"OMG! What is this?!"
"Wow, oh, such gorgeous special effects. The dream world is omnipotent; they are simply the masters of the world."
"Oh my goodness, I think I've suddenly found Nicole Kidman's charm. This outfit, combined with her spell-casting movements, makes her look like a goddess who would only appear in dreams."
"My God, how were these special effects made? Twisting and assembling the city like a Rubik's Cube, everything is so imaginative."
"Living cities. Last month I watched harry potter, and now I just feel like that was child's play. This is what a true magician is."
"I think I suddenly understand why Inception's budget is so high, even higher than transformers. I'm afraid this sequence of special effects alone is equivalent to all the Autobots and Decepticons being deployed."
"Holy crap! Are these really special effects, not magic?"
"It feels like in this instant, I've completely seen the gap between us and Hollywood. This kind of hard power gap will take too long to bridge."
"It's like going back to the last century, seeing the dinosaurs come alive in Jurassic Park for the first time in a movie theater."
"Nicole Kidman, my goddess!"
"Cool!"
"Awesome!"
"Wow…"
"Superb!"
...3915 cinemas, almost encompassing North America's three major cinema chains and numerous independent cinemas.
This number is more than 400 higher than transformers, partly because the film industry is developing, and partly because Eric's reputation precedes him.
Who do you go to if you want to make money? Every director and every company has examples of failure.
But Eric Cooper hasn't had one yet. Even an extremely niche art film like blue is the warmest color managed to gross over 200 million globally. Who else can do that?
Perhaps he will fail in the future, but at least until his first failure, no one dares to question his commercial acumen and ability.
As the boss of MGM, he can mobilize the world's best resources, write his own screenplays, and has the triple endorsement of the Oscar, Golden Globe, and Emmy Awards.
Add a group of veteran actors, Oscar winners and nominees, and tell me, is there any possibility of the movie failing?
the incredibles failed, Spider-Man 2 failed, but Inception cannot fail.
So, from the moment the film was greenlit and started shooting, cinemas across the United States and even the world proactively sought cooperation.
Coupled with simultaneous releases in over 30 mainstream box office countries, more than 20,000 cinemas worldwide are currently showing Inception.
And at this moment, in these cinemas, audiences are exclaiming in unison.
English, Chinese, Korean, German, Spanish, Japanese.
Even without mentioning the novel ideas and the irresistible suspenseful plot, just watching this three-minute special effect sequence has already convinced the audience and made it worth the ticket price.
This special effect sequence was shocking enough for the audience, and the same for fellow directors, except for Peter Jackson, who was informed in advance.
And they weren't just watching for the spectacle; they could also see Eric's ambition.
The style and characteristics presented by Inception clearly indicate it's not just a commercial blockbuster.
As long as the subsequent plot is well told, a film that combines both commercial and artistic elements would be enough to officially elevate Eric to god-like status.
Nolan, Spielberg, Peter Jackson, everyone realized why this kid invited them.
It wasn't just to show off; it was also to have everyone present witness that he was officially joining the ranks of top directors today.
His palm was nudged, and Eric turned to Nicole, then looked at Theron on his left. Tonight was destined to be a fight until dawn.
"Who is she? That beautiful woman. It seems she's the reason you can no longer be a Dream Architect."
After Cobb was killed by the sudden appearance of Mal, the group woke up.
Cobb hesitated for a moment but decided to confess everything. After all, they were forming a team, and if such a crucial matter was kept hidden, unforeseen problems might arise.
Subsequently, Tom Hardy, who played Eames the forger, and Morris Chestnut, who played the role of the chemist, joined the team.
The dream-stealing team was officially formed, ready to launch a surprise attack on Daniel Brühl, who played Fischer, the wealthy heir.
Eric also arranged some small humor here, while also demonstrating Saito's formidable strength.
"Sydney to Los Angeles, that's one of the longest flights in the world. Fischer flies back and forth every two weeks. This is our chance."
"But a super-rich person like him must have his own private jet. We can't get to him."
"What if his private jet had a malfunction? A temporary malfunction."
"But we also need to ensure he's on the same plane as us and bribe the crew. That's also a difficult task."
"Then, would buying that airline make things simpler?"
Everyone's eyes turned to Saito. Judging by their gazes, they all probably wanted to kneel and call him godfather, and knowing smiles also broke out in the cinema.
Immediately, the background music became more and more intense. Through a series of operations, Fischer, the unlucky guy, successfully drank the drugged water.
Inception, officially begins!
Seeing the plot finally progress to the main storyline, everyone became fully alert.
There was no other way. If you didn't concentrate while watching this movie, even if the previous plot had thoroughly explained various dream concepts, you would still get lost and not understand it.
Film critics and fellow directors mentally chanted: First layer of the dream, first layer of the dream, this is the first layer of the dream, the dream owner is the chemist.
A group of people hijacked Fischer, preparing to interrogate him.
The screen suddenly shook violently, and a Humvee appeared out of nowhere, crashing hard into the car carrying Cobb and Ariadne.
Ariadne frowned: "This isn't a part of my design."
Cobb started the car and quickly fled: "Don't look at me, Mal can't control these subconscious projections. It's Fischer. Fischer has been trained to defend against Inception."
"Phew! I knew it, I knew the mission wouldn't be that simple."
Saying that, she pulled out the pistol hidden in her clothes and precisely headshotted a pursuer leaning out of a window.
"You drive, I'll take care of them!"
A fierce car chase and gunfight unfolded on the crowded city highway.
Until even tanks were deployed to besiege the Inception team, cornering them.
Even worse, their benefactor Saito was hit by a stray bullet, groaning in pain, and the Inception team erupted into infighting.
"Arthur, you should have investigated thoroughly. This was your mission. You should have investigated that Fischer had been trained!" Cobb shouted emotionally.
Eames picked up a gun, intending to finish Saito off, but was quickly stopped by the sharp-eyed chemist.
"What are you doing? I'm going to relieve him of his pain."
"No, not this time. I used a special high-dose drug. Even death won't wake him up."
"What! Why didn't you tell me?!"
"I thought Cobb would tell you. He's the one who found me."
"Bullshit! He only wants to go home and said nothing, just led us into such a dangerous situation. Tell me, what happens if we die?"
After a moment of hesitation, the chemist said: "The Limbo. You'll fall into the Limbo."
Hearing the words "the Limbo," everyone's faces showed both anger and fright, and the argument escalated further.
Bang!
Suddenly, a gunshot silenced the situation. Nicole coldly scanned Room: "Anyone who wants to keep complaining can leave, otherwise get to work!"
Seeing this scene, the audience couldn't help but exclaim, "She's damn reliable and can keep things under control."
This damned woman, the charm radiating from her is captivating people.
Was Eric Cooper doing this on purpose? Why did he give so many good scenes to Nicole Kidman?
The Inception team continued to psychologically suggest to Fischer while comforting the shot Saito.
"Deep breaths, Saito, don't fall asleep, at least not now, or you'll spend too long in the Limbo."
"Too long. What happens if it's too long?"
"It will cause an ordinary person's consciousness to collapse. Even if they wake up when the time comes, they will fall into a vegetative state in reality."
Upon hearing this, Saito was also extremely worried and could only force himself to stay alert: "You guys speed up, hurry! Faster!"
"Don't worry, whether I can go home depends on you. I won't allow you to become a vegetable. Take a deep breath, hold on."
Soon, the plot entered the second layer of the dream, and the Inception team arrived at the hotel to continue deceiving Fischer.
Many people quickly chanted in their minds, dream within a dream, the second layer of the dream has appeared, the dream owner is Arthur.
Upon seeing Heath Ledger's fight scene in the hallway, which echoed the moving car in the first layer to create a zero-gravity environment, many people exclaimed how thrilling and brilliant it was, so cleverly designed.
Especially Heath Ledger's fans, who repeatedly praised how handsome their idol was.
Of course, they also didn't forget to thank Eric Cooper. He didn't waste Heath Ledger, successfully unearthing his charming side. This kind of scene had never appeared in Heath's previous films.
"Uncle Peter, the people who kidnapped me were actually sent by you, weren't they?"
"Alas! Since you already know, alright Fischer, but I was also doing it for the company."
"Mr. Fischer, he's lying. He must be hiding something. We need to dig out his secret."
"How do you want to do it?"
"It's simple, enter his dream, and use his own methods against him."
"OK!"
Looking at the already sleeping Fischer, Ariadne scoffed: "What a naive young master, he's already completely fooled."
Eames was a bit confused: "Wait, aren't we supposed to enter Browning's dream?"
Hearing this, Ariadne rolled her eyes speechlessly: "Idiot, that's a pretext to confuse Fischer, to reduce the aggressiveness of his subconscious. We're going into his dream."
"Exactly, let's end this in the third layer of the dream. That's what we need to do."
Through this dialogue, it can be seen that only Cobb and Ariadne in the team clearly knew what to do next. The others couldn't keep up with their thinking.
Then the scene shifted, and the Inception team entered the third layer of the dream, the snow fortress.
The audience once again chanted in their minds, here it comes, here it comes, the third layer of the dream has appeared, the dream owner is the unlucky Fischer.
At this point, the montage flashed again, simultaneously depicting the different predicaments in the three layers of the dream.
The chemist in the first layer was already being overwhelmed by the siege, and Saito, the benefactor, couldn't hold on any longer due to his injury. Out of necessity, he had to prematurely release the kick signal.
The song used for the signal was "Non, je ne regrette rien" by the French diva and chanson queen, Edith Piaf.
Nicole's upcoming film, la vie en rose, tells the story of her life.
"No, the song is early. Something must have happened."
"Don't think about that. There have been enough surprises today. Focus on completing the mission."
"I'm calculating the remaining time."
"The chemist has 10 seconds, Arthur has 3 minutes, and we must take this castle within an hour."
Hans Zimmer's tense score played again, and the three-layered assault proceeded simultaneously, making many audience members increasingly nervous.
This was Tom Hardy's moment to shine. Eric was still very fair; Nicole, Bale, Heath, and Tom all had plenty of screen time, after all, they were all his people.
The chase, explosions, infiltration, and avalanche in the snow — the third layer of the dream almost turned into an FPS stealth game.
Until they brought Fischer into the final room; as soon as he walked in, the mission would be complete.
But just then, something unexpected happened.
Mal suddenly descended from the sky, shot Fischer dead, and was about to kill Saito as well.
Ariadne quickly pushed Cobb away, grabbed the sniper rifle, and killed her.
She glared angrily at Cobb: "I know you two are deeply in love, but you're going to get all of us killed!"
"I'm sorry, I just couldn't bring myself to hurt Mal."
Looking at the fallen Fischer, Cobb could only admit the mission failed and prepared to set bombs for a kick and escape.
As the plot reached this point, the audience was also curious: what would happen next?
Everyone knew the mission couldn't possibly fail, but how would they salvage it?
"Wait, the mission hasn't failed yet. Try this."
Ariadne connected herself, Cobb, and Fischer using the dream-sharing device.
"What are you trying to do?"
"He just collapsed. This might not save him, but it can temporarily pull his consciousness back, even a minute is enough."
"You want to enter the fourth layer of the dream?"
"It's the only way now, isn't it? I don't allow myself to have a failed record. I never have before, and I won't this time either!"
"Alright, Eames, take care of Saito."
The fourth layer, the fourth layer of the dream is here!
As the audience watched, the two woke up on a beach.
"Cobb, I'm warning you, this is the last chance."
"Find Mal, force her to give up Fischer. That's what we need to do."
"We don't have much time. If you can't bring yourself to do it, I will."
Cobb also knew that his indecisiveness had brought unexpected bad results to the team. He nodded: "Leave it to me. I know her best."
Finally, they met in their little house of love, and the film's biggest mystery was also revealed.
It turned out that Cobb had altered his wife's totem and implanted an idea in her, which ultimately led to the tragedy.
In other words, classifying him as a murderer was not entirely wrong, it's just that the method of killing was too bizarre.
As Fischer's consciousness returned to his body, though only barely alive, he still tremblingly saw the will.
This also meant the Inception team's mission was complete, and the idea implantation was successful.
Unfortunately, the benefactor Saito still died in the third layer, so Cobb committed suicide to find him in the Limbo, and the film returned to the opening scene of him waking up from the sea.
When the entire story seamlessly connected, everyone felt their scalps tingle, and a warmth rushed straight to their heads.
Even Theron, Nicole, Ken Watanabe, and other actors felt the same, as they hadn't participated in the pre-screening either; everyone was seeing the complete film for the first time.
As Cobb successfully returned home to his country, his two children showed their faces for the first time and embraced him.
The warm scene made people breathe a sigh of relief, and the audience's nerves, taut for an hour, finally relaxed.
But just when everyone thought it was a happy ending, the screen finally froze on a spinning top.
The film ended.