+4
I don't especially think that the character development in Inception is weak. Rather, I find most of it to be irrelevant. There should be character development between the husband and the wife, and there should be some between the team members when it clarifies their past experiences and why they've been chosen for their jobs. For the most part, I believe that Inception deserves a passing to better than average grade for character development, especially when you consider that we are talking about dreams here.
I'll admit that this is just a coincidence, but I've been dreaming a lot lately, and it almost all has to do with my fearing that I've broken some kind of law and that I have to pay for my crimes. This makes it seem that I'm feeling very guilty about something and I should expect the real-life authorities to raid my house and arrest me for something I've gotten away with. What's so eerie and pervasive is that even after I wake up, I'm convinced that I really did get away with something I should be locked up for, but it's not even remotely the case. It's only the next morning when I realize that the dream is just some action thriller where I'm being chased for something I either never did or already have paid the price for. However, it does make me appreciate dreams more. I started a dream thread here and probably like you, my dreams are floridly cinematic. As I grow older, I seem to sleep less and less, but what little I do sleep does seem to involve strong dreams and I can wake from one and get back into it almost immediately, even when I'm not even sure that I'm really asleep.
You ask, "What does this have with Inception?" I'm not totally sure, but one thing which Inception does seem to feed off is that dreams are pumped-up reality and somehow more realistic (to the dreamer) than reality. In Inception, there are many levels of dreams and "realities", and I believe that Nolan kept everything pretty much clear, especially within a thriller/mystery plot. My dreams don't especially cry out to me for a specific answer. They seem to cry out to just be experienced and experienced HARD. I'm sure if Nolan wants to craft a deeper, more-esoteric study about dreams, then he probably could do it. He just may have to move at a quick pace because I think that Sarah and I can get a(n albeit low-budget) flick on the subject out rather quickly which might appeal to some dreamers and "elitists" (HA!) equally. It'll probably gross about $12.95 but somebody will champion it anyway, and Underachieving Bums don't care about Big Bucks anyway.
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