"I Can Dream About You"

"Even if I can't hold you tonight."  Those are a few of the lyrics to the Dan Hartman song (as lip-synced by Stoney Jackson) from the 1984 movie Streets of Fire (starring Michael Pare and Diane Lane).  However, the song could easily be the theme song for the new Christopher Nolan movie Inception starring Leonardo DiCaprio.  I know I'm really late to the party in writing this review.  I thought I might have been the last person to see Inception, but as I rolled into a packed house at a 3p matinee on the second Saturday of the film's release, there were others who had taken their time in seeing it too.  Or, maybe some folks were seeing it for the second or third time.  Anyway, waiting a week to see the film was perilous as I made an effort to steer away from all the reviews and potential spoilers.  Even with this effort, it was hard not to be affected by all the hype.  So did the movie blow my mind like The Matrix?  No.  Was it a good concept and well-executed? Yes.  Was it smart and entertaining? Yes.  Was it the best film I've seen this year?  No, that honor still belongs to A Prophet.  But Inception is probably a close second in my mind.  I think DiCaprio has really come into his own.  In so many of his other movies, he did not seem like an adult to me.  But now he is clearly a man and a force of an actor who can carry an intelligent and technical storyline without making it cheesey.  And Joseph Gordon Levitt--he worked his ass off in this film. His fight scenes in this movie were awesome and made the special effects that much more exciting.  He could probably carry an action film on his own after this performance.  The other supporting actors Ellen Page, Tom Hardy (who is my new dream boyfriend), Cillian Murphy, Ken Watanabe, Marion Cotilliard, Dileep Rao, and a very distinguished Tom Berenger all did their part to make a convincing story.  When the film ended, the audience I was with made a collective sigh.  We had been cleverly entertained.  But I am left wondering, was it all a dream? Ha Ha Ha!

Anyway, enjoy the below bit of '80s kitsch as you ponder a dream within a dream.