Christopher Nolan

[MrSilly]

I'd like it if he made the next Batman film a smaller affair. Y'know, actually make Batman a central character again, instead of an enabler for everyone else.

[MikeyRix]

I do enjoy Nolan's films rather a lot because of the themes that are often present in them (and being an English Literature geek I do pick up on a fair few). Sometimes they are a little bit too heavy and run the risk of being one-watch films, however; "The Prestige" is probably the "lightest" one he's directed, I'd say.

[CitizenSnips]

Thought I'd revive this in the wake of TDKR conversation:

Originally Posted by morris

Could it be that we tend to ask or expect more from Nolan than other comic book film directors?

Originally Posted by fortunesfool

His dialogue is awful too - really ponderous and on the nose. I lost count of the amount of times the film ground to a halt so someone could deliver a monologue.

So, I don't want to rail on Nolan too much since he's still a great director and has some cool ideas. But I was watching Inception for the second time a while back, and I noticed that roughly 95% of the dialogue is exposition. Literally. If anyone owns it, have a look and see. Even the character development is delivered in exposition. Something that infuriates me about Inception are the fans who say its really 'complex' and 'difficult' and 'weird' as though it's Mulholland bloody Drive. It's not - it's all explained, every step of the way. If you have ears, you can follow it with no trouble.

So what I'm beginning to think is - is he more of an 'ideas man' than a great filmmaker? Not to disparage Memento, Insomnia or TDK but it's starting to seem to me (and I'm sure some others as well) that he's becoming too wrapped up in his own concepts and musings and is beginning to let his storytelling and character development slide. It's gotten to the point where in TDKR he actually invokes the term 'structure' in the post-modern philosophical sense, without any attempt to eke out such a theme. And, worse, (for me at least) he actually seems to miss the point of the term.

Originally Posted by MrSilly

When Cobb is teaching Ariadne (daft name)

Ariadne is the woman who leads Perseus out of the minotaur's labyrinth in Greek legend. So you can see why he chose it... It's a pretty clumsy allusion, I mean he could've called her Adrienne or some more modern update and it would've still worked... I think it kind of speaks to what I've said above.

Any thoughts?

[morris]

Originally Posted by CitizenSnips

I was watching Inception for the second time a while back, and I noticed that roughly 95% of the dialogue is exposition. Literally. If anyone owns it, have a look and see.

I own it and agree with what you're saying. It is quite a flawed film in terms of the way the characters are set up. They are essentially like little pieces moving around a Monopoly (Inception) board. This one is Dog(Arthur), this one is Hat(Cobb), this one is Boot(Eames) and so on and they aren't terribly real or relatable, with the possible exception of Cobb and some of his issues. I feel for him being separated from his children. But Inception is so visually lush and slick that when I put it on, it draws me into its world and I'd be amiss not to praise the soundtrack, which is one of my favourites of the last ten years. In some ways, it's almost like a superbly detailed and flawlessly realised extended music video with some talking bits in between. Not to everyone's taste obviously but I enjoy it.

Agreed, it's nowhere near as deep or clever as it thinks it is. It's the kind of film which is ripe for satire. But that in turn denotes the fact that it has had some cultural impact. We can now say that something is "like Inception". It deserves some regconition if not respect, for that.
No, it isn't Mulholland Drive, but the first time I watched it I more or less grasped it but had a few fuzzy bits..questions in my head. The second time I watched it, it all seemed obvious and made perfect sense. But I never claimed to be the smartest cat in the world, only the one with the best taste in film.

So what I'm beginning to think is - is he more of an 'ideas man' than a great filmmaker? Not to disparage Memento, Insomnia or TDK but it's starting to seem to me (and I'm sure some others as well) that he's becoming too wrapped up in his own concepts and musings and is beginning to let his storytelling and character development slide.

Correct. You've said more or less word for word, what Jonesy said about Nolan once (though I can't remember if it was on the forum or not). Nolan is more of an ideas man than a great filmmaker. In some ways it's a shame, because his eye is second to none, and he has a way of bringing action to life on the screen that has literally oceans of style and is head and shoulders above anyone else in that regard. But his development as a director of striking and beautiful imagery in blockbuster films, has come at the expense of losing a certain amount of humanity, character conviction and the ability to touch audiences and have them relate to his characters.

[CitizenSnips]

Originally Posted by morris

But I never claimed to be the smartest cat in the world, only the one with the best taste in film.

I have a nagging sense that, were it released during the old forum days, you and jonesy would've torn Inception to pieces... Going soft in your old age?

But nah, I agree with what you're saying - for what it attempts to do, it's flawless. Nolan's eye for spectacle has definitely improved rapidly since the limp action scenes in Batman Begins. You're actually right in that there are a few moments in Inception that I didn't get first time, but they were too minor to affect the flow. I still enjoy it, it's just that on second viewing I began to find Nolan's handling of his characters somewhat grating.

But his development as a director of striking and beautiful imagery in blockbuster films, has come at the expense of losing a certain amount of humanity, character conviction and the ability to touch audiences and have them relate to his characters.

I guess what I'm trying to get at is that Nolan's starting to break the old 'show don't tell' adage. Perhaps its the studio's fault, but I feel like if he'd left matters up to interpretation, forced the audience to keep up a bit more, it would've improved the film and gone along with the dream-aesthetic it's creating. And maybe open up room for a bit more character development. It's not so much that he's started to value style over substance, more that he can't seem to resist bringing his subtext to the surface.

Not really disagreeing with you here... I just have a backlog of opinions that's built up over the years away from this place

[morris]

Originally Posted by CitizenSnips

I have a nagging sense that, were it released during the old forum days, you and jonesy would've torn Inception to pieces... Going soft in your old age?

lol. I think Jonesy's been quite critical of it. For me I guess it's a guilty pleasure. I hear that soundtrack and I'm swept away. I have to admit to a small fascination with dreams as a theme too.

I still enjoy it, it's just that on second viewing I began to find Nolan's handling of his characters somewhat grating.

I can understand that. Also, being critical, the pace begins to lag around the snow station bit and impatience starts to kick in. Still, it's a fun waste of an hour or so, partly because its a decent cast.

Perhaps its the studio's fault, but I feel like if he'd left matters up to interpretation, forced the audience to keep up a bit more, it would've improved the film and gone along with the dream-aesthetic it's creating.

The studio probably had something to do with it. Commercial American audiences are not known to be the most intellectual in the world. In some ways, it took some chances and risks and deserves a nod for that. heck, just for being something original for once.