Many of us have watched Christopher Nolan's Inception a few times by now, trying to follow the dizzying multi-layered storyline. But there's no substitute for reading the actual shooting script, with Nolan's hand-written notes. Here's what we've learned from it.
Inception, writer-director Christopher Nolan¡¯s seventh feature film, joins the epic scope of The Dark Knight with the narrative sophistication of Memento. The story of a group of thieves who specialize in invading the mind through one¡¯s dreams, Inception explores the writer-director¡¯s signature psychological themes of memory, paranoia, and self-doubt as his protagonist, Dom Cobb, is pitted against a hostile subconscious spurred on by personal demons and regrets from the past.
In a conversational preface, Nolan discusses with brother and frequent collaborator, Jonathan, the genesis of the idea for the film and the decade-long process it took to write it. Detailing the results of Nolan¡¯s efforts, Inception: The Shooting script includes key storyboard sequences, full-color concept art, and an appendix on the workings of the mysterious Pasiv Device that Cobb and his fellow extractors use to initiate the dream-share. An exclusive exploration of a highly original concept, Inception: The Shooting script is the record of a writer-director at the height of his craft.
Includes:
- Writer-director Christopher Nolan¡¯s initial handwritten outline of the Inception plot
- A preface by brothers and collaborators Christopher Nolan and Jonathan Nolan, in which they delve into the 10-year development process behind Inception
- An 8-page color insert featuring Inception concept art
- An in-world appendix with instructions for operating the mysterious Pasiv Device mechanism