Countdown to "Inception"

Despite my prior attempts to stay optimistic about the summer movie season, it's been a rough couple couple of months for the industry. Plenty of franchise pictures have made money, like "Iron Man 2," "Shrek Forever After," and the latest "Twilight" movie, "Eclipse." However, none of them have topped the takes of their previous installments, despite higher ticket prices and 3D surcharges. At the same time, we've seen several major tentpoles go down in flames, including "Prince of Persia," "Robin Hood," and the latest disappointment, "The Last Airbender." Even smaller comedy and horror pictures like "Get Him to the Greek," "Splice," and "Death at a Funeral" have failed to gain any traction. Only "Toy Story 3" has been an unqualified success, along with the "Karate Kid" reboot, which is already being primed for sequels.

But hope springs eternal that late summer releases might be able to salvage the season. Right now everyone's attention is focused on "Inception," the new Christopher Nolan thriller that's due in two weeks. It's been near the top of my list of most anticipated films of the year, practically since the project was announced. Nolan may be best known for his "Batman," but my favorite of his films is "Memento," his directorial debut that told a murder mystery in reverse chronological order. He has a great head for movies with these intricate, cerebral plots. "Insomnia," Nolan's second feature, was part psychological character portrait, part police procedural. "The Prestige," which he made between the "Batman" movies, was a period thriller that juggled three different timelines and the increasingly complicated machinations of a pair of rival magicians. I expect "Insomnia" to be just as twisty and complex, but coupled with the high anticipation and the increased marketing presence to capitalize on the buzz, viewers run a high risk of being spoiled for many elements they might be better off not knowing about.

I understand that many people like having access to spoilers, and if the movie requires audiences to use a little more brain power than the usual of summer blockbusters require, it would probably help to introduce them to some of the film's headier science-fiction concepts before actual viewing. In my case, however, I want to know as little as possible. I've seen and enjoyed films that are conceptually very similar to "Inception," like the anime "Paprika" and the sci-fi cult classic "Dark City," so I don't need any extra help. From experience I've learned that the less I know going into the movie, the more I'm going to enjoy it. The first two teaser trailers were just enough to get me excited about the film, but after taking in the full trailer earlier this year, I realized that the marketing was starting to show too much. So I've been avoiding the recent promotional push and the early discussions of the film as much as I can.

But it hasn't been easy. I watched "Persons Unknown" last night, which had an extended commercial for "Inception" during one of the breaks. I blocked the image immediately when I realized what it was, but didn't think to worry about the audio until after I heard a character deliver a quick definition of a "kick," one of the mystery terms from the second teaser trailer. Not a big spoiler, but it still rankled. Also early reviews have popped up on film sites like Aint it Cool News and Cinematical. It's a promising sign that the film is going to be good, but they present more pitfalls to avoid. This shouldn't be a problem for the average moviegoer, but as a movie junkie, I browse a lot of these sites daily. I'm worried that getting through the next two weeks will be like running a minefield. You never know when some killjoy will plaster plot details in the comments section of an otherwise innocuous unrelated article, or some lousy editor will forget to put up spoiler warnings. I ruined two season finales of "Dexter" for myself just trying to look up TV schedules.

I might have to go offline completely, just to be safe. I did the same for the last three "Harry Potter" books when they were released, buying the volumes at midnight events and cutting myself off from the world until I had finished them. You may scoff, but I remember a cousin in Taipei complaining that the identity of Dumbledore's murderer made front page headlines in the city the day after the book's release. If this movie really does turn out to be as good as the buzz would have us believe, it'll be worth the trouble to experience it with a clean slate.

I really can't wait for "Inception." I just hope I'm not a paranoid wreck by the time it's released. Then again, what better mental state to have while watching a Christopher Nolan movie?