Inception Explained – One Ending Theory

Getting Inception explained is one thing for the first 140 minutes. But having Inception explained in the last minute is something else, as Inception explanations can be all over the place. For a movie with many secrets and levels of reality, it is fitting that it has one more whopper at the end. However, it only looks like it is a whopper, as a case can be made that nothing really changes at all. Christopher Nolan couldn’t refuse playing one more mind trick on the audience, even at the very last second. Any attempt to have Inception explained hinges on that last shot, and what one believes it really meant.

Warning: Massive spoilers from here on out.

At the end, Leonardo DiCaprio’s Dom Cobb heads home after succeeding in his mission. There, he spins his dream totem one last time, then goes to have the reunion he worked so hard for.

Part of having Inception explained is to remember how the totem only wobbles in reality. If it spins endlessly, then it is still a dream. Therefore, when Nolan cuts to the credits as the totem keeps spinning, it appears that the “reality” of the movie was all Cobb’s dream, and that all the dreams were within that original dream.

It’s hard to have Inception explained after that, but it is possible. Cobb and his wife Mal got lost in experimenting with the dream world, which led to tragedy. They could have gotten so lost in the first level, they mistook it for reality – which makes level one the “reality” of the movie. Since they lost their perception, they kept experimenting as if nothing happened. Therefore, the special dream world they created was really level two.

When Cobb performs inception to get Mal out, they think they’re back in reality, but are really in level one. So Mal is right when she says reality isn’t real, but for the wrong reasons. So when she kills herself, she is sent to the real reality, and not to their dream world. However, Cobb is so far gone that nothing, not even a kick, can wake him up.

Perhaps Inception is explained as Mal performing inception on Cobb, by implanting the idea that he should leave with her. That means the Mal who haunts Cobb isn’t a projection, but the real Mal trying to wake him up. Of course, she could still be a projection, as the real Mal could have gone even crazier once she returned to reality. And, of course, the totem could have fallen after the cut to black.

Having Inception explained depends on whether the totem fell or not. But, if it did, then Nolan is screwing with everyone just for fun. He takes a page from Blade Runner, which made everyone ask at the end whether Harrison Ford was a replicant. They answered it with extended cuts, but Nolan will likely keep the mystery alive, and maddening.

Sources

Slate- “Five Ways Of Looking At Inception”