Michael Caine reveals a secret clue Christopher Nolan shared that settles the Inception’s 'real vs. dream' debate

The award-winning film “Inception,” directed by Christopher Nolan and released in 2010, took thousands of minds for a ride. Starring Leonardo DiCaprio as Dom Cobb and featuring prominent artists Tom Hardy, Cillian Murphy, and Michael Caine, the cognitive aspect of the dream v/s reality concept has fans baffled. The film revolves around Cobb’s dreams and reality, leaving viewers in a chokehold trying to decipher the two. Especially in the last scene, reported The Independent. However, Caine already gave us a subtle hint back in 2018 in a conversation at the Film 4 Summer Screen Show, TIME magazine says.

With the ability to put ideas into people’s minds by entering their dreams, the movie is a thrilling combination of family love and shrewd play, both interwoven between reality and dreams. Throughout the movie, the spinning “totem” indicated that Cobb was asleep and thus dreaming, and if it stops, he’s awake. SPOILER ALERT: The last scene in particular, shared in a clip by HBO Max, has left viewers particularly confused. While the totem is spinning, the actor gets a chance to reunite with his kids after his past actions cost him his loved ones. 

The scene captures DiCaprio walking into a house with Caine, who is playing the character of his father. When he walks in, he sees his son and daughter playing outside. He gets a chance to affectionately cuddle them while the totem is still spinning and Caine is by his side. The last few scenes end with the totem still turning, but with no idea whether it eventually stopped or not. Fans were unsure then if he was stuck in a dream or had gotten his happy ending. This debate lasted for around 10 years until Caine’s explanation in 2018. 

The “Dark Knight” co-actor revealed that when he had initially received the script, he too was confused. “When is it the dream and when is it reality?” he asked Nolan. He received the answer there and then. “He said, ‘Well, when you’re in the scene, it’s reality.’ So get that — if I’m in it, it’s reality. If I’m not in it, it’s a dream,” Caine finally revealed. Do the math, the actor is very much visible in the last scene as Cobb carries his children. But reality or dream is no longer the point of the plot by the end of the film, the director said, in a conversation with Josh Horowitz during the “Happy, Sad, Confused” podcast. 

Nolan recalled being asked about the ending multiple times. It was producer Emma Thomas, Variety reported, who gave a spot-on answer. She explained how the film has been so intense that the ending was designed to show that the actor no longer cares what is a dream and what is reality, so long as he had what mattered most. Film industry analyst Stephen looked at 26,710 movies and noted that only 984 would be defined as ones with good twists. That makes only 3.7%, including movies like "Inception," “The Sixth Sense,” “Atonement,” and so on. While the 1970s saw a good rise in movies with good plot twists, the number dropped again, only to rise again by the 2000s.  

Cognitive Scientist Vera Tobin revealed that these kinds of plot twists and the whole idea of surprise and not knowing are what add to the flavor of films, according to The Conversation. She noted that because we don’t know what to expect, enthusiasm is at an all-time high. But when we get an idea or know what’s coming, it puts us off; that’s why we don’t like spoilers. “Once you’ve learned it, that knowledge affects what you notice, what you anticipate — and even the limits of your imagination,” Tobin remarked. Consider the ending of “Inception.” Some of you might be relieved with the closure, but some of you might be disappointed that now you know, and there’s no experience to build via imagination.

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