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[Korey]

Questions. I think that there are holes in how the dreaming mechanics work in the movie.

1. Problem: Killing yourself in Limbo apparently wakes you up at a higher level. This is a problem because they made a huge deal out of it in Level 1 when it was revealed that they couldn't risk dying during the Inception job for fear of being trapped in Limbo for possibly an infinite amount of time and having their brains turn into scrambled eggs. If it were as easy as jumping off a building, why were they stressing out about it?

2. Mal/Cobb train suicide scene. Was this at the end of their 50-year stint in Limbo, and how they got out of Limbo? Why were they young? Towards the end of the movie there was a shot of them being old and holding their wrinkly hands together.

3. The top falls at the end. We have to accept the rules of the totem, because that's what's presented to us in the movie. Otherwise anything goes and this discussion is meaningless. Also, it at the very least wobbles, which is contrary to what we were shown earlier in which the top spins perfectly, forever.

4. How did Cobb plant the inception in Mal? That wasn't very clear. Something about the safe and the top?

5. What was the point of Fischer's resuscitation in the Modern Warfare 2 level? If you're not resuscitated and you die in Limbo, you go back to Limbo?

6. Why did Cobb wash up on the shore of Saito's place at the end? I thought washing up on the shore was how you entered Limbo, as that's how every other shore scene was about.

7. Why didn't Mal just spin the top to confirm whether or not they were in the real world?

8. What qualifies as a kick? For example, the kick was confusing in the elevator scene, where it didn't go into effect until the end of it. Does slamming into the elevator floor after the charges go off not count as a kick? How is a van falling off a bridge a kick?

 

[Ushojax]

Questions. I think that there are holes in how the dreaming mechanics work in the movie.

1. Problem: Killing yourself in Limbo apparently wakes you up at a higher level. This is a problem because they made a huge deal out of it in Level 1 when it was revealed that they couldn't risk dying during the Inception job for fear of being trapped in Limbo for possibly an infinite amount of time and having their brains turn into scrambled eggs. If it were as easy as jumping off a building, why were they stressing out about it?

It was hard because when you wake up there you might not know whether it's real or fake, or a higher dream level. That's the problem. It's disorientating because death has sent you down instead of up. If you are not careful you will lose track of yourself.

2. Mal/Cobb train suicide scene. Was this at the end of their 50-year stint in Limbo, and how they got out of Limbo? Why were they young? Towards the end of the movie there was a shot of them being old and holding their wrinkly hands together.

They would have been old when they killed themselves. The young appearance was just for artistic effect, Nolan probably wanted to save the shots of the when they were old until after Cobb reveals the length of time they spent in Limbo.

3. The top falls at the end. We have to accept the rules of the totem, because that's what's presented to us in the movie. Otherwise anything goes and this discussion is meaningless. Also, it at the very least wobbles, which is contrary to what we were shown earlier in which the top spins perfectly, forever.

I think you're right, but there is plenty of room for debate, even though the story from Cobb's point of view is resolved whether it topples or not. He has determined this state to be his reality and no longer cares enough to watch the top spinning.

4. How did Cobb plant the inception in Mal? That wasn't very clear. Something about the safe and the top?

Mal put the totem on it's side in the safe, not spinning. Cobb opened the safe, span the top, and that triggered the inception. I assumed he showed it to Mal or she checked on it herself.

 

[Korey]

It was hard because when you wake up there you might not know whether it's real or fake, or a higher dream level. That's the problem. It's disorientating because death has sent you down instead of up. If you are not careful you will lose track of yourself.

That doesn't make any sense, and obviously isn't what they were fretting about. It's easy to tell that you are in a dream world. Cobb/Mal had to convince themselves that they were in the REAL world to cope. Even though apparently, they didn't actually have to do that at all and could have just killed themselves at any point in time to go back to real life.

What they WERE worried about was being trapped there for infinity, not being able to get out. Like Saito, for example, who had to live there for 80 years or whatever...even though again he could have just killed himself.

They would have been old when they killed themselves. The young appearance was just for artistic effect, Nolan probably wanted to save the shots of the when they were old until after Cobb reveals the length of time they spent in Limbo.

Not sure I'm ready to buy the "artistic effect" argument yet....that just seems really cheap and disjointed. I get your point, I just don't accept it because...you can't just do that.

Mal put the totem on it's side in the safe, not spinning. Cobb opened the safe, span the top, and that triggered the inception. I assumed he showed it to Mal or she checked on it herself.

Not sure I buy this either...

 

[Imm0rt4l]

8. What qualifies as a kick? For example, the kick was confusing in the elevator scene, where it didn't go into effect until the end of it. Does slamming into the elevator floor after the charges go off not count as a kick? How is a van falling off a bridge a kick?

It effects the inner ear/balance. The feeling of falling is a kick explained earlier in the movie.

 

[Korey]

It effects the inner ear/balance. The feeling of falling is a kick explained earlier in the movie.

Ok, that makes sense. But:

a) wasn't there a lot of falling around when the van flipped, and the hotel scene, etc?

b) does the impact also count as a kick? Cobb says that it does, and that's the second kick when the van hits the water. How come hitting the elevator floor doesn't count?

 

[Arcipello]

4. How did Cobb plant the inception in Mal? That wasn't very clear. Something about the safe and the top?

Cobb was the architect of the world i assume and Mal was the one filling it at one point until they hit limbo. Mal hides away the only thing that proves she is dreaming, she locks it away deep within her self....Cobb finds it and spins it forever thus causing the strong feeling in her that nothing is real. its fairly simple really.

 

[XMonkey]

Mal put the totem on it's side in the safe, not spinning. Cobb opened the safe, span the top, and that triggered the inception. I assumed he showed it to Mal or she checked on it herself.

I think the inception was more the idea that "this place isn't real, we can be together for real if we kill ourselves and wake up from this dream". The totem was a way for Cobb to make Mal realize that, but it wasn't the idea used for inception. This is evidenced by the fact that Mal still thinks she's not in the real world when she jumps from the hotel ledge and that doing so will wake her up and make Cobb/the children real. This is also why Cobb states it's better to use a positive idea for inception rather than a negative one, I think.

The above seems to makes sense, until you get to the part about "how do I get out of limbo? is it by killing myself, or just realizing why I am there"... and that doesn't seem very clear.

 

[Ushojax]

I think the inception was more the idea that "this place isn't real, we can be together for real if we kill ourselves and wake up from this dream". The totem was a way for Cobb to make Mal realize that, but it wasn't the idea used for inception. This is evidenced by the fact that Mal still thinks she's not in the real world when she jumps from the hotel ledge and that doing so will wake her up and make Cobb/the children real. This is also why Cobb states it's better to use a positive idea for inception rather than a negative one, I think.

The idea was 'death is the only escape'. That was made clear in the movie, but yeah, the totem was just part of the inception, it opened Mal's mind again. That is why Mal became obsessed with dying irrespective of whether the top fell or not.

That doesn't make any sense, and obviously isn't what they were fretting about. It's easy to tell that you are in a dream world. Cobb/Mal had to convince themselves that they were in the REAL world to cope. Even though apparently, they didn't actually have to do that at all and could have just killed themselves at any point in time to go back to real life.

See the thing is that Cobb overestimated the danger of Limbo. Ariadne and Fischer escaped with ease. It was only a huge problem with Cobb and Mal because they were experimenting with it on purpose. They wanted to see what they could do. The problem was that Mal liked the dreamscape they created so much that she intentionally locked the totem away. That was the danger. You will lose track of your reality and attach yourself to the dream you've created. If Cobb had done the same thing, they would have been fucked. Cobb was just ultra paranoid about Limbo.

 

[Korey]

Cobb was the architect of the world i assume and Mal was the one filling it at one point until they hit limbo. Mal hides away the only thing that proves she is dreaming, she locks it away deep within her self....Cobb finds it and spins it forever thus causing the strong feeling in her that nothing is real. its fairly simple really.

Again...what?

I find the whole Mal inception to be pretty weak. It doesn't make any sense. So, he planted the idea that the world wasn't real? Well, that's great, because the world WASN'T in fact real. So he just told her the truth. She realized this by seeing the top spinning. But then, they go into the real world, she has the top, but she doesn't believe she's in the real world.

What?

 

[XMonkey]

Again...what?

I find the whole Mal inception to be pretty weak. It doesn't make any sense. So, he planted the idea that the world wasn't real? Well, that's great, because the world WASN'T in fact real. So he just told her the truth. She realized this by seeing the top spinning. But then, they go into the real world, she has the top, but she doesn't believe she's in the real world.

What?

Ya, I dunno. I really don't think the idea of limbo was executed very well. I've seen it twice and it falls apart more the 2nd time.

 

[Dreams-Visions]

Again...what?

I find the whole Mal inception to be pretty weak. It doesn't make any sense. So, he planted the idea that the world wasn't real? Well, that's great, because the world WASN'T in fact real. So he just told her the truth. She realized this by seeing the top spinning. But then, they go into the real world, she has the top, but she doesn't believe she's in the real world.

What?

it was perhaps the way he did it all. after the seed was planted (even if it was the truth) he had no way to control what that "seed" would grow into. had he known, he would have done things much differently to get his wife to wake up.

you lose all control of how things grow with inception and how it would affect his wife. that was the big issue; not whether what was told was truth or a lie. you walk into an unknown that could be good or bad...life-defining or meaningless. the potential for it to go either way is right there.

made sense to me.

 

[Korey]

See the thing is that Cobb overestimated the danger of Limbo. Ariadne and Fischer escaped with ease. The problem was that Mal liked the dreamscape they created so much that she intentionally locked the totem away. That was the danger. You will lose track of your reality and attach yourself to the dream you've created. If Cobb had done the same thing, they would have been fucked. Cobb was just ultra paranoid about Limbo.

It's weird that in normal dreams, your immediate easy solution to leaving early is to be killed or kill yourself, but then when you're in Limbo all of a sudden your instinct is the opposite of that and you don't kill yourself and instead live 50-80 years without thinking of doing that.

Doesn't make sense.

It also doesn't make sense that you get to Limbo by dying in a sedated state, but then leave Limbo by...dying in Limbo.

 

[Ushojax]

It's weird that in normal dreams, your immediate easy solution to leaving early is to be killed or kill yourself, but then when you're in Limbo all of a sudden your instinct is the opposite of that and you don't kill yourself and instead live 50-80 years without thinking of doing that.

Doesn't make sense.

Again, only Cobb, Mal, and I suppose Saito had problems with Limbo. Fischer and Ariadne got out with no problems. With Mal and Cobb, they were experimenting, diving as deep as possible, and once they got to Limbo, Mal started creating a world that she grew attached to, so attached that she wanted to forget her reality. Cobb never did, and Cobb was aware of everything the whole time. When they first arrived in Limbo, they didn't get desperate to escape, it was just another level for them to experiment in, but Mal became too entwined in her 'creator' role down there. Saito got lost because he died slowly and painfully, probably half aware of what was going on, woke up far away from anybody else and had just his own projections for company. He was alone and I'm not sure we ever saw him with a totem. Easy enough to understand why he got trapped.

It also doesn't make sense that you get to Limbo by dying in a sedated state, but then leave Limbo by...dying in Limbo.

Why not? It's a work of fiction. The rules were established in the movie and they were followed, however contrived. If you keep your wits about you, you can escape Limbo easily, like Ariadne did. If you don't, you run the risk of losing yourself. Limbo is only really dangerous when you are the one creating the world yourself. Who wouldn't want to stay there?

 

[Jex]

Again, only Cobb, Mal, and I suppose Saito had problems with Limbo. Fischer and Ariadne got out with no problems. With Mal and Cobb, they were experimenting, diving as deep as possible, and once they got to Limbo, Mal started creating a world that she grew attached to, so attached that she wanted to forget her reality. Cobb never did, and Cobb was aware of everything the whole time. When they first arrived in Limbo, they didn't get desperate to escape, it was just another level for them to experiment in, but Mal became too entwined in her 'creator' role down there. Saito got lost because he died slowly and painfully, probably half aware of what was going on, woke up far away from anybody else and had just his own projections for company. He was alone and I'm not sure we ever saw him with a totem. Easy enough to understand why he got trapped.

This is my take away as well. Cobb and Mal where unbalanced enough for limbo to be a real problem for them.

 

[G.O.O.]

Saw it yesterday.

So, I don't know if anyone asked => I just would like to know whose dream it is, each time.
Rainy city : Yusef
Hotel : Arthur ?
Mountain : Eames ? (with Fischer thinking it's his own)
Cobb's city : Cobb, obviously
The limbo (where Saito is old) : err...

 

[Korey]

Saw it yesterday.

So, I don't know if anyone asked => I just would like to know whose dream it is, each time.
Rainy city : Yusef
Hotel : Arthur ?
Mountain : Eames ? (with Fischer thinking it's his own)
Cobb's city : Cobb, obviously
The limbo (where Saito is old) : err...

You're right on each, except Limbo is shared. So Cobb/Saito are in the same Limbo. It's not really "anybody's", it's just that it will be unconstructed unless someone's already been there (in this case, Cobb).

 

[gamemadmax]

Asked this before but nobody answered.

Can anybody tell why COBB refused to look at his children's faces ?

 

[G.O.O.]

Asked this before but nobody answered.

Can anybody tell why COBB refused to look at his children's faces ?

I guess it's because he wants to see them, and seeing them in the dream while he's not sure to see them again in real life may make him want to stay there.

Korey : so Cobb's city (as we see it at the end) is the limbo ?

 

[XMonkey]

I always figured he just wanted to experience that moment for real, not for any kind of rule or something.

 

[GodfatherX]

Few things..

Isn't the last dream Fischer's as they state that they are going into his own subconscious to plant the inception? Or is it that Fischers sub conscious is populating the dream?

As far as the easy exit from Limbo, I think the main danger in going that far for Saito was that being shot in level 1 and dying in level 1, going staight to limbo would fry his brain, but for that to be true when died in level 1 he would instantly be kicked from level 2 and 3 and fall from level 1 to limbo. Not that the concept of limbo isn't convoluted enough, and is the single weak point in the movie.

Also I would have loved to have Nolan directed/ written a Matrix sequel as he would have done that world a lot more justice then it's creators did

 

[Korey]

Isn't the last dream Fischer's as they state that they are going into his own subconscious to plant the inception? Or is it that Fischers sub conscious is populating the dream?

No, it's Eames', who's pretending to be the "traitor" godfather dude. Fischer, the subject, is populating the hospital with bad guys sent by the godfather to prevent him from reaching the vault, I think.

Question, what's up with Saito waking up after 60 years of aging in Limbo and immediately picking up the phone and remembering the exact number to dial, etc?

 

[G.O.O.]

Isn't the last dream Fischer's as they state that they are going into his own subconscious to plant the inception? Or is it that Fischers sub conscious is populating the dream?

Remember Cobb's lesson to Ariane : you create the dream, my subconscious populates it. All the dreams take part in Fischer's subconscious, so he's the one who sends the guards.

 

[marathonfool]

Questions. I think that there are holes in how the dreaming mechanics work in the movie.

1. Problem: Killing yourself in Limbo apparently wakes you up at a higher level. This is a problem because they made a huge deal out of it in Level 1 when it was revealed that they couldn't risk dying during the Inception job for fear of being trapped in Limbo for possibly an infinite amount of time and having their brains turn into scrambled eggs. If it were as easy as jumping off a building, why were they stressing out about it?

The first mention of Limbo by Cobbs added an element of risk to the operation. It made the stakes higher and a dream substitute for death. Ultimately, Limbo is nothing but a plot device. The consequences of Limbo change based on the necessity of the narrative.

3. The top falls at the end. We have to accept the rules of the totem, because that's what's presented to us in the movie. Otherwise anything goes and this discussion is meaningless. Also, it at the very least wobbles, which is contrary to what we were shown earlier in which the top spins perfectly, forever.

The last shot of the totem is post-modern ambiguity contrived by Nolan to entertain audiences and instigate post-film dialogue. It's a transparent gimmick that has no bearing on the film.

5. What was the point of Fischer's resuscitation in the Modern Warfare 2 level? If you're not resuscitated and you die in Limbo, you go back to Limbo?

They needed Fischer for inception.

6. Why did Cobb wash up on the shore of Saito's place at the end? I thought washing up on the shore was how you entered Limbo, as that's how every other shore scene was about.

Limbo is a theorized state. As such, no one can be sure, even the writers. I just assume Cobbs washed up in Limbo again because the narrative called for it.

7. Why didn't Mal just spin the top to confirm whether or not they were in the real world?

Because you wouldn't have a foil or an emotional thrust to Cobbs. Or as theorized by others, Mal was gone mentally. But I think my answer is closer to the truth.

 

[Korey]

They needed Fischer for inception.

My question is more about the defibrillator itself. Why was it necessary to use it? What would have happened had they not used it?

 

[McLovin]

Questions. I think that there are holes in how the dreaming mechanics work in the movie.

2. Mal/Cobb train suicide scene. Was this at the end of their 50-year stint in Limbo, and how they got out of Limbo? Why were they young? Towards the end of the movie there was a shot of them being old and holding their wrinkly hands together.
*Once they both knew they where dreaming, they probably reverted back to their younger selves. Although when he plants the inception he's young so I'm not sure.
4. How did Cobb plant the inception in Mal? That wasn't very clear. Something about the safe and the top?
*Spinning the top put the idea in her head that nothing was real. Remember the top was locked in her subconscious in limbo. She didn't have to actually see it, it was just an idea in her head.
5. What was the point of Fischer's resuscitation in the Modern Warfare 2 level? If you're not resuscitated and you die in Limbo, you go back to Limbo?
*If you die in an earlier level then limbo you under heavy sedation you go to limbo. Dying in limbo pushes you back a level since you can't go any lower. Since time goes by so fast down there I'm guessing that even if you know your in limbo you would eventually forget and accept it as reality. The only way out is death.
6. Why did Cobb wash up on the shore of Saito's place at the end? I thought washing up on the shore was how you entered Limbo, as that's how every other shore scene was about.
*Cobb died in the van. By the time he made it back down there Saito had changed the place around.
8. What qualifies as a kick? For example, the kick was confusing in the elevator scene, where it didn't go into effect until the end of it. Does slamming into the elevator floor after the charges go off not count as a kick? How is a van falling off a bridge a kick?
*It seems that while dreaming within a dream the kick has to be more dramatic. Like shooting yourself, jumping off a bridge, crashing the elevator, almost drowning. I think that tipping over kick only counts for reality.

.

 

[Wrestlemania]

My question is more about the defibrillator itself. Why was it necessary to use it? What would have happened had they not used it?

Because it acted as a kick.

 

[GodfatherX]

Because it acted as a kick.

I think he is questioning it more for the fact that he is the only one that was kicked that way, but the answer to that is that they needed him back in level 3 to open the safe ASAP for the inception and counted on Cobb to be able to kick himself out of limbo

 

[marathonfool]

My question is more about the defibrillator itself. Why was it necessary to use it? What would have happened had they not used it?

I assume they needed Fischer alive to wake up in the Snow Fortress. Or else he will wake up the level above it. It's all a bit messy between those who die and go to Limbo, and those who sedated themselves to Limbo.

Because it acted as a kick.

I don't think it's just a kick. Fischer supposedly died. That's why he went to Limbo. The defib most likely acted as a kick and life saver. How else could Fischer come back into consciousness if he's still dead in the Snow Fortress?

 

[Korey]

Because it acted as a kick.

You don't need a kick to be revived from Limbo. You just need to kill yourself in Limbo. See: Juno.

The only difference is that Fischer died in the level above, but that doesn't exactly explain why two actions (one from each side) are needed to revive him.

Someone earlier made a good point. What would have happened if an enemy had chopped up Fischer's dead body into a bunch of different parts.

I assume they needed Fischer alive to wake up in the Snow Fortress. Or else he will wake up the level above it. It's all a bit messy between those who die and go to Limbo, and those who sedated themselves to Limbo.

This makes sense, I guess. I was unclear about skipping levels. Is that how it works?

 

[Wrestlemania]

I think he is questioning it more for the fact that he is the only one that was kicked that way, but the answer to that is that they needed him back in level 3 to open the safe ASAP for the inception and counted on Cobb to be able to kick himself out of limbo

I wondered if he was asking that, but it seemed too stupid a question. It's obvious why they needed him in the snow level unless you happened to miss the whole scene after he's revived.

 

[Korey]

I wondered if he was asking that, but it seemed too stupid a question. It's obvious why they needed him in the snow level unless you happened to miss the whole scene after he's revived.

How is it stupid? You just gave me with the wrong answer.

You said it acted as a kick, when the real answer is that they needed to make the body live again in Level 3 so Fischer wouldn't skip levels.

 

[Wrestlemania]

You don't need a kick to be revived from Limbo. You just need to kill yourself in Limbo. See: Juno.

The only difference is that Fischer died in the level above, but that doesn't exactly explain why two actions (one from each side) are needed to revive him.

Do you actually see her walking around in the third level after she dies in limbo? I can't remember. If not then dying in limbo just puts her mind back into level three so she can ride the kick back to reality. By giving Fischer a kick he can then complete the inception.
If she is then I guess him dying in limbo puts his mind back into level 3 and the defib unit just revives him.

 

[marathonfool]

This makes sense, I guess. I was unclear about skipping levels. Is that how it works?

I just assume it. It's a theory based on the actions of the team and how you move up a level when you wake up.

 

[GodfatherX]

Also I'm sure it's been discussed but how many people here are followeres of the idea that the beginning of the movie is apart of Cobbs dream level 1

not saying I'm in that camp but there are a few things in the movie that partially hint at it

 

[gamemadmax]

I think COBB can know he is dreaming or not just by looking/touching the totem.

PAGE 14 - INCEPTION: THE COBOL JOB

If this is how the totem works than this sums up the ending.

 

[Wrestlemania]

I think COBB can know he is dreaming or not just by looking/touching the totem.

PAGE 14 - INCEPTION: THE COBOL JOB

Well yeah, that's how everyone else's works. What I don't understand is how they can know if they're in reality or their own dream, surely it'd only help them identify whether or not their in the dream of someone who doesn't know the totem.

 

[Affeinvasion]

The thing I didn't understand was how changes to the physics of the world only affected the next down layer. So when the van was falling, the hotel was weightless, yet the rest of the layers still had normal gravity. wat?

 

[Anton Sugar]

He spinned it before seeing his children, I don't see whats so difficult to understand about that. He spun it, his children caught his attention and opted to embrace them after such a long time.

Phew, so glad someone wrote this. People making fucking mountains out of mole hills.

BUT WHY DID HE SPIN IT

In the movie, he arrives in his house and everything looks so familiar that he kind of has a tiny freakout and spins the top. THEN he sees his kids faces and doesn't give a fuck about the totem, because seeing his childrens faces is the closure he needed.

 

[Solo]

Listened to Armond White on that podcast... he has a very unique approach to things, but I can't say that he doesn't defend his opinions very well. He was dancing circles around those three schmucks.

 

[PumpkinPie]

Asked this before but nobody answered.

Can anybody tell why COBB refused to look at his children's faces ?

Because if he saw their faces in the dream then he didn't really have any reason to try and get back to them in real life, he could have just lived a happy life in the dream but he didn't want to accept that.

 

[Chaser]

Questions. I think that there are holes in how the dreaming mechanics work in the movie.

1. Problem: Killing yourself in Limbo apparently wakes you up at a higher level. This is a problem because they made a huge deal out of it in Level 1 when it was revealed that they couldn't risk dying during the Inception job for fear of being trapped in Limbo for possibly an infinite amount of time and having their brains turn into scrambled eggs. If it were as easy as jumping off a building, why were they stressing out about it?

2. Mal/Cobb train suicide scene. Was this at the end of their 50-year stint in Limbo, and how they got out of Limbo? Why were they young? Towards the end of the movie there was a shot of them being old and holding their wrinkly hands together.

3. The top falls at the end. We have to accept the rules of the totem, because that's what's presented to us in the movie. Otherwise anything goes and this discussion is meaningless. Also, it at the very least wobbles, which is contrary to what we were shown earlier in which the top spins perfectly, forever.

4. How did Cobb plant the inception in Mal? That wasn't very clear. Something about the safe and the top?

I'll try my hand at a few of these while the film is still fresh in my memory.

1) As has been mentioned - limbo was unique in that it was a shared state anyone can alter. The possibility of losing yourself and/or sense of reality in a world you can literally build was too high. Coupled with the amount of time one perceives in the state (and what that would do to your mind upon waking), it was a risk that they did not want to take.

2) My guess - and it is just that - is that it was used to emphasize how long they really spent there together. It's likely the shots were showing us what Mal and/or Cobb saw in their mind to emphasize the period. There doesn't seem to be a clear answer here though.

3) The top is only shown spinning uninhibited in the limbo state. We can't say for sure how it reacts in a standard dream. There's also the possibility, however small, of its spin being affected by something in reality/a layer above.

4) My understanding is that the actions taken in these "safe" places are metaphorical. So when Cobb spins the top in her safe, it creates an idea in her mind that she is not in reality. She doesn't actually have to look and find the top still spinning.

 

[XMonkey]

The thing I didn't understand was how changes to the physics of the world only affected the next down layer. So when the van was falling, the hotel was weightless, yet the rest of the layers still had normal gravity. wat?

They're dreaming perfectly still in the hotel, so no messed up gravity.

 

[FromTheFuture]

Questions. I think that there are holes in how the dreaming mechanics work in the movie.

1. Problem: Killing yourself in Limbo apparently wakes you up at a higher level. This is a problem because they made a huge deal out of it in Level 1 when it was revealed that they couldn't risk dying during the Inception job for fear of being trapped in Limbo for possibly an infinite amount of time and having their brains turn into scrambled eggs. If it were as easy as jumping off a building, why were they stressing out about it?

I just wanted to say something about this really quickly, as I don't think there's a hole here.

What I got from it was that limbo was the deepest level of dreaming - where dreams would last life times and beyond. If you got caught in limbo and didn't know it, you would basically live your entire life in a dream. When you got out of the dream, you would have zero idea of what had just happened, and no grasp on what was reality and what was dream. That was the entire brain-into-scrambled-eggs deal. The entire idea was to not allow this to happen. The way of getting out of limbo is simply to kill yourself, yes, but if you were entirely sure that limbo was actually reality, what reason would you have for killing yourself?

The reason that Saito got sent into limbo in the first place is because he died in the higher level dreams. In any other case, he would have woke up, but due to the sedation given to them all by the chemist, they were forced to sleep for an allotted amount of time (which is why they needed a flight for 10 hours or whatever). So basically, due to the sedatives, dying in any dream level sent you to limbo in order for you to fill out the remaining amount of sleep you are having in reality.

The reason why Ariadne and Fischer were able to escape so easily is because they knew that they were in limbo - that they knew they were dreaming. So all they had to do was kill themselves as a kick to go up the dream levels. Saito did not know to do this, and thought his limbo was reality. Cobb had to travel to limbo to ensure Saito that his limbo was in fact a dream.

The entire difficulty was in that they forgot that they were just dreaming. That is why when Cobb reaches limbo, he and Saito both don't realize that they are there. But their agreement became a sort of totem, which reminded them that they've been dreaming the entire time.

 

[nib95]

I just wanted to say something about this really quickly, as I don't think there's a hole here.

What I got from it was that limbo was the deepest level of dreaming - where dreams would last life times and beyond. If you got caught in limbo and didn't know it, you would basically live your entire life in a dream. When you got out of the dream, you would have zero idea of what had just happened, and no grasp on what was reality and what was dream. That was the entire brain-into-scrambled-eggs deal. The entire idea was to not allow this to happen. The way of getting out of limbo is simply to kill yourself, yes, but if you were entirely sure that limbo was actually reality, what reason would you have for killing yourself?

The reason that Saito got sent into limbo in the first place is because he died in the higher level dreams. In any other case, he would have woke up, but due to the sedation given to them all by the chemist, they were forced to sleep for an allotted amount of time (which is why they needed a flight for 10 hours or whatever). So basically, due to the sedatives, dying in any dream level sent you to limbo in order for you to fill out the remaining amount of sleep you are having in reality.

The reason why Ariadne and Fischer were able to escape so easily is because they knew that they were in limbo - that they knew they were dreaming. So all they had to do was kill themselves as a kick to go up the dream levels. Saito did not know to do this, and thought his limbo was reality. Cobb had to travel to limbo to ensure Saito that his limbo was in fact a dream.

The entire difficulty was in that they forgot that they were just dreaming. That is why when Cobb reaches limbo, he and Saito both don't realize that they are there. But their agreement became a sort of totem, which reminded them that they've been dreaming the entire time.

Spot on.

 

[BobsRevenge]

Why in Limbo doesn't anyone start flying around like in the climax of The Matrix Revolutions?

There should've been an epic battle between Mal and Leo akin to the one between Neo and Agent Smith. Full stop.

 

[Nazgul_Hunter]

To be clear: Ariadne and Fischer didn't die inlimbo. They're clearly shown opening their eyes in Level 3 before they hit the ground. They were kicked back by a fall, not dying

 

[Krauser Kat]

the snow level is Fischers mind. Yusef the from the movie even says it is. pretty sure they convince fischer to find out what is inside brownings head. Browning in Arthurs world is no longer played by Eames, its a projection of Fischers mind. They go into browning, and its hostile.

 

[BobsRevenge]

the snow level is Fischers mind. Yusef the from the movie even says it is. pretty sure they convince fischer to find out what is inside brownings head. Browning in Arthurs world is no longer played by Eames, its a projection of Fischers mind. They go into browning, and its hostile.

Eames dreams it. Fischer just thinks he's inside of Browning's dream.

Or else the architect couldn't have done a shortcut or anything.

 

[FromTheFuture]

To be clear: Ariadne and Fischer didn't die inlimbo. They're clearly shown opening their eyes in Level 3 before they hit the ground. They were kicked back by a fall, not dying

In Ariadne and Fischer's cases, the falling sensation was their kick. For everyone else, the death was theirs.

 

[Shaneus]

To be clear: Ariadne and Fischer didn't die inlimbo. They're clearly shown opening their eyes in Level 3 before they hit the ground. They were kicked back by a fall, not dying

Yes! Those saying the only way to get out of limbo is wrong... it's not killing themselves that gets Ariadne and Fischer out, it's the fall from the building that does it. The only person who dies from falling is Mal.