Of all arts, film come closest to replicating the world of dreams, as fantasies, fears or surreal events play out before us while we are motionless in the dark. Dreams are the pristine terrain of our unconscious mind, unique to the individual, a hidden idiosyncratic landscape controlled solely by the dreamer's psyche and completely inaccessible to all others. Except for Christopher Nolan. Director of challenging and cerebral blockbusters (Batman Begins and The Dark Knight) with Inception Nolan nominates our unconscious as the new battleground of corporate and emotional espionage.

Dom Cobb (Leonardo DiCaprio) heads a secretive specialist team of "Extractors" who enter the dreams of others manipulate their subconscious and steal secrets and ideas. While psychologically crumbling and gradually losing his own grip on reality, Cobb commits his team to what is considered an impossible process: Inception. They won't steal an idea from someone's mind, but plant one instead -- a dangerous process with multiple layers of "reality", varying speeds of "dream time" and a whole lot of the victim's psychological baggage to contend with. As mind-bendingly inventive as the concept is, the technical ingenuity and visual impact of the colossal dreamscapes are almost beyond comprehension. An absolute big-screen essential -- just take the leap of faith now, and you can figure it all out later (when the DVD is released).

NB: Inception is released in London on 16/07 and screens at the BFI IMAX till 09/09. Also of note and released on the same date are The Concert and Catherine Breillat's Bluebeard.