With a little over a week to go before “Inception” hits theaters, Warner Bros. have given their final marketing push for the film with four new clips, an HBO “First Look” special and some creative outdoor billboards that they hope will grab people’s attention whether they are online, watching TV or actually outside enjoying the summer. As you know, details on the plot are tight, but it’s an existential heist film that takes place in the mind, and if early reviews are anything to go by, the film may launch Christopher Nolan in the category of directing “legend” alongside Stanley Kubrick, David Lean and Francis Ford Coppola.
But for anyone looking to unravel the film a little bit before they get to their local multiplex, these four clips may make the plot a little clearer without divulging any serious spoilers. The first, and most spoiler-ish, shows Arthur (Joseph Gordon-Levitt as Cobb’s number two) defending the team from gunfire as one of their own is rushed off bleeding. In the second clip, Dom Cobb (Leonardo DiCaprio) revisits his university professor (Michael Caine) in need of a new recruit, and explains why his mission of inception is so critical. The third clip has Cobb and the recruit (Ellen Page) in her first lesson of “shared dreaming” (a scene worth saving for theaters if you haven’t seen the TV spots), and finally, the fourth features Cobb and Arthur speaking to Saito (Ken Watanabe) with a proposition to teach him to defend his mind/dreams from extractors.
Also providing a peek at the movie, HBO’s First Look series has recently aired their program for “Inception,” showing even more of the film and the making of. You can watch it below in a not-so-hot version taped off someone’s TV; don’t expect it to stay online for too long.
And if all that wasn’t enough, some massive, creatively placed and designed billboards (like the one above) may catch your eye when you leave the house. You can check out some more examples here.
“Inception” floods theaters July 16 (as if you didn’t already know this). Clips and vids after the jump: –Omar