Nolan discusses the ending of Inception again: whether it is a dream or not is not the point

There are some mysteries in movies that have always been talked about by audiences and fans. For example, Quentin Tarantino has been asked for many years, "What is in the suitcase in Pulp Fiction?". Christopher Nolan, the director of the upcoming new film Oppenheimer, was also troubled by the ending of Inception. Everyone wants to know, is the ending of the movie a dream or reality?

More than ten years have passed since the release of Inception, and the discussion about this issue has gradually subsided. However, recently, Nolan was asked this question again.

During an interview on the Happy Sad Confused podcast about the new film Oppenheimer, interviewer Josh Horowitz asked, "I'm curious, when someone comes up to you and asks, 'Chris, what happens at the end of Inception,' what is your standard answer?"

Nolan laughed and said: "Thank God, I haven't been asked this question for a long time." He then continued: "I went through a phase after the movie came out and I was asked this question all the time. Sometimes I would make mistakes and get caught outside the theater..."

"I think it was (Inception producer) Emma Thomas who gave the right answer... The point of the shot is that Leon's (Leonardo DiCaprio) character doesn't care (if it's a dream). It's not a question I can answer easily."

Although Nolan's answer was not unexpected, it was clear that even the actors were a little confused when they received the script. Michael Caine, who plays the protagonist's father-in-law in the film, previously told Esquire magazine that because of his appearance, the last scene of the movie should be reality rather than a dream.

"When I got the script for Inception, I was a little confused, and I said to him (Nolan): 'I don't understand what the dreams are,'" Caine said in a 2018 interview.

“I said, ‘When is it a dream and when is it reality?’ And he said, ‘Well, when you’re in the scene, it’s reality.’ So, get it – if I’m in it, it’s reality. If I’m not in the scene, it’s a dream.”

Some people have studied the sound of the spinning top and concluded that it will eventually fall. However, none of this can prove whether the ending is real or not, because as the director said, the most important thing about the ending is to convey the feelings of the protagonist Cobb, who no longer cares whether it is a dream or not. But it is conceivable that the debate will continue.