12c) The inception was actually on Cobb
A popular theory is that the film wasn’t about planting an idea in Fishcer’s head, rather it was about planting an idea in Cobb’s head. Think about it, Cobb is racked with guilt and his father-in-law (Michael Caine’s character Miles) knows this. Surely he would want to see his son-in-law get back to normal wouldn’t he?
Could it be that he hired Ariadne, an exceptionally bright and talented architect, to perform inception on Cobb?
Think about it, when Cobb is walking through the airport at the end and sees Miles, Miles says “you’re welcome”. Why would Miles say this? Is he saying it because he has freed Cobb from the guilt and now Cobb can finally get on with his life?
If anyone was capable of performing inception on Cobb it would be Ariadne. She was always eager for more information on Mal and she was the only one who got a look inside Cobb’s mind. She is also the only one who knows about Cobb’s totem and how it works.
Perhaps the inception was on Cobb all along. It was to plant the idea that he wasn’t responsible for Mal’s death and that he could still live a normal and peaceful life if he let go. As for when the inception took place, that’s another story. It could be when Cobb went to try out the drugs in Yusef’s place and everything from there was in his head or it could be that the inception on Fischer was just a cover or an excuse for Ariadne to get into Cobb’s head and perform the inception. An interesting take on this theory can be found here. I’d summarize it but its quite long and this article is already getting a bit too lengthy.
12d) The inception was on us the audience and was done by Christopher Nolan
An interesting thought going around is what if the inception was on us, the audience?
Think about it. Perhaps Christopher Nolan planted an idea in our head. No matter how we view the ending we will always have doubts. No theory or explanation is perfect. If it’s a dream then why does the top wobble, if it is reality then why are the kids wearing the same thing and why do they look the same age? Why after Cobb goes under in Yusef’s place is the top never shown to fall again? Nolan has planted a seed of doubt in our heads. If he hadn’t shown the last shot of the top, most people would just assume Cobb got back. Due to that last shot of the top, we all now have ‘creeping doubts’ as Mal calls it. We question what was real and what was a dream?
12e) Cobb wakes up at the end and is actually able to return to his kids
Most people still think that the ending is real and Cobb is back in the real world. Think about it, Cobb went into limbo to find Saito. He reminds old Saito of their deal and convinces Saito that this world is a dream and not reality. Since both of them realize that they are dreaming, perhaps they can escape limbo.
When Saito grabs the gun, and presumably kills himself and Cobb, maybe this sends them back to the plane. Or maybe the sedatives wear off by this point and they are able to escape limbo from the gunshot since they are not under sedatives. If in fact the sedatives had worn off and they were just normally dreaming, it would be reasonable to think that they can kick themselves out of limbo and back onto the plane.
The kick would be a straight kick back to the plane since they wouldn’t have to go through the other levels. This is because the other levels had already collapsed so technically they were only one level under.
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