website tracking

Search The Big Picture


« Cera Says 'Arrested Development' in a State of Arrested Development | Main | 'Green Lantern' Writer on Progress, Casting Rumors »
Monday
15Jun2009

Nolan's 'Inception' Has a $200 Million Price Tag?

DateMonday, June 15, 2009 at 3:49PM
There have been some elevated budget numbers this year - Avatar costs $300 million, TRON will cost over $200 million - and they were proven to be exaggerated a bit. So when I see that Christopher Nolan's Inception might cost $200 million, I'm a little skeptical.

After all, this was supposed to be smaller than the Batman movies, a necessary break from the enormity of Gotham City. But Calgary Sun (via /film) reports that Inception will film in Canada and four other countries and it comes with a burdensome budget about ten percent above that of The Dark Knight.

"It's not going to be just a two-day shoot," a source told the paper. "It's not just some CBC mini-series. It's pretty substantial."

Alberta has seen a few productions in the past, and Brokeback Mountain is probably the most notable films in the past few years, but the source for Calgary Sun says nothing has ever hit the area with this kind of budget. "These guys are going to spend more money before lunchtime than most (networks) will spend on a series. It's as big a movie as has ever been shot here."

We don't know much about Inception, but Nolan has earned the right to keep us in the dark. There's some weird logline about it being a psychological thriller that takes place in the architecture of the mind, and we know it has a great cast - DiCaprio, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Marion Cotillard, Ellen Page, Michael Caine, Ken Watanabe, and Cillian Murphy.

Do I care what it costs? Not really. But it does kind of surprise me that Nolan would dive right back into the very deep end of the pool. Sure, Warner Bros. is giving him its full support, but I still think this has to be beyond excellent to go over half a billion around the world. $200 million is always a gamble, and when you don't have a franchise like Pirates or a superhero, it's an even bigger risk.

AuthorColin Boyd | | in , , | Print ArticlePrint Article | | Comment1 Comment |

Reader Comments (1)

I don't mind Hollywood spending money on Nolan.

On the other hand there is no direct correlation between money and ideas. Ideas cost nothing.

Presumably, it's the ambitious plan to film in America, Europe, Africa and Asia that is costing the mulah.

On the other hand, with CG at hand, is it really necessary to film all over the world.

Some of the best dramas of all time are set in just one place during one day.

Also, Leo makes me a bit concerned. After some really nice work in The Aviator and The Departed, I think his acting has become simplistic and repetitive. Can he go where Nolan wants him to go?

Tuesday, June 16, 2009 | Unregistered CommenterLengthy Johnson

PostPost a New Comment

Enter your information below to add a new comment.

My response is on my own website »
Author Email (optional):
Author URL (optional):
Post:
 
Some HTML allowed: <a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <code> <em> <i> <strike> <strong>