9. Why didn’t Ariadne and Fischer fall into limbo when they fell off the building in level 4? Didn’t they kill themselves?
You have to remember that limbo is just a state of mind. It is when you don’t realize that you are dreaming. It’s not technically a place.
Ariadne knew she was in a dream the whole time so therefore she could not enter limbo. That is why when she fell off the building she woke up in level 3 rather than going into limbo. Rather than killing herself, the fall acted as a kick and as soon as she started to fall, she woke up in level 3. She probably never even hit the ground, so technically she didn’t kill herself. The same goes for Fischer. Right when the falling sensation begun, it is assumed that it was at that moment they awoke in level 3, since the kicks were synced.
10. What exactly was that world that Cobb and Mal created for themselves?
Cobb and Mal created a dream world for themselves. In this world they pushed their subconscious to the edge, they went incredibly deep. Due to this, Mal started to slip into limbo. This is partially because Mal was creating from memories. Cobb was always full aware he was in a dream.
Mal and Cobb were able to play God in their world and Mal was able to grow old with Cobb which was her dream. To escape from this world, Cobb had to perform inception on Mal because Mal started to believe she was living in the real world.
11. Explain the events that took place during the final sequence.
I personally think that the plane is reality and I am going to base this answer on that fact. Everyone gets on the plane and is connected. It is only once they are connected that the dream starts. The first level is the city streets and Yusuf dreams it. The team kidnaps Robert Fischer and forces him to give them the numbers. They also start to plant the idea in his head that his dad wants him to break up the company.
Now level two begins. Yusef stays awake while the team goes into level two. The second level is the hotel and Arthur dreams it. Here the team tricks Fischer into thinking that Browning is an enemy. Cobb convinces Fischer to come with them to level 3.
Arthur stays awake while everyone goes into level 3. The third level is the snow fortress and Eames dreams it. Fischer is taken to the fortress where hopefully the idea that was planted will take hold. While at the fortress, Mal shoots Fischer and Cobb and Ariadne go into level four to save him.
Eames stays awake and everyone else goes into level 4. Ariadne is able to save Fischer and they both kick themselves back up to level 3. Cobb is the one dreaming in level 4 and eventually he stays back so he can go into limbo to find Saito. While in level 4 Cobb is stabbed by Mal.
After being brought back to level 3, Fischer goes into that room with his dad and that whole scene plays out and the idea takes hold of Fischer’s mind. Shortly after this, all the kicks happen. Saito and Cobb are in limbo but the rest of the group is kicked all the way back up to the top. Once they escape the van, Eames transforms into Browning to see if they got the job done.
Cobb and Saito are currently in limbo at this point. Saito is in limbo because he died from the gunshot. The reason why Cobb is in limbo is because Mal stabs him and he presumably dies and enters Saito’s limbo since he is in shared dreaming with Saito. Since Cobb didn’t die from the stab wound right away he may have been able to kick himself back up but he purposefully missed the kick and stayed back to find Saito.
12. So what happened at the end?
The ending is the most confusing part of the film. There are a couple of theories as to what happened. The theories are as follows:
12a) Nothing Ever Happened
The nothing ever happened ending is the simplest. Some people believe that nothing ever happened and everything was just Cobb’s dream. People think that Cobb was just a normal businessman who came onto a plane and fell asleep.
No one knew anyone. During the plane ride, Cobb had a crazy dream (the events that took place in the film) and at the end of the film he woke up. That’s it. No inception, no such thing as entering people’s minds, nothing that was shown was real. It was all just a dream and Cobb is just an ordinary person who was flying home.
12b) Cobb started dreaming after he met Yusef
What if everything from when Cobb meets Yusef is just a dream? Think about it, Cobb goes down to the basement with Yusef and sees all those people who are dreaming. It is here that he decides to try out Yusef’s chemical. This could be the last moment he is truly awake. When he ‘wakes up’ from the chemical he tries to use his totem but is interrupted by Saito. Cobb isn’t able to see if he is still dreaming or not. From this point on we never again see the top fall, technically we never know if Cobb awoke from that dream in Yusef’s place. For all we know, he could still be asleep.
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