I don't really know how to review the movie because, at its core, it IS a mystery; I don't want to give anything away. Any little detail could give too much away. I will say that the story and plot were really good and really well executed. I will also say this about the movie as a whole: if you think you saw something, don't second guess it - you probably did.

Fortunately, I CAN talk about one of the best parts of this movie (or rather, multiple parts, as it happens more than once): the dream sequences. In the preview, all kinds of crazy crap is happening – those are parts of the dream sequences. Normally dream sequences kind of irritate me. They seem like a cop out; "Let's have something crazy happen and... OH! It was just a dream!" These aren't like those because they are obviously dreams. They are obviously dreams (at least to me) because they worked the way real dreams do. In movies, dreams are just "alternate options" - they have full narratives, consistent characters, settings, and are generally fairly realistic situations (maybe with a twist or a "that person wouldn't really do that" kinda thing), etc. These dreams didn't have that. Settings changed, characters changed, topics changed; random - often impossible - stuff would happen, and people would just go along with it. There's a particular dream toward the middle of the movie that has the look and feel of a genuine nightmare. Those sequences are VERY well done.

I wanna say something about the acting, but again, I can't really say too much without giving too much away. I will say that DiCaprio was really good (there's a lot of range with his character) and Ben Kingsley was great too in that throughout the whole thing you can't really pin him down. Is he a good guy? A bad guy? Hard to say. But in a good, elusive way; not a vague way. Mark Ruffalo was really good too in that he was a really prominent character, but didn't come across as overbearing. All the secondary characters were well portrayed as well. The warden was a bit of a favorite.

Another really noticeable thing in the film was the editing. I won't say how - I'll just say it's really noticeable and makes you think about how important editing is in a movie (especially one like this one).

Also the score was well done. It played into the story a little bit, but it really set the mood. It had a very foreboding, dark feel to it, but also a sense of the film noir movies of the 50s (which, incidentally, is when the movie is set). Good job, score folks!

That's really about all I can say about it, except this: if you go to see it, plan to see it twice. The end will completely change the movie for you, and there will be a lot throughout the movie that will then fall into place. I know I plan on seeing it again just to see how much really works into the plot.

4.5 / 5 - Great acting, great story telling, and dream sequences that will stick with you make this movie one of the best I've seen this year so far.