Corrected entry: "The kick" is the feeling of falling that is supposed to jolt a person awake. As demonstrated by Yusuf, even with heavy sedation Arthur woke up every time he started falling from his chair. Yet at the start of the movie, Cobb fell all the way into the bathtub before waking up. And it wasn't the fall as much as the water that woke up Cobb (water began to spray inside the Japanese temple, meaning that Cobb was still dreaming when he hit the water and was incorporating the sensation of the water into his dream). In fact, why was the bathtub even needed if all it takes is a fall to wake someone up? Wouldn't it have been safer to place Cobb's chair on a padded carpet to soften his fall, rather than have him choke on water and risk drowning?
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25th Jul 2013
Inception (2010)
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Correction: It is evident that the kick doesn't always work in the initial sensation. Like in the dream part towards the end when the van smacked against the bridge. That was supposed to be the kick, but it failed. It is also stated that the sedative they are using in the main part of the movie when on the jet is "a very powerful sedative". And the chemist even said he specially engineered it. So it is logical to assume that there are different types, powers, and effects of different sedatives. the one Cobb was on in the beginning was likely one that needed the water as insurance that a fall didn't work or was suppose to be lifted by water anyways.
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