Is Nolan’s Time Genius or Nonsense? Memento, Inception, Interstellar, and Tenet

Mark and David discuss Christopher Nolan’s recurring use of time across films with guest Mark Wiberg, debating whether it’s brilliant or overly complicated. Wiberg ranks Interstellar highest for its time pressure on humanity, relativity set pieces like Miller’s planet, and the emotional video-message sequence, wchhile noting issues with early dialogue, character development, and the final reunion. They revisit Memento’s reverse structure, unreliable narrator, manipulation of Leonard’s memory, and the reveal that he chooses to continue the quest. Inception’s nested dream time is criticized for exposition and an ambiguous ending, though praised for ambition and effects. Tenet divides them: Davidt calls it a favorite for entropy reversal, determinism themes, and set pieces, while others find it cold or confusing. They end with broader thoughts on time stories, determinism vs free will, and recommendations.

Check out Wiberg's DJ Butterz Youtube

https://www.youtube.com/@DJButterz

This week Mark and David ostensibly talk about the book and movie versions of Solaris. Solaris is a story that asks some deep questions like:

• What are the limitations of Science?
• How do you determine if an entity is conscious?
• What are 50 ways to kill your re-animated loved one?

However, Mark triggered David by asking about AI. This causes David to go on a long and tedious explanation of why LLMs are not conscious. Which is basically a recapitulation of:

https://gracefulatheist.com/2026/06/07/humanism-and-ai/

They discuss this aritcle in Verge: AI bots started a religion — humans immediately followed

https://www.theverge.com/ai-artificial-intelligence/975017/ai-spiralism-chatbot-movement

Counter points to my argumetns on LLMs:

Are LLMs conscious?

https://preposterousuniverse.com/podcast/2026/08/10/363-chandra-sripada-on-how-llms-and-humans-are-cognitive-cousins/

Do LLMs plan?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=locKEKxG3os

Other topics Mark and David veer into:

• The Odyssey
• Morality
• Re-dos

Mark and David watched "The Legend of Boggy Creek" and discuss the Fouke Monster and the Big Foot legend.

Should the creature be called:

• The Fouke Monster
• Big Foot
• Sasquatch
• The Squatch

We veer into:

• How truly atrocious "The Legend of Boggy Creek" movie is
• Our appreciation for the musical interlude in the movie
• The personal vendetta the Fouke Monster has for one group of people
• The different ways Mark and David look at evidence
• Cryptids and stories around the camp fire
• What humans get out of monster stories
• Science progresses one tomb stone at a time
• Science Fiction and dreamers led us to our modern world

Earlier in June more UAP documents were declassified. A document dump, if you will. Ostensibly, that is the topic of this weeks Certainly Dubious. We also veer into topics such as these:

• Calling them UAPs vs UFOs
• Science changes its mind and has an attitude
• In which we accidentally talk about Covid 19
• Fighter pilots are heroes and no one should ever doubt them
• The Drake equation and the Fermi paradox
• Borges' Library vs Monkeys with typewriters
• Mark and David assert their sanity and that is not a demand, that is a solid fact! What we demand is solid facts!"
• God is cool with aliens
• Should angels be considered aliens?
• How open minded can you be?
• How to avoid an anti-moral bender

Welcome to the Certainly Dubious podcast, where two longtime friends take on the intriguing and the bizarre with opposing viewpoints. We invite you to listen in and pick a side: Mark "the open-minded" and David "the skeptic."

So, sit down with your coffee, tea, beer, or the ubiquitous bottle of water and listen in while two old friends talk about things that they are in no way qualified to comment on. Oh, and turn off all the lights; this podcast is better in the dark.

In this episode Mark and David discuss:

• Introduction to the podcast and each other
• How we met each other
• Teaching our children about Santa Claus
• Social contagion of psychoses
• Love and grace: is it just biochemical?
• Star Trek morality
• Our roles in the zombie apocalypse

Join us and pick a side!

Show page https://redcircle.com/shows/dfa680d5-1ad8-45a3-9c93-07d49ae12711

Mark's podcast

Read Keeper’s Journey: The only way back is forward

https://www.reedkeeper.com/

David's podcast

Graceful Atheist Podcast

https://gracefulatheist.com/podcast/