Int. Same elegant dining room - night (years earlier)

 

The speaker, COBB, is 35, handsome, tailored. A young

Japanese man, SAITO, eats as he listens.

 

COBB

A bacteria? A virus?

 

Cobb gestures at their feast with his wine glass-

 

COBB

An intestinal worm?

 

Saito's fork pauses, mid-air. Cobb GRINS. A third man is at

the table- ARTHUR. He jumps in to save the pitch-

 

ARTHUR

What Mr. Cobb is trying to say-

 

COBB

An idea.

 

Saito looks at Cobb, curious.

3.

 

COBB

Resilient, highly contagious. Once

an idea's taken hold in the brain

it's almost impossible to

eradicate. A person can cover it

up, ignore it- but it stays there.

 

SAITO

But surely-to forget...?

 

COBB

Information, yes. But an idea?

Fully formed, understood? That

sticks...

(taps forehead)

In there, somewhere.

 

SAITO

For someone like you to steal?

 

ARTHUR

Yes. In the dream state, conscious

defenses are lowered and your

thoughts become vulnerable to

theft. It's called extraction.

 

COBB

But, Mr. Saito, we can train your

subconscious to defend itself from

even the most skilled extractor.

 

SAITO

How can you do that?

 

COBB

Because I am the most skilled

extractor. I know how to search

your mind and find your secrets. I

know the tricks, and I can teach

them to your subconscious so that

even when you're asleep, your guard

is never down.

 

Cobb leans forwards. Holding Saito's gaze.

 

COBB

But if I'm going to help you, you

have to be completely open to me.

I'll need to know my way around

your thoughts better than your

wife, your analyst, anyone.

(gestures around)

If this is a dream and you've got a

safe full of secrets, I need to

know what's in that safe. For this

to work, you have to let me in.

4.

 

Saito gives this a flicker of a smile. Rises. A BODYGUARD

opens double doors which give onto a LAVISH PARTY.

 

SAITO

Gentlemen. Enjoy your evening as I

consider your proposal.

 

They watch Saito leave. Arthur turns to Cobb, worried-

 

ARTHUR

He knows.

 

Cobb motions silence. A TREMOR starts, they steady their

glasses, Cobb glances at his watch- THE SECOND HAND IS

FROZEN.

 

ARTHUR

What's going on up there?

 

And we-

 

CUT TO:

 

FILTHY BATHROOM - DAY (FEELS LIKE DIFFERENT TIME)

 

Cobb, ASLEEP, SITTING IN A CHAIR AT THE END OF A STEAMING

BATH. The chair is up on a cabinet- the bottom of the legs

level with the rim of the tub.

 

A sweating man (40's) watches over Cobb. This is NASH. A

distant EXPLOSION rumbles through the room. Nash moves to the

window, parts the curtains. Outside: a CHAOTIC DEVELOPING-WORLD

CITY- the street filled with RIOTERS- SMASHING, BURNING.

 

Nash checks Cobb's left wrist: above his watch, tape holds

TWO THIN YELLOW TUBES in place. Nash looks at Cobb's watch-

THE SECOND HAND CRAWLS UNNATURALLY SLOWLY.

 

Nash follows the tubes to a SILVER BRIEFCASE at Arthur's

feet: ARTHUR IS ASLEEP in an armchair. Tubes connect the

briefcase to Arthur's wrist.

 

Nash follows another set of tubes from the briefcase to where

they pass under the door to the bedroom. Through the crack of

the door, Nash sees SAITO ASLEEP on the bed, tubes running to

his wrist. BOOM- a closer EXPLOSION, and we-

 

CUT TO:

 

INT. BULLET TRAIN COMPARTMENT - DAY (FEELS LIKE DIFFERENT TIME)

 

Nash, ASLEEP. Head ROCKING AGAINST THE WINDOW as the train

BUMPS OVER A ROUGH PIECE OF TRACK.

5.

 

A Japanese Man, TODASHI (18) watches Nash nervously. He

checks Nash's wrist: TWO YELLOW TUBES CONNECT NASH WITH THREE

OTHER SLEEPING MEN IN THE COMPARTMENT: COBB, ARTHUR, SAITO.

 

Todashi checks his watch: THE SECOND HAND TICKS IN REAL TIME.

Another TRAIN PASSES in the opposite direction with a MIGHTY

WHUMP- Todashi's eyes FLY to Nash's sleeping face-

 

NASH JERKS WITH THE MOVEMENT OF THE TRAIN, and we-

 

CUT TO:

 

INT. FILTHY BATHROOM - CONTINUOUS

 

Another EXPLOSION- Nash CHECKS the sleeping Cobb and we-

 

CUT TO: