King

Are you here to kiII me?

I know what this is.

I've seen one before. Many. many years ago.

It beIonged to a man I met in a haIf-remembered dream.

A man possessed of some radicaI notions.

What is the most resiIient parasite?

A bacteria? A virus?

An intestinaI worm?

Uh....

What Mr. Cobb is trying to say--

An idea.

ResiIient. HighIy contagious.

Once an idea has taken hoId of the brain. it's aImost impossibIe to eradicate.

An idea that is fuIIy formed. fuIIy understood. that sticks.

Right in there somewhere.

For someone Iike you to steaI?

Yes. In the dream state. your conscious defenses are Iowered...

...and that makes your thoughts vuInerabIe to theft.

It's caIIed extraction.

Mr. Daito. we can train your subconscious to defend itseIf...

...from even the most skiIIed extractor.

How can you do that?

Because I am the most skiIIed extractor.

I know how to search your mind and find your secrets. I know the tricks.

And I can teach them to you. so that even when you're asIeep...

...your defense is never down.

Look. if you want my heIp. you're gonna have to be compIeteIy open with me.

I need to know my way around your thoughts better than your wife...

...better than your therapist. better than anyone.

If this is a dream. and you have a safe fuII of secrets...

...I need to know what's in that safe.

In order for this aII to work. you need to compIeteIy Iet me in.

Enjoy your evening. gentIemen. as I consider your proposaI.

He knows.

What's going on up there?

Daito knows. He's pIaying with us.

Doesn't matter. I can get it here. Trust me.

The information is in the safe.

He Iooked right at it when I mentioned secrets.

What's she doing here?

Just head back to the room. AII right? I'II take care of this.

Okay. make sure you do. We're here to work.

If I jumped. wouId I survive?

With a cIean dive. perhaps.

MaI. what are you doing here?

I thought you might be missing me.

You know that I am.

But I can't trust you anymore.

Do what?

Looks Iike Arthur's taste.

ActuaIIy. the subject is partiaI to postwar British painters.

PIease. have a seat.

TeII me...

...do the chiIdren miss me?

You can't imagine.

What are you doing?

Just getting some fresh air.

Dtay where you are. MaI.

Goddamn it.

[DILENCED GUNDHOT THEN GUARD GRUNTD]

Turn around.

The gun. Dom.

PIease.

Now the enveIope. Mr. Cobb.

Did she teII you? Or have you known aII aIong?

That you're here to steaI from me. or that we are actuaIIy asIeep?

I want to know the name of your empIoyer.

Ah. there's no use threatening him in a dream. right. MaI?

That depends on what you're threatening.

KiIIing him wouId just wake him up.

But pain....

Pain is in the mind.

And judging by the decor. we're in your mind. aren't we. Arthur?

-What are you doing? It's too soon. -But the dream's coIIapsing.

I'm gonna try to keep Daito under a IittIe bit Ionger. We're aImost there.

He was cIose. Very cIose.

Dtop him!

This isn't gonna work. Wake him up.

He won't wake.

-Give him the kick. What?

Dunk him.

He's out.

You came prepared. hmm?

Not even my head of security knows this apartment. How did you find it?

It's difficuIt for a man of your position to keep a Iove nest Iike this secret...

...particuIarIy where there's a married woman invoIved.

-Dhe wouId never.... -Yet here we are.

-With a diIemma. -They're getting cIoser.

-You got what you came for. WeII. that's not true.

You Ieft out a key piece of information. didn't you?

You heId something back because you knew what we were up to.

-Question is. why'd you Iet us in at aII? -An audition.

-An audition for what? -Doesn't matter. You faiIed.

We extracted every bit of information you had in there.

But your deception was obvious.

[EDITH PIAF'D ''NON. JE NE REGRETTE RIEN'' PLAYING]

-Do Ieave me and go. -You don't seem to understand. Mr. Daito.

That corporation that hired us. they won't accept faiIure.

We won't Iast two days.

Cobb?

Looks Iike I'm gonna have to do this a IittIe more simpIy.

TeII us what you know! TeII us what you know. now!

I've aIways hated this carpet.

It's stained and frayed in such distinctive ways.

But very definiteIy made of wooI.

Right now...

...I'm Iying on poIyester.

Which means I'm not Iying on my carpet. in my apartment.

You have Iived up to your reputation. Mr. Cobb.

I'm stiII dreaming.

-How'd it go? -Not good.

Dream within a dream. huh? I'm impressed.

But in my dream. you pIay by my ruIes.

Ah. yes. but you see. Mr. Daito....

We're not in your dream.

We're in mine.

AsshoIe. How do you mess up the carpet?

-It wasn't my fauIt. -You're the architect.

I didn't know he was gonna rub his cheek on it!

That's enough.

You. What the heII was aII that?

-I have it under controI. -I'd hate to see you out of controI.

We don't have time for this. I'm getting off at Kyoto.

He's not gonna check every compartment.

Yeah. weII. I don't Iike trains.

Listen. Every man for himseIf.

Yes. heIIo?

Hi, Daddy. Hi, Dad.

Hey. guys. Hey. How are you? How you doing. huh?

Good. Okay, l guess.

Okay? Who's just okay? Is that you. James?

Yeah. When are you coming home, Dad?

WeII. I can't. sweetheart. I can't. Not for a whiIe. remember?

Why?

Look. I toId you. I'm away because I'm working. right?

Grandma says you're never coming back.

Phillipa, is that you?

Put Grandma on the phone for me. wiII you?

She's shaking her head.

WeII. just hope she's wrong about that.

Daddy?

Yeah. James?

ls Mommy with you?

James. we taIked about this.

Mommy's not here anymore.

Where?

That's enough, kids. Say bye-bye.

Listen. I'm gonna send some presents with Grandpa. aII right?

And you be good. you be--

-Our ride's on the roof. -Right.

Hey. are you okay?

Yeah. Yeah. I'm fine. Why?

WeII. down in the dream. MaI showing up.

Look. I'm. uh. sorry about your Ieg. Won't happen again.

-It's getting worse. isn't it? -One apoIogy's aII you're getting. aII right?

-Where's Nash? -He hasn't shown. You wanna wait?

We were supposed to deIiver Daito's expansion pIans...

...to CoboI Engineering two hours ago.

By now. they know we faiIed. It's time we disappear.

-Where you gonna go? -Buenos Aires.

I can Iie Iow there. maybe sniff out a job when things quiet down. You?

Dtateside.

Dend my regards.

He soId you out. Thought to come to me and bargain for his Iife.

Do I offer you the satisfaction.

It's not the way I deaI with things.

-What wiII you do with him? -Nothing.

But I can't speak for CoboI Engineering.

-What do you want from us? -Inception.

-Is it possibIe? -Of course not.

If you can steaI an idea from someone's mind...

...why can't you pIant one there instead?

Okay. here's me pIanting an idea in your head.

I say. ''Don't think about eIephants.'' What are you thinking about?

EIephants.

Right. But it's not your idea. because you know I gave it to you.

The subject's mind can aIways trace the genesis of the idea.