America: Starting with the acquisition of MGM...

Chapter 316, Section 314: The opening scene alone is enough to leave you bewildered.

wow...

As the tide rises and falls, Cobb, played by Bale, opens his eyes on the beach, looking at the two children with their backs to him, appearing bewildered and helpless. He is then taken to see the elderly Saito.

"A long, long time ago, I saw this spinning top. Someone told me that it could implant consciousness into a person's mind."

Saito fiddled with the top, making it spin slightly on the table, and then the scene suddenly changed.

When the camera focused on him again, a young Ken Watanabe appeared in the same house, but everything felt different.

Keen-eyed viewers immediately realized that the old man from earlier was also Ken Watanabe, but one was frail and dying, while the other was full of energy and eating steak.

Those fellow directors immediately saw through Eric's trickery.

"Mr. Saito, what do you think is the most deeply rooted and impossible-to-remove thing in the human body?"

"Is it flesh and blood, bacteria, viruses, or something else? Intestinal worms?"

Saito was intently chewing his steak when he heard the word "intestinal worms" and immediately gave Cobb a disgruntled look.

The camera focuses on Heath Ledger's Arthur, who is impeccably dressed. His angular face, clad in a suit, has a completely different feel from his usual appearance.

In terms of good looks, he is slightly less handsome than Bale, who is also dressed in a suit next to him.

However, since he had never worn a suit on the big screen before, it was truly refreshing and gave the audience a deeper understanding of him.

"Cobb means," Arthur hurriedly tried to explain.

"It is consciousness, which is both stubborn and infectious. Once an idea is formed, it is very difficult for a person to get rid of it."

"So you were allowed to steal it?"

"That's right. When people are asleep, their defensiveness and vigilance decrease, so we can sneak into their dreams and steal or change their thoughts."

"Mr. Saito, we can train your subconscious mind so that you can fight against the best dream thieves."

Why should I believe you?

"Because I am the best dream thief!"

A short dialogue, yet it contains a wealth of information, even directly presenting the film's central theme to the audience.

Thoughts, entering dreams, dream theft, subconsciousness, defense...

"Inception, so the movie's title doesn't play on suspense; it's really about dreams," Patty Jenkins thought to himself.

"Dreams, changing thoughts and dreamscapes, interesting ideas, somewhat similar to what I used to imagine."

Nolan couldn't help but raise the corners of his mouth: "Could it be that Eric Cooper and I have the same idea? Then let me see how you tell this story."

Saito wiped his mouth, got up, and left: "Take good care of our two guests. We can talk again when we have time."

Seeing their target leave, Arthur and Cobb both wore serious expressions.

"Something's wrong, Cobb. He seems to have realized it."

Rumble rumble

The entire building then began to shake, as if a major earthquake had suddenly struck.

Cobb's pupils contracted sharply. He glanced down at his watch. "Damn it! What's going on?"

Click!

As the second hand moved, the scene changed again when Cobb looked up.

Inside a house, Cobb, Arthur, and Saito were all fast asleep.

And a parade was taking place outside, with a huge drum set beating incessantly, causing the windows of the surrounding houses to tremble.

It was very strange that such a loud noise could not wake the three people.

The nurse beside them checked on the three of them and muttered to himself, "Why did the celebration start early?"

Then, in a close-up of the dancers on the float, the scene shifts back to the place where the three of them were eating steak.

Cobb and Arthur were discussing how to deal with Saito when Mel, played by Charlize Theron, appeared nearby and stared intently at Cobb.

Charlize Theron wore an evening gown; her beautiful appearance had a slightly aloof air, but that didn't stop her from exuding an elegant aura.

Many male viewers immediately thought to themselves, "Yes, this is exactly what we want to see."

Eric's women were also watching this scene: Gadot, Ashley, Mary, Elizabeth, Little Liu, Big Liu, Arjun, and Daddario.

Everyone had to admit that she was truly beautiful, possessing an indescribable charm, the most perfect woman God had ever created.

Nicole, however, did not think so, because she knew that her performance in the movie was no less impressive than her opponent's.

Everyone will fall for her the moment she appears.

"Cobb, why is she here again?"

"Don't worry, I'll take care of it."

Cobb went out onto the balcony and met Mel's gaze.

"If I jumped from here, do you think I would survive?"

"You shouldn't be here!"

Mel turned her head to the side, her eyes clearly showing affection: "I thought you would miss me."

Cobb paused for a moment, his expression becoming somewhat complicated, and said with a guilty tone, "Of course I miss you."

"Are the children alright?"

"Children. Yes, yes, they are all fine."

"So what is your and Arthur's purpose? To steal Saito's secret?"

Cobb glanced at his watch again. "Mel, I don't have much time left. We can talk about this another time."

What followed was Bale's brilliant infiltration and assassination scene, where he took down the guards one by one with a silenced pistol.

However, even with a silencer, the noise of the gun still exists in reality, so it cannot achieve the level of silent assassination.

Please do not try this; these are all adaptations of literary works and films/TV series to serve the plot.

Finally, Bell opened Saito's safe and took what was inside.

Just when he thought the mission was complete, Mel and Saito ambushed him, and Arthur was also captured.

"Put down your weapons and what you have in your hands, Mr. Cobb."

Despite his companion having a gun to his head, Cobb didn't lower his weapon, but still asked resentfully, "Did Mel tell you? Or did you already know?"

Saito suddenly laughed: "Are you referring to your identities as thieves? Or are we in a dream?"

"Tell me who sent you? Who is targeting me?"

Seeing that the other party had seen through his act, Cobb simply stopped pretending: "Killing people in a dream is useless; you can't threaten me with that trick."

Mel smiled slightly: "Killing Arthur would be useless, it would only bring him back to his senses, but what if we just inflict pain on him?"

boom!

With one shot, Arthur's leg was pierced, and he immediately knelt on the ground in agony, howling.

"Arthur, the pain will remain in your mind forever. Judging from the style, this must be your dream. I hope Cobb will cherish your life and not treat it like he did mine."

Before Mel could finish speaking, Cobb raised his hand and shot Arthur dead.

Instantly, the entire building began to collapse, as if you had defeated the final boss in a game and were about to blow up the villain's lair.

At this point, the scenes begin to intersect between dreams and reality. In reality, Arthur is awake, while in the dream, Cobb is still reading Saito's secret in the collapsing building.

Seeing that Cobb was unable to regain consciousness, they used the Falling Technique on him.

But at the same time, Saito also regained consciousness, and a chaotic fight broke out in the room, in which Saito was subdued.

Only a dozen minutes have passed since the movie started, and the constant scene changes have already made most viewers quite confused.

I don't quite understand what's going on, I can only watch and see what happens.

Professional film critics, directors, and actors are generally able to figure out the cause-and-effect relationship.

"Inception is a truly novel idea and subject matter. Eric Cooper used a very complex approach this time."

"Actually, it's not too complicated. Once you go through those rapidly changing scenes, you'll find that it generally follows a linear narrative."

"Cobb and Arthur were hired to steal Saito's secret, the document in the safe."

"This also reveals that dreams have a host, and once the host dies, the dream collapses. Dying in a dream will also wake up."

"And what about Mel?"

"Mel and Cobb are definitely connected. They have children, probably as husband and wife? Or ex-wife? But now they're enemies."

"But Mel isn't among the people sleeping in the room, so why is she appearing in Arthur's dream to cause trouble?"

"That's what I'm also wondering about, but there will definitely be an explanation later."

But just when many professionals thought they had understood the plot, Saito suddenly burst into laughter in the scene.

"You can't fool me. This is not my safe house at all. Polyester carpet. I would never use such low-end stuff."

"This is still a dream, a dream within a dream. You've constructed two layers of dreams in an attempt to deceive me, hahahahaha."

Seeing that their plan had failed, the dream-stealing gang had no choice but to retreat.

The scene changed again, this time the group slept on a train, specifically the Japanese Shinkansen.

"Holy crap! A dream within a dream?! There's even this kind of concept!"

Many self-proclaimed experts suddenly felt cheated. The film was a mix of suspense, science fiction, and unpredictable twists, and they suddenly couldn't tell what kind of movie it was.

But whatever the genre, one thing is for sure: it's fucking amazing.

Some movies can captivate audiences with just the opening sequence, regardless of whether they understand the story or not; the point is simply to make them feel impressed. Inception is undoubtedly one of those movies.

"Heh. Charles, do you still think you understood it?"

"I'm not sure. The multi-layered dream setting creates countless possibilities for this story. It's a movie where no one can predict what will happen next."

"But there are many confusing plot points for us, and I can already imagine how the average viewer would feel."

"Don't jump to conclusions. This film is completely different from Eric Cooper's past style. Let's see how he tells this story well from here on out."

The movie's plot continues, with Cobb and Arthur being captured by Saito in reality, who then hires them to do his bidding.

You were able to steal secrets from my brain; this time, I want you to implant consciousness into the minds of your opponents.

Tempted by the prospect of returning home, Cobb eventually agreed and sought help from his father-in-law, who was also his mentor in entering the realm of dreams.

"If you can help my employer complete this task, I can go home and reunite with my children. You must help me."

"Cobb, you are fully capable of taking responsibility for everything yourself. You are an excellent dream architect."

"It used to be."

"What?"

"Mel Mel is back. She'll stop me from completing my mission. I can no longer be a Dream Weaver."

"Moreover, the last mission failed because the teammates I found at the last minute were unreliable. I need to assemble a stronger team. If I hadn't been desperate, I wouldn't have come to you for help."

"Okay, I do know someone who is an excellent dream expert."

Where is he/she?

"Don't rush. Ariredney is a proud woman. If you want her help, you must pass a test."

Cobb chuckled: "No problem, I'd like to test my new teammate's abilities too."

With her father-in-law's help, Nicole Kidman's character, Ari Ridene, makes her debut.

With her long, gold and red hair, wearing a wool coat and black lace gloves, her eyes and brows gave off an unapproachable vibe.

The three then fell asleep, and Cobb and Ariradine simultaneously entered Arthur's dream, where they would use it as their battlefield to settle their score.

On the bridge over the Seine, the two looked at each other face to face.

"I've found you, Ariradine, you've lost!"

A gentle breeze blew, ruffling Nicole's long hair: "You've got the wrong Cobb. It's not that you found me, it's that I think hide-and-seek is boring."

"We are all good at manipulating dreams, and we are both very interested in prying into the secrets of people's hearts."

"Now I really want to know your secret."

"What do you want to know?"

Why do we need two dream architects?

"Because I have to be in charge of the overall situation, I can't afford to be distracted."

"Hmph! That's just an excuse. Tell me the real reason, and I might consider helping you."

Ariel's desire to uncover the secret immediately touched a raw nerve with Cobb, who said with some annoyance, "Madam, you should be more polite."

"You invited me to do illegal things, yet you expect me to maintain respect, Cobb. Something must have happened to you."

"Shut up!"

Having his wounds repeatedly reopened, Cobb's anger was completely ignited. He suddenly swung his right hand, and the Seine River instantly surged with waves dozens of meters high, sweeping Nicole underwater.

The audience was stunned when they saw this scene on the big screen.

What's going on? How did he suddenly turn into Harry Potter? Does he know magic now?

"Cobb, in dreams we're all-powerful, without missions or scruples. Let me test you before Arthur's subconscious awakens!"

Ariel's voice rang out from all directions, and then the ground began to shake, with skyscrapers folding into various shapes to attack Cobb.

The bizarre and wonderful scene is like being inside a kaleidoscope, where everything around you is turning and twisting.

Despite being a straight building constructed of steel, under Nico's control, it resembled a Rubik's Cube being twisted, transformed, and pieced together at will, dazzling the viewer.

Le Corbusier remained calm in the face of the revitalized buildings, knowing that there was no need to worry about Mel, who was also a top-notch architect.

He stomped heavily under his foot, and the house that was about to flatten him suddenly began to twist in the opposite direction, as if a hand was twisting a Rubik's Cube backwards.

Cobb stared intently at Ariredney: "The best dream architect? Let me teach you what 'best' means!"

(End of this chapter)