Work Text:
FADE IN:
MUSIC CUE: "As Steals the Morn (Instrumental)" by George Frideric Handel
EXT. NIGHT SKY
A cloud passes in front of a thin crescent moon.
INT. ELEGANT HOTEL SUITE - NIGHT
Near an open window, the curtain billows. There are signs of a past struggle. Disheveled bedclothes, an upended room service table, strawberries, champagne flutes, and dinner for two are spread across the floor.
TITLE CARD: The Shade
OPENING CREDITS.
MUSIC ENDS.
EXT. COURTHOUSE, FRONT STEPS - DAY
A throng of news reporters stand on courthouse steps, with cameras and microphones at the ready.
The courthouse doors open. Two men step outside in tailored suits, side by side. The reporters press close to the men as they walk. A reporter thrusts a microphone in the face of the man on the left.
REPORTER #1
Mr. Cobb! Will you be making a statement?
The man on the left, COBB, is 35. He calmly turns away from the microphone and keeps walking down the steps.
ARTHUR
(muttering angrily to Cobb)
Fucking vultures.
COBB
(to the man on the right)
Be kind, Arthur. They're just doing their jobs.
REPORTER #2
Mr. Cobb, what do you have to say to the people who still think you killed your wife?
Cobb looks shaken by the question. The man on the right, ARTHUR, reaches over and slaps the microphone out of REPORTER #2's hand.
ARTHUR
(shouting at the reporters)
Justice was served today. That's all you need to write down. Now, leave this man alone.
Arthur and Cobb walk to the end of the steps, to the sidewalk, into-
INT. SILVER HATCHBACK
Arthur gets in the driver's seat, trying to cool down. Cobb gets in the passenger seat, looking somber. Arthur drives away from the courthouse, out into-
EXT. LOS ANGELES - DAY
The silver hatchback drives through palm-tree-lined streets under the bright sun.
INT. SILVER HATCHBACK
Arthur keeps driving.
COBB
(sadly)
Even after all this, they'll still suspect me. Forever. I'll say to a stranger, "Hello, my name is Dom Cobb," and they'll ask, "Oh, that Dom Cobb? Did you kill her?"
ARTHUR
Never mind those idiots. A jury of your peers believed in you. And Samuelson also specializes in defamation, if we need him for that.
COBB
No, you've already paid him more than you had to.
ARTHUR
Of course I had to. You needed the best lawyer that money could buy, and you couldn't get that alone.
COBB
How deep in the hole are you?
ARTHUR
Never mind that. Would you like to finally see her?
COBB
I would. Very much.
ARTHUR
I thought you might, so I already put the address in here.
Arthur taps the GPS mounted to the windshield.
COBB
You're a good friend, Arthur. You think of everything. (Beat) It's just as well that I missed the funeral. They'd all have asked.
ARTHUR
You didn't miss much. It was a small service. Pretty much just Stephen, Marie, the kids, and me.
COBB
And if Marie had had her way, it'd have been in France. Thank you for advocating on my behalf.
ARTHUR
The kids swayed her the most in the end. Better to bury her where the kids can more easily visit her. Especially now, when they're both so young.
COBB
Too young for all this.
EXT. CEMETERY - DAY
The silver hatchback drives through the front gates of a cemetery and into a visitor parking lot.
INT. SILVER HATCHBACK
Arthur parks the car. Cobb is about to exit, but Arthur raises a hand to stop him. Arthur reaches over to open the glove compartment and takes out a small tealight candle and a long stick lighter. He hands them both to Cobb, who accepts them gratefully.
COBB
You think of everything.
ARTHUR
Whoops. Not everything.
Arthur points to a signpost of cemetery rules. One rule reads "DO NOT LEAVE FIRES UNATTENDED."
COBB
We never saw that.
EXT. CEMETERY - DAY
Arthur and Cobb walk through gravestones, with Arthur leading. Arthur stops and indicates a grave a short distance away. He steps backward to give Cobb more privacy. Cobb nods in appreciation, then walks over to the grave. He crouches in front of the grave labelled "MALLORIE COBB - BELOVED DAUGHTER AND MOTHER."
COBB
Mal, if you can hear me, then please... Help me.
Cobb places the candle in the grass over the grave.
COBB
I'm so lost without you. Let me know that some part of you is still with me. Make me less alone.
Cobb lights the candle. With his head bowed, he wipes his tearful eyes. After he gathers himself, he stands up.
Cobb walks back where Arthur is standing. Arthur looks at the candle burning, then places a hand on Cobb's shoulder. They both turn and leave. They get in the car and drive away.
At the grave, the candle's flame extinguishes on its own, without a breeze. Thick black smoke billows out from the wick, a larger volume than natural.
SFX: BWOMMM
A ring of fire ignites the grass in the center of the grave.
A cemetery ATTENDANT sees the flames from afar and runs into a booth. When he exits the booth with a fire extinguisher in hand, the smoke and flames are gone, as if they had never been there.
Four sooty footprints lead away from the burnt ring in the grass, each step fainter than the last, in the same direction that Cobb and Arthur went.
EXT. COBB'S NEIGHBORHOOD - DAY
The silver hatchback drives down a street near Cobb's house.
INT. SILVER HATCHBACK
COBB
Are the kids still with Marie?
ARTHUR
Yep. You'll have the place to yourself for the night.
COBB
You aren't staying?
EXT. COBB'S HOUSE - DAY
The silver hatchback pulls into Cobb's driveway.
INT. SILVER HATCHBACK
ARTHUR
It's a few miles to my hotel. If I leave now, I can get stuck in only half as much traffic.
COBB
All the time you've been in town, you haven't been staying here?
ARTHUR
It's your house.
COBB
You have a key.
ARTHUR
For emergencies. Not to move in without you.
COBB
Stay for dinner, at least.
INT. COBB'S HOUSE
Montage of Cobb's craftsman-style house, now near-empty.
COBB (O.S.)
Good afternoon. I'd like to order two large pizzas.
Low angle shots of ceilings and doorways.
COBB (O.S.)
One Mediterranean Classic and one...
INT. KITCHEN, COBB'S HOUSE
On the phone, Cobb looks expectantly for Arthur's input.
Arthur taps a finger at one line of the takeout menu in front of them for a restaurant named Gio.
Cobb looks doubtful. He covers the phone.
COBB
But what do you want on it?
ARTHUR
(whispers)
Cheese.
Unimpressed, Cobb returns to the phone.
COBB
And one cheese pizza. No other toppings... Delivery... 215 South Grand Ave. Thank you.
Cobb hangs up.
COBB
(disgusted)
Plain cheese pizza? Gio is a gourmet boutique. Cheese pizza evokes ball pits and animatronics.
ARTHUR
Exactly. It's so the kids can eat the leftovers later.
COBB
How thoughtful. But kids become picky eaters if you don't encourage them to try new foods. You have to broaden their palates.
ARTHUR
You say that because you're their father. I'm their fun pseudo-uncle. It's my job to spoil them.
COBB
(sadly)
Their real uncle won't return my calls.
ARTHUR
(with levity)
How's your other wine list these days?
COBB
Other?
ARTHUR
The grape kind, not the problem kind. You earned your freedom today. You deserve to celebrate. C'mon, let's pop a cork.
MUSIC CUE: "I Don't Wanna Miss a Thing (Cover)" by Pomplamoose
EXT. EVENING SKY
The sun hangs low near the mountains.
EXT. LOS ANGELES ROADS - EVENING
A delivery car drives down LA streets. A sign on the roof advertises Gio, the same as Cobb's takeout menu.
INT. DELIVERY CAR
The DELIVERY DRIVER, wearing white earbuds, hums along to the music playing on his iPod that's propped in a cup holder. He drums his thumbs on the steering wheel.
DELIVERY DRIVER
(singing)
Cause even when I dream of you, the sweetest dream will never do, I'd still miss you babe, and I don't wanna miss a thing...
There's a curve in the road ahead. But before he reaches the curve...
SFX: BWOMMM
The entire windshield turns black, as if a solid shadow has fallen over it.
He slams on the brakes. The car spins out and scrapes against the roadside guardrail. With the impact, his earbuds pop out.
MUSIC ENDS.
He is shaken up, but otherwise unharmed. He breathes a sigh of relief.
A horn HONKS. A TRUCK is heading straight for him. He braces for impact, but right before the hit-
INT. LIVING ROOM, COBB'S HOUSE
A cork POPS. Cobb pours himself wine.
Arthur TINGS a fork against his glass of water.
Cobb and Arthur sit together on Cobb's couch.
ARTHUR
(singing)
For he's a jolly good fellow, for he's a jolly good fellow, for he's a jolly good fellow, which nobody can deny.
Cobb drinks deeply.
COBB
This tastes of hemlock. But I survived the outcome of my trial, even if that doesn't feel true right now. That great thinker was innocent of causing corruption, for, as he knew, to corrupt is to risk self-corruption, as one must avoid. But fighting allegations of corruption also corrupts. I feel wrong, in having been wronged.
ARTHUR
Dom, this isn't ancient Greece. This is California. The land of dreamers. Gold miners. Actors mopping floors while they wait for callbacks. And I know you're one of those dreamers. Deep down, you know you have a happy future ahead of you. You're a good man. The jurors believed in you. I believe in you.
COBB
And I believe I should call the pizza place and ask for a late delivery discount.
ARTHUR
Don't bother. I wasn't that hungry, anyway.
COBB
So much for tipping, if the service isn't worth it.
Cobb stands up.
INT. KITCHEN, COBB'S HOUSE
Cobb stands over the stove, boiling rice and heating a saucepan.
Cobb spoons rice into two bowls and pours sauce over them.
Arthur fills his glass with tap water.
Cobb pours himself another glass of wine. The bottle is nearly empty.
Cobb and Arthur eat.
COBB
It's not pizza, but it eats.
ARTHUR
Delivery boy must've been a new hire. Got lost in the hills.
When their bowls are empty, Arthur stands up.
ARTHUR
Well, that's my time.
COBB
You shouldn't be on the road in your condition.
ARTHUR
You mean sober? I've been drinking water all night. You're the one who's drunk.
COBB
Still, just stay the night.
ARTHUR
Fine. Who knows what I'd run into on the road this late, anyway.
INT. GUEST BATHROOM, COBB'S HOUSE
Arthur brushes his teeth, in view of the mirror above the sink. He leans forward to spit toothpaste in the sink. When he rises back up...
SFX: BWOMMM
There's nothing behind him.
INT. COBB'S BEDROOM, COBB'S HOUSE
An empty king-sized bed with silk sheets.
Cobb puts on boxers and gets into one half of the bed. He turns off a nightstand lamp. He settles into bed, alone.
EXT. NIGHT SKY
The night sky, with no moon in sight.
EXT. COBB'S HOUSE - NIGHT
All the lights in the house are off.
There's no one visible at the front door.
INT. UPSTAIRS HALLWAY, COBB'S HOUSE
Slowly creep down a hallway, to an open bedroom door.
INT. GUEST BEDROOM, COBB'S HOUSE
From the room's doorway, slowly creep inside the room.
Arthur sleeps on his back in a double bed with cotton sheets.
Slowly approach the foot of the bed, travel up Arthur's body, and stay close on Arthur's sleeping face.
SFX: BWOMMM
Something black covers his mouth, as if a solid shadow has fallen over it.
INT. COBB'S BEDROOM, COBB'S HOUSE
Cobb tosses and turns fitfully.
Someone else's hair falls in his face. He shifts to roll against the woman in bed with him.
He drapes an arm over her. He spoons her close to him.
He smells her hair and sighs contentedly. He opens his eyes slightly, happy.
SFX: BWOMMM
His eyes widen as he remembers.
Alarmed, he scrambles backward, away from her, and falls out of bed.
He stands up, facing the window, with his back to the bed. He turns slowly around.
MAL is sitting in bed, looking at him innocently. She looks just like he remembers her.
COBB
I'm dreaming.
MAL
No.
COBB
But... how?
MAL
You went where dead ones are buried and you dared to bare your soul. Bravery like that should be rewarded, no?
Cobb stares at her, concerned.
She looks back calmly.
His concerned look is replaced with one of curiosity.
He slowly gets back into bed with her. He cups her cheek with his palm.
COBB
You feel warm. Alive.
He leans in close to her.
COBB
You smell like you.
He kisses her, first tentatively, then with passion, then with hungry desperation.
COBB
It's you! It's really you!
He relaxes against the bed pillows with her, holding her close, smiling and laughing with joy.
COBB
Oh, I'm finally not alone anymore!
MAL
That had been false. But auspiciously, I have ways of making things true.
COBB
What ways?
MAL
You asked to be less alone. But after Mallorie died, you weren't alone. You used to have Arthur. First, there was the matter of making you alone. And now, I have made you less alone.
FADE OUT.
CREDITS.
END.