Dom Cobb (Leonardo DiCaprio) and colleagues Arthur (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) and Nash (Lucas Haas) failed in a dream stealing operation against Japanese energy tycoon Saito (Watanabe Ken) and were used by Saito. Saito coerced and induced Cobb, who was wanted and exiled abroad, to help him split up his competitor's company and took extreme measures to plant the idea of abandoning the family company and establishing his own business in the deep subconsciousness of his only heir Robert Fisher (Cillian Murphy). In order to return to the United States, Cobb secretly turned to his father-in-law Miles (Michael Caine), and absorbed the young dream designer Ariadne (Ellen Page), dream actor Ames (Tom Hardy) and pharmacist Joseph (Dileep Rao) to join the action. In the progressive dreams, Cobb not only has to deal with Fisher's subconscious instinctive resistance, but also has to face the destruction of his late wife Mel (Marion Cotillard). The actual situation is far more dangerous than expected...