CAYOM YEAR 8 - PART I - MOVIE SUBMISSION

[Alpha]

This is the thread to submit films for Year 8 of CAYOM 3.0! The release calendar is below. It's pre-filled with the IMAX films from the Advance Schedule Thread, but you will still need to make posts for those movies with details about them. You can also submit your fillers here. Note that you are not allowed to post movies in this thread until they are completed - with full cast and release info and however complete a plot summary you plan on giving them. Keep in mind that directors are limited to one major film or two small films a year and that actors should be limited to a realistic number of projects as well.

 

To submit a film, make a post in this thread including the relevant information.

Required info includes:

Title:

Director:

Genre:

Release Date:

Major Cast:

Theater Count:

MPA Rating:

Runtime:

Production Budget:

Plot Summary: (Can be as short or detailed as you wish)

 

If you do not have all of this information finalized, you should not post the film in this thread until you do.

 

You can also optionally include other relevant information like producers, composers, the name of the releasing studio (if you are using your own fictional studios), special formats for release (like IMAX or 3D), even custom taglines or posters if you wish. None of this is required to post your film and it can be added after you first post if you so choose.

 

Limited releases are allowed, and they can expand into additional theaters on a week-by-week basis. You will need to specify when the film expands and how many theaters it goes into each week, up until the final expansion that is the widest it will go.

 

I've included some typical midweek release dates around holidays and such. If you want to release a movie on a weekday in some other week, go right ahead and just specify it in the post for that movie. I'll add that day to the release calendar.

 

This post will be updated regularly with new additions. If available, you can click on the title of a film in the release calendar to go straight to its post.

 

The deadline for submissions is 11:59 PM EST on May 3rd, 2021.

 

Titles listed in green are finished.

 

 

Friday, January 5th

Losers Weepers - Thriller/Black Comedy - Directed by Liz Friedlander - R - $10m budget - 2,942 theaters

Friday, January 12th (4-Day MLK Weekend)

Gunman Clive - Comedy/Western - Directed by Shane Black - PG-13 - $50m budget - 3,100 theaters

The Lost Empire - Sci-Fi/Action/Adventure - Directed by Julia Hart - PG-13 - $145m budget - 3,893 theaters - In IMAX (2 weeks)

Friday, January 19th

White Wyvern - Drama/Magical Realism - Directed by Drew Goddard - PG-13 - $25m budget - 2,250 theaters

Friday, January 26th

Home Invasion: Part III - Hunted - Action/Sci-Fi/Thriller - Directed by Joe Carnahan - R - $35m budget - 3,029 theaters

Friday, February 2nd

Christie Monteiro - Martial-Arts/Action/Sci-Fi/Fantasy/Romance - Directed by Melina Matsoukas - PG-13 - $40m budget - 3,215 theaters

Friday, February 9th

Romance Road - Romantic Comedy - Directed by Tina Gordon - PG-13 - $30m budget - 3,251 theaters
A Very Adam & Cindy Valentine - Romantic Comedy - Directed by Eric Dean Stanton - PG - $7m budget - 3,031 theaters

Friday, February 16th (4-Day President’s Day Weekend)

Funny Business - Animation & Live-Action Hybrid/Comedy - Directed by Albert White - R - $30m budget - 2,545 theaters

Pokémon: The Case of The Orange Outrage - Fantasy/Adventure - Directed by Uta Briesewitz - PG - $175m budget - 4,115 theaters - In IMAX (2 weeks)

Friday, February 23rd
Holland Hannah - Drama/Action - Directed by Anton Corbijn - R - $7.5m budget - 1,815 theaters

Friday, March 1st

Fable - Fantasy - Directed by Michael Dougherty - PG-13 - $110m budget - 3,765 theaters

Flightless Bird: The Downfall of the Boeing 737 MAX - Documentary - Directed by Josh Kriegman and Elyse Steinberg - PG-13 - $10m budget - 3,015 theaters

Friday, March 8th

Recompense - Action/Thriller - Directed by Jean-Stéphane Sauvaire - R - $20m budget - 2,765 theater

Friday, March 15th

MEG - Concert - Directed by Bruce Hendricks - PG-13 - $7m budget - 2,450 theaters

Friday, March 22nd

Far Cry - Action/Thriller - Directed by Paul Verhoeven - R - $130m budget - 3,640 theaters - In IMAX (1 week)

Friday, March 29th (Easter Weekend)

Citizen Kane: A VeggieTales Movie - Family/Animation - Directed by Phil Vischer and Mike Nawrocki - G - $20m budget - 3,300 theaters

Kings of the 6 - Sports Documentary - Directed by Sean Menard - PG-13 - $0m budget - 2,500 theaters

Tyler Perry's 2 Big Families - Dramedy - Directed by Tyler Perry - PG-13 - $15m budget - 3,120 theaters

Friday, April 5th 

Numbers Theory - Thriller - Directed by Jeremy Rush - PG-13 - $35m budget - 3,416 theaters

Friday, April 12th

Doc Dreams - Documentary - Directed by Steve James - PG-13 - $1m budget - 2,021 theaters
The Idiots - Sports Documentary - Directed by Casey Affleck - PG-13 - $7.5m budget - 2,375 theaters

Snow Monkeys - Nature Documentary - Directed by Drew Fellman - G - $5m budget - 2,450 theaters

Friday, April 19th
No Mercy - Action/Horror - Directed by Louis Leterrier - R - $50m budget - 3,245 theaters

Up in the Sky - Sci-Fi/Drama - Directed by Hanelle Culpepper - PG - $35m budget - 3,112 theaters

Friday, April 26th

The Insect God - Science-Fiction/Horror/2D Animation - Directed by Daniel Ulrich McBroom - PG-13 - $8m budget - 1,987 theaters

Friday, May 3rd
Mass Effect: Revelation - Sci-Fi - Directed by Olatunde Osunsanmi - PG-13 - $200m budget - 4,273 theaters - In IMAX (2 weeks)

Friday, May 10th (Mother’s Day Weekend)

Walking with Dinosaurs: The Cinematic Experience - Documentary - Directed by Richard Diamond - PG - $15m budget - 1,977 theaters

Wet Willy - Horror/Comedy - Directed by Josh Greenbaum - R - $10m budget - 2,745 theaters

Friday, May 17th
Monster Bug Wars: The Spider Path - Mockumentary/Horror/Black Comedy - Directed by Nelson McCormick - PG - $4m budget - 2,678 theaters

Monster Bug Wars: The Scorpion Path - Mockumentary/Horror/Black Comedy - Directed by Karen Gaviola - PG - $4m budget - 2,678 theaters

Rhino Riders 2 - Family Sports - Directed by Dean DeBlois - PG - $120m budget - 4,012 theaters

Friday, May 24th (4-Day Memorial Day Weekend)

Dealer's Choice - Crime/Thriller - Directed by Cory Finley - R - $20m budget - 2,425 theaters

Heartman - Horror/Thriller - Directed by Nia DeCosta - R - $30m budget - 3,666 theaters

Sandboy (Limited Release) - Fantasy/Drama - Directed by Benh Zeitlin - PG - $10m budget - 16 theaters

Friday, May 31st
Sandboy (Limited Expansion #1) - Fantasy/Drama - Directed by Benh Zeitlin - PG - $10m budget - 106 theaters

The Wild Thornberrys - Adventure/Family/Comedy - Directed by Beth McCarthy-Miller - PG - $140m budget - 4,352 theaters - In IMAX (2 weeks)

Friday, June 7th

Everything I Never Told You - Drama - Directed by Chloé Zhao - R - $25m budget - 2,153 theaters

Sandboy (Limited Expansion #2) - Fantasy/Drama - Directed by Benh Zeitlin - PG - $10m budget - 534 theaters

Friday, June 14th (Father’s Day Weekend)

Bailey Buckets: A Hoops Story - Sports/Dramedy - Directed by Charles Stone III - PG-13 - $18m budget - 2,879 theaters

Sandboy (Wide Release) - Fantasy/Drama - Directed by Benh Zeitlin - PG - $10m budget - 3,215 theaters - In IMAX (2 weeks)

Friday, June 21st

Dave-Day - Claymation/War/Dramedy - Directed by Eric Fogel - R - $15m budget - 2,659 theaters

Friday, June 28th

Mighty Fall - Live-Action & Animation Hybrid/Sci-Fi/Mystery/Dramedy/Action/Adventure - Directed by Alex Hirsch - PG-13 - $175m budget - 4,012 theaters - In IMAX (2 weeks)

 

Tuesday, July 2nd

Meme Th(II)evies - Comedy - Directed by Jake Szymanski - PG-13 - $20m budget - 3,235 theaters

Wednesday, July 3rd
The Gnashing - Horror - Directed by Trey Edward Shults - R - $25m budget - 2,735 theaters

Friday, July 5th (5-Day Independence Day Weekend)

Eminem-esque - Documentary/Comedy - Directed by Claudia Pond Eyley and Dan Salmon - PG-13 - $2m budget - 1,564 theaters

Friday, July 12th
Fullmetal Alchemist: A Tale of Two Brothers - Action/Adventure - Directed by Scott Derrickson - PG-13 - $115m budget - 3,825 theaters - In IMAX (2 weeks)

Friday, July 19th
Animal Crossing - CG Animation - Directed by Steve Martino - G - $75m budget - 3,450 theaters

The Exchange: European Studies - Comedy - Directed by Sean Anders - PG-13 - $25m budget - 3,467 theaters

Friday, July 26th
Static Shock: Frozen Summer - Superhero/Coming-of-Age - Directed by F. Gary Gray - PG-13 - $135m budget - 4,202 theaters - In IMAX (2 weeks)

Friday, August 2nd

The Wave Heist - Romance/Action/Thriller - Directed by Luiz Enrique Rios - PG-13 - $40m budget - 3,202 theaters

Friday, August 9th
Frankenstein Jr. - Action-Adventure/Sci-Fi/Comedy - Directed by Peter Ramsey - PG - $45m budget - 3,525 theaters

The Space Between Trees - Mystery/Crime Drama - Directed by Debra Granik - R - $6m budget - 3,124 theaters

Friday, August 16th

Strangers in the Town - Period Black Comedy - Directed by Claire Scanlon - PG-13 - $25m budget - 3,050 theaters

Friday, August 23rd
New Tricks - Comedy/Drama - Directed by Stephen Chbosky - PG - $80m budget - 3,020 theaters

The Outback - Nature Documentary - Directed by Alistair Fothergill - G - $5m budget - 2,450 theaters

Friday, August 30th (4-Day Labor Day Weekend)

Learning to Care (Limited Release) - Naturalistic Dramedy - Directed by Brett Haley - PG-13 - $2m budget - 4 theaters

Slash, Splat, Boom! - Slasher/Thriller/Satire - Directed by Sophia Takal - R - $13m budget - 2,897 theaters

Soar - Sports/Biography - Directed by Kasi Lemmons - PG - $20m budget - 2,350 theaters

Friday, September 6th

Learning to Care (Limited Expansion #1) - Naturalistic Dramedy - Directed by Brett Haley - PG-13 - $2m budget - 25 theaters

Panzer Dragoon - Fantasy - Directed by Roar Utahag - PG-13 - $175m budget - 3,561 theaters - In IMAX (2 weeks)

Friday, September 13th

Floodbath - Disaster/Thriller/Drama - Directed by Leigh Whannell - PG-13 - $12m budget - 3,003 theaters

Learning to Care (Limited Expansion #2) - Naturalistic Dramedy - Directed by Brett Haley - PG-13 - $2m budget - 103 theaters

Friday, September 20th

Learning to Care (Wide Release) - Naturalistic Dramedy - Directed by Brett Haley - PG-13 - $2m budget - 645 theaters

The Million-Dollar Jacket - Romantic Comedy / Action - Directed by Michael Dowse - PG-13 - $20m budget - 2,960 theaters

The War Between Ants - Documentary - Directed by John-Paul Davidson - PG-13 - $7.5m budget - 2,652 theaters

Friday, September 27th 

Green Arrow: The Ninth Circle - Superhero/Action/Thriller - Directed by Paul Greengrass - PG-13 - $115m budget - 4,017 theaters - In IMAX (1 week)

Learning to Care (Wide Release) - Naturalistic Dramedy - Directed by Brett Haley - PG-13 - $2m budget - 2,045 theaters

Friday, October 4th
Learning to Care (Wide Expansion #2) - Naturalistic Dramedy - Directed by Brett Haley - PG-13 - $2m budget - 2,765 theaters

Olive's Hallowed Eve - Family/Musical - Directed by Jemaine Clement - PG - $65m budget - 4,037 theaters - In IMAX (2 weeks)

Friday, October 11th

Out of Order: The Decline of the Arcade - Documentary - Directed by James Swirsky and Lisanne Pajot - PG - $3m budget - 1,500 theaters

World of Trouble - Dystopian Drama - Directed by Jason Bateman - R - $40m budget - 3,419 theaters

Friday, October 18th

The Tale of a Guinea Pig - Comedy - Directed by Paul Hoen - PG - $7m budget - 3,072 theaters

Friday, October 25th

Dirty Hands - Drama/Thriller/Political - Directed by Dan Gilroy - R - $40m budget - 3,270 theaters

Friday, November 1st
Everything We Miss (Limited Release) - Traditional Animation/Dark Drama - Directed by Michaël Dudok de Wit - R - $15m budget - 4 theaters

Returning from Hell (Limited Release) - Drama - Directed by Niki Caro - R - $6.5m budget - 5 theaters

The Three Caballeros Ride Again - Animation/Adventure/Drama - Directed by Matt Danner - R - $70m budget - 3,000 theaters

Friday, November 8th (Veteran’s Day Weekend)
The Bronx is Burning - Historical Sports Drama - Directed by Martin Scorsese - R - $75m budget - 3,504 theaters

Everything We Miss (Limited Expansion #1) - Traditional Animation/Dark Drama - Directed by Michaël Dudok de Wit - R - $15m budget - 65 theaters

The Last Airbender: The Boy in the Iceberg - Fantasy/Adventure - Directed by Jon M. Chu - PG - $225m budget - 4,121 theaters - In IMAX (2 weeks)

Returning from Hell (Limited Expansion #1) - Drama - Directed by Niki Caro - R - $6.5m budget - 20 theaters

Friday, November 15th
Everything We Miss (Limited Expansion #2) - Traditional Animation/Dark Drama - Directed by Michaël Dudok de Wit - R - $15m budget - 375 theaters

Returning from Hell (Limited Expansion #2) - Drama - Directed by Niki Caro - R - $6.5m budget - 50 theaters

The World That We Knew - Historical Fiction - Directed by Luca Guadagnino - R - $42.5m budget - 2,865 theaters

Friday, November 22nd
Everything We Miss (Wide Release) - Traditional Animation/Dark Drama - Directed by Michaël Dudok de Wit - R - $15m budget - 1,015 theaters

Loving Shadow and Light - Family/Comedy - Directed by Lasse Hallström - PG - $20m budget - 3,201 theaters

Returning from Hell (Limited Expansion #3) - Drama - Directed by Niki Caro - R - $6.5m budget - 100 theaters

Wednesday, November 27th (5-Day Thanksgiving Weekend)

The Castaways - Superhero/Sci-Fi - Directed by The Duffer Brothers - PG-13 - $185m budget - 4,125 theaters - In IMAX (2 weeks)

Everything We Miss (Wide Expansion #2) - Traditional Animation/Dark Drama - Directed by Michaël Dudok de Wit - R - $15m budget - 3,135 theaters

Returning from Hell (Limited Expansion #4) - Drama - Directed by Niki Caro - R - $6.5m budget - 500 theaters

The Turkey Squad: The Fred Durst Cut - Action/Sci-Fi/Comedy/Parody - Directed by Fred Durst - PG-13 - $2.5m budget - 1,991 theaters

Friday, December 6th
As Fast As I Can - Family/Sport/Crime - Directed by Alfonso Cuarón - PG-13 - $30m budget - 3,100 theaters

Christmas Shopping - Dramedy - Directed by Noah Baumbach - PG-13 - $11m budget - 2,030 theaters

Returning from Hell (Wide Release) - Drama - Directed by Niki Caro - R - $6.5m budget - 1,112 theaters

Friday, December 13th
Dreams - Anthology/Sci-Fi/Fantasy/Action/Comedy/Drama/Horror/Live-Action & Animation - Multiple Directors - PG-13 - $100m budget - 3,563 theaters

Returning from Hell (Wide Expansion #1) - Drama - Directed by Niki Caro - R - $6.5m budget - 2,253 theaters

Friday, December 20th

Endless Animation's The Un-title-able Squirrel Girl Sequel - CG-2D Animation/Superhero/Comedy - Directed by Lauren MacMullan - PG - $135m budget - 4,320 theaters - In IMAX (2 weeks)

Wednesday, December 25th (Christmas Weekend)

Sins of Their Fathers - Sci-Fi - Directed by Kenneth Branagh - PG-13 - $125m budget - 3,810 theaters
Wii Fit - Drama - Directed by Peter Sollett - PG-13 - $10m budget - 2,450 theaters

Edited May 5, 2021 by Alpha

[Alpha]

HOLLAND HANNAH

 

Release Date: February 23rd, Y8

Directed by: Anton Corbijn

Cinematography: Martijn van Broekhuizen

Edited by: Claire Simpson

Genre: Drama / Action

Studio: Alpha Pictures & Film4 Productions

Shooting Format: Arri Alexa Mini (3.4K Digital)

Aspect Ratio: 2.39:1

Film Formats: 2K DCP, 4K DCP

Audio Formats: 5.1, 7.1, Dolby Atmos

Production Budget: $7.5 million

Theater Count: 1,815

MPAA Rating: R

Running Time: 90 minutes

 

Main Cast:

Elizabeth Debicki as Hannah

Omar Sy as Dominique

Adam Brody as Gordon
Michiel Huisman as Ruben

The rest of the characters are performed by unknowns, mostly Dutch actors.

 

Premise: Set in the city of Amsterdam at the height of the mid-1990s Eurodance craze, an Australian contract killer (Debicki) is hired by members of the Dutch mob to assassinate a former lover of hers (Sy) that was caught skimming from their funds.

 

Full Synopsis (around 1.9k words)

 

1999. As The Breeders’ cover of “Happiness is a Warm Gun” plays, a plane flies above a European city during the late afternoon. A young steely-eyed blonde woman, Hannah (Elizabeth Debicki) reads a copy of Frantz Fanon’s The Wretched of the Earth, and then glances out her window as the flight crew informs the passengers that they'll be arriving in Amsterdam shortly. The song continues to play as she walks through the airport with a confident swagger pulling her carry-on bag, looking at the various advertisements and stores inside the airport with a sense of familiarity. At some point, as she goes down an escalator, she sees a well-dressed man named Ruben (Michiel Huisman) waiting at the bottom, who waves to her.

As a chauffeur drives them throughout the city, "This Is Your Night" by Amber plays on the radio. Ruben describes all the various landmarks and sights to see in Amsterdam (we can tell that he's somewhat attracted to her) as well as the city nightlife, but Hannah replies that she's been to the city multiple times in the past, and is already quite familiar with it. Ruben hopes that she can enjoy her visit while she's "taking care of business." In the evening, they arrive at a strip club, where a DJ plays some trance music. Ruben continues to act as a tour guide of sorts of his establishment, trying to call Hannah's attention to the meticulous club design and the choreography of the dancers, and Hannah tries to hide her disinterest. They make their way to the table of an older gentleman named Rudolf, who waits patiently for them to sit down and get settled in.

As the three's conversation progresses, we can infer from some small details that Hannah is a contract killer, and that Ruben and Rudolf are both members of the penose, the Dutch equivalent of the mob based in Amsterdam, and that she's been hired for a job. Ruben shows a picture of a man named Dominique (Omar Sy), and explains that while Dominique used to be a valuable partner, word is that he's been skimming from the mob's funds in order to start a rival operation, and they want Hannah to take care of him. While they don’t know where he is, they know that his associate, a pimp/bookie named Martijn might know. Ruben maintains his stoic business attitude, Rudolf angrily laments that they never should've gotten involved with him in the first place, and that he had a feeling from the moment he met him that he would turn. Hannah affirms that she can get the job done, no questions asked, and Ruben thanks her, telling her they've booked her a hotel room at the Amstel. Rudolf tells her that he hopes her jetlag wears off, because he wants the job done quickly.

She arrives at the hotel room, and after unpacking her belongings, takes another look at the photo of Dominique.

1993. Same city, different time. (These flashback sequences feature more handheld camera work, as well as more frequent cuts, shooting in wide angles and a less linear presentation.) As “No Limit” by 2 Unlimited plays loudly throughout an active nightclub, Hannah takes a shot at the bar, repeatedly eyeing the hallway to the office. Across the bar, Dominique, in the flesh, eyes her. When she orders another, Dominique corrects the bartender: 2 shots, both on him. He walks over to Hannah and begins to hit on her, but Hannah at first rejects his advances, commenting that his English isn’t very good in French. Dominique becomes a bit flustered, but keeps at it, and Hannah says that he’ll let him buy her one drink if he goes away afterwards.

They walk over to a table with drinks and begin to open up about themselves as the music changes. Throughout their conversation, we learn that Dominique is the son of Senegalese immigrants and that his time in Amsterdam is his first vacation in a while, while Hannah is from Australia and is here for business reasons (still eyeing the office hallway). As they discuss their home lives, they find a commonality when the subject switches to their domineering parents, and the feeling of having no autonomy in their personal lives and Hannah begins to feel a twinge of connection to him.

Dominique asks if she wants to head onto the dancefloor, and Hannah, beginning to feel energized, says she needs to make a quick trip. Walking down the hallway, she turns into the bathroom, and takes some ecstasy, before storming into the office. An older man struggles to navigate the menus on his desktop computer with several large bills and an ashtray on his desk. Hannah pulls out a gun and shoots him in the thigh. As he cries out in pain, Hannah presses down on his wound tells the man that he’s had too many chances to pay up. She shoots him in the chest, killing him, and stuffs the money in her jacket. She heads back out as the Haddaway song overtakes all other sound in the film. She goes up to Dominique, and in a state of energized ecstasy, begins to make out with him. The two dance amidst the crowd, as a swirl of neon lights and smoke begins to overtake our vision.

"What is Love" continues as Hannah rides on the back of a motorcycle, which swerves through the streets of Amsterdam. They have sex in Dominique’s hotel room, and embrace each other lovingly, intercut with a montage showcasing some of their time in the city during their stay. Late into the night (no soundtrack), Hannah and Dominique lie in bed, talking more about themselves. Both wonder how long they have to feel the kind of excitement they experienced tonight, and Dominique responds that the time they’re living in isn’t built to last, which is why he’s living in the moment, and she should too.

In the present, Hannah navigates her way through De Wallen, a known “red-light” district, and makes her way to the brothel owned by Martijn, under the pretense of applying for work as a prostitute. Getting the chance to meet one on one with Martijn, a man with some sleazy qualities personality-wise, she quickly switches into hitman mode, beginning to pressure him into revealing where Dominique is by aiming a staple gun at his hand. As she starts firing, Martijn relents and reveals his address in the Jordaan. Before she leaves, Martijn taunts her as he clutches his hand, saying that he still talks about her, and asks that he not break his heart.

Walking out of Martijn’s office, Hannah is ambushed by Martijn’s bodyguard. The fight is taken to the bathroom stalls, where Hannah is cornered. However, despite his taller stature and larger build, she out-maneuvers him and lands some considerable blows on him. She bashes the bodyguard’s head against the bottom of the toilet, and walks out calmly even as the patrons notice her hands covered in blood.Ready to head to her destination, Martijn’s words echo in her head and she recalls her earlier memories of Dominique. Feeling exhausted, she finds a place to wipe her hands clean, and staggers into the night.

Hannah ends up at the same nightclub she was in back in 1993, and wanders through the crowded space looking alienated from the rest of the dancers. She watches the faces of everyone that she passes by, looking happy and carefree. She finds another sullen face standing amidst the crowd, Gordon (Adam Brody), and walks up to him and asks if he knows the song. He replies that it’s “Better Off Alone” by Alice Deejay, and that he should know since the label he works for is promoting the single in the US. She asks if they want to go somewhere else, and he passively agrees.

In a private room, they both smoke a joint as they discuss current events while the bass from the music booms from the other room. Gordon talks about how his fruitless attempts to keep his mother to not invest in a bunker for Y2K, while Hannah jokes that she welcomes the techno-apocalypse with open arms (she lies about her profession, claiming to be a computer company executive). Gordon then laments that he finds his current job unsatisfying, and that he expected to be a musician and ended up being someone who manages musicians to his disappointment. They then discuss that the paths they’ve taken in life haven’t led them to where they wanted to be. At some point, Hannah begins to cry, admitting to Gordon that she thinks she’s a terrible person. Gordon tries to comfort her, and he offers to spend the night with her.

They walk through the town, continuing to talk, until a van pulls up. Several men exit and grab the two of them. Hannah struggles as Gordon is beaten, while one of the men informs Hannah that their boss (Dominique) knows about the planned hit, and says that they’re here to deliver a message. She fights them off, and guns them down. In her hotel room, she tends to Gordon’s wounds, and tells him she can get him a plane ticket for her flight tomorrow back to Australia, and asks him to meet her at the airport. He accepts, and they kiss.

In the morning, Hannah leaves to go to Dominique’s location. She approaches his doorstep with each step feeling like an eternity, and keeps her gun close to her. She enters the apartment slowly, but Dominique knows that she’s there. He calmly greets her, apologizing if his men caused too much trouble last night, but that hopefully she’s impressed by what he’s made of himself since she last saw him. He offers her a cup of coffee, but she refuses.

They begin to have a conversation, trying to catch up amidst the tense atmosphere. Dominique tries to woo her back, saying that he doesn’t believe their night years ago was just a one-time thing, but Hannah says that she doesn’t see a future for them, and that there’s too many factors now forcing them apart. They argue for a moment about whatever romantic feelings they may or may not still have, until things simmer down once more. Dominique asks what’s stopping her from accepting him back, and Hannah says that she has commitments that prevent her from doing so. She admits that she still might have feelings deep down for him, but says that he needs to look at himself and look at her, and ask himself what makes him thing they could have ever been together longer. They share a silence, before Hannah asks for that cup of coffee he offered. Somberly, he gets up to make it, and Hannah whips out his pistol during his moment of vulnerability and shoots him in the head.

Later in the day, Hannah calls from a payphone at the airport and tells an unknown person that the job is done. She finds Gordon at the terminal. On the plane ride to Australia, she lies back in her chair next to Gordon during the takeoff. She glances out the window, and for a split second she sees Dominique on the runway, watching as the plane takes off. She blinks, and he’s gone.

 

Edited November 2, 2020 by Alpha

[YM!]

Green Arrow: The Ninth Circle 

Studio: Endless Entertainment 

DC Entertainment 

Release Date: 9/27/Y8

Genre: Superhero/Action/Thriller

Director: Paul Greengrass

Producer: Erica Lee

Writers: Derek Kolstad and Chris Collins

Score: Henry Jackman

Rating: PG-13

Budget: $115M

Theater Count: 4,017

Format: 2D, 3D, Dolby Cinema and IMAX

Runtime: 127 minutes

Charlie Hunman as Oliver Queen/Green Arrow

Morena Baccarin as Felicity Smoak

Lana Condor as Artemis Crock-Nyugen/Arsenal

Blair Underwood as John Diggle

Aiden Turner as Malcolm Merlyn

Matt Damon as Lawrence Crock/Sportsmaster

Benecio Del Toro as Circlemaster

Richard Kind as Doug Miller

Previous Film:

(Y6:) Green Arrow - $53,569,422/$160,250,223/$515,760,220

 

Spoiler

We open in a giant room full of monitors as figures with black masks over their heads known as The Ninth Circle, led by the Circlemaster (Benecio Del Toro). The figures discuss adding a new member to their little group. A video shows the rich playboy Oliver Queen (Charlie Hunman), being rescued from the island just two years ago and now having turned Queen Industries around with focus on social projects, cleaner energy and STEM based research as well as doing more for the community. 

 

The Circlemaster, notes while Queen Industries is growing closer to the red, knows that type of goodwill is just what they need, as good buzz is strong buzz. Another video pops up showcasing the vigilante, Green Arrow fighting some crooks, noting that Green Arrow could be a threat to their organization, noting that this could cause a wave of vigilantism as well as open a can of worms they can’t close. The Circlemaster tells them to test Queen before he joins them, as well as test the Green Arrow, so they can more easily exterminate him.

 

We then cut to Star City, as Oliver goes about his day to day at Queen Industries. While it isn’t as profitable as it was in his father’s era, he has given the company a clean state and helped the community. Oliver announces a new plan to revitalize Star City over the years using his inheritance, other businesses such as Tek and Neus, and Queen Industries at a gala held for Star City and it’s citizens. The citizens celebrate as Oliver is pulled aside by his Board of Directors, led by family friend/advisor Doug Miller (Richard Kind), rather unpleased with the profits and they need to be at their best, suggesting they temporarily ditch the social projects as Oliver refuses. 

 

Oliver then recieves a surprise visit rom Malcom Merlyn (Aiden Turner), his childhood best friend. The two joyously reunite, as Malcolm admits he hasn’t heard from Oliver since him being stranded on an island. Oliver says it’s been rough but he’s been surviving, having turned the company back around. Malcolm also explains he’s turned his family business around too, showing that Merlyn Group has become one of the biggest businesses in America. 

 

Malcolm also jokes he’s seen how his friend has changed from a daddy’s boy to a bleeding heart, noting his more liberal and kind ways. Malcolm says he has a big idea to pitch Oliver but it’s so secret, he can’t tell him here and invites him out for dinner tonight at a steakhouse. 

 

Later that night, Oliver drives back to his penthouse, as he reminisces on his time on the island. Oliver feels great guilt over who he was before as well as his father Robert was also a corrupt businessman, as he wonders if he’s even worthy of being able to change, noting his overcompensating as Green Arrow and his reform projects. Realizing he’s late to dinner, Oliver heads to the steakhouse.

 

As he arrives, Oliver and Malcolm reminisce as Malcolm explains he wants to buy out Queen Industries and make Oliver part of his board of directors, much to Oliver’s confusion as Merlyn Group is already a conglomerate. Malcolm explains that he wants to strengthen his father’s brand, and offers Oliver a spot on his board. Malcolm notes that while Oliver did turn the company around, it has yet to reach the heydays from before. Oliver says because his father has done shady shit, and he was too incompotent before, as Oliver just wants to make something of himself, politely declining the offer. Malcolm understands but notes to his friend that he can get him to change his mind soon. Oliver thanks Malcolm for the dinner as he heads back home.

 

Oliver then suits up as Green Arrow as he does some vigilante nightwork. Through a montage, Green Arrow leaps from building to building as he takes down criminals throughout the city, using guerilla tactics, hand to hand skills and martial arts he learned while on the island and in training, and his various arrows; some of which ensnare the criminals with rope, electrocute, or in some cases injure but not kill. Green Arrow, with just minutes until midnight as he looks at the city, on top of a skyscraper, proud of his work.

 

However, near the docks, he notices a boat sinking in the distance. Green Arrow corresponds with the Star City police on the scene as well as the chief and former NAVY Seal, John Diggle (Blair Underwood). Green Arrow and Diggle have formed somewhat of a partnership over the year as Diggle tells Green Arrow what’s happening. Green Arrow attempts to evacuate many citizens to safety using his arrow to create ziplines for the crew members. 

 

However, Green Arrow runs low on arrows. Suddenly, we see Arsenal (Lana Condor), a teenaged vigilante in a red spray-painted Robin Hood costume, and face mask only showing her ponytailed black hair. Arsenal helps Green Arrow using her solvent based arrow that works to help hold together the ship as she and Green Arrow save the last family as the ship goes under. As they escape though, Green Arrow notices a mysterious logo on the box, which is a series of 9 circles making a flower like design, floating in the distance. 

 

The citizens and police thank the two as Arsenal celebrates, amazed that her technology worked but also geeks out meeting her hero, Green Arrow. Green Arrow pulls her aside, away from the civilians. Arsenal introduces herself properly to Green Arrow, explaining she wants to be his sidekick. Green Arrow thanks Arsenal for the help but he doesn’t want to risk a child getting hurt but Arsenal insists that she can help, explaining that she’s wanted to be a part of something greater for most of her life and that she was inspired by Green Arrow’s heroics. Touched but still unmoved, as Green Arrow notes he shouldn’t be idolized and advises her to stay out of it.

 

Green Arrow, hears gunshots from a nearby building, and ziplines there, leaving Arsenal. Green Arrow notices the commotion came from one of Queen Industries rivals, Tek, responsible for creating smartphones and tablets. Green Arrow quickly goes inside, to find the building empty and nothing stolen, as heads to the office finds the CEO dead with a circle carved into his chest. Green Arrow is stunned, until a stray baseball whizzes past him, barely missing. 

 

Green Arrow grabs it, only to hear it ticking, as he hurls it out the window as it explodes. Green Arrow notices a man in a hockey mask, and armor to almost resemble sports gear. Green Arrow chases the figure through the rooftops who uses a pole to leap from building to building. Green Arrow stunning the figure with an electrical arrow causing him to drop the pole. The figure then tosses it aside, after the initial shock and introduces himself as Sportsmaster, as he explains that he and his bosses have heard much about the modern-day Robin Hood. Green Arrow snarks isn’t Sportsmaster late for football tryouts. Sportsmaster says that he meant to kill the Arrow and dispose of his evidence but guesses he’ll beat him to death instead. 

 

Sportsmaster throws a series of razor sharp hockey pucks at Green Arrow who dodges most of them, by shooting exploding arrows to disarm them. Sportmaster charges at Green Arrow with a saber, as Green Arrow breaks his compound bow into two, using them to slash and block Sportsmaster’s saber strikes. The two lose their weapons, as they duke it out in a fist fight. Green Arrow is able to land a powerful roundhouse kick, stopping Sportsmaster. Green Arrow arrests Sportsmaster, as Sportsmaster says the Ninth Circle said he was good, but he didn’t think Green Arrow was that good. Green Arrow is confused, as the Sportsmaster says he can’t spoil the whole secret but they’re everywhere and nowhere. Green Arrow is so stunned he doesn’t notice, Sportsmaster sedates him with a gas, disorienting the Emerald Archer. Sportmaster laughs, as he says he was told to let him live as The Circle wants him, but warns if he steps out of line again, he’ll kill him. Sportsmaster throws a javelin in the distance which releases a zipwire and ziplines down as he rides off on a motorcycle. Green Arrow soons snaps out of the daze but Sportsmaster has gotten away, but finds a card with the Ninth Circle logo, the same on the box in the harbor.

 

Green Arrow rushes home before the authorities arrive as he turns on the news about the reported murder of Tek’s CEO as well as figures not knowing who’s responsible. However, unlike the prior time, footage was retrieved of Green Arrow, rushing to the scene, causing suspicion if Green Arrow killed Tek’s CEO. Diggle denies these claims, trusting Green Arrow for his work but is suspicious himself. Oliver looks through the penthouse to see if his father has anything on The Ninth Circle, to no luck except for an old contact book. Oliver dismisses this until he grabs a sheet of paper and sketches out the missing pages, revealing the Ninth Circle logo.

 

Oliver soon realizes that both a partner of his social project was targeted as well as his father having some sort of part in The Ninth Circle, as decides to consult Doug tomorrow. The next day, Queen Industries has been doxxed by an anonymous person, causing much panic in the office. Suspecting this to be related to The Ninth Circle, Oliver confronts Doug on the matter in privacy. Doug lashes out at Oliver, telling him he needs to pay attention to the company, and ominously warns for the good of everyone, let it be.

 

Oliver, refuses decide to check out Doug tonight as Green Arrow while downloading everything into a harddrive and asks Felicity Smoak (Morenna Baccarin), head of SmoakKo, an energy research and IT company an old flame from college, to investigate for him as he heads off for the rest of the day, much to the chagrin of Doug and Queen Industires higher ups, due to the panic. 

 

Oliver arrives at SmoakKo as he greets Felicity. Felicity happily greets her old friend as the two discuss old times and share back and forth banter. Felicity asks Oliver why he is here, as Oliver offers to volunteer for Women for STEM to help. Felicity snarks that there is no press here so Ollie can go turn back into the greedy goblin he is. Oliver notes he owns half the program, as well as it feeling good to make a difference. Felicity allows this, as he seems slightly less self absorbed than usual.  Felicity shows him around the workshop, as we see multiple high school girls working with scientists inside a laboratory, doing experiments and what not. Oliver notices one student, a sophomore, Artemis (Lana Condor), is busy sketching something in a notebook. 

 

Felicity introduces Artemis to Oliver, explaining that she is one of her brightest students, as Artemis looks unamused towards Oliver, as she really doesn’t care much for billionaires, as she and Oliver get into an argument on the good he’s doing. Attempting to de-escalate, Felicity has Artemis show Oliver the project she’s been working on, as Artemis shows them the adhesive solvent she's been working on that is resistant to extreme temperature. Oliver secretly deduces that Artemis is Arsenal and is impressed as Felicity teases Oliver not to steal another one of her company’s ideas. Felicity is also very impressed with Artemis’ work, revealing that she’s worked with Artemis for over the past two years, and it is shown that she and Artemis share an almost mother-daughter bond.

 

As Oliver helps throughout the day, Felicity suspects something is amiss, as Oliver explains that he is a bit concerned about Queen Industries’ cyber security and asks Felicity if she wouldn’t mind looking through which she agrees too. Felicity tells Oliver to cut that act, as she knows he’s Green Arrow, noting that is why she helps him, as Oliver concedes. As Felicity searches through the files and tracks addresses but finds nothing so far out of the ordinary, suggesting the hack was an inside job but nothing was stolen. Oliver asks on an unrelated note, if she has heard about The Ninth Circle. Felicity says The Ninth Circle is an urban legend, about an underground organization composed of the richest people on the planet that was rumored throughout centuries to have run America. Felicity asks Oliver why does he ask as Oliver explains that the recent murder of the Tek CEO has him nervous. Felicity laughs this off, saying Oliver has watched too much TV as they don’t exist, and is an urban legend. Oliver thanks Felicity for the help. Felicity notes it was no problem, as she invites for drinks sometime, so long as Oliver pays for the bill. Oliver declines, as he notes he isn’t ready for drinks, let alone . Felicity understands but sees right through Oliver, noting that he doesn’t need to prove to the world that he’s changed. Oliver smiles at her kind words and leaves.

 

Later that night, Oliver suits up as Green Arrow, following Doug on his commute home, as Doug stops by the seemingly empty Tek building as he heads inside. Doug talking with The Underground Men, masked assassins sporting the presidents on the dollar bills as masks confirming he did his task. Green Arrow appears as Doug attempts to run away, leaving him to fight The Underground Men, as Green Arrow is able to defeat them using his combination of martial arts and his bow. 

 

Green Arrow chases Doug who escapes in his car. Diggle and the police oversee and attempt to investigate. Green Arrow demands Doug tell him what’s going on as Doug is panicked, revealing that he is sorry, but was forced to do this. Doug says that he needed to keep Oliver and Queen Industries safe, revealing that he if an informant for the group, and the mole at Queen Industries. Doug says he knows that there’s a meeting at the docks tomorrow and begs Green Arrow to protect him. Green Arrow asks for Doug to tell more but Doug suffers a heart attack, pushing himself out of the archer hands, causing him to fall out of the parking lot, much to Green Arrow’s horror. Overseeing this, Diggle and the police are shocked by this seeming betrayal as Green Arrow runs away to hide.

 

Green Arrow heads back home, only to find it ransacked, but only his father’s book gone with only the page of the Ninth Circle logo torn out. Oliver then finds the TV eerily on, as the news reveals another about oil company Neus, another Queen Industries partner, had its main headquarters going up in flames with the CEO missing. The news also shows that Doug Miller was seemingly killed by Green Arrow, showing the scene early but altered to frame Green Arrow. Diggle declares Green Arrow a menace, and begins a manhunt for him.

 

The next day, Oliver heads into work, mourning the loss of Doug as well as the Green Arrow has become a hero to a divisive pariah in a matter of a night. Oliver becomes more motivated to destroy the Circle, as he ignores his office duties. Noticing his friend’s stress, Malcolm offers to help the now scrambled Queen Industries, putting in a very generous payment for the company which Oliver refuses.

 

We then cut to Artemis‘ house where she’s seemingly crushed at Green Arrow’s betrayal, looks at her Arsenal costume, demotivated that she can help. Artemis has a conversation with her mother Paula who is making breakfast. Artemis vents her frustration whilst hiding her double life attempt as Paula comforts her. Artemis’ abusive father Lawrence Crock (Matt Damon) come home from work, as he attempts to make small talk with his daughter, as he barks at Paula to make breakfast. 

 

Paula huries up as Artemis attempts to stand up for her mother, but back downs as she’s too nervous. Lawrence has to take a call outside, and leaves. Artemis asks Paula why they put up with him, especially as her sister left because of Lawrence as Paula says right now it doesn’t matter but implies she is scared to leave. Paula tells Artemis to get ready for school. Artemis grabs her backpack in her room, as she notices a light from Lawrence’s study room. Artemis goes to investigate as she finds his Sportsmaster gear, shocking Artemis. 

 

Artemis decides to follow her father in secret instead of going to school as Lawrence receives a mysterious call, as it is revealed to be a group call with The Ninth Circle members and the Circlemaster. Through the conversation, Artemis finds out they’ve framed Green Arrow. Circlemaster states his plan is almost complete as Sportsmaster asks what about the Green Arrow, as Circlemaster states to do as Sportsmaster wishes. Circlemaster tells Sportsmaster that they’ll send him The Underground Men to help. 

 

Realizing her dad is behind the conspiracy, Artemis decides to head to the docks tonight to stop Green Arrow from getting into a trap. Later that night, Green Arrow heads to the docks to search for the secret hideout but is stopped by Arsenal. Green Arrow tries to get her to leave but Arsenal reveals that the Green Arrow is being sent up, revealing that she has obtained information on Sportsmaster’s identity, as Arsenal explains that Sportsmaster is her father, revealing he poisoned Doug.

 

Green Arrow is shocked but goes through with the uncovering, as he needs more information. Arsenal reluctantly agrees but if she can come too, as Green Arrow reluctantly agrees. The two search various warehouses but all seem empty, until the last one where Arsenal finds a secret entrance. The two sneak inside the catacombs as Green Arrow takes photos for proof and comes across a hidden lab room. Green Arrow hacks into a computer but all of the files are decoded with some type of encryption. Green Arrow deduces that this isn’t the main headquarters but rather some sort of research lab or base. Arsenal then shines her flashlight as she shows Green Arrow the collage of photos, with a red X marked over each major business owner or socialite under the Ninth’s Circle’s control or killed. Green Arrow is shocked to see Oliver Queen is the main target and that figures like Malcolm and Felicity are next.

 

The two run out of the secret base only to find the exit to outside the warehouse, blocked by Sportsmaster and about a hundred Underground Men. Green Arrow and Arsenal hide behind some boxes as the Underground Men open fire as Sportsmaster taunts Green Arrow for falling into a trap. Green Arrow asks Arsenal if she has any more surprises as Arsenal quickly fires an arrow into the ceiling, filling the room with smoke, as Green Arrow and Arsenal slip past the guards and run out. 

 

The Underground Men chase the two as Green Arrow and Arsenal attempt to escape firing arrows as they defeat them using their own fighting skills as Green Arrow uses more forceful martial arts and Arsenal uses more graceful strikes. The two are cornered by Sportsmaster who takes them on in a melee fight. Arsenal freezes out of fear as Green Arrow is forced to take on a more defensive style of fighting as Sportsmaster attacks Green Arrow with a running pole.

 

Green Arrow is significantly bruised in his attempts to protect Arsenal as Sportsmaster goes for the killing strike but Arsenal stops him by using her solvent arrows to halt Sportsmaster, giving Green Arrow the advantage he needs. Sportsmaster glances at Arsenal but a helicopter opens fire at Green Arrow and Arsenal, as a rope descends down giving Sportmaster a chance to escape.

 

As the police comes, Green Arrow promises to protect Arsenal but orders her to stay home, as the two escape from the police. Green Arrow successful evades the cops as he heads back home into his penthouse. 

 

The next day at Queen Industries, Oliver is more paranoid as he is distracted at work still haunted by the Ninth Circle. Oliver decides to heads over to SmoakKo, as he Felicity the flash drive hoping she’ll uncover it despite being needed at work. Felicity notes Oliver doesn’t look well, but as she attempts to help, Oliver acts more standoffish and nervous, aggravating her. Oliver neglects more of his duties as he realizes he’s missed an important audit, leaving his workers and board high and dry.

 

Oliver’s board scolds him as they decide to accept Malcolm’s bid. Oliver notes he has final authority but one member notes that if Doug were to pass, the board can override Oliver much to his chagrin. Meanwhile, Artemis is also both jumpy throughout her day at school as Lawrence has come to pick her up early. In the car, Lawrence intimidates Artemis by threatening Paula into revealing what she knows as well as Lawrence tells her if he so much as Artemis interferes, he will kill Paula and then her.

 

Lawrence calls The Circlemaster as they make their next move. Later that night, Sportsmaster leads a small group of Underground Men for an attack on Merlyn Group, forcing Green Arrow to intervene. Meanwhile, back at SmoakKo, Felicity stays late, narrowly decoding the flash drive, finding out more secrets about The Ninth Circle as she pieces together the group’s plan to destroy the city. However, she soon finds her building invaded by Underground Men as she attempts to make a hasty escape. Green Arrow finds Sportsmaster holding Malcolm at ball-point. Green Arrow fights Sportsmaster again but much more unhinged, giving him the advantage. Green Arrow creates a zip line for Malcolm to escape as he corners Sportsmaster.

 

Sportsmaster taunts Green Arrow about their other plan. To Green Arrow’s horror, he promptly ties up Sportsmaster but soon finds the building surrounded by Diggle and the police, who chase him around the city and prevent his escape, until Green Arrow manages to lose them. Meanwhile, Felicity attempts to escape the building as she uses a letter opener to defend herself against the Underground Men, finally making it to the fire stairs case but the building explodes from the top up making her fate ambiguous.

 

Green Arrow arrives at the scene as he calls out for Felicity but to no luck as he mourns. The next day, Oliver is utterly defeated, as Malcolm contacts his friend to check up on him. Oliver decides to take up Malcolm’s offer to be part of his board as Oliver decides to tell Malcolm about the case, desperate for help and the nightmare to end. Oliver meets up with Malcolm at Merlyn Group as the building is empty but Malcolm, explaining he gives his employees one day off of the week.

 

As Malcolm pours Oliver a drink, as Oliver at first refuses, having gone sober but needs to calm his nerves. After a few drinks, a drunk Oliver spills his guts and asks Malcolm for help, knowing Malcolm could help him. Malcolm advises Oliver he’ll handle it and that it’s over, as Oliver, noticing something off, as he suspects Malcolm to be involved in the Circle noticing the 9th Circle tattoo on his neck, as he passes out due to the drugged alcohol.

 

We cut to Oliver tied up in his office, as Malcom apologizes. Oliver asks Malcolm to explain himself as Malcolm reveals that he knew Oliver is the Green Arrow, shocking Oliver. Malcolm assures Oliver only he knows. Malcolm figured out Oliver was Green Arrow pretty easily due to similar voices and patterns, but never wanted to kill his best friend but just distract and help him see the light. 

 

Malcolm reveals that The Ninth Circle was founded in Star City and while they aren’t controlling the world as that’d be too messy, they have controlled Star City for a century, having various hitmen do their dirty work. Malcolm also reveals that he is actually the head of The Ninth Circle, explaining that the group was founded in fact by the Queen family, specifically Oliver’s great grandfather, and that the Queen family ran it for years. Malcolm inherited second in command when his father died, and the Circle agreed to have the rest of the members kill Robert Queen when he decided to quit, thus inheriting the title of Circlemaster. 

 

Oliver is angered and outraged as Malcolm reveals that his plan was to collect a series of Star City owned business into his group, as he admit he admires Oliver’s idea of fixing the city, and doing that takes a lot of power. Malcolm says The Ninth Circle doesn’t have as much power as it should, sure they tilt things in their favor but not enough for absolute control. 

 

Malcolm notes he bought Tek and Neus but not SmoakKo but Queen Industries was his prize jewel. However, Malcolm says that its not a coincidence that Tek, Neus, Merlyn, and Queen are grouped in a square as he says The Ninth Circle planted bombs under the foundation of the four industries near the fault lines. Once they go off in unison, Star City will be destroyed. Since Merlyn owns most of the big business, he’ll collect the insurance, and along with the rest of his Ninth Circle crew will rebuild Star City, be adulated for the act as they can spread their influence throughout Washington, then America and soon the world. Malcolm offers Oliver a part of his new Ninth Circle and using the Green Arrow moniker as the lead assassin for the group.

 

Oliver refuses to join as Malcolm is disappointed, as he truly wanted to rule with his friend but he’ll have to kill him instead. The building bursts into flames as Malcolm leaves Oliver in Queen Industries to die. Malcolm returns to Sportsmaster and The Underground Men at the safe house. 

 

Oliver slips out of his chains, as he attempts to escape the burning building, but passes out due to the smoke. Oliver goes into a lucid dream where he confronts Robert (Bruce Greenwood) over his actions, as Oliver accepts his past, and notes it doesn’t define him, and will bring honor back to the Queen name.

 

Arsenal comes in and saves Oliver, as the two escape meeting up with Felicity nearby as an overjoyed Oliver hugs her. Oliver asks how did they know, as Felicity figured out his identity quickly but didn’t want to say anything and went to find Artemis once she learned the plan. Arsenal admits that she was somewhat shocked that her greatest hero is a spoiled one-percenter billionaire. Oliver asks for their help to stop Malcolm. Felicity and Arsenal agree as Felicity hands him the suit as Oliver suits up as Green Arrow as Oliver notes they need to make a pit spot. 

 

The three head to Star City Police Department as Green Arrow, hands himself over, explaining he wants to speak to Diggle. Diggle is rather irritated and furious at Green Arrow until Green Arrow says he needs their help, showing Diggle the details of The Ninth Circle, how he was framed and that they’re bombs under the city that need to be deactivated. 

 

Diggle agrees to look into the bomb threat but is not sure he can trust Green Arrow. Green Arrow admits he wouldn’t trust himself either in Diggle space but decides to reveal himself to Diggle as an act of confidence as Oliver Queen.

 

Diggle tells the police to evacuate the city and help stop the bombing. Felicity reveals that the secret hideout is in the sewers. With an hour on the clock, Green Arrow, Arsenal, Diggle and some officers head into the sewers, as they attempt to locate the bombs as Felicity, the bomb squad and police deactivate the bombs whilst fighting Underground Men.

 

Green Arrow and Arsenal make it to the sewer base which is actually in a huge underground bunker as they fight their way through Underground Men with help Diggle and his police, as Green Arrow and Arsenal find Sportsmaster and Malcolm, who now wields a katana.

 

Green Arrow chases after Malcolm, Arsenal fights Sportsmaster as well as Diggle fighting the goons as Felicity disarms bombs. Sportsmaster taunts his daughter as he attacks her with his various sports bombs which Arsenal destroys with her arrows. The fight soon turns physical with Sportsmaster due to years of experience, having the advantage.

 

Green Arrow and Malcolm fight throughout the sewers as arrows flings and sword strikes, as both injured one another as they head towards the end of the sewers which is a giant hole near a dam. Both of them lose their weapons, as Malcolm breaks Oliver’s hand during the physical skirmish.

 

Arsenal is able to face her fear and using her father’s timed hits against him, shoving an exploding puck into Sportsmaster knocking him out as Arsenal notes he’ll never hurt her, Paula or anyone again. Malcolm gets the brief advantage but Arsenal arrives just in time to bind his legs with the solvent arrow, giving Green Arrow the advantage he needs to subdue and pin Malcolm. Felicity deactivates the bombs as the police round up the Underground Men.

 

Green Arrow considers killing Malcolm, but decides not to, sparing but arresting him. Malcolm attempts to toss himself into the dam but is stopped by Green Arrow. Malcolm notes that Green Arrow made the wrong choice. The authorities arrive as the whole Ninth Circle is arrested. Diggle lets Green Arrow free and decides to keep the secret, as Green Arrow thanks Arsenal for her work, noting he’ll be in contact with her soon. 

 

The next day, a news report shows the shady dealings behind Merlyn Group, having been shut down and uncovered by police. Artemis wakes up, as she finds Oliver Queen and Felicity having breakfast with her mom. Artemis is shocked until Oliver explains that he has came here to offer an internship and a gratuitous stipend for Artemis, noting her handiwork and resolve. Artemis is confused but goes along with it, as Oliver explains that she’ll be doing some office work for him after school and will return home on a timely matter. Artemis asks Paula if it’s okay as Paula nods.

 

The three head into Oliver’s car as Oliver explains to Artemis that he’ll take her under his wing as his sidekick. Oliver knows that the world is changing, and as such he much change his approaches. Oliver notes if he wants to grow as a person, he too must accept that this, and who he is but needs people in his corner. Oliver knows they only met a few days ago, but Artemis represents the type of person he wants to be, and in an ever changing world he needs allies. Artemis agrees as Felicity smirks that training is about to start, as they pull up to the newly redesigned and now secluded Queen Manor, that acts as a secret laboratory/base of operations for Team Arrow. Diggle patches into them through the video screen notifying them of crimes.

 

The film ends with Green Arrow and Arsenal looking over the city, as Felicity does the recon and investigation for the team. Green Arrow and Arsenal jump off the roof, ready for action.

 

Mid Credit Scene: Team Arrow prepares for their next mission, as we see Artemis is too distracted on her phone. Oliver snatches the phone out of Artemis’ hand as we see a video of Static (Niles Finch) fighting Ebon and the Meta Breed during the first Static Shock film. Oliver asks Artemis if this is for a movie or something as Smoak shows dozens of articles showing superpowered humans popping up, dubbed as metahumans, to the shock of Oliver.

 

Post Credits Scene: We see back to the Ninth Circle meeting once more discussing the failure of Malcolm, which reveals that Malcolm’s Ninth Circle wasn’t the real one. The Circlemaster notes the new emergence of metahumans by showing videos such as Static, Plastic-Man and Blue Beetle, and new heroes such as Booster Gold and the failures of members like Dr. Alva and Maxwell Lord. The Circlemaster assures them they are always four steps ahead, right now they can find a way to profit from all sides, and know Green Arrow’s secret identity, but they’ll wait it out until the time is right, for now they play it small. Green Arrow thinks Malcolm was the head of the Ninth Circle as his board of directors were the rest of the group, and they still have the advantage. 

 

The meeting closes as the Circlemaster takes off his mask, revealing it to be Vandal Savage as his room lights up revealing he’s actually thousands of years old and was actually historical figures such as Genghis Khan, Alexander The Great and Julius Caesar. Savage notes he’s been waiting for something fun to happen, and that the rule of man is over, and is now time for the gods to rule.

 

Edited November 10, 2020 by YourMother the Edgelord

[YM!]

Snow Monkeys

Studio: Creatures Incorporated 

Release Date: 4/5/Y8

Genre: Nature Documentary

Director: Drew Fellman

Rating: G

Budget: $5M

Theater Count: 2,450

Runtime: 77 minutes

Narrator: Henry Golding

Composer: John Williams

Plot:

We follow the life of Suno, the snow monkey as she attempts to survive the harsh winter in the Japanese mountains as well as staying warm. We learn about the snow monkeys’ diet, grooming and behavior over the course of this film.

 

Edited November 2, 2020 by YourMother the Edgelord

[SLAM!]

Christie Monteiro

Studio: New Journey Pictures

Director: Melina Matsoukas

based on characters from the Tekken video game franchise

Genre: Martial-Arts/Action/Sci-Fi/Fantasy/Romance

Release Date: February 2nd

Theater Count: 3,215

MPAA Rating: PG-13 for Language, Violence, and Suggestive Themes

Runtime: 1 hr 48 min

Production Budget: $40 Million

Composer: Antonio Pinto

 

Major Cast

Letitia Wright as Christie Monteiro

Jonathan Majors as Eddy Gordo

Giancarlo Esposito as The Grandfather

 

Spoiler Cast

Spoiler

Spoiler

Ngo Thanh Van as Julia Chang

Ryan Potter as Jin Kazama

Daisuke Tsuji as Kazuya Mishima

Terry Notary as Jack (mo-cap)

Ken Watanabe as Heihachi Mishima (cameo role)

 

Logline

Christie Monteiro joins the King Of The Iron Fist Tournament in hopes of preventing Eddy Gordo from vengeance-killing one of its organizers.

 

*special thanks to @Blankments*

 

Plot Summary

Spoiler

Spoiler

A bell tolls twelve times, and the sound is accompanied by hazy footage. First toll, fade in on the mouth of a volcano; second toll, a man throws his son into the volcano; third toll, the son tumbles further and further; fourth toll, the son stops rolling and lays lifelessly; fifth toll, dark shadows creep out from the rocks; sixth and seventh toll, the darkness approaches and envelopes the son; eighth toll, lightning crashes near a tall skyscraper with a sign that says Mishima Zaibatsu Corporation; ninth toll, engineers are seen manufacturing humanoid robots, and scientists are seen developing chemical serums; tenth toll, scientists approach a man on a table with a black-liquid syringe, inserting its contents into the man's arms; eleventh toll, the man's hand clenches--he is clearly strained by great pain...

 

The twelfth toll chimes; we cut to a clear, low-angle shot of Christ the Redeemer, Rio de Janeiro’s most famous landmark. Cut to Eddy Gordo (Jonathan Majors), who's staring up at the statue. Eddy wears black sunglasses, gold chains, dreadlocks, and whatnot. He notices a cluster of tourists not too far away—they’re taking photos of and with the statue. Eddy glances up at the statue one more time before turning away. We cut to him walking through the colorful streets of Rio before calling a taxi. He gets in and tells the driver to take him to the train station, which the driver does. He stares out the window, and we get a shot of the streets from inside the taxi as it takes off.

 

Cut to Christie Monteiro (Letitia Wright) as she jogs happily down a sidewalk. She’s carrying a bouquet of flowers. She hears a girl’s scream from an alleyway and looks in to find two hooded men robbing a woman that’s younger than her. Christie gets their attention, and she utilizes the martial art capoeira to handily defeat the crooks—all while holding the bouquet in her hand. (Capoeira combines fighting with dance—there’s more kicks than punches, and the fighter stays on their toes. It’s a ton of legwork.) Christie offers the woman a single flower (she can’t give her the whole bouquet) and jogs away.

 

She arrives at the grounds of her grandfather’s dojo. She finds the grandfather (Giancarlo Esposito) sitting at the kitchen table sullenly. He tells her that Eddy left her a note. She reads the note, drops the bouquet, and runs off despite the grandfather’s broken protest. We cut to the note, which says that Eddy is seeking vengeance against the man who killed his father.

 

Christie runs through the streets at high speeds, desperate to stop Eddy from leaving Rio. She has to perform parkour moves to get past certain areas—she does it as if it’s second nature. She makes it to the train station, but there’s so many people that she can’t find him in the crowd. She finally sees Eddy board a train just as the doors close. It takes off. Christie runs alongside the train in tears, and she stops running as the futility of the action hits her.

 

Cut to Christie sitting alone in a sparsely decorated bedroom. Her grandfather walks in and tells her something he hadn’t told her before.

 

Grandfather: Your grandmother told you I went on a journey to America. That was false. In the year I was gone, I had been in prison. And Eddy Gordo had been my cellmate. That’s where I asked him to mentor you in capoeira. And in that cell, he would constantly talk about a man named Kazuya Mishima—the man who killed his father. I knew he hated Kazuya. But he never told me of his plan to seek vengeance. So I thought he’d be here to stay—to help mentor the children, and to help mentor you. And I was wrong. I’m sorry.

 

Christie stares at him in rage. The grandfather frowns and exits the room.

 

Cut to children and teenagers running into a courtyard-style dojo. Christie ushers them in. One of them asks where Eddy is, as Eddy had been one of the instructors. Christie hesitates, and before she responds, we cut to Christie and the students sitting on the ground, all dressed in martial arts uniforms. Christie calls a volunteer up to explain basic fundamentals of capoeira to the students. The grandfather watches them with his hands held behind his back.

 

Christie’s explanation culminates into a practice bout between her and the volunteer. The sound fades as Christie zones out during the instruction, and we see rapid-fire flashback images where Eddy teaches Christie capoeira. Eddy is impressed by Christie’s natural talent but maintains a reasonably strict attitude. Christie sits on a bench sweating profusely when Eddy hands her a small towel and a water bottle. Christie looks up at him with a happy expression.

 

“Christie.”

 

We cut back to the present as the grandfather steps forward. Christie finds herself pinning down the volunteer as a wrestler would. The volunteer is tapping on the ground, crying uncle. Christie lets the volunteer go, apologizing. The grandfather calls for an early dismissal, telling them to come back next time. As the puzzled students disperse, the grandfather asks Christie about her action. Christie, overwhelmed, walks away.

 

Cut to a speedily-edited sequence where Christie bursts into her room, composes herself, changes out of her uniform and into casual clothes, touches up her appearance in a mirror, and leaves. The sequence continues: the grandfather watches as Christie walks out of the dojo grounds, and the following shot is of the back of Christie’s head as she walks down a sidewalk, using a night out in town as a way to clear her head. She aimlessly browses through stores, telling herself she’s trying to find Eddy when she knows she won’t.

 

We cut to a scene where Christie thumbs through leather jackets in an ‘edgy’-style thrift shop. Speakers are playing music from a radio station. She takes a jacket and asks a muscular store manager for the dressing room. She goes to the dressing room, sits down, and sighs. Suddenly, an announcer on the radio tells listeners to listen carefully. The announcer advertises the King of the Iron Fist Tournament, a high-stakes fighting competition being held in Miami, Florida. The prize is ownership of the Mishima Zaibatsu Corporation (which is currently held by Heihachi Mishima). The advert’s main goal is to market the tournament to spectators, but it confirms that fighters are still being sought after. Christie stares down and whispers Eddy’s name.

 

Christie puts the jacket back on the rack and heads toward the exit. The manager offers her a cryptic warning, telling her the tournament is “not for girls like her,” as many dangerous people will be attracted to it. Christie stares at him before leaving.

 

Cut to the grandfather as Christie arrives home. Christie begins to pace back and forth. The grandfather asks her what’s wrong. Christie tells him that she thinks she knows where Eddy is—in Miami, where the King of the Iron Fist Tournament is taking place. The grandfather tells her that her responsibility is with the capoeira students and that there’s no way to know for sure that Eddy is there. When Christie tries to argue, he forbids her from going and storms away.

 

Cut to Christie sitting alone in her room. She’s deep in thought. The camera zooms in on her as she agonizes over her decision.

 

We cut to a flashback in which a jet black convertible sports car drives down a Brazilian highway. The car has its roof down. It is nighttime. Christie sits in the passenger seat, her hair swaying in the breeze, as Eddy drives. Eddy tells her how important it is to be able to defend yourself against the people in the world. Eddy also advises her never to fall into hatred. No matter what happens in her life, she needs to approach situations with love in her heart. He implores her not to take the same path as him. Eddy then asks for permission to drive faster, and Christie nods excitedly. Eddy speeds up, and Christie suspends her arms in the air, crying out as if she’s on a rollercoaster.

 

We cut back to Christie in her room. Resolve overwhelms her. In another rapid-fire sequence, she opens her laptop, signs up for the tournament, buys a plane ticket to Miami, and packs a duffel bag full of essentials. She walks through the house thinking the grandfather is asleep, but sure enough, the grandfather steps out of the shadow and tells her to wait. The grandfather tells her that he knows he can’t stop her. He also knows he owes her something for keeping his time in prison a secret from her.

 

Christie walks toward him, allows the bag to slip off her body, and gives him a big hug. The grandfather tells her that he hopes she finds Eddy. Then he tells her to go—he’ll teach the students until she comes back.

 

Christie walks out as the grandfather smiles. The quick sequencing continues as Christie finds a taxi and takes it. Just like Eddy’s taxi moment, the camera captures the backseat’s window as the taxi takes off. We cut to an airplane as it makes its landing during sunrise. We cut to a long take as Christie grabs her bag, walks off the plane, walks through the terminal, and walks toward the exit—light pours from the glass doors. We cut to an amazed Christie as she gazes around the city of Miami, taking in the sights.

 

We cut to Christie as she gets things ready in her hotel room. She opens the bag and takes out an orange envelope. She pours the contents on the bed. The most notable item is a silver necklace reminiscent of a soldier’s dog-tag. She puts it on.

 

There’s a knock on the door, and she answers it. On the other side of the door stands an Asian woman in a dress shirt and khakis who introduces herself as Julia Chang (Ngo Thanh Van). Christie asks her what she wants.

 

Julia: I’m your first opponent. Meet me on the roof in ten minutes.

 

Julia walks away. Christie composes herself before changing into her martial arts uniform. She takes the elevator, and we see her stretching her arms and legs as she gets ready to fight. 

She walks out of the elevator and onto the roof, where Julia is waiting. The sun is setting, and the lights of the buildings and streets decorate the moment. There’s a lot of people on the roof, minding their own business. Julia assumes her fight stance. Christie bounces up and down, raising her arms in front of her.

 

Julia strikes. Christie blocks it. They engage in battle. The people around them notice the fight and form a circle around it. The white flash of cameras threaten to distract them, but they continue fighting. Julia knocks Christie down, pleading with her to take the fight more seriously. Christie sweeps Julia off her feet; she rolls away to get back on her feet—but Christie’s already on her feet, rushing toward Julia.

 

Christie leaps forward and spins, smacking Julia in the face with her foot. Christie tries it again, but Julia blocks it and rushes forward with a flurry of strikes and punches. Christie holds her hand over her mouth in pain. Julia tells her not to succumb until the fight is over. Christie removes her hand—her nose is bleeding. She grimaces and rushes forward to attack.

 

This time Christie overwhelms Julia with spinning kicks, and Julia struggles to get up. Julia holds a hand up—her way of saying “uncle”—and takes off the tag around her neck. She throws it toward Christie’s feet. Christie looks around as the people on the roof applaud both of the fighters. Before she takes the tag, she helps Julia up. Julia stumbles forward and whispers in her ear—“there’s something I need to tell you.” Christie and Julia stare at each other.

 

We cut to Christie’s hands, the fingers spread apart, as it examines Julia’s tag. Christie and Julia are sitting at an outside diner. Julia tells Christie that out of all the first opponents she could have gotten, she’s lucky that it was her—some of the opponents would have killed her.

 

They talk. Christie tells Julia that her friend is Eddy Gordo and that Kazuya Mishima is responsible for killing Eddy’s father. Julia tells Christie everything she knows about Kazuya—about his feud with his father Heihachi Mishima, his abandonment of his son Jin Kazama, about Kazuya’s deal with the devil for immense power, and about the devil gene that runs through both Kazuya and Jin. She gives her a cryptic warning that the King of the Iron Fist Tournament has a whole host of unholy and terrible things swirling around it. Christie surmises that if Eddy is seeking to kill Kazuya, then he is in danger of being consumed by the tournament’s evil. Julia confirms this with a nod. Christie hunches forward and swallows.

 

We cut to a flashback in which Christie and Eddy hike up to where Christ the Redeemer is. They set out a bucket for tips and engage in a friendly spar showcasing and advertising capoeira. A large crowd of people gathers around them to watch, and they receive tips. We see a gorgeous faraway establishing shot in which the crowd watches them spar near the base of the statue.

 

Cut to Christie as she walks down a sidewalk in casual clothes, moving with purpose. It is late at night. She stops when she sees the entrance of a nightclub across the street. She pulls out her smartphone. An anonymous text has told her to meet her at this nightclub. She proceeds.

 

She enters the nightclub. Pulsating techno music blares from the speaker. Many people are on the dance floor, having a lot of fun. There’s a lot of strobe-lights and colors lighting up the room. Christie wanders in and slips into the crowd of people on the dance floor. She looks around in every direction as she journeys deeper into the crowd. Suddenly, she sees a man walking toward her—his face concealed by the hood of his sweatshirt.

 

The hooded figure asks her if she’s a fighter. She says yes. The hooded figure grabs her by the neck and hoists her in the air. The dancers notice this and back away from the action. Christie’s legs flail as she struggles to breathe. The figure’s eyes, draped in shadow, display the maliciousness of a hawk.

The hooded figure tosses Christie’s body forward; she lands with a violent thud and slides across the floor. 

 

The crowd takes out their smartphones and begins to take pictures and videos. Jin asks Christie if she still wants to fight. Some blood drips from Christie’s mouth, but she wipes it away with her arm and lifts herself up. She tells the figure to reveal himself. The figure unzips the hoodie.

 

???: Very well.

 

He throws the jacket off. It’s Jin Kazama (Ryan Potter). For lack of better words, he is ripped. He raises his arms in a fight stance.

 

His presence alone is enough to shake Christie to the core—and she doesn’t even know who he is. Jin ushers her forward with his finger. Christie rushes toward him and performs a wide scissor-kick to the head, which Jin swiftly dodges. Christie and Jin throw punches at each other, blocking each other’s attacks—for a fleeting moment, it looks like they’re perfectly matched, until Jin lands a hook on Christie’s shoulder, knocking her back.

 

Christie takes a moment to breathe. Jin asks her if she’s had enough. Christie swallows. We cut to her feet—she’s hopping up and down, warming up her feet. She’s not done yet. Jin barely has time to raise his arms as Christie rushes to him, flips onto her hands, and batters him with spinning kicks. She ends the combo move with a scissor kick that smacks Jin across the face.

 

Jin steps back. He wipes the blood off his mouth.

 

Jin: This ends now.

 

His left arm flares and becomes embroiled with blue electricity. Christie is amazed. Julia’s words ring in Christie’s head—The King of the Iron Fist Tournament has a whole host of unholy and terrible things swirling around it.

 

As Jin’s inner power has been revealed, the clubbers surrounding them take more pictures and videos than they had taken before. There’s people in the background pushing clubbers out of the way, though—they surround Jin and Christie, revealing themselves to be armed forces reminiscent of members of a S.W.A.T. team. The fighters turn around to look at the enemies, and they instinctively back into each other. The camera dollies in a circle around them.

 

Christie: It’s the security!

Jin: No. That is false.

Christie: Who are they?

Jin: Mercenaries of Heihachi Mishima. They’re here to kill us.

Christie: What?!

Officer: Freeze! Hands where I can see ‘em!

 

Jin flares his second arm—both his arms are surging with blue electricity now. He is attacking mercenaries before the command “fire” can come out. Understanding that it’s life or death, Christie attacks force members as well. She does a cartwheel to knock a machine gun in the air, catches it, and smacks the mercenary in the face with it, knocking him out cold. The mercenaries rush toward the fighters, and the fighters easily take care of the mercenaries.

 

Once Christie has knocked out the last of her share, she stares over at Jin, who grabs a mercenary by the face and lifts him in the air. The voltage shocks the mercenary, electrocuting him and killing him. The mercenary’s body drops to the floor unconscious. The crowd of clubbers goes wild with applause—none of them are injured.

 

Jin looks at Christie with a stoic look on his face; Christie stares at him with a deer-in-the-headlights look. Jin yanks off the tag around his neck and tosses it to Christie, who catches it just in time. Christie shoots Jin a puzzled expression; Jin simply smirks as he disappears into the crowd. Clubbers embrace Christie as she stares down at the tag—we cut to the tag, which reveals that her opponent was, in fact, Jin Kazama.

 

Cut to a dark room—red-gloved hands type on the keyboard of a bright laptop. Cut to the tuxedo-covered torso of the person typing—the handheld camera rises up to reveal the scarred face of Kazuya Mishima (Daisuke Tsuji). There are scars below his left eye and on his right cheek, and his left eye glows red. Kazuya finds the updated tournament bracket and sees that Christie has officially beaten Jin. Kazuya holds a walkie-talkie up to his mouth—the voice on the other end greets Kazuya, confirming who Kazuya is to the audience. Kazuya asks about the ‘Christie’ figure.

 

Assistant: I don’t know, boss. Sounds like he threw it. He might be planning something for the night of the final battle.

Kazuya: Set her up against Jack. Just to be sure.

Assistant: Roger.

Kazuya sets the walkie-talkie down, maniacally chuckling to himself.

 

We abruptly cut to an extreme close-up of Christie’s face—her eyes snap open as she’s laying in the bed of her hotel room. The rays of the sun burst into frame from the background. She smiles.

 

We see snippets of her taking a shower and making herself a cup of coffee. Someone knocks on the door of the hotel room, and she answers: it’s Julia, who jumps up and down, congratulating her for winning her bout against Jin Kazama. Christie corrects her, saying the fight was interrupted by a group of goons, but Julia says that getting to the next round over a man as powerful as Jin Kazama, for any reason, is impressive enough. Christie suddenly remembers what Julia had told her—Jin Kazama is Kazuya Mishima’s abandoned son. She resolves to find Eddy immediately and rushes out of the hotel room—Julia asks where she’s going, but by then, Christie is long gone.

 

Christie runs through the city sidewalks for Miami, searching for Eddy. Her search is intercut with a conversation she has with Eddy on the dojo grounds.

 

Christie: If we’re going to teach capoeira together, we need to get to know each other.

Eddy: Yeah. I guess that’d help.

Christie: What’s your favorite color?

Eddy scoffs. His answer is Green.

 

In Miami, Christie looks at every green thing she can lay her eyes on. She sees a Miami Dolphins banner in the window of a store and hurries across the street to get to it. She doesn’t find Eddy, so she looks around again.

 

Christie: Have you always lived in the city?

Eddy laughs. Of course he has—he feels at home where there’s hustle and bustle.

 

Christie looks down and sees that the next block’s worth of sidewalk is teeming with people walking up and down. Christie worms her way through the crowd, looking around for Eddy and failing to find him.

 

Christie: Comida?

Eddy thinks for a moment. He says that tacos are his favorite food.

 

In the large crowd of people, Christie turns toward the row of businesses and gasps. Right in front of her is a Mexican restaurant. She walks in and sees Eddy sitting at a bar in the back, drinking from a glass beer bottle.

 

“Eddy!”

 

Christie rushes in. Eddy notices her and is very surprised to see her. He gets up from his chair, and Christie collapses into him, giving him a big hug. Eddy waits a moment, then pulls away.

Eddy: What are you doing here?

Christie: I came to find you.

Eddy: …Come sit with me.

They sit at the bar.

Eddy: You entered the tournament. Didn’t you.

Christie: I figured you might have entered as well.

Eddy: I did. But I threw my first match.

Christie: Why?

Eddy: I need the element of surprise, of course.

Christie: …Kazuya.

Eddy doesn’t verbalize his intentions—he simply nods.

Christie: Please don’t do that, Eddy. The children need you at the dojo. I’m still in the tournament—even after fighting Jin Kazama! Maybe we can make a deal! I win and you walk away!

 

Eddy eats half of a fish taco. He tosses money on the counter and gets up from his seat.

 

Eddy: No deals, Christie. You know I can’t walk away.

 

Eddy walks away, but Christie tells him to wait. She’s in tears.

 

Christie: Please reconsider. I pray that you at least reconsider. I pray that you remember what you told me… I don’t want you to fall into hatred, either.

 

Eddy turns back as he walks toward the exit.

 

Eddy: Go to the beach. Recover from your fights. We’ll meet again soon.

 

Eddy leaves. Cut to Christie’s tear-streaked face as she watches him walk away.

 

Cut to Eddy as he wades through a crowd of people. He becomes increasingly distressed the more he walks. He ducks into an alleyway and paces around. His sunglasses are on, but we can tell he's sad anyway.

 

Eddy: Oh, Christie. You're making it hard. You're making it hard for me. I have to do it--you don't understand, I have to...

 

Eddy leans against a brick wall and slumps down to the ground. Cut to a shot from the sidewalk; people pass by in the foreground while Eddy cries to himself.

 

Cut to the beach as the ocean waves gently brush against the shore. Christie has followed Eddy’s advice—she’s wearing a bathing suit and has brought things such as a beach towel. Her tournament tag is around her neck as well. She lays down on the beach towel and stares up at the cloudless sky. We cut to more flashback glimpses as Christie and Eddy enjoy a day at the beach together—they’re in beach chairs, and Christie’s reading a magazine while Eddy’s drinking a beer. In the flashback, Christie jumps off of the beach chair and ushers Eddy toward the water—she’s going for a swim, and she wants Eddy to come with her. Eddy non-verbally declines. Christie gives Eddy a “you’re no fun” look before heading toward the water.

 

 We cut to Christie in the present as she was rising above the ocean surface. She dives back down, and the camera follows her into the water. A collection of underwater shots accompany Christie as she cools down and runs her fingers through the sand.

 

We crosscut between Christie enjoying the ocean and people on the beach running away and reacting to something in fear. An underwater shot shows Christie rising up to the surface. Cut to a medium-full shot of Christie as she rises from the water, pushes her hair to the back of her head, and stares in awe at something on the beach.

 

We cut to a faraway shot of what she sees—Jack (mo-cap by Terry Notary), a muscular humanoid robot with an army green tank top, cargo shorts, and a blonde mohawk, is standing on the shore, staring directly at her. Other beachgoers are taking pictures of Jack and running away from him.

 

Christie slowly realizes that the robot is standing there with the intention of having her cornered. She walks toward the robot slowly—the robot continues to stare her down. She walks to her left—the robot walks the same direction. She walks to her right—the robot mimics her again. Seeing no option, she steps out of the ocean and onto the shore—Jack storms up and stands right in front of her, towering over her. We cut to a tense shot of Jack and Christie as they stare each other down—the ocean is on one side, while the crowd of people is on the other.

 

Suddenly, water rushes up against their feet. Jack backs away, trying to get away from the water, and Christie seizes the opportunity to sprint away. She throws her things together and runs away. She turns back—Jack is sprinting toward her. She runs faster.

 

There’s a chase sequence, and eventually, Christie is caught by Jack in a marketplace of outdoor tents. Jack rips the tag necklace off of her neck and walks away with it. Christie walks away feeling defeated.

 

Cut to Kazuya as he smiles proudly—the bracket on his screen shows that Christie has been defeated. He clicks to another tab to reveal a picture of Heihachi Mishima (Ken Watanabe). “Your reign is over, father.” He clicks to the other tab to reveal a picture of Jin Kazama. “I’ll make sure he doesn’t get in my way.” He cracks his knuckles, rises up, and walks off.

 

We cut to Christie processing her defeat in her hotel room. Getting to the finale could have helped her get through to Eddy—now, that may not happen. Julia comes to visit again, and she tells Christie that the loss wasn’t her fault—the tournament is rigged against fighters of honor like them. Christie goes into a one-minute monologue about how she wants a better life for Eddy than that of a prisoner and an assassin. Julia tells her that there will be people in the world who are drawn to doing bad things and that there’s no way of choosing who is drawn to it. Julia goes into her own monologue about how the same is true for those who are drawn to justice and truth—her mother, Michelle, disappeared while investigating the Mishima family, compelling Julia to investigate in her place.

 

Christie replies as the camera slowly zooms in on her: “I was drawn by love. Not by evil, not by truth or justice, but by love. There must be a way for love to win.”

 

Julia tells her that they need to go to where the final battle is taking place. She says that there’s no guarantee they’ll actually be able to prevent the worst from happening—but if they go to where they’re drawn, there might be a way to achieve their goal. Christie asks Julia if she’ll go with her to the site of the final battles. Julia says ‘of course’.

 

Meanwhile, Kazuya is on his computer, and he sees that he’s made it into the semifinals—and he’s set himself up against Jack, who he knows he can beat. He gets up from his chair, smirking, and walks offscreen.

 

Christie and Julia go to the semi-finals of the tournament, which is taking place inside of a small stadium—the location and nature of the stadium are kept under wraps to give off an effect. There’s two characters from Tekken fighting each other in the ring, and the crowd is eating it up. Kazuya is watching the fighters like a hawk, and in a booth above the crowd, Eddy is aiming a sniper rifle at Kazuya, trying to find the right moment to take the shot. We see his finger shaking around the trigger.

 

Eddy waits too long—Kazuya finds him with his red eye, speaks into a walkie-talkie, and disappears into the crowd. Eddy won’t risk killing an innocent person, so he says “dammit” and hurriedly disassembles the gun. Cut to Kazuya as he enters an elevator—he cracks his knuckles as the door closes.

 

Christie and Julia arrive and look around at the crowd. Christie miraculously sees Eddy in up that booth just as he’s booking it out of there. Right after he finds them, mercenaries of Heihachi Mishima circle around the two women. Julia insists that she can handle them on her own, so Christie kicks a few aside while Julia engages the mercenaries in battles.

 

 A few mercenaries follow Christie into a stairwell. Christie makes short work of the mercenaries—but low and behold, Jack is standing at the top of the staircase in front of her. Knowing there’s no way out of it, Christie musters up the courage and engages in battle with Jack.

 

 We cut back to Julia, who continues to fight—she decides that she’s outnumbered, so she runs away. She gets out of the stadium, wishes Christie luck, and runs off.

 

Kazuya gets out of the elevator and encounters Eddy. Eddy and Kazuya fight each other, and it’s clear that Kazuya has the upper hand.

 

We cut back to Christie, who is extremely bruised. She eventually defeats Jack by hopping up the stairs, leaping, wrapping her legs around the robot’s neck, and backflip-suplexing him down the staircase. The robot’s head breaks on impact with the wall, and it loses power, leaving Christie free to find Eddy.

 

Kazuya and Eddy continue to fight on the upper floor of the stadium—the fight is crosscut with Christie’s efforts to limp toward the place where she thinks Eddy might be. Eventually, Eddy does a somersault and kicks Kazuya down to the ground, temporarily immobilizing him. Eddy pins him down, pulls out a pistol, and aims it at Kazuya’s forehead.

 

“Eddy!”

 

Christie finds them right before Eddy pulls the trigger. Eddy looks down at Kazuya, who smirks with contempt. Christie pleads with Eddy not to pull the trigger. Eddy looks back and forth at Christie and Kazuya, coming just short of crying, but he decides not to kill Kazuya. Eddy runs to Christie while Kazuya gets up on his feet.

 

Kazuya: There is no place for love in battle. That is why you couldn’t kill me.

 

Suddenly, a shirtless Jin bursts through the stadium window and faces Kazuya. Jin looks different this time—he has black-feathered wings and horns on his head. Eddy escorts Christie away as Jin and Kazuya circle each other like vultures. Christie and Eddy’s journey out of the stadium is juxtaposed with Jin and Kazuya’s battle. Christie and Eddy get in a taxi, and their part end with the shot looking out the window—just like the other taxi moments. Then Jin incapacitates Kazuya—but he doesn’t kill him. He flies out the window, leaving Kazuya alone.

 

Cut to black.

 

This is how the film ends: Christie’s grandfather teaches his students capoeira, and after the lesson, he travels to Christ the Redeemer after marking a checkmark on his calendar—his calendar is filled with checkmarks, suggesting that he’s been traveling to the statue once a day for a few weeks. He sees Christie and Eddy fighting together near the base of the statue, and he smiles. The final shot is a shot of Christie and Eddy fighting, which fades to black.

 

 

Edited September 22, 2023 by SLAM!

[SLAM!]

The World That We Knew

Studio: New Journey Pictures

Director: Luca Guadagnino

based on the novel by Alice Hoffman

Genre: Historical Fiction

Release Date: November 15th

Theater Count: 2,865

MPAA Rating: R for Language, Violence, Nudity, and Sexual Content

Budget: $42.5M

Runtime: 2 hr 03 min

Composer: Alexandre Desplat

 

Major Cast
Katherine Waterston as Ava

Dixie Egerickx as Lea

Famke Janssen as Hanni

Thomasin McKenzie as Ettie

Finn Wolfhard as Julian

Timothee Chalamet as Victor

Aisling Franciosi as Marianne

Vincent Cassel as The Beekeeper

Mathieu Amalric as Monsieur Alain

Marion Cotllard as Madame Claire

Isabelle Huppert as Sister Marie

Dafne Keen as The German Girl

Jean Dujardin as Dr. Girard

with August Diehl as The Hunter

and Terry Notary as The Heron (motion capture when applicable)

 

Synopis: In a fictional Holocaust narrative involving Jewish mythology, various characters of Jewish descent navigate western Europe in order to escape the clutches of the Nazi regime.

 

Plot Summary (just shy of 8k)

Spoiler

Spoiler

Germany, 1941. It is a quiet Sunday afternoon in the streets of Berlin. Hanni (Famke Janssen), a black-haired woman, walks with her daughter Lea (Dixie Egerickx), appearing from the corner of a city block and walking hurriedly to a store. Their clothes are brown and baggy, fitted to conceal as much of their identity as possible. Hanni tells her to wait outside as she enters. Lea looks through the glass as she watches her mother shoplift an item.

 

A Nazi soldier appears and calls out to Lea. She stands still for a fleeting moment, hoping to pass by as a regular citizen. But the Nazi soldier stomps toward her. Lea finds it best to run.

 

She runs into an alleyway. Dead end. The Nazi enters the alleyway and points a gun at her, refusing to give Lea the chance to refute the idea that she’s Jewish. But the Nazi tells her she’s beautiful and says he knows what can be done in exchange for letting her go free. He uses his body to pin Lea against the wall and begins taking off clothing items.

 

Lea looks from the corner of her eye and sees an angel with black wings. She knows this angel as Azrael—in Jewish mythology, this is the angel of death. Suddenly, the bang of a gunshot is followed by the Nazi slumping to the ground, a pool of blood expanding underneath his body. Hanni has snuck into the alleyway, plucked the gun from the holster, and defended her daughter. Hanni throws the gun onto the Nazi’s body, and they run out of the alleyway and onto the sidewalk. The blood on the soles of their feet leave footprints on the sidewalk, but with each of their steps, the footprints dissipate.

 

They make it back to an apartment building where many Jews live. Hanni consoles her daughter, who asks her why she did it. Hanni tells her to remember a story of a wolf, one that symbolizes survival and defending loved ones. Lea goes off to aid other Jews, so Hanni sneaks to the room of her bedridden mother Bobeshi. Hanni tells her that the Jews no longer have a life in Germany—they’ve been reduced to scavengers at best and sitting ducks at worst. The bedridden mother tries to be optimistic. Hanni glances at the window. The sky is blue. She tells her mother she will honor her no matter what—as that is the fifth commandment.

 

Hanni looks through drawers and gathers necessary items. She takes these items and sneaks to a rabbi’s estate in the dead of night. Knocking on the door, a young woman named Ettie (Thomasin McKenzie) opens the door. Hanni presents one of her items: a stunning necklace. This is proof she’s able to pay for what she’s going to ask for.

 

Ettie, the rabbi’s daughter, is careful not to wake up the others in the estate. They have a private conversation in the house. Hanni tells her that she wants a golem to be created for her daughter, Lea. In Jewish mythology, a golem is a soulless, artificial human-like creature that can be created by a Jewish magician. The golem has no free will and must follow the orders of its master. Hanni wants one because she wants Lea to escape Berlin before it’s too late, and the golem can be commanded to protect Lea at all costs as well as to disguise itself as Lea’s cousin.

 

Ettie says that the rabbi will not do it—but she, herself will do it. In exchange, she wants the necklace. She knows intuitively that Hanni is smart enough to have something else to pay for the two fake passports for Lea and the golem; Ettie wants the necklace to pay for two fake passports for herself and her sister. Hanni asks Ettie why. Ettie says, succinctly, that she wants to live.

 

Early in the morning, as the dawn draws pink streaks in the sky, Ettie draws letters and circles on the ground in an outside location. The camera does not capture drawing, so as not to offend God; in other words, the camera stays on Hanni and Ettie. The two women talk about the logistics of creating a golem, confirming to each other that once a golem fulfills its purpose, it must die—Lea must erase a certain letter on the body of the golem, so that the word emet (‘truth’) becomes met (‘dead’). To Ettie’s bewilderment, Hanni insists that the golem be female. Traditionally, golems were male. But Ettie complies and makes the necessary arrangements.

 

Ettie: Let us begin.

 

Cut forward in time to an extreme close-up: the black-pupil eyes of Ava (Katherine Waterston) open and look around. She is lying in the mold where Ettie had drawn her numbers and circles. She scrunches the mud she once was; then she looks at her hands and recognizes that she is alive. Hanni walks to her, hands her a change of clothes, and asks her to do exactly as she says, as well as love Lea as a mother would love her daughter. Ettie sweats bullets; she walks away to catch her breath, relieved the deed worked.

 

We cut to Ava looking around as Hanni leads her through the apartments. Hanni introduces Ava to Lea and tells her that she must leave on a train to Paris, France with Ava. There is a Jewish family with distant cousinship that can take in Ava and Lea, even for a brief time. She gives Lea a pendant necklace with directions regarding Ava inside of it; she can only open the pendant when she is in a safe place, truly away from the Nazis. Hanni explains that she cannot take Lea to Paris herself because she must honor her mother according to the fifth commandment. Lea is very reluctant to go with Ava, but Hanni tells Lea to honor her and says that, no matter what happens, they will always dwell inside each other’s hearts. Ava stares stone-faced during all this.

 

We cut to the day they’re boarding the train; just outside the apartment building, Lea and Hanni embrace each other for the last time. Ava takes Lea by the hand and stares into Hanni’s eyes. The looks they give each other express a thousand words. Ava takes Lea away while Hanni watches.

 

While Lea and Ava are in line waiting to board the train, Lea tells Ava that she doesn’t want her protection; Ava states that she must protect her, as Hanni commanded her to be a protector. That is the most important direction given to her by Hanni. Ettie hurries toward the train with her sister; the sister is worried about the validity of their passports, because the forger made their passports hastily, but Ettie tells her to shut up and says they have to trust each other. Their passports are okayed miraculously, and they get in line to board; Ava notices Ettie (her physical creator) from the corner of her eye, but she pretends not to have seen her.

 

Cut to the window of the train as grassy fields pass by. Ava looks down at Lea, who’s crying because she isn’t sure if she’ll ever see her mother again. Ava attempts to wipe away some of Lea’s tears, but Lea swats her hand away. Ava then coldly tells Lea to stop crying because she doesn’t want her cover to be blown. Ettie notices Ava and Lea from a booth on the other side of the train. Her sister asks her if she knows them. Ettie deflects and asks, “doesn’t she have nice hair?”

 

The train continues forward for a time until it stops at a Nazi-mandated checkpoint. Outside, Jews are being rounded up by the Nazis. Nazi soldiers board their car and start examining passports. Lea prepares the forged passports while Lea looks outside and notices Azrael flying in the air. Ettie and her sister take out their passports, but Ettie gulps. The blue ink is smudged, and the paper is useless. Ettie and the sister exchange nervous glances. Ettie then takes her sister by the hand and walks in the opposite direction of the Nazi. She asks a train operator if they can “walk outside to get some fresh air.” The train conductor stares at them for a moment before silently waving them forth. The sisters step out of the train and immediately book it toward the woods. Nazis shout in German, a gunshot is fired, and Ettie’s sister falls down, but Ettie has no choice to run by herself.

 

Ava notices the trouble and opens her window. She looks to the sky and speaks a language undiscernible by the ears of man. Then birds attack the Nazi who struck Ettie’s sister, allowing Ettie to escape. Lea looks at Ava with amazement—“I think I know what you are,” she whispers. Ava glances at Lea and looks off. The train’s wheels spin and spin and spin and spin and spin…

 

Ettie hurries through the forest. When she knows she is safe, she stops at a tree to catch her breath. She cries and screams, but the voice is made silent by the film’s edit.

 

We cut to a housekeeper (Aisling Franciosi) as she packs a bag of clothes during the night. Her scene is a sequence of shots in which she leaves the house she’d been keeping. She is reluctant to go, but she must. She travels a long distance to a secluded house in the tree-covered hills. The owner of the house, a beekeeper (Vincent Cassel), opens the front door and sees her. The girl shouts “father” and runs to him. They embrace. “Welcome home, Marianne.”

 

Madame Claire Leví (Marion Cotillard) scours her house (which has paintings and bookshelves in it). She alerts her husband Monsieur Alain Leví (Mathieu Amalric), who’s working at his desk, that the housekeeper is missing. Someone knocks at the door; they open it and see Lea and Ava. (This means the current location is Paris.) Lea makes the distant cousinship claim and asks for refuge. Madame Claire urges Monsieur Alain to refuse, but Ava states that she’ll be able to help them with anything they need. The couple shoot each other a look.

 

The couple introduces Lea and Ava to their two sons, Julian (Finn Wolfhard) and Victor (Timothée Chalamet), and tell them the two women will be staying with them for a while. Julian is happy to have visitors, while Victor has a more cynical attitude. The parents state that Ava will be helping them with the house in Marianne’s absence. Victor accuses them of “forgetting Marianne without trying to look for her.” Madame Claire states that Marianne might come back, and if so, they’ll let her back in with open arms. Victor storms away angrily.

 

Julian introduces himself to Lea and takes it upon himself to show her around Paris. Ava deems it necessary to stay and keep the house well in order to validate their refuge to Madame Claire.

 

Julian and Lea have a fun time together in the markets and squares of Paris, which is shown through an extended montage. Lea feels free until she sees Nazi soldiers patrolling and mistreating people. Julian protects Lea because she’s frightened.

 

In the house’s backyard, Ava puts clothes on a clothesline when she looks up at the sky and notices a heron (CGI). She drops everything, leaps over the fence, and sprints in the direction that the heron flew. She finds herself at a secluded lake and sees the heron (motion capture by Terry Notary when applicable) in the middle of the lake. Its feathers are silver, and it is as tall as a human. In a trance, Ava kicks off her shoes and enters the shallow part of the lake. The heron walks to her. They gaze into each other’s eyes; Alexandre Desplat’s score swells, and they dance with one another. The camera flows gently, capturing their dance with a long-sized shot. Ava splashes water; her dancing exudes radiance.

 

We cut from an establishing shot of the dancing to a shot zooming toward Ettie’s back; she’s scrubbing dishes in a restaurant. The owner brings her more dishes and tells her to keep up the good work. There’s one shot of her laying down with her eyes open at night. Then the next day, she tells the restaurant owner she’s leaving, stating she cannot stay in one place at the same time. We have a montage of shots in which she travels from that village to another village. She finds a villager willing to house her for a night and introduces herself as “Nicole Duval.” She sits alone in the cottage tearfully; the villager asks her what’s wrong, and Ettie tells them a monologue.

 

Ettie: All I ask for now is someone to listen. From this day forth, I am a gentile. And as a gentile, I shall divorce myself from everything holding me back. I will fight, and I will avenge.

 

 The villager tells her they’ll forget she heard that. Ettie stares down in silence.

 

“You’re leaving?!” Madame Claire shouts as Victor gathers his things. Victor explains that he refuses to stand and watch as the situation gets worse and worse. He storms out of the house. Madame Claire calls out, but Monsieur Alain consoles her, saying Victor’s made up his mind.

 

Julian talks to Lea about Victor. He talks about Victor’s strong personality and the relationship he has with him—if only to cope with Victor leaving them. Lea says she can relate to parting with family members, as she had to say goodbye to her mother. Julian and Lea’s bond deepens.

 

Lea and Ava spend many days with the Leví family. Ava proves to be a natural at keeping a house together—she is especially good at cooking, as she understands the ingredients on a deeper level than humans do. The Monsieur continues his work while the Madame smokes cigarettes and worries about the Nazis marching right outside her window. They make do with one another…

 

…Until one night, when Ava walks out into the backyard. She looks out. We cut to an image of the heron, standing sullenly in front of a tree.

 

Cut to Ava storming into the house. She tells Lea (and by extension the Leví family) that they need to leave immediately. Lea is reluctant to leave—but Ava will not take no for an answer. Lea runs out into the backyard and cries. Then, she hears Hanni’s voice from within her mind. Hanni says, through voice-over, that Ava is her connection with Lea, and that she must do what Ava says. She tells Lea to remember her story of the wolf and to remember that she will always be with her. Julian appears and asks her what’s going on; she tells him that she’s going with Ava.

 

Julian declares that he wants to go with her. He goes inside to pack his things. But his mother, the Madame, forbids him from going in a tearful monologue, saying that it was enough for her to lose Victor and that Julian needs to think about what he’d do his parents if he left with Lea.

 

Julian says goodbye to Lea while Ava stares stone-faced at their interaction. Lea promises to survive and makes Julian promise her that he will survive too. They vow to keep these promises.

 

We cut to a montage of images fading in and out as Ava leads Lea through the streets of Paris. They arrive at a Catholic convent for orphans run by the head nun Sister Marie (Isabelle Huppert), and they successfully convince Sister Marie that Lea is a Catholic orphan seeking asylum when Lea recites Catholic prayers word for word. Hanni had taught her how to do that, of course. Ava is introduced to the other nuns, while Lea becomes acquainted with a German Girl (Dafne Keen) who remains closed off from everyone except her.

 

Alone in her room while the other girls sleep, Lea opens the pendant Hanni gave her and reads about Ava, confirming her suspicions. She memorizes the contents and tears the letter quietly…

 

Time passes by, and Ettie seeks out members of a resistance group. She finds a boy around her age who asks her to put on a blindfold and get in a passenger seat of a car. During the nighttime drive, the driver tells her to take off the blindfold. She does and sees that Victor’s driving the car. He introduces herself as Victor, and Ettie introduces herself as Nicole Duval. Victor tells her to use her real name—they need to trust each other. “Ettie,” she says. Victor says that she’s going to the hideout of his small resistance party. There’s a few guys around their age as well as a girl named Beatrice. Ettie asks if there are guns where they’re going—she wants to learn how to use one. “Are you sure?” Victor asks. “Once you learn how to fire a gun, there’s no going back.”

 

They make it to the hideout. Ettie meets everyone and introduces herself. Days pass by as she interacts with them. She proves herself especially talented at catching fish—Beatrice remarks that the fish seem to swim right into her hands. The four guys leave to go on a mission, but Victor tells her that when they get back, he’ll teach her how to shoot a gun.

 

Ettie and Beatrice keep the hideout secure, hunting and fishing to their content, and on one of the nights, Ettie ruminates about Queen Esther and about how she saved the lives of many Jews. One night, a car drives to the hideout. It’s one of the guys, who reports about a mistimed grenade explosion from when they tried to blow up Nazi vehicles. One of the boys is dead, and another is taking care of Victor, as he’s suffering from burns from the explosion. In any case, this driver fears that the hideout may be compromised. Ettie abandons the hideout with the others.

 

Cut to the convent, where Lea tells Ava to teach her a little bit about talking to birds. Ava tells her that it’s impossible for humans to talk to birds. Lea says that she wanted to know because she wants to ask the silver heron to do something. Ava asks her what she has in mind. Julian kicks dust in the backyard when the silver heron perches on the fence. The heron gives Julian a letter from Lea, and Julian nervously hands him the letter he’s written for Lea. The heron stares at Julian with its red eyes before flying back to the convent.

 

We cut to a montage where Julian’s living his life with Monsieur Alain and Madame Claire while Lea lives her life in the convent, learning about the nuns and getting to know the other German Girl. Lea is even able to catch glimpses of Ava and the Heron dancing together in the courtyard of the convent while no one else notices. Ava also cooks for the girls, and her skills rival that of a baker who’s somewhat heavy set and has worked at the convent for years.

 

One day in the courtyard, Lea notices that the heron hasn’t shown up for a while and asks Ava where it’s gone. Ava tells her that it migrated south to Africa—but that it will return soon. Lea is upset that she can’t send any more letters to Julian for a while, but Ava consoles her by saying she’ll be able to send letters again soon. Ava stares into the sky and frowns.

 

Another day, Julian and his family are told to walk with a group of Nazis toward a stadium. They comply and enter the stadium—but the stadium starts to fill up with Jews, and they notice that they might be in trouble. They talk to a nearby Nazi and tell they must be in there by mistake because they aren’t refugees—they are Parisian citizens. But people aren’t being trapped in the stadium because they’re refugees. They’re being trapped in the stadium because they’re Jewish. And they’ve figured that out too late.

 

The parents offer the Nazi a nice watch to at least get Julian out of the stadium. The Nazi takes the watch, grabs Julian, and orders him to walk backward into the crowd that’s pouring into the stadium. Julian is distraught as he does it—the camera’s buttery smooth as it watches Julian walking backward through the crowd—but he manages to gets away from the stadium.

 

On a nearby rooftop, he looks down at the stadium to try and see his parents. Now, the stadium is filled with people who have been trapped inside by the Nazis. Monsieur Alain perhaps sees Julien in the corner of his eye but chooses not to look in that direction. Madame Claire, a small dot in the center of the frame, wobbles madly through the stands to find herself some shade. Julian cries as he walks through the streets of Paris—much more desolate and lifeless than they once were—and he notices a young man who is perhaps familiar to him.

 

Julian runs to the young man, who asks him if he is Julian Leví. Victor has sent one of his resistance friends to find Julien and escort him out of Paris. Julian smiles at the thought that his brother might be alive.

 

Time passes by, and the resistance member brings Julian to the farmhouse of the housekeeper Marianne and her father, the beekeeper. Julian is happy to see Marianne and glad to meet the beekeeper. Then he sees a bandaged Victor sitting on a bed, staring at him with a smile. They embrace one another. Julian asks Victor what happened to his face. Victor says he was struck by his team’s own grenade—he asks Julien if he wants to see, and he uncovers his face, revealing a considerable burn scar. We cut to the characters outside the house as Victor tells Julian he has to go back and fight more of the Nazis for the resistance. Julian wants to go with Victor, but Victor wants him to stay at Marianne’s house and her father, the beekeeper. Victor and Marianne kiss, and Marianne gazes passionately as Victor leaves with the other resistance member.

 

In the convent, the baker sweeps in the courtyard and notices Lea and the German Girl speaking to one another in German. Sister Marie then calls to him, wanting to talk to him in the office.

 

In the office, Sister Marie basically tells the baker that the convent needs to lay him off because the convent doesn’t have the resources to pay him. The baker criticizes Sister Marie because, right there in her office, there’s items that are not exactly cheap, such as pens, bookshelves, and the like. Sister Marie lovingly tells the baker that, when the convent has more funds, he’s more than welcome to come back. But the baker stares into space. And Sister Marie peers into him.

 

The baker walks out of the front door. Sister Marie watches him from the window of her office. The baker turns around to look at the office, and the expression on his face can only be described as pure greed. Sister Marie hurries down and tells all of the nuns and all of the orphans that they need to leave immediately. They go in groups; Lea, of course, goes with Ava. Sister Marie volunteers to stay behind at the convent. Everyone else leaves toward the French countryside, and the Nazis walk into the convent. There’s a brief, harsh scene in Sister Marie’s office where the Nazis open a file and read Sister Marie’s Jewish ancestral history as if it’s a criminal record. Sister Marie stares stoically as the “charges” are spoken.

 

Lea and Ava hide in the woods together. They drift away from the other convent escapees at Ava’s urging. Cut to Ava halting; Lea looks up at her and sees that Ava is basking in the sunlight, closing her eyes, moving her lips to silently speak—perhaps, she is talking to God. Lea wanders off as Ava worships on her own. Lea collects fallen lumber for firewood, but she suddenly stops and stares at a wolf. She can tell from a distance that the wolf is female. They stare at each other for a time, before the wolf loses interest, looks away, and darts off.

 

Lea and Ava, having found a small cave, make a fire and warm themselves. Lea stares into the fire as its embers dance. She hears Hanni’s voice inside her head—but Hanni is now telling her that her heart and Ava’s heart are now the only places where she exists on earth. We see hazy images of Hanni suffering in a death camp. Hanni tells her she will always be with her before her voice fades away. Lea begins to cry. Ava holds her tightly. But she is amazed by the love she feels. She looks down at Lea, whose head is firmly wrapped around Ava’s waist. She stares into space. Tears stream down her face, though she doesn’t realize the tears are falling down.

 

Time passes; Lea and Ava wake up in the cave when the heron descends from the sky. Ava runs toward the heron, and they stare at one another happily. Lea sees them from the cave and quickly jots down a message for Julian.

 

Lea’s message is expressed in a voice-over during a montage of shots where Julian helps Marianne and her father. Julian’s reply to Lea follows hers during the same montage. In the montage, Julian helps Marianne and her father collect honey from the bees—they all wear protective gear while they collect the honey. Then they’re just plain living together and having a good time. Julian describes this and explains that Marianne has been leading groups of refugees to the French-Swiss border on a regular basis, so she’s traveling from the house quite often. Julien tells Lea he is happy she’s alive and that she wishes to see her soon.

 

At a time when Marianne is away, the beekeeper, who’s been teaching Julian how to survive and fend for himself, tells him to go down to a creek to fetch water. He does this, but upon his return, he sees Nazi vehicles park in front of the house. He hides in the foliage and waits for them to leave. When they leave, Julian rushes into the house and finds the beekeeper’s body hanging by its neck. He is dead. Julian buries the beekeeper near the house. He sits alone in the house, shaking because he doesn’t know what to do.

 

Then he remembers the beekeeper’s words—a brief, one-shot flashback of Julian’s POV where the beekeeper tells him, “if anything happens to me, there’s something I hid in a place no one will think to look. Find it, and it will help you survive.” So Julian searches the house, all its nooks, and all its crannies, to try and find this object. Then he has an epiphany. He goes out to where the bees are kept and reaches into the hive. He gets stung a little bit, but smiles off the pain. Soon enough, he reaches out a bundled paper—it’s a makeshift map of Jewish safe zones in the French countryside. He packs a bag and walks off, thinking it’s better to go than to stay.

 

Cut to a pair of binoculars’ view of a Nazi hideout. Victor explains to Ettie, who’s looking through the binoculars, that high-ranking Nazis stole this two-story house to use as a base. Ettie sees various Nazi officers interacting with one another—and then she looks into an upstairs bedroom window, where a specific general is taking women’s clothing from the drawers and throwing it on the bed with the intention to use the clothing to serve himself. He is their target.

 

Ettie lowers the binoculars as Victor explains the resistance group is waiting to secure a sniper rifle and a reliable getaway vehicle before they go through with assassinating the general. But in the meantime, Victor wants Ettie to split up from the group and find a nearby refuge. Ettie asks him why. He tells her that he wants her to be the one that fires the gun. Ettie is pleased, but she asks why it would be her out of all the other resistance members. Victor tells her that out of everyone in his (albeit small) resistance, she is the one who has the very least to lose. Furthermore, she’s a great shot. Ettie looks down and smiles.

 

Dr. Girard (Jean Dujardin), a doctor treating patients in his country home, says farewell to a group of people as they walk out. Then he looks up at the hill and notices Ettie walking toward his house. We ellipsis-cut to Dr. Girard letting Ettie inside, saying it’s a pleasure to have her in there. Ettie cuts to the chase, if she must be turned away, let it be so—but she needs asylum. Dr. Girard’s expression exudes understanding; he says that everyone who seeks him out primarily seeks him out for his services as a doctor and that he hasn’t had to house a refugee yet—he admits he’s surprised it’s taken that long. Time moves forward rapidly as we cut to a montage of moments where Ettie and Dr. Girard get to know one another. During the montage of moments, Dr. Girard tells her about his wife, Sarah, who passed away before the war broke out. The doctor lets Ettie try on some of his wife’s old dresses—“it’s no good if they sit in the closet unworn.”

 

Their rapport gets to the point where Dr. Girard adores Ettie as the daughter he never had. One night, Ettie has an unconventional favor to ask of the doctor. She asks him if they can have intercourse. Dr. Girard initially refuses and asks her why she would suggest that. Ettie clarifies that it’s not like she loves him like *that*. She wants this for a selfish reason: she doesn’t say she thinks she might die in the assassination attempt, but she does say she wants to know what it means to experience intercourse with an honorable man. Dr. Girard thinks to himself in his kitchen, his hands clasping his forehead, unsure of what to do. He makes up his mind and walks to the room. Ettie stares at him expectantly. Cut to the hallway as he waits for a moment and closes the door.

 

Cut to Julian in someone’s house as he scrubs the floor with a towel. The owner of the house walks up and tells him that he needs to leave and that they’re sure he understands. Cut to Julian walking away from the house of a couple that gave him refuge, even if for a brief period of time. As he travels through the French countryside, he reads a map and finds a place he wants to go. After a few shots of him traveling, he finds a shelter for Jewish children. The volunteers running the shelter assure him that this shelter has been sanctioned by the French government as a safe space for Jewish children. Julian is very happy to meet other children—this includes people who are around his age as well. He is also happy to discover that they’re able to do activities such as “arts & crafts” and growing flowers in the backyard’s garden. We cut to another montage of moments as Julian eats good meals with the others and even leaps from a cliff to a lake at its bottom. He breaks through the water’s surface and laughs with the other kids.

 

We cut to the dinner after they went cliff-jumping into the lake. The others at his table ask Julian if he’s feeling okay. Julian vomits on the floor next to him. The kids gasp. One of the boys he’d been cliff-jumping with if he swallowed the water in the lake. Julian, now obviously sick, says he swallowed some by accident. The boy says there’s bad bacteria in the water, but if he goes to rest it off, he should be fine in the morning. Julian offers to clean up his own vomit, but the volunteers assure him they’re handling it, so Julian exits to the second floor to rest.

 

Cut to Julian resting in his room late at night. He hears screaming coming from outside. He peers through the window blinds and stares aghast. The volunteers are arguing with a Nazi as soldiers are tossing children into a massive truck as if they’re hay barrels. Julian thinks to himself. He opens the door of his room and sees that a few soldiers are walking into other rooms and taking other kids by force. He notices that across the room is an open window. He sprints down the hallway and jumps out of the window, falling down toward the backyard and breaking something when he lands. He winces—but he knows better than to make a sound. He crawls desperately toward bushes and hides in them. He hides just in time and watches as two Nazi soldiers enter the backyard, walk to the other side of the garden, and pee on flowers the children had grown.

 

Nazi #1: I still can’t believe it: the French prime minister declared it a courtesy to send children to be with their parents in Auschwitz!

Nazi #2: Ha! These bastards deserve what’s coming to them.

 

Julian waits until the Nazis leave. He hobbles to the brick fence, climbs over it, and runs away.

 

We fade to Lea and Ava discovering the beekeeper’s house—they see that it’s abandoned and decide to hunker down. Lea finds food items they can cook. Ava cooks and accidentally burns herself, but Lea must tell her to pull her hand away because she can’t feel the pain; Ava sees that her left hand has become the color of terracotta, and that it’s melting. Ava goes to the creek and stoops down to run her hand through the water. The heron glides in, lands, and stands behind her to watch. She tells the heron a monologue about how he is not bound to the earth, and that he is lucky to not be bound to the earth—but that she, herself, is bound to the earth. She walks to the shore while the heron cranes its neck in empathy, stepping toward her and hesitating. She scoops mud to her and shapes it into a hand, saying she’ll never know what it means to be flesh and blood, and she’ll never know what it means to have free will, but she nonetheless thanks God because she exists, even if only for a moment. The mud forms into a hand—good as new.

 

Later that night, Ava situates things inside of the house and looks outside a window at exactly the right moment. She sees Lea running out of the wooded area. At first, she smiles in a motherly fashion—but something isn’t right, so the squints her eyes. There’s a swarm of small dots swirling around Lea maliciously. Ava figures out what’s happening. She grabs a tablecloth, runs to Lea, lashes the cloth, and commands the bees to flee with her undiscernible language. The bees fly off, but Lea falls to the ground unconscious. Ava rushes to Lea, telling her to wake up and stay with her. Then Azrael is seen hovering above them, his body outlined by the palpable moonlight. Ava detects the angel, stands between him and the girl, stamps the earth, and shouts:

 

“NO!”

 

Azrael gawks. Ava grits her teeth, her expression akin to a snarling wolf. Azrael stares through the darkness of his hood; he then shuts his book and holds it at his side, as if to give Lea permission to live. Ava, not taking her eyes off the hovering angel, picks up Lea and darts off.

 

Ava runs through the forest, carrying Lea as she sprints in no certain direction. Hanni speaks to Lea through voice-overs as Ava runs as fast as she can. She miraculously makes to no other place than Dr. Girard’s house, where Dr. Girard quickly begins to treat Lea. Ettie sees Ava from the far side of a hall—Ava locks eyes with her, so Ettie hides behind the corner and clasps her mouth. In the doctor’s operation, Julian is lying down on the 2nd cot, recovering from his fall at the children’s shelter, and he sees the condition Lea is in. He struggles to reach her dangling hand and grabs it, telling Lea that she made a promise to survive and that she has to survive. Ava watches stone-faced as Dr. Girard treats Lea.

 

A handful of glistening nature shots fade in and out of each other.

 

Cut to Lea sleeping soundly on the cot. Dr. Girard tells Ava that it’s a guarantee Lea will live. He also remarks on how improbable it is for Lea to have survived an attack by a swarm of bees, let alone made it all the way to his house in such a critical condition. He also remarks on how rare of a coincidence it is that so many people under his roof seem to know each other—his patient, Julian, knows about both of them, and even Ettie seems to know about her. Ava loses interest in the conversation and walks out of the room. “Madame!” says the doctor—she does not return.

 

Ettie and Ava talk together in a private room of the doctor’s house. Ettie commends Ava for fulfilling her purpose thus far. Ava commends her for giving her life. Ettie buries her hands in her face, deducing that even though she declared herself a gentile, she supposes she really can’t ever escape from being a Jew. She says she wanted to be a scholar, and she wanted to be a teacher, but she simply can’t ever escape being a Jew.  Ava warns her that she sees two clear paths for her: one leading to life and one leading to death. Ettie wears a healthy grimace and says that she will choose the path that saves the lives of others, no matter what happens to her. Ava blesses Ettie. Ettie sheds tears.

 

Cut to Lea and Julian telling their stories of survival to each other in the operation room. Then they smile at each other and tell each other they’re thankful for the other’s survival. They hug.

 

A day or two passes, and Ettie’s reading a book when she looks out the window. She sees Victor standing on top of the hill. She shuts the book.

 

We cut to Ettie giving Dr. Girard a hug and telling her goodbye. Ettie says goodbye to the others as well. Ettie and Ava look at each other for one last time before she walks out the door. Julian says he has a gut feeling and walks out the front door—then he sees Victor on top of the hill right as Ettie is about to make it to him. Julian shouts out to his brother and tries to run—but his movement is still somewhat inhibited. Nevertheless, Victor sees him and meets him halfway. They hug each other, and Victor tells him to listen: he wants him to take Lea and go to Marianne’s house to wait for her to arrive—and he wants them to go with Marianne to the French-Swiss border. Julian asks Victor why he’s not going with them—he pleads for Victor to come with him. Victor holds Julian’s head and states that he’s doing something with Ettie that can potentially save many lives and that he’ll cross the border to meet them if he survives. Julian says, “please, brother.” Victor says, “I’m sorry”—and shakes off Julian’s hand, disappearing over the hill.

 

Ettie aims the sniper rifle as she and Victor hide behind the same rock. We see the scope’s POV as Ettie aims at the general they’re targeting. Victor calmly tells her to take the shot whenever she’s ready. Ettie bites her lip. She fires. The bullet strikes and kills the general. The Nazis start shouting in German. Victor tells Ettie to abandon the gun as they scramble to flee. They run to their getaway car—Victor gets in the driver’s seat—and they drive away.

 

They get on the road, and for a moment, it seems like they might get away—but a Nazi vehicle sees them on the intersecting road in front of them. Victor drives as fast as possible. The Nazi vehicle swerves on the road to follow the getaway car. Victor tells Ettie to get the pistol. Ettie leans out of the window and fires the pistol, killing the Nazi in the shotgun seat—but a Nazi leans out of the backseat and shoots, striking Ettie near the shoulder and fatally wounding her. The Nazis shoot the getaway car’s back tires, and Victor swerves and crashes into a ditch.

 

The Nazis get out of their car and apprehend Victor—they drag him away as he kicks and screams. Ettie stares at the blue sky through the windshield. She smiles. She pulls out a device and pushes a button.

 

The car explodes.

 

The explosion can be seen from a distance.

 

Marianne hikes through the forest and sees the house from a distance. She sees Julian, waves, and hikes closer. We cut to Marianne greeting Julian and the others at the house. They tell her that they have something to tell her about Victor. Marianne perks up and asks them what they want to tell her. Ava tells her that Victor is dead. (She knows this because the heron saw it.) The news hits Marianne slowly. She turns away, walking in disbelief, and collapses to her knees, convulsing into a puddle of sadness. Julien and Lea stare at Marianne in sadness while Ava looks up at the sky. Cut to Julien wedging a wooden cross (with “Victor Leví” written on it) next to the beekeeper’s grave. They stare at the graves and mourn. Marianne gives a monologue, promising her father and lover that the forthcoming generations will know and understand the atrocities they were affected by—and that she will make sure their stories are remembered by the world.

 

We cut to a montage of moments in which Marianne leads Julien, Lea, and Ava through the woods and to the border. They help each other walk and help each other stay hidden. Ava looks up at the sky and is delighted that the heron is watching over them. During the montage, Hanni congratulates her daughter through voice-overs.

 

They reach the mountain path to the border and are about to cross when Ava’s eyes widen. She whips around. We see a shot of the forested area behind her. She knows that something is amiss. She runs in the direction of the trouble she intuitively knows about. Lea yells at her to wait, but Julian grabs her arm and tells her that they need to cross immediately. Lea turns to him, hesitates, and says, “there’s something I need to tell you.”

 

Ava sprints through the forest, knowing that something is amiss. A man’s voice shouts at her and tells her to stop. She looks and sees that a Nazi (August Diehl) is pointing a shotgun at her. She continues sprinting in spite of the Nazi’s shotgun. The Nazi, a hunter, tells her to stop one more time, but she continues to sprint, unfazed by the sight of the gun. The hunter fires and grazes Ava’s arm, but since Ava cannot bleed, she covers the wound and collapses, acting like the bullet did more damage than it did. Grains of dirt seep through her fingers.

 

The hunter smiles wickedly; he surmises that the woman “must be” one of the many “brainless Jews” he’s encountered. He saunters to a tree stump, sits down, and crosses his leg. Ava stares at the man in contempt. The hunter sarcastically asks her what it’s like to serve her God, what it’s like to “manipulate the world” with “Jewish evil,” etc. He points to the tree limbs, saying he wants to show her something.

 

Ava looks up and stares in horror. The heron is hanging upside down, its feet tied to a rope—dead. The hunter boasts that he did to the heron what he does to everything that is below them: he slaughters them. All of them. All the “sewer rats” that roam the earth—all the creatures in which he can gain something by killing them. As he saunters over to Ava, he asks her what she thinks about that. Ava sees Azrael, the angel of death, sitting on a tree limb, kicking his feet giddily, with his book open and quill at the ready. Ava stares at the hunter and does not answer the question. The hunter asks her the question a second time. She doesn’t answer him—just stares. The hunter says that if she doesn’t answer, he’ll shoot her. Again, she doesn’t answer. The hunter says he’ll count to three, and if she doesn’t answer, he’ll shoot. He counts to ‘one.’ Then he counts to ‘two.’

 

Abruptly cut away as a gunshot is fired—many birds fly out from the trees and into the sky.

 

There is a red wound in the hunter’s chest. He examines it and gasps. He looked down at his belt. The pistol is missing from his holster. He turns around. Lea has slipped the pistol out and defended Ava. With one hand covering the wound, he points the shotgun at Lea—but he falls down and dies before he can fire. Lea and Julian rush to help Ava up to her feet. Julian swallows at the sight of Ava’s wound, which has become an enclave of skin-colored dirt. Ava says that she Lea and Julien have to travel to the border immediately—and she tells Lea to erase the letter and change emet to met, effectively turning her to dust. Ava pulls the collar of her shirt, revealing the word emet on her chest. Lea cries—she doesn’t want to do this. Ava tells her it must be done.

 

The music swells. Julian and Lea hold each other as Lea reaches out her finger. Ava closes her eyes and accepts her fate. Lea looks away for a fleeting moment, but she looks at the word, knowing what must be done.

 

We see another extreme close up of Ava’s eyes as the score intensifies and tapers off. She opens her eyes. She looks around in confusion. Lea and Julian are nowhere to be found. She winces at a jolt of pain, something she’s never felt before. She feels her arm and looks down at her hand, and on the hand, she finds blood. Crimson blood. Human blood. She pulls her shirt and looks at her chest. She catches sight of the Hebrew word just before it dissipates: instead of changing the word to met, Lea had changed it to a word that means ‘love.’

 

The sun rays shine down on Ava. She looks around at her surroundings in awe. We see shots of the animals and birds in the forest, and all the trees whose leaves and branches sway. She smiles, stares at the sky, and rejoices, happy to be alive.

 

Fade to black.

 

 

Edited September 22, 2023 by SLAM!

[4815162342]

Losers Weepers

Genre: Thriller/Black Comedy
Directed By: Liz Friedlander
Release Date:  January 5, Year 8

Cast: Little-Knowns
Theater Count: 2942 Theaters
Budget: $10 million
Running Time: 102 Minutes
MPAA Rating: R for scenes of gory violence, strong language, drug use, and sexual content

 

Previous Film's Gross (Finders Keepers): $6,555,110 OW/$16,015,939 DOM/$30,811,133 WW

 

Plot Summary:

 

Spoiler

 

The film picks up where Finders Keepers left off, with a wounded Evil Friend being carted away by the gangsters whose money he and his now dead friends stole. Kicking, screaming, wailing, he's bound and gagged and tossed in the back of a van, and the van speeds off with several gangsters inside it as well. Unfortunately for the gangsters, their vengeance is short-lived when the van driver swerves to avoid a moose in the middle of the road, and the van loses control and flips and rolls over in an accident that bashes everyone inside around. It comes to a halt and Evil Friend regains consciousness and sees everyone else inside seems dead. He frees himself from his bindings and stumbles out of the van and down the road. One of the gangsters turns out to still be alive, and crawls out of the wrecked van and gives chase, stumbling and shooting his gun, but missing. The gangster catches up to Evil Friend, but before he can shoot Evil Friend, he gets run over by an 18-wheeler that had careened out of control trying to avoid the same moose. Evil Friend cackles at being alive, then passes out.

 

Evil Friend wakes up in a hospital, and is visited by detectives about the gangsters, and is able to BS his way out of any trouble. He's disappointed the money is all gone though. The next day, Evil Friend is visited by Family Lawyer, the attorney for his extremely wealthy and even more extremely estranged parents. Family Lawyer tells Evil Friend that his parents are both dead, having died at the same time in freak accidents while trying to out-compete one another in extremely dangerous rich people feats. The dad died parasailing over shark-infested waters, and the mom died tightrope walking over a volcano caldera. In any case, Family Lawyer tells Evil Friend that his parents' will is being read in a few days after the funeral, and he should be there.

 

Evil Friend attends the funeral of his parents, then the will reading. Along the way, we meet all of his estranged siblings: Sorrowful Sibling, a sister who is always overdramatically depressed and cynical and nihilistic; Smiley Sibling, a sister who is cheerful to the point of syrupy toxicity; Sickly Sibling, a brother who has always been afflicted with one ailment or another and weak in constitution; Somnambulist Sibling, a brother who is completely bland and boring except for the fact he gets up to hijinks sleepwalking, Sex Addict Sibling, a brother who wants to sleep with everyone he can; and Screw-up Sibling, a sister who always fails at everything she does, and fuels her mistakes with copious drugs and alcohol.

 

The will is read, and the massive family estate is split six ways between Evil Friend's other siblings, provided they are alive, or maintain to extremely specific moral character clauses. Evil Friend is cut out of the will entirely, other than a small annual stipend, except in the case that all of his other siblings are either dead, or have been disinherited due to the moral character clause. A couple siblings gloat to Evil Friend, though a couple express sympathy. Evil Friend shrugs and says Mom and Dad were assholes anyway.

 

Evil Friend calls up an old acquaintance who used to be his right-hand in havoc, Submissive Stooge. Evil Friend tells Submissive Stooge that he has a plan, a cunning plan. He is going to arrange for the death or disgrace of all of his siblings, which will result in him inheriting 100% of everything! Evil Friend, has become, Scheming Sibling.

 

First on Scheming Sibling's hitlist is Somnambulist Sibling. Scheming Sibling arranges for him and Somnambulist Sibling to go on a camping trip with several other people, Scheming Sibling always being conspicuously with people at all times for alibis. During all this, he has arranged for Submissive Stooge to lay out a series of incidents that will lead Somnambulist Sibling to his doom. It turns out that while sleepwalking, Somnambulist Sibling is subconsciously attracted to death metal music, and the plan is for Submissive Stooge to lure Somnambulist Sibling away from the campsite by playing death metal in the distance after Scheming Sibling has triggered the sleepwalking. The lure works, and Somnambulist Sibling sets out sleepwalking into the woods. Submissive Stooge has set up several elaborate death traps, but Somnambulist Sibling manages to barely sleepwalk by all of them, so Submissive Stooge uses the music to lure the sleepwalker to a cliff ledge, but Somnambulist Sibling stops right at the edge. So Submissive Stooge has to push Somnambulist Sibling over, and almost gets knocked over too in the process, but escapes. One down.

 

Sickly Sibling is mostly confined to his townhouse, with top-flight security, so Scheming Sibling's plan is to slowly poison his brother to death. He enlists Submissive Stooge to pose as one of the nurses who visits Sickly Sibling every so often, and lace some of his food/beverages with slow acting poison. There's some misunderstandings as Submissive Stooge nearly blows his cover, but this plan gets to a start.

 

In the interim, Scheming Sibling targets Sex Addict Sibling and Screw-Up Sibling, planning to do a 2-for-1 scheme that will kill Sex Addict Sibling and disgrace Screw-up Sibling. Sex Addict Sibling loves to host orgies every now and then, and sometimes Screw-up Sibling is there to get wasted, high, laid, etc., though both swear they've never hooked up, probably. Anyways, Scheming Sibling manages to get himself invited to one of these orgies, and arranges to sneak Submissive Stooge in as well. After enjoying himself a bit, and after Submissive Stooge briefly gets trapped as a submissive in a BDSM room, Scheming Sibling enacts his scheme. With Sex Addict Sibling and Screw-Up Sibling both wasted, he convinces Sex Addict Sibling to participate in a group orgy upstairs, and for Screw-Up Sibling to get the good drugs for everyone. As part of this, Scheming Sibling arranges for Screw-up Sibling to inadvertently dump a bunch of ecstasy, GHB, cocaine, and all manner of goodies into Sex Addict Sibling's drink, so when Sex Addict Sibling gets stimulated in the orgy, he gets a heart attack and dies on the spot. His cause of death is traced to what Screw-up Sibling did to his drink, so she is arrested on homicide charges. Family Lawyer informs the siblings that this activates her moral character clause, and she is out. Three siblings down.

 

Sickly Sibling is still in the process of being poisoned, and occasionally Scheming Sibling visits to talk with him, and also help along with the poisoning. It's slow going, but Sickly Sibling seems to be getting sicker. Scheming Sibling, confident of his eventual success, hires a maid service for his place, and dismissively says sure when the maid he ends up hiring asks if she can bring her daughter with her.

 

Scheming Sibling now goes after Smiley Sibling to disgrace her. Smiley Sibling runs all sorts of charities and benefits for the poor and helpless, and Scheming Sibling's plan is to ruin her reputation with these things. He uses Submissive Stooge to infiltrate some of the charities and arranges for one of them, a shelter and care center for runaway children, to be connected to a sex trafficking ring with lots of falsified evidence. This then gets leaked to the press and Smiley Sibling becomes the target of a criminal investigation, which she swears innocence. The police and press dig into things and end up finding no proof of the sex trafficking ring for kids, BUT, it turns out that Smiley Sibling was actually using the charities to be a massive money laundering operation and embezzlement/Ponzi scheme, and the police stumble upon this. Smiley Sibling gets arrested on this, and Family Lawyer tells the other siblings that with these charges, Smiley Sibling is out as well. Four down.

 

Scheming Sibling's next plot is to convince Sorrowful Sibling to kill herself. Depressed over the death and disgrace of four of her siblings, Sorrowful Sibling is well on the way to checking herself out, and Scheming Sibling subtly pushes her along the path. Having a flair for the dramatic, Sorrowful Sibling decides to kill herself via a convoluted over the top scheme of jumping off the roof of the tallest building in the city. She goes to the top, but there's glass barriers installed precisely to prevent this. So Scheming Sibling suggests she jump off one of the bridges. She goes to a bridge, but a driver passing by stops and tries to talk her out of it, and when he reaches for her, he's the one who tumbles over the side of the bridge instead of her, and she scurries away. So Scheming Sibling suggests she just OD, classic, tried and true. She takes a bunch of sleeping pills, and when Scheming Sibling checks on her...she's just sleeping and snoring. So Scheming Sibling has to finish her off by smothering her with a pillow. However, now there's signs of murder, and Scheming Sibling has to cover it up, so he gets Submissive Stooge to help him hide the body in a suitcase and they sneak it out of the apartment building. Submissive Stooge steals a car, they put dead Sorrowful Sibling in it, put the car at the top of a hill, then release the brake and let it roll down the road, where it goes straight-forward and crashes into a gas station, igniting one of the pumps in an over-the-top explosion. Didn't go as planned, but that's five down.

 

Back to Sickly Sibling, who is now extremely sick, and after another talk with Scheming Sibling, passes away in his sleep from the poison. Scheming Sibling is the last Sibling standing, and he goes to Family Lawyer to claim his inheritance.

 

Except, there is a problem. Family Lawyer says he just learned that Scheming Sibling's dad slept around a lot, and fathered a child several years ago. Since the love child post-dates the most recent will, state law requires the love child to inherit on an equal basis with all other children. Since Scheming Sibling is the only one left, that means the love child gets half. Scheming Sibling now has a Secret Step-Sibling.

 

Submissive Stooge tells Scheming Sibling half of a fortune is a lot, but Scheming Sibling WANTS IT ALL! He's gonna get rid of Secret Step-Sibling no matter what. He says he has gotten this super duper bottle of scotch he was saving for the moment he got everything.

 

After casing the house where Secret Step-Sibling, who's nine years old. Scheming Sibling, being extremely frustrated, angry, and impatient, decides that he and Submissive Stooge will stage a break-in/burglary of the house and sadly Secret Step-Sibling gets caught in the way. Submissive Stooge, after being berated, goes along with the plan. Little do they know, that Secret Step-Sibling is also a Savant Step-Sibling, and has been observing their moves with suspicion.

 

So, when Scheming Sibling and Submissive Stooge break into the home one night when Secret Step-Sibling is alone, they are confronted with an array of death traps, Home Alone style, that befuddle and confound them, and eventually Submissive Stooge gets decapitated in an elaborate trap worthy of a Saw movie, and his corpse, muscles still in motion, stumbles outside towards his waiting car before collapsing just by it. Scheming Sibling however makes it through the traps and confronts Secret Step-Sibling and chases her around, before she locks herself in a panic room. So, Scheming Sibling arranges for a gas leak that blows up the house, and he is confident no one escaped.

 

Scheming Sibling goes back to his place, in a good mood, and pours himself a drink from the special bottle of scotch he was saving. He drinks, and then suddenly Family Lawyer appears from a side room. The jig is up. Scheming Sibling is confused, and then Sickly Sibling, in his wheelchair, emerges from the same room and says he suspected Scheming Sibling from the start, so he switched the poisoned food/beverages out. And where did the poison go? Out of the room steps Secret Step-Sibling and her mom, who is the maid Scheming Sibling hired. Sickly Sibling says he knew about Secret Step-Sibling from the beginning, and when he realized what Scheming Sibling was up to, arranged for them to deposit the poison in the bottle of scotch. Since Secret Step-Sibling is also a Savant Step-Sibling, she was able to figure out how to do it without leaving a trace. And since they knew what Scheming Sibling was up to, Secret Step-Sibling was able to arrange for an easy escape tunnel from her house in the event her traps didn't kill him. Scheming Sibling is infuriated and pulls out a gun, but since he got a huge dose of the poison he was slowly trying to kill Sickly Sibling with, it acts so much faster and Scheming Sibling convulses, pukes up all of his insides, organs, etc., then dies in his own stink.

 

Sickly Sibling looks at Secret Step-Sibling and says "Welcome to the Family"

 

 

[4815162342]

Numbers Theory

 

Inspired by Real Life Box Office Forum Events

 

Genre: Thriller
Cast: Liam Neeson (Shawn), Joaquim de Almeida (Joao Carlos), Dakota Johnson (Mary), Diogo Morgado (Ferdinand), Denis Leary (Rick), with Elisabeth Shue (Kathy) and Karl Urban (Horace)
Directed By: Jeremy Rush
Release Date: April 5, Year 8
Theater Count: 3416 Theaters
Budget: $35 million
Running Time: 98 minutes
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for violence, some drug use and sexual content, and brief strong language

 

Plot Summary:
 

Spoiler

 

Shawn (Neeson) is a respected financial analyst who uses complicated statistical formulas and historical models to make projections about the financial prospects of stocks, currency exchange rates, values of material goods, etc. He has a loving wife, Kathy, (Shue), two happy grown-up children, and even a prize-winning Newfoundland. His life is perfect.

 

Shawn meets with a new client, a Portuguese entrepreneur named Joao Carlos (de Almeida). Joao Carlos is accompanied by his personal assistant, Ferdinand (Morgado) who stays quiet and takes notes. Joao Carlos wants to play the stock market via betting on the successes and failures of Hollywood studios.

 

After a couple short scenes showing him doing research and his personal life, Shawn gives a presentation that shows that Numerator Pictures is about to release an action/thriller film starring a mid-50s actor who until now has only done dramatic work, with total costs exceeding $100 million. The studio is publicly traded on Wall Street, so if the action film tanks, investors will start panicking. Shawn says that his research indicates that the film will indeed tank, making “$12-15 million on its opening weekend, with a final domestic run of $35-40 million, tops.” Therefore he recommends shorting Numerator Pictures’ stock in anticipation of the flop, but advises caution. Joao says if Shawn’s right he could stand to make a killing, so he will short the stock to the tune of $10 million. As he signs the relevant papers, he asks Shawn “you’re not going to screw me over, are you?” Shawn replies he’s never wrong.

 

Outside the office, Ferdinand asks his boss if it was wise to invest so much capital into “trash cinema.” Joao says having been forced to take their business here, they need to make their killing, and this American came highly recommended.

 

We see time progress, Shawn spends some time with his family. He and Kathy talk about taking a nice long European vacation. Shawn also has a short meeting with Rick (Leary), who represents a major hedge fund that is interested in using Shawn’s services.

 

One day Shawn gets an alert from Deadline Hollywood that the action film in question has opened almost $40 million, about triple his minimum projection. Joao Carlos calls expressing concern. Shawn explains action films rarely have sustained business. “Even if it gets to 100 million domestic, which is dubious since critics are tearing this movie a new one, studios only take a bit over half that cut” he explains. “It would need to make over $200 million worldwide to break even. And the studio needs this to more than just break even, since they passed on some lucrative IP to make this movie”.

 

As the next several weeks tick by, we see that Shawn has closed a deal with Rick. We also see that the action film has obtained remarkable legs, crossed $130 million domestically and well more than that overseas. Shawn isn’t broken up, telling an assistant that it was one bad guess. Of course Joao doesn’t feel the same, storming into Shawn’s office one day. Joao says that Numerator Pictures’ stock has rebounded, which wipes out the $10 million invested. Shawn reminds Joao he had suggested caution but Joao doesn’t care. “I asked you if you would screw me, and you said you were never wrong.” He spits on Shawn and storms out.

 

Ferdinand, waiting outside, asks what they do now, since that $10 million was a lot of their seed money. “If your competitors learn about this they’ll see you as weak and move in.” Joao says they won’t when they see how he handles those who screw him.

 

Things seem to go on as normal for Shawn. He meets with an investment banker called Horace (Urban). Horace knows some inside information on a prominent oil corporation. Shawn is intrigued.

 

A week later, Kathy is leaving her and Shawn’s brownstone to walk their Newfoundland when suddenly it gets agitated and yanks out of Kathy’s grip and runs into the street where it is hit by an SUV that speeds off without stopping. Kathy is distraught and Shawn consoles her.

 

The next day, Shawn is at his office, finishing up a call with Horace to firm up their working deal, when he gets an unmarked large envelope. Inside are several photos of Kathy with their dog. There is also a dog whistle. Shawn is stunned for a moment, but then his face contorts into anger. At home he doesn’t mention this to Kathy, but simply tries to numb himself with drinks.

 

A few days later he meets Rick, who notices his tension. Shawn shrugs it off but Rick says Shawn should loosen up and join him and a few other executives he knows on a night out. After some pushing Shawn joins them for some drinking and gets pretty drunk. So when he gets approached by an attractive woman half his age, it only takes a little encouraging to go with her. She takes him to a nearby hotel room and they start making out, but as she starts taking clothes off he hesitates, and is able to sober up and excuse himself.

 

Things seem to go back to normal. Shawn continues working out a deal with Horace where Horace will give him some information that he can use to advise clients. It’s not quite insider trading, but it’s close to the fuzzy line.

 

Kathy is at home talking on the phone with friends when a small package is delivered. She opens it up and finds inside photographs showing Shawn’s almost hookup, though some photos (the audience can tell) have been doctored to look like things went even further. Kathy looks upset and she flings the envelopes and photos across the room, where they scatter.

 

When Shawn comes home he finds the photos scattered about, and goes upstairs to find Kathy sitting on their bed, a couple suitcases packed. The two of them have a fight, Shawn trying to explain that nothing happened, he stopped himself, and Kathy arguing back that Shawn should have known better, that the photos tell a different story, and that now she understands why he’s been putting less time in with her and the family. “Now you get your wish” Kathy says coldly, and she shoves the suitcases at him. Shawn silently takes the suitcases and leaves.

 

Shawn checks into a hotel, pissed off. He thinks about going to get a drink but stops himself. Instead he makes a phone call.

 

The phone call goes to an office where we see a sign that says “Lansky Detective Agency.” A woman about thirty answers and introduces herself as Mary (Johnson). Shawn asks for Saul Lansky and Mary says Saul’s semi-retired and is in Palm Beach for the next three months, but she can help him out. Shawn looks skeptical and says he’ll look for someone who sounds older but Mary says Saul’s taught her a lot. “If you can’t get the best, get someone trained by the best” she adds a little perkily. Shawn sighs and asks her to meet him at a nearby park.

 

At the park Shawn is sitting on a bench when Mary arrives, and Shawn scoffs and says she looks even younger than he thought. Mary says she’ll ignore the ageism and get down to business, and asks Shawn what his problem is. Shawn still looks unsure about this and Mary says she’s not some rookie, she did a tour in Afghanistan, and after she got medically discharged Saul, a family friend, hired her and began teaching her. “But if you wanna be a cranky old misogynist, well good luck with that.” Shawn sighs and apologizes, he’s had a rough week.

 

Mary sits and Shawn says he thinks someone is targeting him. He mentions his dog’s death followed by the envelope, and now the encounter with the woman followed by the envelope to Kathy. Maria asks if he still has the things from the dog-related envelope since she can arrange for some forensic tests on the items. She says she’ll do the same for the envelope and pictures sent to his wife, if she can get them. Shawn laughs and says good luck trying to get Kathy to cooperate.

 

Shawn arranges for Mary to get from his office the envelope with the dog photos and dog whistle. She then goes to visit Kathy, who reluctantly lets her in, first thinking she’s Shawn’s “tramp” but relenting when Mary says she works for Saul. Mary persuades Kathy to let her take the photos/envelope of Shawn’s “encounter”. Kathy isn’t inclined, but Mary says “listen, if the tests don’t pan out, then maybe he is a cheating bastard. But if they do, then maybe he’s not completely full of shit.” Kathy nods and hands them over.

 

A couple scenes pass showing Shawn agreeing to go further into his deal with Horace and the two hashing things out. We get the impression that the increased stress on Shawn has made him less cautious.

 

Mary arrives at a forensic lab used by the NYPD to drop off her stuff. She’s friends with a couple of the lab techs and is able to schmooze them into inserting her stuff near the top of the line.

 

The following day, a pair of federal agents come into Shawn’s office and interrogate Shawn about alleged insider trading and stock fraud, the agents showing evidence they have that has his name attached. Shawn explains what he had done and how it was legal. The agents aren’t convinced and show him documents that show borderline market actions with his signature. None of them have Horace’s name. The agents say Shawn “better get a lawyer on speed dial.”

 

Shawn calls Mary and gets her voicemail. He tells her what just happened and says he needs her help to locate Horace, giving his full name and all other information Shawn remembers about him. He calls his wife and gets no response. He then hears back from Mary, who’s in her office at her computer, looking at government records. Mary says the forensics aren’t done yet but adds that she used Shawn’s information on Horace and she’s found nothing. The guy doesn’t exist.

 

Shawn tries to keep his work going, but his clients are being evasive. Rick comes in to say his investors are nervous about Shawn’s legal troubles, so he’ll have to back out of their investment arrangement until things clear up. He and Shawn have a bit of an argument where Rick says clearly Shawn isn’t the golden goose he was led to believe.

 

After Rick leaves Shawn starts getting himself frunk where he gets a phone call. It is Joao Carlos. Sounding pleased, Joao tells Shawn he’s heard that he’s had a lot of bad things happen. Shawn puts things together and accuses Joao Carlos of screwing with his life. Joao says that Shawn’s failure hurt his business, so he is returning the favor. Joao Carlos says it’s he wants to enter into another “bet” with Shawn. If Shawn can track Joao down, Joao will let him have evidence exonerating him. Shawn says he will find Joao Carlos and make him pay. “Good luck then” is the response.

 

After Joao hangs up we see him with Ferdinand. Ferdinand thinks his boss is being too cocky, baiting Shawn. “Just end it already.” Joao says no, he wants Shawn to have hope first.

 

Shawn paces. Finally he gets a call from Mary. They meet and she tells him two things: first, she’s heard the Feds will be moving in to lock down his business and arrest him in the morning. Second, she has gotten forensic data back with trace DNA from the envelopes. It matches to a low-level thug for hire in Brooklyn. Shawn asks if she can look at the original financial documents from Horace. She says she can but says he’s risking more criminal charges if he tampers with the investigation. Shawn says he has nothing to lose at this point. He brings up what Joao said and Mary replies that if Saul was here he’d call Joao’s promise a crock of shit, and she agrees. Shawn asks Mary if she’s able to do some digging on this guy, since it’s clear he’s not some normal businessman.

 

The following morning we have a tense scene as Shawn sneaks back into the building where his office is. He gets into his office, finds the originals of the financial documents of his deals with Horace, and gets back out just before the Feds arrive. He arranges for a courier service to deliver them to Mary.

 

Shawn looks for the thug, whose name is Curtis. After some careful observation, he finds Curtis with some buddies. Shawn follows them from afar and sees that the car Curtis has is the SUV that ran his dog over. Liam Neeson is pissed.

 

Cut to night, Shawn has tracked Curtis to a club. Shawn takes a metal bat and starts bashing the hell out of Curtis’ SUV, setting off its alarm. After a minute Curtis comes out, furious. Curtis comes at Shawn and Shawn breaks a kneecap with the bat. Shawn asks Curtis who paid him to kill his dog. Curtis is defiant, so Shawn breaks his other kneecap. Curtis then says a dealer and pimp named Isaac was the one who gave him the instructions. Curtis then semi-apologizes about running over Shawn’s dog, saying he feels bad about it. “Apology accepted” Shawn says, before smashing the bat into Curtis’ head to knock him out.

 

Shawn checks into a motel and is called by Mary. Shawn mentions what he’s found out and Mary says it’s a start, and tells him what she has learned about Joao Carlos. Turns out he was a mid-level leader of a Portuguese crime syndicate, but he had a falling out with his bosses and fled Portugal after stealing about $20 million from them. “Then you accidentially wiped out at least half of his money.” Mary adds that this guy has a dark reputation, when he was younger he liked to torture his targets before finishing them off. “He’s gonna be waiting for you to find him”. Shawn says he figured as much, and tells her she can walk away from this, it’s his problem, not hers. Mary scoffs and says if Saul found out she jumped ship he’d kick her ass “and he’s pretty spry for pushing 80”. Isaac comes up and Shawn figures he was the guy who got him set up with the prostitute. Shawn mentions being out with Rick and that Rick and his guys encouraged him to go with her, and Mary says then Rick probably knows how to get to this guy. Shawn wants to handle it but Mary says he’ll be spotted. Let her handle this part. Shawn says ok, there’s something else he’ll take care of.

 

We get a short scene introducing Isaac. He’s lounging in comfort when he gets a call from Curtis, who says a guy beat information out of him. Isaac looks to the side and we see none other than Horace and Ferdinand. Isaac briefly explains the problem and Horace says he’ll make sure the police arrest Curtis for one of the myriad of crimes he’s committed. “He gets put in holding, in a cell with some guys with nothing to lose, and the problem goes away.”

 

Horace and Ferdinand walk out and Horace mentions Ferdinand doesn’t talk much. “I’m paid to listen” Ferdinand replies. “Any other talents other than what 7 billion other people have?” Horace asks mockingly. Ferdinand brushes aside his coat to show a gun holstered on his hip. “My boss is paying you handsomely” Ferdinand says, “it’s on you to deliver.” “I always do” Horace replies with a smile,. “The other American claimed the same” Ferdinand comments.

 

We see a short scene of Kathy going about her day. FBI agents watching her. She goes to Midtown and in the big shuffle of people the agents briefly lose track of her and she is quickly pulled aside by Shawn, who asks her for five minutes. Kathy reluctantly agrees. Shawn eventually is able to convince Kathy he isn’t talking out his ass. Kathy says he should turn himself in but Shawn says he needs proof, so the Feds can’t ignore it. Kathy says she hopes Shawn is right, and asks him to be careful.

 

We see Rick and some cronies out at a steakhouse, acting like rich white financial bros. Rick winds up at a bar and is approached by Mary, who acts like an escort, and she’s able to charm Rick into getting them a hotel room. In the hotel room Rick tries to put some moves on Mary but she uses self-defense training to put him in an armlock, then pin him to the bed with one of her stilettos on his groin. She interrogates him about the escort with Shawn and Rick easily breaks, saying he was just asked to show Shawn a good time, nothing more. Isaac gave him a discount for it. “Tell me all about Isaac or future escorts will not be impressed by you” Mary says.

 

Ferdinand updates Joao Carlos and he isn’t so sure Horace will clean up the loose ends. Ferdinand asks to let him tie things up. Joao thinks for a moment, then tells Ferdinand to keep an eye on Isaac. “If things look bad, use your judgment.”

 

A couple scenes show Shawn and Mary researching Isaac with the info she got from Rick. They create an organizational table listing Isaac’s schedule, everywhere he goes and an average duration of stay for each place. They’ve found blueprints and detail things like exterior cameras and guards. They find when Isaac visits a certain hotel, there is a blind spot in interior security.

 

It’s op time. Shawn uses a laundry exit to get inside the hotel Isaac regularly visits.

 

We see Mary behind the wheel of a car in the hotel’s parking garage. Unbeknownst to her, we see Ferdinand in a car in the same garage, and he sees Shawn enter. He pulls out a gun, screws on a silencer, and slips around to a different entrance.

 

Isaac arrives as expected and follows his routine, going to an upper floor. He arrives in a suite to find Shawn. Shawn says they should talk.

 

Shawn questions Isaac, throwing him around a bit. He wants to know who Isaac reports to. Isaac objects, saying Shawn can only blame himself for going with the woman. This does not improve his situation.

 

After some more aggression, Isaac describes Horace and the arrangements for meeting him, through a phone number. Shawn says Isaac is gonna come tell his friend everything he knows. He drags Isaac into the hallway, and a couple seconds later Isaac is shot. It is Ferdinand. For a second they freeze, and then Ferdinand aims at Shawn, and Shawn shoves a laundry cart at Ferdinand. Shawn is clipped in the right shoulder but the laundry cart hits Ferdinand and knocks him over. Shawn bolts for a staircase and narrowly avoids being hit by a couple more shots. Ferdinand gives chase.

 

Ferdinand chases Shawn through the hotel to the parking garage, narrowly missing Shawn a handful of times. Shawn reaches Mary’s car and dives in and tells her to go. She sees Ferdinand coming towards them with a gun and immediately floors the gas pedal. Ferdinand shoots a couple times, hitting the windshield, but gets hit by the car and rolls over top of it and behind as it speeds off. Mary is hyperventilating and Shawn thinks she’s scared and says it’s gonna be fine. Mary replies “No, that was amazing!” Shawn laughs, but winces cause of his injury.

 

Horace goes to meet with Joao, annoyed Joao tried to undercut him. “Sure you killed Isaac, but your lackey got himself seen.” We see Ferdinand in the room, bruised up and an arm in a sling,. Joao retorts “if the people you used had covered their tracks better, then there wouldn’t have been need for it at all.” Horace reminds Joao that he taunted Shawn to come find him. Joao furrows his brow. After Horace leaves Joao chastises Ferdinand for not finishing the job. “I would have, but he wasn’t alone” Ferdinand replies. Joao looks at the door Horace exited from and tells Ferdinand to keep tabs on Horace. “I don’t want him cutting and running on me.”

 

We cut to Shawn’s hotel room where his minor gunshot wound has been patched up. An employee from Mary’s agency drops off some stuff from her office and she goes over it with Shawn. First, she obtained security camera footage of a building across the street from where Shawn works and found a person matching Horace’s description entering Shawn’s building. Second, her tracking of the financial records Shawn provided has produced a handful of shell corporations that are fronts for a single corporation, which is just a routing service for a LLC. Third, the phone number Isaac provided was a disposable cell, but more digging showed that it was purchased by a credit card. The credit card was licensed by the routing corporation for the LLC. She looks up the LLC’s mailing address and decides to go visit it. Shawn wants to go with her but Mary says that legwork is meant for the young, and he’s well, not. She advises Shawn to meet her at the agency.

 

Mary arrives at the LLC’s office in Queens, giving a fake story. Horace comes out to meet her and they talk briefly. Horace plays it cool and says it must be some error her getting referred to him. Mary asks Horace what his company does. Horace says they’re “strategic consultants.” He says they can talk more back in his office. Mary, sensing some danger, declines. She leaves and when she gets to her car she quickly drives away. Horace meanwhile tells the “employees” around him to start packing things up.

 

Ferdinand has staked out Horace’s place and he starts tailing Mary’s car.

 

Cut to Mary arriving at her office. It’s empty other than Shawn and when Mary she describes the guy she talked to, Shawn recognizes Horace. They start talking about how to proceed, when there’s a creaking noise from outside, and Mary tells Shawn to get down, which they do just as an automatic weapon opens up and bullets rip into the agency office. They crawl into a back office and Mary rummages through her desk until she finds a pistol. “You have a gun?” Shawn asks. “I’m a private detective in New York City of course I have a gun” Mary replies. She motions for Shawn to stay low. Ferdinand enters the agency, awkwardly wielding an automatic rifle. He sees Shawn moving and opens up again, which allows Mary to flank him, pop up, and shoot him twice.

 

Shawn and Mary go over to take a look and Shawn says it’s Joao Carlos’s right-hand man. “He was there at Isaac’s, and he’s here now. Means Joao is scared.” Mary tells Shawn he should go, there’s gonna be cops swarming this place soon and she’s gonna need to set them straight. She flips him her car keys. Shawn thanks Mary for her help and Mary says he can thank her by getting the son of a bitch, though as Shawn exits she calls out “and a bottle of tequila too”

 

Cut to police marking up the agency as a crime scene, Mary talking to detectives. They’re giving her a hard time. At that point their boss comes in and tells them to quit being jackasses, her story checks out. He just talked to Mary’s boss on the phone and got a hole ripped in his backside from both him and the captain. Mary has an “I told you so” smile.

 

At the LLC office, things are being shredded or burned. Horace goes to his car to drive and it’s crossing an intersection when it gets slammed into by another. Horace’s car flips and rolls. As Horace crawls out he sees Shawn walking towards him. Horace staggers to his feet and says “nothing personal.” The two then get into a fistfight that Horace would clearly win if he wasn’t banged up from the car crash, so after a minute, Shawn is victorious. Horace tries to pull out a gun, but Shawn knocks it away. Shawn picks it up and tells Horace that if Horace tells him how to find Joao Carlos, Horace can walk away. Horace sighs and says Joao’s not worth dying for. He tells Shawn of a place in Staten Island along the harbor. Shawn thanks him, and then shoots Horace in the leg. Horace curses Shawn out, to which Shawn replies “I said you can walk away, I didn’t say you could run.” Horace curses and limps away.

 

Shawn drives to Staten Island, while Mary leads some cops to Horace’s company. As they arrest a couple goons and seize some unburned papers, one cop reports about Horace’s car being totaled nearby with no one in it. Mary goes to call Shawn. He doesn’t pick up. She then checks an app on her smartphone and a map comes up with a moving dot.

 

Shawn arrives at the location, a secluded house overlooking the harbor. Shawn walks around, calling for Joao, but there’s no response. As he climbs up steps Joao emerges and tases him.

 

Shawn wakes up tied to a chair, across from Joao, holding a gun. A couple guards are in the background. Joao compliments Shawn finding him. Too bad it ends here. Shawn says that Joao overreacted, since he clearly has enough money to hire private contractors and hitmen. Joao says it’s the principle. Shawn’s failure forced him back to square one. Joao asks Shawn to analyze the probability of him surviving a close-range gunshot. At that point police sirens are heard coming close. “Perhaps you should analyze the probability of getting out of here?” Shawn replies. Joao tells two guards to protect the front while he tells a third to dispose of Shawn. Joao slips out the back. The third guard grabs Shawn and drags him. Shawn kicks and knocks things over, one table having a pair of scissors. Shawn grabs the scissors and stabs the guard in the leg. The guard falls and Shawn kicks him repeatedly until he’s knocked out. Shawn unties himself and runs to follow Joao as the sirens cut off and we hear shouts and some gunshots.

 

Joao Carlos is walking towards a pier with a small boat. As he starts it up he gets tackled by Shawn diving off the pier and the two wrestle as the boat starts moving into the harbor, out of control. Shawn is clearly worn out from all the stuff he’s gone through, and Joao gashes Shawn with a boat hook. He says he’s glad he was able to do this himself and goes for an over-the-top coup de grace swing with the boat hook, but Shawn dodges and smashes Joao’s head into the side of the boat and continues punching Joao until he sees the boat is heading for a rocky mole. He gives Joao one last punch before jumping off the boat, and coming back to the surface in time to see the boat hit the mole and explode.

 

Shawn swims to shore, but he is growing weaker, and he just makes it to the beach before passing out in the surf….

 

The screen fades in to show Shawn in a hospital bed, regaining consciousness. Mary’s sitting in a chair nearby and she says it’s about time. Shawn asks what happened and Mary says she had GPS tracking on her own car, and she used it to help the police find him. They were able to pull him out of the surf. Shawn thanks her and asks about Horace. Mary says a cop car found him hobbling a mile from his office. He’s soon to be in a cell. Shawn’s glad but says he still has some legal problems to clean up. Mary smiles and says that probably won’t be a problem, she got an friend to help straighten that out. At that point an old man enters who we surmise to be Saul. Saul (uncredited cameo by Elliot Gould) tells Shawn that these rookies and kids running around playing cops and robbers are a bunch of amateurs, but luckily their bosses mostly got their heads screwed on straight and listen to smarter people. He’s taking care of everything. Shawn nods, then says “well, not everything. We’ll see if I still have a marriage at the end of this.”

 

At that point we see Kathy in the doorway and she asks for a minute with Shawn. Mary and Saul excuse themselves and Kathy sits by Shawn. “For the record, I’m still mad at you” Kathy says. “But, I’m glad you’re ok.” The camera pulls back as they talk and the screen fades out.

 

…

 

It is a few months later. Shawn and Kathy have reconciled and his legal issues have been settled. They’re taking that nice long European vacation they’d wanted to do. A couple hours into the flight, Shawn gets a phone call. It’s Joao Carlos. Shawn says he’s supposed to be dead. Joao laughs and says he’s never liked flying, being cooped up with dozens of people for hours. Shawn realizes what Joao is implying and asks where he is. Joao says he and Shawn will get their quality time. “It’s a Non-Stop flight after all”. He hangs up. Shawn looks furious, then determined.

 

Because you don’t fuck with Liam Neeson when he tries to go on vacation.

 

 

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Dirty Hands

 

Genre: Drama/Thriller/Political

Cast: Carrie Coon (Alice Sorvino), Jeremy Strong (David Baum), Sterling K. Brown (Victor Harvey), Nicholas Hoult (Lawrence Gerrard), Raúl Esparza (Joshua), Mark Gatiss (Chester Kirkman), Cécile de France (Eva), Asia Kate Dillon (Charlie), Alexander Siddig (Afarwan Dessali), Pruitt Taylor Vince (Jacob Cooley), Steve Zahn (Jimmi Grasberg), Lyndie Greenwood (Yara), Timothy Simons (Carl), and Paul Giamatti (Senator Burns)

Written and Directed By: Dan Gilroy

Release Date: October 25, Year 8

Theater Count: 3270 Theaters

Budget: $40 million

Running Time: 130 Minutes

MPAA Rating: R for violence, strong language, and some sexual content

 

Plot Summary:

 

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1UZYKfEMdHoxzGQYwtlKDRI1IaK75DKBzfJifbvueKTs/edit?usp=sharing

[4815162342]

The Bronx is Burning

 

Cast: Michael B. Jordan (Reggie Jackson), Bobby Cannavale (Billy Martin), Wyatt Russell (Thurman Munson), Jesse Plemons (Lou Piniella), Jack Quaid (Fran Healy), Caleb Landry Jones (“Catfish” Hunter), Martin Donovan (Gabe Paul), and Jason Clarke (George Steinbrenner)

Genre: Drama/Sport

Directed By: Martin Scorsese

Written By: Cheo Hodari Coker, Kevin Willmott, and Steven Zaillian

Edited by: Thelma Schoonmaker

Cinematographer: Rodrigo Prieto

Release Date: November 8, Year 8

Theater Count: 3504 Theaters

Budget: $75 Million

Running Time: 160 Minutes

MPAA Rating: R for pervasive language throughout, sexual content and partial nudity, and some drug use

 

 

Plot Summary:

 

Spoiler

As the studio logos for Numerator Pictures and various production companies appear, “The River” by Bruce Springsteen plays, with the opening credits beginning at 0:18 into the song, alongside a series of archive news reports from New York City during 1976, commenting on the high levels of crime and immorality plaguing the city, the lackluster performance of the Mayor, and show the dark place the world-famous city resides in. The credits play scattered through this montage and end with the song fading out at the 2:32 mark. Then a final news report shows up and reports that Game 4 of the World Series is about to begin, with the Cincinnati Reds leading the New York Yankees three games to none.

 

October 21, 1976

 

Game 4 of the 1976 World Series begins at Yankees Stadium with the New York Yankees in dire straits. Things start out well for the Yankees who score first thanks to a hit by catcher Thurman Munson (Russell) but the tide turns against them with the Reds grabbing a 3-2 lead by the ninth inning. Then a meltdown occurs where the Yankees proceed to give up four runs in the top of the ninth.  As “Hold Tight” by Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick & Tick begins and frustrated by his team’s mistakes and the refereeing calls, Billy Martin (Cannavale), the manager of the Yankees, seeing a foul ball that landed by the dugout, picks it up and throws it at the home plate umpire (0:16 into the song), being promptly ejected from the game. Martin storms out of the dugout (0:24 in) and profanely argues with the umpire before an assistant coach drags Martin off the field (0:48 in) Martin trying to pull away while still screaming at the top of his lungs, and finally before leaving Martin kicks a bat rack in the dugout, spilling the bats all over the place (1:06 in).

 

Martin retreats to the trainer’s room in the team clubhouse and sits under a table crying. His bereavement is soon interrupted when George Steinbrenner (Clarke), the owner of the Yankees, barges in and tears Martin to pieces in a profanity-laden tirade for embarrassing him. Martin, a wreck, gives feeble responses and Steinbrenner barges back out, leaving Martin to sit in silence.

 

THE BRONX IS BURNING

 

The film moves briskly through a short series of scenes showing Martin at his lowest, “No Fair at All” by The Association playing in the background. His second wife Gretchen informs him that she’s leaving him, and the two have one final argument about Martin fucking up every good opportunity he has. Martin spends most of his time secluded in a hotel in New Jersey that he lives out of, drinking copious amounts of alcohol in the hotel bar.

 

The film shifts to a board-room in in Manhattan, where Steinbrenner meets with several team executives, including his general manager, Gabe Paul (Donovan). Steinbrenner still is nursing anger and frustration at Martin, calling him Italian slurs, and being determined to fire him. Paul is able to calm his boss down, explaining that Martin got the Yankees to the World Series for the first time in a dozen years, and that with Steinbrenner’s recent problems, firing Martin would result in him being torn an asshole by the papers larger than the Grand Canyon. Steinbrenner, talked off the ledge, is still not happy with how the Yankees got humiliated by the Reds and says the team needs a shakeup.

 

Some days later, Martin pulls himself away from the bottle and goes to the Yankees’ main office to discuss the next season with Paul. Martin has some ideas about players to target, including a new outfielder, and Paul patiently listens to Martin’s suggestions and diplomatically tells him that the Yankees intend to go in another direction. Martin asks for time with Steinbrenner to sell him on his ideas and Paul says “The boss has already made the arrangements. The Yankees have their new rightfielder.” Martin, eyes narrowed, asks who.

 

November 29, 1976

 

Just after midnight, a plane lands at JFK International Airport with “Feeling Alright” by Joe Cocker starting in the background. Outside on the tarmac a team of reporters and photographers congregate as the plane taxis to a halt. The baseball star Reggie Jackson (Jordan) steps out of the plane (0:43 in with the song) with a blond model on his arm and after coming down to the tarmac genially fields a few questions, using charm and a big smile before stepping away to a waiting limousine. The limo drives into Manhattan, Reggie occasionally glancing out the window when he isn’t canoodling with his female friend. The limo winds up in front of a hotel and Reggie is helped in every way as he goes inside (song fading out around 2:25 in). Reggie’s happy mood comes to a screeching halt when he and his companion arrive at their suite and find that it has two twin beds. He immediately calls Paul, waking him up in the middle of the night, and demanding that the accommodations be changed. Paul tries to settle Reggie down and say it can be fixed for tomorrow, but Reggie threatens to call Steinbrenner himself. Paul, grumbling, calls the hotel and arranges for Reggie to get moved into the presidential suite. Reggie’s happy again and with a wink tells the hotel attendant that he and his friend are gonna be sleeping in, closing the door behind him.

 

The following day at a banquet hall, the Yankees brass led by Steinbrenner hold a huge press conference as they formally sign Reggie and welcome him to the team. The deal has made Reggie the highest-paid player in baseball history. Steinbrenner says Reggie is the missing piece the team needs to win the World Series. When it is Reggie’s turn to speak, the player turns up the charisma and tells the crowd of reporters that “I didn’t come to New York to be a star. I brought my star with me.” He all but guarantees a championship for the coming season, proclaiming “I’m going to be working the next World Series, either for the Yankees or ABC, and I’m pretty sure I won’t be sitting in the broadcasting booth.” The crowd of reporters roars along with all of his confident and self-assured comments and lap it up.

 

Martin watches the news broadcast from the bar in his hotel. He doesn’t seem impressed.

 

The film shifts to Martin eating out with a couple of his best players, including Munson and pitcher James “Catfish” Hunter (Landry Jones). Martin complains about the front office sideling him through the whole process. Martin is also petty about the fact that Steinbrenner keeps taking Reggie out to dinner and showing him around, and “he hasn’t even taken me out to lunch fucking once since I got here.” Hunter, a genial, laid-back, friendly person, tries to reassure Martin but Munson is a bit bitter since Reggie’s deal is so exorbitant it makes all of the other Yankee players look grossly underpaid.

 

“We got to the World Series without him, and now it’s like we’re fucking ghosts.”

 

As they leave they’re accosted by a reporter who comments that Reggie has said that he looked forward to being in New York since he and Steinbrenner got along so well. Martin, a little tipsy, cracks that Reggie is soon going to find out that Steinbrenner ain’t the manager of the Yankees.

 

We see a few short scenes showing Reggie getting accustomed to living the lifestyle of the famous in New York City, garnering a small entourage, hitting it big with the ladies and taking some home for one-night stands, and generally living it up. We see by contrast, Martin living a rather subdued and mostly solitary offseason life. We also follow Munson, the catcher and team captain, committing himself to off-season workouts and training to make sure he is in top form. We see him socialize with Hunter, as well as fellow Yankee player Lou Piniella (Plemons), his closest friend. We see that the fuss over Reggie is still annoying him, and we learn it traces back to an interview given by the Cincinnati Reds’ manager after the World Series where he says it would be embarrassing to compare Munson to the Reds’ legendary catcher Johnny Bench. So, he is approaching things with a major chip on the shoulder.

 

March 1, 1977

 

The first day of spring training has come with the Yankees all congregating at their facility in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Reggie arrives a bit overweight but gets right to work with practice. "All Day and All of the Night” by The Kinks plays as on the field later that day, as the members of the team stretch, play catch, etc, Reggie clearly looking a bit out of shape as he practices in the field (fading out 1:16 in).

 

Reggie and Munson meet for the first time and it does not go well. Munson, as team captain, tries to push Reggie into doing running/sprints before hitting, and Reggie tries to cajole Munson into just letting him hit, but Munson won’t back down. The confrontation seems close to boiling over when one of the Yankee coaches intervenes and says “fuck running, Reggie get in there and hit.” Reggie trots towards the batting cages, giving Munson a wink. Munson does not look happy.

 

In the clubhouse the mood is tentative. Reggie turns up his charm and tries to ingratiate himself with the players, and it goes better with some than others. One player he does bond with is Fran Healy (Quaid), the backup catcher. Munson is very guarded in the locker room, and is caustic and abrasive to reporters who seek a gotcha line or juicy quote.

 

The Yankees do mediocre in their spring training games, which suits Martin fine since he reminds reporters that spring training is just to get players back into the. Martin indeed uses the month in Florida to relax, taking a casual attitude to practices and games. His interactions with Reggie are a bit touchy. Reggie is used to batting cleanup and Martin bats him all over the lineup, and keeps assigning him to road games while most of the other major players only do home games. Reggie recognizes, talking with Healy, that this is Martin’s passive-aggressive way of letting Reggie know who is in charge.

 

Steinbrenner grows irate over the Yankees losing games, ignoring Paul’s reminder that spring training games don’t matter. Eventually Steinbrenner confronts Martin in the locker room and this leads into a fiery argument.

 

MARTIN: “I’m going to tell you something. I’m the manager of this team and don’t you be coming back into my fucking clubhouse for any fucking reason.”

STEINBRENNER: “I ought to fire you right now.”

MARTIN: “I don’t give a shit if you fire me, but you’re not going to come in here and tell me what to do in front of my players.”

 

Before things get even more explosive, some players intercede. Steinbrenner backs down and leaves. Afterwards Steinbrenner complains to Paul that if he gets an early heart attack, it’s Martin’s fault. Paul says Martin’s a hotheaded bastard, but the players love him. He tells Steinbrenner to keep things cordial with Martin for as long as possible.

 

The following day, Steinbrenner takes Martin out to breakfast and apologizes for berating him in front of the players. Martin gives his own semi-apology, and there seems to be a cease-fire, for now.

 

Many of the players feel alienated by Reggie’s high salary and most of the time he is excluded from the usual clubhouse banter. Reggie, being proud of his accomplishments, doesn’t back down and says he earned his money. Joining Munson in his cold war standoff with Reggie is Lou Piniella. The two of them do what they can to feed Reggie’s discomfort, such as ragging on him while he takes batting practice and mocking mess-ups. Reggie, knowing he’s the outsider, puts his head down, being one of the first to show up in the morning and the last to leave at night.

 

Still, it’s clear that the pressure is starting to wear on Reggie, and in one telling interview with a reporter, confesses he’s feeling like he might never be good enough for the rest of his team, and if the team doesn’t do well, they’ll find a way to pin it on him. We also see him for the first time acknowledging his race and commenting that the legacy of the Yankees until recently was pretty much all-white. “I’m the first black superstar they have, and a bunch of them ain’t ready for it.”

 

Spring training wraps and Reggie returns to his cushy corner apartment on Fifth Avenue, which is quite exquisitely furnished.

 

April 6, 1977

 

The Yankees hold their final preseason practice at Yankee Stadium. After practice Martin gathers all the players together in the clubhouse and tells them that any disorder that happened during spring training is over and now they have to pull together and work things out together in out of the public eye. After the pep talk Reggie goes up to Munson and extends a hand, saying they can start fresh. Munson, after a slight hesitation, takes it and says “sure, we’re on the same side.” Reggie walks off and Munson comments to Piniella “we’ll see how long it lasts though.”

 

Martin, holding court for the press, swats away the questions about spring training dissension as news the media generated while hungry for a story. When asked what he’s gonna do if trouble pops up, Martin says he’ll handle it how he always does, with class. The reporters laugh at that, given Martin’s reputation.

 

The next morning is the first game of the season. As “Join Together” by The Who plays, the film shows each of the major baseball characters getting up and ready in the morning before heading over the stadium (intercutting between all of them). Reggie, always conspicuous in his appearance, shows up in a burgundy Rolls-Royce. As he gets dressed (2:10 in), we see that the locker assignments have Reggie in a mostly vacant section, whereas a lot of the other major players’ lockers are congregated around Munson in the far corner. The film then cuts ahead to the Yankees starting team running out onto the field to take their positions, the camera swirling around Jackson, Munson, etc as they are cheered on by the fans in the stands. (2:32-2:54)

 

The game starts promisingly with the Yankees getting an early lead. In the sixth inning Reggie gets a base hit, advances to third, and then on a wild pitch makes a mad dash for home plate, sliding safely just under the tag of an opposing player. As he dusts himself off, and walks to the dugout, everyone can hear the chanting that is starting: “Reg-gie….Reg-gie…Reg-gie.”

 

Reggie returns home and collapses on a plush velvet sofa, legs stretched out, arms folded behind his head, looking like he’s king.

 

The feeling doesn’t last.

 

May, 1977

 

The promising beginning for Reggie Jackson has turned into a month-and-a-half of frustration as he does mediocre both offensively and defensively and New York fandom, growing restless, greets him with heckles and boos every time he comes to bat.

 

It also seems that whatever détente between Reggie and Martin, Munson, and the rest of the team is now over. Martin’s behavior towards Reggie seems borderline gaslighting, peppering him with taunts from the dugout and continually changing his batting position and strategy. Players such as Munson and Piniella however are more direct about their discontent with Reggie. After a disappointing loss where Reggie made a couple bad defensive errors, Munson comments about a new candy bar from Standard Brands that will be named after Reggie. Munson says that “Reggie already has a candy bar named after him: Butterfingers.”

 

Martin benches Reggie for a road game against the Oakland Athletics, telling Reggie maybe he needs a day off to clear his head. Reggie, in a brief lapse of control, mutters that maybe he’d have a clear head if he didn’t have a “guinea motherfucker” for a manager. Martin half-catches it, and he and Reggie have a staredown before Martin tells him to get his ass on the bench.

 

“Bad Moon Rising” by Creedence Clearwater Revival begins playing. The game runs into extra innings all tied up, but at a critical moment where a hit is desperately needed, Martin deliberately picks an untested rookie over Jackson (0:24 in), who glares at his manager as the rookie gets a hit that starts the game-winning rally. (song ending at 1:10). After the game Jackson complains about it to his friend Fran. Fran tells Reggie it’s just one game. Reggie responds that it always starts with just one game. “Give them a fucking inch and they’ll take the whole damn thing away if they can.”

 

Towards the end of May Sport Magazine releases in its June issue a story about Reggie Jackson that includes an interview one of its reporters had with Reggie back in March. The film flashes back to March to show some of the interview, Reggie arriving at a bar wearing a t-shirt with SUPERSTAR emblazoned on it in bright silver lettering.

 

Reggie, after having a couple drinks, talks freely about his feelings. He says that “this team, it all flows from me. I’m the straw that stirs the drink. It all comes back to me.” At a couple points he puts down Munson’s stature in the team, saying that Munson doesn’t have the presence to intimidate the other team, and that once he has the city eating out of the palm his hand, Munson won’t be able to stand it. As Reggie winds down, the writer, looking like a kid on Christmas, asks Reggie if he’s sure he wants all of this printed. Reggie smacks the table with a palm and says without question.

 

The film cuts to the reporter finishing up the story and forwarding it to his copy editor. The copy editor, reading it, howls in glee and remarks “Jesus the city’s gonna fucking bury this guy. And it’s gonna sell us a boatload of magazines.”

 

As “Gimme Shelter” by the Rolling Stones starts to play, we see the printing presses start to go into action, a series of shots showing the printing process, the magazines being delivered across the New York metropolitan area, and people hawking them from newsstands. It’s a hit.

 

Munson enter the Yankees locker room (1:23 in) with a copy of it tucked into a back pocket of his pants. He has a clubhouse assistant fetch Fran, and when Fran arrives, Munson goes ballistic, waving the magazine in front of Fran and ripping Reggie for the stuff he said. Fran, cautiously, suggests that maybe Reggie was taken out of context. “For four fucking pages, Fran? That’s a long time to be out of fucking context.” Munson points at Fran with the magazine and warns him to keep Reggie in line. “Or you’ll wish the only thing I do to you is shove this magazine so far up your ass you’ll be able to read it coming out your mouth.” Fran stays quiet and just watches as Munson stalks off, the song ending around the 2:10 mark as Munson leaves the room.

 

Munson vents to Martin in Martin’s office and Martin tells Munson to “Get your shit together, snap out of it, and play the game. I’ll handle Mr. Straw.”

 

Reggie arrives at the ballpark to learn from Martin he’s been bumped down to the bottom of the lineup, and we see most of the team is flat out ghosting him. Reggie shrugs it off, and during the game hits a crucial home run, and after reaching home plate he ignores Martin and his teammates, who had assembled for a customary handshake.

 

Afterwards, Martin tells reporters that leadership is done by example, not by running your mouth. He recommends the reporters talk to Reggie about why he didn’t shake hands. Reggie gives a BS answer to brush it off and heads home. The press then goes to find Munson and Munson, true to his usual standoff-ish behavior, doesn’t answer any questions, until finally their needling gets a rise out of him and he says Reggie’s a fucking liar and must be the most insecure person in the world if he thinks Munson’s jealous of his success.

 

In following days the discontent continues to simmer in the clubhouse. Fran’s attempt to mediate things with Munson gets harshly rebuffed. Little incidents occur, such as Reggie’s bags being “accidentally” knocked over, players requesting to have their lockers moved away from Reggie, and obscene notes taped to his locker. Reggie goes to Martin to ask him to call a team meeting to try and smooth things over and Martin, looking a little schadenfreude at Reggie’s discomfort, tells Reggie if he thinks he needs to clear the air, he should talk to his teammates person to person. Reggie glumly leaves the office and one of the assistant coaches comments he doesn’t think Reggie will follow through on that. “Of course he won’t” Martin says. “That’s one of the proudest guys I’ve met, man will break before he admits he handled anything wrong.”

 

Reggie doesn’t do the individual apologies. Fran says it may not be a bad idea, but Reggie says Martin wants him to humiliate himself and Munson and the others will lap it up. “I’m not gonna apologize just for speaking my mind.”

 

The confrontations continue, with one instance on a team bus, one of the players, a black player named Mickey Rivers, going “Reggie fuckin’ Manuel Jackson. You got a white man’s first name, a Spanish man’s second name, and a black man’s last name. No wonder you’re all fucked up, man. You don’t know what the fuck you are.” Reggie replies he’s not gonna waste time with a brother who can’t read or write. Mickey retorts all that reading and writing doesn’t mean shit if Reggie can’t hit the ball.

 

June 17, 1977

 

The Yankees arrive at Fenway Park. Catfish Hunter is stressed out, dogged by reporters about his mediocre performance so far this year. Martin angrily brushes off reporters, telling them Hunter is as healthy as a fucking horse, but it’s clear something is wrong. Hunter takes cortisone shots constantly, spends much of his time soaking in ice bathes, and is generally depressed. Talking with Munson, Hunter says he feels guilty about playing poor, especially given how much he’s getting paid.

 

That night, Hunter tries amping himself up, but once the game starts things go sideways with him unable to control his pitches. The result is before the first inning is over Martin walks out from the dugout and tells Hunter it’s not his night. Hunter walks to the dugout like a man on death row.

 

The next day the Yankees fall behind early, with Reggie making defensive miscues, including a failure to hustle on one play. Martin grimaces at this and motions for a backup outfielder, Paul Blair, to head out to replace Reggie in the middle of the inning.

 

Reggie meanwhile has been using the lull in the action to lean against the bullpen and chat with Fran when Fran sees Blair approach and, looking like a guy about to witness a plane crash, motions for Reggie to turn around. Reggie sees Blair and does a “you mean me?” hand motion/face expression and Blair nods. Reggie asks what the hell’s going on and Blair, in don’t shoot the messenger mode, says Reggie should ask Martin.

 

Reggie, looking confused, trots back to the dugout, the whole crowd hooting and hollering at him being benched, and as soon as Reggie enters the dugout he finds himself face to face with Martin, looking ready to blow a gasket.

 

MARTIN: What the fuck do you think you’re doing out there?

REGGIE: What are you talking about?
MARTIN: You know what the fuck I’m talking about. You want to show me up by loafing on me? Fine, then I’m gonna show your ass up. Anyone who doesn’t hustle, doesn’t play. I oughta kick your ass.

REGGIE *putting down his glasses and gloves*: Who the fuck do you think you’re talking to, old man? Don’t ever pull that shit on me again motherfucker.

 

Hearing that, “Nowhere to Run” by Martha Reeves and the Vandellas starting at 0:12, Martin lunges at Reggie but at the last millisecond is pulled back by one of the coaches while one of the reserve players pulls an eager-to-fight Reggie back towards the locker room. Fans all around the stadium point and react as they witness the altercation. As the two men are led away from one another (0:41 in) they continue to yell and scream and occasionally try to break free. Reggie finally is taken to the locker room while Martin is all but pinned in the dugout, Reggie shouting as he’s half-dragged away “You’ve always had it out for me!” (song ending at 1:02 mark).

 

Fran, having watched all this from the bullpen, heads to the locker room and persuades Reggie to shower and leave before the game ends, to let things cool down. The entire incident in the dugout has been captured on national television. When asked about it after the game by a reporter, if he thought the incident was a bad look, Martin replies that he didn’t care if the whole world saw it.

 

Watching all of this on TV, Steinbrenner orders Gabe Paul to go to Boston and hold an emergency meeting with Martin and Jackson. “And if Billy doesn’t say what I want to hear, fire the son of a bitch.”

 

Martin goes out to a bar and spends the night drinking beer and scotch and by the close of it is fully loaded. Slurring his words, he seems morose and depressed and repeats over and over “they’re gonna say it’s all my fault.”

 

Reggie, sulking in his room when Fran arrives, is a bit emotional, saying he didn’t want to fight Martin, but he doesn’t know if he can take it much longer. “I’m a good ballplayer, a good Christian, but to them I’m a _______ who won’t be subservient. This team’s never had someone like me before, and except for Steinbrenner, they treat me like dirt.”

 

The following morning Paul flies into Boston and meets with Martin and Reggie to try and smooth things over. The meeting is short and goes poorly, in large part to Martin referring to Reggie a couple times as “boy.” Not inclined to give Martin the benefit of the doubt, Reggie ends the meeting early and leaves without shaking Martin’s hand.

 

Steinbrenner talks with Paul over the phone and Paul relates what happened. Steinbrenner says some papers are insinuating Martin’s a racist and asks Paul for his opinion. Paul says Martin’s a half-Italian New Yorker who’s stood in the shadows of giants his whole life. “So yeah, probably a bit, but he also probably feels like he’s worked harder than anyone to get to the top and he doesn’t want anyone overshadowing him now that he’s there.”

 

Steinbrenner goes to the next stop on the Yankees’ road trip with the intention of firing Martin in person, but Paul convinces him to back off the idea. “Fire Martin now and everyone assumes Reggie runs the team. Whomever you replace Martin with will have no authority or credibility.”

 

Steinbrenner backs off, instead announcing to the whole team that he has given Martin a reprieve…for now. “Get your act together and lay off the race shit.” But Steinbrenner has Martin meet him in private and he warns Martin that if pulls more shit like this in the future, he’s gone, no matter how bad it’ll make Steinbrenner look in the press. “Get it the fuck together Billy.”

 

Reggie tries to take his mind off the discord in the team by living it up in the NYC social life. In a montage set to “Hero Worship” by the B-52’s, we see him, with friends, he goes to Broadway shows, eats at the finest restaurants, hits up the popular clubs, and usually has a model or other attractive woman on his arm while he does it. Reggie likes to post up in the corner, where he can be seen and noticed, but not bothered unless he wants to be, which usually is reserved for young, pretty women. He has the time of his life, but his troubles with the team are definitely eating at him, and he spends at least a decent amount of time venting about it. The montage fades out around the 2:45 mark.

 

July 9, 1977

 

Martin’s wracked with unease over his situation. In a frank talk with Munson, Martin, a bit drunk, confides that he is scared about losing his job, since he now has two ex-wives, and children from both marriages, to support.

 

Munson comes from the talk pissed at how Martin’s been treated and he talks things over with Hunter and Piniella and they both agree someone needs to stand up for their manager. So Munson rips Steinbrenner in an interview under condition of anonymity.

 

When word of the interview reaches Steinbrenner, he gets worked up into a rage and forces Martin to hold a press conference where Martin is made to insist that no one is meddling with Martin’s managing of the team. Martin looks like there’s a gun to his head, and a couple reporters comment to one another that the press conference has the opposite effect Steinbrenner intended. “Georgie’s got Billy’s balls in a clamp.”

 

Munson and Piniella are a bit remorseful about, and after having a few drinks, decide to visit Steinbrenner in his hotel to talk. As “Around and Around” by The Animals plays, It’s after midnight when they get to his room and Steinbrenner, a little annoyed at the intrusion, lets them have their say. Munson tells Steinbrenner to either fire Martin or get off his back. This in-between bullshit is hurting the team. After some haranguing back and forth, Steinbrenner says he’ll consider their opinion. Martin meanwhile has been getting liquored up again in the hotel bar and stumbling upstairs, comes across Munson and Piniella leaving Steinbrenner’s room. Martin confronts them, thinking they’re plotting against him, and Munson has to shove Martin up against the wall to calm him down and reassures him they got his back.

 

Steinbrenner for his part isn’t convinced, and tells Paul to start interviewing candidates to replace Martin. Word of this reaches Martin and he sulks in his office at Yankee Stadium, smoking a cigar as he chats with a couple assistant coaches who’ve confirmed Paul’s interviewing. Martin feels resigned to being fired.

 

Paul meets with Steinbrenner and says every candidate he’s talked to has turned the job down. “They don’t want a part of what’s going on in this city this year.” Steinbrenner mutters curses.

 

The following day he holds a press conference where he says Billy Martin is going to stay the manager of the Yankees, provided he abides by a list of seven qualifications. The media mockingly reports on this as the “Seven Commandments.” The press and the fanbase remain heavily behind Martin, who’s seen as the little guy fighting for the blue collar working people. This hits home when in the first game following the press conference, when the lineup is announced, the crowd gives Martin a standing ovation, and he waves, tips his cap, and smiles, with some tears. Reggie, watching this, is clearly a bit amazed at how much the people love Martin, and also frustrated that he can’t get the same respect. Fran tells him “just win. You hit the ball for them, you win for them, and they’ll go to the mat for you.”

 

It’s easier said than done. One day, Reggie is signing autographs when a young teenager calls him a motherfucker. Reggie chases the teen and tackles him to the asphalt. Criminal harassment charges get filed and Reggie is briefly accosted by the police, and there’s a brief tension between Reggie the big baseball star, and Reggie the black guy who’d tackled a white kid. Paul handles the situation and is able to convince the kid’s family to drop the charges. He reminds Reggie that star or no star, some people are looking for any excuse to knock him down.

 

August, 1977

 

The Yankees are still out of rhythm. Paul meets with Martin and tells him that Reggie is gonna bat cleanup the rest of the season. Martin at first refuses, and Paul says it’s not a request. “Listen Billy, I get it, George is an asshole, but he’s willing to get crucified by this city if he has to, to be in charge of the team. Get off the fucking high horse for once.” Martin stares down Paul with venom in his eyes, but says fine, Steinbrenner gets his wish.

 

In a montage set to “Touch Me” by The Doors, perhaps spurred by the fixed lineup position, or maybe just finally getting into a groove, the Yankees, Reggie included, start going on a mini-tear, winning close games, the players performing to expectations, and the crowd coming around, even returning to chanting “Reg-gie, Reg-gie, Reg-gie” when Reggie comes to bat.

 

The improved performance on the field also translate to Reggie being even more smooth and comfortable in his social and personal life, with holdouts that had been reluctant to give him the five-star treatment now catering to his every need. He’s living it up. The montage fades out around the 2:23 mark
 

For his part, Martin has cut down on his drinking, and we see his interaction with his new ex-wife has gotten a bit more cordial. Though there’s still a slight bit of distaste as shown in a scene where Martin talks with his son and tells him he can get him any autograph he wants, and the son asks for Reggie’s, to visible annoyance.

 

Reggie gets called into Martin’s office for a meeting, the first real face-to-face they’ve had since the June blowup. Reggie, not lacking for confidence, tells Martin that it seems to him that with him batting cleanup the team’s finally playing as well as it should. Martin retorts that a team plays well when the players play for the team, not only for themselves. “You might make headlines and get awards and score runs, but it means shit if the team goes home with nothing.” Martin says he wasn’t a good ballplayer when he played, “the stars ran rings around me. But I hustled, I gave it my all, and left everything on the field. So yeah, my statline was about as impressive as a fucking little leaguer, but I got their respect. You want to not be miserable here for the next several years? Get your teammates’ respect.” Reggie, looking thoughtful, genuinely says he’ll try to do that.

 

Reggie then asks why Martin called him in here in the first place and Martin rolls a baseball across the desk to Reggie. “For my son” he says. Reggie turns on the biggest grin as he pulls out a pen and Martin says “You say one god-damned thing Jackson I will knock all your fucking teeth out right here right now.” Reggie says nothing, but keeps grinning like the Cheshire Cat.

 

September, 1977

 

The Yankees are now in their most crucial game of the season, playing at home against the Boston Red Sox. In a tense game where both pitchers are dominant, the game is scoreless until the bottom of the ninth when Reggie, waving off Martin’s orders to bunt, swings at a bad pitch and manages to crush it into the stands for a home run, winning the game. Even Martin can’t find a reason to berate Reggie for disobeying.

 

“Laughing” by The Guess Who plays. The only hiccup is that Catfish Hunter’s injuries appear to have caught up to him, and he can barely lift his throwing arm. Martin tells him he’s done for the season, maybe he’ll be back for the playoffs. Catfish quietly agrees, but we see afterwards when he’s alone he lets out a rare show of emotion and punches his locker several times with his hurt arm, in some tears around the 1:12 mark.

 

Martin meets with Steinbrenner, as the Yankees are in good position to take the division after beating the Red Sox. Steinbrenner is pleased, but reminds Martin that the team collapsed last year. “In the World Series” Martin says. He tells Steinbrenner that if he gets the team to a second World Series, he deserves a contract extension. Steinbrenner replies “Win the World Series and we’ll see. If you don’t, I’ll find a manager who will.”
 

October, 1977

 

The Yankees are back in the post-season and the clubhouse is in good spirits. We even see Reggie and Munson are now outwardly on good terms and even joke around a bit. Afterwards, Piniella talks with Munson, a bit bemused that Munson is now buddy-buddy with Reggie. Munson laughs a little bitterly, then says “How could I ever like that son of a bitch after what he’s pulled, but we need him to win. We need him to win.”

 

Martin talks with Paul and again brings up a contract extension and having more money added on top. Martin mentions he can always go to the press and say a few things to get under Steinbrenner’s skin, and Paul replies “Sure, we can’t fire you right before the playoffs. But they last only a month.” Martin says if Steinbrenner fires him, he can just find another team to appreciate him. “Assuming any of them will touch you with a ten foot pole after George is done with you” Paul replies, walking away.

 

Catfish Hunter, saying his throwing arm feels better, pleads with Martin to let him play but Martin isn’t confident and keeps him benched for the first postseason series against the Royals. This leads to Hunter for the first time criticizing Martin in the press harshly, even the reporters surprised by the soft-spoken pitcher’s language. A little later, Martin drops by Hunter’s locker and says he won’t hold it against Hunter, he knows Hunter wants to help his team. Martin tells Hunter that if he’s healthy, he’ll pitch in the World Series. “But don’t run your fucking mouth until then.”

 

We cut to the series against the Royals tied at two games apiece. Martin meets with Fran Healy before Game 5 to tell him to tell Reggie’s he benched for the final game.

 

FRAN: I’m not telling him, you tell him. You’re the manager!

MARTIN: I don’t want to tell him.

FRAN: Then have one of the other coaches tell him.

MARTIN: They don’t want to tell him either.

FRAN: Jesus fuckin’ Christ. You’re that scared of him?

MARTIN: Don’t be a wiseass. You’re his friend, it’ll come better from you.

 

Fran lets Reggie know and the two talk it over for a couple minutes. Reggie eventually says “Listen, I’m mad as fuck right now, but at least if the team loses they can’t blame me for it.”

 

By the same turn, Martin, chatting with one of the coaches while smoking, admits that part of the reason he’s done this is to prove he can win when it counts without Reggie in the lineup. The coach notes Martin’s taking a big risk, since if they lose, he’s fired before morning. Martin says “well at least it’d be my fucking way.”

 

Funnily enough it is Paul Blair, Reggie’s replacement that night, who is the hero, starting a ninth-inning rally that wins the game for the Yankees and sets them up for a World Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers.

 

After the game, the team celebrates in the locker room. Blair gives Munson a hug and thanks him for working on hitting. Munson puts an arm around Blair, and, looking at Reggie across the way, says “Yeah, maybe I can’t stir a fuckin’ drink, but I can teach you to hit the fuckin’ ball.”

 

Martin sprays Steinbrenner with a champagne bottle, saying “that’s for trying to fire me!” Steinbrenner replies, with a grin, “If I want to fire you, I will.”

 

October 11, 1977

 

The World Series begins in New York City, the Empire State Building illuminated in the Yankees’ colors of blue and white.

 

We cut to Game 2, the Yanks up 1-0 in the series, with Martin meeting Hunter and, true to his word, telling the pitcher it’s his turn to go out there, after not playing for over a month.

 

Before the game starts, an abandoned elementary school a few blocks from the stadium catches fire, the flames visible from the stands. All of the networks pick up on the story and during one helicopter shot of the inferno we get archive recordings of famed television announcer Howard Cosell announcing “There you have it, Ladies and Gentlemen, the Bronx is burning.”

 

Hunter starts the game with bravado, but soon enough his arm starts to give out and, his confidence shaken all over again, he gets routed by the Dodgers and is pulled early. The game ends up a total disaster, with police chasing fans running onto the field, bottles and toilet paper being thrown down onto the field, fans dumping their beers onto stadium staff. It’s a total mess.

 

Hunter, depressed, talks with Munson and Piniella and says he let the team down, but he doesn’t regret taking his shot. Reggie takes a different tack, commenting to a reporter that “the son of a bitch should never have let Fish pitch tonight.” Martin severely rebukes Reggie in public the following day as the Yankees prepare to travel to LA. Reggie does look a bit remorseful and we see him approach Hunter to apologize and tell him the team will make sure they win the damn thing. Hunter appreciates that and apologizes for not being a better teammate to Reggie. The two have a little rapprochement.

 

The next three games are in Los Angeles, with brief highlights showing what happened. The Yankees win Games 3 and 4 while the Dodgers win Game 5. With the Yankees leading the series three games to two, the World Series returns to New York for Game 6.

 

October 18, 1977

 

It is a crisp fall day, with the skies clear, the temperature cool. During batting practice in the afternoon, Reggie hits almost every ball out of the park. Fran has been watching this and warns Reggie to save some for the actual game. “Otherwise you’re gonna play like horseshit.” Reggie just flashes a grin back.

 

That night Reggie is walked his first appearance, and at his second time at the plate in the fourth inning, on the first pitch from the Dodgers pitcher Reggie swings as hard as he can and flings the ball into the outfield. Racing hard, it isn’t until he clears first base that he notices that he hit a home run. Returning to the dugout, he is given a little pat on the cheek by a pleased Martin.

 

The next inning he is up again. Again on the first pitch he swings as hard as possible and again races from home plate. Passing first he sees the ball again clear the fences for a home run and with a grin slows to a happy trot as “Moondance” by Van Morrison begins to play and the crowd again begins to chant “Reg-gie, Reg-gie, Reg-gie.” As he crosses home plate for the second time, he holds up a pair of fingers and silently mouths “two.” The film jumps to the eighth inning when Reggie is up again, receiving a standing ovation. Yet again on the first pitch Reggie launches it into the stands (0:49 in) for yet another home run, the crowd silent in disbelief. As Reggie rounds the bases at a glacial trot, soaking up the attention, even some of the Dodger players begin softly applauding. The Yankees are up 8-3 and an improbable World Series win is only minutes away. Reggie returns to the dugout where even the players who’ve dogged him for so long are appreciative, and he sits on the bench, puts his feet up, and smiles (about 1:30 in).

 

In the ninth inning, “25 or 6 to 4” by Chicago starting, policemen in riot gear take positions to deal with unruly fans, the public announcer saying over the loudspeaker for fans to not go on the field, and many of the people at the bleachers are sitting on the top of the outfield fence. Everyone is on the edge of their seats (1:07 in). When the last out is recorded, the stadium goes berserk, with thousands of fans coming from all directions towards the field. Martin along with many of the Yankee players race to the middle of the field to engage in a massive celebratory group hug as the police can do nothing but let the masses of fans run past them (1:58 in). Reggie takes off his helmet and glasses and runs pell-mell for the dugout, weaving between fans already on the field. Not far from the dugout he collides with an oblivious fan, sending the fan sprawling to the ground, and then disappears into the dugout (ending with a sudden flourish at 2:24).

 

Most of the Yankees, Steinbrenner included, go to a massive party to celebrate the win. Munson walks up to Reggie and after a few awkward seconds offers a handshake. Reggie smiles and laughs and pulls Munson in for a hug. For now at least, the two are on good terms. We see players like them, Piniella, Hunter, etc, letting all the frustrations from the past year subside on this happy night. Reggie goes up to Fran and thanks him for being a good friend.

 

Martin, looking exhausted, has a short talk with Steinbrenner where he’s told yes he does have a job next season. “But don’t pull this shit again Billy. It’s a short leash.”

 

As “Nights in White Satin” by the Moody Blues plays, (starting at 0:23) standing in the middle of the party, holding a shot glass and looking at it, and looking around at his players celebrating, Martin looks relieved and content, like all the stuff of the past 6 months was worth it. Martin then spies Reggie across the way, laughing it up with Fran, a couple other teammates, and some adoring ladies. At 1:00 in Martin raises his shot glass in a little salute to Reggie and Reggie gives him a nod back. Martin turns away, downs his shot and leaves the party to find somewhere quieter, not saying a word to anyone else as he walks out the door (1:18 in).

 

At the party we get a series of short clips of various major players, with title cards indicating information about them.

 

Fran Healy, clinking glasses with Reggie and sharing a laugh over a story Reggie’s telling.

 

FRAN HEALY

Retired the following season. Spent over three subsequent decades as a sports broadcaster for the Yankees and Mets.

 

 

Lou Piniella, downing a shot and waving for another as he recreates a home run event.

 

LOU PINIELLA

Played for the Yankees until 1984. Managed several teams over a two-decade span, and managing the Reds to a 1990 World Series win.

 

 

Catfish Hunter, relaxing in a booth, looking stress-free for the first time in a while.

 

CATFISH HUNTER

Retired following the 1979 season as a result of cumulative injuries. Elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1987. Died in 1999 at age 53 (Lou Gehrig’s disease).

 

 

Thurman Munson, holding court as team captain in front of several teammates and guests, looking triumphant at reaching the top.

 

THURMAN MUNSON

Died August 2, 1979, age 32 in a plane crash in Ohio. His uniform number was immediately retired by the team, and his clubhouse locker was never reassigned to another player

 

 

Gabe Paul and Steinbrenner, sitting at a table together and having an animated discussion.

 

GABE PAUL

Left his job during the off-season. Would help run multiple baseball teams for the next decade. Died in 1998 at age 88.

 

 

GEORGE STEINBRENNER

Continued owning and running the Yankees until his death in 2010. Upon his passing he held a reputation as one of the most infamous, and successful, baseball owners in history.

 

 

The film cuts to Martin, in a mostly empty bar somewhere, having a quiet drink, a couple people walking by and patting him on the back or shaking his hand, and Martin giving them thankful nods before returning to his drink.

 

BILLY MARTIN

Fired July 23, 1978.

Re-hired June 19, 1979.

Re-fired September 1979.

Re-hired April 1983

Re-fired October 1983

Re-hired April 29, 1985

Re-fired October 1985

Re-hired April 1988

Re-fired June 22, 1988

 

Died Christmas Day, 1989 (drunk driving accident). His funeral was attended by many Yankee players he played with or managed. Reggie Jackson was not one of them.

 

“I may not have been the greatest Yankee to put on the uniform, but I was the proudest.”

 

The camera holds a shot of Martin sitting at the bar, holding an empty shot glass, before fading to black (music fading out at 4:05 in).

 

Reggie arrives home just before dawn, tipsy and tired, and lies down on a couch. A friend of his goes to another room to get some things and calls out to Reggie to remember to get ready for an interview with the “Today Show” in a couple hours.

The friend, not getting an answer, comes to the room where Reggie and finds Reggie peacefully asleep on the couch as “New York State of Mind” by Billy Joel begins playing, starting at the 0:57 mark of the song.

 

REGINALD MARTINEZ JACKSON

Elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1993.

Known forever in baseball legend as “MR. OCTOBER”

 

The screen fades to black and the credits roll. As the credits continue, the song at the 3:53 mark segues into

“Empire State of Mind” by Jay-Z, which plays for the remainder of the credits.

 

Edited November 3, 2020 by 4815162342

[YM!]

 

 

Studio: Endless Entertainment 

Nickelodeon Movies

Walden Media

Matt Tolmach Productions 

Release Date: 3/28/Y8

Genre: Live-Action CG Hybrid/Adventure/Family/Fantasy

Director: Beth McCarthy-Miller

Producer: Matt Tolmach

Writers: Beth McCarthy-Miller and Chris McKenna

Score: Henry Jackman

Rating: PG for adventure action/peril involving children, mild language and thematic elements

Budget: $140M

Theater Count: 4,352

Format: 2D, 3D, Dolby Cinema and IMAX 2D/3D

Runtime: 127 minutes (including a 7 minute short)

Cast:

Karen Gillan as Eliza Thornberry

Pixie Davies as Diane Thornberry

Mila Kunis as Debbie Thornberry 

Rupert Everett as Walter Toughfrut

Kumail Nanjiani as Rohan Rafari

Sigourney Weaver as Marianne Thornberry 

Timothee Chalamet as Donnie Thornberry

Michael Jai White as Bones

Beanie Feldstein as Jenifer

John Kani as The Shaman

with

*John Cleese as Darwin Thornberry

*Trevor Jackson as Kipp 

and

Timothy Spall as Nigel Thornberry 

*indicates a voice role as a CG animal

Short: Randy Raccoon in Cartoonist Combat

Studio: Endless Animation 

Genre: Traditional Animation

Rating: PG for some cartoon violence

Cast:

John Mulaney as Randy Raccoon

 

Spoiler

We open in an animated forest as we see Snoot le Snot (Eric Bauza), who is attempting to hunt down Randy Raccoon (John Mulaney) for his continuous interfering. Randy is in his cave, chewing on some garbage ala Bugs Bunny but spits it out noting it’s disgusting but he’s an animal. 
 

A shotgun points down as Randy sighs, noting it’s to cliched, as he points the muzzle through his mailbox, which Snoot fires, shooting and charring his rival. Randy complains he’s done this cartoon for decades, noting that the animators need to come up with better material.

 

Suddenly, a digital pen appears on screen as it removes the background and turns it into the sky, sending a hapless Randy plummeting into the ocean. Randy notes a pirates adventure could be fun as an anchor hits him upside the head, sending him up to the ship. Randy is captured by a group of pirates as the pirate captain threatens to kill him, as Randy notes that his shoelaces as predictably untied as the two go back and forth until they switch places, with the Captain tied up.
 

Randy quickly drops the anchor, which is tied up to the other pirates and the captain sending them plunging into the ocean. Randy notes the cartoonist will have to do better as he is suddenly sent to a blank canvas and given various grotesque redesigns much to his annoyance. Randy notes they need to loosen up as Randy is transported to a yoga studio as he is forced to stretch into various painful poses until he’s a jumbled ball of limbs. 
 

Randy refuses to give up his criticism as he is sent through various cartoons which all lead to pain for him, such as a game show that drops anvils on him everytime he answers, a bike race through a minefield and lastly a highly cartoonish and convoluted death trap. Randy concedes as he realizes it’s a great cartoon as they finally did one where he has been beaten. We then cut to Randy an award show as Randy thanks everyone including the cartoonist but as he gets the award mid speech, he realizes it is a giant bomb, exploding rapidly for comic effect. We then see Randy as a pile of ash as he replies he hates cartoons.

 

 

Plot:

Spoiler

 

In an animated sequence similar to the TV show, Eliza Thornberry (Karen Gillan) narrates her youth on how she got the power to talk to animals after saving a magical shaman in Africa but was sworn to secrecy as they’d be taken away if found out. Eliza and her family, as well as Darwin (*John Cleese), a chimpanzee who happens to be her best friend. Eliza explains her father, Nigel, alongside her mother Marianne, were hosts of a nature documentary as they went all around the world with her teenage sister Debbie and adopted and feral brother Donnie. Eliza explains time passed as the family went their separate ways, as Nigel and Marianne retired traveling the world, after Debbie went to college, she went into the world of fashion, as Donnie went to boarding school. Eliza explains she did what she did best, explaining helping the animals, as she became a celebrity world-renowned animal specialist.

 

In the present, an adult Eliza, now owns the private Eliza Thornberry Animal Sanctuary in California, home to many exotic and endangered animals. Her assistant, the scatterbrained Rohan is chased by Gerald, a white tiger, charges at Rohan as Eliza drops down from the canopy as she calms down Gerald by scratching his ear. Eliza apologizes as she explains Gerald’s very playful. Rohan tells Eliza her schedule today, includes a press release for her new book, her charity programs, roundup of the new animals, as well as meeting with the Nature Network.

 

Eliza proceeds about her day as normal, although she’s most excited and passionate with the animals, she is still very professional and charming with her day to day stuff. Later that night, Eliza and Rohan then head to Nature Network headquarters as a party is going on. Eliza is surprised that a party is going on as is Rohan as the notes said dress attire but not like party.

 

 

As Rohan rambles about his favorite types, Eliza is approached by the head of the Network, Tracy Gilfford (Tom Hanks cameo), who’s happy to see her. Eliza is cordial as the two commence in small talk as Eliza asks about the meeting as well as the party. Glifford reveals that Walter Toughfrut (Rupert Everett) is debuting his new show, Walter vs Wild, a nature survivalist show similar to Naked and Afraid and Man vs Wild as Glifford would like her to do a show with Toughfrut as Eliza politely declines. Toughfrut, who boasts chauvinistic and narcissistic attitude, approaches Eliza as he attempts to boast and brag, making Eliza decline, infuriating and humiliating Toughfrut.

 

As the night end, Eliza heads back inside the sanctuary as she says goodnight to Rohan, she heads into her house inside the sanctuary plains as she converses with the animals on her walk. Eliza then has tea with Darwin, sporting a striped blue tank top and apron, who’s finished tidying up the house. The two watch TV as they discuss their days as Eliza vents about Toughfrut as Darwin calls him a crude knockoff of the Thornberry legacy. Darwin notes that she had a call from her ex husband Francis, much to Eliza’s surprise as she asks Darwin when. Darwin notes about a few minutes ago. Eliza quickly calls Francis as she rushes upstairs as Darwin complains she’s dirtying the carpet. Eliza apologizes as she calls Francis.

 

The two are amiable towards each other, making small talk as Eliza asks Francis (Dan Stevens) how their daughter, Diane (Pixie Davies) is, as Francis says she’s great, doing well in school and is looking forward to seeing her again as Eliza smiles. It is revealed that despite the divorce Eliza still makes sure to visit her daughter at least one a year. Francis explains he’s been called in overseas from Britain, explaining that he’ll need her to watch Diane for the year. Eliza is shocked saying she’d have to find schools, commutes, allergies but accepts. Francis says all she needs to know is Diane is allergic to Kiwi and they’ll be heading to the states tomorrow morning.

 

Eliza explains to Darwin to make up the guest bedroom as Diane is coming tomorrow. Darwin is delighted as it’s been ages since they’ve had guests as he notices Eliza’s nervousness as Eliza explains the situation. Darwin assures her she’ll be fine, and parenting can’t be that hard as Eliza chuckles at that as while Darwin is wrong, she’s afraid that she’ll push her daughter further away. Darwin says that Eliza is a caring woman and besides Diane is young as Eliza remarks she’s 12. Darwin grimaces as he says preteens are the most unruly and wishes her luck. 

 

The next day proceeds as normal as Eliza asks Rohan to man the sanctuary. Rohan agrees as he has made a long list for this day. Eliza and Darwin proceed to pick up Diane from the airport, humorously with Darwin driving the car. Eliza catches up with Francis as Eliza greets Diane. There’s a mix of tension and elation for the mother and daughter as Francis says goodbye to Diane as he jokes with Eliza not to let any tigers eat their girl.

 

Diane is amazed to see a monkey drive the car, as Darwin is offended. There is definitely an air of awkwardness around each other as the two, despite yearly visits and phone calls, don’t know each other well as well as different attitudes, in that Diane is more introverted and a slight phoneaholic, but nevertheless, Eliza decides to take some initiative and promises a fun day for the two of them. Eliza shows Diane around the city, as the mother-daughter duo bond a bit, as Eliza even gets Diane a dog, a Cairns Terrier who Diane decides to name Kipp. However, the fun day is put to an end, when Eliza is called back into work as Rohan is overwhelmed by his duties, forcing the two to head back and cancel the rest of their plans.

 

As the duo return to the sanctuary, absolute chaos is amongst the animals as Eliza is forced to help calm the beasts terrorizing Rohan. Diane is amazed to see all these wild animals up close but a rather humiliating accident causes her to turn sour. As the day ends, Eliza apologizes to Diane as Diane insists she’s fine as most animals aren’t her thing anyway, dismaying Eliza a bit.

 

As Diane prepares to go to sleep, Kipp (Trevor Jackson) speaks to her, asking Diane to pet him. Diane panics as she asks if Kipp can understand her as Kipp replies yes and is excited to talk to his master, having a series of questions such as what are colors like or how do they get the people onto the TV as Diane struggles to keep calm as she thinks it’s a dream and that if she sleeps it’ll go away as Kip sarcastically replies, if it was a dream, he’d be a cat’s uncle, as Diane nervously and quickly heads to sleep. 

 

Diane wakes up as Kipp greets her good morning as Diane soon panics that it’s not a dream as Kipp replies she has bad morning breath. Diane brushes her teeth as she struggles what to do as Kipp says they’ll get to the bottom of this but needs a walk first. In the kitchen, Eliza struggles to make a pancake breakfast as Darwin tells her that she needs more flour and the batter is too watery. Diane enters the room as Eliza drops the conversation and greets her daughter good morning, asking if she slept well. Diane lies saying she just had a nightmare. Diane, still shaken, says she has to take Kipp for a walk and will be right back as she rushes out the house. Eliza and Darwin stare at her, perplexed as Darwin wonders if it was the cooking.

 

Diane takes Kipp for a walk as she still feels numb from the whole experience as she asks Kipp why can she hear him as Kipp is unsure as he’s just a dog, for all he knows it could be some weird gluten thing. Diane heads to the dog park as she soon is overwhelmed by hearing all of the voices of the dogs lamenting about issues with their owner, or conversing with one another (humorously there’s a cameo of Pitbull, voicing a pitbull from Miami). 

 

Diane bumps into a Hispanic girl her age, named Elena, riding on a skateboard. As the two preteens begin awkward small talk all the while Diane attempts to ignore Kipp’s advice on relationship building like asserting dominance or sniffing butts. Elena invites Diane to hang out. Diane accepts gleefully but keeps her cool. Kipp is proud of his owner, but he’d personally do more butt-sniffing but no one’s perfect. Diane then states Kipp to be quiet. 

 

Elena introduces Diane to her friends, as they show her around the city as the squadron of preteens have fun and goof off around the city as Diane and Elena bond over their overbearing parents, as well as shared fascination over life in their different countries. However, Diane is still overwhelmed by the various animals she hears talking throughout the city. 

 

As the day nears it end, the preteen group heads near the park to vent but Diane overhears a pigeon for help and is nudged by Kipp to help. Diane excuses herself as she heads to the secluded, tree covered part of the park as she and Kipp save the bird from angry, rabid dogs but in the process, Diane humilates herself during the run, by falling into the lake and being sprayed by a skunk, all whilst her new friends watch. Diane returns home sulking, as she notices Eliza having a conversation with Darwin, almost as if her mom could understand the chimp. Eliza is notably concerned to have her daughter come home so late as Diane informs Eliza on her new ability to talk to animals, shocking Eliza. Eliza dismisses this, as it’s absurd. Diane points out her mom has been around the world, experiencing all sorts of weirdness and has seen her talking to Darwin, almost as if they’ve had a conversation. Eliza denies her ability to talk to animals as Diane breaks down as she wants a normal life, and is now stuck with a curse. Eliza attempts to console her daughter as she says talking to animals would be a cool thing, as Diane disagrees as she isn’t Eliza and storms off. Kipp rushes after his master as Eliza slumps defeated, as she isn’t cut out for parenting as Darwin assures it could always be worse, as Eliza is frustrated she can’t tell the daughter the truth as she suspects her powers are hereditary, as she would lose her powers, and therefore lose everything. Darwin says rather blunty, that Eliza doesn’t want to lose a daughter. 

 

Eliza ponders this, as she has a nightmare about her failures as a mother which morphs into a vision from the Shaman (John Kani) who gives her a cryptic sign Mnyama Mji as well as the mental image of a map. Eliza looks through past exploits and research, attempting to find a way to make things right as she finds a map to a temple in Botswana that has the marking of Shaman who gave her powers.

 

The next morning, Eliza reconciles with Diane as she says she might have found a way to rid her of her abilities, as she says she has heard “rumors” of a temple in Botswana that could free Diane from the curse. Diane is unsure but Eliza promises that she’ll be safe, and says it could always be a story to share with her friends, minus the animal talking part. Diane agrees as Eliza says they’ll be leaving in a few hours.

 

Eliza, Diane, Darwin, Kipp and an excited Rohan, who tagged along, pack their bags as Eliza says they have to go to England first. Humorously, both Darwin and Kipp to their chagrin are placed with the animals down below the plane. Diane asks Eliza why they are heading back to England as Eliza explains that she needs her old equipment and findings. Word gets out about Eliza’s travels via Rohan through canceling meetings.

 

Glifford catches wind of this during his meeting with Toughfrut, as he gushes about the potential missing ratings, much to Toughfrut’s jealousy. Toughfrut decides to find out what Eliza is doing as well as getting the scoop first, by any means necessary. 

 

As the gang pick up Kipp and Darwin from baggage claim (the former of whom enjoys the carousel), they land in London. Diane is delighted to be in familiar territory as Eliza also has fond memories of Britain as the two bond. Eliza explains they won’t be heading to the city but rather an island as they take a boat, leading them to her family vacation home, which has been seemingly renovated into a more deluxe mansion, much to Eliza’s shock. Diane is amazed by the house, as Eliza says it’s much different as she rings the doorbell.

 

Debbie (Mila Kunis) answers the door, and is surprised to see Eliza. Despite her aloofness, Debbie is happy to see Eliza as she invites them inside for lunch, even the monkey. Darwin is annoyed that everyone thinks he’s a monkey as Kipp tells Darwin not to go bananas as Darwin retorts as long as Kipp keep his fleas away from him. 

 

It is revealed Debbie has become a famous fashionista, as well as a house full of servants to help. Debbie is surprisingly kind to the servants as Eliza is impressed that fame hasn’t gotten to her head as the two catch up as Eliza introduces her to her daughter Diane. Diane is revealed to be a huge fan of Debbie’s fashion, which delights Debbie. Debbie jokes she is glad Diane didn’t inherit Eliza’s poor fashion sense as everyone shares a life. Debbie asks why they are here. Eliza attempts to answer but Diane interrupts her mother and explains they’re heading to Africa in order to free her powers to talk to animals. Debbie is taken aback but casually responds ok as Rohan is surprised to learn the truth, thinking it was something else as he asks Diane a bunch of questions such as he asks do the animals speak in English or if Darwin has been making fun of him. 

 

Darwin remarks Rohan is as sharp as a gelatin mold as Rohan notices this as he knows the chimp said something sassy. Eliza stops the conversation as she asks if she can retrieve some of her things which Debbie allows as she pulls Eliza aside, saying she’ll show her where she put the things in the attic. Debbie asks Eliza how come she never told Diane about her powers, revealing Debbie knows Eliza’s secret. Eliza explains she doesn’t want to lose them as Debbie found out when she lost them once, but for some reason doesn’t understand why Diane can tell others without them being removed. Debbie asks her how’s the motherhood thing turning out as Eliza remarks it’s tough but feels that she can help and reconnect with Diane through this. Eliza obtains her expedition book, remarking her travels as well as animal tips. 

 

Eliza then thanks her sister as she wants to borrow that family convoy as Debbie declines politely, explaining she sold that “hunk of junk” for her deluxe tour bus. Eliza warns her sister that if anyone found out her secret, that Debbie would be turned into a Warthog. Debbie reluctantly agrees but tags along as she wants to see how Eliza’s does in motherhood as well as charge her for any damages.

 

Meanwhile, back in America, Toughfrut with the help of his cameramen/college intern Jenifer (Beanie Feldstein) breaks into the Thornberry Animal Sanctuary, whilst narrowly avoiding the sleeping animals and breaks into Eliza’s house to gain information. Toughfrut raids the pantry as he complains about Eliza stealing his spotlight as he has Jenifer do the dirty work. 

 

Jenifer finds Eliza’s home computer as she finds out they have bought tickets to London and are apparently heading to Botswana from her records lying about. Toughfrut decides they’ll cut them off in England as Jenifer argues it would be better to reach Africa first. Toughfrut glares as he refuses to let Eliza steal the spotlight from under him but knows she has skills better than them for jungle travel, they’ll follow her and then cut her off. Toughfrut and Jenifer head inside Toughfrut’s jet which is plastered with images of the celebrity.

 

As the tour bus travels down Western Europe, heading to the Pyreenes mountains as Eliza and Rohan take turns driving (Debbie refuses as she’s not part of the adventure and is only on vacation), Debbie is busy reading magazines while helping do Diane’s name, as Darwin struggles to teach Kipp chess. Debbie, delighted to be a cool aunt, dishes gossip with Diane as well as giving DIane social advice on how to help her awkwardness around her crush. Eliza onlooks the conversation as Rohan notices Eliza’s nervousness, as Rohan says he’ll take care of the rest of the route.

 

Eliza joins up with Debbie and Diane as Diane asks Eliza and Debbie what was it like for them, practically growing up, traveling the world as Debbie and Eliza have different opinions but reminiscent of fun times like when Donnie beat up Darwin with a spatula or some of their adventures to Paris or China. Suddenly, the bus spins to a stop when they almost hit a wounded bear cub (E.G. Charles). Eliza attempts to help as she and Darwin rush outside as the others stay inside. 

 

Eliza asks if they hurt them, as the bear cub replies no. The cub is amazed that a human can listen to him as Eliza explains it’s a secret never to be share apart from animals. The cub explains that they’re on poacher territory, much to Eliza’s shock and rage. Eliza grabs some gear from the bus as she explains they’ve stumbled upon poacher territory as she brings the cub inside, as Rohan, Diane and Debbie help tend to the cub’s wounds. Eiiza explains she is going to scout out ahead, and get help, granning a whip. Debbie says it’s not a smart idea for Eliza to go all “Lara Croft” alone as Eliza says she has tricks up her sleeves as she and Darwin rush away. 

 

Eliza treks through the snow as Darwin shivers, remarking they didn’t dress well enough. Eliza finds the compound, a large shack in the forest, with armed guards as Darwin asks for an idea to distract them. Diane calms the cub as she holds a conversation with the cub as she helps care for his wounds as the cub wants to see his mama at the prison. Diane is compelled to help her mom, as Kipp makes a distraction as he barks outside, as Rohan and a reluctant Debbie investigate. Diane, the cub and Kipp decide to sneak out, picking up a flare gun and her mom’s book. 

 

Back at the compound, Darwin distracts the guards by dancing as he lures them over to Eliza, who quickly knocks them out as the two sneak in. As they find the animals in cages, Eliza is surprised at Diane, the cub and Kipp suddenly arriving. Eliza tells them to go back, as Diane says she thought she needed her help and wanted to help the cub. Eliza sighs as she has Diane on lookout as she and Darwin will free the animals. 

 

As Eliza and Darwin begins the freeing process, Diane snoops around as she sees Bones (Michael Jai White), the deadly head of a worldwide poachers orginaztion, makes various sales through the dark net for animals as Diane spots the mother bear (Grey Griffin) in a cage as she creeps in and attempts to free the bear while Bones is distracted. As the mother sneaks out and reunites with her cub, Bones finds Diane, demanding she tells him where she came from. Kipp bites Bones but Bones tosses the dog aside as he scampers. 

 

Kipp gets Eliza and Darwin as they free the last animal as he tells them Diane was captured as Eliza naturally rushes towards the room and confronts Bones, who both recognizes each other from past exploits. Eliza demands Bones release Diane but he has her drop her whip which she complies. Bones prepares to grab a gun but Eliza kicks it out of his hand as she fights Bones as Diane rushes for the flare gun. Eliza beats Bones but is overwhelmed by the rest of his poachers. Thankfully, DIane tells him to back off as she points the flare at him but Bones is rather amused as Diane is struggling to hold the flare. Diane fires the flare prematurely, hitting a gas tank, causing it to explode. This causes an avalanche as the poachers flees and escapes. Eliza, Darwin, Kipp and Diane take a snowmobile and rush down the mountain as Bones chases them on another snowmobile. 

 

Bones manages to shoot the tracks as our heroes snowmobile soon falls next to Bones but are saved by the mother bear and her cub who hoists them on her back as they slide down a cliff, propelling our heroes in the air, but Debbie drives the bus, catching them mid-air, barely saving our heroes as the bear family makes it to safety. The bus becomes aquatic as they are sent down a river that’ll take them to Africa. Eliza scolds Diane for being irresponsible as Diane retorts Eliza shouldn’t have went by herself. Eliza grounds her as Diane admits sometimes it’s just so hard to be her daughter.

 

Bones makes it out of the avalanche alive, as he swears revenge. Suddenly, Toughfrut’s jet lands as Toughfrut and Jenifer. Toughfrut complains about the cold as he asks Bones if he has seen the Thornberrys as Bones assumes Toughfrut is an ally of Eliza and points his gun at him. Toughfrut says he’s not an ally, but is Eliza’s sworn enemy. Bones is confused as Toughfrut is frustrated no one recognizes him. Toughfrut says he has his own nature documentary series, but recognizes Bones as a poacher for his smell and clothing. Jenifer finds Eliza’s book which contains her animal information and tips as Toughfrut snatches the book amazed at the knowledge. Toughfrut offers Bones a deal to team up, Toughfrut will offer Bones his services in the animal documentary world to fund him as the two take down Eliza. Jenifer opposes this but is quickly silenced by Toughfrut, who hits her. Bones agrees as he calls his crew in Africa to hunt down Eliza Thornberry as the three leave.

 

The gang finally reaches the jungles of Botswana, only for Debbie’s tour bus to break down, due to the water damage entirely much to Debbie’s sadness. Rohan says he can try to fix it but it’d be better to wait in the morning. Rohan decides to get some sleep as he needs to prepare to fix a mess that bad. Debbie looks at him in confusion as Rohan says he was joking only to face Eliza as he shakes his head no. Kipp feels guilt for not being able to bit Bones harder as Darwin says he did a bang up job for a pooch, as he offers to play fetch with him. Eliza decides to make dinner, using the food they bought to make a stew, as she talks to Debbie on how frustrated she is as Debbie snarks Eliza wasn’t a cakewalk as a kid but suggest she just talk to her daughter. Eliza thanks Debbie as she jokes how come she isn’t a mother as Debbie responds she loves kids but just doesn’t want to be a mom, Eliza attempts to reconcile with Diane as she asks for her help with the stew. 

 

Eliza admits her skills were impressive as Diane thanks her mom as Eliza even admits they were better than her at her age, surprising Diane. Eliza says judging by the location, there’s some berries she needs to give the stew a special kick, inviting Diane to come with her.

 

 

As the two pick berries as well as interact with other jungle animals which Eliza gives tips to Diane to help gain the trust of an animal, the mother-daughter duo bond as they finish the stew. Over the campfire, Diane asks her mother about her childhood and what she was like as Eliza admits she was a lot like Diane growing up; headstrong but somewhat shy and caring. Eliza admits her bond with the animals she meant helped shape her into the woman she is now, giving her confidence. Eliza also reveals that in her heyday (which is told in the form of an animated flashback), she was described as “a cooler Lara Croft” as she fought poachers and saved animals. Eventually, she meet Francis, who was on duty as a MI6 agent and the two feel in love, leading to Diane being born. 

 

Eliza explains they settled down for a year traveling the world with Diane but was presented an opportunity to take down Bones and his organization but despite taking down a large chunk of his operation failed and almost lost both Francis and Diane. Eliza had to choose between being a mom or her mission, as she chose the latter but still trying to be a part of Diane’s life. Eliza says she spent the years toppling the poacher trade organization leading to her sanctuary but lost the chance to see her girl grow up as she eventually ended her crusade and stayed in her sanctuary.

 

Eliza admits to Diane that she regrets not being a better mom to Diane. Diane admits that she isn’t the best mom but is glad Eliza is trying. The next day, our heroes begin the trek throughout the jungle as Rohan fixes the bus, much to Debbie’s delight, as they reach a river nearby but unfortunately it’s not accessible for the bus. Debbie volunteers to stay behind as she doesn’t want to leave the van in the middle of the jungle and has some calls from work. 

 

 

Eliza attempts to figure out how to travel down the river as their boat won’t carry five of them. Kipp suggests to Diane, they can swim as he can dog paddle but Darwin refuses due to coldness. Rohan spots dolphins as Diane asks them for a ride, using the tips from her mom to calm them as they agree to help. 

 

The dolphins take them down the river as they reach a covered up part of the jungle covered with trees. As they navigate the jungle, they are in the center of an elephant crossing. Diane is in awe until she notices that they’re running almost like they’re being lured as she notices an electrical fence covered in shrubs. Realizing it’s a trap, she and Eliza help warn the elephants as they thank them. Rohan then notices in the distance they’re in poacher territory. The camera shows that Toughfrut, Jenifer, Bones and the poachers are in the area, having set up a base camp to hunt them down, revealing it to be a trap to lure our heroes as the cameras on the shrubs are revealed.

 

As the poachers start to arrive, they’re forced to retreat as Eliza notices vines as they all begin swinging on vines in the canopy as Eliza holds Kipp who can’t climb. However, the guards manage to shoot the vines, causing Diane and Darwin to fall. Eliza and Rohan save them as Eliza dives down, landing and swiping a motorcycle from the poachers, knocking them out mid-ride as she rounds up everyone, as she and Diane alternate driving and luring the guards to motor destruction.

 

They eventually reach a dead end, having lost the poachers, as Eliza realizes they’re at the end of the map but confused. Diane questions if it all was a sham as Kipp smells something, trapping over a rock, opening a secret passageway as they all enter. Back to the villains, Toughfrut is furious to have lost them, as Bones reviews the security footage around the jungle, as they find Eliza talking to animals, during the elephant skirmish as they determine she can talk to animals. 

 

They then find an undiscovered part of the jungle as well as a large temple in the distance. The five walk there but are tracked by a masked mysterious figure. Kipp senses something is wrong but ignores it as a giant net trap ensnares them. The figure jumps down and begins spouting a bunch of gibberish, flailing a sword but stops recognizing Eliza, as the figure reveals himself to be Donnie (Timothee Chalamet). 

 

Eliza is elated to see her brother as he frees them. It is revealed Donnie has become much calmer, laidback and well spoken as he grew up. Donnie reveals he’s here helping their parents while on vacation as he takes them to a treehouse, revealing Nigel (Timothy Spall) and Marianne (Sigourney Weaver) playing chess. After a joyful reunion, it is revealed that Nigel and Marianne during their world travels found out about this place a few months ago and went to uncover the mystery but the temple needed a phrase to work, decipher the symbols on there to the alphabet they found.

 

Eliza, remembering The Shaman’s cryptic words, thinks she has an idea as Nigel replies “Smashing”. The Thornberrys travel to the temple as Diane gets the chance to speak to her grandparents, as Nigel is delighted to hear about her animal talking abilities as well as a fellow Brit for a granddaughter. They finally reach the city sized temple as Eliza enters the phrase “Mnyama Mji” as the gate opens. 

 

Marianne, using the symbol key, determines that this giant labyrinth is to act as a security system to ward off intruders while the natives had some kind of symbol to bypass it. The group carefully navigates the temple, as they navigate various rooms by deciphering patterns and solving riddles, as they narrowly avoid blow darts, pitfalls, and poisonous laughing gas, due to Eliza and Diane’s teamwork.

 

The last room seemingly leads to an alleyway of choices but only one door is the right one. Nigel notices that each door has a different symbol,between the sun, an animal, and a person. Eliza says anyone of them can trigger a trip, as Diane points out the animal door has a gold knob while the others are silver, which leads them to a bunch of tunnel like slides, as they narrowly avoid spiked boulders. They then wind up in a maze as DIane gets a huge scrape during this skirmish as Eliza decides that it’s not safe, leading to another argument as Eliza has Rohan take Diane back to the treehouse. 

 

 

The poachers arrive with guns surrounding them, holding everyone hostage. Bones grabs Diane as Toughfrut gloats about his victory. Toughfrut also determines that Eliza can talk to animals, which Eliza denies. Bones notices writing on the wall as it reveals that “one with animal tongue” can navigate the rest of this maze. Toughfrut has Bones threaten Diane by stepping on a pitfall trap, leaving her dangling as she is held up by Bones. 

 

Toughfrut demands Eliza reveal the truth, noting her knowledge of animals is way too advanced. Eliza reveals she can talk to animals, not Diane as she begs Bones to let her daughter be. Suddenly, strong rainbow-colored winds strike Eliza as she loses her power. Eliza is taken aback as she attempts to talk to Darwin but can’t understand him. Toughfrut doesn’t believe her as he has Bones drop Diane as Kipp chases after her, as Eliza lets out a mournful cry. 

As Toughfrut and Bones take a dismayed Eliza to force her to help them, threatening the rest of her family. Toughfrut tells Jenifer to watch over the family as he, Bones and the rest of the poachers head towards the last room. As they slide down the chute, Diane and Kipp find themselves back where they started as the two decide to save their family. Diane finds Debbie in the tour bus as she explains what happened as they drive the bus as they head to the entrance but damage the bus. Meanwhile, back at the temple, Jenifer frees the family and Rohan, apologizing for what happens as they went too far. They attempt to find another pathway but are ambushed by poachers. 

 

Diane uses her skills to summon the elephants who help tear down the entrance and reach the temple. The heroes are about to be finished as the elephants raid the temple, saving them as Nigel calls these events “Smashing”. Together, they round up and capture the poachers as Diane attempts to find the last room.

 

Toughfrut, Bones and Eliza make the final room as it’s revealed to be the underground city of Mnyama Mji, showing the skeletons of the citizens, as Eliza determines something caused its destruction as they head to a temple as they find the amulet in the hand of a skeleton. Eliza analyzes the stone warning stating the amulet needs someone who speak the tongue of animal in order to speak to animals or a great curse will happen.

 

Toughfrut gets the amulet as he tells Bones to dispose of Eliza, despite Eliza’s confusion as she thought they needed someone who could talk to animals. The room starts to shift as Eliza realizes something is wrong as magical energy storms the room, creating a fire breathing chimera. The Chimera eats Bones as the room closes shut. The chimera chases after Toughfrut as Eliza attempts to stop the beast but to no luck.

 

Diane and the elephant burst in the room as the elephant holds off the chimera, accidentally knocking out Toughfrut in the process, sending the amulet flying. Eliza and Diane happily reunite as Eliza explains what happened as she hypothesizes that Diane must calm the chimera using the amulet. The two manage to find the amulet on the other side whilst avoiding the chimera. The chimera attempt to claw at Diane but Eliza takes the swipe as Diane grabs the amulet. Diane asks the chimera to stop as it responds.

 

The chimera turns to dust, Eliza and Diane as they are confronted by The Shaman as he is impressed by the bravery both of them showed today. The Shaman asks both of them what they want as The Shaman offers Eliza her powers back but she declines, as she says it’s time to be a parent and her adventures are pretty much done. Diane also decides to keep her powers. The Shaman does allow more leniency in Diane’s rule as she is able to tell anyone in her family but if they tell anyone outside the family, like in Eliza’s loophole, they’ll be turned into warthogs. Diane asks how come she could tell people before without consequences as The Shaman says they didn’t have a deal yet but also said it was an opportunity to help bring Eliza and her closer together. The Shaman wishes the both of them luck as his spirit fades away.

 

About three months later, Diane is still living with Eliza as she in a webcam chat to her dad explaining she’s enjoying America. It’s revealed Diane explains her newly inherited powers to talk to animals as well as bonding with Eliza. The Thornberry Animal Sanctuary is still going but now open for public visits, as Diane helps Eliza. Diane also is enjoying American school life, making many friends including Elena. Toughfrut was arrested due to various lawbreaking as his stories are deemed mad ramblings. The film ends with the Thornberry family reuniting alongside Jenifer and Rohan for a family dinner.

 

Edited February 16, 2021 by YourMother the Edgelord

[SLAM!]

New Tricks

Studio: New Journey Pictures

Director: Stephen Chbosky

Genre: Comedy/Drama

Release Date: August 23rd

Theater Count: 3,020

MPAA Rating: PG for Brief Language, Brief Peril, and Thematic Elements

Runtime: 1 hr 35 min

Production Budget: $80M

Original Score by: Emile Mosseri

 

Main Cast

Sean Giambrone as Greg

(both as the actor and as the voice)

Kara Hayward as Alexis, Greg's Sister

Bryan Cranston as Ken, Greg's Dad

Catherine Keener as Debbie, Greg's Mom

Karan Brar as Sanjay, Greg's Best Friend

Alisha Boe as Vivian, Greg's Sister-in-Law

Kathryn Newton as Mia, Greg's Cousin

Ross Lynch as Fletcher, Alexis's Boyfriend

with Maitreyi Ramakrishnan as Lana

and Norm Lewis as Johnny, Greg's Stepdad

 

Note about VFX: The dog in this film is the result of a motion-capture performance by a real-life dog. CGI is used to give the dog an amplified emotional range. There are other dogs in the film as well--those dogs are motion-capture performances by dogs as well.

 

Note about Pacing: The film's story beats move along briskly. Lines are often spoken in short succession from one another, perhaps (but not quite) like an Aaron Sorkin film. Some moments are slow and some moments are fast, and I trust the reader to differentiate between the two.

 

Logline: Family and friends come together when a teenager transforms into a dog overnight.

 

Personal Note: Thank you in advance for reading this. 

 

Spoiler

Spoiler

We fade into a suburban neighborhood. It’s a cloudless day, but the sun’s about to set. Inside a beige two-story house, a pair of human hands push buttons on a video game controller. They are the hands of Greg (Sean Giambrone), who sits crisscross-applesauce in front of a TV screen.

His sister Alexis (Kara Hayward) calls him for dinner. He pauses the game and heads down the stairs. His father Ken (Bryan Cranston) asks him to pour sweet tea for them, so Greg does this; he pours two cups with ice and one without, because Alexis prefers tea without ice. They sit down for dinner—Alexis made it, she’s a great cook—and Ken notices something off about Greg. Ken asks Greg if something’s on his mind, and Greg says that he’s fine. Ken sees right through the lie—so does Alexis, who, of course, groans out loud.

 

Ken: Hey, Greg.

Greg: Yeah?

Ken: After dinner, maybe you and I could toss the baseball around. If you want.

 

We ellipsis-cut to Greg and Ken in the backyard, playing catch with baseball mitts. Ken convinces Greg to admit what’s getting to him. Greg says that he hasn’t made as many college friends as he thought he would. Ken tells Greg not to worry; he just got through his freshman year, so there’s no knowing what the future holds.

 

Ken: And besides! You’ve got me and Alexis…

Greg: Yeah…

Ken: And your friend Sanji’s still in town…

Greg: It’s Sanjay.

Ken: Right, and there’s… Well… There’s your mother—and Johnny and Vivian, cus’ they’re step-family-members… Look. You’ve got people in your corner. Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise.

Greg: All right.

Ken: And hey. You know what matters to me? That you graduated high school, and that you and your sister are here for the Summer.

 

A bird lands on the yard’s fence. Greg’s scared of birds, so he walks off. Ken tries to get him to stay, saying that the bird has no intention of hurting him—but by then, he’s already gone.

 

Cut to Greg brushing his teeth in an upstairs bathroom. Alexis peeks her head in and asks him when he’ll be done with the bathroom. Greg tells her he’ll be done in a minute. Alexis urges him not to stay in his room all Summer again—she thinks she sees that happening already. Greg quickly says he won’t do that. Alexis then tells Greg to hurry up as Greg walks over to the window—“Hey, it’s a full moon, that’s pretty cool.” Alexis starts counting down from five, and Greg hurries out.

 

Cut to Greg in bed, almost asleep when he gets a text. It’s Sanjay. He replies to the texts.

 

Greg! You in town?

Yeah. Since Last Week.

You wanna get together soon?

Yeah. I’ll text you tomorrow.

Ciao dude

Ciao dude

 

Greg puts the phone next to his glasses on the nightstand. He stares up at the ceiling fan—we cut to the ceiling fan before cutting back to him—and he drifts off to sleep.

 

After a neighborhood shot of early morning, Ken cracks eggs into a frying pan. He asks Alexis if Greg likes his eggs sunny side up. Alexis says she’s pretty sure Greg likes his eggs scrambled. Ken grumbles and says he’ll eat the ones in the pan—then he asks if Greg is still asleep. Alexis insists on waking him up—Ken suggests letting him sleep in, but Alexis argues that since it’s almost 10:00 and breakfast is being made, he needs to wake up, and she goes upstairs before Ken has time to talk her out of it.

 

Cut to Greg’s room, where a figure lays underneath the bedsheets. Alexis knocks before entering the room—she walks to the bed, pulls the sheets over, and promptly presses her hand against her mouth in shock.

 

“Alexis? Is something wrong?”

 

Alexis rushes out. The figure rises, and Greg’s nightclothes from the prior nights fall off of the figure, revealing a border collie mix with white and light-brown fur. The dog realizes that’s it’s standing on four legs and looks at itself to figure out what’s wrong. He looks at his paws, then at his muzzle—and its ears droop down in fear.

 

“No no no no no… This isn’t happening… This isn’t happening…”

 

Greg turns back and sees that he has a tail. He walks around in circles trying to get a better look.

“No! No no no!”

 

He sees himself in a mirror directly across from the bed and halts. He stares in awe at his reflection—we cut to a close up as he sneaks toward it with his jaw hanging open. We see his eyes—slightly more whites of the eyes than that of a dog’s. (There is a patch of brown fur on his left eye and left ear—the rest of his head is white.)

 

Suddenly, Ken opens the door and gasps. Greg perks up at Ken.

 

“Dad!”

 

Greg walks forward off the bed and falls off, tumbling to the floor. Ken rushes to him stoops down to him, hovering his hands over Greg as if he’s afraid to touch him.

 

Ken: Greg?

Greg: It’s me, Dad! I don’t know why-

 

Ken grabs Greg’s head and assures him he’s fine—he scans the room, thinking of what to do.

 

Ken: All right, buddy, you stay here, and I’m gonna make some phone calls. All right? Stay here.

 

Ken hustles out in a huff, bewildered and anxious. Greg struggles to his feet and follows him out—only to balk at the sight of the staircase. Camera tricks show that it seems much steeper and more daunting than it had before. He begins to fret when Alexis calls to him from the bottom.

 

Alexis: You wanna come down? One step at a time. Come on.

 

Greg slowly walks down the stairs while Alexis fights through her own fear and encourages him. Greg frequently stops, saying he doesn’t think he can do it, but Alexis prods him, telling him he’s halfway there—then telling him he’s almost there. Greg, an intelligent mind, finds his stride and hurries down.

 

Greg: Alexis!

 

Alexis stoops down and embraces Greg. She smiles through tears and pets him, telling him that everything’s okay.

 

We cut to a montage, where both Ken and Alexis call specific people.

-        Mia (Haley Lu Richardson) is driving in high traffic when she gets a call from Alexis. “Yes, men are dogs, what’s new… Wait, what? Are you serious? You’re serious. I’m coming now. Yes, I have my blinker on, I just turned it on.”

-        Sanjay (Karan Brar) is studying coding on his laptop when Ken calls him. We hear Ken specifically reference him as Greg’s best friend, and he asks if he can keep a secret. Sanjay, perplexed, replies that he can keep a secret. He peeks out his bedroom door before closing it, while we hear Ken tell him he “deserves to know what’s happening.”

-        Fletcher (Ross Lynch) strums the guitar in his apartment’s living room, using the phone to play along with chord-sheets, when Alexis interrupts him with a text. He groans as he picks up the phone. He shouts to an offscreen roommate, “Houston, we have a problem.”

-        Johnny (Norm Lewis), who’s in his living room, picks up a cell phone. Ken immediately asks why he’s speaking to Johnny, as he called Debbie’s number. (We see a quick shot of Vivian (Alisha Boe), Johnny’s daughter, texting nearby and looking up Johnny as the conversation happens.) Johnny says Debbie put her phone down before she went into the kitchen—“oh, here she is… Ken’s calling you, dear…”—and he hands the phone to Debbie (Catherine Keener), who purses her lips and asks why he’s speaking to her.

-        “Hey Debbie, we’ve got a situation on our hands,” Ken says. “It’s about Greg…”

 

And so, these friends and family members come to Ken’s house to meet and talk about Greg’s transformation. Ken opens the front door and ushers them in. Greg sits in the hallway, drooping his head, while Alexis stands nearby and greets them. Mia rushes to Greg and pets him.

 

Sanjay: It must be true… He even resembles Greg.

Mia: Awwwwww, look at you, you’re so cute, I mean I hope it’s not too soon for this, but you’re such a handsome boy! So adorable! Awwwwww! ❤️

Vivian: I think it is too soon, Mia.

Fletcher: (to Alexis) Can he talk like a human still?

Greg: Yeah, I can talk.

 

They freeze.

 

Fletcher: Wow.

 

Debbie takes one look at Greg, then glares at Ken with her hands on her hips.

 

Debbie: Did you do this to Gregory?

Ken: What? No.

Debbie: Kenneth. Why is our son a dog? Do you know?

Johnny: Honey, try calming down a bit.

Debbie: I’m calm enough.

Ken: I’m sorry, Deb, I really have no idea…

Debbie: So he just became a dog overnight. How am I supposed to believe that?

Greg: Hey.

 

They look down at Greg, who walks up to them. Greg tells them that he’ll be able to tell them everything he knows.

 

We cut to the living room. Greg’s family and friends sit on (or stand behind) the living room couch. They stare directly at him as he sits in front of the couch, and we cross-cut between Greg and everyone else. Alexis asks with crossed arms if Greg really did wake up as a dog—Greg confirms it. They hurl a barrage of questions at him—did he eat or drink anything funny, did he have any dreams or visions, did he feel sick that night. Greg answers ‘no’ to all of these.

 

Debbie: Great. It’s an unexplained “Act Of God.”

Johnny: God does work in mysterious ways…

 

Mia asks him how it feels to be a dog. Greg says he doesn’t have an answer yet—but it’s different—it’s like sensual overload. Vivian asks about his vision—Greg says he has a slightly different field of vision, but other than that, it seems like natural vision. Sanjay says that makes sense—“If you look closely, there’s more of the whites of the eyes than what’s normal for a dog—that has to be why I thought he resembled Greg.”

 

Alexis: He is Greg.

Sanjay: …Well. Of course. That’s correct.

 

Debbie demands to know if there’s any way Greg can change back—or if Greg knows a way to change back.

 

Greg: I’m sorry, Mom… This just now happened…

Debbie: No. This isn’t happening to my son.

Ken: Deb—

Debbie: It’s Debbie.

Ken: I know that… It’s just… Maybe it’s okay that he’s a dog—I mean, for the time being.

Debbie: What? Are you hearing yourself?

Ken: Well, listen—it might just be for a day—maybe for a week, or a shorter amount of time like that.

Debbie: Of all the reasons why we divorced—what if it’s a month, or a year, or God forbid, what if it’s the rest of his life?

(Johnny leans forward and rubs his forehead. Alexis interrupts.)

Alexis: Listen, Mom. We would all prefer Greg as a human, but we don’t have a way to change him back. We can’t just go to a pharmacy and buy medicine for this. And you, Dad. It’s not okay that he’s a dog. You’re right that we have to accept it, but it’s not okay. At all.

 

Silence for a moment. Fletcher strokes his chin.

 

Fletcher: Does Greg have to get neutered if he’s a dog?

The others respond with “of course not” and “why would you think that,” and Fletcher defends himself, saying he was simply asking a question.

 

Mia excitedly announces that she has an idea: to take Greg to PetSmart! The store allows dogs inside, so Greg can pick out items like a collar, leashes, toys, beds, food bowls—even clothes if he wants any! It’ll be the first time a dog picks out its own items!

 

Vivian: I’m not sure if that’d—

Alexis: I like that idea; if Greg’s going to be a dog, he needs to be comfortable. Greg, what do you think?

Greg: Uh, well, I guess we could—

(Mia leaps off the couch.)

Mia: I’m gonna start my car, and we can all go together! ❤️

Debbie: Make sure all the young adults go with you, Alexis--your father and I are going to stay here and have a talk.

Alexis: Alright guys, follow me and Mia if you’re coming to PetSmart.

Greg: Alexis, wait!

 

Mia, Alexis, and Greg go to the front door while everyone else gathers their bearings. Johnny begins to chuckle to himself, and Vivian asks him what’s so funny.

 

Johnny: He’s takin’ “dog days of Summer” to a whole new ball game! Hoo boy!

 

We cut to Mia’s car (parked on the curb) as Alexis opens the passenger-seat door for Greg. Meanwhile, Sanjay and Vivian pile into the backseat. Greg’s too nervous and shaken to jump into the car, so Alexis tries to pick him up—but Greg is unexpectedly heavy. Fletcher appears and uses his strength to help Greg into the car. Fletcher then tells Alexis that he’s going back to his apartment to write some songs, as he’s been inspired by the day’s events (and there’s only room for five in the car anyway). Alexis likes this. They kiss. Fletcher walks off as Alexis enters the backseat. We get a shot of a distressed Greg as he looks back at the front door of the house, where Ken, Debbie, and Johnny are standing and watching. Mia exclaims that they’re going shopping as they drive off to PetSmart.

 

We cut to the store, where the young adults stand in front of a dog tag dispenser/machine—Sanjay argues that they should get a tag with the name Greg, but Vivian argues that they should pick a different name for the tag—“our parents said they wanted to keep it a secret.” Mia suggests the name “Buddy” because they could call Greg ‘Buddy’ without denying his identity. Alexis asks Greg if it’s okay with him—he nods. Vivian says “Buddy it is” as she types it in—but Sanjay insists to himself he’s still calling him Greg no matter what. Greg hears bird calls, and he nudges Alexis, whimpering; Mia notices and asks what’s wrong, and Alexis answers, “he probably hears the birds, you know he’s afraid of birds.”

 

Cut to Greg sitting in front of the leashes—the shot is from behind him, and there’s a lot of headspace, so it’s as if the leashes are staring down at him. Mia grabs one off the rack—“I like this one! <3”—which prompts Vivian to leave, saying she’ll go pick out a dog bed. Alexis stoops down and says to Greg that she knows his favorite color is blue—she points to where the blue leashes are, and Greg grabs the leash he wants with his mouth—the leash is blue with a pattern of gray diamonds. Sanjay claims he knew Greg would pick that specific leash.

 

As they’re walking to the registers, Greg instinctively catches a scent and follows it, piquing the others’ interest. They follow Greg to a kiosk where there’s bags of dog food. Greg sniffs the bag and stares back at the others. Mia says “awwww” as she points to him, and Greg notices he’s been wagging his tail.

 

We cut to the inside the car as Mia’s driving—the first shot is of Greg in the passenger seat as Alexis puts a gray collar around his neck. She comments that the collar is going to match his leash very well. Sanjay, who’s crammed in the backseat between Alexis and Vivian, asks Greg why he wanted to smell the dog food so bad. Greg answers that the scent took his nose and just wouldn’t let go of it, and that it smelled very good to him—like how humans can smell a grill from far away. Vivian says “we can’t just let him only eat dog food,” and Alexis insists that she’ll include pieces of “human food” in the bowl each time he eats.

 

Mia then suggests that Greg should try sticking his head out of the window. Greg isn’t so sure, but the others encourage him to try. Mia rolls down the window, and Greg sticks his head out—the wind blows in his face, and his chops are pulled back on his muzzle. He pulls himself back in.

 

Greg: The wind is—well, it’s windy…

 

They encourage Greg to try again, so he sticks his head out, and this time he ends up closing his eyes and embracing the smell of the wind—his tongue slips out of his mouth as he gives in. Sanjay raises his eyebrows and give a look that suggests “I can’t believe this is happening.”

 

Suddenly, Mia passes by a park and exclaims that they should take Greg to the dog park.

 

Alexis: Mia, no. It’s too soon.

Mia: Ask Greg, see what he thinks.

Greg: I… Uh…

Mia: See, he’s fine! I’m the one driving, I say we go!

 

We cut from the car practically swerving into the park to the group standing in the parking lot.

Alexis attaches Greg’s leash.

 

Greg: I honestly feel like I’m being thrown in the deep end.

Alexis: Greg, I think you’ll be fine—just let us know if you’re overwhelmed, and we’ll get you out.

Sanjay: But do that by barking instead of speaking—if other people hear you talk, you’ll be a lab experiment.

Vivian: Does he even know how to bark?

Sanjay: I mean, he got the four legs and the nose down pretty rapidly.

Mia: I’m gonna take so many pictures! Ohmigosh!

Greg: Alexis…

Alexis: You have to adjust sometime, might as well adjust now. Come on.

 

Greg reluctantly agrees to go. Once they’re in there, Alexis unleashes Greg and tells him to run around and have fun, so he gulps and trots out toward the middle of the park. Mia pulls out her phone to take pictures—but her phone dies, so that’s a bummer. Sanjay says “Look!” and the group sees Greg as two other dogs trot toward him. We cut closer to Greg as he tenses up. One of the dogs goes to sniff the rear of his body, and Greg leaps away. Determined, the other dogs persist. Sanjay yells, to mess with Greg, that maybe one of those dogs wants to be his girlfriend. Greg barks at him angrily—and when the dogs try again, he runs away. The dogs, of course, run after him. Mia gasps, stating that Greg just barked.

 

We cut from a shot of Greg running away from the other dogs to a shot of Greg, Alexis, and Sanjay entering Ken’s house. (Alexis asked Sanjay to help carry in the supplies bought from PetSmart). Greg trots to Ken, who stoops down and greets him. Ken looks at the tag and asks why it says ‘Buddy.’ Alexis replies that it’s for confidentiality. Ken says “huh.”

 

Sanjay announces that he has to go to work on his online class. Ken invites Sanjay to take Greg for a walk anytime he wants—if Greg thinks that’s a good idea. Greg says that he’d like that. Sanjay puts out a fist-bump (before realizing it’s a futile gesture)—but Greg improvises by placing a paw on Sanjay’s fist.

 

Greg: Ciao dude.

Sanjay: Ciao dude.

 

Sanjay leaves.

 

Greg: Oh no.

Ken: What.

Greg: I, uh, I’ve been holding it in all day, and…

Ken: You have to pee?

Greg: Yeah, really bad.

Ken: Okay. Uh. Um. We can let you out.

Greg: What? Out?

Ken: Yeah, out in the backyard.

Greg: But where do I go in the yard?!

Alexis: You’re a dog, Greg, you can go anywhere in the yard.

Greg: Anywhere?! But…

Ken: You don’t have to be embarrassed about it, I’m sure mother nature understands.

Greg: Can’t I just go in the bathroom?!

Alexis: Ugh! I have the door open for you, just go outside.

Greg: I’m sorry, it’s just—it doesn’t feel right to me!

Ken: This is no time for moral quandaries, son, just go before you pee on the carpet.

Greg: Eghghghgh I Can’t Hold It I’m Sorry

Greg crouches down.

Ken: Aw, for Pete’s sake!

Alexis: No, Greg, not the carpet!

 

We cut to Ken and Alexis spraying the carpet stain and cleaning it. In the next shot, we see Greg in the background, standing on the other side of the sliding door.

 

Greg: Can I come in now?

Ken: No. Not until dinner.

Greg: Ugh. (He angrily trots offscreen.)

Alexis: Hey Dad.

Ken: Yeah?

Alexis: How was that talk with Mom and Johnny?

Ken: Oh. Uh. She just stressed the importance of you two spending time with them. She wants to help Greg get through this.

Alexis: That was it?

Ken: Yeah. But you know her. She’ll say it in a strong-willed manner.

 

We cut from that conversation to Ken placing a food bowl on the dinner table. He suggests that Greg sit in the chair, and he helps him get situated while Alexis stares in subtle discomfort. Greg apologizes for peeing on the carpet, saying it won’t happen again—Ken forgives him, knowing he’s still adjusting to things. Greg stares at his food and sniffs its aroma. Alexis states that she put in pieces of chicken for him. Greg says thanks without looking from the bowl; leaning in, he chows down while the others stare at him. Ken and Alexis exchange glances.

 

Ken: Hey, Greg. Uh. You wanna toss the ball after dinner?

Greg: I don’t think I can hold a mitt…

Ken: No, I mean, we could try to play fetch. If you want.

 

Greg perks up. We cut to Greg and Ken walking outside.

 

Greg: So you throw the ball, I run to it, I bring it back, and we do that over and over again?

Ken: Yeah, that’s fetch.

Greg: Well, I don’t know, Dad—that sounds really repetitive, and I shouldn’t be getting slobber on our baseball, and—

 

Ken tosses the ball up and down in his hand. Greg looks at it and fixates on it; he wags his tail and pants. Ken smiles and tosses the ball across the yard—Greg runs to get it, and when bringing it back, he drops the ball at Ken’s feet and looks up at him.

 

Greg: Again.

 

We cut to inside the house as Greg continues fetching the ball—Alexis bites her lip as she watches through the sliding door’s glass with her arms crossed.

 

We cut to a moment where Greg says goodnight to Ken as he walks up the stairs. Alexis asks if he wants to go to sleep, and Greg, tuckered out from fetch, says yes. Alexis leads him into his room; she’s set up his dog bed on his floor, and Greg walks in circles before plunking himself down. Alexis states that she’s leaving his bedroom door open and that she’ll be awake face-timing Fletcher for a while in case Greg needs anything. They say good night to each other.

 

That night, Greg’s tossing and turning… Then a radiant white light appears. Greg springs to his feet and sees a female husky with crimson eyeballs and completely snow-white fur standing in front of him. Greg follows the husky down the stairs and follows her out of the sliding door, which is inexplicably open. They sneak through a small hole in the wooden fence, and the husky leads Greg to a place where he’s standing before a large hilly stone protruding from the earth. The husky instructs Greg to stand there as she walks behind the stone; then Greg looks in awe as many collarless dogs—dogs of various breeds, all of which have crimson eyeballs and snow-white fur—appear from behind the stone and stand above Greg. A Dobermann stands in the middle, and the husky stands on its right side. The Dobermann tells Greg, with a suitably deep voice, that he’s been granted the choice of whether to stay as a dog or return to his form. Greg can appear before them to announce his decision any time he’d like, but if he waits too long, his body will be taken over by the sentience-lacking soul of a dog, and Greg’s soul will be placed among the pack that he sees before him. As this is said, rain falls, and it falls harder and harder and harder—then after the instruction, Greg stares up at the sound of booming thunder, and from the dark gray clouds comes a surge of blue lightning which strikes him without mercy. The lightning chars Greg’s body black, and Greg levitates off the ground, and his fur shifts rapidly from charcoal-black to snow-white.

 

We cut to Greg jolting awake—the sun rays shine through the windows, and he’s curled up in his bed. ‘Twas a dream he’d just seen. He rolls to his belly and sets his front legs on the rim of the bed—he notices these legs and stares down at them, thinking deeply about his dream.

 

Greg trots downstairs. Ken’s reading a newspaper on the couch. (The newspaper’s headline discusses a noticeable pattern of days with fantastic weather.) Ken says that Alexis refilled his water bowl and mixed pieces of scrambled eggs in with his food before she left—he asks if it’s okay that the bowls are on the floor instead of on the table.

 

Greg: That’s okay. Hey Dad.

Ken: Yes?

Greg: I think I’ll be human again soon. But in the meantime, there’s a lot of good I can do as a dog.

 

Greg trots toward his food and water. Ken raises his eyebrows.

 

Ken: Hey, I’ve got someone coming to install one of those “doggie doors” in the front door—so you can go outside anytime you want.

Greg: Thank you!

 

Ken thinks for a moment. Then he nods to himself and continues reading.

We cut to a montage of Greg experiencing life as a dog, set to the song above. He goes for walks with Sanjay, hangs his head out the window during car rides (Mia’s driving), gets let out into the yard (for *business*), runs with other dogs at the park (Alexis is on the bench watching him while Fletcher sits next to her writing song lyrics), and catches a frisbee that Ken throws—maybe not in the exact order. Oh, and throw in Debbie scrolling through pictures of Greg that she sees from Vivian’s smartphone.

 

The song builds up and abruptly stops—we cut to Greg snoring loudly as he lays down in the house. Alexis walks in—“Dad, you wore him out!”—and shakes him awake. Greg cranes his neck and greets her groggily.

 

We cut to her room as she brushes him with a hairbrush, telling him to stay still. They discuss going to Debbie’s house, and Greg admits that he’s a little scared to see how Debbie will react to him still being a dog, but Alexis reassures him that she’ll get used to it soon and that visiting her will speed up that process. Plus, she says, it’ll be good to hang out with Johnny and Vivian. Alexis lets him know that she has something for him—it’s a bandana (subtle white and light blue plaid pattern) that she wraps around his neck. They look in a bedroom mirror. Greg likes it.

 

Alexis finishes packing the car, and Ken tells them to have fun. This time, Greg confidently leaps into the shotgun seat. They say stuff like “see ya” as Alexis backs out of the driveway. Ken says to himself, “bless Debbie’s heart.”

 

Cut to Debbie, who’s standing on her front porch, smoking a cigarette. Johnny walks behind her and expresses his joy that Greg and Alexis are coming to stay for a few days. Debbie blows smoke and asks why it feels like she’s the only one who cares that her son’s become a dog. Johnny replies that everyone reacts to trials in their own unique way. Debbie retorts that everyone else is talking about accepting that Greg’s a dog and that she doesn’t understand how someone can simply accept that fact. “If it were me, I’d be doing everything in my power to change back.” Johnny reassures her that the time will come when he changes back—"it’s not a matter of if, but when.” Then Alexis’s car passes by as it drives down the long winding driveway. Debbie pats him on the back—“hopefully the ‘when’ is while we walk from here to the driveway.”

 

Cut to Alexis letting out Greg, who trots to Debbie and Johnny, greeting them. Debbie stoops down, smiles, and pets him. Vivian comes out, and Alexis hugs her—Vivian is excited that they’re over again. Johnny sees the hug and smiles—Alexis then greets him with a hug as well.

 

Cutting to inside the house, where a local news program commentates on the string of days with excellent weather that still hasn’t ended yet, Debbie asks Greg (while she moves in the kitchen) if being a dog’s gotten easier. Greg says it has—he’s gained deliberate control of his body.

 

Vivian: So you can, like, wag your tail whenever you want?

Greg: Yep.

Alexis: Hopefully now, you can control your bladder…

Greg: Aw, shut up.

Debbie: Yeah, we heard about what happened yesterday, and I’ll just say, if you pee inside my house, you’re staying out for the whole night. You understand?

Greg: Uh, yes! I mean, yes ma’am!

Johnny: (laughs) What I would’ve given to see that!

Vivian: Why’s everything so funny to you?

 

Johnny laughs even harder. Vivian rolls her eyes.

 

We cut to nighttime. Greg’s in his bedroom, sleeping on his dog-bed, when Alexis and Vivian sneak in. Alexis turns on the light of her cellphone, and the girls see that Greg is out cold. Vivian hands Alexis a dog treat that is reminiscent of a strip of bacon, and Alexis holds it near Greg’s nose. While he’s still out cold, Greg sniffs the ‘bacon’ and begins eating it, rambling incoherently about bacon in the process. Vivian looks puzzled while Alexis stares stone-faced.

 

Vivian: What does this mean?

Alexis: He told us he had deliberate control.

Vivian: And?

Alexis: If he’s eating bacon in his sleep, that means he might be wrong.

Vivian: Or he’s just sleep-eating.

Alexis: Hand me another one.

 

Vivian hands Alexis another ‘bacon’ strip. She does the same thing, and again, Greg eats it in his sleep—all while mumbling. Alexis’s face becomes even more serious as Vivian stares in displeasure.

 

Vivian: We should go before we wake him up.

Alexis: You’re right. Let’s tell him about this tomorrow.

 

The girls stand up and turn to leave—then Greg raises his head.

 

Greg: Hey, before you go, do you think I can have another one of those? They’re pretty good.

 

The girls realize that Greg was pretending to be asleep. Alexis angrily tosses bacon at Greg while he laughs to himself.

 

The next morning, Sanjay takes Greg for a walk in Debbie’s neighborhood—he’s never been in this neighborhood before. Greg *lifts his leg* next to a street sign, and Sanjay resolves to look away—and his eyes find a teenager (Maitreyi Ramakrishnan) playing basketball in her driveway. Greg *finishes* and asks Sanjay if he knows her. Sanjay doesn’t. So Greg playfully asks if he wants to talk to her, and Sanjay is shy at first, but Greg succeeds in goading him on.

 

The teenager shoots hoops when Sanjay walks near the driveway. She introduces herself as Lana and admits that she’s not really a basketball player—shooting hoops is “just something to do.” Sanjay compliments her athleticism—he’s studying computer programming, so he stays in a lot. That’s when Lana notices Greg.

 

Lana: Oh! Can I pet your dog?

Sanjay: Uh… Yes, please!

Lana pets Greg.

Lana: He’s cute! Buddy’s his name, right?

Sanjay: Uh… Yes! It is!

Lana: I love dogs! I’m a dog-sitter, actually.

Sanjay: Really? Well, I guess we have something in common!

Lana smirks. She knows why he said that.

Lana: Well, you’re welcome to come by anytime! And I’ll dog-sit Buddy whenever!

Sanjay: Oh! Great!

Lana: I’d like to see you again! Sanjay, is it?

Sanjay: Yes! Sanjay! Lana?

Lana: Lana.

Sanjay: Great! Have a good day!

 

Sanjay and Greg walk off, and Lana goes back to shooting hoops—before looking back at Sanjay and smiling. Greg calls Sanjay a “Chad,” and Sanjay tells him to shut up. Lana drops her basketball in shock.

 

Cut to Sanjay and Greg entering Debbie’s house—Mia’s inside visiting, and Fletcher’s there with his acoustic guitar. Mia predictably runs to Greg and gives him a big hug.

 

Mia: Ohmigosh, it’s been such a long time since I’ve seen you, how are you! ❤️

Vivian: How was the walk?

Sanjay: I thought it went pretty well.

Greg: Sanjay met a girl…

Sanjay: Greg, no.

Mia: (gasps) Really?!

(Sanjay facepalms and groans.)

Debbie: Speaking of relationships, I’m trying to get a certain someone to leave my property.

Fletcher: Oh, don’t worry ma’am, I’ll be out of your hair in a minute.

Debbie: First of all, I don’t know who gave you my address, and second of all, you should by now know I don’t allow Alexis to have boyfriends in my house.

Alexis: Mom! Fletcher’s fine! Just leave him alone!

Fletcher: Now listen: I come here not as a boyfriend, but as a musician. And my next song goes out to Greg—the four-legged man of the hour! One! Two! Three! Four!

 

Fletcher starts playing a bad cover of an indie rock song on his guitar.

 

Mia: He’s playing my favorite song! That’s my favorite song, everyone! ❤️

 

Everyone else listens to Fletcher’s song while Debbie chases him around the living room. Sanjay shakes his head at all the chaos.

 

Sanjay: …I’m going home to do schoolwork.

Greg: Ciao dude.

Sanjay: Ciao dude.

 

We cut to nighttime—Johnny’s reading a book in his living room chair when something opens and closes the kitchen refrigerator. Sure enough, he catches Greg scurrying by with a water bottle in his mouth.

 

Johnny: Young man.

Greg: (with the bottle in his mouth) Oh hey Johnny.
Johnny: Whatcha got there?

Greg: (sets the bottle down) Water.

Johnny: And you’ll pour that in the bowl on your own?

Greg: I’m sure I can figure it out.

Johnny: I don’t doubt it. Come here, I’ll tell you something.

 

Greg trots over, jumping and laying down on an ottoman. Johnny delivers a helpful monologue about the Greek philosopher Diogenes, about how Greg is lucky to be in a situation where he doesn’t have to worry about much, and how situations that can’t be controlled are nothing to be ashamed of. Greg thanks him, and Johnny suggests that since there’ll be nice weather tomorrow, he can take him to his favorite fishing spot.

 

We cut to the next day, where Johnny’s set up his boat at a dock. Vivian asks Johnny if she has to go—Johnny says she should be excited, as they’re going to the sandbar, and she can lay out in the sun. Greg runs across the dock and leaps into the boat; the only one who’s not impressed is Debbie, who criticizes him for doing something that could’ve been dangerous. Fletcher (!) says that he’s the one who told Greg to do it—Debbie notices Fletcher, who’s standing on the dock carrying a heavy cooler in one hand and a guitar in the other.

 

Debbie: You again.

Fletcher: Now I know what you’re thinking—something along the lines of ‘go away,’ right? Well, I understand if I’m not allowed in the house; but I should at least be allowed in the boat. Plus, I can help Johnny with anything he needs—sailing happens to be my second hobby.

Alexis: Please, Mom? He’s being considerate!

Fletcher: Okay, fine. But you’re helping Johnny with the boat.

Alexis hugs Debbie and thanks her, and then she hugs Fletcher.

 

As they move through a saltwater channel, Johnny drives the flat-bottom boat very well, and Fletcher helps him with whatever he needs. Alexis and Vivian each other’s hands, while Debbie holds on to her magnificent black sunhat (she also wears black sunglasses). Greg leaps onto the bow of the boat and sniffs the air and wind of the saltwater channel—reveling in the scents.

 

A sensational end to the sequence: the boat reaches the sandbar, and the women gather the bags while Johnny and Fletcher anchor the boat—and Greg leaps into the water, paddles to the sandbar, and shakes the water off his hair. He sees a flock of seagulls at the tail end of the sandbar and wags his tail—Johnny sees this from the boat.

 

Johnny: You wanna go after them, right? Well, I ain’t stopping you.

 

Greg runs toward the flock of seagulls. We get a shot of all five loved ones as they watch Greg run. Then comes the money shot: Greg bulldozes through the seagulls, and the nation of seagulls flies away from the sandbar.

 

Greg: This is my island! No birds on my island!

 

The others watch; Greg full-on barks at the birds as they fly away into the morning sunrise.

 

We cut to Greg, smiling in contentment. He’s laying down in Vivian’s room, where she’s hanging out with Alexis and Mia. Their conversation turns to current events, and they have a discussion about police brutality, a subject that Vivian is especially passionate about. Vivian makes the claim that Greg wouldn’t get pulled over--let alone beat by the police—like an African American would. Alexis states that Greg can’t drive because he’s a dog. Vivian states that that’s exactly her point—he could be driving as a dog, and the police wouldn’t give him as hard as a time as people who share her skin color. (This dialogue is meant to characterize Vivian as an activist.) Mia, in somewhat tone-deaf fashion, says it makes sense that people tend to love dogs more than other humans, as the dogs in movies like Independence Day and Twister have suspense placed on them as to whether they’ll live—and she rambles on about other examples.

 

Meanwhile, Greg becomes disinterested in the discussion and trots out of the room. He trots down the stairs and hears an argument coming from Johnny and Debbie’s bedroom. He hears Johnny say “I disagree,” and he hears Debbie say, “I know that, but he’s my son and I should make the decision.” He waltzes into the bedroom, and the parents stare at him. Johnny steps out.

 

Debbie: Sit on the bed. I want to talk to you for a minute.

 

Greg does so. Debbie sits crisscross-applesauce, facing her son.

 

Debbie: So I’ve thought about it, and, I, um…

 

Greg stares at her. Debbie gains her composure.

 

Debbie: I don’t want you coming back to my house until you’re human again.

 

Greg lowers his ears and asks why.

 

Debbie: Don’t play stupid. I know you’ve figured it out.

 

Greg asks her, “figured out what?”

 

Debbie: The code, or wish, or whatever it is—you’ve figured out a way to change back, don’t lie to me and tell me that you haven’t.

 

Greg simply says, “Mom.”

 

Debbie: I refuse to believe whoever threw you into this didn’t leave you a way to change back—if you have to go on some fantasy adventure, fine, but I want you to be human, I don’t want a dog as my son.

 

She covers her eyes and holds back her emotions.

 

We cut to Greg staring out the window of Alexis’s car—she drives back to Ken’s house. Alexis asks if Greg is sure he doesn’t want the window down. Greg says he’s fine—Alexis knows it’s an obvious lie, but she lets it slide.

 

Cut to Ken as he paces in the house. Greg runs through the doggie door, and Alexis opens the front door. They say their hellos. Alexis asks Ken if he heard what Debbie’s said; Ken says yes.

 

Cut to Greg laying down in his room. Ken opens the door and asks him if he wants to play catch—then he corrects himself and says “play fetch,” and he corrects himself a third time, saying the words could be used interchangeably. Greg declines. Ken asks him why not. Greg tells him he’s tired. Ken tells Greg that he understands, and he leaves him alone. Greg then looks up at a clock on the wall. It ticks, and it ticks, and it ticks, and it ticks. Greg looks away.

 

The pace starts to quicken—during the next few moments, an unspecified number of days are passing by—as Alexis stands with Fletcher in the public park—Fletcher asks where Greg is, but Alexis says he didn’t want to come to the dog park. Fletcher is surprised that she didn’t coax him harder to come to the park—it would’ve been good for him. Alexis says that she thinks back to the time where Fletcher went back to his apartment to write songs, and she says that she needs to allow Greg to have some time to himself in the same way. Fletcher says that he’s not sure if the situation is a 1:1 comparison. Alexis says she knows that and sighs.

 

Cut to Ken letting Mia into the house. Mia brings supplies to Greg, who’s laying down and barely awake. She explains some of the toys and expresses her hope that he’ll feel better soon.

 

Cut to Sanjay talking with Greg by phone—Sanjay’s in Lana’s neighborhood, walking a few of that Lana’s dogs. Sanjay reveals his relationship with Lana is blossoming, which is why he’s helping out Lana more and more, and that he’s surprised Greg doesn’t want to “go undercover” in the dog-sitter’s house, as Greg could listen in on their conversations. Greg says he’s scared he “might get in the way of things.” Sanjay’s confused, but ends the call with ‘Ciao Dude.’

 

Cut to Ken meeting with Debbie and Johnny to talk about Greg. Ken is sad that Greg doesn’t want to spend time with him—they could be playing fetch or frisbee, or going for walks, but all he’s doing is lying next to him on the couch. Debbie retorts that he should be participating in human activities such as sports, going to restaurants, going to the beach etc. Johnny states that maybe he doesn’t have to worry about doing those things until he’s human again, and Debbie argues that Greg should want to do those things now and that Greg’s humanity is in Greg’s hands and that he must become human. Then Ken states that he wants to spend time with Greg as he is—it doesn’t matter how he spends time with Greg, just that he’s spending time with his son at all. Debbie asks Ken if he’s even hearing himself, and Ken projects that he hears himself loud and clear. Johnny steps in and attempts breaks up the argument, but Debbie continues arguing, stating that if Ken wants Greg to be a dog, that’s fine, but she will never think that way.

 

All the while, Vivian watches and listens from the staircase. She sits on the steps and thinks for a moment before displaying resolve.

 

Cut to another day and time when Alexis is brushing Greg’s hair, and Vivian demands to have a talk with Alexis. On the front porch, Vivian asks Alexis if there’s anything she (Alexis) can do to convince Greg to focus on becoming human again. Alexis says that while she wants him to be human, she also wants Greg to feel comfortable in his skin. So that’ll mean encouraging him to be brave and live as a dog—and he’d been acting brave until Debbie’s comment did something to his psyche. (Shots of Greg from inside show he’s listening in.) Vivian argues that many people around the world live like dogs, and that Greg shouldn’t fall into it if he doesn’t have to. Alexis, hand on forehead, suggests there’s a difference between being a dog and living like one.

 

Greg then bursts through the doggy door and trots off into the neighborhood. The girls ask him if he wants one of them to take him for a walk.

 

Greg: I’d rather not be leashed right now.

 

Cut from the girls exchanging glances to Greg exploring the neighborhood on his own. He follows his nose and lets the scents lead him. He finds a squirrel and walks toward it, but the squirrel (predictably) runs up a tree. Then a group of people passes by on bikes. They don’t pay attention to him—just to their bike ride. Greg continues walking down the road and sees all of his neighbors with their lawnmowers, gardening tools, footballs, scooters, chalk, slip-n-slide, what-have-you. Then a baseball lands in the yard nearest to him. The middle school boys across the street tell each other, “maybe the dog with bring the ball back for us.”

 

Greg stares, and the shot of the ball in the grass dissolves to a shot of Ken’s baseball in the backyard’s grass. Greg’s laying down in the grass, staring directly at the ball. He looks over at the sliding door and sees dim silhouettes of Ken and Alexis—they’re not having an argument, but their conversation is serious. Greg turns and sees the female husky sitting in the yard, staring at him—the husky then retreats through the hole in the fence from his dream.

 

Cut to dinner; Greg finishes eating his meal from his bowl. Alexis asks him how the pork chop pieces tasted. Greg really liked them. Alexis says that’s good. Greg notices sadness in her voice and asks her what’s wrong. Alexis says that she’s fine. There’s silence for a moment. Alexis springs up from her chair, saying that she’s going to bed. Greg lowers his head.

 

Cut to Ken as he’s watching television. On TV, a meteorologist explains that the first day of cloud coverage in a long time is coming the next morning. Greg hops up onto the couch and asks if he can watch TV with him—Ken says ‘of course.’ Greg lays his head on Ken’s leg and watches TV. Ken flips through the channels, telling Greg to stop him when he finds something he wants to watch, and Greg watches as he skips from channel to channel.

 

After a while, Greg tells Ken that he’s tired, so Ken offers to walk him upstairs to tell him goodnight. Greg trots onto his dog-bed, walks in circles, and lays down. Ken turns to leave the room when Greg gets his attention.

 

Greg: Dad.

Ken: Yes, son.

Greg: If I never became human again, would you still love me?

Ken hesitates for a moment.

Ken: Son. I love you no matter what shape you take. Never forget that.

 

They tell each other good night. After a while, Greg hurries out of the room, down the stairs, out of the house, and through the fence. He trots up to the stone, and all of the dogs with red eyes and white fur appear from behind the stone and stare down at him.

 

Dobermann: I take it you’ve made your decision.

 

Greg stares at the Dobermann with resolve.

 

The next morning, Ken sifts scrambled eggs on his frying pan. He’s proud of himself for remembering to scramble Greg’s eggs. Alexis says, “speaking of Greg, I can’t believe he’s still asleep.” Ken asks Alexis to go upstairs and see if he’s awake. Alexis does this and enters Greg’s bedroom—and the dog jolts awake, staring at her while panting and wagging its tail.

 

Alexis: Greg?

 

The dog trots to Alexis and stands on its hind legs, leaning against her and staring her in the eyes. Alexis takes a closer look and assumes a stone-faced expression. We cut to the dog’s eyes, which show much less of the whites of the eyes than before.

 

We cut to Ken cooking when Alexis appears from the staircase, telling him something’s wrong. The dog runs down the stairs behind her and jumps on Ken. Ken sees for himself the eyes of the dog, which are now exactly that of a dog’s. Ken sets the dog down.

 

Ken: Why did your eyes change, Greg?

 

The dog tilts its head in confusion.

 

Ken: Speak, centurion…

 

The dog tilts its head the other way. Ken glances at Alexis.

 

Ken: I don’t think he understands.

 

The dog jumps onto Ken again, yipping giddily, sticking its tongue out, wagging its tail. Alexis covers her mouth and runs out of the room, reaching her smartphone and dialing numbers.

 

Another “corralling everyone” montage sequence:

-        Mia’s driving down a four-lane road—the sky is covered by light gray clouds—when Alexis calls, telling her to come to Ken’s house—she nearly causes accidents swerving into the faraway lane, yelling to the honking drivers that she has an emergency to get to.

-        Fletcher’s brushing his teeth when he sees the text message—he shouts to his offscreen roommate that he’s meeting Alexis, and they get into a shouting match about how Fletcher sees Alexis too frequently and that the roommate’s been stuck with chores, all the while Fletcher has to rush back and forth to the sink because he keeps forgetting to properly wash the spit and toothpaste residue off of the toothbrush.

-        Lana opens her front door and greets Sanjay, who’s catching his breath. Thinking Lana might be helpful as she knows a lot about dogs, Sanjay tells her about Greg, and that they need to get to him immediately. Lana says, “So that’s why he could talk to you.” Sanjay’s caught off guard, and Lana slaps him, saying, “That’s for lying to me.” Then she kisses him, saying, “That’s for your devotion—without it, you wouldn’t have been walking a dog that talks.” Sanjay smiles and blushes, while Lana assures him she hasn’t told a single soul. Then Sanjay’s demeanor changes—“We need to go now.”

-        At Debbie’s house, Vivian rushes to Debbie and Johnny, explaining to them that something’s wrong with Greg and that they need to go to Ken’s house. Debbie starts pacing around, assuming the worst, and Johnny tries to calm her down, telling her not to worry. Then Debbie coils her fingers in frustration, telling Johnny that she should be worried because the situation is an emergency. Johnny asks Debbie to at least delay her worry until to gets from the house to the driveway. Debbie grasps her head—“I’m his mother, what if he’s dead”—and that’s when Vivian interrupts them, telling them that if they must argue, they can argue in the car.

 

In Ken’s living room, Alexis, sitting on the floor, wide-eyed with worry, tells the dog, through a voice made scratchy from a lump in her throat, to sit. It sits. She tells it to lay down. It lays down. She tells it to roll over. It rolls over. She breaks down in tears. The dog whimpers, springs to its feet, and nudges her skin with its nose. She tells the dog she’s sorry as she cries.

 

Ken paces around the room with her hands behind his head. The doorbell rings, which causes the dog to bark, but Alexis holds it back. Ken opens it, and Mia and Fletcher are standing there, while Debbie, Johnny, and Vivian are running toward the door, and Sanjay’s car is being parked on the curb. Therefore, they’ve all coincidentally arrived at around the same time. Ken hurriedly waves everyone inside.

 

They all crowd around Greg. Alexis hysterically explains that Greg isn’t responding to them, and it’s as if he’s forgotten he was ever human. Fletcher asks if he’s talked—Ken says he hasn’t talked at all this morning. Lana points something out to Sanjay, who gasps and rushes to Greg. He peers into the dog’s eyes, and then he stares at everyone in horror, telling them that the whites of his eyes are diminishes, and that the dog no longer resembles Greg to him. Everyone stares at Lana, as they caught her pointing out that feature to Sanjay.

 

Lana: (swallows) I’m Lana, I’m a friend of Sanjay’s, and… My understanding is that this boy became a dog, and… I think it’s possible that… That… His life essence isn’t in this body anymore. I think it’s possible that the dog part of him has overwhelmed him. I’m sorry.

 

Debbie gnashes her teeth. She stomp towards Lana and points a finger at her.

 

Debbie: How dare you! You bitch! How dare you suggest that!

 

Lana steps back. Sanjay takes a step forward and shoots Debbie an offended glare. Debbie sinks down toward the dog while Mia wipes away her tears, quietly telling herself that she feels useless. Alexis begins to cry, and Fletcher hugs her tightly. Debbie grabs the dog’s head and pleads, saying she knows he’s in there, and that she needs him to come out.

 

Ken: I’m sorry!

 

Debbie notices that Ken’s face is beet-red with sadness and anguish—she stands up slowly.

 

Ken: This might be my fault! Last night, he asked me if I would still love him if he never became human! And I said that I’d love him either way! And I told him that I’d love him because I knew that to be true! (He pauses to inhale dripping snot back into his nose.) And there’s no way to know for sure, but that might’ve—

 

Debbie punches Ken in the face, blackening his left eye. Alexis pulls Ken away, while Debbie is held back by Johnny and Vivian.

 

Debbie: You murdered him!

Ken steps back, shaken by the accusation. Alexis casts an offended glare.

Debbie: Let go of me!

Johnny and Vivian let go of Debbie, who inhales sharply. Ken holds his hand over his eye.

Ken: I forgive you, Deb. I understand.

Alexis: You forgive her?! She’s not even sorry for it!

Debbie: Alexis…

Alexis: (to Debbie) It’s no one’s fault! It’s not anyone’s fault! No one murdered him! And we’ll never know if this could’ve been prevented, but if it could’ve been prevented, then you murdered him, Dad murdered him, I murdered him, everyone in this room murdered him! If the blame has to lie with someone, it has to lie with everyone!

 

Everyone is silent for a moment. The dog lays down, whimpering and barking for attention.

 

Johnny: I suggest that we gather around him, hold hands, and say a prayer. Just a quick prayer.

Sanjay: What about those of us who don’t believe in God?

Johnny: We can bow our heads and close our eyes, and the ones who wish to pray may do so. I don’t mind praying in silence.

 

The dog lays down in sadness. Everyone silently comes together and gather in a circle around the dog. They bow their heads and close their eyes.

 

We fade to the white-fur dogs playing freely with each other in the forest. The clouds are somewhat darker now. Greg sits among them, watching. He, too, has white fur, and his eyes are entirely crimson. The female husky trots to him and tilts her head slightly.

 

Husky: Your decision was to take the punishment—the price for waiting too long to decide. Why?

He hesitates.

Greg: I…

 

Greg stares down. The other dogs tell each other that Greg is about to explain his decision, and they come up and stand behind the husky—all expect the Dobermann, who lays down from afar while staring daggers toward the commotion. The husky sits expectantly.

 

Husky: Well?

 

Greg gains his composure.

 

Greg: Being a dog was fun at first. But then I felt pressure—I thought that everyone was waiting for me to become human again. I wasn’t sure if I wanted that. I thought I was better off as a dog than as a human. But I knew if it came to the point where I explicitly said I’d never be human again, some of them would never accept it. So I figured that if their dog was just a normal dog instead of me, they’d be able to move on with their lives, and I wouldn’t have to worry about it.

 

Greg stares down and broods.

 

Labrador: What? Is he really saying that?

Saint Bernard: That’s not what I would’ve done.

Pitbull: Man, I’d kill to be human! Really!

Terrier: Overthinking, stubborn son of a bitch…

Schnauzer: You’re head’s in the sand like an ostrich, lad!

 

The husky gets up and stands right in Greg’s face.

 

Husky: Is that really what you think?

Greg: Well, I… I think so!

Husky: Follow me. There’s something I should show you.

 

The husky levitates off the ground and flies off in a certain direction. Greg looks back at the other dogs, who promptly ask him what he’s waiting for. Greg swallows and follows the husky into the air; they fly like ghosts through the forest, stopping and hovering in front of one of the windows of Ken’s house. The husky asks Greg to look through the window. When he does, he sees his family and friends standing in a prayer circle around the body he left behind.

 

Greg: That’s…!

Husky: Yes, Greg. Those are your loved ones. That’s how much they care about you. And that’s how much they’ll miss you when you’re gone.

Greg: But… I thought they were willing to move forward without me!

Husky: Greg. They’re not sad you’re gone because they were a part of your life. They’re sad you’re gone because you were a part of theirs.

 

Greg begins to regret his decision—we see that regret on his face. Suddenly, something steps onto the roof of the house and calls Greg by name. It’s the Dobermann.

 

Dobermann: I told you your soul would be placed among the pack. But never did I say you couldn’t return. Go back to your loved ones. They’re waiting for you.

 

We cut from Greg to the group of loved ones, who are still standing together. Sanjay opens his eyes, sees the dog, and tells everyone to look. We cut to the dog as the whites return to his eyes. Greg jolts to his feet, shakes his body, and looks up at the loved ones. He tells the hello.

 

Everyone is happy that he’s back! The all stoop and kneel down to him—Debbie and Ken are side by side as they embrace Greg. Greg sits, and everyone fervently asks him what happened.

 

Greg: I have something I need to admit.

Ken: What is it, son?

Greg: I was given the option to become human again on the first night. And I also had the option to stay as a dog. But I almost chose to leave this body. I didn’t want to upset you by staying a dog, but I didn’t want to have to be human again!

Debbie: What? Gregory, why wouldn’t you want to be human?

Greg: (crumbling) As a human, I had no ambition. I spent all my time with material things. And I was reluctant to spend time with you. And when I was a dog, I noticed that you were making strides to move on with your lives. So I wanted to withhold myself from disrupting your lives anymore than I already had, because I just… I didn’t feel like I was good enough!

Ken: Greg, of course you’re enough, you’re more than enough.

Debbie: You’re perfect, honey, we love you as you are!

Johnny: That’s nothing to worry about! Of course you’re good enough!

Alexis: You’re my brother! I promise I accept you just for that!

Mia: Yeah, and you’re saying I wouldn’t accept a cousin? Are you kidding?

Sanjay: I don’t think my life would be the same without you!

Fletcher: I’m still getting to know you, Greg!

Vivian: The last thing you should be doing is counting yourself out!

Alexis: We love you Greg!

Sanjay: We love you Greg!

Vivian: We love you Greg!

Fletcher: We love you Greg!

Mia: We love you Greg!

Debbie: We love you Gregory!

Johnny: We love you child!

Ken: We love you son!

 

At this point, tears have been falling from Greg’s eyes for a while. He thanks them. His loved ones hug him and place hands on him. It’s a tender moment.

 

Suddenly, Greg’s expression changes from bliss to worry. He asks to be let out into the backyard. Fletcher jokes that the first thing he wants to do after coming back from his out-of-body-experience is pee in the yard—and a few people laugh. While Ken’s opening the sliding door, Mia introduces herself to Lana, saying, “you must be the girl Sanjay was talking about!”

 

Greg stands in the middle of the yard. He stares up at the gray clouds. Then a flock of birds fly from the trees and head a certain direction—Greg sees that, too. Greg walks back inside the house and warns everyone that a really bad and destructive rainstorm is going to touch down in about half a day’s time. The loved ones ask Greg if he’s sure, and Lana confirms this: she knows that animals are able to tell when danger is coming. The loved ones decide that they have a responsibility to take Greg’s warning to heart and tell everyone they can about the rainstorm.

 

Greg: Wait—by everyone, you mean…

Johnny: Everyone in town? That’s exactly right.

Vivian: We won’t just sit by and let the town get flooded.

Greg: But you’re going by my intuition! How do you know for sure?

Alexis: I think after what’s happened to you, if we’re presented with anything remotely plausible, we’re going to respond to it.

 

We cut to a long take on the driveway where everyone’s hurrying to their cars and yelling about their plans to each other. Sanjay’s going with Lana to return the dogs she’s dog-sitting to their owners, Debbie’s calling news stations, Fletcher’s calling his roommate, Mia’s bold enough to announce that she’s going into supermarkets and shouting the news like an evangelist, Alexis is going with Mia to reign her in ‘just in case,’ and, well, Ken is going to drive Greg anywhere he wants to go. Before Greg gets in the car, Debbie stoops down to him and apologizes for what she said, saying that she trusts him and that the most important thing to that her son is alive. They embrace each other, Greg gets in the car, and Ken drives off.

 

In the car (where Greg rides shotgun), Ken asks Greg if he ever made him feel like a dog. Greg admits that, yes, even before the transformation, Ken’s made him feel like a dog several times. Ken apologizes and makes a new declaration: for the rest of the Summer and when the time comes to go off to college, he wants Greg to live free—“I’m done keeping you inside the house—you go out of the house, you visit your mother, you make friends, you have an impact. I promise you, you don’t ever have to feel like a dog ever again, not as long as you live. But we better let people know about this storm first!” Then Greg asks Ken to roll the window down, and he starts shouting to the people walking by that a storm is coming. Naturally, the people notice that a dog is talking to them.

 

We cut to a montage of the main ensemble doing what they can to warn people about the storm. Lana calls the owners of the dogs she’s sitting while Sanjay opens his laptop and uses his coding and computer skills to advertise the storm to local social media users. Fletcher calls his favorite radio station and asks them to warn listeners (we crosscut between Fletcher and the radio host). Alexis and Mia walk into the store, and Mia beings shouting that there’s going to be a bad rainstorm coming—there’s a particularly obnoxious naysayer, so Mia slaps him, back-hands him, and slaps him again, telling the naysayer to wake up and get prepared; Alexis, of course, apologizes for the slapping. In the backseat of Johnny’s truck, Vivian calls friends to tell them to spread the word right as Johnny parks the truck at a marina, where he shouts at an operator to call boats into the port—when he gets back in, Debbie gets frustrated because she’s trying to type an e-mail into her phone, and Vivian demands that she take the phone and type in what Debbie tells her to say. We cut to local news broadcasts, where news anchors confirm the coming of a destructive rainstorm—as well as announce sightings of a talking border collie.

 

When night falls, Ken and Greg are discussing whether to go home and wait out the storm. They’re driving on a backroad—one with many bridges over waterways—and out of nowhere, it begins to downpour. The heaviest rain you can imagine! With his blackened left eye, Ken struggles to see in the rain, and we can see him swerve on the road. Then lightning strikes the road right in front of Ken, and Ken veers off the bridge and into the waterway. The car starts filling up with water fast. Ken struggles to get out because of his seatbelt is buckled. Greg breathes in, dives under the water, bites down on the seatbelt, and pulls at it, trying to tear the seat belt. Ken unlocks his car door, waits for the car to fill entirely with water, and then opens his door—but the seatbelt still secures him. Greg miraculously tears the seatbelt with his jaws, allowing Ken to grab him by the collar and swim up to safety.

 

Ken breaks above the surface and inhales. He carries Greg to the nearest shoreline and lays Greg down on his right side—he’s unconscious. Ken asks himself how CPR is done on a dog, then finds the area where his heart is and pumps. Ken blows air into Greg’s nostrils before pumping his heart again. By now, Ken is crying because he wants his son to live. He tries to blow air into him again, and he pumps his heart another set of fifteen times. He does this another time. He repeats once more after that. And finally, Greg coughs up water and breathes. Ken is overjoyed that Greg is alive, and he asks that Greg simply take a moment to rest. Greg does so.

 

We fade to another day, a cloudless day, as two boats glide on the water toward a small island in the middle of the channel. Greg narrates in a voice-over, revealing that, in the next dream he had, he told the dogs he wanted to become human, and that the dogs gave him a date and a time, and that the folks agreed to make it a time of celebration. Greg arrives on Johnny’s boat—Ken, Debbie, Sanjay, and Lana were on that boat as well—and then Fletcher’s boat lands nearby, and, predictably, the ones that rode with him were Alexis, Vivian, and Mia.

 

No dialogue past this point. The loved ones pitch a tent for Greg, who holds a pair of clothes in his mouth and walks into the tent. They zip up the tent and drape towels over it so they don’t see the shadows and Greg can transform back into a human in privacy. While waiting for Greg, the young adults toss a beach ball to each other while the adults drink beer and reconcile with one another. Then Greg emerges from the tent as a human, scooping sand in his palms and watching it fall between his fingers. Ken is the first one to embrace him. The loved ones surround him, overjoyed to have Greg back in their lives as a human. We coast to the end with an emotional montage of moments where the family spends time together on the island. Fletcher plays a song on his guitar, Johnny goes fishing, the girls (Alexis, Mia, and Vivian) talk to one another, Ken tosses a chocolate bar to Greg for him to enjoy, Debbie reads in a beach chair (while glancing joyfully at her son), and Sanjay walks on the shore with Lana. The second-to-last moment of the montage is Fletcher proposing to Alexis, Alexis saying yes, and the loved ones applauding—even Debbie is applauding.

 

The last part is three or four jump cuts where they line up in a row as if posing for a camera. They laugh with each other, enjoying each other’s presence, and in the final shot, they all stare into the camera, as if encouraging the audience to take the film’s messages to heart.

 

Fade to black.

 

The first end-credits song is “My Own Soul’s Warning” by The Killers, posted above. The second end-credits song is a cover of Switchfoot’s “Dare You to Move” performed by Ross Lynch.

 

 

Edited September 22, 2023 by SLAM!

[SLAM!]

http://assets.stickpng.com/images/5b4a216ec051e602a568cd7e.png

 

Studio: New Journey Pictures Animation

Director: Steve Martino

Genre: CG Animation

Release Date: July 19th, Y8

Theater Count: 3,450

MPAA Rating: G for General Audiences

Runtime: 1 hr 25 min

Production Budget: $75 Million

 

Major Voice Cast

Elijah Wood as Johnny

John Cho as Tom Nook

Christina Vee as Isabelle

Genesis Rodriguez as Mabel

Cristela Alonzo as Sable

Jermaine Clement as Redd

Alan Tudyk as Blathers

Kristen Schaal as Celeste

Khary Payton as Brewster

Anjali Bhimani as Katrina

Esme Creed-Miller as Daisy Mae

with Ben Schwartz as Rover

and Taron Edgerton as K.K. Slider

 

Clarification

This title is Animal Crossing, not Welcome to Animal Crossing; I forgot that the logo had that part... Heh heh 😅... Onto the film!

 

Spoiler

Spoiler

It’s a sunny day, and a commuter train is barreling through country hills. Cut inside the train and dolly past the seats—the passenger are revealed to be anthropomorphic animals. Well. All except one: there’s one single human (Elijah Wood), whose face is buried by a newspaper. A cat in a burgundy cardigan (Ben Schwartz) walks up to the booth.

 

Cat: May I?

Human: Uh. Yeah. Sure.

 

The cat sits in the booth. He waits for a moment before remarking that he’s reading the newspaper—which seems antiquated by modern standards. The human states that he’s phased out all the screens he could—they hurt his eyes. “Good for you,” the cat says. The cat introduces himself as Rover, and the human replies with “Johnny.” The cat then asks him where he’s from.

 

Johnny: (folds newspaper) Well, I won’t say where I’m from, but I will say where I’m going. Leaf Town.

Rover: Leaf Town! I’ve heard great things about Leaf Town!

Johnny: That’s peculiar, ‘cuz the town’s just now been founded.

Rover: Is that so? Well, I’m just know it’s a great place to live.

Johnny: I hope so. I need a place where I can just relax and be away from everything. You know what I mean?

Rover: I know exactly what you mean.

 

The train arrives in Leaf Town. Johnny stands and says it’s his stop. Rover tells him good luck—then he says, “you enjoy your life, all right—you only get one.” Johnny nods.

 

Johnny gets off the train, which promptly departs. The town in front of him, a hilly neighborhood, looks humble yet somewhat unfinished, with small houses, a few shops, a town, and a museum—all between the station and the vastness of the ocean. Johnny hardly takes two steps beyond the station when the villagers ambush him with party poppers and streamers. (The villagers include a wolf named Kyle, squirrels named Filbert and Hazel, a goth-styled dog named Cherry, a monkey named Simon, and a duck named Joey). Johnny is pleasantly surprised by the warm welcome.

 

Isabelle (Christina Vee), a dog with blonde fur, introduces herself as a representative of the town and gives Johnny a brief tour. He meets the hedgehog sisters Mabel and Sable (Genesis Rodriguez and Cristela Alonzo respectively) who run the clothing store, and he meets the two owls Blathers and Celeste (Alan Tudyk and Kristen Schaal respectively). Then she shows Johnny his red-roofed house and tells her she’ll see him at the Town Hall first thing tomorrow. Johnny surmises aloud that it’s probably going to be about signing documents. But Isabelle corrects him and says that she’ll be informing him about his mayoral duties.

 

Johnny: Uh… Mayoral duties?

Isabelle: Oh, you’re a hoot and a half! Get settled in, okay? Bye-bye!

 

Johnny walks into his house, utterly flabbergasted.

 

Johnny: Mayoral duties? Does she think I’m the mayor? I’m not the mayor…

 

Johnny looks around at his house—there’s a bed, a nightstand, a lamp, and a hardwood floor—that’s it. Johnny drops his bag and sighs.

 

He walks out of the house, but guess who’s standing next to him right as he walks out? None other than the tanuki Tom Nook (John Cho), who’s both Leaf Town’s head of real estate and the owner of Nook’s Cranny! Tom Nook introduces himself and asks Johnny if he likes the house. Johnny says he likes it. After he talks about the house a bit, he hands Johnny a mortgage bill. Johnny looks at the numbers, and his eyes bulge out like a cartoon character’s.

 

Johnny: Sir, uh… Isn’t this a little much?!

Tom Nook: Don’t worry chap, you’ll pay it off in no time! And no need to hurry—it’s not a time-sensitive payment! Okay? Take care of yourself!

 

Cut to Johnny setting down an empty cup of coffee in a café called The Roost. He asks the bartender, a bird named Brewster (Khary Payton), for another cup. Brewster laughs and remarks that Johnny’s already winded after the first day. Johnny goes on a tirade about how first of all, the representative thinks he’s the mayor of the town—Brewster says he thought he was the mayor as well, but Johnny says that’s beside the point—and second of all, the real estate manager handed him a preposterously large bill. Brewster laughs and says that he’s sure he’ll be able to handle it—and he also tells him it’s up to him if he wants to take that mayor position, even if it ends up being temporary—because the town could certainly use a hand!

 

Fade to the next morning as Johnny groggily steps out of his house with “bed-head” hair. He opens his mailbox and sees a letter from an individual named Tortimer. He opens the letter and finds out that this “Tortimer,” the one who was supposed to be the mayor, knows about the situation Johnny’s in and essentially gives him the go-ahead to assume the mayoral duties. Why? Perhaps he thinks Johnny seems like a nice person. He doesn’t explain his reasoning very well.

 

Johnny walks into the town hall and is quickly greeted by Isabelle, who hands him documents to sign. Johnny asks what the document says as he begins to drink a cup of coffee. Isabelle lists off a lot of elements including role expectations, responsibilities, salary information, and the like. Johnny does a spit take after seeing the salary information—he gets paid a lot of bells. Granted, he’s expected to use a lot of the money to improve the town, but there’s still more than enough to help him with his mortgage payment.

 

And so, we cut to Johnny’s induction ceremony. All of the villagers and townspeople stand in the crowd while Isabelle introduces Johnny. The villagers shout, “Speech! Speech! Speech!,” and Johnny doesn’t disappoint. He keeps it short and simple, saying that he’ll do his best to make the town a livable place for everyone. More party poppers and streamers! Yay!

 

We cut to a montage in which he tries to catch fish and bugs for the museum, because a full museum would drive tourism to the town, but it’s definitely harder than he thought it’d be. Isabelle teaches him to shake all of the trees because he sells the apples that fall from it, and sometimes, there’s other items in it—she shakes a tree, and an entire couch falls from it. Johnny tries shaking another tree, but a beehive falls down, and all the bees chase Johnny into a river.

 

Because Johnny’s clothes are ruined, he goes into The Able Sisters clothing shop. Mabel enthusiastically greets him at the front of the store while Sable, sowing quietly, grumbles “good afternoon.” Johnny says, “here’s the deal—I need new clothes.” Mabel agrees based on what she sees and hands Johnny a catalog. We cut to a montage of Johnny trying out clothes as if it’s a fashion show—Johnny struts out of the dressing room, and Mabel tells him to strike poses, helping him decide on an outfit. Sable approves of the outfit Johnny ends up choosing, which ends up being the classic red #1 shirt and jeans.

 

Johnny walks to the town hall, but he’s surrounded by the villagers as they tell him about the specific utilities they want in the town, such as bridges, a fountain, etc. Johnny yells “one at a time” as he pulls out a notebook and makes a list. In the town hall, Johnny tells Isabelle about all the things the villagers wanted in the town, and Isabelle tells him not only will he need money, but he’ll also need supplies—and Johnny muses that he’ll also need storage space for supplies.

 

Enter Tom Nook, who overheard Johnny say that he needs storage space. He congratulates Johnny for paying the first mortgage payment and tells him he can expand the size of this house and pay another mortgage payment after the construction. Isabelle claps at the notion of a solved problem while Johnny leans back and groans.

 

Another montage happens where Johnny has a bridge built across the town’s river, a few more neighbors move in, the museum starts to fill up, Johnny expand his house piece by piece, etc. The town is making real progress under Johnny’s guidance, and everyone’s happy about it.

 

Rover comes by to visit and is excited that the town’s progressing further along. He sees that Katrina (Anjali Bhimani), a fortune-telling panther, has set up a tent in the town—being as free-spirited as he is, he drags Johnny into the tent. Katrina reads their fortune and sees misfortune for Johnny—so he’s a little bummed out. Then she tells Rover that she sees regular fortune for Rover. Rover asks for clarification, confused as to whether that’s good fortune or bad fortune. Katrina declares that there is no such thing as clarification in fortune telling. She ends the scene by saying, “that’ll be 1,000 bells each.”

 

Johnny and Rover walk outside. Johnny feels like the fortune-telling was a rip-off. Rover tells him not to worry about it because of how well he’s been handling the town. Rover leaves on the next train.

 

The next morning, Isabelle bursts into the town hall. Johnny asks her what’s going on. Isabelle tells him that the famous musician K.K. Slider wants to have a concert in town. Johnny tells her to schedule it, but also says that more work needs to be done to make the town fit for K.K.’s arrival—not only that, but they’re a little low on funds. Isabelle suggests the “stalk market.” Johnny says, “the what now?” Isabelle tells him that he can buy turnips from a merchant who happens to be in town that very day—then, he can sell them to Tom Nook for a higher price.

 

Johnny goes outside and talks with a young warthog merchant, Daisy Mae (Esme Creed-Miller). He buys 100 turnips from the merchant and puts all of them in his pockets. Daisy Mae asks him how he can do that, and Johnny admits that his pockets are extremely deep.

 

Then a sneaky Kitsune fox, Redd (Jermaine Clement), drives into town in a rusty truck. He sets up a tent and waits inside, rubbing his hands together. Johnny walks into the tent and sees a fancy painting that the museum already has—meaning he could sell it for a lot of money. Redd tells him that the painting costs an absurd amount of money—10,000 bells or something along that line. Johnny pays him the bells, but Redd tells him to wait—he sniffs the air and states that he also wants all of Johnny’s turnips. Johnny reluctantly gives him the turnips.

 

In the museum, Celeste is talking to Blathers about constellations and telescopes when Johnny walks in. Blathers appraises the painting and is shocked to learn that the painting is a fake. Johnny runs back to Redd’s tent, but by then, he’s already packed up his tent and leapt into his truck. Redd brags to Johnny about having sold him a fake painting, and for dramatic effect, he tosses the turnips to his feet, saying that the turnips are ruined because they were left in the sun for a long time (by Redd’s intention, no doubt). Redd snickers to himself as he drives away. By then, the villagers have crowded around the scene, and one of them says, “that’s why I don’t play the stalk market.”

 

Johnny walks to the town hall and tells Isabelle that he’s going to publicly announce his resignation the next day. He doesn’t believe he’s fit to lead the town after all of the mistakes he’s made. Isabelle begs him to reconsider, but Johnny’s having no of it and walks out.

 

We cut to a montage where Johnny walks through the town in sadness. It starts to rain, so he pulls out his umbrella, but the umbrella breaks, so he gets drenched. He walks into The Roost and asks for a cup of coffee. He didn’t even notice that he sat next to Tom Nook. Tom Nook is able to tell that Johnny’s had a pretty rough day. Johnny doesn’t want to talk about it. Tom Nook tells him about his past—how him, Mabel, and Sable go way back, and how he left the city to live a life in the country. He tells Johnny, “this too shall pass.” They hit their mugs together and “drink to that” while Brewster smiles.

 

Johnny thinks to himself the next morning. He holds the town meeting, but he tells the villagers the truth about his mayor thing—that he wasn’t supposed to be the mayor. This prompts gasps, and one of the villagers says, “I knew it!” Johnny says that he was thinking about resigning… But he decided that no, he’s not resigning. (This makes Isabelle very happy!) Johnny says he’s decided not to resign specifically because there’s still work to be done in Leaf Town. Then he asks the villagers to help him decorate the town, because K.K. Slider’s coming that night!

 

After a montage where everyone decorates the town, K.K. Slider (Taron Edgerton) exits the train and is greets by the villagers and their party poppers and streamers. K.K. Slider thanks them for the warm welcome. He goes to the front of the town hall and looks around at the decoration, saying that the humble presentation is his kind of jam. He sits on a stool and sings a song he wrote for Leaf Town—it’s titled “K.K. Leaf Town.” It’s a nice song, and everyone likes it!

 

Johnny narrates about the progress of the town over a montage that shows how Johnny has been able to pay his mortgage, Tom Nook has renovated his shop, Mabel and Sable are doing good business, Blathers and Celeste are running the museum very well, and the town is progressing smoothly. At the end, Johnny takes a walk with Isabelle and sees the train station. A familiar cat is sitting in one of the window seats, waving at him. Rover congratulates Johnny for doing an excellent job, and as the train goes forward, Rover shouts that he’s going to continue traveling, but he’s sure they’ll see each other soon. Then the train travels yonder. Isabelle asks Johnny what’s going to happen next. Johnny tells her, “that’s up to us.” They walk back to the town hall.

 

Fade to black.

 

 

Edited September 22, 2023 by SLAM!

[SLAM!]

White Wyvern

Studio: New Journey Pictures Classics

Director: Drew Goddard

Genre: Drama/Magical Realism

Release Date: January 19th, Y8

Theater Count: 2,250

MPAA Rating: PG-13 for Language, Violence, Brief Nudity, and Sexual References

Budget: $20M

Runtime: 1 hr 25 min

 

Cast

Julia Garner as Bethany Holcomb

Gary Sinise as Sylvester Morton

Margo Martindale as Irene Morton

Reid Miller as Brady Morton

Drew Scheid as Ronny Morton

and Aaron Taylor-Johnson as Daron Boyer

 

Logline: A resilient young woman travels to her uncle's farm to escape from her abusive boyfriend. Little does she know that the farm contains a secret...

 

Plot Summary (about 6.6k words)

Spoiler

Spoiler

Fade in on a gas station in the middle of nowhere. Inside the store a customer and a cashier, both wrinkly but nonetheless friendly, discuss the worth of different brands of cigarettes. Bethany Holcomb (Jane Levy) storms in and struggles to speak through her anxiety. The men calm her down, and Bethany states while crying that she’s trying to find a farm and that she keeps getting lost and that she knows it’s getting dark and that she’s not sure if she’ll be able to find it. The men encourage her and lay a map down on a table, talking her through navigations until she understands which roads she needs to take. Bethany says thank you, takes the map, and storms out. The cashier asks her if she wants anything on the house. She stammers “no” and leaves.

 

We cut to Bethany fast walking to her car. She enters and fumbles with her keys. We cut and look at the window of the store, where the men look at her and wonder what’s wrong. She finally starts the car, backs out, and drives off.

 

The opening credits appear while she drives through the dark country roads. She darts her eyes, keeping them peeled for road signs and whatnot. At one point, she slams her brakes just in time to stop herself from hitting a deer. The deer trots away, and she continues. She’s clearly been affected by something—we just don’t know what.

 

She makes it the farmhouse, driving past rows of corn plants until she’s able to park. Sylvester Morton (Gary Sinise), a farmer wearing a MAGA hat, walks out with a flashlight and greets her, saying, “thank goodness you made it, I was getting worried about you.” Sylvester quietly guides her inside to a bedroom in the house and tells her to get some rest. Bethany gets some of her things together. We see her changing clothes (nothing too clear), and we see bad bruises on her arms and on her back. She gets to bed and lays down, her eyes open and her body shaking.

 

Fade in and out of black. A rooster crows as the sun rises over the farm. Bethany peeks through the blinds of the window and sees the farm for herself. Confident in the image of the land, she lets go. We cut to her groggily walking down the staircase. Irene Morton (Margo Martindale) greets her and officially welcomes her back to the Morton family’s farmland. Irene hugs Bethany and says she’s glad Bethany made it there safely. Bethany then sees Irene and Sylvester’s two sons, Brady Morton (Reid Miller) and Ronny Morton (Drew Scheid), who are sitting down eating breakfast. They see her and practically trip over themselves getting up from the table. They hug her and welcome back “Cousin Beth.” Bethany doesn’t say much.

 

We cut to Beth taking in the sights of the farm outside. Sylvester is working a good distance away. He shouts, asking if Beth is settling in. She shouts “yeah”. Sylvester says that, while Beth is here, he might need an extra pair of hands once in a while. Beth says she’s capable. Then Sylvester asks her if she likes horses. Beth says that she does. Sylvester suggests to Beth that she should ask Irene to show her around the horse stable. He gets back to work.

 

We cut inside the horse stable as Irene opens the door and light breaks in. We hear the neighs and whinnies of four horses. Irene cheekily states that having horses on the farm gives her something to do. She introduces Bethany to all of the horses. First, there’s Graham, a male Clydesdale with youthful energy. Then there’s Squall, a female horse with ashen gray hair—a little sassy, but very sweet. The oldest one of the bunch is Kuzco—he has hay in his mouth while he looks at Bethany—and he’s pretty reserved because of his age, which makes him excellent for beginning riders. Then last but not least, there’s White Wyvern, named due to his striking snow-white hair. The horse is drinking from his trough when he notices the presence of the humans and looks up. Irene tells Bethany this horse is the most recent addition to the stable and claims that, out of all the horses they own, White Wyvern seems to be the wisest—even wiser than Kuzco. While Irene’s talking, the horse is staring into Bethany’s eyes in a way that pierces her. Irene walks away, telling Bethany to follow her around for the rest of the tour; Bethany struggles to break her gaze away before she finally does.

 

Inside the house, Brady and Ronny plan on tossing the football around outside. Then Ronny wonders aloud if they should invite Bethany to toss the ball with them. Brady says “let’s do it.” They run upstairs and find Beth in her bedroom, but she is currently absorbed in a phone call with her mother. Her back is turned to the boys.

 

Bethany: They gave me a tour of the farm. I saw the horses.

Mother: Good! Good, good, good! So you’re settled in?

Bethany: Yes. I am.

Mother: I’m happy to hear that! You’ll love it at your uncle’s farm!

Bethany: Mom. Please keep me updated about where Daron is, what he’s doing—

Mother: Oh, don’t you worry! You’re safe out there, and that’s what matters! We’ll take care of everything here!

Bethany: Okay. Tell everyone I said hi.

Mother: Will do! I love you, sweetie!

Bethany: Love you too. Bye.

 

Bethany hangs up. Brady and Ronny have been staring at her in silence. She turns toward them, wipes away a tear, and smiles.

 

We cut to Bethany tossing a football with the brothers. Ronny bombards Bethany with a lot of questions about her life. What is it like to live in Wichita, is it hard to go back to farm life after city life, yada yada yada. Brady tells Ronny to lay off a bit on the questions as it’s clear she’s been through some traumatic events. The brothers bicker for a little bit until one of them accidentally throws the football at Bethany’s head, drawing blood. They rush to help her.

 

Cut to everyone sitting at the dinner table. Irene is just about finished setting the table when Bethany (now wearing a band-aid on her forehead) tells everyone that she appreciates their hospitality. Sylvester insists that it’s not a problem. Ronny says, “tell us about Daron,” and Brady tells him to shut up. Bethany gulps; Irene tells her she doesn’t have to talk about him, but she says it’s fine. She calls him the “big bad wolf,” saying that he would drink too much, he would beat her, he would gaslight her and tell her she had no one else… And she says she’s had it. She says, “you couldn’t pay me to go back to him.” Sylvester tells Bethany that he’s glad she’s safe. Then he tells Ronny to say the blessing. They hold hands and bow their heads.

 

That night, Bethany’s laying in bed with open eyes. A glint of light appears from the direction of the window. She gets out of bed and walks to the window, spreading apart the blinds with her fingers. The light is coming from the horse stable…

 

She finds that everyone else is asleep and decides to investigate the light herself. She takes a flashlight and a swiss army knife outside and walks toward the stable. She says to herself, “If this is Daron, I swear to God I’ll kill him.”

 

She steps into the stable. A shimmering aura brightly shines in White Wyvern’s stall. She walks past Graham, who’s trotting in circles, agitated by the light. She walks past Squall, who’s wearily sauntering toward the corner of her stall. She walks past Kuzco, who’s asleep. She grips the swiss army knife, braces, and turns the corner. Then as she steps into the light, her eyes widen, and she drops her knife on the ground.

 

The light is radiating from White Wyvern’s body. There’s a sparkle gleaming from a horn on the horse’s head. “U-U-U-You’re a-U—” she stammers. White Wyvern whinnies. Then she says it: “unicorn.” The horse steps to her and lowers its head so that its horn is within reaching distance. Bethany makes the decision to walk toward the horse, reach out, and touch the horn. The horn’s light spreads out, covering the image rapidly.

 

Bethany, lying in bed, opens her eyes. She sits up and wonders if her experience had been a dream. We cut to her in the bathroom, where she’s preparing to take a shower—she reaches to her forehead and finds that the place where she was hit by the football isn’t painful anymore. She takes off the band-aid—it’s as if the bruise was never there. She feels her sides and her arms—in disbelief, she takes off her shirt and sees that all of the bruises inflicted by Daron are gone. She tears up and tells herself that her encounter with the unicorn was not a dream. It was real.

 

She storms downstairs, excited to tell someone. She sees Irene sitting at the dining room table sorting through bills. She tells Irene, “I have to tell you what happened last night,” but Irene says, “just a minute,” as she’s trying to figure out the Morton family’s budget. She basically tells Bethany that they’re getting through the pre-harvest period by the skin of their teeth, and that they’ve had to cut back on things—including Brady and Ronny’s allowance; they’re not too happy about that. Bethany crosses her arms and says that’s a shame. Irene tells her she wishes there was a way to make things easier for her family. She asks Bethany what happened to her last night. After a moment, Bethany says, “the scratch on my head healed up.” Irene buys her answer.

 

Cut to Bethany alone in her room, looking in the mirror. She laughs to herself and tells herself that she must keep it a secret. She knows the Mortons don’t know that White Wyvern is a unicorn—otherwise, they would’ve sold him already. She tells herself, “you don’t know who’s buying him and for what reason—he healed you up, it’s best you keep him safe and sound.” Then she blushes and jumps giddily.

Cut to Bethany working with Sylvester by handing him wood for him to chop with an ax. Sylvester remarks that her wound healed very fast. She plays it off—“yeah, it healed pretty fast!” He stops chopping and walks up to Bethany, telling her he found a swiss army knife in the horse stable. Bethany admits that it’s hers, but says she must’ve dropped it during Irene’s tour. Sylvester says that makes sense and hands it back to her, but he tells her to watch the knife as he wouldn’t want a horse stepping on it. Bethany says she understands. Sylvester says, “speaking of the horses, Irene and the boys are goin’ ridin’, and you’re more than welcome to come along with ‘em.” This intrigues Bethany.

 

Bethany goes to the horse stable with Irene and the boys. Irene tells her that she’s thinking of setting her up with Kuzco since he’s easy for beginners to ride. Bethany asks if it’s okay for her to ride White Wyvern instead. Irene says, “I’m not even sure if he’s broken in yet. Are you an experienced rider?” Bethany tells her that she’d been riding plenty of horses as a child. Irene shakes her head but caves and allows her to ride White Wyvern. We get a brief scene of Bethany brushing the horse, and Bethany talks to him and gets to know the way he acts.

 

The horse is a bit more than Bethany bargained for at first, but she gains a handle on him. Brady complains that he has to ride Kuzco while Ronny struggles to ride Graham. Meanwhile, Squall trots assuredly under Irene’s command. White Wyvern turns his head and looks at Beth with his eye. Bethany tells him he can go fast just for a little bit, and the horse darts off. The other horses stop walking—even Graham—so they stand and watch while White Wyvern races across the Kansas prairie. Bethany is leaning back from the momentum, but she pulls herself up and leans forward, and we see from her smile that she’s having the time of her life. Irene tells her sons, “that there is a woman who’s tasted freedom for the first time.”

 

Sylvester stands in the living room on his phone. “We’ll see you tomorrow. You too. Bye.” The others walk in just has he finishes the call. Bethany excitedly tells Sylvester that she had a fun time riding White Wyvern. Sylvester says he’s happy for her. Sylvester tells Irene that he wants to talk with her in private, so they go to their bedroom. Brady and Ronny crowd around Bethany, asking her how she was able to ride White Wyvern so well. Bethany talks about her past riding experience, but the brothers demand further explanation, as no one else has been able to get that horse “break in” yet. She says, “if I told you, you wouldn’t believe me.” She walks away.

 

We cut to her in the horse stable, sitting on a barrel of hay. White Wyvern is shining bright again, his horn once again appearing on his head. She thanks White Wyvern for the ride and tells the horse that he’s treated her better than her boyfriend Daron was ever able to treat her—and for that alone, she’s grateful. She jokes and says she has to “hit the hay,” telling White Wyvern good night and walking away. Of course, as she walks, the horse stares daggers into her.

 

Fade to the same gas station from the beginning. The same customer from before comes in and asks the same cashier from before for a lottery ticket. The cashier asks if he wants the one with the $200M cash price, and the customer says that absolutely the one he wants. Offscreen, Daron Boyer (Aaron Taylor-Johnson) opens the door, causing the bell to ring. The cashier says he doesn’t look like he’s from around the area. We cut to Daron, who’s wearing black pants, a white tank top, a baggy khaki jacket, and face tattoos that suggest he’s a fan of Post Malone and Tekashi 6ix9ine. He puffs a cigarette and replies, saying, “that’s why I’m asking for directions.”

 

We cut to Daron speeding down the country roads, chugging beer and listening to hypermasculine rap music. He grunts to himself, saying, “Imma put a collar on that b****, she don’t know what’s comin’ to her.” He swerves recklessly into the road on his left.

 

Cut to Bethany helping Irene with dishes after breakfast. Irene tells her that Sylvester invited someone who is looking for a bed-and-breakfast house. Bethany is happy that it’ll help the family financially and asks her who Sylvester invited. We hear the sound of a car being locked. Bethany recognizes the car by its sound and drops the dishes she’s cleaning. She storms to the window and sees Daron marching toward the house. She covers her mouth and runs upstairs.

 

Daron enters and introduces himself to Irene, who immediately figure out who he is and tells him he shouldn’t be there. We cut to Bethany, who’s locked herself in her room and is freaking out. Sylvester enters and confesses that he was given Daron’s name but didn’t think he was the Daron that Bethany had run away from. Irene tells Daron that he has no right to be inside their house, but Daron states that he’s willing to pay a lot of money each day he stays in the house, and that he’ll leave once he regains the trust of his girlfriend—once he regains her trust, he’ll leave with or without her. Sylvester turns back to Irene, telling her they really need the money, and that maybe, just maybe, Bethany and Daron will be able to reconcile with one another. Irene states that if Daron so much as lays an unwanted finger on Bethany, he’ll have to leave. Daron manipulates, saying he’s absolutely fine with those terms. Sylvester tells Brady and Ronny to show him around, and he tells Irene that he honestly didn’t know who he was. Then Irene retorts that maybe if Sylvester had told her that his name was Daron, she would’ve been able to raise that concern before he came. Sylvester claims that he thought the name wasn’t important. Irene shakes her head—“Aye Yai Yai…”

Bethany sits in her room when Daron knocks on the door. Bethany says Daron shouldn’t dare open the door. Daron leans against the door and says he won’t open it. He claims that he’s turned over a new leaf and that he’s never going to hurt her again. He also claims that he might not be able to find another man who’s willing to drop everything to find her like this. He leaves, and Bethany curls up into a ball and cries to herself. Daron goes downstairs and gets a phone call, and it’s from Bethany’s mother, who tells him he needs to give her back the phone he stole from her—and Daron snaps the phone in half and throws it away.

 

Later, someone opens the door, and she throws a pillow, which hits Ronny in the head. Brady and Ronny walk in and ask if she’s okay, and say that she shouldn’t feel like she has to hide in the room. Bethany says that she doesn’t want to be anywhere near Daron. Brady and Ronny promise Bethany that as long they’re around, they’ll protect her from Daron at all costs—so she doesn’t have to hide in that room. Bethany thanks them, and they have a group hug.

 

Daron works with Sylvester and impresses him by helping with manual labor on the farm. Bethany and Irene see this from the horse stable. As they take care of the horses, Irene asks Bethany why she wanted to date someone with all of those tattoos on their face. Bethany says that when they met each other, Daron was a much better man, set up to play college football, but began a downward spiral since his expulsion for cheating on exams. He forced her to drop out of college with him and started drinking and giving in to selfish desires. Irene says with certainty that if they were a little more financially secure, they’d have already kicked him out, and that once Daron pays them enough money for them to feel better, she’ll personally tell him to leave.

 

Bethany makes the decision to tell Irene that White Wyvern is a unicorn. The horse glares at her. Irene begins laughing and says there’s no way White Wyvern is a unicorn. Bethany tells her about the encounters she’s had with him. Irene accuses her of thinking that her dreams are real and states that the day she sees a horn on the horse’s head is the day she becomes an astronaut. But Irene is more than happy to hear that she’s bonding with one of the horses. Bethany frowns.

 

We cut to nighttime. Bethany’s asleep when White Wyvern’s light shines inside of the room. Bethany wakes up and sees that, yes, White Wyvern is standing inside of the bedroom, staring at her. Bethany asks her what he wants, and the horse stomps his hoof and whinnies. Bethany apologizes for almost outing him, telling the horse that that’s how bad she wants Daron out of her life. The horse tips her horn toward her, and she touches it. She then finds herself in a huge stable with almost endless rows of stalls, where she watches as White Wyvern’s previous owners drag him into a stall—and one of the owners whips him. Bethany surmises that White Wyvern, through this vision, is saying that he can relate to her struggles of being abused and mistreated. Then she watches as owners try to drag White Wyvern breaks free from the owners and runs toward Bethany, disappearing into her like a ghost. The owners point at Bethany, saying that they have to run after that horse. Bethany backs away and tell them wait—but she looks toward a mirror, and a reflection of a horse stares back at her. She wakes up from the dream in fear.

 

Cut to Bethany walking into the kitchen, where bad rap music is playing from a phone. Daron’s saying stuff like “uh” and “yeah” while he’s cooking pancakes. She stares at the back of Daron’s head for a moment. Daron notices her and offers her pancakes. Bethany accepts the food because she’s hungry, but insists that just because she’s receiving his pancakes doesn’t mean they’re getting back together. Daron says “aight” and hands her a plate of pancakes that’s topped by butter and syrup. Then, knowing that no one else is around, he tells her, “let me know if you want some sugar—you know I give good sugar.” Bethany stares down with wide eyes. Daron puts the utensils down and saunters toward her, telling her it’s not something to think too hard about—he still wants to be with her, and he still wants to “give her a good time.” Bethany plasters the pancakes on Daron’s shirt, discards the plate, and leaves while saying “on second thought I think I’ve lost my appetite.” Daron’s face grows red, and he curses under his breath.

 

Bethany storms to Sylvester, who’s doing more farm work.

 

Bethany: Uncle.

(Sylvester doesn’t hear her the first time.)

Bethany: Uncle!

(Sylvester notices this and looks at her. Bethany crosses her arms.)

Bethany: What part of “he abused me” do you not understand?

Sylvester: Beth, I—

Bethany: No. You have the authority to kick Daron off your land. You need to do that.

Sylvester: Sweetheart, I know you’ve been through some pain, but I think you should give Daron another chance.

Bethany: Excuse me?

Sylvester: I’ve worked with Daron, I’ve had a beer with Daron, and despite his quirks, he seems to be a nice guy.

Bethany: A man with face tattoos and slurred speech is a nice guy to you?

Sylvester: You have to see through his exterior, Beth—you’ll see who he is on the inside.

Bethany: THAT IS RICH. I’ve known who he is on the inside for years. And for you tell me that he’s someone different from the Daron I’ve had to put up with alone? F*** you. I told you he gaslighted me. I told you he bruised me.

Sylvester: Well… (gulps) I’m more than willing to believe you, but if you say he bruised you, then you should show me your bruises. Then I’d know for sure.

(Bethany stares in disbelief.)

Bethany: So I’m a liar? Is that it?

Sylvester: Beth, I—

 

Bethany storms away from Sylvester. Irene sees Bethany storm away from the living room window—as Irene talks to Bethany’s mom on the phone. The mom tells her that she hasn’t been able to reach Bethany, and that she thinks Daron stole her phone. Irene thanks her for calling and hangs up. Daron, who’s trying to wipe syrup off his t-shirt, claims that Bethany is crazy. Irene says it’s funny—yesterday, she told me that one of the horses was a unicorn. Daron laughs—“did she really? That’s hilarious…” Then Irene thinks for a moment and asks Daron if he’s the one that made her crazy—since a normal girl with a comfortable life wouldn’t be making claims like that. Daron clicks his tongue and says, “c’mon now.” Irene then asks Daron if he’s playing smart with her. Daron laughs off the suggestion. Irene says that she overheard what he said to Bethany, and that she’s the wrong woman to play smart with. She then walks off.

 

We cut to Bethany bursting into the stable. She storms past Ronny and Brady, who are raking hay around the stable. She speaks to White Wyvern with a lump in her throat, pleading the horse to take here away to a place where she won’t have to interact with Daron ever again—she says that Daron will keep pursuing her, and that she’s out of options. Brady and Ronny, confused as to why she’s trying to ask things from a horse, take her away as she cries to herself. Then Brady notices, while Bethany cries, that White Wyvern brushes his hoof against the hay eight times. Brady makes a mental note and follows the others.

 

In Bethany’s room, the brothers ask her why she was talking to the horse. Bethany asks if they’ll believe her. They nod. Bethany tells them that White Wyvern is a unicorn. The brothers exchange glances and tells her that White Wyvern being a unicorn actually makes sense to them. Bethany tells them that she didn’t know what else to do because she feels like there’s nowhere for her to go to truly escape from Daron. Brady then speaks up and says that White Wyvern had brushed his hoof against the hay eight times in a row. Beth deduces that the horse wants her come to the stable at 8:00. Then someone knocks on the door. Everyone freezes, fearing that Daron may have overheard everything they said. Then the knocker opens the door—it’s Irene. She tells them that she’s had a change of heart about keeping Daron in the house, that she should have turned him away in the first place. Then she asks her sons if they own an audio recorder. Ronny says he owns one. Irene says there’s a plan coming together in her head…

 

Sylvester comes in the house—he’s extremely tired from all the work. Irene walks to him and helps him get settled in. Sylvester says hi to Bethany, who’s on the couch reading a book. Irene suggests to Sylvester that later that night, when he’s in the garage with Daron, he should show him the MAGA hat that he owns. Sylvester asks why, and Irene asks if he’s curious to have a political discussion with Daron. Sylvester says that’s a pretty good idea and that he’ll show Daron his hat before walking off. Irene winks at Bethany, who smiles.

 

We cut to a particularly tense dinner scene where Bethany and Daron sit on opposite sides of the table. Sylvester tells Bethany that Daron says he started reading the Bible. Bethany says that’s great as she stabs her salad with her fork. Daron says with a grin that he’s started going to church and wearing “bad button shirts,” and that he wants to listen to the pastor and do what the pastor tells him to do. “I’m happy for you,” Bethany says as she continues to brush him off. Daron continues to act ‘cool,’ saying that he knows he’s not perfect and that he wants to be a better man. Brady and Ronny, sitting next to each other, are staring down, not saying anything. Daron keeps mumbling, saying that he’ll attend AA meetings, he’ll get the tattoos off his face, he’ll do anything Bethany wants—because he loves her.

 

Bethany: You don’t love me. You love controlling me. You love standing on my shoulders and feeling tall. And I’m not gonna take it anymore.

Daron: (clicks his tongue) Aw, c’mon, Beth, you know I’m tellin’ the truth.

Sylvester: Beth, I think you should consider his words—he says he wants to change for the better.

Bethany: (stands up) With all due respect, you don’t know him like I do.

 

Bethany leaves the room, and Irene quickly volunteers to follow her. The others at the table are silent for a minute. Then Daron asks Brady and Ronny if they like Post Malone. They nod their heads. Thinking it’ll impress the brothers, Daron says that he knows all the words to “Better Now” and starts singing the chorus, dancing in his seat. Sylvester looks at Daron with a fatherly expression of disappointment. Brady and Ronny say that they’re finished eating and take their plates to the kitchen.

 

In Irene’s bedroom, Irene whispers to Bethany that she’ll sneak over to the stable to prepare White Wyvern for riding. Irene knows that Beth’s escape hinges on Beth telling the truth about the horse being a unicorn, but she wants to give Bethany’s claim a chance, even if she doesn’t think the horse is a unicorn—because as far she can tell, Bethany deserves to be believed. Bethany hugs Irene tearfully.

 

We cut to the garage. Ronny’s recording device sits on a shelf, unnoticed by Daron and Sylvester who are cracking open bottles of beer. Daron is already getting drunk. Sylvester tells Daron he’s still rooting for him and Bethany to get back together—he knows that things are tense between them, but he’s insistent that the couple can still be happy together. Daron encourages that train of thought by claiming he feels like Bethany is his soulmate, and that he’s come for her because he “really is that passionate about being with her.” Sylvester, almost forgetting, tells Daron he wants to show him something—he walks to a box in the garage and puts on a red hat, showing it to Daron and asking what he thinks. Daron claps his hands together.

 

Daron: Yeah, man! That’s who I voted for!

Sylvester: Well, that’s great! Your exterior’s more liberal—er, youthful—but on the inside, you’re conservative, and I find that really neat!

Daron: Yeah! That time before that Hilary election when he came out with that sound clip of him telling all his friends he’d grab the woman by the *****, I gotta say, I really related to that.

Sylvester: (puts his beer down) You… You related to that?

Daron: Yeah, man! I mean, you gotta grab something you want when you want it! You know?

Sylvester: So… Are you saying you want to grab Bethany… Like Donald Trump…

Daron: Yeah, absolutely, man! That’s what I’m here for, you know? I’m gonna grab Bethany, and I’m gonna get her back, because that’s how much I love her, you know?

Bethany: (walks in and crosses her arms) Glad to hear you wanna treat me like an object. Like you always have.

Daron: Bethany! How ya doin girl! Ha ha! (chugs more beer)

Sylvester: (takes off his hat and turns to Daron) Daron… Is that true? Were you grabbing my niece like that? I don’t approve of that at all.

Daron: She’s lyin. Everything that comes out of that b****’s mouth is a lie. I only did that once—I was just poundin’ her most of the time. She steps outta line? Pop! Just like that! Ha ha!

Bethany: Now, you listen to me, Daron. You better get in your sports car and leave my uncle’s property, cuz’ I ain’t ever getting back together with you. Ever again.

 

Daron stands up and walks to Beth in anger. Beth brandishes her swiss army knife and tells him not to take another step. Daron smacks the knife out of her hand—getting a cut on his hand—and raises her into a chokehold. Sylvester frees Beth by pushing Daron away and punching him in the face, knocking him to the ground. Sylvester tells Beth to run, saying he’ll keep him away. Beth runs to the horse stable. She checks the time—it’s 8:00 on the dot. She runs into the stable and asks White Wyvern to take her away from the farm. The horse stands up; his body glows white, and the horn appears on his forehead. She mounts on White Wyvern, and the horse takes off while Irene, Brady, and Ronny watch. White Wyvern runs across the Kansas plains and disappears in a forest.

 

Ten minutes later, we see that Daron is tied up in the garage. Irene tells Sylvester everything: that White Wyvern is a unicorn, that Bethany took off riding him, and that they’ve secretly recorded evidence of Daron’s abuse, so that Bethany will be safe from Daron for good. Sylvester says “okay.” Then he tearfully apologizes to his wife, saying that he should’ve trusted her from the beginning and that he should’ve judged Daron a little more closely. He wanted Beth to be happy, and he genuinely believed that the path to happiness was through reconciliation with her partner. Irene smiles and suggests that the reason why he thought their relationship was fine was because [Sylvester and Irene’s] relationship was good, in turn making him falsely believe that all relationships were just as good. Sylvester tells Irene that he’s lucky to have her as his wife, and they hug.

 

Daron wakes up, sees Beth’s swiss army knife, and quietly drags it toward him with foot. Brady and Ronny then walk into the garage, telling their parents that they’ve called the police, and that the police are on their way. Then Daron stabs Sylvester in the shoulder and runs out of the garage—Irene attends to Sylvester while the brothers run after him.

 

Daron makes it to his car, but he realizes that he doesn’t have his car keys. He sees the brothers running to get him. Scrambling for a solution, Daron runs toward the horse stable—he bursts in, thanks his lucky stars that he knows how to ride a horse, hops onto Graham, and rides him out of the stable. The horse almost gallops into Brady, but Ronny pulls his brother out of the way, and they watch as Daron escapes on horseback.

 

With no other option, the brothers decide to ride after Daron. Ronny allows Brady to ride Squall since Brady rode Kuzco last time, and thus, Ronny rides Kuzco himself. They ride away from the farm and into the darkness of the night.

 

The police arrive, and after listening to Irene, he resolves to search for Daron. Irene stays with Sylvester and tells him she has a feeling that Bethany will turn out all right. Sylvester tells Irene that if anything happens to Bethany, he’ll never forgive himself. Irene tells him, “don’t worry—just rest.” She looks off with an expression of uncertainty. We cut to an aerial shot of the farm before fading to black.

 

The next morning, Bethany wakes up in a forested area, where small fairies are flying around her. Amazed, she looks at her fantastical surroundings in awe. White Wyvern watches her as he lies in the Grass. Bethany drinks from a stream of water, and she sees the reflection of a female unicorn staring back at her. Bethany touches her face and verifies that she herself is human, but she stares at the reflection for a moment. White Wyvern trots to her and tips his horn to her. Bethany deduces that he’s offering to transform her into a unicorn. She reaches out to touch his horn… But she pulls her hand away. She tells White Wyvern that she want to escape, but that’s not the way she wants to escape. White Wyvern trots away, stranding Bethany in the forest.

 

We cut to Daron, who rides Graham through the forest. He shouts Bethany’s name a few times, his voice tinged with concern. He finds a path in which the light breaks through the leaves of the trees, and Graham refuses to go down that path. Daron hits Graham, but the horse stands on his hind legs, slips Daron off his back, and gallops back to the farm. Daron walks down the path, swatting at the fairies that fly around him, until he finds Bethany near the stream. Daron tells her to stop running away from him, but Brady and Ronny ambush Daron, telling her to run.

 

Bethany follows the stream as she runs away from Daron. We cut to Daron as he shakes off the brothers and chases after Bethany. Bethany is forced to travel down uneven terrain, and she sees that the stream is quickly becoming a river—and the further she runs, the faster the water flows. Daron chases after Bethany, but suddenly, White Wyvern charges toward Daron. The unicorn threatens Daron by jumping on its hind legs and neighing. Daron looks at White Wyvern in fear, and the radiating light is blinding him. He steps backward and falls into the river. Bethany looks and sees that Daron is in the river—and she also sees that the water’s heading toward a cliff, and the water’s falling into a foggy abyss. “Dammit,” Bethany says as she rushes to the edge of the river. She shouts at Daron and tells him to swim to her. Daron reaches Beth and grabs her hand—just in time, right before his rescue becomes impossible. Daron is pulled out of the river, and he collapses.

 

Daron: Why’d you save me? After everything I’ve done?

Bethany: I’m a bigger person than to watch you die.

(Daron catches his breath.)

Bethany: You ever lay a hand on me again, you’re going down that waterfall, you understand?

Daron: (hesitates) I’ve done awful things to you. Things I can’t take back. I’m sorry.

 

Bethany turns toward the forest. White Wyvern is standing there, staring at them. Bethany stands up at the sight of the horse. Then a herd of unicorns comes out from the within the forest and stand with White Wyvern. Bethany stares in awe, as does Daron. White Wyvern turns to join them as they walk back inside the forest, but Bethany tells him to wait. She stares at the horse and hugs him around his neck, telling him she’ll never forget him. Then White Wyvern disappears with the herd, never to be seen again.

 

Bethany walks with Brady and Ronny down the forest path, while Daron trails behind at a reasonable distance. Brady and Ronny talk with each other about the things they’ve seen in the forest. They see police cars blocking the mouth of the forest, and the police are saying “come out with your hands up.” Beth, Brady, and Ronny all turn to look at Daron.

 

Daron: What? Why’s the police here?

Bethany: (raises an eyebrow) That’s your cue.

 

Daron closes his eyes and accepts his fate. He walks past the others and slowly raises his hands.

 

Daron: Beth. You make sure you never get with a man like me. And you two—see Post Malone in concert as many times as you can.

 

The police tackle Daron to the ground, handcuff him, and take him away. Sylvester and Irene run to Beth and the brothers—Sylvester has a cast around his shoulder. Sylvester apologizes for allowing Daron to stay in the house. Beth laughs to herself. Sylvester asks what’s funny. 

 

Bethany: It took a unicorn to make Daron leave me alone. Hell, he would’ve forced his way here even if you said no. Plus, you punched him in the face—that ought a count for somethin’.

Sylvester: I’m just glad you’re safe. If anything had happened to you, I would never have forgiven myself.

(They hug each other.)

Irene: I’ll just say, Sylvester—after hearing that recording, if you vote for Trump in the next election, I’ll be pissed.

(Sylvester and Irene have a good laugh.)

Ronny: What are you gonna do now, Beth? Now that Daron’s going to prison?

Brady: We could throw the football. Ride the horses.

Irene: You’re welcome to stay with us as long as you need.

Bethany: Yeah. I’d like that!

Sylvester: That’s my girl.

 

The family walks out of the forest. Beth stares back toward the forest and smiles. We cut to a shot of the forest before gradually fading to black.

 

Edited September 22, 2023 by SLAM!

[SLAM!]

The Thanksgiving

Studio: New Journey Pictures

Director: Sean Anders

Genre: Comedy

Release Date: November 27th, Y8

Theater Count: 3,120

MPAA Rating: PG-13 for Mild Language and Crude Humor

Budget: $15M

Runtime: 1 hr 40 min

 

Cast

Will Ferrell as Jimmy

Toni Colette as Donna

Taissa Farmiga as Melanie

Jacob Tremblay as Adam

 

THE THEATRICAL RELEASE OF THIS FILM HAS BEEN CANCELED. IT WILL INSTEAD BE GOING STRAIGHT TO CAYOM+. NEW JOURNEY PICTURES THANKS YOU FOR YOUR UNDERSTANDING.

Edited January 1, 2021 by SLAM!

[YM!]

Meme Th(II)eves 

Studio: Infinite Studios 

Release Date: 7/2/Y8

Genre: Comedy

Director: Jake Szymanski

Rating: PG-13

Budget: $12.5M

Theater Count: 3,235

Format: 2D

Runtime: 103 minutes

Cast: 

Unknowns

Previous Film: Meme Thief - $5,363,294/$14,869,022 / $19,230,555 (OW/DOM/WW)

Having solved the mystery of their dank memes being stolen, our group of teens (Cool Kid, Da Nerd, Ms. Memer, and Geoff) are on summer vacation, having graduated from high school all with different career paths. Cool Kid is joining the army, Da Nerd and Ms. Memer are going to college, and Geoff is attempting to start his own business with his food truck. However, they have slowly group apart since high school. In order to retain some friendship, they go on a cross country road trip to MemeCon in Washington DC, where all the best meme makers, Instagram influencers and the like are, hosted by most famous celebrity Ronald Ronaldo. However, their vacation plans are cut short when they learn hackers plan on stealing a top secret meme, and using it to hack the White House which could cause utter bedlam.

 

The teens go do spy stuff around MemeCon, have a glowstick rave fight, fight off and escape from Secret Service agents, and have a car chase around the Capital all while keeping the friendship together barely. But a fight happens leaving Cool Kid on his own and getting captured by the Meme Theives forcing his friends to rally the people of MemeCon to help as a battle continues. Our heroes stop the Meme Theives as they find out the leader is actually Ronald Ronaldo. The villains are sent to jail as the friends part their separate ways but affirm their friendship.

Edited November 10, 2020 by YourMother the Edgelord

[YM!]

Home Invasion: Part III - Hunted

Studio: Infinite Studios 

Release Date: 1/26/Y8

Genre: Action/Sci-fi/Thriller

Director: Joe Carnahan

Rating: R

Budget: $35M

Theater Count: 3,029

Format: 2D and 3D

Runtime: 110 minutes

Cast:

Jason Statham as Walter Peck

Liam Nesson as Steve Lewis

The rest are unknowns

 

Previous films: 

(Y6): Home Invasion Part II: Abduction - $13,739,487/$30,579,700/$81,066,429 (OW/DOM/WW)

(Y4): Home Invasion - $17,680,973/$45,406,739/$89,316,109 (OW/DOM/WW)

 

The 8 feet tall reptilian aliens are classified now as the Apuxes, are seeking revenge on the heroes from the past two movies: Walter Peck, the former MI6 agent without a hand and Steve Lewis, the former Navy Seal. Using Walter DNA, with a combination of their eggs and advanced weapons, create Giga-Apuxes, who soon betray and kill the Apuxes, deciding to challenge their makers instead.

 

The two kidnap and track Walter and Steve and beam them to their homeland, a small moon similar to jungles on Earth, where they’ll be hunted for sport. Walter and Steve team up using the wit, strength and skills to outwit the Giga-Apuxes, killing them brutally in the jungle. The two manage to get in a spaceship and head back to Earth but crash land thanks to some hatching eggs, on a desolate planet, the abandoned ruins of the Apuxes home planet.

Edited November 10, 2020 by YourMother the Edgelord

[YM!]

Loving Shadow and Light

Studio: Infinite Studios 

Release Date: 11/27/Y8

Genre: Family/Comedy

Director: Lasse Haelstrom

Composer: Tyler Bates

Rating: PG for mild rude humor

Budget: $20M

Theater Count: 3.201

Format: 2D 

Runtime: 109 minutes (including a 10 minute short)

Cast:

Unknowns for the family

Jason Mantazoukas as The Dogcatcher

Andy Samberg as Principal Butte

Previous Film: (Y7) Loving a Shadow - $16,662,506/$70,603,356/$113,015,765 - OW/DOM/WW

 

Short:

Levi and Magi in The Santa Job: A Gateways Short

Studio: Endless Animation 

Genre: Animation 

Rating: G

Cast:

McKenna Grace as Bailee

Donald Glover as Levi

Awkwafina as Magi

Frank Welker as Stripes

 

 

Spoiler

We open in the CG animated world as we see a suburbia streets decorated with Christmas lights as well see a huge rainbow colored house as we see Levi, the former Watcher and now proud dad, putting up Christmas decorations, using a few gadgets Bailee made. (A Gatling gun that shoots lights, an inflatable Santa that has a light show, having Stripes chase around mechanical ornaments etc.)

 

Levi heads inside as Bailee and Magi are making cookies, which turn out poorly. Bailee notes that Magi wanted to use unorthodox ingredients as Magi defends Peanut Butter, Banana and Jalapeños cookies is an inspired choice. 

Bailee notes she’s excited as this is her first Christmas with a family as Levi notes he is known to make fabulous parties. Bailee and Levi go off a checklist, making sure the tree is order, a landing strip for Santa (although Levi points out Santa doesn’t come to this dimension), Yule log, giving presents to the local orphanage. 
 

Bailee expresses excitement as she hands Levi, Magi and Stripes the presents she made for them but Levi notes they won’t open them until Christmas and tucks Bailee in bed.

 

Levi and Magi sip eggnog as Levi notes that he thinks this year will be perfect, as he has this dad thing on lock. Magi goes to get the presents from a secret hiding spot only to find them gone as Levi realizes he accidentally gave them to the orphanage.

 

Levi panics as he wanted this to be perfect as Magi has an idea, suggesting they ask Santa. Levi notes Santa doesn’t exist in the universe until he gets an idea, grabbing Magi. The two hop into Levi’s ship and head to various dimensions. 

Stopping in a hand drawn animated world similar to the Frosty the Snowman special , Levi and Magi sneak into Santa’s Warehouse as Magi goes undercover as an elf. Levi tells Magi to grab the first item, a dollhouse, as Magi is surprised Bailee likes dolls. Magi attempts to swipe one from the conveyor belt but is whisked away into an elf HR meeting forcing Levi to grab it, but during this Levi gets caught on the conveyor belt and is wrapped alongside the dollhouse. 
 

The two then head to a stop motion world inspired by Rankin-Bass to retrieve wireless headphones, as they head to Santa’s Warehouse but this time it’s a giant maze full of gifts, including a team of highly deadly elf ninjas with cookie throwing stars. The two barely escape but do so through a cookie vat, trapping them in a cookie crust.
 

As they eat their way out of the crust, the three head to the last universe, a CG animated world stylized like a storybook. The two grab the last item which is a toolkit but in this universe, Santa’s Warehouse is a giant store selling gifts as the inside is similar to a Mad Max world, as consumers fight to gain presents. Levi and Magi brawl and outwit the various consumers as they get their hands on a toolkit but gets into a scrap with a father and daughter duo. Magi manages to pin them in with a Gift avalanche as they barely escape.

 

Levi and Magi attempt to fly back home but their ship was vandalized and gifts stolen, as Magi left the keys inside, leaving them only the teleporter remote to get them home. Levi grabs a shopping cart as they two run away with the toolkit as the teleporter charges, as they evade the various consumers after their last gift including a Santa-themed father and daughter, in various Christmas themed armored vehicles.

 

The father and daughter crash their vehicle into their cart as they head near a cliff as Levi and Magi barely escape but the family are in trouble. Levi and Magi help them out, saving them using the Christmas lights on the vehicles to grab them out. Seeing them, without presents, as well as Magi noting Bailee only needs Levi to be happy on Christmas, Levi gives them the toolkit as they in turn give them a small bell. 
 

Our heroes return on Christmas morning as Bailee wakes up to see a few presents under the tree but not hers. Levi apologizes, explaining to her the whole situation but Bailee isn’t mad or disappointed, noting that Levi should open his gift. Levi opens his which a mug that says “Multiverse’s Greatest Dad”, as Bailee notes as long as the family is together, the Christmas is perfect. Levi gives Bailee the bell from earlier, noting it’s not much but he wanted to give her something. 
 

The bell starts shaking and flies outside as a laboratory sprouts out of the bell, amazing the family as Bailee hugs Levi thanking him. 
 

 

It has been 2 years since the Thompsons have had the feisty and troublesome Bombay cat Shadow as a part of their family. As the family now preps for new things in life, as the family is a day away from moving to Atlanta as patriarch Tom has received a cushy new job and a bigger house, the homemaking mother Trisha is working on the final draft for her book but has gotten writers block, Trina’s graduation year is this year and doesn’t want to leave cause of her high social status as Todd looks forwards to a fun middle school year hoping to pull of the career making prank, and Shadow is... Shadow.

On the day of the move, despite some comical mishaps, arrive to Atlanta in one piece as the family has some problems over the week (Tom feels insecure about his new job, Trisha feels overwhelmed at lack of work, Trina is trying to climb back in the top of the social chain and Todd finds his new nemesis in a more strict principal and next door neighbor, Principal Butte (Andy Samberg), Shadow must comply to a leash law and strikes a rivalry with a ruthless Dogcatcher (Jason Mantazoukas) who has a disdain for naughty pets, enforcing strict policies on pets.

 

Tom decides to ease the tensions by going to a new pizza joint but the Thompson’s find an abandoned Golden Shepard puppy who takes a shining to Todd. The Thompsons bring the dog home and decide to adopt it, naming it Light, but the dominant Shadow grows jealous, sparking a cat/dog rivalry as Light is much less troublesome, and more affectionate and naive to everyone even Shadow.

 

Things improve slightly over the next week for the family as Tom learns his way around work, Trisha reworks her book to about both pets, Trina makes gains at school due her Instagram showcasing Light, Todd rearranges his prank to get Butte’s old embarrassing yearbook photos during a school assembly. Light and Shadow get into pet shenanigans at home, further annoying the Dogcatcher, who makes a more avid pursuit to catch both.

 

However, during a family outing at the park, Shadow and Light cause trouble and embarrassing the family, punishing the pets, leaving them in separate Light in a doghouse outside and Shadow in a cat house in a guest room. As Trisha goes out to get office supplies and meet with a publicist, Shadow taunts Light causing a scrap leading both to be caught by the Dogcatcher. Trisha returns to find them missing later as the family comes together to search for their beloved pets, attempting to look all around the neighborhood getting help from their neighbors and splitting up, as the Trisha and Tom look together, as Trina goes with the teens as Butte helps Todd as Todd learns Butte was a nefarious prankster in the day but stopped as they caused too much trouble as the two bond as Todd questions his motives.

 

Meanwhile, the Dogcatcher decides to kill Shadow and Light himself but the two escape and outwit the Dogcatcher using slapstick and comedic hijinks throughout the city (in a restaurant, the mall and finally a bookstore) as Trina learns about this from her Instagram and rallies people to the location. The Dogcatcher corners the pet in an alleyway, doing an over the top speech on killing them like he did every other naughty pet but is found out as the Thompsons and the neighbors witness this, as Light and Shadow are saved as The Dogcatcher is sent to court.

 

A few months later, Light and Shadow have learned to get along as Tom excels at work, Trisha sold her now children’s book about the two pets which is being praised in reviews, Trina is popular and Todd while still mischevious, channels his energy to sports as he and Butte are on good terms, having decided not to humiliate the principal. Movie ends with Light and Shadow stealing a ham on the dinner table.

Edited February 10, 2021 by YourMother the Edgelord

[4815162342]

World of Trouble

 

Genre: Dystopian Drama

Starring: Alden Ehrenreich (Hank Palace), Manuel Garcia-Rulfo (Cortez), Jimmy Tatro (Jordan), Bill Camp (Atlee Miller), Jane Levy (Trish McConnell), Emily Alyn Lind (Ruth), and Kaitlyn Dever (Nico Palace)

Directed By: Jason Bateman

Written by: Damon Lindleof

Release Date: October 11, Year 8

Theater Count: 3419 Theaters

Running Time: 122 Minutes

Budget: $40 Million

MPAA Rating: R for depictions of violence, strong language, drug references and use, and some sexual content

 

Setting: The final weeks prior to the impact of the 6.5-kilometer wide asteroid known as Maia. Set to impact in the vicinity of Indonesia, in the U.S., on the far side of the world, the remnants of the government and the wealthy have retreated into secure bunkers, leaving the rest of the country to tear itself apart as the countdown approaches zero.

 

Plot Summary: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1yZVbkoClvvprUkyYfFS92D-8Y-dQGGJW8kbpFcGzlII/edit?usp=sharing 

[MCKillswitch123]

THE TURKEY SQUAD

THE FRED DURST CUT

 

Studio: Phoenix Fire Entertainment

Director: Fred Durst

Producer: Beth McCarthy-Miller

Release Date: November 27th Y8

Genre: Action/Sci-Fi/Comedy/Parody

Rating: PG-13, for violence and crude jokes

Format: 2D

Budget: $2.5M

Theater Count: 1,991

Runtime: 2 hours and 30 minutes

Original Music: David Bergeaud

 

Previous Movie Grosses:

- The Turkey Squad, Y7 -> $10,155,688 OW / $20,044,778 DOM / $42,055,106 WW

 

Cast

- Matt Bomer as Lucas

- Awkwafina as Melissa

- Charlie Heaton as Vincent

- Katherine Langford as Maya

- Jesse Tyler Ferguson as Tyler

- and Vince Vaughn as Dr. Louisiana

 

Plot: This is a re-release of The Turkey Squad, but this time, directed by Fred Durst.

 

The movie is exactly the same, but everyone now has weird wigs Photoshopped onto them, including Awkwafina literally having Pennywise hair and Matt Bomer using John Travolta's wig from The Fanatic. Also, there's an additional 15 minutes where the characters do literally nothing but listen to Limp Bizkit music. It's a mini Limp Bizkit concert, literally in the middle of the movie.

 

Otherwise, the plot is the same:

Quote

 

In the year 2100, in the Earth colony Vacooma, and in a time where the Earth colonies are forbidden from using copyrighted brands on Earth due to reasons left unexplained, Melissa (Awkwafina) and Lucas (Bomer) are best friend vloggers known for their culinary videos. Together, they created a HiperVideo channel, LoveTimesSquare, that has well over 4 million Vacoomian subscribers. The most out of any HiperVideoers in Vacooma. They are also genius inventors.

 

Dr. Louisiana (Vaughn), a member of a cult that wants to banish Earth culture from the colonies, decides to start an uprise in small scale, and the "first of many, little but important act" is to forbid all old YouTube habits from existing in the colonies, starting with the banishing of all culinary, ASMR and unboxing videos. Overtime, he builds a guerrilla of supporters that rally up with him every night to make plans against HiperVideoers ala Ku Klux Klan (Very important note: THAT is just a visual cue, Blank, it's not that they are as bad as the KKK, as it should be pretty obvious). One night, they decide to kidnap Tyler (Ferguson), Lucas' boyfriend, and make the ultimatum that if Lucas and Melissa don't take down their videos forever, they are burning Tyler to the stake. Why not just kidnap one of Lucas or Melissa instead? They don't know either, they just kinda make it up as they go along.

 

Melissa and Lucas embark on a mission to find and rescue Tyler and save the HiperVideo movement forever. As they are attacked in the street by one of Dr. Louisiana's goons, they realize they are popular amongst that group for being "the turkey video guys". Plus, it's Thanksgiving on Earth right now, so they decide "screw the laws, we do culture however the Hell we want" and decide to theme their superhero act around turkey- Thus, they rename their HiperVideo channel to TheTurkeySquad. They build super effective turkey guns that shoot explosive turkey, electric turkey, sticky turkey, poisonous turkey, etc., while also making turkey videos along the way, pissing off Dr. Louisiana further more. The turkey they use as artillery is generated through a formula they invented.

 

Along the way, they encounter Maya (Langford), an ASMRtist, and Vincent (Heaton), an unboxing veteran, who join them because they were attacked by Dr. Louisana as well. The team embarks on a journey with tons of sci-fi action comedy shenanigans. The action is mostly based around shooting all sorts of varied turkeys, and also playing with environment gadgets like anti-gravity boots (boots that let the heroes make gravity theirs to manipulate), as the cinematography is equally creative and trippy. They also have a few moments of bonding.

 

They finally break into Dr. Louisiana's camp, and there, they seduce every soldier with tasty turkey. For a second, the guerilla is almost about to quit and become food HiperVideoers themselves, but Dr. Louisiana realizes this and gets them back on track. The final third is an epic battle between the Turkey Squad and Louisiana + goons. The Turkey Squad wins and saves Tyler and Maya and Vincent's respective pets. Together, they go to live more adventures and stand against the laws that forbid Earth cultures from existing in Vacooma and other colonies!

 

 

Edited January 27, 2021 by MCKillswitch123