Man on the Train (2011) Movie Script
1
one, two, three,
four, five, six.
We're all out of nitroset.
Two.
Sorry we're all out.
I thought we had some more but...
we are definitely all out.
I'm sorry.
I'll order some more in for you.
Migraine tablets.
Uh, unless you have
a prescription...
here.
Two?
We wouldn't normally...
I'll give him six of mine.
Here.
Oh, well.
Nitroset will be in...
Sometime tomorrow.
C-c-can I pay for this...
yeah, sure.
Then?
You can't take those
without water.
You can't take 'em
without water.
Oh...
Uh...
I live nearby.
I'll get you a glass of water.
Come on.
I'm just around the corner.
you don't lock it?
No, why?
Does that seem unwise to you?
Nothing ever happens
in a town like this.
Bet I've even lost the key.
Come on.
Are you there?
The key for this one's
been gone a long while now.
Come on in.
It's old.
It certainly is.
Please.
It would be pleasanter
to live in if the style of decor
were more minimalist.
Dreamt of it being
Japanese zen.
You know, bare boards
and paper screens,
simple rice bowl.
Please sit down.
Beautiful really.
But to have achieved that,
I would have had to have
ripped all of this out.
My poor, dear mother
would have died
if I'd done that.
Not that she didn't.
Die, that is.
15 years ago next month.
15 years, gosh.
I haven't touched
anything really,
which could lead you
to believe that,
like my mother,
I, too, am reluctant to change,
but it would be wrong.
I have introduced
quite a few modern gems,
uh, mostly in the kitchen.
Would you believe that I brought
in the first potato masher?
25 years ago.
They used to mash potatoes
with a fork.
Then, one day, I found that
so repulsively old-fashioned,
I just went out and bought
a potato masher and...
A couple of years later,
Ta-da?
A microwave.
How 'bout that?
Useful.
Hmm.
Nice place.
You don't seriously like it,
do you?
Why?
It has a past.
The past is dead.
It's boring.
You don't seem like
the kind of a man
who would have allowed himself
to suffer boredom.
I wish.
Hmm.
You see that picture behind me?
She would have been painted
probably at the end
of the 19th century.
She was my first love.
Rocks a boy for life.
Indulging onanistically
in front of the painting
of a woman who's been dead
for over 100 years.
Look at her.
Look at the disdain,
the rejection.
I used to sit
on this piano stool
with a handkerchief.
Is it any wonder that
my sexually active years
in the outside world
didn't shape up to much.
Depends what you mean
by "shape up"?
Philip Larkin
summed it up best.
He's reputed to have said
that sexual relations
were akin to having
somebody else blow your nose.
Funny.
Can I offer you a drink?
Oh, gosh.
I do apologize.
The stupidity of old men.
I'm terribly sorry.
Hmm.
You don't have a lot
to say for yourself, do you?
I've always wondered
what it would be like
to be your kind of persona.
To be the silent stranger type,
you know?
The fellow who walks
into the bar, doesn't utter
a word, but the minute he comes
through the door,
the mood in the entire room
changes dramatically.
The women grab their compacts,
a little bit of lipstick,
change an earring,
flick of the hair.
It's not anything.
It's just there.
But he's messed
with their heads.
You've seen too many movies.
No, I've probably read
too many books.
But you have to
indulge me a little.
The...
The extent of
my barroom experience
is limited to ordering
a strawberry milkshake.
Well, I appreciate
your hospitality.
A couple of pills
and a glass of water.
How's your headache?
I'll live.
Thank you.
the hotel... is closed.
Ah, yes.
It always is this time of year.
I'll take you to your room.
Up the wooden hill
to bedfordshire.
These are two of my
illustrious forebears.
They were both colonels
in the dragoons
at the battle of yellow tavern.
His regiment wasn't engaged,
and, prior to that,
at gettysburg,
he was in the infirmary.
The day before,
he had cut himself
sharpening his sword.
His great Uncle there
was guiding the ships,
and he arrived at chesapeake
after it was all over.
And then he stopped
to show a grenadier
how to cock his carbine,
and he blew the right side
of his head off... his head,
not the grenadier's.
Now, these engravings
are almost certainly
taken from paintings
by John trumbull.
I have to admit that...
That I feel a certain empathy
towards those two characters,
ludicrous though they may be.
My grandmother said
that I was like them.
And I... I think the dear woman
was probably right,
because, like them,
I seem to have
an uncanny ability to...
Miss out on
all of the possible highlights
of my life.
I-I-I've managed to opt out
of everything:
Every... every opportunity,
every engagement,
every challenge, everything.
Is it okay
if I stay through Friday?
Oh, stay... stay as long
as you like.
Absolutely, yeah.
Through Friday is perfect.
I, uh...
I'm going to be
otherwise engaged
on Saturday morning.
And anyway,
the toilet's down there.
The extra blankets
are in the wardrobe.
Uh, there's this room.
There are four other bedrooms,
and, uh, you're welcome
to stay in any one,
but the advantage of this one
is that the roof above it
is intact, so, if it rains,
you don't get wet.
It's fine, thank you.
I'll leave you to it.
If you need anything, uh,
just call, let me know.
Okay?
Would you like a nightcap?
Not for me.
I've always thought
I'd like to take to hard liquor.
There's something poetic
about drinking to excess.
You know, Brendan behan,
Dylan Thomas.
But after I have a sip or two,
I have to stop.
I have the most extraordinary
heartburn.
It's... it's... it's agonizing.
Good night.
Good night, yeah.
We can have supper
tomorrow night, if you like.
Oh, my.
Hmm.
Hmm.
Doo-do-doo-do-doo
do-do-do-do-do
do-do-do-do-do hup!
boo-bah-do-do
Huh.
It's rare that I have
the inclination, but,
your being here...
I-I'm supposed to do it,
doctors say that I should,
but, mostly, I just can't.
It's so boring.
No harm, I guess.
Not much point
either, actually.
What I do in my daily activities
is equivalent
to a sporting event.
Running to catch a bus
is a marathon.
Bend over to tie your shoes,
you're doing gymnastics.
Just climbing the stairs
takes an effort out of me
that I'm sure is
what it would take out of you
to scale the face of a cliff.
You... you work out
regularly, right?
Never.
Did you sleep all right?
See you later.
Yeah, okay.
Come.
This is sado.
Hey.
Yeah, don't worry about it.
I-I'll explain later.
I'm worried already.
Explain now.
He only speaks once a day.
10:30 sharp every morning.
Okay, can he drive?
He is shit hot.
Yes, aces.
You spread out a little.
Well, life moves on.
Um, loco does not get in
till tomorrow.
That's so fucked up.
"In kyoto
where is the heian shrine
when spring reflects upon
full of plentiful
cherry blossoms,
beware the sweetness of things."
So what is at question here?
Why did the poet
write this poem?
What line reveals that?
Mm.
In kyoto, where is
the heian shrine?
Surely nothing
could be clearer.
That's like saying,
"in New York
where is the statue of liberty."
In kyoto,
where is the heian shrine.
The... the poet
is placing the poem,
giving it context.
But he's asking the question.
What question?
Where the heian shrine is.
No, no, no.
The heian shrine is in kyoto,
and the poet states that.
Yes, but where in kyoto?
If I say, "in New York
where is the statue of liberty,"
it means that I know
it's in New York,
but I don't know exactly where.
In Ellis island,
the Hudson river.
Okay, but if it were
a question, there would be
a question mark.
Is there a question mark there?
Mm, they left it out.
Sorry.
No, it was...
it was left out because it is
not an interrogative statement.
I don't know which of us
is the more obtuse:
You, who seek questions
when there are only answers
to be seen
or me, who seeks an answer
when there may not even
be a question.
Anyway, we'll pick it up
next Wednesday.
Think about it, all right?
Think about it.
Don't ask anybody.
Just think about it.
Make sure your Henry James
is prepared for Friday,
will you?
Oh, I have...
I have an interesting anecdote
about Henry James.
He was the mentor
of the novelist Edith wharton,
and before he went to england,
he warned her
about the American public,
the reading public.
And he said that
"the Americans love a tragedy
with a happy ending."
I'll see you Friday.
Oh, God.
Beware the sweetness
of things.
Sorry?
Beware the sweetness of things.
Isn't that the answer
you wanted?
What's wrong
with the sweetness of things?
Well, one could get
used to it, couldn't one?
Were you a good teacher?
Not one of them
was molested in 40 years.
Congratulations.
Thank you.
I've prepared the fixings
for an omelet
of my own invention.
Come on.
Ohh.
It's instantaneous.
The heartburn is...
It's just you don't know
how to do it.
There's a skill?
Imagine you're thirsty.
Huh. Okay.
Take a good mouthful.
Taste it.
Swallow.
Ohh.
How does that feel?
Good.
Oh-ho.
Can I ask you something?
Yes.
Could you lend me
some slippers?
Well?
I've wasted my life.
Okay.
Oh, just wait.
Oh, these aren't broken in yet.
They're brand-new.
They're spares
that I was keeping aside for
when mine are
completely worn out.
The ideal slipper,
for it to be really comfortable,
is almost worn out.
Try walking in them.
No, no, no, no, no.
You have to drag along,
scuffle your feet,
let the heel drop free.
Think Japanese geisha.
You just have to practice.
You must keep them.
How nice to give you a gift,
to give you a piece of my life.
I mean, some other day,
maybe you'll be able to
think of something for me,
or maybe not.
I mean, nothing from your life
would suit me really, would it?
Do you have a tattoo?
Why?
Oh, I don't know,
I was thinking that if I had
been you, I would have had
a tattoo.
You know, uh, an eagle
or a dragon.
A tattoo...
Well, we decorate
the things we love, right?
But, of course, I mean,
if it were somebody e...
I mean, it would be a joke.
I mean, a roaring lion
on a puny bicep.
It would be...
Would you like to sit
in the conservatory?
I have a conservatory.
You know, a veranda, a porch,
a stoop.
Hmm.
Spare me your reflections
on infinity.
What?
Oh, every time
anybody comes out here,
they start babbling
about the cosmos.
And I think I lack
a cosmic sensibility.
Stars leave me cold.
They say we have
one for each of us.
They do?
What's that?
Some fancy
native American legend?
No.
Ordinary old wives' tale.
So what's up
with Saturday morning?
Saturday morning, me?
Oh, um, nothing really.
Just a check-up.
More of a tune-up actually.
I'm gonna get out the scissors,
you know, snip, snip, bingo.
That's what they do these days.
They see a little blip
on the old ect, and they
haul you in for a tune-up,
for repairs.
Don't like to talk
about it, huh?
Me?
No, not much.
No.
Professor?
Yes.
You have a scan scheduled?
Yes.
Follow me, please, sir.
It... it... it was like nothing.
Any idiot could have walked in
or out with his eyes shut.
But... but I... I copped two years,
and then,
when they put me inside,
were they waiting for me,
or what?
Yes, motherfuckers.
I had no one there, no friends.
No one.
Thank Christ
I got this early parole
on account of...
are you even listening to me?
No.
Revenge is the justice of woe.
10:30.
Weird, no?
Has he taken a vow,
or is he just wacko?
He has been this way
since his wife left him.
When was that?
Seven years back.
Not this time.
I'm calling it off.
What?
But it's a cinch, like you said.
Loco's not here.
I wouldn't trust my life
with wacko there.
You're way out of shape.
That's more than enough reason.
What? Are you kidding?
But we've done totally tougher
jobs than this over and over.
It just doesn't feel right.
If you'll not do it,
then I will do it on my own.
Christ, I need the cash.
hey, how are you?
How are you?
I'm good.
This is a stick-up,
freeze where you are.
We can't go on
meeting like this.
Ah, it's a small town.
Can I tell you a secret?
Can I stop you?
I've had an account
in this bank
for more than 50 years.
And every time I walk
through that door,
do you know what I want to do?
No, you haven't told me
the answer to that one yet,
and I'm sure you will.
Rob the place.
What?
I've been fantasizing about it
since I was a kid.
I walk through that door
wearing a balaclava,
pistol in one hand,
submachine gun in the other.
What?
You've never dreamt
about being a bank robber?
No.
We don't share
the same kind of nightmares.
Look, I'd never kill anybody.
Nobody.
My imagination is very specific.
Everything goes perfectly.
Clean getaway, never arrested.
What do you do with the money?
The Bahamas.
Always the Bahamas.
I'm at the casino,
blowing all the money.
Me blowing money.
That's a fantasy.
But I did have somebody
to do that with once.
When my mother died,
she'd specified in her will
that there was
this particular sum
and that it was just for me
to splurge with, you know?
To have fun with.
So I went to New York City.
I was determined
to paint the town red.
And?
It rained.
The whole time.
And not your spring showers,
you know.
It was torrential downpour,
so I sat in the movies.
My mother, bless her soul,
she must have been disappointed,
but, uh...
I-I don't actually
have it in me to splurge,
you know?
That... splurging takes
daring wit.
And I-I just don't have
the kind of imagination
that allows me to blow money.
You, though, you...
I bet you've been through...
I manage.
Were you going to get
something to eat?
Oh, yeah. Absolutely.
The best place in town
is just up here.
That's the uptown cinema.
That's been there
for donkey's years.
I had my first real kiss
in there.
Wasn't very romantic.
She stuck her tongue
down my throat
and I nearly choked.
Then she tried to grope me.
She grabbed me wrong
and I screamed
and the whole cinema
turned around.
You know, the old limerick:
"Said a young man
to his lady friend please
as he wriggled with pain
on his knees,
it would give me great bliss
if you'd take hold of this
and relinquish your grasp
upon these."
That was her.
A place in the sun.
That was the movie
they were showing.
Theodore dreiser.
American tragedy.
Great novel,
pinnacle of American realism.
Down there.
That's where I sit.
So this was your regular?
It still is.
Every lunchtime.
Saved me from the students
in the school cafeteria.
Hi, Tracy.
Hi, Professor.
Steak's off.
Steak's off?
Steak's off.
Omelet.
Salad or fries?
Both.
Professor, the same?
Same.
And coffee or beer?
What do you think? Beer?
Two beers.
Two beers.
So how did it end?
What?
With the girl
outside the uptown.
Oh.
Heartbreaking.
She went off with
the school janitor's son.
And I was left in the thrall
of the 100-year-old woman
in the painting.
I dreamt of that girl for years.
Her eyes went this way.
There was something
about that walleyed look
that I find highly erotic.
What about you?
When did you first
lose your heart?
I can't remember.
Oh, happened so many times
that it's impossible
to sort out the beginning?
No, it's probably just
pretty forgettable.
Oh, memories are important.
I prefer to forget.
Don't do that again.
Seriously, don't do that again.
I don't... I don't want
to get into anything.
You know what?
Stop.
Hey.
You want a sip of beer?
No, no.
Come on, little sip,
little sip.
Ah-ah-ah-ah-ohh, nice.
That's it.
That's good, bro.
You didn't say something?
No, you know why?
No.
They're a team.
One against two.
You don't stand a chance.
Well, except in the movies.
Should we get him...
should we get him
some alcoholic beer?
It's how you know
you're gettin' old.
A few years back,
he would have backed down
and apologized.
Now he knows there's no need.
The bill.
And you can give it to me.
He doesn't get paid.
He's really practically
a street kid.
And there's nothing
I can do about it.
We're two.
Does that make us a team?
Knock it off, knock it off.
It's okay.
What a racket they're making.
Come on!
You're being such a baby!
Go, sit down, finish your beer.
I'm gettin' pissed off.
Really.
I'm really pissed off.
Go tell 'em.
I'd have to change
my whole life
if I were gonna do that.
I understand your caution.
You know,
I've never been in a fight.
No, not once.
Not in my whole life.
Not even in the schoolyard.
That's not such a bad thing.
You're supposed to drink it.
Hey.
Dial it down, okay?
Is he talking to us?
cromorant fishing:
How stirring, how saddening.
Summer grasses
are all that remain
of soldier's dreams.
You don't remember me,
do ya?
I'm class of '92.
You were my teach
back in the day.
I'm Joseph.
Joey Peterson.
I work over at Carson's,
the lighting shop over there.
How 'bout you?
You still into
the haiku poetry or?
No, no, I'm retired now.
I have private students.
All right.
Time flies, man.
We were just...
we were just gonna leave.
I guess we got
a little too rowdy for you or?
No.
Peterson.
What a... what a pleasure.
Well, it was great
to see you again, Professor.
And you.
I was pretty good,
me remembering that poem
though, right?
Oh, a ten out of ten.
Yeah.
I listen, I listen.
Oh.
Have a good afternoon.
Yeah, thank you.
You too.
Take care.
No man can escape his past.
That took guts.
Can you imagine?
The first time I look
for a fight
and I pick on someone
who likes me?
What did you expect?
Breaking glass?
No, a small memory
to savor with my slippers,
dreaming cognac dreams.
Haiku.
Ten out of ten.
Agh!
Oof.
What?
Shing!
Oh.
Darbon.
You know
the walnut tree's gone.
It's got the disease.
I know that you've been
coming here on the last Thursday
of every month for what...
how many years now?
Ten at least, right?
How is it that I never
expect to see you?
Everybody always forgets
about the gardener.
Have to get rid
of the walnut tree, do we?
Yup.
Pity that.
Slam!
Hey.
Buffalo bill's defunct.
He used to ride
a watersmooth silver stallion.
Shoot!
One, two, three, four, five,
pigeons just like that.
Jesus, he was a handsome man.
But what I want to know is,
what do you think
of your blue-eyed boy now,
mister death?
Oh, shit!
Oh, lord.
Oh, God.
Oh, look at you.
Standard security.
Two shitty out-of-date
black-and-white
closed circuit TV cameras.
And local staff.
It's like breaking into
a bag of pretzels.
You can choke on a pretzel.
What?
What happened to you?
You've changed, you know that?
You have changed.
I mean, you've not
put on any weight, but what?
Are you going to retire
with a slippers and a pipe?
Eh?
You can use the money.
Maybe.
Yes.
Well, then.
how come you got
two of everything?
Two combs, two toothbrushes,
two razors.
Because I finally realized
that, in general,
there are two kinds of people:
The kind who prepare for nothing
and who have the wit
and the imagination to deal
with pretty much everything
and then the others who...
and I fall into that category...
who are the opposite.
And what kind of people
are they?
They're the kind without
that wit and that imagination.
They have to buy spares
so that they will be prepared
for every imagined eventuality.
So do you have
two of everything?
Pretty much.
Sometimes three.
There's a drink there for you.
Do you play?
Yes, indeed I do.
I think with the exception
of needlepoint, I possess all
of the accomplishments
of a well-bred young woman
educated at the end
of the 19th century.
Are you musical?
I had a harmonica once.
Well, that's good
for a traveling man.
Curious thing about music.
When people find out that
you play a musical instrument,
they always assume
that you're enjoying it.
Oh, what wonderful hours
he must spend at his piano.
They're so wrong.
It is so boring.
It is so very boring.
Schubert I like.
Schubert appeals
to my sense of failure.
When I see you
in those slippers,
I can imagine myself
festooned with tattoos,
zipping down the highway
in a sporty red convertible.
To your good health.
And yours.
Let me
show you something else.
Watch the two lamps.
And there's an old French adage
that comes into play for me.
Le temps qu'il passe plus tot
que le temps qu'il fait.
So I have had
much more affection
for the time that I take,
and I worry less about
the time that it takes.
Have you found that?
No.
Oh, poof.
Another certainty obliterated.
I'll put it down to progress.
Could I ask
a consideration of you?
Sure.
W-would you be so kind
as to go down
to the liquor store
and buy me some tobacco?
I can't go there myself.
Mm, why is that?
Oh, uh, the woman
at the cash register.
What about her?
Oh, it's a long story,
stupid really.
It's...
Well, it's a... you know,
for more than 40 years,
I've been going into that store
to buy my tobacco.
That's all I buy there.
I don't buy anything else.
And every time I go to pay,
she looks me straight in the eye
and she says, "can I get you
anything else, sir?"
And it drove me mad.
And one day, I got completely
and utterly fed up,
and I said to her,
"y-y-you just cannot any longer
ask me, 'can I get you
something else, sir?'
I don't want anything else.
And if I want something else,
I will ask for it."
And I stormed out
and slammed the door.
And then a week later,
I went back,
hoping against hope, and...
Do you know what happened?
No.
I went in.
She was looking me
straight in the eye.
I asked for my tobacco,
without taking her eyes off me,
she went and got the tobacco,
came back, gave it to me.
I gave her the money,
and she didn't say, "can I
get you something else, sir?"
She said,
"will that be all, sir?"
And you didn't kill her?
I could have
jumped over the counter
and rung her neck.
But I didn't.
I left the store
and I never went back.
And I've been buying
my tobacco at the supermarket,
and it's not
nearly as good and...
Here, it's called
condor ready rub.
Won't be long.
Okay, thank you.
Anything else, sir?
75 cents, please.
Thank you.
Anything else, sir?
That's $5.95, please.
Thank you.
Packet of condor
ready-rub pipe tobacco.
No, two.
Make that two packs.
$9.23, please.
Anything else, sir?
Nope.
What'd I tell you?
Unbelievable.
It was kind of you to lie
about the woman
at the cash register.
She didn't say it to you,
did she?
She said it to me,
but she doesn't say it to you.
That's the difference.
I wouldn't get too bugged out
on that kind of stuff.
No, but it says something,
doesn't it?
Get you more salad?
No.
Why did you get two?
There are two kinds of people.
I decided to side with those
who are prepared for everything.
Thank you.
Are you going to tell me
what brought you to this town?
There's no need.
There isn't?
You already know.
Yes, I suppose I do.
Is it the bank?
Don't worry.
If it goes wrong,
we'll keep you out of it.
No.
No, it's not that.
Not at all, no.
I wa... I was thinking that
perhaps I might be able
to help.
I mean, I-I-I know
I probably wouldn't be any good.
I'm completely useless
with anything that involves
split-second timing
or improvisation, but...
It's a lot simpler
than you think.
You stroll in,
wave a gun around,
grab the money, and leave.
Off to the Bahamas.
My, oh, my.
Oh, my.
It's going to be quite
a Saturday morning.
Yes, it is.
There... there are gonna be
three of us for dinner
tomorrow night.
Is that... is that all right?
A woman.
Well, um, sort of.
I mean, technically, yes.
Ah.
I have another favor to ask you.
A favor.
No problem.
I'll make myself scarce.
No, no, no, it's not that.
No, no, nothing like that
at all.
I want something else
all together.
It's just that I'm...
There's something... I mean...
I mean, if it's possible,
it's something that
I've always wanted, but, um...
and I've thought about it often.
It's just that...
The opportunity has, uh...
Never presented itself.
I'm listenin'.
what should I imagine?
What's there to imagine?
I don't know.
What am I shooting at?
It's a coke can.
You're shooting
at a row of coke cans.
How 'bout the gardener?
No, you're not shooting
at the gardener.
It's a row of tin cans.
I missed.
Yeah, you missed.
You need to relax.
Just take a breath.
There they go.
I think, wasn't it?
I mean, a closer miss.
You know what they say?
A miss is a miss
by an inch or a mile.
Perhaps it requires
a special gift.
No, it doesn't.
Oh, certainly
it takes practice.
Not even.
What's the trick then?
Self-pity maybe.
My arm isn't too stiff?
Just find a position
that's comfortable for you,
a stance that's your own.
There you go.
Listen...
Can I run something past you?
Yes.
I'm an old eagle
smoking this fine Italian cigar.
Think of it.
An old eagle
smoking a fine Italian cigar.
You know it?
It's bukowski.
What comes next?
I have caged the world
away from me.
I'm an old eagle smoking
this fine Italian cigar.
Think of it.
An old eagle
smoking a fine Italian cigar.
It has become pleasant again
to be alive.
But you know that, don't you?
I heard it once,
but I just couldn't remember
how it ended.
Never one of my favorites,
bukowski, but I've always
held an affection for that poem.
Do you know how it ends?
Just like you,
just for a time there,
I didn't think
I was going to make it.
Are you still dead-set
on Saturday?
Are you?
Me?
I have no choice.
Me neither.
Another round?
No.
No, I've reached my limit.
Thank you.
It's like...
Beautiful poetry.
It's the essence of it.
Less is more.
You know, I haven't
decided on Saturday yet.
What does your decision
depend on?
On whether someone
shows up or not.
Aw, fuck.
I can't even just...
these painters
are all fucking mad.
I can't even look at this shit.
It's like...
Makes you mad painting,
you know?
Agonizing over
these fucking details
drive you fucking insane.
Well, this guy here understood,
you know, how to alternate
between light and shape,
to give tonality to his palette.
Look at him.
But he kind of lost his frenzy
along the way.
You know, he knew
the rules of art, but he lost
the art of the rules,
which is why he's here
and not at the metropolitan.
What kept you?
Why weren't you on time?
I was on time.
Not in a great state.
So I decided it would be better
to wait a little.
I ran into a bottle
two hours before, and...
one of those fucking meetings
you can't shake off, you know?
So how was detox?
Fucking murder.
Fucking hell.
Max here?
Yeah.
He's hired a driver.
Well, if Max chose him,
he should be fine.
Can you at least stay sober
for a couple of days?
Well, that's forever.
Just till Saturday?
Yeah, well, forever
always lasts till Saturday.
What's the estimate on the job?
Three.
100 grand each.
Wow.
Can't complain about that.
No.
Fuck.
Hey, what do you say we go
grab a beer and we celebrate?
I'm just joking.
Don't... I-I'm just joking.
Forget I said it.
This one's almost certainly
an original John trumbull.
John trumbull?
Where'd you get
the John trumbull from?
Afternoon.
Ah!
Well, I don't know what
the weather's doing
out there now, but I nearly
turned the heat on this morning.
Must be that global warming
you're advertising.
Oops.
I don't want the usual.
You don't?
No.
I want different.
How different?
Slicked back.
You gonna have to change
the cut a lot for that?
Eh?
Slicked back like...
yeah, no parting.
You?
No parting?
Straight back.
Well, we can do
the no parting, I mean...
hey.
My life's been a prison,
and I'm gettin' out now,
and that's what
I want to look like,
like I'm comin' out of prison.
Well, well, well.
I'm gonna keep
the mustache, though.
Well, I'm grateful for that.
I... you know, I think I'm seeing
everything these days.
That brandier boy
came by the other day.
He asked me for a
double-zero cut, saw it on mtv.
I'm glad you don't want
a double-zero cut.
Well, we're breaking
new ground.
You have no idea
where I might end up.
Ah.
Well.
I had to walk
around the block three times
before I could figure out
to come in here.
I've come for my tutorial
with the Professor?
He's not here right now.
Are you standing in for him?
Yes, I suppose
I am standing in for him.
So what are you studying
with the Professor?
We do Henry James on Fridays.
The portrait of a lady.
And what's the story about?
There isn't much of one.
There's always a story.
No such thing as a book
without a story.
Have you read it?
Yes.
So you know it then?
And you've had this guy
in here for, what, how long?
Two days already?
But... but... but
but he leaves tomorrow.
I have never missed it.
Oh, there you are!
This is Vivienne.
First meetings are always
intimidating, I know.
Not always.
First meetings
aren't always intimidating?
Aren't... aren't you intimidated?
No.
Neither am I.
Oh.
Me, when I meet someone
for the first time,
it's like I'm a little boy
sent to the principal's office.
In short pants.
Yeah, short pants.
Would you get us
a drink, darling?
On my way!
I have no idea
why he wanted us to meet.
Me neither.
Well, he has this idea
everyone he likes
should get along.
He could be wrong.
He's an optimist at heart.
Not a bundle of laughs,
but an optimist.
So you're fond of him?
Just because it's
and old affair
doesn't mean it's tired.
Drinks are in the drawing room.
Beep beep.
Straight up or on the ice?
Ice broken?
To smithereens.
quiet little town.
Yeah, and very trusting.
why don't you get yourself
someone younger or prettier?
I think
Vivienne's good looking.
Of course,
but are you fond of each other?
Ah, we're familiar.
We don't shake each other
to the core like we used to,
but...
Well, yeah, yeah, yeah.
We're... we're fond.
It's not fondness
you need tonight.
Yeah, well, at least
she doesn't intimidate me,
how's that for starters?
How'd he do?
He passed.
Oh, good, good.
I told you he would.
Vivienne's son
is taking his finals.
Now, he didn't do well enough
to get into
the top universities, but...
why don't you tell her
you don't give a shit?
Wha...
I-I do... I give a...
no, he doesn't.
All he wants is sex.
He has no interest
in your kid's exam results.
Wha...
And you?
What about me?
What do you want?
What do you want,
other than to stir things up?
Hmm?
You want to watch?
Oh, Vivienne.
Anyone would think
you're jealous.
I just call it as I see it.
yes, doctor?
Oh, you are still there.
Of course.
Yeah, is, um... yes?
My patient still
the, uh, first case
up in the morning?
It... not till noon.
Good.
You're in operating room 1
with a full bypass team.
Thanks.
Good night.
Good night.
I have 25.
Do-do-do-do-do-do.
Well, that's that.
She always wins in the end.
Women always win in the end.
I'll just go tidy up.
I like it.
You do?
Mm-hmm.
Thank you.
I was wrong back there.
You were right.
Must be sweet comfort,
an old mistress.
It is, you know.
15 years now.
Since your mother died?
You remembered that, huh?
Yeah, two incidents
did coincide.
Why didn't you marry her?
Oh, I thought about it.
I thought about it, but...
I panicked.
You... you never married,
I'm sure.
Endlessly changing, moving on.
I'd have liked to have sailed
from woman to woman,
a new America every time,
another continent to explore,
never dropping anchor.
Women aren't what
they used to be.
Still, it would have been
nice to have discovered
and explored new embraces.
It's poetry that gets you
in the end.
Without the words,
it's all so forgettable.
Hmm.
What do you think of her?
I don't think of her.
She's yours.
We should have
one last snifter on the stoop
before the big day tomorrow.
this used to be
my favorite spot.
The surroundings
weren't so built up then.
I could breathe.
I had a future.
Hope.
And I stopped living
before I got old.
Years went by and...
I fell into decay
just like this damned house.
Do you know why
women look away when
you pass them on the street?
Why?
Because they're dazzled.
Why wouldn't
they fall for you?
Don't you know
how extraordinary you are?
Look at yourself.
There's so much to see.
The older we get,
the more precious we are.
That's what you've missed.
You haven't understood that.
I haven't thought of it
like that, no.
It's the right way.
The only way.
You shouldn't
keep a lady waiting.
No, you're right.
Thank you.
Good night.
She turned you down?
No.
I have a proposition for you
if you will listen...
listen it out.
Let's hear it.
I'd like to give you the money.
It's... it's a very small bank.
It will not be a very good haul.
If you would take it from me,
you can pay it back if you want.
I-I don't really need it.
No, I can't do that.
Okay.
Off to bedfordshire.
I've met guys
like you before, you know?
You're always trouble.
Sadness follows you
wherever you go.
It's not that women like me
don't know that.
It's just that
we're attracted to it
all the same.
I've never met a good girl
but she didn't have a bit
of badness in her somewhere.
Maybe I'm too old
for all that now.
I just wanted to let you know
that I know that.
Do you love him?
He said you never
ask questions.
I don't usually.
Forget I asked.
I have already.
There you are.
You look green.
I hope it's the light.
No, uh, I can't, thank you.
Fasting, doctor's orders.
There's a train at 9:15.
You've just got time to make it.
Tempting.
Give into it.
Just this once.
Well, you can't say
I didn't try.
The bukowski.
Poem's in there.
Thank you.
Just like you,
just for a time there,
I thought I wasn't
going to make it.
And, j-j-just it's how we met,
it was, uh, so extraordinary
from m-m-me giving you
those pills, and I never
would have done that.
No.
It's like it was pre-ordained.
I don't believe
in that kind of stuff.
Neither do I.
well.
Be seeing ya.
See ya.
ah.
Oh.
Elaine?
Oh, hey.
Um, you're just down at the end,
It's on the left.
We all pass on like centuries
and doves.
All good.
I'll be back.
I have contact.
Suspects entering bank.
Red team.
Positions.
down, down on the ground!
Oh, God!
Down on the ground.
Put your hands on your head.
Go now!
Go!
Down!
Now! Hands on your head!
On the ground!
Back, back down!
Now!
Nobody move.
Don't touch anything.
Stand there.
No, nobody talk.
Nobody move.
This will be over very soon.
Go, go.
Keep your fucking head down.
I'll blow it off.
Where's the vault?
Nobody move. Nobody talk.
Swab.
Move in.
Get it, get it, get it, get it.
Stay there.
What's the matter?
Fuck!
Fuck!
Fuckin' fake!
Fuck!
Fuckin' Max.
Fuckin' Max.
I'll fuckin' kill him.
No, stop!
Fuckin'.
No, stop!
Time of death 12:36.
one, two, three,
four, five, six.
We're all out of nitroset.
Two.
Sorry we're all out.
I thought we had some more but...
we are definitely all out.
I'm sorry.
I'll order some more in for you.
Migraine tablets.
Uh, unless you have
a prescription...
here.
Two?
We wouldn't normally...
I'll give him six of mine.
Here.
Oh, well.
Nitroset will be in...
Sometime tomorrow.
C-c-can I pay for this...
yeah, sure.
Then?
You can't take those
without water.
You can't take 'em
without water.
Oh...
Uh...
I live nearby.
I'll get you a glass of water.
Come on.
I'm just around the corner.
you don't lock it?
No, why?
Does that seem unwise to you?
Nothing ever happens
in a town like this.
Bet I've even lost the key.
Come on.
Are you there?
The key for this one's
been gone a long while now.
Come on in.
It's old.
It certainly is.
Please.
It would be pleasanter
to live in if the style of decor
were more minimalist.
Dreamt of it being
Japanese zen.
You know, bare boards
and paper screens,
simple rice bowl.
Please sit down.
Beautiful really.
But to have achieved that,
I would have had to have
ripped all of this out.
My poor, dear mother
would have died
if I'd done that.
Not that she didn't.
Die, that is.
15 years ago next month.
15 years, gosh.
I haven't touched
anything really,
which could lead you
to believe that,
like my mother,
I, too, am reluctant to change,
but it would be wrong.
I have introduced
quite a few modern gems,
uh, mostly in the kitchen.
Would you believe that I brought
in the first potato masher?
25 years ago.
They used to mash potatoes
with a fork.
Then, one day, I found that
so repulsively old-fashioned,
I just went out and bought
a potato masher and...
A couple of years later,
Ta-da?
A microwave.
How 'bout that?
Useful.
Hmm.
Nice place.
You don't seriously like it,
do you?
Why?
It has a past.
The past is dead.
It's boring.
You don't seem like
the kind of a man
who would have allowed himself
to suffer boredom.
I wish.
Hmm.
You see that picture behind me?
She would have been painted
probably at the end
of the 19th century.
She was my first love.
Rocks a boy for life.
Indulging onanistically
in front of the painting
of a woman who's been dead
for over 100 years.
Look at her.
Look at the disdain,
the rejection.
I used to sit
on this piano stool
with a handkerchief.
Is it any wonder that
my sexually active years
in the outside world
didn't shape up to much.
Depends what you mean
by "shape up"?
Philip Larkin
summed it up best.
He's reputed to have said
that sexual relations
were akin to having
somebody else blow your nose.
Funny.
Can I offer you a drink?
Oh, gosh.
I do apologize.
The stupidity of old men.
I'm terribly sorry.
Hmm.
You don't have a lot
to say for yourself, do you?
I've always wondered
what it would be like
to be your kind of persona.
To be the silent stranger type,
you know?
The fellow who walks
into the bar, doesn't utter
a word, but the minute he comes
through the door,
the mood in the entire room
changes dramatically.
The women grab their compacts,
a little bit of lipstick,
change an earring,
flick of the hair.
It's not anything.
It's just there.
But he's messed
with their heads.
You've seen too many movies.
No, I've probably read
too many books.
But you have to
indulge me a little.
The...
The extent of
my barroom experience
is limited to ordering
a strawberry milkshake.
Well, I appreciate
your hospitality.
A couple of pills
and a glass of water.
How's your headache?
I'll live.
Thank you.
the hotel... is closed.
Ah, yes.
It always is this time of year.
I'll take you to your room.
Up the wooden hill
to bedfordshire.
These are two of my
illustrious forebears.
They were both colonels
in the dragoons
at the battle of yellow tavern.
His regiment wasn't engaged,
and, prior to that,
at gettysburg,
he was in the infirmary.
The day before,
he had cut himself
sharpening his sword.
His great Uncle there
was guiding the ships,
and he arrived at chesapeake
after it was all over.
And then he stopped
to show a grenadier
how to cock his carbine,
and he blew the right side
of his head off... his head,
not the grenadier's.
Now, these engravings
are almost certainly
taken from paintings
by John trumbull.
I have to admit that...
That I feel a certain empathy
towards those two characters,
ludicrous though they may be.
My grandmother said
that I was like them.
And I... I think the dear woman
was probably right,
because, like them,
I seem to have
an uncanny ability to...
Miss out on
all of the possible highlights
of my life.
I-I-I've managed to opt out
of everything:
Every... every opportunity,
every engagement,
every challenge, everything.
Is it okay
if I stay through Friday?
Oh, stay... stay as long
as you like.
Absolutely, yeah.
Through Friday is perfect.
I, uh...
I'm going to be
otherwise engaged
on Saturday morning.
And anyway,
the toilet's down there.
The extra blankets
are in the wardrobe.
Uh, there's this room.
There are four other bedrooms,
and, uh, you're welcome
to stay in any one,
but the advantage of this one
is that the roof above it
is intact, so, if it rains,
you don't get wet.
It's fine, thank you.
I'll leave you to it.
If you need anything, uh,
just call, let me know.
Okay?
Would you like a nightcap?
Not for me.
I've always thought
I'd like to take to hard liquor.
There's something poetic
about drinking to excess.
You know, Brendan behan,
Dylan Thomas.
But after I have a sip or two,
I have to stop.
I have the most extraordinary
heartburn.
It's... it's... it's agonizing.
Good night.
Good night, yeah.
We can have supper
tomorrow night, if you like.
Oh, my.
Hmm.
Hmm.
Doo-do-doo-do-doo
do-do-do-do-do
do-do-do-do-do hup!
boo-bah-do-do
Huh.
It's rare that I have
the inclination, but,
your being here...
I-I'm supposed to do it,
doctors say that I should,
but, mostly, I just can't.
It's so boring.
No harm, I guess.
Not much point
either, actually.
What I do in my daily activities
is equivalent
to a sporting event.
Running to catch a bus
is a marathon.
Bend over to tie your shoes,
you're doing gymnastics.
Just climbing the stairs
takes an effort out of me
that I'm sure is
what it would take out of you
to scale the face of a cliff.
You... you work out
regularly, right?
Never.
Did you sleep all right?
See you later.
Yeah, okay.
Come.
This is sado.
Hey.
Yeah, don't worry about it.
I-I'll explain later.
I'm worried already.
Explain now.
He only speaks once a day.
10:30 sharp every morning.
Okay, can he drive?
He is shit hot.
Yes, aces.
You spread out a little.
Well, life moves on.
Um, loco does not get in
till tomorrow.
That's so fucked up.
"In kyoto
where is the heian shrine
when spring reflects upon
full of plentiful
cherry blossoms,
beware the sweetness of things."
So what is at question here?
Why did the poet
write this poem?
What line reveals that?
Mm.
In kyoto, where is
the heian shrine?
Surely nothing
could be clearer.
That's like saying,
"in New York
where is the statue of liberty."
In kyoto,
where is the heian shrine.
The... the poet
is placing the poem,
giving it context.
But he's asking the question.
What question?
Where the heian shrine is.
No, no, no.
The heian shrine is in kyoto,
and the poet states that.
Yes, but where in kyoto?
If I say, "in New York
where is the statue of liberty,"
it means that I know
it's in New York,
but I don't know exactly where.
In Ellis island,
the Hudson river.
Okay, but if it were
a question, there would be
a question mark.
Is there a question mark there?
Mm, they left it out.
Sorry.
No, it was...
it was left out because it is
not an interrogative statement.
I don't know which of us
is the more obtuse:
You, who seek questions
when there are only answers
to be seen
or me, who seeks an answer
when there may not even
be a question.
Anyway, we'll pick it up
next Wednesday.
Think about it, all right?
Think about it.
Don't ask anybody.
Just think about it.
Make sure your Henry James
is prepared for Friday,
will you?
Oh, I have...
I have an interesting anecdote
about Henry James.
He was the mentor
of the novelist Edith wharton,
and before he went to england,
he warned her
about the American public,
the reading public.
And he said that
"the Americans love a tragedy
with a happy ending."
I'll see you Friday.
Oh, God.
Beware the sweetness
of things.
Sorry?
Beware the sweetness of things.
Isn't that the answer
you wanted?
What's wrong
with the sweetness of things?
Well, one could get
used to it, couldn't one?
Were you a good teacher?
Not one of them
was molested in 40 years.
Congratulations.
Thank you.
I've prepared the fixings
for an omelet
of my own invention.
Come on.
Ohh.
It's instantaneous.
The heartburn is...
It's just you don't know
how to do it.
There's a skill?
Imagine you're thirsty.
Huh. Okay.
Take a good mouthful.
Taste it.
Swallow.
Ohh.
How does that feel?
Good.
Oh-ho.
Can I ask you something?
Yes.
Could you lend me
some slippers?
Well?
I've wasted my life.
Okay.
Oh, just wait.
Oh, these aren't broken in yet.
They're brand-new.
They're spares
that I was keeping aside for
when mine are
completely worn out.
The ideal slipper,
for it to be really comfortable,
is almost worn out.
Try walking in them.
No, no, no, no, no.
You have to drag along,
scuffle your feet,
let the heel drop free.
Think Japanese geisha.
You just have to practice.
You must keep them.
How nice to give you a gift,
to give you a piece of my life.
I mean, some other day,
maybe you'll be able to
think of something for me,
or maybe not.
I mean, nothing from your life
would suit me really, would it?
Do you have a tattoo?
Why?
Oh, I don't know,
I was thinking that if I had
been you, I would have had
a tattoo.
You know, uh, an eagle
or a dragon.
A tattoo...
Well, we decorate
the things we love, right?
But, of course, I mean,
if it were somebody e...
I mean, it would be a joke.
I mean, a roaring lion
on a puny bicep.
It would be...
Would you like to sit
in the conservatory?
I have a conservatory.
You know, a veranda, a porch,
a stoop.
Hmm.
Spare me your reflections
on infinity.
What?
Oh, every time
anybody comes out here,
they start babbling
about the cosmos.
And I think I lack
a cosmic sensibility.
Stars leave me cold.
They say we have
one for each of us.
They do?
What's that?
Some fancy
native American legend?
No.
Ordinary old wives' tale.
So what's up
with Saturday morning?
Saturday morning, me?
Oh, um, nothing really.
Just a check-up.
More of a tune-up actually.
I'm gonna get out the scissors,
you know, snip, snip, bingo.
That's what they do these days.
They see a little blip
on the old ect, and they
haul you in for a tune-up,
for repairs.
Don't like to talk
about it, huh?
Me?
No, not much.
No.
Professor?
Yes.
You have a scan scheduled?
Yes.
Follow me, please, sir.
It... it... it was like nothing.
Any idiot could have walked in
or out with his eyes shut.
But... but I... I copped two years,
and then,
when they put me inside,
were they waiting for me,
or what?
Yes, motherfuckers.
I had no one there, no friends.
No one.
Thank Christ
I got this early parole
on account of...
are you even listening to me?
No.
Revenge is the justice of woe.
10:30.
Weird, no?
Has he taken a vow,
or is he just wacko?
He has been this way
since his wife left him.
When was that?
Seven years back.
Not this time.
I'm calling it off.
What?
But it's a cinch, like you said.
Loco's not here.
I wouldn't trust my life
with wacko there.
You're way out of shape.
That's more than enough reason.
What? Are you kidding?
But we've done totally tougher
jobs than this over and over.
It just doesn't feel right.
If you'll not do it,
then I will do it on my own.
Christ, I need the cash.
hey, how are you?
How are you?
I'm good.
This is a stick-up,
freeze where you are.
We can't go on
meeting like this.
Ah, it's a small town.
Can I tell you a secret?
Can I stop you?
I've had an account
in this bank
for more than 50 years.
And every time I walk
through that door,
do you know what I want to do?
No, you haven't told me
the answer to that one yet,
and I'm sure you will.
Rob the place.
What?
I've been fantasizing about it
since I was a kid.
I walk through that door
wearing a balaclava,
pistol in one hand,
submachine gun in the other.
What?
You've never dreamt
about being a bank robber?
No.
We don't share
the same kind of nightmares.
Look, I'd never kill anybody.
Nobody.
My imagination is very specific.
Everything goes perfectly.
Clean getaway, never arrested.
What do you do with the money?
The Bahamas.
Always the Bahamas.
I'm at the casino,
blowing all the money.
Me blowing money.
That's a fantasy.
But I did have somebody
to do that with once.
When my mother died,
she'd specified in her will
that there was
this particular sum
and that it was just for me
to splurge with, you know?
To have fun with.
So I went to New York City.
I was determined
to paint the town red.
And?
It rained.
The whole time.
And not your spring showers,
you know.
It was torrential downpour,
so I sat in the movies.
My mother, bless her soul,
she must have been disappointed,
but, uh...
I-I don't actually
have it in me to splurge,
you know?
That... splurging takes
daring wit.
And I-I just don't have
the kind of imagination
that allows me to blow money.
You, though, you...
I bet you've been through...
I manage.
Were you going to get
something to eat?
Oh, yeah. Absolutely.
The best place in town
is just up here.
That's the uptown cinema.
That's been there
for donkey's years.
I had my first real kiss
in there.
Wasn't very romantic.
She stuck her tongue
down my throat
and I nearly choked.
Then she tried to grope me.
She grabbed me wrong
and I screamed
and the whole cinema
turned around.
You know, the old limerick:
"Said a young man
to his lady friend please
as he wriggled with pain
on his knees,
it would give me great bliss
if you'd take hold of this
and relinquish your grasp
upon these."
That was her.
A place in the sun.
That was the movie
they were showing.
Theodore dreiser.
American tragedy.
Great novel,
pinnacle of American realism.
Down there.
That's where I sit.
So this was your regular?
It still is.
Every lunchtime.
Saved me from the students
in the school cafeteria.
Hi, Tracy.
Hi, Professor.
Steak's off.
Steak's off?
Steak's off.
Omelet.
Salad or fries?
Both.
Professor, the same?
Same.
And coffee or beer?
What do you think? Beer?
Two beers.
Two beers.
So how did it end?
What?
With the girl
outside the uptown.
Oh.
Heartbreaking.
She went off with
the school janitor's son.
And I was left in the thrall
of the 100-year-old woman
in the painting.
I dreamt of that girl for years.
Her eyes went this way.
There was something
about that walleyed look
that I find highly erotic.
What about you?
When did you first
lose your heart?
I can't remember.
Oh, happened so many times
that it's impossible
to sort out the beginning?
No, it's probably just
pretty forgettable.
Oh, memories are important.
I prefer to forget.
Don't do that again.
Seriously, don't do that again.
I don't... I don't want
to get into anything.
You know what?
Stop.
Hey.
You want a sip of beer?
No, no.
Come on, little sip,
little sip.
Ah-ah-ah-ah-ohh, nice.
That's it.
That's good, bro.
You didn't say something?
No, you know why?
No.
They're a team.
One against two.
You don't stand a chance.
Well, except in the movies.
Should we get him...
should we get him
some alcoholic beer?
It's how you know
you're gettin' old.
A few years back,
he would have backed down
and apologized.
Now he knows there's no need.
The bill.
And you can give it to me.
He doesn't get paid.
He's really practically
a street kid.
And there's nothing
I can do about it.
We're two.
Does that make us a team?
Knock it off, knock it off.
It's okay.
What a racket they're making.
Come on!
You're being such a baby!
Go, sit down, finish your beer.
I'm gettin' pissed off.
Really.
I'm really pissed off.
Go tell 'em.
I'd have to change
my whole life
if I were gonna do that.
I understand your caution.
You know,
I've never been in a fight.
No, not once.
Not in my whole life.
Not even in the schoolyard.
That's not such a bad thing.
You're supposed to drink it.
Hey.
Dial it down, okay?
Is he talking to us?
cromorant fishing:
How stirring, how saddening.
Summer grasses
are all that remain
of soldier's dreams.
You don't remember me,
do ya?
I'm class of '92.
You were my teach
back in the day.
I'm Joseph.
Joey Peterson.
I work over at Carson's,
the lighting shop over there.
How 'bout you?
You still into
the haiku poetry or?
No, no, I'm retired now.
I have private students.
All right.
Time flies, man.
We were just...
we were just gonna leave.
I guess we got
a little too rowdy for you or?
No.
Peterson.
What a... what a pleasure.
Well, it was great
to see you again, Professor.
And you.
I was pretty good,
me remembering that poem
though, right?
Oh, a ten out of ten.
Yeah.
I listen, I listen.
Oh.
Have a good afternoon.
Yeah, thank you.
You too.
Take care.
No man can escape his past.
That took guts.
Can you imagine?
The first time I look
for a fight
and I pick on someone
who likes me?
What did you expect?
Breaking glass?
No, a small memory
to savor with my slippers,
dreaming cognac dreams.
Haiku.
Ten out of ten.
Agh!
Oof.
What?
Shing!
Oh.
Darbon.
You know
the walnut tree's gone.
It's got the disease.
I know that you've been
coming here on the last Thursday
of every month for what...
how many years now?
Ten at least, right?
How is it that I never
expect to see you?
Everybody always forgets
about the gardener.
Have to get rid
of the walnut tree, do we?
Yup.
Pity that.
Slam!
Hey.
Buffalo bill's defunct.
He used to ride
a watersmooth silver stallion.
Shoot!
One, two, three, four, five,
pigeons just like that.
Jesus, he was a handsome man.
But what I want to know is,
what do you think
of your blue-eyed boy now,
mister death?
Oh, shit!
Oh, lord.
Oh, God.
Oh, look at you.
Standard security.
Two shitty out-of-date
black-and-white
closed circuit TV cameras.
And local staff.
It's like breaking into
a bag of pretzels.
You can choke on a pretzel.
What?
What happened to you?
You've changed, you know that?
You have changed.
I mean, you've not
put on any weight, but what?
Are you going to retire
with a slippers and a pipe?
Eh?
You can use the money.
Maybe.
Yes.
Well, then.
how come you got
two of everything?
Two combs, two toothbrushes,
two razors.
Because I finally realized
that, in general,
there are two kinds of people:
The kind who prepare for nothing
and who have the wit
and the imagination to deal
with pretty much everything
and then the others who...
and I fall into that category...
who are the opposite.
And what kind of people
are they?
They're the kind without
that wit and that imagination.
They have to buy spares
so that they will be prepared
for every imagined eventuality.
So do you have
two of everything?
Pretty much.
Sometimes three.
There's a drink there for you.
Do you play?
Yes, indeed I do.
I think with the exception
of needlepoint, I possess all
of the accomplishments
of a well-bred young woman
educated at the end
of the 19th century.
Are you musical?
I had a harmonica once.
Well, that's good
for a traveling man.
Curious thing about music.
When people find out that
you play a musical instrument,
they always assume
that you're enjoying it.
Oh, what wonderful hours
he must spend at his piano.
They're so wrong.
It is so boring.
It is so very boring.
Schubert I like.
Schubert appeals
to my sense of failure.
When I see you
in those slippers,
I can imagine myself
festooned with tattoos,
zipping down the highway
in a sporty red convertible.
To your good health.
And yours.
Let me
show you something else.
Watch the two lamps.
And there's an old French adage
that comes into play for me.
Le temps qu'il passe plus tot
que le temps qu'il fait.
So I have had
much more affection
for the time that I take,
and I worry less about
the time that it takes.
Have you found that?
No.
Oh, poof.
Another certainty obliterated.
I'll put it down to progress.
Could I ask
a consideration of you?
Sure.
W-would you be so kind
as to go down
to the liquor store
and buy me some tobacco?
I can't go there myself.
Mm, why is that?
Oh, uh, the woman
at the cash register.
What about her?
Oh, it's a long story,
stupid really.
It's...
Well, it's a... you know,
for more than 40 years,
I've been going into that store
to buy my tobacco.
That's all I buy there.
I don't buy anything else.
And every time I go to pay,
she looks me straight in the eye
and she says, "can I get you
anything else, sir?"
And it drove me mad.
And one day, I got completely
and utterly fed up,
and I said to her,
"y-y-you just cannot any longer
ask me, 'can I get you
something else, sir?'
I don't want anything else.
And if I want something else,
I will ask for it."
And I stormed out
and slammed the door.
And then a week later,
I went back,
hoping against hope, and...
Do you know what happened?
No.
I went in.
She was looking me
straight in the eye.
I asked for my tobacco,
without taking her eyes off me,
she went and got the tobacco,
came back, gave it to me.
I gave her the money,
and she didn't say, "can I
get you something else, sir?"
She said,
"will that be all, sir?"
And you didn't kill her?
I could have
jumped over the counter
and rung her neck.
But I didn't.
I left the store
and I never went back.
And I've been buying
my tobacco at the supermarket,
and it's not
nearly as good and...
Here, it's called
condor ready rub.
Won't be long.
Okay, thank you.
Anything else, sir?
75 cents, please.
Thank you.
Anything else, sir?
That's $5.95, please.
Thank you.
Packet of condor
ready-rub pipe tobacco.
No, two.
Make that two packs.
$9.23, please.
Anything else, sir?
Nope.
What'd I tell you?
Unbelievable.
It was kind of you to lie
about the woman
at the cash register.
She didn't say it to you,
did she?
She said it to me,
but she doesn't say it to you.
That's the difference.
I wouldn't get too bugged out
on that kind of stuff.
No, but it says something,
doesn't it?
Get you more salad?
No.
Why did you get two?
There are two kinds of people.
I decided to side with those
who are prepared for everything.
Thank you.
Are you going to tell me
what brought you to this town?
There's no need.
There isn't?
You already know.
Yes, I suppose I do.
Is it the bank?
Don't worry.
If it goes wrong,
we'll keep you out of it.
No.
No, it's not that.
Not at all, no.
I wa... I was thinking that
perhaps I might be able
to help.
I mean, I-I-I know
I probably wouldn't be any good.
I'm completely useless
with anything that involves
split-second timing
or improvisation, but...
It's a lot simpler
than you think.
You stroll in,
wave a gun around,
grab the money, and leave.
Off to the Bahamas.
My, oh, my.
Oh, my.
It's going to be quite
a Saturday morning.
Yes, it is.
There... there are gonna be
three of us for dinner
tomorrow night.
Is that... is that all right?
A woman.
Well, um, sort of.
I mean, technically, yes.
Ah.
I have another favor to ask you.
A favor.
No problem.
I'll make myself scarce.
No, no, no, it's not that.
No, no, nothing like that
at all.
I want something else
all together.
It's just that I'm...
There's something... I mean...
I mean, if it's possible,
it's something that
I've always wanted, but, um...
and I've thought about it often.
It's just that...
The opportunity has, uh...
Never presented itself.
I'm listenin'.
what should I imagine?
What's there to imagine?
I don't know.
What am I shooting at?
It's a coke can.
You're shooting
at a row of coke cans.
How 'bout the gardener?
No, you're not shooting
at the gardener.
It's a row of tin cans.
I missed.
Yeah, you missed.
You need to relax.
Just take a breath.
There they go.
I think, wasn't it?
I mean, a closer miss.
You know what they say?
A miss is a miss
by an inch or a mile.
Perhaps it requires
a special gift.
No, it doesn't.
Oh, certainly
it takes practice.
Not even.
What's the trick then?
Self-pity maybe.
My arm isn't too stiff?
Just find a position
that's comfortable for you,
a stance that's your own.
There you go.
Listen...
Can I run something past you?
Yes.
I'm an old eagle
smoking this fine Italian cigar.
Think of it.
An old eagle
smoking a fine Italian cigar.
You know it?
It's bukowski.
What comes next?
I have caged the world
away from me.
I'm an old eagle smoking
this fine Italian cigar.
Think of it.
An old eagle
smoking a fine Italian cigar.
It has become pleasant again
to be alive.
But you know that, don't you?
I heard it once,
but I just couldn't remember
how it ended.
Never one of my favorites,
bukowski, but I've always
held an affection for that poem.
Do you know how it ends?
Just like you,
just for a time there,
I didn't think
I was going to make it.
Are you still dead-set
on Saturday?
Are you?
Me?
I have no choice.
Me neither.
Another round?
No.
No, I've reached my limit.
Thank you.
It's like...
Beautiful poetry.
It's the essence of it.
Less is more.
You know, I haven't
decided on Saturday yet.
What does your decision
depend on?
On whether someone
shows up or not.
Aw, fuck.
I can't even just...
these painters
are all fucking mad.
I can't even look at this shit.
It's like...
Makes you mad painting,
you know?
Agonizing over
these fucking details
drive you fucking insane.
Well, this guy here understood,
you know, how to alternate
between light and shape,
to give tonality to his palette.
Look at him.
But he kind of lost his frenzy
along the way.
You know, he knew
the rules of art, but he lost
the art of the rules,
which is why he's here
and not at the metropolitan.
What kept you?
Why weren't you on time?
I was on time.
Not in a great state.
So I decided it would be better
to wait a little.
I ran into a bottle
two hours before, and...
one of those fucking meetings
you can't shake off, you know?
So how was detox?
Fucking murder.
Fucking hell.
Max here?
Yeah.
He's hired a driver.
Well, if Max chose him,
he should be fine.
Can you at least stay sober
for a couple of days?
Well, that's forever.
Just till Saturday?
Yeah, well, forever
always lasts till Saturday.
What's the estimate on the job?
Three.
100 grand each.
Wow.
Can't complain about that.
No.
Fuck.
Hey, what do you say we go
grab a beer and we celebrate?
I'm just joking.
Don't... I-I'm just joking.
Forget I said it.
This one's almost certainly
an original John trumbull.
John trumbull?
Where'd you get
the John trumbull from?
Afternoon.
Ah!
Well, I don't know what
the weather's doing
out there now, but I nearly
turned the heat on this morning.
Must be that global warming
you're advertising.
Oops.
I don't want the usual.
You don't?
No.
I want different.
How different?
Slicked back.
You gonna have to change
the cut a lot for that?
Eh?
Slicked back like...
yeah, no parting.
You?
No parting?
Straight back.
Well, we can do
the no parting, I mean...
hey.
My life's been a prison,
and I'm gettin' out now,
and that's what
I want to look like,
like I'm comin' out of prison.
Well, well, well.
I'm gonna keep
the mustache, though.
Well, I'm grateful for that.
I... you know, I think I'm seeing
everything these days.
That brandier boy
came by the other day.
He asked me for a
double-zero cut, saw it on mtv.
I'm glad you don't want
a double-zero cut.
Well, we're breaking
new ground.
You have no idea
where I might end up.
Ah.
Well.
I had to walk
around the block three times
before I could figure out
to come in here.
I've come for my tutorial
with the Professor?
He's not here right now.
Are you standing in for him?
Yes, I suppose
I am standing in for him.
So what are you studying
with the Professor?
We do Henry James on Fridays.
The portrait of a lady.
And what's the story about?
There isn't much of one.
There's always a story.
No such thing as a book
without a story.
Have you read it?
Yes.
So you know it then?
And you've had this guy
in here for, what, how long?
Two days already?
But... but... but
but he leaves tomorrow.
I have never missed it.
Oh, there you are!
This is Vivienne.
First meetings are always
intimidating, I know.
Not always.
First meetings
aren't always intimidating?
Aren't... aren't you intimidated?
No.
Neither am I.
Oh.
Me, when I meet someone
for the first time,
it's like I'm a little boy
sent to the principal's office.
In short pants.
Yeah, short pants.
Would you get us
a drink, darling?
On my way!
I have no idea
why he wanted us to meet.
Me neither.
Well, he has this idea
everyone he likes
should get along.
He could be wrong.
He's an optimist at heart.
Not a bundle of laughs,
but an optimist.
So you're fond of him?
Just because it's
and old affair
doesn't mean it's tired.
Drinks are in the drawing room.
Beep beep.
Straight up or on the ice?
Ice broken?
To smithereens.
quiet little town.
Yeah, and very trusting.
why don't you get yourself
someone younger or prettier?
I think
Vivienne's good looking.
Of course,
but are you fond of each other?
Ah, we're familiar.
We don't shake each other
to the core like we used to,
but...
Well, yeah, yeah, yeah.
We're... we're fond.
It's not fondness
you need tonight.
Yeah, well, at least
she doesn't intimidate me,
how's that for starters?
How'd he do?
He passed.
Oh, good, good.
I told you he would.
Vivienne's son
is taking his finals.
Now, he didn't do well enough
to get into
the top universities, but...
why don't you tell her
you don't give a shit?
Wha...
I-I do... I give a...
no, he doesn't.
All he wants is sex.
He has no interest
in your kid's exam results.
Wha...
And you?
What about me?
What do you want?
What do you want,
other than to stir things up?
Hmm?
You want to watch?
Oh, Vivienne.
Anyone would think
you're jealous.
I just call it as I see it.
yes, doctor?
Oh, you are still there.
Of course.
Yeah, is, um... yes?
My patient still
the, uh, first case
up in the morning?
It... not till noon.
Good.
You're in operating room 1
with a full bypass team.
Thanks.
Good night.
Good night.
I have 25.
Do-do-do-do-do-do.
Well, that's that.
She always wins in the end.
Women always win in the end.
I'll just go tidy up.
I like it.
You do?
Mm-hmm.
Thank you.
I was wrong back there.
You were right.
Must be sweet comfort,
an old mistress.
It is, you know.
15 years now.
Since your mother died?
You remembered that, huh?
Yeah, two incidents
did coincide.
Why didn't you marry her?
Oh, I thought about it.
I thought about it, but...
I panicked.
You... you never married,
I'm sure.
Endlessly changing, moving on.
I'd have liked to have sailed
from woman to woman,
a new America every time,
another continent to explore,
never dropping anchor.
Women aren't what
they used to be.
Still, it would have been
nice to have discovered
and explored new embraces.
It's poetry that gets you
in the end.
Without the words,
it's all so forgettable.
Hmm.
What do you think of her?
I don't think of her.
She's yours.
We should have
one last snifter on the stoop
before the big day tomorrow.
this used to be
my favorite spot.
The surroundings
weren't so built up then.
I could breathe.
I had a future.
Hope.
And I stopped living
before I got old.
Years went by and...
I fell into decay
just like this damned house.
Do you know why
women look away when
you pass them on the street?
Why?
Because they're dazzled.
Why wouldn't
they fall for you?
Don't you know
how extraordinary you are?
Look at yourself.
There's so much to see.
The older we get,
the more precious we are.
That's what you've missed.
You haven't understood that.
I haven't thought of it
like that, no.
It's the right way.
The only way.
You shouldn't
keep a lady waiting.
No, you're right.
Thank you.
Good night.
She turned you down?
No.
I have a proposition for you
if you will listen...
listen it out.
Let's hear it.
I'd like to give you the money.
It's... it's a very small bank.
It will not be a very good haul.
If you would take it from me,
you can pay it back if you want.
I-I don't really need it.
No, I can't do that.
Okay.
Off to bedfordshire.
I've met guys
like you before, you know?
You're always trouble.
Sadness follows you
wherever you go.
It's not that women like me
don't know that.
It's just that
we're attracted to it
all the same.
I've never met a good girl
but she didn't have a bit
of badness in her somewhere.
Maybe I'm too old
for all that now.
I just wanted to let you know
that I know that.
Do you love him?
He said you never
ask questions.
I don't usually.
Forget I asked.
I have already.
There you are.
You look green.
I hope it's the light.
No, uh, I can't, thank you.
Fasting, doctor's orders.
There's a train at 9:15.
You've just got time to make it.
Tempting.
Give into it.
Just this once.
Well, you can't say
I didn't try.
The bukowski.
Poem's in there.
Thank you.
Just like you,
just for a time there,
I thought I wasn't
going to make it.
And, j-j-just it's how we met,
it was, uh, so extraordinary
from m-m-me giving you
those pills, and I never
would have done that.
No.
It's like it was pre-ordained.
I don't believe
in that kind of stuff.
Neither do I.
well.
Be seeing ya.
See ya.
ah.
Oh.
Elaine?
Oh, hey.
Um, you're just down at the end,
It's on the left.
We all pass on like centuries
and doves.
All good.
I'll be back.
I have contact.
Suspects entering bank.
Red team.
Positions.
down, down on the ground!
Oh, God!
Down on the ground.
Put your hands on your head.
Go now!
Go!
Down!
Now! Hands on your head!
On the ground!
Back, back down!
Now!
Nobody move.
Don't touch anything.
Stand there.
No, nobody talk.
Nobody move.
This will be over very soon.
Go, go.
Keep your fucking head down.
I'll blow it off.
Where's the vault?
Nobody move. Nobody talk.
Swab.
Move in.
Get it, get it, get it, get it.
Stay there.
What's the matter?
Fuck!
Fuck!
Fuckin' fake!
Fuck!
Fuckin' Max.
Fuckin' Max.
I'll fuckin' kill him.
No, stop!
Fuckin'.
No, stop!
Time of death 12:36.