[SPEAKING INDISTINCTLY]
[SPEAKING INDISTINCTLY]
Bets around, bets around.
Let's go, Jameson.
Everybody in? Atkins, Atkins?
SOLDIER 1:
Oh, come on, man, let's go.
MELVIN: No, man, your sister
didn't send me that check yet.
[SOLDIERS LAUGHING
AND CHEERING]
[SOLDIERS CHATTERING]
No, this is how you play the...
This is how you play Texas Hold 'em.
SOLDIER 2:
You just told us how to play it!
This is how you play Texas Hold em.
SOLDIER 3: Will you flip another card.
This is the fourth fucking...
SOLDIER 4: Four of a kind.
SOLDIER 5: What do you got, Melvin?
Yo, Melvin, man,
what you gonna do,
you gonna play the cards
or you gonna hatch them?
I ain't gonna hatch them. I need to
run out to the ATM real quick.
[SOLDIERS LAUGHING]
There's gotta be a...
Gotta be a 7-Eleven
out there somewhere.
Let me get two.
[SPEAKING INDISTINCTLY]
[RAP MUSIC PLAYS
ON RADIO NEARBY]
MAN:
So why don't we just go directly in.
Right up this route, straight in.
Yes, well, I see the captain
enjoys the road less traveled.
No, the captain enjoys
not going down the highway,
dragging his ass so every Tom, Dick
and Qaddafi can take a whack at it.
It's very bad here.
It's bad here, it's still bad here.
And I've heard it's bad
right down here.
- Bad everywhere, huh?
- Yeah.
Mines?
Tricky. Swedish-made.
[GROANS]
The man didn't say anything
about mines to me.
Sergeant Shaw.
- Sergeant.
- Sir.
Rolling in two minutes.
Yes, sir.
You okay?
RAYMOND:
Yes, sir.
Two minutes.
SOLDIER:
Yo, give me two cards, man.
[BOOGIE DOWN PRODUCTIONS'
"LOVE'S GONNA GET'CHA" PLAYS]
[MUSIC STOPS]
RAYMOND:
Captain says we're moving out.
So...
[SOLDIERS LAUGHING]
Hey, that cat needs a friend.
And a hug.
MARCO:
It was just before Desert Storm.
We were on a routine recon
inside Iraqi-controlled terrain,
assessing enemy troop strength
for what Saddam Hussein promised
would be the mother of all wars.
I'm in the lead vehicle
with Sergeant Shaw
and our guide, a civilian contractor.
The night is clear.
Stars, but no moon.
[TIRES SCREECHING]
Ambush!
Hang on.
[SOLDIERS YELLING]
Exit the vehicle.
On me! On me!
Get a flare up, sergeant.
[MACHINE GUNS SHOOTING]
Enemy dismount! Go after, go after!
Stay left!
SOLDIER:
Covering, covering, covering!
INGRAM:
Bear right!
Move it, move it, move it!
[SCREAMS]
TOKAR:
Captain Marco!
[GRUNTS]
BO Y:
Sir?
Was you scared?
Scared? Well...
...there was really no time
to be scared.
With complete disregard
for his own life,
Sergeant Raymond Shaw
engaged single-handedly
an entire company of the enemy.
Sergeant Shaw was awarded
the Medal of Honor.
I signed the recommendation myself.
- Yes, sir.
- Um, uh,
were you wounded?
MARCO:
I was, I was injured.
Concussion, lost focus.
Sergeant Shaw, he took command.
MAN:
Major?
MARCO: Yes.
- Did your unit sustain any casualties?
Yes. PFC Edward Ingram,
PFC Robert Baker III
were killed.
Now, the Medal of Honor,
Congressional Medal of Honor,
is the highest award that any soldier
could aspire to.
What these brave men
that I've talked about today did
should never be forgotten.
Since 1917, there have only been
out of a total of 30 million
Americans at arms.
Who knows.
Maybe one day,
one of you fine young men
will earn that medal
in defense of this great nation.
Yes.
Major Marco,
on behalf of Troops 1094 and 1128,
just wanna thank you
for coming to speak to us
about the Medal of Honor
and about your interesting experiences
in the armed forces.
MARCO:
Thanks for listening.
Thank you very much.
You ever wish it had been you?
I'm sorry, excuse me?
Won the Medal.
Been... Been the hero.
Well, sir, I'm just...
I'm just proud that I was there.
Thank you.
Thank you very much.
[CROWD CHATTERING]
- Major Marco?
- Yes.
Al Melvin, sir.
Corporal Melvin.
From your unit, Desert Storm.
Corporal Melvin. How you doing?
I have these dreams, sir.
- Dreams?
- Yes, sir.
Kuwait. It's you and me,
Ingram and Baker and...
...Raymond Shaw.
Okay.
See, I remember it happened
like you just said,
and then...
...I don't.
Well...
...we had it pretty rough
over there, Melvin.
That was a long time ago.
Memories shift.
Do you have dreams, sir?
Everybody has dreams, corporal.
No, not these.
No, I don't.
I write it all down.
You know, like, every night,
right when I wake up,
I try to get it down.
It doesn't always come together,
you know,
not everything that I can remember.
Maybe you should go
to the V.A. Hospital,
talk to one of the doctors.
- I've been to doctors, man.
- Okay.
I'm just... I'm just...
I'm just a little stuck, sir.
Because I remember, okay, Shaw...
Shaw, okay...
Shaw saving us, right...
...but that doesn't make sense,
because...
...that should've been you.
Okay, if Shaw is in the Hummer...
...the Toyota is here...
All right. Just get up, get up.
Listen, it's...
That's over with. That's done.
Okay? You gotta move on.
What I was hoping is that,
you know, maybe...
You need some money
or something?
- No, no, sir.
- Wait a minute.
I don't need your money, man.
All right. It was great to see you.
[MELVIN BREATHING HEAVILY]
CASHIER:
Paper or plastic, sir?
TV REPORTER:
With public anxiety being rekindled
by the events of Bloody Friday,
with the war on terror continuing into
yet another year, no end in sight,
the worries just continue to grow.
Polls indicate that
more and more voters
are concerned with
personal family safety,
with economic security,
fearing more and more jobs
going overseas
or being taken by
illegal immigrants.
They're concerned with the quality
of air and our water,
the degradation caused by the
rollback in environmental regulations,
by religious and racial polarization,
with the drumbeat of body bags
coming from all over the globe.
The American people are ready
for a new agenda.
But because this party is so
divided on so many issues,
the choice of a vice presidential
nominee may very well be
the unifying factor for delegates
at this convention.
MAN [ON TV]: And if this respect
propels me toward the nomination
as your vice presidential candidate,
I will be greatly honored.
We need to look inward,
attend to our own house.
The danger to our country is not only
from some terrorists at large,
terrorists who, by the way,
we've helped engender
with 20 years
of failed foreign policy.
No, the real danger
is from suspending civil liberties,
gutting the Bill of Rights,
allowing our fear
to destroy our democratic ideals,
because once we start overturning
our constitutional protections,
our enemies have won.
[KNOCKING ON DOOR]
Raymond? Oh.
- There he is.
- Darling. Shoo.
What, were you gonna make me
stand out there like room service?
I asked downstairs and Miss Freeman,
your wrangler, helpful Miss Freeman,
she said you were up here
practicing your speech.
I don't honestly understand why
you insist upon
isolating yourself, Raymond.
People adore you,
they crave your company,
and yet here you are,
holed up as if you were some sort of
emotionally challenged individual
like your father.
Shut up, Tom.
Instead of Raymond Prentiss Shaw,
handsome, intelligent,
people-loving war hero
with a great deal to offer his party.
- No.
- And his country.
RAYMOND:
No.
- No, what?
- No.
I haven't even asked you
a question yet.
RAYMOND: No to the question
you're going to ask.
No to all of the questions
you pretend to want to ask.
Your hair is too flat.
And no, you may not engage
in your usual backdoor
And that tie...
political thuggery to shovel me
onto the presidential ticket.
Tie's wrong. Something less busy.
Oh, you're not interested.
Of course I'm interested.
I wouldn't be here if I wasn't.
But not if it means attacking
the reputation
of a statesman like Tom Jordan,
which I am sure
was part of your plan.
Excuse me, when have I ever
attacked Senator Jordan, despite...
Despite what?
Despite the shameful way
his daughter toyed with you
that summer at the shore.
You chased her away, Mother,
let's not have any illusions about...
She wasn't in your league, but if that's
the way you choose to remember it...
You destroyed any possibility
of us ever...
Honey, you are oversimplifying things
a little bit, but it's okay.
I'll stay out of it.
You have my word.
[CROWD CHEERING]
Thank you. Thank you.
I think you all know my mother,
Senator Eleanor Prentiss Shaw.
And some of you, no doubt,
remember my father,
the late Senator John Shaw.
I've been honored to serve
my two terms in Congress.
[MEN AND ELLIE
SPEAKING INDISTINCTLY]
But I also grew up on the Hill.
I've seen how the game is played
by professionals,
how deals are struck,
committees bullied,
agendas bought and sold.
And with apologies to my mother,
I wish to remain an amateur.
RAYMOND [ON TV]:
I believe democracy is not negotiable.
[CROWD CHEERING ON TV]
I believe that freedom from fear
in the world at large and here at home
is not negotiable.
I know how much Americans
have to fear today.
But I can tell you
that I've been there.
I've faced the enemy firsthand
on the battlefront.
I know what it is to be afraid.
But I am living proof
that we can win.
We can prevail.
We must secure tomorrow today.
Thank you.
ELLIE: Bluffing?
- That was the inference.
They should be down on their fat,
white knees, thanking me
for saving this party from
committing political seppuku.
You gave them every opportunity
to do the right thing, senator.
No. I gave them one opportunity and
that was unusually generous of me.
See if you can get ahold of
Bob Arthur,
because I'm gonna wanna
meet with him.
Thank you very much
for arranging this.
- I appreciate it.
HEALY: Sure.
ELLIE: Mr. Secretary.
- Senator.
Thank you very much
for taking this meeting.
LEONA: Good to see you again.
- Leona. So nice to see you, Leona.
Buddy. Gentlemen.
No, I thought we settled it
this morning.
All right, I'll keep you posted.
The decision is final.
ELLIE:
Thank you very much.
- How's Jeanine?
UTLY: Senator.
Tom Jordan's on the ticket.
Now, we don't need your blessing,
but we'd like it.
Okay, so before we get started,
I'm just...
[LAUGHS]
I'm dying to know...
...which genius hatched the idea of
pairing a sound bite from Nebraska
with a relic who thinks that keeping
suicide bombers off our buses
is unconstitutional.
Was it you, Gordy?
All the research indicates
that an Arthur-Jordan ticket
sits quite well
with the American people.
"Sits quite well"
translates into how many votes?
MAN 1: Your son is largely unknown
outside of New York.
I mean, his public service,
his congressional record,
while commendable,
is not the kind of thing...
My son is a war hero.
MAN 2: Governor Arthur has agreed
to consider Raymond
for a cabinet-level post.
We didn't come here
to have a discussion.
Did we come here
to have a discussion?
WELLS: Ellie, you don't have the votes
to block this.
Not even to push the nomination
to a second ballot.
Oh, Jim, even running against
this cut-and-fold vice president,
with his party's record of
abysmal failure at home and abroad,
Governor Arthur is still unelectable
to the presidency...
...without help.
Consider, that our intrepid Arthur
can hold on to his own home ground,
and the Northeast,
and even California,
we are still dead across the South.
He's not dead completely
in the South, senator...
ELLIE: And the Southwest,
where they win by landslides.
I mean, you know this.
Your focus groups,
your polls all tell you this.
They back me up, right?
Now, you're counting on
Tom Jordan to help you get
the black vote, women
and college kids.
My gut instinct says he won't,
and on Arthur to somehow hold
the centre, where he is soft at best.
We're confident
this is a winning ticket, Ellie.
What's your margin of error, Vaughn?
Five points?
Three?
I can swing that, and you know it.
Oh, I could swing seven
away from you.
That's more than enough
to split the ticket.
And deny us the White House
another four years? No.
No, not even you.
Not even you, senator,
will do that, you are bluffing.
Oh, no, no, no, senator,
I would and I will
and I will do whatever is necessary
to protect America
from anyone who opposes her.
I can't...
Am I the only person in this room
who's been reading
these NSA reports?
- I've read them.
- All right, then you know,
you know we are on the brink
of another cataclysm,
probably nuclear, on our own soil.
Oh, Ellie, that's a bit extreme.
ELLIE:
And it's not from random terrorists,
but from covert alliances
of disaffected nations
who have all been made bold
by this kind of Jordan one-worlder
who believes that human beings
are essentially good
and that our power is somehow,
I don't know,
shameful or evil or never to be used.
Make no mistake,
the American people are terrified.
They know something's coming.
They can feel it.
And we can either shovel them
the same old shit and call it sugar
or we can arm them.
We can arm them with a young,
vibrant vice president.
We can give them heat, energy,
give them a war hero with heart,
forged by enemy fire
in the desert in the dark,
when American lives
hung in the balance.
Give us a few minutes.
Thank you.
Mr. Secretary,
thank you for your time.
- Thank you.
ELLIE: Really appreciate it.
- Leona, good evening.
- Thank you, Ellie.
Well, they're gonna have to make
their own decisions.
I am proud...
[CROWD CHEERING]
... to offer into nomination
the name of the next vice president
of these United States:
Raymond Shaw!
TV NEWSCASTER 1: A remarkable
development. Twenty-four hours ago,
New York Congressman
Raymond Prentiss Shaw
wasn't even being mentioned
as a possible candidate
for the vice presidential nomination
four years from now,
much less this current convention.
Some incredible news
from the convention floor tonight.
Like a long shot
catching the favorite
on the back stretch
of the Kentucky Derby,
Raymond Shaw has overtaken
Senator Thomas Jordan
to gain the vice presidential
nomination.
TV NEWSCASTER 2:
Raymond Shaw bears the lineage
of the fabled
Prentiss family dynasty.
Grandson of legendary industrialist
and diplomat Tyler Prentiss,
son of controversial
Senator Eleanor Prentiss Shaw,
who took over the seat
vacated by her husband,
the esteemed John Shaw,
when he died tragically
over 20 years ago.
For many, Raymond Prentiss Shaw
is an enigma.
The millionaire
Harvard honors student
who enlisted in the infantry,
refusing the officer's commission
to which he was entitled.
Media-shy and reclusive,
Raymond Shaw's life
was forever changed
on the killing fields of Kuwait,
where he won the Congressional
Medal of Honor for combat bravery.
Two members of Sergeant Shaw's
famed "Lost Patrol,"
PFC Edward Ingram
and PFC Robert Baker III,
were killed.
Their guide, a civilian contractor,
disappeared in the ambush.
But Sergeant Shaw
heroically fought off the enemy
and guided the shell-shocked
survivors of the Lost Patrol
across hostile terrain to safety.
Raymond Shaw is probably
the kindest, bravest, warmest...
Most selfless human being
I've ever known.
TV NEWSCASTER 2:
The celebrated war hero,
who dedicated himself to
public service after Desert Storm.
The Medal of Honor winner, beloved
by the men of the Lost Patrol.
TV NEWSCASTER 3: He quickly
turned his energies to public service
in his adopted state of New York.
- The revolutionary science
of biogenetics,
which has literally transformed...
INGRAM:
Captain Marco!
MAN: The revolutionary science
of biogenetics.
The revolutionary science
of biogenetics,
which has literally transformed...
INGRAM: Captain Marco!
BAKER: Raymond Shaw
is the most selfless
human being I've ever known.
Raymond Shaw is probably
the kindest, bravest, warmest...
Yet note the complexity
of the frontal lobe.
Nevertheless...
MELVIN:
Captain.
Help me.
Sergeant Shaw.
Captain.
Suffocate Private Baker. Kill him.
SOLDIERS: Raymond Shaw is
probably the kindest, bravest, warmest,
most selfless human being
I've ever known.
[BAKER GASPING]
SOLDIER:
Raymond Shaw...
NOYLE:
Excellent, excellent. Go on, Raymond.
Good, good, Raymond.
SOLDIERS: Raymond Shaw
is probably the kindest, bravest,
warmest, most selfless
human being I've ever known.
No offence, major...
...but it sort of chaps my ass
that we have to have a babysitter.
I'm just here to make sure
you don't get cornered
by some Air Force general's
unhappy wife.
Major Marco,
we should be so lucky.
WOMAN: So nice to meet you.
RAYMOND: Thank you.
WOMAN: Thank you.
RAYMOND: Nice to meet you.
Raymond Shaw.
Major Marco, this army of two
are gonna do some recon
at the no-host bar.
ELLIE:
- A failed foreign policy
which has only served
to galvanize our enemies.
Excuse me, please.
In fact, mobilizing an ersatz
army of malcontents...
WILSON:
General Sloan, you lead the charge.
SLOAN:
Absolutely.
William. Hi, how are you?
All right, good.
Have you met my wife, Pam?
PAM: Hello, how are you?
- Hello, Bob Arthur.
I mean, isn't that supposed to be
the point of this great country of ours,
that everybody matters.
Not just the people at this party.
But perhaps more importantly,
those who can't afford to be here.
- Raymond. Sorry to interrupt.
- Excuse me.
- Bob. You know my daughter.
ARTHUR: Tom, I can't believe it.
Of course.
Jocelyn, good to see you again.
ELLIE: Mark.
- Eleanor.
Raymond, your granddad would be
so goddamn proud of you.
Thank you, Mr. Whiting.
Raymond, this is J.B. Johnston,
from Manchurian Global.
RAYMOND: Hi. How are you?
- Pleasure.
ELLIE: And David Donovan,
their managing director.
And co-chair of
the U.S. International Policy Caucus.
Strong supporters, congressman.
They're desperate to be
of service to you, darling.
Thank you, Mother,
I think you've earned your fee.
Oh, no. My plucky idealist.
So, gentlemen, how's business?
Not bad, Raymond.
Business is not bad.
It could always be better.
Any better and you guys
are gonna have
more assets than
the European Union.
Don't we already?
Every great society,
every great civilization,
always anchored by a great navy.
WOMAN: Congressman Shaw.
RAYMOND: Thanks very much.
Nice to see you, Bob.
Thanks for coming.
Congressman.
Ben Marco.
I know. Hello, captain.
How you doing?
- I need to talk to you.
- Okay.
JOCELYN: Oh, my God, Raymond,
it's been so many years.
RAYMOND: And?
JOCELYN: And I've been married,
- I've been divorced.
RAYMOND: Yeah.
Well, you may have noticed
I've changed a bit myself.
No. No, that's not...
No, yes, I have noticed.
I see. It's great.
Congratulations.
My feelings haven't, though.
Changed, I mean.
What feelings? What?
Jocelyn, I have never
stopped wondering
how things might have turned out
between us
- if my mother hadn't...
- Raymond.
Raymond, people can't just
rewrite their lives.
I haven't had a relationship...
...of any consequence
since we stopped seeing each other.
Doesn't that say something to you?
Yeah, that...
That you must be just about
the loneliest person on this earth.
Raymond, we were kids then. It must
have been, what, 15 years ago?
It was sweet, but...
Joce.
Yeah. I have to go.
Yeah.
Best of luck with the campaign.
Thank you.
Joce...
Sergeant Raymond Shaw.
I wanna talk to you too.
- Not now.
- Excuse me, sir.
I mean, I know you're busy,
congressman...
- Don't touch me.
- I'm sorry.
I'm sorry, it's just that, well...
Don't ever touch me.
ANDERSON: Hello, major.
Have you tried the Pad Thai?
I'm told it rules.
MAN: What were you hoping
Congressman Shaw would say?
I don't know, sir.
It's not so much what he said
or didn't say, it was more of his...
...attitude, his demeanor.
Are you taking your meds?
MARCO: Lieutenant Colonel Howard,
with all due respect,
I've had over a dozen years
of experts telling me
that I have Gulf War Syndrome,
I have post-traumatic stress disorder
and every other mood disorder
that you can name.
In those 12 years,
I've been a good soldier.
And I've denied what
every nerve ending in my body
is telling me is more real than not.
I've had one dream,
not variations on a dream,
the same dream.
Night after night...
No. No. I'm sorry.
You're saying that an entire squad
of U.S. Army soldiers
was hypnotized into believing
that Raymond Shaw
deserved the Medal of Honor.
And that somehow,
thanks to your dream,
you're the only one
who knows the truth.
Major Marco, you will stay clear
of Congressman Shaw.
HOWARD:
And you are to resume your medication.
That is an order.
GARRET:
That will be all, major.
RAYMOND: Somewhere right now,
an American soldier in the war on terror
is worried about his
family back home.
Somewhere right now,
in some small American town,
his grandmother is standing
in her kitchen.
She's got her medicine bottle
in one hand,
she's opening the refrigerator
with the other and she's thinking:
"I can pay for my medicine...
... or I can pay for my dinner.
I can't do both. "
I don't believe that our mothers
and grandmothers
should have to face that kind of
decision, not in this country.
I don't believe that the brave men
and women of our armed forces,
risking their lives overseas,
should have to worry
about their families back here
in America.
You see, there are some gaps
in this country...
... deep chasms
that we need to bridge.
The gap between rich and poor,
between government
and the people,
between true security
and the notion of feeling safe.
Second floor, room three,
end of hall.
RAYMOND [ON TV]:
Between what is real...
Don't you just love this guy?
And what is not.
Tough choices are an unavoidable
element of leadership,
I would just urge the governor
to remember that
the primary responsibility
of government...
[WOMAN MOANING NEARBY]
[KNOCKS ON DOOR]
Al Melvin.
Al, it's Ben Marco.
Are you in there?
RAYMOND:
Fox is in the henhouse.
Weasel.
Weasel is...
The weasel is a weasel.
Sir, I'll be right outside.
What?
I'll be right outside, sir.
I know.
- Good night.
- Good night, sir.
[PHONE RINGING]
- Shall I get that for you, sir?
- No.
- Good night, sir.
- Good night.
You have 30 seconds, Mother.
Am I that predictable?
You have no idea.
I'm calling to compliment you,
Mr. Grumpy.
I thought you were
magnificent tonight.
And so did all the network
campaign experts.
And that compassionate
vigilance thing
[PHONE RINGING]
Is working quite well for you.
- I might have to convert.
- I happen to believe in it.
Oh, yes, of course you do.
- Now, Raymond...
- Good night, Mother.
Raymond? What? No, wait, wait.
- Hang on a second.
- What? Raymond?
Are you there?
Yes?
NOYLE:
Sergeant Shaw?
Who is this?
- Sergeant Raymond Shaw?
- Yes.
Raymond Prentiss Shaw?
Yes.
Listen.
Go to the bedroom of your suite.
Enter the hallway there.
Go to the end and open the closet.
Yes, thank you.
- Hello, Raymond.
RAYMOND: Hello.
Do you remember me?
No, sir, I don't.
Brilliant. We've got 20 minutes
for our little checkup
from the neck up, gentlemen,
so if we could take his jacket.
Please sit down.
No, Mr. Villalobos, I'm just...
The Army's got me gathering
information on stress disorders,
so I'm just...
...you know, just running statistics,
trying to find out about my old team...
[PHONE HANGS UP]
MARCO:
Well, listen. Mr. Wilson,
when Nathan came home,
was he preoccupied with Kuwait?
I mean, did he have nightmares
or bad dreams
about the firefight over there?
[CAMERA SHUTTER CLICKING]
NOYLE: You'll feel a little cold
as this anesthetic gel goes on.
Probe sheath...
...and probe.
Please relax.
Are you relaxed, Raymond?
Yes, sir.
NOYLE: Now, Raymond,
I am going to drill a tiny hole in the skull,
which will allow delivery
of the new implant.
So, what you'll feel is a little
discomfort in the form of pressure
and also a loud vibrating noise
in your head,
all of which, of course,
is completely normal.
[MAN SPEAKING
ON TELEVISION NEARBY]
[ROCK MUSIC PLAYING NEARBY]
NOYLE:
Thank you.
Of course, as soon as this
or any task is completed,
you will already have forgotten
that it ever actually took place.
Probe going in now.
[MONITOR BEEPING]
Good.
Excellent.
Releasing implant.
There. That wasn't so bad,
was it, Raymond?
No, sir.
NOYLE:
That's good. No decay, no slippage.
Everything seems to be
in flawless working condition.
NOYLE:
Now, Raymond.
Can you remember the deaths
of Private Baker and Private Ingram?
RAYMOND:
Yes, sir.
NOYLE: Good. Can you describe them
for me, please?
RAYMOND: We're on a routine recon
inside Iraqi-controlled terrain,
assessing troop strength.
"We're on a routine recon
inside Iraqi-controlled terrain,
assessing troop strength."
The mission ends without incident.
We're heading back...
"Toward the command.
The night is clear. Stars..."
The night is clear.
Stars, but no moon.
The patrol is ambushed.
We're engaged unexpectedly by
ground forces with helicopter support.
RPG incoming, mortar fire.
"Captain..."
Captain Marco
is knocked unconscious.
In the ensuing firefight, Eddie Ingram
gets himself separated to the left.
Baker goes after him.
An incoming mortar shell
kills them both instantly
before I am able to locate and
eliminate the source of the ordnance.
MELVIN [WHISPERING]:
Captain. Captain Marco.
Help me.
TOKAR:
Pardon me. Is this seat taken?
I see the captain enjoys
the road less traveled.
ROSIE:
Paper or plastic?
Oh, come on.
From the grocery store.
You know, at the checkout stand.
Paper or plastic girl, that's me.
"Paper or plastic, sir?"
I see you there all the time.
Bennett Marco.
Checks from First National Bank.
Romance novels, instant noodles,
NoDoz and tomatoes.
So anyway, I'm on vacation.
Holiday in the Big Apple
and all of that.
And I saw you sitting here
and I said, "Hey,
why not reach out
and touch someone?"
Ha.
So, what, I suppose
you're heading to New York City.
Yeah, yeah, I'm... Yeah.
Business? Pleasure? Both?
Well, I'm just... I got an old friend
up there, an old Army friend that...
Well, he's in politics now
and I'm just gonna
catch up on old times with him.
I'm sorry, you said your name was?
Eugenie.
What do your friends call you?
My friends, they call me Rosie.
- Rosie?
- Yeah, see, my full name is
Eugenie Rose.
I like the Rosie part better.
Eugenie is, well...
...fragile.
Yeah, but still, when I asked you
your name, you didn't say...
What did you say?
You said Eugenie.
Yeah, well...
...maybe I was feeling fragile
at the time.
Are you okay?
Excuse me.
[SIGHS]
Hello, captain.
Do you remember me?
[SIREN WAILING]
[MAN SPEAKING INDISTINCTLY
ON PA S YSTEM]
Ben.
Hey. I'm gonna get a cab.
You want me to drop you somewhere?
No, I'm okay.
Okay. So your friend's
gonna meet you here, then?
No.
All right.
El Dorado 59970.
It's my cell phone number,
in case you ever... You know.
I like to say it the old-fashioned way.
Can you remember or should I write it
on your chest with a Sharpie?
- I'll remember.
- Okay.
Hey, you're kind of...
You need somewhere to go
to freshen up?
RADIO NEWSCASTER:
Pentagon watchdogs today accused
the private equity fund
Manchurian Global
of grossly overpricing plasma
and other critical medical supplies
during the recent
Indonesian incursion,
even as the company secured
a half-billion-dollar no-bid contract
[SIRENS WAILING]
To provide combat support services
to American soldiers
preparing to mobilize in Sri Lanka.
[WOMAN SPEAKING
INDISTINCTLY]
ROSIE:
There you go.
Come on in.
This is my cousin's apartment.
MARCO: Is she here?
- No.
Be it ever so humble.
No place like home, right?
Believe it or not, there's a view.
Go to the fire escape
and tilt your head up,
you can almost see a tree.
- Can I get you something to drink?
- No, I'm fine.
I've got some dieter's tea.
It's great for your metabolism,
if you're into that.
Or some tomato juice. No? All right.
Or...
...some water?
- No, thank you.
- I'm sorry.
I'm nervous.
I yak when I get nervous.
Where is she, your cousin?
She's on tour with Dreamgirls.
Hey, are you okay?
Yeah.
Look, I'm sorry about
what happened earlier.
You don't have to apologize to me.
I'll make you some tea.
Jesus. Where's the lemon? Okay.
- You okay in there?
- Yeah, I'm fine.
You know, I left you some towels
in there, did you see them?
MARCO:
Uh-huh.
ROSIE: What was that?
- Dropped my bag.
Ben?
Are you okay in there?
Earth to Ben.
Yeah.
- You sure everything's all right?
- Yes.
Ben?
[KNOCKING ON DOOR]
Ah!
Ben?
Ben?
Ben.
Ben?
[METAL CLATTERING IN SINK]
What are you doing?
Did you see that?
What I had in my hand.
MARCO: I wasn't hallucinating, Delp.
I held it in my hand.
MAN:
That's what they all say, Marco.
Some wicked shit got sprayed
on you guys during Desert Storm.
Besides all the depleted uranium,
I mean.
I personally know of
a couple of Rangers
who swear that they see only
in tertiary colors now,
- Delp.
- And can pick up sports talk radio
in their cortical block if they get
too close to a Con-Ed transformer.
It's not Gulf War Syndrome.
The Army did try this
tiny, implantable ID thing.
You could imbed it under the skin,
then scan it like a bar code
for medical emergency information:
Blood type, DNA.
Well, the Army never put one in me.
That you know of, man.
That you know of.
RADIO NEWSCASTER 1:
U.S. Planes bombed selected sites
in Guinea today,
acting on intelligence
that the African nation's military
regime had secretly resumed
its chemical weapons program.
The secretary of defense declined
to comment on the attack,
saying only that the mission
was successful,
targets acquired, that all American
personnel involved here
were home safe and sound.
RADIO NEWSCASTER 2:
Striking transportation workers...
My dreams seem more real to me
than what I actually remember
happening over there. It's like...
It's like somewhere along the line
I got brainwashed or something and...
I'm just, like, all scrambled up.
We have all been
brainwashed, Marco.
As for somebody
imbedding electric probes
and computer chips in your brain
to make you do things,
it's horseshit, man.
A little electroshock...
...and sleep deprivation will do
the trick for a fraction of the price.
Ask the Uzbeks.
What about my dreams?
What if all this is your dream...
...and you are really
still back in Kuwait?
[SIRENS WAILING]
[CROWD CHEERING]
- Thanks for coming out. Thank you.
MAN: Congressman!
- Congressman!
WOMAN: Congressman!
Congressman! Congressman!
Why do you and Governor Arthur
oppose deploying troops
into Indonesia?
Well, Governor Arthur and I believe
we can't clean up the world
with dirty hands.
MARCO:
Sergeant Shaw!
Do you ever dream about Kuwait?
Captain Marco.
It's okay. It's okay.
Nice to see you, sir.
Good evening.
It's good to see you too.
Why did you ask me about Kuwait?
I didn't.
I asked you about your dreams.
- Thank you, Lily.
- Congressman Shaw, I'm sorry.
They wanna know if you can do
an interview with Larry King at 6?
- No, no.
- No to the interview or no to 6?
No. He wants to talk
about my mother. No.
- Everything under control, P. J?
- Hello, sir.
RAYMOND:
Good to see you.
So, captain, what can I do for you?
I just need a few minutes
of your time.
Congressman Shaw,
a moment, please?
Private time.
Unfortunately, this is as private
as it gets for me now.
- I understand.
- He's all right, Will.
- Come on in.
MARCO: Thank you, thank you.
RAYMOND: Hey, George.
- There are these dreams
that some of the men
from our unit have been having.
Including you?
Well...
...it's more of a question
of what actually happened
the night that our patrol
got attacked.
That's easy. We're on a routine recon
inside Iraqi-controlled terrain.
The patrol is ambushed.
RPG incoming, mortar fire.
- You're knocked...
- Unconscious. Exactly the way...
Not to cut you off, but I mean,
exactly the way that I remember it.
But I dreamed something else.
Am I in your dreams, captain?
Yes, you are, congressman.
Saving everybody?
It's a whole lot more complicated
than that. Now, Corporal Melvin,
he's been drawing these pictures
and he wrote down what he dreams.
- Maybe if you just...
- I don't have dreams, captain.
At all? You don't dream at all?
Everybody dreams, right? I mean...
Look, captain, I'd like to help you,
I would, I really would,
but I think you ought to
see somebody.
- Somebody who specializes in...
- I've been to doctors.
Well, good, that's very good,
because they can probably
help you out a lot more than I can.
- I don't know, but...
- Take care, captain.
- Yeah. Yeah. Okay.
- Thanks for coming by.
I'm not crazy, Shaw.
Major.
- Ben. Are you hungry?
- Starving.
Well, it depends on the demographic.
WOMAN:
Excuse me.
- I killed Baker?
MARCO: Well, it's a dream.
I mean, it could mean
something else.
It could mean I'm supposed
to think you did.
No, I killed the enemy.
I didn't know them either, so...
...it was okay.
And anyway, I remember what we did
in Kuwait. I remember it perfectly.
I just...
...don't remember actually doing it.
Maybe you didn't do it.
No.
What a thought.
What?
Life is so bizarre, isn't it?
Which part?
I don't know.
What you saw downstairs.
This campaign. Politics.
My whole public life and persona.
I mean, posing and grinning
like a goddamn sock puppet,
shaking hands with total strangers
who must be completely blind
if they can't see
what I am at the core.
What my mother has made me.
A Prentiss.
Ferociously a Prentiss.
- But not a Shaw. No, sir.
- I see.
No, you don't.
You can't.
I was 20 years old
before I had a friend.
Worse, a girlfriend. Well, you know,
from my point of view, anyway.
A friend outside of my mother's circle
of approved encounters
and she...
...my mother...
[CLEARS THROAT]
God only knows what she told
Jocelyn to chase her away.
Precipitating my sole act
of rebellion:
Storming off...
...and enlisting in the Army.
But after the war...
...I came back to her.
Why did you come back?
What happened?
Weren't you listening?
Mother happened.
You know, the truth is I hate it.
I've always despised the Medal.
The cloying adulation
of the little people.
It's certainly...
...nothing for you
to be jealous of, major.
I'm not jealous.
I don't have the dreams, Ben.
How could you not remember
saving our unit?
I do. I said I did.
No, no, you didn't. You said
that you didn't remember doing it.
That's what you just said
a couple minutes ago.
When I think about that night...
...it's as if I know what will happen.
The thing is, I never seem
to get to the point
where I feel that it actually
does happen.
But I'm sure that's perfectly normal.
Okay. Well, have you discussed this
with anyone? These discrepancies?
Who would I share that with?
My old Army buddies
who love and adore me
for saving their
pathetically unimportant,
present company excluded, asses?
You could discuss it
with Army intelligence.
You could go down there.
I mean, I could go with you
and discuss it and you can tell them
what you remember,
what you don't remember,
and they could...
...run some tests.
Yeah, tests. Boy.
The press would have
a field day with that.
Somebody put an implant inside me.
I found it this morning.
I've got the hole in my back
if you wanna take a look at it.
And I got a good feeling
they put one in you too.
Nobody has put anything
in me, Ben.
Let's prove it.
Why don't, you know...
- We'll go get an x-ray...
- Look, Ben,
I wanna be supportive of you. I do.
But don't you think this could wait
till after the election?
Why? For what?
- What are you scared of?
- I'm not afraid of anything.
- Then why don't we just prove it...
- Know what? I think you should leave.
- I'm sorry, I really...
- Listen.
Somebody got into our heads
with big steel-toe boots,
cable cutters and a chainsaw
and they went to town.
Neurons got... Got...
Got exposed and circuits got rewired.
Our brain cells got
obliterated, Raymond.
Please.
You need to get help, Ben.
What are you doing? Ben!
[RAYMOND YELLING]
Stop! Stop!
ANDERSON:
Inside! Inside!
Congressman!
He bit him. He bit him.
Get him out of here.
Are you okay, sir?
- Leave me alone.
ANDERSON: Sir, we should...
Get out!
MAN:
We fished him out of the Potomac River
about 4:45 yesterday afternoon.
What were you doing
in Al Melvin's apartment?
I went to talk to him.
He wasn't home.
Talk about what? Dreams?
Interesting stuff.
MARCO: Yeah, there's hundreds
of those in his place.
You should have your people
check it out.
Oh, we'll get on that right away.
Colonel Garret was kind enough
to show us the file on you, Marco.
You are the real deal, aren't you?
Special Forces. Rangers. Delta.
MARCO:
I wanted to talk to Corporal Melvin
to ask him some
unanswered questions about...
...our reconnaissance
in Kuwait back in '91.
- He wasn't home.
- Right. He wasn't there.
So, what, you thought it was okay
to just break in and wait for him?
I didn't kill him,
if that's where you're headed.
Nobody said you did.
Maybe he committed suicide.
[MARCO SIGHS]
What's your obsession
with Raymond Shaw?
I'm not obsessed
with Raymond Shaw.
The man of his dreams.
MARCO: You may want to ask
your medical examiners
to check Melvin's back.
It's under the skin
just shy of the scapula.
They may find a implant.
Just under the skin, left side. If they
don't look real hard, they won't find it.
[WILLIAMS HUMS
"TWILIGHT ZONE" THEME]
They could sing that while
they're looking for it if they like.
- Implants.
- That's what I said.
I-M-plant.
Yeah, but judging from
your file here, apparently,
you don't know your shit
from your oatmeal, my friend.
WILLIAMS:
Excuse me. This is unnecessary.
You got a problem?
Psycho? You look a little angry.
Maybe you wanna hit me?
Go ahead, you can do it.
- Hey!
HOWARD: For God's sake, Ben...
He hit me.
ELLIE:
And you wanna help him?
RAYMOND: No. That would be
political suicide. Of course not.
I want you to help him.
I can't even imagine why.
Mother, I can assure you, I am as
uncomfortable asking you to do this
as you are being asked.
My campaign people are getting
a restraining order against him.
He's going on every security watch list,
but I won't lock him up.
- I'm not pressing charges.
- What?
I don't know, it's just...
I don't wanna talk
about this right now.
Can we get back to the campaign
and focus on something...
Raymond, you don't actually
believe his story?
No.
But he does.
And he's a fine soldier.
And if his slim hold
on sanity requires
that I tolerate his delusions
until he can get help, I'll do it.
It doesn't diminish me.
I'm not afraid of him.
Raymond.
How much do you actually know
about your friend?
ELLIE:
Oh, that's sad.
Poor little tin soldier.
Mother, please.
Well, just imagine how terrified
your people were yesterday
when Major Marco showed up
at campaign headquarters
and you invite...
My God, you invited him in.
With all they know about him.
I know him.
I served under him.
He was a good man.
Well, that's what the neighbors
always say about serial killers.
[SIRENS WAILING]
[RAP MUSIC PLAYS]
[REPORTER SPEAKS
INDISTINCTLY ON RADIO]
You're out of here.
Shaw won't press charges.
Someone from
Senator Eleanor Shaw's office called
and intervened on your behalf.
Major, you've reached the terminal end
of the Army's patience.
You're relieved of duty,
effective immediately.
Yes, sir.
Ben,
there is a young neurologist
at Walter Reed. His name is Zahn.
He's had real success
with Gulf War Syndrome.
You are instructed to get
your affairs in order
and report to him
first thing Monday morning.
DELP:
I thought you said you lost it.
MARCO:
I bit a guy. I found another one.
DELP:
Uh-huh.
These are not supposed to exist.
These are only theoretical.
So, what does it do?
- I don't know.
- You don't know?
I don't know.
I don't wanna know.
You don't wanna know.
Look, it's out of you
and you are still alive.
That's the good news.
What's the bad news?
Maybe they know you're here.
You said the Army implants,
they were for
emergency medical data, right?
The ones they publicized were.
There was a parallel project
for all kinds of scary implantables.
The Clinton watchdogs finally
freaked out about it, closed down.
Parallel project?
How did you know about that?
Manchurian Global funded me
to make some of their scary shit.
Heard of them?
Imagine not just
a corporation, Marco,
but a goddamn geopolitical
extension of policy
for every president since Nixon.
Cash is king, Marco.
Cash is king.
You sure you wanna do this?
Absolutely.
Because I don't.
I'll owe you one.
No.
I still owe you.
For getting me out of Albania.
Albania.
[CHUCKLES]
DELP:
What are you doing?
MARCO: Oh, in case
I forget things I wanna remember.
DELP: I'm putting you on a cocktail
of methohexitol to take the edge off.
MARCO:
The edge off of what?
DELP: Getting clarity.
Or whatever you wanna call it.
ECT not being
the precise science that, say,
leeching is.
You don't think
this is gonna work?
It's a desperation move, man.
But, hey, there is a school
of thought that says
a victim of induced abreaction...
Here it comes.
[MONKEYS SCREECHING]
[BEEPING]
SOLDIERS:
The night is clear. Stars, but no moon.
The patrol is ambushed.
We were on a routine recon
inside Iraqi-controlled terrain,
assessing troop strength...
Captain Marco was
knocked unconscious.
In the ensuing firefight, Eddie Ingram
gets himself separated to the left.
Baker goes after him.
Hello, captain.
ALL: Before Sergeant Shaw
is able to locate...
Eddie Ingram gets himself
separated to the left.
[PANTING]
[SOLDIERS SPEAKING
INDISTINCTLY]
[GASPS]
[SEAGULLS CAWING]
[MARCO GRUNTS]
[NO AUDIBLE DIALOGUE]
Did you go blank on me again?
He said this would happen.
Who?
Your German friend.
Your friend.
Ben.
He said it'd be like
a computer system crash.
That your brain would shut down,
but it would reboot again
and you'd forget all your RAM.
Or most of your RAM.
[GRUNTS]
Do you remember me?
Do you remember me?
Ben?
Eugenie.
MARCO:
How did I get here?
ROSIE:
You called me.
MARCO:
Where am I?
RADIO REPORTER:
- Planning a suicide bombing.
The Mile High City has suffered
a series of brutal attacks
during the past several months.
Senator Eleanor Prentiss Shaw,
does it bother you at all
that your son repudiates
so many of your more
- controversial policies?
- No. He's his own person.
Raymond and I may disagree
on certain issues,
but I think we share
the same fundamental vision
of what this country can be.
- Which is?
- Better.
Better and better.
Safer, braver, stronger.
A beacon of freedom
in a world troubled by shadows.
America must prevail.
The future and survival
of modern civilization,
democracy, freedom,
all depend upon it.
REPORTER:
So your son, Congressman Shaw...
MARCO:
Rosie.
[REPORTER AND ELLIE
SPEAKING INDISTINCTLY ON TV]
Hm?
I was in the park on Friday?
We were in the park on Monday.
Monday?
- Yep.
- Monday.
We were flying low.
It's, like, over the ocean, and just...
A field hospital.
And they took us up to this place.
- Where? Military?
- I don't know. I don't know.
Just state-of-the-art stuff everywhere.
Stainless steel and wires
and tubes and monitors.
- Were you tortured?
- No. Yeah.
I mean, there was pain.
You know, it was like...
I don't know what they call it.
Invasive procedure.
For example?
Like what? What do you mean?
Invasive.
See, they were in my head...
...and they made me...
Well, Raymond Shaw,
they made him kill somebody.
Like it was nothing.
Private Robert Baker.
That's who it was, it was a private.
One of my soldiers.
I think they made me
kill somebody too.
A kid named Eddie Ingram.
NOYLE:
Private Ingram, stand up.
Walk a few steps, please.
And if you could secure the door,
please, Chris.
Captain Marco.
Stand up.
- Raymond.
- Yes, sir.
There's a gun on the cupboard.
Would you please take it
and give it to Captain Marco.
RAYMOND:
Yes, sir.
NOYLE:
Here.
RAYMOND:
Captain.
Sir!
Captain Marco,
please shoot Private Ingram.
Now, Raymond,
suffocate Private Baker.
Kill him.
[FAN BLADES WHIRRING]
[GRUNTS]
Keep going, Raymond.
[CHOKING]
I knew the...
A soldier knows the enemy.
I'm in command.
That's primary, I know.
I thought I knew...
...who the enemy was.
My men, they trusted me
with their lives, you know?
Don't.
Don't touch me.
ROSIE: Ben, the person that did this,
what was his name?
Can you remember?
Did he have a name?
Ben?
[MAN ON TV
SPEAKING INDISTINCTLY]
[AUDIENCE ON TV LAUGHING]
[REPORTER ON TV
SPEAKING INDISTINCTLY]
[SIRENS WAILING]
[CAR HORN HONKS]
Smile if you like.
This will just take a minute.
ROSIE [ON TAPE]:
I see you there all the time.
Bennett Marco.
Checks from First National Bank.
Romance novels, instant noodles,
NoDoz and tomatoes.
[TAPE FAST-FORWARDS]
MARCO: Old friend
up there, an old Army friend that...
Well, he's in politics now...
[TAPE FAST-FORWARDS]
MARCO:
What else did we talk about?
ROSIE: What happened to you
after you were captured?
Black helicopters,
secret laboratories...
... mad scientist, mind drugs...
... shock torture
and Raymond Shaw.
MARCO:
You don't believe any of it, do you?
ROSIE: It's crazy.
MARCO: It sounds crazy, doesn't it?
ROSIE: It sounds crazy.
MARCO: That's what they wanted me
to think too. It's exactly what
they want you to think.
[TAPE FAST-FORWARDS]
ROSIE: What about the other guys
from your unit?
Where are they?
MARCO: They're all gone.
So-called natural causes.
Owens died of cancer in '97.
Villalobos' car crashed.
Atkins committed suicide.
Jameson died 9/11, Pentagon.
[TAPE FAST-FORWARDS]
ROSIE: Ben?
MARCO: Yeah?
ROSIE: Did he have a name?
MARCO: Who?
ROSIE:
The person that did this, Ben.
What was his name?
Can you remember?
Ben.
MARCO: Yeah?
ROSIE: Did he have a name?
[NO AUDIBLE DIALOGUE]
You only have to look
at the enormous strides made
in the last decade
with the genetic reconfiguration
of the noble tomato.
What was happening was the tomato
was over-ripening in the process
and it was losing its flavor.
It's actually a very simple procedure
to deactivate the gene concerned.
And the same thing
can be applied to ourselves.
At a flick of a switch,
we can adjust character,
change personality.
And of course, more importantly...
... we can offset
the ravages of dementia
by implanting memory or adjusting
the synaptic connections.
We can free people
from the terrible burden
of an emotionally
compromised past.
MARCO: Watch where you're going!
MAN 1: Sorry.
Watch where you're going!
Just back up! Just back up.
Watch it. Watch it. Shut up.
MAN 2:
Take it easy, sir.
I called the Pentagon and they told me
he's on medical leave.
Secret Service, they got him on a
couple of their watch and observe lists.
I guess there's been some trouble with
this guy involving Congressman Shaw.
Oh?
JORDAN: Among the shareholders
in Manchurian Global,
were they to ever publish a list,
which they won't,
you would find former presidents,
deposed kings,
trust fund terrorists,
fallen Communist dictators,
ayatollahs, African warlords
and retired prime ministers.
- See what I mean?
- I get it. They're big. They're huge.
They're... They're...
They're gigantic.
I can't touch them. I get it.
I don't want to.
And you bring me rumors
and conjecture.
I started with nightmares.
Rumors, conjectures,
that's a giant leap forward.
Nightmares that you've interpreted
using as primary resources
A, your spotty memory,
B, the Internet,
sacred sanctuary of idiots and nutters.
That's how they're gonna look at this.
And C, a crazy man's notebook,
along with evidence you chewed
out of a man's back.
All neatly stitched together
with a common thread
of a supremely powerful,
well-connected private equity fund,
who, if you ever get
anywhere near them,
will plead ignorance
and be shocked.
Shocked to learn
what some of their subsidiary
partners are engaged in.
I could give a rat's ass
about Manchurian Global, sir.
I could give a rat's ass about them.
That is not why I'm here.
I looked you up too, senator.
Oh?
You were in the Army.
JORDAN:
I was drafted.
Didn't make much of a soldier,
I'm afraid. Let me see this.
That's not what I saw in the record.
That's not what the record says, sir.
And you know how it works.
Wars are fought
one battle at a time.
Battles, you win one bullet at a time.
And I'd be lying to you if I said
that I didn't factor in,
in a huge way,
the fact that you have
a vested, personal,
political and patriotic interest
in how all of this shakes out.
I'd be lying to you.
You're right, major.
I do.
RADIO NEWSCASTER:
A $5,000-a-plate dinner
honoring the CEO
of Votron Incorporated,
the nation's third-largest producer of
the controversial touch-screen units
that will be used in the forthcoming
election, was disrupted last night,
when protestors disguised as
waiters and kitchen staff
unleashed a blizzard
of symbolic chants from above,
resulting in a momentary panic.
The supporters of presidential hopeful
Vice President Edward Nelson
fled to exits and dove under tables.
Security personnel quickly subdued
the protestors, one of whom...
ELLIE:
The man is insane, Tom.
Full-blown schizophrenia.
He's been stalking Raymond,
the FBI is all over this already.
I've seen the files.
- Have you seen them?
- All over what?
Your bipolar war buddy
has been sharing his dreams
with Senator Jordan.
Hello, Raymond.
Hello, senator.
How's Jocelyn?
Have you fact-checked this
with anyone, Tom?
- Raymond.
ELLIE: Hm?
JORDAN:
Do you recognize this man?
No.
His name is Atticus Noyle.
He's a South African scientist
and mercenary.
Someone our CIA turned to
for covert mind warfare
against the Soviets in Afghanistan.
Someone who has sold
his technology and services
to terrorists and rogue states.
And what does he
have to do with me?
Major Bennett Marco
claims that this man...
...brainwashed you.
In his dreams.
Contrived to have you win
the Medal of Honor.
And has you poised to be the first
privately owned and operated
vice president of the United States.
Sir, I've already spoken
with Ben Marco.
Unfortunately, he's not a well man.
He's delusional.
Nevertheless,
he's pulled from his mad hat
some remarkably lucid connections
between his dreams
of your exploits in Kuwait
and this Dr. Noyle
and the private equity fund
Manchurian Global,
your mother's primary political
benefactor for the past 15 years.
Oh, come on, Tom.
They contribute to half the Senate.
Both sides of the aisle.
What are you saying?
At the time of Desert Storm,
Dr. Atticus Noyle
was working under a research grant
from Manchurian Global,
developing deep implant
behavior modification.
Oh, my God.
Rogue scientists, mind control,
Manchurian Global.
- You.
- Tom.
Connect the dots, Raymond.
Where was your famous
Lost Patrol
for those three missing days?
Eluding capture in the desert?
Or somewhere else,
being microwaved
by this Atticus Noyle?
- Oh, Tom.
- I'm sorry, senator,
but what exactly
are you suggesting I do?
Bow out gracefully.
Personal reasons,
an obscure illness.
Yield your spot on the ticket
and go into seclusion.
Oh, that's what this is about.
And then surrender yourself
to federal authorities.
Help them trace this thing
to its source
and address whatever damage
may have been done to you.
And I'll be waiting
for your press announcement
first thing in the morning.
- And then we'll talk.
- Tom.
If there's any inkling of truth
in any of these charges,
if anyone has ever harmed
a hair on his head,
I will find out about it.
You have 12 hours, senator.
But if it's not true,
I will see you impeached
on the floor of the Senate
and bury you.
Good night.
It's preposterous.
Idiotic story.
Mother, there's something
I have to tell you.
What?
I've been having the dreams.
Ben said there were tests
they could run to see if...
No. Where are you going?
Sergeant Shaw.
What?
Sergeant Raymond Shaw.
RAYMOND:
Mother, I...
ELLIE:
Raymond Prentiss Shaw.
RAYMOND:
Yes.
ELLIE:
Listen.
[SEAGULLS CAWING]
[TRAIN HORN HONKING]
CONDUCTOR [ON PA]:
Good morning to you all,
and welcome to Amtrak's
northbound Acela,
making station stops
at Baltimore, Philadelphia,
Newark, New York's
Penn Station
and Boston as the last stop...
Who's that?
RAYMOND:
It's Raymond, sir.
JORDAN:
Oh, don't do that.
You're gonna get
soaking wet, Raymond.
Raymond.
I came to apologize, sir.
Raymond, what are you doing?
- I'm sorry.
- We'll get some help for you, son.
It's not your fault, Raymond.
It's not your fault.
- I'm sorry, sir.
- It's your mother...
[GURGLING]
Dad!
Help!
Oh, God. Daddy!
Help!
Raymond? What are you doing?!
What is going on?
What is happening?
Where's my father?
What are you doing?
Dad! Dad!
[GURGLING]
TV NEWSCASTER:
The five-term senator
and recent front-runner for his party's
vice presidential nomination
appears to have
accidentally drowned
when his kayak overturned near
his Chesapeake Bay weekend home.
Police say his daughter,
35-year-old Jocelyn,
may have been trying
to rescue Jordan
when she was herself overcome
by the icy water.
The bodies of Senator Jordan
and his daughter
were discovered this morning
by a crab fisherman
who spotted the capsized kayak
floating far offshore,
nearly a mile from
Senator Jordan's residence.
Neighbors say the senator was an
expert kayaker whose morning trips
were a familiar sight along
the western bank of the Bay.
TV REPORTER: Governor Arthur,
do you have any comment
on this tragic event?
Senator Jordan was a statesman
of the highest integrity.
Tom Jordan was a friend.
A damn fine man.
Just a great American.
That's all for now. We'll have
something for you a little later.
TV NEWSCASTER: They're the latest
target of SEC corruption probes,
but private equity fund
Manchurian Global confirmed today
it is continuing with plans to
finance privately owned combat units
to relieve beleaguered
U.S. Troop deployments worldwide.
It is a move that could save the
Defense Department billions of dollars.
How does Arthur die?
You know who I'm talking about,
the new president.
If he dies, Raymond Shaw becomes
the new president, doesn't he?
Chain of succession.
That's what you got in mind.
That's what you people wanna do.
You wanna really run the world,
don't you, Susie? Rosie?
Whatever the hell your name is. I got
my library card and I got your tapes.
I do my research too.
We're going to the feds,
we're going to the police,
the newspapers, whatever it takes.
I am the feds.
Now, get off me!
[ROSIE PANTING]
Get off of me!
We found...
...an implant device...
...in Al Melvin.
You found one in Melvin.
Just like you said.
I'm part of a shadow unit.
We've been watching you.
Trying to sort this thing out.
This isn't an election, this is a coup.
This is... In our own country,
a regime change, in our own country.
Ben, don't. Ben.
This is rich people, Manchurian Global
funding bad science
to put a sleeper in the White House,
and that's what's going on, Rosie.
- That's what's going on.
- I wanna believe you.
Well, then, believe me.
Help me. Help me.
Shoot me, then.
Help me or shoot me.
Make a decision.
Make a decision.
I made a decision
when I met you, Ben.
Now, why don't you show me
what you have in your file.
REPORTER 1: Sir!
REPORTER 2: Congressman!
[REPORTERS YELLING]
REPORTER 3: Sir, do you have
a statement for us tonight?
DONOVAN:
- Was exceptionally clear and simple.
A stronger, safer,
more profitable world
through uncorruptible
top-level management.
We trust you with our technology
and suddenly you turn him
into a common hit man.
How fucking dare you.
I trusted you with my son.
You didn't even ask us...
Don't lecture me! You swore to me
that this was fail-safe.
No leaks, no glitches, no...
No dreams.
Not even a shadow of what was done
to Raymond...
You needed to ask before you acted.
This is not a...
Tom Jordan was going to destroy
my son and everything I've worked for,
and every one of us along with it.
And you wanted me to what?
- Call a meeting?
- Now, look, look, look.
In the larger course of history...
...there are key players...
...and role players, senator.
Bullshit! This is about my son
and the future of this country.
I thought we understood each other.
I think we do. I think we really do.
- Your god is money.
- Oh, wait, wait, and yours is?
No, no. I'm a believer.
I am an optimist.
I believe in the future.
And people who do,
the ones who make history
instead of just sitting around
watching it,
no, they're willing to take
the big risks.
Yes, I made a decision.
Oh, God! Where are
all the men anymore?
My father, Tyler Prentiss,
never asked,
"Is this okay? Is this okay?"
You know what I'm saying, Mark?
He just did what needed to be done.
RADIO NEWSCASTER:
Come on, rise and shine, New York.
It's a big day in the Big Apple.
That's right. All polls indicate
that New Yorkers will be turning out
in record numbers today
across the five boroughs
to select a new president.
At least, that's how the billboard
says it's supposed to happen.
The polls open at 6 a.m.
And bars and taverns in Manhattan,
Brooklyn, Queens, the Bronx,
and Staten Island will be
opening shortly thereafter.
That's right, New Yorkers. We are
free to drink and vote all day today.
[CROWD CHEERING]
[SPEAKS INDISTINCTLY]
RAYMOND:
Thank you. Thank you.
Thanks for coming out.
[SPEAKING INDISTINCTLY]
Congressman, good luck.
- Hello.
- Hi.
- Hey. Thank you very much.
WOMAN 1: The next vice president, sir.
I hope so.
MAN:
Let's have a win.
WOMAN 2:
We're with you. We're with you.
Thank you, Tony, take care.
[ANDERSON WHISPERING
INDISTINCTLY]
Thank you.
[CROWD APPLAUDING
AND CHEERING]
Take care. Goodbye.
Thanks very much.
ROSIE:
It's clean.
It's clean.
It's all right, Evan.
How's your back?
I've been having the dreams, Ben.
Oh, that's good.
- They're inside my head.
- We'll get them out. I got the proof.
I know what they did to us.
I just don't know why.
I dream things, Ben.
Terrible things that can't
possibly have happened.
- I'm gone, Ben...
- No, you're not, you're right here.
Ben...
...there's something I want
you to have.
I don't deserve this.
Jocelyn's dead.
I know.
And the senator.
Yeah.
Did I?
I think so, Raymond, yes.
I don't remember, Ben.
I don't remember.
Raymond...
...did they tell you what it is
they want you to do?
That's what I gotta find out.
We gotta find out what's gonna
happen, where it's gonna happen...
Are we friends, Ben?
I wanna believe we were friends.
We are connected and that's
something nobody can take from us.
You could've had me locked up,
but you didn't.
That's proof that there's something
deep inside.
There's a part that they can't get to.
And it's deep inside of us.
And that's where the truth is.
That's our only hope. That's what
you and me need to tap into,
and that's what you and I are gonna
use to take them out, Raymond.
We don't have much time. Please.
- I thought you were smarter than that.
- Raymond, please.
You don't think they saw this
coming, Ben?
You don't think they factored you in?
[PHONE RINGING]
I am the enemy, Major Marco.
What are you talking about?
Yes, Mother.
Yes, he's right here.
- She wants you.
- Me?
Yes, senator.
ELLIE: Is this Captain Marco?
- Yeah.
Captain Bennett Marco?
Yes.
Bennett Ezekiel Marco.
Yes.
Listen.
[SCHOOL BELL RINGING]
[CHILDREN CHATTERING]
Hurry up!
ROSIE:
Major Marco?
Ben?
GIRL: People can get together
whenever they want
and not get in trouble.
People should be allowed to say
what is on their mind...
The Bill of Rights gives people...
[CROWD CHEERING]
Thank you.
The candidates made ritual trips
to the voting booths today.
Governor Arthur,
casting his ballot in North Platte,
will spend election night
in the Big Apple
with running mate Raymond Shaw
for their anticipated victory party.
The presidential rival,
incumbent Vice President Nelson
returned to his home
in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
He attended special church services
this morning...
- All clear.
ELLIE: Raymond...
- Clear.
- ... listen.
The bullet will strike Bob Arthur
the moment you step forward
and arrive on your star beside him.
Because the assassin...
...the deranged, obsessed...
...tragically paranoid lone gunman...
...is trying to kill you.
Major Marco's
an excellent marksman.
Mmm.
But you must stay very, very still
and stand right where you're
supposed to stand.
What happens to Ben?
The assassin always dies, baby.
It's necessary for
the national healing.
I'm sure you will never entirely
comprehend this, darling.
But I want you to know, Raymond...
...I did this for you.
So that you could have
what I couldn't.
What your father threw away.
The opportunity to lead this nation.
- I know, Mother.
- And so I let them take you
and change you a little bit.
Not so much that you would notice,
but just enough to bring you back
to who you really are.
And to what you will become.
Oh, and look at you.
Look at you.
Look what you've achieved,
look how far we've come.
It's working, Raymond.
And you're going to save
our country now.
In the hour of her greatest need.
Yes, Mother.
But...
But when you smile...
...oh, darling, when you smile,
that's what I live for.
When you smile.
Well, it's official.
CBS News now projects
Robert Arthur and Raymond Shaw
to be the next president
and vice president
of the United States.
With at least 270 electoral votes
and support of almost 70 percent
of votes tallied tonight.
Arthur and running mate
Raymond Shaw are leading
in all but one remaining race,
in the sitting vice president's
home state of Louisiana.
Wait, Jimmy. Jimmy, wait.
Wait. Go back.
Can you go back?
Yeah.
ROSIE: Stop.
JIMMY: Sure.
Now, can you zoom in on that guy?
Yep.
No, no, Jimmy, the other one. The one
in the back. The one in the shades.
- This one?
- Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Hm.
Never mind. Thanks, Jimmy.
[CROWD CHEERING NEARBY]
Arthur! That's right!
Arthur! Arthur!
- We did it. Wow.
- Yeah!
All right! Yes!
- Yes.
- Hi.
Thank you. Thank you.
Thank you.
CROWD [CHANTING]:
Arthur! Arthur! Arthur! Arthur!
Let's have a good show, people.
Let's have a really good show, okay?
CROWD [CHANTING]:
Arthur! Arthur! Arthur! Arthur!
Cue screens.
Very good.
[CROWD CHEERING]
Stand by with the first music cue.
Now, music.
[ORCHESTRAL MUSIC PLAYING]
Okay.
Damn it.
Shaw missed his first position.
[FIREWORKS EXPLODING]
[FOUNTAINS OF WAYNE'S
"BETTER THINGS" PLAYING]
[SPEAKS INDISTINCTLY]
AOP! AOP!
Up there!
[SPEAKING INDISTINCTLY]
[PANTING]
ROSIE:
Ben!
Ben!
ROSIE:
All right. Bye.
[BEEPING]
TV NEWSCASTER: The FBI
has just released security footage
of the assassin of Raymond
and Eleanor Prentiss Shaw
entering the hotel two hours
before the fatal shooting.
Authorities have identified
the gunman as Klaus Bachmann.
Bachmann was believed to have been
killed in a car bomb explosion
in Chechnya four years ago.
He was employed there as a
covert operation specialist
by Global Endeavors,
a U.K. Subsidiary of the equity fund
giant Manchurian Global.
A second former Manchurian Global
civilian contractor
was taken into custody
by federal agents
at Chicago's O'Hare Airport
early this morning.
Laurence Tokar made news
during the Gulf War
for his presence on Raymond Shaw's
famed Lost Patrol.
Tokar was missing in action after
the ambush that resulted in Shaw
being awarded the
Congressional Medal of Honor.
Authorities are exploring additional
connections between the two men.
Still reeling from the recent tragic loss
of Senator Thomas Jordan,
Congress has already announced
a far-reaching investigation
into Jordan's death,
in an effort to learn if it is in any way
related to the Shaw assassinations.
In a supercharged encounter
moments ago, president-elect Arthur...
[MAN SPEAKING INDISTINCTLY
ON RADIO]
MARCO:
I remember running.
I had to...
...get out...
...to where the sky was. And had to...
...get to the water.
Escape. Regroup.
Come back, get my men.
I thought that if I could just
get to the water...
...everything would be okay.
If I could just get to the water.
[SEAGULLS CAWING]
NOYLE: Now, when you're rescued
and returned with your patrol
to command headquarters,
what will be among the first
of your duties that you'll undertake?
MARCO: I'll recommend Sergeant
Shaw for the Medal of Honor, sir.
He saved our lives.
He terminated the enemy.
Led us across the desert to safety.
NOYLE:
Excellent. And there were casualties?
MARCO:
There's always casualties in war, sir.