"My name is melinda gordon." "I just got married, just moved to a small town, just opened up an antique shop." "I might be just like you." "Except from the time that i was a little girl, i knew that i could talk to the dead." "Grandmother:" "It's all right, honey." "Earthbound spirits, my grandmother called them, the ones who have not crossed over because they have unfinished business with the living, and they come to me for help." "To tell you my story, i have to tell you theirs." "Double jab cross." "Ok." "Double jab cross!" "Stay on top of him." "Stay on top of him!" "Be first!" "Be first!" "1, 2, 1, 2." "Get inside... and time!" "Nice work, nice work, nice work." "Hey, teo, don't make me come up there and show you how it's done, huh?" "Keep dreaming." "What's going on?" "We selling those tickets?" "We had to print more." "I'm gonna go hit up the ladies in the self-defense class." "Nice." "Ladies." "My new target audience." "Hah!" "Hah!" "And again, and attack!" "Hah!" "Hah!" "Ok." "I can't wait to see you all next time." "Ladies, don't forget, next saturday, it's fight night right here in our own beautiful village square." "It's our own teo de la costa vs. Jackie o'callahan from centerville." "I have to tell you, i do not get boxing." "2 guys hit each other over and over again on purpose until one of them falls down." "Oh, well, it's quicker than football." "All the proceeds go right to the firehouse reconstruction project, too." "So, i'll see you at the store?" "Mm-hmm." "Oh, bring coffee?" "Of course." "Muffin?" "I think i've earned it." "Pumpkin." "Ooh!" "Done!" "Girls, stone cold." "Ho ho!" "That's right." "Hey." "Hey, come on." "I want you to meet teo." "Uhh!" "Teo, sorry to interrupt." "I wanted to introduce you to my wife." "Mrs. Clancy, it's a pleasure." "Mrs. Clancy is my mother-in-law." "Please, just call me melinda." "Melinda." "That's what i taught him." "Never to call a grownup by their first name unless given permission." "Um... just one thing, though." "Do you think you could take a dive in the eighth, 'cause i got a couple hundred bucks on o'callahan." "You made a bad bet, my friend." "Take a dive." "My son would never do such a thing." "It was a joke." "No, no, it's not a joke." "I gotta cover all my bases." "You're crazy, dude." "All right." "Do what you do best." "I'll check you later." "All right." "Hey, jim." "What's up, baby?" "How you doin'?" "[Speaking spanish]" "My spanish is a little rusty." "Can you see me?" "Come on." "Something terrible has happened to my family." "?" "i know you can see me." "I know." "I can tell by the way you're pretending not to see me." "Not here." "I can't talk to you here." "Can you see me now?" "Ok, new policy." "No more talking to ghosts in public." "Too many people staring, and nobody is buying the cell phone excuse." "Is this some kind of stream of consciousness thing you picked up in yoga class?" "Oh, um, ok." "Su..." "uh... i'll be in the back room doing some stuff." "You have to help me." "With what?" "My husband." "He was always with my son, always watching over him, protecting him, and now they're not even talking to each other, and i don't know why." "Do you know when they stopped talking to each other?" "Was it before you died?" "I don't remember." "All the medicine that they gave me made me so foggy." "Do you remember your name?" "Oh." "I'm so sorry." "Yes." "My name is estella de la costa." "Estella, let me be honest." "I think this is a domestic problem between 2 living people, and they need to work it out for themselves." "It's not really what i do." "Hi." "So, then, what do you do?" "I help people cross over." "I cannot even think about cross over before i know what happened to them." "Look, i'm sorry." "Family disputes are none of my business." "This is something you need to make peace with and move... it's not a family dispute." "It's not that simple." "It can't be." "[Bells on door jingle]" "They just love each other so much." "Oh, hi." "Just once, i wish one of those ghosts following you around would actually buy something." "Ok." "I don't understand something about you." "Plain pizza?" "Uhh!" "You don't like anything on it at all?" "I'm a purist." "You, mr." "Gourmet cook, and you have naked pizza." "That is just indecent." "As soon as you put meat and fish and pineapple on a pizza, it's not pizza anymore." "It's frankenpizza." "It's unnatural, and actually, it's insulting to the pizza." "Now you're saying i'm insulting pizza?" "I'm surprised it's even speaking to you." "You need help." "I am begging you to get help for that whole thing." "All right." "Ha ha ha ha!" "I met someone interesting today." "Should i be jealous?" "A living person?" "Oh, right." "Of course not." "How could that be interesting?" "Teo's mother." "No kidding." "You know anything about the family at all?" "Not really." "Well, his dad used to train him at that gym, but he hasn't been around for a long time." "Well, apparently, he hasn't talked to his dad in a long time, and his mom doesn't know why." "What happened to her?" "I don't know." "She doesn't know." "I don't know if there's anything i can do." "I mean, i want to help her, but then, am i getting involved in their family business?" "Yeah." "I just feel like i have to start setting some boundaries, you know?" "What do you think?" "That's a tough call, because when you start talking about boundaries, i start thinking about uninterrupted dinners, nights at the movies, and weekends out of town, and... right." "Am i a bad person?" "No." "Because then i start thinking about teo and his dad, and they used to be at that gym 24/7." "I mean, his dad was training him to get ready for the olympics." "Well, the least i can do is let teo talk to his mom and see if she can get them back together." "Right, yeah." "Hey, i think one of your anchovies is violating the air space of my perfectly plain pizza." "Embrace the anchovy." "Embrace it." "Come on, do it." "You need help." "You know you want to." "I'll embrace it." "You think i need help?" "This is me, embracing it." "Ooh!" "Oh, my god." "It's alive." "Out, demon." "Ha ha ha!" "You need a sparring partner?" "No way." "I'd definitely be outclassed by you." "Oh, it's true." "I am undefeated in my weight class." "Ha ha ha ha!" "Did i interrupt?" "No." "Melinda, right?" "Right." "Everyone's really excited about the fight." "Yeah?" "Good." "It's gonna be a good one." "Do you ever get scared in the ring?" "I mean, when somebody's coming at you like that, attacking you?" "I look forward to it." "Oh. 'cause i get scared when i have to fend off a 70-year-old woman named edith in my self-defense class." "You know, even if you're afraid, you should never show it." "If you let your opponent sense your fear, then you're done." "The first question i ask every time i step in the ring, is this guy scared?" "They usually are." "Your parents must be very proud of you." "Are they coming?" "My mother died last year." "Well, maybe she'll be watching you on saturday anyway." "You believe that stuff?" "Actually, yes." "Well, i don't." "There's nothing after this." "There's no heaven, there's no hell." "You're born, you live, you die." "That's it." "Are you sure?" "Yeah, i'm sure." "I'm here to do one thing in this life, and that's fight, so that's what i'm gonna do." "I'd appreciate it if you didn't talk about my mother." "Not like that." "Stubborn as a mule, just like his mami." "Ha ha ha ha!" "Oh, i laughed at them..." "the doctors... when they told me i had a tumor in my brain." "I didn't care about the odds or statistics." "I got out of castro's cuba." "I come to this country with nothing, made a home, raised a child." "I had so many challenges in my life." "I never thought cancer was gonna beat me." "But then the tumor spread out like a spider web." "The doctors couldn't operate." "I started feeling like i was disappearing." "They said i had 6 months to live." "6 months?" "Teo and my husband were away in a tournament when i died." "I watched." "I saw him win." "That is the last thing i remember." "After my funeral, teo packed up and left our house." "It's a mother's worst nightmare." "She died, and her husband can't protect your child." "If i just could talk to gilberto, ask him what happened between the two of them." "Look, abby, you're dragging your feet!" "Come on!" "Look alive!" "Not gonna beat holy family looking like that, girls." "Look at him." "So focused." "Everything he does, he does 100%." "You'd never say his heart is breaking." "All right." "Work on your headers." "Excuse me." "Mr. De la costa, hi." "Hi." "I'm melinda gordon." "Nice meeting you." "I'm a friend of estella's." "Oh." "I'm sorry, have we met before?" "I don't remember you." "I'm really more of an acquaintance of estella's." "Um... she spoke to me about you." "She loved you..." "very much." "Sorry." "Sometimes it's like i find a new little piece of her every day." "My friends told me i would get over this and that i'll move on." "It just doesn't get any better." "My heart is so sore." "I'm sorry." "I know how much it hurts." "You do, don't you?" "Ok." "That's it for today!" "Make sure you get some orange and water inside you!" "And stretch!" "Do you ever feel like sometimes she's still with you?" "Yes." "Yes, i do." "Little hints here and there." "I'll be on the field on a beautiful, sunny day, and i'll feel a surge of happiness just like i used to feel when i was coming home to her." "And for an instant, i feel like if i just turn around and look, she'll be there beside me." "And, of course, i look, and she's not there." "Hmm." "And i die a little bit more inside." "So, how did you meet?" "In cuba." "I was walking across the town square in havana with my friend miguel, and i saw her walking toward me." "He took my picture before we even met." "You took her picture before you even met." "With an old-fashioned camera." "Yes." "It was the last moment you two didn't know each other." "I don't understand." "Look, the reason i know your wife, how i know her, is that i can see her." "It's a gift i have." "You... estella's here?" "She hasn't passed over yet, and she wants to talk to you." "I knew it in my bones that if i had faith, that she'd come back to me." "Is she ok?" "No more suffering?" "No." "Not from sickness." "From something else, though." "She's confused." "Why are you not training him for the olympics?" "What happened?" "She wants to know why you're not training teo for the olympics." "You tell her... you can tell her." "She's standing right in front of you." "Where?" "What's done is done." "I did what you asked me to do." "What did she ask you to do?" "That's between us." "Excuse me, miss gordon." "I gotta go." "What did you ask him to do?" "?" "teo." "Remember me?" "Anthony majors." "We met in brooklyn, kid gloves, a couple years ago." "You saw me fight fast louie leone." "Tko, third round." "You never had a fight that went more than 5." "You signed my fight card." "I still have it, sir." "Well, now we know we both have excellent memories." "What are you doing here?" "I mean, in grandview?" "I'm looking for you." "Me?" "A couple of years ago, your old man was training you for the olympics." "I read that you qualified for the national team." "You were big... then you just dropped out of sight." "And when i finally hear your name again, they tell me you're fighting in these little towns, so i had to come up and see for myself." "What happened?" "We had a death in the family." "My mother." "I'm sorry to hear that." "I lost my old man when i was about your age, so i know how it feels." "I just want to keep fighting." "The olympics?" "Don't really matter to me anymore." "Is your father still training you?" "No, sir." "Look, teo, i didn't come all this way just to talk about the past." "I want you to come to my training camp in florida, work with my guys, real trainers." "All due respect." "Take you along slow, steadily, the right fights, the right opponents." "In a year or two, you'll be the main event." "This is your time, my friend." "Your shot." "I've never been to florida, mr." "Majors." "Well, i guess you could use a change of scenery, find the joy in the sport again, make nice money." "Make a lot of money." "Look, teo, i know this is a lot at once, so why don't we just hang out for a couple of days, let me work with you." "Ok." "Attack!" "Yah!" "Aah!" "Oh, my god!" "Oh, i'm sorry!" "Ow!" "Ow!" "Oh, i'm so sorry." "Are you ok?" "Have you been practicing at home?" "A little." "What are you planning on being, an urban vigilante?" "Well, i don't have big, strong jim beside me to protect me all the time." "Well, i don't always have big, strong jim beside me, either." "Ok, then." "So you want to go again?" "No." "Uhh!" "Ok, class, that's it!" "Let's give it up for us!" "Whoo!" "...get to know each other." "I love this coat." "I got it at an estate sale in saratoga." "It belonged to a woman whose great-grandmother's best friend was eleanor roosevelt." "There's a problem." "Andrea can ring that up for you." "Explain to me something." "Why is it bad for teo to sign up with a promoter?" "I mean, isn't that what fighters do?" "Well, only amateur fighters can go to the olympics." "Once you turn into a professional, that's it." "It's all about the money." "And he's too young to deal with all that." "We have to talk to gilberto." "Yeah." "I'll talk to him." "Do you know a promoter named anthony majors?" "I knew him when his name was tony mangione." "He's made a name for himself on the back of a lot of boxers." "He wants to take teo with him to florida, wants him to turn pro." "What did teo say?" "He seems to be thinking about it." "Your wife came to me about this." "She's very upset." "I've seen what majors does to his fighters." "He'll use teo as cannon fodder for his top contenders." "He came to me several years ago in brooklyn, and i told him, i am teo's trainer." "We don't need you." "I guess now that i'm out of the picture... estella needs you to talk to teo, even if it's just to warn him about majors." "He doesn't have anyone to guide him." "He needs you." "My son, eh?" "You know how it is between us." "If i tell him to stay away from majors, he'll run to him." "Maybe, but if he does go with him and something bad happens, can you live with that?" "Majors:" "That's the advantage of having a manager and a promoter." "I make sure that you're taken care of, win or lose." "All your contracts are air-tight." "I meant what I... what are you doing here?" "I came to talk to you." "I'm anthony majors." "I'm teo's father." "Nice to meet you." "We met several years ago, mr." "Mangione." "I came to talk to him, not you." "Whatever you want to say to me, you can say to mr." "Majors." "Son, i know we don't see eye to eye, but you're smarter than this!" "This man's not your friend." "I can take care of myself, pop." "Mr. De la costa, i assure you, i just want what's best for him." "You want what's best for you." "Well, that's teo's decision, isn't it?" "Mr. Majors thinks i'm ready to go pro." "So do i." "Son, you were heading towards the olympics." "You were this close." "We both know what happened with that, don't we, pop?" "Your mother wanted that for you!" "Who are you to talk to me about my mother?" "You know what she wanted." "Anyway, she's gone." "All that matters now is what i want." "Don't you see that what she wanted is more important now than ever because she's gone?" "I don't have to listen to you, not anymore." "You don't think i feel what you feel?" "!" "Look at me, boy!" "She was your mother, but she was my wife!" "And i wasn't with her, either." "Please, don't do this to each other." "It's too late, papi." "It's too late." "Please, don't go!" "?" "So far, we've raised 5 grand for the firehouse, and with this fight... i thought you were hoping for 1,000." "Ah, people in the town are just really turning out for teo." "It's great to see." "Hmm." "They all want to say they knew him when." "Did you get his father to talk to him?" "Apparently, it only made things worse." "He's really hurting." "What is so hard about people just talking to each other?" "Talk, listen, talk, listen." "Was it ever that simple for you and your parents?" "Ok." "We had the talking part down pretty good." "I don't know." "There's something else, though." "Something they're keeping from me." "What do you think it is?" "I don't know." "Family stuff." "Hard to unravel." "I'm not really sure it should be unraveled, at least not by me." "Anything i can do?" "Funny you should ask." "I fight for you, mami." "Everything i do is for you." "Every time i win, i feel closer to you." "I wish you were here." "Who would you say your greatest influence is?" "Definitely oscar de la hoya." "I remember watching him win the gold in barcelona." "Against marco rudolph..." "the only u.s. Gold medal." "Wasn't your dad training you for the olympics?" "Why does everyone want to talk about my father?" "He's dead to me." "Oh, i know what you mean." "My dad's dead to me, too." "What?" "You mean... yeah." "Dead dead." "Listen, i'm sorry." "I didn't mean to bring..." "don't worry about it." "It's all the same." "We weren't really speaking at the end." "Why not?" "I don't know." "He didn't like who i was or who i became, i guess." "Come on." "You're kidding, right?" "No." "He wanted my brother and me to go into his brokerage business, one of these huge wall street companies." "A lot of people with very nice shoes." "Then my brother died and the pressure was really on me to step up and, you know, take my place in the family dynasty." "What do i do?" "I become a paramedic, a civil servant." "I was never happier, but him, he was never more miserable." "So what happened?" "You know, he cut me off, i cut him off." "It's what men do, right?" "You don't need me." "Watch me not need you." "The thing is, you know, somehow you always think it'll get sorted out, and you always think there's time." "Anyhow, that's just me." "I'm sure you guys have plenty of time." "You know, i bet it's been a while since you've had a home-cooked meal." "Why don't you come over tonight, have dinner with me and my wife?" "Listen, you know, i gotta wake up early, and i gotta watch what i eat." "Great." "See you tonight around 7:00?" "Ooh, that's great." "I'll swing by the grocery store on my way home." "Hey, i am very capable of making a wonderful dinner under pressure." "I'll see you in an hour." "Bye." "You're leaving?" "It's closing time." "And?" "And i'm going home." "That's what closing time means." "That's funny, 'cause tonight, i thought it meant self-defense class and dinner after." "You forgot." "Completely forgot." "It's just that i got jim to invite teo for dinner, and... i'm sorry." "It's, um... it's fine." "It's totally fine." "I'll find out if we can take a makeup class." "I feel terrible about this." "Don't." "You take your responsibilities very seriously, and i really admire that." "Are you mad?" "Melinda, stop." "All right?" "Wait a minute." "You're planning on cooking?" "Wish me luck." "I should wish teo luck." "Gee, thanks." "Have fun." "1, 2... honey, you need way more red pepper than that." "Don't worry." "It's not gonna hurt you." "Why are you so distracted?" "Let's just say i won't be getting my own cooking show on the food network anytime soon." "I'm telling you, churrasco estilo cubano is teo's favorite dish." "Now, if it is not spicy, he's not gonna like it." "Didn't your mother teach you how to cook?" "I am already stressed out." "Please do not bring up my mother." "Oh, wow!" "That is really good!" "Ha!" "I can't believe i made it myself." "Right." "Being dead means i get no credit?" "I would have never thought to use this much seasoning, but whoo!" "Ha ha!" "A lesson you should apply for the other parts of your life." "Yeah." "Yeah." "Teo." "Hey, how you doing?" "Nice house." "Thanks." "Just don't take too close a look at the plumbing, the wiring, or the roof." "Hi." "Hi, melinda." "Nice to see you again, teo." "Thank you." "Look, i'm sorry about what happened at the gym the other day." "Forget it." "I tend to have that effect on people." "Wine?" "No, thanks." "I don't drink." "Told you." "Water?" "Yes, please." "Hello, son." "Dinner is served." "Smells great." "Here we go, guys." "We eat like this every day." "What is that?" "Churrasco estilo cubano." "It's my favorite." "How'd you know?" "Oh!" "Put that spoon down!" "Put your spoon down." "Estella:" "Where are your manners?" "We don't eat until we say grace." "I would like to say grace first, if that's ok." "I'm sorry." "God bless this house and this family." "God bless this house and this family." "Make us grateful... make us grateful... for your mercy..." "for your mercy... and mindful for the needs of others." "And mindful of needs of others." "Amen." "Amen." "Mmm!" "This tastes just like my wife's." "It's almost as if she's here." "Is she?" "What's going on?" "Teo." "You rigged this whole thing, didn't you?" "No, i didn't." "You gave her mami's recipe." "You told her how she always said grace, the exact words she said." "Teo, i promise you, i didn't say a thing." "No, it's true." "He didn't say anything to me." "Look, the truth is... the truth is, your mom is here, and that's why i invited you to dinner... because i can see her." "I can talk to her." "You're lying." "Teo." "My mother is dead." "He put you up to this 'cause he's trying to get me to do what he wants." "I don't care what you want!" "No, that's not... i do what's best for me." "Teo." "I know you have my photo in your bible." "You have a picture of her in your bible." "What is this?" "What are you doing?" "All i want is peace between you and your father." "She just wants you and your father to be at peace." "It's true." "Your mother's here." "I can feel her." "You got to sense her, too." "I always feel her." "You can't hate me forever." "She doesn't want that." "I don't hate you, papi." "But i can't forgive you for taking me away from her." "You let her die alone." "Teo, stop." "Please!" "Leave me alone!" "How did you know those things?" "How did you know that i had that photo?" "Think about it." "How could i have known unless she told me?" "My mother... is she really here with me?" "Yes." "She's right here." "I can't believe that." "I can't." "How can... you have you gifts, and i have mine." "I am so proud of you." "I'm proud of everything you've done." "She's so proud of you, teo." "Although i never liked you to be a boxer." "Did you know that she never wanted you to be a boxer?" "What?" "What mother would want to see her baby get beaten up?" "Ha ha ha ha!" "She would have wrapped me in band-aids if i would have let her, from head to toe." "No." "I couldn't protect her." "I wasn't there when she died." "I'll never forgive him for that." "No one's perfect." "Everyone makes mistakes, even your parents." "She's saying that no one is infallible." "Please, mami." "Stop making excuses for him." "He took me away." "He made me go to that tournament." "I didn't want to go, but... he insisted." "I didn't want to leave you." "Now i'm never gonna go to the olympics because i don't deserve to go." "I wasn't with you." "This is my punishment." "No." "She wants you to let go of your anger." "Everything that happened is in the past." "Melinda:" "You can't live in the past." "You have to forgive yourself." "I can't." "I can't." "I'm sorry." "Why did you take him away to the tournament?" "Estella wants to know why you took teo away." "She's saying she doesn't remember?" "Yes." "Mi amor, it's because you told me to." "jim:" "Good evening, grandview!" "And welcome to the fight of the century!" "Thank you." "Because of you, we have raised over $7,000, so give yourself a big hand." "Let's go, baby." "Tonight's the night." "Be the man out there, ok?" "All right." "Where's your head, champ?" "I'm here." "Good." "Listen, after you knock this guy out, i got some papers for you to sign and a first-class plane ticket to miami." "Oh, what is this?" "Grand central station?" "I came here to talk to my son." "It won't take long." "It's important." "If you need me, i'll be right outside." "Your mother and i need you to know why we made that decision for you to go to the tournament." "She's here?" "Estella:" "Teo, i told you that everybody makes a mistake." "I was talking about me." "One of the last times she was able to talk to me, before her mind went, before she started to fade away... my will is in the safety deposit box, along with the birth certificates and our marriage license." "You're not gonna die, ok?" "So stop talking like that." "You must do as i say." "This is going to happen." "I know it's hard, but soon enough, i... i won't even know we had this talk, and you have to remember this for me." "I'm listening." "Teo's career must come first." "Do you understand?" "Yes." "Yes." "Do you?" "Look at me." "I don't want teo to miss his moment because he's at my bedside watching me die." "We only have one chance to live this life." "Don't!" "I had my chance." "He must have his." "Now, promise me." "Tell him someday to forgive me." "Hey, he's gonna have to forgive me, not you." "Never you." "I was just trying to protect you." "She didn't realize she was taking away your chance to say good-bye." "It was my mistake, teo." "My mistake, not your father's." "She needs you to forgive her." "Of course i forgive her." "And she needs to know that you forgive your father." "He was only doing what she asked him to." "All this time, papi... you let me think it was you?" "I thought you were putting the olympics ahead of her." "Why didn't you say something?" "You know it was easier for you to be mad at me than at her." "I didn't think you would understand, son, and i'm sorry, 'cause your mother and i made a mistake." "Estella:" "You need to be a family again, stay together." "She needs you to stay together, be a family." "Teo." "She's giving you the chance to say good-bye." "I'm ready." "She wants you to win tonight." "She also said not to hurt the guy too badly." "No single punches." "Combinations." "And i want you to be first, always first." "Be aggressive." "Crowd:" "Teo!" "Teo!" "Teo!" "Teo!" "Teo!" "Teo!" "Teo!" "Teo!" "Teo!" "Teo!" "Teo!" "Teo!" "Teo!" "Teo!" "You're gonna go all the way, teo." "Tonight's just the beginning." "You're right, mr." "Majors." "I am... but not with you." "Thanks for everything." "Teo!" "Teo!" "Teo!" "Teo!" "Teo!" "Teo!" "I have one more good-bye to say." "Gilberto, estella knows that she took your chance to say good-bye away, and she wants to fix it now." "So..." "You make my life so beautiful." "[Speaking quietly]" "I hope you find love again." "[Speaking quietly]" "I will never forget you, estella." "I will raise our son, and everything i do, i'll do like if you're watching me, so..." "Hey!" "Ha ha ha!" "Jim:" "Ladies and gentlemen..." "and firemen... you know who you are... uh, without further ado, i'd like to introduce tonight's fighters." "In the blue corner, in green trunks, weighing 140 pounds, centerville's best..." "jackie o'callahan." "And in the red corner, in the red trunks... teofilo de la costa!" "I won't quit my day job." "Teo!" "Teo!" "Teo!" "He's down!"