"do you remember i said the gas gauge was broken, you said that it wasn't?" "no, i just said you had to tap it." "no, that's not what you said." "it's--it's not what you said." "are we out of gas?" "you must be psychic." "man." "you kill me, you know." "you kill me." "you know this was a setup, don't you?" "oh, don't try to get off the hook, man." "theo wants to thank us for savin' her life." "well, yeah. so?" "so she relays an invitation with directions, says there are fuel depots galore." "says there's a feast waiting for us at a fabulous inn." "ok." "and you believed her." "i didn't believe her, believe her." "then why are our asses stuck out here walkin'?" "why do you got to oversimplify everything?" "did we follow theo's directions?" "yes, we did." "did we run out of gas?" "yes, we did." "are we gonna die of starvation without so much as a grave marker?" "it's possible." "well, i rest my case, sherlock." "you know, you'd rather be right than just about anything." "no, i'd rather be eatin' baby back ribs." "you would rather be eatin' baby back ribs while you were right about somethin'." "that's correct." "i rest my case." ""no, i said 'posse!" "'"" "oh, oh, i think i see somethin' edible." "is it a pizza?" "mushrooms!" "yo, hey, man, you can't just go picking' those things." "why not?" "'cause if you get the wrong kind, they'll kill ya." "i know my mushrooms." "trust me." "no way. if you know the difference between good ones and poisonous ones, you're straight." "then how do you tell the difference?" "the poisonous ones'll kill ya." "mmm. mmm, mmm, mmm." "oh, come on, you know you're hungry." "come on." "yeah, i'm not hungry enough for my last meal." "now you don't see me dropping dead, do you?" "ask me again in about an hour." "you feel a little weird?" "no." "i feel a lot weird." "you know how you stare into the fire and see things?" "birds, big-ass birds." "buffaloes." "swooping down, picking up a shepherd." "cowboy-pirate, riding a buffalo, rearing' up... wavin' a-- waving' a fur... sombrero." "the shep-shepherd's changin' legs." "go--go with the blue ones, dude. they match your eyes." "i'm goin' off the board for 500 here, jack." "give the man a toaster!" "i see an iguana in lederhosen." "you see what i see?" "flying hedge trimmers." "where?" "it's here, man." "it's not like they're hidin' it right next to the wind-up dancin' teeth." "dancin' the limbo." "you made a good fire, man." "i did, didn't i?" "you made a good fire." "kurdy, wake up." "w-what?" "an elephant just woke me up." "well, an asshole just woke me up." "i'm serious, man." "yeah, so am i." "dear dad, it's been 15 years since the big death wiped out everyone over the age of innocence... the end of your world," "the beginning of mine." "oh. you know what the worst part of it all is?" "you mean me puking my guts out back there for 20 minutes wasn't the worst part?" "no, lee chen warning us that it was a setup." "you hear somethin'?" "just my stomach flippin' over again." "down, big fellow." "no, music." "oh." "it's got to be the inn theo told us about." "it could still be a setup." "well, hello there." "theo sent us." "i know." "we've been expecting you." "come." "lee chen, eat your heart out." "won't make for much of a meal." "welcome to the lithia inn." "i'm patrick desault, proprietor extraordinaire, if i do say so myself." "i'm kurdy." "jeremiah." "i, uh, love what you've done with the place." "oh, you've been here before?" "no, i just love what you've done with the place." "theo said i should give you the royal treatment." "oh, and, uh, what might that be?" "i told you it was a setup." "fuck." "back in your pants, boys." "it was theo's idea." "she said she wished she could see the expression on your faces." "yeah, that theo." "what a kidder." "anyway, she's picking up the tab, so, everything, everything," "everything... is on the house." "but first things first." "you gentlemen hungry?" "we make a mean mushroom omelet." "no." "mmm." "kurdy?" "i think that we have died and gone to heaven." "yeah, you got that right, jack." "no, i'm serious." "i mean, the poison mushrooms." "does this bear any resemblance to reality to you?" "no, not exactly, but i am not mad." "and then there was the elephant." "hey, i didn't see an elephant." "you saw the elephant, maybe you just died." "pinch me." "you know, just to make sure." "uh, you've got all these beautiful women around, and you want me to grab your ass?" "you are dead." "time to choose a girl." "assuming that is your particular poison." "pity." "that's, uh, quite a likeness." "i think i've captured you." "what's your name?" "polly." "polly want a cracker?" "don't pay any attention to him. he's still alive." "and what about you, kurdy?" "i'm--i'm fine." "fine isn't the word." "and what might your name be?" "cassandra." "well, cassandra, i'm sure you have plenty of other things to do, however-- no, i'd love to." "sorry. she's taken." "well, maybe we should just let the lady decide for herself." "i said she's taken." "excuse me." "now, now, yarbo." "what have i told you about using your words, hmm?" "this is not the time or place." "you and me, we are not done." "ahem." "i just love the smell of testosterone in the evening, hmm?" "ahem." "where are you from, jeremiah?" "nowhere." "everywhere." "i'm surprised i haven't met you there." "you like working here?" "some days better than others." "you look like you'd rather be sailing." "it's just an old bumper sticker." "listen, um, polly." "mmm-hmm." "you--you don't have to do this if you don't want to." "what makes you think that i don't want to?" "just in case i am dreaming, do me a favor." "don't wake me." "if you'll do the same for me." "oh, yeah." "we see all kinds in here, believe me." "you know what i'm sayin'." "the minute i laid eyes on you, i knew that you were different." "you've got somethin' deep goin' on." "don't ask me to explain." "i--i won't." "am i talking too much?" "no." "'cause i've been accused of that." "i mean, elysse says i'm chronically caffeinated." "do you like music?" "i love music, any kind of music." "not that i get all that much spare time, but when i do, i sing a little." "well, not that i'm all that good, but, uh, people tell me i have a pretty good ear." "can you hear me?" "what do you mean?" "you weren't sayin' anything." "maybe you weren't listening." "you want me to shut up." "is that it?" "nope. no, no, no." "that's not it." "i just want you to listen, not just to me, but listen to the silence." "well, i don't get it." "how can you hear silence?" "see--see, that's just it." "y-you have to train yourself." "i mean, you have to just shut everything else out of your mind, and focus." "well, why would you want me to listen to nothing?" "because that's where everything important is." "see, that's the best music of all:" "the sound of the sunrise, the wind in the trees," "the sound of a man and a woman gazing into each other's eyes." "i think i can hear it." "it's the most beautiful sound i've ever heard." "it almost made me forget." "that doesn't happen very often." "so, desault, does he, uh, does he mistreat you?" "is he bad to you?" "no, not at all." "he--he takes really good care of us." "we're well fed, well compensated." "he takes care of us in every way." "so where does the sadness come from?" "the past." "i know how that goes." "i figured you were battling demons of your own." "i think we've all got things we're trying to hide." "what's yours?" "when i was 16, i got pregnant." "the most beautiful baby you've ever seen." "but i was really young and really confused." "i couldn't handle the thought of being a mother or giving up my freedom." "so i gave her up instead... to her father." "it's haunted me ever since." "do you ever wonder what happened to them?" "less than a week ago, a traveler came through here." "we got to talking." "i found out that gregory and carrie are in coeur d'alene, just over the river." "well, do you ever think about going to see them?" "actually, i've done nothing but think about it." "so what's stopping you?" "we're not allowed to leave this place." "unless... unless what?" "unless we win our freedom." "and you win your freedom how?" "i can't." "but maybe you can." "and i would do this how?" "by fighting for it and winning." "no, you listen to me." "i know you want a piece of this kurdy, but his partner is the challenger." "you settle your personal stuff on your own time." "right now, you've got one simple job:" "break jeremiah in 2." "he's gonna find out that saving theo's life comes at a price." "so don't pull any punches. got me?" "jeremiah, i can't let you go through with this." "i'm not doin' it for me, man." "there's no way i can back out." "look, this is for your own good." "what is?" "all right, come on." "come on." "ladies and dobermans, we have a last-minute substitution." "in the red corner, the challenger, the walking, talking, human experiment in man's capacity for pain, in his final farewell appearance on planet earth, the human death wish, kurdy malloy!" "kurdy!" "kurdy!" "kurdy!" "kurdy!" "kurdy!" "kurdy!" "and just entering the ring, the reigning champion, the bone crusher, the widowmaker, the jackhammer, the patron saint of subdural hematomas, yarbo!" "are you sure you don't want me to forge a note from your chiropractor?" "no, it's too late." "just so you know, yarbo's never been beaten." "there's always a first time." "go get him, tiger." "any questions?" "why aren't we wearin' real gloves?" "why?" "are your hands cold?" "or would that be your feet?" "and now i'll explain the rules for the benefit of our visitor." "hmm." "oh, there are no rules." "best 2 out of 3 rounds, boys." "you did good." "you took his best, you weathered the storm." "you got him on the run." "he's on the ropes." "you gotta keep your guard up." "he's strong, but he's flat-footed." "he's probably got a glass jaw." "hell, i bet you could nail him with one good shot." "cassandra, honey." "yes, darling?" "never mind." "don't throw a tantrum." "get in there... finish him." "wait." "i just realized something." "when yarbo makes love, there are some positions he can't get into." "thanks for sharing." "no, no. it's his knee." "his right knee, an old training injury." "you hit his right knee, he's toast." "his knee, his right knee." "kurdy!" "kurdy!" "kurdy!" "kurdy!" "kurdy!" "kurdy!" "kurdy!" "kurdy!" "kurdy!" "kurdy!" "kurdy!" "kurdy!" "kurdy!" "kurdy!" "kurdy!" "kurdy!" "the winner and new champion, dirty kurdy!" "what about your promise?" "seems to me you broke the rules." "there are no rules, remember?" "unless you want me to bring the audience into it." "well, it's a little unorthodox, but ok." "you win one girl's freedom." "knock yourself out." "it's more than he could do." "ok, now, i know jeremiah promised polly her freedom, but i think it's only fair that i offer it to you first." "that's sweet, kurdy, but where would i go?" "well, you'd come with me." "my life is here." "i'm happy here." "it's polly that wants to go." "thank you." "hey." "yeah." "you're not, uh, pissed at me, are you?" "pissed?" "no, kurdy, why would i be pissed?" "'cause you sucker punch me, knock me out, tie my ass up down here?" "you know, if you want to keep a guy from going out in traffic, you don't hit him with a car." "you know what i'm sayin'?" "wow, that guy tagged you pretty hard." "yeah, but i won." "give me a little krazy glue, i'll be good as new." "thanks, man." "if we get a chance, i'll return the favor sometime." "maybe." "i still don't know how to thank you guys." "you've given me hope for the first time in... i don't know how long." "so what do you think will happen after you, uh, find your daughter?" "i'm hoping that she'll give me a 2nd chance." "she's what, 8 years old?" "just barely." "and she's been with her father the whole time?" "her father's part of a circus troupe." "he's a juggler." "they move from town to town, set up their tents, and do shows." "do they have animals in this circus, do you know?" "like maybe a-an elephant?" "would you give it up?" "to tell you the truth, i'm not sure." "i didn't think circuses even existed anymore." "there aren't many, but gregory grew up in that world." "his parents were acrobats." "after the big death, the children picked up where their parents left off." "i met him when his circus came to our town." "romance under the big top." "for a brief moment, i was convinced that i was in love." "but not yet ready to be a mother." "not then... but now, i want that connection." "i want that feeling of family." "i sure as hell don't want to spend the rest of my life wondering "what if?"" "well, polly, there are 2 other people in the equation right now." "i'm not a fool, jeremiah." "when it comes to matters of the heart, i think all of us are fools sometimes." "i think about my own mother." "i was barely 10 when i lost her." "what i wouldn't give to have her come walking back into my life." "well, the only difference is, your mother didn't choose to abandon you." "none of our parents did." "i was 16 years old." "what kind of a mother would i have made?" "it's--it's different now." "i have so much to give to her." "until you get to know this child, you're gonna be a stranger to her." "you think you can deal with that?" "i won't know unless i try." "well, i'll be damned." "my heart is racing." "i don't even know what she looks like." "that should be easy." "if she's anything like her mother, just look for drop-dead gorgeous." "polly?" "is that really you?" "oh, i don't believe this." "hello, gregory." "and you--you're just as beautiful as ever." "these are my friends, jeremiah and kurdy." "this is the father of my daughter, gregory." "is she here?" "that's her in the hat." "that's--that's china." "look, polly, unfortunately, your timing isn't the best." "everybody here is pretty rattled." "we just lost the star of our show." "who's that?" "iana, our performing elephant." "see that?" "they lost an elephant." "wait, have you seen her?" "is she gray, big, long eyelashes, peanut breath, got a big thing in the front?" "you've seen lana?" "where?" "where'd you see her?" "ah, a couple of days ago, about 10 miles east of here." "you've got to take me there." "she'll never survive out in the wild." "she's totally domesticated." "how'd you lose an elephant?" "3 nights ago, some bandits came through." "they fired some shots and stampeded the animals." "we've been looking for lana ever since." "maybe you could visit another time." "you should know, gregory, that i'm not just here for a visit." "i want to be a part of my daughter's life." "it's time that she knows how much she means to me." "seems to me, you made that clear when you walked away." "that was a long time ago." "will you excuse us?" "see?" "they lost an elephant." "i saw an elephant." "i'm not crazy." "well, you may have seen an elephant, but not crazy?" "you're pushin' it." "look, i'd be a liar if i didn't admit it's wonderful to see you." "but, polly, you--you can't just waltz back into our lives after all these years and start making claims on my little girl." "she's my little girl, too." "i--if you want to see china, talk to her, ok." "i can understand your curiosity." "curiosity?" "she's my child as much as she is yours." "no, no, she's not." "i've raised her." "this community has raised her." "we sweated blood to make her who she is." "i can appreciate that." "i do." "it's just... you have no idea what it's been like." "i need this, gregory." "but your needs aren't the issue here." "it's china i have to worry about, and for you to suddenly decide to play the good mother, honey, it's too little, too late." "it's ok." "he just needs some time to adjust to the idea." "you remember i told you about china's mom?" "is that her?" "yeah." "listen, i've got a lead on lana." "i'm gonna see if i can get polly's friends to drive me there, but i want you both to keep an eye on china." "i'm worried polly might try to do something rash." "we won't let her out of our sight." "thanks." "right around here." "elephant tracks." "ah, she's definitely been by here, and not so long ago." "you know, gregory, like i was sayin' back there, i mean, i think polly really loves your daughter." "she loves the idea of being a mother, that's obvious." "living with that reality is a whole other thing." "maybe you both could use a reality check." "you know, give her a chance to prove herself." "forgive and forget?" "i'm not sayin' it'd be easy. i just-- we must be close." "tracks head through that glade." "hi, there." "hi." "do you know who i am?" "china... i'm your mommy." "mommy went to heaven." "no, no, that's--that's not true." "i may not have been around very much, but i've always cared about you." "i've always loved you." "i told you, i don't have a mom." "son of a bitch." "come on, move." "let's go!" "pull!" "damn it!" "hey, wait a second." "let's just get a game plan together." "we don't get lana back, that'll be the last of the circus." "we'll get her back." "we'll get her back." "come on, move it." "move it!" "piece of garbage." "china's a wonderful child." "you should be very proud of her." "you have any kids?" "i guess i feel like china's one of my own." "a lot of us do." "so everybody gets to be her mom except for her real mother?" "that's not how it is." "in this world, we all just make do." "if there's not enough food, we share." "if there's a stranger out in the cold, we invite him in by the fire." "and if a child needs mothering, you reach out to her." "that's all i'm trying to do." "i understand, believe me." "then why can't gregory see it?" "i don't know." "maybe he's afraid." "afraid that i'm going to kidnap her, right?" "that's what you all think?" "i think he's afraid of his own feelings." "when you left all those years ago, you should've seen him, polly." "he was inconsolable." "oh, please." "he spent the better part of a year just looking for you." "every stop we made, he put out the word, asked if anyone had seen you." "he loved you, polly." "for all i know, he still does." "come on, move it." "go. go!" "keep movin'." "pull!" "asshole!" "i'll bet you're pretty good on that thing." "nah. i'm still learning." "listen, sweetie, i'm sorry if i seemed to be pushing you." "how come you never wanted to see me?" "i did want to see you." "you have no idea how much." "but i was scared, afraid that you'd hate me," "that it was too late to be a part of your life." "does that make any sense?" "sorta." "when i left you and your daddy, i wasn't much more than a kid myself." "and i was too confused and too upset to be a good mother to you." "but now, i think that maybe i could." "i don't think so." "i'm pretty ok with just my dad." "maybe i could get a little hug in the meantime?" "it's ok." "i have waited 8 years." "i can wait a little while longer." "man, i gotta admit this circus is amazing." "well, it's only a shadow of what it used to be." "even some of those who've been here since they were little kids have decided to move on." "why's that?" "audiences just aren't there anymore." "it's gettin' harder and harder for us to stay afloat." "really?" "man, i would think people would flock to see a show like this." "used to be that way." "what's changed?" "the circus is about celebration." "it's about hope." "i don't have to tell you there's not a lot of hope anymore." "yeah." "well, i know it's a long haul for a lot of folks, but the way i see it, people are always lookin' for hope." "they just get discouraged, that's all." "exactly what happened to us." "but check it, man." "i mean, what you got here is one big old hope machine." "i mean, this is all about lifting people's spirits, man." "people need things like this circus as much as they need food or air to breathe." "what you gotta do is keep the faith." "iana!" "whoo!" "iana's home!" "sweetie." "polly, listen." "i-if i said some things to hurt you, i didn't mean to." "i caught you off-guard." "i understand." "you know, sometimes, i look at china, i see you in her." "the eyes, right?" "i was thinking more the stubbornness." "she's pretty headstrong." "polly, your comin' back here, i'm sure it wasn't easy." "i just wanted you to know it says a lot about you." "you know, the guy i used to work for all these years, he was kind of a showman type himself." "i drew posters for him, and he said that it really helped draw in an audience for his fights." "maybe the circus could use that kind of promotion." "we could use somethin', that's for damn sure." "as--as far as china goes, though, i--i still can't make any real promises." "i'm not asking for any." "at least it'll give the two of you... the three of us, a chance to get reacquainted." "i'd like that." "dear dad, today took me back to one incredible afternoon when i was 5, maybe 6, and you and i went to the circus." "i thought you were doing it just for me, but then i looked up and saw your face." "today made me realize that even after everything we've been through, the joys we experience as children can live as long as we do."