" Vince!" " Hey, man." " This is great!" " Yeah!" "This is great, man!" "How are you?" "!" " I can't complain." " Yeah." "Cool, cool." "Totally, it is." "I'm very psyched." "Oh." "You should be, Johnny." "This is a great thing." " Thanks, man." " It's great to be alive!" "Totally." "Vince:" "Shit." "Clear!" " What's up, man?" " Nothing much." " John:" "You're not dressed." " Lay off." "It's not that I don't like it..." " Vince:" "What?" " Nothing." " Vince:" "So?" " John:" "So nothing." " Okay." " Okay." "Excellent." "I swear to God, man, you get stranger every year." "You look good, John." "Where's Leah?" "She didn't make the trip." "Why not?" "We broke up." "Shut up." " I'm serious." " Shut up!" " Man, I'm serious." " You broke up?" " We broke up." " Why?" "Uh, complicated." "Why?" "Oh, she didn't like the way I dress." " Come on." "Don'tjoke, man." " Actually I'm not." "Tell me what happened." "Oh, I get stranger every year." " Come on, Vince!" " What, man?" "!" "She thinks I am a dick!" "She sends her apologies for not coming." "She says she's sure it's gonna go, you know, fine." "I don't believe it." "She does." " Why did you break up?" " Hey, hey, I don't know!" " John:" "Sorry, man." " Yeah, man." "Me too." "Well... what, is it permanent?" "Vince:" "Permanent as a dead horse, amigo." "Vince." "Come on, what did you do?" "Why did you say that?" " Because I know you." " What, you think I'm a dick?" "Uh... no." "Uh... but I do know that occasionally... you have a tendency to act in a phallic fashion." " I'm not like that anymore." " You're not a dick?" " Vince:" "No." " You're not a dick anymore?" " You see what I mean?" " Hey, I'm just asking what happened." "Well, a lot of things." "Like?" "Like, I don't know." "Like she says I'm reckless." "All right?" " What, in general?" " Vince:" "Yeah." "Okay, you weren't specifically reckless recently?" "Not particularly specifically." "No." " Be honest, Vince." " I am." " Did you fuck around?" " No!" " Vince!" " I didn't." "So what happened?" "Uh... she thinks I have violent tendencies." " Oh boy." " John, I never touched her." "I never said you did." "Yeah, well, she thinks I have "unresolved issues, which occasionally manifest themselves in potentially violent ways."" "What?" "John:" "I think it's fair to say she has a point." "Yeah, well, no one's saying she doesn't have a point." " John:" "So?" " So what, she's got to break up?" "She's probably scared." "God." "Of what?" "I never threatened her." "You sometimes present a threatening appearance." "Dude, we've been going together for three years!" "So what?" "So, I mean you'd think she'd be used to it by now." "That's a tricky one, Vin." "Jesus!" "What's tricky?" "I'm just saying, it's tricky." "Women these days have no reason to hang around... potentially violent guys." "It's not an attractive quality to them anymore." "Too many other guys out there with resolved violent tendencies." " Oh, so I'm out offashion." " John:" "Look, don't be a fool." "Well, don't be a politically correct fuck." "Hey, I'm not." "I'm telling you, you're an idiot if you think chicks are gonna put up with your bullshit." "What bullshit?" " Uh..." "like playing rough." " I didn't play rough with her." " Vince." " Vince:" "What?" " I love you." " Oh great." " But come on..." " Vince:" "What?" " You don't not play rough." " I totally do not play rough!" "Fuck!" "Okay, man." "Look, I'm just sorry you broke up." "All right?" "I'm sorry for you both." "Don't be sorry for that bitch." "Fine, Vince." "I'm just sorry for you." "Okay?" "Next subject." "Vince:" "Well... she says if I get my act together, keep going to the meetings... stop being a dick... then she might consider talking to me again." "Good." "That's great, man." "Should we get some dinner?" "Vince:" "I got to wait for a call." "From whom?" "Vince:" "None of your business." " From Leah?" " Vince:" "No." "Okay." "Vince:" "Hey, you ready for your big day tomorrow?" " You're mad." " Vince:" "I'm not mad." "Hey, buddy, you're allowed to be." "Vince:" "I'm not mad." "Don't be a fag, okay?" "I'll find somebody else." "That's true." "Vince:" "...who appreciates my dark side." "Yeah, you know, but the thing is, if you could maybe find a way to learn something from all this, then you wouldn't have as large a dark side." "Learn what?" "Learn to deal with some of your violent tendencies." "Oh yeah?" "How?" "By acknowledging them." "Right?" "John:" "By making some type of... truce with yourself, where you're not in constant battle to prove your integrity or self-worth, you know, whatever it is you think nobody gets about you." "I don't think there's anything to get about me." "Vince, your idea of manhood is putting on Eddie Cochrane and screwing your girl." "Okay?" "Hey, I'm a simple man." "Well, it's not like that anymore." "Women want other things." "Yeah, well, what do they want?" "I don't know, guys who don't put their fists through windows, who don't throw phones across the room... who don't stalk their girlfriends across 1 6 states." "All right, all right." "All right." "Where they got you staying?" "John:" "Uh, they got me over in town, at the Radisson." "Nice." "Yeah, it's nice." "Lansing Film Festival!" "Yeah... that and Cannes." "Hey, still it's a good gig." "It's a good cheap thrill." "Why you got to dump on it?" "It's a good gig." "I got big expectations." "I spent two years of my life on this film." "I want it to be..." "you know, at a theater near you." "Yeah, well it is." "It's playing right over..." "Yeah, but you had to come all the way to the middle offucking Michigan to be there." "For one screening." "All you need is one of those guys from... whatever, right, Disney, to be there tomorrow." "They see it, they like it, boom!" "Next thing you know, you're directing Free Willy IV." " Hey." " Hey." " Hey!" " Hey!" "Dude, come on." "I'm starving." "Yeah." "What time is it?" "John:" "It's quarter of." "You want a beer?" "John:" "Aren't you supposed to be getting your act together?" "I'll wait till I get back." "Oh, this is, this is good." "Okay, Vince!" "Right here." "This is what she's talking about." "Right here." "John... if I wanted to hang out with my mom..." "Well put." "Vince:" "And besides, what Leah don't know won't hurt her." "What do you got going on in that bag, Vince?" "Uh... beer." "How much?" "Vince:" "Hmmm..." "A lot." " Jesus, man." "I don't know why I said you had violent tendencies." "Oh, why?" "John:" "The warm beer, the boxers, the Motor Palace." "Who needs Betty Ford?" "We can't all be at the Radisson, can we?" " You wanna come stay with me?" " No." "I thought you'd be with Leah, that's why I didn't offer earlier." "Vince:" "It's not a problem." "It's not a problem." "They gave me a double." "1 1th floor, overlooking the park." "Still, you probably want to get laid." "That's true." "It's your big weekend, man." "Chicks are gonna flock to you." "Oh, you're right." "No." "I'll be fine here." "Cool." "Should I twist your arm?" "Little bit more." " Prick!" " Putz." " Suck ass!" " Schmuck!" "Ahh!" "Ahh!" "I appreciate you coming all the way out here, man." "Seriously." "We've come a long way." "Vince:" "Since?" "I don't know." "High school." "You think?" "Some of us." "Dude, I'm totally giving you shit." " No, but you're right." " No, man." "I'm not!" "Let's face it, you are." "John:" "I'm right only in that I think you can do better than you are." "Vince:" "Why?" "Because I believe in you." "If I didn't, we wouldn't still be friends." "And I probably couldn't say that to you." "Why not?" "Because it sounds totally pretentious." " You're right." " But the thing is, I mean it." "John:" "No, look, I'm sorry, but it's like this whole thing with Leah." "If it is permanent, then you should view it as an opportunity to... change." "Change what?" "I don't know." "Find a newjob..." " I like myjob." " What is yourjob?" " Volunteer firefighter." " Oh, right." "How do you make your money?" " Lay off, John." " I'm just saying..." "What?" "It's just a little immature." "Well, you try doing it." " That's not the point." " Besides... the majority of my clients happen to be, like, over 50." "Okay?" "So, if that's not mature, then I am baffled as to what is." "Okay." "Private dope delivery to ex-hippies does not a mature man make, Vince." "It's no different than standing on the corner and selling to teenagers." "Why are you lecturing me?" " Hey, I'm not lecturing anybody." " You are." " I'm just pointing a few things out." " Such as?" "Such as, yes, I think you can do better." "Better than what?" "Better than... better than pissing your life away." "Vince, look, you're smart, right?" "So why are you still dealing drugs?" "Because I am smart." "All right?" "If I were dumb I would've gotten caught." "Besides, I am a firefighter." " You deal to the fire chief." " He needs me." "That's not the point." "Why is what you do better?" "Why is what I do better?" "Yeah." "Why is what you do better?" "Okay." "What I'm trying to do is better because it's an attempt at figuring things out." "I would like to eventually become good enough at it to the point where I can contribute..." "All right, fuck you." "Seriously, where I can contribute to a larger debate about why this country's so fucked up." "Like for example, why is it that a 50-whatever-year-old fire chief feels the need to get stoned every night?" "Right?" "What is it about life in America that's driving that urge in him?" "He likes it?" "Fine, but then there's something slightly wrong with the fact that someone with that type of responsibility is constantly high." "I'm serious." "Maybe there's something worth exploring there." "His firehouse happens to have the best record in the city." "If my house was on fire," "I wouldn't want his high ass anywhere near it." "Listen, man, you are so up yourself." "If the guy has a good record, it's because he's lucky." " That's it." " Says who?" "It's obvious, man." "He's living this big, luck-driven lie." " Get real, are you high?" " No." "I'm serious." "You're making movies about guys who rob Popeye's Fried Chicken." "Hey!" "Hey, I am telling a story... which aims to resonate the notion of where our society's headed if we're not careful." "If it sounds a little pompous, it's only because I haven't fully honed my skills yet." "It doesn't sound pompous." "It sounds... like you're talking out of your ass." "Why?" "Because you have no idea where society is headed, okay?" "You are just like everybody else, all right?" "You're just following the latest trend which you hope will get you laid until that trend switches to something else, at which point you'll drop the old one and start making movies about, you know, whatever... turtles getting caught in fishing nets." "You don't like my work?" "I like it, like I like a shot of whiskey first thing in the morning." "It's good for about 10 minutes and then I want my coffee." "Wow." "What?" "Now you're all sensitive?" "Did I say something to piss you off?" "Or is it that you're just a dick?" "Well, both." "Well at least you're finally admitting it." "Unlike... some of us." "What?" "That I'm a dick?" "Yeah." " When?" " I was speaking figuratively." "When was I figuratively a dick?" "High school." "What?" "I was too shy to be a dick in high school." "Hey, buddy, give yourself a little credit." "I think you held your own." "That's because everyone's a dick in high school." "It's the white male football-playing prerogative." "The trick is to evolve into something else once you're out." "John, you're wearing $200 shoes." "Okay, first of all, that's not true." "Oh, what?" "$1 50?" "I'm less shy than I was in high school." "Oh, great, so now you're an overt dick." "No, I'm a thoughtful person who happens to like nice shoes." "And is, occasionally full of shit." "Is there something I'm not doing that you want me to do?" "I don't want you to do anything." "No?" "Because it seems like I'm being asked to do something by a 28-year-old pot dealer who doesn't have the guts to progress with the rest of society." "Which would be fine if it was a legitimate rebellion, instead ofjust some lonely guy hanging out in a motel room wearing boxer shorts acting like a potentially violent dick." "You want to get high?" "No." "Come on, John, let's get high." " I'm not getting high." " Oh, why?" "Only potentially violent dicks get high?" " No." " So, let's get high." " I'm not getting high." " Well, I am." "Fine." "What do you got going on in that bag, Vince?" " Pot." " How much?" "A lot." "P for party." "A for all night long." "R for reefer." "T for turn me on." "Y for why not?" "P-A-R-T-Y." "Party, party." "Let's get high." " Jesus..." "You know who's out here?" " Where?" " Here." "Lansing." "Who?" "Amy." "Amy Randall?" "Mm-hmm." "Yeah." "Tracy told me that a couple of years ago." "When I found out that you got this thing," "I looked her up on the Net... and she's out here." "She's like an assistant district attorney or something." "Did you call her?" "I thought about it." "You should, man." "Especially now that Leah's..." " Out of the picture?" " Yeah." "Vince:" "Huh." "John:" "Huh." "I wonder if she's..." "Still hot?" " Yeah." " Not a very appropriate thing to say." "Yeah." "Okay, you know what?" "Here's the thing about being appropriate." "It's better to try to do that than to be a complete asshole." "The choice to respect people is actually a good one, despite people like you, who insist on calling fat people "fat" to their faces." "What if they are fat?" "If they are fat, they probably realize it without you having to remind them." "You know, it basicallyjust... comes down to having a couple of manners." "Oh, is that what it is?" "Yep." "Then why did you ask if she was still hot, Miss Manners?" "Because she is." "She was." "That's... no, no, that's not a bad word." "If the word is essentially a compliment, saying it isn't bad manners." "Human beings like to be called attractive." "I'm not labelling Amy Randall anything she doesn't know." " I'm sure she's smart too." " Well, then I think we should call her up." "And if we find out she weighs 320 pounds," "I think that we should say to her, "Gee, we're really glad we dated you in high school instead of now, because back then, you were really hot." "And now..." "I'm sure you realize about now."" " John:" "You know what, Vince?" " What?" "Why don't you just shut up for awhile?" "Well, I see." "So, I made a point, so I should shut up." "John:" "No, it's that you like being rude for the sake of it." "Either that or you do it to prove nobody can make you be nice." "Either way, it gets tiresome." "And you and I don't see each other often enough to make worthwhile this little competition for who's more "authentic," okay?" "It's not about that anymore, we're just... we should accept the fact that we're different from each other, and let the friendship go from there." "Accept the fact we're different from each other?" " John:" "Yeah." " Would you like to make me?" " Make you what?" " Accept that fact." "No." " Why not?" " Because it's stupid." " No, it's not." " Yes, it is." "No, it's not." "How else will I know you're different?" " You'll just have to trust me." " No." "Prove it." "Or else what?" "Or else, I'll kick your ass." "Well, I guess this means you are potentially violent." "Only when it comes to you, John." "You know, it's funny how you get this way" " whenever we talk about Amy Randall." " No, I don't." "I don't even think you realize it." " Fuck off, John." " Okay, you know what?" " I'm out of here." " Fuck off." " Thanks for coming." " Fuck off!" "Vince!" " Fuck you, John." " Look..." "I'm sorry you still feel bad about Amy Randall, and every time you get stoned and drunk around me," " this comes up." " Fuck you." "It was over 1 0 years ago." "I've explained this to you a million times... that I thought it was okay for me to be with her because you had broken up, and that I now have a... better understanding as to the fragility of human emotions." "And thus, if the situation arose again," "I would not let what happened happen." "But these things do happen, especially in high school." "And I'm sorry that I hurt your feelings." "That's not what I'm talking about." "What are you talking about?" "What happened." " So am I." " So... what happened?" "We slept together." "How?" " What do you mean, how?" " How did you sleep together?" "Oh, okay, so now this is about that?" "Is it?" "I don't know." "You tell me." "We slept together." "Yeah, how?" "Vince..." " you know how." " No, I don't." "I mean, I have an idea... but I don't actually know, because... we've never talked about it." "We laughed about it." "We thought it was kind offunny, but you never exactly told me what happened." "Okay..." " So what do you want to know?" " I want to know what happened." "We slept together." "How?" "What do you mean, how?" "How?" "You're gonna have to be more specific." "In what fashion..." " did you sleep with her?" " Jesus..." "We had sex." " And..." " And that was it." "Was it good sex?" " I've had better since." "Was it fun?" "It was all right." "Was it on the rough side?" "It's hard to say..." "We were both drunk." "Did you rape her?" "Did I rape her?" "No." "Kind of?" "No." "Was it kind of like a date rape?" "Was it kind of like a date rape?" "Yeah." "Did you kind offorce her to have sex with you?" "No, man." "John?" "I'm not sure what you want me to say." "I want you to tell me what happened, all right?" "You're a filmmaker, okay?" "Lay out the scene for me." "Show me the dailies." "You know what?" "Can we talk about this when you're not high?" "Maybe the only reason I'm high is so that you would get high, and for once tell me the truth, instead of changing the subject." "Okay." "It was a little rough, which is something that doesn't make me proud." " Okay?" " Did you talk to her after that?" " No." " No?" "Why not?" "I wouldn't know what to tell her." "I'm a completely different person." " Well, maybe she is too." " Maybe." " Maybe she's fat." " That's really not funny." "I didn't say it was." " Does anybody know what happened?" " I didn't tell anyone." "Why not?" "Maybe you should." "Wait... look, I don't actually consider it a crime." "It was not a good thing." "It was morally somewhat questionable... and yeah, yeah, I wish it hadn't happened." "But it's nothing where I need to turn myself in to the police" " 1 0 years later." " Nobody's talking about the police." " What are you talking about?" " I don't know..." "Her." "I think she already knows." "Maybe you should apologize." "Oh..." "Jesus!" "You think I should apologize to her?" "Yeah, why not?" "Look, it wasn't even date rape." "It was something that got a little out of hand." "I thought you weren't sure what date rape was." " I'm sorry, okay?" " Don't apologize to me." "I'm not." "I'm... what I'm trying to say... is that 1 0 years ago," "I did something..." "wrong." "And that when I think about it now, the person who did that seems like a complete stranger to me." "This dumb, drunk high school senior who thought she was being prudish..." "and needed some coercion." "It was bad." "I regret it." "But it was a far cry from rape." "And I don't think she'd call it that either." "What do you think she'd call it?" " I have no idea." " What if she called it rape?" "Listen to me." "I highly, highly doubt that she even remembers it." "You remember it." "Yeah, I remember it because it was a pivotal thing for me." " Your first rape?" " Don't be an asshole." "Look, just tell me why it was pivotal for you." "I don't know." "It was one of the first times in my life that I looked at myself objectively and made a conscious decision to try to avoid becoming a certain type of person." "For her it may have been nothing important one way or the other." "For me, it constituted something more significant." "Or so you'd like to think." "Why are you suddenly so high and mighty?" "I'm not high and mighty." "I'm too high to be high and mighty." "Besides, I'm just a lowly, drug-dealing, boxer-wearing scum of the earth, right?" " You said it." " No, actually you did." " I didn't mean it like that." " How did you mean it?" "That you should change your life a little." " This coming from a rapist." " You're an idiot." "I'm sorry." "This coming from a low-budget film maker who makes movies about, "Where society is possibly headed if he could just forget about the date rape he didn't kind of do."" "You're seriously disturbed." "No, actually, I am high and mighty." "I was wrong before." "Look, what do you want me to say?" " I'm sorry." " Stop apologizing to me." "I'm not!" "I'm apologizing in general." "It's something I wish hadn't happened." "I don't think I'm an evil person." "No one's saying you're evil." "It sure as hell feels like it." "Do you think you're evil?" "No." "So then, you're not evil." "I'm the evil one." "You're the morally conscious movie-maker." "Whatever." "Whatever." " All right, can we stop now?" " Totally." "Thank you." "Jesus." "I just think you should call her." " I am not going to call her." " Why not?" "You should." "Just stop, okay?" "To call her now would be to trivialize the entire thing." "I mean, what do I say?" ""Oh, hey, how's it going?" "How's your life?" "Oh, by the way, sorry about the date rape 1 0 years ago."" "So you did date rape her?" "No, I didn't." "What did you do?" "I coerced her to have sex with me." "How?" "Verbally." "You verbally coerced her?" "Yeah, by applying excessive linguistic pressure," "I persuaded her to have sex with me." "Ah..." "And then, things got rough?" "No, things got rough in that, after a while, they became aggressively playful." "They did?" "We did." "Meaning what?" "Meaning that I probably thought I was still being playful, but others might interpret my actions as being..." " rough." " I.e., rape." "No." "Rough." "Look, John... only you two know what happened." "So only you two can interpret your actions." "So why don't you just tell me the facts" " and interpret them later?" " I am telling you," "I argued her into it." "You're fucking lying." " What is your problem?" " I just don't know how you can sit there with your oldest friend..." " and continually tell lies." " Okay, Vince, what makes you think I'm lying?" "Because only you would come up with" ""excessive linguistic pressure."" "Okay?" "That's not a normal expression." "That is a sign of "excessive bullshit," all right?" "If you had really done only that, you'd be more specific." "You'd said you told her if she didn't put out, you'd tell everybody she had VD, or smelled bad, or had a penis, or any of the normal things that guys say." "But instead, you come up with your typical crap, which sounds..." "mature, all right, but contains nothing." "And it's bullshit, because the reason why you are where you are today... is because you always insist on getting things your way." "That is what you're good at." "So why don't you own up and admit what you did?" "Vince, fuck off." "Fine, I'll call her." " Don't do that." " Why not?" "John:" "Because I would like you not to." " Why not?" " Vince." "Vince!" "You've already made your point." " What's my point?" " Your point is that... nobody's perfect, including me, so it offends you when I tell you how you should live your life." "That's not my point." " It should be." " Well, it's not." " Why not?" " 'Cause I haven't got to my point yet." "All right." "So get to it." "Maybe I don't have one." "Then I'm gonna leave." " Wrong." " Right." "Admit it." " Admit what?" "!" " Admit what you did to Amy." " What makes you think I did something?" " Because I know." " How?" " Cause she told me." " Told you what?" " What you did." " What did she say?" " What?" " What did she say?" " Nothing." "It was obvious, so just tell me what you did" " and I'll let you go." " Would you stop being a dick?" " Tell me what you did." " Why do you care?" " 'Cause I want to hear it." " What would that change?" " I don't know." " So why does it matter?" "We know I did something wrong." " So tell me what you did." " I pinned her arms back and stuck my dick in, okay?" "For Christ's fucking sakes, shit happens!" "I already said I'm sorry." "Thank you." " What did you just do?" " Taped our conversation." "Why?" "Wanted to make sure I heard you right." "Tape:" "So tell me what you did!" "I pinned her arms back and stuck my dick in, okay?" "For Christ's fucking sakes, shit happens!" "..." "Whoo... you're right." "You know?" "You are a completely different person." "I can't believe you just did that." "Beer?" "You're mad?" " How could you do something like that?" " Like what?" " I'm not messing around, Vince!" " No, what?" "It offends you?" "It offends me fucking immensely." "Why?" "I..." "I'm..." "All I'm doing is suggest you call up and apologize for the actions of a drunk high school senior." "You know that you just ended our friendship." "Come on, man." "It's a cheap little tape recorder." " It's K-Mart." " Why did you do that?" " I'm trying to make a point." " Which is what?" " There's something wrong here." " What?" "Where?" "With you and I?" "And everyone else." "So, okay, what is it?" "Do you think everyone should call up and apologize for things they've done wrong in their lives?" "I don't know." "Yeah." "You honestly think that would help?" "You don't think it'd just end up being a bunch of... hypocrites wandering around, raping people, and then apologizing later?" " You got a better idea?" " Yeah." "Not do it next time." " That's it, huh?" " Yeah." " You don't think she'd want that?" " Want what?" "The tape." "Why would she want that?" "To know that you admitted it." " Vince." " What?" "John:" "Look..." "I doubt she remembers it happening." "Well, then she might want to be reminded." "Why?" "Because if you pinned my arms back and fucked me without permission..." "I'd want to be reminded." "Don't talk like that." "That's what you said, right?" "That's what's on the tape." " This is ridiculous!" " Why?" "Because my apologizing now won't make any difference to her." "She's probably dealt with the whole issue and moved on." "All right." "Maybe she has." "But if you're such a different guy than you were 1 0 years ago, technically you shouldn't mind apologizing for something that the real you didn't even do." "Now, on the other hand, if you still are the kind of guy who would do something like that, then I understand you don't want to apologize." "You wouldn't want to come across like a hypocrite." "Give me the tape, Vince." "No way." " Why not?" " Because, as you imply to me on a daily fucking basis whenever we spend the day together," "I wouldn't have the guts to tell her all the interesting tidbits of information that this tape herewith contains." "It'll be much easier to simply hand it to her." "If I even have the guts to do that." "You know something?" "I don't really think I'm hungry." "I think I'm gonna skip dinner." "You won't give her that tape." "It's hard to say." "Will you stop being a dick, Vince?" "!" "I'm sorry, did you want to do that line?" " What will you do with the tape?" " Here's what I was thinking." "I was thinking about adapting it into a movie." "Maybe you could help me with this, and maybe I could have the world premiere at next year's Lansing Festival." "Dude, I'm totally psyched!" "Listen, really you should get going." "I'll just tell her you said hi." " What are you talking about?" " I don't know." "Shit." " She'll be calling at any minute." " Why?" "She said she'd call at 8:00." "Wait a minute." "I thought you said you didn't call her." "I said I thought about calling her." "And then, you see, I actually did, and it's cool." "We're hooking up for dinner." "Really, you should get going." "I probably won't go through with this whole thing." "Unless she sees the tape sitting there and we're talking and she keeps pestering me about what's on it." "Hello?" "Hey, Amy." "How are you?" "You still up for some chow?" "Cool." "Hey, did I tell you why I was out here?" "Yeah, right, the film festival." "But the reason for that is... you remember John Salter, right?" "Yeah, yeah." "Well, he actually made a movie that's being shown as part of the festival." "Yeah, and I'm out here for that." "He's out here too." "He's over at the Radisson." "1 1th floor, overlooking the park." "Yeah." "Yeah, I don't know how you want to work this because I'm over here at the Motor Palace on Saginaw." "Yeah." "Exactly." "Cool." "Cool." "Uh-huh." "Well, you know, the thing is I don't have wheels, so..." "Really?" "Well, that would be great." "'Cause if you want tojust come here and then we'll just take it from there." "And you know where it is?" "Oh, wow." "Well, terrific." "Then I'll see you in a few, right?" "Yeah, it's room 19." "19, right." "Yeah, yeah, me too." "All right." "Okay." "Bye-bye." "Dude, do you think I could borrow a few bucks?" "Vince... why are you doing this?" "Well... at first, it was a moral crusade, but now..." "I don't know, except for that you don't want me to." "And that's worth more than our entire friendship?" "John, come on." "I highly doubt if I weren't one of your oldest friends," "I would even possess the power to make you think twice about something like this." "That's assuming you are thinking twice." "There are better ways to go about making someone do that." "How?" "Convincing him with a really good argument?" "Applying excessive linguistic pressure?" "Huh?" "I'm not a very moral guy, John." "Much less a... highly articulate poet-filmmaker, all right?" "I can barely pay my rent, much less convince somebody like you to stop being an asshole." "No one's asking you to be articulate, Vince." "You pick what is potentially the most important weekend of my life to bring up something I haven't thought about in 1 0 years!" "Yeah." "I guess so." "So, are you staying?" "Give me the tape, Vince." "Mmmm... no." " Just give me the tape." " Why?" "Because it doesn't belong to you." "I bought it... at K-Mart." "What's on it doesn't belong to you." "Bullshit, all right?" "I had to be like Aldrich fucking Ames to make this tape." "This is the most planned out thing" "I've done in my whole life." "No." "It's mine, Vince." "I'm going to give it to you, you're gonna destroy it." "No, I'm not." "What will you do with it?" "Put it in your closet and not think about it for another 1 0 years?" "You know, where did you get this whole self-righteous thing?" "It's not like you to have a spine." "What can I say?" "I... am a fireman." "I'm not leaving until you give it up." "Fine, stay as long as you want." "Just don't touch my coke." "Tell me something." "Have you ever done anything you regretted?" "Yeah." "You have." "That you never apologized for?" "Um hmm." "So... why are you doing this?" "It must be... that I have guilt, all right, for all the things I never apologized for... and that I'm taking it out on you." "Okay, so then it's irrational." "Yeah, I agree." "So give me the tape." "No fucking way." "You know something?" "I wasn't going to give her the tape at all, except now, with the way that you're acting, it's like I have no choice." "Listen, you should really get going." "She called me from her cell." "She's a couple of minutes away." "Okay, that's it." "Give me the tape, Vince." " Uh... no." " Vince!" " What?" " Give me the tape." "Feel free to leave at anytime." "Stop being a dick, Vince." "I won't take get in your way this time." " Vincent!" " Vincent!" "Vince:" "Get off me!" "Hey, Amy." " Hi, Vincent." " Wow!" "You look good." "You too." "It's nothing." "Hey, you'll never guess who stopped by." "Hey, John?" "Yeah." "Look who's here." "Hey." " John." " Hey, Amy." "Oh, sorry." "Vince:" "I'm so sorry." "Are you all right?" "Excuse me." " Quite the reunion." " Yeah." "He just swung by to say hi." "I haven't seen you in..." " Since high school, probably." " Amy:" "Yeah." "Yeah." " I saw you at Tracy's." " That's right." "What was that, about like five years ago?" "Yeah." "I couldn't make it that time." "That's right." "You were in grad school, right?" "Yeah, USC." " Amy:" "For film?" " Uh-huh." "Obviously." "I mean, the Lansing Film Festival." "That's great." "Right, that's why I'm here." " Vincent told me." " Oh, right." " Yeah." "Vince:" "Wow!" " Great to see you." " You too, you too." "Umm..." "I think I'm going to wait outside for you." "Why?" "It's just that, umm..." "I didn't lock my car so..." "Oh, no, what is it?" "Is it the black one right there?" " Yeah." " It'll be fine." "Just sit and let's hang out, just for a second." "Come on." "Sit down." "Let's hang for a minute." "Huh?" "Okay." "So." "Yeah." " It's good to see you, Amy." " You too." "What are you doing here, in Lansing, Michigan?" "I guess I like it." "It's kind of mellow." "Totally." "You know, I went to school in Ann Arbor." "That's right, that's right." " So I decided to stay on." " I admire that." "Vince told me, uhh..." "what kind of law is it?" "I'm an assistant district attorney." " Right." "That's cool." " Amy:" "I like it a lot." "Yeah?" "Yeah." "Definitely." "It's a pretty good job." "So, you like, what?" "You basically prosecute criminals?" "Yeah." "Somebody's got to do it." "Yeah." "So, Vincent..." "what are you up to?" " Me?" " Yeah." "Not much." "I couldn't believe you just called me out of the blue this morning." "Yeah?" "No, no, I actually love it when people do that." " Really?" " Yeah, no, no." "I don't have the courage to do that kind of thing, and itjust..." "I just figured, what the hell?" "You know?" "But you could've easily not done it." "Not done what?" "Well, not called." "Most people don't." " That's true." " It is true." " Like...." "John." "I didn't know you lived out here." "And if you had?" "I'm probably one of those people who don't have the courage." "You think?" "It's hard to say." "Amy:" "It is." "I mean, it is hard." "Half the time it's not even worth it." "People change." "They end up having nothing to say to each other, even if they were best friends the year before." "I'm glad you're not fat." " Is that right?" " Vince:" "Yeah." "You should've seen me in college." "Really?" "A big girl, huh?" "Quite." "Well, me too." "Amy:" "Probably for different reasons." "Vince:" "Uh-unh." " You didn't answer my question." " Which one?" "What are you doing these days?" "Well..." "I live in California." "Amy:" "Where?" "Oakland." "Nice." "Yeah, yeah." "I'm a..." "a firefighter." "Are you serious?" "Yeah, I'm totally serious." " That's really cool." " Vince:" "Yeah." " It keeps me busy." " I'm sure." "A lot offires in Oakland?" "Uhh... average." "I should get going." "Wait, I thought we were going to have dinner." "No, I never said that." "Okay, but why don't you?" "I can't, I gotta get some sleep for tomorrow." "No you don't." "Yeah, actually I do." "Dude, they are showing your movie!" "It's not like you're running a marathon." "I know, but..." "Plus it's not showing till 2:00 in the afternoon." "Vince, I've got some meetings in the morning." "God, you haven't changed a bit, have you?" "Me?" "I remember you doing the same thing when we were dating." "What do you mean?" "Putting pressure on people to follow whatever schedule you've already made up in your mind." "That's not true." "Yeah, it is, but it's nice." "No, it's like you... it's like he stays up the night before thinking for hours how the next day's gonna go and how he just wants people to partake in his vision." " That's not true." " Okay." " John can do whatever he wants." " I know." "I'm suggesting he join us for dinner." " Why?" " Because I'm sentimental." "I like it when old friends get together." "Is that so wrong?" "It makes me feel... you know, warm." "Well maybe John doesn't feel like it." "Yeah, well, I know that he doesn't, because he doesn't have the courage." "It's like you said, he lets things go." "I didn't mean him specifically." "Well, you should have." "He always does that." "Does what?" "Lets things go." "Buddy, come on." "If you saw your mom walking down the street, you would cross to the other side." "I think maybe next time, save the drugs for after dinner." " Are you high, Vincent?" " I'm just... you know... a bit." "Have you been smoking pot since high school?" "Hey, same as drinking." "Yeah, but you still drink?" "Okay..." "your point?" "I'm just saying you should be more careful." " Is it "Lecture Vince Night"?" " Who's lecturing you?" "You are just a little bit." "He was." "I'm waiting for the Motor Palace guy to come in here next." "It's only because I care about you." "You haven't seen me in five years." "You were my first boyfriend." "It's inevitable." "You could turn into... you know, a dirty old bum and I'd still care." "Really?" "Of course." "It's just one of those things." "Do you want to get married?" " I can't right now." " Why not?" "I have a boyfriend." " Who is he?" " He's the District Attorney." "Oh God, that is so typical." " Typical." "Why?" " Itjust is." "Well, if it doesn't work out, I'll give you a call in Oakland." "Yeah right." "So I should really get going." "Why don't you give him a lecture?" " On what?" " I don't know." "Taking better care of himself." "He looks like he's doing okay to me." "It was good to see you again, Amy." "You too." "Vince:" "Whoa, whoa, whoa." " Vincent!" " What?" "No, no, he can't get out of here just like that." " I'll see you tomorrow." " Bullshit." " What?" " I have to go." "No." "Listen, Amy..." "It was really good of you to say that." "You know, because I always thought that... that John was your first love." "I realize you guys didn't date much in high school, but..." "I assumed even though I didn't know then, that when you guys got together at the end of senior year," "I always assumed that was like some kind of... you know, long-awaited love affair that was bound to happen." "Am I characterizing it correctly?" "I don't think anyone would call it a long-awaited love affair." "What would you call it?" "I'd call it us getting together at the end of senior year." "Oh, maybe I was justjealous." "You know?" "Because..." "I mean, you know..." "I always wanted to be your first... boyfriend." "You were." "Yeah, I know, but..." "You know what I mean." "I know I shouldn't care about things like that, but..." " like I said, I'm sentimental." " That's not sentimental." " What is it?" " It's stupid." "You know something?" "I agree with you." "All right, it is." "But I didn't know that back then." "Back then... you not wanting to have sex with me was like... getting disinvited to Christmas dinner with my grandparents, which is something that I'm very sentimental about." "You shouldn't have taken it personally." "I know, but..." "I did." "Especially when you guys ended up getting together." "Literally." "But I guess I blew it out of proportion." "What are you talking about?" "I'm talking about you and John getting together at the end of senior year." "That hurt my feelings at the time." "But according to John, it was less of a love affair that was bound to happen and more like two kids getting giddy before graduation, in which case, I really shouldn't hold a grudge." "Is that what it was?" "I would say it was more of a crush that never amounted to much." "For you or for him?" "For me." "It doesn't seem like Amy wants to talk about this." "Why not?" "I mean, come on." "We're all mature adults." "Why can't we talk about a high school crush" " that happened 1 0 years ago?" " Fine, then" "I'm going to let you two have this discussion without me." "Before you go, I'm just curious as to why... nothing came of Amy's crush for you." "Amy?" " Why nothing ever came of it?" " Yeah, I mean, why didn't it develop into something more serious?" "It was not like you and I got together afterwards." "Vince:" "I don't even remember you dating anyone after that." "At least not from our school." "Well, I guess itjust didn't work out." "There's no specific reason for that?" "Amy:" "I'm sure there was." "But..." "No but." "I'm sure there was." "All right..." "John," " why are you so anxious to leave?" " Look... this is a little uncomfortable for me." "Okay, it's a little uncomfortable, so..." " I'd rather leave." " Fine." "I'm here, all right?" "What?" "Does anyone have anything they'd like to say to me?" "Amy?" "No, thanks." " Vince?" " Yeah!" "I mean, listen." "It's your call, John." "I can't speak for you." "It was good to see you again, Amy." "That is so fucking typical!" "I got to go." " Hey, John..." " What?" "Can I have that back?" "Goodbye, Amy." "Oakland must be a pretty safe place." "Why?" "There obviously aren't enough fires to keep you busy." "What do you mean?" "Can you tell me what that was about?" "I wanted to... find out what happened between you two." "When?" "That night." "I wanted him to apologize to you." "Why?" "So that you could hear it." "He admitted it to me." "What did you do?" "I got him to admit it." "It's on the tape." "Admit what?" "What he did." "He did do it... didn't he?" "What?" "That night." "Am I wrong?" "He raped you." "Why would that be any of your business?" " You're missing my point." " Even if he had, the last thing I'd want would be... a taped confession." "Why not?" "Because I'm not the one who needs it." "What are you talking about?" "I'm not the one who needs it." "All right, all right," " who needs it?" " I'll see you later." "Where are you going?" " Home." " Why?" "You don't understand." "I'm trying to do the right thing." "For whom?" "For you." "Is that really what you mean?" " Yes, it is." " Because I don't think it is." " I thought you'd appreciate it." " Well, I don't." "Why not?" "Because he didn't rape me." "What?" "He didn't." "So the only person you're trying to make feel better... is yourself." "Oh Christ." " Hey." " John:" "Hey." "What are you doing?" " I came back." " Why?" " Because I felt like it." " Yeah..." "Can you give us a couple minutes in private?" " Are you kidding me?" " I'm serious." "You want me to leave you alone with her?" "Yeah." " No." " You can wait outside the door." "No fucking way!" " Why not?" " 'Cause of the whole..." " No!" " I just need two minutes." " Why?" " I want to tell her something." " What?" " It's none of your business." " Yeah, it is." " Why?" " I'm the one who brought it up." " Amy:" "It's all right." " Yeah, no, it's not." " Yes, it is." "Well, I don't care, all right?" "I'm not leaving." " I wanted to apologize." " For what?" " Vince." " What?" "Shut up!" "I wanted to apologize." "For what it's worth..." "I'm..." "I'm sorry." "I'm really... honestly... truly sorry." "What for?" "For what happened between us in high school." "What happened between us?" "I'm talking about what happened at the end of senior year, which Vince was trying to get me to talk about before." " Hey!" " Before when?" "Five minutes ago." "About when you and I got together in high school?" "Right." "Right." "Tell me again what happened." "Do you know... which day I'm talking about?" "The end of senior year." "At Rebecca's party?" " Yeah." " Yeah." "Hey... what are you guys doing?" "No, I just..." "I'm curious." "I don't want there to be a communication gap here." "I'm not sure what I'm supposed to say." "Look, I think you think you did something to me." " Yes." " What do you think you did?" "Why?" "Why?" "Because this is very interesting to me." "Do you not think that something happened?" "Of course something happened." "But are you saying you don't remember what it was?" "Come on, John!" "There's some things one doesn't forget." "I agree." "I'm just wondering how... you would describe it, that's all." "Probably the same way as you." "You think?" "Look, the whole reason this thing started is because Vince taped this conversation." " I didn't realize..." " It's fine." "I'm just saying, that's why I'm here." "So, you're here because Vincent taped you?" "Yes." "Why?" " Why?" " Why?" " Because it made me think." " Oh." "Which is why I came back." "Amy:" "Good." "So tell me again what happened?" "I think..." "I think I raped you." "Oh my God!" "No, you didn't rape me." "Yes, I did." "No, you didn't." "Are you trying to make fun of this?" "No." "Amy, I know what happened." " Apparently not." " Yes, I do." "Says who?" " John:" "Me!" " Why?" "Because I just admitted it." "On what, on the tape?" " Yeah." " Amy:" "What's on it?" "It's me confessing what I did." " What did you do?" " I just told you." " That doesn't prove you did it." " Why not?" "If no one's accusing you of anything, there's no reason to confess." "I..." "I..." "I..." "I'm having trouble realizing what you're doing." "I'm not doing anything." "This is not an easy thing for me." "You sure about that?" " John?" " What?" "You sure you know what you're saying?" "I'm saying what you wanted me to say." "All right, but..." "Are you sure you got the right girl?" " Jesus!" " She said nothing happened." " She's lying!" " No, I'm not!" " Amy!" " What?" "!" " You... you're mocking this!" " Why would I do that?" "I have no idea." "But if you are, I have better things to do!" "Oh..." "I just think we have differing perceptions of what happened." "I really don't see how that could be." "Why?" "Because you decided you did something?" "I did do something." "Well, I say you didn't." " So then what happened?" " When?" "Then." "We had sex." " Amy." " What?" "I'm trying to be honest." "Why now?" "Because I haven't seen you in 1 0 years." "But why now?" "Because... when Vince played back the tape for me, it hit me what I had done." "And if he hadn't played back the tape?" "Yeah?" "Would you be saying this?" "Probably not." "Or is itjust that I'm here?" " What do you mean?" " If I lived in Alaska, would you have sought me out?" " I don't really know." " You should look into that." "Fine." "Maybe you were jealous of Vincent." "Does that make me sound conceited?" " A bit." " Why?" "I loved you." "I did." "I was totally in love with you that night." "Did you love me?" "No." "Then why were you with me?" "I'm not sure." "Maybe it's the same reason you came back to apologize." " Which is what?" " You like pissing Vincent off." "Why would it piss him off if it's what he wanted?" "Because he's confused." "Exactly." "It's never too late to one-up your best friend by telling him that you raped the love of his life in high school." "Especially if you can do it in front of her." " That's very good." " You think I'm like that?" "Oh, I don't know." "I have a poor record ofjudging you accurately." "Maybe you came back to get the last word." "You didn't like what you'd said, so you came back and phrased it a little more eloquently." "The reason I came back is to apologize!" "Which I can assure you is not at all disingenuous." "I honestly am sorry." "Why?" "Because you had your hand over my mouth?" "Yes." "John, I let everybody do that." "Can you please just tell me the truth?" "I am." "Vince:" "Where are you going?" " I should leave." " Why?" "Because no matter what I say," " there's nowhere for this to go." " No, you just want the last word." "And you know what?" " It's not yours to have." " Would you guys figure out what the fuck you're talking about?" "Vince, I don't know." "She's in denial." " Amy?" " What?" "Whatever gave you the idea that something happened?" " At Rebecca's?" " Yeah!" "I just..." "I thought that later, that's what you were trying to tell me." "Why?" "Because why else would you be sleeping with John when you were supposed to be dating me?" "You and I had already broken up." "Yeah, but we hadn't even slept together." " So why would you be with him?" " It's none of your business." "Vince:" "Okay, fine, but it's partly why..." " I thought something happened." " You mean, if I wasn't sleeping with you, why would I be sleeping with someone else?" "Yeah." "I guess." "I thought something like that." "I'm going to go." "Vince, maybe I'll see you tomorrow." "Amy," "I'm truly sorry." "I'm sorry you're not in a place where you can hear that." " I hope you have a good life." " Why did you just say that?" " Say what?" " I'm not in a place where I can hear that." "Because you don't seem to realize I'm serious." "I don't know how else to put this." "And if it really were no big deal for you, it was for me." "And I want you to know that I'm sorry it happened." "Amy:" "Well, you should be." "I hope you die for it and go to hell." "And if there's no hell, I hope you suffer on your way to death." "My hope is that your last living sensation be that of a steel rod being shoved repeatedly up your insides, so that it batters your heart and punctures your stomach." "Is that along the lines of what you wanted?" "Amy:" "Uh?" "I don't know what you want me to say to you." "Nothing." "So was I right?" "Yes." "This is Amy Randall from the DA's office." "Could you please dispatch a squad car over to the Motor Palace on Saginaw, room 19?" "There appears to be a significant amount of illegal substance in the room." "Amy:" "Uh-huh." "Amy:" "It appears to be cocaine." "Yes." "Yes." "Could you also please run a check on one of the two gentlemen here?" "Mr. John Salter." "S, as in Sally, A-L-T-E-R." "Possible history of sexual misconduct, including a verified first degree CSC 1 0 years prior." "Yeah." "Nope." "Yes." "Thank you." "You two can make a run for it if you'd like." "Did you really just do that?" "The average response time in Lansing is four minutes." "One of the top departments in the country." "Why does this have to be like this?" "Because if you're truly repentant, then you should be willing to pay the price." "Why can't you just accept the fact that I'm sorry?" "It does me no good." " Is that my fault?" " No." "It's just the way it is." "But I'm the one who has to run out of here like a criminal?" " That's up to you." " Because I'm not going to." "Is that because you think the statute of limitations has run out?" "I have no idea." "There is none for a sexual misconduct felony." "Just to let you know." "All right, listen." "I don't feel like getting busted for a couple of lines." "Then I'll see you later." "Amy:" "Just do me a favor and leave that tape behind." "So I can give it to Officer Friendly when he gets here." "You want me to give you the tape?" "Yeah." "Amy:" "You don't need his permission." "I feel like I do." "You didn't need his permission to make it, so why do you need it now?" "Protocol?" "Fine." "Well, I guess I'll just have to stay here" " and tell them myself." " Oh Jesus!" "Vince:" "Dude, it might be in your best interest to come with me." "I'm staying." "Vince:" "Why?" "If this is the only way she knows how to deal with this," " then this is what should happen." " What about me?" "What about you?" "I didn't really do anything wrong!" "You're in possession of an illegal substance." "I was just trying to blow off a little steam." "You should have blown it off with beer." "I did!" "I was just trying to blow it off a little extra." "John:" "You'd better go." "They're on their way." "Come with me." "No." "Don't be an idiot, all right?" "They will arrest you." "All right, is this really what you want?" "John's a big boy." "He can make his own decisions." "All right, fine, fuck it." " Hey, I'm out of here." " John:" "Thanks, Vince." "What?" "Thanks." " For what?" " For all your honesty." "Okay, what does that mean?" "Nothing." "I'll see you later." "No!" "Fuck!" "Fuck!" "God!" "Shit." "Did you really call the police?" "No." "Oh Jesus Christ!" "Sorry." "Why did you do that?" "!" "I felt like it." "You are so fucked up!" "God!" "What did you expect?" "Fine, but do you have any idea how much those cost?" "There'll be other drugs." "I know." "But I..." "I really liked those ones." "Good luck tomorrow." "Thank you." "You're welcome." "Goodbye, Vincent." "Vince:" "Goodbye, Amy." " It was good to see..."