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Bethany (2017)
Mr. snuffles, what do you
have to say for yourself? You're so silly. There you are. Of course not, we're the bestest friends forever, ever. I'll always be true. Who are you talking with, Princess? Just with my dolls, mommy. Get some sleep, darling. We have a big day ahead of us. So that went well. Are you okay? I'm okay. So what did Hodges say, any legal problems about probate? Nope, it's all done, wrapped up in a pretty legal bow with my signature. I'm sorry, sweetheart, that was inconsiderate. Where would you like to go, anywhere, just name it. Home, I'm going home. Hey, miss Mason, some of your students want to say goodbye. Bye, we love you! Bye, miss Mason! We're here, baby. Wake up, sleepyhead. You know me and long car rides. You excited to be home? Yeah, something like that. Well, come in. Let's get some lights on in here. All right. Huh. Time to buy some light bulbs. And what is behind door number one? Can we make sure that the kitchen and bathroom work before we go exploring? Otherwise, we need to go to a hotel, I need to shower. Shower it is, okay, baby. That's one down. Now a shower for milady. I can't believe this is you. That is some big hair. How come you never showed me this pic before? - Because it's not me. - What? That's her, that's mother. Huh. She's got a lot of these laying around. They're all of her. They always were. You two could be sisters. I'm an only child. Tea, extra honey. Thank you. Looking at pics of a supermodel, I see. She seemed to think so. You never really talked about her much. There's a reason. Care to share? Mother only cared about what she wanted, not what I wanted. She was impossible to be around. That sounds like all mothers. I mean, you know mine, all she ever does is guilt-trip me and tell me to have kids and, uh, send me corned beef and cabbage. She wanted to be around you. I got so lonely, I had an imaginary friend. - Really? - Yeah. Her name was Bethany. What, no neighborhood kids or kids from school? I was home-schooled, and playing with other children was unladylike. Wow, my mom is starting to sound a lot less annoying. I wouldn't go that far, you remember last Thanksgiving? Yikes, yes, I do, and her cell phone rings to the stabbing music from psycho. This is a big decision, we need to talk about it. No, we don't. Yes, we do, Claire. Look, baby, I love you... And I love you, Aaron. That's not the question here, it never is, it never was. I think that we should deal with things one thing at a time, and this house is a big enough thing to deal with, so can we please just deal with that... I am, and you're right, it is a big thing. It's a great big thing that we talked about and agreed upon before we moved here. Well, it's different now. How? - It's better. - For you, maybe. For me, this house... It's the best break we've ever gotten. Being here feels wrong, off, like I'm walking through someone else's memory of life and I don't want it to be mine. I'm sorry, sweetie. I am. But the reality is, this house is old, it needs a lot of work before it could make any money on today's market, but for us, it's priceless, we've won the lottery here, sweetie. Yeah, well, when you win the lottery, you cash in the ticket, you don't move into the fucking 7-Eleven. Don't. Don't storm off like that's your final word. I left my friends and business to come here with you, as well, so don't act like you're the only one on the cross. Goodnight, Bethany. Claire, I think you're deflecting the question. Remember, my office is a safe place. The only thing that matters here is honesty to ourselves. No one is perfect in the eyes of the world, so let's address the monster in the room. You want to have a child with Aaron? Yes, I do, just not right now. Is that because last time, the baby was stillborn? No, it's because I don't want to have a child in this house. Why? Because I don't want to become my mother. And having a child in this house would do that? I mean, that's crazy. Do not call me that. I'm not calling you crazy, I'm saying the thought process is crazy... Well, it's the same thing. That's good, Claire, you're angry. Now let's talk about why. I cut both of my wrists after my baby was born dead. I was filled with pain and anguish and hormones, and I lashed out at myself to end it. And I have come to terms with that, it's part of who I am, but it is not why I don't want to have a baby in this house. Good, good. So, let's figure out why. What do you think it might be? Claire? Honey? I'm sorry. It's not your fault, Aaron, and anger isn't always a bad thing. It's progress. - Really? - Absolutely! Her anger will pass, but the moment will be fertile ground for contemplation. Just be patient. Okay. Okay, thank you. She always prides beauty and status above all else. These were your mother's? No, these were mine. What are they for? - Beauty pageants. - Beauty pageants, huh? How come I never knew about this? Because I did them when I was a little kid. That's just, that's just cruel, making a little girl for fight for the validation of strangers. That's all my mother cared about. I'm sorry, honey. This is it. This is my life. You see, she's won every pageant, and she's only just begun. Her accolades are quite impressive. Yes, she's my perfect girl. Do a pirouette. Very impressive indeed. Thank you, miss Freedman, i also do gymnastics... Oh, that's enough, you can go. Nice to meet you, miss Freedman. You too, sweetie. You know, she would be the perfect poster child for your pageant this year. She is darling. I'll see what I can do, Susan. You know, I think that you can do more than just see. I can't accept that. Of course you can. This is her life, it's all she has. Good. Tea? All right. Don't worry, I'm pretty sure we can streamline your workflow and get your office up and running in no time, bye. - Potential new client? - Potential huge new client. They me to bid on the entire building. That's fantastic. What did I tell you, good things ahead. - I'm really excited for you. - For us, this could be huge. I'll be back soon. And think about it. Get it. You know, Gary's been here five years and he's never made a cross-platform proposal like that. I mean, the guy looks and talks like Mr. Magoo, but baby, he's in. That's great, honey. He's in, he's down, and he's on board. Their infrastructure, it's a dinosaur. Their bandwidth's a joke, the hardware is aztec, but they just had a massive acquisition of their ip, and guess who bought them. Uh... Come on, guess, guess, guess. Who's your favorite search engine, that makes cyborg eyewear and wants to cheer for a march? - Goo... - Yeah, that's it! But don't say anything because, you know, they might have bugged the house. I mean, I'm kidding, I'm kidding, but we've got to keep it on the down-low for now. I mean, this is a complete reboot of the entire facility and they want me to do it, me. Holy crap, I think i know how your mom felt when she won miss apple pie. Apple festival. Exactly, except my crown will be made out of fiber-optic cable. Financial stability, baby. Think about it, you won't even have to work, you won't even have to work! You can be a mom, like we talked about, you know, a stay-at-home mom. Of course, you'll want to get out of the house, get to the gym, take care of yourself. You gotta take care of your body, keep you in good shape, you know what I mean, sweetheart? Want to keep you pretty and ripe like a little apple doll, my little apple, fresh little darling. No, no, no, no, no, no! No, no, no, no, no, get off! They're gonna eat me... Baby, hey! What are you looking at? They're on me. Claire, you're okay, Claire! There's nothing here, sweetie, there's nothing here, sweetheart, there's nothing here, it's just, it's just us. - It's just us. - It's just us, you're safe. Just you and me. Okay, okay. Do you want to lay down? Okay. You want me to bring you some tea? Okay, it's okay. It's all right. - Sorry, I don't know... - Hush, it's okay. I'll be right up. I'm really proud of you, Aaron. You work really hard, they're lucky to have you. Thank you, baby. Make sure you use the blush. A Princess always makes sure that her cheeks are like perfect roses. Gently, child. We don't want to look like a whore. Wipe it clean and do it again. Yes, mother. Again! Claire, are you okay? Yeah. Yeah, I'm, I'm fine, I'm just looking at something, I guess. As long as you're all right, I'm just a little concerned for you. Yeah. Thanks. I just, um, I mean, I don't know. Yeah, I get that. So, this is your old room, huh? Yeah. Were you a little person your whole life before we started dating? I know, it's weird. Weird, yeah. But seriously, you were how old when you moved down... - 17. - 17. I was 17 years old before I stood up to her and walked out. I just don't see you playing with dolls and stuffed animals when you were 17. I kind of see you as more of a cherry bomb. A hot chick with a bad attitude. You know. Yeah, that was me. So you're not the one who left your room in a time warp? No, it was, it was dark and messy and covered in posters. Because this, this looks like pre-tween Claire is frozen in carbonite and it's a little creepy. I think this stuff must have been in boxes years before I even moved out. Mr. snuffles, here, is where I used to hide my weed in junior high. It's totally creepy. Hey, I made some tea. Do you want some? Chamomile, lots of honey. Thank you. I'm sorry you're having such a rough time with this. I'm sorry, I didn't know that this would put me, us, through the ringer like this. I know, baby. I know you know, and i love you for that. And I love you. I just want you to be happy, whatever that is. Thank you. Have you thought about medications, going back on them? Aaron. I'm just saying that Dr. brown is way better than that old quack. He's young and hip and... Really? No, no, he's no Elvis, but he's up to speed on all the newest options and it's just, it's worth thinking about. I don't want to be a zombie again, Aaron, that was awful. I know it was rough, but it can be better. We can do it together. Just think about it, okay? - And talk to him. - Okay, I will. You were listless and you didn't bathe and you didn't laugh at my jokes and you ate the neighbor's brains which... Hey! Now, I'm going to take a shower so I don't smell like the undead. You're not just some stinky zombie, honey. You're my stinky zombie. Hey. Hey, hey, hey. - You have a nightmare? - Yeah. I got you, kitten, I got you. No boogeymen tonight. And tomorrow, the Mason family steps onto the gravy train. It's good dreams for everybody, okay? Okay. Bethany? Claire, you hear that? Claire? Claire, Claire! Claire! Oh, oh, no. No, no, no, no, no. No, no, Claire, Claire, can you hear me, Claire? Claire, can you hear me? Uh, sweetie, I need you to stay awake. Okay, honey, stay awake for me. And I need you to stay awake and I need you to tell me your name. Claire, Claire Mason. Yes, that's right, baby. That's very good, very good, and don't fall asleep. Okay, so, can you tell me what year it is? What? What year is it, baby, you stay awake. That's great, that's great, sweetie pie. You're doing really well, don't fall asleep. - Just tell me my name. - Bethany. Claire, Claire, stay awake. They're on their way. Claire, Claire, honey, Claire, baby, please stay awake. Stay awake, Claire, Claire. Claire. Claire, come here, baby. Come here, it's okay. Mommy needs a hug, come here. I'm sorry. Oh, you're so pretty. You're so pretty. You have so much ahead of you. I used to look like you. You're mom's pretty little one, now, you know that. Do you? You're all I have. Beauty is just so brief. It's goes so fast. Mommy, you're hurting me. - Mommy! - How dare you! - Let go of me! - Give me that, give it! It's time you grew up! - Aaron. - I'm here, Claire. How was she in the house? It was a dream, Claire. What happened? I was hoping you could tell me. The noise, it moved, she moved further, further than before, and I followed her to the stairs and, and then she pushed me. The wall, a hand came from the wall, and it pushed me down. It sounds like a great entry into your dream journal, Claire, but I want to know the truth. That is the truth. Did you know? - What, know? - Did you know? - Did I... - Because I do, now. Er protocol, they, they checked you for drugs, hallucinogens, they wouldn't even let me come close to you until Dr. brown talked to the duty nurse, explained your past. And then the rabbit died. Rabbit, what? You're pregnant, Claire. It's a fact. It's six weeks of fact. Now, what I need to know, what I have to know, is did you know? Did you know and go down those stairs on purpose? What? Why would I ever... I don't know. Exactly, I don't know. No! Aaron, no! No, I would never. Oh, my god, Aaron, no. I didn't know. I'm sorry. Is it okay? Is the baby okay? Our baby is fine. We're fine. - We're going to have a baby. - We're going to have a baby. We're going to have a baby! I will be right downstairs. Call me if you need anything. - I will. - Okay. - Thank you. - No problem. Let's get you in bed. I love you, Aaron. I love you too, sweetheart. Okay, I'm fine. I'm okay. Claire, are you okay? - Uh, yeah. - Claire? You sure you're all right? Yeah, yeah, I'm good. - Can I get in there? - Just a minute. - Hey. - What did you need to do? Uh, why? Were you going to take a shower? No. Do I smell, or... Oh, no, it's just, you know, these old water heaters. Oh, right. - Yeah. - Okay. Hey. I love you, Claire bear. I love all of you. I love you, too. I will bring you luddites kicking and screaming into the modern age. Hey, not till after dinner, sith lord. Yes, ma'am, I promise. Promise. Wrong franchise, but I'll take it. Oh. Well, you really didn't have to go through all this trouble. I didn't want to put you out. Oh, no, I mean, you're practically family. I mean, the only family we can stand. I thought I should follow up, see how you guys were doing after what happened. See how she was doing. It's much appreciated, really, above and beyond, sir. You know, secretly, the drive is like a mini-vacation. I tell Janice that the phone's dead then I use it as a chance to catch up on all my trashy books on tape. To life's little luxuries. Cheers. Oh, I miss Canada sometimes. The little things, Caesar's... Caesar's, is that the pizza chain or... No, Caesar's, it's a bloody Mary with clam juice and booze. Clam juice and booze? That sounds disgusting. - But it's good. - Really? Do they have, like, sardines and beer? Yeah, somebody should do that, or octopus and whiskey. Yeah. It's the little things, right? It's the little things, like the up-speak, how we end every sentence with a question mark. We sound like a bunch of elves. It's just not cool, not sexy. It's the worst with the ladies. Oh, that's not true. Well, of all the commonwealth countries, our accent, Irish, Australian, Canadian, we sound like a bunch of apologetic hobbits. It's not that bad. Actually, it's our super power. We hide behind politeness. It's the ultimate subterfuge, when everybody thinks they're safe and we come charging in on a moose, swinging a hockey stick and screaming beer, it's true. Yep, I am one of the chosen, Mr. brown. That's doc brown to you. Only if you've got a flux capacitor, eh? I just might. Aaron? Don't just sit there, help him! Aaron! Yeah, baby? Uh, nothing. Just the knife was a little slippery. Okay, but you called my name. Yeah, uh, dinner's almost ready. Okay, thanks, sweetie. So, onto other, more pressing matters. There is no way, I have to give you push back on this, but there is no way that a tralfamadorian would be friends with an ewok, it's not even the same universe. Clearly you don't understand the complexities of slaughterhouse five, or the politics of the ewok. - A mare, is it inherited... - Help me, help me! Claire! Claire, Claire, what, oh, no. No, no, what did you do, baby? What did you do? I'm going to call an ambulance. It was Bethany, she grabbed me. I had to stop her, cut her fingers off. Aaron. Please, no, no, no, no! It's okay, Claire, I'm here. It's okay, Claire, you're in the hospital. The baby? It's fine, the baby is fine. But you're not, sweetheart, you need rest. I just woke up. Aaron, why am I handcuffed? It's for your protection, Claire. Yours and the child's. I didn't do this, I didn't do this. She, she did this, she made me do this. Honey, honey, we were there, we saw what happened. You didn't see, you didn't see, Aaron, because she chose me, she wants me. Aaron, you just didn't see. Claire, please just... No, Aaron, you have to listen to me, you have to be on my side, okay, you can't turn your back on me... - Listen, I... - And think that I'm crazy. I'm not turning my back on you, sweetheart, but you need to calm down. No, no. Just rest, Claire, we're getting you the help you need. It's good for you. No, I'm not a child, I'm not crazy, I'm not crazy, she did this, the little girl, the girl did this, no, goddammit, Aaron, let me out. God, what is that, what is that? It's fine, she's fine, it's safe, Claire, it's safe. It's safe. Aaron, I didn't do this. It was her, she did this to me, to us, Bethany, Bethany. Please, sweetheart, it's okay, just sleep. It's going to be all right, I love you, baby. - Aaron... - I love you so much. I love you so much. Mom? Mommy? Mommy, are you okay? I'm fine. She bit me. What? That ugly, worthless little animal bit me. Come here. I said, come here! Look at the water. - No, I don't want to... - Look at the water! This is what ugliness brings, do you understand? Yes, mother. This is what happens when you lose a baby. Claire, Claire, Claire, no, no, baby, please, please! Please wake up, please wake up, please! Please, baby, don't! No! Claire, Claire, wake up, wake up, Claire, Claire! Aaron, Aaron. Come on, let's go home. There's nothing you can do here now. She's going to be asleep for hours. Let's go, come on. There's a cab out front. I'll come pick you up in the morning. - You sure? - Yeah, come on. - Okay. - Go home, go home. Get some sleep. Thank you, uh, if you weren't there, I mean, that was... - Hey. I don't know what i would have done, Paul, it was just... I was happy to help. Just get home, get some rest, okay? Yeah. - It's been a long night. - Yeah. Uh, thank you for everything. I'm going on break. Eight o'clock? See you then. Okay. - She's going to be okay. - Yeah. - I'll be here. - Okay. - Just relax. - Thanks, Paul. Right this way, ma'am. Late night? Early morning. How's your patient? Good, for now. Kind of an odd one, to be honest with you. Well, let me know if you need some help. You are a godsend. Hey, can I hop on this computer and check some records? Come on. - Miss Aaron... - Oh, fuck. Miss Aaron. Let's take a look, shall we? I just... I'm your doctor, dear. Now let's behave properly. No need for theatrics or impudence. Get away from me. Oh, don't be shy. We both know that you wouldn't be in a family way if you were. - What? - Shy, that is. Get away from me or I'll scream. Come, come. The checkup is routine. We've been down this road before. You don't want to raise up any old ghosts, do you, Mrs. pinnacle? That's my name, how do you know my name? My apologies. He's barely cold by now, isn't he? What's important are the girls and you, Susan, you and your previous little girls. Mommy's got to be in tip-top shape. Mommy can't be the apple queen if she's not in tip-top shape, now, can she? Mommy. I'm not a mother, i don't have a child. Silly lies don't suit your apple pretty lips. We were both there, all of us were. Them that was and is not now. Two little girls, beautiful and pure on the inside, one to Cherish, one to nourish, a blessing and a curse. Please, I'm not her, I'm not my mother. Yes, you are! To both of them! God doesn't give us what we desire. God gives us what we need. - Oh, babe. - She's so beautiful. Oh, my god, my little Claire, you are perfect. She's beautiful. Doctor, I think you need to take a look at this. I understand, nurse, thank you. Let me see her. Two tiny miracles, we are so blessed, honey. - I want to hold her. - Of course. We did all we could. I'm sorry. I don't deserve this. I don't deserve this! What did you do to me, what did you do to me? - What did you do? - Susan, Susan. Oh, my god. The girls need you now, they need their mother. Listen to me... what did you do? It'll be all right, I promise. Look at me, Susan, I promise. What did you do, what did you do? What did you do? What did you do, what did you do? What did you do, what did you do! Enough, I said enough! Got you. Come on. Stop. Miss Mason, are you okay? Yeah. Are you sure you're all right? Did he touch you? Yes, or no, no, he didn't. No, no, he didn't. Get Mr. merman back to his room. This time, follow the procedures precisely. Yes, sir, come on, Mr. merman. Doctor merman to you, you young... Yeah, just move your ass. He's a doctor here? No, he used to be, 15 years ago, that was before the pills and the mills. He said he knows me, he knows my mother. He said he knows me. Miss Mason, you seem a little fuzzy still. Do you remember anything about how you got down here? Listen to me, he knew my mother's name. He knew about me, he said I have a sister. Yeah, well, he also wants to do a prostate exam on me every Wednesday. He knew our names, he knew mother's name. The apple queen, he was there, he saw all of us... Let's take a walk, and you can tell me all about the apple queen, okay? Well, you need to let my husband in right away. - We'll do that... - Just tell him. But right now, you're going to get some rest. Okay. Because everything is going to be so much better once you rest. Hey, Paul, I was just about to head to the hospital. We need to talk, can I come inside? Yeah, yeah, uh, is everything okay, is Claire okay? She will be. What are these? Claire's family file. Is something wrong with Claire? Yes. All of Claire's issues must be stemming form malory. Malory? Is that a mental illness or... - Her twin sister. - What? Claire had a twin sister. No, she's never said anything about a sister. She didn't know, nobody told her. Claire's childhood was hidden from her, from everyone. Her mother truly must have been a monster. Look, look at this. Here. The baby was born horribly deformed, and her mother was so ashamed, she bribed the doctor to falsify the birth records to show that her twin was stillborn even though the baby was still alive. That explains the genetic aberration. That's why your baby was born stillborn. It was inherited from the mother, from Claire. So, what does it mean? - Claire's imaginary friend. - Yeah, uh, Bethany. Malory Bethany pinnacle. Wait, you're saying that Bethany is Claire's sister? Her sister, precisely. Um, okay, Paul, but you're not suggesting something supernatural, this is... Look, I'm a man of science, but this house is doing horrible things to her psyche and I suggest you don't bring her back. Put your clothes on and get dressed, please, right now. We have to leave, we have to go. What's going on? I saw her, Bethany, malory, whatever her name is, i saw her and she fooled me. - Where? - She fooled me, just the same way she fooled you. Dr. brown, she made me cut him. - My god. - On his throat, and he bled, and he died, are you going to help me, who's going to believe me? I don't want to go to jail. No one believed you and I'm your husband, I didn't believe you. No, no, no, okay? I need to lay her to rest. What? She was my sister and i will not treat her the way my mother did, i will not become my mother. We need to do this to move on. No, no. You don't have to come with me but I'm going back. I don't want to go. - Are you sure? - Not at all. I'm sorry. I'm so sorry, I didn't want it. She made, she made me. I'm sorry. All right. There. That was it. That was my place. There's a hole in here, like a tunnel. Can you make this hole larger? Yeah, hold on. Okay. Okay, that should be big enough. I'm going to, I'm going to get inside. - No, no, I have to. - Claire, it's not safe. No, Aaron. I need to. She's my sister. Be safe. Where does it go? I don't know, it keeps going. No, honey, I don't like this, I don't like this, come back. Aaron, it's okay. Follow my knocking. I'm right here, Claire. Again? Got it. Aaron, I see a tunnel. I'm going to go down. Be careful. Bethany. Bethany, I'm your sister! It's okay, it's okay. Stop it! Stop it, Bethany, I'm here to help you. It's okay, it's okay, it's okay! Listen, I'm here. Stop it, stop it, I'm here. Bethany, I'm here, I'm here, I'm here. You're okay. I'm here now. I'm here, Bethany. You're okay. You're safe. It was my fault. It was my fault you died. We went away. I was 10 years old and I, I begged mom to take me skiing, it was a snow day. Eight days in a cabin with food and warmth and friends, while you starved here alone in the dark. It's my fault. I understand why you hated me, I hate me. I was your only friend, but I didn't know you were real. I'm so sorry. It's time to set you free. Honestly, I still think you guys could have gotten a higher number, but as long as you're happy. We are, very, thank you. Okay, then, well, if you've taken everything you need and you've tied up all your loose ends... Yep, all done. It's been a real pleasure, folks. - You, as well. - Thank you. Are you hungry? Not really. I just want to get out of here. Yeah. We can get something on the way. Here's to new beginnings. To new beginnings. |
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