[man narrating] When I was 16,
I had lice in my hair.
My mom shaved it all off.
I looked like a peanut.
I hated it.
That wasn't the worst thing
that happened that summer.
When I was 16,
my father went to the moon.
[man]
Oh, carry me over
Them old desert sands
The yellow moon shinin'
On high
Let me breathe
The sweet air
Of a pure desert night
My feral pony and I
Well, ridin' and ropin'
Now, that's what I love
A life in the open
I crave
The wild mountain rose...
[narrator]
People used to vacation here.
They used to come here
for the lake.
That's where
the hotel used to be,
and there's the boathouse.
My dad said when he was little,
he'd go fishing in the lake,
that you could water-ski
in it too.
Now we just have
dust storms.
My feral pony and I
- [man] Johnny! Johnny! Johnny!
- [man 2] Get off of him, man.
- You fucked up, boy.
- Get out of here, Johnny.
Dad!
Jesus Christ,
Mickey.
If he wants to be alone,
he can be alone.
So goddamn
melodramatic.
[Mickey narrating] Speculation was that
Uncle John went off to hide somewhere,
maybe Mexico, because he thought
he was in trouble about the fight.
But he wasn't.
We just never
saw him again.
Thank you for this food
and that we can
all be together.
- Amen.
- [all] Amen.
Quit it.
[father] Hey, stop
fucking around and eat.
I suppose it doesn't matter
now why Uncle John left.
All that matters, I guess,
is that he did leave.
The next day, we heard the
factory would shut down for good.
My father said
that we could start over,
and we believed him.
But my mother?
She's been my father's girl
since she was 15.
[father] I don't want to
drag you out there.
I have to see how it is!
Does that not make sense?
- [mother] You're just gonna leave like everyone else?
- I'm not everyone else.
She started over with him one too many
times to believe such a thing was possible.
What aboutthem? Why do you
think I'm doing this?
What am I supposed to do?
Just sit here and rot?
- What do you want me to do?
- I want you to think about us!
[father]
There is nothing here!
It's okay.
I'll stay, okay?
[boy laughs]
[boy] Yeah!
It's still got
a lot of power, okay?
- Do not gas it.
- Okay.
You got to start off slow.
Right? You tell him.
- Don't go fast.
- Start off slow.
- You don't have to go fast the first time.
- Okay.
- Start it. Tell him to start it.
- Start it, start it.
Just don't crash.
- [engine starts]
- [father] There we go.
How's he doing?
[laughing]
I'm going for the ribs.
Are you ready?
I'm just gonna use
the bathroom, okay?
I'll be right back.
Are we home yet?
No, not yet.
Want some cookies?
Where's Dad?
He'll be back soon.
I'm this one.
[imitating engine revving]
- [imitating engine]
- [boy chuckles] No!
Oh! No, no.
[imitating engine revving]
- [chuckles] Yes! I win!
- Such a cheater.
- How am I cheating?
- You just knocked me off.
That's the whole point
of the game.
What's taking him so long?
Hey, Dad?
Dad!
[knocking]
- [rapping on window]
- [man] Hey.
You can't park here.
Let's go.
[engine starts]
[narrator] Sonya Stecko
said her dad wrote her
a rambling 16-page letter.
He said he loved her,
and offered her advice
about marriage, money,
and other subjects.
It was as if he'd planned to miss
the next 30 years of her life.
My neighbor Summer's dad left
in the middle of the night.
She found her dad's car
in a ditch.
There was no blood
in the car.
It was as if he vaporized
out of the driver's seat
and just floated away.
Val's father owned the bar
on Avenue A.
One day he left
the store unattended.
He'd taken all the cash
and left a note.
After that,
when a dad left,
we'd just say,
"He went to the moon."
"We're going to the moon,"
we imagined them saying.
"I'm going to the moon."
[astronauts chattering
over radio, indistinct]
[radio communication continues,
static]
[characters on TV]
Going to the moon
I'm holding you tight
And we'll sing
A little tune
As we fly to the moon
Here you go, Kolya.
Hey, Mom.
- Cheese sandwich.
- Just put it there.
[people laughing,
chattering]
[boy] Hey! Where the
fuck are you going?
You going like
the rest of them?
Are you going to the moon?
[chuckles]
No. Actually, I was
just gonna hitchhike.
- Hitchhike?
- That's fucking dumb.
Hey, uh, we're going to the beach.
You want to come?
Um, I'm trying to
find my dad.
Come on. It'll be fun!
The moon can wait.
- Yo.
- [boy] Yo, Val.
[woman]
Cherry
Tells me some things
I don't want to know
And I can't see
A light at the end
For us anymore
But I can't keep crying
All of the time
No, I can't keep crying
All of the time
[boy]
Oh, fuck. Shit.
- Come on, come on.
- No shit.
What?
Come on.
Let's go.
You got it.
[chattering, whooping]
[laughs] Oh!
- [Mickey] All right. Ready?
- Okay. Okay.
- Wait. Cheers. We got to "cheers" it.
- Can I just go?
Oh.
Ready? Okay.
- All right, let's do another.
- I'm still going.
Oh, my God,
you are such a lightweight.
You got to drink this one whole.
Like, you can't just sip it.
- I can't do it.
- It's not a shot if you're just sipping it.
- It's not gonna go down...
- Just go. Ready?
One, two, three.
I did it! I did it!
- Okay.
- Okay.
- Just say it, all right?
- Ugh!
- Say it.
- Asshole.
- Say it louder.
- He's an asshole!
- You're better without him.
- I'm better without him.
You hate him.
Well, I don't
really hate him.
You hate him.
Okay, fine. I hate him
a little bit.
I knew it. Me too.
Do you hate him?
Yeah.
Yeah, I hate him.
[whooping, cheering]
- [boy] Oh, shit!
- [cheering]
[all chanting] Summer! Summer!
Summer! Summer!
- [boy] Aw, shit!
- Hey!
- Want to come with us?
- I'm going home.
Home? What are you
going home for?
You know there's no one
at home, right?
You can just come with us.
It's no problem.
Mickey...
you don't know shit.
I don't know shit?
Youdon't know shit.
My dad left too, remember?
But at least you have someone
waiting at home for you.
I have nobody.
I have a fucking cat, Mickey.
You don't know shit.
[meows]
Mr. Pickles!
Is that you?
Oh, my God,
Mr. Pickles, hi!
Hi, Mr. Pickles.
Mr. Pickles, come back.
You just got here.
Why are you so mad?
[coughing, vomiting]
[man speaking on TV, indistinct]
[clattering]
[mother groans]
Thank you.
Of course.
Whoa, eggs!
Looks good.
[woman] I watch the moon
Hang in the sky
I hear the traffic
Rushing by
Freight train engine
In the night
I'm still here
[Mickey narrating] Kolya asked me
what life on the moon was like.
We told them they fish
for supper there.
They wear deer skins
and make fires for heat.
At sunset they sing
all the old songs.
The ones grandpa
used to sing us.
Kolya laughed so hard,
he nearly wet himself.
He wanted life here to be
as good as the moon.
So, what do you want?
Just a little
off the sides.
I have a job interview
tomorrow.
You're definitely
the longest hair I've had
on a boy today.
[chuckles]
I don't really like
getting my hair cut.
I get it, I get it. We'll make
it as painless as possible.
Yo, guys.
You know I once saw
a flying "saucerus"?
I was up in Joshua Tree
camping with my dad.
We couldn't find our car,
so we tried to find our way
by the stars.
Then suddenly
there was this noise
and colored lights.
I've never seen
anything like it.
I'm serious. No lie.
Do you guys solemnly swear
that we will not go to the moon?
- [Summer] Dude.
- [Val] Fuck, yeah, I'm in.
[Summer]
We're both in.
Hey, Mickey.
Do you swear that
you won't go to the moon?
[Summer whispers]
Fuck, yeah. That's right.
No moon.
[imitating bird calling]
[singing indistinctly]
Cookie!
- Cookie!
- Cookie!
- Cookie!
- Cookie!
Hey, Cook!
What do you guys need?
We got some scrap.
What do you guys want
for it?
That trailer.
[Cookie] Yeah, right.
You lost your mind?
How about those bikes?
[Cookie]
What do you think, Belle?
Belle?
Hey, what do you think?
You think we should,
uh, do that?
- Come on, Belle.
- I got a treat. Come on, Belle.
- Come on, Belle. Here, puppy.
- Come on, Belle.
Come on, Belle.
I'll give you a treat.
- Belle...
- Want a treat?
She's not too friendly right now.
How about one more load?
- I love you, Belle.
- [Mickey] Deal.
[chattering, indistinct]
Mother ship, mother ship,
we're about to launch!
[Mickey narrating] With all the
men gone, we boys became men.
[boy]
Heh. Nice.
[mother] Good.
See you soon.
Hey.
Did you get the job?
Yes.
Great.
So, shorter, huh?
Did you get a job at a
grocery store or the army?
[chuckles] Yeah.
It's weird.
So how's your day going?
Uh, good. Busy.
You?
Just trying to figure out
that cash register.
You better figure it out.
[chuckles]
Looks nice pulled off
your face like that.
Thanks.
Am I your last customer?
Mm-hmm.
You want to, uh,
maybe, uh,
have a drink with me
or something, or...
get a bite to eat,
talk?
God!
Um...
my kids are
coming home soon.
I should probably
make dinner for them.
- Yeah.
- But thanks.
You're welcome.
- You did good, though.
- Oh, thank you.
Moo, moo, moo!
Hey, why can't I get a kiss?
Come on.
Dicks.
Fuck.
[boy] See Val's
cousin over there?
- She's kind of a babe.
- Yeah, she's such a babe.
[chuckling]
Let's go have
a baby with her.
Gross!
- Maybe she'll come over here.
- Fuck, yeah.
[man on TV speaking
indistinctly]
Some of these small fragments will
enter Earth's atmosphere tonight,
but they will undoubtedly
explode into nothing more
than a harmless shower
of tiny meteorites,
according to NASA.
The greatest concentration
of this meteor shower
will be in the southwest
region of the United States.
This meteor shower will be,
however, quite harmless...
Do you have a girlfriend?
You don't have anyone?
Not really.
What about you?
Do you have
a boyfriend?
[chuckles]
You want to do it?
What?
Have you ever...
you know.
You tell me.
Hey.
- You have an eyelash.
- Oh.
You want to
make a wish?
[Sonya] It says that you're
selfish when it comes to love.
And your end line says
that you're creative.
And...
[chuckles]
And your lifeline
says that you're...
gonna die young.
I'm just kidding!
I'm just fucking with you!
It says here that you're gonna
be a cat lady when you grow up.
Look at that.
[astronauts chattering
over radio, indistinct]
You're back.
Do you know where
our daddies are?
[pans clattering]
Get out.
- I know I fucked up.
- Get the fuck out!
- I fucked up really bad.
- You left me!
You don't get to just walk back in here!
Get out!
Get out! Go!
Get out now!
[pan clatters]
[door shuts]
[answering machine beeps]
Hey, Mickey, it's Mom.
Just calling to check in
on you and Kolya.
Grandma says hi.
I'll be back tomorrow.
Call me and let me know
you guys are okay?
What are you doing?
Help me out
and open this door.
Dad's coming back, and he'll
be sad his chair is gone.
- Dad's not ever coming back, kiddo. Sorry.
- Dad's coming home!
Don't fucking touch the chair, okay?
He's not fucking coming back.
He's never coming back.
Ever.
[Mickey]
Open the door.
Let me in, okay?
Fuck.
[Kolya narrating]
He is going to the moon.
We're going to the moon.
I'm going to the moon.
[men chattering on TV]
Kolya?
Kolya!
We're gonna
find him, okay?
I don't care if we have to
search the whole desert.
We're gonna find him.
[door opens, shuts]
[door opens]
Now, here's
what we'll do.
I'm gonna
count to three,
and then I'm gonna let go,
and then we're gonna
go back inside.
Okay?
- Is that okay with you?
- Okay.
Can I count?
Okay.
One...
two...
three.
[whistles]
[man] I'm such
a piece of shit.
I'm so fucking sorry
I left you.
I miss that damn Madonna of
yours, and that Hula Hoop.
[chuckles]
[exhales sharply]
But you're brave,
and you're strong.
You've got this
crazy fucking dream.
You're following it.
You're gonna make it.
You don't need me.
You're fine on your own.
It's just...
Goddamn it.
It's just..
I guess
I really need...
You know,
I miss you, Dad.
[vehicle approaching]
What's wrong?
It's just, my dad.
You know,
he's not in good shape.
I've been thinking
about it,
and, um...
There's this farm
out in Nebraska
where he found work.
And he says that
there is a good school.
We could take care
of each other there, you know?
You're...
You're going
with him?
If it sucks out there,
I'll come back.
I just...
I feel like...
I'm not leaving
until Thursday.
I think that you and I
will both be happier
if we both...
- Mickey.
- [footsteps retreating]
Mickey!
Bye, Sonya.
- Be careful.
- I will. Thank you.
Bye, Doc.
- Be careful.
- All right, thanks.
Oh!
What is that face?
I'm gonna miss you
the most.
Be strong, okay?
[Summer]
Hey, Sonya!
Hey, Summer.
Oh, man.
- Sonya.
- Hey.
- Oh, I'm glad I made it.
- Me too.
I almost thought I wasn't
gonna get to say bye to anyone.
I'm so happy for you,
like...
There's so much out there,
you know?
You don't even know.
There's just nothing here,
so I hope
you enjoy it out there.
Don't cry.
You're gonna make me cry.
I am not gonna cry.
Live it long!
[car door opens, shuts]
- Ready?
- Mm-hmm. Yeah.
[car engine starts]
[pop ballad plays]
Paradise
Is there something more
[continues, indistinct]
Stop the car!
[engine starts]
Hey, man, you good?
[laughing, chattering]
[pop music plays]
- Hey, Mickey.
- Hey.
What do you need?
Can I get a whiskey,
neat, please.
[Nick] Last call.
You want another?
What happened to your hand?
Nothing.
Really?
I never thought of you
as the fighting type.
[dominos clatter]
[door opens]
Don't tell me
you need another haircut.
No.
I just wanted to give you
a thank-you present.
You got me that job.
Want a cup of coffee?
I'd love one.
Where'd you get
the cookies?
- Baked them.
- No way.
I got 'em from my work.
- So I guess it's going good, huh?
- Mm-hmm.
Yeah, real good.
No.
I'm sorry.
I'm so sorry.
I'll go.
Okay.
Uh, sorry.
[door shuts]
What are you doing?
What are you doing? Huh?
- Stay away from my fucking mother!
- What are you doing!
- Fucking motherfucker!
- What the fuck are you doing?
- What are you doing?
- Fuck you!
What is this?
Come on.
[Mickey]
Nick, stop!
Nick, that's enough!
I'll fucking kill you!
- Nick! Nick, stop, man!
- Fucking bitch!
I'll fucking kill you!
- Nick, stop!
- [blows landing]
[Mickey] Nick!
Nick!
Nick!
Slow down, man.
- Nick, calm the fuck down.
- Get off me.
- Fuckin', dude.
- Get off!
- Nick.
- Get the fuck off me!
Fuck!
I'm not him.
[mother]
Mickey....
Mickey...
Mickey, please?
You hungry?
Can I get you some food?
I'm all right.
Listen, Mickey...
There's no one else.
Look at me.
It's just us, okay?
[Kolya narrating]
The older boy,
he soon left
for the moon.
We just
never saw him again.
Even though
the lake is almost gone,
birds still come
in the winter--
ducks, geese and cranes.
They come back every year.
I think about our dad,
and how he'll be back
by then too.
[Summer] Oh, hey.
It's your cousin, Val.
[Summer laughing]
Yo, Val. Did you know
Mickey spread them legs?
[laughing]
No, I'm serious.
He was all up in that.
She was like...
[moaning]
Then she was like,
"Oh, yes! Mickey!"
[laughing]
We're having a swordfight.
Not a very good one, but...
What's wrong?
I'm pregnant.
That night when
we were together...
I don't know.
[scoffs]
It's so stupid, I know.
I... I don't expect
anything from you.
I just found out.
I just thought
I should let you know now.
[girl] Mickey!
Come back
to the dark side!
We're winning!
No, wait,
we're losing!
Mickey...
I'll talk
to you later, okay?
I'm your father.
Mickey!
Come back!
- Come back!
- [girl shouts]
[Val]
Get her, Mickey!
[whispering]
Hey, Kolya.
Hey, get up.
Hey, I...
want to give you
something.
What?
My BMX.
Why?
I'm going away for a while.
I'm gonna go find Sonya.
You're leaving?
I'm gonna be back.
I just...
I have to find her.
Kolya....
[sobbing]
Please don't cry, Kolya.
Kolya, I'm sorry.
Kolya,
please don't cry.
[door shuts]
[sobbing continues]
[engine starts]
[Mickey narrating I wonder
if my father's happy.
I imagine him in a castle,
with pools and huge tables
of food and beer.
I imagine him lounging nude
in hot tubs
with women half his age,
women who were on the moon
when our fathers got there.
I imagine the weather
on the moon to be nice,
and that our fathers
are singing songs in praise
of their new lives.
I sense that there's music
on the moon.
I'm going to the moon.
[man]
Oh, come meet me tonight
In the moonlight
Come meet me tonight
All alone
For I have a sad story
To tell you
It's a story
That's never been told
How I wish
That I had someone
To love me
Somebody to call me
Their own
How I wish that I had
Someone to live with
For I'm tired of
Just being all alone
I'll be carried
to my new jail
Tomorrow
Leaving my little darling
All alone
With the cold prison walls
All around me...
[man] Yeah, you missed that one.
- Dude, that was a bank shot.
- I didn't miss anything.
This is a bank shot.
See how it hits the rail?
You didn't call
that bank, man.
Dude, that is not how
we play around here, man.
- What do you mean?
- Dude, that is not how we play.
- We call our shots...
- You need an attitude adjustment, pal?
[man] Didn't hit rail one.
Nothing but net.
That's a good shot.
- Not in my book, it's not a good shot.
- Bank shot, nothing.
Are you broke? You don't want to pay?
Is that your fucking problem?
- That's not we play here.
- Why don't you deal with it?
Do I have to whip your ass? Want
me to whip the shit out of you?
- Come get some!
- Get 'er done. [chuckles]
- Come over here, big boy. I'll kick your ass.
- Hey. Uncle Johnny.
Mickey?
What the hell, dude?
Oh, my God!
how have you been?
What are you...
What are you doing here?
Bring anyone else
with you?
Just me.
Come on,
let's have a drink.
Come on.
Pinky, set us up one.
And there
I'd be willing to die
[song ends]
[applause]
So how's Nick?
The boy--
how's he been?
He's been great.
Yeah, I knew he would be.
[chuckles]
He was a tough one.
I guess your dad
left too, huh?
You understand that,
as a dad,
there's a hell of a lot
on our plate, you know.
And I understand
a little bit of animosity,
and shit, hell,
I get it, I really do.
But, uh, everybody kind of
leaves for different reasons.
Do you have any idea
where he is?
If you're looking for a dad,
you found a hell of a dad.
[snorting chuckle]
Oh, shit.
You're probably better off
without us anyway, man.
If we could turn back,
I know we would.
I sure the hell would.
Onward and upward,
you know.
When are you coming back?
[chuckles]
Probably just
another few months.
At least I got to,
you know, make sure
the truck's running good enough
to get there solid and safe.
I don't know
what the fuck to give him.
I always knew he was strong.
I'm glad to hear
he's doing good.
It's about time he started
looking forward to
getting into
something better anyway.
Just keep
spending time with him.
He needs something.
You know what I mean?
[truck engine starts]
[engine revving]
[Mickey narrating] Is there
some happiness in the desert?
Of course there is.
Still, that doesn't
change everything.
It doesn't change this.
The moon follows us
wherever we go.
[electronic pop plays]
[woman singing, indistinct]