Welcome to America's last frontier...
...where the final lumbering
remnants of the Ice Age...
...the massive and
awe-inspiring glaciers...
...calve cathedral-sized
icebergs into the sea...
...where nature's bounty unfolds
in a panoply of flora and fauna...
...the like of which is seen
nowhere else on the planet.
From the ocean depths,
plumbed by ageless cetaceans...
...to azure skies,
where the mighty eagle soars.
This land abounds with creatures
great and small, strange and majestic.
It is a land steeped in tradition...
...its mists redolent of the hearty
souls of men who have gone to sea:
Tlingit and Haida...
...lnuit and Aleut...
...Russian and Norwegian.
Their languages and deeds...
...lingering on in the names of our
countless islands and passageways.
A land that has lifted its siren call
to the bold and adventurous...
...to those willing to risk their lives
for the promise of untold fortune...
...be it from fur, fin, from the heaven-
pointing spires of old-growth spruce...
...or from the buried treasures of gold
or black energy-rich petroleum.
A land visited each year
by the relentless and mysterious salmon.
Each river and stream welcoming home
the king and sockeye...
- the coho and dog, pink or humpback...
...which is smashed into cans...
...and quick-cooked to give the
colourful local folks something to do...
...other than play cards
and scratch their nuts all day.
A land where that nice old lady
from Fort Lauderdale...
...who had the stroke
three cabins down...
...was probably parked next to the
thawed-out halibut you'll eat tonight...
...while your floating hotel
chugs through the Hecate Strait...
...to deliver its precious
load of geriatrics...
...to the hungry
Visa-card-accepting denizens...
...of our northernmost and
most mosquito-infested state!
So?
What's "redolent"?
Having or emitting an odour.
You mean people wanna
come here because of the smell?
Pleasantly fragrant!
- Not talking about this place.
- Damn right!
Soon as they close this down, they'll
turn it into a tourist attraction!
They'll disinfect the joint, and you can
get a job in one of those cases.
Like in a museum.
One of those displays.
Dioramas!
Dioramas. In that diorama...
...they'll hang fake fish guts
all over you, put a label underneath:
"Typical Filipino Cannery Worker"!
Probably pay better than this.
I'll be out on the water in my boat...
...and every time I make a set...
...there'll be a floating
nursing home...
...with 500 sons of bitches and
their cameras capturing the moment.
And what boat is this?
My boat.
You don't have a boat, honey.
Remember?
Oh, yes, I do.
I'm getting it back today.
Would you like some hors d'oeuvres?
Would you like some hors d'oeuvres?
Thank you.
Would you like some hors d'oeuvres?
Nice uniform.
The bride's parents wanted uniforms.
I look stupid.
You look like an angel.
I look like a little white maggot.
- Would you like one?
- Thank you.
How come you don't have to wear one?
This is the unemployed
pulp mill worker's uniform.
Right.
Would you like some hors d'oeuvres?
- No, thanks.
- I'll have one.
You gotta look at the big picture. You
clear-cut the trees, what do you have?
Hundreds of thousands of dollars
worth of timber.
Yeah, but it's ugly.
The point is to try to get the trees
down without spending a fortune.
You're thinking short-term.
My mother told me,
"You don't shit in your front yard."
- Your mother said that?
- Constantly.
Look, our people cruise by an island.
They got their binoculars out,
the ones that can still see.
What do we show them?
We show them a little Indian fish camp,
some totem poles maybe.
A black bear foraging for breakfast
in the early morning mist.
We do not show them deforested hillsides
and logging equipment, Phil.
Heavy machinery they see in New Jersey.
The timber industry
has a right to make a living.
We all have to make our living.
I'm not arguing that.
Cut the trees in the Interior.
Turn it into a parking lot.
Just quit with the chain saws when
you get to where people can see.
We're trying to develop themes
for each area up here:
"The Whales' Causeway."
"Island of the Raven People."
"Kingdom of the Salmon."
"Lumberland."
That's us.
That's a turn-of-the-century sawmill
and a gift shop.
That's history, not industry. History
is our future here, not our past.
She looks like a million bucks,
doesn't she?
Beautiful.
Would you like some more?
No, thanks. Could you find the girl
with the shrimp and send her this way?
It's like these kayak outfitters.
I know the jellybean colours are
easy to spot if there's trouble...
...but it spoils the ambience.
C'est la vie, say the old folks
It goes to show you never can tell
Thank you. Thank you very much.
Thank you.
Today is a special day for me. I know
it's a special one for all of you too.
This is my last appearance
with Randy Mason and the Pipeline.
I'll be continuing my run as
a solo performer at the Golden Nugget.
Randy will be rapidly sinking...
...back into the relative obscurity
he so richly deserves.
The time we've spent together has seemed
much longer than it probably was.
And with that in mind, I'd like
to dedicate this next song to him.
Fellas.
Room 16
The Palms Motel
I can rest behind that door
My life with you's become a living hell
Don't wanna live like that no more
And whatever it will take
I will do to make this
Final break
Better off without you
Better off without you
Better off without you
In my life
I'll show up with a lawyer.
You threatening us with a lawyer?
In schools now, when they teach
contracts, you know who they use?
Francine here, that's who.
She wrote the fucking book!
It's not exactly a textbook, Louise.
I, on the other hand,
am a criminal attorney.
Some of the business practices
you engaged in...
That's bullshit!
You see two dykes wander up here
from Seattle, you figure:
"Here's easy pickings"!
When we bought these properties,
which you'd run into the ground...
That's not true!
When we bought them from you...
...promises were made about plumbing,
about dry rot.
I had a cash-flow situation.
Promises which you didn't keep!
I gave you my boat!
Yes, as collateral.
It's worth more than those repairs.
It's worth relatively little.
We've had it appraised.
I gave you my license.
But, Harmon, the problem is,
we are not fishermen.
Exactly.
So I take my boat, I go out,
I make my limit.
I give you the money.
I get my boat back.
Wait a minute. We paid
the docking fees all winter.
We had the engine overhauled.
And now that there's fish again...
...you think you can waltz in here...
...take our boat, Harmon, our boat,
as if you still owned it?
As if you never defaulted
on any of this?
You're worse than a fucking bank.
If we let you treat us like this,
what does that say to everybody?
- "Don't take these women seriously."
- You come here.
You bust people's balls...
Your balls are busted because you put
them in a vise and yanked the handle.
- The screw.
- What?
The jaws of a vise are moved
by a screw or a lever.
You don't call it a handle.
Thank you, Louise.
The point being, Mr. King...
...if you are feeling pressure on your
testicles, you have yourself to blame.
You're just gonna take the hit?
You're gonna let my boat
rot in the harbour?
You misrepresented the properties to us.
You tried to swindle us into keeping
your boat from being repossessed...
...by assigning the title to us.
You gals already said
you're not fishermen.
But there's no shortage of guys
who are willing to work for a piece.
A share.
What?
On a boat, you know, in nautical terms,
it's called working for a "share."
Thank you.
If we're gonna do this,
we have to get our terminology right.
You think you'll get anybody
in town to take my boat out...
...and fish on my license?
You're both fucking crazy.
Better off without you
In my life
Is this your truck?
You working here?
I gotta load this wine off.
Gotta help tear things down after.
Could you give me a ride?
Yeah, I guess. After I...
- How far is it?
- Just into town.
Whenever you're ready.
I'm ready now.
- Aren't you the singer?
- Well, I was.
You're really good.
Thanks. I just broke up with a guy,
and he's here.
And if I'm gonna keep my shit
together, I need to go now.
I'll wait here.
Yeah, I'll just...
I meant what I said before.
You're really good, singing.
Thanks.
Especially since I've never
heard of you or anything.
Do you watch sports?
Yeah, basketball.
There must be players who are
really good that you've never heard of.
Nope.
No, if they're professionals and they're
really good, everybody's heard of them.
Well, singing is different.
It's a matter of taste...
...luck, whatever.
You okay?
Couldn't be better.
Your boyfriend was
the guy in the band, Randy...
Mason.
Well, I never heard of him either.
Good.
Take a left here.
When we came up to this country
15 years ago...
...Margie was 8 years old and convinced
we would all be eaten by grizzlies.
So far none of us has lost anything...
...but the occasional
backpack to the bears.
And this has been for us,
like for so many people before...
...a land of opportunity, a land...
There's just a couple more things.
I thought this was your house.
See if he can survive
without the fucking microwave.
You taking his stuff?
My stuff. My daughter's stuff.
You sure?
Look around you. You see
everything that looks like shit?
That looks like somebody with no taste
and bad personal hygiene would have?
That's his stuff.
Would you grab the other end of that?
How long did you live here?
Three weeks.
I used to gig with him in Spokane.
He had this anorexic girl singer who'd
get too shaky to go on, so I'd fill in.
My booker talks me
into doing a year up here.
You know, "The money's real good."
I bump into Randy in Sitka,
and we hit it off.
So you move in.
No, I told him, " Keep your distance.
I got a kid. I'm older than you are.
I don't smoke as much dope as you do.
So don't think I'm moving in
or anything."
So how does your stuff
end up in his place?
Unforeseen circumstances.
You married?
Live with somebody?
Nope.
Sorry.
You work for those two?
Franny and Zooey?
Frankie and Lou? Yeah.
What'd you do before this?
Pulp mill, till it closed.
And before that?
This and that, like everybody.
Fisherman.
Yeah, I was.
Did you like it?
While it lasted.
You don't go out anymore?
Nope.
Why not?
Unforeseen circumstances.
I should get back.
Let's move it off the truck.
The guys inside will help me.
You're gonna stay here?
We were before.
This is my regular gig
for the next month or so.
Well, I'll come see you, then.
Sing.
Great.
My kid is gonna kill me.
It went fine.
The father was gonna
cater it on the ship...
...till the bride put her foot down.
You out of here?
Time off for good behaviour.
Saw all the groom's buddies
checking you out.
Right.
I'm serious.
Bunch of preppy thugs.
You're a hard woman to please.
Catch you tomorrow.
You need a ride?
You know what they wanna bring?
Frankie and Lou?
- What?
- Alpacas.
For sweaters?
For hiking trips.
They wanna take people out
for a week or so...
...and have the alpacas carry the gear.
They do it on the Amazon.
The Andes.
The Amazon's a jungle river.
It'd be too hot.
It's probably the mountain range,
the Andes.
Whatever.
They get them up here, no way
I'm cleaning their cages.
These are some strange people
we work with.
I don't know...
We got the lesbo trail guides,
the human pincushion in the kitchen.
Rusty.
He looks like he took a staple gun
to his eyebrows.
We got Eunice, the cashier:
26 years old and still
lives with her mother.
We got the handyman there,
killed two people.
He what?
Joe Gastineau? Mr. Dark and Moody.
He killed people?
Got them killed. Same thing.
Took them out on his boat,
and they both drowned.
How'd you like to carry
that around with you?
I'm sorry you got stuck at work.
I just had to get out of there.
I'm used to getting home on my own.
I just like to know where it is.
Half my clothes are missing.
Well, I grabbed everything I could see.
- I had a load in the dryer.
- We'll get it back.
I didn't wanna move over there
in the first place.
It was a dumb idea, and I'm sorry.
He wasn't that bad.
Compared to what?
- Compared to Lyle.
- He Whose Name...
...Must Not Be Spoken.
Now look, I made a mistake
with Randy, and I'm sorry.
I'll help you get your stuff.
You're the mistake.
Your ladies did a really nice job
with that reception.
I didn't eat, but it looked really good.
Is the boy that likes you the one with
the shrimp and the hair in his eyes?
I didn't say he likes me. I said
I thought he was good-looking.
And no, that's not him. That's Perry.
Perry wants to be a break dancer
when he grows up.
I thought that was over.
Disco hasn't made it up here yet.
Come on.
How could you think
I think Perry is cute?
You're a high school kid.
What do I know what you like?
Right.
You don't.
Are you mad at me about Randy?
Did you like him?
It's hard enough to keep
their names straight!
Don't be that way!
I feel like shit!
I could use a little support.
That's what therapy's for.
We're gonna have to rent the VCR again.
He's back.
There's nothing we can do about it.
He'll make a feud out
of this thing with his boat.
Our boat.
Doesn't he have a job?
If the temperature in the water
changes a couple of degrees...
...it becomes slightly
more or less acid.
Any little change, it can mean
the salmon won't return there.
And where do they go?
They probably just keep looking
along the coast until...
So the whole run disappears?
It's been known to happen.
Pretty hard-wired, fish.
Not many options.
People, though, got bigger brains.
They can guess at the future,
make decisions.
They just do a real lousy job of it.
I hate it when they're
stranded out in the air.
Their gills are working, they have
that desperate look on their face.
Well, they're drowning.
In air.
What do you think
it feels like to drown?
I don't know.
Never had the experience.
Blow it out!
Five more!
Four...
...three...
...two...
...one. Both hands!
Here we go!
Keep those knees going!
Eight...
Now reach and pull it down!
Strong arms!
Six!
Well...
...that's all she wrote.
They say the Chinese might buy it.
Pack it all up, ship it over.
They can have it.
Who wants a drink?
This is the Golden Nugget Saloon,
founded back in 1881...
...when Port Henry was the gold-mining
centre of the Northern Territory.
They say nobody eats
canned salmon anymore.
Do you eat it?
Why would I want canned
when I can get fresh?
People in Peoria are saying
the exact same thing.
The only recorded bout
between a domesticated wolf...
He's in that little DeHaviland of his...
...coming in with the wind steady
and the water's like glass...
...doing his usual rap about
the wilderness and the glaciers...
Think you're the only person up here
out of a job?
Trying to impress these two girls.
He's still got his wheels down.
I drop these people off the boat.
He's a bigtime corporate executive.
He's with his second wife and
two kids from the first marriage.
Those wheels dig in.
He flips tail over head.
They got heated tents,
freeze-dried gourmet dinners.
They're wearing about
$4000 worth of Gore-Tex.
The Beaver's lying belly up in the
channel. The two girls are unconscious.
He's hanging upside-down, hooked in by
his belt, water coming from all sides.
Two hours they lasted. And the exec
gets me on the radio, saying...
Head-on into some other bozo in a Piper
Cub whose eyes are also down on water.
It's so cold, your spit's frozen
solid before it even hits the ground.
And the metal has that tinny sound
when you slam the door...
...like the thing's gonna shatter.
There haven't been shootings.
Can't see the front of my plane,
this fog's so thick.
Harvest the resources, my ass.
A man goes out, he makes a set
and he catches fish, goddamn it!
He's not a goddamn farmer!
There's mountain peaks
all around me.
The Russians, the Japanese
scooping up our crab.
But it's been the setting
for many a confrontation.
Long time no see.
Smilin' Jack. What
brings you down this altitude?
Flew some medical supply
salesmen in from Cordova.
There's a thousand of them
at the Convention Centre.
Where are you living these days?
Two steps ahead of the finance company.
I'll see you later.
- Jumpin' Joe Gastineau.
- Friend of yours?
Not exactly.
You gassed her up
You're behind the wheel
With your arm around your sweet one
In your Oldsmobile
Barrelin' down the boulevard
Lookin' for the heart of Saturday night
Got paid on Friday
Your pockets are jinglin'
And then you see the lights
You get all a-tinglin'
'Cause you're cruisin' with a six
Lookin' for the heart of Saturday night
Mind if I sit?
No, please.
Thanks.
So...
You're terrific.
Who do I remind you of?
Remind me of?
Singers.
Most people go, "You remind me of Judy
Collins, but your voice is deeper...
...Emmylou Harris,
but your hair is curlier."
Screamin' Jay Hawkins.
Really?
No, I think he usually wore
a bone in his nose.
So can you make a living doing this?
Sort of.
You make a living working
for the lodge ladies?
Sort of.
It can be nice.
One summer, I did a cruise ship in the
Caribbean. I got to take my daughter.
You take her with you?
Pretty much, yeah.
Her father is...?
Out of the picture.
It was his choice.
So you've sung in a lot of places?
Thirty-six states and the territory
of Puerto Rico.
How about you?
I've been to Seattle a couple of times
and Canada, along the coast.
But you must like it?
I don't think I'd do so well
down south. You know, cities.
How come you're not married?
- Sorry.
- You know...
If you don't wanna say...
Probably the same reason
you're not married.
Because such a high percentage
of men are jerks?
Because women are scarce
and winters are long?
That's true, but...
You're looking for someone
who understands your bullshit...
...but is still crazy about you anyway?
That's a bit much to ask for.
No, it's not.
So have you, like, recorded songs?
I've made demos.
And I'm not exactly up here
to be discovered, or anything.
You know, at my age...
...it doesn't make a whole lot of sense,
my so-called career.
So why do you still do it?
Almost every night...
...it doesn't matter where I am
or what song I'm singing...
...all of a sudden, I'll hook into it.
I'll be feeling whatever it is
the song is about.
And I can hear it.
I can feel it in my voice.
And I know that I'm putting it across.
Moments of grace.
Do you know what I'm saying?
I do.
I put my kid through a lot, though.
Moving all the time.
But when I take a straight job,
bank teller, waitressing, whatever...
...I feel so defeated, I don't
even want her to look at me.
Would you like...
...to do something?
"Something"?
It's real pretty country here.
I could take you...
I gotta warn you.
What's the thing with
the long skinny boats?
Kayaking.
I don't do that one.
Or anything where if the spike comes out
of the cliff, you plunge to your death.
Climbing.
In general, things where you wear
gear instead of clothing, I don't do.
It's good to know.
What do you...?
When you're not working...?
I read a lot.
A lot, yeah.
I go to the gym, punish myself
on the treadmill.
If I'm with a guy, I make pathetic
attempts at ingratiating myself...
...often involving cooking
and cleaning activities.
When my daughter was little,
I would do stuff with her.
You don't anymore?
No.
So...
...if you're willing...
...let's work on this
"doing stuff" idea.
You think of stuff,
and I'll think of something.
But keep trying, really. Okay?
I will.
You know where to find me.
Two shows nightly. Bye.
It was called "Gold Fever."
In 1897, the first wave of fortune
seekers swept through Port Henry...
...on their way to Skagway, the Chilkoot
Pass and the Yukon gold fields.
They were desperate men...
...willing to perish in search of one
big strike every prospector dreamed of.
It could be the entire cruise,
or you may work just one leg...
...lay over at a stop and
switch to a different ship.
How much time would I spend at home?
We like to think of our vessels
as a kind of home.
Not much, huh?
We have this job for you.
It's different.
- We have this ship...
- Boat.
We have this boat.
The Raven.
We had the engine overhauled,
put a new gill net drum on it.
Harmon King's boat.
It's our boat now.
- He gave us his license.
- His entry permit.
Just to make up for some of the money
he still owes us.
We want you to go out.
To go out?
Go out and fish.
I'm not a fisherman.
Well, you used to be, right?
I mean, you know
what you're doing on a boat.
I suppose.
So you could, if you wanted to.
Yeah, if I wanted to.
We could figure out some kind
of percentage deal.
We don't know if we wanna keep it.
With the season almost over,
and the license so expensive...
You're not tight with Harmon, are you?
Not especially, no.
If you could just go down to the marina,
look it over.
Tell us if you need anything
to make it operational.
I haven't been commercial fishing
for 25 years.
Has it changed that much?
Well, more technology, but I just...
You're bailing us out.
It's a matter of credibility.
If we let people walk all over us...
I'll have to think about it.
Think about it. Go down,
look at the ship... the boat...
...figure out who you'd like
to have for your crew.
You think people'd do that,
knowing that it's Harmon's boat?
You can always get somebody.
If there are any calls for me,
anybody comes by asking if I'm here...
...just say I'm not registered, okay?
I'm trying to surprise somebody.
I don't want word to get around.
You get points for originality.
You're the first guy that's ever asked
me to watch fish thrash around and die.
- Well, it's...
- No, I'm not complaining.
I think it's cool.
I've seen it on TV,
but in person like this, it's...
They're so beat-up looking.
Well, they stop eating
when they head in.
My daughter did that for a while.
Almost had to put an IV in her.
Jesus, it's relentless, isn't it?
They don't stop.
Well, some of them do.
They just wear out and give up.
I'd make it.
Yeah, no sweat.
I do this much at the gym every day.
I'm gonna be gone
for a couple of days.
It's sort of a job, you know, a favour.
When I get back, it'd be
great to see you again.
That's all?
Your boat, Mr. Gastineau,
is a very unusual property.
Look, I don't wanna sell it.
I just want a mortgage.
But in view of your past
financial difficulties...
That was San Diego.
A poor credit rating
is a poor credit rating.
It's going to follow you
wherever you go.
It's just out there waiting.
Waiting for the chance to fuck you over.
- You personally?
- Whoever.
One second, you're skimming along
the surface, not a care in the world...
...then one thing goes wrong.
Yeah, like Rudy Bannister.
Rudy Bannister?
He's up in the fjord longlining when
the front of the glacier breaks off.
It makes this wave four or five stories
high by the time it hits his boat.
It's gone.
And Sonny McCarthy.
Gets caught in the riptides, trying
to short cut through Rimski Channel.
They hit the rocks.
Two guys stay onboard, two guys jump.
Sonny and the other guy
stayed onboard, bought it.
- Luck.
- Luck, nothing.
The ocean wanted them.
Hell, I'm glad I'm not
going out there no more.
It could be quick, like that
deadhead that Tommy Grogan hit.
It punched through his bow
and sunk him in five minutes.
Or it can sneak up on you
when you're not even looking.
Like Joe Gastineau.
Fuck. Ever a guy had the world
by the balls, it's Joey.
The basketball player?
He was headed for a full scholarship,
some university in California.
Senior year, he blows out his knee.
Kiss that goodbye.
Had a jump shot that'd make you weep.
So he gets on one of Torgeson's
crab boats up north...
...back when that was
a fucking gold mine.
Makes enough to put a down payment
on this little gillnetter...
...the Arctic Dawn.
Gets some friends, Lester Pope,
who used to work with his father...
...and this kid, Oley.
Jack Johannson's brother.
He'd never been out fishing.
He's like a high-school buddy.
Played hoop with Joe.
They were gonna go out with Joe
and make a big score.
I was crewing on the Cape Fox then.
We hooked into this run.
We were barely moving.
It was flat calm, no tide.
We were picking fish as fast
as we could to keep the net wet.
By nightfall, we were all plugged,
waiting in line at the tender.
About six boats ahead of us,
maybe eight behind, Joey's on the end.
It was party time.
Everybody that wasn't unloading drops
anchor, and they start boat-hopping.
So about 1, 2 in the morning,
Joe gets back on his outfit.
Him and the Johannson kid,
they go below to sleep it off.
And Lester racks out on deck.
It would be morning before
the tender could get to them anyway.
Maybe the boat was out of the water too
long. You get cracks, things dry up.
Or they were so plugged, the water line
rose up to where it'd never been before.
Whatever.
Without a sound, the boat fills like
a sponge and sinks in 30 seconds.
Damn.
So Joey wakes up, it's pitch-black.
He's underwater, right?
He's upside-down,
completely disoriented.
Swims out through the galley, yells loud
enough to wake me up on the Cape Fox.
We fished him out okay,
but the other two, not a trace.
Lost.
Yeah, he lost his friends...
...he lost the catch, there's no
insurance on the boat. That's gone.
And Joe...
Joe's not the same guy.
This old house is falling down...
...around my ears
I'm drowning in a river...
...of my tears
When all my will is gone...
...you hold me sway
I need you at the dimming...
...of the day
You pull me like the moon...
...pulls on the tide
You knowjust where I keep...
...my better side
What days have come to keep us...
...far apart
A broken promise...
...or a broken heart
Now all the bonny birds...
...have wheeled away
I need you at the dimming...
...of the day
Come the night you're only...
...what I want
Come the night you could be...
...my confidant
I see you on the street...
...in company
Why don't you come...
...and ease your mind with me
I'm living for the night...
...we steal away
I need you at the dimming...
...of the day
I need you at the dimming...
...of the day
I already got you one.
How'd you guess?
I've been keeping my eye on you.
I like your singing.
Thanks.
You really class up this joint.
I've played worse.
Jack Johannson.
I've been warned.
A lot of formerly married women
took flying lessons from you.
A lot of formerly married
women are suing me for alimony.
I'm thinking of getting out
of the bush pilot game.
Find something more lucrative.
Let's see... Fast-food service?
Camp counsellor?
You live around here?
No. One-year tour of the frozen north.
Out on your own?
No, I'm hooked up with a guy.
Musician?
He's a fisherman.
Oh, my God!
He shot a fish.
Shot it?
A halibut. It was like
a gangland execution.
We could use some halibut.
When's Joe getting in?
Joe, are you home?
But he still works here?
On and off. He's out
on a fishing boat now.
Fishing? Joe?
Can I tell you about our specials?
What are you buying when you get
on a roller coaster?
Not risk, because only fringe consumers
want that, but the illusion of risk.
Being hurled to the edge of danger, but
knowing that you never have to cross it.
Mr. Disney's innovation was...
...to put these rides and attractions
into a story context.
You imagine yourself a character
in his cartoon...
...as you floated through
a plaster of Paris jungle.
The obvious next step, and
this is at the core of our proposal...
...is not bigger and better
facsimiles of nature...
...but nature itself.
Think of Alaska as one big theme park.
How'd we do?
Got a couple boatloads.
In three days?
They were running pretty good.
I kept a few out for the restaurant.
Oh, my God!
That's gorgeous!
That's great!
- Bobby!
- Jesus...
...look at this. You're all
where I left you six years ago.
Same barstools and everything.
Hey, Harm. Aud, you're looking good.
Somebody come in and
dust you off once a week?
How's the charter business?
I can't complain. I'm thinking
of bringing my Glacier Bay clients here.
"See Port Henry's wax museum.
Incredibly lifelike figures posed
in various stages of drunken stupor."
Set up a round
for these characters, Vic.
Just come up from Baja...
...chitchat the clients, lay
on the cerveza, harass the whales.
You like that?
I like not freezing my nuggets off
here all winter...
...waiting to see who
blows their brains out first.
You know Roscoe Karnes?
Roscoe with the voice box?
Blew his brains out February.
I rest my case.
Vic, I heard my brother's
been coming in here.
Fucking sellout!
He's over in the corner here, Bobby.
Jumpin' Joe, the man himself.
Hey, bro.
Heard they shut the pulp mill down.
Town smells better.
They said you were working for a couple
of button nibblers at Harm's old lodge.
How you been?
Terrific. Just terrific.
I just took a National
Geographic crew out...
...to do a piece on the sea lion
rookery before I come up.
I get a lot of repeat customers,
and computerized my navigation...
Teresa?
Teresa and the kids are cool.
Joaquin starts kindergarten this year.
Great.
Listen, someone said
that you were out fishing.
Frankie and Lou, they got
a boat, they got a license.
They asked me to go out, so...
Back in the saddle.
So to speak.
Sorry I couldn't make it
for the old man.
No problem.
I had clients.
Hollywood real-estate honchos.
Yeah, well, you couldn't make it.
I didn't have a ceremony.
I did some paperwork
and put up a headstone.
You got my check?
Yeah, thanks.
I called my mom to tell her about it.
How'd she take it?
Changed the subject.
Well, he was who he was.
Died in bed, man.
I always figured he'd freeze to death in
the parking lot outside of some joint.
You know the laundromat at Wrangell?
Where there's a shower?
The guys coming off the boats?
About three years ago, I was in there.
Got my soap, got my towel and back
in the steam, I see this old guy.
I say, "That is one
beat-to-hell human being."
The guy looks up and it's the old man.
That's the last time I saw him.
The Old Salt. The Old Prospector.
I tell my clients stories
about the old man.
Colourful shit.
The tour guide part of the job.
How he lost those fingers, and how he,
you know, survived the earthquake...
...and all those tidal waves
on that tender.
You heard them all.
The guy I was scared of
when I was little...
Nobody wants to hear about him.
Nope.
I gotta ask you a favour.
Me?
- Have I ever asked you for anything?
- What is it?
Well, I got a situation.
It's a finesse thing with a client.
I gotta pick him up at Skagway.
I need somebody to crew for me.
You always run your operation
on your own.
It's just for appearances.
It's a business deal, see?
I gotta impress the guy, so I gotta
look less like a captain and more...
Like an admiral.
Exactly. It's a milk run, and
since you're on the water again...
I've only gone out once.
Well, I can trust you.
I mean, this deal, this business deal,
it's sensitive. Word can't get out.
When would we go?
Day after tomorrow. I just gotta
put a couple things in motion.
I'll see if I can get off work.
You saved my ass, bro. I appreciate it.
You and me, we're...
Practically strangers.
No, we're the Gastineau brothers, man.
Half brothers.
Right.
Listen, I gotta run, bro.
I'm on a schedule here.
I'm at the south marina.
The Orca Princess.
Sunday morning, 7 sharp,
we catch the tide.
It'll be a blast.
Good evening. I'm Donna De Angelo,
and this is the Golden Nugget.
Well, I see some
familiar faces out there.
Welcome back.
There's the tide.
Is it with you? Are you plowing
into it? Is it slack?
Where's the moon in its cycle?
There's wind.
It can jump on you when you're
ducking in and out of the islands.
There's the size of the channel...
...the configuration of the bottom...
You still know all this stuff?
Yeah, as much as you can know it.
This isn't what I expected.
What did you expect?
I don't know.
Some guys, they live alone,
it can get...
I had the Health Department over this
morning. They sprayed the walls down.
You listen to a lot of different stuff.
That's good.
See a whole wall of the,
you know, Butthole Surfers, it...
You read books.
So you're either a nice, quiet guy
who lives alone, or you're...
...a serial killer.
I mean, my track record for consciously
choosing men is so horrendous that I...
If I...
...ever hooked up with somebody good,
it would be pure luck.
I'm being careful, okay?
Me too.
"'The Water Baby.'
The midwife knew at first look
it wasn't a normal delivery.
The newborn was cold
as it struggled and gasped..."
A little louder.
"The midwife knew at first look
it wasn't a normal delivery.
The newborn was cold as it
struggled and gasped in her arms...
...wet and cold with a bluish pallor
that didn't change...
...once she cleared its throat
with her finger.
It fought for air but
didn't open its mouth.
The mother, sweat-soaked
in her bed sheets...
...the father, video camera dropping
away from his apprehensive face...
...her assistant, on the phone
to the life-support unit...
...all seemed to move in a heavy
slow motion, as if underwater.
The midwife was halfway down the hall
with the baby before she noticed them.
A tiny, half-moon slit below each ear...
...lined with a deep crimson membrane.
Gills."
I never slept with a drummer.
Is that good?
Probably.
It probably indicates some level
of self-respect I've never fallen below.
So...
...ex-fishermen rate
higher than drummers.
Certain types of fungus
rate higher than drummers.
And what brings this up?
I don't know if my daughter's
a virgin or not.
Is she going out with a drummer?
No, I was just...
I don't know. Just thinking.
Well, have you asked her?
I don't wanna know that badly.
If I ask her if she needs underwear,
she considers it invasive.
She's been a major baby-sitter
since she was 13.
She wants her own money, her own room.
Independent.
You don't have any children, do you?
No.
But you were married.
I knew that.
It's a good thing you didn't
have kids to fight over.
So?
When's the last time you
were involved with someone?
About a year ago.
Someone from the pulp mill?
An aerobics instructor.
Not Corky.
You know her?
Yeah, she works at my gym.
So?
Who dumped who?
She thought I was too downbeat.
- She used that word?
- Among others.
Well, she's a real spark plug,
that Corky.
I have to tell you something.
I'm allergic to wool.
Like in a carpet, even a blend.
So in blankets and clothing...
I can get rid of whatever.
No, you don't have to.
If you see me itching...
Well, no, it's no big deal.
I bought new sheets.
In case you came over.
Really?
So maybe this is a terrible idea.
Veto it if you want.
Some guy?
He's really nice.
They're all nice
till you say they're scum...
...and shouldn't be allowed
walking the streets.
This'll be fun.
It's like a nature thing.
Oh, please.
You don't like him, you don't have to
deal with him again. It's my business.
Then why do I have to go?
Consider it a favour to me.
It's important he know
you're more than a rumour.
I'd rather stay a rumour.
Anyhow, you already know him.
You work with him. Joe Gastineau.
Is there some problem with him?
He seems really nice.
Is there something I should know about?
He's fine.
He's not the guy you like out there?
Honey.
Honey, he's my age. He's older.
What did you think could happen?
Nothing did happen, did it?
Give me a break!
Maybe this is good. Maybe it's a sign.
We don't usually like
the same type guys.
If I knew you were interested in him...
But I didn't, did I?
You can be mad at me,
but not that mad. Okay?
This isn't a willful
boyfriend-swiping type of thing.
It's something different.
If you do this for me,
I'll love you forever.
She's a good kid.
She's funny.
Really?
In a morbid kind of way.
So do you find her attractive?
I never thought about it much.
Well, she's a kid.
Will I sleep with you or with her?
It's up to you.
You two know each other.
I'm gonna go down below
and get things squared away.
Some coincidence, huh?
So you like boats?
I don't know. Never been on them much.
Well, we're gonna cruise up north a ways
and maybe see some whales, seals...
...sea lions.
My mother hates boats. Anything you
do outdoors that's fun, she hates it.
And she's allergic to wool.
She told me.
You allergic to anything?
My mother's boyfriends.
It's terrific down there.
Yeah, Bobby's got a real
nice operation going.
I love boats.
Hey, Joey. Terrific. You made it.
Bobby, this is Donna De Angelo
and her daughter, Noelle.
They're coming along for
the first leg of the trip.
Great. We'll take the scenic route.
Well, the first night, maybe
you slap some water on your face...
Well, the first night, maybe
you slap some water on your face...
...take your clothes off,
crawl under the sheets.
Seems like minutes
before they yank you out of bed.
You pick the money fish out of the web,
ice them down, make another set.
The next night, you maybe
take your jacket off...
...and sleep with your boots on,
on top of the rack.
Third night, you might not
make it below.
By the end of the week, you look
for someplace safe to lean on...
...and close your eyes
for a few minutes.
I've slept on fish.
Sounds like hell.
Well, people get hooked on it.
God knows why.
It's the thing itself, you know?
You go out, you find the fish.
You pull them out of the ocean.
You're right there with it.
Everything else is secondhand.
People work in canneries.
People sell real estate, T-shirts.
What if you couldn't sing anymore?
What if you had to work, like,
you know, in a record store?
So you liked it.
And it was dangerous.
And you got off on it.
Yeah, I guess I did.
Noelle is studying to be
a nuclear physicist.
Very funny.
You could. You're smart enough.
She's been in a new school every year.
But she's a good writer.
How would you know?
I've read your stories.
When I was 12.
You still write, don't you?
The weather service says
we got a gale coming.
We're not gonna make it to the narrows.
Is that bad?
If we put in back here, the mountains
will knock down a lot of the wind.
It's not a good anchorage.
- You've been in there?
- No.
Well, if we stay out here,
we're gonna get hammered.
How's the kid?
Do you want some water?
Rinse out your mouth?
We could try another one of those pills.
No, I'll be all right.
What are these cuts?
- These...
- They're just cuts!
"Just cuts"? How did they get there?
Maybe I got them at work.
People don't get cuts...
We'll pull into
this inlet and drop anchor.
When it calms down,
I'll throw on a couple of steaks.
Are you all right?
"Frosh Phenom Cans 30
in Overtime Upset."
"Soph Sensation Leads the Saint
K-Cagers to the State Finals."
He's got those scars on his knees.
Jumpin' Joe Gastineau.
The "Houdini of the Hardwood,"
the "Beethoven of the Bank Shot."
So he was good?
John Wooden sent one of his scouts
to look at him.
Is that someone I should know?
In basketball, it's like God sending the
angel Gabriel to check out your moves.
Joey graduated, they retired his number,
retired his locker...
...bronzed all his old jockstraps...
...stuck them in the trophy case.
High school.
The game's changed.
Now I'd just be another guy.
Right.
This tofu burger, how does she like it?
Mealy, medium-mealy
or black and crispy?
I don't think she's very hungry.
When this was a territory, it would've
been a hanging offense to eat bean curd.
She is picky about food.
If I scramble her an egg,
she makes me feel like a criminal.
If your own kid can't make you
feel like shit, what's the point?
No meat?
No meat, no fish, no dairy.
Food Nazi.
I could scrape the green stuff off
the anchor chain, heat that up for her.
Listen.
You hear anything?
No.
Nobody comes back here.
I thought I heard a motor.
Listen, Joe, we got a problem.
I should've asked.
They're terrific.
But this guy I'm meeting...
Guys, actually.
What's going on?
It's complicated.
Tell me.
I was in a situation.
I invested in some real estate.
It didn't turn out well.
There was a cash-flow squeeze.
I had these clients. They
owned an organic food business.
I took them from Baja to Glacier Bay.
They're high the whole time, but nice.
And at the end, we got along
pretty good, and they gave me a bonus.
It's a pound of hash, right?
It's primo stuff.
They said if I wanted, if I was that
kind of guy, how easy it would be to...
- Christ.
- They connected me with someone.
I brought up a couple of loads
over the last few years.
It's a piece of cake.
The money gets me out of a jam.
It's just hash.
It's not crack or heroin.
You carrying drugs onboard?
No, Joe.
I'm not.
That's the problem.
The last time I'm up,
off of Cape Caution...
...a Canadian patrol boat
comes racing after me.
I dump the whole batch.
Hundreds of thousands of dollars.
I get nervous, and it's fish food.
They had me confused
with some other boat.
Somebody reported them running
too close to a pod of humpbacks.
These guys, Joey, I don't know that much
about them, but they don't fuck around.
They think I sold it on the side,
that I'm holding out.
We arrange a meet in Baja.
I get nervous again.
I smell a setup, I don't show.
I come up here, my home turf.
I contact them, arrange another meeting,
tell them we'll work it out.
That's where we're headed?
I got it all worked out.
A payment schedule.
A mortgage on the boat, the house.
They'd rather get
their money back, right?
These are businessmen.
What am I supposed to do?
I told Teresa, Joey. She left me.
She took the kids, went across
to Tijuana to her sister's.
You gotta help me out of this.
You don't tell me shit.
I gotta have somebody backing me up!
Just for them to see I got
somebody behind me, I got family!
I mean, who else can I trust?
But the women...
We go by Tenakee Springs tomorrow.
We drop them off there.
They were gonna fly back anyway.
Have a plane pick them up there.
Stay up here. I'll figure out
something to tell them.
You're saving my ass on this.
You don't deserve it.
I don't know. I just feel funny.
Not as funny as I'll feel sleeping
in the same bed with you.
Come on. You used to all the time.
It wasn't that long ago.
It was that long ago.
It was in another lifetime.
It could be kind of fun.
If we weren't trying to impress
some guy, we wouldn't even be here.
What do you mean, "we"?
You know what I mean.
There's no room, but come on in.
How you feeling?
A little better.
Good. The wind's gone down,
so it should be pretty calm.
Tomorrow, we're gonna swing over
to Tenakee and drop you off there.
- What's that?
- A little town...
No, that upstairs.
Somebody come onboard?
What's happening?
All right, follow me.
Whatever happens, follow me.
Swim for shore!
They're up here,
getting off the front!
Keep swimming.
Keep going. Keep going!
We've gotta get to the woods.
Come on.
Go up. Up.
Up here.
Come on.
What the fuck is going on?!
Somebody shot Bobby.
What? Who shot him? Why?
What? Who shot him? Why?
I don't know. He told me
he was in trouble just now.
What'll we do?
Take your clothes off.
What?
Get them off or you'll freeze.
- Hurry up!
- We have to get help!
There's nobody here!
Now help Noelle!
I'm cold.
If they come after us...
...we're gonna have to move,
so put your shoes back on.
I don't have any.
I don't believe this is
fucking happening!
The night's short now.
We'll be all right.
Turn around. Get your shirt off.
Scrunch down, scrunch down.
Rub her, rub her!
I can't breathe.
I can't move.
It's okay.
They're coming in.
Here. Get on my back.
Come on.
Get the clothes.
Hurry up!
The boats are gone.
Both of them.
Think they'll come back?
There's no way to know.
Look, I'm sorry.
I didn't have any idea till last night
that something was wrong.
You think they killed him?
Where are we?
It's a little inlet...
...on the back side of Kuleshov Island.
What's that?
Like up Shit Creek without a paddle?
Yeah, pretty much.
Now, I think we should head
towards the channel...
...while it's still light,
and hope we run into a stream.
We'll be okay for a few days
without food, but water's...
Here, try this.
- What are you gonna use?
- Don't worry.
I'll just be careful where I step.
This is not happening to us.
It could be worse.
It's not that cold yet.
And I've got my knife.
Christ, wait a minute.
We can have a fire.
I'm not sure. Smoke...
I'm not gonna let her
freeze like that. Not again.
For white folks to leave the mainland,
they usually had some kind of scheme.
People used to raise foxes
for the pelts, you know.
It was a big deal for a while.
Watch yourself.
Why come out here?
Well, land was available, I guess.
They would hunt and fish
and try to grow some things.
Over here!
Somebody lived here.
Tomorrow, they'll miss us.
Noelle won't be in class.
Nobody will miss me in school.
They'll miss you at your job. And Joe.
And I'm supposed to sing at the Nugget.
It'll be a few days before people
start calling around for us.
Bobby wasn't keeping radio contact,
so nobody knows he cut in over here.
How long does it take to starve?
I don't know.
Depends on, you know, what shape
you're in, and what else you're doing.
You remember that fast
that I did in Idaho?
How long was that?
You cheated.
I did not.
I had some tomato juice.
Then it isn't a fast.
Well, I'm starving now.
How long will it take us
to get to the channel?
A couple days. Maybe more.
Days?
I think we should hang here where
we've got shelter for a while...
...make sure those guys don't come back.
Then we can start a signal fire
on the shore.
Do people come here to fish?
Nobody does anything on Kuleshov.
What about this stuff?
No, I don't think so.
That batch there, what you've got,
that's good.
And you can look
under the rocks for crabs.
When are we gonna light
the signal fire?
I think we could risk it tomorrow.
Then we find a place that doesn't
go under when the tide comes in.
"'My Diary."'
So are we gonna eat that thing too?
Sea cucumber. Lots of protein.
Can you hand me some of that algae?
Sea lettuce.
Thank you.
These limpets taste like rubber.
Frankie steams them in white wine and
ginger, on a bed of saffron couscous.
It's one of the appetizers.
I memorized them.
If we're here for a while,
I'll rig something for cooking.
Sorry.
Here.
Chew this real slow.
"My name is Anne Marie Hoak,
and this is my diary.
Papa and Mother and I have come here
to make a go at the fox farming trade.
If this pans out, says Papa, next year
I can go back to finish with school.
I offered to get on at the cannery
to help out when we were in town...
...but Papa says there's
too much trash working there.
He was a logger, but...
...fell while he was topping,
and now has headaches and dizziness...
...that prevent him from many
of the trades other men pursue.
This way, he says, we can live
in the great outdoors...
...and operate our own business...
...which is every man's true desire.
Mother doesn't care for it.
We have transported a dozen
breeding pairs of blue pelt foxes...
...and put them in their pens.
They're lovely to look at,
but nervous...
...and I need to mind my fingers
when I'm near them.
When the vixens are ready to bear, we'll
separate them to be with their litter.
Papa is building a fish trap
in the stream...
...as he hopes to catch
the returning chum for fox food.
I expect it will be a hard life,
but work is scarce back in town...
...and Papa's spirit was getting low.
Mother goes on about how
she'll miss female company...
...and that I will have to
be her special friend.
Papa thinks he's been
a disappointment to her.
And sometimes she
doesn't do much to hide it.
I'll be lonely here, I can tell,
but it should be a great adventure...
...like Caddie in Caddie Woodlawn.
I'll try to be a faithful writer,
dear diary...
...and tell you my innermost thoughts."
Read some more.
Tomorrow night.
We may not be here tomorrow.
I found it.
I'll read it when I want to.
We'll have something
to look forward to.
Like a soap opera.
Sounds like we're moving in.
There's no telling
how long it's gonna be.
We're gonna be all right, aren't we?
We're gonna be fine.
Lester!
Lester! Oley!
Help!
Help, somebody, please!
Somebody help me!
Help me.
Who the fuck is that?
Lester and Oley. They're on the boat.
What boat?
Are you okay?
What's the matter?
You can't always save people.
We need to feed this
a couple of times a day.
When the sky's like this,
it won't be easy to spot.
But on a clear day...
So what if it rains?
Well, if it rains or the tide comes in
too high, we'll start from scratch.
Then we hope that somebody sees this.
Somebody who doesn't wanna kill us.
It's a possibility.
Jeez, you two are a perfect match.
Doom and Gloom.
- There's no use pretending.
- Yes, there is!
We're on a camping trip.
We're on a survival school camping trip.
This is what they call "quality time,"
isn't it?
This is what they mean.
No distractions, no media stuff.
We just get to know each other.
We gnaw the bark off a few trees.
People pay money
to come on trips like this.
If you assume that bad shit's
gonna happen, bad shit happens.
I just don't see the point.
The fish go in through here...
...then they can't
turn around and get out.
Well, that's the idea, anyway.
This wire's kind of brittle, though.
Where'd you learn all this stuff?
My old man taught me.
You did lots of stuff with him?
When he had something to do and needed
somebody to swear at, he took me along.
My father's a composer. My real father.
Really?
How long did you live with him?
I didn't.
She split up with him,
you know, before...
Bobby was your half brother?
Did you ever live together?
Nope.
We'd see each other around.
He was a lot younger.
Different friends, a different life.
I've got two half sisters
and a half brother.
What are they like?
I never met them.
They're pretty little still.
I saw them in a picture.
He was in People magazine, my father.
So you don't visit?
She doesn't want me to.
You just write letters and phone calls?
No.
You don't think we're gonna
get rescued, do you?
"The house is small but cozy now that we
have cleaned it up and made it our own.
I have my own room, and at night I hear
the owls calling back in the woods...
...and our foxes yipping
when something wild comes by.
There are blueberries everywhere.
My fingers are stained purple with them.
Mother insists I'll be attacked by bears
if I stray too far from the house.
Papa's headaches are better,
and I help him clear the fish trap...
...and prepare the food for the animals.
It is unpleasant, sticky work,
but must be done.
I've gotten stronger
handling the skiff.
Mom chides Papa
for making a boy of me.
But I don't mind.
The days it doesn't rain
are God's glory.
Most of our vixens are
close to giving birth.
Some days, I'll go for hours without
speaking, and feel I'm changing...
...perhaps possessed by the soul
of some long-dead Indian girl...
...or perhaps the spirit of a she-wolf.
This morning, I snuck up on Papa
felling a spruce for the fireplace...
...and watched him for a long time
without him seeing me.
Perhaps I shall learn
to become invisible.
I made blueberry pancakes.
Mother says if she eats any more fish,
she'll grow fins and swim back to town.
At night, she has me kneel
with her to pray."
You gonna read us some more?
"The terrible birthing has begun.
We think one of the vixens
ate her litter.
The kits, the ones that survived...
...are lovely once their eyes are open.
Papa told me not to handle them,
but when he is gone, I do.
Their heads are squarish and fluffy."
Fox babies.
Isn't that enough?
Don't want the bears to dig him out.
Sorry you had to see this.
Killing somebody for money.
By the middle of winter up here, people
kill each other because they're bored.
Bobby took a risk, didn't work out
for him, and that's all.
"Winter has locked us
in its icy embrace.
The pelts of the animals are thick and
bluish, our home is blanketed with snow.
Papa calls it 'Limbo, ' because it isn't
heaven and it's too cold to be hell.
Mother wondered about purgatory,
but he said no.
Purgatory has an end to it.
'Don't torture me so, ' said Mother.
The salmon we dried up has run out.
The kits are eating solid food now,
and it's hard to keep up with them.
Papa went to the other side
of the island and shot two sea lions.
He could only bring one back
without tipping over in the skiff.
I had to help him
with the crosscut saw...
...breaking it down to pieces
that we keep in the shed.
Papa said it's just meat, but I tried
not to look at what I was doing.
When Papa rowed back, the other
sea lion had been gotten to by a bear.
We put a piece of the frozen meat
in each of the pens...
...and the foxes fight over it
and gnaw at it...
...and the outside melts from
the heat of their little tongues.
Mother won't deal with them anymore.
She has grown silent
with the shorter, darker days...
...and only now and again will she
break out into one of her Bible songs.
She asks me to join her,
but we don't harmonize well."
"I have a dream about Fox.
He is a young man who comes to me on
snowshoes, dressed in the blue pelts.
His skin and hair are dark,
but his eyes are ice blue.
All the others here are paired,
he says:
Papa and Mother.
The sires and the vixens.
But I am alone...
...and he can't let that continue.
Sometimes in the dream
he stays with us, but usually...
...he picks me up and carries me
to his own island.
Papa says...
...if we can get the animals through
the winter, they're a gold mine.
He says fortunes have been
started on less.
He says if he keeps
having his dizziness...
...l'll have to go hunting
with him the next time.
The burns from where Mother hit him with
the bacon grease are only pink now...
...healing, though the hair doesn't grow
on that part of his jaw.
I'm sewing a sampler."
Don't worry about it burning.
Just flip it over after a minute.
Did you put the trap back?
Good.
Good day for planes.
Nobody's coming.
Don't be negative.
In two weeks, how many planes
have we seen? Zero.
We heard that one.
There'd be more
if they were looking here.
What's that supposed to mean?
Bobby probably told
people at the dock...
...that we were headed
in a different direction.
He thought people were after him.
People were after him.
Stupid.
Trying to impress your boyfriend,
drag us out on a boat...
I'm cold, I'm hungry, I'm dirty and
I'm scared shitless, just like you are.
- I'm trying to help us get through this.
- I shouldn't be here!
I shouldn't be in this state!
Nobody is to blame for this!
Yeah, right.
When you are of age, you're free
to fuck up your own life...
...but until that time, I'm afraid
it's my job to do it for you.
You could help me with this.
He's not my father!
- Thank God!
- What's that mean?
He would've gone off picking berries.
That's the last we would've seen of him.
That's not true!
How do you know? You were
in the same room with him twice!
You wouldn't let him!
If he thinks of you once a year,
I'd be surprised.
Every Christmas. He sent me a bike...
He sent me a watch, a dollhouse...
I sent the bike!
I sent the watch! All of it.
When you were little, I figured you have
the Easter Bunny, you have Santa Claus.
You should have a father in California
that sends you stuff.
I hated that dollhouse.
I know you did, sweetheart.
But you wouldn't let me exchange it
because it was from him.
"I was the one who found them.
It was time to clean
the scat from the pens...
...so I had the buckets and the shovels.
And then there was blood
everywhere in the snow.
All of them torn and smashed,
even my little kits.
A bear, says Papa.
Though when has a bear gone
into a half a dozen pens...
...without breaking the gates?
Mother says nothing.
But she's only a black spot these days
and refused to celebrate Christmas.
I dreamed that Fox came and was angry
for what we let happen...
...that he held me down on the snow,
and I felt his hot breath on my face...
...felt it bitter in my throat...
...and felt his ice eyes
cutting into me.
I wish...
...I wish he would come soon.
Mother...
...sleeps with me now,
and it is cramped and tense.
You would think that...
...another body under the covers
would bring warmth...
...but I awake feeling drained, like
she's pulled all the heat from me.
I'm doing the cooking now,
and my eyes...
...are always red from the smoke.
The wood is too big
for the cook stove...
...but the ax has gone missing,
and we can't break it down.
Mother says hell is a cold place.
Maybe...
...l'm the soul not of a she-wolf...
...but of a soaring bird...
...that flies south every winter.
And my heart is so sick...
...because I'm not supposed
to be here in this cold...
...this dark, this wet.
Maybe I'm like the air in this house...
...the air that doesn't move
when Papa and Mother...
...pass in silence.
Dead smoky air...
...that smells of wool and old bacon.
We threw the animals on the rocks
for the tide to deal with.
Papa cried."
They're coming!
They're coming!
Careful!
You folks picked a hell of a place
for a clambake.
We've been stranded.
Any more of you?
No, it's just us.
We were on Bobby's boat,
and he was murdered.
I'm not sure who did it.
We jumped off at night.
A couple fellows came looking,
then we hid.
Then they pulled anchor.
Damn.
How long you been here?
A week and a half.
We've been living in an old house,
holing up there at night.
And I was hoping you people
could help me.
My radio's shot.
I'm low on fuel and
heading into bad weather.
Your radio's gone?
Crapped out on me a half-hour ago.
Not even static.
I'll have to turn this thing around,
try to get out of here, send help.
Would you take my daughter?
She's sick.
I'd love to, but I can't
handle the weight.
She barely weighs a thing.
I've barely got a fighting chance
as it is. Sorry, ladies.
Here.
You wanna help me with this thing?
I got a first-aid kit in here.
No food, though.
I'm real sorry to hear about Bobby, man.
I used to party with him up in Haines.
What's the story, Jack?
What's what story?
Who sent you?
Just one more night out here, honey.
And then they'll come back and get us.
Couple of guys,
Mr. Smith and Mr. Brown.
Never seen them before, but I don't
think they're here to save the whales.
They laid some money on me to see if I
could spot three people in the boonies.
And if you saw them?
Just go back and tell them where.
So why'd you land?
I'm on the level about the radio, Joe.
I hoped to find some fishermen with
a shortwave and a cooler full of brew.
If I'd have known the deal about Bobby,
I'd have turned them in.
You have to trust me on that one.
Hang in there, ladies.
I'll be back with the cavalry tomorrow.
We're gonna make it.
Last I heard, he was flying
out of Anchorage...
...kicking square halibut
out of a cargo plane.
What's that?
Marijuana bales. You fly over
a spot on the water.
Somebody signals you with
lights or a code over the radio.
You dump them,
and people down below...
...fish them out,
take them to the next stage.
He's a drug dealer.
He's whatever pays best,
or what he can get away with.
He hit on me a couple of times
at the bar.
He seemed like a nice guy.
I'm not saying people don't like him.
I'm just saying I don't trust him.
You think he might tell those men?
I don't know.
I don't believe him about the radio.
And we've got some personal history.
Like what?
His brother drowned on a fishing boat,
and it was my fault.
He wouldn't do that to us.
He's not a killer.
How do you know?
I've looked in his eyes. I can tell
some things about a person.
Look, we don't have any choice!
You're sick. It's getting colder.
We can't stay here!
Nobody's gonna show up for a while
if it keeps up like this.
Not in a plane, not in a boat.
It's got to stop sometime.
Sooner or later.
Humour me, okay?
All right, it was worse yesterday
and the day before.
The signal fire's probably out.
As soon as it clears,
we'll get it going.
It's blank.
What is?
It's blank.
Look, after the first few entries...
The foxes haven't even
had their babies yet.
"We won't bury her on the island.
She made me promise.
She whispered it, and she hissed it...
...in my ear one night when she laid
hard beside me in bed.
'Promise me.'
She wouldn't listen to anything else.
We had come back from
looking for deer, Papa and me.
Signs at the salt lick,
but nothing to shoot at.
I was putting his rifle back
where he hid it in the shed roof...
...when I heard him cry out.
He wouldn't...
He wouldn't let me in at first...
...though I hollered
and struck at the door.
He opened up...
...when he'd got her down
on the table...
...but...
...I still saw the black mark
around her neck...
...where the cord was.
The fire had gone out...
...so our breath was showing,
Papa and me.
White long sighs of grief.
And her mouth open...
...and hair crispy to the touch.
We wrapped her in her afghan...
...and then I...
...I got the fire going
while Papa just sat.
Nothing to say.
Later, we found the note...
...and she told how the animals
were Satan's handmaidens...
...and how their sharp little eyes...
...would not give her peace.
So she killed them...
...and then threw the ax in the woods.
'We have looked into ourselves,'
she wrote...
...'and what is there condemns us.'
We'll take her off the island
come first thaw.
If Fox comes...
...padding through the trees...
...he will find us gone."
That's it?
That's it. The last entry.
Poor thing.
Who?
Little Anne Marie there.
Her mother didn't love her
enough to stick around.
She was crazy.
But still...
She left her daughter.
I would never do that.
No matter what.
I kind of look forward
to her being sick.
It's the only time
she lets me hold her anymore.
It's some kind of fever.
It's in her lungs.
We have to get her out of here.
You really think he might bring
people back to kill us?
I hope I'm wrong.
Lf...
When we get back, I still
have some dates up north.
I'd only be gone for...
She could stay with me.
And so could you.
You're not sick of us?
You're not sick of me?
There's nobody I'd rather be stranded
in desperate circumstances with.
We should take our time
with the furniture moving part.
You know, she pretends not to...
...but she gets her hopes up for me.
When it doesn't work...
I'll take care of her.
There it is.
Looks bigger.
Room for all of us.
Or those men.
To hell with it.
I'm not staying here.