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Painkillers (2018)
[ Light bulbs flashing ]
[ Glass crunching ] [ Electric hum ] [ Music playing ] [ laughter, indistinct conversations ] [ Phone ringing ] Hey, where are you guys? Woman: Oh, we left. - What? - Yeah. - Lame. That party was amazing. - Hey, miss? Yeah, it was just okay... Help, please. Are you okay? [ Grunts ] [ Panting ] [ Grunts ] Sarah? Sarah? [ Woman continues indistinctly on phone ] Hello? Sarah? Talk to me, what's going on? Sarah? [ Music playing ] [ Music playing ] - Oh! - Go, go, go! Come on, come on, come on, come on... Go, go, go, go! Oh, my gosh, you did that and you're in dress shoes. That's right, I am. So, where's your skills? Come on. Come on, buddy! Your goal! Goal! Whoo! Nope. No, no. Come on, come on, buddy. I gotta be a goalie, okay? Ah! [ Panting ] Come on, man! Come on, what's with you? I'm the doctor, you're the soccer player. [ laughter ] Ah! Goal! Oh, you kicked me! Hey, low blow! - [ Phone ringing ] - Tickle monster ensues! It's a ticklish spider! Oh, hold on, buddy. [ Clears throat ] Hey, Dr. Konrad. Uh-huh. How are his vitals? - Yeah, and what's the...? - Can we play? What's the CT scan show? All right, I'll be there in 20. Let's fly, buddy. Already? Hey, you know how it goes. It's an emergency and I'm on call, let's go. Pack it up. Come on, buddy. I'm sorry. You're always sorry. Look, it was getting dark anyway. Couldn't play that much longer. [ Sighs ] I just... miss you, Dad. Hey... you wanna see something scary? Yeah. Okay, here goes, ready? Three, two, one. Brian: Whoa! [ Chuckles ] Brian: Again, again! Oh, come on. I would highly advise against that, Captain. Override protocol. Copy that, over. One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten. [ John chuckles ] - Do 20 now! - Oh, let's not get carried away. Okay. Thanks, Dad. That was fun. So how are things at school? You got a girlfriend now, right? Dad! That's gross. What's her name, Irma? - Shit! - Dad, watch out! Hold on! [ Heart beating ] [ Soft breathing ] [ Heart monitor beeping ] Chloe, muffled: John, can you hear me? It's okay, baby, it's me, Chloe. Nurse! How long have I been out? Two days. Brian... Brian, is he all right? Oh, God, no, oh, God, no. Oh, God, please. No, not dead. [ Groans ] No! Oh, what's happening? - [ John grunting ] - Somebody help! Describe what you're feeling. [ Muffled yelling ] Call Dr. Konrad! [ Yelling ] This will help. Just breathe, just breathe, relax. - John, John. - John: What's happening to me? - What's going on? - I don't know, he was coming to when we were talking and then something got triggered. It happened quickly. - Do something, anything! - Nurse: I did. - Please! - Morphine, five milligrams. - And then nothing? - Nothing. All right, give me a hundred of the ketamine - in one of the verse. - Dr. Konrad... Do it! He should be knocked out by now. [ Groaning ] Again. - Dr. Konrad... - Do it! Okay. I can't, I can't. - I'm sorry... - I'll do it. - I'm sorry! - Chloe, you don't work here anymore. Step back. [ Groaning ] It's okay, baby, just breathe. Dr. Konrad: Just... [ music playing ] [ No audible dialogue ] [ No audible dialogue ] [ Traffic noises, siren wailing in distance ] Dr. Konrad: From a medical standpoint, all the reports and tests come to the same conclusion, that there's nothing physically wrong with you. I mean, we just can't seem to find the source of the pain. And, quite frankly, I've never seen anything like this before. I mean, I personally consulted with dozens of experts... I don't care about other doctors, what's your opinion? That you've suffered a traumatic shock... both emotionally and psychologically. And that... this is just your body's way of dealing with the pain. Could it be a form of post-traumatic stress? It doesn't fit the diagnosis. You both know as well as I do that there are new orphan diseases every day. Parkinson's? It doesn't explain the pain. John, we've given you every painkiller and sedative known to man and you're just... You're not responding. So, if you want my... professional opinion... go home. Rest. And with everything that's happened... talk to each other. [ Music playing ] [ John grunting ] John... What are you doing? Why are you putting him away like that? [ Sobbing ] [ Music playing ] [ No audible dialogue ] [ Whispers indistinctly ] Chloe: Thank you for coming. Thank you. I'm so sorry for your loss. Thank you. John, can I speak to you for a minute? I'm sorry, do I know you? My name is Herb Morris. A friend of mine told me about your situation who works in the medical field. Dr. Konrad consulted with him regarding your condition. He wouldn't have told me about your situation if he didn't think I could help. And I can help, John. Look, I... don't have time for this. John... I understand you've been through so much and you have a long road ahead. Let me give you my card and you call me when you're ready. Ready? You'll know. Chloe: Who was that? John: No one. Just some ambulance chaser. [ Rain pattering, thunder crashing ] [ Crying ] [ Sighs ] - Do you want some help? - No. I can do it. John? Yeah? We should talk. What do you wanna talk about? Our son died, John. It wasn't your fault. Don't say that, okay? You... you weren't there, I was there, I was driving, this was my fault. You have to stop blaming yourself, you can't live... You call this living? Oh. [ Groaning ] Here, give me this. [ Bandage stretching ] [ TV playing indistinctly in background ] [ Panting ] [ Sighs deeply ] John! John! What did you do? - What did you do? - Hey, hey, shh. Hey. It's not what you think. You're not shaking anymore. The pain is gone, Chloe. [ Music playing ] [ Phone ringing ] John on phone: This is John Clarke. Said you had some information about my condition. I'm ready to hear it. [ Music playing ] What you have is an extremely rare version of PTSD, and by rare I mean one in a million. Now there are theories, but, in the end, nobody's been able to figure out exactly what this is. Is there a cure? A cure? No. Barely a palliative. Just by looking at you, I can tell that you've already discovered it for yourself. You drank your own blood... and the pain went away. I know what you're going through, John, believe me I do. This is insane. - So, what, I just drink my own blood now...? - Whoa, whoa, whoa no, no, not so fast there, champ. For some reason, that particular cure only works the once. I don't know, maybe to give you a taste for it. I can assure you, you continue down that route... you won't last very long, if you know what I mean. What, am I like a... vampire now or something? What's happening to you is very real. Now, I can assure you you're not gonna live forever, you can still go out and enjoy the sun, you can have garlic on your steak, hell, you can even enjoy your good looks in the mirror when you wake up in the morning. All that shit is just myth. But the core of it is true. It's blood. Blood eases the pain. Fresh human blood, animal blood doesn't work, old, stale blood doesn't work. Mother nature knows best. [ Chuckles ] Yeah, you find this natural? Good news is... Is I can get you what you need. Are you offering to sell me blood? Think about it, John. You can have your life back and nobody need ever know. [ Groaning ] [ Car horn honking ] [ Sustained car honk ] [ Music playing ] [ Chiming ] Oh, fuck! [ Heart monitor beeping ] Just gonna change this out for you. [ Door unlocking, opening ] Where were you? I've been calling. Oh, sorry, I... lost track of time. Are you okay? Yeah, yeah, I'm all right. And the pain? It's gone. But how? I mean, you've been sick for days and then, just like that, it's gone? Did you call Gail? Don't get me wrong, I'm glad that you're feeling better, but... there has to be some kind of explanation otherwise it could just come back. Hey... I'll be fine. Just please give me some time. Okay? [ Music playing ] Gail, it's Chloe. Reporter's voice on laptop: Urban legend Carla Franken was found dead today in her prison cell where she was awaiting trial. Police sources say she committed suicide by hanging herself. Ms. Franken was arrested earlier this year for the alleged killing of 24-year-old Sarah Mendelsohn. Unofficial sources at that time claimed that Ms. Franken had drank the blood of her alleged victim, which sparked a series of tabloid rumors that labeled her as the "Charles County Vampire Killer." Official sources strongly denied those rumors. Ms. Franken had been troubled for many years after her entire family died in a house fire that she inadvertently started. Gail wants to see you in an hour. [ Taps keyboard ] Oh, uh, right. Great. Thank you. What were you looking at? Nothing. Okay. [ Music playing ] Woman over P.A.: Rapid response team to room 453. Rapid response team, room 453. Dr. Barnett, please dial 115. Dr. Barnett, 115. [ Scoffs ] You wanna be reinstated? Pain's gone, Gail. It's over. Over just like that? I guess you were right, it must've been psychological. I have no other explanation for it. It's only been a couple of days. I... did you start seeing anyone? I talked it over with Chloe like you suggested and it really helped. Uh-huh. Well, I wanna start monitoring you on a daily basis. And you can when I resume working. I'll be here, you can keep your eye on me. John, don't you think it's a bit too soon? I can do it. See? What happened to the other hand? I... I tried to do some home improvements, the shaking relapsed for like a second when I did. Mm-hmm. And what happens when it relapses during a surgery? Look, I knew you would say that, and you know that I would never risk endangering a patient's life, so I'm not asking you to put me back into surgery on my own at first. Let me assist for a while. I'll be at the hospital, I'll get back into my rhythm... John, we don't need you to assist on somebody else's surgery. I need it, Gail. I need to feel useful again. You know me. My whole life is my work. You don't even have to put me back on payroll again. You're being ridiculous. When my mother died, all I could think about was getting back to work and staying at work. All I wanted to do was just... do anything to just... [ sighs ] Stop thinking about her all the time. And stop thinking about the guilt... and the shame. Stop thinking about the pain. I wanna help you, John. I do. But this help comes with a warning. I'm gonna watch you very carefully. And the moment there's any sign of trouble, you are out. Sure. You can start next week, - Dr. Eubanks... - I wanna start today. Immediately. [ Music playing ] [ Heart monitor beeping ] I'll take care of that. John, listen, what are you doing in the dark? I... What's going on? John? Just... talk to me. You're scaring me. Just... tell me what's going on. I'm here to help. I just wanna... I just wanna help. John, don't leave! - John! - [ door shuts ] Jesus Christ. [ John panting ] Whoa. Would you look at this? Junkie doctor. Never thought I'd see the day. Look like you need a fix, doc. - [ John shudders ] - Maybe I can help you. Hook you up. - You want some morphine? - No. - Some crystal? - Fuck off, will you? Whoa, doc, you off your meds? - Wallet now. - I don't have anything on me. I'm not taking your word for it. Your night's not tonight! What the fuck, man? [ Both grunting ] [ Shuddering, groaning ] Dude, you fucking stabbed me! You did that yourself. Why are you staring at me like that? [ Muffled ] You're fucking creeping me out, man. Do something! You're a fucking doctor, for fuck's sake, come on! I'm bleeding out here, man! [ Normal ] Hey, where are you going? The ER's right in there. Help me! You're seriously gonna leave me like this? [ Music playing ] [ John shuddering ] What are you doing? You went back to work? What happened? Oh... relapse. I dropped some blood samples. The pain's back? It's okay, honey, I'm here. Arms up. I'm here. Thank you. We'll get through this. It's gonna be okay. - [ Voice muffled ] - [ heart beating ] What? What happened? Stay away from me. I don't wanna hurt you. What? What's wrong? You don't understand, I'm a danger to people, I'm a danger to you. What are you talking about? I need to go! [ Crying ] John, stop! You're not the only one who lost Brian. I need you. Please. I'm sorry. [ Screams ] [ Yells ] [ Panting ] [ Music playing ] Man: Hey, thanks, Herb. [ Doorbell rings ] John, welcome. Take a seat, I won't be long. [ Door opens and closes ] [ Door opens and closes ] Here, this should help. Careful. Don't spill on the rug. [ Gulping ] Cheers. You have it too? But your skin. Pale skin's bad for business. Are there many others like us? Worldwide, a few hundred maybe. Around here, barely a handful. And... and you know them all? I like to think I do. I heard about this woman, Carla Franken... Oh... Was she one of us too? Well, I guess you could say so. Not one of the smart ones, if you ask me. She paid the price for her recklessness. Where'd you get this? I mean, I've tried blood banks, but... You're a smart man, John, but you're gonna have to adjust your notions of good and evil. You'll come to understand that grey is a fine color after all, good for all seasons. Did you kill for it? Not my style. You like what you see, hmm? You can have your life back, John. You can have control. Would you like me to show you? [ Knocks on door ] Come in. Hey, Gail, do you have a minute? Chloe, uh... yeah. In fact, I was... actually planning to call you. How are you doing? I'm keeping it together. Have you seen John? No, I haven't, not today. Which is why I wanted to talk to you. Please, sit down. [ Music playing ] [ Sighs ] Last night, I caught John stealing blood from the O.R. And when I confronted him, he ran away from me. And earlier yesterday, several blood bags were punctured and left all over the floor. [ Sighs ] The other night, I, um... I found John unconscious on the floor. He had... cut his wrist and there was... There blood on his mouth, but I didn't think anything of it, I mean, it was the first time that the pain had stopped. I mean, he wasn't shaking anymore. And then last night, he... He said that he was a danger to people, to me, and he ran away. This doesn't exist, right? Before John's condition... I would've said no. What? Chloe, we've gotta call the police. - No. - We can't let him be a danger to everybody else, or himself for that matter. No, no. Please, Gail, we both know John, he's just probably trying to figure this out on his own. I need to find my husband before the authorities do. Please. 24 hours. After that, I have to call the authorities. Thank you, Gail. I'll just... I'll keep trying him. Okay, and I'll do the same. Chloe. Please take care of yourself. [ Music playing ] John: So where are we going? Herb: You'll see. So what's your story? What happened to you? 9/11 happened. I was in charge of a rescue dispatch unit when it happened. Oh, my God. We were in the north tower trying to get everyone out and, um... then the south tower was hit. I couldn't... I had to save myself. I got out just before the building collapsed entirely. How? I made a choice. Looking back on it, I could've saved some of them. I saw a way out, I didn't look back, I didn't tell anyone. In that moment, right before everything goes black... you have to make a choice. If you really want to survive, if you're willing to do anything to survive, then you survive. The pain comes from unbearable guilt, like yours, John. No, try not to think about it. The pain comes back earlier than it should if you do. Anyways, afterwards, before it was decided I was unfit for active duty, they took away my badge, put me on permanent paid leave. So you came to California and found yourself a new line of work. No, I don't look at it that way. No, life threw me a challenge and I rose up to meet it. It wanted to knock me down, but I didn't let it. I was supposed to die that day in that building, but I didn't. And I won't let anyone or anything take from me what I can have in this world, John. Uh-uh. No. I don't play with the cards I'm dealt, I deal the motherfucking cards. John's voice: Hi, you've reached John Clarke's voice-mail, please leave a message at the beep, I'll get back to you as soon as I can. [ Phone beeps ] Reporter's voice on laptop: Urban legend Carla Franken was found dead today in her prison cell where she was awaiting trial. Police sources say she committed suicide by hanging herself. Ms. Franken was arrested earlier this year for the alleged killing of 24-year-old Sarah Mendelsohn. Unofficial sources, at that time, claim that Ms. Franken had drank the blood of her alleged victim. [ Music playing ] [ Gasps softly ] [ Crying ] [ Sniffles ] [ Phone line ringing ] John's voice: Hi, you've reached John Clarke's voice-mail, please leave a message at the beep, I'll get back to you as soon as I can. [ Sniffles ] Where are we? That's Jack Crane's house. The pedophile? Alleged pedophile. He was released last month after a mistrial. How do you know where he lives? I got friends. [ Sniffs, then grunts ] And that's why they call it the glove compartment. [ Grunts ] Trust you know how to put those on? Herb, what are we doing? Shh, justice, come on. Come on. Shh. - [ Gate clanks ] - Herb... [ sighs ] Look. Look. Oh, God. - [ Jack yells ] - [ Herb grunts ] [ Groaning ] Well, I guess you're less imposing to grown-ups. Who are you? What do you want? Who are we? What do we want? We want you. - With a fucking gun? - Shut the fuck up and open your eyes. What? Herb: That could be your kid, John. - Oh, her. - You fucking pervert. You disgusting monster! [ Grunting ] John? You dirty fuck! You piece of shit! Get the fuck up, you dirty motherfucker. - Jack: No! No! No! - You piece of... shit! I'll kill you! I'll kill you, you fucker. I'll fucking kill you! You dirty motherfucker! You fucking dirty motherfucking... John. John! - Fuck! [ Yelling ] - John, stop! Hey! Hey! That's enough! That's enough! Stop. [ Panting ] Shit, man, I thought you were gonna kill him. Okay, I wasn't expecting that. Pretty impressive. Shit. What have I done? Is that why you brought me here? To beat the shit out of him, is what you wanted me to do? Holy shit, what have I done? Nothing's gonna happen to you. What about him? We're not done with him yet. He's gonna get what he deserves. Let me take those for you. [ Music playing ] [ Grunting, rustling ] That's it. Okay, just here. Now what? I got it from here, you take a load off, champ. I'll be right back with refreshments. [ Grunts ] [ Grunts ] [ Door creaks open ] [ Panting ] - Right on time. - No. What's wrong? What did you do to him? Oh, come on, you're smart enough for me not to have to explain. - Here. - No, I can't. I won't. Don't go down this road, John, do not make this choice. I don't to do with whatever you got going on down there. Jack Crane is a pedophile! We did society a favor! [ Muffled ] Yeah, how do you feel, John, huh? How does that feel? 'Cause that does not get any better, trust me. [ Normal ] John, do the right thing, take control and drink. No. You need to understand something, John, you are either with me or you're against me. And, believe me, you do not want to be against me. [ Grunts ] You leave me out of this. Don't you ever come near me again, do you hear me? Do you hear me? What a waste. John's voice: Hi, you've reached John Clarke's voice-mail, please leave a message at the beep, I'll get back to you as soon as I can. Hi, you've reached John Clarke's voice-mail, please leave a message at the beep, I'll get back to you as soon as I can. [ Crying ] Hit me again. Again. I'm gonna have to see some money, dude. Knock yourself out. Hey, handsome. All that and you're still shaking. What are you on? You don't wanna know what I'm on. Pour me one? Hey, why don't we... come back to my place? No, thanks, not interested. Come on. - Hey. - What? I know what you want. You don't know what I want. - Fuck. - You don't know what I need. What's your problem, man? All right. Time to go home, buddy. Let's go. Chloe? Chlo? [ No audible dialogue ] [ Heart monitor beeping ] [ Groans ] [ Crying ] I'm sorry. [ Knocks on door ] Come in. Gail. How is she feeling? Better. Thank you for... saving her. How are you dealing with the pain? I'm dealing. Tell me about the blood. Well, it wasn't hard to put the pieces together. Blood is barely a fix. So, then, did you attack that man in the alley? It was self-defense. But things... things will never get out of hand again. I promise. I resign, Gail. I'm sick. [ Sighs ] If you get through... When you get through this... the door is always open. We'll see about that. But I think Chloe... would like to return. I think that she would love that. She always was one of our best nurses. Yeah, well, too bad she hooked up with the wrong doctor. [ Music playing ] Alleged pedophile Jack Crane has been missing since last night in what appears to be an attempt at revenge. Crane's release from his mistrial earlier this year attracted nationwide attention, causing uproar from the victims' families - as well as backlash from the community. - Hey. Prosecutors are fighting for the... Hey. You feeling better? Thanks for the meal. You know I'm not much of a cook. It was perfect. Talk to me, John. I need to understand what's going on. Look, I'm... I'm tired of hiding things from you. So I'm gonna tell you the whole truth. Even if it means that... you don't want to be with me anymore. Come on. That's not gonna happen. Tell me. [ Music playing ] Do you remember that man that was at Brian's funeral? [ Sighs ] John, promise me... this is over. Everything with Herb and the blood. From now on, we start fresh, okay? I can't promise you that just yet. Why not? 'Cause whatever he's doing to Jack Crane, he's doing to other people. So call the police, we don't want to get involved. I already am involved. Okay. Then what? [ Doorbell rings ] Wait here. [ Music playing ] John, old friend. We need to have a little chat. I thought I made myself clear. It's a little chilly out here, John. Oh, by the way, your neighbors... such nice folk. Come in. Thank you. Wow. I didn't realize you were such a big shot. I told you I was done. No, you're not, John. You just had an instinctive reaction to something that your current set of morals rejected. But morals do evolve over time, believe me. But you didn't seem to hear my warning. So I brought you this. They got your DNA all over them. Jack Crane's too. If I fall, you fall. That means you're stuck with me. You set me up. I run a very dangerous business, John. I need insurance that one of my clients isn't gonna have a moral dilemma and call the cops on me. So let me tell you exactly what is gonna happen now. You're gonna shut your mouth and do what you're told. You're gonna come every day to my showroom. I'm gonna give you your fix and you're gonna pay me out of your big, fat surgeon salary. - I don't want your fucking blood! - [ grunts ] - [ Gun clicks ] - Now, you remember, you fuck, you are nothing without the blood! Weak, small, pathetic, nothing more than a crippled fucking junkie. So you can climb down off your moral fucking high horse and listen very carefully to what I'm about to tell you. You are gonna do exactly what you are fucking told. You're gonna take the blood. [ Chuckles ] You're gonna get back to work and you're gonna give me my fucking money! [ Yells ] He's still alive. What do we do? I'm gonna end this. Grab his keys and his phone. [ Music playing ] What the fuck? Man: Please... help me. I'm coming, I'm coming. All right, stay with me. No! No, no, no, no. It's okay, man, it's okay. It's okay. You're gonna be okay. We'll get you out of here. Fuck! Oh, God. Herb: [ muffled ] Let me out of here! You prick! [ Groaning, slamming ] Come on! Hello? Hey, who's there? No, no! Not you, not you, please. Not you. [ Crying ] Let me go, please, please! Please, don't hurt me. Get out now! Get out before I change my mind. [ Yelling ] You listen to me and you listen to me now, all right? You're gonna forget about everything, okay? About me, about this place, all of it. - Okay. - But if you ever touch a child again, I swear to God, I will find you, and next time, I won't be so nice. I promise! - Now get the hell out of here! - [ grunts ] Get out of my sight! Okay! [ Slicing, Jack groaning ] Jack: No! Don't you fucking move. So this is how you do it, huh? What did you think, John? You think I just walk around openly killing people? I'd have to kill someone every fucking day. Not very practical, is it? You're no better than him. People like this do what they do for pleasure, we do what we do out of necessity, in order to survive! That doesn't justify what you've done. We're cleaning the scum off the streets! How the hell can you live with yourself? You slut fuck! I opened up my arms to you, I offered you a normal life! This is how you thank me? You know what, John? I'm done talking to you. Get in, you're gonna make a great addition to my cell. You're a fucking monster! Shut your mouth, get in there now, or I pay your wife a visit in more ways than one! [ Grunting ] Gotta admit, I'd rather drink the blood of a surgeon than that of a pedophile. My clients might not know the difference, but I do. I might even charge a little more for it. No! You're not gonna hurt anyone else anymore! [ Both grunt ] [ Both groaning ] [ Yelling ] No. No, no, please, no. It's been too long since you've experienced real pain. No! John! John! John. John! [ Music playing ] [ Door opens ] [ Door closes ] [ Sighs deeply ] You know I'm gonna be like this for the rest of my life. I'm not going anywhere. [ Music playing ] [ Music continues ] |
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