DORY: Hello.
Breathing pretty heavy
over there.
Just a dream.
(BELL TOLLING)
You sure you're okay?
Do you want me to leave
or something?
No, stay.
I'm gonna go get some air.
You know you got
two different shoes on,
right?
One's a little newer
than the other.
Anything else?
Thanks for stopping by.
What the hell
did you just do?
How did you get up there?
(BELL TOLLING)
TOMMY: Be strong, fellows.
KYLE: We going, baby. Come on.
KYLE: One of us has to move
on some of that.
TOMMY: Oh, yeah?
Well, some of us already have.
Hi, Dory.
Hey, Tommy. Hey, Dan!
Looking good,
all right.
Thanks, Trev.
Referring to the endless array
of women, dickhead.
How can they all
be in love with me?
Exactly, how can they?
KYLE: Incoming, gentlemen.
Oh, my sweet mama and papa.
See that smile she gave us?
Yeah. Looked like
a toothpaste ad.
Whitest teeth
I've ever come across.
Faster, faster!
Punch hard, punch hard.
Heel! Good!
All right, Jensen.
You work hard
and you get results.
That's how it happens.
Nice, Kyle.
Excellent.
Now, who else
has some good stuff
to show me today, huh?
All right, Millman. Nice.
Tight. Lower your shoulders.
Good. Keep it tight.
Good, good.
I want to show you
something, Coach.
Don't waste energy.
Keep that mouth shut.
Good.
Millman. Millman!
Sorry, Coach.
Sorry doesn't mean anything.
I can do this.
I've been working on it.
Get over here!
Nobody on this planet can do
what you are trying to do.
You are great up there, Danny.
You're one of the best
I've seen.
You're gonna rank even higher
than you did last year,
and you might make it
through all the qualifiers if
you don't
kill yourself first.
Tommy, you're up.
What's he trying to do?
Three consecutive flips
before he dismounts.
Anybody ever done that?
Nope.
That's why
he's trying to do it.
Thinks it's gonna make him
lord of the rings.
Only, with Middleman, it's where
he tries to tear both arms
out of their sockets.
COACH: All right,
the next qualifying heat
is six weeks from today,
and you know what I say.
Don't think
this is gonna happen
just 'cause you're pretty
and can do a handstand.
You think I'm kidding?
And I've got footage
of your competition
you need to see again.
Help you with something?
You can tell me
how you did it.
You like things explained.
Don't you?
(BELL CLANGING)
How we doing tonight?
Look.
That roof's gotta be
at least 10,
maybe 12 feet high.
No human
can make a vertical leap
over four or five feet, tops.
I know. I'm a gymnast.
Toughest men's sport
in the world.
Most people don't know that.
The Spartans of ancient Greece
were gymnasts, too.
They vaulted over bulls.
Trained their elite warriors
that way.
Did you know that?
I know more than you think.
And you think
more than you know.
But knowledge is
not the same as wisdom.
Yeah? What's the difference?
You know how to clean
a windshield, right?
Yeah.
Wisdom is doing it.
I train seven days a week,
Why so much?
Are you serious?
I am a heartbeat away
from qualifying.
Qualifying for what?
You watch the Olympics?
No.
Thanks for stopping by.
Look, even as good as I am,
I gotta do everything I can
to make sure that I qualify.
There's a lot you'd
have to know before you could
understand what you saw.
Go. Ask me.
Ask me something.
Ask me anything.
Are you happy?
You said
I could ask you anything.
What does happy
have to do with anything?
Everything.
My dad's got plenty of cash,
school's kind of a breeze,
I get straight A's.
I got great friends,
I'm in great shape,
and I only sleep alone
when I absolutely want to.
So why can't you
sleep at night?
Yesterday, you came here
at 3:00 a.m. Now, tonight.
That's two nights in a row.
What are you? Some kind of
a Quickie Mart philosopher
or something like that?
You need some philosophy?
No, thanks, Socrates.
I get enough at school.
Last question.
If you don't make
the Olympic team,
what will you do?
If I don't what?
You must have thought
about it.
What the hell
are you talking about?
What's the problem?
I don't even know
what I'm doing here.
You're a freak.
And I don't need you
freaking me out.
CROWD YELLING: Thirteen.
CROWD: Fourteen.
Your exit sign's lit, Middleman.
CROWD: Fifteen.
CROWD: Sixteen.
Hey, there, beautiful thing.
So, this is what you do
for fun.
ALL: Seventeen.
Eighteen.
(CROWD GROANING)
Did I pick up that maybe
you and Dory hooked up
the other night?
BOY: Come on, Dan-o.
It's all you.
ALL: Nineteen.
She told you that?
Is it true?
We're supposed to be friends,
man.
What does
that mean, exactly?
It means you're a jerk
who treats his friends
like dirt.
Somebody grab my beers.
Somebody grab mine!
Hey! Hey! Hey!
Come on, guys.
Hey, Dan, what's the matter
with you, man?
With friends like you,
who needs assholes, right,
Dan-o?
BOY: Calm down.
What?
You want to fight Tommy?
Who does he think he is?
He's pissed at you, all right?
Is it true?
I thought Dory was old news.
All right?
So, excuse me
if she comes
banging on my door.
Why? Why, Dan?
Listen to yourself.
Dory was Tommy's girl.
I said I thought it was over!
Just go back
to your party, man.
Okay. Yeah, I will.
Hey.
You want these?
You're really cute.
Jesus!
(GASPING)
Susie, you okay?
Yeah.
Sorry.
What's the matter?
Couldn't sleep again?
What would you say
if I told you
that I keep seeing those shoes
in a dream I keep having?
I'd say maybe
you're still asleep.
You can live a whole lifetime
without ever being awake.
Hey, Socrates.
If you know so much,
how come you're working
at a gas station?
This is a service station.
We offer service.
There's no higher purpose.
Than pumping gas?
Service to others.
How we doing tonight?
Japanese style, huh?
So you know Socrates?
Is that what you call him?
I bet he loves that.
You eat here with him
every night?
Actually,
I think one's for you.
I see you've met Joy.
Hey, big Buddha.
Hi, little Buddha.
Joy, this is Dan.
We met.
(WHISPERS) Socrates.
Socrates.
Bon apptit.
You look hungry.
Joy do all that?
She live around here?
She related to you
or something?
You need to start asking
better questions.
What?
Slow down.
You might taste something.
You sure got a lot of rules
about stuff, don't you?
Not rules. Things I've learned
from my own life experience.
That's why I'd say
your eating is sloppy.
Who cares?
You do.
That's the difference
between us, Dan.
You practice gymnastics.
I practice everything.
If I was your trainer,
no meat.
Seriously?
None.
I could probably
handle that.
No TV, no alcohol,
no drugs and no sex.
And that's why I'm glad
you're not my trainer.
So, this diet
and your training
are making you all you can be?
Absolutely.
So, how long
can you stand like this?
Name it.
Five minutes. On the table.
Done.
You move so much as a muscle,
and I get to call you Jack
for the rest of the night.
Jack?
Short for jackass.
DAN: What time is it?
What time is it?
What time
is
it?
What
time
is...
(SHOUTS)
My son, Jack.
Thanks for stopping by.
Everyone tells you what to do
and what's good for you.
They don't want you
to find your own answers.
They want you
to believe theirs.
And let me guess.
You want me to believe yours.
No.
I want you
to stop gathering information
from outside yourself
and start gathering it
from the inside.
What are you,
part of some cult
or something?
People are afraid
of what's inside,
and that's the only place
they're ever gonna find
what they need.
Why can't you sleep?
Is it because,
maybe, late at night,
when all the noise dies down
and you're lying there
in the bed,
and there's nobody around
but you, then, maybe,
you get a little scared?
Scared because suddenly
everything feels so
empty.
You tell me you want to be
more than just someone
who gets up on those rings
and performs
a well-practiced stunt or two.
You tell me
you want to be someone
who uses his mind and his body
in ways that most people
would never have
the courage to,
and I will train you, Dan,
to be a real warrior.
BOY: Is he all right?
What's going on?
Kyle. He took a bad fall.
It's fine. I'm fine.
It might be broken.
No.
We'll need an x-ray.
No.
It's all right, Kyle.
It's all right.
It's all right.
I mean it, Coach.
I know.
It doesn't feel like a break.
They're just gonna have
a look at it, that's all.
I don't need it looked at.
And I said you did.
Let's go.
Put it in a sling.
I don't need a sling.
Rider down, man.
Bad break.
You don't know that.
It could be a sprain.
I mean, he's a casualty,
Tommy-boy.
He's our best horse man.
Where do you think
that leaves us, huh?
Trevor, get off that thing.
Or what?
Like you don't want it?
Except you suck
at the pommel horse, Middleman.
I just never focused on it.
That's 'cause you got
one big show and only one.
Lord of the rings.
Yeah? Want to see
what I can do?
Don't embarrass yourself.
Go play, little boy.
Jesus Christ, did you both
just see them take Kyle away?
I mean, Jesus,
what if he's done?
Don't get in my face about it,
all right? Jesus, go hold
his hand if you want to.
DAN: Sometimes,
I don't like myself very much.
My first thought was about how
maybe Kyle's fall
could work out for me.
People are not their thoughts.
They think they are
and it brings them
all kinds of sadness.
Toss me that wrench.
I'm not what I think?
Of course not.
The five-eighths.
The mind is just
a reflex organ.
It reacts to everything.
Fills your head
with millions
of random thoughts a day.
None of those thoughts
reveal any more about you
than a freckle does
at the end of your nose.
Take a swing at me.
What?
What are you doing?
Come on.
on the cheek.
Come on. Take a shot.
Knock it off, man.
I don't want to hit you.
You don't want to hit me?
I don't want to hurt you.
I guess I'll just have to
keep slapping you then.
Did you notice
how the right leverage
can be very effective?
What if I were to tell you
that's what your training,
even your life, is about?
Developing the wisdom
to apply the right leverage
in the right place,
at the right time.
Take out the trash.
You take out the trash.
The trash is up here.
That's the first part
of your training,
learning to throw out
everything you don't need
in here.
How?
Meet me tomorrow on campus.
Strawberry Creek bridge.
Where the hell are you going?
Poli-sci. Where are you going?
I'm going to pommel horse
try-outs.
I forgot.
Less than an hour.
Hey, hey! Wait up.
Tell them to hold up
for me, all right?
What?
DAN: Soc!
Soc!
Listen.
I totally forgot about this.
Now, I got this thing
at the gym.
It's pretty important.
Can we make this quick?
Sure.
Hey!
Hey! I'm talking to you.
What the hell
is wrong with you?
You said you were in a hurry.
So you pushed me
off the bridge?
I emptied your mind.
You what?
I emptied...
No, you didn't.
You threw me into the river.
And while you were falling,
tell me, Dan,
what were you thinking of?
I don't know!
Were you thinking
about school?
No!
Grocery shopping?
No!
This thing
you had to hurry off to?
No! I was...
The present.
Devoted 100% to the experience
you were having.
You even had a word for it.
(SCREAMS)
You're out of your mind.
You know that?
It's taken
a lifetime of practice.
We want you
out of your mind, too, Dan.
What is that you do?
Some kind of
martial arts move?
I didn't see it coming.
You weren't paying attention.
Even now you're not.
Your mind's filling up again.
You're missing out
on everything that's going on.
There's nothing going on.
(LAUGHING)
(BOTH LAUGHING)
(WHIMPERING)
There's never
nothing going on.
Take out the trash, Dan.
The trash is anything
that is keeping you from
the only thing that matters,
this moment.
Here.
Now.
And when you truly are
in the here and now,
you'll be amazed
at what you can do
and how well you can do it.
Until we know more about Kyle,
we need the horse covered,
so...
Anybody who wants
a shot at it, gets a shot.
Where's Millman?
(WATER RUNNING)
(WATER ROARING)
All right,
next man up. Trev?
You know I'm superstitious,
Coach. I gotta go last.
DAN: I'll go.
All right.
Millman, where the hell
did that come from?
Soc!
Hot damn! I wish
you could've been there.
You would've loved it!
I used your trick.
I used your mind trick
and it worked. It totally
worked. I was awesome.
It's not a trick.
Yeah, well, whatever it is,
I used it.
I took out the trash,
and I mean Trev?
Trev's the one guy
I'm always going up against.
You should have seen me.
I demolished the guy.
You know, I wasn't worried
about what did happen,
or what might happen,
what could happen.
I just got up there
and I cleared my mind.
And I was flawless.
Listen, I'm jumping in
with both feet. All right?
Whatever you tell me to do,
I'm gonna do. No beer,
no meat, no girls, no problem.
How long did you stay
that way, clear and flawless?
"I demolished that guy.
You should have seen me."
You're in the past.
Gloating.
You're not in the now, living.
You haven't learned anything.
Go home.
Training's over for tonight.
Wait a minute.
Wait a minute.
Go home, I said.
(BELL TOLLING)
SOCRATES: Hey, Dan.
(PANTING)
Why do we have to be
all the way up here,
where we could kill ourselves?
I was hoping
you could tell me.
TOMMY: God!
What do I keep trying for?
I'll never make this cut.
Dad was right.
I'm gonna make him right
if I don't find a way
to do this.
Will I ever forgive myself
if I don't make this cut?
CO ACH:
Where the hell is Millman?
Too good to show up
for practice, now, I guess.
I don't know
how to handle these kids.
What do I say to them?
They're talking,
but their lips aren't moving.
I'm not their mother.
I'm their coach.
TREVOR: Coach thinks
I'm worthless.
I am worthless.
I'm a worthless piece of shit
and Millman's always
gonna be better than me.
Am I reading their minds?
Maybe you just never really
listened to them before.
I've only got
four qualifiers left.
I've got to get new mats.
I can't stick this
double double. My line's
not straight on the bar.
I'm such a worthless
piece of shit.
(INDISTINCT VOICES)
You gotta be doing this.
Otherwise I'm losing my mind.
Sometimes you have to
lose your mind before
you come to your senses.
Millman!
It's about time you showed up.
Thanks for joining us.
Go home, I said.
What did you just do to me?
You have to be strong
if you're gonna do this, Dan.
What did you do?
Where I'm gonna take you,
some of the things
I'm gonna show you,
you're gonna need strength.
And you're gonna need
to trust me.
TREVOR: So it's hot as hell,
and this penguin,
he's pushing his
broken-down car
past the 31 flavors.
So, suddenly he's practically
burying his face
in a large vanilla
when he sees
a service station.
So he goes over,
the mechanic opens up the hood
and says,
"Looks to me
like you've blown a seal."
The penguin wipes his mouth
and says, "Hey, screw you!
It's ice cream."
What's up, Tommy?
Hey, Trev.
TREVOR: Hey, what's up with
the rabbit chow, Middleman?
All right, I got another one.
A man, a duck
and a big-breasted nun
walk into a bar, right?
So, this old guy
did this high jump.
Did this really high jump.
And?
I'm kind of doing
what he tells me
so I can find out
how he did it.
Wait a minute.
You're letting somebody else
coach you?
No.
Well, what's he doing to you?
'Cause you look like crap.
I don't know.
I don't know
what he's doing to me.
You better get away from it,
Middleman.
We got qualifiers in four
weeks and you're looking like
a worthless piece of shit.
Hey!
Joy, right?
Mmm-hmm.
I need to talk to you
about our mutual friend.
Socrates?
If he didn't
tell you his name,
you won't get it from me.
Yeah, why didn't he tell me?
I mean, I don't know anything
about the guy.
I'm serious.
All right? He's supposed to be
making me stronger,
making my life better.
It's just the opposite.
What's he doing?
What are you worried about?
I want to know
who I'm dealing with here.
(BELL TOLLING)
Come on, come on.
Tight. Keep it tight, Danny!
No! No, you're shaking!
You're shaking!
What the hell
are you doing up there?
Yeah, I'm off today.
Oh. You're off, huh?
Well, you've been off
for one hell of a streak,
Millman.
First you're a dream
on the horse and now you can
barely stand up straight.
Huh?
Next time you're tired,
go take a nap
instead of coming to practice.
(PANTING)
lke, your key?
Yep, all right.
Voyeur.
How we doing tonight?
How am I doing?
I'm tired, I'm hungry
and I'm horny.
How are you doing?
I need some answers tonight.
I need to know that this...
That this is all going
somewhere, and I need to know
it right now.
I mean, what kind of a warrior
trains by sitting around
scrubbing toilets?
When you become a warrior,
you learn to meditate
in every action.
Scrubbing toilets?
Letting go of attachments.
Like your pride.
Giving up your addictions.
Yeah, name one thing
I'm addicted to.
Talking.
Especially interrupting.
Knowing everything,
when in fact you know nothing.
You really think that this
is going to expand
my awareness of anything?
My game is off!
My coach probably thinks
that I'm on drugs,
and I'm thinking...
(SIGHS)
I just don't have
any more time for you
right now.
All you have is right now,
Jack.
Did you just call me
a jackass again?
'Cause, you know, I'm really
starting to wonder
how someone with the life
that you've managed
to put together
can teach me anything.
I mean, are you really happy?
Maybe you're just a case
of someone who, not having
made much of themselves,
says that the world is lost
and all these things
don't matter.
Be happy with less, right?
Less than what?
Less than nothing?
I call you a jackass
when you act like a jackass.
Like now, Dan, when you're
letting your emotions
control you.
This isn't emotion!
This is common sense!
You know what?
Let me tell you something,
whatever your name really is.
When I get what I want,
I'll be happy.
For real and forever
and anything else
I say it'll be.
'Cause I will make it happen.
ALL: Three, two, one!
Drink! Drink! Drink!
Danny, good.
That's it, Danny.
Steady.
Good. All right, come on!
Bring it home!
That's what I remember
about you, Millman!
You were good.
I needed this.
Needed to escape.
Lucky me.
Yeah, and lucky me.
You guys
are in such great shape.
So if I wasn't
in such great shape,
wasn't on the gymnastics team,
just had a regular body,
you wouldn't be into me?
If I didn't have this body,
would you be into me?
(ALARM BEEPING)
(HORN HONKING)
(TIRES SQUEALING)
(BRAKES SCREECHING)
(CRASHING)
(GLASS TINKLING)
(PEOPLE CHATTERING)
(POLICE SIREN WAILING)
TREVOR: Hey, Middleman.
I don't know what to say.
Hey.
Got the whole team here.
You ran a red light, man.
Can you believe that?
You gotta get better, man,
'cause...
You ran a red light.
...whose ass
am I gonna kick at practice?
Don't waste your energy.
Keep that mouth shut.
Dan?
(MONITORS BEEPING)
Dan?
I hear your folks are waiting
down in the cafeteria.
I don't want my folks.
I want to know
what's going on.
I'm gonna tell you,
but your parents
will probably...
I don't need anyone
to hold my hand right now.
My leg is in a cast.
When does it come off?
Your leg didn't just break,
Dan.
It shattered.
You fractured your femur
in 17 different pieces.
We had to take bone
from your hip and pin it
to your leg with a steel rod.
How long for it to come out?
It doesn't come out.
Now, in a few months,
you'll be able to start
the rehab process.
You can talk to your
physical therapist,
and, with some hard work,
I'm sure you'll eventually
be able to walk again.
Now, I know it might not
sound like it right now but,
given what happened,
that makes you
a very lucky young man.
(BELL TOLLING)
RUNNER: Hey, Bob, come on!
(CHATTERING)
Hey, stranger.
Hey.
I heard you got out
of the hospital.
How you doing?
Okay.
I thought about you.
Yeah?
Can I try something?
Warm hands.
Wow.
Really warm.
You ever hear of
the healing power of touch?
No.
But, at this point,
I could be talked
into anything.
I'm not coming on to you, Dan.
Shouldn't you be healing
my leg instead of my chest?
Maybe I don't think your
leg is the only thing
that got broken.
I know this is
a scary moment for you.
Are you paying attention
to it?
How is the old man?
Why don't you ask him?
He ever ask about me?
That was bad.
That was, like,
me sounding like...
That was bad.
That was you sounding
like you miss him.
You know, he came
to visit you in the hospital.
I'll see you around.
Hey, Coach.
Millman?
Good to see you, man.
Looks like you're bulked up
in the shoulders a little.
That's pretty much
all I can do right now,
presses and curls.
Yeah.
Hospital doesn't think so,
but I'm gonna be
off this cane soon.
Then, I'm back.
You gotta listen to them.
I have this crazy thought.
I'm already gonna miss
the third round.
I can't fix that.
But that final qualifier?
Dan.
That's not till next fall.
That gives me eight months.
What are you gonna do
in eight months?
I already petitioned
the Olympic Committee.
Dan, you have to be realistic.
What if I get back? Huh?
What if I get back to where
I was? You wouldn't want me
on the team?
Of course I would, Dan,
but look at yourself.
For Christ's sake, you've got
a piece of metal
holding your leg together!
-You can't give up on me.
-I'm not giving up on you, Dan.
Then, please,
just hear me out.
Dan!
The doctors have told me
there's just no question.
You will never
compete again.
(BELL TOLLING)
(BREATHING HEAVILY)
(INAUDIBLE)
(POUNDING ON DOOR)
BOY: Christ, Millman,
what the hell
is going on in there?
Come on, Danny, open the door,
man! Answer me!
Millman...
What do you want?
No one's stopping me,
so just stay away.
I didn't come here
to stop you.
You think I won't do it?
'Cause I'm not afraid
of anything.
Not even this.
Or how about this?
Or this?
Look at you.
Hanging on for dear life.
Afraid to fall.
Well, I say
fall.
(SCREAMING)
It's not like
you're giving up anything.
Nothing you haven't
already lost.
What are you holding onto,
anyway?
(SCREAMS)
It's you, isn't it?
You're the one
I have to let go of.
You know what you're doing?
No.
(YELLING)
Do you know
who you are
without me?
No.
Then what
are
you doing?
(SCREAMING)
(GASPING)
(THUNDER RUMBLING)
(RAIN FALLING)
(THUNDER CRASHING)
(RAIN POURING)
(THUNDER RUMBLING)
(ENGINE SPUTTERING)
Go.
(ENGINE SPUTTERING)
Again.
(ENGINE TURNING OVER SLOWLY)
I don't know what to do now.
First realization
of a warrior.
What is?
Not knowing.
(CRYING)
What's happening to me?
I don't cry.
Apparently, you do.
It's embarrassing.
Emotions are natural,
like the passing weather.
What do you do
if you can't do
what you were born to?
Everything has
a purpose, Dan,
even this.
And it's up to you
to find it.
Go.
(ENGINE STARTING)
Your training can now move
to a new arena,
an arena where you
find your answers from within.
That old Plymouth.
Sit on it till you have
something of value to tell me.
That's it?
I don't hear from you
until you have an insight
worth sharing.
That's all?
How we doing tonight?
DAN: Okay.
Okay.
Anger, hatred, violence,
they're really all just fear.
Fear, then, not money,
is the root of all evil.
Chaos Theory is correct except
that chaos is actually
not chaotic at all
but perfectly controlled.
If you lend somebody $20 and
never see that person again,
it was probably worth it.
When making a peanut butter
and jelly sandwich,
you must first apply
the peanut butter,
not the jelly,
to the bottom half
of the bread.
The people that are the
hardest to love are usually
the ones who need it the most.
Hmm?
There you are.
Thank you very much.
There's never
nothing going on.
There are no ordinary moments.
(CHUCKLING)
Yeah.
Welcome back.
(PEOPLE CHATTERING)
You gotta be kidding me.
This isn't another vision,
is it?
'Cause I don't see
how this could be happening.
What the hell are you doing?
(LAUGHING)
Something wrong?
We don't do this anymore,
remember? We know better.
We're better than everyone
who doesn't know what we know
or live the way we do?
Is that what you mean?
Not better, maybe.
Smarter.
There is no "better."
You will never be better.
Same way you'll never be less
than anybody else.
The habit is the problem.
All you need to do
is be conscious
about your choices
and responsible
for your actions.
Is that why, out of all the
people you could have taught,
you chose me?
You done flattering yourself?
You chose me.
Why should I believe you?
You taught me yourself to only
listen to my own intuition.
How do you know that I'm not
your own intuition
speaking to you right now?
You mean maybe
I made you up?
Don't mess with me like that.
Every what has its what?
Every action has its price
and its pleasure.
Recognizing both sides,
a warrior becomes...
...realistic and responsible
for his actions.
(VOMITING)
THUG: Boy sounds bad
over there, man.
DAN: You gotta be kidding me.
Money, boys.
Picked the wrong guy
to pull this shit on, boys.
Little leverage,
at the right time,
at the right place?
Yours.
We can ramp this up
a little, tough guy.
Thank you and good night.
Didn't you forget our watches?
This is where
you give it to them, right?
Now, maybe I should have said
Dan's watch. I don't wear one.
Give it.
Thanks, old man.
What are you, a medium jacket?
Is he a what?
I'm not taking your jacket.
It's a good jacket.
Nice warm lining.
I'll take it.
It's a good jacket.
You. You're about Dan's size.
What size shoe
do you wear, Dan?
Are you kidding?
Christ, Soc, how far
are we gonna take this?
DAN: They could have
killed us!
They could have killed us!
You could have kicked
every single one
of those guys' asses.
Instead, we're probably
gonna get picked up
for indecent exposure.
You think that's funny?
Do you?
You think that's funny?
You could have laid out
every single one
of those guys.
Tell me.
Tell me what the hell
you were thinking.
That the ones that are hardest
to love are the ones
that need it the most.
That knowledge
is not the same as wisdom.
Wisdom is doing.
They could have killed us.
It's a transformation.
Death?
Yes.
It's a little bit more radical
than puberty but nothing to
get particularly upset about.
What the hell
are you talking about?
Death isn't sad.
The sad thing is
most people don't live at all.
Is that a double double?
No, that was a full twisting
double layout.
I need to make it
a double double.
Look at you.
First day without
the training wheels.
No cane, no crutches.
Listen, I just came here
to say,
I haven't always been
a very good friend.
In fact, I can't remember
the last time
I was somebody's good friend.
Hey, it gets crazy,
you know?
I mean, what are you gonna do
when we're always competing
against each other?
Anyway, what I really
came here to say was...
Whoa! Whoa! Whoa!
Trev, is Middleman apologizing?
I think he is.
Oh, God. Oh, God.
He's going down.
(GRUNTING) Oh, my God.
He's going down!
He's going down!
Medic!
Get the paddles! Clear!
Clear!
Oh, God, take me instead!
Oh, no!
DAN: Took for granted
what I could do.
I was sloppy with my life.
I'm scared, but
I feel like I got rid of
all the old stuff, and...
I think it was
the right thing to do.
When you feel fear,
use the sword.
Take it up here
and cut the mind to ribbons.
Slash through
all those regrets and fears
and anything else
that lives in the past
or the future.
I want to be able
to do that.
I think I'm ready.
Ready for what?
Devoting my life
to a higher purpose.
Really?
Service to others, right?
That's gonna be me, now.
I'll do whatever you think
I should.
All right.
All right.
I think you should continue
your training as a gymnast.
A warrior does not give up
what he loves, Dan.
He finds the love
in what he does.
Look at me!
Look at me.
I have a metal rod in my leg.
A warrior
is not about perfection
or victory
or invulnerability.
He's about
absolute vulnerability.
That's the only
true courage.
What kind of training
you think I could do? Huh?
I just had an accident.
The accident is your training.
Life is choice.
You can choose to be a victim
or anything else
you'd like to be.
Just ignore
what happened to me?
A warrior acts.
Only a fool reacts.
What if I can't do it?
That's the future.
Throw it out.
Well, how would we start?
There is no starting
or stopping,
only doing.
I want to show you something.
When did you do all this?
When you were lying
in that hospital.
While I was what?
Now we can really
go to work.
(GRUNTING)
(RAIN POURING)
I don't believe you
for a minute.
Seriously, man!
You talking about
that redhead?
Not the redhead, man,
your redheaded girl.
How is she my redheaded girl?
You were on her
all night, bro.
I handed her off to you.
Which redhead
are we talking about?
Make this a threesome?
You're really not my type,
Middleman.
What would you guys say
if I told you I was ready to
get up on those rings again?
I'd say you hit your head
and not your leg.
(DOOR OPENING)
Hey, Coach.
That yours?
Wait here.
You boys give us the room
for a minute.
What? Why?
What's going on?
It's okay. Hey.
I've had this in my office
for a few days now.
I just didn't think I'd ever
need to give it to you.
The Olympic Committee voted
on your request
for a special dispensation
to compete in the qualifiers.
I'm sorry.
You petitioned
the Olympic Committee?
They talked to your doctors,
who feel there's no evidence
to indicate that you're
strong enough to compete.
Is that what it says, Dan-o?
No.
It says that you could
turn that decision around
if you saw any evidence
to the contrary.
And I said I'm sorry.
You watch me and you tell me
you don't see any evidence.
I don't want to see a man
who was in a cast
trying to do triple flips.
Watch me.
Then you tell me that.
The doctor said that you could
spend the rest of your life
in a wheelchair.
You think I care about that?
No, Dan,
'cause I've seen your ego
nearly kill you up on
those rings about 100 times
and I am not ready
to see that happen for real.
I've already said that
to the committee,
and they have closed the case.
You gave up on me.
TOMMY: Danny, come on.
You gave up on me.
TREVOR: Dan.
SOCRATES:
Nearly all of humanity
shares your predicament, Dan.
If you don't get
what you want, you suffer.
And even when you get
exactly what you want,
you still suffer
because you can't
hold onto it forever.
He thought I couldn't do it.
Doesn't matter.
He doesn't know
that I'll be there 100%.
You don't need him or any
letter to get up on those
rings and do what you love.
Yes, I do. All right?
I'm talking about getting up
there and winning the gold
right now,
so, yes, I do.
The gold is a craving.
"If only I had it,
I'd be happy."
Can't you hear it in there?
It's a dream, Soc.
All right? I can't think
that dreams are bad.
You don't surrender
your dreams, Dan.
You surrender the one thing
you never have
and you never will,
control.
Accept that you don't control
what will happen to you.
That you may or you may not
compete in the Olympics.
That you may
or you may not, Dan.
And that you are something
exceptional either way.
I was ready
to give this all up,
but you stood here
and you told me
that you wanted me
to train again!
I told you a warrior
does what he loves.
And this is what I love!
Chasing gold?
Living in fear
that you might fail?
That's what you love
about it?
No! Dreaming of
standing up there
and winning this thing!
Of doing what has always felt
like the thing
that I was put here to do.
I've been on a trampoline
since before I could ride
a bike because I loved it.
'Cause it was the first thing
that I was sure that I loved.
I'm sorry.
Okay? I'm sorry.
I thought I was strong
but I'm not.
'Cause I really tried
to give this whole thing up
but I can't.
Tomorrow morning,
bring your hiking shoes.
I've got a place I've wanted
to take you since the first
night you walked in here.
It's a long hike
but I think...
I think you're finally
ready to see it.
DAN: Three?
SOCRATES: Three.
Life has just three rules?
And you already know them.
Paradox,
humor and change.
Paradox.
Life is a mystery.
Don't waste time
trying to figure it out.
Humor.
Keep a sense of humor,
especially about yourself.
It is a strength
beyond all measure.
Change.
Know that nothing
stays the same.
Hey, please tell me
we're getting a little closer.
Come on, Soc,
it's been three hours, man.
Now, we're here.
We're where?
At what I came to show you.
What, the view?
There, next to your foot.
The flower?
No.
Better not be.
The rock.
There's something...
There's something special
about this rock?
Something wrong?
Come on, Soc!
This is what
I was finally ready to see?
Well, the whole trip up here,
you were excited,
you were happy.
Yeah, because I thought
I was gonna see something!
You were like a kid
on Christmas morning.
You said so yourself.
The whole trip up here,
it made you feel good.
Because for the past
three hours I've been waiting
to see this wonderful thing.
Well, what changed?
That there's nothing here
but this rock!
I probably should have
told you that
before we left, huh?
But I guess
I wasn't sure
what we'd find, either.
Never am.
Sorry you're not
happy anymore.
The journey.
The journey's
what brings us happiness
not the destination.
(BOYS CHATTERING)
Millman.
Millman, what are you doing?
Millman, get your hands
out of the chalk.
Hey.
Hey.
Ready for the big day?
Yeah. I leave tonight.
Where you headed?
Just out running.
With a book?
Actually, I think
I want to kiss you.
Anything to say?
Good luck tomorrow.
You know, I see us together,
you and me.
I dream stuff all the time!
Sometimes it comes true!
Hey, I'm just telling you!
I really think
it might happen!
Then maybe it will!
This your place, Millman?
Who are you?
Who are you?
Where's the other guy
who works here?
I just started today.
You want gas,
you gotta pump it yourself.
Hey.
Hey, man.
Hello!
Where's your secret weapon?
I don't know.
What do you mean?
He stood you up?
COACH: We moving on, here,
Millman?
TREVOR: He ever tell you
how he got up on that roof?
It doesn't matter.
(CROWD CHEERING)
A very strong 9.3
for young David Bloodgood,
ranking him in the top
seven athletes we've seen
competing here today.
The competition
is fierce this year.
I can't remember a time
when the bar has been
raised so high.
And for good reason, Bart.
For those of you
just joining our broadcast,
these trials today will decide
the six young men
from all over the country
who will be representing
the United States
at this year's Olympics.
All right, Millman.
Just the routine
you showed me. Right?
No triple flips,
no showboating.
Just get up there and be you.
ANNOUNCER: Coming up next,
the top qualifiers
from UC Berkeley.
TOMMY: Hey.
How you doing?
You together?
You did something that
none of us can completely
wrap our heads around.
You know that, right?
I mean, it's like a miracle
or something, Dan-o.
Whatever you learned, man,
whatever that guy
taught you...
You think...
You think maybe you can
rub a little of that magic
onto me?
It's not magic, Tommy.
Just getting rid of all
that bullshit you have
up in your head,
tells you
you might not be enough.
So when you get up there,
you make every move
about the move.
All right?
Not about the gold.
Not about what your dad
thinks about you.
Not about anything
but that one moment in time.
But this is for the gold.
Everything we do, Dan-o.
I mean, at least for me,
my whole life is about getting
those 20 seconds
in front of those judges
so they can
give me that gold.
You wanna know what my dad
would think of me
if that happened?
You want to know how
my whole life would change?
How everything that's
a problem right now
wouldn't matter anymore?
I'd get everything I want.
I'd get to be happy.
I'd get to be happy, Dan-o.
ANNOUNCER: Next up,
ladies and gentlemen,
from UC Berkeley, Dan Millman.
Now, Dan is quite the
wild card, Bart, because less
than 10 short months ago,
this young man actually
shattered his leg
in a motorcycle accident.
SOCRATES: Where are you, Dan?
Here.
What time is it?
Now.
What are you?
This moment.