Just a reminder,
ladies and gentlemen,
this fine young fighter will
be right here in Pittsburgh...
on the boxing card
this Monday night.
Time now for the main event
of the evening!
In this corner,
from Paterson, New Jersey,
wearing the white trunks
with the blackstripe,
the winner of 18
of his last 21 fights,
Rubin "Hurricane" Carter!
And in the left corner,
in the dark trunks
with the white stripe,
from St. Thomas,
Virgin Islands,
the welterweight champion
of the world,
Emile Griffith!
Fighters, let's go.
All right.
All right,
keep your punches up.
It's gonna be a good,
clean fight, all right?
All right, touch gloves.
Good luck.
Go to your corners.
Hurricane,
blow yourself outta here!
Go get 'im,
Rubin.
Let's get 'im.
Come on and get me!
I'm in here!
I tell you what
- first one through that door is gon' die!
And the second one and the
third one after that, so come on!
Room in here
for everybody.
Collins! Becker!
Klein on the platform!
Lock 'em down!
Go!
It's Carter, tier one!
Got room in here for everybody, so come on!
Three times life. That's
what I got. Three times life!
And for what? For murders
I didn't even commit?
I ain't got nothin' but time,
so come on!
Come on in and get me!
Y'all wanna know who's talkin'?
Hurricane is talkin'!
You wanna see the Hurricane?
Come on up in here and see him!
Did you see that punch?
Oh, no!
Lucky punch!
You got him, Rubin boy!
Three, four,
five, six-
You all right?
Yeah, I'm all right.
All right, let's go!
Knock him out!
Come on!
He's in your corner!
Get out of the corner!
Another left to the body!
Another right to the head!
- A vicious combination!
- Yeah!
And he looks like
he's going down!
He hits the canvas!
Four, five-
It doesn't look like
he's gonna get up.
He's up!
The referee is checking him. You all right?
That's it!
It's over!
At 2 minutes and 13 seconds
of the first round,
Rubin "Hurricane" Carter
has defeated...
the welterweight champion
of the world!
Come on, come on, come on!
Come on!
Come on! Who's first? Shut up!
Relax there, Carter!
What the hell's going on?
I'm going in there. Are you nuts?
You wanna get yourself killed?
Everybody stand down!
Stand down!
Come on in here. Talk to
'em, Jimmy. Talk to them!
I ain't takin' no shit!
Rubin, calm down!
It's me, Jimmy. Talk to me.
I ain't takin' no shit
in here! Rubin, calm down!
Take it easy, champ. Now tell me what's
going on. Tell me what's happening.
Come on.
Hurricane done killed 'em!
Clear- Clear the tier.
Get out of here, everybody!
They wanna toss my cell,
Jimmy.
They're gonna
find my manuscript.
That book is the only thing I got
left in here. You understand me?
That's the only chance I got
to get out of here.
I lose that,
they gonna lose too.
Rubin, who do you think the first man
through this door has gotta be now?
It's me.
Listen-
All right.
Come on in here. Line 'em
up. Line 'em up, Jimmy.
Listen to me now. What if that manuscript
wasn't in this cell when we tossed it?
What if it was stuffed down your pants
or something and we couldn't see it?
I can make sure you weren't
strip-searched. Okay?
Don't bullshit me.
No bullshit.
You have my word.
Ain't nobody puttin'
their hands on me, Jimmy.
Ain't nobody
gonna touch me.
All right.
Nobody touches you.
You think
I killed them people?
I don't know, Rubin.
I don't know.
Shit.
Motherfuckers.
1-10, suspect at 1059-
John, you been drinkin'?
No.
Just relax.
Let me handle this.
Okay.
License and registration.
It's on the steering post.
What's going on?
Shit, Hurricane, didn't realize it was you.
Yeah, it's me.
What's going on, Theo?
We're looking for two negroes
in a white car.
Any two will do?
No-
Oh, sh-
Okay, get out.
All right, let's go.
Come on.
Check his vitals.
It's clear.
Air passage.
Heart rate
has changed.
Chin up.
Keep the passage open.
Can he talk,
Doc?
Just for a moment.
Would you raise his head?
Can you make out
these two men?
Are these the two men
who shot you?
Look carefully,
sir.
Are these the two men
who did it?
He said no.
Move closer.
He said no.
Move closer.
Take another look,
sir.
Son of a bitch.
Sir, look closer.
You sure
these aren't the men?
Dirty son of a bitch.
Watch your mouth.
Same old shit,
huh, Della Pesca?
Shut up.
Ask him again.
You been after me
my whole life, Della Pesca.
Now you're tryin' to pin a
murderjack on me. Well, it don't fit.
I'm gonna take
your black ass down,
Mr. Fuckin' Champion
of the World.
I got your black fuckin'
champion right between my legs,
you short punk bitch.
You try me.
That's just what
I'm gonna do.
Pistolshots ring out
in the barroom night
Enter Patty Valentine
from the upper hall
She sees the bartender
in a pool of blood
Cries out, My God
they've killed them all
Here comes the story
of Hurricane
The man the authorities
came to blame
For something
that he never done
Put in a prison cell
but one time
He could've been
the champion of the world
Now all the criminals in
their coats and their ties
Are free to drink martinis
and watch the sun rise
While Rubin sits like Buddha
in a ten-foot cell
An innocent man
in a living hell
Yes, that's the story
of Hurricane
But it won't be over
till they clear his name
And give him back
the time he's done
Put in a prison cell
but one time
He could've been
the champion of the world
Hey, man, it's cold out here.
What are you talking about?
It's like summer for us.
Well, like the summers
in Brooklyn better.
All these people freezing
their butts off to buy books?
That's right.
Lined up like this, not for a
movie or ball game or somethin'?
Ain't it great? No, isn't
it. "Isn't it great?"
Very good.
I stand corrected, Les.
Used books?
Books nobody wants anymore?
That's the great thing
about books.
Once you use them, you can pass
them along to somebody else...
like a torch...
or a football.
You know,
something you pass.
Okay, bring it on in.
Put it down.
Good, good.
Down.
Okay, young man,
that'll be 25 cents.
Jesus.
Twenty-five cent?
Mustn't be
much of a book.
So, Lesra,
what'd you get?
Uh, this.
What is it? I don't know.
It's about a boxer.
It's got, like, 337 pages,
though, you know.
Well, it probably takes a lot of
words to tell someone's life story, eh?
Yeah, well, this guy must be, like, 150
years old if he gon' use all these words.
Sometimes we don't pick the books we read
- they pick us.
It's unfair
Can I get some whiskey
Can I get some whiskey
Can I get some whiskey
We've been home schooling this young man for
eight months. That's how it applies to us.
I'm not married. Mr. Swinton, who you spoke
with, is one of the two men I live with.
No, Sam Chaiton
is the other man I live with.
I don't think you do see,
Mr. Broden.
They are my business partners
and my roommates.
You're the Department
of Education...
and you're telling me you're prepared
to stop this young man's education...
because you can't find some
goddamn high school records?
Yep, that's exactly what
I'm doing, Mr. Broden.
I'm not asking you
to make an exception.
I'm asking you to do your job, which is
different, but I thank you for it anyway.
Shit.
Political Science 101.
That art
of gentle persuasion.
Never mind 101.
I need a smoke.
So how was the book sale? Great.
There. Did you get The Other America?
Uh, I couldn't find The
Other America, but I got you-
Sam, Robertson Davies, R.D. Laing.
Don't piss me off today. It's a
book sale, Lisa, not a library.
Whatever.
Hey, look, Lisa.
Got this one right here for
25 cent. The Sixteenth Round.
Oh, your first book, huh?
Yeah.
"Rubin 'Hurricane' Carter. "
Hurricane is the professional
name I acquired later on in life.
Carteris the slave name that
was given to my forefathers...
who worked in the cotton fields
of Alabama and Georgia...
and was passed on to me.
The kindest thing I can say
about my childhood...
is that I survived it.
Paterson was a run-down town,
a poor and violent place.
The only way to survive was to know how
to handle yourself, and I learned fast.
Hurry up!
Hurry up!
Get out of here! Let's
go! Let's get out of here!
Hold on.
Wait, wait, wait.
Take this out.
Hey, Donnique,
go for a swim!
Hello, boys.
Wanna see
something?
Huh?
Isn't that pretty?
You like that?
What's your name?
Donnique.
Donnique?
That's a pretty name,
Donnique.
You wanna be good to me,
sugar?
H- H-Hey, mister!
L- Leave him alone!
I wouldn't hurt
your friend.
Would I?
You don't need to be afraid,
Donnique.
You're pretty.
How old are you?
Ten.
Ten?
I said,
leave him alone!
Run! Run!
Come on!
Get outta here!
You little bastard.
Let's get outta here!
Black bastard!
Goddamn it!
Please, mister!
Put me down!
Shut up,
you son of a bitch!
Put me down!
Ow!
I didn't
- didn't do nothin'! Come on, let's go.
I didn't- I
didn't- Shut up.
I didn't do nothin'.
Come on, you-
No!
Get in there.
It wasn't me!
I didn't do nothin'.
Sit down, kid.
What have we got here?
It's a juvenile case.
He's a kid, Sarge.
He's only 11 years old.
It's a nigger
with a knife.
I don't care
how old he is.
Take care of it.
We know you were at the falls last
week, and we know what happened.
You're gonna talk,
you little son of a bitch.
You'll be making speeches when I
get through with your black ass.
Ralph. Ralph.
I'm Sergeant Detective
Della Pesca.
You wanna tell me
what happened?
What is it, you were trying
to rob this man's gold watch,
he fought back
and so you stabbed him?
Is that pretty much it?
I- I-I...
didn't do nothing.
Let me tell you something,
sunshine.
The man you stabbed...
is a very important member
of this community,
and you are going down.
Do you see?
And I am gonna see to it personally.
As for you, Rubin Carter,
you're a menace to society.
If something isn't done about you soon,
you'll become a dangerous man in later life.
I only wish you were old enough I
could send you to the state prison.
I there fore
sentence you...
to the state home for boys
in Jamesburg...
from this day
till you're 21 years of age.
So be it.
Jamesburg was
a place of horror...
that I would be forever sorry
to have known existed.
It was there that I spent the next eight
years learning how to maim, butcher...
and fight for my survival.
I don't get what's going on.
I'm the boy's father.
I'll take care of him.
I don't know what you people-
I mean, what's it to you?
Mr. Martin, we've gotten to know
Lesra over the past few weeks.
I gotta tell you, he's got more
natural ability and enthusiasm...
than just about any kid
I've ever worked with.
So when he told us
he wanted to go to college,
we figured that's the way
it was gonna be.
Well,
I know he's smart.
There's no doubt about that,
but, uh,
he can't read,
Mrs. Martin.
But we think
we could teach him.
I mean, within two years, with a lot of
work we could get him ready for college.
Well, that school's
sure not doing it.
Now wait.
I am that boy's father.
But if they can give him
- They're talking to me, Alma.
Uh, Mr. Martin,
we've got plenty of room.
If Lesra wants to learn,
then we can teach him.
If you don't want that that's up to you,
but no one is trying to replace you, sir.
This what you want, boy?
I wanna go to college.
If that's what it's gon' take,
then yeah.
It don't seem right.
Why you gotta go,
Lesra?
Don't you want me to go,
El?
You should be here
backin' me up.
Leave the boy, Elston.
Lesra goin' to Toronto now.
Got a job to do.
Wants to go to college.
After eight years
at Jamesburg,
I escaped.
I was angry,
embittered with life.
I ran as if on a cloud,
unaware of how high I was stepping
or of anything else around me.
There was room in my head
for only one word, one thought..
freedom.
I ran straight into the U.S. Army
and a pair of paratrooper wings.
My whole life changed.
I learned that knowledge
of self and kind...
is the only true means to the
liberation of the blackman.
I could do anything.
I overcame my stutter.
I became a prizefighter.
I came back to Paterson the
all-Army European welterweight champ.
Let me have a soda,
please.
Judy, who's
that fine soldier...
standing over there
at the bar?
Oh, he's a local boy.
Rubin Carter, I think.
Make it two.
I think he's comin'
over here.
Uh-oh. Stay cool.
Mm-mmm!
I'm back. Mmm, so you missed me, did you?
So, tell me-
Well, what do you
want to know?
You're in my seat.
Uh, you know,
I'm from Georgia,
and I was thinkin'
that afterwards...
you and me-
You're in my seat,
country.
I don't see your name
anywhere.
That's 'cause you blinded by the
ass-kickin' I'm about to put on you.
Now get up
out of my seat.
Come on. Take it easy.
Whoa, whoa, whoa. Calm down.
Let that motherfucker go. Stop it.
You wanna come over
and dance with me?
Hey, I'm talkin' to you. Hmm?
Oh, you wanna fight, or you
wanna dance? He ain't worth it.
Yeah, you wanna dance.
Come on.
Probably got a lot
of hostility up in him.
Should I let myself go
In his direction
Oooh-ahh Come on, sweet thing.
Is his love
strong enough
Oooh-ahh
Come back here.
Formy heart's
protection
Oooh-ahh
I don't know I don't know I don't know
I don't know I don't know I don't know
You dance nice. But he loves me so good
Thank you. Till I think I should Oh-oh
Oooh-ahh
If I gave him
my heart
These hands are meant
for more than just fighting.
Would he refuse it
Would he tear it apart
Or tenderly use it
Her name was Mae Thelma.
I don't know She was the
prettiest woman I had ever seen.
I don't know I don't know I don't know
But he hugs me so tight
Till I think I might
Oh-oh
You got a girl around?
No.
I ain't got no girl.
No?
Well, I had a good time
with you tonight.
Mae Thelma,
is that you?
Yeah, Mama,
I'll be right up.
You gon' call me
tomorrow?
I'm gon' call you tonight.
You can't call me tonight.
I'll call you tomorrow
then.
Shh!
That your father? No. My father's asleep.
Your name
Rubin Carter?
Yeah.
You're coming with us. For what?
You heard the man.
What'd you think,
we weren't gonna find you?
You still owe me time.
104, meet Vice officers
at Glory Park.
All right, get out.
This way now.
Okay.
From that moment on,
I decided to take control
of my life.
I made up my mind
to turn my body...
into a weapon.
I would be
a warrior-scholar.
I boxed.
I went to school.
I began reading-
W.E.B. Du Bois, Richard Wright.
Move, tier one!
So I gave up
all the worthless luxury...
that most inmates crave.
The girlie books, fags,
cigarettes, the movies-
I hated them.
In fact,
I hated everyone.
I didn't even speak English.
I spoke hate.
And its verbs were fists.
I made up my mind...
to turn my body
into a weapon...
that would eventually
set me free...
or kill anyone who sought
to keep me in prison.
On September 21, 1961,
I was released,
and I vowed upon
everything holy...
never to come back
to prison again.
I had spent almost
half my time on this Earth...
in jail.
Hey, come on, Lesra. Time
to get up. Breakfast, buddy.
Yeah. All right.
I'm up. I'm up.
Did you get any sleep?
Your light's been on all night.
I can't stop reading.
This book's
about my life.
Jeez, Lisa, you gotta smoke
for breakfast?
Whew.
Do you know
when we met in Brooklyn?
Yeah.
Why'd you take me home?
You know,
you met my folks, man,
you brought me up here, you
did all this stuff for me.
Yeah?
No, I mean why?
Why'd you
do all that?
'Cause you were smart
and funny.
And short.
We figured
it'd be good for you...
to spend a little time
with some tall white people.
Yeah, absolutely.
What, did you do it
'cause I'm black?
You thought I couldn't
do it myself?
'Cause Rubin,
Rubin did it all himself,
you know.
Hey, Les, we didn't
feel sorry for you.
We met you, got to know you and realized
you could accomplish some things...
and, like a lot of us,
you could use some help.
I'm sure that Hurricane Carter
had some help along the way.
None of us does it alone. Hey.
As far as doing it for yourself goes,
nobody can learn anything for you.
Trust me.
Everything you're doing now,
you're doing for yourself.
I'll get it.
You know, I been thinkin'. Yeah?
About what?
No, no, he's here.
He just-
Think I wanna put up a heavy bag.
You know, like a big punching bag.
Uh, those renovations?
The end of the month.
Any special reason?
- No, man. I just feel like
punchin' somethin', you know.
That's it.
It's set.
Whoo! Whoo!
Oh! Oh!
A little low.
Keep the left down.
Straight out of prison,
I was a fighting machine.
One thing I could do-
the only thing- was box.
I had tasted my own blood,
and I loved it.
This is
your ringside commentator.
Tonight's fight brings together Rubin...
..."Hurricane" Carter from Paterson,
New Jersey,
and Joey Cooper,
who is currently undefeated.
Yeah!
Way to go, Hurricane!
And the champion, Joey Cooper,
seems to be helpless...
against Rubin Carter,
the challenger.
You got him!
Aah!
Things have taken
a surprising turn...
in this middleweight fight
tonight.
Joey Cooper in big trouble,
Rubin Carter pouring it on.
Left hooks, right hooks,
uppercuts- Oh!
He did it!
Oh, look at this!
What a disaster
for Cooper!
Carter is punishing him.
He's gonna-
Oh, he is down, folks! He is down for
the count, and he is not getting up!
Five, six, Come on! Get up!
seven, eight, nine
- Get up now! Right now!
You're out!
Unbelievable!
Rubin Carter comes on
like a hurricane...
and defeats the undefeated
Joey Cooper in round one...
of this middleweight fight!
I don't believe it!
Unbelievable upset tonight!
Have you ever seen anything
like it?
And the crowd
is going wild here...
in Reading, Pennsylvania.
Rubin Carter took this fight right
away from him here this evening.
Mrs. Carter, what do you
think it's going to be like...
being married to such
a ferocious fighter?
It's gon' be a little scary,
but I'll try my best.
Can you believe
that black son of a bitch?
He thinks
he's champion of the world.
Fighter of the year, my ass.
A low-life criminal.
My mother told me
'Fore she passed away
Said Son, when I'm gone
Don't forget to pray
'Cause there'll be
hard times
What do they expect? Of course
a riot broke out. Hard times
Every time we try to defend
our own neighborhoods,
they send the cops in
to bust us in our heads.
If you feel so strongly about all this,
Hurricane, why aren't you out there...
in stead of sittin' in here
drinkin'?
I'm drinking club soda,
first of all,
and I'm in here because
you asked me to be here.
But you're right. Maybe
I should go down there.
Maybe I should grab my gun, shoot me
half a dozen of them nigger-hatin' cops.
What you think, Bucky?
I know I can get me about
five of 'em before they get me.
Ed? Huh?
How about you?
You wanna come?
Shit. That's off the record, by the way.
Oh, he knows that.
Don't you?
Sure, champ, sure.
You betcha.
Take that, champ!
Get down.
Ohh!
Right here.
Rubin!
Get down! Stay down!
Oh, Lord, what is it?
Let's get outta here!
You all right, T?
Shh, it's okay. It's okay.
Shh.
It's okay.
All right, all right.
You all right?
You know
why they did this.
Shh. All right.
Come on, come on.
I told you it was
off the record.
Nothin' with you is "off the
record. " I don't wanna go into it-
You never talk
to them people.
All right, all right
- Everything you say, they gon'
make up somethin' different.
Why do you say these things? You tryin' to
get us killed? I know what they're doin'-
So what you want me
to do, huh?
You want me to roll over
and just lay dead?
Pride.
It ain't nothin' but pride.
Damn right it's pride. I'm
guilty. Give me my baby.
You will not be able
to stay home, brother.
You will not be able to plug
in, turn on and drop out.
You will not be able
to lose yourself on skag,
and skip out for beer
during commercials...
because the revolution
will not be televised.
The revolution
will not be televised.
The revolution will not be brought
to you by Xerox and ballparks...
without commercial
interruptions.
The revolution will not be right back
after a message about a white tornado,
white lightning
or white people.
You will not have to worry about a dove
in your bedroom, the tiger in your tank...
or the giant
in your toilet bowl.
The revolution will not
go better with Coke.
The revolution will not fight
germs that may cause bad breath.
The revolution will put you in the
driver's seat. Break it up! Break it up!
The revolution will not be
televised- will not be televised-
will not be televised-
will not be televised-
The revolution won't be
no rerun, brothers.
The revolution will be live.
Champion of the world!
Champion of the world!
Yeah, they're still out.
I've seen a lot of things
in my time,
but it's taken 35 minutes
for these judges to tell us...
what this hometown crowd
already knows.
Joey Giardello
is about to lose the crown...
to Rubin "Hurricane" Carter.
Ladies and gentlemen,
it's a unanimous decision.
The winner...
and still champion
of the world,
Joey Giardello!
Giardello!
No, no, no.
Hey! What?
- You've stolen it!
- Aw, shit!
Bullshit!
What is going on here?
Yeah! Yeah!
Boo!
All I can say...
is these Philly judges must've
been watching a different fight,
because in the one
we just saw...
Hurricane Carter
took the title.
Oh, now tell me where
can you party, child
All night long
In the basement
Down in the basement, yeah
Oh, where can you go
when your money gets low
In the basement
Down in the basement
And if a storm
is takin 'place
You can jam
and still be safe
In the basement
I got somethin' special
for you.
Hey, Hurricane.
How you doin'?
Hey, champ.
In the basement
Down in the basement
Oh, you got the comforts
of home Anybody call a cab?
A nightclub too In the
basement Down in the basement
Anybody call a cab? I did,
unless Rubin's taking me home.
Yeah, if I take you,
it ain't gonna be home.
Mr. Carter!
M- Mr. Carter.
Headed 'cross town,
Mr. Carter?
Yeah. Why?
You need a ride?
W
- Would you mind? No, I wouldn't mind.
All right! Okay. Come on.
You drive.
Drive your car?
Come on.
Oh, shit!
My friends are never gonna believe
I was cruising with the Hurricane.
What we wanna know is,
can we get his autograph?
Oh, shit.
Motherfuckers.
John, you been drinkin'? No.
All right, just relax. Let
me handle this. All right.
License
and registration.
It's okay.
I got it.
You guys come with me.
B- E-L-L-O.
Bello.
Bradley.
B- R-A-D-L-E-Y.
Okay.
Are those the guys?
No?
Okay, let's go.
So what are you doing around here at
that hour? We was just taking a walk.
Right?
Yeah.
Just getting a pack of cigarettes.
That's it.
Both of you
are in big trouble.
You're in violation
of your parole.
But I don't wanna talk
about the burglary.
We'll talk about your
parole problem later, Bello.
As far
as I'm concerned,
no proof a burglary
really took place.
See what I mean?
Yeah, I see what you mean.
I'm only interested
in the facts in this case,
and you and Bradley are the only
two people that can help me out.
Do you follow?
Yeah, I follow.
Good.
Now, is there any scenario
that you can imagine...
in which you could be sure,
really,
positively sure...
that the man
you saw that night...
was Rubin Carter?
Yeah.
Rubin Carter.
Wanna tell me again what happened?
You were there having a drink?
No, no, it was a-
I was going out for a
pack of cigarettes. Yeah.
I heard a couple of shots.
Then I saw these two colored guys come
out of the bar. And one of them was?
One of them was Rubin Carter. Rubin Carter?
Yeah, Rubin Carter,
the fighter.
All rise!
Court will come
to order.
The Honorable Judge Larner
presiding.
Be seated.
The defendants will rise.
Rubin Carter,
although you still contend you are not
guilty of the crimes charged against you,
you were afforded a full and fair
trial by a jury of your peers.
Have you reached
a verdict?
Yes, we have,
Your Honor.
We, the jury,
find the defendants,
Rubin Carter and John Artis,
guilty on all counts.
Oh, no!
It ain't right!
He's innocent!
Order!
No!
Order in the court! No!
Order. The bail if will see
to it that order prevails.
This ain't right!
Railroaded!
No.
Rubin Carter,
John Artis,
for the murder
of James Oliver...
it is
the Court's sentence...
that you be imprisoned for the
remainder of your natural life.
No!
On the second count,
the murder of Fred Nauyaks,
you are sentenced to be imprisoned
for the remainder of your natural life.
No, God, no!
As to the third count involving
the murder of Hazel Tanis,
it is the sentence of this
Court that you be imprisoned...
for the remainder
of your natural life.
Okay, Carter,
let's go.
Take it easy.
You're a tough guy.
He thinks he's gonna stay
in a room, and that's it.
Put your clothes, shoes, your ring, your
watch and whatever else you've got...
in that bag.
You are being issued a standard inmate
uniform with your numbers on it...
so that we can identify you immediately.
You'll go to have your facial
hair shaved. You know the rules.
No, I can't do it,
Warden.
I beg your pardon?
I cannot do it.
Look, you have legal custody
over my body,
but I'm innocent.
I've committed no crime.
The crime's been committed
against me.
I will not wear the clothes
of a guilty man.
I'll go anywhere you want me to
go in this penitentiary, Warden,
but you let it be known
in no uncertain terms...
that any man who tries
to put his hands on me-
This place is where
we tell you the rules.
You hear that?
Do you
understand me?
Do you?
Because if you do,
you had better strip
right now...
and put on
that fucking uniform.
I can't do that.
Put this man
in the hole.
Give him
sufficient time...
to reflect on how he intends
to behave in this institution.
Ninety days.
Hey, Bobby,
we got another one for you.
I like your suit.
Three,
two,
one.
Lights-out.
You see?
"Though I walk through the
valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil. "
There's doubt.
The shadow is doubt.
The shadow is doubt.
But you're not gonna get me.
You're not gonna get me.
Lights-out.
What the fuck
you talkin' about?
You can't break me
'cause you didn't make me.
You understand?
Huh?
You fucked everything up
for everybody, Rubin.
It's all fucked-up.
Who's that?
Y'all ain't got no speakers
in here. Who is that?
I put us into this situation
any goddamn way,
motherfucker.
I done fucked everything up
for everybody.
You know that shit,
that's all fucked up.
What the fuck they expect
us to do now, huh?
Motherfucker.
I'm- I'm- I'm scared.
Shut up. Shut the fuck up,
you little skinny motherfucker.
You think your father beat
your little stuttering ass?
Don't make me
jump over there on ya.
No, you shut up.
Just shut the fuck up talkin'
to me. Fuck you talkin 'to?
You ain't tellin' me what to
say. I'm running shit around here.
Fuck is wrong? Ain't nobody
runnin' shit. I'm runnin' shit.
Shut the fuck up!
What you say?
No. No.
W- What are we
gonna do now?
Huh?
I don't know what.
Shit, ain't nobody touchin' me.
Ain't a goddamn soul touchin 'me.
Put your hands on me not twice. You
better not put your fuckin' hands on me.
Shut up!
Oh, yeah. There's our man. I can
feel the hate. Can you feel it?
You can feel
the hatred, Rubin.
Don't you wanna
just hurt somebody?
I feel like
I wanna kill somebody,
'cept there ain't nobody
in here to kill,
'cept you, boy.
How 'bout it, Rube?
Go away from me!
All right, Carter.
Time's up.
Jesus Christ.
You could really
use a shower.
You smell awful, Mr. Carter.
Why don't you take a shower, get you
a decent cell with a bed and some food?
You'll feel
a lot better.
At what price do I, uh,
take this shower?
What do you mean?
What do I put on after I take this
shower that's gonna make me feel so good?
What everyone else puts on.
That's the rules.
Yeah, well, you can just take me
on back down to the hole.
You could die down there.
I could die up here too.
Look, what if I got you a pair of
pajamas from the prison hospital?
Far as I'm concerned, you'd be
wearing prison-issued clothing.
They got stripes?
No stripes.
What 'bout numbers?
No numbers.
What color are they?
They're white.
Okay. I can live
with those.
Thank you, Mr. Carter.
You're welcome,
Mr. Williams.
Shower's all yours.
Thank you.
It came to me as
kind of a revelation...
that my own freedom
lay in not wanting...
or needing anything of which
they could deprive me.
If punishment consisted
of being locked in your cell,
then by simply choosing
to never leave my cell,
I deprived them
of that weapon.
I would not work in their shops. I would
not eat their food. I began to study.
I dissected my entire case
piece by piece,
beginning with my initial arrest
through the trial itself...
and finally,
to the awful verdict.
I didn't get a trial...
free from constitutional error
and racial prejudice.
He knows that.
You know it!
That's not helpin' me
in here, Myron.
Look. Look!
I'm innocent.
That's why.
Seven years! You're goddamn
right it's seven years!
Just get me outta here.
I want a new trial. Okay?
The people united
will never be defeated.
The people united
will never be defeated.
The people united
will never be defeated.
The people united-
It shows that
there's still hope.
There is hope for change
in America.
I believe in law and order,
and I believe that everybody
have a right to another trial.
Here comes the story
of the Hurricane
The man the authorities
came to blame
For something
that he never done
Miss Ellen Burstyn.
Put in a prison cell
But one time
He could have been
the champion of the world
They ain't givin' up. They said
they're gonna demonstrate again.
Muhammad Ali and Ellen Burstyn
and Bob Dylan, everybody.
That's good, Mae.
Everybody.
Look, Mae, uh,
we've already lost
two trials,
and now they've turned down
my request for an appeal.
I'm sorry, it, uh-
It's over.
It's finished.
And I'm gonna die in here,
Mae, so-
Baby, listen.
There is still a chance.
Now, all we have to do is
hang on. Listen to me, now.
There's nothin'
to hang on to, Mae.
I want you to divorce me.
Understand?
And I don't want you
to come back down here.
No. Now, you listen to me. Mae,
now, baby, don't- Don't make this-
There are still things
that we can do.
I am not gonna be a weight
hangin' around your neck.
You are no weight around my
neck. You're a weight around mine.
Now, I can't do all the years
I gotta do in here...
knowin' they can take your beautiful
face away from me anytime they want to.
You understand?
Rubin.
I ain't walkin'
away from you.
I'm dead.
Rubin.
Just bury me, please.
Rubin?
Rubin?
Rubin, we're...
- we're in this together
now. We just gotta hang on.
Guard.
Rubin.
Rubin.
We just gotta hang on.
We just gotta hang on.
I will bend time
to my own clock.
When the prison is awake,
I will sleep.
When they sleep,
I will wake.
I will live neither
in their cell...
nor in my own heart,
only in my mind...
and my spirit.
"Once I reached my hand out
for help,
"it came down
and then withered...
"as dry grass blown away
into dust leaving nothing.
"Now I wait for nothin'.
I need nothin '.
"Not tomorrow.
Not freedom. Not justice.
"In the end,
the prison will vanish,
"and there'll be no more Rubin,
"no more Carter,
"only the Hurricane.
And after him,
there is no more. "
Man, what we gonna do?
Man, what we gonna do?
- 'Bout what?
- About the Hurricane, that's what.
Well, there's not much
we can do, Lesra.
But the man's innocent, yet he's been
in jail 15, 16 years. That's not right.
I know that's
what his book says.
- Two juries found him guilty, Les.
- Yeah, two white juries.
Hey, hey, not all
white people are racists.
And not all black people
are murderers.
Look, I just wanna write him a letter and
tell him how much his book meant to me.
That's all.
I know you told me
Such a long time ago
Dear...
Mr. Hurricane-
That you want me
No. That's really stupid.
You don't love me no more
I wanna know
- What's that?
- It's ten dollars, U.S.
I thought he might need
some money for stamps,
if you want him
to write you back.
Yeah. Yeah.
Write me back.
That's cool.
Thanks, Lisa.
No problem.
Dear Mr. Rubin Carter,
I read your book,
and I really felt sad...
about what happened to you.
I want you to know
how much your book meant to me.
It's here!
Hey, he wrote us back!
It's here! It's here!
He wrote us back!
Home of the brave. Land of
the free. He wrote us back.
Can you stand it?
Well, open it already. I
don't know. You think I should?
"Dear Lesra, Please forgive
the seemingly tardy reply,
"but he who bemoans
the lack of opportunity...
"forgets that small doors many
times open up into large rooms.
"It was not only thoughtful,
but insightful on your part.
"Stamps, paper and envelopes...
"were exactly what was needed
to complete this transmission.
"Your letter, feelings,
concerns, desires and warmth...
"literally
jumped off the page at me...
"when reading
your heart felt message.
"It is as if
you heard my thoughts...
"and reached out to share yours with
me at a moment when I can hear you.
"So, thank you once again.
"Forever...
"your friend and brother,
Rubin 'Hurricane' Carter. "
Wow.
You got your answer.
Yeah.
Dear Rubin,
I've been thinking about my life
compared to yours.
I come from Bush wick
in Brooklyn.
My parents are alcoholics,
and my brother's in prison.
I was third in my class,
and I couldn't even read.
I couldn't write you
this letter just a year ago,
but then I met these friends from Canada
when I had a summer job at the EPA.
They offered to educate me,
and they got me out.
Sometimes I feel guilty about my
family 'cause I left 'em behind.
Now that I know you,
I know it isn't right.
I shouldn't cry
about my own feelings,
not if you can do
what you've done.
I've been thinkin 'though, I
would like to come and visit you,
if that will be all right.
Palm down. Right hand.
Keep the line moving.
Put your right hand out, please.
Palm down. Keep the line moving.
Keep the line moving,
please.
Okay, now.
Y'all listen up, now.
Visits for Jones, Taylor,
Harris, Ramos,
Sykes, Carter, Tucei,
line up right here.
Uh, you didn't
call my boy's name.
Hemmings.
Eric Hemmings, 65660.
Hemmings?
Yeah.
Ah, no visit for Hemmings
today. He's in lockup.
Okay, Mac, open it up!
Keep outta the way.
Extend your arms.
Palms. Turn around.
Show me your feet.
Spread 'em.
Next.
Open your mouth.
Roll your tongue.
Extend your arms.
Show me your palms.
Turn around.
Show me your feet.
Spread 'em.
Ready on the outside!
Okay. Come on.
Single file.
Let's go.
Single file.
Let's go. Single file.
Mr. Carter?
Rubin "Hurricane" Carter,
that you?
Mm-hmm.
You don't look like your pictures.
I thought you'd be bigger.
Hey, I'm bigger than you.
But don't tell anybody,
okay?
All right.
Okay. Sit down.
Hey, this is some place, man. No.
No, it's not. This is no
place, not for a human being.
Don't ever get used to a place
like this, Lesra.
You got a lot
of guts, kid.
Takes a lot of courage to come
all the way down here by yourself.
I'm impressed. I was scared
you weren't gonna let me come.
Me too.
But you're Rubin "Hurricane"
Carter. What would you be scared of?
Doors opening, of the light outside, of you.
Me? Mr. Carter, I don't understand. Mm-hmm.
Oh, no, no, no. Don't call
me Mr. Carter. Call me Rube.
Rube?
Yeah.
Rube.
All right, Rube.
So, tell me about these
folks you're livin' with.
Oh, the Canadians?
Yeah. I got pictures of' em.
Here.
This is Sam, this is Terry and this
is Lisa, and they're the greatest, man.
Huh. Yeah. I met 'em at an EPA in Brooklyn.
And, you know, they was doin'
business and brought me home and stuff,
and the rest
is what happened, man.
Yeah. That's when
my life changed, Rube.
Hmm. Just yanked a brother up and
took him up to Canada, just like that?
No, no.
They asked my folks.
I see.
So what they do?
Are they a religious group
or hippies or a commune or-
No. They fix up houses
and sell 'em. You know?
They're just people.
Just people. Just workin',
eatin', livin' together?
I don't know. This is what they
do, man. That's their thing.
What'd your folks say?
Oh, my dad, you know, he's
happy. He's glad for me. Oh, good.
You see 'em much,
your folks?
Yeah, but sometimes it's
hard though. Yeah, well-
Yeah, it's hard.
You give them hope.
Yeah, I guess.
You do.
You give 'em hope because
you have transcended, Lesra.
It is very important to
transcend the places that hold us.
You know that? You've learned
to read. You've learned to write.
Writing is-
It's magic.
You feel that sometimes?
Yeah, I guess I do.
Mm-hmm.
When I started writing,
I discovered that I was doing
more than just telling a story.
See, writing is a weapon,
and it's more powerful
than a fist can ever be.
Every time I sat down to write, I could
rise above the walls of this prison.
I could look out over the walls
all across the state of New Jersey,
and I could see Nelson Mandela
in his cell writing his book.
I could see Huey.
I could see Dostoyevsky.
I could see Victor Hugo,
Emile Zola.
And they would say to me,
"Rube,
what you doin' in there?"
And I say, "Hey,
I know all you guys. "
It's magic, Lesra.
They sure don't teach it
that way up in Canada.
Maybe you could tell me some
books to read. I can do that.
But these people in Canada or anywhere
else, they can only teach you so much.
It's up to you.
It's your search.
You gotta find out what's true for
you, what is true for Lesra Martin.
I ain't never met
nobody like you before.
You think I killed
those people, son?
No, I know you didn't.
How you know?
I just know.
I'm so glad
I met you, Lesra.
Me too.
Visit's up.
Everybody out.
Come on, folks,
let's go.
You like a quick picture of you
and your son, Mr. Carter?
Come on, folks. Let's go.
It's up to my son. Yeah,
all right. All right.
That's enough pictures.
Come on. Let's go.
Dear Lesra,
whoever is responsible for your present
condition obviously cares a great deal.
For me, it was a miracle to see
such light in a human being again.
When you came, it was like the day
had started off without the sun.
It's dim and it's cool.
Then suddenly,
and without any warning,
the sunshine breaks through the
dimness and lights up everything.
What ya gonna do
Do you wanna get down
What ya gonna do
Do you wanna get down
You been all around
the world, huh, Mobutu?
Been everywhere. Shut your
motherfuckin 'mouth up.
Where your people from, Africa?
Born in the Congo, mm-hmm.
In the blackness of black.
My mother was a Pygmy. She
stood four foot, one inch. Hmm.
My father was a big Watusi.
He was seven foot, ten.
Oh.
He'd have to pick her up
like a little child to kiss her.
Cute.
Get down on it if you
really want it Get down on it
What do you think
of white folks?
Mmmmmm...
Just a little bit too much
of this stuff, you know?
But, uh, then again,
I once rode the rails
with a hobo by the name of, um,
Alabama.
Now, he was white folks,
and he was a good man.
Mm-hmm. He saved my life
three times.
Three times?
Mm-hmm. Three times.
Three times life, huh?
Everything I lost...
that really matters,
I lost at the hands
of white folks.
I know what you mean,
but they ain't all bad.
What ya gonna do
Do you wanna get down
What ya gonna do
But they sure can't dance.
Oh, shit.
Mm-hmm.
Hey, y'all,
this is where we go in.
Come on.
Come on!
Don't look now, but we're
being watched. Stop it.
Somehow I don't think
you can smoke in there.
Right over there.
Hey, Rube, man, we made it.
How you doin', man? All right.
Sam. Hey, Rubin. Good to meet you.
Yeah. Good.
Good. Good.
Professor.
Yeah.
This is Terry.
Terry.
Nice to meet you. It's my pleasure,
Terry. Heard a lot about ya.
Lisa. Hi.
Lisa.
So, you don't look
like I thought you'd look.
Lesra said
you were so tough.
Is that good?
Don't know.
Don't know.
Don't know.
Come on.
Sit down.
Everybody together.
How can you stand it?
So, uh, Rubin,
how's the appeal goin'?
We hear it's with the New Jersey
Supreme Court. Have they set a date?
Why don't
we talk about Lesra?
Well, I'm sure that Lesra wants to know
what's happening with your case too.
My case is doing
what it's doing.
I have to focus on the fact
that I have to do the time.
Well, how do you
do that?
How do I do that?
I do that by not allowing myself
to want or to need...
anything.
I'm free in here because
there's nothin' I want out here.
Not free to want? Not
free to risk human contact?
This place doesn't allow you
to be human.
The only contact you get in here
is gettin' stabbed in the back...
or gang-raped in the shower.
That's what
they reduce you to.
You've obviously elevated it
to something else with Lesra.
Because of you, I wanna be a lawyer
when I grow up and prove you innocent.
Except we don't have to wait until...
...I'm a lawyer because these
guys are willing to help.
We all believe
in your innocence.
I've been innocent for 16 years.
That's how long I've been in here.
Innocence is
a highly overrated commodity.
None of us can judge what you've been
through, but you might wanna consider-
You're damn right none of you
can judge what I've been through,
because none of you
have been through it.
What do you know about doin
'time? Tell me about it.
What do you know about what it is to be me?
What do you know about bein' in this place?
This is too much, you guys. Yeah,
you're right. This is too much.
Um, y'all look.
Let's just go, all right?
Rubin. Rubin.
Hey. Hey.
Hey, listen, we left a package
for you in the mail room.
Yes.
Visitors left this for you
in the mail room.
We had to open it
'cause of security.
Nice to have friends.
"Special gift
for the Hurricane. "
Don't trust 'em, Rubin.
Don't trust 'em.
You trust a bunch of little
white-ass do-gooders...
more than you trust me,
more than you trust us.
Yeah. No more hate.
Try that on, huh?
Don't trust 'em. They'll turn
on ya. Don't trust 'em, no.
Think me and you. Me and
you. See how that fits.
It's time.
For what?
It's time for you to go.
Don't you turn your back
on me, nigger.
Rubin!
Rubin!
Ladies and gentlemen,
in this corner-
In this corner,
from Paterson, New Jersey,
wearing the white trunks
with black stripes,
Rubin "Hurricane" Carter!
Okay, Sam. You joining us? Yeah. Yeah.
Lesra,
get up the back.
Dear Rubin, I can't believe the
warmth and beauty of your letter.
Ready? We get a rich, deep feeling
of experiencing your presence.
You've made what
we've been saying the truth,
that you can't keep people back
who refuse to be kept back.
Here we go.
Here we go.
We work out of our home, so we 're
always here if you'd like to call.
We'd really like
to hear your voice.
You are very persuasive,
and I thank you
for all the things you send me,
but you people are
a bad influence on me.
I'm startin' to like all
this stuff a little too much.
You're lettin' me get loose.
Hello?
Yeah, I'll accept the charges.
Hey, Rube, what's happening, man?
Lesra, boy, you, uh-
Well, you sound more
like a man every day.
Get outta here.
Where is everybody?
Oh, you know Canadians.
They're not happy unless they're
outside tappin' a tree for maple syrup.
I don't know how they do it.
It's cold out there.
What's up, Rube?
Something happen?
Yeah, I, um,
heard from the courts,
Lesra.
Been denied.
I lost the appeal.
Oh, no, man.
Look, hold on, Rube.
Let me tell everyone, okay?
I gotta go, little brother.
No. Wait, Rube.
Wait. Wait. But, Rube!
Rubin!
What's going on?
Lost the appeal.
Oh, no.
Dear Lesra, Terry, Sam,
Lisa,
This is, in many ways, the saddest
letter I've ever had to write.
I appreciate your many efforts
and kindnesses,
but I am a prisoner.
My number is 45472,
and my job-
"My number is 45472, and my job
- The key to my survival...
"lies in my ability
to do the time.
"This place is not one in which
humanity can survive, only steel can.
"This will be
my last letter to you.
"Please do not write.
Please do not visit.
"Please find it in your hearts
to not weaken me with your love.
Rubin 'Hurricane' Carter. "
Open up, Ken.
Okay.
Thanks.
Rubin,
I got a letter here for you
from Canada.
I'm just gonna
slide it in here for ya.
You do what you want
with it.
"Dear Rube,
"I know you asked us
not to write,
"so I'm not writing,
just sending you two things.
"One's a picture of me
and my new girlfriend, Pauline.
"The other is something
that rightfully belongs to you,
"'my high school diploma.
Your friend and brother forever,
Lesra Martin. "
Don't count the stars
Or you
Might stumble
Hello.
Yes, I accept-
I accept the charges.
Rubin? Hey.
Rubin, I can't hear you.
Rube?
Hello?
He said he can't do
the time.
Uh, collect call to anyone
from Mr. Rubin Carter.
Take one.
Yes?
Rubin?
Lesra? No, it's Terry. I'm here
with Lisa and Sam and Lesra's here.
Hey, how y'all doin'?
Look out the window.
What?
You see that light?
The one that's blinking?
You see it?
Yeah.
Can you see Lesra?
Yeah, I see you.
What are y'all doin' here?
Whoo! Whoo! Can he see us?
Yeah, he can see you.
Whoo!
Whoo! Rube!
We're here.
We've moved down here.
For what? We're in this thing
full-time until you walk outta there.
Hold on.
Lisa wants to say something.
Hurricane!
Hey, Rube.
Looks like you got
some foot soldiers now, huh?
We're all in this together, and
we're not leaving till we all leave.
You're beautiful.
We're gonna take you home.
Okay.
Okay.
Rubin has asked us to give you
copies of everything that we have...
and to answer any questions.
And since we've represented
him for over ten years,
there's an awful lot
of material.
I mean, we have rooms
full of files.
Absolutely, and, uh, please
understand that we are not here...
to second-guess you or-
You know, we've come down here
to help in any way we can.
Anything, you know?
Anything at all.
Well, that's
very kind of you,
and I congratulate you on your
dedication to Rubin's case.
Uh, maybe I should add...
that in those ten years we've been working
on this, we've donated our services.
We've never asked for a dime.
We never expect one. Do we?
No.
I wanted to be sure.
And also in that time, uh,
there have been a lot of people,
great people,
all well-intentioned.
Famous.
Infamous.
Or not.
Boxer, singers,
writers, actors,
journalists, etcetera.
A lot of brave people
who gave of their time,
and to some degree
risked their reputations.
People like you.
And, uh, people come and go.
And, frankly,
nobody lasts.
Nobody stays the course.
Nobody goes the distance...
because it's too tough.
It's too slow,
and it's heartbreaking.
It's too heartbreaking.
With all due respect,
Mr. Friedman,
what you have to understand
is that we're here.
We've moved here,
and we have every...
...intention of staying
here until Rubin is free.
Right on.
So we finally got in to see your lawyers,
Beldock and Friedman, the other day.
How'd they take it?
Oh, I'd say we handled
ourselves pretty well.
Yeah, we hauled about, what, ten
tons of documents into the apartment.
In broad daylight?
Oh, yeah.
Wait a minute. Listen to
me. This is not Canada.
Now, I can
protect you in here,
but there's not much
I can do for you on the outside.
The only way I'm ever
leaving this place is...
if a lot of very important
people are exposed.
They're not just
gonna let that happen.
You understand?
We'll be careful.
Okay. Well, why don't you walk us
through what happened that night?
Now, three cops have testified
the shooting occurred at 2:45.
So, what time did you leave
the Nite Spot?
2:30.
Oh, now tell me where can you party,
child, all night long in the basement
Anybody call a cab?
Time for me to get outta here.
How much do...
...I owe you, Big Ed?
Your money's no good here.
- Anybody call a cab?
- I did. Unless Rubin's taking me home.
Mm-hmm.
If I take you,
it's gonna be more than home.
Get on outta here, girl.
Shit.
What were you doin' out
so late on a Thursday night?
What does it matter
what night it was?
Wasn't Thursday night ladies'
night? Didn't it matter to your wife?
I'm in the penitentiary for
murder, not attempted adultery.
So there was a cab there. He
must have seen you leave, right?
No. No, he left
before I did.
Bye, Rubin.
Take it easy.
Hey, turn around.
Huh? Hey!
Whoa! He's gone!
I wish to God John Artis
had met a girl that night.
I wish that, uh,
he hadn't been there at all.
He didn't deserve this.
He didn't deserve any of it.
Artis, let's go.
You're done.
He got the same sentence
I got...
and all he had to do was lie
and say I killed those people...
and they would have
let him out...
and his nightmare
would have been over.
Most men couldn't have stood up
to that kind of torture,
but John Artis did.
The man is my hero.
So the police said
it was 2:45 or a little after...
when all hell broke loose
at the Lafayette bar.
That's what they said.
Apparently, the two gunmen entered the
bar and immediately started shooting.
According to William Marins, two
guys barged in and just opened fire.
Oliver goes down first.
Nauyaks.
Then Marins was the only one
that got a look at them.
Then they shoot Hazel Tanis
and leave.
What's Bello doing?
Bello was a lookout for
a burglary up the street.
And who else saw anything?
Patty Valentine. She said
she saw the getaway car.
And there was a man who lived across the
street by the name of Avery Cockersham.
Cockersham? That name
was in the police report. That's right.
So how come he didn't testify? The
judge threw the police report out.
Cockersham left town.
Nobody could find 'im.
It was two colored guys. They just
walked in, they started shootin'.
Call the cops.
Now, according to the police, the
murders were racially motivated.
The bar didn't serve blacks, so,
naturally, this crazy nigger, Rubin Carter,
had to take out his vengeance
on the entire white race.
This is Exhibit 11-F.
This is 1966.
What are you talking about? Where
are you? Trial transcripts, 1966.
Valentine first said...
the car's tail lights
were similar to the getaway car.
"Similar. "
Right.
Then in '76, Exhibit 89-C,
she says, quote,
"The Carter car was unquestionably
the same car. There was no doubt. "
Closed quote.
Exactly.
Kind of makes you wonder,
doesn't it?
Second trial, ten years later,
suddenly she changes her story.
She drew a picture,
like a bow tie.
Yeah, yeah.
I got it here.
"Tail lights lit up all across the back...
...like a butterfly, as the
killer's car drove away. "
"Like a butterfly. "
So the first thing we have to do is find
out exactly what Rubin's car looked like.
We need to find a '66 Dodge Polara. Mm-hmm.
There's the bow-tie lights,
like Patty Valentine described.
I'm not so sure about that.
You ready?
Yeah.
Yeah.
See that? They don't
light up all the way.
Oh, yeah, that's a Dodge Monaco.
You don't want one of those.
They don't have the power. I'll
make you a good deal on this one.
Shit.
Monaco?
Mr. Carter?
Yeah.
I was told to get you.
Get me? By whom?
The warden wants
to see ya.
For what?
I don't know.
Open up, Al.
Mr. Carter.
I have a difficult job
running this place,
but I do it.
I do it really well.
You called me down here at 3:00
in the morning to tell me that?
I hear things.
I hear everything.
What have you heard, Warden?
I hear something's
goin' down.
I don't want a mess,
something that I can't clean up.
This doesn't have anything
to do with my case, does it?
Shit happens everyday,
and I wanna warn you,
that's all.
Somebody tries to take you down,
something gets started,
I can't stop it.
You understand me?
What do you suggest
I do?
Stay alive.
And that goes
for your friends too.
Guard!
Who is it?
We're looking for
an Avery Cockersham.
Do the Cockershams
live here?
I'm Mrs. Cockersham.
What do you want?
You're black.
You're white.
Baked fresh this morning.
You take the white one.
Yeah, there were plenty colored
folks in the neighborhood...
and in the bar too.
Avery and me were regulars.
They served blacks in the bar?
We had a runnin' tab.
So much for
the racial motive.
My Avery got a good look
at those men,
and it wasn't
Rubin Carter.
He told the police.
He told them and he told them.
He even signed a statement
for that detective.
You know the one.
Heavyset.
Look like a bulldog
with glasses.
- Della Pesca.
- That's the one.
Could we, uh,
talk with your husband?
Avery's dead.
He died
just before the trial.
I'm sorry.
Here's stuff
I wanna check out.
Who the fuck
you think you are?
Does this look
like Toronto to you?
Excuse me?
You've got some nerve
comin 'down here,
pokin' your nose
where it don't belong.
Let me ask you something,
Mr. Canada.
What the fuck do you know
about this place, huh?
You know anything?
You don't know shit.
Let me enlighten you...
because you don't know
what you're doing.
You are makin' enemies
that you don't know exist.
Huh?
We know about you.
You don't know shit about me.
You understand?
You don't know shit about this place,
so let me tell ya something else.
You're not welcome here.
You're not fuckin' welcome here.
You got that?
Go back to where you belong.
Lesra's gonna have
to get on with school,
so we might want to send him
back for a while.
I understand. It's probably the best. Yeah.
Yeah.
What about you?
Oh, it's- it's gonna take
a little longer than we thought.
You are all right?
Yeah.
I've asked myself,
Lisa,
if I could
do for anyone...
what you and Sam and Terry and Lesra
have done for me, and the answer is no.
So, if you feel like you need
to go home for any reason,
I'll understand.
No, you've gotta understand
we're not-
we're not leaving
without you.
All right?
And we're gonna
find something.
Um,
well, I found
something,
a fellow by the name
of Barbieri.
He's a private investigator. Prosecution
hired him in the second trial.
Didn't he resign
from the case or something?
He quit and turned in his murder
book and crime-scene photos,
list of evidence,
but no notes.
Anyone talk to him?
Myron tracked him down.
What'd he say? Nothin'. He was scared.
Of whom? Of the people he was workin ' with.
Mrs. Barbieri?
Miss.
Hello.
Uh, is Mr. Barbieri in?
There isn't
any mister.
Uh, Dominick,
Dominick Barbieri?
That was my father.
He passed away years ago.
Wow. Maybe you
oughta have a yard sale.
That case always
bothered my father.
He never talked
about it.
He said he had to live
in this town.
Yeah. Any idea where
his notes might be?
Well, if he kept them at all,
they'd be in one of those boxes.
Guy was a pack rat. He must have
saved every case he ever worked on.
Wait, wait, wait, wait. What?
I found it. Look at this. Look. What?
He kept a damn diary. Oh, look.
Who would have thought he'd
put it in a diary? Look at this.
There.
A call was placed to an emergency
operator named Jean Wahl...
at 2:28 a. m.
to report the shooting.
At 2:28?
That's right.
She then calls the cops
to tell them.
They say they
already know about it.
In fact, they've got a cruiser on its
way over to the Lafayette at that moment.
Oh, my God.
Yes.
According to Barbieri,
"time on the record of
customer contact was changed...
from 2:28 to 2:45."
Yes.
Son of a bitch.
Which, if true, puts John Artis
and myself at the Nite Spot...
at the time
of the killings.
Well, if we can prove she got
the call at 2:28. We'll prove it.
We can prove it.
Mrs. Wahl?
Hi. My name is
Sam Chaiton.
We spoke on the phone
about the Rubin Carter case.
I told you,
I don't want to talk to you.
Mrs. Wahl, please, um, you told
an investigator named Barbieri...
that an emergency call you took the night
of the Lafayette bar murders was at 2:28.
I don't know what I told him.
It was a long time ago.
Uh, but there's a card
that says 2:45 on it,
and, uh, you didn't
sign the card.
According to Barbieri, it was
signed by a Miss Lenore Harkinson.
She was my supervisor.
Why would your supervisor sign the
card? Wouldn't you do that yourself?
Look, if there's a card and that's
what it says, then that's what it says.
I don't remember
anything else,
and if someone tries to make me
testify, that's what I'll say.
Uh, look,
Mrs. Wahl-
Thank you.
So this is a copy of the phone
company's record of customer contact.
It's all there,
just like Barbieri said.
2:45.
Hmm.
Look at the signature
on the card.
It's signed by Lenore Harkinson,
Jean Wahl's supervisor.
Does that mean
anything to you?
It means she didn't have to
write up a phoney ticket. What?
He signed it himself.
Who?
His handwriting
is on every report...
that put me in prison
since I was 11 years old.
It's Della Pesca.
It's his handwriting.
- Oh, shit! What's happening?
- What the hell is that?
Oh, shit! Hold on!
You all right?
Yeah.
Lesra, you okay? I'm all right.
Are you all right? Yeah? I think so. Damn.
Yeah?
Shit.
Hey, you okay?
What the fuck was that? Need help?
We're okay.
Thanks.
Are they all right?
Goddamn.
Hey, let's go!
The law states we have to take our new
evidence back to the original trial judge,
and then if he turns us down,
we go to the state appeals court-
No. No. No. No.
Listen to me.
These people aren't
gonna just let that happen.
They've made their careers on my
case. What are you talking about?
I'm talking about lawyers,
prosecutors, judges...
who have moved up the ladder
on my black back.
We don't know what enemies we
have out there in this state.
We gotta take it out of New Jersey
and take it to the federal court.
Rubin, if you go
into federal court...
with new evidence that hasn't
been heard in the state court,
the judge is gonna
throw it out.
Okay?
That is the law.
Then we transcend the law.
We- We get back to humanity.
You said if we take the new
evidence before the federal judge,
he's gotta look at it
before he throws it out, right?
Right. I believe that once he looks
at it, he will have seen the truth.
Having seen the truth,
he can't turn his back on me.
And what if you're wrong and
he does turn away? Then what?
Then you throw out all this evidence
that everyone's fought to get.
And you know what, Rubin? You will never
be able to mention it in a court again.
It is finished. It's erased.
It's as if it never happened.
This evidence is the key
to getting you out of here,
and you'll be throwing
it away, Rubin.
When in a few more years
- I don't have a few more years, Myron.
Leon, help me out.
I can't. I agree with Rubin.
It's time to move on.
Move on? What do you mean? Move
on where? The State's biased.
We're never gonna get anything
there. We have to go federal.
We can't take the risk of going
federal with this. Listen to me.
I'm 50 years old.
I've been locked up
for 30 years.
I've put a lot of good
people's lives at risk.
Now, either
I get outta here-
Get me outta here.
Ready?
Good luck, Rubin.
This is for you.
You stay strong.
As-Salaam-Alaikum.
Alaikum-Salaam.
Good luck.
Peace, baby.
Be cool now.
Good luck,
Mr. Carter.
Rubin.
Rubin Carter,
prisoner 45472.
See ya around.
Okay, Jimmy.
Your Honor,
we appear before you...
in our 19th year
before the courts.
Rubin Carter has never enjoyed
a full, fair...
and unforced disclosure of the facts to
which he is constitutionally entitled.
For 19 years,
the truth has been hidden...
not only from
Rubin Carter's eyes,
but from the eyes
of justice itself.
Your Honor, the prosecution
objects forcefully here.
Counsel is attempting
to present new evidence...
and circumvent
the State Court of New Jersey.
Your Honor must,
according to the law,
drop this entire petition where it belongs
- into the garbage.
Your Honor, we implore you to at least
hear us before making your ruling.
Mr. Beldock,
I hope you understand...
the implications
of your action.
That is a very
slippery slope...
you're trying to climb.
We do, Your Honor.
Proceed.
In 1976,
the State of New Jersey's...
chief investigator of this case,
Dominick Barbieri, resigned...
because he discovered
the truth.
He discovered that
this case was built...
on a foundation
of forgeries and lies.
Those lies show the guilt
not of Rubin Carter,
but of a corrupt police force
and the prosecutor's office.
And now, this wall of lies
has been destroyed,
so that this court
may finally see the truth,
and, pray God,
not turn its eyes away.
This court
is not unmoved by your...
eloquence and passion,
but the prosecution
is correct.
This petition contains
new evidence...
that has not been presented before
the State Court of New Jersey,
and there is no legal argument
that you could make...
which would allow me
to consider it.
Therefore, you have
two choices before you..
I can send this case
back to the state court...
and you can present
the evidence;
or...
if you insist on proceeding,
this evidence
will be lost to you forever.
You understand the choice
before you, Mr. Beldock?
Your Honor, may I request a
moment to confer with my client?
That's the smartest thing you've
said all morning, Counselor.
Rubin,
listen to me.
This judge is telling us
as clearly as he possibly can...
that he's going
to rule against you.
This is our last stand,
Myron. Rubin, I am begging you-
Let's proceed.
Your Honor,
my client wishes to continue
with this proceeding.
Uh, do you do so formally,
and, uh, are you aware
of the significance...
of such an action?
We do so formally.
Proceed.
But, Your Honor-
Yes? The State is not prepared
to argue the merits of this case.
Why not?
Well, we assumed...
that the Court would not hear this
petition based on new evidence.
You assumed wrong.
Proceed.
So, Your Honor, this case
was poisoned from the start.
No evidence.
No witnesses,
except admitted liars.
Only a racially charged
atmosphere,
which was fanned by the police
and the prosecutors...
who knew the truth
and distorted it...
and subverted it
and destroyed it...
to convict an innocent man.
What more can the State of
New Jersey do, Your Honor,
than give a man not one,
but two jury trials?
And nothing has changed
since then.
Mr. Carteris,
and always has been,
a menace to society.
He's been in and out
of jail his whole life.
A criminal.
He's a violent man.
His whole life
has been violence.
And it is our duty,
Your Honor,
to continue to protect the
general public from such a man.
Thank you.
I've heard
your statements.
I'll take them
under consideration.
Now, is there anything else
that counsel wishes to add...
before I make
my final ruling?
What are you doing?
I wanna say something.
What are you gonna say? I wanna
- I need to say something.
Your Honor,
my- my client,
Mr. Carter,
wishes to address the Court.
Request granted.
Thank you,
Your Honor.
I was a, um,
prizefighter.
My job was to...
take all the hatred...
and skill that
I could muster,
and send a man
to his destruction.
And I did that.
But Rubin "Hurricane" Carter
is no murderer.
Twenty years I've spent
locked up in a cage...
considered a danger
to society.
Not treated
like a human being.
Not treated
like a person.
Counted 15 times a day.
I serve my time
in a house of justice,
and yet, there's
no justice for me.
So, I ask you...
to consider the evidence.
Don't turn away
from the truth.
Don't turn away
from your conscience.
Please, don't
ignore the law.
No, embrace that
higher principle...
for which the law
was meant to serve.
Justice. That's all
I ask for, Your Honor.
Justice.
This court is in recess.
Oh, thank you.
It's good.
Come a long way,
huh, little brother?
Yeah.
Look, I just want you to know if this
doesn't work, I'm bustin' you out of here.
You are? Yeah. That's right.
I'm bustin' you
outta here.
What was the first book
you ever bought?
Yours.
Hmm.
You think
that was an accident?
No.
No, me neither.
Lesra,
short for Lazarus.
"He who is risen
from the dead. "
Rubin.
Genesis, chapter 29,
verse 32.
"Behold a son. "
You put those two together,
Lesra, and you have,
"Behold a son
who has risen...
from the dead. "
That's no accident.
Hate put me in prison.
Love's gonna
bust me out.
Just in case love doesn't,
I'm gonna bust you outta here.
Yeah.
You already have,
Lesra.
All rise.
This Federal District Court of
New Jersey is now in session,
Judge Sarokin presiding.
Be seated.
This court does not arrive
at its conclusion lightly.
On one hand, Rubin Carter
has submitted a document...
alleging racial prejudice,
coercion of testimony
and withholding of evidence.
On the other hand,
Mr. Carter was tried twice...
by two different juries,
and those convictions
were subsequently upheld...
by the New Jersey
State Supreme Court.
He's gonna rule against us.
Rubin's gonna lose.
However,
the extensive record...
clearly demonstrates
to this court...
that Rubin Carter's
conviction...
was predicated upon
an appeal to racism...
rather than reason...
and concealment...
rather than disclosure.
To permit convictions
to stand...
which have
as their sole foundation...
appeals to racial prejudice,
is to commit a violation...
of the Constitution...
as heinous as the crimes
for which the defendants...
were tried and convicted.
I here by order Rubin Carter...
released from prison...
henceforth,
from this day forward.
Whoo!
This court is adjourned.
Rube, you made it, man.
You're free.
Can you stand it?
You did it, Rube.
You did it, man.
Whoo-hoo-hoo!
Rubin Carter
has just been freed.
All right!
You're free, Rubin!
Mr. Carter, how do you feel?
Mr. Carter? Mr. Carter?
Mr. Carter?
Now that you're out, are you
still gonna be the Hurricane?
Oh, I'll always
be the Hurricane.
And the Hurricane
is beautiful.
This is unbelievable!
The crowd is going wild.
Everybody wanted this victory,
and Hurricane has delivered.
Yes, that's the story
of the Hurricane
But it won't be over
till they clear his name
And give him back
the time he's done
Put in a prison cell
but one time
He could have been
the champion of the world