[DISTANT FOGHORN]
[GULLS CAWING]
[]
[GILLIAN LAUGHING]
I got you!
You better run!
I got you now!
[BOTH LAUGHING]
[GILLIAN SCREAMS PLAYFULLY]
Come on!
Gillian!
What? What?
Do it again!
["SOME KIND OF WONDERFUL"
BY GRAND FUNK RAILROAD PLAYS]
I don't need
A whole lots of money
I don't need
A big, fine car
I got everything
that a man could want
I got more
Than I could ask for
Daddy, could you
turn it down a little?
I don't have to run around
I don't have to
stay out all night
Ooh, when my baby kisses me
Chills run up and down
Daddy, can we just turn it down?
When my baby
Exactly!
I have been getting
this all summer.
You have to stay on the island.
How many times are
you gonna say that?
I've been back three days.
So I'm insecure.
You've spent
the whole summer away.
School starts in two weeks.
I gotta know whether I should be
shopping around for
a new best friend,
and Mr. Wacko up
there is your father.
Here we go!
Hey!
Son of a bitch!
Daddy!
You're in the wrong lane!
Daddy, this really is not smart.
I'm telling you, he's crazy!
What?
DAVID:
Would you pull over, please?
Hello! Hello, I'm over here!
I'd like to talk to you!
This is a two-way street.
What's the matter with you?
Pull over!
Daddy!
What's your problem?
You oughtta yield!
My problem is you didn't yield.
You saw the sign.
What does it say?
I was ahead of you!
In the car, now!
Ahead of me?
He said he was ahead of me!
You could get arrested!
What's wrong with you?
That sign said yield!
Just get in!
You were not ahead of me!
Get in the car!
I'm sorry. He's just...
Rachel!
We're late for Esther and Paul.
Sorry.
You're right, he didn't yield.
He didn't.
[CAR STARTS]
Come on.
Who's gonna be brave, huh?
Go ahead. Don't be shy.
Paul,
come on, you gotta try this.
They say there's
something spiritual
about feeding them
in flight, but l...
I tried it.
One of them bit me in flight.
Don't believe them.
Stop. Come on.
Come here.
I already pulled a muscle.
Here. Here we go.
Here, birds.
No dinner, no TV.
See if they take it.
Here you go.
Oh, great. Thanks, Esther.
You tell her yet?
Hey, what scared the birds away?
Just the sound of
your voice, Esther.
Are they skittish or intuitive?
Tell me what?
The complete truth.
He was supposed to fill you in
as soon as we left port,
but obviously he hasn't.
Those birds are rabid.
What? What?
What complete truth?
Well, you know, David's wife...
it happened, uh...
With the boating accident.
Right.
[]
DAVID:
Gillian, where you goin'?
Esther, would you please
translate for me?
ESTHER:
She never listens to me.
DAVID:
Come on, Gillian, not funny.
Get down.
Gillian, come on.
It's my birthday!
Let me have some fun!
It's your 35th birthday.
Grownups shouldn't have fun!
Tell your mother
grownups don't scale things.
Grownups don't scale things!
Tell your father
he's not my father!
He's supposed to be
my fun-loving husband!
This is incredible!
Mommy, please!
Paul, could you get her down?
Sure. As soon as
I unclench my fingers.
Mom!
I'm almost there!
Mom, you're scaring me!
This is so great!
You can come down now!
Rachel, try again.
She'll listen to you.
Mom!
Mommy!
Mom!
Gillian!
Mom!
Daddy?
Daddy?
What?
What are you looking at?
What?
Oh... nothing.
Nothing.
Hey! Hey, the ferry's here!
See it, David?
Oh, great.
David?
He asked me to call him that.
I'm 16, Rachel.
Give it up a little.
Tomorrow is her birthday?
So this is two
years to the very day?
We didn't even think of it
until three days ago,
and then we were afraid
that you might back out.
You are fixing me up with a man
on the anniversary
of his wife's death,
which also happens
to be her birthday.
I absolutely
would have backed out.
Thank you.
She's upset now.
What do you expect?
I mean...
how could he
have agreed to this,
for God's sake?
Oh, my God.
Well...
'Oh, my God' what?
You mean there's more?
He doesn't exactly
know that you're coming.
Air.
He doesn't know I'm coming?
In a way, because we're always
trying to fix him up.
He doesn't know we are bringing
someone on this particular trip,
but I'm sure that we'll all
laugh about it over dinner.
It's okay.
Don't worry, it'll be fine.
We're already having fun.
This is great.
Easy, now. Here it comes,
straight down.
There you go. There we go.
I see them. There they are.
Hey, Paul!
Hey!
Aunt Esther! Hi!
Hi!
Hey! You look great!
Oh, sweetie!
Oh, look at you!
Three days away from me,
already you look different.
No, I don't.
Hey, Muscles.
Hey, Mr. Cerebellum.
New toup?
Nah, it's the old toup.
Hi.
Hi, sweetie.
If we hustle,
we can beat the traffic.
Is this all the luggage?
Hi.
Hi?
What do you mean, hi?
Who are you?
I'm leaving, that's who.
No, no, no, no.
David, meet Kevin Danford,
business associate.
She designs all our software,
and she decided
to join us for the weekend.
Under extremely false pretenses.
Kevin took one of
your literature classes
at B.U.
For one day, years ago.
Talk about a small world, right?
Years ago. Well.
MAN ON PA:
Next, Woods Hole, Martha's
Vineyard, and Nantucket...
Well, let's go.
Let's... let's go.
Departing in 45 minutes.
You knew.
I knew it was somebody
named Kevin.
I figured a fishing buddy.
Paul doesn't fish.
I thought maybe he started.
You think that's funny.
Just let me take
the next boat back.
No, you're walking
the wrong way.
This is going to be
a fabulous weekend.
You might think I enjoy carrying
the luggage,
but you would be wrong.
I can't be both a bellboy
and a mediator.
We have a situation.
Did I tell you about this air,
or did I tell you?
I have been smelling.
You bottle it, you take it home
and sell it, it's that good.
Come on, breathe deep.
In good stuff, out shit.
Come on.
In good, out shit.
Come on, Cindy!
In good...
Okay, all packed up.
Let's go.
Ow. Ow.
Cool it.
And drive normal.
ESTHER:
Kevin, you sit in the front.
Could I just talk to you
for one second?
I can't get in the car
if you're leading me...
We have the potential
for a colossal disaster.
They're both alone,
so we arranged. End of story.
Look happy.
They're watching.
Hello! Hi!
Let's make the most of it.
You're a negative person.
That's another thing.
Don't trot out
your psychology platitudes.
Your training is
in architecture.
These headshrinking seminars
are part of your midlife crisis,
and I hear you don't even
contribute to the class.
Who said?
Who said?
I've heard.
Come on!
You're holding up the fun.
Let's go.
Kevin, get in the front seat.
Isn't this an amazing old car?
At least smile.
To reveal that you have teeth
might keep them distracted.
I am writing that one down.
This could get bumpy.
Everybody in?
Hey, slow down!
["SOME KIND OF WONDERFUL"
BY GRAND FUNK RAILROAD PLAYS]
I got everything
that a man could want
I got more
than I could ask for
How about that ocean air?
RACHEL:
He almost never crashes.
ESTHER:
Bottle it, take it home, and
sell it, that's what I say.
What are you doing?
I was just noticing you've had
quite a developmental year.
You're gross.
Don't you know that she's
She's some kind of wonderful
She's some kind of wonderful
Yeah she is
She's some kind of wonderful
Here we are. Everybody
gets to pick their own room.
First come, first served.
I wrenched my back.
That air!
Smell that island air!
Enough with the air!
Could I speak with you
a moment alone, please?
Excellent.
Sure.
Oh, yeah. Hey, I gotta pee.
I'd like to hear this.
Forget it, Cindy. Let's go.
Hey, you know,
you may want to...
Paul and Esther,
they will grab the best room.
Look, I am very sorry.
I had no idea that this was the
anniversary of your wife's...
Oh, don't, please.
And I had no idea that you
knew nothing about my coming.
I'm quite prepared to leave.
I don't know how they could
possibly think that this...
You're here.
Tomorrow we've got a big sand
castle competition.
I'm excellent at castles.
I do the whole bit...
pillars, balconies, columns.
Moats?
What have they been telling you?
They're acting friendly.
Come on, he was angry.
This is your most
gigantic goof ever.
It's for his own good. It's
unhealthy, all this seclusion.
It was his wife.
She was my sister.
Life goes on.
Again with the psychology.
If he refuses to recognize that,
maybe we should have
Rachel live with us.
She only gets to be 16 once.
She'll never get this year back.
We are here to enjoy
a restful weekend.
She's got college, SATs,
not to mention socially.
Must you always be
your complete and total self?
What?
That's two.
I'm writing down two.
No, no, no, no.
Didn't I tell you?
No way.
You are not wearing that.
We both are.
I got one for you too.
["HEARTBEAT CRAZY" BY
RENEE COLOGNE PLAYS SOFTLY]
Oh, my God,
look at your breasts!
Wonder Top. Cleavage.
I'm not going out like that.
I'm not gonna do it.
At some point in your life, you
are going to have to trust me.
And this is that point?
While you're
wearing electric
blue rectal floss?
Your diaphragm
covers more than that.
When we learn to deal with men,
we gotta practice on the boys,
and this is how we
tease them with the goods.
Now, let's practice our walk.
Our walk?
Oh, yes.
The walk is very key.
And it's all hips, like this.
Oh, my Lord.
I am not doing that.
No way am I doing that!
We gotta own the beach, Rache.
The walk is ownership.
I don't want to walk.
At least slow down.
We're barely moving.
You're 39, I'm 42.
I only have sex by appointment.
Even then, it's with Esther.
Why do you do that,
all the putdowns?
We don't really mean it.
It gets boring.
Being caustic
pre-empts kindness,
which is important since
kindness could lead to more sex,
and it is exactly
how you picture it.
What's the matter?
Let's stop.
Don't you think it's
insensitive,
fixing me up on her birthday?
Gillian has no
more birthdays, David.
I'll bear that in mind.
It's not natural for a man...
Nature's the goal?
Most mammals mate for life.
For life! That's nature.
Some species, the surviving mate
remains faithful and monogamous
even after the mate has died.
Let me renew
your subscription to Nova.
I don't have to stand for this.
I can outrun you.
Oh, yeah?
[GULLS CAWING]
RACHEL:
He goes out there every night.
Thursday, he was out all night.
ESTHER:
Doing what?
Staring at the ocean, I guess.
Is it, like, a sickness?
In your psychology classes,
do they have a name for this?
Oh, yes. It's...
he's nuts.
[BOTH LAUGH]
He will be all right.
It's just...
He really loved her.
He's not the only one.
I know.
Hey.
Hey.
You're probably beginning to
notice, I never leave.
Why is that?
I live next door.
My parents are away.
I'm orphaned here
for the weekend.
You know about this weekend?
Oh, yes. It's, um...
an anniversary.
Not just that.
It's the anniversary.
Dress-up dinner,
castle-building, karaoke.
Gillian started it.
They choose stupid songs you'd
never admit to liking.
They what?
A lot of Barry Manilow.
Weekend tradition.
This is the Gillian weekend.
["YOU MAKE ME FEEL LIKE DANCING"
BY LEO SAYER PLAYS]
Oh [CLEARS THROAT]
Ah ah
Oh
Ah ah
You've got
a cute way of talkin'
You got the better of me
Just snap your fingers
and I'm walkin'
Like a dog hangin'
on a leash
What, are you kidding?
This is your song?
Yeah, so?
You're supposed to choose
songs you're ashamed of.
This is a classic!
I love this song!
You make me feel
like dancin'
BOTH:
I want to dance
the night away
You make me feel like dancin
I want to dance
the night away
You make me feel
like dancin'
[LAUGHTER]
Come on, let's go again.
No, I don't really wanna.
Oh, you look fabulous.
I know.
Might want to lose the gum.
Or not.
He's not gonna fall for you.
Live people can't
compete with dead ones.
Ask anybody.
Thank you.
DAVID:
I don't think so!
[SONG CONTINUES IN BACKGROUND]
You make me feel
like dancin'
I feel like dancin'
DAVID AND PAUL: Whoo.
Dancin'
DAVID AND PAUL: Whoo.
Dance the night away
I feel like dancin'
DAVID AND PAUL: Whoo.
Dancin'
BOTH: Ahh.
[MUSIC STOPS]
I'm sorry, we were, uh, we were
just practicing for karaoke.
Sorry. I heard the sound,
couldn't quite believe it.
We're sorry.
Me too. You know what?
I miss Esther.
PAUL:
Sugarplum?
I think there's a plan
to give us private time.
The plan is to
get me over Gillian.
It's been two years.
I'm not over her.
I see.
You can relax, 'cause if it
makes you feel any better,
you're not my type.
Thank you.
Well... we'll see
you at dinner.
Dinner, yes.
First off...
Not too much.
I would like to toast us all
for looking so fantastic.
Absolutely.
Especially me.
It took me an hour to
get into this dress.
And ten seconds
for me to imagine
you out of it,
Miss Teen Succulent.
All right, glasses up.
Sorry.
To all of us.
Cheers.
Ching ching.
Okay, I'm hungry. Let's eat.
Rachel said you have a baby.
You have a baby?
Yes, I have a little boy.
He's 3 years old.
And why I'm not
back home with him
right now completely escapes me.
If you don't mind my being
a nosy little bug,
what happened to the father?
I mean, I know you're divorced.
He cheated on her, bad.
Rachel said.
Yes, my husband is
out of the picture.
I have complete custody.
Completely out of
the picture, David.
ESTHER:
Did you hear that?
That's good news.
So, how come you don't have
children? Do you shoot blanks?
That's a personal
question, Cindy.
I mean, if you really
want to know...
Can I tell her?
You might as well.
We were afraid that
they'd turn out like you.
[LAUGHTER]
You are such a child.
Who's helping me
with the castle tomorrow?
We've got to be on the beach
by 7 a.m. Judging's at 2.00.
ESTHER:
7 a.m.? I thought we were going
to the cemetery tomorrow.
No time.
We've got to start early.
I want to beat Megan Weeks. I've
lost to her three years running.
She's ungracious, arrogant,
and this year, she's gonna gag
on the taste of
unmitigated defeat.
She's 9.
This is my entry tomorrow.
As you can see,
I'm gonna need some help.
Here's an aerial view.
Could you get the end of this?
[WHISTLES]
[SCOFFS]
What?
You have blueprints?
Sure. This takes organization.
Look at these columns.
They're Corinthian.
How long did it
take you to do that?
PAUL:
Esther.
I don't know. Does it matter?
Does it matter?
Pumpkin.
You're a professor of
literature.
You spend your time
meeting with sand engineers?
We build castles every year.
Not with forklifts.
You'll need permits
for that kind of construction.
What's the problem, Esther?
PAUL:
Honeybuns.
PAUL:
Sweetcakes.
I'd like to know the problem.
No problem.
I want to know the problem.
You want to know the problem?
Let me see if I can
locate the problem for you.
You're living on an island,
a practically
deserted island in winter.
You're doing nothing.
I'm writing a book.
What have you written?
Let me see.
I'm the only one
who gets to read it.
Everyone else has to wait
until it's finished.
You're protecting him.
I'm not protecting him.
Don't be reading my mind!
Can't we once eat without having
a free-for-all?
I can't stand it!
Butt your nose right in.
Stick it in snug.
Can we just regroup?
We've got a terrific soup here.
Come on in! Wreck my life!
It's only mine!
It's been two years!
Two years!
Hey!
Listen to yourselves.
Can't we once not
do this, one time?
Maybe you're not happy.
I don't know.
Or care.
But whether or not you're happy,
do you have to spoil our dinner?
My concern is for Rachel.
My unhappiness...
Honey. Sugar.
Stop calling me food.
This is not a stable home.
She's with a single parent who's
an unemployed recluse
who does nothing but plan
Corinthian sand columns.
You can talk to me
about a lot of things,
but parenting isn't one of them.
You don't know the first thing
about being a parent.
Maybe it's time
that I found out.
Maybe Rachel should come
and live with us full-time.
Rachel.
Do you want to live
with Esther and Paul?
No.
Well, there you go.
End of issue.
You're not the first person
to lose someone you love.
This isn't original.
I'm going for a walk.
[]
Well, they brought somebody.
A woman. Living.
Dead jokes. Funny.
They're all ganging up, Gilles,
sayin' it's time for me to get
over you and let you go.
You don't want me
to let you go, do you?
You can't ask me
questions like that.
Why not?
'Cause you know my wants.
Or what I say I want is really
what you want me to want
'cause I'm here right now
only in your mind,
unless I'm real, which would
mean I'm kind of a ghost,
which I know
you don't want me to believe
'cause you hate
the idea of being crazy.
Why do you always do that?
Do what?
Fire back in rambling sentences
to confuse me.
You do.
I don't do that.
No, what you do is,
you ask questions
you don't really
want me to answer.
Whether I want to or not is moot
because you always dodge.
You did it alive,
you do it dead.
Are you seriously gonna try
to outtalk me?
How's Rachel?
She's good, I think.
She seemed to have a good summer
with Paul and Esther.
The one rule we had
was she comes first.
We even stuck to that one.
I know.
She needs you to be there.
Especially this weekend.
I know that too.
You're okay, Mr. Man.
I miss you.
You're okay.
I gotta run.
Get back here!
Go play with the live girl!
Gillian!
Come on!
Hey, kiddo.
I heard you yelling.
Were you yelling at someone?
Oh...
Just myself.
You talk to her, don't you?
What?
Mommy.
You talk to her out here.
Oh, well, I talk to her all the
time, in my prayers.
You talk to her like she's right
in front of you out here.
No, that's...
Well, sometimes
I fantasize about stuff.
What's with this book
that you're writing?
Well, you know, it's, uh...
you know, it's...
You know.
A lie?
Well, yeah.
Is everything okay?
We haven't really talked much
since you've been back.
Yeah, it was kind of hectic
those three days,
what with just the two of us.
Do I tell you I love you enough?
You know, I read these studies.
With teenagers, you're not
supposed to say it too much.
They won't hear
it after a while.
If you say it too little,
that can cause harm too.
Do I say it too much?
Too little? I...
I don't know.
You say it the right amount.
["BILLY, DON'T BE A HERO" BY BO
DONALDSON & THE HEYWOODS PLAYS]
Come back and
make me your wife
And as he started to go
She said,
Billy, keep your head low
Billy, don't be a hero
Come back to me
CINDY:
Paul, take it outside.
As far away as possible, okay?
Okay, okay, I'm finished.
Hi.
Hi, baby.
PAUL:
Next time you're gonna
have to pay for this.
You out talking to him?
Yeah.
How is he?
He's fine.
He cooled off a little bit.
He's fine now.
What'd you talk about?
Esther, he's fine, okay?
Maybe you do butt
in a little too much.
Well, I'm sorry, but sometimes
I get scared for him,
and I get scared for you too.
You can always tell me
to butt out, you know.
Yeah.
Just don't worry, okay?
You don't have to worry.
What?
You tell me not to worry, but...
am I wrong to worry?
I'm tired.
I'm gonna go to bed.
Good night.
Good night.
PAUL:
Why can't you sleep?
ESTHER:
How did you know
I wasn't sleeping?
When two people are together
long enough, they sense things.
Plus which,
you snore like an elk.
I have a court appointment
Monday morning.
What do you mean
you have a court appointment?
Rachel shouldn't be
living in this situation.
You're going to a court of law?
No, it's a tennis court.
I'm gonna play doubles.
What are you thinking?
She went from an A student
to C's and D's.
No.
Her mother died!
She still had
A's the year after.
It was the second year
she started to bottom out.
It's not Gillian. It's him.
Her guidance counselor, whom
David doesn't even talk to,
by the way, says that she's
retreating more and more.
She's been laughing and having
fun the last two months.
With us, but look at her here.
She doesn't want to leave him.
Of course not. Of course she
doesn't want to hurt her father.
But she's the one
who's getting hurt.
He's done nothing
to cause any judge
anywhere to take
away his daughter.
It's not your business.
So we're supposed to wait?
He's her father.
She's my sister's daughter.
You're not her mother,
you're an aunt,
an aunt who might want to be
more, but still just an aunt.
You want to write that down?
Fine.
Maybe that way
you'll remember it.
PAUL:
Don't do this, Esther.
Don't do this.
I don't want to do it.
Let's just...
Let's just see how
the weekend goes.
["FAITHFUL" BY CLETO ESCOBEDO
PLAYS OVER PA]
I don't give my heart away
so easily
Don't listen to what those
people say about me
Believe it when I say
You're still the one
I got some more shovels.
I give you all I got girl
For your love
I will be faithful
[LAUGHTER]
Faithful Yeah
You know, now I see
why David had the blueprints.
This is serious.
Very.
They even come
from the Vineyard for this.
Now, this is Megan Weeks,
last year's winner.
Gee, Megan, what a lovely entry.
I was thinking of
adding another victim.
Ah-hah.
Charming.
[BOTH CHUCKLE]
Oh, my God!
You madman!
Oh, tread softly, sweet
maidens, tread softly.
Wow!
Esther, kiss the king!
Oh, I take it all back.
This is amazing.
I take it all back.
You're a genius.
Thank you.
PAUL:
Hey, what about me? I helped.
You want credit? Last night I'm
nuts, now you want credit?
I provided moral support.
Hey.
This is really cool.
You may breastfeed the king.
And should there
be any leftovers...
Paul!
What?
Eww.
["THIS IS HOW WE DO IT" BY
MONTELL JORDAN PLAYS]
We got 'em, see?
They're looking.
Who's looking?
Boys. Men. Ignore 'em.
More hip.
God, this thing is killing me.
My breasts hurt.
Just own the beach, Rachel.
Can you do that?
Walk cool.
Own the beach.
Hi.
The judging is over.
You're free.
Oh, thank God.
Arise, arise, my liege.
Gimme your hand.
They'll announce in 10 minutes.
Let me get you a towel.
You okay?
Too much sun, maybe.
Hang on.
Plus being buried.
I'm a little light-headed.
Sure.
You know, maybe it's just thrill
of the competition, huh?
Excuse me.
What are you lookin' at?
An act of God. Two acts.
Turn around, you sweet things.
Look at that.
Junior Mints.
Oops.
Rachel! Rachel!
Hi, Daddy.
Never mind 'Hi, Daddy'.
What are you doing?
You're practically naked!
I'm making you decent.
I'm wearing a bathing suit.
Go away. Please leave the
premises. You!
Hi.
Put that towel on!
Put that on!
We're on a beach!
Cindy, it's okay.
You're perfect,
I want you to know that.
Don't you look at me.
You're being ridiculous.
What got into you?
Dad, what's the matter?
Dad, what?
Gillian?
Dad?
Gillian!
Daddy! Daddy!
Wake up. Come on.
Come on, hey, wake up.
Open your eyes. Come on.
Come on. There you go.
You thought you saw Gillian.
Daddy, are you all right?
Yeah.
I'm fine.
He's okay.
Too much sun. He'll be fine.
You won.
Hey! You won, you won!
Can we just have a little room?
Back up. Give him some air.
Megan Weeks is crushed.
Her life is ruined.
Come on, Rache, he's fine.
He's not fine.
He thought he saw her.
Maybe it was your bathing suit
that made him faint.
Speaking of which, this is
cutting off circulation.
It's lucky I don't pass out.
He screamed her name.
[HORN HONKS]
Hey.
Hi.
There's this party tonight.
Supposed to be good.
Wanna go?
With you?
Yeah.
Okay, sure.
I'll get somebody
for you if you want.
I know how to snap my finger,
thank you very much.
I'll pick you up.
Eight thirty.
Great.
[STARTS CAR]
I have a date!
Yeah, I see.
Tonight!
I caught that too.
So, what's with the meditation?
I have a date.
Dates scare me.
Yeah, me too.
You must have been nervous
getting off that ferry.
It was probably more terrifying
getting on the ferry.
By the time it docked, I'd...
Well, I-I wasn't nervous.
Why?
I don't know, really.
This might surprise you,
but I was hoping
you and my father...
You don't even know me.
Well, you seem to
be on this planet.
[BIRDS CALLING]
You're gonna scare the fish.
I'm sure what you're doing
puts them at ease.
Feeling better?
Much.
Great.
David, we got a problem.
Esther's worried
about Rachel living with you.
How many times
are we gonna play that record?
It's gone beyond talk now.
She's got an appointment
with a judge on Monday,
and I think she might
move for custody or something.
What?
I didn't know this was coming,
I swear it.
She's going to court?
She doesn't want to, and I'm
sure it won't come to that.
I am telling you
so you can help yourself.
You've got to act normal...
you know,
use a napkin at dinner,
try to breathe
between sentences.
If you see Gillian again,
wave subtle.
PAUL:
David, this is
dangerous and illegal.
It's also very upsetting to me.
I have a problem with high
speed. The speed concerns me.
DAVID:
Then shut your eyes.
I told you what I
told you in confidence.
I hope you're not
gonna barge in there...
Esther's planning to take my kid
and I'm supposed to
keep my mouth shut.
Broach it to her naturally so
she doesn't know I ratted.
'How are you? Nice dress.
Make any court dates?'
Shut up!
That was very helpful.
Slow down, please.
Watch it! Jesus!
Just let me out of the car
right here. This is fine.
And you keep
going into the trees.
Esther, a moment of
your time, please.
What's wrong?
I need a moment.
Can I have a moment?
Certainly.
Excuse me.
You come here under the guise
of a vacation weekend,
and you have...
you plan to see a judge!
It's like what?
Calm down.
You're punishing me
for hurting too much.
I shouldn't hurt anymore.
The fucking statute of
limitations on pain has run out!
Let me tell you why I feel...
Does Rachel know?
No. She would never
choose to leave you.
I'm doing it in
her best interests.
Rip her from her father! That's
her best fucking interest!
Do you want
an adult conversation,
or see how many
times you can swear?
Fuck you. How many's that?
I was on that boat too.
You have no priority on this.
My priority is my daughter.
Then make her one!
I want you to get
out of the house!
I'm sick of you
barging into my life.
If I hadn't barged in, you
wouldn't have a life, David!
I'm the one who
found you, remember?
I'm the one who barged in after
you gobbled the sleeping pills.
Let's not forget
that little trivia.
Took me a long time
to like you, David.
It's taken me even longer to
care, but I do care now.
If you want to throw your life
down the toilet,
I will cry for you
whether you believe it or not.
But if you think that I'd let
you take Rachel down with you...
then you don't know who I am.
You've never made the slightest
effort to know who I am.
Hi.
Hi.
All set.
Ready?
See you later, Daddy. Bye.
Where you goin'?
Oh, I-I have a date.
Didn't I tell you?
I-I thought I did. Funny.
Daddy, you remember Joey.
Joey, my father. Daddy, Joey.
All right. Bye.
Wait. You're going out
with him?
Yeah, we won't be
too late. See you.
Hold it.
Do you take drugs?
No.
How many holes do you have
in your ears?
Nose?
Six.
Three. Four.
'Night! 'Night!
'Night, 'night, 'night.
I'm gonna skip dinner.
Take a walk.
[]
[DISTANT BELL TOLLING]
Remember the meteor shower?
A certain daughter was conceived
under those stars.
I thought I saw you
on the beach today.
It wasn't you, was it?
No.
I must have been hallucinating.
It was different from the way
I see you here.
Who knows?
Maybe they're right.
I am sitting on a rock,
talking to a ghost.
I could go.
No.
I think I am in trouble.
A little.
Why?
I think maybe I'm sick.
I pretend I'm okay.
Am I sick?
I always hated good dreams.
I-I couldn't take the
disappointment of waking up.
And then I figured out a way to
know whether I was dreaming.
What are you talking about?
I realized that in
most of my dreams
I'd ask myself,
'Am I dreaming?'
I'd never ask that
when I was awake.
So I finally figured it out.
If I ever wondered,
is this a dream or not,
then I knew it was.
You ever wonder?
Don't leave.
I'm not leaving.
[CHATTERING]
[]
Joey!
Hey, hey, Joey.
Danny.
Rachel.
Hi.
Hi.
Have some punch. It's a vintage
batch I made myself.
Yuck.
It's a zombie.
What's in a zombie?
Rum and stuff.
It's good.
I'll get some more.
Would you try talking to him?
You could be an objective voice.
It seems no matter
what I say, he just...
Maybe if you
weren't so shy about it.
This isn't
something I want to do.
Then don't.
A man shouldn't
lose his daughter
for taking long
walks on the beach.
It isn't just that.
Then what is it?
Is there something else
you're not telling me?
No.
Then I don't see his crime.
His wife is dead, and he doesn't
want to let her go.
My husband let me go
while I was still living.
I'd prefer to
think he was crazy.
If you could just talk to him.
['AFTER THE LOVIN' BY ENGELBERT
HUMPERDINCK PLAYS]
And I hope you can hear
What the words
and the music have to say
It's so hard to explain
Everything that I'm feeling
Face-to-face,
I just seem to go dry
But I love you so much
That the sound...
[LAUGHS]
You know, I-I didn't get a
chance to sing my encore, so...
Where is everybody?
Well, uh,
Rachel went out on a date.
David ran away from home.
Kevin and Esther
went looking for him.
So that leaves just you, me,
and the moonlight.
Come on, let me inspect you
for tonsillitis.
Have you been
pathetic your entire life?
Uh, not yet.
Come on, don't look at me like
that. You enjoy this banter.
The bathing suits, the outfits,
the hormone 'I am woman' strut.
But don't worry, you're safe.
I'm married to Esther.
No, no, I'm safe,
'cause men like you
never do anything
except sit on porches
and watch things and say things,
but never do things.
You think so, huh?
You wanna kiss me?
I beg your pardon?
We've been doing
this flirting thing,
and you've been staring at me
since you got here.
You were practically
drooling at the beach.
I'm sure you
must have thought...
what it would be like.
Maybe we should just see.
Maybe you should just...
I don't know...
touch me a little.
Take a chance.
Nobody has to know.
See?
Men like you
just sit on porches.
They don't do anything.
Hello.
Nice night.
Does my apologizing for all this
have any effect?
None.
You think I'm a loon.
Yep.
Anything else?
No, that's it.
'Loon' sums it up.
You've got an opinion.
I'm a big boy.
She was beautiful, exotic,
and she died young.
And you've maybe romanticized
her into something mythical,
into something she wasn't.
I was with her for 18 years.
There's nothing
illusory about my memory.
Just a theory.
He went out alone
on the beach again tonight.
If life were like a big truck...
what would be worse...
to get run over by it,
or for it to just pass you by?
Like from the side of the road,
just, it passes you by.
What?
A truck, Esther.
If life were like
a goddamn truck,
better to get run
over or passed over?
You're standing by
the side of the road?
Yeah.
Do I get to drive the truck?
It's a big joke, right?
Just forget it, all right?
Forget it. Forget it.
It's fine, really.
If life were like a truck.
I'm fine.
Hey, easy.
I probably shouldn't have
had that second punch.
And they were big cups too.
They were, like... I bet they
were, like, 16-ounce cups.
They were huge!
They were big.
Which means I had, like, a quart
of zombie, and that's a lot,
because I've never really
drunk alcohol before.
I probably shouldn't admit that.
Drink a lot of water
and eat some bread.
You'll feel less sick tomorrow.
Thanks.
I had a good time.
Me too.
Maybe we can
go to a movie or something.
Now?
Some other night.
Oh, that'd be great. I mean,
that'd be really, really great.
Oh, I-I'm sorry.
I am... so dizzy
right now.
It's okay.
That was my first kiss ever
using my tongue!
I probably shouldn't admit that.
Oh! Oh, Daddy, hi.
Oh, I am so sorry.
That's so unlike me.
Oh...
Are you drunk?
I just...
You're drunk.
You're drunk. She's drunk!
The cups were
bigger than they looked.
They were big cups.
Say goodbye to Joey forever.
Goodbye. Goodbye forever,
Joey. Call me!
Call me, okay?
I said I was sorry.
Get up to your room.
Stay out of this, Esther.
And then what? You're gonna
come up and talk to me?
Or are you gonna
go and talk to her?
Who?
Do you know he
talks to my mother?
Every night he goes out there,
he has conversations!
My mother appears,
and he swims with her,
and they probably even kiss.
You were out there again
tonight, weren't you, Daddy?
You were out
in the water with Mommy.
Weren't you?
I asked you to go upstairs.
What did she say?
Oh, she's drunk.
Does Gillian appear to you
out there on the beach?
Yes, she does.
You swim with her?
Yes.
Is she naked?
It's all pretend.
I know it's pretend.
You go out on the beach,
and you have imaginary
conversations with Gillian?
People talk to
the dead all the time.
But the dead don't talk back.
David...
you're ill.
People dream. It's normal.
People dream. They fantasize.
You screamed at her today.
What kind of a daydream is that?
That was sunstroke.
David, don't you
see what you're doing?
You're trying to
deny she's gone.
That's why you won't
go to the cemetery.
I don't like cemeteries.
You're carrying on an active
relationship
with your dead wife!
There's no rule saying
that love has to die too!
Oh, that's such poetic bullshit.
Love is a feeling. And if I feel
it, it exists, it's real.
Grief is a feeling too.
I'm not grieving.
I'm happy!
When I go out to the beach
at night, God, I feel better.
I look forward
to seeing Gillian.
It makes me happy.
It... it... it makes me
happy, happy, happy.
Well, I'm happy for you,
Mr. Happy Happy Happy,
but it's not
normal to be spending
nights with your deceased wife.
You can't apply normal to me.
Should I give up the happiness
I've found for normalcy?
David, you can't
keep living in a fantasy.
Yes, it's a fantasy!
It's a fantasy!
How many normal, married people,
while making love
to their spouse,
pretend they're
with somebody else?
That's a fantasy.
I have an emotional fantasy.
Why should I apologize for it?
Fine, just tell it
proudly to the judge.
How dare you do this thing?
She's my daughter.
He's always running off.
Your goddamn sister
and my best friend Paul.
How can they do this?
How can they do this?
Where's Rachel?
They don't know my life.
They don't know it.
They don't know!
I think they're upset now
because they do.
Maybe you shouldn't have
told them you talk to me.
Oh, I'm not insane!
I don't go to restaurants
and order for two.
When I go to the movies,
I buy one ticket.
One ticket.
I didn't create all this.
I'm just trying to survive it.
I'm just trying to survive!
I didn't climb the goddamn mast.
I didn't do that!
I'm to blame.
Maybe you are.
You were selfish.
You didn't think.
I was stupid.
You're being selfish.
I screamed at you to get down.
I begged you to get down!
And who's up there now?
Who's the next to fall?
I'm not helping you this way.
I'm not.
Maybe I should go.
No! Don't, don't go.
I think...
I think it has to be soon.
But not tonight, not tonight.
I don't want to go.
Do you think I want to be gone?
I don't want to be gone.
I don't want to be gone.
Well, maybe if I go back to
Boston, you could be there.
They've offered me
my teaching job back.
When I come home at night,
you could be there
like you are here.
I don't know.
I can't let go.
Not yet, I can't.
I can't.
Okay.
I stop this,
then you're gone... forever.
I'm not ready.
I know.
What?
Come on.
One night like it used to be.
What?
One night.
Let's get you dressed.
This is crazy!
Put your hands
out like we used to.
I hold onto handlebars now.
No hands!
Mom.
I'm passing you.
All right.
Okay, here I come.
Here I come!
No chance.
You're old, Mom.
Give it up.
Funny.
Who's passing who now?
You're not gonna pass me.
Mom?
Rachel!
What, what, what is it?
Who? Who?
Mommy. She was...
she was here.
It was... it was a dream,
sweetie. It was a dream.
Mommy, she was here.
No, she was here.
It's okay, Rache.
It's okay. It's okay.
It was just a dream.
It was a dream.
Mommy was here.
You saw Mommy in your dream.
RACHEL:
She was here.
DAVID:
It's okay.
Mommy was here.
You had some dream.
I didn't dream.
You had some dream.
Mom was here.
Mommy was here.
You want some tea?
Yeah.
Tea.
Okay.
Hey, Cin?
Why don't you sit over here.
Yeah.
I'll go make us some tea.
You'll be okay.
It's okay.
There, yes, ohh.
There, sweetheart, shh.
I really think that
you should go up there.
I'm makin' the tea.
I really think she needs you.
She had
a nightmare about her mother.
That's right, it was a
nightmare. It was a... ow!
Whoa, whoa, whoa. It's okay.
It's all right. I got it.
It's okay? David? David?
Yes, it's okay. It's okay.
She had a nightmare.
But she's all right.
She's all right.
No, I'm not.
I think I should go
live with them, Daddy.
I can't. I'm sorry.
I see you go out there...
and talk to her at night,
and I know you want
to make her alive,
but she's not alive.
And I'm sure that
you never meant for me
to know you tried
to kill yourself.
She didn't tell me.
She didn't have to.
But every time you go
to that beach, she's...
I didn't see.
I'm sorry.
I didn't know.
You'll always be my father.
But I have to go.
I have to let my mother be dead.
[]
Rache, what am I gonna do?
I'm stuck here.
You're gonna come
visit all the time.
Oh, great. And I'll get to
play with Paul.
Always late.
Boat's not gonna wait.
Did you ever consider that?
Did I consider that you yapping
doesn't speed me up?
Was he talking
about you last night?
What?
People pretending they're making
love to somebody.
Do you do that?
No, do you?
Never.
We used to make
love all the time.
Now it seems to be,
I don't know...
seasonal.
We're not in our 20s anymore.
Yeah.
How would you
describe our marriage?
Uh, you know,
I'd describe it as, uh...
you know, it's very nice.
We have a nice marriage, Esther.
A lot of people don't have that.
You know, they say the reason
most couples
want to have children is...
because they sort of want
to celebrate the marriage.
Do you think that's why
we never wanted to have kids?
Because we didn't feel that we
had anything to celebrate?
What was that
thing last night...
that life passing you by,
that big truck of life...
what was that?
I was just, you know...
I love trucks.
Can we just once be honest?
Can we be
truthful with each other?
We don't want to
face the truth, Esther.
I mean, the truth is that
David goes out there
and gets giddy every night
splashing around with a ghost.
And we're both jealous,
'cause he has something
that we've never known.
That's the truth.
We don't want to face that.
Hey.
Every day I get up...
I go to work...
and I come home to you.
I may not jump into bed all the
time wanting sex, but...
I sure as hell need you to be
there for me to hold on to.
And if that's not, uh...
then God didn't make little
green apples, however that goes.
Where are my brown shoes here?
[CHATTERING]
[SHIP HORN]
Four-minute warning! That horn
means we got four minutes.
Okay, let's go!
Look after him for me?
I promise.
Don't try to date him.
Ha ha.
It's okay. I got this.
Get a move on.
I don't want to put up with you
people another day.
Yeah?
David.
We'll take good care of her.
You can count on that.
I will.
I got these. No, I got it.
No problem. I got it.
I got this.
It was very nice meeting you.
Well, I'm so glad I came.
You're a very
romantic man, Mr. Lewis.
If you ever do come
over to the mainland,
I'm gonna fix you up
with one of my friends.
You're makin' fun again.
Say goodbye to your daughter.
Such a horrible thing.
Young love nipped in the bud.
Okay, postcards are beautiful
and cheap to send. Say goodbye.
Joey lives in Belmont.
He's a renter.
I'll see him in a couple weeks.
Oh, joy.
I'll call.
Okay. Bye.
So...
there's something that
needs to be said here.
I wish I knew what it was.
Me too.
These are the times
I miss her the most,
'cause she'd
always know what to say.
She was the center.
Dad, you were the center.
It was always you.
She was the one climbing masts.
And letting go of handlebars.
Well... boat's gonna leave.
I'm sorry. I wish I could stay.
I'm just...
No, no. This is right.
You're doing what's right.
You're doing what's...
what's the best.
We don't... even need
to say goodbye, really.
No, no. More like, 'See ya'.
Yeah. 'See ya'.
We'll be seeing each other,
visiting each other a lot.
A lot, a lot.
Say hi to her for me.
See ya.
We'll call as
soon as we get back.
Right. Yeah.
Have a good trip.
I'm staying.
No, you're not.
You're going. And I'm going.
I can get my job back at B.U.
You mean it?
I mean it. I mean it!
I mean it.
You know,
I just have to close up
the house and
settle a few affairs.
I'll be on the morning ferry.
Okay.
And no more crying.
This is a good thing.
It's a good thing.
I know, I know.
The boat's gonna leave.
He's going back to work at
B.U. He's gonna come back!
DAVID:
What're you looking at me for?
Just find me
a real estate broker
and a good therapist.
Somebody with a little more
training than Esther.
PAUL:
Uh, done.
And maybe till you find a place,
you come and live with us.
If you promise not to sing.
Hi.
You made a shadow.
You must've been
thinkin' about me.
You remember that rule we had...
Rachel comes first.
That was our rule.
Your rule.
Mm-hmm.
I picked you some flowers.
I'm gonna miss you, Mr. Man.
Oh, I can't let you
be real anymore, Gill.
I can't.
I know, I know.
I gotta go on for Rachel's sake.
And mine.
Does it have to be today?
Yeah.
Okay.
I love you forever.
Me too.
[GULL SQUAWKING IN DISTANCE]
Goodbye.
[]