August (2008) Movie Script
I, George Walker
Bush, do solemnly swear
that I
will faith fully execute
the office of President
of the United States.
that I will
faith fully execute
the office of President
of the United States
and will, to the
best of my ability
preserve, protect and
defend the Constitution.
Tom
Cruise and Nicole Kidman
caused quite a stir when they
announced plans to separate.
The couple explained
the spilt was caused
by careers that
frequently keep them apart.
The market
plunge was sharp and swift,
the NASDAQ was bloody
too, closing below 2000
for the first time In
more than two years.
Our 40th
president, Ronald Reagan,
born February 6th, 1911, celebrated
his birthday quietly today
In his home
In Los Angeles.
The tech sector took yet
another beating this week
but there were a few winners,
most notably Landshark,
whose stock hit a record high
for the fourth straight day.
In just a few minutes, we'll talk
to Landshark CEO, Tom Sterling.
Mark, tell us just a little
bit about this company.
It's an amazing story
we're seeing here, Ron.
At a time when the tech sector
has been in virtual free fall,
here's a company that's
been public for four days
and it's already
up an astounding 500%.
Indeed it has. And we want to
talk Landshark CEO Tom Sterling.
Tom, are
you with us?
Yeah, I'm here.
Congratulations. Thanks
for joining us.
Thank you
for having me.
This is a very difficult
market environment.
Can Landshark get the traction it needs?
I think you're missing the point, Ron.
Traction really isn't the issue
because Landshark is not a vehicle,
Landshark is
the road itself.
We've seen start-ups before,
they come out strong, get B-Listed
before they're even out of lockup.
The man has got to be very very tough.
That's just
business, Ron.
That's what separates
the men from the boys.
I indeed it is.
Tom, congratulations,
thanks for being
with us today.
Absolutely.
Any time.
Market confidence in Landshark
has been extraordinarily high.
The real question is where will
these guys be six months from now?
We'll be right here!
You did good.
Congratulations, man.
Hey, Tom.
This is
Tom. Leave a message after the beep.
Ahh. I am so
sorry, guys.
Um, Tom is not much
of a morning person.
Excuse me, sir.
Excuse me.
Can I help you?
One skinny mocha
latte. Thank you.
Here he is.
So,
I see you've met
my brother Joshua,
the creative genius
behind our little venture.
Brad, Jonathan,
we've met of course,
and you are...
Mason Newburger.
Nice to meet you.
So,
you're Unison, we're
Landshark, let's make money.
We were, uh,
We expected
a proposal.
Okay, there's
been a miscommunication.
We apologize but
what Tom and I...
We are
who we are.
The brand
speaks for itself.
Who else are
you talking to?
Who are you
meeting with?
Well, actually,
I don't see how
that's relevant.
Nobody, right? I mean,
nobody of any weight.
Because nobody
does what we do.
You know it, I know it
so let's cut the shit.
Without a proposal? Without
something to take back?
You can understand,
it's gonna be hard for
us to sell this upstairs.
Well, maybe next time, we
should be meeting with upstairs.
Big words
for an MOP.
Your lockup is
standard 180.
He's out
September 14th.
So you got four weeks,
which according to the FCC
means you can't buy,
you can't sell,
all your millions,
it's all on paper.
Okay guys, um...
before we get
all heated up...
You want portal play?
Anybody can give
you a portal play?
Any asshole,
he's a fucking portal.
That's so third quarter 99.
You want bleeding-edge
mission-critical cross platform
robust scalable architectures?
Well, duh. That's what everybody wants.
What you want
is "e. " Pure e.
Not e-commerce,
not e-business,
not click-and-mortar,
anything but that, e.
Not old, not tired,
not stepped on,
not one gram of e and ten
grams of baby laxative,
pure e. Josh knows e. I know e.
That's what
Landshark does.
And somehow
when e changes,
we're there first, on
the shore. Beckoning.
Is there anyone who can
aggregate the way we can?
I don't think so. Because
if there was, I'd be there.
But I'm here. And that's
why you invited me here.
You invited me here
because you want in.
Okay.
Fine.
So let's talk numbers.
Our CFO, as you know,
is Dylan Gothschalk.
Give Dylan a call,
make him an offer.
We'll see If we
can accommodate you.
Motherfucker!
You fucker.
Don't you ever fucking
apologize ever fucking again.
That's not
what we do.
Well, I'm so sorry.
Hop in!
Oh no, I told Mo
I'd stop home first
to make sure
she's okay.
I'll give
you a ride.
That's okay. I'll see
you back at the office.
What?
Hey!
Did you hear?
Pseudo dot com.
How many they dump?
Everyone but the.
Who do I owe?
Baum who called twice.
Andrew Goldman.
Fuck him.
Jonathan Grey.
Fuck him.
Laurel Wormack,
twice, Kowalski.
Somebody's sitting
in my chair.
Don't get all pompous
on me, Tom. Just don't.
You blew them off.
You had to, didn't you?
I just did
my thing, Mel.
I don't tell you how to do your thing.
I won't have a thing if
you keep on blowing off
the people who are
trying to hire us.
We've got Snowmark to worry
about. Our plate is full.
Our plate is not full.
Snowmark is three months late.
We need that account, we need the money.
Take it then. You want
the money, take it.
They'll call Dylan, and when
they do, take their money.
They'll call. Trust me. You'll see.
I've got a bazillion
shares of Landshark
I can't do
anything with.
out of lockup, 4 weeks.
Four weeks from now, If we
don't get any cash coming In,
we're gonna be
under water!
We IPOed at 12, shot up to
Want to know
where we are now?
Two and one eighth.
You better get
to work then.
Can I have my
chair back, please?
Hey.
Yeah, you can
put it there.
Can you give
me a burp pad?
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Josh, you need to help
me unpack this shit.
I can't do it
by myself.
I know.
I'm sorry.
I'll help you unpack tonight, I promise.
Is there
anything I can?
I can't stay
very long.
Is there anything that
I can do before I leave?
You can give
me a kiss.
How is he?
Good.
He fell asleep.
Wanna hold him?
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Do you want
your hot chocolate?
What do you mean I can't?
What you're saying isn't can't,
you're saying I shouldn't.
There's a
world of difference.
Do what you want. Want the
Gulfstream? Go ahead and get it.
I just want the numbers,
not the moralizing,
not the more than I can
afford, just numbers.
With maintenance?
With everything!
Give or take, but
a million a month.
What does it cost not to lease
the G5? Ever think about that?
Did you ever take
that into account?
You're looking at me like
"What does this asshole think?
That the bottom never fell
out? Like July never happened?
Of course it happened! Abercrombie
was like, "This is great"
and then she was like,
"This is overvalued. "
What the fuck does that
have to do with us?
It's about
valuation, Tom.
Elision has
a Gulfstream.
Case has a Gulfstream.
Ross has a Gulfstream.
Bezos has a Gulfstream.
Fucking Bezos!
The cost of not having one is the
cost of saying to the world that Tom...
Tom is just not
In that league.
And what does that cost? A fuck of
a lot more than a million a month.
A million a month
can be leveraged.
Being looked at
as B-List, can't.
Can't.
You're past
that point, Tom.
I was right about Unison, wasn't I?
They called, just
Like I said they would.
You and Mel just need to
have a little bit of faith.
This will take more
than smoky mirrors.
If you're not part of the solution,
you're part of the problem.
Am I fired?
Just find a
way to do it.
Arbitrage, I don't
care. Wanna know something?
You're gonna like it.
You're gonna
like riding in it.
You're gonna
call me and say,
I'm gonna take
the family to Hawaii.
You got two kids?
Three.
"I'm gonna take the wife
and three kids to Hawaii. "
and I'm gonna say, "Cool.
Why don't you take the G?"
And I'll tell you this.
I promise you this.
When you do,
once you do, Dyl...
Never mind,
just get it.
Hey.
Sarah?
What are you doing here?
Tom.
Hi.
Hey, Dylan.
HI, Sarah.
When did you
get back in town?
Um, just
a couple of weeks ago.
I'm taking
off, Tom.
Gotta get home. Nice
seeing you again, Sarah.
Welcome back.
Thanks, nice
to see you too.
I was just trying to
keep a couple of shifts.
So you're back then.
Yeah. Classes start
next month. So...
Where are
you living?
Same place.
How's your brother?
Josh is good.
Yeah, he's good.
Good.
Tell him I said hello, okay? Bye.
Who was that?
So what do you
want to do tonight?
Taxi!
Well, good night.
Good night.
Recent
polls show that 55% of Americans
disapprove of President Bush
taking a 30-day working vacation.
If the President
returns on Labor Day,
he will tie a lot of records
held by Richard Nixon.
Ben Affleck today,
for alcoholic.
Nicole Kidman says she refuses to be
bitter about the break up with Tom Cruise.
Josh? I'm
just starving right now.
What are
you doing?
Nothing.
You were supposed
to be unpacking.
I'm totally unpacking. Do
you want to order some food?
Tom, you think about what size
you want me to send
to your parents?
What the fuck are
these still doing here?
Hey, what are
these doing here?
Come on, come on, get them
up? Big ones, little ones,
let's go, they don't do
much good sitting here!
Hey Tom,
Charlie Corwin?
Livemusicchannel. com?
Fuck that guy.
So what?
A little one?
No, he's through,
he's finished.
Fuck him, don't give him shit.
You know what? Give him a
little one, what the fuck.
Dylan.
Nice Koosh.
We got
problems, Tom.
Josh is on
his way.
Oh, this
is important.
Well, let's get
started without him.
Josh. So what's
all the excitement?
Snowmark shit the bed.
They haven't filed yet, but word is out.
And Unisol
pulled their offer.
So where does
that put us?
The NASDAQ went down
and we're doing worse.
We're below a dollar.
Josh!
So what are
our options?
Cutbacks, but then there's
the whole perception thing.
Rumors, the sniping, the
downward spiral could sink us.
So we're probably looking at
another round of financing.
We got an offer
from Barton Ogilvy.
What's the catch?
Second-round financing
is not easy.
They'll pay market value but
they're gonna want a big piece.
How much do I have to give up?
Percentage, Dylan.
What percentage are we
gonna have to give up?
Like fifty.
So Josh and I, we
start this company,
no, we invent
this company,
we bring you two in,
we give you contracts
which we
don't even have.
Now you want to let some
moneybag fuck us up the ass?
A better time to do this might have been
four months ago, Dyl. Before July!
Things have changed.
So we lose
half our company.
We get greeked up the ass
by Barton-fucking-Ogilvy?
This is no time
to be proud, Tom.
That's not the play. That's
not the way we're gonna do it.
I'll cash-hold
the company myself.
You're leveraged
to the hilt.
I'll find the
fucking money.
You're broke, Tom.
Get the fuck out
of my office, Dyl!
I just want to talk,
you know, some place
away from the office.
Yeah.
Can I get
the next ball?
Take the left
flipper, come on.
There's some shit's
been going down,
it's complicated but I've been
thinking about your future.
Oh, how nice for me.
You've always
been smarter than me.
That's not what's
at issue here.
"At issue?" Are we at a court of law?
Why are you
telling me this?
I want to let
you in on this.
It's an opportunity, it's,
not a Landshark thing,
it's a brothers thing,
a Tom and Josh thing.
What do you
want from me?
You've always been
smarter than me.
The squirrel and
the whatever, you,
you always were
prudent who saved...
Tom, what
do you want?
Just some
working capital.
How much "just
some working capital?"
Enough to get us through the lockup,
to get us to
the other side.
You want me to put myself
on the hook personally?
Josh!
When you said thinking
about your future,
I should've known. When Tom says
"thinking about your future. "
that means "What can I
screw you out of today?"
Yeah.
You got me
all wrong, man.
Oh, yeah, I don't think so.
Know what? You're a great designer, man.
But this is business,
this is money.
You remember, when it
was just me and you
and we were moving
into our first place?
Why do you always
bring this up?
And I said we were gonna
need 15 phone lines?
And you laughed. And
you went down to NYNEX
and they said it was gonna
cost 110 dollars a line
plus deposit, plus it
was gonna take five weeks?
Please, why do you
always tell this story?
And you were
gonna pay it!
I went down there and they installed
them the next day and for free!
Wow!
I know money, man! And
maybe the NASDAQ is up,
maybe the NASDAQ
is down,
but if we could just make
it from here to there,
if we could just make it through
this lockup, these next few weeks,
there's a fucking pile of
money, man. Just waiting for us.
A mountain of it and we're gonna eat it.
When we're around everybody
else, I got a front.
But with you, I can tell
you when I'm in trouble.
We're in trouble, and
you gotta believe me
when I say that
we're in trouble.
Now we can make
it through this but...
Ineed your help.
You gotta trust me.
Uhh...
Oh, okay.
I mean...
You know what? Just because I'm smart
doesn't mean
I'm stupid, Tom.
Hold on!
Is there anything I can do?
It's all done.
I'll open the wine.
There's wine
open already.
This is a great bottle. You'll like it.
It's a Batard-Montrachet
Grand Cru, 1998.
Am I supposed
to be impressed?
It's really
good, Dad.
Perhaps you could save
it for a special occasion.
And so they asked me to speak at e
- Symposium which is
quite an honor because it's
considered the most important
North American conference
on new technology.
What do you actually do, Tom?
Excuse me?
You, Landshark,
what do you do?
David!
I'm serious. I was there last Friday.
Where was I?
How would I know
where was I?
I dropped something
off for Joshua and...
you know what I saw?
You know what I saw?
Oreos. You know me,
Tom, I see it, I say it.
What I saw was a whole bunch of kids,
bright young kids, they're
all just sitting around.
When they got
tired of sitting,
which was more
often than not,
they'd get up, go to the
kitchen and eat some Oreos.
Then they'd go back to their
desk, a cute little desk from Ikea.
Am I correct? And they'd play
solitaire on their computers.
Now you correct
me if I'm wrong.
It's a long day,
I give you that.
Ten in the morning
till ten at night,
seven days
a week, but...
why the hell would somebody
give you a million dollars
just to watch you sit
around and eat some Oreos?
Dad, add some zeroes.
Add two zeroes and that's
what we're talking about.
Just because you take your
failure and call it success
doesn't mean you can take my
success and call it failure.
Tom!
I'm not finished yet.
Tom, I do not Like
where this is going!
I was saying something
and I wasn't finished.
Do you want to hear
what I have to say?
Do you want to fucking
hear what I have to say?
He just does
not get it!
What did you want? You
wanted to change the world!
Stop the war! Poetry must
be made by all! Right?
I've seen
the bookshelves!
I grew up with them! Cinderblocks
and five copies of Soul oNice.
You wanted to change the world,
and what did you settle for? Tenure?
You wanted to
change the world?
Well, we're changing it. Tiananmen
Square? That was the fax machine.
Think what we'll have
now that we have the Web.
Your guy,
what's his name?
The guy you did
the seminar on?
McLuhan? Global
Village, right?
Well, we're out there
making it every day
while you puff up, all smug
and proud and self-satisfied!
And then it's like go tell the
maid to go dust the Goddard posters.
I'm leaving now.
No Mom,
I'm leaving.
Hi.
Hi.
You look, um,
vaguely familiar,
have we met before?
I don't think so.
Don't, Tom.
I've gotta work.
When do you
get out of here?
You mind if I wait?
It's a free country.
Maybe we can get a bit to
eat when you're finished.
I'm broke.
I'll take a number
five and a number eight,
and he'll have...
Let me take you
someplace nice.
a number 11. Wasn't that
the one you used to get?
The babaganush, right?
Just this once.
Yeah, he'll take number
Thank you.
So, how are you?
How have you been?
Good, yeah.
Everything's good.
Um, work is good. Landshark
is doing great, so...
Work great, how's
everything else?
Is there
something else?
How are
your parents?
How about you?
How was Barcelona?
Oh, it... it was amazing.
Incredible. I mean,
the people and the culture, the
architecture, it was just... fantastic.
And the program
was really great, too.
And I got to stay on to the
end of July as an apprentice.
Sarah, what
happened with us?
Come on,
Tom. Don't.
I was, um, working for
this firm that was designing
like this massive
public housing project.
But with these really
beautiful structures,
and, um,
and they were incorporating all of
these sustainable design concepts...
Stop it, Tom.
Stop what?
You're doing
that thing.
What thing?
You know what
you're doing.
So, thank
you for dinner.
It was, um,
it's good
to see you.
It's good to
see you too.
I missed you.
Tom.
Sarah.
Sarah.
What is this?
It's nice to see you, thank
you for a lovely evening?
Is that really
what this is?
I can't.
Okay.
It's just that...
it's okay.
I get it.
I'm okay.
Hey man.
Hey!
What's up?
Whatchall looking at?
What's so funny?
We're studying
our screen saver.
It's really interesting.
I like the logo.
Oh yeah.
Yeah, fuck y'all.
Fuck Company? You guys are
wasting your time on Fuck Company?
You're wasting
Your company time...
They have this countdown.
Our capitalization,
our outflows. Burn rate.
How many days till it all runs out.
Yeah? What
do they say?
Three weeks.
Fuck that noise. Come
on, get back to work.
Get back to work, come
on, come on, come on!
Ooh.
Car's here, Tom.
Car?
Car to the Center.
Car as in town car.
He forgot. I betcha he forgot.
Forgot what?
The e-Symposium?
That's next week.
This is next week.
And I'm gonna
assume, Tom,
that the reason
you look like shit
is because you were up all
night working on your speech.
Come on.
In 1997, Landshark
was two brothers and a dirty
old office down In the Bowery.
Today, hundreds of
employees In eight cities...
Don't forget
to mention me.
Us. You won't fuck 'em now, will you?
Now, they're
stock's a little bit down,
but they're not. While other
companies are laying people off,
they're actually hiring. You know
the man I'm about to Introduce.
Mr. Tom Sterling.
Yeah, Tom,
go get them!
Thank you, Jason.
I mean it.
Really.
It's great to be here.
We get invited to these things
all the time but we never go.
But... this one is special.
Because of you. Because of
Jason.
Because of the free shrimp.
Shrimp. Pigs
in a blanket.
Those tiny little caviar
things on little crackers.
But you didn't come to
hear me talk about snacks.
You came because...
we are at the forefront of a revolution.
A revolution In technology
but also a revolution...
You probably know
what I was gonna say,
so fuck that shit.
What I mean is,
If I say what you already
know what I'm gonna say,
then it's like the hamster scurries
and scurries and the wheel spins and,
at the end of the day, we're
all still in the cage, right?
So,
instead of that
prepared shit,
I'm just gonna tell
you what's in my heart.
You know what the problem is with the...
with, I don't even know what
to call it, with "our thing?"
The problem is, w-
what are we doing?
Are we making the world
a less sucky place?
Or more sucky? How are we
everyday Impacting the suckage?
My mom and dad
were right.
It pains me to say it but
they were right when they said
that those who make half a
revolution only dig their own grave.
Is that what we're making
here? Half a revolution?
What the Net is
supposed to do,
what new broadband
is supposed to do,
what digital whatever is supposed
to do is increase freedom!
Is increase choice!
But what are we offering
in the way of choice?
AOL or EarthLink?
Gates or Ellison?
Miller Light
or Coors?
Gore or Bush?
B2B or not B2B?
We make money.
Tons of it.
We help big greedy
advertising agencies
sell the useless products
of massive morally corrupt
multinational corporations.
We advise them on how
to aggregate eyeballs,
Have you ever seen the
beginning of Chien Andalou?
You know, with the eyeball
and the straight razor?
'Cause pretty much
that's what we do.
Fuck you, Tom.
Okay, okay, fuck me. Fuck me.
But what I'm telling you is
the truth, and you know it.
Click-through is over.
Cross platform is over.
"i" whatever is over.
Disintermediation is
way over.
The start-up is over,
branding is over,
convergence is so over!
Dot-com and everything
it stands for... over!
So what's left?
What's left
is what we do.
What's left is
those people
who are very very good at what we do.
You all know people,
they're in your shop,
who are amazing designers.
Writers in a language that's
being invented before our eyes.
I grew up with one.
My brother Joshua.
Now, I can charm a VC.
Well, on a good day
I can charm a VC.
But Joshua...
Joshua can Imagine.
Joshua can make something where
yesterday there was nothing.
And that makes all the
difference, doesn't it?
Thank you.
Thank you and
enjoy your lunch.
Yeow!
Tom rules!
Tom.
Tom, I've got
to take off.
Have a drink with me first. Just one.
Oh yeah, I can't.
Morela called...
is everything okay?
Yeah, yeah, yeah. Jacob's
having a tough time,
he's still
colicky, he's...
What did you think
of the speech?
It was good.
It was good.
It was nice, thanks.
Tom.
You really pulled one out, Tom.
I was a little worried there for
a moment but, you pulled it out.
I was thinking maybe we
could just do something quiet,
um, like, maybe
I could cook dinner,
just hang out
and talk, you know.
'Cause I had a really good
time seeing you the other night.
And, uh...
so just gimme a call back
when you get this, okay?
Hey.
Hey yourself.
Holy shit!
You did it!
Of course
I did it.
I didn't think
you would.
What do
you mean?
I don't know,
I just, um,
I just thought you
were humoring me.
Are you kidding me?
I love it!
I sure wish you were here
when they were working at it,
because the
contractor screwed me.
I have pictures.
You were totally right
about opening this up.
Lets in
the light.
So do you
like it?
It's the first thing
that I designed
that's actually been,
you know, realized.
That's the, um... do you want some wine?
I made a rabbit. You aren't
still a vegetarian, are you?
Just kidding, I
made a sea bass.
You still eat
fish, right?
Seems a little
hypocritical though,
this one looked cute and furry
so I'm not gonna eat this one.
I'll make a little
exception for that one.
I mean, fish have
feelings too, right?
So, can you explain the
logic to me In that because
I just
don't understand.
I'm sorry, were you
actually saying something?
I was saying you liked
the rabbit, remember?
Fuck off.
You remember the time
with Mo and my brother?
Yes, I do.
You were a dick.
Walt, how is
it my fault?
Because you
could've told me.
You just gobbled
that shit right up!
I though it was tofu!
I had no idea it was...
A cute little
bunny rabbit?
You were like, "Damn,
this is some tasty tofu. "
Hypocrite.
Prick.
What else
is new?
Just work
stuff, really.
Just dealing
with Landshark.
That's going well?
Are you happy?
Yeah, of course,
I mean...
It must be nice to get
to work with Josh, right?
And everything seems like
it's going really well.
Do you know, last spring, I was...
I was on a
train to Madrid.
And someone left a magazine on the seat.
And I looked over, and there
was your face on the cover.
Wired? I hated
that picture.
I looked like
a total douche bag.
Yeah, you did. You were
doing your picture face,
with your lips all pouty.
You looked totally gay.
The point is,
the article,
I mean,
holy shit.
You did it.
All those conversations that we had,
and I remember you saying
that there's no second-best
in what you and Josh were planning.
No second-best?
In ever said that.
I would never say
anything that cheesy.
That is exactly
what you said,
and you'd totally say
something that cheesy.
But that's what
I love about you.
You're always
with the absolutes.
You did it, Tom. I'm
really happy for you.
So come on.
Tell me.
Tell me
how it feels.
It's not what you
think it is, believe me.
Well, tell me
what it is then.
Things have changed since
that article was written.
Five months ago,
when that was written,
Josh and I were, uh...
On March 14th, our combined net
worth hit 387 million dollars.
But now,
we're, uh,
worth about one
one-hundredth of that.
And Landshark has burnt their
and made virtually... no
revenue to speak of, so...
Basically, we're fucked.
But hey, it was
fun while it lasted.
But let's not talk
about Landshark.
I'm sure everythings
gonna be fine.
What about you? What
have you been working on?
Oh, there's, like, a
house, that I designed.
It's in a show and it's
opening tomorrow night.
A house?
Yeah, just like
a little house.
Sounds great,
I love a little house.
It's from last year, it's
like drawings and a model.
But I think it came out
really well, actually.
I wanna see it.
Tomorrow, five to seven,
there's a reception.
Five o'clock.
I'll be there.
I should go.
Oh, fuck.
Barton
Ogilvy.
Very... particular.
I'm not in position
to talk price.
My client would Like to discuss
it with Mr. Sterling directly.
But I can tell you that they're very
Interested In hearing your proposal.
They can meet you
tomorrow at nine am.
Maybe you want to talk this
over and get back to me,
just call my office
by lunchtime.
But as I said before,
if you're not prepared to
offer seats on the board...
I just want to be clear on that
so we're all on the same page.
We're not wasting
anyone's time.
We'll be there.
Tomorrow morning,
Thank you.
How we doing on
that Gulfstream, Dyl?
I'll talk to him.
I'll talk to Josh.
Hey, have you
seen my brother?
Have you
checked the roof?
No.
Hey, have you
seen Josh?
Over there.
Hey, Josh.
Oh, hey, Tom. You just
missed your brother.
Did you tell him I
wanted to talk to him?
Yeah, I did.
Check that
shit out. It's Like a big pita.
It's totally
absurd though.
Your house is the best one by far.
It blows these
other ones away.
I didn't miss
it, did I?
It's five to seven.
I told you.
I'm just gonna hang
out with my friends.
Come on,
don't be mad.
I'm not.
It's my fault.
I just thought maybe
You might have changed.
I was hoping that...
Take care of
yourself, Tom. Okay?
Use that. We need to watch
out because usually when...
He pees his pants. That's
when I peed my pants too.
How's your brother?
Tom? Um,
well, he's Tom.
I don't know.
By special messenger.
It weighs a ton.
Whoa.
It's from
Tom, Dad.
Go ahead and
open it up.
"From
your friends at Landshark,
wishing you the gift of enlightenment. "
"The gift
of enlightenment. "
Enlightenment.
Hard to beat.
Ohhh.
Hi Tom, how are you feeling?
We're just
taking off, so...
You know what, Josh?
Why don't you stay
and I'll take Jake.
No, I think we
should go home.
No, really, um,
help me to the cab.
Alright, everybody.
Okay, well, I guess
I'll be back.
Why don't you
come over for dinner?
Bye.
I'll get
Morela a cab.
Bye.
I said some words.
The last time I was
here, I said some words.
And I said
them in anger...
and sometimes... anger may not be
the best way to say some things.
I think, David, he's
apologizing to you.
I'd need my decoder ring
to figure that one out.
Cut him
some slack.
You want the words?
I'm sorry, I apologize, my bad.
Thank you, Tom.
I know how hard
that was for you.
And I just want
to say that...
It's okay, Mom, it's okay. It's okay.
Oh! I also want to say, "Thank you. "
Thank you
for the, um...
Crate!
The crate and
what was in it.
I'm glad you
all liked it.
How big is
it, Dad?
There it is.
Is it this big?
Yay big?
Like... 18 Inches?
Yeah, like
a foot and a half.
Okay, so not
three feet.
Not three feet!
Where would we put
a three-foot Buddha?
Exactly.
No, see, that's
not my point.
That's beside the
fucking point! You see?
The point is that Tom
doesn't give presents, okay?
Everybody gives presents. Tom
doesn't 'cause it's so crass,
it's so, uh, it's
so third quarter 99.
Right? So Tom, Instead
of giving presents
to celebrate Landshark, to
celebrate coming out of lockup,
he gives you...
But of course, Tom being Tom,
there's gotta be an order,
you know, a hierarchy
of some sort, because
how do you know you're In
If there's no out? Right?
So, A-list Buddha,
and B-list Buddha.
Am I right, Tom?
Anyway, who
are you guys?
Oh, just his mom,
just his dad.
So, B-list.
I should go.
Joshua, can I
give you a lift?
Oh, I'll get
a cab.
Come on, let's take a walk.
Come on, Josh.
What do you want?
I don't want anything.
Well, what
are we doing?
Why are we here?
What is this?
A conversation.
A conversation.
Down a road and at
the end of that road...
Joshua, will you turn all
your shares over to me?
Just for a day,
just for a week.
Just sign this piece of paper...
and everything will
be cool, bro, you said.
I just want to talk, Josh.
I just want to hang.
You understand the
position I'm in, right?
I'm in the
same position.
Not really!
See, for you this is
all... a game, or something.
But for me, it's different because
I've got Mo and Jake to think about.
I can't afford
to be cavalier.
I've got a fucking baby!
I just bought an apartment!
I've got a mortgage to pay. I
know that all seems square to you,
but it's
my fucking life!
Look, what you said at
that e-Symposium about me,
and about what I do, it was
really sweet, Tom, it really was.
But we had a deal!
I do my thing,
you do yours, right?
Well, I did my thing.
And you? I don't know.
I mean, you talk
a good game.
You... you
understand money.
You understand business a
whole lot better than I do
but where's it gotten
you? Where's it gotten us?
I trusted you, Tom!
It doesn't work, Josh.
What do
you mean?
Landshark.
As a business model...
it doesn't work.
What are you
talking about?
The numbers
don't add up.
At least not the way
we expected them to.
Oh, fuck you! You're so full of shit!
I know what you
think of me, Joshua.
I know that you think that
I'm taking advantage of you.
I know that you
don't respect me.
But you tell me,
you tell me
how what you do,
what Landshark does
could possibly make money
as a business right now.
You could say whatever
you want about me,
but I believed
in your idea.
I believed in you!
But the financial
projections that we made,
they were like
three years off.
The technology
isn't there!
So, our market, it
doesn't fucking exist!
That's not my fault.
I'm not saying
that it is.
It's just the fucking
reality of our situation.
We're no different from
any of these dot-coms, Josh.
It's all hype.
And where the fuck
do you think that
hype comes from?
You're right, I spent a
lot of money on stupid shit,
but that's what
kept us going.
Fumes.
That's what
Landshark runs on.
I still believe
In Landshark.
And In three,
maybe four years,
but we're not gonna last that long.
We're not gonna
last three weeks
if we don't make this
deal work tomorrow!
And Ineed your help!
Ineed
your permission.
Josh.
Don't leave!
It was just me and Josh.
Still living at home,
if you can believe that.
I mean, Josh was.
So we sat down
after dinner,
Nancy and David
were up at Lincoln Center.
We were like,
we can do this.
I mean, I was like, we can do
this. Together we can do this.
And Josh just sort
of woke up.
Right before my eyes,
he just sort of woke up
and he said,
"Of course we can. "
And so... we get this
place on the Bowery
not the new Bowery,
it's the old Bowery,
we had rats, big
fucking rats
the size of cats,
I swear it.
We'd meet our clients
out at restaurants,
we couldn't bring them
back to the office,
it wasn't an office,
not really.
Could we just get a water?
This first guy,
his name was Goldblatt,
he was, like,
what can you do?
And I was like,
And he's just when can you get it up?
And I
don't hesitate,
I say, Week after next but
that's gonna cost you another 25.
I'll squeeze you in
before Hardy McNimman.
Of course there was
no Hardy McNimman.
Know why people
commit to something?
Not because they want to,
because ultimately,
nobody wants anything.
People commit for one reason
and one reason only.
So some other son of a bitch
doesn't get there first.
And that... Hey,
it's Banana Republic.
I don't think
I like your tone.
I don't think
I'm selling it.
It's a little late
for a working stiff.
You get pink-slipped?
As a matter of fact
I'm with Von Treska,
the number
one aggregator...
Way back In May
you guys had
what did your press release
say? First mover advantage
meaning you were the first
guys in the niche market
only then came July.
It turned out
the niche didn't
really exist.
So you did what everybody Like you did.
You said, "We're not a
niche player, we're B2B."
As if that was gonna save your ass.
How many people did that
same exact thing that week?
Fuck you.
It's a lot more fun to
make inventory than sell it.
A lot easier too. How much
do you guys spend in a month
as opposed to
how much comes in?
Or is that old-
school accounting?
I said fuck you.
I heard you
the first time.
If I wanna say it,
I'll say it.
All night If
I want to.
Fuck you, fuck you, and fuck you.
Do you know why
you're even here?
Because we
had a dream.
And you did what guys
like you always do.
You smelled the money. You
came down. You wanted in.
You wanted to
drink the Cru.
Not because you love, not even
because you know what you're doing
but because this is where the action is.
No, because somebody told you
this is where the action is.
You don't know
anything about me.
Guys like you
ain't got no vision.
Ain't got no passion.
Ain't got no soul.
Hey, let me ask
you something.
Do all the flowers
and the fancy dinners
make up for the fact that he's
never been able to make you come?
Open up, Tom!
Come on!
Good morning, Tom.
Nice shiner.
What happened to you?
Somebody obviously had enough.
Hope it wasn't
his brother.
Did you speak
to Josh?
You did talk to him,
didn't you, Tom?
This guy's old school, he's not
gonna fall for the sweet talk.
I can handle this,
Dylan, trust me.
If they ask you
about the shortfall?
I'll let you
handle it.
And if they ask about the e
- Symposium?
I was just shaking things
up. I was trying to inject
a little salutary
controversy the way
that an oyster needs a small
bit of grit to make a pearl.
Believe me,
I got this.
Mr. Barton will
see you now.
Mr. Ogilvy's
with him.
Shall I show
you the way?
Thank you.
What a joy.
What a
significant day.
The pleasure
is all ours.
I'm a busy man
to be sure,
but when the opportunity presents itself
to meet my friends at Landshark,
why, we clear our decks, so to speak.
Allow me to introduce my
senior partner. Cyrus Ogilvy.
Cy? This is
Miss Melanie Hanson,
It's a pleasure.
Mr. Dylan
Gothschalk.
Mr. Thomas Sterling.
COO, CFO, CEO.
We're here today to
seek a fuller partnership.
So that
our futures
are separate but
successful futures.
We'll be
bound together
so that our happiness
can become your happiness.
Happiness? Dear boy, I'm
more interested in RO I.
I'm offering
substantial happiness.
How substantial?
Very substantial.
At what price?
Market value.
Circumstances have changed
over the past few days,
have they not? That
offer no longer stands.
What were you
expecting to pay?
Market value
does not matter
because your stock
trades by appointment.
To sell it, you need
a willing buyer.
And your stock
has no float.
But the real question is the
board. We'll want control.
You're kidding, right?
What do you know
about the Net?
What do you know
about new technology?
Nothing. Not
a fucking thing.
The way people communicate,
the way people think,
the very nature of commerce is
changing, and you're scared shitless.
You don't understand
it, but you want in.
To be quite
honest, Mr. Sterling,
we don't like
your style.
We don't like the way
you conduct yourself.
And though you seem to
have fooled a lot of people,
we don't much like the way
you conduct your business.
And since we don't particularly
want to be In business with you,
you'd have to make it
very much worth our while.
I was In Adam's
House at Harvard,
so I made
some friends.
And then Wharton,
I made a few more,
and in South Hampton
where we summer.
So, on the street,
you could say
I have a lot
of friends.
And they look to me
for my opinion.
When I tell them, I tell
them that we've looked
at the Landshark figures
and we didn't see a future,
I don't have
to say it loudly.
I have only to whisper
it. Do you understand?
By the time
your lockup ends,
you will own 500, 000 shares D
- Listed paper.
You would dump your
entire investment
because you don't
like my style?
Why?
Because I can,
Mr. Sterling.
Is that a threat?
That's just business.
It's what separates
the men from the boys.
So why am I here?
We're Interested In
the future of Landshark.
But we're not
interested in you.
There is no Landshark without me.
Au contraire. By our metrics,
your company would be better off.
Miss Gilbo will
show you out.
Wait.
Don't waste your time. Or ours.
But If I could
just say one thing...
This is not a negotiation.
This is our offer.
Miss Hanson, Mr. Gothschalk,
your brother Joshua,
they'll stay
with the company,
and we'll do everything within our
power to keep the stock price high.
You will step down.
And you will relinquish
all Interest In the company.
We will take
control of the board,
and we will buy your shares
at 15 cents on the dollar.
Mr. Sterling.
You can take it
or leave it.
We need your
answer Immediately.
My brother Joshua gets
a employment contract?
Joshua Sterling will
be well taken care of.
Okay.
Okay.
You have
yourself a deal.
Tom.
I'm fine.
Really I am.
Yeah.
This just In.
Singer and actress Aaliyah has
been killed In a plane crash
over the Bahamas.
According to sources...
Six in quarters.
Thanks.
Jackpot!
Oh, nice.
Hey, can I
get the next one?
It's gonna
be a while.
Jackpot!
Maybe we can...
me and you,
maybe we can...
start...
build, you know.
Make... something.
Uh, like, together.
It's all over, Josh.
Let me shoot
this one.
Nope.
The left flipper?
Jackpot!
See?
Jackpot!
Hmm!
Jackpot!
Are you kidding?
When did you get
out of what?
Jackpot!
Bush, do solemnly swear
that I
will faith fully execute
the office of President
of the United States.
that I will
faith fully execute
the office of President
of the United States
and will, to the
best of my ability
preserve, protect and
defend the Constitution.
Tom
Cruise and Nicole Kidman
caused quite a stir when they
announced plans to separate.
The couple explained
the spilt was caused
by careers that
frequently keep them apart.
The market
plunge was sharp and swift,
the NASDAQ was bloody
too, closing below 2000
for the first time In
more than two years.
Our 40th
president, Ronald Reagan,
born February 6th, 1911, celebrated
his birthday quietly today
In his home
In Los Angeles.
The tech sector took yet
another beating this week
but there were a few winners,
most notably Landshark,
whose stock hit a record high
for the fourth straight day.
In just a few minutes, we'll talk
to Landshark CEO, Tom Sterling.
Mark, tell us just a little
bit about this company.
It's an amazing story
we're seeing here, Ron.
At a time when the tech sector
has been in virtual free fall,
here's a company that's
been public for four days
and it's already
up an astounding 500%.
Indeed it has. And we want to
talk Landshark CEO Tom Sterling.
Tom, are
you with us?
Yeah, I'm here.
Congratulations. Thanks
for joining us.
Thank you
for having me.
This is a very difficult
market environment.
Can Landshark get the traction it needs?
I think you're missing the point, Ron.
Traction really isn't the issue
because Landshark is not a vehicle,
Landshark is
the road itself.
We've seen start-ups before,
they come out strong, get B-Listed
before they're even out of lockup.
The man has got to be very very tough.
That's just
business, Ron.
That's what separates
the men from the boys.
I indeed it is.
Tom, congratulations,
thanks for being
with us today.
Absolutely.
Any time.
Market confidence in Landshark
has been extraordinarily high.
The real question is where will
these guys be six months from now?
We'll be right here!
You did good.
Congratulations, man.
Hey, Tom.
This is
Tom. Leave a message after the beep.
Ahh. I am so
sorry, guys.
Um, Tom is not much
of a morning person.
Excuse me, sir.
Excuse me.
Can I help you?
One skinny mocha
latte. Thank you.
Here he is.
So,
I see you've met
my brother Joshua,
the creative genius
behind our little venture.
Brad, Jonathan,
we've met of course,
and you are...
Mason Newburger.
Nice to meet you.
So,
you're Unison, we're
Landshark, let's make money.
We were, uh,
We expected
a proposal.
Okay, there's
been a miscommunication.
We apologize but
what Tom and I...
We are
who we are.
The brand
speaks for itself.
Who else are
you talking to?
Who are you
meeting with?
Well, actually,
I don't see how
that's relevant.
Nobody, right? I mean,
nobody of any weight.
Because nobody
does what we do.
You know it, I know it
so let's cut the shit.
Without a proposal? Without
something to take back?
You can understand,
it's gonna be hard for
us to sell this upstairs.
Well, maybe next time, we
should be meeting with upstairs.
Big words
for an MOP.
Your lockup is
standard 180.
He's out
September 14th.
So you got four weeks,
which according to the FCC
means you can't buy,
you can't sell,
all your millions,
it's all on paper.
Okay guys, um...
before we get
all heated up...
You want portal play?
Anybody can give
you a portal play?
Any asshole,
he's a fucking portal.
That's so third quarter 99.
You want bleeding-edge
mission-critical cross platform
robust scalable architectures?
Well, duh. That's what everybody wants.
What you want
is "e. " Pure e.
Not e-commerce,
not e-business,
not click-and-mortar,
anything but that, e.
Not old, not tired,
not stepped on,
not one gram of e and ten
grams of baby laxative,
pure e. Josh knows e. I know e.
That's what
Landshark does.
And somehow
when e changes,
we're there first, on
the shore. Beckoning.
Is there anyone who can
aggregate the way we can?
I don't think so. Because
if there was, I'd be there.
But I'm here. And that's
why you invited me here.
You invited me here
because you want in.
Okay.
Fine.
So let's talk numbers.
Our CFO, as you know,
is Dylan Gothschalk.
Give Dylan a call,
make him an offer.
We'll see If we
can accommodate you.
Motherfucker!
You fucker.
Don't you ever fucking
apologize ever fucking again.
That's not
what we do.
Well, I'm so sorry.
Hop in!
Oh no, I told Mo
I'd stop home first
to make sure
she's okay.
I'll give
you a ride.
That's okay. I'll see
you back at the office.
What?
Hey!
Did you hear?
Pseudo dot com.
How many they dump?
Everyone but the.
Who do I owe?
Baum who called twice.
Andrew Goldman.
Fuck him.
Jonathan Grey.
Fuck him.
Laurel Wormack,
twice, Kowalski.
Somebody's sitting
in my chair.
Don't get all pompous
on me, Tom. Just don't.
You blew them off.
You had to, didn't you?
I just did
my thing, Mel.
I don't tell you how to do your thing.
I won't have a thing if
you keep on blowing off
the people who are
trying to hire us.
We've got Snowmark to worry
about. Our plate is full.
Our plate is not full.
Snowmark is three months late.
We need that account, we need the money.
Take it then. You want
the money, take it.
They'll call Dylan, and when
they do, take their money.
They'll call. Trust me. You'll see.
I've got a bazillion
shares of Landshark
I can't do
anything with.
out of lockup, 4 weeks.
Four weeks from now, If we
don't get any cash coming In,
we're gonna be
under water!
We IPOed at 12, shot up to
Want to know
where we are now?
Two and one eighth.
You better get
to work then.
Can I have my
chair back, please?
Hey.
Yeah, you can
put it there.
Can you give
me a burp pad?
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Josh, you need to help
me unpack this shit.
I can't do it
by myself.
I know.
I'm sorry.
I'll help you unpack tonight, I promise.
Is there
anything I can?
I can't stay
very long.
Is there anything that
I can do before I leave?
You can give
me a kiss.
How is he?
Good.
He fell asleep.
Wanna hold him?
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Do you want
your hot chocolate?
What do you mean I can't?
What you're saying isn't can't,
you're saying I shouldn't.
There's a
world of difference.
Do what you want. Want the
Gulfstream? Go ahead and get it.
I just want the numbers,
not the moralizing,
not the more than I can
afford, just numbers.
With maintenance?
With everything!
Give or take, but
a million a month.
What does it cost not to lease
the G5? Ever think about that?
Did you ever take
that into account?
You're looking at me like
"What does this asshole think?
That the bottom never fell
out? Like July never happened?
Of course it happened! Abercrombie
was like, "This is great"
and then she was like,
"This is overvalued. "
What the fuck does that
have to do with us?
It's about
valuation, Tom.
Elision has
a Gulfstream.
Case has a Gulfstream.
Ross has a Gulfstream.
Bezos has a Gulfstream.
Fucking Bezos!
The cost of not having one is the
cost of saying to the world that Tom...
Tom is just not
In that league.
And what does that cost? A fuck of
a lot more than a million a month.
A million a month
can be leveraged.
Being looked at
as B-List, can't.
Can't.
You're past
that point, Tom.
I was right about Unison, wasn't I?
They called, just
Like I said they would.
You and Mel just need to
have a little bit of faith.
This will take more
than smoky mirrors.
If you're not part of the solution,
you're part of the problem.
Am I fired?
Just find a
way to do it.
Arbitrage, I don't
care. Wanna know something?
You're gonna like it.
You're gonna
like riding in it.
You're gonna
call me and say,
I'm gonna take
the family to Hawaii.
You got two kids?
Three.
"I'm gonna take the wife
and three kids to Hawaii. "
and I'm gonna say, "Cool.
Why don't you take the G?"
And I'll tell you this.
I promise you this.
When you do,
once you do, Dyl...
Never mind,
just get it.
Hey.
Sarah?
What are you doing here?
Tom.
Hi.
Hey, Dylan.
HI, Sarah.
When did you
get back in town?
Um, just
a couple of weeks ago.
I'm taking
off, Tom.
Gotta get home. Nice
seeing you again, Sarah.
Welcome back.
Thanks, nice
to see you too.
I was just trying to
keep a couple of shifts.
So you're back then.
Yeah. Classes start
next month. So...
Where are
you living?
Same place.
How's your brother?
Josh is good.
Yeah, he's good.
Good.
Tell him I said hello, okay? Bye.
Who was that?
So what do you
want to do tonight?
Taxi!
Well, good night.
Good night.
Recent
polls show that 55% of Americans
disapprove of President Bush
taking a 30-day working vacation.
If the President
returns on Labor Day,
he will tie a lot of records
held by Richard Nixon.
Ben Affleck today,
for alcoholic.
Nicole Kidman says she refuses to be
bitter about the break up with Tom Cruise.
Josh? I'm
just starving right now.
What are
you doing?
Nothing.
You were supposed
to be unpacking.
I'm totally unpacking. Do
you want to order some food?
Tom, you think about what size
you want me to send
to your parents?
What the fuck are
these still doing here?
Hey, what are
these doing here?
Come on, come on, get them
up? Big ones, little ones,
let's go, they don't do
much good sitting here!
Hey Tom,
Charlie Corwin?
Livemusicchannel. com?
Fuck that guy.
So what?
A little one?
No, he's through,
he's finished.
Fuck him, don't give him shit.
You know what? Give him a
little one, what the fuck.
Dylan.
Nice Koosh.
We got
problems, Tom.
Josh is on
his way.
Oh, this
is important.
Well, let's get
started without him.
Josh. So what's
all the excitement?
Snowmark shit the bed.
They haven't filed yet, but word is out.
And Unisol
pulled their offer.
So where does
that put us?
The NASDAQ went down
and we're doing worse.
We're below a dollar.
Josh!
So what are
our options?
Cutbacks, but then there's
the whole perception thing.
Rumors, the sniping, the
downward spiral could sink us.
So we're probably looking at
another round of financing.
We got an offer
from Barton Ogilvy.
What's the catch?
Second-round financing
is not easy.
They'll pay market value but
they're gonna want a big piece.
How much do I have to give up?
Percentage, Dylan.
What percentage are we
gonna have to give up?
Like fifty.
So Josh and I, we
start this company,
no, we invent
this company,
we bring you two in,
we give you contracts
which we
don't even have.
Now you want to let some
moneybag fuck us up the ass?
A better time to do this might have been
four months ago, Dyl. Before July!
Things have changed.
So we lose
half our company.
We get greeked up the ass
by Barton-fucking-Ogilvy?
This is no time
to be proud, Tom.
That's not the play. That's
not the way we're gonna do it.
I'll cash-hold
the company myself.
You're leveraged
to the hilt.
I'll find the
fucking money.
You're broke, Tom.
Get the fuck out
of my office, Dyl!
I just want to talk,
you know, some place
away from the office.
Yeah.
Can I get
the next ball?
Take the left
flipper, come on.
There's some shit's
been going down,
it's complicated but I've been
thinking about your future.
Oh, how nice for me.
You've always
been smarter than me.
That's not what's
at issue here.
"At issue?" Are we at a court of law?
Why are you
telling me this?
I want to let
you in on this.
It's an opportunity, it's,
not a Landshark thing,
it's a brothers thing,
a Tom and Josh thing.
What do you
want from me?
You've always been
smarter than me.
The squirrel and
the whatever, you,
you always were
prudent who saved...
Tom, what
do you want?
Just some
working capital.
How much "just
some working capital?"
Enough to get us through the lockup,
to get us to
the other side.
You want me to put myself
on the hook personally?
Josh!
When you said thinking
about your future,
I should've known. When Tom says
"thinking about your future. "
that means "What can I
screw you out of today?"
Yeah.
You got me
all wrong, man.
Oh, yeah, I don't think so.
Know what? You're a great designer, man.
But this is business,
this is money.
You remember, when it
was just me and you
and we were moving
into our first place?
Why do you always
bring this up?
And I said we were gonna
need 15 phone lines?
And you laughed. And
you went down to NYNEX
and they said it was gonna
cost 110 dollars a line
plus deposit, plus it
was gonna take five weeks?
Please, why do you
always tell this story?
And you were
gonna pay it!
I went down there and they installed
them the next day and for free!
Wow!
I know money, man! And
maybe the NASDAQ is up,
maybe the NASDAQ
is down,
but if we could just make
it from here to there,
if we could just make it through
this lockup, these next few weeks,
there's a fucking pile of
money, man. Just waiting for us.
A mountain of it and we're gonna eat it.
When we're around everybody
else, I got a front.
But with you, I can tell
you when I'm in trouble.
We're in trouble, and
you gotta believe me
when I say that
we're in trouble.
Now we can make
it through this but...
Ineed your help.
You gotta trust me.
Uhh...
Oh, okay.
I mean...
You know what? Just because I'm smart
doesn't mean
I'm stupid, Tom.
Hold on!
Is there anything I can do?
It's all done.
I'll open the wine.
There's wine
open already.
This is a great bottle. You'll like it.
It's a Batard-Montrachet
Grand Cru, 1998.
Am I supposed
to be impressed?
It's really
good, Dad.
Perhaps you could save
it for a special occasion.
And so they asked me to speak at e
- Symposium which is
quite an honor because it's
considered the most important
North American conference
on new technology.
What do you actually do, Tom?
Excuse me?
You, Landshark,
what do you do?
David!
I'm serious. I was there last Friday.
Where was I?
How would I know
where was I?
I dropped something
off for Joshua and...
you know what I saw?
You know what I saw?
Oreos. You know me,
Tom, I see it, I say it.
What I saw was a whole bunch of kids,
bright young kids, they're
all just sitting around.
When they got
tired of sitting,
which was more
often than not,
they'd get up, go to the
kitchen and eat some Oreos.
Then they'd go back to their
desk, a cute little desk from Ikea.
Am I correct? And they'd play
solitaire on their computers.
Now you correct
me if I'm wrong.
It's a long day,
I give you that.
Ten in the morning
till ten at night,
seven days
a week, but...
why the hell would somebody
give you a million dollars
just to watch you sit
around and eat some Oreos?
Dad, add some zeroes.
Add two zeroes and that's
what we're talking about.
Just because you take your
failure and call it success
doesn't mean you can take my
success and call it failure.
Tom!
I'm not finished yet.
Tom, I do not Like
where this is going!
I was saying something
and I wasn't finished.
Do you want to hear
what I have to say?
Do you want to fucking
hear what I have to say?
He just does
not get it!
What did you want? You
wanted to change the world!
Stop the war! Poetry must
be made by all! Right?
I've seen
the bookshelves!
I grew up with them! Cinderblocks
and five copies of Soul oNice.
You wanted to change the world,
and what did you settle for? Tenure?
You wanted to
change the world?
Well, we're changing it. Tiananmen
Square? That was the fax machine.
Think what we'll have
now that we have the Web.
Your guy,
what's his name?
The guy you did
the seminar on?
McLuhan? Global
Village, right?
Well, we're out there
making it every day
while you puff up, all smug
and proud and self-satisfied!
And then it's like go tell the
maid to go dust the Goddard posters.
I'm leaving now.
No Mom,
I'm leaving.
Hi.
Hi.
You look, um,
vaguely familiar,
have we met before?
I don't think so.
Don't, Tom.
I've gotta work.
When do you
get out of here?
You mind if I wait?
It's a free country.
Maybe we can get a bit to
eat when you're finished.
I'm broke.
I'll take a number
five and a number eight,
and he'll have...
Let me take you
someplace nice.
a number 11. Wasn't that
the one you used to get?
The babaganush, right?
Just this once.
Yeah, he'll take number
Thank you.
So, how are you?
How have you been?
Good, yeah.
Everything's good.
Um, work is good. Landshark
is doing great, so...
Work great, how's
everything else?
Is there
something else?
How are
your parents?
How about you?
How was Barcelona?
Oh, it... it was amazing.
Incredible. I mean,
the people and the culture, the
architecture, it was just... fantastic.
And the program
was really great, too.
And I got to stay on to the
end of July as an apprentice.
Sarah, what
happened with us?
Come on,
Tom. Don't.
I was, um, working for
this firm that was designing
like this massive
public housing project.
But with these really
beautiful structures,
and, um,
and they were incorporating all of
these sustainable design concepts...
Stop it, Tom.
Stop what?
You're doing
that thing.
What thing?
You know what
you're doing.
So, thank
you for dinner.
It was, um,
it's good
to see you.
It's good to
see you too.
I missed you.
Tom.
Sarah.
Sarah.
What is this?
It's nice to see you, thank
you for a lovely evening?
Is that really
what this is?
I can't.
Okay.
It's just that...
it's okay.
I get it.
I'm okay.
Hey man.
Hey!
What's up?
Whatchall looking at?
What's so funny?
We're studying
our screen saver.
It's really interesting.
I like the logo.
Oh yeah.
Yeah, fuck y'all.
Fuck Company? You guys are
wasting your time on Fuck Company?
You're wasting
Your company time...
They have this countdown.
Our capitalization,
our outflows. Burn rate.
How many days till it all runs out.
Yeah? What
do they say?
Three weeks.
Fuck that noise. Come
on, get back to work.
Get back to work, come
on, come on, come on!
Ooh.
Car's here, Tom.
Car?
Car to the Center.
Car as in town car.
He forgot. I betcha he forgot.
Forgot what?
The e-Symposium?
That's next week.
This is next week.
And I'm gonna
assume, Tom,
that the reason
you look like shit
is because you were up all
night working on your speech.
Come on.
In 1997, Landshark
was two brothers and a dirty
old office down In the Bowery.
Today, hundreds of
employees In eight cities...
Don't forget
to mention me.
Us. You won't fuck 'em now, will you?
Now, they're
stock's a little bit down,
but they're not. While other
companies are laying people off,
they're actually hiring. You know
the man I'm about to Introduce.
Mr. Tom Sterling.
Yeah, Tom,
go get them!
Thank you, Jason.
I mean it.
Really.
It's great to be here.
We get invited to these things
all the time but we never go.
But... this one is special.
Because of you. Because of
Jason.
Because of the free shrimp.
Shrimp. Pigs
in a blanket.
Those tiny little caviar
things on little crackers.
But you didn't come to
hear me talk about snacks.
You came because...
we are at the forefront of a revolution.
A revolution In technology
but also a revolution...
You probably know
what I was gonna say,
so fuck that shit.
What I mean is,
If I say what you already
know what I'm gonna say,
then it's like the hamster scurries
and scurries and the wheel spins and,
at the end of the day, we're
all still in the cage, right?
So,
instead of that
prepared shit,
I'm just gonna tell
you what's in my heart.
You know what the problem is with the...
with, I don't even know what
to call it, with "our thing?"
The problem is, w-
what are we doing?
Are we making the world
a less sucky place?
Or more sucky? How are we
everyday Impacting the suckage?
My mom and dad
were right.
It pains me to say it but
they were right when they said
that those who make half a
revolution only dig their own grave.
Is that what we're making
here? Half a revolution?
What the Net is
supposed to do,
what new broadband
is supposed to do,
what digital whatever is supposed
to do is increase freedom!
Is increase choice!
But what are we offering
in the way of choice?
AOL or EarthLink?
Gates or Ellison?
Miller Light
or Coors?
Gore or Bush?
B2B or not B2B?
We make money.
Tons of it.
We help big greedy
advertising agencies
sell the useless products
of massive morally corrupt
multinational corporations.
We advise them on how
to aggregate eyeballs,
Have you ever seen the
beginning of Chien Andalou?
You know, with the eyeball
and the straight razor?
'Cause pretty much
that's what we do.
Fuck you, Tom.
Okay, okay, fuck me. Fuck me.
But what I'm telling you is
the truth, and you know it.
Click-through is over.
Cross platform is over.
"i" whatever is over.
Disintermediation is
way over.
The start-up is over,
branding is over,
convergence is so over!
Dot-com and everything
it stands for... over!
So what's left?
What's left
is what we do.
What's left is
those people
who are very very good at what we do.
You all know people,
they're in your shop,
who are amazing designers.
Writers in a language that's
being invented before our eyes.
I grew up with one.
My brother Joshua.
Now, I can charm a VC.
Well, on a good day
I can charm a VC.
But Joshua...
Joshua can Imagine.
Joshua can make something where
yesterday there was nothing.
And that makes all the
difference, doesn't it?
Thank you.
Thank you and
enjoy your lunch.
Yeow!
Tom rules!
Tom.
Tom, I've got
to take off.
Have a drink with me first. Just one.
Oh yeah, I can't.
Morela called...
is everything okay?
Yeah, yeah, yeah. Jacob's
having a tough time,
he's still
colicky, he's...
What did you think
of the speech?
It was good.
It was good.
It was nice, thanks.
Tom.
You really pulled one out, Tom.
I was a little worried there for
a moment but, you pulled it out.
I was thinking maybe we
could just do something quiet,
um, like, maybe
I could cook dinner,
just hang out
and talk, you know.
'Cause I had a really good
time seeing you the other night.
And, uh...
so just gimme a call back
when you get this, okay?
Hey.
Hey yourself.
Holy shit!
You did it!
Of course
I did it.
I didn't think
you would.
What do
you mean?
I don't know,
I just, um,
I just thought you
were humoring me.
Are you kidding me?
I love it!
I sure wish you were here
when they were working at it,
because the
contractor screwed me.
I have pictures.
You were totally right
about opening this up.
Lets in
the light.
So do you
like it?
It's the first thing
that I designed
that's actually been,
you know, realized.
That's the, um... do you want some wine?
I made a rabbit. You aren't
still a vegetarian, are you?
Just kidding, I
made a sea bass.
You still eat
fish, right?
Seems a little
hypocritical though,
this one looked cute and furry
so I'm not gonna eat this one.
I'll make a little
exception for that one.
I mean, fish have
feelings too, right?
So, can you explain the
logic to me In that because
I just
don't understand.
I'm sorry, were you
actually saying something?
I was saying you liked
the rabbit, remember?
Fuck off.
You remember the time
with Mo and my brother?
Yes, I do.
You were a dick.
Walt, how is
it my fault?
Because you
could've told me.
You just gobbled
that shit right up!
I though it was tofu!
I had no idea it was...
A cute little
bunny rabbit?
You were like, "Damn,
this is some tasty tofu. "
Hypocrite.
Prick.
What else
is new?
Just work
stuff, really.
Just dealing
with Landshark.
That's going well?
Are you happy?
Yeah, of course,
I mean...
It must be nice to get
to work with Josh, right?
And everything seems like
it's going really well.
Do you know, last spring, I was...
I was on a
train to Madrid.
And someone left a magazine on the seat.
And I looked over, and there
was your face on the cover.
Wired? I hated
that picture.
I looked like
a total douche bag.
Yeah, you did. You were
doing your picture face,
with your lips all pouty.
You looked totally gay.
The point is,
the article,
I mean,
holy shit.
You did it.
All those conversations that we had,
and I remember you saying
that there's no second-best
in what you and Josh were planning.
No second-best?
In ever said that.
I would never say
anything that cheesy.
That is exactly
what you said,
and you'd totally say
something that cheesy.
But that's what
I love about you.
You're always
with the absolutes.
You did it, Tom. I'm
really happy for you.
So come on.
Tell me.
Tell me
how it feels.
It's not what you
think it is, believe me.
Well, tell me
what it is then.
Things have changed since
that article was written.
Five months ago,
when that was written,
Josh and I were, uh...
On March 14th, our combined net
worth hit 387 million dollars.
But now,
we're, uh,
worth about one
one-hundredth of that.
And Landshark has burnt their
and made virtually... no
revenue to speak of, so...
Basically, we're fucked.
But hey, it was
fun while it lasted.
But let's not talk
about Landshark.
I'm sure everythings
gonna be fine.
What about you? What
have you been working on?
Oh, there's, like, a
house, that I designed.
It's in a show and it's
opening tomorrow night.
A house?
Yeah, just like
a little house.
Sounds great,
I love a little house.
It's from last year, it's
like drawings and a model.
But I think it came out
really well, actually.
I wanna see it.
Tomorrow, five to seven,
there's a reception.
Five o'clock.
I'll be there.
I should go.
Oh, fuck.
Barton
Ogilvy.
Very... particular.
I'm not in position
to talk price.
My client would Like to discuss
it with Mr. Sterling directly.
But I can tell you that they're very
Interested In hearing your proposal.
They can meet you
tomorrow at nine am.
Maybe you want to talk this
over and get back to me,
just call my office
by lunchtime.
But as I said before,
if you're not prepared to
offer seats on the board...
I just want to be clear on that
so we're all on the same page.
We're not wasting
anyone's time.
We'll be there.
Tomorrow morning,
Thank you.
How we doing on
that Gulfstream, Dyl?
I'll talk to him.
I'll talk to Josh.
Hey, have you
seen my brother?
Have you
checked the roof?
No.
Hey, have you
seen Josh?
Over there.
Hey, Josh.
Oh, hey, Tom. You just
missed your brother.
Did you tell him I
wanted to talk to him?
Yeah, I did.
Check that
shit out. It's Like a big pita.
It's totally
absurd though.
Your house is the best one by far.
It blows these
other ones away.
I didn't miss
it, did I?
It's five to seven.
I told you.
I'm just gonna hang
out with my friends.
Come on,
don't be mad.
I'm not.
It's my fault.
I just thought maybe
You might have changed.
I was hoping that...
Take care of
yourself, Tom. Okay?
Use that. We need to watch
out because usually when...
He pees his pants. That's
when I peed my pants too.
How's your brother?
Tom? Um,
well, he's Tom.
I don't know.
By special messenger.
It weighs a ton.
Whoa.
It's from
Tom, Dad.
Go ahead and
open it up.
"From
your friends at Landshark,
wishing you the gift of enlightenment. "
"The gift
of enlightenment. "
Enlightenment.
Hard to beat.
Ohhh.
Hi Tom, how are you feeling?
We're just
taking off, so...
You know what, Josh?
Why don't you stay
and I'll take Jake.
No, I think we
should go home.
No, really, um,
help me to the cab.
Alright, everybody.
Okay, well, I guess
I'll be back.
Why don't you
come over for dinner?
Bye.
I'll get
Morela a cab.
Bye.
I said some words.
The last time I was
here, I said some words.
And I said
them in anger...
and sometimes... anger may not be
the best way to say some things.
I think, David, he's
apologizing to you.
I'd need my decoder ring
to figure that one out.
Cut him
some slack.
You want the words?
I'm sorry, I apologize, my bad.
Thank you, Tom.
I know how hard
that was for you.
And I just want
to say that...
It's okay, Mom, it's okay. It's okay.
Oh! I also want to say, "Thank you. "
Thank you
for the, um...
Crate!
The crate and
what was in it.
I'm glad you
all liked it.
How big is
it, Dad?
There it is.
Is it this big?
Yay big?
Like... 18 Inches?
Yeah, like
a foot and a half.
Okay, so not
three feet.
Not three feet!
Where would we put
a three-foot Buddha?
Exactly.
No, see, that's
not my point.
That's beside the
fucking point! You see?
The point is that Tom
doesn't give presents, okay?
Everybody gives presents. Tom
doesn't 'cause it's so crass,
it's so, uh, it's
so third quarter 99.
Right? So Tom, Instead
of giving presents
to celebrate Landshark, to
celebrate coming out of lockup,
he gives you...
But of course, Tom being Tom,
there's gotta be an order,
you know, a hierarchy
of some sort, because
how do you know you're In
If there's no out? Right?
So, A-list Buddha,
and B-list Buddha.
Am I right, Tom?
Anyway, who
are you guys?
Oh, just his mom,
just his dad.
So, B-list.
I should go.
Joshua, can I
give you a lift?
Oh, I'll get
a cab.
Come on, let's take a walk.
Come on, Josh.
What do you want?
I don't want anything.
Well, what
are we doing?
Why are we here?
What is this?
A conversation.
A conversation.
Down a road and at
the end of that road...
Joshua, will you turn all
your shares over to me?
Just for a day,
just for a week.
Just sign this piece of paper...
and everything will
be cool, bro, you said.
I just want to talk, Josh.
I just want to hang.
You understand the
position I'm in, right?
I'm in the
same position.
Not really!
See, for you this is
all... a game, or something.
But for me, it's different because
I've got Mo and Jake to think about.
I can't afford
to be cavalier.
I've got a fucking baby!
I just bought an apartment!
I've got a mortgage to pay. I
know that all seems square to you,
but it's
my fucking life!
Look, what you said at
that e-Symposium about me,
and about what I do, it was
really sweet, Tom, it really was.
But we had a deal!
I do my thing,
you do yours, right?
Well, I did my thing.
And you? I don't know.
I mean, you talk
a good game.
You... you
understand money.
You understand business a
whole lot better than I do
but where's it gotten
you? Where's it gotten us?
I trusted you, Tom!
It doesn't work, Josh.
What do
you mean?
Landshark.
As a business model...
it doesn't work.
What are you
talking about?
The numbers
don't add up.
At least not the way
we expected them to.
Oh, fuck you! You're so full of shit!
I know what you
think of me, Joshua.
I know that you think that
I'm taking advantage of you.
I know that you
don't respect me.
But you tell me,
you tell me
how what you do,
what Landshark does
could possibly make money
as a business right now.
You could say whatever
you want about me,
but I believed
in your idea.
I believed in you!
But the financial
projections that we made,
they were like
three years off.
The technology
isn't there!
So, our market, it
doesn't fucking exist!
That's not my fault.
I'm not saying
that it is.
It's just the fucking
reality of our situation.
We're no different from
any of these dot-coms, Josh.
It's all hype.
And where the fuck
do you think that
hype comes from?
You're right, I spent a
lot of money on stupid shit,
but that's what
kept us going.
Fumes.
That's what
Landshark runs on.
I still believe
In Landshark.
And In three,
maybe four years,
but we're not gonna last that long.
We're not gonna
last three weeks
if we don't make this
deal work tomorrow!
And Ineed your help!
Ineed
your permission.
Josh.
Don't leave!
It was just me and Josh.
Still living at home,
if you can believe that.
I mean, Josh was.
So we sat down
after dinner,
Nancy and David
were up at Lincoln Center.
We were like,
we can do this.
I mean, I was like, we can do
this. Together we can do this.
And Josh just sort
of woke up.
Right before my eyes,
he just sort of woke up
and he said,
"Of course we can. "
And so... we get this
place on the Bowery
not the new Bowery,
it's the old Bowery,
we had rats, big
fucking rats
the size of cats,
I swear it.
We'd meet our clients
out at restaurants,
we couldn't bring them
back to the office,
it wasn't an office,
not really.
Could we just get a water?
This first guy,
his name was Goldblatt,
he was, like,
what can you do?
And I was like,
And he's just when can you get it up?
And I
don't hesitate,
I say, Week after next but
that's gonna cost you another 25.
I'll squeeze you in
before Hardy McNimman.
Of course there was
no Hardy McNimman.
Know why people
commit to something?
Not because they want to,
because ultimately,
nobody wants anything.
People commit for one reason
and one reason only.
So some other son of a bitch
doesn't get there first.
And that... Hey,
it's Banana Republic.
I don't think
I like your tone.
I don't think
I'm selling it.
It's a little late
for a working stiff.
You get pink-slipped?
As a matter of fact
I'm with Von Treska,
the number
one aggregator...
Way back In May
you guys had
what did your press release
say? First mover advantage
meaning you were the first
guys in the niche market
only then came July.
It turned out
the niche didn't
really exist.
So you did what everybody Like you did.
You said, "We're not a
niche player, we're B2B."
As if that was gonna save your ass.
How many people did that
same exact thing that week?
Fuck you.
It's a lot more fun to
make inventory than sell it.
A lot easier too. How much
do you guys spend in a month
as opposed to
how much comes in?
Or is that old-
school accounting?
I said fuck you.
I heard you
the first time.
If I wanna say it,
I'll say it.
All night If
I want to.
Fuck you, fuck you, and fuck you.
Do you know why
you're even here?
Because we
had a dream.
And you did what guys
like you always do.
You smelled the money. You
came down. You wanted in.
You wanted to
drink the Cru.
Not because you love, not even
because you know what you're doing
but because this is where the action is.
No, because somebody told you
this is where the action is.
You don't know
anything about me.
Guys like you
ain't got no vision.
Ain't got no passion.
Ain't got no soul.
Hey, let me ask
you something.
Do all the flowers
and the fancy dinners
make up for the fact that he's
never been able to make you come?
Open up, Tom!
Come on!
Good morning, Tom.
Nice shiner.
What happened to you?
Somebody obviously had enough.
Hope it wasn't
his brother.
Did you speak
to Josh?
You did talk to him,
didn't you, Tom?
This guy's old school, he's not
gonna fall for the sweet talk.
I can handle this,
Dylan, trust me.
If they ask you
about the shortfall?
I'll let you
handle it.
And if they ask about the e
- Symposium?
I was just shaking things
up. I was trying to inject
a little salutary
controversy the way
that an oyster needs a small
bit of grit to make a pearl.
Believe me,
I got this.
Mr. Barton will
see you now.
Mr. Ogilvy's
with him.
Shall I show
you the way?
Thank you.
What a joy.
What a
significant day.
The pleasure
is all ours.
I'm a busy man
to be sure,
but when the opportunity presents itself
to meet my friends at Landshark,
why, we clear our decks, so to speak.
Allow me to introduce my
senior partner. Cyrus Ogilvy.
Cy? This is
Miss Melanie Hanson,
It's a pleasure.
Mr. Dylan
Gothschalk.
Mr. Thomas Sterling.
COO, CFO, CEO.
We're here today to
seek a fuller partnership.
So that
our futures
are separate but
successful futures.
We'll be
bound together
so that our happiness
can become your happiness.
Happiness? Dear boy, I'm
more interested in RO I.
I'm offering
substantial happiness.
How substantial?
Very substantial.
At what price?
Market value.
Circumstances have changed
over the past few days,
have they not? That
offer no longer stands.
What were you
expecting to pay?
Market value
does not matter
because your stock
trades by appointment.
To sell it, you need
a willing buyer.
And your stock
has no float.
But the real question is the
board. We'll want control.
You're kidding, right?
What do you know
about the Net?
What do you know
about new technology?
Nothing. Not
a fucking thing.
The way people communicate,
the way people think,
the very nature of commerce is
changing, and you're scared shitless.
You don't understand
it, but you want in.
To be quite
honest, Mr. Sterling,
we don't like
your style.
We don't like the way
you conduct yourself.
And though you seem to
have fooled a lot of people,
we don't much like the way
you conduct your business.
And since we don't particularly
want to be In business with you,
you'd have to make it
very much worth our while.
I was In Adam's
House at Harvard,
so I made
some friends.
And then Wharton,
I made a few more,
and in South Hampton
where we summer.
So, on the street,
you could say
I have a lot
of friends.
And they look to me
for my opinion.
When I tell them, I tell
them that we've looked
at the Landshark figures
and we didn't see a future,
I don't have
to say it loudly.
I have only to whisper
it. Do you understand?
By the time
your lockup ends,
you will own 500, 000 shares D
- Listed paper.
You would dump your
entire investment
because you don't
like my style?
Why?
Because I can,
Mr. Sterling.
Is that a threat?
That's just business.
It's what separates
the men from the boys.
So why am I here?
We're Interested In
the future of Landshark.
But we're not
interested in you.
There is no Landshark without me.
Au contraire. By our metrics,
your company would be better off.
Miss Gilbo will
show you out.
Wait.
Don't waste your time. Or ours.
But If I could
just say one thing...
This is not a negotiation.
This is our offer.
Miss Hanson, Mr. Gothschalk,
your brother Joshua,
they'll stay
with the company,
and we'll do everything within our
power to keep the stock price high.
You will step down.
And you will relinquish
all Interest In the company.
We will take
control of the board,
and we will buy your shares
at 15 cents on the dollar.
Mr. Sterling.
You can take it
or leave it.
We need your
answer Immediately.
My brother Joshua gets
a employment contract?
Joshua Sterling will
be well taken care of.
Okay.
Okay.
You have
yourself a deal.
Tom.
I'm fine.
Really I am.
Yeah.
This just In.
Singer and actress Aaliyah has
been killed In a plane crash
over the Bahamas.
According to sources...
Six in quarters.
Thanks.
Jackpot!
Oh, nice.
Hey, can I
get the next one?
It's gonna
be a while.
Jackpot!
Maybe we can...
me and you,
maybe we can...
start...
build, you know.
Make... something.
Uh, like, together.
It's all over, Josh.
Let me shoot
this one.
Nope.
The left flipper?
Jackpot!
See?
Jackpot!
Hmm!
Jackpot!
Are you kidding?
When did you get
out of what?
Jackpot!