Control Freak (2025) Movie Script
..
[dramatic music playing]
[speaker]
You're not good enough.
You're too stupid.
Too ugly.
You are worthless.
That's what she said to me,
and I believed her.
[sighs, sniffles]
Now, raise your hand
if the voice in your head
has ever said any of these things to you.
Yeah. [chuckles]
[gurgling]
Eight years ago,
I was working at a Waffle House
and living inside my Toyota Corolla.
[chuckles] Glamorous, I know.
- [gasps]
- [timer beeps]
And that voice was with me
every minute of every day.
Whenever I aimed for something better,
she convinced me to give up.
[scratching loudly]
Who is she?
She certainly isn't me.
I want to be better,
I want to succeed.
[water splashing lightly]
That voice was a parasite
inside my mind,
and I was a way-too-generous host.
[scratching loudly]
She's holding your best self hostage
while the basic you
goes through your basic life,
day after day,
never reaching your true potential.
But all of that ends here.
I'm gonna show you how
to shut her up once and for all,
and together, we are going to unlock
the best version of you
the world has ever seen.
Are we ready?
[cheering and applause]
[scratching]
[muffled applause]
[scratching]
[scratching]
[gentle music playing]
[couple breathing heavily]
[fire crackling]
[sighs] You got another one.
[paper rustling]
[sighs]
What's up? What is it?
My mom's anniversary is this weekend.
I thought it was next month.
- You wanna do something?
- Like what?
We could, you know, go pay our respects.
Go see your pops.
I wish I could.
I owe the team a new draft.
I thought the last one was solid.
Give yourself a break.
[Valerie Nguyen]
But it's not good enough.
[scratching]
- [clock beeping]
- [button clicking]
- [blender whirring]
- [pencil scribbling]
[scratching]
[water sloshing]
- [music stops]
- [gasps]
- [button beeps]
- [gasping]
- You're kidding me, right?
- Yeah, I wish I was,
but China has a real hard-on
for paperwork.
Can we cut this?
It feels insensitive.
But they need my birth certificate?
Who do they think I am?
A sleeper ISIS agent?
[Crystal] Right?
This would never happen
- to a white cis man.
- That's not what I meant.
Do you think Tony Robbins
is getting his tour canceled
because he doesn't have the proper forms?
- It would never happen.
- Wait, they could cancel the tour?
I mean, hypothetically, sure,
but they won't.
- [scratching loudly]
- Hey, maybe your folks have a copy.
Like, my mom still has
all my kindergarten drawings.
- [scratching stops]
- My queen, don't stress about it.
Look, clearly,
you've got a lot on your plate.
My office is gonna find a work-around.
Worst case, we cut a few days
and we skip Asia for now.
What? No.
No cuts, no changes.
I'll find it.
[gentle, dramatic music playing]
[scratching]
We are all searching.
You feel the pull,
an urge to go somewhere,
but it's not clear where.
You are fumbling around in the darkness,
looking for a light
in the distance to guide you.
But you're looking in the wrong place.
The light you seek is inside of you.
You are the light,
and you choose where to shine it.
[gentle, dramatic music continues]
[sighs]
[creaking murmuring]
[fingers scratching]
[scratching continues]
[sighs]
[keyboard clacking]
[typing]
[scratching]
[Valerie gasping]
[upbeat music playing]
[narrator] [on video] Are you ready
to unleash your inner power?
Her books opened our minds.
Her speeches opened our hearts.
And now, for the first time
in seven years,
the queen of good habits
is taking her life-changing lessons
around the world.
Don't miss your chance
to see Valerie Nguyen
live in your city,
and become unstoppable.
[video stops]
So?
So, I think it's a great start.
[laughing] Okay.
Okay, lay it on me.
The music is a bit much,
pacing is choppy,
and I don't love the script.
That "queen" line? It's cringe.
- [softly chuckles]
- [sighs] And this clip, it's ancient.
Can we shoot something new?
[sighs] We can.
But this has to go out next week, right?
- And?
- And if you obsess over every frame,
then we're not gonna get it out in time.
[Robbie crunching loudly]
You know, you shouldn't talk
to your boss like that.
You should fire me.
Oh, come on!
[sighs]
How are you still eating this crap?
'Cause I love the taste of crap.
[Valerie] [on recording] At first,
a good habit feels like punishment.
You're depriving yourself
of something, right?
"Why can't I just have one bite of cake?
Just one drag of that cigarette?"
But it's not punishment.
It's the exact opposite.
Every time we lace up
those running shoes,
open that journal,
every time we act with intention
and not indulgence,
we are sending a signal to our brains.
We are telling our subconscious
that we matter,
that our mind and our body
are worthy of attention and care.
[fading] That is why a good habit
is the ultimate act of self-love.
[distorted, eerie music playing]
[Valerie sighs]
[muffled crackling]
[crackling continues]
[footsteps]
[phone buzzing]
[Crystal] [on voicemail]
Hey, Queen, it's Crystal.
Look, I know you're swamped
but I really need that birth certificate.
We gotta lock in the sched
and I have some sponsors I'd hate to lose.
So were you able to chat with the fam,
see if they kept a copy?
Look, all I know is that things
are only gonna get crazier...
[crackling drowns out voice]
[scratching]
[sighs]
Yeah.
It's Valerie.
[distorted violin music playing]
[muffled indistinct chatter]
[aquarium water bubbling]
This place is just like I remember.
When you were little,
I have to cut very short,
because you pick cuticles so hard,
make them bleed.
We call you...
[laughing]
I don't remember that.
Finished. You like?
[Aunt Thuy groans]
Do you have those boxes
from the old house?
Why?
There's just some keepsakes I want.
- Back there, if you want to check.
- [phone ringing]
But your-- [sighs]
[ringing continues]
[Aunt Thuy speaking Vietnamese]
[electricity buzzing]
[door clicking shut]
[quiet, dramatic music playing]
- [electricity buzzing]
- [lights click]
[Valerie breathing heavily]
[ominous music playing]
[insects buzzing]
There's a box missing.
- Do you know where it is?
- Your dad took it.
[ominous music resumes]
[muffled water sloshing]
[crunching]
- [scratching]
- [water lapping]
[water splashes]
[fingers scratching]
[Robbie]
"Reggie."
That sounds-- Reggie doesn't work
until he's older, I don't think.
"Riley," I like.
That's pretty fun.
Um... I like Ron.
For a girl, that's nice.
Or "Ronalt," with a "t."
- What about Rodrigo?
- Wait. Isn't that Spanish?
[Robbie]
Yeah, we could learn Spanish.
Don't you want, like, a beautiful
Spanish man as a child?
Could play flamenco guitar for us.
[in Latin accent] Rodrigo.
[normal]
Val, what's up?
Look, I know that it is taking forever
and it feels like it's not gonna happen.
It's gonna happen.
[weak laugh] Totally.
I mean, it's not like
they would cancel the tour.
[chuckles]
I was talking about getting pregnant.
- I'm sorry.
- [laughing] That's okay.
- My head's all over the place and--
- Yeah.
Oh, you know, I've been meaning
- to talk to you about the--
- Oh, hon, you're doing it again.
- You gotta see someone about that, really.
- Oh, no.
It's just an itch, okay?
[softly]
It's just an itch.
[dramatic music playing]
[scratching]
[sighs]
[sighs]
[scratching loudly]
[exhales sharply]
[flesh squelching]
[sighs]
[music stops]
[tape crackling]
[Valerie sighs]
[doctor] [on phone]
You've had this for 11 months,
and you're calling me now?
Sorry, Doc, work's been crazy.
I've been using a corticosteroid,
but it's not working.
Could you prescribe me a betamethasone?
[doctor] Valerie,
I need to examine you in person first.
I just need stronger medicine.
[doctor] It's not that simple.
Chronic pruritus is tricky to diagnose.
It could be psoriasis, rosacea.
It could have nothing to do
with your body at all.
What do you mean?
[doctor] I mean, you should consider
additional approaches to diagnosis.
I'm not a therapist,
but given your family history,
this might have more to do
with the psychological components.
Maybe it's something hereditary?
[eerie chanting]
[underwater sloshing]
[muffled screaming]
- [music stops]
- [scratching]
[deep guttural chanting]
[chanting continues]
[chanting continues]
[Sang Nguyen]
You look tired.
I hope you're not working too hard.
No rest for the wicked.
- [Sang] How's Robin?
- Robbie.
He's good.
We got married last year.
Oh.
Children?
Uh, not yet, but we're trying.
Hm.
[sniffles]
[sighs]
[laughing]
It's not what you think.
Though I can't blame you for thinking it.
And I don't blame you for anything, Vy.
[pot thunks]
So, this is it.
This is your life now.
It's a strange concept,
giving up everything one holds dear.
I don't expect you to understand.
You always loved your nice things.
[chuckles]
Oh, but I do understand.
That's why I'm here.
You took some "Earthly attachments"
from the salon.
I came to get them back.
[slurping]
Lighten your cosmic load.
And I thought you came
to honor your mother.
Just give me the boxes
and I'll be out of your hair.
Your figurative hair.
What boxes, Vy?
- You're looking at everything I own.
- I don't have time for your games, Ba.
- I need--
- You don't need anything!
All your wealth and fame,
did it make you happy?
- [mysterious crackling]
- Or does it weigh you down,
as you struggle to hold onto it
and keep it from slipping
through your fingers?
[crackling stops]
You keep looking at that.
[Valerie] What is it?
- Sanshi.
- Okay.
And why is it the only thing
you have hung up in here?
- It's creepy.
- [eerie music playing]
It's a reminder.
Sanshi translate to "hungry ghost,"
or "hungry parasite."
In times of great calamity, the Sanshi
can take control of a human host
and poison them with... what's the word?
The host weakens
and the Sanshi grows stronger,
until one day...
[breathing heavily]
Okay, Ba, you're creeping me out.
Just... give me the boxes and I...
Vy! Vy!
Are you okay?
[hissing]
[Valerie gasps]
[music stops]
Wait, I'll get some water.
No, it's okay, I'm fine.
[breathing heavily]
[dark, tense music playing]
Of course.
"Cherokee Storage"?
[distorted, eerie music playing]
[fingers scratching]
[music fades out]
[dark, ominous music playing]
- [knocking]
- [Valerie gasps]
[Valerie sighs]
Sorry, um, are you Valerie "De-jo-yen"?
- Yeah.
- Oh, my God!
You're, like, my mom's hero.
She was a smoker for 30 years,
she reads your book...
- [claps hands]
- ...And, boom, she quits cold turkey.
You, like, saved her life.
- Wow.
- Oh my God,
I gotta get a picture.
She's gonna die!
- Cheese!
- [camera clicks]
- Can you roll it down a little?
- Oh, yeah, okay.
- Just one more angle, sorry.
- Oh, yeah.
[camera clicks]
[footsteps approaching]
[lights clicking on]
[lights clicking off]
- [lock clatters]
- [door rattles]
[electricity buzzing]
[eerie, dramatic music playing]
- [drawer slams]
- [sighs]
[eerie music continues]
[paper rustling]
[drawer closes]
[lights clicking]
[quick footsteps passing]
[lights clicking]
[running footsteps]
[person sobbing]
[sobbing continues]
[lights clicking]
[sobbing continues]
Hello?
Are you okay?
[soft sobbing continues]
I won't hurt you.
[insects rustling]
[suspenseful music building]
[shrieking, gasping]
- You scared me.
- Is this your locker?
Uh...
- No, it was open, I just heard--
- Do you have an ID on you, ma'am?
[breathing heavily]
[whispering]
You are the light. The light is you.
You are the light.
And the light is you.
[dramatic music playing]
[scratching]
[Valerie] Now, take it from
someone who has been there.
Life is hard.
A little pill and a life coach
won't change that.
It's up to you.
Stop making excuses,
start taking action.
If a situation is out of your control,
control the way you react.
Keep to the path
and remember your truth.
You're an unstoppable force.
- [bug squishing]
- Fucker.
[Valerie sighs]
- [loud thud]
- [gasps]
[soft, pensive music playing]
[music darkens]
[fingers scratching]
So, how is he? [crunches]
Same as he ever was.
You know, if I knew that you were going,
I could've come, been your backup.
[grunts]
It was a last-minute decision.
- I-I can help you.
- No, I got it.
Okay. [chuckles]
I'd like for our kids to know
where they came from.
I think that they should meet
their grandpa someday.
If he's still alive by then.
God, Val, that's fucked up.
- Wh-- I'm just being realistic.
- [lid pops]
The man's been an addict
for half a century.
It's a miracle
he can still stand up straight.
[Robbie] He's still your father.
I'm aware.
[jar thuds]
[Robbie sighs]
And you know that what happened
to your mom was an accident?
It wasn't his fault, it wasn't your fault.
You know that, right?
It's not your fault, Val.
Oh, my God.
Are you Good Will Hunting me right now?
- [sighs]
- That's a movie, babe.
[Robbie scoffs]
In real life, there's no magical therapist
to hug away the pain.
It takes years of hard work
that you have to do yourself.
There's a good book on this, actually.
[dishes clinking]
[book thuds]
[quiet, dramatic music playing]
[tape ripping]
[insects chirring]
[eerie music playing]
[Valerie coughing]
[gasping, coughing intensifies]
[thuds]
[gasping, coughing]
[groans, gasps]
[gasping, breathing heavily]
[deep breaths]
[groans]
[eerie, curious music playing]
[phone buzzing]
[recorded voice] Your call has been
forwarded to an auto--
[sighs]
[salt pattering]
[eerie, dramatic music playing]
[scratching]
I don't want it!
I don't want to sign it!
[Valerie sighs]
Vy, why you order this?
Sorry about this.
Color all wrong.
I don't have space for this.
You're going to love it.
All the new salons have them.
[Valerie]
My new tour starts Saturday.
I'd love to have you...
[massage chair lightly vibrating]
Tea getting cold.
[Vietnamese music playing faintly]
Look, I was so young when Ma passed,
I barely remember her.
I wanna know who she was.
Who knew her better than you?
She was a good woman.
Smart.
And stubborn, like you.
Was she... happy?
[Aunt Thuy]
Happy? [chuckles]
Sure.
Why'd she hurt herself?
What was wrong with her?
[Aunt Thuy]
[groans] You want to slander her memory?
She wore long sleeves to cover them up,
but sometimes she forgot.
What was it?
Mental illness?
Drugs?
Look, I need to know.
Please?
[sighs]
After the war...
something terrible took hold of her.
Curse her.
[ominous music playing]
No more question.
[music fades out]
What about my father?
Stay away from him, Vy .
[Valerie sighs]
[scratching]
[eerie chanting music playing]
[music intensifies]
- [music stops]
- [exhales]
Come see me live
and become unstoppable.
Let me do it one more time?
- [Robbie] Yeah, yeah.
- Okay.
Come see me live
and become unstoppable.
Okay, cut.
I think we got it.
Let's move on to stills.
[flash popping, camera clicking]
Hey, Val, babe,
can we lose the hat for a few shots?
Hat stays.
[photographer] Turn to your left.
- [camera clicking]
- [mysterious hissing]
[mysterious crackling]
[electricity buzzing]
[camera clicking rapidly]
[mysterious crackling continues]
[scratching]
- [mysterious growling]
- [Valerie screaming]
[Valerie sighs]
[Robbie]
I've never seen her do that.
[Crystal]
Relax, it's just stress.
[Robbie] It's not just stress.
Did you not just see that?
- We have to delay the tour or something.
- [scoffs] Yeah, she'd love that.
- [Valerie groans]
- [Robbie] Crystal,
there's something wrong with her.
[Crystal] Robert, this is
Val's opportunity to up-level.
She's going for it.
Are you really that intimidated
by a strong woman?
- [Robbie scoffs]
- Get over yourself. [chuckles]
Crystal, are you serious?
We have to talk about this.
- [gentle, dramatic music playing]
- [breathing anxiously]
- [water babbling]
- [muffled scream]
[gasping breaths]
[music fades out]
[sighs]
Are you ready to talk?
Oh, what? Don't give me a hard time.
I haven't had a drink in months.
Val, I--
Oh. [chuckles]
Oh, okay.
[Robbie chuckles]
Wait, we should check your, uh,
your ovulation, okay?
[breathing heavily]
Oh, baby.
[grunts] Yeah?
Is that how you want it?
Okay.
[both breathing heavily]
[Robbie]
Oh, fuck.
[Valerie gasps]
[grunting] Ow, fuck.
[laughs] Chill.
- [tense music playing]
- [Valerie breathing heavily]
[Robbie]
Ow, Val. Stop.
Oh, fuck! Val, what the fuck?
I said stop, that hurts.
[Robbie groaning]
[exhales sharply]
Ow, what the fuck?
Am I bleeding?
I got caught up.
I'm sorry.
Yeah. You--
Can you get a towel or something?
Baby.
I would never hurt you.
No, Val, that's not gonna work.
Okay, that's gonna work.
Okay, fuck.
[moaning]
[breathing heavily]
Yeah, just like that's good.
Val, what?
Val, what the fuck?
Val, Val.
[anxious breathing]
Oh, God.
Baby?
Look, I talked to the doctor, okay?
He said it's not a big deal.
He said it's not a big deal?
Come on, let me see it.
I'm just trying to help you, okay?
Okay, I don't need your help!
Look, this is not your problem.
Stop trying to control the situation.
Val, I'm not trying to control anything.
You're the biggest fucking control freak
in the universe.
When you speak with hyperbole,
it's hard to take you seriously.
Don't talk to me like
I'm one of your fucking clients, Val.
Then stop acting like a fucking child.
You're scratching a fucking hole
- in your head, Val!
- [Valerie yelps]
I'm serious.
- [groans] Okay!
- Don't touch me.
How do you expect
to take care of a fucking kid
if you can't take care of yourself, Val?
I'm gonna sleep on the couch, okay?
You can sleep in the fucking crime scene.
Robbie!
[exclaiming]
[eerie music playing]
[water trickling]
[fire crackling]
[drill whirring]
[grunting]
[sighs]
[dramatic music playing]
[exhales sharply]
[drill whirring]
[switches beeping]
- [alarm beeps]
- [contraption rattling]
[sighing]
[lights click]
[low rumbling]
[rumbling continues]
[Valerie breathing heavily]
[rumbling continues]
[mysterious crackling]
[scratching]
[creature growling]
- [panicked breathing]
- [crackling continues]
[growling]
[gasping]
[knocking]
[Robbie] Val?
Val, what's going on, what happened?
I'm okay.
It was just a bad dream.
- [pounding]
- [Robbie] Val--
It's okay, I'm fine.
[Robbie] Open the door!
- [pounding]
- What's going on? Val, open the door.
I'm coming, I'm coming.
- [pounding continues]
- Val, open the door now.
- Val, open the fucking door!
- It was just a nightmare.
[roaring]
[screaming]
[labored breathing]
[ripping, slicing]
[whirring]
Hey, are you hungry?
I made breakfast.
[cup thunks]
[sighs]
I'm sorry.
Okay? I've been...
shutting you out and it's not fair.
It's just, um...
it's my head.
Of course, it is, right?
It's something...
inside my head, and I think it's, um...
always been there...
since I was a little kid, but it's--
[gentle, dramatic music playing]
But it's making me do things,
and I can't stop.
I keep doing these things, Robbie, I--
[exhales sharply]
[exhales sharply] It's...
It's not me, okay?
[laughs weakly]
You know me.
This isn't me.
Babe?
Robbie.
[sighs] Okay.
[scratching]
[sighs]
[exhales]
Fuck.
What the fuck? What the fuck?
[chuckles] Baby.
Look, this is all just
a big misunderstanding.
Look, I've always wanted kids.
You know that.
Look, if you just come home,
I can explain--
[recorded voice] The mailbox is full
and cannot accept any messages.
[shouts] Fuck!
Fuck, fuck, fuck!
[sighs]
What do you truly want?
Your basic self is trapped on the surface.
She lives only for the moment.
Basic Val, she wants a cigarette
and a bag of gummy worms.
But your true self, she dives deeper.
She lives for the future.
And how does she get there?
[gagging, spitting]
By doing her daily work.
[eerie, tense music playing]
Now, start small.
Start slow.
Start with simple, manageable habits
you can commit to every day.
And then, build on that foundation,
every week, every month, every year.
[hammer banging]
Soon, you'll see improvements.
You'll feel happier, more confident.
[spray can hissing]
And as you build momentum,
I promise you...
- [hammer banging]
- [spray can hissing]
...you won't ever want to stop.
[banging]
[grunting]
Vy?
- [sighs]
- Your door was open.
- [music stops]
- Hey, Ba.
[blows]
- [Sang] How's the tea?
- It's good.
- Where's Robin?
- Robbie.
He's at work.
Ba, what are you doing here?
Uh... [clears throat]
Vy, I wasn't always around
when you were little.
You were a strong girl, and so normal.
[sighs]
I was sure you didn't inherit it.
I was wrong.
You're infected, Vy, it's in your blood.
Infected.
With what?
Sanshi. [clearing throat]
Are you in withdrawal?
Is that why you're here?
This isn't about me.
[slurping]
I'm not giving you any more money.
[cup thuds, pieces clatter]
What was in that tea?
[tense music playing]
It's not going to stop.
- Did you drug me?
- What?
You'll keep hurting yourself again,
and again, and again.
You should go.
I'm serious.
You need my help.
[tense music continues]
I need you out of my house,
you psycho junkie.
[Valerie gasps]
[music softens]
[clasps clicking]
Be careful, Vy.
[breathes anxiously]
Okay.
[retching]
[labored breathing]
[distorted eerie music playing]
[softly]
They're drugging you.
[labored breathing]
You're not crazy.
[breathing anxiously]
Your family is.
[eerie music stops]
[breathing heavily]
[coughing]
- [engine revving]
- [tires screeching]
[hammer banging]
[lights clicking]
[Sang] [voice echoing]
What boxes, Vy?
I thought you came to honor your mother.
- [electricity buzzing]
- [siren wailing in distance]
[jarring, distorted music playing]
[swarm scurrying]
[music stops]
[thunder crashing]
[chanting music playing]
- [rainfall outside]
- [phone buzzing]
Okay, I know this is gonna
sound insane, but, um,
my dad just came over
and I think that he might have--
[Robbie] [on phone] Val, slow down.
I can barely hear you.
Robbie? Hello?
- [Robbie] The connection sucks up here.
- Robbie, I can't--
- [Robbie] Hello?
- Fuck.
- [phone thunks]
- [sighs]
[water dripping]
[thunder crashing]
[thunder continues]
[eerie, suspenseful music playing]
[rain pattering]
[thunder crashing]
[Valerie shrieks]
[eerie, dramatic music playing]
[muffled screaming]
[disorienting music playing]
I found your stash.
I want answers, Ba,
and if I smell a whiff of your bullshit,
I'm taking this straight to the abbot.
[floorboards creaking]
I'll do it.
I will ruin you.
Why'd you do it?
- [slams drawer]
- Answer me!
I don't know what you're talking about.
Now, take a deep breath.
[Valerie grunting]
[both grunt]
- [Valerie grunting]
- [thud]
That's mine!
Don't fucking move.
[labored breathing]
What was it, Ba?
She find out about your habit?
Were you afraid she'd expose you?
Why'd you kill Mom?
[tense music playing]
I had to save you.
I told myself you didn't have it,
but she knew the truth.
You were born with it,
and it's all my fault.
[sobbing]
I summoned it.
- [gunshot]
- [helicopter whirring]
[light splashing]
[eerie echoing voice hissing]
[mysterious crackling]
I passed it to your mother.
It grew inside us like a parasite,
and the more we hurt ourselves,
the stronger it grew.
We tried to stop, but Sanshi is...
Patient, it withers you away, day by day,
year by year, until there's nothing left.
[inhales sharply, grunts]
[mysterious crackling]
She wanted to save you from it .
But it's part of you. [laughing]
It is you.
Do you understand?
There's only one way to kill it.
[gentle, dramatic music playing]
She wanted to save you.
[gasps]
[whispering] No.
[gentle, dramatic music continues]
- You're lying.
- No.
She would never hurt me.
There was no other way.
No salvation.
- No escape.
- [muffled scream]
Stop!
[exhales sharply]
[sniffling]
There's no demon, Ba.
There is just you.
And you're fucking pathetic.
[whimpering]
[sobbing]
[traffic rushing by]
- [phone buzzing]
- Robbie?
[Crystal] [on phone]
Where the hell are you?
- Hey, Crystal.
- [Crystal] I called you like 50 times.
Val, you're on in 30 minutes.
- Shit.
- [Crystal] Get your ass over here.
Do the best you can,
we've got 10 minutes.
- Oh! The hat stays.
- Oh, come on.
You are not wearing that hat
in front of 2,000 people, okay?
We have some major guests
here tonight, Valerie.
- Robbie.
- Valerie.
Valerie, where are you going?!
Fuck off, Crystal!
[Crystal scoffs]
Joey got a lot of the audience
coming in, but I want you to...
- Robbie, baby, please, please . Hi.
- ...getting B-roll the whole time.
Just give us a second, sorry.
- What, Val?
- I love you.
I love you,
and whatever you need me to do,
- I'll do it, okay?
- [sighs]
- Val...
- Hey.
I mean it, okay?
I'll cancel the tour,
I swear, just say the word.
[heavy breaths]
Let me show you.
Let me make this right.
Look, I'm not buying it anymore.
Okay, maybe they will.
So ...
[sighs]
Good luck.
[scratching]
[announcer]
Ladies and gentlemen,
please welcome to the stage
Valerie Nguyen!
[cheering and applause]
[uplifting music plays in studio]
Who is feeling brave tonight?
Huh? Anybody?
- Uh, how about you?
- [quiet chatter]
[chuckles]
[applause]
[Valerie]
Do you know who that is?
Um, me?
That is the person
who's going to change your life forever.
Not me, not your husband,
your shrink, or your priest.
Her.
Here's the thing, folks.
There is no golden ticket.
The cavalry isn't coming.
You are alone in an indifferent world.
No one can save you.
[scratching]
And no one can hold you back
from your power.
Look at her.
She holds the cards.
She is the guiding force
of her own destiny,
and she is the only person
who will always have your back,
no matter what.
- Because--
- [mysterious crackling]
[whooshing echo]
[Valerie gasping]
- [labored breathing]
- [whooshing echo]
[gasping]
[unsettling music playing]
[yelps]
- [shrieks, grunting]
- [audience gasps]
[yelps]
[grunting]
[unsettling music continues]
[Valerie grunts]
[gasps]
[Robbie]
Val! Val!
- [Crystal] Val!
- [Robbie] Val, wait.
- Val!
- Val, you're bleeding!
[scratching]
[horn honking]
[suspenseful music playing]
[panicked breathing]
Wake up.
I saw it.
And it's real,
and you were right.
[grunts]
I'm sorry. [sniffling]
We can fix this.
We can fix it together.
There's still time.
Ba. Ba.
[panicked breathing]
[phone thuds]
[flesh squelches]
[flesh squelching]
[jarring dramatic music playing]
[gagging]
[music intensifies]
[music softens]
[music fades out]
She incurred damage here
in the left hemisphere,
causing a loss of motor control
on the right side of her body.
But we're hopeful
this will improve over time.
[machines beeping]
[Robbie]
How?
[doctor]
Well, when the cortex is damaged,
uh, movement can either be temporarily
or permanently diminished.
No, how does somebody scratch a hole
in their fucking skull?
- [sighs]
- A bacterial infection
likely softened the cranial tissue,
allowing her to penetrate
the parietal bone.
We're talking months,
even years of slow damage, like...
[Robbie sniffles, sighs]
...like driving the head of a pin
through a stone.
- [machines beeping]
- [distant hospital chatter]
[dramatic, eerie music playing]
[electricity buzzing]
[low growling]
[light clicking]
[eerie music intensifies]
[Sanshi roars]
- [music fades out]
- [leaves rustling]
[water babbling]
[soft music playing]
You're getting your movement back.
I'll be walking again in no time.
Yeah.
Keep those shoulders up
and your focus forward.
[gentle classical music playing]
- You got it, Val.
- [grunts]
Hey, I got you.
Okay, okay.
[doctor]
Now, her occipital lobe is fine,
but damage to the frontal lobe
may result in hallucinations or delusions.
Now, Val, have you been seeing
or hearing anything unusual?
Val.
No.
Nothing unusual.
- I-I don't see--
- [doctor] Oh.
Sorry about that.
So, I wanted to go over...
[voice fading]
[birds chirping]
[lightly scratching]
[Robbie sighs]
Is this too tight, or...?
No.
Hey, this would be kinda kinky
if it wasn't so fucked up.
[chuckles]
[sighs] Goodnight.
[scratching]
Oh, come on.
Val, what the fuck?
Are you hiding a knife or something?
What's--
No, no, it wasn't me.
Who was it?
Who was it?
Um,
Robbie, you have
to listen to me, okay?
Look, my dad came over,
and I think he gave me something,
and, um, now I think there's something
inside of me.
- Okay, Val--
- And I can't stop.
- Come on.
- I can't.
Where is it?
Robbie?
Robbie, listen to me, okay? I was--
- What the fuck?
- No.
I didn't-- that wasn't me, okay?
You have to believe me.
I'm not lying to you, Robbie, okay?
It's something inside of me.
- Please, you have--
- You're a liar.
Robbie, you have to believe me.
Robbie!
[breathing anxiously]
[whimpering]
[gentle, somber music playing]
[sniffling]
[Valerie] [on video] Your state of mind
determines your reality.
If you think you're gonna fail,
guess what?
You're gonna fail.
Change your attitude,
commit to success, believe.
No one knows
what you're capable of except you.
No one else can see inside your mind.
And thank God for that, right?
Because if they ever saw
who you really are,
they would be disgusted.
[tense, ominous music playing]
He's on to you, Val,
and when he tells them,
they're gonna lock you in the loony bin.
[distant bang]
[tense, ominous music continues]
[Robbie] That's not really
addressing the issue, doctor. I--
She's recovering, sure.
She's getting back on her feet soon
I'm sure. It's--
What does it matter if her body recovers
and her mind doesn't?
Okay, it's-- hold on one second.
[door creaking shut]
She's not the same!
There's something else--
[jarring dramatic music playing]
[music fades out]
[Valerie]
Good evening, my love.
Come on, have a seat.
It's bun bo hu, my grandma's recipe.
I made it for our third date, remember?
Yeah.
Go ahead.
I already ate.
[sighs]
Oh, my God.
- It's good, right?
- It's so good.
[laughing]
Keep eating.
[slurping lightly]
- Hey.
- [spoon clinks]
I'm really sorry about everything.
[chuckles] Shit. Yeah.
Me too. That...
really, really made me angry.
I don't like being angry, and...
[swallows roughly]
- But... [groans]
- When I said I wanted kids, I meant it.
Okay, but something wouldn't let me do it.
Robbie, there's something inside of me
and I have to get it out.
- That's fucked up.
- [spoon clatters]
- [body thuds]
- [Robbie grunts lightly]
[tense music playing]
[sighs]
[struggling]
Hey.
[shushing]
- It's okay, it's okay.
- [Robbie mumbling]
Just give me a few days
to figure this out,
and everything
can go back to normal, okay?
- [Robbie grunting]
- Baby, baby, hey, hey.
- [grunting]
- I know this sucks.
But I'm gonna make you
really comfortable, okay?
- See?
- [narrator] [on audiobook] Chapter five,
the power of choice.
- I love you.
- [Robbie grunting]
[narrator] The path will test you,
but sooner or later,
you're faced with a challenge
so difficult,
- it feels damn near impossible.
- [muffled screaming]
You'll feel helpless and trapped,
but not alone.
Great men and women
have stood right there
in that same spot,
but did they give in to their fear?
No.
They chose belief--
belief in themselves,
in their path,
in something far greater
than that one single difficult moment.
So... what do you believe in?
[match striking]
[eerie humming music playing]
[cartoony music playing]
[music continues]
[TV clicking]
[channels changing]
Look, I don't know what you're after,
but if you tell me, maybe I can help you.
I mean, you kinda need me, right?
Can't we find some arrangement
that doesn't involve both of us dying?
Come on.
I know you're there.
What do you want?
What do you want?
[breathing heavily]
Answer me!
[low mysterious growling]
[mysterious crackling]
- [growling]
- [Valerie shrieks]
[shrieking]
[tense, ominous music playing]
[Valerie shrieks]
[grunting]
[Sanshi hissing]
[Valerie screaming]
[Sanshi laughing]
[roaring]
[glass breaking]
[Valerie panting]
[Valerie screams]
[sobbing]
[scratching]
Will you stop that?
[scratching stops]
- I can't.
- [scoffs]
"I can't. I can't."
You are so pathetic,
it makes me want to puke.
- No wonder no one loves you.
- [softly crying]
I can't stop.
Then you know what you have to do.
Like this. See?
[flesh squelching]
It's quick.
It's easy.
[flesh squelches]
Don't worry.
No one...
will miss you.
[mysterious crackling]
- [screaming]
- [items clattering]
[panting]
[gentle, suspenseful music playing]
[saw buzzing]
- Val?
- [saw buzzing continues]
[saw thunks]
- Val, what are you doing?
- [buzzing continues]
[drill whirring]
[eerie humming]
[gentle, suspenseful music continues]
[Robbie]
Val!
- Val, what are you doing?!
- It's gonna be okay!
[saw buzzing]
[Robbie]
Val!
Val, what are you doing? Stop!
[buzzing continues]
[grunting]
[dramatic, eerie music playing]
[breathing heavily]
[grunting]
Fuck! [panting]
[Valerie screams]
- [items clatter]
- [screams]
- [saw whirring]
- [screaming]
[bones crunching]
[screaming]
- [flesh sizzling]
- [screaming]
No!
[grunting] Come on!
[hollering]
[hand thuds]
[dramatic music playing]
[phone line ringing]
[operator] [on phone]
911, what is your emergency?
911. Hello?
Please respond.
Are you able to respond?
We can dispatch someone to your location.
911. Hello?
[Sanshi hissing]
[crackling]
[Sanshi cackling]
[Sanshi laughing]
[crackling]
Okay.
[Sanshi screeching]
[saw buzzing]
- [Sanshi screaming]
- [saw whirring]
[Sanshi growls and screams]
[arm crunches]
[tools clatter]
[Sanshi screaming]
- No! [panting]
- [Sanshi laughing]
[grunting]
[panting]
[saw buzzing]
[screaming]
[saw whirring]
[Valerie screaming]
[flesh squelching]
[panting]
[silence]
[gasps, grunts]
[breathing heavily]
[tense, solemn music playing]
[sighing]
[crackling]
[crackling and squelching]
[grunting]
[screaming]
[grunting]
[breathing heavily]
[glass shatters]
[labored breathing]
[Valerie grunting]
[whimpering]
[Sanshi growls]
[Valerie screams]
[panicked breathing]
[eerie, ominous music playing]
[grunting]
[crackling]
[Sanshi growling]
[Valerie breathing heavily]
- [water splashes]
- [music stops]
[underwater sloshing]
[gentle, somber music playing]
[Sanshi screeching]
[Valerie] That voice was with me,
every minute of every day.
Whenever I aimed for something better,
she would convince me to give up.
But who is she?
She certainly isn't me.
That voice was a parasite
inside my mind.
And I was a way-too-generous host.
But even now, years after
I trained myself to silence her,
her words still echo in my head.
Does that mean she was right all along?
Am I still alone?
Am I still... unlovable?
Can anyone save me?
[gentle, somber music continues]
[muffled screeching]
[both gasping]
[Robbie]
I got you.
[both breathing laboriously]
I got you, I got you,
I got you, I got you.
What is that? What is it?
What is that?
[labored breathing]
[creature whimpering]
It's me.
[water babbling]
[gentle music playing]
[branches rustling]
[water trickling]
[water babbling]
Fuck.
You scared me.
[sighs]
I'm sorry.
I, um,
I had a whole speech planned, but...
[sighs]
Um...
- [Robbie sighs]
- I'm sorry, could you help me with this?
[sighs]
Like, it'd be insane
for you to stay, but ...
I'm asking you anyway.
I don't know what I'm doing.
I don't think I've ever known
what I'm doing. I--
Baby...
I know I wanna do this with you.
[gentle, solemn music playing]
[baby crying]
[Valerie and baby laughing]
Yeah.
[scurrying]
That's our choice.
[gentle, solemn music playing]
[music fades out]
[dramatic music playing]
[speaker]
You're not good enough.
You're too stupid.
Too ugly.
You are worthless.
That's what she said to me,
and I believed her.
[sighs, sniffles]
Now, raise your hand
if the voice in your head
has ever said any of these things to you.
Yeah. [chuckles]
[gurgling]
Eight years ago,
I was working at a Waffle House
and living inside my Toyota Corolla.
[chuckles] Glamorous, I know.
- [gasps]
- [timer beeps]
And that voice was with me
every minute of every day.
Whenever I aimed for something better,
she convinced me to give up.
[scratching loudly]
Who is she?
She certainly isn't me.
I want to be better,
I want to succeed.
[water splashing lightly]
That voice was a parasite
inside my mind,
and I was a way-too-generous host.
[scratching loudly]
She's holding your best self hostage
while the basic you
goes through your basic life,
day after day,
never reaching your true potential.
But all of that ends here.
I'm gonna show you how
to shut her up once and for all,
and together, we are going to unlock
the best version of you
the world has ever seen.
Are we ready?
[cheering and applause]
[scratching]
[muffled applause]
[scratching]
[scratching]
[gentle music playing]
[couple breathing heavily]
[fire crackling]
[sighs] You got another one.
[paper rustling]
[sighs]
What's up? What is it?
My mom's anniversary is this weekend.
I thought it was next month.
- You wanna do something?
- Like what?
We could, you know, go pay our respects.
Go see your pops.
I wish I could.
I owe the team a new draft.
I thought the last one was solid.
Give yourself a break.
[Valerie Nguyen]
But it's not good enough.
[scratching]
- [clock beeping]
- [button clicking]
- [blender whirring]
- [pencil scribbling]
[scratching]
[water sloshing]
- [music stops]
- [gasps]
- [button beeps]
- [gasping]
- You're kidding me, right?
- Yeah, I wish I was,
but China has a real hard-on
for paperwork.
Can we cut this?
It feels insensitive.
But they need my birth certificate?
Who do they think I am?
A sleeper ISIS agent?
[Crystal] Right?
This would never happen
- to a white cis man.
- That's not what I meant.
Do you think Tony Robbins
is getting his tour canceled
because he doesn't have the proper forms?
- It would never happen.
- Wait, they could cancel the tour?
I mean, hypothetically, sure,
but they won't.
- [scratching loudly]
- Hey, maybe your folks have a copy.
Like, my mom still has
all my kindergarten drawings.
- [scratching stops]
- My queen, don't stress about it.
Look, clearly,
you've got a lot on your plate.
My office is gonna find a work-around.
Worst case, we cut a few days
and we skip Asia for now.
What? No.
No cuts, no changes.
I'll find it.
[gentle, dramatic music playing]
[scratching]
We are all searching.
You feel the pull,
an urge to go somewhere,
but it's not clear where.
You are fumbling around in the darkness,
looking for a light
in the distance to guide you.
But you're looking in the wrong place.
The light you seek is inside of you.
You are the light,
and you choose where to shine it.
[gentle, dramatic music continues]
[sighs]
[creaking murmuring]
[fingers scratching]
[scratching continues]
[sighs]
[keyboard clacking]
[typing]
[scratching]
[Valerie gasping]
[upbeat music playing]
[narrator] [on video] Are you ready
to unleash your inner power?
Her books opened our minds.
Her speeches opened our hearts.
And now, for the first time
in seven years,
the queen of good habits
is taking her life-changing lessons
around the world.
Don't miss your chance
to see Valerie Nguyen
live in your city,
and become unstoppable.
[video stops]
So?
So, I think it's a great start.
[laughing] Okay.
Okay, lay it on me.
The music is a bit much,
pacing is choppy,
and I don't love the script.
That "queen" line? It's cringe.
- [softly chuckles]
- [sighs] And this clip, it's ancient.
Can we shoot something new?
[sighs] We can.
But this has to go out next week, right?
- And?
- And if you obsess over every frame,
then we're not gonna get it out in time.
[Robbie crunching loudly]
You know, you shouldn't talk
to your boss like that.
You should fire me.
Oh, come on!
[sighs]
How are you still eating this crap?
'Cause I love the taste of crap.
[Valerie] [on recording] At first,
a good habit feels like punishment.
You're depriving yourself
of something, right?
"Why can't I just have one bite of cake?
Just one drag of that cigarette?"
But it's not punishment.
It's the exact opposite.
Every time we lace up
those running shoes,
open that journal,
every time we act with intention
and not indulgence,
we are sending a signal to our brains.
We are telling our subconscious
that we matter,
that our mind and our body
are worthy of attention and care.
[fading] That is why a good habit
is the ultimate act of self-love.
[distorted, eerie music playing]
[Valerie sighs]
[muffled crackling]
[crackling continues]
[footsteps]
[phone buzzing]
[Crystal] [on voicemail]
Hey, Queen, it's Crystal.
Look, I know you're swamped
but I really need that birth certificate.
We gotta lock in the sched
and I have some sponsors I'd hate to lose.
So were you able to chat with the fam,
see if they kept a copy?
Look, all I know is that things
are only gonna get crazier...
[crackling drowns out voice]
[scratching]
[sighs]
Yeah.
It's Valerie.
[distorted violin music playing]
[muffled indistinct chatter]
[aquarium water bubbling]
This place is just like I remember.
When you were little,
I have to cut very short,
because you pick cuticles so hard,
make them bleed.
We call you...
[laughing]
I don't remember that.
Finished. You like?
[Aunt Thuy groans]
Do you have those boxes
from the old house?
Why?
There's just some keepsakes I want.
- Back there, if you want to check.
- [phone ringing]
But your-- [sighs]
[ringing continues]
[Aunt Thuy speaking Vietnamese]
[electricity buzzing]
[door clicking shut]
[quiet, dramatic music playing]
- [electricity buzzing]
- [lights click]
[Valerie breathing heavily]
[ominous music playing]
[insects buzzing]
There's a box missing.
- Do you know where it is?
- Your dad took it.
[ominous music resumes]
[muffled water sloshing]
[crunching]
- [scratching]
- [water lapping]
[water splashes]
[fingers scratching]
[Robbie]
"Reggie."
That sounds-- Reggie doesn't work
until he's older, I don't think.
"Riley," I like.
That's pretty fun.
Um... I like Ron.
For a girl, that's nice.
Or "Ronalt," with a "t."
- What about Rodrigo?
- Wait. Isn't that Spanish?
[Robbie]
Yeah, we could learn Spanish.
Don't you want, like, a beautiful
Spanish man as a child?
Could play flamenco guitar for us.
[in Latin accent] Rodrigo.
[normal]
Val, what's up?
Look, I know that it is taking forever
and it feels like it's not gonna happen.
It's gonna happen.
[weak laugh] Totally.
I mean, it's not like
they would cancel the tour.
[chuckles]
I was talking about getting pregnant.
- I'm sorry.
- [laughing] That's okay.
- My head's all over the place and--
- Yeah.
Oh, you know, I've been meaning
- to talk to you about the--
- Oh, hon, you're doing it again.
- You gotta see someone about that, really.
- Oh, no.
It's just an itch, okay?
[softly]
It's just an itch.
[dramatic music playing]
[scratching]
[sighs]
[sighs]
[scratching loudly]
[exhales sharply]
[flesh squelching]
[sighs]
[music stops]
[tape crackling]
[Valerie sighs]
[doctor] [on phone]
You've had this for 11 months,
and you're calling me now?
Sorry, Doc, work's been crazy.
I've been using a corticosteroid,
but it's not working.
Could you prescribe me a betamethasone?
[doctor] Valerie,
I need to examine you in person first.
I just need stronger medicine.
[doctor] It's not that simple.
Chronic pruritus is tricky to diagnose.
It could be psoriasis, rosacea.
It could have nothing to do
with your body at all.
What do you mean?
[doctor] I mean, you should consider
additional approaches to diagnosis.
I'm not a therapist,
but given your family history,
this might have more to do
with the psychological components.
Maybe it's something hereditary?
[eerie chanting]
[underwater sloshing]
[muffled screaming]
- [music stops]
- [scratching]
[deep guttural chanting]
[chanting continues]
[chanting continues]
[Sang Nguyen]
You look tired.
I hope you're not working too hard.
No rest for the wicked.
- [Sang] How's Robin?
- Robbie.
He's good.
We got married last year.
Oh.
Children?
Uh, not yet, but we're trying.
Hm.
[sniffles]
[sighs]
[laughing]
It's not what you think.
Though I can't blame you for thinking it.
And I don't blame you for anything, Vy.
[pot thunks]
So, this is it.
This is your life now.
It's a strange concept,
giving up everything one holds dear.
I don't expect you to understand.
You always loved your nice things.
[chuckles]
Oh, but I do understand.
That's why I'm here.
You took some "Earthly attachments"
from the salon.
I came to get them back.
[slurping]
Lighten your cosmic load.
And I thought you came
to honor your mother.
Just give me the boxes
and I'll be out of your hair.
Your figurative hair.
What boxes, Vy?
- You're looking at everything I own.
- I don't have time for your games, Ba.
- I need--
- You don't need anything!
All your wealth and fame,
did it make you happy?
- [mysterious crackling]
- Or does it weigh you down,
as you struggle to hold onto it
and keep it from slipping
through your fingers?
[crackling stops]
You keep looking at that.
[Valerie] What is it?
- Sanshi.
- Okay.
And why is it the only thing
you have hung up in here?
- It's creepy.
- [eerie music playing]
It's a reminder.
Sanshi translate to "hungry ghost,"
or "hungry parasite."
In times of great calamity, the Sanshi
can take control of a human host
and poison them with... what's the word?
The host weakens
and the Sanshi grows stronger,
until one day...
[breathing heavily]
Okay, Ba, you're creeping me out.
Just... give me the boxes and I...
Vy! Vy!
Are you okay?
[hissing]
[Valerie gasps]
[music stops]
Wait, I'll get some water.
No, it's okay, I'm fine.
[breathing heavily]
[dark, tense music playing]
Of course.
"Cherokee Storage"?
[distorted, eerie music playing]
[fingers scratching]
[music fades out]
[dark, ominous music playing]
- [knocking]
- [Valerie gasps]
[Valerie sighs]
Sorry, um, are you Valerie "De-jo-yen"?
- Yeah.
- Oh, my God!
You're, like, my mom's hero.
She was a smoker for 30 years,
she reads your book...
- [claps hands]
- ...And, boom, she quits cold turkey.
You, like, saved her life.
- Wow.
- Oh my God,
I gotta get a picture.
She's gonna die!
- Cheese!
- [camera clicks]
- Can you roll it down a little?
- Oh, yeah, okay.
- Just one more angle, sorry.
- Oh, yeah.
[camera clicks]
[footsteps approaching]
[lights clicking on]
[lights clicking off]
- [lock clatters]
- [door rattles]
[electricity buzzing]
[eerie, dramatic music playing]
- [drawer slams]
- [sighs]
[eerie music continues]
[paper rustling]
[drawer closes]
[lights clicking]
[quick footsteps passing]
[lights clicking]
[running footsteps]
[person sobbing]
[sobbing continues]
[lights clicking]
[sobbing continues]
Hello?
Are you okay?
[soft sobbing continues]
I won't hurt you.
[insects rustling]
[suspenseful music building]
[shrieking, gasping]
- You scared me.
- Is this your locker?
Uh...
- No, it was open, I just heard--
- Do you have an ID on you, ma'am?
[breathing heavily]
[whispering]
You are the light. The light is you.
You are the light.
And the light is you.
[dramatic music playing]
[scratching]
[Valerie] Now, take it from
someone who has been there.
Life is hard.
A little pill and a life coach
won't change that.
It's up to you.
Stop making excuses,
start taking action.
If a situation is out of your control,
control the way you react.
Keep to the path
and remember your truth.
You're an unstoppable force.
- [bug squishing]
- Fucker.
[Valerie sighs]
- [loud thud]
- [gasps]
[soft, pensive music playing]
[music darkens]
[fingers scratching]
So, how is he? [crunches]
Same as he ever was.
You know, if I knew that you were going,
I could've come, been your backup.
[grunts]
It was a last-minute decision.
- I-I can help you.
- No, I got it.
Okay. [chuckles]
I'd like for our kids to know
where they came from.
I think that they should meet
their grandpa someday.
If he's still alive by then.
God, Val, that's fucked up.
- Wh-- I'm just being realistic.
- [lid pops]
The man's been an addict
for half a century.
It's a miracle
he can still stand up straight.
[Robbie] He's still your father.
I'm aware.
[jar thuds]
[Robbie sighs]
And you know that what happened
to your mom was an accident?
It wasn't his fault, it wasn't your fault.
You know that, right?
It's not your fault, Val.
Oh, my God.
Are you Good Will Hunting me right now?
- [sighs]
- That's a movie, babe.
[Robbie scoffs]
In real life, there's no magical therapist
to hug away the pain.
It takes years of hard work
that you have to do yourself.
There's a good book on this, actually.
[dishes clinking]
[book thuds]
[quiet, dramatic music playing]
[tape ripping]
[insects chirring]
[eerie music playing]
[Valerie coughing]
[gasping, coughing intensifies]
[thuds]
[gasping, coughing]
[groans, gasps]
[gasping, breathing heavily]
[deep breaths]
[groans]
[eerie, curious music playing]
[phone buzzing]
[recorded voice] Your call has been
forwarded to an auto--
[sighs]
[salt pattering]
[eerie, dramatic music playing]
[scratching]
I don't want it!
I don't want to sign it!
[Valerie sighs]
Vy, why you order this?
Sorry about this.
Color all wrong.
I don't have space for this.
You're going to love it.
All the new salons have them.
[Valerie]
My new tour starts Saturday.
I'd love to have you...
[massage chair lightly vibrating]
Tea getting cold.
[Vietnamese music playing faintly]
Look, I was so young when Ma passed,
I barely remember her.
I wanna know who she was.
Who knew her better than you?
She was a good woman.
Smart.
And stubborn, like you.
Was she... happy?
[Aunt Thuy]
Happy? [chuckles]
Sure.
Why'd she hurt herself?
What was wrong with her?
[Aunt Thuy]
[groans] You want to slander her memory?
She wore long sleeves to cover them up,
but sometimes she forgot.
What was it?
Mental illness?
Drugs?
Look, I need to know.
Please?
[sighs]
After the war...
something terrible took hold of her.
Curse her.
[ominous music playing]
No more question.
[music fades out]
What about my father?
Stay away from him, Vy .
[Valerie sighs]
[scratching]
[eerie chanting music playing]
[music intensifies]
- [music stops]
- [exhales]
Come see me live
and become unstoppable.
Let me do it one more time?
- [Robbie] Yeah, yeah.
- Okay.
Come see me live
and become unstoppable.
Okay, cut.
I think we got it.
Let's move on to stills.
[flash popping, camera clicking]
Hey, Val, babe,
can we lose the hat for a few shots?
Hat stays.
[photographer] Turn to your left.
- [camera clicking]
- [mysterious hissing]
[mysterious crackling]
[electricity buzzing]
[camera clicking rapidly]
[mysterious crackling continues]
[scratching]
- [mysterious growling]
- [Valerie screaming]
[Valerie sighs]
[Robbie]
I've never seen her do that.
[Crystal]
Relax, it's just stress.
[Robbie] It's not just stress.
Did you not just see that?
- We have to delay the tour or something.
- [scoffs] Yeah, she'd love that.
- [Valerie groans]
- [Robbie] Crystal,
there's something wrong with her.
[Crystal] Robert, this is
Val's opportunity to up-level.
She's going for it.
Are you really that intimidated
by a strong woman?
- [Robbie scoffs]
- Get over yourself. [chuckles]
Crystal, are you serious?
We have to talk about this.
- [gentle, dramatic music playing]
- [breathing anxiously]
- [water babbling]
- [muffled scream]
[gasping breaths]
[music fades out]
[sighs]
Are you ready to talk?
Oh, what? Don't give me a hard time.
I haven't had a drink in months.
Val, I--
Oh. [chuckles]
Oh, okay.
[Robbie chuckles]
Wait, we should check your, uh,
your ovulation, okay?
[breathing heavily]
Oh, baby.
[grunts] Yeah?
Is that how you want it?
Okay.
[both breathing heavily]
[Robbie]
Oh, fuck.
[Valerie gasps]
[grunting] Ow, fuck.
[laughs] Chill.
- [tense music playing]
- [Valerie breathing heavily]
[Robbie]
Ow, Val. Stop.
Oh, fuck! Val, what the fuck?
I said stop, that hurts.
[Robbie groaning]
[exhales sharply]
Ow, what the fuck?
Am I bleeding?
I got caught up.
I'm sorry.
Yeah. You--
Can you get a towel or something?
Baby.
I would never hurt you.
No, Val, that's not gonna work.
Okay, that's gonna work.
Okay, fuck.
[moaning]
[breathing heavily]
Yeah, just like that's good.
Val, what?
Val, what the fuck?
Val, Val.
[anxious breathing]
Oh, God.
Baby?
Look, I talked to the doctor, okay?
He said it's not a big deal.
He said it's not a big deal?
Come on, let me see it.
I'm just trying to help you, okay?
Okay, I don't need your help!
Look, this is not your problem.
Stop trying to control the situation.
Val, I'm not trying to control anything.
You're the biggest fucking control freak
in the universe.
When you speak with hyperbole,
it's hard to take you seriously.
Don't talk to me like
I'm one of your fucking clients, Val.
Then stop acting like a fucking child.
You're scratching a fucking hole
- in your head, Val!
- [Valerie yelps]
I'm serious.
- [groans] Okay!
- Don't touch me.
How do you expect
to take care of a fucking kid
if you can't take care of yourself, Val?
I'm gonna sleep on the couch, okay?
You can sleep in the fucking crime scene.
Robbie!
[exclaiming]
[eerie music playing]
[water trickling]
[fire crackling]
[drill whirring]
[grunting]
[sighs]
[dramatic music playing]
[exhales sharply]
[drill whirring]
[switches beeping]
- [alarm beeps]
- [contraption rattling]
[sighing]
[lights click]
[low rumbling]
[rumbling continues]
[Valerie breathing heavily]
[rumbling continues]
[mysterious crackling]
[scratching]
[creature growling]
- [panicked breathing]
- [crackling continues]
[growling]
[gasping]
[knocking]
[Robbie] Val?
Val, what's going on, what happened?
I'm okay.
It was just a bad dream.
- [pounding]
- [Robbie] Val--
It's okay, I'm fine.
[Robbie] Open the door!
- [pounding]
- What's going on? Val, open the door.
I'm coming, I'm coming.
- [pounding continues]
- Val, open the door now.
- Val, open the fucking door!
- It was just a nightmare.
[roaring]
[screaming]
[labored breathing]
[ripping, slicing]
[whirring]
Hey, are you hungry?
I made breakfast.
[cup thunks]
[sighs]
I'm sorry.
Okay? I've been...
shutting you out and it's not fair.
It's just, um...
it's my head.
Of course, it is, right?
It's something...
inside my head, and I think it's, um...
always been there...
since I was a little kid, but it's--
[gentle, dramatic music playing]
But it's making me do things,
and I can't stop.
I keep doing these things, Robbie, I--
[exhales sharply]
[exhales sharply] It's...
It's not me, okay?
[laughs weakly]
You know me.
This isn't me.
Babe?
Robbie.
[sighs] Okay.
[scratching]
[sighs]
[exhales]
Fuck.
What the fuck? What the fuck?
[chuckles] Baby.
Look, this is all just
a big misunderstanding.
Look, I've always wanted kids.
You know that.
Look, if you just come home,
I can explain--
[recorded voice] The mailbox is full
and cannot accept any messages.
[shouts] Fuck!
Fuck, fuck, fuck!
[sighs]
What do you truly want?
Your basic self is trapped on the surface.
She lives only for the moment.
Basic Val, she wants a cigarette
and a bag of gummy worms.
But your true self, she dives deeper.
She lives for the future.
And how does she get there?
[gagging, spitting]
By doing her daily work.
[eerie, tense music playing]
Now, start small.
Start slow.
Start with simple, manageable habits
you can commit to every day.
And then, build on that foundation,
every week, every month, every year.
[hammer banging]
Soon, you'll see improvements.
You'll feel happier, more confident.
[spray can hissing]
And as you build momentum,
I promise you...
- [hammer banging]
- [spray can hissing]
...you won't ever want to stop.
[banging]
[grunting]
Vy?
- [sighs]
- Your door was open.
- [music stops]
- Hey, Ba.
[blows]
- [Sang] How's the tea?
- It's good.
- Where's Robin?
- Robbie.
He's at work.
Ba, what are you doing here?
Uh... [clears throat]
Vy, I wasn't always around
when you were little.
You were a strong girl, and so normal.
[sighs]
I was sure you didn't inherit it.
I was wrong.
You're infected, Vy, it's in your blood.
Infected.
With what?
Sanshi. [clearing throat]
Are you in withdrawal?
Is that why you're here?
This isn't about me.
[slurping]
I'm not giving you any more money.
[cup thuds, pieces clatter]
What was in that tea?
[tense music playing]
It's not going to stop.
- Did you drug me?
- What?
You'll keep hurting yourself again,
and again, and again.
You should go.
I'm serious.
You need my help.
[tense music continues]
I need you out of my house,
you psycho junkie.
[Valerie gasps]
[music softens]
[clasps clicking]
Be careful, Vy.
[breathes anxiously]
Okay.
[retching]
[labored breathing]
[distorted eerie music playing]
[softly]
They're drugging you.
[labored breathing]
You're not crazy.
[breathing anxiously]
Your family is.
[eerie music stops]
[breathing heavily]
[coughing]
- [engine revving]
- [tires screeching]
[hammer banging]
[lights clicking]
[Sang] [voice echoing]
What boxes, Vy?
I thought you came to honor your mother.
- [electricity buzzing]
- [siren wailing in distance]
[jarring, distorted music playing]
[swarm scurrying]
[music stops]
[thunder crashing]
[chanting music playing]
- [rainfall outside]
- [phone buzzing]
Okay, I know this is gonna
sound insane, but, um,
my dad just came over
and I think that he might have--
[Robbie] [on phone] Val, slow down.
I can barely hear you.
Robbie? Hello?
- [Robbie] The connection sucks up here.
- Robbie, I can't--
- [Robbie] Hello?
- Fuck.
- [phone thunks]
- [sighs]
[water dripping]
[thunder crashing]
[thunder continues]
[eerie, suspenseful music playing]
[rain pattering]
[thunder crashing]
[Valerie shrieks]
[eerie, dramatic music playing]
[muffled screaming]
[disorienting music playing]
I found your stash.
I want answers, Ba,
and if I smell a whiff of your bullshit,
I'm taking this straight to the abbot.
[floorboards creaking]
I'll do it.
I will ruin you.
Why'd you do it?
- [slams drawer]
- Answer me!
I don't know what you're talking about.
Now, take a deep breath.
[Valerie grunting]
[both grunt]
- [Valerie grunting]
- [thud]
That's mine!
Don't fucking move.
[labored breathing]
What was it, Ba?
She find out about your habit?
Were you afraid she'd expose you?
Why'd you kill Mom?
[tense music playing]
I had to save you.
I told myself you didn't have it,
but she knew the truth.
You were born with it,
and it's all my fault.
[sobbing]
I summoned it.
- [gunshot]
- [helicopter whirring]
[light splashing]
[eerie echoing voice hissing]
[mysterious crackling]
I passed it to your mother.
It grew inside us like a parasite,
and the more we hurt ourselves,
the stronger it grew.
We tried to stop, but Sanshi is...
Patient, it withers you away, day by day,
year by year, until there's nothing left.
[inhales sharply, grunts]
[mysterious crackling]
She wanted to save you from it .
But it's part of you. [laughing]
It is you.
Do you understand?
There's only one way to kill it.
[gentle, dramatic music playing]
She wanted to save you.
[gasps]
[whispering] No.
[gentle, dramatic music continues]
- You're lying.
- No.
She would never hurt me.
There was no other way.
No salvation.
- No escape.
- [muffled scream]
Stop!
[exhales sharply]
[sniffling]
There's no demon, Ba.
There is just you.
And you're fucking pathetic.
[whimpering]
[sobbing]
[traffic rushing by]
- [phone buzzing]
- Robbie?
[Crystal] [on phone]
Where the hell are you?
- Hey, Crystal.
- [Crystal] I called you like 50 times.
Val, you're on in 30 minutes.
- Shit.
- [Crystal] Get your ass over here.
Do the best you can,
we've got 10 minutes.
- Oh! The hat stays.
- Oh, come on.
You are not wearing that hat
in front of 2,000 people, okay?
We have some major guests
here tonight, Valerie.
- Robbie.
- Valerie.
Valerie, where are you going?!
Fuck off, Crystal!
[Crystal scoffs]
Joey got a lot of the audience
coming in, but I want you to...
- Robbie, baby, please, please . Hi.
- ...getting B-roll the whole time.
Just give us a second, sorry.
- What, Val?
- I love you.
I love you,
and whatever you need me to do,
- I'll do it, okay?
- [sighs]
- Val...
- Hey.
I mean it, okay?
I'll cancel the tour,
I swear, just say the word.
[heavy breaths]
Let me show you.
Let me make this right.
Look, I'm not buying it anymore.
Okay, maybe they will.
So ...
[sighs]
Good luck.
[scratching]
[announcer]
Ladies and gentlemen,
please welcome to the stage
Valerie Nguyen!
[cheering and applause]
[uplifting music plays in studio]
Who is feeling brave tonight?
Huh? Anybody?
- Uh, how about you?
- [quiet chatter]
[chuckles]
[applause]
[Valerie]
Do you know who that is?
Um, me?
That is the person
who's going to change your life forever.
Not me, not your husband,
your shrink, or your priest.
Her.
Here's the thing, folks.
There is no golden ticket.
The cavalry isn't coming.
You are alone in an indifferent world.
No one can save you.
[scratching]
And no one can hold you back
from your power.
Look at her.
She holds the cards.
She is the guiding force
of her own destiny,
and she is the only person
who will always have your back,
no matter what.
- Because--
- [mysterious crackling]
[whooshing echo]
[Valerie gasping]
- [labored breathing]
- [whooshing echo]
[gasping]
[unsettling music playing]
[yelps]
- [shrieks, grunting]
- [audience gasps]
[yelps]
[grunting]
[unsettling music continues]
[Valerie grunts]
[gasps]
[Robbie]
Val! Val!
- [Crystal] Val!
- [Robbie] Val, wait.
- Val!
- Val, you're bleeding!
[scratching]
[horn honking]
[suspenseful music playing]
[panicked breathing]
Wake up.
I saw it.
And it's real,
and you were right.
[grunts]
I'm sorry. [sniffling]
We can fix this.
We can fix it together.
There's still time.
Ba. Ba.
[panicked breathing]
[phone thuds]
[flesh squelches]
[flesh squelching]
[jarring dramatic music playing]
[gagging]
[music intensifies]
[music softens]
[music fades out]
She incurred damage here
in the left hemisphere,
causing a loss of motor control
on the right side of her body.
But we're hopeful
this will improve over time.
[machines beeping]
[Robbie]
How?
[doctor]
Well, when the cortex is damaged,
uh, movement can either be temporarily
or permanently diminished.
No, how does somebody scratch a hole
in their fucking skull?
- [sighs]
- A bacterial infection
likely softened the cranial tissue,
allowing her to penetrate
the parietal bone.
We're talking months,
even years of slow damage, like...
[Robbie sniffles, sighs]
...like driving the head of a pin
through a stone.
- [machines beeping]
- [distant hospital chatter]
[dramatic, eerie music playing]
[electricity buzzing]
[low growling]
[light clicking]
[eerie music intensifies]
[Sanshi roars]
- [music fades out]
- [leaves rustling]
[water babbling]
[soft music playing]
You're getting your movement back.
I'll be walking again in no time.
Yeah.
Keep those shoulders up
and your focus forward.
[gentle classical music playing]
- You got it, Val.
- [grunts]
Hey, I got you.
Okay, okay.
[doctor]
Now, her occipital lobe is fine,
but damage to the frontal lobe
may result in hallucinations or delusions.
Now, Val, have you been seeing
or hearing anything unusual?
Val.
No.
Nothing unusual.
- I-I don't see--
- [doctor] Oh.
Sorry about that.
So, I wanted to go over...
[voice fading]
[birds chirping]
[lightly scratching]
[Robbie sighs]
Is this too tight, or...?
No.
Hey, this would be kinda kinky
if it wasn't so fucked up.
[chuckles]
[sighs] Goodnight.
[scratching]
Oh, come on.
Val, what the fuck?
Are you hiding a knife or something?
What's--
No, no, it wasn't me.
Who was it?
Who was it?
Um,
Robbie, you have
to listen to me, okay?
Look, my dad came over,
and I think he gave me something,
and, um, now I think there's something
inside of me.
- Okay, Val--
- And I can't stop.
- Come on.
- I can't.
Where is it?
Robbie?
Robbie, listen to me, okay? I was--
- What the fuck?
- No.
I didn't-- that wasn't me, okay?
You have to believe me.
I'm not lying to you, Robbie, okay?
It's something inside of me.
- Please, you have--
- You're a liar.
Robbie, you have to believe me.
Robbie!
[breathing anxiously]
[whimpering]
[gentle, somber music playing]
[sniffling]
[Valerie] [on video] Your state of mind
determines your reality.
If you think you're gonna fail,
guess what?
You're gonna fail.
Change your attitude,
commit to success, believe.
No one knows
what you're capable of except you.
No one else can see inside your mind.
And thank God for that, right?
Because if they ever saw
who you really are,
they would be disgusted.
[tense, ominous music playing]
He's on to you, Val,
and when he tells them,
they're gonna lock you in the loony bin.
[distant bang]
[tense, ominous music continues]
[Robbie] That's not really
addressing the issue, doctor. I--
She's recovering, sure.
She's getting back on her feet soon
I'm sure. It's--
What does it matter if her body recovers
and her mind doesn't?
Okay, it's-- hold on one second.
[door creaking shut]
She's not the same!
There's something else--
[jarring dramatic music playing]
[music fades out]
[Valerie]
Good evening, my love.
Come on, have a seat.
It's bun bo hu, my grandma's recipe.
I made it for our third date, remember?
Yeah.
Go ahead.
I already ate.
[sighs]
Oh, my God.
- It's good, right?
- It's so good.
[laughing]
Keep eating.
[slurping lightly]
- Hey.
- [spoon clinks]
I'm really sorry about everything.
[chuckles] Shit. Yeah.
Me too. That...
really, really made me angry.
I don't like being angry, and...
[swallows roughly]
- But... [groans]
- When I said I wanted kids, I meant it.
Okay, but something wouldn't let me do it.
Robbie, there's something inside of me
and I have to get it out.
- That's fucked up.
- [spoon clatters]
- [body thuds]
- [Robbie grunts lightly]
[tense music playing]
[sighs]
[struggling]
Hey.
[shushing]
- It's okay, it's okay.
- [Robbie mumbling]
Just give me a few days
to figure this out,
and everything
can go back to normal, okay?
- [Robbie grunting]
- Baby, baby, hey, hey.
- [grunting]
- I know this sucks.
But I'm gonna make you
really comfortable, okay?
- See?
- [narrator] [on audiobook] Chapter five,
the power of choice.
- I love you.
- [Robbie grunting]
[narrator] The path will test you,
but sooner or later,
you're faced with a challenge
so difficult,
- it feels damn near impossible.
- [muffled screaming]
You'll feel helpless and trapped,
but not alone.
Great men and women
have stood right there
in that same spot,
but did they give in to their fear?
No.
They chose belief--
belief in themselves,
in their path,
in something far greater
than that one single difficult moment.
So... what do you believe in?
[match striking]
[eerie humming music playing]
[cartoony music playing]
[music continues]
[TV clicking]
[channels changing]
Look, I don't know what you're after,
but if you tell me, maybe I can help you.
I mean, you kinda need me, right?
Can't we find some arrangement
that doesn't involve both of us dying?
Come on.
I know you're there.
What do you want?
What do you want?
[breathing heavily]
Answer me!
[low mysterious growling]
[mysterious crackling]
- [growling]
- [Valerie shrieks]
[shrieking]
[tense, ominous music playing]
[Valerie shrieks]
[grunting]
[Sanshi hissing]
[Valerie screaming]
[Sanshi laughing]
[roaring]
[glass breaking]
[Valerie panting]
[Valerie screams]
[sobbing]
[scratching]
Will you stop that?
[scratching stops]
- I can't.
- [scoffs]
"I can't. I can't."
You are so pathetic,
it makes me want to puke.
- No wonder no one loves you.
- [softly crying]
I can't stop.
Then you know what you have to do.
Like this. See?
[flesh squelching]
It's quick.
It's easy.
[flesh squelches]
Don't worry.
No one...
will miss you.
[mysterious crackling]
- [screaming]
- [items clattering]
[panting]
[gentle, suspenseful music playing]
[saw buzzing]
- Val?
- [saw buzzing continues]
[saw thunks]
- Val, what are you doing?
- [buzzing continues]
[drill whirring]
[eerie humming]
[gentle, suspenseful music continues]
[Robbie]
Val!
- Val, what are you doing?!
- It's gonna be okay!
[saw buzzing]
[Robbie]
Val!
Val, what are you doing? Stop!
[buzzing continues]
[grunting]
[dramatic, eerie music playing]
[breathing heavily]
[grunting]
Fuck! [panting]
[Valerie screams]
- [items clatter]
- [screams]
- [saw whirring]
- [screaming]
[bones crunching]
[screaming]
- [flesh sizzling]
- [screaming]
No!
[grunting] Come on!
[hollering]
[hand thuds]
[dramatic music playing]
[phone line ringing]
[operator] [on phone]
911, what is your emergency?
911. Hello?
Please respond.
Are you able to respond?
We can dispatch someone to your location.
911. Hello?
[Sanshi hissing]
[crackling]
[Sanshi cackling]
[Sanshi laughing]
[crackling]
Okay.
[Sanshi screeching]
[saw buzzing]
- [Sanshi screaming]
- [saw whirring]
[Sanshi growls and screams]
[arm crunches]
[tools clatter]
[Sanshi screaming]
- No! [panting]
- [Sanshi laughing]
[grunting]
[panting]
[saw buzzing]
[screaming]
[saw whirring]
[Valerie screaming]
[flesh squelching]
[panting]
[silence]
[gasps, grunts]
[breathing heavily]
[tense, solemn music playing]
[sighing]
[crackling]
[crackling and squelching]
[grunting]
[screaming]
[grunting]
[breathing heavily]
[glass shatters]
[labored breathing]
[Valerie grunting]
[whimpering]
[Sanshi growls]
[Valerie screams]
[panicked breathing]
[eerie, ominous music playing]
[grunting]
[crackling]
[Sanshi growling]
[Valerie breathing heavily]
- [water splashes]
- [music stops]
[underwater sloshing]
[gentle, somber music playing]
[Sanshi screeching]
[Valerie] That voice was with me,
every minute of every day.
Whenever I aimed for something better,
she would convince me to give up.
But who is she?
She certainly isn't me.
That voice was a parasite
inside my mind.
And I was a way-too-generous host.
But even now, years after
I trained myself to silence her,
her words still echo in my head.
Does that mean she was right all along?
Am I still alone?
Am I still... unlovable?
Can anyone save me?
[gentle, somber music continues]
[muffled screeching]
[both gasping]
[Robbie]
I got you.
[both breathing laboriously]
I got you, I got you,
I got you, I got you.
What is that? What is it?
What is that?
[labored breathing]
[creature whimpering]
It's me.
[water babbling]
[gentle music playing]
[branches rustling]
[water trickling]
[water babbling]
Fuck.
You scared me.
[sighs]
I'm sorry.
I, um,
I had a whole speech planned, but...
[sighs]
Um...
- [Robbie sighs]
- I'm sorry, could you help me with this?
[sighs]
Like, it'd be insane
for you to stay, but ...
I'm asking you anyway.
I don't know what I'm doing.
I don't think I've ever known
what I'm doing. I--
Baby...
I know I wanna do this with you.
[gentle, solemn music playing]
[baby crying]
[Valerie and baby laughing]
Yeah.
[scurrying]
That's our choice.
[gentle, solemn music playing]
[music fades out]