West of Thunder (2012) Movie Script
WIND CAN BE HEARD,
EERIE IN NATURE.
RED WOLF (VO):
In Lakota language.
HENRY SEED: (voiceover)
In English
RED WOLF: (voiceover)
Hecena iyuha unnipi yelo.
(Lakota Language)
GUITAR NOTE PLAYS
SORROWFUL IN NATURE
MUSIC CONTINUES
MUSIC SLOWS...THEN STOPS.
DRUMBEAT INCREASING IN TEMPO.
FOLLOWED BY A FIDDLE.
SUDDENLY STOPS
HENRY SEED:
Silence in the face of
evil is itself evil.
HENRY SEED:
Good afternoon Sheriff.
My name is Henry Seed.
Nice to meet ya.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Nice to meet you.
Have a seat.
HENRY SEED:
Thank you.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Now,what can I help you with?
HENRY SEED:
Well Aahh..I've got
a question to ask...
and a favor to ask
of you as well.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
I'll do my best to
answer your questions.
HENRY SEED:
Do you know Jonathan Brown?
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Jonathan Brown...
I've known him for going on now
about 20 years...
he's the proprietor of our
blacksmith.
HENRY SEED:
Is he the same Jonathan
Brown that was awarded the
Congressional Medal of Honor
at the Massacre
of Wounded Knee?
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
I believe he was
awarded that medal for
the Battle of Wounded Knee.
If you wish to talk to
Jonathan he's probably having
dinner..he lives about
two miles south of town.
HENRY SEED:
No, no that's all I need to
know...I appreciate your
time sheriff...thank you.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Uh..What about your favor?
HENRY SEED:
Would you be able to
console Mrs. Jonathan Brown..?
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Why...has something
happened to Jonathan?
HENRY SEED:
Not yet...
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Are you planning on
harming Jonathon?
HENRY SEED:
No no no...but I
have a strong suspicion
that in exactly ...
seven minutes
he will be putting his gun to
his head and taking his own
life.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Stay right there!
Don't move!
JONATHAN BROWN:
Charlie just....
HENRY SEED:
Hello Jonathon...
how was your dinner?
JONATHAN BROWN:
It was good my
wife's a helluva cook.
Do I know you?
HENRY SEED:
No... no you don't but
my name is Henry Henry Seed.
JONATHAN BROWN:
Alright Mr. Seed what
can I do for ya?
HENRY SEED:
Actually this gentleman
was here first.
JONATHAN BROWN:
Hmm mm but you're
here now....what do you need?
HENRY SEED:
I don't need anything
but I would very much
enjoy seeing your old pistol.
JONATHAN BROWN :
Oh!...yes, this is my old
sidearm from my cavalry days...
it's a standard issue Colt 45..
HENRY SEED:
I bet you this has seen
a lot of action.
JONATHAN BROWN:
A helluva lot actually, I rode
with Col. John Forsyth in the
7th.....
Whoa! I don't have loaded
weapons in the shop.
HENRY SEED:
I'm sorry...but why don't
you put that bullet to good
use this time.
JONATHAN BROWN:
You need to leave now.
HENRY SEED:
I'll go... I will go but,
you need to leave first.
Put the gun to your head
and you leave..........
HENRY SEED:
Sir your timing is impeccable...
We are in need
of a credible witness.
GUNSHOT IS HEARD
LITTLE THUNDER:
(in Lakota)
PASTOR CALMES DOYLE (OS):
I walked in and saw Jonathon
with his gun to his head. I
immediately tried to grab
it from him but I was too late.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Did he say anything?
Was he in anguish?
PASTOR DOYLE:
Actually he looked like hell.
He was shaken up a bit and
muttered something right
before he pulled the trigger.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Was it anything discernible?
PASTOR CALMES DOYLE:
Barely.
I think it was something to
the effect of walking young
or walk kenya...I'm not
sure. But sheriff I need to
get to Emily's house for
some counseling so if you'll
please excuse me....
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Thank you Pastor.
PASTOR CALMES DOYLE:
Charlie...
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
You're Birgil's little brother.
You're Charlie Little Feather.
Charlie when you were in the
store did you see anything,
hear anything, was there
anybody else in there with
you?
CHARLIE LITTLE FEATHER:
I felt a dark person in the room
with him...
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
So there was another
person in there with
you...was he Mexican?
Was he black?
CHARLIE LITTLE FEATHER:
I'm not sure if I'm saying it
right...
...a dark power...a spirit.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
OK, so this wasn't a walking
talking man this was a ghost...
CHARLIE LITTLE FEATHER:
(in Lakota)
I was in the presence of
something strong and dark.
MINOR RUNNING CLOUD:
(in Lakota)
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Tom, Pastor Doyle said you
wanted to talk to me.
TOM LEWIS:
I've been working on
the body of Jonathan Brown.
I've got strict orders from
the military that we will not
bury a war hero with a self
inflicted bullet in his head.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Did you have trouble
extracting it?
TOM LEWIS:
No...I found it neatly
tucked in his medial lobe.
But we ah we seem
to have a problem.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
What kind of problem?
TOM LEWIS:
The bullet was never fired.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
I'm not getting you.
TOM LEWIS:
This is the bullet that was
in Jonathan's brain. It has
no grooves, no scratches
and the load is still intact.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Are you sure you didn't
misplace it or exchange it
with another bullet?
TOM LEWIS:
o, no Sheriff there are no
her bullets in this building and
I swear to everything that
is Holy this is the bullet
that I removed from
Jonathan's brain I, I,
I pulled it out and I
immediately noticed that the
bullet had not been engaged and
I have no earthly
explanation for that.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Hmm Is that your laudanum?
TOM LEWIS:
Yes My arthritis
has been acting up recently
and it's the only medicine
that I know that
will take the edge off.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
OK Tom. Give my regards
to Margaret.
A FIDDLE CAN BE HEARD.
A FIDDLE CAN BE HEARD.
COLIN:
Hey!
HENRY SEED:
Pardon me my friend..
COLIN:
Don't touch me!
BARTENDER ZEKE:
Hail there Henry.
What brings you
here this time?
HENRY SEED:
Hello Zeke...I've got an
itch, a little noise to make.
It's been a long journey.
WANDA (OS): Hello Henry.
Looking good.
How are you holding up?
HENRY SEED:
I am getting my bearings
Wanda, although today
was a pretty good day.
BARTENDER ZEKE:
So I heard.
WANDA:
You'll be sticking around then?
HENRY SEED:
As long as it takes...
I've got a lot of work to do...
BARTENDER ZEKE:
Got a lot of noise to make...
WANDA:
You sure you know what
you're doing?
HENRY SEED:
I do know this...sometimes a
deafening silence needs to be
broken with a thunderous roar.
BARTENDER ZEKE:
Perhaps so.
HENRY SEED:
It just seems to me like a lot
of people are turning a deaf ear
and a blind eye.
WANDA:
You should keep your own eyes
and ears open.
CHARLIE LITTLE FEATHER:
Hello.
PETER LEWIS:
Good afternoon.
ELIZABETH JANE:
Mr. Little Feather!
CHARLIE LITTLE FEATHER:
Elizabeth Jane.
ELIZABETH JANE:
Good afternoon Mr. Little
Feather.
May Gusty come over today?
CHARLIE LITTLE FEATHER:
Yes I'm sure she would like
that.
She will be over in a little
while.
ELIZABETH JANE:
Thank you.
EUGENE RODGERS:
Peter...
PETER LEWIS:
Afternoon, Eugene...
EUGENE RODGERS:
Something on your mind?
PETER LEWIS:
Indians should stay on the
reservation.
EUGENE RODGERS:
Scalp trading vermin.
KNOCKING ON DOOR
EUGENE RODGERS:
Hello, can I help you?
HENRY SEED:
Hello, I'm sorry to be
bothering you at mealtime but I
was wondering if you would
like these blankets...
They are made by Lakota
artisans.
EUGENE RODGERS:
How much are they?
HENRY SEED:
I believe in that old adage that
if you cast your bread upon the
water, it comes back ten-fold.
EUGENE RODGERS:
Well that's mighty kind of you.
They appear to be well
made blankets...
They must have been hard to come
by.
HENRY SEED:
Well I... I do have my sources.
EUGENE RODGERS:
Well, we appreciate the gesture.
Would you care to join us for
dinner Mr....?
HENRY SEED:
Seed... Henry Seed.
EUGENE RODGERS:
Henry this is my wife Katherine
and our son Matthew.
KATHRYN RODGERS:
Pleased to meet you.
HENRY SEED:
It's my pleasure Kathryn.
KATHRYN RODGERS:
Please join us.
HENRY SEED:
Thank you. What's your name?
MATTHEW RODGERS:
Matthew.
HENRY SEED:
Matthew my name is Henry Seed.
Nice to meet you.
MATTHEW RODGERS:
Nice to meet you too.
KATHRYN RODGERS:
Thank you for the blankets,
they're lovely.
HENRY SEED:
Thank you and you're welcome,
they're very talented artisans.
No grace, no thanksgiving?
EUGENE RODGERS:
You'll have to excuse us, Henry,
we just aren't into that habit
anymore... but you are more
than welcome to have a silent
prayer if you wish.
HENRY SEED:
To be honest with you it's been
a very long time for me
as well...
What do you do for a
living Eugene?
EUGENE RODGERS:
I am a rancher. Got the state's
only long horn cattle.
I've got over 200 head.
HENRY SEED:
You must have a hell of
a lot of land.
EUGENE RODGERS:
Well... we started with 160
acres deeded to us by the
government and then we were
able to buy up another 640
acres per the Treaty of 1873.
HENRY SEED:
Let's see... if memory serves
that was the amended treaty of
the Nez Perce Treaty of 1873
that stated,
once Indians were removed
either peaceably or forcibly,
the land was then given...
I'm sorry, sold to ranchers and
homesteaders.
EUGENE RODGERS:
Yeah I guess that was it.
HENRY SEED:
Did you have any problems
getting them off your land?
EUGENE RODGERS:
I had no problem whatsoever...
CREEPY MUSIC PLAYS
HENRY SEED:
Matthew do you like drawings?
MATTHEW RODGERS:
Yeah...I've got a big book of
them.
HENRY SEED:
I'd like to share these drawings
with you.
They were done by a friend
of mine.
He's a Lakota medicine man. He's
a spiritual man...
a man who has visions.
Do you like them?
MATTHEW RODGERS:
Yeah!
HENRY SEED:
Do you want to know a
little bit about the story?
MATTHEW RODGERS:
Sure!
HENRY SEED:
OK.
This drawing represents
mankind and the space right
there means that the circle
is broken...
And these are Lakota people.
MATTHEW RODGERS:
Are they sleeping?
HENRY SEED:
In a sense they are
Matthew... But these are yours.
MATTHEW RODGERS:
Thank you Mr. Seed.
HENRY SEED:
You are welcome. Well, I must be
off.
Thank you so much for the meal.
EUGENE RODGERS:
Thank you for the nice gifts.
We appreciate the kindness.
HENRY SEED:
It was no problem
whatsoever...
NATIVE AMERICAN MUSIC PLAYS
ELIZABETH JANE:
Hey Gusty I got this book in
town for you.
GUSTY LITTLE THUNDER:
Thank you and I got this
necklace for you...
ELIZABETH JANE:
Oh, Thank you. It's beautiful!
I wonder if I'll ever get to use
these things like my father did?
GUSTY LITTLE THUNDER:
Do you ever wonder what he was
like?
ELIZABETH JANE:
He died when I was so young.
My mother doesn't really
like to talk about it,
but she says that he was a
good and handsome man.
She says he was a dreamer
with a good heart and would
have liked the fact that
you and I are friends...
I wish I could
have known him.
GUSTY LITTLE THUNDER:
Well, our family who is
no longer here,
are always watching over us.
ELIZABETH JANE:
I'd like to think that...
Hey Gusty,
if you had to pick one boy in
all the world to be
with who would you choose?
GUSTY LITTLE THUNDER:
I am partial to strong boys...
with a soft voice and nice
smile...I like your brother...
ELIZABETH JANE:
Do you think
you would ever like to
live in the big city?
GUSTY LITTLE THUNDER:
I think I'd like it to be...
how it used to be...
ELIZABETH JANE:
Was that thunder?
GUSTY LITTLE THUNDER:
I think that was just the wild
horses...Hello Gaka.
ELIZABETH JANE:
Hello Mr. Little Thunder
LITTLE THUNDER:
Hello Tacosha...are
you ready to go?
GUSTY LITTLE THUNDER:
Gaka can you tell us
a story first?
LITTLE THUNDER:
When I was a child I
had a vision..I was standing
on the highest mountain of
them all and beneath me was
the whole hoop of the world.
And I saw the sacred hoop
of my people was one of many
hoops that made one circle
and in the center grew one
mighty flowering tree to
shelter all the children
of one mother and one father.
Slowly all circles will widen
connect just like your
les are connected in friendship.
INTERIOR TAVERN : BAND
PLAYING CALLED THE FISHKILLERS:
(singing)
This is our world,
This is where we live and it
takes our lives just as it
gives and it nurtures us and
burns us too and it taunts
us to make it through....
HENRY SEED:
(in Lakota)
HENRY SEED: (VO)
There are things in my past,
present and future that I
am equally proud and equally
ashamed of.
FIDDLE MUSIC PLAYS
ERRATICALLY
COWBOY #1:
Hey you Jackaninny you
stole land from my uncle!
COWBOY #2:
It was legal..and I know
what you did with my sister!
PASTOR CALMES DOYLE:
A few of my church members have
been asking me about this
Henry Seed. He's got'em
spooked a bit.
Who do you think he is?
LITTLE THUNDER:
He's a spirit...a thunder
being, a Wakinyan,
who is from the West. He
inhabits an earthly
body for his purpose.
PASTOR CALMES DOYLE:
Is he a vengeful spirit?
LITTLE THUNDER:
He is.
PASTOR CALMES DOYLE:
In the Old Testament Book of
Daniel...the prophet saw four
winds carrying four
creatures from the north,
south, east, and a man-like
creature coming from the west
bringing retribution and
revenge.
LITTLE THUNDER:
If we choose his
path it will only bring us
destruction and separation.
PASTOR CALMES DOYLE:
"They shall mingle with the seed
of men...
but they shall not
cleave to one another....
CLARENCE O'LEARY:
If we can get this here right
up at the top here if one
of you wants to bring it up?
HENRY SEED:
Hello Father. Do you have
any work today?
CLARENCE O'LEARY:
Actually we do!
We need help with one job
rightly. You seem pretty
strong....Boy that must have
been a close call there.
HENRY SEED:
Actually it wasn't a
close call...it went
straight through my heart.
CLARENCE O'LEARY:
Ooh!
You must have had the saints
watching you that day...
HENRY SEED:
Well someone saw it...
CLARENCE O'LEARY:
Well, I've got about two days
worth of work to offer.
Everyone on my crew
gets paid $1 a day.
Is that agreeable?
HENRY SEED:
Yeah, that's very agreeable.
Do the Lakota men get paid
a dollar as well?
CLARENCE O'LEARY:
Well, Just between you
and me...
I pay them $1.10 a day.
They're strong as hell
and smart as a Dickens novel.
By the look of your skin
are you a little Indian?
HENRY SEED:
I'm a little bit of everything.
CLARENCE O'LEARY:
Mr. Everything!...You're hired.
HENRY SEED:
Thank you....Mr. Everything.
I love the sound of that
but you may call me
Henry...Henry Seed.
CLARENCE O'LEARY:
Mr. Seed nice to meet
ya and you may call
me Father O'Leary or
Clarence or Jugsy.
HENRY SEED:
Jugsy?
CLARENCE O'LEARY:
Henry I am Irish...
well, we need to get
started here with this
windmill...
CLARENCE O'LEARY:
Boyos, grub is ready.
Come and get it.
Gather round...shut the hell
up...please.
Mrs. Grey Eagle has prepared
this meal for us and first
I'll say a little grace.
Heavenly Father,
thank you for this food.
Thank you for the
sun, and our strength.
Mitakuye Oyasin. We are
all related in your Holy
Name....Oh, I
almost forget...
...Thank you for the whiskey.
Amen.
CROWD OF WORKERS:
Amen.
CLARENCE O'LEARY:
Boyos... raise your water
mugs. We have been gifted a
bottle of the finest spirits
from Cork County. So after
work if you'd like to help
yourselves to a little
snigger... by all means. But I
shall be starting now...
you be in heaven a half hour
ore the devil knows you're dead!
HENRY SEED:
That is great! That is the type
of toast that's going to keep me
on my toes.
CLARENCE O'LEARY:
Well you've got
half an hour...enjoy.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Henry I want to see you
in my office. Right now.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
What do you know about this?
HENRY SEED:
It is a bullet. It is my bullet.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
I received this from
our mortician, he said he
found it in the brain of
Jonathan Brown....although
I know that he has become
sorely addicted to an opiate and
sometimes his judgment is
clouded.
HENRY SEED:
I believe that opiates add
thunder to a man's clouds.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Henry how did your
bullet get mixed up
with the offending bullet?
HENRY SEED:
It came in with the deceased.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
You mean that an
un-fired, pristine bullet
went through the skull of
Jonathan Brown and
scrambled his brains?
HENRY SEED:
Actually Sheriff, sometimes
self-inflicted trauma
is justice in its purest sense.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
How so?
HENRY SEED:
Twenty three men of
the 7th Calvary were
awarded the Congressional Medal
of honor for bravery during
the Massacre of Wounded Knee.
Twenty three men who shot
unarmed women and children.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
I'm very well aware
of the battle.
HENRY SEED:
Please let me finish...
The cowards behind
those Hotchkiss guns not only
shot and killed noble people.
They killed thirty of their
own cavalry men.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
It was tragic...
HENRY SEED:
Yeah tragic...Sheriff,
did Jonathan ever regale you
with his act of heroism that
garnered such
an august award?
HENRY SEED: (voiceover)
After the melee, Jonathon on
his own accord, tracked
down two Lakotas who had
escaped the brunt of the
massacre... For about a mile or
so he tracked a 20 year old
squaw named Mary Two Horse.
...Jonathan shot her in the
back. She died immediately.
Her one year old son,
that she had been holding...
froze to death that night,
If I had to live with
that horror, if I had to live
with that raw unbridled
cowardice. I would kill myself
too.
HENRY SEED: (voiceover)
The bullet didn't kill him
sir...
Justice killed Jonathan Brown.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Henry...I am asking
you to go back
from whence you came.
HENRY SEED:
And if I don't....
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
I will arrest you.
HENRY SEED:
You have no cause to
hold me and I,
sir, have unfinished business
to attend to.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
You have 24 hrs...
do you understand me?
LITTLE THUNDER: (in Lakota)
My dream today has
the healing power of the
Great Spirit and
my grandfathers...
but it comes in equal measure
a seed of great destruction.
FLUTE PLAYS
FLUTE PLAYS
MINOR RUNNING CLOUD: (in Lakota)
RED WOLF: (in Lakota)
LITTLE THUNDER: (in Lakota)
INTERIOR TAVERN
HENRY SEED:
I give each one many chances
to show change, I extend
mercy in a
merciful fashion.
WANDA:
Your new friends should
inspire more
raindrops of mercy.
Gusty and Elizabeth are
proof that things may change.
HENRY SEED:
Elizabeth Jane's father
died in vain.
WANDA:
He died defending and
protecting a Lakota woman
from being savaged by two
gun-slinging idiots.
HENRY SEED:
He died and the Lakota
woman also died from
her wounds. They both lost,
nobody won...they all lost.
WANDA:
Gusty and Elizabeth are
proof...that he won...
BARTENDER ZEKE:
You know Henry you can either
spread the truth or you can
spread sickness.
HENRY SEED:
and sometimes I can parcel out
both with pinpoint accuracy
KATHRYN RODGERS:
Where is Dr. Bernhagen?
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
He's just north of
Eagle Butte.
He should be back on Thursday
What was he muttering?
KATHRYN RODGERS:
He kept pointing to this
picture right here.
He kept saying thunder, Thunder.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Did Matthew do these?
KATHRYN RODGERS:
No. They were given to
us by a gentleman
just a couple of days ago.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Did he give you anything else?
KATHRYN RODGERS:
These blankets. He said
that they were....
umm... Indian made.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Kathryn you need to
burn these
blankets right away.
SOUND OF WIND
MINOR RUNNING CLOUD:
RED WOLF:
MUSIC STARTS - MELANCHOLY
IN NATURE.
COLIN:
Miss Wanda, did I tell you
that my pop now owns
1600 acres and I am our ranch's
leading cow puncher.
MISS WANDA:
I could see you
punching cattle...
COLIN:
Yes ma'am
KIPPY:
Now Colin, that is
impressive...but I am
the 12th in command of
the South Dakota Railroad
Division number 245.
COLIN:
Kippy that is not impressive,
there's only 13 people
that work in your office.
KIPPY:
That is true Colin but let me
tell you something,
I am climbing right up that
ladder...
COLIN:
Well I am friends with world
famous people.
WANDA:
Like who, pray tell?
COLIN:
Like Mr. Thomas Ederson...he
happens to consider me a very
close friend and confidant.
KIPPY:
What?
THE Thomas Ederson?...the
inventor of the vacuum pump.
COLIN:
Well the vacuum pump,
the candle under
glass...which I think I
invented anyway and he took
it from me...Well I was a
guest of his, right, about 5
or 6 years ago in 1893 back
at the Chicago World's Fair.
KIPPY:
What that one in Chicago?
COLIN:
Yeah, the very same one...where
he showed me his latest,
greatest invention. As a
matter of fact Miss
Wanda I think I'm the first
person in the world to see
his "moving pictures"...
and Mr. Ederson liked to
refer to it as watching his
"flim"
WANDA:
Flim?
KIPPY:
Flim?
You punch drunk turd
rambler it is "film"...film.
F..I..L...L.M
BARTENDER ZEKE:
Gentleman I'm sure Miss Wanda
is very impressed with your
bilateral, chronically
diminished mental
acuity...but why don't we
give Ms. Wanda a little bit
of breathing space.
COLIN:
Thank you very much sir
for your heartfelt compliment...
KIPPY:
Yeah,
yeah I appreciate that.
My daddy he used to say
my brains were a thing of
beauty...and now I
know they're "a cutie."
Thank you. Thank you.
BARTENDER ZEKE:
....Yeah....you're welcome...
WANDA:
I like your jewelry Henry.
It is very handsome.
HENRY SEED:
Thank you Miss Wanda.
It is Lakota made.
The warriors of their tribe
wear it as a sign of honor
and respect.
WANDA:
Gosh how....French of them.
COLIN:
Hey where I'm from the only
males who wear jewelry are
steers with those big ol'
pins in their noses and
flagholes who like to bump
butts with other animals.
HENRY SEED:
Guys leave Wanda alone.
Leave me alone.
Or I will literally
let hell loose on you.
KIPPY:
You know that whore was right
about you.
You are a French tickler
and...a....oh Colin!
COLIN:
Oh damn you got me good
Kippy.
KIPPY:
You want a drink?
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Pastor can you make
anything of this drawing?....
I think it may have some
religious significance.
PASTOR CALMES DOYLE:
I've seen drawings like this
before.
It reminds me of the
visions of Little Thunder.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
The Lakota medicine man?
PASTOR CALMES DOYLE:
I tend to think of him as a
modern day St. Paul
with a touch of St. Peter
thrown in.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Well what makes you that he's a
modern day Paul?
PASTOR CALMES DOYLE:
Paul originally chose a path of
hatred and vengeance.
The Lord split Paul's
sword of hatred in two with a
blinding flash like terrible
thunder and lightning,
leading Paul to a new
path of peace and love.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Are any of his
visions like Peter's?
PASTOR CALMES DOYLE:
Instead of a cornucopia his
visions involve circles or
hoops. Each circle represents a
different race or creed of
mankind. The beautiful part
about his visions are each
circle becomes concentric
and connected to each other.
They all become brother
circles, all connected to,
and under, the eyes of
our Heavenly Father.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
But this circle here
seems to be broken.
PASTOR CALMES DOYLE:
Yes it does...
HENRY SEED:
Dr. Fixer I am in dire
need of your medicine.
DR. FIXER:
Hold your horses I'll
be out in a minute.
Now, how many
bottles do you desire sir?
HENRY SEED:
I actually need 12
bottles.
DR. FIXER:
Twelve! That's a healthy bill
of sale...
let me see that'll
be 3 dollars.....three sir.
HENRY SEED:
There you go.
DR. FIXER:
Now, what is your ailment
sir If I may inquire?
HENRY SEED:
None! I am as fit as
a fiddle.
DR. FIXER:
Really? Well then you must have
someone in your household who
is suffering from a liver
problem or maybe the
yellow disease.
HENRY SEED:
Actually no... as a matter
of fact I just thoroughly
enjoy the taste of
your elixir.
DR. FIXER:
Oh...OK.....
HENRY SEED:
Would you mind joining
me for a few pulls?
DR. FIXER:
Well I have been feeling
a little under the weather
so to speak so I don't mind if I
do... I could use a little
shot of the cure-all
you know...
HENRY SEED:
A toast...
DR. FIXER:
A toast....
HENRY SEED:
May you be in heaven
a half an hour before
before I know you're dead.
DR. FIXER: AAhh...
I feel better already.
HENRY SEED:
So you are a doctor...
you are a medical doctor?
DR. FIXER:
Ah no but I do have
P.H.D.
HENRY SEED:
A P.H.D in what?
DR. FIXER:
In philosophy...but
that does allow me to say
that I am actually a doctor.
HENRY SEED:
Well doctor,
what medicinal qualities
does your elixir have?
DR. FIXER:
Well it has been known
to treat anybody that
has liver disease or that
horrific yellowing of the
skin that may accompany it.
HENRY SEED:
Are you sure your
elixir isn't causing the
cirrhosis of the liver and
the yellowing of the skin.
DR. FIXER:
Now sir to suppose that...
HENRY SEED:
...to suppose that this
is actually 80 percent
alcohol and 20 percent
taproot?
DR. FIXER:
Well there is a small
percentage of alcohol in
there as a soporific...
but that is actually a
proprietary blend of the
medicinal herbs and roots
and proteins and vitamins.
Yep.
HENRY SEED:
Who do you sell this to?
DR. FIXER:
Every man and woman
of every walk and
talk of life.
HENRY SEED:
Do you sell these to
the Indian people?
DR. FIXER:
Yes we do in fact, I've been
told that it helps them to
think straight and, you know,
be more healthy and
have better self esteem!
HENRY SEED:
Do you know that it is
illegal to sell alcohol
on the reservation?
DR. FIXER:
Sir, this is not an alcohol...
this is not classified as an
alcohol, I'm telling you this
has been classified as a
medicinal by the medical
council of the sovereign
state of South Dakota.
HENRY SEED:
I've seen what your
"medicinal" has done
to the Indian people.
I've seen the putrid
condition that your alcohol
has left them.
I've seen them give
you their last monies...
DR. FIXER:
...well...
HENRY SEED:
...I've seen them spend their
monies on your
alcohol instead of blankets
and food...
DR. FIXER:
...Sir, that is their choice.
That is their choice.
HENRY SEED:
That is true...that
is 100 percent true,
that is their choice...but it's
an interesting choice on
your behalf.
DR. FIXER:
How so?
HENRY SEED:
That you actually see...
that you actually bear
witness to their seeds of
despair and then
water them with your elixir.
DR. FIXER:
Now sir. Sir, I take
no moral responsibility
for what certain people...
they abuse my medicines...
HENRY SEED:
And I sir have no moral
responsibility with the way I
am going to leave you after I
make you drink every one
of those bottles......
DR. FIXER:
...thank you...
HENRY SEED:
...you're welcome....
PASTOR CALMES DOYLE:
Good afternoon...Little
Thunder this is Sheriff
Chapman...Sheriff Chapman,
Little Thunder. The sheriff
would like you to take
a look at this drawing.
LITTLE THUNDER:
Who has done
this?
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
A man named Henry Seed.
LITTLE THUNDER:
I had a vision this
morning..this is what I
drew...
this man is a Thunder
Being, they watch over two
spiritual roads. One is
rain and thunder, the other
is the growth and the peace
that comes with the rain.
He is only one road.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
He obviously isn't
the peaceful road.
LITTLE THUNDER:
He wants to break
your people's circle which
in turn breaks all circles.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
This X on his chest...
is there any
significance to that?
LITTLE THUNDER:
A spear took his
heart, replaced it with hate
and left a scar of revenge.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
I need you to talk to him.
LITTLE THUNDER:
I will, after I talk to my
people.
HENRY SEED:
My name is Dr. Henry Seed
Fixer and I have the
elixir of elixirs!
FEMALE TOWNIE IN CROWD:
Sir you have to have a permit to
sell any wares in our town.
HENRY SEED:
Ma'am I have the correct permits
here. I have all the permits
and I have the backing of a
higher authority every single
step of the way.
DRUNKEN MALE CROWD PERSON:
Sir, what kind of medicine are
you hawking here for us?
HENRY SEED:
That's a great question my brain
addled drunken friend...
DRUNKEN MALE CROWD PERSON:
Well thank you very much.
HENRY SEED:
This medicine is a proprietary
combination created by the
United States
Pharmacology Department.
Its most beneficial, most
important ingredient is
this......This is the canine
tooth of the Bovidae Bison
Bison commonly
known as the buffalo.
We at the USPD extract the
tooth and grind it down to a
fine powder and then we add
pure Wisconsin spring fed
waters and our own
combination of medicinal
herbs, roots,
proteins and vitamins.
MALE CROWD PERSON:
What's it good for?
HENRY SEED:
You sir have
palpitations of the heart.
You ma'am have hot flashes
and pains in your wrists.
You sir have residual back
pain from falling off
your horse exactly 26 days
ago...And you sir have
the bane of modern man.
You were once young and
virile My elixir can put
the Jesse back in your James,
put the Charles in your
Dickens, put the Bat
in your Masterson,
put the Kid in your Billy
and put the Wild Bill in your
Hickok....But first let me
tell you about our extraction
process.We slowly slaughter
the buffalo and then we,
as it is still alive, pull the
tooth.
The carcass is then laid
to waste like carrion,
the rotted flesh for the
crows and critters of the
plains. We let the carcass
go to waste... all of it...
We use no meat for sustenance,
no hide for warmth,
no skin, not a bit, for leather,
no bone for knick knacks or
patty whacks nothing but this.
LITTLE GIRL IN THE CROWD:
His medicine is bad...
it will hurt you!
HENRY SEED:
From the mouths of
babes comes the truth on a
white horse I have lost all
my authority to sell you
this elixir.
BOOKSTORE OWNER:
Ah a wonderful choice.
I think you will
enjoy Oliver Twist.
Are you familiar
with the story at all?
HENRY SEED:
No, a little, not much though.
BOOKSTORE OWNER:
I like to call it the preeminent
rags to riches story.
HENRY SEED:
That's right;
I do remember that he grew up
in an orphanage.
BOOKSTORE OWNER:
Even with that humble
beginning he is able to
exhibit integrity and the
power of choice.
Even when no choice is
given he still chose.
HENRY SEED:
How is that possible?
BOOKSTORE OWNER:
I like to call it the magic and
mastery of volition...
pure undiluted free will.
HENRY SEED:
So I guess you must
be from the school of
thought of John Milton then
huh?...Creating a heaven from
hell and a hell from heaven.
BOOKSTORE OWNER:
Exactly...there are no
inextricable situations.
The situation only takes
meaning in the way that we
perceive it, in the
way that we handle it.
HENRY SEED:
So even if a man were
shackled and bound
he'd still have a choice?
BOOKSTORE OWNER:
Even more so.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Michael lock your doors and meet
me in my office.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Michael did someone put rotting
meat in your store...
did you get a bad a delivery?
MICHAEL:
No I don't get no deliveries
until next Tuesday. You were
in my store this morning it was
fine then wasn't it?
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Yes it was.
MICHAEL:
Well it ain't now, everything in
the store has gone bad.
The seeds have meal worms
in them...even the damn hard
candies have gone putrid.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Did someone else enter
your store after I left?
MICHAEL:
Well yeah about 6 or 7 people.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Was one of them a tall
gentleman with dark hair?
MICHAEL:
Yeah he didn't buy nothing,
he just circled his hands
around...I didn't know what
the hell he was doing. I thought
it was some damn European
way of saying hello.... Well,
I gotta go see what I can
salvage from the store.
HENRY SEED:
Michael, your place smells
really bad.
MICHAEL:
What did you do to my
foodstuffs?
HENRY SEED:
Actually the question should
be... what did I do
to my foodstuffs?
MICHAEL:
I'm not getting you...
I did nothing.
HENRY SEED:
You are absolutely correct.
You've done nothing at all...
nothing except lock your front
door. Two winters ago you
hoarded all of your
food for your kinfolk,
for your townsfolk. Any
Indian looking for food
you locked the front door.
MICHAEL:
They were beggars...
I run a business.
HENRY SEED:
They were not beggars...
they had federally issued
vouchers...
just as good as any minted
money.
MICHAEL:
Well I was afraid we were
gonna run out of food.
HENRY SEED:
You didn't run out of food
Michael. You ended up
with a large surplus that
eventually went bad.
MICHAEL:
I think I may have been wrong
in my judgment.
I have thought about that
almost every day for the last
two years.
I know what I did was wrong.
HENRY SEED:
Have you tried to
rectify that wrong?
MICHAEL:
No but...
if ever that happens again,
I will do the right thing.
HENRY SEED:
I actually...I actually believe
you. I appreciate your
heartfelt manner...I do.
Michael are you married?
MICHAEL:
No...
HENRY SEED:
Do you have any children?
MICHAEL:
No...
HENRY SEED:
I will not show you
any mercy...
LITTLE THUNDER: (in Lakota)
MINOR RUNNING CLOUD: (in Lakota)
RED WOLF: (in Lakota)
SIMON:
How's Gusty?
ELIZABETH JANE:
Very well. She asked about you.
SIMON:
See you after work.
ELIZABETH JANE:
Have a good day Simon.
HENRY SEED:
Simon, you're Elizabeth
Jane's brother?
SIMON:
Yes sir.
HENRY SEED:
So Elizabeth Jane has
an Indian for a friend?
SIMON:
Yes sir, they've been
friends for 8 years.
HENRY SEED:
I heard that Gusty
kinda likes ya.
SIMON:
I like her too.
WANDA:
Hello Henry........
HENRY SEED: (voiceover)
........When the drum was
created it was created with a
sole purpose--a heart and
soul purpose to mirror all
mankind's heartbeat and pulse,
a rhythmic connection and a
common percussive thread that
is the backbone and building
block of all of our heart
songs.......
A TRIBAL SONG PLAYS
A TRIBAL SONG PLAYS
HENRY WHISTLES
RANCH OWNER OTIS:
What the hell...you
got no right to be here,
this is my land.
HENRY SEED:
What's your name?
RANCH OWNER OTIS:
Otis
HENRY SEED:
Otis, do you know that in the
Lakota language there are
no words for ownership of
land... That all land, all
of this, only has One owner.
RANCH OWNER OTIS:
Really? See I got a deed that
says otherwise. I own this
land and I'd really like you to
leave...
HENRY SEED:
Do you know where I was sitting,
like what I was sitting next to?
RANCH OWNER OTIS:
Yeah, you're sitting on my land.
That's my field, those are my
trees.
HENRY SEED:
In this grove of trees is
actually an Indian resting
site. There are 18 souls,
18 bodies that have been
laid to rest all throughout
that...
RANCH OWNER OTIS:
Look, guess what?
I don't rightly care about
any of that. All I'm thinking
right now is getting you
the hell out of here.
HENRY SEED:
Otis, Do you know that all
mankind...
every creed, every color
has a respect for the dead.
You're not planning on
expanding your farmland and
defiling these
grounds are you?
RANCH OWNER OTIS:
You know I don't know yet.
But when I do decide
it will be my decision.
HENRY SEED:
That is true,
it is your choice...and I'm
going to make a decision..I
think I may want to
stay right here...
RANCH OWNER OTIS:
You know I think I might
just forcibly remove you.
HENRY SEED:
I may want to kill you...
although...
although I am making a conscious
decision. I am making an
amorally correct choice.
RANCH OWNER OTIS:
You lost me there jackass.
HENRY SEED:
I'm choosing the lesser
of two evils.
RANCH OWNER OTIS:
Oh so you've chosen to
leave my land...
that's a good decision.
HENRY SEED:
No, actually I'm choosing to
beat the hell outta you
instead of killing ya...
FLUTE SOUND
FLUTE SOUND
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Do you believe in the sins
of the father?
PASTOR CALMES DOYLE:
No, we sail our own ships.
We choose our Captain.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Well, I've been thinking that
Henry Seed is punishing us for
what our grandparents and our
parents did to the Indian.
PASTOR CALMES DOYLE:
Sadly, we haven't done much
better than our parents and
grandparents before us.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
How so? I treat the Indian
fair and square.
PASTOR CALMES DOYLE:
We ignore the Indian as a
whole though.
Do you remember
two winters ago?
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Yeah, worst one we've ever had.
PASTOR CALMES DOYLE:
We could only house 12 Lakota
in our church, but if each
family in town had taken in just
one Lakota family no one would
have starved, not one
froze to death.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
I guess that would
have helped some.
PASTOR CALMES DOYLE:
My uncle fought for the South
during the Civil War.
He once told me a story about
when he was stationed as a
guard at the POW camp
in Andersonville, SC.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Sadly, I've heard of it.
PASTOR CALMES DOYLE:
My uncle was placed in
charge of guarding the
foodstuffs for the other
confederate soldiers.
One night a Yankee prisoner
slipped past him and stole a
bunch of apples. The thief was
eventually caught and when he
was questioned he confessed that
he was stealing the apples to
give to his dying friend.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Did they show him
any mercy?
PASTOR CALMES DOYLE:
No...a fellow guard, a friend
of my uncle, shot the man
to death. My uncle sat by in
silence.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
What could he have done?
PASTOR CALMES DOYLE:
He could have explained
the reason for the theft,
he could have offered
to whip the prisoner,
he could have pulled
the gun from the guard's
hand...anything
besides death.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Maybe his hands were tied and he
didn't have a choice.
PASTOR CALMES DOYLE:
We always have a choice...
you know the damndest
thing about this story is that
a few years later my uncle
found out that this particular
Yankee prisoner was a
a shirt-tail relation to him.
He sat idly by while a man
murdered his own flesh and
blood... Silence in the face
of evil is itself evil.
INTERIOR TAVERN --
MUSIC BY THE FISHKILLERS:
(singing)
There's a break in the circle,
there's a crack in the hoop,
there's a rupture in time,
we're all in the soup...you
can think you're a loner,
do it all by yourself,
but you're nothing without
everything, just gathering
dust on a kitchen shelf You
can go it alone, you can make
a new plan but there's no
such thing as a
self made man.....
BARTENDER ZEKE:
You alright?
HENRY SEED:
Yeah I think so,
I just need a little solitude
and confinement to let my
thoughts ponder and let my
spirit stretch its legs...
ELIZABETH JANE:
Sir, be careful.
HENRY SEED:
Don't worry about me;
I have a real good connection
with the sunka wakan.
ELIZABETH JANE:
You speak Lakota?
HENRY SEED:
I do. Do you?
ELIZABETH JANE:
A bit...my friend Gusty's
teaching me.
HENRY SEED:
I have a question for
you...how do you come
to have a Lakota friend?
ELIZABETH JANE:
Well, after my father died the
Lakota helped my mother out
with the farm and the horses.
Without them we wouldn't
have been able to survive,
we help each other out.
HENRY SEED:
Not everyone seems to
feel the same way though.
ELIZABETH JANE:
Gusty's grandfather says that
hatred and revenge break the
circle and that we have to be in
harmony with the four-legged
and the two-legged
in order to survive.
HENRY SEED:
Mitakuye Oyasin,
we are all related...thank
you Elizabeth Jane.
HENRY SEED:
Sheriff I respectfully give
myself up to you. I will
put myself under your bond and
shackles of confinement.
INDIAN MUSIC PLAYS
INDIAN MUSIC PLAYS
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Henry, I saw that
scar on your chest,
was that a bullet wound?
HENRY SEED:
Actually it was a large
lance that was thrown at
me and we lost the battle
because of it.
Then every one of my
followers then was
shackled and chained
and then they were.....
we were cast from our home.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
When the hell was that?
HENRY SEED:
Many, many years ago.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Well last night all of Peter
Lewis' horses were stolen
do you know anything
about that?
HENRY SEED:
Hey Sheriff have you
ever heard of the
term Sunka Wakan?
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
No I haven't.
HENRY SEED:
Well, it actually means Sacred
Dog and it's the Lakota's name
for horse.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Hmm..interesting...
HENRY SEED:
You know I don't exactly know
where it came from, but
if you'll let me I
could venture a guess.
Well as it is told, when He...
kicked Adam and Eve out for
eating an apple...he also sat
them down and he told them
that they would lose all
connection, all
communication with all the
animals....although I do
believe that the horse and
the dog walked into His
office and they begged him
for a continued communication,
a continued connection.....
When the government stole
all of the horses from the
Lakota, it may have broken
their spirit but it did not
break that bond....
The horse, the dog, sacred dog,
Sunka Wakan...
EXTERIOR BADLANDS
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
He's all yours.
LITTLE THUNDER: (inLakota)
HENRY SEED: (in Lakota)
RED WOLF: (in Lakota)
HENRY SEED: (in Lakota)
MINOR RUNNING CLOUD: (in Lakota)
HENRY SEED: (in Lakota)
CHARLIE LITTLE FEATHER:
(in Lakota)
RED WOLF: (in Lakota)
LITTLE THUNDER: (in Lakota)
HENRY SEED: (in Lakota)
MUSIC IS HEARD and THUNDER IN
THE DISTANCE...
MUSIC IS HEARD and THUNDER IN
THE DISTANCE...
INDIAN CHANT STARTS
AND CONTINUES...
INDIAN CHANT STARTS
AND CONTINUES...
HENRY SEED: (in Lakota)
No more silence...
World keeps turning, turning
it's back, turning a blind eye
to all that has been done
here... History redacted by
the bullies who won
here,
We're all in denial, the
nations honor is still being
defiled. You say zip about
sin. Go on then...
let evil win...You sittin
here in shit and give in?
Confess, yell it out! Let's
exercise this - confess!
Confess!
EERIE IN NATURE.
RED WOLF (VO):
In Lakota language.
HENRY SEED: (voiceover)
In English
RED WOLF: (voiceover)
Hecena iyuha unnipi yelo.
(Lakota Language)
GUITAR NOTE PLAYS
SORROWFUL IN NATURE
MUSIC CONTINUES
MUSIC SLOWS...THEN STOPS.
DRUMBEAT INCREASING IN TEMPO.
FOLLOWED BY A FIDDLE.
SUDDENLY STOPS
HENRY SEED:
Silence in the face of
evil is itself evil.
HENRY SEED:
Good afternoon Sheriff.
My name is Henry Seed.
Nice to meet ya.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Nice to meet you.
Have a seat.
HENRY SEED:
Thank you.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Now,what can I help you with?
HENRY SEED:
Well Aahh..I've got
a question to ask...
and a favor to ask
of you as well.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
I'll do my best to
answer your questions.
HENRY SEED:
Do you know Jonathan Brown?
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Jonathan Brown...
I've known him for going on now
about 20 years...
he's the proprietor of our
blacksmith.
HENRY SEED:
Is he the same Jonathan
Brown that was awarded the
Congressional Medal of Honor
at the Massacre
of Wounded Knee?
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
I believe he was
awarded that medal for
the Battle of Wounded Knee.
If you wish to talk to
Jonathan he's probably having
dinner..he lives about
two miles south of town.
HENRY SEED:
No, no that's all I need to
know...I appreciate your
time sheriff...thank you.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Uh..What about your favor?
HENRY SEED:
Would you be able to
console Mrs. Jonathan Brown..?
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Why...has something
happened to Jonathan?
HENRY SEED:
Not yet...
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Are you planning on
harming Jonathon?
HENRY SEED:
No no no...but I
have a strong suspicion
that in exactly ...
seven minutes
he will be putting his gun to
his head and taking his own
life.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Stay right there!
Don't move!
JONATHAN BROWN:
Charlie just....
HENRY SEED:
Hello Jonathon...
how was your dinner?
JONATHAN BROWN:
It was good my
wife's a helluva cook.
Do I know you?
HENRY SEED:
No... no you don't but
my name is Henry Henry Seed.
JONATHAN BROWN:
Alright Mr. Seed what
can I do for ya?
HENRY SEED:
Actually this gentleman
was here first.
JONATHAN BROWN:
Hmm mm but you're
here now....what do you need?
HENRY SEED:
I don't need anything
but I would very much
enjoy seeing your old pistol.
JONATHAN BROWN :
Oh!...yes, this is my old
sidearm from my cavalry days...
it's a standard issue Colt 45..
HENRY SEED:
I bet you this has seen
a lot of action.
JONATHAN BROWN:
A helluva lot actually, I rode
with Col. John Forsyth in the
7th.....
Whoa! I don't have loaded
weapons in the shop.
HENRY SEED:
I'm sorry...but why don't
you put that bullet to good
use this time.
JONATHAN BROWN:
You need to leave now.
HENRY SEED:
I'll go... I will go but,
you need to leave first.
Put the gun to your head
and you leave..........
HENRY SEED:
Sir your timing is impeccable...
We are in need
of a credible witness.
GUNSHOT IS HEARD
LITTLE THUNDER:
(in Lakota)
PASTOR CALMES DOYLE (OS):
I walked in and saw Jonathon
with his gun to his head. I
immediately tried to grab
it from him but I was too late.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Did he say anything?
Was he in anguish?
PASTOR DOYLE:
Actually he looked like hell.
He was shaken up a bit and
muttered something right
before he pulled the trigger.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Was it anything discernible?
PASTOR CALMES DOYLE:
Barely.
I think it was something to
the effect of walking young
or walk kenya...I'm not
sure. But sheriff I need to
get to Emily's house for
some counseling so if you'll
please excuse me....
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Thank you Pastor.
PASTOR CALMES DOYLE:
Charlie...
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
You're Birgil's little brother.
You're Charlie Little Feather.
Charlie when you were in the
store did you see anything,
hear anything, was there
anybody else in there with
you?
CHARLIE LITTLE FEATHER:
I felt a dark person in the room
with him...
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
So there was another
person in there with
you...was he Mexican?
Was he black?
CHARLIE LITTLE FEATHER:
I'm not sure if I'm saying it
right...
...a dark power...a spirit.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
OK, so this wasn't a walking
talking man this was a ghost...
CHARLIE LITTLE FEATHER:
(in Lakota)
I was in the presence of
something strong and dark.
MINOR RUNNING CLOUD:
(in Lakota)
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Tom, Pastor Doyle said you
wanted to talk to me.
TOM LEWIS:
I've been working on
the body of Jonathan Brown.
I've got strict orders from
the military that we will not
bury a war hero with a self
inflicted bullet in his head.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Did you have trouble
extracting it?
TOM LEWIS:
No...I found it neatly
tucked in his medial lobe.
But we ah we seem
to have a problem.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
What kind of problem?
TOM LEWIS:
The bullet was never fired.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
I'm not getting you.
TOM LEWIS:
This is the bullet that was
in Jonathan's brain. It has
no grooves, no scratches
and the load is still intact.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Are you sure you didn't
misplace it or exchange it
with another bullet?
TOM LEWIS:
o, no Sheriff there are no
her bullets in this building and
I swear to everything that
is Holy this is the bullet
that I removed from
Jonathan's brain I, I,
I pulled it out and I
immediately noticed that the
bullet had not been engaged and
I have no earthly
explanation for that.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Hmm Is that your laudanum?
TOM LEWIS:
Yes My arthritis
has been acting up recently
and it's the only medicine
that I know that
will take the edge off.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
OK Tom. Give my regards
to Margaret.
A FIDDLE CAN BE HEARD.
A FIDDLE CAN BE HEARD.
COLIN:
Hey!
HENRY SEED:
Pardon me my friend..
COLIN:
Don't touch me!
BARTENDER ZEKE:
Hail there Henry.
What brings you
here this time?
HENRY SEED:
Hello Zeke...I've got an
itch, a little noise to make.
It's been a long journey.
WANDA (OS): Hello Henry.
Looking good.
How are you holding up?
HENRY SEED:
I am getting my bearings
Wanda, although today
was a pretty good day.
BARTENDER ZEKE:
So I heard.
WANDA:
You'll be sticking around then?
HENRY SEED:
As long as it takes...
I've got a lot of work to do...
BARTENDER ZEKE:
Got a lot of noise to make...
WANDA:
You sure you know what
you're doing?
HENRY SEED:
I do know this...sometimes a
deafening silence needs to be
broken with a thunderous roar.
BARTENDER ZEKE:
Perhaps so.
HENRY SEED:
It just seems to me like a lot
of people are turning a deaf ear
and a blind eye.
WANDA:
You should keep your own eyes
and ears open.
CHARLIE LITTLE FEATHER:
Hello.
PETER LEWIS:
Good afternoon.
ELIZABETH JANE:
Mr. Little Feather!
CHARLIE LITTLE FEATHER:
Elizabeth Jane.
ELIZABETH JANE:
Good afternoon Mr. Little
Feather.
May Gusty come over today?
CHARLIE LITTLE FEATHER:
Yes I'm sure she would like
that.
She will be over in a little
while.
ELIZABETH JANE:
Thank you.
EUGENE RODGERS:
Peter...
PETER LEWIS:
Afternoon, Eugene...
EUGENE RODGERS:
Something on your mind?
PETER LEWIS:
Indians should stay on the
reservation.
EUGENE RODGERS:
Scalp trading vermin.
KNOCKING ON DOOR
EUGENE RODGERS:
Hello, can I help you?
HENRY SEED:
Hello, I'm sorry to be
bothering you at mealtime but I
was wondering if you would
like these blankets...
They are made by Lakota
artisans.
EUGENE RODGERS:
How much are they?
HENRY SEED:
I believe in that old adage that
if you cast your bread upon the
water, it comes back ten-fold.
EUGENE RODGERS:
Well that's mighty kind of you.
They appear to be well
made blankets...
They must have been hard to come
by.
HENRY SEED:
Well I... I do have my sources.
EUGENE RODGERS:
Well, we appreciate the gesture.
Would you care to join us for
dinner Mr....?
HENRY SEED:
Seed... Henry Seed.
EUGENE RODGERS:
Henry this is my wife Katherine
and our son Matthew.
KATHRYN RODGERS:
Pleased to meet you.
HENRY SEED:
It's my pleasure Kathryn.
KATHRYN RODGERS:
Please join us.
HENRY SEED:
Thank you. What's your name?
MATTHEW RODGERS:
Matthew.
HENRY SEED:
Matthew my name is Henry Seed.
Nice to meet you.
MATTHEW RODGERS:
Nice to meet you too.
KATHRYN RODGERS:
Thank you for the blankets,
they're lovely.
HENRY SEED:
Thank you and you're welcome,
they're very talented artisans.
No grace, no thanksgiving?
EUGENE RODGERS:
You'll have to excuse us, Henry,
we just aren't into that habit
anymore... but you are more
than welcome to have a silent
prayer if you wish.
HENRY SEED:
To be honest with you it's been
a very long time for me
as well...
What do you do for a
living Eugene?
EUGENE RODGERS:
I am a rancher. Got the state's
only long horn cattle.
I've got over 200 head.
HENRY SEED:
You must have a hell of
a lot of land.
EUGENE RODGERS:
Well... we started with 160
acres deeded to us by the
government and then we were
able to buy up another 640
acres per the Treaty of 1873.
HENRY SEED:
Let's see... if memory serves
that was the amended treaty of
the Nez Perce Treaty of 1873
that stated,
once Indians were removed
either peaceably or forcibly,
the land was then given...
I'm sorry, sold to ranchers and
homesteaders.
EUGENE RODGERS:
Yeah I guess that was it.
HENRY SEED:
Did you have any problems
getting them off your land?
EUGENE RODGERS:
I had no problem whatsoever...
CREEPY MUSIC PLAYS
HENRY SEED:
Matthew do you like drawings?
MATTHEW RODGERS:
Yeah...I've got a big book of
them.
HENRY SEED:
I'd like to share these drawings
with you.
They were done by a friend
of mine.
He's a Lakota medicine man. He's
a spiritual man...
a man who has visions.
Do you like them?
MATTHEW RODGERS:
Yeah!
HENRY SEED:
Do you want to know a
little bit about the story?
MATTHEW RODGERS:
Sure!
HENRY SEED:
OK.
This drawing represents
mankind and the space right
there means that the circle
is broken...
And these are Lakota people.
MATTHEW RODGERS:
Are they sleeping?
HENRY SEED:
In a sense they are
Matthew... But these are yours.
MATTHEW RODGERS:
Thank you Mr. Seed.
HENRY SEED:
You are welcome. Well, I must be
off.
Thank you so much for the meal.
EUGENE RODGERS:
Thank you for the nice gifts.
We appreciate the kindness.
HENRY SEED:
It was no problem
whatsoever...
NATIVE AMERICAN MUSIC PLAYS
ELIZABETH JANE:
Hey Gusty I got this book in
town for you.
GUSTY LITTLE THUNDER:
Thank you and I got this
necklace for you...
ELIZABETH JANE:
Oh, Thank you. It's beautiful!
I wonder if I'll ever get to use
these things like my father did?
GUSTY LITTLE THUNDER:
Do you ever wonder what he was
like?
ELIZABETH JANE:
He died when I was so young.
My mother doesn't really
like to talk about it,
but she says that he was a
good and handsome man.
She says he was a dreamer
with a good heart and would
have liked the fact that
you and I are friends...
I wish I could
have known him.
GUSTY LITTLE THUNDER:
Well, our family who is
no longer here,
are always watching over us.
ELIZABETH JANE:
I'd like to think that...
Hey Gusty,
if you had to pick one boy in
all the world to be
with who would you choose?
GUSTY LITTLE THUNDER:
I am partial to strong boys...
with a soft voice and nice
smile...I like your brother...
ELIZABETH JANE:
Do you think
you would ever like to
live in the big city?
GUSTY LITTLE THUNDER:
I think I'd like it to be...
how it used to be...
ELIZABETH JANE:
Was that thunder?
GUSTY LITTLE THUNDER:
I think that was just the wild
horses...Hello Gaka.
ELIZABETH JANE:
Hello Mr. Little Thunder
LITTLE THUNDER:
Hello Tacosha...are
you ready to go?
GUSTY LITTLE THUNDER:
Gaka can you tell us
a story first?
LITTLE THUNDER:
When I was a child I
had a vision..I was standing
on the highest mountain of
them all and beneath me was
the whole hoop of the world.
And I saw the sacred hoop
of my people was one of many
hoops that made one circle
and in the center grew one
mighty flowering tree to
shelter all the children
of one mother and one father.
Slowly all circles will widen
connect just like your
les are connected in friendship.
INTERIOR TAVERN : BAND
PLAYING CALLED THE FISHKILLERS:
(singing)
This is our world,
This is where we live and it
takes our lives just as it
gives and it nurtures us and
burns us too and it taunts
us to make it through....
HENRY SEED:
(in Lakota)
HENRY SEED: (VO)
There are things in my past,
present and future that I
am equally proud and equally
ashamed of.
FIDDLE MUSIC PLAYS
ERRATICALLY
COWBOY #1:
Hey you Jackaninny you
stole land from my uncle!
COWBOY #2:
It was legal..and I know
what you did with my sister!
PASTOR CALMES DOYLE:
A few of my church members have
been asking me about this
Henry Seed. He's got'em
spooked a bit.
Who do you think he is?
LITTLE THUNDER:
He's a spirit...a thunder
being, a Wakinyan,
who is from the West. He
inhabits an earthly
body for his purpose.
PASTOR CALMES DOYLE:
Is he a vengeful spirit?
LITTLE THUNDER:
He is.
PASTOR CALMES DOYLE:
In the Old Testament Book of
Daniel...the prophet saw four
winds carrying four
creatures from the north,
south, east, and a man-like
creature coming from the west
bringing retribution and
revenge.
LITTLE THUNDER:
If we choose his
path it will only bring us
destruction and separation.
PASTOR CALMES DOYLE:
"They shall mingle with the seed
of men...
but they shall not
cleave to one another....
CLARENCE O'LEARY:
If we can get this here right
up at the top here if one
of you wants to bring it up?
HENRY SEED:
Hello Father. Do you have
any work today?
CLARENCE O'LEARY:
Actually we do!
We need help with one job
rightly. You seem pretty
strong....Boy that must have
been a close call there.
HENRY SEED:
Actually it wasn't a
close call...it went
straight through my heart.
CLARENCE O'LEARY:
Ooh!
You must have had the saints
watching you that day...
HENRY SEED:
Well someone saw it...
CLARENCE O'LEARY:
Well, I've got about two days
worth of work to offer.
Everyone on my crew
gets paid $1 a day.
Is that agreeable?
HENRY SEED:
Yeah, that's very agreeable.
Do the Lakota men get paid
a dollar as well?
CLARENCE O'LEARY:
Well, Just between you
and me...
I pay them $1.10 a day.
They're strong as hell
and smart as a Dickens novel.
By the look of your skin
are you a little Indian?
HENRY SEED:
I'm a little bit of everything.
CLARENCE O'LEARY:
Mr. Everything!...You're hired.
HENRY SEED:
Thank you....Mr. Everything.
I love the sound of that
but you may call me
Henry...Henry Seed.
CLARENCE O'LEARY:
Mr. Seed nice to meet
ya and you may call
me Father O'Leary or
Clarence or Jugsy.
HENRY SEED:
Jugsy?
CLARENCE O'LEARY:
Henry I am Irish...
well, we need to get
started here with this
windmill...
CLARENCE O'LEARY:
Boyos, grub is ready.
Come and get it.
Gather round...shut the hell
up...please.
Mrs. Grey Eagle has prepared
this meal for us and first
I'll say a little grace.
Heavenly Father,
thank you for this food.
Thank you for the
sun, and our strength.
Mitakuye Oyasin. We are
all related in your Holy
Name....Oh, I
almost forget...
...Thank you for the whiskey.
Amen.
CROWD OF WORKERS:
Amen.
CLARENCE O'LEARY:
Boyos... raise your water
mugs. We have been gifted a
bottle of the finest spirits
from Cork County. So after
work if you'd like to help
yourselves to a little
snigger... by all means. But I
shall be starting now...
you be in heaven a half hour
ore the devil knows you're dead!
HENRY SEED:
That is great! That is the type
of toast that's going to keep me
on my toes.
CLARENCE O'LEARY:
Well you've got
half an hour...enjoy.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Henry I want to see you
in my office. Right now.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
What do you know about this?
HENRY SEED:
It is a bullet. It is my bullet.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
I received this from
our mortician, he said he
found it in the brain of
Jonathan Brown....although
I know that he has become
sorely addicted to an opiate and
sometimes his judgment is
clouded.
HENRY SEED:
I believe that opiates add
thunder to a man's clouds.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Henry how did your
bullet get mixed up
with the offending bullet?
HENRY SEED:
It came in with the deceased.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
You mean that an
un-fired, pristine bullet
went through the skull of
Jonathan Brown and
scrambled his brains?
HENRY SEED:
Actually Sheriff, sometimes
self-inflicted trauma
is justice in its purest sense.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
How so?
HENRY SEED:
Twenty three men of
the 7th Calvary were
awarded the Congressional Medal
of honor for bravery during
the Massacre of Wounded Knee.
Twenty three men who shot
unarmed women and children.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
I'm very well aware
of the battle.
HENRY SEED:
Please let me finish...
The cowards behind
those Hotchkiss guns not only
shot and killed noble people.
They killed thirty of their
own cavalry men.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
It was tragic...
HENRY SEED:
Yeah tragic...Sheriff,
did Jonathan ever regale you
with his act of heroism that
garnered such
an august award?
HENRY SEED: (voiceover)
After the melee, Jonathon on
his own accord, tracked
down two Lakotas who had
escaped the brunt of the
massacre... For about a mile or
so he tracked a 20 year old
squaw named Mary Two Horse.
...Jonathan shot her in the
back. She died immediately.
Her one year old son,
that she had been holding...
froze to death that night,
If I had to live with
that horror, if I had to live
with that raw unbridled
cowardice. I would kill myself
too.
HENRY SEED: (voiceover)
The bullet didn't kill him
sir...
Justice killed Jonathan Brown.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Henry...I am asking
you to go back
from whence you came.
HENRY SEED:
And if I don't....
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
I will arrest you.
HENRY SEED:
You have no cause to
hold me and I,
sir, have unfinished business
to attend to.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
You have 24 hrs...
do you understand me?
LITTLE THUNDER: (in Lakota)
My dream today has
the healing power of the
Great Spirit and
my grandfathers...
but it comes in equal measure
a seed of great destruction.
FLUTE PLAYS
FLUTE PLAYS
MINOR RUNNING CLOUD: (in Lakota)
RED WOLF: (in Lakota)
LITTLE THUNDER: (in Lakota)
INTERIOR TAVERN
HENRY SEED:
I give each one many chances
to show change, I extend
mercy in a
merciful fashion.
WANDA:
Your new friends should
inspire more
raindrops of mercy.
Gusty and Elizabeth are
proof that things may change.
HENRY SEED:
Elizabeth Jane's father
died in vain.
WANDA:
He died defending and
protecting a Lakota woman
from being savaged by two
gun-slinging idiots.
HENRY SEED:
He died and the Lakota
woman also died from
her wounds. They both lost,
nobody won...they all lost.
WANDA:
Gusty and Elizabeth are
proof...that he won...
BARTENDER ZEKE:
You know Henry you can either
spread the truth or you can
spread sickness.
HENRY SEED:
and sometimes I can parcel out
both with pinpoint accuracy
KATHRYN RODGERS:
Where is Dr. Bernhagen?
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
He's just north of
Eagle Butte.
He should be back on Thursday
What was he muttering?
KATHRYN RODGERS:
He kept pointing to this
picture right here.
He kept saying thunder, Thunder.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Did Matthew do these?
KATHRYN RODGERS:
No. They were given to
us by a gentleman
just a couple of days ago.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Did he give you anything else?
KATHRYN RODGERS:
These blankets. He said
that they were....
umm... Indian made.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Kathryn you need to
burn these
blankets right away.
SOUND OF WIND
MINOR RUNNING CLOUD:
RED WOLF:
MUSIC STARTS - MELANCHOLY
IN NATURE.
COLIN:
Miss Wanda, did I tell you
that my pop now owns
1600 acres and I am our ranch's
leading cow puncher.
MISS WANDA:
I could see you
punching cattle...
COLIN:
Yes ma'am
KIPPY:
Now Colin, that is
impressive...but I am
the 12th in command of
the South Dakota Railroad
Division number 245.
COLIN:
Kippy that is not impressive,
there's only 13 people
that work in your office.
KIPPY:
That is true Colin but let me
tell you something,
I am climbing right up that
ladder...
COLIN:
Well I am friends with world
famous people.
WANDA:
Like who, pray tell?
COLIN:
Like Mr. Thomas Ederson...he
happens to consider me a very
close friend and confidant.
KIPPY:
What?
THE Thomas Ederson?...the
inventor of the vacuum pump.
COLIN:
Well the vacuum pump,
the candle under
glass...which I think I
invented anyway and he took
it from me...Well I was a
guest of his, right, about 5
or 6 years ago in 1893 back
at the Chicago World's Fair.
KIPPY:
What that one in Chicago?
COLIN:
Yeah, the very same one...where
he showed me his latest,
greatest invention. As a
matter of fact Miss
Wanda I think I'm the first
person in the world to see
his "moving pictures"...
and Mr. Ederson liked to
refer to it as watching his
"flim"
WANDA:
Flim?
KIPPY:
Flim?
You punch drunk turd
rambler it is "film"...film.
F..I..L...L.M
BARTENDER ZEKE:
Gentleman I'm sure Miss Wanda
is very impressed with your
bilateral, chronically
diminished mental
acuity...but why don't we
give Ms. Wanda a little bit
of breathing space.
COLIN:
Thank you very much sir
for your heartfelt compliment...
KIPPY:
Yeah,
yeah I appreciate that.
My daddy he used to say
my brains were a thing of
beauty...and now I
know they're "a cutie."
Thank you. Thank you.
BARTENDER ZEKE:
....Yeah....you're welcome...
WANDA:
I like your jewelry Henry.
It is very handsome.
HENRY SEED:
Thank you Miss Wanda.
It is Lakota made.
The warriors of their tribe
wear it as a sign of honor
and respect.
WANDA:
Gosh how....French of them.
COLIN:
Hey where I'm from the only
males who wear jewelry are
steers with those big ol'
pins in their noses and
flagholes who like to bump
butts with other animals.
HENRY SEED:
Guys leave Wanda alone.
Leave me alone.
Or I will literally
let hell loose on you.
KIPPY:
You know that whore was right
about you.
You are a French tickler
and...a....oh Colin!
COLIN:
Oh damn you got me good
Kippy.
KIPPY:
You want a drink?
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Pastor can you make
anything of this drawing?....
I think it may have some
religious significance.
PASTOR CALMES DOYLE:
I've seen drawings like this
before.
It reminds me of the
visions of Little Thunder.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
The Lakota medicine man?
PASTOR CALMES DOYLE:
I tend to think of him as a
modern day St. Paul
with a touch of St. Peter
thrown in.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Well what makes you that he's a
modern day Paul?
PASTOR CALMES DOYLE:
Paul originally chose a path of
hatred and vengeance.
The Lord split Paul's
sword of hatred in two with a
blinding flash like terrible
thunder and lightning,
leading Paul to a new
path of peace and love.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Are any of his
visions like Peter's?
PASTOR CALMES DOYLE:
Instead of a cornucopia his
visions involve circles or
hoops. Each circle represents a
different race or creed of
mankind. The beautiful part
about his visions are each
circle becomes concentric
and connected to each other.
They all become brother
circles, all connected to,
and under, the eyes of
our Heavenly Father.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
But this circle here
seems to be broken.
PASTOR CALMES DOYLE:
Yes it does...
HENRY SEED:
Dr. Fixer I am in dire
need of your medicine.
DR. FIXER:
Hold your horses I'll
be out in a minute.
Now, how many
bottles do you desire sir?
HENRY SEED:
I actually need 12
bottles.
DR. FIXER:
Twelve! That's a healthy bill
of sale...
let me see that'll
be 3 dollars.....three sir.
HENRY SEED:
There you go.
DR. FIXER:
Now, what is your ailment
sir If I may inquire?
HENRY SEED:
None! I am as fit as
a fiddle.
DR. FIXER:
Really? Well then you must have
someone in your household who
is suffering from a liver
problem or maybe the
yellow disease.
HENRY SEED:
Actually no... as a matter
of fact I just thoroughly
enjoy the taste of
your elixir.
DR. FIXER:
Oh...OK.....
HENRY SEED:
Would you mind joining
me for a few pulls?
DR. FIXER:
Well I have been feeling
a little under the weather
so to speak so I don't mind if I
do... I could use a little
shot of the cure-all
you know...
HENRY SEED:
A toast...
DR. FIXER:
A toast....
HENRY SEED:
May you be in heaven
a half an hour before
before I know you're dead.
DR. FIXER: AAhh...
I feel better already.
HENRY SEED:
So you are a doctor...
you are a medical doctor?
DR. FIXER:
Ah no but I do have
P.H.D.
HENRY SEED:
A P.H.D in what?
DR. FIXER:
In philosophy...but
that does allow me to say
that I am actually a doctor.
HENRY SEED:
Well doctor,
what medicinal qualities
does your elixir have?
DR. FIXER:
Well it has been known
to treat anybody that
has liver disease or that
horrific yellowing of the
skin that may accompany it.
HENRY SEED:
Are you sure your
elixir isn't causing the
cirrhosis of the liver and
the yellowing of the skin.
DR. FIXER:
Now sir to suppose that...
HENRY SEED:
...to suppose that this
is actually 80 percent
alcohol and 20 percent
taproot?
DR. FIXER:
Well there is a small
percentage of alcohol in
there as a soporific...
but that is actually a
proprietary blend of the
medicinal herbs and roots
and proteins and vitamins.
Yep.
HENRY SEED:
Who do you sell this to?
DR. FIXER:
Every man and woman
of every walk and
talk of life.
HENRY SEED:
Do you sell these to
the Indian people?
DR. FIXER:
Yes we do in fact, I've been
told that it helps them to
think straight and, you know,
be more healthy and
have better self esteem!
HENRY SEED:
Do you know that it is
illegal to sell alcohol
on the reservation?
DR. FIXER:
Sir, this is not an alcohol...
this is not classified as an
alcohol, I'm telling you this
has been classified as a
medicinal by the medical
council of the sovereign
state of South Dakota.
HENRY SEED:
I've seen what your
"medicinal" has done
to the Indian people.
I've seen the putrid
condition that your alcohol
has left them.
I've seen them give
you their last monies...
DR. FIXER:
...well...
HENRY SEED:
...I've seen them spend their
monies on your
alcohol instead of blankets
and food...
DR. FIXER:
...Sir, that is their choice.
That is their choice.
HENRY SEED:
That is true...that
is 100 percent true,
that is their choice...but it's
an interesting choice on
your behalf.
DR. FIXER:
How so?
HENRY SEED:
That you actually see...
that you actually bear
witness to their seeds of
despair and then
water them with your elixir.
DR. FIXER:
Now sir. Sir, I take
no moral responsibility
for what certain people...
they abuse my medicines...
HENRY SEED:
And I sir have no moral
responsibility with the way I
am going to leave you after I
make you drink every one
of those bottles......
DR. FIXER:
...thank you...
HENRY SEED:
...you're welcome....
PASTOR CALMES DOYLE:
Good afternoon...Little
Thunder this is Sheriff
Chapman...Sheriff Chapman,
Little Thunder. The sheriff
would like you to take
a look at this drawing.
LITTLE THUNDER:
Who has done
this?
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
A man named Henry Seed.
LITTLE THUNDER:
I had a vision this
morning..this is what I
drew...
this man is a Thunder
Being, they watch over two
spiritual roads. One is
rain and thunder, the other
is the growth and the peace
that comes with the rain.
He is only one road.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
He obviously isn't
the peaceful road.
LITTLE THUNDER:
He wants to break
your people's circle which
in turn breaks all circles.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
This X on his chest...
is there any
significance to that?
LITTLE THUNDER:
A spear took his
heart, replaced it with hate
and left a scar of revenge.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
I need you to talk to him.
LITTLE THUNDER:
I will, after I talk to my
people.
HENRY SEED:
My name is Dr. Henry Seed
Fixer and I have the
elixir of elixirs!
FEMALE TOWNIE IN CROWD:
Sir you have to have a permit to
sell any wares in our town.
HENRY SEED:
Ma'am I have the correct permits
here. I have all the permits
and I have the backing of a
higher authority every single
step of the way.
DRUNKEN MALE CROWD PERSON:
Sir, what kind of medicine are
you hawking here for us?
HENRY SEED:
That's a great question my brain
addled drunken friend...
DRUNKEN MALE CROWD PERSON:
Well thank you very much.
HENRY SEED:
This medicine is a proprietary
combination created by the
United States
Pharmacology Department.
Its most beneficial, most
important ingredient is
this......This is the canine
tooth of the Bovidae Bison
Bison commonly
known as the buffalo.
We at the USPD extract the
tooth and grind it down to a
fine powder and then we add
pure Wisconsin spring fed
waters and our own
combination of medicinal
herbs, roots,
proteins and vitamins.
MALE CROWD PERSON:
What's it good for?
HENRY SEED:
You sir have
palpitations of the heart.
You ma'am have hot flashes
and pains in your wrists.
You sir have residual back
pain from falling off
your horse exactly 26 days
ago...And you sir have
the bane of modern man.
You were once young and
virile My elixir can put
the Jesse back in your James,
put the Charles in your
Dickens, put the Bat
in your Masterson,
put the Kid in your Billy
and put the Wild Bill in your
Hickok....But first let me
tell you about our extraction
process.We slowly slaughter
the buffalo and then we,
as it is still alive, pull the
tooth.
The carcass is then laid
to waste like carrion,
the rotted flesh for the
crows and critters of the
plains. We let the carcass
go to waste... all of it...
We use no meat for sustenance,
no hide for warmth,
no skin, not a bit, for leather,
no bone for knick knacks or
patty whacks nothing but this.
LITTLE GIRL IN THE CROWD:
His medicine is bad...
it will hurt you!
HENRY SEED:
From the mouths of
babes comes the truth on a
white horse I have lost all
my authority to sell you
this elixir.
BOOKSTORE OWNER:
Ah a wonderful choice.
I think you will
enjoy Oliver Twist.
Are you familiar
with the story at all?
HENRY SEED:
No, a little, not much though.
BOOKSTORE OWNER:
I like to call it the preeminent
rags to riches story.
HENRY SEED:
That's right;
I do remember that he grew up
in an orphanage.
BOOKSTORE OWNER:
Even with that humble
beginning he is able to
exhibit integrity and the
power of choice.
Even when no choice is
given he still chose.
HENRY SEED:
How is that possible?
BOOKSTORE OWNER:
I like to call it the magic and
mastery of volition...
pure undiluted free will.
HENRY SEED:
So I guess you must
be from the school of
thought of John Milton then
huh?...Creating a heaven from
hell and a hell from heaven.
BOOKSTORE OWNER:
Exactly...there are no
inextricable situations.
The situation only takes
meaning in the way that we
perceive it, in the
way that we handle it.
HENRY SEED:
So even if a man were
shackled and bound
he'd still have a choice?
BOOKSTORE OWNER:
Even more so.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Michael lock your doors and meet
me in my office.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Michael did someone put rotting
meat in your store...
did you get a bad a delivery?
MICHAEL:
No I don't get no deliveries
until next Tuesday. You were
in my store this morning it was
fine then wasn't it?
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Yes it was.
MICHAEL:
Well it ain't now, everything in
the store has gone bad.
The seeds have meal worms
in them...even the damn hard
candies have gone putrid.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Did someone else enter
your store after I left?
MICHAEL:
Well yeah about 6 or 7 people.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Was one of them a tall
gentleman with dark hair?
MICHAEL:
Yeah he didn't buy nothing,
he just circled his hands
around...I didn't know what
the hell he was doing. I thought
it was some damn European
way of saying hello.... Well,
I gotta go see what I can
salvage from the store.
HENRY SEED:
Michael, your place smells
really bad.
MICHAEL:
What did you do to my
foodstuffs?
HENRY SEED:
Actually the question should
be... what did I do
to my foodstuffs?
MICHAEL:
I'm not getting you...
I did nothing.
HENRY SEED:
You are absolutely correct.
You've done nothing at all...
nothing except lock your front
door. Two winters ago you
hoarded all of your
food for your kinfolk,
for your townsfolk. Any
Indian looking for food
you locked the front door.
MICHAEL:
They were beggars...
I run a business.
HENRY SEED:
They were not beggars...
they had federally issued
vouchers...
just as good as any minted
money.
MICHAEL:
Well I was afraid we were
gonna run out of food.
HENRY SEED:
You didn't run out of food
Michael. You ended up
with a large surplus that
eventually went bad.
MICHAEL:
I think I may have been wrong
in my judgment.
I have thought about that
almost every day for the last
two years.
I know what I did was wrong.
HENRY SEED:
Have you tried to
rectify that wrong?
MICHAEL:
No but...
if ever that happens again,
I will do the right thing.
HENRY SEED:
I actually...I actually believe
you. I appreciate your
heartfelt manner...I do.
Michael are you married?
MICHAEL:
No...
HENRY SEED:
Do you have any children?
MICHAEL:
No...
HENRY SEED:
I will not show you
any mercy...
LITTLE THUNDER: (in Lakota)
MINOR RUNNING CLOUD: (in Lakota)
RED WOLF: (in Lakota)
SIMON:
How's Gusty?
ELIZABETH JANE:
Very well. She asked about you.
SIMON:
See you after work.
ELIZABETH JANE:
Have a good day Simon.
HENRY SEED:
Simon, you're Elizabeth
Jane's brother?
SIMON:
Yes sir.
HENRY SEED:
So Elizabeth Jane has
an Indian for a friend?
SIMON:
Yes sir, they've been
friends for 8 years.
HENRY SEED:
I heard that Gusty
kinda likes ya.
SIMON:
I like her too.
WANDA:
Hello Henry........
HENRY SEED: (voiceover)
........When the drum was
created it was created with a
sole purpose--a heart and
soul purpose to mirror all
mankind's heartbeat and pulse,
a rhythmic connection and a
common percussive thread that
is the backbone and building
block of all of our heart
songs.......
A TRIBAL SONG PLAYS
A TRIBAL SONG PLAYS
HENRY WHISTLES
RANCH OWNER OTIS:
What the hell...you
got no right to be here,
this is my land.
HENRY SEED:
What's your name?
RANCH OWNER OTIS:
Otis
HENRY SEED:
Otis, do you know that in the
Lakota language there are
no words for ownership of
land... That all land, all
of this, only has One owner.
RANCH OWNER OTIS:
Really? See I got a deed that
says otherwise. I own this
land and I'd really like you to
leave...
HENRY SEED:
Do you know where I was sitting,
like what I was sitting next to?
RANCH OWNER OTIS:
Yeah, you're sitting on my land.
That's my field, those are my
trees.
HENRY SEED:
In this grove of trees is
actually an Indian resting
site. There are 18 souls,
18 bodies that have been
laid to rest all throughout
that...
RANCH OWNER OTIS:
Look, guess what?
I don't rightly care about
any of that. All I'm thinking
right now is getting you
the hell out of here.
HENRY SEED:
Otis, Do you know that all
mankind...
every creed, every color
has a respect for the dead.
You're not planning on
expanding your farmland and
defiling these
grounds are you?
RANCH OWNER OTIS:
You know I don't know yet.
But when I do decide
it will be my decision.
HENRY SEED:
That is true,
it is your choice...and I'm
going to make a decision..I
think I may want to
stay right here...
RANCH OWNER OTIS:
You know I think I might
just forcibly remove you.
HENRY SEED:
I may want to kill you...
although...
although I am making a conscious
decision. I am making an
amorally correct choice.
RANCH OWNER OTIS:
You lost me there jackass.
HENRY SEED:
I'm choosing the lesser
of two evils.
RANCH OWNER OTIS:
Oh so you've chosen to
leave my land...
that's a good decision.
HENRY SEED:
No, actually I'm choosing to
beat the hell outta you
instead of killing ya...
FLUTE SOUND
FLUTE SOUND
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Do you believe in the sins
of the father?
PASTOR CALMES DOYLE:
No, we sail our own ships.
We choose our Captain.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Well, I've been thinking that
Henry Seed is punishing us for
what our grandparents and our
parents did to the Indian.
PASTOR CALMES DOYLE:
Sadly, we haven't done much
better than our parents and
grandparents before us.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
How so? I treat the Indian
fair and square.
PASTOR CALMES DOYLE:
We ignore the Indian as a
whole though.
Do you remember
two winters ago?
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Yeah, worst one we've ever had.
PASTOR CALMES DOYLE:
We could only house 12 Lakota
in our church, but if each
family in town had taken in just
one Lakota family no one would
have starved, not one
froze to death.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
I guess that would
have helped some.
PASTOR CALMES DOYLE:
My uncle fought for the South
during the Civil War.
He once told me a story about
when he was stationed as a
guard at the POW camp
in Andersonville, SC.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Sadly, I've heard of it.
PASTOR CALMES DOYLE:
My uncle was placed in
charge of guarding the
foodstuffs for the other
confederate soldiers.
One night a Yankee prisoner
slipped past him and stole a
bunch of apples. The thief was
eventually caught and when he
was questioned he confessed that
he was stealing the apples to
give to his dying friend.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Did they show him
any mercy?
PASTOR CALMES DOYLE:
No...a fellow guard, a friend
of my uncle, shot the man
to death. My uncle sat by in
silence.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
What could he have done?
PASTOR CALMES DOYLE:
He could have explained
the reason for the theft,
he could have offered
to whip the prisoner,
he could have pulled
the gun from the guard's
hand...anything
besides death.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Maybe his hands were tied and he
didn't have a choice.
PASTOR CALMES DOYLE:
We always have a choice...
you know the damndest
thing about this story is that
a few years later my uncle
found out that this particular
Yankee prisoner was a
a shirt-tail relation to him.
He sat idly by while a man
murdered his own flesh and
blood... Silence in the face
of evil is itself evil.
INTERIOR TAVERN --
MUSIC BY THE FISHKILLERS:
(singing)
There's a break in the circle,
there's a crack in the hoop,
there's a rupture in time,
we're all in the soup...you
can think you're a loner,
do it all by yourself,
but you're nothing without
everything, just gathering
dust on a kitchen shelf You
can go it alone, you can make
a new plan but there's no
such thing as a
self made man.....
BARTENDER ZEKE:
You alright?
HENRY SEED:
Yeah I think so,
I just need a little solitude
and confinement to let my
thoughts ponder and let my
spirit stretch its legs...
ELIZABETH JANE:
Sir, be careful.
HENRY SEED:
Don't worry about me;
I have a real good connection
with the sunka wakan.
ELIZABETH JANE:
You speak Lakota?
HENRY SEED:
I do. Do you?
ELIZABETH JANE:
A bit...my friend Gusty's
teaching me.
HENRY SEED:
I have a question for
you...how do you come
to have a Lakota friend?
ELIZABETH JANE:
Well, after my father died the
Lakota helped my mother out
with the farm and the horses.
Without them we wouldn't
have been able to survive,
we help each other out.
HENRY SEED:
Not everyone seems to
feel the same way though.
ELIZABETH JANE:
Gusty's grandfather says that
hatred and revenge break the
circle and that we have to be in
harmony with the four-legged
and the two-legged
in order to survive.
HENRY SEED:
Mitakuye Oyasin,
we are all related...thank
you Elizabeth Jane.
HENRY SEED:
Sheriff I respectfully give
myself up to you. I will
put myself under your bond and
shackles of confinement.
INDIAN MUSIC PLAYS
INDIAN MUSIC PLAYS
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Henry, I saw that
scar on your chest,
was that a bullet wound?
HENRY SEED:
Actually it was a large
lance that was thrown at
me and we lost the battle
because of it.
Then every one of my
followers then was
shackled and chained
and then they were.....
we were cast from our home.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
When the hell was that?
HENRY SEED:
Many, many years ago.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Well last night all of Peter
Lewis' horses were stolen
do you know anything
about that?
HENRY SEED:
Hey Sheriff have you
ever heard of the
term Sunka Wakan?
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
No I haven't.
HENRY SEED:
Well, it actually means Sacred
Dog and it's the Lakota's name
for horse.
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
Hmm..interesting...
HENRY SEED:
You know I don't exactly know
where it came from, but
if you'll let me I
could venture a guess.
Well as it is told, when He...
kicked Adam and Eve out for
eating an apple...he also sat
them down and he told them
that they would lose all
connection, all
communication with all the
animals....although I do
believe that the horse and
the dog walked into His
office and they begged him
for a continued communication,
a continued connection.....
When the government stole
all of the horses from the
Lakota, it may have broken
their spirit but it did not
break that bond....
The horse, the dog, sacred dog,
Sunka Wakan...
EXTERIOR BADLANDS
SHERIFF CHAPMAN:
He's all yours.
LITTLE THUNDER: (inLakota)
HENRY SEED: (in Lakota)
RED WOLF: (in Lakota)
HENRY SEED: (in Lakota)
MINOR RUNNING CLOUD: (in Lakota)
HENRY SEED: (in Lakota)
CHARLIE LITTLE FEATHER:
(in Lakota)
RED WOLF: (in Lakota)
LITTLE THUNDER: (in Lakota)
HENRY SEED: (in Lakota)
MUSIC IS HEARD and THUNDER IN
THE DISTANCE...
MUSIC IS HEARD and THUNDER IN
THE DISTANCE...
INDIAN CHANT STARTS
AND CONTINUES...
INDIAN CHANT STARTS
AND CONTINUES...
HENRY SEED: (in Lakota)
No more silence...
World keeps turning, turning
it's back, turning a blind eye
to all that has been done
here... History redacted by
the bullies who won
here,
We're all in denial, the
nations honor is still being
defiled. You say zip about
sin. Go on then...
let evil win...You sittin
here in shit and give in?
Confess, yell it out! Let's
exercise this - confess!
Confess!