Where God Left His Shoes (2007) Movie Script
Eric, be back in a minute,
all right? Keep hitting.
Hey, Frank.
Frank, you got a minute?
I just got off the phone with the promoter
for the December fight.
- Oh, yeah? What did he say?
- Pulling you from the card.
- You're kidding me.
- No.
Why would they do that?
Come on, Frankie. You know why.
- Yeah.
- Nothing I can do.
Right.
Don't worry, papi.
There'll be other fights, right?
Hell, yeah.
I mean, they can't just do that.
You have a contract.
- They can do whatever they want.
- Well, sue them.
Yeah, well, who am I gonna sue?
What, who am I gonna sue?
I can't sue nobody.
- Mom, Justin hit me.
- No, I didn't, she's lying.
Did too!
- No, I didn't!
Did too!
Who was a liar?
- She's lying.
- Just go wash up.
- Dinner's ready.
But...
- Do you see that?
Hey.
You heard your mother. Get out.
- Well, she just hit...
Now.
- But she...
Now.
Man.
Can Hector do something?
I'm not dealing
with that parasite anymore.
I took all my stuff out of the gym
and out of the locker.
Oh.
"Oh," what?
What's that supposed to mean?
I was counting on the money.
We have no more.
- What am I gonna do? I'm behind bills...
- I know, I was...
I'm counting on it too, okay?
I'll figure something out, I will.
I promise you, I will. Come on.
- Don't be like that.
- Don't... Don't "come on" me.
Stop it.
Stop it.
- Go to basketball tryouts today?
- No.
Why not?
Because I don't wanna play basketball.
I wanna play football.
He's gonna get hurt if he plays football.
- Tell him he needs to play basketball.
- You need to play basketball.
Wow, that's just the enthusiasm he needs.
- What do you want me to say?
- I want you to encourage him.
I would, but he can't shoot hoops.
- Why not?
Why not?
When he dribbles,
he looks like a retard.
- I can dribble.
No, you can't.
- I can.
- No, you can't.
- Yes, I can.
- I've seen you dribble. You can't dribble.
Your sister dribbles better than you.
- Can I box?
- Can you box?
- What are you gonna box, oranges?
No boxing.
- Out of your head.
- Why not?
Because I say so.
Don't look at me.
If you throw a punch the way you dribble,
you're not even gonna see 13.
I can't be worse than you.
- Hey, what'd you say?
- Nothing.
You said something. I wanna hear it.
- I didn't say anything.
What'd you say?
I didn't say anything.
- So?
- What?
What now? Jesus Christ.
- You check the fuse box?
It's not the fuse box.
We're the only ones out.
Did you pay Con Ed?
You wanna do this in front
of the kids right now?
Can you turn on the lights?
I'm scared.
Oh, sweetie, don't be scared.
Come here, come here, come here.
There's nothing to be scared of.
The dark is actually a lot of fun.
Hey, hey, Justin, grab your plantain
and throw it at me.
- What?
- Come on, throw it at me.
I'll get in trouble.
You're not gonna.
- Throw it at me.
- What are you doing?
- What are you doing?
- Watch.
- Get it in my mouth.
You're cleaning this up, okay?
Yeah, okay, yeah. Come on.
- Ready? You ready?
- All right, watch your sister.
She's gonna outdo you.
One for the team!
One for the team.
- Guess whose turn it is.
- Mom's.
That's right.
- I'm not...
Don't you dare throw that.
Don't throw that at me.
You're playing this game
no matter what.
- That's right, that's right.
I ain't playing this game.
- Yes, you are.
- Come on, concentrate, woman, focus.
Don't throw that at me.
- Open up, Mom.
Come on, it loves you.
Wait, wait, baby,
let me do it, let me do it.
Let me get it, Mama.
Watch, watch.
Come on, open your mouth. She's right.
Come on.
That's right. You know how we like it.
Oh!
Ah.
You spit it out. I got it in.
I wanna demand a recount.
Justin.
Aw.
All right, that's enough.
No more. Come on.
We're not gonna waste all the food.
That was fun.
- You're not scared anymore, right?
No, I'm not.
- What was that?
Not anymore.
CHILDREN
Trick or treat!
All right, I'm coming, I'm coming.
Hey, can I help you?
Yeah, New York City
Department of Housing.
Trick or treat.
- What's going on?
What is this?
Sorry, man. You got two hours
to pack your stuff.
Come on.
All right, how much do we have?
Two hundred and twenty-nine.
Two hundred and twenty-nine, okay.
If I sell the car, we could probably get
what, another 800, maybe 900,
if we're lucky.
- I'll look for a job tomorrow.
- You can't look for a job.
Who's gonna take care of Tina?
Come on, we can't afford it.
- Where are we gonna go tonight?
- I don't know, I don't know.
Why don't we just go to a hotel,
sleep the night, try to figure things out?
Why don't we call your cousin Benny?
No way. We're not staying with Benny.
There's no way I'm staying with him.
He's been shot, like, five times.
He's a goddamn hoodlum.
I can call Luis.
What are you thinking?
I wasn't thinking. I mean...
Hey, I'm sorry.
Look, I'm fine. Just forget it.
Just forget it, all right?
Check, please. Check.
Everything okay here?
- Yeah, it's great.
- What's the damage?
- Uh, it's 16 pumpkins.
Sixteen, that's a lot of pumpkins.
- How much are the shakes?
Five dollars apiece.
- And the fries?
Three ninety-five.
Okay, so five and five and four is what, 14?
Well, there's tax too.
Right, right, tax.
Who can forget the government, right?
Excuse me. I'll give you a minute.
Can I get some money, please?
What's the matter?
Hey, hey, hey, what's wrong?
What, what, what?
What's the matter?
Come on.
Look, this isn't easy
on either one of us, all right,
but we gotta be strong.
Gotta be strong, baby.
We've gotta make a pact, no crying
in front of the kids. You got me?
- I'm just tired.
- I know, I know.
But the best thing for us right now
is to stay together, you got it?
Yeah.
We're gonna make it.
I promise you, we're gonna make it.
- Okay.
- All right?
Yeah.
I love you. Now come on.
Let's pay the bill
and go to sleep, all right?
I'll take care of it.
Take the kids out.
- I need a moment, okay?
- All right.
Come on.
Come on, hurry up.
Put all the candy away.
I got it.
I'm not done watching.
You pick them up.
Why do I gotta go pick it up?
Why can't you?
Don't start.
- But we...
- I got enough things on my mind.
- What the hell you doing?
I'm sorry.
- I'm really sorry.
- Clean it up.
Help him.
Here you go.
Here you go.
Here you go.
- Don't you usually give me 75?
- What about those bricks you dropped?
- You expect me to pay for that?
- Come on. I broke 10 bricks.
How much are bricks,
You want the 50 or not?
Come on, man. All I'm saying is
that 10 bricks at 50 cents is how much?
I mean, do the math.
You know what?
I don't got time for this shit. Take the 75.
Just don't ever expect me
to hire you again.
It's your choice.
Keep it.
There's a smart man if I ever saw one.
Hey, have you got any work
coming up in the next few days?
I don't know if you noticed
all the decorations
all over the place, but it's Christmas.
Thanks a lot.
- Ha.
- You scared me, you idiot.
So, what you doing?
Just trying to bring some
Christmas spirit to this place.
Oh, yeah, it's really working.
Look at that.
- How was work?
- I made 50 bucks.
- You usually make 75.
- Yeah, usually.
Look, I don't wanna talk about it,
all right?
Okay.
Where are the kids?
Justin's outside
playing with some friends
and Christina's on the bed playing with
some toys the Salvation Army dropped off.
Hey, Tina.
- Who's your friend?
Smiddy.
Hi.
Get the hell out of here.
Angie.
Angie. I can't find my jacket.
What?
I think somebody stole my jacket.
Can you believe that? Jesus.
Hey, excuse me,
can I talk to you for a second?
Someone stole my jacket last night.
I need to file a report.
Actually, Mr. Diaz, I was
just about to come and find you.
Uh, follow me. I need to talk to you.
Did you find it?
You're not gonna believe this.
You're not gonna believe it.
What? What's wrong?
We gotta leave the shelter.
What?
Remember that list I put us on
for the apartments a couple months ago?
- Yeah.
- Yeah, well, they called us.
- You're kidding me.
- Yeah.
We're gonna be in our own apartment
for Christmas after all.
What do you think of that?
I'm not kidding. I gotta see
the property manager in an hour.
- Oh, my God.
- Didn't I tell you?
- Didn't I promise you?
- You did, you did.
- I promised you, right?
- Is Santa Claus gonna come this year?
There is no Santa Claus.
Really, stupid, think about it.
How can Santa Claus
go to everyone's house
in the whole wide world in one night?
Don't listen to your brother. He doesn't
know his ass from his mouth.
Sweetie, you know what?
Santa already came.
- He brought us a beautiful apartment.
- But I want my doll back.
Aw.
- Well...
You know what Papa's gonna do?
I'm gonna call Santa personally
and make sure that he hooks you up
with whatever it is you want.
Let me get a little giggle out of you.
- Nothing?
- She's tired.
All right. I gotta go, honey. Come on.
Why don't you take
the troublemaker with you,
and I'll take Tina to the clinic
and pack everything up?
You get the easy way out, huh?
- You know he can't stay here.
- I get stuck with him.
- Come on, Justin.
- Why can't I stay here?
Because you're coming with me, that's
why. Come on, bundle up, champ.
- Bundle up.
- You can't go out like that.
Come on, baby. I'm five blocks
from the subway, then a couple of blocks...
Just take that.
- See you back here in a couple of hours?
- With a key.
With the key to our new apartment.
Thank God.
Oh, it's freezing.
- Come on, let's go.
- Why can't I stay here?
Because you can't, that's why.
It's not safe.
- I can protect myself.
- Oh, yeah?
You can protect yourself
from a grown man?
Yeah, hell, yeah.
Yeah, let someone try something.
- Where the hell you get that?
- I got it from a friend.
Can I see it?
What the hell are you doing with this,
man? What's wrong with you?
- What?
- Carrying shit like that.
- What's wrong with you?
- I can protect myself.
- You can protect yourself from a man?
- Yeah.
- You think you could?
- Yeah.
Come on, protect yourself.
What you gonna do now?
What you gonna do now?
Come on, what you gonna do?
Protect yourself.
If you can do it, man,
if you can protect from me,
you can stay here all day. Come on.
- Ugh.
- Uh-huh.
Just as I thought.
You're an asshole.
Don't ever let me catch you
with a knife again, you hear me?
Whatever.
- Go under, go under.
- What?
Go under.
Go, go!
Hi. Merry Christmas. I'm Frank Diaz.
I'm here to see Carita
about an apartment.
Oh, Jesus.
Oh, look. Hey, hey, look.
Yankee Stadium, man.
- We can watch the game from here.
- Oh.
- That's cool.
Okay, Mr. Diaz, it's $201 a month.
And utilities included,
first and last month's security.
There's three bedrooms down the hall.
This is it. What do you think?
Well, it's not exactly
where God left his shoes,
but it'll do.
You can actually move in today.
That's great, that'd be great.
If you're handy, you can, mm,
fix it up, do something with it.
Yeah, I know. Put a little muscle to it,
maybe paint it, you know?
- Yeah.
- Change the floors a bit.
- I could do something with that.
- Yeah, well, wonderful, wonderful.
Um, why don't we go back to my office,
and we can get the paperwork filled out?
It's Christmas Eve.
I know you'd like to be in.
- I would love that. You saw that, man?
I know.
- How great is that?
Awesome.
Here you go. Fill this out.
- What is this?
The application. You need a pen?
Sir, you need a pen?
- Yeah, yeah, yeah. Thank you, thank you.
Okay.
You all right?
Yeah.
You know what, do you mind
if I filled it out right outside?
- Be just a second.
All right.
Thank you. Come with me.
Here, fill that out.
- Why?
- Just fill it out.
Why can't you do it?
Because my wrist is killing me
from the last fight, that's why.
It is. My wrist is killing me.
Just fill it out, all right?
Then anything you don't understand,
just ask me, all right?
Here's your application,
and here's the $400.
Well, actually, it's $398,
but I'll get you the 2 bucks
in about two days, all right?
Okay, that's fine.
You didn't fill out
the employment section.
Right, because, uh,
I'm in between jobs right now.
I'm a boxer.
One of the requirements
in qualifying for an apartment here
is that you have some form of income.
No, I do, I do.
I just work off the books, that's all.
So it's, like, construction and, you know,
work hasn't been steady lately...
Unfortunately, I can't put down
that you work off the books.
Right. I'm gonna have a few jobs
lined up right after Christmas.
That won't work.
Management is very strict,
and since you don't have
a guaranteed form of income,
I can't process your application.
I will have to put you back on the list.
What are you talking about?
I can't give you the apartment unless
you are presently employed, on the books.
Your name will go on the list.
When an apartment becomes available,
I'll contact you.
My family's in a shelter,
and I can't do it anymore.
We just can't do it anymore.
Do you understand?
I'm sorry. I'm sorry, sir.
I don't know what else to tell you.
You can tell me the apartment is ours,
and we can move in there today.
I can't do that.
Come on, it's Christmas.
It's Christmas. Give me a break.
Can you cut me a break, please?
I promise you,
I'll have a job by the first of the year.
I guarantee.
I'm sorry. There's nothing I can do.
I have a family too, and if I
put you down for the apartment
and get caught, I can lose my job.
Justin, wait for me outside.
- Give her hell.
- Yeah.
Let me explain something to you.
Let me explain my situation to you, maybe.
Maybe you'll understand, um.
Me and my family,
we've been having some hard months,
and all we want is to have an apartment
for Christmas, that's all.
That's all we want.
Look, I understand your position.
I know what you're in,
but imagine having children
and sleeping in a dirty shelter
on a cold floor for three months.
Imagine that.
I understand, I understand...
- No, but are you imagining that for me?
Yes, I understand your position.
Many of the tenants who live here
were in your shoes at one time or another,
but like I said, there's nothing I can do.
Right.
Nothing you can do.
You know, let me ask you something.
How many of those tenants
that were in my shoes
went into the Gulf War
and fought for this country?
- How many of them, huh?
- Excuse me?
It's a simple question.
How many of them went and fought?
I went and joined up
and fought for this country
when I was 18 years old, okay?
And you're telling me that it's okay
for me to risk my life,
risk my life for your family, but you
don't have to put anything on the line
- for me and my family.
- It's not like that.
Yeah. Yeah, it is like that.
It's just like that.
Wait, wait, uh. Come back, please.
Do you get a check
from the government each month?
I don't get anything.
I don't get a dime. I don't get nothing.
Look, I leave the office at 6 tonight.
If you can find a job by then,
the apartment's yours.
That's the best I can do.
Otherwise, and I'm sorry,
but I'll have to call
the next person on the list.
- Thank you. I know what you're doing.
- Here.
- Thank you so much.
- Mm-hm.
So, what happened in there?
So we didn't get it?
No, we didn't get it, Einstein.
Not yet, anyway.
- Where we going now?
- To get a job.
Why?
Why? Because I need a job
to get an apartment, that's why.
Why didn't you tell her you already
have a job, make something up?
- And when she finds out I lied?
- We'll already have the keys.
We'll get thrown out of
another apartment. Great.
No. But why can't you just...?
No, you could...
- Actually, you could just tell her...
- Guy, you're not making sense.
- Shut up.
- Don't tell me to shut up. You shut up.
I'm just trying to help.
- Know how you can help?
- How?
By shutting up.
MAN
Stand clear of the closing door.
Oh, man.
I'm hungry.
Well, you should have ate
at the shelter.
Can we eat
when we get off the train?
No, no, no, all the money
I got is for the apartment.
Should have went with Mom.
Yeah, you should have.
Who lives here?
Just mind your business and
don't embarrass me, all right?
- How you doing?
- What are you doing here?
- I told you I got no work today.
- I know, I know,
and I'm sorry to bother you,
but I need to talk to your father.
- About what?
- It's about...
Hello, Mr. Montecello,
how are you?
- How you doing?
- I'm sorry to bother you.
I know it's Christmas Eve
and whatnot,
but I got something very important
to talk to you about, if you got a minute.
We're a little busy right now.
Yeah, I realize this,
but this is really important.
- Come on, it's cold. Let him in, come on.
Thank you, thank you.
You're just gonna leave me out here?
Go over there and play with the kids.
- Play ball, make friends.
- Why can't I...?
It's freezing though. I'm cold.
What's this about
that you gotta come bother us today?
Yeah, well, this isn't easy to say,
but, uh, me and my family,
we're living in a shelter.
- What are you, homeless?
- Just about.
You hungry or something?
- Dad, give him a few meatballs and:
- That's okay, I didn't come here for food.
- I didn't come here for handouts.
- Come on, have a bite. Have a bite.
I'm fine. Thank you very much,
but I'm fine.
Come on, my wife made 200 of them.
Have a bite.
You know, it's an insult to turn down
an Italian woman's cooking.
MoNTECELLo: Come on.
- I don't wanna be insulting anybody, right?
MoNTECELLo: It's good.
- Sure, sure.
Be good for you. Have a bite.
- Wow. That's great stuff.
The best.
- You want more?
- No, I'm great. It hit the spot. Thank you.
Look, I know you guys are very busy,
and I don't wanna take up your time,
but the reason I'm here is, uh,
I'm a boxer.
And I was up for this big fight,
and I got taken off the card.
I knew I recognized you.
You're the guy that got his ass kicked
by Rodriguez
back at the Garden,
like two months ago.
- I lost the fight, yeah.
- You threw in the towel.
I saw it on ESPN.
You'd have had a shot if you didn't quit.
Hit him with a couple good punches.
You still would have got your head beat in,
but you would have had a shot, at least.
- As I was saying, um...
- How can we help you?
Well, that's why I'm here, sir.
In order for me to qualify
for this apartment,
we need somebody to tell the people
who are running the building, um,
that I work for you guys on the books.
- But you don't work for us on the books.
I know.
- You want us to lie?
- No, I'm not asking you to lie.
I'm not asking you that.
I just need proof of employment
so I can get my family out of this shelter,
and all I need is a W-2 form
or a paystub, anything like that.
- We can't do that. No way.
My family will be very appreciative.
I'll work it off. I'll work weekends,
I'll come here whenever you guys need it,
- whenever. Holidays, I don't care.
- No can do.
Come on, vinny. It's Christmastime.
The guy's down on his luck.
Let's give him a break.
Maybe we could do something with this.
We can't do it.
We're not hiring anyone on the books,
and we for shit sure
ain't lying to the government.
Forget it.
We'll lose our license. What happens
to us when we lose our license? Huh?
- For this?
- All right.
Look, I'm sorry.
My son runs the business.
If there was something we could do,
believe me, Frank, we'd do it.
Thank you, sir, thank you.
Merry Christmas. Thank you very much.
Thank you very much for your time.
- Thanks for leaving me out in the cold.
- You're welcome.
I wasn't really thanking you.
Now where are we going now?
- In the city.
- Can we get something to eat?
Yeah, we will, in a little while, okay?
What's that red stuff on your mouth?
What red stuff?
What are you talking about?
The red stuff on the side of your mouth.
Did you eat something
while you were in there?
I bet you didn't know that it's an insult
to turn down Italian cooking, know that?
You suck, you know that?
You really suck.
I can't believe...
I can't believe you ate something in there.
Hey! Hey, stop right there.
Hey, I said stop. Stop right there.
Yo, I said stop.
Police. Stop right there.
Stop. Police!
I said stop!
Stop.
What's the matter? What's the matter?
Come on. Get on my back, quick.
All right, let me see, let me see.
Okay, okay. All right.
- Oh, man.
- All right. Can you bend it back?
Can you? All right, so you didn't break it,
you just sprained it.
Look, I'm gonna have to tie this up
really tight, all right?
- To cut off the swelling. I got to, man.
- No, leave it. Leave it.
All right, see?
Hey, what happened to your hand?
- When I fell, I cut myself.
- Oh, Jesus Christ. Let me see it.
Look, we'll clean it up
when we get into the city, all right?
All right, stick your hand out.
Stick your hand out, come on.
It's gonna sting a little bit, all right?
Come on.
Let me see.
All right.
- Where'd you get that?
- I took it.
- Oh, shit.
- What's the matter?
I can't eat it now.
It has peanuts in it.
- So? What's the big deal, man?
- I'm allergic to peanuts.
- Remember?
- Allergic to peanuts?
I thought you was allergic
to, uh, raisins.
No, peanuts.
Well, that's what you get
for stealing, man.
Hey, look, I wanna say
I'm sorry, all right?
It's just that...
Never mind. I'm sorry, man, all right?
I'm sorry.
Can you walk?
Yeah, I think so.
All right.
If it hurts, let me know and we'll
take a break, all right? Come on, let's go.
Excuse me, ma'am, do you know where
the Human Resources department is?
- It's on the third floor.
- Third floor?
WoMAN: Up the escalators.
Okay, thank you. Come here.
Hey, over there. Go.
Go sit down and rest your ankle. Go.
WoMAN: Can I help you?
- Yes, how you doing?
My name is Frank Diaz.
I'm here for the security guard position.
- I was wondering, who should I speak to?
- Sorry, they're all filled.
Oh, wow, really?
Well, are there any other
positions available?
WoMAN:
You don't look like a perfume tester.
Well, I can be very versatile.
Look, we really don't have
anything right now.
Try back after the New Year.
You know, what do you have to do
to be a perfume tester?
What do you do? Hold the bottle
and say, "Try this fragrance,
Chez Monet"? I could do that.
Sir, move your foot out
the door before I call security.
Sorry.
- Come on. Find something, man.
- I'm looking, I'm looking. Relax.
- What about this? What about that?
- No, not that.
What about that,
a beautician in the Bronx?
Oh, a beautician. Ha, ha.
That's hilarious, man. You're really funny.
What? How hard does it have
to be to cut someone's hair?
Gotta go to school for that.
You can't just cut hair,
- give a perm or a weave without learning.
- Don't have to go to school for that.
You do.
Gotta go to school for everything.
Not if you wanna be president.
All you have to be is 35 and a U.S. Citizen.
Look, just find me a job, okay?
Just find me a job.
Because I'm not gonna be president,
and I'm for sure not gonna be
a beautician in the Bronx.
What about painting?
- I can do paint. Where?
Right here, 230 East 1 st Street.
Good work, man, good work.
Rip it out, rip it out.
Hey, hey.
- Hey, Jus. Check it out.
- What?
- Little girly over there.
- Where?
Right there.
Oh, look at her. She's looking at you, man.
She's eyeballing you.
No, she's not.
Look at how she just smiled.
- Come on, do something, man.
- No.
- She's smiling at you.
- No.
Look at that.
You're in like Flynn, buddy.
Don't waste it. It's a great opportunity.
Do something. Do something.
- Wave at her.
- No.
She loved it, she loved it, look at her.
I'm helping you out, man.
- Stupid. Helping me out?
- Don't call me stupid. Let's go.
Let's get out of here.
- You're not gay, are you?
No.
You ever get to first base?
Second.
You're lying, man.
You never got to second base.
- Did too. Kissed a girl.
- Oh, yeah?
- Who was the unlucky lady?
- I ain't telling you.
Better not be that girl with the wooden leg
you always hang out with in the shelter.
Little perv, taking advantage
of the handicapped, man.
- You guys even touch tongues?
- None of your business.
When you start
hitting triples and home runs,
you're gonna have to bag it, all right?
Because you can't go raw dog these days.
"Bag it"? What, what...?
You never got to second base, forget it.
Yeah, I know, I know,
but what does "bag it" mean?
What's wrong?
Nothing, man. Come on, let's go.
- How's your ankle?
- It hurts even more.
Just put the weight on the other leg.
- Don't step on it.
- Can I help you?
Yeah, I'm here to apply
for the painting job.
- Come in.
- Thanks.
MoRRIS:
You ever work in a school?
Uh, no, I can't say that I have.
A bunch of bratty kids with no respect.
Yeah, it won't bother me.
I got two of my own.
You know how to paint?
Yeah, of course. You know,
I painted my own car once even.
It didn't come out all right,
but, hey, it saved a lot of money.
Good. Principal Danner wants every
classroom painted over the holiday break.
- Step into my office.
- Yeah.
Hey, hey, do me a favor.
Go sit by the radiator
and stay warm, okay?
- You smoke?
- Yeah, yeah, sometimes.
Thank you.
It sucks they got you working
on Christmas, huh?
Tell me about it.
All right, let's get this sucker filled out.
- Name?
- Frank Diaz.
- Address?
- 1873 Hunt's Point Avenue, Bronx, 11457.
- Social?
- 987-65-4320. This is on the books, right?
Yeah, of course it's on the books.
It's a city job. Pfft.
Good, good, good.
Where was your previous place
of employment?
I was working construction,
but it was off the books.
- Yeah, before that.
- Oh, before that?
- I'm a professional boxer.
- No kidding?
- Yeah, yeah. Why, you a big fight fan?
- No, no, no, bowling is my sport.
Bowling's cool, bowling's cool.
What else?
Uh, ever been convicted of a felony?
No.
Any medical condition
I should know about?
Not that I know of. Heh, heh, heh.
Any problem starting today?
It would just be till 3:00.
I gotta get a jump-start
on those classrooms.
No, yeah. I can start today, man.
Whatever you need.
That's what I'm here for.
You seem all right in my book.
Besides, I needed somebody yesterday,
um...
- The job pays $ 12.50 an hour.
- Twelve-fifty.
- Yeah, is that a problem?
- No, that's great.
Twelve-fifty's great.
- Well, Mr. Diaz...
- Hey, hey, why don't you call me Frank?
Just call me Frank.
It's what everybody calls me.
- Frank?
- Yeah.
Well, Frank,
unless you changed your mind
before you walked in that door,
you got yourself a job.
I do?
Merry Christmas.
Don't be so happy.
It sucks working here.
The doctor will be right in.
- Okay. Okay.
One, two. Good girl.
Relax, you're gonna get better.
- Hi, I'm Dr. Desai.
- Hi.
Hi. So what's wrong with this little cutie?
Oh, she's been sick for three days.
This morning she woke up with a fever.
Oh, flu's going around.
It sounds like you're coming down
with it too.
Everybody at our shelter is sick.
Oh. Which shelter is it?
Most Precious Host.
It'll be a little cold, okay?
There are better shelters in the city.
There's Safe Haven downtown.
That's for women who've been abused.
What are you trying to say?
I see a lot of women
come here in need of help
- and they don't like to talk about it.
- I don't need help.
My husband's never laid a hand on me.
We came here to take care
of my daughter. Can we just do that?
Okay. Um...
Can you stick out your tongue
for me for a second?
- Wide. "Ah. " Say "ah. "
Ah.
Okay, thanks.
I've been down that road in the past,
and I was smart enough to get out.
There are better shelters,
but that would mean leaving my husband.
I was just giving you options in case
you need them, but you don't.
He's out getting the keys
to our new apartment.
- Our last day at the shelter.
- Congratulations. Good news.
She's got a lot
of inflammation in her throat,
so I'm gonna put her on an antibiotic.
I'll just get the medicine and get you
something for your cough too.
Thank you.
Twelve-fifty an hour, man.
You know what that means?
You can finally get me
something to eat?
Oh, yeah, I'm gonna get you
something to eat on the way home.
But it means Yankee Stadium,
baby, you and me, opening day.
- Sound like a plan, huh?
- Yeah.
I'm gonna get those seats
on the second tier
over first base
where all the foul balls go.
- Can we get hot dogs?
- We're gonna get hot dogs.
Hot dogs, peanuts, cotton candy...
oh, no peanuts, man.
- I forgot, you're allergic.
- We have to have ice cream.
- Yeah, ice cream.
- Lot of ice cream.
Tons of ice cream,
tons of ice cream.
Cotton candy, zeppoles...
I'm gonna give you so much candy,
it's gonna rot your teeth.
But don't think about food
right now, man.
Because it'll make you hungry.
We got two hours left, all right?
Oh, we did it.
Can you believe that? We did it.
We did it, little man.
Come on, give me five.
Give me five.
Uptown. Midtown. Downtown.
- Oh, man, why'd you slap the brush for?
- Come on, that's not funny.
- You see me laughing? I'm not laughing.
- Okay. We'll go cross-town.
That ain't right, man. That ain't right.
You think that's right?
I got your hand, you got my threads.
That's a whole other different story.
- Frank, got a minute?
Yeah, yeah. What's up?
I was just about to
start painting the wall right now.
- Look, I need to talk to you.
- Yeah, yeah, sure. Sure.
Keep stirring it. Get to work, man.
Help us out, all right?
What's going on?
Ran your social
through the district computer.
Felony charges came under your profile.
Do you know anything about that?
Felony charge?
It said you spent two years in jail.
Yeah, well, I...
Something did go down.
It did go down. I mean,
I was a young kid, man, a stupid kid.
Twenty-one years old.
You know how that is, right?
I was hanging out with the wrong crew.
And I'm with them,
and they go into this bodega, but I
stayed outside and they took some shit.
- I didn't even know they were gonna do it.
- They held up the place?
I don't know. I don't know. Like I said,
I stayed outside, so I have no clue.
But it was a big mess. It was a big mess,
and I was guilty by association.
And even the store clerk
said that I wasn't a part of it.
I couldn't afford a good lawyer.
You know how that goes.
- Frank, this is a problem.
- Mr. Morris, I'm not that guy.
Okay? I'm not that guy.
That was a long time ago.
It was a mistake, you know?
I got a wife and two kids, man.
That was the wrong time, wrong place,
wrong friends, you know what I'm saying?
- Frank.
- It happens to everybody, you know?
- I mean...
- Frank.
Look, I need these classrooms painted
as much as you need this job,
but the board of education has a policy:
No felons near the kids.
Now, I'm sorry,
but there is no way around that.
Right.
Justin, come here.
Hey, buddy, can I talk to you a second?
I'm looking for a guy.
Frank Diaz, a Latino guy.
He's a boxer.
He's about maybe your size.
I used to pick him up here for work.
I picked him up with you.
- Sorry, I don't know him, man.
- Whoa. It's a good thing, a good thing.
I'm trying to do the guy a favor.
I'm looking all over the place.
- Sorry, guy, I can't help you.
- Can you help me out?
Aw.
- Oh, man.
Come on, stay over here
till it clears up a little bit.
You never told me you went to jail.
Yeah, you never told me you
sucked face with Peg Leg Patty.
The things you find out
along the way, huh?
What you doing
listening to my business?
- I couldn't, I could just hear you.
- Yeah, sure.
Does Mom know?
Yeah, your mom knows.
- Did you shoot anybody?
- No, I didn't shoot anybody.
That's why your mom
wants you to take up a sport,
so you'll stop hanging on the street
or end up in trouble.
Matter of fact, you're signing up
for basketball next week.
- My ankle could be broken.
- It's gonna be better by then.
Now, come on, we haven't got much time.
Let's go.
- It's pouring.
- Put your hood up.
Find me a job.
You're not gonna find anything today.
It's Christmas Eve.
You want a warm apartment? You want
something to eat? Find me something.
- You buy the paper or you put it down.
- Relax, it's just a quarter.
I'm running a business here.
You look, you buy.
- Oh, is that so?
- Yes, that's so.
- Oh, I found something.
- What you find?
Look, "Stockroom employees
needed for holiday. "
Where at?
- Right here.
Oh, it's Houston Street.
Here, I'm putting it down. You happy?
There you go. You happy?
Let's go, come on.
Wait, you can't go like that.
- Why not?
Because you're wet,
you have paint on you...
Yeah, so what am I supposed to do?
- Get new clothes, that's what.
- Oh, right.
You wanna go to Armani's
on a shopping spree? Barneys?
- You don't have to spend money.
- No?
Because people are giving away
clothes for free nowadays.
- Just do what Mom does.
- What does she do?
Tell you when we get there.
- Are you sure your mother does this?
- Yeah.
And she gets on me for cursing.
Hey, help me pick out
a shirt for these pants.
- How about this one?
- What, you mean like a pimp?
Come on, man.
This is more like it. This is good.
All right, just stay here.
I'll be right back, all right?
Get your hands off!
Hey. Hey, relax.
Get off!
- Hey, what's going on?
- This your kid?
Yes, he's my stepson. Why?
- Just caught him shoplifting.
What are you talking about?
Hey, you, empty your pockets.
Empty your pockets,
or we're gonna do it for you.
Hey, kemosabe, just relax, all right?
This is a kid, man, please.
Empty your pockets, man.
What the hell are you doing, man?
What the hell are you doing?
I'm sorry.
I don't know what the hell got into him.
We have to take him in the back.
Gotta write this up.
Come on.
We all make stupid mistakes, right?
Come on, look, you got it back, right?
No harm, no foul. It's all good, right?
We gotta take him
in the back and write him up.
Look at him, he's a 9-year-old kid, man.
We all make mistakes, right?
It's Christmas.
- Want me to pay for it?
Sir, it is store policy.
I know it's store policy, man,
but it's not your store.
I'll pay. I'll give you the money.
Sir, what do you have on
underneath that sweater?
Oh, man, you know...
You know what happened?
We're gonna need some more assistance
down here in the men's section.
I was in the dressing room when I heard
the screaming. I didn't get a chance...
Go, go, go.
Meet you at the newsstand. Go, go, go.
- Whoa. Where's he going?
- Come on.
Let's just try to work this out, all right?
The two of us, all right? Because what?
Look, I'll give you the clothes,
I'll pay you back, whatever.
- We can work this out.
- That's not the point.
So, what is your point?
The point is you have on a sweater
that doesn't belong to you.
I told you why, man.
I was in
the dressing room putting it on,
and I heard the commotion.
- Relax.
- I came out to protect my son.
- I am relaxed.
- You don't seem relaxed.
- I'm just trying to work this out.
- Your voice doesn't seem relaxed.
I'm trying to work this out.
I said I'll pay you.
- Back off right now.
- You are not going anywhere.
- I'm going...
- You're coming with me.
What the hell is the matter with you, huh?
What the hell's wrong with you?
What are you, stupid?
You stealing jewelry for your girlfriend?
No, it was for Mom.
It's for your mom?
VENDoR: Two fifty.
- For your mom?
WoMAN:
All right, I think I'll...
I think I'll give you some change...
All right, just forget it, all right?
Forget it.
- At least I got the new clothes, right?
- Yeah.
Now, come on. Let's go look for a job.
Come on.
What's the matter?
- Tell me. What?
- Oh, man.
I left my money inside the pants
in the dressing room.
- What are we gonna do now?
- I don't know. I don't know.
If I go back in there,
I'm gonna get arrested.
Jesus Christ. This is great, man.
This is great.
- Hey, excuse me, do you have the time?
It's 2:15.
Two-fifteen, great.
Now I gotta get the deposit and a job.
That's just great.
- All right, come on, man. Let's go.
- No. I can't walk.
- What?
- I can't walk. My stomach hurts.
Your stomach doesn't have to do
with your legs.
No. I'm not going anywhere
until I get something to eat.
- We'll get something to eat at the shelter.
- No, no, no.
- Don't be a pussy, man.
- I'm not a pussy. I'm not a pussy.
Hey, don't do this to me now.
Come on, man.
No, no. I'm not... No.
I'm not going anywhere
until I get something to eat.
I've been walking miles and miles,
and my stomach is growling,
and my stomach is empty.
I feel like I'm gonna pass out.
Justin, come on, man.
I swear to God, I...
- I want you to get up right now.
- No.
Justin, get up right now.
Right now, you hear me?
No. I'm done. I'm done.
I don't care what you say anymore.
Anymore. I'm hungry,
and I want something to eat.
All right. I'll get you something to eat.
Are you happy? Come on.
Finally.
I'm not eating shit from there.
- Are you listening?
- Yeah, yeah, I'm listening to you.
- Why can't we go to a restaurant?
- This is a restaurant.
It's the back of a restaurant.
Try to find something that's wrapped.
Yeah, I'm looking, I'm looking, man.
Oh, bingo. Look.
Look what I got. Look what I got.
Look at this. Look at this.
A perfectly good little jelly doughnut.
Here you go.
- It's fricking hard as a rock.
- Yeah, it's just frozen, that's all.
This is disgusting.
Maybe if I hadn't
listened to you and stolen clothes,
we could have
bought something edible.
I've been asking to get something to eat
for the last five hours.
I knew I should have
left you at the shelter, man.
Yeah, you should.
Leave me right here.
- I'll get back to the shelter myself.
- Trust me, I'd like to, man.
- This isn't my fault.
- Whose fault is it, man?
Who got paint on my pants,
and I had to get new clothes?
Was that my fault, huh?
Was that my fault?
- It's your fault we live in a shelter.
- What?
What did you say?
You do this all the time.
What'd you say?
- I said it's not my fault.
- No, that's not what you said.
You said, "It's your fault
we live in a shelter. " I heard you.
You think I'm a loser, don't you?
You know how many families are
struggling, trying to make it? A lot, okay?
Wait till you have kids, boy.
You're gonna see how damn hard that is.
I'm not gonna have kids
unless I can afford them.
You got an answer for everything.
Yeah, I have more answers than you do.
You think I needed you in my life?
Think I needed the responsibility?
- You think I needed you?
- Yeah, you did. You did.
Or would you rather be with
your real pops? Huh?
Think you're better off with him?
Go back,
so he could beat you up
for no reason every day.
Shut up. Just shut up.
What, now you don't have an answer,
big man?
You had a big mouth,
but when somebody fights back,
- you have nothing to say?
- I'm a bigger man than you.
- Is that so?
- Yeah, it is so.
I can make more money begging
in an hour than you can in a whole day.
Ooh. You're a big man. Ooh.
I can read.
And I can walk all over the city
for five hours with a broken ankle,
and you can't even get out of the corner
and at least lose a fight like a real man.
Give me that. You don't want
the doughnut? You don't want it?
Excuse me,
can you spare some change?
Spare some change?
Excuse me,
can you spare some change?
Excuse me, sir,
can you spare some change?
Excuse me, sir,
can you spare some change?
I'm not talking to you, man.
You're not gonna get anything like that.
Merry Christmas. I'm not talking to you.
Go back to the shelter, man.
Go back to the shelter.
You're not gonna get anything that way.
Yeah? Hey, see,
I'm not talking to you, man.
Excuse me,
can you spare some change?
Excuse me, can you
spare some change?
Excuse me, can you spare some change?
Excuse me. Spare some change?
Excuse me, ma'am, can you
spare some change, please?
WoMAN:
Sorry.
Excuse me, sir,
can you spare some change, please?
Thank you.
Excuse me,
can you spare some change?
Excuse me, ma'am.
- Excuse me, ma'am.
- Excuse me, spare some change?
Can you spare some change?
Merry Christmas.
Excuse me, can you spare
some change, please?
Excuse me, can you spare
some change?
- Thank you, sir. Merry Christmas.
Yeah. Merry Christmas.
Count your money
as fast as you can, all right?
Hey, look, I wanna thank you
for helping me out there, okay?
Whatever.
Remember when I was at the park
trying to tell you something this morning?
Yeah.
I'm gonna tell you...
I'm gonna tell you the most important thing
that I'm ever gonna tell you.
This is the secret to life.
You listening to me?
Like I got a choice.
There's nothing to fear.
Okay, come on. Say it.
Why?
Because I don't wanna waste my breath.
I wanna make sure that you heard me.
There's nothing to fear.
Right, because fear
is the worst weapon in the world.
The most powerful weapon.
People are gonna try to scare you
into doing a lot of things
that you don't wanna do, trust me.
I mean, look where it got me, right?
Look where I am today.
Anyway, just know people
are gonna manipulate you,
and that's how they're gonna do it.
You got me?
- Yeah.
- Good. Good.
- So how much you got?
- Hundred and forty.
- Wow.
- How much you get?
It's none of your business.
- Do we have enough?
- Yeah, yeah, we got enough.
We got enough.
As long as I get a job, we'll be fine.
All right, man. Come on, let's go.
Excuse me, sir. Excuse me.
I'm sorry I'm late. Traffic.
But I'm looking for a job.
- We're closed now.
- I know, I know, but the trains...
- Try another day.
- Two hours. Two hours.
- I'm sorry, I can't help you.
- Give me a chance. Come on.
What about the beautician job
in the Bronx?
It's 5:30, man.
By the time we go back uptown
and come back, we'll never make it.
Maybe we could try a few restaurants
over by the building.
- No, it's over.
- It's not over.
Why do you always do that?
You're always giving up.
Hey, there's no shame to losing.
I did my best, okay?
Come on, man.
I wanna make one more stop before
we go to the shelter, all right? Come on.
Hey, is this
what Christina was looking for?
You're buying her a present?
- Yeah, I'm buying her a present, why?
- What about me?
- What about you?
- I walked all over the city,
sprained my ankle
and starved for 10 hours,
and she gets a present?
- Look, all I wanna know is, is this what...?
- Yeah, yeah.
Thank you.
Now go get something for yourself
- and make sure it's under 20 bucks.
- Forget it. Forget it.
- No, go get something.
- I'm fine.
Why would you have brought it up
if you didn't want something?
- I don't want anything.
- Yeah, you do. Yeah, you do.
Come on, you give me shit,
and you make me feel bad
for not getting you something,
not thinking about you. Go get something.
Go, go.
Did you mean what you said?
Said about what?
About you not needing me
around anymore.
Come on, come on.
Of course not, man.
We were just arguing, that's all.
What are you doing?
Hey, hey, hey. What are you doing?
What are you doing, man?
What's the matter? Is something wrong,
man? Is your ankle hurting? What?
- Do you love me?
- Do I what?
You always tell Christina and Mom,
but you never tell me.
That's because you're a man.
You're a man. Come on.
You're a little man,
but you're still a man. Come on.
You know I do, right?
So we're men, man,
and men don't do that.
Imagine me dropping you off
at school every day,
saying, "Justin, I love you.
I love you, Justin. "
- You would have kicked my ass, right?
- Yeah.
You know, when we start...
When we play-fight like this
or I pound you on the head, right?
When I pound you and give you noogies,
that's me telling you in code,
all right?
I thought you knew that.
No.
All right, now you know, stupid.
What was that? What was that?
What was that?
Come on. Throw a punch
like the way I taught you.
That's it, that's it.
That's how I used to hit
when I was your age, man.
Go ahead. That's right.
That's getting good, man.
I'm gonna take you to the gym,
but don't tell your mother, all right?
All right. No, that's it, that's it.
That's it. Hey.
What are you doing? Hey, cut it out.
What are you doing, man?
Hey! Come on, stop it. Stop it, man.
What the hell's the matter with you?
People are watching. Hey, stop.
Calm down, I'll let you go.
Calm down, I'll let you go.
All right.
Here, baby.
Hey.
Give me that.
- Hey, are you okay?
- Yeah.
- What happened, baby?
- Oh, he's fine, baby. He's fine.
Just sprained his ankle, that's all.
- How are you doing, Tina?
- She's better. Her fever broke.
Oh, that's good, baby. I'm glad.
Hey, look, look.
Wow.
Look what Santa gave me.
What took you so long?
I started to worry.
Tell me on the way.
Let's get going. Everything's packed.
We're all ready to go. You guys ready?
What's wrong?
Honey, you got new clothes.
Yeah, it's a long story.
Baby, what happened?
We didn't get the apartment.
What are you talking about?
We didn't get the apartment.
I gotta get a job on the books
to qualify, is what I gotta do.
Can we call someone,
do something?
Angie, I went everywhere,
and I tried everything.
Okay.
We'll figure it out.
Let's just go and have dinner.
Some Christmas dinner,
a nice-looking dinner
somewhere, all right? How about that?
Let's go eat.
- Yeah.
- All right?
- The kid's starving, I had a long day...
- Yeah.
All right. I'm gonna go wash up, okay?
Hey, what happened to your hand?
When I slipped, I cut myself.
Oh.
Okay, guys.
We're just gonna go to dinner, okay?
Coats on.
Wanna take your doll out, baby?
Come on, we'll take her out.
I wish you a merry Christmas
I wish you a merry Christmas
I wish you a merry Christmas
And a happy new year
Sit over there.
Thank you.
- Enjoy your meal.
- Thanks.
- What are you gonna have, pumpkin?
- Spaghetti.
- All right, you got it.
- Merry Christmas.
- Merry Christmas.
- Merry Christmas.
What can I get for you?
- Two sodas for the kids.
- You gonna have pasta with butter?
- Yep.
Pasta and butter.
What are you gonna have?
- The chicken Parmesan.
The chicken papa john.
I think that's what I heard him say.
I'm gonna have a steak, medium,
and my wife's gonna have the lobster.
- What's wrong with you?
- And two glasses of red wine.
Very good.
Thank you.
I'll be right back with your drinks.
- You're a jerk, you know that?
- That's why you married me.
Yeah.
That's not funny.
Sit up straight.
Put your napkin on your lap.
Are you gonna tell
everything that happened today?
I think we should dance.
- Dance?
Yeah.
I don't see anybody dancing.
- Who thinks we should dance?
- Ooh.
I need a majority vote.
Who thinks we should dance?
You're not gonna embarrass us?
I said I need a majority vote.
Thank you.
Looks like I got a majority vote here.
You're gonna have to dance with me.
Come on.
Come on.
Come on, let's go over here.
Snowflakes are falling
Outside my window
But it'd be just perfect with you
Children are singing
And sleigh bells are ringing
But it'd be just perfect with you
Ange,
I'm sorry.
Sorry about what?
Being such a goddamn loser.
You're not a loser.
Yeah. I couldn't even get a job.
- Stop it.
- Why are you even with me, huh?
I mean, I had potential,
but what do I got now?
No matter what I say right now, it doesn't
matter. You're not gonna listen to me.
If somebody showed you
a crystal ball right now,
and they said to you,
"This is where you're gonna end up,"
would you do it again?
Come on, the truth.
I love you, you know that.
And you're the best husband
and the best father in the world.
But would I do it again?
No. And neither would you.
And that's just the truth.
I don't feel so good.
Well, you ate everything
but the breadbasket.
How was everything?
It was excellent.
- Great, thank you.
I'll leave this with you.
- The wine is on the house.
- Thank you.
Merry Christmas.
- Merry Christmas to you too.
Goddamn.
Who broke a window in here, huh?
- I told you we shouldn't have come here.
- No, it's fine, it's fine. I got it.
I got it.
Man.
Here, why don't you take the kids outside?
I'll take care of it.
No.
- No, I'm not doing that.
- Doing what?
You don't think I know what you do?
I know what you do.
Just let me pay for it, okay?
That should do it.
All right, everybody, come on.
Everybody, you ready? Bundle up.
It's gonna be cold.
You okay?
How's your leg? What's wrong?
What's wrong?
Come on.
Frank, what's wrong?
Oh!
- Frank!
No. Hey, stop!
- Frank, stop!
Frank!
Frank, please! Frank, stop.
Oh, my God.
Frank!
Stop!
Baby...
oh, God.
WoMAN:
Mr. Diaz.
Yeah?
Can I talk with you for a second?
Yeah, sure.
What happened out there?
I'm sorry.
I got a little out of hand out there,
but he stole my jacket.
I thought you were placed
in an apartment.
So did we,
but obviously we didn't qualify.
- Sorry to hear that.
- What's going on? He pressing charges?
WoMAN: No, but unfortunately I have
to ask you to leave the shelter.
- He took my jacket...
- Excuse me, excuse me.
That man stole my husband's jacket.
No, no, she's not understanding clearly.
- He stole our jacket.
- Ma'am... Angie, please, okay?
I had to fight him because
he took my jacket, all right?
I'm aware of what happened, and
I will deal with him, but you've gotta go.
You're gonna throw me out?
You're gonna throw... Me and my kids,
you're gonna throw us out?
What kind of shelter is this?
- You can stay and keep one bed.
- One bed?
What do I do with one bed, ma'am?
I got two kids here.
Can you count? One, two kids!
What do I do with that?
Angela. Angie, calm down.
- Don't...
Don't tell me to calm down
after what you did.
Don't you tell me to calm down!
What are you gonna do?
He steals my husband's jacket,
and we get kicked out?
- You tell me how this is fair! You're sorry?
WoMAN: I'm sorry, but this is our policy.
You know what?
You leave me no choice.
- You leave me no choice.
- Can't you just reconsider, please?
- Can you think about it?
WoMAN: I'm sorry, I can't.
He took my jacket.
I'm so sorry.
MAN
Hello?
Hello?
Hey.
Where'd you go?
I called Luis.
Come here.
What'd you do that for?
- Because we got nowhere to go.
- Yeah?
He's gonna pick us up,
and let us stay with him.
- We can go to another shelter.
- The kids can't go on like this.
You're always on me, always,
about showing them the right way,
and then you do this?
- What kind of example you...?
- You know what?
I've done the right thing all my life.
I am done.
I'm trying to fix this right now, please.
Please.
Ready, guys?
Is Frank gonna come?
Yeah, he will.
How are you?
Great.
You look lovely.
Hey, big guy. How's it going?
Sorry, can we just do this
the way we talked on the phone?
Let's just not make it harder, okay?
Yeah. Sure.
Hey, man, it's all good.
No, man, it's not all good,
especially what you did to her.
Frank, for chrissake.
Angie, go with him, all right?
Go and take the kids.
I'm gonna find a shelter. I'm fine.
Justin, grab your things.
I'm not going.
Get in the car now.
No.
Frank, tell him to get in the car.
Hey, hey. What are you doing, man?
What are you doing, champ?
Come on, what's going on?
Come on, uptown.
Come on, downtown. Cross-town.
Cross-town. Come on, man.
Don't leave me hanging.
- I'm not going.
- You gotta go, man. You gotta go.
Gotta take care of your mother
and sister when I'm not around.
- You're the big man now.
- I'm not going without you.
Yeah, it's big of you, all right,
but you got no choice.
I have a choice.
If you don't go, I don't go.
- What the hell's going on here?
- Just a minute, okay?
Justin, you can't stay with Frank.
He's gonna go to another shelter.
It's gonna be too dangerous, okay?
Justin, why don't you listen to your mom
and come with us?
You can see Frank tomorrow.
How about you go in the car
and leave me and Frank alone?
I'm your father.
You don't talk to me that way.
What's this?
What is this?
I'm sorry I called,
and I dragged you out here, okay?
Yeah, you're sorry, all right.
Look at what you're putting yourself and
these kids through. For what? For him?
This is the man you keep
my son away from me for?
You're pathetic.
Pathetic.
Oh, man, look at that.
Okay, why don't you guys wait right here?
I'm gonna go in.
WoMAN: You're all gonna have to
step back a bit.
I'm sorry, we have no room
for the rest of the night.
I've been here all night.
I understand.
There's nothing I can do.
You're gonna have to step back, sir.
I have no room for you. I'm sorry.
There's absolutely... No.
Let me stay.
It's beyond my control.
Can I have you all just step back, please?
I'm completely full for tonight.
I'm sorry.
- I have to ask you to step back.
- Sorry, sorry.
I gotta talk to somebody, please.
WoMAN: Can you please clear
this walkway? Can you please...?
- I'm sorry, sir. I'm sorry.
- How you doing?
- I need two beds.
- We're at capacity right now.
I'm sure you are,
but I got two children.
Sir, we're completely full for the night.
I'm sorry.
- Two little kids.
- Can we please clear this walkway?
- I'm sorry, we have no room.
- I know, I know.
Can you recommend a place?
- You can try Most Precious Host, maybe.
- You know, we just came from there.
WoMAN: There's nothing else.
There's nothing else in the area.
Try, uh, Brooklyn.
I hear they have beds
out in Fort Greene,
but they might be full by now.
It's the busiest night of the year.
I'm sorry.
Everybody, please,
can I please have you clear this walkway?
We are completely full.
We have no beds.
It's totally full.
I don't know what the hell to do.
WoMAN
Stand clear of the closing door.
- What the hell you doing?
- Playing a game.
Don't play.
Try me.
Aw.
Too low, too low. My bad.
One more try, one more try.
Aw.
See, you can't throw, man.
You got no aim.
- I wanna try it. I wanna try.
- Let her try.
A small piece, baby.
Wait, wait, wait.
That has peanuts in it. I'm allergic.
- No, you're not.
Yes, I am.
I just told you that because
you'd stuff your face and get yourself sick.
Hey.
Hey, don't look at me.
I had nothing to do with that.
That is not right.
- Your mom's slick, isn't she?
Yeah.
Yes.
- Mmm. She got it!
- Who's the best? It's you.
- I did it.
You're the champ.
I can't believe you did that to him.
- Not the worst thing.
- You're too much.
I love you.
all right? Keep hitting.
Hey, Frank.
Frank, you got a minute?
I just got off the phone with the promoter
for the December fight.
- Oh, yeah? What did he say?
- Pulling you from the card.
- You're kidding me.
- No.
Why would they do that?
Come on, Frankie. You know why.
- Yeah.
- Nothing I can do.
Right.
Don't worry, papi.
There'll be other fights, right?
Hell, yeah.
I mean, they can't just do that.
You have a contract.
- They can do whatever they want.
- Well, sue them.
Yeah, well, who am I gonna sue?
What, who am I gonna sue?
I can't sue nobody.
- Mom, Justin hit me.
- No, I didn't, she's lying.
Did too!
- No, I didn't!
Did too!
Who was a liar?
- She's lying.
- Just go wash up.
- Dinner's ready.
But...
- Do you see that?
Hey.
You heard your mother. Get out.
- Well, she just hit...
Now.
- But she...
Now.
Man.
Can Hector do something?
I'm not dealing
with that parasite anymore.
I took all my stuff out of the gym
and out of the locker.
Oh.
"Oh," what?
What's that supposed to mean?
I was counting on the money.
We have no more.
- What am I gonna do? I'm behind bills...
- I know, I was...
I'm counting on it too, okay?
I'll figure something out, I will.
I promise you, I will. Come on.
- Don't be like that.
- Don't... Don't "come on" me.
Stop it.
Stop it.
- Go to basketball tryouts today?
- No.
Why not?
Because I don't wanna play basketball.
I wanna play football.
He's gonna get hurt if he plays football.
- Tell him he needs to play basketball.
- You need to play basketball.
Wow, that's just the enthusiasm he needs.
- What do you want me to say?
- I want you to encourage him.
I would, but he can't shoot hoops.
- Why not?
Why not?
When he dribbles,
he looks like a retard.
- I can dribble.
No, you can't.
- I can.
- No, you can't.
- Yes, I can.
- I've seen you dribble. You can't dribble.
Your sister dribbles better than you.
- Can I box?
- Can you box?
- What are you gonna box, oranges?
No boxing.
- Out of your head.
- Why not?
Because I say so.
Don't look at me.
If you throw a punch the way you dribble,
you're not even gonna see 13.
I can't be worse than you.
- Hey, what'd you say?
- Nothing.
You said something. I wanna hear it.
- I didn't say anything.
What'd you say?
I didn't say anything.
- So?
- What?
What now? Jesus Christ.
- You check the fuse box?
It's not the fuse box.
We're the only ones out.
Did you pay Con Ed?
You wanna do this in front
of the kids right now?
Can you turn on the lights?
I'm scared.
Oh, sweetie, don't be scared.
Come here, come here, come here.
There's nothing to be scared of.
The dark is actually a lot of fun.
Hey, hey, Justin, grab your plantain
and throw it at me.
- What?
- Come on, throw it at me.
I'll get in trouble.
You're not gonna.
- Throw it at me.
- What are you doing?
- What are you doing?
- Watch.
- Get it in my mouth.
You're cleaning this up, okay?
Yeah, okay, yeah. Come on.
- Ready? You ready?
- All right, watch your sister.
She's gonna outdo you.
One for the team!
One for the team.
- Guess whose turn it is.
- Mom's.
That's right.
- I'm not...
Don't you dare throw that.
Don't throw that at me.
You're playing this game
no matter what.
- That's right, that's right.
I ain't playing this game.
- Yes, you are.
- Come on, concentrate, woman, focus.
Don't throw that at me.
- Open up, Mom.
Come on, it loves you.
Wait, wait, baby,
let me do it, let me do it.
Let me get it, Mama.
Watch, watch.
Come on, open your mouth. She's right.
Come on.
That's right. You know how we like it.
Oh!
Ah.
You spit it out. I got it in.
I wanna demand a recount.
Justin.
Aw.
All right, that's enough.
No more. Come on.
We're not gonna waste all the food.
That was fun.
- You're not scared anymore, right?
No, I'm not.
- What was that?
Not anymore.
CHILDREN
Trick or treat!
All right, I'm coming, I'm coming.
Hey, can I help you?
Yeah, New York City
Department of Housing.
Trick or treat.
- What's going on?
What is this?
Sorry, man. You got two hours
to pack your stuff.
Come on.
All right, how much do we have?
Two hundred and twenty-nine.
Two hundred and twenty-nine, okay.
If I sell the car, we could probably get
what, another 800, maybe 900,
if we're lucky.
- I'll look for a job tomorrow.
- You can't look for a job.
Who's gonna take care of Tina?
Come on, we can't afford it.
- Where are we gonna go tonight?
- I don't know, I don't know.
Why don't we just go to a hotel,
sleep the night, try to figure things out?
Why don't we call your cousin Benny?
No way. We're not staying with Benny.
There's no way I'm staying with him.
He's been shot, like, five times.
He's a goddamn hoodlum.
I can call Luis.
What are you thinking?
I wasn't thinking. I mean...
Hey, I'm sorry.
Look, I'm fine. Just forget it.
Just forget it, all right?
Check, please. Check.
Everything okay here?
- Yeah, it's great.
- What's the damage?
- Uh, it's 16 pumpkins.
Sixteen, that's a lot of pumpkins.
- How much are the shakes?
Five dollars apiece.
- And the fries?
Three ninety-five.
Okay, so five and five and four is what, 14?
Well, there's tax too.
Right, right, tax.
Who can forget the government, right?
Excuse me. I'll give you a minute.
Can I get some money, please?
What's the matter?
Hey, hey, hey, what's wrong?
What, what, what?
What's the matter?
Come on.
Look, this isn't easy
on either one of us, all right,
but we gotta be strong.
Gotta be strong, baby.
We've gotta make a pact, no crying
in front of the kids. You got me?
- I'm just tired.
- I know, I know.
But the best thing for us right now
is to stay together, you got it?
Yeah.
We're gonna make it.
I promise you, we're gonna make it.
- Okay.
- All right?
Yeah.
I love you. Now come on.
Let's pay the bill
and go to sleep, all right?
I'll take care of it.
Take the kids out.
- I need a moment, okay?
- All right.
Come on.
Come on, hurry up.
Put all the candy away.
I got it.
I'm not done watching.
You pick them up.
Why do I gotta go pick it up?
Why can't you?
Don't start.
- But we...
- I got enough things on my mind.
- What the hell you doing?
I'm sorry.
- I'm really sorry.
- Clean it up.
Help him.
Here you go.
Here you go.
Here you go.
- Don't you usually give me 75?
- What about those bricks you dropped?
- You expect me to pay for that?
- Come on. I broke 10 bricks.
How much are bricks,
You want the 50 or not?
Come on, man. All I'm saying is
that 10 bricks at 50 cents is how much?
I mean, do the math.
You know what?
I don't got time for this shit. Take the 75.
Just don't ever expect me
to hire you again.
It's your choice.
Keep it.
There's a smart man if I ever saw one.
Hey, have you got any work
coming up in the next few days?
I don't know if you noticed
all the decorations
all over the place, but it's Christmas.
Thanks a lot.
- Ha.
- You scared me, you idiot.
So, what you doing?
Just trying to bring some
Christmas spirit to this place.
Oh, yeah, it's really working.
Look at that.
- How was work?
- I made 50 bucks.
- You usually make 75.
- Yeah, usually.
Look, I don't wanna talk about it,
all right?
Okay.
Where are the kids?
Justin's outside
playing with some friends
and Christina's on the bed playing with
some toys the Salvation Army dropped off.
Hey, Tina.
- Who's your friend?
Smiddy.
Hi.
Get the hell out of here.
Angie.
Angie. I can't find my jacket.
What?
I think somebody stole my jacket.
Can you believe that? Jesus.
Hey, excuse me,
can I talk to you for a second?
Someone stole my jacket last night.
I need to file a report.
Actually, Mr. Diaz, I was
just about to come and find you.
Uh, follow me. I need to talk to you.
Did you find it?
You're not gonna believe this.
You're not gonna believe it.
What? What's wrong?
We gotta leave the shelter.
What?
Remember that list I put us on
for the apartments a couple months ago?
- Yeah.
- Yeah, well, they called us.
- You're kidding me.
- Yeah.
We're gonna be in our own apartment
for Christmas after all.
What do you think of that?
I'm not kidding. I gotta see
the property manager in an hour.
- Oh, my God.
- Didn't I tell you?
- Didn't I promise you?
- You did, you did.
- I promised you, right?
- Is Santa Claus gonna come this year?
There is no Santa Claus.
Really, stupid, think about it.
How can Santa Claus
go to everyone's house
in the whole wide world in one night?
Don't listen to your brother. He doesn't
know his ass from his mouth.
Sweetie, you know what?
Santa already came.
- He brought us a beautiful apartment.
- But I want my doll back.
Aw.
- Well...
You know what Papa's gonna do?
I'm gonna call Santa personally
and make sure that he hooks you up
with whatever it is you want.
Let me get a little giggle out of you.
- Nothing?
- She's tired.
All right. I gotta go, honey. Come on.
Why don't you take
the troublemaker with you,
and I'll take Tina to the clinic
and pack everything up?
You get the easy way out, huh?
- You know he can't stay here.
- I get stuck with him.
- Come on, Justin.
- Why can't I stay here?
Because you're coming with me, that's
why. Come on, bundle up, champ.
- Bundle up.
- You can't go out like that.
Come on, baby. I'm five blocks
from the subway, then a couple of blocks...
Just take that.
- See you back here in a couple of hours?
- With a key.
With the key to our new apartment.
Thank God.
Oh, it's freezing.
- Come on, let's go.
- Why can't I stay here?
Because you can't, that's why.
It's not safe.
- I can protect myself.
- Oh, yeah?
You can protect yourself
from a grown man?
Yeah, hell, yeah.
Yeah, let someone try something.
- Where the hell you get that?
- I got it from a friend.
Can I see it?
What the hell are you doing with this,
man? What's wrong with you?
- What?
- Carrying shit like that.
- What's wrong with you?
- I can protect myself.
- You can protect yourself from a man?
- Yeah.
- You think you could?
- Yeah.
Come on, protect yourself.
What you gonna do now?
What you gonna do now?
Come on, what you gonna do?
Protect yourself.
If you can do it, man,
if you can protect from me,
you can stay here all day. Come on.
- Ugh.
- Uh-huh.
Just as I thought.
You're an asshole.
Don't ever let me catch you
with a knife again, you hear me?
Whatever.
- Go under, go under.
- What?
Go under.
Go, go!
Hi. Merry Christmas. I'm Frank Diaz.
I'm here to see Carita
about an apartment.
Oh, Jesus.
Oh, look. Hey, hey, look.
Yankee Stadium, man.
- We can watch the game from here.
- Oh.
- That's cool.
Okay, Mr. Diaz, it's $201 a month.
And utilities included,
first and last month's security.
There's three bedrooms down the hall.
This is it. What do you think?
Well, it's not exactly
where God left his shoes,
but it'll do.
You can actually move in today.
That's great, that'd be great.
If you're handy, you can, mm,
fix it up, do something with it.
Yeah, I know. Put a little muscle to it,
maybe paint it, you know?
- Yeah.
- Change the floors a bit.
- I could do something with that.
- Yeah, well, wonderful, wonderful.
Um, why don't we go back to my office,
and we can get the paperwork filled out?
It's Christmas Eve.
I know you'd like to be in.
- I would love that. You saw that, man?
I know.
- How great is that?
Awesome.
Here you go. Fill this out.
- What is this?
The application. You need a pen?
Sir, you need a pen?
- Yeah, yeah, yeah. Thank you, thank you.
Okay.
You all right?
Yeah.
You know what, do you mind
if I filled it out right outside?
- Be just a second.
All right.
Thank you. Come with me.
Here, fill that out.
- Why?
- Just fill it out.
Why can't you do it?
Because my wrist is killing me
from the last fight, that's why.
It is. My wrist is killing me.
Just fill it out, all right?
Then anything you don't understand,
just ask me, all right?
Here's your application,
and here's the $400.
Well, actually, it's $398,
but I'll get you the 2 bucks
in about two days, all right?
Okay, that's fine.
You didn't fill out
the employment section.
Right, because, uh,
I'm in between jobs right now.
I'm a boxer.
One of the requirements
in qualifying for an apartment here
is that you have some form of income.
No, I do, I do.
I just work off the books, that's all.
So it's, like, construction and, you know,
work hasn't been steady lately...
Unfortunately, I can't put down
that you work off the books.
Right. I'm gonna have a few jobs
lined up right after Christmas.
That won't work.
Management is very strict,
and since you don't have
a guaranteed form of income,
I can't process your application.
I will have to put you back on the list.
What are you talking about?
I can't give you the apartment unless
you are presently employed, on the books.
Your name will go on the list.
When an apartment becomes available,
I'll contact you.
My family's in a shelter,
and I can't do it anymore.
We just can't do it anymore.
Do you understand?
I'm sorry. I'm sorry, sir.
I don't know what else to tell you.
You can tell me the apartment is ours,
and we can move in there today.
I can't do that.
Come on, it's Christmas.
It's Christmas. Give me a break.
Can you cut me a break, please?
I promise you,
I'll have a job by the first of the year.
I guarantee.
I'm sorry. There's nothing I can do.
I have a family too, and if I
put you down for the apartment
and get caught, I can lose my job.
Justin, wait for me outside.
- Give her hell.
- Yeah.
Let me explain something to you.
Let me explain my situation to you, maybe.
Maybe you'll understand, um.
Me and my family,
we've been having some hard months,
and all we want is to have an apartment
for Christmas, that's all.
That's all we want.
Look, I understand your position.
I know what you're in,
but imagine having children
and sleeping in a dirty shelter
on a cold floor for three months.
Imagine that.
I understand, I understand...
- No, but are you imagining that for me?
Yes, I understand your position.
Many of the tenants who live here
were in your shoes at one time or another,
but like I said, there's nothing I can do.
Right.
Nothing you can do.
You know, let me ask you something.
How many of those tenants
that were in my shoes
went into the Gulf War
and fought for this country?
- How many of them, huh?
- Excuse me?
It's a simple question.
How many of them went and fought?
I went and joined up
and fought for this country
when I was 18 years old, okay?
And you're telling me that it's okay
for me to risk my life,
risk my life for your family, but you
don't have to put anything on the line
- for me and my family.
- It's not like that.
Yeah. Yeah, it is like that.
It's just like that.
Wait, wait, uh. Come back, please.
Do you get a check
from the government each month?
I don't get anything.
I don't get a dime. I don't get nothing.
Look, I leave the office at 6 tonight.
If you can find a job by then,
the apartment's yours.
That's the best I can do.
Otherwise, and I'm sorry,
but I'll have to call
the next person on the list.
- Thank you. I know what you're doing.
- Here.
- Thank you so much.
- Mm-hm.
So, what happened in there?
So we didn't get it?
No, we didn't get it, Einstein.
Not yet, anyway.
- Where we going now?
- To get a job.
Why?
Why? Because I need a job
to get an apartment, that's why.
Why didn't you tell her you already
have a job, make something up?
- And when she finds out I lied?
- We'll already have the keys.
We'll get thrown out of
another apartment. Great.
No. But why can't you just...?
No, you could...
- Actually, you could just tell her...
- Guy, you're not making sense.
- Shut up.
- Don't tell me to shut up. You shut up.
I'm just trying to help.
- Know how you can help?
- How?
By shutting up.
MAN
Stand clear of the closing door.
Oh, man.
I'm hungry.
Well, you should have ate
at the shelter.
Can we eat
when we get off the train?
No, no, no, all the money
I got is for the apartment.
Should have went with Mom.
Yeah, you should have.
Who lives here?
Just mind your business and
don't embarrass me, all right?
- How you doing?
- What are you doing here?
- I told you I got no work today.
- I know, I know,
and I'm sorry to bother you,
but I need to talk to your father.
- About what?
- It's about...
Hello, Mr. Montecello,
how are you?
- How you doing?
- I'm sorry to bother you.
I know it's Christmas Eve
and whatnot,
but I got something very important
to talk to you about, if you got a minute.
We're a little busy right now.
Yeah, I realize this,
but this is really important.
- Come on, it's cold. Let him in, come on.
Thank you, thank you.
You're just gonna leave me out here?
Go over there and play with the kids.
- Play ball, make friends.
- Why can't I...?
It's freezing though. I'm cold.
What's this about
that you gotta come bother us today?
Yeah, well, this isn't easy to say,
but, uh, me and my family,
we're living in a shelter.
- What are you, homeless?
- Just about.
You hungry or something?
- Dad, give him a few meatballs and:
- That's okay, I didn't come here for food.
- I didn't come here for handouts.
- Come on, have a bite. Have a bite.
I'm fine. Thank you very much,
but I'm fine.
Come on, my wife made 200 of them.
Have a bite.
You know, it's an insult to turn down
an Italian woman's cooking.
MoNTECELLo: Come on.
- I don't wanna be insulting anybody, right?
MoNTECELLo: It's good.
- Sure, sure.
Be good for you. Have a bite.
- Wow. That's great stuff.
The best.
- You want more?
- No, I'm great. It hit the spot. Thank you.
Look, I know you guys are very busy,
and I don't wanna take up your time,
but the reason I'm here is, uh,
I'm a boxer.
And I was up for this big fight,
and I got taken off the card.
I knew I recognized you.
You're the guy that got his ass kicked
by Rodriguez
back at the Garden,
like two months ago.
- I lost the fight, yeah.
- You threw in the towel.
I saw it on ESPN.
You'd have had a shot if you didn't quit.
Hit him with a couple good punches.
You still would have got your head beat in,
but you would have had a shot, at least.
- As I was saying, um...
- How can we help you?
Well, that's why I'm here, sir.
In order for me to qualify
for this apartment,
we need somebody to tell the people
who are running the building, um,
that I work for you guys on the books.
- But you don't work for us on the books.
I know.
- You want us to lie?
- No, I'm not asking you to lie.
I'm not asking you that.
I just need proof of employment
so I can get my family out of this shelter,
and all I need is a W-2 form
or a paystub, anything like that.
- We can't do that. No way.
My family will be very appreciative.
I'll work it off. I'll work weekends,
I'll come here whenever you guys need it,
- whenever. Holidays, I don't care.
- No can do.
Come on, vinny. It's Christmastime.
The guy's down on his luck.
Let's give him a break.
Maybe we could do something with this.
We can't do it.
We're not hiring anyone on the books,
and we for shit sure
ain't lying to the government.
Forget it.
We'll lose our license. What happens
to us when we lose our license? Huh?
- For this?
- All right.
Look, I'm sorry.
My son runs the business.
If there was something we could do,
believe me, Frank, we'd do it.
Thank you, sir, thank you.
Merry Christmas. Thank you very much.
Thank you very much for your time.
- Thanks for leaving me out in the cold.
- You're welcome.
I wasn't really thanking you.
Now where are we going now?
- In the city.
- Can we get something to eat?
Yeah, we will, in a little while, okay?
What's that red stuff on your mouth?
What red stuff?
What are you talking about?
The red stuff on the side of your mouth.
Did you eat something
while you were in there?
I bet you didn't know that it's an insult
to turn down Italian cooking, know that?
You suck, you know that?
You really suck.
I can't believe...
I can't believe you ate something in there.
Hey! Hey, stop right there.
Hey, I said stop. Stop right there.
Yo, I said stop.
Police. Stop right there.
Stop. Police!
I said stop!
Stop.
What's the matter? What's the matter?
Come on. Get on my back, quick.
All right, let me see, let me see.
Okay, okay. All right.
- Oh, man.
- All right. Can you bend it back?
Can you? All right, so you didn't break it,
you just sprained it.
Look, I'm gonna have to tie this up
really tight, all right?
- To cut off the swelling. I got to, man.
- No, leave it. Leave it.
All right, see?
Hey, what happened to your hand?
- When I fell, I cut myself.
- Oh, Jesus Christ. Let me see it.
Look, we'll clean it up
when we get into the city, all right?
All right, stick your hand out.
Stick your hand out, come on.
It's gonna sting a little bit, all right?
Come on.
Let me see.
All right.
- Where'd you get that?
- I took it.
- Oh, shit.
- What's the matter?
I can't eat it now.
It has peanuts in it.
- So? What's the big deal, man?
- I'm allergic to peanuts.
- Remember?
- Allergic to peanuts?
I thought you was allergic
to, uh, raisins.
No, peanuts.
Well, that's what you get
for stealing, man.
Hey, look, I wanna say
I'm sorry, all right?
It's just that...
Never mind. I'm sorry, man, all right?
I'm sorry.
Can you walk?
Yeah, I think so.
All right.
If it hurts, let me know and we'll
take a break, all right? Come on, let's go.
Excuse me, ma'am, do you know where
the Human Resources department is?
- It's on the third floor.
- Third floor?
WoMAN: Up the escalators.
Okay, thank you. Come here.
Hey, over there. Go.
Go sit down and rest your ankle. Go.
WoMAN: Can I help you?
- Yes, how you doing?
My name is Frank Diaz.
I'm here for the security guard position.
- I was wondering, who should I speak to?
- Sorry, they're all filled.
Oh, wow, really?
Well, are there any other
positions available?
WoMAN:
You don't look like a perfume tester.
Well, I can be very versatile.
Look, we really don't have
anything right now.
Try back after the New Year.
You know, what do you have to do
to be a perfume tester?
What do you do? Hold the bottle
and say, "Try this fragrance,
Chez Monet"? I could do that.
Sir, move your foot out
the door before I call security.
Sorry.
- Come on. Find something, man.
- I'm looking, I'm looking. Relax.
- What about this? What about that?
- No, not that.
What about that,
a beautician in the Bronx?
Oh, a beautician. Ha, ha.
That's hilarious, man. You're really funny.
What? How hard does it have
to be to cut someone's hair?
Gotta go to school for that.
You can't just cut hair,
- give a perm or a weave without learning.
- Don't have to go to school for that.
You do.
Gotta go to school for everything.
Not if you wanna be president.
All you have to be is 35 and a U.S. Citizen.
Look, just find me a job, okay?
Just find me a job.
Because I'm not gonna be president,
and I'm for sure not gonna be
a beautician in the Bronx.
What about painting?
- I can do paint. Where?
Right here, 230 East 1 st Street.
Good work, man, good work.
Rip it out, rip it out.
Hey, hey.
- Hey, Jus. Check it out.
- What?
- Little girly over there.
- Where?
Right there.
Oh, look at her. She's looking at you, man.
She's eyeballing you.
No, she's not.
Look at how she just smiled.
- Come on, do something, man.
- No.
- She's smiling at you.
- No.
Look at that.
You're in like Flynn, buddy.
Don't waste it. It's a great opportunity.
Do something. Do something.
- Wave at her.
- No.
She loved it, she loved it, look at her.
I'm helping you out, man.
- Stupid. Helping me out?
- Don't call me stupid. Let's go.
Let's get out of here.
- You're not gay, are you?
No.
You ever get to first base?
Second.
You're lying, man.
You never got to second base.
- Did too. Kissed a girl.
- Oh, yeah?
- Who was the unlucky lady?
- I ain't telling you.
Better not be that girl with the wooden leg
you always hang out with in the shelter.
Little perv, taking advantage
of the handicapped, man.
- You guys even touch tongues?
- None of your business.
When you start
hitting triples and home runs,
you're gonna have to bag it, all right?
Because you can't go raw dog these days.
"Bag it"? What, what...?
You never got to second base, forget it.
Yeah, I know, I know,
but what does "bag it" mean?
What's wrong?
Nothing, man. Come on, let's go.
- How's your ankle?
- It hurts even more.
Just put the weight on the other leg.
- Don't step on it.
- Can I help you?
Yeah, I'm here to apply
for the painting job.
- Come in.
- Thanks.
MoRRIS:
You ever work in a school?
Uh, no, I can't say that I have.
A bunch of bratty kids with no respect.
Yeah, it won't bother me.
I got two of my own.
You know how to paint?
Yeah, of course. You know,
I painted my own car once even.
It didn't come out all right,
but, hey, it saved a lot of money.
Good. Principal Danner wants every
classroom painted over the holiday break.
- Step into my office.
- Yeah.
Hey, hey, do me a favor.
Go sit by the radiator
and stay warm, okay?
- You smoke?
- Yeah, yeah, sometimes.
Thank you.
It sucks they got you working
on Christmas, huh?
Tell me about it.
All right, let's get this sucker filled out.
- Name?
- Frank Diaz.
- Address?
- 1873 Hunt's Point Avenue, Bronx, 11457.
- Social?
- 987-65-4320. This is on the books, right?
Yeah, of course it's on the books.
It's a city job. Pfft.
Good, good, good.
Where was your previous place
of employment?
I was working construction,
but it was off the books.
- Yeah, before that.
- Oh, before that?
- I'm a professional boxer.
- No kidding?
- Yeah, yeah. Why, you a big fight fan?
- No, no, no, bowling is my sport.
Bowling's cool, bowling's cool.
What else?
Uh, ever been convicted of a felony?
No.
Any medical condition
I should know about?
Not that I know of. Heh, heh, heh.
Any problem starting today?
It would just be till 3:00.
I gotta get a jump-start
on those classrooms.
No, yeah. I can start today, man.
Whatever you need.
That's what I'm here for.
You seem all right in my book.
Besides, I needed somebody yesterday,
um...
- The job pays $ 12.50 an hour.
- Twelve-fifty.
- Yeah, is that a problem?
- No, that's great.
Twelve-fifty's great.
- Well, Mr. Diaz...
- Hey, hey, why don't you call me Frank?
Just call me Frank.
It's what everybody calls me.
- Frank?
- Yeah.
Well, Frank,
unless you changed your mind
before you walked in that door,
you got yourself a job.
I do?
Merry Christmas.
Don't be so happy.
It sucks working here.
The doctor will be right in.
- Okay. Okay.
One, two. Good girl.
Relax, you're gonna get better.
- Hi, I'm Dr. Desai.
- Hi.
Hi. So what's wrong with this little cutie?
Oh, she's been sick for three days.
This morning she woke up with a fever.
Oh, flu's going around.
It sounds like you're coming down
with it too.
Everybody at our shelter is sick.
Oh. Which shelter is it?
Most Precious Host.
It'll be a little cold, okay?
There are better shelters in the city.
There's Safe Haven downtown.
That's for women who've been abused.
What are you trying to say?
I see a lot of women
come here in need of help
- and they don't like to talk about it.
- I don't need help.
My husband's never laid a hand on me.
We came here to take care
of my daughter. Can we just do that?
Okay. Um...
Can you stick out your tongue
for me for a second?
- Wide. "Ah. " Say "ah. "
Ah.
Okay, thanks.
I've been down that road in the past,
and I was smart enough to get out.
There are better shelters,
but that would mean leaving my husband.
I was just giving you options in case
you need them, but you don't.
He's out getting the keys
to our new apartment.
- Our last day at the shelter.
- Congratulations. Good news.
She's got a lot
of inflammation in her throat,
so I'm gonna put her on an antibiotic.
I'll just get the medicine and get you
something for your cough too.
Thank you.
Twelve-fifty an hour, man.
You know what that means?
You can finally get me
something to eat?
Oh, yeah, I'm gonna get you
something to eat on the way home.
But it means Yankee Stadium,
baby, you and me, opening day.
- Sound like a plan, huh?
- Yeah.
I'm gonna get those seats
on the second tier
over first base
where all the foul balls go.
- Can we get hot dogs?
- We're gonna get hot dogs.
Hot dogs, peanuts, cotton candy...
oh, no peanuts, man.
- I forgot, you're allergic.
- We have to have ice cream.
- Yeah, ice cream.
- Lot of ice cream.
Tons of ice cream,
tons of ice cream.
Cotton candy, zeppoles...
I'm gonna give you so much candy,
it's gonna rot your teeth.
But don't think about food
right now, man.
Because it'll make you hungry.
We got two hours left, all right?
Oh, we did it.
Can you believe that? We did it.
We did it, little man.
Come on, give me five.
Give me five.
Uptown. Midtown. Downtown.
- Oh, man, why'd you slap the brush for?
- Come on, that's not funny.
- You see me laughing? I'm not laughing.
- Okay. We'll go cross-town.
That ain't right, man. That ain't right.
You think that's right?
I got your hand, you got my threads.
That's a whole other different story.
- Frank, got a minute?
Yeah, yeah. What's up?
I was just about to
start painting the wall right now.
- Look, I need to talk to you.
- Yeah, yeah, sure. Sure.
Keep stirring it. Get to work, man.
Help us out, all right?
What's going on?
Ran your social
through the district computer.
Felony charges came under your profile.
Do you know anything about that?
Felony charge?
It said you spent two years in jail.
Yeah, well, I...
Something did go down.
It did go down. I mean,
I was a young kid, man, a stupid kid.
Twenty-one years old.
You know how that is, right?
I was hanging out with the wrong crew.
And I'm with them,
and they go into this bodega, but I
stayed outside and they took some shit.
- I didn't even know they were gonna do it.
- They held up the place?
I don't know. I don't know. Like I said,
I stayed outside, so I have no clue.
But it was a big mess. It was a big mess,
and I was guilty by association.
And even the store clerk
said that I wasn't a part of it.
I couldn't afford a good lawyer.
You know how that goes.
- Frank, this is a problem.
- Mr. Morris, I'm not that guy.
Okay? I'm not that guy.
That was a long time ago.
It was a mistake, you know?
I got a wife and two kids, man.
That was the wrong time, wrong place,
wrong friends, you know what I'm saying?
- Frank.
- It happens to everybody, you know?
- I mean...
- Frank.
Look, I need these classrooms painted
as much as you need this job,
but the board of education has a policy:
No felons near the kids.
Now, I'm sorry,
but there is no way around that.
Right.
Justin, come here.
Hey, buddy, can I talk to you a second?
I'm looking for a guy.
Frank Diaz, a Latino guy.
He's a boxer.
He's about maybe your size.
I used to pick him up here for work.
I picked him up with you.
- Sorry, I don't know him, man.
- Whoa. It's a good thing, a good thing.
I'm trying to do the guy a favor.
I'm looking all over the place.
- Sorry, guy, I can't help you.
- Can you help me out?
Aw.
- Oh, man.
Come on, stay over here
till it clears up a little bit.
You never told me you went to jail.
Yeah, you never told me you
sucked face with Peg Leg Patty.
The things you find out
along the way, huh?
What you doing
listening to my business?
- I couldn't, I could just hear you.
- Yeah, sure.
Does Mom know?
Yeah, your mom knows.
- Did you shoot anybody?
- No, I didn't shoot anybody.
That's why your mom
wants you to take up a sport,
so you'll stop hanging on the street
or end up in trouble.
Matter of fact, you're signing up
for basketball next week.
- My ankle could be broken.
- It's gonna be better by then.
Now, come on, we haven't got much time.
Let's go.
- It's pouring.
- Put your hood up.
Find me a job.
You're not gonna find anything today.
It's Christmas Eve.
You want a warm apartment? You want
something to eat? Find me something.
- You buy the paper or you put it down.
- Relax, it's just a quarter.
I'm running a business here.
You look, you buy.
- Oh, is that so?
- Yes, that's so.
- Oh, I found something.
- What you find?
Look, "Stockroom employees
needed for holiday. "
Where at?
- Right here.
Oh, it's Houston Street.
Here, I'm putting it down. You happy?
There you go. You happy?
Let's go, come on.
Wait, you can't go like that.
- Why not?
Because you're wet,
you have paint on you...
Yeah, so what am I supposed to do?
- Get new clothes, that's what.
- Oh, right.
You wanna go to Armani's
on a shopping spree? Barneys?
- You don't have to spend money.
- No?
Because people are giving away
clothes for free nowadays.
- Just do what Mom does.
- What does she do?
Tell you when we get there.
- Are you sure your mother does this?
- Yeah.
And she gets on me for cursing.
Hey, help me pick out
a shirt for these pants.
- How about this one?
- What, you mean like a pimp?
Come on, man.
This is more like it. This is good.
All right, just stay here.
I'll be right back, all right?
Get your hands off!
Hey. Hey, relax.
Get off!
- Hey, what's going on?
- This your kid?
Yes, he's my stepson. Why?
- Just caught him shoplifting.
What are you talking about?
Hey, you, empty your pockets.
Empty your pockets,
or we're gonna do it for you.
Hey, kemosabe, just relax, all right?
This is a kid, man, please.
Empty your pockets, man.
What the hell are you doing, man?
What the hell are you doing?
I'm sorry.
I don't know what the hell got into him.
We have to take him in the back.
Gotta write this up.
Come on.
We all make stupid mistakes, right?
Come on, look, you got it back, right?
No harm, no foul. It's all good, right?
We gotta take him
in the back and write him up.
Look at him, he's a 9-year-old kid, man.
We all make mistakes, right?
It's Christmas.
- Want me to pay for it?
Sir, it is store policy.
I know it's store policy, man,
but it's not your store.
I'll pay. I'll give you the money.
Sir, what do you have on
underneath that sweater?
Oh, man, you know...
You know what happened?
We're gonna need some more assistance
down here in the men's section.
I was in the dressing room when I heard
the screaming. I didn't get a chance...
Go, go, go.
Meet you at the newsstand. Go, go, go.
- Whoa. Where's he going?
- Come on.
Let's just try to work this out, all right?
The two of us, all right? Because what?
Look, I'll give you the clothes,
I'll pay you back, whatever.
- We can work this out.
- That's not the point.
So, what is your point?
The point is you have on a sweater
that doesn't belong to you.
I told you why, man.
I was in
the dressing room putting it on,
and I heard the commotion.
- Relax.
- I came out to protect my son.
- I am relaxed.
- You don't seem relaxed.
- I'm just trying to work this out.
- Your voice doesn't seem relaxed.
I'm trying to work this out.
I said I'll pay you.
- Back off right now.
- You are not going anywhere.
- I'm going...
- You're coming with me.
What the hell is the matter with you, huh?
What the hell's wrong with you?
What are you, stupid?
You stealing jewelry for your girlfriend?
No, it was for Mom.
It's for your mom?
VENDoR: Two fifty.
- For your mom?
WoMAN:
All right, I think I'll...
I think I'll give you some change...
All right, just forget it, all right?
Forget it.
- At least I got the new clothes, right?
- Yeah.
Now, come on. Let's go look for a job.
Come on.
What's the matter?
- Tell me. What?
- Oh, man.
I left my money inside the pants
in the dressing room.
- What are we gonna do now?
- I don't know. I don't know.
If I go back in there,
I'm gonna get arrested.
Jesus Christ. This is great, man.
This is great.
- Hey, excuse me, do you have the time?
It's 2:15.
Two-fifteen, great.
Now I gotta get the deposit and a job.
That's just great.
- All right, come on, man. Let's go.
- No. I can't walk.
- What?
- I can't walk. My stomach hurts.
Your stomach doesn't have to do
with your legs.
No. I'm not going anywhere
until I get something to eat.
- We'll get something to eat at the shelter.
- No, no, no.
- Don't be a pussy, man.
- I'm not a pussy. I'm not a pussy.
Hey, don't do this to me now.
Come on, man.
No, no. I'm not... No.
I'm not going anywhere
until I get something to eat.
I've been walking miles and miles,
and my stomach is growling,
and my stomach is empty.
I feel like I'm gonna pass out.
Justin, come on, man.
I swear to God, I...
- I want you to get up right now.
- No.
Justin, get up right now.
Right now, you hear me?
No. I'm done. I'm done.
I don't care what you say anymore.
Anymore. I'm hungry,
and I want something to eat.
All right. I'll get you something to eat.
Are you happy? Come on.
Finally.
I'm not eating shit from there.
- Are you listening?
- Yeah, yeah, I'm listening to you.
- Why can't we go to a restaurant?
- This is a restaurant.
It's the back of a restaurant.
Try to find something that's wrapped.
Yeah, I'm looking, I'm looking, man.
Oh, bingo. Look.
Look what I got. Look what I got.
Look at this. Look at this.
A perfectly good little jelly doughnut.
Here you go.
- It's fricking hard as a rock.
- Yeah, it's just frozen, that's all.
This is disgusting.
Maybe if I hadn't
listened to you and stolen clothes,
we could have
bought something edible.
I've been asking to get something to eat
for the last five hours.
I knew I should have
left you at the shelter, man.
Yeah, you should.
Leave me right here.
- I'll get back to the shelter myself.
- Trust me, I'd like to, man.
- This isn't my fault.
- Whose fault is it, man?
Who got paint on my pants,
and I had to get new clothes?
Was that my fault, huh?
Was that my fault?
- It's your fault we live in a shelter.
- What?
What did you say?
You do this all the time.
What'd you say?
- I said it's not my fault.
- No, that's not what you said.
You said, "It's your fault
we live in a shelter. " I heard you.
You think I'm a loser, don't you?
You know how many families are
struggling, trying to make it? A lot, okay?
Wait till you have kids, boy.
You're gonna see how damn hard that is.
I'm not gonna have kids
unless I can afford them.
You got an answer for everything.
Yeah, I have more answers than you do.
You think I needed you in my life?
Think I needed the responsibility?
- You think I needed you?
- Yeah, you did. You did.
Or would you rather be with
your real pops? Huh?
Think you're better off with him?
Go back,
so he could beat you up
for no reason every day.
Shut up. Just shut up.
What, now you don't have an answer,
big man?
You had a big mouth,
but when somebody fights back,
- you have nothing to say?
- I'm a bigger man than you.
- Is that so?
- Yeah, it is so.
I can make more money begging
in an hour than you can in a whole day.
Ooh. You're a big man. Ooh.
I can read.
And I can walk all over the city
for five hours with a broken ankle,
and you can't even get out of the corner
and at least lose a fight like a real man.
Give me that. You don't want
the doughnut? You don't want it?
Excuse me,
can you spare some change?
Spare some change?
Excuse me,
can you spare some change?
Excuse me, sir,
can you spare some change?
Excuse me, sir,
can you spare some change?
I'm not talking to you, man.
You're not gonna get anything like that.
Merry Christmas. I'm not talking to you.
Go back to the shelter, man.
Go back to the shelter.
You're not gonna get anything that way.
Yeah? Hey, see,
I'm not talking to you, man.
Excuse me,
can you spare some change?
Excuse me, can you
spare some change?
Excuse me, can you spare some change?
Excuse me. Spare some change?
Excuse me, ma'am, can you
spare some change, please?
WoMAN:
Sorry.
Excuse me, sir,
can you spare some change, please?
Thank you.
Excuse me,
can you spare some change?
Excuse me, ma'am.
- Excuse me, ma'am.
- Excuse me, spare some change?
Can you spare some change?
Merry Christmas.
Excuse me, can you spare
some change, please?
Excuse me, can you spare
some change?
- Thank you, sir. Merry Christmas.
Yeah. Merry Christmas.
Count your money
as fast as you can, all right?
Hey, look, I wanna thank you
for helping me out there, okay?
Whatever.
Remember when I was at the park
trying to tell you something this morning?
Yeah.
I'm gonna tell you...
I'm gonna tell you the most important thing
that I'm ever gonna tell you.
This is the secret to life.
You listening to me?
Like I got a choice.
There's nothing to fear.
Okay, come on. Say it.
Why?
Because I don't wanna waste my breath.
I wanna make sure that you heard me.
There's nothing to fear.
Right, because fear
is the worst weapon in the world.
The most powerful weapon.
People are gonna try to scare you
into doing a lot of things
that you don't wanna do, trust me.
I mean, look where it got me, right?
Look where I am today.
Anyway, just know people
are gonna manipulate you,
and that's how they're gonna do it.
You got me?
- Yeah.
- Good. Good.
- So how much you got?
- Hundred and forty.
- Wow.
- How much you get?
It's none of your business.
- Do we have enough?
- Yeah, yeah, we got enough.
We got enough.
As long as I get a job, we'll be fine.
All right, man. Come on, let's go.
Excuse me, sir. Excuse me.
I'm sorry I'm late. Traffic.
But I'm looking for a job.
- We're closed now.
- I know, I know, but the trains...
- Try another day.
- Two hours. Two hours.
- I'm sorry, I can't help you.
- Give me a chance. Come on.
What about the beautician job
in the Bronx?
It's 5:30, man.
By the time we go back uptown
and come back, we'll never make it.
Maybe we could try a few restaurants
over by the building.
- No, it's over.
- It's not over.
Why do you always do that?
You're always giving up.
Hey, there's no shame to losing.
I did my best, okay?
Come on, man.
I wanna make one more stop before
we go to the shelter, all right? Come on.
Hey, is this
what Christina was looking for?
You're buying her a present?
- Yeah, I'm buying her a present, why?
- What about me?
- What about you?
- I walked all over the city,
sprained my ankle
and starved for 10 hours,
and she gets a present?
- Look, all I wanna know is, is this what...?
- Yeah, yeah.
Thank you.
Now go get something for yourself
- and make sure it's under 20 bucks.
- Forget it. Forget it.
- No, go get something.
- I'm fine.
Why would you have brought it up
if you didn't want something?
- I don't want anything.
- Yeah, you do. Yeah, you do.
Come on, you give me shit,
and you make me feel bad
for not getting you something,
not thinking about you. Go get something.
Go, go.
Did you mean what you said?
Said about what?
About you not needing me
around anymore.
Come on, come on.
Of course not, man.
We were just arguing, that's all.
What are you doing?
Hey, hey, hey. What are you doing?
What are you doing, man?
What's the matter? Is something wrong,
man? Is your ankle hurting? What?
- Do you love me?
- Do I what?
You always tell Christina and Mom,
but you never tell me.
That's because you're a man.
You're a man. Come on.
You're a little man,
but you're still a man. Come on.
You know I do, right?
So we're men, man,
and men don't do that.
Imagine me dropping you off
at school every day,
saying, "Justin, I love you.
I love you, Justin. "
- You would have kicked my ass, right?
- Yeah.
You know, when we start...
When we play-fight like this
or I pound you on the head, right?
When I pound you and give you noogies,
that's me telling you in code,
all right?
I thought you knew that.
No.
All right, now you know, stupid.
What was that? What was that?
What was that?
Come on. Throw a punch
like the way I taught you.
That's it, that's it.
That's how I used to hit
when I was your age, man.
Go ahead. That's right.
That's getting good, man.
I'm gonna take you to the gym,
but don't tell your mother, all right?
All right. No, that's it, that's it.
That's it. Hey.
What are you doing? Hey, cut it out.
What are you doing, man?
Hey! Come on, stop it. Stop it, man.
What the hell's the matter with you?
People are watching. Hey, stop.
Calm down, I'll let you go.
Calm down, I'll let you go.
All right.
Here, baby.
Hey.
Give me that.
- Hey, are you okay?
- Yeah.
- What happened, baby?
- Oh, he's fine, baby. He's fine.
Just sprained his ankle, that's all.
- How are you doing, Tina?
- She's better. Her fever broke.
Oh, that's good, baby. I'm glad.
Hey, look, look.
Wow.
Look what Santa gave me.
What took you so long?
I started to worry.
Tell me on the way.
Let's get going. Everything's packed.
We're all ready to go. You guys ready?
What's wrong?
Honey, you got new clothes.
Yeah, it's a long story.
Baby, what happened?
We didn't get the apartment.
What are you talking about?
We didn't get the apartment.
I gotta get a job on the books
to qualify, is what I gotta do.
Can we call someone,
do something?
Angie, I went everywhere,
and I tried everything.
Okay.
We'll figure it out.
Let's just go and have dinner.
Some Christmas dinner,
a nice-looking dinner
somewhere, all right? How about that?
Let's go eat.
- Yeah.
- All right?
- The kid's starving, I had a long day...
- Yeah.
All right. I'm gonna go wash up, okay?
Hey, what happened to your hand?
When I slipped, I cut myself.
Oh.
Okay, guys.
We're just gonna go to dinner, okay?
Coats on.
Wanna take your doll out, baby?
Come on, we'll take her out.
I wish you a merry Christmas
I wish you a merry Christmas
I wish you a merry Christmas
And a happy new year
Sit over there.
Thank you.
- Enjoy your meal.
- Thanks.
- What are you gonna have, pumpkin?
- Spaghetti.
- All right, you got it.
- Merry Christmas.
- Merry Christmas.
- Merry Christmas.
What can I get for you?
- Two sodas for the kids.
- You gonna have pasta with butter?
- Yep.
Pasta and butter.
What are you gonna have?
- The chicken Parmesan.
The chicken papa john.
I think that's what I heard him say.
I'm gonna have a steak, medium,
and my wife's gonna have the lobster.
- What's wrong with you?
- And two glasses of red wine.
Very good.
Thank you.
I'll be right back with your drinks.
- You're a jerk, you know that?
- That's why you married me.
Yeah.
That's not funny.
Sit up straight.
Put your napkin on your lap.
Are you gonna tell
everything that happened today?
I think we should dance.
- Dance?
Yeah.
I don't see anybody dancing.
- Who thinks we should dance?
- Ooh.
I need a majority vote.
Who thinks we should dance?
You're not gonna embarrass us?
I said I need a majority vote.
Thank you.
Looks like I got a majority vote here.
You're gonna have to dance with me.
Come on.
Come on.
Come on, let's go over here.
Snowflakes are falling
Outside my window
But it'd be just perfect with you
Children are singing
And sleigh bells are ringing
But it'd be just perfect with you
Ange,
I'm sorry.
Sorry about what?
Being such a goddamn loser.
You're not a loser.
Yeah. I couldn't even get a job.
- Stop it.
- Why are you even with me, huh?
I mean, I had potential,
but what do I got now?
No matter what I say right now, it doesn't
matter. You're not gonna listen to me.
If somebody showed you
a crystal ball right now,
and they said to you,
"This is where you're gonna end up,"
would you do it again?
Come on, the truth.
I love you, you know that.
And you're the best husband
and the best father in the world.
But would I do it again?
No. And neither would you.
And that's just the truth.
I don't feel so good.
Well, you ate everything
but the breadbasket.
How was everything?
It was excellent.
- Great, thank you.
I'll leave this with you.
- The wine is on the house.
- Thank you.
Merry Christmas.
- Merry Christmas to you too.
Goddamn.
Who broke a window in here, huh?
- I told you we shouldn't have come here.
- No, it's fine, it's fine. I got it.
I got it.
Man.
Here, why don't you take the kids outside?
I'll take care of it.
No.
- No, I'm not doing that.
- Doing what?
You don't think I know what you do?
I know what you do.
Just let me pay for it, okay?
That should do it.
All right, everybody, come on.
Everybody, you ready? Bundle up.
It's gonna be cold.
You okay?
How's your leg? What's wrong?
What's wrong?
Come on.
Frank, what's wrong?
Oh!
- Frank!
No. Hey, stop!
- Frank, stop!
Frank!
Frank, please! Frank, stop.
Oh, my God.
Frank!
Stop!
Baby...
oh, God.
WoMAN:
Mr. Diaz.
Yeah?
Can I talk with you for a second?
Yeah, sure.
What happened out there?
I'm sorry.
I got a little out of hand out there,
but he stole my jacket.
I thought you were placed
in an apartment.
So did we,
but obviously we didn't qualify.
- Sorry to hear that.
- What's going on? He pressing charges?
WoMAN: No, but unfortunately I have
to ask you to leave the shelter.
- He took my jacket...
- Excuse me, excuse me.
That man stole my husband's jacket.
No, no, she's not understanding clearly.
- He stole our jacket.
- Ma'am... Angie, please, okay?
I had to fight him because
he took my jacket, all right?
I'm aware of what happened, and
I will deal with him, but you've gotta go.
You're gonna throw me out?
You're gonna throw... Me and my kids,
you're gonna throw us out?
What kind of shelter is this?
- You can stay and keep one bed.
- One bed?
What do I do with one bed, ma'am?
I got two kids here.
Can you count? One, two kids!
What do I do with that?
Angela. Angie, calm down.
- Don't...
Don't tell me to calm down
after what you did.
Don't you tell me to calm down!
What are you gonna do?
He steals my husband's jacket,
and we get kicked out?
- You tell me how this is fair! You're sorry?
WoMAN: I'm sorry, but this is our policy.
You know what?
You leave me no choice.
- You leave me no choice.
- Can't you just reconsider, please?
- Can you think about it?
WoMAN: I'm sorry, I can't.
He took my jacket.
I'm so sorry.
MAN
Hello?
Hello?
Hey.
Where'd you go?
I called Luis.
Come here.
What'd you do that for?
- Because we got nowhere to go.
- Yeah?
He's gonna pick us up,
and let us stay with him.
- We can go to another shelter.
- The kids can't go on like this.
You're always on me, always,
about showing them the right way,
and then you do this?
- What kind of example you...?
- You know what?
I've done the right thing all my life.
I am done.
I'm trying to fix this right now, please.
Please.
Ready, guys?
Is Frank gonna come?
Yeah, he will.
How are you?
Great.
You look lovely.
Hey, big guy. How's it going?
Sorry, can we just do this
the way we talked on the phone?
Let's just not make it harder, okay?
Yeah. Sure.
Hey, man, it's all good.
No, man, it's not all good,
especially what you did to her.
Frank, for chrissake.
Angie, go with him, all right?
Go and take the kids.
I'm gonna find a shelter. I'm fine.
Justin, grab your things.
I'm not going.
Get in the car now.
No.
Frank, tell him to get in the car.
Hey, hey. What are you doing, man?
What are you doing, champ?
Come on, what's going on?
Come on, uptown.
Come on, downtown. Cross-town.
Cross-town. Come on, man.
Don't leave me hanging.
- I'm not going.
- You gotta go, man. You gotta go.
Gotta take care of your mother
and sister when I'm not around.
- You're the big man now.
- I'm not going without you.
Yeah, it's big of you, all right,
but you got no choice.
I have a choice.
If you don't go, I don't go.
- What the hell's going on here?
- Just a minute, okay?
Justin, you can't stay with Frank.
He's gonna go to another shelter.
It's gonna be too dangerous, okay?
Justin, why don't you listen to your mom
and come with us?
You can see Frank tomorrow.
How about you go in the car
and leave me and Frank alone?
I'm your father.
You don't talk to me that way.
What's this?
What is this?
I'm sorry I called,
and I dragged you out here, okay?
Yeah, you're sorry, all right.
Look at what you're putting yourself and
these kids through. For what? For him?
This is the man you keep
my son away from me for?
You're pathetic.
Pathetic.
Oh, man, look at that.
Okay, why don't you guys wait right here?
I'm gonna go in.
WoMAN: You're all gonna have to
step back a bit.
I'm sorry, we have no room
for the rest of the night.
I've been here all night.
I understand.
There's nothing I can do.
You're gonna have to step back, sir.
I have no room for you. I'm sorry.
There's absolutely... No.
Let me stay.
It's beyond my control.
Can I have you all just step back, please?
I'm completely full for tonight.
I'm sorry.
- I have to ask you to step back.
- Sorry, sorry.
I gotta talk to somebody, please.
WoMAN: Can you please clear
this walkway? Can you please...?
- I'm sorry, sir. I'm sorry.
- How you doing?
- I need two beds.
- We're at capacity right now.
I'm sure you are,
but I got two children.
Sir, we're completely full for the night.
I'm sorry.
- Two little kids.
- Can we please clear this walkway?
- I'm sorry, we have no room.
- I know, I know.
Can you recommend a place?
- You can try Most Precious Host, maybe.
- You know, we just came from there.
WoMAN: There's nothing else.
There's nothing else in the area.
Try, uh, Brooklyn.
I hear they have beds
out in Fort Greene,
but they might be full by now.
It's the busiest night of the year.
I'm sorry.
Everybody, please,
can I please have you clear this walkway?
We are completely full.
We have no beds.
It's totally full.
I don't know what the hell to do.
WoMAN
Stand clear of the closing door.
- What the hell you doing?
- Playing a game.
Don't play.
Try me.
Aw.
Too low, too low. My bad.
One more try, one more try.
Aw.
See, you can't throw, man.
You got no aim.
- I wanna try it. I wanna try.
- Let her try.
A small piece, baby.
Wait, wait, wait.
That has peanuts in it. I'm allergic.
- No, you're not.
Yes, I am.
I just told you that because
you'd stuff your face and get yourself sick.
Hey.
Hey, don't look at me.
I had nothing to do with that.
That is not right.
- Your mom's slick, isn't she?
Yeah.
Yes.
- Mmm. She got it!
- Who's the best? It's you.
- I did it.
You're the champ.
I can't believe you did that to him.
- Not the worst thing.
- You're too much.
I love you.