Witch Hunt (1994) Movie Script
1
News On Parade.
Magic comes to Tinsel Town.
Not since this years sensation,
a frozen four-course meal on a tray
have people and the press
been caught up in such a frenzy.
Everybody wants more magic
in their lives.
Licensed practitioners of magic are
popping up like rabbits in a hat trick.
Don't like the look of your house?
This licensed practitioner
will transform every room.
How's this for instant
interior decorating?
There's even do it yourself magic.
Mr. and Mrs. America
are getting into the act.
Say, looks like this youngster's
really moving up!
Licensed magic practitioners and there
products maybe on the up and up.
But there are others
whose use of magic is down and dirty.
Unlicensed and underground,
they represent magic's dark side.
That raised the suspicion
of dynamic senator, Larson Crockett.
He's leading an anti magic crusade.
His target, Tinsel Town.
Senator Crockett's convinced that magic,
licensed or unlicensed, is un-American
infiltrating our lives
and undermining the American family.
Why work? Why worship?
If there's magic to make things easy.
For some of Hollywood's biggest stars
and moguls, it's time to name names.
Politicians and prestidigitators
at war.
Senator Crockett's political muscle
versus magic in Hollywood.
From Magic California,
News On Parade.
WITCH HUN Magic...
Magic!
The word conjures images of slough,
degeneracy, and corruption.
I brought my committee to Los Angeles
where this plague began
and I will not rest
until America...
What's he gettin'
so worked up about?
Some people have a problem
with magic.
What's to worry? I mean, it just makes
things easier, right?
Never touch the stuff myself.
- That's some life line you got there.
- I got a good life.
- Oh, yeah? What you do?
- I'm lookin' for somebody.
Someone in particular? Or someone with
an interesting outlook on things?
No, somebody in particular. He owes his
ex-wife 7000 bucks.
He moved and forgot to drop
the lady a card.
So what? The little woman hires you
to find someone?
- What are you, a detective or somethin'?
- Or somethin'.
Well, when you find the guy,
you gonna break his legs?
- Thanks for the conversation.
- Thank you. And take a card.
Don't mind if I do.
Me, I'm old fashioned.
- A man should keep his promise.
- You talkin' to me?
There's a lady who'd like to have
a few words with you, Sydney.
She got the last penny
she's ever gonna get from me.
I don't think so.
Animus seperatum todas!
That's 7000 bucks
back alimony to you!
The philosophy T.V.
which explains the origin of man...
All right, Sydney,
your wife needs proof to see you.
It started off small.
It wasn't a conspiracy or anything.
It was like...
it was just a fad.
Somebody'd bend a spoon,
or levitated their dog
the next thing you knew,
it was starting to spread.
Pretty soon the whole neighbourhood
was doin' it.
And in a little while, it was all over
the place like a Tupperware party.
That's him! That's the louse!
You're walkin' pretty straight
for a man with no backbone!
I'm gonna let you two lovebirds
have some time alone.
- Get in. Now!
- Good luck, Sydney.
Why didn't you just shoot me?
Still, I never thought it was evil. It
was just natural. It's human curiosity.
At worst I thought it was a crutch.
Magic can make people lazy.
And if you're not careful,
it can creep up on you.
Instead of taking out the trash,
the trash takes out itself.
Instead of washin' the dishes,
you just encourage them.
Nobody sees it happen to them,
it just happens.
So it makes my job a little tougher but
it's nothing to get hysterical about.
Last year, it was boola-hoops
and Senator Crockett
never held congressional hearings
about that.
Sure, I get tempted to use it.
Who doesn't?
But in my business,
it's better just to work clean.
I knew a private eye who hired a witch
to put a tail on a guy
and the poor bastard
had to have it surgically removed.
Some things just aren't worth it.
Mr. Lovecraft?
I'm Kim Hudson.
- You're in the movies.
- Which one of my efforts have you seen?
I don't remember the title.
You in the bathtub full of bubbles.
And you had your big toes
stuck in the faucet?
Let's Do It.
The name of the picture.
Let's Do it.
It was a very sophisticated comedy.
You know the part I like best?
When the fat plumber came in.
So, what can I do you for,
Ms. Hudson?
Actually, it's Mrs. Gotlieb.
- I'm married to N.J. Gotlieb.
- The producer?
There's only one.
And I have reason to believe
he's being unfaithful to me.
What sort of reason?
Nicky's producing my C new picture
at Palisade.
He hired a girl for a walk-on.
But her part keeps getting bigger
and bigger.
Now, you'd have to be as dumb as I look
not to figure it out.
$45 a day plus gas and expenses?
Just give me something solid
I can take to my lawyers.
I'm sure whatever he's up to
it'll be cheap, tawdry,
and decidedly third-rate.
Please.
We gather together and close this circle
to refute the whispers in the darkness.
Cords stronger than a thread.
Ropes stronger than a cord.
A pledge, a bond, a sacrifice.
- Hi, Phil.
- Trudy.
Come to join the coven?
- Not today, angel.
- Anytime you want, Phil. Anytime at all.
You better be careful what you wish for.
All right?
- Who's that producer you're workin' for?
- N.J. Gotlieb.
- That's what I thought.
- I'm on my way there right now.
- You wanna lift?
- Thank you.
- What's this story on Gotlieb?
- He's short.
You have to be careful with short men.
Their auras are compressed.
Is he the sort of man who would cheat
on his wife?
Only if it occured to him.
- What is that stuff?
- You really don't want to know.
- We all set?
- I'm ready.
All right! Hit it!
Mr. Gotlieb, have you got any gold
fillings in your teeth?
- What's it to you?
- Nothing.
It's just that they tend to melt
if you stand too close.
Mind your teeth.
Fair is foul and foul is fair.
Hover through the fog
and the filthy air.
What place is this?
It's a real pleasure, Bill.
Welcome to Hollywood.
- Holly Wood?
- Yeah. I'd got a couple of people
I'd like you to say hello to.
I am N. J. Gotlieb.
This is Ms. Tracy Pinkem,
really somethin' special.
Absolutely love your stuff.
When Nicky said...
Okay, okay. This is Malcolm Purdy,
head of production.
- Harmon Vacual, business affairs.
- How do you do?
- Jim and Ted.
- Ted and Jim, actually.
Great writers.
They'll help you over the bump.
Trevor Bundt, best director in town.
And Mr. Frank Krushnick
of the William Morrs Agency.
- Who are you?
- I'm with the witch.
Excuse me a sec, will you, Bill?
Somebody get Bill here
a parking space.
Paint over, what's his name,
that Nobel Prize guy.
Finn Macha.
Moses on a pony,
if it isn't Phil Lovecraft.
Well, how's the world treating you,
dickface?
I thought you were in Chicago.
Well, I missed the friendly people
and the orange juice.
- What are you doing for Gotlieb?
- Privileged information.
But from one Lodge member to another, he
called me in as a security consultant.
An "expeditor."
I tie up loose ends.
It seems to me they're still lookin'
for a couple of people you expedited.
Are you still chasing
naughty husbands, dick face?
And drying the tears
of those poor lonely wivey poos?
Tell me something, honestly.
Do I look like I have a dick
on my face?
That's why I like you, Phil.
I like to take things apart.
See how they work.
Watches, phonographs, people.
I like to see inside.
Well, I'll see you around, Phil.
I don't think so.
Well, there's no doubt about it. You and
me we've still got business to settle.
- Who was that?
- It's somebody I know.
He has a sore eye.
The devil can put all manner
of mischief in an eye like that.
If it were mine, I'd pluck it out.
- Let's get out of here.
- Okay.
I followed Gotlieb up to Los Feliz.
I wish I had a rum punch for every time
somebody in my business
followed a car up to Los Feliz.
Look at the motion picture industry,
friends.
Why do you think everyone in show
business is beautiful? Magic.
Why don't they ever get old?
Magic.
Why are their jokes always funny?
Magic.
That was creepy up there.
I cut my lights and stayed back.
The last thing I need was to get turned
to stoner end up with the body of a goat.
Standing in my dressing room
with my wardrobe lady,
being fitted into my costume.
I'm a movie star.
She's a waitress.
How do you think that makes me feel?
I got to do what I think is best
for the picture.
- My picture.
- My picture.
You're replacing me
with that skinny ass car-hop.
We're married, you crumb.
What will people think?
Don't make a big deal out of it, Kim.
There are lots of other studios,
you'll land on your feet.
You can't do this to me.
What about our marriage?
That wasn't a marriage.
That was a licence to shop.
- What about my three-year contract?
- Have your people talk to my people?
The public won't stand for this!
The public? What you fail to grasp
is just how replaceable you are!
You're nothin' but nice tits
and a pleasant smile!
You'll be forgotten
before you reach the gate!
This isn't the first time I've been
fucked in the producer's office!
Just you...
not Dickens.
N.J. Gotlieb.
It's Harry Schroadecker.
Five minutes.
So, he won an Oscar.
He hasn't had a hit for five years!
But I'm willing to give the rum of you
another chance because I'm sentimental.
Tell him he's got until 5:00.
Take it or leave it.
- What do you want?
- I want to make my report.
- Save it. You're fired.
- I am?
You're fired, I'm fired,
everybody's fired.
You wanna know where he went last night?
I couldn't care less.
He went into a big house
in the hills above Los Feliz.
- You said he went where?
- A house on Glendower Avenue.
- That cow!
- Now what cow would that be?
- Get that, will ya?
- No, you fired me, remember?
Yeah, it's me.
Am I in your way?
- Get them out of here.
- All right, come on.
- Hi.
- Hi.
- What the hell you doin' here?
- What happened, Bradbury?
Come on. Give.
I'm a friend of the widows.
What happened?
Somebody put the big whammy on Gotlieb
and cut him down to size.
- And?
- Ever see two dogs
play tug of war with a bone?
Forget the gurney. You can get him out
of here in a lunch pail.
Oh, you thinkin' of somethin?
According to this lady, the last person
to see Gotlieb before he got small
was your friend, the widow.
Okay, okay. Break it up. This is a
police investigation. Come on.
Lieutenant Bradbury, heard good things
about you. Larson Crockett.
What's being done about this
ghastly business?
- We're workin' on it.
- Good.
This is just another example
of how magic has shot
it's sinister tentacles
into the motion picture industry.
I give my personal pledge
that soon a new day will dawn
on a witch free America,
a more wholesome country.
As we proceed with our Los Angeles
hearings
and prepare our patriotism rally.
I thought that magic was trouble
but now...
Now that they're tryin' to outlaw the
stuff, how come I'm not so happy?
If God doesn't destroy Hollywood
he owes Sodom and Gomorrah
an apology.
As my dear friend,
Norma Desmond is so fond of saying
"Maybe the pictures got small."
But Nicky Gotlieb never got small.
Well, he did actually. But not until the
very end when he got "really small."
On earth, you may be the head of a
studio. You may be a big star.
In heaven,
we're all just bit players.
Under contract to the one
who discovered us.
Cecil, B. DeMille,
Fatty Arbuckle, Nicky Gotlieb
all just walk-ons
in the part we were born to play.
God's little extra. In Nicky's case,
God's very little extra.
God's littlest extra.
But no less dear to God
as he was dear to us.
So, farewell, N.J. Gotlieb.
We have reached a final fade out.
But, dear friends,
think of it not so much as fade out
but as a dissolve to a better world.
We have to talk.
Awful nice of you showin' up
for his funeral.
I am the widow.
Besides, it'd look funny if I didn't
come. People might get the wrong idea.
- And what idea would that be?
- I want to hire you.
You hire me. You fire me.
Now, you want to hire me again.
- The police think I killed Nicky.
- I think you're right.
I didn't.
You believe me, don't you?
It doesn't matter what I believe.
It matters what I can prove.
Well, prove it.
- Oh, well, you're tough, aren't ya?
- That's me.
Are you tough enough to put your husband
in that parakeet coffin?
Don't strain yourself
tryin' to figure me out, Lovecraft.
Just find out who killed Nicky
and get me off the hook.
- Okay, you got the keys to his car?
- His car?
The Lincoln he was drivin'
the other night.
Well, I can get them for you.
I'll start with that
and the house on Glendower.
There's nothing there
you have to know about.
- Well, I'll decide that for myself.
- Stay clear of that place.
You know, the cops are only going
to work as hard as they have to.
If the frame fits,
you're gonna wear it.
The keys to the Lincoln
will be at the house.
- Ms. Hudson.
- Ms. Hudson...
Somebody slipped me a mickey
the other night.
What kind of a "mickey?"
Raven landed on the hood of my car
and the next thing I know, it's morning.
Nice touch.
I mean, you don't see that kind of
workmanship around these days.
It's usually just frogs.
Not even toads, just frogs.
Oh, amateurs. Anyway, what was the
purpose of this "mickey?"
- I was following somebody.
- And when you woke up, he was gone.
- And now he's dead.
- N.J.Gotlieb.
The same.
I'm going out to look at his car
and I was hoping
maybe you might go with me?
Are you asking me for help?
Well, I'm asking you to
watch my back for rabies, okay?
I have to make a phone call.
- So, what are we looking for?
- I don't know.
There's sand on the driver's side
and none on the passenger's.
He went to the beach alone?
Or he went with someone
who didn't come back with him.
- Is this what you do when you detect?
- Yeah, basically.
Well, it doesn't seem
very precise to me.
What's buzzin', cousins?
What is this?
A field trip?
I had to have somebody watching my back
while I was watching yours.
- Besides, Trudy might be able to help.
- God knows I'm willing.
- What kind of help?
- Events cling to objects.
And Trudy is very good
at hearing their memories.
Very, very good.
You want to know what happened to
Gotlieb? Where he and his friend went?
- I don't use magic.
- Purist.
Who said boo about magic? You drive
the car. I read the map. That's all.
And what are you?
The chaperon?
- What about my car?
- We have to take this car.
- This holds the memories.
- It'll be our little secret.
I get the front seat!
Thanks.
Here's where I lost him.
It was raining
when they got back in the car.
Gotlieb and another man.
"What am I, the chauffeur?
Never mind, keep driving. You're gonna
have the time of your life."
- They drove down the hill.
- Where do I go?
A West on Sunset,
all the way to the beach.
This is where they came.
- Now, you can wait. here.
- You forget, we can help.
I found the house, didn't I? You want me
to tell you who owns it?
Yes, I can almost feel it.
It's definitely coming.
Well, when it hits you,
would you let me know?
- Want me to do that for you?
- Do you mind?
All right.
- I don't understand.
- What?
There's nothing.
- Nothing unusual?
- Nothing at all.
This place has been wiped clean.
Erased.
It's never... It's so empty,
what happened here?
- There was a girl.
- How do you know that?
It doesn't take magic.
There's always a girl.
Trudy, let's take a look
at the bedroom.
- Can I ask you something?
- No.
What exactly is your problem
with magic?
I don't have a problem.
I just don't use it.
- Why?
- I've got personal reasons.
It's a pity. Kropotkin's says you have
the qualities of a magus
to know, to dare, to will.
What?
Somebody wiped the prints off the bottle
like they wiped the house of memories.
So you wouldn't know
anyone was here.
The easy thing would have been
to take the bottle and ditch it.
- Unless...
- Unless?
Unless... Unless you wanted to make
a show of wipin' the prints
because, you wanted someone to know
what you were doin'.
Well, why would they do that?
You're the one that writes screenplays.
You tell me.
- Beverly Wilshire Hotel, good morning.
- Room 1209.
I'm sorry, those calls are being held.
Would you like to leave a message
for Senator Crockett?
- No, that's okay. Thanks.
- What was that?
Nobody slept here.
Look at that bed.
There's not a ruffle on it.
It's perfectly smooth.
More show.
Trudy, it's all right.
It's not, it's not all right. There's
nothing here! Nothing!
It's as if somebody sucked the life out
of this place.
It's so empty,
it makes my head hurt.
- It's all right, kid. You did your best.
- You don't understand.
This place is dead, as dead as the moon.
That's not right at all.
It's okay.
Okay.
Two rules you learn in this business,
get paid up front,
and don't work with partners.
The bathroom wasn't empty after all.
Someone had left the stem
of a martini glass from the bar.
More show? It took us three hours
to get home from Malibu.
Then Trudy made us stop
to listen to a building.
Jesus!
You see that?
- You see what he done?
- Frisk him.
- Move.
- Where?
You're interested in that house,
aren't you?
Yeah.
- Get in. Sit.
- Thanks.
- He's polite.
- Shut up.
Watch him, by which I mean,
"watch him."
I'll watch him.
Still usin' zombies?
I thought that went out.
I just work here.
But they start to smell.
Not for three months
depending on the weather.
You could have put out my eye
with that cigarette gag.
Yeah.
You think burnin' somebody's face
is a joke, huh, sailor?
No, that's not a joke.
Two cannibals are eating a clown.
One says,
"Does that taste funny to you?"
Now, that that's a joke.
Stand up, sailor. Let's see
how funny it is with your face.
- What's your name, kid?
- Tyrone.
Tyrone. You're not the sharpest pencil
in the box, are you?
If it ain't on the page,
he ain't on the stage!
What do I care about television.
If he's so hot for the rights,
let him have 'em.
Hey. Hey, sister,
can you get out of here first?
I put a spell on you
Because you're mine
You better stop the things you do
I ain't Iyin
No I ain't Iyin'
You know I can't stand it
Your runnin' around
You know better daddy
I can't stand it Because you put me down
Yeah yeah
I put a spell on you
Because you're mine
You're mine
Mr. Brown,
I'd like you to meet Cherie.
- Good evening, sir.
- Perhaps a bit more sophistication.
Of course.
And a little more up top.
Now you two run along.
Hello. My name is Vivian Dart.
Welcome to my home.
Are you looking for anything
particular tonight?
Oh, I'm way past bein' particular.
Then I've got exactly what you want.
Right this way.
I don't believe I caught the name.
"Better Nails Today."
You're a manicurist?
Small world, isn't it?
- You're getting too old for this, Phil.
- Where's my wallet?
Leaving so soon? You and me have got
such a lot of catching up to do.
Hey, you shouldn't be up here at all.
Vivian, would you treat the man
with a little more respect?
Phil and me are members
of the same noble profession.
What are you doing here?
No, I told you,
I'm a private security consultant.
I help miss Dart make sure the place
runs nice and smooth.
You're a bouncer in a whore house?
Cut the reunion and get him out of here.
They think you're upset
with that whore house crap.
Were you workin' for Dart or Gotlieb
when he brought the Senator up here?
I'm not sure I know
what you're talkin' about, friend.
How come I don't trust you, Macha?
You don't trust yourself,
how do you trust anybody else?
If you ever get tired of crawling around
in the bushes, Philip, let me know.
There's always room for men like you
in my organization.
- Here's your wallet.
- Whose got my gun?
I'll keep it.
You'll come around, just you'll see.
Well, you seem pretty sure.
Ever wonder why it's the guy, not the
girl that's nervous on prom night.
That's because the girl knows
how it's going to come out.
And that's the way it is
between you and me, Philip.
I'm the girl.
I know how it's going to come out.
Call ahead next time. Vivian
will let you in the front door.
What happened
out at the beach house, Macha?
Which beach house would that be,
Philip?
You know the one,
the one without any fingerprints.
Kim left the house in her pink car,
with a pink dress and a purse to match.
The lady knew how to accessorize.
I guess it was something
they taught you at the studio.
I followed her out the new freeway
past Rosemead to El Monte.
It was a long drive to see a movie.
Don't leave me, Sam.
He's dead. Murdered by whoever
tried to kill you.
It's about time you tell us
who did it so we can find him.
He shouldn't have left.
He was my friend.
- He shouldn't...
- All right.
Let's take him.
But not for you.
Whoever it was shouldn't hurt Manny.
We ain't got much time to go.
Who did it?
Who killed the girl in my room?
Who paid you to do it?
- Mr. Brown.
- Mr. Brown.
Hi. Well, you have an interesting way
of mourning, Mrs. Gotlieb.
I like to watch my pictures.
Now, you could run them
in the screening room.
I like to watch them big.
No problem if I just sit here
and watch the show with ya?
Well, what can I do about it?
Call an usher?
- Which picture you in?
- This one.
You know that big house on Glendower
your husband went to
the night before he died?
- It's a high price cat house.
- I told you to forget about that house.
He went there with a certain gentleman.
They picked up a girl.
Drove to a house down at the beach.
Made sure I couldn't follow.
After he left, something...
somebody made a big show
of covering up.
Now, what do you suppose
that might be?
I told you once,
I don't know anything.
Now, you don't know it all but you know
something. You're part of this.
I'm coming up in this part,
right here.
He's supposed to be an hour ago.
I kept that pilot on payroll for years.
Just for a spot like this.
But is he coming?
Don't try that again.
I wanna be seen.
I want to be seen.
You're very good in this.
Jesus, Kim I was going crazy.
I couldn't find your car and...
- Popcorn?
- It's okay. Get in the car.
- This is nice and cosy, huh?
- Who is this guy?
I work for her. Who are you?
She's a friend,
and that's all you have to know.
- Well, what's your name, friend?
- Marie.
Marie. What a nice name.
So, tell me something, Marie.
Get out to the beach much?
- Shit!
- Easy!
- You can't get away. Drop the gun.
- Come and get it!
- Stay down!
- He's shooting at us!
Get to the car.
Slowly, slowly, stay down.
Okay, get ready.
Okay, let's go.
- That's six. He's out of bullets.
- That was close.
- Hey!
- Hey. She's taking your car!
- Marie!
- Hey!
Have a seat.
- Who you calling?
- I'm reporting a stolen car.
The police? You're calling the police.
You can't do that.
- Why not?
- The car's not stolen. Not really.
- Oh, she just borrowed the car.
- And just who is she?
A friend. Well, an acquaintance,
more than a friend.
What does your acquaintance
do for a living?
I don't know.
I mean, what difference does it make
where she works?
You wanna know what I figure?
I figure she works for Vivian Dart.
She's one of those girls
from that big house on Glendower.
I figure she's the girl
that your husband dropped
at the beach house with Crockett.
Now, if that's so,
why is she so worried?
And how come she came running
to you of all people?
You know somebody
by the name of Finn Macha?
Who's Finn Macha?
He was doing some consulting work
for your husband at the same time
he was working for Vivian Dart?
I don't know him.
Well, you don't know much of anything,
do you, Mrs. Gotlieb!
- I'm not the worst person you ever met.
- Well, I didn't say that.
The fact is...
I kind of like you.
Most of the men I meet...
you can pretty much see
right through them.
You're different.
- Solid.
- In a mature sort of way.
There's too many unanswered questions
for you and me
to start having
that particular conversation.
- Who says?
- I say.
Yeah? Oh, yeah.
Oh, I'm interested.
- Stay here.
- Where you going?
I don't answer your questions
until you start answering mine.
A few hours earlier, she'd been watchin'
a movie. Now she was a stiff.
No matter how many times I saw it,
it always got to me.
You know the story.
Girl falls in with wrong crowd.
One minute she's a fresh face gal
and the next, she's stuck
in the window of Saks.
Good. Very good.
That's it.
Bradbury.
A couple a kids saw her drive off
the pier.
Managed to get the licence number.
Thought you might be interested.
- Foot's still on the accelerator.
- Look at her face.
Suicides don't look like that.
She didn't know she was drivin' off
a pier,
somebody put the whammy on her!
She probably thought
she was at the Rose Parade.
Who is she, Phil? It's your client's
car, but that ain't your client.
She lent the car to a friend.
I don't know her name.
Come here.
You wouldn't happen to know where your
client was this evening, would you?
- I got a pretty good idea.
- Good.
She hadn't been home
since she took this wagon out.
Suppose I wanted to talk to her.
You wouldn't get all coy
all of a sudden, would you?
It's a free country, Bradbury. You can
talk to anybody that you want to.
This Kim Hudson's
a pretty good lookin' woman
if you go in for that movie star
sort of a thing.
And she's gotten herself involved
in two homicides in three days.
Are you gettin' near the point?
Just this.
Don't get complicated, Phil.
A man gets too complicated,
he starts to make mistakes.
- I'll keep that in mind.
- Good.
She's gone.
Your actress friend.
- The lady has secrets.
- Everybody has secrets.
Drink your coffee.
Everywhere I go in,
this case is water.
Rain, the ocean, swimming pools.
- Water is very important.
- Water makes me nervous.
- What kind of doughnuts are these?
- Two jellies and a bear claw.
- I'll take the bear claw.
- I want the bear claw.
Then why did you get
the jelly doughnuts?
Half the bear claw, all right?
The raven is still with you
at your shoulder.
You can't see it,
but I know it's there.
- The question is, who's raven is it?
- Oh, it's yours.
The raven belongs to you as does
the snake it carries in its beak.
- I didn't tell you about the snake.
- No, you did not.
- We're looking for Hypolita Kropotkin.
- You've found Hypolita Kropotkin.
Hypolita Kropotkin, I'm here
to serve you with this summons
to appear at the Special Senate
Sub-Committee on Unnatural Activities
as chaired by Senator Larson Crockett.
Duly served.
What's the big idea?
- Are you Lovecraft?
- Yeah, I'm Lovecraft.
The senator would like to meet you.
I made my way
up to the Pilgrimage Theatre
where Crockett was preparing
his rally.
It's where they hold
the Boy Scout Jamboree every year.
Crockett must of felt right at home.
He didn't drink. He didn't smoke.
He didn't lust.
I couldn't figure out
what he wanted from me.
Larson Crockett.
Pleased to meet you.
- Phil Lovecraft.
- Heard a lot about you, Phil.
Heard a considerable lot about you.
Hope you don't mind meeting out here.
Got a lot to do
and precious little time.
Our support grows bigger every day.
- That's a little premature, isn't it?
- The stake?
You might say it's symbolic.
Nice centrepiece for the rally.
Of course, now that congress has passed
the capital punishment bill.
Well, then it could be something else,
couldn't it?
Why did you subpoena Kropotkin?
I take it you know
she's a card carrying witch.
Having an office across from her, you
probably see things, hear things.
- Smell things.
- I'm smelling something right now.
I thought you were the man
who didn't believe in magic.
Oh, I believe in it.
I just don't use it.
It's a gift from a friend.
Friends are a valuable commodity, Phil.
But you gotta be careful.
Don't let people get too close.
Things rub off.
A man has to be very careful
of the company he keeps.
You must get very lonely.
Would you give a loaded gun
to a child, Lovecraft?
Would you let a baby play with a
blowtorch? Of course you wouldn't!
I love the people of this country.
I love them enough to protect them
from sinister forces out
to exploit their appetites.
I want you to join my personal staff.
Come on board as a full-time
paid investigator.
Together we can bring about
an end to this plague!
Well, I appreciate your offer
but I got clients.
The Gotlieb killing? There are better
uses for your talents.
How many times did you and Gotlieb
meet?
Just once.
He came by my hotel,
he wanted to talk in private
so we drove around for a few hours.
He told me many disturbing things
about the influence of magic
in the motion picture business.
I tried to get him to testify
for my committee, but he was too afraid.
- Not unjustifiably as it turned out.
- Well, that's too bad.
Gotlieb would have made
a very powerful witness.
But under the circumstances,
his wife will be just as effective.
As Gotlieb's widow,
she felt it was her duty
to uncover the forces
of magic corrupting the movies.
She's testifying tomorrow morning,
just before your friend, Kropotkin.
Hudson's your client, isn't she?
State your name for the record.
My name is Mrs. N. J. Gotlieb.
Be seated.
You are the widow of motion picture
producer, N. J. Gotlieb,
- is that correct?
- Yes, sir.
Did your husband ever express to you
his concern
about the pernicious influence of magic
in the motion picture business?
Oh, yes, my husband,
my late husband often confided in me
his growing sense of apprehension.
He felt the practitioners of magic
had an agenda
that outside the needs and desires
of ordinary America.
You are testifying in your husband's
place this morning?
- That is correct, Senator.
- Why is that?
Nicky, my husband...
can no longer speak for himself.
He was killed.
Murdered by magic.
- The woman is good.
- She's gotta be good.
- She doesn't have a contract anymore.
- Mrs. Gotlieb...
do you recognise the item
in this envelope?
Excuse me?
The item in this envelope.
Do you recognise it?
That's Nicky's watch chain.
How did you get this?
To your knowledge, was this chain
in your husband's possession
at the time of his death?
I guess so.
It's an interesting piece of metal
at the fob.
- Did you give him that charm?
- No.
But you know who did give it to him,
don't you, Mrs. Gotlieb?
- I think it was someone at the studio.
- What was that person's name?
We're waiting, Mrs. Gotlieb.
What was the name of that person?
Senator,
I think this is sort of outside
what I expect to be
would be talking about.
The name, Mrs. Gotlieb.
Give us the name.
I believe her name is Kropotkin.
Hypolita Kropotkin.
This Kropotkin woman,
is she a practitioner?
I believe so, yes.
- But, Senator, I'm sure that it was...
- The witness may step down.
- Thank you for your time and attention.
- But, Senator...
Call the next witness.
Hypolita Kropotkin, come forward
and be heard. Move.
Step aside, guys, please.
- State your name for the record.
- Hypolita Laveau Kropotkin.
Hypolita Laveau Kropotkin, are you now,
or have you ever been a witch?
Ice, cloud, river.
Water is always water.
- Is that a yes or a no?
- That is a yes.
- Is that you in the photograph?
- Yes, it is.
- Who were the other people with you?
- Those are not friends.
We better get out of here.
Just go, go, go, go.
Are they not, in fact,
members of your coven?
There is nothing shameful
in a coven.
What are the circumstances of your
participation in this coven?
When? Where? Who else was there?
What are their names?
The names of people
whose souls are laced with magic?
- That is what you want?
- That is what we want.
Then give me the phone book
and I'll start with the ace.
Magic is in everyone of us,
it's as common as salt.
What you want to do is to prevent people
from finding it and nurture it.
Don't think
you're the first practitioner
who's tried to excuse
their behaviour with this
"cloudy references to natural magic."
Now, I'll give you one more chance
to identify the other members
of your coven.
I decline to do so,
respectfully.
Mrs. Kropotkin, do you recognise
the item in this envelope?
It is familiar to me.
- Did you give this item to N.J. Gotlieb?
- Yes.
Let the record show
that the unfortunate Mr. Gotlieb
had this item in his possession
when he was diminished
by supernatural means.
Did you do anything to this stone
before you gave it to him?
There is an incantation,
a peace and wisdom
and resolve in purpose.
He has the spell on the stone,
is that what you're saying?
- A benevolent one.
- A benevolent one!
I have here the laboratory report
from the FBI on this particular stone.
It concludes
that there are measurable levels
of the most pernicious and toxic
magic they have ever encountered.
More than enough to do what was done
to the unwitting Mr. Gotlieb!
- What are you suggesting, Senator?
- I am suggesting, my good woman
that you are a witch
and a practitioner.
That you gave this tainted item
to an innocent man
about to reveal your sinister Kabal
and that man is now dead!
We have evidence of how you used your
shameless and unwholesome powers.
I give you this opportunity
to recant your belief in magic
renounce all supernatural agents
and activities
and purge yourself of all affiliations
with other witches, conjurers
- and similar practitioners.
- I recant nothing.
I renounce no one
and I need no purging.
You leave me no alternative.
Hypolita Laveau Kropotkin
the Congress of the USA hereby brand you
as a murderer and consort of the devil.
And keeping with the emergency powers
of the Un-natural Activities Act,
I order you to be taken
to a public place
where you will be burned
as punishment for your crimes
and for the enlightenment
of the general population.
Sergeant at Arms,
take her into custody.
- No, it's not right.
- Motion to adjourn.
- Kropotkin!
- Lovecraft!
- Crockett!
- Hardball, Mr. Lovecraft.
Kim?
You wanna tell me
why you got in the pool?
Crockett set me up.
He said I'd be cleared
and everything would just go away
if I made a little speech
about the evils of magic.
I didn't know he was going to ask me
about the watch fob or Kropotkin.
I honestly didn't know.
Now they're gonna burn her.
- I thought it was a way to fix it.
- It's fixed, all right.
Did they tell you that your friend,
Marie, is dead?
What?
Yeah, they fished her out
of the bay in your car.
I didn't know.
- Who was she?
- She worked for Vivian Dart.
Marie's the girl Nicky brought
to the beach house for Crockett.
What's your connection with Dart?
- She did some work for me once.
- What kind of work?
I worked in the steno pool of that
studio for six years saving every penny.
I went from typing scripts
to being a star, overnight.
Vivian Dart did the enchanting?
She gave me whatever it is
that movie stars have.
That thing we all want.
I got it.
Nobody at the studio recognized you?
No one at the studio even looked at me
before the spell.
- Gotlieb didn't know?
- Nobody knew.
Except Dart and that Irishman
that works for her.
- Macha.
- I had to pay him off regular.
I bet.
You met Marie at Darts.
She worked with Macha
and Dart on special dates.
Such as what?
Well, when they wanted to set someone up
they let the sex get a little rough.
Then Marie hits her head,
or slips in the bathtub and drowns.
Macha shows up. Says everything
can be taken care of for a price.
Patsy pays. Leaves.
Marie's free to play another day.
So that's what happened
at the beach house.
They're shakin' down a Senator,
somethin' goes wrong.
Presto chango.
What's wrong with having
what you want?
- I just wanted to be happy.
- Well, they got pills for that now.
Water.
Water everywhere.
You don't know everything. You don't
have the magic in your blood.
You don't have it on your skin
everyday of your life.
No, but I used it once
a long time ago. Just once.
There were two men.
They were goin' out on a boat
and I needed to hear what they said.
So, I hid an empty bottle on board.
And when they came back,
I took the bottle...
and I poured the conversation out
and I had what I needed.
But they weren't alone on the boat.
There was a girl.
So when the cops came after them,
they figured the girl had ratted.
Cops got them both
but before they did,
one of them had time
to take her back out on that boat,
strangle her and throw her body
into the bay.
And now...
the man in the bottle
has come back.
Busy, busy, busy.
Rush, rush, rush.
How do you get up here?
I forget somebody showed me
the back way.
Where's Macha?
Was it your idea or Macha's
to set up Crockett in the badger game.
I know it wasn't Gotlieb. I only wanted
to do was show him a good time.
- I don't know what you're talking about.
- I'm not interested in you.
Finn Macha. Oh, he's somethin' else
again, isn't he?
I'm done with Macha.
That partnership is dissolved.
I'm taking a long, long vacation!
Where is he?
- He's leaving.
- I'm a lucky man.
I don't suppose you need any help
with your luggage, do you, Vivian?
Guess not.
Watch the noise, fellahs.
- You know what they say about Zombies?
- What?
Strong as hell
but very bad lateral movement.
Mint?
Let's try it one more time.
Where's Macha?
Get your flags!
Buttons here!
Good evening, Lovecraft.
Glad you could make it.
How much is in there?
Oh, not so much
in the grand scheme of things.
- Expediting pays pretty good.
- So does discretion.
You had Gotlieb killed. You thought
he was the one working the badger game.
I'm afraid I went off
a little half-cocked.
- And the girl.
- Loose ends, Phil.
You know how I am about loose ends.
And whose idea was it
to set up Kropotkin?
Mine.
The Senator wanted to use Kim,
but I convinced them that the frame
would be a better fit using the witch.
So, this guy's gonna blackmail you
and now you're acting like
long lost brothers.
- Politics makes strange bedfellows.
- But he's a practitioner.
- So?
- It was all a show.
The hearings,
the press coverage.
Attacking magic, you could care less
about protecting the people.
Spend some time in congress, Phil.
You get up to here with "the people."
Listening to their petty complaints,
their demands.
Their constant inane
whining about one thing
after the next thing, after the next
thing, after the next thing.
Just because they vote for you,
they think you owe them something!
- But why go after magic?
- Who am I suppose to go after?
Big business? You need something
a little different, a little outside.
Let me tell you something
about "the people," Phil.
You lock any 10 of them in a room,
they may not elect a leader
but I guarantee,
they'll pick someone to hate.
- Burn the witch! Burn the witch!
- People, back up, back up.
- Burn the witch! Burn the witch!
- Stay back. Come on, back off!
- Burn the witch!
- Get back! Away from the truck!
I'm not gonna let you burn her.
The witch will burn and there's nothing
you can do about it.
- You'd be surprised what I can do.
- Really?
- Gentlemen, did you hear everything?
- Yes, sir.
What was the gist
of our conversation?
They brought money in that satchel,
they thought they could pay you off.
Well, then,
you better arrest them.
- What are you trying to pull, Crockett?
- I better take that for evidence.
No one double crosses Finn Macha.
I'm the one that sees inside.
You don't believe me?
Ask Lovecraft.
I see what's inside
and I bring it out.
What you are
is an insignificant little mick.
Crack of Solomon on your hat.
Bring them both.
I don't want them to miss the show.
What did you just do?
Someone just remarked...
- This could make a great movie.
- Quite not.
- Will, work on something, will you?
- The ceremony.
Well, I think we have something
just as special.
Ladies and gentlemen, the next president
of the United States, Larson Crockett!
Listen up. America,
- It is going to be all right!
- Yeah!
And it's going to be all right
because of people like you.
Good!
- God, I love this country.
- Yeah.
The fire we light tonight
will burn across America.
It will set fires in every city,
and every town.
- Can I count on you?
- Yeah!
- Can I depend on you?
- Yeah!
Of course I can!
We know the difference
between right and wrong...
No one double crosses Finn Macha.
And we know how to do it...
- The cameras. The cameras!
- The cameras off now!
It feels good!
Nothing like a little fresh air.
Looks like we're having a little party.
Well, guess who just showed up?
Hey, what the fuck you looking at?
Come on, time to burn the witch!
Come on!
We're gonna burn her
and then we're gonna burn another one
and another one and another one
after that!
We're gonna stack them up like firewood.
Come on, what's wrong with you, people?
You're pretty loud
when you want something!
"Oh, Senator Crockett, I deserve better.
Oh, Senator Crockett,
I deserve a better life!
Oh, Senator Crockett,
I deserve T.V. dinners and T-Birds,
and lawns to cut and peace of mind."
Well, I got news for you.
You're not gonna get it!
I'll tell you what you gonna get.
You'll get porno video
and double digit inflation
and a designated hitter, and wars
in countries you've never even heard of.
Now, that's what I call a world
without magic.
Hey! Where you all going?
The party just started!
I thought you wanted me to help you out!
I thought you liked me!
Fuck it. I'll do it myself.
Go on, arrest him.
Arrest both of them.
- Your names, I want both your names!
- Let go...
I have friends in high places!
Come with me now.
- Where's Macha?
- I don't know.
He took off
when Crockett came out of his shell.
I gotta find him,
we got some unfinished business.
It seems
he feels the same way, too.
- You stay here.
- You shouldn't do this alone.
Yes, I should.
Some people use magic
for gain or revenge.
But Macha...
Macha uses it out of malice.
It's not just his eye that's sour.
It's his soul.
Then I guess,
you better keep the motor running.
Lovely of you to come, Philip.
And on such short notice.
So, how'd things work out
with Senator Crockett?
- They're trying to put him together.
- No one double-crosses Finn Macha.
Too bad you left before the end.
But that wasn't the end, Philip.
This is it. Right here.
Where is she? Where's Kim?
I haven't forgotten
that business with the bottle.
I figure, once a man uses magic
he may use it again.
And I want that man on my team.
- I don't use magic.
- We'll see.
- I asked you a question.
- Well, where do you think she might be?
I'm a fan of old movies.
I like to watch them over and over.
And there's one I'd like to show you.
Except it's not that old.
Just a couple of days.
Come along, Philip.
Here's my screening room.
This is my movie.
- Call me Mr. President again.
- Mr. President.
Take a seat.
And the wonderful thing about old movies
is you get to recast them.
Like this one for instance.
It wasn't cast right.
That's much better.
I've also done a little rewrite.
In the original the girl didn't die. But
considering the new cast, she will.
Well, aren't you going to do anything?
Think of the little lady.
- Let her go.
- Well, you could make me.
You could whip up
some of that mojo boo doo.
Conjure up a lightening bold
and strike me down.
You want some incentive?
- No!
- You have the power!
You know the words.
You know the spells.
You let one girl die
because you used magic.
Are you going to let another one die
because you won't? Work for me, Phil.
Darling,
you're about to die of principles.
- I don't use magic.
- Well, the pity is I do.
Help me!
Chango! Oya!
Yewa!
Water, water everywhere.
I'm sorry, Phil. I couldn't let you
do it. I flipped the bird.
Final call.
Chicago city now boarding...
- Here you go.
- Thank you.
- You sure this is what you want to do?
- Pretty sure.
Well, the public's gonna wonder
what happened to Kim Hudson.
Well, if they want to wonder, let them.
- Well, thanks.
- Good luck.
Bye.
Wait a second.
- There's something we forgot.
- What?
Wow. A girl could last a winter
on a kiss like that.
- Don't forget to write.
- Oh, I won't.
Kim Hudson disappeared.
But since she never really existed,
I figured the score was even.
It didn't matter anyway.
Pretty soon another girl would be
stepping off the Highland bus
wishing herself into a D-cup
and her big break.
Crockett, too, he's the kind of guy
who says he hates magic,
and then goes home
and levitates chics in the basement.
Last I heard he was sharing a cell
with himself in San Quentin.
And so it goes.
There was usually a one to one ratio
between dreams and disappointments,
and no amount of magic
could change that.
It's always gonna be there
if someone wants to believe in it.
Let's face it
everybody's gotta believe in something.
English Master Template
News On Parade.
Magic comes to Tinsel Town.
Not since this years sensation,
a frozen four-course meal on a tray
have people and the press
been caught up in such a frenzy.
Everybody wants more magic
in their lives.
Licensed practitioners of magic are
popping up like rabbits in a hat trick.
Don't like the look of your house?
This licensed practitioner
will transform every room.
How's this for instant
interior decorating?
There's even do it yourself magic.
Mr. and Mrs. America
are getting into the act.
Say, looks like this youngster's
really moving up!
Licensed magic practitioners and there
products maybe on the up and up.
But there are others
whose use of magic is down and dirty.
Unlicensed and underground,
they represent magic's dark side.
That raised the suspicion
of dynamic senator, Larson Crockett.
He's leading an anti magic crusade.
His target, Tinsel Town.
Senator Crockett's convinced that magic,
licensed or unlicensed, is un-American
infiltrating our lives
and undermining the American family.
Why work? Why worship?
If there's magic to make things easy.
For some of Hollywood's biggest stars
and moguls, it's time to name names.
Politicians and prestidigitators
at war.
Senator Crockett's political muscle
versus magic in Hollywood.
From Magic California,
News On Parade.
WITCH HUN Magic...
Magic!
The word conjures images of slough,
degeneracy, and corruption.
I brought my committee to Los Angeles
where this plague began
and I will not rest
until America...
What's he gettin'
so worked up about?
Some people have a problem
with magic.
What's to worry? I mean, it just makes
things easier, right?
Never touch the stuff myself.
- That's some life line you got there.
- I got a good life.
- Oh, yeah? What you do?
- I'm lookin' for somebody.
Someone in particular? Or someone with
an interesting outlook on things?
No, somebody in particular. He owes his
ex-wife 7000 bucks.
He moved and forgot to drop
the lady a card.
So what? The little woman hires you
to find someone?
- What are you, a detective or somethin'?
- Or somethin'.
Well, when you find the guy,
you gonna break his legs?
- Thanks for the conversation.
- Thank you. And take a card.
Don't mind if I do.
Me, I'm old fashioned.
- A man should keep his promise.
- You talkin' to me?
There's a lady who'd like to have
a few words with you, Sydney.
She got the last penny
she's ever gonna get from me.
I don't think so.
Animus seperatum todas!
That's 7000 bucks
back alimony to you!
The philosophy T.V.
which explains the origin of man...
All right, Sydney,
your wife needs proof to see you.
It started off small.
It wasn't a conspiracy or anything.
It was like...
it was just a fad.
Somebody'd bend a spoon,
or levitated their dog
the next thing you knew,
it was starting to spread.
Pretty soon the whole neighbourhood
was doin' it.
And in a little while, it was all over
the place like a Tupperware party.
That's him! That's the louse!
You're walkin' pretty straight
for a man with no backbone!
I'm gonna let you two lovebirds
have some time alone.
- Get in. Now!
- Good luck, Sydney.
Why didn't you just shoot me?
Still, I never thought it was evil. It
was just natural. It's human curiosity.
At worst I thought it was a crutch.
Magic can make people lazy.
And if you're not careful,
it can creep up on you.
Instead of taking out the trash,
the trash takes out itself.
Instead of washin' the dishes,
you just encourage them.
Nobody sees it happen to them,
it just happens.
So it makes my job a little tougher but
it's nothing to get hysterical about.
Last year, it was boola-hoops
and Senator Crockett
never held congressional hearings
about that.
Sure, I get tempted to use it.
Who doesn't?
But in my business,
it's better just to work clean.
I knew a private eye who hired a witch
to put a tail on a guy
and the poor bastard
had to have it surgically removed.
Some things just aren't worth it.
Mr. Lovecraft?
I'm Kim Hudson.
- You're in the movies.
- Which one of my efforts have you seen?
I don't remember the title.
You in the bathtub full of bubbles.
And you had your big toes
stuck in the faucet?
Let's Do It.
The name of the picture.
Let's Do it.
It was a very sophisticated comedy.
You know the part I like best?
When the fat plumber came in.
So, what can I do you for,
Ms. Hudson?
Actually, it's Mrs. Gotlieb.
- I'm married to N.J. Gotlieb.
- The producer?
There's only one.
And I have reason to believe
he's being unfaithful to me.
What sort of reason?
Nicky's producing my C new picture
at Palisade.
He hired a girl for a walk-on.
But her part keeps getting bigger
and bigger.
Now, you'd have to be as dumb as I look
not to figure it out.
$45 a day plus gas and expenses?
Just give me something solid
I can take to my lawyers.
I'm sure whatever he's up to
it'll be cheap, tawdry,
and decidedly third-rate.
Please.
We gather together and close this circle
to refute the whispers in the darkness.
Cords stronger than a thread.
Ropes stronger than a cord.
A pledge, a bond, a sacrifice.
- Hi, Phil.
- Trudy.
Come to join the coven?
- Not today, angel.
- Anytime you want, Phil. Anytime at all.
You better be careful what you wish for.
All right?
- Who's that producer you're workin' for?
- N.J. Gotlieb.
- That's what I thought.
- I'm on my way there right now.
- You wanna lift?
- Thank you.
- What's this story on Gotlieb?
- He's short.
You have to be careful with short men.
Their auras are compressed.
Is he the sort of man who would cheat
on his wife?
Only if it occured to him.
- What is that stuff?
- You really don't want to know.
- We all set?
- I'm ready.
All right! Hit it!
Mr. Gotlieb, have you got any gold
fillings in your teeth?
- What's it to you?
- Nothing.
It's just that they tend to melt
if you stand too close.
Mind your teeth.
Fair is foul and foul is fair.
Hover through the fog
and the filthy air.
What place is this?
It's a real pleasure, Bill.
Welcome to Hollywood.
- Holly Wood?
- Yeah. I'd got a couple of people
I'd like you to say hello to.
I am N. J. Gotlieb.
This is Ms. Tracy Pinkem,
really somethin' special.
Absolutely love your stuff.
When Nicky said...
Okay, okay. This is Malcolm Purdy,
head of production.
- Harmon Vacual, business affairs.
- How do you do?
- Jim and Ted.
- Ted and Jim, actually.
Great writers.
They'll help you over the bump.
Trevor Bundt, best director in town.
And Mr. Frank Krushnick
of the William Morrs Agency.
- Who are you?
- I'm with the witch.
Excuse me a sec, will you, Bill?
Somebody get Bill here
a parking space.
Paint over, what's his name,
that Nobel Prize guy.
Finn Macha.
Moses on a pony,
if it isn't Phil Lovecraft.
Well, how's the world treating you,
dickface?
I thought you were in Chicago.
Well, I missed the friendly people
and the orange juice.
- What are you doing for Gotlieb?
- Privileged information.
But from one Lodge member to another, he
called me in as a security consultant.
An "expeditor."
I tie up loose ends.
It seems to me they're still lookin'
for a couple of people you expedited.
Are you still chasing
naughty husbands, dick face?
And drying the tears
of those poor lonely wivey poos?
Tell me something, honestly.
Do I look like I have a dick
on my face?
That's why I like you, Phil.
I like to take things apart.
See how they work.
Watches, phonographs, people.
I like to see inside.
Well, I'll see you around, Phil.
I don't think so.
Well, there's no doubt about it. You and
me we've still got business to settle.
- Who was that?
- It's somebody I know.
He has a sore eye.
The devil can put all manner
of mischief in an eye like that.
If it were mine, I'd pluck it out.
- Let's get out of here.
- Okay.
I followed Gotlieb up to Los Feliz.
I wish I had a rum punch for every time
somebody in my business
followed a car up to Los Feliz.
Look at the motion picture industry,
friends.
Why do you think everyone in show
business is beautiful? Magic.
Why don't they ever get old?
Magic.
Why are their jokes always funny?
Magic.
That was creepy up there.
I cut my lights and stayed back.
The last thing I need was to get turned
to stoner end up with the body of a goat.
Standing in my dressing room
with my wardrobe lady,
being fitted into my costume.
I'm a movie star.
She's a waitress.
How do you think that makes me feel?
I got to do what I think is best
for the picture.
- My picture.
- My picture.
You're replacing me
with that skinny ass car-hop.
We're married, you crumb.
What will people think?
Don't make a big deal out of it, Kim.
There are lots of other studios,
you'll land on your feet.
You can't do this to me.
What about our marriage?
That wasn't a marriage.
That was a licence to shop.
- What about my three-year contract?
- Have your people talk to my people?
The public won't stand for this!
The public? What you fail to grasp
is just how replaceable you are!
You're nothin' but nice tits
and a pleasant smile!
You'll be forgotten
before you reach the gate!
This isn't the first time I've been
fucked in the producer's office!
Just you...
not Dickens.
N.J. Gotlieb.
It's Harry Schroadecker.
Five minutes.
So, he won an Oscar.
He hasn't had a hit for five years!
But I'm willing to give the rum of you
another chance because I'm sentimental.
Tell him he's got until 5:00.
Take it or leave it.
- What do you want?
- I want to make my report.
- Save it. You're fired.
- I am?
You're fired, I'm fired,
everybody's fired.
You wanna know where he went last night?
I couldn't care less.
He went into a big house
in the hills above Los Feliz.
- You said he went where?
- A house on Glendower Avenue.
- That cow!
- Now what cow would that be?
- Get that, will ya?
- No, you fired me, remember?
Yeah, it's me.
Am I in your way?
- Get them out of here.
- All right, come on.
- Hi.
- Hi.
- What the hell you doin' here?
- What happened, Bradbury?
Come on. Give.
I'm a friend of the widows.
What happened?
Somebody put the big whammy on Gotlieb
and cut him down to size.
- And?
- Ever see two dogs
play tug of war with a bone?
Forget the gurney. You can get him out
of here in a lunch pail.
Oh, you thinkin' of somethin?
According to this lady, the last person
to see Gotlieb before he got small
was your friend, the widow.
Okay, okay. Break it up. This is a
police investigation. Come on.
Lieutenant Bradbury, heard good things
about you. Larson Crockett.
What's being done about this
ghastly business?
- We're workin' on it.
- Good.
This is just another example
of how magic has shot
it's sinister tentacles
into the motion picture industry.
I give my personal pledge
that soon a new day will dawn
on a witch free America,
a more wholesome country.
As we proceed with our Los Angeles
hearings
and prepare our patriotism rally.
I thought that magic was trouble
but now...
Now that they're tryin' to outlaw the
stuff, how come I'm not so happy?
If God doesn't destroy Hollywood
he owes Sodom and Gomorrah
an apology.
As my dear friend,
Norma Desmond is so fond of saying
"Maybe the pictures got small."
But Nicky Gotlieb never got small.
Well, he did actually. But not until the
very end when he got "really small."
On earth, you may be the head of a
studio. You may be a big star.
In heaven,
we're all just bit players.
Under contract to the one
who discovered us.
Cecil, B. DeMille,
Fatty Arbuckle, Nicky Gotlieb
all just walk-ons
in the part we were born to play.
God's little extra. In Nicky's case,
God's very little extra.
God's littlest extra.
But no less dear to God
as he was dear to us.
So, farewell, N.J. Gotlieb.
We have reached a final fade out.
But, dear friends,
think of it not so much as fade out
but as a dissolve to a better world.
We have to talk.
Awful nice of you showin' up
for his funeral.
I am the widow.
Besides, it'd look funny if I didn't
come. People might get the wrong idea.
- And what idea would that be?
- I want to hire you.
You hire me. You fire me.
Now, you want to hire me again.
- The police think I killed Nicky.
- I think you're right.
I didn't.
You believe me, don't you?
It doesn't matter what I believe.
It matters what I can prove.
Well, prove it.
- Oh, well, you're tough, aren't ya?
- That's me.
Are you tough enough to put your husband
in that parakeet coffin?
Don't strain yourself
tryin' to figure me out, Lovecraft.
Just find out who killed Nicky
and get me off the hook.
- Okay, you got the keys to his car?
- His car?
The Lincoln he was drivin'
the other night.
Well, I can get them for you.
I'll start with that
and the house on Glendower.
There's nothing there
you have to know about.
- Well, I'll decide that for myself.
- Stay clear of that place.
You know, the cops are only going
to work as hard as they have to.
If the frame fits,
you're gonna wear it.
The keys to the Lincoln
will be at the house.
- Ms. Hudson.
- Ms. Hudson...
Somebody slipped me a mickey
the other night.
What kind of a "mickey?"
Raven landed on the hood of my car
and the next thing I know, it's morning.
Nice touch.
I mean, you don't see that kind of
workmanship around these days.
It's usually just frogs.
Not even toads, just frogs.
Oh, amateurs. Anyway, what was the
purpose of this "mickey?"
- I was following somebody.
- And when you woke up, he was gone.
- And now he's dead.
- N.J.Gotlieb.
The same.
I'm going out to look at his car
and I was hoping
maybe you might go with me?
Are you asking me for help?
Well, I'm asking you to
watch my back for rabies, okay?
I have to make a phone call.
- So, what are we looking for?
- I don't know.
There's sand on the driver's side
and none on the passenger's.
He went to the beach alone?
Or he went with someone
who didn't come back with him.
- Is this what you do when you detect?
- Yeah, basically.
Well, it doesn't seem
very precise to me.
What's buzzin', cousins?
What is this?
A field trip?
I had to have somebody watching my back
while I was watching yours.
- Besides, Trudy might be able to help.
- God knows I'm willing.
- What kind of help?
- Events cling to objects.
And Trudy is very good
at hearing their memories.
Very, very good.
You want to know what happened to
Gotlieb? Where he and his friend went?
- I don't use magic.
- Purist.
Who said boo about magic? You drive
the car. I read the map. That's all.
And what are you?
The chaperon?
- What about my car?
- We have to take this car.
- This holds the memories.
- It'll be our little secret.
I get the front seat!
Thanks.
Here's where I lost him.
It was raining
when they got back in the car.
Gotlieb and another man.
"What am I, the chauffeur?
Never mind, keep driving. You're gonna
have the time of your life."
- They drove down the hill.
- Where do I go?
A West on Sunset,
all the way to the beach.
This is where they came.
- Now, you can wait. here.
- You forget, we can help.
I found the house, didn't I? You want me
to tell you who owns it?
Yes, I can almost feel it.
It's definitely coming.
Well, when it hits you,
would you let me know?
- Want me to do that for you?
- Do you mind?
All right.
- I don't understand.
- What?
There's nothing.
- Nothing unusual?
- Nothing at all.
This place has been wiped clean.
Erased.
It's never... It's so empty,
what happened here?
- There was a girl.
- How do you know that?
It doesn't take magic.
There's always a girl.
Trudy, let's take a look
at the bedroom.
- Can I ask you something?
- No.
What exactly is your problem
with magic?
I don't have a problem.
I just don't use it.
- Why?
- I've got personal reasons.
It's a pity. Kropotkin's says you have
the qualities of a magus
to know, to dare, to will.
What?
Somebody wiped the prints off the bottle
like they wiped the house of memories.
So you wouldn't know
anyone was here.
The easy thing would have been
to take the bottle and ditch it.
- Unless...
- Unless?
Unless... Unless you wanted to make
a show of wipin' the prints
because, you wanted someone to know
what you were doin'.
Well, why would they do that?
You're the one that writes screenplays.
You tell me.
- Beverly Wilshire Hotel, good morning.
- Room 1209.
I'm sorry, those calls are being held.
Would you like to leave a message
for Senator Crockett?
- No, that's okay. Thanks.
- What was that?
Nobody slept here.
Look at that bed.
There's not a ruffle on it.
It's perfectly smooth.
More show.
Trudy, it's all right.
It's not, it's not all right. There's
nothing here! Nothing!
It's as if somebody sucked the life out
of this place.
It's so empty,
it makes my head hurt.
- It's all right, kid. You did your best.
- You don't understand.
This place is dead, as dead as the moon.
That's not right at all.
It's okay.
Okay.
Two rules you learn in this business,
get paid up front,
and don't work with partners.
The bathroom wasn't empty after all.
Someone had left the stem
of a martini glass from the bar.
More show? It took us three hours
to get home from Malibu.
Then Trudy made us stop
to listen to a building.
Jesus!
You see that?
- You see what he done?
- Frisk him.
- Move.
- Where?
You're interested in that house,
aren't you?
Yeah.
- Get in. Sit.
- Thanks.
- He's polite.
- Shut up.
Watch him, by which I mean,
"watch him."
I'll watch him.
Still usin' zombies?
I thought that went out.
I just work here.
But they start to smell.
Not for three months
depending on the weather.
You could have put out my eye
with that cigarette gag.
Yeah.
You think burnin' somebody's face
is a joke, huh, sailor?
No, that's not a joke.
Two cannibals are eating a clown.
One says,
"Does that taste funny to you?"
Now, that that's a joke.
Stand up, sailor. Let's see
how funny it is with your face.
- What's your name, kid?
- Tyrone.
Tyrone. You're not the sharpest pencil
in the box, are you?
If it ain't on the page,
he ain't on the stage!
What do I care about television.
If he's so hot for the rights,
let him have 'em.
Hey. Hey, sister,
can you get out of here first?
I put a spell on you
Because you're mine
You better stop the things you do
I ain't Iyin
No I ain't Iyin'
You know I can't stand it
Your runnin' around
You know better daddy
I can't stand it Because you put me down
Yeah yeah
I put a spell on you
Because you're mine
You're mine
Mr. Brown,
I'd like you to meet Cherie.
- Good evening, sir.
- Perhaps a bit more sophistication.
Of course.
And a little more up top.
Now you two run along.
Hello. My name is Vivian Dart.
Welcome to my home.
Are you looking for anything
particular tonight?
Oh, I'm way past bein' particular.
Then I've got exactly what you want.
Right this way.
I don't believe I caught the name.
"Better Nails Today."
You're a manicurist?
Small world, isn't it?
- You're getting too old for this, Phil.
- Where's my wallet?
Leaving so soon? You and me have got
such a lot of catching up to do.
Hey, you shouldn't be up here at all.
Vivian, would you treat the man
with a little more respect?
Phil and me are members
of the same noble profession.
What are you doing here?
No, I told you,
I'm a private security consultant.
I help miss Dart make sure the place
runs nice and smooth.
You're a bouncer in a whore house?
Cut the reunion and get him out of here.
They think you're upset
with that whore house crap.
Were you workin' for Dart or Gotlieb
when he brought the Senator up here?
I'm not sure I know
what you're talkin' about, friend.
How come I don't trust you, Macha?
You don't trust yourself,
how do you trust anybody else?
If you ever get tired of crawling around
in the bushes, Philip, let me know.
There's always room for men like you
in my organization.
- Here's your wallet.
- Whose got my gun?
I'll keep it.
You'll come around, just you'll see.
Well, you seem pretty sure.
Ever wonder why it's the guy, not the
girl that's nervous on prom night.
That's because the girl knows
how it's going to come out.
And that's the way it is
between you and me, Philip.
I'm the girl.
I know how it's going to come out.
Call ahead next time. Vivian
will let you in the front door.
What happened
out at the beach house, Macha?
Which beach house would that be,
Philip?
You know the one,
the one without any fingerprints.
Kim left the house in her pink car,
with a pink dress and a purse to match.
The lady knew how to accessorize.
I guess it was something
they taught you at the studio.
I followed her out the new freeway
past Rosemead to El Monte.
It was a long drive to see a movie.
Don't leave me, Sam.
He's dead. Murdered by whoever
tried to kill you.
It's about time you tell us
who did it so we can find him.
He shouldn't have left.
He was my friend.
- He shouldn't...
- All right.
Let's take him.
But not for you.
Whoever it was shouldn't hurt Manny.
We ain't got much time to go.
Who did it?
Who killed the girl in my room?
Who paid you to do it?
- Mr. Brown.
- Mr. Brown.
Hi. Well, you have an interesting way
of mourning, Mrs. Gotlieb.
I like to watch my pictures.
Now, you could run them
in the screening room.
I like to watch them big.
No problem if I just sit here
and watch the show with ya?
Well, what can I do about it?
Call an usher?
- Which picture you in?
- This one.
You know that big house on Glendower
your husband went to
the night before he died?
- It's a high price cat house.
- I told you to forget about that house.
He went there with a certain gentleman.
They picked up a girl.
Drove to a house down at the beach.
Made sure I couldn't follow.
After he left, something...
somebody made a big show
of covering up.
Now, what do you suppose
that might be?
I told you once,
I don't know anything.
Now, you don't know it all but you know
something. You're part of this.
I'm coming up in this part,
right here.
He's supposed to be an hour ago.
I kept that pilot on payroll for years.
Just for a spot like this.
But is he coming?
Don't try that again.
I wanna be seen.
I want to be seen.
You're very good in this.
Jesus, Kim I was going crazy.
I couldn't find your car and...
- Popcorn?
- It's okay. Get in the car.
- This is nice and cosy, huh?
- Who is this guy?
I work for her. Who are you?
She's a friend,
and that's all you have to know.
- Well, what's your name, friend?
- Marie.
Marie. What a nice name.
So, tell me something, Marie.
Get out to the beach much?
- Shit!
- Easy!
- You can't get away. Drop the gun.
- Come and get it!
- Stay down!
- He's shooting at us!
Get to the car.
Slowly, slowly, stay down.
Okay, get ready.
Okay, let's go.
- That's six. He's out of bullets.
- That was close.
- Hey!
- Hey. She's taking your car!
- Marie!
- Hey!
Have a seat.
- Who you calling?
- I'm reporting a stolen car.
The police? You're calling the police.
You can't do that.
- Why not?
- The car's not stolen. Not really.
- Oh, she just borrowed the car.
- And just who is she?
A friend. Well, an acquaintance,
more than a friend.
What does your acquaintance
do for a living?
I don't know.
I mean, what difference does it make
where she works?
You wanna know what I figure?
I figure she works for Vivian Dart.
She's one of those girls
from that big house on Glendower.
I figure she's the girl
that your husband dropped
at the beach house with Crockett.
Now, if that's so,
why is she so worried?
And how come she came running
to you of all people?
You know somebody
by the name of Finn Macha?
Who's Finn Macha?
He was doing some consulting work
for your husband at the same time
he was working for Vivian Dart?
I don't know him.
Well, you don't know much of anything,
do you, Mrs. Gotlieb!
- I'm not the worst person you ever met.
- Well, I didn't say that.
The fact is...
I kind of like you.
Most of the men I meet...
you can pretty much see
right through them.
You're different.
- Solid.
- In a mature sort of way.
There's too many unanswered questions
for you and me
to start having
that particular conversation.
- Who says?
- I say.
Yeah? Oh, yeah.
Oh, I'm interested.
- Stay here.
- Where you going?
I don't answer your questions
until you start answering mine.
A few hours earlier, she'd been watchin'
a movie. Now she was a stiff.
No matter how many times I saw it,
it always got to me.
You know the story.
Girl falls in with wrong crowd.
One minute she's a fresh face gal
and the next, she's stuck
in the window of Saks.
Good. Very good.
That's it.
Bradbury.
A couple a kids saw her drive off
the pier.
Managed to get the licence number.
Thought you might be interested.
- Foot's still on the accelerator.
- Look at her face.
Suicides don't look like that.
She didn't know she was drivin' off
a pier,
somebody put the whammy on her!
She probably thought
she was at the Rose Parade.
Who is she, Phil? It's your client's
car, but that ain't your client.
She lent the car to a friend.
I don't know her name.
Come here.
You wouldn't happen to know where your
client was this evening, would you?
- I got a pretty good idea.
- Good.
She hadn't been home
since she took this wagon out.
Suppose I wanted to talk to her.
You wouldn't get all coy
all of a sudden, would you?
It's a free country, Bradbury. You can
talk to anybody that you want to.
This Kim Hudson's
a pretty good lookin' woman
if you go in for that movie star
sort of a thing.
And she's gotten herself involved
in two homicides in three days.
Are you gettin' near the point?
Just this.
Don't get complicated, Phil.
A man gets too complicated,
he starts to make mistakes.
- I'll keep that in mind.
- Good.
She's gone.
Your actress friend.
- The lady has secrets.
- Everybody has secrets.
Drink your coffee.
Everywhere I go in,
this case is water.
Rain, the ocean, swimming pools.
- Water is very important.
- Water makes me nervous.
- What kind of doughnuts are these?
- Two jellies and a bear claw.
- I'll take the bear claw.
- I want the bear claw.
Then why did you get
the jelly doughnuts?
Half the bear claw, all right?
The raven is still with you
at your shoulder.
You can't see it,
but I know it's there.
- The question is, who's raven is it?
- Oh, it's yours.
The raven belongs to you as does
the snake it carries in its beak.
- I didn't tell you about the snake.
- No, you did not.
- We're looking for Hypolita Kropotkin.
- You've found Hypolita Kropotkin.
Hypolita Kropotkin, I'm here
to serve you with this summons
to appear at the Special Senate
Sub-Committee on Unnatural Activities
as chaired by Senator Larson Crockett.
Duly served.
What's the big idea?
- Are you Lovecraft?
- Yeah, I'm Lovecraft.
The senator would like to meet you.
I made my way
up to the Pilgrimage Theatre
where Crockett was preparing
his rally.
It's where they hold
the Boy Scout Jamboree every year.
Crockett must of felt right at home.
He didn't drink. He didn't smoke.
He didn't lust.
I couldn't figure out
what he wanted from me.
Larson Crockett.
Pleased to meet you.
- Phil Lovecraft.
- Heard a lot about you, Phil.
Heard a considerable lot about you.
Hope you don't mind meeting out here.
Got a lot to do
and precious little time.
Our support grows bigger every day.
- That's a little premature, isn't it?
- The stake?
You might say it's symbolic.
Nice centrepiece for the rally.
Of course, now that congress has passed
the capital punishment bill.
Well, then it could be something else,
couldn't it?
Why did you subpoena Kropotkin?
I take it you know
she's a card carrying witch.
Having an office across from her, you
probably see things, hear things.
- Smell things.
- I'm smelling something right now.
I thought you were the man
who didn't believe in magic.
Oh, I believe in it.
I just don't use it.
It's a gift from a friend.
Friends are a valuable commodity, Phil.
But you gotta be careful.
Don't let people get too close.
Things rub off.
A man has to be very careful
of the company he keeps.
You must get very lonely.
Would you give a loaded gun
to a child, Lovecraft?
Would you let a baby play with a
blowtorch? Of course you wouldn't!
I love the people of this country.
I love them enough to protect them
from sinister forces out
to exploit their appetites.
I want you to join my personal staff.
Come on board as a full-time
paid investigator.
Together we can bring about
an end to this plague!
Well, I appreciate your offer
but I got clients.
The Gotlieb killing? There are better
uses for your talents.
How many times did you and Gotlieb
meet?
Just once.
He came by my hotel,
he wanted to talk in private
so we drove around for a few hours.
He told me many disturbing things
about the influence of magic
in the motion picture business.
I tried to get him to testify
for my committee, but he was too afraid.
- Not unjustifiably as it turned out.
- Well, that's too bad.
Gotlieb would have made
a very powerful witness.
But under the circumstances,
his wife will be just as effective.
As Gotlieb's widow,
she felt it was her duty
to uncover the forces
of magic corrupting the movies.
She's testifying tomorrow morning,
just before your friend, Kropotkin.
Hudson's your client, isn't she?
State your name for the record.
My name is Mrs. N. J. Gotlieb.
Be seated.
You are the widow of motion picture
producer, N. J. Gotlieb,
- is that correct?
- Yes, sir.
Did your husband ever express to you
his concern
about the pernicious influence of magic
in the motion picture business?
Oh, yes, my husband,
my late husband often confided in me
his growing sense of apprehension.
He felt the practitioners of magic
had an agenda
that outside the needs and desires
of ordinary America.
You are testifying in your husband's
place this morning?
- That is correct, Senator.
- Why is that?
Nicky, my husband...
can no longer speak for himself.
He was killed.
Murdered by magic.
- The woman is good.
- She's gotta be good.
- She doesn't have a contract anymore.
- Mrs. Gotlieb...
do you recognise the item
in this envelope?
Excuse me?
The item in this envelope.
Do you recognise it?
That's Nicky's watch chain.
How did you get this?
To your knowledge, was this chain
in your husband's possession
at the time of his death?
I guess so.
It's an interesting piece of metal
at the fob.
- Did you give him that charm?
- No.
But you know who did give it to him,
don't you, Mrs. Gotlieb?
- I think it was someone at the studio.
- What was that person's name?
We're waiting, Mrs. Gotlieb.
What was the name of that person?
Senator,
I think this is sort of outside
what I expect to be
would be talking about.
The name, Mrs. Gotlieb.
Give us the name.
I believe her name is Kropotkin.
Hypolita Kropotkin.
This Kropotkin woman,
is she a practitioner?
I believe so, yes.
- But, Senator, I'm sure that it was...
- The witness may step down.
- Thank you for your time and attention.
- But, Senator...
Call the next witness.
Hypolita Kropotkin, come forward
and be heard. Move.
Step aside, guys, please.
- State your name for the record.
- Hypolita Laveau Kropotkin.
Hypolita Laveau Kropotkin, are you now,
or have you ever been a witch?
Ice, cloud, river.
Water is always water.
- Is that a yes or a no?
- That is a yes.
- Is that you in the photograph?
- Yes, it is.
- Who were the other people with you?
- Those are not friends.
We better get out of here.
Just go, go, go, go.
Are they not, in fact,
members of your coven?
There is nothing shameful
in a coven.
What are the circumstances of your
participation in this coven?
When? Where? Who else was there?
What are their names?
The names of people
whose souls are laced with magic?
- That is what you want?
- That is what we want.
Then give me the phone book
and I'll start with the ace.
Magic is in everyone of us,
it's as common as salt.
What you want to do is to prevent people
from finding it and nurture it.
Don't think
you're the first practitioner
who's tried to excuse
their behaviour with this
"cloudy references to natural magic."
Now, I'll give you one more chance
to identify the other members
of your coven.
I decline to do so,
respectfully.
Mrs. Kropotkin, do you recognise
the item in this envelope?
It is familiar to me.
- Did you give this item to N.J. Gotlieb?
- Yes.
Let the record show
that the unfortunate Mr. Gotlieb
had this item in his possession
when he was diminished
by supernatural means.
Did you do anything to this stone
before you gave it to him?
There is an incantation,
a peace and wisdom
and resolve in purpose.
He has the spell on the stone,
is that what you're saying?
- A benevolent one.
- A benevolent one!
I have here the laboratory report
from the FBI on this particular stone.
It concludes
that there are measurable levels
of the most pernicious and toxic
magic they have ever encountered.
More than enough to do what was done
to the unwitting Mr. Gotlieb!
- What are you suggesting, Senator?
- I am suggesting, my good woman
that you are a witch
and a practitioner.
That you gave this tainted item
to an innocent man
about to reveal your sinister Kabal
and that man is now dead!
We have evidence of how you used your
shameless and unwholesome powers.
I give you this opportunity
to recant your belief in magic
renounce all supernatural agents
and activities
and purge yourself of all affiliations
with other witches, conjurers
- and similar practitioners.
- I recant nothing.
I renounce no one
and I need no purging.
You leave me no alternative.
Hypolita Laveau Kropotkin
the Congress of the USA hereby brand you
as a murderer and consort of the devil.
And keeping with the emergency powers
of the Un-natural Activities Act,
I order you to be taken
to a public place
where you will be burned
as punishment for your crimes
and for the enlightenment
of the general population.
Sergeant at Arms,
take her into custody.
- No, it's not right.
- Motion to adjourn.
- Kropotkin!
- Lovecraft!
- Crockett!
- Hardball, Mr. Lovecraft.
Kim?
You wanna tell me
why you got in the pool?
Crockett set me up.
He said I'd be cleared
and everything would just go away
if I made a little speech
about the evils of magic.
I didn't know he was going to ask me
about the watch fob or Kropotkin.
I honestly didn't know.
Now they're gonna burn her.
- I thought it was a way to fix it.
- It's fixed, all right.
Did they tell you that your friend,
Marie, is dead?
What?
Yeah, they fished her out
of the bay in your car.
I didn't know.
- Who was she?
- She worked for Vivian Dart.
Marie's the girl Nicky brought
to the beach house for Crockett.
What's your connection with Dart?
- She did some work for me once.
- What kind of work?
I worked in the steno pool of that
studio for six years saving every penny.
I went from typing scripts
to being a star, overnight.
Vivian Dart did the enchanting?
She gave me whatever it is
that movie stars have.
That thing we all want.
I got it.
Nobody at the studio recognized you?
No one at the studio even looked at me
before the spell.
- Gotlieb didn't know?
- Nobody knew.
Except Dart and that Irishman
that works for her.
- Macha.
- I had to pay him off regular.
I bet.
You met Marie at Darts.
She worked with Macha
and Dart on special dates.
Such as what?
Well, when they wanted to set someone up
they let the sex get a little rough.
Then Marie hits her head,
or slips in the bathtub and drowns.
Macha shows up. Says everything
can be taken care of for a price.
Patsy pays. Leaves.
Marie's free to play another day.
So that's what happened
at the beach house.
They're shakin' down a Senator,
somethin' goes wrong.
Presto chango.
What's wrong with having
what you want?
- I just wanted to be happy.
- Well, they got pills for that now.
Water.
Water everywhere.
You don't know everything. You don't
have the magic in your blood.
You don't have it on your skin
everyday of your life.
No, but I used it once
a long time ago. Just once.
There were two men.
They were goin' out on a boat
and I needed to hear what they said.
So, I hid an empty bottle on board.
And when they came back,
I took the bottle...
and I poured the conversation out
and I had what I needed.
But they weren't alone on the boat.
There was a girl.
So when the cops came after them,
they figured the girl had ratted.
Cops got them both
but before they did,
one of them had time
to take her back out on that boat,
strangle her and throw her body
into the bay.
And now...
the man in the bottle
has come back.
Busy, busy, busy.
Rush, rush, rush.
How do you get up here?
I forget somebody showed me
the back way.
Where's Macha?
Was it your idea or Macha's
to set up Crockett in the badger game.
I know it wasn't Gotlieb. I only wanted
to do was show him a good time.
- I don't know what you're talking about.
- I'm not interested in you.
Finn Macha. Oh, he's somethin' else
again, isn't he?
I'm done with Macha.
That partnership is dissolved.
I'm taking a long, long vacation!
Where is he?
- He's leaving.
- I'm a lucky man.
I don't suppose you need any help
with your luggage, do you, Vivian?
Guess not.
Watch the noise, fellahs.
- You know what they say about Zombies?
- What?
Strong as hell
but very bad lateral movement.
Mint?
Let's try it one more time.
Where's Macha?
Get your flags!
Buttons here!
Good evening, Lovecraft.
Glad you could make it.
How much is in there?
Oh, not so much
in the grand scheme of things.
- Expediting pays pretty good.
- So does discretion.
You had Gotlieb killed. You thought
he was the one working the badger game.
I'm afraid I went off
a little half-cocked.
- And the girl.
- Loose ends, Phil.
You know how I am about loose ends.
And whose idea was it
to set up Kropotkin?
Mine.
The Senator wanted to use Kim,
but I convinced them that the frame
would be a better fit using the witch.
So, this guy's gonna blackmail you
and now you're acting like
long lost brothers.
- Politics makes strange bedfellows.
- But he's a practitioner.
- So?
- It was all a show.
The hearings,
the press coverage.
Attacking magic, you could care less
about protecting the people.
Spend some time in congress, Phil.
You get up to here with "the people."
Listening to their petty complaints,
their demands.
Their constant inane
whining about one thing
after the next thing, after the next
thing, after the next thing.
Just because they vote for you,
they think you owe them something!
- But why go after magic?
- Who am I suppose to go after?
Big business? You need something
a little different, a little outside.
Let me tell you something
about "the people," Phil.
You lock any 10 of them in a room,
they may not elect a leader
but I guarantee,
they'll pick someone to hate.
- Burn the witch! Burn the witch!
- People, back up, back up.
- Burn the witch! Burn the witch!
- Stay back. Come on, back off!
- Burn the witch!
- Get back! Away from the truck!
I'm not gonna let you burn her.
The witch will burn and there's nothing
you can do about it.
- You'd be surprised what I can do.
- Really?
- Gentlemen, did you hear everything?
- Yes, sir.
What was the gist
of our conversation?
They brought money in that satchel,
they thought they could pay you off.
Well, then,
you better arrest them.
- What are you trying to pull, Crockett?
- I better take that for evidence.
No one double crosses Finn Macha.
I'm the one that sees inside.
You don't believe me?
Ask Lovecraft.
I see what's inside
and I bring it out.
What you are
is an insignificant little mick.
Crack of Solomon on your hat.
Bring them both.
I don't want them to miss the show.
What did you just do?
Someone just remarked...
- This could make a great movie.
- Quite not.
- Will, work on something, will you?
- The ceremony.
Well, I think we have something
just as special.
Ladies and gentlemen, the next president
of the United States, Larson Crockett!
Listen up. America,
- It is going to be all right!
- Yeah!
And it's going to be all right
because of people like you.
Good!
- God, I love this country.
- Yeah.
The fire we light tonight
will burn across America.
It will set fires in every city,
and every town.
- Can I count on you?
- Yeah!
- Can I depend on you?
- Yeah!
Of course I can!
We know the difference
between right and wrong...
No one double crosses Finn Macha.
And we know how to do it...
- The cameras. The cameras!
- The cameras off now!
It feels good!
Nothing like a little fresh air.
Looks like we're having a little party.
Well, guess who just showed up?
Hey, what the fuck you looking at?
Come on, time to burn the witch!
Come on!
We're gonna burn her
and then we're gonna burn another one
and another one and another one
after that!
We're gonna stack them up like firewood.
Come on, what's wrong with you, people?
You're pretty loud
when you want something!
"Oh, Senator Crockett, I deserve better.
Oh, Senator Crockett,
I deserve a better life!
Oh, Senator Crockett,
I deserve T.V. dinners and T-Birds,
and lawns to cut and peace of mind."
Well, I got news for you.
You're not gonna get it!
I'll tell you what you gonna get.
You'll get porno video
and double digit inflation
and a designated hitter, and wars
in countries you've never even heard of.
Now, that's what I call a world
without magic.
Hey! Where you all going?
The party just started!
I thought you wanted me to help you out!
I thought you liked me!
Fuck it. I'll do it myself.
Go on, arrest him.
Arrest both of them.
- Your names, I want both your names!
- Let go...
I have friends in high places!
Come with me now.
- Where's Macha?
- I don't know.
He took off
when Crockett came out of his shell.
I gotta find him,
we got some unfinished business.
It seems
he feels the same way, too.
- You stay here.
- You shouldn't do this alone.
Yes, I should.
Some people use magic
for gain or revenge.
But Macha...
Macha uses it out of malice.
It's not just his eye that's sour.
It's his soul.
Then I guess,
you better keep the motor running.
Lovely of you to come, Philip.
And on such short notice.
So, how'd things work out
with Senator Crockett?
- They're trying to put him together.
- No one double-crosses Finn Macha.
Too bad you left before the end.
But that wasn't the end, Philip.
This is it. Right here.
Where is she? Where's Kim?
I haven't forgotten
that business with the bottle.
I figure, once a man uses magic
he may use it again.
And I want that man on my team.
- I don't use magic.
- We'll see.
- I asked you a question.
- Well, where do you think she might be?
I'm a fan of old movies.
I like to watch them over and over.
And there's one I'd like to show you.
Except it's not that old.
Just a couple of days.
Come along, Philip.
Here's my screening room.
This is my movie.
- Call me Mr. President again.
- Mr. President.
Take a seat.
And the wonderful thing about old movies
is you get to recast them.
Like this one for instance.
It wasn't cast right.
That's much better.
I've also done a little rewrite.
In the original the girl didn't die. But
considering the new cast, she will.
Well, aren't you going to do anything?
Think of the little lady.
- Let her go.
- Well, you could make me.
You could whip up
some of that mojo boo doo.
Conjure up a lightening bold
and strike me down.
You want some incentive?
- No!
- You have the power!
You know the words.
You know the spells.
You let one girl die
because you used magic.
Are you going to let another one die
because you won't? Work for me, Phil.
Darling,
you're about to die of principles.
- I don't use magic.
- Well, the pity is I do.
Help me!
Chango! Oya!
Yewa!
Water, water everywhere.
I'm sorry, Phil. I couldn't let you
do it. I flipped the bird.
Final call.
Chicago city now boarding...
- Here you go.
- Thank you.
- You sure this is what you want to do?
- Pretty sure.
Well, the public's gonna wonder
what happened to Kim Hudson.
Well, if they want to wonder, let them.
- Well, thanks.
- Good luck.
Bye.
Wait a second.
- There's something we forgot.
- What?
Wow. A girl could last a winter
on a kiss like that.
- Don't forget to write.
- Oh, I won't.
Kim Hudson disappeared.
But since she never really existed,
I figured the score was even.
It didn't matter anyway.
Pretty soon another girl would be
stepping off the Highland bus
wishing herself into a D-cup
and her big break.
Crockett, too, he's the kind of guy
who says he hates magic,
and then goes home
and levitates chics in the basement.
Last I heard he was sharing a cell
with himself in San Quentin.
And so it goes.
There was usually a one to one ratio
between dreams and disappointments,
and no amount of magic
could change that.
It's always gonna be there
if someone wants to believe in it.
Let's face it
everybody's gotta believe in something.
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