Oh, Canada (2024)

[bunniefuu]

["Endless, Pt. 1"

by Phosphorescent playing]

[soulful vocalizing]

[projector whirring]

[male vocalist]

Through My window, I knows

About the wind

When it blows

About the lights

From the road

And their

Every nightly glow

Guessin' oh

How they'd explode

If she should

Decide to show

Up among this

Empty-handed nest

It's endless

Take my feet to the bar

Where I know you at not are

Take my coins

Place them there

Make that sound

I love to hear

'Cause I have been long

Against this night

I've been a mess

My whole life

And I don't care

What happens next

It's endless

[soulful vocalizing]

Still the dawn

Fills with me

And my tongue

Fills with glee

And your ghost

Fills my sight

And the gathering light

Is lying soft

Around your feet

As you turn to ask of me

"Is it long, my love

Until we rest?"

It's endless

[man] I was not present

when my father died.

I arrived a week after.

He was sick,

but his death was unexpected.

He had agreed

to a day-long interview

to be conducted

by former students of his

in his apartments

in Old Montreal.

[groaning very softly]

[groans]

[sighs]

I forget why I agreed

to do this.

Tell me why I agreed to do this?

Monsieur Fife agreed to make the

interview because he's famous

-for something

to do with cinema.

-Ah.

And famous people

have to make interviews.

Mm-hm.

Where's Emma?

[Emma] I'm here.

[Fife sighs]

Hey.

You look wonderful.

[Fife scoffs]

I certainly don't feel calm.

Don't feel calm.

Oh, cherie.

Uh, we're ready.

One minute.

[Fife sighs]

I need her f*cking here.

She's the only reason I agreed

to do this g*dd*mn thing.

If she's not there,

I'm shutting it down.

-Emma's here, Emma's here.

-Right behind you, Leo.

You know, what I got to say,

I don't want to say it twice.

It's a lot easier to say

what I wanna say

if I know who I'm talking to.

You're talking to Malcolm,

making a movie.

No, they're making a movie,

Malcolm and Diana.

-Uh-huh.

-Professor Fife.

Ah.

[exhales]

You're blessed, yeah.

We've arranged the place

for the interview there.

Um, you look great.

Yeah, I've never looked better.

You remember

your fellow classmates?

Of course.

Malcolm and Diana.

Mr. and Mrs. Ken Burns

of Canada.

Don't be cruel.

We're used to it, Em.

Uh, Diana will be

behind the camera,

and this is our assistant

du jour, Sloane.

I have a last name,

Sloane Ambrose.

We have you right here on the X.

Um, yeah.

Perfect.

Okay, um,

indicate when you're ready.

As discussed, we want

to record your progress

from your arrival in Canada

as a draft refugee

through your career

as a filmmaker.

Um, we've prepared a list

of 25 questions.

Your career is an emblem

of political filmmaking.

Ah, we're using

the camera technique

you pioneered.

Where's my wife?

[Emma] I'm here.

[Malcolm] Consider it

a protg's homage.

No objection.

And, also, we don't have

to finish today.

We can continue tomorrow.

Just sit there till I finish

telling everything, okay?

Yeah. [laughs]

We've worked up

some great questions for you.

Oh, I'm sure you have.

Rene said you wouldn't begin

unless Emma was present.

Is it true?

Mostly true, yeah.

I might have done it,

but differently.

[Emma] Why?

For the record.

What record?

[Leo] I don't know.

Like giving testimony.

It's easier

when I say it to you.

[Emma exhales]

[Malcolm] Okay, let's begin.

Lights, please.

[Sloane] Leonard Fife,

December 22, 2023.

[hands clap]

[Malcolm] Leonard,

I'd like to begin with--

The story begins...

the night of March 30th, 1968.

Richmond, Virginia.

That's when the poisonous flower

first bloomed.

[soft music playing]

My wife, Alicia, and I were

visiting her parents' home.

[Alicia laughs]

[Alicia groans]

[Alicia] Goodnight.

Ooh, the baby's

restless tonight.

"There was once

a velveteen rabbit.

And in the beginning,

he was real splendid.

He was fat and bunchy,

as a rabbit should be.

His coat was spotted

brown and white,

he had real thread whiskers,

and his ears were lined

with pink sateen.

On Christmas morning..."

Oh.

Well, that was quick.

Can I listen?

Oh, I can hear him.

Hm?

Or her.

She'll be a girl.

And then we'll be

the perfect family,

mom, pop, son, daughter.

I wish I could stay.

Mm.

When's the flight?

It's first thing.

Don't wake up, I'll take a cab.

Give my best

to Stanley and Gloria.

What an unexpected couple.

Still together.

And I should be there by dinner.

[knocking at door]

[Alicia] Dad.

I'm sorry, darlin'.

Leonard, join me

for a personal conversation

before dinner?

Sure.

[Alicia's dad] Game room.

Have a snootful.

I'll be there in 15.

[kisses]

[knocking at door]

Leonard.

Come on in.

Have a seat.

Would you like

an excellent cigar

made by Cuban exiles?

You know what, actually,

I'm trying to stop smoking

on account

of Alicia's pregnancy.

But, yes.

[Alicia's dad] So, I gather

this is a crucial moment

in your lives.

For you and Alicia, I mean.

Yes, sir, you know, it's a--

uh, it's a big change.

-[clears throat]

-[Alicia's dad] For all of us.

It will be a long ways away

from Richmond,

but, uh, you'll have to come

visit us in Vermont sometimes.

Often.

I've never been there.

Vermont.

[Leo] Yeah, and we'll come down

and visit as often as possible.

Especially when

I'm not teaching, you know,

when college is out and...

It's a good little college,

I hear.

Goddard.

One of those, uh,

progressive colleges

from Alicia's description.

[Leo] Yes, sir.

[man] My father has not told him

that he could stay on at UVA

for another three years.

He hasn't told Alicia either.

[knocking at door]

Come in.

I've asked my brother, Jackson,

to join us.

Come on in, Jack,

pull up a chair.

[Jackson] Ben tells me

you're going north tomorrow.

Closed a deal on a place

you bought up there.

[Leo] Yeah, that's correct.

-[Leo clears throat]

-[Jackson] I know.

You got yourself

a teaching job up there.

A long ways from

your children's grandparents.

Does your own family

still live up there?

Oh, they've, uh,

they've moved to Maine.

That's a damn long ways away.

Son, let me cut to the chase.

My brother and I have been

discussing a proposal,

a business arrangement

we'd like you to consider

before you make

your big move north.

Beech and Nettleson

have bought out

a dozen family-owned health

and pharmaceutical companies.

They would like to purchase

Dr. Todd's.

The offer is substantial.

In the millions.

That's a problem.

[distant dog barking]

W-what's the problem?

[Jackson chuckles]

The next generation

is the problem.

It's all girls.

You have Ben's one

and my three.

None of my girls

nor the boys they married

is fit to run a lemonade stand.

We've grown to like you.

Well, you hired

a private detective.

[Ben] Just to check you out.

I'd already told Alicia

I'd been married before.

With a child.

[Jackson] We'd like you

to consider a proposition

that Ben and I have been

discussing with our attorneys.

We'd like you to hold off

on that purchase

of the place in Vermont

and join Dr. Todd's.

We'd like you to consider

becoming an executive officer.

Not right away, of course,

but soon.

Mm, maybe very soon.

Chief executive officer.

Dr. Todd's would be yours,

Leonard.

Not Beech and Nettleson.

Company would stay

in the family.

Well?

What about it, son?

I-I'm surprised and flattered.

I, uh, I never contemplated

working for Dr. Todd's,

let alone

chief executive officer.

Uh, I'm just--I'm not sure

that my background--

If you're thinking

of your literary ambitions,

you don't need to give that up.

It's not a full-time commitment.

T.S. Eliot was a banker.

Wallace Stevens ran

an insurance company

in Connecticut.

Herman Melville, your favorite,

he worked as a customs officer.

It's a long list.

My brother's done his homework.

[Jackson chuckles]

[Leo] Well.

I mean, that certainly

gives me a lot to, uh,

to think about, uh...

I'd have to talk

to Alicia first.

You take your time,

take your time.

It's the biggest decision

you're gonna make in your life.

We can hold off

Beech and Nettleson

for another week or two.

I mean, I would probably

have to get a haircut,

shave the mustache.

[Jackson] Mm.

[chuckling]

Okay, um...

you give me a week to decide.

[soft music playing]

Thank you.

I'm, uh, I'm very grateful.

[Leo] My head was still spinning

when I returned

to the guest bedroom.

As the Viet Cong

mounted attacks

down the length

of South Vietnam,

the massive buildup of North

Vietnamese Army regular--

I told Alicia what her father

and uncle had offered me.

They what?

What do you mean?

How's Cornel?

Restless but fine.

Yeah, they, um...

Yeah, they told me that

if I came out as an executive,

they wouldn't sell Dr. Todd's

to Beech and Nettleson.

They would stay on

for a transition

and then...

basically turn the company

over to me.

Yeah.

They didn't talk about money

or stock options or anything.

I mean, not that that would

matter one way or the other.

-Wow.

-Wow.

Yeah, wow.

-Wow.

-Yes.

That's the last thing

I expected from those two.

I thought, you know,

to them I was, like,

from another planet.

Oh, you, honey.

They know you're smart.

They just have

to get used to you.

I just don't feel comfortable

with them.

I...

Their wealth, manners.

Genteel Southern white politics.

Just--I know you feel the same.

Mm. Well, times change.

And people change.

Ah. Private detectives.

Don't be a broken record.

Dad must have talked to Mom

about this.

This would mean we would live

in Richmond.

But you never signed

a contract, right?

It was just a verbal agreement.

-You're kidding, right?

-Yes, of course.

Of course I'm kidding.

Yeah.

It is a stunner.

Isn't it just

a wee bit tempting?

No.

No, not at all.

No.

No, I'd be drunk or dead

before I hit my mid-30s.

Oh, Dad barely spent five hours

a day at Dr. Todd's.

The company runs itself.

You could continue writing.

Vermont will be the summer home.

You really want me

to take this offer, don't ya?

No, of course not.

And I don't want you

not to take it either.

There would be support

with the children.

Enough money for private school.

We could build our own house.

You know what this offer is.

This means you have a family.

How'd you leave it?

[Leo sighs]

I told 'em

I'd have to talk to you.

I said I'd get back to them

after this trip to Vermont.

Well, it's a huge decision.

We'll sleep now, sweetie,

come to bed.

You have two flights

and a long drive

ahead of you tomorrow.

["All of It, All"

by Phosphorescent playing]

Yeah.

[male singer]

A coward this morning

Black after backing away

No explanation

Could ever explain it away

Could your bones

Be so bright?

Would it all be all right

If you laid them tonight

Ah, with me

Safe beside

Your arms can be magic

It all can be magic

You know

[chair clatters]

You all ways can have it

Thanks.

[male singer]

But not like you wanted

Breakfast?

Oh, no, no,

I'm eager to get on my way.

Cornel woke me up.

Hey.

Thought I'd bring him

to see his daddy for breakfast.

Good morning.

-Good morning.

-Good morning.

Hi.

Oh!

Don't think about taking a cab.

I mean, there's really no point

in you driving all the way

out there and back.

It's a pleasant ride

to Byrd Field.

Do you want to use

Benjamin's shaver?

[Alicia] Honey.

That man is unstable.

Well, Daddy, of course he is.

What 22-year-old man isn't?

I wouldn't want him stable.

All right.

Oh. What do you think, Cornel?

-Hm?

-Hm?

Should I...

-Good.

-Oh, okay.

[Alicia chuckles]

I won't be long,

I'll be right back.

[male singer]

Sometimes y ou have

to be cruel

It's sad that it's sad

But don't let that

Dampen you

No, to live you must die

Yes, and more than one time

You must kiss it goodbye

[Cornel] My father was wearing

a khaki jacket.

I didn't see him again

for 30 years.

Can we stop for a moment?

We don't have

to change cards yet.

This is for Sloane.

Sloane, the microphone

has fallen.

Just adjust the mic.

This time,

run it under the shirt.

[Leo] She smells like

desire itself.

What do I smell like?

Especially to a young woman.

Can she pick up the odor

of the medications?

The anti-androgens

and the Taxotere.

And the bisphosphonates

that keep my bones

from breaking under my weight.

The smell of dried feces

clinging to my a*s.

Tell me again why I came home

from the hospital.

Well, I'm sure

you're a lot happier here.

Emma's nearby,

and everything's familiar.

Where the hell is my wife?

[footsteps]

[Emma] Sorry.

I had to step out.

I got a text on my phone

I had to answer right away.

Okay, Leo, um, I think we've

gotten a little off track.

Yeah, you messed with

the continuity.

It's gonna look edited.

Sorry?

You go on talking.

I know most of the stuff,

some of it, anyway.

No, you don't.

You don't know any of it.

No.

Some of this

I've never even told myself.

It's...

[sighs]

This is a gift to you, my love.

You will know me.

You've been talking

for almost an hour.

Maybe you should take a break.

How old are you, Sloane?

Twenty-four.

Why?

[Leo] [whispers] Yeah.

When I was 22...

I'd already been married,

fathered a child,

gotten divorced.

By the time I was

your tender age, Sloane,

I had... ruined my life.

Imagine if everything good

that could ever happen to you

has already happened.

You were a hero.

You stood up against the w*r,

the draft.

[scoffs]

[Leo] Does she really

believe that?

I wanna continue.

Turn on the camera.

Lights, please.

[Leo] Let's go, come on.

[Malcolm] Okay, let's pick up

from when you arrived

in Canada as a draft resister.

[Sloane] Leonard Fife.

December 22, 2023.

[hands clap]

I changed planes

in Washington D.C.,

Washington National

it was called then.

I had a cashier's check

for $23,000

from the Federal Reserve Bank

of Richmond in my pocket.

This was to pay

for the Vermont house...

the title to which

was to be held

solely by the Alicia

Violet Chapman Trust.

[indistinct PA announcement]

Perhaps that

eight-millimeter film

still exists somewhere,

proof that Leonard Fife

was seen, and filmed,

in Washington National Airport

on March 31st, 1968,

10:58 a.m.

[indistinct chatter]

[woman] Flight 291

is now boarding.

All passengers please proceed

to Gate Four.

[Malcolm] This documentary

will make Leonard Fife

as big in the Canadian

collective memory

as Glenn Gould.

It will resurrect all his films.

It will make the public

rethink what it means

to be an artiste engag.

From your position

against the w*r

to your most recent work.

[Diana] It's a token of respect.

Believe me, Leo will come off

as totally sympathetic.

It will be their film, Leo.

[Leo sighs]

All set, Mr. Fife.

Have a great flight.

[Leo] I felt suddenly giddy.

As if something

was about to happen.

A big reveal which will affect

everyone on the plane.

As if the plane

is about to explode,

and I would be

the sole survivor.

Wait.

You were smoking on an airplane?

This was 1968.

Ah, yeah.

Of course, sorry.

May I continue?

[Malcolm] Please.

[Leo] I grew up in Strafford.

About 20 miles northwest

of Boston proper.

I'm, um, headed up

to Montpelier in Vermont.

Goddard College.

Oh, yeah, yeah,

that's a good school.

It is, yeah,

I got a teaching job there.

I'm buying a place.

I should be back with the car

in a couple of days.

[Leo] After college,

I headed south.

I met Amy in a bar

in St. Petersburg.

[lively music playing]

Amy was 18.

I was on my way to Cuba.

-Hi.

-Hey.

I never made it to Cuba.

We were married

four months later.

She was the sweetest thing.

[indistinct chatter]

She was already

a month pregnant.

She named our daughter Heidi

because that was

her favorite book.

True.

I was working on a novel.

You wrote a novel?

Ah, no, no, no.

It was just...

It was awful, sh*t.

Pretentious literary drivel.

No, I have no idea what happened

to the manuscript.

Things...

Things disappear, they get lost.

Left behind.

Like people...

you once loved, who loved you.

A writer.

Yes.

Like any self-absorbed

20-year-old man

who wants to be regarded

as a writer,

much more than he wants

to write.

Yeah, From Here to Eternity,

they call that writing.

Bullshit, you know,

I read that book

in a day.

That's not--that's not writing.

It's f*cking--it's typing.

[Leo] Who doesn't know

how to define love

because he's never

loved anyone.

I love you, Amy.

I love you, I promise.

I'm never gonna leave you,

all right?

I promise. I love you.

-Please, Leo.

-I love you.

Please.

[Leo] Maybe

if he says it enough,

he will feel it.

[sobs]

[energetic music playing]

[female singer]

Oh, stop

Don't worry about it

[Leo] Her name was Amanda.

[female singer]

Stop

Don't worry about it

[man] But you're not listening,

you're not listening.

Without emotion,

there is no color, right?

And without color,

no emotion, okay?

-[Leo] Franz Kline, right?

-[man 2] Where's Amy?

-She's home.

-[man] Franz Kline, Franz Klein.

Listen, if color is invisible...

is there no emotion?

[man 3] Jesus.

[man 4] Art is about waiting,

even in painting.

Take Leo here, he's waiting.

-No I'm not, I'm not waiting.

-You're not writing.

-That's called waiting.

-I'm writing.

-[man 2] I'm getting beer.

-[man] He's writing,

he's writing.

Okay? Look, look,

history is waiting, right?

Yeah? Leo,

what are you waiting for?

[man 4] You'll never

be a great painter

if you keep talking.

-[man 2] f*ck off.

-I'm waiting for, you know,

everything to just

kind of fall into place.

Yeah, right, there you go.

See? See? 'Cause art

doesn't have a subject, okay?

Documentaries have subjects,

all right?

[funky music playing]

What's that?

It's the novel he's not writing.

[Amanda] "The first move

he ever made

was to crawl for the door,

and every move since."

Not bad.

Well... well, there's more

where that came from.

Can I have a ciggy?

Oh, this is--this is, uh,

Stanley Reinhart.

He, uh, he paints big.

Real big.

Amanda.

Clark.

[tires squeak]

[engine rumbling]

[dog barking]

[Leo] Amanda was a jazz pianist.

She said she was the mistress

of Gerry Mulligan,

but he was always on the road.

[birds singing]

[dog barks]

Amy.

Amanda.

Alicia.

All those "A"s.

[moaning]

[Leo] I made love

to Amanda once.

And Amy did not find out.

No consequences.

But I couldn't believe

that I wouldn't do it again.

And then, again.

Until Amanda has fallen in love

with me.

And Amy would find out.

Well, I'll tell her myself.

Or... or someone who knows you

or me will tell her,

and...

and then Amy won't have

any choice but to leave me.

Do you love her?

It's an impasse, then.

It's fine.

It's fine.

It's all right, Leo.

Now, come back to bed.

[Leo] There's no other way

to escape two

unacceptable alternatives

than to create a third.

Stop. That's enough.

Stop this now.

He needs a break.

He's confused.

It's his medication.

I won a Genie Award,

and a Gemini.

We won an Oscar.

He confabulates

like he's dreaming.

It's wrong to be doing this.

Most of what he's saying

is either misremembered

or half-invented.

It's wrong to be

filming this, Malcolm,

even if you end up not using it.

I made a career...

from...

getting truth out of people...

that told me what

they wouldn't tell others.

[sighing]

And now, it's my turn.

And I can't tell the truth

unless that camera's on,

and you are my witness.

[Leo sighs]

This is my final prayer.

That whether or not

you believe in God...

you don't lie when you pray.

[Diana] He seems

to want to continue.

Hit the lights, please.

[Leo] Photography

versus life.

Reality versus image.

Susan Sontag's On Photography.

Seminal work.

Six essays.

I'm sure you've all read this.

If you haven't, you will have,

by next class.

Okay. Yeah.

"After the event has ended,"

Sontag writes,

"the picture will still exist,

conferring on the event

a kind of immortality

that would never

otherwise have existed.

While real people are out there

k*lling other real people,

the photographer stays behind

his or her camera,

creating an image world

that bids to outlast us all."

Jamie, you wanna

turn the lights out?

Okay. Famous photograph.

Yeah, this was taken

by photojournalist Eddie Adams

the morning

of February 1st, 1968.

It shows the execution

of Vietcong prisoner

Nguyen Van Lem...

by General Nguyen Ngoc Loan...

on Ngo Gia Tu Street, Saigon.

This photograph won Adams

a Pulitzer Prize.

Van Lem will never die.

General Loan will never die.

Every time

this photograph is seen...

they're alive again.

Emma?

Ms. Flynn, you disagree?

There's another way to put it.

Van Lem isn't going

to be living forever.

He's going to be dying forever,

every time someone

shows that image.

One second!

Did you... did you really

not know this

about the wife in Virginia,

and the son,

and the other wife

and the baby?

Jesus, Sloane.

Leave it alone.

He's mixing things together,

memories, films, fantasies,

other people's stories.

Emma knows the story of Fife

better than anyone.

She's been living

with him 30 years.

I know everything

I need to know.

Jesus, you're talking about me

like I'm not

in the f*cking room!

I can hear you!

-[sighs]

-Darling, I'm sorry.

[scoffs]

[sighs]

Right. It-it's not about

the meds either, she's wrong.

Emma is wrong.

She doesn't know

everything she needs to know.

[labored breath]

You believe me, right, Rene?

[in French]

Let's take a break.

No. No breaks, no, no, we work.

Come on, let's just keep going.

Can we do that?

Okay. Lower the lights.

Dark, I need dark.

You, get behind

your machine there.

Your... Errol Morris doohickey,

whatever you call it.

Interrotron.

Based on the technique

you pioneered.

Not me.

[coughing]

Sigmund Freud.

The interviewer's

not in the sight line.

It's that simple, right?

Uh, you position yourself

so that the subject

can only look

directly down the lens.

And if you're

silent long enough,

you're unseen long enough...

people will talk,

they can't help themselves.

[chuckling]

Freud.

He was sitting there in his

chair next to the chaise.

He understood this very well.

Listen.

Wait.

[coughing]

Leo, do you need some water?

[exclaims]

Yeah.

Yeah, I saw that...

documentary that you made

about Chernobyl.

Yeah, I could count

the inaccuracies

with eight fingers, one hand.

[Emma laughs]

[Emma] Leo.

Get him some water, Sloane.

I'm just doing

what I always did,

spoke the truth, uh-huh.

But not you.

No, no, no, uh-uh.

[swallowing hard]

You fraud.

I don't wanna see you anymore.

Fraud.

Fraud!

[inhales noisily]

Yeah. I wanna see Emma up here.

I want my wife.

I want Emma!

Yeah. Put Emma on there.

[Malcolm] Have a seat.

[Leo] Lights.

[Emma] I'm here, Leo.

Yeah? Hi.

Okay, let's start

with In the Mist,

the documentary

about Dow Chemical testing

Agent Orange in New Brunswick

for use in Vietnam.

That put you on the map.

You almost went to jail for it.

The way from Boston

to Montpelier

led past The Fens

and north through Strafford,

the town where I was raised.

[horn honks]

["Where to Strip" playing]

Your timing is always off

Bless you and keep you

Oh, brother

[Leo] I thought I might

want to write about it,

so I decided to stop

and pick up a map.

[engine puttering]

[male singer]

Please, I've waited

Please, I've waited

Please

I've waited

[counterman exclaims]

Mr. Leonard Fife!

Long time, no see.

Good to see you, Jimmy.

Times moves fast, huh?

Ah, well, not when you're

scoopin' ice cream, boss.

The regular?

Yeah, what was that?

Ah! Coffee and a bran muffin.

Buttered, heated.

All right, sounds good.

You know what?

You never told me.

What was Cuba like?

-Cuba?

-[door closes]

Leo.

Is everything okay?

Yeah, yeah. I hitched.

[man] You hitched.

From college?

Pa, you'll have to hurry

if you're gonna catch

the 9:27 train.

We have a lot to talk about.

[footsteps]

-[door opens, closes]

-[priest] Listen to me, Leonard.

You can't walk out on the world

for being what it is.

You're 18,

and you're dismissing the world

because it's not

as idealistic as you are?

It may turn out,

in a decade or two,

you'll discover

you could have done more

to help the poor and oppressed

by staying in college

and getting your degree.

Or at least

serving your country.

Then wandering off

like some sort of hobo.

It's my decision, so-so please,

stop telling me

why I should stay in college.

Why should I become a doctor

or some kind of businessman?

Reverend, I imagine

you wanna comfort my mother,

since she's the one

who called you here.

Are you going out, Leo?

Don't worry, I'll be back.

I'm not leavin' for good.

Not till after Christmas,

anyway.

Where will you go

after Christmas?

Where can you go

after you've left college

and your home?

To Cuba.

Cuba.

What a grand idea.

Back when I was your age,

I came damn close

to running off to Spain

to fight with

the Lincoln Brigade.

Some of my friends did.

Had brilliant careers

ahead of 'em,

in spite of being communist.

Say, maybe you wanna

try a darker tie.

[soft holiday music playing]

The ones that came back, though,

found it wasn't so easy

to pick up where they left off.

Things had changed.

Russkies, the Chinese.

Gotta run "toot sweet."

Look. You pick out

a couple of ties you like

for my brother-in-law.

You got good taste,

my son thinks

one hell of a lot of you.

Let's hope he doesn't

jump the traces

and follow you off to Cuba,

for Christ's sake.

I'll be back tomorrow.

[clears his throat, inhales]

You know, I wrote

a recommendation letter

to Rumford, don't you?

Yes, sir, I do.

Your parents are proud

of you, Leo, proud.

You're all they've got.

You decide to go back

to Rumford,

maybe I can make a few calls.

Come by the house.

We can have a few drinks

and talk this thing out,

man to man.

Promise me that?

That's-that's very generous

of you, Mr. Callahan.

I won't let you down.

[Callahan] No.

Happy New Year.

Oh. Tell Mr. Varney

I said hello, and...

[chuckling]

...don't forget to lock up.

Happy New Year.

[door closes]

[clears throat]

[lock clicks]

[soft, tense music playing]

[paper bag rustling]

[cash register rings]

[Malcolm] Uh, wait a second.

I don't get it,

this doesn't make sense.

What? What don't you get?

There were...

Give me an example.

It all connects.

Well, the clothes,

for one thing.

The clothes you lifted

from the store,

gloves and Pendletons,

those are winter clothes.

Sounds like you were going

to Canada, not Cuba.

Did you ever make it to Cuba?

No, no, it was over

before I got there.

Um...

Florida.

I... I got as far as Florida.

The girl who got pregnant

with the baby Heidi?

Amy.

[male singer]

I'll tell t he world

That I'm in love with you

[Sloane] What about the trip

across the country?

Malcolm gave me

a copy of On the Road.

He told me you took

a trip like that.

Sloane!

[chuckling]

That was a c*ck,

stupid thing,

yeah, it was me.

My buddy, Nick De Fina.

So, he gave her

a copy of On the Road.

He's f*cking her.

Yes, he is.

And Diana knows about it.

And Sloane thinks she doesn't.

She thinks she's in love

with this 50-year-old man.

Oh, he's f*cking her,

all right.

Diana deserves better.

She is better than him.

Now, from page one,

we know how

our biography will end.

The subject dies.

But with an interview...

no, you can't be sure

how the thing will turn out.

Malcolm would be nowhere

without Diana.

He'd be making

local TV commercials

in Winnipeg.

Or promotional docs

for Caribbean timeshares.

He convinced her

he was more talented than her.

How do I know?

So, where are you from?

Uh, well...

[Leo] Because I did

the same thing

when I seduced her.

Yes, yeah, yeah, Bonneil,

my parents also.

Yeah. I love having you

in the class.

Oh, I love... I love

this opportunity,

it's, uh, it's so inspiring.

[clears throat]

So, Nick, he, I don't know,

feeling guilty

about everything, I guess,

he goes to a priest,

he confesses,

about the car

and the blind bugger,

and the priest calls the cops.

So, that's the end of it,

the end of our big adventure.

We, uh... we go home.

I was never the same.

[Emma] This is hard on me, Leo.

I mean, I know I'm not

the one who's sick,

but this is like

some kind of post-mortem.

You're exhausted.

The meds are messing

with your mind, darling.

You're confused.

You're saying things that

shouldn't be said on camera!

Can we please

just stop this now

and try again

when you're feeling better?

When am I feelin' better?

I'm never feeling better,

you know that.

A priest turned

you and your buddy in.

I thought that--

[Leo] We drove

across the country.

Made it all the way

to California, actually,

going to Australia.

We ended up there...

at a YMCA.

[Rene] It's time to change

your bag, Mr. Fife.

You need to go to the restroom.

[Malcolm] Let's take a break.

Sloane, get the mic, please.

[soft ambient music playing]

[Leo clears his throat]

[door closes]

[clattering]

[toilet flushing]

-[Rene] Up!

-[Leo grunts]

That's it. Jacket.

All right.

Now.

Sidestep, nice and easy,

that's good.

Okay, pants.

And down.

-That's good.

-[Leo grunts]

-Okay. All right.

-[Rene] Okay.

Call me when you're

ready to be wiped.

[Leo] Yes.

I could go silent,

the way I did

when I stopped eating.

Then I would disappear.

What's left of me

is in my brain.

When you have no future,

all you have left is your past.

And if your past

is a lie, like mine,

especially to those

closest to you,

a fiction...

then you can't exist,

except as

a fictional character.

[distant bird calling]

We've got plenty

of good material.

Why don't we break for the day?

[Diana] Or at least

for some lunch.

I can go make us

some sandwiches.

Why is he doing this?

[Emma] What?

This.

He wants to confess.

[Diana] What?

That he's a coward

and he never loved anyone.

[Diana] Is it true?

No.

We've got a lot of material.

Sometimes, you don't know

what you know

until you see it afterwards.

He never saw his son again?

He ran into Cornel

in Montreal at a screening.

I was there.

[Leo] Rene?

You've done so much

for him, Emma.

I'll go make us

those sandwiches.

[Leo] If your doctor ever

asks you to stop by, don't.

[Emma] Test results.

[eerie ambient music playing]

Cancer?

What kind?

Not the good kind.

You're a survivor, Leo.

We'll get through this together.

We're a team.

Merry Christmas.

Happy Holidays.

Sontag and Freud died

over the holidays.

Excruciating deaths.

[clears his throat]

How can so much suffering

have no meaning?

[Malcolm] Uh, okay.

Where's Emma?

[Diana] Making some lunch.

Are you all right?

Yeah, I just... just

give me time to finish this.

[sighs deeply]

I know you think

this is a fiction.

I don't care.

I don't care

what you do with my story

once I finish telling it.

I don't care.

Cut and splice it,

do whatever you want.

Yeah, I heard you whispering,

I'll be dead.

Do whatever you want with it.

But you will have witnessed

me telling my wife,

my beautiful wife,

what kind of man she married.

It will verify

that there was this intimacy

between a man and his wife.

This intimacy

could not have happened

without this camera

and this microphone.

[sighs]

Where is she?

Come on, it's a natural,

you and me.

I can make documentaries,

but you,

you have people skills.

[soft c*ck music playing]

I think we'd make a great team.

[faint indistinct chatter]

Emma!

[sighs softly]

Emma.

[clears his throat]

Where is she?

Lunch is ready.

-Let's take a break.

-[Leo] No, not now.

Let's go. Lights down.

Come on.

-[door closes]

-Come on!

[inhales, exhales forcefully]

Okay.

Okay.

Hi.

Where were we?

[Malcolm] Uh, you were

in Feeney's Pharmacy.

Feeney's, right, okay, yeah.

All right, yeah,

I stopped to get a map.

-Here you go.

-Thanks.

[indistinct chatter]

[melancholic music playing]

Montpelier was 150 miles

northwest of Strafford.

I missed the turnoff

for the interstate

and took U.S. 4 north.

[engine puttering]

[Malcolm] Leo?

Are you all right?

No, no, I, um...

Wait a minute, I don't know,

starting in the wrong place.

I don't know

where the hell we are.

I'm confused!

[Leo exclaims]

Now, uh...

[inhaling, exhaling deeply]

Yeah, just, um...

You wanted to hear

about Into the Mist, right?

-[Malcolm] Yeah.

-Yeah.

It was a fluke.

[telephone ringing]

[man] Can you believe this?

[unintelligible]

Stop the w*r. Can I help you?

[Leo] After I

arrived in Canada,

I met a fellow from Oklahoma,

Ralph Dennis.

[telephone ringing]

Where you from?

New England.

-Up here for a visit?

-Yeah.

Uncle Sam's after me.

You speak French?

Uh, like a year in high school.

[Ralph] So you're a guy

with all the talents

but no skill.

And you don't speak French,

and you don't own

any property here?

No.

Don't look good, brother.

You're gonna need landed status

if you wanna stay in Canada,

and that won't happen in Quebec.

You need to get to a province

where they have use for Anglos.

I know this fellow

who manages a truck farm

in Gagetown, New Brunswick.

I work there in the summers.

You should come along.

[Leo] It began as a lark.

Photograph the different

color dustings,

then make

a psychedelic montage.

[engine roaring]

[filmstrip clicking]

[psychedelic music playing]

I thought it was trippy,

but it turned out it was

a secret American Army test

by Dow, of Agent Orange.

It was a scandal,

and I was a documentary

film director.

Then, I became a good

documentary film director.

[solemn music playing]

Wait a minute,

what the hell's going on?

I don't think I...

[sighs heavily]

Is the camera rollin'?

What... What's goin' on?

[eerie music playing]

I must sound like a madman,

one of those

homeless schizophrenics

wandering about,

muttering to themselves.

Maybe that's the idea,

maybe it's just

keep the camera rollin'

until...

Ol' Leo Fife kicks the bucket...

on camera.

Where's Malcolm?

Uh, he's in the bathroom.

Come on, I ain't got all day!

Come on.

Malcolm and Diana.

You'll all be heroes.

Be the toast of Canada,

the whole bunch of you.

[laughing]

What a terrible thing

to say, Leo.

-Sorry about that.

-Yeah, welcome back.

All right, where were we?

Come on, let's go.

[Malcolm] Okay, here we go.

Sloane?

[clears his throat]

[Sloane] Leonard Fife,

December 22, 2023.

Yeah, I rented a car

at the airport.

Yeah, that's a good school.

It is, yeah, I got

a teaching job there.

I'm buyin' a place.

I should be back with the car

in a couple of days.

My plan was to stay over

at the painter

Stanley Reinhart's house,

a friend from Boston,

and his wife, Gloria.

[male singer]

The stars would know

To send you the shivers

The night would glow

In the room

In which you swim

[Leo] Stanley taught at Goddard.

He helped me get hired

and find a house.

[male singer]

But there's all

of that doubt

And there's

All of that skin

But all is grace

[man] Hey, Leo!

[Leo] Hey!

[male singer]

All is beauty

-Welcome!

-[Leo] Okay!

[male singer]

And when all this is gone

Beauty will remain

[mellow music playing]

Up here, check this out.

[Leo] Wow.

Hey, man, I'm sorry

I took so long.

[Stanley] Ah, don't

worry about it.

[Leo] Is this some new work?

[Stanley] Uh, yeah, yeah.

I've, uh, I've hit

a bit of a rough patch.

[they chuckle]

I've, uh...

but you know, I like

workin' with my hands,

I always have.

And, uh, when I'm

lookin' for inspiration,

I've been choppin'

some wood, so.

I like to imagine

the wood stacked all neat

as I go to sleep, you know?

[clears his throat]

-Here you go.

-Thank you.

How's, uh, how's Gloria?

She's inside,

she's probably sleepin'.

Oh, she's in bed.

Yeah. sh*t, I guess

it makes for a long story.

I, uh... I tried to get her

to go see a shrink.

I even said I'd go with her.

She's got an answer

for everything, you know?

[Leo] Mm.

The truth is,

she's a g*dd*mn masochist,

'cause the more she hates

me and this life,

the happier she becomes.

All right. A, uh, a masochist.

Yeah, man, it's the...

it's the way she talks.

I thought she found a lover.

Then, uh, she laughed

in my face, and, uh...

that night, I drove

down to Plainfield,

and I, uh,

I laid one of my students.

[grunting]

[Leo] You know, you can't

keep going like this.

[liquid swishing]

Well, if nothing improves

by next year, I'll...

I'll try and make it

in New York.

And what about the students

you're counseling

on avoiding the draft?

What, you're just...

you're just gonna abandon them?

They don't need me.

Even though I'm the only guy

on the faculty

that served in the military,

the Canadian border

is so close,

they could walk across.

The Canadians would

welcome them with open arms.

Right, but what about...

what about me and Alicia?

I mean, we're moving here.

I'm bullshitting myself.

Besides, I'm not ready

for the New York scene.

-[Leo] Gloria.

-Ciao, Leo.

Stanley told me

you were coming.

There was a phone call.

Alicia's mother?

I told 'em

you would call 'em back.

-Where is that?

-In the house.

Follow me.

[rotary dial clicking]

[phone ringing]

I'm sorry I missed it.

It's okay.

I'll fix you something.

[clearing throat]

-[Benjamin] Yes?

-Hello, Benjamin.

This is, uh, this is Leonard.

Sorry, I just got in.

What's going on?

Stanley told me

that, uh, that Jessie called?

[Benjamin] It's all right now.

We were scared for a while.

Did something happen to Cornel?

[Benjamin] No, no,

Cornel is just fine.

He's sound asleep now.

Okay, what's... what's going on?

-[Jessie] Leo? It's Jessie.

-Jessie, what's wrong?

[Jessie] Alicia's fine.

She miscarried this afternoon.

Jesus.

Is she, um, is, uh...

Is...

Is she all right?

[Jessie] Yes.

And, um, the... the fetus,

is the fetus...

[Jessie] It was a girl, Leo.

It wasn't right, though,

it was malformed,

the doctor said.

Dr. Gold, an excellent man.

-He's Jewish.

-Did she fall?

[Jessie] It came on very quickly

right after lunch.

She started hemorrhaging,

and we called the ambulance.

She's fine now.

It's probably a blessing

since the baby was,

well, you know.

She said to give you her love

and tell you she's feeling

fine, just tired.

Do you think I should

just, um, should I just...

Should I just leave

for Richmond right away?

I mean, should I leave tonight?

[Jessie] It's not necessary.

Everything is over

and done for now.

She'll call you tomorrow.

[somber music playing]

Just get yourself

a good night's sleep.

Thank you, thank you, Jessie,

and Benjamin, too.

Okay, goodnight.

[sniffles]

[receiver clicking]

Um, I'm going to bed.

Hey.

Jeez, what a f*cking shame, man.

What?

What are you...

what are you gonna do?

[Leo] I don't know, she, uh...

She... she really wanted

that baby, and, uh...

And the house, and, God...

[Stanley] Yeah.

I guess I'll just leave

first thing in the morning.

-[Stanley] Yeah.

-Yeah.

[Stanley] Okay.

Okay.

Come here, man.

Give me a hug.

I'm so sorry, man.

I'll set up the cot

for you, okay?

Okay.

Thanks, man.

[melancholy music playing]

[Cornel] I was nearly 30 when

I decided to find my father.

My mother never spoke of him.

It was easier than I thought.

Computers with data banks

had recently come in use.

I'd often thought

about this drive.

Thinking about it

and actually doing it

are different things.

Suffer the Innocents

was about the actions

of Bishop McCann

and his subsequent trial

in Montral.

The need to balance

society's obligation

to denounce and deter actions

like those of Bishop McCann

with the bishop's career

as a distinguished

spiritual leader...

-Satan!

-...and educator.

Satan's spawn!

A monster sent from hell

to defile the innocent!

Did I say "defile"?

f*ck! That's what you did!

You f*cked me!

You ate my childhood!

[Malcolm] The amazing thing,

what everybody remembers,

is that you never

pan back to the judge.

You closed in

on Bishop McCann.

[Judge Uhlig] ...will be

required to report weekly

to a probation officer.

You are free to leave

this courtroom.

[dark music playing]

[applause]

[speaking French]

Ladies and gentlemen,

thank you for coming.

It's my pleasure to introduce

Montral resident,

the filmmaker Leonard Fife.

Thank you, merci beaucoup.

Um...

Emma, come here.

My wife and my partner

in art and life,

Emma Fife.

Without her, I am nothing.

[indistinct chatter]

[Leo] That one was

probably... what, Emma?

Two years we worked

on that one?

[indistinct remarks]

Thank you, I appreciate it.

Congratulations, Dad.

What?

I'm your son, Cornel.

-Who's this?

-[Emma] It's Alicia's son.

That's right.

I'm your son.

I don't have a son.

Stay away from me.

How's your mother?

[Cornel] She's good.

Uh, she remarried.

She's still in Richmond.

She has two children,

she has a good life.

And you?

-Married?

-Uh, yeah.

Uh, working at UVA.

Administration.

-That's in Richmond.

-Charlottesville.

So, he never told you?

I knew, in a fashion.

I don't know what to say.

I'm sorry you had to see that.

I'm happy I found him.

You know, I...

saw what I needed to see.

[Emma] What was that?

Um...

Can I keep in touch with you?

Do you have an e-mail address?

Electronic mail.

Yeah, of course

I have an e-mail.

Still working things out

with the computers.

You like Montral?

Yes.

We have a wonderful marriage.

He's faithful to me.

We're good together.

You'll tell him about our talk?

We'll see how that works out.

[mellow music playing]

[door squeaking]

[indistinct chatter]

[in French]

Are you sure

he's just sleeping?

[Rene] He's very fatigued.

[in French]

[Cornel] All creation starts

with a single cell of energy

that explodes with a bang

and becomes the universe.

Cancer starts the same way.

A single rogue cell breeds

a tumor that metastasizes

and sets to eating the body...

and eventually devours it.

That's enough,

I want you to leave.

You said this would be

a token of respect.

We have a contract

with the CBC.

[Emma] f*ck your contract.

He wanted to do this.

I never should've agreed.

[Rene] He's waking up.

[fire crackling]

-[Leo] Stanley?

-[Gloria] No.

It's Gloria.

I brought you an extra blanket

'cause it gets cold in here

when the fire goes out.

[Leo moans]

Thank you.

Is there any more wood

to put on the fire?

[Gloria] Yes.

[wood clattering]

[Leo] Ah, that's great.

I hope Stanley and I talking

didn't keep you from sleeping.

The walls are thick.

[Leo] Is he asleep now?

He's dead to the world.

Couldn't wake him

if I wanted to, and I don't.

Are you gonna leave him?

[Gloria] Yeah, probably.

For another man?

For another life.

Well, here's to your new life.

[ambient music playing]

[heavy breathing]

[grunting]

[groaning]

[sighing]

[light clicking]

[paper towel ripping]

[light clicking]

That was f*cking scary.

Are you sure he's okay?

[Rene] No, he's not okay.

I have to take him

from you now.

[light clicking]

Just want this pain to end.

[Emma] Mm.

The cancer's appetite.

I'm having so many new thoughts.

Wonderful thoughts.

That's it.

Just... pack up and go.

Come.

[mellow music playing]

Don't you dare.

Okay, okay.

[metal clanking]

[exhaling]

[grunting]

[grunting]

Okay.

I'm okay.

Hey.

Get this in the bedroom.

[knocking]

What do you want?

We're packing up.

Is there anything we can do?

No.

Just leave us.

I'm applying a fentanyl patch.

[vocalizing]

[gentle music playing]

[engine starting]

[engine puttering]

[Leo] What did they have,

the other men I respected?

What did I not do that Stanley

and Ralph and Nick did?

They served in the military.

[vocalizing]

[man 1] Sixty-seven.

Again.

One thirty-eight.

All right, next.

[unintelligible]

[man 2] Take this.

[man 3] Mr. Fife, get dressed.

Meet me downstairs.

[man 1] About 96.

Take a seat.

Your name?

Leonard Fife.

Date of birth.

I mean, it should all be there.

I'm making sure

this is your file

and not some other idiot's.

Um...

March 27th...

March 28th, 1942.

Place of residence.

Strafford, Massachusetts.

[lighter clicking]

Mr. Fife...

are you a h*m*?

No, sir.

No.

[repeating "no"]

No, sir, no, no.

Enough.

You're 1-Y, Mr. Fife.

That means

you'll only be called up

in the case

of total mobilization.

Take this form and report

back to the sergeant.

Get your stuff and go home.

You'll receive your draft card

in the mail in a few days.

[clearing throat]

-Mr. Fife?

-[Leo] Hm?

[discordant electric

guitar music]

[rock music playing]

[shaky breathing]

[soft music playing]

[Cornel] He felt as if

being pulled into a black hole

from which

not even light can escape.

He fights its pull.

He tries to stay here,

standing on the borderline

of one country and another,

between the past and present.

Toward evening, something

in his throat rattled.

He gasped.

His body twitched

as if to shake off

a fallen leaf

or a feather.

[male vocalist]

O Canada

Our home and native land

True patriot love

In all of us command

With glowing hearts

We see thee rise

The True North

Strong and free

From far and wide

O Canada

We stand on guard for thee

God, keep our land

Glorious and free

O Canada.

[birds chirping]

[male vocalist]

O Canada

We stand on guard for thee

[birds chirping]

[mellow music playing]