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I left a note
On his dresser
And my old wedding ring
With these few
Good-bye words
How
can I sing
good
Old sleepy head
I'm packin' you in
Like I said
Take care of everything
I'm leaving my wedding ring
Don't look for me
I'll get ahead
Remember, darling
Don't smoke in bed
GITTES: I suppose it's fair to say
that infidelity made me what I am today.
I know lots of investigators won't handle divorce cases.
The truth is, not that many guys are good at matrimonial work.
It takes finesse and experience.
Hell, everybody makes mistakes. But if you marry one,
they expect you to pay for it for the rest of your life.
I don't care whose fault it is, his, hers or the milkman's.
If one of them comes to me, it means they're both miserable.
And that's my job,
putting people out of their misery.
Don't look for me
I'll get ahead
Remember, darling
Don't smoke
In bed
BERMAN: Oh, no.
Oh, no.
Oh, no, Kitty. How could you?
You told me you were going to the beauty parlor in Hollywood,
and now I find you here, just where they said I'd find you
in Room 19-H of the...
GITTES: Bird of Paradise Motel.
Of the Bird of Paradise Motel in Redondo Beach
at 2:00 in the afternoon on October 27, 1948, with this man.
Mr. Berman, it's unnatural to discuss what year it is
when you're staring at your wife in bed with another man.
But my lawyer said to be very specific.
We'll establish the date.
Just...
All right?
Oh, no. Oh, no.
It's an earthquake.
Relax.
Mr. Gittes? Did you feel that?
Yes, Gladys, we felt it.
And everybody all right out there? All right.
Are we okay?
Relax, Mr. Berman. It's just a temblor.
A trembler?
A temblor.
Look, I know how edgy you must be, Julius, but...
My friends call me Jake.
Well, that makes two of us.
That's what my friends call me.
Is that right? Is that right?
He's a Jake, and I'm a Jake.
Yeah. How about that? Two Jakes.
Now, listen, Jake. I never lost a husband yet,
but I got a golf date at 1:00
and if I'm not ready to tee off at 12:55,
they'll break every club in my bag.
You're kidding. That's terrible.
No, that's the Wilshire Country Club.
I'm lucky they let me join.
I know what you mean.
Please, Mr. Berman... Jake...
Go ahead.
Oh, no, Kitty. How could you?
You told me you were going to the beauty parlor in Hollywood,
and now I find you here,
just where they said I'd find you, in Room 19-H
of the Bird of Paradise Motel in Redondo Beach
at 2:00 in the afternoon with this man.
(MAN MOANING ON TAPE RECORDER)
BERMAN: Oh, no, Kitty. How could you?
MARK: What's going on here?
You told me you were going to the beauty parlor in Hollywood...
And now I find you here.
Look, Jake, what's this going to prove?
It's just where they said I'd find you,
in Room 19-H of the Bird of Paradise Motel
in Redondo Beach... Just take it easy.
With him? How could you, Kitty? How could you
Not with him! Not with him!
Look, Jake.
We were going to tell you soon.
Get her out of here!
Damn!
What the fuck's happening?
Damn! Just calm down, ma'am. Just calm down.
Where did that gun come from?
Somebody call an ambulance!
Come on.
Get pictures of everything, Larry.
GITTES: Most cops' ethics are a little like the cars they drive,
black and white.
Lou Escobar is different.
I did my share of fighting in the war and even got a medal for it,
but Lou lost a leg with the 1st Marines at Guadalcanal.
So he knows about regrets
and what might have been and how life doesn't always give you a fair shake.
Cowboys and Indians!
You can't trust a guy who's never lost anything.
How's that, Lou?
Your client shot a guy right out of his saddle.
Oh, yeah. I never had anything like that happen to me before,
not while I was in the room, anyway.
See you, Lou.
You witnessed it.
I was next door.
By the time I got in the room,
Berman had him trapped in the john.
He fired the last two shots through the door.
Then they could've struggled over the gun.
I'm sure they did.
Why are you so sure if the door was closed?
You're right, Lou.
Maybe the guy shot himself three times
and gave Berman the gun.
Jake, walk me to homicide.
I just came from there, Lou.
Besides, I got an appointment at 8:00 at Perino's with Linda.
I'll give you an escort.
Now, where did Berman get a hold of the gun?
In the bedroom.
How do you know he didn't have the gun with him?
I'd never frisk him before I let him walk in on his wife
hanging on the headboard
while some guy was slamming her into the wall, Lou.
Just asking you, Jake.
Look,
Berman got the gun from somewhere
in the motel room and fired it.
Somewhere in the motel room?
That's absolutely all I know.
Then what happened?
What usually happens when somebody pulls a gun, hmm?
Everybody ducks.
I guess you talked to the investigating officer,
Detective Loach.
I just came on duty, Lou.
Now, this is not a case
where I want any difficulty for anybody.
It's simple. A guy gets fucked getting fucked.
Let's not get cute.
Haven't seen you in a while, Jake.
I never seem to get away from my desk.
Makes me wonder. I should've made captain.
Well, for your 20th year, Lou,
I'll get you a pillow for your chair,
something you can sit on besides Loach.
Jake, there's a call for you.
This is homicide. It ain't your office.
Let it ring.
You're not lost, are you, Gittes? You know the way out.
Jesus, don't go, don't go.
You're just the man I want to see.
What for? I can't. I just got asked to leave.
Is that true?
Yes, Mr. Weinberger.
Answer the phone, please.
Get the phone.
Homicide.
Lieutenant Loach, it's for him.
It's his office again.
Take your call.
He's been disruptive, Mr. Weinberger.
Disrupting homicide is not all bad.
So, we have sheets, blankets,
one shower curtain with broken rings attached,
toupee...
And I do need to speak with Mr. Gittes about our client.
Our client?
I'm counsel for Jake Berman.
We have one 2-inch Smith & Wesson revolver
registered in the name of the dead man,
Mark Bodine, on behalf of B & B Homes.
No wire recording on the police report?
His men didn't pick one up. What's B & B Homes?
You're not thinking, Jake.
B & B Homes.
Bodine & Berman.
It's just another one of their corporations,
Berman's and the dead man's.
Just remember, you have a fiduciary relationship
with our client, Mr. Berman.
We'll talk about it later.
I'll be in my office.
Can I use your phone?
GITTES: Cotton was right. We should have turned up B & B Homes,
and maybe Berman's partner would still be chasing his wife
instead of cooling his dick down at the county morgue.
So my client didn't level with me,
not exactly Movietone News.
Cotton only tells one side of the story in court.
Escobar knows I don't tell him everything.
And when husbands and wives lie to each other,
one of them comes to my office and lies to me.
Frankly, if I waited for an honest client,
I'd be sitting around until Rocky Graziano
played Rachmaninoff at the Hollywood Bowl.
Lucy, what the hell's going on?
I don't know, Mr. Gittes.
Please, get away...
I wouldn't go in there if I was you.
Ralph, what are you doing to that woman?
Let go of her this instant.
Oh, my God! Jake!
Don't you touch me!
Oh, my goodness.
Oh, I'm terribly, terribly sorry.
Oh, I know how difficult this must be.
Yeah.
It must hurt you so.
Yeah. Yes, it does.
Everything will be fine.
Just rest for a moment.
See? All right.
(WOMAN SOBBING)
Scotch.
All right. Now, who the fuck is that?
Mark Bodine's widow. Who?
The wife of the guy that Jake Berman shot.
Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah, yes.
She knows you were there when he was killed.
So what? So was Mrs. Berman.
Why ain't she over at her house breaking the joint up.
It'd be a lot more appropriate.
She wants to talk to you.
LILLIAN: You're a war hero.
Oh, you may be slick as a floorwalker,
but you and that little kike killed my husband,
you son of a bitch!
Gladys, get my lawyer on the phone. Ralph...
They're not going to get away with this.
Mrs. Bodine, if you were there, you would've known
that when Mr. Berman saw Mrs. Berman
in bed with your husband, he just lost his head.
That little prick never lost his head
or the first nickel he ever made.
Not only that... Get me a handkerchief.
There's Kitty Berman.
She's a cold-hearted frigid bitch.
She and Jake were in this together.
In what together?
Jake and Kitty Berman killed my husband, and you helped.
What the hell.
I'm going home now, and I'm going to call the newspapers.
Mrs. Bodine, it would be highly irresponsible of me
to allow you to do that.
Give me one good reason.
I'll give you two.
You can't walk, and you shouldn't drive.
All right.
Ralph, don't just stand there.
Call the lady a cab.
Oh, my God!
She just walked right into it. Get her out of here.
That's kidnapping.
Not if you take her home.
Walsh!
Get the wire recorder out of the car,
and don't leave evidence laying around like that.
Larry?
Why didn't you tell me that Berman and Bodine were partners?
He just gave us B & B Homes.
Oh, yeah, sure.
Look, when you get her back there,
take her in through the window or the side door.
Stay till she sobers up.
There'll be papers jumping all over the lawn like flies.
RALPH: Like the song says, till then.
Yeah, sure.
Mr. Gittes.
Your tuxedo is laid out and your private phone line is on.
Thank you, Gladys. Good night.
WALSH: Bird of Paradise Motel,
October 27, 1948, 1300 hours.
I'm based in bedroom one-niner.
Okay, Ralph, you on the bed?
Mayday, mayday. Bail out of there.
TILTON: What's wrong?
Some linen supply guys,
they're making a delivery right outside your door.
They're making a delivery.
Yeah?
Hi, kid. You got the wire recording?
Right here. You wanna hear it?
Yeah.
BERMAN: Oh, no, Kitty, how could you?
MARK: What's going on here?
You told me you were going to the beauty parlor in Hollywood...
COTTON: Jake, for Christ's sake! Jake, are you there?
Are you okay, Jake?
Yeah.
Yeah, I'm fine.
Never mind. Hang up and put the recording back in the safe.
I can't do that, Cotton.
When the power comes back on, it'll trigger the alarm for 40 blocks,
and I'll have the LAPD all over my ass.
So stay till the power's on and then put the recording back in the safe.
All I want is a chance to go over it before the police do.
Is that it?
Jake, we've done business many, many years.
We'll keep on doing business... Cotton...
Just so long as you protect
your client and mine, Jake Berman.
Cotton...
Cotton. What?
Thank you.
And fuck you.
Thank you, Jake. It's always a pleasure doing business with you.
KITTY: Honey.
MARK: Oh, Kitty,
there's another woman who can give Akey a bad time.
And you know who.
Who?
Honey, I think you do know.
We're talking about Katherine Mulwray.
Oh, not her. Not again.
Kitty, I'm telling you, Katherine Mulwray can give Jake
a real bad time, you know?
What other...
I'm telling you, she retains rights to the subdivision,
and if I can get to her
I can prove that Jake has taken advantage of the land.
We could all strike it rich.
Just hold me.
Hold me.
Look, just help talk Jake into...
Kitty, there's another woman who can give Akey a bad time.
And you know who.
Honey, I think you do know.
We're talking about Katherine Mulwray.
Oh, not her. Not again.
Kitty, I'm telling you, Katherine Mulwray can give Jake
a real bad time, you know?
What other...
I'm telling you, she retains rights to the subdivision,
and if I can get to her
I can prove that Jake has taken advantage of the land.
We could all strike it rich.
Hello?
I've spent half the night at Perino's waiting for you.
Oh, my God. Linda.
LINDA: What have you been doing?
Nothing.
Just an emergency.
A nothing
That I'd like to hear about sometime.
Maybe you'll tell me in another life.
KITTY ON RECORDER: What are you talking about?
BERMAN: Oh, no, Kitty. How could you?
MARK: What's going on here?
You told me you were going to the beauty parlor in Hollywood
and now I find you here...
Jake, what's this going to prove?
...just where they said I'd find you, in Room 19-H
of the Bird of Paradise Motel in Redondo Beach.
Just take it easy.
Yes? Hello, darling.
I'll be right there.
I can explain everything. Are you still at Perino's?
Would I be answering my own phone if I were still at Perino's?
You jackass.
What the fuck's happening?
Hello?
Honey, I'm so sorry. I'll be right there.
WOMAN: You and that little son of a bitch.
Who is this?
You're going to pay for this, you Irish dick!
Where is she? Upstairs in bed.
Jake, she's fine. Ralph's with her.
Ralph? Jesus Christ.
All right, Mrs. Bodine.
What did you take?
It's enough to make you want to skeeve.
All right. Let me have this.
Come here.
We'll do this sunny-side up.
You bastard!
Call the doctor.
You sleazy lowlife.
Hers, if you can find the number.
I'm going to rip your face off, you son of a bitch!
That's all right, honey. Don't worry about a thing.
I'm going to make sure you don't even get your hair wet.
That's right.
Chuck Newty, Mr. Gittes. Mr. and Mrs. Bodine's attorney.
Come on, Minnie.
How are you? Fine.
Mr. Walsh indicates you've been trying to keep Mrs. Bodine from the press.
That's fine. I have no quarrel with that.
At least until the courts arrive at some disposition of criminal charges,
then, of course, there'll be civil actions.
Civil actions?
Mrs. Bodine is not only widowed,
but she's been left out in the cold financially as well.
Chuck.
Mr. Bodine and Mr. Berman
were in business with a San Fernando subdivision,
but it was not an association either man treasured or trusted.
So, in the event of either partner's death,
all liabilities are to be assumed by the surviving partner,
but, of course, all profits, as well.
Therefore, when Mr. Berman shot and killed Mr. Bodine,
we could be talking about a man who exploited his wife's infidelity
to the tune of a 5 or $6 million profit...
Chuck!
And used you, however unwittingly, as an accomplice.
Chuck, did you hear me?
Excuse me a moment.
Who's that?
Mattie Rawley.
She's from Pasadena.
So is General Patton.
CHUCK: All right. Fine, fine.
(ZIPPO STALLING)
Here.
Keep them.
Thanks.
Chuck...
What I do for a living may not be very reputable, but I am.
In this town, I'm the leper with the most fingers.
No court's gonna view me as an accomplice.
Probably not.
Mr. Berman will undoubtedly plead temporary insanity.
And if he's successful,
you'll be sued for allowing a crazy man
to see his wife in another man's arms.
On the other hand, if there's evidence of premeditation
in the killing of Mr. Bodine,
Berman's not crazy.
Mrs. Bodine gets to keep her husband's money,
and she would have no need to sue you at all.
Quite the contrary.
Let's keep in touch, Mr. Gittes.
Does that mean he wants you to prove your own client is guilty of murder?
Yeah.
Is that ethical?
Larry, he's a lawyer.
Jeez.
Bodine mentioned Evelyn Mulwray's daughter
on the wire recording.
He did? What did he say?
Just her name. I couldn't hear.
Right before Berman shot him.
Well, that doesn't mean anything.
It could have been just gossip.
Could have.
(INDISTINCT CHATTERING ON RADIO)
ANNOUNCER ON RADIO: ...7th delivered here.
See the Pontiac Auto Show at your dealer now.
Pontiac Fine Car.
GITTES: Time changes things.
Like the fruit stand that turns into a filling station.
But the footprints and signs from the past are everywhere.
They've been fighting over this land
ever since the first Spanish missionary
showed the Indians the benefits of religion, horses,
and a few years of forced labor.
The Indians had it right all along. They respected ghosts.
You can't forget the past any more than you can change it.
Hearing Katherine Mulwray's name started me thinking
about old secrets, family, property,
and a guy doing his partner dirt.
Memories are like that, as unpredictable as nitro,
and you never know what's going to set one off.
Like the clues that keep you on the right track
are never where you look for them.
They fall out of the pocket of somebody else's suit
you pick up at the cleaners.
They're in the tune you can't stop humming
that you never heard in your life.
They're at the other end of the wrong number
you dial in the middle of the night.
The signs are in all those old familiar places
you only think you've never been before.
But you get used to seeing them out of the corner of your eye,
and you end up tripping over the ones
that are right in front of you.
I should've been wise to Berman's hand-wringing act
from the very beginning.
It was as plain as the shoes on his feet.
BERMAN: What do you call four drowning Mexicans?
Cuatro sinko.
You know who Lou Escobar is?
Yeah.
He's captain of detectives in homicide.
You know you turned his sister down for a house?
Had to be done.
Had to be done?
Folks, here's Eucalyptus Place and there's 17.
I'll be with you in a moment.
MAN: Okay, no problem.
Jake?
I'm sure you're gonna love living in El Rancho San Fernando.
MAN: Yeah. Thank you. WOMAN: We sure are.
You know who else couldn't buy a house here?
Me.
I can build it and I can sell it,
just as long as I don't move in next door.
They don't want Mexicans or Jews around.
Let me tell you something else.
The customer is always right.
I got a wife to protect.
Protect?
You mean divorce, don't you?
Yeah.
That, too. Yeah.
You know, your wife is a possible accessory in this.
To what?
Come on.
You picked the one time you can murder a man
and make him pay for it.
One way or the other, she helped.
Please stay away from my wife or else.
I recognize that as a valid threat coming from you, Mr. Berman,
but the police are gonna think the same thing,
you murdered your partner
for his half of the subdivision and 5 or $6 million,
to which you and your wife are now legally entitled.
Yeah, Ty, what's the problem?
Tyrone Otley, J.J. Gittes.
I know Mr. Gittes from the DWP when I worked for Hollis Mulwray.
Mr. Berman, it's the same problem.
These earthquakes are shaking up our water wells like soda pop.
Only it's not soda pop.
It's millions of gallons of water and gas
under all these homes.
And it's getting hazardous.
What do you mean, hazardous?
It could explode.
But you said it was marsh gas.
I thought only natural gas was explosive.
Mr. Berman, whether it comes from an old marsh or baked beans,
all gas is natural.
Gas is gas.
How do I get rid of it?
Call the gas company.
You all right? Yeah.
How am I gonna build homes with the gas company drilling
farkakte holes in the ground?
Where were we?
Well, I was accusing you of murder, Mr. Berman.
Call me Jake. Which way's your car? I'll walk you to it.
So, Jake...
Why all this nervous Nellie horseshit you gave me in my office?
Well, I'm telling you, I was genuinely nervous.
It's upsetting knowing your wife's involved with a strange man.
You didn't know it was your partner?
How should I know it was my partner? You didn't.
Well, if it was my partner and my wife, I would've known.
Well, that's your business. I'm not complaining, Jake.
You did your job.
Somebody out there?
Funny thing about land.
What do you mean?
I used to know the people that owned this.
Did you? No.
How you gonna plead at the preliminary hearing?
Well, that's Cotton's job.
You think you're gonna get away with this?
I'm not getting away with a thing, Jake.
Tell you what I'm gonna do.
You guarantee Mark Bodine's widow
her husband's full share of the subdivision
so I don't have to worry about lawsuits and the police,
and you won't have to worry about me.
Otherwise, I'm gonna prove that you deliberately murdered the man.
You know something, Jake?
You might think you know what's going on around here,
but you don't.
MAN: You might think you know what you're dealing with...
How long have you been here?
Jake, you better lie back. The doctor's on his way.
Not long.
You ever been here before?
What difference does that make?
Yes.
Me, too.
Really?
This used to be all orange groves.
Walnut groves, too.
How did you say you got this land?
Take it easy.
I didn't say.
Mr. Gittes, this isn't the time to discuss it.
I think you should lie down...
Who are you?
Kitty Berman. Oh.
Sorry, Mrs. Berman. I didn't recognize you.
Well, that's understandable.
We've never actually been introduced.
What about you, Mrs. Berman?
Do you know where Mr. Berman got this land?
I've asked you nicely not to involve my wife in this.
Jake, please.
Mr. Gittes, I think there's something you should do
before you ask any more questions.
What's that?
Get your head examined. You've been in an accident.
You may not be thinking clearly.
And I don't like waking up with someone staring at me,
especially when I can't see their eyes.
You're lucky you're awake at all.
Okay.
Mr. Weinberger, Lieutenant Loach again.
Mr. Novak.
Mr. Weinberger again. And a Mr. Oatley.
GITTES: Oatley?
Tyrone. Otley.
Gosh dang it. Otley.
GLADYS: Gittes Investigations.
It's Lieutenant Loach. It sounds serious.
Gladys, it's only serious if it's Escobar.
Detective Loach, Mr. Gittes is in conference...
I thought you were tailing Berman.
Ralph is.
I thought you were gonna see a doctor.
First thing in the morning.
You just had your bell rung pretty good, Jake.
Yeah.
GLADYS: Captain Escobar. It's serious.
Uh...
Take a message.
They're after the recording.
Doesn't even know we have it.
Are you gonna lie to him?
Would I lie to him?
When was the last time you saw the Mulwray girl?
Must have been 14, 15 years old.
People can get in a lot of trouble in that amount of time.
I'd have heard.
Did she ever send you a bottle of Scotch saying,
"Welcome home, sailor"?
How about a fruitcake for Christmas?
Did she ever send you a postcard?
For cripes sake, Jake,
you're not responsible for Evelyn Mulwray's death
and you're not responsible for Katherine Mulwray's life.
Her name was on the wire recording.
That's all I'm saying.
That's got nothing to do with our problems with this fellow Berman.
How do we know?
Okay. I'll check the chain of title to the land.
I'll see if there's anything peculiar.
You don't have to do that.
If I don't, you will.
Why don't you put that file away?
Life's been good. You're a seven handicap.
Six.
Marrying a wonderful girl.
Why don't you go see a doctor?
Put that file away.
Okay.
EVELYN: "Dear Jake,
"I'm leaving with Katherine for Mexico.
"I couldn't wait for you any longer.
"Once we're safe, I'll get word to you through Khan.
"Please don't try to look for us.
"My father is crazy enough to track you to us.
"I want my daughter to believe a new life is possible.
"I know I told you I don't see men for very long.
"You seem to be that rare exception.
"I can't say goodbye to you.
"Evelyn.
"P.S. Katherine said that you seemed
"a very nice man, and Curly concurred.
"Ha ha."
KHAN: I see you survived the war.
GITTES: Oh, yes.
It's been a long time.
But I read about you in the papers once in a while.
What can I say?
Trashy publicity's part of my business.
The less you want, the more you get.
Please. I enjoy it.
I'm sure many people do.
Besides,
you are very successful.
Oh, I can't complain.
Does that mean you are happy?
Who can answer that question off the top of their head?
Anyone who's happy.
What about Katherine?
I'm sure she's as happy as she can be.
No problems?
I can't quite catch your concern.
Well, for instance, is there any reason she might need money?
I can't see why.
She owns a lot of land. Taxes have risen since the war.
I wouldn't know.
We've had no contact for quite a while.
GITTES: Odd flowers.
Yes.
Isn't it amazing they still grow here?
It's her favorite. She bred them.
You see those purple hues?
They're caused by the burning of the seed.
And this is how I remember her last.
Where did she go from here?
If she's in trouble, I just wanna help her, that's all.
Oh, no. If she is in trouble, you would not be the one to help.
Like her, you are a prisoner of the past.
You would do her more harm than good.
Such things have happened.
Wherever fate has taken her,
I'm sure that she is grateful for what you've done for her.
Isn't that enough?
I don't wanna live in the past, Khan.
I just don't wanna lose it.
You keep it.
(SPEAKING MANDARIN)
(THE WHISTLER THEME PLAYING ON RADIO)
MAN: I am the Whistler.
And I know many things, for I walk by night.
I know many strange tales, hidden in the hearts of men...
I know the nameless terrors of which they...
GITTES: The city's different at night.
The air smells better.
It's harder to see that the oil rigs outnumber the palm trees
and it's almost like the good old days.
At least the way I'd like to remember them.
But stay in this business long enough,
and every street leads to a place you'd like to forget.
Every case brings back memories
of what you should have done and what might have been.
And every skirt reminds you of another woman.
Or, if you've got it bad enough,
the same woman.
Trick or treat.
You shouldn't be breaking into people's offices, Mickey.
Not with your reputation.
And Halloween is this weekend.
Well, I guess we got the jump on everyone.
Liberty Levine, say hello to Jake Gittes.
Liberty Levine?
You know, he can wrap his fist around a roll of silver dollars.
And what's this?
It's a hand grenade.
You ought to know that. You're a war hero.
See?
Jeez, don't let go of the handle, Jake.
You only have about, what,
four seconds to answer your calls, nudnik?
You wouldn't have enough time. You were very popular today.
"Weinberger. Escobar. Weinberger. Weinberger."
He wants to sue somebody, naturally.
"Linda. Escobar. Linda." Again.
She's nuts about you. I wonder what she wants.
Captain Escobar, I know what he wants,
he wants the Berman wire recording
by the end of business tomorrow.
Otherwise, he's gonna come after you with a court order
for withholding evidence, conspiracy...
So, Jake...
You got criminal, you got civil...
You got love.
But before anything of this nature comes to pass,
you got me.
And I want you to do something for me.
I need a favor.
Favor?
I think that the Berman wire recording is in your safe.
So what I want you to do is I want you to open the safe,
drop the grenade in the safe, and then, most important of all, Jake...
Close the safe.
You're crazy, Mickey.
That may be.
But do you know a better way to stay healthy?
Okay. All right.
I was wrong.
It's not here.
Liberty.
That was a nice show. Take a bow.
Where is it? Where is it, Jake?
At my lawyer's.
Your lawyer's?
I want the Berman wire recording by tomorrow.
Be a mensch.
Otherwise, I'm gonna have to give you a serious reprimand.
Oh, I'm shedding all over the place.
I'm sorry.
Lie back.
Mickey do this to you?
Yeah. I thought so.
I saw he and Liberty going down as I was coming up the stairs.
Mrs. Bodine...
How do you know the biggest hood in LA?
I've seen him around town.
Santa Anita, private screenings,
the Bolanos fight at the Legion.
Jake introduced us.
Berman? Mmm-hmm.
He and Mickey grew up together in Boyle Heights.
They're best friends.
Mrs. Bodine...
What can I do for you?
Testify in court that Berman knew
his wife was in bed with his business partner.
Just that one little thing?
That and I hear you have a wire recording
that proves Berman murdered my husband.
Well, that's what they say,
but I'm not sure it proves anything.
Well, anyway, I'd like it.
Mrs. Bodine...
Lillian.
Ethically, I can't do that.
Ethically?
I have certain statutory obligations.
I can't use information adverse to a client
when I acquired that information while employed by the client.
Well, then I'll hire you. Prove Berman planned it.
Lillian, just listen...
No! Just prove it and put the weasel in jail.
Nothing else matters. Nothing else in the world.
How about five or six million bucks?
Your husband's share of the subdivision.
Berman said he'd let you have it.
Could I make a phone call?
Please.
No.
That's what your lawyer told you to say to five or six million bucks?
Yes.
You always do what your lawyer tells you?
More or less.
And who tells him what to do?
What do you mean?
That woman at your house the other night.
He listened to her.
That's Mattie Rawley. Everybody listens to her.
He's her lawyer, too?
Her husband's.
Any reason Mr. Rawley would have to be interested in Jake Berman?
I don't know. He was a friend of Mark's. That's how I met Mattie.
Tell you what I'm gonna do. I can't let you have the recording,
but I could let you listen to it.
Mark and Kitty talk on it?
Mainly, yeah.
Look, if you're not up to this, I'll understand.
I'm up to it.
All right?
WALSH: Adam Boy Charlie,
Adam Boy Charlie.
Lawrence Walsh.
WALSH: Mayday, bail out of there.
RALPH: What's wrong?
Some linen supply guys,
they're making a delivery right outside your door.
They're making a...
KITTY: Honey.
MARK: Oh, Kitty, there's another woman
who can give Akey a bad time. And you know who.
Does that mean something to you, "Akey"?
Mark called Berman "Jakey" sometimes.
Oh, Kitty, there's another woman
who can give Akey a bad time. And you know who.
"There's a woman who can give Jakey a bad time, and you know who?"
Something like that.
Honey, I think you do know.
We're talking about Katherine Mulwray.
KITTY: Oh, not her. Not again.
Kitty, I'm telling you, kid.
Sounds like he thinks this Katherine what's-her-name
could give Berman a hard time.
Did Mark ever mention that woman to you?
Mark never talked about women with me.
He was a chaser.
And he never had to run very far.
...get to her I can prove
that Jake has taken advantage of the land.
We could all strike it rich.
Just hold me.
Hold me.
See what I mean?
About what?
...Mulwray woman. Did you ever hear of whipstocking?
Whips and stockings? God damn it!
That son of a bitch was really...
Lillian, just calm down.
I always knew that Kitty was a perverted little snat.
BERMAN: Oh, no, Kitty, how could you...
Don't let it start.
You told me you were going to the beauty parlor...
No. Don't let me hear. It's coming. Don't let me hear!
No. Don't let me hear. I'll kill you, son of a bitch!
Don't let me hear! Don't...
I don't want to hear anymore!
All right.
GITTES: Where'd that gun come from?
All right. All right. It's over. It's over.
Somebody call an ambulance!
I'm getting out of here.
Can I help you?
Stop me. Don't let me go back to the house.
So stay here.
I'm not responsible for one more thing.
No! Damn you, you bastard.
All right!
All right! That's enough.
That's enough! Enough.
Oh, don't make me do it.
Don't make me do it. Don't...
Oh, you're going to make me do it, aren't you?
You're gonna make me.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Yeah, I am, I am, I am.
All right.
Take the rest of that goddamned thing off.
Lillian. Lillian!
Honestly, I'm trying to be a gentleman about this.
Now just get down on your knees.
Down on your knees.
Stick your ass up in the air,
and don't move until I tell you.
Jake, I did come across some documents.
You've met Mrs. Bodine.
Lawrence Walsh, my oldest associate.
Mrs. Bodine and I
have been having a rather lengthy consultation, and...
I see.
Yes, and going over a number of matters and so forth,
and Mrs. Bodine has expressed a wish
to employ us to locate the previous owner
of the B & B subdivision land.
Pardon me, Jake. Can I talk to you for a minute?
Excuse us, Mrs. Bodine.
This is Berman's title insurance report.
The previous owner was Mickey Nice.
Mickey Nice?
Now look at the previous title transfer.
Now, don't go off half-cocked. We don't know what this really means.
Well, you got to admit it was pretty generous of Katherine
to just give her land away.
From Katherine to Mickey to Berman, same day, same place.
It's Ralph calling again.
I'll take it in my office.
Ralph, hold on. He'll be with you in a minute.
Is everything all right?
Fine.
Yeah, Ralph.
I'm at the Bay City Laundry at the corner of Little Washington and Venice,
and somebody is following Berman besides me, pal.
Probably the cops.
No. It's not the cops, it's one guy in a tan Studebaker.
Not the cops?
No.
All right. If Berman leaves, stick with him.
Get a number on the Studey and call in.
I'm on my way out. Yeah. Okay.
Do you think Mr. Walsh has any idea that we...
Absolutely none.
They're still in the laundry.
Who?
Berman, Mickey, that hood Liberty, and some blonde.
Some blonde?
What the hell is Chuck Newty doing here?
GITTES: Is that the tail? RALPH: Yeah.
All right. You stay with Berman.
I'll cover the mouthpiece.
You got dimes? Yeah.
GITTES: Sometimes it's best to follow the piece that doesn't fit.
Chuck Newty wouldn't do anything
he couldn't charge $30 an hour for,
so he wouldn't shadow Berman without a client.
You know, you can follow the action, which gets you good pictures.
You can follow your instincts,
which will probably get you in trouble...
Or you can follow the money,
which 9 times out of 10 will get you closer to the truth.
Earl Rawley's trademark was on Newty's matchbook,
Lillian Bodine's lighter, and half the oil wells in LA.
Who else could afford to keep a lawyer's meter running?
Mile High dairy store
Mile High ice-cream cones
Mile High cones double-dipped
TY: In 1792, a certain Jose Longuinez Martinez,
while traveling through the Pueblo de Los Angeles,
about 3 leagues to the west,
found a great lake of pitch with many pools
in which blisters were continually rising and falling.
In hot weather, animals looking for water
could be seen sinking into the tar.
Their cries would attract predators.
We've pulled nearly a million specimens
from a couple of holes in the ground.
Animal after animal, literally dying to eat another dying animal.
The greatest record of life on earth is what it is.
All caught in little seeps
from the greatest lake of oil on Earth there is.
Twenty-two miles long, 46 miles wide,
the entire LA Basin,
where we work and live today.
Ladies, this way.
How many jobs you got, Mr. Otley?
Call me Ty.
Wonderful speech you gave the ladies.
Thank you.
"LA, the greatest lake of oil on Earth there is." Pretty good.
Mr. Gittes, could we continue this discussion some other time?
My secretary said you called me repeatedly, Ty.
Said you made it sound like something of an emergency.
Yes, of course. After the explosion,
I was very concerned about you, Mr. Gittes.
That's very thoughtful of you, Tyrone.
Now...
Who got to you?
Who got to me?
Was it Berman?
Got to me about what?
Or was it somebody from Rawley Petroleum?
GITTES: Brother,
Berman, Levine...
And some woman, blonde.
This the clearest you got?
Well, yeah, yeah.
Did you follow her?
What for? You told me to follow Berman.
Berman had a 2:00 appointment at his lawyer's, Ralph.
You don't follow somebody when you know where they're going.
But you said stay with Berman.
Who the fuck is this woman?
Who is that woman?
Laura Teal. You remember her, don't you?
Old rubber gloves? You bet.
Hey, hey, hey. There he goes.
She's alone now. Better hurry up and get in there.
Mrs. Teal, how nice to see you.
What are you doing here?
Don't tell me I'm being watched.
No, Mrs. Berman.
Your husband has all the matrimonial information
he needs to go to court.
Oh, yes. If only he wanted a divorce.
He doesn't?
You've been talking to Lillian.
I have?
You have.
Lillian loves angora. You make a big enough mess...
And you can't be ignored.
What did she call me?
Aside from frigid and conniving.
A killer.
Killer?
I enticed her husband into bed
so my husband could shoot him in a fit of jealous rage?
That's right.
And what's the rest of the plan?
That's it.
You slept with a man so he could be legally murdered,
the entire subdivision belongs to you and your husband.
Jake doesn't want Mark's money.
I'm sure he'll see Lillian gets whatever it is her husband's entitled to.
All she wants is the wire recording.
I find that difficult to believe.
Look, lady, you may have a worldly, wise
and sophisticated veneer, but I got ties older than you are.
And Mrs. Bodine thinks your husband ought to be in jail.
She thinks something on that wire recording
proves that he's a murderer and if she's right,
I want to tell the police what it is before they tell me.
I am sure my husband did what he did because he loves me.
And suppose you're wrong, suppose I'm wrong.
Suppose he didn't kill Bodine for love or money?
Now what? That's not possible.
There's got to be a reason.
I think the reason is on that wire recording.
Well, I don't know what that possibly could be.
Mrs. Berman, would it surprise you to know
that your husband was seeing another woman?
Is he?
Would it surprise you?
No. Not necessarily. No.
In other words, he loves you enough to kill somebody,
but you're not surprised that he's fooling around?
What do you think a jury is going to think of that?
Who is this woman?
Mrs. Berman, wouldn't you like to know one way or the other?
If...
If there's a relationship...
I'd like to know about it, yes.
Then you'll tell me what I want to know?
What's that?
Exactly what Bodine was asking you on the wire.
I'll tell you what I remember,
but it may not be what you need to know.
Who is it?
It's the colorist, Mrs. Berman.
Come back a little later, would you, please?
Fine.
Mr. Gittes, I want to remind you
that so far you have yet to show me anything
that proves my husband deliberately did anything to anyone.
And if I can prove otherwise?
Then we'll talk later.
After all,
first things first.
Look, Mr. Gittes, it was two and a half years ago
these people were here.
I have very little recollection of the transaction,
and these photographs are not going to refresh my memory.
I don't wish to talk about these people.
Well, can you tell me this much?
Why wouldn't Miss Mulwray
quitclaim the deed to Mr. Berman directly?
Mr. Gittes, I am a notary public, not a mind reader.
If that's the way they want it, that's the way I do it.
Well, this deed doesn't even mention mineral rights.
Any exception to title rights will be found in some other agreement.
And if there is no other agreement?
Then the original owner retains all rights not specifically granted.
Delores, would you please show Mr. Gittes out?
He's awful touchy.
How did it happen?
You don't know?
Come on. You can tell me.
That's how it happened. He told.
What?
About three weeks ago, just after I came to work here,
somebody else was in asking about these people.
And one of those people came back and broke his jaw.
Him, right?
All right. Forget about him.
What about the guy who was asking?
Can you remember what he looked like?
I'll bet he asked you out.
Oh, no. He's married.
Not anymore.
Thank you.
Good of Mr. Rawley to see me on such short notice.
Oh, he's looking forward to it, Mr. Gittes.
He's just around the point.
Do you like shrimp?
Sure do.
We've got some good ones.
I prefer matches. Thank you. I love the smell of sulfur.
Chuck here said that you want to talk to me about Mattie.
Well, not exactly, I was hoping you could help me with Lillian.
Well, that's up to Chuck and my wife Mattie.
As far as that's concerned, it's really none of my business.
None of your business?
Well, I suppose, in a sense, when you're in the oil business,
you're in everybody's business.
That's right.
Is that why you broke into my office
and why you got Jake Berman under surveillance?
Mr. Gittes, I...
Just excuse us a little bit, will you? Yes, sir.
Thank you.
Before Mark got killed,
he became aware of Berman's other associates.
And he was concerned that he might have
a silent partner in this Mr. Nice.
Mark was frightened.
He came to me for help purely as a friend.
Frightened of Berman and Mr. Nice.
Yes, indeed.
But not too frightened to sleep with Berman's wife.
I'll tell you what we'll do, John.
You tell me what the hell you think's a-goin' on here,
and I'll tell you if I think you're right.
Mr. Rawley, I think you think there's oil under the B & B subdivision,
and I think you're trying to get to whoever has the mineral rights.
All I'd find under that subdivision is a lot of hot air and gas.
You wanna know why?
Look up and down the coast here.
Summerland, Huntington Beach, Bolsa Chica.
That's where the oil is.
That's where it's juicy. Out there. It ain't 6,000 feet inland,
down through 2,000 extra feet of cretaceous granite.
Have I answered all your questions?
There's one thing about Los Angeles
that makes it different than most places, John,
and that's two things.
You got a desert with oil under it,
and, second, you got a lot of water around it.
Hollis Mulwray and Noah Cross moved the water onto this desert,
and we have to move people the same way they moved the water.
Without my oil, you got no automobiles.
Without automobiles, you got no road construction,
no sidewalks, no city lights, no gas stations, no automotive service,
and no Berman subdivision stuck out in the tules
because nobody can get there.
Then Mr. Berman's out of business
before he even gets in business.
The name of the game is oil, John.
That don't go here, Oren.
Take it up to Hill 36.
Back to 36!
What's that for?
Did you ever breed any horses?
Can't say that I have, no.
Well, it's sort of like helping a stallion mount a mare.
Whipstocking is somethin' you do
to coax the drillin' bit in the right direction.
After you've gone to all that time and trouble,
you wouldn't want your big fella
to miss what he was aimin' at, now, would you?
I know what your time's worth, John, and I'll take care of you.
Just don't let me down.
GITTES: Old Cactus Arrow probably hoodwinked quite a few city boys
with his Will Rogers routine, but I knew he wasn't talking
about two horses on their honeymoon.
Whatever Rawley was mounting, it wasn't a mare.
I just wanted to make sure it wasn't me, either, pardner.
Do you want to meet or not?
Anywhere you say.
Green Parrot Bar and Grill on Cahuenga,
just south of Franklin anytime after 10:00.
Are you all right, honey?
Honey
Good evening. May I help you?
No. I'd like to sit at the bar.
Fine.
Can I help you, sir?
Yeah. Johnny Walker Black, straight up.
Soda back?
Yeah, thanks.
Thank you. Thank you.
They say
Into your early life
Romance came...
Mr. Gittes. I'm so glad you could make it.
Well, Tyrone, what's on your mind?
This is an HK-100 Go-Devil.
It's how you put a camera in a compass on the ground
to tell what direction you're drilling.
Take it easy, Ty.
This is a photo of the compass.
It'll prove Rawley's drilling east
toward the Berman subdivision, not west, out toward the ocean.
Double Scotch, soda back.
We're...
We're talking about oil here, right, Ty?
Obviously.
Mr. Rawley believes there's oil under the subdivision.
He's endangering hundreds of lives drilling under those homes
with all the seismic activity.
He's whipstocking.
Someone has got to stop him.
Well, I can't do that, Ty. Nobody can.
Guys like Rawley don't get arrested.
They get streets named after them.
In this type of situation, it's best just to leave it alone.
Rawley's stealing from Berman.
It's a big thief stealing from a little thief.
Who are we to quarrel?
Did you bring my treat?
What the fuck for?
Then why did you come here?
What are you doing here?
I own the joint. What's your excuse?
I got a date.
Then be a gentleman and excuse yourself.
Hey. Come on, nudnik.
Look around. What do you see? Strictly class. Polite. Big tippers.
Not only that, they're nice to the help.
If the cops didn't keep bumping up the payoffs,
this would be the best business I got.
What business you got with Jake Berman?
Jake Berman is 100% legitimate.
What do you call legitimate?
Take off his jacket.
I can tell you what I don't consider legitimate.
Must be a short list.
Blackmail.
What are you talking about?
Blackmail.
It's a form of mental torture. It's the worst.
Physical torture? It's not so bad.
There's only so much of it you can take, and then eventually, you die.
It's over.
But mental torture?
That's real aggravation. It goes on and on and on.
You got the wire recording.
Why are you withholding evidence from your own client,
if you're not a blackmailer?
Answer that, you putz.
Hey, boss, I think we're in trouble.
What are you talking about?
Smile at the birdies, lady.
WOMAN: Smile.
Now gather your hats and your purses.
The vans are in the back.
Nice and orderly. That's it.
OFFICER: Okay, ladies and gentlemen, right this way.
LOACH: Come on, Gittes.
There you were, consorting with a known hoodlum
under grand jury investigation
and known to be friendly with your client Jake Berman.
So what?
So either you were doing business with Mickey, or...
Or what?
We got a vice officer who swears you approached him
and fondled his privates in the men's room.
How was it?
You'll get a chance to tell everybody at the state board.
Either that, or prove you're not withholding evidence.
How will I do that?
Let us hear the wire recording.
And then you'll decide if it's evidence that I'm withholding.
Get your court order, Loach. It's my private property.
How much are they paying you to suppress it?
Bribery. Conspiracy.
Conspiracy to commit murder.
Maybe not bribery anymore.
Oh?
Maybe he's back to blackmail.
What are you talking about, Loach?
I'm talking about incest.
Incest?
You know, incest.
Like when a father bangs his daughter,
like with dogs and squid.
I'm talking about him extorting money from the Mulwrays
to keep his mouth shut.
Loach, I don't recall anything like that.
All I recall is that your father shot an innocent woman
while their little girl watched him do it.
And what a fine shot it was.
Well, it was a long time ago.
Besides, I wouldn't extort a nickel from my worst enemy.
That's where I draw the line.
Well, I'll tell you, Jake.
I knew a whore once.
For the right amount of money, she'd piss in a guy's face.
But she wouldn't shit on his chest.
See, that's where she drew the line.
Well, junior, all I can say is,
I hope she wasn't too much of a disappointment to you.
Get back! Get back!
Get back or I swear
this motherfucking son of a bitch is gonna suck on this
until he dies!
Now suck it!
Suck it!
Okay.
Suck it.
You pissed your pants, junior.
Maybe you'll need a change.
You're off this case and suspended for 30 days.
And you! When I get through with you,
you're going to wish Loach was back on the case.
Book Mr. Gittes. Then I'll make bail.
Get him out of here.
Get him out of here!
OFFICER: Hey, who the fuck is this asshole?
Just get over there and sit down. Sit down.
WALSH: Some linen supply guys, they're making a delivery.
GITTES: You Mexican piece of ass!
They're making a delivery.
Yeah, Gladys?
It's Mr. Weinberger.
He says it's urgent.
Okay, I'll take it.
Hello, Cotton.
I'm here with Flynn.
GITTES: Give him my best.
Jake says hello.
Hello, Jake.
Well, Escobar got his court order.
When? Just now.
And if you don't produce that wire recording,
you're going to jail till you do.
At least let me have it, Jake. Let me worry about it.
Yeah. I'd better get back to you, Cotton.
Jake...
Jake. Jake, didn't you hear?
Escobar's got his court order.
What did they deliver?
Who? Jake, Escobar is gonna be knocking on that door any minute.
The guys from Bay City Linen, what were they delivering?
It was a chair, wasn't it?
Jeez. I think so.
A chair and some towels.
GITTES: Kitty Berman had said she wouldn't believe
her husband did anything wrong until I delivered proof.
Well, she was going to get what she asked for,
the kind of proof she could sit on.
I don't expect you to remember where this came from.
The police report said the weapon was
a .38 caliber Smith & Wesson Police Special
with a 2-inch barrel, like this.
The chair was delivered to your room at the Bird of Paradise Motel
forty minutes before you arrived by Bay City Linen
right out of the back of one of Mickey's trucks.
Well, Mrs. Berman?
Mrs. Berman?
GITTES: Watch it!
Kitty? Get away from me.
Kitty.
Stay away.
I got a new deal for you.
When you wanna talk,
pick a spot where nobody can sneak up on me
and nail me with Escobar's court order.
Anything else?
And tell Mickey I stole his truck before he tells the cops,
because if they stop me, they'll have enough evidence
to arrest you both.
Murder one.
How do you want to play this, Jake, 20 bucks a hole?
What's the matter? Too rich for you?
Let's cut out the cute bullshit.
We're here to discuss your life.
Let's wait till we get on the course, okay?
I'm a 14 handicap.
Nine.
What the hell. It's my club. I'll play you even. Twenty bucks a hole?
Hell, yes.
Be my guest.
Hell of a shot.
BERMAN: Good bounce.
Nice putt.
Okay.
What's it going to take, 100, 200, 300 grand?
If I don't give it to Escobar, he's gonna put me in jail.
I'll pay your legal fees.
Contempt of court, big fucking deal.
More like conspiracy to commit murder.
Escobar's gonna think I'm trying to cover my ass, not yours.
Jake...
I can make the rest of your life awful easy.
You never know when you're gonna need something extra.
Make it. Fuck.
I'll tell you, nothing beats bad luck, does it?
BERMAN: Okay. What's your deal?
Tell me how you got Katherine Mulwray to give you her land.
She suggested it.
Bodine know that?
Is that why you killed him?
Because he was mousing around asking the same questions I am?
She's alive and well, Jake.
Put me in touch with her. That's all I ask.
I can't do that.
That's the deal.
The deal is you'll turn the wire over to me
at the end of this round, or I'll have you killed.
My money or your life.
Say, Jake.
Ever seen my one
Liberty. Liberty.
LIBERTY: You all right?
Yeah.
Relax. What's wrong?
Remember what I said, Jake.
GITTES: No sign of the wife?
RALPH: No, I haven't seen the wife.
The big guy came out, made a phone call to Nice.
Something about Elsa, radio...
Watch your feet, buddy.
Got dimes?
Just take it easy. You'll be all right.
It's gonna be all right, Jake.
Please hurry. They're waiting for us at the hospital.
Some blonde.
ANNOUNCER ON TV: Okay! New Ajax cleans all bathroom surfaces
of mildew and stains faster.
GITTES: I'm used to seeing the intimate details of people's lives,
but looking at a guy's x-rays is as intimate as it gets.
It's the kind of thing most guys don't even tell their wives about.
Sorry. It has to look like nobody's home.
The D.A.'s still trying to serve me.
Hand over the wire recording.
Pardon me?
Give the recording to the police.
Otherwise, you're in contempt of court. You'll go to jail.
Would you mind if I had a drink, please?
The preliminary hearing's tomorrow.
You've got to answer some questions.
Scotch and soda?
Fine.
There's nothing I can tell you you don't already know.
We'll see.
Thank you.
How is your husband's health?
Fine, obviously.
Anything else?
What did Mark Bodine ask you about Katherine Mulwray?
Well, apparently, she retains the mineral rights
to the subdivision land.
Mark thought they might be valuable.
I guess he was trying to get in touch with her.
I don't remember all that much.
When you're
with somebody like that...
Well, you can imagine.
Yes, I can.
I was honestly unfaithful.
And with a very ambitious man.
So?
Maybe that's why he was killed.
Over mineral rights?
Jake cared about land. He wouldn't kill anybody
over mineral rights. Believe me.
Oh, my God. Linda.
Honey, there's somebody I'd like you to meet.
Please don't bother. I can see you're hard at work.
I don't need any introductions. Don't stop for a thing.
I simply wish to say that I never want to see you
or hear from you again.
I'm sorry.
Not your fault.
That was your fiancee?
Used to be.
Well, I'm sure once you explain everything,
she'll calm down and be okay.
What?
What are you looking at?
Oh. This.
Jake gave it to me. It's stuck.
Let me.
Uh...
What...
What kind of flower is it?
A poppy.
Why is it two colors?
With wildflowers, you can change the color.
You don't say.
The way summer fires do. You simply
scorch the seeds.
Of course, it's not permanent.
Wildflowers are very unstable, so you have to keep scorching them.
Sort of like dyeing your hair.
Exactly.
Otherwise, the color will simply
revert.
I don't get it.
I'm sorry.
All I ever wanted was...
All I ever wanted all these years
was just to see that you hadn't been hurt,
and that you wouldn't be hurt.
I didn't want you to be involved.
I am involved. Your crazy husband saw to that.
I didn't want to give you any reason not to testify.
You said you'd always protect me no matter what.
I knew you would.
What about Jake?
I don't know. He...
I don't know about Jake.
He made me feel I could live a normal life like anybody else.
He was romantic.
He's a murderer, right?
Right.
Hand over the wire recording.
JUDGE: It is the necessary nature of any evidentiary hearing
to tolerate, and even to encourage, some informality.
However, I must remind everyone that we are seeking probable cause
that a capital crime has been committed.
There can be no more serious matter before this court.
Will opposing counsel approach the bench?
Look, we're all a little new to this sort of evidence.
If something isn't clear,
I want the witnesses available to testify as we go.
All right. Thank you.
Will investigators Tilton and Walsh please take the stand?
Your Honor, may I respectfully request that the courtroom be cleared
of all those not directly involved with this case,
due to the delicate nature of the material we're about to hear?
Mr. Weinberger, this is an open public hearing.
Since there are no minors present, we shall continue as we are.
Thank you, Your Honor.
Bailiff?
I must ask for complete silence in the courtroom.
WALSH: Adam Boy Charlie. Adam Boy Charlie.
Lawrence Walsh at the Bird of Paradise Motel,
October 27, 1948. 1300 hours.
I'm based in bedroom one-niner...
KITTY: Honey.
BERMAN: Oh, no, Kitty. How could you...
MARK: What's going on here?
Jake, what the... You told me you were going...
It's different. He's done something to it.
It's procedure.
It's not the same.
BERMAN: It's just where they said I'd find you... 19-H...
The Bird of Paradise Motel... Redondo Beach...
Just take it...
Don't fuck with me, Jake.
How could you With him?
It's not the same.
Not with him! Not with him!
Oh, no, you're not. I'm going... They have changed it.
Get her out of here!
KITTY: Oh, my God!
TILTON: Just calm down, ma'am. Just calm down.
GITTES: Where did that gun come from?
Somebody call an ambulance!
Come on. Get pictures of everything, Larry.
This isn't it!
They've done something to it! Those bastards!
Those... Son of a bitch.
Was that it, Mr. Gittes?
Yes, Your Honor.
Was that Mr. Bodine's voice at the end
saying, "Oh, no, you're not, Jake, I'm going to..."
Something or other?
Yes, Your Honor.
In what context was that statement made?
Having his photos taken by my associate.
And the, "I'm going to" something or other?
Your Honor, I believe that's when Mr. Bodine drew the gun
and tried to stop us.
ESCOBAR: What's he talking about? He wasn't even in the room.
He's lying through his teeth.
Isn't it a fact, Mr. Gittes, that you weren't even in the room?
Objection, Your Honor. What for?
To give Mr. Gittes time to come up with something to say?
Mr. Hannah, if you have something to say,
address the court.
Objection overruled.
You may answer the question, Mr. Gittes.
I'm certain that I was in the room.
I'm not positive where I was when the shots were fired.
Were you, Larry?
Well, Jake, I was under the bed.
Actually, I thought Berman did have the gun first,
but I had no idea where he got it.
Your Honor, I object to the witnesses engaging in this colloquy.
I mean, they weren't even sworn in.
I might add, Your Honor, I find it extremely distracting
to see the district attorney
getting all his objections from Captain Escobar.
Gentlemen, please.
Can we at least agree that there was a gun in the room?
I agree. I hope so, Your Honor.
Very good. Now, to whom was the gun registered?
To the deceased, Mr. Mark Bodine.
Green Parrot Bar and Grill.
Isn't it a fact, Mr. Gittes, that you're out on bail,
having been arrested at the Green Parrot Bar and Grill?
Wait a minute.
Your Honor, the witness has been charged, not convicted.
What's the charge?
The charge?
Yes. The charge.
Well, that Mr. Gittes was fondling
the private parts of a vice officer
in the men's room of the Green Parrot Bar and Grill.
Objection, Your Honor.
I'm with you, Mr. Weinberger.
I have no idea what you thought you could do
with this kind of evidence, Mr. Hannah.
It certainly has no place in my courtroom.
Do yourself a favor.
The next time, you be sure you've got a case.
That's about it for this hearing.
Bailiff, we'll have a short recess
before considering the next matter.
GITTES: Maybe I didn't tell the whole truth
at the preliminary hearing.
But there's one thing I've learned about the truth,
a little bit goes a long way.
And splashing Katherine Mulwray's past
all over the LA Times
wouldn't do anybody any good.
That's one truth Jake and I had in common.
Berman's x-rays said more than
a couple of missing words on a wire recording.
What's the difference who passes the sentence,
a doctor or a judge?
This way, Katherine can deal with her ghosts in private
and I can try to tell myself I kept my promise.
But that's the problem with the past,
there's always plenty more where that came from.
You want to see it again?
What's new?
We're going into the model. Keep customers out for a while.
MICKEY: Sure.
Believe it or not, I thought I was doing something here,
giving G.I.'s and couples their first home.
Tell you this, they're the only tract homes in the valley,
G.I. or not, with lath and plaster and hardwood floors.
Is that right?
They're built to last.
For a while, anyway.
There was a time, a few years ago,
when Kitty and I had a cash problem.
For us to own our own home was a dream.
I figured you got hold of those.
Mark Bodine have any idea how sick you were?
I didn't know myself till a few days ago.
Elsa told me the radium and... She's the doctor.
The radium implants weren't working.
Months of aggravation, with my skin breaking out and itching,
and trying to keep it from Kitty.
And I'm still riddled with this drek.
So the only thing that Bodine was blackmailing you about was
Katherine Mulwray?
How did he find out who your wife was?
Oh, for some reason, he was checking out
the mineral rights on the land,
found the quitclaim to Mickey and got hold of the notary public.
He threatened to expose her
if I didn't have her sign over the mineral rights,
dump the subdivision in his lap.
Knowing that vantz,
I figured he'd do it after I was dead anyway.
Well, he was in it for a lot more than that.
Everything okay?
Yeah.
How much do you want for those?
How much do you think I want for those?
Kitty tell you who she was?
No.
Then how did you find out?
I just did my job.
She couldn't tell you, Jake.
And she didn't know what I was doing.
I was too afraid to tell her I was this sick.
If she had known, none of this would have happened.
It's my fault.
I wouldn't undress in front of her. I slept in the den.
She thought...
She thought I lost interest in her.
Jake...
We wanted to have a baby.
She was devastated, Jake.
You know Kitty.
She was looking for assurance from somebody,
and, as it happened, Mark was there looking for her.
Well, you took a hell of a chance hiring me.
Nothing like the chance Bodine would talk about Kitty.
And besides, there was something else.
What's that?
He was fucking my wife.
Come on, Jake!
Jake! Come on, Jake!
Are you all right, Jake?
Yeah.
Come on, Jake. Let's get out of here.
Wait a second. Better check...
Look at the crapper. See the crapper.
There's stuff coming out of the toilet,
the sink, the shower.
I don't know. Just take a look.
Jesus, he's right. There's shit everywhere.
That's expensive shit.
You're telling me.
I'm gonna have more lawsuits than Carter has liver pills.
That's oil.
That's what Rawley and Bodine have been after.
They're drilling under your subdivision to get it, Jake.
My oil?
Not for long, if we don't get out of here. Come on, Jake.
Then it's Kitty's?
Come on, Jake.
I'm gonna stick around and have a smoke.
What?
Would you want an autopsy if you were me?
That wouldn't be so good for Kitty, would it?
Got a light?
Go ahead.
Give him the light.
Get out of here. Go on.
Get out of here. Get out.
BERMAN ON TAPE RECORDER: Dear Kitty,
I can't face you with this.
I guess from the day we met, all I ever really wanted
was to know I could take care of you
and that you would love me and think well of me.
So naturally, I haven't liked being reminded
I can't take care of you or protect you much longer.
You remind me about that more than anybody.
All you have to do is walk into a room
or look like you need help opening up a can of soup
or buttoning the back of your dress.
If I hurt you, honey...
Just try and forgive me.
It's been rough
knowing I wouldn't be able to keep anybody from hurting you.
I love you, Kitty.
That son of a bitch.
What the hell does he mean,
he doesn't feel he could face me with this?
I think he means...
Why didn't you tell me?
I thought he should tell you himself.
Could you...
What?
Could you...
What? Anything.
Open the window.
Yeah. I can do that.
Thank you.
Jake.
Mrs. Berman, if you want to talk to him,
sometimes I think that's the best thing.
I don't have to listen.
Jake.
Mrs. Berman?
Does it ever go away?
What's that?
The
past.
Well...
I think you have to work real hard on that one.
I can't do it alone.
I don't suppose you'll have to.
That's wrong.
Don't be too sure.
That's your problem, kid.
You don't know who you're kidding.
You take too good a care of me, Mr. Gittes.
Well, it's a tough habit to break.
Think of me from time to time.
(DOOR CLOSING)
Katherine!
It never goes away.
In the night
Though we're apart
There's a ghost of you
Within my haunted heart
Ghost of you
My lost romance
Lips that laugh
Eyes that dance
Haunted heart
Won't let me be
Dreams repeat a sweet
But lonely song to me
Dreams are dust
It's you who must belong to me
And thrill
My haunted heart
Be still
My haunted heart
In the night
Though we're apart
There's a ghost of you
Within my haunted heart
Ghost of you
My lost romance
And thrill
My haunted heart
Be still
My haunted heart
Dreams are dust
It's you who must belong to me
And thrill
My haunted heart
Be still
My haunted heart