Voila! Finally, the The Two Jakes
script is here for all you quotes spouting fans of the movie sequel to
Chinatown with Jack Nicholson. This script is a transcript that was painstakingly
transcribed using the screenplay and/or viewings of The Two Jakes. I know, I know, I still need to get the cast names in there and I'll be eternally
tweaking it, so if you have any corrections, feel free to
drop me a line. You won't
hurt my feelings. Honest.
I suppose it's fair to say
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.
Oh, no!
No, Kitty. How could you?
You said you were going to
the beauty parlour in Hollywood,
and now I find you here
where they said I'd find you,
in room -H of the...
Bird of Paradise Motel.
...of the Bird of Paradise Motel
in Redondo Beach,
at two in the afternoon on
October th, 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.
My lawyer said to be very specific...
We'll establish the date. Just...
It's an earthquake.
- Relax.
- Mr Gittes? Did you feel that?
Yes, Gladys, we felt it.
Everybody all right?
- Right.
- Are we OK?
Relax, Mr Berman.
It's just a temblor.
A trembler?
A temblor.
I know how edgy you must be, Julius.
- My friends call me Jake.
- 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 one o'clock.
If I'm not ready to tee off at :
they'll break every club in my bag.
You're kidding. That's terrible.
The Wilshire Country Club.
I'm lucky they let me join.
I know what you mean.
Please, Mr Berm...
Jake... Go ahead.
No, Kitty, how could you? You said
you were going to the beauty parlour,
and now I find you here,
where they said I'd find you,
in room -H of the Bird of Paradise
Motel in Redondo Beach,
at two in the afternoon
with this man.
- Kitty, how could you?
- What's going on?
You said were going
to the beauty parlour...
What will this prove?
...room -H of the Bird of Paradise
Motel in Redondo Beach, with him!
How could you, Kitty?
How could you?!
With him?! Not with him!
Not with him! Not with him!
Get her out of here!
Damn!
What the fuck... hey!
What the fuck...?
- Damn!
- Just calm down, ma'am.
Where'd that gun come from?
Somebody call an ambulance!
Come on. Get pictures
of everything, Larry.
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,
but Lou lost a leg with
the first Marines at Guadalcanal.
He knows about regrets and how life
doesn't give you a fair shake.
You can't trust a guy
who's never lost anything.
How's that, Lou?
Your client shot a guy
right out of the saddle.
I never had anything like that
happen before,
not with me 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 two shots through the door.
- Maybe they 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.
I got an appointment at eight o'clock
at Perino's with Linda.
I'll give you an escort. Where
did Berman get hold of the gun?
- In the bedroom.
- In the bedroom.
How do you know
he didn't have the gun?
I'd never frisk him
before I let him walk in on his wife
while some guy was slamming her
into the wall...
Just asking you, Jake.
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.
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
if I should've made Captain.
For your th year,
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.
You're just the man I want to see.
I can't. I got asked to leave.
- Is that true?
- Yes, Mr Weinberger.
- Answer the phone, please.
- Get the phone.
Homicide. Lieutenant Loach,
it's... for him. 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...
two-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 another 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?
Cotton was right.
We should have turned up B & B Homes.
Maybe Berman's partner
would still be chasing his wife
instead of cooling his dick
at the County Morgue.
So my client didn't level with me.
Not exactly 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.
If I waited for an honest client,
I'd be sitting around
until Rocky Graziano played
Rachmaninoff at the Hollywood Bowl.
- Lucy, what's going on?
- I don't know, Mr Gittes.
I wouldn't go in there if I was you.
What are you doing to that woman?
Let go this instant!
- Ralph!
- Oh, my God! Don't you touch me!
My goodness.
I'm terribly, terribly sorry.
- I know how difficult this must be.
- Yeah.
- It must hurt you so.
- Yes, it does.
Everything will be fine.
Just rest for a moment.
See? All right.
Scotch.
All right. Who the fuck is that?
- Mark Bodine's widow.
- Who?
The wife of the guy Jake Berman shot.
Yeah.
- She knows you were there.
- So what? So was Mrs Berman.
Why isn't she breaking her house up?
It'd be more appropriate.
She wants to talk to you.
You're a war hero.
You may be slick as a floorwalker,
but you and that little kike killed
my husband, you son of a bitch!
Get my lawyer on the phone.
They're not gonna
get away with this.
If you were there, you would've
known that when Mr Berman
saw Mrs Berman in bed with your
husband, he lost his head.
That prick never lost his head
or his first nickel. 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
to call the newspapers.
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.
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.
- Yeah, sure.
Look. When you get her back there,
take her in through the window
or the side door.
Stay till she sobers up. Papers'll be
jumping all over the lawn like flies.
- Like the song says, till then.
- Yeah, sure.
Your tuxedo is laid out
and your private phone line is on.
- Thank you, Gladys. Good night.
- Good night.
Bird of Paradise Motel,
October hours.
I'm based in bedroom one...
OK, Ralph... on the bed?
- Mayday. Bail out.
- What's wrong?
Some linen supply guys are making
a delivery right outside your door.
They're making a delivery...
- Yeah?
- Hi, kid. Got the wire recording?
- Right here. You want to hear it?
- Yeah.
Kitty, how could you?
You said you were going to
the beauty parlour in Hollywood...
Jake, for Christ's sake,
are you there? Are you OK, Jake?
Yeah, I'm fine.
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 blocks,
and I'll have
the LAPD all over my ass.
Stay till the power's on and
put the recording back in the safe.
I just want to go
over it before the police do.
- Is that it?
- We've done business many years.
And we'll keep doing business
so long as you protect
your client and mine, Jake Berman.
- Cotton.
- What?
Thank you. Fuck you.
Thank you, Jake.
Always a pleasure doing business.
Honey.
Kitty, there's a... woman
who can give "akey" a bad time,
and you know who.
Honey, I think you do know. We're
talking about Katherine Mulwray.
Mark, not again.
Kitty, Katherine Mulwray can give
Jake a real bad time.
I'm telling you, she retains
rights to the subdivision,
and if I can get to her I can prove
Jake has taken advantage of the land.
- We could all strike it rich.
- Just hold me. Hold me.
Just help talk Jake into...
Kitty, there's a... woman
who can give "akey" a bad time,
and you know who.
Honey, I think you do know. We're
talking about Katherine Mulwray.
Mark, not again.
Kitty, Katherine Mulwray can give
Jake a real bad time.
I'm telling you, she
retains rights to the subdivision,
and if I can get to her I can prove
Jake has taken advantage of the land.
We could all strike it rich.
I've spent half the night
at Perino's waiting for you.
- My God. Linda.
- What have you been doing?
- Nothing. Just an emergency.
- A nothing emergency?
That I'd like to hear about sometime.
Maybe you'll tell me in another life.
- What are you talking about?
- No, Kitty. How could you?
You said you were going to
the beauty parlour in Hollywood...
What'll this prove?
...in room -H of the Bird of
Paradise Motel in Redondo Beach!
Hello, darling. I'll be right there.
I can explain everything.
Are you at Perino's?
Would I be answering my own phone
if I were? You jackass.
Honey, I'm so sorry.
I'll be right there.
- 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.
- She's fine. Ralph's with her.
- Ralph? Jesus Christ.
All right, Mrs Bodine.
What did you take?
It's enough to make you wanna 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?
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 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 did business
with a San Fernando subdivision,
but it was not an association
either man trusted.
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 $ million profit,
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.
All right. Fine.
- Here. Keep them.
- Thanks.
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 going
to 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.
Jesus!
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.
That doesn't mean anything.
It could have been just gossip.
Coulda.
See the Pontiac
auto show at your dealer now.
Pontiac. Fine car.
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
since the first Spanish missionaries
showed the Indians the benefits
of religion, horses,
and a few years of forced labour.
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 gonna set one off.
The clues that keep you on 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.
In the tune you can't stop humming,
that you never heard in your life.
They're at the wrong number you dial
in the middle of the night.
The signs are in
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 have been wise to Berman's
hand-wringing act from the beginning.
It was as plain
as the shoes on his feet.
What do you call four
drowning Mexicans? Quattro 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 is Eucalyptus Place.
And there is .
- With you in a moment.
- OK, no problem.
I'm sure you're gonna love
living in El Rancho San Fernando.
- We sure are.
- Thank you.
You know who else
couldn't buy a house here? Me.
I can build it and I can sell it,
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? Don't you mean divorce?
Yeah. That, too.
Your wife is a
possible accessory in this.
- To what?
- Come on.
You pick the one time you can
murder a man and make him pay for it?
- One way or the other, she helped.
- Stay away from my wife, or else.
I recognise that as a valid threat
coming from you,
but the police will think
the same thing -
you murdered your partner
for his half of the subdivision
and $ or $ million to which you and
your wife are now legally entitled.
Ty, what's the problem?
Tyrone Otley, JJ Gittes.
I know Mr Gittes from the DWP
when I worked for Hollis Mulwray.
It's the same problem.
These earthquakes are shaking up
our water wells like soda pop.
Only it's not soda pop.
Millions of gallons of water
and gas under these homes.
It's getting hazardous.
- What do you mean, hazardous?
- Could explode.
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 going to...
build homes with the gas company
drilling holes in the ground?
Where were we?
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 Nelly horseshit
you gave me in my office?
I'm telling you,
I was genuinely nervous.
It's upsetting when your wife's
involved with a strange man.
You didn't know it was your partner?
How should I know? You didn't.
If it was my partner and my wife,
I would've known.
That's your business. I'm not
complaining. 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?
That's Cotton's job.
You think you'll 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 share of the subdivision
so I don't worry about the police,
and you won't worry about me.
Otherwise, I'll 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.
You might think you know...
How long have you been here?
Jake, you'd 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.
- You should lie down and...
- Who are you?
Kitty Berman.
Sorry, Mrs Berman, I...
I didn't recognise you.
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.
Jake, please.
I think there's something you should
do before you ask any more questions.
What's that?
Get your head examined.
You may not be thinking clearly.
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.
Mr Weinberger,
Lieutenant Loach again,
Mr Novak, Mr Weinberger again,
and a Mr Oatley.
- Oatley?
- Tyrone.
- Otley.
- Gosh dang it. Otley.
Gittes Investigations.
It's Lieutenant Loach.
It sounds serious.
Gladys, it's only serious
if it's Escobar.
- Mr Gittes isn't in...
- You were tailing Berman.
Ralph is. I thought
you were going to see a doctor.
First thing in the morning.
You just had your bell rung
pretty good, Jake.
- Yeah.
- Captain Escobar. It's serious.
- Take a message.
- He's after the recording.
- He doesn't even know we have it.
- Are you going to lie to him?
Would I lie to him?
When was the last time
you saw the Mulwray girl?
She must have been years old.
People can get in a lot of trouble
in that amount of time.
I'd have heard.
She ever send a bottle of Scotch
saying, "Welcome home, sailor"?
How about a fruitcake
for Christmas? A postcard?
Cripes, 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?
- OK. I'll check the land title.
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.
- Six. Marrying a wonderful girl.
Why don't you go see a doctor?
Put that file away.
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.
- I see you survived the war.
- 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.
- 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.
- Is a 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.
Odd flowers.
Yes. Isn't it amazing
they still grow here?
It's her favourite. She bred them.
You see those purple hues?
They're caused by
the burning of the seed.
This is how I remember her last.
Where did she go from here? If she's
in trouble, I just wanna help her.
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.
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
which they fear most.
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.
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 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.
I guess we got the jump on everyone.
Liberty Levine,
say hello to Jake Gittes.
Liberty Levine?
He can wrap his fist around
a roll of silver dollars.
- What's this?
- It's a hand grenade.
You ought to know that.
You're a war hero. See?
Don't let go of the handle.
You only have 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, he wants the Berman
wire recording, by tomorrow.
Otherwise, he's coming 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 favour.
Favour?
I think that the Berman
wire recording is in your safe.
So what I want you to do is open the
safe, drop the grenade in the safe,
and then, most important
of all, close the safe.
- You're crazy, Mickey.
- That may be.
But do you know a better way
to stay healthy?
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 going to have
to give you a serious reprimand.
I'm shedding all over the place.
I'm sorry.
Lie back.
Mickey do this to you?
I thought so. I saw he and Liberty
going down as I was coming up.
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?
They grew up together in
Boyle Heights. They're best friends.
What can I do for you?
Testify that Berman knew his wife
was in bed with his business partner.
Just that one little thing?
And I hear you have a recording that
proves Berman murdered my husband.
That's what they say,
but I'm not sure it proves anything.
Anyway, I'd like it.
- Mrs Bodine...
- Lillian.
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.
Then I'll hire you.
Prove Berman planned it.
- Lillian, just listen...
- No! Put the weasel in jail.
Nothing else matters.
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.
That's what your lawyer told you
to say to six million bucks?
Yes.
- You always do what he 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?
He was a friend of Mark's.
That's how I met Mattie.
Tell you what I'm gonna do.
You can't have the recording,
but you can listen to it.
Mark and Kitty... talk on it?
Mainly, yeah.
If you're not up to this,
I'll understand.
I'm up to it.
All right?
Adam boy charlie, adam boy charlie.
Lawrence Walsh.
- Mayday, bail out.
- What's wrong?
Some linen supply guys are making
a delivery right outside your door.
They're making a delivery...
Honey.
Kitty, there's a woman who can give
"akey" a bad time, and you know who.
Does that mean something to you -
"akey"?
Mark called Berman Jakey sometimes.
Kitty, there's a 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.
- Mark, not again.
- Kitty, I'm telling you...
Sounds like he thinks this Katherine
could give Berman a hard time.
Did Mark ever mention her to you?
Mark never talked about women
with me. He was a chaser.
And he never had to run very far.
If I get to her I can prove Jake has
taken advantage of the land.
- We could all strike it rich.
- Just hold me. Hold me.
- See what I mean?
- About what?
Did you ever hear of whipstocking?
Whips and stockings? God damn it.
That son of a bitch was...
Lillian, just calm down.
I always knew that Kitty
was a perverted little snat.
- Kitty, how could you?
- Don't let it start.
...to the beauty parlour...
- Don't let me hear. It's coming.
Don't let me hear.
No, don't let me hear!
God damn it, you son of a bitch,
don't let me hear!
I don't want to hear any more!
All right.
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.
Don't make me do it.
Don't make me do it. Don't...
You're going to make me do it,
aren't you?
You're going to make me.
You're going to make me.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Yeah, I am. All right.
Take the rest of
that goddamned thing off.
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.
I did come across some documents.
You've met Mrs Bodine.
Lawrence Walsh, my oldest associate.
Mrs Bodine and I have been having
a lengthy consultation, and...
I see.
Going over a number of matters.
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.
You got to admit it was generous
of Katherine to 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.
I'm at the Bay City Laundry, corner
of Little Washington and Venice.
Somebody's following Berman
besides me.
- Probably the cops.
- No. It's a guy in a tan Studebaker.
- Not the cops?
- No.
All right. Stick with Berman. Get a
number on the Studey. I'm on my way.
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?
- Is that the tail?
- Yeah.
Stay with Berman, I'll cover
the mouthpiece. You got dimes?
Sometimes it's best
to follow the piece that doesn't fit.
Chuck Newty wouldn't do anything
he couldn't charge $ an hour for,
so he wouldn't shadow Berman
without a client.
You can follow the action,
which gets you good pictures.
You can follow your instincts,
which'll probably get you in trouble.
Or you can follow the money,
which nine times out of ten
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?
In a certain
Jose Longuinez Martinez,
while travelling through
the Pueblo de Los Angeles,
found a great lake of pitch,
with many pools in which blisters
were continually rising and falling.
In hot weather, animals looking for
water were seen sinking into the tar.
Their cries
would attract predators.
We pulled a million specimens
from two 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.
miles long, 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.
- Lovely speech you gave the ladies.
- Thank you.
LA, the greatest
lake of oil on earth there is.
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.
After the explosion,
I was concerned.
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?
Brother... Berman... Levine...
Some woman, blonde.
This the clearest you got?
- Well, yeah.
- Did you follow her?
What for?
You told me to follow Berman.
Berman had a two o'clock appointment
at his lawyer's.
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 Teel.
You remember her, don't you?
Rubber gloves, you bet.
There he goes. She's alone now.
Better hurry up and get in there.
Miss Teel, 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.
- 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 the 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 her husband's entitled to.
- All she wants is the recording.
- I find that difficult to believe.
Look, you may have a worldly wise
veneer but I got ties older than you.
Mrs Bodine thinks your husband
ought to be in jail,
that the recording proves
your husband's a murderer.
If she's right, I wanna tell
the police before they tell me.
I am sure my husband did what he did
because he loves me.
And suppose you're wrong, I'm wrong.
Suppose he didn't kill
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.
I don't know
what that possibly could be.
Would it surprise you to know 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 will a jury think of that?
- Who is this woman?
Mrs Berman, wouldn't you like to know
one way or the other?
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.
It may not be what you need to know.
- Who is it?
- It's the colourist.
- Come back a little later, please.
- Fine.
Mr Gittes, I want to remind you
that 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.
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.
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.
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.
Dolores, 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.
No. He's married.
Not any more. Thank you.
Good of Mr Rawley to see me
on such short notice.
He's looking forward to it.
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 sulphur.
Chuck here said you want
to talk to me about Mattie.
Not exactly. I was hoping
you could help me with Lillian.
That's up to Chuck
and my wife Mattie.
- That's really none of my business.
- None of your business?
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 don't...
- Excuse us a little bit. Thank you.
Before Mark got killed, he became
aware of Berman's other associates.
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.
Not too frightened to sleep
with Berman's wife.
Tell you what we'll do, John.
You tell me what the hell
you think's going on,
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 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 want to know why?
Look up and down the coast.
Summerland, Huntington Beach, Bolsa
Chica-that's where the oil is.
That's where it's juicy, out there.
It ain't feet inland,
down through 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 cars.
Without cars,
you got no road construction,
no sidewalks, no city lights, no gas
stations, no automotive service,
and no Berman subdivision out in the
tules because nobody can get there.
Then Mr Berman's out of business
before he even gets in.
The name of the game is oil, John.
That don't go here, Oren.
Take it up to hill .
Back to !
What's that for?
- Did you ever breed any horses?
- Can't say that I have, no.
It's like helping a stallion
mount a mare.
Whipstocking is something you do
to coax the drilling bit
in the right direction.
After you've gone
to all that trouble,
you wouldn't want your big fella
to miss what he was aiming at.
I know what your time's worth, John,
and I'll take care of you.
Just don't let me down.
Old Cactus Earl 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, any time after ten.
- Are you all right, honey?
- Honey? What did you say?
Good evening. May I help you?
- No. I'd like to sit at the bar.
- Fine.
- Can I help you, sir?
- Johnny Walker Black, straight up.
- Soda back?
- Yeah, thanks.
Mr Gittes.
I'm so glad you could make it.
Tyrone, what's on your mind?
A Go-Devil underground camera tells
which direction you're drilling.
- Take it easy, Ty.
- This is the 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 talking about oil here, Ty?
- Obviously.
Mr Rawley believes there's oil
under the subdivision.
He's endangering lives, drilling
with all the seismic activity.
He's whipstocking.
Someone has got to stop him!
I can't do that, Ty. Nobody can.
Guys like Rawley don't get arrested,
they get streets named after them.
In this situation,
it's best to leave it alone.
Rawley stealing from Berman is the
big thief stealing from the little.
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 it. What's your excuse?
- I got a date.
- Be a gentleman and excuse yourself.
Come on, nudnik.
Look around.
What do you see? Strictly class.
Polite. Big tippers.
And they're nice to the help.
If the cops didn't keep
bumping up the payoff,
this would be
the best business I got.
What business you got
with Jake Berman?
- He's per cent 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?
- It's a form of mental torture.
It's the worst.
Physical torture? It's not so bad.
There's only so much 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.
- Boss, I think we're in trouble.
- What are you talking about?
Smile at the birdies, ladies.
Now gather your hats and your purses.
The vans are in the back.
Nice and orderly. That's it.
I'm telling you, Sergeant,
I just stopped in for a quick drink.
You were consorting with a hoodlum
under grand jury investigation,
- Known to be Jake Berman's friend?
- 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.
Then you'll decide if it's evidence
that I'm withholding?
Get your court order.
It's private property.
How much are you paid to suppress it?
Bribery. Conspiracy.
Conspiracy to commit murder.
Maybe not bribery any more.
Maybe he's back to blackmail.
- What are you talking about, Loach?
- I'm talking about incest.
Incest?
Incest, like when a father bangs his
daughter, like with dogs and squid.
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.
- And what a fine shot it was.
It was a long time ago.
Besides, I wouldn't extort a nickel
from my worst enemy.
That's where I draw the line.
I'll tell you, Jake.
I knew a whore once. For the right
money, she'd piss in a guy's face.
But she wouldn't shit on his chest.
That's where she drew the line.
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
this motherfucking son of a bitch...
...will suck on this until he dies!
Now, suck it! Suck it!
- OK.
- Suck it.
You pissed your pants, Junior.
Maybe you need a change.
You're off this case
and suspended for days. And you!
When I get through with you, you'll
wish Loach was back on the case.
Book Mr Gittes. Let him make bail.
Get him out of here.
- Get him out of here!
- Get your hands off me!
Get over there and sit down.
Sit down.
Some linen supply guys,
they're making a delivery.
Right outside your door.
They're making... delivery.
- Yeah, Gladys?
- It's Mr Weinberger.
- He says it's urgent.
- I'll take it.
- Hello, Cotton.
- I'm here with Flynn.
- Give him my best.
- Jake says hello.
- Escobar got his court order.
- When?
Just now. If you don't produce that
wire recording, you're going to jail.
At least let me have it, Jake.
Let me worry about it.
Yeah. I'd better
get back to you, Cotton.
Jake, didn't you hear?
Escobar's got his court order.
- What did they deliver?
- Escobar's gonna be here any minute.
The guys from Bay City Linen.
What were they delivering?
It was a chair, wasn't it?
I think so.
A chair and some towels.
Kitty Berman
had said she wouldn't believe
her husband did anything wrong
until I delivered proof.
She was gonna 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. Smith & Wesson police special,
with a -inch barrel, like this.
The chair was delivered to your room
at the Bird of Paradise Motel
minutes before you arrived
by Bay City Linen,
right out of the back
of one of Mickey's trucks.
Well, Mrs Berman? Mrs Berman?
Watch it!
- Kitty?
- Get away from me.
- Kitty.
- Stay away.
I got a new deal for you.
When you want to talk, pick a spot
where nobody can sneak up on me
and nail me with
Escobar's court order.
- Anything else?
- 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?
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
out on the course.
- I'm a handicap.
- Nine.
What the hell. It's my club.
I'll play you even. bucks a hole?
- Hell, yes.
- Be my guest.
Hell of a shot.
Good bounce.
Nice putt.
What's it going to take?
grand?
If I don't give it to Escobar,
he'll 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.
I can make the
rest of your life awful easy.
You never know when
you're gonna need something extra.
I tell you,
nothing beats bad luck, does it?
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? Cos he
was 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 give me the wire
at the end of this round,
or I'll have you killed.
My money or your life.
Ever seen my one-legged golfer?
You all right?
Just relax.
- What's wrong?
- Remember what I said, Jake.
- No sign of the wife?
- No, I haven't seen the wife.
The big guy came out, called Nice,
something about Elsa, radio...
- Watch your feet, buddy.
- Got dimes?
Take it easy. You'll be all right.
You're gonna be all right, Jake.
Please hurry.
They're waiting at the hospital.
Some blonde.
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 DA'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?
- 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's your husband's health?
Fine, obviously. Anything else?
What did Mark Bodine ask you
about Katherine Mulwray?
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... Jake cared about land.
He wouldn't kill anybody over
mineral rights. Believe me.
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 or hear from you again.
I'm sorry.
Not your fault.
- That was your fiancée?
- Used to be.
I'm sure once you explain everything,
she'll calm down and be OK.
What?
What are you looking at?
This. Jake gave it to me.
- It's stuck.
- Let me.
- What kind of flower is it?
- A poppy.
Why is it two colours?
With wild flowers,
you can change the colour.
You don't say.
The way summer fires do,
you simply scorch the seeds.
Of course, it's not permanent.
Wild flowers are very unstable,
so you have to keep scorching them.
Sort of like dying your hair.
Exactly. Otherwise,
the colour 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.
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.
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?
We're all a little new
to this sort of evidence.
If something isn't clear, I want
the witnesses to testify as we go.
All right. Thank you.
Will investigators Tilton and Walsh
please take the stand?
Your Honour, 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?
This is an open public hearing.
Since there are no minors present,
we shall continue as we are.
- Thank you, Your Honour.
- Bailiff?
I must ask for complete silence
in the courtroom.
Adam boy charlie.
Adam boy charlie.
Lawrence Walsh
at the Bird of Paradise Motel,
October hours.
I'm based in bedroom one...
Honey.
No, Kitty. How could you...
- What's going on here?
- You said you were going...
It's different.
He's done something to it.
- It's procedural.
- It's not the same.
It's just where
they said I'd find you...
Room -H... the Bird of
Paradise Motel... Redondo Beach...
Just take it easy.
Don't fuck with me, Jake.
How could you?
How could you? With him?!
It's not the same.
- Not with him!
- They have changed it.
Get her out of here!
- Just calm down, ma'am.
- Where'd 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!
Bastards! Those... Son of a bitch!
- Was that it, Mr Gittes?
- Yes, Your Honour.
Was that Mr Bodine's voice at the end
saying, "No, you're not,
Jake, I'm going to..." something?
Yes, Your Honour.
In what context
was that statement made?
Having his photos taken
by my associate.
And the "I'm going to..." something?
I believe that's when Mr Bodine
drew the gun and tried to stop us.
- What? He wasn't even in the room.
- He's lying through his teeth.
Isn't it a fact that
you weren't even in the room?
Objection!
To give Mr Gittes time
to invent something to say?
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?
- I was under the bed.
I thought Berman had the gun first,
but I didn't know where he got it.
Your Honour, I object to the
witnesses engaging in this colloquy.
They weren't even sworn in.
I find it distracting
to see the District Attorney
getting his objections from Escobar.
Gentlemen, please.
Can we at least agree
there was a gun?
- I agree.
- I hope so.
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 you're out on bail,
having been arrested
at the Green Parrot Bar and Grill?
Wait a minute. The witness
has been charged, not convicted.
- What's the charge?
- The charge?
- The charge.
- Well, that...
Mr Gittes was fondling
the private parts of a vice officer
in the men's room
of the Green Parrot.
- Objection, Your Honour.
- I'm with you, Mr Weinberger.
I have no idea
what you thought you could do
with this kind of evidence,
Mr Hannah.
It has no place in my courtroom.
Do yourself a favour.
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 the next matter.
Maybe I didn't tell
the whole truth at the hearing.
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 some
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'll be in the model,
keep customers out.
Sure.
Believe it or not,
I thought I was doing something here,
giving Gls and couples
their first home.
They're the only tract
homes in the Valley, GI 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 are?
I didn't know myself
till a few days ago.
Elsa told me the radium
- She's the doctor -
...the radium implants
weren't working.
Vay iz mir. 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 Bodine was only blackmailing you
about Katherine Mulwray?
How did he find out
who your wife was?
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 she
didn't 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.
He was in it
for a lot more than that.
Everything OK?
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 sick.
If she had known,
none of this would have happened.
It's my fault.
I didn't want to undress
in front of her, I slept in the den.
She thought I'd lost interest in her.
We wanted to have a baby.
She was devastated, Jake.
You know our Kitty.
She was looking for assurance
from somebody
and as it happened,
Mark was there looking for her.
You took a hell of a chance
hiring me.
Nothing like the chance Bodine
would talk about Kitty.
- Besides, there was something else.
- What's that?
He was fucking my wife.
Come on, Jake!
Come on, Jake!
Are you all right, Jake?
Come on, Jake. Let's get out of here.
Wait a second. Better check...
Look at 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.
Yeah, I'll have more lawsuits
than Carter has liver pills.
That's oil. It'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 stay and have a smoke.
- What?
Would you want an autopsy
if you were me?
That wouldn't be so good for Kitty.
Got a light?
Go ahead. Give him the light.
Get out of here. Go on.
Get out of here. Get out.
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...
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 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.
Mrs Berman,
if you want to talk to him,
sometimes I think that's the best
thing. I don't have to listen.
Does it ever go away?
- What's that?
- The past.
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.
It's a tough habit to break.
Think of me from time to time.
It never goes away.