East of Middle West (2021) Movie Script

Good morning.

For the record, this hearing

will be conducted

via video conference call

as you're currently being held

in the Fort Madison

correctional facility

and will be recorded.

First, I'd like

to thank Ms. Royer

of the Iowa District

Attorney's Office.

I'm being joined

by Ms. Fancher and Mr. Davidson.

Now, is this our understanding

before we begin

you'd like to make a statement.

I know that some things

are done on purpose

and some things

are done on accident.

Part of me thinks that

I shouldn't even be here.

What I did...

What I did was wrong.

I wish that I could

take back that day.

But I can't.

I tried blaming everyone else

but it was me.

I killed them.

Shit.

-Let me see it.

-Mom, it's still hot.

No, I know.

Ow! Shit!

You know, she probably

didn't even write a will.

She's got that big old property

that she didn't do shit with.

Wouldn't even occur to her

to leave it to her only kin.

-I don't think it was that bad.

-Sweetie,

you are too young

to remember. Stop lying.

If you hated her so much,

why are we going?

I don't hate her.

She's my sister.

I can't not go.

Besides, it's bad enough

people won't shut up

about what your father did.

-He was your husband.

-Hey.

Okay, try it now.

It's the damn battery.

We've come here today

not because of a death

but because

of a life well lived.

One lived with truth.

That is something we should

remember about death.

Besides, we don't know

when it comes.

We must have said all we can say

before that day.

When that time comes...

Aunt Addie was

different from my mom.

She used to tell me

I wasn't gonna grow up

to be like my dad.

He used think she was right.

I'm only known in this town

because my dad is the only

person serving a life sentence.

It's like everyone knows

the worst thing about you

before you even open your mouth.

What's your deal?

-Why'd she leave?

-Oh.

An allergic reaction?

I guess it was her time.

-I don't know.

-No. I, I mean,

why'd she leave town?

-What?

-You guys both grew up here,

why'd she go?

I don't know, Chris.

She was always kinda odd.

She probably left thinking that

she would fit in somewhere.

I've excused you for

the first part of the day.

I don't need to get

a call from the school...

-Mom.

-...telling me that

you skipped again.

I know!

Hey.

-What?

-Good luck at the game tonight.

I promise I'll be there, okay?

Yeah.

How about we ask Freeman's dad

about how long it takes

for bones to decompose?

Where's your school spirit,

Freeman?

Whoo!

Hey.

I'm sorry.

I stopped to have

a quick drink with Craig

and then this car

wouldn't start.

Anyway-- Hey, do you know Craig?

Plumber?

He's not a plumber.

He's a contractor.

-He cleans our toilet.

-He does not clean our toilet.

He fixed the bathroom.

I hate our bathroom.

It looks like shit.

He's coming over tonight

to watch a movie.

You think maybe you could go

hang out with your friends?

I need to get beer

and scratchers.

You know, you don't have

to make me feel so bad

for trying to have a life.

You could be doing

the same thing.

Freeman.

Something new?

I'll tell you what.

Put some hair on that chest.

Go on.

Drink up.

I'll take that, thank you.

We're gonna have a beer and run.

Let's go.

Coming?

Let's go.

Whoo!

Hey, there's one right here.

- Hey!

- Hey, hey, hey, hey!

Hey, hey, hey!

Whoo!

Had your back there, Freeman.

Here you go.

It's all right here.

- Come on.

- Whoo!

Alright, I gotta grab something.

Let's go.

Was that a-- Was that a 9mm?

No, it's whiskey.

No, no, the, the gun.

Oh, you had a gun?

No.

My, my dad has a gun, though.

He-- That he keeps

under his pillow.

Cool.

-I shot it once.

-Hmm.

He, uh, he came home

like super drunk

and my mom was screaming

so I, I--

I, I shot it in the air.

Why didn't you shoot him?

What the hell did you

get a turkey for?

To blow up.

Yeah!

My God, Freeman.

You need another one?

- Sure, yeah.

- Here you go.

Here you go.

It's all right here.

Whoo! Hey, we got one!

Hey, hey!

Whoo!

I'm tired of throwing cans!

Wanna throw some punches.

How about you, Freeman?

You wanna beat some ass?

Who are we fighting?

We?

How about you and me?

I'll even let you have

the first swing.

I don't wanna fight you, man.

See that's your problem,

Freeman. You're just scared.

Haven't thrown

a damn can all night.

Pretty sure dad had some balls.

Aright, Slim.

Up here on your left.

On my cue.

Let's go. Come on, now.

Good morning, Maddie bear.

Make dottie!

Dottie it is.

Yay!

-At the dot.

-Uh-uh.

Uh, I don't think so

this morning.

Fine.

You win.

All right.

Here's dottie.

Here you go, sweetheart.

Let's give you a little syrup.

Boom!

Maddie girl and I are having

pancakes. You want some?

That's dottie. Really delicious!

Here you go. Eat up.

Soy milk and eat

a little bit of fruit, okay?

Mm-hmm.

I thought you were gonna

get the real milk.

I don't want her

drinking this stuff.

It's just watered down.

Call about the job?

You want me to give you

the number again or...

- I'll call.

- By the way, um,

your dad called last night

when you were out.

Why do you say that like

you didn't know where I was?

Sorry.

Last night, when you were

helping Warren with his fence

your dad called. Better?

He wants to pick up

Maddie this weekend.

Yeah, it's not gonna work.

It's her grandpa, Denny.

Well, I'm her father.

At least he's trying.

God damn it!

Guys, all set? Ready to go?

-Mm-hmm.

-Yeah. Uh,

I was thinking we should

get some ice cream.

I actually was just talking

to Diane Selby.

She and Frank invited us

over for late dinner.

So I told them

we're gonna do that. Sorry.

Okay.

Okay, let's go.

But you can't say

I'm not trying.

Good girl.

Alright, friends.

I got the brewskies.

Uh, did you want

some more water or...

- This is fine.

- Okay.

Okay. We're up.

- Yeah.

- Go.

Uh, he's a football player.

-I always said his name wrong.

-Oh, Dan Marino.

-Who says Dan Marino?

-It was a mistake.

Whatever, nobody cares

about the name.

Well, Dan Marino's one

of the most famous--

-Anyways, okay,

go, go, go! Let's go.

-Okay, just-- I'm--

He was a politician. Um,

you volunteered to canvas

for him one summer.

Oh, Walter Mondale.

Denny door-knocked

for Walter Mondale?

- Come on.

- He's very proud of it.

So you probably shouldn't.

-Yeah.

-I was for a good cause

or I thought.

- He came in knocking on my door wearing this low white...

- -Oh, hey.

...'old man' short sleeves.

Buttoned up.

No, we came in longer.

Super cute, super nerdy.

- Super my type.

- So your type.

-I know.

-Okay.

Good. Okay.

- Are you ready?

- Yeah, alright.

Ah, let me see.

That wasn't so bad.

You don't-- Uh, no, it wasn't.

Thank you for doing it.

I appreciate that.

I, I miss you. I miss...

I missed you.

I'm here.

Brenda...

Fuck, Freeman!

Oh, shit.

Let's go!

Freeman!

I'm sorry.

Hello?

What happened?

Dear Lord.

Hey, you know the Tillmans?

Brenda Tillman.

Works at the school.

Anyway, um...

they got into a horrible

car accident last night.

Mrs. Tillman

and her daughter both died.

I want you to go

buy some flowers

and drop it over at their house.

I'll give you the address.

Well, it's in the car. Hold on.

- Riley, we need to talk.

- Get outta my face, Freeman.

No, what are we gonna do, man?

We?

Well, yeah. You know

it was an accident.

No, I don't.

What I do know is that tomorrow

I'm going to the station

with my dad

and I'm gonna tell him

how some Freeman kid

threw some shit up my window.

You're on your own, Freeman.

No, you know

that was an accident.

-The hell, man!

-Come on!

Get the fuck off my property.

Go!

Shit!

Hi, Den. It's me.

I know you told me not

to leave voice mails, but...

I'm just worried.

Shit.

I'm not trying to st--

Who the hell are you?

-Who the hell are you?

-I'm, I'm, I'm Linda's son.

Uh, I'm, I'm Addie's nephew.

I didn't know anyone was here.

You can't stay here.

Who the hell are you?

You don't even know who I am.

What you need is you need

to get the hell outta my house.

What? Just 'cause you were

sleeping with my aunt

it means you get to stay here?

What'd you say?

Say that again.

Say it again.

It's not your house.

Even if I didn't marry her

that sure as hell doesn't

give you permission

to fucking squat here.

Shit. Go on.

- What?

- I said go on.

Go.

Where?

Look, man, I'm too old

to feel bad, alright?

Feelings is for your age.

Good luck.

Go to hell.

Don't forget your bag.

Denny!

Denny?

I know you're in there.

I just wanna talk.

Hey.

- Ahh! What?

- I'm so sorry.

-Are you okay?

-What, what are you doing?

Well, I live here.

What are you doing here?

Uh, I...

I thought this was

a different property.

So you sleep under my tree?

- I'm travelling.

- Oh, yeah? Where?

Do you guys not, like,

start with names around here?

Not when they're irrelevant.

Amy.

It's nice to meet you, Amy.

I'm Chris.

And I gotta get going.

Get in.

Why? Do you got

any other options, kid?

Come on. Get in.

Yeah.

Uh, you okay if it's black?

I don't got nothing

to put in it.

Yeah, that's fine.

So,

are you gonna tell me

why you're here?

Look, I don't need

your help, man.

I don't need to stay here.

Where you gonna go, huh?

Back home?

After your nice little vacation

in Clinton, Iowa.

Hey, hey, hey. Come on, man.

I'm just trying to help you.

You gotta shoot straight

with me, though.

Why you running?

Did you just get in a fight

with your mom?

What? You knock a girl up?

Man!

You is the problem

with your generation, man.

You guys can't handle your shit.

It's pathetic.

- You don't know me.

- I don't know you.

But I don't need to know you

to know that you're scared.

-I'm not scared.

-Oh, yeah?

Hey, let me tell you

something, man.

Everybody's scared.

Sit down.

Come here.

When you don't know...

what you're scared of,

that's when your problems

are gonna start to haunt you.

But the second you know

what it is

it's just like a ghost in a--

A bad dream.

It's just gonna disappear.

All right.

Oh, hey.

Excuse me.

Hey.

What's that? I know.

I'm coming. I know.

I had to come back.

I had to come back to that.

Mm-hmm.

Okay. I gotta run.

I got some business

I gotta take care of.

Got some clothes for you.

Come outside with me.

Uh, I'm gonna pay you

for a day's work.

You know how to work, right?

Okay.

See this shit here?

There's stuff like this

all over the farm.

I want you to get it all

gathered up, put it

in the back of my truck.

You can use that

wheelbarrow right there.

Okay?

And when I come back...

you're gonna tell me the truth.

Or you'll be on your way.

Okay?

Alright, get to work.

Oh, hey, you stay

out of the shed here

with the green wrenches.

I mean it. You go in there

I'm a rocks throw

from the sheriff

and you don't wanna be

acquainted with him.

Get to work.

What are you doing?

Working.

You work for Bill?

Yeah, well, I clean

this place for free.

Uh, sorry about the other day

and for hounding you just now.

There's just a lot going on.

It's good to see you again.

Look, I work down

at Odie's in town.

Maybe come by some time?

I can sneak you out a beer.

Call it even?

Sure.

So, what were you

and that girl talking about?

She think you're staying here?

'Cause you ain't.

She's your neighbor.

Yeah, I know exactly who she is.

- I didn't tell her anything.

- Yeah? Is that right?

Huh? Mr. Secret Agent man?

Time to go. Hey.

Take it. Go on.

'Cause you got

nothing to tell me, right?

Good luck, partner.

-I killed them.

-No, you stop, stop!

Stop right there.

You made a mistake.

Come on, man.

You're telling me what?

You, you mean to kill that

mother and child?

-No!

-No. No, right.

So this is where you

gotta make a choice.

You move on from this.

From here. Okay?

I told you if you were straight

with me, that I'd help you out.

I'm a man of my word.

Now let's get you

set up in the barn.

We're gonna be smart about this.

I mean, it's not the Renata

but better than a brick coop.

Oh, boy.

This is my old car.

Well, we gotta do something

with that hair.

Think you're good looking

enough to pull that off?

It's too risky to keep

you up at the house.

Everyone in this town talks.

I wanna help you.

But if you tell a soul

-or you talk to that girl...

-I got it.

'Cause if it's between you

and me, kid, it's a no-brainer.

We should probably

figure this out soon.

Sorry I'm, uh...

If financing's an issue,

-we have options.

-I'm fine.

The four-by-two

comes in a wicker trim, okay?

Please, just take your time.

- Julie, what did I tell you?

- Denny?

Denny, it's Diane Selby.

Hey, listen. Um...

There's a memorial tomorrow

at the school.

I thought you might wanna...

Okay.

I tried calling earlier

but, um...

I guess you need rest.

Yeah, that sounds fine.

Good work.

Dad?

Dad, listen to me.

You say you're gonna

do something.

But I'm just locked up here.

I'm not playing your mind games.

Dad?

Sam, can I get another?

Did you give up so soon?

What are you sitting

in the dark here for?

What's wrong with you?

Bill, can we talk?

Tell you what, why don't you

come and help me make dinner.

While eating you can tell me

whatever the hell you want.

'Cause I need somebody

to rinse these.

-Can you grab

my reading glasses?

-Yeah.

- Here.

- Thank you.

Uh...

I found your aunt's

old recipe book.

I'll tell you, man.

She liked some weird shit.

She ever talk about my dad?

Ah, not to me, she didn't.

Oh, are you allergic

to peanut oil?

I had to watch everything

with your aunt. Yeah.

You know, I did meet him once.

My dad?

Well, I didn't actually

meet him. I--

I was with him

at the race track.

What?

Oh, boy. There's a lot you

don't know about your old man.

Mm-hmm.

This is before I met your aunt.

Well, if he didn't win

that first one and then

the second one--

Third one. He just kept

doing it and doing it.

And it was just like his luck

was just growing and growing.

I watched this thing for hours,

man. It was unbelievable.

Yeah, but what happened?

I'll tell you what happened.

Last race of the day.

He took everything and he...

put it on that race.

Put it on one, one dog.

He lost it.

- Damn!

- -That's what we was all thinking

but he takes out his knife

grabs the bookie from behind.

Knife, right to his nuts.

And he says to him

- "Is your manhood

worth two grand?"

Pissed his pants.

Right then and there.

It was amazing.

I'll tell you something.

You don't see that no more.

Yeah, what's that?

People who know what they want.

They'd do anything to get it.

I never heard anyone

talk about my dad like that.

Let me tell you something.

You're a Freeman, okay?

And you should be

proud of that name.

I went in the shed.

Look, I know you told me not to.

I can put two and two together.

-You stole that stuff.

-No, no.

People who steal

they got no moral code.

Okay, they, they steal

because they just got the itch.

'Cause they want more.

Me? No. I have a system

and it was clean.

And I only took from

people who took first.

I wanna make money

- and I wanna

get the hell outta here.

You wanna make money?

I'm good.

Take the beer.

There's a lotta people

around here.

Flat out

bullies.

Ah-ha! You know the type

I'm talking about.

The ones that just like

to take advantage, huh?

You gotta tell me how you do it.

Well...

Maybe if you still got some

of that Freeman luck tomorrow.

I'll tell you some more stories.

Hi, do you know

how to get to Odie's?

Perfect. Thank you.

Shit!

Jerk! Don't you use front doors

where you're from?

I didn't mean to scare you.

You don't scare me.

What? You just go from town

to town cleaning people's barns?

To get where?

Uh, nowhere in particular.

I don't just clean barns.

How old are you?

I'm 21.

-Bullshit.

-I am.

Okay, there's nothing I hate

East of Middle West (2021) - full transcript