Flowers for Algernon (2000) - full transcript
Charlie Gordon is mentally handicapped and all he wants in life is to be a genius. When he gets picked for experimental surgery it looks like his dream may finally come true. But the surgery has side effects that could could kill Charlie. Can Charlie survive being just plain old "Charlie Gordon" and will his newfound romance survive this test of character?
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I want to be a dancer.
I want to be a ballerina,
and dance on my toes.
[humming]
I wanna drive an 18
wheeler with a load
of eggs in the back.
And I want to drive fast, on
the road with lots of bumps.
And when I get to
where I'm going,
I'm gonna open up the
back, and none of them eggs
would be broken.
And then my dad would be
proud, and Miss Kinian
will be pleased.
Then-- then I could
take out girls,
and they wouldn't even
care about my damn legs,
or my damn head, because
I would be a big shot!
[laughter]
I want to learn.
I think Charlie's the
school's best candidate.
Hey, Charlie!
Hurry up with that flour!
I'm coming, Ollie!
MAN: Tony, how many bags?
Hey, Charlie, do me a favor.
Well, just a sec.
I gotta give this
flour to Oliver.
Well, I only need you
for a second, Charlie.
MAN: Hey, Frankie,
give me a hand.
I need you to pick
up that bread pan.
It dropped on the floor.
Just let me put
these bags down.
Hey, Mr. Donner
always told you not
to carry more than you're able.
If you think you can
handle that load,
surely you can pick
up a bread pan.
Hey, Charlie!
I need the flour!
Just a sec.
Come on, Charlie.
OK, Gimpy.
Yeah, go for it.
Go for it.
Here we go.
That's it.
Come on.
That's it.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Come on, Charlie.
Come on.
Oh!
Yes!
[cheering]
Yeah!
[laughter]
What did I tell ya, Charlie?
You're beautiful, Charlie.
Boy, I sure pulled
a Charlie Gordon.
Oh, you sure did.
[laughter]
You guys.
[laughter]
Mornin'.
Hey, Charlie.
How's it going?
- Going good.
- Work OK?
- Aw, yeah.
Thank you.
Another beautiful
day, huh, Charlie?
- Yeah.
- Come here, you.
I have to go.
Come on.
No, seriously.
No, no, you have to stay.
[laughter]
Come on, Billy.
MAN: Come on.
WOMAN: Just hold me.
MAN: I've got something
better than breakfast.
[bell ringing]
OK, class, we'll
see you tomorrow.
We're going to the
planetarium, so don't
forget to pack a lunch.
Bernice, you forgot last time.
I'm going now.
Bye!
Bye.
Bye.
Here's everything for you.
I'm sorry.
Bye, Miss Kinian.
Bye.
Bye.
Bye!
See ya.
Charlie, can I see
you for a moment?
Bye.
I'll see you tomorrow.
See you tomorrow.
I know I forgot to
pack a lunch last time,
but this time I'll bring some
day old bread from the bakery,
and everybody can
have a sandwich!
That's sweet of you,
Charlie, but that's not what
I want to talk to you about.
Well, don't worry.
It's good.
Sit down.
Charlie, do you remember
the other day when that man,
Doctor Strauss, came to visit?
He was asking
people questions?
That's right.
And the reason he
was asking questions
was because he's looking for
someone to do an experiment.
What kind of experiment?
Well, it involves
an operation,
and a lot of things even
I don't understand--
but it's very safe, and it's
worked very well before,
except it only worked
on laboratory animals.
Animals?
This time Dr.
Strauss has permission
to try it on a human being.
And if it succeeds, it can make
that human being very smart.
Dr. Strauss wants to
do the experiment to me?
Maybe.
We don't know yet.
He has to do some more tests.
But he was very impressed
with you the other day.
I gave the right answers?
Yes, you did.
Try not to get your hopes up.
There are other people
that he's interviewing,
and we still have to get
permission from your mother.
Charlie, what is it?
She won't even see me.
She won't have to see you.
She just has to sign a paper.
And maybe after the operation,
she'll want to see you.
You'll be famous.
Your picture will be
in all the papers.
I don't want to be famous.
I just want to be a genius.
Why?
So I can have lots of
friends who will like me.
So I can make my
mother be proud.
Now, I want you to take a
look at this card, Charlie.
What do you see on this card?
People see all kinds of
things in these ink blots.
I don't see nothing.
Sure you do.
Take a good, hard look.
Maybe I should get
some glasses, Burt.
No Charlie.
I mean, tell me what
it makes you think of.
It makes me think of someone
spilled some black paint.
Yeah.
But-- what's in the black paint?
People say it reminds
them of things.
They see pictures.
Oh.
Yeah.
I see.
What do you see?
Pictures of black paint.
You know what
this is, Charlie?
What?
A maze.
- Amazed.
- No.
A maze.
You know, like-- zzt.
Zzt.
And-- anyway, look.
Now, I'm going to give
you this magic wand.
Hold on, hold on.
Let me show you first.
And I want you to use it--
start here at the beginning, OK?
And use the wand to make
a path through the maze,
just like this.
Now, you see that little
box at the end, over there?
That says finish?
That's where you want
to get to, all right?
Now, if you go off track, you'll
probably get a little zap.
It's not going to
hurt you, or anything.
I'll just lead you in
the right direction, OK?
Hold on.
Ready?
And-- go.
[bzzt]
Ow!
[bzzt]
Ow!
I'm not very good
at tests, Burt.
That's OK, Charlie.
This isn't a test.
What is it, then?
It's a game.
How come it's not fun, Burt?
Ow!
I'm sorry, Burt.
It's too hot.
- Hey, that's all right.
Don't worry about it.
You did fine.
I thought I could do it, too.
I was feeling lucky, see?
I had my lucky penny,
and my rabbit's foot.
I don't think anybody
can win this game, Burt.
You know what, Charlie?
You're right.
It is hard.
But I'll let you in
on a little secret.
I know a fellow who can win.
You want to see him?
- Uh-huh.
- All right.
Close your eyes.
It's-- it's dark, Burt.
Yeah.
OK, open.
Charlie, this is Algernon.
- Hello
- Come on, buddy.
Up, up, up, up, up, up.
There you go.
Watch this.
Wow!
That's one smart mouse.
Burt's given you a lot of
test these last few days,
hasn't he, Charlie?
This is a lot of books.
Lots of books.
And really big words.
And small ones.
How do you think you did
on his tests, Charlie?
Not so good.
You're wrong, Charlie.
You did very well.
I did?
Better than anyone
else here tested.
Does that mean
I get to be smart?
It might.
We won't know until
after the operation.
Are you gonna-- you're
gonna do something to my head.
You're going to--
you're going to put
a computer in, or something.
No, Charlie.
It's already inside your head.
You see, we just have to
make it work a little better.
My brain?
Parts of your brain, Charlie.
Millions of little
parts of your brain.
These parts are
called chromosomes.
Enzymes.
Genes.
You'll fix my genes,
and I'll be a genius.
We'll try, Charlie.
We're going to try.
We'll begin by injecting
our initial dosage
to allow us to
stimulate specific areas
of the basal ganglia.
Charlie?
Yes, doctor?
You may feel some strange
sensations at the beginning,
but I promise you there
won't be any pain.
OK, Charlie.
Here we go.
[children shouting]
You jerk!
CHILD: Come on, you idiot!
No!
(ECHOING) Charlie?
(ECHOING) Charlie?
Charlie?
Charlie?
Charlie?
Hi.
Hi.
Is it over?
It's over.
Am I smart?
I bet you are.
Bet they're getting
smarter every minute.
Heh.
I'm really hungry.
Well, it's gonna take a
little time before we know
anything, Charlie,
but the operation
could not have gone better.
Did you give my
brain a new pair?
Pair of what?
Jeans.
Heh, heh.
Well, yes, Charlie.
In a way, you do
have a new pair.
And you know something, Charlie?
If this operation
works, nobody will
ever have to be like you were.
None of these babies will
ever have to grow up and go
through what you went through.
Ain't that something?
[babies crying]
All right.
You ready, buddy?
Ready.
On your mark, get set--
go!
[bzzt]
Oh!
[bzzt]
Ow!
[bzzt]
Ah!
He beat me again, Burt!
I bet I'm never
going to get smart.
Aw, come on, Charlie.
You just gotta have
some patience, OK?
I mean, you're probably
learning even right now.
I'll tell you one
thing I just learned.
I never knew I was
dumber than a mouse!
Charlie, I'm gonna let you
in on another secret, OK?
This is no ordinary mouse.
Algernon had an operation
just like yours.
He's the smartest mouse I know.
- He did?
- Yeah.
Cross my heart.
And when your operation
starts to work,
you'll be beating
him in no time.
That's a promise.
I hope he don't get mad.
I doubt it.
What was that?
He wants you to win.
He does?
Hello?
Anybody here?
Hello?
Must have pulled
another Charlie Gordon.
MAN: Hey, Charlie!
Surprise!
Hey!
[cheering]
Hey!
Hey!
Wow!
Whoa!
Blow that one!
Thank you, Mr. Donner.
Now, [inaudible],
you're such a good kid.
Hey, what did you
do up there, Charlie?
Take out some flour?
How you feeling?
Huh, buddy?
Good.
I feel good.
- Yeah?
Good enough to run the mixer?
What happened to Oliver?
Charlie, uh--
Oliver got fired.
Mr. Donner's looking
for a replacement, but--
but he's gotta run it
himself in the meantime.
How about that, huh?
- What did he do to get fired?
- Well, he missed work.
Just like you did.
Better watch yourself, buddy.
Could be next.
Hey, Mr. Donner?
I won't miss work again.
I promise.
I only missed this time
cause the doctors made me.
But-- even if I get
sick, I'll come in.
It's OK, Charlie.
What's bothering you?
Gimpy says you might fire
me, like you did Oliver.
Well, don't listen
to that butt head.
Why would I fire you?
You're a better worker than
all these guys put together.
You've got a job for life,
and that's a promise.
Thank you, Mr. Donner.
Hey, Charlie?
Whatcha reading?
Oh, it's really hard.
It's my homework.
OK, it's really
simple, actually.
You've got three choices.
You got subtraction--
remember, we talked about that?
Multiplication, and division.
Now, use the mouse-- go ahead,
put your hand on the mouse--
and you make a choice between
addition, subtraction,
and multiplication.
Now, remember, subtraction
means to take--
Away.
Away.
Charlie, good work.
Great.
Call if you need some help.
I'll just be right
over here, OK?
[inaudible] rubbed his
eyes and looked around.
Check this out.
[inaudible]
[tires squealing]
Aw!
[tires squealing]
I should always
find that the cal--
Calamity.
Calamity.
That's a hard one.
Calamities of
life were shared--
shared among the upper
and lower part of mankind,
but that the middle--
Station.
Station had the
fewest disasters.
You know what that means?
Yeah.
What?
It means that
people like me got
it harder than people like you.
That's what Mr. Dafoe says.
Do you think that's true?
I think we all
got it pretty hard.
Except Mr. Caruso.
Cause he's got it
harder than any of us.
Why's that?
Well, because he doesn't
have someone to help him out.
Like I do.
Let me show you something.
See?
He won't be lonely for long.
There's somebody there.
Mhm.
Start again.
Ready?
And... Go!
Woo! Yes!
Yes!
You did it!
You did it!
I knew you could do it!
I did it!
I did it!
- Charlie!
Charlie, it's working!
You are getting smarter!
I'm smarter than
a real smart mouse!
You see that?
Wait right here.
Strauss has gotta see this.
I'll be right back.
Charlie, give me something.
Give me something!
No, like this.
Like this.
Yeah!
Woo!
Charlie's the man!
Aw-- I'm sorry, Algernon.
You're not mad at me, are ya?
I tell you what--
I'll be your friend.
I'll take care of you now.
Cause I'm smarter than you.
I promise.
Hey.
Hey.
Oh!
Hey.
Ha ha!
[laughter]
Hey, Charlie, whatcha readin'?
"Treasure Island."
I didn't know you could
read stuff like that.
Well, it's pretty hard, but
I'm getting the hang of it.
Well, you know, Frank
and I were talking,
and you're a hell
of a lot smarter
than we thought you were.
Yeah?
Maybe a little.
You know what day
it is, don't ya?
Tuesday.
It's Mr. Donner's birthday.
Really?
Yeah.
And you know what he'd
like more than anything?
He'd like to find someone who
can run that mixer for him.
You know, uh, Mr.
Donner is getting
awfully tired of running
that thing himself.
And we figured, you know,
since you're getting so smart,
maybe you could take over?
I don't know, Gimpy.
It's a pretty hard machine.
I mean, Oliver went to
school for a whole year
to learn how to do it.
Yeah, and Oliver never read
no "Treasure Island," neither,
huh?
Come on, Charlie.
Why don't you give it a try?
I don't know.
I could get in a lot of trouble.
I could mess up real bad,
and we'd have to shut
down for the whole night.
Come on, Charlie.
You've been watching Oliver
for five, six years now.
I'm sure you know how to
do it as good as he did.
Yeah.
I probably do.
Hey, do you really
think I can do it?
Hey, don't sell
yourself short, Charlie.
You're sure?
Absolutely.
[machinery whirring]
He's got it.
MAN: Hey!
He got it.
Hey, hit the--
Oh my god.
Charlie?
What do you think you're doing?
Hey, Mr. Donner!
Look-- I'm making you a birthday
loaf, just like Gimpy and Frank
said I could.
See?
It came out just fine!
Happy birthday, Mr. Donner!
Hey, Gimpy, thanks for
talking me into this.
I don't know.
That a boy.
That a boy!
Yeah!
[applause]
Good.
[applause]
Hey, come on!
I'm buying this round, too.
I just got a raise.
I ain't-- I ain't had
a raise practically
since I started working.
This is Gimpy.
He needs-- he needs--
he needs another one.
Mr. Donner balled him out, and
he was just trying to help.
I don't know why you thought
it was his birthday, Gimpy.
Still, he should
have been grateful.
I mean, he got a
new mixer-operator,
and he didn't even
have to train him.
Here's looking at you, Gimp.
Hey, you wanna dance, Charlie?
Naw, not me.
Come on, I'll show ya.
- No thanks, Frank.
- Hey.
Hey.
You're looking at the twist
king of Long Island City.
1964.
Woo-hoo!
Come on, it's easy, you know?
You just gotta move your hips.
That's it.
Hey, come on.
Come on, come on.
I need a partner.
Come on.
Come on.
Hey, look, I'd ask the Gimp,
except he's too embarrassed.
He'd fall on his ass.
Come on.
Naw, not me, Frank.
Come on, Charlie!
Get it going out there.
Get it going!
That's it.
That's it.
Hey.
Act like you're mixing
bread, you know?
Hey, there you go.
You got it.
Hey.
You keep going like that,
I'm gonna lose my job.
Hey, Gimpy, look at me.
I can do anything tonight!
Woo-hoo!
Whoa!
[laughter]
Whoops!
Here you go, Charlie.
Whoa!
[laughter]
Hey, Charlie, I think you
had a little too much to drink.
You'd better watch yourself.
I don't make
fun of you, Gimpy.
[knocking]
Hi, Charlie.
Can I come in?
Yeah.
I've been worried about you.
Burt said that you
haven't been to the lab,
and you haven't been to
school the last couple of days...
You have to keep your
appointments, Charlie.
The experiment has
to be monitored.
I'm just--
I'm just thinking about things.
Like what?
All the times that I was
falling down because somebody's
foot was sticking out.
Like how I thought all my
friends were smart and good.
And that they liked me.
I thought they were my friends.
You shouldn't feel bad
if you think everyone
isn't nice, like you think.
I shouldn't?
No.
This happens to
all of us, Charlie.
You can be the most brilliant
person in the world,
and people will still fool you.
Like you?
Coming here, seeing
my apartment.
Your apartment is lovely.
It's not lovely.
It's ugly, and I'm ashamed for
you to see the way that I live.
I mean, look at this.
Look at this mess!
I mean..
Now I know why my mother felt
the way that she did.
I see how stupid I am,
and how little I've got.
[clattering]
You've done more
with what you have
than I could have ever imagined.
You're just saying
that to be nice.
You know what my
father used to say?
He used to say, Alice,
you're a chicken.
You're too shy, you're
not pretty enough.
If I believed that, then--
I wouldn't be a teacher.
I would never have met you.
But you are pretty.
I'm glad you're my teacher.
Thank you.
That's sweet.
Don't swallow other people's
sour grapes, Charlie.
OK?
[children playing]
I'll see you tomorrow.
OK.
You'd better show up.
Bye, Miss Kinian.
Bye.
You are making astonishing
progress, Charlie.
Better and faster
than we ever imagined.
But there are still things
that we don't know about.
Things that Algernon can never
tell us, that we think you can.
Like what?
Like, what else is changing,
beyond your intelligence?
Do you have feelings
that you never felt?
Do you have memories?
You said that you don't remember
much of your childhood, right?
Well, are any of those
memories coming back?
Sort of.
In what way?
Sometimes I have--
like, flashes.
But what do you mean
by flashes, Charlie?
Things that happened, that I
haven't thought of in a while.
Such as--
I mean, is there any one
particular memory, Charlie?
Harriet.
Who's Harriet?
She's a girl I
knew when I was--
10 or 11.
I thought of her the other day
when I was with Miss Kinian.
And you liked Harriet?
Oh, yeah.
Yeah.
She never teased me the
way that other kids did.
I used to do tricks for
her, and make her laugh.
What sort of tricks
would you do, Charlie?
Stupid stuff.
But-- I never felt like
she was laughing at me.
I always thought she liked me.
And what happened?
Charlie?
I had a locket.
I had a heart on a chain.
I decided to give it to her.
I asked my cousin to write
a letter to her from me,
telling her how
much I liked her.
I left it on the
doorstep, with the heart.
The next day, after school,
her brother stopped me.
[children shouting]
Stupid jerk!
The letter was
full of bad words.
Dirty words that my cousin
wrote, to play a joke on me.
I'm sorry, Charlie.
I'm sorry.
Then my mother took me out of
school, and I never went back.
Not long after that, they
sent me away for good.
You stole my
locket, didn't you?
And you gave it to
that little girl.
CHARLIE: I didn't!
You're a thief, and a liar!
[laughter]
Hey, Charlie.
Just the man I wanted to see.
Charlie?
Charlie?
I just want you to come
to my office for a moment.
You OK?
- Yeah.
You sure?
Yeah.
OK.
Come on.
You remember these cards,
don't you, Charlie?
Yeah.
- What's wrong?
- Nothing.
I don't understand
them then, and I
don't understand them now.
Well, it's pretty
simple, really.
What do you see on
this card, Charlie?
People see all kinds of
things in these ink blots.
Tell me what it
makes you think of.
What it makes me think of?
Mhm.
You mean there's
not hidden pictures?
- Hidden?
- In the black paint...
That's what you
said the first time,
that there was hidden pictures.
- No, no, I never said that.
- Yes, you did.
- Charlie, I--
That's what you said.
You made me feel stupid,
because I couldn't see them.
You said there was pictures
that everybody could see.
I know I never said that.
You're lying! You're
lying to me!
- Calm down.
- Why should I calm down?
Now-- you're just
like everybody else,
laughing, and making fun of me.
Before I didn't know better, but
now I do, and I don't like it.
Look, Charlie, I know
I never told you there
were hidden pictures in there.
You want proof?
All right.
I'll show you proof.
I made recordings of all
my sessions with you.
You want me to play
back that session?
Here we go. You want
to hear this?
I probably used the exact
words then that I used today.
It's a requirement
for these tests.
Listen.
BURT (RECORDED): What
do you see on this card?
People see all kinds of
things in these ink blots.
CHARLIE (RECORDED):
I don't see nothing.
BURT (RECORDED): Sure you do.
Take a good, hard look.
CHARLIE (RECORDED): Maybe I
should get some glasses, Burt?
BURT (RECORDED): No, Charlie.
I mean, tell me what
it makes you think of.
CHARLIE (RECORDED):
Makes me think of someone
spilled some black paint.
BURT (RECORDED): Yeah, but
what's in the black paint?
People say it reminds
them of things.
They see pictures.
CHARLIE (RECORDED): Oh.
Yeah.
I see.
BURT (RECORDED):
What do you see?
CHARLIE (RECORDED):
Pictures of black paint!
[recording stops]
That was me.
That was you.
You know what it's hearing
your old self talk back to you?
It's like hearing someone
that you thought was dead.
But worse-- someone that
you never knew existed.
Not like that.
Not as dumb as that.
You never were dumb,
were you, Algernon?
You were just normal.
See, the trouble with me
is I was never normal,
and it's all I
ever wanted to be.
Now I'll just be the--
dumb guy that they made smart.
Even if it's normal smart,
I'll still be different.
I don't know which is worse--
to not know what you
are and be happy,
or to become what you
always wanted to be,
and feel like you're alone.
It's too hard to read.
No, you're doing fine.
You're learning faster
than we ever thought.
No.
It's so beautiful out.
It's impossible to keep
your nose buried in a book.
Oh.
That.
Yeah, I see what you mean.
You know, we were always
told that silence is--
is restful. But I think it's
just the opposite.
When I was little,
I used to lie in bed
and listen to the sounds
of my neighborhood.
It would help me sleep.
The isle is full of noises,
sounds, and sweet airs that
give delight, and hurt not.
How do you know that?
I just read it.
Yes, but how did
you remember it?
We just read it,
10 minutes ago.
Caliban talking
about the island.
Charlie, I've read
this, like, 20 times.
I mean, I couldn't
remember it just like that.
Do you know more?
Sometimes a thousand
twangling instruments
will hum about mine ears,
and sometimes voices
that if I then had
waked after long sleep
will make me sleep again.
And then, in dreaming,
the clouds, we thought,
would open, and show riches
ready to drop upon me.
That when I waked, I
cried to dream again.
That's amazing.
You just read that once?
Yeah.
Just-- a few minutes ago.
[laughter]
What?
You mean everybody
can't do that?
No, Charlie.
Everybody can't.
Wow.
Wow!
No, you're wrong again, Frank.
You got it all upside down.
Mm-mm.
Game five.
No, it was game six. '74.
Game five, '75.
Come on, Frank.
I was there.
Then you should remember.
Game five, '75.
Actually, Frank's
right, Gimpy.
It was 75.
But it was game six,
not five, Frank.
See, what happened was
the game was tied, 6-6.
The bottom of the ninth,
the bases were loaded,
when Fred Lynn
flied out to George
Foster, who threw home to
Johnny Bench for a Denny Doyle
tag out.
Cincinnati went on
to win the series.
Boston's been in
agony ever since.
Say, you're from Boston,
aren't you, Frank?
Boy, they sure made
a mess of that book.
Yeah.
I still liked it, though?
Why?
It was so simplistic.
I mean, they-- they
reduced the novel to--
excuse the cinematic reference--
black and white.
I mean, how could she
fall for that guy?
I did.
Really?
A little.
Didn't you think she was sexy?
No, I-- everything's
more complex than just
finding somebody attractive.
I mean, people are
more complicated, and--
I think-- I think--
What?
Well-- take you, for
instance, I used to just
see you as a teacher, but
now you're-- you're more
like a friend.
I hope so.
Only, friends don't call
their friends Miss Kinian.
Oh, I see.
OK.
Go ahead.
What?
Say it.
Alice.
Alice.
[laughter]
I never had a friend
like you, Alice.
I mean, the old Charlie thought
he had lots of friends, but--
none like you, Alice.
I'm glad we're over
that hurdle, Mr. Gordon.
Mr. Gordon?
Most of us don't know
who our friends are.
We don't have an operation to
make people emotional geniuses,
and we never will.
But I'm glad to be your friend.
Me, too.
Well, I've gotta home.
I've got some work to do.
It's been a pleasure, Charlie.
Alice.
Did you ever have a
girlfriend, Algernon?
Huh?
You haven't got the slightest
idea what I'm talking about,
do you?
You meet a girl, you got
one thing on your mind.
Well, I think about that, too.
Love.
Love is so much more than that.
I've loved people
all my life, and--
you've never loved anyone.
What do you know?
But you must know what
it's like to be loved.
You feel any different
because of that?
Hm?
For once in my
life, I want to know
how it feels to be loved back.
Hm?
I don't believe it.
Guy's a freak.
I mean, come on.
You ever seen
anything like that?
You think he's been
fooling us all along?
I don't know what to think.
All I know is he's
laughing at us.
Naw.
Not Charlie.
- Yeah.
He asked me the other day
if I read that "Lolita"
book he was reading.
Well, what am I supposed to say?
I mean, I swear to god,
the guy is making fun of me
right to my face.
- That's all?
Naw.
He's watching us all the time.
Like we're some kind of
specimens he's studying.
Like we're the freaks,
and he's the normal one.
Yeah, well, he ain't normal.
I'll give you that.
You read that "Lolita,"
you're one sick cookie.
You got that right.
I sure miss the old Charlie.
Charlie?
I don't want to interrupt,
but I have some good news.
You two are taking a trip.
Me, too?
You and Algernon.
I just got word from the
International Psychiatric
Convention in Chicago.
They're accepting
my paper, Charlie.
Now, I know it's a little
early, but Charlie,
your progress is so remarkable
that I just can't hold back.
I-- I need to show you off.
What are you going to
do, run me through a maze?
- No, Charlie.
- I'm serious.
How are you going
to show me off?
People are going
to ask you questions.
- Like Trivial Pursuit?
- No.
Of course not.
- I got it.
Why don't I read 'em Sappho
here, in the original Greek?
Or Chinese?
You want me to learn
to speak Chinese?
What are you
getting upset about?
Well, these are
important scientists.
I want to make a
good impression.
Charlie, I don't
know what you're--
How about me words to
spell, like Frankenstein?
Now, you're not
being fair, Charlie.
No, you're not being fair.
You're treating me
like a mouse in a maze.
Why don't you calm down?
Because I have a choice here.
No you don't, Charlie.
You do not have a choice.
Now, I made you what
you are, so if you
want to go ahead and
compare me to Frankenstein,
that's your opinion.
But I believe that
your life now is
immeasurably better than
before, so you owe me this.
You have an ethical
responsibility.
No I don't.
The old Charlie agreed
to this, not me!
Come on, Charlie.
You're splitting hairs here.
You want to talk ethics?
This is not some Kantian
categorical imperative.
Whoa, whoa, what is that?
What is that supposed to mean?
What would David
Hume say about this?
- Who?
- David Hume?
He sent Immanuel Kant on his--
Charlie, I'm talking
about Chicago, here.
What are you talking about?
What, are you saying
you haven't read Hume?
- Charlie--
- Have you or haven't you?
Probably read him in college.
Probably?
He's one of the most brilliant
minds of 18th century thought,
and you say probably?
I thought you were
an educated man?
I am an educated man.
Why don't you--
How can you call
yourself an educated man
and say you haven't read Hume?
Have you read Hegel?
I don't care about Hume
or Hegel, or anybody!
I'm talking about changing
the face of medicine,
winning Nobel
prizes, and you bring
it some esoteric 18th
century philosopher!
I'm smarter than
you, aren't I?
Say it!
Yes.
Yes, Charlie.
You are smarter than me.
You've learned more in
four months than I've
learned in my entire life.
You've made a freak of me
at the other end of the scale,
haven't you?
Well, I got news for
you, Dr. Strauss.
I'm not your science
fair project,
I'm not your ticket to
Stockholm, and I'm sure as hell
not your paper in Chicago.
Charlie?
Mr. Donner wants to see you.
Hey, uh, come on inside.
MAN: Make sure you get it--
What's this?
It's a, uh, petition.
Signed by all the
workers, complaining
about your attitude.
They, uh-- they've asked
me to let you go, Charlie.
Why?
Well, you've changed.
You're angry.
You makes them feel
dumb sometimes.
They made me feel dumb.
Well, you were dumb.
At least, they thought you were.
But now, you know,
you talk down to them.
You have this attitude.
I don't know what happened, but
the Charlie you used to be--
the Charlie everyone
here liked--
he ain't around anymore.
Mr. Donner, I--
I can be more friendly.
Too late.
Half the guys that work here
have been in complaining.
They're afraid of you.
Now, Charlie, I gotta look
out for everybody here.
You promised me
you'd never fire me.
I promised another
Charlie, not you.
Where will-- where will I go?
Well, anywhere you want.
You won't have
trouble getting a job.
But-- you don't
need to work here.
Yes, I do.
This is my home.
No, Charlie.
Not anymore.
Charlie, what
are you doing here?
Mr. Donner fired me.
Oh, Charlie, I'm sorry.
They asked him to.
All the people that I
thought were my friends!
- Why?
- They hate me now!
I made them hate me!
Just like I did
Dr. Strauss today.
I made him feel like an idiot!
I'm so angry, and
I don't know why!
I'm sorry.
Your heart's gotta
catch up to your head.
If you can learn to see people
with your head and your heart,
you'll be surprised
at what you find.
But how do I do that?
What do you know
about Dr. Strauss?
Why?
Did you know his father
pressed him so hard
to succeed, he had
a nervous breakdown
when he was an undergraduate?
And if he presents
his paper in Chicago,
and it's well received,
there's some part
of him that'll feel like, at
last, he made his father proud.
So you're saying I
should go to Chicago?
That's not what
I'm saying, Charlie.
Just try to look
before you judge.
Whichever way you go.
Well, what about you?
How do I learn to see you
with my heart and my head?
What do you want to know?
Um-- I'm a Pisces.
I wanted to be a dancer,
but I wasn't good enough.
Then I wanted to be a writer,
but I wasn't good enough.
And then I--
I found this.
And now I think I'm good enough.
Do you have a boyfriend?
A boyfriend?
I've come close, but
I've never really
gotten to the point where
I let myself fall in love.
You know, my father
was right, Charlie.
I am a chicken.
I was afraid to be a
dancer or a writer.
Just like I'm afraid to
commit to certain people.
I always do-- no, Charlie.
No.
Charlie!
No.
That-- this can't happen.
No.
- Why?
It-- it just isn't right.
I mean, I, um-- there
are plenty of women
out there waiting
for someone like you,
but I'm just not one of them.
I'm-- I'm sorry.
I have to go.
I have to go.
If I give Lester two cookies,
and Bernice takes one away--
She can't.
She can't.
I'll eat it.
Are they chocolate chip?
Hi, Charlie.
Hey, Charlie.
Hi, Charlie.
Hi, Lester.
Hi, Bernice.
Hi, everyone.
Hey, Charlie, I don't know
if you can come back in here.
You know, you missed a
lot of classes, mister.
You got a lot of work to
do before you catch up.
I'll do my best, Mike.
I promise.
It's OK.
I'd like to speak to
Miss Kinian, please.
Lester, why don't you
read about the story
that we started yesterday, OK?
OK.
I'll be-- I'll be right back.
Dog--
What's going on?
Boy--
I want you to come
to Chicago with me.
Oh, Charlie--
Please.
I won't-- I won't pull anything
like I pulled last time.
I promise.
Charlie, last week was--
No, I don't want to
talk about that anymore.
I-- I need you now.
I need a friend.
I'm afraid.
Of what?
I don't know.
Something's not right.
I'm starting to lose things.
Memories.
I mean, they're there, and
then suddenly they're not.
You're forgetting things?
Not important things, but--
it's like a motor in my head
that's starting to run down,
and I don't know why or how.
- It's probably nerves, Charlie.
- Maybe.
Maybe that's what it is.
But-- I need you.
I've already spoken
to Dr. Strauss.
He'll pay for your ticket.
But you have to make up
your mind really fast.
How fast?
When do you leave?
In about an hour.
When Charlie Gordon
first came to us,
he was outside of society.
He was alone in a great city,
without friends or relatives
who could care for him.
Without mental
equipment that would
let him lead a normal life.
He had no past, no
contact with the present,
and no hope for the future.
In fact, one might say
that Charlie Gordon
was one of nature's mistakes.
A mistake that, with Charlie's
own help, we have corrected.
Before you meet this
remarkable human being,
I want to show you
where he came from.
What he was like before.
So, this videotape was made
just over six months ago.
Alex, would you roll
the tape, please?
DR. STRAUSS (RECORDED):
Charlie, tell us about yourself.
My name is Charlie Gordon.
DR. STRAUSS (RECORDED):
Where do you live?
Home.
DR. STRAUSS (RECORDED):
Do you have a job?
Yeah.
I work at the bakery.
DR. STRAUSS (RECORDED):
What do you do there?
I-- I help.
I ain't allowed to bake,
cause I'll mess things up.
One time I-- I put a whole
bunch of chocolate chips
in the rye bread, because
I like chocolate chips.
Gimpy says I pulled a
real Charlie Gordon.
[laughter]
DR. STRAUSS (RECORDED): Charlie?
What's a Charlie Gordon?
That's something I
do that's real dumb.
Other people can
pull Charlie Gordons,
too, but nobody like me.
DR. STRAUSS (RECORDED):
If you could
do anything in the
world, Charlie,
what would you want
to do the most?
Learn.
I want to learn.
I want to be a "gene-ass!"
[laughter]
Ladies and gentlemen,
Mr. Charlie Gordon.
[applause]
Charlie, you
can be seated now.
Please, let me
say a few words.
Charlie-- they're
all going to have
questions for you afterwards.
No.
Let me speak.
I'll be brief.
I promise.
Of course.
Excuse me if I'm at a loss.
I hadn't seen that
video before, and I
feel like I just met
an old friend whom
I'd forgotten so much about.
I'm very thankful to Dr.
Strauss and Mr. Stinson
for all they've done for me.
And to me.
But there are a few things
that have been said today
to which I take exception.
Dr. Strauss, in all
innocence, described
the old Charlie Gordon
as a mistake of nature,
and a burden--
descriptions with which many
of you would probably agree.
Well, let me explain, Charlie.
I am not aware
of any contribution
that Charlie Gordon made to
society before his operation,
but to describe him as
a mistake is unfair.
He would have given you
his last crust of bread,
if you asked for it.
Which brings me to my
next topic of discussion--
the Charlie Gordon of tomorrow.
My intelligence has grown
at a remarkable rate.
My IQ is now reaching
the 200 range.
And where will it stop?
Will I keep growing
smarter and smarter?
Will I be able to
solve the problems
of physics and medicine?
Or will I level off, and be
surpassed by future Charlie
Gordons, as Dr.
Strauss' techniques
become more and more refined?
Well, the answer, my friends,
is neither A nor B. The answer
I read in an article
last night, by Dr.
David Choterov of the
University of St. Petersburg.
It appears that Dr. Choterov
has been experimenting
in this area, too, and
each of his subjects,
after a brief increase
in intelligence, reverted
to their original
level of idiocy.
Or less.
Now, granted, his subjects
were mice, and not humans,
and his techniques
were not as refined,
or as skillful as Dr. Strauss'.
But the basis of his
theory is identical.
Because of this
evidence, in conjunction
with certain personal
observations that I've made
over the last few days,
I've come to the conclusion
that tomorrow's
Charlie Gordon will
be the same Charlie Gordon as
the one featured in the video
you just saw.
Only he won't be as smart.
But what I find most
disturbing about this article
is that Dr. Strauss
knew, as each of you did,
about Dr. Choterov's
experiments, and their outcome.
And he never said a word.
Well, why-- why don't you
let me explain, Charlie?
Not to me, not to
the old Charlie Gordon.
Charlie, I think it's
time for you to sit down.
Now, granted, the
Charlie Gordon would have
said go ahead, do it anyway.
And perhaps I would have
said the same thing.
But what I'm talking about
here is ethical responsibility.
OK, Charlie,
that's enough, buddy.
Something the old Charlie
Gordon knew a hell of a lot
more about than many
professionals today!
He wanted to be a
"gene-ass," like each of you!
Now I know that you're
not "gene-asses,"
you're just asses!
And this experiment is over.
[shouting]
Charlie, no!
[shouting]
Everybody, take cover!
Don't move!
Watch out!
Watch out!
Don't step on Algernon!
Whoa, whoa!
Please!
[shouting]
Watch out!
Watch out!
Whoa!
Here, baby!
Hey, Algernon.
Well, you know, little
buddy, you're the most
important mouse in their life.
And they couldn't
tell you from Adam.
Ready to go home?
[knocking]
Hi.
I need to talk to you.
Is that Algernon?
Yeah.
I thought you let him loose?
Is that why you brought me here?
So I could watch you do
some sleight of hand?
Of course--
So I could see you
humiliate the very people
who made you who you are?
- Look, would you just--
How could you
do that, Charlie?
It's not my fault. He lied.
I know he lied,
but you could have
called him on it in private.
You didn't have to make a
public laughingstock out of him.
Well, he was willing
to laugh at me!
They all were!
You heard them!
And now you're treating them
just like they treated you.
Well, it's not
science, it's stupidity!
I'm sick of doctors that go
around acting like they're God.
You've come a long way,
haven't you, Charlie Gordon?
You're about as ethically
responsible now as they are.
Well, I wouldn't
worry, Miss Kinian.
You'll soon have the
old Charlie Gordon back,
and he'll let people treat
him any way they like.
Yeah, I got it.
OK.
Good luck, kid.
Hey!
How ya doing?
You wanna dance?
You wanna dance?
- Thanks.
I don't dance.
MAN: I'll take care of it.
When
Who is she?
The girl you're drinking about?
It's not that simple.
It never is.
It's actually a guy.
Oh!
OK.
Hey.
Whatever way's your tail.
Come to think of it,
he does have a tail.
You're kiddin'?
And a lot of fur.
This is not a human being
we're talking about, is it?
Would you like to meet him?
Sure.
This is Algernon.
Oh, he's so cute.
Hi, Algernon.
I'm Faye.
And you thought I was.
Very funny guy.
Algernon is a-- is
a certified genius.
He's much smarter
than you, or even me,
in comparative mouse terms.
But he's starting to get dumb.
Pretty soon he'll be as
dumb as any mouse around.
That's too bad.
Well, not totally.
Because-- then he'll get
to see Charlie again.
Charlie's this-- this
friend of his, who's
a lot dumber than Algernon.
In comparative mouse terms.
What happened to Charlie?
Charlie went away.
Pretty soon he's coming back.
But-- when he gets
back, Algernon may
be too dumb to recognize him.
He'll just think that he's me.
I'm a little confused.
You wanna dance?
- I thought you said you didn't?
- Huh?
Dance.
Oh.
He don't, but I do.
Who's he?
The guy I live with.
He don't know I'm
still around, but I am.
I'm Charlie.
Charlie Gordon.
Come on!
Just a little weird.
Hey.
Hey.
Hey!
Come on!
It's easy!
It's just like mixing bread!
OK.
You're gonna do the twist?
Watch this.
[laughter]
Whoa!
You all right?
[laughter]
What are you doing?
Come on.
Yeah!
SINGER: Come on, little
miss, and do the twist.
Charlie?
Can I come in?
[coughing]
Hi.
Hi.
You OK?
Algernon and I
went out dancing.
We got mugged by Chubby Checker.
Can I make you some coffee?
Maybe, uh-- maybe I
should make you some.
Alice, I--
I owe you an apology
for the way I--
I behaved, and the way I
spoke to you in Chicago.
I guess I pulled a
real Charlie Gordon.
I understand.
He's back.
Who?
The old Charlie.
He came back last
night at the bar.
You mean you
pretended you were him?
No.
No, I really was him.
He's still inside me.
When he came out, I--
I went in.
I know it sounds
strange, but what's
really strange is
that there were
times last night while he was
out that I actually felt happy.
They wanted me to tell you
that they need you, Charlie.
They want you to come back.
They-- they'll agree to
any demands you make.
That sounds like a
reply to a ransom note.
And come to think of
it, I guess it is.
Why are you
suddenly giving up?
Isn't it obvious?
Because some
guy in Russia says
it's automatically reversible?
You don't know.
Maybe you can change it.
Maybe there's something
you can do, Charlie.
- I doubt it.
- Then prove it.
Prove to me it's useless,
because I don't think it is.
You're just sitting there
with a bomb in your lap,
waiting for it to go off.
The old Charlie
wouldn't do that.
I miss him.
Not just the innocence or the
sweetness, like you think I
do, but I sure as
hell miss the courage.
You were right, Charlie.
You were right in what you said.
I just wish that you had said
it a little more delicately.
I knew about the
Russian experiment.
I knew about the results--
and I suppose I was just
naive enough to hope that it
wouldn't happen this time.
I'm sorry.
And you probably guessed that
there's another dimension
to this that we can't ignore,
because I am not smart enough
to save you, Charlie.
But you are.
I created a monster,
and now my monster
has the capability to finish
the experiment that I began.
What if I don't want to?
Then it's over.
Please, Charlie.
Please-- don't let it be over.
Dr. Strauss?
Charlie?
You guys gotta come see this.
Please.
He was doing this maze with
no problem only a week ago.
Now he doesn't know where he is.
So the regression's begun.
Well, I think it's been
going on for some time now.
It's just happening a lot faster
than we ever thought possible.
What about
changes in behavior?
Well, he has been acting
a little weird lately.
Unpredictable.
Hi.
I brought you some food.
Thanks.
Thanks.
Charlie, I wanted
to talk to you.
I'm sorry?
Never mind.
I'll see you tomorrow.
[charlie whispering]
Hey.
Algernon-- hey.
It's OK.
Slow down.
It's not gonna catch ya.
It's gonna be all right.
It's going to be all right.
There.
It's not the whole answer,
but it's 2/3 of it.
It's brilliant, Charlie.
It's not brilliant enough.
It doesn't change anything.
It just explains
why it's happening.
There's still something else.
There's the last third that
I'm not able to explain,
that might turn it all around.
Something in the math, maybe?
No, it's not in the math.
It's not in the
chemistry, either.
It's something-- it's a
light outside my grasp,
and my arms aren't long
enough to reach it.
Charlie, is there something
that would make a difference?
Enough of a difference
to get to that Nobel Prize?
I'm not interested in
the Nobel Prize anymore.
Sure you are.
We all are.
Because you're going
to share it with me.
[laughter]
- Charlie?
- Hey!
Sorry.
It's Algernon.
He's stopped eating.
I think he's given up.
We're going to have to feed
him ourselves from now on.
Let me see.
Hey.
What's wrong?
Hey.
What's wrong?
You think he wants to die?
I think-- and Strauss
disagrees, but--
I think there's a part
of him that realizes
what he can't do anymore, and--
I guess he refuses
to live like that?
Sorry.
It's just a stupid theory.
Come on.
Eat.
What'll you do with
him when he dies?
We'll have to dissect him.
I know it sounds awful, but
we don't really have a choice.
I mean, we gotta find out what
went wrong with him, right?
Yeah.
Charlie, we just have to
remember, he's only a mouse.
Yeah.
He's only a mouse.
Come on.
Eat.
Come on, Algernon.
Come on.
Charlie's neat,
Charlie's sweet.
Charlie is a dandy.
Every time he goes to town,
he gets his girl some candy.
Ah!
What's--
WOMAN'S VOICE: He gets
his girl some candy.
[siren]
Charlie You said
you wanted to see me?
I've defined the problem.
The solution has been in
front of me all along.
Well, what is it?
Come on, tell me.
You have to explain it to me,
because that math is beyond me.
It's really very simple.
My regression is inevitable.
And even if there were any
hope of my finding a solution,
I no longer understand
the equations
necessary to find them.
Oh, Charlie, come on.
Don't give up.
You just hit a bump.
No.
Nope.
It-- it's not a bump.
It's a chasm.
But you said
there was something
you hadn't thought of.
You know, a light somewhere?
Isn't that what you said?
You said there was something
that would make a difference,
remember?
- Not to my head.
To my heart.
That's where the
real problem lies.
But I know how to solve that.
You don't get it, do you?
What you value is intelligence.
But the mind without the
heart isn't worth a damn.
Charlie Gordon loved
people with all his being.
That's all he had.
But now my heart is
overwhelmed with my head.
It's a question of
values, Dr. Strauss.
In Charlie Gordon's
world, we're the morons.
You'll tell Burt and
Alice, won't you?
[knocking]
Yeah?
Please-- let me in.
Don't-- don't be afraid.
I just-- I just want to see you.
I just want to talk to you!
Please don't shut me out again!
Please!
I'll pay you to talk to me!
Just as much money as they paid
you to sign the permission!
I'm not going away
until you talk to me!
If you don't open the
door, I'll break it down!
[pounding on door]
Ma!
[glass shattering]
Don't be afraid.
I just-- I just
want to talk to you.
I just want you to understand
that I'm not the way I was.
I'm not retarded anymore.
I'm not a moron.
I'm normal, Mom.
Just like you always
wanted me to be.
So talk to me.
You can be proud of me.
So-- so tell me that.
Tell me.
Tell me about how it
was when I was little.
Tell me why you hated me.
I need to know
before it's too late,
and you're the only
person that can help me.
So please help me, Mom.
I just wanted
you to be normal.
I just wanted a normal kid.
God cheated me on
everything else.
You'd think he'd give
me a break on that one.
Don't ya?
Here, well-- feel better.
Why'd you send me away?
Why'd I send you away?
You don't know?
You never did
understand nothing.
you were always
getting in trouble.
You were always
making a big mess.
I was scared.
It was hard enough
when you were little.
You got too big.
I sent you away cause you
were better off without me.
Still are.
You gotta believe that.
Handsome man.
You grew up to be
a handsome man.
And tall.
And smart.
Famous.
I've been reading about
you in the newspapers.
Of course you make me proud.
Of course, I should have
known you'd be handsome.
Such a beautiful baby.
Too beautiful.
You know, if God gives
you too much of one thing,
he evens it out somewhere else.
I always said that.
Heh.
You remember that there?
You loved that locket.
Played with it all the time.
What happened to that, I wonder?
We were happy then.
Sing to me.
Hm?
You'd sing to me.
You remember?
The song about Charlie?
Sing it to me.
Oh-- (SINGING) Charlie's
neat, and Charlie's sweet.
And Charlie, he's a dandy.
Every time he goes to town,
he gets his girl some candy.
Over the river and
through the trees,
over the river to Charlie.
Over the river and
through the trees,
to bake a cake for Charlie.
Charlie's neat, and
Charlie's sweet,
and Charlie, he's a dandy.
Every time he goes to town--
He gets his girl some candy.
Oh, he gets his
girl some candy.
Get his girl some candy.
You remember that, huh?
(SINGING) Charlie's neat,
and Charlie's sweet,
and Charlie, he's a dandy.
Every time he goes to town,
he gets his girl some candy.
CHARLIE: I finally saw her.
I know now why my mother
could never love me.
She could never love anybody.
It's not my fault.
But still, I feel so--
afraid.
I feel-- so--
alone.
Me, too.
I do, too.
No.
It's what I want.
No.
It's too late.
No, Charlie, it isn't.
You're only doing this
because you feel sorry for me.
No.
I feel sorry for me.
I need you.
I've always needed you.
I've just been too afraid.
I love you.
Not just the dumb
you, or the smart you.
I love the man that lives
in both those people.
Alice-- I'm never--
It's OK.
I'll show you.
Come here.
Sit down.
Now, don't use your head.
Just use your heart, OK?
Soften your lips.
[phone ringing]
Algernon.
Hey.
[crying]
Hi.
What is it?
Why so mysterious?
- Come on.
- Where are we going?
I'll show you.
I didn't want
them cutting him up.
I've got something
to say to you, Alice.
Something important.
OK.
I used to have a locket
I got from my mother.
I kept it with me
all these years,
even though it made
me sad to look at it.
And-- and I didn't know why.
Now I know it's
because it was empty.
There was nothing inside.
Not even a picture.
I gave it to Algernon
because, in a funny way,
he filled it with love.
I didn't need it anymore,
because I had you.
These last few days have
been the happiest in my life.
My real heart is filled with
love now, because I know
how it feels to be loved back.
I love you, Alice.
More than anyone
I've ever known.
And I always will.
That's why I want you to leave.
Charlie-- that
doesn't make sense.
Yes, it does.
I want you to remember
me like I am now.
It's all going so fast.
I'll forget how to read soon.
And-- and write.
And before long, I'll
forget about you.
You'll just be Miss Kinian,
and I'll just be some guy
you have to take to school.
Some-- some grown
up little boy, who
loves you like a-- like a
sister, or a-- a mother.
But not like a woman.
Not like a real friend.
I can't agree to this.
Then I'll-- I'll change
the locks on my apartment.
I'll lock myself in,
and I won't come out.
Please.
Don't you see?
If we go on like this, we'll
lose every happy memory we got.
It's not so bad, really.
It's only sad because
we've been so happy.
I would go through
the entire operational
all over again, just
for these last few days.
MAN: Want another belt?
MAN: Yeah.
Hey, pull that back over here.
MAN: I'm ready for the ride.
[knocking]
- Hi, Mr. Donner.
Hi, Charlie.
What can I do for you?
Well, I was wondering if maybe
I could have my old job back?
I was sick, Mr. Donner, but--
I ain't sick no more.
Pretty soon I'll be just like
the old Charlie Gordon again.
And-- and I know you hired
someone to run the bread mixer,
and that's OK, because
I can't do it no more.
It's too hard.
Well, I-- I dunno, Charlie.
You know, I don't think
the guys are gonna be--
Please, Mr. Donner?
It won't be for long,
because pretty soon
I'll be too dumb to work here.
And then I'll go
to a home I found,
where they take care of folks
like me that nobody wants.
Look, it's not that I
don't want you, Charlie.
It's just--
Let me try.
Please?
Let me just ask
the other fellas.
We'll leave it up to them.
OK.
- Heya, guys!
- Hey!
Charlie!
Charlie!
Hey!
Hey!
Hey, Rene!
Hey, Frank!
Hey, Gimpy!
- Hey.
Well, Charlie?
How's it hanging, buddy?
All right.
Hey, I got one for ya!
- Yeah?
Hey.
Hey.
How many Charlie Gordons does
it take to screw in a lightbulb?
How many?
Two.
One to try to screw it
in, and one to hand him
a lightbulb when he drops it.
[laughter]
Hey, come here.
Great to see ya, Charlie.
Good to see you, Frank.
Charlie.
Charlie.
ALICE: OK, uh,
Bernice, why don't you
come up here and see if
you can write Lester's
name on the blackboard?
I can't spell Lester.
Well just give it a try, OK?
We'll sound it out.
La, la--
Lester.
Lester.
L. Lester.
A. Lester.
S. Lester.
T. Lest-- Lest--
S-ter.
Hey, Charlie, where ya been?
Hi, Mike.
Boy, are you in trouble.
You ain't been here for so long,
you probably forgot your name.
Uh-uh.
I'm Charlie Gordon.
And-- and you're Mike,
and that's Miss Kinian.
See?
Yeah.
But Charlie, you can't just
leave here and not come back
till you feel like it, Charlie.
You've got to be here every day!
And I will, from now on.
Won't I, Miss Kinian?
I'm not going to
miss no more school.
Good for you, Charlie.
I'm going to be smart, Mike.
I'm going to be a
regular "gene-ass."
Heh.
More like jackass.
I can spell jackass.
Miss Kinian, he's
sitting in my chair.
No, it's my chair.
It's my chair, Charlie!
Charlie, get out of my chair!
Charlie, get out of my chair.
That's my chair now.
- No.
- Yes.
- No, it's my chair.
No, I--
MIKE: - Technically it
was Charlie's chair first.
No, those are my crayons.
Hey, Miss Kinian?
Miss Kinian, wait up.
[crying]
Hi, Charlie.
What can I do for you?
You can let me give you a hug.
Don't cry.
I know you're crying,
but don't cry.
I don't know why I'm dumb again,
or what I did wrong, but--
it's OK.
I learned a lot of stuff
I never knew before.
I learned about my ma, and--
some other stuff, too.
But now I know I'm a
person, like everybody else.
And I'm going to keep
trying to get smart
again, as best I know how.
That's a promise.
So don't you feel sorry for me.
I bet I'm the first dumb
person in the whole world who
found out something
important for science.
It's like I did it for all the
dumb people all over the world.
Here.
Blow.
You'll feel better.
You see?
And I-- and I still
got lots of friends.
And I'll have even more,
when I go to the home that's
going to take care of me.
It ain't so bad.
I love you, Charlie.
Thank you.
For everything.
You're welcome.
Miss Kinian, when I go away,
would you do me a favor?
I wouldn't ask, except I
think you wouldn't mind.
Anything.
Whenever you think
of it, would you put
flowers on Algernon's grave?
He really likes them.
Do it for me.
I'd be honored.
Bye, Miss Kinian.
See ya tomorrow!
[music playing]
---
I want to be a dancer.
I want to be a ballerina,
and dance on my toes.
[humming]
I wanna drive an 18
wheeler with a load
of eggs in the back.
And I want to drive fast, on
the road with lots of bumps.
And when I get to
where I'm going,
I'm gonna open up the
back, and none of them eggs
would be broken.
And then my dad would be
proud, and Miss Kinian
will be pleased.
Then-- then I could
take out girls,
and they wouldn't even
care about my damn legs,
or my damn head, because
I would be a big shot!
[laughter]
I want to learn.
I think Charlie's the
school's best candidate.
Hey, Charlie!
Hurry up with that flour!
I'm coming, Ollie!
MAN: Tony, how many bags?
Hey, Charlie, do me a favor.
Well, just a sec.
I gotta give this
flour to Oliver.
Well, I only need you
for a second, Charlie.
MAN: Hey, Frankie,
give me a hand.
I need you to pick
up that bread pan.
It dropped on the floor.
Just let me put
these bags down.
Hey, Mr. Donner
always told you not
to carry more than you're able.
If you think you can
handle that load,
surely you can pick
up a bread pan.
Hey, Charlie!
I need the flour!
Just a sec.
Come on, Charlie.
OK, Gimpy.
Yeah, go for it.
Go for it.
Here we go.
That's it.
Come on.
That's it.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Come on, Charlie.
Come on.
Oh!
Yes!
[cheering]
Yeah!
[laughter]
What did I tell ya, Charlie?
You're beautiful, Charlie.
Boy, I sure pulled
a Charlie Gordon.
Oh, you sure did.
[laughter]
You guys.
[laughter]
Mornin'.
Hey, Charlie.
How's it going?
- Going good.
- Work OK?
- Aw, yeah.
Thank you.
Another beautiful
day, huh, Charlie?
- Yeah.
- Come here, you.
I have to go.
Come on.
No, seriously.
No, no, you have to stay.
[laughter]
Come on, Billy.
MAN: Come on.
WOMAN: Just hold me.
MAN: I've got something
better than breakfast.
[bell ringing]
OK, class, we'll
see you tomorrow.
We're going to the
planetarium, so don't
forget to pack a lunch.
Bernice, you forgot last time.
I'm going now.
Bye!
Bye.
Bye.
Here's everything for you.
I'm sorry.
Bye, Miss Kinian.
Bye.
Bye.
Bye!
See ya.
Charlie, can I see
you for a moment?
Bye.
I'll see you tomorrow.
See you tomorrow.
I know I forgot to
pack a lunch last time,
but this time I'll bring some
day old bread from the bakery,
and everybody can
have a sandwich!
That's sweet of you,
Charlie, but that's not what
I want to talk to you about.
Well, don't worry.
It's good.
Sit down.
Charlie, do you remember
the other day when that man,
Doctor Strauss, came to visit?
He was asking
people questions?
That's right.
And the reason he
was asking questions
was because he's looking for
someone to do an experiment.
What kind of experiment?
Well, it involves
an operation,
and a lot of things even
I don't understand--
but it's very safe, and it's
worked very well before,
except it only worked
on laboratory animals.
Animals?
This time Dr.
Strauss has permission
to try it on a human being.
And if it succeeds, it can make
that human being very smart.
Dr. Strauss wants to
do the experiment to me?
Maybe.
We don't know yet.
He has to do some more tests.
But he was very impressed
with you the other day.
I gave the right answers?
Yes, you did.
Try not to get your hopes up.
There are other people
that he's interviewing,
and we still have to get
permission from your mother.
Charlie, what is it?
She won't even see me.
She won't have to see you.
She just has to sign a paper.
And maybe after the operation,
she'll want to see you.
You'll be famous.
Your picture will be
in all the papers.
I don't want to be famous.
I just want to be a genius.
Why?
So I can have lots of
friends who will like me.
So I can make my
mother be proud.
Now, I want you to take a
look at this card, Charlie.
What do you see on this card?
People see all kinds of
things in these ink blots.
I don't see nothing.
Sure you do.
Take a good, hard look.
Maybe I should get
some glasses, Burt.
No Charlie.
I mean, tell me what
it makes you think of.
It makes me think of someone
spilled some black paint.
Yeah.
But-- what's in the black paint?
People say it reminds
them of things.
They see pictures.
Oh.
Yeah.
I see.
What do you see?
Pictures of black paint.
You know what
this is, Charlie?
What?
A maze.
- Amazed.
- No.
A maze.
You know, like-- zzt.
Zzt.
And-- anyway, look.
Now, I'm going to give
you this magic wand.
Hold on, hold on.
Let me show you first.
And I want you to use it--
start here at the beginning, OK?
And use the wand to make
a path through the maze,
just like this.
Now, you see that little
box at the end, over there?
That says finish?
That's where you want
to get to, all right?
Now, if you go off track, you'll
probably get a little zap.
It's not going to
hurt you, or anything.
I'll just lead you in
the right direction, OK?
Hold on.
Ready?
And-- go.
[bzzt]
Ow!
[bzzt]
Ow!
I'm not very good
at tests, Burt.
That's OK, Charlie.
This isn't a test.
What is it, then?
It's a game.
How come it's not fun, Burt?
Ow!
I'm sorry, Burt.
It's too hot.
- Hey, that's all right.
Don't worry about it.
You did fine.
I thought I could do it, too.
I was feeling lucky, see?
I had my lucky penny,
and my rabbit's foot.
I don't think anybody
can win this game, Burt.
You know what, Charlie?
You're right.
It is hard.
But I'll let you in
on a little secret.
I know a fellow who can win.
You want to see him?
- Uh-huh.
- All right.
Close your eyes.
It's-- it's dark, Burt.
Yeah.
OK, open.
Charlie, this is Algernon.
- Hello
- Come on, buddy.
Up, up, up, up, up, up.
There you go.
Watch this.
Wow!
That's one smart mouse.
Burt's given you a lot of
test these last few days,
hasn't he, Charlie?
This is a lot of books.
Lots of books.
And really big words.
And small ones.
How do you think you did
on his tests, Charlie?
Not so good.
You're wrong, Charlie.
You did very well.
I did?
Better than anyone
else here tested.
Does that mean
I get to be smart?
It might.
We won't know until
after the operation.
Are you gonna-- you're
gonna do something to my head.
You're going to--
you're going to put
a computer in, or something.
No, Charlie.
It's already inside your head.
You see, we just have to
make it work a little better.
My brain?
Parts of your brain, Charlie.
Millions of little
parts of your brain.
These parts are
called chromosomes.
Enzymes.
Genes.
You'll fix my genes,
and I'll be a genius.
We'll try, Charlie.
We're going to try.
We'll begin by injecting
our initial dosage
to allow us to
stimulate specific areas
of the basal ganglia.
Charlie?
Yes, doctor?
You may feel some strange
sensations at the beginning,
but I promise you there
won't be any pain.
OK, Charlie.
Here we go.
[children shouting]
You jerk!
CHILD: Come on, you idiot!
No!
(ECHOING) Charlie?
(ECHOING) Charlie?
Charlie?
Charlie?
Charlie?
Hi.
Hi.
Is it over?
It's over.
Am I smart?
I bet you are.
Bet they're getting
smarter every minute.
Heh.
I'm really hungry.
Well, it's gonna take a
little time before we know
anything, Charlie,
but the operation
could not have gone better.
Did you give my
brain a new pair?
Pair of what?
Jeans.
Heh, heh.
Well, yes, Charlie.
In a way, you do
have a new pair.
And you know something, Charlie?
If this operation
works, nobody will
ever have to be like you were.
None of these babies will
ever have to grow up and go
through what you went through.
Ain't that something?
[babies crying]
All right.
You ready, buddy?
Ready.
On your mark, get set--
go!
[bzzt]
Oh!
[bzzt]
Ow!
[bzzt]
Ah!
He beat me again, Burt!
I bet I'm never
going to get smart.
Aw, come on, Charlie.
You just gotta have
some patience, OK?
I mean, you're probably
learning even right now.
I'll tell you one
thing I just learned.
I never knew I was
dumber than a mouse!
Charlie, I'm gonna let you
in on another secret, OK?
This is no ordinary mouse.
Algernon had an operation
just like yours.
He's the smartest mouse I know.
- He did?
- Yeah.
Cross my heart.
And when your operation
starts to work,
you'll be beating
him in no time.
That's a promise.
I hope he don't get mad.
I doubt it.
What was that?
He wants you to win.
He does?
Hello?
Anybody here?
Hello?
Must have pulled
another Charlie Gordon.
MAN: Hey, Charlie!
Surprise!
Hey!
[cheering]
Hey!
Hey!
Wow!
Whoa!
Blow that one!
Thank you, Mr. Donner.
Now, [inaudible],
you're such a good kid.
Hey, what did you
do up there, Charlie?
Take out some flour?
How you feeling?
Huh, buddy?
Good.
I feel good.
- Yeah?
Good enough to run the mixer?
What happened to Oliver?
Charlie, uh--
Oliver got fired.
Mr. Donner's looking
for a replacement, but--
but he's gotta run it
himself in the meantime.
How about that, huh?
- What did he do to get fired?
- Well, he missed work.
Just like you did.
Better watch yourself, buddy.
Could be next.
Hey, Mr. Donner?
I won't miss work again.
I promise.
I only missed this time
cause the doctors made me.
But-- even if I get
sick, I'll come in.
It's OK, Charlie.
What's bothering you?
Gimpy says you might fire
me, like you did Oliver.
Well, don't listen
to that butt head.
Why would I fire you?
You're a better worker than
all these guys put together.
You've got a job for life,
and that's a promise.
Thank you, Mr. Donner.
Hey, Charlie?
Whatcha reading?
Oh, it's really hard.
It's my homework.
OK, it's really
simple, actually.
You've got three choices.
You got subtraction--
remember, we talked about that?
Multiplication, and division.
Now, use the mouse-- go ahead,
put your hand on the mouse--
and you make a choice between
addition, subtraction,
and multiplication.
Now, remember, subtraction
means to take--
Away.
Away.
Charlie, good work.
Great.
Call if you need some help.
I'll just be right
over here, OK?
[inaudible] rubbed his
eyes and looked around.
Check this out.
[inaudible]
[tires squealing]
Aw!
[tires squealing]
I should always
find that the cal--
Calamity.
Calamity.
That's a hard one.
Calamities of
life were shared--
shared among the upper
and lower part of mankind,
but that the middle--
Station.
Station had the
fewest disasters.
You know what that means?
Yeah.
What?
It means that
people like me got
it harder than people like you.
That's what Mr. Dafoe says.
Do you think that's true?
I think we all
got it pretty hard.
Except Mr. Caruso.
Cause he's got it
harder than any of us.
Why's that?
Well, because he doesn't
have someone to help him out.
Like I do.
Let me show you something.
See?
He won't be lonely for long.
There's somebody there.
Mhm.
Start again.
Ready?
And... Go!
Woo! Yes!
Yes!
You did it!
You did it!
I knew you could do it!
I did it!
I did it!
- Charlie!
Charlie, it's working!
You are getting smarter!
I'm smarter than
a real smart mouse!
You see that?
Wait right here.
Strauss has gotta see this.
I'll be right back.
Charlie, give me something.
Give me something!
No, like this.
Like this.
Yeah!
Woo!
Charlie's the man!
Aw-- I'm sorry, Algernon.
You're not mad at me, are ya?
I tell you what--
I'll be your friend.
I'll take care of you now.
Cause I'm smarter than you.
I promise.
Hey.
Hey.
Oh!
Hey.
Ha ha!
[laughter]
Hey, Charlie, whatcha readin'?
"Treasure Island."
I didn't know you could
read stuff like that.
Well, it's pretty hard, but
I'm getting the hang of it.
Well, you know, Frank
and I were talking,
and you're a hell
of a lot smarter
than we thought you were.
Yeah?
Maybe a little.
You know what day
it is, don't ya?
Tuesday.
It's Mr. Donner's birthday.
Really?
Yeah.
And you know what he'd
like more than anything?
He'd like to find someone who
can run that mixer for him.
You know, uh, Mr.
Donner is getting
awfully tired of running
that thing himself.
And we figured, you know,
since you're getting so smart,
maybe you could take over?
I don't know, Gimpy.
It's a pretty hard machine.
I mean, Oliver went to
school for a whole year
to learn how to do it.
Yeah, and Oliver never read
no "Treasure Island," neither,
huh?
Come on, Charlie.
Why don't you give it a try?
I don't know.
I could get in a lot of trouble.
I could mess up real bad,
and we'd have to shut
down for the whole night.
Come on, Charlie.
You've been watching Oliver
for five, six years now.
I'm sure you know how to
do it as good as he did.
Yeah.
I probably do.
Hey, do you really
think I can do it?
Hey, don't sell
yourself short, Charlie.
You're sure?
Absolutely.
[machinery whirring]
He's got it.
MAN: Hey!
He got it.
Hey, hit the--
Oh my god.
Charlie?
What do you think you're doing?
Hey, Mr. Donner!
Look-- I'm making you a birthday
loaf, just like Gimpy and Frank
said I could.
See?
It came out just fine!
Happy birthday, Mr. Donner!
Hey, Gimpy, thanks for
talking me into this.
I don't know.
That a boy.
That a boy!
Yeah!
[applause]
Good.
[applause]
Hey, come on!
I'm buying this round, too.
I just got a raise.
I ain't-- I ain't had
a raise practically
since I started working.
This is Gimpy.
He needs-- he needs--
he needs another one.
Mr. Donner balled him out, and
he was just trying to help.
I don't know why you thought
it was his birthday, Gimpy.
Still, he should
have been grateful.
I mean, he got a
new mixer-operator,
and he didn't even
have to train him.
Here's looking at you, Gimp.
Hey, you wanna dance, Charlie?
Naw, not me.
Come on, I'll show ya.
- No thanks, Frank.
- Hey.
Hey.
You're looking at the twist
king of Long Island City.
1964.
Woo-hoo!
Come on, it's easy, you know?
You just gotta move your hips.
That's it.
Hey, come on.
Come on, come on.
I need a partner.
Come on.
Come on.
Hey, look, I'd ask the Gimp,
except he's too embarrassed.
He'd fall on his ass.
Come on.
Naw, not me, Frank.
Come on, Charlie!
Get it going out there.
Get it going!
That's it.
That's it.
Hey.
Act like you're mixing
bread, you know?
Hey, there you go.
You got it.
Hey.
You keep going like that,
I'm gonna lose my job.
Hey, Gimpy, look at me.
I can do anything tonight!
Woo-hoo!
Whoa!
[laughter]
Whoops!
Here you go, Charlie.
Whoa!
[laughter]
Hey, Charlie, I think you
had a little too much to drink.
You'd better watch yourself.
I don't make
fun of you, Gimpy.
[knocking]
Hi, Charlie.
Can I come in?
Yeah.
I've been worried about you.
Burt said that you
haven't been to the lab,
and you haven't been to
school the last couple of days...
You have to keep your
appointments, Charlie.
The experiment has
to be monitored.
I'm just--
I'm just thinking about things.
Like what?
All the times that I was
falling down because somebody's
foot was sticking out.
Like how I thought all my
friends were smart and good.
And that they liked me.
I thought they were my friends.
You shouldn't feel bad
if you think everyone
isn't nice, like you think.
I shouldn't?
No.
This happens to
all of us, Charlie.
You can be the most brilliant
person in the world,
and people will still fool you.
Like you?
Coming here, seeing
my apartment.
Your apartment is lovely.
It's not lovely.
It's ugly, and I'm ashamed for
you to see the way that I live.
I mean, look at this.
Look at this mess!
I mean..
Now I know why my mother felt
the way that she did.
I see how stupid I am,
and how little I've got.
[clattering]
You've done more
with what you have
than I could have ever imagined.
You're just saying
that to be nice.
You know what my
father used to say?
He used to say, Alice,
you're a chicken.
You're too shy, you're
not pretty enough.
If I believed that, then--
I wouldn't be a teacher.
I would never have met you.
But you are pretty.
I'm glad you're my teacher.
Thank you.
That's sweet.
Don't swallow other people's
sour grapes, Charlie.
OK?
[children playing]
I'll see you tomorrow.
OK.
You'd better show up.
Bye, Miss Kinian.
Bye.
You are making astonishing
progress, Charlie.
Better and faster
than we ever imagined.
But there are still things
that we don't know about.
Things that Algernon can never
tell us, that we think you can.
Like what?
Like, what else is changing,
beyond your intelligence?
Do you have feelings
that you never felt?
Do you have memories?
You said that you don't remember
much of your childhood, right?
Well, are any of those
memories coming back?
Sort of.
In what way?
Sometimes I have--
like, flashes.
But what do you mean
by flashes, Charlie?
Things that happened, that I
haven't thought of in a while.
Such as--
I mean, is there any one
particular memory, Charlie?
Harriet.
Who's Harriet?
She's a girl I
knew when I was--
10 or 11.
I thought of her the other day
when I was with Miss Kinian.
And you liked Harriet?
Oh, yeah.
Yeah.
She never teased me the
way that other kids did.
I used to do tricks for
her, and make her laugh.
What sort of tricks
would you do, Charlie?
Stupid stuff.
But-- I never felt like
she was laughing at me.
I always thought she liked me.
And what happened?
Charlie?
I had a locket.
I had a heart on a chain.
I decided to give it to her.
I asked my cousin to write
a letter to her from me,
telling her how
much I liked her.
I left it on the
doorstep, with the heart.
The next day, after school,
her brother stopped me.
[children shouting]
Stupid jerk!
The letter was
full of bad words.
Dirty words that my cousin
wrote, to play a joke on me.
I'm sorry, Charlie.
I'm sorry.
Then my mother took me out of
school, and I never went back.
Not long after that, they
sent me away for good.
You stole my
locket, didn't you?
And you gave it to
that little girl.
CHARLIE: I didn't!
You're a thief, and a liar!
[laughter]
Hey, Charlie.
Just the man I wanted to see.
Charlie?
Charlie?
I just want you to come
to my office for a moment.
You OK?
- Yeah.
You sure?
Yeah.
OK.
Come on.
You remember these cards,
don't you, Charlie?
Yeah.
- What's wrong?
- Nothing.
I don't understand
them then, and I
don't understand them now.
Well, it's pretty
simple, really.
What do you see on
this card, Charlie?
People see all kinds of
things in these ink blots.
Tell me what it
makes you think of.
What it makes me think of?
Mhm.
You mean there's
not hidden pictures?
- Hidden?
- In the black paint...
That's what you
said the first time,
that there was hidden pictures.
- No, no, I never said that.
- Yes, you did.
- Charlie, I--
That's what you said.
You made me feel stupid,
because I couldn't see them.
You said there was pictures
that everybody could see.
I know I never said that.
You're lying! You're
lying to me!
- Calm down.
- Why should I calm down?
Now-- you're just
like everybody else,
laughing, and making fun of me.
Before I didn't know better, but
now I do, and I don't like it.
Look, Charlie, I know
I never told you there
were hidden pictures in there.
You want proof?
All right.
I'll show you proof.
I made recordings of all
my sessions with you.
You want me to play
back that session?
Here we go. You want
to hear this?
I probably used the exact
words then that I used today.
It's a requirement
for these tests.
Listen.
BURT (RECORDED): What
do you see on this card?
People see all kinds of
things in these ink blots.
CHARLIE (RECORDED):
I don't see nothing.
BURT (RECORDED): Sure you do.
Take a good, hard look.
CHARLIE (RECORDED): Maybe I
should get some glasses, Burt?
BURT (RECORDED): No, Charlie.
I mean, tell me what
it makes you think of.
CHARLIE (RECORDED):
Makes me think of someone
spilled some black paint.
BURT (RECORDED): Yeah, but
what's in the black paint?
People say it reminds
them of things.
They see pictures.
CHARLIE (RECORDED): Oh.
Yeah.
I see.
BURT (RECORDED):
What do you see?
CHARLIE (RECORDED):
Pictures of black paint!
[recording stops]
That was me.
That was you.
You know what it's hearing
your old self talk back to you?
It's like hearing someone
that you thought was dead.
But worse-- someone that
you never knew existed.
Not like that.
Not as dumb as that.
You never were dumb,
were you, Algernon?
You were just normal.
See, the trouble with me
is I was never normal,
and it's all I
ever wanted to be.
Now I'll just be the--
dumb guy that they made smart.
Even if it's normal smart,
I'll still be different.
I don't know which is worse--
to not know what you
are and be happy,
or to become what you
always wanted to be,
and feel like you're alone.
It's too hard to read.
No, you're doing fine.
You're learning faster
than we ever thought.
No.
It's so beautiful out.
It's impossible to keep
your nose buried in a book.
Oh.
That.
Yeah, I see what you mean.
You know, we were always
told that silence is--
is restful. But I think it's
just the opposite.
When I was little,
I used to lie in bed
and listen to the sounds
of my neighborhood.
It would help me sleep.
The isle is full of noises,
sounds, and sweet airs that
give delight, and hurt not.
How do you know that?
I just read it.
Yes, but how did
you remember it?
We just read it,
10 minutes ago.
Caliban talking
about the island.
Charlie, I've read
this, like, 20 times.
I mean, I couldn't
remember it just like that.
Do you know more?
Sometimes a thousand
twangling instruments
will hum about mine ears,
and sometimes voices
that if I then had
waked after long sleep
will make me sleep again.
And then, in dreaming,
the clouds, we thought,
would open, and show riches
ready to drop upon me.
That when I waked, I
cried to dream again.
That's amazing.
You just read that once?
Yeah.
Just-- a few minutes ago.
[laughter]
What?
You mean everybody
can't do that?
No, Charlie.
Everybody can't.
Wow.
Wow!
No, you're wrong again, Frank.
You got it all upside down.
Mm-mm.
Game five.
No, it was game six. '74.
Game five, '75.
Come on, Frank.
I was there.
Then you should remember.
Game five, '75.
Actually, Frank's
right, Gimpy.
It was 75.
But it was game six,
not five, Frank.
See, what happened was
the game was tied, 6-6.
The bottom of the ninth,
the bases were loaded,
when Fred Lynn
flied out to George
Foster, who threw home to
Johnny Bench for a Denny Doyle
tag out.
Cincinnati went on
to win the series.
Boston's been in
agony ever since.
Say, you're from Boston,
aren't you, Frank?
Boy, they sure made
a mess of that book.
Yeah.
I still liked it, though?
Why?
It was so simplistic.
I mean, they-- they
reduced the novel to--
excuse the cinematic reference--
black and white.
I mean, how could she
fall for that guy?
I did.
Really?
A little.
Didn't you think she was sexy?
No, I-- everything's
more complex than just
finding somebody attractive.
I mean, people are
more complicated, and--
I think-- I think--
What?
Well-- take you, for
instance, I used to just
see you as a teacher, but
now you're-- you're more
like a friend.
I hope so.
Only, friends don't call
their friends Miss Kinian.
Oh, I see.
OK.
Go ahead.
What?
Say it.
Alice.
Alice.
[laughter]
I never had a friend
like you, Alice.
I mean, the old Charlie thought
he had lots of friends, but--
none like you, Alice.
I'm glad we're over
that hurdle, Mr. Gordon.
Mr. Gordon?
Most of us don't know
who our friends are.
We don't have an operation to
make people emotional geniuses,
and we never will.
But I'm glad to be your friend.
Me, too.
Well, I've gotta home.
I've got some work to do.
It's been a pleasure, Charlie.
Alice.
Did you ever have a
girlfriend, Algernon?
Huh?
You haven't got the slightest
idea what I'm talking about,
do you?
You meet a girl, you got
one thing on your mind.
Well, I think about that, too.
Love.
Love is so much more than that.
I've loved people
all my life, and--
you've never loved anyone.
What do you know?
But you must know what
it's like to be loved.
You feel any different
because of that?
Hm?
For once in my
life, I want to know
how it feels to be loved back.
Hm?
I don't believe it.
Guy's a freak.
I mean, come on.
You ever seen
anything like that?
You think he's been
fooling us all along?
I don't know what to think.
All I know is he's
laughing at us.
Naw.
Not Charlie.
- Yeah.
He asked me the other day
if I read that "Lolita"
book he was reading.
Well, what am I supposed to say?
I mean, I swear to god,
the guy is making fun of me
right to my face.
- That's all?
Naw.
He's watching us all the time.
Like we're some kind of
specimens he's studying.
Like we're the freaks,
and he's the normal one.
Yeah, well, he ain't normal.
I'll give you that.
You read that "Lolita,"
you're one sick cookie.
You got that right.
I sure miss the old Charlie.
Charlie?
I don't want to interrupt,
but I have some good news.
You two are taking a trip.
Me, too?
You and Algernon.
I just got word from the
International Psychiatric
Convention in Chicago.
They're accepting
my paper, Charlie.
Now, I know it's a little
early, but Charlie,
your progress is so remarkable
that I just can't hold back.
I-- I need to show you off.
What are you going to
do, run me through a maze?
- No, Charlie.
- I'm serious.
How are you going
to show me off?
People are going
to ask you questions.
- Like Trivial Pursuit?
- No.
Of course not.
- I got it.
Why don't I read 'em Sappho
here, in the original Greek?
Or Chinese?
You want me to learn
to speak Chinese?
What are you
getting upset about?
Well, these are
important scientists.
I want to make a
good impression.
Charlie, I don't
know what you're--
How about me words to
spell, like Frankenstein?
Now, you're not
being fair, Charlie.
No, you're not being fair.
You're treating me
like a mouse in a maze.
Why don't you calm down?
Because I have a choice here.
No you don't, Charlie.
You do not have a choice.
Now, I made you what
you are, so if you
want to go ahead and
compare me to Frankenstein,
that's your opinion.
But I believe that
your life now is
immeasurably better than
before, so you owe me this.
You have an ethical
responsibility.
No I don't.
The old Charlie agreed
to this, not me!
Come on, Charlie.
You're splitting hairs here.
You want to talk ethics?
This is not some Kantian
categorical imperative.
Whoa, whoa, what is that?
What is that supposed to mean?
What would David
Hume say about this?
- Who?
- David Hume?
He sent Immanuel Kant on his--
Charlie, I'm talking
about Chicago, here.
What are you talking about?
What, are you saying
you haven't read Hume?
- Charlie--
- Have you or haven't you?
Probably read him in college.
Probably?
He's one of the most brilliant
minds of 18th century thought,
and you say probably?
I thought you were
an educated man?
I am an educated man.
Why don't you--
How can you call
yourself an educated man
and say you haven't read Hume?
Have you read Hegel?
I don't care about Hume
or Hegel, or anybody!
I'm talking about changing
the face of medicine,
winning Nobel
prizes, and you bring
it some esoteric 18th
century philosopher!
I'm smarter than
you, aren't I?
Say it!
Yes.
Yes, Charlie.
You are smarter than me.
You've learned more in
four months than I've
learned in my entire life.
You've made a freak of me
at the other end of the scale,
haven't you?
Well, I got news for
you, Dr. Strauss.
I'm not your science
fair project,
I'm not your ticket to
Stockholm, and I'm sure as hell
not your paper in Chicago.
Charlie?
Mr. Donner wants to see you.
Hey, uh, come on inside.
MAN: Make sure you get it--
What's this?
It's a, uh, petition.
Signed by all the
workers, complaining
about your attitude.
They, uh-- they've asked
me to let you go, Charlie.
Why?
Well, you've changed.
You're angry.
You makes them feel
dumb sometimes.
They made me feel dumb.
Well, you were dumb.
At least, they thought you were.
But now, you know,
you talk down to them.
You have this attitude.
I don't know what happened, but
the Charlie you used to be--
the Charlie everyone
here liked--
he ain't around anymore.
Mr. Donner, I--
I can be more friendly.
Too late.
Half the guys that work here
have been in complaining.
They're afraid of you.
Now, Charlie, I gotta look
out for everybody here.
You promised me
you'd never fire me.
I promised another
Charlie, not you.
Where will-- where will I go?
Well, anywhere you want.
You won't have
trouble getting a job.
But-- you don't
need to work here.
Yes, I do.
This is my home.
No, Charlie.
Not anymore.
Charlie, what
are you doing here?
Mr. Donner fired me.
Oh, Charlie, I'm sorry.
They asked him to.
All the people that I
thought were my friends!
- Why?
- They hate me now!
I made them hate me!
Just like I did
Dr. Strauss today.
I made him feel like an idiot!
I'm so angry, and
I don't know why!
I'm sorry.
Your heart's gotta
catch up to your head.
If you can learn to see people
with your head and your heart,
you'll be surprised
at what you find.
But how do I do that?
What do you know
about Dr. Strauss?
Why?
Did you know his father
pressed him so hard
to succeed, he had
a nervous breakdown
when he was an undergraduate?
And if he presents
his paper in Chicago,
and it's well received,
there's some part
of him that'll feel like, at
last, he made his father proud.
So you're saying I
should go to Chicago?
That's not what
I'm saying, Charlie.
Just try to look
before you judge.
Whichever way you go.
Well, what about you?
How do I learn to see you
with my heart and my head?
What do you want to know?
Um-- I'm a Pisces.
I wanted to be a dancer,
but I wasn't good enough.
Then I wanted to be a writer,
but I wasn't good enough.
And then I--
I found this.
And now I think I'm good enough.
Do you have a boyfriend?
A boyfriend?
I've come close, but
I've never really
gotten to the point where
I let myself fall in love.
You know, my father
was right, Charlie.
I am a chicken.
I was afraid to be a
dancer or a writer.
Just like I'm afraid to
commit to certain people.
I always do-- no, Charlie.
No.
Charlie!
No.
That-- this can't happen.
No.
- Why?
It-- it just isn't right.
I mean, I, um-- there
are plenty of women
out there waiting
for someone like you,
but I'm just not one of them.
I'm-- I'm sorry.
I have to go.
I have to go.
If I give Lester two cookies,
and Bernice takes one away--
She can't.
She can't.
I'll eat it.
Are they chocolate chip?
Hi, Charlie.
Hey, Charlie.
Hi, Charlie.
Hi, Lester.
Hi, Bernice.
Hi, everyone.
Hey, Charlie, I don't know
if you can come back in here.
You know, you missed a
lot of classes, mister.
You got a lot of work to
do before you catch up.
I'll do my best, Mike.
I promise.
It's OK.
I'd like to speak to
Miss Kinian, please.
Lester, why don't you
read about the story
that we started yesterday, OK?
OK.
I'll be-- I'll be right back.
Dog--
What's going on?
Boy--
I want you to come
to Chicago with me.
Oh, Charlie--
Please.
I won't-- I won't pull anything
like I pulled last time.
I promise.
Charlie, last week was--
No, I don't want to
talk about that anymore.
I-- I need you now.
I need a friend.
I'm afraid.
Of what?
I don't know.
Something's not right.
I'm starting to lose things.
Memories.
I mean, they're there, and
then suddenly they're not.
You're forgetting things?
Not important things, but--
it's like a motor in my head
that's starting to run down,
and I don't know why or how.
- It's probably nerves, Charlie.
- Maybe.
Maybe that's what it is.
But-- I need you.
I've already spoken
to Dr. Strauss.
He'll pay for your ticket.
But you have to make up
your mind really fast.
How fast?
When do you leave?
In about an hour.
When Charlie Gordon
first came to us,
he was outside of society.
He was alone in a great city,
without friends or relatives
who could care for him.
Without mental
equipment that would
let him lead a normal life.
He had no past, no
contact with the present,
and no hope for the future.
In fact, one might say
that Charlie Gordon
was one of nature's mistakes.
A mistake that, with Charlie's
own help, we have corrected.
Before you meet this
remarkable human being,
I want to show you
where he came from.
What he was like before.
So, this videotape was made
just over six months ago.
Alex, would you roll
the tape, please?
DR. STRAUSS (RECORDED):
Charlie, tell us about yourself.
My name is Charlie Gordon.
DR. STRAUSS (RECORDED):
Where do you live?
Home.
DR. STRAUSS (RECORDED):
Do you have a job?
Yeah.
I work at the bakery.
DR. STRAUSS (RECORDED):
What do you do there?
I-- I help.
I ain't allowed to bake,
cause I'll mess things up.
One time I-- I put a whole
bunch of chocolate chips
in the rye bread, because
I like chocolate chips.
Gimpy says I pulled a
real Charlie Gordon.
[laughter]
DR. STRAUSS (RECORDED): Charlie?
What's a Charlie Gordon?
That's something I
do that's real dumb.
Other people can
pull Charlie Gordons,
too, but nobody like me.
DR. STRAUSS (RECORDED):
If you could
do anything in the
world, Charlie,
what would you want
to do the most?
Learn.
I want to learn.
I want to be a "gene-ass!"
[laughter]
Ladies and gentlemen,
Mr. Charlie Gordon.
[applause]
Charlie, you
can be seated now.
Please, let me
say a few words.
Charlie-- they're
all going to have
questions for you afterwards.
No.
Let me speak.
I'll be brief.
I promise.
Of course.
Excuse me if I'm at a loss.
I hadn't seen that
video before, and I
feel like I just met
an old friend whom
I'd forgotten so much about.
I'm very thankful to Dr.
Strauss and Mr. Stinson
for all they've done for me.
And to me.
But there are a few things
that have been said today
to which I take exception.
Dr. Strauss, in all
innocence, described
the old Charlie Gordon
as a mistake of nature,
and a burden--
descriptions with which many
of you would probably agree.
Well, let me explain, Charlie.
I am not aware
of any contribution
that Charlie Gordon made to
society before his operation,
but to describe him as
a mistake is unfair.
He would have given you
his last crust of bread,
if you asked for it.
Which brings me to my
next topic of discussion--
the Charlie Gordon of tomorrow.
My intelligence has grown
at a remarkable rate.
My IQ is now reaching
the 200 range.
And where will it stop?
Will I keep growing
smarter and smarter?
Will I be able to
solve the problems
of physics and medicine?
Or will I level off, and be
surpassed by future Charlie
Gordons, as Dr.
Strauss' techniques
become more and more refined?
Well, the answer, my friends,
is neither A nor B. The answer
I read in an article
last night, by Dr.
David Choterov of the
University of St. Petersburg.
It appears that Dr. Choterov
has been experimenting
in this area, too, and
each of his subjects,
after a brief increase
in intelligence, reverted
to their original
level of idiocy.
Or less.
Now, granted, his subjects
were mice, and not humans,
and his techniques
were not as refined,
or as skillful as Dr. Strauss'.
But the basis of his
theory is identical.
Because of this
evidence, in conjunction
with certain personal
observations that I've made
over the last few days,
I've come to the conclusion
that tomorrow's
Charlie Gordon will
be the same Charlie Gordon as
the one featured in the video
you just saw.
Only he won't be as smart.
But what I find most
disturbing about this article
is that Dr. Strauss
knew, as each of you did,
about Dr. Choterov's
experiments, and their outcome.
And he never said a word.
Well, why-- why don't you
let me explain, Charlie?
Not to me, not to
the old Charlie Gordon.
Charlie, I think it's
time for you to sit down.
Now, granted, the
Charlie Gordon would have
said go ahead, do it anyway.
And perhaps I would have
said the same thing.
But what I'm talking about
here is ethical responsibility.
OK, Charlie,
that's enough, buddy.
Something the old Charlie
Gordon knew a hell of a lot
more about than many
professionals today!
He wanted to be a
"gene-ass," like each of you!
Now I know that you're
not "gene-asses,"
you're just asses!
And this experiment is over.
[shouting]
Charlie, no!
[shouting]
Everybody, take cover!
Don't move!
Watch out!
Watch out!
Don't step on Algernon!
Whoa, whoa!
Please!
[shouting]
Watch out!
Watch out!
Whoa!
Here, baby!
Hey, Algernon.
Well, you know, little
buddy, you're the most
important mouse in their life.
And they couldn't
tell you from Adam.
Ready to go home?
[knocking]
Hi.
I need to talk to you.
Is that Algernon?
Yeah.
I thought you let him loose?
Is that why you brought me here?
So I could watch you do
some sleight of hand?
Of course--
So I could see you
humiliate the very people
who made you who you are?
- Look, would you just--
How could you
do that, Charlie?
It's not my fault. He lied.
I know he lied,
but you could have
called him on it in private.
You didn't have to make a
public laughingstock out of him.
Well, he was willing
to laugh at me!
They all were!
You heard them!
And now you're treating them
just like they treated you.
Well, it's not
science, it's stupidity!
I'm sick of doctors that go
around acting like they're God.
You've come a long way,
haven't you, Charlie Gordon?
You're about as ethically
responsible now as they are.
Well, I wouldn't
worry, Miss Kinian.
You'll soon have the
old Charlie Gordon back,
and he'll let people treat
him any way they like.
Yeah, I got it.
OK.
Good luck, kid.
Hey!
How ya doing?
You wanna dance?
You wanna dance?
- Thanks.
I don't dance.
MAN: I'll take care of it.
When
Who is she?
The girl you're drinking about?
It's not that simple.
It never is.
It's actually a guy.
Oh!
OK.
Hey.
Whatever way's your tail.
Come to think of it,
he does have a tail.
You're kiddin'?
And a lot of fur.
This is not a human being
we're talking about, is it?
Would you like to meet him?
Sure.
This is Algernon.
Oh, he's so cute.
Hi, Algernon.
I'm Faye.
And you thought I was.
Very funny guy.
Algernon is a-- is
a certified genius.
He's much smarter
than you, or even me,
in comparative mouse terms.
But he's starting to get dumb.
Pretty soon he'll be as
dumb as any mouse around.
That's too bad.
Well, not totally.
Because-- then he'll get
to see Charlie again.
Charlie's this-- this
friend of his, who's
a lot dumber than Algernon.
In comparative mouse terms.
What happened to Charlie?
Charlie went away.
Pretty soon he's coming back.
But-- when he gets
back, Algernon may
be too dumb to recognize him.
He'll just think that he's me.
I'm a little confused.
You wanna dance?
- I thought you said you didn't?
- Huh?
Dance.
Oh.
He don't, but I do.
Who's he?
The guy I live with.
He don't know I'm
still around, but I am.
I'm Charlie.
Charlie Gordon.
Come on!
Just a little weird.
Hey.
Hey.
Hey!
Come on!
It's easy!
It's just like mixing bread!
OK.
You're gonna do the twist?
Watch this.
[laughter]
Whoa!
You all right?
[laughter]
What are you doing?
Come on.
Yeah!
SINGER: Come on, little
miss, and do the twist.
Charlie?
Can I come in?
[coughing]
Hi.
Hi.
You OK?
Algernon and I
went out dancing.
We got mugged by Chubby Checker.
Can I make you some coffee?
Maybe, uh-- maybe I
should make you some.
Alice, I--
I owe you an apology
for the way I--
I behaved, and the way I
spoke to you in Chicago.
I guess I pulled a
real Charlie Gordon.
I understand.
He's back.
Who?
The old Charlie.
He came back last
night at the bar.
You mean you
pretended you were him?
No.
No, I really was him.
He's still inside me.
When he came out, I--
I went in.
I know it sounds
strange, but what's
really strange is
that there were
times last night while he was
out that I actually felt happy.
They wanted me to tell you
that they need you, Charlie.
They want you to come back.
They-- they'll agree to
any demands you make.
That sounds like a
reply to a ransom note.
And come to think of
it, I guess it is.
Why are you
suddenly giving up?
Isn't it obvious?
Because some
guy in Russia says
it's automatically reversible?
You don't know.
Maybe you can change it.
Maybe there's something
you can do, Charlie.
- I doubt it.
- Then prove it.
Prove to me it's useless,
because I don't think it is.
You're just sitting there
with a bomb in your lap,
waiting for it to go off.
The old Charlie
wouldn't do that.
I miss him.
Not just the innocence or the
sweetness, like you think I
do, but I sure as
hell miss the courage.
You were right, Charlie.
You were right in what you said.
I just wish that you had said
it a little more delicately.
I knew about the
Russian experiment.
I knew about the results--
and I suppose I was just
naive enough to hope that it
wouldn't happen this time.
I'm sorry.
And you probably guessed that
there's another dimension
to this that we can't ignore,
because I am not smart enough
to save you, Charlie.
But you are.
I created a monster,
and now my monster
has the capability to finish
the experiment that I began.
What if I don't want to?
Then it's over.
Please, Charlie.
Please-- don't let it be over.
Dr. Strauss?
Charlie?
You guys gotta come see this.
Please.
He was doing this maze with
no problem only a week ago.
Now he doesn't know where he is.
So the regression's begun.
Well, I think it's been
going on for some time now.
It's just happening a lot faster
than we ever thought possible.
What about
changes in behavior?
Well, he has been acting
a little weird lately.
Unpredictable.
Hi.
I brought you some food.
Thanks.
Thanks.
Charlie, I wanted
to talk to you.
I'm sorry?
Never mind.
I'll see you tomorrow.
[charlie whispering]
Hey.
Algernon-- hey.
It's OK.
Slow down.
It's not gonna catch ya.
It's gonna be all right.
It's going to be all right.
There.
It's not the whole answer,
but it's 2/3 of it.
It's brilliant, Charlie.
It's not brilliant enough.
It doesn't change anything.
It just explains
why it's happening.
There's still something else.
There's the last third that
I'm not able to explain,
that might turn it all around.
Something in the math, maybe?
No, it's not in the math.
It's not in the
chemistry, either.
It's something-- it's a
light outside my grasp,
and my arms aren't long
enough to reach it.
Charlie, is there something
that would make a difference?
Enough of a difference
to get to that Nobel Prize?
I'm not interested in
the Nobel Prize anymore.
Sure you are.
We all are.
Because you're going
to share it with me.
[laughter]
- Charlie?
- Hey!
Sorry.
It's Algernon.
He's stopped eating.
I think he's given up.
We're going to have to feed
him ourselves from now on.
Let me see.
Hey.
What's wrong?
Hey.
What's wrong?
You think he wants to die?
I think-- and Strauss
disagrees, but--
I think there's a part
of him that realizes
what he can't do anymore, and--
I guess he refuses
to live like that?
Sorry.
It's just a stupid theory.
Come on.
Eat.
What'll you do with
him when he dies?
We'll have to dissect him.
I know it sounds awful, but
we don't really have a choice.
I mean, we gotta find out what
went wrong with him, right?
Yeah.
Charlie, we just have to
remember, he's only a mouse.
Yeah.
He's only a mouse.
Come on.
Eat.
Come on, Algernon.
Come on.
Charlie's neat,
Charlie's sweet.
Charlie is a dandy.
Every time he goes to town,
he gets his girl some candy.
Ah!
What's--
WOMAN'S VOICE: He gets
his girl some candy.
[siren]
Charlie You said
you wanted to see me?
I've defined the problem.
The solution has been in
front of me all along.
Well, what is it?
Come on, tell me.
You have to explain it to me,
because that math is beyond me.
It's really very simple.
My regression is inevitable.
And even if there were any
hope of my finding a solution,
I no longer understand
the equations
necessary to find them.
Oh, Charlie, come on.
Don't give up.
You just hit a bump.
No.
Nope.
It-- it's not a bump.
It's a chasm.
But you said
there was something
you hadn't thought of.
You know, a light somewhere?
Isn't that what you said?
You said there was something
that would make a difference,
remember?
- Not to my head.
To my heart.
That's where the
real problem lies.
But I know how to solve that.
You don't get it, do you?
What you value is intelligence.
But the mind without the
heart isn't worth a damn.
Charlie Gordon loved
people with all his being.
That's all he had.
But now my heart is
overwhelmed with my head.
It's a question of
values, Dr. Strauss.
In Charlie Gordon's
world, we're the morons.
You'll tell Burt and
Alice, won't you?
[knocking]
Yeah?
Please-- let me in.
Don't-- don't be afraid.
I just-- I just want to see you.
I just want to talk to you!
Please don't shut me out again!
Please!
I'll pay you to talk to me!
Just as much money as they paid
you to sign the permission!
I'm not going away
until you talk to me!
If you don't open the
door, I'll break it down!
[pounding on door]
Ma!
[glass shattering]
Don't be afraid.
I just-- I just
want to talk to you.
I just want you to understand
that I'm not the way I was.
I'm not retarded anymore.
I'm not a moron.
I'm normal, Mom.
Just like you always
wanted me to be.
So talk to me.
You can be proud of me.
So-- so tell me that.
Tell me.
Tell me about how it
was when I was little.
Tell me why you hated me.
I need to know
before it's too late,
and you're the only
person that can help me.
So please help me, Mom.
I just wanted
you to be normal.
I just wanted a normal kid.
God cheated me on
everything else.
You'd think he'd give
me a break on that one.
Don't ya?
Here, well-- feel better.
Why'd you send me away?
Why'd I send you away?
You don't know?
You never did
understand nothing.
you were always
getting in trouble.
You were always
making a big mess.
I was scared.
It was hard enough
when you were little.
You got too big.
I sent you away cause you
were better off without me.
Still are.
You gotta believe that.
Handsome man.
You grew up to be
a handsome man.
And tall.
And smart.
Famous.
I've been reading about
you in the newspapers.
Of course you make me proud.
Of course, I should have
known you'd be handsome.
Such a beautiful baby.
Too beautiful.
You know, if God gives
you too much of one thing,
he evens it out somewhere else.
I always said that.
Heh.
You remember that there?
You loved that locket.
Played with it all the time.
What happened to that, I wonder?
We were happy then.
Sing to me.
Hm?
You'd sing to me.
You remember?
The song about Charlie?
Sing it to me.
Oh-- (SINGING) Charlie's
neat, and Charlie's sweet.
And Charlie, he's a dandy.
Every time he goes to town,
he gets his girl some candy.
Over the river and
through the trees,
over the river to Charlie.
Over the river and
through the trees,
to bake a cake for Charlie.
Charlie's neat, and
Charlie's sweet,
and Charlie, he's a dandy.
Every time he goes to town--
He gets his girl some candy.
Oh, he gets his
girl some candy.
Get his girl some candy.
You remember that, huh?
(SINGING) Charlie's neat,
and Charlie's sweet,
and Charlie, he's a dandy.
Every time he goes to town,
he gets his girl some candy.
CHARLIE: I finally saw her.
I know now why my mother
could never love me.
She could never love anybody.
It's not my fault.
But still, I feel so--
afraid.
I feel-- so--
alone.
Me, too.
I do, too.
No.
It's what I want.
No.
It's too late.
No, Charlie, it isn't.
You're only doing this
because you feel sorry for me.
No.
I feel sorry for me.
I need you.
I've always needed you.
I've just been too afraid.
I love you.
Not just the dumb
you, or the smart you.
I love the man that lives
in both those people.
Alice-- I'm never--
It's OK.
I'll show you.
Come here.
Sit down.
Now, don't use your head.
Just use your heart, OK?
Soften your lips.
[phone ringing]
Algernon.
Hey.
[crying]
Hi.
What is it?
Why so mysterious?
- Come on.
- Where are we going?
I'll show you.
I didn't want
them cutting him up.
I've got something
to say to you, Alice.
Something important.
OK.
I used to have a locket
I got from my mother.
I kept it with me
all these years,
even though it made
me sad to look at it.
And-- and I didn't know why.
Now I know it's
because it was empty.
There was nothing inside.
Not even a picture.
I gave it to Algernon
because, in a funny way,
he filled it with love.
I didn't need it anymore,
because I had you.
These last few days have
been the happiest in my life.
My real heart is filled with
love now, because I know
how it feels to be loved back.
I love you, Alice.
More than anyone
I've ever known.
And I always will.
That's why I want you to leave.
Charlie-- that
doesn't make sense.
Yes, it does.
I want you to remember
me like I am now.
It's all going so fast.
I'll forget how to read soon.
And-- and write.
And before long, I'll
forget about you.
You'll just be Miss Kinian,
and I'll just be some guy
you have to take to school.
Some-- some grown
up little boy, who
loves you like a-- like a
sister, or a-- a mother.
But not like a woman.
Not like a real friend.
I can't agree to this.
Then I'll-- I'll change
the locks on my apartment.
I'll lock myself in,
and I won't come out.
Please.
Don't you see?
If we go on like this, we'll
lose every happy memory we got.
It's not so bad, really.
It's only sad because
we've been so happy.
I would go through
the entire operational
all over again, just
for these last few days.
MAN: Want another belt?
MAN: Yeah.
Hey, pull that back over here.
MAN: I'm ready for the ride.
[knocking]
- Hi, Mr. Donner.
Hi, Charlie.
What can I do for you?
Well, I was wondering if maybe
I could have my old job back?
I was sick, Mr. Donner, but--
I ain't sick no more.
Pretty soon I'll be just like
the old Charlie Gordon again.
And-- and I know you hired
someone to run the bread mixer,
and that's OK, because
I can't do it no more.
It's too hard.
Well, I-- I dunno, Charlie.
You know, I don't think
the guys are gonna be--
Please, Mr. Donner?
It won't be for long,
because pretty soon
I'll be too dumb to work here.
And then I'll go
to a home I found,
where they take care of folks
like me that nobody wants.
Look, it's not that I
don't want you, Charlie.
It's just--
Let me try.
Please?
Let me just ask
the other fellas.
We'll leave it up to them.
OK.
- Heya, guys!
- Hey!
Charlie!
Charlie!
Hey!
Hey!
Hey, Rene!
Hey, Frank!
Hey, Gimpy!
- Hey.
Well, Charlie?
How's it hanging, buddy?
All right.
Hey, I got one for ya!
- Yeah?
Hey.
Hey.
How many Charlie Gordons does
it take to screw in a lightbulb?
How many?
Two.
One to try to screw it
in, and one to hand him
a lightbulb when he drops it.
[laughter]
Hey, come here.
Great to see ya, Charlie.
Good to see you, Frank.
Charlie.
Charlie.
ALICE: OK, uh,
Bernice, why don't you
come up here and see if
you can write Lester's
name on the blackboard?
I can't spell Lester.
Well just give it a try, OK?
We'll sound it out.
La, la--
Lester.
Lester.
L. Lester.
A. Lester.
S. Lester.
T. Lest-- Lest--
S-ter.
Hey, Charlie, where ya been?
Hi, Mike.
Boy, are you in trouble.
You ain't been here for so long,
you probably forgot your name.
Uh-uh.
I'm Charlie Gordon.
And-- and you're Mike,
and that's Miss Kinian.
See?
Yeah.
But Charlie, you can't just
leave here and not come back
till you feel like it, Charlie.
You've got to be here every day!
And I will, from now on.
Won't I, Miss Kinian?
I'm not going to
miss no more school.
Good for you, Charlie.
I'm going to be smart, Mike.
I'm going to be a
regular "gene-ass."
Heh.
More like jackass.
I can spell jackass.
Miss Kinian, he's
sitting in my chair.
No, it's my chair.
It's my chair, Charlie!
Charlie, get out of my chair!
Charlie, get out of my chair.
That's my chair now.
- No.
- Yes.
- No, it's my chair.
No, I--
MIKE: - Technically it
was Charlie's chair first.
No, those are my crayons.
Hey, Miss Kinian?
Miss Kinian, wait up.
[crying]
Hi, Charlie.
What can I do for you?
You can let me give you a hug.
Don't cry.
I know you're crying,
but don't cry.
I don't know why I'm dumb again,
or what I did wrong, but--
it's OK.
I learned a lot of stuff
I never knew before.
I learned about my ma, and--
some other stuff, too.
But now I know I'm a
person, like everybody else.
And I'm going to keep
trying to get smart
again, as best I know how.
That's a promise.
So don't you feel sorry for me.
I bet I'm the first dumb
person in the whole world who
found out something
important for science.
It's like I did it for all the
dumb people all over the world.
Here.
Blow.
You'll feel better.
You see?
And I-- and I still
got lots of friends.
And I'll have even more,
when I go to the home that's
going to take care of me.
It ain't so bad.
I love you, Charlie.
Thank you.
For everything.
You're welcome.
Miss Kinian, when I go away,
would you do me a favor?
I wouldn't ask, except I
think you wouldn't mind.
Anything.
Whenever you think
of it, would you put
flowers on Algernon's grave?
He really likes them.
Do it for me.
I'd be honored.
Bye, Miss Kinian.
See ya tomorrow!
[music playing]