The Deuce (2017–…): Season 2, Episode 2 - There's an Art to This - full transcript

WOMAN: (ON PA) Attention, customers,

for the Albany Express Direct bus.

The bus is now loading at Gate 32.
This is a gate change.

Albany Express Direct
now boarding at Gate 32.

LARRY: Look-see you. You from afar.

As I live and breathe.

- Baby, you a college girl?
- Dropped out.

- I might go back, but...
- No, no, no.

Education's wasted on the youth.

Classroom's a box.
What you gonna learn in a box?

Hmm. Uh, I just said that
to my parents last week.



Bet you did.
And now you here in the big city

for a real education.

From the University of Life As Lived.

Yes. Yeah.

I see it all in your eyes.

It's as plain as day.

My name's Larry Brown.

Brenda Peterson.

Hey, you. Go.
Get your ass out of my seat.

WOMAN: (ON PA)...keep your personal
belongings with you at all times.

- You got a crib?
- A what?

A coop. Place to stay.

Oh. My mom has this cousin
I've never met. I'll see how it goes.

I want to ask you a question,



and I'm gonna answer
that question for you.

Okay.

What's your dream?

What is it about the big city
that brought you here?

- Well, I...
- Shut.

Said I was gonna answer it for you.

You wanna be an actress.

You wanna see yourself in the movies.

Okay, now you're scaring me.

Oh, it's your lucky day,
Brenda Peterson.

I mean, with my industry connections,

and of course, after we get
to know each other a little better,

I can most definitely offer you
the proper assistance and direction.

That's what I need. Directions.

We gonna get along right fine,
you and me.

How do I get to this address?

I'm supposed to meet a guy at 3:00,
and I really don't wanna blow it.

WOMAN: (ON PA) Now boarding
at Gate No. 7, Trailways...

It's cool. I'll find it.

You know they're gonna
exploit you, right?

You gonna get yourself exploited!

(THEME SONG PLAYING)

(DRILL WHIRRING)

Ta-da!

- Irene, what the fuck?
- Hey, hey, look.

Let me ask you this, all right?

Which one of yous doesn't wanna
triple their daily takeaway?

Now let me see hands.

All right.

Watch this.

All right, take that, take this.
Some props. Here we go.

Where the fuck's he going?

FRANKIE: All right. Irene,
put the thing in the thing.

Okay.

This ain't gonna be pretty.

All right, window goes up,
this is you.

(FRANKIE HUMMING)

All right. Thank you.

You keep dancing.

Oh!

Another one? Thank you. Look at that.

I got tipped twice
for one pat on the ass.

That's nice work if you can get it.
Know what I mean?

What happens the third time?

I don't know.
You play fucking patty cakes.

I signed up for show. No touch.

Hey, don't knock it.

The girls at that joint
over on 49th Street,

they are making money hand over fist.

That's right. Okay?

Now, rules.

Rule number one, all right?

You gotta make sure
the mook ain't a cop.

Second rule.

You make sure
he don't touch you anywhere

that you don't guide him first, okay?

What, like, internally?

No. Fuck this.

What? Dee.

- Dee.
- Come back.

You ask me,
we'll make a shitload more in tips

than if they're just
sticking money in the slot.

That's right. Very wise.

Okay. Third rule.

You make sure his hand

goes through the partition
to you, all right?

You don't put any part of yourself
onto his side.

And if you do,

make sure it's something
you can live without.

(CHUCKLES)

I was just joking.
I was kidding there. All right?

Look, don't worry, all right?

Anything happens, there's a button
on the side of the window,

you press that.

And if that don't work, then...

GIRL: Then what?

- Yell.
- Yell.

Okay.

This is a good thing! For all of us.

This is progress!

Tell them.

Yeah.

No such thing as free money.

Good set last night, right?

Great set.

I like where you're going with it.

- More personal.
- Finally, right?

'Cause honestly, all that
"Rimbaud is my spirit animal" bullshit

was starting to give me hemorrhoids.

Him, Baudelaire,
Apollinaire, Frigidaire,

and all those other bad-boy poseurs.

Rimbaud wasn't a poseur.

"I am a beast, a nigger.
But I could be saved.

"You are sham niggers."

No offense, bro.

"I enter the true kingdom
of the children of Ham."

- Ham and a side of hash browns.
- Exactement.

You wanna make honest art?
Look to where you've been.

Sign it for me?

Why don't you
come back down again tonight?

I'll have a real gift for you.

If I can get in for free.

(CLEARS THROAT)

MAN: Where the hell is my light meter?

Where's my fucking wimple?

JOSS: It's on your head.

(LAUGHS) I love that word.

- Joss, can you get Harvey for me?
- JOSS: Yeah.

"Wimple."

Hey, Candy says...

What? What does she want?

(SNIFFS)

- Where are they?
- They?

No. Come on.

It's just a couple of fries.

Harvey, just stop.

You know I'm right.

Candy needs to talk to you.

- Candy.
- Harvey.

I'm not doing this anymore.

- Doing what?
- Doing this.

Priests, nuns, rabbis.

- You're religious now?
- No, it just offends me.

Well, I stayed up all night
writing this scene. Ask Joss.

Come on, Harvey,
this whole script is shit.

Hey. Hey, I'm trying to say something

about organized religion
in this movie.

- It's a statement piece.
- Yeah? Saying what, exactly?

Hey, you hear the one
about the blind guy at the seder?

They hand him a piece of matzah,
he says, "Who wrote this shit?"

CANDY: Harvey,
you gotta get rid of Melinda.

She's fucked up
even when she's not fucked up.

No problem. Anything else?

Yeah.

I'm not doing any more
Daddy Knows Best scenes.

That's a fantasy.

That's not my fantasy.

Oh, that's someone's fantasy.

Hey, Harvey, you want me
to keep banging out films for you,

you gotta give me
some better shit to work with.

And you have gotta let me
start drawing some lines for myself.

- Otherwise...
- All right. Absolutely.

I've also been thinking
about something else.

I want 20, 25 tables
and a small stage.

So, live music?

Yeah, but mellow.

American songbook.
Like at The Carlyle.

So, that means a dance floor.

Maybe a little one.

Nothing anybody'd go crazy on.

There's enough discos
downtown already.

This is more one of those
Nick and Nora Charles nightclubs

from the movies, you know?

Some wit and class to it.

More conversation, less cock.

Something like that.

Been to your other club a few times.

- Did you have fun?
- I did.

Good.

Be that as it may,
I'll need 20,000 up front.

Like I told Kenneth, 15 as a deposit,

five for two months' rent in advance.

Well, we have to talk to some people.
Can we get a little time on this?

Whatever you need.

This isn't it.

The movies that stick in a theater
for more than a month,

they cost more
and they're better than ours.

So how about getting
the fuck out of this shoebox

and making something really special?

Because this crap
that we're doing now, I mean,

I will be amazed
if the guys sitting in the theater

stay to the end of the movie
after they squeeze one out.

And the best flicks,
they make you think a little,

they make you laugh for real.

- Because they give you story.
- Yeah, we give story.

No. The real moneymakers,
Alice in Wonderland.

Right, it's fucking based on
Alice in Wonderland.

Misty Beethoven's
based on My Fair Lady.

Shaw's Pygmalion, actually.

Devil in Miss Jones
is based on a French play.

- That would be Sartre's No Exit.
- Will you stop, please?

But, you know,
it's a bit of a stretch.

Don't do this smart-ass
film buff thing of yours.

I'm just trying to talk to you.

I'm just trying to talk to you.
I'm listening to you.

And I'm not going to those
fucking spaghetti benders

I have to deal with for more money.

- Neither are you.
- Takes money to make money.

- What?
- JOSS: You heard me.

Et tu, Mrs. Brute?

Okay.

- I'll raise it on my own.
- Yeah?

Good luck with that.

(PEOPLE CHEERING)

HARVEY: What now?

MAN: Well done.
WOMAN: Fucking awesome!

MAN 2: Nice job, Lori.
WOMAN 2: All right, Lori.

- What happened?
- I got nominated!

- For what?
- Best Supporting Actress.

- Hey.
- That's fantastic.

- Which movie?
- Family Head.

- I'm dreaming, right?
- That's amazing.

Taught her everything she knows.

Oh, please. I got off that bus
with skills, and you know it.

- Too true, Lor, too true.
- CANDY: Hey, Harvey.

- Whose side are you on?
- Harvey. Best Director.

- Get the fuck out.
- Let me see this.

(CANDY LAUGHING)

Oh, my...

Fuck.

Nobody's saying nothing about it.

Any of your friends out there
been acting any different than usual?

Like how?

You mean, like, paranoid?
Yeah. Everybody. Every day.

You'd be too if you was one of us.

Who ain't been around since then?

I don't know.

There's this one kid,

kind of like a joker,
always cracking everybody up.

That's why I'm thinking about him.

He kind of disappeared.
But I don't know his name.

Maybe Skeef? Skaff?

White, black or Puerto Rican?

There's something
you need to know about me.

I do what I gotta do, you know,
but I got a girlfriend, too.

Mmm-hmm.

FLANAGAN: You knew the Doomsday
Defense was gonna show up,

but Jesus, eight turnovers?

It's embarrassing.
Morton got his ass handed to him.

So much for vindication.

How's your case going?

You know, zeroing in, zeroing out.

You don't have to feel guilty anymore
about not taking me under your roof.

I wasn't feeling guilty about it.

I'm back with the wife. (SNIFFS)

Is that a good thing?

My new philosophy, every choice
you can make in life sucks.

Given that, best thing you can do

is choose the thing
that sucks the least.

(WOMAN MOANING)

(WHISPERING) Over there.

(MOANING CONTINUES)

Taylor... Tyler.

Raise her hips up about six inches,
otherwise I can't see the insert.

He does that, he's gonna be
banging on my eggs.

- I don't want to hurt her.
- Hey, Shana, fucking Da Vinci

had to lay on his back for 10 years
with paint dripping in his eyes.

But guess what?
It's called the Sistine Chapel.

Sacrifice for your art, okay?

Randall, a word, please.

RANDALL: Cut. Find me another
fucking angle that works, please.

I know you think you're an artiste,
but this is not a church.

The woman just said
she's not comfortable...

All right, all right, all right.
I hear you.

So, what was so important
you couldn't make today's call?

She's here now. What?

And she was over
at Harvey's shop this morning.

Word gets around, Lori.
You double-booked yourself.

- She's in demand.
- Look, it's my fault.

I told you both that I could,
and I didn't realize.

I'm sorry. I'm sorry.

Go suit up, Miss In Demand.

Who are you?

The agency sent me.
I auditioned today.

Okay. We'll use you in the orgy.

Go talk to her, with the clipboard.

She'll run you through
hair and wardrobe.

Come on.

Lori.

Yeah.

Don't be apologizing for who you are.

See, girl, we just keep moving up.

- And with this award...
- It's just a nomination, C.C.

Mmm-hmm.

You gonna win, girl.

- ABBY: Miss me already, huh?
- Hey, Abby.

So, why was I summoned?

What's the deal?

You're throwing away sevens!

- Hey, Mike. You're in charge tonight.
- What?

Whoa, whoa, whoa. Vince. Him? Come on.

Did I say Mike was in charge?
Yeah, I think I did.

- What the fuck?
- ABBY: Where are we going?

Road trip. Tonight.

- What about The Hi-Hat?
- Yeah, what about The Hi-Hat?

I called Annette.

She's gonna come in and cover for you.

Boss man, I don't think I was angling
for any kind of promotion.

Yeah. Beside the fact
that you're crossing lines here.

I mean, I'm fucking blood, right?

Mike, you're gonna be fine.
You know why? 'Cause I trust you.

Fuck this. Fuck this fucking game.

My grandma plays gin.

Come on, let's go.
I got a rental outside,

you bring your camera if you want.

Mike, gonna be fucking great.

Good luck.

Can I ask you something?

Sure.

There's this girl, Frances Matarazzo,
in my homeroom.

I really like her,
and I think she really likes me.

- Okay.
- But my best friend Stan,

he really likes her.

So, I want to ask her
to go to the movies,

but I don't wanna
make Stan feel crappy.

And I don't want him
to get pissed off at me

and not be my friend anymore.

Yeah, it sounds like a problem.

I mean, Mom,
Frances doesn't even like him.

If you were me, what would you do?

I don't know.

I mean, girls are gonna come and go.

Mom, I really, really like her.

Then I would ask myself

which was more important to me.

The friendship or the movie date.

So, you're going out with girls now?

Just a few.

As opposed to every girl in the world?

Stop, okay?

You know, I've been doing
pretty good at work lately.

What do you think about me
looking around for a two-bedroom?

Okay.

Like, for us.

Not a good idea?

We can look together.

Yeah.

I don't mean right away, but soon.

- How soon?
- Soon.

Here we are.

Wow.

Come on.

Yeah, it don't look like much now,

but you should've seen it
when I was a kid.

- Jesus.
- What?

Condom graveyard down there.

The Coney Island whitefish.

Yeah, summertime,
there'd be couples down there

doing everything from making out
to straight fucking.

My friends and I,
we'd be up here peering down,

we'd see a couple people humping away,

we'd pour water on them
through the slats

and then run like hell.

Pure class.

Lots of babies being made.

Lots of kids running around Brooklyn
with the name Sandy.

Did you ever take
any girls down there?

Once. Marie Amalfitano.

But we were in, like, sixth grade,
so it was mostly kissing.

Mmm.

For me, it was always The Boathouse.

My parents' club.

Well, welcome to the great state
of Un-Connecticut.

I think I would have had
a lot more fun here.

Yeah, I heard
she's a dental hygienist now.

Who?

Marie Amalfitano.

Saw you also got one
of the AFAA nominations.

You, too?

What was yours for?

Best Actress.

Oh.

Just Supporting, me.

It's all cake, right?

Mmm-hmm.

- You see me on TV last night?
- Mmm-mmm.

Midnight Blue.

That Channel J show.

With the Screw guy, Al.

That Channel 35 show?
Yeah, I've seen that.

Uh-huh.

He interviews you
just like Johnny Carson,

except he's asking you,
like, about fucking and sucking.

You should go on with him.

Millions of guys watch,

and you don't have to do much.

- He just asked you to go on it?
- Nope. Kiki set it up.

She's your manager?

Manager, agent,
whatever she wants to call herself.

Do you wanna meet her?

Uh, maybe another time.

So, anyway, after we taped the show,

the guy, Al,
he invites me back to his office,

and I'm thinking,
"Okay, here it comes.

"Now I gotta blow him
or whatever for the spot."

Mmm-hmm.

But really, he just asks
if he can go down on me.

Just asks it,
like I have to give permission.

What?

And then, afterwards,
he gives me half of his sandwich

and we talk about
how he can't get his favorite deli

to deliver below 23rd Street.

I mean, whatever, right?

- What the hell?
- All right, stand aside.

Look, there's an art to this,
all right?

(EXHALES)

Oh!

Just 'cause it looks easy
don't mean that it is.

- Oh. Hmm.
- Yeah.

Right?

All right. Here's the secret.

You gotta bank it.

- Watch.
- Okay.

Huh?

Okay?

No, sorry, it says "no bank shots."

Yeah. Exactly.

Come on.

- Here we go. Here we go.
- All right.

(BOTH CHEERING)

Stick with me, kid.
I'll show you the world, huh?

- (THUD)
- MAN: Give me my hand back!

ELISE: Fuck you!

Let me go!

MAN: (ON PA) Just a dollar minimum
is all it takes to smell it,

touch it, taste it, right now.

MAN: Damn it!
ELISE: Fuck you!

Give me my goddamn hand back!

- ELISE: Fuck you, asshole!
- Hey, you all right?

- Get me out of here!
- Elise, lift it up!

- Fuck you too, Frankie!
- FRANKIE: All right.

- You have to help me.
- All right, relax.

- Where you going?
- Relax.

Whoa, sorry.

MAN: (ON PA) The best pussy
in New York City, right here.

Hey, Elise. Hey.
The button. Push the button!

See what he fucking did to me?

All right, he's got long fingernails.

What, you gonna
chop his fucking arm off?

You fucking serious, Frankie?

Push the fucking button!

- Fucking asshole.
- Push the button!

Push the... Push the fucking button!

- Push it!
- I am! It's fucking broken!

Fuck. All right. Sir, just wait there.

You bitch!

- All right, relax.
- Open...

- Will you get me out of here?
- Relax! Relax! Relax!

- All right, easy.
- Get it open!

- There you go.
- Shit!

Look what she did to me.

- My watch! Where's my watch?
- What...

She took my watch!

- Elise!
- The bitch took my watch.

The watch!

- Fuck! Fuck!
- There it is.

MAN: (ON PA) Girl, girls, girls!

I'm going to the cops! Right now!

Well, could've been worse, you know.
She could've taken the wedding ring.

Oh, fuck you.

All right.

Elise, you okay in there?

ELISE: Fuck you, Frankie.

You all right, baby?

No, I will not be paying my tab.

Did I say anything?

But if things go good Thursday,
I might be.

- What's Thursday?
- A legit callback.

Fantastic. For what?

A revival of The Zoo Story.

It's in New Hope, Pennsylvania,
but right now I'll go anywhere.

I thought you were busy.

Yeah, just some porn.
I'm trying not to do so much of that.

Three years Juilliard,
two years La MaMa,

and it's like I got a brand
on my forehead from that shit.

Every casting agent in town

is whispering something
about the size of my dick

before I walk in for any read.

Well, as long as they say nice things.

- To New Hope.
- To any hope at all.

VINCENT: Welcome to Neponsit.
ABBY: Whose house is this?

VINCENT: My Aunt Celeste.

She's upstate visiting her daughter.

- ABBY: Mmm.
- (CHUCKLES)

- Yeah.
- ABBY: Wow!

Where is Miss Havisham's wedding cake?

What do you mean? Still hungry?

(ABBY CHUCKLES)

What?

Yeah.

Big family.

Mmm.

You were so adorable as a little kid.

Yeah, I think you're looking
at Frankie there.

No, I'm not.

Shit, you're right. That is me.

Gene, you need anything?

I'm fine, Paul.

MAN: Can I have one more
of the same thing?

Let me get you a real drink.

Okay.

MAN: Hey, settle down.

- He's the one that hit me first.
- I never touched you.

- Step back!
- Faggot!

It's me. It's me. You okay?

I'm fine.

You fucking cowards.

- "You fucking cowards."
- What'd he hit you with?

I don't know.
I was coming out of the bar

- and I got hit from behind.
- So, he hit you with his fist?

Officer, it's dark in there.

Maybe he was trying to fit

a big black cock in his mouth
and he missed!

- Hey, no one's talking to you!
- OFFICER: Lean back, guys. Lean back.

How do you know it was him
if he hit you from behind?

- I know because...
- You know why?

'Cause maricóns,
they like it from behind.

Hey, what'd I just say to you?

OFFICER: Listen,
you want to file a complaint?

Or can we just take you to the ER
and call it a night?

Dee, do up the top button.

Yeah, I think it's hotter like that
if you slowly take them off.

Let's do the talking again.

I hate to evict you.

Nice and slow. You're in charge.

- HARVEY: It's almost midnight.
- Maybe we can work something out.

How?

Let's think, see what pops up.

He owes you money. Enjoy your power.

Yeah. That's a week's rent
paid up right there.

Okay, Terry,
give me a little resistance.

This is a strange situation.

- Why would I resist?
- Because you're not in charge here.

- Like I'm kind of the girl here?
- Don't look at me. Look at her.

Yeah, Terry, you kind of are.

Candy, how much rent does he owe me?

I'm not loving the color of that sofa.

Fuck me! Guys. Fuck!

Cut. Cut.

Okay, I'm sorry.

I know everybody's tired,

but we have gotta get these scenes
by the morning, all right?

We're already a day overdue
on the camera.

Can we reset?

Let's get to the fucking.

(BABY CRYING)

(SIGHS)

Jesus Christ.

Look who's home, Jeremy.
It's your fucking dada.

- Can I just breathe here?
- Here, breathe with him.

He's been crying all day.
I'm exhausted.

Did you take him to the pediatrician?

This morning.

He wants to test him for allergies.

- What allergies?
- All.

I'm gonna go back to bed.

Don't fall asleep on me, okay?

Too late.

You okay there, buddy?

(JEREMY SPITS UP)

Candy.

I wanna rap to you about something.

Hey, baby.
Just give us a second, all right?

Thanks, Dee.

Look, I've been
coming down here awhile

to see what you do, how you do.

And I gotta say,

the males you use,

they don't look like real men.

They don't even fuck like real men.

Yeah, no kidding.

How come you hardly use any brothers?

Where we going with this, Larry?

Are you serious?

Why not?

I mean, a pimp is a performer, right?

I perform every day.

And depending who I gotta deal with,
it's a different role.

Hoes, cops, other pimps.

I am who I need to be
to control the situation.

Yeah, but that's the thing.
Guys like you, it's all about control.

That shit don't play here.
You gotta give all that up.

Show your ass, do what you're told.

Think you could do that, Larry?

I can do whatever I put my mind to.

Can't bitch-slap a camera.

(SIGHS)

Long day's night.

Thank you.

Hey, who was that lady
you were talking to today?

You mean Genevieve Furie?

No.

The fuck!
Harvey, you don't give me a heads-up?

I didn't wanna make you nervous.

Oh, for Christ's sake.

Did she say anything?

You wanna meet her?

(DISCO MUSIC PLAYING)

You know who that is, right?

I know he need to get a new wig.

(LAUGHS)

Yo, yo, yo! Listen up!

Turn the music down for this.

Turn it down!

It's 4:00 a.m., and all y'all know

this the moment where my man Vincent
kick this party up a notch

by making sure everybody
have a free drink in their hand.

(ALL CHEERING)

That's right,

4:00 a.m.,
and y'all sipping on a new one.

But I ain't Vincent.
Do I even look Italian?

In fact, I don't look anything
like a motherfucker

who needs to give a free drink
to anyone, ever.

So, if y'all wanna
keep this party happening,

y'all gonna get to the bar,

put down some cash money
on some alcohol,

or I'm gonna bounce your ass
into the cold light of the early morn.

(ALL LAUGHING)

Mike, you're honorary Italian!

Hey, forget about it.

Paisans, let's drink!

(ALL CHEERING)

(DISCO MUSIC PLAYING)

That girl today on set?

Uh-huh?

She just sashays in,

says she wants
to make a movie with us.

And she's like some college girl
from, like, wherever.

And that's the thing.
They're all like that now.

Like, everybody that I work with,
all the girls,

never whored, never will.

It's like they just decided
that they want to make porn flicks.

Like they sat down
with their guidance counselors

and made a plan.

Thing is,

everything and everybody,
it's just, it's getting...

I don't know,
it's changed, C.C., you know?

It's not like how it was
when we started.

It's different.

The directors and the actors,
and it's just...

It's like a free world.

A free world.

Yeah.

You know, the awards,

they say that all the nominees

are going out to LA
for the award show.

No kidding.

Like, on a plane?

Yeah. Yeah, they say
it's like a thing, like...

Like a...

Like, an important thing
for the business.

They say everybody's gonna be there.

I don't know, maybe we should go.

Hey.

You going out for the AFAA awards?

I hope so.

I've never been to LA before.

It's a chance to meet and greet
the whole industry, both coasts.

Like who?

De Renzy, Damiano,
Spinelli, Arthur Morowitz,

the Mitchells.

You want, I can arrange sit-downs.

Absolutely.

Then you gotta hire me as your agent.

I get 10% of everything,
no more, no less, no strings.

- Why me?
- Because when I watch you in a flick,

I see a woman who genuinely
looks like she's enjoying herself.

Sometimes I do, but sometimes...

I'm not saying
what you think I'm saying.

I'm saying you're an actor.

Do you know what a gift that is,
to be able to sell it onscreen?

I've never really thought about it,
I just...

Like I was telling Shana,
this whole thing is new for porn,

agents actually
representing the talent.

New on this coast, at least.

Here, the only thing agents did
was find fresh bodies for directors.

We worked for them,

but out West,
girls are starting to get repped.

You let me guide your career,
we're both gonna make a lot of money.

That's what C.C. always says.

The other day on set,

what were you talking
to the director about?

About treating my client with respect,

professional respect.

Look, C.C. is a pimp

who's in way over his head,

and the only thing he's gonna do
is drag you down.

VINCENT: In the summers,
my Aunt Celeste,

she'd send all the rug rat cousins
out here to the beach.

She'd sit on the porch
with her sisters, play canasta,

talk about shit you wouldn't believe.

Like, "If you can't marry Italian,
what's the next best choice?"

And me and Frank,
we'd come up from the beach,

too much sand in our shorts.

And our other aunt, Carmen,

she'd give us a taste of her wine
in a paper cup.

And then we'd run back
to the house, to the backyard,

and my Uncle Ernie would be
back there with all the husbands,

he'd give us a taste,

and if he was winning,
he'd let us play a hand for him.

All day, back and forth,
back and forth like that.

So, what is the next best choice?

- For a husband?
- Mmm-hmm.

My Aunt Celeste, she liked the Jews.

Jews, they make better money

and generally they don't hit
their wives or beat on their kids.

ABBY: I love this.

Yeah. It's the best.

This is us.

Shit, we gotta get back.

- Why? What's the rush?
- Fuck.

I almost forgot the baby shower.

What... What baby shower?

GENEVIEVE: I want D80, half a load.

- You have the blood knife?
- MAN: Right, yeah.

GENEVIEVE: I wanna see the incision,
you know? That's good.

Use the air cannon
for the splatter on the wall.

- You know what to do.
- MAN: Great.

GENEVIEVE: Oren, I think
we're gonna start with, like,

a wide two-shot,
then you dolly in from there

and stay on her face.

- I'll do him.
- OREN: Perfect.

GENEVIEVE: Janet, when you're
stabbing him for the first time,

I wanna see rage in your eyes.

- Rage, okay? You're doing great.
- JANET: All right.

First position, everybody.
Nobody fuck it up.

I wanna get it in one.

I'm going handheld on this.

- Okay, Oren, are you ready?
- Yeah.

Okay.

Raise it higher.

That's good,
but lift your chin a little.

Okay? You look great. All right.

FRAN: Where the hell were you?

Don't start, okay?

You were supposed to take Patrick
to the dentist two hours ago!

There was a pile-up on the bridge.
Nothing I could do about it.

He's gonna wind up
with more holes than teeth.

- Here. Take him.
- Not now, Fran.

- I'm supposed to go...
- I said not now!

Bobby!

CANDY: Miss Furie,
I have gotta tell you...

GENEVIEVE: Agneiszka.

"Genevieve Furie" is just for show.

Agneiszka, I have learned so much
watching the films you directed.

And I have seen all of them,

'cause I know you started
in skin flicks like me. And now...

And now they, you know, let me
do the trash and the slash

and the horror and...

It's still porn, but different.

Well, it's more than fuck films.

Yeah.

So, why did you come to our set?

Harvey asked me.

He likes you.

And we share some history.

So, me, I don't like women, you know?

They talking too much,
they slow things down,

they can't lift track,
they can't move camera, they...

Thank you.

If I was your teacher,

from what I see yesterday,

I'd give you a "C."

First of all, your camera guy,
he think he's your co-director.

Put him in his place,
or fire him and shoot it yourself.

Second of all, your crew is shit.

There's plenty
of legitimate pros out there

who'd be happy to moonlight,
you know, for extra dollars.

Just put the word out
and they find you.

Third of all, anyone can fuck on film,

but hardly anyone can act.

- Yeah.
- To me, I'd rather use real actor

- with normal-sized prick.
- Yeah.

Because what happen when they
actually have to stop fucking?

- When they have to open their mouth...
- Exactly.

- ...and sell a character? Right?
- Yeah.

Four, stop using whores.

They're dead around the eyes.

Got some bubbly for the ladies!

(WOMEN CHEERING)

WOMAN: Thank you!

Ah!

- You're sure it's a girl, right?
- Yeah.

(CORK POPS)

In case the damn doctor's wrong.

- LARRY: Yo, come on!
- (BANGING ON DOOR)

You have customers out here
freezing our nuts off!

- Come on!
- VINCENT: Big bad wolf.

All right.

Raise a glass for Adam or Eve.

(SCOFFS)

We ain't here for no al fresco shit.

Guys, it's a baby shower.
A girl thing.

Let them have their party.

Hey, Daddy.

What's going on in there?

I just said.

Bought a motherfucking present
for the bitch.

Oh, that's sweet.

If it's so girly-girly,
why the fuck Vince in there?

Do me a favor. There's a tribe
of slap-a-hoes out there.

Can you go babysit them
before they break the door down?

MAN: Hey, yo, see that bodega
up on 9th burned down, too?

That why they call it Hell's Kitchen?

Hey, I got cigars.

My man.

You know what
they're doing inside, right?

What do you think they're doing?

- They're conniving against our asses.
- Yeah.

Scratch a bitch, uncover a conspiracy.

(SIGHS) Yeah...

WOMAN: Okay,
a cucumber won't knock you up.

A cucumber won't beat your ass.

Or say, "It ain't mine."

A cucumber won't give you the syph.

- Or hate on your kids.
- Or take your money.

- Or beat your ass.
- You said that already.

I'm saying it again.

Did somebody say soft?
It won't go soft?

ALL: Yeah.

Wait, which one?

Sorry I got you kicked out of there.

Yeah, they didn't
want me in there anyway.

Getting cold.

MAN: It's all about Roger Staubach
and his Doomsday Defense...

Dropping off or picking up?

What do you care?

Question withdrawn.

Fuck you. People have to eat.

So, how goes your tourist carving?

I keep hearing about
this one hustler kid

who disappeared right after.

- Skeef, Skiff...
- You mean Skeets.

- Skeets?
- Angel Arroyo.

If he's vanished,
he didn't vanish far.

His mother lives up in the Bronx.

This here is called

getting some work out of me.

MAN: Cowboys gonna do it again
next year. Just wait.

(FILM SPOOLS WHIRRING)

Fuck me.

Listen to this. Listen.

"He could be seen from afar
among the trees

"putting his arm around her waist

"and walking, half-bending over,

"ruffling the chemisette
of her bodice with his head."

There's four fucking chapters,

that's the closest
anybody's got to fucking!

(SIGHS)

Agneiszka said,
"Look to the classics." Fuck.

Moby Dick?

You gonna make a joke
about a sperm whale?

- The Iceman Cometh.
- The what?

Crotch-22?
The Adventures of Fuckleberry Finn?

Stop. It's not a fucking party game.

What about fairy tales?

Most of them are about sex, anyway.

Hmm.

- For example?
- Snow White.

You gotta cast dwarves.

Cinderella? No, no.

Keep going.

Goldilocks.

"Somebody's been sleeping in my bed."

Sleeping Beauty.

Hey, there, Little Red Riding Hood

You sure are looking good

You're everything

That a big bad wolf could want

(BOTH HOWLING)

How you doing?

You run this shithole?

I, uh...

- Yep.
- Give me a Dewar's, rocks.

Same for Frick and Frack over here.

Heard about that mess the other night.

Do you know who I am?

- The Horse.
- That's right.

I got places on either end
of Christopher,

and one around the corner.

Nobody fucks with them, do they?

Mr. Ianniello,

we already have an understanding
with Mr. Pipilo.

Oh, Mr. Pipilo.

Shit. I didn't know
you were with Rudy.

How the fuck am I supposed to know
that you're with a guy

when your customers are getting
the shit beat out of them

every time they go
in and out of your joint?

I came here to help you.

Far be it for me

to interject into
the business affairs of Rudy Pipilo.

But if I were you,
I'd ask out of that arrangement,

and possibly get into a new one,

where you're actually getting
the protection you're paying for.

But that's up to you, not me.

Yo. Hit us again.

He had you backed
against the passenger door.

Let me hear you say it.

Backed against the door, yeah.

So, you had no way to escape him?

No.

And he was angry.

How much do you weigh?

He weighs nothing. Look at him.

Can I tell you how much
the other man weighed?

Two hundred and forty pounds.

Dios mío.

So, would you say
you were in fear for your life?

Yeah.

Good.

So, where were you?

He had me backed up
against the passenger door.

There was nothing else I could do.

MAN 1: You got it?
MAN 2: Yeah. That's good.

MAN 3: All right. Watch your head.
Got it?

MAN 4: Yup.

BOBBY: Duggan.

Big Bobby Dwyer. Holy shit.

I haven't seen you
since the Navy Yard job.

What was that, six, seven years ago?

What the fuck's going on here?

What does it look like?

And why do you care?

Detective Alston?

So, you solved it.

You heard quick.

I usually do.

So? Robbery?

Was he robbed?

He was down on the Deuce
trolling for some young trade,

and he backed the wrong kid into doing
something he didn't wanna do.

And here you are looking to protect
the tourists from New York.

Turns out New York needs
to protect itself from the tourists.

Wrong case for you. Sorry.

Do you have any idea what's coming
down the pipe, Detective?

What?

A new Knapp Commission?

A new broom?

You know who benefits?

Cats like you get all of the ink.

You know who gets it in the neck?

Cops who get suckered in.

Next thing they know, they get shot
and nobody lifts a finger.

Two years later,
everybody's still stealing,

like nothing ever happened.

That's not what this is about.

Do you know what are
the two greatest crime fighters

we have in this city?

Sheetrock and cranes.

(JAZZ MUSIC PLAYING)

Fucking Christ.

What's the problem?

See what's happening
around the corner on Dyer?

Guys are carting shit off a truck,
I go see what's what.

It's Hodas again,
opening another parlor.

This one right between two of ours.
That motherfucker!

Vin? It's me. Guess what?

Another fucking Hodas joint's
going up.

Right down the street!

Right between us and the Geisha House.

All right, I'll get
with Rudy then. Bye.

- Hey, Vince.
- Yeah.

Hey. Gotta get with Tommy Longo, man.
Maybe Rudy, too.

I'm kind of freaking out.

Look, I got somewhere to be tonight.

Why don't you just go
talk to him yourself?

- Alone?
- Yeah.

You're paying him too, right?

- Yeah.
- Yeah.

(PHONE RINGING)

Babe, come on, we gotta go.

Kitchen's gonna close.
They stay open late, but come on.

- Now?
- Yeah, now. Now or never.

Come on, I thought
you wanted to grab a bite.

Okay, just, um...

Abby. You.

Abby.

Hello?

Oh, my God. Hey.

Sure. Sure. Where?

Abby.

I'm coming right now.

Vin, something came up. I'm sorry.

What do you mean, "something came up"?

What?

What about dinner?

That negligee's too long for you.

You're gonna trip
and break your neck in here.

Borrowed it from my sister,
who's a giant.

How about this?

Everybody says,
when it comes to women's wear,

I have excellent taste.

If you trust me,
I'll pick you up a few nice things

and bring them in tomorrow.

That's how I am with my friends.

Man is a hopeless romantic.

WOMAN: Well,
whatever you want to do...

WOMAN 1: And one strategy
I was thinking about

is focusing on the massage parlors,
the peeps,

a group of us standing outside
with cameras

and shooting the johns going in.

- Shooting the johns.
- WOMAN 2: I don't like it.

I mean, you're talking about
public shaming.

It could come back on us in a bad way.

It's not about the johns.

It's about whoever's making money
off these women.

WOMAN 3: Hold on a sec.

The reality is that the pimps
are always gonna pimp,

and johns are always gonna spend,

and the higher-ups will always
find a way to cash in.

WOMAN 1: So, why do anything?
Is that what you're saying?

No, that's not what I'm saying.

I'm saying what do the women need
in order to get out?

And if they're not ready to get out,

then what do they need
in order to survive?

WOMAN 1: Look, the bigger issues
are the bigger issues.

Political, criminal,
public awareness, whatever.

(THEME MUSIC PLAYING)