All language subtitles for Southside.With.You.2016.720p.BluRay.x264-Replica

- Lunch is almost up, honey.
- Okay.

Hmm.

Yes?

I thought it wasn't a date.

It wasn't, and it isn't.

Thought you said he was just another
smooth-talking brother.

Going to an awful lot of trouble
for just another smooth-talker.

Mom, you know I try to look my best

no matter where I go
or who I'm going with.

It's fun to look pretty.

- He's a colleague.
- Okay, if you say so.

- Hello?
- Hi, Bar.

Aren't you supposed to be on your date?

I've got a few minutes
before I need to leave.

You're not checking up on me now,
are you, Toot?

Well, maybe I am.

But it's a grandmother's God-given right.

You have a bad habit of being late,
and if you're late to the first date,

I can promise you there won't be a second.

I won't be late. I appreciate it.

- How's Gramps?
- How's Gramps? He's Gramps.

He's got his bridge game
on Tuesdays and Thursdays,

golf on the weekends,
but when he's home and bored,

well, what can I say, Bar,
he drives me up the wall.

- Well, thank you, baby.
- Of course.

So, where you going looking so raggedy?

- Girl's got herself a date.
- Mm.

It's not a date, Daddy.

He's the summer associate I told y'all
about, the one from Harvard Law.

I mentioned I worked legal aid,
and he invited me to a community event

- at the Gardens.
- Huh?

Yeah, 'cause it doesn't get more romantic

than broken plumbing
and underfunded schools.

TAnd tell me the young lady's name again.

Michelle Robinson.

She's my advisor at the firm, remember?

And tell me again what she looks like.

Well, she's tall.

Ah. What else?

What else would you like to know?

Well, where's she from?

Chicago.

Uh-huh. Which part?

The side that's predominantly black.

Okay, so she's...

Yes, Toot, her skin is
of the darker persuasion.

Good.

So long as you're happy, Bar,
that's all that really matters.

Thanks, Toot.

Now, I gotta go, or I will be late.

Okay, love you.

I love you, too.

- So, what's this boy's name?
- Barack Obama.

Barack-a-what-a?

He's half-white.

His father's from Kenya
and his mother's white.

So, why isn't this a date?

We work together. It's inappropriate.

Mm. Maybe, but you are
spending the day with him.

Yeah, the meeting sounded interesting.

Well, even if it's not a date,

the least thing you could've done
is run a brush through your hair.

You look real nice, Meesh.

Thank you, Daddy.

This heat, this heat, this heat!

Hey, uh, women wearing the freeze hairdos,

y'all doing that to keep cool
during the summer?

Sounds like a plan to me.

What are you doing to keep cool?

What are you doing to beat this heat?

Speaking of hot, hot, hot!

Janet's bring the heat
with the number one single in the country.

I miss it so much when I don't hear it.

I know you do, too.

So I'm playing it for me and for you.

# Shot #

# Like an arrow going through my heart #

# That's the pain I feel #

# I feel whenever we're apart #

# Not to say that I'm in love with you #

# But who's to say that I'm not? #

# I just know that it feels wrong #

# When I'm away too long #

# It makes my body hot #

# So let me tell ya, baby #

# I'll tell your mama #

# I'll tell your friends #

# I'll tell anyone whose heart
can comprehend #

# Send it in a letter, baby #

# Tell you on the phone #

# I'm not the kind of girl
who likes to be alone #

# I miss you much #

# Oh, boy, I miss you much #

# I really miss you much #

# M-I-S-S you much #

# I miss you much, baby #

# I really miss you much #

# M-I-S-S you much #

# I'm rushing home #

# Just as soon as I can #

# I'm rushing home to see
your smiling face #

# And feel your warm embrace #

# It makes feel so g-g-g-good #

# So I'll tell you, baby #

# I'll tell your mama,
I'll tell your friends #

# I'll tell anyone whose heart
can comprehend #

# Send it in a letter, baby,
tell you on the phone #

# I'm not the kinda girl
who likes to be alone... #

- Hi.
- Hello.

- You're late.
- I was hoping you wouldn't notice.

It's okay, I expected it.

You were late for your first day of work.

- You noticed that, too.
- Yeah.

I'm your advisor, I'm supposed to notice.

- Do you live here alone?
- No.

No, this is my family's house.

My parents still live here
and, apparently, so do I.

Should we?

Oh, uh, yeah. Car's down this way.

- All set?
- Mm-hmm.

# I can tell you how I feel about you... #

You're on that account, right?

- Which account?
- Bottlecap?

Yeah.

Everything cool?

Why, what did you hear?

Some of the juniors said
you weren't happy with the work.

They're wrong.

They weren't disparaging you.

They were impressed that
an associate stood up for herself

the way you did.

It's not the work. I mean, it is the work.

It's tedious, but that's to be expected.

Second year associates get the grunt work.

I can live with that.

I'll complain about it,
but I can live with it.

It's the trademark suit
that's got me fuming.

I take it you did not agree
with the judge's decision.

I completely agreed
with the judge's decision.

And I told Thompson six months ago

that we would lose if we tried it
like a trademark dispute.

I was basically silenced for
voicing a dissenting opinion.

Hmm. There's no real
contribution at our level.

There's only the illusion of contribution.

Get ready, buster. You're on deck.

Are you sure it's the firm
you're frustrated with?

Shouldn't we be getting to the meeting?

We have some time.
It's not for another few hours.

What?

I thought we'd swing by the Arts Center.

There's an Afrocentric exhibit
that's supposed to be...

Wait. What is this?

What is this? I don't know.

I mean, taken at face value, that's
a pretty existential question, Michelle.

What happened to the meeting?

It doesn't start till 4:00,

so I thought we'd see some paintings,
maybe grab a bite to eat.

We don't have to.

Barack, you seem like a really sweet guy.

But how many times do I have to tell you?

We're not going out together.

Well, Michelle, thank you for saying that.

You seem like a real sweet girl,
but I have to correct you.

We are in fact out,
and we are in fact together.

But not on a date. This is not a date.

It doesn't have to be.

Barack, I don't want it to be.

You know, usually women I meet
are willing to look past

my hideous appearance
and get to know the real me.

If I thought you were hideous,
I wouldn't have set you up with Gina.

Gina's very attractive.

Now that's true. Gina is very attractive.

This is not a date.

That's okay. I'll go at your pace.

Barack, there's no pace to go at because
there's no anything to speak of.

I am your advisor at our law firm.

- It would be tacky.
- You keep saying that.

- And you keep ignoring it.
- For good reason.

You're my advisor insomuch as you introduced
me around at the beginning of the month,

and you showed me
how to use the copy machine.

Which, by the way,
I still can't figure out.

So, some advisor.

Secondly.

It's not "our" law firm.
It's your law firm.

I'm just here for the summer.

And while you're here, it's inappropriate.

So you think I'm attractive enough
to set up with your prettiest friend...

You think she's that pretty?

You and I share
a lot of the same interests.

- I don't know that that's true.
- We both love Chicago.

I get it.
You think we have a lot in common.

And maybe we do, maybe we can be friends.

But if you can't understand this,
then you can't understand me.

It's hard enough being a woman
at a giant corporate law firm.

For all the talk of equality that
goes around and all those filled quotas,

I'm still surrounded by mostly men.

So I gotta work just a little bit harder
to earn everyone's respect.

I gotta work a little bit harder
to be taken seriously.

Now add on that I'm black.

All that extra work I put in
to compensate for being a woman?

Being black erases that
and brings me back down to zero.

So now I'm working double-time

just to be seen for who I am
and what I'm capable of.

Now, how's it gonna look
to a guy like Thompson

if I swoop in and start dating
the first cute black guy

who walks through the firm's doors?

The liberal-minded people
will think it's precious,

and the close-minded people
will think it's pathetic.

- You think I'm cute?
- I didn't say that.

Some of the secretaries
described you that way.

Nice dodge. Listen, listen.

We're a few blocks away.

Why don't we go in
and check out the exhibit?

I'd still like us to go
to the meeting a little later.

It would mean a lot to me.

Okay, it's not a date.

- Fine.
- Until you say it is.

Oh. That's Ernie Barnes.

You read that in a brochure?

No, I'd spot a Barnes a mile away.

You know, Barnes
is a real interesting brother.

Did you watch "Good Times"?

- Not a family staple.
- Really?

There was a black family in Chicago
that didn't watch "Good Times"?

We are more of a "Brady Bunch,"
"Dick Van Dyke" kind of family.

Those kids on Euclid Avenue, man,
I'm telling you, they had it good.

Dy-no-mite!

Do you remember that?

Yes, I remember the line.

- That character's name was J.J.
- Right.

He was kind of a screw-up.

Would steal here and there,
couldn't read or write, talked jive.

You know, just a bad TV stereotype, right?

Mm-hmm.

But, see, as the show progressed,
J.J. developed this interest in painting.

As it turned out,
he actually had a lot of talent.

But he didn't take it seriously.

Not until his dad,
who was this tough blue-collar guy,

encouraged him to keep painting.

He saw it as his son's
only way out of the projects.

- What did he paint?
- Black ghetto life.

They were crisp,
exaggerated, very colorful.

His style was a lot like these.

That's because Ernie Barnes
did all the paintings for the show.

Hmm.

My brother would love this.

- Craig, right?
- Yeah.

How did you know?

I may have overheard you
talking about him at the office.

Stalker.

Yeah, but who's the bigger Looney Tune,

the stalker or victim who willingly
goes to a museum with the stalker?

Willingly?

I'm more inclined to describe
this as a hostage situation.

I'm that bad, huh?

Oh, hush.

Craig shoot hoops?

He's decent.

Pickup games? Office league?

He's an assistant coach at Illinois Tech.

No kidding.

I assume he played ball at school?

Yeah, at Princeton, and then
for a couple of years in the BBL.

He actually got drafted by the Sixers,
but they never played him.

What?

I'd say "decent ballplayer"
is a gross understatement.

He was decent.

Great is NBA.

Uh, no. Good is college.

Great is your brother. Super-human is NBA.

I think I came to my realization

when I missed varsity
my junior year of high school.

Cut class for a week after that.

Why?

Oh, I was hapa.

So in everyone's eyes,

I shouldn't have just made the team,
I should've been the best.

What's "hapa"?

Hawaiian for "mixed."

Hmm.

Maybe they didn't expect you
to be the best.

Maybe you put that expectation
on yourself.

Makes me think of Gwendolyn Brooks.

"The pool players.

Seven at the Golden Shovel.

We real cool.

We left school.

We lurk late.

We strike straight.

We sing sin.

We thin gin.

We jazz June.

- We die soon."
- "Die soon."

Room Ful A'Sistahs.

What do you like about this one?

I guess it reminds me
of our house on Sundays.

The boys would be upstairs
watching football,

and the girls would be downstairs
singing around the piano.

- You sing?
- I play.

- Any good?
- I'm not bad.

My aunt Robbie was a piano teacher,
so I started young.

- How old?
- Four.

- That's young.
- Not for my mom.

She started us early on everything.

Reading...

French lessons.

- You speak French?
- Mm.

Are you fluent?

I know a few words.

I never would've taken you for a Frenchie.

I mean, any other language but French.

It's just so... sentimental.

Il Ne faut pas Se fier aux apparences.

What does that mean?

It means, things are not
always as they appear.

- Turkey on rye coming right up.
- Thanks.

Here.

It's on me.

Okay, okay.

And now, the grand finale.

What, no good?

That was sweet of you,
but I don't like pie.

No, you're mistaken.

This is not a slice of pie,
this is a slice of heaven.

Mm.

Who doesn't like pie?

I'm an ice cream kind of girl.

Oh, yeah?

- Which flavor?
- Chocolate.

Ugh!

What, you don't like chocolate ice cream?

I don't like ice cream, period.

Now that's weirder than not liking pie.

Not when you spent a summer in high school
working at Baskin-Robbins, it's not.

I overdid it.

They had Baskin-Robbins in Hawaii?

You do know Hawaii is part of
these here United States, don't you?

It just seems so foreign.

Honolulu's pretty normal.

Played hoops all day.
Went to a good school.

Then again, there's a lot
about my high school years

I do not remember.

Why?

Let's just say a lot of it
got lost in a cloudy haze.

Oh.

Because you smoked a lot of marijuana?

Yes, because I smoked a lot of marijuana.

I had a lot of growing up to do.

One time, when I was nine years old,

I go to this girl's birthday party,
and I show up, and it's me and 20 girls.

I'm the only boy there.

When I asked them why,
they all just started laughing at me.

I remember running all the way home.
I was mortified.

What made you think of that?

I don't know, just popped in my head.

I could never figure it out.

Hey, you're a smart lady.
Why were they laughing at me?

They probably had crushes on you.

Hmm.

I mean, everything's backwards
when you're little.

When a boy likes you, he pulls your hair.

When you like a boy,
you kick him in the shins.

You do any shin-kicking back in the day?

If you were on the playground,
and you were brown and cute, watch out.

You, uh...

doing any shin-kicking these days?

Are you inquiring about my personal life?

I might be.

Well, the answer is no.

Tell me more about your...

grade-school Casanova years.

No, no, I couldn't have been less popular.

The kids in Indonesia used to throw me
in the swamp and call me "Blackberry."

Indonesia?

Yeah, I lived in Jakarta for a few years.

I'm not kidding.
We had crocodiles in the backyard.

But...

but why were you living there?
I mean, how did you end up there?

Lolo, my mother's ex-husband,
was from there and went back for work.

- We went with him.
- But where was your dad?

He was back in Kenya.

And you didn't wanna live with him?

It wasn't an option.

Anyway, I didn't have
to suffer at the hands

of my Indonesian tormentors for long.

I moved back to Hawaii when I was 10.

My mother wanted me
to get a better education.

Well, did you?

I don't know.

How would you rate my level of education?

You're like that jive-talking
stereotype from "Good Times."

So, what about you?

What about me?

You're Ivy League through and through.

Craig got the natural smarts.

I just worked my butt off.

I'm sure your mother made sure of that.

She never had to.

Education was always priority number one.

My dad would stand for nothing less.

And there was no way Craig
and I were gonna disappoint him.

What's he like?

He's the greatest man in the world.

He told us from day one,
education was the key to our happiness,

and he didn't let us forget it.

What's he do for a living?

Operations engineer
for the Water Department.

Basically, he fixes the boilers.

He's been there since '68.

That must be
where you get your work ethic.

You don't know the half of it.

Well, tell me, then.

You're asking a lot of questions.

You don't have to answer them, Michelle.

Can you keep what's said
outside the office...

outside the office?

Michelle, I've been trying to get you
outside the office for a month now.

I'm serious.

Yes, absolutely.

My dad has MS.

That why you live at home?

It's better to be there and to help out.

He's on crutches now.

Still gets himself to work every day.

You know, they're lucky
to have a daughter like you.

I'm lucky to have parents like them.

Is your mother still alive?

Oh, yeah. Still in Jakarta.

She's a wonderful lady.

But you don't see her much.

No, she has her own life.

But she's brilliant, warm...

Truly wonderful.

- And she's white.
- Snow white.

Born in Wichita, Kansas.

- You were born in '60?
- '61.

Hmm.

A white woman and a black man

getting married
and having a kid back then.

They were ahead of their time.

You want the God's honest truth
about my folks?

- Sure.
- Okay.

My mother thought Harry Belafonte
was the most handsome man

on the face of the planet.

Yeah, I'd say chocolate
was her favorite flavor, too.

No, really.

I think their attraction was that simple.

My father looked like Nat King Cole,
and my mother looked like Patsy Cline.

Whoo!

Not bad at all, Miss Robinson.

Those drummers were incredible.

- Yeah, they were.
- Mm.

I wonder if they were African.

- Why?
- Well, it could be a ritual.

I was part of one while visiting
my family's village in Kenya.

What were the rituals for?

Prayer, mostly.

Hey, do you believe in God?

You like to go straight
for the jugular, don't you?

You have a real nice jugular.

- Real defined, real sexy.
- Watch it now.

Growing up, we went to church
on Sundays, but...

I don't know.

I believe in some sort of guiding spirit.

But I also think God helps
those who help themselves.

I think I saw that
on a bumper sticker somewhere.

- That's how you know it's good.
- Ah.

And your religious proclivities?

Let's just say I'm still evolving.

- What were you raised?
- Nothing, really.

My mom didn't associate
with any one religion.

And your father, was he like you?

About the only thing my father and I had
in common is that we both went to Harvard.

The only difference is, he got kicked out.

You still got two years.

Think that's enough time for me
to develop a drinking problem

and burn through all my student loans?

You don't like talking about him.

There isn't much to say, unfortunately.

That can't be true.

It is true.

His life was incomplete.

In every imaginable way.

He married my mother,
they had me, he left.

Went to Harvard, got kicked out,
never got his Ph.D.

Got a job at the Kenyan
government, got fired.

Never found a stable job again.

Had a few too many drinks
at a bar one night,

got behind the wheel, never made it home.

He died when he was 46.
His life was incomplete.

Even his tombstone is blank.

No one bothered to have it engraved.

No one bothered?
All that family over there?

No one had the money.

You'll do it.

When you have the money, you'll go
back there and have his name engraved.

You think you know me well enough
to make that prediction?

No.

But I am a pretty hopeful person,

so I'll just say, I hope you do it.

We should probably get to the meeting.

- # The world is yours #
- # Hey, young world #

- # The world is yours #
- # Young world, young world #

- # The world is yours #
- # Young world #

# It may cause concern #

...Denby of "New York" magazine

thinks Spike Lee's new picture
is gonna cause them black folk to riot,

but Chicago's native son Roger Ebert
calls it a masterpiece.

Have you seen it? Who's seen it?

What's the good word? You rioting yet?

Hit the phones and let me know,
and if you haven't checked it out yet,

do the right thing and see it now!

Dying to see this movie.

Sounds interesting enough.

Blick, Thompson, and Cohen
were talking about it in the office.

And Thompson said the film
might be racist towards white people.

No, he didn't.

He didn't mean anything by it.

He's just a little
out of touch, that's all.

I'm just tired of being
two different people.

I played that game at Princeton,
and I played it again at Harvard.

There were white kids at school
who would talk to me in class,

but if I saw them out on the quad,
and they were with their other friends,

they would walk right past me
without so much as a nod.

Now, obviously, the firm is not like that

but sometimes when I'm leaving
Southside in the morning,

headed for the Loop,
I feel like I'm leaving Planet Black

and landing on Planet White.

Come on, you got wooed, just like me.

You got wined and dined.

You saw the corporate culture,
the racial culture.

You knew the score,
and you still said yes.

You sure it's the firm
you're frustrated with?

That's the second time
you've asked me that question.

It's the second time
you haven't answered it.

What are you suggesting?

Take the Bottlecap case as an example.

Once you made your point,
why bother pressing further?

- To try and get through to Thompson.
- Come on, you knew you wouldn't.

Like you said,
you're a second year associate.

Thompson wants you doing research,

interfacing with the clients,
preparing his arguments.

- The grunt work, right?
- Right.

But if I don't speak up,
what's the alternative?

Shut my mouth
and sit there looking pretty?

First of all, you always
sit there looking pretty.

Second of all, I'm not suggesting
you silence yourself.

I'm just wondering why you chose
to work at a corporate firm

where you knew your silence
would be expected.

And really what I'm wondering is why

you're wasting the fight
you have inside you

on battles you can't win
and issues you don't care about?

Excuse me?

You think because we spend
one afternoon together

and you tried to buy me a sandwich,

you're entitled to pass judgment
on the choices I made in my life?

- You think I'm wasting my life.
- Now, I never used those words.

You didn't have to use those words.

You used other ones,
and they stung just as much.

Why?

If you really loved what you were doing,
would you be bothered by what I said?

No.

You'd tell me to go screw myself,
and you'd go on your merry way,

making tons of cash and doing trademark
law for the rest of your life.

And how do you know that's
not exactly what I plan to do?

Because you spent two years
of law school in Gannett House,

working pro Bono cases
for poor, single moms.

And my guess is that it kills you

to know you can't put
the same passion and intelligence

towards cases that
actually mean something.

You're more than welcome to
pass judgment on your own father.

You know what, you're more than
welcome to pass judgment on me.

But quite frankly, it sounds like you
know me about as little as you knew him.

- Michelle...
- And the biggest offense is,

this is coming from a guy
who quit community organizing

for Harvard Law, only to take a summer
position at the same corporate firm

he's railing against.

Now that is the height of hypocrisy.

I apologize. I meant no offense.

Barack!

Ladies!

Hey!

Oh...

So happy to see you guys.

Looks like we got a full house today.

Well, everyone heard
you was coming, Barack.

We all wanted to get a look at
our Harvard man all grown up.

Does a year and a half change a man?

No, but apparently it gets you a lady.

And finally a sista.

How you doing, sweetie?

- My name's Bernadette.
- Oh! I'm Michelle.

Very nice to meet you.

- I'm Janice.
- Hi.

We was your boyfriend's ladies
while he was working here in the Gardens.

- Oh, we're not...
- Platonic ladies, Janice.

Don't go giving her any ideas.

We did everything together.

Except the sexy stuff.

Hmm. Now this is a real man
you got yourself here.

Just going right over there.

Tommy, my man!

B!

Oh, it's so good to see you.

Yo, Rafiqa!

This Barack's woman, Michelle.

- He done well for himself.
- Mm-hmm.

Welcome.

Janice, we're not together.

You say this Barack's girl?

No, Kyle, this Barack's woman, Michelle.

Y'all married and shit?

Kyle, watch your mouth.
Your ass in church.

Y'all married?

No. We're not together.

At all.

Let me tell you a little
something about Barack.

My son LaJuan wanted to be in the Navy

since he was playing
with toy boats in the tub.

But growing up in the Gardens, ooh!

Little by little,
the place was getting to him,

and he was starting to get the same ideas

as every other young Negro around here.

Thinking there ain't no place
for 'em outside these walls.

And even if there was, ain't no way out.

Well, in comes Barack.

And every time he come by
the house to talk business,

he sets aside a little time to talk
with my LaJuan about Navy boats.

I don't even know
how Barack knew about Navy boats.

And he could've been
making up names, for all I know.

The USS this and the USS that.

Didn't matter.

He kept LaJuan interested.

He told my boy that he could be anything

if he worked hard enough.

You see, he didn't have
a father to tell him that.

And you know what?

- He made it out.
- Mm, mm.

My son is sailing across the seas

on the "USS Dakota."

Looking all fly and professional
in his military uniform.

Hands off, girl.
That's my boy you talking about.

Afternoon, everybody. Afternoon.

- Afternoon.
- Afternoon.

Right, right, right. Okay now.

Today, you know we here to
discuss the Community Center.

What Community Center?

Look, I know.

I know the city's decision was
a disappointment, all right?

No, Tommy, it was more
than a disappointment.

It was six months of our lives
down the drain.

Okay, hold on. Everybody, just hold on.

It was a disappointment.
But it wasn't all bad.

See, now we got ourselves
not one, not two,

but three foundations to fund
our Community Center programs

when the time is right,
and I got that in writing.

Now, how in God's name
are they supposed to fund

our Community Center programs
when we ain't got no Community Center?

That's right. That's right.

Well, that's the dilemma
we here today to solve.

Now, what we have to do first is take
a look at why the City Council said no.

Well, what difference does it make?
They say no to everything we ask for.

Now, that's just not always true, Curtis.

Now, we got that
job center up and running.

We got people's apartments
on hold for them while they rehabbing.

Look, all I know is this,

Senator Torrance got himself a state grant

to build a church
that he's gonna preach in,

and Alderman Said helped him get it.

Meanwhile, my little girls
can't go but a mile up the road

to play for all the gangs
running around the Gardens,

pushing they drugs,
littering they garbage,

shooting they guns like this
is the Wild West or something.

Shoot, our kids can't even
go play in they friends' house

across the street at the Gates.

The Senator got himself a church,
our kids got themselves the shaft.

Okay, okay, okay!

There's a lot of issues to address,
and I know better than anyone else.

Come on, I've devoted my life
to helping this community,

- but we got to stay focused.
- That's right.

Look, we got to take our anger
and channel it towards the goals we set,

and right now that's the Community Center.

Now, you know from past experiences,

we got things done because
we honed in on one issue,

we pressed, we squeezed, and we
screamed until somebody finally listened.

It's taking too long.
We tired of screaming.

- Well, then ain't nothing gonna change.
- Well, maybe it can't.

Huh?

Look, I disagree.

And I'm sure our guest here
disagrees, too, because I seem to recall

when he was standing here in my position,
by this podium, a year and a half ago,

y'all got something done.

I seem to recall, with his guidance...

your patience and persistence, y'all
got that asbestos problem cleared up.

Got them toilets fixed. The pipes cleaned.

Now, I know when times were tough,
this brother right here...

had a lot of motivational words for us.

And I'm gonna ask him to come up
and say a few right now.

'Cause I'm gonna tell you something,
we might be down for the count...

but we ain't out.

Brother Barack, would you come on up?

- It's all you.
- Thanks, bro. Thank you.

Thank you.

It's good to be back.

It's good to see all of you.

I missed that musty smell up here.

Looks like Pastor Mike hasn't gotten
around to filling in that hole in the roof.

No.

Think we're gonna have to organize
a meeting just to get that leak fixed.

But listen.

I, uh... I feel your pain.

I do.

It's...

It's a part of me now, that pain.

Sometimes it hits me like a heart attack,

hundreds of miles away
in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

Now, I could be listening to
a lecture in class,

or studying in the library...

or watching a movie,
or talking to a friend...

and I think of all of you.

I may have gone on to
a different life at Harvard...

but you know what I've realized?

I never left the Gardens.

Now...

Tommy deserves some credit here, folks.

Our fight with the City Council
two years ago

was proof that these victories do not
come easy, and they don't come big.

They are few and far between.

But you gotta use them
like building blocks.

One by one, one on top
of the other, and little by little...

you got yourself a building.

And that's exactly
what you need in this case,

is a building for your Community Center.

Now, I feel your disappointment.

But the truth is...

you're in a good position right now.

Still ain't got no Community Center!

All right, all right. All right.

Tommy got funding pledges. That's real.

That's money down the line,
and that's hard to secure.

Now, I know it's not the whole package,
but think about it.

Now all you need is a building.

You're halfway there.

Now, the Council said no to the building,

but that was before
you had funding pledges

secured with the help
of Brother Tommy here.

So now, when you remount your campaign...

you have something to bring to the table.

You're contributing.

And the folks downtown
like to see us contributing.

Makes 'em feel like the money they
give you is gonna be put to good use.

Just wanna know that you care.

And Tommy's right when he says we need
to take a look at why they said no.

Not because it's the right decision,

but because you've gotta understand
where they're coming from.

You've gotta understand the city's
motivations, its self-interest

in order to align them with your own.

We turn self-interest
into mutual interest.

So, let's give the council members

the benefit of the doubt for a moment.

Let's say they want you
to have your Community Center.

Okay, okay. But let's say for a moment

that we got some
good folks on that Council,

and they'd like to see your kids
have a place to go after school and play.

Yeah, right.

Now, I believe there probably are a few.

So, if we've got some
good-hearted folks there...

why can't they get your
funding request approved?

Getting paid to say no.

Okay, Curtis, I hear you, I hear you.

- Anyone else?
- Don't care enough.

All right. Any other ideas?

Maybe they don't think they can.

That's what I'm thinking, Kyle.

I don't think they believe
they can get it done.

Even if they wanted to.

They know developers don't
wanna build in the Gardens.

There's nothing in it for them.
No stores. No economy.

These council members don't necessarily
want the answer to be no,

they just believe it will be.

So, what are you proposing, Barack,
that we build the damn thing ourselves?

Almost. Almost, Curtis.

Now, Tommy and I have
been discussing this.

And we both think you might wanna
consider changing the goal slightly.

Refocus your efforts on
obtaining a land designation.

Now, if you control the land...

you can cut a deal with one developer
to build everything in the area...

on the condition that one of the buildings
be the Community Center.

Now, that's more jobs, more stores,

and a Community Center for your children.

They just gonna say no
like they say no to everything else!

Now, we gotta stop thinking the word
"no" is the end of the line, Curtis.

"No" is just a word.

You flip those letters around,
you get an entirely different word.

- "On."
- That's right.

As in "carry on."

Say it with me now.

- Carry on!
- Carry on!

- They say no, we say...
- Carry on.

- They say no, we say...
- Carry on!

That's it! There you go!

- Harold Washington...
- My man.

Harold Washington was one of
the reasons I moved to Chicago.

When I first came here, every barbershop

and chicken shack on the Southside
had a squeaky-clean picture of him

hanging up on the wall
for everyone to see.

- You right about that.
- Still do.

Chicago's first black mayor.

- He was our mayor.
- Yes, sir. Yes, sir.

But even Mayor Washington
disappointed in some respects.

He had to face the great
truth of our country...

that it's not easy to get things done.

The founders made it that way on purpose.

They made it messy...

so that no one law,
no one government, no one man

could decide the fate of
everything and everyone.

In very simple terms...

we got a heck of a lot of different people

with a heck of a lot of different agendas.

But I also believe
that people, most people...

are basically, at their core, good people.

And so, if at first we don't
understand their agenda...

the City Council, the Alderman,
the State Senator...

we have to try our hardest
to understand who they are

and what they need.

We have to let go of judgment.

That's a lesson...

I learned today from a friend.

No matter what we think about someone...

we never truly know what it's like

to walk in their shoes.

But we have to try.

Whether it's a colleague,
a family member...

or a particular opponent,
especially our opponents.

Because where their needs
align with our needs...

is where things get done.

That's America.

Just a bunch of different states.

States of land, states of mind...

states of people.

And it's up to us, all of us...

to keep all those different states...

united.

Thanks for inviting me.

It's been a while since I've had that
kind of connection to real-life struggle.

Me, too.

In high school, my typing
teacher gave me an A minus.

I wrote her a letter every day
until she changed it to an A.

I celebrated all day long.

But that night, I couldn't sleep.

I kept asking myself over and over again,

"Did I even deserve the A?"

Sometimes I forget why I'm fighting.

Or even that I am fighting.

I didn't know I was wrestling
with myself about the firm.

I understand that.

You think you're real smooth, don't you?

Why?

Did you know you were speaking today?

No.

Well, not exactly.

I knew there was a decent chance, yeah.

Mm-hmm.

Pretty good setting to bring a girl.

Surrounded by people who adore you.

People who might tell this
girl heart-tugging stories

about how inspired their sons
to join the Navy.

And an inspirational speech that had
everybody in awe, Mr. Obama.

Including you?

It wasn't bad.

You sounded a little professorial.

But you definitely have
a knack for making speeches.

Thank you.

You know, that being said, it didn't hurt
to take you there on our first date.

- Our first what?
- You heard me.

You must have misspoken
because according to you,

this isn't a date until I say so.

You know, if you don't wanna spend any more
time with me today, I'll respect that.

I won't like it,
but I'll respect your wishes.

But if you wanna keep hanging...

let's call it a date
and move on to the next event.

- Next event?
- Drinks and a movie.

You think you're real smooth.

And real cute.

I don't know about the "cute" part.

I mean, they did look good on Dumbo.

Well, I'd rather be Dumbo
than the Wicked Queen.

Wicked Queen?

Now, you can't just say
any old wicked queen.

From which movie?

- There you go.
- Thanks, Steve.

# Why can't nobody love me #

# Like my baby does? #

# Young girl turned out to be two times #

# Twice the woman #

# That I thought she was... #

Don't even come at me
with that "Innervisions" nonsense.

It's a better album all around.

"You and I," "Sunshine of My Life,"

"Superstition."

- All great songs.
- His best.

Not better than "Higher Ground."

"Talking Book" was
the first album I ever heard,

and if it was the last,
I'd be set for life.

- That's how brilliant it is.
- Uh-uh.

Man!

Well, at least we can agree
that Stevie is the best.

- Mm.
- At least we can start from there.

Okay, so what about
that moment in the church

before the meeting?

Which?

I think Bernadette said it,
about you finally dating a sister.

Who knows with those two.
They love to gossip.

- Is it true?
- Is what true?

That you never date black women.

Not true.

But you did date white women?

I've dated a couple of white women, yes.

And which do you prefer?

Come on, buster,
now it's your turn to ante up.

My girlfriend at Columbia was white.

It was pretty serious.

- What was her name?
- Jennifer.

How long were you with Jennifer?

A little over two years.

Mm-hmm...

Columbia was a strange time in my life.

I was reading a lot, figuring
stuff out, had very few friends.

- Except for Jennifer.
- Exactly.

She was lovely.

She really was.

She was very caring.

Kept me company when I was lonely.

We fell into that private little universe

couples can fall into,

where you develop your own kind of
language and customs, you know?

I've never had that with anyone
other than my own family.

It's nice.

Anyway...

when we went to visit her family,
they were incredibly gracious to me.

Very nice, open-minded people,
but, you know, I looked around

at all the pictures
on the walls, you know...

all the white faces...

and I knew I couldn't spend any more
of my life living as an outsider.

Does that answer your question?

So, why did you come to Chicago?

- To try and make a difference.
- Mm-hmm.

Thought I would, too.

I thought maybe I'd work civil cases,

help women, empower them.

Being at that meeting today
aroused some of those old dreams.

Lit some kind of fire.

But those last couple years,

the corporate firms descend upon
the campus like a pack of wolves.

And they're so appealing.

I wanted to be in a position to pay
off my loans, pay my folks back.

Live a little.

Enjoy life.

There's nothing wrong with that.

There's nothing wrong with it
until there is.

Yeah. I know what you mean.

I feel like something else
is pulling at me.

I wonder if I can write books,

or hold a position
of influence in civil rights.

- Politics?
- Maybe.

I just wanna do more.

Yeah, so do I.

And maybe just wanting it
is enough for now.

Whatever I end up doing,
I take comfort in knowing

I can't do much worse than my dad did.

That doesn't sound like the same guy
who gave that fancy speech earlier.

The one who talked about
letting go of judgment.

I've noticed how you talk
about your father.

Such an angry way to live your life.

Judging him.

Living your life against his.

You're still fighting him.

But he's not here anymore.

You said earlier you felt
his life was incomplete.

Every father's life is incomplete.

That's why they have sons...

to finish what they started.

You know, my grandfather
was not a very generous man.

He could've helped my dad through college.

But he was so terrified
of getting into debt,

he refused to lend him any money.

So my dad had to drop out
of school after a year.

It took a while,
but he forgave my grandfather.

Then he got his job with the city...

and he has spent the rest of his life
working in that boiler room,

making sure not to do to his kids
what his father did to him.

You have to forgive your father...

so your anger doesn't turn you into him.

You have to forgive him...

so you can be better than him.

That's what he would want.

- Get his arm! Get his arm!
- Gary, that's enough!

Gary, that's enough, man!

- Gary, that's enough!
- Shut up!

Radio Raheem! Radio Raheem!

- No!
- Radio!

Radio Raheem! Radio Raheem!

What's the matter?

Be careful. I feel a riot coming on.

Oh!

- I'm gonna use the restroom.
- Okay.

Michelle?

It is you. Your height gave you away.

Avery.

What are you doing here?

Uh... Picking up groceries.

What do you think? We came to the movies.

- You did?
- Yeah.

We partners do that from time to time.

And on occasion, we bring along our wives.

Laura, this is Michelle Robinson,
one of our more tenacious associates.

Michelle, this is my wife Laura.

So pleased to make your acquaintance.

Likewise. Likewise.

I think Avery mentions you
at least a dozen times a day.

Are you here alone?

Me? Um...

I'm with a friend.

Actually, I have to go.

What did you think of the film?

What did I think? I liked it.

All the hoopla leading up to it,
I had to see for myself.

- Oh, what did you think?
- Compelling.

Though the ending was puzzling
and more than a little infuriating.

Barack!

- Avery!
- Wow!

Having a Sidley Austin reunion here.

We just came from a community meeting

that we attended as colleagues
and friends,

and just thought it might be a good idea
to stop and see the movie

since it's something
everybody was talking about.

Um...

Thank you for that
illuminating explanation.

Laura, this is one
of our summer associates,

a very talented young man, Barack Obama.

Very pleased to make your acquaintance.

Pleasure's all mine.

So, you got around to
seeing the movie, I take it?

Yes, yes, we did.

In fact, I was just explaining to Michelle
how angry that ending made me.

Why would the delivery man
have thrown the trash can

through his employer's window?

He must've known his actions
would cause the mob to riot.

Seemed totally irrational.

Let me put it to you another way, Avery.

I'm all ears.

If Mookie hadn't thrown the trash can,

maybe the crowd would've
turned on Sal and his sons.

So instead of the store being destroyed...

they might be dead.

And Mookie knew the insurance
would cover the damage to the store.

He was saving Sal's life.

I never would've considered
that perspective, Barack.

See, that's why we need
a guy like you full-time.

Michelle, make sure
to treat him real good.

We want him sticking around.

- We'll see you both Monday.
- Good night.

- Good night.
- Night.

You know I only said that
to make Avery feel better.

Mookie threw that trash can
'cause he was fucking angry.

What a coincidence seeing him here.

It's really wild.

It wasn't a coincidence.
It was cosmic justice.

I knew damn well going out with you
was the wrong thing to do.

Pun intended.

And don't even try to
convince me otherwise, Barack,

because there is nothing you can say.

Nothing?

I can't tell you that Avery doesn't give
a hoot about seeing the two of us out?

"Make sure to treat him real good."

That was not okay, Barack, by any measure.

It was smarmy.

You don't think
that was laced with anything?

You don't think he meant anything by that?

Maybe he did. So what?

First thing Monday morning he is gonna
spread this juicy little anecdote

around the office like wildfire.

You know, none of this would've happened

if you had just respected
the boundaries I laid out.

But you refused.

You didn't respect
our working relationship.

And now that's all there's going to be.

I don't want any...

It's pretty good.

You want some?

Sure.

# What goes underneath your armor #

# Underneath your clothes #

# Do you know? #

# Let's find out together #

# Let's find what we're looking for #

# We'll explore #

# Leave your house of mirrors #

# Hear me out #

# Fear no consequence #

# Forget your doubts #

# I don't know where the road leads #

# You don't know
if I'll break your heart #

# We don't know how the winds will blow #

# And we won't know #

# We won't go #

# Unless we start #

# Ooh, start #

# Fall into the sea #

# Of possibility #

# And hope #

# Letting go #

# Float away with me #

# Until we can't see any coast #

# That we know #

# Hold on tight until #

# We become one #

# Find our island #

# Underneath the sun #

# I don't know where the road leads #

# You don't know
if I'll break your heart #

# And we don't know
how the winds will blow #

# And we won't know #

# We won't go #

# Unless we start #

# Ooh #

# Start #

# Yeah #

# Our beloved beside us #

# All you want to give up #

# Only happens if we let it live #

# And I don't know where the road leads #

# Ooh #

# You don't know
if I'll break your heart #

# We don't know how the winds will blow #

# And we won't know #

# We won't go #

# Unless we start #

# Ooh #

# Start #

# Yeah #

# Oh, unless we start #

# Ooh #

# Oh, start #

# Yeah #

# Unless we start #