Original subtitles

(film reel clicks and whirs)

(music blares in distance) (traffic honks)

We need to get into character, okay?

Slow down. My feet hurt.

All right, Irene, just remember that we're Greek, okay?

I'm gonna do all the talking.

We have to get into this party.

Try and talk to somebody important, all right?

If I can get hired for the Olympics, then hola Brazil.

Brazil.

(people chatter indistinctly) (cameras click)

[Cameraman] Beautiful. Yes.

One more. Nice.

Oh, hi. We should be on the list.

My name is Teodora Papayano Pouvis,

and this is my sister Irene.

We are direct descendants of the first Olympians.

Nope.

We really should be on that list.

I, I, I please check every page.

(cameras click)

Wait until our ancestors here about this!

I can't believe that was your best idea.

It's almost as ridiculous as when you posed

as that sports agent to meet that quarterback.

Okay, punter.

He was a punter, thank you very much, and he was very cute.

Okay, what I remember is when you showed up

for the meeting, and you couldn't come out of the bathroom.

Well, you have to admit life

is more fun when you've got goals.

Get it? Goals?

(laughs) What we gonna do now?

(singer sings in foreign language)

(tram whirs)

(muffled music plays on radio) (car hums)

(brakes groan)

Do people from Brazil desperately

wanna travel to New Jersey?

(door slams)

I thought college would help me escape, but it failed.

I'm right back where I started, plain and small.

(birds chirp)

Credit cards! - (laughs) No.

You are not going into debt just so you

can chase boys in the southern hemisphere.

Please, Mom!

It could be a culturally immersive experience!

It could change my life!

I don't think immersive is a word.

Yes, it is,

and what could be more worth some bad credit, you know?

I think it's about time that I become less local

and more global.

I will tell you what is more worth

is you getting your life going towards a worthwhile goal.

Don't waste time!

Honey, we need to save every penny for law school,

and besides, it's best for you to stay in school

until the economy gets- The economy gets better!

Right, precisely!

Everyone I know from college

is going abroad after graduating, Mom.

It's what you do.

It's friends with money, Dora.

You need to expand your social circle

or network or whatever you call it.

But Irene and I have been friends

since we lived in the city, Mom.

- How about something sweet? - Oh, my God.

(engine hums in distance)

I will run away. I'll go to Ohio.

I'll go to Nevada.

(gasps) I'll go to Singapore,

but then I have to be a stowaway on a ship,

and that'd be really weird.

But then I'll make a living from my something,

but then I'll become famous, and then she'll be sorry!

And I'll be set to do something big,

and she'll show up, and I won't recognize her, right?

And then I'll turn around and say, "Mom? What mom?

I don't know what this woman is talking about.

Please take her away."

- Dora? - What?

You've got to snap out of this.

Yeah, so says the girl about to leave for South America.

I'm sorry to interrupt, Miss Huntington.

It's getting late if we're gonna be picking up your friend.

Oh, Bri's meeting me at the airport.

- Brianna's going with you? - I couldn't go alone.

No, no, I, I guess you couldn't.

All right, gonna be late.

- I love you. - I love you. Have fun.

(door slams) (tires crunch in snow)

(knock thuds)

Honey?

We can go to the shore every weekend

when the weather warms up.

Can you sign this get well card for your Aunt Vera, please?

(bags rustle)

Would you like to know what happened to her?

- Yeah, what happened? - She broke her foot.

She was dancing.

(both laugh)

God bless her.

Oh my. Aunt Vera boogieing down.

That's kind of cool. - Yeah, I guess so,

except that, at her age,

a broken bone is gonna take an awful lot longer to heal.

Oh, gosh,

and there's that book "Paradise" that just came out.

What kind of book?

Oh, it's Nena Gabrelle's autobiography.

You know, it's on the best-seller list.

Nena Gabrelle who is the actress?

No, Nena Gabrelle the bimbo.

Oh God, you don't know about this. So wait.

It turns out that Uncle Theodore faked his death

and ran off with her back in the 60s.

What? No way, that's crazy, right?

Oh my God, your room. Have you seen your room?

Ta-da! You signed up for the prep course thing, right?

(hands clap)

You did not Just clap your hands at me, Mom!

Yes I did, Dora! I'm trying to energize you.

Let's go, Dora. Come on, you could do it!

(sighs) These depressions of yours really get

in the way of your progress. - Stop, stop.

I'm just trying to support you, honey.

We're in this together, you know?

"Rio fab. Wish you were here instead of Bri."

Did Irene even graduate? I thought she flunked out.

- You can let go of me now. - Okay.

(lips peck)

Does Aunt Vera have anyone taking care of her?

No. Not yet.

She doesn't like to have strangers in the house,

so they're still trying to find someone.

(laughs) No, no, no, no, no, no. Have you lost your mind?

Please don't clap at me again.

No.

You cannot take care of an 80-year-old woman

right now, Dora.

No, that's final.

I owe her. It's the least I can do.

I'll go look into train schedules.

Yes, you do that

because I'll be damned if I'm gonna drive you!

This is silly. I'll drive you.

The cleaning lady says that she needs help

in and out of the bathtub.

No problem there.

She likes music but no CDs, only record albums.

Okay. Is this Grandma's coat?

Well, I thought I'd play the part

of the dowdy poor relation, like from a gothic novel.

But woe, the eve of departure is upon me yet.

I must journey to great Aunt Vera's country manor.

Except that it's Brooks Brothers and very expensive.

Why don't you play the part of a bright young girl

who aspires to become a successful lawyer, hmm?

(train horn blares)

Okay. "Most importantly, keep her spirits up.

She likes her cocktails,

but you have to ask her if she wants one.

She won't make it herself, and cut her toenails."

- That's gross. That's gross! - Ugh. That's the job.

Why does it always seem like everything fabulous

is so far away from me?

And I think it's all right there in your head.

(attendant speaks indistinctly over loudspeaker)

(bell dings)

I'll be up on March 1st to take you to the test,

and I will come and get you whenever you want, okay?

All you have to do is call me.

(gentle pleasant music)

(train whirs in distance)

(van hums)

[Voice On Radio] You're arrested for murder

when some egg jails his bookie.

You beg the judge for life, and he says,

"Okay, hard labor for life."

You wake up at a work farm and there's nothing but rain.

You try to the bail the water with buckets

and tin cups with all the other sorry bastards.

- Aunt Vera? - Back in the bunkhouse,

you get crosswise with two convicts who hate your look.

- Hello? - They nail your clothes

to the wall while you're still in 'em.

You can feel the end of your tether flapping in the breeze.

Suddenly there's nothing for it, so you sing.

Only you can't sing, so you yell,

songs about chippies and tomatoes

and a cat called Half Track Frank.

You're too exhausted to sleep. - Aunt Vera?

Good afternoon, Dora. You can turn that off.

[Voice On Radio] Heading into the blackness.

You reach down to feel the thing moving you,

and there's nothing there.

You wanna scream but your mouth.

[Dora] Do you want some help?

I'm cold.

I wanted a fire and I've always hated this chair.

(wood clinks)

Here.

(wood clinks)

All right, all right, all right.

Just a moment, yeah. Okay.

All right, all right.

- Here. - All right.

I can walk.

I'm not an invalid, so please do not treat me like one.

If you want to be useful,

you can bring in that poor dracena plant out there.

Bring her inside.

(door creaks open)

Don't leave the door open. Please hurry.

Oh, I, I, I, I don't think this is firewood yet,

but I can try to use your hammer.

No, Dora, it'll come back,

and then we'll put it in the sun room where it belongs.

(phone rings)

The machine picks it up.

(phone rings)

Can I, can I make you a cup of tea?

(phone rings)

No tea.

(phone rings) (Vera sighs)

No tea. (sighs)

(phone rings)

Aunt Vera, would you like a drink?

Martini dry with a twist.

Yes, ma'am, cocktail coming up.

(footsteps shuffle)

I, I love your home. Does it have a name?

I've never understood how you can name a house

unless houses come when you call them.

My grandfather built it.

When he died, my family moved here from Charleston.

Was quite a cultural shock. I guess this is where I'll die.

(footsteps shuffle)

So you've come to help your feeble aunt.

(laughs) Great aunt.

You can't be happy about it.

Oh, I volunteered!

You need your head examined.

(soft upbeat music)

(curtains rattle)

(phone vibrates)

Hi. Hi, yes.

Yeah, everything's fine. I love Aunt Vera.

What a warm and and gentle soul. Yeah.

I think, I think this is gonna be the best thing I ever did.

(laughs) Yeah. Yes, I am being serious, Mom!

Yeah. Okay.

Okay. I, I gotta go.

Yes, there's a desk with a chair and my computer on it.

Okay? Goodbye, Mom.

(phone thuds)

(soft pleasant music)

I graduated college.

So I heard. What degree?

Pre-law and a minor in English literature.

Here's to your wonderfully useless degrees.

- Which you paid for - Mm-hmm.

And I'm forever thankful, and I just turned 20.

And to being 20 and all that it means.

I wish it meant I could travel.

Oh. Well, now I traveled continually (laughs) for years.

Now I have a garden, and it takes up my time.

I'm sure it's beautiful in the spring.

It's beautiful now. it's just dormant.

And I hear you're still dancing. That's amazing.

What do you dance? - Dance?

I heard you broke your foot dancing.

I broke my toe, not my foot, just my toe,

but it threw me off balance a great deal

because the damn thing, it's just like an anchor.

And I can't drive. Oh no.

I can't even go up and down stairs, (laughs)

And, and, and, and they move me down into the study.

Well, you could always learn to chair dance.

Now I see your father. He died too young.

It's strange to think I've spent half my life

without him already.

I was your age when I met Theo.

[Dora] Wasn't he some sort of like war journalist, right?

Oh, honey, he was the best. (laughs)

We met when he was here in Saugerties.

Well, he's still paying his dues,

and he was covering the story of the cement factory,

and when he left, I followed him.

That's romantic.

I'm taking the LSAT in March.

Vive le France!

Vive le France!

(Vera gulps)

Yes, indeed.

(glass thuds)

(birds chirp)

(Dora sighs)

(soft bright harp music)

You must not follow me!

Okay, okay, maybe just a little,

but you must leave space between us

because I can't be seen with you, commoner.

But you belong to me. - No! I belong to France!

Vive le France!

("La Marseillaise") (Dora laughs)

Maybe Aunt Vera's gone senile.

(computer keys clack)

"In 1968, the brilliant journalist and fiction writer,

Theodore Marxos, went missing and was presumed killed

while covering the war in Vietnam

and began a new life with his mistress,

"actress and anti-war activist Nena Gabrelle."

(phone vibrates)

(phone thuds) (soft guitar music)

Dear Irene, how am I? I'll tell you.

Life is so still at my Great-Aunt Vera's estate

that a depression would be redundant.

I'm wearing thermals in Saugerties

while you're on the beach with Brianna.

Is it okay? Does it hurt?

But I'm happy for the both of you, sort of.

Okay, okay, okay. - Wait, wait, wait.

[Dora] The picture of the ocean in my head is gone.

It must've evaporated.

Trying to lift Aunt Vera's spirits

is about as easy as trying to lift an enormous elephant.

♪ Watch out for your foot, ha ha ha ha ♪

But sometimes, Aunt Vera is not so dull.

(glass shatters) (cane thwacks)

Aunt Vera?

(soft upbeat guitar music with vocals)

At least the dream I had when I was 12 has now come true.

Remember how we wanted to be characters

from a 19th century novel?

But still waiting for my dashing suitor to arrive.

Your extremely grounded friend, Dora.

These are the dressy sweaters. Go get the other box.

(footsteps shuffle)

(light clicks on)

(case shuffles)

(rubber band snaps)

Dora! I'm freezing down here!

I'm gonna burn the other chair!

Wait, you're pulling my hair.

That's it, that's it. How long you been here?

- 12 days. - (sighs) Seems like forever.

Here. - What's that?

Make haste. Gets dark early.

(cars whoosh past) (soft bright music)

Can I help you?

- Where are the aspirins? - Aisle two in the middle.

And I need some suppositories.

- I'm sorry? - I need some suppositories.

Oh, Phil, can you grab some of those anal laxatives there?

What else? I'll fix you up.

(laughs) Bless you.

Okay, throat lozenges.

(birds chirp) (traffic hums)

(door creaks open) (upbeat music)

Welcome to Dig.

Brr, who's wearing these? - No one here.

It's resort wear. - Like South America?

Like Aruba, warm and tropical.

Oh my God.

Oh, you can put your things over here.

I haven't seen you here before.

Oh, I'm just up visiting my great aunt.

I'm Dora. - Abbey.

I always wanted a great aunt.

Does she wear like big chunky jewelry and kaftans?

No, she wears rings, but she doesn't really wear kaftans.

- That's unfortunate. - Yeah.

Oh, the dressing rooms are over there.

Okay.

(door bell chimes)

[Nikki] Oh, lovely weather you have out there.

Just looking for a gift.

- Male or female? - Hmm?

Well,

I hadn't really ever considered purchasing anything living,

but I, I'd lean towards a female just outta habit.

[Dora] My butt looks huge!

(Nikki laughs)

Well, you can't go wrong with jewelry

if that's more of what you have in mind.

Sure.

(footsteps shuffle)

Oh God! Ooh, ooh!

I'm sorry.

Nice outfit. Was that an art piece?

(laughs) Gone wrong.

Can I take a look at this one?

Okay, good choice. It's very popular.

Ooh, that's beautiful and very in.

Well, I like being in.

(upbeat music continues)

- (laughs) It's important. - Yeah.

Well I guess I'll, I'll take that one.

- Okay. - That was simple.

My daughter's turning 15. I can't believe it.

Seems their problems keep getting bigger,

but at least the gifts get smaller, right?

Oops, sorry. (laughs)

- Can I have you sign this? - Sure.

Mm-hmm, thank you. - Thank you.

I hope she enjoys it. - Sure she will.

Appreciate your help.

Thank you very much for shopping at Dig.

Please come again.

(doorbell chimes) (Abbey squeals and laughs)

I just sold a necklace to one

of the biggest music producers of all tiz-ime!

Nikki Summers!

Oh my rock and roll God! Who is that?

Nikki Summers, U2, REM, Nine Inch Nails.

I heard that he was making an album at Woodstock.

I would love to sing for him.

- Are you a singer? - And songwriter.

Yeah? That's cool.

I had a band in high school.

We were called Jane's Girls,

and all of our songs were based

off of characters from Jane Austen novels,

but the only song that we actually got down right

was "I Got It Bad for Mr. Darcy."

(laughs) I would love to hear that song.

Oh God.

Well, I could never perform in front of an audience,

so our band died. - You need some stylation.

What? Ooh, whoa, okay!

I dunno how to really do this jacket.

You look amazing.

Just a little zip. - Ooh my goodness!

Look a t this shape.

This is such a nice shape. - I feel like a new woman.

Yes. (laughs)

Oh, can I hear one of your songs?

Okay, but it's just a demo.

♪ If I could take a minute to breathe ♪

Oh my gosh, I love this. You have such a nice voice.

- Thank you. - Yeah.

Wait, we have to get you into Nicki Summers' music studio!

I mean, then you can sing for him.

You can't just walk in there.

Those kind of sessions are closed.

Abbey, doors are for opening.

I can get you into Nikki Summers' music studio.

All right. (laughs) Okay.

- Oh. - Let's do some accessories.

(phone vibrates) ♪ Pulling my strings ♪

Hello?

♪ Keep pulling my strings ♪

Hi! Yeah, okay.

♪ Pulling my strings ♪

Okay. All right, I'll be home soon, okay?

All right, bye. Oh my God.

(laughs) You look like a rock star.

Thank you, who has to buy adult diapers.

Ew.

(both laugh)

(pages shuffle)

August, 1952. Saw Theodore again today.

We talked for hours.

He's the first real journalist I ever met.

His ideas get me so excited.

He calls me Jean after Jean Arthur.

I'm a good sport, he says.

I had a dream about him last night we were together.

He smiled at me.

(big band music)

Ooh. What about "House of Mirth"?

Get out of the 19th century.

Okay, well, "Tropic of Capricorn."

Yes. Oh God, I used to have such a crush on Henry Miller.

Is it possible to lust after a dead man?

When I was younger, Jack London did it for me.

Miller was always too stimulating,

the smell of raw onions and the taste of goat cheese.

- Raw onions and goat cheese? - Mm-hmm.

That's what his apartment in Big Sur smelled like.

You've been to Henry Miller's apartment?

Was it like super earthy? - It was more like dingy.

Oh wait. I think I found one.

Yes. You can get down now.

"Bloody Footprints in the Sand."

Whoa. Aunt Vera!

An island murder mystery. Creepster.

(doorbell rings)

- Oh damn. Is it Tuesday? - Mm-hmm.

(sighs) The Saugerties Poetry club.

What do they want?

I host the monthly poetry readings.

- When? - Now.

We used to do it at the lighthouse, but listen,

there's cold drinks in the refrigerator and cheese,

and I want you to greet and welcome each

and every one of them. - What, me? Why?

Wait, wait! Where are you going?

To my room.

Well, I look forward to hearing your poem.

[Vera] I never read. I just support.

(doorbell rings)

(people chatter indistinctly)

(door opens and thuds shut) (footsteps shuffle)

- What are you doing here? - Abbey, hi!

This is my Aunt Vera's house.

Are you a poet? - No, not really.

I, it just helps with my songwriting.

Cool. I this everyone, you think?

Yeah. Wait, your great aunt is Vera Marxos?

- Yeah. - What?

It must be really cool to like hang out with her.

Depending on her mood, you know?

But I found her journals from like a really,

really long time ago. - No way.

- Yeah. - What did they say?

It's wild.

I, you'd never know it,

but she used to do this thing called tramping,

and so Aunt Vera and Uncle Theo,

they would jump onto moving train cars,

and that's how they traveled. - Like a hobo?

Like, like romantic hobos, you know?

Oh, did you find out about getting

into Nikki's recording session?

Closed.

- I've got a plan. - Well, I got the clothes.

(both laugh)

Do you think I need to welcome everyone?

- Yeah. - Oh, thank you.

Good afternoon. I'm Aunt Vera's niece, and I love poetry.

(laughs) Sounds like an AA meeting.

(Abbey laughs)

"In the room, women come and go, talking of Michelangelo."

Yes. (laughs) Thank you, Dora.

It's so nice of your aunt

to offer her home to the poetry group.

Guy Reed, can you please take us away?

Okay, before we begin,

I just wanna remind everybody,

the End of Winter Poetry Festival is coming up very soon.

We still have posters and tickets,

and we really need to get the word out.

The other night, I was in a fast food parking lot trying

to decide whether to turn left and go out into the night

or turn right and drive home.

I was wanting to satisfy a deep longing for beauty,

but I realized that satisfaction

of that longing is not possible.

Art is the best chance we have of finding truth

and, therefore, being beautiful if the muse allows.

So I wrote this poem, "Burst."

"Cosmic rays pierce your body every second, photons,

helium nuclei, and other particles from stars.

It's a measurable fact.

How many cosmic rays in a nanosecond?

0.0000000001, the tiniest smidgen,

but in the last second, just gone by,

light from the energy you just saw

traveled nearly a billion feet.

In 10 seconds,

thousands of cosmic rays passing by through space in time.

How many through my heart?

"Oh, love, the beautiful ones in your eyes."

(soft upbeat music)

[Dora] Day four, crossing the Atlantic.

I like to stare at the water,

not toward the horizon but straight down deep.

Virginia is no more.

Vera means truth, and that's what I'm after, truth.

(paper shuffles)

"Dear V, here's the article."

I'm bloody stuck. See what you can do.

Pound it out and send it back

to the embassy in Budapest fast.

Tell your mother no chance in hell

of us getting an annulment.

"Theo."

Normandy.

Theo hates that he missed D-Day

and talks about Korea all the time.

Last night we slept in a burned out barn near the beach.

I tried to focus my mind on the waves

instead of the sound of rats gnawing around us.

I want an adventure. We walked all day.

I saw an old woman in the fields.

I stopped and helped her collect rocks.

She lived through two world wars. It's now real to me.

I wanna grab it and write about it like Theo does.

My brain fills up but scatters quickly

as Theo pulls me away toward his interests.

Must find a map of Asia. Istanbul.

It's our seventh anniversary. Theo forgot.

He confuses the date with the first time we had sex,

but after seven years,

Theo depends on me and my red pen more than ever.

Ginsburg suggested I become an editor

and quit torturing myself trying to get published.

Theo agreed, but they were drunk.

"They're probably right. Damn them."

(people speak indistinctly) (soft bright music)

[Reporter] What was your inspiration?

If it wasn't for my niece Dora,

I would never have known how extraordinary my life

was and is. - Oh, I have fresh eyes.

I am so proud of our latest book,

"I'm Not an Invalid, So Don't Treat Me Like One."

(people speak indistinctly and clap)

What the hell are you doing?

What, what are you doing?

You're not supposed to walk upstairs!

How dare you! Put them away!

But Aunt Vera,

these are like the best things I've read in, in decades!

What would you know?

No one wanted to publish what I wrote. Oh no.

They want the mystique of being the wife

of the great writer!

No one wants reality. You put them away.

(pen scribbles)

Why are you running?

'Cause it gets the adrenaline going!

If you fall in those clothes, you own them!

Okay, close your eyes, okay?

We need to get into character. I'll be your agent.

- Manager. - Are they closed?

- Yeah. - Good. Okay, great!

So Abbey, I want you to visualize yourself

as a "Rolling Stone" reporter.

You're writing a, an incredible-

- Abbey. - Ed.

What are you doing here? - I know Nikki.

Well, are these kinda sessions closed or?

Only to reporters and weirdos. What are you doing here?

Oh, well, actually, we know Nikki, too.

Really? Oh.

You have to jam with these guys.

- Could we come in? - Yeah, let's go in.

- Yes. - It's freezing.

♪ You know you turn the other way ♪

♪ In a one-way town ♪

♪ Oh oh oh oh ♪

♪ Put your heart in the sky ♪

♪ Put your feet into the grou-ou-ound ♪

♪ Oh oh oh oh oh ♪

♪ Find a way as bright as the sun in your eyes ♪

♪ Oh oh oh oh ♪

♪ You left a tear in the dust ♪

♪ Rotting in your vi-i-i-i-i-i-i-Ines ♪

That was good. Sounded good, okay.

Oh. Hey, the boutique girls.

What do you know? Hey guys, let's take five.

My God. So, to what do we owe the pleasure of your visit?

Well, we didn't get to tell you the other day,

but Abbey here is an incredible-

- I need raw meat! - (laughs) Chris, you animal.

I gotta get you out to LA with me,

check out Stuart Copeland's new studio, Sacred Grove.

I've been drumming my ass off out there.

It's the best way to stay in shape.

- Are there any fat drummers? - (laughs) That's funny.

Oh, Buddy Miles, I suppose. - Bernard Purdie.

John Bonham, fat. Pear shaped.

(upbeat rock music plays faintly)

Towards the end. (laughs) - I'll give you that.

- What you reading? - Hmm?

Oh, this is, this is the new Nena Gabrelle.

It's her new memoir. - No way!

Yeah, it's very randy stuff.

Not very well written, but very randy.

Theo Marxos is my great uncle, actually.

- No. - Yeah,

and I'm living with his wife Vera in Saugerties right now.

She's my great aunt. - Are you serious?

- Yeah. - You gotta be shitting me.

I'm, I'm a huge, huge Marxophile.

I mean, his writing about America

after the war changed my life.

Hey Nikki, I don't mean to barge in-

Can I just ask you,

did your Aunt Vera mention anything about this book?

No, no, no, no, not at all,

and I'm kind of ashamed to say it,

but I actually haven't read any of my uncle's writing.

But I did find this huge box of Vera's journals

from like way back in the day.

- Oh my God. - Did you read some of those,

I hope? - Oh hell yeah.

I can't put 'em down.

Are you kidding? - Hey, Dora-

Do you know, was, was your Aunt Vera,

was she with him in Korea?

Yeah, and they traveled all the time.

You know, I actually think I'm named

after my, my uncle Theodore.

Dora, Theodore. - So I wanted to say-

Sorry to interrupt. I have a close friend in the city.

He's with DeGraw Publishing,

and I've got a feeling he'd love to take a look at those

if your aunt is interested in publishing them.

- I just wanted to ask- - Oh yeah, that would be huge!

Are you kidding me?

And I'm sure it would take her outta the major,

major slump she's in, you know?

(laughs) I'm sorry, you guys.

I'm just realizing you're gonna have to skedaddle.

I gotta get the boys back to work.

- Thank you so much. - Great talking to ya.

Good seeing ya. Thanks for stopping by.

(Dora squeals and laughs)

Hey Ed, you gonna just sit there or you gonna get the boys?

[Ed] Yes, sir.

(car hums)

Thank you for the best day yet in Saugerties. Oh my God.

Well, I'm glad one of us had a best day.

Nikki will listen to your music.

I'll be sure of it. As your manager-

Are you delusional? Manage your own life.

God, I felt like such an idiot standing there.

I'm sorry.

No, I'm the one who's delusional to think

that I could sing for Nikki Summers.

Please get out of my car.

(door opens)

Okay.

(footsteps shuffle)

(door slams) (engine revs)

[Voice On Radio] We found a lonely stretch of sand

and spent our day swimming and making love.

- I'm home! - Teddy caressed me

with his literary brilliance,

reciting poetry and prose

as the water lapped our naked bodies.

It was a shared baptism into a new life together.

After months of traveling,

retreating further So cold.

[Voice On Radio] and further from humanity,

we found our paradise. - Bring me that dead dracena.

[Voice On Radio] I vowed to take care of Teddy.

No! Leave that poor suffering plant alone.

I'll get you some firewood. Where did you get this?

A surprisingly mean-spirited ex sent it to me.

"Vera, damn that Teddy, but he never fooled you.

"Best, George." Damn that George.

(Vera chuckles)

Wait, you knew about Nena?

I am going to show you

how to make the perfect gin martini.

(sighs) I didn't break my toe dancing.

When I got a call from that damn reporter about Nena's book,

well, I pretended to know all about it.

(laughs) Oh ho ho ho, and then after I hung up,

I kicked the pantry door in. - Oh.

I wondered what happened to that door.

Theodore, moving, writing,

with his little nurse made into ho, his idea of paradise.

Yeah.

(soft music)

(footsteps crunch in snow)

(seeds trickle)

Nikki, Nikki.

(gentle pleasant guitar music)

Hey, Dorothy Dora.

Sit down. How are ya? - Good.

I see you brought the stash.

So listen, I've been thinking,

are you sure your aunt wants to (laughs) do this?

Hmm? Yeah, of course.

She wants to share it with the whole world.

Okay. That's awfully brave of her. (laughs)

I wouldn't want somebody digging around in my closet.

That's a whole other story.

But my friend told me he would love

to get his hands on this, so. - Wait, Nikki.

You have to do me a favor if you're gonna take this.

Okay. What's that?

You have to come to the poetry festival next weekend.

Fine, sign me up. The what?

(water splashes)

Oh yeah, yeah.

I thought the force majeure was as fascinating

as the (speaks in foreign language).

Yeah, mm-hmm.

Okay, I gotta go, Mom.

Yep, I love you, too. Bye.

(footsteps thud)

Do depressions run in our family?

You are not depressed. You are unhappy.

If I were you, I'd be unhappy, too.

Why are you going to law school, Dora?

Don't know. It'll make my degree useful.

That's one way to go, right? - Go where?

According to you, France!

That is something that I say when someone I know

is about to commit them self to something

that might not be right for them.

I was going to secretarial school. Instead I went to France.

(laughs) Oh wow. Right now I can't do anything.

I can't go to France. I can't go to Brazil.

I can't go anywhere, so maybe I should just become a lawyer

so I can actually afford to do the things

that I wanna be doing, Aunt Vera!

You're a Wells, Dora. We do not follow a straight line.

(Vera sighs)

Was Dad like me?

He pursued his passions mightily.

So, no, you are not like your dad.

He was in the theater.

When you came, your mother wanted him to quit.

I do know that he loved you and your mom very much.

She never talks about him.

I'm gonna go into the village, okay?

So if you need anything, just call me.

I won't need you.

But you do need me, Aunt Vera,

because you have a broken toe,

and I cannot wait for it to be unbroken!

(soft harp music)

I told you, I'm a pauper!

I hold a big bag of I can't even afford!

(doorbell chimes) (bag rustles)

Abbey. - I'm busy.

I'm just returning the clothes.

I didn't eat in them except

when I ate my foot at the music studio.

Prosecco!

Is that how you normally are?

I mean, admittedly, I don't know you that well,

but you got this weird look in your face

as if nothing else mattered.

You completely shut me down. It was awful.

I know, I know. I think it's my nerves.

My mom calls it leaving the planet.

Yeah, I, I didn't mean to do it at all. I'm, I'm so sorry.

- What's that about? - Well, I had a great idea.

I think you should sing at the poetry festival!

That's a big event. You've already burnt me once.

Yeah, I, I know, and that's, that's once too many.

Apparently I'm in drastic need

of some emotional stylation, too.

Pop that baby open. (laughs) I need it.

- Why? What's going on? - Oh, Dora.

This is the beginning of the end.

- It is? - Yes.

This is the first day of the last 30 days of my 20s.

(cries) Oh my God. I'm getting old, darling.

- Shut up! - Yes, I see it.

I, I'm just getting wrinkly all over.

(cork pops) (girls squeal and laugh)

(Prosecco splashes) (muffled music plays)

- Let's get outta here. - And go where?

There's nowhere to go.

Doesn't Saugerties have a lighthouse?

Yeah, but it's like way too cold and windy.

Oh, I know!

You should like, we should go out there,

and you should do some like performance out there

in honor of turning 30. - (laughs) Like what? (laughs)

It's totally uncivilized out here.

(laughs) This is awesome!

Oh my God! (laughs) - Be careful.

Okay, start picking up things

that we can like throw into the river.

- It, it'll just blow away. - So what?

Just think of it as like your life up until now,

just blowing away. - It's really depressing.

(screams and laughs) Getting old is depressing!

(laughs) Okay, let's go! Come on, ya old maid.

(soft upbeat guitar music) (twigs snap)

Take some more sticks. (laughs)

[Abbey] It's so pretty out here.

[Dora] It's such a good day to come out here!

[Abbey] It's such a cold day to come out here!

- Whoa! This is so cool! - Here's the lighthouse.

Woo! (laughs)

All right, ready?

(soft music)

(both laugh)

Farewell, old days!

Here's to better new ways!

You are like a hawk perched, ready to devour!

The earth, the world, my heart in all its power.

Woo! Thank you, wind, for listening.

Amen. - Amen.

(Dora laughs) (train horn blares)

Oh, that train is headed to the city.

- I wish we were on it. - I know.

Sometimes I wish I could get on the throughway,

drive south, and never come back.

- Do it. - I can't.

I have to take care of my stepsister, Tabitha. Wait, here.

- Oh, what a cutie. - (laughs) Yeah, she's cute,

and she's smart, too.

Her parents, my dad and his on, off, on, off girlfriend,

they don't make the time to take care of her.

- Oh, that's awful. - Yeah, so otherwise,

I would be gone a long time ago.

But you have your music, Abbey. That's amazing.

I mean, I don't have anything except thoughts

about being far away and doing huge things.

But, but how do I get from here to there, you know?

Like, I feel like I'm in this, this all beige waiting room.

Don't worry.

Some idea will creep up on you,

and it might not be huge, but it will feel massive,

and the beige waiting room will just be a memory.

- Hey, is that Nikki? - Nikki?

Whoa.

What are you doing here? This is so weird.

Hey, what, what are you doing here, the two of ya?

- We just made a sacrifice. - A sacrifice?

What kind of sacrifice? What-

It was in honor of Abbey's birthday.

She's a little upset that she's turning 30.

I mean, she's upset because of, because of something else!

(laughs) 30. Oh, your poor little thing, you.

In that case, you might as well just throw yourself

in the river and get it over with.

30.

Believe me, it doesn't matter,

at least until you get to be my age anyway.

For instance, I just, I just finished this record.

Everybody says it's great. - Great!

No, but see, great is overrated. You know what I mean?

Really is. I mean, where's the life in it, you know?

I can't think of the last time that I made a record

that had a track on it that had to grow on the listener

where you listen to it and you think,

"Something's not right,"

but then you listen to it again and again and again,

and slowly but surely,

it grabs you and throws you in the river.

(Abbey and Dora laugh)

Now the Buddhists, now the Buddhists,

the Buddhists have a saying

that whatever you're doing up until the age of 50,

stop it and do something completely different. (laughs)

(nose blows)

Me, I'm a little late on that one myself, but-

But I thought you said that age doesn't matter.

It's true. I'm talking about the work though.

I mean, if you're not sweating

and working hard at something,

then you're, you're just not living.

Ah. On that note, it's time for this one to go.

Shit. - Ooh!

- Oh, oh, Nikki, Nikki, ooh. - Oh gosh.

I'm all right.

(gentle pleasant music)

Hi, Aunt Vera! I went to the lighthouse.

(footsteps shuffle)

Vera?

(footsteps shuffle)

Vera?

(clock ticks)

Vera?

(wind blows) (footsteps crunch in snow)

Aunt, Aunt Vera?

Are you all right? How long have you been out here?

I heard the train. This is nothing like it.

Did you give him the letters, too?

Well, mostly scribbled thoughts.

That's what Theo did when he was gone.

Once, I nearly burned them, but what's the use?

I know 'em all my heart, particularly one.

"Dear Virginia, how are you?"

I can't continue, and all the places that we know,

the people, the deadlines.

Grab my hand like we used to jumping trains,

"and I'll, I'll pull you up, and we'll escape together."

I don't have that letter 'cause Theo never wrote it.

You wanna travel, Dora? I'll give you the money.

Okay, okay.

Because I don't want you here anymore.

DeGraw is interested in my journals.

I wanted you to have the spotlight, not what's her name.

What feeble half-baked brain do you possess

that says it's okay for you

to just serve up my private moments

on a platter to some complete stranger?

(Vera cries)

You gave him the originals for God's sake!

Not even photocopies? God.

(footsteps crunch in snow) (Dora sniffles)

(soft melancholy music)

(feet and suitcase thump)

(clock ticks)

Bye, Aunt Vera.

I know it was stupid, Mom! My bus gets in at two.

What, the test? What, what about the test?

Yeah, I'll take it in Newark! Bye!

(traffic rumbles in distance)

(van rumbles)

(window hums)

Please get in, Dora.

(door slams)

Oh my god, Aunt Vera, I'm so sorry the way I treated you!

There was just no consideration for the other person.

I'm, I'm, I'm turning into my mom! I mean, oh God.

I, I, there was no respect for you or anything,

and, and I'm so sorry.

I'll call DeGraw, and I'm sorry.

Why do you have a trash can? - What are these?

- Nothing, just trash. - What did they used to be?

Some were images from my dreams

and others were just thoughts.

It's junk. It's nothing, it's just throwaways.

Well, they may be a bit rough,

but they're telling, a place where interesting things occur.

You know my poetry club? - No, I can't read these.

Well, not the way they are right now,

but you can work them and read it at the festival.

- No way! No! - If you read, I'll read.

(paper rustles)

(gentle pleasant music)

♪ Ooh ooh ooh ♪ (water splashes)

♪ Ooh ooh ooh ♪

♪ Ah ha ah ah ah ah ah ♪

♪ Doo ooh ooh ♪

Over and over, break the ice,

rocks like blocks, deep into mud,

thud, blood, crud.

(scoffs) Enough with the rhyming.

- How's the riding going? - Awful.

I mean, I, I feel stuff, you know,

but it's not doing anything

except just rolling around inside me.

You're in a muddle.

It's the worst place to be in everyday life,

but it's the best place to be for creativity.

Listen, every writer that I know,

including your great-uncle,

every writer has trouble writing.

- So what did you do? - Hmm.

You know how men, men have their muses?

Well, a woman can have her muse, too.

Are you saying you had some affair

with a big band musician to help you with your muddle?

(laughs) Oh, well, (laughs)

I didn't necessarily say affair, but, well,

I, I, I was always editing and always writing articles

that nobody wanted to publish.

So I needed a little attention,

a lively conversation, you know?

Theo, oh, he was off on his missions,

so I was off on mine, so to speak.

We are so much alike.

(both laugh)

(soft harp music)

♪ Like a lover, like a child ♪

♪ Run for cover, running wild ♪ (glass clinks)

♪ Rain is falling ♪

(muffled singing) (footsteps shuffle)

Who wants something sweet?

♪ Winter won't be hangin' round ♪

♪ Winter's blown on the ground ♪

♪ Now it's leaving (sings indistinctly) ♪

- Beautiful. - Thank you.

Before dinner?

(muffled singing)

♪ So long, so long ♪

- Oh. - All right.

For you. - Thank you.

- Thank you. - Ladies.

Mm, mm mm mm. Oh, thank you.

So this is a recipe from the kitchen of Mr. Henry Miller,

of course with some improvisation by Aunt Vera and me.

- Raw onion? - Mm-hmm, among other things.

Isn't it yummy? - Mm-hmm.

The kalamata olives were a really good addition.

Mm, Dora remind me to find a book,

one of my favorites, Lawrence Ferlinghetti.

I think you're gonna find his work to your liking.

- Got it. - So should I quiz you

to prep for the test tomorrow? - No, you should not.

(soft upbeat oldies music)

What kind of law do you want Dora to practice?

Oh, well I was thinking trial

because of the theater of it,

and she's always been so dramatic. (laughs)

But I don't know. What were you thinking, Dora?

Tax. Is there a time limit to a poem?

No, a poem has to snake its way out of you

and become the length it becomes.

That sounds uncomfortable.

- It can be. - It can be.

(gulps) I'm gonna check on dinner.

Excuse me, honey. - Thank you.

(heels clack)

"My drifters days are past me now.

I've got so much more to think about,

deadlines and commitments,

"what to leave in and what to leave out."

Mom.

I don't think Aunt Vera has been acquainted

with the great poet Bob Seger.

Oh, I love that song!

"I wish I didn't know now what I didn't know then."

♪ Against the wind ♪ (women snap rhythmically)

♪ Still running against the wind ♪

See that, smarty pants?

Anyway, I'm just trying to make a point.

I'm not as insensitive as you think I am.

And when you're making six figures,

you can donate your time and money to a local poets group,

isn't that right?

Well, if that's the path she wishes to take.

Well, it should be. I mean, look at you and me.

Where did the curvy road of the heart take us, Vera, huh?

Down to the pit where it aches, seldom comes up for air.

Well, I can't argue with that.

So put off pleasure for awhile,

knowing that on down the line,

it's gonna rear its luxurious and lucrative head.

Job, money, life. That's the order, Mom?

That's right.

Is that what you told Dad?

- Can I have one of those? - Oh, yes, dear.

(flames whoosh)

I mean, where's the glamour in starving?

I guess it makes you skinny, and that's fashionable,

and okay, we were passionate and starving,

but then you came, and everything changes, everything.

So, so Dad's career wasn't good enough for you.

Your parents had the same career.

(sighs) Hot glue and lumber. God, I miss that smell.

For constructing sets.

But, but getting a real job and moving to Jersey,

that must've stressed Dad out

and probably contributed to his heart attack.

Your father didn't die from a heart attack, Dora.

He fell off a scaffold and died instantly.

What?

I wasn't there.

Before I left, Danny was going on and on

about this unusual and extravagant set.

Why did I leave? I, I can't remember.

It's all so foggy now.

But I came back, and I, I couldn't see him,

and at first, I thought it was because of the, my eyes,

the, going from sunlight into darkness.

It's always hard adjusting.

So I walked down the side aisle,

and I kept trying to find him up there, and then I knew.

(voice breaks) He was on the floor and he was all...

No way I was gonna tell that to my little girl.

Heart attack, heart attack, heart attack.

That was it. End of story.

(footsteps shuffle)

(door opens)

So how was it, honey? - It was good.

Why the heck do you have this? "Frozen Garden."

The festival starts in an hour. Let's go.

Well, the moment we've all been waiting for.

She founded the Saugerties Poetry Club 20 years ago,

and, as passionate as Vera Marxos has been

in helping others with the written and spoken word,

we have never heard her speak.

Well, lucky us. Tonight, she takes the stage.

Vera. - Yeah, Vera!

(audience cheers and applauds)

I am an old fool,

(audience laughs)

Which is not as appealing as when I was a young fool.

But, you know, I think it's all worth it, I think,

and luck is still on my side because I have a chance

to spend time with my great niece, and she is great.

And together, with DeGraw,

we are going to knock that book "Paradise" off the shelves.

(audience laughs and applauds)

And Dora, I want to thank you for reintroducing me

to my muddle because sometimes in life, that's all we have.

This poem is called "All the Things."

(soft piano music)

"Snow is general over the Catskills."

Garden waits for me like a lover,

contained, lush, yearning, and never satisfied.

Train. You took me here and there.

Ice cold bear. You didn't really care.

You just continued on.

Home.

You will go into other hands,

and they will soon know your creaks and shadows

and your flaky walls and the cobwebs that hang.

I grew comfortable and you grew quiet.

You, in and out, in and out. You never made still my heart.

Oh, how I loved you too much.

Theodore, Ada, Phineas, Betty, Danny, Mother, Father,

"snow is general over the Catskills."

Thank you.

(audience cheers and applauds)

It's a lovely thing. Love you.

(people speak indistinctly)

- Where are you going? - I can't do this.

- Come on. - No, I can't do this!

It's crazy. - Come here.

What do you mean you can't do this? What's your problem?

You nervous? Everybody gets nervous.

You ever hear that Janice Joplin threw up

before every performance?

All right, so it might have something to do

with the amount of whiskey she drank, but nevertheless,

remember what I was telling you at the river,

or at least trying to tell you down by the river?

I want you to take the one energy that's inside you

that needs to come out and throw it at the audience.

Be a thunderbolt with words.

Make a collision between you and them, or you could bail.

(footsteps shuffle)

Sorry. Nervous.

This poem is called "Frozen Garden,"

and it is dedicated to my Aunt Vera.

"Nature is sometimes cruel to the seeds we cast,

but some seeds pick up the wind and warm.

Dad, I see you smiling atop the structure of your happiness,

painting the future of your dreams you left behind.

I am here now, step by step,

moving on the set you helped create.

I want to sing my song loud and proud,

but my brain makes the tune a fogged muddle.

The heart is my mostly companion,

traveling along a path not weeded with ease,

beats on as it quivers, its vocals sometimes faint.

I was only 10 when you took a misstep

and didn't understand why you left.

Where?

Your heart did not attack, and I don't see you falling.

I see you finally able to fly.

"You were brave, Dad, and I will be, too."

Thank you.

(audience cheers and applauds)

Well, I wasn't exactly a thunderbolt with words,

but I am struck by two extraordinary thoughts.

Everything fabulous is not so far away from me,

and I understand why my mom wants me to go to law school,

but she should go instead.

("Lightning in the Same Place")

♪ Nothing's gonna get in my head ♪

♪ To wrap around those words you said ♪

♪ Oh, now, I just go and dig up the dead ♪

♪ Knowing I can't explain to a searching soul ♪

♪ The ones that you love, you got to let them go ♪

♪ Don't you know that as a bird ♪

♪ It's got to be solo ♪

♪ Just quit fighting the fall, yeah ♪

♪ I saw lightning in the same place far too many times ♪

♪ Sorrow hides behind a plain face ♪

♪ Deep where the sun doesn't shine ♪

♪ 'Cause I don't believe in a coincidence ♪

♪ Into the fires of blissful ignorance I threw my innocence ♪

♪ Haven't seen it since ♪

(audience cheers and applauds)

♪ I saw lightning in the same place ♪

♪ I saw the lightning, yeah ♪

♪ Sorrow hides behind a plain face ♪

("Walden Pond")

♪ I hope you spend your days riding verses on your page ♪

♪ May your life be a Walden Pond swim ♪

♪ Taking showers in the cold ♪

♪ And your glasses filled to their brim ♪

♪ And I hope you treat your heart real nice and real smart ♪

♪ May your life be a Walden Pond swim ♪

♪ Can't be worthless seeing stars ♪

♪ Buying rocky road for me and him ♪

♪ Stay in that water and keep where you are feeling fine ♪

♪ But I'm just the daughter of a man ♪

♪ Who lives on oak and wine ♪

♪ And I swim like my father ♪

♪ And remember hard days driving miles cross county lines ♪

♪ And I've still got those pictures ♪

♪ That I found in a bucket ♪

♪ They're all up on my wall ♪

♪ And I've still got those paintings ♪

♪ That you did for my birthday way back in the fall ♪

♪ And I've still got those pictures ♪

♪ That I found in a bucket ♪

♪ They're all up on my wall ♪

♪ And I've still got those paintings ♪

♪ That you did for my birthday way back in the fall ♪

♪ Ooh ooh ooh ooh ooh ♪

♪ Mm mm mm ♪