Original subtitles

Good evening, ladies and gentlemen.

I'm making a gift for a dear friend.

It's a going away present.

It's also in the nature of a surprise, since he isn't aware the trip is being

planned for him.

This is peculiar.

I'm cutting along the dotted line.

Oh, well, I don't really need anything fancy. I'm only going to chain it to his

feet. And now, ladies and gentlemen... We present our story, Backward Turned

Backward.

Nice turnout.

So, you're a chemist.

Tell me something.

How is it people can smell blood a mile away?

No, they can't.

But they do every time.

Look at them.

Good, honest, God -fearing vultures.

Don't be too hard on them, Andy.

All they want is... All they want is Phil Canby's head for dinner.

You going to give it to them?

I don't know.

What'd you find?

Nothing. Just about the cleanest job I ever saw.

What about this?

Oh, it's the murder weapon, all right.

But I can't tell you much more than that.

Why not?

Well, see for yourself.

Pick it up.

Go on.

Now smell it.

Laundry soap?

Yep.

Yeah, he scrubbed it in the sink.

And then he washed out the sink.

Gotta hand it to old Canvey. He's a neat murderer.

Now you listen to me, Saul.

Hill Canby isn't a murderer until a jury says so. You understand? A jury.

I haven't even arrested him yet.

You wanted to see me, Andy?

Yes.

Now, Miss Lyons, I know you mean well, and I'm grateful for the help you've

to us.

I'm going to have to ask you to hold your tongue about this.

Until we make an arrest.

I'm sure I don't know what you're talking about.

You've been telling people that you knew something terrible was going to happen.

Well, it's the truth.

And the truth never hurt anybody.

Did it?

I'm not so sure.

Anyway, something terrible did happen before all this. And everybody knows it,

too.

Phil can be.

Chasing after a girl young enough to be his granddaughter.

Do you know what I saw?

I saw Phil Canby take Sue Thompson in his arms and kiss her.

Right on the mouth.

Made me sick to my stomach.

Why?

Why? Oh, Andy, Phil Canby, 60 years old.

59. Besides,

the way I hear it, he offered to marry her and she accepted.

But that makes it even worse. The very... idea. A girl still in her teens

marrying an old fool like that.

Is that why you all want to see him hang? Because you think he's an old

Would you like your daughter to marry a man of 59?

Were you in love with Matt Thompson?

I certainly was not.

Why?

I liked Matt well enough, and I... Well, I felt sorry for him, all alone in this

big old house.

Not exactly alone.

He had his daughter, Sue.

A lot of good she was.

You'd think that girl could at least keep this place clean.

Who took care of Sue when she was a baby, after her mother died?

Her father.

And when he was working?

Oh, I don't know.

From what I've heard, you were very good to both Matt and Sue in those days. I

was only doing my duty, helping out.

I've heard rumors that you expected Matt to propose to you.

Is that true?

Whoever told you such a silly thing?

Are you prepared to swear you heard the merry baby crying last night? I most

certainly am. At 10 .30? That's right. You're sure?

It couldn't have been some other child?

Hardly. There isn't another baby in the whole block.

And I knew it was 10 .30 because I looked at my clock when I got home.

Why did you do that? I always do. And that was when you heard the baby crying?

You know, Phil can be swears the baby was asleep at that time and never cried

once. That's ridiculous.

I never heard him like that before, rasping for breath. He kept it up all

time I was getting ready for bed.

All right, Miss Lyons.

You can go on home now.

Well, isn't there anything I can do?

No, I think you've done just about enough.

We'll call you.

Ambulance is here, Andy.

Can we haul it away?

Oh, Sheriff.

Come in.

Your father here?

Yes, he's upstairs, I think.

With Sue Thompson?

I'm sorry.

Philip, darling, I'm coming.

Yes, Mommy's here.

It's all right, darling. Mommy's here now. And I'll have your lunch in just a

minute. You're at a certain age.

I know.

I have the same trouble with mine.

Now, now, young fellow, what's the matter?

Quiet!

You

certainly

have a way with children.

With this one, I do.

Couldn't rightly say about any others.

You got anything more to tell me, Phil? Nothing more to tell.

They're all blaming him for it, aren't they?

Why? What's wrong?

He worked for those people. He loved them. He was their friend.

Why are they all suddenly turning on him like this?

Don't you know?

Yes, I suppose I do.

But it's not right, Sheriff.

You can't condemn a man for murder just because you don't approve of what he's

doing. I'm not condemning your father, Betty.

I'm only trying to get at the truth.

You've got to believe that.

Told you all I know, Andy.

What's the point of going on about it?

It's not a matter of point, Bill. It's routine.

You don't mind if I ask Sue a few questions, do you, Phil?

Not if she don't.

Sue, Sheriff here wants to talk with you.

Yes, sir.

Sue, I'm going to speak straight out to you.

A lot of people think that Phil can be as responsible for your father's death.

That's silly.

Maybe so, but that's the way it is. Do you think he's responsible?

Doesn't make any difference what I think.

Now, Sue.

I'm going to ask you a few questions. I want you to tell me what happened last

night, just the way you remember it. And don't leave anything out.

Go ahead.

Tell him.

It's all right.

We got nothing to be afraid of.

I don't know what to say.

Last night you asked Phil over to your house to fix the drain.

Is that right?

Yes, sir. What happened?

Phil was fixing the drain.

We were talking about our plans.

Daddy came in and then he started to yell and say awful, terrible things.

What things?

Said he'd have me put in an institution before he'd see his daughter married to

an old man.

Let her tell it, Phil.

Then what, Sue?

Phil yelled something back at him. It scared me. I hid in the pantry and put

fingers in my ears.

When did you come out of the pantry?

When Daddy told me to.

He said it was all over and I could go to bed now.

Phil was gone?

Yes, sir.

I went upstairs and went to sleep.

All right.

Phil, I've got to talk to you now.

How long?

Go upstairs, honey.

Won't take long.

You rest some.

Nice girl.

Ain't a girl.

She's a woman. Best I've seen in a long time.

Phil, there's no sense pretending you're in trouble.

Miss Lyons says she heard little Philip crying at 10 .30 last night.

Her daughter admits you didn't change the baby. Now, that isn't like you,

neglecting him.

He was asleep.

Didn't want to wake him up.

Matt. Thompson was killed between 10 and 11.

You say you were here at that time babysitting while Betty and her husband

to the show. You had the radio turned on.

That's right.

Come home right after the quarrel.

Nine o 'clock.

Everybody knows that when you're here, that baby's quiet.

Yet Miss Lyons heard him crying at 10 .30.

Don't you see what that means?

Lyons never touched Mac. All right, you never touched him.

Who did?

Don't know.

Don't rightly care.

State's attorney is going to say that that baby was crying because you weren't

here to keep him quiet.

He's going to say that you got to thinking about Matt Thompson's threat.

You couldn't stand it anymore, so you went back and killed him.

You even left the wrench behind.

Using that to fix the drain.

Forgot it.

Forgot it.

Why did you wash it with laundry soap?

Didn't. Bill, you've got to give me something more to go on.

I'd go all the way for you if you'd just give me some proof that you didn't kill

Matt. Anything.

Anything.

Andy.

You think I did it, don't you?

What else can I think?

Phil, this whole town's against you.

If you don't give me something more to go on, you're going to hang.

Phil, when did you first fall in love with Sue Thompson?

Fall in love?

Sounds funny saying that about somebody my age.

Don't it, Andy?

Don't rightly know.

Whatever it was...

It happened last spring.

I was working in the yard and kind of keeping an eye on little Phillip at the

same time.

Sue come over to watch, like she always did.

She was no different, I guess.

All big -eyed and sad like a doe.

Like a big -eyed, sad little doe.

Ready to run if you made a wrong move.

But she was different somehow.

I'd been seeing her ever since she was a child.

But now it was like I was seeing her for the first time.

Never seen such an expression on her face before.

Like she wasn't a little girl no more, but a woman.

And she wasn't just outside the yard, but outside the world.

Looking in.

I'd tried to fool myself into thinking that I just felt protective towards her.

But it weren't so.

I was in love with her.

I am in love with her.

She makes me feel young.

And I haven't felt that way for 20 years.

Disgusted, Andy?

I just wish the two things could be separated.

You and Sue and Matt Thompson's murder.

Can't be separated.

They hang me, it won't be for murder.

It'll be because I fell in love with a 19 -year -old girl.

What's that about?

Nothing.

How's it going?

It isn't.

What about the drain?

Well, there are wrench marks on it, but I don't know what that proves.

Harris is here.

Where? Upstairs.

Miss Thompson, your father was murdered last night. Now I'm going to find out

who did it and why.

So you'd better tell me the truth. I am telling you the truth.

Do you mean to tell me that you didn't expect your father to interfere with

marriage to an old man like Phil Candy?

He never interfered with anything I did.

And don't you know that he told Betty Murray that he would chain you up rather

than see you marry Canby?

He never said that to me.

Well, what did he say when you told him?

I think he said something like, well, doesn't that beat everything?

And he laughed.

Are you taking over my job, Mr. Harris?

Well, it's not a bad idea, Andy, seeing that sheriffs do have all the fun.

First on the scene, first to make an arrest.

Sue, Mr. Harris and I have some talking to do. Why don't you run on back?

I told you I'd let you know when I was ready.

And aren't you?

Look, Andy, I've been getting a lot of calls.

Now, I understand your feelings in this matter, and I sympathize in a way. But

the press is getting impatient.

What they want is an arrest.

And if you can't give them that, and personally, I can't understand why not.

At least tell them you have a suspect under surveillance.

Oh, but you'd rather have that mob out there take things into its own hands.

I'll take care of it.

Good.

Well, what's worrying you, Andy?

Look, there's enough in here to nail Canby to the ground.

I know.

Well, you ought to. You put it together for me, so why are you stalling?

Look, Thompson threatens Canby.

Makes things unpleasant.

Can be flies into a rage and beats out Thompson's brains with a wrench.

Later, he cleans up and goes home.

Opportunity, motive, no alibi.

It all seems so obvious, Andy.

I know, I know.

And what's his defense?

He was home babysitting.

Now, who's going to believe that after Miss Lyons testifies, she heard the baby

screaming its head off?

All right, I'll make the arrest.

After the funeral, is that soon enough for you?

Do me a favor.

Don't mix me up with those wolves outside.

I'm after Canby because I think he's guilty.

And I think that because of this evidence you've given me.

And to thy charge, beloved Lord, we dispatch the immortal soul of Matthew

Wallace Thompson.

In his life upon this earth, Matthew was a gardener, tending for the loveliest

of thy creations, the flowers.

So in a way it is fitting that he should at last return to the soil from whence

his beloved roses sprang.

He was a good man.

He never missed a Sunday at church.

from the age of seven to the time of his cruel and hasty death.

But he has not truly died, as thou dost well know.

He has but gone from this world to another.

And as we think of him now, reunited at last with his loved ones for all

eternity, we lift our hearts in joyous anticipation of that dark, mysterious

journey.

Would you wince us off?

Hello, John.

Sheriff.

The old man, huh?

Better take your wife upstairs, John.

You too, Sue.

I'm not leaving. This is my father's house, and I don't have to leave if I

want to. All right.

Phil Canby, I'm arresting you for the willful murder of Matt Thompson.

Oh, you're crazy.

My father never killed anybody.

My father would never kill anybody.

It isn't going to help.

There's nothing we can do. Let's go, Phil.

We can't take him away.

He'll be given a fair trial. Don't lie to her, Andy. If I can be arrested for

something I didn't do, I can be hung for it.

Let's get it done with.

You can take some things if you want. No, I don't know things.

And how do you feel now?

That's right.

You, Sue Thompson.

It's all your fault. Every single bit of it.

If you hadn't led my father on like this, he never would have gotten into

this trouble.

You're just a... Betty!

Leave her alone!

I won't! I won't! She did this to you! She made you lose all your friends!

This lion's herd.

What will they do with her?

What they do with all sick people, I expect.

Put her in a hospital.

Do you think she knows she killed her father?

No. I don't think she has any idea she killed him.

We have run out of entertainment.

Until next week, that is.

I have a new piece of stone and have decided to give sculpturing one more

Oh, well, what can you expect from a beginner?

Good night.

No.