Original subtitles

[playing cheerful tune]

[Dr. Molstad] Now this is where we work with all our test subjects.

As you can see, we test the entire range of emotions

from happiness to sadness and fear and so on.

That's one of our newest patients, Jennifer.

Poor dear.

Most kids would be laughing.

Jenny, we call her.

She's also one of our most severe cases.

Hi, Jenny.

[puppy whimpering]

That's a perfect example of what I've been talking about.

She has no desire to play with the puppy,

to cuddle with it, anything else.

Jenny doesn't know what it's like

to laugh or cry, be happy, sad, afraid, angry.

She doesn't experience any of the basic emotions,

emotions that the rest of us take for granted.

It's kind of amazing

that you would talk this way in front of her.

Think I'm insensitive? No, no.

No, Jenny was born with this condition.

Alexithymia.

Primary alexithymia,

caused by a genetic neuro-physiological defect,

which means she's never had any feelings that can be hurt.

If you could graph emotions

the way you graph a heartbeat or a brainwave,

most of my patients would be flat-lining.

If they don't feel anything,

how do they survive in the outside world?

Oh, well, just because they're void emotionally

doesn't mean they're void intellectually.

Most of them fake it as they grow older.

They see someone laugh, and they laugh.

Or they fake a smile or two.

-[knock on door] -Yes, come in.

I'm sorry to interrupt.

There's something on television I think you should see. Excuse me.

[announcer on TV] You're seeing live pictures of a hostage-taking in progress

in the downtown core.

We go now to our reporter on the scene, Adrian Wheeler.

[Wheeler] A little over 40 minutes ago,

two men, both of them armed, apparently robbed the store.

A shoot-out with police occurred outside

as the robbers attempted to escape.

As a result, one robber is dead.

The other suspect is holding a hostage at gunpoint

in this parking lot right next to the store.

The hostage, I think it's Beth.

A police detective is now entering the parking lot.

I believe he'll attempt a face-to-face negotiation with the suspect.

The suspect, as I mentioned, is armed.

He's holding a store employee,

a woman, as hostage.

Can you zoom in on this, Jimmy?

We have a name now on the hostage.

Her name is Elizabeth Carter.

She looks remarkably calm considering the situation that she's in.

She's one of your patients.

Mm-hmm.

She's completely without emotion.

-[gunshot] -[Wheeler] Oh, my God! Oh, no.

Is the hostage okay?

Yes, she's still standing. But the robber is down.

Once again, the hostage Beth Carter is unharmed,

and she looks surprisingly unaffected

by what she's just been through.

[Control Voice] There is nothing wrong with your television.

Do not attempt to adjust the picture.

We are now controlling the transmission.

We control the horizontal and the vertical.

We can deluge you with a thousand channels

or expand one single image to crystal clarity

and beyond.

We can shape your vision

to anything our imagination can conceive.

For the next hour,

we will control all that you see and hear.

You are about to experience the awe and mystery

which reaches from the deepest inner mind

to The Outer Limits.

[Control Voice] It is said that emotions are the language of the soul.

But what happens when that expression is muted?

What becomes of feelings that have no voice?

Hi, Beth, how are you?

Fine.

Come on.

[knocking at door]

Come in.

Beth is here.

Oh. Sure, send her in.

Beth, hi. Please sit down.

How are you today?

Fine.

Well, that was quite an experience

you went through day before last.

Experience?

[Dr. Molstad] Yeah, the armed robbery,

being held hostage.

The police shot the man.

Yes, I know, yeah.

Did you feel anything about that?

The man who held you hostage being killed?

No.

Well, that's why I brought you in here today.

Beth, I think it's possible

for you to take a huge step forward in your therapy.

It would require that you undergo an operation

where an implant, a tiny device,

designed to stimulate the neurotransmitters responsible for emotions

be placed directly inside your brain.

-Emotions? -Yeah.

You'd be the first person to try it.

It's something we've been working on for a very long time.

For me?

Yeah, well, your disorder makes you a perfect test case

for the implant.

If we're successful, this could help many more people.

Millions of people, Beth.

This technology can make anti-depressants, anti-psychotics,

Prozac even, obsolete.

This would not only change your world, Beth.

It would change the world.

[surgeon] Okay, everyone,

I'm cutting through the dura now.

How's she doing, Bill?

[Bill] She looks stable.

[surgeon] Okay,

clamp, please.

You look like an expectant father.

Well, if this works...

You'll have reinvented the treatment of mental illness

in one fell swoop.

Hopefully so.

That's what this is all about, isn't it?

Honestly, I was thinking about Beth.

[surgeon] A little suction here, please.

We have the chance to introduce technicolor

into the life of a woman

who's only ever lived in black and white.

That's what this is about,

isn't it?

Of course.

And the billions of dollars it will generate

has nothing to do with it.

Well...

[surgeon] I'm inserting the implant now.

[woman on TV] From the beginning of civilization,

the human race has continually searched

for better ways to understand the mysteries of the weather.

Of course, some methods were more reliable than others.

But now we use the latest technology

to bring you accurate and up-to-the-minute weather reporting.

Any change?

No.

Damn!

We checked the implant just before lunch.

It was working beautifully.

You'd never know to look at her.

[man on TV] The predictions are based on the fact

that there's been about twice the normal amount of snow cover on the ground.

Last spring, of course,

the flooding affected a massive area in the southern part of the state.

Is that something we've seen before?

Is that an expression?

That program she's watching,

she wants to change the channel.

She's bored with it, or dissatisfied with it.

Officials in both North Dakota and Minnesota

are also predicting massive flooding.

The show-pack there has been record-breaking this winter.

Many areas have seen up to three times more snow than usual.

Meantime, in western Illinois--

She did it!

She did it! Look at her!

She felt a need.

She expressed a desire.

She did that all on her own.

That implant is starting to work.

[woman on TV] You can't be thinking of going in there.

[Dr. Molstad] Now you know the rules.

Smoke before fire.

That means you start.

You didn't like that, did you?

Good for you.

[doctor] As you know, a good goat will do that.

[laughing]

Come on.

What do you think?

Is this really yours?

Come on.

It is so pretty.

One day you'll have a place of your own just like it.

-[cat meows] -[Joan] Hey, Mulligan.

-Come here, boy. -You have a cat?

Yeah. What's life without a cat? Want to pet him?

Yeah.

Would you like to hold him?

Yeah.

[crashing]

Beth, it's okay. It's okay. Beth, it's okay.

It's just... There's some workmen doing renovations upstairs.

That's all it is, okay? It's nothing.

I should have warned you, I'm sorry.

Actually some of them are kind of cute, the workmen.

I mean...

Okay, maybe I'm moving a little fast there, yeah?

You know, I think the first thing we need to do...

We need to do something with this look of yours.

My look?

Yeah, yeah, come on.

Joan.

Wow.

I don't know if I can do this.

Oh, sure you can.

Not like the first day at a new job.

Just picking up where you left off.

Everyone will want to know how I am.

How are you?

I'm scared.

That's good.

That's how it should be.

You look great.

Thank you...

For everything.

She'll do fine.

I don't know.

We knew that fear would be

one of the hardest emotions for her to deal with.

She's fine.

She's showing a tremendous amount of courage.

[horn honking]

Hey lady, you forgot to pay me!

I'm sorry.

I've never been excited before.

Sorry!

Hi.

Hello.

Joan!

Joan?

No Joan.

[banging]

Jerks.

Mulligan! Here, kitty, kitty!

[echoing voices]

[voices stop]

[voices continue]

[screaming]

Oh...

You had a real scare thrown into you.

Are you all right?

I think so.

Oh, you don't have to be afraid of him.

It's true that's a face that only a mother or someone like me could love,

but he's harmless.

I ought to know. I've been married to him for 40 years.

Sorry I scared you.

The front door was ajar.

I wanted to make sure the place wasn't getting robbed.

We're your new neighbors from down the hall.

-I'm Dolly, and this is-- -Mike Kellerman. Nice to meet you.

-You must be Joan's new roommate. -Yes.

I don't know who's prettier, her or Joan.

Joan is much prettier than I am.

[Dolly] Don't sell yourself short.

You're no slouch in the looks department either.

Beth, what happened?

Nothing happened.

Mike saw your front door was ajar,

thought he'd stick his considerably large nose

in here to investigate.

-Scared her a little, that's all. -That's all.

You left the door open?

I...I don't remember.

I just...Voices.

What voices?

Beth. What voices?

It was nothing.

It was nothing.

You need to be a little more careful.

This is a pretty safe building,

but you should always leave the door locked,

especially if you're here by yourself.

Okay.

So I see you've met Dolly and Mike.

Yes, actually they've been very nice to me.

The rumors that we're a couple of old ogres

have been greatly exaggerated.

[Joan] Beth, you still look a little weak.

I'm gonna call Kevin and tell him no about tonight.

-Kevin? -Yeah, he's a friend of mine who lives downstairs.

In 1A?

Yeah. He invited us to dinner on his boat.

But I'll tell him we'll take a rain check.

No, I'd like to go.

I would really like to go.

[Kevin] So I went from hammering nails for a living

to hiring other people to hammer nails

to buying and renovating old apartment buildings,

including the one we live in.

[Beth] You're a landlord?

[Kevin] Oof. You say that with such distaste.

No, you don't look like a landlord.

What do landlords look like? Pray, tell.

Like Mike Kellerman.

Now he looks like a landlord.

[laughing] Beth bumped into Mike today.

Oh. I hope he's okay.

Oh!

So, who are you?

That's what I'd like to know.

Here I've been rambling on and on about myself all night.

-Typical. -Hey, watch it now.

Besides, you've been hanging on every word.

Dream on, buddy.

I love hearing you talk.

I mean, this has pretty much been the best dinner I've ever had,

the food, the conversation.

I used to pretty much always eat alone.

Well, this may not be the best meal I've ever cooked,

but...

And I can't remember when I've had two more charming dinner companions.

Joan!

Joan!

Joan!

[banging]

Jerks.

Joan, where are you?

Joan?

Joan?

Shoot.

[knocking]

Joan?

[car alarm beeping]

[echoing voices]

Stop it! Just stop it!

[echoing voices]

Oh, I scared you.

I'm sorry.

It's okay.

I hate doing laundry.

I don't mind.

You still seem sort of jumpy.

Is everything all right?

I think my imagination is playing tricks on me.

Mike accuses me of that all the time.

Know what I tell him?

You believe anything you want, but I've seen what I've seen,

and I know what I know.

What have you seen?

Would you believe the inside of an alien spaceship?

You've heard about people

Being abducted by aliens, haven't you?

Well, of course you have.

It's all over the TV.

I thought all that stuff was, you know, that was made up.

That's what the government wants you to think,

but it's really happening.

Take my word for it.

What... What do they look like?

Same ones who abduct everybody else.

Gray ones.

Their faces look dead,

except for their eyes.

And it looks like they could see right inside me,

right inside my brain.

What did they do to you?

Anything they wanted.

They had this sort of

long metal probe thing.

Well, I don't want to go into details,

but it doesn't take much imagination,

if you know what I mean.

Oh...That's awful, awful.

Yeah.

Still have nightmares.

Still hear their voices.

Voices?

Yeah, inside my brain.

This constant chattering

like they were all talking at once.

Beth, this is Dr. Molstad.

Dr. Molstad, I was trying to reach Joan.

Are you all right?

I'm fine. I just need to ask Joan something.

She's already left.

I don't know if she was going straight home or not,

but I'm pretty sure she'll be there shortly.

You sure I can't help you?

No, I mean, yes.

I'll just wait till she gets home, thank you.

[meowing]

Mulligan!

Mulligan!

Mulligan!

[echoing voices]

You're not real.

I'm just hearing things.

There's nobody here.

There's nobody else here.

[echoing voices]

I'm not going to let you get in the way of my new life,

especially some stupid mindless chattering

that doesn't really exist!

Stop!

[voices fading away]

[voices returning]

[screaming]

Beth, what's wrong?

Beth, what happened? What's wrong?

What happened? What happened?

What happened? What's wrong?

It's okay.

It's okay.

It's okay.

[Joan] She said she saw Mulligan

right outside the front door dead.

Scared me half to death.

But Kevin came up here first.

He didn't see any sign of the cat or an intruder.

I'm sure he's not dead.

He has a kitty door. He comes and he goes.

I'm sure he's gonna be back.

Yes, I'm sure he will.

She said something was in the apartment, not someone.

But she refuses to say what.

Whatever it was scared her half to death,

if there really was something.

Do you think she hallucinated the entire episode?

She said something to me the other day about hearing voices.

But she didn't want to talk about that.

[Kevin] You need one of my super gourmet home-cooked meals

served by candlelight.

What do you say?

We'd like to speak to Beth alone.

Sure, no problem.

Think about what I said.

Tomorrow night, I'll come up here.

Okay.

Thanks, Kev, for everything.

No problem. I'll be downstairs if you need me.

-Bye. -Bye.

[clearing throat]

Well, Beth, um,

it might be a good idea

for you to come back to the institute for a few days,

just for observation.

It might be best just for now.

It's possible the implant is creating some side effects for you.

I don't want to go back.

You don't understand.

I never knew how amazing it all was,

how ice cream tastes,

how flowers smell,

how someone smiles at you.

-Just because--

-Yeah, Beth--

Before, I...

People always talked about these feelings, feelings,

feelings...I thought they just seemed to be

something that other people had.

But now I know.

I know how precious they are,

and I never want to lose them ever.

I'm not suggesting that the implant be removed.

I won't let you.

I won't let you.

I mean, it's mine now, right?

It's in my own head. I own it.

I just need to learn how to control my imagination

a little bit better, that's all.

What was it you thought you saw?

Nothing.

It was nothing.

I just got frightened.

It's over now.

It's over, I'm okay.

And I'm not going to go back.

All right.

I want you to stay here tomorrow,

keep an eye on her, see how she's doing.

Another incident like that, I want her back at the institute immediately,

no ifs, ands or buts.

Would you like some wine?

Please.

Where's your partner in crime?

She's out with some friends.

I could call her on her cellphone, if you like.

No, no, that's okay.

I was just curious.

I made enough for three, just in case.

Oh.

You don't like it?

No, it's fine.

It's not bad.

It's not bad.

Beth... I hope you don't think this is the reason I cooked for you.

I'm sorry, I didn't mean to--

-[glass shatters] -No, no, it's okay.

-I'm sorry. -No, no, it's okay.

I just didn't want you to think--

I mean, I didn't expect...

I'm sorry.

Can you turn the lights off?

Sure, no problem.

This one too?

Yeah.

[echoing voices]

[screaming]

No! Stop it!

No! Stop it!

No! No!

Stop! No! No!

No! No!

No! No! No! Stop! No!

No!

No! No!

No! Don't!

No! No!

No!

[muffled screaming]

Beth?

Beth?

Beth?

Can you hear me?

Beth?

Beth, look at me.

Look at me.

It's me, it's Dr. Molstad.

You got to hold on a little while longer.

We're gonna have to take the implant out.

Do you understand what I'm saying?

The implant is malfunctioning.

We're going to take it out.

Take it out?

Yes, it's not working properly.

No!

I'm sorry--

The neurosurgeon can't get here for another hour.

Damn it, that's not good enough!

I'm sorry, I'm so sorry.

No, I don't want an operation.

I know, but it has to come out. It's too dangerous.

No! No! No!

Dr. Molstad!

-He's coming right back. -No!

Okay, I'll go get him. Okay?

No, I don't want to take it out!

No, I don't want to take it out!

Sam, that's not good enough.

You're not listening to me.

I need you here now as fast as you can get here.

It can't wait. It's got to come out now

before something else happens.

She wants to see you right now.

Okay, okay, please. Yes, how long?

20 minutes, great. Get going.

I'll be here waiting for you.

You left her alone?

She got agitated when you weren't there.

I didn't know what to do.

[ringing buzzer]

[man] Come on up.

[meowing]

Mulligan?

[meowing]

Mulligan?

Mulligan... How's the boy?

Hey, get back here!

Mulligan!

Come here, boy!

Come here, Mulligan.

Here, boy.

Come here, boy.

Ah, the hell with you.

You can stay in here and rot for all I care.

[gasping]

[echoing voices]

[man] How the hell did she escape?

[woman] Who knows? Who cares?

The important thing is she's gonna come back here.

When she does, I want her to see Mulligan alive and well.

[Kevin] Did you tell Dolly and Mike?

[Joan] Yeah, they know to keep up the act.

They want more money.

Surprise.

Come on, unlock the door.

Yeah, yeah.

[Joan] Mulligan!

Here, kitty, kitty.

You know, she might not even come back.

I mean, that implant must be fried after what we put her through.

I can't believe you slept with her, Kevin.

Sorry, babe.

I had to occupy her somehow until the drugs kicked in.

Besides, she was out before we even finished.

Yeah, right.

[chuckling]

I'll miss these guys.

How much do you think the corporation spent on 'em?

Hundred grand, maybe more.

I can't believe they spent that much.

When Molstad's implant is a failure,

our company has the market cornered with our own version.

You have any idea how much money we're talking about?

As long as I get a piece.

Mulligan, where are you?

Come on.

Come on, boy.

Here, kitty, kitty, kitty.

Mulligan, come on out.

[Kevin] Oh, here he is.

Very funny.

[meowing]

Oh, there he is.

There he is. Mulligan.

What are you doing in here, you crazy boy?

Come on.

[Kevin] Let's get out of here.

[Joan] Mulligan!

[meowing]

Forget about the stupid cat.

We did it, we're rich.

Let's celebrate.

[both chuckling]

[Joan] Maybe we should get downstairs.

[Kevin] Quit worrying.

If Beth does show,

we'll just wrap her up again and take her back to Molstad.

He'll dig the implant out of her brain

and slap a label on it, "defective."

[screaming]

[both screaming]

[bodies thudding]

[woman on PA] Dr. Hawthorne, call on line three.

Dr. Hawthorne, line three.

Well, that's it, the results of the hearing are in.

Because of the unusual nature of the case,

and because you've reverted to your old self,

you cannot now possibly understand

the emotions behind what you did.

You won't be held responsible

for the deaths of Joan Garrison and Kevin Flynn.

The Kellermans' confession helped.

They said they were actors playing roles they were hired to do.

Of course with that spaceship

and the accoutrements right up there in that apartment,

it would have been pretty hard to deny anyway.

But what about you?

Are you all right?

I'm fine.

It doesn't bother you that implant is still in your brain?

No.

Well, it's harmless.

It's burned itself out.

All the behavioral tests confirm that.

There would be no point

in going through painful surgery to remove it.

I'm truly sorry that it's turned out this way, Beth.

For both of us.

Don't worry, baby, I'm home.

[Control Voice] Errant computers can be reprogrammed,

imperfect machines redesigned.

But human beings are another matter.