Original subtitles

- Oh, thanks.

Woo!

Yeah!

Woo, all right!

Hey, Paul.

Hey, Paul.

Hey, Paul.

- Hi, Steve.

- Hey.

Take a look at this.

Ooh.

- Holy shit, this is fantastic.

- Right.

We got everything we asked for.

We got the grant, thesis credit,

the equipment, everything.

- And have you heard from your pal

in the Scientific American?

- Well, I didn't want to say anything 'til this,

but they'll publish the paper if we find

the ivory-billed woodpecker.

- God, I'm gonna faint.

- Do you think you can handle it?

- Do you think I can handle it? Do bears shit in the woods?

- Oh, I know, I know.

I'm sorry I asked.

- I can't wait to see Mary Brad's face, she'll die.

- About Mary-

- I can't go without my camera assistant.

Mary Brad is essential.

- Well, essential is essential.

- Why all the sudden interest

in the Ivory-billed woodpecker?

- Dr. Green, I didn't hear you.

- I know, you were busy with the Ivory bill.

Well?

- Sir, it seems that not a single sighting of the bird

has been reported in the last 20 years,

and if somebody doesn't find it fast,

it's gonna be declared extinct.

- Fast?

- Well, by 1992.

- I understand the science department

is financing an expedition to look for your-

- Ivory bill, sir.

- Ivory bill, of course.

I believe Steve Porter is leading the expedition.

You know him, don't you?

- We're still friends.

- Good.

Because we're thinking of sending someone

to cover the story for The Witness.

- Well, why not me?

- Why not?

- You will if you want to stay on The Witness.

- I told you, I have to do a piece

on the library building fund.

- Fuck the library building fund!

This is a matter of life or death.

- Okay, okay, whatever you say, sir.

- That's more like it.

Now, dig up whatever you can on Frederick Brown,

Sarah Willis, and Arthur Nolan.

On my desk by 4.

Very funny.

Hi.

Hope I'm not interrupting anything.

- Hi, Anne.

- Hi, Anne. Did you have a nice summer?

- Best ever, you?

- Can't complain.

- I should hope not.

I hear they approved your project.

Congratulations.

- Thanks, Anne.

Well, I guess I'll be seeing ya.

- I guess so.

The Witness is sending me to cover the expedition.

- Over my dead body.

- Steve, I didn't think you still cared.

- Anne, this is serious.

- I was kidding.

- Okay, take it easy.

- Not about the expedition though.

- Forget it.

- By the way, I've tracked down the last few persons

to see the Ivory bill.

- Rob, we got the grant.

- I'm still working on it.

I just can't get it to look real.

- So this is what you do for fun, huh?

- Not for fun, son, for money.

If I could just get it to work right.

- We got the grant.

- And faculty credit?

Well, that's great!

No senior seminar.

You all set?

- I've been working all summer on it.

- I'll bet.

- Well, maybe not all summer.

- You know, it's nice not to have any senior seminar.

Hm?

- Hi, everybody!

- Hi. - How you doin'?

- I think ya'll know Anne,

she'll be covering the expedition for The Witness.

- Jesus, Steve, she'll scoop us!

Do you think the Scientific American's

gonna want our stuff after it appears in The Witness?

- Neither nor rain nor slow nor sleet nor hail.

- Anne's not covering the results,

she's covering us.

- And Steve's covering Anne.

- Okay, I see we're gonna have to discuss

some guidelines here.

- Anne.

A journalist's work is done with patience

and quiet determination.

- What?

Well, it's about time.

Let's have it.

- Well, Brown was an instructor at LSU

before he went to Vietnam.

- It says here he's blind.

Was that Vietnam?

- Nah uh, that was later.

- Poor bastard.

A blind bird watcher.

- Keep reading.

- Hi.

Yeah, that'll be great.

We can handle the rest.

- Oh, the state says I gotta go along.

Keep an eye on things, take care of the motor.

Anything happens, you know.

- Well, I'm sure we can manage.

- Whether you can or can't, camper goes with me.

Call me Brian.

- Right, Steve.

- Pretty piece of tail.

- You better not let Paul hear you say that.

- Oh yeah?

Who's Paul?

- Look, can we just go?

I'm tired of this parking lot.

- Everything in?

- Yeah.

Hey everybody, this is Brian.

- Hey, Brian. - Hey, Brian.

- Hey, Brian.

- I think that's fair enough.

IfAnne lets us read the article

before she submits it, where's the beef?

- Well, what if we don't like what she writes?

- Just don't do anything you don't want

in the papers, dear.

- Steve.

- Come on, Mary.

Anne's just teasing.

Don't give her the satisfaction.

- And Professor Simon will arbitrate

any differences of opinion.

- And I don't have to submit my material to The Witness.

- Whoa, just a second.

Anne did give us the names of the last three people

who'd seen the Ivory bill, didn't she?

- Yeah, but one of them is dead.

- That's not my fault.

- And another one lives in California.

- Yeah, but Frederick Brown still lives

right here in Louisiana.

Thanks, Anne.

What's that guy doing back there?

- He's filling in some data

on some possible observation points.

Slow down, that must be it.

This must be the place.

Maybe I better go in alone.

I mean, we don't have an appointment or anything.

- Come on!

- I'm coming too.

After all, you wouldn't be here if it weren't for me.

- Mr. Brown?

Anybody home?

Anne, Anne.

We shouldn't be doing this.

- Is anyone home?

- What are you doing in my house?

I meant to frighten you, and I'm glad I did.

No, I don't need your help, missy.

I'm not afraid of the dark.

- May I?

- As you may.

Make yourself at home.

Now Steven Porter, Wells.

Let me have a look at you.

- I'm from the Wells Witness, sir.

May I take notes?

How interesting.

So you record bird song and...

- And I compare the variations that occur

within a species under different circumstances.

For instance...

That call is only heard when the humidity exceeds

92.5 relative to the temperature

of the time of day, of course.

- Isn't the location of the bird essential?

- Naturally.

That's why the compass is here.

Is someone else out there?

How did you find me, Steven Porter?

- He didn't, I did, sir.

You actually saw the Ivory bill, didn't you?

- What's wrong, Steven?

Cat got your tongue?

- Yes, sir.

No, no, sir.

- Why don't you tell me why you came here

in the first place, Steven.

- Anything that would help us find

the Ivory bill again, sir.

Any notes, any suggestions.

- You don't know what it would mean to us, Mr. Brown.

Our whole senior year depends on it.

- No, there's nothing left.

Well, in that case, I guess we better be going.

- Wait.

There is one thing.

- Is that your-

- Is that my what?

Nothing, sir.

We can talk about it later, Anne.

- I don't know why I kept it.

I got rid of all of the other papers.

- This is fantastic.

- Well, it may or may not be.

Nevertheless, you can have it.

- What is it?

- I don't know why I kept it all these years.

Little missy's full of questions, isn't she?

- It's my job, I'm a reporter.

- I guess we better be going.

Anne.

- Steven.

- Sir?

- I hope you find whatever it is you're looking for.

- Thank you, sir.

- Thanks, pal. I thought you were supposed to go in there,

introduce yourself, and call us.

- Yeah, Steve.

This is our project too.

- I just couldn't.

I mean, there was no way.

- Is that how you want it written up?

In those very words?

- Give Steve a break, Jen.

Fred Brown is very, very strange.

If you ask me, you're lucky you didn't go in there.

- I didn't ask you!

Sorry, Anne.

I didn't mean that.

It's just that you're not a scientist.

- Okay.

Brown did give us something though.

Brian, do you have a detailed map of Louisiana?

- Does a bear shit in the woods?

- Why did you shut me up in there?

That photograph was important.

- What photograph?

- The family photograph.

For god's sake, Steve.

Brown's whole family disappeared

right after he came back from Vietnam.

- So, what does that have to do

with the Ivory-billed woodpecker?

- Don't be so provincial, it's a human interest story!

If I only could get a handle on it,

I might be able to sell it to a big paper.

- Look.

You're here to cover the expedition for The Witness, period.

- I'm glad to hear that, I was beginning to wonder.

- Do you mind?

- I thought you guys had worked all that out.

- Who asked you?

- Well, I can't shoot anymore, not with this fog.

- You think we oughta get back to the camper

before it gets dark?

- Oh God no, not with Brian here.

- I don't know these woods,

I usually work in Shreveport.

- The fog is really, really thick.

- Take it easy, I got my compass.

- Hey, look over there.

- Let's go!

Get out of here, come on!

Come on!

Let's get out of here, come on!

- Poor bastard.

- We gotta keep going, or else we'll end up the same way.

- How come nobody else found that guy

before we did?

- Nobody comes down this way.

So that's why we have to find the camper fast.

- We're in luck.

It's a house.

- Let's hope it's not a gingerbread house.

- Everything's a joke to you, isn't it?

- There's no one here.

- And hasn't been for a long, long time.

- Beautiful!

Look at this, Brian.

Let's do it.

Let's check it out.

Come on.

Wow.

- It's a generator.

- I bet it hasn't been used for centuries.

- My God, there are millions of them.

I've never seen so many birds in my whole life.

- We're probably right in their migration flightpath.

Oh, that's why they built this house out here,

right in the middle of nowhere.

Hey, look.

March 29th, 1965.

Take it easy, girl.

- Take it easy yourself.

- What a fabulous idea.

This must've been an aviary.

An ornithologist must've lived here.

- I know you must feel like Schliemann at Troy,

but let's get back to the others.

- Where's Steve?

- Anne?

Paul?

Rob?

Anne?

Stevie?

Your bottle's ready, boy.

- It's getting dark.

We oughta spend the night here.

- I don't know.

I don't think we should.

- I'm sure not going out in that swamp at night.

- We found an old generator under the house.

I'll see if I can't get it going.

- You need some help?

- Steve, are you all right?

Is something wrong?

- It's this house.

I don't know, I'm getting these strange vibrations.

It's like a bad dream.

- Do you want to talk about it?

- No, it's okay.

It's okay.

- Is that it?

- Yeah, that's all I found.

- What wouldn't I do for a cup of coffee?

- You'll be fine, dear.

- As soon as it's light, I'll find the camper

and get the police.

- I saw a man in the swamp.

- Well, I've had it for one day.

You coming, Mary?

- Where's our room?

- Goodnight, everybody. - Night.

- I'm ready to turn in too.

Jennifer, shall the younger females share a room?

- I'm not sleepy yet.

- Well, if you have other plans...

- Well, it is getting late.

- Whoa.

I was just inputting the law.

- Maybe it needs a good night's sleep.

- Steve, this system's designed to-

- I was just kidding.

I'm the one who needs a good night's sleep.

- Paul.

Paul.

- What?

What?

- Paul.

Wake up, Paul.

- What is it?

- Something's happened to Jennifer.

- What?

Why? - I saw her go into the porch

but she never came out.

- So?

- I don't know.

- Come on, give me a break.

Let me sleep. - Paul, wake up!

Wake up.

Wake up.

She's been having hallucinations,

you know the fog.

- It's real dark.

Are you sure it was Jennifer?

- Of course I'm sure it was Jennifer.

I saw her from the window.

- What's all this about Jennifer?

- Mary thinks she saw her go into the porch.

- I did!

- Well, maybe she couldn't sleep.

- What's this, a party?

I don't want to miss anything.

- Yeah, some party.

- I couldn't sleep either.

I don't know.

Something about this place.

- You see?

- Well, why don't we go look for her?

Then we can all get some sleep.

Come on.

- Jennifer?

Jennifer?

- She's probably back in the house by now.

- Feeling better?

- No.

- I wish she'd of wandered in here.

I'd have given her something to help her sleep.

- Jennifer?

- Why not?

I didn't say anything about turning the lights on, did I?

- I didn't mean that,

I just didn't think she was your type.

- Type?

What's type got to do with it?

- Well?

- Maybe she went for a walk.

Was something bothering her?

Steve?

- Not that I know of.

I think we better go look for her.

We'll all split up,

the first one to find her, whistle.

Okay?

- Okay.

- Shit!

- Jennifer?

Jennifer?

Shit.

Jennifer?

- Jennifer?

- Jennifer?

- Jennifer?

- Oh, you scared the shit outta me.

- Well, why didn't you turn on the light?

- I did, the bulb blew out.

- Why don't we just go check outside?

- Yeah, that's good.

You coming?

- Yeah.

- We'll check around front, you take the back.

- Hey, Steve.

- Yeah?

- Nothin'.

Shit.

Jennifer?

Jennifer?

Jennifer?

- Brian, Brian!

- What happened?

How did it happen?

- He wouldn't stop.

We couldn't help him.

- Poor Brian.

- Let's just find Jennifer and get the hell out of here.

- Let's get out of here, please!

There's something evil about this place!

- All right.

We find Jennifer and we go.

- Rob and I will check around back, okay, Steve?

- Good.

I'll take another look around the porch.

- I'm coming with you.

- You better go with them.

- Jennifer?

Jennifer!

- Rob, maybe you better stay back.

- I don't just wear this compass for decoration.

- Jennifer!

Jennifer!

- Wait a minute.

Don't you see something over there?

- It's the camper!

That's Mary!

- Paul!

We've gotta get out of here!

Take me home!

- We found Jennifer, she's dead.

What?

- Somebody killed her.

- Oh my God.

- We've gotta get out of here, fast.

Whoever did that to her could do the same to us.

- Well, we found the camper.

It's just a couple hundred yards from the house.

- We're getting out of here, come on.

- Wait a minute.

My computer!

I can't just leave it here.

- To hell with your computer.

Oh, you don't understand.

You just don't understand!

- Come on, Rob!

Christ, Brian had the keys!

Yeah, this is no problem.

There's no problem.

What the hell's taking them so long?

What the hell's taking them so long?

Where the hell are they?

- Hey, it's okay.

- What's the big idea?

You almost scared the hell out of me.

- We're sorry, Rob.

We waited for you, you just didn't see us.

- We should go, Mary and Paul have gone ahead.

Paul?

Paul?

- What took you guys so long? I thought you were lost.

Brian had the keys!

- Can you manage then?

- I can.

- Look!

- Hurry up, Rob.

- We're gonna get the hell outta here.

- Oh my God!

Oh my God!

- Mary!

Mary, please!

- Oh my God, oh no!

Oh God, please help me.

Oh my God!

Oh my God.

- Easy, Rob.

You can do it.

Oh my God!

- Hurry up, God damn it!

- Maybe it's got some suggestions.

- I wish I could fool around at a time like this.

- I'm not fooling around! It might be able to tell us

how to get the hell outta here!

- Well?

- It might take a minute, but it will be worth it.

I know my shit.

- I can tell you what our chances are

without the fuckin' computer!

- Easy, Paul!

- None!

We're fucked!

All we can do is hole up here,

and wait for morning if we live that long.

- Those things from the swamp.

But how can anyone live in the swamp?

- Live?

Maybe they're not really alive.

- You mean lost souls who can find no peace?

There's no such thing.

- Oh, yeah?

You tell that to Jennifer, or Mary.

- I'll go check the generator.

Paul.

Are you in?

It's leaking.

Let me see what I can do.

- I wish I had been nicer to Jennifer.

We can't tell what's already happened, can we?

- No, we can't.

It's not much but-

- It's better than nothing.

Let's go.

- Okay.

Come on.

- What does it mean?

What could it mean?

- They got him.

They got Rob.

He's dead.

He's dead.

They're coming.

They're coming.

- Find something to block the door.

- Steve!

Steve!

Steve!

No, no!

- No, no, no, not this way.

Come on, up, up, up!

Up, up!

- It's a trap.

It's a trap, we're fucked.

It's a trap, we're fucked.

- No!

- It's like I killed him with my own hands.

- There was nothing you could do.

Nothing.

Well, we can't stay here forever.

- Let's go.

- Mr. Brown.

- I'm glad I got here in time, son.

There's no need to be afraid.

You're out of danger.

It's me they want.

Why?

- They feed on fear.

It animates them and gives them strength.

It was fear that killed your friends.

They hold no power on me.

How can you be afraid when you live in eternal darkness?

The real darkness is inside of me, it is me.

- You're Steve's father.

- I'm here now, and they shall have their revenge.

And go now, away.

Go!

- Come on.