Original subtitles

[music playing]

[evil laughter]

Grendel the cannibal wants to eat your old blood!

No!

No!

Grendel's going to swallow you.

Well, the tickle monster's going to tickle you.

No, no, no.

Stop.

I'm hungry.

We'll catch us some fish then.

Get up.

BOTH: (SINGING) --donkey-donk there, here a donkey,

there a donkey, everywhere a donkey, donkey.

Old MacDonald had a farm, E-I-E-I-O.

Whew.

[inaudible]

[strumming]

Woods are a-bloom.

The wide world awakens.

Happy the mansions, the meadows most fair.

(SINGING) And where are ye going, Glenn Randall, my son?

Where are ye going, my handsome young man?

I've been to the woods with father.

I've been to the woods with father.

But make my bed soon, for I'm sick at the heart and fain

would lie down.

What do they mean, Daddy?

The words.

The words are magic words.

They're beautiful words, Glenn.

They're like fossils in a rock.

They preserve the hopes and dreams

of those who came before us.

We say their words and sing their songs

so we don't forget them.

You understand?

Ah, you will someday soon, I promise.

You want some more fish?

Soup?

No.

Marshmallow?

Yeah.

Yeah. [inaudible].

OK.

Where's your stick?

Put it on there.

So what do you think, tomorrow night we cook fish again,

or we go to McDonald's?

We go to McDonald's.

I agree.

Where have you gone, Glenn Randall?

Oh, now you've angered the grim demon.

You've made him angry and eager to kill.

[yelping]

Daddy, what happened?

Help me, Glenn.

Come here, son.

Everything's going to be all right.

Come here.

Don't be afraid.

Don't be.

Everything going to be all right if we just keep our heads.

Somebody will come looking for us soon.

But you must do exactly as I say-- exactly as I say.

Do you understand?

There's food and provisions back at the campsite.

Do you remember how to get there?

OK, go.

[groaning]

Three days.

Where are they?

Why don't they come?

[howling]

Wild land, lonely land, land of wolf places.

[chuckling]

[coughing]

They're going to kill us.

They're leaving us to die, Glenn.

Murderers!

God punishes the sin of murder, banishes monsters

and trolls and goblins from the fields of men.

Maggots eat my body, sin eats my soul.

In the darkness, a demon-- a demon grim.

Cursed, cast out, a damned exile, angry.

Angry and eager to kill.

Daddy?

Glenn?

Oh, Glenn.

Do as I say.

You must do as I say.

Yes, Daddy.

A grim demon, cursed, cast out.

A savage demon.

No hope to halt the savage assault. Tear it to pieces.

Bite through the bones.

Gulp the blood.

Gobble the flesh.

God protect us from goblins and ghosties

and long-legged beasties, and things

that go bump in the night.

Tear it to pieces.

Bite through the bones.

Gulp the blood.

Gobble the flesh.

Are we there yet?

Not yet, sweetheart.

She started asking that question when

we were still in the driveway.

I have to go potty, Mommy.

We'll be there soon, Cara.

It's number two.

Anybody with kids ought to have a Portosan

built into the backseat.

Don't take your bad mood out on the baby, John.

It's not her fault.

I know.

You forgive grumpy old daddy-bear, honey?

Will you buy me a Barbie doll?

Barbie is not a doll.

Barbie is an addiction.

Do you know what Barbie leads to?

Barbie hats, Barbie dresses, Barbie houses.

Who knows, Barbie Kotex.

Once Barbie gets you, you're gone.

She can't help wanting things.

She takes after her father.

Come on, Julie.

I'm just trying to make an honest living.

Honest?

That's a laugh.

The column you used to write for "The Times

Book Review," that was honest.

How could a man who had the sensitivity and insight

to write beautifully about new novels and modern poetry

write that trash for trivial minds?

Books, mostly paperbacks, with lurid

covers about flying saucers and ghosts and witches?

John, how could you?

Listen, my books are honest, and they seek

answers to honest questions.

Then why do they need those covers?

Girls with cleavages, front and back,

being pursued by all manner of ghastly creature?

Garish colors and cheap graphics.

I don't paint the covers, Julie.

The publishers think they help sell the books.

How oft the apparel doth proclaim the man.

How oft the cover proclaims the book.

You're a snob, Julie.

Lots of good writers have their books packaged

in ways they don't necessarily like,

but they still pick up the royalty checks.

Money.

Always money.

You don't seem to mind the creature comforts

that money provides or the security

we can give Cara because of it.

The college simply doesn't pay enough.

I like teaching English.

I like eating.

I like to go potty.

OK, honey.

We'll be at Uncle Ross's any minute now.

Can I play with Mary Rose?

Sure can.

And Amy too?

Amy's gone away for a while, honey.

Oh, John.

Poor Ross and Cleo.

Have they gotten over it yet?

It's not an easy thing to forget.

Are you sure we should be visiting them?

It's been three years now.

Ross thinks we can help Cleo, kind

of coax her back into society.

She's been very withdrawn since the incident.

Well, it looks like he could use some help.

Are we there yet?

You don't need to stop for a stranger with Cara in the car.

John!

[squealing tires]

Kid!

Kid!

Mommy, it hurts.

Stay in the car, sweetheart.

Don't get out.

Just stay in the car.

Mighty good of you, neighbor.

Mighty good.

You know, you don't see too many good Samaritans around anymore,

not even here below the buckle of the New Jersey

Bible Belt. Didn't mean to frighten

your little one like that.

Ordinarily I'm very good with children.

Always had a little space in my heart for the tykes,

as you might say.

Well, then watch your own son and keep him out of the road.

JULIE: He might have been killed.

LUDWIG: Well, hold on, hold on.

Don't get your bowels in an uproar.

Besides, it wasn't any kid of mine

you seen running out there-- leastwise not that I know of.

You know, I'm a salesman, you know.

I'm on the road all the time.

Franklin Ludwig's the name, salvation's the game.

Say, you wouldn't happen to have some spare water

for the radiator, would you?

I'm afraid I can't help you there, Mr. Ludwig.

God damn it, then it'll have to cool off by itself.

What a hunk of tin.

If there was a hell for cars, it'd

be right comfortable there.

What are you selling there, Mr. Ludwig?

Goddamn best little book you ever saw.

Beebs Bibles-- the word made cheap.

That's what they want out here in the boondoggles,

cut-rate salvation.

Hell, these farmers can't afford to patch up their asses.

But you mention the good news, and they'll always manage

to cough up a couple of bucks.

The price is right.

How about it?

Sorry.

We're not really religious.

Well, I knew that soon as you got out of the car.

Oh, by the way, if I was you, I wouldn't go around volunteering

that information around here.

You know, New England wasn't the only place where they burned

witches and other folks whose viewpoints differed

from that of the local files.

Is that so?

Oh, hell yeah.

This place was teeming with federal marshals

right after World War I. Seems as

though a couple of the locals took it into the minds

that some of the city slickers were possessed by demons,

and they exorcised them the best way they knew how.

What was that?

Put goddamn bullets through their wiped out all families--

kids, dogs, cats, goldfish.

As the good book says, they left not one to piss

against the wall.

Left not one to piss against the wall?

The Bible says that?

Book of Kings, John.

You're right, ma'am.

Hey, I thought you said you wasn't religious.

I'm not.

I teach English literature.

That includes the King James translation of the Bible.

Your quotation from King's refers

to the instruction given to Hebrew warriors

before they attacked the enemy.

Right again, ma'am.

Here they take that kind of stuff

literal like, standard operating procedures for fighting

the enemies of Jehovah.

What was the name of the group?

Are any of them still around?

If you want to believe it, their names were Brownies.

Not the little girls with beanies on their heads.

Nah, this group was more like the Ku Klux Klan,

except maybe not quite so friendly or tolerant.

Their leader was a man named Preacher Brown.

He and his family disappeared when the marshals came

in to clean out their flock.

Nobody's heard or seen of him since then.

Most of the people around these parts

are descendants of those brownies.

Personally I think they've gone underground.

What makes you say that?

You'll see.

You're in the pine barrens of New Jersey.

These people are mean and suspicious folks.

Anybody beyond a second or a third grade education

is called Doctor around here.

And then of course there are the missing people, mostly kids.

Well, we know Sheriff Carr, and we know about his daughter Amy.

Have there been others?

Oh, hell yeah, maybe 12 kids, four or five adults

over the last couple of years.

You close to the sheriff?

He kin? -No.

Ross and I were in the Marines together.

We keep in touch.

Your buddy's in a heap of trouble, Mister.

I'll tell you, if his daughter hadn't disappeared

too a couple of years ago, they probably

would have strong him up.

They don't trust him, you know.

He was raised in the big city.

What the hell do you think I talk like this for?

I'm an NYU graduate.

Thanks for the information, Mr. Ludwig, and the advice.

Good luck with your sales.

Luck?

You don't need any god damn luck with these yokels.

You just say it's the word of God and open sesame.

Their flyblown pocketbooks spread their cheek,

and the long green pops out like pus from a pimple.

You're sure you're not interested in one of these?

Makes for good protective power.

Those god damned heathens.

God damn it, I'm beginning to spook myself.

[engine starting]

Ross, you son of a bitch.

You haven't changed much.

It's good to see you.

Thanks for coming.

Julie, honey!

You're looking smart and pretty as ever.

Hi, Ross.

And hello to you, Princess Cara.

Did you come to play with Mary Rose, huh?

Uh-huh.

And Amy too when she comes home.

Oh, Ross, I'm sorry.

Are you sure Cleo is really up to having house guests?

Yeah, Dr. Fish was just checking her out.

She-- she'll be fine.

Oh, Julie, honey, I'm sorry.

This is county medical examiner, Dr. Robert T. Fish.

-Nice to meet you. -John.

Nice to meet you. -Dr. Fish.

Pleasure to meet you, Mr. DeWolfe.

I'm a great fan of yours.

Although I have to admit, I'm forced to rip

the covers off your paperbacks.

All those cleavages, you know.

Mrs. Fish doesn't approve.

Do tell.

Yes, I was very interested in your last book--

the one about the couple who claimed they were

kidnapped by a flying saucer.

"Unexpected Detour"?

They didn't claim they were abducted, Doctor.

That information was revealed under hypnotic regression

by a fully certified psychiatrist.

I invite my readers to draw their own conclusions.

Yes, but don't you tend to lead them a bit?

I mean, your books wouldn't sell nearly

as well as if they were about some emotionally

disturbed couple.

And that picture I had to rip off,

it did feature a rather abundantly proportioned

young lady who was having her clothes ripped

off by some sort of goblin.

And that title, "Unexpected Detour,"

doesn't that infer that they were

actually led off the highway by some mysterious power?

Maybe they had a daughter who needed a potty stop.

Speaking of which, we'd better get the munchkin

here to the nearest facility.

With sirens and red lights.

This way, folks.

God damn piece of shit.

I don't get any water soon, I'll never get home before 9:00.

Hey, Braun.

Braun!

Braun, wait a minute, will ya?

Braun!

Braun!

Come on, Braun.

How about a little water for my car,

just a little water for a poor parishioner who's

trying to spread the world of God?

[whispering]

[screaming]

[barking]

[whispering]

If you gentlemen would just serve yourselves,

Julie and I will get the children ready for bed.

Thanks.

Ross, what's going on?

Amy isn't the only child who disappeared, John.

In the past three years, our community

has lost 12 children, all gone without a trace or clue.

Amy was the first.

We've lost some adults too, but the kids-- the kids

seem to vanish in sequence, one every two months.

Ludwig mentioned the disappearing kids,

but he didn't say anything about a pattern.

Ludwig, the salesman?

Where'd you run into him?

Out on the highway.

His car was having some trouble.

Don't you have any leads at all?

None.

It's one of the reasons you're here, even though I should warn

you that Dr. Fish disapproves.

Good night, Mommy.

No fuss, young lady.

You and Mary Rose have a busy day tomorrow.

I want you to go nighty-nights as soon as possible.

Cross my heart, Mommy.

OK.

Good night, Aunt Julie.

Good night.

Good night, Aunt Cleo.

Good night.

No more chit-chat.

Good night, Mary Rose.

MARY ROSE: Good night, Cara.

We've tried everything, John.

Followed every lead, exhausted every possibility.

Police and detective methods just don't

seem to work in this case.

That's where you come in.

In one of your books-- damn, this is tough for me.

In one of your books, you talked about a medium,

mind reader, something, who helped police cracked cases.

I gotta know, is she for real?

Or did you pad your stories to make it seem real?

Mind readers?

What are you talking about, Ross Carr?

Your daughter is missing.

Why aren't you out there looking for her?

What kind of a father are you anyway?

Here's Freddie.

[squeaking]

You scared me!

This is my friend, Freddie.

He's one of my dollies.

My daddy's gonna buy me a Barbie.

Mommy says I'm not old enough for a Barbie.

I wanted to play with Amy's, but Mommy won't let me.

[creaking]

It's the woodies.

What?

The woodies, things in the woods.

You know.

No such things.

Who says?

Mommy.

So does my mommy.

Mommies don't know much.

There are two woodies.

Are not.

Are too.

Are not.

[creaking]

I know, because Amy's a woodie.

Damn it, I shouldn't have said anything in front of her.

It's bad enough as it is.

I gave her a shot.

She'll rest some now.

Actually, I have read all of your books, Mr. DeWolfe,

especially since Ross mentioned that he was considering

asking you down here.

I must admit, I find your subject matter

provocative and intriguing.

But the problems in this case are no longer academic for me.

My interests are more than a mere guessing game.

That's why my questions must be blunt.

Shoot.

How well did you do your research?

And do you honestly believe in what you write?

And is this mind reader thing genuine?

You see, I have to be convinced that there

are other possibilities such as people being

kidnapped by flying saucers.

Sheriff Carr is my friend.

I know-- I know he's a friend of yours.

That's why I must know the truth.

If your books are phony, I won't reveal it to the public.

Dr. Fish, I can assure--

[whispering]

I want my daughter back, damn it.

I want her back.

[chatter]

Just received word, Sheriff.

Pete Gordon's eight-year-old, gone like the rest.

Some of the boys are out there now.

Any comment on the latest disappearance, Sheriff?

I mean, do you consider the number

13 to be unlucky or anything?

Should I just jot down the usual?

No clues, no leads, no hits, no runs, no errors?

Just 13 kids left on base, except you don't even

know where the ballpark is.

[assent]

Sheriff I think you and Mr. DeWolfe better get on inside.

I'll handle this.

Mr. DeWolfe?

Not the Mr. DeWolfe, the sheriff's famous friend?

John DeWolfe-- author, lecturer, and get

this, folks, ghost hunter.

Isn't that right, Mr. DeWolfe?

You better step aside, Miss Hawthorne.

We'll keep you and the rest of the press

informed of our progress, Dale.

So far there hasn't been a thimbleful of progress

to be informed about.

Excuse me.

John DeWolfe.

My, my.

Mr. DeWolfe.

Hello, Doctor.

Well, it isn't everybody that gets

a welcoming committee like that when

they come to work every day.

Morning, Bob.

Dr. Fish.

Luke.

Well, I'm still waiting for those answers, Mr. DeWolfe.

Call me cynical, but I don't think

you're going to add anything of significance

to this investigation.

None of your methods have done anything so far, Doctor.

Maybe it's time we started thinking of this case

in different terms, with new eyes.

In any event, it won't hurt.

The worst that can happen is we'll

be right back where we are now.

Well, I can't argue with you there,

except to say just one thing-- we've got

to set a time limit on this.

Now, if we don't get any results with your methods,

we're going to have to go back to the sure and safe way.

Agreed.

Good.

Where do we start?

Says here's that this Isaac Braun was interviewed again

by detectives two months after his son's disappearance

and claimed to have seen the boys subsequently.

The detectives couldn't get him to explain what he meant,

though, so they dropped it.

That's because they know Isaac Braun.

He's a crazy backwoods farmer and a religious fanatic.

A brownie?

No.

There's no brownies around here anymore.

Why told you about the brownies?

The salesman, Ludwig.

Outsiders are always fascinated by stories about the brownies.

You sure they're gone?

Ludwig said they had just gone underground.

Some of these sects are pretty weird, Ross.

This-- this could be your tie-in.

I doubt it, John.

There haven't been any brownies around

here since before I was born.

Hell, I've lived here all my life.

I mean, except for school and Vietnam,

I've been here all that time.

You don't think I would have heard something?

Not necessarily.

Consider your position and these brownies' history.

Well, I wasn't the sheriff when I was a kid,

and kids hear everything.

Don't forget that one, John.

That's a dead end.

Our friend Isaac Braun is just your garden

variety religious nut.

He probably thought he saw his son in some kind of a vision.

OK.

I'll file the brownies away for a while.

Let's go talk to this Mr. Braun and get us some salvation.

Morning, Mr. Braun.

Morning, Sheriff.

This is John DeWolfe.

Mr. DeWolfe.

Mr. Braun, in your last interview with detectives,

you claimed you saw your son again.

Did you see him or didn't you?

I'm through with fooling with you, Braun.

Now, where did you see Jamie?

There.

Did you go to him or did you call him?

No.

Why not.

Because that boy was not my Jamie.

What do you mean?

You just said he was.

Goblins and giants who battle with God.

Come again?

Goblins and giants who battle with God.

What is that, a line from the Bible or something?

No, not the good book.

ROSS: Mr. Braun, I don't know what's going on--

Sheriff, you got a warrant?

No, but I don't think that's--

ROSS: Then get off my land, or I'll--

Or what?

Or I'll call the police.

Ross, let's get back.

I'll talk to you later, Braun.

What was that up there?

Ross, does Braun strike you as the hospitable type?

I mean, the sort who'd invite in strangers off the road?

Are you kidding?

You saw the way he acted.

Besides, this whole area is posted.

Take a look around.

JOHN: Right, then we're agreed he isn't

the kind of guy who'd invite in a traveling

salesman off the road.

ROSS: Not a chance.

What are you getting at, John?

Ross, when we get back to town, I

think you'd better give Ludwig's home office a call

and see if he's checked in.

What's the name of that outfit?

Beebs Bibles, the word made cheap.

Why?

Because I saw Ludwig's car behind the barn.

There's no mistaking that heap.

I can't believe Braun would invite

Ludwig in for an overnight.

Those two would make the Odd Couple

look like identical twins.

He's giving me weird vibrations, Ross.

Yes, Pete?

I thought you just wrote about that stuff.

Some of the people I've talked to tell you that everybody has

is, a sort of a sixth sense.

Check it out for me, Ross.

It might not be anything, but I don't know.

OK.

What did the sheriff want, Pa?

Same as always.

They just don't understand.

Well, I don't understand either.

How could you see our Jamie and not go to fetch him?

Ain't no words to some things, Mother.

I'm scared, Pa.

That car by the barn and that blood in the fields.

Something's very wrong here, and you know what it is.

You've got to tell me.

The Lord works in mysterious ways.

I'm waiting for divine guidance.

The Lord will tell us in his own good time.

[giggling]

Jamie?

Is that you?

I get so worried.

Even though Ross put that fence up after Amy,

I still get frightened when she's out there.

You can't keep her inside all day, Cleo.

Why are you Julie?

Why is John?

And all those terrible books-- flying saucers, ghosts,

witches.

What do they have to do with my little girl?

Nothing, Cleo.

Nothing.

Ross only asked John down here because-- because they're

old friends.

He thought maybe John would think of something.

Oh, honey, the books don't matter.

They're not real.

John only wrote those stories to make extra money for us.

They're horrible.

They hurt people and they frightened them.

Why does John want to frighten people?

What kind of person is he?

Cara, honey, what's the matter?

Mommy's busy.

I have no one to play with me.

What do you mean, baby?

Where's Mary Rose?

She went away with the woodies.

Can I have a cookie?

[screaming]

We couldn't cover this forest in 1,000 years,

not even with the National Guard.

John, I can't wait any longer.

Can you get that mind reader down here now?

John?

John?

Hm?

Are you really bringing that psychic down here?

Mm-hmm.

How can you carry this farce so far?

How can you turn this tragedy into a circus?

I don't understand why Ross believes that trash you write.

I've had enough, Julie.

I wrote the truth in my books as best I could perceive it.

While you were lecturing politely

on Anglo-Saxon literature, I was scraping up

every bit of information I could find, pro and con,

for my case studies.

Believe me, my master's thesis wasn't as thorough.

I don't understand you, Julie.

You-- you teach poetry, and yet you lack the faculty of wonder.

It's almost as if you were afraid

that-- that the real facts of life

would somehow threaten the popular opinions

of Short Hills, New Jersey.

Grow up, John.

Please grow up.

Stop muddling in this psychic nonsense.

You and Ross should be out looking

for some kind of a pervert, not a flying saucer or a ghost.

You're just a big kid who's read too much science fiction,

and now you're pretending that it's real.

For God's sakes, grow up before it's too late.

Oh, my.

Yes.

Yes, indeed.

Anything, Mrs. Allegari?

Alice, dearie.

Just Alice.

You have to be patient with these things.

Alice just got here after a long trip, Ross.

She needs to be rested first.

John, I have to know.

ALICE: You will, dearie.

You will.

But Johnny is right.

I'll do much better after I catch a few Z's.

What?

ALICE: Sleep, dearie.

A short snooze.

But can't you tell me anything? I mean, any little--

ALICE: Your little girl is still alive, dearie, if that's

what you want to know.

Only she's changed somehow.

How?

I don't know yet.

Let me take the dollie to my cabin, and I'll sleep on it.

Too bad it's not one of those GI Joes, huh?

Don't worry, dearie.

I'll pick up the vibrations, like a plant--

you know os-moozis.

That's osmosis, Mrs. Allegari.

Right, dearie.

Hold onto him, John.

He's a smart one.

Is the new calf gonna be all right, Pa?

Fine.

I'll fetch you something to eat right away.

[giggling]

Jamie?

Jamie?

Don't go outside, Mary.

Why not?

Mind me.

Jamie?

Jamie?

The Lord is my shepherd.

I shall not want.

He maketh me to lie down in green pastures.

He leadeth me beside the still waters.

He restoreth my soul.

Afternoon, gentlemen.

I got that report on Mr. Ludwig, Sheriff.

ROSS: Good.

Let's have it.

Seems Ludwig was due to check in with the folks at Beebs

Bibles yesterday, but they haven't heard hide nor hare

from him.

Is it usual for Mr. Ludwig to go AWOL from his company?

No, sir.

He's their best salesman and regular like clockwork.

He hasn't miss a check-in in 12 years.

There's something there, Ross.

I know there is-- some tie-in.

We have to be cautious, John.

We don't know that for sure.

Well, one thing's for certain.

We're going to pay our friend Mr. Braun a visit.

But first, I want to get Mrs. Allegari back in the office.

I have to know about Mary Rose.

Give her a call.

See if she's up yet.

Hello, Mabel?

This is Sheriff Carr.

Would you ring Mrs. Allegari's cabin for me?

I think it's number 12.

[phone ringing]

Hello?

Thank you, dearie.

I had a very good rest.

15 minutes will be fine.

I'll be ready, dearie.

Bye-bye.

What are you trying to tell me, dearie?

Dearie?

Where are you off to, dearie?

I want to talk to you.

Slow down.

I can't keep up with you.

Dearie?

Dearie, please.

Slow down.

Not so fast, dearie.

I can't keep up.

No more.

My legs ain't what they used to be when I was a child your age.

You want to come home with me, dearie?

Your mommy and daddy miss you, Mary Rose.

Hello, dearies.

Are these your friends, Mary Rose?

Hold it right there. I don't want to hurt you.

Don't come any closer.

What do you want?

Why won't you speak?

[grunting]

Ow.

Come on, come on.

Put those things down. Put those down.

Put them down.

Put those things down.

Go, go.

Ow, ow, ow!

Come on.

Put that down.

I'm a nice little lady.

Don't do that.

No, your mom and dad would be very angry at you.

[screaming]

Oh, my baby.

Did you hear something?

No.

ALL: Gulp the blood.

Gobble the flesh.

Tear it to pieces.

Bite through the bone.

Gulp the blood.

Gobble the flesh.

Tear it to pieces.

Bite--

What was that?

Nothing.

Try some. It's good.

OK.

It was definitely a woman screaming.

Wait.

Where are you going?

Oh, my god!

Doctor, I've seen a lot, but nothing like this.

Go tell the sheriff we're bringing the body out now.

And this woman was just lying on the ground

with all this blood.

And then they started this horrible chanting.

Oh, god.

It was so awful.

Chanting?

What do you mean?

You know, like reciting something together.

What'd they say?

Hard to remember it all.

Something like, tear up, bite her bones, swallow her blood.

No, not swallow.

It was more like-- like, gulp.

Gulp her blood.

Yeah, and gobble her flesh.

Oh, god.

I think I'm going to be sick again.

Can I go? ROSS: Sure.

I mean to talk to you later.

Did you catch all that?

I think so.

I'll double check with them when they're

feeling a little less queasy.

What do you make of it, some kind of voodoo thing?

It's not like any voodoo ritual I've ever heard of.

And believe me, in my business, I've heard of a lot of them.

A whole group of kids chanting and acting like savages.

Do you think my kids are with them?

I don't know, Ross.

Alice said that Mary Rose was somehow changed.

I liked her, John.

I believe she would have helped us.

I'm sorry.

Me too.

Sheriff, the body's coming out now.

Uh, I looked everywhere.

There's no sign of it.

What?

Mary Rose's doll.

Well, Mr. DeWolfe, looks like the makings

for another bestseller here.

That lady was my friend, Miss Hawthorne.

So who says bestsellers can't be about friends,

especially mystical friends?

We don't need all this hocus-pocus, Sheriff.

Damn it, our wives and kids are getting scared

to walk the dog to the corner.

[assent]

Come to think of it, I'd rather let him go on the rug myself.

Stay calm, Josiah.

Sheriff Carr has everything under control.

Before the next two or three kids vanish,

I'm sure his author friend will have discovered a spaceship

from Saturn that's been playing the Pied

Piper for the past three years.

Isn't that right, Mr. DeWolfe?

That's your story, Miss Hawthorne.

Why don't you put it in a hopper and let it rotate?

And he's rude too.

How about that, folks?

When are you going to do something, Sheriff?

Yeah, we voted you in.

We can vote you out.

You voted for him.

I didn't.

We don't care about all this crap, Sheriff.

We want our families to be safe.

[assent]

Whose kids are next, Sheriff?

Yeah!

And if you can't handle it, we'll see to it ourselves.

How nice to incite a riot.

Ta-ta.

Sheriff, Mr. DeWolfe.

Oh, and remember, the medium is the message.

[chatter]

Mr. Braun?

Mr. Braun?

Please, Mr. Braun.

I'll only take a few minutes.

I know the sheriff was out here yesterday, Mr. Braun.

Why?

What did he hope to find after a full year?

Mr. Braun?

Mr. Braun?

Mrs. Braun, hello!

Mrs. Braun?

Mrs. Braun?

Mrs. Braun?

Mrs. Braun?

[shrieking]

[giggling]

Now.

[screaming]

We still have to drive over to Braun's farm

and check on Ludwig's car.

John, what that young couple heard, don't you

have any idea what it means?

No.

They kept repeating four main words--

tear, bite, gulp, and gobble.

Like some kind of savage ritual.

Sounds like "Beowulf."

What?

Sounds like "Beowulf."

You remember, John-- the Anglo-Saxon epic.

Angle what?

Anglo-Saxon.

Anglo-Saxon was the language that preceded English.

"Beowulf" was the story of a Viking hero

who roamed the country conquering monsters.

When John said gulp and gobble, it reminded me

of Anglo-Saxon alliteration-- successions

of the same initial sound.

Wait a minute, wait a minute.

Julie may have something there, Ross.

What was it that farmer Braun said?

Here.

Giants and goblins who battle with God.

See?

That succession of G sounds-- goblins, god, gulp,

gobble-- typical Anglo-Saxon poetry.

But that doesn't make sense.

Why would children run around eating people and then

quoting angel-axon poetry?

Where would they have hear it?

Anglo-Saxon.

And that sounds like "Beowulf."

I think you'll find those lines in a story

about a monster named Grendel.

But why Grendel?

Grendel was a cannibal.

Let's get to the office.

Maybe the files.

I'll call Dr. Fish and have him meet us over there.

Oh, Julie.

Lock the door afterwards.

And don't let in anyone who speaks in alliteration.

I can't rest.

I can't sleep.

I just need something to calm me.

Let me make you a cup of tea.

No, sit down.

Let me do it.

[smashing glass]

I told Cara to be quiet.

Now she's going to get it.

Here it is.

A college professor named Randall

disappeared about 10 years ago.

What did he teach?

Medieval English, Old English, and--

Yeah?

Anglo-Saxon.

Is Cara all right?

Julie?

Julie!

Cara!

Can I take two?

No.

You can only take one.

Why don't you take this one?

I want to take Marianne.

Cara!

Look Aunt Cleo, it's Mary Rose.

Get her!

A formidable monster, there's Grendel.

It seems he felt himself an outcast

of society, scorned, ridiculed.

So he took his revenge out on the king and his soldiers.

Now, according to this book-- here

it is-- he could carry off and eat a dozen warriors at a time.

Some appetite.

Look at this.

He was also invulnerable.

You see how the swords and spears are useless against him?

The hero, Beowulf, literally had to pull

him apart with his bare hands.

And even with one arm torn away, Grendel

still managed to crawl off into the woods and die by himself.

[screaming]

-Aunt Cleo! -Quiet.

You're coming with us.

I hope you're finding something, gentlemen.

The librarian's having kittens about having to come back here

in the middle of the night.

Well, we're learning more about the monster.

I still can't see what all this has to do with the kids,

though.

What'd you find out, Ross?

The college chancellor knew Randall very well.

Said he was a brilliant and exceptional scholar.

Could quote freely from any of the literature he taught.

In all other respects, he was a solid citizen.

The least likely candidate for the loony bin.

His only hobby was camping.

That's when he vanished, after a weekend trip

with his eight-year-old son, Glenn.

Neither one was ever seen again.

What does that tell us?

I don't know yet.

But this has to be a major breakthrough.

If Julie's right, and all the evidence indicates that she is,

then Professor Randall's our only clue.

He has to be involved somehow.

Who else could have taught the kids those lines?

The boy Glenn?

Glenn Randall.

Grendel.

Glenn Randall.

What's that suggest to you?

Get out!

Get out of here!

Get out!

Get out of here!

Out!

Cara!

All right.

How do we connect a professor who

vanished 10 years ago with a bunch

of kids who act like cannibals and spout poetry?

What do we know about his home life?

Did he have a happy marriage?

I mean, could he have been despondent when he walked off

into the woods that last time?

The chancellor said the marriage was a good one

by all outward appearances.

At any rate, Mrs. Randall still lives in the area,

and she hasn't remarried.

You can check with her in the morning.

What do we do in the meantime?

ROSS: We go back to the office and check the files.

We have to be positive about this.

We can't afford to have overlooked anything

or get trapped into a wild goose chase.

If there's a possibility other than Randall,

we better check it out.

I don't want to reopen old wounds for Mrs. Randall

unless it's absolutely necessary.

I have sinned.

We all have sinned.

We have committed the sin of Jonah.

We have denied who and what we are.

And like Jonah, we haven't imperiled our community.

Only an act of faith can save us now.

We must admit our heritage and throw

ourselves upon the waters.

We must don our armor once again,

even against those demons in the shape of our children.

There can be no exceptions.

We must cleanse ourselves.

The wages of sin is death.

[assent]

ROSS: There's one positive lead we can check on right now.

JOHN: What's That?

ROSS: Ludwig's car.

I'm not finished with Mr. Braun yet.

JOHN: Let's do it.

But I don't want to.

Don't be such a baby.

Grendel says it's your job.

Mr. Braun?

Mr. Braun?

Looks like nobody's home.

Looks like.

Wonder why he left the lights on.

Maybe he's coming right back.

Yeah.

Maybe.

Is there anywhere around here they might have gone?

Neighbors, bar, or something?

No place near.

This areas all fields and woods and marshes.

In town, they pull the sidewalks in around 9 o'clock.

That was three hours ago.

Wherever he is, his wife must be with him.

Is there any reason he might go out in the field?

I can't imagine why.

LUKE (ON RADIO): Sheriff Carr, this is Luke.

Do you copy?

I'll check out front.

OK.

LUKE (ON RADIO): Carr, this is Luke.

Do you copy?

Ross, you out there?

This is Carr.

What's going on, Luke?

LUKE (ON RADIO): I think we've got a problem here, Sheriff.

How big a problem?

LUKE (ON RADIO): I think you should get back to the office

right away.

OK, Luke.

10-8.

Just got a call from Luke.

There's some kind of disturbance in town.

Something's wrong here too, Ross.

I'm going to stay and wait for Braun.

You come back and get me when you can.

John, you sure you'll be OK here?

Fine.

Now, get going.

Stay loose.

Remember you're deputized now, buddy.

[siren]

Hey, stop it.

Cut it out.

Stop it.

The outlander must die.

CHILDREN: Kill.

Cut it out.

[screaming]

Glenn.

Glenn.

Glenn!

Glenn?

Glenn!

Glenn!

Oh.

Please, Mr. Braun, please.

Please.

What's going on here, everybody?

Come on.

You're acting like a bunch of children out here.

Here's the sheriff, finally.

What's this all about?

The usual, except someone's really

stirred them up this time.

If you were doing your jobs, we wouldn't

have to do it ourselves.

Folks!

Folks, let me have your attention, please.

Thanks.

We have an important new lead tonight.

And we're following up on it right now.

Try to be patient a little while longer.

What new lead?

ROSS: I can't tell you right now.

JOSIAH: You can't tell us nothing.

You never answer nothing.

You don't catch nothing.

You're kind of an all-around nothing.

You got no call to do that, Luke Domain.

Remember who you are.

That was before, Mr. Modicah, before my time and yours.

That don't matter now.

JOSIAH: It matters.

It still matters.

You'll see, Luke.

Blood will tell.

What's he mean, Luke?

What blood?

Don't mean nothing, Sheriff.

That was before.

That don't mean nothing now.

You see?

He never answers nothing.

The only time he's on the spot is

when that smart little reporter gal comes around.

Where is she now?

How come Miss Hawthorne isn't here now?

She ask too many questions for nothing answers?

You get her transferred, Sheriff?

I don't know where Miss Hawthorne is.

But I'm sure she'll turn up soon.

[laughing]

Him also, Lord.

He too is father to Satan's spawn.

Sluts and consorts of Beelzebub.

Oh, star of the morning, how thou has fallen.

All-- all agents of hell, young whores of Beelzebub.

Mister, if you're calling my little girls whores,

I'm going to cut your tongue out with a linoleum knife.

Now, what do you know about this Braun?

Make it quick.

Goblins.

Goblins and giants who battle with God.

That angel-axon poetry again.

What the hell is going on at your place anyway, Braun?

How come you left your house open and the lights on?

I didn't do it.

They did it.

They did it.

Luke, keep them in line.

When the time comes, you too will join

us in the sacrifice of Abraham.

[screaming]

Amy!

Amy!

Amy!

Amy!

Amy!

Grendel will pay you for this.

He will avenge his queen, his Wealtheow.

Wealtheow was the king's bride, Amy.

I am not Amy.

I am Wealtheow.

Grendel has stolen me from the king's house,

and I am his alone.

Amy, it's me, your Uncle John.

Your mother and father are heart-sick over you.

I have no mother, and I have no father.

They did not come from me.

Grendel said they would not come for me.

I have only Grendel.

Amy!

Your parents tried to find you, but

this boy who thinks he's Grendel hid you away deep in the woods.

They did not come.

He is Grendel.

I am Wealtheow.

We are demons, cast out and cursed.

Damned exiles.

We are angry.

Angry and eager to kill.

Amy, stop.

That's enough.

Amy.

Uncle John, will you touch me now?

What do you mean, Amy?

The way Grendel touched mother when he tied her.

What?

I won't mind.

Grendel touched mother.

Why shouldn't you touch me?

My god, Amy.

Where's Cleo?

And where is Aunt Julie?

How could you not--

Uncle John!

You know, I've always liked you, even when I was a little girl.

That's enough!

Now, stop it.

Where is my wife?

And Cara.

Is Cara--

Cara learns the exile way, the magic song

of the outcast fiend.

Amy!

[sirens]

Come on.

Ross!

Wait!

Get back in the car.

John?

Ross!

Get in the car!

They're here, all over.

What?

No!

No!

Grendel's children will die tonight

on the flesh of their enemies.

He was your father, Amy.

A good man who loved you.

I have no father.

Only Grendel.

Come on.

I've got to get out of here, Amy.

Wealtheow!

And I'm taking you with me.

I've got to get you to the town and show the people

what's happening here.

He will never let you take me from him.

We'll see.

Stay there.

Come on.

Grendel!

Grendel!

Grendel!

Grendel!

Grendel!

Grendel!

[giggling]

You're going home, Amy.

And we'll get you de-programmed or whatever they call it.

There's nothing for you there.

The dark death's shadow holds you no hope.

Then we'll come back here and you'll show us

where Grendel's camp is.

These people come in here, telling us what to do.

Stay down.

Don't make a sound.

Mr. DeWolfe, where's the sheriff?

Dead.

He's dead.

Luke, I need your help.

I know where the children are.

Something happened out at the house.

Mrs. Carr, your wife, and daughter are missing.

I found blood on the staircase.

We can find them, Luke.

For Christ's sake, you've got to help me.

Come on.

These aren't kids.

They are demons.

Luke!

One of those who would stand in our way.

What?

This man stands in the face of heaven's will.

He would stay the hand of Abraham.

Abraham?

What are you talking about?

But just as Abraham was called upon to sacrifice his son,

so too are we called upon to sacrifice,

to cleanse ourselves, to purge our soul of the darkness.

Sacrifice?

Are you talking about killing your own children?

Are you crazy?

There's no devil here.

It's just your children being led by a boy who's been lost

in the mountains for 10 years.

Luke, tell them.

BRAUN: No!

Do not fear!

I know where he goes.

He shall not escape our net.

Come to my farm now.

The upper pasture!

AMY: Now you too are in exile, cursed and outcast.

JOHN: Shut up.

I'm going to save my wife and daughter.

Where is the camp?

AMY: The wild land.

The lonely land.

The land of wolf places.

You must hurry, Uncle John.

The sun is ahead of you.

I will take you there gladly, for you will never return.

And if you hurry, you may be on time for the ceremony of dawn.

And you may even see Cara consume my mother's

living spirit, [inaudible].

What does that mean?

How could I tell you?

That would spoil the surprise.

CHILDREN: Tear it to pieces.

Bite through the bone.

Gulp the blood.

Gobble the flesh.

Tear it to pieces.

Bite through the bone.

Gulp the blood.

Gobble the flesh.

Tear it to the pieces.

Bite through the bones.

Gulp the blood.

Gobble the flesh.

Tear it to pieces.

Bite through the bones.

Gulp the blood.

Gobble the flesh.

Tear it to pieces.

Bite through the bones.

Gulp the blood.

Gobble the flesh.

Tear it to pieces.

Bite through the bones.

Gulp the blood.

Gobble the flesh.

Tear it to pieces.

Bite through the bones.

Gulp the blood.

Gobble the flesh.

Tear it to pieces.

Bite through the bones.

Gulp the blood.

Gobble the flesh.

Cleo.

[heart beating]

I am Grendel!

We are the goblins.

Lunatic!

I have your queen.

Come and get her, Grendel, if you dare.

This is Grendel's kill.

Where's my daughter?

I knew.

I knew all along.

But I waited for divine guidance to deliver them into our hands.

You Bible-thumping moron.

These are children.

They need help.

There's no danger here anymore.

Put down those damn rifles before someone gets hurt.

Oh God, give us the strength to complete this purification.

Let us not falter in this last hour.

If one child is harmed, one child, I'll have all of you

up on accessory to murder charges.

Count on that.

[gunshot]

Grendel!

[screaming]

No!

Mama!

[gunfire]

[gun cocking]

No!

[growling]

[heart beating]