Original subtitles

so you must be careful where you put it,

and in whom.

Tell me, Conor O'Malley.

What shall I destroy next?

What?

It is most satisfying, I can assure you.

Come on! Tell me! What should I destroy?

Snap the chimney?

The chimney!

Next!

Throw away their beds!

Smash the furniture!

Break the windows!

Windows.

Break them yourself.

Come on!

Harder, Conor O'Malley! Come on!

Harder!

That's it, that's it!

Yes!

Feels good, doesn't it?

Yes!

Grandma.

Grandma.

Grandma.

Grandma, please...

Grandma.

How do you like them sunny side up?

What are you doing here?

What do you think?

Grandma called very early this morning.

She's gone to the hospital to see your mum.

She has had a bad turn.

I need to see her.

We'll see what happens today

and maybe you can visit for a little while this afternoon.

I can see how upset you are.

I didn't mean to.

I don't know what happened.

Worse things happen at sea.

What does that mean?

Aren't you going to punish me?

What could possibly be the point in that?

I gotta say, champ, this is really just amazingly thorough.

Buried treasure!

These must be those...

The home movies your mum used to send to me when I moved away.

Why did you move away?

We were young.

Too young. We had big dreams, and...

What kind of dreams?

Well, your mum wanted to go to Art college.

Really? Yeah.

She didn't go, but she wanted to. What happened?

Because Mum got pregnant with me. Hey.

Mum never regretted having you. You were only ever good news.

And I know that for a fact,

because the one thing she regretted,

was marrying me.

Why did she marry you, then?

Because I'm handsome.

Your mum was amazing, and she still is.

And we were in love.

I mean, I still love her.

But, you see, the...

Love isn't enough.

It doesn't carry you through.

So, you didn't get happily ever after.

No, but that's life, you know.

Most of us just get messily ever after.

And that's alright.

But I'm happy you turned out like her.

Mrs Chandler.

Because his education is really important!

You're telling me now what to do.

So I'm pulled in every direction. You can take him out.

You can take him out of school then...

Thank you.

I'm gonna go and find something to eat. You want anything, kid?

I want you to stop calling me kid.

Fair enough.

I'm sorry, Lizzy.

Who was that man in the suit?

Just...

Nothing.

What happened this morning?

Nothing.

It's fine.

Just had a bit of a bad reaction.

But there's one more thing they're gonna try, and it's...

it's a medicine that's had some really good results.

Why didn't they try it in the first place?

Because this is something you take

when the other stuff hasn't worked the way they want it to.

Does that mean it's too late?

No, of course it doesn't mean it's too late.

Are you sure?

I believe every word I say.

Belief is half of all healing.

Belief in the cure,

belief in the future that awaits.

Yeah.

You know that tree that I'm always going on about?

Yeah.

Well, this drug is made from trees like that.

It is? Yeah!

Seriously?

All this time, we could have gone out there and just chopped it down.

But not that one.

That one's our friend.

Where are you?

I'm here.

So can you do it?

Can you make my mum better?

If your mother can be healed, the yew tree will do it.

So that's a yes?

You still don't know why you called me.

I didn't call you.

And even if I did, it was obviously for my mum.

Was it? Why else?

To listen to idiotic stories that make no sense?

It is not yet time for the third tale. But soon.

And after that, you will tell me your story, Conor O'Malley.

No!

No, not this!

That's just a nightmare!

No, please!

That's not my truth!

That's just a nightmare!

Nevertheless, this is what will happen after the third tale.

I want to know what's going to happen with my mum.

You waste the precious time that is given to you.

Wait! Where are you going?

You're a tree of healing. I need you to heal!

And so I shall.

Conor, I'll come back. I promise.

All right? And you'll come to LA for Christmas.

I don't want to leave Mum on her own for Christmas.

Conor, this medicine your mum's taking... it's going to make her well.

No, Conor. It probably isn't.

Yes, it is. No, it's a last-ditch effort, son.

It'll heal her, Ok? I know it.

It's the reason it came, it has to be.

Reason what came?

The monster.

Conor, what? It comes at 12.07.

At first I thought it was a dream, but there's always...

Conor, stop it. All right. It's a dream.

That's all it is. I'm sorry you have to face this,

but you have to be brave.

Do you understand?

Come on.

Come on.

I'll be back as soon as I can.

What if it's not fast enough?

Conor, listen... it's Ok.

What's Ok?

Just...

You don't have to.

Look. Can you see? Can you see?

Can you wave?

Can you see him?

Look, then we wave to Grandma.

Hello, Grandma!

Con, can you say hello to Grandma and Mum?

Hello, Grandma!

There we go.

Mummy's heard this one a lot.

Ok, you ready?

Con, look, sit, come sit here.

Con, look.

Hello, Grandma. Mummy and...

There we go.

We're doing you a picture, Grandma.

And then mix it together.

What colour is that?

Brown. Yeah!

It's a nice sludgy brown.

But we have brown here. That's true.

What can you see?

What's that? What are those?

What are these?

The eyes. The eyes, that's it.

Life is always in the eyes.

If you get that,

you'll be a proper artist.

Yeah.

Look.

This is how we draw the eyes in.

This is where the eyes catch the reflection.

Then we see the life in the eyes, see that?

Do it again.

It's life.

Maybe if we take a pencil,

and you can draw on there...

Do you want to try it?

Show me how you do it.

Look, Con.

That's his hair.

And this is his eyebrow.

There's the eyes.

Oh, look, there's his mouth.

There's his mouth, he's very angry.

Can you see?

Look at that!

And then we start to make a face.

And then...

There's our monster.

There's the monster.

Look at the monster.

Very slowly.

That's it.

It's a thirty-minute exam this morning,

and this is all the stuff we've been doing for the last two weeks.

So, if you've done your revision,

there won't be any surprises.

In a moment I'm going to ask you to turn your pages over

and there will be no talking for the next thirty minutes.

I want total silence in here,

because you're going to be using your brains, not your mouths.

So, thirty minutes, starting now.

Good luck.

I think I've finally figured you out.

After all this time.

All that you are looking for is someone to kick your head in.

But you know what?

I'm not that guy anymore.

Goodbye, O'Malley.

I no longer see you.

Now you are invisible to me too.

I hope your mum gets better.

What took you so long?

It is time for the third tale.

There was once an invisible man,

who had grown tired of being unseen.

It was not that he was actually invisible.

It was just that people had become used to not seeing him.

One day, the invisible man couldn't stand it anymore.

He kept wondering:

if no one sees you,

are you really there at all?

What did the invisible man do?

He called for a monster.

I don't even know what to say to you, O'Malley.

You sent him to hospital!

His parents are threatening to sue.

It wasn't me.

What was that?

It wasn't me.

I'm not invisible! I'm not invisible!

If you want to be seen, this is not the best way.

I'm not invisible!

Did you hear me?

I'm not invisible!

School rules dictate immediate exclusion.

But how could I do that,

and consider myself any kind of teacher?

Go back to class.

We will talk about this one day,

but not today.

You're not punishing me?

What could possibly be the point?

Let me give you an example of emotional wellness.

You know how difficult it is sometimes to say no, right?

How good it feels when you finally find the courage to say it.

Why is that?

Aren't you coming?

I'll be right here.

What did you do to your hands?

This is the talk, isn't it?

Everybody wants to have a talk lately.

Con.

Look at me.

I spoke to the doctor this morning.

The new treatment, it's not working.

The one from the yew tree?

Yeah.

How can it not be working?

Things have just moved really fast.

Faster than they thought.

But how can it not be working?

I don't know.

It has to.

So what happens now?

What's gonna be the next treatment?

I'm so sorry.

I've never been more sorry,

about anything in my life.

It's Ok that you're angry, Con.

It really is.

I'm pretty angry too, to tell you the truth.

But, Con...

Con, are you listening?

One day,

if you look back and you feel bad for being so angry,

you couldn't even speak to me,

you have to know that that was Ok,

that I knew.

Because I know everything you need to tell me

without you having to say it out loud.

And if you need to break things,

by God, you break them.

Break them, good and hard.

And I'll be right there, Con.

I wish I had a hundred years.

A hundred years I could give to you.

Wake up!

Wake up!

Wake up!

Wake up!

Wake up!

I don't care what time it is!

You lied!

Wake up!

Wake up!

Wake up!

I need you now!

You will do yourself harm if you keep that up.

It didn't work!

You said the yew tree would make her better, but it didn't!

Fix her! Make her better!

Conor!

You were the one who called me, Conor O'Malley.

If I called you, it was to save her!

It was to heal her!

I did not come to heal her.

Yes, you did!

I came to heal you. Me?

I'm not the one who needs healing!

How many times do I have to tell you?

My mum's the one who.

Help me.

It is time for the fourth tale.

No!

No, please! Get me out of here!

It is time for your nightmare.

I need to get back to my mum!

She is already here.

No!

Mum, get out of here!

I'm fine!

It's all right. There's nothing to worry about.

Mum, run! Please, run!

Mum!

Mum!

Conor!

Mum!

Mum!

Mum!

Conor!

Mum!

Don't let me go! I won't!

Conor! Mum!

Conor!

Mum!

Conor!

Here is the fourth tale. Help!

Here is the truth of Conor O'Malley.

Here is your nightmare.

Mum!

Mum!

Mum!

Mum!

This is when I wake up.

This is when I always wake up.

The tale is not yet told.

Get me out of here! I need to see my mum!

She is no longer here, Conor.

She fell. I couldn't hold on to her anymore.

Conor!

Speak the truth!

No!

You must speak the truth or you will never leave this place.

What truth? I don't know what you mean!

You must tell me the fourth tale, Conor O'Malley.

You must tell me your nightmare before it is too late.

No! Yes!

Tell me, Conor! Tell me the truth!

It'll kill me if I do!

It will kill you if you do not!

No!

Speak the truth! No!

The truth, Conor O'Malley!

Tell me the truth, boy!

No!

Speak the truth!

No!

Speak the truth! No!

Speak the truth! No!

Speak the truth, boy! I want it to be over!

I can't stand knowing that she'll go.

I want it to be finished.

I let her fall.

I let her die.

That was brave, Conor.

You finally said it.

Why didn't it kill me?

I deserve punishment.

I deserve the worst.

Do you?

I've known forever that she wasn't going to make it.

She'd keep telling me she was getting better all the time,

because that's what I wanted to hear.

And I believed her.

Except I didn't.

And I started to think how much I wanted it to be over.

I couldn't stand how alone it would make me feel.

A part of you wished it would end,

even if it meant losing her.

I let her go.

I could have held on for longer,

but I always let her go.

And that is your truth, Conor O'Malley.

I don't want it to be, though.

Now it's for real.

Now she's going to die and it's my fault.

And that is not the truth at all.

You were merely wishing for an end of pain.

Your own pain.

It is the most human wish there is.

I didn't mean it, though.

You did, but you also did not.

How can both be true?

How can a prince be a murderer and be loved by his people?

How can an apothecary be evil-tempered but right-thinking?

How can invisible men make themselves more lonely by being seen?

I don't know.

Your stories never made any sense to me.

Because humans are complicated beasts.

You believe comforting lies

while knowing full well the painful truth that makes those lies necessary.

In the end Conor,

it is not important what you think.

It is only important what you do.

So what do I do?

What you did just now.

You speak the truth.

That's all?

You think it's easy?

You were willing to die rather than speak it.

I'm so tired.

So tired of all of this.

Then sleep.

There's time.

Are you sure? I need to see my mum.

We will both see her tonight.

Will you be there?

Yes.

It will be the final steps of my walking.

How does the fourth story end?

Sleep.

Sleep.

Sleep.

Thank God!

Conor!

Conor!

I've been out of my mind trying to find you.

There was something I had to. No time. We have to go now.

Damn it!

Grandma.

I'm sorry.

About the sitting room and...

and everything.

It doesn't matter.

It doesn't matter.

You know, Conor?

You and me...

We are not the most natural fit, are we?

No. I guess not.

I guess not either.

But we're going to have to learn.

I know.

You do know, don't you?

Of course you do.

But there is one thing we have in common.

Your mum.

That's what we have in common.

It's Ok.

I see you found him.

Thank you.

Hello, my darling.

Ma? Yes, I'm here.

I'm here. Can you feel my hand?

And Conor's here, too. Is he?

Here is the end of the tale.

I'm afraid.

Of course you are afraid.

It will be hard.

It will be more than hard.

But you will make it through, Conor O'Malley.

You'll stay?

I will be right here.

What do I do?

Now all that is left is for you to speak the simplest truth of all.

I don't want you to go.

I know, my love.

I don't want you to go.

How does the fourth story end?

It ends with the boy holding on tight to his mother.

And by doing so, he can finally let her go.

Conor.

This is your room now.

I've been making it ready.

Thank you.