Imagine you're dead.
Feel yourself go numb.
Start with your fingers,
move to your hands,
your wrists,
right on up to your elbows.
Everything is dead.
If we can imagine our own deaths
but still manage to come back to life,
then it proves that we can survive anything.
Now, don't be afraid.
Own the moment.
If you're in control, then the chaos
will happen around you, and not to you.
You understand?
The camera's in the hat?
Yep, it sure is.
Look.
I hope this works.
Oh, three months of prep, it's gonna be perfect.
Okay, I'll punch in at nine, same as always.
Give me 20 minutes, we should have a good crowd by then.
Can I taste the fake blood again, Mom?
No, honey, the bag is sealed. I don't wanna stain my shirt.
# Take a straight and stronger course #
# To the corner of your life #
# Make the white queen run so fast #
# She hasn't got time #
# To make you a wife #
# Cause it's time, it's time in time #
# With your time and its news is captured... #
Well, hello.
How can I help you today?
# Do do do do do do do do da #
# Do do do do do do do do do da #
Have a nice day.
# Do do do do da... #
All of them.
# Is captured #
Gun!
# I've seen all good people turn their heads each day so satisfied ##
I got it! I got the gun!
- It's over! It's over! - How could you?
Mama, no!
Mommy, don't die. Mommy!
And for what? Lollipops?
Mommy loved lollipops.
I'm telling you, it tastes just like maple syrup.
Sorry, guys, I'm so sorry.
What? I'm hungry, we skipped breakfast.
- You did good. - Well-done.
- You did great. - Well-done.
- Here you go. - Help Mama up.
- Baxter. - No, it's my fault, I broke first.
I'm so sorry. I'll see you in the car.
Go.
What in the fuck is going on?
Ladies and gentlemen,
let this be your trumpet call.
Life is... sweet!
So taste it
while you still can.
Baxter!
I think I found something.
I mean, it's cruel.
I'm sitting there by myself because my date is late, damn it.
What... This is...
Damn it.
It's...
- This is... - We're getting pretty close.
You should probably get into your robe.
My robe?
We're just about ready for the next scene where you're topless.
Wardrobe should have a robe set for you in your trailer.
Topless? Did...
No. No!
My... my script doesn't mention nudity.
Freeman put it in this morning.
Come on, he never mentioned it to me when we rehearsed it.
We're gonna go in five, everyone.
Uh, you look like more than five minutes out.
Yeah, oh, yeah. I'm gonna be a lot more than five.
What's up, sunshine?
- You want me to get naked. - Topless.
A guy answers the door and I am standing there with my tits out?
Gina wants to control the situation.
With her breasts? Come on.
I-I never...
would've guessed that you're so uptight.
You know, it's like... I mean, Annie Fang,
you know, wild woman, indie darling.
- Sorry, sorry to disappoint you. - You used to...
you used to do anything, you know, for your roles.
Those aren't stories I'm proud of, Freeman.
They're just like stupid, stupid things that an actor does when they're too afraid to act.
I know better now.
- That's too bad. - What, that I'm older and wiser?
No, that's you've become, like, so bourgeois.
- You know, with the shitty rom-coms... - Okay, that's it.
That's it, we're done. You need to leave.
- You need to leave. - No, I'm just trying to help you.
I'm not doing it.
I wanna show the world that...
that you are still a legitimate actress.
- Uh-huh, thanks, Freeman. - As brave and-and fearless...
- Thank you. - ...as you've always...
Yeah, I'm not doing it.
- I know what I am asking you... - Mm-hmm.
- ...to do is difficult. - Mm-hmm.
But great art is always difficult!
Damn...
Don't be afraid.
Own the moment.
If you're in control, then the chaos
will happen around you, and not to you.
You understand?
Did they not set a robe for the walk?
I don't need one, I'm in control.
Let's get this fucking scene over with.
Fantastic. All right, here we go, everyone.
- Hi, there. - Hi.
Mm.
- How much is that? - $2.
That's five.
I've got these for this.
And good thing I only did about a dollar of that, okay?
So that's... all that's yours and this and this.
Mine. Yep.
- How you doing, Harold? - Hey, Baxter.
- How are things? - Well, the book is not done
if that's what you're asking, but I'm working on it every day.
You know, it was two years overdue last month, right?
- I do. - You know they're losing patience.
- Right? - I'm sure they are.
Listen, if you're calling to make me feel bad,
you've done it, and we can hang up now, okay?
No, I might have a job.
- Yeah? For me? - Nothing big.
Story for a men's magazine.
Do you know what a potato gun is?
All right, you hit it with the hair spray, about a one and half count.
- Hair spray, huh? - Yep.
Seal it up. Screw that on real tight.
Lock her up. Raise the weapon.
- This is about to get good. - Aim, fire.
Boom!
- Come on! - Don't it smell like French fries?
Little bit.
You guys come out here quite a bit, do you?
Oh, every night... unless there's something good on TV.
- Right. - Understandable.
Okay, Lois Lane.
- Call this baby Air Force One. - All right.
We're not gonna pretend that it's better than sex,
but this is gonna make you very happy.
- Wow. - Come on, you're a natural, man.
- Look at you. - I get it.
That's got a lot of carry to it. Give me one more of those.
- Give me that, man. - And one more of those.
Don't be afraid.
Own the moment.
If you're in control, then the chaos
will happen around you, and not to you.
You understand?
Okay, I'm ready.
- I told you! - One more!
One more.
- No. - What?
- Nuh-uh. No, don't push your luck. - Don't be crazy.
- Come on. Let's do it. - I'll do it.
You do it.
- Stay with us, pal. - What's going on?
We're heading to the hospital, Baxter, but I need you to talk to us, buddy.
Can you do that? Baxter, can you do that, buddy?
- I shot you in the head. - Huh, yeah, what do you want me to say?
It doesn't matter. Tell us anything. Tell us about you're writing.
I am, uh... I got a new book, but I'm a little writer's blocked.
- Well, maybe we can help you out. - What's it called?
It's called, uh, "A Children's Pit."
Well, what's it about?
It's about these two kids, a brother and a sister,
and they run away from an orphanage, but they get caught by a pit master.
Well, what's that?
It's a guy who has an arena underground and forces them to fight for sport.
Do they escape?
I don't know, I don't know. I haven't gotten that far.
- Let me just take a little nap. - No, no, no, no, no.
What's going on with my ear? It really hurts.
Perforated eardrum.
You'll be fine in a few weeks.
No flying for a while, though.
- Did you say "no flying"? - That's what I said.
You'll feel better when your people get here.
What does that mean? I don't have any people.
Well, we went through your wallet. Standard procedure.
The doctor called your parents. They're driving up to get you.
No, no...
No, no. Miss?
Miss?
Caleb and Camille Fang are most known
for creating improvised public events
that incorporate their own children into the artwork.
The results are often as unsettling as they are arresting.
In one of their earliest works,
Caleb Fang walked through a crowded roller-skating rink
carrying his infant daughter.
Suddenly a serious of homemade, flare-like devices
he had taped to his back began to discharge.
Camille captured the event from the rink's second level.
The Fang's simply throw themselves into a space
as if they were hand grenades and wait for their disruption to occur.
Candice Fang!
They seem to have no expectations, other than to willfully cause unrest.
You, take your hands off!
This kind of event is so rudimentary,
so unencumbered by the traditions that have come before it,
that it almost strains the notion of what constitutes art.
That Fangs, that's just a gimmick.
- That's all that is. - Well, you couldn't...
That's not fair.
I mean, uh, you know, whether or not you like the Fang's work,
uh, you can't deny the artistry, certainly.
What? Of course I can. That's my job.
Look, the Fangs pass off these hollow pranks
as if that's enough.
Could say the same thing about the Diggers or the Situationists
or the Dotist for that matter.
But if you care to look a little deeper, you'll find that the Fangs transcend...
Transcend? They're not transcending anything.
- It's just tricks. - If...
In the... in the pageant piece, they challenged gender stereotypes.
In the restaurant piece, they asked us to look at food
not as sustenance but as status or style.
- Come on. - In some of the early...
Just because... just because you attach a statement doesn't make it art.
You know, you can call it art, but real art...
- But that ambiguity is what... - ...requires an aesthetic...
- ...makes it interesting. - ...intelligence...
Is-is it art or is it a joke? Is it profound or is it a prank?
Uh, are they geniuses or charlatans?
These are the questions that they want us to ask.
- They're not too hard to answer. - And the Fangs are challenging
- the very nature of art itself. - I don't think they are.
They embrace everything that's wonderful about art,
and... and... and they subvert it at the same time.
They are deeply serious class clowns
- who celebrate and... - Clowns is right.
I'm sorry.
What were you saying?
I... I think what they're doing is wonderful.
Well, I guess... I guess I just don't get it.
Well, that's pretty obvious.
So the truth is, making a movie is really...
it's a strange process, you know?
Always requires some sort of degree of weirdness.
Is that why you took off your top?
I took off my top because...
Well, 'cause I wanted to prove to myself that I could do it.
I've never done a nude scene before, so...
what the hell, right?
Did Sally tell you that this was...
this is a very important article for me?
No, she did. I know.
Yeah.
They say I'm in a bit of a...
I don't know, precarious position right now career-wise.
And that I have to... I don't know.
That I'm not stable.
You don't have to worry about that.
Thank you, but I do. Obviously, I do.
Well, you can relax because I don't care about your meltdowns.
I'm actually more interested in your family.
- It's okay. - I'm sorry.
- I'll get you another. - I'm so sorry.
- Thank you very much. - Um...
You're not gonna put that in the article I hope.
- How could I leave it out? - Oh...
Are you always so jumpy when someone mentions your parents?
It doesn't come up often, actually.
- Really? But they're famous. - Yeah.
Well, not really. In certain circles, I suppose, but...
I wrote my thesis on their work.
You're kidding?
Wow.
Great.
That's why I wanted to do this story.
Huh.
Do you think you'll ever do another piece with them?
No.
God, no.
Thanks.
It must've been fun, though.
Come on, being child A.
Yeah, of course, but I'm not a child anymore.
Anyway, your readers don't wanna hear about this.
They don't wanna hear about weirdo performance art.
Look, I think you're a great actress.
But the artist you are, don't you think she was already there in child A?
The emotion, the joy,
the anarchy?
It's too bad none of your directors have known how to channel all that
the way your parents did.
When I was nine year old...
child A was a role.
It was a role I played.
It's not who I am.
Hey, Baxter. How you doing, buddy?
I'm terrible.
- Where are you? - I'm in Upstate New York.
Mm. Yep, that is terrible.
- What are you doing up there? - I got shot in the head.
What did you say?
I got shot in the head, but I'm okay.
I'm, uh... Well, I'm not okay.
I'm in a hospital, but, you know, I'm not dying, so...
- You got shot in the head? - I did.
Well, who? Who shot you in the head?
Uh, just this guy, and it was a potato.
- Baxter. - It's not why I'm calling, though.
Come on, are you on drugs? Are you?
- Yep, Percocet mostly. - Mm-hmm.
Would you call me back when you're lucid?
- No, no, Annie, don't hang up. - Come on.
- Uh, the doctors... - Baxter...
...will not let me leave, and Mom and Dad are bringing me home to recuperate.
- What? - Yeah, Mom and Dad are on the way.
You gotta come get me.
Look, I'm in my pajamas, and I'm 3,000 miles away.
- I can't do that. - Well, I can't go back home.
I can't go back home by myself.
All right, um, I'm gonna help you out.
But, uh, I'm just, uh, I need a day to sort a few things out.
I'm in a really weird place right now.
Are you in a weird place, Annie? I almost got killed by a potato.
Would you just relax? I'm sending you a plane ticket.
- You can come and stay with me. - No, no, I can't fly, Annie.
So tell them you can't go.
- Just stand up to them, Baxter. - When have I ever done that?
No answer, right?
'Cause I've never done it. Thanks a lot, Annie.
Point is, I call in a favor.
I line up this guy from "Esquire,"
- and you decide to nail him? - No, I didn't decide.
- It just... it happened. - That's the problem, Annie.
- These things shouldn't just happen. - I know.
You could get away with this stuff a few years ago, okay?
Everybody likes a little shoplifting with their starlet.
A little DUI here and again. It's kinda cute.
Come on, I stopped that. Done.
Yes, there was a nice lull in the middle years, you know, nice and quiet.
But things are starting to get a little loopy again, you know?
And I know the good offers aren't coming in, but you can't panic about it.
I can get back on track.
I can, Sally.
I don't think you can.
You know, you have the impulse control of a two year old.
Look...
- Are you drinking again? - No.
Listen, if you are, I know a couple places.
I'm not drinking. I just... I need a project.
I mean, what about the start date on "Powers That Be 3"?
Have we got that yet?
You're gonna have to talk to Gordon about that.
- Why? - Why? Because he's your agent.
I think you should hear it from him.
- Hear what? - Oh, God.
What?
They offered Lady Lightning to Allison Cane.
- Okay. - Mm-hmm.
- Well, that's a bummer. - Come on, Annie.
Look at this as a good thing.
You don't have to wear that ridiculous costume anymore.
- I love that costume. - We'll get you a better one.
In the meantime,
I think you need to take a step back.
I think you just have to have a real sit-down with yourself.
I don't even know what that means.
# Bad world, it's unforgiving #
# Kill all parents so you can keep living #
# Kill 'em, kill 'em, kill 'em, dead! #
Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.
That was a song I wrote myself called "Kill All Parents."
We appreciate any donations you can spare for our dog Cornelius.
You ready? One, two, three.
# Don't eat that bone, don't eat the bone #
# It will make you sick... #
You guys... you guys are terrible.
Hey, man, they're trying to perform.
- What's your problem? - Be quiet, let those kids be.
- Dude, let the kids perform. - This is... bad.
This is horrible. I'm sorry, you suck.
No, he's right. You guys are awful.
- She knows what she's talking about. - You should learn how to play
your instruments, not just hold them and pound them.
- Kids, keep playing. - We can't afford lessons.
Oh, I'm sorry, did I hurt your feelings?
'Cause I wanna kill myself. It's that bad.
You're probably killing your dog with your music.
This will be great for my documentary on crap.
All right, keep playing, kids, keep playing.
- Wait, you like this? - Do not listen to them.
You need to get your ears checked, blondie.
- You like these kids? - I hope you don't have any kids.
I hope your uterus is shriveled up!
- No, you're not taking this. - Yeah, give me the camera.
- You taking it? You have to get it. - Give me the camera.
There you go. That's the show.
That's the show.
Oh! Oh, you were awful!
- Awful! - Awful!
- I have never heard anything worse! - The camera and the footage
all destroyed, but I don't care.
But I don't care. That was just for us.
You were amazing. I have never been prouder.
# Kill all the parents so you can keep living #
# Kill 'em, kill 'em, kill 'em, kill 'em! ##
- Sorry we're late, I'm sorry. - You're late.
I had a sign and everything. You had to get your own bag.
Oh, thank you for coming.
We're gonna take care of each other, hmm?
- Okay? - You need taken care of, too?
- Yeah. - You okay?
- How's your ear? - It's... it's better than it was yesterday.
- Look at these two. - Oh, God.
- Hey, hey. - Welcome home.
- Look how skinny you are. - What's with the bandages?
Did you see your brother's ear? We wanted to play along.
- Oh, you look so beautiful. - We don't need the wheelchair
- anymore, Dad. - We brought you a neck brace.
- Look at this. Come on. - Oh, here.
- So, A, what's the plan? - Daddy.
Sorry, Annie. What's the plan, Annie?
I don't know. I'm just here for Baxter.
- Oh, we're all here for Baxter. - Whatever Baxter needs.
- This is a place of healing. - Mm-hmm.
That's great. I just need someone to take me shopping.
Not a lot of great options in your closet, Dad.
Go lighter on those pills, sweetheart.
My ear hurts pretty bad, Mom.
What about you?
Anything you're itching to do while you're back?
Mm, I'm just gonna take it easy.
Do a little yoga, some reflection.
- Ooh, reflection. - Yeah.
Apparently I have some bad habits that I have to break.
Don't do that.
Your bad habits are my favorite thing about you.
Yeah, but I think that's part of the problem, Daddy.
Hey, speaking of.
- We saw your titty shots. - Holy shit.
They were... wonderful.
Jesus Christ.
It's... it's about time you started playing with the idea
of celebrity in the female form as viewed object.
- That's not what I was doing. - Of course it is.
Whether you know it or not.
You can take the girl out of the art, but you cannot take the art out of the girl.
- Well, I'm still an artist, Daddy. - That's what I just said.
Yeah, actors. Actors are artists.
Yes, didn't I say I like your titty shot.
We both like them very much. You have beautiful breasts, sweetheart.
Okay, that's it! Can we not talk about the titty shots anymore, please?
Please, and we can stop saying "titty shots," everybody.
The Fangs.
Together again. That's how it should be.
Waited a long time for this.
Cheers.
Titty shots.
Titty.
- Titty. - Dad.
- Titty. - Dad, it's ridiculous.
I was better back then.
- It was so simple. - Mm.
They just told us what to do.
When did it get so complicated?
Don't you know?
No.
"Smother Beach." Camille!
"Smother Beach."
Baxter.
You never saw the urgency in this one.
Thank God your sister improvised a bit.
Your mother nearly died out there.
Baxter was perfect.
Perfect.
What do you got on?
- Mind your business. - I'll make popcorn.
Thank you.
You got something going on upstairs, huh?
Nah, we can pick it up later.
Nobody told me it was movie night.
- Put another one on just for the hell of it. - Oh, that's better.
Why are we doing this?
Because we need to behave like healthy people.
It's called acting, you know?
You look, you act the part, before you know it, you are that person.
- What person? - A person that doesn't screw things up.
Which means no more Percocet for you. No more booze for me.
- You think you can do that? - Oh, yeah.
I thought it was nice last night.
Looking at those old pieces, sitting on the couch together.
- What? - You don't see it, do you?
- See what? - Being seduced by your own parents,
- which I think is kinda gross. - Come on, you're ridiculous.
Let's turn back.
Mom wants us to run some errands with her.
- You think I'm being ridiculous, huh? - What? Yeah.
You didn't see that? You didn't pick up on any of that?
- No. - Come on.
What kind of errands? I wanna do some yoga after this.
Let's go. Let's run uphill. You wanna be that person?
That person runs uphill. Come on.
- Yeah, I'll... I'll run uphill. - Uh-oh.
- Come on! - Ow.
Hmm, so where are we going?
- To the amusement park. - We're running an errand
- to the amusement park? - Why are we going there?
The Denver MCA wants me to create a new piece.
I haven't heard from them in years, and when we realized that you'd both be home...
Needless to say, they were very excited.
- So, Annie, Annie, put this on. - So we're doing a piece?
- Oh. - What did I tell you?
- Yeah, put it on. - What is this?
It's a shirt, honey, and you need to wear it or the event won't work.
All you have to do is handout these fake coupons...
- Here. - ...for chicken sandwiches.
And when we're doing that,
Baxter will film all the people at the counter demanding free food.
Then I rally the angry customers, I get them to storm the counters.
- It'll be a thing of beauty. - Yes.
I don't think this is a good idea.
- It's not a good idea. - No.
- What are you talking about? - Bad idea, Mom.
It's gonna be fun like old times. You're gonna be brilliant.
Yeah, what about when they recognize Annie?
- We brought a disguise. - Annie's gonna wear a disguise?
- It's a good one. - That stinks, Mom.
- I can't. - Baxter.
- Yep. - Stay out of this.
- Okay. - If the tabloids get ahold of this,
- it will be terrible for me. - Exactly right.
Who cares? You shouldn't be in that business anyway.
- What? - Please don't say that.
You've been at it for 20 years. What have you got to show for it?
A bunch of crap movies and a tampon commercial.
- Caleb, be nice. - Oh, my God, Dad.
- Was it not a tampon campaign? - It was.
"Absorb all the good things in life and leave the rest to us."
- Okay, come on. - Terrible tag line.
- Just trying to make a living. - And I'm giving you
- an opportunity to be artists again. - Okay, we've been over this.
A and B are still artists.
Please don't call us "A and B," Mom.
Please don't call us artists, you mean.
- Caleb! - I'm sorry.
Your popcorn flicks and Baxter's emo fanfiction
- is not art. - Dad, I wouldn't...
- It's garbage. - What is wrong with him?
Dad?
Caleb, can I just say you forget I've seen the reviews of the masterpieces
- you and Mom have been churning out. - Don't, don't, don't, don't, don't.
- No, this... he needs to hear this. - No, no. Annie, drop it.
All right, let's talk about the water balloon thing.
- Huh? - Yeah.
Let's talk about the... the disastrous,
- wife-abusive piece. - What about the epileptic in the...
Oh, my Go... The epileptic in the antique shop.
- Tasteful, Mom. - Okay, all right, we get it, we get it.
The pieces aren't the same without you, we know that.
- They're not. - Oh, no, they're not.
- No, shove it! - That's why we're doing this.
Shove it up your ass! We don't need you.
Your mother and I will do it ourselves. We've done it that way for years.
We're trying to be nice.
I thought you might wanna feel part of it again, but to hell with you both.
Baxter, could you at least work the camera?
- But you still want me to film it? - Yes, of course.
- Yeah, grudgingly. - Yeah, you're damn right
it's gonna be grudgingly.
- Go ahead. - Even though it's all...
- it's shoved up my ass? - No.
- This is painful. - It's really tough to watch.
I mean, I knew he didn't like my movies, but I had no idea that he hated them.
Well, what he hates is that he needs us.
Without us, their work sucks.
That's what he hates.
- I'm sorry to bother you. - Oh, it's fine.
- Would you like me to sign... - Baxter, Suzanne.
- Suzanne Crosby? - Oh, yeah, you left a message.
- Yeah, hi. - How's it going?
- We went to high school together. - Yeah, it's okay
- if you don't remember me. - No, I do, I do.
Now, that I'm looking at you, your hair used to be...
- Oh, God, yeah. - And you had a bunch of piercings.
- Am I right? - Yeah, yeah, I still do have a couple.
Oh, yeah? Oh, yeah.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Um, I hope this isn't too weird, you know, I-I saw you.
I happened to be here.
- So I just thought I'd say hello. - Sure.
She's got a writing class she wants me... Well, you heard on the message.
- This is my sister Annie. - Hi.
- I-I don't mean to be pushy. - You're not.
I just... I just think the students would love to hear you speak.
You being from the area and making such a name for yourself.
- Oh, I don't know about that. - Oh, come on.
Oh, say yes.
- Yeah. - Say yes.
- I'm thinking about it. - Oh, come on.
- Let me... It's, uh... - Well, you know, no pressure.
I'm easy, so just...
- You have the information, um... - Yeah, I'll get ahold of you.
I'll... I'll, uh...
- It's good to see you. - Okay.
- Good to see you. Bye. - Thanks, good to see you, too.
She's adorable.
Yeah.
Oh, look alive. They hooked one.
That poor cashier, she doesn't get paid enough to handle this.
Oh, shit, he's giving it to him.
What is that? She's giving him the sandwich.
- She thinks it's real? - I don't know. She thinks it's real.
Okay, see what happens.
She... she give it to 'em...
What the hell... hell is going on?
You can't rely on anybody these days to make a public piece of art.
Give me one of those.
- Hello. - Hi.
- I'd like one free sandwich, please. - Sure thing, here you go.
Thank you. Wait, don't I need a coupon?
Okay.
I got this from some shady-looking characters
over by the Orange Julius.
It doesn't, uh, seem on the up-and-up.
- No, it's good. - I... I think that's fake.
- I don't think so. - It is, though.
I want you to look at it for two seconds, you tell me if that's real.
Do you want the sandwich or not?
- Let me talk to your manager. - Sure.
Hey, Charlie, will you come over here for a second?
Hi. What can I do for ya?
- Is the manager not at work today? - Oh, no, he is.
You got him.
That coupon is fake.
Oh, no, it's fine, sir.
- Have you looked at it? - I did.
- It's official. - It's not official.
It does not look to be official to me. That's a fake.
And you've handed out all these free sandwiches for counterfeit coupons?
You're a fool, and your people are fools.
Sir, please just take your free sandwich and step out of line.
I wouldn't eat that shit sandwich if you paid me.
Okay, sir, I will call the police.
You have the tiniest responsibility.
You just have to do your job. I do the rest.
All you have to do is let the thing happen.
What is wrong with people these days?
I do the work, you get to witness the beauty.
That's all you have to... Stop that.
You don't record me, I record you.
This is supposed to be art, not some YouTube video.
- Well, honey, let's just leave. - Didn't I say this would happen?
You thought they'd solve everything. They've only made things worse.
You did this. Hey! Hey!
- You! You did this. - Honey, let's go.
I think they're losing it.
- Their artistic sensibility? - No, their minds.
- Yeah. - Their...
I mean, he's always had a odd idea of what constituted art,
but come on, that was almost silly.
Did he really think he could lead a coop on the Chicken Queen?
I don't know.
Maybe we should've helped them.
- "Help them"? - Yeah.
No, Annie, come on. Absolutely not.
They're struggling. We all are.
Well, it's not the same, though.
Besides, helping them wouldn't solve anything.
It would turn us back into kids. Is that what you want?
Hey, your father and I have decided to go to the Berkshires for a few days.
Berkshires, huh? Great.
- When? - Tonight.
Is this because of the Chicken Queen?
What a disaster.
Great art's always difficult, though, right?
What'd you say?
I just said what you tell us, that great art's always difficult.
Do me a favor, don't talk about things you know nothing about.
Okay. Deal.
I found something weird.
- That is weird. - There's like 100 of these
in the back of my closet.
- What do you think they are? - I don't know.
Maybe a fan sent them?
I mean, remember that lady who sent all those teeth in the Ziploc bags?
They're actually kind of great. I mean, look at the detail in them.
- Yeah. - What are you doing?
- Hi. - Don't look at those.
Oh, no, shit. No, no, no, no, no, no, no.
- No, no, no, no. - What's wrong?
I... I... I don't know. God damn it.
Where did these paintings come from?
- They're mine. - They're yours?
- You did these? - Yes, I did.
Since when did you start painting, Mom?
How do you think I got into art school?
I stopped when I met Daddy.
- So he doesn't know about these? - Oh, good God, no.
If he ever found out that I'd started painting again,
I'd be such a betrayal.
Why is this door locked?
- We're, uh, we're talking. - About what?
Our feelings.
Ugh, meet me in the car.
I want you to have these. Here, that's for you.
That's for you.
Promise me that if I die before your father,
you'll get rid of all the others.
So let's... let's put these back.
- They're amazing. - Oh, I'm sure they're just paintings.
They're pretty great, Mom.
Yeah, thank you.
The fridge is full,
so you are welcome to whatever is in there.
- Thanks, Mom, have fun. - Thanks.
Give me a kiss.
- Drive safe, Dad. - Yep.
You look after your brother.
- It's only gonna be a couple of days. - I know.
- I'll be fine. - Bye, Daddy.
Stay out of our room.
Will do.
- Why is she crying? - She always cries at good-byes.
Oh.
# I pawned everything #
# That I had this morning... ##
You know, as awkward as yesterday was,
I really think I've cleared a hurdle.
- Oh, yeah? - Yeah.
I was thinking about what, um,
what that stupid "Esquire" guy said.
That every time I make a... I don't know... make a mess of things,
I'm just doing exactly what child A always did.
But when I think about it, it pissed me off that was right...
That he was right on the money, right?
Exactly, Baxter, he was right on the money.
- Mm-hmm. - And yesterday, I didn't do that.
Mm-mm. Child A stood up to them.
And that's thanks to child B, right?
Yeah, we're helping each other. We're breaking old patterns.
Like a couple of Dr. Phils.
We're getting better. Come on, I haven't had a drink.
- You haven't had a pill. - Well, oops.
- Baxter. - Me ear hurt.
Anyway, but something's working.
- You know? - Mm-hmm.
And when Mom and Dad realize that we're not kids anymore,
which they have to do, we could have a healthy family.
Healthy life. Do healthy things together.
Take a trip.
Grand Canyon.
In a Winnebago.
- Sounds terrible. - Well, I'm just spitballing.
Come on, don't bring me down.
Good morning, ma'am.
Would you mind coming down to the station?
There's a situation we'd like to talk to you about.
Now, the car that is registered to your parents
was found at a rest stop on Route 22 just before the Massachusetts border.
They were not with the car, but there were, I'm afraid,
signs of a struggle and quite a bit of blood.
We checked the security cameras
and interviewed employees at the surrounding locations,
but we've been unable to come up with anything conclusive at this point.
All signs indicate that your parents are currently missing,
and we have to suspect foul play.
I'm sorry, Sheriff, this is, um...
Our parents aren't missing.
They're artists. This is all a performance.
We know all about their art things.
But the fact is, they're missing from a car
that they were driving, and it's covered in blood.
This is so stupid.
Ma'am, there have been four rest-stop abductions
in the last nine months all along Route 22 and all ending in homicides.
Hang on.
Really?
That's not what this is.
Let's hope not.
Let's hope not, but the crime scene photos
do show some startling similarities to the other cases.
Would it be possible for me to have a look at that?
Did you say four in the last nine months?
And this would be the fifth or the fourth?
- Jesus Christ. Let me see that. - It's fake. Fake blood.
- Can I see it? - This is what they...
this is what they use in a lot of their performances.
The lab will let us know if that is the case.
Ahem.
You think they're dead, right?
We don't know that, but...
it is a possible scenario, yes.
Our parents are probably hiding somewhere now laughing themselves silly.
And as soon as you say they're dead, they're gonna pop up resurrected.
It takes seven years to pronounce someone dead without a body in this state.
Are they gonna wait seven years?
Here's another one.
"College student latest victim in a string of rest-stop murders."
Mm-hmm. They knew about the murders.
They built the entire piece around them.
Do you wanna know why they did it?
Because we wouldn't do the Chicken Queen thing.
We're being punished.
"Local man found in IHOP Dumpster."
A place of healing, my ass. Staging their own death.
- Annie, don't do that. - Oh, God, you're right.
You're right. What am I doing?
Slipping back.
And you wanna know something? This is all Caleb. All Caleb.
That's why Mom was crying when she left, she didn't wanna go.
Why else would she leave those paintings for us to find?
Well, she... she didn't. She hid them.
From him. She wasn't hiding them from us.
They were in my closet.
She wants us to know that she's her own artist.
Right? She doesn't wanna do his art anymore.
Same as us. She is... she is being forced into it just as we are.
We're all being forced into this crap.
And what if he isn't doing that?
What if this is real?
- I mean, just consider it. - Baxter, come on.
- It could be real. I mean, come on. - That's... that's what he wants.
This is what he wants. He wants us to think that they're dead.
It's pretty low, even by his standards, but that's what he wants.
He wants child A, child B crying, doing this.
Mm-hmm. I hope you're right.
- That son of a bitch. - What? What?
That son of a bitch!
If this is an art piece, then they're recording us.
And they've got cameras somewhere.
And they're trying to tape us.
Caleb?
Camille!
I know it! Come on!
But I know that they're hiding somewhere.
Just waiting.
We're... we're going to bed early, we're getting up early,
we're putting our heads together, and we're gonna search for them.
And we're not gonna stop until we find them.
I can't think of anyone.
They didn't have any friends. We're their only relatives.
Well, somebody's helping them.
What are you doing? What is that?
This is a corkboard.
I can't conduct an investigation without a corkboard.
And I am pinning all this stuff to it.
Been through their address books, their emails,
and I haven't really found anything that jumps out.
Don't you think we should let the sheriff do all this?
Oh, no. The sheriff isn't looking for them.
The sheriff is looking for murders.
Yeah, and-and if we do find them,
and they're alive, what then?
What do we do? Do we punish them?
This isn't about punishment, Baxter.
This is about honesty.
This is about saying, "Enough. We're done.
Cut the crap. No more pretending.
You're not dead. We're not in mourning.
We're not gonna play anymore.
We're gonna get on with our lives.
We're gonna be a real family... for once.
Live a real life."
And rent a Winnebago, yeah?
Are you making fun of me?
- No. - I'm doing this for us.
For all of us. You understand that, right?
Okay.
Are you hungry?
No, I have to stay focused.
Watch a few of these.
Stay focused.
I do not feel comfortable doing this, and it's just a bad idea.
Have you ever heard "the show must go on"?
Well, that is what happens when the leading man
crashes his car into a tree on opening night.
- I have to stage manage. - Baxter, Colby is in the hospital...
- Annie. Annie. - ...with a broken collarbone.
This is my final performance of my senior year.
- There are kissing scenes. - I'm an actor.
- I won't be kissing you. - Yes, you will.
- I'll be kissing Romeo. - Played by your brother!
I just heard about what happened to Colby Reed.
- We got a packed auditorium. - It's okay. Baxter's gonna step in.
Miss Delano, are you familiar with the plot of this play?
Baxter knows the lines, Joe, without him, we don't have a play.
Yeah, well, with him, we have incest.
All right, very well. We will do this play.
- There will be no kissing. - It's "Romeo and Juliet."
That's the deal, Miss Fang.
You're gonna be great. Go get dressed.
Though grant for prayer's sake.
Then move not, while prayer's effect I take.
Thus from my lips, by thine, my sin is purged.
Then have my lips the sin that they have took.
Sin from thy lips?
Give me my sin again.
You kiss by the book.
People are laughing because of you. You are ruining...
Good even to my ghostly confessor.
Romeo will thank thee, daughter, for us both.
Wait... no, no.
No. No. No, no, no, no, no.
Bravo!
- You were... It's the best... - I really appreciate that.
...Shakespeare I've ever seen.
- B, telling you, so good. Very best. - That was so good.
- What's that? - Miss Delano.
- Couple minutes, kids. - Get in the car, come on.
- Quite a night, right? - I was just fired, actually.
- What? - Oh, it was worth it.
- Tonight we did what theater should do. - But it wasn't your fault.
Oh, I knew what I was getting into.
I told your parents when we were preparing this thing
that the best art always leaves scorched earth in its wake.
Scorched earth.
What do you mean "when we were preparing this thing"?
Your parents didn't tell you?
It was their idea, but I was honored to be a part of it.
You might not believe it, but I studied...
at my university... I studied in the Experimental Theater Wing, so...
Um, your parents are two of the most important avant-garde artists of our time.
Of course I helped them.
Well, what about Colby Reed?
How'd you know he'd just crash his car?
Oh, your parents took care of him.
No, no, no, no. Goodness, no.
Um, they paid him $500 to drop out of the play.
The crash was just bad luck.
Why would they do all that?
For art, darling.
For art.
We're such cattle. You know, people need to be shaken up.
Snap out of it. Look around, see things in a new way.
- That's what we try to do in our work. - That's right.
Because if you shake something up hard enough, it gets transformed.
It's not really about what we do.
- It's what they do. - Yeah.
- The people watching. - Yes.
Our work hasn't an affect on them 'cause we wake them up.
- We bring them back to life. - Mm-hmm.
It's a resurrection.
Another reflection of the human condition?
No, you know it's not.
Who wants to see a reflection of the human condition?
I suppose that happens when our pieces are shown in galleries.
"Oh, look what they did. Look how people responded.
It's so human and wonderful."
But that's not the art. To me, by then, you know, it's over.
Yeah, we really only do gallery shows to get grants.
Mm-hmm.
The art is in the actual moment, as it's happening.
Real people really responding.
The actual human condition, not some artist version of it.
- Isn't that just life? - Yes, exactly.
Not a reflection of life but life itself.
Art and life, life and art, we make them interchangeable.
And both are enriched because of it.
Do you think other art can do that?
No. What, painting?
Photography? That's the opposite. That's death.
Art happens when things move around, not when you freeze them in a block of ice.
- God! - That was art.
You're crazy.
This is not.
- See? - Cheers.
- Right? - That's right.
- Did I surprise you? - You surprised me.
You always do, don't you?
Anyway, that's what I mean.
- Hey, Baxter? - Yeah?
The "Romeo and Juliet" thing,
that was when it all stopped being simple, isn't it?
- Well, isn't that why you left? - No.
I thought I left because I went to college.
Hey, why are you getting dressed up?
I wanna look the part.
What part?
The part of someone who gets up in front of a class and isn't completely petrified by it.
- You're going? - Yeah, is that wrong?
Uh, I just think it's a little strange.
I mean, come on, making public appearances
- when your parents are missing? - Yeah, well, I need the distraction.
Oh, Baxter.
Well, then, I wanna go.
- I wanna hear you speak. - I'm not really gonna be speaking.
I'm just gonna be answering their questions.
- I don't care. I wanna go. - All right.
I don't want you jumping in, though, okay?
They just... they wanna hear from me.
- I won't say a word. - Good.
- What do you think? - I think, um...
I don't know, lose the ear thing.
Well, that's there for medical reasons, but...
Well, I think it looks a bit...
- Like I've been hurt. - ...distracting.
They won't listen to your...
It's not working with this or this, right?
- 'Cause this is... - Just lost the ear thing.
...pretty tight.
So this is Baxter Fang.
Author of "House of Swans,"
which was nominated for the coveted Golden Quill award.
His second novel, "The Underground," was befitting a second novel.
A more complex and divisive book.
That's fair.
Uh, he's gonna talk to us today about the creative process.
Baxter, take it away.
Okay.
Don't wanna do just questions? I can...
All right, let me... let me present...
I'll present to you the, uh,
how... I work. I'll tell you how I write.
I write by computer. I do it all on computer.
And...
and I... I chew gum.
I find that very helpful.
Maybe you could speak in more general terms?
You know, like what drives you
- to put pen to paper. - Yeah.
A little more general, generally,
- more general terms. - Yeah.
Good, good.
Let's see.
Sometimes I get horrible thoughts in my head.
You guys ever get horrible thoughts in your head?
You know, I can't get 'em out, so it helps me to write them down.
Uh, when I... when I was a kid,
I thought a lot about this... this one...
I mean, I thought about what would happen my parents died.
And, um...
And I couldn't get it out of my head.
Can't, couldn't, can't.
And... and you don't wanna think about it,
but if you do get stuck with it, I suggest you write it down.
That's what I did.
Um, I've...
Well, my sister and I don't have relatives.
So in my story, we get... we get taken to an orphanage.
And... and this orphanage is run by this woman.
And she mistreats all these kids, she's very harsh to them.
And my sister and I,
we... we put up with... with all the...
the harsh treatment for months.
And then we figure out a... a way to escape.
We... One night under cover of darkness,
we go to this... this incinerator chute.
We get out the bottom of the chute,
and we scoot off across this field of beets.
I have it as a field of beets.
Anyway, so this is a field of beets, and we're running across it, we're running across,
and we're looking over our shoulder and all is good.
We make it, we get to the other side and there's this peaceful forest.
And we go into this forest, and it's...
We think that all the hardship is behind us,
but then, suddenly, a sack goes over our heads.
And we're taken away into this underground, like, lair.
And there's all these other kidnapped kids in there.
And another chapter of misery would kind of start from there.
I don't have that part yet, but...
Anyway...
Anybody ever have terrible thoughts like that?
- I do. - Do you?
All the time.
Just write 'em down.
It's helpful, for me at least.
You know, if I can't get it out of my head, I just... I write 'em down.
Even if they're super weird, I can control them.
And I can... I can...
I can just, you know, I can control my world.
You know, with writing.
That's what writing is for me.
Just...
You have five new messages.
- First new message. - Hi, this is Ann Amata from Art...
- Second new message. - This is WMAC in Albany.
We're hoping to schedule an intervie...
- Third new message. - Hey, this is Eddie Sanchez...
Fourth new message.
Hey, this is, uh, Sheriff Hale. I said I'd call when the blood results came back.
I'm afraid that, uh, the blood at the scene
does match your dad's DNA profile, so it is real.
Which, obviously, none of us wanted,
but it does mean that we have a serious situation here.
So we'll need to dig a bit deeper into the investigation as we discussed.
I'd appreciate a call back. Thank you.
That doesn't mean anything.
Caleb's done crazier things than draw his own blood.
You know that.
Good night.
Baxter! I think I found something.
You were wrong! You were wrong.
When you said that they didn't have any friends, you forgot about Hobart.
- Who's that? - Hobart Waxman.
Their mentor.
If they told anyone about their disappearance, they would've told Hobart.
Can we talk about this tomorrow?
'Cause I'm right in the middle of this.
- Middle of what? - I'm writing my book.
I just... I thought of something really good, and I'm...
Oh, wow.
- That's exciting. - I'm excited about it.
So what are we gonna do about Hobart?
He's gotta be dead or pretty close to it.
Then we better find him soon.
- Annie... - Come on.
- ...I'm not only... - No, no, no, don't do this to me.
Don't make me do it by myself. You promised.
You promised that we'd help each other.
The first year I was in Hobart's class,
we went to see a piece by the artist Chris Burton,
who's work Hobart did not care for.
Chris Burton's a hack. A complete and utter fraud.
So we're at Burton's gallery,
and he tells us he's gonna be shot, today.
Sure enough, an assistant pulls out a gun and shoots him.
In the arm.
I was shocked. I thought it was thrilling.
And I made the mistake of saying so in class.
- So Hobart turns on me, and he says... - It's horseshit!
Art could never happen in a control environment.
That's not art.
I don't know what it is... taxidermy.
I mean, who the hell cares if you let somebody
come and shoot you in the goddamn gallery?
There's no danger. There's no... no surprise.
No, it needs to take place in the world,
around people who just don't know that it's art.
That's the way it has to be.
He was so disappointed in me.
I had to make it up to him somehow.
Caleb and I were dating, and he asked me if I could run a camera.
So we hunkered down in a classroom on the fifth floor of the history building
with a window that overlooked the courtyard,
and we waited for Hobart to pass by.
# Honey'd sweet apples #
# They're rotting away #
# Millions of people never start in the race #
# There's stuff on our plates that has not been alive #
# Someone pays full price #
# For my cheap flight life #
Oh, my God. Oh, my God.
# Sunshine... #
He shot me with a crossbow.
I... I shot him with a crossbow.
- He almost used a rifle. - I...
- And thank God you didn't. - He knew what was gonna happen.
He just didn't know when.
There was a card in my pocket. Said "I've been wounded by a friend."
It was chaos.
Screaming, blood, silence.
I remember lying there thinking, "Oh, this is so beautiful."
He... he refused to give them my name.
- He's a good guy. - Yeah, he's all right.
- Hobart, you fat fuck. - Hobart.
# Sunshine #
# We all see the same sky ##
Wow.
It doesn't look like there's anybody here,
- so what now? - Even better.
Let's find an open door, search the house.
Hang on, what are you talking about?
Come on, let's split up.
- Quick. - We're just gonna break in?
- Yeah. Come on. - Annie...
Don't move, honey.
- I'll put a hole in your boyfriend. - He's got a gun.
Take it easy, Hobart. You know us.
Annie. Annie Fang.
Holy shit.
- Is this Baxter? - Yeah, Baxter.
Baxter Fang.
I'll be damned.
So can you take the gun out of my back now, please?
Oh, hell, I don't have a gun.
- Just my finger. Bang, bang. - Oh.
You got me.
Annie, I haven't seen you since you were a bit of a thing.
I watched all your movies, though.
And you, too, Baxter.
- Those books are terrific. - Thank you.
Well, not that second one. That was...
- Not for you? - But the first one...
- that was very good. - Thank you.
Yeah, that second one...
second one was... that was a challenge.
Third one's gonna be good, though.
So I read about your parents. Awful story.
Think they're really dead?
- Well, I think it's very, very... - No. No, no, I don't.
- ...possible. - I think you're helping them.
Is that why you're here?
You're the only one who believes in them enough to not tell anyone else, so...
They love you.
They most certainly do not.
We had a falling out years ago.
- Really? - Is that right?
Mm-hmm.
- Really? - Yeah.
Well, what was it about?
It's not my place to say.
- Can I offer you a little advice? - Sure.
Stop looking for them.
It was a bad idea tangling up family and art.
It...
But maybe you're free of that now.
You need to stop thinking of this as a sleight.
Start thinking of it as a gift.
Yeah.
Gift.
- I know I shouldn't. - What is this?
They were lost after you left.
The work suffered terribly.
So a few years back, I offered to finance a documentary on them.
To celebrate what you'd all done.
But also to close that chapter so they could move on to something new.
A documentary.
Yeah, it was... it was a terrible idea.
We never released it, obviously.
But you asked about, uh, falling out...
Tell me, did you ever think that what you were doing
might have an adverse effect on the children?
No, children are amazingly resilient.
When my cousin Jeffrey was two, he got stuck in a well for three days.
And now he's got a family and he sells vinyl siding, so there you go.
And when did you decide that you wanted to use them in the work?
A was a baby, and to be honest, after she was born,
I was... I was miserable.
I thought this is the end of our life.
- As artists. - Obviously, as artists,
because, and I've heard this over again,
children kill art, they just do.
You have them, and the passion you had
for creative expression becomes secondary.
Some people believe that.
I went into a terrible funk, but then the most wonderful thing happened.
Near Christmas, we took the baby to see Santa at the mall.
It was my idea. I thought it'd be cute.
We grab the camera, we go down there,
and I put A on this rancid hobo's lap,
and she, of course, screams, but in a way I'd never heard.
It was like something conjured by the dark arts.
Like a hoard of demons were gonna fly out of her mouth.
And poor Santa's trying to shake her loose.
The elves go running for the break room.
Families grab their children and run from the line.
It was pandemonium, and an epiphany for me.
I thought, "Children don't have to kill art.
Not if they are the art."
For the first time I thought, "Hey...
I think I want kids."
- Jesus, don't say that. - It's true.
Um, you know, I don't want that in there.
- Um, I want that whole... - Why?
- ...last section cut. - Why?
- What he said about the kids. - That was great... that was great stuff.
- Hobart, no. - What? But...
- What's the point of doing this... - If you... if you put that in there...
- ...if we're not gonna tell... - ...I swear, I-I'm not coming back.
- I'm done with this. - No, what are you...
- No, not unless you promise me. - If we're gonna tell the story,
don't we have to tell the real story?
Baxter, I know how to find them.
Oh, Annie, it's late. Go to bed.
No, no, no, no. Mom's paintings.
We... we do this gallery show.
We call it "The Hidden Art of Camille Fang"
and we promote it like a memorial and then Caleb will come out of hiding.
He will be incensed. He will rail against it.
- What do you think of that? - Annie, Annie, please.
- What do you think? - Come on.
- I think you're drunk. Come on. - I'm not drunk.
- I can smell it. - No, I've had a drink, I'm not drunk.
Turn off that goddamn light right now and go to bed, Annie.
This is such a good idea. Listen to me.
Stop watching that fucking documentary!
- I have a friend who has a gallery. - You sound like an idiot.
- And he can... - I'm finished with this. I'm all done.
I'm done helping you with this search.
I'm done with the road trips and the... and the corkboard.
I'm doing all this because I'm your brother, Annie, and I love you.
And I think that it... you might need all this stuff to help you
get through all this stuff with Mom and Dad,
but I'm starting to think that you're just avoiding it.
Avoiding what?
I think you're just avoiding the truth.
Come on.
And if they're not dead,
they want everyone to think that they are, including their own kids.
So if we find them, what difference does it make?
You can't say anything to them to make them change who they are.
- You don't know that. - Yes, I do.
And for some reason, you've got some crazy idea in your head
that suddenly they're gonna stop being who they are.
And that they're gonna stop doing the things that they do.
And being the people that they are, Annie.
That they're suddenly gonna become these normal parents,
and that's gonna help you fix all of your... stuff.
It's just not gonna happen.
We can't fix them, we can only fix ourselves.
Can we, though?
Yeah.
I think we can.
And moving on is a start.
You think they're dead, don't you?
You thought it the whole time.
I don't know.
If they're dead, it's horrible.
But if they're not dead...
it's kinda worse.
In a lot of different ways.
So either way, I just think they're gone, you know?
- Hi. - Hi.
Find anything you like yet?
- I got my eye on a couple of things. - Yeah?
What's this music?
Oh, this is, I don't know, something from my parent's collection.
If you like it, I can get you a deal.
What about, um, what about this?
What about this instead?
That you can have.
- Really? - Yeah.
- Annie won't mind? - No, it's mine.
- I won that. - Even better, even better.
- I'm giving that to you. - How do I look?
- You look good. - Is it good?
- Yeah, try it on. I'll bet it fits you. - # Kill all parents #
- Yeah. - # Kill all parents #
- Come on. Through here? - # Kill all parents, kill all parents #
Hang on a second, hang on a second.
# Kill, kill, kill all parents, kill all parents #
# Kill all parents, kill all parents #
# Kill all parents... #
Hey, Annie.
# Kill all parents, kill all parents #
- Do you hear that? - # Kill all parents, kill all parents #
- # Kill, kill, kill all parents # - That sound familiar?
- # Kill, kill, kill all parents # - Yeah.
- # Kill all parents, kill all parents # - Sure is.
# Kill all parents, kill all parents, kill, kill ##
"The Vengeful Virgins"?
What...
Song four... "KP Kill All Parents."
- Is everything okay? - Let me see that.
"Kill All Parents" is a Fang song.
Annie and I sang this in a piece as kids. Annie wrote this song.
Didn't we sing this at Central Park, and Dad's camera was destroyed.
There's no footage.
- The only way that they'd know about... - Yeah.
...this song is through you, me, Mom, or Dad.
"The Vengeful Virgins recently signed to Light Noise,
a tiny indie label based in the Northwest.
Lucas and Linus Bolts are 14, self-taught musicians
obsessed with the apocalypse and still living in Massachusetts.
Why am I so afraid they're gonna kill us?
They're not gonna kill us.
- We're just looking for information. - Yeah, okay.
You ready?
Okay, you're looking for an address book, lyric sheet,
- diary, anything that's helpful. - Yeah, got it.
- You remember your lines? - I do. I got it.
- You wanna run it? - No, I don't wanna run it.
- Hi. Is that Linus? - Lucas.
Mm, Lucas.
50-50 shot.
Um, we're the writers from "Spin." "Spin" magazine.
- We you not expecting us? - No.
- Oh, that's weird. - No?
I'm Jana Day. This is, uh, Pete Sanders.
- I'm Pete. - And, um, we're here to do the, uh,
the profile on you and your brother
- for the magazine. - Yeah, we're supposed to do an interview.
Usually interviews go through our manager.
- Yeah, we did that. - Sure.
- Oh, this is strange they didn't... - Yeah, did nobody call you?
...give you a heads up. I mean, come...
Anyway, can we come in because this isn't gonna get it done, so...
Hey, there's Linus.
- Who are they? - "Spin" magazine.
They wanna do a story about us.
- How's it going? - Yeah, you might even get the cover.
- That's true, that's true. - So, uh, mind if we jump in?
- Hmm? - Is that all right?
Just, uh, just start talking, you know?
What kind of guitar do you play?
Hey, uh, do you guys mind if I use your restroom?
It's down the hall.
- Is that down this way? - Yeah.
Thank you.
Um, I got it from a catalog.
Some cheap thing. We don't care about instruments.
Great. Uh...
what are your influences?
Um, we like speed metal, I guess, but we're not good enough to play it.
We listen to some rap.
Cool.
Great.
And, uh...
tell me about the song "KP."
Um, what do you wanna know?
What made you write it?
We just thought people should kill their parents
if they wanna do anything good with their lives.
It's a stupid song, really.
- You didn't write the song, Lucas. - Yes, we did.
- We wrote it. - No, you didn't.
And I'm gonna write an entire article about it unless you tell me who did.
- Yeah. You set? - Be careful.
- Pan down, pan down on it. - Okay. Oh, my God.
- Oh, God, it hurts. - Are you all right?
- Yeah, yeah. - Good, good.
Okay, good, that's good. That's good. That's enough. Okay, spread it around.
- Yeah. - Okay, spread it around.
Yeah, okay.
Put it right on the steering wheel.
All right.
You didn't write it. Who taught it to you?
Come on.
- Who? - I think you should go.
- Where'd you get that song. - Hey, Annie.
- Shh. Where'd you get the song? - Okay, we didn't write it.
But it was the first song we played,
so we put it on the album because we knew it so well.
Of course you didn't write it. You wanna know why? I wrote the song.
What is this?
They said they were from "Spin,"
Mom, but I don't think they are.
Go play out back, boys.
- Miss Delano? - What the fuck?
I said go out back.
Where are our parents?
Leave us alone, please.
Just let us live our lives.
Tell us what you know about them.
- I can't. - Why not?
A and B.
I'd like to say I'm surprised, but I'm not.
I should've known you'd find me.
Where's Mom?
Uh, she doesn't live here.
Do you?
Pay attention, Caleb.
You've obviously been working on this for a very long time.
And Baxter and I, we wanna ruin it for you very badly.
We want it to explode in your face,
and that is what's gonna happen unless you tell me exactly what I wanna know.
- Didn't I warn you? - Shut up!
What the hell is this?
That's our family.
How long ago was this taken? Look at this.
- Seven years ago. - Bonnie's my wife.
- Really? - It's complicated.
Yeah.
Those boys love Caleb, so don't you ruin that.
- Stop. - He's been a wonderful father to them.
He goes to baseball games and concerts.
And you don't need him, we do.
You can think what you want, but he dotes on the three of us.
You stop talking!
You take us to Camille.
- Yeah, let's go see Camille. - Yeah.
- You take us to Camille right now. - Come on, let's go.
Okay, now give me a rag or something.
- All right, I got one. - Oh, my God.
I can't believe you slashed your arm like this.
- Ridiculous. - We needed the blood.
- What's Mom's fake name? - Patty Howlett.
- She have a fake family, too? - No.
See, Bonnie inherited this cabin up north.
Mom's been spending summers there
getting to know people in town so it wouldn't be suspicious when she settled there.
So this has been in the works for a while.
For several years, yes.
We had to be thorough, create new identities
we could slip into when Caleb and Camille died.
We needed social security numbers, bank accounts, tax history.
Otherwise, it wouldn't have worked.
It didn't work!
Hello, Annie, Baxter.
Hello, Patty. Here's how this is gonna go.
You're gonna answer a couple of questions,
and then you're gonna do what I tell you next.
Let's start at why.
The work. Why else?
This was meant to be our defining work.
An event so large,
it would overshadow everything we'd done before.
But then it became clear that you no longer saw value in our work,
and we knew we couldn't trust you with the plan.
We kept it from you.
So you suckered in Ms. Delano instead? To help you?
We didn't sucker in anyone.
She came on willingly long ago.
Some people appreciate our work.
Um, he and Bonnie were to live
as husband and wife in appearance only.
And that worked for a couple years,
but things happen.
You're adults, you know that.
Hold on a second.
You're actually the father of those boys?
Every piece has its... its own complications.
And for what it's worth, the boys did help the cover story.
Wow. You actually replaced us.
- No one replaced anyone. - You didn't wanna work with us.
- Why did you put up with all this? - The art.
Everything we've ever done is for the art.
No, it wasn't just the art, Caleb, you know that.
Everything I do is out of love for you.
And I... See, I made him a promise after you were born.
He wanted to leave.
And I swore to him that if he figured out a way
to be happy and still stay,
then I'd always do the same for him.
- Even sacrifice your own children. - Don't say that.
Come on, when push came to shove, every time, you chose him over us.
For God sake, you talk like I'm a monster.
We had a good life, you were happy children.
You forget how fun those pieces could be.
- The thrill of leaping in. - Oh, give me a break.
No net, not knowing what was gonna happen.
You're telling me that wasn't fun? The adventures we had.
What did other kids do, go to the Grand Canyon?
Disney World? We did something important.
I think I would've preferred Disney World, okay?
- If you're asking. - And a mom and a dad.
I've always loved you kids.
Whatever ambivalence I might've felt early on, it turned into love.
As long as we didn't do shitty movies and compromise your artistic sensibilities.
What, I'm not allowed to disapprove your choices?
That's like the main thing parents do.
What's your take on The Vengeful Virgins?
That stupid CD, that damn song, it nearly ruined everything.
Promise your dad that you won't tell.
No, we're pulling the plug.
This little piece is over.
- The hell it is. - The hell it isn't.
I'm gonna take this, I'm gonna go right to the press.
- You give that to me. - No.
You're gonna ruin years of work because your feelings got hurt.
Just come on, just be reasonable, both of you, and just don't blow this up.
Well, that's what we Fangs do, we blow things up.
Look, we get it. You think we damaged you.
Fine, my parents damaged me, her parents damaged her.
You have kids, you're gonna damage them.
That's what parents do, so what?
I'm not a young man anymore.
This is the last big thing I'll ever make.
Come visit once a year and just please don't tell.
You want us to pretend your dead?
Sure.
We can do that.
Come on. Give it to me.
- We can do it. - Yeah?
- Well, thank God that's over. - Okay.
Let's go.
You may not understand or appreciate or value what we do,
but you cannot deny its relevance,
its... its effectiveness.
Everything we did woke you up.
Made you look at your life anew.
That's what we do for people.
That's what we've always done.
And that's a good thing.
Yeah, yeah, I supposed it is.
But you know what happens to those people?
What?
Well, they walk away.
You never see them again.
Keep going to those baseball games.
The boys will like that.
You ready?
I'm ready.
Now, imagine your dead.
Feel yourself go numb.
Start with your fingers, move to your hands,
your wrists, right on up to your elbows.
Everything is dead.
If we can imagine our own deaths
but still manage to come back to life,
then it proves that we can survive anything.
"Don't be afraid.
Own the moment.
If you're in control, then the chaos will happen around you, and not to you.
You understand?
The children nodded and the pit master
threw open the door that lead to the arena.
A roar came rolling down the tunnel.
The eager spectators were out there.
Rachel took her brother's hand and began their walk to the pit.
They knew this was their job...
to fight the others, to do unspeakable acts
in order to please the adults who watched over them.
But still, the siblings had each other, and the ability to imagine a better place.
For they truly believed, despite all they had been through,
that happiness was still possible.
That somewhere in the future, they would escape the pit
and find redemption in a new world.
And this is the thought that they clung to, the brother and the sister,
as they held hands
and walked toward the arena
and finally stepped into the light."