Dread

Maybe I'm not being clear enough.

Maybe I need to be honest with you

and tell you what I want.

What is it that you want?

I want your soul to open up for me.

Frustration or unhappiness are caused by

the unrealized potential in a person.

Cyrenaic hedonism

supported immediate gratification.

Even fleeting desires were encouraged

regardless of the pain or expense to others.

- Can I bum a cigarette?

- Yeah.

I don't see you

in any of the other philosophy lectures.

Ethics fulfills one of my requirements.

I'm actually a filmmaker.

Are you the real deal or someone

who thinks he's the next Scorsese

because he spent his Friday nights

at the multiplex instead of getting laid?

I'm definitely not the next Scorsese,

and I wasn't getting laid on Friday nights

for reasons far more humiliating

than being at the movies.

- Quaid.

- Stephen Grace.

- Hey.

- Hey.

The philosophy major here is sh*t anyways.

What we should be doing is flirting with

the subject of any worthwhile philosophy.

You know, the things we don't understand,

the things we fear,

because if we don't, then we risk...

Doesn't matter.

We risk what?

If you don't go out and find the beast,

sooner or later,

the beast will come and find you.

Well, I really don't think

I have fears that justify a two-hour lecture.

No? What's the worst thing

that's ever happened to you?

My brother, my older brother,

he died when I was 15.

How did he... How did he die?

A car accident.

He was drunk.

Losing an older sibling

must have given your life a sense of frailty.

Come on. No fear of your own mortality?

No, there's not fear.

It was anger, and it was sadness.

Not fear. Fear would've been selfish.

I'm telling you, I lead a pretty dull life.

Fear doesn't cross my path very often.

- Okay, I'll drop it.

- Thank you.

That's me missing my train.

That's like the 10th time

that alarm's gone off since I've met you.

- I'm just being practical. I...

- Maybe you're afraid to live.

Hey, wake up, honey. We're home.

You tired, baby?

What storybook do you want tonight?

Can I help you?

I was in an accident,

and I need to use your phone.

I'm sorry. My phone is not working.

You'll have to go somewhere else.

Sarah! Sarah! Get out of the house!

Please!

Mama.

This is your mother,

your father.

- Hey.

- Hey.

I didn't sleep well.

Calculus or ethics?

I went out.

- You don't go out when I ask.

- I didn't plan it.

Just... Just kind of happened.

Stephen, there's a police officer here.

He asked me if I knew

where you were last night.

- So much for the golden future, son.

- That's funny.

What are you doing here?

I want you to come by my place tonight.

- Is that everything?

- Yeah.

For what?

I want to talk to you about something.

Proposition.

- What, why don't you just tell me now?

- No, I can't. I gotta go.

Come after work. 64 Pilgrim Street.

- Change.

- Thanks.

Nice to meet you.

Cool birthmark, by the way.

That's it for today.

It's good.

The painting? It's a hobby.

- You have any others?

- No.

I trash them when I'm done.

I can't stand all these eyes staring at me.

Let me change.

So... So, I've been thinking

about something.

So, you've heard of Kinsey, right?

Yeah.

- The guy who did the sex studies.

- Yeah. What if we did a fear study?

Compile a survey on people's fears

and what causes them.

You have access to equipment

through the film program, right?

- And you need a project for your thesis.

- Yeah.

Call it an experiment in catharsis.

To live another's dread vicariously,

that's the...

That's the safest way to touch the beast.

Yeah. See, I don't think I really want to

touch the beast that you're talking about.

Well, then, let's just do it

because it will be f***ing fun

to do something worthwhile.

Well, since you put it that way.

Yeah, that summer my brother died

he bought this old beater of a car.

It was really cool, though.

It was a 1965, eye-shadow blue Mustang.

We drove around all summer in that thing.

I didn't want to admit it that night,

but you're right.

When my brother died,

the first thought that came to mind

was that I could've easily been

in the car with him,

that at 15 I could've died.

So, you're in?

Yeah. I'm in.

Good. Let's celebrate.

- Hey, this is Samantha.

- Hi.

- And this is Zooey, right?

- Yeah.

It's a really cool name.

Have you ever seen the film Killing Zoe?

What?

I said I like your name.

You sh*t.

Don't we use computers for that now?

Don't you know only pricks and terrorists

wear sunglasses indoors?

So, I need an editor for my thesis.

- What do you think about partnering?

- What would be the topic?

Dread.

We're gonna chase the beast,

discover the origins

of people's deepest fears.

Reveal the dark behind the door.

Okay, I'm in.

How old were you

when you had your first nightmare?

The first nightmare I really remember...

I hate moisture.

The worst is when you spill a drink

and your napkin gets all wet

like a fleshy mass.

- Have you ever been mugged?

- Do you believe in the devil?

Have you ever been harmed

by a family member?

Have you ever seen a person die?

What's your strongest memory

of feeling fear?

F***. F***.

- At first it started like a fungus...

- I don't believe in anything.

...but then there was this discharge.

God is man, and man thinks he's God.

When my baby sister was born, my

mother's vagina ripped, like, three inches.

They had to sew her up with frigging twine.

I was 10.

On that day, I vowed to never have kids.

Can we stop?

It turned out there was a worm,

and it had crawled up there

when I was swimming in the lake

by my grandparents' house.

And my pubes,

they started to grow this cheese.

I think we have everything we need.

You know we've had

five classes together. Five.

And this is the first meal we've ever shared.

Well, it's not really a meal.

That's more like a botanical garden.

I'm sorry if I offend you with my roughage,

Mr. Triple Bypass.

- So good.

- I just don't like meat.

Your burger

makes me want to vomit.

Gross. That's lovely.

First meal. Two years.

To be honest, you know, you're probably

one of the people I talk to the most.

Wow. You're such a loser.

What's up?

It's not good enough.

It's a start.

But, "I'm scared of spiders,"

"I'm scared of clowns,"

"I'm scared of Mickey f***ing Mouse. "

Who cares?

Relax.

I don't believe in anything.

What is there to believe in?

Do you set that thing

to tell you when to take a sh*t?

- Give me the f***ing thing.

- No.

...been like ghosts.

Give me the f***ing watch, Stephen.

- I'm not...

- Give me the watch.

- Hey, hey! Wait.

- God. What up, you two? Come on.

You f***ing a**hole.

Stop!

Interview me.

What?

I want to sit.

I grew up in a small town

in upstate New York.

My mom worked at the local supermarket,

and my dad...

And my dad worked at the...

At a meat-packing plant

about 20 miles outside of town.

They'd slaughter cattle there

and supply our markets

with corn-fed organic beef.

Rate this script:0.0 / 0 votes