Equus

1

Afterwards, he says,

they always embrace.

The animal digs his sweaty brow

into his cheek,

and they stand in the dark for an hour,

like a necking couple.

And of all nonsensical things,

I keep thinking about the horse,

not the boy,

the horse,

and what he might be trying to do.

I keep seeing the huge head,

kissing him with its chained mouth,

nudging, through the metal,

some desire absolutely irrelevant

to filling its belly

or propagating its own kind.

What desire could this be?

Not to stay a horse any longer?

Not to remain reined up forever,

in those particular genetic strings?

Ls it possible, at certain moments

we cannot imagine,

a horse can add its sufferings together,

the non-stop jerks and jabs

that are its daily life...

And turn them

into grief?

What use is grief...

To a horse?

You see...

I'm lost.

What use, I should be asking,

are questions like these

to an overworked psychiatrist

in a provincial hospital?

They're worse than useless.

They are, in fact,

subversive.

The thing is...

I'm wearing that horse's head myself,

all reined up in old language

and old assumptions,

straining to jump, clean-hooved,

onto a whole new track of being

I only suspect is there.

I can't see it, because my educated,

average head is being held

at the wrong angle.

I can't jump, because the bit forbids it,

and my own basic force,

my...

Horsepower, if you like...

ls too little.

The only thing I know for sure, is this.

A horse's head is finally unknowable to me.

Yet I handle children's heads,

which I must presume to

be more complicated,

at least in the area of my chief concern.

In a way, it has nothing

to do with this boy.

The doubts have been there for years,

piling up steadily in this dreary place.

It's only the extremity of this case

that's made them active.

I know that the extremity is the point.

All the same, whatever the reasons,

these doubts are now

not just vaguely worrying,

but... but intolerable!

Forgive me.

I'm not making much sense.

Let me start properly, in order.

MARTINI All right.

Come on. Break it up. Come on!

...Through this gate, into another field.

I couldn't see it,

but I knew I had to get through that gate.

If I could get through it,

then that was it, I could see everything.

All right. All right.

Take one, Mary Ann.

I don't want one.

Mary Ann, come on.

Don't bother me.

You don't have to listen to them

all the time.

Oh, I know, but, uh...

- Why not?

- You want one, take one.

Stop being so ignorant!

All right. All right, now. Settle down.

...Sucking it up?

That's no good. Shall we smash it?

- Yeah.

- Yeah.

No.

No?

Come on, we'll smash it.

No.

All right, now. Now pick up your right leg.

No.

Pick up your right leg, man.

Why'?

Because you'd please me

a great deal if you did.

I said, "No"!

Come on. Up.

Now scream! Jab it! Louder. Go on!

Scream! Scream!

That's it.

It began one Monday,

some months ago,

with Hesther's visit.

Martin, I'm sorry.

I should have called first, I know.

Not at all. You're a welcome relief.

Have a filthy coffee?

No, please, no.

It's really rather urgent.

Take a couch.

Martin, I've just come from

the most shocking case I ever tried.

My fellow magistrates wanted to send him

to prison on the spot.

I mean, luckily,

I got him remanded for a report.

Who's he?

A teenager. The name's Strang.

Ah.

What's he done? Dosed some

little girl's Pepsi with Spanish fly?

What could possibly have thrown your court

into such tory convulsions?

He...

Blinded 6 horses with a metal spike.

- Blinded?

- Yes.

All at once, or over a period?

All at once, the night before last.

Where?

In a stable over at Chalk Ford.

He worked there on weekends.

What did he say in court?

Nothing. He just sang.

Sang?

Martin, you've simply got to take him here.

You think this hospital is suitable?

How dangerous is he?

No, I mean, you, personally.

Now look, Hesther,

before you say anything else,

I can take no more patients at the moment.

I can't even cope with the ones I have.

- You must.

- Why?

Thank you. Oh, for... damn!

Hello, Pat?

Yes. Now, my advice is,

cancel her leave for a month.

See what difference that makes to her dad.

Yes, exactly.

Now, why?

Because there's no one else

within 100 miles of that desk

who can handle him,

and perhaps understand

what this is all about.

The regular hospital will be useless,

and so will the other doctors here.

That's an absolutely

unwarrantable statement.

Well, it's true.

They'll be very cool and professional,

and underneath, they'll be disgusted

and immovably English,

just like my court.

Well, what am I? Polynesian?

Please, Martin.

This is the last favor

I'll ever ask of you.

- No, it's not.

- No, it's not.

I mean, he's obviously abominable.

I know that already.

Why me? Why, Hesther?

'Cause there's something

extraordinary about him.

In what way?

Terrible, if you like.

I don't quite know what I'm saying. I'm...

Just knew I had to come here.

Take him, Martin. It's very important.

What did I expect of him?

Very little, I promise you.

One more dented little face.

One more adolescent freak.

The usual unusual.

Now, this room

will be completely yours.

No one will come in without your say so.

There's a bell if you need anything.

There's a lavatory down the corridor,

2nd door on the left.

I think this is one of the nicest rooms

in the whole place. Don't you, Mr. Pearce?

Absolutely.

Sometimes, I blame Hesther.

She brought him to me.

But of course, that's nonsense.

What is he but a last straw?

A last symbol. That's all.

I was ripe for the confrontation.

Alan Strang, Doctor.

Ah, thank you.

Hello.

My name's, uh, Martin. Yours is Alan.

Won't you sit down?

For today, I just want a few simple facts.

Uh, is... is this your full name?

Alan Strang?

And you're 17, is that right? 17?

You work in an electrical shop

during the week.

Electrical and kitchenware.

Well?

Double Your Pleasure

Double your fun.

With Double-good, Double-good

doublemint gum.

Yes.

Now let's see, you live with your parents,

and your father's a printer.

What sort of things does he print?

Double Your Pleasure

Double your fun.

With Double-good, Double-good

doublemint gum

I mean, does he do leaflets, calendars?

Things like that?

Try the taste of martini.

The most beautiful drink in the world.

It's the bright one

The right one, that's martini

I wish you'd sit down if

you're going to sing.

Don't you think you'd be more comfortable?

There's only one "T" in typhoo.

In packets and in teabags, too.

Any way you make it

You'll know that it's true.

There's only one "T" in typhoo.

That's a good song.

I like that better than the other two.

Sing that one again.

Double Your Pleasure

Double your fun.

With Double-good, Double-good.

Now, listen.

This is not a loony bin. It's not a prison.

If you behave yourself,

you'll have a reasonably all right time.

If you don't, you'll be packed off

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