Knowing

Synopsis: In the fall of 1959, for a time capsule, students draw pictures of life as they imagine it will be in 50 years. Lucinda, an odd child who hears voices, swiftly writes a long string of numbers. In 2009, the capsule is opened; student Caleb Koestler gets Lucinda's "drawing" and his father John, an astrophysicist and grieving widower, takes a look. He discovers dates of disasters over the past 50 years with the number who died. Three dates remain, all coming soon. He investigates, learns of Lucinda, and looks for her family. He fears for his son, who's started to hear voices and who is visited by a silent stranger who shows him a vision of fire and destruction. What's going on?
Genre: Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi
Director(s): Alex Proyas
Production: Summit Entertainment
  1 win & 5 nominations.
 
IMDB:
6.2
Metacritic:
41
Rotten Tomatoes:
33%
PG-13
Year:
2009
121 min
$79,948,113
Website
2,035 Views


Everyone inside now!

Lucinda,

we're going in.

Lucinda!

Lucinda,

we're going in.

Lucinda!

Now, you remember tomorrow

is our official opening day, don't you?

- Yes, Miss Taylor.

- Yes, Miss Taylor.

And you remember Principal Clark

ran a competition last month

to find the best ideas to celebrate

this very special day.

- Me! Me! Me!

- Me! Me! Me!

Well, yesterday,

the staff selected the winning idea,

and it came from this class.

The winner is our own

Lucinda Embry.

Lucinda?

- Why her?

Lucinda?

- Lucinda?

Come on, everyone.

We'll be closing our dedication ceremony

with the burial of a time capsule.

- Yes?

- What's a time capsule?

This is a time capsule.

Wow.

- That's incredible.

Now, I need you

to put your thinking caps on,

because I want each of you to draw

what you think the future

is going to look like.

Then we'll put the pictures in the capsule,

and 50 years from today,

a group of children just like yourselves

will open it up to see what you drew.

Doesn't that sound exciting?

- Yes, Miss Taylor.

- Yes, Miss Taylor.

Let's begin.

That is a lovely spaceship there, Dawn.

Thank you, Miss Taylor.

- Well done.

And that is a nice robot, Andrew.

Very good.

Time's up. Everyone hand your work in.

And make sure you write your name

on the envelope.

My name's over here.

Thank you, Harold.

- Thank you, Miss Taylor.

Lucinda, you need to finish up now.

- Thank you.

- Thank you.

Oh, Lucinda.

The assignment was to draw a picture.

This was your idea.

Okay, I want you all to finish, please.

Welcome to all

our friends and esteemed colleagues.

We, the students and faculty

of William Dawes Elementary,

hereby bury this time capsule

in dedication of our new school,

and we charge our descendents

to open this vault of history

To the future and the promise that it holds.

Lucinda?

Lucinda?

Lucinda?

I'm certain Lucinda

is simply being over curious.

Can you please help find her?

The cloakroom. Check the cloakroom.

Lucinda. Henry, come on.

- Lucinda?

- Come on out now.

Lucinda?

Lucinda?

Lucinda.

Oh, my God.

Make them stop.

Please make them stop whispering.

Caleb? Take a look at this.

There you go.

What is it?

Saturn's rings await your approval.

Has anyone found life on other planets?

Not yet. Guess it's just us for now.

Okay.

Then how many that might have life?

Well, if you count the number of stars

similar to our sun in this galaxy,

then you factor in the probability that

they have Earth-like planets orbiting them...

There are 10 million possible worlds

with four million mature enough

for life to evolve.

Why do you even ask?

Just making sure if you're listening.

- Where you going?

- To watch that Discovery program.

But it's Dad's famous Sunday night

hot dogs on the run...

...time.

I can't consume that.

I've decided to become a vegetarian.

Well, when were you planning on

telling the guy

who buys the groceries around here?

Are you deaf? I just told you now, Dad.

The cubs are now

six months old and bounding with energy,

but, any parent knows,

this is also a mixed blessing.

- Off.

- No, it's almost over.

You're not gonna be able to concentrate

in class tomorrow.

I don't have class tomorrow.

It's the 50th anniversary, remember?

I remember.

Caleb,

when I said it was just us out there,

you know I was talking

about space, right?

I didn't mean heaven, or anything.

- I'm sure wherever Mom is...

- Dad, you don't even believe in heaven.

I never said that, Caleb.

I just said we can't

know for sure, that's all.

If you want to believe,

you go ahead and believe, okay?

Okay. Bedtime.

Hey, you and me,

- together forever.

- Forever.

I love you.

I love you, too.

We're going to pose a topic

to get you thinking along the right lines

for your term paper.

It's the subject of randomness

versus determinism in the universe.

Who's jumping in? Jessica?

Determinism says

that occurrences in nature

are causally decided by preceding events

or natural laws,

that everything leading up to this point

has happened for a reason.

That's right.

That's what determinism says.

Spencer? Tell me something about the sun.

It's hot.

Elaborate.

Temperature's about 10,000 degrees

Fahrenheit on the surface,

- 27 million degrees at the core.

- Good.

Stacey?

A word or two about the composition.

Mostly hydrogen.

Also helium with some carbon

and nitrogen thrown in there.

Excellent. Now, I want you to think

about the perfect set of circumstances

that put this celestial ball of fire

at just the correct distance

from our little blue

planet for life to evolve,

making it possible for you to be

sitting here in this riveting lecture.

But that's a nice thought, right?

Everything has a purpose, an order to it,

is determined.

But then there's the other side

of the argument,

the theory of randomness,

which says it's all simply coincidence.

The very fact we exist is nothing

but the result of a complex

yet inevitable string

of chemical accidents

and biological mutations.

There is no grand meaning.

There's no purpose.

What about you,

Professor Koestler?

- What?

- Well, what do you believe?

I think sh*t just happens.

But that's me. Class dismissed.

Now, that's some very heavy sh*t

for a Monday morning, by the sounds of it.

Since when does the cosmology

department audit my lectures?

Since my esteemed colleague

in astrophysics owes me a latte.

So what's on

your scientific mind today?

Do you remember Kim's little sister?

Ph-double D's? Remember her?

Is it ethical to say things like that

about your sister-in-law?

What? It's factual. It's peer-reviewed.

I mean, it's like... Anyway, whatever.

- She's in town this Friday.

- Okay.

And she thinks that you're intriguing,

which I thought was code for gay,

but apparently not because she's asked

if you would join us for dinner.

- Yeah, I... I don't know, Phil.

- Come on, John.

Come on, you owe me for last time

you skipped out on me.

- Caleb was panicking.

- Yeah, look, I know.

And the time before that,

he had a sore throat.

- Oh, no.

- What?

- Damn it! Damn it!

- What?

Caleb's ceremony. I'm sorry, Phil.

Hey! Hey! Friday!

I'll think about it!

- This little light of mine

- This little light of mine

- I'm gonna let it shine

- I'm gonna let it shine

- This little light of mine

- This little light of mine

- I'm gonna let it shine

- I'm gonna let it shine

- This little light of mine

- This little light of mine

- I'm gonna let it shine

- I'm gonna let it shine

- Let it shine, let it shine, let it shine

- Let it shine, let it shine, let it shine

Fifty years ago, the students and faculty

of William Dawes Elementary

imagined what the future might hold.

Today, we unveil their legacy.

Now, I'd like to introduce you

to someone very special,

Miss Priscilla Taylor.

Since Miss Taylor was there

for the original dedication,

it's only fitting that we have her

do the honors today.

Wow!

You almost forgot again.

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Ryne Douglas Pearson

Ryne Douglas Pearson (born August 15, 1964) is an American novelist and screenwriter. more…

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Submitted on August 05, 2018

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