Lucky Bastard

[somber piano music]

[birds chirping]

[somber piano music]

Hey.

Daniel.

I'm leaving.

Okay, I'll drive you to the

airport.

No, no, no, I called a cab.

I thought you said you

wanted me to drive you...

No, I changed my mind.

But didn't you say....

No.

Danny.

I want you to think about

what I said last night.

You know what I want.

[phone ringing]

Thanks, thanks, I'll be right

out.

I can't think right now.

Danny.

Hey, you know I love you.

You're going to have to think

about that sometime.

Sometime is coming up.

Happy birthday.

Oh man, hey wait.

Thanks for remembering.

Sure.

I like the new chair.

Yeah, it's good.

It's much more visual than

the last one.

Think so?

Yeah.

Not very

comfortable though.

Yeah, visually it didn't work with

the cushions.

Looks great, sucks to sit on.

I'm representing the firm

for the Athens job,

Charlie told me that I might have to meet

with Bob at the architectural site,

they need expertise on the

architectural structural system

so I might be a little

longer than usual.

If I go to Sydney I'll give

you a call okay?

Let you know when

I'm coming back.

Wait.

We'll talk when I

get back, okay?

But Rusty I'm really, really

tired of living in a hotel.

It's the Tropical!

Janice Joplin died here;

it's like the hottest hotel in Hollywood.

Yes, but I want something

more permanent.

Say hi to Bob for me.

Yeah.

This one is May 1936.

Well that's good,

but not good enough.

Has to be 1935

and July please.

I've got it, June 1935.

June?

June's good, I

could approve June.

It's a month before

the house was finished.

Let's see.

Color is good!

Design is good,

texture is good...

uh, oh, what's this?

What?

Do you see it?

Look, there's a crack.

Yes!

F***!

Keep looking.

You can't even see it!

Garret it has to

be perfect, okay,

you can't put your name on

something unless it's absolutely

perfect, we just have to

keep looking that's all.

Rusty I need a minute.

Sorry, still looking.

Rusty, we'll find a sink okay,

can we have a minute please?

How are we supposed to

find a sink if we're talking?

This is serious.

I got a call from the

Howell's last night.

What?

They're not upset

about the house I hope.

The house is perfect, they can

not be upset about the house.

They love your work.

Okay.

And that's the thing, they

want you to design a house

for their daughter.

Did they find another

Frank Lloyd Wright to restore?

No, they want you to design this

one from the ground up and I

told them it's the chance

you've been waiting for.

They're nightmare

clients, nightmare clients.

I thought I was going to have a

nervous breakdown in the last

house I did for them.

You think you're going to have

a nervous breakdown on every

project we do.

What about the noitra, I mean

I've spent three years of my

life on this project.

You said I should put my

whole life into this project.

Rusty listen to me, I think that

we need to get you moving past

the (inaudible)

restorations, okay,

I mean people are starting to

think that that's all you do.

I got a call from a Russian

magazine last week

about your last restoration.

Magazine, Russia?

Yeah, Russia and I think

they want to do an interview.

Russian magazine?

Rusty I don't think

it's a good idea,

I think it will only perpetuate

the whole restoration thing and

not showcase your

design work.

Should I do an

interview in the magazine?

Rusty the point is even people

in Siberia only think that you

do restorations, okay.

I mean you need to break

out, make some other kind of

statement, move

towards your own creativity.

I don't want to

make a new statement,

I like this statement, I want

to make this statement over

and over again.

I'm about refinement,

I'm a perfectionist,

I've looked at 200

sinks for this job alone!

The house is for

their daughter, okay.

It's her wedding present.

I mean it's on a mountain

top in the desert!

You're going to build a

house from the ground up,

I want you to be creative okay!

And, and, and you're talking to the

Howell's this afternoon, for us!

So you had this

planned all along?

Yeah, you're damn right I did

buddy because I'm the master

planner and you're the

master designer and,

and, you're the

greatest partner in the world,

I just want you to

fuckingg grow.

I don't want to grow.

Well you're going to

grow starting right now.

You know this is in

your best interest!

Yeah, yeah, yeah...

You're such a

fuckingg bastard.

You're an a**hole.

You're what?

I'm assigning Rusty

to a new project.

But Rusty is doing my house.

Yes, and it's almost finished.

I'm taking over, I'm going

to handle all the details.

ls this your idea Rusty?

This is my idea actually.

Rusty is going to be designing

a house from the ground up.

He's moving past restorations.

What restorations?

I spent five million

dollars on this property,

now it's just a restoration?

I didn't say that, l

didn't say anything like that.

We spent every weekend looking

for vintage plumbing Rusty.

We even flew to the

Philippines to look at veneers.

And now you're just

dumping me for some new project.

I didn't dump you guys.

I'll be taking over the completion

aspect of the project.

ls this what you want Rusty?

Well I mean he is the boss.

I'm not the boss, I'm Rusty's

business partner and the house

is almost complete

and Rusty is moving on.

Like hell he is!

I'm calling my

lawyers right now,

I'll see both of you in court.

I thought that went well.

Good, good...

Well, we're going

to the Howell's now,

so we'll get back.

So tell Rusty about the site.

Yes, um, we called Garrett

to see if we could get you to

design a house for our

daughter on some land

we have up in Mullholland.

Yeah, well of course l

would have to see the property,

you know feel it out,

get an idea of the land.

Mother bought it years ago,

I haven't done much with it.

lt's about ten acres.

Ten acres, my God

on Mulholland.

More or less.

lt's some pretty spectacular

views if I say so myself.

Mr. Price, well Rusty,

if I can call you Rusty.

Oh, of course, I think I spent

about two years trying to get

you to call me

Rusty, Mrs. Howell.

Elaine.

Elaine.

The thing is Rusty that we're

so pleased with what you did,

we just wanted to give the

same pleasure to Brookie.

Uh huh.

You see Rusty what she

means-- what we mean is well,

turns out there's this

Gio Ponti up in the hills.

lt's unpublished and it's

unknown as well as untouched

and has been perfectly maintained

by the original builders.

Heard about it this

morning when I was playing golf.

And, um, well Rusty, we traded.

About 15 minutes before

you got here.

You would love it Rusty.

lt's got all the original furniture

that was built for the house.

lt was built by Venezuelan

copper magnet for his wife in

1955, she wanted to

be a film actress.

So you guys aren't

actually building anything?

That's right my boy,

we're giving her the Ponti.

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