Project X Page #4

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You'll be out of here

before you know it.

You'll forget all about

this pIace, man.

( jet passes overhead )

( water splashes )

Good night, Jimmy.

Good night.

Hey, don't teach them any more.

You understand?

Come on.

I have to weigh you.

Hey, come here.

Virgil.

I said come back here.

Give me your hand.

Okay, get on the scale.

I said get on the scale.

Get on the scale.

Now stay there.

Would you get on

the goddamn scale?

No. No.

Stop playing.

Not playtime. Understand?

On the scale.

Get on the scale.

Give me that.

What are you--? Give me that.

God damn it, Virgil.

Woman over P.A.:
Lieutenant Maxwell,

please report to operations.

( water running )

Come here.

( screeching )

( all screeching )

( insects chirping )

( phone rings )

Hello.

Hello.

Is this Teresa McDonald?

Mm-hmm.

Jimmy:

Well, you don't know me,

but we have a friend

in common-- Virgil.

What's wrong?

Is he all right?

Yeah.

You're the one who taught him

sign language?

Yeah.

Well, listen, I know that it's

none of my business,

but I don't understand

what he's doing here.

I mean, it must have taken you

a long time to teach him--

Where? Wait a minute.

Where are you calling from?

Lockridge Air Force Base,

where you sent him.

Lockridge Air Force Base?

He's supposed to be

in a zoo in Houston.

Who is this?

I can't tell you.

Listen, I shouldn't even have

made this call in the first place.

If anybody finds out,

they'll nail my ass to the wall.

- Wait a minute.

- I'm sorry.

No, no, wait.

- How are you doing?

- Okay.

Okay, this is where we keep

new recruits

until they're processed

into the program.

I'm sorry,

what was your name again?

Curtis, Sergeant.

Well, Curtis, white neckbands

denote freshmen,

blue-- juniors, and red-- seniors,

kind of like college.

Here's a leash.

Here's a clipboard.

And you can use this key.

Jimmy:
Dr. Carroll, I'm gonna talk

to Colonel Niles today.

I'm gonna ask to be transferred

from the project.

So what's the problem?

I guess I'm just not

cut out for it.

Sit down.

Now, you want to be a pilot.

I know that.

But without these studies,

there's no way we can be sure

that pilots can survive

to complete their missions if they get

subjected to ionizing radiation.

Yes, yes, I know.

Really, I understand that.

It's just--

for example, Virgil--

the one who knows

how to sign--

I know that you don't believe this,

but he knows how to talk.

And it seems to me

that there would be a better use

for him than this experiment.

You've grown very close

to that animal.

And it hurts you to think about

what's gonna happen.

Now listen.

It's perfectly okay

for you to feel that way. It is.

You wouldn't be human

if you didn't feel that way.

And I think that it's good

that you're able to express it.

Now all I can say to help

is that it will get better

and the pain will go away.

Jimmy, what, do you think

I'm some kind of monster?

You think I enjoy having to

sacrifice these animals?

Now, I know you got into some

trouble before you came here,

but since then, you've become

one of the top peopIe

- I've got working in this program.

- Really?

And I intend

to let Colonel Niles know that.

Well, thank you very much.

We'll get you up in the air

again soon, Jimmy.

General:

Well, we'll forgive him once.

Hello, Garrett.

How's it been going?

Oh, fine, thank you, sir.

General, this is

Jake Garrett's son.

Really?

I knew your father well.

Niles:
He's on our

pilot performance team.

Fine. Keep up the good work,

young man.

General.

So the mountain comes

to Mohammed, eh?

Lyn, I hope you have room

for one more tomorrow.

We've got

Senator Dannis coming.

Dr. Carroll:
Oh, I'm sure

we can squeeze the senator in.

Woman over P.A.:

Lieutenant Shine to the vivarium.

Lieutenant Shine to the vivarium.

( music playing )

( horn honks )

Jimmy:

Possible flush for Hadfield.

- Nothing for Eddie.

- Thanks, Jimmy.

- Gary, three.

- Yes.

Okay.

All right, let's make this interesting.

I'm in for a buck.

I see that. I see that.

I see that,

and you see this.

Eddie:

El Paso.

- Check it out.

- How are you doing, beautiful?

- Can I buy you a drink?

- Thanks, I'm leaving.

I see your buck

and I bump you a buck.

Oh.

Read 'em and weep, Jimmy boy--

queen high flush.

Not so fast, Hadfield.

Not so fast.

Full boat,

aces and eights.

Your ass is nailed to the wall--

to the wall.

Jimmy, you are the luckiest son of a

b*tch on Lockridge Air Force Base.

And you are the ugliest son of

a b*tch on Lockridge Air Force Base.

Eddie:
Jimmy, my man,

how about a loan?

- Jimmy:
Uh, sorry. I'm a little short.

- You're a little sh*t.

Excuse me.

Could I buy you a drink?

I don't see why not.

What'll you have?

A beer.

A beer. Two beers.

So what's the gag?

There's no gag.

Hey, it's not that I haven't been

picked up in a bar before,

but who put you up to this?

You did.

You called me last night.

I'm Teri McDonald.

I've been hanging around

this place all night.

I was just about to go back to the motel

when I recognized your voice.

Your name's Jimmy?

You did call me, right?

I couldn't sIeep

after you hung up,

so I got on a plane

and flew down here this morning.

I've been walking around this base

all day and no one seems to know

anything about any work

involving chimpanzees.

Look, you were right to call.

If someone sent Virgil here,

they made a big mistake.

Listen, they're doing

top-secret work here.

If anybody knew that I even talked to

you, I could be charged with treason.

Okay, if I can't talk to you,

who can I taIk to?

Nobody. Listen, the best thing

for you to do

is you just get on a plane

and-- and go home.

No, no, wait a minute.

You called me.

Now maybe you shouldn't have,

but you did.

Somebody lied to me.

They told me he was gonna end up

in some zoo in Houston.

I didn't spend three years

of my Iife training him

to have him end up being tortured

in some military laboratory.

No, he's not being tortured. Nobody said

anything about torture, okay?

They don't put chimps

up in satellites anymore, right?

And I don't think that the air force

is into medical research.

- What am I supposed to believe?

- I don't know.

I don't know.

I can't help you.

- I'm sorry. I gotta go.

- What?

I don't know. I don't mean

to be rude, so excuse me.

They're here.

Garrett, take your pilot

down to the flight chamber

on the double, okay?

Let's hustle.

- She got married?

- She got married, yeah.

- No.

- She did.

Come on, Garrett, on the double.

Go, go, go on.

( whimpering )

- ( screeching )

- Come here.

Krieger:
Come on, Garrett.

Let's not keep them waiting.

Garrett.

- No.

- What?

I'm not gonna do it.

Are you out of your mind?

Do you have any idea what

you're doing? Now come on.

What the hell's going on here?

We're all right, sir.

Just a little disagreement.

Niles:
He kept the wing to see

that he got a good cockpit.

( men laughing )

Niles:

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