Renaissance Man Page #11

from morn til even fought...

and sheathed their swords

for lack of argument.

Dishonor not your mothers.

Now attest that those whom

you called fathers did beget you.

Be copy now to men of grosser blood

and teach them how to war.

And you, good yeomen...

whose limbs were made in England...

show us here the mettle of your pasture.

Let us swear that you

are worth your breeding...

which I doubt not.

For there is none of you

so mean and base...

that hath not

noble luster in your eyes.

I see you stand

like greyhounds in the slips...

straining upon the start.

- [ War Drums Beating ]

- The games afoot.!

Follow your spirit...

and upon this charge cry...

- God for Harry.

- Harry!

- England!

- England!

And Saint George!

[ Men Shouting, Cheering ]

[ Shouting Continues ]

[ Grunting ]

[ Yelling ]

- Come on, Mel!

- Aah!

- [ Melvin Groaning ]

- Who shall be-eth my next victim?

- Yo!

- I cant wait to get back

and do the push-ups.

- [ Laughing ]

- Mel, you slept through

the whole thing, didnt you?

No, I didnt sleep at all.

I really enjoyed it, Mr. Bill.

I cant thank you enough.

The best part was the drummer.

The drummer was the best part

of the whole joint.

Listen, I liked the whole thing.

Everything was great.

I just didnt like them

stupid accents they used.

Thats so stupid.

Why cant they talk like us, right?

- Listen to yourself.

- Listen to you!

- [ Haywood ] Rocky Balboa or somebody.

- [ Laughing ]

[ Haywood ]

Talk about an accent.

[ Benitez ]

Henry Vsays...

[ Imitating Al Pacino ]

Once more into the breach,

dear friends, once more.

Or close the wall up

with our English dead.

- In peace, there is

nothing so becomes a man--"

- As shuttin the hell up.

[ With Cuban Accent ]

Shut the hell up, okay?

- Youre drivin me crazy, okay?

- Okay, okay. I said okay.

- Quiet, now.

- One time you gotta tell me. One time.

- Whered you get that?

- At the theater. Relax, I paid for it.

Hump-ty dump-ty dump

- All together now

- Hump-ty dump-ty dump

Ohh, humpty dumpty sat on a wall

Humpty dumpty had a great fall

Hump, make it funky now

Hump, make it funky now

Hump-ty dump-ty dump

See, I need some

information about a soldier

who served in Vietnam.

- His name is Brian Davis, Sr.

- Okay.

No, wait. It would be,

actually, Brian Davis.

Grand Forks, North Dakota.

Okay. Are you C.I.D.?

Of course Im C.I.D.

Why else would I be here, right?

Excuse me one second.

Excuse me, Sergeant.

He needs--

- [ Speaking Low ]

- He does, huh? Ill handle it, then.

- Hi. No.

- What?

Shes not allowed

to access those files...

without prior authorization

from her supervisor.

Im her supervisor.

But I just told her

I was C.I.P.

C.I.T.?

C.I.G.?

- D.

- D.

Im C.I.D. So, can I

get the records?

- No.

- Aw, come on.

Is that all you ever say?

No.

Hmm. A window of opportunity.

[ Softly ]

Huh?

No?

Mr. Bill, why do we need to know...

every Tom, Dick, and Orsic

in this play anyhow?

Aha.

Melvin, Im glad you asked.

- Where you goin?

- No, no, no.

[ Recruits ]

Oh.! Aw.!

In four days, each

and every one of you...

will be up in front of the class...

facin the firing squad.

- Whos doin the shootin?

- Me.

You never said nothin

bout no damn test.

Nobody asked me. Im the teacher.

- My hands are sweatin already.

- I thought you was my boy.

Give us a ride here.

No more rides, Montgomery.

No more free passes.

Look, um, Mr. Rago, we talked about this.

Im not good at tests.

- [ Recruits Chattering ]

- Look.

You are not dumb.

But I need you to know that.

that nobody gave you anything.

I want you to know what it feels like

to make the grade...

all on your own.

You can do it.

I know it.

Victory starts here.

- [ Man ] Recruits, single file.!

- I need you to fill these in...

and return em with

your attendance sheets A.S.A.P.

I need em for the boys records.

They graduate next week.

- What is this?

- Its a certificate. It says

theyve completed the course.

Oh. Well, they havent. Not yet.

Ill sign em when they pass the test.

Test? What test?

Im giving em a test this Friday.

- Oh, no, youre not.

- Oh, yes, I am.

Look, you dont

kid around with tests in the army.

- Tests are real things here.

- Thats right, including mine.

Look, youve done your job.

The Drill Sergeants

are happy with your guys.

Theyre makin it as soldiers.

They dont need your test.

Youre wrong, Tom. If they pass it,

theyll know they earned something.

And if they flunk it, theyre gone.

This isnt Princeton.

We dont have summer school. You got it?

- [ Exhales ]

- Sit down, please, Bill.

Look, I know you mean well...

but this time listen to me.

Theyre almost there.

Dont do to them

what you did to Hobbs.

This came for you.

[ Hobbs ]

Dear Mr. Rago...

thanks for all your letters.

I dont know what you and

Captain Murdoch wrote to the warden...

but it sure worked cause I

may be gettin outta here soon.

Just wanted you to know

I been reading Othello.

Imagine that:
:

Mr. Shakespeare writin

about a black man way back then...

and a soldier too.

Prison librarian says Im the first

to check out Shakespeare in 1 6 years.

She asked me if I was interested

in signin up for some college classes.

I told her if they had

a few teachers like you...

I just might.

Well, Mr. Rago, like Hamlet says...

""The rest is silence. "

Sincerely...

Nathanial T. Hobbs.

Hey, Mr. Rago,

lets talk about the fight...

Yo, Billy, my boy,

lets get back to the graveyard...

cause them clowns diggin up

them skulls-- thats the mad stuff.

- Yo, whats up with that?

- All right. Okay.

Mr. Rago, does Hamlet

have a last name or what?

[ Montgomery ]

I know you know. You the man.

Yup. Yup. Were gonna

go over everything...

but, uh... but first

I have to talk to you about something.

Um, according to the army...

[ Exhales ]

youre not required to take a test...

to pass this class.

Hallelujah! Hey, yo!

We passed!

I give you an A+, Mel.

Thank you. Well, you get an A+ too.

Now, hold on, Mr. Bill.

What are you sayin here...

that if we fail, we still pass?

No. If you take a test, and you fail...

youre out.

Youre out of the army. Is that clear?

- What?

- Um, you said if we take the test.

Yeah, Davis. The choice is yours.

Hold on. Hold on, Billy. How bout

if we take the test, pass the test?

We get a bonus? We get, like,

keys to a car, cash, a prize maybe?

A little somethin?

Some incentive?

You get a prize.

Yeah.

But you cant drive it...

or spend it...

or even see it.

All you can do is feel it.

What the hell kind of prize is that?

I got a family, all right?

I need this job.

Imagine goin home, tellin your ma

you got a Shakespearean discharge.

- Bill.

- Hmm?

If you get any sadder,

youre gonna trip over your lip.

Im sorry. Uh, Im just not

a fun date tonight.

Aw, just lighten up a little bit.

- People are gonna think I kidnapped you.

- [ Laughs ]

You know, we get to keep these.

- Ah.

- I have a lovely set of 1 6 at home.

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