Rollerball Page #3

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Say, excuse me.

You're not paying a whole lot

of attention, are you?

- What's this dude's name?

- That's our new speedball from Manila.

Yeah, you know. That's Toughie.

Come on up, Tough.

Oh, he's a big honker.

Say, why don't you do

me and the boys a favour?

Since you know all there is to know,

we'd appreciate it.

Why not give us a demonstration?

Show us how you made that big rep.

Just skate around

and just take me out, huh?

Go get him, Toughie.

Now, eyes. Use 'em.

Don't lock your eyes in one spot. This

game isn't all muscle. Use your head.

Lock your eyes on the target and keep...

Ears. Now, they're real important, too.

If there's anything I love,

it's luxury centres.

When I get my privilege card,

I know what I'm gonna get me, too.

- A secretary.

- What for?

You planning on becoming an executive?

I just need one. About this tall.

Yeah? Why don't you give it a rest?

- Can I help you, please?

- Yeah. I tried to order some books

and they said I had to appear

at the centre personally.

That's right, this is our circulation unit.

Make your choice here or by catalogue.

There must be a mistake.

These books are classified.

They have been transcribed

and summarised.

- Who summarises them?

- I suppose the computers do.

- What do you need books for?

- I wanna study up on some things.

You could go to the computer centre

where the real librarians are.

But we have all the edited versions here.

Anything I think you'd want.

Let's see, then. This is not a library

and you're really not a librarian.

I'm only a clerk, that's right.

I'm sorry, really.

The books are really in computer banks

being summarised? Where is that?

There's a computer bank in Washington.

The biggest is in Geneva.

That's a nice place to visit.

- I guess that's where the books are now.

- Thank you.

It's not that exactly.

Yeah, but books, Jonathan?

Anything you wanna know,

you could hire a corporate teacher.

You could call somebody up,

use your privilege card.

I can't. That's just it.

I think there's something goin' on.

Somebody's pushin' me.

Who? Bartholomew?

But you're Jonathan E. Everybody

knows you. You've got everything!

You know you'll be treated right.

You always have been.

Yeah. I don't know.

Well, I do know. We're livin' good.

You know we are.

I found this to wear.

Is it all right?

That's the uniform of the house.

I'm Daphne.

Yeah. That figures.

It's all right.

Here. Wear these, too.

That's right. No penalties.

Limited substitutions.

You can handle it! You can beat Tokyo!

All we gotta do is change our tactics.

There's always been rule changes.

You know that!

It gets more people to watch the game,

that's all there is to it.

You all signed contracts to finish the

season, no matter what the alterations.

- Every last one of you signed.

- See, now we all signed a contract.

It doesn't matter! We're not gonna lose,

no matter how they change the game.

That's right. That's right.

All it means is a change of strategy.

We knock out their bikers early,

then their skaters.

Don't try to score yourselves

and the game's yours.

Watch yourselves out there!

They're playing the same rules we are.

It's gonna be rough.

But it's still basically the same game.

And the team with the power wins.

That's easy to say, man!

Hey, Rusty.

Hey! Wait a minute.

Hey, Rusty, come on.

Listen, you were talking

about them contracts.

How come everyone else has got

to play with the no-penalty rule

and they're pressuring me to quit?

I don't know.

But can't you do what you're told?

For your own good, get out!

I don't wanna leave the guys to play

Tokyo with the rules breakin' down.

Jonathan, it doesn't matter

what you want!

You think about that.

These are in slow motion to show

the impact of your blows on opponents.

- Yeah, fine.

- We want you to approve the sequences.

It's...

It's all fine with me. Anything.

I really don't see why I'm needed here.

Well, the Energy people

want you to be satisfied.

There, now. Isn't that a marvellous shot?

Sure.

I'm a stat freak myself.

Isn't that perverse?

Have you got anything I can take?

Just take one.

Statistics, huh?

Yes. The greatest number of points

scored in a single game - 18.

The highest velocity of a ball when

actually fielded by a skater - 120mph.

Most deaths...

Please.

Don't do that.

Most deaths - 9. Rome versus Pittsburgh,

December last year.

The greatest number of players put out of

action by a single player in a game - 13.

A world record,

courtesy of your dear self.

There have been studies

of stat freaks in rollerball.

Some go to the track, but they never

take their eyes off the big board.

What's this?

I always wonder if a rollerball player

sees himself as a class apart.

"Hello... pause. "

"I'm Jonathan E... smile. "

"I would like... " This for me?

Very astute. Yes.

It's your retirement announcement.

Your special is already

scheduled all over the world.

You're supposed to read this

as part of the programme.

- What sort of pill did you give me?

- Pure aphrodisiac, Daph. Enjoy yourself.

Can't we finish up here and go home?

You are being recorded.

- Feelin' woozy?

- Try to read the announcement.

I'm all right.

Why don't you read the?

- Oh, yeah. You want that, do you?

- You are making things very...

How many assignments

you been on, Daph?

You're good at what you're good at,

so you must have been around some.

A lot of girls have stayed with me,

but you know that. Never seemed to mind.

But odd thoughts I've had

about you, Daph. Odd thoughts.

- Wondered if you'd been briefed on me.

- I'll ask you to read...

Yeah, a lot of things occur to me, Daph.

A lot of things occur to you?

You look terrible.

You do look terrible.

Come on.

You shouldn't take anything

offered to you just like that.

- What was in it?

- Nothin' to hurt you.

You're too trustin'. Ever think of that?

Hook 'em deep now!

They're good boys,

but they're a bit rough.

As you know,

the Tokyo game is coming up.

You will remember that the Tokyo team

uses karate and hapkido techniques.

We will review these techniques

with special attention to deathblows.

Same lecture every year!

There are certain body areas that skilled

opponents will endeavour to strike.

What we got for our skilled opponents

is the Houston fist-in-the-face technique!

Especially in a game with no penalties...

You gotta get mad, all right? Play hard.

It don't matter if they're all tiny little men.

Especially in a game with no penalties

and limited substitutions.

Get mad and fly!

Please...

I know about certain body areas, too.

We gotta hit those guys in the ganglia.

- Where?

- In the ganglia.

That's a mess of nerves under the ear.

You gotta drive the jawbone up in that

mess of nerves and it rings a bell.

You must understand.

The Tokyo team has

a very eccentric playing style.

And no penalties! If I go down,

I know my team is with me, right?

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