The Adjustment Bureau Page #3

McCRADY:
You kidding? It's going to

take a signed order from the Chairman.

Get legal on it.

Legal just arrived.

There's no way the

Chairman approves a reset.

This is your fault. There is

no way you get a briefcase.

Hey.

- What are my options?

- Hey.

Just bullshit him.

Bullshit this guy?

Hey! What's going on here?

Look at this.

Questions will burn in him

till the day he dies.

He won't stop searching

for answers. He won't quit.

We have to watch him

forever, make sure

he doesn't talk.

Endless ripple effects.

You remember the Torres

case 40 years ago?

It's not that bad, is it?

In the end, they just

leveled with him.

Completely?

Looking at that, I don't

see you have a choice.

Who the hell

are you guys?

We

are the people who make sure

things happen according to plan.

My name is Richardson.

Oh.

You really think I

couldn't see that coming?

I can read your mind.

Yeah, really.

Pick a color.

Blue.

Pick a number. Seventeen.

Now, why are you still

thinking about running?

I don't really know

what's going on here.

You've just seen

behind a curtain

that you weren't supposed

to know existed.

Must be jarring.

It's not your fault.

Your path through

the world this morning

was supposed

to have been adjusted.

You were supposed

to spill your coffee

as you entered

the park this morning.

You would have gone

upstairs to change,

you would have

missed the bus,

and you would have

arrived at work

10 minutes later

than you did,

and we would

have been gone.

I was supposed

to spill my coffee?

We call that

an adjustment.

See, sometimes, when

people spill their coffee

or their Internet goes out

or they misplaced their keys,

they think it's chance.

And sometimes it is.

Sometimes it's us...

...nudging people

back on plan.

Sometimes when

nudging isn't enough,

management authorizes

a recalibration.

We deploy our

Intervention and they change

your mind for you,

like we did with

your friend Charlie.

He's fine, by the way.

You don't need

to worry about him.

Now...

There is something I need you to

understand if I'm going to let you go.

Okay.

Very few humans have seen

what you've seen today,

and we're determined

to keep it that way.

So, if you ever

reveal our existence,

we'll erase your brain.

The Intervention

Team will reset you.

Your emotions,

your memories,

your entire personality

will be expunged.

Your friends and family will

think you've gone crazy.

You won't think anything.

You understand?

Not one word about us.

Okay.

Oh, one more thing, you bumped into

a woman this morning on the bus.

Elise?

What does that have

to do with anything?

You were never supposed

to see her again.

What does that matter?

Because it matters.

McCRADY:
- It's in his wallet.

- Hey, hey. God! Hey!

What's with you guys?

Jesus!

Oh, come on. No! No!

What the hell?

Really?

What the hell?

Okay.

- Okay.

- Take him back.

Enjoy the rest

of your day.

I can walk.

I'm capable of walking.

Dude, what are you

doing on my floor?

You know, I called you like 10

times, you could have picked up.

Christine, I found him.

He's in my office.

What the hell

are you doing?

Round up the guys, we're

going to do the meeting now.

You have a headache?

What is wrong with you?

Hey, we're in the big

conference room on 17. Let's go.

Morning, Congressman.

You sure you're okay?

Yeah, you?

I'm great, why?

You don't have

a headache or anything?

No, I feel fantastic, man.

Is it me or this

an odd conversation?

On David's

solar panel deal,

our tech guy has

serious doubts

about the efficiency

ratings they're claiming.

They'd need a 20-fold improvement

over anything anyone else

has been able to manufacture at that

price point to really be a game-changer.

You're opposed to this anyway,

Charlie. And with these financials...

Whoa, whoa.

I know it's a risk,

but if our company doesn't take a chance

on something like this, then who will?

I mean, I'm willing to take a fire on

something that could change the world.

Not to mention,

be incredibly lucrative.

David?

Yeah, I mean, it's why

I took the job here.

All right.

Let's do it.

Come into my office

for a second.

Something is wrong.

A couple of hours ago you miraculously

reunite with the girl of your dreams.

Explain to me why you don't have

an ear-to-ear grin right now.

I lost her number.

What?

The woman on the bus.

I lost her phone number and all

I had was her first name, so,

I'm never going

to see her again.

I'm sorry.

Wow, I'm really sorry.

Your entire world

is turned upside down

and you're thinking

about a woman.

Even if you could

remember the number,

you'll never get through.

Lost cell phone,

changed numbers,

whatever creates

the fewest ripples.

My name is Harry,

by the way.

The fewest ripples?

You freeze people.

You froze my friend.

We need special

authorization to...

Poke around in

people's brains.

You make them think

whatever you want...

Be quiet, David.

Can I get you something?

Just some water, please.

Your friend will be fine.

Recalibrations make tiny

changes in the way people reason.

It doesn't work on

emotion or personality.

That's too intrusive.

You said authorization.

Authorization from who?

The Chairman.

The Chairman?

That's just

a name we use.

You use many other names.

We can't talk here.

Meet me on the 4:00 p.m. boat

and I'll answer what I can.

If you reveal us, even

if it's unintentional...

I know. You'll bump

me on the head.

Richardson has automatic

authority to reset you.

You mean lobotomize me?

Try not to forget it.

Be on the 4:
00 p.m. boat.

Ask your questions,

I'll tell you what I can.

What were they

doing to Charlie?

Just changing the way

he weighs investment risks

which will subtly shift the direction

of his company in the way upstairs wants.

So, Richardson could

read my mind?

Richardson was trying

to scare you.

No, he knew the number I

was thinking of, the color.

Because he set it up

as a choice.

"Choose a color,

choose a number."

We can't read your mind

or hear your thoughts.

When you make a decision,

your mind weighs options.

We can perceive them.

We know when you're going to

go off the plan or not because

if we're close enough,

we can sense when

it's going to happen.

We're just here

to keep you on plan.

That's all we're

authorized to do.

Are you allowed to be

telling me this stuff?

Are they following me now?

We have to monitor

the entire world.

We don't have the manpower to

follow everyone all the time.

And there is

something about water.

It blocks our ability

to read your decision tree.

Are you an angel?

We've been called that.

We're more like

case officers

who live a lot longer

than humans.

Why are you helping me?

I have my reasons.

And why won't they

let me be with Elise?

All I know is the amount

of resources they've used

keeping you from her is

pretty damn important to them.

You're going to look

Rate this script:3.5 / 2 votes