The Glass Castle Page #5

Go on, pick out

your favorite one.

It's yours for keeps.

You can't give me a star.

It's your Christmas present.

No one owns the stars.

Well, that's why you

gotta claim 'em

before anyone else does.

Like Columbus claimed

America for Queen Isabella.

Claiming a star for your own

has just as much logic.

Maybe more,

because you don't have to kill

and subjugate millions

of people to do it.

So go ahead, pick out

any one you want,

'cept for Betelgeuse and Rigel

because Lori and Brian

already laid claim to them.

I want that one.

REX:
The bright one? Yeah.

That's Venus. She's a planet.

Kinda dinky compared

to real stars.

She just looks brighter

'cause she's closer to us.

I like it anyway.

What the hell. It's Christmas.

You can have a

planet if you want.

(CHUCKLES) (STUTTERS)

You know, her atmosphere

is a lot like the

Earth's, only, uh...

500 degrees hotter.

Really?

So when the sun

starts to burn out

and the Earth turns cold,

everyone might wanna move

to Venus to get warm.

And now they're gonna

have to get permission

from your descendants first.

(CHUCKLES)

(SIGHS)

I love you, kid.

Love you more.

(REX SIGHS)

(UTENSILS CLATTERING)

I really like David.

You really what?

Yeah. He's not that boring.

I think he'd be a nice

addition to the family.

Oh, by the way, I just found out

my brother is planning to

sell his half of Mom's land.

Uncle Jim? Yeah, and

it's a real shame.

My father always taught

me you never sell...

(THUDS) REX:
Free

market, my ass!

The whole thing is a rigged

game, and you know it!

It's a system created

by all you fat cats

to make yourselves richer

and keep the poor

where they are.

It's nothing more than

legalized larceny.

Admit it, David.

On behalf of all the fat cats,

I'm not going to admit to

something that's not true.

David...

Jeannette, it's fine.

We're just talking.

Yeah, we're just talking.

You know what, Rex? Let's

just agree to disagree.

On behalf of the

90% in our country

workin' for $4.75 an hour,

I will do no such thing!

How very noble of you. A

real champion of the people.

How drunk are you?

How 'bout we settle this the way

they did in ancient Rome,

with a good old-fashioned

arm wrestlin' match?

Pretty sure that's not

somethin' they did in Rome.

Dad, enough.

Come on, Mountain Goat!

David's gonna fight

for your honor.

This is ridiculous.

Yes, it's ridiculous.

We are going home.

What? You're giving up already?

You're gonna just

wander outta here

with your tail

between your legs?

(CHUCKLES) I'm not

gonna arm wrestle you.

Oh, okay, so you admit it?

I'm right and you're wrong.

(CHUCKLES) Okay. Uh-uh.

What the hell.

Atta boy! (SHRIEKING)

No, David.

This is a bad idea.

Babe, it's gonna be fun.

Babe, it's gonna be fun.

Babe, it's gonna be fun.

Dad, please.

Come on. Don't you

wanna give him

a chance to prove me wrong?

DAVID:
Yes, Jeannette,

let me prove him wrong.

Okay. You guys

wanna be idiots...

Yes! Yes, yes, yes!

Here we go! ROSE

MARY:
Come on, Rex.

BRIAN:
Put 'em up. All right.

(GRUNTING)

ROSE MARY:
Let's do it.

BRIAN:
Ready...

ROSE MARY:
Straighten up.

BRIAN:
Set...

Go!

ROSE MARY:
Come on, Rex!

Come on, David!

Yay! Yay! Come on!

(OVERLAPPING CHEERING)

ROSE MARY:
Come on.

Give him what you got.

REX:
How's that feel, boy?

BRIAN:
Pick it up, David!

Come on!

ROSE MARY:
You got it!

REX:
You're gonna

lose to an old man.

Come on, honey! Bring it home!

Bring it home!

Let out the wild man!

Come on, Rex!

David, come on. You're

stronger than this.

Come on. Let's go, David.

What'd I tell ya? No fight.

Come on, David! Kick his ass!

REX:
Stop helpin' him!

Take him down! Murder him!

BRIAN:
Come on!

Murder him, David!

(ALL SCREAMING AND CHEERING)

Honey, don't lose this! Come on!

Murder that old dirty bastard!

Take him down! Take him down!

(ALL CHEERING LOUDLY)

Go, go, go, go!

Yes, yes, yes!

(GROANS) (SHRIEKS)

Yes!

Whoo!

Dow Jones will live

to see another day!

Left-handed rematch! I want

a left-handed rematch!

No, Dad. Don't be a sore loser.

BRIAN:
You ready for

a lefty rematch?

I'm ready for whatever you

wanna throw at me, old man!

Oh! (GASPS)

What the hell, Dad?

BRIAN:
Jesus! LORI: Sh*t.

Well, you heard him. I

mean, he said he was ready

for whatever I wanted

to throw at him.

I think he broke my nose.

It's not my fault. I

have a soldier's reflex.

I seriously thought

you were ready.

Tell your boyfriend that

he needs to be careful

about sayin' things

he doesn't mean.

He's not my boyfriend, Dad.

He's my fiance.

Let's get you home.

It's not stopping. I don't know

where all the blood

is coming from.

Please, I don't want that.

Why do you still have

all these stupid boxes?

David, you're drunk.

Just drink some water.

Let's go to bed.

He punched me in the

face, Jeannette.

I know. You told

me not to worry,

and then he punched me right

in the middle of the face.

Everybody was shouting,

it was so loud...

And you screamed at me.

You said "murder him,"

shouted it right in my ear.

Like a madwoman.

Please just drink some water.

This is serious, Jeannette.

Your dad is a total nut-job.

Hey, I can call him

that, not you.

Your mom is delusional.

Poor Maureen. She's gotta be

out of her mind that she's

choosing to live in

that dump with them.

This is my family that

you are talking about.

I know! And they are

totally insane!

(SNIFFLES)

(SIGHS)

Jeannette, I...

I want to spend the rest

of my life with you,

but if we're gonna try

and do that together,

I can't have any more of

whatever that was tonight.

I... (SIGHS)

I gotta... I gotta go pee.

I'm gonna pee.

(DOOR CLOSES)

Don't worry. It's about a

20-hour drive to Texas.

I can do it in under 15.

We'll be back

before you know it.

How did Grandma Smith die?

My mother was an old woman.

Old women die.

Did she leave you anything?

What kind of question is that?

Why can't we come with you? I

don't wanna stay with Erma.

Your dad hasn't had a

drink in two months.

I think we deserve

a little vacation.

But Erma hates us.

Don't blame her for her misery.

It's all she knows.

She's a dumb witch.

Actually, she's very smart.

That's where your

dad gets it from.

TV HOST:
...he painted

a self-portrait

with a bandaged ear.

Van Gogh.

WOMAN:
Who is Van Gogh?

HOST:
That's right.

ERMA:
You eat what I

put on your plate.

You spit that out, you're

gonna eat that, too.

No runnin' in the house,

no shoutin', no whinin',

no openin' the windows

or the curtains.

Edgar Bergen.

Who is Edgar Bergen? HOST:

Edgar Bergen is right.

It's so weird that Dad lived

here when he was our age.

Yeah, I thought we had it bad.

BRIAN:
Look at this.

You think Dad really

wrote all this?

Listen to this.

"There might be more than

this blanket of black dust,

"the stench of the tug,

"the crunch of the

coal-stained snow.

"More than the sound

of her cackle,

"the cracks in her

calloused hands.

"And there might be more,

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