Winchester

---

Henry?

Henry.

Henry.

Henry?

Darling, what is it?

What are you doing?

(BREATHES HEAVILY)

He's coming for us.

(CREAKING)

(MUSIC PLAYING)

NANCY:
I couldn't move.

I started shaking.

I was getting dizzy.

I was sure everyone

in the room wanted to kill me.

(MOANS)

I've never been so scared.

(INHALES)

Pointless in the end though,

fear, isn't it?

(CHUCKLES)

That's your best advice, doc?

All right.

(GROANS)

What do you think controls you?

Your body or your mind?

Your money controls me, sugar.

Ah, there you go.

- Fine.

- Okay, okay.

I think my body and mind

control each other.

Well, let's find out.

Is this real?

Yes.

- Yes?

- Yes.

The mind

is incredibly creative.

It can make us see situations

that appear completely real,

but are in fact

nothing more than illusions,

perceptions of truth.

How did you do that?

Sometimes we all need

a little help

to see the difference

between reality and illusion.

And that's about taking control,

about not letting fear

control you.

Because fear in the end

only exists in your mind.

(KNOCKING)

ERIC:
All right.

Sorry to say good night.

I'm looking for Dr. Price.

(SPEAKING FRENCH)

- Good night.

- I'm Arthur Gates,

Chief Legal Officer of the

Winchester Repeating Arms Company.

Really?

NANCY:
See you

next week, sugar.

You're a hard man to reach,

Dr. Price.

Good night, Nancy.

- Good night.

- Good night.

I'm on sabbatical.

Good night.

What do you want?

A prescription?

I've come to offer

you employment.

- Whiskey?

- No, thank you.

Are you familiar with Sarah

Winchester, Dr. Price?

Mrs. Winchester's

husband William

was the majority shareholder

of the Winchester

Repeating Arms Company.

Twenty-five years ago,

William passed,

leaving Mrs. Winchester

a rather large inheritance,

and 51% of the company.

Mrs. Winchester also lost

her only child, Annie.

It's said in her grief,

she turned to a medium...

Spiritualist of some sort.

The medium may have taken

advantage of her mental state.

That's not uncommon

after a tragedy.

I can assure you,

Sarah Winchester

is anything but common.

Aye, after her spiritual

encounter,

she moved across the country

to San Jose,

- where she purchased what...

- Where's my...

Was then an eight-room house.

Maybe it's in the garden room.

She spent the last 20 years

expanding it.

What stands now is

a gargantuan seven

storied structure,

with no apparent

rhyme or reason,

no master plan,

each maze of halls

more confusing than the next.

A house under

never-ending construction,

built on the orders

of a grieving widow

whose mind is as chaotic

as the house itself.

Over the years, she's become

more and more reclusive.

Last month,

the Board of Directors

enacted its right to assess

Mrs. Winchester's

state of mind,

to determine if she's fit

to control the company.

You want to take it

away from her?

We're worried about

her sanity, Dr. Price.

We need a professional.

Any kind of diagnosis

from such a long distance

would be impossible.

Well, Mrs. Winchester's agreed

to let you stay

at the residence.

An offer

that is exceedingly rare.

An unwilling patient,

the long distance.

This is not

something ordinarily I...

Name the amount.

Doesn't really work like that.

How much do you owe?

Mortgage?

Hospital expenses?

Medicine?

Three hundred.

We'll pay six.

For the appropriate assessment.

(LAUGHS)

FOREMAN:
Mrs. Winchester

requests the bay window frame

be installed by sundown.

Move with haste.

(WORKERS CHATTERING

INDISTINCTLY)

(HAMMERING)

FRANK:
Let me get that, sir.

Thank you.

FRANK:
Busy day

of construction here, sir.

- Yes.

- Days and nights

are always busy here.

ERIC:
Really? Nights, too?

FRANK:
Right round

the clock, sir.

This way.

Most of the rooms

don't stay up very long,

like Mrs. Winchester's

garden room there.

That might not last the season.

ERIC:
Really?

WORKER:
Check the measurements

here have been done.

FRANK:
Please wait

in the library, sir.

I'll call for Mrs. Marriott.

(WIND BLOWS)

(CHIMING)

(CLOSET DOOR RATTLING)

- Jesus!

- My apologies, sir.

The door was making

a terrible racket.

ERIC:
No, no, no, no, no.

That's quite all right.

Gave me a fright.

MARION:
Dr. Price?

- Yes.

- Welcome.

Marion Marriott,

Mrs. Winchester's niece.

Oh. Well, it's a pleasure

to meet you.

I must say, I have never

quite seen a house like this.

My aunt advised me

of the nature of your visit.

As you are aware,

it is unfortunate timing,

so I would ask you

to behave in a manner

befitting the circumstance.

Unfortunate, how?

A tragedy occurred.

Oh.

Well, I'm sorry to hear that.

Are you carrying firearms?

Should I be?

Aunt Sarah forbids them.

Well. (CHUCKLES)

I'm completely unarmed.

Good. You, like I,

like everyone,

are guests in Aunt Sarah's home.

You will abide by her rules.

Understood.

You are to stay in this section

of the house, the east wing.

Aunt Sarah's private domains

are off limits.

Understood.

ERIC:
So...

Are you close to your aunt?

Is this already part of

your evaluation, Dr. Price?

No, ma'am, it is not.

Yes.

Aunt Sarah

is an exceptional woman.

She does not deserve

to be treated

with anything less

than complete respect.

Yes, ma'am. Quite right.

May I?

MARION:

This is the grand ballroom,

built almost entirely

without nails.

The walls and parquet floor are

made of six separate hard woods.

The silver chandelier

was imported from Germany.

Follow me, Doctor.

There are almost one hundred

rooms in the house.

It's easy to get lost.

(HAMMERING AND SAWING)

How unusual.

Aunt Sarah

suffers from arthritis.

This makes climbing stairs

manageable for her.

The house can be overwhelming.

Do keep up.

ERIC:
What is this?

It's a communication device.

Really?

You speak into the holes,

and a series of pipes

travel the sound

to the desired room.

(WHISTLES)

(CHUCKLES)

- Ingenious.

- Yes.

You'll find many of my aunt's

inventions are state of the art.

I trust you'll find everything

you need with the room.

Aunt Sarah will be

joining us for dinner.

Perhaps you would like

to freshen up beforehand.

I very much look forward

to meeting your aunt.

Aunt Sarah

would not approve of you

drinking before dinner hour.

Her sense of smell

is still as acute as mine.

Respect her wishes.

You were right about me, Ruby.

I am

a fraud.

(DEEP INHALE)

(EXHALES)

You're a phony, hmm?

That feels good.

Well, you don't know

what you're doing.

(CLEARS THROAT)

You don't know

what you're doing.

Oh, yeah. You prove nothing.

For Christ's sake.

Jesus Christ!

(CHUCKLES)

Ah!

Who are you?

What do you want?

Dinner will be served

in 10 minutes.

- You're alone, yes?

- Yes, sir.

- Nobody else with you?

- No, sir.

No? You didn't see anyone

just come out of here?

Are you all right, sir?

I'm fine. I just thought

someone else was...

Well, I thought I saw

someone else in my room.

Interesting.

Look, I'm fine, yes.

Dinner in 10 minutes, yes?

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