A Very Special Favor

Only a few hours ago I did not know you existed.

And now you are the sculptor and I am but a piece of clay.

I've always liked working with clay.

I've worked on fruit bowls, vases, ashtrays,

but never anything like you.

You must come over tonight and try.

All depends on what happens in court.

If my company wins the case,

I'll be in the mood for molding.

But if we lose...

Oh, you will not lose. Trust a woman's instincts.

Darling?

Just in case you get to my apartment before I do.

Did you see that, Calvin?

Kissing at 9:00 in the morning, and practically inviting him to her bedroom.

You won't find women like that in Cedar Rapids.

No matter how hard you try.

Morning, Claude. Monsieur Chadwick, where have you been?

I tried calling you at your hotel all night.

Claude, what kind of a man would spend his first night in Paris

alone in his hotel room?

I tell you what kind of man.

A very sick, crippled, old man, whose wife is blocking the doorway.

Who is that man with Monsieur Daudet?

Paul, Paul Chadwick.

He arrived last night. He works for the Northern Oil Company.

An attorney? No.

What the Americans call a troubleshooter.

What?

A specialist sent in to salvage critical situations.

The situation for the Northern Oil Company is past salvaging. It's dead.

All that remains is for the judge to administer the last rites.

The evidence is all in their favor.

On top of which, you are suing a French company in France,

in front of a French judge.

Mesdames, messieurs. La cour.

We made a mistake.

This case should have been settled out of court.

It was.

Poor man. You should have those fingers x-rayed.

I've been verbally criticized by a judge, but never physically attacked.

I simply put my hand on her desk, and she smashed it with the gavel.

It's amazing. I will never understand how we won.

In this case, the goddess of justice was indeed blind.

What mysterious force is it that ultimately tips this delicate scale?

Mr. Chadwick, what a pleasant surprise. Michel Boullard.

The opposing lawyer in court this morning.

Of course. Sorry you lost the case.

Oh, it was an experience.

You know, until today, I've never tried a case before a woman judge.

Come to think of it, the judge was a woman, wasn't she?

Attractive, too. Yes.

And, I suspect, quite shapely. Possibly.

Who knows what goes on under those judicial robes?

Oh, I will never know.

And you, being a gentleman, obviously will never tell.

My case was well-prepared. The evidence properly presented.

The legal amenities scrupulously observed.

As a lawyer I overlooked nothing.

As a Frenchman I am a national disgrace.

To have an American defeat you at this game.

That game's become quite popular in the States.

Oh, amateurs.

How would you feel if we beat you in baseball?

Now, please, ease the humiliation for me.

Tell me you are at least part-French.

My father is English, my mother's Danish.

It's close enough.

The situation was critical. Time was of the essence, I...

Apologizing for a virtuoso performance?

Believe me, Monsieur, I am filled with nothing but admiration.

Not many men would have taken this in such good spirit.

In a way, I feel I owe you a favor.

If there's anything I can do for you while you're in New York,

please don't hesitate to call on me.

Oh, thank you.

Is this your first trip to the States? Yes. I'm going to visit my daughter.

Excuse me. The stewardess is busy.

I thought you gentlemen might like some coffee.

Oh, thank you. Thank you.

We live in hope, don't we? Ah, youth.

You get apartment keys and I get saccharin.

Hello? Hello?

Darling, this is Paul.

Angel. Sweetheart.

Honey, don't say a word. My plane just landed.

Paris was hell without you.

All'l could think about was that unforgettable hour before I left.

Now I have to go to the office and file my report,

so slip into something comfortable and don't move.

I'll be over sometime tonight.

Two at one time.

Even Napoleon would not have attempted two invasions at once.

Oh, they live in the same building. Magnificent.

You must have some French blood in you. No, no.

Michel! Michel! Etienne!

Goodbye, Monsieur Chadwick. Goodbye. And don't forget,

if there's any favor I can do for you... Thank you, my friend.

Etienne! Ah, Michel!

I'm so glad to see you.

Let me look at you. Ah!

Why, you haven't changed in 25 years. That is what you tell a friend?

That I looked like this 25 years ago?

Maybe I should phone first.

How do you walk in and say hello to a daughter

you haven't seen in almost 25 years? I won't even know her.

How could I let all these years go by? Michel?

It was her mother who left you and took her to this country.

And there was the war, the years you spent in the Middle East.

In the beginning you write every day, then every week, then once a month.

Then it becomes just birthday presents and Christmas cards.

As far as she knows,

her father is someone you find in the mailbox twice a year.

It'll all work out.

And tonight you'll both come to my restaurant and we'll celebrate.

I'm so nervous.

It's like the night Lauren was born.

You will be proud of her.

At her age, a prominent psychologist.

You say she's not married?

An education, building a practice. That takes time.

She's almost 30. She's looking around.

At 18, when a girl looks around, there is usually a man following her.

At 30, when you look around, the only thing coming is 40.

The Doctor is in her office.

You're next.

I'm not a patient. I'm her fiancé.

Oh!

You and the Doctor are to be married? When?

As soon as she can fit our wedding into her schedule.

She's a very busy woman.

She's in there working on some notes for a lecture.

I can't tell you how long she'll be. I've been waiting almost,

almost an hour.

We'll wait 10 more minutes, then we'll cough.

We'll cough? To let her know we're here.

If she comes out angry, we won't tell her which one of us coughed.

Why should she be angry? She's not to be disturbed when she works.

That's one of the most important things we agreed on when we got engaged.

That and no children, of course.

No children? She has her career to think of.

There's time for just so many things in a woman's life.

Somebody has to have the babies.

Unfortunately, you can't. Yes.

It would solve so many problems.

I thought I heard someone out here. It was him. He coughed.

If it's about an appointment, my receptionist will be back shortly.

I'll be finished in 10 or 15 minutes, Arnold.

I got tickets to the theater tonight. It got very good reviews.

I sometimes wonder about those critics. They make one mistake after another.

I'll turn these in, and get tickets to a show I know is good. Like...

The Taming of the Shrew? Taming of the Shrew.

And it's close to the restaurant. I made reservations at the Trianon.

They have magnificent steaks.

The chef always overcooks them. He'll do it every time.

There're plenty of other places we can go to like...

The Troubadour? The Troubadour. Of course.

I'll call them. Good.

Oh, you got your hair cut.

Why did you let them do that to you?

You know when you take too much off the top your head looks flat.

I told them how you like it. He's supposed to be a good barber.

Oh, well, I suppose there isn't much he can do with it.

You're not using that dandruff brush I bought you.

I forgot. Oh, darling,

don't wear that blue suit tonight. Yes, dear.

Isn't she something? I'll bet you never expected to see someone like that.

No, I didn't.

Tell me, why can't you wear your blue suit tonight?

It accentuates my bad posture. I have very round shoulders.

She noticed that on our first date.

You're lucky.

You might have gone all through life without ever knowing it.

That's true. And if it weren't for her,

I wouldn't be wearing these corrective shoes.

She had the outside of all my shoes lined with lead

to give me balance.

She's done a lot for you.

I was a mess.

And the sad thing is, I never knew it. She had to point it out to me.

Hello? I'd like a table for two tonight. 7:00.

In the corner by the fireplace. Name?

Dr. Lauren Boullard.

Got to be firm with those head waiters.

Very nice to have met you, sir.

I've got to go home and change.

I never knocked. I was afraid. I couldn't tell her I was her father.

She would have said, "Fine. Leave your name.

"If ever I need one I'll call you."

Who knows? She might have broke into tears,

thrown her arms around you, kissed you.

And told me I needed a shave.

I saw what she did to her fiance.

In her office I witnessed a public execution.

From the top of his flat head to the tips of his lead-lined feet

she took him apart.

And when she puts him together again, what will he be?

The ideal American husband.

But why don't the men protest? Why don't they leave such wives?

Where will they go? To other wives?