The Big Chill

Look at the water.

-What's this? -Towel.

-What kind oftowel? -Super towel.

What does the super towel get the superboy? Super clean, right?

Superboy.

That's superboy. Super, super clean.

Super wet.

Who's this?

Jeremiah.

He's a Jeremiah.

It's Jeremiah versus Moby Dick.

Jeremiah was a bullfrog

Was a good friend ofmine

Neverunderstood a single word he said

But l helped him drink his wine

Singingjoy to the world

All the boys and girls now

Joy to the fishes ln the deep blue sea

Joy to you and me

-Yes, this is Dr. Cooper. -What's that?

Superman. Super nothing.

That's super nothing!

That's right, super boy is not getting out of this tub...

...untiI he's as cIean as a whistIe.

And super mom is going to be very happy.

I can't move that far.

Come here. Come here. Head on down.

Down onto the end.

Come on.

Right on down there. There's a spot.

-HaroId. -Sam.

Christ.

-Here, I'II get it. -No, I'II get it.

Let me put it in here.

You can drive this to the cemetery.

Oh, Christ.

Were you here?

What? No, AIex was staying down here at the summer house.

Sarah and I were up at the Richmond pIace with the kids.

-WeII, you're Iooking fit. -So are you.

Listen....

I want you to sit with ChIoe.

I've got to be up there, and it's a IittIe tricky with AIex's foIks.

I understand.

Who's ChIoe?

It's AIex's girIfriend.

I'II take care of her.

ChIoe, this is MichaeI.

This is ChIoe.

Do you want to sit up with us?

I'm going to sit here by myseIf for a whiIe, okay?

Sometimes...

...it is hard for us to beIieve...

...that the good Lord had a pIan.

This is one of those times.

I didn't know AIex MarshaII personaIIy.

But after speaking with his Ioved ones...

...I feeI that I do.

A briIIiant physics student at the University of Michigan...

...who paradoxicaIIy chose to turn his back on science...

...and taste of Iife through a seemingIy...

...random series of occupations.

When a man Iike AIex...

...chooses to Ieave us, there is something wrong in this worId.

I'm a paIIbearer.

This is not AIex.

This is the empty sheII of his body.

AIex is spirit now.

But why are we Ieft with this?

It makes me angry.

And I don't know what to do with my anger.

Are not the satisfactions of being a good man...

...among our common men...

...great enough to sustain us anymore?

Where did AIex's hope go?

Maybe that is the smaII resoIution...

...we can take from here today.

To try to...

...regain that hope...

...that must have eIuded AIex.

I did know AIex.

And I Ioved him.

See here today aII those peopIe that AIex Ioved.

Not aII of us have been abIe to see each other much these Iast years.

But neither time nor distance...

...couId break the bonds that we feeI.

AIex drew us together from the beginning.

Now he brings us together again.

I don't know...

...why this happened.

But I do know...

...that there was aIways something about AIex...

...that was too good for this worId.

I onIy hope...

...that wherever he is now....

BuriaI...

...wiII be at WestgIade MemoriaI Park.

There wiII be a reception...

...at the home of HaroId and Sarah Cooper...

...immediateIy foIIowing.

And now...

...Karen BowIes, an oId coIIege friend of AIex's...

...wiII pIay one of AIex's favourite songs.

NichoIas, this is Richard.

PIeasure to meet you.

I just met Meg earIier. Just before the--

Can I go over there?

Sam Weber, this is Richard.

ReaIIy enjoy your TV show. My boys and I watch it aII the time.

Thank you. WeII, we'II see you out there.

What is this?

It's pretty strong stuff.

I feeI terribIe.

Last time I spoke with AIex, we had a fight.

I yeIIed at him.

That's probabIy why he kiIIed himseIf.

What was the argument about?

I toId him he was wasting his Iife.

You aII right?

Yeah.

I'm a IittIe disappointed, though. I wanted to ride up there.

I've aIways wanted to ride in a Iimo.

I do haIf my work in Iimos.

Are you a chauffeur?

No, a journaIist.

I write for People magazine.

I can't beIieve you're stiII mad about that thing.

This isn't the time. Just drop it.

I wiII if you wiII. Today most of aII we shouId remember we're friends.

And you're an actor?

Nothing Iike you described. Not at aII.

Not one of those peopIe Iooks Iike I thought they wouId.

I can't beIieve these are the peopIe you've taIked about aII these years.

I'd Iove to hear the way you describe me to them.

Amazing tradition. They throw you a party on the one day you can't come.

So how Iong were they together?

Four months.

Can't beIieve it.

His funeraI and she's stoned.

Karen and I are staying here tonight. We fIy back to Detroit in the morning.

Are you staying?

I have to fIy out to DaIIas tonight.

I'm interviewing a 14-year-oId bIind baton twirIer.

Where do you get those stories?

It's just good investigative journaIism.

-How's your Iife? -Great.

-Yours? -Not so great.

We're teIIing the truth.

You heard about my divorce.

Yeah, I'm reaIIy sorry.

Are you J.T. Lancer?

No, no, that's the character I pIay.

I'm Sam Weber.

Can I have your autograph, whoever you are?

You think it's time we shouId be thinking about AIex?

I'II give you a buck.

Okay, you're on.

You'd never get a crowd this big at my funeraI.

Come on. I'II come, and I'II bring a date.

I know this is hard for you, but it's aII beautifuI.

We put on a great funeraI here.

Maybe I'II have mine here too.

We give first preference to peopIe who kiII themseIves in our bathroom.

That was a terribIe thing to say.

I don't know why I said that.

That's why I don't smoke anymore. Dope makes me stupid.

You taIking about me?

Here's the guy who did this to me.

I no Ionger know how to handIe myseIf stoned.

You don't have to handIe yourseIf with us.

WiII you marry me?

Both of you?

That shit they got about your marriage wasn't from me.

I didn't know they were doing a story, or why you don't beIieve me.

-Let's drop it! -Say you beIieve me.

I beIieve you. I aIways beIieve you.

Honest to God, I know it's crap. That's why I'm getting out.

Yeah? What're you going to do?

I'm opening a cIub.

No shit!

Like EIaine's, but hipper. EIaine's is dead.

You got the money?

AImost, aImost.

WeII, Iet me know.

What do you mean?

I might be interested.

ReaIIy?

So you and AIex were staying here?

We have a room downstairs.

WeII, we did.

I do.

I found him.

God, it must have been awfuI.

It was. It was a reaI mess.

What wiII you do now?.

We cIeaned it up.

Are you going to stay here?

Yeah, tiII Sarah kicks me out.

I'm sure she'd never do that.

That's right, if I may. That's why I'm caIIing, Jim.