Ratched

And of course,

there I was at the foot of the stage,

beating my breasts and howling at the sky…

"Blow, winds, and crack your cheeks!"

And then…

Suddenly, the rest of the play was gone.

I could hear them whispering, "Good heavens!"

"He's forgotten his lines!"

And then, it happened again

in St. Louis.

And the next night in Galesburg, until finally I said,

"Len Bronley, you must do something!"

You're very full of yourself, aren't you?

I do beg your pardon?

No one cares why you're here.

You forgot your lines.

So what?

Maybe you're just growing old.

I was a legend.

A household name all over Europe.

I have played every opera house from La Scala to the Bolshoi.

I have sung every great soprano role,

from Brünnhilde to Turandot.

I am here…

Because I have no choice.

My melancholia…

Has gotten the better of me.

I wake up in strange places…

…not knowing how I got there.

When I read about Dr. Hanover's miracle procedure

in The San Francisco Chronicle, huh…

…I knew I had to give it a chance.

I am hoping the procedure evens me out a little bit.

Also…

I really need to quit smoking.

Hello.

What's your name?

Peter.

It's nice to meet you, Peter.

I'm Lily.

What brings you to see Dr. Hanover,

if you don't mind me asking?

My mom says I daydream.

Friends.

Today, we stand together on the precipice of history.

It is truly a momentous day.

Nurse Ratched will get you prepped while I scrub in.

Here are your gowns.

And a reminder, the procedure will require some mild sedation.

See you on the other side.

Oh, I nearly forgot.

There will be some observers in the operating theater today.

Just some government officials and a reporter.

Nothing for you to concern yourselves with.

I'm sorry, a reporter?

I was hoping that the details of my condition would remain confidential.

What? That you're a lesbian?

That much is plain.

It's made obvious by your facial structure.

I refuse to wear this!

My entire backside will be exposed!

Any glimpse of your backside, Mr. Bronley, will be brief,

as it would cause even the most hardened observer to promptly avert their eyes.

Dr. Hanover has asked you to put on the gowns and prepare to be sedated.

Following the procedure, you will be woozy.

That's normal.

And there may be some dried blood at the site of incision.

Sorry I'm late.

Hi, Reggie.

Glad you could make it.

Where's the governor?

Campaign trail.

San Jose this morning.

How is this a major press event when the governor sends his secretary?

You know full well that I speak for the governor, Reggie.

And I'm confident you'll find today's event worth your time.

Oh.

It is already worth my time.

That took forever.

Hello, Mrs. Briggs.

Good morning. Reggie, this, of course, is Secretary Randall Berglund,

head of the State Detentions Bureau,

and Miss Annie Hardcastle,

administrative Aassistant to the director of state finance, Stan Powers.

The governor believes this facility can become a shining example,

not just of what we can accomplish as a state,

but what we're capable of as a nation.

And now… the main event.

Here's Dr. Hanover, a visionary who, like the governor,

believes that our correctional system should do exactly that:

correct rather than penalize.

This is just very exciting.

Nurses, take your seats, please.

Ladies and gentlemen,

you're about to witness history.

I present to you the lobotomy.

In 1935, Portuguese neurologist António Egas Moniz

first attempted a procedure that I now wish to make commonplace.

A procedure so straightforward,

it can be performed on all four subjects in a quarter of an hour.

The brain's frontal lobe is the seed of its neuroses.

Juvenile distraction,

mania,

memory loss,

lesbianism.

All of these maladies can be subdued, if not reversed,

by surgically disrupting a series of neural connections

in the brain's white matter.

As you can see, the patients have received only the lightest sedation…

And will awaken, though slightly groggy,

as brand-new individuals

unencumbered by the mental illness that brought them to this place.

Now, I encourage you to sit back,

relax, and bear witness as I touch the mind.

First, the incision.

You'll notice that the patient feels nothing.

Next, the trepanning.

Oh, my. Oh, my.

Now, we rotate the instrument,

creating a circular lesion in the brain.

You'll observe that the subject is still totally insensate.

A reminder that these are involuntary movements that emerge

as the neural connections are severed.

And the procedure is complete.

Miss Hardcastle!

Reggie, please.

Miss Hardcastle?

Nurse Ratched, if you could quickly attend to our guest,

I'd like to proceed with today's program.

Now, on to the next patient.

Who are you?

A friend.

My name is Mildred Ratched,

and I work with Dr. Hanover at Lucia State Hospital.

We're housing an inmate there.

Edmund Tolleson.

Do you recognize that name?

Yes... ...yes, I do.

What do you want with me?

I drove an hour and a half to tell you

that I'm trying to get Mr. Tolleson fit to stand trial,

so that he can be punished for what he did to those priests.

And to you, his only surviving victim.

I don't want to talk about this.

I know what you've been through.

About your nervous breakdown.

I don't want to talk about this.

You see, Father…

I'm a Catholic.

But when I read about what Mr. Tolleson did…

It destroyed my faith.

Help me, Father.

Help me cleanse the Lord's creation of this evil.

How?

By having an interview with Dr. Hanover and telling him what you saw.

It is Dr. Hanover's evaluation that will determine whether Edmund dies.

Or if he's allowed to live out the rest of his days…

In lavish, extravagant luxury.

No.

No, Church teaching is very clear on this. I don't believe in…

- Putting anyone to death. - Nor do I.

Except in this case.

We cannot trust the system.

If he is allowed to live, he will kill again.

I know it.

Please, Father.

Tell Dr. Hanover.

Not only the facts, but how it felt.

I can't.

I've already told the story.

I'm scheduled to… speak to the state prosecutors in...

When?

In two weeks' time, I'm…

I'm just… I'm not well enough.

I just can't.

I understand, Father.

Here.

My mother gave this to me on the morning of my first communion.

And I want you to have it…

So you know there is another child of God out there who is praying for you.

Why is he building a barn?

I don't understand it.

I have no idea.

Is it to house the patients?

No, it's an actual barn,

with animals.

I mean, it's like a real, functioning, actual barn.

I overheard Dr. Hanover talking about buying an Arabian stallion.

So I've looked into getting riding lessons,

because maybe that's something he and I could do together.

I haven't found the right teacher yet, but I will.

Excuse me.

You're eating my peach.

I haven't eaten anything.

All right, you're holding my peach.

- So? - So it's mine.

The peach in your hand.

I don't see your name on it.

- And who would do that? - Do what?

Put their name on a peach?