Collateral

- You okay? - Yeah, I'm fine, mate.

Don't worry about it.

You all right?

Enjoy L.A.

- He did it. - It's all right.

Can you tell me why everything is always about you?

Everything is not always about me.

That gearhead with his pocket protector was being sarcastic,

- and you damn well know it. - "Sarcastic." You know what?

- I'm sorry, I just didn't see it that way. - Oh, that's bullshit.

What about the dig about the makeover? That was really nice.

What do you want me to do? I work with the man, for Christ's sake.

And you know what? You're perfectly capable of taking care of your own shit.

You know something? The last time I checked, you were sleeping with me.

So unless you want to start fucking him, I suggest...

Pal, where can I catch a shuttle to the airport around here?

- Back there. - Thanks.

It was him in that gold Lexus on the cell phone.

Are they still asking for a change of venue?

He's enhanceable because of priors in the early '80s.

- Where to? - Downtown. 312 North Spring Street.

Downtown.

Look, the transcriptions need to be done by 7 a.m., period, okay?

Hold on. Take Sepulveda to Slauson to La Brea.

Take La Brea north to Sixth into downtown.

So what? You'll be up late.

I'm pulling an all-nighter, too, so save the tears.

I'll take the 105 east to the 110. That's faster.

What?

I said, the 105 to the 110, that'll get you there quicker.

The 110 turns into a parking lot around USC.

But once you get to La Brea north of Santa Monica, then it's jammed.

The 110 north of the 10,

you get people driving to Pasadena, and they drive slow.

Yeah, they do, but what I do is I get off on Grand, and then I...

Hey, surface roads is what you want, that's what we'll do.

- Are we taking bets? - Are we?

But what if you're wrong?

I don't think I'm gonna be wrong, but if I am, the ride's free.

Okay, you got yourself a deal.

Go ahead, say it.

- Say what? - Go ahead.

Oh, I got lucky with the lights.

You weren't lucky with the lights. What you were was right.

I was wrong.

Max.

You mind turning that up?

- You like the classics. - I do. I used to play in high school.

- Let me guess. Woodwinds. - No. Strings.

I never had the lungs for wind instruments.

Could've fooled me by the way you were unloading on that cell phone.

Different instrument.

You know, if you had just listened to me,

we'd be all bogged down in traffic right now.

You would've made yourself an extra 5 bucks.

Yeah, well, you keep that 5 bucks. Buy you something special. Go wild.

Really, it's not that... It's not a big deal. Nothing big here.

Well, how many cabbies do you know

get you into an argument to save you money?

There were two of us. I had to kill the other one.

I don't like competition.

Take pride in being good at what you do?

What, this? Oh, this is... This is... No, this is part-time.

This is a fill-in job. Pay the bills.

But I will be the best at what I do. But that's something else.

- What else? - Just shaping up some things.

Like?

Tell me.

Limo company I'm putting together. Island Limos.

It's gonna be like an island on wheels. A cool groove, like a club experience.

When you get to the airport, you're not gonna wanna get out of my limo.

So I do this part-time to get my Benz off leases,

staff up, get the right client list. You know, things like that.

How do you like being a lawyer?

- What are you, psychic? - Little bit.

There's the dark pinstripe suit.

Elegant, not too flashy. That rules out advertising.

Plus a top-drawer briefcase that you live out of.

And the purse. A Bottega.

Anyway, a man gets in my cab with a sword, I figure he's a sushi chef.

You? Clarence Darrow.

Well, no, not quite. He worked defense. I'm a prosecutor.

- Big case? - Yeah.

- Got us here fast. - Of course.

But you didn't answer my question.

Do you like what you do?

Yeah.

But not today.

No, I do. Like, I can't wait.

I love standing in that courtroom.

At the same time, I get this

clenched-up thing the night before the first days.

Clenched up? How?

I think I'm gonna lose. I think the case sucks,

my exhibits aren't in order, I'm not prepared enough,

people are gonna find out that I don't know what I'm doing

and I've been running some charade all these years.

I represent the Department of Justice,

and my opening statement is gonna fall flat at the most important point,

and the jury's gonna laugh at me.

And then I cry. I don't throw up.

A lot of people throw up. I have a strong stomach.

And then I pull myself together, I rewrite my opening statement,

work my exhibits, and that's what I do for the rest of the night.

That's my routine.

In the morning, it starts, and I'm fine.

You need a vacation.

I just had a vacation on the Harbor Freeway.

No, no, not in a cab. I mean, you need to get your head straight.

Get your unified self up. Get harmonic. You know...

When was the last time you took a break?

I go on a vacation all the time.

- How often? - A dozen times a day.

My favorite spot.

Maldives Island.

It's my own private getaway.

Things get heavy for me, I take five minutes out,

and I just go there.

And I just concentrate on absolutely nothing.

- Here. Take it. - Oh, no. I couldn't do that.

Take it. Take it, because you need it a lot more than I do.

And it'll help you. I guarantee it.

Thanks, Max.

Go get 'em.

Hey.

I don't know,

in case you ever wanna investigate a Fortune 500 company or

argue cab routes.

Hey.

Oh, whoa, whoa. Hey, yeah. Come on, man, I'm sorry.

I didn't hear you, man. Come on. I'll take you.

- Where to? - 1039 South Union Street.

Gotcha.

- How long you think this'll take? - Seven minutes.

Seven. Not eight? Not six?

Two minutes to get across the 110 to Normandie.

Normandie to Venice, three minutes.

Over to Union is one. Plus one for "shit happens."

- Okay if I time you? - Knock yourself out.

What do I get if you're wrong? A free ride?

You get an apology. I already offered my free ride today.

- To who? - Some girl.

Did you get a date with her?

- First time in L.A.? - No.

Tell you the truth, whenever I'm here, I can't wait to leave.

Too sprawled out, disconnected. You know.

- That's me. You like it? - It's my home.

Seventeen million people. This was a country,

it'd be the fifth biggest economy in the world, and nobody knows each other.

I read about this guy, gets on the MTA here, dies.

Six hours he's riding the subway

before anybody notices his corpse doing laps around L.A.,

people on and off sitting next to him.

Nobody notices.

This is the cleanest cab I've ever been in.

- Regular ride? - Yeah, I share it with the day-shift guy.

- Because you prefer nights? - Yeah, people are more relaxed.

Less stress, less traffic, better tips.

- How are the benefits? - Oh, no. It's not that kind ofjob.

I'm not in this for the long haul. I'm just filling in, you know.

Just temporary while I'm getting some things shaped up.

This is just temporary.

- How long you been driving? - Twelve years.

Really?

What other things you putting together?

You know, I don't wanna talk about it. Just a little business plan.

- No offense. I just... - None taken.

You're one of these guys that do instead of talk.

That's cool.

- Seven minutes. Man, you're good. - I got lucky with the lights.

Yeah, sure. You probably know the light schedules, too.

Listen, I'm in town on a real-estate deal, close in one night.

I got five stops to make. Collect signatures, see some friends,

and then I got a 6:00 a.m. out of LAX. Why don't you hang with me?

The car's not for hire, man. That's against regs.

- Regulations? - Yeah.

These guys don't pay you sick leave. How much you pull down a shift?

- How much? - 350, 400.

Yeah? Well, let me tell you what. I'll make it 600.

- Man, I don't know. - Plus an extra hundred

you get me to LAX and I don't have to run for the plane.

Oh, no, guy. I don't know about this.

- I don't know. - Yeah, you do.

- Man, I don't know, man. - Yeah, you do.

Six hundred...

Cool. We got a deal. Now, here's 300 down.

- What's your name? - Max.

- Max. I'm Vincent. - All right.

I can't stay double-parked here, though.

I'll meet you in the alley behind the building.

All right.

Definitely not from around here.

There you go.

Oh, no! Shit! Fuck!

What the fuck?

What the hell? Damn it!

My man, you all right?

Oh, shit. Fuck.

He... He fell on the cab.

He fell... He fell from up there on the motherfucking cab.