- Spring. The birds are singing. The flowers are blooming. The sun warms the Earth. Somewhere. Not here. It's 30 degrees out, it snowed 9 feet last winter, and four frozen sodas just exploded in my truck. Welcome to Patience, Colorado. - # Good morning, heartache. # And I seen you yesterday. # I might lose my mind. # But I never lose my way. # - So this is the doctor by the lake everybody was talking about? - He's owned the cabin since 2004. Comes and stays for a week at a time. Till last winter. He came late December, been here ever since. - Huh. What, is he retired or something? What does he do out here? - I think he's fishing. - I am in the middle of nowhere, a tiny town three hours from the nearest city on roads that are impassable half the year. - (WHISTLES) - Nobody in their right mind would live in a place like this unless they have something to hide. (INDIE ROCK MUSIC) - # Don't matter if the cold wind blows. # I'm gonna wind up working in the thick of it. # Sunshine through the rain and snow. # There's an oily brine bilgewater baptism waiting below. # - Excuse me, sir. You Dr Harry Vanderspeigle? - Yes, that's me. - Yeah, I'm Sheriff Mike Thompson. Everybody calls me Big Black. - Because of your truck. - Cos of` (CHUCKLES) Oh, you funny, huh? You funny? This here's my deputy, Liv Baker. - You can just... call me Liv. Or, uh, Deputy. Deputy Liv. - What can I help you with? - Well, we had ourselves a murder in town last night. You're a doctor. We need you to come down and take a look at the body. - Isn't there a town doctor who can help you out? - Yeah, well, see, that's the thing. The victim is the town doctor, Doctor. - (GRUNTS) (UPBEAT COUNTRY MUSIC) - When Neil Armstrong became the first human to step on their moon, he said he wasn't chosen to be first. It was merely circumstance. Circumstance put him in the pilot seat on that mission, and circumstance pulled me from the pilot seat on mine. (THUNDER CRASHES) When I first came to Earth, I didn't expect to even set foot on the planet. (ZAP) Circumstance. Stranded on an alien planet. In order to survive and complete my mission, I would have to somehow fit in with the human lifeforms. (UPBEAT SONG PLAYS) (STATIC, SONG STOPS) (QUIET, TENSE MUSIC) (WIND HOWLS) (LOCK CLICKS) (MYSTERIOUS MUSIC) (CLATTERING) Is there someone in here? (SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC) (GASPS) (SHOUTS) - (GROWLS) (DRAMATIC MUSIC) - (GRUNTS) (SCREAMS) (SONG RESUMES) - # Feeling all right. - # Don't you get too lost # in all I say. # Till someone comes along and # takes my place. (ALIEN ROARS, SONG CONTINUES PLAYING) - # Feeling all right. # Oh, oh. - # I'm not feeling that good myself. - # Oh, oh. - # Feeling all right now. - # Oh, oh. # (SONG CONTINUES) - MAN ON TV: I got news for you, Cosette. There's no such thing as hooker-client confidentiality. - MUMBLES: I got news for you, Cosette. - I got news for you, Cosette. - I got... (MUMBLES) Cosette. (STOMACH GROWLS) ('LAW & ORDER' THEME TUNE) - I got news for you, Cosette. - CLEARLY: I've got news for you, Cosette. - I got news for you, Cosette. - I've got news for you, Cosette. - I got news for you, Cosette. - I've got news for you, Cosette. (MYSTERIOUS MUSIC) When my ship crashed, I lost precious cargo, a device I need to complete my mission. I have to find it before the snow melts, or someone else will. I've never been into town before. It's just too risky. (KIDS LAUGH AND CHATTER) Plus, they don't have a pizza place, and the internet said that parking was a nightmare. But here I am. My first real test. To say my species is more advanced than humans would be a massive understatement. If the universe had a scale for intelligence, humans would land right below lizards. - Well? We're waiting. - Ah, hello, doctor. I'm Ben. I'm the mayor. Thanks for getting him, Mike. - I told you to call me Big Black. - Yeah. I'm not comfortable with that. Thank you so much for coming. Obviously, we had to close down the clinic, which has been a bit of a problem since the nearest hospital is over three hours away. The body is right down here. (TENSE MUSIC) - (SNIFFS) I'd say, from the smell, she's been dead at least six hours. - What the mother hell?! - You're not dead. - Yeah, no shit. I was sleeping. - She's not the dead doctor. He's over there. - Oh. - Asta's the nurse. She's the one who found him here this morning when she got to work. I know this is hard for everyone, but a grief counsellor is coming to speak to each and every one of us. - Oh, yeah. Good job, snowflake. Is that coming out of the town budget, or is he working for hugs? - Who are you? - I'm Harry Vanderspeigle. I'm a doctor. Mayor Snowflake had them bring me down to look at the dead body. - Please don't call me that. - Isn't that your name? - Pretty much. - OK. All right. So, this is Sam Hodges. He was the town doctor. Abigail was the doctor's wife. She's been out of town. Let me know when she calls. - You'll know. I gave her your number. - What? - Well, you're the mayor. And I don't know how to tell someone their husband died. - Yeah, give her my number. I'll tell her he's dead. I don't give a shit. - Who was the last person to see him alive? - Me. I left him here alone probably around 9. When I came in this morning, he was... - (SNIFFS) - I covered him with the sheet. - This... is... awesome. - What? What's awesome? - A good mystery, figuring out what happened, like Law & Order. MIMICS THEME TUNE: Kung-kung! That was fun. - Fun? - Yeah. I know who killed him. - W-Who? - He did. The angle of the wounds. The way the blood is on his hand. He murdered himself. - And why in the hell would he do that? - I don't know. I wasn't here. - All right, look, that's one creepy sumbitch, right? That ain't just me, right? Y'all see that, right? - Yeah, but it's OK for people to be a little bit different sometimes. - Look at what he do. What's a chung-chung? - Can you not talk to me? - Wait. Please don't tell me that you're leaving. - OK, I won't. - Um... No, but we` we still need your help. - I was asked to come look at a dead body. I did that. Do you have more dead bodies? - No. - Then I have to go. - (SCOFFS) Wait. You looked at the body for two seconds. Look, maybe you're right. Maybe he killed himself. But if he didn't, there is a killer out there. OK? We need to do an autopsy. - Do you mean 'cut into the body and pull out the organs' autopsy? - Yeah. Yes, that kind. Yeah. The paths got snowed in last night, and the coroner won't come until the roads clear. But, lucky for us, the man who used to run the pathology lab at Rutgers lives in town. - Well, don't call that guy. I'll do the autopsy. - That guy is you, I... I looked you up. You ran the lab at Rutgers. - Of course I ran the lab. I knew that. I was making a joke. I'm a very funny person. (LAUGHS AWKWARDLY) - OK, good. OK, well, I got to go. But you've got this. OK? (INTRIGUING MUSIC) (INDISTINCT CHATTER) - (SCREAMS) - (HISSES) - Max? Max! Hey! Let me in the car. (TENSE MUSIC) (TENSE MUSIC) - How is this possible? Only one in a million humans have the genetic mutation that enables them to see through our molecular reconstruction, yet somehow, in a town of a thousand people, there is a runny-nosed kid who can see me in my true form? That means there are more people in this town who can see me as an alien than there are slices of pizza. Humans have a term for this. 'Bad luck' and 'raw deal' and 'this is some bullshit'. Why are you standing in here? - Because I'm assisting you with the autopsy. - No, you're not. You're still standing here. - Sam Hodges has been my doctor since I was a kid, and I'm not going anywhere until I know what happened to him. - Hm. Fine. You can stand there... and take notes. - Do I look like a stenographer? - Then why are you here? - Cos I don't trust you. You said he killed himself, but he would never do that. - There are multiple cuts in the neck. The angle of all of them is consistent with the cuts coming from his own hand, the back of which was covered in blood but not the palm because it was clenched around the scalpel. - Sounds great. He didn't kill himself. - I am smarter than you. - What are you, 12? - Don't feel bad. It's just a fact. Once you accept it, you will stop fighting me. - You want facts? OK. I'll give you two. Um... You're kind of a dick. - That is just one. - Sam loved his life. And he would never kill himself. And if, for some reason, he did, he sure shit wouldn't stab himself over and over again in the front of the neck. - OK, you're so smart. Where would be have stabbed himself? - Probably his carotid artery. - Mmm. He was a doctor; if he wanted to kill himself, he would have sliced his carotid. How did I miss that? I'm smarter than a lizard. - So you admit he was murdered? - No. - Wait, did you just call me a lizard? - No. I compared you to a lizard. - OK. We don't have to talk while we do this. (UPBEAT MUSIC) - # Nail your colours to the mast # and have a little faith in me. # I don't give up so fast # if there's one thing you can say for me. # You're one step away from a better day, # however long the night. # And whatever it takes, # I'm gonna make everything all right. # Baby, I'm gonna make everything all right. # (MUSIC FADES) - Look, I know you really didn't want to do this. So I just wanted to say that I... appreciate you helping us. You did a good job. - You just gave me a compliment. (SOFT MUSIC) - Yeah? - You know, pandas are so stupid, sometimes they don't even realise they're pregnant. And when they give birth, they're like, 'What is this?' And then they kill their crying babies. - What? - I compared you to a lizard before, but that's not so bad. - (SIGHS) - Pandas are really dumb. - Um, if that was you returning the compliment, you should try again. - I like your brown skin. - I guess I should quit while I'm ahead. I'm gonna go across the street to The 59 to get a drink if you wanna come. - I have work to do. - The autopsy's done. What work do you have to do at 8 o'clock at night? - 'I strangled and drowned a guy four months ago, 'and I have to search the lake for his bloated corpse before some fisherman finds it.' Just stuff. - Suit yourself. Feel free to come by if you ever stop being a weirdo. - Weirdo? That's not good. Now I have to meet her over there and prove to her I fit in, that I'm normal like them. But first I'm going to cut Sam Hodges' brain out of his head and squish it in my hands. (SAW WHIRRS) (INTRIGUING MUSIC) This is amazing. - (DOOR OPENS) - Who's the weirdo now? - Hi. I'm Abigail Hodges, Sam's wife. He's not home. Is he here? - Yeah. (ROCK MUSIC PLAYS) - She walked in? What did you do? - I put down the brain to shake her hand. She ran out. Her voice goes very loud. - Jesus. Sam's first wife, Rosie, died years ago. She was like a mother to me. God knows I needed one. This is when you're supposed to ask me about my childhood. - Why? I don't care. - Nobody cares. (SCOFFS) That's not the point. (CHUCKLES) I left home when I was 16. Then I married a biker in Denver. Jimmy and I split four months ago, which is the reason I'm buying you dinner. - Why? - Cos you have a pick-up truck. And I was hoping you could take me tomorrow to get the rest of my things. - I'll buy him dinner for less than that. - (CHUCKLES) Hi, D'Arcy. This is Harry. He's a doctor, and he's new in town. He's been helping us out. - Mmm, doctor. Oh. Oh shit. Right. Cos of Sam. So sorry, Asta. They find out who did it yet? - Nope. Not yet. - Why are the walls covered in old mining equipment? - You are new, aren't you? The 59! - CROWD: 59! - Died to save one. Town motto. Maybe stick around long enough, you'll find out what it means. - To the 59. And to finding the bastard who killed Sam. - I'll drink to that. - (GIGGLES SHAKILY) Wow. What is that? - That's our local whiskey. It's pretty great, right? - No. It's awful. - (LAUGHS) - Why do I want more? - Um, that's because you're bad. You like being bad, which is great news because I like bad boys. - (CHUCKLES) - GRUMBLES: Is there some more? - (CHUCKLES) (UPBEAT POP SONG PLAYS) - # Let's go to the beach-each. Let's go get a wave. # They say what they gonna say. # Have a drink, clink. Found the Bud Light. # Bad b` like me is hard to come by. # The Patron-on. Let's go get it on. # The zone-one. Yes, I'm in the zone. # Is it two? Three? Leave a good tip. # I'ma blow all my money and don't give two` # I'm on the floor, floor. - (GROANS) - # I love to dance. # So give me more, more # till I can't stand. # Get on the floor, floor # like it's your last chance. # If you want more, more, # then here I am. # Starships were meant to fly. # Hands up and touch the sky. # Can't stop cos we're so high. # Let's do this one more time. # Starships were meant to fly. # Hands up and touch the sky. # Let's do this one last time. # Can't stop. We're higher than a mother` - Yes! D'Arce. D'Arce! (SONG CONTINUES PLAYING) - Uh, uh, uh, uh. - (CHEERING) - # Hear you say 'ray, ray, ray'. # Spend all your money cos today payday. # If you a G, you a G, G, G. # My name is Onika. You can call me Nicki. # Get on the floor, floor # like it's your last chance. # If you want more, more, # then here I am. (CHEERING) # Starships were meant to fly. # Hands up and touch the sky. # Can't stop cos we're so high. # Let's do this one more time. # Starships were meant to fly. # Hands up and touch the sky. # Let's do this one last time. # Can't stop. We're higher than a mother` # # Can't stop. We're higher than a mother` # - You OK to drive home? Or you gonna dance home? Hmm? - That would be fun but impractical. - (CHUCKLES) Hey, pick me up at the clinic at 10? - Sure. - Good night, Harry the Doctor. (RINGS BELL) Harry the Doctor! (MYSTERIOUS MUSIC) - SLURS: 'It's over. 'I just spent a whole day with them, and I fit in perfectly. 'Nobody could tell I was different. 'Almost nobody.' - (SCREAMS) - 'The answer's simple. 'It's night time. I'll just break into that kid's house and kill him. 'I'll say one thing about whiskey. 'It's allowing me to make smart, rational decisions.' (TENSE MUSIC) (MUSIC CONTINUES) (MUSIC BUILDS) (MUSIC STOPS) (MUSIC RESUMES) - (WINDOW THUDS) - (GASPS) (SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC) (MUSIC BUILDS) (MUFFLED SCREAM) - Do not make a sound. That's good. Don't worry. I'm not going to hurt you. I'm just going to kill you. - (YELPS, BITES) - Ah! - (SCREAMS) - (GASPS) - Max? Hey. What's going on? - There's an alien under the bed! - (SIGHS) Let's go, sweetie. - Come on, buddy. No more stories, OK? - It's not a story! - Hey, Max, I can't do it, OK? I can't have another night with no sleep. Let's go. - No! - Max, you can sleep with us. - Do you want to die?! - We're not gonna die, Max. I'm gonna give you to the count of three. Get down. - No! - There's nothing under the bed. One, two, th` There you go. (SIGHS) I told you not to let him watch those movies. - I watched E.T. when I was his age. - (GROWLS) - It's all right. Come on. - (SNARLS) (GRUMBLES) (ALARM CLOCK BLARES) (GROANS) (BLARING CONTINUES) (BLARING STOPS) (GRUNTS) Whiskey. Headache. Nausea. Severe dehydration. (DEVICE BEEPS) Alcohol must not affect humans the way it does us. If it did, they obviously would never drink it. (INTRIGUING MUSIC) (INDISTINCT CHATTER) - # Why don't you love me like` # - What the`? (TURNS RADIO OFF) The hell are you doing? - I just thought we could listen to some music or something. - Music? Girl, I got your music right here. (BEATBOXES 'AMAZING GRACE') - (HUMS ALONG) - (CONTINUES) Shh, shh. Quiet. - (SIREN WAILS) Hot damn! I thought I'd never see your face again after what you did last night. - You know about last night? - Yeah, I knew there was something off about you. - Sheriff thinks you took Sam's body. - Yup. That's right, 'amigro'. Yeah, you're getting that twitching, aren't you, down in your taint? You know why? That's your body's way of telling you you're guilty. Now, why don't you go and admit what your taint already knows. You took that doctor's body, didn't you? Didn't you? - Of course I took his body. - What? - This ain't right. - What was he supposed to do after the autopsy? Put Sam in the freezer next to the ice cubes? - I considered that, but I would have had to saw him in half. - Oh, you think this is funny, huh? You think this is funny? Ain't you got no respect for the dead? - Of course I do. - Ms Twelvetrees? I'm done with the intake forms. - Jay, this is Dr Vanderspeigle. He'll be helping us out. - Hi. You have a fly on your neck. - It's a birthmark, douchebag. - Douche... bag. - Sorry. Jay is having a hard time with Sam's murder. She helps us out at the clinic. There's not a lot going on here for kids her age. Having her work at the clinic keeps her off the street. - What's wrong with the street? - (CHUCKLES) This town looks like a slice of Americana, but trust me, it has an underbelly. That's why I help kids like Jay. This is it. Are you coming? - Yes, in one minute. - Douche... bag. A small syringe for douching the 'vajeena'. Images. What the hell? Taint. - Hey, you can just put that stuff in the box. (SOFT MUSIC) Some people believe the buck symbolises protection and rebirth. - Protection from what? - Everything. (MUSIC CONTINUES) Thank you so much for helping me. You OK? You got it? All right. Thank you. What are you doing home? - So this is the new man? - There's no new man. We work together at the clinic. I needed his truck. - Well, why don't you take your truck and head home? Me and Asta got some catching up to do. - I don't think that's what she had in mind. (TENSE MUSIC) - It's what I had in mind. - Harry, just... Hey, just go. It's fine. We have, actually, a lot to talk about, right? Right? And I'll come get my things tomorrow. K? - Fine. - OK. Jesus Christ, Jimmy. - Who's this guy? - Let's go. (UNSETTLING MUSIC) - Keep driving. Of course she's in danger. The guy had a skull on his arm with a snake coming out of its eye socket. But she's not your problem. Your only problem is you're no closer to completing the mission than you were four months ago. So get focused. No more stupid moves. Damn it! (DRAMATIC MUSIC) (SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC) (INDISTINCT ARGUING INSIDE) - JIMMY: How about that? You think that's gonna be fun for me? - (OBJECTS SMASH) You want to embarrass me like that? - (ASTA YELPS) - You know what the funny part is? I actually came here to forgive you, and I come home to that. Four months. I come home to that. Where are you going? Where do you think you're going? Get back here. Hey! - I don't want to talk to you. - This is the last time. You understand me? I told you if you did it again, this is what would happen. You're making me look stupid. - Oh, you don't need my help. Let go! - (GRUNTS) - (GASPS) (SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC) FADED: 'Harry! 'Stop. Stop. 'You're killing him! 'Harry. Harry. 'Harry.' Hey. He's not worth it. OK? It's not worth it. (MUSIC CONTINUES) - (GASPS) (PANTS) (SHOUTS, GROANS) - Bitch. - (COUGHS) (ENGINE SHUTS OFF) - You gonna tell me how you did that? - Did what? - You just dragged a 220-pound man... through a wall. - Yoga? Why did you want to come out here? (SOFT MUSIC) - I've always been an outsider. Maybe that's why I understand you. - What makes you think I'm an outsider? - Cos wherever you learned to do that stuff back there, it wasn't around here. You're just... different. I know what that feels like. Sometimes just feeling human is alien to me. - Yeah, me too. Why would you marry that guy? - God knows I've asked myself that question for years. When I was 16, I got pregnant. Jimmy convinced me we were too young to raise a child, so I... I gave the baby up for adoption. (SOLEMN MUSIC) Whenever I got sad about it, he would remind me in his own special way that I did the right thing. I think I felt like if I left him... I gave the baby up for nothing. One day, four months ago, I had enough. I got in my car and never went back. (MUSIC CONTINUES) - The Lord is my shepherd. I shall not want. He maketh me lie down in green pastures. He leadeth me beside the still waters. He restoreth my soul. He leadeth me in the path... - Why is everyone in town calling my phone thinking I'm the new town doctor? - Well... You know, everyone has the right to medical care. And, as the mayor, it's my job to do what's best for the people of this town, and that is to fight to make sure that they have a doctor. Also, I had a standing 4 o'clock therapy appointment on Tuesdays with Sam, so... - And now you want to talk to me instead? - Well, you know, I love Kate so much. I just... Sometimes when we're screwing, I don't want to look her in the face. - OK. - Yeah. I'll see you Tuesday. OK. - ...walk through the valley of the dead. I will fear no evil. - I'm really glad you came. You're kind of a breath of fresh air in this place. - Thy rod and thy staff, they comfort me. - Air! - WHISPERS: 'Where are you going? 'Harry! Excuse me.' - Thou anointeth my head with oil... - 'Harry! I'm so sorry. Excuse me.' - My cup runneth over. (CROWD GASPS) - Oh yeah. That ain't weird at all. - I'm so sorry. Hey, Harry. He really misses the doctor. Harry, this is not the time or the place. - (SNIFFS) Has to be now. In an hour, he'll be underground with the worms. - (CROWD GASPS, ABIGAIL WHIMPERS) - Mm. So intense. I like it. But not for everybody. - 'Harry!' I'm so sorry. Keep praying. I'm sorry. - U-Unto thee, O Lord, do I lift up my soul. - I know how he died. - What? - His windpipe. He needed air. - (COUGHS) - It's the only thing that would explain what happened. He tried to give himself a tracheotomy. He couldn't do it in time. - Yeah. That makes sense, but I don't get it. Why would his throat close up? - Because Sam Hodges was poisoned. And one of the people here... is the murderer. Kung-kung! VOICEOVER: Humans are dangerous. My people have always known that. (TENSE MUSIC) My mission was simple. Drop my device on to their planet and head back home. (DRAMATIC MUSIC) (ZAP) I had no intentions of getting close to any of them. - JIMMY: Don't you walk away from me! - Don't tell me what to do! (OBJECT SMASHES) (GRUNTS) (OBJECT SMASHES, JIMMY MUTTERS) (SOFT, DRAMATIC MUSIC) - Come on! Asta, come on! I'm sorry. (MUSIC CONTINUES) (MUSIC CONTINUES) - (SOBS) - I was taught that the biggest problem with the human race was their need for connection. We always saw that as a weakness. But now I realise it may be their greatest strength. In 1884, the local mine caved in. When the miners escaped, they realised there was one man still trapped. - There's still one in there. - 59 men went back into the compromised mine, risking their own lives to save him. 59 died to save one. (DEVICE BEEPS) Maybe there's something redeemable about the human race after all. Unfortunately for them, it's too late. It's only a matter of time before I find the rest of my device. And when I do, I can finally complete my mission and kill them all. Every single one of them. - Yeah, thanks. Bye. Hi, Harry. - Hi. - You OK? - Yeah. - You have a patient in the exam room. - # Trouble, don't you find no home by me. # Trouble, don't you find no home by me. # Oh, my Lord, if you're listening, # tell 'em go ahead and get gone. - (SCREAMS) - Yeah. This is some bullshit. (ROCK MUSIC) Captions by Able. Captions were made with support from NZ On Air. www.able.co.nz Copyright Able 2022