Original subtitles

What you doing, bitch?

Catching doodle bugs.

Trying to.

You stick a cheese square on your pine needle.

Some at Monterey Jack, they love that.

There's nothing sadder than a church that had been deserted, Seth.

Nothing left in there but the bugs.

There's a caterpillar on this book.

The poor wee fellow's moving so slowly.

I think I'll call you Moses.

Forget the caterpillar.

You've got a lot of reading to do, angel girl.

I don't want to read. I want to get on with my assignment. This is your

assignment. What?

The caterpillar or Plato?

The book.

Man gives information and God gives inspiration.

And you're going to need both of them before this case is over. But Tess...

go ahead and be a bookworm.

We've both got a puzzle to solve this time, baby.

Yours is in the book, and mine is out in the field.

And with the bugs.

What is your assignment?

That's the puzzle. God has given me a challenge this time.

I got a whole town out there in a malaise.

First, the church got shuttered.

Then they lost sight of the light, and they became afraid to take

for themselves.

So they all hunkered down like doodlebugs, waiting for God to pluck

out. And you know something else, Angel Girl?

I don't like bugs.

Yellow? Airhead?

You got him.

You live in a trailer.

You sell ice cream out of a broken van.

You don't know where your next dime's coming from.

Who is this?

You can't see a way out.

Here's what you do.

Go to System Vinegars.

Look under the watering can on the bench in front.

You'll see a lottery ticket.

It's been scratched off.

It's worth $20.

It's the start of your nest egg.

Twentieth?

Who is this?

This is not yet for you to know.

I'll call back.

When you walk down the road,

heavy burden, heavy load, I

will rise and I will walk with you.

I'll walk with you till the sun don't even shine.

Walk with you every time.

I tell you I'll walk with you.

Believe me I'll walk with you.

All things come to him that waits, Ada. And I've been waiting for this a long

time. I believe your ship's come in, Pearhead.

Were you going to retire in style?

Let me see.

This voice told me I'd find it right outside.

20 bucks.

Pearhead, you're going to retire on 20 bucks.

It's the start of my nest egg.

I'm fixing up my ice cream van, then you watch those frozen novelties fly off

the shelf.

Vinegar.

Looky here.

I'm a winner.

Oh, this town got a winner.

Lord have mercy, you could have fooled me.

His voice tipped me off.

This week he's hearing voices.

Well, I don't see you winning nothing.

Just digging a hole of grave of dead around here. Six feet deep.

And since I'm the only one doing any work around here... I'm working, sis.

I'm working on my birdhouse.

I need to win me a big lottery.

Oh, there you are.

So you think you can get rid of these ants? I think I can handle it.

Okay, go on.

Move out.

Get your little ant butts out of here.

Go around the corner. I got a hole for you.

Go now. Go. Go now.

Wow.

That's amazing.

They're leaving.

See?

Anything can happen.

Hands can turn around and leave.

This strange voice on the payphone clues me into winning 20 bucks.

It's like a miracle.

So you think that payphone is a pipeline to heaven, huh?

Really? Your smoked ribs are heaven.

Right here in Georgia.

Thank you, Erskine. Good morning.

Morning. Hi, Ada. Well, morning, Andy.

How are you?

Well, symptoms keep up.

Might be having chemo next week.

Andy, our microwave broke. Can you come take a look?

Sure.

How you doing, Ada?

I'm fine.

I'm looking for a place in Atlanta.

I've got a waitress job lined up, and maybe they got room for one more singer.

I hope they do, Ada.

So, you getting along okay?

I'm just waiting to see what God has in mind for me.

Oh, I'm sure something good.

Maybe there's another church that needs a good pastor.

There's nothing wrong with driving a truck.

Maybe that's all God really wanted me to do.

Oh, Erskine.

Hey, Vinegar.

Is that your lady?

It's supposed to be for a blue warbler.

But you never really know who's going to move in.

You don't really know much of nothing in this life.

That's right, Vinegar.

Ants are marching.

Phones are ringing.

God only knows.

Apparently so.

All right, care head, let's check this out right now.

Yes, operator.

Can you trace the call that just came to this pay phone?

What you doing, sugar?

Trying to catch doodlebugs.

That's interesting.

I'm an entomologist myself.

What's that?

A person that studies bugs.

I'm studying doodlebugs. So you know what they really are.

Yeah. They're bugs.

They're really antlion larvae.

They burrow in the sand and wait for the ants to fall in.

Ants are their breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

That's why they grab onto your pine needle.

Yeah, I knew that.

Your mama teach you all that?

I live with my aunt.

She said in a few weeks, the doodle bugs will transform.

They spread their wings and fly away.

I'm expecting to see some transformation right around here.

You can't do that.

All right, well, thank you very much.

Hello? Sister?

It's for you.

Me?

Hello? My child, when you were growing up in Detroit, you knew something was

wrong with your brother Vincent.

It's different.

Not quite right. Who is this?

Then your grandfather wrote you about how nice people were in Georgia.

When he died and left you his restaurant, you brought vinegar down

you. You hoped he'd have an easier life.

Now you feel trapped.

Can't get out of the restaurant. Have to take care of your brother.

And I don't know what to do.

First things first.

I know you had a fight with Vinegar last week.

What you need to do is go to him and say you're sorry.

Then he'll hug you as he always does.

And you'll both feel better.

They said something, didn't they?

See?

See? Who is that?

It's getting late, Andy. School night.

Okay, okay. I'm just downloading one more thing.

That's what you said before.

What are you looking at, anyway?

Liver cancer?

I say it could be genetic.

Andy, when your mother died, it was a horrible thing for all of us.

But it's not inherited.

You're not dying.

Thanks, Dad.

Nice try.

Vinegar?

I'm sorry about the fight that we had last weekend.

What I said about that cow having more sense than you.

I just...

Hello?

Hello, Ada.

I know you bought a ticket to Atlanta.

You want to move there and sing in a cocktail lounge.

That's your dream.

Who told you? Who is this?

Wasn't there someone in town you've always loved?

Don't leave for Atlanta.

Learn what you feel in your heart.

I'll call back when you do.

You enjoying the book, Moses?

Huh?

It's all about Mr. Plato.

See right here?

See it?

Plato's famous simile.

Humanity is like a group of prisoners chained inside a cave.

They see their shadows on the wall and think that's reality.

Fairhead told me about this phone thing.

Don't you think you're getting a little carried away?

Who do you think's making these calls?

I can't figure it out to save my life. Nobody could know all that stuff at

Maybe it's...

Let's

see what this is all about.

Hello, this is Erskine Hughes.

And no, we don't have Prince Albert in the can.

No, don't.

Erskine!

Your wife passed away.

Because of that, you left the ministry.

Return to it.

You're going to need it.

Find love where you can, Erskine.

Andy deserves a mother now.

There's someone here waiting to be that.

What did he say?

What did he say?

What did he say?

Nobody could have known that.

Nobody except me.

Voice on that phone is God himself.

Listen to this, Moses.

God is truth and light is shadow.

I think Mr. Plato was inspired.

Are you talking to a caterpillar?

I know what I was reading to it.

And I think he was enjoying it.

See that wriggle?

How are you getting on out there?

Not good. I got a problem.

People think that God's on the other end of a payphone.

And is he?

Maybe he is and maybe not.

We're not the only ones he speaks to.

Oh.

What are we doing sitting out here?

We have to keep this a secret.

If work is not the gods on this phone, the whole county will be standing in

line.

Golly, she's right.

Gotta shut her dang cake holes and get out of sight.

Well, what if the phone rings and nobody's here?

We'll take shifts. I'll stay at the barbecue tonight. Can't hardly sleep

Might as well do something useful.

That's a good idea.

Good plan, isn't it?

No?

Good. Listen to this.

Then Plato suggests, what if one man escaped outside the cave and he

saw the real world bathed in light and he went back inside to tell the others

but they all thought he was deranged?

What an unhappy ending.

Poor philosophers.

They mustn't sleep very well.

Oh, my God.

Down Main Street is an old brick building.

The old bar?

Take this building and make it come alive again. You and the others.

Each one has a job there.

You can run the restaurant.

Harriet can manage the bar.

Ada can sing.

You can do it.

Okay. Okay.

We can do it.

Okay.

Okay!

Peerhead!

Peerhead, come!

Come!

You've got to come!

This

is

our salvation.

Where's all the money coming from this?

Sis is getting a mortgage on a restaurant and their head's selling a

You putting up money?

Well, with everyone doing it, I had to put some in.

Don't you see, Erskine? I can sing there.

And, well, the hand of God is in all of this. The hand of God? Ada?

I don't know.

To give God a human voice diminishes him.

I don't think that was God on the phone.

Well, he spoke to you, didn't he?

Someone did.

Maybe the folks in this town believe in a little more down -to -earth God than

you do.

I guess they do.

You know, Erskine, I really miss going to church. Sitting in that second pew by

the window and hearing those beautiful things that you had to say.

Maybe that's why I listen to a voice on a phone, because I don't have you to

listen to anymore.

I think people would rather hear easy lies than hard truth.

Well, if that's what you think, then you're a coward for quitting.

You should hang in there and fight instead of giving up your faith.

I never lost my faith in God.

Well, you lost your faith in us.

Sure is pretty.

Well, it's dead, all right.

I'll have to replace it with a new one. No, no.

Don't do that.

Can you rewire it?

Yeah, but a new phone will work better. You'll get a cleaner connection.

Oh, we really like this connection.

Couldn't you just tape it back up?

I got some electrician's tape.

Yeah, I can fix it if that's what you want.

Yes, thank you.

Do that.

And then come to our grand opening tonight.

You won't want to miss it.

Yeah, see, I got this call coming, a real important call. I got to hear what

had to say. Who's that?

God.

Hairhead.

Really?

I mean, this guy.

Yeah, I just got to know what he had to say.

I know what God was going to say.

Hairhead broke the phone.

Yeah, it's me.

It's me.

Andy,

that's your voice on the phone?

Yes.

Thank you.

Welcome,

everybody, to the grand opening of Jim's Bar and Grill.

Thank you, thank

you. Well, my name is Ada Dobbin, and I want to say...

That it sure means a lot to have all of you folks here.

We really put our hearts and souls into this place.

And everything else.

Yeah, I guess it kind of looks like we took a chance, but we never thought so.

We had all the faith that everything was going to work out. So anyway, thank

you. And here's a nice old song to kind of kick things off.

Harry?

You'll never know just how much I miss you

You'll never know

just how much I care

And

if I tried I still couldn't hide

My love for you.

You ought to know.

For heaven's sake, I told you so.

I knew it wasn't God on the phone all the time.

I admit I didn't know who it was and I certainly didn't think it was you. But I

knew it wasn't God.

You want to know how I knew it wasn't God?

Because he doesn't go around messing in people's business.

He gives them a choice.

He shows them the difference between right and wrong, and then he lets them

up their own minds, make their own decisions.

Well, what if they make the wrong ones?

Then they just have to live behind a bad decision, but God is always there to

see them through.

Made a bad decision.

Whose mind were you trying to change, baby?

You'll never know if you don't know

now.

Where's Ada?

Tell these people what you've done.

I can't.

Yes, you can.

You just don't want to.

And seeing as how mad they're all going to be, I can understand that.

There's a fire! The club is on fire!

Hi, everybody.

Ada.

I was running up a hospital bill that I knew I couldn't afford, so I figured I'd

just leave as quick as I could.

You okay?

Good enough.

Um, I came to say that... I think I'm gonna try Atlanta.

But I'm gonna get my baby back ribs tomorrow.

Then I guess I'll hit the road.

Hello? Hello, baby. You all right?

Is Ada all right?

Yes, she's up and around. She's home.

And I think I can get her job back in Atlanta.

Can they fix the club? No, baby.

It's gone.

Andy, I know you're scared, but you cannot keep this secret inside.

It'll eat you up.

I'm going to be there with you all the time.

Now you come on down here. I'm waiting on you.

Okay?

Okay.

Shouldn't you be getting some rest?

I'm waiting for God to come and explain all this.

God is not going to call you on this phone, Pearhead.

He never did.

It's not his voice you heard.

That's not the way he works.

Don't say that.

Don't take that away from me.

Don't you see? My whole life I've been a loser. I've never made any money.

I never had a girl.

Everybody makes fun of me. I know that.

And then one day, God picked me.

Me. Called upon that phone and talked to him.

And it made me feel like there's some

reason I've been born.

Nobody's born just...

Just how people make fun of them.

Are they?

No, baby.

You're one of God's creations.

And he loves you, Pearhead. Whether he ever calls you on this phone or not, God

loves you.

Oh,

fuck.

He's the one who started all this.

Me?

You're the one who said to rebuild that bar.

God said to.

This is ridiculous.

Ada almost lost her life because of the stupidity.

Because of her stupidity? Hey, don't you talk that way about her.

If anybody's stupid, it was me for listening to you insist.

How dare you? We lost everything we had in that fire. Our whole future.

Now we're stuck here forever.

Stuck until we die. We're never going to get out. What about me?

I lost my truck. My nest egg is gone.

I'm as good as buried.

Maybe God will call.

Great.

Maybe he'll have a new idea that'll just kill us all completely.

Miss Ada.

This is from Andy.

First kiss?

Well, it's his handwriting.

It's addressed to you.

Dear Ada, it's me, Andy.

I guess we're both leaving town.

I wanted to tell you and everybody that it wasn't God on the telephone.

It was me.

I was the voice on the phone.

I never meant to hurt anybody.

But it looks like I ruined everybody's life.

Anyway, I did have a good reason.

I did it because... Because...

Well, I had a good reason.

At least I thought so.

Anyway, maybe I'll see you on the road.

Give my dad a kiss goodbye.

Andy.

I can't believe that was Andy's voice on the phone.

What was he thinking?

Why did he do it?

He said he had a good reason.

I'm sure he did.

Nothing excuses this.

I'm so sorry, everyone.

I've got to find him.

I don't know what else to do.

Yes, you do.

Everybody around here says you used to be a man of God.

You can still be one if you want to. You know the best way to get that boy back

home. Every worthwhile search starts with God.

Because whatever you're looking for, and wherever it is, God is already there.

The real one.

Lord, I'm going off to find my boy.

Take care of him, please.

Protect him.

Send an angel right now to find him and bring him home.

Thank you.

Amen.

Amen, Lord.

Well, you're a little rusty, but it's good to hear you praying again,

Yes, indeed.

Let's go.

I'll go east. Sis, you and Vinegar head west. Ada, Sal.

I know you'll send an angel to that little boy.

One who won't disappoint you this time.

Tess, what happened?

I blew it. That's what happened.

You? Yeah, me.

I was trying to lead a little boy to the truth and I pushed when I should have

pulled and I pulled when I should have pushed. Now some people have some of the

truth and nobody has all the truth.

Tess, you know how you always say that man gives information but God gives

inspiration? Mm -hmm.

Well, I think God just turned on a light for me.

Mr. Plato says that humans are like people stuck in a cave looking at

the wall, believing the shadows are real, but they're just things that get

front of the light.

You sent a little boy outside to face the light, and that was a good place to

start, but it wasn't enough.

Now you have to let light in for a whole town.

You can start with Andy.

Andy ran away.

But where did he run to?

Where do people go when they can't stand too much light?

Into the dark?

Mm -hmm.

And I can think of one place around here that definitely has been missing the

light.

You used to come here all the time, huh, baby?

Yeah.

And then your whole world fell apart?

Why do you care?

Just leave me alone.

I can't do that, Andy.

Why not?

Everybody else does.

I'm alone all the time. No one cares.

You feel like you're alone, but that's not for real, baby.

That's just a shadow on the wall.

God always has a plan, but he doesn't always hand it to us on a silver

Sometimes we have to learn the hard way.

All of us have to.

How do you know?

I'm an angel, Andy.

Sent by God to tell you that he loves you, sweetheart.

Through your loss, every fire, and each mistake.

God loves you, baby.

He must be the only one.

No, no, no.

There are a lot of people right here that love you.

Take a look.

Thank God you're all right.

That was a terrible thing to do, son.

Andy, you ruined us. Somebody ought to kick your behind.

Andy, why?

Why did you do this, Andy?

Because... Because Ada loves you, Dad.

What?

I can tell.

Nobody makes her smile like you.

But you wouldn't let her get near you.

She couldn't even see you on Sundays in the choir after you closed down the

church.

So she gave up.

She was moving to Atlanta.

So I figured if she had a real good reason to stay here, like singing, maybe

would move.

Because whether you want to believe it or not, I'm dying.

And after I'm gone, I don't want you to be alone.

You are not dying, Andy. You're not. You're not. I am. I'm just like Mom.

in the genes. No, no, no!

Oh, my Lord.

I'm an angel sent by God, Erskine.

God has returned to this church.

Well, he never left.

But some of you have been missing.

You've all been hunkering down in your holes like doodle bugs, expecting God

to pull you out instead of reaching up to him.

With your faith.

So that's it then.

We let somebody else do our thinking and our praying for us. Now everything's a

mess.

Well, God has a way of taking a mess and cleaning it up.

Think about it.

Sis, you did something big.

Don't forget that.

And Pearhead, you found out.

that the company of your friends is more rewarding than money.

And Zaniga, you saved a woman's life.

You're a hero, and you got all the respect you've always wanted.

Erskine, a good woman loves you, and an empty church misses

you.

And you, Andy, believe me when I tell you this,

You are not dying.

A lot of children feel that way when their mama passes.

But you're going to live a long and wonderful life with your father and

whoever else.

Ada?

Oh, you're all right.

I read them all your letter.

Well, except for part of it, though.

I know about the other part.

I guess I've known about the other part for a long time.

Ada, I... I hope you'll stay.

I hope you mean that.

He does.

So Vince, what did God say?

He told me how to catch a doodle bug.