Original subtitles

You know, Tess, I have always loved the look of French country. Too cutesy.

Well, what about something with a lodge -type feeling?

Too many moose heads.

Okay. No moose heads?

It's got to be rusty.

Like this.

Log?

Tess, not log.

How long have you been a caseworker?

Nine years. And in those nine years, how many times have I been wrong?

Hardly ever.

Almost never.

And do you know why that is?

Because you have been a caseworker for a very long time.

Long, long,

long time.

Have you got something you want to tell me, Miss Wing?

Tab.

It's just, you know how we usually go to our assignment and they almost never

come to us?

But this time since they are coming to us instead of the other way around, I

thought it would be great if we put our best foot forward and get them something

really much more... French country than rusty.

Exactly. I love the way you reasoned that out.

Feels wonderful.

The answer is no.

Father's here.

Ah, the bill for Ricky's rehab.

Nah, they didn't waste any time, did they?

You know, you're still getting all your mail here. Have you moved out or not?

I don't see why I can't go camping.

Because this weekend is just the guide, sweet pea, but I promise you the next

time that we go, you can come, all right?

Do you have everything you need?

How should I know?

We've never done this before.

I really don't want to do this. Honey, what did Dr. Price say?

You can bond with your family or you can bond with the drug.

Would it actually help if we had a family?

Hey.

Phone works up there. I'll call you.

Okay.

Have fun.

Try.

Be honest.

Okay, honestly, I don't think that it really matters which one you go with,

whether it's this moose manor or this Swiss chalet or just some country house.

What matters is you put something here now because their car is going to break

down in about three minutes.

Oh, well, Tess, if you feel strongly about the large thing... Oh, no, no, no,

no. If you want French country, it's fine with me.

Let's make that two and a half minutes.

Did we pass the afternoon turnoff?

Rick, did we pass the afternoon turnoff? How should I know?

Oh, come on, Rick. You know, can't we just try to get along for one week and

have a little bit of fun, huh?

Wow.

Easy.

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.

Tom's truck's towing.

Yes. Yes, I need a tow.

My number's... Hello?

Hello?

We can't get any reception up here.

Listen, we're going to have to walk. We just saw a few miles back here.

Come on, get your stuff. Let's go. No, I'll wait here.

No, you won't wait here. You're going to get your stuff. We're going to go.

You don't trust me.

Boy, talk about a lucky grin.

What happened? Did you tear a hole in your gas tank?

No, no.

Weirdest thing.

Wait, you didn't run over a rusty muffler and puncture your gas tank?

No, no.

I think a meteorite hit our car.

See? A rock fell out of the sky and landed on your car.

What are the chances of that?

It was like...

Yeah, it's what we would call in my business, uh, a low risk.

But then, you know, you just never know what can happen, and that's why

everybody has insurance.

You do have insurance, don't you? Dad, give it a rest, man.

Yeah, well, I'm sorry.

But, uh, but anyway, so much for camping.

Jeez, what are we going to do now?

Are you sure they can take us without the reservations here?

Oh, yeah.

Well, what's it like?

It's, um, nice.

It's kind of a rustic -y, log cabin -y, country cottage -y

chalet. It's nice.

As a matter of fact, it's right...

Oh,

it's over there.

It's nice, huh?

Hey, Tess, I got some customers for you.

Well, welcome to Angel's Crest Lodge. My name is Tess. Joe Collette.

This is my son, Ricky.

This is a real nice place you have here.

Thank you very much. Hello, Ricky.

We just need a room for a couple of nights. Our car is being worked on in

Rollinsville.

Two... Two nights.

Fine. Let me see what I can do here. You guys cut it a little close, didn't you?

Never mind. How come this thing for two nights?

Their car's trashed.

That too.

Oh, no, no. It's not my fault. Something very weird happened out there.

Monica will show you to your room. And I'm sure your busted gas tank or...

Or whatever.

We'll all be taken care of, Monica. They're in the bunkhouse suite.

Oh, the bunkhouse suite.

Would you follow me, please?

See you guys later.

Just what is going on? Something got in the way. Like what?

A meteorite.

So, this is your room.

There's extra blankets in the closet.

Dinner will be at eight, family style, in the great room. Where's the TV? Oh,

there's no TV. No computer, no telephone.

That's what makes this place a really great getaway.

Okay?

Oh, you suck.

Hey, look, Ricky.

Just because your mother and I are separated, that doesn't mean we have to

And, you know, I care about you. And I brought you up here because I want to

spend some time with you.

I was in rehab for 16 weeks, and you only came to the family counseling

once.

I was working.

Now you bring me up here to see if you wasted your money, right?

You want to make sure I'm not using it anymore.

Are you?

Why would I?

I mean, my life is perfect, isn't it?

I'm going to go for a walk. You want to come?

Well, I've only had an hour and 15 minutes since you called, but I'm here.

read everything published on general astronomy from 1584 to yesterday

with special emphasis on publications relating to NEOs.

That's near -Earth objects.

Well, that rock came a lot more than near.

Well, so what's the difference if an old muffler breaks his gas tank or a

meteorite breaks his windshield? I mean, it's still got him here, right?

The difference is that something up there changed our plans down here.

And if it has already changed things a little, it could change them a lot if...

Oh, my.

What? I just remembered something about Joe Collette.

Do you remember in his file what his hobby is?

Oh, yes.

There's no such thing as coincidence.

Gloria, did you get new glasses?

Yeah. You like them?

Hello.

I just wanted to remind you that dinner is in half an hour.

Did your father go out for a walk?

Ricky, I know that we may not seem that exciting up here without all the usual

electronic equipment, but we have something here that you won't see in the

What's that?

Stars.

Do you mind if I take a look?

No, please. Be my guest.

Wow, Polaris is looking good tonight, huh?

Are you an astronomer?

Oh, no.

No, just an amateur.

He came right out of the sky and right through the car.

No.

Probably about 19 centimeters in diameter.

Very, very, very dark fusion crust.

From the ablation?

Oh, yeah, yeah. So it wasn't cometary then? No, no, no. It was definitely a

piece of an asteroid. I have to see this.

Rick!

I'll see you then.

Is he there?

Oh, no.

Is that that right there, baby?

We have a problem.

And it's a lot bigger than a little rock.

Asteroid? Yes.

A big one.

Remember you told me to set up the telescope, and I started talking to Joe

astronomy. Which, by the way, for an insurance salesman, he's really

knowledgeable.

Anyway, when he walked away, I looked up again, and there it was.

What does it mean, Ted? I don't know, but it's never a good thing when a heavy

object falls on you, is it?

That asteroid in Siberia about a hundred years ago, it flattened over 700 square

miles of forest.

Where's this one going to land Gloria?

I don't know

Rick

What are

you doing?

It's embarrassing, you know watching you pretend like you know all kinds of

stuff about astronomy

Well, I do.

Now, didn't you ever notice all the science magazines I used to get when I

to live at the house?

No.

You see, you complain that I don't know you. See, but you don't know me.

Look, I know it hasn't been such a great day today.

But tomorrow's going to be better.

That, um, Monica says she'll take us fishing at sunrise.

Dad, there's no way I'm waking up at the crack of dawn to go fishing.

Want to bet?

Two near misses in the last year. Yes.

One misses by 300 ,000 miles. Another by just 75 ,000. Erica, honey, finish your

breakfast. Yeah, that's right, Brian. It was a close call. No one saw that

asteroid until it had passed. I remember.

Last June.

Yeah, that's right. If that would have landed, that would have been like

dropping a nuclear bomb.

Amazing. For those of you just tuning in, astronomers at the Jet Propulsion

Laboratory in Pasadena have confirmed the existence of a new asteroid.

on a possible collision course with Earth. But you know, Brian, we're

being hit by rocks from space. Most burn up in the atmosphere and never reach

us. If an asteroid is big enough, though, it is possible for it to hit the

Earth's surface.

That's right. It could certainly do some serious damage.

You don't know what you're missing, Ricky.

I can live with that.

Have you ever done this before, Ricky?

No.

Ah, there's nothing like the feeling you get when you're fishing.

Except maybe being in a coma.

It should be crossing into the Earth's orbit in 12 or 14 hours.

And it could hit us.

Work now.

This was going to be such a simple assignment.

What's this place doing here?

My name is Tess.

Gosh, that's swell.

Maybe you didn't hear the actual question.

And you are?

Mildred Mancini. I can read no relation.

You have rooms?

Rooms?

Rooms, rooms.

Yes, Mildred, come with me. We'll see what we can do for you.

The bag is in the sidecar, cutie. Yes, ma 'am. Can I get your backpack for you?

Nobody touches this thing but yours truly.

You got it, green eyes?

What brought you up here, Mildred?

My late husband and I used to bike in here to fish.

Never caught anything, but then that wasn't really the point. Al and I just

liked being alone together.

You would have hated this place.

Come with me.

Uh -huh. I have three houses in the same neighborhood that I can show you this

afternoon. We interrupt this program to bring you a special news report.

Good afternoon, everyone. Could you hold on a second? We are just receiving word

of a civil defense alert called by the Defense Department.

We want to go now to the Pentagon, where a briefing is just about to get

underway.

I imagine a woman like Mildred has had a fascinating life. Is that true,

Mildred? Honey, fascinating doesn't begin to cover it.

I'm 79 years old, and I've spent 60 of those years on the road with my

darling Al, seeing the world one back road at a time.

You always keep your backpack on?

A woman has to keep a little mystery about her.

Well, you struck me as being the kind of woman who has a real healthy philosophy

on life.

You bet I have. Life is an adventure. You just got to go along for the ride.

I like that. No pressure.

Yeah, but there are pressures in life.

You can't get around being responsible.

My dad's real big on not having fun.

The thing about going along for the ride is that you miss out on the joy of

planning the trip.

I don't need plans. I go where I want. I do what I want.

Cool. You're darn right it's cool. Everything that means anything to me, I

out there on my bike. Some clothes, a few pictures, and a little portable TV.

never miss Judge Judy. Oh, she is a real firecracker. That gal, what time is it?

Um, it's two.

Oh, I was going to take a hike up that mountain today.

I guess I'll do it tomorrow.

You know, I'm not a dad, but I do know what it's like to love somebody and not

be able to get through to them.

And I've learned that you never really know what it takes to bring two people

together, but you just got to recognize that chance when it comes, because

sometimes that window opens and closes very quickly.

I just hope it hasn't already closed.

Dad? Yeah.

Dad? Yeah.

Dad, you better hear this.

Off my bike, I pledge it. Is that right? Just listen.

put, our telescopes aren't looking for asteroids this size.

It's one of the same reasons we missed asteroid 2002 MN back in June.

That one actually passed by the Earth's orbit before we knew anything about it.

And how does this new asteroid compare with that one?

It's roughly triple the size, Terry.

It would easily cover the space of three football fields.

Have you even been able to determine yet when or if this thing might cross the

Earth's orbit?

Well, at its current speed of about 10 miles per second, it would cross the

Earth's orbit in something less than 10 hours.

Our latest projections on the path of the asteroid suggest a possible, and let

me stress possible, impact somewhere in the western United States.

Can you be more specific on that? No, not yet.

To get an accurate projection... You could be writing that asteroid's path.

Work for me.

The sooner it hits, the better.

Well,

there are hundreds of possible scenarios.

The best case is it misses the Earth completely or just... skips off our

atmosphere. Worst case, obviously, is if it lands near a major city.

Now, given the size and speed of this asteroid, there would be significant

damage in a large area, extending from the point of impact, right?

Yes, I'm afraid that's likely, if it does hit.

And that could mean heavy casualties in a populated area such as Los Angeles.

Steve Chamberlain, spokesman for the National Aeronautics and Space

Administration, speaking to us from Washington, D .C. Thank you very much

your time, and we'll be checking back with you throughout the day for updates.

Coming up right after the break. So if asteroid 2002 CS hits, it'll have an

impact the likes of which we've never seen.

That's correct.

This kind of destruction is almost unfathomable.

Tell me, Dr. Gershwin, is this what they call an extinction -level event?

No. However, if it does land somewhere in the western United States, which is a

possibility now, the area's significant damage could extend for hundreds,

possibly thousands of miles.

What could survive that?

Well, probably not very much.

The first hundred miles in every direction would likely be nothing but

earth. After that, there'd be hundreds of miles in which all large animals,

including people, would be killed.

Beyond that, hurricane winds could have devastating effects for a diameter of 2

,000 miles.

Really?

Batteries are dying. I might have some extras on the side.

But come 4 o 'clock...

I'm still going to watch Judge Judy.

Mildred, this is a very serious situation, but you don't seem to care.

Why?

Well, Princess, you'd have to live as long as I have to understand the answer

that question.

I think I know the answer.

May sound old -fashioned, Andrew, but I'm a father, son, and Holy Spirit kind

gal, and I'm not afraid to die.

I don't think that sounds old -fashioned.

Hasn't failed me in 79 years. I don't expect it to now.

Makes me feel good to know that Al's in heaven.

But now I'd just like to die and be there with him.

But here I am, healthy as a horse.

Here they are.

How long were you married?

59 years.

I was 19.

I don't much like the world now without him.

So I'd be perfectly happy to ride to my eternal rest on an asteroid.

But there is one thing that I still have to do.

And just in case there's no tomorrow, I would be much obliged if you would...

To help me get to the top of that mountain tonight.

I'd be happy to.

And these calculations are based on an estimated speed of 9 .8 miles per

10 hours before potential impact.

Well, that's a conservative estimate. The asteroid will gain speed as it

approaches Earth.

So we're talking about a collision velocity upwards of 42 ,000 miles an

impact.

That's great. Now it's really good.

I wonder if Mildred found the batteries.

Dad, can I have the phone? I want to call Mom.

Yeah, good. It's not going to work.

I mean, this whole thing is totally surreal.

You know, there's probably really nothing to worry about.

I mean, you know how the press is when it gets a hold of something like this.

You know, they'll say, uh, disaster Earth 2002, and then in a couple days

nothing will happen, and in a week everyone will just forget about it.

Well, there are actually a variety of scenarios that are realistic.

For example, if it did hit, it could have 30 times the impact of the bomb

hit Hiroshima.

Well, so basically you're saying this could be the end of the world?

No. Oh, no. No, no.

Well, maybe just part of the world.

This part, actually.

But it could also just come really close.

and burn up in our atmosphere and just go right by.

We don't know what tomorrow will bring, Ricky.

But this could be it.

I mean, all we really are is just a rock spinning around in space with a bunch

of other rock.

That asteroid isn't going to steer around us just because we're here.

It doesn't know. We're just in its way.

The weird thing is, it's probably been headed for us for thousands of years.

And we were doomed a long time ago.

And now, Life on Earth, books, music, religion and art, everything that humans

have accomplished will have meant nothing.

Love meant nothing. War meant nothing.

Rehab meant nothing.

I don't believe that.

Yeah, well, I do.

And that means one kid getting stoned isn't going to make any difference.

Whoa. Whoa, hey, hey, hey.

Where are you going?

Home. I'm going to go find Andrew, and I'm going to go... No, you're not going

anywhere. Look.

It's just because you don't care about our family anymore. How can you say

I do care. No, you don't care. I wish to God we weren't stuck up here right now,

Rick, but we are.

What do you think, you're going to outrun that thing? You can't outrun it.

don't know where it's going to hit.

What you're going to do is you're going to sit down and you're going to wait

this thing out for the next few hours.

And you're going to try to have some faith.

Faith in what?

God?

Faith is a joke, Dad.

Don't say that. Everybody I ever put my faith in has let me down.

Why should God be any different?

You got to go on.

Mr.

Colette. Yeah.

I want you to start counting to 100.

Monica, you might want to help him with the counting.

Gloria, you go watch your asteroid.

I've got business to take care of my own.

Count.

And where do you think you're going?

Home. I drive fast enough, I can... Let me get this straight.

You're gonna get stoned, steal my friend's tow truck, ride a hundred miles

hour down a one -lane road, and try to outrun an asteroid?

Yeah.

I think not, give me that. Hey!

Hey yourself!

Now, I'm not gonna stop you from leaving, and as bad as I want to give

lecture on drugs, I'm not gonna do that either.

But I am going to suggest that this is not a good time for your head to be in a

cloud of smoke.

The president has declared a curfew for everyone in the western United States to

begin two hours from now.

That's 8 p .m. Pacific Standard Time. The National Guard has been called up to

prevent looting and enforce the curfew.

Let's face it, folks, there's nowhere to run. So just sit tight, keep your loved

ones close, and let's say a prayer.

Come on back, baby.

Turn around.

Come on back.

I have a plan on being a lousy father, Monica.

I know.

You know, sometimes I just hate myself.

You mustn't say that, Joe.

No, why not?

You must not hate what God loves.

And God loves you.

And how do you know that?

He sent me here to tell you.

I'm an angel.

Whoa!

I'm an angel.

A messenger from God.

So are Tess and Andrew and Gloria.

God knew even before we did that we would all be here tonight, watching that

guy, waiting and praying.

Is it true?

Yes.

And... And what was going to happen?

All sorts of things get broken in this life, Joe.

Hearts get broken.

Pieces of rock are broken off from distant worlds.

But you can't worry about the myriad things that can break in the universe.

Just remember that God can heal all of them.

God can heal this world in his time.

And he can heal your broken family right now if you let him. It's not too late.

I would do anything if he could do that.

God's not making a trade, Joe.

He's given you a gift, and all you have to do is accept it and share it,

beginning with your son.

Oh, I don't know how.

Tell Ricky about the first time. you ever saw the star.

Andrew, um... Oh.

Look, I'm sorry, man. I took your tow truck and I ran over an old muffler and

think I tore up a hole in the gas tank.

Well, you know about that.

Well, I guess the only thing left to do is go back to the lodge.

So, uh, get in.

We should know one way or another in about an hour.

You okay?

Yeah.

Yeah, in fact, I'm a lot better than you might think.

Um, we need to talk.

I know a great place for talking.

Watch your step.

Here we go.

I have to rest.

Okay.

You okay?

You go on ahead.

You go on.

Watch your step up there.

I don't see it.

Yeah, well, you're not going to see it until it comes in our atmosphere.

You know, when I was a kid, we had this tiny apartment in the city.

And, you know, we never saw much at night, just asphalt and streetlights.

It was one summer, they took a bunch of us city kids, street kids, and they sent

us to the country for a camp out.

And all of a sudden, I was surrounded by fields and meadows. You got horses,

cows, birds flying around.

But the one thing that really blew me away was the stars.

I've never seen the stars like that before.

Yeah.

I never really looked at them until last night.

That's what made me want to be an astronomer when I grew up.

So what happened?

I don't know what happened.

Everybody thought that I was a little bit too intellectual for...

A guy like me.

Anyway, you know, I got a job right out of high school.

And I never made it to college until I was 30.

That's when I met your mom.

Well, we fell in love in about a minute and a half.

So why didn't you become an astronomer in college?

Well, her dad, he was kind of an old -fashioned guy. He thought that whoever

married his daughter should have a real career, and me being an astronomer

didn't really fit into his plan for me.

I went into business with your granddad selling insurance.

You see, nobody seemed to think that I could be the guy that I knew I could be.

So I just stopped trying.

And I buried myself in work so I wouldn't have to think about it.

I guess you could say that that became my drug.

I never knew you were so unhappy.

I never realized you were so unhappy.

You see, God gave me dreams that night I saw those stars and I lost them.

I lost them because I never trusted him enough to let him help me make those

dreams come true.

You see, Ricky, I don't want that to happen to you.

It's kind of weird talking about a future when we don't even know we're

have one.

Yeah, but you know what?

We got right now.

I love you, Ricky.

Maybe I should have said that to you and I should have told you that a lot more

than I did.

And I'm sorry.

Okay, okay.

Okay.

Listen up, everybody.

I got a lot to say and not very much time to say it if Astro Girl there is

right.

Right now, oh, there's a million people out there

praying that this asteroid doesn't hit. And I might probably be the only

one praying it does.

Because I miss my husband so much.

And I keep asking for God to tip me too. But I guess God has

got his own plan.

So I'm going to keep on staying on the road, waiting for my time.

But it's time for Albert to get off the

road.

Bye, baby.

God willing.

I'll see you sooner than later.

Andrew, can you give me a hand?

Help me out.

Come on. Yeah.

Yeah.

We are about to switch now to live pictures from the National Observatory

Cambridge, Massachusetts.

as we count down the last few moments before we learn the fate.

Hey, it's ringing.

Hello?

Oh, Sandy.

Joe.

Oh, thank God. Where are you?

Oh, we're 20 miles outside of Rollinsville.

Um, no, we're okay, honey. Don't worry about anything. We're okay. I just can't

believe this is happening.

Mom, we've been trying to call you.

Oh, honey.

I love you so much.

I love you too, Mom.

Ricky, I want to tell you something.

I am proud of you.

I am so proud of you. I have always been proud of you.

Um, I hear your little sister wants to say something.

I love you, Ricky.

I love you too, Squirt.

Is Daddy there?

I'm right here, baby.

Now you listen to me, okay?

I don't want you to be scared.

I now need you to be brave.

And we're all going to get through this together, okay?

Me, you, Ricky, and Mom.

All right?

Okay.

Okay, hold on.

Just hold on.

I respect that man.

Ted, what does an angel do at a time like this?

We do what we were created to do, baby.

We praise God for what we understand, and we praise him even more for what we

don't understand, because he understands everything.

He's got the whole world in his hands.

He's got this whole wide world In his hands

He's got the whole world In his hands He's got the

whole world In his hands

I love you,

Dad.

You're having a heart attack.

Sandy. Sandy.

Joe.

We're okay.

It didn't hit us.

The angle, it was too shallow. It just bounced right off the atmosphere.

It's gone. It's over.

I'm coming home, Mom.

I'm coming home.

I'm coming home, too.

Take me home, Andrew.

Glory be to God.

In the highest.

In the very highest.