Original subtitles

It's time to get going.

What is it, Emily? What's wrong?

My little frogs.

What's wrong with them?

Stay away from the water.

There is absolutely no scientific evidence to support any correlation

the mutated frogs found in Leopard Frog Lake.

A national pesticide company.

Sir, do you understand?

Please, one at a time. Dr. Bryant, what about the incidence of birth defects and

leukemia in the surrounding community? Do they have any connection to CB4T, the

dioxin -based herbicide national used to manufacture?

EPA banned CB4T seven years ago, and it was incinerated according to EPA

guidelines. Dr. Bryant. High rates of cancer and birth defects happen in any

community.

In fact, in the last 30 years,

Cancer and birth defects have been on the increase nationally.

We will have a written statement for you people later today.

Excuse me.

Excuse me.

You handled that great, David.

I've had a lot of practice.

In local news, a scene right out of a horror movie.

A mother and two children discovered a dozen mutated frogs at Leopard Frog

We have this report.

Well on a hike

Hello, David.

How was your day?

Amy looks terrible.

She's out of her mission again.

I saw you on the news.

It was a feeding frenzy.

Why blame you?

People are upset, their children are getting sick, and they need a scapegoat.

There isn't anything behind it, is there, David?

What are you saying, Stephanie, that Jim and I are poisoning people? No, of

course not.

It's just that, David, the chances of all these people having leukemia is...

Well... All children aren't born perfect.

Are they, Stephanie?

Daddy.

Hey, Jeremy.

Hi, Daddy.

I'll go first.

I'm sorry, Jeremy.

Daddy's got a lot of work to do.

Next time, okay?

The two of us will go, okay, sweetheart?

Go get cleaned up for dinner, all right?

Okay.

You have been promising to take him fishing for weeks now.

I can't.

Not tomorrow.

I've got to work.

That is a lie, David.

You could be there if you wanted to. You always use work as an excuse. My work

gives us a very comfortable life.

my work gave us this house and everything else that we have my work

special needs he is your son david what do you think i should do stephanie what

is it what do you want from me i want you to take him fishing

I want you to love him, David.

Whoa.

What happened to you, little guy?

One little slip up and you regret it for the rest of your life.

Change. If you could change the world.

Change.

Rearrange your world.

Change.

Take one, divide by two.

Change. If it was only up to you to change.

To a world of wonder from the world.

What happened to me?

This must be some sort of cranial chemical imbalance that's stimulating a

-death out -of -body experience.

Actually, Dr.

Bryant, you are out of your body.

Literally.

You're dead, sir.

I'm dead.

But I... What was that?

It's like a thermoreversible co -setting polymer.

What?

A wall of jello.

Oh, right.

There certainly is an abundance of great trout lakes in this region.

Although, I'm not sure that this is one of them.

You ever take your son Jeremy fishing, Dr. Bryant?

How do you know my son's name?

Judge Othniel knows everything.

What is happening to me?

The mistakes of your past have brought us together.

It's your judgment day, Dr. Bryan.

There is absolutely no scientific evidence to support any correlation

the mutated frogs found in Leopard Frog Lake and National Petrified Company.

High rates of cancer and birth defects happen in any community.

Any community, Doctor?

Are you telling me that there is a correlation?

That the illnesses are related to national pesticide?

You had no idea?

No.

They didn't burn the toxic chemicals as you thought, Doctor.

They dumped them.

At Leopard Frog Lake, the chemicals seeped into the water table. But you've

to believe me.

If I had known, I never would have let that happen.

Your Honor.

Dr. Bryant was at the lake today looking for evidence. Can't you take that into

account?

Oh, that's a very good point, Mr. Smith.

Years too late.

If I had only known, do you honestly believe I would have allowed that to

happen? I believe that you believed in the company line.

But I had to believe.

You don't understand.

Where I come from, I was the first one to...

To go to college, the first one to own a home.

I pulled myself out because I worked harder than anybody else.

I'm good at what I do.

The very best in my field.

And what about your family?

All right, so I admit that sometimes my success came at the expense of my

family.

But what I did, I did for them.

I gave them everything.

Everything?

Hi, Daddy.

I'll go first.

I'm sorry, Jeremy.

Daddy's got a lot of work to do.

Next time, okay?

You gave your son everything, except what he needed most, a father.

You don't understand.

My son is different.

I always felt that Jeremy, Down syndrome with some kind of punishment.

For what?

Dr. Bryant, I thought you said you had no idea that your company was making

people sick. I didn't.

You've got to believe me.

If I only had the chance to do it over again, it'd be different.

Done.

It's giving you a second chance to go back and change everything.

What? A chance to live again.

Dr. Bryant, I want you to return and to convince yourself to put your fellow man

ahead of the almighty buck. Right the wrongs you have committed.

You will have three days, Dr. Bryant, and three days only.

You will go back with all your memories intact.

No one will recognize you. You are a free agent in the universe with the

blessing of God almighty and his court.

No comment from Madison Sheriff Thomas Burns.

Next up, filling in for our vacationing investigative reporter, Jeff Acton, is

Gene Fitzsimmons with a hard -hitting, no -punches -pulled expose. Gene, what

have you got for us?

Oh, um... Nothing yet, Dean.

It's still a work in progress.

All right. Get off him.

Go to weather.

Before the folks at home start paying attention? Okay, stay on it, Gene.

We'll be waiting.

Well, let's see what the weather has in store for us this weekend. And for that,

we go to our new weatherman from sister station KBBU in Detroit, Smith Rain.

Smitty, how's it looking out there?

Can you speak?

Looks like more of the same.

Clear skies and sunshine. You mean after it stops raining?

Oh, uh, of course. That's exactly what I mean. You took the weather right out of

my mouth. You did.

Okay, this is a train wreck. Um, go to commercial before the station manager

hits the coronary.

This is absurd.

I'm a scientist.

I don't know the first thing about investigative reporting.

Yeah, like I'm a meteorologist.

No one can predict the weather.

That's one domain he usually likes to keep to himself.

Wait a minute.

That says July 1990.

That's two months before Jeremy was born.

Am I here to do the news or save lives?

In this case, that may be one and the same.

Jim Newhouse, the company's CEO, is my best friend.

I gave my life to that company.

Now you want me to go on the air and bring down national pesticide?

Absolutely.

If that's what it takes.

Well, I can't do that.

Not without evidence.

So do you think you'll listen?

I'll have to.

Nice digs.

It was a big step up, above our means.

But I knew that it was Stephanie's dream house, and when she finally became

pregnant after all of those years... Look at her.

When you're in love, you kind of want to make their dreams come true, no matter

what the cost.

I know what I did.

Wait a minute.

That's Jim and Marcy. I can't talk to him with Newhouse in there.

You think he knew about the illegal dumping?

Well, he had to.

I mean, nothing happened in that company without him knowing.

He was my best friend. How could he have kept this from me?

Jeremy, I love it.

So you've decided on the name? Well, if it's a boy, if it's a girl, I'm

thinking... It's going to be a boy. Trust me, I know these things.

Oh?

Based on what?

Scientific theory?

Women's intuition?

A manly hunch.

You look so thin.

Right.

And we have also decided that... Honey?

Jim, Marcy, we'd like you to be godparents to our son.

I'll be honored.

Thank you. Oh, Stephanie.

Oh, look at this. A train set for your

kids still in the womb?

At this rate, it's their birthday, you can buy them a car.

Easy there, boss. First, I've got to make the mortgage payments.

Hey, you'll be fine. I guarantee it. You just wait till you're fully vested and

the stock options kick in.

You're going to have more money than you know what to do with, buddy.

Music to my ears. That's right.

Hear that, Jeremy?

You're going to have everything.

Your little hard desires.

You were going to spoil him, David.

Rotten.

Should have seen how Jeremy's face lit up when he saw that train set for the

first time.

Man, it had flashing lights and bridges and tunnels.

Jeremy would always look so sad whenever the train would leave the station, and

he'd look so happy when it came home.

Gotta find my way back home again, Mr. Smith.

You sure you know where you're going? I'm in the lab.

I'm always in the lab.

You're not in the lab.

I can see that.

Hellman.

Where's your name tag?

Hold it, you two.

I need backup. Third floor. Suspect proceeding west.

Wow, you're so, uh, young.

Right.

Dr. Bryant?

Yes.

Uh, I'm... We're reporters for WZBI -TV.

How did you get in here?

Look, we don't have much time.

National Pesticide is going to bury your stockpile of CB4T.

That's absurd.

No, it isn't.

Look, you signed the papers ordering it to be incinerated.

But it wasn't.

Instead, it's being dumped somewhere near Leopard Frog Lake.

You're crazy. Listen to me.

Children are going to get sick.

And they're going to die.

You've got to stop it.

Grab him. Hey, hey, take it easy.

Take it easy. You all right, Dr. Bryant?

I'm fine. Come on, sir. Let's go.

Come on. Just check it out.

What have you got to lose?

Well, I think you heard me. Don't you think you heard me?

Hey, we definitely planted a seed, right?

Well, I know me.

It'll lead at me, and I'll need to disprove it, and I'll find the evidence,

I'll hella break loose.

What?

I gotta get back to the state.

Oh, um... Look, there's gotta be a paper trail.

There always is, right?

Right.

But you know where it'll lead.

Right back to Jim Newhouse, a man you consider your best friend.

Hey, David, you want to see me?

What's up?

Yeah, I have a dilemma.

I know I recommended incinerating CB4T according to government guidelines, but

can't seem to find the paperwork.

I know I signed it.

Yeah, well, I have an even bigger dilemma.

Your life's about to get more complicated.

Get in the way, more responsibility, more stuff.

See, it's my dilemma.

Who's going to take this brand new Range Rover off my hands?

Yeah, it's your new company car, buddy.

Perfect for hauling around strollers, diaper bags, and every toy imaginable.

Oh, man.

You're such a worrier.

I guess that's what I pay you for, huh?

Okay.

When the EPA banned the pesticide, we lost the bundle.

So now the company's going to save millions of dollars by disposing of it

another way, recouping some of our investment.

It's a business decision.

You're going to bury it? Yeah.

CB4T. You can't.

It's already begun.

You know the only safe disposal method is by extreme heat.

Yeah, according to you.

But there's other recommendations.

Hey, don't worry about it. We've taken every precaution. The drums are sealed

good and tight.

I can't approve this.

It started. It's too late.

Look, I'm sorry the memo bypassed you.

It was an oversight.

A favor from me to you.

If anything goes wrong, it's my neck on the line, not yours.

No, it'll be everybody's neck. It'll kill people.

Trust me on this one, David.

It's an acceptable risk.

Jim, what's with the company speak?

You're a company man, aren't you?

I'm talking to you as a friend here.

I'm worried about this.

Hey, well, so am I.

That's why I need to know I can count on you.

Oh, well, if it isn't the two trespassers.

How did you find out?

I'm a newswoman. I have sources everywhere.

And the chief of security at National called and ratted on you.

Sorry. What are you sorry for? This is the most excitement we've had around

since the annual loot -fisk eating contest.

It's a fish.

It's like a really big fish.

So, what did you find out? Tell me everything.

National pesticide is going to bury 50 ,000 gallons of an herbicide called

And that affects our average viewer's life how?

The dioxin level in CB4T is 5 ,000 times greater than one part per million.

It has strong hydrophobic properties as well as a proven mutagenicity.

In English?

It causes genetic mutation.

Once it seeps into the water supply, the children in this town are going to get

sick.

And some are even going to die.

And we, we can stop it from happening.

How? By reporting the truth about national pesticide.

Oh, right.

Don't you even care? No, all I do is care.

But here's a newsflash. This is a company town.

And those kids that you're talking about, most of their parents work for

national pesticide.

I don't think that they'd poison their own kids.

What if we bring you proof?

From the inside.

Well, I... I wouldn't expect any of them to come forward anytime soon.

Well, one of them will.

Morning, Dr. Bryant.

Mrs. Bryant?

What are you doing here? Are you following me?

No, I had a feeling that you'd be here.

Yeah, right. You're following me.

Okay, so I'm following you.

But I wouldn't be if it wasn't so important.

You're looking lovely, Mrs. Bryant.

Well, thank you.

You're obviously a man of large taste.

He's a reporter looking for a story that doesn't exist.

Gene Fitzsimmons, WDBI -TV News.

If you want to talk to me, talk to me at work.

Leave my wife out of this. I tried, but I got thrown out.

I'm sure you heard about it. It was quite a ruckus this morning.

What ruckus?

Did I miss something?

You didn't tell her.

But you tell her everything.

You don't know me.

I know that you're driving a new car today.

A new car?

And keeping secrets from your wife.

What happened?

Did Jim Newhouse get nervous when you started questioning him about the CB4T?

What are you talking about?

David took care of it. David had all of that incinerated. Tell him, David.

Tell me, David. Did you?

Is it safe?

Is your neighbor?

Tell me.

Can you look at little Amy ten years from now when her hair's falling out

chemo and say that you took care of it?

Don't listen to him. He's just trying to stir up controversy.

Dr. Bryant, you could lie for the company.

You could lie to me and even to your own wife.

But don't lie to yourself.

Come on, Steph, let's go.

Because once you do that, they don't just own your new car and the mortgage

your house.

They own your soul.

And if you let that happen, you can never get it back.

Never get it back.

Got it.

Hey. It'll be done soon.

We won't have to live like this forever.

We are always waiting for something.

Escrow, the room addition, now the baby.

It never quite feels like we're where we want to be.

Honey, we're black.

We are right where we're supposed to be.

There isn't any chance that that reporter was telling the truth.

Tell me it'll be okay for Jeremy to swim in that lake.

Nothing is going to happen to anyone's baby, especially ours.

It's going to be perfect.

Everything is going to be perfect.

Looks like rain.

I was so sure that I would do the right thing.

How could I go through my entire life without knowing myself at all?

Don't give up.

Have faith.

In myself?

No.

In the power that gave you a second chance.

What power?

What is it?

I am a scientist.

So you make me understand.

Where is the power?

Everywhere.

Tell me something, Mr. Smith.

Is this power that you want me to trust in?

Is it the same power that created my Jeremy?

Of course.

Well, then he must hate me.

Oh, no.

No, he loves you.

You hate yourself.

Stop it.

How?

By believing that the same conscience that burns inside of you right now also

lives in him.

New England Journal of Medicine.

High levels of dioxin.

Suspected of causing everything from chloracne to skin

lesions to leukemia.

I know what I have to do now, Mr. Smith.

I'll break the story and name myself.

That'll put enough stink to start an investigation.

It'll also destroy me.

You know, a man is not defined by his job.

Not even a scientist.

A man is defined by his principles.

Mr. Smith, I don't even know why I'm here anymore.

I don't know why I was ever here.

Newsroom? I'm looking for a reporter.

I think his name is Gene.

I know it's late, but... He's right here.

Maybe this is your answer.

Gene here.

I'm just, uh... Are you the one that was talking to my husband today in the

park?

Steph? Mrs. Bryant?

Are you all right? What's the matter?

I'm just looking for my husband.

He's not there?

I tried him in the lab. I tried his car phone. I just thought... I was hoping

maybe he... I'm sorry.

Good night.

No, wait, Mrs. Bryant.

Is she okay? No.

She's alone.

My baby!

We need to get her to the hospital.

I don't want to lose my baby.

Please don't let me lose my baby.

This doesn't make any sense.

I mean, she's over two months early.

It didn't happen this way.

Smith, what is happening?

I don't know.

How is she?

Mrs. Bryant is fine, but there may be some complications with the baby.

What kind of complications?

Well, the baby is premature.

They're monitoring its heartbeat. They may have to do a C -section.

We'll just have to wait and see.

Still no word from the father?

This is all my fault.

I've come back and I've stirred things up and now Stephanie's in there all

and Jeremy's... Is it Jeremy struggling to be born?

Everything else has changed.

Do you want it to be Jeremy?

What are you saying?

I wish my son was dead?

No.

I'm asking you if you prayed he'd never been born.

God hears everything.

Hello?

Hey, is there a Smitty here?

Yeah, thanks.

Hello? Okay.

Here's the scoop. I did some checking.

Far Hurst Waste of Bozal does have a contract with National Pesticide, and

they're scheduled for another pickup today.

But we don't know what it is or where they're taking it. We do.

Leopard Frog Lake.

Meet us there, Christy, and bring the cameras.

I can't. This is too big for me.

Then grow.

I'm not moving.

Roll over me because I'm not moving. This is your last warning, buddy.

I don't care what TV station you're from.

Either you get out of the way, or I'm going to start her up anyways and drop

this whole stuff right on top of you. You go right ahead and dump.

If I'm not moved, it would be a great lead story for 6 o 'clock news.

I'm not letting you bury the CB -14, Newhouse.

did brian tell you about that no but i wish he had yeah sure well you can tell

me finish it national and every other chemical company in this country well i

guess friendships only go so deep yeah i guess so about five feet down then it

gets really ugly david what are you doing the water is

contaminated jim

A newsstand?

This is great.

Are you rolling?

Never rolling.

All right.

No, look, this is a non -news story, all right? There is no contamination. We

double -checked everything.

I'll state my reputation on it. What about your wife?

We built this company together.

Don't blow it now. Drink it.

Turn the camera off. Turn it off! If true national pesticide is bearing

dioxin, it should be incinerated.

No comment. No comment!

Drive. Get out of here.

He's holding up.

He's in intensive care.

Steph, he's early, but with neonatal care being what it is, he'll be

fine.

He just needs to grow a little more and then he'll be perfect.

You don't know, do you?

When I saw him in the delivery room, I was so shocked, you know.

I mean, it wasn't what I expected.

But then I saw the way he looked at me.

Jeremy has Down syndrome.

How could this happen?

We made him, David.

Our love made him.

Poor Jeremy.

He doesn't deserve this.

To be born?

No.

To fight so hard just to... Just to be.

He gave and he gave and he gave.

He asked for so little in return.

And now?

This is all my fault.

For not staying on top of the CB -14.

I knew deep down inside, I knew.

I should have followed through on that stuff.

And I think what could have happened.

You will always believe that Jeremy is a reminder of your own failings.

Not a reminder of punishment.

But Jeremy is not a punishment.

Then what is he?

Every important thing that you will ever learn,

you'll learn from him.

But I have nothing to give.

Oh yeah, you do.

You've got the most important thing.

Your love.

Can you give it?

Because I've got to tell you something.

He's right.

This is not a punishment.

I believe that this is a test.

Everybody doesn't get a second chance at life.

This is about choices.

What's happening?

Come on, John. Fight. You've got to fight.

Is he going to die?

Is that what you want?

Is it?

In your secret heart, God hears everything, man.

I don't want to take a chance at life.

Jeremy?

You're home.

I'm alive?

Well, how?

None of the children got sick.

National Pesticide cleaned everything up in time. They went out of business.

Now you conduct research.

At the university?

What about Jeremy, my wife?

but she's alone.

Oh, God, please give me not... Let me have my son.

Daddy.

Hello.

Jeremy.

Look at that face.

It's pure joy.

I'll always remember this, Mr. Smith.

You won't have to, Dr. Bryant.

You'll only remember the new life you've chosen for yourself.

Hey, Jer, what you got there?

What do you have?

Huh?

Let's see.

It's a frog.

It's perfect.

Just like you.

Thank you.

Jeremy judges no one.

Loves all things.

It looks at our weary world through innocent eyes.

I believe when I finally look into the faces of angels, they may look just like

Jeremy.

Change your world.

Change.

Rearrange your world.

Change. Take one, divide by two.

Change. If it was only up to you to change. To a world of

wonder from a world made.