Original subtitles

Gentlemen and ladies, the time has come for our annual scavenger hunt.

A hundred questions in three days.

Well, Kingsfield said there aren't any rules. If there aren't any rules, then

anything goes.

Your scavenger hunt is simply not appropriate to the nature, purpose, and

natural decorum of a law school.

Let be all, gentlemen.

The study of law is something new and unfamiliar to most of you, unlike any

other schooling that you have ever known before.

And one day we'll all say, hey, look, we've gone through the

first year.

You teach yourselves the law, but I train your minds.

You come in here with a skull full of mush, and if you survive,

you leave thinking like a lawyer.

Stop moaning. You're sneezing.

675, King's Bench, 432.

675, King's Bench, 343.

432, Nottingham.

The year is 1575, and the text is in Latin.

Yes, 675, 343. No, Nottingham!

What's the matter with you, Nottingham? Are you cracking up?

There are three simple digits.

The citation is 4-3-2.

I'm sorry, I... Oh, there's cobwebs and it's so dark down here.

There's Anne Damp.

Now, we're almost done.

6-7-5.

King's Bench.

4-3-2. Better.

Much better, melting hammer. Come along.

Come on.

You promised to build me a house. Now, halfway through, you realize you're

going to lose money on the contract. So you come to me and you say you can't

finish the house unless I give you an extra $10,000. I mean, that's blackmail.

That's breach of contract. You are obligated to build that house for me.

Wrong, Hart, you're wrong. Completely wrong.

I had a right to give up the contract and suffer the damages. When you agreed

to pay me an extra $10,000, it is a new contract.

Under your theory, there is no way to correct the contract that turns out

badly for both the parties. You just stop working and demand more money? What

am I supposed to do? I'm left with a half-finished house.

I mean, your theory is blackmail.

It's against everything to do with contract law. It's crazy.

Who are you calling crazy? Have you even bothered to read the case book?

Gagarian, would you listen to reason? I will when I hear it. You are the one

that doesn't have an open mind.

Mr. Gagarian and Mr. Hart, will you please cease your histrionics

and conserve your energy?

I have something that will take all of it that remains.

Gentlemen and ladies, the time has come for our annual scavenger hunt.

It will acquaint you with many types of material that you may need to consult

and that may prove useful in your future careers as lawyers.

The hunt consists of a list of 100 questions.

to be answered within three days.

In the past, I have confined the questions to those which can be answered

by reference to the law school materials.

This year, the answers to these questions can be found only by searching

the entire length and breadth of the university.

In real life, the law knows no bounds.

The same is true of this year's scavenger hunt.

One final comment.

There are no rules to the scavenger hunt, no guidelines.

You may choose to work together, pool your efforts, or you may not.

This, too, is the way of the real world.

My only role is to grade the results.

Grade them severely, I might add.

Any one of you who does not answer at least 75% of the questions correctly

will receive an F.

F for flunk.

If you looked at this, what are we going to do about it?

Oh, what am I going to do about my sister?

Send her home.

Send her home? What kind of talk is that?

You know, you're going to be needing my help soon, and I need yours now.

But, Del, think about her.

There'll be no one to talk to, no one to show her around.

The dorm is going to be like a ghost town. Ernie's will be empty. Every

single student is going to be in the library.

Liz, she's already on her way here. She'll be here any minute.

Oh.

Well, you're right.

I guess we all have to stick together. It's just that Kingsfield blew me away

with all this scavenger hunt.

Bell, your sister can stay with me. You don't have time to go checking out

hotels.

Oh, Liz, thanks a lot.

It's wonderful. You're saving my life.

No rules.

We're going into battle, and we need the war council.

Okay, General.

Anderson? Yes, sir.

Where's Bell?

Oh, he's picking up his sister.

What? He's just going to move her into my room and then meet us in the library.

But we need everybody's brain now, even Bell's. It's an inappropriate time to

allow a sibling to visit. Doesn't Bell realize that?

Well, Bell didn't know about the scavenger hunt, and neither did his

sister. Well, he knows about it now.

Why couldn't she visit next week, next month?

Next year.

You can bet that Bell's not the one to confront his sister with the hard and

cold facts of law school life in Kingsfield.

No, but I will.

She has to go. Ford, we're all nervous about this assignment, but I don't think

it's fair to take it out on Belle's sister. Logan, it is for her own good.

There are certain decisions which, as leader of this group, I must make.

I will explain to her very carefully that her brother's grades may well hinge

on this week's work, as will ours.

We're going into war, my friends.

This is no time for noncombatants to be walking around.

Belle's sister has to go.

Now, everyone into the library and start working on these diabolical questions.

I'll join you later as soon as I take care of Belle and the sister.

What is it?

The dean and Professor Smathers would like a word with you, sir.

Never keep the dean waiting, Mrs.

Nottingham.

Charles? Yes?

It's good of you to see us on such short notice.

We, uh, know that you're... We understand that you're planning to hold

another one of your scavenger hunts this year.

Scavenger hunt is a tradition of this school and my class.

Many professors use it as a teaching tool.

Not the way you use it. It is the consensus of the law faculty that you

should not hold your scavenger hunt this year.

And you speak for the faculty, do you? The students.

are in a tense, nervous mood. Reports from the law school psychiatrist and

other teachers indicate that instability has reached a point where... An

unacceptable level. I see it in my own class. Now, your methods of teaching are

simply not in a... Charles, the fact that you turn your students loose with

no guidance... With no rules. Wild in the library like beasts.

Books are lost. Other projects disrupted.

Your scavenger hunt is simply not appropriate to the nature, purpose, and

natural decorum of a law school.

Let be all, gentlemen.

I want you to consider carefully what we've been saying.

Please do not hold a scavenger hunt this year.

Try to think of the good of the school.

It is my habit to do precisely that.

The administration of this law school does not want you to hold a scavenger

hunt. Nor does the faculty, Charles. That is their consensus.

Please. Charles, will you consider what we've been saying?

Good day, gentlemen.

What do you got here, Bell?

Come here.

I think I got something.

What do you got?

Just come here. Take a look.

We're coming through. Come here. Hurry up.

We're coming through here.

Iraqi railroad cave.

This is it. This is the key to question number two.

All right.

It's right there.

I can't see it.

Well, maybe someone has it out.

Impossible. I checked.

Well, then where is it?

How are we supposed to find the answer to number five?

Yeah, I found it.

Great.

It was hidden.

What do you mean?

It was hidden back there.

Somebody used it and then hid it so nobody else could find the answer to the

questions.

Ford's right.

It's turning into war.

Excuse me.

My name is Franklin Ford. I'm the leader of your brother's study group, and there

are a few things I'd like to make clear.

Yes?

Willis, would you snap out of it? I want to talk to you.

I'm great at this scavenger hunt, sis. Better than any of them, even Hart.

I answered ten questions today.

Kingsfield is finally going to know what a bell is made of.

Willis.

You know, it's not exactly fun around here.

Do you understand?

You know, the only person that I've seen is that little Napoleon with the bow

tie. And he told me I should go home.

Bored? Yeah, well, I took care of him.

Willis, hey.

I'm supposed to be visiting you.

You know? So let's visit. Let's do something.

I can't. I got the scavenger hunt.

Yeah, the scavenger hunt.

You're mad.

You know that?

I mean, nobody lives like this.

They don't spend all their time underground with a lot of books.

Hey, what'd you expect? You wanted to come here? This is what it's like. Don't

blame me.

Number one, I did not want to come here. I wanted to go to Europe. And number

two, this is all I could afford.

You know, I have been stuck studying in Pepperdine College, in Pepperdine, New

York, population 300, and I thought I was going to come here and meet some

interesting people.

But I was wrong.

I mean, you guys are just a bunch of robots, and you don't notice anything

else but your law books.

Willis!

I'll be back later.

Uh, look, why don't you go to an art museum or something? I don't know.

Go sit down in some classes.

Take a walk or something.

We got some great pigeons around here. Why don't you feed them?

Feed the pigeons.

He was told not to hold a scavenger hunt this year, but he's done it again.

Now, who does he think he is?

Kingsfield. Well, this time he's gone too far. No rules.

His scavenger hunt disrupts this entire school for weeks.

Other students will suffer. His own students close to the breaking point

will become dangerously unbalanced.

Now, I believe that the dean is going to have the spunk to stand up to him this

time.

That's a shame.

He was such a brilliant teacher. The scavenger hunt is not teaching. It's

just some sadomasochistic game he plays for his own amusement.

Anyone have any luck?

The book is gone. There's no way we're going to get the answer to number 28.

Somebody hid it.

Gagarin was working on 28. That's one more answer for his group and one less

for ours.

Well, Kingsfield said there aren't any rules. If there aren't any rules, then

anything goes.

You hide a book, the other people flunk out. You beat them too bad.

You know, some of these questions can only be answered by using the other

university libraries.

I suggest we get over there. Good idea. Don't worry about anything. I answered

eight more questions.

Oh, Bell, that's great.

I'm good at this. I mean, I talk as well as Hart in class, but I'm a bulldog when

it comes to the scavenger hunt. All right, everybody, let's get back to

work.

I'm going to take these back to the dorm.

Hey, come on, bulldog.

Say that.

Want some help with your books?

No, thank you.

Oh, come on. You're going to drop them. I can handle it. Thank you. Listen, I'm

going to the dorm, too.

See? Now you don't look like a bookcase anymore.

Watch it. Don't lose the order. There are answers in those books.

I'm sorry.

What's this? My criminal law outline.

What's a criminal law outline?

Please don't touch it. It's very important. Very.

What, this pile of paper?

Please.

Okay, okay. I'm sorry. Here's one criminal law outline. One pack of papers

back in its own special little place.

Sorry.

Oh, that's impressive.

I know what these are.

Class notes.

My goodness, aren't you diligent?

Fill out every page.

And no doodling.

Are you going to let me work?

Maybe.

So you're not going to let me work?

I'm bugging you, aren't I? You know damn well you are.

I know, I know I'm bugging you. But you deserve it, don't you?

What did I do to you?

Oh, you're gonna be in the way, Miss Bell.

You're gonna disrupt your brother's work, Miss Bell.

You're gonna cause chaos, Miss Bell. Go home, Miss Bell.

All right.

I deserve it.

Yeah, you deserve it.

Now, can I do some work?

Yeah, now you can go to work.

rewards every man for himself.

Oh, Bell, are you suggesting we ought to start hiding books, too?

Hey, what I'm suggesting is that we ought to make sure that we have the

answer to some questions that nobody can find but us.

Everybody's doing it.

Your mind is tortured, Bell. It leads down to Earth.

The answer to 53.

In this book?

Toddler's Treatise on Timber's Code.

Okay. What's next?

Listen, have you guys seen Dodler's Treatise on Timbers Codes? Because it's

not here on the shelf and it's not signed out.

You know, you got it. You must have it. Hey, hey, calm down, Gagarian. Anyone

could have taken it. Now, look, my study group needs that book.

Well, I'm sure you'll find it if you look hard enough.

Yeah, take a look right down there, huh? You rats.

Hart, are you crazy?

Looking for the answer to a legal question in a medical...

Kingfield's been trying to tell us that the law is everywhere.

Now, I'm telling you, the answer to question 75 is in here.

Excuse me.

Uh, we're looking for a periodical called The Malpractice Doctor's Letter.

You're law students, right?

Yeah, that's right.

Are you doing that scavenger hunt for Professor Kingfield?

Exactly. Out.

What? Law students are banned here. This is a nice, quiet medical library. You

know, it's not a battleground.

Yes, but we have to answer these questions. Now, you have a book that we

need. I have already asked you to leave once. Please go.

But if you'd just let us use the index, we... I've asked you to go. No.

Good morning, Doctor.

I mean, I can believe the jacket, but where'd he get the stethoscope?

Good boy, he's very creative.

I get it.

Four. Don't do that.

What?

Sneak up on me. Take a break.

No. Oh, come on, please. Just a small five-minute break, please. I have

something I found I want to show you. Lisa, I'd love to, but I can't. Well,

then I'm just going to have to bother my brother, the one who's so good at

finding all these answers for your study group.

Ten minutes.

Great.

Isn't it terrific?

It sure is.

I didn't even know it was here.

Well, we spend all our time going down into the library. We never think about

coming up here.

You know, Ford, your mind is just like a groundhog.

I mean, you spend all of your time down in the dark passages.

But you're even worse.

You know, even groundhogs come up for the spring.

You're right.

Just fantastic.

You can see everything, the whole school.

Like a new world.

It's helpful sometimes to look at things from a different perspective, isn't it?

Charles. Yes?

Now there are complaints from the law school library, and our stacks are being

depleted. Books are being taken out of the building without being signed out.

The books will be returned.

It isn't only our library I could cover for you there.

This year, your students are wreaking havoc in the libraries of all the

departments of the university.

The divinity school, the medical school.

There's never been a scavenger hunt like this before.

I told you, this year's students are a very enterprising lot.

Enterprising? Yes,

they've shown remarkable initiative, drive, and imagination.

And what do you intend to do to curb it?

Nothing.

I can't change their character, and I'm the one who gave them the assignment.

Charles, what is the point of all this? Things will return to their normal

order. How can you get order out of chaos?

What is the point of this scavenger hunt of yours?

This time, Charles, I'm holding you responsible, personally responsible, to

the university as a whole.

You still think this scavenger hunt has no purpose?

No educational value?

Everyone is saying that you've gone too far.

I invite you and Professor Smathers...

to my Friday class and contract law.

It may allay your doubts.

For your sake, Charles, I hope it does.

Several professors, including Smathers, are pressing for your removal as head of

the Academic Curricular Committee.

I got 20.

All right, Bulldog.

I just want to say you have truly surprised me. You deserve the applause

of the entire group.

I am impressed, Belle.

You know, it still isn't enough.

I mean, even with Belle's work, we've only answered 40 questions.

And they get harder and harder because other study groups have either hidden or

lost or stolen the reference materials that we need.

You know, right now, it looks like there is a good chance we may not pass.

And there's only one day left.

Well, we haven't heard from Mr. Ford yet.

How many questions you got?

What?

Ford, how many questions have you answered?

Three.

Three, that's it?

Ford, you know how hard we've all been working.

I have two.

All right, share it with us, then. Hey, calm down, everybody. Calm down? That

kind of attitude means an F for everybody in the study group.

Bulldog suits you to a T.

You're all caught up in this paper chase, oblivious of everything going on

around you. For instance, your sister's here visiting you, and what do you do?

You ignore her.

You are the pits.

Question 40.

What's going on?

Why aren't you working?

I am. I'm just taking a little break.

Well, it looks like it's going to be a long break.

Ford, what's the matter with you?

You've got to get it together.

I'm doing my work.

Now, you know that that assignment is due tomorrow.

Do you expect to use our work and not contribute enough of your own?

We work as a team.

This is law school, not college.

Ford!

As I said, it's not college, and it certainly isn't daycare.

I have been finding it very difficult to concentrate today, Miss Bell.

I'm glad.

So is part of me.

But there's another part, a voice deep down that keeps telling me,

Ford, you're not working hard enough.

Well, you know, if we have to talk, I'd rather hear the first voice.

You won't believe it.

The answer to question 99 is in this book. In this book.

But I thought we were going to pass on question number 99 because it was too

difficult. Not for me.

Not for the old bulldog.

Hey, this book is over 200 years old. I stole it from the treasure room. I had

to pretend I was an exterminator.

Bell, you amaze me.

That's a brilliant move.

It was an extremely brilliant move.

Hey, where's Lisa?

I have no idea.

I mean, I know I'm running a hotel around here, but I didn't think I was

running a guard service.

Look, though, I've got to go to the library. We really don't have much time.

Hey, well, I mean, did you see her in the dorm?

Belle, she's your responsibility. She's your sister, not mine.

Now, I don't want to discuss your sister and... Well, look, more important than

that, I just don't want to become involved in a family argument, okay?

What do you mean by that?

I just mean I'm going to the library, and if you want to find your sister,

conduct your own scavenger hunt.

Lisa, it's your brother. My brother?

Just go over there.

Come on, Ford, open up.

What is it, Bill? Have you seen my sister?

I'm not your sister's keeper.

Come on, Ford, I've been looking all over for her. I spent enough time away

from the work already.

I haven't seen her.

Well, where could she be?

She's a big girl. She probably went to a movie or something. We're all pretty

boring, you know.

I know, but you think she would have said something.

I'm sure she's all right, Willis. Don't worry.

Yeah, I guess so.

How you doing on the questions?

Oh, uh, hanging in.

I'll see you later.

Come

on,

Liz.

No, it's useless.

I'm never going to find the book.

Forget it. And we're never going to find the answer either.

The study group has hidden it. Hey, come on.

No.

You're right.

We can't finish it.

We can't pass.

And it's... It's all Kingsfield's fault.

An assignment without any rules, dog-eat-dog.

Damn it.

We have a good study group, Hart, maybe the best, and we're all gonna flunk. The

whole class is gonna flunk.

We're just like rats running through a maze, and there's no cheese at the end

of it, and he knows it. So what you're telling me is that Kingsfield gave us an

assignment knowing that we were all gonna flunk? What I'm saying is that

he's mean.

Your idol is just a mean old man who enjoys watching other people suffer.

There's got to be a reason.

No, there isn't. It's just plain old meanness.

Turning us loose to fight each other.

Come on to something. Where are you going?

Are you going to finish this hunt when you know we're down the tubes?

Thanks for coming, Gagarian.

Come to the point, Hart.

There's a way to pass this assignment.

Sure, sure. We'll sneak into Kingsfield's classroom. We'll steal all

the answers.

Now, listen.

If we pool all our resources, if we share our answers, if we exchange the

books we've hidden... What?

Our study group has answered maybe 40 questions. Yours has answered, I don't

know, maybe 40 more?

25. Okay, we share.

Don't you see? We share the answers. And the books. And maybe we share with a

couple of other study groups. Then we all pass.

You want everyone to pass?

What good is a grade of A if nobody gets an F?

Everybody getting A's is better than everybody getting F's, Gagarin, and you

know it.

Look, Hart.

I don't trust you.

How do I know that you have 40 answers?

How do I know that you even answered the questions right?

about making trades, about contracts.

We're talking about contract law.

Look, you and I will make a contract, one that satisfies every contingency.

You know, your study group might have answered more questions, but we answer

tougher questions.

We'll trade you two of your questions for one of ours.

Now, what if your so-called tough questions are ones that we've already

answered? Well, in that contingency,

I guess we owe you something.

Like two questions?

How do we deal with the problem of

mediation? Are you guys going to argue all night?

Ernie, it takes a long time to make a contract. What are you talking about

mediation? What if we disagree on the submitted performance of any part of the

contract?

Pringle versus Cooperstown.

A mediation panel. Right. Two members from my team, two members from yours.

It can't be an even number, otherwise there'll never be a resolution.

Okay, Ernie, to break the tie vote? Done. Put it in the contract. Thank God

you're finished. The beers are on me.

This actually looks fair, Hart.

Listen, it's not good contract law to drive the hardest bargain you can. We've

created a contract that works, and one that doesn't take advantage of either of

us.

Okay, I'm ready to sign on behalf of my study group.

Okay, just a second.

Congratulations. Thanks, Ernie.

Oh, here's to you, Harvey. Here's to you, sir.

Hey, how's it going, pal?

I found one more rancher, one fortune I found.

Oh, I'm proud of you, Bulldog.

Yeah. Your passenger work's been wonderful.

In fact, you know, everybody's tried hard, except our great leader.

He spends all his time messing around with your sister.

What?

Know what?

I thought everybody knew.

Everybody? What are you talking about?

Come on, Bill. I mean, you can't be making out in the dorm and try to keep

it quiet.

Quite a little girl that sister of yours. Only had three days.

I'll kill him.

Quite a little number.

My sister?

My little innocent sister?

Innocent? I think not, Bill.

I gotta get her home. I gotta get her out of here. Okay, now, Bell, on

question 98, I got a small quibble with you here.

You know, if we consult the relevant Islamic authorities, I think we'll clear

it right...

Lisa,

what's the matter?

What's the problem?

Oh, it's my brother.

He's making things very unpleasant.

I'm going back to school.

Do you have to?

Don't you have any other options?

Well, options?

You're the lawyer.

I mean, at least you're trying to be.

I mean, you're supposed to be able to think things out thoroughly and

logically, so you tell me, what's the option?

For you.

For us.

I mean, law isn't everything.

I mean, where is it ordained that you have to study law this year or next

year?

Ford, you can be irrational.

You can be undependable.

You can be crazy, Ford.

Crazy? You know, I've always wanted to go to Europe to see Paris.

It'd be wonderful to run away with somebody.

To Paris?

Or Rome or London or anywhere you want.

Just anywhere that would be new and exciting.

It'd be an adventure, Ford.

You can't just run away.

If we love each other, we can do whatever we want.

I can't just run away.

Don't you see how much I've invested in this law school? How much it means to

me?

You're scared, Ward.

Maybe I am.

But I know who I am and what I want.

I think we should think about this. Maybe write to each other.

Everything's happened so fast.

Write to each other.

Okay, I'll write to you if that's what you want.

And you can file them away with the rest of your class notes.

Well, when does Hart get here?

He should be here any minute.

You don't bother to sit down, Ford.

Hope you had an enjoyable few days with the little sister.

Shut up, Anderson.

You lied to me, Ford. You snuck behind my back pretending to be working when

all the time... Bill, you don't understand.

I don't want to hear about it, Ford.

Now get out.

Is that the general consensus?

Logan?

I don't know.

But you did let us down, Ford.

Anderson? Well, you haven't carried your weight, have you, old boy?

You know, the only thing that makes me feel better is that you won't have our

answers.

Yes, there I mean it.

Yeah. Well, I can't wait to be there when Kingfield puts a big rosy F next to

your name, Ford.

contracts i negotiated with seven different study groups and they're good

solid contracts i felt like a real lawyer negotiating for those okay great

what's the result we've got 93 questions to the scavenger

Gentlemen and ladies, I trust that you have found the scavenger hunt valuable,

if not completely enjoyable.

I also trust that some of you have answers to hand in.

Will you please contain yourselves?

You will have the opportunity to hand in your answers in due course.

Now you may have noticed the two distinguished visitors have joined us

They wish to learn what if anything you have gained from

the scavenger hunt Do not be fooled by age

It does not necessarily bring wisdom our two

distinguished colleagues

Do not understand the purpose of the scavenger hunt.

I'm sure that one of you will be able to enlighten.

Mr. Bell.

Sir, I'd like to say that the hunt was very exciting.

I mean, searching out all those old books, finding ways to get them.

Yes, Mr. Bell, but the purpose.

Sir?

Oh, of course, to find the books, to get the answers.

No, Mr. Bell.

Unfortunately, you are wrong.

Mr.

Gargarian?

I'd just like to say one thing.

Everybody knows what a tough grader you are and how you hate to give A's.

Well, this time I think you made a mistake.

I mean, this time I think almost everyone in the class is going to get an

A.

This time... Mr.

Gargarian, will you please sit down?

Comment on my personal likes and dislikes is not welcome in this class.

Now, is there no one who can explain the purpose of this scavenger hunt?

Mr. Hart.

Sir, you gave an assignment with no rules.

You must have known that all of us would fight for the books, lie, cheat if we

had to. The point, Mr. Hart, the point.

And you gave us an assignment that no one person or even one study group could

possibly do on their own, one that the entire class would have flunked

unless... Unless what, Mr. Hart?

Unless we find a way to work together, to share the material, to exchange the

answers to... To what, Mr.

Hart?

to make contracts with one another.

I think that beyond debate and reading about contracts, you wanted us to make

contracts.

Thank you.

Thank you very much, Mr. Hart.

The law of contracts does not reside in the flimsy pages of books.

It grows naturally out of the interactions of people.

as they tried to do tasks which no single person alone could accomplish.

Contract law describes the human condition.

You wished to pass, you wished to find the answers, you could not do so alone.

Therefore you developed rules, and ultimately you developed contracts.

Just as years ago at the dawn of civilization mankind realized that it

had to cooperate and to regulate that cooperation it developed rules of

contract.

The purpose of this assignment was to show you that contract law surrounds you

in every facet of your daily lives.

The purpose of this assignment was to lift your eyes from the printed page to

the natural order of life.

I'm glad that some of you seem to have learned that lesson.

You may now hand in your answers.

Listen, you guys, I think Ford should get the answers, too.

I don't. He didn't do enough work.

Well, I've thought about it, and Ford's a member of our group.

If any of us have the answers, he deserves them as well. Hey, I don't care

what you say. He didn't do enough work.

Bell, don't you understand?

The whole purpose of this assignment is to learn that we can't make it alone. We

have to honor the relationships we make with each other. Now, we're a group, and

we make it through this law school by relying on one another.

Well, Bell, he's right.

Okay, you made your point.

First years are hard years, much more than we know.

With good friends to love us, we'll feel every blow.

Stay open to all things, and one day we'll all say.