(FAST-PACED JAZZ PLAYING)
Excuse me, do you mind if I sit here?
I can't see anything but their backs from where I'm sitting.
It's all right.
Thank you.
It's really a great combo, huh?
I'd like to listen, please.
Sorry.
- That's real fine music, isn't it? - Yes, I like it.
Do you mind if I buy you a drink?
- No, thank you. - I'd like to.
No. Thank you.
(SPEAKING IN A GREEK DIALECT)
(CONTINUING IN GREEK)
Who was that woman?
I don't know.
- Well, what did she say to you? - Nothing.
Would you pay my check for me, please? Thank you.
Hey, wait a minute.
(SHIP'S HORN)
Hi.
Why are you following me?
Well, you left so fast, I don't know how to reach you or anything, like...
I'd like to see you again, if it's okay.
- It's impossible. - Hey, wait.
Um...
just let me talk to you for a little while.
I'll just walk along with you.
Shouldn't be out alone on a night like this, anyway.
- Would I be safe with you? - Yes.
Hey, I know that woman upset you.
I thought maybe you'd need somebody to talk to.
Come on, is this the way?
Okay?
Here's where I live.
(CHUCKLING)
It's a merry-go-round!
Mm-hmm.
(CHUCKLING)
Do you live inside a wooden horse?
No.
My apartment is upstairs.
JOHNNY: Must be pretty noisy, living over a merry-go-round.
Sometimes.
But I love the music.
- It reminds me of when... - Of when you were a kid?
Yes.
Well...
- Good night. - Wait a minute.
I don't even know your name.
My name's Johnny.
I am called Mora.
Aren't you going to invite me upstairs for...
for a while?
- I have to go in. - Just for a while.
Good night, Johnny.
Hey, Mora?
Well, can I see you tomorrow?
Please?
All right.
I'll fix breakfast for you.
Okay, what time?
Around eleven?
Okay, I'll be here at eleven.
- Good night. - Night.
(SHUTTER RATTLING)
- (CHUCKLING) Good morning! - Good morning.
You're opening up the merry-go-round already?
Sure am. Sunday's our big day.
Those look like beautiful horses. Do you mind if I look at 'em?
- Sure. Go right ahead, son. - Thank you.
Don't cost nothing to look.
Them horses are all hand-carved.
Imported from Bavaria.
Most people don't notice how special they are.
They're the finest in the country.
- Morning, Dad. - Oh, good morning, Ellen.
Er... just showing this young man here what fine horses we got.
- Oh. - Oh, excuse me, er...
This is my granddaughter, Ellen.
- Hello. - Hello.
- What's your name, son? - Johnny. Johnny Drake. How are you?
Daddy, you got the key to the cashbox?
Oh, yeah, got 'em here somewheres.
Oh, thank you.
I'd better be getting upstairs. I'll see you around.
Hey, er...
- Beautiful horses. - Er... who you gonna visit?
Well, I'm just gonna visit a girl named Mora.
- Mora? - Uh-huh.
I ain't never seen you around here before.
You, er...
just, um...
meet her or something?
- No. No, I've known her for a while. - Oh.
Well, I'll see you around.
- Well, so long, son. - Okay.
(GRUNTING)
(INAUDIBLE CONVERSATION)
- MORA: Yes? Who is it? - It's me, Johnny.
- Good morning. - Morning.
- Come in. - Thank you.
How are you?
- I'm pretty good. - Good.
Wow.
- This is quite a place you got here. - Thank you.
I collect things from the ocean.
Yeah, so I see.
- Can I take your hat? - Oh, thank you.
Are you hungry?
- Yeah, I'm starving. - Good.
Breakfast is ready.
- I have it on the balcony. - Okay.
- Come on. - Where's the balcony?
- Out here. - Oh.
'Yes?
Sure have a great view.
Thank you. I love it.
- Let's make a toast. - All right.
To you and me...
and to the beautiful Pacific.
To us, Johnny.
I hope you like fish.
I found this wonderful fresh mackerel this morning.
Oh, I love food from the ocean.
Specially lobster, and crab, and sea urchin.
- Do you ever eat sea urchin? - No, I never have.
It's like a wonderful ocean fruit.
Scoop 'em out like a pomegranate.
I'd like to taste one some time.
Oh, they're rare around here, but I think I know where I can get some.
- Maybe next time? - Okay.
(CHUCKLING)
Mmm! (CHUCKLING)
What do you do?
- I mean, do you work, or what? - Yes, I work.
In fact, I have to work today.
On Sunday?
What do you do?
Well, I told you my name. Hadn't you ever heard it before?
No, don't think so.
Well, I work on the amusement pier.
- I'm an attraction. - What are you, a dancer?
No.
They throw baseballs at ya?
- Don't they? No, really, don't they? - No! (LAUGHING)
My job isn't dangerous.
I give up. What do you do?
I'm a mermaid.
- You're a what? - A mermaid.
Half woman, half fish.
I don't get it.
Oh, it's very simple.
I wear an artificial fish tail,
and I lie in a tank that looks like it's filled with water,
and people pay twenty-five cents, and come and look at me,
and that's how I make my living.
Don't you ever get tired of 'em?
Sometimes...
But it's restful, anyway.
I told you about myself. What about you?
(CHUCKLING)
Me, I'm a member of the US Navy.
Do you really want to know?
- Yes. - Well...
My mother, um...
My father left my mother and I when I was very young,
so I became very close to my mother.
And I've always wanted to see the world,
and I never had a chance to. I couldn't.
Then my mother fell ill, and...
died.
So I figured the easiest way to get out of Denver, Colorado,
was to join the Navy. See the world.
- But I haven't seen any of it yet. - You will.
I hope so.
(SEAGULLS CRYING)
- Are you going to eat any more? - No.
They're attracted by the food on your plate.
Look at that one.
Watch them.
One will come too close.
They get bolder and bolder.
Hey!
- Wow! - I won't hurt you.
Surprised you, didn't I?
Where did you ever learn to do something like that?
I don't remember.
Probably on the island where I was born.
There, there. Don't be afraid, little bird.
I won't hurt you.
Sweet bird, don't be afraid.
(FAIRGROUND ORGAN MUSIC)
- lfikethose. - Look!
- JOHNNY: What? - MORA: My poster.
- Oh, is that supposed to be you? - Mm-hmm.
It's the way I look when I'm in my costume.
(CHUCKLING) Wow, I gotta see this!
You will.
- I wonder where Sam is? - Who's Sam?
He's the owner of the show. My boss, as you say.
Hey, aren't you afraid people are gonna see you out here?
No, they don't pay any attention to the place
- until Sam begins his spiel. - Oh, yeah?
Ssh.
(SNORING)
- Caught you, Captain Murdock! - I beg your pardon?
Oh, I was... I was just thinking, my dear.
Yes, I was... I was merely contemplating some important matters
in the quiet peace of the, er... summer afternoon.
Why are you so late?
I'm not late enough to make any difference.
Run along now and get ready, will you?
Oh, I will, but I want to introduce a friend of mine.
This is Johnny Drake. Captain Murdock.
- How do you do? - How are you?
Hurry along now. I'll be warming up the amplifier.
All right. I'm going to put my costume on.
- I'll call you when I'm ready. - Hey, you're not going to be long, are you?
- No. - Okay.
Sure is a hot day today, isn't it?
Yes, yes, it is. Quite.
Huh! That right over there must really shake you up! You ever tried it?
No, looking at it all day's enough for me.
Tell me, young man...
you've been sailing the seas for how long?
Oh, not long at all. I've only gone as far as the Hawaiian Islands.
- I'm stationed out at Pedro. - Ah, that's a pity, that's a pity.
I thought we might reminisce.
You know, compare notes, as one seaman to another.
You know, I'm retired from His Majesty's service.
- Oh, you mean the English navy? - Precisely, precisely. The English navy.
Later on, I became captain of my own ship.
That's how Hound her, on one oi my voyages.
You mean Mora?
Yes, well perhaps she's told you all about it?
No, she hasn't. She told me something about coming from an island.
You know, you might be interested in that story.
It's a very unusual one.
Now, why don't you come and visit me sometime?
Well, listen, maybe I can come down some weekend, when I have liberty?
Yes, yes, there's no hurry. No hurry at all.
I'll tell you what, I'll give you my card.
I live in Venice.
It's not as grand as its Italian namesake,
but it has a certain charm, nevertheless.
- Captain Samuel Murdock? - Yes.
- MORA: I'm ready, Johnny! - Oh, er...
Well, I'll see you around.
- Yes, yes. Good bye. - Bye.
Mora, ladies and gentlemen. Mora the mermaid!
The strangest creature in captivity.
See her alive!
See her living underwater.
Half woman, half fish.
The strangest creature in captivity.
For twenty-five cents, ladies and gentlemen.
One quarter of a dollar.
The thrill of your life! Only twenty-five cents.
Mora the mermaid...
TANNOY: Seat cruiser service from San Pedro, Wilmington, Long Beach, Los Angeles
now arriving, Gate One.
DRIVER: Santa Monica Station.
Well, good night.
- Are you going to sleep? - No.
Don't you want to go for a swim?
I'll go a little later.
You get cramps if you go in now.
Ah, I've never believed that.
It's true, though.
It's very, very dangerous to go in the water right after you've eaten.
Maybe.
(SIGHING)
Hey, Mora, what's with this Sam character?
- Sam? - Yeah.
Nothing. What do you mean?
I mean, er... what's his story? Who is he?
You've been thinking about him, haven't you?
Yeah, sort of.
Sort of a funny old guy.
He's just a lonely old man.
Do you know him very well?
Quite well.
He's my employer.
Sometimes, I think, my only friend.
He's your only friend? What about me?
Of course, you.
You don't know me very well.
Maybe after you get to know me...
I think I know you pretty well.
On our third meeting?
No.
But I'd like you to know me better.
I'm not afraid of that.
Why should you be afraid?
Tell me, did Sam say anything to you about me?
He said that he found you on some island.
Yes, he did.
He found me as an orphan on the island of Mykonos.
I was just a child, and he adopted me.
- You mean he's your, er...? - My guardian.
He's been like a father to me. I owe him everything.
I'm sorry. I didn't even realise.
I... if I said anything unkind about him, I'm sorry.
That's all right.
I know that he's a strange man,
but he's been so good to me, and I'm grateful.
And I know you can understand that, because of
what you told me about your mother.
- Would you like some more coffee? - I'd love some.
- You love the sun, don't you? - Yes.
The sun...
and the moon, and the stars...
And the sea.
MORA: Yes, the sea.
Yes, I love the sea most of all.
But I'm afraid of it, too.
Guess we're all a little afraid of what we love.
- Hey, Mora. - Yes?
You're awfully far away.
(RHYTHMIC DRUMMING)
Hey, Mora, you gonna dance for us?
(SLOWER RHYTHM)
(RHYTHMS SPEEDING UP)
(VERY RAPID DRUMMING)
(GASPING)
(CROWD CHATTERING)
johnny?
- Huh? - I'm all right.
You just stay there for a minute. It's all right.
- Are you okay? - Yes.
Could you get back a little?
- Are you okay? - Yes.
It was that woman, wasn't it? Huh?
What woman?
- Here's your coffee, Dad. - Er... thank you, dear.
- Hi! - Hi, how are you?
WOMAN: Thank you, my dear.
We were just having some tea. Do you want some?
Well, I was just going out for some coffee.
Oh, you can have that here. I just said "tea", but I meant coffee.
Madame Romanovitch here is the only one who drinks tea.
- And how are you, lad? - Hi, there. How are you?
- Pretty fine. Pretty fine. - That's good.
Sit down, young man.
What a dreadful invention these teabags are.
If everyone insisted on using teabags,
I'd never be able to read anyone's tea-leaves.
- Isn't that so, young man? - Yeah, I guess so.
Of course, for myself it doesn't really matter.
I can't read my own, anyway.
Fortune tellers never can, you know.
They can see for everybody else, but not for themselves.
- It's quite frustrating at times. - Must be.
- ELLEN: Coffee. - Thank you.
How long you been in the Navy?
Just a little over a year.
What part of the country are you from?
I'm from Denver, Colorado.
Now, this is my first time out on the coast.
Ah, then you are a visitor in our midst!
Yeah, I guess you could call me that.
I like it out here.
When I get out of the Navy, I'd like to locate out here.
- MAN: Hello, folks. - Oh, hello.
Dad, it's Lieutenant Henderson.
Oh, how are you, Lieutenant?
- Fine. - Would you like a cup of coffee?
No, thank you, I can't.
You haven't seen anything new or unusual, have you?
- No, I haven't. Have you, Dad? - No.
How's things with you, Lieutenant?
You come across any new clues?
Maybe.
We're not quite sure about it yet, though.
There's not very much to go on.
It's nice to know you ain't just given up.
Well, I'd better be on my way.
- See you all again soon. - Well, bye, Lieutenant.
Bye.
What was that all about?
Er... that was Lieutenant Henderson, of the Venice police.
He was asking us about Mora.
Mora? What about her?
You're a stranger here, and I guess you don't know what everybody hears...
EHen, deal
You're meddling.
But I think he oughta know.
I think somebody oughta tell him. Don't you, Dad?
Why, sure. Certainly ain't no secret.
In the past two years, Mora's had two boyfriends,
and they're both dead now.
What, do the police think that had something to do with her?
- Nothing's been proved. - No, not yet.
But don't you think the fact that it's happened twice is enough?
They were both nice boys.
They went around with her,
then, suddenly, they disappeared.
A few days later, their bodies were found,
washed up on shore, drowned.
MADAME ROMANOVITCH: Nevertheless, my dear,
there wasn't a shred of evidence that it wasn't simply
a most unfortunate coincidence.
The police haven't been able to make a single arrest.
I know, but if she didn't cause their death,
then she brings bad luck, and that's almost as bad.
I bet she didn't tell you about those boys, did she?
(PHONE RINGING)
GRANDFATHER: Hello? Merry-go-round.
We wanna ride the merry-go-round.
Okay. I'll be right back.
Er... just hold the line there. Hey, sailor?
It's for you.
That's funny, because nobody knows I'm here.
Hello?
(DIALLING TONE)
Hello?
Who was it?
Oh, I don't know. Um...
Look, something's come up. I'm gonna have to go.
Thank you for the coffee.
(FAIRGROUND ORGAN PLAYING)
MADAME ROMANOVITCH: Just a minute, young man!
Do drop by and see me.
The cards will tell you a great deal.
(CHAIR CREAKING)
Did you see a woman go by here?
(CREAKING)
(DOORBELL RINGING)
Well, well, well, what a jolly surprise!
Come in, come in, come in!
Well!
You finally decided to honour me with a visit.
Yes, yes, we were talking about my ward, weren't we?
Well, er...
what I have to say is rather difficult to explain,
particularly to young people, you know, er...
I feel that young people nowadays
form their opinions about life too soon.
One shouldn't do that.
But then, perhaps you're different.
What were you going to tell me about Mora?
Oh, my dear, dear, dear, dear. Maybe you aren't different.
Patience, young man!
Patience is a virtue. You should learn that.
But, er...
no, actually, er... what I want to tell you
is difficult to put into words.
Certainly into words that you would understand.
However, I can put the basic fact quite bluntly.
You are in grave and serious danger, as long as you continue to see Mora.
- I'm in danger from you? - No. Certainly not.
- Then what are you talking about? - Mora, my friend. Mora.
- You must be crazy. - On the contrary, I am quite sane.
And Mora's quite dangerous to you.
In what way?
Well, er...
shall we say that she, er...
that she suffers from a certain compulsion
which might cause her to take your life.
Are you trying to tell me that she's insane?
Not precisely, but it might be better if you thought she were.
Oh, I wish you'd take my word for it.
Break off this...
this acquaintance, before it's too late.
You're a nice young fellow I wouldn't like to see you get hurt.
I wonder if you'd be good enough to get another bottle of
this splendid liquid from the cabinet over there, would you?
And, while you're there, you might turn on the light.
It seems to be getting a bit dark in here.
The one at the end there.
On the lower shelf.
Oh, don't be alarmed. That's just a little Arabian souvenir.
The hand of a thief.
The Mohammedans punish their thieves
by removing the offending portions of the body.
Rather gruesome, but logical, don't you think?
How did you ever get that?
A little gift from the Sultan of Marrakesh,
who knew that I collected odd things.
He sent it to me. Rather thoughtful of him.
Yeah.
- It's very interesting. - Have another?
(DRINK BEING POURED)
You hit that stuff pretty hard, huh?
Well, it may seem that way to your young eyes.
But, at my age, one needs a little stimulant.
You'll find that out later on.
You were going to tell me some more about Mora.
Oh, yes, yes. So I was, so I was.
Well, you've...
you've read the Greek myths, haven't you?
No. No, I haven't.
You certainly know the legend of the Sirens,
who in ancient days used to lure seafaring men to their destruction?
Yeah, I've sort of heard of them.
Well, the Sirens were a strange race of sea people,
half human, half creatures of the sea.
The female of the species were, er...
known popularly as "mermaids".
That means "women of the sea".
It's like that, er...
that act you and Mora put on.
Exactly.
But that's a fake, isn't it?
A sideshow illusion.
You wouldn't believe that they actually exist, would you?
No. No, I wouldn't.
Well, let me tell you, young man, that things happen in this world
never dreamt of in your philosophy.
Where do you think myths come from?
Do you think they're just made up?
No, they spring from truth.
Ancient truth. Living truth.
Um... what does this have to do with Mora?
She was a sweet little thing.
She lived here with me.
Up there.
That was her room.
Behind that door.
Hound her.
I found her on an island.
I didn't know then what she was to become.
Er... become?
I didn't know then that she belonged to that ancient race.
She's a monster!
If you don't stop seeing her...
well,
I warned you.
That's all I can do.
Look, just tell me one thing.
Captain... Captain Murdock?
There's a woman that's been bothering Mora.
Now, I think she's here.
I just want to talk to her, that's all.
Woman?
There isn't any woman.
I'm all alone.
Captain Murd... Captain Murdock!
Sir?
(SNORING)
- (CLATTERING) - (HOWLING)
(HOWLING WIND)
I didn't want you to know.
It was right of him to tell you, but I didn't want you to know.
Now, I suppose I... I won't see you anymore?
Mora, you don't think I believed him, do you?
But it's true, Johnny.
They are waiting for me to join them.
You've seen one of them.
Do you mean that woman?
You saw how she looked at me,
how she spoke to me.
She's one of them.
She's one of the sea people, and she's hereto remind me
of the time that I must go to them in the sea.
Come here.
Sit down.
Look, Mora...
I don't know how or where you got these ideas,
but they're wrong.
You see, these things don't happen.
Oh, Johnny, if only they didn't.
If only they couldn't happen.
Americans have such a simple view of the world.
You think that everything can be seen,
and touched, and weighed, and measured.
You think you've discovered reality,
but you don't even know what it is.
Then you mean that everything Sam told me's the truth?
Almost everything.
And will you just tell me how you know?
Because I feel the sea water in my veins.
Because I listen to the roar of the sea,
and it speaks to me like a mother's voice.
The tide pulls at my heart,
and the face of the moon fills my soul with a strange longing.
Mora...
I don't understand.
Listen,
try to understand,
and forgive me.
I haven't listened to one of these since I was a kid.
My grandmother used to have one of these on her dresser.
It does sound like the ocean, doesn't it?
When I made the voyage to this country from Greece,
I carried such a shell with me over the land.
In that way, I kept the sea always with me.
Always close.
Johnny, I'm so afraid.
Listen, don't be afraid.
Look, look, I don't know what this is all about, you see.
I don't know what it's all about.
But I know that I'm here, and that we'll work this out.
Hold me.
(SEAGULLS CRYING)
My dear, dear boy!
I hope you don't mind my telling you,
but I willed you to come here.
I really did. And I'm so happy that it worked.
Oh, really?
I know you have a problem, a very serious problem,
and I'm going to try and help you.
Thank you, I'd appreciate that.
After the reading.
After the reading is time enough to thank me.
Er... how much does a reading cost?
Oh, a trifling two dollars.
- You can afford that, can't you? - Oh, sure, that's fine.
Have you ever had a Tarot reading before?
No, I've never been to a fortune teller before.
Don't use that expression, "fortune teller".
It's so vulgar.
I prefer to be known as a chiromancer or clairvoyant.
Now, first we must find the card that represents you.
If you've never had a Tarot reading before,
you've probably never seen cards that look like these.
No, I haven't.
Our modern deck of playing cards is based on these,
but most of the symbolical cards have been left out.
Here you are! The Knight of Cups.
Why is that me?
Because this card represents a fair young man,
innocent and searching.
Take a good look at these cards, young man.
They contain all the secrets of the universe.
How can a deck of cards contain all the secrets of the universe?
Each card is a symbol.
Linked together properly, the total of all these symbols
contains the total of man's knowledge.
Yeah, it's like putting a message into a code.
Exactly.
Now, this is what crosses you.
This is what crowns you.
This is what is beneath you.
This is what is behind you,
what is before you.
This is you, your house, your hopes and fears,
and this is your future.
- Well, what do you see? - How strange!
What?
There are certain lunar aspects suggested here.
The Moon card represents the journey into the unknown.
The dog and the wolf, the fears of the mind,
the deep, primitive instincts in all of us.
You see, the crab is attempting to climb out of the water onto the land,
but it almost always sinks back again.
- What does that mean? - Don't be impatient.
I don't like to make a mistake.
A mistake in this profession can be disastrous.
You see, the lunar card is most unhappily placed,
next to the card known as The Hanged Man.
- What does The Hanged Man mean? - Ah!
This is a card of profound significance.
The figure shows life in suspension.
It has often been falsely called a card of martyrdom,
but martyrdom involves suffering.
And, if you will look closely at the face of the figure,
you will see that it expresses deep entrancement.
This card shows that a great awakening is possible,
and reminds one
that, after the sacred mystery of death,
there is the glorious mystery of resurrection.
Well, er... is that good or bad?
My dear boy, the cards don't lend themselves to oversimplification.
And what about Mora?
I'm afraid she's caught in a...
vortex of evil.
And you...
it saddens me to tell you, but you are in danger.
- Grave danger. - What kind of danger?
Now, that is a question you do not need to ask me.
The answer lies already in your heart.
(FAIRGROUND BARREL ORGAN)
Well, I wouldn't put much stock in what a fortune teller says.
JOHNNY: I don't.
It's just when you keep hearing things over and over again,
you start believing it after a while.
You said some things about Mora.
What do you really know about her?
Oh, I'm sorry about what I said the other afternoon.
That was really none of my business.
I was just telling you what I'd read in the newspapers,
'cause I thought you oughta know.
I just can't believe that...
(HEAVY SIGH)
Are you in love with her?
Yes.
That's the funny thing about love...
um... it can happen very suddenly. You know what I mean?
Like...
when you're lonely,
or when you've been looking for someone.
I don't know what to do for Mora.
See, she believes it, too.
Believes what? That she killed those boys?
No, no, no, no.
I... I can't explain.
Well, try not to worry about it.
Why, maybe things'll turn out better than you think.
- Want some more coffee? - No.
I'm gonna go for a walk.
There's some time to kill before, er... Mora gets home.
Is she, er... working?
Yeah.
Well, Ellen...
- It is Ellen, isn't it? - Uh-huh.
I didn't think you'd remember... Johnny.
(BOTH CHUCKLING)
Well, thanks for listening to me.
It's sort of hard sometimes when you don't have anybody to...
talk things over with.
I know.
Maybe you'll come around again soon, huh?
Yeah, okay.
- I'll see you later. - Okay.
Bye, Johnny.
Bye.
- Mora? - MORA: Hi!
I'm taking a bath.
- Did you have a good day today? - I sure did.
There were lots of people on the pier.
That's good.
I'm sort of tired.
Why don't you lie down for a while?
Yeah, I think I will.
- You gonna be in there long? - No, not long.
Okay.
That's good. I'm anxious to see you.
(DOOR OPENING)
(GASPING)
(PANTING)
Mora?
Mora!
(ECHOING)
Mora!
(ECHOING) Mora... Mora... Mora...
MORA: Johnny!
(SCREAMING)
Johnny!
Oh, Johnny! Oh, Johnny, they were horrible!
JOHNNY: Sssssh.
Everything's all right. It's all right.
(SEAGULLS CRYING)
-Morning.
So, how are you this morning?
Mmm, I'm sleepy.
- Sleepy? - Mmm.
Good.
- Shall I make you breakfast? - No, you stay in bed.
I want you to rest.
- I'd like to. - Good.
How do you feel?
(CHUCKLING)
I feel stiff all over, but it's all right.
Why don't you go have a massage?
I could. I don't want to leave you alone, though.
I'll be all right. It's morning now.
- Sure you'll be all right? - Mm-hmm.
- Where's the bath hut? - It's down at the end of the pier.
All right.
- Will you get some rest while I'm gone? - Mm-hmm.
All right.
- I'll see you in a while. - All right.
(SIGHING)
Bye.
(DOOR CLOSING)
(SEAGULLS AND WAVES BECOMING LOUDER)
Hey, you're all tied up in knots, kid.
What's the matter? Girlfriend ain't, er...
treating you all right, hmm?
No, it's just...
I'm just a little tense, that's all, I guess.
Ah, we'll put you in good shape.
Well! Fancy seeing you here!
What a delightful surprise.
Hi.
And how are you today, Bruno?
Hello, Captain. Do you want me to pound you later?
Now, am I likely to forego a pleasure like that?
By the way, Johnny,
I hope you haven't forgotten the conversation we had the other day.
I've been really worried about you, you know.
- Really? - Yes, really.
Tell me something. Has, er...
has Mora been acting a little odd recently?
No.
Sure, now, you're telling me the truth?
Well, doesn't matter. It's...
just that I want to give you a bit of advice.
You must be especially careful,
now, at the time of the full moon.
'Cause that's when the tides pull the strongest.
As I said, er...
a word to the wise.
What are you trying to...?
MORA: Honey, I've been thinking about last night,
and I've decided...
that I must have been walking in my sleep.
And I don't want to talk about it.
I'm going to forget it.
Do you know, that's the best thing I've heard you say?
We'll just forget about it, all right?
That's what I've been trying to get you to do, you know.
- I know. - All right. We'll forget about it.
All right. (BOTH CHUCKLING)
- So, what are you doing? - Cleaning the diving equipment.
I was looking at the calendar, and I noticed that the moon was full,
and I realised that the tides will be just perfect
at a certain place I know,
and I thought we could go diving there this afternoon.
I don't think it's a very good idea.
Why?
It's too cold.
But the water is warm.
I just don't think it's a good idea. I think you should rest.
I don't want to rest, Johnny. I feel fine.
You're here such a short time on the weekends,
and I have the whole week to rest when you go.
Please go with me.
All right.
Where do you want to go diving?
It's not far from here. You'll see.
Are you ready?
How do you know where we are?
Because I've been here before.
- Must be awfully deep here. - It is.
What's the point of diving here?
There are reefs under here.
You'll see.
Johnny...
- What? - Stay close to me.
We mustn't become separated.
(GASPING)
Oh, God!
(WHIMPERING)
Oh, God! Oh, God! Oh, God!
(sesame) Oh, God!
Oh, God. Oh, God, Oh, God.
(CLOCK TICKING)
(LAUGHING)
MADAME ROMANOVITCH: But it almost always sinks back again.
(KNOCKING)
- Who is it? - MAN: Room service, your evening papers.
Just leave 'em outside.
(SIGHING)
(WOMAN SCREAMING)
(LIVELY FAIRGROUND MUSIC)
(WOMAN SCREAMING)
(CACKLING)
Mora, ladies and gentlemen.
The strangest creature known to man,
Mora the Mermaid,
- Twenty-five cents. - (THUNDER RUMBLING)
Twenty-five cents, ladies and gentlemen.
One quarter of a dollar. Mora the Mermaid.
See her underwater.
Mora. Mora the Mermaid.
Brought to you from the waters of a distant sea.
Twenty-five cents.
Mora the mermaid.
- Mora. - (THUNDER INTENSIFIES)
Mora the Mermaid, ladies and gentlemen. See her underwater.
The only mermaid in captivity. Twenty-five cents.
(CHILDREN LAUGHING)
(MULTIPLE THUNDERCLAPS)
MURDOCK: I knew you'd come back to us eventually.
The murderer always returns to the scene of his crime.
Oh, I know this isn't the exact spot where the deed occurred,
but you had to see her, didn't you?
You had to see the result of your monstrous act!
- But I loved her. - You loved her.
What do you know about love?
I've loved her ever since she was a child.
No, you did it and you must pay for it.
How did you find her?
God wanted me to find her.
She was such a sweet little child.
Why?
- Why? - (MULTIPLE GUNSHOTS)
I thought the shooting gallery was closed tonight.
It is. It sounded like it came from over there.
What's going on here, buddy?
HENDERSON: Come in, Johnny. Sit down.
This is somewhat irregular,
but Captain Murdock here has agreed to give us a statement,
and he asked that you be present.
You can go ahead now, Captain Murdock.
To begin with, I want you to know
that no matter what I've done,
how wicked and unreasonable it may seem,
it was done for love of Mora.
I've loved her ever since I found her.
She was a pathetic little thing, in that Greek island village,
abandoned there to almost certain starvation,
if I hadn't taken her into my home.
But, of course, I realised that, like all children,
she would eventually grow up,
and leave that home.
That preyed on my mind constantly. I...
I couldn't face the thought of her leaving me.
So I decided to
plan some way to keep her with me, always.
The best way seemed to make her entirely dependent on my love.
In order to do this, I...
I told her the legend of the sea people.
Slowly, I put into her young and pliable mind,
the idea that she was one of them,
that some day she must rejoin them,
and that she couldn't expect to have normal relations with ordinary people.
But I never counted on the enormous power
of her own independent will.
Eventually, my love wasn't enough for her.
She had to have another kind of love.
And, when she began those relationships,
I decided the only thing to do was to...
cut them off at their source.
So I killed those two young men.
And I tried to persuade her in some way that she had done it,
under some strange influence from the sea people.
And, to a certain extent, lsucceeded.
I managed to cast a lot of fear and doubt into her mind.
But she still demanded her freedom.
She left my home, she took an apartment,
and then she met Johnny.
And if he's told you the story, then...
you know the rest.
So my experiment in psychology failed,
or perhaps it succeeded too well.
She couldn't face a recurrence of what had gone before,
so, rather than destroy the person she loved,
she decided to embrace the rapture of the depths.
That's what happened.
Isn't it?
Yes.
You loved her, didn't you?
Then perhaps you can understand,
just a little.
I do understand.
HENDERSON: Captain Murdock, there's one thing I've been wondering about.
Johnny told me about a woman who frightened Mora.
She was supposed to be one of the sea people.
I assume she was part of your plan.
Woman? I don't know what you mean.
You know, the one that I followed to your house that day. Remember?
I vaguely think you mentioned something about that before,
but there wasn't any woman. I...
I don't know what you're talking about.
I've told you everything.
May I go?
Guard?
(DOOR OPENING)
But I saw that woman with my own eyes.
This wasn't just something out of Mora's imagination.
It's almost as...
It's almost as if there's some truth in what she said.
I think it's more likely that Captain Murdock
- is merely trying to protect the woman. - I suppose so.
'Yes?
The shore patrolmen are here to pick up Drake, sir.
He'll be right out.
Well, good luck, my boy.
Just down the hallway.
Hello.
Hi.
I found out you were here, so I came down to see
if there was anything I could do for you.
Thank you.
I'm sorry about Mora.
I hope that...
maybe on your next leave, you could come by
and take a ride on the merry-go-round?
I'd like to do that.
Okay.
I'll see you later.
Okay.
Bye.
- Whaddaya know? It's stopped raining. - That it has, sir. That it has.
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