Start again.
I am a spy, a sleeper, a spook, a man of two faces.
I was cursed to see every issue from both sides.
I was a communist agent implanted in the South.
Winter, 1975.
Claude asked me to meet him in front of the cinema.
He was a fan of Charles Bronson.
Yes, that's right.
I know that last time, I'd said the movie was Emmanuelle
but she was leaving.
The movie was definitely Death Wish.
Hey, you know what that is?
- Jesus. - What?
Man, you stand out like a sore thumb in this town.
But still, you manage to surprise me every time.
Yeah, training. Training, my friend. You'll get there.
You know, by the time I'm through with you
you'll be able to blend in with the Harvard rowing crew.
- Do I know what what is? - What?
No... a death wish.
A death wish. Does that mean anything to you?
(Vietnamese)
But something was clearly off.
A death wish. Does that mean anything to you?
My wishes are all for life, despite everything.
Well, keep your chin up.
Chin up. This war's not over yet. Come on.
I saw it stateside. Crude, to say the least.
But a primer for existentialist philosophy, you know?
Plus a score by Herbie Hancock.
I mean, that is just fantastic. You don't hear that every day.
I think you'll be cozy right about there.
This is my general preferred seating area.
Optimal sound, picture large enough to fill your field of vision.
I thought she was under my charge.
Where's my translator?
He's saying, "Where did you get the list?"
I think you'll appreciate this.
Not at first, you won't.
You'll lock all this up in a little box
but in the future, when you look in that box again
and you will
it'll remind you that your contribution to this war
has been substantial.
So, keep your eyes glued to the action.
Be proud of yourself.
At least half as proud as I am of you.
Well, half proud is about my maximum.
Half. Exactly. I am half and half.
Biracial, bilingual. A synthesis of incompatibilities.
Claude, from the CIA
was the key figure who taught me the ways of America.
He offered me education in the latest pop culture.
Like all his countrymen, he thought he could buy my loyalty.
The key figure who taught me
the ways of the South Vietnamese was about to enter.
The General was in charge of the Secret Police.
His name sparked fear in the hearts of the North
and in much of the South, too.
(Vietnamese)
I never expect you to be here. You never come.
I thought it'd be good training for your ambitious aide-de-camp.
It wasn't my idea.
She was under my charge and I obviously had to...
You obviously did very well in capturing her.
But you're too soft on the follow-through
with someone as pigheaded as she.
Dumpling's an old hand. Let him show you the ropes.
I read your notes. Excellent quotations.
How do you know the Communist stuff so well?
Well, I study, sir.
One thing you can say about the commies
they're not hesitant to use forceful rhetoric.
It's very seductive.
Like that quote from Trotsky.
"What is to be done? What is to be done?"
Pretty sure that's Lenin.
Well, to be accurate, it's Chernyshevsky.
Lenin was just quoting him.
Did you have any plans for after this?
Can you pick up my dry cleaning?
I need a pressed shirt for a dinner.
She looked at me with a particular hatred.
And she had every reason to.
The low rider Knows every street, yeah...
I wasn't impressed by the originality of her insult.
People have been spitting on me and calling me bastard
since I was a kid.
Although, sometimes, for variety
they call me bastard before they spit.
You look queasy. Am I making you uncomfortable?
No.
Come on, man. This is your fuckin' assignment.
See it through. You afraid to get your beak wet?
Show me. Show me, precious.
Get your nose in that shit
and nuzzle.
This is damp, man. It's damp, it's moist.
This is counterintelligence.
It gets wet down here.
You should want this.
You should wanna taste the interrogation.
Here it comes.
Can smell it.
There she is. A little chocolate-covered treat.
So what did I do when those dogs pawed at her shit?
What could I do?
Tried to remember the last time I still felt beauty and hope.
Because what is it that makes this struggle worthy
of enduring such sacrifice?
That's right. I'm talking about hope.
The hope I feel
when I'm with my family.
Not just my birth family, but my brothers.
My blood brothers. Bon and Man.
Hey.
Our friend Bon's father had been killed by the Viet Cong
so we knew we could never win him to the people's cause.
Man and I had to hide our true identities.
"Except for you..."
he said.
How am I supposed to sound "encouraging" in my speech
considering the imminent collapse of the entire northern front?
General, the American Congressional delegation
isn't expecting military updates.
They know the situation all too well.
There is irony in who is to inspire whom.
Well, what they wanna hear, sir, is that we still share a purpose...
the Mission Civilization, a faith in the good fight
the American way, et cetera.
A sophomore debate team
for a Fort Leavenworth alum like yourself.
That is true, and my English is more and more impeccable
since I hired you.
- Is that not correct? - Impeccable. Tough word.
Let us show it off.
Write up some notes for the speech.
Understood, sir.
I will argue vociferously against the American withdrawal.
America is not going anywhere.
Secretary Kissinger confirmed that.
He's a man of his word, and a laureate of the Nobel Prize.
And give me plenty of quotations in the speech.
- Both sides. - Both sides?
You mean the Americans and ours?
No. I mean the commies and our morals.
Oh, shoot. I'm sorry.
When you mentioned commies' morality
you reminded me of something.
One second.
Hurry up. I'm starving!
This is it.
"Asian Communism and the Oriental Mode of Destruction"?
- Richard Hedd? - It's a gift from Claude.
He says it's all the rage at Langley and the Pentagon.
If we pull a couple of choice quotes and you casually tear them apart
everybody will be impressed by your intellect, sir.
Who else but you would have such authority to speak
on the Oriental mode of destruction?
I'll make some crib notes.
I lived at the General's house like a manservant
which was humiliating.
But fortunately
the old French colonial mansion was so massive
I still had enough privacy to do my real work.
Must be a very serious gardening problem
for you to call me at my office.
When?
See what I mean? Better than the movies.
Big talk.
First reports claim that
six persons were killed
and 22 wounded in pre-dawn attacks in Central Saigon this morning.
The American Embassy is asking citizens to remain calm...
Hey! How's it hangin', Hein?
Claude!
- Evening. - It's been a long time.
Sure. Nothing is more enticing than a taste of Madame's pho
but it's madness at the embassy.
And nothing spells friendship like American liquor.
That's for you, pal.
The General likes to impress Claude with his English skills
but sometimes he wanted me to translate.
That's when you knew things were serious.
- Claude... - I got a gift for you, too
my friend.
Here's the new Isley Brothers.
- Yeah, hot off the presses. - Amazing.
You know, it's gotta have a little funk in the blood.
Yeah, quiet as it's kept, you know, I'm 1/16th Negro.
The plane!
- Request the plane. - We need a plane, to America.
So do we all. So do we all.
I'm afraid that all we can offer is a black flight
off the books, C-130.
That's not enough.
If word gets out that you're fleeing the country
you know there'll be fuckin' riots in the streets.
I'm not fleeing.
I'm retreating. Temporarily.
So keep this strictly confidential.
You must limit your passenger list.
What...
Please, do not abandon us.
Don't forget to destroy the documents.
Contact me directly when you're done.
I'll get you two planes. Scout's honor.
The General knew as well as I did
that there would be no additional plane.
Claude knew that we knew.
And we knew that Claude knew.
What they didn't know
was that I had no intention of getting on that plane.
I'm tired. I think I'll call it a night.
Hey, I'm telling you.
When you check this out, you're gonna love it.
On side two, right?
The second track they cover Todd Rundgren's...
- you know Hello It's Me? - Please, just shut the fuck up.
I could shoot the life out of you, you little prick.
You got big...
This is the full list. Select the passengers.
I'd risked so much to get that staff list
and the General himself just handed it over
like the morning paper.
Only I knew that the General was soft on the inside
so he left it to me to do the hard work.
Instead of picking who would go
I began by crossing off who we would leave behind
to face a harsh trial.
Was I feeling guilty? No.
I was eager to testify to their guilt at our revolutionary court.
General.
It tastes cheap, but I better get used to it.
Our president has resigned.
That coward, that foolish...
No, I can't think of the English word.
There are many colorful options, but let's just go with "chicken."
Half of those confidential documents concern the US.
Those Americans started these crusades against communism
but now they're bored, and we've been taken for suckers.
Final list?
Yes. Made the selection based on loyalty and ability.
It was rare for the General to show his mutilated foot.
To expose his vulnerabilities.
It was an opportunity I couldn't pass up.
I have one personal request.
Could we spare three spots for my friend Bon?
His son is my godson.
If all of our soldiers were as brave as the Airborne
we would've won this war.
Thank you, sir.
We will live to fight again.
But for now, we're well and truly...
"Fucked" will work just fine.
Do you know of any toast from your college years in America
for a future that looks unclear?
"Here's blood in your eye."
I have no idea what that means.
Here's blood in your eye.
Making the list was far from simple.
To select the most capable officers
and to help them escape would be counter-revolutionary.
But to select the most incompetent
would naturally raise the General's suspicion.
So, I selected those incapables who appeared capable.
(Vietnamese)
In defense of this corny moment
I would like to clarify that we established this tradition
when we were 14 years of age.
You better listen to your mother.
Everyone's ready to go. You're holding them up.
At least turn off that silly song.
Why can't we go to Paris?
'Cause in Paris
you wouldn't be able to use
all those handy English expressions I taught you.
Come on. You'll like America.
Young people do. I did.
Sir, I guess this is where we part ways.
I trust that, under your able leadership
your group will get away just fine.
You're in front of the line.
Thank you, Claude. And thank America.
Yeah, I'll pass that along.
What about you? Do you have an escape plan?
Come on, we're CIA. We'll figure somethin' out.
Oh, boy.
Gosh, think I'll take ya up on that.
Leave the keys in the ignition when you leave it.
I would not want 'em to damage it when they steal it.
Sure thing.
General's a good guy.
You're right.
Guess he forked out a lot of his personal stash
to bring along a lowly subordinate like myself.
Yeah.
Yeah, we should've slipped out in the night
before we had to run away.
I don't like it. Makes me blue.
It's like that Dion song.
As I walk along
I wonder what went wrong With our love
A love that was so strong
Oh, my little runaway. I guess that's you.
Del Shannon.
That was Del Shannon.
Teacher's pet. All right.
See ya stateside.
The buses will come to transport you to the plane.
If you can't understand me, find someone who can.
Stop asking the US Marine Corps for food and drinks.
This is not a Burger King.
Plane 34! Plane 34, now loading!
Right on this line right there. Keep it movin'.
Yep. Right there...
Plane 34 is reserved for my group only!
Who are these people?
Ain't no first class here today, General.
Two to a seat. Vietnamese asses ain't that big anyhow.
You bastard! Who bought you off?
Come on now. We ain't got time for second guesses.
Nut to butt. Nut to butt!
Let's go, let's go! Move it... move it!
Everybody on! Find a seat!
Move... move!
Get on the plane! Your friends are gone, man!
(Vietnamese)
I'm a-walkin' in the rain
Tears are fallin' and I feel the pain
Wishin' you were here by me
To end this misery
And I wonder...