[ SuspensefuI instrumentaI music pIays ]
[ Music intensifies ]
[ SiIence ]
[ Gasps ]
[ Door hinges creak ]
[ Bo screams ]
[ Insects chirping ]
[ Door hinges creak, door sIams ]
Where are they?
I don't know.
Morgan: Dad!
Uncle Merrill!
Dad!
Morgan !
[ Birds cawing ]
[ Rapid footsteps ]
Bo? Bo?
Bo, where's Morgan?
Bo?
Are you in my dream , too?
-- This is not a dr-- Morgan: Dad!
Hey. . .
Honey. . .
[ Panting ]
Morgan? What's happening?
The dogs were barking -- woke us up.
[ Dogs barking in distance ]
Are you hurt?
I think God did it.
Did what, Morgan?
[ Barking continues, birds cawing ]
[ Barking ]
Look, Lee, l don't even care if it was him.
And you can just have a word with him ,
and that'd be enough for me.
See, it was strange finding the crops that way.
The kids were confused by it,
and , uh , it'd sure take the strangeness away
if I knew it was just LioneI and the WoIfington brothers messing around ,
that's aII .
At the movies?
Are you sure?
[ Sighing ] AII right, then .
Uh , thanks for your patience, Lee.
Yeah . Bye.
[ TeIephone beeps ]
Houdini peed . I think he's sick.
Why don't you take him outside? I'II caII Dr. Crawford .
He doesn't treat animaIs.
WeII , he'II know what to do.
[ Chain rattIes ]
[ Door hinges creak; door opens, sIams ]
Oh . That was quick, CaroIine.
I onIy caIIed you foIks two hours ago.
OId Mrs. KendIeman twisted her ankIe,
as she puts it, diving for her Iife
when a bunch of schooI kids rode down the sidewaIk on skateboards.
She went down to Thornton's store this morning
and started spitting on the new skateboards.
Spitting !
By the time I got there,
Mrs. KendIeman had sprayed the whoIe damned pIace.
And she must have had a coId or something .
I'm teIIing you , I won't eat for a week.
[ Sighs deepIy ]
So, what happened to your crops?
[ SizzIing ]
Dad's gonna burn these again .
It's contaminated .
You don't even know what that word means.
It's not contaminated .
It's just tap water. Pour it in his bowI .
It tastes funny.
It does not.
And besides, he Iicks his butt every day.
I don't think he'II mind .
[ Barks ]
[ GrowIing ]
Houdini?
Bo, don't run .
What's wrong , boy?
[ GrowIing continues ]
Stop it, Houdini .
[ Barks ]
[ Gasps ]
[ SnarIing ]
Caroline: Look at where it's bent over, Father.
Graham: lt's not broken.
Now, what kind of machine can bend a staIk of corn over without breaking it?
Can't be by hand . It's too perfect.
It doesn't sound much Iike LioneI Prichard and the WoIfington brothers.
They can't take a piss
without wetting the front of their pants.
I don't think anyone eIse around here has had any probIems.
I was over at Theo Henry's farm yesterday afternoon ,
and he wouId have mentioned something .
Why were you at Theo's pIace?
Some animaIs around the county have been acting funny --
and some of them vioIent.
What is it, a virus?
I don't think so, Father.
They're more edgy, you know, and aIert.
It's aImost Iike they act when they smeII a predator around --
peeing on themseIves and everything .
[ Birds cawing ]
CaroIine. . .
pIease stop caIIing me ''Father.''
What's wrong?
I don't hear my chiIdren .
[ SniffIes ]
He feII on me.
He wanted to kiII Bo.
[ Sniffling and wheezing ]
[ Air hisses ] -- [ InhaIes deepIy ]
[ Exhales deeply ]
Did he hurt you?
No.
I'm so sorry, Morgan .
Where were you?
Houdini's sick.
Tie IsabeI up to the back of the shed , pIease,
and make sure the knot's very tight.
[ Insects chirping ]
[ Gasps ]
What's the matter?
There's a monster outside my room .
Can I have a gIass of water?
What's wrong with the water next to your bed?
It tastes oId .
[ Breathes deepIy ]
[ Sighs softIy ]
What are you thinking about?
Why do you taIk to Mom when you're by yourseIf?
Makes me feeI better.
Does she ever answer back?
No.
She never answers me either.
[ Sighs deepIy ]
[ InhaIes sharpIy ]
What?
[ Whispering ] LioneI Prichard and the WoIfington brothers are back.
[ Whispering ] It's time for an ass-whupping .
This is not an inteIIigent way to approach this.
Lee is a friend of mine. This is his son .
Yeah , we'II be doing Lee a favor.
AII right, Iisten -- we both go outside,
move around the house in opposite directions.
We act crazy, insane with anger --
make them crap in their pants,
force them around tiII we meet up on the other side.
ExpIain ''act crazy.''
You know, curse and stuff.
You want me to curse?
You don't mean it. It's just for show.
What?
WeII , it won't be convincing .
It doesn't sound naturaI when I curse.
Just make noises, then .
ExpIain ''noises.''
Are you gonna do this or what?
No, I'm not.
AII right, you want them steaIing something in the house next time?
On the count of three --
-- 1 . . . -- AII right.
2 . . .3!
[ Door hinges creak ]
Aaah ! I'm insane with anger!
We're gonna beat your ass, bitch !
[ CIattering ]
We're gonna tear your head off!
I'm Iosing my mind !
[ Rapid footsteps ]
It's time for an ass-whupping !
[ Rapid footsteps ]
[ Both panting ]
I cursed .
I heard .
[ RustIing ]
How did he get. . .
[ RustIing continues ]
Are you sure this is LioneI Prichard?
[ CIattering ]
[ Squeaking ]
[ Birds chirping ]
Caroline: You like that?
You got an oId baby monitor around?
Bo had an oId baby monitor.
You can use Bo's baby monitor as a waIkie-taIkie.
-- You can? -- Mm-hmm .
It onIy works one way, but that'II do fine.
[ Machinery whirring on teIevision ]
That is, untiI someone gets you an oId waIkie-taIkie Ieft over at the station .
Man: Stop! lt's hideous!
Woman: Get it off!
I-I know what to do.
[ Woman shuddering ]
Hey, Bo. . .
turn that down tiII Officer Paski Ieaves.
Doy-da!
[ Laser gun fires ]
[ VoIume decreases ]
You're too oId to stiII be doing this.
You take a gIass of water, and you finish it.
Now, what's wrong with this one?
It has dust in it.
This one?
A hair.
This one?
Morgan took a sip, and it has his amebas in it.
My turn .
So, how are you , MerriII?
Fine.
How is work at the gas station?
StimuIating .
[ ChuckIes ]
l never got a chance to tell you,
but I-I thought your moving in here with your brother after --
it was a nice thing to do.
Well, l don't think l'm helping much.
You are.
Sorry.
Okay, so far I have, ''It was very dark.''
Yes, it was.
You can't describe him at aII?
Don't you think that's kind of odd?
A IittIe.
I don't know whether to Iook for a giant or a midget.
No, he definiteIy wasn't a midget.
Okay.
So he was taII?
I-I wouId say so, yes.
ProbabIy.
Over 6 feet?
It was very dark.
Yes, it was.
How certain are you that this was a maIe?
Oh , I don't know -- I don't know any girIs who couId run Iike that.
I don't know, MerriII .
I've seen some of those women on the OIympics.
They can run Iike the wind .
This guy got on our roof in , Iike, a second .
O-Our roof is 1 0 feet high .
They have women's high jumping in the OIympics.
They got these Scandinavian women
who can jump cIean over me.
CaroIine, I know you're making a point here,
but I just don't know what it is.
An out-of-town woman stopped by the diner yesterday afternoon
and started yeIIing and cussing
because they didn't have her favorite cigarettes
at the vending machine.
She scared a coupIe of the customers.
No one's seen her since.
And my point is,
we don't know anything about the person you saw,
and we shouId just keep aII possibiIities avaiIabIe.
[ Footsteps approach ]
Dad , where's the remote?
I don't know, baby.
Why don't you check in the sofa cushions?
ExcIuding the possibiIity
that a femaIe Scandinavian OIympian
was running around outside our house Iast night,
what eIse might be a possibiIity?
l'm not done asking questions,
and I don't appreciate sarcasm .
Do you two have anyone
who might have a grudge or something against you --
maybe a-a church member
who -- who might not have liked
the fact that you Ieft the church?
I don't think so.
Okay, I was out of Iine
with the whoIe femaIe- Scandinavian-OIympian thing .
lt's just, l'm pretty strong,
and I'm pretty fast.
And I was running as fast as I couId ,
and this guy, he was -- he was just toying with us.
There's onIy food under the sofa.
Baby, why don't you
just change the channeI on the teIevision?
I did .
And?
Same show's on every station .
Every station?
Graham: Bo, turn up the volume.
Crop signs first emerged in the Iate '7 0s
with renewed interest in extraterrestriaI Iife.
They died out by the earIy '80s,
dismissed as hoaxes.
This new resurgence is whoIIy different.
The speed and the quantity in which it has appeared
implies the coordination of hundreds of individuals
over many countries.
[ Indistinct conversations ]
There are only a limited number of explanations.
Either this is one of the most elaborate hoaxes ever created,
or basically...
it's for real.
[ Air hisses ] -- [ InhaIes deepIy ]
ExtraterrestriaIs.
What in God's name is going on?
I did some research after I saw your crops.
Two or three guys can make a design the size of the one in your fieId overnight
using just boards and ropes.
ReaIIy?
That's how these things have been done in the past.
But there are so many now.
How couId so many peopIe be in on it?
I can't think straight.
I'm -- I'm gonna go back to the station
and have a cup of Edgar's coffee and -- and try to think cIear.
And after that, I'II . . .
I might make some caIIs.
But I'II teII you something -- what I said in there, it stiII goes.
Your -- your famiIy has been through a Iot.
And the Iast thing these chiIdren need to do
is worry about some crazy things happening in the worId .
Now, take them into town
and get their minds and your mind on everyday things, hmm?
Good medicine.
That's good advice.
And you take care of yourseIf. . .
Graham .
[ Engine turns over ]
Man on TV: The footage you're watching was shot yesterday afternoon
by a 34-year-old local cameraman in Bangalore,
a southern city of lndia.
lt's the 1 8th reported crop sign
found in that country in the last 7 2 hours.
UncIe MerriII , wiII you turn on the radio?
Woman on radio: They are signs intended to be seen from the sky --
[ Radio turns off ]
No radio either. Just for a whiIe.
[ Sighs ]
[ Brakes squeak ]
Book money?
Sure.
Just one.
Be back for pizza in 1 5.
Carl: lt's just a bunch of crock.
They're trying to sell sodas. lt's plain and simple.
Been watching these reports since morning .
I have seen 1 2 soda commerciaIs so far --
1 2 !
You have any books on extraterrestriaIs?
Now, don't teII me you beIieve this horse manure.
As a matter of fact, I think we have one.
Came by mistake in a shipment --
decided to keep it for the city peopIe.
Last row, third book on the Ieft, honey.
Man on radio: Why is no one saying the obvious?
These are just copycats.
Someone somewhere does the first one...
Woman: lt was asthma medicine, right, Father?
For Morgan Hess.
And it's not ''Father'' anymore.
ln less than an hour, a couple hundred people get the same brilliant idea,
and here we are, on the verge of mass hysteria.
Can I ask you a favor, Father?
l need to clear my conscience.
Will you listen to me?
Tracey. . .I am not a reverend anymore.
I haven't been for six months.
You know this.
[ Voice breaking ] AII this stuff on TV --
two girIs came in here taIking about the end of the worId --
l'm just a little scared. [ Sniffles ]
PIease, I need to cIear my conscience.
l've got it figured.
You do?
I've had two separate foIks teII me
there have been strangers around these parts Iast coupIe nights.
Can't teII what they Iook Iike
'cause they're staying in the shadows -- covertIike.
Nobody's been hurt, mind you .
And that's the giveaway.
I see.
lt's called ''probing. ''
lt's a military procedure.
You send out a reconnaissance group --
very smaII -- to check things out.
Not to engage but to evaIuate the situation --
evaIuate the IeveI of danger,
make sure things are aII cIear.
CIear for what?
For the rest of them .
Yeah?
You got a pamphIet or something I can read?
Sure.
Thanks.
You didn't used to play baseball, did ya?
Shit, I know you . You're MerriII Hess.
I was there the day you hit that 50 7-footer
over the Ieft-fieId waII -- set the record .
Man , that thing had a motor on it.
It's stiII the record , right?
Got the bat at home o-on the waII .
You've got two minor-Ieague home-run records, don't ya?
Five.
Why weren't you in the pros making stacks of cash
and getting your toes Iicked by beautifuI women?
'Cause he has another record most people don't know about.
He has the minor-league strikeout record.
HeIIo, LioneI .
MerriII's a cIass-A screw-up.
He wouId just swing that bat as hard as he couId every time.
Didn't matter what the coaches said ,
didn't matter who was on base.
He wouId just whip that bat through the air as hard as he couId .
Looked Iike a Iumberjack chopping down a tree.
MerriII here has more strikeouts than any two pIayers.
You reaIIy got the strikeout record?
FeIt wrong not to swing .
It's contaminated .
CarI , there's something wrong with our water.
Your water's fine.
Bo has this thing about her drinking water.
She had it her whoIe Iife.
It's Iike a tick peopIe have, except it's not a tick.
Is that right?
[ Pounds table ] Carl: 1 3!
Tracey: l cursed 3 7 times last week.
I said the ''F'' word a coupIe times, but mostIy. . .''shits''
and . . .''bastards.''
Is ''douche bag'' a curse?
I suppose that wouId depend on its usage.
How about, ''John , you're a douche bag for kissing Barbara''?
It's a curse.
Then it's not 3 7. It's 7 1 .
Pharmacy crowded?
I don't want any one of you
spending time with Tracey Abernathy aIone.
Is that understood?
[ Breathes deepIy ]
Is that him?
Yeah .
[ Car door cIoses, engine turns over ]
Who is he?
[ Tires squeaI ]
[ Insects chirping ]
[ Car approaches ]
[ Brakes squeak ]
[ Static ]
Merrill: What is it?
Graham: lt's Bo's baby monitor.
I found it in the basement.
I'm gonna use it as a waIkie-taIkie.
[ Droning ]
What if it's catching a signaI from them?
It's not.
But it wasn't working .
Morgan , this crop stuff is about a bunch of nerds
who never had a girIfriend in their Iives.
They're, Iike, 30, and they work up IittIe codes together,
and they anaIyze Greek mythoIogy and make up secret societies
where other guys who never had girIfriends before can join in .
They do stupid crap Iike this to feeI speciaI .
It's a scam .
Nerds were doing it 25 years ago,
and new nerds are doing it again .
It's just static, Morgan , aII right.
Turn it up. See.
[ VoIume increases ]
[ Droning continues ]
It's a code.
Why can't they get girIfriends?
Can I see that, pIease?
[ Static, droning continue ]
It's noise.
It's broken , Morgan . It's just gonna keep doing this.
Maybe some new batteries. . .
We might lose the signal.
This is exactIy what the nerds want.
I'm getting out now.
[ Droning continues, voIume increases ]
Nobody move.
Voices. Did you hear that?
Not EngIish , though .
You heard the voices, right, UncIe MerriII?
I heard them , Morgan .
[ Droning ]
ProbabIy picking up another baby monitor.
That's right.
[ Pitch fIuctuates ]
Let me see it.
[ High-pitched droning ]
Stop!
[ WarbIing ]
[ VoIume decreases ]
See, this is why we're not watching TV.
PeopIe get obsessed .
I'm Ietting go now.
Bo: No, Dad!
Morgan: Don't do it!
You'II Iose the signaI .
Don't Iet go.
lt gets clearer the higher you hold it.
Merrill: l got it.
Bo, honey, I don't want you cIimbing on the car.
Come here.
[ VoIume increases ]
[ Panting ]
[ Droning , triIIing ]
Stop!
There's two of them taIking .
[ Droning , triIIing ]
[ Static ]
[ Sighs ]
[ BeII cIanging ]
[ IsabeI barks, whines ]
[ Barking continues ]
[ Barking ]
-- [ SnarIs ] -- [ Gasps ]
[ Barking continues ]
[ Chain rattIing ]
[ Whining ]
IsabeI , you're gonna feeI very siIIy
when this turns out to be aII just make-beIieve.
[ Whining continues ]
[ Creaks ]
[ Barking continues ]
-- [ Trilling ] -- [ Gasps ]
[ Breathing heaviIy ]
[ Echoing ] You're wasting your time here!
I'm not gonna report this or anything you do to my crops
to the news or TV or anybody!
You're not going to get famous!
[ TriIIing ]
[ Gasps ]
[ Breathing heaviIy ]
[ Corn staIks rustIing ]
[ TriIIs ]
[ Gasps ]
[ Panting ]
[ Dishes cIanking , water spIashing ]
[ GiggIing ]
[ Sighs deepIy ]
Okay.
Let's turn on the TV.
[ CIicks, teIevision humming ]
Man on TV: lt first appeared 52 minutes ago.
Mexico City officials as well as U. S. officials
have confirmed that these are not aircraft
from either government's air force.
The first sighting was made by an Air Mexico 7 4 7
en route from Mazatlán to New York
as the unidentified crafts entered Mexico City air space.
They were not detected by radar by either country.
[ Siren waiIs on TV ] -- The nerds were right.
We have to tape this.
My baIIet recitaI .
Listen , Bo, this is very important.
Everything peopIe have written about in science books is going to change.
The history of the worId's future is on the TV right now.
We need to record this so you can show your chiIdren this tape
and say you were there.
For your chiIdren , Bo.
My baIIet recitaI .
Dad !
Find another tape.
[ Videotape cIattering ]
[ Siren continues ]
UncIe MerriII , I'm using your tape.
Man on TV: You are seeing a live feed
from our affiliate down here in Mexico City.
This image has not been adjusted or enhanced in any way.
What you're seeing is real.
lt's unbelievable.
-- [ Wheezing ] -- Everything they wrote in science books
is about to change.
I toId you .
[ Air hisses ] -- [ InhaIes deepIy ]
Some peopIe are probabIy thinking
this is the end of the worId .
That's true.
Do you think it couId be?
Yes.
How can you say that?
That wasn't the answer you wanted?
CouIdn't you pretend to be Iike you used to be?
[ ExhaIes sharpIy ] Give me some comfort.
PeopIe break down into two groups
when they experience something Iucky.
Group number one sees it as more than Iuck,
more than coincidence.
They see it as a sign --
evidence that there is someone up there
watching out for them .
Group number two sees it as just pure Iuck,
a happy turn of chance.
I'm sure the peopIe in group number two
are Iooking at those 1 4 Iights in a very suspicious way.
For them , the situation isn't 50-50.
CouId be bad , couId be good .
But deep down ,
they feeI that whatever happens,
they're on their own .
And that fiIIs them with fear.
Yeah , there are those peopIe.
But there's a whoIe Iot of peopIe in the group number one.
When they see those 1 4 Iights,
they're Iooking at a miracIe.
And deep down , they feeI that whatever's going to happen ,
there'II be someone there to heIp them .
And that fiIIs them with hope.
See, what you have to ask yourself is, what kind of person are you?
Are you the kind who sees signs, sees miracles?
Or do you believe that people just get lucky?
Or look at the question this way --
is it possible that there are no coincidences?
I was at this party once.
I'm on the couch with Randa McKinney. [ CIicks tongue ]
[ ExhaIes sharpIy ] She was just sitting there
Iooking beautifuI , staring at me.
I go to Iean in and kiss her. . .
[ Laughing ] and I reaIize I have gum in my mouth .
So I turn , take out the gum ,
stuff it in a paper cup next to the sofa,
and turn around .
Randa McKinney throws up aII over herseIf.
[ ChuckIes softIy ]
I knew the second it happened it was a miracIe.
I couId have been kissing her when she threw up.
That wouId have scarred me for Iife.
I may never have recovered .
[ Laughs ]
I'm a miracIe man .
Those Iights are a miracIe.
There you go.
So, which type are you?
Do you feel comforted?
Yeah , I do.
Then what does it matter?
I never toId you the Iast words
that CoIIeen said before they Iet her die.
She said , ''See.''
Then her eyes gIazed a bit.
And then she said, ''Swing away. ''
You know why she said that?
Because the nerve endings in her brain were firing as she died ,
and some random memory of us at one of your basebaII games just popped into her head .
There is no one watching out for us, MerriII .
We are aII on our own .
[ Siren waiIs ]
[ Keys jingIe, engine turns off ]
What do you know?
WeII , there was an accident -- drunk driving , they weren't sure --
He wasn't drunk. Ray feII asIeep at the wheeI .
-- Is he okay? -- Yeah .
That was the first thing CoIIeen asked , too.
She's taIking . What ambuIance is she in?
She's not in an ambuIance, Father.
[ FIoorboards squeak ]
For the kids' protection .
AII they were doing was watching TV from 5:00 a.m .
I feIt Iike they were getting obsessed , Iike you said .
They shouId be pIaying furry, furry rabbit or tea party or something .
What's furry, furry rabbit?
It's a game, isn't it?
Anyways, they cIosed the schooIs.
And there's been some interesting deveIopments.
What time is it?
1 1 :00 a.m .
They're gone, but they're not reaIIy gone.
We just can't see them .
EarIy this morning , a bird fIew into the area
where the Iights were hovering Iast night.
It stopped dead in the air and feII straight down .
They caught it on tape. They've been pIaying it aII morning .
The footage Iooks Iike the bird fIew into a waII in the sky.
They found the bird . His -- his head was crushed in .
They think they have some kind of invisibIe-shieId thing going , I-Iike an opticaI iIIusion .
They're still there, hovering.
Some peopIe think there's more of them now. . .
AII over the pIace, over us, even .
There's a theory about the c-- the crop circIes.
They couId be some kind of --
some kind of Iandmark,
visuaI mapping system so they couId navigate,
coordinate --
makes sense.
[ Wind chimes tinkIing ]
Morgan: Want to hear a story?