"I might not be able to serve our client to the best of my ability"?
He said nothing.
And now, disregarding the trust and affection I conferred upon him...
Andrew Beckett proposes to haul me into court...
to sling accusations at me, to call me a bigot...
in full view of the entire Philadelphia judicial establishment.
My God!
Excuse me.
Beckett doesn't want to go to court. He wants a quick, tasty settlement.
A jury might decide that he has a case.
Wait a minute.
He was fired for incompetence, not because he has Al DS.
You didn't know he was sick, did you, Bob?
Holy shit. Did you, Bob?
No. No, not really.
Okay, everybody.
Everybody, this is the house that I grew up in...
right here in the hometown of Lower Merion, Pennsylvania.
Wait, here's proof.
There. My handprints from when I was a cute little boy.
Today is the 40th wedding anniversary of my mom and dad, the Becketts.
Isn't that somethin'?
Pretty tough life around this poverty so many years, huh?
Well, those can be some pretty mean streets. Don't let appearances fool you.
Here's the front door. Now, I once slammed...
this finger in the front door and I broke it.
There's my sister Jill, everybody.
- Say hello, Alexis. - Mommy's pregnant again!
What? Are you really?
- Hi, Meghan. - It's Uncle Andy!
- Where's Dad? - He's trying to fix the snowblower.
It snows once in seven years, Dad buys a new snowblower.
Oh, me. How are you?
Oh, Mom, today's a good day.
Meghan, keep that up. You're doin' a great job.
I gotta say hello to the Bronte sisters.
How are you? Good to see you.
Hi, Lee. How are you?
Put me down!
If you let me love you
It's for sure I'm gonna love you
All the way
All
Bud and Sarah
All the way
There will be things said at the trial that are hard for you to hear...
about me and my personal life.
And there's gonna be publicity. I want to make sure it's okay with everybody.
Andy, you want me to take her?
No. She's fine.
I think it's great that you're asking, Andy...
but this is really your call.
All right. Thank you, brother.
Hey, you're my kid brother.
That's all that matters. Okay?
To be honest, I'm worried about Mommy and Daddy.
They've been through so much already.
And it's possible there are going to be some very tough times ahead.
Andy, the way that you've handled this whole thing...
you and Miguel... with so much courage...
I don't believe there's anything...
that anyone could say that would...
make us feel anything but incredibly proud of you.
Well, I didn't raise my kids to sit in the back of the bus.
You get in there and you fight for your rights, okay?
Gee, I love you guys.
Ladies and gentlemen of the jury...
forget everything you've seen on television and in the movies.
There's not gonna be any last-minute surprise witnesses.
Nobody's gonna break down on the stand with a tearful confession.
You're gonna be presented with a simple fact:
Andrew Beckett was fired.
You'll hear two explanations for why he was fired:
Ours and theirs.
It is up to you to sift through layer upon layer of truth...
until you determine for yourselves which version sounds the most true.
There are certain points that I must prove to you.
Point number one: Andrew Beckett was...
is... a brilliant lawyer...
a great lawyer.
Point number two: Andrew Beckett, afflicted with a debilitating disease...
made the understandable, the personal...
the legal choice to keep the fact of his illness to himself.
Point number three: His employers discovered his illness.
And, ladies and gentlemen, the illness I'm referring to is Al DS.
Point number four: They panicked.
And in their panic, they did what most of us would like to do with Al DS...
which is just get it and everybody who has it...
as far away from the rest of us as possible.
Now, the behavior of Andrew Beckett's employers may seem reasonable to you.
It does to me.
After all, Al DS is a deadly, incurable disease.
But no matter how you come to judge Charles Wheeler and his partners...
in ethical, moral and human terms, the fact of the matter is...
when they fired Andrew Beckett because he had Al DS...
they broke the law.
Fact:
Andrew Beckett's performance on the job...
varied from competent, good...
to oftentimes mediocre...
to sometimes flagrantly incompetent.
Fact:
He claims he's the victim of lies and deceit.
Fact:
It was Andrew Beckett who lied...
going to great lengths to conceal his disease from his employers.
Fact:
He was successful in his duplicity.
The partners at Wyant, Wheeler did not know...
that Andrew Beckett had Al DS when they fired him.
Fact:
Andrew Beckett is dying.
Fact:
Andrew Beckett is angry...
because his lifestyle, his reckless behavior...
has cut short his life.
And in his anger, his rage...
he is lashing out.
And he wants someone to pay.
Thank you.
Andrew Beckett represented your company in a lawsuit in 1990. Is that correct?
That's correct.
Were you pleased with his work?
We were satisfied with the outcome of the litigation.
Satisfied.
Mr. Laird, when I approached you about being a witness in this trial...
you gave sworn testimony in a deposition, is that correct?
That's correct.
In that deposition, you said that you were impressed and delighted...
with the quality of Andrew Beckett's work.
Do you recall saying that?
In all honesty, I was delighted...
with certain aspects of Andy's efforts.
But in general, I found the work to be...
merely satisfactory.
Do you agree...
that a bologna sandwich is a satisfactory meal?
Whereas caviar and champagne...
roast duck and baked Alaska...
that might be considered a delightful meal?
We object. These gastronomical comments are irrelevant, Your Honor.
They are not irrelevant.
Your Honor, five months ago this witness characterized Andrew Beckett as caviar.
Now he's a bologna sandwich.
I think the jury is entitled to know...
what powerful force has caused him to change his mind.
He hasn't changed his mind.
He's amplified his answer.
Objection sustained.
All right.
Mr. Laird, explain this to me like I'm a four-year-old, okay?
Did Andrew Beckett win your lawsuit for you?
Yes, we won.
Oh, congratulations! That must've been a very...
satisfactory experience.
"Al DS Cures Homosexuality" Homophobia's got to go. Hey, hey!
- Ready, Mr. Beckett? - Get ready. Here they come.
No rights for sodomites!
Adam and Eve! Not Adam and Steve!
Thou shalt not lie with mankind.
Do you see this as a gay rights issue?
I am not political. I just want what is fair, what is right.
But you are gay, aren't you?
I don't see how that's any of your business. But, yes, I am.
Totally irrelevant.
Do you think that homosexuals deserve special treatment?
- Hell, no! - We're in Philadelphia...
the City of Brotherly Love, birthplace of freedom...
where the Founding Fathers authored the Declaration of Independence.
I don't recall that glorious document saying...
anything about all straight men are created equal.
I believe it says all men are created equal.
Gimme a goddamn break.
As far as someone being fired from a law firm or a business...
if we found that their action was discriminatory...
they'd do no business with the city.
- Thank you, Mayor. - Yo!
You're not getting a little light in the sneakers, are you, pal?
Yeah, I am, Filko. I'm changing.
I'm on the prowl.
And I'm looking for a hunk, not just any hunk.
I mean a man, a real man like you.
You can tell everybody. You know what we do. You wanna play sailor?
- Remember? You're the first mate? - That's not funny!
Let me tell you something. These people make me sick.
But a law's been broken.
You remember the law?
At least we agree on one thing, Joe.
What's that, Charlie?
Tutti-fruttis make me sick too.
Ms. Benedict, is it true you worked for Walsh, Ulmer and Brahm...
at the same time as Walter Kenton?
That's correct.
At that time, did Walter Kenton know...
the K.S. Lesions on your face and arms were caused by Al DS?
Definitely. I told all the partners.
How did Walter Kenton treat you after you told him you had Al DS?
Every time he'd come in contact with me, he'd get this look on his face.
I refer to it as the "Oh, God" expression.
As in, "Oh, God, here comes that woman with Al DS."
Thank you, Ms. Benedict. No more questions, Your Honor.
Ms. Benedict, how did you contract the Al DS virus?
Through a transfusion. I lost a lot of blood giving birth to my second child.
So, in your case there was no behavior on your part...
which caused you to be infected with the virus.
It was something you were unable to avoid. Isn't that correct?
I guess.
Thank you.
But I don't consider myself...
any different from anyone else with this disease.
I'm not guilty. I'm not innocent. I'm just trying to survive.
Thank you, Ms. Benedict.
No further questions at this time, Your Honor.
You may step down, Mrs. Benedict.
Beyond noticing the marks on his face...
were there other things about his appearance, Miss Burton...
that made you suspect that Andrew had Al DS?
He was getting thinner, and he seemed very tired sometimes.
But he was working so hard. Still, I felt something was wrong.
And I can't believe they're pretending that they didn't notice anything.
Objection.
Just answer the question, please.
Have you ever felt discriminated against at Wyant, Wheeler?
Well, yes.
- In what way? - Well...
Mr. Wheeler's secretary, Lydia...
said that Mr. Wheeler had a problem with my earrings.
- Really? - Apparently Mr. Wheeler felt...
that they were too... "ethnic" is the word she used.
She told me he said he would like it...
if I wore something a little less garish...
a little smaller and more American.
What'd you say?
I said, " My earrings are American.
They're African-American."
Let's have order, please.
Thank you. No more questions.
Ms. Burton...
weren't you recently promoted?
Yes. I'm in charge of the paralegal department.
Congratulations on your unfettered ascendancy at Wyant, Wheeler.
I don't know if I'd go so far as to call it unfettered.
I don't understand. How do you explain...
the promotion of an obviously...
intelligent, articulate...
qualified African-American woman...
in a firm which practices discrimination...
as wantonly and consistently as you and Mr. Beckett claim?
- I can't explain it. - Could it be...
that these...
instances of discrimination...
are in fact misunderstandings...
that have been blown completely out of proportion?
I think counsel tends to oversimplify the issue somewhat.
Thank you, Miss Burton, I'll...
take that note under consideration.
- How's the trial going? - Excuse me?
It's a great case. I saw you on television. I'm a law student at Penn.
- How you doing? - All right. How are you?
- Saw me on TV? - Yeah.
It's a good school, Penn. What year are you in?
Second. Listen, I just want to tell you...
this case, it's tremendously important.
I wanted to let you know I think you're doing a fantastic job.
- Hey. - Thank you. All right.
When you graduate, you give me a call.
Okay. All right. Thank you very much.
- Listen, Joe? - Yeah?
Would you like to have a drink? I just finished a game and could use a beer.
Ah, no, I can't. My wife is...
I don't pick up people in drugstores every day.
- You think I'm gay? - Aren't you?
What's the matter? I look gay to you?
Do I look gay to you?
- Relax. - I ought to kick your faggoty ass.
Take it as a compliment. Geez!
That is exactly the kind of bullshit that makes people hate your...
faggoty ass.
You want to try and kick my ass, Joe?
- Asshole. - No, you're the asshole, buddy!
Please continue, Ms. O'Hara.
We were going crazy looking for this complaint.
I felt like I was in the twilight zone.
Mr. Beckett was screaming at everybody and he just...
He looked so freaky.
Mr. Kenton kept saying, "You lost the Highline complaint?"
And he called Mr. Wheeler, and all of a sudden...
Jamey comes in with the complaint in his hand.
- He says, "It was in central files." - Central files?
Central files is a place where paperwork is sent when cases are closed.
Jamey ran it over to the court just in time...
and everybody just stood there completely wasted.
And Mr...
And Mr. Beckett just kept saying...
"I'm sorry. Sorry. I don't understand this."
Thank you, Ms. O'Hara.
No further questions at this time, Your Honor.
All right. Mr. Miller.
- May I? - Certainly.
Thank you.
- You okay? - Yes.
- You want a glass of water? - No.
Was Andy a good boss?
Yes.
He was very sweet.
How would you characterize his work as an attorney?
How would I know? I just worked for him.
Excuse me, Your Honor, but is this for the record?
Mr. Miller, perhaps you should return to counsel's table.
Yes, sir.
- Miss O'Hara? - Yes?
Were you aware...
at any time of any problems that the senior partners had...
with the quality of Andrew's work prior to this missing file episode?
No, I wasn't.
Thank you. No more questions, Your Honor.
Is Andrew Becket the kind of lawyer who misplaces crucial documents?
Not to my knowledge. No.
If you wanted to make a lawyer look incompetent, would this be a good way?
Hiding an important document maybe for a few hours...
and then making it look like the responsible lawyer misplaced it?
Why would Mr. Wheeler and the others behave so outrageously?
Because they found out Andy was sick?
- He's not answering the question. - Perhaps.
We've had lawyers with heart attacks, ulcers, prostate cancer, leukemia!
No one sandbagged them.
Did you have something to do with this file being lost accidentally on purpose?
- Objection. - I'll rephrase.
Did you have anything to do with this file being misplaced?
Absolutely not.
Are you a homosexual?
- What? - Answer the question! Are you a homo?
A faggot? A punk?
A queen, pillow biter, fairy?
Bootie snatcher, rump roaster? Are you gay?
- Objection! - Order!
Where did this come from? Suddenly counsel's attacking his own witness?
Mr. Collins' sexual orientation has nothing to do with this case.
Please have a seat, Miss Conine.
Would you approach the bench, Mr. Miller?
Could you kindly share with me...
exactly what's going on inside your head...
because at this moment, I don't have a clue.
Your Honor...
everybody in this courtroom...
is thinking about sexual orientation, sexual preference...
whatever you want to call it.
Who does what to whom and how they do it.
They're looking at Andrew Beckett. They're thinking about it.
They're looking at Mr. Wheeler, Miss Conine, even you, Your Honor.
They're wondering about it.
Trust me, I know they're looking at me and thinking about it.
So let's get it out in the open. Let's get it out of the closet.
Because this case is not just about Al DS, is it?
So let's talk about what this case is really all about:
The general public's hatred, our loathing...
our fear of homosexuals...
and how that climate of hatred and fear...
translated into the firing of this particular homosexual...
my client, Andrew Beckett.
Please have a seat, Mr. Miller.
Very good.
In this courtroom, Mr. Miller, justice is blind...
to matters of race, creed, color...
religion and sexual orientation.
With all due respect, Your Honor...
we don't live in this courtroom, though, do we?
No, we don't.
However, as regards to this witness...
I'm going to sustain the defense's objection.
How many weeks would you be out to sea without stopping at port?
Oh, anywhere from two weeks to several months.
Any women on board?
Not when I was in the navy.
So, during these long voyages...
months at a time out to sea, no women in sight...
hundreds of hardworking, robust young men in the prime of their lives...
at the peak of their natural appetites and desires...
their God-given hormonal instincts, anything going on?
Going on? Like what?
Like two sailors down below making flippy-flop.
- Objection. - Mr. Miller.
We had one guy like that.
You haven't ruled on my objection, Your Honor.
Go on, Mr. Miller.
You had one guy like that. You mean a homosexual?
He strutted around quarters naked trying to get everybody to notice him.
Made everyone sick.
He was destroying our morale.
So we let him know this kind of behavior was not acceptable.
How'd you do that? Wrote him a letter?
We stuck his head in a latrine after ten of us had used it.
- You taught him a lesson, didn't you? - Yes, we did.
- Like firing Andrew taught him a lesson. - Objection.
I withdraw. You were aware when you worked with Melissa Benedict...
that she had Al DS, correct?
- She didn't try to conceal it. - So you are aware...
of the difference between a bruise and a lesion. Correct?
Beckett told me he had been hit by a racket ball, and I believed him.
Did you avoid contact with Ms. Benedict after you found out she had Al DS?
She says and I quote, that you were repulsed by her. Is that correct?
I felt, and I still feel nothing...
but the deepest sympathy and compassion for people like Melissa...
who contracted this terrible disease through no fault of their own.
Don't move now.
Okay.
Boy. It's not going through.
We may have to flush it out again.
The vein's closed.
We've got to call Barbara.
- Nurse Ratchett. - Wait a minute.
Yeah. Tell her to come over.
Look, I've... There's so much stuff that I need to get done.
Can we... Can we just skip the treatment for tonight?
No. We are not skipping this treatment.
It's my arm, and it's my treatment, and I say skip it.
Well...
You know something?
That stuff is saving your life.
What's the matter with you tonight?
Close the law book.
Will you just...
The least you can do...
is look at me...
and give me a little of your time, man.
Got it?
You are worried...
we don't have very much time left, now, aren't you?
No. No.
I'll tell you what I'm gonna do.
I'm going to start planning my memorial service.
I'm going to start preparing for the inevitable.
Maybe you should think about it.
No.
I've got a better idea.
- Hi, Andrew. Hi, Miguel. - Hey, hey!
- Oh, Joe Miller, Counselor. - My wife, Lisa.
- Are you Lisa? Nice to meet you. - Nice to meet you.
- You look wonderful! - Maria, Lisa.
- Miguel's sister, Maria. - How are you, Maria?
- Do you care for something to drink? - I'll take care of Joe.
You're looking, uh, alive tonight!
I had a blood transfusion, and I feel great.
So, you like it? I'm a lawsuit.
You get it? I'm a lawsuit.
- It's not bad. - Lawsuit.
- What are you drinking? - Wine is good.
Can I have some of the red, please?
We've got to get to this Q and A sometime tonight, you know?
Sure. Just one problem.
- I'm at a party right now. - Fine. Whatever.
- We'll get to it, just later. - Thank you.
Hi, Joe Miller.
- Do I know you? - Mona Lisa.
Ah. Uh, lawsuit.
Nice. Have fun.
Mr. Sandman
Bring me a dream
Make him the cutest boy that I've ever seen
Give him two lips like roses in clover
Then tell me that my lonesome nights are over
Mr. Sandman
I'm so alone
Don't have a boyfriend to call my own
Oh, won't you please turn on your magic beam
Mr. Sandman, bring us a dream
It is hard to imagine
Oh, that nothing at all
Could be so exciting
And so much fun
Oh, heaven
Is a place
Where nothing Oh, nothing
Can go wrong
Thank you.
- Thank you. - Sure.
Congratulations, Counselor.
Congratulations?
You've survived what I assume to be your first gay party intact.
Let me tell you something.
When you're brought up the way most people are in this country...
there's not a whole lot of discussion about homosexuality...
or what do you call it, alternate lifestyles.
As a kid you're taught that queers are funny, queers are weird.
Queers dress up like their mother, that they're afraid to fight...
that they're a danger to little kids.
That all they want to do is get into your pants.
That pretty much sums up the general thinking, if you want to know the truth.
- Thank you for sharing that with me. - You're very welcome.
Let's go over this testimony. We've got a big day on Monday.
Okay. First I'll ask you...
"Can you describe the circumstances in which...
you joined the firm Wyant, Wheeler, Hellerman, Tetlow and Brown?"
Miller?
Do you ever pray?
Andrew, that is not the answer to the question.
But, yes, I pray.
- What do you pray for? - What do you mean?
I pray that... I don't know!
I pray my baby is healthy. I pray my wife made it through delivery.
I pray the Phillies win the pennant.
Now, can we go through these questions?
Number one: "Can you describe the circumstances in which...
you joined the firm Wyant, Wheeler, Hellerman, Tetlow and Brown?"
Can you do that for me?
There's a possibility I won't be around to see the end of this trial.
Yes, I've considered that.
I've made some provisions in my will for some charities.
Miguel will need a lawyer. I know it's not your area.
I know a good probate lawyer.
- Thank you. - You're welcome. Now...
"Can you describe the circumstances in which...
you joined the firm Wyant, Wheeler, Hellerman, Tetlow and Brown?"
Do you mind this music? Do you like opera?
I am not that familiar with opera, Andrew.
Oh, this is my favorite aria.
It's Maria Callas.
It's Andrea Chenier.
Umberto Giordano.
This is Madeleine.
She's saying how...
during the French Revolution the mob set fire to her house.
And her mother died, saving her.
She says, " Look!
The place that cradled me is burning.
I am alone."
Do you hear the heartache in her voice?
Can you feel it?
Now, in come the strings, and it changes everything.
It's like the music... it fills with a hope.
And that'll change again. Listen.
"I bring sorrow to those who love me."
Oh, that single cello!
"It was during this sorrow that love came to me.
A voice filled with harmony.
It said, 'Live still.
I am life.
Heaven is in your eyes.
It's everything around you. It's the blood and the mud.
I am divine!
I am oblivion.
I am the god...
that comes down from the heavens to the earth...
and makes of the earth a heaven.
I am love.
I am love."'
Geez, I better get out of here.
Lisa's... I told her that, you know...
I'll look over the Q and A.
No, you're ready.
Jesus.
God.