(theme music playing)
NARRATOR: Man lives in the sunlit world
of what he believes to be reality.
But... there is,
unseen by most, an underworld.
A place that is just as real
but not as brightly lit.
A dark side.
(door opens)
(sighing)
Bless you, Kellie.
(sighs)
Whenever you're ready, Kellie.
Coming, Mr. Martin.
(crackling hum)
(buzzing)
Good morning, Mr. Martin.
Morning, Kellie.
What's my schedule look like?
Well, it's light for a change.
You've got a meeting with the Labor Relations team
at 10:30. Right.
Mr. Finster of Finance for lunch.
Okay, Finster for lunch.
And Donna Kern at 2:00.
What about Wiley?
I thought Wiley was coming by today.
Well, Senator Wiley's office called just before you came in.
There's been a hearing rescheduled.
So, he had to postpone.
Damn it, I've got to talk to him!
All right, thanks.
Oh, and-and Mr. Martin?
That man from Vita Eterna is here.
Again?! Well, get rid of him.
I still don't have time for him.
He says he has a letter from a company insurance carrier.
Well, did he say what he wants?
He says he can only tell you.
Well, it must be that Wyoming thing.
Probably wants to lean on us to settle the suit.
Okay, give me a minute and then send him in.
Hey, what are you doing?
Until we're done, Mr. Martin, we need privacy.
Henry Harris, Vita Eterna Assurance.
It's a pleasure to meet you, sir.
What's this all about?
The mine accident, I assume?
Oh, no, this is about you, Mr. Martin.
I'm here because I want you to take a new look at yourself.
You have all this responsibility.
A multi-million dollar corporation.
A wife who could not support herself.
Two boys in college.
It would be a shame if anything happened
to a man in your position.
There's no way not to take risks.
That's exactly right.
And that's why you need protection.
I have more insurance than I know what to do with.
Policies to protect my company, policies for my family.
I know that.
And a very impressive amount, indeed.
Several million dollars.
But that's all death insurance.
And I'm talking about something else.
I'm talking about making sure that you don't die.
Well, I think I've given you enough of my time.
I'm perfectly serious, sir.
I'm in a position to assure that you will not be
cheated out of years you have coming to you.
How?
By providing you with a very special
little package of protection.
I'm wearing one now.
Show me.
(beeping)
(yelling)
(smoke alarm beeping)
KELLY (knocking at door): Mr. Martin? Harris?
Is everything all right?! Harris!
Where are you? (knocking on door)
(smoke alarm beeping)
KELLY (knocking): Is everything okay in there?!
Mr. Martin, are you all right?!
Everything all right?
Are you okay? (knocking continues)
Mr. Martin, is everything okay in there?
(knocking) Are you all right?
(alarm continues blaring)
Harris!
Hello again, Mr. Martin.
Now do I get a few more minutes of your time?
Now you understand why I needed to talk to you.
(knock at door) KELLIE: Mr. Martin! Mr. Martin!
Are you all right?!
Mr. Martin, should I call security?
Now, Kellie, no calls.
In or out, I don't want to be disturbed!
I don't understand a damn thing.
What is that thing? Where did it come from?
From the Lifebomb on my back.
It's a memory fabric.
It takes its programmed shape and then it hardens.
You look a little shaken, Mr. Martin.
Why don't you sit down and, uh, I'll start from the beginning.
This is nuts.
(chuckling) Not at all, sir.
Lifebomb is designed to do one thing well.
Which is to keep you alive.
Mine's demonstrative, of course.
The real thing won't go off
unless it determines you're in danger.
After that, the cocoon
will keep you warm and cozy
until you're in the hands of a medical team.
All right, you can't come right out
and guarantee a person won't die.
Pretty close, Mr. Martin.
Pretty darn close.
You see, inside the shell, you're breathing pure oxygen.
The lining inflates to stop any bleeding,
even provides CPR.
The backpack feeds you anything from adrenaline to morphine.
As needed.
And all the while,
the unit is paging emergency services by radio.
Think of the service contract we're offering on your body.
Unless you're still under warranty.
(chuckling)
Look, if this is for real,
why haven't I heard of it before?
We prefer a low profile.
We don't advertise.
And our clients respect our request for privacy.
The Lifebomb is not for everybody.
How many of these things do you have out?
Oh, don't worry about being a guinea pig.
More than 1,000 people are wearing these.
You'd be surprised at how many names you'd recognize.
People who have signed that letter have our permission
to talk to you if you want.
I believe you know most of them.
Sure, sure, I know them.
Fortune 500 who's who.
All right, then.
How much?
Oh, I'm sorry, I thought I made that clear.
Our contract is with your insurance carriers.
There's no cost to you.
Ah, well, you almost had me, Harris.
But you said the wrong thing there.
My alarm bells go off when somebody offers me
too good a deal.
Sorry, I can't see the catch.
But I know it's there.
You're cautious, that's good.
But we've got nothing to hide from our friends.
It's all in there.
Every rule, every wrinkle.
When you've satisfied yourself, just give me a call.
Anytime.
How close are we to being done with this thing?
It's getting so the words "Wyoming" and "mine accident"
make me want to crawl under my desk.
We're close. Nine of the victims' families
are ready to accept our offer.
And the last one should fall in line
when they realize they're all alone.
What do the out of pocket costs look like?
In round numbers,
four million for each of the six dead miners
and less for the four that were disabled.
That's 30 million dollars.
But spread out over three fiscal years
with the payment schedule we've proposed...
Oh, that makes all the difference.
30 million, Donna!
Could you really call that a workable settlement?
It'll remove the cloud
that's been hanging over us.
I don't have to tell you how
this thing's been affecting our stock.
Damn it all, I hate being fleeced like this!
Nobody pointed a gun at those people
and said, "You, be a miner!"
They knew the risk.
That's why they pull those wages.
It's not like we cheated the families!
The company insurance paid off.
We don't owe them anything more!
They got what they've been promised!
(dog barking)
(groaning)
Coming to bed, sailor?
Leanne, I thought you were asleep.
No, I was just gonna change clothes.
Ben, are you all right?
Sure, sure, I'm fine.
You're not gonna go back to work tonight, are you?
Why don't you come to bed?
Maybe you could go see Dr. Wilson in the morning.
Don't you think I know what he'd say?
"Mr. Martin, we've had too many three-egg omelets
"lately, haven't we? And how long has it been
since you last played a round of golf?"
You could be nicer to yourself.
And to me.
I can't ease up now.
There's too much that has to be done.
What about doing something for me every once in a while?
Leanne, honey, you know the situation.
I gotta get the company through the rough times.
I'm planning on an early retirement, you know that
but there's gotta be something to retire from.
Don't forget about having something to retire to.
And so, we'll need to further explore the tax consequences
of such a settlement before finalizing any agreement.
And moreover, Donna, I want firm data
on the internal cost associated with going to trial
as well as the size of awards
in similar--
(groaning) (tape rewinding)
(gagging)
(dialing phone)
Vita Eterna, Henry Harris speaking.
Harris, Ben Martin.
Ah, Mr. Martin.
What kind of a medical do I have to pass
to take part in that program of yours?
There's no exam.
If you weren't eligible, you wouldn't have heard from us.
I want to do it as soon as possible.
Now, you understand there's some minor surgery involved?
To implant the sensors.
But I could schedule you for tomorrow morning.
Good, that'll be fine.
Is everything all right, Mr. Martin?
You sound like a worried man.
I don't have to be now, right?
(sighing)
MARTIN: You know, ever since this started bothering me,
I've been playing this little game with myself.
Be sitting in a meeting, or at the dinner table
and I'd wonder,
what would happen if I had a heart attack right now?
I mean, how would they react?
Like, who'd panic?
Who'd be calm?
And I'd play out this whole little drama in my head.
No need to wonder once they're finished with you down the hall.
It was different every time in this game, you know?
One of my sons flunking out, being hassled by the IRS.
Catching the controller embezzling.
Well, stress does come in different shapes and sizes.
(sighs)
They're ready for you, Mr. Martin.
Of course, this isn't a free lunch either.
I'll have to give up sunbathing in public,
backrubs... (chuckling)
Harris...
I'm doing the right thing, aren't I?
Many of our clients have reported
they're enjoying life more now.
The important thing is they can report at all, huh?
Yes, of course.
That much we can guarantee.
But the rest is up to you.
(alarm buzzing)
Oh, honey!
Yes, Ben?
When I came home last night it looked like
that first maple along the drive needs some work.
What am I paying that gardener for?
I don't know, I guess I'll have to have a talk with him.
Well, see that you do, huh?
Ben,
I hate that thing on your back!
You know...
just a week
and I've already gotten used to it being there.
Well, I'm not used to it.
Well, don't get excited.
Dr. Wilson wanted me to wear it.
I told you it monitors my blood pressure.
What's next? Little meters
and an antenna?
Look, I'm starting to think about the future
like you were telling me to.
This isn't what I meant.
I meant us! I meant having a little fun around here!
I'm trying to make sure we stay together!
Together?
That's a joke, right?
It's been years since I could compete
with your company for your time.
Leanne, that's not fair!
Now, you know the situation!
I just can't leave now.
You can!
But you won't because you think I should be happy playing house
while you tend to business.
That's real life to you!
Real life to me is dealing with my responsibi...
(beeping)
Ben?
What's wrong?
(beeping, buzzing)
Oh, my God!
(steady tone)
(screaming)
(Lifebomb ringing)
(gasping)
Are you listening to me, Ben?
I promise, I promise and I'll try.
I mean, for heaven's sake.
Was is it gonna take to make you take care of yourself?
Leanne, he's the one I told you about.
How you feeling, Ben?
I hurt.
But I'm still here thanks to your gadget.
Leanne, honey, give us a few minutes alone.
Will you, please?
I'm glad for you, Ben.
I don't like to see people die.
Well, I've been thinking about that.
Look, why is this such a big secret?
I mean, there's a lot of people who'd want one
if they only knew about it.
Well, that was the idea at first.
We didn't think only people like you would be wearing them.
What the hell do you mean by that?
We've lost so many good people who still had more to give.
Poets,
artists, diplomats.
The Lifebomb could've done them and us a lot of good.
This is a personal thing with you, huh?
(chuckling): It was.
I developed the deployment mechanism.
Hmm.
So, what happened?
We needed start-up money, didn't we?
We approached the foundations, there was little interest.
The federal government laughed at us.
Somebody listened.
Insurance companies listened.
The National Association of Life Insurance Underwriters.
They paid for everything.
They still do and they own us.
I don't get it.
You're a businessman, add it up.
It's cheaper to keep you alive.
You're a high risk.
Anybody could see you're ripe for a heart attack,
a stroke, perforated ulcer.
If you die, the insurers lose $15 million.
By protecting you, they protect themselves.
Very neat.
They put a new Lifebomb on me?
Almost before they did anything else.
Now, look, Harris,
I don't think this is such a good idea for me.
I could get to count on it too much.
Well, I'm afraid at this point you don't have much choice.
What do you mean?
The only way you can get out
is to leave your company and drop your insurance.
Come on, I couldn't do that.
I mean, Leanne and my sons,
my-my boys, they-they need that security.
Look, Ben, our life assurance works.
The Lifebomb works.
Be smart about it.
Wear it.
But make sure you don't need it again.
Don't tempt fate.
In other words, slow down, huh?
Exactly.
Well, that's the problem.
I don't know if I know how.
Well, Ben, for your sake, I hope you learn.
(door buzzing)
What are you doing here?
I've had it, Ben.
What?
You're at it again, nothing's changed.
But Leanne...
I still don't exist for you.
I had to make an appointment with your secretary
to come here and tell you that I'm leaving you.
Leanne, I'm trying to change.
With things on your back that explode, right?
Just a little more time.
You've had time.
You haven't spent it with me.
(phone buzzing)
KELLIE: I'm sorry, Mr. Martin,
but I finally got Senator Wiley on the line.
Senator Wiley,
I've been expecting to hear from you for weeks.
Now, what's happening with our export exemption?
Leanne, wait.
What do you mean
that you can't move on it this year?
Please, Leanne!
Well, how big a contribution from Minepac does it take
to get a little cooperation from you people?
Well, that never happened before!
Christ, we do half our business
with the Russians and the Chinese!
Look, damn it, Senator, we can't wait till after the election.
We're hurting now!
Now, you listen here, Senator.
I don't care what the majority leader says.
And I don't care about the political atmosphere!
If you people don't move your butt on this thing and...
(gagging): ...get something happening,
the third biggest employer in this state could...
(gasps)
(monitor beeping)
You trapped me.
HARRIS: No, Ben.
You trapped yourself.
We saved your life twice.
I can't go through this again and again.
But you will again and again as long as necessary.
But don't worry, we won't cut you off.
I want to die.
There's nothing left.
This isn't living.
It is by our definition, Ben.
The one in the contract.
You should understand.
A businessman like yourself.
You can't expect anything more.
You got what you've been promised.
No.
(crying): No.
No!
NARRATOR: The dark side is always there.
Waiting for us to enter.
Waiting to enter us.
Until next time, try to enjoy the daylight.