Forgive me.
Selma?
Jeff.
What are you doing here?
Is it already 3:00?
Uh, not really.
Hell, I'm always early.
You cut yourself again.
There's some blood on your blouse.
Strange.
I couldn't feel it at all.
Selma...
We're here now.
By the bus stop?
Yeah, the bus stop.
It's over there.
And the lake is here?
Promise me that you won't follow me.
Promise.
Yeah, I promise.
Dobry Vecer, Pane Doktore.
Dobry Vecer.
I would like to pay for the operation now.
¡ç2,056...
and 10 cents.
I know it's not quite
what you told me, but...
but it's all I could get together.
Well.
What last name
shall I put on the receipt?
Oh, I don't need a receipt.
I really don't.
I have to know the name of your son.
When he comes in for his operation.
Novy...
He will come,
and he will say that his name is Novy.
And then you will know...
that he has been paid for.
Novy?
Like Oldrich Novy,
the tap dancer?
It is strange, isn't it?
But he never really made it over here,
did he?
I saw his films when I was a kid.
He was in the first musical
I ever saw.
Same here.
Selma?
It's Tuesday night.
What about your rehearsal?
Yeah, I guess.
You want to go?
Yeah.
Then maybe put your arm around her,
and... a little bit of...
Hi, Selma.
Hi, Samuel.
We weren't sure you'd show up, actually.
Sure, I'd show up.
Hi.
Nice to see you.
Be right back.
Okay.
She's here.
Yeah.
Okay.
Okay, I think--I think you could...
try it one more time for me.
But I should-- I should be going now.
I think Gene may wonder where I am.
Jeff, he--he hasn't seen me all day.
I think maybe we could do your scene.
Let's do the tapping scene.
Okay? We haven't done it in weeks,
and we really need to rehearse it,
and while you're here, we might as well
take advantage of the time, please?
Okay, let's do the tapping scene.
You come offstage--
Let me have the nuns up there.
Imagi-- you're going to do
Selma's part for her
for right now, all right?
You like it?
Yes.
We haven't done it for a while.
Remember that part we did where--
where you, uh...
you come to the convent gate
to say goodbye to the--to Maria?
I should leave, Jeff.
What?
Gene--Gene is probably worried now.
I haven't seen him all day.
All right.
I'm sorry, Samuel, but...
Betty, come here for a second, please.
The drummer that you wanted--
Remember, you asked me for a drummer?
I found somebody. She's fantastic.
Her name's Betty. She's right here
for the first time tonight.
Please meet her. Selma, this is Betty.
Hi, Betty.
You play the drums?
Yeah.
Tell her how long you've been studying.
Two years.
She's wonderful.
You've got to stay and enjoy this.
You've got to-- I have an idea.
Let's do the finale.
I just remembered, you hate finales.
No finale!
I've a better idea.
""Climb Every Mountain,"" part one.
The state will show
that the defendant has not only perpetrated
the most callous...
and well-planned homicide in recent memory...
but is also a fundamentally selfish
individual...
who cynically hides
behind a handicap,
devoid of sympathy for anybody
but herself.
This woman found trust and friendship
when she sought refuge in our country,
and the evidence will show
that she has repaid such kindness with betrayal,
robbery, and murder,
inflicted upon the very people
who opened their homes and hearts to her.
Ladies and gentlemen of the jury...
The evidence will prove that she herself...
did not show that mercy she will ask of us.
Is this the bag here, detective?
Yes, the very same.
Houston's blood was all over it.
Well, shortly before the homicide,
I had a checkup on her vision,
and I found that she was myopic.
It's nearsighted--
Nearsighted, but... She could see.
Yes.
She said communism was...
better for human beings.
She had nothing but contempt
for our great country and its principles?
Apart from its musicals. She said the American one...
the American ones were better.
So...
the defendant preferred Hollywood
to Vladivostok.
I suppose that's an acknowledgement of sorts.
She just asked many times
about the money.
She wanted to know where it was?
That's right.
She asked you about the gun?
Yes, she did.
She wanted to know where it was kept?
That's right.
Bill was lying on the floor
and... he was wounded.
And...
He was pleading for his life?
Yes.
"I--I beg you, I beg you,
I beg you."
You showed him no mercy, Selma!
You shall have no mercy either!
Would you state your name for the record, please?
Selma Jezkova.
And Bill and Linda Houston...
were your friends, is that right?
Yeah.
In fact, you lived in a trailer
on their property.
Yeah.
And didn't they also
take care of your young son
when you were at work?
Yeah.
They bought him a...
birthday present recently.
Is that right?
Yeah. They got him a bike.
Right.
Your sight was poor,
you claim, contrary to
the expert testimony we have received.
But you saw well enough
to inflict 34 wounds on Bill Houston.
So why did you kill him, actually?
If I may be so bold to ask?
He asked me to.
He did?
How intriguing.
A man with a fine career
and some wealth, a happy marriage,
why would this Bill Houston
ask you to kill him?
I promised not to say.
Well, that clears things up immensely.
You promised you wouldn't say.
In that case, we'll just have to take your word for it
when you say that the money you stole
was your own, despite the fact
that Bill Houston's savings
also disappeared so mysteriously
that same day.
Just, uh...
Just where did you get your money?
Well...
I'd been saving up.
Well, I suppose you could call it that.
What were these savings to be used for?
You never bought your son
so much as a single birthday present,
as we've heard.
Yes?
My--my father.
In Czechoslovakia.
Your father?
And what, pray tell...
is his name?
My--my father is...
Oldrich Novy.
So...
We're meant to believe...
that you killed Bill Houston
by inflicting 34 wounds on him
because...
He asked you to.
Just as we're meant to believe
that you were blind when you did it...
Are meant to believe that it was your own savings
that you stole from him...
Just as we're meant to believe
that you sent all you had
to your father back home,
a man by the name of Oldrich Novy.
Is that right?
Yes.
Thank you, Miss Jezkova.
Ladies and gentlemen of the jury,
you've now heard from the defendant's own lips.
You must believe her,
just as you must believe her
when she claims her father's name
is Oldrich Novy.
Your Honor...
at this time, the state calls
to the witness stand...
Oldrich Novy.
Please state your full name.
The name is Oldrich Novy.
And you used to live in Czechoslovakia?
That is right.
I live now in California, as you know.
That's right, that's where we found you.
What exactly is your relationship
with the defendant?
I do not know her.
You don't know her?
So...
You have not received money
from her.
Money that--that...
she says was so dearly earned?
No, I have not.
Perhaps you're not her father then?
No, I am not.
Well, if this relationship
was made up by the defendant,
then...
can you think of any way
she might've come to know your name?
I was once well known in Czechoslovakia
uh... because of my profession.
Yes, Mr. Oldrich Novy, what is your profession?
Maybe that can give us a clue to why,
why this somewhat... romantic,
certainly communistic, woman
who worships Fred Astaire but not his country,
why she might've lied...
and misused your name...
to make us think all her money was spent
on a poor father and not on her own vanity.
What is it that you do?
I was an actor. I made films.
They were musicals.
Say it again!
Will the court please rise?
The honorable Judge A.D. Mantle presiding.
Have you reached a verdict?
Yes, Your Honor.
Will the defendant please rise?
We, the jury, find the defendant
Selma Jezkova
guilty of murder in the first degree
and hereby sentence her to death.
Is this the verdict of this jury?
You fully understand that it must be unanimous?
We do, Your Honor.
Selma Jezkova...
You are hereby sentenced
to be taken from this place
and confined in the state penitentiary
until such time as you shall be executed
by being hanged by the neck
until you are dead.
This court is adjourned.
All rise!
I've just heard about the...
Supreme Court decision.
Yeah, I...
I just want to talk practical stuff.
On Gene's birthday...
he will receive a letter.
And it's so important, Kathy...
that he reads it really carefully.
I need you to take care of that for me...
because I'm not gonna be there
when he gets it.
He should not be afraid,
because there's nothing to be afraid of, Kathy.
Listen, Gene wants to see you so badly.
Won't you let him? Please?
There's nothing for him to see.
He's got you now, Kathy.
And there's one more thing:
He has to call himself Novy.
That's very important.
All right, time's up, Selma.
I know that sounds a bit foolish.
Novy?
I'm sorry I didn't tell you before
about all this. I just didn't dare to
because they would ruin everything.
But what-- Why does he
have to call himself Novy?
Stop asking questions like that, Cvalda.
Please... Iet me tell Gene hello...
from you to him.
No.
I know you love your son very much.
I love him very much.
Got a boy of my own back home.
You never told me that.
Good night, Brenda.
Good night.
Say hi to your son from me.
Thank you, Selma.
Can I help you?
Did you once have a patient called...
Jezkova...
Selma Jezkova?
Well, if it wasn't too long ago,
I can check my records for you.
Jes... Jez... Jess...
Sorry, there's no one here by that name.
What about Novy?
I have good news for you.
What's that?
We found a new lawyer...
and he's going to get your case re-opened.
He says your lawyer was incompetent.
What do you mean?
Well, the case is going to be re-opened.
You won't get the death sentence.
Is that true?
Yes. New information has turned up.
Wh-what information?
Well, we know the whole story, Selma.
Why didn't you tell us anything?
You know, about...
about the money for Gene's operation.
How did you find out?
Well, Jeff talked to the doctor.
Does--does Gene know?
I mean, have you told Gene?
No. No, I didn't.
But you've got a much better case now.
That's very important, Kathy.
His eyes might get worse from worrying,
and then the operation won't work.
Yes, but, Selma...
Don't you see that it would help you
if they knew that you were trying to save your son
from going blind?
The lawyer, he'll come and see you
in two weeks' time.
Kathy, but, uh...
You know they're hanging me
in one week.
We know that, but he says
you can apply for a stay.
You know, most cases get one the first time.
Well, you can smile.
Selma...
Yeah... it's just too much for me.
I thought I was strong.
I just can't take it, Kathy.
Apply for a stay.
What if they don't phone?
Uh, well, you'll be transferred to the other...
cell block at some point tomorrow.
That's the cell block where they hang people.
Yeah, that's where they...
spend the last day.
And then they do their 107 steps.
It's from that room...
to the gallows, isn't it?
That's what they say, Selma, but...
Look at...
You're gonna get your stay.
Why don't you try to think of something nice,
all right?
It's just so quiet here.
What's that got to do with it, Selma?
You know, when I used to work in the factory...
I used to dream that I was in a musical,
because, in a musical,
nothing dreadful ever happens.
But it's so quiet here.
Don't the prisoners march or something?
March? No.
Yeah?
No, they don't. They don't...
There's not...
There's not much noise around here, Selma,
I know.
But later they turn on the radio.
No, no, no. There's no...
They don't allow radio in the isolation block.
But I've been listening to the ventilation...
shaft.
I hear sometimes people singing there,
Iike...
hymns or...
That's not against the rules,
to listen, is it?
No.
I wonder if...
if maybe you're hearing the singing
coming from the chapel.
Yeah?
Maybe you'll even get a sermon.
Selma...
You got your stay.
You got the stay.
I'm so happy for you.
I'm your new legal counsel.
My name is Luke, okay?
Oh, hi, Luke.
I'm, uh, quite sure...
I can get your sentence commuted.
All I need is a signature
stating you want the case re-opened...
and then I can get all the paperwork ready
by tomorrow.
Yeah.
There's a lot of things your other lawyer didn't do
that I'm going to do.
A lot of ground that wasn't covered
that I am going to cover.
The fact that you were fighting for your boy
is something we can really milk.
I have some experience in cases like this, so...
That's what the attorney before said.
Uh... yeah.
You see, he was appointed by the court,
and you don't get the best legal counsel
that way.
Y-You were not appointed by the court?
I'm not appointed by the court, no.
You're gonna have to pay me.
But... not to worry.
Yeah?
That's been taken care of.
I made a deal with your... Iady friend?
Deal?
Yeah, in regard to my fee.
I've agreed to accept the amount
that she said she could raise.
How much...
How much was it?
Well, I can tell you precisely,
because I received an envelope.
It's, uh, two thousand dollars--
¡ç2,056.10?
That's it precisely.
Now...
There's something here.
I'd like to just sort of go over our tactics.
I have a couple of questions to ask you.
If he doesn't have the operation next month,
it's gonna be too late!
And he will never be able to see!
This is what it's all about,
so he can see his grandchildren!
Well, let me tell you something.
The only thing that's important to me
in my whole life,
and you don't understand, Kathy!
- Listen to me! - It's just plain stupidity!
- Listen to me! - Waste that kind of money...
on a blind woman who's gonna spend
the rest of her life in jail!
But he needs his mother, you know,
alive, no matter where!
You don't understand!
He needs his eyes!
- He needs his mother! - No!
- Yes! Alive! - No!
Listen to reason for once!
Selma.
I listen to my heart.
I will go to the police. I will tell them that...
you stole the money from... from Bill.
Oh, yes, I will tell that.
I will tell them that,
that you stole it from Bill,
and you will never see the money again!
That will be gone for good.
No operation! Nothing! No mother! Nothing!
You can have your money back.
I just want to make sure
that you fully comprehend
what this means, this decision.
Yeah.
You fully realize what will happen?
Yeah.
I already asked for no more stays.
Once this starts, there's no stopping it.
You understand me?
Yeah.
I'm prepared.
Gene says thank you.
Thanks for what?
Oh, some comic books on his birthday.
You can't buy him... presents
and say it's from me.
You have to stop doing that, Jeff.
Uh, maybe you can just...
phone him.
Just say, you know...
something to him.
No, that's--that's not a good idea.
He wants to be the one...
who's allowed to be there when it happens.
But I-- And then they told him
he's too young.
Who put that crazy idea into his head anyway?
I don't want him to be there.
I'll be there if you would.
And Kathy?
You know Kathy. She's...
She's still angry.
If you think you can take it...
I would love you to be there.
Don't cry, Jeff.
Jeff, don't cry. It's gonna be fine.
Jeff.
Why did you have him?
You knew he would have the same disease as you.
I just wanted to hold a little baby...
just in my arms.
I love you.
It's time, Selma.
Okay?
Okay.
Your meal, Jezkova.
Selma Jezkova...
It's time.
Please stand.
She can walk on her own.
Selma...
I'm afraid my legs aren't working very well.
You can do it, Selma.
Yeah.
I have a plan, okay?
Yeah.
You're gonna stand up with me.
Yeah.
I may make some noise.
It will give you something to listen to.
Yeah.
Listen.
There's 107 steps.
Selma, listen to the mark.
I couldn't even do one.
You can do it.
I can't do it!
Now listen, Selma.
I want you to do one--there, one.
Come on.
Listen.
Two.
Three...
four...
five... six...
seven... eight...
nine... ten...
11... 12... 13...
14... 15...
16... 17... 18...
19... 20...
21... 22... 23...
24... 25...
26... 27... 28...
29... 30...
39... 40...
43... 44... 45...
55... 56...
60... 61... 62...
70... 71... 72...
75... 76... 77...
93... 94... 95...
104... 105...
106...
107.
Selma Jezkova,
do you have any last words?
Very well. Proceed.
Selma.
Selma, you okay?
It's okay. It's okay.
Come on now.
Use the board.
Oh, no, no. No, wait. Give her a chance.
She can stand up. She can stand.
In here.
It's okay. It's okay.
The straps on her hands.
I'm scared.
It's okay.
- I'm so scared! - I know.
On the mark.
No!
I can't do the hood!
It's okay. Selma.
I have to breathe!
Nobody told me about the hood!
It's just so you can't see, Selma.
- I can't breathe! - I know.
I can't breathe!
- Look, look-- - I can't breathe!
I have to breathe!
Look, she can't breathe.
She can't breathe! She can't--
I'm taking it. I'm taking it.
This is irregular.
I don't care if it's irregular.
- We have regulations. - She's blind--
I don't care about the regulations!
The girl is blind, for Christ's sake.
I'm gonna make a call.
Yeah, make the call--
Gene...
Yeah, we have a situation here.
I'll hold for him.
Gene...
The woman's blind... I'll wait.
Gene...
Waiting for a call.
Gene...
Gene!
He--he's just outside.
He gave me these for you.
Guard.
So he had the operation?
He will see his grandchildren!
He is just outside.
You were right, Selma!