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[PA system chimes]
[stewardess] Ladies and gentlemen, we are now approaching Marrakech, Morocco,
where the local time is half past 3:00 p.m.
As we prepare for landing, please make sure your seatbelts…
["Wassulu Don" playing]
[indistinct chatter]
Thanks.
[sighs]
[cell phone chimes]
Katherine, it's Mona.
I think you're getting to that retreat today.
That's great.
But I know those things sometimes end up being more fun than work.
I just wanted to remind you of our deadline.
If we want to make your publication date, and it would be kind of disastrous not to,
we need your draft by--
Oh… thanks.
- [Hamid] Madame, welcome to Kasbah A'shab. - Hi.
I'm Hamid.
And your luggage is where?
Somewhere between JFK and here.
Oh, no, it's lost.
I'm gonna be optimistic and say misplaced.
Madame Benzakour was really sorry not to greet you herself.
She's dining with the other guests.
And this is you.
It's an ancient one. After you.
Oh.
Wow.
Oh, my God.
I, uh, RSVP'd so late.
I thought they'd put me in a broom closet.
Well, Madame Benzakour, she insisted you have her best room.
Who got bumped?
This is amazing.
Oh, wow.
Well, I will wait for you outside.
And whenever you're ready, I'll take you to dinner.
Oh, um…
No, no. No dinner for me.
You sure? Madame Benzakour was eager to say hello.
Oh, Hamid, I'm so tired.
Do you think if I just took the smallest room,
I could skip all the group activities?
I'm really… I'm just here to work.
Well, this is not a problem.
- Well, good night, madame. - Good night. Uh, Katherine.
- Sorry? - I'm not a madam.
Just a Katherine.
Very well.
[car horn honking]
Holy shit, Owen.
What are we doing here?
Don't ask me. I followed you.
[Fatema] Hey, Lily Kemp.
You made it.
Welcome. I'm Fatema Benzakour.
It's so nice to meet you.
And Owen. That's correct?
That's me.
Come, I'll show you around.
We are still waiting for some guests to arrive,
but all the other writers will be here by dinnertime.
This is the main kasbah.
But I have put you two in one of our garden rooms.
This way, please.
[Lily] Wow.
[Fatema] If you don't see what you want in the kitchen,
just ask anyone, and they will take care of you.
- [Owen] All right. - [Lily] Okay.
[in Arabic] Hamid, did you put their bags in their room?
- Yes, Madame. - Thank you.
- [in English] Hello. - Hey, man.
[exhales] Fatema, this is incredible.
Thank you.
Everything is from my great grandfather's time.
Except the mattress, which you will be glad to know is new.
- [Owen] Good. - Okay, I'll let you settle in.
Cocktails on the terrace at 6:00, okay?
Thank you so much for having me. It's such an honor.
Come on. The honor is mine. See you later.
I mean…
Oh, my goodness.
Pretty awesome.
Owen, look at this view!
You can see forever.
Seriously, how lucky are we to be here?
Hey, I know her.
Yeah. I still can't believe this is real.
I can.
[sighs]
[cell phone chimes]
What the…
[line ringing]
[man on phone] Yeah.
Why am I getting real estate ads from some random phone?
I gave a realtor your number.
What? You can't go giving out my number.
You said you'd find a new place to live before you left.
I've been busy. I'm writing.
Kath, if we wait for you to stop writing to move out,
you'll live here forever.
Neither of us wants that.
You know how hard this book has been?
That's why I flew all the way out here just to get some quiet, all right?
- Kath. - To concentrate.
You sending this apartment bullshit isn't helping.
Yeah, well, helping you isn't my responsibility anymore.
[indistinct conversation]
- Yeah, you are the crime writing… - Yeah.
About crimes, yeah.
How long did it take you to write your graphic novel?
Listen, I read one of your books,
and I want to tell you you can improve yourself.
- I'd say two-and-a-half years all in all. - Really?
We'll talk again later.
[Lily] They're all literary giants, and I wrote a glorified beach read.
They're just gonna take one look at me
and see what a total fraud I am and then just kick me out.
Hey.
You wrote a great book.
- You got this. - Thank you.
- Okay. Yeah. - Just police story. I was bored.
I am sorry.
Oh, my God, it's Ada Dohan.
- I don't know who that is. - Okay, she won the Nobel Prize,
- so act like you do. - Okay.
Lily Kemp?
- Yeah. - I'm Rafih Abdo.
Yeah.
- Uh, your memoirs-- - I was really excited
to know you would be here. I loved your book.
Oh, my God. I… That…
Thank you.
This is Owen.
- Hey, nice to meet you. - Nice to meet you too, man.
Rafih wrote that beautiful memoir about his time as a child soldier in Libya.
- Oh, right, yeah. You loved that. - Yeah.
Listen, can I ask you a question about your book?
- First of all, like… - Okay.
When did you write it?
I started it right after college…
Hey, buddy.
How's it going?
All right.
[indistinct chatter]
Fiction or non-fiction?
I'm sorry?
Which do you write?
Oh. Neither.
I'm not a writer at all. I'm in finance.
I'm just here with Lily, my girlfriend.
Let me guess.
She dedicated her book to you, huh?
She did.
Yeah, I did.
I couldn't have done it without him.
Bullshit. [chuckles]
Bullshit.
Excuse me?
A book inside a writer is like a fetus in a womb.
Once it's been conceived,
there is nothing anyone can do to either speed or prevent its arrival.
Hmm? You're at best, an amenity.
Like the warm towel in business class. Huh?
[Ada chuckles]
Did you have a good time?
You hardly said anything all night.
Yeah.
Okay, you can't take that warm towel stuff personally.
She's a notorious shit-stirrer.
Okay? It's just what she does.
It's fine. It's fine.
Great.
[sighs] I need an Ambien.
Are you going to take one?
No, I have my call.
Oh, yeah. Okay.
- Good night. - Good night.
[cell phone buzzing]
- [cell phone beeps] - Wait, what?
Oh, shit.
Oh, come on.
Shit.
Come on.
Shit.
Thank God.
- Hey, it's me. Are they on already? - [woman] It's okay,
- but they've been waiting. - Shit. Put me through.
[man] Hey, Owen.
[Owen] Hey, sorry. Little reception issue, but I'm here.
All right, here's the deal.
We cleared the sale of the property with the rest of his family.
They're all on board, just waiting to hear from us.
And like I said, he'll only sell if he can stay on as CEO.
So that should be part of it.
Yeah, we saw your email. We got it. All good.
- We'll let you know when the offer is out. - Okay.
Great. Just wanted to make that clear.
Hello?
Fuck.
Hey.
Water.
Cell service. Barely.
Right.
Okay.
Hey. Um…
Did you happen to see what door I came out of?
Uh, no.
- Sorry. - That's okay.
Hold on.
- The stairs are over here. - Okay.
Oh.
I know where I am now.
- Yeah? - Yeah.
Thank you. I would have been on that roof all night.
No problem.
- Good night. - Good night.
[patrons speaking indistinctly]
He almost always fails, right? It's 50%.
- Ah, there you are. - Morning.
- Hey. - This is Owen.
He was up all night making calls.
- You met Rafih. - Hello.
This is Peng and Gunner.
Gunnar.
- It's Gunnar. - Gunnar. Sorry.
Oh! So there's a reporter here doing a story on the retreat.
Fatema asked a few of us to stick around and talk to her, but I don't have to.
No, you should, for sure.
Yeah? You won't feel like I dragged you all the way out here and abandoned you?
No. I'm fine. Do your thing.
- There's no water? - Mmm-mmm.
I'm so sorry about that.
That's okay.
I'll do my best to fix it right away.
Great. Um…
But I tell you what, In the meantime, I would…
I would love a quiet place to work.
Well, I'm afraid there will be a lot of activity at the kasbah today.
Yeah.
But there is an expedition.
- No. - No one has signed up.
The drive is long, the car is air-conditioned.
And cherry on the cake,
the driver does not speak English.
[speaking Arabic]
[in English] Morning.
- Yes? Sorry. - Is this car going to Chef-something?
- Yeah, yeah. - Yeah? Okay.
Oh! Hey.
Thanks.
Just us, huh?
Yeah.
I'm Owen, by the way.
Katherine.
- Loewe? - Mmm-hmm.
Yeah, I knew you looked familiar.
I see your face in bed a lot.
My girlfriend's always reading your books and your picture's on the back.
- So… - Right.
More nights than not, I get in bed, and there you are, staring right at me.
- Owen. - Mmm-hmm.
- Do you see this? - Mmm-hmm.
Um, this is requiring 100% of my attention.
So, shut up?
Please.
Okay.
[upbeat song playing]
All right.
See you later.
Yeah.
Uh… One second.
[man praying over PA system]
- Yeah? - Yeah.
All right.
- Hey. - Hey.
You sure? I don't want to disturb you.
- Oh, yeah, I need a break. - Okay.
How's it going?
It's… It's going.
Yeah?
How was your morning?
My morning was fine, I guess.
Thanks.
- I'll have what she's having. - Okay.
"Fine, I guess"?
You traveled thousands of miles for, "Fine, I guess"?
Yeah, I…
You want to know the truth?
Always.
I don't think I love travel.
- Really? - Yeah.
Just the whole thing, you know, airports and flying and…
People always say it's going to be this transformative experience, you know.
Go to a new, exotic place, meet the new, exotic you.
But you get there and you're not new or exotic.
You're just you.
[chuckles] That's true.
Flaubert said the point of travel was to make us modest.
Right?
To show us the tiny place we occupy in the world.
I grew up with four sisters.
So I know how small I am.
Okay.
- Thank you. - Welcome.
- Bon appétit. - [Katherine in Arabic] Thank you.
- [in English] So then why'd you come? - Uh…
That's a good question.
My girlfriend, Lily, was invited. Yeah.
I don't know.
I guess she needed a personal shopper.
What'd you get?
- You wanna see? - Sure.
That's a fuck load of little stars.
Yeah.
You can never have too many, right?
- Really? - I don't know.
How about you?
How's your day been?
Fine, I guess.
What if you lived here and didn't like the color blue?
Who doesn't like blue?
I could pick a fight with blue.
That'd be a great use of your time and energy.
- Don't you think? - Yeah.
Where are we going right now?
- Someplace new and exotic. - [chuckles]
So why'd you fly almost thousands of miles?
Oh, I'm finishing a book.
I just needed a place to write.
You can't finish it at home?
[sighs] Nope.
Did you start it at home?
Yeah.
So what changed?
Oh, um… Excuse me.
Uh, I'm sorry. Do you speak English?
- Yes, I do. - Thank you.
I lost my luggage and need some underwear.
[woman] Sure. Follow me.
[typing]
[engine sputters]
Whoa.
What's…
Everything okay?
[driver speaks Arabic]
[in English] You get that?
I'm thinking engine trouble.
Terrific.
[driver speaking Arabic indistinctly]
[in English] You don't see that every day.
[bleating]
Does that look normal to you?
No.
Definitely not.
Oh, my God.
[upbeat music playing on car stereo]
[music stops]
- Hello. - Hey.
Hello. How you doing?
Well, we're…
Great.
{speaking Arabic]
[in English] Hey, sir, madame. I'm Sisi, the brother of Aziz.
So the car has a little problem, which is easy to fix.
So please come with me. I will take you in my car.
Come with you?
- [Katherine] "Easy to fix"? - Yeah, in that car. Yes.
[Katherine] We're gonna be there for a quick visit?
Because you said the car will be a quick fix.
Yeah, I'm gonna do my best to fix it.
And if it's not, hopefully when I go to my family's house,
- even my mom will be happy. - How nice.
She will cook for you all the time. That's what she do when we have a guest.
- So she's cooking, cooking, cooking. - All the time?
[kids chattering]
- Hello. - Hello.
- Hey. - Hello.
Uh, any idea how long this will take? Maybe someone else can come get us.
No, this is not necessary.
My brother has called the kasbah. They know you are delayed.
So just please follow me, yeah?
[conversing in Arabic]
[in English] So, please.
[greets in Arabic]
[in English] Yeah. Okay.
[greeting in Arabic]
[in English] Thank you.
Sure.
[conversing in Arabic]
[in English] Owen. Shee-th?
- I'm Mohammed. - Mohammed.
Me, Katherine. You?
What's your name?
You. You? You're Katherine?
Look at you. A beautiful baby.
Congratulations.
I like it.
Perfect.
New and exotic.
Yeah.
Maybe a little.
Can I ask you something?
Yeah.
These, uh, retreats and stuff, are they…
are they a big part of being a writer?
Huge.
I mean, you kind of don't need to write.
You just travel and go to conferences,
hang out with people who get way too drunk and only talk about themselves.
- [chuckles] - Lucky you. You get to be a part of it.
No, it's just…
This is Lily's first novel, so…
- Yeah, and it did well. - Yeah. Yeah, really well.
I mean, she had never published anything.
And then overnight she became a best-selling author.
- That is a tricky transition. - Hmm.
How's she dealing with it?
Yeah, she's great.
You know, it's… It's a lot of change.
Things feel… different.
She feels…
I don't know.
Different.
Yeah, I…
I mean, it's all good.
I've never known anything that's all good.
No. No, I guess not.
So what are you gonna do with all those stars?
Oh. They're for the apartment, I think.
To decorate?
I have no idea. To decorate something.
Yeah, I see.
[Owen] Well, that was a fun day.
- Thank you. - [Katherine] Thank you.
I'm gonna go see what's going on.
You want to join?
- I'm good. Good night. - Night.
- [upbeat music playing] - [indistinct chatter]
Hey. There you are.
I was starting to get worried about you.
- Look at you. - You were gone.
- [Owen] How are we feeling? - Good, good.
Okay, come sit, come sit.
Hey.
- It's all right? - Yeah.
Everyone's so awesome. Owen, I love these people.
What's going on here?
[Lily] You know, just a little Moroccan something.
- Hashish? - You can try it.
[Owen] I'm good.
What's been happening in here?
[Lily] The reporter knew way more about me than I thought she would.
Turns out my Europe sales have been pretty good.
Of course they have.
How are you? How was your day?
Were you lonely?
Uh. Yeah, a little.
But not really, actually. There was someone else on the trip.
Who?
It's that writer you like. Katherine Loewe.
- Katherine Loewe? - Mmm-hmm.
She's not here.
Yeah, she is.
And you spent the day with her?
I mean, part of it.
Not the whole day. We did our own thing too.
Why didn't you tell me?
I am telling you.
Right.
So what'd you guys talk about?
Not much.
Owen. That would be like…
What?
It'd be like if I spent the day with Warren Buffett
and you asked me what we talked about,
and I said,
"Not much."
I don't really care about Warren Buffett.
[cell phone ringing]
Great.
So the offer's in. We're just waiting on the counter.
[man] This dude serious about wanting to hover around after the sale?
Yeah. He's been saying it all along.
Staying on as CEO is an important piece of this for him.
We're already giving him 15% of the profits after the extraction.
[man 2] His family's gone. Why does he care?
I get it. I just know that's gonna be item number one in his counter.
He's never run a real business before.
[man 1] Owen, you brought us a great property.
Help this guy see the light, will ya?
Okay. Ping me when we hear back.
- [man 1] You'll be the first to know. - Bye.
[men conversing loudly in Arabic]
[in English] This is unacceptable. I mean…
I just need a quiet place somewhere.
I mean, honestly, it doesn't have to be nice.
I work best in grubby spaces.
Literally, a closet would be ideal.
Anything.
Oh, perfect.
Madame Benzakour would not like you to work in a storage room. It's…
Well, maybe we just don't tell her.
How's that sound?
Well, that sounds good.
Thank you, Hamid.
I'll leave you.
[door closes]
[Lily] It's so beautiful.
Oh, my God.
This is awesome.
Hey, Owen, how old do you think all this is, huh?
Mmm. Two, three years?
Yeah, right.
This is so cool.
So apparently this part was called Qubbat al-Khayzurān.
And it was named after the Sultan's favorite concubine.
- Wow! - Yeah?
- She got her own wing. - Apparently.
Must have really pissed off all the other concubines.
Do they have ruins like this in Libya?
Oh, yeah, we do. We do. We do.
You know, we have Romans, Byzantine.
As a kid, I used to play… What's the name of the hiding game?
- Hide and seek. - Hide and seek.
Hide and seek. I used to play this in ancient amphitheaters.
- Wow. - [Owen] Cool.
[cell phone buzzing]
I'm sorry. I gotta deal with this.
- Sorry. - It's all right.
AGVA is still at 5,200 an acre.
[man 1] Our opening offer is generous, more than generous.
Yeah. It seems fair. I'm not sure what the holdup is.
[man 2] If it's environmental shit,
tell him he can't saddle us with more restrictions than the government does.
[man 1] This clown should be thanking us.
You talk to him, Owen.
Okay, makes sense. He trusts me.
I'll let him know he needs to counter if he wants to move forward.
[man 2] Keep us posted.
- Hey. - Sorry, guys. Work stuff.
What?
Owen, what's your work?
I'm in private equity.
And what is that?
Well, we invest in assets we think will appreciate.
So right now I'm buying a property with some coal deposits.
Coal deposits for mining?
Essentially extraction.
Yeah, we don't pull the stuff up ourselves.
We're just buying the field as an investment.
When they do bring it up, it'll be cleanly.
I've read about this.
They call it clean coal, but it's still very bad, right?
Uh, sure, unless you want to turn on the lights.
In which case, you're going to need some form of energy, right?
So until wind, solar, hydro can meet the global demand for power,
2,500 acres of untapped coal is going to be a solid investment.
Yeah.
[cell phone buzzing]
Excuse me. Sorry.
[Lily] It would have been nice if you were present at lunch.
You knew I'd have to work.
Yeah, but do you have to take every call the second it comes in?
No one else is on their phone.
- I don't want to be on my phone. - Yeah.
But I have bosses and a deadline and a five-hour time difference.
I know, it just… it just feels like you're not really here with me.
Lily, I'm… I'm here.
Katherine.
- Finally, I see you. - Oh.
Thank you so much for having me.
Sorry, I've not been social with jet lag and no luggage and…
Yes, Hamid told me.
I'm sorry. It's so inconvenient.
I love the room. It's great.
I've just been…
- Hey, can you get me a drink? Thank you. - Sure.
- Excuse me. - Yeah, see you.
Will you join us for the dinner tonight?
But of course. Yeah, sure.
- I'm counting on you. - Okay. I will definitely be there.
Okay. See you.
Okay. Thank you for having me.
Excuse me, so sorry to bother you.
- No. - I wanted to introduce myself.
- Hi. - I'm Lily Kemp.
Hi. Katherine.
- Nice to meet you. - You too.
I'm sure you're sick of hearing it at this point,
but reading Not Here, Not Anywhere
- is the formative memory of my youth. - Oh, wow.
It's the book that made me want to become a writer.
Well, for that, I apologize.
No, no, no.
- I honestly don't know… - Thank you.
Can I have a beer please?
So, thank you.
I'm sure you would have found your way, with or without the book.
[Owen] Hey.
Hey.
Oh! You guys have met, right?
Owen, Katherine.
Yeah, we met.
I… I remember seeing photos in a magazine.
I don't know, a couple of years ago, of the farmhouse you lived in.
With…
God, what was his name?
No, you don't remember.
Anyway, it was…
It looked like the perfect life.
Hmm.
[chuckles] Well, excuse me.
Okay.
[soft music playing]
- Was I? - Yes.
I mean…
It's not about being terrific.
It was Nietzsche actually who talks about truth and what it means to exist.
Oh, boy.
- French existentialist. - Jean-Paul Sartre.
No. The woman, his lover.
- Simone de Beauvoir. - Simone de Beauvoir, that's it.
[Fabien] Yes! Good.
- That was good. - Everyone…
[Rafih] Let's kick some ass. Come on.
Come on.
- Lolita's mother. - Charlotte Haze.
Yes!
The Polish writer. And he wrote in English.
- Conrad. - Joseph Conrad.
- Conrad. - Yeah.
Okay, okay, okay, it's my turn.
- Yeah, yeah, yeah. - Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Lily Kemp.
Oh! I know this one.
It was George Sand's real name.
- Amantine-Lucile-Aurore… - Amantine-Lucile…
- Dupin. - Yes! Yes.
- Dupin. - Yes.
It's Gogol. Collection of essays.
Garbage.
Okay. An Evening on the Farm in Dikanka.
- Yes! Very good. - Amazing.
Congrats.
Flaubert heroine.
She died vomiting bile.
- Madame Bovary! - Madame Bovary!
- [Gunnar] Yeah. - Nice.
[Fabien] Okay, that's all, team.
- That's… - [Rafih] I love this.
- Oh, hey. It's your turn. - Okay.
Here we go.
Owen.
- Don't let us down. Come on. - Show us.
- [Philippa] Let's see what you got. - [woman] Yeah.
- Uh… - Today.
Come on, it's not fair.
- Just say anything. - [Fatema] It's not fair.
- [Rafih] Let's go. - [Lily] Hey, hey.
I think there were a few of them.
They sang backup for, uh…
No, no, no, no, no.
This is from literature, Owen, not…
No, this is music. It's early R&B.
- No, no, it can't be. - It's like Aretha Franklin or…
It's not music. Stop thinking music.
- Is it a title? - I don't know.
Is it a character? Does it rhyme with anything?
- Okay, I have no idea. - Does it mean anything?
Does it remind you of…
- Time. - Time.
Sorry.
Don't worry.
- It's all right. - Sorry.
It's all right.
Hey.
Forgive him, okay? He only reads Sports Illustrated.
[all groaning]
[Luca] All right. This is where we seize the victory.
- Okay? - [woman] Okay.
[Fabien] Oh, my God. Okay, okay.
[Luca] Okay. Okay. I know this.
The book from India that tells you how to have good sex.
- [Lily] Good sex? - Kamasutra.
[woman] Good sex?
[man] Everybody knows.
[Katherine] Hey.
Hey.
You locked out?
Yeah.
That empty?
Mmm-hmm.
- Oh. - Yeah.
You got a better room.
Yeah, of course.
And I like what you've done with it.
Hey, thanks. Yeah. I went to great effort, as you can see.
What do you think all this would cost if we were paying for it?
I don't know, a lot.
It's weird, though, right?
- It is weird. - Mmm.
To Pip, whatever the hell that is.
A Pip is a backup singer. Gladys Knight.
- Gladys. - Knight and the Pips.
Thank you. That's who I was thinking of.
- Cheers, Gladys. - Yeah, cheers, Gladys.
A Pip is also a character in a Charles Dickens novel.
Great Expectations.
Right. Yeah. That's probably the one they were looking for.
Yeah, I'm with you.
I'll take "If I Was Your Woman" over Little Dorrit any day.
Can I ask you something?
Sure.
How does your guy deal with all this stuff?
Who said I have a guy?
Wikipedia.
Did you look me up?
I did. I googled you.
Why?
Curious.
You could've just asked.
Yeah, but now I don't have to.
- Because I know everything. - Oh, right. Of course. Yeah.
Like what?
Well, I know you published your first book when you were still in college.
Mmm-hmm.
Which I gotta say, it's really obnoxious.
Yo, easy now.
I skimmed the whole publication section. Too long.
Same with awards. Endless.
I got the gist. Prolific, successful.
And then I jumped down to personal and I learned you're with a sculptor
who makes giant metal blobs that, for some reason,
sell for hundreds of thousands of dollars.
There was also a shit ton of Wiki quotes.
You are highly Wiki quoted.
[chuckles] Yes.
Yeah, that's my greatest achievement in life.
But of course, if you're looking for real familiarity,
you got to know things Wikipedia doesn't tell you. Right?
Like?
Oh. I mean, like… Let's see.
What was your high school nickname?
[Owen] Mmm.
That's an actual question. I'm asking you.
What was your nickname?
Who said I had a nickname?
Because you did. You're a nickname guy.
- You don't know that. - I think I do.
Come on.
You weren't the guy on the football team?
You know, the clutch guy.
I don't know if you threw the ball or caught the ball,
but you were definitely on the ball as the clock ticked down.
And that guy always has a nickname.
I'm not gonna tell you.
- Oh, yes, you are. - Mmm-mmm.
Yeah.
Are you gonna make me guess?
Sure.
- Yeah? - Mmm-hmm.
Fine.
You really think you're going to get it?
I know I'm gonna get it.
I got it.
No, you don't.
Yeah.
The Big O?
- Oh, fuck you. - [gasps]
The Big O, is it? You're really the Big O?
How did you get that?
That's so incredible.
Oh, I mean, come on.
If that was your nickname, then cheerleaders
definitely had a cheer for you.
You know what? I'm not having this conversation.
- Come on. - No.
- Oh, you have to do the cheer for me. - Ugh.
No, let's talk about your nickname.
- How about that? - Come on. I don't have a nickname.
That's so obvious.
Tell me the cheer.
- All right, fuck it. - [gasps]
♪ Give me the O! Give me the Big O! Give me the O! ♪
- Thank you so much for doing that for me. - Oh, my God.
You want to know the worst thing about it?
You loved it.
- I loved it. - Yeah.
I loved it so much.
Of course you did.
How come you can't finish your book at home?
Long story.
Yeah?
I've got time.
- Yeah? - Mmm-hmm.
[cell phone buzzing]
Oh, shit.
No, I don't.
I'm sorry. Work calls.
- Next time? - Next time.
Good night.
I threw it, by the way.
The ball.
I was the quarterback.
It was my field and I decided what happened on it.
Okay, so that was Dina on the phone,
and apparently Random House wants to make a two-book deal with me.
Congratulations.
No, you don't understand. In order to get my next two books,
they're gonna have to make me an insane offer.
And I don't mean piddly, little, freelancer money either, Owen.
I mean real money.
Owen, this is good news.
Like I said, congratulations.
I'm sorry. Uh… [scoffs]
Are you threatened by this?
Are you serious?
I mean, this is how you react to the idea of me being financially self-sufficient.
Jesus.
What? I just didn't see you as the kind of guy
who'd be threatened by my success.
I didn't see you as someone
who'd shoot me down in front of a roomful of people
'cause I hadn't read the right fucking Dickens book.
So I guess we're both learning a lot here, huh?
Owen, that was a joke.
- That's funny to you? - I was joking. It was a game.
No, games are fun. That wasn't fun.
Okay.
How did you know that was Dickens?
I don't know who you are here.
[sighs] Look, you're having a bad day.
Fine, that's allowed. I get it.
But I'm not having a bad day, Owen.
I'm actually having a really great day.
And I want it to stay that way.
So I'm gonna head out. Okay?
Come find me when you're in a better mood.
[speaking Danish]
[in English] Good morning, arm candy.
Fuck off.
[commentator speaking indistinctly on TV]
[men cheering]
[clears throat]
[coughs, spits]
[toilet flushes]
I'm sorry.
Can I get you anything?
No.
[muezzin calling to prayer]
Hey.
How you feeling?
Any better?
Uh. A little.
That fucking sandwich.
What sandwich?
I had a sandwich in town.
When were you in town?
Yesterday.
Okay. Well, that overnight to the desert leaves pretty soon.
There's no way.
It's all right. Just go without me.
Okay.
No desert for you?
Not this time.
You?
Seen it.
Doubt it's changed.
Hey, kid.
Do you want a beer?
Come on. Just admit you're stuck.
I'm not stuck.
You can always tell when she's stuck.
I'm not stuck.
What's the title?
No. If you don't have a title, you don't know what you're writing.
- You want help? - Oh…
You know my solution.
What's your solution?
Fuck him or kill him.
When you're stuck in life
or in literature…
you need to do something irrevocable.
Death and sex.
Two things that cannot be undone.
You know, she has a nice ass.
Your girlfriend.
Dude, don't say that.
- It's a compliment. - No, it's just creepy.
You know, Katie and I almost got married when we were your age.
Why didn't that happen?
Ugo, I never, ever once thought about marrying you.
That might be why.
[Owen] Were you two together for a long time?
[Katherine] No, we were kids. It was…
It died out fast.
[Owen] Hmm.
He's… He's still pretty into you.
He's an alcoholic, sex addict. So…
- He's pretty into everybody. - Yeah.
Right.
You followed me yesterday.
No.
Yeah.
I saw you in town.
I was there. But I wasn't following you.
Mmm.
Well, what were you up to?
Shopping.
For?
I happened to be in the market for a…
a tall mound of bright orange spices.
Nice.
No. He looked wasted,
and I just wanted to make sure you were safe.
Am I?
[in French] Very pretty.
- Sure. Goodbye. - Goodbye.
[in English] What's all the texting about?
Work.
Yeah, I… think my bosses might be a bunch of dicks.
[Katherine chuckles] Oh. Why is that?
It's boring. You don't want to hear about it.
No, I'm interested. Tell me.
Okay. I found this West Virginia property sitting on a vein of coal.
My bosses got all excited about it.
Me coming in with a hot deal.
You know, it's all good.
But?
The seller wants to stick around.
It's his family property,
he doesn't want a bunch of New Yorkers to come in and cut off his mountaintop.
So I gave him my word.
My bosses originally said,
- "Sure, not a problem." - All right.
I'm looking at all these emails
that make it clear they're going to dump him.
Uff. Sounds shitty.
Yeah, it is shitty, you know?
I mean, how hard is it to just do the right thing?
For most people, practically impossible.
[arguing in Arabic]
[in English] Well, I was when I was a little kid…
- Yeah. - Were you excited?
[cell phone chimes]
What's all your texting about?
Real estate ads. I hate real estate ads.
Whoever invented the phrase "en suite bath" should be eviscerated.
Why are you looking at real estate?
I gotta get a place to live.
Well, what happened to the farmhouse?
Parted ways.
You and the house, or you and the sculptor?
- Both. - Ah.
- How long were you together? - Um…
- Fourteen years. - Wow.
Fourteen years.
That's a long time. What… What happened?
Funny story. Uh…
Actually, he got cancer.
And--
Yeah. Cancer is always funny.
He's fine. He's going to be fine.
Okay.
It was caught early, wildly treatable. All of that.
But it was scary for a month or so,
and that was just long enough for him to have a big ol' epiphany.
Which was what?
That he'd spent 14 years with somebody who, uh…
and I quote…
"Has a heart incapable of love."
You don't believe that, do you?
I don't know.
Evidently, I'm only bearable when I'm not writing.
Are you ever not writing?
That's what makes it funny.
Right?
[Owen] So, are you stuck?
[Katherine] That's not the word I'd use.
[Owen] What is the word?
"Stuck."
[Owen] My favorite coach used to say,
"If it doesn't take hard work to get, it's probably not worth having."
[Katherine] Yeah? I don't know.
I think sometimes great things just land in our lap.
- [music playing] - [indistinct chatter]
Guess they're back from the desert.
Good night.
- Hey. - Yeah.
For what it's worth…
I think you're extremely bearable.
Good night, Owen.
- [upbeat dance music playing] - [laughter]
- [door opens] - [Lily giggling]
[indistinct conversation]
[Lily] Owen, what is your problem? You've barely said a word to me.
[Owen] Sorry. You've been sleeping off your hangover.
[Lily] You're upset because I'm having fun.
You know, ever since we got here, you've been just aloof and--
Hey, I'm not the one throwing around bullshit words,
getting high every night, and coming in without any clothes on.
[scoffs] Wow!
That's what's been occupying your mind
while you've been passing up chances to see the Sahara Desert?
I had food poisoning.
If it wasn't that, it'd be something else,
you always find a way to ruin the things I'm excited about.
[Owen] What have I ever ruined for you?
[Lily] How about this trip, for example?
[Owen] That's bullshit.
You know, all this stuff that you suddenly can't stand about me,
none of it's new.
This is me. This has always been me.
It used to be fine.
It wasn't fine.
Okay? It's always bothered me
that you don't read fiction or appreciate art.
I just don't say anything because I didn't want you to feel insecure.
Oh. [scoffs]
Thanks for being so thoughtful.
Look, Owen…
All of this stuff, like…
This is, like, core person stuff for me.
And you act like it's an annoyance.
I don't know what you want from me.
Sometimes I don't think you know what you want. Period.
You're right.
Enjoy your time, I'll stay out of your way.
Great.
[Owen clears throat]
Hey.
Okay?
Thirsty?
Well, I couldn't sort things out sober, so now I'm drunk.
Mmm-hmm.
So, what's the issue?
Uh…
You know, just…
What's the right way to live your life.
Oh.
Right.
- So, the easy stuff. - Yeah.
The way I see it is you got two options.
There's my usual approach.
Which is?
When things get tough, you get tougher.
Right.
It's not hard to get, then it's not worth having.
- Mmm-hmm. - Right.
And what's the other one?
Be careful there.
I could fall for a kid like you.
What did you call me?
- Kid. - [scoffs]
Wow. Okay.
Owen. It's not a criticism.
That's good to know.
Thanks.
Owen.
Damn it.
Hey.
I was looking for you.
When I woke up this morning,
and you weren't there…
I thought you just left.
You know, just…
given up on us.
Look, I know we've been off.
Or whatever. I've been off.
But I also know that…
we've both been unhappy.
You've been unhappy.
Do you even like me?
I don't always like you.
Come on. You don't always like me.
I just… I'm not perfect, you know. And neither are you.
[sighs] Maybe all this…
Maybe all this stuff, it's just…
Maybe it's just a messy part of… being together.
[groans] Maybe we should just go home and start over.
[cell phone chimes]
Fuck.
[knock on door, door opens]
Uh… I just want to apologize for last night.
I got all drunk and stupid,
- and the truth is… - Look…
…meeting you has been the best thing to come out of this whole trip.
And also…
I'm leaving.
I'm gonna do some exploring.
Where you headed?
I don't know.
But I think you should come.
["Open" playing]
♪ I'm a fool For that shake in your thighs ♪
♪ I'm a fool For that sound in your sighs ♪
[in Arabic] Thank you.
♪ I'm a fool for your barely… ♪
[in English] Thanks.
You're welcome.
So…
What exactly are we doing?
I'm not exactly sure what we're doing.
But I'm happy I'm doing it with you.
Me too.
♪ I want to make this play Oh, I know you're faded ♪
♪ Hmm, but stay, don't close your hands ♪
♪ I want to make this play Oh, I know you're faded ♪
♪ Hmm, but stay, don't close your hands ♪
♪ Ooh, stay open ♪
[moaning]
Hey.
Look. Comes with a bed.
Nice.
You know, I didn't think you'd come with me.
No?
Almost didn't ask.
Why did you?
'Cause I like you.
I felt good when I'm with you.
I feel like myself again.
Haven't felt that way in a while.
Same.
[birds chirping]
Morning.
You're working?
A little.
I think I figured it out.
Oh, yeah?
Overnight, I just…
How all the… pieces come together.
Overnight, huh?
Yeah.
Sometimes it happens like that.
You know? You look the other way and…
kinda just sorts itself out.
It's probably what you do before sleep, though,
that makes the difference.
Right?
I mean, yesterday you're stuck, and now…
I don't think you have it all figured out yet.
- No? - No.
I think I should come over here and get a little more unstuck.
- Yeah. Olive. Okay. - Olive.
And you know I love an olive. So…
It's good.
You want some alone time today?
Mmm… No.
I won't mind. I can go for a walk.
Let you work for a while.
No.
Sure?
I'm sure.
- All right. - Yeah.
[cell phone chimes]
[shower running]
So, do you want to know what I did today?
Same thing I did, I think.
Yeah, yeah. And, uh…
I quit my job.
- What? - Mmm-hmm.
I mean, not officially, but I set the ball in motion.
Owen, that's huge.
Yeah.
But you know what did it was… was watching you work.
Seeing you all lit up by it.
I mean, you really love what you do, right?
Always.
I mean, even if I'm getting nowhere.
- Yeah. - I… I do.
Yeah.
And I don't.
I mean, not how I'm doing it right now.
It's like, win at any cost, doesn't matter who you destroy.
And I… I just… I don't want to do it that way.
I don't want to be like that.
It's a compromise I'm not gonna make.
So you won't.
'Cause that's not you.
- I'm excited for you. - Thank you.
Yeah. How do you feel?
- Yeah. Terrified. Yeah. - What?
Which… which one of your books should I… should I read first?
You're good. You don't need to read a book.
No. I… I do need to.
The fact that people around the world know things about you that I don't…
I fucking hate that.
You know, you know things about me they never will.
Yeah? Like what?
Like, my nickname.
What's your nickname again?
I'm not telling you.
[chuckles]
[continues indistinctly]
[Katherine] I don't know.
Maybe I just live here.
You know?
Get a little apartment,
become a fisherwoman.
[Owen] I love that.
[Katherine] Yeah?
[Owen] Can I stay too?
Please.
Yeah. You're in?
- I would love to be. - Great.
It's a plan.
That's a plan.
You know what I was thinking about today?
The swing route.
What's that?
It's a passing pattern in football.
You use it when things aren't exactly going your way in the game.
But what it comes down to is trusting your instincts enough to make the call.
Finding hope… in a big mess.
That's what this is.
Yeah.
Shit. Your bag.
[gasps] My book!
My book!
Stop!
[shouts indistinctly]
[shouts in Arabic]
[in English] Fuck.
Fuck.
I'm sorry.
Oh, my God.
Is it backed up?
No. It's not backed up.
I'm sorry.
Please. Please. Just…
Don't…
[muezzin calling to prayer]
Hey. You're here.
Did you…
No luck.
I've been looking everywhere.
You okay?
Me, too. I was just walking around.
I was looking through trash cans,
thinking maybe they would take the cash and dump the rest.
Sorry I… snapped at you.
- Shouldn't have done that. - No, it's fine. You were upset.
No, it's not fine. I'm saying I'm sorry.
Okay.
So, I think I need to, um,
go home.
Well, I don't have one,
but find a place to live, you know? And then…
Maybe that's where I start. Maybe that's what I have to do.
Okay. Let's do that.
- Let's get on a plane tonight. - I have to do that alone.
I think I have to do it alone.
I'm sorry.
Come on. I'm not letting you fly home like this by yourself.
I mean, you should slow down and take a breath.
Look at me. Please. I'm a mess.
I need to figure this out myself, and…
You don't know what I need if I don't know what I need.
- All right. Stop, stop. - I'm trying to get my--
I need to get out of here.
Hey. I know this is hard.
Okay? I do. And I'm sorry.
But I'm right here. Just let me help you.
How are you gonna help me?
I just lost two years of my life.
How do you help that?
I don't have the other stuff.
Hobbies and nicknames.
I just have my writing. That's it.
I'm sorry.
This is all my fault. It's not you.
I mean, my God,
rule number one as a traveler, right, is keep your eyes on your bag.
[locker beeps]
Right? Like, what was I thinking?
And I just sat there looking at the ocean with my bag sitting behind me.
That's just stupid.
Katherine, I know you're upset and…
and you want to get out of here,
but I don't think you should leave like this.
No? What should I do? Stay?
Stick around and see what else I can lose?
That's not what I'm saying.
I came here finish a book.
I should've just finished my book.
I fucked up.
I just let myself get distracted.
Distracted?
Distracted.
That's what this is to you? A distraction?
I'm really sorry about your book.
[door closes]
[woman] Okay. Final question.
This is your eighth novel.
How has the process of writing changed for you over the years?
[Katherine] Well, I suppose the process hasn't changed all that much.
What does change is what I learned from it.
Every book gives me something,
teaches me something.
What did this one teach you?
The truth is, I had no idea when I started.
Um…
My books often evolve from some sort of confusion.
Some unresolved question rattling around in there.
And this time I was thinking a lot about the instinct to cut and run,
to bolt at the first sign of trouble.
And when we do that, we tell ourselves that we're running from danger.
- But that could just be bullshit. - [faint laughter]
It could be that we're not running from danger at all.
But from safety.
Maybe that's the truly terrifying thing.
Being seen.
Known.
Loved.
But maybe that's just me.
Sounds like a perfect place to end.
Katherine Loewe, thank you so much for your time.
Oh, thank you.
- [audience applauding] - Thanks.
♪ You keep me walking on the same line ♪
♪ When we get high on my break time ♪
♪ And we're just watching From the same town ♪
♪ But that don't change When it break down ♪
♪ Then we were talking About the same crime… ♪
- Thanks. - All right.
♪ Learnt my lesson at the same time ♪
♪ Go? Back on 74 ♪
[indistinct conversation]
♪ Call this place my home ♪
♪ Never gonna cry anymore ♪
♪ Where did it all… ♪
Hey.
How are you?
Um… I'm… good. How are you?
Yeah, I'm good.
You, uh… You live around here, or?
Uh… No. Patricia--
[Patricia] I dragged her down here.
We're celebrating her latest book.
- Oh, right. - [man] It's brilliant.
I was gonna tell you why…
Can I…
No, it's okay. I gotta run. I just wanted to say hello.
Um…
It's nice to see you.
[Patricia] Okay. That's a story I need to hear in its entirety.
[man] Oh, all of us.
There you are.
- You okay? - Yeah. I'm good.
Let's go, we're gonna miss the start.
Owen?
Owen.
One second.
Hey, I get it if you don't want to talk to me.
No, it's okay.
I've been trying to figure out some way to…
to reach out to you.
To say I'm sorry.
My God. The way I left…
I picked up my phone 100 times, but couldn't dial. 'Cause…
'Cause I was embarrassed.
All I can say is I was out of my head. That is no excuse.
It's… It's just the truth, and… I don't know.
I came back and I was… I was barely functioning.
Walking around like a zombie,
trying to find a place to live with a realtor.
I mean, not looking for a place to live with a realtor.
But just… [chuckles softly]
Right.
The point is…
I missed you.
Every minute.
And that's the thing about writing.
It lets you hold on to something you lost.
So I did that.
Then I wrote a book…
called The Swing Route.
- The Swing Route? - Yeah.
[chuckles] The Swing Route.
It's about finding hope in a big mess.
Something you said.
Yeah. Yeah, I remember.
You do?
Oh, yeah.
All of it.
- Owen, are you coming or no? - One second.
Yeah, so…
You gotta go.
And, I just wanted to say…
just know you were never a distraction. You were the whole point.
["Boyhood" playing]
♪ It doesn't matter what I tell myself ♪
♪ For a moment there I swear I saw me ♪
♪ I went to meet somebody new ♪
♪ Changed beneath the evening light ♪
♪ And she held me kind of like you do ♪
♪ I hope you know ♪
♪ I could have been somebody who ♪
♪ You wanted to have around to hold ♪
♪ I should have jumped When you told me to ♪
♪ I wanna change but it's nothing new ♪
♪ And if I grow I'm gonna get so old ♪
♪ I wanna change but it's nothing new ♪
♪ And if I grow I'm gonna get so old ♪
♪ Will you hold me like you always do? ♪