L.A. Noire 1.7 - A Marriage Made in Heaven

L.A. Noire - A Marriage Made in Heaven

Genre: Crime

Director: Gavin O'Connor

Writer: John Malone

Based on the video game

Cast: Joe Alwyn, Eric Ladin, Bill Burr, Frederick Weller, Jordan Gelber, Daniel Webber, Isabelle Cornish, Amber Valletta, Chris Sullivan, Josh Stewart and Frank Whaley

Plot: 1947 - Captain Gordon Leary (Bill Burr) tracks down Cole Phelps (Joe Alwyn) and his partner Stefan Bekowsky (Eric Ladin) while they are at their desks at the Central precinct. He tells them to head over to Ray's Cafe where there has been a report of a felony hit and run. The victim is deceased and the coroner is already on his way. Bekowsky is excited that it isn't another abandoned vehicle and volunteers to drive to the scene. When they arrive at Ray's Cafe, they find the coroner Malcolm Carruthers (Jordan Gelber) inspecting the body of the victim, Lester Pattison, in the street in front of the bar. An officer on the scene says that there is just one eye witness, an aspiring actress named Shannon Perry. Carruthers tells Phelps and Bekowsky that based on the wounds on the body and how the body landed on the street, the car would have struck the victim from behind. Phelps looks at the victim's wallet to get the address of the victim. In a garbage can outside of the bar, Phelps finds a bloody kitchen knife. Bekowsky says anyone could have thrown it out and that they're investigating a hit and run, not a stabbing.

Phelps and Bekowsky introduce themselves to Shannon Perry (Isabelle Cornish) and ask her what she saw. She tells them that she lives in an apartment above the bar. She heard people arguing, then saw Pattison stumble into the street where he was hit by a dark red Lincoln Continental. She tells them she saw the first three letters of the license plate: 3C8. Bekowsky asks about the argument she heard, and she says that it was a man and woman and seemed like husband and wife, but that's about it. Next, Phelps heads inside to talk to the bartender while Bekowsky hits up the regular patrons for information.

Courtney Sheldon (Daniel Webber) meets with Dr. Harlan Fontaine (Frederick Weller) at his home office. Fontaine invites Sheldon to have a seat and asks him how he's liking working at his clinic so far. Sheldon says it's fine, but Fontaine is skeptical of Sheldon's response and asks him to elaborate. Sheldon says that he was hoping the therapy would be more beneficial. Fontaine explains that treatment can unfortunately be a very long term process. Sheldon tells Fontaine that he finds it odd that so many of the patients at the clinic are drug addicts and are still using their drugs of choice. Fontaine says that in the past these people would have been condemned to sanatoriums, but if they can reveal the root of the problem then they can have a chance to help them. Sheldon apologizes to Fontaine, but says that he just expected more. Sheldon asks how the patients can still be using illegal drugs while in therapy. Fontaine tells him that what may on the surface appear to be illegal is actually of benefit to society at large.

Phelps asks the bartender, Dudley Lynch (Chris Sullivan), what he knows about the accident. Lynch says that the bar was busy at the time, so all he heard was the impact. Phelps asks him what Lester Pattison was doing outside, and Lynch says that he and his wife Lorna were having a fight, so the owner told them to take it outside. Lynch says that Lester was a regular at the bar, and that the owner, Leroy Sabo, took Lorna home. Phelps meets up with Bekowsky outside, and Bekowsky says he didn't learn much other than that the Pattisons fought regularly at the bar. Phelps walks over to a payphone and calls the precinct asking them to run the partial license plate Ms. Perry remembered. There is a Lincoln registered to a William Shelton matching the partial plate. Bekowsky says it looks like they might have caught a break on the case.

When they pull up outside Shelton's apartment they decide to wait outside across the street from the car and wait for someone. After a while they finally see William Shelton (Frank Whaley), suitcases in hand, start loading up his car to make a getaway. Phelps and Bekowsky walk over to him and say that making a run for it isn't going to look good for the jury. Shelton throws a suitcase at the detectives and attempts to speed off in his car, but the car is having trouble starting. Bekowsky starts laughing as Phelps pulls his gun and orders Shelton out of the car with his hands in the air. Shelton says the accident wasn't his fault. The guy jumped right in front of his car and there was nothing he could do about it. Phelps asks him why he didn't stop, and Shelton says he has had accidents before. Phelps asks Bekowsky to cuff Shelton. As Bekowsky is loading Shelton into the car, Shelton says that there were a man and a woman right next to the man he hit and he thought they could get him to a hospital.

After taking Shelton in to the station, Bekowsky says they should probably go check in with the victim's wife. They drive to her house and knock at the door. Lorna Pattison (Amber Valletta) answers and invites them in. Phelps asks her what happened, and Lorna calmly says that her husband was hit by a car and now he's dead, there's not much to it. Phelps and Bekowsky are befuddled by her lack of emotion regarding the accident. Leroy Sabo (Josh Stewart) then enters the room and introduces himself to the detectives. He says that Lester lost at cards and then lost his temper at the bar. He told Lester to leave the bar to cool off. Lester then turned without looking and walked right out in front of the car. Phelps asks Leroy what his relationship with Lorna is, and Leroy tells him that they're good friends. Lorna interrupts to say that she was filing for divorce from Lester. He could be a mean son of a bitch. Bekowsky says that it sure has worked out conveniently for Leroy and Lorna. They can now be together without the difficulty her getting a divorce. Phelps asks Lorna how the car came to hit Lester, and she says that it happened how Leroy said it happened. Lester was yelling and walked right into the path of the car. She says she feels sorry for the driver since he had no chance to evade Lester. Phelps and Bekowsky tell Leroy and Lorna to have a nice day and leave the house.

Bekowsky and Phelps drive to the morgue to take a look at the body. When they arrive Phelps says based on the evidence so far they can probably get the driver of the car in front of a judge by the end of the week. The coroner Malcolm Carruthers says that would be a mistake. Phelps and Bekowsky look at each other confused, and Carruthers tells them that Lester Pattison was already dead when the car hit him. He had been stabbed multiple times in the chest. Phelps says they found a knife in the alleyway next to the crime scene. Carruthers asks if it was bagged, and Phelps says they had a patrolman bag it so it should be in evidence right now. Carruthers says he'll be able to get them a match on the knife. Bekowsky comments that their hit and run case has suddenly become a homicide case. They race back to Lorna Pattison's residence.

They knock at the door and when she answers they tell her she needs to come downtown to answer some questions. Lorna tells them that it wasn't her idea and that Leroy is the one who stabbed Lester. Bekowsky asks where Leroy is, and she says he's in the bedroom. Leroy then emerges with a gun. He starts yelling at Lorna for turning on him and lying to the cops. He yells that it was all her idea to kill Lester to collect the life insurance. Lorna begs the detectives to shoot Leroy, calling him crazy. Leroy then shoots Lorna and runs out the back of the house. Phelps chases after Leroy into the street where Leroy grabs a young woman as a hostage. Phelps carefully steadies his aim and shoots Leroy Sabo in the head. Bekowsky catches up with Phelps and says that Phelps is doing the paper work on this one. They head back to Ray's Cafe where Captain Leary is waiting for them. He says he sent them on a hit and run, but came back with first degree murder. He tells them to keep up the good work and pours them beers from the bar. 

Manson 1.7 - Never Learn Not to Love

Manson - Never Learn Not to Love

Genre: Biography / Crime

Director: Antonio Campos

Writer: Lon Charles

Cast: Jim Sturgess, Danika Yarosh, Isabelle Fuhrman, Thomas Dekker, Sammi Hanratty, Tania Raymonde, Pete Ploszek, Christopher Cousins, Kim Raver and Ethan Embry

Plot: 1968. Dennis Wilson (Pete Ploszek) returns to his house after a long recording session and finds that Charles Manson (Jim Sturgess) and his friends have completely trashed the place. Wilson is annoyed, but Ella Jo Bailey (Danika Yarosh) and Patricia Krenwinkel (Isabelle Fuhrman) start to kiss his neck, which calms him down. Manson tells Wilson that he has written a song especially for the Beach Boys. In a studio, Dennis and producer Terry Melcher (Ethan Embry) record Manson singing "Cease to Exist". Wilson said he digs the lyrics and promises to play the recording for the rest of the Beach Boys to see if they want to record it. Manson is excited and offers Wilson some LSD.

1967. Bobby Beausoleil (Thomas Dekker) and Catherine Share (Tania Raymonde) are on the set of the western-themed soft-core porn film The Ramrodder at the Spahn Movie Ranch. They are both in costume as Native Americans when they director starts to run down the scene for them. Several other actors in costume arrive on the set and the director instructs the actors on the orgy scene they will be filming. Bobby and Share are paired up and instructed to simulate sex as close as possible without any penetration. After the day of filming, Bobby and Share have sex together in his car.

1968. Dennis Wilson tells Charles Manson he has good news for him. He and the rest of the Beach Boys decided to go ahead and record a version of Manson's song. Manson starts hooting and hollering with excitement. Wilson plays the tape for Manson, who becomes increasingly angry as the song plays. He demands to know what happened to his song, the song he wrote. Wilson tells Manson that his brother Brian is the chief song writer for the band and insisted on rearranging it, but it's mostly still there. Manson storms off insisting this isn't over.

Leslie Van Houten (Sammi Hanratty) sits in front of her parents Paul (Christopher Cousins) and Jane (Kim Raver). They look at her with disappointment. Paul expresses confusion at how Leslie went from being named the homecoming queen at Monrovia High School to being caught with drugs and getting pregnant. Leslie is crying as there is a knock at the door. Jane goes to answer it and greets a doctor. Jane tells Leslie that the doctor is there to take care of the baby. Leslie is confused and asks if the doctor is there to perform an abortion, but the doctor interrupts her and tells her that technically speaking, the procedure can't be called an abortion because the fetus is too mature. Later that night, after the procedure, Jane hands Leslie a garbage bag. She tells Leslie to bury the fetus in the back yard. As she cries Leslie digs a hole in the ground and places the bag in it and covers up the hole.

In San Francisco, Leslie is trying to score drugs in the Haight-Ashbury neighborhood, but nobody is willing to share with her until she meets Bobby Beausoleil and Catherine Share. Together the three of them all go to a park and take LSD. The three of them start to kiss each other when a couple of cops arrive and announce that any hippies found loitering in the park in 15 minutes will be arrested for vagrancy. Bobby tells them he knows of a place they can crash down near Los Angeles and they all get into his car and start heading south.

Charles Manson walks into Dennis Wilson's house late one night and starts loading up one of Wilson's car with valuables. Wilson asks Manson what he's doing. Manson says he's collecting payment for the Beach Boys using and ruining his song. Wilson says whatever, but after this they're done. He doesn't want anything to do with Manson or his groupies. Manson pulls a bullet out of his pocket and tosses it to Wilson. Wilson is confused and asks what it is. Manson says it's a bullet. Every time Wilson looks at it, Manson wants him to think about how nice it is that Wilson and his family are all still safe. Wilson grabs Manson by the head and throws him to the ground. Wilson then starts kicking and punching Manson, who starts crawling away and into Wilson's car. Manson starts pulling away in the car. Wilson throws several rocks at the car as Manson drives off with his car and valuables.

Have Gun - Will Travel 1.7 - From Within

Have Gun - Will Travel : From Within

Genre: Western

Director: Frank Darabont

Writer: Dwight Gallo

Based on the television series

Cast: Walton Goggins, Benedict Wong, Adrianne Palicki, Luke Kirby, Ben Cross and David Caruso

Paladin (Walton Goggins) sits in the dining room of the Hotel Charlemagne when Chan (Benedict Wong) brings him his morning coffee and newspaper. Paladin comments that he is pleased that things are finally back to normal. Chan agrees. Helena Pervis (Adrianne Palicki) enters the dining room and sits across the room from Paladin. He nods in her direction and she waves. Helena is then joined by her husband Frank Pervis (Luke Kirby). Helena points out Paladin to him and says there he is if Frank still wants to talk business with him. Frank says that breakfast is no time to conduct business and he will try to reach out to him later. Paladin gets up from his seat and walks over to Helena and Frank. He introduces himself to Frank and says he heard he was looking to conduct some business with him. Frank looks over to Helena, but Paladin tells Frank that Helena hasn't told him anything, he simply heard him say it from across the room. Paladin agrees with Frank that breakfast is no time to conduct business, but that he is free for lunch, so if Frank would like to speak to him then he'll be at his usual table. Paladin then leaves the dining room.

Paladin sits down in the office with the hotel's owner, Charlemagne (Ben Cross). Paladin asks him what he knows about Frank Pervis. Charlemagne says he doesn't know much other than that he is something of a gunslinger and he has a lovely wife he doesn't spend enough time with. Charlemagne asks Paladin why he asks, and Paladin tells him that he suspects Frank Pervis means him harm, but he doesn't know if it's personal or business. Charlemagne suggests it's most likely business since Frank sounds like he's from out east, but that he doubt Frank Pervis has the balls to try to pull something on the hotel property. There is however one man he wouldn't put it passed, that being Paul Pilate. Paladin asks if Pilate has been around the hotel, and Charlemagne nods. Paladin says that if Pilate wants him dead so much he ought to do it himself rather than hire some green gunslinger. Charlemagne agrees and tells Paladin that he'll have Chan keep a close watch on Frank Pervis. Paladin thanks Charlemagne for his hospitality and leaves the office.

Chan follows Frank Pervis down the streets of San Francisco and watches as he enters a bar. Not wanting to blow his cover, Chan watches the front of the bar from across the street. Inside the bar, Frank sits down next to Paul Pilate (David Caruso). Frank tells Pilate that Paladin is back in town, but that he seems to know what's going on. Pilate scoffs at that idea, and tells Frank that he knows Paladin very well, and he doubts Paladin knows any more than Frank has told him. Frank says he didn't tell Paladin anything, but that Paladin told Frank that he is free for lunch to talk business. Pilate tells him to go, but not to say anything. He'll have another gunslinger ready to shoot Paladin from the window while Frank meets with him.

Paladin sits at his usual table in the dining room of the Charlemagne drinking some more coffee when Frank Pervis enters the dining room. Paladin motions to a chair across from his and Frank takes a seat. Paladin asks Frank how long he's been working for Paul Pilate. Frank is taken aback by the question, but Paladin tells him to answer. Frank says not that long. Paladin asks Frank what exactly he's been hired to do, because it doesn't seem like he's been hired to kill him, nor would such a plan be prudent on the ground of the Hotel Charlemagne. Frank insists that Pilate just recently hired him to keep an eye on Paladin and tell Pilate what he's been up to.

Helena decides to head downstairs from her room at the hotel to see how the meeting between her husband and Paladin is going. When she walks through the lobby, she is surprised that Chan isn't in his usual post, but she continues walking. Once she enters the dining room, a gun shot rings out nearby. Frank ducks down to the ground. When he notices that Helena has entered the room, he yells at her to get down.

Paladin calmly gets up and walks outside where he sees Chan with a gun, having just shot a shady looking character with a rifle. Paladin thanks Chan for saving his life. Chan tells him it's part of his job and drags the dead boy of the sniper off to the police.

Paladin walks back into the Charlemagne where Frank and Helena are still in the dining room. Paladin pulls out his gun and tells Frank to start talking. Frank says Pilate said he was going to hire someone to shoot Paladin. Paladin tells Frank that if he tries to get him killed again, the outcome will not be pleasant for anyone involved.