SACD n°129909 et Wga 823

Contact : +33 610 445 564/ sylvianaber@yahoo.com

PITCH: Juliana Mercks, a very famous European singer is, after the death of her father making an investigation on psychiatric drugs given to kids.

Tom Mercks, a man of about 60 is driving his car. Suddenly, another car appears and tries to send him off the road. John stops, opens his window and inside the other car he recognizes two men. In silence, John ignores them, but one of the two men threatens John to hand him a document. John accelerates and the other car follows him. Reaching a high speed in the chase, John loses control his car and crashes into a tree. At the same time a third car arrives and the two men escape.

Tom Mercks is in a hospital room. A nurse is by the side of the bed. With strain he attempts to write on a piece of paper. He is in a critical state.

Two young women arrive at the room. The nurse announces that John, their father, is dead. Juliana and Cora, the two sisters, scream and run towards their father. The nurse gives Juliana the piece of paper her father had written. Juliana reads it: "please prove that I was innocent and take care of..." But the sentence is incomplete because of John’s abrupt death.

Credits appear as the funeral takes place. In the background Freddy, a man of about 60 can be seen. He is alone.

At Tom Mercks’s office, Juliana searches for possible clues.

Two days later, Juliana who is a singer, gives a concert in the memory of her father. At the same time, Tom Mercks’s office is ransacked.

After the concert, Juliana returns to her father’s office and discovers that it has been broken into. She makes a connection between the aggression and the unfinished message of her father and therefore calls the police. After the visit of the police, Juliana continues searching everywhere for possible clues and she even breaks the wooden floor. Buried under the boards she discovers an green and worn out address book. She dials some of the numbers listed, but these are non existent. She then discovers another number on her father’s desk. She dials it. A man named Freddy answers, the same man who was present at the funeral. He says he doesn’t know her or her father. Juliana feels that he is lying yet she hangs up. Inside the address book she also finds an article from the American press written in 1968 and signed by Harry Mark. She reads it: "The most important victory for Psychiatry and Psychoanalysis took place in 1965 with the law called ESEA (Elementary and Secondary Education Act), a law concerning education in schools which endows a big amount of money to implant psys in schools allowing them to give medical treatment to children without going through the regular family doctor. "

Harry Mark, Washington, 1968

Juliana continues to search but she cannot find any other interesting information inside the office.

She flies to Washington, where she finds out that the newspaper that published the article had been closed for almost 15 years. In the phone book she finds that there are 18 Marks in the greater Washington area. Juliana visits each one of them. The ninth Mark in the list is an old woman intrigued by the fact that a 25 year old European woman could be looking for her dead son, victim of a fire twenty seven years before. Juliana shows the article to the old woman, who reads it and sheds a tear. She apologizes to Juliana stating that she cannot offer help. The old woman closes the door and Juliana, tempted to ring again, decides to leave. As she walks away she turns around and sees the old woman looking through a window. They both have a strange feeling.

Juliana continues her research in a library where she asks for the newspaper which published the article 30 years before. The librarian looks at her strangely. Among many documents Juliana finds another article that explains how Harry Mark had been working against the government and how he had been sentenced to six years of imprisonment for stealing confidential papers from the Ministry of Education. She also discovers that after Harry’s first year of sentence he had perished in a fire that took place in the prison. Juliana gets a very strange sensation when looking at the photograph of Harry.

Juliana now knows that Harry Mark was fighting against the government, which was permitting psychiatrists to practice treatment upon students in schools.

She asks the librarian if she can borrow some articles for a few days. The librarian looks at her hesitating and asks her why she wants all those newspapers. Juliana says that she is working on a research paper for school. When she leaves, the librarian opens a drawer and finds a magazine where a journalist had written an article about Juliana’s rising singing. Having recognized her, the librarian picks up the phone.

In Juliana’s hotel room the phone rings. Juliana answers but no one speaks. She hangs up nervously and goes outside.

She walks up the street. A man follows her. She notices him, runs and loses him after a moment. Juliana finds a place to eat.

Juliana meticulously reads the newspapers examining every detail. Juliana takes the article with the picture of Harry. She is sure of having seen the same photograph in the past and calls her sister. She asks her to fax her the few pictures that they have from their father’s family. When these arrive she finds an identical picture to the one in the article. She is certain of the exactness of the pictures, yet she cannot recognize the man in them.

Juliana goes further into her research. In another newspaper she reads that after the "Drama of 68" an association had been created to defend children from psychiatric treatment. Juliana gets into her car in order to visit the association.

On her way there she is followed by a car. In spite of the danger, Juliana makes it to the association’s premises. She enters the building, she is received by someone who informs her of the purpose of the association and gives her some examples of psychiatric treatments. Juliana is disgusted by what she hears.

Then she goes back to her hotel. She goes to the bar. A band is playing. She goes to the pianist and whispers something in his ear. She takes the microphone and sings a jazz standard. At the bar she distinguishes the man who followed her earlier. She interrupt her singing, but realizes that she is out of danger so continues. When she is done the audience applauds, she crosses over to the bar. Juliana approaches the man, she looks straight at him in the eyes but remains silent. He apologizes to have frightened her. He tells her that he knows who she is and what she is doing in Washington. He gives her his business card and offers help in case she needs it. His name is Matt Kingtall and he is an attractive private detective. Juliana asks him who is paying him to help her. He answers that it is confidential, but she can call him whenever she wants, whenever she needs him. She looks at his whisky glass and says that she doesn’t like men who drink. He smiles and says that usually he never drinks without the permission of his mother and that he will never do it again. Juliana smiles back and leaves.

Juliana visits the family of an ex-victim. She again has the feeling of being followed. A few hours later, while she is visiting another family, the car she had rented explodes. Juliana calls Matt and says that she needs to see him right away. When he arrives she is still talking to the police. Juliana runs to Matt and asks him earnestly who is paying him to follow her. The answer again is that it is confidential. She yells at him and says that her life has been hell for the last week and that she doesn’t give a damn about it being confidential.

They both go into a coffee shop and Matt explains to Juliana that thirty years before a twelve year-old boy, Phil, had killed his father and himself. A scientist and professor of the time, Harry Mark, had investigated and discovered that the boy had been prescribed to take Crozic, an anti-depressor, for a six month period. Harry Mark as a scientist knew the side effects of Crozic. He knew that the medicine created the desire to kill or commit suicide. Harry Mark started a battle to get the medicine off the market. He had met the mother of Phil, who explained the chain of events in her son’s life. Based on her story, Harry Mark wrote an article. A few weeks later he was arrested for stealing "confidential papers".

Matt explains to Juliana that the librarian who had assisted her two days before was Phil’s sister. It was she who had hired Matt to investigate Juliana’s actions. She had been suspicious ever since Juliana took the newspapers home.

Needing help, Juliana asks to Matt if he agrees to work with her.

Together they go to visit people that have been members of the association.

Juliana decides to visit Harry Mark’s mother again. After explaining to her their purposes the mother invites them to enter the house. They ask her many questions and she brings out a box where she kept some personal papers that had belonged to Harry Mark. They look at the papers but cannot find anything special. The mother explains that the police took many documents when the "Drama" took place. Matt asks her if Harry Mark had had a girl friend at the time. She answers that she doesn’t know but that her son had had a very good friend: Freddy. She gives them Freddy’ phone number and address. Juliana instantly realizes that it is the same one she had found on the top of her father’s desk.

They arrive in Freddy’s house. Juliana recognizes him from the funeral and tells him. As a result he invites them in and begins the account of the big "Drama of 1968":

In 1965, Harry Mark was a prominent scientist and a teacher in a school. One day during a meeting with representatives of the government, he found out that an experiment was to take place inside the school walls. Two psychoanalysts were to work with a group of very famous psychiatrists. One of the psychiatrists had discovered a few years earlier a "magical" product called Crozic. This drug was said to be very efficient on children who were hyperactive or could not concentrate at school. But Harry’s scientific knowledge allowed him to see the danger in the product. He knew the side effects: willingness to commit suicide or to kill. Harry became determined in stopping the group from launching the "experiment". He sent a letter informing the parents of the students. The principal of the school threatened to fire him if he continued. Therefore Harry published three articles in three different newspapers, where he described the side effects of the drug, its repercussions on education, and the liability of its existence for lives and for the educational system as a whole.

Crozic was produced by a large pharmaceutics company called Honey. Continuing his battle, one night Harry Mark had sneaked into the facilities of Honey. At the office of a high executive he found an envelope with a check for $2500 addressed to Neil Veinstein. Harry knew Veinstein. He was the District Attorney. In the envelope there was also a note: "Congratulations Neil. Crozic sales are up. Thank you for your influence and your indirect help. Keep up the good work. and we shall continue on the same 15% deal. There is only on thing that needs to be done: get rid of Harry Mark. Sincerely, Mike Blandom. "

Freddy continues to explain to Juliana and Matt that Mike Blandom was the father of the Senator Blandom who at the time was beginning his career. Harry took the note with him and left the check untouched. No one ever knew that Harry had been there or that he had taken the note.

Later, Neil Veinstein secretly planted an "official and confidential" document in Harry’s home. Harry had been accused and found guilty of theft and espionage of government issues and was sentenced to six years in jail. Before his arrest he gave the note to his cousin. A day later this same cousin suffered a mortal accident in his shop. Apparently there had been a gas leak that provoked an explosion when the cousin turned on the light of the shop. His instant death disabled Harry to use the note as evidence of his innocence. He did not know where his cousin had put it. In addition to that, Veinstein never cashed the check so Harry had no evidence.

After one year there was a big fire in the prison. Harry escaped taking advantage of the opportunity. He put his identification bracelet on another man who was completely burned and faked his own death. Harry moved to France where he got married and had two daughters: Juliana and Cora. He became a science teacher. He never saw his mother or his family again knowing the danger that this would represent. The only person with whom he remained in contact was Freddy. He never stopped his battle against psychiatry even if from an indirect position.

Juliana realizes that her father was Harry Mark.

She returns to her hotel completely perplexed. In the meantime, Matt goes to see a friend who works in the Justice Department and asks her to search in the files of the computer for possible names of those who attacked had Harry Mark thirty years earlier. There was no record of the matter. The only way to have more information would be to access the central file and this was impossible without special permission.

The day after, Matt’s friend at the Justice Department calls him and informs him that she was surprised because she had seen her boss speaking to the District Attorney who had a folder in his hand labeled "Harry Mark". Matt comes instantly to see her. From the angle of her office they can both see the District Attorney. Matt recognizes Neil Veinstein. He walks to him and introduces himself. Veinstein, however, avoids him and tells him to make an appointment with his secretary. The District Attorney goes into his office and shuts the door.

Matt goes to Juliana’s hotel. She’s still sleeping but she wakes up and opens her door. Matt enters. On the table she has the same newspaper as the one seen earlier in the drawer of the librarian. There is a big article on Juliana’s career and a few pictures of her and her family. She explains to him what the article is about: a few weeks before she had given a concert and an American journalist had interviewed her and taken some pictures.

While looking at the pictures, Matt realizes that in one of them her father appears in the back. He understands that the District Attorney could have seen it and knew where to find him. Harry’s enemies knew that he had escaped from the fire in the jail thirty years before but could never find Mark. It then became easy for Mark’s enemies to track him down in France. Matt understood also that Harry didn’t suffer a car accident but was killed.

Juliana and Matt go back to see Harry Mark’s mother. They explain to her the whole situation. She cries when she hears that her son only really died last week. She embraces Juliana strongly. She shows them the little house where Harry loved to spend time in the garden. When Juliana goes inside she recognizes it. She has a photo of her father when he was eight years old and he was playing with his cousin in this room. She sheds a tear. Matt wipes the tear off her face and holds her tenderly. They are starting a big search in the house to look for more information. They cannot find anything. Juliana is sure that the clue to this awful story is hidden somewhere in the little house. In a box there is the book : Alice in Wonderland. She takes it and tells Matt that this was the favorite story of her father’s. He always would read it to them when they were kids. She takes the book with her. They leave.

But she has to go back to France because she has to give a concert. Matt drops her off at the airport. Before she leaves they kiss each other. Then she still has the feeling of being followed but she cannot spot anyone.

She arrives safely and while she’s explaining what she found out to her sister Matt in Washington returns to the District Attorney’s office, early in the morning, and disguised as the janitor. He sees the hotel number where Juliana had been staying written on a slip on the desk of the DA. He cannot find anything in the drawers or in the cupboards. He turns the computer on. He obviously doesn’t have the password. He calls his friend and asks her the password. She doesn’t know it and gives him different passwords but none of them work. Finally she tells him that the District Attorney likes his dog very much. He tries Bobby and it works. They laugh. She finds a file called Juliana. She opens it. There sees Juliana’s resume as well her sister’s. Finally they go to the email boxes. Just a few weeks before the District Attorney had sent an email to the "Honey" Pharmaceutics’ Company where he said that he asked Zac to retrieve the document, no matter what he must do.

Matt calls Juliana immediately and tells her to go away with her sister because they are in danger. Juliana insists on giving her concert anyway.

Matt goes to the airport.

The concert starts. He recognizes in the audience the District Attorney. Matt sits in a position from which he can look at the DA. Then he sees the District Attorney make a sign with his right hand to two big guys who are standing. The two guys go outside. Matt follows them. After he exits the concert hall he gets a punch on his head. He falls down. When he wakes up he’s lying on the floor. Someone is helping him up. He thanks the person and sees that everyone is leaving the concert hall. It means that the concert is over. So he runs backstage and finds Juliana’s dressing room. When he arrives the room is empty. He checks everywhere but cannot find her. He knows that she has been kidnapped. He leaves the theater and suddenly sees Mark’s copy of Alice in Wonderland lying on the street. He picks it up and puts it in his pocket.

He returns to the US. In the plane he takes out Alice in Wonderland and smiles. He starts to read it and then looks at the cover. Suddenly he feels something very hard under the cover. He takes it out and he finds the long lost note that Harry Mark had taken from the Honey facilities 30 years before.

He finds his car , starts it, and feels a weapon behind his head, held by one of the two giants seen in the theater in France. Matt asks him to not hit his head because it hurts him. He attempts to be funny. But the giant doesn’t appreciate Matt’s humor. Matt makes him understand that Juliana doesn’t know where the document is and that he is the only one who knows, so he should not kill him but protect him. Otherwise Veinstein would be very unhappy. The giant orders him to drive and to shut up.

Under the pressure of the giant Matt drives to the District Attorney’s house. When they arrive he is thrown inside a room. Juliana and Cora are there. Juliana rushes up to him and embraces him and introduces Cora to Matt. Matt searches the walls and doesn’t find any cameras. Without speaking he conveys to Juliana that she should have a look inside her father’s book. When she sees the note and the copy of the emails, he puts instantly a finger on her lips to be sure that she will not say anything. Juliana shows the papers to Cora. They all smile. Matt starts to talk about banalities like the weather and the movies. Juliana sings with her sister. Meanwhile they try to find a way out. What they don’t know is that there is a camera in the curtain rod. So Veinstein is very happy and orders his guys to take the note and to kill the three guest.

A man shows up and makes them go outside. Matt jumps on him and signals to Juliana to escape with her sister. They run so fast that they push away two guards, and successfully escape. When they arrive in the street a car arrives. Juliana runs to the middle of the road. The car stops. Juliana and Cora jump inside. The young driver is very happy because he recognizes Juliana. The two guards follow them in another car. Juliana asks the young driver to hurry up and to drop them in the Washington Post and to lose the other car. He tries to do his best but the other car comes too close to them and they almost crash into each other. One of the two guards threatens them with a weapon. He wants the document. Juliana tells Cora that she should not be afraid because as long as they have the document he will not kill them. And she realizes that the same probably happened to their father only that that he had lost control over his car in the chase. Finally a truck comes from the front and the other car has to go behind. The younger driver makes it to the newspaper. Juliana and Cora get out and when they scream for help as they see the other car arrive. The two giants vanish.

Juliana reveals the truth of folder that has been filed for 30 years. She names her now deceased father’s enemies. Veinstein is under arrest.

Juliana knows that she will never live again in Europe. She gets married to Matt. Her Grand-Ma is at the wedding of course.

Juliana sings during her wedding in the meanwhile a text is shown:

Veinstein was forced to resign and was sentenced to ten years in prison. The IRS did an investigation on Honey Pharmaceutics. Blandom has never been reelected as his career suffered for his father’s criminal past. Honey closed its doors. And 75 leading citizens have been found guilty of swindling and embezzlement. The investigation was continued in Europe because it was discovered that Honey wired big sums of money to different European government officials.

The innocence of Harry Mark was proven by his daughter’s.