(feedback/voices overlapping)
(man) I ask you to listen with an open mind,
forgetting for a moment what you believe and don't believe.
This is how it started.
On a night like this.
On a two-lane country road not far from here.
Hey, Jeff!
Pull over!
(honks horn)
(whimpers)
(siren)
(speaks Chinese)
(barking)
It's that same mutt causing all the racket.
He just barks since the other pups were adopted.
Tomorrow you can put him to sleep.
For now, put him in the can.
(whimpers)
(makes petting noises)
Come here, boy.
Uncle Jerry's got a special treat for you today.
Stop that dog!
- (dog whining) - Now...
Now...
Now you're history!
(car horn)
(shrieking and laughing)
(school bell)
( heavy metal music) *
(petting noises)
Come here, little fellow.
Come on. We'll keep each other warm.
Come on.
(chuckles)
(man) These two connecting circles. They mean forever.
It's beautiful.
- Will you be with me forever? - Yes, Tommy.
Forever.
"My fancies are fireflies."
"Specks of living light, twinkling in the dark."
Poetry is food for the soul, little puppy.
(sighs)
We've seen better days.
Oh, well. Here, let's play a little game.
Now...
See, we have three walnut shells.
One, two, three. Three walnut shells.
And we put the little jewel under one.
We move 'em around. Move 'em around.
There. Where is it?
Where's the jewel?
Good puppy. Good puppy.
OK. Here we go again.
Now, where is it? Where is it?
Good puppy.
Thank you.
Thank you. Thank you.
Good puppy. Good puppy!
- He's such a smart little guy. - Thank you.
It was just a fluke.
He's my little fluke.
Yes!
Fluke by nature, Fluke by name.
(coughs and splutters)
I... I don't feel very well, Fluke.
I think I'll take a nap before we go.
(barking)
(male voice) Rise and shine, squirt.
Don't let 'em catch you sleeping.
That old dogcatcher gets up mighty early
lookin' for easy targets just like you.
Did you run away, or did they pull that old "dump the pup" trick?
You can talk?
Don't be goofy. I'm a dog, pal.
But you're not barking.
What you're saying to me are words.
It's a mental thing. It's what I want you to know
and what you want me to know.
- That's all it is. - But... but...
You never met anyone who can communicate?
- No, never. - Well, now you have.
They call me Rumbo. What about you?
Fluke.
Mm-mm.
I smell hunger with a capital H.
Whaddya say we get something to eat?
What about Bella?
I'm afraid Bella had to move on, my friend.
You won't be seeing her any more.
Hey, come on. It's chowtime. Let's roll.
Rumbo, wait up. I have to do something.
Woah, what have we got here?
Mm-mm-mm.
That's not the way we do it, squirt.
Now, check this out.
Three paws down, firmly,
while number four reaches for the sky.
- Oh. - Now that's class!
Rumbo, help! Help!
Hey, squirt, we're goin' to eat and you're takin' a bath.
Get outta there. Come on.
Come on. You can do it. Come on.
There.
You OK?
Yeah. I'm OK.
Well, that's one way of gettin' rid of your fleas.
What's that... What's that smell?
I mean, I love it. I love it.
Hey, hey! Be cool. Knock it off.
Ow!
Come on back here. Come on.
It's taken me years to build this route
and I'm not gonna let some rookie ruin it.
Now, you just sit there and watch the master.
Hey, Rumbo. What's goin' on?
What'll it be?
Coming right up, sir.
There you go.
Now, who is this?
Listen, Rumbo, you know I can't be feeding all your buddies.
(Rumbo) Just let me handle this.
Hey, Bert, how about something for the pup?
I bet you want something for the pup too, huh?
Ow!
Now, you two, out of here. I got payin' customers to tend to.
Listen up. You're gonna meet the boss, but he don't have patience with dogs,
so when he talks to you, just wag your tail and go into your puppy routine.
OK.
You are gonna love this place, kid. Lots of nice shade and soft places to lay.
It's the only place I know you can chase tyres and not worry about gettin' run over.
(Rumbo chuckles)
(man) Uh-huh, yeah.
All righty. I'll have to call you back, all right?
(coughs)
Rumbo, where the hell you been all night? Huh?
- What do you have, a sweetheart? - What!
- Just go to him. - He called me a girl.
People make mistakes. Now forgive him and get over there and wag your tail.
- What's he doing? - He's being affectionate.
- Well, it hurts. - Well, love hurts.
What's this say?
"Fluke". What the hell kinda name is that?
Ah, that's a nice dog.
(whimpers)
(Rumbo) Hey. Hey!
- What's going on? - I guess I was dreaming.
- You were what?! - Uh, dreaming.
I was seeing pictures inside my head.
Pictures ain't got no business being inside your head.
Next time you just growl and chase 'em away.
Rumbo, have you always been a dog?
What you talkin' about? What else could I have been?
- I don't know. A human. - A two-legger? Me?
Rule number one: stop askin' dumb questions.
- It's just that... - No "buts", no "ifs", no "ands".
Stop talking all this nonsense. It's sack time.
Good night.
Good night, Rumbo.
(Rumbo) Oh, man! This is too good to be true.
- What are we gonna do, Rumbo? - Take a good look, squirt.
We done hit the promised land.
- Oh, holy smoke! - D'you think this'll be all right?
All right? The guy walked away. That's what I consider formal invitation.
- (Fluke) Everything smells so good. - Mm-hm.
Mm-mm! (chuckles)
I knew I smelled pumpkin!
Hey!
(Bert) Yeah, so I'm sittin' there just waitin' for the light,
this woman bangs into the back of my car.
$500 damage and they raise my insurance rates.
Now you tell me if that makes any sense.
(barking)
Fluke?
- Fluke. Cool it. - (customer coughing)
- Don't mind that dog. He's harmless. - (Rumbo) What's with you?
There's something about him. Can't you smell it, Rumbo?
That'll be $1.85.
All right. Thank you.
Oops.
Sorry about that.
Hey! Hey!
Get off me!
- Fluke, cut that out. - That dog is vicious. He attacked me.
You can't keep a dog like that in a public place. Hear what I said?
I heard you. Now go on, man. You're making the dogs nervous.
Go on, get outta here!
It's all right. Everything's all right.
Shh, shh. It's all right. It's all right. Quiet. It's OK.
Sorry, pooch. I guess you're gonna have to find something else to read.
What's up? You look like you just saw a ghost.
- I saw someone I used to know. - An old friend?
I think... he's a murderer.
I hear they were your dogs.
My dogs never bit anybody normal.
Well, that dog ought to be put to sleep.
The dogs had their shots and you won't die from that scratch.
I could complain to Animal Control. I could make a lot of trouble for you.
Mike...
All right?
Now get outta here.
(Rumbo) Uh-oh. I think it's time to split.
Hey! Hey, Rumbo! Rumbo!
Rumbo, get back here!
Come on in. Time for supper.
Daddy's back.
Hey! Hey, Rumbo! I see you.
You're gonna get yours.
OK, Fluke. You did your time.
(ringing tone)
(woman) Hello?
Hello?
Is anybody there?
- (licking) - Who's this?
What the hell...!
Hey, Fluke! Hey! Fluke!
(groans)
Oh, these dogs.
Hello?
- Hello? - Hi. Who's calling?
You called, lady. Who you lookin' for?
No, you called me. Who is this?
I didn't call anybody. The only other person in this office was Fluke,
and he couldn't have called because he's a dog, lady.
Rumbo, I wasn't always a dog. And neither were you.
Right! Last week I was Snow White.
Well, how do you know who Snow White is?
It's something you knew in your past, read in a book.
- That's ridiculous. - You can't face it. You're lying to yourself.
- I'm happy who I am. - But I'm not.
I lived in a house. I had a family. I had a life once, Rumbo.
- You got one now. A damn good one. - I'm gonna find them.
If you're gonna go chasing after humans in your head, you're going alone.
And don't bother coming back!
Rumbo! Wait!
Get him in the truck.
- There you go. - You're right. He's just the right size.
(machine beeping)
(horn)
Forever.
(beeping quickens)
This is impossible.
(alarm)
- We gotta get outta here. Can you walk? - I think so.
Got it. Now let's roll.
- Rumbo, I can't see. - Grab my tail.
Ow! Hey, easy with the teeth, now.
Watch your step.
Here we go. Blue skies ahead.
- Shoot the dog. - I can't shoot the dog!
Maybe we should stop here for a minute. They'll never find us here.
I think maybe I'll lay down for a while.
- How are your eyes? - A little better.
Rumbo, you're bleeding.
Listen to me, squirt. You stay in these woods until your eyes heal.
What do you mean? I'm staying with you.
I don't think I can help you any more, squirt.
Rumbo, why you talking like this? You're gonna be all right.
Forget it. There's nothing you can do.
Come closer.
Look, we've got to stay together. You and me, like always.
I can't make it without you, Rumbo.
I had another dream. My family's in danger.
Fluke, things aren't always what they seem.
Rule number one: there's no going back.
You can't be sorry about what's been, squirt. You got to be.
Please. I have to know.
Am I the only one?
You were a man once, too. Weren't you, Rumbo?
Remember that snapshot behind old Bert's counter?
That was me. In another life.
Bert was my brother.
Hm. I never really missed being a two-legger.
But the sea...
Huh. I wish I could smell the sea again.
All I know is you were the best friend I ever had.
I'll miss you.
Rumbo, don't leave me.
Maybe we'll meet again, squirt.
Next time around.
No.
Rumbo?
(sobs) No.
Rumbo's words kept ringing in my ears: "There's no going back."
But my family was in danger. I had to go to them.
(bell ringing)
- We're gonna be late. - Wait up.
(school bell)
Let's go.
(school bell)
Cool. Hey, boy.
(girl) Oh, sweet puppy.
(girl) Neat dog.
(engine starts)
Move it, pooch.
(gasps)
Get down. Get away. Look at this!
- Mom, he's not gonna bite us. - Get down!
Get away.
This dog is crazy.
Get down! Get away from the car!
What is with this dog? Brian, shut your door. Shut it. Shut it.
What's wrong with it? I've never seen a dog act like this.
Mom, the windows are up. He can't do anything to us.
Let's go. We're going home.
My god, it scared me.
(Fluke barking)
- It's the dog from school. - No, no, Brian. Don't open the door.
What's going on?
My god. How did he get here?
Uh, that's OK, Libby, thanks.
Mom, we have to feed him. He must have run all the way here.
Come away from the door. Come on.
- He must be thirsty. - Brian, we know nothing about that dog.
Stubborn dog.
- Brian, come and eat. - I'm not hungry.
There's a big juicy cheeseburger here with your name on it.
Come on and eat your supper.
I don't think I can eat with that sad creature staring in at me.
He probably hasn't eaten for days.
All right.
He can stay for just one meal, then he's gone. Deal?
Deal.
- Ah! - I told you, Mom. He's really nice.
- Good boy. - (sneezes)
Bless you! I think he likes us.
Do you think anybody owns him?
Well, let's see if he's got a tag here.
Here it is. Oh, there's no address. It just says "Fluke".
Hi, Fluke.
Fluke.
Mom, I know we made a deal and I respect it.
But can't we keep him... just for a little while?
Brian, why don't you get up off the floor?
Just until we find his owner?
You can't put him on the street now. I mean, he could be hit by a car.
You are just like your father.
A con artist.
Your father used to brag he could sell ice cubes to the Eskimos.
Well...
He can stay on one condition. He has to have a bath right now. He's filthy.
(groans)
Energise.
(imitates gunfire)
Gotcha.
Fluke, have you seen Data?
Hey.
My dad used to do that.
(whimpers)
OK, Fluke, this is your bed for the night.
I'll see you in the morning.
(gasps)
What are you doing here?
- See you later, Fluke. - Come on, Brian. We're gonna be late.
What's the matter, Fluke? Hm?
What's the matter?
You're a sweet boy. You're a very sweet dog.
Playing with Brian, doing things that I never had time for when I was a man,
made me realise how precious every moment is.
This was where I belonged.
Somehow, sooner or later, I'd find a way to tell them who I really was.
(clatter)
Brian!
(gasps)
Fluke...
Did you escape from a circus, or what?
Tom looked so silly in this hat.
- Ready, Brian? - All right. Come on, Fluke! Let's go.
* We're off to see the Wizard
* The Wonderful Wizard of Oz
* Because, because, because, because, because
* Because of the wonderful things he does
* We're... off to see the Wizard
* The Wonderful Wizard of Oz
* Because, because, because, because, because... *
(actress on TV) I love you.
More than you know.
(Tom) She was even more beautiful than I remembered.
I would have given anything to tell her how much I loved her.
More than fields I have planted with my hands.
- I love you more than morning prayers. - Shh, Fluke. Stop whining.
- I'm trying to watch the movie. - It's OK, Fluke.
(vehicle approaches)
- (knock at door) - Come in. The door's open.
- Hi, Jeff. - Hi.
- No, Fluke! No! - Jeff!
No. Fluke!
- Fluke, no! - What are you gonna do to him?
Please, don't hurt him!
(Jeff) Open the door!
You all right?
- Hello. Give me Animal Control. - Don't call them!
Brian, please! No, no, we've got a dog that's going crazy on our front lawn.
Brian, honey, go to your room. It'll be OK. Please, go.
Yes, please.
6241 Willow Drive.
I don't know what got into him, why he's acting like this.
Well, something's wrong with that dog.
- Good evening. - What's the problem, sir?
Well, my friend's kid brought home some stray
that just went berserk. It bit me.
It's a large, brown mutt.
He might still be around here somewhere. I don't know.
- (officer) We won't find him out there. - (officer #2) He's gone.
- We'll call Animal Control in the morning. - Thanks for coming out.
If it happens again, give us a call.
Well, there's nothing more I can do.
- Are you OK? I mean... - Yeah. It didn't break the skin.
Don't go yet. Why don't you stay for a bit?
(Jeff) They'll take him to the pound.
I don't wanna call the pound.
You know what they do to dogs there. I can't do that to Brian.
- Don't whine. They'll hear. - (mother) Something about that dog...
- Brian? - Yes, Mom?
- You OK? - Yeah. I just need a Kleenex.
- 'Night, kiddo. - 'Night, sweetheart.
Quiet, Fluke.
Come, Fluke.
Good boy.
(Jeff) Listen, it came off the streets. You don't know where it's from.
It just wasn't a good idea to let him in.
I don't know what came over him.
But he attacked me, which means he could easily turn and attack either of you.
Maybe he was trying to protect us.
Brian has become attached to that dog. I haven't seen him this happy in years.
What about you?
Are you OK?
- I've been thinking about Tom a lot lately. - Me, too.
- (mother) You think he's happy? - I hope so.
I keep thinking maybe if I'd... If I'd only known what he was going through.
Listen, I thought that we agreed we weren't gonna do the "ifs" any more.
I think that we've got to try to...
put this behind us.
I love you, Fluke.
Oh, hey, hey, hey! Good morning, huh?
(coughs)
What's going on?
- You're so warm. - Mom, I've gotta find...
Go back to bed. I wanna take your temperature.
- But, Mom... - You're going nowhere. You have a fever.
Go on. Back to bed.
- Morning, Rose. - You're early this morning, Mr Newman.
- How was the trip? - Work.
A lot of hard work, Rose, as usual.
Well, I hear you're actually taking a vacation this year.
Well, Carol made me promise.
Now, is that likely to turn into a honeymoon?
Well, if I had my way, it would.
How is she?
Much better, thanks.
She still misses him at times, but we all do.
Yes, we do.
- Have a good one. - You, too.
Jane, can you please bring me that file?
- How'd it go? - Fine, thanks.
- Is that it? - Yeah, this is it.
No, I mean for the night. My family's waiting.
And your wife called. You have dinner reservations at 8.30.
Listen, could you please call her and tell her that I won't be able to make it.
- Anything else? - No.
- Thank you. - Just don't stay too late, Mr Johnson.
Good night.
I see our brave captain is still at the helm.
(phone rings)
(footsteps)
(phone ringing)
(Carol) Jeff, it's me.
But... you called Tom's old office.
I did? Oh, God, I'm so scared.
- What's happened? - I can't find Brian.
All I can think is that he's out looking for that dog.
Jeff, he has a fever and it is already below freezing outside.
Listen, I'm leaving right now. We'll find him. Everything will be fine.
- Hurry. - Bye-bye.
(growling)
I didn't care if I was dying or not. I'd had my revenge.
Then suddenly it came to me and I remembered what really happened.
I see our brave captain is still at the helm.
Somebody's gotta work. Especially in a business whose profits are off 30%.
You've heard we're in a slowdown? Everybody's off.
So what's the cure? Everybody go home at five o'clock every night?
It's 8.45.
What d'you think of the prototype? I asked them to set it up for you.
- Did you notice? - I read your specs.
It's twice as efficient as any braking system around.
- But it's twice as expensive. - It could save thousands of lives.
Maybe, but it's not cost-effective.
Not cost-effective! I never thought I'd hear something like that from you.
When we started, we wanted to combine our talents to do something positive.
Make money by helping people.
We were young then. It's different now.
I don't believe that. Neither do you.
It's so easy for you to criticise my life.
Do you have any idea how many responsibilities I have? No.
No, because you don't live in the real world. You're a dreamer. Always have been.
I'll take that as a compliment.
We're not going to throw money away on your dreams.
This company is in trouble and some has to take responsibility.
No, our company is not in trouble.
It's just a slow period and you think it's the end of the world.
Tom, what the hell is wrong with you?
You've got the kind of life that any man would envy. I envy it.
- You've got a great wife, a beautiful kid... - Leave them out of it.
Like you do?
We're not gonna develop this system.
As a partner and head of design, I say we are.
As a partner and head of finance, I say that we're not!
Not!
Hey, you've lost it. I don't even recognise you any more.
Come back here. We're gonna settle this now.
Come back here!
Pull over!
Pull over.
Are you crazy? You're gonna get us both killed!
Let's talk about this, can we, like a couple of adults.
It's useless trying to race because you know I always win.
Tom!
Oh, God. Tom?
Tom?
(sobs)
Oh, God! Tom...
Oh, what had I done?
Everything had been my fault.
Jeff had always been a true friend. Even after my death.
I had to help him.
Fluke.
Go find Brian. He's sick.
He can't stay out in this cold.
Go find him.
(Brian) Daddy?
Daddy?
I can't find him anywhere.
Maybe from where you are, you can see Fluke.
Help me find Fluke, Daddy. Please.
Mr Grimes!
Hey, Mr Grimes! Wait!
Mr Grimes!
Wait!
I know where he is.
Fluke.
I knew you'd come.
(barking)
Brian!
Brian. Brian. It's Mommy.
Hi, Mom.
Come on.
- Fluke kept me warm, Mom. - OK. Let's go to the car. Come on.
OK, put your arms around my neck.
Here you go.
OK.
I was dreaming, Mom.
I was dreaming, and Fluke spoke to me. He told me not to cry.
He said he had to go away.
OK, stay here and keep warm.
I'll be right back.
Come, Fluke.
Come with us.
Come on, boy.
Let's go home now.
Come on, Fluke.
Of course, I had to go away.
I loved them too much to get in the way of their happiness.
Jeff would be there now, in a way that I hadn't been.
I didn't know how to live as a man and I didn't know how to live as a dog.
Now I understand that life is something to be cherished in every form.
So this is my story.
Perhaps I was made to remember so that I could share it with you.
And perhaps there are many out there like me,
hiding behind the eyes of simple creatures.
Maybe even someone close to you.
(male voice) Rise and shine, squirt. Don't let 'em catch you sleepin'.
Rumbo?
Ha-ha! You didn't think you could get rid of me that easy now, did you, squirt?
- Rumbo, I can't believe it's you. - You better believe it.
Come on over here. Come here.
We've got a lot to talk about.
But first, let me tell you something about being a squirrel.
Rule number one...