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We're the Millers · 2013 — Chapter 8 of 21 · 4'02" · B2

A Cop Demands a Bribe, Explained: be a team player

A Mexican officer pulls the family over and asks for money to let them go. When they are short on cash, he hints at something more personal, and the group turns on each other before a single word clears it up: he only wanted pesos, and a hundred will do.

What happens

On the road in Mexico, a police officer stops the family and makes clear that the alternative to a bribe is prison. They cannot cover the amount he names, so he suggests something more personal, which sends the group into a panic. In the end the officer only meant pesos, and a hundred settles it.

Police questioningThreatsBargainingPersuadingPolice & suspectB2mediumamerican
IMDb ↗

Listen for

cut the shitbe a team playerfront and centerattaboy

00:00 / 04:02
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Now
  39. ❝ MonologueCaps and cigarette butts8 linesPractice page ↗
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Phrase of the scene

be a team player

顾全大局、配合团队

大卫让罗丝配合他应付警察，用这句话把荒唐的要求包装成顾全大局。

The boss wants everyone to be a team player this quarter.

Also in this scene

  • cut the shit

    少废话、别装了

  • front and center

    到前面来、站到中间

  • attaboy

    好样的（带点居高临下的夸奖）

  • Keep the change

    零钱不用找了

Everything marked in this scene

32 notes across 72 lines

Phrase · B1be cool- What's it look like? It's a cop, genius. - Be cool.
Slang · B2genius- What's it look like? It's a cop, genius. - Be cool.
Soundwe're the Millers

liaison

- Remember we're the Millers. Okay. - Okay. Yeah. Okay. Cool.
Phrase · B1get into somethingYou see, the family and I got into a heated game of road bingo and--
SoundCut the shit

flap

- Cut the shit. - I'm sorry?
Grammar · B2if I search your mobile home

if clause

And we both know if I search your mobile home, what I'd find.
Phrase · B1feel like doing somethingBut I don't feel like arresting anybody...
Phrase · B2take a bribe...so I'll just simply take my bribe and I'll be on my way.
Phrase · B1be on one's way...so I'll just simply take my bribe and I'll be on my way.
Phrase · B1that sort of somethingIt's a lot. Um, we don't have that sort of cash on us right now.
Phrase · B2a little more something...something a little more personal?
Slang · C1suck his dickI gotcha. Rose, suck his dick.
Phrase · B2be a team playerCome on. Will you be a team player?
Phrase · B2no need to be alarmedPlease, please, señora. No need to be alarmed.
Phrase · C1the company of someoneSee, I'm, how you say, a man who prefers the company of other men.
Phrase · B1how do you saySee, I'm, how you say, a man who prefers the company of other men.
Grammar · B2a man who prefers the company of other men

relative clause with who

See, I'm, how you say, a man who prefers the company of other men.
Phrase · B1a number + topsFive seconds tops. Just cradle the balls.
Phrase · B2front and centerOkay. Kenny! Front and center, buddy.
Phrase · A2what's the planOkay, so what's the plan?
Phrase · B1get out of hereYou suck his dick, and we get outta here.
Slang · B1outta hereYou suck his dick, and we get outta here.
Phrase · B1bring it in- Okay? Bring it in, on three. - What?! No!
SoundBring it in

liaison

- Okay? Bring it in, on three. - What?! No!
Grammar · B2you never really know until you know

until clause

I mean, you never really know until you know.
Grammar · B2it's coming off a little homophobic

come off as

Look, this gay panic situation you're having now, it's coming off a little homophobic.
Slang · C1gay panicLook, this gay panic situation you're having now, it's coming off a little homophobic.
Phrase · B1have no idea- What is he saying to him? - I have no idea.
Phrase · B2someone's chance to be the heroThis is your chance to be the hero.
Phrase · B1why didn't you say so- "Pesos"? Why didn't you say so? - Mm-hm. A thousand.
Phrase · B1keep the changeHere. Here you go. A hundred. Keep the change.
SoundKeep the change

elision

Here. Here you go. A hundred. Keep the change.

A Cop Demands a Bribe, explained

What's really going on

The scene runs on the gap between what the officer says and what everyone hears. His request for "something a little more personal" is deliberately vague, and the family fills the silence with the worst possibility, turning on each other in seconds. The comedy is cruel — the mild, willing members push the reluctant one forward — but it also shows how quickly a group will sacrifice an individual to stay out of trouble. The punchline restores order the moment the misunderstanding clears, and the shame evaporates as fast as it arrived. Nothing serious ever happens; the joke is that they were ready to do something serious anyway. It is the film's least subtle lesson about how thin their loyalty really is.

Theme

SurvivalThe group is ready to do something humiliating to avoid prison, showing what they will trade to stay safe.
LiesThe whole scheme depends on a fake family, and the scene shows the group turning on itself when the lie gets tested.

Listen for

  • we're the Millers — liaison
  • Cut the shit — flap
  • Bring it in — liaison
  • Keep the change — elision
I mean, you never really know until you know.

A mock-serious argument used to pressure someone into something, delivered as if it were wisdom.

Look, this gay panic situation you're having now, it's coming off a little homophobic.

An absurd accusation used to push the reluctant one into going along with the plan.

Because, believe me, they won't last two days in a Mexican prison.

The guilt-based argument that finally wins him over: do it for the others, not yourself.

See, I'm, how you say, a man who prefers the company of other men.

The officer's polite euphemism, which only makes the awkward request more confusing.

This is your chance to be the hero.

The flattering pitch that reframes an awful task as a noble opportunity.

Questions about this scene

Why does the officer stop the family?

He saw them leaving Pablo Chacon's compound and knows what a search would find. Instead of arresting them, he offers to take a bribe and go.

What does the officer actually want?

Money, and specifically pesos, not something personal. The family misreads his vague hint and panics before he clarifies the amount.

What does be a team player mean here?

It means putting the group first, even at your own expense. It is used to pressure one member into volunteering for something unpleasant.

Why does David finally agree?

Because the others argue that the women will not survive in a Mexican prison. He gives in for their sake, not his own.

How does the scene end?

The misunderstanding clears: the officer only meant a thousand pesos, and a hundred covers it. They pay and drive away, relieved and embarrassed.

We're the Millers · 21 chapters

All chapters →
Up next · Chapter 9look the partFake Family at the Border Checkpoint
Chapter 1what I wouldn't giveDavid Runs Into Little RickyChapter 2a real Sophie's choiceDavid Fights for CaseyChapter 3out of my leagueBrad Offers David a JobChapter 4a huge red flagDavid Recruits Rose for the TripChapter 5in my sleepThe Millers Fly to MexicoChapter 6blend inThe Millers Cross into MexicoChapter 7as we speakDavid Picks Up the Wrong LoadWatching · Chapter 8be a team playerA Cop Demands a BribeChapter 9look the partFake Family at the Border CheckpointChapter 10save your baconThe RV Breaks Down in the DesertChapter 11a bit of a hiatusHow David and Rose MetChapter 12pass the batonThe Millers Perform at the JamboreeChapter 13the birds and the beesKenny's Bad DrawingChapter 14spice things upThe Couple Walks In on ThemChapter 15Mum's the wordCasey Teaches Kenny to KissChapter 16worth way more alive than I am deadPablo Chacon Confronts the MillersChapter 17make a good caseKenny Gets Bitten by a SpiderChapter 18a cheap shotInterrogating Casey's BoyfriendChapter 19dead in a ditchThe Fake Family Falls ApartChapter 20get one's hands off someoneCasey Punches Scottie P.Chapter 21a huge paydayDavid Begs the Group to Come Back
Chapter 8 of 21 · about 60 min to go