We're the Millers · 2013 — Chapter 21 of 21 · 4'53" · B2

David Begs the Group to Come Back, Explained: a huge payday

David returns with a pitch and a joke, but the others want an apology, not a deal. On the surface it's a negotiation about money. Underneath, the scene is about trust already spent, and the question "How do we trust you?" is the one he can't answer with words.

What happens

David turns the RV around and tries to win the group back, promising to split the money evenly. They remind him that he misled them and left them behind. When nothing else works, he gets on his knees and begs, and they agree to return to the RV. Then the Fitzgeralds appear.

ArgumentsApologiesApologizingPersuadingFriendsB2mediumamerican
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the open roada huge paydaybegging pantswaltz back in

00:00 / 04:53
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Phrase of the scene

a huge payday

一大笔收入、大赚一笔

大卫独自上路,用这个说法形容自己正奔着一大笔钱去。

The deal could be a huge payday for everyone.

Also in this scene

  • the open road

    开阔的公路;自由自在的旅途

  • begging pants

    求饶裤(开玩笑说准备下跪求人时穿)

  • waltz back in

    若无其事地晃回来

  • it was wrong of me to

    我不该……;我做那件事是错的

Everything marked in this scene

29 notes across 92 lines

Phrase · B2beeline itI'm out on the open road, just by myself, right? And I'm just beelining it to a huge payday.
Phrase · B2a huge paydayI'm out on the open road, just by myself, right? And I'm just beelining it to a huge payday.
Grammar · B1I start to realize something

start to do

And I start to realize something: it's boring in here.
Phrase · B1turn something aroundYou gotta turn this RV around and go back and get those dip sticks."
Phrase · B2dipsticksYou gotta turn this RV around and go back and get those dip sticks."
Grammar · B1You gotta turn this RV around and go back

have gotta

You gotta turn this RV around and go back and get those dip sticks."
Phrase · B1just kiddingHeh. I'm just kidding, you're not dip sticks.
Phrase · B1what do you say we ...What do you say we go home? Come on, let's go.
Slang · B2Go fuck yourselfHey, David? Go fuck yourself.
Soundget out of here

elision

Come on, guys. Let's get out of here, go home. Get in the RV, go home, get out of here.
Phrase · B2know what something is aboutI know what this is about, and I get it.
Phrase · C1betwixt usEvenly. Betwixt the four of us.
Soundthe four of us

liaison

Evenly. Betwixt the four of us.
Phrase · B2take one's butt somewhere...and take our butts back to Denver where we're gonna be rich and we're gonna get paid.
Phrase · B2waltz back inAnd then you come waltzing back in here all...I don't know what the hell that was...
Grammar · C1you come waltzing back in here

come + present participle

And then you come waltzing back in here all...I don't know what the hell that was...
Phrase · B1works for someone- That would make me feel a lot better. - Works for me. Sure.
Phrase · B1get on one's kneesYou really want me to get on my knees? And beg you?
Soundget on my knees

flap

You really want me to get on my knees? And beg you?
Phrase · B2begging pantsIt's a good thing I'm wearing my begging pants.
Slang · B1PopsHere, let Pops get in here.
Phrase · B2what in the H-E-L-LWhat in the H-E-L-L are you people doing here?
Slang · B2tampinDo you have your period? Do you need a tampin?
Phrase · B2it was wrong of someone to do somethingMelissa, yes, it was wrong of me to fondle Mrs. Miller's breasts.
Grammar · C1it was wrong of me to fondle Mrs. Miller's breasts

it was ... of someone to do

Melissa, yes, it was wrong of me to fondle Mrs. Miller's breasts.
Phrase · C1like throwing a hot dog down a hallwayIt's like throwing a hot dog down a hallway.
Soundhot dog down a hallway

flap

It's like throwing a hot dog down a hallway.
Phrase · B1make out with someoneI saw Kenny making out with his sister and mother while their dad watched.
Phrase · B1thank God someone is alive- Hey. Ah, thank God you're alive. - He's got a gun!

David Begs the Group to Come Back, explained

What's really going on

The chapter is a small trust negotiation dressed as a comedy. David opens with a charming story about freedom and a big payday, but the others cut through it: "How do we trust you?" The divide is real, because he did leave them behind, and no amount of charm answers that. What works instead is submission, and the begging scene turns his humiliation into the joke that finally wins them over. The relief is short-lived. The moment the Fitzgeralds show up, the invented family starts to fall apart, and the lies that held the group together begin to come out in public.

Theme

TrustThe group refuses David's pitch until he begs, because his earlier betrayal cost him their trust.
LiesThe fake family the group built starts to collapse the moment outsiders appear and questions begin.

Listen for

  • get out of here — elision
  • the four of us — liaison
  • get on my knees — flap
  • hot dog down a hallway — flap
It's a good thing I'm wearing my begging pants.

David's joke as he kneels, turning a humiliating apology into a bit.

How do we trust you?

The group's core objection, the line that sums up why money alone will not win them back.

No! No, we're drug smugglers. There's a difference.

A defensive correction that is funny because the difference barely exists to anyone else.

Rose isn't my mom, she's not my sister. We're not a real family.

The confession that breaks the cover story, admitting the whole family was an act.

It's like throwing a hot dog down a hallway.

An absurd, crude comparison used for comic effect while the adults overshare.

Questions about this scene

Why does David come back for the others?

He finds the solo drive boring and realizes he needs the group to finish the job. He turns the RV around and tries to talk them into coming home and splitting the money.

Why don't the others trust David?

He misled them and then left them behind, so they no longer believe his promises. Their question, how they can trust him, is what forces him to beg.

Why does David kneel and beg?

It is his last move to win them back, and he plays it for comedy with the joke about his begging pants. The others agree only after he humbles himself.

What happens when the Fitzgeralds arrive?

They show up looking for the same event, and the fake family starts to unravel. Kenny blurts out that they are not related, and the truth about the smuggling comes out.

We're the Millers · 21 chapters

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