had to for past obligation
Get in. I had to find fireworks.Zodiac · 2007 — Chapter 1 of 30 · 5'06" · B1
Darlene Ferrin's Last Drive, Explained: creep someone out
On the surface it is a Fourth of July drive, then an awkward stop and small talk. Underneath, a car has been tailing them, and the tension keeps breaking through: "You seem weird. Is everything okay?" The meeting ends in gunfire, and a phone call calmly reports the double murder.
What happens
A young couple spends the Fourth of July driving around and watching fireworks. A car follows them, and when they stop somewhere quiet, a man walks up. The encounter turns violent, and the film cuts to a caller who reports a double murder and gives directions to the scene.
Listen for
creep someone outthe Fourth of Julyreport a double murderworry about it
00:00 / 05:06Space play · ← → lines · R repeat
Now
Phrase of the scene
creep someone out
to make someone feel uneasy or frightened
戴琳和前夫在车里被陌生人盯上，事后她对同伴说 you really creeped us out，怪对方刚才那番举动把大家吓得发毛。
That empty house at the end of the street creeps me out.
Also in this scene
- the Fourth of July
the US Independence Day
- report a double murder
to tell the police that two people were killed
- worry about it
to keep feeling anxious about a problem
Everything marked in this scene
30 notes across 31 lines
Let me drive.Are you coming or not?alternative question with or not
Are you coming or not?It's too crowded.too + adjective
It's too crowded.Let's go someplace quiet.What are we doing?-You seem weird. Is everything okay? -Yeah, everything's fine.-You seem weird. Is everything okay? -Yeah, everything's fine.-I'm cold. -You're cold on the Fourth of July?liaison
-I'm cold. -You're cold on the Fourth of July?Fuck off and die!Shut up.Was that car at the drive-in?-Do you want me to tell him to leave? -Stay in the car.-Do you want me to tell him to leave? -Stay in the car.want someone to do something
-Do you want me to tell him to leave? -Stay in the car.weak form
-Do you want me to tell him to leave? -Stay in the car.Who was that, Darlene?to keep feeling anxious about a problem
Don't worry about it.-Don't tell me not to worry. Who was it? -It's nothing.negative infinitive
-Don't tell me not to worry. Who was it? -It's nothing.Oh, shit.to make someone feel uneasy or frightened
Man, you really creeped us out.liaison
Man, you really creeped us out.to tell the police that two people were killed
-Vallejo Police Department. -I want to report a double murder.May I for polite requests
May I have your name and where you are calling...If you go one mile east on CoIumbus Parkway,They were shot with a 9mm Luger.Darlene Ferrin's Last Drive, explained
What's really going on
The scene builds dread out of ordinary things. It starts as a holiday date, with fireworks and a car full of small talk, but the details keep pointing the wrong way: someone is cold in July, a strange car keeps appearing, and the mood turns when one of them asks, "You seem weird. Is everything okay?" The other keeps saying it is nothing. What makes it chilling is the calm—the couple argues about whether to worry, then they park, and the horror arrives without drama. The closing phone call states the facts with the same flat tone: a place, a car, a gun, a double murder. The ordinary voice is the scariest part.
Theme
Death & griefA holiday drive ends in a double murder, and the only trace left is a flat phone report.
LiesReassurances like "everything's fine" paper over the danger that the following car represents.
What you'll learn
- Use creep someone out for unease
- Hear don't worry about it as a shutdown
- Catch location and weapon in a police call
- Treat everything's fine as possible irony
Listen for
- on the Fourth of July — liaison
- Stay in the car — weak form
- creeped us out — liaison
They were shot with a 9mm Luger.The caller delivers the killing as plain fact, down to the weapon's caliber, which makes the report colder than it sounds.
I thought you were starving.A line of small exasperation: the couple's easy mood is already off, and the speaker notices the other isn't eating.
It's July. How many shirts are you wearing?A banal observation that hints something is wrong: dressing for cold in midsummer is an early sign of unease.
Was that car at the drive-in?The first spoken hint of the follower, turning a pleasant evening into something watched and unsafe.
Questions about this scene
Why does the couple think they are being followed?
They keep noticing the same car, first at the drive-in and then near them again, which is what turns the evening tense.
Who is the caller at the end?
A voice reports the double murder in a calm, factual tone, giving the location, the car, and the gun as if reading off details.
Why does one character keep saying nothing is wrong?
They deflect every question about the strange car, saying it is nothing, which only deepens the other person's worry.
Does anyone survive the attack?
The scene only shows the shooting and the report; the caller describes it as a double murder, so the outcome is presented as fatal.
Zodiac · 30 chapters
All chapters →
Up next · Chapter 2I wouldn't kid youThe Zodiac Confession Call
Watching · Chapter 1creep someone outDarlene Ferrin's Last Drive
Chapter 2I wouldn't kid youThe Zodiac Confession Call
Chapter 3shed light onZodiac's Cipher Reaches the Chronicle
Chapter 4get any ideasZodiac Attacks the Couple at the Lake
Chapter 5a hell of a get-upZodiac's Lake Berryessa Attack
Chapter 6flag a cabThe Presidio Cab Murder
Chapter 7did inZodiac Claims the Taxi Murder
Chapter 8skip townPolice Bicker Over the Zodiac Case
Chapter 9at a moment's noticeZodiac Calls the TV Talk Show
Chapter 10crack the codeBelli Tries to Catch the Zodiac
Chapter 11What's your angle?Graysmith Cracks the Zodiac Cipher
Chapter 12the more the merrierKathleen Johns Escapes the Zodiac
Chapter 13come out of the woodworkGraysmith Finds the Zodiac's Source
Chapter 14in my gutGraysmith Talks Zodiac on a Date
Chapter 15beat the bushesRiverside Investigators Compare Notes
Chapter 16lost in the shuffleThe Informant Describes Leigh Allen
Chapter 17the whole pointPolice Question Arthur Leigh Allen
Chapter 18greener pasturesPolice Question Leigh Allen's Mother
Chapter 19home turfPolice Build a Case Against Allen
Chapter 20tore out of herePolice Search Allen's Trailer
Chapter 21holding the bagBill Transfers Out of the Chronicle
Chapter 22fade into a footnoteGraysmith Pitches a Zodiac Book
Chapter 23yesterday's newsGraysmith Talks His Way In
Chapter 24more than just a coincidenceGraysmith Follows the Birthday Clue
Chapter 25tread lightlyGraysmith Chases Rick Marshall
Chapter 26blow overThe Letter That Framed Toschi
Chapter 27put yourself out thereGraysmith Chases the Case at Home
Chapter 28get it in your headGraysmith Meets the Theater Owner
Chapter 29the date that didn't endLinda Recalls the Painting Party
Chapter 30cancel each other outRobert Confronts Dave About AllenChapter 1 of 30 · about 147 min to go