A scene from Born on the Fourth of July 1989
Mrs. Kovic

What happened in that war? What happened to you? You need help, Ronnie, you need help.

Ron Kovic

No, you need help! All your God and your bullshit dreams about me!

Mrs. Kovic

You'll wake the whole neighborhood. [She starts telling the other children to go to bed]

Ron Kovic

YOU ARE ASHAMED OF ME! You're EMBARRASSED by me.

Tommy Kovic

Please, Mom, let me talk to him.

Mrs. Kovic

You go to bed!

Ron Kovic

**** YOU!

Mr. Kovic

Don't you talk to your mother like that!

Mrs. Kovic

What did you say to me?! [Comes back to Ron's room, enraged] WHAT DID YOU SAY TO ME?? [Smacks Ron's face a couple of times and leaves; Ron strolls after her]

Ron Kovic

**** YOU!!!

Mr. Kovic

Ronnie, that's ENOUGH!

Mrs. Kovic

You're gonna wake the whole neighborhood!

Ron Kovic

OH, WAKE 'EM UP! TELL THEM! CUSACKS, CAMELLETTIS, WALSHES!! You tell them all! Tell them what they did to me. What they did to this country.

Mrs. Kovic

[To Mr. Kovic]

They're gonna call the police this time

Ron Kovic

We went to Vietnam to stop communism!... We shot women and children!

Mrs. Kovic

You didn't shoot women and children! What are you saying?

Ron Kovic

That was the war, communism, the insidious evil! They told us to go.

Mrs. Kovic

Yes, yes that's what they told us.

Ron Kovic

Thou shalt not kill, Mom. Thou shalt not kill women and children! Thou shalt not kill! Remember? Isn't that what you taught us? Isn't that what they taught us?

Mrs. Kovic

Stop it! Stop it!

Ron Kovic

But they're the evil, Mom. They're the ones we should be fighting. They lied to me growing up, they lied to all of us, but it's not gonna work anymore. Not for you... for me... for anybody else.

Mrs. Kovic

Stop it, stop it! As long as you're in this house, you will not talk that way. Eli, please stop him.

Mr. Kovic

Ron, come on now... you made your point, now stop.

Ron Kovic

No, I haven't made my point. Tell her, Dad. They're killing everybody now.

Mrs. Kovic

I didn't force you to go!!

Ron Kovic

YES, YOU DID! YES, YOU DID!!! It's all falling apart, Mom! King. Kennedy. Kent State. We all lost the war, Mom. **** Communism won! It's all for nothing!

Mrs. Kovic

That is not true, Ronnie.

Ron Kovic

What do you know, Ma? WHAT DO YOU KNOW?!?

Tommy Kovic

Ron.

Ron Kovic

What? Tell her, Tommy. You tell her, Dad! Tell her it's all a lie! It's a **** lie! Tell her God's as dead as my legs. There's no God and there's no country. It's just me... and this **** wheelchair for the rest... of my life. [Unzips his pants and sticks his hand in] It's just me and this... dead... penis.

Mrs. Kovic

[Hysterically disgusted]

OH MY GOD! RONNIE!!

Mr. Kovic

Don't, Ronnie! Not with the catheter! For God sake!

Ron Kovic

DEAD... PENIS!

Mrs. Kovic

Oh, GOD! Eli, I can't take this anymore.

Mr. Kovic

[Notices the children]

Go to your rooms. Go to your ROOMS!

Mrs. Kovic

[To Ron]

THE HELL WITH YOU!!!

Ron Kovic

In church they said that it's a sin if you play with your penis, I wish I could.

Mrs. Kovic

Don't say "penis" in this house!

Ron Kovic

Penis!

Mrs. Kovic

Stop!

Ron Kovic

Penis! Big **** erect penis, MA!

Mrs. Kovic

STOOOOOOP!!

Ron Kovic

PENIS! PENIIIIIIIIIS!!!

Mrs. Kovic

[Praying in tears]

Lord, he won't let go, what do I do?

Ron Kovic

I really don't have time to learn to use it. It's gone in some jungle. Some **** jungle over there. It's just gone. [Notices his mother sits down crying, and he, too, is in tears] I'm sorry it happened this way. I'm sorry if you're sad, Mom. [Softens] I'm so sorry you're sad. I'm sorry.

In this scene

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