VERGER

Clarice Starling : 

How did he end up 

at Your House?

Mason Verger : 

I invited him of course... 

to my pied-à-terre. 

I came to the door in my 

nicest come-hither outfit. 

I was concerned... that 

he'd be afraid of me. 

But he didn't seem to be.
Afraid of me. That's 

almost funny now.

Mason Verger : 

I showed him my toys, my noose 

set-up, among other things - 

it's where you sort of hang yourself, 

but not really -- It feels good 

while you, uh... well, you know. 

Anyway, he said "Mason,"...

Hannibal Lecter : 

Mason, would you 

like a popper?

Mason Verger : 

And I said, "WOULD I..?! Oh WOW! 

Once that kicked in I was flying... 

He said "Mason, Show Me How You Smile 

to gain The Confidence of A Child." 

I smiled, and he said 

"Oh, I see How You Do It."

[In flashback, Mason kicks 

out a full-length mirror] 

Mason Verger : 

The good Doctor approached me with 

a piece of broken mirror. "Try this,"

Hannibal Lecter : 

Try peeling off your face...

Mason Verger : 

"... and feeding it to the dogs."

[In the flashback, Mason does so, 

still laughing hysterically] 

Hannibal Lecter : 

No, I can still see it. 

Try again! No, 

I'm afraid not...

Mason Verger : 

That's entertainment!

[dissolve to The Present] 

Mason Verger : 

Ah, it seemed like 

a good idea at the time.

MASON VERGER :

 Cordell, to you, does that look like a wave 

‘Goodbye’, or ‘Hello’? 

So, What Do You Think? 

Does Lecter wanna fuck her, 

or kill her, or eat her, or what? 

CORDELL: 

Probably all three, 

though I wouldn't wanna 

predict in what order. 

[VERGER CHUCKLES] 

VERGER :

Here's What I Think — 

No matter how Barney might wanna romanticise it, 

or make it 

"Beauty and the Beast" -- 

Lecter's Object, 

as I know from personal experience, 

has always been 

degradation and suffering. 

Yes, but She is A Policeman —

You are a Pig.

As was Richard of Gloucester —Swine.

She’s a bold and plucky chaste and righteous  champion-protector of The Weak and defender of The Innocent —

You’re a cruel and boastful sado-masochistic  billionaire pervert and Rapist of Children —

Mason Verger doesn’t seem to understand how that makes the two of them any different as people in Lecter’s eyes...

Cordell, get this damn thing off me, 

I can't breathe in this thing. 

He comes in 

The Guise of A Mentor, 

as he did with me, and her, 

but it's distress that excites him. 

To draw him, she needs to be distressed. 

To make her attractive to him, 

let him see her distressed. 

Let The Damage He Sees suggest 

The Damage He Could Do. 

[ No, that’s not him, that’s you. ]

[SMACKING LIPS] 

[SLURPS] 

When The Fox hears The Rabbit scream, 

he comes a-running —

But not to help. 

KRENDLER: 

I don't understand. 

VERGER OVER PHONE: 

Well, there's nothing to understand, Paul. 

All you have to understand is 

What it's Worth to You. 

KRENDLER: 

No, no. 

I don't understand why she didn't turn this over. 

I mean, she's such a Straight Arrow. 

VERGER :

She didn't turn it over, 

Because she didn't receive it. 

She didn't receive it, 

Because it was never sent. 

It was never sent, 

Because Lecter didn't write it. 

He didn't write it, 

Because I did. 

KRENDLER: 

Oh! 

[LAUGHING]

VERGER :

So, what do you think? 

KRENDLER: 

I think you'd have been better off 

if you never got her out of 

Trouble in the first place. 

VERGER :

Oh, woulda, shoulda, coulda. 

I meant what do you think 

about The Money? 

KRENDLER: 

....Five. 

[LAUGHS] 

VERGER :

Oh, let's just toss it off, like, 

"Five." 

Let's Say it with 

The Respect it Deserves. 

KRENDLER: 

[ENUNCIATING] 

$500,000. 

VERGER :

That's better, but not much.

And will it work?

KRENDLER: 

It'll work.

It won't be pretty.

VERGER :

What ever is?

 

[CHUCKLES]

[DIAL TONE DRONING] 

Cocksucker