Technology has just about
taken over everything in the world today.
But no matter how computerized and mechanized things get,
people are still the most important part of any operation...
and the weakest link.
Dave Edwards was a computer engineer
working for a company involved with the Phoenix Foundation
on a top-secret government project.
When a routine security check showed
he was spending a lot more money than his job paid,
it raised suspicions
that Edwards was smuggling information from work.
I'd been following him to find out who he was selling to.
My high-living young protégé
seems to have grown a tail, Harrill.
Do we burn the drop, Mr. Sanborn?
No, no, no, no, we've come too close.
With this delivery, we'll have all the components of the RAINS unit.
Tell Kreese to send Edwards to the secondary drop.
Then you dispose of our unwanted guest.
Hi. Would you like to dance?
- Hi. - Hi.
Kreese, use the emergency signal.
We've got a crasher.
Hello, David.
Papillon.
What went wrong? I saw the emergency signal.
You went wrong. You were careless.
The butterfly.
Give it to me... now.
Call the police.
Using a Brazilian butterfly to pass secrets.
Whoever we're dealing with sure has a flair for the dramatic.
There it is.
Micro-transparency.
Even the lab didn't get this till the second pass.
And what exactly did they find?
Well, let's take a look.
Oh, no.
What?
These are the schematics for the RAINS satellite linkage system.
But even these are useless
without the schematics from the other three companies.
Well, maybe they've already got them.
You're right.
We've got to notify Colonel Collins right away.
Yeah, you know, I've got some questions
I need answered about this operation.
MacGyver, I know all this secrecy bothers you,
but the military has put this RAINS project...
- Pass, please? - ...on a strictly need-to-know basis.
Well, I need to know why some guy was killed last night.
Oh, hi, Dad.
Here's all that data you wanted.
I also made a PERT chart for scheduling deliveries.
Oh, great.
So, Michael, the old man got you working weekends, huh?
I appreciate your giving up your Sunday.
Well, as long as I can catch that Laker-Celtics game this afternoon.
Well, I hope you haven't bet too much on this one.
Me?
Never.
- Hey, see you around. - Yeah.
It's good to see you two getting along.
Yeah. Putting him to work here is the best thing I ever did.
We've seen more of each other this year
than all the time he was growing up.
Well, I guess what they say is true.
It's never too late.
Excuse me, young man.
I'm in a hurry, mister.
Yes, but uh, didn't we meet in Paris last winter?
I never travel overseas before April.
Ah, but it doesn't get warm until May.
You've kept up with your homework.
Excellent.
Papillon.
I-I don't get it.
David said I was never supposed to meet you.
Ah, I'm afraid I have some rather sad news for you, my boy.
David is dead.
I'm sorry to give you this news. I know how close you two were.
I can't believe it. He was like my big brother.
I know, I know.
We've been friends since school.
What happened?
Well, he got careless.
He stepped into a trap...
and got shot trying to escape.
Shot? By who?
FBI, CIA,
NSC, DXS -- who knows?
It's all the same alphabet soup.
The really important thing here is the operation.
You've got to run that now.
Me?
You want me to be in charge? You don't even know me.
I know all about you, Chas.
I know where you live. I know where you work.
I even know who you sleep with.
And I have always known that you'd be the one
to take Dave's place should the occasion arrive.
And that time has come now.
I-I don't know if I'm ready for all this.
Nobody was supposed to get hurt.
And no one else will.
All we need to finish our mission
is that final set of schematics.
By the way, when you deliver them,
I'm going to see that your share is doubled.
It's up to you now.
You're not going to let us down, Chas?
Somehow, Edwards got the specs
of the satellite linkage before it left Teldar Systems.
Now, our problem is that we don't know
whether any other schematics were stolen from Webber,
Macroflex, or Vectorcomp.
This is exactly the kind of thing we were trying to prevent.
This is a disaster.
The entire RAINS operation could be compromised.
Just what is this operation?
The details are classified. Strictly need-to-know.
Yeah, I've heard that before, colonel, and right now, I need to know.
The Phoenix Foundation was contracted to assemble
the RAINS unit and maintain security.
Anything beyond that doesn't concern you.
I think it does.
Somebody was killed last night.
- MacGyver... - I mean it, Pete.
I got to know whether this involves something I can sleep with.
What can't you "sleep with," Mr. MacGyver?
Shady, hip-pocket political scams, for one.
RAINS is not in that category. You can take my word for it.
Sorry.
Not good enough.
I'm out of here.
- He can't quit. - Yes, he can.
Then replace him.
He's the best man we have.
MacGyver! Hold it.
Okay.
You win.
RAINS is an acronym
for Remote Air Identification Neutralizing System.
It picks up enemy radar signals
and transmits the frequency to a satellite,
which sends out a wave pattern that disrupts the signals.
Which makes any plane virtually invisible.
Well, what kind of operation is this gonna be used on?
In a minute.
Thornton, how many people have access to the RAINS assembly room?
Only myself and the lab chief have pass cards.
The magnetic combination is changed every morning at random.
How often is this room swept for bugs?
Every morning.
And the RAINS unit here is gonna be used
on a highly sensitive mission.
You two never heard what I'm about to say.
Our intelligence suspects
a hostile country is building a biochemical warfare factory.
The DXS wants to use the RAINS unit
to get a recon jet through their radar
and shoot some pictures before Wednesday.
What happens on Wednesday?
We expose the plant to the United Nations Security Council,
which could save thousands of people from an agonizing death.
Now, is that nonpolitical enough for you?
Dave Edwards dead.
I can't believe it.
Neither can I.
I don't care what Papillon says.
I got into this to pay off my condo, not to get shot.
None of us did.
But we have to finish the job.
Finish the job?
We'll be lucky if the job doesn't finish us.
If they found Dave, they can find us.
Look, Papillon put me in charge.
We start by covering Dave's trail.
Dump everything that could link him to us.
Right. That's a start.
So, how do we get the satellite linkage for RAINS out of Teldar?
We don't have to.
The Phoenix Foundation has it now.
Isn't that right, Thornton?
You got it.
- Ah. How's it going, Michael? - Hi.
Any luck?
Oh, I've been at it since 7:30 this morning.
This is all I got.
What is it?
It's what's left of Teldar Systems' file on Dave Edwards.
I'd be willing to bet someone got into their mainframe, planted a virus,
and wiped out his whole history.
A virus?
When is somebody gonna come up with a computer vaccine?
It's an epidemic.
We're all at the mercy of these hackers.
Oh, these are no hackers, Pete.
This is professional sabotage.
Well, where do we go from here?
Edwards worked at State University before he went over to Teldar.
I have asked the registrar to send over his file.
Okay.
Let me know what you find.
Seven... eight...
nine...
ten.
We got it all worked out.
Courtesy of Papillon.
A few snapshots of those satellite linkage schematics,
and we'll all be set for life.
I can't just waltz into the security lab.
I've already told you guys. It takes a special pass card.
Show him, Simon.
Here. Move over.
Nine-volt battery.
Card with a blank strip, and bingo.
You've got an instant copy of any magnetic code you want.
I've already used it to boost a couple credit cards.
Works like a charm.
I've already told you guys.
There are only two in the entire building.
Now, how am I supposed to get my hands
on a pass card to copy?
What are fathers for?
Oh, you're good.
Who is?
Well, whoever broke into Teldar's system
must have hit Edwards' university file, too.
Well, what's this?
It's the access number to Edwards' personnel file.
The number keeps changing.
Are you telling me
we can't access any information on Dave Edwards?
That's about it.
It's these computers, I'm telling you.
Give me the good old days when we still had paper, books.
That's a good idea, Pete. Good one.
Yes, I'd like the number for the State University Library, please.
Library!
Yeah, that was a good idea.
Stick with it.
Hey, Dad?
You got a minute?
For you, I've got a minute.
Come on in.
Now, what's up?
Well, I wanted to get your opinion on something.
Yeah? What's that?
Oh, wow.
Oh, that's beautiful.
Uh-huh.
Well, I've always been partial to cashmere.
I know.
That's why I got it in your size.
- What? - Now, you remember you told me
not to bet too much on that Lakers-Celtics game.
Well, as usual, I didn't listen to you...
Michael...
But for once, I was right.
So, I decided to cut you in on the winnings.
No, you're not giving me this.
Dad, please.
Let me do this for you.
Look, I can't even consider taking that.
It's... It's too much.
Well, then consider it a payment on that loan you gave me in college.
That was not a debt.
A father is supposed to educate his children, all right?
I was happy to do that.
And aren't sons allowed to show their appreciation?
Now, come on. At least try it on.
Now, stop it. I don't know what to do with you.
I don't know what to say.
Well, don't say anything until you see how great it looks on you.
Well...
All right, just for a second.
Okay.
Oh, boy.
Oh.
Sure feels good.
Uh-huh.
Well, I, uh...
I might as well see what it looks like, hmm?
Oh, Michael!
It is beautiful.
But it's too much.
Who says a guy can't splurge on his dad once in a while, huh?
I'll say this for you: you're persistent.
You know, it's really great having you work here.
I mean, even if it's only passing in the hall, it's, uh...
it's nice to know you're around.
I feel the same way, too, Dad.
We didn't really get to do a lot of father-and-son stuff at home, did we?
At home?
I was never at home.
Not enough to be a real father.
Or a husband, for that matter.
I guess I did screw it up, being a father, but, uh,
maybe we could make it as friends now.
What do you think?
I'd like that.
Me, too.
Well, what do you think?
Maybe I'll go out on the town. Sweep a few ladies off their feet.
I think you're dynamite.
Listen, I'd better get back to the salt mines.
Hey, well, now, don't go.
Hey, time's money.
Kids.
Hi.
Find anything at the library?
Yeah, I think I got something.
You seen Michael?
Seen him?
Cashmere.
He cleaned up at Sunday's game.
Decided to share his wealth with the old man.
Go on. Feel it.
- Michael gave you this? - Yeah.
Really something, huh?
So, what did you dig up at the library?
Well, I went through the old yearbooks,
and I found out that Edwards set up the campus computer club
back in '83.
I...
ran a cross search...
with the members of the club
against the personnel files of the four RAINS companies
and Phoenix.
Well, did you find a connection?
Yeah.
Five of the members of the club work
for companies involved with the RAINS components.
David Edwards was with Teldar.
Alex Percy with Webber,
Charles Gordon at Macroflex,
Simon Fletcher, Vectorcomp.
Well, who's the fifth?
No.
No, not Michael.
It can't be.
MacGyver, there's got to be some mistake.
He wouldn't be involved in anything like this.
I'm his father!
He just gave me that jacket.
Was Mike ever alone with this jacket?
So who is it, kid? The Soviets?
A little glasnost gift for your comrades?
Why, Michael, why?!
The price was right.
This isn't about money, is it?
Yes.
At first, anyway.
All I had to do was tell them
when the RAINS components were being shipped to Phoenix.
So they'd know when the designs were ready to be ripped off.
And delivered to whom?
To Dave Edwards.
Until your people killed him.
Michael, I was there.
If anyone shot him, it was his contact.
Papillon woul...
Papillon?
That's French for butterfly.
And that's what we found on Dave Edwards.
All right, kid. Who is this Papillon?
I don't know.
I want some answers, now!
I told you I don't know. I've never met him.
Will you let me handle this?!
Oh, sure, Thornton!
You've done one hell of a job so far.
All right, will everybody just settle down?!
Now Papillon wants the plans to the RAINS satellite linkage.
I say we give it to him.
In person.
You mean... use Michael to draw him out in the open?
A trap.
And I'm the bait? No way.
I really don't see that you have much choice, son.
I can't do it.
Michael, you're the only one who can do it.
And you will.
Because it's the only way you're gonna avoid
spending the rest of your life in jail.
No! No, damn it!
No deals.
If Michael is going to help us clean this up...
it's gonna be because he wants to do the right thing.
And because he has to be responsible for what he's done.
Michael...
When were you supposed to deliver the film to your contact?
Tonight.
At the health club.
All right.
Put a wire on him.
But he doesn't leave this room until we leave for the drop.
Michael...
maybe you did it for the money.
Maybe it was because you wanted to hurt me.
But what I don't understand
is how you lost the ability to know right from wrong.
Is there a right and a wrong anymore, Dad?
The world you operated in wasn't black and white.
You told me you operated in the gray area all your life.
I... what I did I did within the law!
I did it for my country!
Come on, Pete. Let's go.
You're late.
I'm here.
Excuse us.
- Got the film? - I said I would, didn't I?
Great.
Papillon needs it by 2:00 or none of us will get paid.
He'll get it... as soon as we renegotiate my cut.
What are you talking about? This is a done deal.
That was before I had to do Dave Edwards' job.
- I'm in charge here. - Not anymore.
If you were, you'd know this stuff is worth
ten or 20 times what Papillon is paying us.
Papillon is not going to renegotiate.
He will if he wants the schematics for that satellite linkage.
Oh, man, I never thought you'd be the one
to pull a stunt like this.
Hey... we're the ones taking all the risks here.
We should be the ones who clean up.
What if I cut you in?
Give you a share of my take?
Papillon never has to know.
He'd never buy it.
He doesn't have a choice, does he?
It's supply and demand, babe.
We're the ones with the supply,
we're the ones who'll make the demands.
Simple free enterprise.
I don't know...
Look, I'll tell him.
Make the offer myself.
That way, there's no heat on you.
When and where?
South wing of the Regis Shopping Mall tomorrow at noon.
You tell Papillon not to be late.
Every one is a perfect specimen.
Aren't they lovely?
I wouldn't trade my collection for a Picasso.
Now, when I put you in charge,
I expected you to control your operatives,
not them to control you.
I never thought Michael would turn on us like this.
He's holding the goods.
Well, if our young friend insists,
we have no choice but to oblige.
Tell him that I agree to this meeting on his terms.
You can't be serious.
I have clients coming at 2:00 to take delivery
on the schematics of all four components.
Disappointing them could be hazardous to my health.
So is walking into a trap.
Yes, and that's why you're going to attend the meeting in my place.
Young Thornton will assume that he is Papillon.
That way, we minimize the risks
and maximize the likelihood of success.
And you, my boy... your loyalty is duly noted.
You're going to be rewarded.
Now Mr. Harrill will go along with you.
When you obtain the film,
he'll bring both of you back here.
And I think you should be moving now.
Hans, a moment, please.
Do you think it is a trap?
When our young friends give you the film
I want you to use this on them.
It fires prussic acid.
It's a deadly gas.
One whiff and they'll drop like flies.
Now by the time the fuss is all sorted out,
you and Harrill will be on your way back here with the microfilm.
Just remember...
get it up, very close...
Have you any idea what that is worth?
Don't touch it!
- Mr. Sanborn, I'm sorry... - No matter.
But... since you seem a little clumsy today,
I'll load this myself.
This is sodium thiosulphate.
The antidote.
Swallow it after you fire the gas.
After all,
we wouldn't want you dropping dead, would we?
Okay, hurry up.
We're just about set to go.
Maintain your position.
Target should be arriving in five minutes.
We'll send your boy out in two.
Understood.
It all started out so simple.
Nobody was supposed to get hurt.
It was cloak and dagger, a game.
It's just like Dad used to play.
It was no game, Michael.
No matter how you try to rationalize it,
you sold out your country,
and everything your father believes in.
You hurt him.
How do you hurt a stranger?
Okay.
So Pete's not some kind of Norman Rockwell super-dad.
And maybe he wasn't there 24 hours a day
whenever you needed him.
But that doesn't mean he didn't love you.
Better get out there, kid.
The moment this is in Papillon's hands,
we'll move in.
Scared?
A little.
You should be.
You just hand off the film. Let us do the rest.
Got it.
You brought it?
Where's Papillon?
Right over there. With the newspaper.
That's Papillon?
Find him.
Got him.
Oh, no!
He's got a gun. It's a set-up!
Get out of the way!
No, Michael!
Out of here! Move!
Dad!
Hey, Pete?
Pete, what happened?
Pete, what's the matter?
He's dead.
What?
You smell that?
Almonds.
Oh, my God.
Prussic gas, a poison.
Old KGB trick.
Smells like almonds.
Makes an assassination look like a heart attack.
Call an ambulance.
There's no time.
What are you talking about?
Works too fast. There's nothing we can do.
No, there's got to be.
Prussic gas is a form of cyanide.
Sodium thiosulphate will neutralize it.
Sure.
Where the hell are you gonna find that in the next two minutes?
Stay with him.
Medical emergency. I need some photo fixer.
Get him up.
Come on, Pete. Drink.
Come on. Drink.
That tastes terrible!
Welcome back.
Michael! Where's Michael?
They got him, Pete.
Well, things didn't go exactly as planned,
but we can't argue with the results.
Excellent.
Oh, I trust Mr. Kreese took his medicine as planned?
He did.
Good fellow.
He always did follow orders.
Papillon, what is this?
Figure it out, Chas.
If he didn't need the other guy, he certainly doesn't need us.
He's got what he wants.
For your sake, I hope so.
My customers should be here in less than an hour.
Watch them while I process the film.
Gentlemen... take a seat.
You know, Pete, you really should be taking it easy.
Yeah, sure.
Well, what about our friend here?
Well, there was no wallet on the body, no ID at all.
Looks like cyanide poisoning.
Yeah? I thought he took a pill before I went out.
Another KGB trick.
Probably was told it was an antidote for prussic acid.
What's that?
"P. Sarpedon m"?
Code?
Well, Sarpedon was a warrior in ancient Troy.
Other than that, I...
Wait a minute.
Well, come on. Have you got something?
Well, species of butterflies
are named after characters in Greek mythology.
"P" stands for papilio,
the genus, sarpedon, is the species,
and "m" the gender, male.
This is a name tag to a butterfly collection.
Listen, this Papillon is obviously into butterflies.
Maybe he's a collector.
I mean, it all fits.
So we know he likes butterflies.
So what? Where does that get us?
Well, butterfly collectors subscribe to journals,
lepidopterist magazines, stuff like that.
Right! Have your people trace the subscribers
to every butterfly magazine they can find,
and then cross-reference that with the DXS. Come on.
The film is genuine.
My clients will be very pleased.
Oh, there's some shovels in the cellar. Go get them.
Got an address?
Good work.
They came up with 19 possible names.
One of 'em practically set off all the bells and whistles.
Robert Sanborn.
Sanborn?
Who's he?
He wasa naval attaché stationed in Europe.
Up until they suspected him of selling
classified information to the highest bidder.
Yeah, he resigned, but they never proved a thing.
Well, where do we find him?
He has a country place about 15 minutes out of town.
The federal boys are working on the paperwork now.
Paperwork?
We need search warrants.
We can't make a move without authorization.
Yes, we can.
We're talking about my son's life.
I trusted you.
Oh, trust is such a worthless commodity.
Now, security -- that's priceless.
And I've determined that the best way to ensure mine
is for you two never to be seen again.
Here they are.
Shall we take a stroll in the woods?
After you.
Keep going, boys, down there towards the lake.
We're not too late.
Yet.
Hold it.
Looks like they're expecting company.
That's a chopper pad.
So now what?
I think we stand a better chance if we can split 'em up.
Think you can make your way through the woods
without being spotted?
Yeah, sure.
Where are you gonna be?
I'm gonna try and break up their party,
draw one of them down there.
Turn to our left there, boys.
Okay, that's far enough.
Now, boys, I have one last little chore for you.
Dig.
Dig!
Right on time.
Red light.
Something's wrong. Better hang back a minute.
Where's he going?
Something's wrong.
Something must have scared him off.
Take care of these two.
Forget the digging.
They'll never find you out here.
On your knees, both of you.
Please. Please don't.
Freeze! Drop it!
Now! Drop it!
Hey!
Give...
Drop it! I said drop it now!
It's too hot for me.
We're out of here.
I think you just missed your flight.
Pete...
you about ready to go?
Ready as I'll ever be, I guess.
Pete...
a parent can only take so much responsibility.
I wish it was that simple.
I think we're all responsible.
And I think some of us, maybe a lot of us,
have been sending out the wrong signals.
I guess we'd better go.
Oh, yeah.
So did your lawyer talk to the prosecutor?
Yeah. He said my cooperating
could help get me a reduced sentence,
but I'm still gonna have to serve time.
I'm scared, Dad.
I know.
Me, too.
Michael, do you remember what I said about being friends?
Well, that still goes.
And friends stand by each other...
through everything.
I'm your friend.
Come on. Let's go, son.