Person of Interest (TV Series)

No Good Deed (2012)

Michael Emerson: Harold Finch

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Quotes 

• Harold Finch : I've never regretted building the machine. But I didn't fully realize the personal cost. I'm good with computers. People; well, people other than Grace; have always been a mystery to me. I failed to recognize the lengths to which they would go to protect the machine, to control it. By the time I realized it, it was too late for me. But not for her. You see, Mr. Reese, if knowing about the machine is like a virus, that makes me patient zero. Simply being near me was putting her life in danger. I'm sorry. I was lucky. I had four years of Happiness. Some people only get four days.

• Harold Finch : You're right, Mr. Reese... it's a three-man team!

  John Reese : [Shoots one]  Two and a half.

• John Reese : Time to see what our spy does at night. And so far... not much.

  Harold Finch : Not everyone's a social butterfly, Mr. Reese. For some of us, human interaction is... difficult.

  John Reese : Not calling it human interaction might help...

• Harold Finch : I'm surprised, Mr. Reese. That nice young lady seemed somehow impervious to your charms.

  John Reese : That "nice young lady" had a .45 pointed at me under her desk!

• Nathan Ingram : Everything's in place. Point-to-point transit will take ten days

  Harold Finch : Hope nothing goes wrong in the rest of the world in ten days.

  [Harold goes to shut off the machine] 

  Nathan Ingram : Wait. Do we have a contingency?

  Harold Finch : A contingency?

  Nathan Ingram : Alicia seemed... nervous. Now, what do we do if the government decides to abuse this thing?

  Harold Finch : They're your contacts, Nathan.

  Nathan Ingram : They're just people. The power that this thing represents - I mean, who would you trust it with?

  Harold Finch : Besides you? No one. Which is why the machine has been coded in such a way that it *cannot* be abused. It cannot even be accessed. It upgrades itself, maintains itself, patches itself. After tonight, no one can alter it. Ever.

  Nathan Ingram : I used to be a software engineer, Harold. Remember, back before I became your corporate beard? Any system can be compromised, given enough time. We need an off switch, a back door, and this is our last chance to build one.

  Harold Finch : You are a talented engineer, Nathan, so you should remember: Any exploit is a total exploit. The tiniest crack becomes a flood. If we build a back door into this machine and someone else finds out about it, that would be... Very bad. We need to trust the machine, exactly as we built it, and then let it go.

• Harold Finch : The answer to your question is yes. It exists. And it's watching us right now. I'm telling you this because you remind me a little of myself. And I know that, if I were you, I would keep asking until I knew the truth. So now you do. Now stop asking the question.

  Henry L. Peck : Where is it? How does it work? I mean, the servers alone...

  Harold Finch : I know how you feel. Your need to understand. But believe me, Mr. Peck, this is a mystery you do not want to solve. Knowing the answer has cost me something I value more than my own life.

  [Hands him a folder] 

  Harold Finch : Clean passport, plane tickets, a bank card to a well-funded account in your new name. Please, Mr. Peck, for your own sake, and quite frankly, for mine, go and live your life. Find some secrets of your own. And if you really need a mystery, I recommend the human heart.

  Henry L. Peck : How do you know all this?

  Harold Finch : Because I built it.

• Harold Finch : [Reviewing Peck's data]  ... Are you following me?

  John Reese : [Looking up from his book]  Financial analyst. Its riveting...

  Harold Finch : They can't all be babies and mafia dons!

• Harold Finch : If something ever happens, I have... a contingency.

  John Reese : Well, sooner or later, you're going to have to let the cat out of the bag, Finch.

  Harold Finch : Curiosity kills cats, Mr. Reese.

• Harold Finch : Mr. Reese is everything alright?

  [There's a loud crash as Reese flips an assailant over a table] 

  Harold Finch : I'll take that as a "No."

• Nathan Ingram : [about the Machine]  Thought you would have turned this thing off by now. We turn it over tomorrow.

  Harold Finch : I'm keeping it online as long as possible.

  Nathan Ingram : The world has been spinning for 5 billion years without your machine, Harold. I'm sure it will be fine for one more night. Honestly, I'll be glad to be rid of the thing.

  Harold Finch : This "thing" has already saved countless lives.

  Nathan Ingram : You mean countless *relevant* lives.

  Harold Finch : We had to draw the line somewhere.

  Nathan Ingram : Everyone is relevant to someone.

• Harold Finch : I suppose we can count our blessings Detective Fusco isn't the inquisitive type, but Peck's in more danger than ever.

  Henry L. Peck : [as Reese breaks into a parked taxi]  Seriously, who the hell *are* you?

  Harold Finch : All Henry Peck did was ask questions. He deserves a normal life. And if we have any hope of giving it to him, we have to destroy all that evidence and stop him from getting any more.

  Henry L. Peck : [dials his cell phone]  Yes, my name is Henry Peck. I'm an analyst with...

  John Reese : [grabs it]  Who'd you just call?

  Henry L. Peck : The Office of Special Counsel, the agency that protects whistleblowers.

  Harold Finch : Oh, I really wish you hadn't let him do that, Mr. Reese. The people who know about the Machine - one of them works for the Office of Special Counsel!

  Henry L. Peck : [Reese throws Peck's phone out the window]  What are you doing? Our own government is spying on us and they want to kill me to cover it up. I have to tell someone!

  John Reese : The people you called aren't who you think they are. There's no one to tell.

• Harold Finch : So far, the most unusual thing about Henry Peck is that he has better-than-average security habits. I haven't been able to hack his voicemail, his email, or any online accounts.

  John Reese : Secretive, solitary. He's just like you, Finch. So how did you get his number?

  Harold Finch : Well, John... there's this machine...!

• John Reese : This isn't over, Finch. The man wrote 78 pages to fight a speeding ticket.

  Harold Finch : I know. He's not gonna give up. And neither are the people who know about the machine.

  John Reese : So what the hell are we gonna do?

  Harold Finch : A good friend once showed me that, even with an intractable problem, one can still find a way to do the right thing.

• John Reese : So Peck asks about your machine, and now someone's trying to kill him. Something you want to tell me, Finch?

  Harold Finch : As with all computer systems, the big problem is human error. Strictly speaking, the machine is not legal. I always knew that certain measures would be taken to protect it, but...

  [pause] 

  Harold Finch : But as I found out myself, the people I've entrusted it to are more... Ruthless than I anticipated.

• John Reese : This isn't a financial firm. It's a SCIF.

  Harold Finch : Sensitive compartmented information facility. Secret government installation designed to protect classified data.

  John Reese : Peck's no financial analyst either. He's a NOC, some kind of spy

  Harold Finch : And you thought he didn't have a life.