Hi peeps!
This is a short screenplay I wrote a while ago for an assignment when I was in uni, taking a theater and film course. It was inspired by the poem What They Want, by Bukowski. Enjoy (I hope)!
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“WHAT THEY WANT”
FADE IN:
INT. CORNER OF A DARK CAFE – NIGHT
The sound of music sets in, whilst there is a close-up of Peter in the dark of a café. We see different parts of him: first, his fingers, steady, bringing the cigarette up high. Then his mouth, an arrogant grin whilst taking a drag. Finally, his cold, bright eyes, cool, but somewhat off. His eyes focus and then his glance turns serious. We see the half-smoked cigarette gets thrown away. As soon as the cigarette hits the ground, the music stops and we get a view of the person sitting opposite of him, who is mostly hidden in the dark of the café.
MAN #1
So, tell me, how is your artwork coming along?
PETER
Hm. It's fine, I guess, haven't seen it in a while now. Busy with the other stuff.
MAN #1
I really do think you should let go of your paranoia, focus on your work again. If it's what you love, maybe it'll give you some peace.
PETER
We've been over this already. You told me you'd tell me.
MAN #1
Hush, hush. Don't start panicking on me now.
PETER
I'm not. I just can't stand you bullshitting me around like this. You know this, come on.
Man #1 leans forward across the table and we see his old, dreary face, a bleak light crossing his features. For a minute he seems to consider Peter in silence, then draws back into the shadows.
MAN #1
Calm down, son, I still don't understand why you keep on doing this, this digging into nothing, really. Nothing to do about the whole thing, if you ask me.
PETER
Well then it's my fucking lucky day, 'cause I'm not asking you, now am I?
MAN #1
Right, thanks for clearing that up so gently.
Another moment of silence, then a sigh and Man #1 resumes speaking, now in a much colder tone.
MAN #1 (CONT'D)
You're seeing ghosts, there is nothing there. Really, no big plan to bring down all the major artists. Get over it already.
The shot focuses on Peter, who shifts in his chair, making a move to get up, but then sitting down again. He lights a cigarette, takes one drag and throws it away. His expression is dark.
PETER
Right, no plan? You're saying that all those men died on their own, that they actually all killed themselves? Sure thing man, but I'm sure as hell not buying it. Go sell that crap to someone else. Something is going on and I'm going to get to the bottom of things.
Then there is a close-up of Peter wrist being grabbed and the skin of Man #1's arm is revealed. We get a close-up of a tattoo, before we see both of them again. Peter's eye is obviously drawn to the tattoo and he seems frozen for a while, whilst Man #1 slowly lets go of Peter's wrist.
MAN #1
Just saying that you should stick to your own business, if you know what's best for you.
After this we see Peter get up and leave the café in a hurry. He makes his way through the dark, crowded area, bumps into some strangers and enters the streets, half stumbling, where twilight has set in. We get a last close-up of his young, troubled face and see how his face fades and the window of the café in the background becomes clear. A single figure behind it stirs.
EXT. DIRTY ALLEY – DAY
We see a figure entering the narrow alleyway, his shoulders hanging low and one hand tugged deep into his pocket, while smoking a cigarette with the other. It's Peter, wandering the streets of the city. He keeps on walking for a while, but comes to a standstill next to a bookshop that is somewhat unnoticeable at first, hidden as it is between the other buildings. He drops the half-smoked cigarette, and takes a quick look around the alley, before going in.
INT. OLD BOOKSHOP – DAY
The interior of the bookshop is old and faded: the colours are bland and the furniture is ragged. There is an overall feel of obscurity and the place appears abandoned. The bookcases are stacked up high, filled with old, heavy books.
PETER
Hello?
No one answers and Peter starts to look through several books, very absently flipping the pages. Finally he stops at something that catches his eye: a book with yellowed pages and a newspaper article hidden between the pages with the heading: 'DOSTOEVSKY: loss of a genius'. We see his fingers trace the picture below the headline. There is a close-up of the picture, on which we see a figure standing against a wall, a gun pointed at him. The shot closes in on a blurry figure on the side, who's hand is giving orders. The movement of the camera stops: a clear picture of the same sort of tattoo is to be seen on the mans right bare arm.
Peter appears to be shocked and drops the book, after which a soft thump is heard. We see him picking up the book and getting back up again, when all of a sudden an old woman appears next to him. We see the two of them in one frame, Peter surprised at her presence and the old woman with a sweet smile. He hands over the book, without speaking.
OLD WOMAN
Are you looking for anything in particular, dear?
PETER
No, I was just browsing.
The old woman starts to wander off, holding the book, when it catches Peter's eye again.
PETER (CONT'D)
Wait! Actually, could you perhaps tell me something about the symbol in the picture? Yes, that one, the one on his arm.. Do you know what it stands for?
The old woman hesitates, takes a quick look around the shop, afraid almost. She speaks very quickly, but in a low voice. Peter leans in, looking at several things she starts pulling of the racks.
OLD WOMAN
Listen, I should not be telling you this, but it is the symbol of the Illuminati.
PETER
The what?
OLD WOMAN
The Illuminati. I can not tell you much, as almost everything about them is kept secret, but the word goes that everything behind the screens is controlled by them. That they are the ones who dominate the world to gain a new world order.
We see Peter is stunned, then the old woman smiles.
OLD WOMAN (CONT'D)
Funny, I never noticed the symbol on his arm. But if I were you, I would let it go, it is all just mumbo jumbo, made up by crazy folks.
The old woman walks away, but we see that Peter is not calmed down and starts going over the article again. Another shot that closes in on the picture and the symbol in it, while music sets in.
Suddenly, Peter hears a sound from the other side of the shop. He looks over and sees two tall men in dark suits talking to the old woman, who seems confused. We see her pointing at Peter, when all of them turn their heads to face him. In a split second Peter stuffs the article in his pocket and bolts. We see the two man shout at him, but then quickly start to follow him, as he runs outside.
EXT. DARK ALLEY – NIGHT.
We see Peter running through the alley, as two dark figures burst into the alley as well, following him. There is a lot of incomprehensible shouting behind him and he starts stumbling as he glances around to get a better look at the two men following him. Then he picks himself up and makes his way out of the alley, across the busy street. He almost runs into a car, but is able to get to the other side of the street just before all the cars start moving again.
Peter manages to get a cab, which he gets into. He then takes one last look at the two men. As the cab drives off, we see one of the men holding up his right hand, the symbol visible again. The music dies down.
INT. STUDY ROOM – NIGHT.
The room we see is dark, only lit by a single, faint light coming from the corner of the room. The flickering casts a weak light on the rest of the room and we see some empty canvas and a lot of mess. In the corner of the room where the light comes from there is a figure leaning over some paperwork, vigorously going through them, now and again mumbling something. It is Peter. He leans back, lights up a cigarette, takes a drag, but then puts it out and throws it away. It ends up on a small pile of other half smoked cigarettes. Slowly, music begins to play in the background.
Then the camera closes in on what Peter is doing and, from looking over his shoulder, we see all kinds of articles on the Illuminati and the deaths of several artists. Everywhere the symbol appears.
Peter goes through his routine of lighting a cigarette and then throwing it away again, while growing more and more restless: he is shifting in his chair and going through his hair with rough movements.
All of a sudden he sits back, his hands behind his head, and his eyes closed. The screen goes black and dissolves into a daydream Peter is having about things that have happened in the past.
PETER (V.O.)
Then, all of a sudden, I could see them; In my mind, I could see them all. Chatterton taking rat poison-
We see a group of men surrounding a corpse, that is lying on a bed. It is a very old-fashioned image, dating from somewhere around the late 18th century. The crowd is taking precautions and adjusting the body, after which one man drops a dark substance right next to the dead body. The image on his arm is visible.
PETER (V.O. CONT'D)
Pascal cutting his wrists in the bathtub-
Now we shift from the corpse on the bed to a corpse in bath. His wrists are cut, the water is turning more and more red, while a group of men around the corpse are mumbling. One of them throws the blooded knife he is holding to the ground, right next to the tub. Again, the symbol on his arm is visible.
PETER (V.O. CONT'D)
Crane jumping into a boat propeller-
The scene shifts to a boat, drifting on a deserted lake. At the end of the boat we see a man, backing up from the small crowd of men in front of him. Finally one of them reaches out, the symbol visible, and pushes him right into the boat propeller. Blood splashes everywhere and darkens the water.
PETER (V.O. CONT'D)
Even Dostoevsky stood up against the wall.
Lastly, we see the article from the newspaper Peter found in the bookshop, with focus on the man and the symbol on his arm. The image comes to life and we see how the man orders to shoot Dostoevsky. He then draws back and disappears in the crowd.
The screen goes black and turns back to Peter again. He opens his eyes, gets up, grabs his coat and leaves the room. Music stops.
PETER (V.O. CONT'D)
But those fucked up so called suicides or tragic murders never did make sense and I was never the one to sit back and believe the lies that the masses were fed. I am not the one to sit back and wait, wait until someone is next.
EXT. STREETS – NIGHT.
Peter is roaming the streets, hiding in the collar of his coat and the dark of the night. He passes some happy couples, people dancing and laughing, drunk, and some shops. It's clear that he doesn't know where here is headed or what he is doing, as he sometimes stops and looks around to see where he has gotten himself, then continues walking in no clear direction.
At a certain point along the road he stops and focuses on the window of a shop. We see a flyer hanging on the inside, with a piece of artwork and the heading 'IN MEMORIAL: HIS MOST FAMOUS WORKS' across it. Peter steps forward and takes a good look at it. His eyes widen and he starts backing up. Then he starts running in another direction.
EXT. RAGGED UP TELEPHONE CELL – NIGHT.
We see Peter frantically looking around, whilst picking up the phone in the booth and dialing a number. On the fifth ring, someone answers in a confused, half-asleep voice.
JACK
(into phone)
Hello?
PETER
(into phone)
Jack! It's me, Peter. I need to talk to you right now.
JACK
(into phone)
For fucks sake, Peter, it's like 5 am.
PETER
(into phone)
Hell, Jack, somethings going on, I'm telling you, they've found me. My art- they took it! It's on display- they stole it!
JACK
(into phone)
Peter, calm down, please. I can not understand you like this.
PETER
(into phone)
I'm telling you Jack, they took my work and now they're out to get me. I'm next! I have to go into hiding, no way around it. Those fucking bastards took my art, Jack!
JACK
(into phone)
Peter, stop this. Don't do this again. We-
PETER
(into phone)
But before I go into hiding, I have to go get my work. That's what I'm going to do, Jack. I'll call you when everything's set and done.
JACK
(into phone)
Peter, do-
PETER
(hangs up)
As soon as Peter hangs up, he leaves the booth and determinately starts walking down the street.
INT. ARTGALLERY – DAY.
It is the next morning and we get a view of a typical art gallery: fancy, lots of fancy, white walls and a lot of fancy people walking around. On the walls we see several very famous and well known art pieces.
We then get a shot of Peter, who is wandering in a different section, glancing now and again at brightly coloured, abstract paintings. He has deep, dark circles under his eyes and his hair is a mess, forming a contrast with the rest of the audience and drawing their attention.
From a distance Peter is being watched by two dark figures: the same men from earlier on. They lurk in the background, while Peter approaches a painting. He is studying it intensely, right before leaping forward and trying to take it off the wall. Around him, people are yelling, surprised at the action, and Peter's eye is drawn to the two tall men. He appears frightened when seeing them and forgets the painting, while bolting to the exit of the building.
We then see several fractured shots, where we see Peter running; the two men following him; the three of them exiting the building, on to the busy streets in full daylight, blinding the camera's view. Then, a lot of screaming, and, with the return of the image, Peter getting hit by a car and everything going black.
INT. SMALL, WHITE ROOM IN A PSYCHIATRIC HOSPITAL – DAY.
Bit by bit the room starts taking shape: first, there is an overall whiteness, like bright daylight, then forms gradually start taking shape. The white, basic interior in the white room: only a bed and a chair in the corner of the room. Then the window up high opposite of our point of view, where some weak light comes through. Finally, the door, where a tall figure enters from. He is wearing a simple, long, white coat and is carrying a sort of notebook.
We then see Peter, on the bed, waking up. He appears lost and confused. As the camera zooms out, we see him struggling in a straitjacket and him panicking as soon as he finds out what he's in.
DOCTOR
Ah Mr. Jones, glad to see you've woken up.
For a minute, Peter appears too confused to react, then he starts panicking, trying to get away from his straitjacket.
PETER
What the hell am I doing here? Why am I in this thing?
DOCTOR
How sad, Mr. Jones, that we have to go through this again.
PETER
Go through what?
We see the doctor lowering his glasses and, with a sad look on his face, shaking his head.
DOCTOR
We've been treating you all this time: when you first came here, you were under the illusion that you were the greatest artist alive and that some organization tried to steal your art and kill you. You then got hit by a car and have been here ever since. Unfortunately, ever since the accident you have been having problems with your memory.
PETER
No-
DOCTOR
You've been here for two years, Peter.
We then see Peter shaking his head, but less and less convinced of his own sanity.
PETER
No, no, I AM an artist, I-
DOCTOR
Oh Peter, you are not an artist. All you've ever left behind is a big, empty canvas. There is nothing there, Peter.
In a short flash we see Peter's room, the big white canvas in there, and then we switch back to Peter, his anxiety clear. He still struggles a bit with the straitjacket, but his face expression is blank.
After that the doctor leaves the room and multiple others enter, taking tests and talking to each other in hushed voices. We see Peter sitting in the corner, still on the bed, not moving and almost in a trance-like state.
All of a sudden, Peter's eye shifts towards one of the men near him, checking the straitjacket. As he reaches for Peter, we see the symbol on his lower right arm. Their eyes meet and the man immediately draws back.
The scene shifts to the empty canvas.
PETER (V.O.)
That's what they want: a God damned show, a lit billboard in the middle of hell. That's what they want, that bunch of dull, inarticulate, safe, dreary admirers of carnivals.
Peter lets out a cold laugh.
The screen turns black and music starts.