HENRY FOOL
Written by
Hal Hartley
SHOOTING DRAFT
EXT. JUNK YARD -- DAY
A garbage truck roars by and...
Simon Grim hangs from the back of it. He is a shy, skinny
and terrified-looking guy around thirty years old.
The truck rumbles to a halt and Simon climbs down off it to
go punch out at the time clock.
EXT. BEHIND THE WORLD OF DONUTS -- DAY
Moments later.
He comes walking up a small alley and sits to drink his beer.
He begins to relax. This is his quality private time.
Then he hears something and looks up.
He peeks up over the edge of some junked kitchen appliances
and sees...
Two teenage kids -- Warren and Amy -- smoking crack and having
sex.
Simon looks on, intrigued, as Warren smokes, then...
WARREN
(to Amy)
You want some?
Amy takes the pipe and smokes as he feels her up.
Simon is fascinated. He drinks and looks on as...
Amy grins up foolishly at Warren and lowers the pipe. The
boy undoes his belt and hikes up the girl's skirt.
Simon can't believe this. He looks around to see if the coast
is clear, then returns just in time to see...
Warren takes Amy by the waist and enter her.
The pipe falls from the young girl's hand.
Warren throws his head back and grinds himself into her.
Simon's mouth falls open in awe.
But Amy tosses her head back to the side and sees...
The amazed garbage man; caught.
Amy starts screaming insanely.
Simon runs for his life.
Amy and Warren throw rocks and bottles at him as they chase
him away.
INT. THE GRIM HOUSE -- DAY
Moments later.
Simon runs up and throws open the screen door. He stands
there in the doorway catching his breath.
His sister, Fay, is at the kitchen table watching a small
portable TV while their mother, Mary, sits a few feet away
in the living-room watching another TV tuned to a different
channel.
FAY
(to Simon)
Where the hell have you been?
(to Mary)
Mom, come on and eat.
MARY
I'm not hungry.
FAY
(pissed)
Then why'd I cook!
Mary is a manic-depressive, still in her bathrobe at six in
the evening.
MARY
I don't know why you cooked! I don't
know why you bother!
Fay holds her head in her hands and sighs. She glares at her
brother.
FAY
Sit down and eat, Simon.
Simon sits at the table and Fay slams down before him a bowl
of some sort of gruel. He hesitates, then lifts his spoon.
Supper is horrible and he screws up his face in disgust. Fay
gives him a sideways glance and he leans back down over the
bowl and eats some more.
Pushing the bowl away gently, he reaches out for the container
of milk on the table and drinks straight from it.
He suddenly jumps back and spits out sour milk all over the
table. The container drops to the floor and thick globs of
cheese roll out.
He stands back against the fridge, holding his stomach
while...
Fay and Mary look on in disgust.
EXT. THE GRIM HOUSE -- DAY
Moments later.
Simon crosses the lawn and sits on the curb outside his house.
He stares at the ground before him as he holds his stomach
and spits, sickened.
He looks up, though, and sees...
A little seven-year-old girl -- Pearl age seven -- standing
there in the street watching him.
Simon tries to smile at her.
But she throws a rock at him and hits him in the head.
He falls forward, hurt, as the little girl runs away. Lowering
his hand, he sees he's bleeding. Desperate, lonely and ill,
he drags his bloodied fingers across the coarse pavement.
Fay slams out of the side door of the house in a tight-fitting
dress and stands on the lawn, applying lipstick.
FAY
God, I wanna get fucked.
Fay snaps shut her compact, straightens her skirt and sighs.
FAY
You OK?
Simon loses track of what he is hearing and relaxes. He looks
back at his sister.
Fay fluffs out her hair and walks off.
FAY
See ya later.
Simon watches her go, but is still drawn to something he
seems to hear up the street in the other direction. He cocks
his head, sits perfectly still and listens.
He hears it now. We do, too. Footsteps. Big ones. Like a
giant somewhere in the distance. The neighborhood trembles.
Titles begin.
Simon tries to figure out where it's coming from; the sky,
the house, the highway at the end of his block... Finally,
he focuses on...
The blacktop right before him, smeared with his own blood.
Music starts.
He kneels out slowly into the street and stares at the
pavement. He stretches out his hand and places it flat on
the road. The pounding is louder now, becoming the beat of
the music over the scene.
Simon lowers his face to the pavement, closes his eyes and...
Puts his ear right down against the road. He hears...
The steady tread of somebody very much larger than life.
Kneeling forward, with his ear to the ground, Simon opens
his eyes and sees...
A man approaching. The music swells up full.
Simon lifts his head slowly from the road, looking off in
wonder at...
This stranger coming towards him; an oddly handsome freak
striding over the crest of the distant intersection with a
windswept mane, two over-stuffed suitcases and a crumpled
tie fluttering back over his broad but crooked shoulders.
Simon rises till he's kneeling up straight in the road.
Henry Fool finally reaches him and stops.
Titles finish.
Simon says nothing and watches as Henry looks off at the
house.
Satisfied, but wary, Henry Fool looks around the neighborhood
and then down at Simon.
HENRY
Get up off your knees.
He tosses the suitcases down in front of Simon and walks off
towards his new home.
EXT. BACK OF THE GRIM HOUSE -- DAY
Henry comes around behind the house and finds the door to
his basement apartment. He approaches. Simon follows, carrying
the suitcases.
INT. HENRY'S APARTMENT -- DAY
Moments later.
The door is wrenched open and Henry is hit square in the jaw
by a decade of dank airless gloom. He coughs.
Entering, he finds a few old wooden chairs littering the
main room. He inspects the old wood stove, then takes a chair
and smashes it. He tosses the wood in the stove.
Simon looks on, amazed. Henry lights a fire with unusually
quick results, then stands back and looks at Simon.
HENRY
Where you gotta go to get a six-pack
of beer around here?
INT. WORLD OF DONUTS -- DAY
This is a convenience store with a number of tables at which
to eat donuts.
Warren is shoplifting while Amy terrorizes Gnoc Deng, the
Vietnamese cashier, who stares out at them from behind the
safety of the counter.
AMY
Say something.
WARREN
(calling)
She's mute.
AMY
What?
WARREN
She don't -- you know -- talk.
Amy looks back at Gnoc, snarls, then follows the cashier's
gaze to the door.
Simon enters. Clutching Henry's cash, he stops dead in his
tracks when he sees...
Warren and Amy.
He steps forward and approaches the beer cooler.
Warren and Amy hover around, just out of reach, like a couple
of vampires.
Dragging a six-pack out of the cooler, Simon crosses to the
counter. Warren and Amy hang back, silent and threatening.
Gnoc rings up the purchase and glances over at...
Amy, staring a hole into the side of Simon's skull.
Gnoc hands Simon back his change and he makes for the door,
but...
Warren shoves himself between it and Simon.
Simon freezes. Warren is expressionless. Simon looks back at
Amy. She turns away, reaches up under her skirt, jerks down
her panties, then leans forward on to the counter. Leering
back over her shoulder, she hisses...
AMY
Kiss my ass.
Simon is nonplussed.
Gnoc presses a button on the wall that sets...
A red light flashing above the stockroom door.
Warren grabs Simon by the neck and drags him over to Amy's
bare behind. Amy laughs as Simon is forced to his knees and
has his face shoved up right into the crack of her ass.
But then... Simon throws up all over her.
Warren falls back in disgust.
Gnoc covers her face with her hands.
Amy looks around at herself, realizes, and starts screaming
bloody murder.
Simon falls back on to the floor, clutching his stomach, as
Amy staggers around with her vomit-strewn underwear down
around her ankles.
Then Gnoc's father, Mr Deng, appears at the stockroom door
holding a shovel and ready to fight.
WARREN
(scared)
Oh, shit!
Mr Deng comes running at them and Warren drags Amy from the
store. Simon crawls out of the way as the old man throws
open the door to the parking lot and screams at the retreating
delinquents...
MR DENG
(in Vietnamese)
Stay the hell out of my store, you
good-for-nothing punks!
Having scared them off, he comes back in and starts screaming
at Simon.
MR DENG
Look at this! What's going on here?
Simon, get up off the floor! Is this
beer paid for?
INT. HENRY'S APARTMENT -- NIGHT
Later.
Simon splashes water over his face at the kitchen sink, then
watches as Henry unpacks one of his suitcases. It is filled
with dozens of old, worn notebooks. Henry stacks them on the
mantelpiece over the fireplace; the fire is now crackling
and bright.
Simon steps over and looks at...
The name tag on the other suitcase: 'Henry Fool'.
HENRY
(off-screen)
Centuries ago it had an 'e' at the
end.
Simon looks over and sees...
Henry's silhouette against the fire. He steps forward into
the light and grabs a beer from the six-pack on the floor.
He hands one to Simon.
Simon takes it and stares at it a moment before raising his
eyes to Henry.
SIMON
Where do you come from?
HENRY
Nowhere in particular.
He winks at Simon, then struts around the room, hugely
impressed with himself.
HENRY
I go where I will and I do what I
must.
(stops, drinks)
That's why I'm in trouble. I'm sort've
what you might call... 'in exile'.
SIMON
Why are you in trouble?
HENRY
(stopping)
An honest man is always in trouble,
Simon. Remember that.
Simon comes away from the fire, watching him carefully. Henry
stands in a dim corner across the room.
SIMON
How do you know my name?
Henry pauses, looks aside, drinks, then grins demoniacally.
He steps forward and comes face to face with Simon. He lifts
his finger and points to...
Simon's name stitched upon the breast of his work shirt.
Realizing this, Simon moves off and thinks.
Henry throws more wood on the fire, glancing back over his
shoulder, laughing mischievously.
SIMON
(stopping him)
I am not retarded.
HENRY
(pauses)
Well... I'll take your word for that.
SIMON
(explaining)
People. I mean. They think. You know.
Because.
He tries to articulate what he thinks he feels but winds up
gesticulating curiously with his hands. This finally dissolves
into a dumb stare into empty space.
HENRY
I see.
Simon looks at him. Henry stands and grabs a notebook from
off the mantelpiece. He tears out a few pages and shoves
them in his pocket. He hands the now fresh writing tablet to
Simon.
HENRY
Here. Take this. And...
He searches his pockets and finds a pencil.
HENRY
...this. Keep them with you at all
times. You ever feel like you got
something to say and you can't get
it out, stop and write it down. OK?
Simon hesitates, then accepts the gifts. Henry goes for
another beer while his new friend studies the dozens of
notebooks on the mantelpiece.
SIMON
What are these?
HENRY
(proudly, returning)
This? This is my life's work. My
memoirs. My 'Confession'.
SIMON
(carefully)
What have you done?
Henry drinks and looks down into the raging fire.
HENRY
(wistfully)
I've been bad. Repeatedly.
(shrugs and steps
away)
But why brag? The details of my
exploits are only a pretext for a
far more expansive consideration of
general truths.
(contemplating the
notebooks)
What is this? It's a philosophy. A
poetics. A politics, if you will. A
literature of protest. A novel of
ideas. A pornographic magazine of
truly comic-book proportions. It is,
in the end, whatever the hell I want
it to be. And when I'm through with
it, it's gunna blow a hole this wide
straight through the world's own
idea of itself!
He smokes. Simon is impressed. They hear a bottle smash
outside in the street and Henry goes to the window. They're
throwing bottles at the house.
HENRY
(throwing down his
cigarette)
Come on, let's go break their arms!
Simon jumps up.
SIMON
No!
Henry stops. Simon looks away and sits back down.
SIMON
(pauses)
If I'm quiet.
He is ashamed of himself.
Henry sees this and settles down. He considers his new friend
with genuine care as he gets himself a new cigarette. He
lights up, thinks, then grabs another chair and sits close
by Simon. They sit there in silence a while, then...
HENRY
Once. I forget where I was. Central
America maybe. Somewhere hot. Stupid
job. Bad pay. Dangerous location and
water so foul the natives wouldn't
even piss in it. This crowd of drunken
motherfuckers hired by the local
drug cartel shows up at my hotel
room and threatens to tear me limb
from limb. And I say, listen, hombres,
OK, you've got me outnumbered four
to one and you're gunna kill me here
tonight and not a soul in this dimly
lit world is ever gunna notice I'm
gone. Fine. But one of you... one of
you... one of you is gunna have his
eye torn out. Period. Silence. I
repeat myself. One of you poor,
underpaid jerks is gunna have an eye
ripped out of its socket. I promise.
It's a small thing, perhaps, all
things considered. But I will succeed.
Because it's the only thing I have
left to do in this world. So why
don't you just take a good look at
one another one last time and think
it over for a few minutes more.
(smokes, waits)
They sober up a little, look at their
shoes in confusion, then step out
into the hall to talk among
themselves.
Henry stares into the flames and falls silent. Simon is
riveted. He leans forward, on the edge of his seat...
SIMON
What happened?
HENRY
(winking)
Well, here I am, still, after all.
INT. THE GRIM HOUSE. UPSTAIRS -- NIGHT
Later that night.
Simon climbs the stairs and stops when he hears raunchy sex
from his sister's room. He stands outside her door and
listens.
MARY
(off)
Did you throw up all over some girl?
Simon looks up the hall and sees his mother in her room,
sitting on the edge of her bed, smoking. He approaches and
stands in her doorway.
MARY
They were throwing bottles at the
house.
Simon says nothing. He looks down at his feet.
MARY
(gesturing to Fay's
room)
She's got some ex-con in there she
met at the bar. Tattoos all over
himself and a big red bloated nose.
SIMON
Did you take your pills?
Now she says nothing. She smokes and looks away.
Simon steps into the bathroom and gets her medication. He
runs a glass of water and brings it in to her.
She swallows the pills and washes them back with water.
SIMON
You want me to tell her to be quiet?
She looks away, unconcerned and cynical.
MARY
What's the use? She might as well
get it while she can. She's not always
gunna have the ass she has now, you
know. That's just how life is.
She throws the blanket over herself and turns off the light.
Simon stands there in the dark.
INT. THE GRIM HOUSE KITCHEN -- NIGHT
Moments later.
Simon comes downstairs into the quiet, dark kitchen and sits
at the table. He listens to the traffic on the highway and
stares off into space. Finally, he takes the notebook Henry
gave him from his pocket and places it before him. But then
he just gazes off into the dim living-room and scratches his
head. Returning his attention to the notebook, he digs down
into his pocket and retrieves his short stub of pencil.
He opens the notebook and carefully flattens back the cover.
Lifting the pencil, he pauses and stares at the blank page.
Then, after more intense hesitation, he brings the pencil's
dull tip to the very top left edge of the page and begins
writing in a slow, laborious hand.
INT. THE GRIM HOUSE KITCHEN -- DAY
The next morning.
Henry barges in the kitchen door with two containers of coffee
and some jelly donuts. Simon jumps up from where he sits
asleep over his notebook at the table.
HENRY
Good morning, Simon! Glorious day,
huh? Here, have a donut. Can you
lend me twenty dollars?
Simon rubs the sleep from his eyes, blinks, disoriented and
reaches for his wallet.
HENRY
Thanks. Where's the library in the
scruffy little burgh?
SIMON
(handing him cash)
Down the highway about a mile and a
half and then make a left.
HENRY
Excellent! I'm polishing up the final
chapters of my 'Confession' and I
need a reasonably well-stocked
reference section.
He lifts up Simon's notebook.
HENRY
What's this?
Simon hesitates, shyly.
SIMON
I thought. Um. I was. I wanted to.
Maybe.
He gives up, sighs and gazes at the floor. Henry flips through
the book, impressed. It is full from cover to cover, every
page dense with Simon's cryptic scrawl. Henry frowns,
intrigued. Then...
HENRY
Can I take this?
Simon looks up, terrified. But his friend puts him at ease.
HENRY
I'll correct the spelling.
EXT. JUNK YARD -- DAY
Later that day.
Simon finds a number of volumes of the classics while crushing
garbage.
EXT. BEHIND WORLD OF DONUTS -- DAY
That evening.
Simon sits with his evening beer and his new collection of
soiled classics. He cracks open a volume of Shakespeare and
tries to read. It's an obvious struggle. He puts it aside
and lifts up Wordsworth, studying its cover and the texture
of the pages. A page flutters away and he climbs down to the
edge of a greasy puddle to retrieve it. It's now wet and
torn, so he flattens it out on the concrete and tries to fit
it back into the book.
He reads a little, furrowing his brow, then drinks. He bites
his lip and tries again.
He sits back, exhausted and thinks. He hears a twig snap and
looks back over his shoulder to see...
Amy throws a bottle at his head.
Smash!!!! He falls to the ground, blood streaming down his
neck.
Warren runs over and grabs him by the shirt, lifting him out
of the puddle and smacking him in the head.
Amy runs forward and waits with a rolled-up newspaper which
she sets aflame with her lighter.
Warren punches Simon in the stomach and throws him to the
ground, then unzips his fly and pisses on him.
Amy watches, giggling excitedly, waving the flaming torch.
Simon crawls away and grabs hold of an old section of fence,
while Warren zips up and grabs the fire from Amy.
Simon pulls himself to his knees, rests his face against the
rusted fence and gasps for breath. Warren waves the flaming
torch in his face.
SIMON
(weakly, unheard)
One of you is gunna lose an eye.
Amy comes nearer with a can of gasoline. Simon pulls himself
to his feet as she splashes him with fuel. Warren is waving
the torch deliriously above his head.
SIMON
(screaming)
One of you is gunna lose an eye!
Warren stops.
Amy steps back and lowers the gas can.
Simon turns with effort to face them, adjusts his glasses
and continues...
SIMON
One of you. I promise.
Warren watches him blankly, then is burned by the torch which
is too hot to handle. He drops it.
Amy giggles, then stops, excited, but confused.
Simon grips the rusted chainlink so that it cuts into his
hands and stares straight at Warren.
SIMON
You can set me on fire. But one of
you is gunna have an eye torn out of
your head. I promise.
Warren is transfixed. He shivers and looks at Amy, who steps
back, scared, and puts down the gas can. She turns and walks
away.
Warren looks back at Simon, troubled.
He hangs there still, glaring at him.
Further away, Warren rejoins Amy and stares at his hands.
Amy looks ill.
WARREN
Fuck.
AMY
Take me home.
INT. WORLD OF DONUTS -- DAY
Henry is at one of the tables, correcting the spelling in
Simon's notebook, when he looks up and sees...
Simon stumble in, beaten and bruised, dropping his classics
to the floor. Henry and Mr Deng rush over to him.
HENRY
(scared)
Simon! Who did this to you?
SIMON
I was gunna tear out their eyes. I
knew I could do it.
HENRY
Whose eyes?
SIMON
I told them. Like you said. I told
them. And I knew I could do it.
He passes out. Henry looks at Mr Deng.
MR DENG
You should take him home. He smells
like a toilet.
Henry nods, agreeing, then lifts Simon off the floor. Mr
Deng holds the door open as Henry carries his friend out
into the parking lot.
Meanwhile, Gnoc gathers up the classics from the floor and
places them beside Simon's notebook, where it still sits
open on the table. She looks at it, then reads. She lifts it
off the table and reads further, immediately and deeply
engrossed.
Mr Deng watches as Henry departs with Simon, then comes back
into the store and stops, startled, when he sees...
Gnoc sitting there, staring off into space, the notebook
open in her hands before her, singing quietly.
INT. THE GRIM HOUSE -- DAY
Twenty minutes later.
Fay is in the bathroom helping Simon out of his clothes,
trying to clean his wounds.
FAY
(calling)
Shit, Mom, we gotta get him to a
hospital!
SIMON
No!
FAY
Oh, shut up! Turn around.
Henry is at the kitchen table with Mary. She watches him
suspiciously. He lets her.
MARY
This kinda thing has happened before.
HENRY
(standing)
It won't happen again.
She watches him as he walks around the room, browsing.
MARY
How do you know?
He stops and lifts a small framed photo of a soldier off the
piano.
HENRY
This your husband?
Violated somehow, she gets up and snatches it out of his
hands. She puts it in a drawer and cringes as Henry plays
one note on the piano.
MARY
Stop that.
He fixes her with a steady, knowing stare which causes her
to gather the collar of her bathrobe up around her neck. She
steps back, exposed, when there's a knock at the door. They
look over to see...
Mr Deng enter with the notebook.
MR DENG
(nods to Mary, then)
Mr Fool, what is this?
HENRY
It's poetry.
MR DENG
Are you sure?
Henry comes over, takes the notebook from him and shoves it
in his pocket.
HENRY
Of course I'm sure. I corrected the
spelling myself.
MR DENG
It made my daughter sing.
HENRY
Yeah, well, you know -- that's what
poetry does.
MR DENG
But she has never spoken in her life.
Meanwhile, back in the bathroom...
SIMON
Owww!!!
FAY
Keep still!
SIMON
Let me do it!
FAY
(fed up)
Fine! You do it, Simon! I don't care!
She storms out to the top of the stairs, cocks her hip and
whines...
FAY
Mom! Simon's got a broken rib, his
shoulder's dislocated or something,
and he won't let me disinfect the
gash in his head!
MARY
Fay, just take him to the hospital,
will ya!
FAY
(stamping her foot)
But he won't go!
MARY
(screaming)
Simon Grim, you go to the hospital
with Fay right now, do hear me!
Simon reaches out and slams the bathroom door.
Fay looks from the bathroom door down the stairs to Mary.
Mary, her nerves rattled, glances over at Mr Deng, who turns
and leaves the house.
Henry lights a fresh cigarette, loosens his tie and heads
upstairs.
INT. THE GRIM HOUSE BATHROOM -- DAY
A moment later.
Henry throws open the door and enters. He steps over Simon,
who is on the floor, folded up against the toilet.
HENRY
We gotta talk.
Henry sits on the edge of the bathtub and takes the notebook
from his pocket.
HENRY
What the hell were you trying to do
when you wrote this thing?
Simon just looks at him, not certain what he means.
SIMON
Nothing.
HENRY
Well, you know you wrote it in a
kind of iambic pentameter.
SIMON
Iambic what?
HENRY
Verse.
He scratches his chin and smokes.
HENRY
Look, in my opinion, this is pretty
powerful stuff. Though your spelling
is Neanderthal, and your reasoning a
little naive, your instincts are
profound. But the whole thing needs
to be given a more cohesive shape.
It can be expanded. Followed through.
Unified.
(smokes, then)
You see what I'm getting at?
Simon just stares at him, overwhelmed. Henry drops the
notebook on the floor and points at it with his cigarette.
HENRY
Are you willing to commit yourself
to this? To really work on it? To
give it its due? In the face of
adversity and discouragement? To
rise to the challenge you yourself
have set?
Simon just blinks, looks away and wonders.
HENRY
And don't gimme that wonderstruck
'I'm-only-a-humble-garbage-man'
bullshit, either.
SIMON
It hurts to breathe.
HENRY
(nodding)
Of course it does.
Simon coughs and Henry leans back and smokes.
INT. THE GRIM HOUSE UPSTAIRS -- NIGHT
An hour later.
Fay cringes outside Simon's room as Henry goes about setting
her brother's arm.
SIMON
Like this?
HENRY
Yeah. No. OK?
SIMON
Wait!
HENRY
Don't move! Fuck. There.
SIMON
Are you sure that's right?
HENRY
Yes. Now shut up and lie back.
Simon does.
SIMON
Is this gunna hurt?
HENRY
Yes.
He pauses, then leans back.
HENRY
You gunna be alright?
Simon nods and stares at the ceiling. Henry hands him a towel.
HENRY
Here. Bite on this.
SIMON
(spots blood on it)
What's that?
HENRY
(looking)
It's blood. From your head. Lie back.
Shove that in your mouth and hold on
to something.
Simon bites down on the towel and grips the edge of the bed
with his free hand. Henry sits on his legs and gently raises
the broken arm.
Outside the door, Fay bites her knuckles. Further down the
hall, Mary listens from her bedroom.
HENRY
Okay. You ready?
Simon nods. Henry grabs hold of the arm, swallows and braces
himself. Simon waits, then Henry tugs the arm straight.
SIMON
Aaagghhh!!!!!!!
Fay turns and runs down the stairs. Mary backs away into her
room and shuts the door.
INT. THE GRIM HOUSE KITCHEN -- NIGHT
Later that night.
Henry comes downstairs and stops, tired. Fay is sitting at
the table with a bottle of gin and two glasses. She has dolled
herself up a little and Henry likes what he sees. He looks
her over and she smiles. He sits. She pours. They drink.
FAY
So, do you have, like, you know, a
girlfriend, Henry?
HENRY
No.
They drink again in silence. He lights her cigarette and
they watch each other closely. Finally, Fay leans on the
table and twirls a strand of her hair between her fingers.
FAY
Do you find me attractive?
HENRY
Yes, I do.
FAY
I look young for my age, don't I?
HENRY
How old are you?
FAY
How old do you think I am?
HENRY
You look young.
FAY
(playfully)
How young?
HENRY
I don't know. Young.
FAY
But how... I mean, do I look more
like twenty, or... you know, thirty?
He drinks and studies her. She presents her profile. Finally,
he leans back.
HENRY
Thirty.
Fay jumps up, furious.
FAY
Listen, you geek, after a couple of
drinks plenty of people mistake me
for eighteen!
She grabs her bag and storms out of the house. Henry watches
her go, then chuckles deviously and splashes himself another
drink.
EXT. WORLD OF DONUTS -- DAY
Next morning.
A thirty-year-old cocktail waitress named Vicky walks up and
stops when she sees...
Warren, sitting back against the side of World of Donuts,
smoking a joint and thinking about his future.
She sighs and approaches.
VICKY
Hey, Warren, are you a registered
voter?
WARREN
Bug off, Vicky!
Unruffled, she hands him a flyer.
WARREN
(reading)
'Saving America From Itself.' What
the fuck is this?
VICKY
It's everything you need to know
about the upcoming elections and
congressman Owen Feer and all the
really good things he wants to do
for our country.
He tokes deeply, then...
WARREN
Oh yeah, like what?
VICKY
He wants to win back this country
for us Americans, Warren, and restore
some kind of cultural-moral standard
to our way of life.
Warren looks over the flyer, then reconsiders Vicky.
WARREN
What time's your kid go off to school?
VICKY
(carefully)
Nine o'clock.
WARREN
How about I come over and visit you
later?
Vicky sighs, troubled. She adjusts her waitress uniform and
looks mildly offended.
VICKY
Well, I don't know, Warren. I mean...
Warren gets up, too.
WARREN
Come on. I mean it. I'm trying to
change.
Vicky is hard-pressed. She wants to believe him, but knows
better. She thinks about it while...
Henry passes by and approaches the store.
INT. WORLD OF DONUTS -- DAY
Same time.
Henry enters and takes Simon's notebook from his pocket. He
flips through a few pages and selects one in particular.
He tears it out of the book and tapes it up beside the
register so customers can read it. He winks at Gnoc. She
smiles shyly and makes him a coffee. He takes it and moves
off to a table just as...
Vicky enters. She starts accumulating groceries, placing
them on the counter one item at a time.
Henry settles down and watches as...
Vicky returns to the counter with a bottle of orange juice
and notices the poem. She reads, holding the orange juice
out to her side.
Gnoc starts to ring up the other purchases as her father
comes up behind her, busying himself with an inventory of
the cigarettes.
Vicky's lip starts to tremble as she reads, a horrified
expression clouding her face. Finally...
Smash!!!! She drops the bottle of orange juice and stands
back. Mr Deng and Gnoc jump back, alarmed.
Henry tilts his head and pays close attention.
VICKY
(screaming at Mr Deng)
How dare you put something like this
up where anyone can see it!
Mr Deng looks from her to the poem and then over at Henry.
Henry urges the man to stand up for himself.
MR DENG
(to Vicky)
It's poetry.
VICKY
It's pornography! The product of a
diseased mind! You oughta be ashamed
of yourself, Mr Deng!
MR DENG
It made Gnoc sing.
VICKY
(pauses, confused)
It's disgusting! There oughta be a
law or something!
She grabs her things and leaves. Mr Deng holds his head and
looks over at Henry.
HENRY
(winking)
There's no accounting for taste, is
there, Mr Deng?
Mr Deng has no idea. He sits, worried, as Gnoc comes out
from behind the counter and begins mopping up the mess.
INT. THE GRIM HOUSE KITCHEN - DAY
Later.
Henry is at the kitchen table with Simon, working on the
poem. Simon is bandaged up, his arm in a sling, black eyes,
etc.
HENRY
See, Simon, there are three kinds of
there. There's 'There'. T-H-E-R-E.
There are the donuts. Then there's T-
H-E-I-R; which is the possessive. It
is their donut. Then, finally, there's
'they're'. T-H-E-Y-'-R-E. A
contraction, meaning they are. They're
the donut people. Get it?
SIMON
Uh-huh.
Henry lifts up one of Simon's newly acquired classics...
HENRY
And look, if you're gunna read
Wordsworth you've gotta get a more
up-to-date edition. This odoriferous
tome you're so attached to doesn't
even have all fourteen books of the
Prelude. And you need notes.
Commentary. I'll go to the library
and find you the best edition they
have.
SIMON
Thank you, but that's OK. I'll stop
there on my way back from work. Well,
yes, maybe not today, but, you know,
tomorrow, probably.
HENRY
Quit.
SIMON
My job?
HENRY
Yeah.
SIMON
Why?
HENRY
You need time to write, Simon. To
study. To reflect.
SIMON
But I like my job.
HENRY
We all have to make sacrifices. A
vocation like ours, Simon, is not a
nine to five thing. You can't put a
fence around a man's soul. We think
and feel where and when we can think
and feel. We are the servants of our
muse and we toil where she commands.
Simon looks past him and Henry follows his gaze to find...
Mary standing at the foot of the stairs, listening to them.
She says nothing. She looks Henry up and down, then shakes
her head disdainfully and grunts. She throws herself on the
couch and turns on the TV, casting acid glances over at the
kitchen.
EXT. THE GRIM HOUSE - DAY
Moments later.
Henry and Simon come outside...
SIMON
She's clinically depressed.
HENRY
Yeah, and what's that mean?
SIMON
(thinking, then)
I guess it means it's not her fault.
Henry wanders out to the road, checking his wallet, then...
HENRY
(sighing)
You ever think of leaving?
SIMON
Here?
HENRY
Yeah.
SIMON
To go where?
HENRY
Out there. You know, into the world.
Where ever.
Simon looks off, thinks it over and slowly nods.
SIMON
Yeah, I guess.
HENRY
(reciting)
'Opportunity will step away and make
room for a man to pass it by.'
SIMON
Is that from your book?
HENRY
No. I found it in a fortune cookie.
He pulls the tiny piece of crumpled advice out from one of
his pockets and shows it to Simon.
SIMON
Can I read your confession?
HENRY
No. Not yet. Soon. We'll see.
SIMON
Is it almost finished?
HENRY
(puffing himself up)
Well, you know, Simon, a piece of
work like this, it's... A vocation
like ours... You can't put a fence
around a man's soul. What I'm trying
to achieve, it's... Well, it takes a
lifetime really. It's a life's work.
(looking around)
But soon. Don't worry. I'd appreciate
your feedback. I gotta go. See ya.
He hurries away around the corner. Simon walks back to the
house and stops when he sees...
A plain-clothes policeman, Officer Buñuel, drive up and park
before the house.
Simon spies as the man gets out of his car and knocks on
Henry's door. He, of course, gets no answer.
INT. THE GRIM HOUSE KITCHEN -- DAY
Later that day.
Simon works on his poem at the kitchen table while Fay flips
through a magazine and watches TV. Mary, lying on the couch
in her bathrobe, watches her own TV.
The cacophony is augmented by the rattling dishwasher and
the trucks rumbling by on the highway outside.
Mary looks over at her son, suspicious, and leans off the
couch.
MARY
What are you doing there, Simon?
He carefully finishes writing a word, then looks up and
pauses.
SIMON
I'm writing a poem.
Mary looks at Fay, who looks up from her magazine and
considers her brother. Then they break out laughing.
Simon looks on.
They laugh and laugh and laugh...
INT. WORLD OF DONUTS -- DAY
Later.
Simon is bent over his notebook, consulting a dictionary,
hard at work.
Amy and three kids are grouped around the register, reading
the page Henry taped up earlier. As they read, Amy glances
anxiously back at Simon.
They finish reading and stand back.
PAT
So what? It ain't so great.
CHRIS
(to Amy, of Simon)
That him?
Amy nods 'Yes', then leads them towards Simon.
Simon scribbles away.
AMY
(off)
Pardon me, Simon.
He looks up, sees her, panics and slides away on the seat.
Amy looks down and bites her lip, contrite. She sighs.
AMY
Uhm. Look, ah... I'm the editor of
the high school newspaper now and...
PAT
One of the editors.
AMY
One of the editors, and we...
PAT
You.
AMY
I... wanted to know if we could print
your poem in this month's issue.
Simon looks around at them all, threatened.
SIMON
Why?
AMY
Because I think it's great.
PAT
I don't.
CHRIS
(to Pat)
Who cares what you think?
TED
You're a drag.
CHRIS
A well-known drag.
AMY
(to Simon)
Please?
Simon fumbles with his pencil, ill at ease and self-conscious.
Then, to get rid of them, he nods his consent.
INT. THE GRIM HOUSE -- DAY
That evening.
Fay comes downstairs in only a towel and wet hair. She
switches on the TV and looks for cigarettes. She finds Mary's
pills on the table and remembers to ask...
FAY
Ma, you take your medication?
Mary is lying on the couch. She drags her eyes from the TV
and glances lazily at Fay, then back to the TV.
FAY
(to herself)
Guess so.
She sits at the kitchen table and lifts her magazine.
Henry shows up at the kitchen door with a pile of library
books. His eyes brighten when he sees...
Fay sitting there wearing only her towel. He knocks. She
looks back over her shoulder and sees him.
HENRY
Evening, Fay.
FAY
(disdainfully)
What do you want?
HENRY
I've got these books for Simon.
She turns away.
FAY
Well, leave 'em there on the counter,
then.
He comes in and stacks the books near the sink. Fay pretends
to ignore him, but rakes her fingers through her wet hair
anyway, to show more shoulder.
This is not lost on Henry, who tarries and leans back against
the counter, salivating.
Fay flips through her magazine and Henry steps closer and
leans against the fridge.
She casts a bored glance in his direction, then returns her
attention to the TV. She senses him step aside and follows
his movements without turning. Suddenly his hand appears
from behind her and gently strokes her hair. She freezes,
waits, wonders...
He leans his face down beside her. She looks at him. He looks
at her, then down to...
Her bare legs crossed before her on the kitchen chair. His
hand moves down and slides itself deep in between her things.
Her mouth drops open.
He looks back up at her. He grins.
Fay jumps up and away, breathlessly clutching the towel around
herself.
Henry casts a glance over her body, throws his hair back out
of his face and shivers with lust.
Fay steps back and grabs hold of the staircase banister,
making an unconvincing gesture of injured pride.
Henry comes closer and she steps backwards up the stairs.
He stops, loosens his tie, holding her with his gaze.
She readjusts her towel, throws back her wet hair, sighs
defiantly, then sashays into her room, leaving the door ajar.
Henry waits there at the foot of the stairs, reaches down,
grabs his crotch and repositions his hard-on. He takes a
step up the stairs, then stops. He looks over to the couch
and sees...
Mary, lying there, sedately amazed.
He pauses, then grins.
Mary blinks and smiles sleepily.
INT. WORLD OF DONUTS -- DAY
Same time.
Simon sits back from his writing and rubs his neck. Putting
down his pencil, he looks up and sees...
Warren enter the store and grab a beer from the cooler. Seeing
Simon, he waves and approaches.
WARREN
Hey, Simon, you a registered voter?
Simon hesitates, but then nods uncertainly. Warren hands him
a flyer. This year when you go to the polls, I want you to
consider Congressman Owen Feer. He wants to restore America
to its position of unmatched wealth, power and opportunity;
to revitalize American civilization and lead the human race
to even greater levels of freedom, prosperity and security!
He's a good man.
He steps over to the register and pays for his beer. Mr Deng
glares at him, distrustfully. Warren stops on his way out
and snarls at the old man...
WARREN
Immigrant.
He leaves. Simon looks down and studies the flyer.
INT. THE GRIM HOUSE. UPSTAIRS -- DAY
Same time.
Fay lies across her bed in her towel, holding a pose and
glancing anxiously back at the door. Finally, losing her
patience, she gets up.
FAY
Where is he?
She opens the door and looks out into the hall.
He's not there.
She steps out into the hall and listens.
FAY
Henry?
Nothing. She comes to the top of the stairs and hears faint
activity from down below. She proceeds downstairs.
She sees no one in the kitchen, then looks in the living-
room and stops. She goes white, her mouth falling open in
horror.
Henry and Mary are screwing one another on the couch. Sloppy,
impassioned, brute sex.
FAY
(screaming)
Mommy!!!!!
They fall away from each other in terror and fatigue. Mary
clutches wildly at her bathrobe as Henry falls over the coffee
table, stumbles to his feet and pulls up his trousers.
Fay is crushed. She breaks out in tears and runs upstairs.
Henry catches his breath and starts after her, but stops,
uncertain and confused.
MARY
You bastard!
HENRY
What?
MARY
Get out!
INT. WORLD OF DONUTS -- DAY
Simon is asleep with his head down on the table. He wakes
finally and sees...
Henry sitting across from him, gripping a beer and reading
the poem. He finishes, shuts the book and drinks.
HENRY
Listen. I know a man. He's a big
shot in the publishing business.
Angus James. Smart, adventurous and
tons of integrity. When this thing
is ready, I'll recommend he reads
it. He'll respect my opinion.
Simon takes this in, then looks down at his hands and proceeds
carefully.
SIMON
A man was here today looking for
you.
HENRY
(alert)
What man?
SIMON
I don't know. He drove by the house
a few times.
Henry throws his eyes heavenward and pulls his hair. Jumping
to his feet, he paces maniacally.
HENRY
Why do they torment me like this?
Why? They're like a bunch of fucking
mosquitoes!
A customer a few tables away gets nervous and leaves.
SIMON
What do they want from you?
HENRY
They want to suffocate me, Simon!
They wanna extinguish me like a flame!
Some kid named Tim, sitting at another table, turns around
and asks...
TIM
But why?
HENRY
They're afraid, that's why! They're
afraid of what I might do! What I
might say! Think! They're afraid of
my ideas!
He drinks, then returns and sits beside Simon.
HENRY
You and I are alike in this way,
Simon.
SIMON
Yeah?
HENRY
We're outsiders. We think and feel
too much and too deeply. And the
world can't handle that. Our mere
existence is a threat to its illusion
of security. Sure, they'll name a
wing of a new library after us when
we're dead! But now... Now, when
we're alive... Now, they wanna burn
us at the stake!
He drinks, burps, then slams down the can. He glances over
at Tim who is still looking on.
HENRY
Scram.
Tim hesitates, but then obeys. He gets up and leaves. Henry
returns to Simon.
HENRY
For example, I made love to your
mother about half an hour ago and
now I'm beginning to think that maybe
it wasn't such a good idea.
Simon blinks. Henry adds...
HENRY
I mean to say, I think Fay may be
jealous.
Simon is deeply confused. He looks ill. He stands and takes
a few steps away, staring at the floor.
SIMON
I don't want to think about this.
HENRY
Bad move, Simon.
Simon stops and looks at him.
HENRY
(pointing at him)
A poet has got to be able to think
about anything.
Simon pauses, then comes closer to Henry and stops.
SIMON
Am I really a poet?
Henry jumps up, strides around the store and speaks at the
top of his voice.
HENRY
Of course you are! A great poet! But
you need experience. You need to do
something to be ashamed of every
once in a while, for cryin' out loud.
He walks to the door.
HENRY
Come on! Let's go out! There's a den
of iniquity right across the street!
You got any money?
He strides out of the store.
Simon stands there, stunned and looks at Mr Deng as the old
man wipes off the table with a wet rag.
INT. THE INFERNO -- NIGHT
Later that night.
Henry is dancing wildly on the bar with two sloppy-drunk
topless dancers. The place is rocking and the crowd cheers
them on.
Simon sits perched on a stool, gripping the bar with white
knuckles and clutching a beer, looking on in terror as...
Henry starts stripping.
INT. THE GRIM HOUSE -- NIGHT
Later that night.
Simon stumbles in and heads upstairs. But he stops, seeing...
Mary, sitting on the top step, smoking. She looks guilty and
tense. So does Simon.
MARY
That man's a bad influence.
SIMON
On who?
She gets up and storms into her room.
INT. FAY'S ROOM -- NIGHT
Moments later.
Simon comes upstairs and stops outside his bedroom door when
he sees...
Fay, passed out drunk on her bed. Her clothes are half off
and her lipstick smeared. She still grips a bottle of tequila
in her hand.
Simon hesitates, but then goes in and removes her shoes. He
gets her out of her jacket and rolls her into the bed.
Her bare limbs have their effect on Simon and he finds himself
staring at her thigh.
He reaches out and almost caresses her leg where her hiked-
up skirt reveals the bottom of her behind. He catches himself,
snaps his hand away and covers Fay with a blanket.
He flees.
INT. SIMON'S ROOM -- NIGHT
Moments later.
Simon is alone in the room with his bed.
The pale sheets beckon.
He is flushed. He blinks.
INT. THE GRIM HOUSE KITCHEN -- NIGHT
Moments later.
He creeps down the stairs with an arm-load of books. Sitting
at the table, he wrenches a nearby lamp into a more useful
position and begins to read.
DISSOLVE TO:
INT. THE GRIM HOUSE -- DAY
The next morning.
Henry stumbles up the stoop carrying a laptop computer, its
various accessories and a couple of coffees.
He lets himself in and dumps the computer on the kitchen
counter.
Simon is asleep on the couch, still in his clothes.
HENRY
(shoving him)
Simon. Hey, Simon.
(Simon wakes)
Come on. I got ya some coffee.
Henry trudges back to the kitchen, where he whips out his
red pen and immediately begins to correct Simon's poem.
Simon rolls off the couch and makes his way to the table.
Seeing the computer...
SIMON
What's this?
HENRY
It's a computer. You write on it.
He reaches into his pocket.
HENRY
Here's the manual.
Simon looks over the computer and flips through the manual.
SIMON
Where'd you get it?
HENRY
I stole it. Now listen. Remember how
yesterday we discussed the relative
desirability of cadence in relation
to the readability of...
FAY
(off)
Oh, shit! Not you again!
Fay is on the stairs, hungover and disgusted. Henry throws
up his hands and gets up to go.
HENRY
Simon, I can't work under these
conditions.
FAY
Yeah! Get outta here, you freak!
HENRY
Get a life!
FAY
Eat shit and die, Henry!
Mary throws open her bedroom door.
MARY
(screaming)
Beast! Fiend! Rapist!
FAY
Oh, shut up, Mom!
Fay stomps back upstairs. Mary slams her door shut. Simon
runs out after Henry.
EXT. WORLD OF DONUTS -- DAY
Moments later.
Simon follows Henry out into the street and over towards
World Of Donuts...
SIMON
Henry, wait up!
HENRY
I am not a rapist!
But Henry stops short, seeing...
Officer Buñuel enter World of Donuts.
HENRY
Shit. Come on, this way.
And he runs down the street in the opposite direction. Simon
hangs back, but then follows...
INT. CHURCH -- DAY
Moments later.
They scramble in and Henry is out of breath. He slumps down
into a pew.
HENRY
Keep a look out. Tell me when he's
gone.
Simon does, but then...
SIMON
Henry, what's going on? Who is that
guy? What's he want?
HENRY
He wants to help me! He wants to be
my friend.
He pats his pockets, looking for his smokes. Simon looks on,
baffled. He comes closer.
SIMON
Help you with what?
HENRY
(suddenly)
Shhh!
He hears something, stands and moves further into the church.
Simon hesitates, but then follows. They hear someone crying.
Finally, in a pew off to one side in the shadows, they find...
A young priest named Father Hawkes. He's a wreck. He looks
up from his quiet sobbing and sees...
Henry and Simon standing there looking on with embarrassed
distaste. He lowers his head in shame. Henry moves closer
and sits beside the distraught priest.
HENRY
What's wrong?
The priest sighs hopelessly.
FATHER HAWKES
I doubt.
Henry leans back with a sigh and reaches for his cigarettes.
HENRY
So, you're an honest man. Why beat
yourself up about it?
He offers a cigarette to the priest and he accepts.
FATHER HAWKES
I don't know if there are grounds
for faith. Is my vocation relevant?
Does it make a difference?
SIMON
A difference in what?
FATHER HAWKES
The world. The way it is. Is this a
way to help relieve suffering?
HENRY
Your vocation makes a difference.
FATHER HAWKES
How can you be so sure?
HENRY
Because vocation is the difference.
Only someone who really cares doubts.
Listen, father, as I was about to
tell my friend Simon here, I am,
without doubt, the biggest sinner
within a hundred miles of this parish.
But still, I've gotta stay up late
at night to outdo the unending parade
of mundane little atrocities I see
committed every day right out in the
open spaces of this loud and sunlit
culture we call home.
FATHER HAWKES
You seem to me to be a sensitive and
generous man.
HENRY
I like to think so. But the fact is
I appreciate depravity. Nevertheless,
I insist your vocation makes a
difference, because to hold out
anything other than a spiritual
yardstick to reality is to be jerking
off grandly into the abyss. Listen,
have you got any money? Let's go
have a drink.
EXT. WORLD OF DONUTS -- DAY
Warren is stopping people on their way in and out of World
of Donuts.
WARREN
Excuse me, miss, are you a registered
voter?
MISS
Oh God, really I don't know.
WARREN
Well, I'd like to give you some
information about Congressman Owen
Feer. This man is gunna make a big
difference in the lives of every
American in the years to come...
MISS
Thanks, sure. I gotta go, thanks.
A man, Bill, steps up...
WARREN
Pardon me, sir...
BILL
Fuck off!
WARREN
Right.
Warren stands back and loosens his tie. He looks over at
Pearl age seven, who is sitting outside the store.
WARREN
What time's your mother get off work?
She doesn't respond. He shakes his head and approaches. He
sees Fay exit the store...
WARREN
Fay, are you a registered voter?
FAY
(stopping)
Don't you dare talk that way to me!
And keep your hands off my brother.
Pearl, what are you doing here?
WARREN
I'm watchin' her.
Fay figures it out and approaches.
FAY
You and Vicky get back together?
WARREN
I gotta regular job now and
everything.
She lifts a flyer and reads.
FAY
I saw this retard on TV this morning.
WARREN
He's gunna be the next president of
the United States of America, Fay.
FAY
Keep dreamin' Warren. The guy's a
Nazi.
WARREN
I like him!
FAY
Gimme a light.
WARREN
(lighting her cigarette)
He's a decent man. He takes
complicated issues and totally
simplifies them. And I appreciate
that.
FAY
You still sell dope?
WARREN
No. You know what the problem is
with this country, Fay? Me. I'm the
problem. We live in a culture of
poverty and crime, where the work
ethic is undermined and male
responsibility is made irrelevant.
She studies him a moment more, lost, then shakes her head
and helps the child off the car.
FAY
Come on, Pearl, let's go play at my
house.
WARREN
She gives you any trouble, Fay, you
just let me know.
INT. THE INFERNO -- DAY
An hour later.
Henry and Father Hawkes are drinking. Simon leans on the
bar, nodding off to sleep. After a while, Father Hawkes leans
back and...
FATHER HAWKES
Do you think human beings are innately
bad?
HENRY
Worse than bad! Monstrous! But I
love that about them.
(banging on the bar)
Wake up, Simon!
Simon falls off his bar stool.
EXT. WORLD OF DONUTS -- DAY
Moments later.
Warren straightens his tie and looks over to see...
Simon stagger up.
Warren shakes his head in dismay and approaches. Simon
steadies himself against the wall of the building.
WARREN
Jesus Christ, Simon, you're letting
yourself go to hell! You read that
flyer I gave you?
SIMON
What?
WARREN
Simon, wake up and smell the coffee,
huh! It's up to guys like you and me
to help create a better tomorrow!
Simon is lost.
INT. WORLD OF DONUTS -- DAY
Moments later.
He staggers into World of Donuts and heads for the coffee
machine, but stops when he sees Buñuel talking to Mr Deng.
Buñuel looks over. Their eyes lock.
EXT. WORLD OF DONUTS -- DAY
Same time.
WARREN
(to Vicky)
Why would I steal a computer from
the campaign office?
VICKY
I'm not saying you did, I'm just
saying one was and since you do have
this criminal background...
Whack!!! He slaps her...
WARREN
(pointing)
Don't judge me!
Simon runs out of the store and limps away towards home as
Buñuel storms out in pursuit. Simon tries to run, but Buñuel
catches him easily.
BUÑUEL
Look, I know you know him. People
have seen you around together.
Simon ceases to struggle, but shakes himself free and stands
looking down at his feet. Buñuel stands aside and watches
him a moment, then reaches in his jacket and brings out his
badge.
BUÑUEL
I'm his parole officer.
Simon studies the badge and waits a little, before asking...
SIMON
What did he do?
BUÑUEL
I'm not supposed to talk about that
stuff with people.
SIMON
He's my. Friend.
Buñuel pauses, then puts away his badge and looks around the
parking lot.
BUÑUEL
Mr Deng says you're some sort of a
poet, or something.
Simon doesn't corroborate this. He looks away and readjusts
his sling. Buñuel scratches his head, satisfied and prepares
to leave. But first...
BUÑUEL
You tell Henry to call me -- Officer
Buñuel -- pronto! Or they're gunna
chuck his ass straight back into
jail! Got it?
Simon shrugs.
Buñuel waits a moment, then steps away and gets back in his
car. Simon watches as the parole officer drives away and
passes...
WARREN
Vicky, look I'm sorry.
VICKY
Don't you even come near me!
INT. THE GRIM HOUSE KITCHEN -- DAY
Later.
FAY
What do you mean, you quit?
SIMON
I quit my job.
FAY
Why!
SIMON
There are things I want to do.
FAY
Like what?
Simon thinks of trying to explain, but then decides not to.
SIMON
'Opportunity will step out of the
way to let a man... pass it by.'
FAY
Are you drunk?
SIMON
Now you have to go out and get a
job!
FAY
I am not gettin' a job!
(paces, then)
Who's gunna look after Mom!
SIMON
I will.
Fay looks at the ceiling and sighs.
FAY
Pearl, go outside.
They wait as the child goes outside.
Mary listens, unseen, from her bedroom door.
Fay comes over and frowns at her brother. She's about to
lecture him, but he cuts her off.
SIMON
If you treat Mom like a sick person,
she's gunna stay like... you know, a
sick person.
Fay tries to control herself. She sighs tiredly and attempts
to reason with him...
FAY
Simon, don't be retarded...
SIMON
(banging the table)
I am not retarded!
Fay steps back, startled. Simon stands, but can't decide
which way to go. He sits back down.
SIMON
I can see with my own eyes.
Mary turns away from her door and sits on her bed.
Fay leans over the stove, where a large pot of water is
beginning to boil.
FAY
Mom can't be left alone with no one
to keep an eye on her.
Simon is frustrated and lashes out.
SIMON
Well, who's been keeping an eye on
her while you've been out getting
fucked by every OTB winner in town?
Fay's mouth falls open and she staggers back, hurt.
Simon regrets it already and stands to leave, scared. But
Fay grabs the pot off the stove and hurls it at him, splashing
boiling water all over his back.
SIMON
Aggghhhh!!!
Outside, Pearl turns and looks back at the house.
Simon lies gasping on the floor of the kitchen. Fay falls
back against the stove, terrified and drops her head into
her hands.
INT. THE GRIM HOUSE BATHROOM -- DAY
Later.
Fay is crouched on the floor, sobbing, while Simon lies in a
tub of cold water. Mary comes in with a pathetic little
freezer tray of ice cubes and dumps them into the tub.
She steps back into the hall and throws the ice tray down
the stairs. She glares back at Fay, who cries even louder as
Simon stares up at the ceiling.
Mary shakes her head and walks into her room, slamming the
door behind her.
FAY
(sniffling)
What happened to her, Simon? How did
she get this way? Will it happen to
me too? Huh? Why are we so fucked
up?
Simon has no answers. But he reaches out and touches his
sister's hand.
INT. LIBRARY -- DAY
Evening.
Simon comes limping in, all stiff because of his scalded
back. He's not familiar with the library, so he stands looking
around, trying to figure it out.
INT. LIBRARY STACKS -- DAY
Moments later.
He wanders into an aisle, overwhelmed by all the books. Coming
to the far end of the aisle, he looks off to his left and
sees Henry sitting on a small stool, reading, with ten or
twenty open volumes scattered around him on the floor.
SIMON
(approaching)
Henry?
HENRY
(looking up and rising)
Simon! What are you doing here?
SIMON
Henry... Your parole officer, Officer
Buñuel, came by again today.
Henry sighs and sits back down.
SIMON
He told me to tell you that if you
don't call him they're gunna put you
back in jail.
HENRY
Simon...
SIMON
He gave me this number...
HENRY
Simon...
SIMON
He was talking to Mr Deng too, and,
well, you know, I was thinking...
HENRY
Simon, just shut the fuck up!
Simon blinks and looks down at his feet, unable to respond.
Deeply hurt, he simply turns to walk away. But Henry reaches
out and grabs his arm. Simon stops, pauses and looks back at
his friend.
HENRY
Forgive me.
He lets go and turns away on his stool.
HENRY
Forgive me, Simon.
Simon comes back over to him.
SIMON
Call him, Henry. Please.
Henry gives in slowly to the inevitable. He sighs deeply and
stands, handing Simon a book...
HENRY
OK. Look, do me a favor. You got a
library card?
SIMON
Yeah.
HENRY
Check this out for me.
Simon looks at the cover: Paradise Lost.
HENRY
Milton. Seventeenth century. English.
You see, Simon, it's important my
'Confession' dig up the past, comb
previous evidence and help chart the
historic -- even the aesthetic --
inevitability of my ideas. And...
A young woman passes by, scanning the stacks. She and Henry
have a split second of eye contact, then she turns and moves
away. Henry straightens his tie and watches her go.
HENRY
This place is crawling with chicks,
Simon. Wander around. Leer a little.
Cop a feel. Impose yourself on 'em.
See what happens.
SIMON
I make girls uncomfortable.
HENRY
Bullshit! You've got a rough hewn
charm that sets 'em on edge. Now,
listen, I gotta go.
SIMON
Henry?
Henry stops and turns. Simon pauses, then...
SIMON
What did you do?
Henry watches him for a moment, then swaggers closer...
HENRY
I got caught.
Simon waits for more but is disappointed. With one final
cracked grin at his friend, Henry throws back his shoulders,
slicks back his hair and strides off. Simon watches him go
and frowns, not comforted. He flips through the pages of
Paradise Lost.
SIMON
(voice over)
'Whereto with speedy words the arch-
fiend replied Fallen Cherub, to be
weak is miserable...'
INT. LIBRARY READING ROOM -- DAY
Moments later.
He comes out from the stacks, working his way through the
first page of Paradise Lost. He nearly bumps into a girl and
they stop and look at one another. He tries to hold her gaze
for a moment, challenging himself, but then turns away and
stalks to a table. He sits and leans over the page.
After a moment, though, he lifts his face and glances at...
Another girl, sitting further down the table. She looks up
from her reading and returns his gaze.
He smiles at her.
She gets up and leaves.
Simon frowns, confounded and returns to his book. He takes
out his notebook and pencil, meaning to take notes, but sees
instead...
A third girl sitting at another table, listening to her
Walkman and typing her homework into a laptop computer.
He finds himself staring at her and forces himself back to
his book. But he can't help himself and glances back over at
her.
With a sigh, he begins to write in his notebook...
SIMON
(voice-over)
Why is it this beautiful girl makes
me sad? Does she know how beautiful
she is? Do people tell her? Does she
ever feel stupid?
He looks back over at her. She happens to look up and their
eyes meet. She smiles. Horrified, he looks down.
SIMON
Why don't I smile when she looks at
me? I look away. Ashamed of myself.
He watches her again, thinks, then writes...
SIMON
Her figure makes me violent. I want
to somehow break her. But tenderly.
How is this possible? Ask Henry.
He writes a few moments more, scribbling across the page,
then stops and looks back over at the girl.
SIMON
(voice-over)
I can't breathe.
He tears out the page and folds it in half. Then he gets up
and crosses the room to where the girl is busily engaged in
her work. She looks up, sees him, and removes her headset
with a pleasant smile. He places his note on the table before
her, then turns and walks quickly away.
The girl watches him go, confused, then lifts the note and
reads...
SIMON
(voice-over)
Why do I do this to myself? And why
do I reduce you to only one
possibility? These are not even
questions anymore. I know the answers
myself. This isn't a page of notes.
It's a letter. A letter to you. A
desperate act. You are a miracle to
me. I can't breathe.
By now, Simon is gone from the library. The girl finishes
reading the letter and looks around in astonishment.
INT. WORLD OF DONUTS -- DAY
Evening.
Henry enters and sits with Buñuel.
BUÑUEL
How are you, Henry?
HENRY
(frowning)
Peachy. Gimme a light.
BUÑUEL
Have you found a job?
Henry just glares at him and smokes.
BUÑUEL
How 'bout those Alcoholics Anonymous
meetings, did you go over and visit
them yet?
HENRY
What happened to this assistant
librarian position you were supposed
to set me up with?
Buñuel looks down, disappointed.
BUÑUEL
I tried, Henry. I really did.
HENRY
So what happened?
BUÑUEL
Henry, with your background... Well,
I mean, with your record, they didn't
think it'd be right to have you at
the neighborhood library.
HENRY
Why not?
BUÑUEL
They thought you'd be a bad influence
on the kids.
Henry sits back, offended.
BUÑUEL
(adds)
Or worse.
HENRY
So my word is not enough. My promise
worthless. The fact I've served my
time nothing but the emblem of my
continuing guilt.
BUÑUEL
Apparently.
Henry leans back and sighs, furious and indignant.
INT. THE GRIM HOUSE -- NIGHT
Simon comes in, excited and preoccupied, and finds Fay working
at the computer.
FAY
What's up?
SIMON
(guiltily)
Nothing.
FAY
I'm creating my résumé. This
computer's got a program especially
for it. I bought some special
stationery too. It's scented. Look.
She shoves a sheath of papers up under his nose and he backs
away in disgust.
FAY
It's roses.
Simon takes his notebooks from a cabinet above the fridge.
SIMON
Can you type my poem into that thing?
FAY
(shocked)
That's your poem?
SIMON
Yeah.
FAY
(smokes, then)
Simon, Mom's right about you. A poem's
supposed to be a small, delicate
kinda thing. Kinda feminine. Gentle.
Look at this. You've made a fuckin'
telephone book.
He places the notebooks on the table and leaves the house.
Fay clears the computer screen, pulls the notebooks closer
and gets down to work.
INT. HENRY'S APARTMENT -- NIGHT
Moments later.
Simon arrives with a six-pack and finds Henry sitting in
front of the fire, staring into the flames, brooding darkly.
HENRY
I was caught. Yes, I was caught...
once. I was caught in flagranti
delicto screwing a thirteen-year-old
girl named Susan. She was an ugly
and mean-spirited kid, but she knew
how to play upon my weaknesses which,
I admit, are deep and many.
He drinks, then looks at Simon and adds...
HENRY
You appear shocked.
SIMON
(he is)
Sorry.
Henry stands and leans over the fire.
HENRY
It was a pathetic little conspiracy.
A transparently desperate attempt to
discredit me and my ideas; to label
me a mere pedophile. As if I'd be
ashamed of such a thing. As if
Socrates himself hadn't been taken
out of circulation for corrupting
the youth of Athens!
He comes over and takes a beer. He strides around the room,
thinking, reflecting.
HENRY
Seven years. Seven years for one
afternoon of blissful transgression.
But what of it? Who cares? Prison's
not so bad; particularly if one's a
sex offender, free from the popular
and conventional horror of sodomy.
Stops, drinks declares...
HENRY
They were not 'lost years'.
He approaches the notebooks lined up on the mantelpiece.
HENRY
I put them to good use. I began my
major work. My opus.
He glances over at Simon, who sits gripping his beer,
watching, rapt.
HENRY
Believe me, Simon, this incident
with the girl, prison... It pales to
insignificance in the wider context
of my career.
He pauses and swills back some beer. He brightens up, gets
excited...
HENRY
Nothing in comparison to the day my
'Confession' is unleashed.
(beginning to pace)
What an orgy we'll have then, huh?
What shouts of outrage from the
offended populace, from the
sanctimonious purveyors of culture
and quality, the righteous defenders
of what ever inane and haphazard
notion of progress then in vogue.
They'll be beside themselves with
fiercely reasoned critical analysis.
Apoplectic with indignation!
Drinks sloppily, burps, wipes his mouth with his arm.
HENRY
Their feelings will be hurt.
He smashes the bottle in the fireplace.
HENRY
Yes, like a mirror which reflects
only the inside of the person before
it, my 'Confession' will lovingly
render humanity's common monstrosity
in all of its lurid wide screen glory.
He grabs a new beer and twists off its cap.
HENRY
Why should I blush or feel shame
before the common lot of humanity,
anyway, for a few banal and, again I
admit, inelegant transgressions?
He drinks, sighs and sits back down.
HENRY
After all, really, I'm doing
civilization a favor.
Simon sits back in awe. He waits a moment and thinks. Finally
he stands and approaches the 'Confession'. He reaches out
and drags his hand across the notebooks.
SIMON
When can I read it?
Henry sits staring into the flames again. He pauses, then...
HENRY
Soon.
INT. CHURCH -- DAY
Next day.
Simon and Father Hawkes are deep in conversation.
FATHER HAWKES
We are told not to judge. But to
forgive. Not to look into our
neighbor's eye to find the bad, but
to find the good.
(pacing)
Now this is difficult. I admit.
(pause)
But having a good friend is not always
easy.
Simon listens and carefully considers all the priest says.
SIMON
Yes, but... do you think Henry is...
dangerous?
Father Hawkes pauses, then comes closer and sits.
FATHER HAWKES
He needs help. Our help. Yours
especially.
SIMON
But what can I do?
FATHER HAWKES
The best parts of himself come to
the surface when he's helping someone
learn. I've seen this. Let yourself
be taught. Show your appreciation
for his guidance. In this way, you
know, perhaps. Well. There's hope
for everyone. Even. Even Henry.
INT. WORLD OF DONUTS -- DAY
Fay comes walking up through the parking lot with Simon's
notebooks and a pile of typed papers. She's a wreck; tear-
stained face and a ball of tissues gripped in her hand like
a weapon. She throws open the door to the World of Donuts
and looks around.
The place is crowded with teenagers hanging around like it
was a café or student union.
Fay sniffles tragically and falls on the counter.
FAY
Gnoc, gimme a value pack of Kleenex,
will ya?
Gnoc gets the Kleenex while Fay overhears two kids near
Simon's poem...
TIM
The violence of the imagery reminds
me of early Clash, while the lyricism
of the verse recalls, for me, Walt
Whitman.
BIBI
I would have said Dickinson, maybe
even Eliot, and so on. But I agree
with the punk roots...
Fay pays for her tissues and makes her way to the back of
the store where she finds Simon with Henry, who is holding
forth to his friend and the small coterie of high school
students surrounding them...
HENRY
The greats all say the same thing:
little. And what little there is to
be said is immense. Or, in other
words, follow your own genius to
where it leads without regard for
the apparent needs of the world at
large, which, in fact, has no needs
as such, but, rather, moments of
exhaustion in which it is incapable
of prejudice.
(drinks)
We can only hope to collide with
these moments of unselfconsciousness.
This divine fatigue... this...
FAY
(sitting)
Push over.
Henry takes the typed manuscript from her and continues...
HENRY
As I tried to make plain in Paris:
'Nous savons que nous avons chuté
parce que nous savons qui nous
sommes.' 'We know we have fallen
because we know who we are.'
FAY
(skeptically)
When were you in Paris?
HENRY
(interrupted)
That's beside the point. But did
they listen to me? Of course not!
Fay blows her nose and Simon is concerned.
SIMON
You alright, Fay?
FAY
(lighting a cigarette)
No, I'm not alright! Your poem brought
my period on a week and half early!
So just shut up. Everybody just shut
up!
She drops her head to the table and cries. Henry and Simon
look on in silence. Then Henry continues...
HENRY
For is this not the best of all
possible worlds? Are not the evils
of this world necessary components
of a cosmos that could not exist
without them?
Amy's girlfriend, Chris, leans forward studiously and asks...
CHRIS
So, do you believe in God?
HENRY
(smokes, shrugs)
Unfortunately.
FAY
(lifting her head)
Yeah, but when were you in Paris?
HENRY
(aggravated)
At. One. Time.
CHRIS
Simon, can I have your autograph?
Simon looks from her to Henry. Henry winks at him.
HENRY
Go ahead. But never let yourself be
flattered.
Simon signs the girl's book.
FAY
(to Henry)
So what about this friend of yours,
Hot Shot? The publisher.
HENRY
Who?
SIMON
(reminding him)
Angus James.
FAY
Yeah. Angus James. How about sending
this poem to him?
Henry seems a bit put upon.
HENRY
Because it's not done yet.
FAY
(to Simon)
When's it gunna be done, Simon?
SIMON
I don't know.
FAY
Well, you oughta be home writing
instead of hanging out over here
with all your groupies.
AMY
Hey, I'm not a groupie.
FAY
Pardon me, swivel-hips. Is that your
PowerBook?
AMY
Yeah.
FAY
Can I see it?
Fay and Amy talk tech as...
HENRY
(continues)
The thing to do is to send parts of
it to different magazines and literary
journals first. That kinda thing.
You know. Substantiate it.
AMY
(looking up)
What's 'scatalogical' mean?
Henry sips his beer and looks at her.
HENRY
Filth, child. A preoccupation with
excrement. Why?
AMY
That's what the Board of Education
called Simon's poem, yesterday;
scatological.
Henry reaches across the table and shakes Simon's hand.
INT. THE GRIM HOUSE KITCHEN -- DAY
The next day.
Fay is frying something on the stove, a cigarette hangs from
her lip. A middle-aged woman with a press ID on her lapel
appears at the kitchen door and taps.
EDNA
Hello?
FAY
Yeah, I'm listening.
EDNA
My name is Edna Rodriguez and I write
the human interest column for the
Queens County Examiner and I was
just wondering if I could have a
word with Simon Grim?
Intrigued, Fay steps over to the door with her spatula. She
looks Edna over, studies her ID, then steps away and screams
upstairs.
FAY
Simon!
EDNA
(startled)
Thank you.
Fay comes back over near the door, waving her spatula.
FAY
You can't talk to him for, you know,
too long or anything, 'cause he's
gotta, you know... he writes all
day. That's all he does. Can you
believe that?
No response.
FAY
(calling again)
Hey! Simon! Get down here!
Simon finally shuffles into the kitchen.
FAY
Simon, this is Edna. She's from the
newspaper.
EDNA
(rapid fire)
Simon, the Parents' Association at
the local high school are calling
your poem pornography. The teachers
are defending the students' right to
exercise their critical tastes and
sensibilities. The county agrees
with the Church and considers the
poem emblematic of modern society's
moral disintegration. How do you
feel about these controversial
reactions to your poem?
Simon says nothing. He just stares at her.
FAY
(punching him)
Simon, answer the woman.
Simon just looks away, thinks, then wanders back upstairs.
Mary passes him on his way out of the kitchen and comes up
to Fay and Edna at the door.
MARY
I need my prescription filled.
FAY
Mom, this is Edna. Edna, Mom.
EDNA
Mrs Grim, what was Simon like as a
child?
MARY
We all thought he was retarded.
FAY
Everyone did.
MARY
Never said a word.
FAY
He masturbated constantly.
MARY
Had no friends.
FAY
Till he met Henry.
MARY
And that's when all the trouble really
started.
INT. HENRY'S APARTMENT -- DAY
Henry is shaving. Simon sits in the kitchen, sorting through
rejection letters...
SIMON
(reading)
Dear Mr Grim, we here at the magazine
consider ourselves and the publication
open-minded and cutting edge and
have consistently printed the work
of the most brilliant and farseeing
young talent of the day. Every week
we are forced to return writing which
we can not for one reason or another
publish and include a brief but polite
refusal. But this tract you've sent
us demands a response as violent as
the effect your words have had upon
us. Drop dead. Keep your day job.
Sincerely, The Editors.
HENRY
De gustibus non disputandum est.
SIMON
(thinking)
You can't argue with taste?
HENRY
About taste. You can't argue about
taste. God, Simon.
Simon gives up and pushes the letters away, beaten.
SIMON
The other twenty-five are almost as
bad. I don't know why I bother.
Henry drops his razor and stomps out into the hall.
HENRY
What do you mean you don't know why
you bother? You bother because you
know the poem is excellent!
SIMON
Do I?
HENRY
Of course you do!
SIMON
I'm not so sure sometimes.
HENRY
Can you sit there, look me straight
in the eye, and tell me you don't
think this poem is great? That it is
not at once a work of great lyrical
beauty and ethical depth? That it is
not a genuine, highly individual,
and profound meditation on the miracle
of existence?
Simon holds the stare, overwhelmed.
SIMON
I, ah...
HENRY
Can you?
Simon looks away, thinks a moment, then looks back at Henry.
SIMON
No. I can't.
HENRY
So, you see, you have no choice!
He goes back into the bathroom. Simon thinks a while, then...
SIMON
(calling)
Can you recommend it to your friend,
the publisher?
No response.
SIMON
Henry? Can you recommend the poem to
him?
Still no response. Simon gets up and stands in the bathroom
doorway. Henry is shaving.
SIMON
I mean, I think it's finished and,
for better or worse, it is book
length.
HENRY
That might not be as easy as it seems.
SIMON
Why?
HENRY
Well, it's been a long time. My name
might not carry as much weight as it
once did with Angus.
SIMON
But he's your friend, right?
HENRY
We were close at one time.
SIMON
You said he respected your opinion.
Henry puts down his razor and looks at Simon in the mirror.
HENRY
Look, Simon, opinions come and go.
He sees Simon looks worried.
HENRY
To be honest; my ideas, my writing,
they haven't always been received
well or even calmly. They're
upsetting. I'm a controversial man.
He walks around the bathroom, gesticulating.
HENRY
You see, what I'm doing is too
radical. Too uncompromising. It'll
take time for people to see its value.
It's ahead of its time, perhaps, or
maybe just...
(stops)
A recommendation from me might do
you as much harm as it does good.
Simon patiently absorbs all this, then walks through the
kitchen and looks across at the 'Confession' notebooks.
SIMON
Henry, why can't I read the
'Confession'?
HENRY
Because certain work needs to be
experienced all at once in order for
one to appreciate the full force of
its character.
INT. WORLD OF DONUTS -- DAY
Simon talks with Fay as she eats her lunch.
FAY
Simon, wake up! The guy's in a dream
world!
SIMON
He's afraid that his reputation will
prevent people from giving my work
an honest chance.
FAY
His reputation as what?
SIMON
As a writer.
FAY
Gimme a break.
SIMON
He's kinda like in exile. Marginalized
on account of his ideas.
FAY
If he's such a great big fat genius,
why doesn't he write books? Like you
do.
SIMON
He has. He's written a book. It's
almost completed. He's been working
on it for years. It's just not
published.
FAY
Yeah, I bet. It's probably disgusting.
SIMON
(defensively)
It's a quite serious and difficult
piece of work, apparently.
FAY
Have you read it?
SIMON
No. Not yet. Soon. Certain work needs
to be experienced all at once in
order for one to appreciate the full
force of its character.
FAY
Yeah, well, what ever. Listen, Simon,
forget Henry. Go straight up to this
Angus James character yourself and
make him read your poem.
She gets up to go. She's wearing a smart outfit.
FAY
I'm gunna apply for a job at the one-
hour photo joint and then go over to
the Mall to see about that job in
the bank. Make sure Mom takes her
pills. See ya.
INT. THE GRIM HOUSE -- DAY
Mary is sitting, brooding in front of the TV, which displays
only static white noise. She turns it off with the remote
and sits in silence for a moment.
She gets off the couch and moves to the kitchen table, where
Fay's computer sits. She goes over and reaches up above the
fridge, opening the cabinet containing Simon's notebooks.
She hesitates, then takes them down and holds them in her
hands, as if to begin reading. But then she puts them back.
She walks over to the piano and stands there, hesitating,
before slowly sitting down and opening it. She lifts her
hands to play, then pauses and looks around behind her, making
sure no one is there.
But, finally, she turns back and begins playing.
She plays a sad-sounding modern classical piece with rusty
accomplishment. At one time she was probably quite good.
She plays for a while, gradually letting herself become moved
by the music. But then she stops, pauses, and looks behind
her.
Simon is standing in the kitchen. He has been deeply affected
by her playing.
SIMON
Please don't stop.
She stares him down a moment longer, then looks away and
closes the piano. She returns to the couch and switches on
the TV.
Simon comes closer. He sits.
SIMON
That was nice what you were playing.
MARY
Yes, it was nice. But it was
unremarkable.
Simon waits. Eventually...
SIMON
Does that matter?
MARY
(looking right at him)
Yes. It does.
She gets up off the couch and goes upstairs. She slams her
bedroom door and leaves Simon alone on the couch. He thinks.
Then, he gets up and goes into the kitchen.
He takes the typed manuscript of his poem from the cabinet
above the refrigerator and goes to the door. He pauses,
clutches the poem and goes out.
EXT. SUBWAY STATION -- DAY
Simon waits, clutching his poem to his side, as a train pulls
into the station. Excited and determined, he gets on.
INT. TRAIN -- DAY
Simon travels to New York City. He finds an envelope on the
floor to put the poem in.
INT. MARY'S ROOM -- DAY
Mary wakes up and sits on the edge of the bed, feeling
regretful about her tone of voice with Simon.
INT. THE GRIM HOUSE KITCHEN -- DAY
Moments later.
Mary comes down into the kitchen and listens.
MARY
Simon?
No answer. She steps over to the cabinet and almost takes
down Simon's notebook. But doesn't. She grabs her pills and
is about to take them. But then she stops. She puts them
down and goes to the cabinet. She takes down Simon's notebooks
and sits at the table, pauses, then pulls them closer and
begins to read.
INT. PUBLISHING HOUSE LOBBY -- DAY
Simon enters a big, posh lobby and checks the registry.
INT. PUBLISHING HOUSE RECEPTION -- DAY
Moments later.
Simon comes out of the elevator and enters the reception
area of James Midriff and Sutton Publishing. He walks
hesitantly up to the receptionist, a bright and spirited
young woman named Laura.
LAURA
Hi, I'll take that.
Simon steps back defensively.
LAURA
Aren't you the messenger?
SIMON
No.
LAURA
Are you here to fix the plumbing?
SIMON
I'm here to see Mr. Angus James.
LAURA
(amused)
Are you?
SIMON
I'm not a plumber. Or a messenger. I
was once a garbage man. But now I'm
a poet.
Laura steps back, cocks her head and removes her designer
eye-wear.
INT. CONFERENCE ROOM -- DAY
Same time.
Angus is at a big table with two other men, Steve and Barry.
BARRY
The book, as we know it, Angus, will
be a thing of the past within the
next few years. Novels, articles,
newspapers will all be downloaded on
to our personal computers anyway.
ANGUS
So you're telling me to get out of
the publishing business?
STEVE
No. But we've got to re-invent the
publishing business for the electronic
age.
Laura knocks.
ANGUS
Yes, Laura?
LAURA
I'm sorry to disturb you, gentlemen,
but... Angus, there's a particularly
wound-up young garbage man out here
who seems to have written a poem. A
long poem. And I recall how, at last
month's meeting, you stressed the
need for us to be on the look-out
for more marginalized verse from
unestablished quarters of the American
scene.
ANGUS
Did I say that?
Steve and Barry nod.
STEVE
Yeah. You did.
BARRY
Twice.
ANGUS
Well, OK. Make an appointment, Laura.
Sometime next month.
LAURA
Right-e-o.
And she's gone.
ANGUS
(returning)
So, anyway, how is the digital
revolution going to help me sell
books?
INT. PUBLISHING HOUSE RECEPTION -- DAY
Simon looks disappointed.
SIMON
Why can't I see him now?
LAURA
(sincerely)
Because he's a very important man
and, well, you're not.
Simon just looks down at his shoes. Laura touches his arm
and reassures him.
LAURA
Be reasonable.
He looks up, pauses, then...
SIMON
Why?
INT. CONFERENCE ROOM -- DAY
Same time.
ANGUS
I don't think people are going to
prefer reading books on television,
Steve.
STEVE
It won't be television!
BARRY
It'll be interactive.
STEVE
Angus, look, we have a number of
charts here...
BARRY
In every home in America the PC will
be where the TV used to be.
STEVE
And it'll be a direct connection to
all forms of media.
BARRY
An unprecedented transformation of
American social life...
STEVE
We'll all become better informed,
more literate, increasingly
productive, and... Well, and, like I
said, we have a number of charts...
Laura re-enters...
LAURA
Sorry to disturb you again, gentlemen,
but... Angus, I'd like to call
security for this one. Though, before
I do, I just wanted to ask just how
marginal the as yet undiscovered
voice of American poetry should be?
ANGUS
(thinking)
Pretty damn marginal, I'd think.
BARRY
Down right controversial, probably.
ANGUS
How's he strike you?
LAURA
He's been denounced by his local
Board of Education.
BARRY
Oh, I read about him in the paper.
Hangs out in a delicatessen somewhere
and writes pornography.
INT. PUBLISHING HOUSE RECEPTION -- DAY
Moments later.
Angus comes out to the water cooler and glares at Simon as
he gets a drink.
ANGUS
Hello, and why do you think I should
take valuable time out of my busy
schedule to read...
He grabs the envelope and sees no title.
ANGUS
This?
Simon is stumped. He looks over at Laura, who purses her
lips and tilts her head. He twists a button on his shirt,
thinking, then returns to Angus.
SIMON
Because it's a masterpiece.
ANGUS
Really?
SIMON
Yes.
ANGUS
(to Laura)
Are you hearing this?
LAURA
He's adorable.
SIMON
I wouldn't want to waste your time.
ANGUS
I'm sure you wouldn't and I appreciate
you being so straightforward.
SIMON
Thank you.
ANGUS
I assume you can take straightforward
criticism?
Simon looks over at Laura.
LAURA
Just say 'Yes'.
SIMON
(looking back)
Maybe.
ANGUS
Get him a coffee, Laura.
LAURA
Have a seat, Mr Grim.
ANGUS
Hold my calls for the next half hour.
LAURA
What about Steve?
ANGUS
He doesn't drink coffee. Steve, do
you drink coffee?
STEVE
(off)
Angus, listen to me!
INT. WORLD OF DONUTS -- DAY
Henry paces back and forth. With the fingers of one hand
pressed against his forehead and his eyes closed tight in
concentration, he dictates to Amy, who is sitting at a table
with her laptop computer, typing his every word.
HENRY
In the infinite amplitude of his
love, God wants to create the largest
number of best elements that can
exist together in one cosmos... OK.
Amy types away, fascinated by Henry's intelligence.
HENRY
In an instantaneous calculation made
in eternity, God computes the best
possible world and creates it. Fine.
This 'decision' by God is uncontingent
and eternal rather than temporally
or ontologically sequential.
Stops, zeroing in on his point.
AMY
How do you spell that?
HENRY
What?
AMY
Ontologically.
HENRY
O-N-T... Don't you have some kinda
spell-check on that thing?
AMY
Never mind.
HENRY
It is impossible for every perfect
good to be compatible with every
other perfect good. The intense beauty
of the mountain must be set off by
the fertility of the plain, so to
speak.
He smokes, drinks, paces some more. Amy waits with bated
breath, devastated by his obscure profundity. He comes back
and sits beside her, reaching his conclusion.
HENRY
The good of freewill must entail
real choices for sin.
She gazes at his profile, in love.
Henry sits thinking and Amy watches him reverently. She leans
over close and whispers in his ear. He turns and looks at
her, alarmed.
HENRY
Listen, Amy, back off. I'm on parole.
AMY
You feel the same way. I can tell. I
can see it when you look at me.
Henry jumps up and looks around, paranoid. He keeps his voice
down and points at her.
HENRY
Hey! I don't look at you.
AMY
Yes you do. In the street. In the
parking lot yesterday. That night on
the highway.
HENRY
I look at a lot of people that way.
Disappointed, Amy turns away and sulks.
AMY
You think I'm stupid.
Henry sees she's genuinely upset and feels bad. He sits back
down and lays his hand on hers.
HENRY
No, as a matter of fact, I think
you're a real bright kid and I like
that about you.
AMY
(looks up, pouts)
You do?
Now Henry tries to scare her away. He leers at her.
HENRY
I like it so much I've got half a
mind to do perverse things to you.
Right here. Right now. Things you
might just learn to like.
She just stares at him, blinks, then looks away and tries to
imagine this. She takes her laptop and leaves, confused and
blushing.
Henry watches her go and grins, satisfied with himself.
INT. PUBLISHING HOUSE RECEPTION -- DAY
Angus throws on his coat and thrusts the poem at Simon as
they walk down the hall.
ANGUS
This is really quite unbelievably
bad, my friend. I mean, I'm all for
experimentation and I've made a career
out of a healthy disregard for
convention, but... Look, this is
profoundly irrelevant material. This
is only my opinion. But it's an
opinion I value highly. Goodnight,
Laura. Call Norton Press. We're still
on for tomorrow.
Simon looks pale as Angus strides towards the elevator.
ANGUS
I've been wrong before as a publisher.
But I refuse to admit I've ever been
wrong as a reader. You have talent,
I admit. You have an innate sense of
the musicality of language. A good
ear, maybe. But you do nothing
significant with it. And this twisted
reasoning that poses as... conviction
or insight, it's... well, it's
embarrassing.
They reach the elevator and stop. Simon tries to catch his
breath.
ANGUS
Why did you bring this thing to me,
anyway?
SIMON
(weakly)
A friend of mine spoke of you. He
said you had a lot of integrity.
ANGUS
Yes, well, of course, I do. But I'm
not crazy, am I? Who is this person?
Do I know him?
Simon hesitates, almost decides against it, but then...
SIMON
Henry Fool.
Angus looks back at him.
Simon waits.
Angus looks aside, thinks, then shakes his head.
ANGUS
Never heard of him.
Simon just looks at him blankly, confused.
The doors slide open and Angus gets in the elevator. He's
gone. Simon sinks into a chair and stares at the carpet. He
is so surprised and hurt he gasps for breath.
His poem slips from his hand and falls to the floor.
LAURA
(off)
I remember Henry.
Simon doesn't register this right away. But then he looks up
and over at the receptionist.
Laura stands and comes around her desk. She pauses, seeing
his disappointment, then comes closer and picks up his poem.
Handing it to him, she explains...
LAURA
He used to be the janitor here.
He just stares at her, demolished.
EXT. SIDEWALK/SUBWAY ENTRANCE -- DAY
Later.
Simon dumps his poem in a trash can, pauses, then enters the
subway.
INT. WORLD OF DONUTS -- DAY
Henry is leaning on the counter, flipping through pornographic
magazines and smoking.
MR DENG
(off)
Henry, put those magazines back.
HENRY
I'm just looking at the pictures.
MR DENG
It's not good for you.
Henry flips through pages and nods, impressed.
HENRY
I learn so much from these magazines,
Mr Deng. I refuse to discriminate
between modes of knowing.
MR DENG
And you can't smoke in here anymore.
Henry looks up, outraged.
HENRY
Why not!
MR DENG
It's the law.
Henry throws his cigarette to the floor, steps on it and
returns to his magazine.
HENRY
This place is losing all its charm,
Mr Deng.
MR DENG
Business is good. The kids, they
hang out all day and drink coffee,
talk about art and read poetry.
Henry shakes his head in dismay and studies a centerfold.
HENRY
It's just a fad, Mr Deng. These kids
today, they're just slaves to fashion.
INT. THE GRIM HOUSE KITCHEN -- DAY
Same time.
Fay comes in, hot and tired from walking around in high heels.
FAY
Anybody home? Mom?
She stands on the stairs and hears the water running in the
bathroom.
FAY
Ma, that you?
No answer. She discovers she's out of cigarettes.
INT. WORLD OF DONUTS -- DAY
Henry is leaning on the counter with a six-pack of beer,
pleading with Mr Deng.
HENRY
Come on, Mr Deng! How much do I owe
you?
MR DENG
Twenty-five dollars.
HENRY
That can't be right! And so what? My
credit's good.
Warren comes in.
WARREN
Henry!
HENRY
Hey, Warren, you gotta couple of
bucks I can borrow?
Warren reaches for his wallet.
WARREN
Listen, Henry, I wanna remind you to
vote this Thursday.
HENRY
Ah, yes, of course. When noble minds
shrink from the task of leadership
scoundrels will rush in to fill the
void.
(takes cash)
Thanks.
WARREN
It's every American's right. A
blessing. Yet another opportunity to
save America from itself.
Henry pays Mr Deng for his beer.
INT. HENRY'S APARTMENT -- DAY
Moments later.
Fay bangs on the door.
FAY
Hey, Henry, you in there? Gimme a
cigarette.
No answer. She tries the door. It's open. She hesitates.
FAY
Henry?
She goes quietly in.
EXT. WORLD OF DONUTS -- DAY
Moments later.
Henry steps out of the store and stops when he sees Amy
standing there, pouting. He looks away and sighs. Amy picks
at the fabric of her stockings and bites her lip.
AMY
Henry?
Henry smokes.
HENRY
Yeah.
AMY
What kind of... Well, I mean... What
kind of... perverse things would you
do to me?
It's more than he can stand. He holds his head.
HENRY
Take a powder, cupcake.
AMY
No, really.
HENRY
Evaporate!
Crushed, she breaks out in tears and flees.
INT. THE GRIM HOUSE -- DAY
Same time.
Simon comes in, furious and throws open the fridge. He finds
nothing to eat or drink. He slams the door, then hears the
water running in the bathroom upstairs. He stops and listens.
The bathroom door; the water heard running steadily.
Simon turns away then sees...
The poem notebooks face down on the table.
He thinks.
The bathroom door; the water heard running...
INT. HENRY'S APARTMENT -- DAY
Moments later.
Henry comes into his house, hot and bothered, cradling his
six-pack. But he stops, listens, then steps through the
kitchen towards the living-room. He stops in the entrance
and sees...
Fay on the floor of the living-room, reading his 'Confession',
her mouth hung open in an astonished 'O'.
He drops his six-pack and...
She spins around, caught in the act.
Henry stands in the doorway, pent up, sweating and with
perverse things on his mind.
Fay, her hands palm down on the floor behind her, bites her
lip, coquettishly.
Henry looks her over like she was something good to eat.
She feels his gaze all over her and twists to one side with
a breathless little shudder.
He steps nearer, stands over her and she looks up at him.
INT. THE GRIM HOUSE -- DAY
Same time.
Simon climbs the stairs to the bathroom...
INT. HENRY'S APARTMENT -- DAY
Same time.
Henry and Fay kissing passionately...
INT. THE GRIM HOUSE -- DAY
Same time.
Simon knocks on the bathroom door.
INT. HENRY'S APARTMENT -- DAY
Same time.
Henry and Fay groping and shoving one another as they stagger
from room to room.
INT. THE GRIM HOUSE -- DAY
Same time.
Simon bangs on the bathroom door.
INT. HENRY'S APARTMENT -- DAY
Same time.
Fay falls to the couch...
INT. THE GRIM HOUSE -- DAY
Same time.
Simon crashes through the door and finds...
Mary, kneeling over the edge of the tub, her wrists slit and
the blood running down the drain, the shower raining down
over her back.
Simon looks on in horror.
INT. HENRY'S APARTMENT -- DAY
Same time.
Henry tears open his trousers...
INT. THE GRIM HOUSE -- DAY
Same time.
Simon lifts Mary from the bathtub.
INT. HENRY'S APARTMENT -- DAY
Same time.
Henry and Fay clutch and grind and heave...
INT. THE GRIM HOUSE -- DAY
Same time.
Simon drags his mother from the bathroom and down the stairs.
INT. HENRY'S APARTMENT -- DAY
Same time.
Henry and Fay are making mad, passionate love, oblivious to
the world around them.
INT. GRIM HOUSE DAY -- DAY
Same time.
Simon drags Mary through the house.
INT. HENRY'S APARTMENT -- DAY
Same time.
Henry and Fay fuck.
EXT. THE GRIM HOUSE -- DAY
Same time.
Simon drags Mary out the kitchen door and into the yard,
looking desperately for help. He reaches the street, her
limp body hanging grotesquely before him, and looks helplessly
up and down the block.
DISSOLVE TO:
EXT. CEMETERY -- DAY
Simon, Henry, Mr Deng, Fay, Gnoc and Buñuel stand with Father
Hawkes at the grave.
FATHER HAWKES
Let us pray. Lord, grant that peace
be within reach for our friend, Mary.
May the pain and confusion she endured
on earth be fought through in the
after life, so that she may enter
the Kingdom of Heaven and live in
the light of God. Amen.
He sprinkles holy water on the coffin and they all drop
carnations at the grave. Simon and Fay remain there looking
down at the coffin. Henry waits for them a few yards away,
wishing he could help, but feeling out of place.
EXT. JUNKYARD -- DAY
Simon is back working on the garbage truck. He collects
garbage and throws it in the truck as Henry, who is just
along for the ride, hangs from the side of the truck and
pulls the lever whenever Simon tells him to.
HENRY
So I was a janitor! So what?
SIMON
But Angus James said he didn't even
know you!
Henry shrugs and qualifies...
HENRY
Well, I mean, we weren't like bosom
buddies or anything. But we used to
talk sometimes. In the elevator. In
the morning. He said he liked my
ideas. Being a janitor's a good job
if you're a writer. Especially the
night shift; all that time to think
and develop my ideas.
SIMON
Do it.
Henry pulls the lever and the garbage gets crushed.
SIMON
Anyway, he hated my poem.
HENRY
Well, what the hell does he know? He
wouldn't know a vital piece of
literary art if it came up and bit
him in the leg. To hell with him!
He's not the only publisher in the
world!
SIMON
But nobody likes it.
HENRY
(smokes)
It's true. A prophet is seldom heeded
in his own land. Remember that.
SIMON
Do it.
Henry is about to pull the lever again, but sees something
in amongst the garbage...
HENRY
Hey, look, treasure!
Henry steps down and leans over into the garbage. Simon joins
him as he lifts something that is either a ring or a stray
piece of machinery.
HENRY
What is this?
SIMON
Brass maybe. Some kinda copper.
HENRY
It's a ring. Jewelry.
SIMON
I think it's a gasket. A fitting
from off of that old refrigerator
over there.
Henry puts it in his pocket, satisfied and Simon jumps on
the back of the truck as it turns the corner and rolls away.
Henry starts to walk off in the opposite direction, but stops
when he sees Pearl age seven.
EXT. VICKY'S HOUSE -- DAY
Henry comes up the street with Pearl age seven on his back.
He walks into Vicky's yard and finds Warren lifting weights
in the garage.
HENRY
Hey, Warren, I found Pearl wandering
around by the garbage dump.
WARREN
He lost.
HENRY
Who lost?
Warren rests. He sits up on the bench and takes a toke off
the joint he has waiting.
WARREN
Congressman Feer.
HENRY
(realizing)
Oh. Well, you know. Somebody's gotta
lose.
WARREN
What's the fucking use. You make
sacrifices. You try to be a decent
human being. Try to contribute
something meaningful to society. And
what happens? They lose to a bunch
of cultural elite liberal fuck-ups.
I don't give a shit anymore. People
deserve what they get.
Henry pauses, then leads Pearl age seven towards the house.
Warren lies back down and continues his lifting.
INT. VICKY'S HOUSE -- DAY
Moments later.
Henry knocks on the door as he enters...
HENRY
Vicky?
No answer. He comes in and finds her sitting on the couch
with a drink. She's got a black eye.
HENRY
What happened to you?
VICKY
He's a good man, Henry. Nobody's
perfect.
HENRY
I guess not.
VICKY
He's terribly disappointed.
HENRY
I found Pearl wandering around with
no shoes on her feet.
Pearl comes over and stands beside her mother.
VICKY
Thanks. She gets scared.
HENRY
And you don't?
Vicky caresses Pearl's hair, then drinks and looks over at
Henry.
VICKY
I love him.
INT. WORLD OF DONUTS -- DAY
Moments later.
Buñuel is waiting when Henry walks in and steps up to the
beer cooler.
HENRY
(alarmed)
Where's the beer?
MR DENG
No more beer. Coffee. Espresso!
Cappuccino! Café au lait. Carrot
juice. Herbal tea.
Henry looks at the man, disgusted, then falls in to a seat
and motions to Gnoc, who is now the waitress.
HENRY
A double espresso and a jelly donut,
Gnoc.
(to Buñuel)
You mind paying? My credit's no good
here anymore, apparently.
BUÑUEL
(nods amiably)
Did you go to the employment agency
today, Henry?
HENRY
No, but it's OK. Simon's gunna try
to get me a job on the garbage truck.
BUÑUEL
Listen, I'm a little concerned about
your friend.
HENRY
Simon?
BUÑUEL
Seems he gave an obscene note to a
girl in the library.
HENRY
Get outta here! When?
BUÑUEL
I'm not sure.
HENRY
It couldn't have been Simon.
BUÑUEL
It almost certainly is. He mentions
you. Look...
He unfolds a print-out of the letter. Henry reads and Buñuel
leans over, pointing out...
HENRY
'Her figure makes me violent. I want
to somehow break her. But tenderly.
How is this possible? Ask Henry.'
Henry thinks this over, gulps back some espresso and nods
his approval. Then...
HENRY
Buñuel, this is obviously a love
letter.
BUÑUEL
(taking it back)
We've had complaints.
HENRY
Where did you get it?
BUÑUEL
She posted it on the Internet.
HENRY
Oh, the slut!
BUÑUEL
She was trying to warn other girls
about a potential rapist.
HENRY
(smokes)
Is all this true about the Internet?
About how you can get pornography on
it?
BUÑUEL
Well, yeah, sure. It's a big problem.
You can send dirty pictures and
everything.
HENRY
On the Internet?
BUÑUEL
Yeah.
Henry is impressed.
HENRY
No kiddin'?
Buñuel gets up to go.
BUÑUEL
See you on Thursday, Henry.
HENRY
(thinking)
Sure. See you.
(calls the waitress)
Gnoc, gimme one of these double
espressos to go, will ya?
He is having ideas.
INT. THE GRIM HOUSE KITCHEN -- DAY
Moments later.
Fay, still dressed in black, is tapping away on the keys to
the computer, surfing the Internet, as Henry appears at the
kitchen door, gripping his tall double espresso.
HENRY
Hello, Fay.
FAY
Go away.
HENRY
You gotta get outta the house, Fay.
You can't blame yourself for not
being here. You did all you could
for her.
She turns and glares at him.
FAY
Is there something you want?
Henry stops, pauses, looks away. Then...
HENRY
You got the Internet on that
contraption?
FAY
(resumes typing)
Yeah. So what?
He changes the subject again, preoccupied and continues
tenderly...
HENRY
Look Fay, about, you know, between
us -- what happened...
FAY
I don't wanna talk about it, Henry!
He sighs and drinks his coffee, then looks back at her.
HENRY
Type a part of Simon's poem onto the
Internet.
FAY
(stops)
What?
HENRY
Go ahead.
FAY
No.
HENRY
Why not?
FAY
Because.
HENRY
Come on, Fay. It's a great idea.
FAY
I don't know if he would want us to
do that.
HENRY
Sure he would. Just the first ten
verses.
Fay is tempted.
FAY
I don't know.
HENRY
He'll thank you for it later.
Frowning, she reconsiders. She gets up and takes the notebooks
from the cabinet above the fridge. She flips through the
pages but suddenly stops and turns to the door with a nicer
attitude.
FAY
Henry...
But he's gone. It's as if he has vanished into thin air. She
sighs, sits back down, and begins typing the poem onto the
Internet.
INT. WORLD OF DONUTS -- DAY
Moments later.
Henry comes back into the store, satisfied with himself. He
finishes off his coffee, tosses away the cup and takes a
pornographic magazine from the rack. He leans on the counter
where Mr Deng is busy working and flips through the pages.
HENRY
Gimme another one of those tall double
espressos, Mr Deng.
Mr Deng starts to make him one and sees him with the magazine.
MR DENG
You gunna buy that?
HENRY
I'm just looking.
MR DENG
Well then put it back.
HENRY
There's this fascinating story about
a famous rock band and how they tied
a friend of theirs to a bed in their
hotel room and inserted a live fish
into her vagina.
Mr Deng shakes his head and frowns.
HENRY
(explains)
They say she had numerous orgasms.
MR DENG
Henry, you need to do something with
your life. Get a job, or something.
HENRY
I mean, it wasn't the entire fish,
it was just, you know, the nose. The
nose of the fish.
Mr Deng brings over the coffee. Henry is surprised to notice
he is not riveted.
HENRY
You don't find that interesting?
MR DENG
No.
Henry closes the magazine and puts it back. Leaning on the
counter, he sips his coffee and ponders.
HENRY
You ever wonder what it would be
like to have sex with an animal, Mr
Deng?
MR DENG
That coffee is free. Just take it
and get out of here.
HENRY
I mean, some dogs are almost as big
as people and often more attractive.
Mr Deng just goes back to work, leaving Henry there at the
counter thinking big thoughts.
EXT. THE GRIM HOUSE -- EVENING
Simon hangs from the garbage truck as it comes up the street
and pauses in front of his house. He jumps down and the truck
barrels away.
INT. FAY'S ROOM -- EVENING
Simon taps at the door. She looks over at him and he sees
she's been crying. He comes into the room and she sits up on
the edge of the bed.
SIMON
Did you see him?
FAY
He came by this afternoon.
SIMON
Did you talk?
FAY
No.
He comes over and sits beside her. He thinks a moment, then...
SIMON
You've got to tell him, Fay.
FAY
He thinks I'm a slut.
And she starts crying again. Simon awkwardly touches her
shoulder, then moves his hand away. Fay pulls herself
together, sniffles and goes into the bathroom.
INT. THE GRIM HOUSE, AT THE PIANO
Moments later.
Simon comes downstairs and finds Henry at the piano. He looks
ill and is clutching a nearly empty container of espresso.
He is staring sickly at 'the ring'.
SIMON
Henry?
HENRY
Simon, I don't feel so good.
SIMON
What's wrong?
HENRY
I feel all kinda clammy. And damp.
Simon lifts the coffee container and smells it.
SIMON
How many of these did you have?
Henry tries to remember. He squints.
HENRY
Seven.
Simon puts the container down and sits at the table.
SIMON
Henry, we have to talk.
HENRY
Can I use your toilet?
SIMON
Fay's taking a shower.
Henry grabs his stomach. He presses his hand against his
chest, holds his head, then stares at the ring.
HENRY
How much you think I can get for
this?
He looks at Simon.
SIMON
(pauses)
Henry, Fay's pregnant.
Henry looks at him.
SIMON
Fay's pregnant with your child.
Henry lets this sink in. He stands and the room tilts. White
with fear, he clutches at his rumbling gut.
INT. THE GRIM HOUSE BATHROOM
Moments later.
Fay is in the shower as...
Henry bursts into the bathroom, tearing at his belt and
trousers. She starts screaming and wraps herself in the shower
curtain. He drops his pants and throws himself on the toilet
just in time to begin shitting his brains out. Fay crouches,
terrified and disgusted, in the shower.
FAY
Jesus, Henry!
Henry sweats and moans as he empties his bowels in a violent
and messy blast of noise and foul air.
Fay covers her face and whimpers sickly.
Finally, he's done. He hangs with his face out over his knees,
sick, exhausted and in shock. Fay wraps herself in a towel
and steps out of the shower. She creeps carefully around him
and flushes the toilet, growing increasingly concerned.
FAY
Hey, Henry. You OK?
He is destroyed, staring down at...
The 'ring' he still holds in his hand.
Fay sees this, looks at Henry, then kneels and takes it from
him. He doesn't resist. She lifts it up and breathlessly
admires it. Totally misunderstanding, moved beyond words...
FAY
Oh. Oh, Henry.
And she throws her arms around him as he sits there, sweating
and spent, on the toilet.
INT. CHURCH -- DAY
A month later.
Mr Deng and Buñuel drag Henry, kicking and screaming, into
the church foyer. Once inside, he shakes them off and they
stand back. He huffs and puffs and tosses the hair back out
of his eyes. He paces back and forth like a caged animal,
then stops, sees...
Fay, at the altar, waiting with Simon. She is beautiful.
Henry calms down, deeply affected.
Fay smiles down the aisle at him.
Henry throws back his shoulders, straightens his tie and
strides up the aisle.
Also present at the ceremony are Vicky and Warren. Gnoc is
maid of honor.
INT. CHURCH -- DAY
Later.
Henry holds Fay's hand and repeats after Father Hawkes.
FATHER HAWKES
I, Henry, take you, Fay to be my
wife.
HENRY
I, Henry, take you, Fay to be my
wife.
FATHER HAWKES
And do promise before God and these
witnesses...
HENRY
And do promise before God and these
witnesses...
FATHER HAWKES
To be your loving and faithful
husband.
HENRY
To be your loving and faithful
husband.
FATHER HAWKES
In plenty and in want.
HENRY
In plenty and in want.
FATHER HAWKES
In joy and in sorrow.
HENRY
In joy and in sorrow.
FATHER HAWKES
In sickness and in health.
HENRY
In sickness and in health.
FATHER HAWKES
For as long as we both shall live.
HENRY
For as long as we both shall live.
The gasket everyone is now mistaking for a ring is lifted
high before the altar.
FATHER HAWKES
Bless, O Lord, this ring, that he
who gives it and she who wears it
may abide in your peace and continue
in your favor until their life's
end.
The gasket is placed on Fay's finger.
FATHER HAWKES
Whom God has joined, let no man
separate.
The doors of the church swing open with a tremendous creak
and everyone turns from the altar to see...
Amy enter. She steps in and stands there, alarmed, clutching
a long scroll of fax paper.
HENRY
Oh, shit.
FAY
Simon, do something.
Simon walks down the aisle to see to Amy.
The guests watch and wait.
As Simon reaches her, Amy looks away from the altar and shows
him the fax scroll.
AMY
Look.
He studies the fax and recognizes his poem. He grows
concerned.
SIMON
Where did you get this?
AMY
It's all over the Internet.
Simon looks up the aisle at...
Fay and Henry. They look away, caught.
AMY
They're even talking about it on the
TV news.
Confused, Simon starts for the door, shoving the fax in his
pocket. Fay steps down from the altar...
FAY
Simon?
Amy hurries along beside him.
AMY
There's a guy from the radio station
over at World of Donuts and a story
in the newspaper about some kids
burning down a school near Boston!
INT. THE GRIM HOUSE -- NIGHT
Later that evening.
The whole neighborhood is celebrating Fay's wedding. The
music is loud. The people are drunk. The place is a shambles.
A big dance number is playing. Amidst all the festivities,
though, Simon and Buñuel have the small TV propped up on top
of the fridge, following the evening news...
REPORTER
(on TV)
It all started right here in Queens,
Jim, at World of Donuts about one
year ago today, when local garbage
man, Simon Grim, put pencil to paper
and began to compose what many have
come to regard as vicious, antisocial
and pornographic poetry -- 112 lines
of unrhymed free meter verse which
would one day serve to spark the
flames of controversy across the
nation and -- indeed -- the world.
Fay leads the neighbors in the dance...
OWEN FEER
(on TV)
This is outrageous! Measures must be
taken. Have we debased our culture
to such an extent that a garbage man
with a head full of sick ideas is
legitimately referred to as a poet,
and where the filth he spews can be
accessed by any child old enough to
turn on a computer? Is this what we
have come to? Not the transmission
of our highest ideals, but a cynical,
atheistic delirium!
Henry and Fay dance, surrounded by the dancing neighbors...
POET LAUREATE
(on TV)
Poetry of this kind, and this poem
in particular, is, I think, a worthy
form of desperation; a digression on
the extremes of human experience; of
solitude, of community. It is perhaps
alarming, even upsetting to some --
myself included -- but it must be
allowed to exist.
Henry throws an arm around Warren, who stands looking dejected
in the doorway, and raises his glass to the happiness in the
room.
ANCHORMAN
(on TV)
Meanwhile, in Rome today, the Pope
issued a message of hope for believers
in their fight against what he termed
the godless and lost. He did not
mention Simon Grim by name, but
offered a prayer for the young whom
he described as sadly in need of
faith and not the illusion of
conviction offered by rock music,
drugs and contemporary poetry.
The TV is switched off. It's later now. People are passed
out on the kitchen floor and various neighbors are sitting
around the table. Fay steps back from the TV, drains a glass
of beer and wipes her mouth on the sleeve of her wedding
gown. She hugs Simon, who is deeply unsettled by the news of
his growing infamy.
FAY
God, Simon, I mean, like, you're a
total fucking rock star.
INT. WORLD OF DONUTS -- DAY
A huge crowd of kids are pressed up against the doors, trying
to get a peek at their hero, Simon Grim.
Angus comes away from the window. He stands and regards Simon,
who is sitting at a table tearing a napkin to shreds.
ANGUS
I'm willing to negotiate, Simon.
SIMON
I know, it's just...
ANGUS
You've had other offers.
SIMON
Well, yes. But.
ANGUS
What?
SIMON
Why have you reconsidered?
ANGUS
Because I think your writing will be
tremendously successful.
SIMON
But you don't like it?
ANGUS
It's growing on me.
SIMON
What made you change your mind?
He points to the fans outside.
ANGUS
Other people's responses. I don't
live in a vacuum, you know. Two months
ago I didn't have the proof of your
poem's appeal. Now I do.
Simon thinks this over, but says nothing. Angus comes over
and lays his hand on his shoulder.
ANGUS
Consider my offer carefully. Get
some professional advice. I'll call
you tomorrow.
Simon nods.
EXT. WORLD OF DONUTS -- DAY
Moments later.
Angus emerges and has to fight his way through the throng of
excited adolescents. He reaches his limo and gets in. But he
pauses before closing the door and considers the crowd.
Simon emerges from the store and kids begin screaming and
shouting for autographs. Angus shakes his head, impressed.
INT. CHURCH -- DAY
Simon consults Father Hawkes.
FATHER HAWKES
What were the terms?
SIMON
A hundred thousand in cash up front.
FATHER HAWKES
Royalties?
SIMON
A seventy/thirty split.
FATHER HAWKES
Well, that could be better. But it
is a hundred thousand dollars up
front. Guaranteed money. You could
use that.
SIMON
So it's a good deal?
FATHER HAWKES
Of course it's good.
SIMON
So I should take it?
FATHER HAWKES
No. Try to get him up to a hundred
and fifty thousand.
EXT. JUNKYARD -- DAY
Evening.
Henry stalks along, all fired up. Simon tries his best to
keep up with him.
HENRY
I've let myself down, Simon! I've
let myself be caught in the bloody
maw of banal necessity! How did I
get here? How did this happen to me?
I'm going to be somebody's father! I
need time to think. To write. Time
to finish my 'Confession'! I can't
work for a living! It's impossible!
I tried once. My genius will be wasted
trying to make ends meet!
He collapses extravagantly.
HENRY
This is how great men topple, Simon.
Their hearts are in the right place
too much of the time! They get
sidetracked! Distracted. Oh! How
could I have been so careless!
SIMON
Henry, please, let me read the
'Confession'.
HENRY
No. Not now. It's not done. I'm all
washed up. I'm finished!
SIMON
Angus James is convinced my poem is
going to make him incredibly wealthy.
He'll read your book and seriously
consider publishing it. If I ask him
to. I'm certain.
Henry glances back at his friend, digesting this. He thinks
it over, then...
HENRY
Really? You really think so?
Having finally got through to him, Simon comes forward,
anxious to help Henry.
SIMON
I'll insist he publish the
'Confession'.
He paces back and forth, thrusting out his chest, for the
first time in his life displaying something like pride or
arrogance.
SIMON
(adds)
Or I won't let him publish my poem.
Henry sits there watching Simon, impressed with this evidence
of increased self-esteem. He realizes the profundity of the
gesture.
HENRY
You'd do that? You'd do that for me?
Simon stares off into the distance.
SIMON
You saved my life.
Henry is moved. He stands and comes forward. He grabs his
friend by the shoulders and turns him around.
HENRY
Do you realize what you're saying?
SIMON
(pausing)
I owe you everything.
Henry steps away, considering, then looks back at Simon and
extends his hand.
HENRY
OK.
Simon smiles. Henry smiles. They shake hands.
INT. HENRY'S APARTMENT -- DAY
Simon enters, comes forward into the room and pauses, looking
off at...
The stack of twelve books that comprise the 'Confession'.
EXT. HOUSE/BACKYARD -- DAY
Henry stands outside, watching his door.
INT. HENRY'S APARTMENT -- DAY
Simon lifts the first volume, opens it and begins reading.
He sits.
EXT. BACKYARD -- DAY
Henry paces, drinking and smoking nervously.
INT. HENRY'S APARTMENT -- NIGHT
Simon strides the length of the living room, reading. He
stops, frowns.
INT. HENRY'S APARTMENT -- NIGHT
Simon reads in front of the fire.
EXT. BACKYARD/GARAGE -- NIGHT
Buñuel, Hawkes and Mr Deng sleep sitting up as Henry talks
to himself. Fay leans out the back door and interrupts him.
He looks at her, but says nothing. She sighs and goes back
inside: turning off the lights.
INT. HENRY'S APARTMENT -- DAY
The next morning.
Simon sits wearily reading the final page of volume twelve
as the morning sun streaks into the room. Finally, he finishes
and slowly closes the book. He stands and crosses the room.
Leaning against the wall, he removes his glasses and rubs
his aching eyes.
EXT. BACKYARD -- DAY
Simon steps out of Henry's apartment and sees Henry asleep
on the back stoop.
EXT. WORLD OF DONUTS -- DAY
Simon stares into a glass of water. Fay sits ten feet away,
waiting. Finally...
FAY
It's really that bad?
SIMON
It's terrible.
INT. ANGUS JAMES' OFFICE -- DAY
The 'Confession' lies on the big desk. Angus' hand comes
down upon it.
ANGUS
You've read this?
SIMON
Yes.
ANGUS
And you want me to consider publishing
it?
SIMON
Yes.
ANGUS
As part of our deal?
SIMON
Yes.
ANGUS
Simon, this book, it's... It's really
quite bad.
SIMON
That's what you said about my poem.
Angus pauses and figures. He changes the subject.
ANGUS
I'm offering you a very real
expression of my faith in your
writing. Two hundred thousand dollars
and a sixty/forty split.
SIMON
But just exactly what is the nature
of your faith in my writing?
ANGUS
Look, Simon, you don't require my
admiration. You require my experience
as a publisher. And that experience
leads me to believe your poem will
make more money than any book of
poetry ever published. In history.
Virtually make you a household name
within two years. You'll never have
to work on a garbage truck again, I
assure you. Or do anything else for
that matter. Whereas this 'Confession'
by Henry Fool...
He is at a loss for words.
ANGUS
The most I can say for this is...
The man is a scoundrel.
SIMON
He taught me everything I know.
ANGUS
No! He encouraged all that was
expressive in you to become manifest.
He inspired you to act. He influenced
your perception.
Simon waits a while, staring at his shoes.
SIMON
How about if my advance is only a
hundred thousand?
ANGUS
It's not about money, Simon.
SIMON
We could split the royalties
seventy/thirty.
ANGUS
I will not publish Henry Fool's
'Confession'.
Simon sits and lets this sink in. Angus waits, then...
ANGUS
Will you sign the contract?
Simon continues looking out at the city. Angus waits, but
there is no response. Finally, Simon turns, pauses and slowly
crosses the room.
He sits at the table and looks down at the contract.
He signs.
INT. THE GRIM HOUSE KITCHEN -- DAY
Fay is in labor. Henry helps her into her coat as they rush
for the door.
INT. WORLD OF DONUTS -- DAY
Moments later.
Henry runs into the store and stands there, panicked, looking
at Hawkes, Buñuel and Mr Deng. Gnoc runs out to get Fay.
EXT. WORLD OF DONUTS -- DAY
Henry and Gnoc load Fay into the van. The van pulls out.
INT. VAN -- DAY
Henry drives recklessly. Fay rolls around in the back.
INT. HOSPITAL CORRIDOR -- DAY
Fay is in a wheelchair being rushed down the hall. She is
gripping Henry's hand as he runs along beside her.
INT. HOSPITAL DELIVERY ROOM -- DAY
Fay gasps and sweats as the Doctor and Nurse prepare her.
She is scared. She looks over at...
Henry, looking in through the window. He looks scared too.
Fay is sedated by gas.
Henry is taken away by the Nurse.
Fay stares up at the ceiling.
INT. HOSPITAL WAITING ROOM -- NIGHT
Henry is asleep on a row of waiting-room chairs, exhausted.
Simon comes running up the hall and finds him. It's late and
no one is around. He sits down beside Henry and shakes him.
Henry wakes.
HENRY
Simon? You're here.
He sits up and Simon sits beside him.
SIMON
What happened?
HENRY
(coughs)
It's a boy.
SIMON
And Fay?
HENRY
She's alright.
Simon sits back, relieved. Then he remembers the rain-soaked
shopping bag he has with him. He pulls out a couple of cans
of beer and hands one to Henry.
HENRY
Thanks.
They look around, seasoned conspirators and make sure the
coast is clear. Then they pop open the beers and toast.
They drink. Then...
HENRY
How did it go?
Simon pauses, scared, then gets up and crosses the room. He
looks out of the window and gathers his strength.
SIMON
Listen, Henry, Angus James didn't
like your 'Confession'.
Henry looks at Simon blankly, then blinks and looks away.
HENRY
Ah. I see. Well, what now?
SIMON
What do you mean?
HENRY
Did he suggest changes?
Silence. Simon comes back and sits again.
SIMON
No. He didn't.
HENRY
I mean, after all, there are things
I can do to make it more accessible.
SIMON
Accessible?
HENRY
I can soften up some of the language
and make it read easier. Take out
some of the more intratextual
references and popularize the
underlying Sturm und Drang, so to
speak. I can change its mode. Make
it more of a conventional novel
instead.
Simon just stares at him blankly, then sighs and shakes his
head.
SIMON
No. Don't.
HENRY
(laughing)
Oh, Simon, don't be such a purist! I
appreciate your protectiveness, but
the integrity of the work gives it a
durability that can sustain such
things.
Simon comes over and lays his hand on Henry's shoulder.
SIMON
No. Really, Henry. Don't.
HENRY
What are you saying; that it doesn't
merit revision?
SIMON
I'm saying... Angus James didn't
like it.
He steps away and sits. Henry pauses, then approaches and
leans down over him.
HENRY
Well, did you tell him what you think?
SIMON
What I think doesn't matter.
HENRY
Yes, it does. You've got to use your
influence with him.
SIMON
I gave it to him to read and he hated
it. What more can I do?
HENRY
You can refuse to let him publish
your poem.
SIMON
I can't do that.
HENRY
You said you would.
SIMON
That was before I read your book.
HENRY
(hit hard)
Oh.
SIMON
(looking up at him)
I signed the contract, Henry.
Henry stands there a moment longer, then lowers himself into
the nearest seat, weakened.
SIMON
Look, Henry, what did you expect?
HENRY
I... I don't know. Honesty, perhaps.
SIMON
(indignantly)
Look, if I had told you, when at
first I read it, that I thought it
was no good, what would you have
done?
HENRY
I would have respected your opinion.
SIMON
And insisted that there's no
accounting for taste.
HENRY
Well, is there?
Simon's words catch in his throat. He turns away, frustrated.
SIMON
I don't know. I didn't bring it to
Angus because I thought it was good.
I brought it to Angus because you're
my friend.
HENRY
(staggered)
Oh how perfectly enormous of you,
Simon.
SIMON
(explodes)
Look, Henry, I did it! I wrote. I
wrote poetry because you told me to!
I worked! I worked while you sat
back and comfortably dismissed the
outside world as too shallow, stupid
and mean to appreciate your ideas.
HENRY
Is that such a priority? Is that
some sort of measure of a man's worth?
To drag what's best in him out into
the street so every average slob
with some pretense to taste can poke
it with a stick?
SIMON
(sits, tired)
Maybe. Maybe it is.
Henry just stares at him, stands, then turns on his heel and
waves him off.
HENRY
You must be pretty impressed with
yourself, huh? The all too obviously
talented new man, the important new
voice, the early clue to a new
direction, or whatever, etc., etc.,
etc! A popular new trend conveniently
packaged for the distracted young
herd! You want to be liked more than
you know, Simon Grim! You'd be nowhere
without me and you know it.
Simon hangs his head, destroyed.
SIMON
I'm leaving.
Henry is scared all of a sudden. But he puts on a defiant
exterior.
HENRY
Yes. It's time you left.
He stands, drinks and walks over to the window...
HENRY
I saw you for what you were in the
beginning, Simon. I hold no grudge
and I'm certain you will, in time,
leave some serious and small dent in
this world.
SIMON
(weakly)
The world is full of shit.
Henry take advantage of Simon's disillusionment and puts on
a big show of secure wisdom.
HENRY
The world is full of shit. It's true.
And you have to walk through it.
That's your part. I'm sorry. But
you're no good at it. Perhaps I'm
not. Perhaps I wasn't made to walk
through shit. Go on now. Leave. Do
what you're good at. Go.
Simon sits there a moment, numb with grief. Henry, red in
the face, stares at the floor. Suddenly, Simon stands and
walks out. Henry looks up and watches him go. He can hardly
believe it. He almost raises his voice and apologizes, but
can't. He lowers his head again and covers his face with his
hands, listening to Simon's footsteps receding through the
halls.
Simon walks on, away from us, down the hospital corridor.
FADE TO BLACK
EXT. STREET -- DAY
Seven years later.
Fay bangs out of the kitchen door with her seven-year-old
son Ned. Frazzled and overworked, she grips a loaded laundry
basket to her side as she sits Ned down on the curb and points
at him.
FAY
Play!
The kid sits still, obviously guilty of some unspeakable
mischief, as Fay storms back into the house. He looks around,
bored, then brightens up when he sees...
Henry, coming up the street, hanging from the back of a
garbage truck.
INT. THE INFERNO -- DAY
Moments later.
Henry enters with Ned on his back and the bartender, Patty,
goes ballistic.
PATTY
Henry, what did I tell you about
bringing the kid in here!
HENRY
Say hello to Patty, Ned.
NED
Hi.
She suddenly becomes all soft and cuddly.
PATTY
How you doin', sweetie? You wanna
Coke?
He nods and Henry stands him on a stool at the bar.
HENRY
So what did you learn at school today,
Ned? Anything?
He shakes his head.
HENRY
Here, I'll teach you something.
He hands Ned a cigarette and lights it for him. Ned takes a
drag and coughs.
HENRY
Horrible, isn't it?
Ned nods in agreement.
NED
It burns.
HENRY
See. That'll teach ya. Here, sip
this.
And he offers the kid his whiskey.
EXT. THE GRIM HOUSE -- DAY
Same time.
Fay comes out of the house and looks for her son.
FAY
Ned!
She comes out to the street and looks around.
FAY
Ned!
EXT. VICKY'S HOUSE -- DAY
Fay comes up looking for Ned and sees...
Pearl, age fourteen, come out of Vicky's House. She is
fourteen years old now. Warren steps out the door and grabs
her by the arm. She shakes him off. He slaps her.
She runs down the steps and glares back at him.
WARREN
(pointing at her)
I'm warning you, Pearl!
Pearl turns defiantly away and walks into the street.
INT. THE INFERNO -- DAY
Same time.
Henry is teaching Ned how to tip a topless dancer. A dancer
stands on the bar and stretches her garter as Ned slips a
dollar bill in beneath it.
HENRY
That's it. That's it. Perfect!
Some other guy down the bar is reading a newspaper...
BILL
Hey, Fool, it's about your friend --
what's his name. Your brother-in-
law.
Henry looks over. The guy, Bill, shows him the article.
HENRY
What about him?
BILL
(reading)
The controversial and reclusive
American poet Simon Grim has been
awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature.
The Swedish Academy, who will confer
the award late next week, praised Mr
Grim for works of great and difficult
striving, for the rendering of the
desperate, the ugly and the mundane
in a language packed with our shared
human frailties...
HENRY
God, they must be hard up for geniuses
to pin medals on because, listen, I
gotta tell you, when I first met
this guy he didn't even know what an
iambic pentameter was.
BILL
He's a fraud.
HENRY
Keep a lid on it, Bill, you're outta
your league.
BILL
Stir things up so as to stay in the
newspapers. That's his racket.
HENRY
He's a great American poet, you dumb
fuck!
BILL
Poet, my ass! I could puke all over
a piece a loose leaf and be more
profound than he is!
HENRY
Come over here and say that and I'll
cripple ya in three different ways,
you boozed-up Philistine!
FAY
Henry!
Henry and Ned crouch and quiver -- caught. Fay strides up to
the bar and grabs the kid.
FAY
Listen, you degenerate, I've had
about enough of this!
(smells Ned's breath)
Ned, have you been drinking?
The kid checks with Henry then looks back at Fay and nods.
Fay looks at her husband, outraged.
HENRY
(explains)
His throat hurt from smoking.
Fay slaps him across the face -- hard -- and the place goes
quiet. Henry shakes his head clear and she pokes him in the
chest with her finger.
FAY
Henry, don't come home tonight! I'm
warning you! Don't come home at all!
Ever!
And she storms out with the kid. Henry snaps his jaw back
into place, then looks at Patty and Bill and shrugs. He knocks
back his drink and motions for another.
EXT. WORLD OF DONUTS -- NIGHT
Later (evening).
Henry staggers out of the back door of the Inferno and comes
across Mr Deng sitting against the wall of the store, watching
the basketball game on a small TV. World of Donuts vibrates
with loud music.
HENRY
Who's winning?
MR DENG
Nobody.
Henry gestures to World of Donuts...
HENRY
What's going on in there?
MR DENG
We gotta have rock 'n' roll shows
these days, Henry. The poetry readings
just don't pay the bills no more.
HENRY
What did I tell you! It was just a
fad. I told you that! I told everyone!
MR DENG
Did you hear about Simon? It was on
the news today.
HENRY
Yeah yeah yeah. So what? A Nobel
Prize. Anybody can get one of them
these days. That's the problem, with
this world, Mr Deng... Nobody's got
any standards anymore. You seen Fay?
MR DENG
You better sleep in my office tonight,
Henry. She was very angry. You've
gotta let her cool off.
HENRY
I can't sleep in there with that
racket!
MR DENG
Suit yourself.
Henry considers his options, then...
INT. GARAGE -- NIGHT
The place is abandoned.
Henry comes in and, just as he is laying down to go to sleep
on an old couch, finds Pearl age fourteen.
She is hardened and disturbed, but frequently vulnerable and
scared; a troubled kid.
HENRY
What are you doing here, Pearl?
PEARL
You want some?
HENRY
(pauses)
Some what?
Pearl comes towards him. He is kneeling with his face at her
crotch level when she reaches him. She holds out a bottle of
cheap rot-gut wine. Realizing, he takes it and drinks. He
winces.
HENRY
Shit!
Pearl laughs and falls back onto the couch, her sweater
hanging off her shoulder and her skirt hiked up and displaying
her underwear.
Henry stands and searches for something to sit on.
PEARL
Come sit here.
She pats the couch beside her.
He comes over, eyeing her carefully and sits. He hands back
the bottle. She drinks, winces and sits staring at the flames.
PEARL
That's what my dad always says.
HENRY
What?
PEARL
(dead)
'You want some?'
Henry looks away, uncomfortable. She slides her gaze over to
him, their eyes meet, and she pins him to the spot.
PEARL
People say you were once in jail for
having sex with a girl my age.
HENRY
That was a long time ago.
He gets up and stands at the window. Pearl age fourteen
watches him closely as she drinks, then...
PEARL
You want some?
He looks over at her and she slides her coat off her shoulder.
Henry is sweating.
HENRY
You oughta get outta here, Pearl.
PEARL
I was here first.
HENRY
Go home.
PEARL
You go home.
HENRY
Fine.
And he starts to leave. But Pearl sits up...
PEARL
(scared)
Wait!
Henry stops and looks back at her.
PEARL
(hanging her head)
I can't go home.
HENRY
(concerned)
Why not?
PEARL
He beat her up again.
Henry holds his head, tries to sober up. He looks around the
room, then focuses on the girl.
HENRY
Warren beat up your mom?
Pearl stares at the floor. She glances over at him, then
back down at the bottle gripped in her hands. She nods.
Henry pauses, then comes across the room, lowering himself
tentatively to the couch.
HENRY
Is she alright?
She says nothing for a moment, then...
PEARL
(sadly)
Do you think I'm pretty?
Henry lifts his hand and covers his face. He looks up at the
ceiling and sighs. He returns to Pearl...
HENRY
Does she need help?
Pearl reaches over and grabs his thigh. Looking up at him,
with tears rolling down her face, she suggests...
PEARL
I'll suck your cock if you kill him
for me.
Henry jumps away from her and Pearl throws herself down on
the couch, covering her face.
INT. VICKY'S HOUSE -- NIGHT
Moments later.
Henry barges in and starts searching for...
HENRY
Vicky! Vicky, it's Henry from across
the street! Vicky!
He runs through the house, checking the rooms. He throws
open the door to the bedroom and finds...
Vicky, sitting on the edge of the bed, smoking. She has a
black eye and a swollen cheek.
HENRY
(taken back)
Vicky?
VICKY
(standing)
What do you think you're doing, you
idiot!
WARREN
(off)
Hey!
Henry looks over and sees Warren stumble drunkenly out of
the bathroom. What are you doing in my house?
HENRY
(to Vicky)
It's about Pearl.
Vicky looks troubled. She sits back down with a sigh.
VICKY
Mind your own business, Henry.
WARREN
(shoves him)
Yeah, who the hell do you think you
are, anyway?
Henry falls back and looks at Vicky. She looks away.
Henry looks at Warren, pauses, then gives him a sharp, hard
shove.
Warren stands back against the wall, pauses, then erupts
into viciousness.
He grabs Henry and throws him violently down the hall, where
he hits the wall and collapses.
As Henry gets to his knees, Warren kicks him in the ribs.
Henry curls up and rolls out on to the kitchen floor. Warren
kicks him in the side of the head.
Vicky sits back down on the bed, covering her ears.
Warren beats the hell out of Henry, kicking him in the face
and ribs whenever he manages to get up on his hands and knees.
Henry crawls under the kitchen table for safety. Warren grabs
his feet and drags him out. As he is dragged across the floor,
Henry finds a screwdriver and grabs it. He rolls over on his
back as...
Warren lunges down at him again and...
WARREN
Ah.
Warren is stabbed in the heart.
Henry can't believe it.
Warren can't believe it. He stands there in the middle of
the kitchen, amazed, with the screwdriver sticking out of
his chest.
Henry, semi-conscious and severely beaten, falls against the
back door and coughs up a few of his teeth. Vicky steps into
the hall from her room and shudders.
Warren sits at the table, stunned. He looks from the
screwdriver to Vicky, then...
WARREN
Fuck.
He falls to the floor.
EXT. STREETS -- NIGHT
Henry staggers away, limping. He comes to the intersection
at the end of the block and doesn't know which way to run.
Panicked, he looks round, holding his arm to his chest. He
runs towards the highway.
INT. POLICE STATION -- NIGHT
Later.
Fay is wired beyond belief. Trying to listen attentively,
but still too overwhelmed to maintain her concentration.
LAWYER
(off)
It is true your husband served seven
years in prison for statutory rape.
FAY
Yes. It is.
LAWYER
And when was that?
FAY
That was... I dunno. Fifteen...
Sixteen years ago.
LAWYER
And when were you married?
FAY
We were married seven years ago.
LAWYER
Were you aware at all of the victim's
relationship with his daughter?
FAY
Pardon me?
LAWYER
The girl, the daughter, Pearl. She
had been having sexual relations
with her father.
Fay is overwhelmed.
FAY
I didn't know that. No.
LAWYER
Pearl claims she offered your husband
sexual favors if he would kill her
father.
Fay just looks at him blankly, overwhelmed, confused. She
starts to cry quietly.
LAWYER
I'm just repeating what she said,
Mrs Fool. The victim's wife, Vicky,
claims your husband broke into the
house and forcefully entered her
bedroom.
Fay trembles and catches her breath trying to take this all
in. A cop hands her some tissues. She takes them and tries
to concentrate on what the lawyer says.
LAWYER
Fay, I know this isn't easy. But we
need your help here. The girl claims
she asked your husband to kill her
father in exchange for, well, I guess
the promise of sexual relations with
her.
INT. POLICE STATION CORRIDOR -- NIGHT
Later.
Fay staggers out into the noisy corridor and rests against
the wall. Looking down the hall she sees...
Pearl and Vicky, sitting in a blank, brightly lit room beyond
a glass door.
Fay comes closer and looks in at them.
They don't see her. They stare at the floor before them,
dazed and confused.
INT. THE GRIM HOUSE -- DAY
Morning.
Fay is lying on her bed with her coat still on, trying to
think. Ned stands by the side of the bed, watching her.
NED
Mom?
FAY
Yeah.
NED
Where's Dad?
FAY
I don't know, honey. Leave me alone
a minute, I gotta think.
He picks at the bedspread and looks at the ceiling, then...
NED
Mom?
FAY
What!
NED
Is Dad in trouble?
FAY
Yes, Ned, he is. He's in big trouble.
Now just be quiet for two minutes.
He walks around to the other side of the bed and waits a
moment before...
NED
Mom?
FAY
I'm warning you, Ned.
NED
Mom, can I be a mailman when I grow
up?
Fay sits up, pauses and studies her son.
FAY
Sure you can, honey. You can be
anything you want.
Ned is happy to hear this. He shuffles out of the room and
Fay falls back on the bed.
INT. THE GRIM HOUSE KITCHEN -- DAY
Moments later.
Ned comes into the kitchen and digs through the drawers
beneath the sink. He finds an envelope. He reads the return
address: Chelsea Hotel, New York City.
EXT. SUBWAY -- DAY
Ned approaches the subway station and climbs the stairs to
the platform.
EXT. SUBWAY PLATFORM -- DAY
Moments later.
Ned runs up the stairs to the elevated platform just as a
train pulls into the station. He runs down a few cars and
hops in as the doors slide open.
INT. TRAIN -- DAY
Ned rides the train to New York City.
EXT. SUBWAY STOP -- DAY
Twenty minutes later.
He comes up out of the subway on to the street, looks around.
INT. HOTEL LOBBY -- DAY
He comes into the hotel and rings an annoying buzzer which
brings out the concierge, who is in his little office,
watching TV.
CONCIERGE
Yeah, what do you want?
NED
My uncle.
CONCIERGE
What's his name?
NED
Simon Grim.
The concierge looks through his book as Ned waits.
CONCIERGE
There ain't no one here by that name.
Ned pulls the envelope from his pocket, unfolds it and shows
it to the concierge.
NED
Room 423.
The concierge studies the envelope and hands it back.
CONCIERGE
This is post marked five years ago.
Disappointed, Ned takes back the envelope and stands looking
at his sneakers.
CONCIERGE
What does he look like?
NED
(hopeless)
I don't know.
CONCIERGE
Sorry, kid. Can't help ya.
Ned steps away from the front desk and moves towards the
door. But then he stops and looks back at...
The concierge, sitting back in his office, returning his
attention to the TV set.
The boy heads for the elevator.
The concierge looks up and sees him.
CONCIERGE
(jumping up)
Hey!
Ned checks his step and runs for the service stairs.
The concierge goes after him.
INT. HOTEL STAIRCASE -- DAY
Moments later.
Ned runs up the stairs, the concierge in pursuit.
INT. HOTEL CORRIDOR -- DAY
Moments later.
Ned jumps out into the hall, narrowly escaping the clutches
of the concierge, who falls to the floor.
Ned runs up the hall, checking the room numbers as the
concierge gets to his feet. He finds...
Room 423.
He knocks.
The concierge strides up the hall towards him.
Ned knocks again.
The concierge bears down upon him.
He knocks again and...
The door opens a crack, held by its safety chain. A female
figure in silhouette is at the narrow gap.
Ned looks from the door to the concierge approaching.
The concierge arrives and reaches out for him, but the door
opens wide and Ned dives in.
INT. HOTEL ROOM 423 -- DAY
Same time.
The concierge stands in the hallway. The door swings shut in
his face.
Ned kneels on the floor of the hotel room, waiting to be
smacked, or something.
But when nothing happens, he opens his eyes and looks back
over his shoulder at...
Laura, the secretary from the publishing house. She is dressed
for travel and has her coat hung over her arm, a suitcase in
her hand. She smiles at him, then looks from the boy to
someone across the room and...
Ned follows her gaze to find...
Simon, standing there before him, a suitcase in his hand as
well. He looks down at Ned with a calm, intrigued expression.
The boy looks up at him in awe.
Simon steps forward, pauses, then...
SIMON
Get up off your knees.
He does.
EXT. WORLD OF DONUTS -- DAY
A taxi pulls up. Simon and Ned climb out and Laura leans out
of the window.
LAURA
Promise me you'll be on that plane
at seven, Simon.
SIMON
I'll see you in Stockholm.
They kiss. The taxi pulls away. Simon comes down beside Ned,
takes the boy by the shoulders and whispers in his ear.
The kid takes off.
Simon looks over at World of Donuts and sees Gnoc waiting
there at the door.
EXT. BEHIND WORLD OF DONUTS -- DAY
Gnoc leads Simon out through the kitchen. A band is seen
doing a sound check, inside.
Buñuel and Hawkes are waiting there, looking concerned.
Simon gives Buñuel his passport.
Buñuel nods and leaves.
Hawkes and Gnoc open the cellar doors.
INT. WORLD OF DONUTS BASEMENT -- DAY
Moments later.
Simon is lead down the stairs and stops. He looks on in horror
at...
Henry, lying on a makeshift bed, badly beaten up and weak.
Mr Deng is wrapping his chest in bandages.
Simon pauses, then comes closer. He reaches out and touches
Henry's shoulder, standing there looking down at his friend.
Henry looks up at him, pauses and then gestures vaguely with
his hand.
HENRY
Look, Simon, the world's a scary
place. I admit it. But it's not my
fault. I swear!
Simon thinks about this and looks away.
SIMON
I'm sorry, Henry.
HENRY
Don't be. You had things to do.
SIMON
So did you.
Henry thinks about that, sighs and looks away.
INT. THE GRIM HOUSE -- DAY
Fay packs up the many books of the 'Confession' into one of
the old suitcases Henry first came to town with. She slams
it shut.
EXT. THE GRIM HOUSE -- DAY
Ned runs along the street and stops at the police car. He
points down the street with great urgency. The cops jump in
their cars and take off. He then looks over at...
Fay, leaving the house with Henry's suitcase.
EXT. WORLD OF DONUTS BACK ALLEY -- DAY
Same time.
Buñuel backs his car into the alley behind World of Donuts.
Stepping out of the car he hands Simon back the passport.
Simon checks it and then looks up to see...
Father Hawkes and Mr Deng helping Henry outside. Coming out
into the daylight, he straightens up and manages to walk on
his own. He motions Ned over and leans down to the kid with
difficulty.
HENRY
Gotta light?
Ned does. He has his own Zippo lighter and he proudly lights
his dad's cigarette.
Henry smokes, hugs Ned, then leans back and pauses. Finally...
HENRY
Take care of your mom and don't start
trouble you can't finish.
Ned nods and Henry pats him on the shoulder. Then he stands
before Fay and looks at his feet. With her arms folded across
her chest and her hip cocked, she taps her foot impatiently
and waits for his last line of crap.
HENRY
I love you, Fay.
FAY
(rolls her eyes)
Yeah, well, tough.
But then she looks at him and softens. He leans in and kisses
her passionately on the mouth.
Moments later, they all help Henry into Buñuel's car and
Simon gets in behind the wheel. The doors slam shut and Simon
steers the car slowly up the alley. Henry gazes out at Fay
running along beside the car with the rest of the
neighborhood, some of them laughing, some of them crying...
EXT. AIRPORT TERMINAL -- DAY
Simon pulls up at the curb and jumps out. He helps Henry
climb out and together they enter the terminal.
INT. AIRLINE TICKET COUNTER -- DAY
Moments later.
Henry steps up.
AIRLINE TICKET CLERK
Passport and ticket, please.
Henry hands them over. He glances back at...
Simon, waiting.
The clerk compares Henry to the picture in the passport,
checks again, then...
AIRLINE TICKET CLERK
(recognizes)
It's an honor to meet you, Mr Grim.
Really. I mean, God. Congratulations
on the Nobel Prize.
HENRY
Thanks.
AIRLINE TICKET CLERK
I know all your work by heart. It
changed my life.
HENRY
Yeah, well. Look, thanks, but..
AIRLINE TICKET CLERK
Yes. Of course.
She types something more into the computer, then looks up
urgently.
AIRLINE TICKET CLERK
You'll have to hurry, sir. They're
holding the plane for you on the
runway.
INT. AIRPORT GATE -- DAY
Moments later.
Airline representatives come rushing up with walkie-talkies
to meet Henry and Simon as they run through the terminal.
AIRLINE REP #1
This way, please, this way! This
way, Mr Grim! This way! Excuse me!
As they are ushered up towards the gate, Henry stops and
looks off at the security guards and ground crew waiting for
him, certain they can spot him as a wanted criminal.
SIMON
(shoves him)
Go on.
Henry is ushered through security. They take his ticket and
check his passport again. They take his suitcase and place
it on the conveyor belt. He passes through the metal detector.
They pass the metal detector wand over him and he stands
there with his hands outstretched, as...
Simon waits and watches.
The suitcase rolls out from the x-ray machine and as Henry
grabs it, he stops and looks across the security checkpoint
at...
Simon, standing there. He steps forward anxiously.
Henry lingers, speechless, but the airline representatives
are at his side...
AIRLINE REP
Mr Grim, please, the plane is waiting!
We have to hurry!
They drag him away, but Henry looks back as...
Simon stops and watches.
EXT. AIRPORT RUNWAY -- DAY
Moments later.
The plane is waiting out on the asphalt and the airline
representative runs straight for it, calling back over her
shoulder to Henry...
AIRLINE REP
This way, Mr Grim! This way!
Runway technicians rush to their positions, but Henry hangs
back and struggles across the tarmac, looking back over his
shoulder at...
Simon, behind the huge plate glass window of the terminal.
He stops and waits.
Simon raises his hand in farewell and...
Henry raises his in reply.
Then Simon, unheard behind the gigantic glass wall, silent
amongst the roar of the runway, says...
SIMON
(unheard)
Run.
And Henry understands. He lowers his hand, waits just a
moment, then turns and looks out at...
The airplane. The airline representative is shouting at him
from the foot of the stairs and waving him on with her walkie-
talkie.
He glances back once more at Simon. Then...
Henry is running, struggling towards us, forcing himself
towards the plane, getting stronger and running faster with
every step he takes.
CUT TO BLACK
THE END
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