A Clockwork Orange Page #7

CHIEF GUARD:

Yes, Dr. Alcott. Are you prepared to accept the prisoner, sir?

DOCTOR:

Yes, of course.

CHIEF GUARD:

Well, I wonder if you'd mind signing these transfer documents, sir.

Doctor signs.

CHIEF GUARD:

Thank you, sir. There, sir... there, and there, sir... and there. Thank

you, sir. Prison escort move forward. Halt. Excuse me, sir. Is that the

officer that is to take charge of the prisoner, sir?

Doctor nods. Officer steps forward.

CHIEF GUARD:

If I might offer a word of advice, Doc. You'll have to watch this one.

A right brutal bastard he has been, and will be again. In spite all his

sucking up to the prison Chaplain and reading the Bible.

DOCTOR:

Oh, I think we can manage things. Charlie, will you show the young man

to his room now.

CHARLIE:

Right, sir. Come this way, please.

Alex exits with Officer.

INT. ALEX'S ROOM - LUDOVICO CENTRE - DAY

Alex finishing breakfast tray in bed.

Room bright and cheery.

Dr. Branom, a tall woman in her fifties, enters with nurse carrying a

sterile tray.

DR. BRANOM

(very briskly)

Good morning, Alex, my name is Dr. Branom. I'm Doctor Brodsky's

assistant.

ALEX:

Good Morning, Missus. Lovely day, isn't it?

DR. BRANOM

Indeed it is. May I take this

She removes his tray.

DR. BRANOM

How're you feeling this morning?

ALEX:

Fine... fine.

DR. BRANOM

Good. In a few minutes, you'll meeting Dr. Brodsky and we'll begin your

treatment. You're a very lucky boy to have been chosen.

ALEX:

I realise all that, Missus, and I'm very grateful to all concerned.

DR. BRANOM

We're going to friends now, sir.

ALEX:

I hope so, Missus.

She inserts a needle into the medicine vial.

ALEX (CONT'D)

What's the hypo for then? Going to send me to sleep?

DR. BRANOM

Oh no, nothing of the sort.

ALEX:

Vitamins will it be then?

DR. BRANOM

Something like that. You are a little undernourished, so after each

meal were going to give you a shot. Roll over on your right side

please, loosen your pyjama pants and pull them half-way down.

He does, somewhat reluctantly. She gives him a shot in the bum.

ALEX:

What exactly is the treatment here going to be then?

DR. BRANOM

It's quite simple really. Were just going to show you some films.

ALEX:

You mean like going to the pictures?

DR. BRANOM

Something like that.

ALEX:

Well, that's good. I like to viddy the old films now and again.

INT. AUDIO VISUAL LUDOVICO CENTRE - DAY

Auditorium setting. Alex is bound in a examination chair in front of a

large video screen. A white-coated Technician is strapping Alex's head

to a medical device.

He then carefully attaches the eyelid locking to Alex's eyes.

ALEX (V.O.)

And viddy films I would. Where I was taken to, brothers, was like no

cine I'd been in before. I was bound up in a straight-jacket and my

gulliver was strapped to a headrest with like wires running away from

it. Then they clamped like lidlocks on my eyes so I could not shut them

no matter how hard I tried. It seemed a bit crazy to me, but I let them

get on with what they wanted to get on with. If I was to be a free

young malchick in a fortnight's time, I would put up with much in the

meantime, my brothers.

At the back of the auditorium are ten or fifteen solemn medical

Professionals in white coats watching the proceedings and occasionally

taking notes. A film begins showing on the screen.

The Technician drops eyedrops into Alex's eyes.

VIOLENCE FILM:

Man being beaten by four toughs wearing white.

Punches, kicks, grunts, blood.

ALEX (V.O.)

So far the first film was a very good professional piece of cine,

looked like it was done in Hollywood.

Screams, moans, kicks, punches.

ALEX (V.O.)

The sounds were real horroshow. You could slooshy the screams and moans

very realistic and you could even get the heavy breathing and panting

of the tolchocking malchicks at the same time. And then, what do you

know, soon our dear old friend, the red, red vino on tap. The same in

all places like it's put out by the same big firm, began to flow. It

was beautiful. It's funny how the colours of the real world only seem

really real when you viddy them on a screen.

More kicks, punches, groans, thumps.

Girl being beaten, raped by six toughs.

Screams, music, laughing, grunts, heavy breathing.

ALEX (V.O.)

Now all the time I was watching this, I was beginning to get very aware

of like not feeling all that well, but I tried to forget this,

concentrating on the next film, which jumped right away on a young

devotchka, who was being given the old in-out, in-out, first by one

malchick, then another, then another. This seemed real, very real,

though if you thought about it properly you couldn't imagine lewdies

actually agreeing to having all this done to them in a film, and if

these films were made by the good, or the State, you couldn't imagine

them being allowed to take these films, without like interfering with

what was going on.

Girl being raped.

ALEX (V.O.)

When it came to the sixth or seventh malchick, leering and smecking and

then going into it, I began to feel really sick. But I could not shut

my glazzies and even if I tried to move my glazballs about I still not

get out of the line of fire of this picture.

Alex squirming and retching.

Dr. Brodsky clears his throat and quietly addresses his colleagues

seated in the back of the room.

DR. BRODSKY

Very soon now the drug will cause the subject to experience a death-

like paralysis together with deep feelings of terror and helplessness.

One of our earlier test subjects described it as being like death, a

sense of stifling and drowning, and it is during this period we have

found the subject will make his most rewarding associations between his

catastrophic experience and environment and the violence he sees.

Alex retching violently and struggling against his strait jacket.

ALEX:

Let me be sick... I want to get up. Get me something to be sick in...

Stop the film... Please stop it... I can't stand it any more. Stop it

please... please.

INT. ALEX'S ROOM - LUDOVICO - DAY

DR. BRANOM

Well, that was a very promising start. By my calculations, you should

be starting to feel alright again. Yes? Dr. Brodsky's pleased with you.

Now tomorrow there'll be two sessions, of course, morning and

afternoon.

ALEX:

You mean, I have to viddy two sessions in one day?

DR. BRANOM

I imagine you'll be feeling a little bit limp by the end of the day.

But we have to be hard on you. You have to be cured.

ALEX:

But it was horrible.

DR. BRANOM

Well, of course, it was horrible. Violence is a very horrible thing.

That's what you're learning now. Your body is learning it.

ALEX:

I just don't understand about feeling sick the way I did. I never used

to feel sick before. I used to feel like the very opposite. I mean,

doing it or watching it, I used to feel real horrorshow. I just don't

understand why, how what.

DR. BRANOM

You felt ill this afternoon because you're getting better. You see,

when we're healthy we respond to the presence of the hateful with fear

and nausea. You're becoming healthy that's all. By this time tomorrow

you'll be healthier still.

INT. AUDIO VISUAL LUDOVICO CENTRE - DAY

Alex retching and screaming - restrained again by a straight-jacket.

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