A Dry White Season Page #20

(CONTINUED)

111.

CONTINUED:

Stolz picks up a book of Picasso's Peace Paintings,

starts leafing through it carefully, scrutinizing each

page.

He puts the Picasso book carefully back in the place he

took it from.

STOLZ:

An interesting book --Picasso -Not

one I'm familiar with.

BEN:

Not on your list of banned books,

Captain?

Stolz doesn't react...

CUT TO:

INT. BEN'S LIVING ROOM -DAY

The search continues in the living room. Susan is

standing pale, rigid, shocked.

STOLZ:

Mr. Du Toit. If you're keeping

anything from us, we can turn this

whole house upside down if we want

to. We have all the time in the

world.

SUSAN:

(throwing Ben a

warning daggers

look)

I'm afraid I don't understand.

Nothing from Stolz.

One of the men starts to roll up the carpet to look under

it.

Susan has to move out of his way.

BEN:

(gently to Susan)

Why don't you go upstairs?

STOLZ:

I'm afraid she has to stay where

we can see her --in case she

wanted to warn someone.

SUSAN:

My father's an M.P.! Warn who?

112.

CONTINUED:

EXT. DAN PIENAAR SCHOOL -DAY

All four tires of Ben's car have been slashed to ribbons.

INT. BEN'S GARAGE -DAY

Ben and Johan are there.

Ben takes a file from under a toolbox and measures it

carefully against the drawer base. Then, he selects a

piece of wood approximately the size of the drawer and

tries it for size.

We should be in no doubt that's he's constructing a

hiding place.

INT. BEN'S KITCHEN -AFTERNOON

Susan is preparing a roast. There's music from a transistor

RADIO. Susan is startled by a voice, her father's

(Ben's FATHER-IN-LAW). She turns OFF, the RADIO.

FATHER-IN-LAW

Roast beef, I hope it's like your

mother's.

SUSAN:

(happy)

Papa!

He is aged about 70 years, thick set. She rushes to him

and he hugs her tightly and practically lifts her off the

floor. She kisses him.

SUSAN:

Where's Mama?

She disentangles herself and goes to the living room as

excited as a child, the mother is standing by two cases,

smiling.

Susan hugs her.

SUSAN:

Mama!

She holds her mother at arm's length inspecting her.

SUSAN:

The perfume and a new hairstyle.

MOTHER:

Your father insisted that I don't

disgrace you.

(CONTINUED)

113.

CONTINUED:

SUSAN:

(hugging her again)

I expected you a little later.

FATHER-IN-LAW

She insisted we start early.

Where is Ben?

JOHAN:

(walking in with golf

club bag)

In the study. I'll get him.

FATHER-IN-LAW

Have you put on weight, Susan?

SUSAN:

Please don't say that, Papa.

Ben walks in.

BEN:

Sorry. Didn't hear you arrive.

He shakes hands with Father-In-Law.

FATHER-IN-LAW

How are you, Ben?

BEN:

Fine.

He goes to MOTHER-IN-LAW. He kisses her on the cheek.

BEN:

And how are you, Ma?

MOTHER-IN-LAW (MOTHER)

Well, Ben, still have trouble with

my feet.

BEN:

Why doesn't everyone sit down?

SUSAN:

I'll prepare some tea. I baked a

cake.

She goes to the kitchen.

EXT. LOCAL GOLF COURSE -SUNSET

Ben and Father-In-Law are having a drink after a round of

golf, outside the club house.

(CONTINUED)

114.

CONTINUED:

FATHER-IN-LAW

I'm getting tired of the trek to

Cape Town and then back to

Pretoria. If I had my way,

Parliament and government would

be in the same city. There's

nothing wrong with Pretoria.

BEN:

I thought you'd prefer Cape Town;

the sea and Table Mountain.

FATHER-IN-LAW

That's for holidays. Anyway, Ben,

one of the reasons for this visit

was that I wanted to have a

discussion with you.

BEN:

What about?

FATHER-IN-LAW

It's that photograph in the

papers. Ben, a thing like that

could be an embarrassment for

someone who is a member of

Parliament. It's a grievous day

when one's family's behavior

comes between him and his duty

to the fatherland.

BEN:

Are you blaming me for trying to

help those people?

FATHER-IN-LAW

I've been doing that all my life,

be they black or white. But no

member of our family has been seen

with a Kaffir woman before, Ben.

Father signals the African waiter for more drinks.

BEN:

I am glad you mentioned it, Father.

Because I'd like to discuss the

whole thing with you. First,

there's the matter of Gordon

Ngubene himself.

FATHER-IN-LAW

What about him? I thought the

case was closed.

(CONTINUED)

115.

CONTINUED:

BEN:

The inquest didn't clear up half

of what happened.

FATHER-IN-LAW

Oh, really?

BEN:

We have no irrefutable evidence

yet, but we have enough to

indicate that something serious is

being covered up.

FATHER-IN-LAW

You're jumping to conclusions,

Ben.

BEN:

I know what I'm talking about.

The black waiter places the drinks on the table.

FATHER-IN-LAW

All right, Ben, I'm listening.

Perhaps I can use my influence.

But you'll have to convince me

first.

BEN:

If they have really nothing to

hide, why is the special branch

going out of its way to intimidate

me.

FATHER-IN-LAW

(practically choking)

What's this about special branch?

BEN:

They raided the house; they are

tapping my phone, and I have been

threatened by one of the officers.

FATHER-IN-LAW

I'm sorry, Ben, I'd rather not

have anything to do with this sort

of thing.

BEN:

Why?

FATHER-IN-LAW

If the special branch are involved

they must have good reasons.

(CONTINUED)

116.

CONTINUED:

BEN:

It's exactly what I said, Father,

when Jonathan first got into

trouble. Of course, they have

good reasons:
hushing up how

Gordon died and how his son died!

FATHER-IN-LAW

(angry)

Ben, how could you side with the

enemies of your people?

BEN:

You mean you're prepared to sit

back and allow an injustice to be

done.

FATHER-IN-LAW

(his face grows

purple)

It's you, Ben, who talk about

injustice? A man who teaches

history at school? Did you forget

what our people have suffered

under the English oppressors?

Now that we have at along last

come to power in our own land.

BEN:

Now we're free to do to others

what they used to do to us. What

will you do if you were a black

man in this country today, Father?

FATHER-IN-LAW

Don't you realize what the

government is doing for the blacks?

It's a slow process, Ben. One of

these days the whole bloody lot of

them will be free and independent

in their own parts of the land, the

bantoustans --what can be more

just than that? But they're not

ready yet.

The waiter returns --Father-in-law pays the bill, and as

he rises to leave, he puts a paternal arm on Ben's

shoulder.

FATHER-IN-LAW

We have nothing to be ashamed of

before the eyes of the world, my

boy.

(CONTINUED)

117.

CONTINUED:

BEN:

(standing, his golf

bag in his hand)

We don't? I'm not sure we're

going to survive.

They walk away.

FATHER-IN-LAW

Don't underestimate us, Ben. Our

power of survival. We are

Afrikaners!

EXT. STREET CORNER -EVENING

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