Alice in Wonderland Page #2

ALICE:

I wonder if your mother knows that you

two swim naked in the Havershim’s

pond.

FAITH:

You wouldn’t!

ALICE:

Oh, but I would. There’s your mother

now.

Alice starts to walk toward her. Fiona blurts out.

FIONA:

Hamish is going to ask for your hand!

Alice stops dead. Her sister, MARGARET, suddenly pulls her

away.

MARGARET:

You’ve ruined the surprise!

(to Alice)

I could strangle them! Everyone went

to so much effort to keep the secret.

ALICE:

Does everyone know?

MARGARET:

It’s why they’ve all come. This is

your engagement party. Hamish will ask

you under the gazebo. When you say

“yes”...

(CONTINUED)

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7 CONTINUED:
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ALICE:

But I don’t know if I want to marry

him.

MARGARET:

Who then? You won’t do better than a

Lord.

She looks at Hamish who blows his nose, studies the contents

of his kerchief, then folds it and puts it in his pocket.

MARGARET:

You’ll soon be twenty, Alice. That

pretty face won’t last forever. You

don’t want to end up like Aunt

Imogene.

They look at their middle-aged AUNT IMOGENE with over-rouged

cheeks and a yellowing white dress that’s too young for her.

MARGARET:

And you don’t want to be a burden on

mother, do you?

ALICE:

No.

MARGARET:

So you will marry Hamish. You will be

as happy as I am with Lowell and your

life will be perfect. It’s already

decided.

Lady Ascot’s face suddenly looms in hers.

LADY ASCOT:

Alice dear, shall we take a leisurely

stroll through the garden? Just you

and me?

She jerks her away quickly.

8 EXT. THE ROSE GARDENS 8

Lady Ascot steers her through the gardens at a fast clip.

LADY ASCOT:

Do you know what I’ve always dreaded?

ALICE:

The decline of the aristocracy?

(CONTINUED)

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8

LADY ASCOT:

Ugly grandchildren. But you’re so

lovely. You’re bound to produce

little...

(she gasps)

Imbeciles! The gardeners planted

white roses when I specifically asked

for red!

ALICE:

You could always paint the roses red.

Lady Ascot looks at her strangely.

LADY ASCOT:

What an odd thing to say. Come along.

She hurries her along the path. Alice hears a jingling sound.

LADY ASCOT:

You should know that my son has

extremely delicate digestion...

Alice sees SOMETHING LARGE AND WHITE dart past.

ALICE:

Did you see that?

LADY ASCOT:

See what?

ALICE:

It was a rabbit, I think.

LADY ASCOT:

Nasty things. I do enjoy setting the

dogs on them. Don’t dawdle.

She rushes Alice toward the gazebo. Alice looks for the

rabbit.

LADY ASCOT (CONT’D)

If you serve Hamish the wrong foods,

he could get a blockage.

And there it is, a LARGE WHITE RABBIT in a waistcoat,

standing on its hind legs and staring directly at Alice. She

blinks. The White Rabbit darts behind a tree.

ALICE:

Did you see it that time?

(CONTINUED)

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8 CONTINUED:
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LADY ASCOT:

See what?

ALICE:

The rabbit!

LADY ASCOT:

Don’t shout! Pay attention. Hamish

said you were easily distracted. What

was I saying?

ALICE:

Hamish has a blockage. I couldn’t be

more interested, but you’ll have to

excuse me.

Alice dives into the wooded area off the path and stands for

I keep seeing a rabbit in a waistcoat.

a moment, mind reeling.

jumps.

A hand lands on her shoulder. She

ALICE:

Aunt Imogene! I think I’m going mad.

IMOGENE:

How very strange. What kind of

waistcoat?

ALICE:

Brocade, I think. What does it

matter? It’s a rabbit in a waistcoat!

IMOGENE:

I can’t be bothered with your fancy

rabbit now. I’m waiting for my

fiance.

ALICE:

You have a fiance?

The White Rabbit darts by.

ALICE (CONT’D)

There! Did you see it?

IMOGENE:

He’s a prince. But, alas he cannot

marry me unless he renounces his

throne. Isn’t it tragic?

ALICE:

Very.

(CONTINUED)

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8 CONTINUED:
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She backs away and runs into her sister’s husband, LOWELL,

kissing a strange woman. The woman runs off.

ALICE:

Lowell?

LOWELL:

Alice. We were...Hattie is an old

friend.

ALICE:

I can see you’re very close.

Lowell is bright red and highly flustered.

LOWELL:

You won’t mention this to your sister,

will you?

ALICE:

I don’t know. I’m confused. I need

time to think.

LOWELL:

Think of Margaret. She would never

trust me again. You don’t want to

ruin her marriage, do you?

ALICE:

Me? I’m not the one...

Suddenly Hamish is there, annoyed.

HAMISH:

There you are! I told you meet me

under the gazebo!

9 EXT. THE GARDEN - GAZEBO - DAY 9

He pulls her under the gazebo. The shadows of the pillars

fall on her like prison bars. She glances at a string

quartet discreetly positioned in the shadows... bows poised.

Hamish drops to his knee. Alice notices an artist

immortalizing the moment.

HAMISH (CONT’D)

Alice Kingsley...

ALICE:

Hamish.

(CONTINUED)

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9 CONTINUED:
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HAMISH:

What is it?

ALICE:

You have a caterpillar on your

shoulder.

He frantically brushes at his shoulder.

ALICE (CONT’D)

Don’t hurt it.

Alice lets the CATERPILLAR crawl onto her finger, then places

it gently onto a tree branch.

HAMISH:

You’ll want to wash that finger.

He sees his mother motioning to him from below. Everyone is

watching. He blurts out.

HAMISH (CONT’D)

Alice Kingsley, will you be my wife?

The question hangs in the air. Unsure of herself, unsure of

her future, unsure of her own sanity in that moment, Alice

stammers.

ALICE:

I...I......well, everyone expects me

to...and you’re a Lord...and my face

won’t last...and I don’t want to end

up like...but this is happening so

quickly...I think...I...I...

She sees the WHITE RABBIT leaning against a pillar, glaring

at her with undisguised impatience.

ALICE (CONT’D)

...need a moment.

She turns and runs.

10 EXT. THE MEADOW - DAY - CONT. 10

She follows the White Rabbit across a meadow.

ALICE:

Wait!

She loses sight of him. She peeks over the hedgerow. No

rabbit. Stumped, she looks around.

(CONTINUED)

10

11

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CONTINUED:
10

A white paw reaches up and grasps her by the ankle. With a

quick jerk, it pulls her down into the rabbit hole. She

screams...

DOWN THE RABBIT HOLE 11

...and keeps screaming as she tumbles head over heels down

the rabbit hole. She frantically grabs at the walls which are hung

with paintings, ancient maps, cracked mirrors, demonic masks,

etc. She pulls out books, jam jars, a crystal ball, a badger

claw, a monkey’s hand and a human skull in her frantic effort

to stop herself. And down she falls. It begins to grow dark

as the day passes into night. And still she falls. Finally,

after what seems like hours...

INT. THE ROUND HALL - DAY 12

WHAM! She hits bottom, smacking her head on a wooden floor.

ALICE:

Ah!

Wind knocked out, she gasps for air, then she sits up,

rubbing the bump on her forehead. She’s in a round hall with

many doors. She gets up and tries a door. It’s locked. She

tries another one and another. She knocks.

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