American Hustle Page #18

101.

CARMINE POLITO:

(on mic)

Hello, Camden! Hello, New Jersey!

Hello, Atlantic City! [CROWD ROARS]

A lot of my friends been out of

work [CROWD WHISTLES - BOOS] A lot

of good hard working families just

wanna WORK AND LIVE. (crowd CHEERS)

There’s no money nowhere. You gotta

be kidding me! -- don’t they

remember who built this country?

[CHEERS] The one thing we can all

agree about in the State of New

Jersey is that we never, ever give

up! Do we?

Carmine dominates the crowd and you can see the emotion in

his face as he says this. He raises his glass to the crowd.

CARMINE POLITO (CONT’D)

Please, raise a glass with me to a

new era that begins tonight. From

me and my family, we thank you. For

all the hard work that you've given

us in the community. Look what

you've done. This is beautiful!

Thank you!

Crowd ROARS WILDLY. Irv watches, MOVED AND DESTROYED.

DISSOLVE TO:
SHOTS OF EMPTY BALL ROOM, TRASHED HALLWAYS,

ATLANTIC CITY STREET TO OCEAN -- OCEAN SOUNDS

SMASH TO:

132 INT. IRVING’S DRY CLEANERS - EARLY MORNING 132

Irving walks in with his keys, same clothes from night

before, as ocean sounds continue, TAKES A GUN FROM THE SAFE,

and he stands looking lost and lonely, he turns on the

electric dry cleaning rack, where he and SYDNEY STOOD

TOGETHER, IN LOVE. He looks heartsick. HE STEPS INSIDE THE

SWIRLING ELECTRIC DRY CLEANING RACK OF PLASTIC WRAPPED

CLOTHES, AND STANDS ALONE, WHERE SYD USED TO BE, AND IS

HEARTBROKEN.

EXT. THIRD AVENUE - DAY - CONTINUOUS

RICHIE STORMS DOWN THE STREET IN SAME NIGHT CLOTHES.

102.

134 INT. HALLWAY TO SYDNEY’S APARTMENT - DAY 134

BANG BANG BANG -- Richie POUNDS ON SYDNEY’S DOOR -- SYDNEY,

HAIR IN CURLERS, ANSWERS THE DOOR.

RICHIE DIMASO:

Can I use your phone?

135 INT. SYDNEY’S APARTMENT DAY - AS SHE WATCHES -- HE paces

intense, phone in hand, SHIRT SLEEVES, a mess. HE DIALS.

135

RICHIE DIMASO (CONT’D)

(to Sydney)

Last night was insane. I got it allfigured out.

STODDARD THORSEN

(on phone)

Stoddard Thorsen.

RICHIE DIMASO:

(into phone)

Listen, I need the Sherman Suite at

the Plaza Hotel, okay?

STODDARD THORSEN

(on phone)

That's a whole floor of the hotel.

RICHIE DIMASO:

I need a whole floor. I need it for

my operation

INT. FBI FIELD OFFICE - DAY - CONTINUOUS

STODDARD THORSEN

(on phone)

Stop calling it your operation,

Richard. It's not your operation.

And I'm not giving you a wholefloor of the Plaza Hotel.

INT. SYDNEY’S APARTMENT - DAY

RICHIE DIMASO:

I have members of Congress that aregonna come in right now to try togive the Sheik citizenship. They'retaking bribes. This is happeningright now. That's what's happeningright now.

103.

INT. FBI FIELD OFFICE - DAY

STODDARD THORSEN

(on phone)

Bribing members of Congress are you

out of your f***ing mind?

INT. SYDNEY’S APARTMENT - DAY

RICHIE DIMASO:

Stoddard. Stoddard! Shut up!

Listen! Do you know who Victor

Tellegio is? Victor. Tellegio.

Works for Meyer Lansky. You know

who that is?

STODDARD THORSEN

I know who Victor Tellegio is.

RICHIE DIMASO:

Resorts International! He wants ten

million dollars. I have two weeks!

STODDARD THORSEN

You’re not getting ten million

dollars.

RICHIE DIMASO:

(screaming)

Just listen to me! You're not

listening to me! I have two weeks!

I have two weeks to put this thing

together and I need you to get me

the Sherman Suite at the Plaza

Hotel. And your going to f***ing do

it!

STODDARD THORSEN

Lower your voice. You don’t get to

yell at me.

Richie SLAMS DOWN THE PHONE. Edith (HAIR IN CURLERS) STARES

AT HIM.

RICHIE DIMASO:

Calm me down baby. You gotta calm

me down.

He handles her hips and neck and waist and ass.

RICHIE DIMASO (CONT’D)

Baby let’s do this. Let’s do this

right now. -

104.

EDITH GREENSLY:

No, no.

RICHIE DIMASO:

I want to do this. You’re f***ing

skin is glowing baby. Your skin is

glowing.

EDITH GREENSLY:

I’m not doing this with you. We’re

not going to do this unless we do

it for real, alright?

RICHIE DIMASO:

I want to do this now!

EDITH GREENSLY:

That’s what we agreed on so we’re

not going to do that alright?

Alright? Where are you? You’re

acting all scary.

She grabs him by the head to calm him down.

EDITH GREENSLY (CONT’D)

Are you here with me?

HE TRIES A GENTLER SEDUCTION.

RICHIE DIMASO:

(leans down to her eyes)

I love you. I love you. Look at me.

(slowly)

I’m in love with you. It is real

now. I just said it so now’s the

time.

He handles her, nuzzles her neck, starts to turn her on.

EDITH GREENSLY:

(kissing him)

You want the truth? You want real?

RICHIE DIMASO:

I’m ready for real.

SOMETHING CLICKS INSIDE HER -- SHE DROPS HER BRITISH ACCENT --

SYDNEY PROSSER:

(DROPS HER BRITISH ACCENT)

OK, this is real. Do you hear my

voice? This is real. This is real.

What you hear is real.

105.

Richie steps back quickly and grabs Sydney.

RICHIE DIMASO:

What?

SYDNEY PROSSER:

This is me.

RICHIE DIMASO:

What do you mean? What are you

doing an accent? An American

accent?

EDITH GREENSLY:

No. There is no English. There’s

only American. There is no English.

Richie looks at her and continues to hold her looking very

confused and flustered.

RICHIE DIMASO:

What are you talking about? Stop

it. You’re Edith. You’re Edith

Greensly. I checked your records.

SYDNEY PROSSER:

I falsified my records back to

birth. I falsified them.

SYDNEY PROSSER (CONT’D)

My name is Sydney Prosser, and I'm

from Albuquerque, New Mexico. I'm

not Edith Greensly. There is no

Edith Greensly.

Richie steps back. He stares at her darkly.

RICHIE DIMASO:

You’re -- freaking -- me -- out.

No, you said in the stall that we

were going to be real and that we

weren't going to fake it.

SYDNEY PROSSER:

I’m being real now. This is who I

am. I’m Sydney Prosser. Ok?

RICHIE DIMASO:

So -- why -- did you do an English

accent after that?

SYDNEY PROSSER:

I’m sorry I didn’t tell you in the

stall.

(MORE)

106.

SYDNEY PROSSER (CONT'D)

I created Edith because I needed

her to survive, okay? But I'm done

with that now. I'm so f***ing done

with that. Like you do what you

need to survive, right? You do it.

You know, you live with your mom --

you have a fiancée you don't even

acknowledge, right? That's what

you do. And you curl your hair in

little f***ing curlers, which is --

No, it's okay, you look good with

it, but you know -- you have

straight hair, so that's what you

do to survive. You do all sorts of

things, you know. We all do.

RICHIE DIMASO:

(whispers tensely)

Please don't talk about that. I'm

confused. I'm confused and -

SYDNEY PROSSER:

I’m f***ing confused too, alright?

Rate this script:3.7 / 3 votes