Big Fish Page #7

Edward tosses the sign and forges ahead, into the spiderwebs.

35.

EDWARD (cont’d)

And what I recalled of Sunday Schoolwas that the more difficult somethingbecame, the more rewarding it was inthe end.

EXT. CLEARING / THE ROAD - DAY

Edward emerges from the forest, brushing the last cobwebs offand shaking the spiders from his shirt. One is stuck in his

sleeve, and he has to dance to get it out. Even then, hestill keeps twitching, convinced another one is left behind.

At his feet, the gravel road has returned, smooth and dustyand comforting.

Ahead lies a tiny one-street town -- smaller even than Ashton-- with powerlines emerging from the woods to feed it.

Dangling from the line above he sees two dozen pairs ofshoes, their laces tied together.

He passes a sign that reads “Welcome To Spectre!”

EXT. THE TOWN OF SPECTRE - DAY

It’s a main street with stores on each side: Cole’s

Pharmacy, Talbot’s Five and Dime, Al’s Country Store.

Everything is old, but this isn’t a ghost town. In fact,

there’s a group of about 20 CITIZENS spilling out to seeEdward approach. Most are smiling. There are even a few

tears of joy.

What’s more, all of these people are barefoot.

MAN’S VOICE

Friend!

A forty-year old man named BEAMEN comes out of the seed storeto greet Edward. Friendly but a little drunk, he’s theclosest thing the town has to a mayor. He’s carrying aclipboard.

BEAMEN:

Welcome to ya. What’s your name?

EDWARD:

Edward Bloom.

Beamen checks the clipboard. Not finding the name, he flipsforward a few pages. Still looking...

BEAMEN:

Bloom like a flower?

36.

EDWARD:

Yes.

BEAMEN:

Oh. Here! Right here. Edward Bloom.

We weren’t expecting you yet.

Still confused...

EDWARD:

You were expecting me?

BEAMEN:

Not yet.

A helpful woman named MILDRED chimes in:

MILDRED:

You must have taken a shortcut.

EDWARD:

I did. It nearly killed me.

BEAMEN:

Mmm-hmm. Life’ll do that to you. And

truthfully, the long way is easier, butit’s longer.

MILDRED:

Much longer.

BEAMEN:

And you’re here now, and that’s whatmatters.

Beamen’s daughter JENNY (8) hides behind her father, peeringaround to look at the handsome stranger.

EDWARD:

What is this place?

BEAMEN:

The town of Spectre. Best kept secretin Alabama. Says here you’re fromAshton, right? Last person we had fromAshton was Norther Winslow.

EDWARD:

The poet? What ever happened to him?

BEAMEN:

He’s still here. Let me buy you adrink. I’ll tell you all about it.

Hell, I’ll have him tell you.

37.

EDWARD:

No. I’ve gotta meet somebody. I’m

already running late.

He didn’t mean it as a joke, but for some reason, everyone’slaughing.

BEAMEN:

Son, I already told you. You’re early.

INT. BEAMEN’S HOUSE - DAY

Sitting at the kitchen table, Edward takes a second slice ofapple pie. He and Beamen are joined by NORTHER WINSLOW (30),

who fancies himself a cultured artist, though he’s never leftthe state.

BEAMEN:

Now tell me if that isn’t the best pieyou ever ate.

EDWARD:

It truly is.

UNDER THE TABLE:

Young Jenny is stealthily untying the laces on Edward’sshoes.

NORTHER WINSLOW:

Everything here tastes better. Even

the water is sweet. Never gets toohot, too cold, too humid. At night thewind goes through the trees and you’dswear there was a whole symphony outthere, playing just for you.

Suddenly, Jenny YANKS OFF Edward’s shoes. She races for the

door.

EDWARD:

Hey!

He chases after her.

EXT. TOWN / MAIN STREET - DAY

As she runs, Jenny ties Edward’s laces together. Reachingthe edge of town, she tosses the shoes up and around thepower line -- a perfect throw. There’s no way he’s evergetting them down.

38.

The gathered citizens of Spectre CHEER for Edward, who isconfused and overwhelmed. The women hug him. Men shake his

hand.

Still focused on his shoes...

EDWARD:

Wait! I need those!

NORTHER WINSLOW:

There is no softer ground than town.

MILDRED:

That rhymes!

BEAMEN:

He is our poet laureate.

The townsfolk continue to congratulate Edward...

EDWARD (V.O.)

Sometimes in a dream, you’ll visitplaces that seem instantly familiar,

filled with friends you’ve never met.

EXT. UNDER A TREE - DUSK

Edward sits with Norther Winslow. The fireflies are out.

Thousands of them.

EDWARD (V.O.)

A man might travel his entire life andnever find a place so inviting. Myjourney had scarcely begun, and I hadarrived.

Norther hands him his noteboook.

NORTHER WINSLOW:

I’ve been working on this poem for 12

years.

EDWARD:

Really.

NORTHER WINSLOW:

There’s a lot of expectation. I don’t

want to disappoint my fans.

A beat.

EDWARD:

It’s only three lines long.

39.

Norther grabs his notebook back.

NORTHER WINSLOW:

This is why you don’t show work in

progress.

EDWARD:

Norther, do you ever regret not makingit to Paris?

NORTHER WINSLOW:

I can’t imagine any place better thanhere.

EDWARD:

You’re a poet. You oughta be able to.

And maybe if you’d seen more, youcould.

Norther doesn’t answer. Just goes back to his notebook.

EXT. BY THE RIVER - NIGHT

By the light of the full moon, Edward soaks his feet in thewater, trying to make sense of it all. The Key to the Citydangles around his neck.

He stares at himself in the reflection. He smiles.

It’s then that a WOMAN emerges at the far side of the river.

No telling where she came from -- she must have been swimmingunderwater. We never see her face.

She stands in the river with her bare back to Edward,

squeezing the water out of her golden hair, oblivious to his

presence. Edward is breathless. It’s the first woman he’s

seen in her natural state, and he doesn’t dare move lest hefrighten her away.

Then he sees the snake.

It’s a cottonmouth, has to be. It leaves a break in the

water, its small reptilian head aiming for her flesh.

There’s no decision to be made. On pure instinct, Edwarddives in. He swims as hard as can,

GRABBING THE SNAKE

just as it’s about to strike.

The woman dives back underwater, understandably terrifiedthat a man is coming at her.

40.

EDWARD:

No, it’s okay! I got it. I got thesnake.

As the splashing subsides, Edward looks at what he holds inhis hands. Which isn’t a snake at all, but rather a commonstick. And a non-threatening one at that.

While Edward ponders his mistake, he looks around to discoverthat the Girl in the River is gone. He never even saw her

face.

EDWARD (CONT’D)

Wait! I’m sorry. Hello?!

Edward keeps expecting her to surface, somewhere, but shenever does. He stands alone in the river, wondering whattricks his eyes are playing on him.

EXT. BY THE RIVER - NIGHT - CONTINUOUS

A GIRL’S VOICE (O.S.)

There’s leeches in there!

Edward looks to the bank, where young Jenny Hill is watchinghim.

EDWARD:

Did you see that woman?

JENNY:

What did she look like?

EDWARD:

Well, she...uh...

JENNY:

Was she nekkid?

Embarrassed to admit it...

EDWARD:

Yeah.

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