Breathe Page #15

respirator?

ROBIN:

Yes.

CLEMENT AITKENAnd you live at home?

ROBIN:

Yes.

Breathe -Blue Revision -26 June 2016 84A.

CLEMENT AITKEN:

You have a question to ask our

hosts.

ROBIN:

Yes... Why do you keep your

disabled people in prisons?

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CONFERENCE CHAIRMANIn prisons? No, no. We maintainsome of the best facilities in theworld for the severely disabled.

ROBIN:

Run by prison officers.

CONFERENCE CHAIRMANNot at all

ROBINKept out of sight... No part ofhealthy society...

Uproar in the hall. The delegates are appalled.

CONFERENCE CHAIRMANI must ask you to withdraw that.

CLEMENT AITKENMr Cavendish doesn’t mean to causeoffence. He merely suggests thatthe severely disabled can be betterintegrated into society.

ROBINI’m sure you care for your disabledpeople... But when you look at me,

what do you see?... A creaturethat’s barely alive... What do youthink?... Let’s put him in thewaiting room for death... But I, asyou see, have escaped... I have amachine under my seat that breathesfor me... The battery lasts forabout six hours... At home I have arespirator by my bed... I can donothing for myself... Yet here Iam.

Silence. He’s got to them.

ROBINWhen I was first paralysed I wantedto die... My wife wouldn’t letme... She told me I had to live, tosee our son grow up... So I’ve goneon living... because of her... andwith her... and for her.

Diana, standing behind Robin, biting her lip, refusing tocry.

ROBINEvery day I accept the risk ofdying... because I want to live...

(MORE)

Breathe -Green Revision -8 July 2016 86.

ROBIN (CONT'D)

So go back to your prison

hospitals... Tell your paralysed

patients they too can live... Open

the gates... And set them free.

Silence.

Then the clapping begins. Then cries of applause. Thenshouts of acclaim. Then the whole hall is on its feet,

cheering.

128 INT. ROBIN’S ROOM, FURLONGS -NIGHT 128

More time has passed. Now it’s 1980.

Robin’s face jerking, making scary sounds, blood spatteringonto the sheets. Diana up and swabbing away at the bloodspitting from the hole in his throat.

Robin subsides at last.

DIANA:

I don’t know what that was, but

it seems to be over.

Robin gazes up at her, exhausted and apologetic. He looks

older and more worn. Over ten years has passed.

129 INT. ROBIN’S ROOM, FURLONGS -DAY 129

Clement Aitken is operating the suction tube, emptying thefluid from Robin’s lungs. Dark blood comes oozing out intothe receiving jar.

Diana looks on.

Clement finishes and replaces the breathing tube. Robin

breathes again.

CLEMENT AITKEN:

I’m afraid this is what happens

after a number of years on a

respirator. The lining of the

lungs becomes irritated. You get

small abrasions, you get

bleeding. It’s what you might

call normal wear and tear.

ROBIN:

Thank you, Clem. Good to know

everything’s normal.

130 SCENE DELETED 130

Breathe -Blue Revision -26 June 2016 87.

131 INT. ROBIN’S ROOM, FURLONGS -DAY 131

CLOSE ON an electronic display panel lit up with an array of

lights, all flashing at random.

ROBIN (O.S.)

Buggeration!

Robin has now been equipped with a machine called POSSUM,

that enables him to perform several functions by activating asensor with his head. Everything’s going at once: phoneringing, TV screen jumping channels, bed rising and falling.

The phone call is picked up.

PHONE VOICEHello? Doreen here.

ROBIN:

Hello, Doreen. How are you, my

dear?

Jonathan enters:
now a young man in his early 20s. He standswaiting for the call to end. He looks on, smiling. Robinhasn’t yet seen him.

PHONE VOICEOh, can’t complain.

ROBIN:

I bet you can. Life’s never quite

how you want it, is it?

PHONE VOICE:

You can say that again. I’d swap

Tom for a start.

ROBIN:

Be fair. You’d miss him if he

wasn’t there.

PHONE VOICE:

Don’t know that I’d notice, to tell

you the truth. Is that Brian?

ROBIN:

No, it’s Robin. Have to go, Doreen.

Be good.

PHONE VOICEBye, Robin.

Robin manages to end the call.

JONATHANHello, Dad.

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ROBIN:

Jonathan! How lovely!

JONATHAN:

Who was that?

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ROBINNo idea... Haven’t quite got thehang of the machine yet... Keepdialling wrong numbers.

132 INT. KITCHEN, FURLONGS -DAY 132

Jonathan stands in the kitchen as Diana prepares lunch.

DIANAHe does it on purpose. He’s justbored. Being Robin, of course, theyall turn into his best friends.

JONATHANHow is he apart from that?

DIANAHe’s been getting these bleeds.

And his bowels aren’t doing whatthey should. He gets so tired.

JONATHANHow about you?

She looks up at him. She too looks so tired.

JONATHANI don’t know how you’ve done it,

Mum. All these years.

DIANAOh, you know. Keep plodding on.

Jonathan takes her in his arms. She hugs him close, cravingthe warmth and comfort of touch.

DIANAThe stupid thing is, I just lovehim so much.

133 EXT. COUNTRY PATH -DAY 133

Jonathan pushes Robin down a frosty path.

JONATHANHow are you, Dad?

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ROBINWell the wheels are starting towobble a bit.

JONATHANMum is worried about you.

ROBINI am worried about her.

JONATHANYou don’t need to worry about Mum.

She’s stronger than anyone I know.

ROBINQuite right... How about you?

JONATHANOh, I’m all right.

ROBINI wish I could have done more for

you.

JONATHANWhat? You’ve done loads for me,

Dad. You’ve always been here.

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ROBIN:

Couldn’t get away, could I?

JONATHAN:

Always listened to me. Always

wanted to know what I’m doing.

Never put me under any pressure.

Always made life fun for me. I

couldn’t have asked for a better

dad.

ROBIN:

Funny old world.

Breathe -Salmon Revision -26 July 2016 90.

Jonathan gently strokes Robin’s cheek.

134 INT. ROBIN’S ROOM, FURLONGS -NIGHT 134

Robin lies in bed in the darkened bedroom. His eyes are

open. The rhythmic sound of the respirator.

He starts to gurgle. Spatters of blood appear round his

breathing tube.

His body spasms. Blood bursts out of his neck, staining the

sheet. He activates his alarm.

Diana comes running in, followed by Jonathan. Robin is nowgushing blood. Diana takes hold of him, and is at oncecovered in blood.

DIANAHelp me turn him onto his side.

Jonathan moves in and is soon blood-soaked too.

Diana gets Robin onto his side. The blood streams out of

his neck.

Robin’s eyes meet Jonathan’s. Jonathan sees there a look of

mute horror.

DIANA:

Do what you can to clean up the

mess.

She gets the suction tube and sets to work emptying thelast of the blood from inside Robin’s lungs. Jonathan mopsup round her.

The breathing tube goes back in. Robin lies there, on his

back once more, staring at the ceiling.

Breathe -Green Revision -8 July 2016 91.

135 INT. KITCHEN, FURLONGS -NIGHT 135

Diana stands by the kitchen sink, which is full of blood-

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