Brooklyn

1 EXT. STREET. PRE-DAWN EXT. STREET. PRE-DAWN 1

A quiet, working-class residential street in Ireland, early

1950s. It’s morning, but it’s still dark. One of the front

doors opens, and out slips EILIS - early twenties, open-faced

pretty without knowing it. She closes the door quietly behind

her and walks quickly up the street.

There is a hissed call from behind her. She turns, and her

sister ROSE - thirty, attractive, slender, pale - is running

after her, in nightdress and bare feet, holding out a piece

of bread and jam. Eilis takes it from her, makes a face to

show how grateful she is.

EILIS:

(mouthing)

Go back to bed.

Rose nods, tiptoes back to the house.

CREDITS:

2 INT. CHURCH. DAY 2

It’s the early mass, and the church has only a smattering of

worshippers. Eilis is kneeling and praying with two other

women:
MISS KELLY, fifties, thick glasses, a constant look of

disapproval on her face, and MARY, the same age as Eilis, but

large and simple-minded - her mouth is usually open,

indicating her lack of comprehension at more or less any

given moment. Eilis yawns. Miss Kelly shoots her a look.

Chastened, Eilis stifles the yawn and looks fixedly ahead.

3 EXT. KELLY SHOP STREET. DAY 3

Finally, there is weak daylight. Mary and Eilis wait while

Miss Kelly finds her keys and opens the side-door to her

shop. This is clearly not a normal morning for Eilis - she

has something on her mind. She watches Miss Kelly carefully,

trying to judge the right moment to speak to her. The door

opens, Mary walks into the shop, leaving Miss Kelly and Eilis

bringing up the rear.

EILIS:

(suddenly)

Miss Kelly, might I talk to you

later?

MISS KELLY:

Not if what you’re going to say

will cause trouble for me in some

way or another.

End of conversation. Eilis closes her eyes for a moment,

fearful of the confrontation to come.

'Brooklyn' YELLOW Script Dated 24th April 2014 2.

4 INT. KELLY SHOP. DAY 4

Miss Kelly turns on the light, and we see the shop for the

first time. It’s a well-stocked, and well-kept, grocery

store, but it almost certainly hasn’t changed since the

1920s. Eilis walks to the back of the shop to collect the

bread, which has obviously been there since the previous day,

and places it on the counter. While Miss Kelly takes a piece

of long, yellow paper out of its packet, Mary places a ladder

carefully under the old piece, which is stuck to the ceiling

and covered with the bodies of dead flies.

Later. A male customer is buying a single cigarette from

Eilis. Miss Kelly is peering through the shop window from an

angle.

MISS KELLY:

The nine o’clock mass is over,

girls. Here they come.

Later. The shop is packed - customers standing three or four

deep at the counter. Eilis and Mary are coping as best they

can; Miss Kelly is directing them, in a way designed to cause

maximum resentment. Miss Kelly spies a well-dressed woman

standing well back, and smiles at her.

MISS KELLY:

Mrs Brady, what would you like this

morning?

MRS BRADY:

Half-a-dozen rashers, please.

MISS KELLY:

Of course. Eilis will get that for

you now.

Eilis is about to serve a shabbier woman standing right in

front of the counter. Eilis looks at her helplessly.

SHABBY WOMAN:

(aggrieved)

I was next.

MISS KELLY:

And you still are. Mary, if you

serve Mr O’Leary back there, will

you make a mess of it? I suppose

you will. Let’s see.

Mary is stung by the barb. Miss Kelly doesn’t notice and

doesn’t care anyway.

MARY:

Mr O’Leary?

(CONTINUED)

'Brooklyn' YELLOW Script Dated 24th April 2014 3.

4 CONTINUED:
4

Mr O’Leary, like Mrs Brady, is well towards the back of the

scrum. Miss Kelly’s favouritism seems designed to cause

resentment and frustration, but the customers seem used to

her arbitrary treatment of them, and there are no outward

signs of dissent. Miss Kelly turns her attention to a timid-

looking woman standing right in front of her.

MISS KELLY:

Yes?

TIMID WOMAN:

(quietly)

I need some shoe polish.

MISS KELLY:

Shoe polish? Ah, but that’s not

really a Sunday item, now, is it?

These people need things for their

dinner or their tea. Why couldn’t

you have remembered yesterday?

Miss Kelly leans over the counter to stare at the timid

woman’s shoes. The timid woman stares at the counter,

humiliated.

MISS KELLY:

Because it looks like you needed it

yesterday.

TIMID WOMAN:

I’m sorry.

Miss Kelly sighs deeply, shakes her head, and goes to find

the offending item.

5 INT. KELLY SHOP. LATE AFTERNOON 5

Miss Kelly locks the door of the shop behind the last

customer. Eilis stops tidying up and waits until the door is

locked before speaking.

EILIS:

Miss Kelly...

MISS KELLY:

(tetchy)

I hadn’t forgotten. Spit it out,

whatever it is.

EILIS:

I’m..I’m away to America.

Miss Kelly likes to think she knows everything, but this

gives her pause. She soon recovers.

(CONTINUED)

'Brooklyn' YELLOW Script Dated 24th April 2014 4.

5 CONTINUED:
5

MISS KELLY:

(scornful)

Whose idea was that?

EILIS:

Father Flood in New York arranged

it. Rose used to play golf with

him, when he lived here. He

sponsored me. He... he found me a

job, and got me a visa, and..

MISS KELLY:

Well, we won’t be needing you back

here.

EILIS:

I don’t sail for a month. I could

work every Sunday until I go.

MISS KELLY:

I shall want to train a new girl up

straight away.

EILIS:

But I could help.

MISS KELLY:

No, thank you.

She starts to turn her back on Eilis, but she has one last

thing to say.

MISS KELLY:

Your poor sister.

EILIS:

(surprised)

My sister?

MISS KELLY:

Oh, mothers are always being left

behind in this country. But

Rose...That’s the end for her,

isn’t it? She’ll be looking after

your mother for the rest of her

life.

This time she does turn her back and walk away.

6 EXT. NANCY’S HOUSE. NIGHT 6

Eilis is knocking at the door of a house not dissimilar to

her own. She scarcely has time to complete a second knock,

and the door flies open.

(CONTINUED)

'Brooklyn' YELLOW Script Dated 24th April 2014 5.

6 CONTINUED:
6

Her friend NANCY, already wearing her coat, smiles at Eilis,

pulls the door shut behind her, and starts walking off down

the street with Eilis trailing in her wake.

7 EXT. STREET. NIGHT 7

Nancy and Eilis walking arm-in-arm down the street. Now we

can get a chance to look at Nancy properly: she’s

staggeringly pretty, film-star pretty. It helps that she’s

dressed up and made up to go out - Eilis looks a little wan

by comparison, even though she’s made an effort too - but

even so, she’s a stunner.

EILIS:

You look beautiful, Nancy.

NANCY:

Thank you.

EILIS:

You look so beautiful it makes me

despair of this place.

Nancy laughs.

NANCY:

Why?

EILIS:

You’re the prettiest girl in County

Wexford. You should be able to

choose any man you want. And we’re

hoping that George Sheridan from

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