Captain Fantastic Page #17

VESPYR:

Dad!

They all move toward Vespyr’s voice, gathering around a

freshly covered grave.

Zaja reads the gravestone.

ZAJA:

"Leslie Abigail Cash. April 23, 1967 -

July 15, 2014. May God Bless her Soul

for All Eternity."

Nai unzips the duffel bag, revealing spades, garden trowels,

climbing rope.

NAI:

Otherwise she has to lie under that

bullshit forever.

Ben and the kids thrust shovels into the freshly laid grass

patches above the grave and dig.

A SERIES OF SHOTS:

-Nai and Zaja stand in the grave, shoveling dirt.

-Climbing rope tied to the side handles of the casket, heldby Bo and Rellian, Ben yanks the casket from the grave andslides it onto the grass.

-The family, now covered in dirt, pauses, catching theirbreath, staring at the freshly dug casket.

ZAJA:

Mommy's in here.

For a moment, they all forget where they are and what they're

doing. And touch the casket, imagining their mother inside.

GREEN (9.2.2014) 103A.

134 EXT. CEMETERY PARKING LOT. NIGHT. 134

Struggling through the parking lot under its weight - silentpallbearers - they carry their mother's casket to the bus.

GREEN (9.2.2014) 104.

135 EXT. CEMETERY PARKING LOT. NIGHT. 135

Steve pulls out of the cemetery parking lot.

136 EXT. HIGHWAY. NIGHT. 136

Steve drives through the night.

137 INT. STEVE - MOVING. DAY. 137

Everyone is awake as the bus travels down the freeway.

All the children surround the open casket, resting in the

center of the bus, and stare at Leslie’s

lifeless face, so white it’s almost translucent.

They place flowers in her hair, on her chest, around her

neck.

138 INT. STEVE - MOVING. DAY. 138

Inside the small bathroom on the bus, Bo switches on the hair

clipper. He slowly runs it across his scalp, lopping off hislong hair.

He stares at himself in the mirror, his head now buzzed.

139 INT. STEVE - MOVING. DAY. 139

Bo comes out of the bathroom.

The kids look at their brother, but say nothing.

140 INT. STEVE - MOVING. NIGHT. 140

Ben drives through the night. He looks in the rearview

mirror. All the kids, apart from Bo, are now finally asleep.

Bo and Ben look at each other.

Ben rubs his chin. No hair.

Bo rubs the top of this head. No hair.

Bo smiles at his dad and Ben smiles back.

GREEN (9.2.2014) 104A.

141 EXT. BEACH CLIFFS. MORNING. 141

Steve is parked on a cliff overlooking the Pacific Ocean asdawn breaks over the horizon. This early, the sky is anelectric blue; the clouds, striations of yellow and orange.

(CONTINUED)

141 CONTINUED:

GREEN (9.2.2014)

141

105.

Leslie's body, tightly wrapped in a clean white sheet, lieson top of about a cord of dry firewood and newspaper,

creating a massive funeral pyre.

Ben nods at Nai.

As each kid approaches the pyre, they place a memento ontheir mother’s body: notes, flowers, etc.

*

*

NAI:

Mommy. I love you. I love your hair.

I love your smell. I love your face.

I love your belly button. I love yoursparkly shirt. I love how you cook. I

think... that's about it.

Ben nods at Zaja.

ZAJA:

You will always be my mommy. And Iwill never forget you and I willremember you every second of everyday of my life. And when you burn up,

only calcium, potassium, magnesiumand trace element compounds willremain. And as your ashes mix withwater and decomposing plants, youwill be carbonates and oxides. You

will be liming agents, raising pH,

and neutralize acid in the earth and

you'll make the soil happy. So thingscan grow. And I love you forever.

Ben nods at Vespyr and Kielyr. They step forward, readingfrom a piece of paper.

KIELYR:

"I think again over my smalladventures. My fears. Those smallones that seemed so big. For all thevital things. I had to get andreach.”

VESPYR:

“And yet there is only one great

thing. The only thing. To live to seethe great day that dawns. And thelight that fills the world."

Ben gestures and Bo steps forward.

(CONTINUED)

GREEN (9.2.2014) 105aA.

141 CONTINUED:
141

BODEVAN:

I had you as my mom. For 18 years. I

hope you're happy now. I hope you'relaughing. We're going to be okay.

(MORE)

(CONTINUED)

GREEN (9.2.2014) 105A.

141 CONTINUED:
141

BODEVAN (CONT'D)

As a family. Everything's going to beokay. Oh. And I sort of got into a

bunch of colleges.

Ben steps forward.

(CONTINUED)

GREEN (9.2.2014) 106.

141 CONTINUED:
141

BEN:

Hey, Slug. It's me. I'm sorry. That I

didn't know what to do. I'm sorry ifI made things worse. You're my bestfriend.

Ben smiles at Rellian.

Rellian lights a wooden match and passes lit matches to thekids. Together, all the children reach up and light the pyre.

The newspaper and kindling catches, pops and crackles,

engulfing Leslie's body in flames.

RELLIAN:

This was Mom's favorite song.

Rellian nods at Kielyr, who sings “Sweet Child of Mine,” by

Guns ‘N Roses.

After the first verse, Bo joins on guitar, then Rell, on his

cajon, then Vespyr harmonizes, then Zaja plays her tambourine

and Nai comes in with his harmonica.

As the music builds - black smoke billows above them all -

and now everyone, including Ben, is dancing and rocking out,

singing and crying and laughing.

And it's a party.

*

*

*

*

*

*

142 INT. SEATTLE INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT. DAY.

Ben and the kids ride the people-movers down the terminal.

142

143 INT. BATHROOM. SEATTLE INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT. DAY.

The entire family - Ben, Bo, Rellian, Vespyr and Kielyr,

Zaja, and Nai - are crowded into a small toilet stall.

Ben pulls a paper bag out of his backpack. He opens it wideenough for the ashes inside to be visible.

Then he pours.

They all stare at Leslie's ashes in the toilet bowl.

143

(CONTINUED)

GREEN (9.2.2014) 107.

143 CONTINUED:
143

There is a moment of silence.

And then, they all just start laughing.

Bye, Mommy.

NAI:

And Nai flushes the toilet.

144 INT. SEATTLE INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT. DAY. 144

At the ticket gate, all the kids hug Bo.

NAI:

Why are you going to thePhilippines?

Bo shrugs.

BODEVAN:

I just put my finger on a map.

ZAJA:

The Moro Islamic Liberation Front

kidnapped an American last year.

BEN:

He'll be fine.

ZAJA:

'Cause if they kidnap you...

She looks at Ben and then stops.

Forget it.

ZAJA (CONT’D)

BEN:

Go ahead. Say it. You know you want

to.

ZAJA:

If they kidnap you, you could die.

BODEVAN:

Then I better watch out for them.

Ben hugs his son tightly.

BEN:

When you have sex with a woman, begentle and listen to her.

(MORE)

(CONTINUED)

GREEN (9.2.2014) 108.

144 CONTINUED:
144

BEN (CONT'D)

Treat her with respect and dignity,

even if you don't love her.

BODEVAN:

I know.

BEN:

Always tell the truth. And always

take the high road.

BODEVAN:

I know.

BEN:

Live each day like it could be your

last. You drink it in, be

adventurous, be bold, but savor it -

it goes fast.

BODEVAN:

I know.

Ben stares at his son.

BEN:

Don't die.

BODEVAN:

I won't.

Rate this script:4.0 / 1 vote