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Chinatown Page #7
- R
- Year:
- 1974
- 130 min
- 864,568 Views
ESCOBAR:
You've done well by yourself.
GITTES:
I get by.
ESCOBAR:
Well, sometimes it takes a while for
a man to find himself and I guess
you have.
LOACH:
Poking around in other people's dirty
linen.
GITTES:
Yeah. Tell me. You still throw
Chinamen into jail for spitting on
the laundry?
ESCOBAR:
You're behind the times, Jake -they've
(smiles)
And I'm out of Chinatown.
GITTES:
Since when?
ESCOBAR:
Since I made Lieutenant -
It's apparent Gittes is impressed despite himself.
GITTES:
Congratulations.
33.
ESCOBAR:
Uh-huh -- so what are you doing here?
GITTES:
Looking for someone.
ESCOBAR:
Who?
GITTES:
Hollis Mulwray. You seen him?
ESCOBAR:
Oh yes.
GITTES:
I'd like to talk to him.
ESCOBAR:
You're welcome to try. There he is.
Escobar points down to the reservoir -- a couple of men using
poles with hooks are fishing about in the water.
It can be SEEN that one of them has hooked something.
He shouts. The other man hooks it, too. They pull, revealing
the soaking back of a man's coat -- they start to pull the
body into the skiff.
INT. CORONER'S OFFICE - EVELYN AND ESCOBAR
are standing over the body of Mulwray. Escobar has the sheet
drawn back. Evelyn nods.
Escobar drops the sheet. Escobar and Evelyn move a few feet
to one side and whisper, almost as though they were trying
to keep the corpse from hearing them.
ESCOBAR:
-- It looks like he was washed the
entire length of the runoff channel -could
he swim?
EVELYN:
Of course.
ESCOBAR:
-- Obviously the fall must have
knocked him out -
Evelyn nods slightly Escobar coughs. A coroner's assistant
wheels the body out of the office.
34.
ESCOBAR:
(continuing)
-- This alleged affair he was having -the
publicity didn't make him morose
or unhappy?
OUTSIDE THE CORONER'S
Gittes has been sitting on a wooden bench, smoking and
listening. At this question, he rises and looks through the
doorway.
Escobar sees him, ignores him. Evelyn doesn't see him.
EVELYN:
... Well, it didn't make him happy...
ESCOBAR:
But there is no possibility he would
have taken his own life?
EVELYN:
(sharply)
No.
ESCOBAR:
(a little uncomfortably
now)
Mrs. Mulwray, do you happen to know
the name of the young woman in
question?
Evelyn shows a flash of annoyance.
EVELYN:
No.
ESCOBAR:
Do you know where she might be?
EVELYN:
Certainly not!
Escobar and Evelyn move slowly toward the door.
ESCOBAR:
You and your husband never discussed
her?
EVELYN.
(stopping, faltering)
He... we did... he wouldn't tell me
her name. We quarreled over her...
of course -- it came as a complete
surprise to me -
35.
ESCOBAR:
A complete surprise?
EVELYN:
-- Yes.
ESCOBAR:
But I thought you'd hired a private
investigator -
EVELYN:
A private investigator?
ESCOBAR:
(gesturing vaguely
toward the door)
Mr. Gittes.
EVELYN:
Well yes -
Evelyn looks up to see Gittes standing in the doorway only a
foot or two from her. She stops cold. They look at one another
for a long moment.
EVELYN:
(her eyes on Gittes)
But I... I... did that because I
thought it was a nasty rumor I'd put
an end to...
She finishes, looks plaintively at Gittes. Escobar is right
at her back. Gittes says nothing.
ESCOBAR:
-- And when did Mr. Gittes inform
you that these rumors had some
foundation in fact?
Evelyn looks at Escobar but doesn't know how to answer him.
GITTES:
(smoothly)
-- Just before the story broke in
the papers, Lou.
Escobar nods. They begin to walk slowly, again have to move
out of the way as some other corpse is being wheeled out of
one of the Coroner cubicles.
ESCOBAR:
-- You wouldn't happen to know the
present whereabouts of the young
woman.
GITTES:
-- No.
36.
ESCOBAR:
Or her name?
GITTES:
-- No.
They have walked a few steps further down the hall.
EVELYN:
Will you need me for anything else,
Lieutenant?
ESCOBAR:
I don't think so, Mrs. Mulwray.
Of course you have my deepest sympathy -and
-- if we need anymore information,
we'll be in touch.
GITTES:
I'll walk her to her car, be right
back.
ESCOBAR'S POV
Evelyn glances at Gittes. They go through a couple of outer
doors and pass several reporters who have been in the outer
hall, laughing, kidding, the tag end of lines like "only in
L.A." and "Southern Cafeteria."
Gittes hurries her past the reporters who flank them, asking
questions. Gittes brushes them aside.
EVELYN AND GITTES - AT HER CAR
in a small parking lot. Evelyn fumbles in her bag, looking
feverishly for some- thing in her purse.
GITTES:
Mrs. Mulwray?... Mrs. Mulwray.
EVELYN:
(flushed, perspiring)
... Just a minute...
GITTES:
(touching her gently)
-- You left your keys in the ignition.
EVELYN:
Oh... thank you.
She glances down, leans against the side of the car.
37.
EVELYN:
(continuing)
Thank you for going along with me. I
just didn't want to explain
anything... I'll send you a check.
GITTES:
(puzzled)
A check?
Evelyn gets in her car.
EVELYN:
To make it official, I hired you.
She drives off, leaving Gittes gaping.
INT. CORONER'S OFFICE HALLWAY
GITTES:
Don't give me that, Lou. You hauled
me down here for a statement.
Escobar shrugs.
ESCOBAR:
I don't want it anymore.
GITTES:
No?
ESCOBAR:
No -- it was an accident.
GITTES:
You mean that's what you're going to
call it.
Escobar looks up.
ESCOBAR:
That's right.
(contemptuously)
Out of respect for his civic position.
Resume walking. Gittes laughs.
GITTES:
What'd he do, Lou, make a pass at
your sister?
Escobar stops.
ESCOBAR:
No -- he drowned a cousin of mine
with about five hundred other people.
(MORE)
38.
ESCOBAR (CONT'D)
But -- they weren't very important,
Just a bunch of dumb Mexicans living
by a dam. Now beat it, Gittes, you
don't come out of this smelling like
a rose, you know.
GITTES:
Oh yeah? Can you think of something
to charge me with?
ESCOBAR:
When I do, you'll hear about it.
Gittes nods, turns, and walks down the hall.
OUTSIDE MORGUE:
Gittes stops by a body on the table, the toe tagged with
Mulwray's name. MORTY is standing near it in a doorway to an
adjoining room. A RADIO is on, and with it the announcement
that they're about to hear another chapter in the life of
Lorenzo Jones and his devoted wife, Belle.
Another Coroner's assistant sits at the table, listening to
the radio and eating a sandwich.
Gittes ambles into the room.
MORTY:
(a cigarette dangling
out of his mouth)
Jake, what're you doin' here?
GITTES:
Nothin', Morty, it's my lunch hour,
I thought I'd drop by and see who
died lately.
Gittes picks up the sheet and pulls it back. CAMERA GETS ITS
FIRST GLIMPSE of Mulwray's body -- eyes open, the face badly
cut and bruised.
MORTY:
Yeah? Ain't that something?
Middle of a drought, the water
commissioner drowns -- only in L.A.
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"Chinatown" Scripts.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 29 Aug. 2024. <https://www.scripts.com/script/chinatown_73>.
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