From Here to Eternity Page #22

114.

CHOATE:

Top, you sure plastered.

WARDEN:

(mustering dignity)

I am off duty. Off duty if I want

to get plastered -

But Choate has gone into Choy's. CAMERA RETREATS with Warden

as he wanders to the road, still trying to locate the

singing. Half-way across the road he unceremoniously sits

down, crosses his knees Buddha-wise. Here the singing is more

audible. He listens contentedly.

MEDIUM SHOT PREW ANDERSON CLARK

PREW, ANDERSON AND CLARK

(singing)

Ain't no time to lose Re-enlistment

Blues...

Anderson, as usual, finishes the stanza with a brilliant

display on the guitar. Prew stands up. In the glow of a

streetlight his face shows the marks of his battle with

Galovitch. He wobbles and we realize he, too, really Has One

On.

.

ANDERSON:

Where you go in?

PREW:

Back to Choy's. Get nother drink.

The guitars and singing continues in b.g. through following.

CAMERA PANS with Prew as he weaves to the road.

MEDIUM SHOT MIDDLE OF ROAD

as Prew crosses. He can see the seated figure but the light

from the street is too dim to identify it.

WARDEN'S VOICE

(booms)

Halt!

Prew stops automatically.

WARDEN'S VOICE

Who goes there?

PREW:

A friend.

115.

WARDEN'S VOICE

Advance, friend, and be reconized.

Prew moves closer, CAMERA WITH him, until he recognizes

Warden.

WARDEN:

(roaring, laughing)

Quiet! At ease! Fall out! Right

dress! ‘bout face! Hit the track!

Garbage Detail! Latrine Detail! Dis

a drill, not picnic! Hello, kid.

Whatever you doin out all by

yourself?

PREW:

I'm goin to get a drink.

WARDEN:

Siddown. I got a bottle.

He pulls a bottle of whisky from his field jacket, holds it

up to Prew. Prew takes the bottle and drinks. Then he sits

down in the road as matter-of-factly as did Warden. He gives

the bottle back to Warden.

WARDEN:

I hand it to you, kid. They called

off The Treatment this afternoon.

When you beat up Ike. I never heard

of no soljer before ever lickin The

Treatment...

(drinks; then holds out

bottle)

Here, old buddy. Have a lil drink.

Prew drinks.

WARDEN:

This is a terrible crummy life, you

know it?

PREW:

Miserble. Perfeckly miserble.

WARDEN:

What if a truck or somethin was to

come along and run over us?

PREW:

Awful. Awful. We'd be dead,

wouldn't we?

116.

WARDEN:

(nods vehemently)

An nobody to even mourn. You better

not sit here any more. You better

get up and move over to the side of

the road.

PREW:

What about you? You got more to

live for than me. You got to take

care of your Compny.

WARDEN:

I'm old. Don't matter if I die. But

your life's ahead of you. You get

up.

PREW:

No, sir. Never deserted a friend in

need. I'll stay to the bitter end.

WARDEN:

(shakes head stubbornly)

We'll stay together.

They square their shoulders heroically.

WARDEN:

(as if to an invisible

firing squad)

No blindfold. Save it to wipe your

nose on, you skunk.

PREW:

Amen.

Each takes a drink.

WARDEN:

Prew, I got the biggest troubles in

the whole world.

PREW:

The whole world?

WARDEN:

(nods)

Take love. Did you personally ever

see any of this love?

Prew nods gravely.

117.

WARDEN:

You'll unerstan, then... This girl,

see, she wants me to become.

PREW:

Become what?

WARDEN:

(after long hesitation)

An officer. Can you see me as an

officer?

PREW:

Sure I can see it. You'd make a

good officer.

WARDEN:

You both can see more’n I can. You

know what, Prew? I'm scared become

an officer.

PREW:

You ain't scared of nothin, Warden.

WARDEN:

Yes, I am. I tell myself diffrnt

but it's a fack. Where’d I be

as an officer? How could I handle

him? That's the one thing I'm

scared of... be an officer in the

U.S. Army.

(hastily)

Army of the U.S.

PREW:

A man should be what he can do.

Warden nods solemnly as if Prew has uttered a great truth.

They pass the bottle once more.

WARDEN:

How's your girl? Wha'st that name

again?

PREW:

(hesitates)

Lorene.

WARDEN:

Oh, yeah, I remember. Lorene.

Beautiful name.

118.

Warden claps Prew on the shoulder as if he is a lifelong

friend. They smile. They look as if they are sharing a great

secret, a secret known to them alone in the world. The

mournful guitars and singing comes over a little louder.

ANOTHER ANGLE:

The headlights of a jeep descend upon Warden and Prew. Then

the vehicle skids into the shot with a screeching of brakes,

comes to a halt directly in front of the men. Warden and Prew

look at the car calmly, don't move. The headlights are

blazing on them. Stark hops out from the driver's seat,

furious.

.

STARK:

Whatsa matter with you, you crazy,

dumb screwballs?! You tryin to get

killed?!

WARDEN:

What you doin with that jeep,

Sergeant Stark?

STARK:

I borrowed it. I'm goin to town.

What you doin in the middle of the

road?

The music of the guitars has stopped. There is a strange

whine now, far in the distance, not identifiable. It grows

during following.

WARDEN:

My friend Prew and I sittin here

discussin the weather.

STARK:

Your friend, huh?

PREW:

You beard me. I said my buddy

Warden. My good friend Warden that

you better not run over is what I

said.

MEDIUM CLOSE SHOT WARDEN

WARDEN:

(assuming anger)

Don't you know you got to look out

for this man. Get him off the road

before you run him over. He's the

best stinkin soljer in the Compny.

119.

STARK:

You both must be plumb nuts.

PREW:

You heard me. Get this man to some

safety. Why, he's the best stinkin

soljer in the Compny.

STARK:

I guess I’m the one who’s nuts.

MEDIUM CLOSE SHOT MAGGIO

as he stumbles around the side of the jeep directly into the

blaze of the headlights. There are scars, new and healing on

Maggio's face. One of his ears is cauliflowered, enough to

give him the lopsided ribald look of a punchy. A couple of

teeth are missing. Weirdly outlined in the glare, he is a

nightmare figure, an apparition. The whine in the distance is

identifiable now. It is the siren of the Stockade.

MAGGIO:

... figgered you might be at

Choy's...

GROUP SHOT:

The men gape at Maggio, unable to accept the shock of his

appearance. Then Prew and Warden jump up and catch him as he

is about to fall. The drunkenness drains out of them. Stark

watches in bewilderment.

MAGGIO:

(spewing words out)

... done it like I said... escape...

e-scape like I figgered...

Under a tarp inna back of a truck

from the Motor Pool they rode me

right out just like I figgered like

I said... Ony the tailgate came

down 'bout a mile back... an I fell

inns road...

.

(giggles)

... shoulda seen me bounce... musta

broke somethin...

(clutches Prew's shirt)

Prew... lissen...

PREW:

Angelo...

Warden steps back as Prew holds Maggio. During following

Anderson and Clark come over, watch pop-eyed.

120.

MAGGIO:

Fatso... Fatso done it to me...

yestiday he did it for keeps... He

likes to whack me in the gut with a

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