Get on Up Page #3

THE EIGHT YEAR OLD JAMES BROWN LOOKS RIGHT AT US. A level

gaze. That million dollar smile, teeth coated with blood.

THE BEAT CONTINUES OVER...

18 CLOSE UP ON:
18

The June 1968 cover of Look Magazine: A silhouette portraitof James: “IS THIS THE MOST IMPORTANT BLACK MAN IN AMERICA?”

19 EXT. PLANE. VIETNAM. DUSK. 1968 JAMES 35YRS 19

A rickety old twin prop army plane flies low over the jungle.

SUDDENLY below, tracer fire BURSTS out of the canopy.

20 INT. PLANE. VIETNAM. IN THE BELLY 20

Marva Whitney, Clyde Stubblefield, Jimmy Nolen, MACEO PARKER,

Waymond Reed and BOBBY BYRD sit in a line opposite a line ofsoldiers. The soldiers hold rifles. The band hold

instruments.

PING! PING! PING!

BOBBY:

What was that?

They glance at each other nervously. PING! PING! PING!

OUTSIDE -A rocket propelled grenade streaks up out of thecanopy and explodes near the plane, rocking it violently.

BELOW -The world explodes, as Napalm sears across a footballpitch size of jungle, a hundred feet below.

BOBBY (CONT’D)

They’re shooting at us.

MACEO:

Please, Lord! Please!

They look at the soldiers, who are also nervous. Marva looksout the window. Nothing but fire below.

MACEO (CONT’D)

(Shaking)

Oh. My. God.

Drummond taps the soldier opposite. Points out the window. A

soldier looks out, turns white.

SOLDIER:

Holy sh*t.

IN THE COCKPIT -The pilots wrestle to keep the craftupright. Between them, a completely unruffled James Brown isholding court.

JAMES:

See Captain Jenkins, the JamesOrchestra is a 22 piece, but theGov’ment or the Army, powers’t besay I can only bring six fellas.

Right now I got 16 pieces sittin’in a Bangkok hotel. If I’m payingmy own money to be here, and I am,

I oughtta bring as many cats as Iwant. Breaks my heart, son. ‘causeI know they all wish they was hereright now.

PILOT:

Mr. Brown, it’s probably best ifyou go back now.

JAMES:

We gone be fine, Captain.

PILOT:

We’re under attack Mr. Brown.

JAMES:

Settle down, Captain. James Brown

was born dead but then I breathed.

God didn’t want me then and he sure

ain’t gonna call me back now.

The soldier from the back rushes in.

SOLDIER:

The port engine’s on fire.

The PILOT looks back.

PILOT:

How far to Tan Son?

13

IN THE BELLY -Everyone is frozen. Saying prayers. Moaning.

James appears.

JAMES:

Marva, fellas, Listen up. We underattack.

MACEO:

No sh*t, Mr. Brown.

James flashes five fingers at Maceo four times.

JAMES:

Watch that mouth, Maceo. That’s

twenty dollars right there.

The plane suddenly lurches forty five degree and lets out anawful groan. Everyone screams. Except James who is stillstanding like rubber even though he wasn’t holding ontoanything. Bobby sees this.

JAMES (CONT’D)

Mr. Byrd, I’ve decided to opentonight’s show with “I Got TheFeeling“.

James demeanor somehow gives comfort to Bobby. James nods atBobby and smiles.

JAMES (CONT’D)

How’s that sound?

BOBBY:

Sounds good, Mr. Brown.

Bobby smiles at James. The plane lurches again, Bobby

screams.

21 INT. HANGER - SAME TIME 21

A very white female news journalist talks into a camera, asscores of rowdy troops rush toward a make shift stage. Nextto her, a group of BLACK SOLDIERS wait to be interviewed.

NEWS JOURNALIST:

Soul Brother Number One James

Brown, the Hardest Working Man inShow business is embarking on atour with a difference.

(MORE)

14

NEWS JOURNALIST (CONT'D)

In association with the USO, Mr.

Brown is playing a series of showsfor battle fatigued US troopsacross Vietnam-

A BLACK INFANTRYMAN grabs the mic and looks into the camera.

BLACK INFANTRYMAN 1

80 percent of 9th Division is

brothers. We been here 2 years.

What do we get as thanks?

Another Infantryman leans in.

BLACK INFANTRYMAN 2

Country music.

BLACK INFANTRYMAN 1

Country and f***in’ Western. But

James is ours, man. He’s comin’.

Bringin’ some f***in’ soul,

brother.

The other Infantryman grabs the mic.

BLACK INFANTRYMAN 2

Welcome to the sh*t, n*gger!

The Infantrymen laugh and slap hands. As they walk towardstage...

NEWS JOURNALIST:

(To Cameraman)

We can’t use that.

22

INT. PLANE. IN THE COCKPIT. 22

PILOT:

SOLDIER:

I’m losing her. We’re going Oh mother of Christ!

down.

The wounded beast judders in low over the canopy and startssinking into it when the jungle suddenly clears.

23

EXT. TAN SON NHUT AIRFIELD 9TH DIV INFANTRY CAMP OUTSIDE 23

NOM PEI. JUNE 1968. SAME TIME

The damaged plane breaks out over the field with both enginessmoking. Barely regaining control, the pilots make a veryhard landing.

MUSIC:
“There Was A Time” begins.

Army personnel race toward the plane. Next to the runway anold hanger is teeming with soldiers.

24 EXT. AIRFIELD. MOMENTS LATER 24

Biblically pissed, James and Bobby walk from the flamingplane alongside CORPORAL DOOLEY.

Behind them, in deep shock, Maceo and the rest of the band,

clutching instruments.

CORPORAL DOOLEY:

Welcome to Bear Cat, Mr. Brown.

Corporal Dooley. USO Liaison

officer. Can I first say I’m a big,

big fan of your mus-

JAMES:

You in charge when Bob Hope was

over Corporal?

CORPORAL DOOLEY:

(proudly)

I was.

JAMES:

(to Bobby)

Mr. Byrd, You think Bob Hope’splane got shot down?

BOBBY:

No sir, Mr. Brown.

As they approach the hanger filled with troops, a chantbegins inside.

TROOPS:

James Brown! James Brown! James

Brown!

CORPORAL DOOLEY:

(Tightly)

Sorry about the plane trouble-

JAMES:

Plane trouble? They tried to kill

James Brown today. You wanna go

down in history as the man who

killed the funk?

16

James and crew near the rear stage entrance of the hanger.

CORPORAL DOOLEY.

About the show, if you could just

keep it to 25, 30 min-

JAMES.

(Interrupting)

Whoa, whoa, whoa.

BOBBY:

(under his breath)

Oh no.

JAMES:

Corporal, let me tell you the first

thing about James Brown. The first

thing is James Brown don’t tell no

man his business. He won’t tell you

how to take Pnom Ridge or how you

screwed up the Tet offensive. I

don’t tell you how to fight your

war Corporal. So don’t tell me

when, where or for how long I can

be funky.

25 INT. HANGAR. CONTINUOUS. 25

HUNDREDS OF HOT, STEAMING TROOPS ROAR, like a thousand space

rockets taking off at once. It’s awesome, shaking the stage.

TROOPS:

James Brown! James Brown! James

Brown!

James and Bobby enter the hanger. We walk with them and strutup six steps and onto the stage.

Bobby stands back and watches as James grabs the mic andlooks out over the sea of faces.

JAMES:

Sorry we’re late. Are you cats

ready?

The troops roar even louder.

James turns straight to camera, flashes his smile and talksdirectly to us.

17

JAMES (CONT’D)

(quietly)

Are you cats ready?

26 EXT. A PINE WOOD. 1941. DAY. JAMES 8 YRS 26

A cold fog hangs in the fading sunlit trees.

Eight year old James stands alone in a forest clearing. Helooks all around him.

JAMES:

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