Get Shorty

BLACK:

MAN'S VOICE

Looks f***in' cold out there.

EXT. VESUVIO'S RESTAURANT -- MIAMI DAY

It is cold. People walk by hugging themselves, pulling up

their collars, etc.

INT. VESUVIO'S RESTAURANT -- SAME TIME

CHILI PALMER, late thirties, sits in a booth with TOMMY

CARLO, a low level mob type. Chili smokes a cigarette,

stares out the window at the people on the street.

TOMMY:

Guy on the radio said it's gonna get down to thirty-four.

Chili watches a woman on the sidewalk pause to tighten the

scarf around her neck . . . She looks in the window, sees

Chili looking out.

TOMMY:

Thirty-four -- that's freezing, for Christ sake.

(then)

Yo, Chili, you're spacin'.

Chili turns and studies Tommy a moment, then . . .

CHILI:

They're closing the Granview. You know, theater down on

Biscayne?

TOMMY:

Yeah, the guy owes Momo a few G's.

CHILI:

What I'm thinkin' is maybe Momo could buy it.

Tommy looks at him.

CHILI:

Momo could buy it, I could run it for him. Show some Cagney

films.

TOMMY:

What's Momo gonna want with an old place, shows old movies

people don't care about no more. Outside of maybe turnin' it

into a porno house, I don't think he's gonna give much of a

f***. And you already got a job.

Chili looks back out the window again.

CHILI:

Yeah.

We hear LAUGHTER O. S. and then FOCUS on the window so that

Chili can now see a GROUP OF MEN reflected there, sitting at

a table nearby. We hear MORE LAUGHTER and now Chili turns

and looks over at . . .

RAY "BONES" BARBONI

Mob guy

tall, loud suit with lots of jewelry. As he gets up from the

table, the other men around the table follow his lead as he

finishes up some jokes . . .

MOB GUY:

. . . so the guy says, I'm not the tailor, I'm the

undertaker.

The men laugh again, more out of respect than appreciation.

Ray Bones turns, sees . . .

CHILI and Tommy sitting in their booth. Tommy, sucking on a

toothpick, waves.

TOMMY:

Ray. How you doing?

RAY BONES:

Okay, Tommy. You?

TOMMY:

Okay.

Bones focuses on Chili, waits for acknowledgement. But Chili

turns back to the window. Always the peacemaker, Tommy

smiles at Bones again . . .

TOMMY:

You believe this weather, Ray? Miami Beach, for Christ's

sake.

RAY BONES:

(ignoring him)

Chili Palmer.

(smiles)

Chilly outside. Chili inside. It's a regular f***in'

chili-fest. Hey, waiter -- give Mr. Chili Pepper a big

f***in' bowl of chili!

Again the men all laugh respectfully at Ray Bone's stupid

joke. Chili smiles the best he can at the idiot . . .

CHILI:

Good to see you, Ray.

He turns back to the window, watches Ray Bones in the

reflection, still cracking up as he and his men head for the

front of the restaurant. Tommy looks at Chili for a moment,

then stands up . . .

TOMMY:

You done starin' out the window, I'll see you back at the

office.

Chili nods, but still doesn't turn from the window. He

merely watches in the glass as Tommy turns up his collar and

steps out into the cold Miami day.

TOMMY:

Jesus. It's freezin'!

Chili then puts out the cigarette, nods to the waiter who

comes over with the check.

INT. RESTAURANT COATROOM -- A FEW MINUTES LATER

From inside the tiny room. A couple of ratty rain coats and

an old flight jacket hang to one side in immediate f.g. as

Chili steps into the doorway and freezes. He looks o.s. and

whistles . . .

CHILI:

Hey.

A moment later the MANAGER, an old Italian guy in a black

suit, joins him in the doorway.

CHILI:

What happened to my coat?

The Manager peers into the room . . .

MANAGER:

It's not one of these?

CHILI:

You see a black leather jacket, fingertip length, like the

one Pacino wore in Serpico? You don't, you owe me three

seventy-nine.

MANAGER:

Maybe you don't see my sign?

The manager points to a sign on the wall

'WE CANNOT BE RESPONSIBLE FOR LOST ARTICLES.'

CHILI:

Look, I didn't come down to sunny Florida to freeze my ass.

You follow me? You get the coat back or you give me the

three seventy-nine my ex-wife paid for it at Alexander's.

The Manager looks o.s., and begins speaking in Italian.

Chili reacts as we hear the name RAY BARBONI mentioned a

couple of times.

MANAGER:

Explain to him how Mr. Barboni borrow the coat.

A WAITER joins Chili and the Manager in the doorway.

CHILI:

Ray Bones took my coat? Just now?

WAITER:

He didn't take it. He borrow it. See, someone took his coat,

you know . . .

(indicates flight jacket)

. . . leave this old one. So Mr. Barboni, he put on this

other coat that fit him pretty good.

CHILI:

You mean my coat.

WAITER:

He was wearing it, you know, to go home. He wasn't gonna

keep it.

CHILI:

My car keys were in that coat.

MANAGER:

We call you a taxi.

CHILI:

Lemme get this straight. You aren't responsible for any lost

articles like an expensive coat of mine, but you're gonna

find Ray Bones' coat or get him a new one? Is that what

you're telling me?

MANAGER:

Mr. Barboni a good customer.

(making sure to add)

Works for Jimmy Capp.

CHILI:

I know who he works for. Where's your phone.

INT. TOMMY CARLO'S CAR -- DAY

Tommy drives. Chili stares straight ahead, rubs his hands

together, tries to stay warm . . .

TOMMY:

You sure it was Ray Bones took the coat?

CHILI:

That's what the guy said.

TOMMY:

(nervous now)

Tomorrow, I see on the TV weather, it's gonna be nice and

warm. You won't need the coat.

Chili points out the window.

CHILI:

This is it.

EXT. VICTOR HOTEL -- DAY

As Tommy pulls up out front.

INT. CAR -- SAME TIME

Tommy looks up at the hotel as Chili takes a pair of leather

gloves from top of the dash, opens the door. Tommy looks

over at him.

TOMMY:

Hey, Chili.

(Chili pauses)

Get your coat, but don't piss the guy off, okay? It could

get complicated and we'd have to call Momo to straighten it

out. Then Momo gets pissed for wasting his time and we don't

need that.

CHILI:

Don't worry about it. I won't say any more than I have to,

if that.

EXT. STAIRS -- DAY

Chili pulls on the gloves as he goes up the stairs to the

third floor.

EXT. DOOR -- DAY

As Chili knocks on the door three times. He waits, pulls the

right-hand glove on tight, so that when RAY BONES opens the

door, Chili nails him. One punch. No need to throw the left.

RAY BONES:

Jesus . . . Oh, God . . .

Chili then steps over him into the room and grabs his coat

from a chair. He looks over at Ray Bones bent over, blood

running from his nose and mouth, blood all over his hands,

his shirt.

RAY BONES:

F***, man . . .

Chili walks out. Doesn't say one word to Ray Bones.

EXT. BARBER SHOP -- DAY

A warmer day. The sun is shining. All is quiet.

INT. BARBER SHOP -- SAME TIME

The place is empty except for FRED and ED, the two old

barbers sitting in the chairs, reading newspapers.

ED:

You been there, haven't you?

INT. BARBER SHOP BACKROOM -- SAME TIME

A room Tommy and Chili use as an office. Chili sits at the

desk making entries in the collection book. We can hear the

two old barbers talling o.s. . .

FRED O.S.

Paris? Yeah, I been there plenty times. It's right offa

Seventy-nine.

ED (O.S.)

Hell it is. It's on Sixty-eight. Seventeen miles from

Lexington.

FRED O.S.

What're you talking about, Paris, Kentucky, or Paris,

Tennessee?

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