Hancock Page #19

CLYDE:

The box scores are waiting and I got an

inch of meat sticking out of my ass. Make

it snappy.

HORUS:

(loosing his voice)

I'd like my sports page, please.

CLYDE:

You what?

HORUS:

I want you to stop taking my sports page.

CLYDE:

All right.

Clyde closes the door. Horus - thunderstruck.

He stutter-steps... KNOCKS...

CLYDE (CONT' D)

(AGITATED)

What's the matter, you deaf? I'll stop

taking your sports page. Now get out of

here and let me...

HORUS:

(INTERRUPTS)

I want today's sports page.

CLYDE:

You what?

HORUS:

That there... my sports page.

86.

CLYDE:

What's gotten in to you? All of a sudden?

You don't even like football.

Horus does.not budge.

CLYDE (CONT'D)

(CONTINUING)

You'll get it back... after I take my

dump.

Clyde proceeds to close the door... but Horus interjects, his

foot in the door.

HORUS:

No.

CLYDE:

What?

HORUS:

No. I would like my sports page now.

Please.

CLYDE:

After I finish.

HORUS:

I'd prefer it now.

CLYDE:

What's eating you, Longfella? You crazy?

Without warning, Horus wrests the sports page from Clyde's arm

a kamikaze move, indeed.

CLYDE (CONT'D)

(SHOCKED)

Give that back.

Horns lunges at his hulking opponent, lands a punch into Clyde's

midsection. Harmless - it tickles him, maybe.

CLYDE (CONT'D)

Why'd you go and do that for?

Clyde belts up has pants. Roles up his sleeves.., and the

massacre commences.

He simply tears into Horus... SLOWS to the stomach... RIGHTS

across the face. It ends quickly and without resistance - as if

Horns accepted it as fate.

87.

Clyde 'kneels over. Picks up the sports page. And as if yawning,

returns to his room.

KAW/

CUT TO:

EXT. SCHOOLYARD - DAY

By the fence - Mary and Aaron.

Mary, with a brown paper BAG, seems.distant, preoccupied in a

far away place.

AARON:

Are you all right, mom?

MARY:

(DISTRACTED)

Yeah... why?

AARON:

You're acting weird.

MARY:

(didn't hear)

What?

AARON:

I'm late for class. Go home, mom. I think

it's time for your nap.

Aaron leaves.

Pensive, Mary begins her walk... to the boardwalk.

INT. APARTMENT - DAY

The door swings open to admit Horus - battered, enraged,

disoriented. He confronts an empty apartment.

HORUS:

Mary!

A deaf ear. No one's there to console him. He storms out of the

apartment.

EXT. BOARDWALK - DAY

The ocean RAGES against the shore, in the distance and at some

muffled volume.

Up against the railing leans Hancock, and the remains of a

cigarette. His hair drips of salt water - he's been here a

while, one would suspect.

88.

COP (O.S.)

Come back here! Stop him!

In the background, a COP commences pursuit on a THIEF.

The thief dashes by - pass an indifferent Hancock. The cop

follows suit, passing by.

COP (CONT'D)

Stop him!

Hancock - his gaze wavers not from the distant waters.

EXT..STREET - DAY

Horus stumbles. Keeps his balance. Trudges down the street to a

corner BAR.

INT. BAR - DAY

The bar is empty at this hour. The chairs are up, the floor

swept. A husky BARTENDER unloads liquor in the back.

Horus enters. Finds a stool.

HORUS:

Drink.

The bartender comes out, considers this man's appearance.

HORUS (CONT' D)

(CONTINUING)

Is this a bar... or what? Drink.

(uncomfortable with his own

RUDENESS)

Please.

EXT. BOARDWALK - DAY

Mary stands there on the boardwalk, the bag in her arms.

It's cold this morning. A little wind has picked up. And the

clouds - they're alive, restless.

She finds Hancock, staring at her, waiting for. her.

HANCOCK:

Hi.

(EMBARRASSED)

Thank you for being here.

MARY:

Is everything all right?

89.

Hancock has no response.

U:

MARY (CONT' D)

(CONCERNED)

What's wrong?

HANCOCK:

(constipated; following some

THOUGHT)

It's cold.

Mary and Hancock - we notice, they look good together.

HANCOCK (CONT'D)

(at the clouds)

They're moving. The turbulence has

started.

MARY:

Tell me what's wrong.

He points to the distant ocean - where the horizon curves into

darkness.

HANCOCK:

Look out there and what do you see, Mary?

MARY:

(PERPLEXED)

Nothing. I don't know... I don't see

anything.

HANCOCK:

see it,can

It's out there. But you can't

Y nu?

(beat; holding on to a thread)

And that's good, not seeing. But for me,

I've seen it. It's where I'm from... out

there.

MARY:

Please, Hancock. What are you talking

about? What's out there?

HANCOCK:

Duty.

(beat; at Mary)

You ask a man, Mary, and he'll tell you.

He'll say:
"you do what you have to do."

Or what? You let the next guy do it for

you, if you don't... if you can't.

(losing it)

And... but. If I can't, then who?

(MORE)

90.

HANCOCK (CONT'D)

The next guy? No. There is no "I can't."

Just "I must."

Mary - watching a grown superman unravel.

HANCOCK (CONT'D)

(CONTINUING)

But I don't ask, "why me?" I don't

question it. This is me. I'm it. I do

what I have to do. I get in there.., all

the killing... the blood... and I deal

with it. I clean up. I make things right.

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