Hope and Glory Page #21

She is genuinely irritated.

FILM EXTRACT:

BLACK AND WHITE:

A scene from a forties romantic movie. The couple on the

screen are deeply in love, but he must go off to the war.

Their parting is bitter-sweet, prolonged and accompanied by a

symphony orchestra playing its heart out.

EXT. CINEMA - NIGHT

COLOUR:

MAC sits between MOLLY and GRACE. He looks from one to the

other. They are both weeping,

lost in the movie, and oblivious of him. SUE sleeps, lying

across her mother's lap. BILL squirms with embarrassment as

the screen lovers kiss. He turns his face away. When he looks

back, he is disgusted to see that they are still at it.

EXT. NATIONAL GALLERY - DAY

BILL leans over to the balustrade of the pillar portico

looking out on to Trafalgar Square. The strains of a

passionate piano recital reverberate from inside the Gallery.

Soldiers and their girls, hand in hand, listen enraptured.

EXT. TRAFALGAR SQUARE - DAY

Barrage balloons hang over Admiralty Arch and garland Nelson

astride his column.

EXT. NATIONAL GALLERY - DAY

BILL threads his way through the crowd, past signs announcing

Dame Myra Hess's lunchtime concerts (SOLD OUT) and into the

marbled hall.

INT. NATIONAL GALLERY - DAY

BILL slides back into his seat next to GRACE as DAME Myra

concludes the WARSAW Concerto. The audience rises to its

feet, applauding, GRACE, he eyes shining, is among them. MAC

watches her pleasure with pleasure.

BILL is disturbed by the music, by the eruption of emotion

and some wearing blue uniforms demoting the war wounded. They

clap and clap.

GRACE:

Mac, that was wonderful. I haven't

been to a concert since...

MAC:

...since I used to take you to the

Proms?

GRACE:

That's right. Not since then Not

since I got married.

Their eyes meet. The audience is drowning in it own applause.

Everyone is crying, or laughing, or both. GRACE and MAC among

them. In the emotional tumult they reveal more than they

intend. The audience falls silent. BILL'S gaze drifts to the

wall where huge paintings by special war artists hang. GRACE

tears her eyes away from MAC. She senses BILL watching her

and turns her attention to Dame Myra's fingers flying over

the keys.

INT. ROHAN HOUSE - DINING ROOM - DAY

The table has been stretched to embrace the Rohan family,

including GRACE'S SISTERS. They wear paper hats, have

finished their Christmas dinner, and are listening

attentively to King George VI stuttering painfully through

his Christmas message.

EXT. ROSEHILL AVENUE - DAY

It is raining. BRUCE hurries along the street, and as he

enters the Rohan's front gate, he pauses, pulls an old silk

stocking over his head and takes two glass eyes from his

pocket. They look as though they once belonged to a stuffed

stag. He pushes them inside the stocking and positions them

just under his own eyes so that he can peek over them. He

crawls under the bow window.

INT. ROHAN HOUSE - DINING ROOM - DAY

The King falters to a conclusion.

CLIVE:

He was a lot better this year.

MAC and the others mumble agreement.

BILL:

You said that last year, Dad.

CLIVE:

The land and the King are one, my

son. If he stutters we falter. He's

getting batter, and so are we.

The National Anthem strikes up on the wireless. They all rise

and stand to attention.

EXT. ROHAN HOUSE - DAY

BRUCE raises his head and presses his grotesque face to the

window. He taps on the glass. He is startled to see the

assembled family standing upright and staring back at him

without expression. He cavorts and waves his arms, but still

gets no response. Sheepishly, he slinks into the porch and

pulls off the stocking. The door opens to reveal DAWN.

DAWN:

Dad's furious. It was 'God Save The

King'.

He goes inside and she closes the door. He pushes the stag's

eyes into his own sockets and scrunches up his face to grip

them into place. DAWN turns back and he lunges, trying to

kiss her. She squeals wit laughter.

INT. ROHAN HOUSE - DINING ROOM - DAY

A charade is in progress. CLIVE and MAC are got up as

prostitutes, wearing their wives' clothes. GRACE and MOLLY

are dressed as men. There is a lot of salacious flirting and

an argument breaks out over the price of whores. MOLLY says

the word 'tart' emphatically and BILL jumps out of his seat,

yelling:

BILL:

Jam tart! Jam tart! I got it! I got

it!

The four actors abandon their characterizations and applaud

young BILL. BRUCE watches in amazement.

BRUCE:

Jesus Christ! This is Christmas?

GRACE'S father rises, his glass held aloft.

GRANDFATHER GEORGE

The for my annual toast. Charge

your glasses.

There are groans and mutterings of disapproval. He cuts an

impressive figure,white hair, drooping moustache, waistcoat

and watch-chain. His eyes take on a faraway look, sombre and

serious. His wife, pointedly leaves the room, slamming the

door behind her.

GRANDFATHER GEORGE

To Mary McDonald, Thelma

Richardson, Bobo Hinds, Lily

Sanderson...

(savours each name,

smiles, shakes is head,

has a special emphasis

or tone of voice for

every one of them.)

...Little Sarah Whats-it, now

there was a spirit. And Marjorie

Anderson.

Rate this script:0.0 / 0 votes