Into the Woods Page #10

you!

STEPMOTHER:

Mongrel!

(to the driver)

Carry on!

She pushes the BAKER off the carriage and he somersaults

backwards into the brush.

The CARRIAGE speeds off. Deflated, the BAKER picks himself

off the path and sits on what he thinks is a white rock.

There is a muffled “Moo...” He jumps up realizing he’s been

SITTING on the cow.

BAKER:

Milky-White!

He hears something and hides behind a BUSH. Then, seeing it

is his WIFE, he steps out.

BAKER (CONT’D)

I thought you were returning home!

The WIFE screams in fright. Then she recognizes him.

WIFE:

Oh! It’s you! And you’ve the cow!

She runs to MILKY-WHITE.

BAKER:

(braggadocio)

Yes. I’ve the cow. We’ve two of the

four.

WIFE:

Three.

BAKER:

Two.

WIFE:

Three!

She shows him the braid of hair around her neck.

WIFE (CONT’D)

Compare this to your corn.

He does and it’s a perfect match.

BAKER:

Where did you find it?

WIFE:

(false modesty)

I pulled it from a maiden in a tower.

BAKER:

Three!

WIFE:

And I almost had the fourth, but she

got away.

BAKER:

We’ve one entire day left. Surely we

can locate the slipper by then.

WIFE:

We? You mean you’re going to let me

stay with you?

BAKER:

Well...perhaps it will take the two of

us to have this child.

WIFE:

YOU’VE CHANGED./ YOU’RE DARING./

YOU’RE DIFFERENT IN THE WOODS./ MORE

SURE,/ MORE SHARING./ YOU’RE GETTING

US THROUGH THE WOODS.

IF YOU COULD SEE--/ YOU’RE NOT THE MAN

WHO STARTED,/ AND MUCH MORE OPEN

HEARTED/ THEN I KNEW/ YOU TO BE.

BAKER:

IT TAKES TWO./ I THOUGHT ONE WAS

ENOUGH,/ IT’S NOT TRUE:/ IT TAKES TWO

OF US./ YOU CAME THROUGH/ WHEN THE

JOURNEY WAS ROUGH--/ IT TOOK YOU./ IT

TOOK TWO OF US.

IT TAKES CARE,/ IT TAKES PATIENCE AND

FEAR AND DESPAIR/ TO CHANGE./ THOUGH

YOU SWEAR/ TO CHANGE,/ WHO CAN TELL IF

YOU DO?/ IT TAKES TWO.

He flirts with her. She pulls away, teasing him.

WIFE:

YOU’VE CHANGED./ YOU’RE THRIVING./

THERE’S SOMETHING ABOUT THE WOODS./

NOT JUST/ SURVIVING,/ YOU’RE

BLOSSOMING IN THE WOODS.

AT HOME I’D FEAR/ WE’D STAY THE SAME

FOREVER./ AND THEN OUT HERE/ YOU’RE

PASSIONATE, CHARMING, CONSIDERATE,

CLEVER-

BAKER:

IT TAKES ONE/ TO BEGIN, BUT THEN ONCE/

YOU’VE BEGUN,/ IT TAKES TWO OF YOU./

IT’S NO FUN,/ BUT WHAT NEEDS TO BE

DONE/ YOU CAN DO/ WHEN THERE’S TWO OF

YOU.

IF I DARE,/ IT’S BECAUSE I’M BECOMING/

AWARE/ OF US/ AS A PAIR/ OF US,/ EACH

ACCEPTING A SHARE/ OF WHAT’S THERE.

They move towards each other through the trees playfully.

BOTH:

WE’VE CHANGED./ WE’RE STRANGERS./ I’M

MEETING YOU IN THE WOODS./ WHO MINDS/

WHAT DANGERS?/ I KNOW WE’LL GET PAST

THE WOODS.

AND ONCE WE’RE PAST,/ LET’S HOPE THE

CHANGES LAST/ BEYOND WOODS,/ BEYOND

WITCHES AND SLIPPERS AND HOODS,/ JUST

THE TWO OF US--/ BEYOND LIES,/ SAFE AT

HOME WITH OUR BEAUTIFUL PRIZE,/ JUST

THE FEW OF US.

IT TAKES TRUST./ IT TAKES JUST/ A BIT

MORE AND WE’RE DONE./

They sit down next to each other at the top of a small hill

and slide down to the bottom together.

BOTH (CONT’D)

WE WANT FOUR,/WE HAD NONE./ WE’VE GOT

THREE./ WE NEED ONE./ IT TAKES TWO.

They kiss but their moment of romance is interrupted when a

large GOLDEN EGG rolls down the hill between them. The WIFE

screams.

JACK (O.S.)

Stop it! Stop my egg!

The BAKER stops the egg and picks it up. JACK stumbles down

the hill.

JACK (CONT’D)

Oh, brilliant! My Milky-White. And

the owners. And my egg!

BAKER:

Where did you get this?

JACK:

From the Giant’s hen!

The BAKER’S WIFE examines the egg.

WIFE:

A golden egg! I’ve never seen a golden

egg.

JACK:

And you can have it. Along with the

five gold pieces.

WIFE:

Five gold pieces?

JACK:

Now I’m taking my cow.

JACK moves to MILKY-WHITE. The distant CHIMES OF MIDNIGHT

begin to ring out from the castle.

BAKER JACK:

(overlapping)(overlapping)

Now, I never said I would But you took the five gold

sell. pieces.

WIFE BAKER:

You took five gold pieces?! I didn’t take, you gave.

WIFE:

Where are the five gold pieces?

JACK:

You said I could have my cow!

BAKER WIFE:

Now I never said you could. I You would take money before a

said you might. child?!

BAKER:

No, no, no - it’s not how it sounds!

JACK:

(alarmed)

Milky-White...!

MILKY-WHITE has begun to shake like a dashboard ornament. She

moans, then topples over with a loud thud. Alarmed, JACK runs

to the cow and lays his head on the animal’s chest.

JACK (CONT’D)

(tearful)

Milky-White is dead!

The BAKER looks up and sees that the SHADOW has now moved a

third of the way across the MOON. We hear the WITCH scream:

WITCH(O.S.)

TWO MIDNIGHTS GONE!

EXT. RAPUNZEL’S TOWER - DAYBREAK

Hidden by a broken piece of WALL -- someone or something is

watching the R-PRINCE climbing out of the window.

BAKER (V.O.)

When dawn broke, the Baker and his

Wife had but one day left to reverse

the Witch’s curse. As for Rapunzel’s

Prince, he returned yet again to the

forbidden tower.

With RAPUNZEL smiling down, the R-PRINCE descends her hair.

Once he has reached the bottom, she pulls her hair back in

and closes the window.

ANOTHER ANGLE. We discover that it’s the WITCH who has been

watching. She is not happy.

The PRINCE mounts his horse and rides off towards a low rose

thicket -- an easy jump.

With a thrust of her stick, the WITCH makes the thicket shoot

up before the PRINCE has time to act. His HORSE stops short

and he screams as he is thrown over the horse’s head into the

thicket.

ANGLE ON THE WITCH. She smiles at her handiwork then turns to

stare at the top of the tower vindictively.

INT. RAPUNZEL’S TOWER - DAY

The WITCH threatens RAPUNZEL.

WITCH:

WHAT DID I CLEARLY SAY?/ CHILDREN MUST

LISTEN.

RAPUNZEL:

No, no, please!

WITCH:

WHAT WERE YOU NOT TO DO?/ CHILDREN

MUST SEE-

RAPUNZEL:

No!

WITCH:

AND LEARN./ WHY COULD YOU NOT OBEY?/

CHILDREN SHOULD LISTEN./ WHAT HAVE I

BEEN TO YOU?/ WHAT WOULD YOU HAVE ME

BE,/ HANDSOME LIKE A PRINCE?

AH, BUT I AM OLD./ I AM UGLY./ I

EMBARRASS YOU.

RAPUNZEL:

No!

WITCH:

YOU ARE ASHAMED OF ME.

RAPUNZEL:

No!

WITCH:

YOU ARE ASHAMED./ YOU DON’T

UNDERSTAND.

RAPUNZEL:

I’m no longer a child. I wish to see

the world.

WITCH:

DON’T YOU KNOW WHAT’S OUT THERE IN THE

WORLD?/ SOMEONE HAS TO SHIELD YOU FROM

THE WORLD./ STAY WITH ME.

PRINCES WAIT THERE IN THE WORLD, IT’S

TRUE./ PRINCES, YES, BUT WOLVES AND

HUMANS, TOO./ STAY AT HOME./ I AM

HOME./ WHO OUT THERE COULD LOVE YOU

MORE THAN I?/ WHAT OUT THERE THAT I

CANNOT SUPPLY?/ STAY WITH ME.

STAY WITH ME,/ THE WORLD IS DARK AND

WILD./ STAY A CHILD WHILE YOU CAN BE A

CHILD./ WITH ME.

WITCH (CONT’D)

I gave you protection and yet you

disobeyed me.

RAPUNZEL:

No!

WITCH:

Your prince will never lay eyes on you

again. He will never lay eyes on

anything again!

RAPUNZEL:

What did you do to him?

WITCH:

It doesn’t matter because where you’re

going, no one will ever see you again.

The WITCH lunges at RAPUNZEL with a pair of SHEARS and begins

to hack off her hair. The girl lets out a mighty shriek.

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