Memphis Belle Page #13

154 INT. WAIST

Jack is excited and eager; Eugene nervous and jittery.

CLAY (V.O.)

They're a-comin'.

DENNIS (V.O.)

Call them out.

VIRGE (V.O.)

Six o'clock high!

JACK:

Nine o'clock high!

PHIL (V.O.)

Ten o'clock high!

EUGENE:

Three o'clock high!

Jack OPENS FIRE. So does Eugene. The room throbs from

the vibration of the GUNS. SHELLS SPIT out onto the

floor.

70.

155 INT. RADIO ROOM

Danny FIRES out of his little opening in the roof. He

can't see much, just a piece of bright sky.

156 INT. COCKPIT

Right behind the cockpit, Virge is FIRING his twin .50

calibers. The sound is deafening. Luke twists anxiously

in his seat, trying to see what's happening.

DENNIS:

Luke, do your job. The gunners

will do theirs.

EUGENE (V.O.)

Breaking low to five o'clock!

Ball turret, look out!

157 INT. BALL TURRET

Rascal spins the turret and FIRES at a fighter zipping

by at an incredible speed.

RASCAL:

That guy had blue eyes.

158 EXT. MEMPHIS BELLE

There are planes all over the sky. It's hard to tell who

is who. Tracers streak the air. B-17s FIRE back. It's

chaotic. The fighters are dazzling, flying rings around

the bigger planes.

DENNIS (V.O.)

Keep calling them out!

EUGENE (V.O.)

They're leaving us alone.

VIRGE (V.O.)

They're going after the first

flight.

159 INT. COCKPIT

Fighters are converging on the three planes above, really

giving them hell. Engine two of the lead plane bursts

into flame.

LUKE:

Windy City's on fire!

71.

160 OMITTED

161 INT. NOSE

THROUGH the nose we can see the German fighters soaring

off into the sky, fleeing from the burning plane.

PHIL:

Why aren't they doing something?

Are they asleep?

VAL:

Bail out, you guys!

PHIL:

Come on, get out of there!

VAL:

Jesus, there's a hole in the

pilot's window!

Suddenly, WINDY CITY EXPLODES in a huge ball of flame.

162 INT. COCKPIT

The ball of flame becomes a massive black cloud straight

ahead.

LUKE:

Watch out!

DENNIS:

Hold on, everyone!

Luke braces himself. Dennis grips the control column as

we fly straight into the huge black cloud.

163 INT. WAIST

The room is filled with smoke, getting in Jack and

Eugene's eyes. Eugene cries out.

DENNIS (V.O.)

Call in!

CLAY (V.O.)

Tail.

EUGENE:

Right waist.

JACK:

Left waist.

72.

164 INT. BALL TURRET

Smoke fills the ball turret. BITS of metal are PINGING

against the Plexiglas. Rascal is jumping out of his

skin.

RASCAL:

Ball turret! Get us out of here!

165 INT. COCKPIT

Dennis is gripping the wheel, trying to control the plane

as it's buffeted around in the black cloud.

DANNY (V.O.)

Radio operator.

VIRGE (V.O.)

Top turret.

There is a LOUD THUNK and the plane rocks.

DENNIS:

Keep calling in!

Suddenly, we come out of the black cloud into sunshine

that seems twice as bright as before.

LUKE:

Copilot.

VAL (V.O.)

Bombardier.

Beat.

DENNIS:

Navigator, call in! Navigator!

166 INT. NOSE

Phil is paralyzed, staring at the nose. It's covered in

blood and the blood is streaming back from the tip in

rivulets and freezing. Val hasn't seen it yet.

VAL:

Phil! Phil!

PHIL:

Navigator. Sorry. I'm fine.

DENNIS (V.O.)

When I say call in, I mean right

away.

(CONTINUED)

73.

166 CONTINUED:

Val shakes his head in annoyance of Phil, then turns

around and sees the blood.

VAL:

F***! Somebody's guts are all

over the nose!

DENNIS (V.O.)

Any damage? Crew, check your

stations.

The blood has frozen in a ring around the nose. It

glints in the sun, horrible, but also weirdly pretty.

Phil can't take his eyes off it.

VAL:

Nose okay.

DANNY (V.O.)

Radio room okay.

JACK (V.O.)

Waist okay.

CLAY (V.O.)

Tail okay.

Phil shakes himself out of his trance and turns back to

his gun.

DENNIS (V.O.)

Call out those bandits.

167 INT. TOP TURRET

Virge spins his turret, checking the sky.

as if nothing had happened.

VIRGE:

They're gone.

CLAY (V.O.)

Hit and run.

168 INT. COCKPIT

It's peaceful,

Ahead, C Cup and Mama's Boys draw closer together.

Friendly fighters patrol the sky in the b.g.

DANNY (V.O.)

Captain, I just heard from C Cup.

They're taking over the lead.

(CONTINUED)

74.

168 CONTINUED:

DENNIS:

Hear that, Val?

VAL (V.O.)

Roger.

DENNIS:

C Cup is lead plane now. When

they drop their bombs, so do we.

VAL (V.O.)

Got it.

Pause, then Dennis looks at Luke.

DENNIS:

Any chutes from Windy City?

169 INT. WAIST

Eugene and Jack's faces are smudged with soot. Eugene's

eyes are watering and he rubs them.

JACK:

Those guys didn't have time to pee

their pants.

CLAY (V.O.)

If you gotta go, that's the way.

VIRGE (V.O.)

Here one minute, gone the next.

PHIL (V.O.)

Do we have to talk about it?

170 INT. BALL TURRET - RASCAL'S FACE

is also greasy from the soot and he wipes it with his

scarf.

RASCAL:

Hey, I heard a good one from the

waist gunner on Windy City. What

was his name?

JACK (V.O.)

Cooley.

RASCAL:

I mean the left one.

(CONTINUED)

75.

170 CONTINUED:

JACK (V.O.)

Cooley!

RASCAL:

I mean the right one.

VIRGE (V.O.)

I know the guy.

RASCAL:

Tall guy.

CLAY (V.O.)

Not so tall.

RASCAL:

Everyone's tall to me.

171 INT. NOSE

Phil extends the penciled line across the North Sea and

above a string of islands skirting the northern coast of

Holland, the Frisian Islands. We're approaching Germany

fast. Again, Phil's hand shakes and his line isn't as

straight as it should be.

VIRGE (V.O.)

Lindquist.

RASCAL (V.O.)

No, no, no.

VIRGE (V.O.)

Something like that.

RASCAL (V.O.)

Virge, you're not even close.

We DISSOLVE FROM the map TO -

172 EXT. MEMPHIS BELLE

The real coastline, matching the map perfectly: the

curve of Holland's coastline and the Frisian Islands.

RASCAL (V.O.)

Anyway... a plane gets shot down.

This guy bails out. The Gestapo

gets him. His leg's broken and

they have to amputate...

76.

173 INT. BALL TURRET - RASCAL

turns slowly in the turret, searching the sky below for

fighters as he speaks.

RASCAL:

He says, 'Do me a favor. After

you cut it off, give it to one of

your pilots and have him drop it

over my base in England.' So they

do it.

DENNIS (V.O.)

Rascal, don't tie up the intercom.

RASCAL:

This is real quick.

174 INT. TOP TURRET - VIRGE

slowly revolves in the top turret, carefully watching the

sky, listening.

RASCAL (V.O.)

A week later they have to take off

the guy's other leg. Same thing.

'Could you have someone drop it

over my base in England?' And

they do it.

175 INT. RADIO ROOM - DANNY

notices that his camera has moved to the edge of his desk

and is about to fall off. He grabs it just in time and

pushes it to safety.

Rate this script:0.0 / 0 votes