Memphis Belle Page #18

JACK (V.O.)

190 breaking to ten o'clock.

VIRGE (V.O.)

Another one, high at three. Radio

operator, hear me?

DANNY (V.O.)

Gotcha. Thanks, Virge.

Luke looks around for fighters, but none are in sight.

LUKE:

Come on, come on...

248 EXT. MEMPHIS BELLE

A speck appears way down below, dodging through the

formation at a fantastic speed. Fortresses FIRE at it,

but it keeps coming.

RASCAL (V.O.)

Tail gunner, see that bandit at

seven low? He's all yours, Clay.

249 INT. TAIL

Luke eagerly aims his guns down at the approaching plane.

250 EXT. MEMPHIS BELLE

The fighter keeps coming. It flips over on its back and

zooms toward the Belle's tail, MACHINE GUNS BLASTING.

102.

251 INT. TAIL

Luke OPENS FIRE. He follows the fighter up past the

tail. At first it looks like Luke missed it. Then the

FIGHTER STALLS, stopping dead in the air above. Smoke

starts streaming from its belly, its nose drops down and

it starts a slow fall to the right.

LUKE:

I got him! I got him! Whooo!

252 EXT. MEMPHIS BELLE

The fighter falls right into Mother and Country. The

fighter's left wing slices off the B-17's tail.

253 INT. TAIL

Luke watches with horror.

LUKE:

No!

254 EXT. MEMPHIS BELLE

Mother and Country's tail section tumbles toward the

ground with the fighter.

RASCAL (V.O.)

It's the rookies! They got the

rookies!

255 INT. RADIO ROOM

Danny looks out the right side window, alarmed. Then he

flips a switch on his radio.

DANNY:

Memphis Belle to Mother and

Country! Come in, come in!

256 EXT. MEMPHIS BELLE

The back of Mother and Country drops down and two men

roll out. For a moment, Mother and Country hangs in the

air like a big cross. Then it plunges toward the ground.

257 INT. RADIO ROOM

Danny frantically works the radio.

(CONTINUED)

103.

257 CONTINUED:

DANNY:

Mother and Country come in!

He flips a switch. On the RADIO, we hear SHOUTING and

SCREAMING, complete chaos. Danny listens with horror.

258 INT. TAIL

Luke watches, horrified, as Mother and Country falls.

He's stunned, paralyzed by what he did.

259 EXT. MEMPHIS BELLE

Mother and Country plummets to the ground, spinning as

it goes, like a giant arrow. Then it hits the ground

with a quick flash and a little plume of smoke. When it

hits, the RADIO GOES DEAD. Silence.

260 INT. RADIO ROOM

Danny sits there a moment, shocked by the suddenness of

it. Then he starts to move to his position behind his

gun.

261 INT. TAIL

Clay grabs Luke by the back of his jacket and pulls him

up and shoves him out of the way. Then Clay falls to his

knees before his GUNS and STARTS FIRING.

DENNIS (V.O.)

How many chutes from Mother and

Country?

EUGENE (V.O.)

I saw two.

RASCAL (V.O.)

Yeah, two.

CUT TO:

CLAY'S WHITTLED MODEL PLANE

sitting in a sea of spent cartridges. It's crushed. In

the b.g. we see Luke's back as he starts slowly toward

the front of the plane.

104.

261A INT. TAIL WHEEL

As soon as he's out of the tail and into the tail wheel

area, Luke stops and leans against the fuselage wall.

Tears come to his eyes. He tries to hold them back, but

can't. He's overcome with remorse for what he has done.

He finally realizes the horror of war. He struggles to

pull himself together. Then he starts towards the

cockpit.

262 INT. COCKPIT

Dennis is alone in the cockpit. PHIL'S VOICE comes over

the INTERCOM.

PHIL (V.O.)

Captain, this is the bomb run.

DENNIS:

Bombardier, I'm turning it over

to you.

VAL (V.O.)

Roger.

Dennis flips the auto pilot switch to "On." Dazed, Luke

squeezes past the top turret, climbs into the cockpit and

sits in his seat. Dennis pulls off his oxygen mask to

talk.

DENNIS:

Luke, right after delivery, on our

way to the rally point, I'm going

to take some evasive action and

try to avoid this flak. Be ready

on rudder.

LUKE:

Whatever you say, Dennis. You

know what you're doing.

Dennis looks at him, astonished by this response. Luke

turns away to hide his face.

263 POV THROUGH BOMBSIGHT - TARGET

The ground is almost visible, still covered with smoke.

A patch of green or a piece of river can be seen for an

instant, but that's all.

DENNIS (V.O.)

Bombardier, how does the target

look?

VAL (O.S.)

Like sh*t.

105.

264 INT. NOSE - VAL

takes his eye from the bombsight, pulls the bomb bay

door lever, then flips up the latch on the bomb release

button. He catches Phil's eye, who is on his gun, very

near the button. Phil looks at Val a moment, then turns

back to watch for fighters. Val looks through the bombsight

again.

VAL:

Captain, I still can't see a thing.

265 INT. COCKPIT - DENNIS

his finger hovers over the auto pilot switch.

EUGENE:

Bandit, three o'clock high. Top

turret, see him?

VIRGE (V.O.)

I see him. He's a dead man.

JACK:

Ball turret, watch this guy on the

left. He wants your ass.

RASCAL (V.O.)

He ain't going to get it.

266 INT. NOSE - VAL

puts his finger on the bomb release button.

VIRGE (V.O.)

Bandit coming in twelve level.

Coming right at the nose!

PHIL:

I'm on him.

EUGENE (V.O.)

'Nother one at two low, Phil.

PHIL:

Thanks, Gene.

266A OMITTED

&

266B

106.

267 POV THROUGH BOMBSIGHT - TARGET

The only thing we can see is thick, rolling smoke. The

crosshairs intersect at perfect right angles.

VAL (O.S.)

Dennis, my sight says we're over

the target. I've got to do

something. What do you want me

to do?

268 INT. COCKPIT

Dennis's finger is on the auto pilot switch. His hand

trembles.

269 INT. TAIL - CLAY

FIRES his GUN with one hand and rubs his lucky horseshoe

with the other.

270 INT. WAIST - EUGENE

kisses his St. Anthony medal as he FIRES at a FIGHTER

BUZZING in on the right.

271 INT. RADIO ROOM - DANNY

finishes firing off a round, then reaches inside his cuff

for his lucky rubber band, but it isn't there. A flash

of panic. Then he remembers he loaned it to Eugene. He

looks through the rear bulkhead door and can see Eugene.

Danny's relieved his rubber band isn't far away.

272 INT. NOSE - VAL

is frozen, eye to the bombsight, finger on the bomb

release button.

273 POV THROUGH BOMBSIGHT - TARGET

Suddenly the smoke thins a little, revealing the top of

a square grey building, directly at the intersection of

the crosshairs.

274 FLASHBACK - INT. BRIEFING ROOM

To the briefing where the target photo is projected large

on the screen. The S-2's pointer taps the factory three

times. It's the same building.

107.

275 INT. NOSE - VAL

jerks his head up from the bombsight and shouts, excited.

VAL:

That's it! That's it! Bombs away!

(presses the bomb

release button)

Right in the pickle barrel!

276 INT. BOMB BAY

Bombs start dropping from the racks.

277 EXT. MEMPHIS BELLE

The bombs fall from the bottom of the Belle. Bombs also

start to fall from Baby Ruth and the other planes in the

group. Bombs are dropping all over the sky. Then they

hit the ground. Flashes, then billowing clouds of grey-

black smoke. It's an unforgettable, frightening sight.

Rate this script:0.0 / 0 votes