Memphis Belle Page #20

LUKE:

I'm not going anywhere.

DENNIS:

Crew, I'm going to dive and try

to blow this fire out. Everybody

hang on!

He depresses the control wheel.

301 EXT. MEMPHIS BELLE

The plane begins to plunge, leaving Baby Ruth behind.

302 INT. WAIST

Jack's and Eugene's feet go out from under them. They're

suddenly weightless. Eugene hangs on to his gun, but

Jack loses his grip and is slammed against the ceiling.

Shell casings fill the air.

303 INT. NOSE

Phil is lifted up along with anything that isn't nailed

down:
his log book, pencils, compass, maps, ammunition.

114.

304 INT. RADIO ROOM

The floor is tipped at a forty-five degree angle. Rascal

holds Danny. Val has the needle in Danny's upper arm.

The plane is vibrating violently. The needle breaks.

304A CLOSE SHOT

of the airspeed indicator as the needle creeps toward

300 m.p.h.

304B INT. COCKPIT

Dennis and Luke are both holding their control wheels.

Dennis is monitoring the airspeed, Luke watching the

burning engine.

DENNIS:

275. We're exceeding maximum

diving speed. We better level

her.

LUKE:

The fire's not out. Just a

little more.

DENNIS:

A little more and we could lose

the windshield.

LUKE:

Trust me. A few seconds more.

305 EXT. MEMPHIS BELLE

Suddenly the flame on engine three blows out.

LUKE (V.O.)

It's out!

306 INT. COCKPIT

Dennis and Luke pull back hard on their control wheels.

The plane shudders violently as if it's going to rip

apart. Luke and Dennis strain to control it. They're

working together now as partners, no need for words. The

plane starts to pull out of the dive. After it levels,

Dennis pulls off his oxygen mask and takes a deep breath.

DENNIS:

Crew, we're at ten thousand feet.

We can come off oxygen.

(CONTINUED)

115.

306 CONTINUED:

Luke pulls off his mask.

DENNIS:

Thanks, Luke.

LUKE:

Once in a while I do something

right.

307 OMITTED

308 INT. RADIO ROOM

Val is just finishing injecting Danny with morphine. He

pulls out the needle. Rascal, Virge and Eugene are

gathered in the radio room. Danny is still unconscious

and his breathing is shallow. There are occasional

BURSTS OF GUNFIRE from the front and rear of the plane.

VAL:

I don't know what else to do.

He's lost a lot of blood.

EUGENE:

How far is it to base?

VIRGE:

On three engines? Two hours,

maybe two and a half.

VAL:

Two and a half hours! He'll

never make it.

RASCAL:

Val, help him!

VAL:

(panicked)

What do you want from me? He

needs a hospital! I've got a

stupid first aid kit!

Val turns away.

ON EUGENE:

Eugene suddenly sees that he still has Danny's lucky

rubber band on his wrist. He never gave it back.

(CONTINUED)

116.

308 CONTINUED:

He leans against the doorway, trying to hold back his

tears.

CUT TO:

VAL:

turns back to the others. He's very frightened. He's

grasping at straws and trying not to lose control.

VAL:

There's one more thing we can do.

RASCAL:

What? Let's do it!

VAL:

We can put a parachute on him...

and push him out.

The others react with shock.

VIRGE:

Jesus Christ, Val!

VAL:

It's crawling with Germans down

there. He'll get picked up by

the Germans and they'll take him

to a hospital.

RASCAL:

If they don't kill him for fun

first!

VAL:

Rascal, it's his only chance!

Another crew did it. This gunner

lost an arm...

VIRGE:

Yeah, but that guy was conscious.

EUGENE:

Danny couldn't even pull the cord.

VAL:

We can pull it first and put the

chute under his arm.

RASCAL:

He could fall in a lake and drown!

EUGENE:

Val, can't we wait?

(CONTINUED)

117.

308 CONTINUED:
(2)

VIRGE:

We'll be over the North Sea in

ten minutes. Then it'll be too

late.

VAL:

If we're going to do it, we've

got to do it now!

309 OMITTED

310 INT. COCKPIT

Luke is flying the plane. Phil and Val are in the

cockpit, crouched behind Dennis's and Luke's seats.

Val is fighting down his hysteria.

DENNIS:

Val, I'll go along with anything

you say. You're the doctor.

Phil looks at Val. Val avoids his glance.

VAL:

We just don't have a choice,

Dennis. We've got to do it.

PHIL:

No!

DENNIS:

All right. Tell the men that's

my decision and I don't want any

argument.

Val starts to return to the bomb bay. Phil follows him

through the top turret and stops him on the threshold of

the bomb bay. The bomb bay doors open, revealing the

ground so far below. The enlisted men are gathered

around Danny at the other end of the bay. They have put

a parachute on him and tucked the chute under his arm.

PHIL:

Please don't do it, Val.

VAL:

It's his only chance.

PHIL:

No, you're his only chance, but

you're too goddamn chicken to

help him.

(CONTINUED)

118.

310 CONTINUED:

VAL:

If he stays on board, he'll die.

PHIL:

He's going to die if you throw

him out. And you know that.

A long pause. Val is trembling with fright. He looks at

Danny. Phil pleads with him, desperately.

PHIL:

Val, you can save him! So, you're

not a doctor, so what? You can

help him, I know you can. Don't

give up.

VAL:

Phil, I'm scared!

PHIL:

No, you're not. You're not

scared.

Phil turns Val around and looks him in the eye.

PHIL:

You're Val.

Val looks at him a long, long moment.

PHIL:

Now go help Danny.

Val takes a breath, nods and starts toward Danny.

311 EXT. BASE

Some SOFTBALL PLAYERS are playing a game. There are men

on second and third. The batter steps up to the plate

and the pitcher pitches. The ball is right over the

plate, but the batter doesn't even try to swing. His

teammates yell at him, angrily. He points out at the

horizon.

FIRST SOFTBALL PLAYER

There they are!

312 EXT. BASE (HORIZON)

The first three planes appear in the distance.

119.

313

EXT. CONTROL TOWER LAWN

Men are starting to gather on the lawn in front of the

control tower. Bruce is giving instructions to the Life

photographer.

BRUCE:

What I want is a picture of them

running towards the camera,

throwing their hats in the air,

going crazy, the plane in the

background. We might have to do

it a few times to get it right.

314

INT. BARRACKS

Les wakes at the sound of a PLANE ROARING overhead. He

looks at his watch. It's 4:45. He gets up and starts

pulling on his boots.

315

EXT. RUNWAY

The first plane is landing.

pops out of the cockpit.

316 OMITTED

317 EXT. CONTROL TOWER LAWN

A two-pronged red flare

Les joins the rest of his ground crew. The Softball

Players are counting the planes as they appear.

SOFTBALL PLAYER:

Seven!

SECOND PLAYER:

Eight, nine!

THIRD PLAYER:

Did'ja get that one?

We MOVE UP TO the control tower balcony.

318

EXT. CONTROL TOWER BALCONY

The CO joins the S-2 on the balcony. The S-2 is watching

the sky with binoculars.

CO:

How many so far?

(CONTINUED)

120.

318 CONTINUED:

S-2

Nine, sir. There's another one.

Ten.

CO:

The Belle?

S-2

Not yet, sir.

319 EXT. MEMPHIS BELLE

The plane is alone over grey sea. Oil is spitting out

of the first engine on the left side of the plane and

heavy, dark smoke is twisting out of it. The propeller

reverses directions, slows, then stops.

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