My Best Friend's Wedding Page #10

MICHAEL:

Now, there's my girl.

... to tenderness. PAN back to see her wearing everything from her

cardboard container. Nachos, fudge sauce, Diet Coke, the works.

It is really awful. Kids, bystanders, laughing cruelly. Her eyes

fill with tears, and she tries bravely to smile against it...

JULIANNE:

See, I can only do it with

beer.

He takes out his handkerchief. And with that and his hands, gently

scoops the worst of the mess off her. The fact that he's touching

her breasts and her body is something they pretend not to notice.

She laughs softly, and a few tears fall, even though she doesn't

know why. Such an odd, raw, confusing moment. To the world

looking on, they are lovers.

MICHAEL:

(murmurs)

See, better already.

And he kisses her face. Not quite her lips. But only an inch away.

We can feel her heart pounding. He strips off his shirt, only a tank

top underneath.

MICHAEL:

We'll go back to the bathroom,

you'll put this on...

Okay? She sniffles, okay. Swallows.

JULIANNE:

Bet you're glad I'm here to

take care of you.

He puts his arm around her.

MICHAEL:

Bet I am.

Holds her close, as they start toward the restroom...

MICHAEL:

Hope that crazy person's not

still there.

We're on their backs...

JULIANNE (O.S.)

She doesn't scare me.

EXT. BEACH CLUB, LAKE MICHIGAN - SUNSET

Julianne in T-shirt and shorts, rushes onto the deck of a sprawling

beach club. Clutching her bag, she quickly surveys the scene...

... the entire beach has been taken over by the wedding party.

Young folks, old folks, little kids, maybe 200 people. We SCAN

with her to find a crowd around...

... a three-on-three volleyball game. Kimmy and two groomsmen on

one side, facing Michael and the Tennessee debs. The twins wear

spectacular bikinis and are surprisingly athletic, as well as

predictably uninhabited. As the next point begins, Kimmy serves...

... Sammy in back makes a nice dig, lobbing to Mandy who sets for

Michael's vicious SPIKE straight THROUGH his best man's hapless

defense. The crowd cheers Michael, and as he turns, Mandy gives

him a savage...

... CHEST BUMP of congratulation, that any NFL linebacker would be

proud of. It puts the surprised Michael straight on his butt.

Laughter, applause. The twins pull him up and Sammy gives him a

hot kiss on his ear that makes the crowd react. Kim plays good

sport. Julianne watches Michael's body for a beat, then...

... dashes off. Down the beach, several barbecue grills have been

set up. Manned by beach club staff and family alike. Michael's

pop, Joe, is dispensing beers from a keg. Kim's mom, Isabelle, is

coordinating the beans, potato salad and corn-on-the-cob table.

Julianne races across the sand to...

... a huge smoky grill where Walter is basting baby back ribs,

clearly enjoying himself. Julianne runs up to him, says something

into his ear. He looks at her. Then turns his station over to a

club steward, and follows Julianne down toward the lakeside.

CLOSE now. As they stroll together, she's a little breathless.

He's watching her profile, curious, silent. At the water's edge...

JULIANNE:

(whispers)

Is anybody watching?

WALTER:

I hope so. This is all too

mysterious to waste on just me.

She reaches into her big bag. Pulls out a single folded sheet of

paper.

JULIANNE:

I picked up Michael's messages

for him, at our hotel. I stole

one...

His face darkens. The easy smile fades. He holds up his palms...

WALTER:

Julianne, reading my son-in-law's

mail, is not something...

JULIANNE:

Sir, this is important! Haven't

you ever in your life cut one

corner, to make something important

turn out right?

His smile returns. Just a little.

WALTER:

Matter of fact, that's how I got

married.

The look holds. She thrusts the paper out. He still doesn't take

it.

JULIANNE:

It's a fax from Sports Illustrated

from Ben Isaacson, Michael's boss.

WALTER:

(quickly)

I know Ben.

She opens the paper.

JULIANNE:

"Mike. We still have no answer to

our E-mail of Wednesday. Which

option do you select? I don't mean

to rush you, but Personnel needs to

tie up the loose ends."

He takes the paper. We see it now. Looks authentic.

JULIANNE:

I think he's been fired.

WALTER:

It doesn't say th...

JULIANNE:

He's said some things over the

past few weeks. Look, this is why

I came up with the idea of you

offering him a job.

He looks up. He's listening. Closely.

JULIANNE:

And why I couldn't say anything

before in front of Kim.

She bites her lip. Seems so earnest.

JULIANNE:

I just think of how... desperate

he must be feeling. He's marrying

a rich man's daughter, and he's

about to become destitute. You

know the kind of job market he'll

be facing?

He does.

WALTER:

And you think he's kept this to

himself.

JULIANNE:

He's too proud to beg for help.

And if you wait till this comes out,

your offer will be like charity.

Completely humiliating.

He's staring at her. But his mind is working behind his eyes.

JULIANNE:

If you do it now, it's like he's

helping you. He can accept with

dignity.

He taps the paper with the back of his knuckles.

WALTER:

This fax could mean... any number

of things...

She nods. She knows that.

WALTER:

(softly)

Maybe. I should call Ben.

JULIANNE:

Then it could all come out, sooner

or later. Nobody should be in on

this. Just you and me. Or, more

correctly, I.

She takes the paper back.

JULIANNE:

What if, what if I could find

that E-mail?

The long straight look. Maybe he's hooked.

JULIANNE:

I never noticed. Kimmy has your

eyes.

INT. LOBBY, RITZ CARLTON HOTEL - TWILIGHT

Tall, gangly, young DESK CLERK. Lank hair, pimples. He looks up,

beams to see...

JULIANNE:

Hello, again.

She's flirting her ass off.

JULIANNE:

You still haven't straightened

that tie.

And she reaches across the desk with her lovely, slender hands.

Does it for him. Her fingers brush his chest on the way back. We

can assume a woody.

JULIANNE:

You know, my friend, the one

whose message I picked up... ?

He does. His eyes flick toward his stately female SUPERVISOR,

helping another guest across the way.

JULIANNE:

Well, he's still with the wedding

party. And he asked me to get

something he needs real badly from

his room... ?

The boy swallows hard.

JULIANNE:

He's in 1526. If you could just

let me ha...

BOY:

See that woman?

Not only does Julianne see her. The woman is looking back, while

she's talking to her customer. Not a pleasant look.

BOY:

She said, if I ever pull a stunt

like that again...

JULIANNE:

You'll lose your job...

BOY:

... tear my pecker off. Is what

she said.

INT. HOTEL CORRIDOR - TWILIGHT

An elevator OPENS, revealing Julianne, carrying a gym bag. She

looks down the long hallway, sees a maid's cart. Heads the other

way, briskly, to...

Rate this script:5.0 / 2 votes