Pawn Sacrifice Page #20

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Yellow Revision 10-11-13 111.

219 INT. NATIONAL THEATER 219

Spassky finally summons up the will to make another move.

Without any hesitation, Bobby POUNCES -- like a panther.

A collective GASP from the audience.

Spassky stares at the move. His world is falling apart.

220 INT. BROOKLYN CHESS CLUB 220

Carmine and the others watch in wonder.

221 INT. NATIONAL THEATER, VIEWING GALLERY 221

MARSHALL:

What the hell was that?

LOMBARDY:

...It is beyond my ability to explain

or understand.

Across the gallery we catch Livo Nei's awestruck expression.

222

INT. NATIONAL THEATER 222

Absolute silence.

Bobby is going for the kill, crushing the fly. Serene.

He makes his move.

Boris blinks once. He looks up at Bobby. Bobby's eyes are

still, his mind empty. A flicker of incomprehension crosses

Boris's face. Then he half smiles as he realizes he is beaten.

He KNOCKS over his King with a flick of his finger.

It falls in SLOW-MOTION -- like a building being demolished.

223 OMITTED 223

224 INT. NATIONAL THEATER, VIEWING GALLERY 224

Marshall applauds wildly.

Nei gets to his feet too and applauds. Geller glares at him.

Lombardy applauds, filled with emotion.

225 INT. JOAN'S LIVING ROOM 225

She and her kids are jumping up and down, clapping.

Green Revision 10-14-13 112.

226 INT. MOSCOW APARTMENT 226

Regina fights back tears.

227 INT. BROOKLYN CHESS CLUB 227

The chess players are going wild.

228 EXT. TIMES SQUARE (ARCHIVAL FOOTAGE) 228

Cars HONK, pedestrians CHEER.

229

INT. NATIONAL THEATER 229

Silence.

Then...Boris gets to his feet and begins to applaud.

Bobby is at first confused, then astonished.

230

INT. NATIONAL THEATER 230

For one last, delicious second, Bobby is in the safe, quiet,

zone. Then a WAVE of SOUND hits as THE AUDIENCE APPLAUDS.

Bobby CRINGES, then slumps in his chair like a puppet with

its strings cut. The crowd applauds even more as they see

Boris acknowledging the beauty of the game Bobby just played.

ABC COMMENTATOR *

Bobby Fischer has just won game six

and his opponent Boris Spassky is

actually on his feet, applauding.

People applaud wildly; the anchor has to raise his voice...

ABC COMMENTATOR (CONT'D) *

Grandmasters never, ever applaud an

opponent's victory. But I guess

this is something-(

re at cheering crowd)

--no one has ever seen before.

231 OMIT 231

232 INT. NATIONAL THEATER 232

The crowd ERUPTS as Bobby emerges and heads down the stairs.

A mass of humanity SURGES forward -- crowding him, touching

him -- everybody wants a piece of him.

We SENSE Bobby's panic. The SCREAMS, the FLASHBULBS, the

faces, the hands reaching for him. It's all too much.

113.

Then a face in the crowd --it's Regina! --But it can't

be. She's in Moscow. Bobby looks again but she's gone.

Mom!

BOBBY:

He frantically looks around. Then another face --Joan!

course she, too, couldn't possibly be there.

Of

Joanie!

BOBBY (CONT'D)

And then....is that Uncle Paul? No, that's impossible.

Marshall and a couple of his guys usher him into a limo.

233 INT. LIMO - CONTINUOUS 233

Bobby sits in the back as the limo moves slowly through the

crowd. Fans POUND on the glass but he looks straight ahead.

Over this a caption:

Bobby Fischer went on to beat Boris Spassky 12 1/2 - 8 1/2.

234 EXT. LIMO - CONTINUOUS 234

The Limo makes it way through the cheering crowd.

Suddenly, amidst the crowd, Bobby catches a glimpse of THE

TELEPHOTO MAN -- who has spied on him since he was a child.

He leans back out of sight.

He never tried to defend his title and no other American has

ever become world champion.

235 EXT. WASHINGTON PARK, WINTER BLIZZARD 235

The cheering is replaced by the sound of a howling wind.

Bobby walks alone in the snow-blasted park. He stops at one

of the chess tables and wipes away snow with his sleeve.

His descent into insanity was swift and permanent.

He stares at the empty squares.

236 INTERVIEW SOUNDBITE 236

BOBBY (V.O.)

-- It's a worldwide Jewish conspiracy--

Mossad, the defense industry and the

media. Secret government projects

using micowaves to monitor our brains.

Green Revision 10-14-13 114.

Alienating the world with his bizarre behavior, his US *

passport was revoked and he lived in exile, eventually

becoming homeless.

237 INTERVIEW SOUNDBITE 237

BOBBY (V.O.)

9-11, man. Wonderful news. Time

for the f***ing U.S. to get their

heads kicked in. Shows you that

what goes around, comes around...

238 WASHINGTON SQUARE PARK 238

Bobby stands up from the table and slowly walks off into the

blizzard...until he disappears...and all that we see is:

A WHITE SCREEN that RESOLVES INTO:

239 SLOW-MOTION MOCK-ARCHIVAL FOOTAGE (HIGH SCHOOL GYM) 239

Bobby at the height of his power, playing 20 boards at a

time, his movements graceful, passionate, full of life.

Bobby Fischer died in 2008 and was buried in Reykjavik,

Iceland, the site of his remarkable triumph.

240 INTERVIEW SOUNDBITE 240

A smiling Bobby sits on a bench in Washington Square.

BOBBY:

Chess and me, we're pretty

intertwined. I don't really have

much else in my life right now.

Maybe someday I'll spread out a

little. For now, though, I'd like

to be world champion-

(a slow smile)

--And then keep it for, say, twenty

years. Yeah.

CLOSE on Bobby as a big grin spreads across his face.

FADE OUT.

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