Pi Page #11

Jake c*cks the gun. Max starts to cry.

MAX:

You bastards! You stupid

bastards!

Suddenly, Jake is whacked with a sawed-off baseball bat.

He smashes into the sidewalk.

It is Farrouhk, Max's neighbor, who's just pulled up in his

taxicab.

MAX:

(Spotting his savior)

Farrouhk!

Farroukh threatens Marcy and the other tough guy, who

retreat in fear. Farroubk is afraid as well, so he doesn't

quite leap on them. He just keeps swinging the bat.

FARROUHK:

He's sick! He's sick!

Max gets to his feet and runs behind Farrouhk.

Just then a station wagon screeches up to the curb. Lenny

Meyer, Ephraim, and a bunch of other his burly Jews jump out.

LENNY MEYER:

Max!

Max looks at Farrouhk and then he looks at Lenny. Ephraim

grabs Max and pulls him toward the station wagon.

MAX:

(To Farrouhk)

C'mon...

Farrouhk heads for his cab. Ephraim helps Max into the

backseat of the wagon and climbs in after him.

Lenny Meyer jumps into the passenger seat and the gray-bearded

YISRAEL slams on the gas Pedal.

Farrouhk jumps into his cab.

INT. LENNY MEYER'S CAR - MOVING - NIGHT

Yisrael yanks the steering wheel to the left, the old station

wagon skids around a corner.

MAX:

Farrouhk what about Farrouhk!?

LENNY MEYER:

Stay down!

Ephraim pushes Max's head down. Yisrael takes another

corner sharp.

MAX:

Go back!

LENNY MEYER:

He's okay, he got

in his cab. We've been

looking for you.

MAX:

What's going on?

LENNY MEYER:

Do you have the number?

MAX:

What's going on?

LENNY MEYER:

Do you have the number?

MAX:

Yeah, I have it!

LENNY MEYER:

You have it. Where is it?

You have it written down?

MAX:

What is it?

Lenny nods to Ephraim, who starts scanning through

Max's pockets. Max resists. The other guys hold him down.

MAX:

What are you doing!? What

the hell are you doing!?

LENNY MEYER:

We're not joking

around, Max? Where's

the number?

MAX:

(Pushing Ephraim away)

It's not on me. It's in my

head.

LENNY MEYER:

You memorized it?

Did you give it to them?

MAX:

Who?

LENNY MEYER:

Who!? Those

Wall Street bastards.

MAX:

Why do you care?

LENNY MEYER:

Just answer me!

MAX:

Screw you!

LENNY MEYER:

(In Hebrew)

Hit him!

Yisrael screeches the car to a halt. He spins around in his

seat and looks Max in the face.

LENNY MEYER:

You're dealing with something

really big now, Max. I don't

want to hurt you, so answer

me. Did you give it to them?

MAX:

They've got part of it

Now get off me!

LENNY MEYER:

Damn it! Damn it!

They're using it.

MAX:

Using what?

LENNY MEYER:

Shut up!

MAX:

Let go!

Max chews into Ephraim's hand which is pinning him. Ephraim

screams and lets loose a punch to Max's jaw.

LENNY MEYER:

No, don't!

But Lenny is late, and Max's world - as well as ours goes

black.

INT. MAX'S APARTMENT - NIGHT

Max stares suspiciously at the bathroom. He slowly picks up

his drill. Wielding it like a hammer, he carefully advances

into the

BATHROOM where he looks into the sink. He almost vomits when

he sees a piece of human brain sitting above the drain. Ants

swarm across its surface.

Max becomes furious. He whacks it with the drill. Blood flies

up into his face. In a wild rage, he smashes it and punches

it.

Then he drops the drill and uses his bare hands to shove it

down the drain. Screaming like a madman, he jams it until it

is gone.

INT. BASEMENT SHUL - DAY

A wise-looking, bearded Hasidic man with benevolent, piercing

eyes stands tenderly over Max. He wears traditional black

clothes. Lenny Meyer paces nervously in the background.

As Max comes through, RAV COHEN speaks.

RAV COHEN:

Max, Max. You're

okay I'm Rabbi Cohen. Cohen

like you. I'm sorry for what

Lenny did, he's been

reprimanded. It is not our way

Are you okay?

MAX:

Yeah, yeah

RAV COHEN:

Everything will be

fine, Max. You need to give

us the number. Do you have

it?

MAX:

What is it?

LENNY MEYER:

(Charging over)

I told you we don't know

MAX:

You wouldn't be so

flipped out if you didn't

know. What's happening to me?

LENNY MEYER:

Give us the number!

MAX:

Screw you!

RAV COHEN:

Okay, okay! Lenny,

easy! Max, I'll tell you

what's going on. Just calm

down.

(Deep breath, then)

The Talmud tells us it began two

thousand years ago, when the

Romans destroyed the second

temple.

MAX:

What are you...

RAV COHEN:

Just give me a chance.

You'll understand everything

if you listen.

Max takes out his pills and starts feeding himself some.

RAV COHEN:

The Romans also

murdered all of our priest-

hood—the Cohanim—the Cohens,

and with their deaths they

destroyed our greatest

secret. In the center of the

great temple was the holy of

holies which was the heart of

Jewish life. This was the

earthly residence for our

God. The one God. It

contained the ark of the

Tabernacle which stored the

original Ten Commandments

that God gave to Moses. Only

one man could enter this

space once a year on the

holiest day of the year, Yom

Kippur On the Day of

Atonement, all of Israel

would descend upon Jerusalem

to witness the High Cohen's

trip into the holy of holies.

If the holy man was pure he

would reemerge a few moments

later and Israel was secured

a prosperous year. It meant

that we were one yea r closer

to the messianic age. Closer

to the return of the Garden

of Eden. But if he was

impure, he would die

instantly and it meant that

we were doomed. The High

Cohen had a single ritual to

perform in the holy of holies.

He had to intone a single

word.

Rav Cohen takes a dramatic pause. Max is anxious to hear the

end of the story.

MAX:

So?

RAV COHEN:

That word was the true name of God.

MAX:

Yeah...

RAV COHEN:

The true name, which only

the Cohanim knew, was two

hundred and sixteen letters

long.

A long beat.

MAX:

(Incredulous)

You're telling me that the number in

my head is the name of God!?

Wondrously, Max rubs the scar on his head.

RAV COHEN:

(Passion building)

Yes...it's The key into

the messianic age. As the

Romans burned the temple, the

Talmud says, the High Cohen

walked into the flames. He

took his secret to the top of

the burning building. The

heavens opened up and took

the key from the priest's

outstretched hand. We've been

searching for the key ever

since. And you may have found

it. Now let us find out.

MAX:

That's what happened. I

saw God.

RAV COHEN:

No, no, Max.

You're not pure. You can't

see God unless you're pure.

MAX:

It's more than God...

it s everything. It's math

and science and nature...

the universe. I saw the

Universe's DNA

RAV COHEN:

You saw nothing.

MAX:

I saw everything.

RAV COHEN:

There's much more.

We can unlock the door with

the key. It will show God

that we are pure again. He

will return us to The Garden.

MAX:

Garden? You're not pure.

I'm the one who has the

number

RAV COHEN:

Who do you think

you are? You are a vessel

from our God. You are

carrying a delivery that

needs to be made to us.

MAX:

It was given to me. It's

part of me. It's changing me.

Rate this script:0.0 / 0 votes