Red Planet Page #7

LOUIS (whispers)

W-What did you say...?

PASCOW struggles hard to speak again. At first he can only gurgle.

PASCOW:

It's not the real cemetery...

(Long pause) The soil of a man's

heart is stonier, Louis...a man

grows what he can...and tends it.

LOUIS leans forward again, terrified, yet needing to know.

LOUIS:

How do you know my name?

PASCOW (gurgling)

I'll come...to you.

LOUIS grabs PASCOW'S bloody shoulder.

LOUIS (low but urgent)

Dammit, how do you know my name?

INT. HALLWAY ENTRANCE TO RECEPTION, WITH STEVE

STEVE:

Louis, they're sending a--

INT. LOUIS AND PASCOW

PASCOW begins to spasm again.

LOUIS (snaps)

Help me!

PASCOW spews more blood as STEVE kneels beside LOUIS.

INT. THE MAIN INFIRMARY HALLWAY

CHARLTON is pushing along your basic MEDCU goodie-cart, covered

with emergency life-saving gear.

INT. LOUIS, STEVE, PASCOW

PASCOW'S spasms are weakening.

LOUIS (to CHARLTON)

Never mind. He's going.

PASCOW'S hand comes up and paws at LOUIS'S shirt, leaving a bloody

handprint. Then it falls limply back. PASCOW is dead.

LOUIS:

Steve, will you get a sheet to cover

him with?

STEVE leaves the frame and LOUIS stares fixedly down at the body

of VICTOR PASCOW. He closes the eyes.

EXT. A COUNTRY ROAD, LATE AFTERNOON

It's the leading edge of Maine fall, sunny and wonderful. Here

comes LOUIS'S station wagon. As it reaches THE CAMERA, it swivels

to TRACK.

RADIO (voice-over)

Tragedy struck on the first day of the

University of Maine's fall semester

when Victor Pascow, a nineteen-year-old

sophomore--

INT. THE CAR, WITH LOUIS

He still looks shocked by the tragedy. The dying man's bloody

handprint is partly visible on LOUIS'S shirt in spite of his

sport-coat.

LOUIS abruptly turns off the radio and swerves over to the side of

the road.

EXT. THE STATION WAGON

IT comes to a slueing, shuddering stop, almost going in the ditch.

INT. LOUIS, BEHIND THE WHEEL

LOUIS:

He said my name. I heard it. He

said my name.

He stares blankly through the windshield.

EXT. THE CREED HOUSE NIGHT

All lights are off. It's late.

INT. THE CREED BEDROOM NIGHT

LOUIS and RACHEL are asleep, each on his/her own side of the big

double. THE CAMERA MOVES IN ON LOUIS.

SOUND:
Loud, hollow BANG. It's very loud--loud enough to wake the

dead.

LOUIS sits up. Beside him, RACHEL sleeps on. LOUIS'S eyes widen in

terror as he stares at:

INT. THE DOORWAY, WITH PASCOW

He's exquisitely dead. Now pallid as well as smashed up.

PASCOW:

Come on, doc. We got places to go.

INT. LOUIS

He is in terror...but he is also in a state of near-trance.

INT. PASCOW

PASCOW:

Come on, doc--don't make me tell you

twice.

INT. LOUIS

He glances at RACHEL. Although PASCOW has spoken in a fairly loud

voice--and the opening door was like a bomb--she's still fast

asleep. LOUIS looks back toward PASCOW...and then gets out of bed.

He's naked except for a pair of pajama bottoms.

INT. PASCOW

He turns and leaves the doorway.

INT. LOUIS

He reaches the bedroom doorway himself and looks back at:

INT. THE BED, LOUIS'S POV

RACHEL is sleeping as before, and LOUIS himself is also in bed

asleep, although his rest is uneasy...as if he's having a bad

dream.

INT. THE DOORWAY, WITH LOUIS

LOUIS (relieved)

Oh. Thank God.

PASCOW (Voice)

Hurry up, doc.

INT. THE KITCHEN

LOUIS enters and crosses toward the door which gives on the

shed/garage. This door stands open. LOUIS pauses by it.

PASCOW (low)

Come on, doc...

LOUIS goes into:

INT. THE SHED/GARAGE

The station wagon is a dark hulk. LOUIS crosses to it and stands,

perplexed.

PASCOW looms softly behind him and puts an arm around him. LOUIS

turns... and suddenly his face is less than an inch from PASCOW'S

mutilated face.

PASCOW:

Let's go, doc.

LOUIS (moans)

I don't like this dream.

PASCOW:

Who said you were dreaming?

He begins to move toward the garage door. After a moment LOUIS

follows him.

EXT. THE FIELD BEHIND THE HOUSE, LONG NIGHT

We can see two shapes moving up the path toward the woods--PASCOW

and, behind him, LOUIS.

EXT. THE PET SEMATARY ARCH

CAMERA HOLDS, THEN PANS DOWN as LOUIS passes under the arch.

EXT. LOUIS, CLOSE

He looks around, obviously afraid.

EXT. THE PET SEMATARY, LOUIS'S POV

We can see why. By starlight this is one scary place.

EXT. LOUIS

He suddenly sees something else, and now his fear is close to

terror.

EXT. THE DEADFALL, LOUIS'S POV

The face is back in the tumbled branches. It yawns and snarls.

EXT. LOUIS

He walks toward the deadfall as if hypnotized. PASCOW'S hand falls

on his shoulder. LOUIS turns, terrified.

EXT. PASCOW, CLOSE

He really is a dreadful mangled mess.

PASCOW:

This is the place where the dead speak.

EXT. LOUIS

He closes his eyes.

LOUIS:

I want to wake up. I want to wake up,

that's all. I--

EXT. LOUIS AND PASCOW

PASCOW:

The door must not be opened. The

barrier must not be crossed. Don't

go on, doc. No matter how much you

feel you have to. There's more

power here than you know.

He points at:

EXT. THE DEADFALL

That grinning face--and perhaps now there are other effects as

well, subtle but there? Dim red light? A misty smoke drifting

through the tumbled dead branches? The director will know.

After a moment there is a HUGE GRUNTING ROAR from the woods behind

the deadfall--it sounds like no animal we've ever heard before.

There is the sound of something huge shifting and snapping a tree

like a toothpick.

EXT. PASCOW AND LOUIS

LOUIS has crumbled to PASCOW'S feet. His eyes are squeezed tightly

shut.

LOUIS:

Please, I want to wake up. Leave me

alone. It's not my fault you died; you

were as good as dead when they brought

you in--

PASCOW:

The power of this place is old and

always restless. Sometimes the dead

do more than speak. Remember, doc.

CAMERA BEGINS MOVING SLOWLY IN ON LOUIS.

LOUIS:

Leave me alone!

PASCOW:

Remember.

CAMERA IS TIGHT ON LOUIS.

RADIO (voice)

--another beautiful day in Maine!

This is Michael O'Hara sayin' that

the git-go ain't gonna be that bad.

Temps are going all the way up to 70...

We got the Ramones for Ludlow...here's

"Sheena."

As the Ramones start blasting "Sheena Is A Punk Rocker":

INT. LOUIS, IN BED

His eyes snap open. He's in his own bedroom. As he sits up THE

CAMERA ANGLE WIDENS OUT so we can see that he's in bed alone; the

covers on RACHEL'S side are thrown back.

After the initial confusion and fear, LOUIS looks deeply relieved;

he looks the way I suppose we all look upon waking up and

realizing our worst dreams were only dreams after all.

RACHEL (calls)

You up, doc?

LOUIS:

Getting there.

RACHEL:

I got eggs down here!

LOUIS:

Good d--

He throws the covers back and freezes.

INT. LOUIS'S FEET, LOUIS'S POV

They are covered with mud and pine needles. The sheets are greased

with woods-muck.

INT. LOUIS, CU

Utter terror.

INT. THE LAUNDRY CHUTE, CU

LOUIS'S hands enter the shot and dump a bundle of sheets into the

chute.

INT. LOUIS, IN THE UPSTAIRS HALL

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