Room Page #13

59 INT. NANCY AND LEO’S HOUSE - MA'S OLD ROOM - DAY 59

Ma and Jack enter Ma's room. They absorb the decor of Ma's

adolescence - preserved by her mother.

NANCY:

This is your Mom's room, Jack.

Jack looks around. He pulls a strand of his long hair out of

his eyes.

NANCY (CONT’D)

Hey, maybe tomorrow we can cut that

hair. What do you say, Jack?

Jack shakes his head. Whispers to Ma.

MA:

Jack says that’s where his ‘strong’

is.

NANCY:

Ah ha.

(CONTINUED)

59 CONTINUED:
59

Jack walks over to the bed and sits down. We are with him as

he takes in the band posters, track trophies, pictures -

including pictures of his Mom as a young, happy girl. In the

background Nancy and Ma watch him.

NANCY (CONT’D)

I'll let you rest. We'll be

downstairs.

Before she leaves, Nancy talks quietly, insistently to Ma, we

only catch fragments of what she's saying.

(CONTINUED)

59 CONTINUED:
(2) 59

Conventional things, promising she is there, that there's

nothing Ma can't say to her, how much she loves her. Ma is

quiet, a little shell-shocked. Nancy leaves.

Struck by the sight of her music keyboard, Ma tries it: dead.

She kneels down, finds the plug and puts it in the outlet.

MA:

You didn't know I could play piano.

Guess this tune...

But after a few notes of 'Home on the Range'/’Big Rock Candy

Mountain’ she stumbles. Tries again, and messes it up.

Stretches her stiff hand. Then she sits on the bed, suddenly

limp. Checks her watch. It’s gone; an old habit. Both Ma and

Jack are subdued.

JACK:

How long do we have to stay here?

She takes out her bag of meds.

MA:

(getting the tablets she

needs)

We live here now.

She swallows her antibiotics and painkillers without water.

She lies down. We stay on Jack's face as he continues to take

in his surroundings and digest what Ma has said. After a

little while he lies beside her and lifts her shirt so he can

snuggle up and breastfeed.

We repeat a sequence of shots from life before their escape

ending in a mother & child portrait. In the little bedroom,

they could be in Room.

60 INT. NANCY AND LEO’S HOUSE - KITCHEN / DINING ROOM - NIGHT60

Ma, with Jack pressed close to her, sits at the dining table

with Nancy, Robert and Leo. Desert. Jack is eating his first

bowl of ice-cream. He takes a big mouthful and holds his hand

to his head. He tugs at Ma and she leans down so he can

whisper to her.

JACK:

(whispering to Ma)

Ice cream hurts.

LEO:

You got a brain freeze there, Jack?

(CONTINUED)

60 CONTINUED:
60

MA:

Eat it slower.

Small talk as food is passed around. Ma puts her fork down,

she is beginning to get upset. Nancy watches her, puts a hand

on hers. After a little while Ma calms.

They eat quietly, the adults aware of the complexity and

strangeness of the situation. Jack, oblivious, chomps away at

his ice-cream. Robert watches him.

ROBERT:

I'm going to turn in.

Beat.

MA:

Is there something wrong?

ROBERT:

No.

MA:

Why are you in such a hurry?

(CONTINUED)

60 CONTINUED:
(2) 60

ROBERT:

It’s been a long day.

Beat.

MA:

You haven't said one word to Jack.

Unlike Ma, Nancy hasn’t put two and two together about

Robert’s awkward bearing around Jack.

NANCY:

Joy.

Robert looks haunted, torn.

ROBERT:

We don’t have to talk about this

now.

From the carefulness and awkwardness of Robert’s reply Nancy

begins to understand.

NANCY:

My God.

MA:

(to Robert)

Yes we do. Look at him.

Robert can’t. Ma’s anger deserts her.

MA (CONT’D)

Dad.

NANCY:

Robert.

MA:

Please.

Jack is bewildered by this low-key catastrophe.

ROBERT:

I can’t, I can’t... I’m sorry.

MA:

He’s my baby.

(CONTINUED)

60 CONTINUED:
(3) 60

ROBERT:

What that bastard did to you.

LEO:

Come on, Bob. Let’s all just give

this a little time.

Ma stands up.

MA:

Come on, Jack. Time for bed.

As Ma pulls Jack out of the room.

ROBERT:

(to Nancy)

I’m so sorry. I shouldn’t be here.

61 INT. MA’S OLD BEDROOM - LATE AT NIGHT 61

Jack lies awake beside his sleeping mom.

He hears footsteps. The door cracks open and a convoluted

shadow appears, rimmed in light. The door opens wider and the

shadow resolves into Robert, watching his daughter and

grandson sleep. Jack burrows into his pillow pretending to

sleep. The door closes and soon he sleeps.

62 INT. NANCY AND LEO’S HOUSE - LIVING ROOM - MORNING 62

Ma and Nancy sit with coffees. Jack has some cereal. The

house is very quiet. No one talks for a while. Eventually ...

JACK:

(quietly to Ma)

Where’s Grandpa.

Beat.

NANCY:

He had to go home for a while.

MA:

(holding Jack’s face

gently)

Hey Jack, you want play with your

new toys?

Jack shakes his head.

A few minutes later: Nancy is cleaning up in the kitchen as

Ma breastfeeds Jack. She looks out on the bare winter back

yard.

62A INT. NANCY’S HOUSE - LOUNGE AND FRONT HALL - AFTERNOON 62A

Through a chink in net curtains of a car pulling up outside

Nancy and Leo’s house. The Lawyer gets out. We see that the

press has thinned out substantially. There are a few curious

MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC with nothing better to do, a UNIFORMED

POLICE OFFICER and a POLICE CAR.

NANCY (O.C.)

Jack! Come away from there.

We are in the lounge. Jack turns away from the window as

Nancy goes to greet the Lawyer, keeping herself hidden as she

opens the door.

NANCY (CONT’D)

Come in.

LAWYER:

Thank you. Automatic door.

NANCY:

Yes.

LAWYER:

Let me take my shoes off here.

(CONTINUED)

62A CONTINUED:
62A

63 INT. DINING ROOM - LATER 63

The LAWYER and Nancy watch Ma filling out some forms. She is

subdued. Jack has some blank paper in front of him. He is

staring at a large open box of Crayola pencils; every shade

of every color. He carefully selects 5 pencils - the 5 colors

he’s used to from Room - and begins to draw.

Jack occasionally glances at Leo, drawn by his natural

warmth.

LAWYER:

The other thing we need to talk

about is coming up with some kind

of media strategy. I know you're

not thinking about that right now.

But there’s a lot to decide about

in that category.

NANCY:

I don’t think we’re ready for

talking yet. Not like that.

(CONTINUED)

63 CONTINUED:
63

LAWYER:

There are certain to be expenses

going forward and a prime time

interview, one prime time

interview, means a lot of money.

Donations are coming - and I’ll

need some account details, better

in yours than mine, right? - but it

wouldn’t amount to enough for, you

know, open ended support.

Beat.

LAWYER (CONT’D)

There’s huge interest.

Ma notices that Jack is using only the same small set of

colors for his drawing that he had in Room.

MA:

Jack, you have all those colors.

Why don’t you use them. You could

draw a picture of Jack the giant

slayer, with every color.

Jack keeps drawing.

63A INT. NANCY’S HOUSE - LIVING ROOM - NIGHT 63A

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