Sounder
- G
- Year:
- 1972
- 105 min
- 501 Views
FADE IN:
Before titles.
EXT. HUNTING WOODS - LANDSDOWN COUNTY - NIGHT
It is a clear but cold Autumn night at some time in the nineteen thirties. The
Landsdown Woods are an assortment of various elements of nature: quiet water
streams, rushing rivers, heavy brushland, small trees, and the more dominant,
great tall pines. NATHAN LEE MORGAN, a Black man in his late thirties or
early forties, treks deep into the woods with his eleven year old son, DAVID
LEE, and his hound dog, SOUNDER. NATHAN LEE is a well built, strong manner of
a man with a deliberate and quiet manner - DAVID LEE, like his father is tall
and strong with big, bright active eyes. SOUNDER, their hound dog, is a
mixture of red-bone hound and bulldog, with great square jaws.
TITLES BEGIN:
NATHAN LEE carries an old rifle, and a burlap sack thrown across his shoulder
-- DAVID LEE walks with a lantern as SOUNDER tracks ahead of them. They keep
moving until they come upon a quiet river stream --
They walk along the edges of the river, with deliberation. It is obvious that
they have walked this route many times. They reach a cut-off point and circle
back into the woods, and pick up a pathway --
EXT. PATHWAY - NIGHT
They pick up speed in close approach to a weeded area and stop. DAVID looks
about in disappointment. SOUNDER scratches the earth -- NATHAN looks out into
the darkness with a nagging expression on his face --
TITLES INTERRUPTED
DAVID LEE:
There ain't no possums in this woods tonight,
Daddy.
NATHAN LEE:
Looks that way, son. Guess the cold done drove
most of 'em down to the big water country --
but if there's one left out here -- we gotta
find him.
DAVID LEE:
It's cold, Daddy!
NATHAN LEE:
Here, put my jacket over you.
NATHAN takes his jacket off and drapes it over the boy's frame as SOUNDER
begins to scratch and whine with intensity. He moves to stand over the dog.
NATHAN LEE:
You all right, boy?
Suddenly SOUNDER's voice lets out and he breaks away in a burst of speed.
NATHAN and DAVID react quickly and take up the chase behind him.
TITLES BEGIN AGAIN
As SOUNDER makes his way through the woods -- NATHAN and DAVID rush behind
him, following the great unique sound of the dog's voice. It is a sound that
bounces -- soulful, louder and clearer than any purebred redbone. It is
spaced with precision, bouncing from slope to slope like a rubber ball,
filling up the night with music as though the branches of all the trees were
being pulled across silver strings.
EXT. THE BASE OF THE TREE WHERE THE POSSUM HAS TAKEN REFUGE - NIGHT
SOUNDER arrives and makes a leap to climb the tree as NATHAN and DAVID rush
on to the scene. NATHAN looks up and points to the spot where the possum is.
He puts his rifle down near him, and DAVID assists him in the shaking of the
tree as SOUNDER makes his leaps upward to the rhythm of the sound coming from
his voice. The possum gives way to the force and falls to the ground. SOUNDER
charges for the animal -- NATHAN quickly picks up his rifle and aims for the
animal. He fires into blank darkness and misses. The possum recovers from the
fall and scampers into thick brushland, with SOUNDER in close pursuit.
EXT. THE AREA OF THE THICK BRUSHLAND - NIGHT
SOUNDER cannot overcome the briar thickness of the brushland -- but the
possum with his smaller size manages to elude the dog.
EXT. THE EDGES OF THE BRUSHLAND AREA - NIGHT
SOUNDER comes out of the brush area, whining in frustration as NATHAN and
DAVID approach him. NATHAN immediately realizes that the possum has gotten
away.
END OF TITLES:
NATHAN LEE:
(slams his rifle to the ground)
Dammit! And I remember the time when a bull
couldn't a stopped him from gettin' that
possum!
DAVID LEE kneels down and caresses SOUNDER's frame. NATHAN realizes that
DAVID is disturbed over his harshness.
NATHAN LEE:
Come here, son--
DAVID LEE goes to his father, who kneels to him, and puts both of his huge
hands on the boy's shoulders.
NATHAN LEE:
It's all right. He did his job -- I just got
foolish for a minute.
He gives the boy a quick embrace and rises to his feet --
NATHAN LEE:
If anybody's to blame, it's me -- I oughta
nailed him when I took that shot.
DAVID LEE:
It was too dark, Daddy.
NATHAN LEE:
Yeah. We better git back to house now.
NATHAN puts his hand on SOUNDER's neck, gives him an affectionate rub. They
gather their equipment and head for home. They move out of the brush area on
to a pathway.
This area of the road is about ten hundred feet from the front yard of the
cabin. The yard is wide, and stretches out to the very edges of the road
which comes to a horseshoe deadend about two hundred feet at the far end of
their cabin.
NATHAN LEE:
In all the years me and Sounder been tracking
down possums and coons in these woods -- he
ain't tore one of 'em up yet... He always
brought 'em back whole and healthy... And
that's the difference between a hound dog
that's dirty and mean, to one that's great
like ol' Sounder here.
EXT. THE CABIN'S FRONT YARD - NIGHT
They move through the yard, up the steps, on to the porch, and open the door
to the house.
INT. THE KITCHEN-SITTING ROOM - NIGHT
NATHAN, DAVID, and SOUNDER step into the cabin. It is an old house but it is
the home of the Morgan family so it is kept neat and clean at all times. To
one side of the area is a kitchen table, a wood stove, and an old beat-up
cabinet. To the other side are two old rockers, an old dresser, and one or
two pieces of other old living room furniture -- there are three portals in
this area:
the backdoor in the kitchen section which leads to the backyard,and two in the sitting room which leads to the childrens' and NATHAN and
REBECCA's rooms.
REBECCA MORGAN, an attractive brown-skin woman in her thirties, sits in a
rocker by the stove alone, picking kernels out of walnut shells with a bent
hairpin. She looks up to NATHAN as he stands just inside the door, and looks
down at her.
NATHAN LEE:
We cornered one, but he got away.
He does not wait for a response from her -- he, DAVID and SOUNDER keep moving
across the floor, and on out the back door. REBECCA's eyes slowly trail their
backs out the door. Her eyes just hang there after they have moved out of
sight.
The shed is medium in size and old like the house. There is a long wide table
running along side the right wall. There are hanging nails on all of the
walls and alongside the table. The various pieces of archaic farm equipment
are all neatly put in organized places. NATHAN, DAVID and SOUNDER enter the
shed. NATHAN hangs the burlap sack on one of the wall nails, and places the
rifle down on the table -- DAVID does likewise with the lantern.
NATHAN LEE:
Bet you're a tired little fellow, David Lee.
NATHAN takes the lantern apart and begins to clean it -- and DAVID LEE picks
up a small can of oil and puts it on top of the table.
DAVID LEE:
Yes, sir...
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"Sounder" Scripts.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 5 Nov. 2024. <https://www.scripts.com/script/sounder_936>.
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