The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension Page #11

SCOOTER LINDLEY:

Dad! Dad! Buckaroo's in trouble!

CASPER LINDLEY:

Say what?!

INT. PASSENGER SECTION/BUS - NIGHT221

A weary, worried Rawhide comes back into the front of the bus and takes

a seat near Penny and Reno...

NEW JERSEY:

Trouble?

RAWHIDE:

Nah-Damn sophisticated equipment always breaking down.

Reno wondering if there's more to it than Rawhide's saying...Rawhide

losing himself in a copy of American Horseman.

Penny leaning forward, thinking, picking at a guitar left on the seat

in front of her, watching the mysterious Hong Kong Cavaliers.

222

Perfect Tommy arriving, whispering something in Rawhide's ear, Rawhide

nodding...

Penny looking over at Perfect Tommy across the aisle, Perfect Tommy

confiscating the guitar...his guitar.

PENNY PRIDDY:

What's his problem?

RENO:

Perfect Tommy's just threatened by smart women. Can you play that

thing?

PENNY PRIDDY:

Better than him.

EXT. CRASH SITE - NIGHT223

Buckaroo jockeying for an improved position, as the alien John Gomez

prepares to strike the pod-TWO MEN getting out of the sedan

now...ARACHTOIDS in baggy suits...

...THE CROWBAR HITTING THE POD for the first time!

224

The cop turning, shouting at John Gomez from his squad car:

HIGHWAY PATROLMAN

Whadda you think you're doing? Hey!

The cop in a jam, heading back toward the pod, as the two newly arrived

redheads follow him despite his instructions:

HIGHWAY PATROLMAN

I said back off! I mean it. Now get in your car and get the hell

outta here!

...the two goons halting...but as soon as the cop turns, they follow

him again...

EXT. FRONT GATES/BANZAI INSTITUTE - NIGHT225

A modest estate, several unique buildings on several acres of rolling

Midlothian grassland, home of Buckaroo Banzai and the Hong Kong

Cavaliers...that famous Double B logo festooning a large front gate...a

sign:
THE BANZAI INSTITUTE FOR BIOMEDICAL ENGINEERING AND STRATEGIC

INFORMATION.

226

...A NUMBER OF BUCKAROO'S DEVOTED FANS perpetually outside with

sleeping bags and cameras...a wave of excitement rippling through the

crowd as BUCKAROO'S DOUBLE BUS approaches and THREE BLUE SHIELDS on

guard begin opening the gate.

INT. FOYER/BUCKAROO'S HOUSE - NIGHT227

A combination Japanese ryokan-American ranch house, an elegant

reflection of Buckaroo's dual lineage...a teenage girl heading for the

door to answer an insistent buzzer...she MRS. JOHNSON...

228

...Penny and the Hong Kong Cavaliers standing outside...Mrs. Johnson

reacting as if she's seen a ghost...

MRS. JOHNSON

Peggy--!? Oh, wow...no...

RENO:

She's not Peggy, Mrs. Johnson--

MRS. JOHNSON

Not Peggy--! Of course not. How could she be, huh? Whew.

RAWHIDE:

Any word from Buckaroo?

MRS. JOHNSON

No...I thought he was with you guys...

The Cavaliers quickly dispersing...Penny left alone under Mrs.

Johnson's curious eyes...

INT. STUDIO-COMPUTER ROOM - NIGHT229

...the Cavaliers stepping into a home studio, a tangle of wires and

microphones, mixing consoles and data banks tended by a skeleton crew

of BLUE SHIELD TECHNICIANS...one a brainy, wiry kid in his late teens.

BRAINY KID:

Hi, fellas...gonna lay down some background vocals tonight?

RAWHIDE:

Wish life was so simple, Billy. Remember that outfit the Justice

Department checked into last year-Yoyodyne Propulsion Systems?

BRAINY KID (BILLY)

The big space and weapons high tech consortium way behind on their

delivery of the controversial new Truncheon Bomber?

PERFECT TOMMY:

You got her. Buckaroo's orders: access their data bank. Attack their

systems. Up to it?

BILLY:

I'm a little short-handed tonight. My phone phreaks went into town for

the big ice cream social...

NEW JERSEY:

So we'll help. Let's get crackin'!

BILLY:

Who're you?

EXT. CRASH SITE - NIGHT230

Buckaroo watches the alien John Gomez deliver ANOTHER BLOW to the black

space pod, as inside...

INT. BLACK THERMOPOD - NIGHT231

...sits a single BLACK ARACHTOID CREWMAN named JOHN GANT, stoically at

this communications console, trying to focus on a DISTORTED PICTURE

FROM DEEP SPACE even as his enemy pounds and cuts through the hull...

CLOSE ON CONSOLE232

...the picture of his video console coming into focus: a HIGHER-RANKING

BLACK ARACHTOID WING COMMANDER ON TV:

BLACK ARACHTOID COMMANDER

Destroy yourself, John Gant. Set detonator.

INT. FATHER SHIP - NIGHT233

...the BLACK ARACHTOID WING COMMANDER standing at his radio-video

console, receiving a picture of "John Gant"...

ON TV234

JOHN GANT:

Detonator set. My most profuse apologies to my homeland and loved

ones. John Valuk is dead. He fell on his head, but perhaps John

Parker will get through!

The screen going dark.

235

THE ARACHTOID WING COMMANDER exchanging words with his second-in-

command...

SECOND-IN-COMMAND

But what if John Parker too is dead? Then we must send another

thermopod at once to contact Buckaroo Banzai!

BLACK ARACHTOID COMMANDER

There's no time. We have our order from John Emdall.

INT. VAN - NIGHT236

The alien John O'Connor looking in on the crate...finding it

empty...lid off...

EXT. CRASH SITE - NIGHT237

Ordinary citizen John Gomez HITTING the little thermopod again, the cop

exasperated, pushed to the brink, surrounded...

HIGHWAY PATROLMAN

That's it, gentlemen, you're all under...

The cop reaches for his pistol when suddenly John Bigbooté whirls and

lunges out with HIS TELESCOPING ARM, chopping the cop's Adam's apple,

knocking him to the ground...

...the hunters stunned, one of them reaching for a shotgun when the two

newly-arrived Yoyodyne goons attack, easily knocking the hunters to the

ground, beating them!

238

Bucakroo starting forward, but A THREE-DIGIT HAND suddenly on his

shoulder! Spinning him around!

VOICE:

Easy, friend-

Buckaroo face-to-face with RED ARACHTOID John O'Connor, the latter

surprised to discover it's...

JOHN O'CONNOR

Buckaroo Banzai--!

Buckaroo taking advantage of this creature's momentary amazement to

kick O'Connor below the belt...dropping him to the turf...now spying

yet another set of headlights coming down the road...

JOHN O'CONNOR

(in pain)

It's Buckaroo Banzai! Get him! He let the professor outta the box!

239

The goons pursuing Buckaroo onto the road, the HEADLIGHTS OF A TRUCK

bearing down on them...Buckaroo waving back at the truck, his only

chance, when suddenly, instead of slowing, the truck speeds up, trying

to run him over...YOYODYNE!

...Buckaroo lunging to safety at the last minute, getting up and

running into a field...the Yoyodyne truck making a 180( turn and coming

after him, across the meadow.

240

...Buckaroo pursued by the truck and the goons when suddenly THE BLACK

THERMOPOD EXPLODES, Buckaroo and the goons flying to the ground,

Buckaroo quickly up and running, the truck gaining on

him...gaining...still gaining when out of nowhere, A ROPE LADDER falls

from the sky, entangling Buckaroo and pulling him up to a hovering

HELICOPER...

Rate this script:4.0 / 1 vote