The Big Blue Page #17

JACQUES:

(seeing her wet

dress)

You jumped in?

JOHANA:

Only to help the medics, I assure

you.

JACQUES:

My wallet.

JOHANA wet, walks over to the wet clothes on the chair.

She pulls out JACQUES soaking wallet from one of the jacket

pockets.

JOHANA:

It's still here.

She tries to wipe it.

JACQUES:

No. I want to show you. Is it

ruined?

JOHANA:

Well, water isn't exactly the best

thing for pictures... Not even for

pictures of dolphins...

JACQUES:

Give it to me.

JOHANA hands him the photograph. He stares at it, looking

very sad. Worried JOHANA sits down next to him.

JACQUES:

(on the verge of

tears)

My real family...

(he looks at the

picture and cries)

What kind of man has such a family?

She takes the picture out of his hands.

He is so upset that JOHANA can hardly help from crying

with him. She sits next to him and strokes his hair.

JACQUES:

I'm sick of never feeling at home

anywhere.

JOHANA takes him in her arms. He breaks down.

EXT. HOTEL - DAWN

The early morning sun slowly lights up the water. A yacht

has left the hotel dock. It is moving out to sea off the

coast of TAORMINA.

EXT. YACHT - ON DECK

This is the Committee Boat for the diving competition.

On the boat, ROBERTO is worried. He checks his watch and

finally decides to wake up his brother. ENZO is asleep in

the fore peak, curled up on a coil of line, snoring away.

He wears his tuxedo jacket over a skimpy bathing suit.

ROBERTO:

Enzo, wake up!

ENZO:

(pulled from his

dream)

Eh? Si! Avanti!

He gets up on one arm.

ROBERTO:

The medics are looking all over

for you.

ENZO:

(irritated)

I'm meditating, can't you see?

Jacques does two hours of yoga

before going down. I can take a

five minute nap, can't I?

The boat stops. The anchor is thrown over board.

The sailors, technicians and officials are getting ready

for the competition. Today is ENZO'S turn to dive. A man

is hooking a plaque indicating the depth (324 feet) onto a

lead disk which he heaves into the water on a cable.

INT. YACHT - DOCTOR'S CABIN - DAY

A medic is bending over ENZO, taking his blood pressure.

ROBERTO pulls the tuxedo jacket down. The doctor puts a

blood pressure band around ENZO'S upper arm, pumps it up.

He listens with his stethoscope.

DOCTOR:

Mr. Molinari, I'm terribly sorry

but I cannot allow you to dive in

such an advanced state of

exhaustion.

ENZO jumps to his feet, grabs the doctor by his lapels,

lifts him in the air.

ENZO:

(outraged)

What do you know about the sea?

Huh? Nothing! So you just put

your tubes and tin cans away. The

sea is mine! I know when she is

ready for me and when she isn't.

And today, she is ready.

Understand?

DOCTOR:

You dive at your own risk. You're

been warned.

ENZO smiles and pats the doctor on the shoulder.

ENZO:

Brave.

EXT. YACHT - ON DIVING PLATFORM

It's a large float, rigged to the stern of the Committee

Boat. ROBERTO and an assistant help ENZO down the swim

ladder to the platform. He's wearing a wet suit and fins.

He flip-flops to the end of the platform.

ROBERTO hands him his mask. The goggles are filled with

polystyrene to eliminate as much air pressure as possible.

Only two pinholes to see through. The mask fits tightly

over his nose. When ENZO puts it on, he looks like an

astonished insect. ENZO breathes faster and faster.

ROBERTO holds the wire controlling the weighted diving

apparatus. ENZO crosses himself, takes a last long gulp

of air.

ROBERTO releases the weight. It sinks and drags ENZO down,

he quickly disappears into the dark water...

BLACK AND WHITE:

But this is JACQUES as he was a

child. He swims along the bottom,

finds and picks up a gold coin.

We can see its ancient markings, a

youth on a dolphin.

JACQUES looks up. In front of him is a dolphin, floating

vertically, still, apparently just watching. JACQUES isn't

scared anymore. But every time he swims toward the dolphin,

it moves further away. It finally disappears.

INT. HOTEL ROOM - JACQUES - DAY

He sits bolt upright in bed, awakened by his dream. He

looks around the room, trying to get his bearings.

JOHANA is asleep in a chair across the room. On the wall

behind her, her last nights dress is drying on a hanger.

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