The Boxtrolls Page #11

Fish won’t come out of the box so Eggs is forced to lug him

like a sack of concrete to the wall beneath the heating duct.

Trout and Pickles help Snatcher up.

MR. TROUT (CONT’D)

Upsy daisy now, boss. Let's get you

a nice cuppa tea-

Snatcher SMACKS Trout away with his swollen hand - (YELP!)

MR. PICKLES

AAAH! Mister Snatcher!

-- and stares at Pickles. His eyes are swollen nearly shut

and blink spastically.

SNATCHER’S POV: Blurry and distorted at first, then, at each

blink, Pickles morphs into Lord Portley-Rind, white hat and

all.

MR. PICKLES/PORTLEY-RIND

Huh?

(uneasy)

... What is it, Mr. Snatcher?

SNATCHER:

You.

MR. PICKLES/LPR

Me?

SNATCHER:

GIVE ME THAT HAT!

He LUNGES AT PICKLES (AHHHH!) and chokes him with his giant

cheese hand!

SNATCHER (CONT’D)

I’ll make those brie stuffed pigs

bow down to me! I’m going to be

somebody!

56.

Pickles wrestles Snatcher’s swollen face into a headlock.

MR. PICKLES

AHH! I got him! Do it!

MR. TROUT

MR. GRISTLE NOW!

MR. PICKLES

NOW! NOW! NOW!!

Gristle runs up and hurls the jar of leeches onto Snatcher’s

face.

MR. GRISTLE

LEECHES!

SNATCHER:

AHHHHH! UGH. OOF. GAHHH!

Snatcher grunts and yells then everything goes silent, except

for the sucking sound of the leeches. Mr. Trout shrinks away

and Mr. Gristle grins, enjoying the spectacle.

ON EGGS:
Eggs is horrified by the sight of the leeches

sucking on Snatcher’s swollen face.

EGGS:

Eww!

(to Fish)

You have got to help me, Fish!

FISH:

(gurgles) Okay.

Fish sticks his right arm out of the box.

EGGS:

(groan) Uggggh.

Eggs grabs Fish’s arm and swings the whole box over his

shoulder so he is wearing Fish like a back pack. Then Eggs

grabs a pipe on the wall and climbs toward the duct.

They swell up larger and larger as Snatcher’s face shrinks

back down to normal. They drop off one at a time and squish

at Snatcher’s feet.

Snatcher flicks off the last few leeches and flips his hair.

His face is marred with red spots from the suckers but has

returned to its normal size.

57.

SNATCHER:

(groggy)

Oh, hello. Where were we?

MR. TROUT

We was about to... uhh...

MR. GRISTLE

(quietly, gestures with

the empty jar)

Leeches.

MR. TROUT

... Put that new boxtroll to work.

Ain’t that right, Mr. Pickles?

Mr. Pickles stumbles over, rubbing his sore neck.

MR. PICKLES

That is correct.

SNATCHER:

Ah yes... right. Open the workshop

Mr. Trout!

Trout runs to a lever and pulls it.

(1250 EMS) EGGS MEETS SNATCHER

INT SNATCHER’S FACTORY - DAY

The factory is filled with load-grinding sounds as a steam

wheel turns. Huge timbers in the wooden floor PULL OPEN,

REVEALING A DARK PIT BELOW in the FACTORY SUB-LEVEL.

Eggs and Fish are still a few feet short of the air duct.

Eggs heaves Fish halfway into the duct and has to stretch out

over empty space to push him in.

Snatcher and the Redhats reach Fish’s empty cage.

SNATCHER:

Huh? Where is the beast?

Eggs pushes Fish half into the duct while hanging from the

swinging cage. Fish is looking straight down, suddenly his

eyes go wide!

FISH:

Huh?

Eggs follows his gaze and looks down.

58.

EGGS:

(gasps) But.. you’re all alive!?

BIG REVEAL:
IN THE DARK PIT ARE DOZENS OF ENSLAVED BOXTROLLS

in chains! They surround a massive, unrecognizable machine.

They work on different sections drilling, welding, wrenching,

etc.

Oil Can looks up and spots Eggs and Fish.

OIL CAN:

Eggs?

BOXTROLL PRISONERS

Eggs! Eggs! EGGS!

Then amidst all the weird gurgling a HUMAN VOICE calls out.

PRISONER:

Huh?

EGGS:

Huh?

Eggs looks and sees a strange man HANGING UP SIDE DOWN

amongst the boxtrolls. His head is covered with a wild mop of

tangled hair and a long beard and mustache dangle from his

face.

Pickles looks up and spots Eggs straddling the cage and the

duct. He points up, the Redhats follow his gaze.

PICKLES:

There he is...

Snatcher stares at Eggs’ dirty, panicked face.

SNATCHER:

It can’t be. It’s not possible.

(angry )

It’s not right!

MR. PICKLES

That’s our boxtroll! Give ‘im back!

SNATCHER:

(shoves Pickles)

Don’t stand there gawking. Get him!

MR. GRISTLE

Chase time!

Gristle laughs with delight and bolts off, tossing his white

paper hat to the ground. Snatcher looks to Trout.

59.

SNATCHER:

Mr. Trout!

Mr. Trout pulls a lever and the cage Eggs is standing on

jerks up. Fish falls the rest of the way into the duct and

disappears.

FISH:

AHHHHHH!

The cage drops! Eggs leaps onto a rafter as the cage crashes

to the factory floor!

SNATCHER:

TEN YEARS and NOW you show up?!

Eggs looks down as the floor closes over the boxtroll

prisoners faces.

OIL CAN:

Eggggs!

EGGS:

What are you doing with them?

SNATCHER:

You’ll find out soon enough!

Pickles runs past fumbling with a bolas gun as Gristle leaps

onto the nearest hanging cage and points at Trout with his

cricket bat.

MR. GRISTLE

Up!

Trout pulls a lever and Gristle rides the cage up into the

rafters like a pirate.

MR. GRISTLE (CONT’D)

I’M FLYING ON A CAGE!

He leaps off the cage and grips his cricket bat with his

teeth. He swings through the rafters on ropes, all the while

laughing like a maniac. He lands in front of Eggs and swings

the bat aloft.

MR. GRISTLE (CONT’D)

HA! (swings) RAH!

Eggs shrieks and runs across the skinny girders. Gristle

follows on his heels.

SNATCHER:

SHOOT MR. PICKLES! Shoot!

60.

Pickles nervously aims his bolas gun at him.

MR. PICKLES

It’d be easier if he’d stop moving!

Gristle runs behind Eggs, swinging his bat at his head. Eggs

avoids being hit but loses his footing.

MR. PICKLES (CONT’D)

Stop moving!

Eggs falls, hits a beam hard, and grabs the bottom edge of a

girder. He hangs there, an easy shot.

MR. PICKLES (CONT’D)

Thank you.

Gristle raises his bat to strike. Pickles fumbles for the

trigger. There’s no way they can miss.

EGGS:

(defiant, scared)

Boxtrolls don’t hurt anyone! Let

them go!

SNATCHER:

Yes, well, I need them. They’re my

ticket to a white hat, Trubshaw

Baby!

WINNIE (O.S.)

TRUBSHAW BABY!?

Everyone freezes and whirls around. Pickle’s shoots

distractedly - POP! - but the net misses Eggs and loops

around a rafter.

MR. PICKLES

Oops.

Winnie stands in the open doorway of the factory.

WINNIE:

(to Eggs)

I knew there was something strange

about you!

Winnie notices Gristle wielding a cricket bat, Pickles a gun,

and Snatcher looking sheepish.

SNATCHER:

(nervously)

Miss Portley-Rind! What a surprise!

(MORE)

61.

SNATCHER (CONT'D)

Does your.. does your father know

you’re here?

WINNIE:

(dismissive)

No of course not!

(up to Eggs)

But wait til I tell him! The

Trubshaw Baby! Alive!

Winnie sees Trout towering over her.

MR. TROUT

(regretfully)

Sorry, miss.

Winnie looks at Snatcher in horror and confusion. Trout picks

her up in his big hands.

WINNIE:

What are you doing? Unhand me!

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