The Elephant Man Page #4

BOY:

Excuse me, Mr. Treves, sir.

TREVES:

Yes?

BOY:

I found it.

TREVES:

(studying the Boy

carefully)

Did you see it?

The Boy shakes his head slowly, "No."

TREVES:

I'll be with you in a moment ...

The Boy closes the door.

FOX:

(quietly)

I say Freddie, what are you about?

TREVES:

Oh nothing... nothing of any great

importance.

AERIAL SHOT from third floor of the London Hospital looking

down on the hospital square.

Below, Treves is walking briskly across the square, through

a gate and into the slums beyond.

The aerial shot is actually FOX'S POV, and now we see Fox

filled with curiosity, watching the figure from a window.

Looking down from above and to the side of him, we follow

Treves walking through a cobblestone street still wet from a

recent rain, covered with horse manure and filth of all sorts.

The air is smoky from meat burning fires.

Rounding a corner, we see and approach the painted canvas

sign of "The Elephant Man" covering the front of a small,

dingy shop. The door of the shop is windowless and padlocked.

Treves walks into the picture, studies the whole scene for a

moment, goes to the shop door and finds that it is padlocked.

Treves tries to look under an edge of the canvas. To his

left he sees a SMALL BOY watching him intently.

TREVES:

Do you know where the proprietor is?

He holds a coin out. The Boy nods, snatches the coin and

then disappears around the corner.

Treves turns back to the canvas.

A PUB:

A noisy pub, long and narrow. Benches run the length of the

back wall, with small tables up against them. Men are

clustered around the bar, talking in groups.

We see the Boy standing at one of the tables talking to the

Owner, greedily consuming his lunch as he listens. The Boy

gestures outside.

OUTSIDE THE PUB:

The Boy comes out the door, quickly followed by the Owner

hurriedly putting on his coat, fumbling with a riding crop,

the last of his sandwich stuffed in his mouth.

AT THE CORNER:

The Boy and the Owner are carefully looking around the corner

at Treves still in front of the portrait.

OWNER:

He's not a peeler...

BOY:

No, I don't think so.

OWNER:

No... I don't think so.

They walk into the street.

IN FRONT OF THE SHOP

The Owner and the Boy walk up to Treves.

TREVES:

Are you the proprietor?

OWNER:

And who might you be, sir?

TREVES:

Just one of the curious. I'd like to

see it.

OWNER:

I don't think so. No sir, we're

closed.

Treves pulls a purse from his coat, extracts a coin and holds

it out.

TREVES:

I'd pay handsomely for a private

showing. Are you the proprietor?

OWNER:

Handsomely?... Who sent you?

TREVES:

Pardon me?

OWNER:

Never mind. I'm the owner.

He snatches the money.

INSIDE THE SHOP:

Total darkness. We hear the sound of the padlock being

removed. The door opens and light streams in. The canvas

covering the windows at the front of the shop obscures all

other light. The Owner enters, followed by Treves and the

Boy. From his expression, as well as Treves', we can tell

there must be an awful stench in the room. No one says a

word. The Boy closes the door, while the owner lights a small

gas light. We can now see the shop. It it empty, grey with

dust, cold and dank. Some old tins and a few shriveled

potatoes occupy a shelf. The far end of the shop is blocked

off by a curtain suspended from a cord by a few rings.

The Owner approaches it.

OWNER:

Here we are sir.

(ticking it off by

rote)

Life is full of surprises. Ladies

and gentlemen, consider the fate of

this creature's poor mother. In the

fourth month of her maternal

condition, she was struck down by a

wild elephant

(leering)

Struck down, if you take my meaning,

on an uncharted African isle. The

result is plain to see ladies and

gentlemen... THE TERRIBLE ELEPHANT

MAN!

The rings rattle back, and the curtain is omen. We see a

bent figure crouching on a stool, covered by a brown blanket.

In front of it on a tripod is a large brick, heated from

below by a bunsen burner. From the blanket protrudes a

perfectly normal left arm and hand warming itself over the

brick.

It does not move when the curtain is drawn.

Treves steps closer. The Owner, watching his every move,

turns-and smiles at him. He bangs his riding crop on the

wall and yells to the crouched figure, as if speaking to a

dog.

Rate this script:3.0 / 4 votes