The Ghost and the Darkness Page #9

CUT TO:

PATTERSON. CLOSE UP.

PATTERSON:

You genuinely enjoy trying to

terrify people, don't you? Well,

fine-

(lashing back)

-except there isn't a higher rated

engineer and we both know that. And

since time is so important to you,

how long do you think it would take

to find someone else qualified and

bring him here?

CUT TO:

BEAUMONT. Blazing.

BEAUMONT:

Let me explain about time- you've

been here three months and already

two months behind. And the Germans

and the French are gearing up. And

I don't care about you and I don't

care about the thirty dead- I care

about my knighthood and if this

railroad finishes on schedule, I'll

get my knighthood and I want it.

(glancing around as

Samuel appears, goes to

the workers)

Professional hunters may be the answer.

PATTERSON:

All they'll bring is more chaos and

we've plenty of that already- and if

they come in, word will get out- and

what happens to your knighthood then?

BEAUMONT:

I'm going to try and locate Redbeard-

I assume you've heard of him.

PATTERSON:

Every man who's ever fired a rifle has

heard of him- by the time you find him,

the lions will be dead.

BEAUMONT:

(long pause)

Very well, the job's still yours, I'll

go. But if I have to return, you're

finished. And I will then do everything

I can to destroy your reputation. Am I

not fair?

(The great smile flashes)

Told you you'd hate me.

(And he turns, walks off)

CUT TO:

SAMUEL. Moving up to Patterson. Samuel has a bag.

PATTERSON:

(staring after Beaumont)

I do hate him.

(takes the bag from

Samuel, pulls out flares)

I want you to distribute one bag of

flares to every tent area-

(takes out a flare)

-tell the men to light them if

there's trouble-

(beat)

-make it two bags.

(HOLD briefly, then-)

CUT TO:

PATTERSON. ALONE. THAT NIGHT. IN HIS CONTRAPTION.

A lamp burns alongside him. Across the bars, the door of the

railroad car is open. Flickering shadows. Above the doorway is a

thick wooden slab the size of the door. n the ground, barely

visible, the trip wire.

CUT TO:

THE DOORWAY. Outside, something is moving.

CUT TO:

PATTERSON, rifle ready, holding his breath.

CUT TO:

THE DOORWAY. SIlence. Nothing moves now.

CUT TO:

PATTERSON. He rubs his eyes with his hands...

CUT TO:

FLICKERING SHADOWS on the wall. It's later that night.

CUT TO:

PATTERSON. The man is bleary with fatigue. He sits in a corner of

the car, writing a letter.

PATTERSON'S VOICE (over)

"Dearest...

...peace and tranquility continue to

abound here- the workers report each

day with a smile- except for your

absence, this whole adventunre is

providing me nothing but pleasure..."

CUT TO:

THE FLICKERING WALLS OF THE RAILWAY CAR. It's later still.

Patterson, finished writing, stares out at the night.

CUT TO:

A FLARE, rising brightly toward the sky.

CUT TO:

PATTERSON, seeing the flare. The man is miserable.

CUT TO:

A TREE BRANCH. MANY FLOWERS AS WELL AS THE CLAW THORNS.

PATTERSON'S VOICE (over)

Fire.

The branch is destroyed, the flowers blown away.

CUT TO:

PATTERSON AND THREE INDIAN COOLIES. NOT FAR FROM HIS CONTRAPTION.

THE COOLIES hold rifles. They look like brothers, which they are.

They also look tough. And they are that, too. THREE

STREETFIGHTERS.

PATTERSON:

(impressed)

Very good indeed.

MIDDLE COOLIE:

(he wears glasses)

We have hunted since childhood.

PATTERSON:

All right- you'll spend your nights

inside.

(He indicates the railroad

car. The Coolies nod)

You'll have plenty of ammunition.

You're totally protected, you have

really nothing to fear.

MIDDLE COOLIE:

That is correct.

(beat)

Nothing.

Patterson looks at the three men. Obviously, he could not have

chosen better. From them-

CUT TO:

THE BRIDGE. DAY.

A lot of men working under Patterson. Progress is slow.

CUT TO:

THE BRIDGE. NIGHT.

Some men sit on the part that's been built. Spending the night

there for protection. Now, they all turn and we

CUT TO:

ANOTHER FLARE going off in another part of camp.

CUT TO:

PATTERSON, in a tree alone, in despair.

CUT TO:

THE THREE COOLIES IN THE RAILROAD CAR.

Tough as ever. Ready for anything. But nothing is happening.

Silence.

CUT TO:

THE BRIDGE AGAIN AS NIGHT FALLS - MORE CROWDED THAN BEFORE.

STILL MORE MEN are moving into the river. They wade til the water

is up to their necks. Then they reach out, hold hands, start to

sing.

CUT TO:

PATTERSON moving high into a tree. He listens to the sound.

Lovely.

CUT TO:

MOONLIGHT ON THE WATER. The men stand as before, singing softly.

The river here is calm, no current to speak of. The men are safe-

-or rather they should be.

CUT TO:

THE DARKNESS swimming softly, his great jaws silently encircling

the neck of the last man in line, pulling him silently away and as

the others start to scream-

CUT TO:

PATTERSON, watching another flare rise, helplessly listening.

CUT TO:

A CATTLE PEN. THE CATTLE ARE NERVOUS-

-one of them kicks wildly at the wind.

They should be nervous-

-The Ghost walks among them, chooses which one to kill, leaps on

it, brings it to earth as the dust rises.

CUT TO:

ANOTHER FLARE IN THE NIGHT.

CUT TO:

THE HOSPITAL. DAY. PACKED.

HAWTHORNE seems overwhelmed.

CUT TO:

SOMETHING.

And for a moment we don't know what it is. There is a faint light

and now we see what it is we're looking at: a wire.

HOLD ON THE WIRE.

And now a paw walks across it-

-and the instant that happens-

CUT TO:

THE THREE COOLIES, the brothers, in the contraption, two of them

asleep, a flickering lamp the only illumination in the railroad

car and

CUT TO:

THE DOOR OF THE RAILROAD CAR slamming loudly down and

PULL BACK TO REVEAL

THE DARKNESS, standing alone in one half of the railroad car- it's

incredible, just incredible but Patterson's idea actually worked

and

KEEP PULLING BACK TO REVEAL

The entire of the car- the thick bars separating the two halves.

In one half, the huge lion. In the other, the three armed, tough

coolies.

For a moment, it could be a frozen tableau- both sides are too

startled and surprised to do anything but stare-

-and then all hell just explodes as we

CUT TO:

THE DARKNESS, and this incredible roar comes from his throat, the

kind of roar that can be heard five miles away in the night but

this one in the enclosed room sounds even louder and more

terrifying and

CUT TO:

THE DARKNESS, throwing his huge body at the bars and

CUT TO:

THE BARS and both his front claws are slashing through and

CUT TO:

THE THREE TOUGH COOLIES and they retreat against the rear wall of

the car.

CUT TO:

THE DARKNESS, rage building, throwing its body at the bars again

and

CUT TO:

THE COOLIES, pressed in fear against the far wall, unable to do

anything but stare and

CUT TO:

THE CLAWS, ripping at the air and

CUT TO:

THE DARKNESS, leaping forward, smashing into the bars and

CUT TO:

THE CEILING WHERE THE BARS are connected and the sheer power of

his leap has made them jiggle just the least bit and

CUT TO:

THE COOLIES, staring up at the ceiling and

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