The Hustler Page #9

BERT:

How much you think you're worth these days?

I'm puttin' up the money, I'm puttin' up the

time. For that I get seventy-five per cent

return on my money -- if you win.

EDDIE:

You think I can lose?

BERT:

I never saw you do anything else.

EDDIE:

You saw me beat Minnesota Fats for eighteen

thousand dollars.

BERT:

Look, you wanna hustle pool, don't you? This

game isn't like football. Nobody pays you for

yardage. When you hustle you keep score real

simple. The end of the game you count up your

money. That's how you find out who's best.

That's the only way.

EDDIE:

Why back me then? Why not back yourself? Go

find yourself a big fat poker game and get rich

You know all the angles.

BERT:

I'm already rich. But I like action. That's

one thing I think you're good for is action.

Besides, like I say ... you got talent.

EDDIE:

(pleased)

Yeah, you already told me that. You cut that

slice down to bite-size and maybe we can talk.

BERT:

No, we don't talk. I don't make bad bets.

Seventy-five, twenty-five. That's it.

EDDIE:

Kiss off.

He starts to go.

BERT:

Hey, wait.

(beat)

What are you gonna do about the money?

EDDIE:

There are places. I'll scuffle around.

BERT:

Word's out on you, Eddie. You walk in the

wrong kind of place and they'll eat you alive.

EDDIE:

Now, when did you adopt me?

BERT:

(with a friendly grin)

I don't know when it was.

Eddie exits.

CUT TO:

47 EXT. WATERFRONT - NIGHT

Sound of ship's horn. Eddie walks past the piers and warehouses toward

a small waterfront bar called Arthur's Pool Hall.

CUT TO:

48 INT. ARTHUR'S POOL HALL - NIGHT

The atmosphere at Arthur's is stifling, oppressive. A few lonely

drinkers, dock workers, sit stooped over their beer bottles at the bar.

In the back is a pool table. As Eddie enters, we see two burly men, cue

sticks in hand, watching as a pale, skinny young man lines up his shot.

EDDIE:

(to young man)

Hi.

YOUNG MAN:

Hi.

They exchange glances, sizing each other up. Then the young man puts in

his shot.

PLAYER:

(throwing money on the table)

You lucky punk. I quit ya.

YOUNG MAN:

(to Eddie)

You want in, friend?

EDDIE:

How much you playin' for?

YOUNG MAN:

A dollar on the five, two on the nine.

EDDIE:

Yeah, I'll play you a couple. Just for kicks.

YOUNG MAN:

Okay, friend.

Eddie goes over to the rack and takes a cue.

DISSOLVE TO:

49 INT. ARTHUR'S POOL HALL - TIME LAPSE

One of the other players is putting away his cue.

PLAYER:

That's it for me.

ANOTHER PLAYER:

Well, I guess that does it for me too.

YOUNG MAN:

(brashly, to Eddie)

You quittin' too?

EDDIE:

You're a pretty good player.

YOUNG MAN:

How much are you ahead?

EDDIE:

Couple of bucks.

YOUNG MAN:

I guess it's just you and me, huh?

EDDIE:

Yeah, I guess it is, boy. Just you and me.

YOUNG MAN:

You wanna raise the bet? Two on the five, five

on the nine?

EDDIE:

You know what, kid? I think maybe you're a

hustler.

YOUNG MAN:

Try me.

EDDIE:

Shoot.

YOUNG MAN:

Okay.

The young man makes his break shot, slamming the nine into the pocket.

He looks up at Eddie, grinning snidely. The other two men, the losers,

stand around, mutely following the play.

YOUNG MAN:

You sure you don't want to quit, friend?

EDDIE:

(suddenly irked)

Let's cut out the small stuff, huh? Hundred

dollar freeze-out. Ten games, ten bucks a

game, winner take all. And then we'll see who

quits.

YOUNG MAN:

Okay, friend. You're on.

EDDIE:

(pulls out a coin)

Call it.

YOUNG MAN:

Heads.

Eddie tosses the coin on the table.

YOUNG MAN:

You win.

Eddie collects his coin while the young man racks up the balls.

Preparing to break, Eddie chalks his cue.

YOUNG MAN:

You better not miss, friend.

EDDIE:

(savagely)

I don't rattle, kid. But just for that I'm

gonna beat you flat.

He rams the cue ball into the pack. The nine drops in. Everyone is

stunned, particularly the young man.

EDDIE:

That's one.

DISSOLVE TO:

50 INT. THE GAME AT ARTHUR'S - TIME LAPSE

Eddie has lost control of himself. He is shooting as he did at Ames,

rapping in his shots with perfect control. He is completely oblivious

to the glowering faces of the group of men who have gathered around the

table to watch.

EDDIE:

That's five.

Eddie makes a tough shot. The men exchange uneasy glances.

EDDIE:

That's six.

More tough shots: tricky combinations, etc.

CUT TO:

51 INT. THE GAME AT ARTHUR'S - TIME LAPSE

Eddie finishes up with yet another combination shot.

EDDIE:

That's ten. You punk, you two-bit punk. C'mon,

pay up. A hundred bucks.

The young man digs nervously into his jacket for the money. All eyes

are on Eddie. The young man sets down his cue.

EDDIE:

You quittin', friend?

YOUNG MAN:

Yeah, I'm quittin'.

Sensing what is about to happen, the young man pays up. He drops the

cash on the table and leaves quickly. Then one of the other men steps

forward, a thick-fleshed, obscene-looking man named Turk. His mouth

twists into a mock smile. As Eddie looks about him at the circle of

silent men, each one glaring at him, his fury gives way to fear.

TURK:

Why, you're a pool shark, boy. A real pool

shark.

EDDIE:

Well, so's he.

TURK:

But you're better than he was. Much better.

(points to bills on the table)

There's your money, boy.

Eddie wipes his mouth with his sleeve and nervously backs away.

TURK:

There's your money, boy.

Eddie tries to back off but there is nowhere to go, so he makes a

casual movement toward the table.

EDDIE:

Okay.

Suddenly, the men grab Eddie and pin his arms. One man grabs him around

the throat.

TURK:

(sardonically, to the men)

Wait a minute! Let's give this boy his money.

(to Eddie)

We always pay what we lose, boy.

Turk takes the bills from the table and stuffs them into Eddie's breast

pocket.

TURK:

(to Eddie)

We got no use for pool sharks around here.

They drag Eddie into the men's room and shove him up against the

ground-glass partition. We see his cheek pressed against the glass, and

the foggy silhouettes of the others behind him. Eddie, his mouth open,

screams horribly. There is a pause. He screams again. They let go of

his arms and he slumps to the floor. The bartender turns and goes back

to the bar in the front room. The ship's horn is heard again.

CUT TO:

52 INT. SARAH'S APARTMENT - NIGHT

Sarah sits alone in the darkened room, dressed in her robe and slip,

lost in a drunken half-sleep. There is a knock at the door.

SARAH:

Who is it?

EDDIE:

Me. It's Eddie.

She goes to the door and opens it. Her eyes are puffy, her face is

covered with perspiration. She opens the door, then looks up to see him

leaning against the wall, his arms tucked into his chest, with one hand

covering the other.

SARAH:

What happened?

EDDIE:

I got beat up. They ...

(beat)

They broke my thumbs.

Sarah is stunned and moves to him.

SARAH:

Oh, God!

She takes him in her arms. He starts to cry.

EDDIE:

Oh, they broke my thumbs. Broke my thumbs.

She holds him.

DISSOLVE TO:

53 INT. SARAH'S APARTMENT - NIGHT

Sarah watches as Eddie, both hands now encased in plaster casts, tries

to sleep. He tries to move his arms, as if trying to defend himself.

Sarah rises, joins him, and strokes his head.

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