The Italian Job Page #9

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED:

She's hoping to get out as quickly as she can.

STELLA:

I don't think so. Sign here, please.

She hands him the paperwork and a pen. He signs it.

STELLA (CONT'D)

Date.

STEVE:

You read my mind.

STELLA:

Oh, no. I meant that I need you to put

the date by your signature. It's the

26th.

STEVE:

I know what you meant.

(he smiles)

This might seem a little sudden, but...

would you like to have dinner with me?

STELLA:

I don't think that'd be a very good idea.

STEVE:

Why? Is there some kind of cable-rule

against dating customers?

STELLA:

No, it's my rule. I don't accept dates

from men I've just met. I've only known-

you five minutes.

STEVE:

Then I guess I'll have to sabotage my

cable over and over again until you get

to know me better.

He's being charming, and she has to act like he is being

charming, but she really wants to throw-up.

STEVE (CONT'D)

Look, I'm just talking about dinner.

Friday night. It's no big deal. If you

don't like me, you never have to see me

again. You know I'm not going to stop

until you say yes.

CUT TO:

INT. CABLE TRUCK (MOVING) -DAY

Stella drives in heavy traffic down Sunset. Charlie and Lyle

are in the back.

CHARLIE:

I know it was tough in there.

STELLA:

He touched my hand. And he came-on to

me. That slimy, disgusting man came onto

me and I had to pretend that I liked it.

Stella keeps her eyes forward, on the road, so Charlie and

Lyle can't see her face. But Charlie catches her reflection

in the rearview mirror and watches a tear glide down her

cheek. She wipes it away.

STELLA (CONT'D)

You do know what this means . . . I've

created our window of opportunity.

CHARLIE:

I know. When Steve leaves Friday night,

we go in. By the time he realizes you've

stood him up, we'll be long gone with the

gold.

CUT TO:

EXT. HOUSING PROJECTS -NIGHT

A different world. A different vibe. That feeling in the

gut:
you don't belong here.

INT. RENTAL CAR (MOVING)

Handsome Rob drives, Half-Ear in the passenger seat.

HALF-EAR

Skinny Pete.

HANDSOME ROB:

The guy makes Jabba the Hut look like a

spokesman for the Subway Sandwiches'

diet.

They pull over in front of the apartment building that Pete

sent them to.

HALF-EAR

What do you think?

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED:

HANDSOME ROB:

I'm trying not to.

EXT. APARTMENT BUILDING -NIGHT

Half-Ear hits the buzzer for the apartment number on the

paper from the fat man. The door to the building buzzes in

response and they go inside.

INT. APARTMENT BUILDING -NIGHT

Climbing stairs. From behind closed doors: TVs, crying

babies, violent yelling. They start down a hallway. Ahead

of them a door opens and a suitcase is put in front of the

doorway. The door closes. They don't even get a glance at

whomever is inside.

They go to the suitcase. Half-Ear clicks open the lock for

just a peek. He sees the goods.

Handsome Rob starts to slide an envelope of cash under the

door frame. Its sucked out of his hand by someone on the

other side of the door and disappears.

EXT. APARTMENT BUILDING -NIGHT

Half-Ear carefully deposits the suitcase into the trunk of

the rental car. Handsome Rob closes the trunk.

HALF-EAR

Drive slow. We crash and we're a crater.

They get into the car.

INT. RENTAL CAR

Handsome Rob keys the ignition.

The beam of his headlights illuminate TWO HOMEBOYS. TWO MORE

step out of the shadows, one right up to the passenger's door

window. That one taps a 9 MM against the glass.

Half-Ear lowers the window. The homeboy pats one hand

against the faux-leather inside of the door, his other hand

clutches the weapon.

HOMEBOY:

What'd you put in the trunk?

HALF-EAR

Suitcase.

The homeboy, bugging on crank, is not one to be f***ed with.

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED:

HOMEBOY:

Just gimme the keys before I pop a cap in

your head.

Handsome Rob takes the trunk key off the chain and passes it

over to Half-Ear...who nervously drops it onto the carpeted

floor.

HOMEBOY (CONT'D)

Hurry up!

Half-Ear reaches down for the key...but in the flash of an

eye...moving so fast it almost doesn't register...we see him

yank his switchblade from his boot, unleash its blade, and

stab it down into the homeboy's hand. The knife goes through

his hand and lodges into the faux-leather interior of the

door.

The homeboy suffers as Half-Ear whacks the gun out of his

other hand — while Handsome Rob keys the ignition and guns

it.

The other homeboys are already POPPING OFF SHOTS at the car

with semi-automatic handguns. Half-Ear hits the deck. Glass

shatters.

INT. TRUNK OF THE CAR

Bullets slam into the trunk, illuminating the darkness with

streaks of light from the bullet holes. They barely miss the

suitcase filled with explosives.

EXT. RENTAL CAR (MOVING)

The homeboy is still attached to the car door by the knife.

His legs scurry to keep up with the moving vehicle but it's

going too fast so pretty soon he's being dragged. Bullets

whiz by him. He cries out in agony until Half-Ear has the

time to yank out the knife and the homeboy rolls away on the

pavement.

The car makes a sharp right at the next block and pulls .over.

The U-Haul is waiting for them.

They get out of the rental car and open its trunk. Half-Ear

sees the bullet holes that surround the suitcase. An inch

closer and they would've been a crater.

HALF-EAR

Christ.

INT. U-HAUL -NIGHT

They get in with the suitcase. Charlie is behind the wheel,

he's been waiting for them. He hits the gas. They take off,

leaving the shot-up rental car behind.

CHARLIE:

Looks like that went without a hitch.

CUT TO:

INT. CHARLIE'S HOTEL ROOM -DAY

An edited loop of the exterior and interior of Steve's house

plays on Lyle's laptop. The crew is huddled around.

CHARLIE:

Lyle, what's the distance from the front

door to the vault?

Lyle doesn't answer.

CHARLIE (CONT'D)

Lyle?

Handsome Rob leans over to Charlie.

HANDSOME ROB:

He only answers to The Napster now.

CHARLIE:

I'm not calling you The Napster.

LYLE:

You call him Half-Ear.

HALF-EAR

That wasn't my idea.

LYLE:

And him, Handsome Rob.

CHARLIE:

That's only cause he is Handsome Rob.

LYLE:

And I'm The Napster.

CHARLIE:

How far?

(sighs, gives in)

The Napster.

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED:

LYLE:

Five hundred yards.

CHARLIE:

So here's the riddle. How do we get over

a ton of gold from the vault to the

getaway car?

STELLA:

How wide is the hallway? .

The video that Stella got of the hallway plays on the laptop.

Lyle calculates:

LYLE:

Only six feet.

OUR VIEW PUSHES IN FAST on Stella.

QUICK CUT TO:

MINI COOPER (MOVING) -DAY

She's driving. Pure concentration. Then:

Tires spinning over a marble floor. Then:

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