The Lost Language of Cranes Page #3

---

If I don't really know you,

it's because you won't let me.

- You know it's not that simple.

- Well, then what?

- Hm?

- You say you're in love with me.

- But you don't know about being in love...

- No, stop.

...because this is nothing.

- Stop it.

You have no right to tell me

that I don't love you.

I have felt it.

I have felt it here.

Now you can tell me that I'm...

selfish.

You can tell me I'm childish.

You can tell me I'm self-involved.

But don't tell me

that what I feel isn't real.

OK?

I'm sorry.

I'm sorry. You're right.

Where are you going?

Home.

It's late. You really

want to go home now?

All alone in the cold?

I'm sorry.

I was angry.

What about tomorrow?

(Sighs)

Tomorrow is tomorrow.

Tonight I want you to stay with me.

I want to be with you tonight.

(Buzzer)

(Moaning)

(Sighs)

I'm gay.

I'm gay.

You're shocked.

This isn't something new.

Everyone at work knows,

all my friends know.

Everybody...

Everybody knows except for you.

And it's not just a question

of homosexuality,

it's a question of secrets.

I know that it must be, er...

a shock for you...

that so much of my life

I've had to keep so many secrets.

I know all children have secrets.

(Clears throat)

But usually those secrets don't make up

such a huge part of their lives.

No more secrets.

No more. So now you know.

Won't you say something?

I'm not sure I know what to say.

"I'm glad you told me"?

I'm not sure that I am glad.

You'd rather I'd have kept

a secret even longer?

Well, we all have secrets.

Does that mean they all have to be revealed?

Sometimes it's better to be honest.

(Rose) Better for whom?

Better for all of us.

I wish I could be so sure.

Well, I'll, erm...

You'll have to give us time.

Right, Owen?

Need time.

I just didn't think it was fair

for you not to know

such an important part of my life.

There are things I could tell you, Philip.

Things I have never told a living soul.

- Tell them.

- No.

- Why not? I'm prepared.

- Well, I'm not.

Keeping certain secrets secret...

is important to the general balance of life.

Oh. So you'd rather

that I marry a woman.

So that I can feel anxiety

every time I don't feel something sexual.

Maybe we can have sex now and then

if I think about a man while I'm doing it?

You think that's fair?

So I can wake up in 30 years and look back

and see that I've wasted my life?

It would be awful.

A tragedy.

Well, some people would consider

a homosexual life a tragedy.

I consider this to be a tragedy.

The tragedy is that you insist

on making it into a tragedy.

Er...

Were you going to say something, Dad?

Dad, you haven't said

anything at all about any of this.

Are you OK?

OK?

Yes. l-l-l-l think it's OK.

Erm...

I'm sorry, son. I'm sorry

I haven't said anything.

I should, er...

I should probably go.

I should get home.

- Are you healthy?

- As far as I know, yes.

I'm only asking. I read the papers.

I watch television.

- I know about AIDS.

- I'm fine. I'm safe.

I know what I'm doing.

Shall I call you tomorrow?

I'll call you tomorrow.

Bye, Dad.

I'll make some tea.

(Sobbing)

(Rose) Owen.

Owen! Owen!

Ohh.

Owen, I know it's hard.

But it'll be all right.

He's a good boy.

He'll look after himself.

Oh, it doesn't have to be

the end of the world.

It is the end of the world.

- (Sobbing)

- What?

What did you say?

I'll make the tea.

(Sobbing)

Owen.

Owen!

(Sobbing)

Owen.

Oh, please.

Please?

No!

(Woman) "A young child of about three

lived with his disturbed teenage mother

"in a rundown tenement block.

"Barely able to feed or care for him

"the mother frequently

left the child alone.

"Social workers were

eventually alerted.

"They found the child looking

remarkably well and cheerful

"considering how severely

he had been neglected."

"But his play was unlike anything

"they had ever seen before.

"He would raise his arms

then jerk them to a halt,

"stand up on his scrawny Legs,

then fall, bend, and rise.

"He made sudden strange noises,

"a kind of screeching in his throat.

"The social workers

looked out and observed

"a crane on a nearby building site

"and realized that the child

was copying it.

"As it lifted, he lifted.

"As it bent, he bent.

"The child had found

its own language.

"The language of the cranes."

(Phone ringing)

(Click)

(Elliot) Hi. We can't get

to the phone right now.

If you leave your name and number

Elliot or Jarene will call you

back as soon as they can.

(Clicking)

(Beep)

Elliot, it's Philip.

Please call me.

I keep leaving messages and...

(Sighs)

Elliot, listen, please, call me.

Philip.

Yes.

(Click)

(Beep)

(Machine) Thanks for calling.

Thursday, 4:
10pm.

Well, that's that.

Elliot's left London.

- Where did he go?

- Paris.

Of course. Where else?

Well, what I miss about him

is the sense of euphoria he gave me.

- Real euphoria.

- He's a wanker.

Men are wankers.

I should be more independent.

Or challenging. Maybe I should have...

played hard to get.

I should've been tough.

Right from the beginning he encouraged you

to be totally dependent on him.

He enjoyed that. Used it.

He's a wanker.

(Sighs)

(Ringing tone)

(Beep)

Philip? Philip?

This is your father.

(Machine) Hello. This is Philip.

I can't come

to the phone right now.

- Leave your name and number after the tone...

- Poofter!

- ...I'll call you back as soon as possible.

- Poofter!

- Thank you,

- Your father's a f***ing poofter.

(Beeping and clicking)

Poofter!

(Beep)

- Well, it's wonderful.

- Hm.

Large.

- Bright.

- Yes.

New.

- It's like a ballroom.

- Isn't it?

May I have this dance?

( Humming a waltz)

(Laughter)

I don't know, Rose.

What?

I don't know.

It's a lot of money

for only one bedroom.

Do you think we won't be able

to keep up the mortgage?

It would be tough.

Do you want to live

in this neighborhood?

- Oh, I want to stay where we are.

- We can't afford to. You know that.

- So, what are we going to do?

- I don't know, Rose.

That's all you ever say.

"I don't know, Rose. I don't know."

I'm scared.

Don't be.

We've still got time.

Something will turn up.

Owen, face the facts.

We're in a lot of trouble.

- I don't want to move out of London.

- Well, we won't have to.

We will, Owen. You said yourself we'd have to

move to the outskirts to manage a mortgage.

We're starting from scratch.

This is our first mortgage.

Don't.

Something will turn up.

We've got plenty of time.

(Chatter)

Thank you.

I'm glad you could

make it tonight, son.

Oh. Well, thanks

for asking me, Dad.

- How's Mum?

- Oh. You know your mother.

Creature of moods. (Laughs)

She'll be fine soon.

To be honest with you, Philip, ever since

your announcement to your mother and me,

there are certain things I've been...

I've been wanting to ask you.

I'm interested in

your experience of growing up.

I mean, I've never been good at...

expressing affection...

much less asking personal questions.

And, you know, you come home

Rate this script:0.0 / 0 votes