Titanic Page #26

ANDREWS:

Five compartments. She can stay afloat with the first four compartments

breached. But not five. Not five. As she goes down by the head the water

will spill over the tops of the bulkheads... at E Deck... from one to the

next... back and back. There's no stopping it.

SMITH:

The pumps--

ANDREWS:

The pumps buy you time... but minutes only. From this moment, no matter

what we do, Titanic will founder.

ISMAY:

But this ship can't sink!

ANDREWS:

She is made of iron, sir. I assure you, she can. And she will. It is a

mathematical certainty.

Smith looks like he has been gutpunched.

SMITH:

How much time?

ANDREWS:

An hour, two at most.

Ismay reels as his dream turns into his worst nightmare.

SMITH:

And how many aboard, Mr. Murdoch?

MURDOCH:

Two thousand two hundred souls aboard, sir.

A long beat. Smith turns to his employer.

SMITH:

I believe you may get your headlines, Mr. Ismay.

CUT TO:

164 EXT. BOAT DECK

Andrews is striding along the boat deck, as seamen and officers scurry to

uncover the boats. Steam is venting from pipes on the funnes overhead, and

the din is horrendous. Speech is difficult adding to the crew's level of

disorganization. Andrews sees some men fumbling with the mechanism of one

of the Wellin davits and yells to them over the roar of steam.

ANDREWS:

Turn to the right! Pull the falls taut before you unchock. Have you never

had a boat drill?

SEAMAN:

No sir! Not with these new davits, sir.

He looks around, disguisted as the crew fumble with the davits, and the

tackle for the "falls"... the ropes which are used to lower the boats. A

few passengers are coming out on deck, hesitantly in the noise and bitter

cold.

CUT TO:

165 INT. ROSE AND CAL'S SUITE

From inside the sitting room they can hear knocking and voices in the

corridor.

RUTH:

I had better go dress.

Ruth exits and Hockley crosses to Rose. He regards her coldly for a moment,

then SLAPS her across the face.

CAL:

It is a little slut, isn't it?

To Rose the blow is inconsequential compared to the blow her heart has been

given. Cal grabs her shoulders roughly.

CAL:

Look at me, you little--

There is a loud knock on the door and an urgent voice. The door opens and

their steward puts his head in.

STEWARD BARNES:

Sir, I've been told to ask you to please put on your lifebelt, and come up

to the boat deck.

CAL:

Get out. We're busy.

The steward persists, coming in to get the lifebelts down from the top of a

dresser.

STEWARD:

I'm sorry about the inconvenience, Mr. Hockley, but it's Captain's orders.

Please dress warmly, it's quite cold tonight.

(he hands a lifebelt to Rose)

Not to worry, miss, I'm sure it's just a precaution.

CAL:

This is ridiculous.

In the corridor outside the stewards are being so polite and obsequious

they are conveying no sense of danger whatsoever. However, it's another

story in...

CUT TO:

166 INT. STEERAGE BERTHING AFT

BLACKNESS. Then BANG! The door is thrown open and the lights snapped on by

a steward. The Cartmell family rouses from a sound sleep.

STEWARD #2

Everybody up. Let's go. Put your lifebelts on.

IN THE CORRIDOR outside, another steward is going from door to door along

the hall, pouncing and yelling.

STEWARD #2

Lifebelts on. Lifebelts on. Everybody up, come on. Lifebelts on...

People come out of the doors behind the steward, perplexed. In the

foreground a SYRIAN WOMAN asks her husband what was said. He shrugs.

CUT TO:

167 INT. WIRELESS ROOM

ON PHILLIPS, looking shocked.

PHILLIPS:

CQD, sir?

SMITH:

That's right. The distress call. CQD. Tell whoever responds that we are

going down by the head and need immediate assistance.

Smith hurries out.

PHILLIPS:

Blimey.

BRIDE:

Maybe you ought to try that new distress call... S.O.S.

(grinning)

It may be our only chance to use it.

Phillips laughs in spite of himself and starts sending history's first

S.O.S. Dit dit dit, da da da, dit dit dit... over and over.

CUT TO:

168 EXT. BOAT DECK

Thomas Andrews looks around in amazement. The deck is empty except for the

crew fumbling with the davits. He yells over the roar of the steam to First

Officer Murdoch.

ANDREWS:

Where are all the passengers?

MURDOCH:

They've all gone back inside. Too damn cold and noisy for them.

Andrews feels like he is in a bad dream. He looks at his pocketwatch and

heads for the foyer entrance.

CUT TO:

169 INT. A-DECK FOYER

A large number of First Class passengers have gathered near the staircase.

They are getting indignant about the confusion. Molly Brown snags a passing

YOUNG STEWARD.

MOLLY:

What's doing, sonny? You've got us all trussed up and now we're cooling our

heels.

The young steward backs away, actually stumbling on the stairs.

YOUNG STEWARD:

Sorry, mum. Let me go and find out.

The jumpy piano rhythm of "Alexander's Ragtime Band" comes out of the first

class lounge a few yards away. Band leader WALLACE HARTLEY has assembled

some of his men on Captain's orders, to allay panic.

Hockley's entourage comes up to the A-deck foyer. Cal is carrying the

lifebelts, almost as an afterthought. Rose is like a sleepwalker.

CAL:

It's just the God damned English doing everything by the book.

RUTH:

There's no need for language, Mr. Hockley.

(to Trudy)

Go back and turn the heater on in my room, so it won't be too cold when we

get back.

Thomas Andrews enters, looking around the magnificent room, which he knows

is doomed. Rose, standing nearby, sees his heartbroken expression. She

walks over to him and Cal goes after her.

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