Up in the Air Page #4

21.

RYAN:

I think that’s the lady like thing

to do.

INT. HOTEL CORRIDOR - NIGHT

Ryan drops Alex off at her door. She flips the “do not

disturb” on her door handle and kisses Ryan good night.

The door closes. Ryan smiles to himself.

EXT. HOUSTON HILTON - NEXT MORNING

Sprinklers doing their job. One’s broken.

EXT. HOUSTON HILTON - MORNING

Looking through the first floor window, we see Ryan doing

laps in the pool.

INT. LOBBY, HOUSTON HILTON - MORNING

Ryan gets a shoe shine.

INT. LOBBY, HOUSTON HILTON - DAY

The CLERK swipes Ryan card.

EXT. CAR DROP OFF - MAESTRO RENT-A-CAR - DAY

A CAR RETURN CLERK slides Ryan’s card through a device.

INT. CHECK IN DESK, BUSH INTERCONTINENTAL AIRPORT - DAY

Ryan SWIPES his FREQUENT FLIER CARD through the automated

machine.

A FEMALE DESK ASSISTANT notices the number, looks up at Ryan,

and has a tiny orgasm right there.

INT. BOEING 757 - DAY

Ryan looks out the OVAL WINDOW to the landscape of Omaha.

22.

RYAN (V.O.)

Last year, I spent three hundred

twenty two days on the road.

INT. KISS-N-FLY, EPPLEY AIRFIELD - DAY

Ryan wheels passed a couple that leaps into each other’s arms.

RYAN (V.O.)

Which means that I had to spend

forty three miserable days at home.

EXT. RYAN’S APARTMENT BUILDING, OMAHA - DAY

Ryan steps up to an upscale building with little character,

searching for his keys at the bottom of his bag. Finally

finds them and opens the front door.

INT. ELEVATOR, RYAN’S APARTMENT BUILDING - DAY

Ryan presses his floor, when a NOSEY NEIGHBOR slides in.

NOSEY NEIGHBOR:

Ryan?

RYAN:

(doesn’t know his name)

Hi...

NOSEY NEIGHBOR:

Feels like it’s been months, busy man.

We missed you at our Summer party.

RYAN:

Yeah, sorry I couldn’t be there.

NOSEY NEIGHBOR:

We’ve been trying to get a vote on

the new landscaping. Can I e-mail you

the plans...? We’d love to get a

final tally.

RYAN:

It’s fine. Really. I’ll go with the

majority.

NOSEY NEIGHBOR:

Sometimes I forget that you even

live here. You could probably save

money and move into a hotel.

23.

RYAN:

(dead serious)

I looked into it, but the IRS

requires a permanent address for

employment. Otherwise, they

classify you as a vagrant.

Ding! -Ryan gets off at his floor.

NOSEY NEIGHBOR:

Oh.

INT. RYAN’S APARTMENT, OMAHA - DAY

Ryan walks in and sets his bag down. Reveal - the place is

empty... Like empty, empty.

Ryan opens the fridge - Chinese take out. Pizza box. Bottle

of Vodka. Takes a whiff of something - not good.

WOMAN’S VOICE

Hey neighbor.

Ryan turns to find Dianne, a pretty woman just shy of forty.

RYAN:

Hey yourself.

They hug - It’s just intimate enough to know they’ve violated

the rules of sleeping with your neighbors.

DIANNE:

(hands over a package)

I signed for this while you were gone.

RYAN:

Thanks. Hope it wasn’t a bother.

Ryan opens it and finds the CUT-OUT of his sister Julie and

her fiance Jim. It’s an eighteen inch card stock photo of Jim

hugging Julie from behind.

DIANNE:

(re:
photo)

They seem happy.

RYAN:

It’s my sister. She’s getting

married. Haven’t met the guy yet.

DIANNE:

Lots of luck.

24.

RYAN:

I know, right?

They share a smile. Then, Dianne goes to leave.

DIANNE:

It’s good to see you. Feels like a

while this time.

RYAN:

Hey, you want to come over tonight?

Dianne gets a little uncomfortable.

DIANNE:

Actually, I kind of started seeing

somebody.

RYAN:

Oh, that’s... that’s great.

DIANNE:

Yeah, we’re having drinks tonight

if you want to come over.

RYAN:

That’s okay... I’ think I’ll settle in.

Dianne gives a smile/nod and exits. Ryan take another long

look at the CUT-OUT. He shakes his head.

EXT. CTC HEADQUARTERS, CTC - MORNING

A downtown midsize high rise.

INT. CONFERENCE ROOM - DAY

The company has piled in, standing room only. Assistants and

interns watch through the windows.

Craig addresses the group including his own superiors.

CRAIG GREGORY:

Just thrilled to have everyone

under one roof. Welcome home boys.

A couple odd looks from road warriors a decade his senior.

CRAIG GREGORY (CONT’D)

I know there’s are lot of

whispering about why we’re all

here.

(MORE)

25.

CRAIG GREGORY (CONT’D)

Retailers are down twenty percent.

Auto industry is in the dump.

Housing market doesn’t have a

heartbeat. This is our moment. It’s

one of the worst times on record

for America... and I don’t want to

be standing here two years from

now, wondering how we missed this

window of opportunity.

A strangely encouraged response from the group.

CRAIG GREGORY (CONT’D)

Now, last Summer we received a

dynamite young woman by way of

Cornell. She challenged us with some

big ideas. My first reaction was, who

does this kid think she is? But when I

started to give a listen, I was pretty

knocked out. So now, with a little

peek into our future - Natalie Keener.

Natalie stands up.

NATALIE:

If there’s one word I want to leave

you with today, it’s this...

Natalie clicks on her POWER POINT PRESENTATION.

POWER POINT SLIDE: “GLOCAL”

Everyone including Ryan attempts to pronounce it.

NATALIE (CONT’D)

Glocal.

POWER POINT SLIDE: “GLOBAL ---> LOCAL”

NATALIE (CONT’D)

Our global must become local.

POWER POINT SLIDE: A slide shows PEOPLE X 250.

NATALIE (CONT’D)

This company keeps twenty three

people on the road, at least two

hundred fifty days a year. It’s

expensive and it’s inefficient.

When I came to Craig three months

ago with this, he told me, and

quite astutely - it’s only a

problem if you have a solution.

(MORE)

26.

NATALIE (CONT’D)

Well, today I stand before you with

jus that.

She turns around and fires up her monitor. Sitting in a video

conference session is a young man in a suit.

NATALIE (CONT’D)

You all know Ned in reception.

Various people say hello to Ned.

NATALIE (CONT’D)

Today, I’m going to fire Ned.

(aside)

Sorry, Ned. I’m sure H.R. will hire

you back this afternoon.

Ned smiles. People chuckle in the conference room. One guy

jokes “Don’t count on it.”

NATALIE (CONT’D)

Ned could be any employee in any one

of our client’s locations worldwide.

Strategy packets would be shipped in

advance. Ned would be given a seat

and find one of our transition

specialists waiting for him.

Natalie turns to the monitor and proceeds to fire Ned. It is

a pretty dry process and lacks Ryan’s charm.

NATALIE (CONT’D)

Mr. Laskin, the reason we’re having

this conversation today is your

position is no longer available.

NED:

(from a script)

I don’t understand. I’m fired?

NATALIE:

Hearing the words “You’ve been let

go” is never easy. Change is always

scary. But consider the following -

(using Ryan’s line)

Anybody who ever built an empire,

or changed the world, sat where you

are now. And it’s because they sat

there that they were able to do it.

RYAN:

(quietly)

That’s my f***ing line.

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