Re: Move
by Eric Priezkalns
+974 33191443
+44 7958 467273
(c) Eric Priezkalns 2011
fade IN:
Int. Plush Bedroom - night
A woman, Suzi, sleeps in a large bed. Alongside her
lies a man with dark hair. He
lies face down, his back both naked and visible, with the sheets pulled down
around his midriff. A young girl wearing
pyjamas,
Suzi's daughter, comes
into the room
and switches on the light. The daughter is scared and wants to be
comforted. She goes to her mother's side of the bed and tugs at her,
waking
her. Suzi raises herself up on one elbow and sleepily caresses her
daughter's hair, which matches her own. The man also
wakes, mumbles, but pulls the sheets over himself and does not turn around.
Girl
Mommy, mommy, there's monsters living under my bed.
Suzi
No, dearest, monsters only live inside your head.
Fade To:
INT. Inside the Car - day
A bump in the road jolts Suzi awake. She shakes her
head, shaking her sleepiness away. Suzi's new friend, Pascale, is driving.
PASCALE
Pleasant
dreams?
SUZI
I don't know. I never remember my dreams.
Suzi pulls down the vanity mirror in the sun visor on her
side of the
car. We see her eyes in the mirror, and her fingers running through
her tousled hair.
PASCALE
We're nearly home.
(pause)
It's been a long week for you, settling in.
(beat)
Amongst other things.
Pascale smirks whilst keeping her eyes on the road.
Suzi either does not hear, or ignores Pascale's last comment.
SUZI
One week down.
(beat)
Only fifty-one more to go.
PASCALE
I know what you mean.
(beat)
The time will pass quickly enough. Especially if you keep finding new distractions each evening.
Suzi gets a text message on her mobile phone, from an
unrecognized number.
PASCALE
Is that from him?
SUZI
I don't know who else it might be.
The message reads: "are you alone?" Pascale looks over at Suzi, who smiles ruefully back.
PASCALE
So did you take Rollo home last night? Be careful with
that boy, you know he gets around...
SUZI
(mock indignation)
Pascale...
(laughs)
Int. Night Club - Night
Suzi and a blonde man called Rollo are dancing
and
flirting on the dance floor. They are smiling and having fun
whilst
messing around to the music. We see their lips moving, but the music is
too loud to hear what they are saying. The dance music has a strong
rhythm, and the rest of the crowd are also dancing energetically. We get
closer and closer to Suzi and Rollo, until all we see are close
ups of their faces. Suzi and Rollo are close
enough to kiss, although they never do. Suzi's mouth is invitingly
open. Both
are looking
intently at one another.
The camera pulls right back, slicing through the crowded
room, back to Pascale who is perched
on a stool by the bar. She sits alone, watching Suzi and Rollo, smoking a
cigarette with her drink
on the counter.
PASCALE (V.O.)
Come on, I saw you leave with Rollo. And based on what I saw in the club...
Suzi turns and leads Rollo off the
dance floor. They walk past Pascale, seemingly unaware that she
was there.
Suzi (V.o.)
Pascale, don't tease. You didn't see anything in the nightclub. If you'd been outside, then you would have seen something...
Suzi and Rollo step outside, into the night.
They walk away from the entrance, around a corner.
Pascale (V.O.)
Well...?
Suzi places her hand on Rollo's chest, an
intimate gesture but a movement that also ensures they remain some distance
apart.
SUZI (V.O.)
So we were outside...
Whilst Rollo looks squarely at Suzi, smilingly bemused, Suzi
looks
around. When she is sure they are alone, she looks satisfied, then
clenches the
hand upon Rollo's chest into a
fist, grabbing Rollo's shirt and pulling him towards her, as if to kiss.
SUZI (V.O.)
And there was no-one around, so I pulled him close...
Their mouths close in on one another's...
Int. Inside The Car - DaY
Pascale bangs on her horn loudly and repeatedly.
PASCALE
(furious)
Jesus, you fucking idiot!
SUZI
Hey...
Pascale
They drive like fucking morons in this country. Did
you see what he did? He pulled right across me.
SUZI
Hey,
(beat)
Hey, Pascale, we don't want to attract attention.
Pascale puffs out her cheeks and blows hard.
PASCALE
It grinds you down, this place. I tell you, between the
men and the driving and the way they talk to you when you're at work, it grinds
you down. It grinds anybody down.
SUZI
Trust me, there's worse places in the world.
PASCALE
Really? You must have worked in some real shitholes.
SUZI
Yes.
(beat)
I have.
PASCALE
It's all I can do to... it's just so demanding, you know what I mean? Being here. When my contract is up, I'm going to pay off my mortgage, find a decent man for a change and... and... khallas!
Pascale's angry demeanour transforms to laughter.
Pascale shakes her head as she laughs. Suzi places her hand on Pascale's
shoulder, and laughs along.
Suzi's mobile phone starts to ring.
PASCALE
Speaking of men, that must be him again.
SUZI
Unless it's someone from work. There's nobody else I
know in this country. She looks at the display and smiles coyly.
Suzi answers her phone.
SuzI
Hu-llo, Roll-o. So this is your legendary next day call?
ROLLO (V.O.)
(apologetic but whimsical in tone)
Yes, a gentleman always calls the next day. Two days is
just too casual. In fact, I was going to call you earlier, but every time
I picked up the phone, somebody would interrupt with more work for me.
I'm only just leaving there now.
Suzi
I'm nearly home. Are we still going out tonight?
ROLLO (V.O.)
You're not shy, are you?
suzi
I'd like to see you again before your business trip. It
might
be nice to go somewhere where we can actually talk.
ROLLO (V.O.)
Yes, we didn't get much chance last night, did we? You
know, I know the perfect place to go tonight. Let me surprise you - no
need to get dressed up.
As soon as Rollo says this, Suzi flips down the vanity mirror
again, and starts straightening her hair. We see her in the mirror.
ROLLO (V.O.)
I'll come pick you up in an hour.
Suzi moves the sun visor to see herself from another angle in
the vanity mirror. As she does, she catches sight of her daughter's
reflection, sitting on the back seat of the car.
ROLLO (V.O.)
Is that good for you?
Suzi turns and looks over her shoulder. There is nobody
on the back seat.
ROLLO (V.O.)
Hello?
Suzi composes herself and remembers she was talking to Rollo.
SuzI
Yes, sorry, Rollo, that's fine.
(pause)
Do you remember my apartment?
ROLLO (V.O.)
Remind me, what number is it?
Suzi
3W6H. Building 3, West block, apartment H on the sixth
floor. Sorry, I have to go now... hello? Rollo?
Suzi's phone loses reception as Pascale drives into the underground car park.
PASCALE
So, how's the unpacking going?
SUZI
Good, making progress. I haven't finished but it's getting there. But I've got a feeling that some of my boxes have gone missing. It's hard to tell, there's so many.
Int. Car PARK
Pascale pulls into her parking space at the residential
complex where both she and Suzi live. From the artificial light alone, it
would be impossible to tell if it was day or night.
Pascale
Yeah, the same thing happened when I arrived. The
relocation
firm left half my things in the local warehouse. It took them another
three weeks to deliver it all.
Suzi and Pascale get out of the car, and walk towards the
elevator.
Pascale
Do you mind if I borrow your jacket for tonight? If
you're going out with this guy, I might meet up for a few drinks with the crew.
int. elevator
Suzi and Pascale continue by getting into the elevator.
Suzi
Sure. No problem. Come get the jacket now.
(beat)
But one condition: those earrings you were wearing, you
remember, the dangly ones I liked? Will you be wearing them tonight?
PASCALE
No, do you want to pop up and collect them?
SUZI
Just give me half an hour. I'll get changed and come up
then, if that's alright?
PASCALE
Sure. No problem. I'm not going anywhere.
They exit the stairwell and arrive at Suzi's apartment.
int. of Apartment Building - Outside Suzi's Apartment
The corridor, like the stairwell, is windowless. Suzi
reaches into her handbag for her keys, but when she tries the door key, it does
not turn.
PASCALE
Oh, I'm sorry! I completely forgot. The office
manager asked me to give you these.
Pascale pulls out two envelopes from her shoulder bag, and
hands them over.
PASCALE
I think there is keys in one of them. They've been changing the locks on all the doors in this building. It has something to do with tightening up security. They do that kind of thing all the time.
SUZI
Security, huh? I could've been locked out. Why
did they deliver the keys at work instead of at reception here?
PASCALE
I think work paid for the new locks. Don't worry,
probably somebody lost some old keys and they thought it safest to change them
all.
SUZI
Do they keep copies of our keys at work?
Pascale shrugs her shoulders. Suzi opens one of the
envelopes. In the
envelope there are two
similar-looking keys. The first one she selects does not turn
either. Suzi looks at Pascale, mystified.
PASCALE
Try the other one.
(beat)
Third time lucky!
Pascale holds up her fingers, to show they are crossed.
Suzi tries the second key, which does work.
INT. Apartment - DAY
Inside Suzi's apartment there are half-unpacked boxes
scattered
around, and a pile of empty boxes in one corner. The evening sun floods
blue light into the room through the tinted glass. The boxes are covered
with the logos of a relocation company. The apartment is spartan in its
furnishing. Suzi tosses the envelopes on to the coffee table, and reaches
into the wardrobe by the door, pulling out a jacket and handing it over to
Pascale.
SUZI
This one, right?
PASCALE
Thank you! I'll see you shortly.
Pascale leaves with the jacket.
Suzi turns the television on, just for background
noise. The camera focuses on it as Suzi occasionally wanders into
shot. Suzi leaves the room and returns with a
drink of a clear liquid, which she sips from and puts down on the coffee
table. We do not know
what
exactly she has poured; it may be water. She leaves again to
change. Soon afterwards, the telephone rings; it is positioned alongside
the television. For whatever reason, Suzi does not answer it. The
phone rings a few times, and then the answering machine plays.
SUZI's Recorded Voice (V.o.)
Hello this is Suzi!
Jorge's Recorded Voice (V.o.)
And this is Jorge!
Suzi and Jorge Together (V.o.)
Leave a message after the beep!
JORGE'S RECORDED VOICE (V.O.)
Here it comes...
There is a beep and we hear the voice of an older man as he
leaves a message. The camera slowly zooms into the answering machine.
Suzi's Father (V.o.)
Hello dear, it's your father here. I just called to see
how you're settling in. I suppose you're probably galavanting around
again at the moment. Well, I hope all's well. Do call. I ran
into Trisha in the high street - she sends her regards. I'll call again
later, you know I'm no good with these machines. And maybe, dear, you
should think about changing that greeting? Love you dear, call
soon. Bye.
Suzi's father hangs up and the machine clicks off. The
camera pulls back to see the whole of the television screen again. Suzi
returns to the room, oblivious to the message that was just recorded. She
has changed her clothes. Suzi walks across the line of the camera and the
screen, and as she does, the image on the screen changes. The screen
shows what might be a wedding celebration, with people dancing around.
Suzi picks up and opens the second envelope that Pascale
handed her. It contains a letter. The camera zooms in, the angle
the camera is held only allows fragments of the letter to be read: "Re: Move
to... Suzi, congratulations on your new role... local services which you may
find useful...
The envelope also contains various lose pages of what look
like lists, and a poorly photocopied flyer for a nursery. The flyer shows
a circular picture of happy young children, bordered most of the way around by
a rainbow. Upon the rainbow are written the words: "COME TO LONE STAR
NURSERY". Underneath it says to turn to the other side for
directions. Suzi tosses the flyer back on to her coffee table.
The
camera pulls up and a little further back, watching the television screen over
Suzi's shoulder. The television is now playing gentle music, a waltz. On the television, Suzi sees herself in a close
embrace with Jorge, the dark-haired man from her dream. The two of them
are engaged in a slow dance. Jorge is wearing a shirt, which is hanging
out of his trousers. At first, their faces are close together, looking at
each other and smiling, mimicing the closeness and smiles of Suzi and Rollo at
the nightclub. There are
other people dancing in the background, but out of focus. Suzi rests her
head on Jorge's shoulder. We zoom in to
the screen. The viewpoint of the television camera revolves around the
dancers, finally settling on and zooming into Jorge's
face. He talks over his dance partner’s shoulder to the camera, as if he
is talking to the Suzi watching the television in her apartment.
Jorge
We can't go on like this.
Suzi is startled by a banging coming from the wall behind
her. It sounds like her
neighbours may be hammering on the wall. Looking back at the television,
the scene has changed and once again looks like a normal programme. Suzi
picks up the remote, flicks to the news and turns
up the volume.
Male Newsreader (V.o.)
(louder)
... the US Ambassador had been called to meet with the Foreign Minister following allegations of commercial espionage. The allegations were made after a local businessman...
Suzi is further distracted by the sound of children playing
in
the
corridor
outside her apartment. We see Suzi standing and reaching for her drink,
which she sips from again. The door of her apartment is in the background.
CHILDREN (O.S.)
(singing, running, laughing, and the sound of a bicycle being ridden)
Neither Suzi nor we can hear the news over the noise of the
children. Suzi turns her head
away from the TV towards the door. There is the sound of an accident in the
corridor, of somebody falling from their bike outside Suzi's door.
CHILDREN (O.S.)
(screaming, crying)
Suzi puts her glass down and hurries to the door to see what
has
happened outside. We follow her from behind.
int. Corridor of Apartment Building
We are looking down the corridor. All noise stops the
instant that Suzi opens the door. She looks outside, but there is nobody
in
the corridor. There is no bicycle, nor evidence that any children were
there. Suzi looks up and down the corridor.
SERIES OF SHOTS:
A: Suzi is leaning out of her door, looking in the direction
of
the camera. We can see the corridor behind is empty. We reverse
zoom to reveal the length of the corridor in the direction Suzi is
facing.
That too is empty.
B: The camera sees the corridor from Suzi's perspective,
rapidly panning to look in each direction. The corridor is empty in all
directions.
C: Suzi turns back to her apartment door. We see her in
the corridor, pulling her door closed from the outside, and locking it.
D: Suzi walks down the corridor, in the opposite direction
she
came from when she first arrived, towards a stairwell.
E: Suzi walks along a winding path of corridors, passing many
apartments and walking through several pairs of fire doors.
F: Suzi comes to an apartment door and knocks on it. A sign saying that the apartment number is '3S77' is plainly visible on the wall. A tall pot plant, a palm, sits outside the apartment. Suzi waits. Loud music can be heard playing behind the door. Suzi puts her ear to the door, then bangs it again. Then Suzi tries to look the wrong way through the door's peephole.
G: We see Suzi's eye from the side, in close-up, trying to
look
through the peep-hole.
H: We see the peep-hole from Suzi's perspective. A bright
light comes through the peephole. Everything is blurred, making it
impossible to see any detail.
I: We see Suzi from behind. Suzi loudly bangs the door
with
the palm of her hand, and shouts.
Suzi
(shouting loudly)
Hello? Hello? Are you in there? Can you
hear me?
J: Close-up of Suzi's face as she, disappointed, shakes her head and walks away.
int. Corridor of Apartment Building
Suzi walks back down the corridor. The camera continues
to
follow her from behind. As Suzi walks,
she
receives another text message from
an unrecognized number. It reads: "To find solutions, first turn
around". Suzi tentatively looks back over her shoulder, towards the
camera which has been
following her. We then see the empty corridor from Suzi's perspective. Suzi smiles to himself and shakes her head, amused
by her own silliness, as there is nobody there.
As Suzi passes through another pair of fire doors, her mobile
telephone rings. Suzi
stops. She takes her mobile telephone out, and answers it.
PASCALE (V.O.)
Hey Suzi, are you still coming up?
Suzi
Yeah - I was just knocking on your door.
PASCALE (V.O.)
Sorry. I must have my music on too
loud. I'm going deaf in my old age (laughs). You still
outside? I'll come to the door now.
Suzi turns around and walks back towards the camera, back up
the
corridor.
INT. Corridor Outside of Apartment 3S17
The same style of loud music continues to play behind the
door of 3S77. X bangs loudly on the door. We see Suzi from behind,
as
she
stands facing the door.
Suzi
I'm here! Open up.
There is no answer. She rings the bell repeatedly and then bangs again.
Suzi stops, takes a breath, and waits. As she does, she
reaches for the plant sitting outside the apartment, touching one of the leaves
of the palm. She rubs the leaf between her fingers.
Suzi pulls out her mobile phone, still rubbing the leaf of
the
palm with her other hand. She calls Pascale. Suzi
turns a little more sideways and away from the door so we can see her face in
profile.
PAscale (V.O.)
Hello Suzi. Are you on your way?
Suzi
Turn your music down. I've been knocking on your door.
Pascale (V.O.)
Oh? I don't know what you're talking about. I'm
standing in my doorway now, looking for you.
SUZI
(confused)
Excuse me?
Pascale (V.O.)
Have you got the right apartment?
SUZI
I don't get the joke. Of course I've got the right
apartment.
Pascale (V.O.)
I'm just saying these corridors are
confusing. I'm in apartment 3-S-7-7, okay?
We can see that Suzi is standing right by the sign that says
'3S77'.
SUZI
If this is a joke, I don't get it.
PAscale (V.O.)
What can I say? I'm standing here waiting for you.
We hear a disconnected tone. Suzi walks off, putting
her
phone away as she does.
SERIES OF SHOTS:
A: Suzi walks quickly back down the corridor. We follow
from
behind. She passes through fire doors.
B: Suzi walks up the corridor towards and then past the
camera,
as if on CCTV.
C: Suzi walks towards the camera and towards her apartment
door. She turns and unlocks her door and is about to go back into her
apartment. Then she stops and looks down the corridor, roughly in the
direction of the camera. The camera pulls back and up to reveal what Suzi
is
looking at: a small children's bicycle is lying on the floor; it was not there
before.
INT. APARTMENT - DAY
Suzi gets himself another drink, then motions to sit back down, putting the full glass on the coffee table and intending to watch television whilst waiting for Rollo to arrive. Just as she sits, there is a knock at her door. We follow from behind as Suzi gets straight back up, goes to the door and looks through the peephole.
We see Suzi's eye from the side, in close-up, as she looks through the peep-hole. She blinks.
We see from Suzi's perspective through the peephole. There
is nobody outside; the corridor looks empty.
We see Suzi's eye from the side, in close-up. She rubs her eye and looks again.
We see from Suzi's perspective through the peephole. As before, there is nobody outside; the corridor looks empty.
We see Suzi stood facing her door. Jorge is stood
behind her, looming over one shoulder. Suzi is aware of his presence, and
she very slowly turns to look at him. Our perspective changes, seeing
Suzi from behind, as she turns towards us, with a close-up of her face.
As she completes the movement, we reverse zoom to reveal Jorge is not
there. Instead, there is a knocking at the door again.
Suzi instantly flings open the door. There is
nobody outside. Suzi looks down the corridor again. The corridor is
empty, except for the bicycle. Suzi closes the door and goes back into
the
apartment. Her mobile phone rings and she answers.
Rollo (V.o.)
Hi, it's me. Where are you? I'm waiting for you.
SUZI
Sorry?
Rollo (V.O.)
I know, I'm early. I was impatient to see you.
Did you pop out for some smokes?
SUZI
I'm home.
Rollo (V.O.)
(puzzled)
You are? Then let me in. I'm outside.
Suzi opens the door. The corridor is empty.
SUZI
Where outside? Are you outside the building?
Rollo (V.O.)
Outside your front door. Listen - this is me ringing the bell.
The doorbell rings.
Rollo (V.O.)
(teasing)
So come and open the door please!
(beat)
Don't tell me... are you in the
bathroom?
(jokingly)
I hate
it when people answer their phone whilst... you know.
SUZI
I don't understand. I'm at my door, looking down the
corridor. There's nobody here...
Rollo (V.O.)
My dear, what are you talking about?
SUZI
Is this a prank? (laughs nervously) It's pretty
clever. How did you manage to make the bell ring?
Suzi looks at the button for the doorbell and presses it as
she
speaks, making it ring again.
Rollo (V.O.)
Suzi, what's wrong?
(beat)
You sound... I mean you don't sound very happy.
SUZI
I'll leave the door unlocked. Let yourself in, when you get here.
Suzi allows the arm holding his phone to drop to her
side. She lets the door swing closed behind her, and she steps back
inside the
apartment.
Rollo (V.O.)
(worried)
Suzi, darling, is there something the matter? If
there's...
(disconnected tone)
Suzi hangs up, cutting off Rollo mid-sentence. She goes
back to sit in front of the television. The camera moves so we see both
Suzi
and what she is watching on the screen. On the television, Jorge and Suzi's daughter are pinning up a picture the
girl has drawn.
They pin it to the wall, next to a framed painting. We zoom in to the
television screen. Suzi's daughter turns towards the viewer and has a
delighted
expression. She turns to come towards and embrace the viewer, but Jorge
holds her back, crouching behind her and wrapping an arm
around her. Jorge speaks to the viewer in a sombre tone.
JORGE
(concerned)
I don't think you should come here again.
Suzi buries her face in her hands. She looks up, and the television screen is blank. She leaves, hurriedly.
Int. Corridors and Stairwell
Suzi runs down the corridor towards the stairwell, then up
the
stairs to Pascale's apartment.
INT. CORRIDOR OUTSIDE OF APARTMENT 3s77
As Suzi comes out of the stairwell, she sees Rollo with
Pascale. She is surprised to see them together. She steps back,
hiding around the corner with her back to the wall, so they do not see
her. Suzi looks around again, and sees them entering Pascale's
apartment. Pascale ushers Rollo inside; both Rollo and Pascale look
serious.
We see Suzi's face in close up, with her back to the wall. Down the corridor, the door to Pascale's apartment closes. This time, there is no palm plant outside Pascale's apartment, not that Suzi notices. Suzi leans her neck back, resting the back of her head against the wall. She closes her eyes momentarily. After a moment stood motionless in that pose, Suzi stands upright, turns around and walks down the corridor to Pascale's apartment.
Suzi walks up towards Pascale's apartment, and then, unsure
of
herself, she turns away again. She goes back down the stairs to her own
apartment.
INT. APARTMENT - NIGHT
Suzi switches on the light and locks the door behind
her.
We can hear the television is still on, in the background. She stands
with her back to the door. Soon afterwards, there is a knocking at the
door.
Pascale (o.S.)
Hello, Suzi? Are you in there?
SUZI
Go away.
ROLLO (O.S.)
No, we're not going away. We want to come in.
Suzi walks back to the drink she left on the coffee table
earlier. It is full. As she reaches across to pick it up, she
notices
the flyer she also left there earlier. She stares at the children in the
photograph. Suzi sits and picks the flyer up. A child standing to
one side of the photograph looks like Suzi's daughter. We can hear Rollo
is knocking on the door once more, but we cannot clearly hear what he is
saying. Rollo's knocking on
the door merges with the sound of the neighbours banging at the wall again.
Suzi lifts up the flyer, and keeps staring at it. Her
eyes
follow the words that surround the woman's photograph: "COME TO LONE
STAR...". Then she starts to re-read the words beneath: "Turn over to
find directions..." Suzi turns the flyer around in her hands. She
looks at the word "LONE" written upside down, and then she drops the flyer
back on to the table. We see Suzi sat at the table, from front on.
Her
head is bowed forward, looking at the flyer; without moving her head, her eyes
look up, directly at the camera. Suzi pauses a little while, then she
closes
her eyes, lifts her head upright, and
composes himself.
Suzi walks back to his front door. She opens it;
Pascale
and Rollo are still waiting outside. They look up at Suzi, waiting for
her
to speak.
SUZI
I'd like it if...
(pause)
come with me.
INT. CORRIDOR OUTSIDE OF APARTMENT 3N07
Suzi, Pascale and Rollo are standing outside of an apartment
where the sign reads '3N07'. They stand in silence. In the
corridor outside of the apartment there is the children's bike that Suzi saw
before. The palm that Suzi thought was outside Pascale's apartment is
standing
by the door of apartment 3N07.
ROLLO
What now?
Suzi reaches into her pocket, and pulls out the
envelope Pascale handed her earlier. She removes the second key, and puts
it into the lock.
PASCALE
Whose apartment is this?
Suzi
Mine. It was. It was going to be.
INT. Bare APARTMENT - Night
Suzi leads Pascale and Rollo inside. Pascale and Rollo
stand by the door as it closes, whilst Suzi walks into the middle of the
room. The apartment is completely bare, with no furnishings. Four
boxes stand in the middle of the room. The boxes display the logos of the
same relocation firm as the boxes that were in Suzi's apartment. The
walls
are bare apart from a framed painting and a children's drawing. They are
the same framed painting and drawing from Suzi's dream involving Jorge and her
daughter.
Suzi walks up to the boxes. She crouches down and puts her hands on top of one of them.
Suzi
They give you a bigger apartment, if you've got a
family. It was going to be our home.
Rollo and Pascale stay back, standing in silence because they
do not know what to say. The camera slowly turns from them to Suzi, and
then
keeps turning around Suzi to reveal Jorge, her husband, and her daughter, now
standing alongside her. Jorge is wearing the shirt we saw him wear to the
wedding dance; the shirt tails are hanging out of his trousers once more.
The girl is in her pyjamas. Suzi embraces them both. Music faintly
starts to play. It is the same music as was playing behind the door to
Pascale's apartment.
Suzi is distracted by the sound of hammering at the
wall. She looks up towards the painting. The camera zooms into the
painting, and
then pulls back to reveal Jorge standing by its side, with a hammer in
hand.
He nudges the corner of the painting, trying to hang it straight.
JORGE
Is it straight?
The camera pans and pulls back to show Suzi,
standing the other side of the painting from Jorge.
Suzi
It's straight.
JORGE
Good. But you'll need to take it down now.
Jorge turns towards the girl, and grabs her playfully.
JORGE
And it's bedtime for little monsters.
Suzi's daughter raises her eyebrows, appealing to stay up
longer.
Jorge
Come, it's time.
Suzi
(to Jorge, referring to the music)
They're playing your song again.
JORGE
Let's change it, shall we?
The music fades out, and a new song begins, as Jorge steps
towards Suzi. The new music is the opening bars of the waltz
that Suzi and Jorge had danced to previously. They embrace, and
start to dance, striking a similar pose to before. The camera revolves
around them, turning in the same
direction as the dancers. The girl dances around the two of them, moving
in the opposite direction, playacting at dancing with an imaginary
partner. As the camera turns, we occasionally catch a glimpse of Rollo
and Pascale, still standing by the door. The camera continues to turn and
increasingly zooms in on Suzi's face, until the close up fills the
screen. Suzi
seems happy. It pulls back again, and Jorge and her daughter are
gone. Suzi is holding his shirt, clutched to her chest, and with the end
of one
sleeve in her hand. Suzi stops turning, and looks at the shirt, with
sadness.
Fade To Black
Credits as the waltz continues to play.
Fade IN:
INT. Bare APARTMENT - Night
Suzi folds the shirt back into its box. In the
background,
Pascale and Rollo leave the apartment, carrying boxes. With a box under
one arm, and as the music reaches its closing bars, Suzi walks out the door,
leaving an empty apartment behind her. As the door closes, she switches
off the light with her outstretched hand.
THE END