_ACT ONE_ FADE IN EXTERIOR - SKY - NIGHT - GOOSE as it flies calmly through the clouds. Over this: JAKE'S VOICE OVER The first thing that attracted me to Haywood Floyd novels were the pictures on the front. They were always of Haywood himself staring out from the cockpit, cheroot firmly in his teeth, fire in his eyes, off on some wild exciting adventure. As a kid, that's how I always imagined my life would be. INTERIOR COCKPIT - CLOSE ON JAKE the cheroot is almost falling out of his mouth as he sleepily looks out the windshield. Over this: JAKE'S VOICE OVER I guess you really can't judge a book by its cover. Camera widens as Jake yawns and stretches. Suddenly a chicken flies into frame and lands on his shoulder. It just sits there. Jake looks at it for a moment, then: JAKE Would you get out of here! He pushes the chicken off his shoulder. JAKE (calling out) Corky. They're loose again! CORKY (from cabin) I can't help it, they keep getting out of the cage. JAKE Why don't you just open the hatch and let them fly the rest of the way? Intercut with: COCKPIT CABIN as Corky is trying to catch a half-dozen chickens that are everywhere but in the small cage. Jack is sitting on his pillow, growling at them like an old man with his obnoxious grandchildren. CORKY We can't do that. This is our pay. JAKE Right, pay. We fly two loads of papaya to the Tagataya Fruit Company, and this is how they pay us. CORKY The man said he was sorry. Papaya aren't moving as well as he thought. You said it would be alright. The cockpit chicken flutters up again, causing a lot of noise and feathers. Jake looks at him, then: JAKE It's just that you can't buy gas with drumsticks. COCKPIT as Corky and Jack come in. Corky takes the chicken, and hoisting it, sits down in the copilot seat. Jack growls at the chicken. CORKY I got them all back in the cage. JAKE Corky, doesn't it sometimes just get to you? CORKY What? JAKE The way we're living. I mean, look at it. What is it...Friday night. And what do we have to look forward to? CORKY Well, the projector's still broken, but I heard Louie's learned a new card trick. JAKE That's what I'm talking about. (thinking back) Sometimes you just miss the noise, the people. Like when I used to spend my Friday's down at Oggies, listening to Slam Willis and T-Bone Walker set the walls on fire. (to Corky) Don't you ever just miss a whole lot of people doing some hell raising? CORKY Haven't thought about it. JAKE If we could just sometimes get a few paying customers. In cash. Then we could start setting some aside for the Goose...and maybe get away...to a place where something happens. Suddenly we hear a high-pitched whine, and the windshield is ablaze in multi-colored fire and smoke. JAKE What the hell was that? CORKY (looking out the windshield) Sounded like some kind of bomb. Jake, I think we're being fired at. JAKE We're almost over Boragora. Who would want to do a stupid thing like that? CUT TO CLOSE ANGLE - GUSHIE as we see him holding a flare, igniting a rocket which sails into the air and explodes. We pull back to: EXTERIOR MONKEY BAR - NIGHT The whole area is being lit by a half-dozen or so pinwheels, roman candles and assorted sky rockets. From the windows we can see a hell of a celebration going on inside the bar. DOCK lit by the light of the fireworks, we see the hatch open and Jake, Jack and Corky come out. They look out over the "celebration," confused, then head for the bar. EXTERIOR MONKEY BAR - CLOSER ANGLE as we see Willie and Louie coming out, their arms loaded down with more fireworks. LOUIE (to Gushie) Maybe we should set these up on the roof...try and hit the stars! Jake has reached them now. JAKE You've hit enough for one night, thank you. Louie sees Jake and runs over to him. LOUIE Mon ami, you are just in time. Everything is on the house. We are having the celebration of a lifetime. JAKE Louie, what's going on? LOUIE We are holding up our glasses to the mother of persistence and good fortune. For one of our very own. CORKY Which one? As if to answer, we hear a "bray" coming from the batwings of the Monkey Bar. Jake and Corky look over. Jack growls. Coming through the swinging doors we an old, crotchety burro. He sees Jake, then brays again. Jake and Corky immediately recognize the animal. JAKE Puddin' Head! He runs up to the burro and gives his head a friendly hug. JACK as he looks up at the animal and growls again. JAKE It suddenly hits him. He looks over to Louie. JAKE Louie, you don't mean...Dowser! He did it...he finally did it? Louie smiles triumphantly. CUT TO INTERIOR MONKEY BAR - NIGHT as Jake, Corky and Jack enter. Sarah is over by the piano, as the piano player continues to bang out something up and lively. Other locals are crowded around the bar, looking at something. JAKE (calling out) Dowser, you old Aussie, where are you? The crowd parts, exposing Dowser. He is rugged, old, yet full of stubborn energy. He is a mixture of Australian pioneer and native mystic. Warm, lovable, cranky with deep and caring eyes. From years on the island, his accent has homogenized into its own strange creation. He has a full and booming laugh, but as he turns to Jake, his laugh stops and is melting down to a soft smile. We can see that there is a lot of caring between this old man and Jake. DOWSER (with calm energy) Ever tell you the story about an old man who spent forty years in a lava tube looking for a hunk of white rock? JAKE Yeah, you did. Every time you came out of the hills. Dowser turns around and picks up from the bar, a white rock about the size of a small apple. He holds it out to Jake who takes it, looks it over proudly, then hands it to Corky. Dowser picks up what looks like a piece of collar bone and holds it to the ground like a divining rod. DOWSER Was working my claim, must have been half a mile in that old lava tube dowsing with Moby here.... He begins to make the bone shake...reenacting that wondrous moment. DOWSER ...just like I've been doing every day...when suddenly Moby began talking to me...shaking like a belly dancer on ice! (demonstrating) I dug around that spot, and got this platinum nugget. Then right above me, on the wall...I saw it. Veins. Platinum veins crossing every which way! Right there in my claim! He looks up to Jake, sobers again. DOWSER I wasn't wrong, Jake. You see, I never was wrong. Everyone cheers, the piano player strikes up again, and Jake gives Dowser a big hug. We can see through the windows the pinwheels continue to go off and hear the sound of the skyrockets. JAKE Of course you weren't wrong. We all knew that. DOWSER (to everyone) You realize that it was 1897 when that Maori sailor in Melbourne gave me Moby. Taught me how to use it then. Started all this trouble by telling me about this godforsaken island. Hell, it wasn't even called platinum back then. They called it Gaholai...for white gold. LOUIE (to Jake) I used the aqua regia test on the rock...it's platinum all right. DOWSER Tests...hell, all you gotta do is hold it in your fist. You can feel what it is right deep into the bone. That's why old Moby here works. JAKE That's a pretty big find. I'm just wondering what's going to happen when other people find out about it. LOUIE The French government has been offering homestead and mineral rights for a franc a piece for the last hundred years. On this island we had only one applicant...and that was forty years ago. DOWSER And when I got it, they paid _me_ the franc. JAKE I know...but this is different. You've found something. Maybe we should try and keep this quiet. We hear another skyrocket. They all look up as it explodes. CUT TO EXTERIOR MONKEY BAR - DAY - HIGH ANGLE It hits us like a ton of bricks. Boragora is suddenly transformed. The once quiet beach now looks like a refuge camp. There are tents built up on every square inch of sand. Crude "stands" are set up selling picks, buckets, shovels, and other "mining" equipment for outrageous prices. A perennial haze of smoke surrounds the "tent town" from the many outdoor food stands which spew out their thick, greasy barbecue smoke. The people who mill around are of all shapes, sizes, and nationalities, all with festive determination to strike it rich. There is a cacophony of different music, people playing harmonicas and the such, portable record players. The most outstanding sound comes from a loudspeaker shouting out the music of Offenback. The entire place already has the temporary settled-in look like the beginnings of boom towns. We hold on this sight to soak it in, then over this: JAKE'S VOICE OVER It's strange how change sneaks up at you like a striking cobra. If someone was to ask me when the people started to arrive, when Gushie started renting space on the beach to pitch tents and sell merchandise...or when Louie transformed the hotel into a refuge for the rich and serious businessman, I'd have to probably just shrug and say, 'overnight.' It really felt that way. Camera pans over to the dock, where we see Jake getting out of the Goose, and along with Corky, begins to help four people out of the cabin and onto the shore. Over this: JAKE'S VOICE OVER It might have been because I was too busy making money myself flying in 'prospectors' from Tagataya who couldn't get on the over-booked Clipper. CLOSER ANGLE - JAKE as he helps the people off. He looks over to the tent town, and his face tenses up. Over this: JAKE'S VOICE OVER Yet something was wrong. It was like eating a steak dinner with a stuffed nose. There it was, everything I wanted, people, noise, and cash paying customers, right in front of me. I was eating it up, but I wasn't tasting any of it. I didn't know why. Maybe I was just numb. The four passengers from the Goose are all rather young, "Yankees" ready for their first adventure. Their youthful enthusiasm is almost pathetic. One of the men is Dooley: a tall, lanky, well-built Irishman with a boyish face. His eyes are darting all over the place. DOOLEY (to Jake; slight Irish accent) Where do I pick up the gold? JAKE It's platinum and you don't pick it up. You have to file in the office for a claim, then it's about a day's hike into the high country to the site. DOOLEY Hike? I thought you just bend down and pick it up like sea shells. I didn't bring anything to hike with. CORKY Oh, they got plenty of equipment on the beach. Come on, I'll show you around. DOOLEY (as they leave) I don't like hiking. Jake watches as Corky and Dooley leave. Jake looks over to Jack. JAKE Think he's going to find anything? Jack barks once for no. JAKE I don't either. (then) Wonder what's going to happen when they _all_ don't find anything? Jake looks up at the tent town again. CUT TO EXTERIOR MONKEY BAR - TENT TOWN - DAY as camera moves through the "town" following Corky and Dooley. Dooley watches all the people, sleeping in outdoor hammocks or in their tents, washing clothes by the water, buying whatever's being sold, or just sitting around waiting to go up and find their "millions." We can see Willie talking to some of his girls nearby. He does not look very happy. Corky brings Dooley over to a table where Gushie sits. Above him is a sign with all kinds of prices (i.e. Tents 500fr a day, Land Under Tent 600fr a day, Showers 350fr, etc.) Gushie looks up at Dooley. He's said all this a million times now. GUSHIE We're out of tents, but for a little extra I can get you a cot. Claims are handled inside. There's about a half-day wait to see Louie. Dooley isn't listening. He's looking over the tents again. DOOLEY Boy this is something. Isn't there anything you _don't_ sell? CUT TO TENT with a large, purple banner. MONSIEUR LUMIRE'S PALACE DE PARIS. The loudspeaker spews out the Offenback that we have been hearing throughout. Three "young French ladies" burst from the tent and begin to perform a rather good cancan to the music. Lumire, the proprietor, stands in front of them. Men gather around as he talks. We can see Willie in the background during this. One of his native girls, Nani, points over to Lumire, and Willie, stern face, begins to make his way over. Over this: LUMIRE (calling out) I only want to speak to gentlemen of taste, of style...for my women are direct from the shores of Paris, one hundred percent French from head to toe...and they are only interested in making friends with the type of gentlemen who could appreciate what the French have known for years.... By now, Willie has made his way to Lumire. Lumire stops when he sees the priest. The music and girls continue in the background. Two burly bodyguards fall in behind Lumire. LUMIRE May I help you, Reverend? WILLIE (stern) I have been informed by one of my...children...that you have been speaking to them about joining your...tent. LUMIRE I think of myself as a man who is always looking to help those who need it. WILLIE The women of this island do not need your kind of help! LUMIRE Reverend...we are both businessmen of sorts. I have no quarrel with you. Might it be that we take our differences in trade. I will pray in your church...you can pray in mine. Willie looks over to the "cancan" girls. We can see true rage of righteous indignation take over Willie. The music stops. WILLIE You stay away from my children, or you will be answering to _me_! He stomps away. LUMIRE (to the crowd) As I was saying...we have authentic French girls.... CUT TO INTERIOR MONKEY BAR - DAY It is a totally different atmosphere. It is quiet, low lit, with only the most "respectable" of businessmen at the tables. Money is flying everywhere. Sarah is singing at the piano, on which sits a glass over-stuffed with bills. Jake is standing at the bar, having a beer. We can see he doesn't like the way the men are looking at Sarah, as they put the money in the glass. We pick up Louie coming down the stairs of his office with a man, Truman Hastings, a high class man, about Jake's age, from New Haven. He's as smooth as glass and twice as cold, but has a natural charm that can be disarming. Louie is talking to him. As they walk down the stairs: LOUIE Your offer is most generous, Monsieur Hastings, but as I have told you on your last three offers -- the Monkey Bar is not for sale. HASTINGS Tell you what, Louie, every step you walk down, the price will go up another ten thousand francs. LOUIE You don't seem to understand. It is not a matter of price. Hastings stops at the bottom of the stairs. He sees Sarah. Jake sees that he sees Sarah. HASTINGS (watching Sarah) We all have a price. JAKE (to Hastings) Only if we want to sell. LOUIE Jake, this is Monsieur Hastings. He has come all the way from New Haven in America to look over the mining prospects. Hastings sticks out his hand; Jake continues to drink his beer. Sarah has finished her song to joyous applause. She sees the men and goes over to join them. During this: HASTINGS (to Jake) Yes, you own that plane...you must be doing very well. JAKE I don't own the plane. HASTINGS I see, paying it off slowly. Maybe we can talk later. I think I might be of some help to a lot of people out here. (to Sarah) You really have the most lovely voice I've heard in years. Sarah smiles at Hastings. We can see that she has some attraction to him. There is something about him that can do that to women. SARAH That's very kind. HASTINGS (to Sarah; with sincerity) This has been a most perfect day. Only a drink with you could top it. SARAH I'd love to. (to Jake) Come to join us. JAKE No thank you. I'm going to get some air. It's stale in here. Hastings begins to whistle "Cheek to Cheek" as he leads Sarah to a table. The maddening thing is that he's actually quite good at it. Jack growls as he stares at Hastings. JAKE (to Jack) I know how you feel. CUT TO EXTERIOR MONKEY BAR - TENT TOWN - NIGHT as the commotion continues. It takes on an even stranger, unreal look at night -- what with the small fires, and bare bulbs strung across the area. Camera picks up Jack, who is having a hell of a time with a few other dogs that have been brought on the island by "hopefuls." He doesn't like his territory invaded. Jack runs across Puddin' Head who stares down at him. Jack growls at Puddin' Head; Puddin' Head brays back down to Jack. Camera pans up to: EXTERIOR SECOND STORY BALCONY as Jake and Dowser look down at them. The two animals are making quite a racket. In the distance we can hear the faint sounds of blasting. JAKE (to Jack) Would you two stop arguing with each other. Jack barks once for no. DOWSER I don't know what Jack has against Puddin' Head but he just won't let up. JAKE Must have been that time Puddin' Head got into Louie's sherry and fell on Jack while he was sleeping. Jack barks twice for yes. DOWSER That was months ago. That dog's got the memory of an elephant and the temper of a woman. Jack barks once for no. JAKE (to Jack) Just come up here and leave him alone. ANGLE - JACK as he looks up at Jake, then begins to the stairs. Puddin' Head looks at him for a moment, then begins to follow. DOWSER AND JAKE as they continue to look down. DOWSER (to Puddin' Head) Where you think you're going? Puddin' Head brays. DOWSER Absolutely not. You're not coming up here. Another bray. DOWSER I don't care. Jack's a lot lighter. You'd never make it. He brays again. By now Jack's reached Jake. He looks down at Puddin' Head and growls. Dowser looks out at the tent town. We hear another faint blast. DOWSER Hear that sound? Hasn't stopped. Everyone blowing holes in the mountain, hoping for my luck. JAKE Didn't you think you were going to find it? DOWSER You know Jake, I've discovered that when you get old, dress a little funny, hang around with an ornery burro and a piece of whale bone, well, people tend to think you're something out of storybooks. Paper thin and no feelings. They don't know I wake up in the gray part of the morning with that terrible hollow feeling that asks you what you're doing with your life. JAKE We all get that feeling. DOWSER That's my point. But at least you're doing things that are accepted. Try looking for platinum for forty years and see what your mornings look like. (then) Jake, a couple of days before the strike I tried to pack it in. JAKE I can't believe you'd do that, Dowser. DOWSER (continuing) I took a crate of dynamite and was just about ready to sit in the old mine and let it swallow me up. Hell, it consumed most of my life as it was. JAKE What stopped you? DOWSER You're not going to believe this but it was something you said to Corky once. Remember? It was: 'The worst thing to fear in life is not that it will end, but that it will never have a beginning.' JAKE I said that? DOWSER That's the words. So I thought...damn...the only beginning I'd ever have is to find that blasted platinum! (brighten) And Lord, what do you know, but that the very next day I did! Partly thanks to you. JAKE Now don't start giving me any credit; I didn't do anything. It was _your_ forty years. DOWSER (with energy and joy) Maybe. But let me tell you...with that claim of mine, this tired and old man's life is just beginning. He gives Jake a wide smile. Jack suddenly growls. Jake and Dowser turn around. Puddin' Head is standing right behind them on the balcony. He brays. DOWSER Now how in blazes did _you_ get up here? CUT TO INTERIOR LOUIE'S OFFICE as Louie is behind his desk burning the night oil doing his pile of paperwork. There is a knock, then Hastings comes in. LOUIE I am very sorry, Monsieur Hastings. But the office is closed. HASTINGS (friendly) Louie, I'd appreciate this one little favor. I've done all the paperwork myself. I do a lot of these things back in the States. LOUIE (with a sigh) Very well, let me see the paper. Hastings hands it to Louie. Almost automatically, Louie goes to stamp it, then, he sees what's written on it. He stops. LOUIE Wait a minute. This claim has been staked for a very long time. HASTINGS Not anymore. It is now mine. LOUIE He would never sell it to you. HASTINGS Doesn't need to be sold. I own it, legal...don't even need his approval. Check your law books, you will see. DOWSER You can't take Dowser's mine. It's been his whole life. HASTINGS (evenly) Dowser's claim is only the beginning. You should have taken my offer on the bar this evening...because when I'm through, this whole island is going to be mine. He gives Louie an assured smile. LOUIE off his astonished look we: FADE OUT _END OF ACT ONE_ _ACT TWO_ FADE IN EXTERIOR MONKEY BAR - NIGHT Locals and new arrivals both are hurrying to join the crowd on the porch of the Monkey Bar, and on the second floor balcony. Obviously, word has spread and with it the kind of feverish excitement for which bored men are always eager. Perhaps a spontaneous fist fight or a spate of wagering breaks out in their midst. Camera adjusts to find Jake and Dowser pushing for the batwings. Some men push back, but Jake succeeds in getting to the door. INTERIOR MONKEY BAR - NIGHT Quite a different scene, more polished but no less excited. Gushie is guarding the batwings with an axe handle in his lap. He admits Jake and Dowser but, brandishes the axe handle to keep the other men out. JAKE There's a pretty crazy rumor flying around. GUSHIE It's no rumor. Hastings found an old law he says gives him the mine. DOWSER (smiling) No reason for a ruckus. I'll just go settle this with him island style. CLOSER Dowser reacts, tenses, and Jake raises Dowser's hand into view locked in his tight grip. Dowser has a mean looking skinning knife ready for use. Jake pries it loose and hands it to Gushie. JAKE That's just exactly what you're not gonna do. Go have a beer while I get to the bottom of this...Go! Louie won't let that guy pull a fast one. He keeps things very legal around here. Dowser's forehead knits as he gives Jake a suspicious squint. DOWSER That's a bunch of bull. Bon Chance Louie is allergic to laws. JAKE He lets people have a good time but he never lets them get robbed. Dowser goes for the bar as Jake climbs the stairs. DOWSER We're gonna have to settle this island style, Jake...wait and see. INTERIOR LOUIE'S OFFICE - NIGHT - ON OPEN PAGE OF LARGE BOOK - THROUGH MAGNIFYING GLASS The moldy tome is a spider-work of chaptered and indexed French law in barely readable agate-type. As the magnifying glass waves over the columns: JAKE'S VOICE (o.s.) (tightly impatient) He put a mine on it. What more does he have to do? WIDER Louie is searching one of several leather-bound volumes of colonial statutes. Jake is pacing in front of Louie's desk trying to make sense of what he can glimpse through the glass. Hastings has been whistling "Cheek to Cheek" with an annoying trill, while he pokes through Louie's photo albums, but now he stops. HASTINGS According to the law, a man can't just exploit a homestead for investments or minerals. Within ten years he's got to erect a dwelling and plant a crop and live on the land or he forfeits his claim. The law is perfectly clear. Louie heaves the big book closed, in the process sending up a cloud of dust. LOUIE (to Hastings) My countrymen are many things...impractical...large-nosed -- One thing they are not is clear. JAKE (to Louie) Why is there even a question? You know what this guy is up to...in the U.S. we call it claim jumping. HASTINGS But here it is called 'Les loix de colonisation'...laws to protect French interests in their colonies. LOUIE If I enforced all of the archaic laws I could find in these books, I would be required to incarcerate myself every twenty or thirty minutes. ANGLE - ACROSS LAW BOOKS TO HASTINGS He crosses to the books and nimbly flips pages. HASTINGS After they found tin in Guiana, the courts reassigned four thousand claims. The same in Senegal about five years ago. Emeralds. I have no doubt it'll happen again for Marivellan platinum...no matter what one local magistrate thinks. JAKE This is amazing...We're standing here seriously talking about taking Dowser's claim away from him. He's had that land for forty years. HASTINGS My point exactly...He's a nomad. He's claimed property all over this island but hasn't done a damn thing with any of it. So...it's not his any more...It's mine. Hastings heads for the door. JAKE It's his whole life, Louie...I mean, everything. Take it away and... (beat) We've got to do something! LOUIE Oui...but what? CUT TO INTERIOR MONKEY BAR - NIGHT - ON CORKY AND JACK At one table, Corky is with a group of bettors watching a slight-of-hand man run a shell game. Corky points first to one shell. Jack barks once for no. Corky points to another and gets the same. Corky points to the third and still Jack barks once. Squinting, Corky puts a hand over the first and third shells. INSERT - THE SHELLS Jack picks up the middle shell. No pea. BACK WIDE Corky turns over the other shells, empty. The crowd reacts angrily and goes for the crook. Corky scoops the money the table before they pounce on the cheat. CORKY It just ain't a good idea to run a crooked game with Jack around. ANGLE TO STAIRS - ACROSS DOWSER Hastings leads Jake and Louie down the stairs. He's whistling again -- they look like they've just received the doctor's bad news. Dowser drains his glass, flips some coins on the bar. Other customers crowd around Hastings who makes a big show of his victory. Dowser is ignored or given pitiless stares as he pushes out toward the door. NEW ANGLE Dowser is stone faced and unheeding of the men he knocks aside. Jake and Louie try to catch him, held back by the crowd. CORKY You'll wanna see this Dowser. Jack caught a fella cheatin' and these guys are gonna knock him silly. Lookit. This gives Jake enough time to put a hand on Dowser's sleeve. Dowser shakes it off. The men about to beat the cheat pause to hear. The boom town grapevine has already spread the word of what Hastings has pulled. JAKE He's not getting away with it...believe me. Just give me a little time. DOWSER That's what a copper told me back in Victoria, out in the Ballaarat gold fields when these three Abos stole my wagon. Last I saw of that team was the horses' tails. JAKE This isn't Australia. DOWSER Damn shame, too. Aussies know how to keep the peace. Louie has pushed through the tight knot of spectators. LOUIE Mon ami, nothing is certain. Before I allow anything to happen, I will obtain the very best opinion from the very best legal minds in France. Do not fear. DOWSER That's the kind of boosh-wah I'd expect from Hastings...not from my friends. MOVING WITH DOWSER Jake is on him as the crowd surges toward the entrance to the Monkey Bar. JAKE Be reasonable, Dowser. You know if it was up to me or Louie alone, there wouldn't be any question, but...the law is like a mamba...you just can't grab it by the tail or it'll bite you. DOWSER Leave me be. Fifteen judges and thirty-five trials later I know who's still gonna have my mine.... THEIR POINT OF VIEW - HASTINGS leading a group of excited boom towners. Sarah stops him. SARAH (to Hastings) What gives you the right to his homestead? You won't do anything but dig it up like he did. ON HASTINGS rather enjoying the victory. He produces a twenty dollar Havana cigar and twirls it as one of the boom towners lights it for him. HASTINGS Such little faith, Sarah. I'm going to build a log cabin with a white picket fence and some lucky girl is going to give me babies. Maybe it'll be you. With this, Hastings turns to exit. Before anyone can stop him, Dowser snorts like a bull seeing red and, taking a running start, he kicks Hastings full in the rear. Hastings goes headlong through the batwings. EXTERIOR MONKEY BAR - NIGHT Hastings flies out of the batwings and headlong into a mud puddle. Dowser leads Jake and others out the batwings to look down at Hastings. Many willing hands are eager to help the new king of the island out of the mud. DOWSER I knew we'd be doing this island style. Dowser pushes past everyone and goes off by himself into the night. Hastings looks after. The hateful glare on his face is promise he will avenge the insult. CUT TO EXTERIOR BORAGORA - DAY - JAKE He and Jack are taking a walking tour of the tent town. It's quiet and as Jake speaks, camera pans off to the lagoon where men are swimming, lazing about. There is a considerable amount of trash and debris lying about. The boom has seen better days. As the porch of the Monkey Bar, Jake takes a drink from a hose, splashes his face, then gives Jack a drink. During this we hear: JAKE'S VOICE OVER You know the old saying...what goes boom, must come down in splinters. I should've known it that first night when I saw Louie's skyrockets. A boom town is the same...Everything...and then nothing. My mother used to tell me every year before the Fourth of July fireworks over at Yankee Stadium, 'Don't cry when it's over...Nothing that wonderful can last very long.' But, when the sky went dark, I always thought there'd be one more skyrocket. I was always out of luck. Same with these guys...full of hope but out of luck. INTERIOR MONKEY BAR - DAY Jake enters, scanning the room. It's a decidedly different picture than the last time. Gone are the swells, replaced by disillusioned and discouraged men who quietly sip their drinks. Jake spots Louie reading some wireless flimsies. Ahmad the bartender gives Jake a beer while Gushie rolls up, obviously overworked and beleaguered. GUSHIE Those Samoans want more credit. They threatened to take the wheels off my chair. LOUIE Throw them out. And do the same thing with their I.O.U.s. We'll never see their money. GUSHIE He wants me to throw them out. Samoans. Three hundred-pound Samoans. Gushie grabs a beer off the bar and downs half of it while Louie ignores his woes and flips through the flimsies. JAKE I'd bet you'd like to see a paying customer again. LOUIE I remember that creature...vaguely. It's been extinct on Boragora for about a week. JAKE I hate to think we're watching 'survival of the fittest' in action. NEW ANGLE - ACROSS LOUIE AND JAKE TO HASTINGS He is eating a plateful of steak and nursing a bottle of red. The hungry and broke boom towners ignore him, including Jack who growls at the offer of a tidbit. LOUIE Monsieur Hastings is surviving very well, despite my sincere attempts to erase him from our lives. The geologist's report is in. Dowser's claim seems to contain all the platinum likely to be found on Boragora. As for Hastings' claim on the claim...Do you want to read? ON JAKE AND LOUIE JAKE Give me the short, painless version. Louie sighs, snapping his fingers to Ahmad the bartender for a cognac. Jack jumps on a stool and Louie lets him sniff the fumes when the cognac arrives. LOUIE There isn't one. We no doubt are observing the only occasion in the history of the French Republic when even two Frenchmen were of a like mind...in our case, the wrong mind. JAKE We'll have to tell Dowser. Geez...I'd rather drag myself over the reef. LOUIE It must be done...and somehow we must avoid bloodshed. Sarah comes down the stairs and can't avoid passing Hastings. He holds up the wine bottle as an offer, but she keeps her head straight and eyes forward, crossing to Louie and Jake. As she passes the boom towners leer and make comments we can't hear. Hastings shrugs and pays his bill, going outside. At the bar, Sarah fumes for a moment, tapping her toe in a rapid staccato. SARAH If...one...more...dirty...horrible...degenerate -- They have nothing to do but make...remarks to me. I constantly feel like I need a bath. LOUIE I wish the same thought would occur to them. JAKE I know it's getting rough, Sarah, but it's like any bunch of guys anywhere who are bored, broke, and lonely. You can't take it personally. ANGLE TO DOOR Jack growls and heads for cover before we hear a commotion, then Corky bangs into the bar, really disgusted. CORKY Jake. They're teasing Dowser's burro, and I can't get 'em to stop. EXTERIOR MONKEY BAR - DAY Jake pushes through the batwings. Louie, Sarah and Corky are right behind him. NEW ANGLE - PAST JAKE TO PUDDIN' HEAD The burro is the center of attention of a group of men. Dooley is astride the beast, making it buck and jump trying to dislodge him. The group from the bar surges that way. ON THE SCENE Hastings is enjoying Puddin' Head's torment greatly. Dooley goes flying off the burro who has no chance to get away before Dooley is back on. The process of staying astride involves considerable kicking and swearing, not a pleasant experience for the old burro. Hastings holds up a paper. HASTINGS A free lease, gentlemen, to the man who can stay on that creature for a full minute. NEW ANGLE Dowser bulls through the ring of riders at the same moment as Jake. Corky makes an attempt to steady Puddin' Head, who has bucked off Dooley again and is now fully terrified. Dowser goes for Hastings' throat. The men tumble on the ground. Jake really has to work to pull Dowser off. Hastings sits up laughing, despite the near strangulation. The boom towners are disappointed that their chance at a lease and a good fight has been taken away. ON JACK He jumps up and gets a clamp on Puddin' Head's rope and the burro stops bucking. ON DOWSER He is still straining against Jake, all the bad news that has befallen him coming back out with his hurt and anger. JAKE This isn't the way! DOWSER That's what you keep sayin', but I still ain't got my mine back, and I probably never will. Well, you can take away everything a man has, but you don't hurt his animal. Puddin' Head's a stupid burro...but he's smarter'n all you jackasses. You want to kick somebody, kick me. You been doin' a pretty good job so far. Just don't hurt him. He's even older'n me and his back is bad. This speech quiets the crowd a bit. They loosen their ring and begin to drift away, now ashamed. ANGLE TO INCLUDE JACK AND PUDDIN' HEAD Jack drops the rope and barks twice. Puddin' Head responds with two brays and is suddenly turned and running at full speed before anyone can get a hand on him. Dowser takes a few steps after, but it's hopeless to chase. DOWSER Puddin' Head. Get back here, damn your hide. ON HASTINGS He's peeling a few bills off a roll from his pocket, offering them to Dowser, obviously quite satisfied with his revenge for the dunking Dowser gave him in the mud puddle. HASTINGS As you say, an old burro. Fifty francs? For sentimental value? Dowser just looks at the money, then walks away. Jake takes a few steps after him as Hastings shrugs and puts the money back in his pocket. Dowser rounds on Jake. DOWSER Keep clear of me. I'm tired of all your pathetic molly-coddlin'. You ain't even got the guts to tell me I'm the big loser around here. A man who calls himself your friend but don't tell you the truth just turns my stomach. Dowser stomps off by himself. Jake is going to follow after, but Louie holds him back. EXTERIOR BORAGORA TENT CITY - DAY - MOVING WITH JAKE AND JACK strolling past shanties constructed by the boom towners of whatever they could find. Clothes in tatters, wearing hats manufactured of palm fronds, most are well along in the process of going native, frying their fish catch on makeshift stoves of bricks and metal. JAKE'S VOICE OVER Recipe for turning a paradise into a slum...Take equal parts of greed and desperation, mix with a lot of 'too little, too late,' and let bake in the tropic sun until you don't recognize it anymore. Serves...serves to make you pretty miserable. ANGLE TO INCLUDE WILLIE AND LUMIRE in tense conversation. Lumire's Palace de Paris is just about as run down as the rest of the boom town. The once beautiful hostesses are lounging around, trying to keep cool. In their midst is a native girl, Nani, looking out of place and uncomfortable. Jake stops to hear the conversation. WILLIE How can you have enlisted that poor, innocent Christian girl into, into your...service? LUMIRE It was surprisingly easy. She took to it like...well not like a 'poor innocent Christian girl.' WILLIE (fuming) I'll thank you not to blaspheme. What you have this creature doing is beyond description. NANI I only give blessing...blessings. WILLIE Thank you, my child...I'll talk with you later. Right now, I am not in the best of humors. With this understatement, Willie searches for something on which to vent his rage. Unfortunately, it is a trunk on which one of Lumire's girls has set up a mirror and a vast assortment of makeup and perfume. Willie's kick to the trunk sends it all flying, including billowing clouds of face powder. The girls shriek and jump to salvage their makeup. Lumire backs up a step, which Willie quickly closes. Jake has hardly had time to react. He coughs in the powder. ON JACK Unfortunately, he has been covered with powder. He begins to growl, shaking off the stuff. BACK WIDE JAKE Come on...Reverend, how about a schnapps? Willie doesn't turn to Jake, pushing Lumire back until the man is against his tent. WILLIE (to Jake) Bitte...when I am through here.... LUMIRE She came to me of her own free will, and I did not break my word to you...I never paid her a sou. This news further infuriates Willie. He gurgles something and lashes out at a tent pole, hauling it out of the sand. Lumire's entire tent collapses like a house of cards. Several customers inside begin to thrash around, and one climbs out from under in his longjohns. A crowd is gathering, and from somewhere, Lumire's bodyguards finally show up. They step up. Jake gives it another try. JAKE Reverend...We should take a walk...right now. But, that's about all the peace making Jake is allowed. One of the bodyguards throws a punch which Willie deftly parries, going into his Marquis of Queensbury fighting stance. Jake ducks a punch from the other bodyguard, and might have stayed out of the fight excepts Jack decides to get a legful of Lumire. Lumire kicks him away. Now, Jake has to wade in, like it or not. ON THE FIGHT Willie and Jake make strange partners, their fighting styles matching not in the least. Willie looks like a bare knuckler from another century, while Jake's loose and opportunistic style is high, low and everywhere. The fight draws a crowd of boom towners, who begin to immediately place bets and root for one or the other. ANGLE - ALONG ROW OF SHANTIES Jake sends a bodyguard flying and the man collapses one of the cardboard and tin shanties. The next one goes down, then the next like a row of dominos. WILLIE (in German) Fantastisch. Wunderbar. Schlag die Dreckigen hunde nieder. (Fantastic. Wonderful. Beat the dirty dogs into the ground.) ANOTHER ANGLE Willie lands a roundhouse on the second bodyguard, and the man flattens the last remaining shanty. The fight is finished, and so is the shanty town. Jake and Willie shake. WILLIE My congratulations...I haven't had such a workout since I was back home in...ah, the Netherlands. JAKE Were you just speaking Dutch...or...German? WILLIE Ah...ah ha. Dutch. What else? JAKE I could have sworn it was German. WILLIE Many similarities...many, ah... (looking around) Nani! We must go pray for your soul! Willie makes a hasty exit, rounding up Nani. She demurely falls in beside him and they head for the church. Lumire is in a daze, looking at his destroyed tent. He's not in much worse shape than the other boom towners. The fight has just about wiped out the tent city. ANGLE TO JACK He reveals his hiding place, stepping into view from beneath the full skirts of one of Lumire's girls. Jake knocks some of the powder off his fur. JAKE You better go roll in the dirt, Jack, before some other dogs get the wrong idea. ANGLE - PAST JAKE TO LOUIE AND SARAH approaching, looking grim. JAKE (continuing) We should've thought of this before, Louie. The bulldozer approach. Make an official decree or something before they put these things back --- Something about their manner makes Jake stop and listen. Louie shakes his head. Sarah shows Jake a piece of paper. SARAH Dowser's gone, Jake. She hands him the note. JAKE (reading) 'Guess I'll go find Puddin' Head. Guess he's lonely. Guess that's about it.' Damn! I had a feeling. I should've gone after him.... FADE OUT _END OF ACT TWO_ _ACT THREE_ FADE IN EXTERIOR MONKEY BAR HOTEL - DAY - UPPER BALCONY Jake is leaning against a post, looking inland toward the hills, smoking a cheroot. JAKE'S VOICE OVER I wanted to think that a man who'd spent forty years digging up the same mountain on the strength of a dream was the kind of man who'd spend another forty years on the strength of a memory. But, maybe I was the dreamer. Dowser was only a man...too tired to go on doing anything. Jake tosses the cigar over and goes into his room. Camera tilts down to discover Louie pacing the lower porch of the hotel like the captain of a ship, surveying the shanty town clean up. Boom towners are hauling the junk they used to construct their shacks and throwing it onto a tall pile. Gushie rolls out the batwings with a bottle of beer and a pilsner glass for his boss. Louie accepts and pours. LOUIE Merci...I think we shall soon recognize our home again...uneventful...unchanging.... GUSHIE Just the way we like it. The roar and sputter of a badly tuned car engine. ANGLE - TO INCLUDE CITROEN The banged up old car careens around the corner of the hotel and brakes to a stop. Louie is startled by this sudden appearance and lets his beer foam over the glass. One of Lumire's bodyguards is driving the Citroen, and Hastings stands up out of the passenger seat on the sideboard. No trace of his former joviality remains. HASTINGS Can I count on your help? Louie puts down the beer and goes down the steps. LOUIE Certain moi...I would help you best if I confined you to the hotel. HASTINGS I'd like to hear the reason you'd dream up. All I want is to survey my property. Something illegal about that? LOUIE I am not interested in any more of your legal casuistry. I have no doubt that old man is also going there. And, I have no doubt about the treatment he can expect from you. HASTINGS He's nothin' to me, Magistrate...He can squat anywhere he wants on this whole island...as long as I don't own it...and all he'll get from me is a wave. JAKE'S VOICE Then why do you need Lumire's two thugs? ANGLE - UP PAST LOUIE AND HASTINGS TO INCLUDE JAKE leaning over the hotel balcony. Jack is also looking over at Jake's feet. Jake has his pistol and gun belt balled up in one hand and a rolled chart stuck under the other arm. HASTINGS (a beat) Because, I don't think Dowser feels the same way. Jack barks twice to concur. Hastings swings into the Citroen and the driver spins the tires in the dust rounding the corner away from the hotel. Hastings doesn't look back as he slams the door shut. Louie looks up at Jake. LOUIE (fuming) My gendarmes will bring him back. And then...I will simply forget I've sent him to Lagoda penal colony for a few years hard labor. Jake waves the rolled chart as he continues along the balcony, Jack following. JAKE We've got work to do before you can enjoy yourself. Look at this. INTERIOR LOUIE'S OFFICE - DAY - CLOSE ON CHART A large scale navigational map of Boragora with contour lines for the elevations and French place names: on the south coast, the lagoon and Ville de la Boragora; at one end Jacques Reef; toward the north shore the island's central peak of Soufrier; and near the peak, a low marsh named Marais de la Brume. Jake's finger is tracing. LOUIE'S VOICE Are you sure your malaria is not flaring up? WIDE Jake and Louie are looking over the chart, unrolled on Louie's desk. Corky is behind them, and Jack is lying on the desk next to the chart. JAKE I'm perfectly fine. It's two hours by car from here to Soufrier, but if I can land the Goose at Marais de la Brume, I can be there in twenty minutes. LOUIE Why not land on the top of Soufrier itself. You can be there in five. JAKE You're not taking me seriously. Jack barks twice, but Jake ignores this, tracing his route. JAKE (continuing) Dowser's mine is on that mountain, that's where he's gone, and I've got to get to him the fastest way. LOUIE Agreed, but this is not it. A landing along the north coast would seem even more desirable. CORKY You can't land in them swells, Louie. That's the windward side, and it's all cliffs. LOUIE Thank you, I was merely making the point that landing at Marais de la Brume is --- JAKE (cutting him off) It's a shot, Louie, and it's our only shot. Besides, this is the rainy season. For any kind of pilot worth his salt, it's a piece of cake. Jack barks once and puts his paws over his eyes. LOUIE What a deliciously mixed metaphor. CORKY Marais de la Brume. How come everything in French sounds like it smells good and you wouldn't mind kissing it? LOUIE It means 'The Swamp of Fogs.' JAKE I like it in French better. CUT TO EXTERIOR BORAGORA BEACH - DAY - LONG TOWARD THE HOTEL Louie's motorcycle is coming at us through the remnants of the tent city, Jake riding and Sarah in the sidecar. Jack is trotting along behind. Jake runs it a trifle close to the water before braking. Sarah gives him a squinty "you think you're so smart" look. The Goose is pulled up on the sand. Corky jumps out of the hatch and goes immediately to work on the sidecar with a fistful of tools. SARAH As I was saying --- JAKE (ignoring her; to Corky) I'll pre-flight the Goose. Holler when you're ready to load. Without a look to Sarah, Jake swings off the bike and goes for the seaplane. Corky has wedged himself between the sidecar and the bike, working with a wrench. CORKY You'll have to get out of there, Sarah, or come down on top of me. SARAH Maybe it would knock some sense into you. Jack barks once, and Sarah nods ruefully in agreement. She looks around for Jake, but he is already disappearing into the Goose's nose hatch. Jack runs and jumps in after. ON THE GOOSE COCKPIT Jake climbs up into the pilot's chair, priming the engine. He hits the igniter and the port prop begins to spin as the engine wheezes and fires. Sarah has no choice but to hike her dress up and wade into the water to shout to Jake over the engine noise, through the pilot's window. SARAH Despite your fancy driving back there, I still think you're nuts. Jake motions that he can't hear Sarah. She reaches through the window and turns off the switch. The engine dies and winds down. Jake looks at her a bit surprised. SARAH (continuing) I've flown with you enough to know which do-jiggy does what. Now, I have something to say. (shrugs) Dowser won't be any better off if you bury the Goose in some god-awful swamp. Let Louie send his men. Jack barks twice and puts his paws up to look out. JAKE Dowser doesn't like cops. He'd just spit in their eye. SARAH You can be so flip. CORKY'S VOICE She's ready, Jake. The sidecar is detaching from the motorcycle. Some men move in to carry the two pieces to the Goose. BACK ON THE COCKPIT SARAH Please, Jake! I'm starting to feel like a soldier's wife, and we aren't even...we haven't even --- She's choked up with the frankness of her plea. Jake sticks a hand out the window and takes hers. JAKE I think Dowser wants to kill himself...and maybe I'm the only one he'll listen to. If Hastings or the gendarmes reach him first, he'll use that as an excuse. (beat) I love that old guy, Sarah...I know this is corny, but...I, ah...hell, a guy could do worse for a father. I think of him a little like that. (beat) Don't you dare tell him I said it. Sarah shakes her head and smiles. SARAH Men always think the most beautiful things are corny. Be careful! Sarah reaches into the cockpit and hits the igniter. The port engine winds up again and fires. WIPE TO EXTERIOR - SKY - DAY - THE GOOSE in flight, low over the island. CORKY'S VOICE Might as well try to land on a wet blotter covered with straw. INTERIOR THE GOOSE'S COCKPIT - DAY Jake is craned out one window, Corky out the other. JAKE I've got this feeling it's gonna be easier than landing in the lagoon. ON JACK on the floor between the seats. Behind him we can see the motorcycle and sidecar, now apart, lashed into the cabin. Jack barks once. BACK ON JAKE JAKE It's _my_ feeling...Look for a wind channel between the grass, Corky. Twenty feet wide ought to do it. EXTERIOR SWAMP - THEIR POINT OF VIEW - STOCK unrolling below. Much like the Everglades, the swamp is choked with reeds, ten, fifteen feet high which are broken by winding wind channels. INTERIOR THE GOOSE'S COCKPIT - DAY Jake trims the plane, easing back the throttles, letting it drop. Corky points. CORKY How about that one? Pretty straight. Maybe a three hundred yard run. JAKE Fine. It's only twenty points off the wind. What are you waiting for, Jack? Gonna hide your head. Jack's not proud. After two barks, he scoots for his parachute in the back. Jake grins, clamps an unlit cheroot in his mouth, and increases the angle of descent. Intercut with: EXTERIOR - SKY - DAY - THE GOOSE - VARIOUS ANGLES as Jake brings it down, slow and fat. It buzzes overhead and straight into a fog bank. CORKY Where'd this soup come from? JAKE It blows through all the time, I guess. We'll get out of it. Jack barks once. INTERIOR COCKPIT WINDOW - DAY - GOOSE First, nothing but the thick fog blowing past, then reeds begin to lash at the glass with an explosive sound. Corky involuntarily flinches and puts an arm across his eyes. The cockpit lurches as the Goose touches down. EXTERIOR SWAMP - DAY - THE GOOSE - OPTICAL - STOCK as the seaplane lands in the fog. INTERIOR THE GOOSE'S COCKPIT - DAY Corky is straining to see out his window. The engines suddenly stop with a metallic groan. CORKY (pissed) Ah, Jake! This grass has wrapped around our props. I'll be hours hackin' it off the shafts. JAKE We're down. That's good enough for me. A tremendous jolt stops the seaplane's forward momentum dead in the water, lurching Jake and Corky against their straps, and sending Jake's cheroot flying. JAKE (after recovering) Mudbar. Hope we're not far from solid ground. CORKY (sarcastic) Shouldn't be a problem, Jake. We can just carry the motorbike on our backs until we find some. It only weighs a ton. Jack barks twice, and they turn to see him. INTERIOR THE GOOSE'S CABIN - DAY - ACROSS JACK TO COCKPIT He's been thrown into the sidecar and looks forward toward Jake and Corky. JAKE You can ride. EXTERIOR SWAMP - DAY - THE GOOSE - OPTICAL It sits high on a mudbank, covered by the reeds it has collected in its landing, as the fog blows away. WIPE TO EXTERIOR HIGHLANDS - DAY Dowser is stepping along through the sparse vegetation with the help of a sapling he's trimmed as a walking stick. He stops to pull a bottle of French Vichy water out of his pack, taking a long drink and pouring some on his head. DOWSER (to no one) If you don't show your stupid face pretty soon, I'm gonna drink up all this fancy water I brought you. It's got bubbles in it. The snooty kind you like. Dowser shakes his head and stows the bottle in the pack. He continues walking. NEW ANGLE Now we can see that Puddin' Head is about ten feet behind Dowser. When Dowser walks, so does Puddin' Head. DOWSER (continuing) And, of course, there's the bon-bons...the chocolate mousse kind...the kind that makes you roll on your back and wrinkle up your lips with delight. I guess you don't want them either. Puddin' Head puts up his ears at this and gives two brays. Dowser is so lost in his thoughts he thinks he's imagining the sound. He starts walking again. So does Puddin' Head. DOWSER (continuing) Just the kind of trick I'd expect from a dumb ass like you. Been hidin' behind me long enough to find out if it was worth your while. Dowser produces the Vichy water and tips it up so Puddin' Head can have a long drink. DOWSER (continuing) I think it's only fair to tell you, Puddin' Head, this is gonna be my last trip into the mine. It don't have to be yours. (beat) You could go back down and hang out at the Monkey Bar. Jake and Louie'd take care of you. (beat) Do yourself a favor and think it over. Dowser caps the bottle, stows it, and continues walking. Puddin' Head is right behind. DOWSER (continuing) I am not impressed with all this sentimentality. You'd follow me anywhere, wouldn't you? And I know why...I got the -- _bon-bons_! At the sound of the word, Puddin' Head gives a wondrous bray and wrinkles his lips. Dowser pats him affectionately on the nose and fishes out a bon bon from the pack and slowly unwraps the foil around it. WIPE TO EXTERIOR BUSH - DAY First we hear, then we finally see, the reassembled motorcycle break out of the bush on the side of the road. It is heavily smeared with mud. Corky and Jack are passengers in the sidecar. Jake pours on the power and drifts through the turn onto a dirt road. MOVING WITH THE MOTORCYCLE JAKE Finally we can make a little speed. How much time did we lose? CORKY An hour and a half...and hour and forty --- Jake takes a corner and then hits the brakes so hard the bike fishtails ninety degrees to the direction of the road. Corky nearly snaps his neck at the force of the stop. Jack ducks out of sight. ANGLE - PAST THEM TO THE MINE Dug out of the mountainside, Dowser's mine is across a deep river bed, crossed by one of the flimsiest and worst bridges ever. It looks about to go at any minute. The road continues past the ninety degree turn onto the bridge. CORKY I see the mine, but what's that thing across the river? JAKE I could be generous and call it a bridge. Jack sticks his head out long enough to bark once then ducks down again. CORKY I'm with you, Jack. Suddenly, the out-of-tune racket of the Citroen bursts on their ears and the car slides into view from the other direction, braking in a cloud of dust. It comes to a halt facing the motorcycle. The turnoff to the bridge is between them. Hastings steps up on the running board, looking simultaneously at Jake and the bridge. HASTINGS I don't care how you did it, but as long as you got here first, any sign of the old goat? ON JAKE He bridles at the slur, gently nudging the motorcycle ahead to gain the closer position to the bridge. JAKE Dowser's probably in his mine. And, that's where we're going. Jake nudges the motorcycle another few feet, its front tire now almost on the bridge. Corky winces. A timber creaks. ON THE TWO VEHICLES HASTINGS My mine. Just go back where you came from. Jake gestures with a thumb toward the bridge. JAKE Doesn't look too steady. You'd better not drive across. CORKY What about us?! From his hiding place in the sidecar, Jack sounds two muffled barks. JAKE That's different. Intercut the following action: ON THE BRIDGE Jake spins his tires and jerks out onto the bridge, a study in urgency and caution. Immediately the bridge groans and shakes, going to pieces under them. Hastings' driver leans out the window and levels a handgun on the window sill. Hastings knocks his hand down and the shot squirts harmlessly into the dirt. Jake pours on the power to the motorcycle and speeds off the bridge, into the dark mouth of the mine as the bridge crumbles into the river bed below. FADE OUT _END OF ACT THREE_ _ACT FOUR_ FADE IN INTERIOR TUNNEL - DAY It might be day out there, but all we see is darkness. In the background we can still hear the after-rumble of the collapsed bridge echoing through the walls of the mountain and in the walls of the tunnel. We also hear another voice: JAKE'S VOICE Corky...Jack. Are you all right? CORKY'S VOICE I think so. Jack barks twice for yes. JAKE'S VOICE Where's the light switch on this thing? CORKY'S VOICE I think it's over here. We hear the motorcycle horn go off. It's loud, and echoes across the walls. CORKY'S VOICE That's not it, Jake. Then, the headlight goes on -- shining right into camera. It also lights up the area. We can see that we are in a narrow, natural tunnel. We see that the motorcycle has turned over from the spill with Jake and Corky on either side of it. It is Jack who is by the handlebars -- where the light switch is. JAKE Thanks, Jack. Jack barks twice. They get up. There's hardly enough headroom to stand. Corky inspects the motorcycle. CORKY The tire's gone on the sidecar. I'm gonna have to take the whole car off. JAKE (to Corky) I better go see what's left of the bridge. Shine the light towards the opening. Corky turns the motorcycle around and shines the light in the other direction. Jake begins to walk over to it, as Corky starts to detach the sidecar. EXTERIOR MOUTH OF CAVE - DAY as Jake looks out. JAKE'S POINT OF VIEW - ACROSS RIVER as we can see the river washing the debris of the small bridge. On the other side is Hastings and his two men. Hastings looks toward us. HASTINGS (shouting across river) Get the hell out of my mine! He motions to one of his men. He takes aim and fires a warning shot. JAKE as he ducks just as the bullet hits a rock in front of him. Jake disappears into the tunnel. INTERIOR TUNNEL as we see Jake make his way back to Corky and Jack. Corky now has the sidecar off and the motorcycle up and ready to go. Jack is already sitting right behind the handlebars. JAKE They saw me. We gotta find Dowser. I don't think that river is going to hold them back for very long. Jack barks twice for yes. Jake gets on the bike, Corky behind him. He aims the bike towards the deep regions of the tunnel. Then starts up the bike. JAKE After all this, Dowser better be in here. He hits the clutch and takes off into the darkness. CUT TO EXTERIOR MINE - ACROSS RIVER as Hastings reaches into the Citroen for two rifles. He throws them to his men. HASTINGS You're going to have to get some ropes and lower yourselves to the river -- then cross over. They're trespassing on my property. You can kill them...it's legal. The men begin to tie the ropes to the post of the collapsed bridge. INTERIOR TUNNEL as Jake continues to ride through the tunnel. JAKE'S POINT OF VIEW - TUNNEL AHEAD as we see the headlight illuminating the hollow tunnel in front of them. We can hear Jack growling. JAKE What is it, Jack? As if to answer, suddenly darting in front of the headlight...is Puddin' Head. He sees them and brays. CORKY Watch out! FULL as Jake turns the cycle towards the wall to prevent hitting Puddin' Head. It slams against the hard rock -- the headlight blowing out. With the headlight out, they are once again in darkness. But as soon as we adjust to the darkness, we can see, ahead of us, another glow. CORKY Jake, look...over there. The three begin towards the light, on foot. END OF CAVE looking away from it, we can see from a warm, golden light, Jake, Corky, and Jack as they walk towards us. Puddin' Head is right behind them. They look up, past camera, obviously looking at something extraordinary. JAKE There it is all right. CORKY Gee, Jake, I've never seen anything like it! Jack, also looking up, barks twice to agree. LOW ANGLE - THEIR POINT OF VIEW - PLATINUM VEIN across the back wall, at the end of the tunnel we can see, lit by three kerosene lamps, the vein. It looks like the wall itself has been slashed over and over again with a golden saber -- the platinum in the sandy wall sparkling in long, thick lines like a spider web. As we pull back we can see under the vein, a cot, a few supplies, and a large crate...with 'dynamite' printed on it. A figure gets up from behind the crate. He is holding a crowbar in his hand. It is Dowser. FULL as the threesome walk up to Dowser. DOWSER I know, it's something to look at. Maybe you'll understand now what kept me going. JAKE (meaning it) Dowser, that's the find of a lifetime. DOWSER Should be. It took that long. Now if you'll excuse me, I don't think you're going to want to be around here much longer. He picks up one of the sticks of dynamite and begins to fit it with a long fuse. CORKY Jake, I think he's going to blow the mine up. DOWSER All you need is one stick. See, you put it right in the center of all the others and it gets them all worked up. It's going to bring the whole mountain down onto my mine. He takes a wood kindle from the broken up crate and lights it from the lamp...then holds the flame by the fuse. JAKE (hard) Dowser, listen to me! DOWSER (firm) No, Jake, I won't. You have a way...a way of talking people out of things. Hell, if I listen to you, next thing I know I'll be out of this mine...waltzin' back with all of you for a few drinks at the Monkey Bar. JAKE And what's so wrong with that? What are you so afraid of out there? DOWSER I'm afraid of tomorrow, and the next day...and the next year. And of all the years that I'm left on this earth thinking every second that this Hastings fellow is making money off my life. (then; strong) It just isn't worth the pain! With that, he unravels the long fuse, jams the stick into the center of the crate of dynamite, and lights the end -- to everyone's shocked amazement. It begins to burn down fast. No one knows what to do. They stand there frozen as we hear the deadly hiss of the fuse burning. JACK as he walks over to the right side of Dowser, near Puddin' Head. He hops up on Dowser's cot and begins to paw at an open pocket knife. Dowser's back is to him. JAKE as he sees what Jack is doing. He gets the idea. JAKE (quickly) Okay...then at least let Corky take Puddin' Head out of here. Jake looks over to Corky, then motions to Jack. Corky sees the knife and gets the idea. Corky moves over to Puddin' Head, and the knife. CORKY Sure, Jake, I'll take Puddin' Head out. DOWSER You're not going to get him to budge. I've tried. The fuse continues to burn as Corky inches his way from Puddin' Head to the knife. DOWSER Look, Jake, get out of here, while you still have time. It's okay...really. I've had it all now. I've been poor, and for a day or two I had unlimited riches...and let me tell you something. They both don't work. They don't make you happy. The fuse is now off the floor and is burning up the side of the crate. JAKE Damn it, Dowser, the purpose of life is not just to be happy...but to matter, to have it make some difference that you have lived at all! You've done that...you've made it matter. Now don't throw it away. DOWSER Maybe my dreams are just a little bigger than my patience. Corky, having reached the knife, grabs it quickly; then grabbing the fuse, cuts in right in front of the flame. It burns out as it hits the floor. Dowser watches it burn out. He looks up at Jake. He now has tears in his eyes. DOWSER That was real great. You tricked an old man.... CORKY I had to do it, Dowser. We can't let you blow up the mine. DOWSER Why the hell not? Corky thinks about that for a moment. But at the same time, that triggers something in Jake. JAKE (a sudden idea) Yeah, Corky, why the hell not? CORKY Huh? JAKE (sincere; to Dowser) You're absolutely right, you know that. I'm standing here, giving you grand speeches about 'the meaning of life,' and not for a moment have I really thought of what you're going through. Of course, we blow up the mine. CORKY Jake, you sure you know what you're talking about? JAKE (to Dowser) If you don't get this mine, let's make sure no one does. He goes right up to Dowser. He's really rolling now. JAKE Dowser, listen, you keep talking about destroying all this...and yourself with it. But tell me, what would you give to see Hastings' face when he first sees that his mine was under a million tons of mountain? DOWSER It'd be a pretty sight, but what would I do after that? JAKE You find another mine. Spend another forty years with Puddin' Head and Moby...hell you said yourself that being rich wasn't all you thought it would be. It's the looking for it that you love. Come on, Dowser, let's shove this mine right down Hastings' throat! Jake's smile is catching. Dowser thinks about it for a moment, then smiles too. But it quickly disappears as he looks down at the fuse. DOWSER (dark) It was a good idea for a minute, Jake. But you forgot one thing. This fuse here's only got about thirty seconds left on it. We can't run out of here in that amount of time. JAKE Yes, we can. You take Puddin' Head and Jack out of here first, and Corky and I will set the fuse...then get out on the motorcycle. DOWSER Bad soap, Jake. This is my mine...and if it's going to blow, then it's got to be my hands that does it. CORKY I'll take Jack and Puddin' Head. You can ride behind Jake. Okay, Dowser? Dowser thinks for a moment. He walks over to Puddin' Head. DOWSER (to Puddin' Head) Now for once in your life listen to me. You take Corky and Jack up a ways to Hourglass Point, so they can cross over without being seen. You got that? Puddin' Head brays. DOWSER And for God's sake, stay away from the merlberries...hell, I'm the only person who can stand being around you after you go through a bush of them. JAKE Dowser, you're talking to him like it's your last goodbye. Thanks for the confidence. DOWSER Well, a man's gotta cover all bases. (then to Puddin' Head) All right, now get out of here, you dumb fool. Puddin' Head brays. He doesn't want to move. Corky tugs on the rope...nothing. Then Jack growls. That gets him moving. As they begin down the tunnel: CORKY (to Jake) Okay, Jake, now.... JAKE Don't _you_ start. CORKY I was just going to say, I'll see you on the other side of the river. He continues down the tunnel. CORKY (to Puddin' Head) You see, he never lets me finish a sentence. Jack barks twice for yes. They disappear into the darkness of the tunnel. JAKE AND DOWSER as they turn their attention to the crate. JAKE (with warmth) Dowser, I'm glad you changed your mind. DOWSER (sluffing it off) Come on, we better pack this stuff tighter. They begin carefully working on the dynamite. CUT TO EXTERIOR MINE - ACROSS BRIDGE as we see Hastings' men, ropes secure, as they begin to lower themselves down the cliff to the river below -- the rifles strapped to their backs. Camera pans around to the other side of the mine where we see: CLOSER ANGLE - MINE Partially hidden by the trees to the right of the mine opening, we can just barely make out Corky, Puddin' Head and Jack as they begin up the trail to Hourglass Point. Hastings is busy with the ropes, and doesn't notice them. CUT TO INTERIOR CAVE as Jake and Dowser now have the dynamite packed tightly with the fused stick in the center. The short fuse sticks out. Jake turns the motorcycle around to face the exit. Then he gets on. JAKE This is it. Better get going. Dowser turns around and faces the magnificent wall with the marbled platinum. DOWSER Awful beautiful sight. JAKE Look hard. Then close your eyes and remember it. That's a picture no law can take away from you. Dowser closes his eyes, then turns to Jake. He lights the piece of kindling, then gets on the motorcycle. DOWSER Okay, let's blow up a mountain! Jake starts the motor, then grabs the kerosene light. JAKE (over the noise) After you light it, you're going to have to hold this lamp as we move. It's all we've got. He points to the broken headlight. Dowser reaches down and lights the fuse. A split second later Jake hits the gear and they speed off. They are almost out of sight when: DOWSER Stop! Jake slams on the brakes. JAKE What is it? Dowser slips off the back and begins running back to the cave. JAKE Dowser, you can't change your mind! Dowser grabs the whale bone and runs back to the motorcycle. He gets on. DOWSER Had to get Moby. Don't go anywhere without him. Jake gives him a look, as they speed off once again. CLOSEUP - FUSE as it continues to burn. EXTERIOR RIVER - ON CORKY as they make their way to the narrow point in the river (Hourglass Point) and begin to cross. EXTERIOR MINE - ON RIVER as we see Hastings' men, having reached the river, try to begin across against the strong current. Camera pans up to Hastings who, satisfied with his men's progress, begins to whistle "Cheek to Cheek" again. TUNNEL as Jake and Dowser -- trying to hold the kerosene lamp -- continue to speed towards the opening. DOWSER We're not going to make it! It's too far to the opening! JAKE Dowser, it doesn't matter...The bridge is out...I don't know what the hell I'm going to do once we're out anyway! Dowser gives Jake a shocked look. JAKE Well you wouldn't have come if I told you that before! FUSE as it burns almost to the blasting cap. OTHER SIDE OF RIVER Hastings' men are still trying to get in the water without loosing footing; camera pans up to Hastings who is still watching. We zoom to Corky, Puddin' Head and Jack who are now across the river and are heading down. DYNAMITE it blows. EXTERIOR MINE as we see the blinding red flash and smoke as it rips out of the mouth of the mine. VARIOUS SHOTS - QUICK CUTS Hastings, as he is suddenly shocked at the explosion; his men, as they dive into the water; Corky as he looks over in horror. FULL - MINE as the smoke and debris continue to fly out -- then...as if shot from a cannon -- the two wheels off the ground, we see the motorcycle, Jake and Dowser still on it, fly out of the tunnel from the impact of the explosion...and continue right across the river to the other side. MOUNTAIN - STOCK as it crumbles down onto the mine. JAKE As we hear the enormous rumble, Jake gets off the motorcycle, and walks over to the speechless Hastings. JAKE It's all yours, Hastings. There's your God damn mine! Hastings looks over to the mountain. Corky makes his way over to the group, with Puddin' Head and Jack. HASTINGS (in shock) You can't do that! JAKE We just did. Suddenly we hear a familiar tune. But it's not coming from Hastings. Someone else is whistling it: "Cheek to Cheek." Jake turns. It's Dowser. He just looks over to Hastings as he whistles. Jake picks it up, and so does Corky. HIGH ANGLE as camera cranes up, we watch the group: Jake, Corky, Dowser, Jack and Puddin' Head calmly start down the road to their "Cheek to Cheek" chorus -- leaving Hastings and friends to their mountain. FADE OUT _END OF ACT FOUR_ _TAG_ FADE IN EXTERIOR MONKEY BAR - NIGHT The island has returned to normal...all traces of the boom town have been cleared away. And, with this normalization comes a return of the typical Boragora doldrums. INTERIOR MONKEY BAR - NIGHT Jake is at the bar with Willie, Corky and Sarah. Jack is on a table, looking toward them. The turning of the fly fans and the occasional thud of a beer mug on a table are about the only sounds that let us know anybody's even alive in the nearly empty bar. Willie is turned away from the carved monkeys behind the bar in the midst of a paralyzingly boring guessing game. WILLIE ...On the right...I mean, the left...your left, my right.... CORKY Let me get that straight. You're saying your right is our left. WILLIE Yah. My right --- SARAH We get it! JAKE (yawning) Do we have to do this anymore? WILLIE I haven't had my turn...First monkey is covering his eyes like so...his foot is on the head of the next monkey who is climbing a vine or a rope, I'm not sure which it is --- JAKE Shut up! Sorry, Reverend...it's not your fault, but here we are again, on a Friday night, bored to death. I almost wish Dowser would hurry up and make another strike. The others groan and Jack barks once. JAKE (continuing) It's better than guessing monkeys. Boy! I remember Friday nights back at Oggies, listening to --- CORKY/SARAH (finishing) Slam Willis and T-Bone Walker. WILLIE We are not there, Jake, we have to make the best of what we have. Now...the third monkey.... Jake groans and turns to see: ANGLE TO INCLUDE LOUIE entering with a 78 rpm record he is removing from a boxed set. He puts it on the phonograph and cranks the machine up. LOUIE Mon dieu...such lack of imagination. I think we should have some music. Jake sees the record and it does not cheer him up. JAKE Oh no...not Madame Beauchard's art songs again, Louie. I'm gonna hit the sack early. Jake starts for the door, and Louie waits for the record to begin with a large smile on his face. At the first note of the energetic Dixieland song, Jake whirls around. JAKE Royal Garden Blues! Where'd you get that? LOUIE Coincidentally, one of our boom town entrepreneurs had quite an extensive collection of Slam Willis recordings. I was surprised just how much the man was willing to give up to get off this island. Jake takes the record album from Louie, and Sarah and Corky crowd around him to see. The music transports him to another time and place. His foot begins to tap, fingers to snap. JAKE Just listen...isn't that wonderful. LOUIE It is not Madame Beauchard, but...in a certain primitive way.... JAKE You got it, Louie...primitive. Come on Sarah...cut a rug. Jake grabs up Sarah and tries to lead her in a Lindy Hop. At first she resists, but the infectious music finally loosens her up. As Jake swings her up in the air: FREEZE FRAME FADE OUT _THE END_
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