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Are You Now or Have You Ever Been Part 1 (August 7, 2000) Written by: Tim Minear |
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Teaser |
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INT. CORDELIA'S APARTMENT - DAY An 8x10 black and white photograph of the Hyperion Hotel FILLS THE FRAME. It should for all the world look vacant, run down. An overgrown fence and a rusty property management sign in foreground are featured. WESLEY (O.S.) WIDER Wesley and Angel positioned at Cordy's dining room table. Wesley taking in the photo which Angel has presented to him. ANGEL Cordelia enters from the kitchen area with drinks. Wesley continues to study the photograph. WESLEY ANGEL WESLEY As Cordelia sets out tea cup, coffee cup, glass of blood: CORDELIA They each reach for their respective beverages. Settle in. WESLEY ANGEL Angel brings the glass of blood to his lips but pauses, looks at it. Kind of brown and lumpy on top. CORDELIA ANGEL CORDELIA WESLEY ANGEL WESLEY CORDELIA ANGEL He offers nothing else. Wes and Cordy exchange looks. Angel rises, starts to slip into his coat. CORDELIA ANGEL WESLEY ANGEL WESLEY ANGEL Angel exits. Wesley and Cordelia are left to ponder that. They turn their attention back to the photo, and so do we... MOVING IN ON BLACK AND WHITE PHOTO (FX SHOT)... As it transforms... the vegetation on the perimeter fence fades, becoming a well tended foreground. The BLACK AND WHITE gives way to LURID 1950'S COLOR. And now the entire scene ANIMATES and we are in... EXT. HOTEL - DAY (1952) ...our establishing shot, having gone from the black and white of today to the color of a time past. PERIOD-COSTUMED PEDESTRIANS walk by. A PERIOD CAR or two drives by frame... INT. HOTEL - LOBBY - DAY (1952) The now-fading glory of a hotel built in the late 1920's. This isn't a big swoopedy swoop of the lobby. Not yet. We'll get to that later. Right now we're featuring the registration desk. The hotel MANAGER (40's, haggard) and the BELLHOP (20's, slightly seedy) are in conversation. Manager giving Bellhop delivery items. MANAGER The Manager sets a tray with envelope on the counter. MANAGER The Bellhop reacts to that. Doesn't pick up the tray. BELLHOP The Manager gives him a patented Franklin Pangborn dry look. Okay, so given the outfit he can't make this argument fly. BELLHOP The Manager puts his attention on his paperwork. MANAGER The Manager is now fully engrossed in his paperwork. This conversation's over. The Bellhop stews for one more second, then snatches up the bill tray, muttering: BELLHOP Bellhop moves off. Once alone, The Manager glances up from his paperwork, disturbed. We can see he has looked into the eyes of the thing in room 217... and it chills him. INT. HOTEL - UPSTAIRS HALLWAY - DAY (1952) DING! And the elevator doors at the end of the corridor open, revealing the Bellhop. He lingers in the elevator car for a moment, hesitant to step out. A beat too long and the doors start to shut. This rouses him. He pushes out of the car. MOVING In the grand tradition of the Shmuck Bait as the Bellhop moves slowly down the corridor with the bill tray leading. Finally he arrives at room 217. He swallows. Knocks lightly. BELLHOP More anemic knocking. Nothing. BELLHOP He reacts now to the SOUND of the DOOR CHAIN being removed from the other side of the door. Oh, shit. BELLHOP He sets the tray on the floor in front of the door, is already backing away. He gets to the elevator, hits the "down" button. Really wants that thing to get here as... WE HEAR the CLICK of a DEADBOLT being turned at room 217... DING! Bellhop backs into the elevator car. The doors shut before the other dreaded door can open... LOW ON BILL TRAY as the door to room 217 opens. A hand reaches down and picks up the tray. We follow it up to a face -- ANGEL No light in that face. He's 1950's I-don't-get-involved-guy Angel. And frankly, he is kinda creepy. And as he slams the door into frame, shutting out us and the world -- BLACK OUT. END OF TEASER |
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Act One |
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INT. HOTEL LOBBY - DAY - WIDE Taking in the space. Angel alone in this abandoned place. CLOSER - ANGEL He's just feeling the place, the weight of it. He starts to move through the space. CAMERA MOVES with him. We hear, in a distant, distant way, the SOUNDS of LIFE here. Sounds from fifty years past. Coming to the fore of this, a TELEVISION. Getting more distinct... MAN'S VOICE (on television) ANOTHER MAN'S VOICE (on
television) CAMERA FLOATS off Angel, finding... ...an old BLACK AND WHITE TELEVISION SET. Televised House Un-American Activities Committee Hearings. We PULL BACK from that... CAMERA now SUBJECTIVE... catching more bits and pieces of... INT. HOTEL - LOBBY - NIGHT (1952) ...the place comes alive before our eyes. A few RESIDENTS sit in the lobby area watching the TV set. We're Steadi-cam-a-licious as we take in the sweep of the place. People coming and going. An over-rouged and under-dressed SHOWGIRL type bursts at us from around a corner, make-up streaked with tear tracks. She's weeping, fleeing. Coming up behind her, an OLDER MAN, drunk. OLDER MAN We SWING around on the back of the fleeing girl as she nearly collides with... ANGEL as he enters the lobby. He's carrying a package covered in plain brown paper, hugging it tight under his arm. Now we're MOVING WITH ANGEL through the lobby, coming upon the registration area. The Bellhop appears, startled to see Angel, nearly ducking with: BELLHOP Not that he asked or cared. Angel keeps moving, CAMERA lets him head off, lingering on The Manager who's speaking to someone we don't yet see... MANAGER CAMERA ARCS around onto a BLACK FAMILY at the registration desk, the father looking angry, but containing it. Beyond them, in the b.g., WE SEE Angel standing in the elevator just as the doors are closing... DING! INT. HOTEL - UPSTAIRS HALLWAY - NIGHT -(1952) ANGLE FROM INSIDE ELEVATOR as the doors open onto the hallway revealing A BEEFY GOON, probably an ex-cop, a few feet from the elevator. He looks right at us, suspicious, then moves away. REVERSE - ANGEL steps out of the elevator. He glances over at the Goon who has headed off down another intersecting hallway, searching. Angel continues on. He arrives at room 217. Opens the door with his key. As he does, another door a few rooms down opens. A PRETTY YOUNG MAN steps out of that room, smiling to his host, who now appears at the doorway, a ROCK HUDSON-ISH MATINEE IDOL. They both feel Angel's eyes on them. The Pretty Young Man hurries off. Angel and Rock meet eyes for a beat, two men with secrets they'd rather not share, then both retreat into their own rooms. Doors closing at the same time. INT. ANGEL'S HOTEL ROOM - CONTINUOUS (1952) Angel enters his simple single room. He moves to the table, opens his brown paper wrapped package -- a medical bottle of blood. He reaches for an ice bucket. opens it. Old water. INT. HOTEL - UPSTAIRS HALLWAY - CONTINUOUS (1952) Angel exits his room carrying the ice bucket (leaving door open-ish.) We're MOVING WITH HIM as he heads down the hall toward an ICE MACHINE. As he nears it, he hears MUTTERING... ANGEL'S MOVING POV of the end of the hall where it intersects with another corridor. Standing in the intersection is a pudgy, forty-something SALESMAN TYPE with pencil moustache. His eyes are fixed on someone we can't see, just out of view. SALESMAN ANGEL moving closer to the ice machine. ANGEL'S MOVING POV and now HE CAN SEE that there's no one standing where the Salesman is looking. Guy's talking to air. SALESMAN ANGEL scoops ice into his ice bucket. Not really evidencing any kind of reaction one way or another to the weird guy at the end of the hall, just taking it in. Now his attention is drawn by a POUNDING... ANGEL'S POV, THE OTHER DIRECTION where the Goon seems to have found the room he's been looking for. He bangs on it with his fist, trying to gain entrance. ANGEL not bothered or really interested. He closes the ice machine, glances casually back toward muttering salesman guy... but he's gone. That end of the hallway is now empty. Angel hoists his ice bucket, moves back to his room. Just before Angel enters, he and the Goon meet eyes for a beat. INT. ANGEL'S HOTEL ROOM - CONTINUOUS (1952) Angel re-enters his room, pulls the door shut, locks it behind him. Takes the ice bucket over to the small table. He places the bottle of blood in the ice bucket... pauses as he senses something. Now he calmly puts the lid on the ice bucket, as he turns to see -- The door to the
bathroom is slightly open. A FIGURE moves within. Angel eyes this, cautious.
Now a WOMAN, JUDY, appears at the bathroom door. She has something of a young
Natalie Wood about her. She keeps her eyes downcast. Exits JUDY She starts straightening the bed. Self conscious as Angel watches her. Angel starts to slowly approach her from behind. ANGEL We might detect a stutter in her movements, but she tries to play it cool. A nervous half laugh. JUDY ANGEL She turns, looks at him, fear in her eyes, busted. JUDY ANGEL JUDY ANGEL Her eyes flick to the door. She starts to panic... JUDY A beat. Angel looks at her. She can't? Then: ANGEL He takes her by the arm. We can still hear the POUNDING outside the door. Angel makes the connection. JUDY ANGEL JUDY ANGEL He keeps moving her toward the door. But the POUNDING has stopped. Angel registers that. So does Judy, but she's still not ready to relax yet. Angel's attention goes to -- CLOSE - DOOR LOCK turning just slightly. Being picked from outside. ANGEL pushes Judy to the side, turns the lock, pulls the door open, revealing The Goon in lock-picking position. The guy isn't even rattled at being caught in the act. He rises to his full height, cocky as hell. Judy's on the other side of the door, where the Goon can't see her. GOON Angel doesn't offer a response, just looks at the guy. GOON ANGEL GOON ANGEL GOON On the other side of the door, Judy sweats it out. ANGEL GOON ANGEL The Goon casually opens his jacket, revealing the edge of a shoulder-holstered gun. GOON A beat. A test of wills. Angel steps aside a touch, opens the door a little wider, crowding Judy whose heart skips a beat. Goon smiles. See? That was easy. He takes a step -- and Angel snaps the door forward, hard, nailing him in the face. Goon staggers back against the wall opposite the door, his nose broken. ANGEL INT. HOTEL - UPSTAIRS HALLWAY - CONTINUOUS (1952) The Goon clutches his bloody nose. Instinct makes him reach for his gun. But Angel's on him -- lightning quick. He spins him around, grabs him by the hair and runs him down the corridor, banging his head into the elevator call button -- DING! The indicator light blooms. The doors open. The Bellhop is inside the car with a TROLLEY OF LUGGAGE. He blanches at the sight of Angel. Angel tosses the dazed Goon into the car with the Bellhop. ANGEL Without a word the Bellhop gladly hits the "down" button. The doors close. Angel turns and starts walking back to his room. Judy has emerged, is now standing out in the hallway. JUDY But he walks right past her back into his room, slamming the door behind himself and INTO FRAME. BANG! A beat, then CAMERA ARCS from the closed door to where Judy was standing... but instead of Judy looking forlornly at the door that's been shut in her face, ANGEL IS STANDING THERE... INT. HOTEL - UPSTAIRS HALLWAY - DAY ...in the present day, looking at the shut door to his old room, remembering... WESLEY (V.0.) INT. CORDELIA'S APARTMENT - DAY Wesley sits at Cordy's dining room table surrounded by archival material, file boxes, etc. Cordy's at her computer. WESLEY CORDELIA WESLEY CORDELIA WESLEY CORDELIA WESLEY Something catches Cordy's attention, one of the photos. WESLEY CORDELIA She hands him a tabloid photo. An L.A.P.D. Vice Raid. A few WOMEN, identifiable as prostitutes, are being taken away along with some JOHNS. In the b.g. and along the periphery, RESIDENTS watch. Slightly blurry in the deep b.g., the unmistakable figure of ANGEL skulking through the scene. WESLEY CORDELIA WESLEY CORDELIA WESLEY Off Cordelia -- INT. ANGEL'S HOTEL ROOM - NIGHT (1952) Angel in his room fifty years ago. He lights a cigarette. Moves to the table with the ice bucket, grabbing an empty glass. Now he hears MUSIC. Muted. Coming from the room next door. Some late 40's early 50's tune. Nothing morose. Something jaunty. Is it too early for Dean Martin? CAMERA MOVES off Angel, following his gaze to... a common wall with the room next door... INT. SALESMAN'S HOTEL ROOM - CONTINUOUS (1952) The same room layout as Angel's. The MUSIC is coming from a portable TURNTABLE where a record plays. The Salesman stands over it, listening... then something else catches his ear... something only he can hear. He cocks his head slightly, the voice is coming from just above somewhere. SALESMAN He moves over to the small table. We look down on it with him and see... A HANDGUN and a BULLET laid out there. The Salesman picks up the gun, snaps open the chamber, loads in the bullet. INT. ANGEL'S HOTEL ROOM - CONTINUOUS (1952) Angel pours himself a cold frosty one... INT. SALESMAN'S HOTEL ROOM - CONTINUOUS (1952) The Salesman hugs a pillow and the gun as he slides down the side of his bed to a sitting position on the floor. He lifts the pillow to his face... presses gun to pillow... INT. ANGEL'S HOTEL ROOM - CONTINUOUS (1952) Angel sits in the armchair. Starts to lift the glass of blood to his lips... but pauses as -- BANG!, a (MUFFLED) GUNSHOT from next-door. A beat... then he continues raising his glass. As he drinks... INT. SALESMAN'S HOTEL ROOM - CONTINUOUS (1952) TURNTABLE... where the record is now skipping on a groove. A LIMP HAND... on the floor, the gun laying nearby. And now BLOOD POOLING out there, as... INT. ANGEL'S HOTEL ROOM - CONTINUOUS (1952) Angel drinks. The record next door continues to skip. Somewhere above, a THUMPING. Someone pounding on the floor. MAN'S VOICE (O.S.) More pounding. More record skipping. Angel reaches over, turns on his own radio, JAZZ. Drowning out the world around him. And as he drinks and listens to music, not caring... BLACK OUT. END OF ACT ONE |
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Act Two |
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INT. HOTEL - UPSTAIRS HALLWAY - DAY Angel moves down hallway. Steadi-cam swings around to... INT. HOTEL - UPSTAIRS HALLWAY - DAY (1952) ...Manager and Bellhop as they hurry the opposite direction. BELLHOP MANAGER BELLHOP INT. SALESMAN'S HOTEL ROOM - CONTINUOUS (1952) Manager and Bellhop enter the room. They react to the smell even before the sight. Manager takes a handkerchief and puts it to his nose. He steps gingerly around the (tastefully depicted) body of the Salesman. MANAGER BELLHOP MANAGER BELLHOP We're moving CLOSER onto the Manager as the Bellhop continues to prattle on in the b.g. The BELLHOP'S VOICE, drops very low, until finally his mouth is moving but NO WORDS ARE COMING OUT. An eerie TONAL RUMBLING comes up... We're in the Manager's head as now... DEMONIC VOICE (V.0.) MANAGER The other SOUNDS come back up, along with Bellhop's voice. BELLHOP MANAGER The Bellhop thinks they've been having a conversation. BELLHOP MANAGER BELLHOP MANAGER BELLHOP MANAGER BELLHOP Off the Bellhop, bewildered... INT. HOTEL LOBBY - DAY (1952) Angel skulks through the lobby. As we PAN WITH HIM, he becomes the b.g. and we pick up a conversation happening in the foreground, but keeping Angel in frame the entire time... OVER THE HILL WHORE ROCK HUDSON GUY BLACKLISTED SCREENWRITER ROCK HUDSON GUY OVER THE HILL WHORE ROCK HUDSON GUY BLACKLISTED SCREENWRITER ROCK HUDSON GUY BLACKLISTED SCREENWRITER ROCK HUDSON GUY OVER THE HILL WHORE Angel slips out through the boiler room door.... The OLDER MAN, the drunk from act one, sits across from the others. He looks to the others as they prattle on. Their VOICES have DROPPED out... That TONAL RUMBLING comes up again... DEMONIC VOICE (V.0.) Off the old guy, his rising paranoia... INT. BOILER ROOM - DAY (1952) Angel comes down the
steps in the boiler room. There is a RUMBLING down here... part boiler room
RUMBLING and part that demonic TONAL thing we heard before. Angel moves to
the trap door. Pulls it open, starts to descend, pauses, sensing ... behind Angel, a GHOSTLY TENTACLE lashes out from the shadows, then is gone almost so quick we can't be sure if we saw it. Angel dismisses the feeling, disappears into the bowels of the city. The trap door closes with a TH-THUNK! FLASHY CUT TO: INT. CORDELIA'S APARTMENT - DAY CORDELIA Wesley is using Cordy's dining room table to lay out a flow chart/time line of the incidents at the hotel from the 1930s to the present day. He's got archival material wherever possible: news clippings, photos, etc. He adds a clipping to 1935: "Hothouse Killer Claims Fifth Victim." WESLEY CORDELIA WESLEY CORDELIA WESLEY She ponders for a moment, then -- CORDELIA WESLEY CORDELIA Wesley carefully finishes the 1935 slot... WESLEY CORDELIA EXT. GRIFFITH OBSERVATORY - NIGHT (1952) The iconic image of the Observatory sits hunched on the hill overlooking Los Feliz. A summer night in 1952. Period cars. Period clothes. FAMILIES here to take in the sights. People lining up for the show. A sign on an easel reads: "Next Show at 7:45." We find Angel leaning against a rail, by one of the observation platforms, smoking. JUDY He looks over, sees Judy approaching, friendly but wary. JUDY ANGEL JUDY ANGEL She shrinks a little, realizing how that may have sounded. JUDY ANGEL JUDY ANGEL She's lost for a second, recovers. JUDY ANGEL JUDY ANGEL JUDY ANGEL Now with the long pause, then -- JUDY ANGEL He doesn't say it to be a creep, it's just a fact. JUDY He studies the ground. Here's his chance to make a connection... finally he looks up: ANGEL She sees the last of the line is entering the planetarium. JUDY ANGEL Fair enough. At least he didn't slam anything in her face. JUDY ANGEL He nods, pleasant but not familiar. She moves off to the entrance, hands over her ticket. Off Angel, watching her as she gives one last glance back then disappears inside... EXT. L.A. SKYLINE - NIGHT - TRANSITION A flashy cut possibly with a fifties B-movie planet exploding! INT. HOTEL LOBBY-- NIGHT (1952) The gossipy residents in conference in the lobby... Rock Hudson Guy being filled in by the others. OLDER MAN The others wait for Rock Hudson Guy to grasp the significance. ROCK HUDSON GUY OLDER MAN ROCK HUDSON GUY OVER THE HILL WHORE We catch Angel in the b.g., and this time we're PANNING with him the opposite way as he moves to the stairs. BLACKLISTED SCREENWRITER ROCK HUDSON GUY BLACKLISTED SCREENWRITER OVER THE HILL WHORE They nod in the affirmative, conspirators in the truth. Angel drifts up the stairs, not part of this "community." BLACKLISTED SCREENWRITER INT. HOTEL - UPSTAIRS HALLWAY - NIGHT (1.952) Angel moves toward his room but pauses as -- JUDY (O.S.) Angel looks over, sees Judy beckoning to him from her slightly opened doorway. She looks panicked. JUDY INT. JUDY'S ROOM - NIGHT (1952) Angel enters her room. She's smoking, pacing, nervous. JUDY ANGEL JUDY Angel reacts to that, knows better. ANGEL JUDY ANGEL JUDY He looks at her, measuring her weirdness. ANGEL But she is worried... very worried. JUDY ANGEL JUDY ANGEL JUDY She pulls a case out from under her bed, opens it, revealing stacks of cash. Angel just looks at it, in a way impressed. JUDY ANGEL JUDY A long beat as Angel considers the money. JUDY He really wasn't. ANGEL JUDY ANGEL JUDY A long beat as Angel even tries to fathom this notion. Humans can be so stupid... and so sad. He smiles to himself. Might laugh. Manages not to. Because he knows: ANGEL JUDY ANGEL Judy has drifted a little, gazes at the money... JUDY But she's not in that trance, she's realizing: JUDY ANGEL JUDY ANGEL JUDY ANGEL JUDY ANGEL INT. CORDELIA'S APARTMENT - DAY A NEWS CLIPPING with a photo of the Bellhop in handcuffs, a blank look of horror on his face, flanked by period cops. WESLEY (O.S.) Wesley and Cordy hover over the flow chart which is now chock full of gruesome detail. Wesley moves to place the clipping. CORDELIA WESLEY CORDELIA WESLEY CORDELIA WESLEY CORDELIA Cordy positions the clipping... a photo featuring Judy: "Fugitive Woman Believed Dead." And as we push in on that... BLACK OUT. END OF ACT TWO Continue on to Part
Two |
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Are You Now or Have You Ever Been Part 2 (August 7, 2000) Written by: Tim Minear |
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Act Three |
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INT. BOILER ROOM - NIGHT (1952) The RUMBLING of the living boiler room. We find Angel and Judy as they appear at the top of the stairs. He's got the case with the money, she follows carefully as they descend. JUDY He's preoccupied, searching for an appropriate hiding spot. ANGEL JUDY As he climbs up storage items looking for a hiding place, he senses that weird TONAL RUMBLING again. He's not dismissing it this time... JUDY Angel works the hiding place, his attention split between it, the thing he's sensing, and Judy. He slides the case in. JUDY ...that GHOSTLY TENTACLE lashes out of the shadows again, nearly grazing Judy's foot. She's oblivious, rambling... JUDY Angel climbs down, his attention on what he's sensing... ANGEL JUDY ANGEL JUDY Angel hasn't the faith in human nature she's reaching for... ANGEL JUDY CLOSE ON ANGEL. He literally has no answer. Now we POP WIDE TO SEE... ANGEL standing alone in the boiler room in -- INT. BOILER ROOM - DAY -- the present day. No rumbling here. The room is as dead as the rest of the building. Angel moves to the old hiding place, climbs up. Different junk has taken the place of what was there fifty years ago. He clears it away... pries at the piece of old wall... he reaches in. Feels around. He pulls cut the dusty old case. Pops it open -- full of money. She never came back for it. Angel is lost in the implications of this until... Suddenly the familiar TONAL RUMBLING... Off Angel's reaction to that... INT. CORDELIA'S APARTMENT - (LATE) DAY Wesley studies the time line. His frustration growing. Cordelia steps up beside him, glances at the chart. WESLEY CORDELIA Wesley looks at her, stunned. She hands him the phone. CORDELIA He takes the phone as she moves to her computer -- WESLEY INTERCUT WITH: INT. HOTEL LOBBY - (LATE) DAY It's noticeably darker now. Night coming on. Angel on his cell phone, is behind the lobby reception area. During the following he's tinkering with a fuse box. Some SPARKAGE. ANGEL Cordy has brought up something on her computer CORDELIA WESLEY BIG SPARKS at the fuse box. Angel gets the power up - the LIGHTS FLICKER and COME ON. ANGEL WESLEY ANGEL WESLEY ANGEL Off Wesley's surprise... INT. RARE BOOKSHOP - NIGHT (1952) The PROPRIETOR, DENVER, a 30ish, 1950's beatniky type, sits behind the counter, watching TV. We HEAR familiar fifties sitcom canned laughter... He doesn't look up as the DARK FIGURE of Angel appears at the counter. DENVER ANGEL We might note that he's giving Angel a very close once over... DENVER ANGEL DENVER ANGEL Denver has risen, moved to a shelf, grabbed a book -- DENVER He tosses it to Angel -- Angel catches it and it SMOKES in his hand. He drops it on the counter -- HOLY BIBLE. WE TILT up from that... to Angel's VAMPED FACE. Denver reacts to that, dives for the counter, comes up with a cross and stake, poised -- but Angel's gone. Denver moves to the open door, calls out -- DENVER WHAM! He's taken from behind with heart stopping speed. Angel, still vamped, has him in a choke hold. ANGEL Denver nods, scared now. Angel releases him. They face off. ANGEL INT. HOTEL LOBBY - NIGHT (1952) Bellhop approaches Manager, wiping his hands with a dish towel. Manager's looking out toward the lobby with concern where storm clouds are gathering... quarreling residents -- MANAGER BELLHOP MANAGER BELLHOP MANAGER Manager moves toward the hub-bub, Bellhop follows. Our rogue's gallery in heated debate... BLACKLISTED SCREENWRITER ROCK HUDSON GUY BLACKLISTED SCREENWRITER ROCK HUDSON GUY BLACKLISTED SCREENWRITER ROCK HUDSON GUY MANAGER OVER THE HILL WHORE OLDER MAN INT. JUDY'S ROOM - NIGHT (1952) Judy alone in her room. Reading. The TONAL RUMBLING comes up... she's trying to ignore it... But finally: DEMONIC VOICE (V.0.) Judy abandons her book, tries to shake off the paranoia. Moves to the window, opens it, drinks in the night air. Not giving in to it. INT. RARE BOOKSHOP - NIGHT (1952) Angel sits studying the ancient tomes. Denver eyeballs him. DENVER ANGEL DENVER ANGEL DENVER ANGEL DENVER ANGEL DENVER ANGEL DENVER ANGEL DENVER ANGEL Denver stares at him for a beat, a new species... DENVER ANGEL DENVER INT. HOTEL - LOBBY - NIGHT (1952) Crazy freaking paranoid hotel. Manager turning on the Whore: MANAGER OVER THE HILL WHORE ROCK HUDSON GUY BELLHOP MANAGER BELLHOP It's all building to a CACOPHONY of ACCUSATION, until GOON (0. S.) The yelling stops. They all turn to see the Goon, his nose bandaged. With one hand he holds up his P.I. identification -- GOON BLACKLISTED SCREENWRITER -- with the other hand the Goon displays a photograph of Judy. GOON And off this pregnant moment... INT. BOILER ROOM - NIGHT (1952) The trap door opens and
CLUNK!, a hand pushes out a lethal looking medieval weapon. Then the rest of
the supplies for demon slaying... Angel emerges. He gathers up the stuff.
Notes a price tag still dangling from the medieval weapon. INT. HOTEL - LOBBY - NIGHT (1952) Angel enters the lobby. Stark contrast to the maniac mob we saw here moments ago. It's eerily empty. He moves deeper into the place, getting a bad feeling now... We're CLOSE with him as he senses a presence, wheels around to see -- WESLEY, CORDELIA AND GUNN Standing there loaded for bear, because now we are... INT. HOTEL - LOBBY - NIGHT ...back in the present day. Angel standing in the lobby in the same spot he was standing in the flashback. ANGEL INT. HOTEL - LOBBY - (LATER THAT) NIGHT The Raising Ritual in progress. Wesley reads from the sacred text. Cordelia cheerfully sprinkles the place with conjuring powder. Gunn stands ready with an assist for Wesley, also holding a smaller prayer-like book. Angel just stands ready (not far from the fuse juncture box, near reception.) WESLEY GUNN Wesley does a take, at the moment not loving Gunn -- WESLEY GUNN Gunn, not liking the nit-picky of it, tosses the Orb to Wesley. Wesley catches it, nearly has a heart attack. WESLEY ANGEL Cordy moves to Angel, shakes her head... CORDELIA ANGEL CORDELIA Wesley continues the incantation -- WESLEY The air before them begins shifting. Something dangerous forming... building, building... Our people brace for what's coming... And we PRE-LAP with... DING! INT. HOTEL - UPSTAIRS HALLWAY - NIGHT (1952) The elevator door opens, revealing Angel with his supplies. He reacts as he sees -- THE MOB dragging Judy from her room. Rising above the SHOUTING and GOADING... OLDER MAN JUDY OVER THE HILL WHORE ROCK HUDSON GUY MANAGER OVER THE HILL WHORE JUDY Judy is being jostled from all sides. Angel drops his supplies, starts fast walking toward the commotion -- BLACKLISTED SCREENWRITER JUDY BLACKLISTED SCREENWRITER They're all screaming at her, overwhelming her. JUDY Judy, desperate, terrified, now sees Angel approaching... salvation footsteps away. Her only hope. They meet eyes... JUDY And now she's pointing at him. Angel is thunderstruck... stops where he is. The mob is turning to look at him now. JUDY Angel can't believe what he's hearing. The mob turns on him, more of them appearing, filing in behind him, The Goon among those. A few of the mob find the paranormal supplies he left behind. The Goon hefts the medieval weapon, fascinated... GOON And they're swarming. VARIOUS WHAM! The medieval weapon comes down on the back of his head. And the last thing he sees before he hits the ground is Judy, her eyes full of horror at what she's done... BLACK OUT. END OF ACT THREE |
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Act Four |
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INT. ANGEL'S HOTEL ROOM - NIGHT (1952) BAM! The door to Angel's room is kicked open. The mob hustles him in. He's still woozy from the blow to the head. The ice bucket is knocked over... the medical bottle breaks -- blood everywhere. GOON MANAGER BELLHOP INT. HOTEL - LOBBY - NIGHT (1952) THE MOB pushes out onto the balcony, Angel in the middle. VARIOUS Judy is the last out,
dazed, horrified. The ROAR of the CROWD becomes surreal. A constant RUMBLE.
Mouths foaming, moving, screaming, just one big fat creepy sound and picture
design. In other words, let's make this so stylized we can't A ROPE is slung over a beam in the lobby... A NOOSE is pulled down over Angel's neck. Judy looks to Angel, meets his eyes. He looks back... just simply nothing in his gaze, not anger, not sadness, not fear -- only resignation. Judy looks away. The ROAR BUILDS. The mob pushes him off the top of the high lobby landing. His body drops... suspended in mid air for one unendurable moment... then -- -- CRACK!, Angel jerks hard on the rope, punctuating the moment. The ROAR stops. Nothing but deadly, hideous silence... and the CREAK of the weight of a body on the end of a rope. Well, nothing but that and the Bellhop, his a lone voice -- BELLHOP The Mob stares at the swinging body. Cannot believe it. Realization settling over them now... MANAGER One by one they each start to back away... retreating... BELLHOP The lobby thins out... doors slamming... people fleeing. BELLHOP He looks to the lynched body swinging there, makes with the big "oh, shit" look... and bails. Now it's just Angel's -- apparently -- dead body creaking on the end of the rope... ANGEL lifts his head. He's annoyed. He reaches up, forces the noose from his neck and drops to the floor. Starts to dust himself off. Something behind him... he turns -- THE THESULAC Forming at the exact point we left him in his manifestation in the present day. The air shifts, gets thicker... and POP! THESULAC appears from the mist. A robed and hooded death-like creature. He "floats" on snaky, slimy black tentacles which slither from the hem of his robe. THESULAC The thing skitters around buglike on its tentacles, laughing. Angel shoots it a backward glare. Starts to walk away. THESULAC Angel keeps walking... THESULAC Angel slows... stops... half looks back... a beat... ANGEL Angel exits. Thesulac ROARS with LAUGHTER... which becomes a ROAR OF ANGER and WE ARE -- INT. HOTEL - LOBBY - NIGHT -- in the present day and the creature writhes and pitches, unhappy about being dragged out into the open like this. We're hard into the action now. ANGEL CORDELIA WESLEY But he's turned to say that and gets one right in the head. He goes down. ANGEL Gunn helps Wesley up. The four of them fan out, the Thesulac skittering around the lobby in the middle, taking in the odds. THESULAC WESLEY CORDELIA SNAP! A deadly tentacle lashes out right at Cordy's face. She squeals and jumps back. Thesulac laughs. ANGEL THESULAC Thesulac smiles... real big. THESULAC PUSHING IN ON ANGEL... realizing as he says it: ANGEL Angel looks to Gunn, nods. Gunn brings up a CROSSBOW - lets one go -- THWAP!, nailing one of the creature's tentacles to the wall. Thesulac SCREAMS! Another tentacle snaps at Gunn, coils around his arm and tugs him off his feet, sending him across the room crashing into a wall. Angel dives into a shoulder roll, coming up with another tentacle in his hand. Thesulac whips his head toward Angel, HISSING. Angel jams the end of the tentacle into the electrical box. As he does -- ANGEL Angel dives out of the way as -- SPARKAGE! ZAP! The current races up the moist appendage, reaching the thing's body. Lots of snap, crackle and popping. Thesulac disintegrates in a FLASH of electricity and SCREAMING. Once the smoke clears: WESLEY But no one's answering --- Cordy and Gunn have picked up on Angel's sixth-sensing something. Angel turns now... knowing... he moves off, fueled with grim resolve. Wesley sees Angel moving away from them. WESLEY He takes a step. Cordy and Gunn reach out and stop him, sensing Angel has business yet to finish here... INT. HOTEL - UPSTAIRS HALLWAY - NIGHT Angel moves down the hallway, dreamlike. He steps up to Judy's old door... reaches out and just gives it the slightest push... it opens, revealing... INT. JUDY'S ROOM - NIGHT The one room in the hotel that hasn't changed a bit. The same ugly fifties wallpaper... the same furniture. A FIGURE sits in the overstuffed chair, facing away from us. WE MOVE with Angel as he approaches, comes around to face... ANGEL She's an old woman, past seventy years now, but something about the eyes... it's her. OLD JUDY ANGEL He kneels in front of her. She tries to focus on him, not sure if what she's seeing is real... OLD JUDY ANGEL She shuts her eyes. Tears leak out. OLD JUDY She reaches out her hand, strokes his cheek lightly -- OLD JUDY ANGEL OLD JUDY ANGEL OLD JUDY ANGEL OLD JUDY She looks to him, worried. OLD JUDY ANGEL She tries to fathom that, then... OLD JUDY ANGEL She smiles at him. Starts to rise. It's difficult for her. ANGEL She looks to him, grateful. He helps her up. That was a lot of work for her. OLD JUDY He helps her over to the bed. He helps her lie down. She's fighting to stay conscious... OLD JUDY She closes her eyes... her breathing shallow. He puts his hand over hers. OLD JUDY Angel gazes down on her, the thought of granting this, being allowed to grant it, overwhelming to him. He swallows. His mouth dry... ANGEL She doesn't open her eyes. But she smiles. JUDY And she dies. INT. HOTEL - LOBBY - NIGHT Angel appears, lost in thought, moving slowly down the stairs. Cordelia and Gunn are sitting on the covered furniture, getting a bit of a headache from: WESLEY Cordy and Gunn see Angel, rise to their feet. GUNN Angel nods. ANGEL CORDELIA ANGEL CORDELIA GUNN CORDELIA ANGEL CORDELIA They all turn. Angel stands in the middle of the lobby, taking the place in. Wesley looks at him -- WESLEY Angel sweeps the place with his glance, looks contented. ANGEL The others look around, trying to see what he's seeing. And we're... PULLING BACK, taking in the view of our people in this new space... higher and wider, higher and wider... WESLEY ANGEL WESLEY THE END
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