Screenwriting sarah.skeist

Sarah Skeist

9/20/09

The Hideousness of a Thing

We begin on a parked cruise ship, doing a river tour of China. The ship is for the well to do – reasonably fancy, somewhat large but not enormous. It has a cold quality about it, in spite of the sunny, hot day. It is July. 

Newly weds, Sharon and John Partridge, are on their honeymoon. They look down from the dock. She says, “You really want to get this horrible looking thing? Why would you want to take that thing with us on our honeymoon?” John responds, “It’s comforting to watch them. Whatever happens, if I had that to look at, I’d be reminded of how stupid I was ever to get upset.” We see that they are looking at a pet stand set up in the tiny market on the dock, and amid the various exotic creatures, we see that they are looking at a small monkey in a cage. She says, “I just don’t know why you want to take him with us. I find it a little insulting.” He looks at her, “Are you serious?” He tries to touch her hand, but she takes it away. “Just go and buy your monkey.” He says, “You know I won’t buy it if it makes you miserable.” She responds, in a sweet tone, “I’d love to have it. I really would. I think it’s sweet.” He responds, “I don’t get you at all.” Looking away from him, she snaps, “No, you don’t,” and then she tearfully adds, “does that bother you at all?” She walks back into the ship.

John walks along the dock, carrying the monkey in the cage. He sits down, and talks into a voice recorder, “Recipe for dissolving the impression of hideousness made by a thing: Fix the attention upon the given object or situation so that the various elements, all familiar, will regroup themselves. Frightfulness is never more than an unfamiliar pattern.” He clicks off the recorder, and watches a young Chinese couple walking along the dock. They stop and kiss. He takes clicks on his recorder, “More than anything else, woman requires strict ritualistic observance of the traditions of sexual behavior. That is her definition of love.”

Flashback to five years earlier. Professor John Partridge, 32, is addressing his senior seminar. He says that he has graded the final papers, which can be picked up outside his office, and he will see them all at graduation. Sharon Owens, a bright and attractive senior, watches and listens with rapt attention. He looks at his watch, and dismisses the class. They all applaud, as an end-of-the-year tradition.

John is in his office later that day, and hears a knock at the door. Sharon enters. John says, “Come on in Sharon, have a seat.” She sits, and responds, “I just wanted to thank you for a fantastic semester. This has been the most amazing class I have taken in all my four years here.” He responds, “I am happy that you connected to the material so strongly. Of course I figured, since you always seemed to have more questions.” She blushes, and responds, “Sorry I came to your office hours so often, I hope I wasn’t a bother. I just find this material so fascinating, there’s never enough time to talk about everything in class.” He responds, “of course not, it was my pleasure. I am looking forward to seeing you at graduation.” He gets up to let her out, and she looks at him and kisses him. She is as surprised as he is. She kisses him again, and he responds a little. This progresses, turning into a passionate embrace. She locks the door.

We return to the present. It is later in the night, and the Partridges are both on the ship, which has left the harbor. The monkey is next to the bed asleep. A storm is violently raging outside. She anxiously watches it from the tiny window, while he lies in bed, reading. A loud crash of lightning hits, and the lights flicker for a second, but come back on. She goes to her bag, removes a bottle of gin, and pours herself a strong gin and tonic. He says, “You realize what you’re doing, of course.” She responds, “What am I doing?” He says calmly, “Nothing, except just giving into a passing emotional state. You cold read, or lie down and doze.” She takes the drink with her and slams the door. He tries to read, but finds he is distracted. He gets up and leaves.

He goes on deck, and sees her looking over the railing, with an empty glass in her hand. He starts to go to her, but stops himself, and leaves without her seeing him.

Entering the room again, he finds the monkey ripping pages out of his book. He picks the monkey up and puts him in his cage. He goes to sleep.

She returns, and the door wakes him up. She looks at the monkey, and snorts with disgust. He says, “If you want me to give him away, I will. It’s not a big deal.” She responds, “I don’t mind him. What I mind is you. He can’t help being detestable, but he keeps reminding me that you could if you wanted.” He says nothing. She says, “You know I didn’t mean that. I was only kidding.” He responds, “Why not mean it? What’s wrong with criticism?” She turns off her light and goes to bed. He says, “Look, would you like me to give it away?” She says “I just wish there were some way I could just once feel that my giving in meant anything to you. I wish you knew how to seem grateful.” Silence. She says, “Why don’t you just throw it overboard?” He looks at her in disgust, turns over, and mumbles, “I believe you would. I believe you would.”

Flashback to two years ago. They are in a car, dressed formally. Her left hand is resting on the back of his chair, rubbing the back of his neck. She says, “You will do great. You’re the best thing about the philosophy department. They will love your speech, don’t be nervous.”  “I am not nervous.”  She responds, “Well, you seem so quiet!” “Simply because I have nothing of interest to say.” She puffs again out the window, removing her hand. “Well, that doesn’t normally stop you from speaking.” He does not respond. “I’m joking, John.” He says,  “I realized.” “Well, don’t take it so personally! Jesus, it was a damn joke.” “Just because I don’t laugh at a joke doesn’t mean I’m offended.” She roles down the window and starts to smoke a cigarette. He pulls over, saying he has to make an alteration to one of his lines. He reaches for the speech in his pocket, but sees that it is not there. He frantically begins searching his pockets, and exclaims, “I must have left my speech on the kitchen counter!” She calmly responds, “You did,” and hands it to him. Relieved, he exclaims, “I love you! I’m so glad you had it!” There is a long silence. Finally, she says, “did you mean that? what you just said?” He responds, “That I love you? I suppose. I hadn’t really thought about it.” She fights back tears. He sees, touches her arm, and says, “yes, I love you. Ok? I’m sorry, but you know how I feel. Love is just a euphemism for intense desire, and I dislike using the name. People say it to make themselves feel less like animals, but I rather just accept it.” She says, “Please don’t go on. I know your theories. You’ll never convince yourself of them. You can’t honestly believe that.” He is silent.

We return to the boat. The next morning, she wakes up alone in the bed. The monkey is gone. She panics, throws on her bathrobe, and prepares to go out and look for John, but he then enters. He says that he has given the monkey to the one of the maids, and she loves it. Sharon closes the door and leans against it, saying, “Oh John, you didn’t have to do that…” She starts to kiss him. He glances out the window, and exclaims that they are approaching the shore! He runs out to watch from the deck, and leaves her alone in the room. She pours herself a drink.

The boat docks. Sharon and John walk around the small river town. They pass by shops, plenty of noodle places, and beggars. She eventually says that she is hot and tired and is going inside. He says alright, and she says, “are you joining me?” He responds that he wants to walk more. She gives him a disgusted look and says, “Yes, I suppose that’s what honeymoons are for. Walking.” She starts to leave, turns around, and says, “I know you love me. You just don’t want to tell me, because you are morally opposed to agreeing with me.” She smiles sardonically, and leaves. He watches her go, and sits down on a bench and reads.

Flashback to their wedding night. We see them enter their hotel room, she in her wedding dress and he in his tuxedo. She is very drunk, but happy. He is supporting her into the room. She drunkenly removes her dress, revealing sexy lingerie that she obviously bought for the occasion, but she stumbles over her shoes and pretty much ruins the effect. She is trying hard to be sexy, but failing because she is too drunk. He gets into bed, and begins to read. She says, “You’re reading? Tonight?” He says that he is tired. It was a long night, and they have to get up early in the morning. Also, she is drunk. She finally gives up, turns over, and says, “I got drunk because I knew I wouldn’t be able to bear going to sleep alone, tonight.”

Cut to her back in the room, sitting on the bed. She pours herself a drink, and walks around agitatedly. She suddenly sees his recorder device on the table. She picks it up, rewinds, turns it on. She hears, “More than anything else, woman requires strict ritualistic observance of the traditions of sexual behavior. That is her definition of love.” She rewinds it, plays it again. She puts it down, shaking. She picks it up again, and throws it against a wall, breaking it. She takes the gin with her and leaves.

We are back in the town, and see that John has fallen asleep on the bench. He awakens, and it is after dinner time. He walks back to the boat, and opens the door to their room. She is not there. He looks at the table where the bottle had been, and sees that it is empty. He picks up the broken pieces of the recording machine. He looks at the clock, and decides to go to bed. He tosses and turns. Finally, he gets up and goes out to look for her. His face, which has hitherto been almost expressionless, begins to show some anxiety. He goes all over the boat. He asks one of the stewards if he has seen his wife. The steward replies that he hasn’t, and John continues looking. Once John is gone, the steward smiles to himself.

John enters the room, and sees that the sun is rising. He goes to bed. He finally falls asleep, and we are transported into his dreams.

Images and sounds fade in and out of abuse. An eight year old John is in his bedroom in a dingy apartment in Detroit, trying not to listen to his father yelling at his mother. He sits on his bed, looking straight ahead of him, in a daze. He appears to be waiting apprehensively. Finally, we hear heavy footsteps walking closer to his room. The door turns, we hear it open, we see John look up, at which point we jump back to the present…

John wakes up in a sweat. It is early morning. He gets out of bed to continue his search for her. He goes down the hall, and sees a room that is open a crack. Something compels him to peak in. he sees her in bed with a man, half clothed. He walks back to his room, packs his things, and we see him write a short note on a post-it but we do not what it says. He sees one of the maids, gives her the note, and he whispers something in her ear. She nods her head, and he says, “shi shi” (“thank you” in Chinese). He descends the boat, and starts walking away.

Sharon opens her eyes. Somehow, she intuits that he has gone. She jumps up, puts her clothes on, and runs out the door. Runs to the end of the boat and sees him walking away, too far to reach. She calls out, “John!” but he doesn’t hear. She calls again louder, and he turns slightly. It is unclear if he sees her. He turns back around, and keeps walking. She starts sobbing hysterically.

She runs back into their room, throws herself on the bed, and cries. She then looks up and sees the monkey is back, in his cage. The post-it is attached. It says, “You will be alright. Look at the monkey.” She looks at the monkey, and slowly, a smile grows on her face.

Fin.