The Basketball Diaries

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The legend SPRING appears, then dissapears on the black screen. We hear the VOICE OF JIM CARROLL: JIM (V.o.) When I was young, eight or so, I tried making friends with God by inviting him to my house to watch the World Series ... He never showed ... FADE IN: The chained front door of a catholic High School on the Lower East side of Manhattan. The CAMERA GLIDES right through this door into AN EMPTY OMINOUS HALLWAY. WE are aware of a RHYTHMIC THUMPING ECHOING somewhere in the building. As we WIND through the hallways the SOUND gets LOUDER AND LOUDER.

Finally, We ARRIVE at a CLASSROOOM and MOVE inside. We PAN across the rows of STUDENTS in their matching uniforms. It is obvious they are witnessing some sort of beating, because the THUMPING is coming FROM THIS ROOM and their faces are scared. In the back row sit the Bad Boys of the Class - PEDRO, a lovable, little Puerto Rican kid, sneaky as a thief, HERBIE, dark and strong and violent, and NEUTRON, older than the others, a heartbreaker, handsome and athletic. They cringe with each SMACK. ANOTHER ANGLE ON THE CLASSROOM - A large Priest, FATHER MCNULTY, is standing over JIM CARROLL, 15, a handsome,

athletic kid with defiant, mischievous eyes, smacking his ass with a paddle over and over and over and over. Jim smirks through the pain, but it clearly hurts like a bitch. Just as Father McNulty is about to land another blow, th~ BELL RINGS, seemingly saving Jim. Jim smiles up at the Priest. JIM Too bad, Father, I was just starting to enjoy myself ... The Priest lands the final, thudding blow. Jim grimaces.

~.' '.

....

.

FATHER MCNULTY We can do it again tomorrow, if you like, Mr. Carroll.

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Jim doesn't say anything. He falls into step with his Friends, who are filing out of the classroom. Herbie is staring murderously at Father McNulty. They walk into the crowded hallway. PEDRO Jim, is your ass O.K.? Does it hurt, man? Herbie wacks pedro in the back of the head. HERBIE You want to rub it for him, Pedro? PEDRO Don't fuckin' hit me! Herbie is LAUGHING at him. Jim puts his arm around Pedro's shoulder, stopping him from going after Herbie. Neutron looks on, amused. JIM Come on, let's get outta here ...

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They dissapear down a stairway. EXT. SCHOOL - PARKING LOT - MOMENTS LATER Jim, Herbie and Neutron are hurriedly putting on their streetclothes over their basketball uniforms. They put their school uniforms in a bag and ditch them behind a bush. Pedro is the lookout. They are all dressed in the latest city style, oversized jeans, plaid shirts, White t's, hats to the back. They finish dressing and bust out into the street like prisoners in a jailbreak. MUSIC UP. An EXUBERANT, CITY GROOVE. CREDITS START TO ROLL as the Boys hide their catholic School uniforms behind a bush and swagger to the street. EXT. STREET - sAME DAY

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Jim and his Friends hop on the back of a slow moving downtown bus. Jim hangs dangerously off the side of the bus as it picks up speed and disappears in a maze of traffic . CLOSE ON JIM - His eyes are shining with excitement as the city whips by him at hyperspeed.

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ANOTHER ANGLE - Jim almost falls off the bus as it makes a sharp turn. He lets out a WAR WOOP as he regains his balance, exhilirated by the near catastrophe. The Bus moves past STREET VENDORS HAWKING their wares on Delancey Street, past the deserted decay of alphabet city, past the Wall Street BUSINESS MEN in their suits ~nd ties. Jim spots a PRETTY YOUNG WOMAN walking a DOG. He SHOUTS TO HER and smiles. She smiles back. THE MUSIC ROCKS ON. THE CREDITS CONTINUE TO ROLL. ANOTHER STREET - SAME DAY Jim, Pedro, Neutron and Herbie hop off the bus as it slows down near the Ferry Basin. They move to the turnstiles of the Staten Island Ferry. Jim puts in one token and Herbie and Neutron push in with him. Pedro scoots underneath and through like a gutter rat on the subway tracks. .

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INT./EXT. STATEN ISLAND FERRY - DAY Jim and the Boys run up the stairs to the top deck of the Ferry. They catch their breath. Jim looks out at the East River, at the sun dancing off the water like diamonds. Herbie takes something out his pocket. NEUTRON Whatcha got there, Herbie? Herbie shows them a bottle of Carbona cleaning fluid. He takes a hankie out of his pocket and soaks it in the Carbona. HERBIE Shit make you high as a motherfucker. Herbie breathes deeply into the hankie. The head rush hits him. HERBIE Oh, man ... Herbie passes it Neutron, who declines, shaking his head and smiling as if to say "You think I'm crazy?"

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Neutron moves away from Herbie and leans against the rail, looking out over the water.

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~IM

Yo, Herbie, let me try that .•• ~im presses the hankie to his nose and takes four good whiffs. He passes the Carbona down to Neutron.

We HOLD ON ~IM as the high hits him. His eyes roll back into his head. He sways dizzily in the breeze. ~im

focuses his eyes in time to see Pedro lose his cookies over the side of the deck.

They hear PISSED OFF SHOUTS from the bottom deck.. Pedro leans over and sees that he had zeroed in over the head of some incredibly huge monster of a CONSTRUCTION WORKER. PEDRO Oh, shit, man, we gotta get outta here ..• They hear him STOMPING UP THE STAIRS, looking for revenge. He chases them toward the other side of the boat. He manages to grab the back of Neutron's shirt, but it rips off in his hands, revealing his basketball jersey. Neutron catches up with his buddies.

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The Construction Worker is hot on their trail. He seems to have them cornered at the end of the Ferry. Suddenly, they pull a Mel Gibson and make a risky jump to the lower level of the Ferry, leaving him alone on the upper deck. He CURSES them and runs back down to the lower level. They are nowhere to be found. INT. BATHROOM - MOMENTS LATER Jim, Pedro, Neutron and Herbie are all crowded into one stall. They GIGGLE at the dirty grafitti as the CONSTRUCTION WORKER SCREAMS BLOODY MURDER OUTSIDE the bathroom: CONSTRUCTION WORKER Where are ya? Ya fuckin' pricks ya! EXT. STATEN ISLAND FERRY - DAY

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The Ferry docks peacefUlly in the harbor. The Passengers file out en masse. The Construction Worker looks around angrily for his assailants, but they're not around. He finally blends in with the crowd .

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HOLD on the empty Ferry another long moment - Pedro peaks his head out, making sure the coast is clear. Then Jim and Herbie and Neutron walk cautiously from the boat to the shore. JIM (laughing) Did you see his fucking face? They all CRACK up. END CREDITS. EXT. STREET - STATEN ISLAND Jim and his Boys swagger down the tree lined suburban street, past the big, pretty houses, street urchins let loose in paradise. A RICH WOMAN gets out of a white BMW and looks at them suspiciously, the way a hack looks at a black man trying to hail a cab on 5th Avenue: "Are you going to steal something from me?"

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Herbie lets out a WAR CRY, giving the Woman the scare of her life. They LAUGH • The Boys are knee deep in BULLSHIT as they continue down the block. PEDRO Alright, what about the four of us vs. Patrick Ewing? HERBIE Four of us? What the fuck are you gonna do, Pedro, tie his shoelaces together when he's not lookin'? PEDRO Alright, alright, the three of us ••• Whaddya think? HERBIE We take him, no doubtJIM Are you kidding me, Herbie?

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HERBIE He can't guard all of us at the same time, right? And I've never seen you or Neutron miss an open

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jumper. I'll be there for the rebounds. 31M

The rebounds? Herbie, that freak is seven feet tall! HERBIE I can rebound with anybody. 31M

You're sniffin' too much of that shit. Patrick Ewing would fuckin' destroy us. HERBIE There's no way we don't score as long as we move the ball ..• As they move away from us, further down the block, the VOLUME of their CONVERSATION SLOWLY FADES.

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HERBIE Neutron, what do you think? NEUTRON You guys been killin' way too many ~ brain cells. .-/ They disappear over the horizon, but we get the feeling the debate is far from over. ESTABLISHING SHOT - SUBURBAN SCHOOL - AFTERNOON The school is a huge, modern building surrounded by well tended playing fields and a parking lot filled with expensive cars. INT. LOCKER ROOM - SUBURBAN SCHOOL - AFTERNOON LEFTY, the coach, a tall seedy looking man in his early fifties with greasy black hair and a cheesy sweatsuit goes through the locker room KNOCKING on toilet stall doors. LEFTY (overenthusiastically) We gotta game today, gentleman! Who'S ready to play ball?

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He opens one of the stall doors and catches a PLAYER smoking a cigarette. The Player quickly throws it in the toilet bowl.

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LEFTY No smoking, Iggy, stunts your growth. You wanna be big and strong like me, don't ya? He opens another stall door - This one is empty. LEFTY (to no one in particular) No smoking, no pUlling your peekers before a game. Lefty opens the last stall door. Herbie sits on the can, shorts around his ankles, reading an "X-MEN" comice book. HERBIE You mind, Lefty? Lefty closes the door and come over to Jim and the rest of the players, who are signing a basketball. Pedro is in the corner giving out towels - He is the team manager. LEFTY . Hey, whatcha doin'?

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JIM We're signing a ball for Bobby . Can I sign? Why not?

LEFTY JIM

Herbie throws Lefty the ball. Lefty takes the marker and scribbles something on the basketball. LEFTY (reading what he's writing) "To Bobby - Get well soon, kid. We're holding your spot for you. Your coach, Lefty." He hands Jim back the basketball. Jim starts out of the lockerroom with the rest of the players. LEFTY Hey, Jim! Wait a second .•.

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Jim turns back to Lefty, who is smiling at him eagerly. Jim looks uncomfortable .

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(V. o.

)

JIM

I'm not sure, but I think Lefty's a queer. He likes to do funny things like put his hand between your legs and pick you up. When he did this I got keenly suspicious ... LEFTY (trying find something to say) That's a nice thing you're doing for Bobby ... Jim nods, waits. LEFTY You seen Neutron? JIM Yeah, he's talking to some scout from st. John's ...

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LEFTY Uh-huh ... They'll be scouts here when you're a senior, too ••. You wanna play college ball, don'tcha? JIM Why not? LEFTY Yeah, the scouts're sniffing you out already. They like 'em young ••• You come by sometime, we'll go over the schools together ••• JIM Sure, Lefty ... LEFTY We'll get a pizza and make a night of it, whaddya say? JIM My nights are pretty busy •.. LEFTY (smiling knowingly) Homework and all, huh?

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Jim nods. Lefty looks hurt. There is an awkward pause. He looks deeply into Jim's eyes for a long moment. Jim looks down at the floor, very uncomfortable.

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JIM

(v.O.) I heard one of the guy's on last year's team let ·Lefty touch his thing for twenty bucks. I would never do that. Not even for a free ride to North Carolina ... He puts his arm around Jim as they move to the locker room door. LEFTY Let's go get 'em! INT. GYM - AFTERNOON The HOME TEAM is wearing snazzy blue and gold uniforms and going through perfect lay up drills. Jim's TEAM is helter skelter, wearing ragged uniforms and goofing around during warm ups. There is a big banner hanging on the wall that reads "Catholic Youth Organization spring Basketball League".

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The CROWD is filled with basketball fans. They are getting a kick out of the tough ragamuffins from the Lower East Side. A BUZZER SOUNDS, signaling the beginning of the game. The TEAM gathers around Lefty, who is in a froth of excitement. LEFTY Let's press these pricks from minute one. Tough "0", tough "0", tough "D"!!! Jim and Neutron roll their eyes at each other in response to Lefty's shenanigans. CUT TO:

THE OPENING TIP-OFF: Neutron leaps high and gets the ball to Jim,'who dribbles upcourt, perfectly calm, at home with the game. He easily alludes the DEFENDER'S attempt to steal the ball by dribbling between his legs. He plays with a zen like cool, seeing everything on the court.

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Neutron goes back door and Jim whips him a perfect no look pass. Neutron scores on a pretty reverse lay up and points a

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finger to Jim as they run back upcoart, thanking him for the pass. The CROWD EXPLODES. IMAGES COME FAST AND FURIOUS: Jim and Herbie double teaming a RIVAL PLAYER in the corner. Jim steals the ball and passes to Neutron for a wide open dunk. Jim drives hard to the hoop and, in mid air, drops off a pass for Herbie. Herbie muscles toward the basket and gets fouled hard on the shot. Herbie bumps into a gangly, pimple faced, OPPOSING PLAYER with his chest and TALKS TRASH in his' face. Jim has to get between the~ to stop the enraged Herbie from beating the shit out of the guy. Pedro is at the door of the home team's locker room, making sure the coast is clear. He enters and surveys the long row of neat lockers. He slides a small file out of the sleeve of his long coat. JIM

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(V. O. )

You gotta have presence on the court • Presence like a cheetah rather than a chimp. They've both got it, but chimpy gotta jump his nuts around all day to get it, shy cheetah just moves in total nonchalance a sec or two in his slow, sexy strut ..• Me, I play like the cheetah ... As he SPEAKS, WE SEE, IN SLOW MOTION: Jim rising up and up and up on his jump shot. We see the ball leave his hand and rotate slowly, ina high arc, toward the basket and swish softly through the net. Jim turns upcourt, a peaceful smile on his face. The Team is in a time out. The buzzer SOUNDS. Lefty pats Jim on the ass as he returns to the court. Jim looks back at Lefty, pissed off. Pedro expertly opens a locker with his file. He rifles through the pockets of a pair of jeans and grabs a wad of bills from the wallet.

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Pedro finds a nice watch hidden in one of the sneakers. He slides up his sleeve and puts it on his forearm with three other watches .

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Herbie grabs a tough rebound and throws a baseball pass to Jim streaking upcourt. Jim makes a graceful, show off lay up. Lefty pumps his fist in the air, he loves it! Pedro shoves more cash into his'pocket, plus somebody's class ring. He finds a walkman wrapped in a sweatshirt and hides it in one of the pockets of his long coat. He moves with the speed and efficiency of a professional. Jim pulls up at halfcourt and heaves a shot that bounces off the rim as the BUZZER SOUNDS ending the game. The CROWD AAAAHS at the near miss. Pedro exits the Home Team's locker room and returns to the court. The Scoreboard reads HOME - 29, AWAY - 66. Pedro hands Jim a towel as he jogs off the floor. A "LEAVE IT TO BEAVER" TYPE DAD tells Jim "GOOD GAME, SON". JIM (to Pedro)· Any trouble?

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Pedro smiles at Jim as if to say "What are you, kidding me?" Jim musses Pedro's hair . INT./EXT. WHITE CASTLE HAMBURGER JOINT - LATE AFTERNOON The TEAM is gathered in White castle wolfing down the tiny burgers in one bite. Lefty enters and goes to the counter and pays the bill. JIM (v.O.)

There are only two things Lefty forbids: Using the word "Motherfucker" and stealing from the other team as long as they're white. Lefty comes over to Jim, Herbie, Pedro and Neutron angrily waving the check. LEFTY I told you shmucks one burger each! JIM You know it takes at least eight of these burgers to get filled up.

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NEUTRON (smiling) Yeah, we're growing boys.

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HERBIE We're hungry motherfuckers. Lefty eyes narrow with anger at the word "motherfucker". Everybody LAUGHS UPROARIOUSLY. " LEFTY Funny, huh? I'm not driving you guys home, how's that for laughs? Through the glass windows" Jim sees the GUYS from the team they just robbed coming toward the White Castle with TOUGH GUYS fr~m the neighborhood. Pedro and Jim lock eyes. Then pedro, loot in pocket, slips immediately out of the restaurant, unnoticed. JIM Lefty, how are we gonna get back? Lefty sees the Gang coming and LAUGHS back at his Team. LEFTY You ripped 'em off, didn't you?

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Lefty starts to walk out the door • Lefty, wait!

JIM

LEFTY Face the music, pricks! Lefty splits. NEUTRON What are we gonna do? They got the door blocked off ..• Herbie gets up, pissed off, carrying a bottle of coke. HERBIE I'm not afraid of these pussies. The Team follows Herbie outside to face off with the Gang. Jim brings his gym bag with him.

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BOBO, the leader of the gang, the tall, pimply faced member of the opposing basketball team confronts Jim, he's nervous, but very angry. His sidekick, TOMMY, another player on the team looks on • BOBO Where's the stuff you stole?

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JIM I didn't steal anything, Bobo. TOMMY Come on, give him his stuff. Jim shrugs. BOBO Don't fuck around with me ••• Somebody stole my father's ring from my locker. Bobo holds up a nasty looking box cutter. BOBO Don't make me cut you .•. Herbie suddenly shatters the bottle of coke against the Bobo's head. He goes down SCREAMING, blood pouring from his head. Tommy kneels over him to see if he's alright. HERBIE Punk!

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Herbie and Jim start kicking ass maniaclY,on everyone in their path. Neutron is not much of a fighter, but he manages to kick a BIG MONSTER in the balls and leave him howling on the floor. They look up and see TOUGHER, OLDER GUYS, maybe twenty in all, coming up the street towards the White Castle with bats, pipes etc .•. Jim, Neutron and Herbie know what's good for them, they scatter like roaches in opposite directions. INT. SUBWAY - SAME DAY Jim runs onto the SUbway between the closing doors and sits down, trying to catch his breath. Through the doors, he waves a sarcastic goodbye to one of the GUys chasing him. After a moment, an ANCIENT DRUNK stumbles over and sits down next to Jim and launches into a rambling SOB STORY. We see Jim nodding his head, trying to follow the story.

(v.c.)

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JIM

Why is it, that on a crowded train, they always come right to me? It's like radar or something. I never have the heart to tell them to fuck off or find another seat. I wind up getting

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all involved in the story and saying something like "I know just What you mean, the same thing happend to a man I knew and he became a drunk from it and blah blah"blah etc ... " A TRANSIT COP comes over and kicks the Drunk off the sUbway. As the train pUlls away, he waves sadly to Jim through the window with a face that says, "Who's gonna listen "to me now?" (V. o.

)

JIM

Lotta sad stories in the naked city ... EXT. JIM'S STREET - EARLY EVENING The block is hopping - DEALERS, CHEAP WHORES on the corner, OLD NEIGHBORHOOD GUYS hanging out in front of a bodega. We catch sight of Pedro, Herbie and Neutron drinking and BULLSHITTING on a stoop. Jim makes his way down the block. PEDRO Yo, Jimi We did good ..• C'mere ...

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Jim goes over to his Boys on the stoop. Pedro hands Jim three twenty's and six singles. He is wearing the ring that belonged to Pimple Face's Father. PEDRO Herbie's brother's gonna fence the rest of the shit ... Neutron twists open a forty ounce of Olde Golde and takes a swig. He passes it to Herbie, who takes an enormous swig. Jim takes his turn on the bottle as DIANE MOODY, a pathetic, young, neighborhood crack whore, comes over to their stoop, in a filthy mini skirt and tube top. DIANE Hey, fellas ... Anybody looking for a date? HERBIE Yeah, Diane, let's go out for a candlelight dinner. DIANE How 'bout we skip right to desert? I'll do it real good for fifteen bucks ...

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HERBIE Fifteen bucks? I'll give you a penny

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if you let Pedro suck your titty • DIANE very funny ... NEUTRON Do I look like I gotta pay for it? Huh, Diane? Diane zeroes in on Jim. DIANE Jim, whaddya say? Whaddya say? She puts her arms around Jim. I'll do it special, I promise ... Jim untangles himself from her. He offers her a half eaten bag of pretzels from his pocket. JIM It's all I got ...

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She angrily knocks the bag of pretzels out of his hand . DIANE Fuck you. Fuck all you guys! She walks away, desperate and pissed off. HERBIE Fuckin' baseheads ... That crack shit'll kill you. Herbie takes another huge swig of Olde Golde. He looks up the block at the rest of the Whores, someone catches his eye. HERBIE Isn't that Pedro's Mother slinging her wares over there? Everyone LAUGHS until they look and see it really is Pedro's Mother on the corner, one foot against the wall, dressed for the job. Pedro's eyes fill with tears as he looks. JIM Herbie, shut the fuck up, man!

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Pedro runs from the stoop into his apartment building, CRYING.

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HERBIE Why's the little shoe cryin'? Because his father's a loafer and his mother's a sneaker? Jim doesn't answer, he gets off the stoop and walks down the block. HERBIE Hey, Jim, where you going? ESTABLISHING SHOT - ST. VINCENT'S HOSPITAL - NIGHT A HOMELESS MAN PLAYS an old Temptations tune on his guitar in front of the large, modern hospital that occupies the busy corner of Seventh Avene and Greenwich street. INT. HOSPITAL - OUTSIDE BOBBY SACH'S ROOM - NIGHT Jim walks up to Bobby's room and nods politely to his solemn looking PARENTS. He enters INT. BOBBY'S ROOM

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Jim looks in and doesn't see Bobby. BOBBY Over here, Jim ... Jim sees BOBBY SACH sitting up in the second bed, skinny and hairless, a victim of leukemia. In his face, one can see the remnants of a handsome, strong boy. BOBBY What? You didn't recognize me with my "Charles Barkley" hairdo? Bobby runs his hand over his bald head. Jim LAUGHS and walks over to Bobby. JIM Tell you what Bobby, when you get outta here, we'll all get buzzed. They'll think we're a fuckin' gang of skinheads. BOBBY You mean if I get outta here ..

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JIM (forced cheerfulness) Come on, you know you're gonna be fine.

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Bobby shrugs, there is an uncomfortable silence. I brought some guys.

JIM for you, from the

s~uff

BOBBY Yeah, I see you got a Santa bag ... Jim takes out the signed basketball and hands it to Bobby.

JIM Even Lefty signed. Bobby spins the ball on the his finger. BOBBY Remeber when I dunked on that spook in Riverside Park?

. JIM Yeah. You always had good ups.

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BOBBY Yeah ... Jim hands Bobby four dirty polaroids. Bobby looks through them.

JIM Check these out ... Pedro found them in some lady's bag ... She's gettin' it on with a donkey, no shit ... Jim picks out another polaroid.

JIM I love this one. She's throwing this big, hairy spread and has this look on her face that says, "Everything is perfectly O.K." Drove me wild. I broke your record. BOBBY How many times did you choke it?

JIM Seven times.

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BOBBY Get the fuck outta here! "

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JIM I'm serious. One miserable little drop came out the last time. My Mother thinks I have a cold year round because of all the tissues. BOBBY They're pumping so much junk in me, I can't even get a decent chubby. JIM Is that right? Jim goes over to the closet and opens· the door, taking a pair of Bobby's jeans off the hanger. JIM I got an idea. BOBBY What? JIM Get dressed. We're goin' out •

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BOBBY Are you crazy? Jim smiles mischieviously at him and suddenly throws the pants to Bobby. He snatches them out the air, his hands moving with surprising speed. He smiles back at Jim. CUT TO:

Jim wheeling a heavily bundled up Bobby in his wheelchair full speed across Seventh Avenue on 42nd Street, wildly dodging traffic. Bobby is elated by the speed and the danger, his face is really alive for the first time. Jim looks down at him as they make it to the other side of the street, he is thrilled at the sight of his friends pleasure. They continue down 42nd Street at a slower pace- The block is crackling with kinetic energy as it's usual assortments of hustlers, whores, commuters and suckers go about their business.

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Bobby looks up and notices something very unusual about the movie marquee above him: Instead of one of the usual porno titles, it reads BOREDOM MAKES YOU CRAZY .

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Bobby LAUGHS. He looks at the other marquees and they all have these kinds of slogans - SAVOR KINDESS BECAUSE CRUELTY IS ALWAYS POSSIBLE LATER, SLOPPY THINKING GETS WORSE OVER TIME, SLIPPING INTO MADNESS IS GOOD FOR THE SAKE OF COMPARISON. It is surreal. (* note to reader - these are actual slogans currently on movie marquees on 42nd Street.) BOBBY (amazed) what the fuck happened to Forty Duece? He points to a marqee. Last time I was here, that theatre· was playin' "Sperminator II". JIM The whole block's been done over by artists, man. It's pretty cool. BOBBY (smiling) They should put your stuff up there.

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JIM (flattered) Yeah, right. BOBBY You're still scribbling shit in that notebook of yours, aren't you? JIM Of course. BOBBY You bring anything for me? JIM What, to read? BOBBY No, to eat. Whaddya think? Jim stops wheeling Bobby for a moment. He finds a scrap of paper in his pants.

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JIM I found this crumpled in my pocket the other day. I don't even remember writing it . He hands it to' Bobby.

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BOBBY (reading the poem aloud) little kids shoot marbles where branches break the sun into graceful shafts of light I just want to be pure •.. Bobby thinks about the poem for a moment, trying to understand it. I just want to be pure ... CUT TO: A BLACK SCREEN. This blackness turns out to be a partition that slowly rises revealing a naked belly, then tassled breasts, then the shoulders and face of a FEMALE DANCER. Jim and Bobby are revealed just ~s slowly in the reflection of the glass as the partition rises. Jim stands behind Bobby in his wheelchair, both watch the Dancer bump and grind.

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JIM Nothin' like the real thing to float your boat, huh, Bobby? Jim smiles, but Bobby doesn't smile back, he watches the Dancer intensely, trying to get into it. She has a look of vacent boredom on her face as she performs her specialty - swinging her breasts in opposite directions at the same time.

JIM (nudging Bobby) How 'bout that, man? Jim looks down to Bobby and sees that he's getting more and more frustrated and angry. Bobby is shaking his head and MUTTERING to himself. Jim doesn't know what to do. The Dancer looks down at Bobby, sees that he's having a bad time and her eyes soften. They stare at each dther for a long moment, two people trapped in nightmare situations.

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BOBBY (harshly) Get me outta here, Jim.

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JIM What's wrong, Bobby? BOBBY This was a stupid fuckin' idea. I don't feel good. Jim's eyes fill with tears as he sees Bobby's

pai~.

BOBBY (exploding) Didn't you hear me? Get me the fuck out! JIM O.K. , O.K •••

Jim hurriedly backs Bobby's wheelchair out of the booth. Bobby turns back for one last look at the Dancer, but the black partition has already gone down on her face. All Bobby sees is a dwindling view of her mechanically gyrating body as the partition again fills the screen with blackness.

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INT. BOBBY'S HOSPITAL ROOM - LATER THAT NIGHT Jim lifts Bobby out of his wheelchair onto the bed. He kicks off his shoes. JIM Yo, Bob, I'm sorry, man, next time we go out we'llBOBBY There ain't gonna be a next time, Jim ... There is silence as Bobby lies back on his bed. BOBBY Can you close the window? It's cold.

JIM Yeah ... Jim goes over to the window, but it's already closed. BOBBY I'm fucking tired ... Bobby face looks old and fragile on the pillow, his eyes flutter. Jim looks uncomfortable and frightened.

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EXT. STREET - OUTSIDE JIM'S APARTMENT - NIGHT Jim climbs the fire escape up to his window and sneaks into INT. JIM'S ROOM - NIGHT Jim is surprised to see his MOTHER sitting on the bed, waiting for him. She is a tired, red headed woman, missing a tooth, wearing a dirty housecoat. MOM What does the word "enigma" mean? JIM Mom, get outta my room. I'm not in the mood for any crap right now. MOM What does it mean? Jim doesn't answer her.

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MOM I gotta letter from school today, it says, "Jim has become a constant enigma around here. He is an exceptionally bright boy who is not coming close to reaching his potential. We want to know if anything is wrong at home." Jim picks up a dictionary off the shelf and opens it up. JIM (reading) Enigma: a model of perfection, an example to which others strive toward. E.g., Jim was a constant enigma to his Math classmates." Mom grabs the dictionary out of his hands and reads the real definition. MOM You think you're funny, don't you? JIM Get outta my room, I'm tired ...

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MOM We had a deal, Jim - You have to go to school if you want to live in this house .

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JIM I go to school. MOM Don't bullshit me or I'll throw your ass out right now. Father McNulty called and said you cut out after first period. What the hell is wrong with you? JIM You want to see what Father McNulty taught me first period? Jim pulls down his pants to reveal his bare ass covered with serious looking welts from the beating he took. They are starting to blister. MOM What did you do? You must have done something ... JIM I told a fucking joke •.. Jim pUlls up his pants and heads back out the window.

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MOM Jim! EXT. FIRE ESCAPE Jim climbs up the fire escape to EXT. ROOF - NIGHT Jim stands on the roof, looking out at the city, breathing hard, upset. Slowly, he relaxes and strips down naked. He lies down on the tar and looks up at the stars. We see Jim from the waist up, but it is obvious he has begun masterbating.

•

JIM (V.C.) I love it this way. My feet against the tar, which is soft from the Spring heat, the slight breeze that runs across your entire body, especially your crotch. You feel an incredible power being naked under a dome of stars While a giant city is dressed, dodging cars all around you five flights down. I don't think of anything while I'm doing the actual tugging, least of all the heavy sex fantasies

24

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I have to resort to indoors. It's just my own naked self and the stars breathing down. And it's beautiful ... We PULL BACK until we see Jim, a small, naked white figure against the black of the roof tar. The stars hang over him surreally close and large in the dark sky. DISSOLVE TO: BLINDING SUN - The Legend SUMMER appears, then dissapears on the screen. Our eyes focus to find JIM sleeping barechested in his small, ratty room, stained white sheets bunched around his waist, a sly smile on his lips. He looks like a choir boy caught in the middle of a dirty dream. He is bathed in sunlight. On the wall behind his head, tattered newspaper clippings of Jim's basketball exploits share space with a harem of Playboy pinups. An old photograph of a five year Jim and his tall, stern Father is also prominently displayed. His basketball trophies stand on top of a rickety dresser.

•

We don't see any roaches at the moment, but they're here. It's that kind of joint. Jim is jerked suddenly awake by the sound of a WOMAN SCREAMING. He looks bleary eyed to his open window - Five feet across the alley from Jim, a MIDDLE AGED WOMAN dressed only in her bra and panties is loudly CHANTING THE MASS. Whenever she gets to the Virgin Mary's name, she lets loose with an INCREDIBLE STREAM OF OBSCENITIES. It is a freaky sight to wake up to. JIM Damn ... There she goes again ... Jim watches her with fascination as she CONTINUES CHANTING. He takes a dog-eared marble notebook out from under his mattress and starts writing in it. His Mother POUNDS on his door. MOTHER (o.s. ) Jim! Jim, are you up?

•

Jim doesn't answer, he's lost in what he's writing.

25

•

MOTHER (0.5.)

Jim! JIM I'm up, Ma, I'm up! The loony alarm went off ... He writes a few more moments, caps his pen and puts the journal back under his mattress. He takes one last look at the Woman in the window. He struggles out of bed, dressed only in his underwear. He opens his door and walks into A NARROW HALLWAY that leads to INT. BATHROOM - MORNING Jim stares at his reflection in the bathroom mirror, fingers the beginnings of a pimple on his chin, checks out the buzzed sides of his reddish blonde fade haircut.

•

He looks like a 90's version of a Dead End Kid, tough and innocent at the same time, undeniably' cool • Jim takes a piss. We hear his Mother's VOICE through the door. MOTHER (0.5.) Jim, I think I found you a job for the summerJIM Ma, please, I just woke upMOTHER Six fifty an hour, mowing lawns on the highway. It'll be nice, working outside in the sunJIM That's work convicts do. Gimme a break. MOTHER Alright, listen to this one-

•

Jim flushes the toilet drowning out the rest of her sentence •

26

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INT. KITCHEN - MOMENTS LATER Jim is sitting at the kitchen table wolfing down a poptart. His Mother sits across from him'·with the newspaper opened to the classifieds. JIM Why are you so worried about this? Do I ever ask you for money? MOTHER I don't want you running wild. Idle time is the devil's plaything. JIM "The Devil's Plaything", that might be a cool title for my first book. Thanks a lot. Jim stuffs the rest of the poptart in his mouth and walks towards the door. MOTHER

•

Where are you going?

out.

JIM

MOTHER What do you mean, out? JIM Chill, Ma, I can take care of myself. Jim leaves his Mother alone in the kitchen, feeling uneasy. EXT. WEST 4TH STREET BASKETBALL CAGE

- MORNING

Jim sits on the asphalt of the basketball court, leaning against a chain link fence, writing in his journal. A basketball suddenly bounces hard off the fence right above his head. startled, Jim looks up, right into the face of REGGIE PORTER, a powerfully built man in his early 40's. Reggie's face is bearded, scarred, his eyes betray a life of bad luck and hard living. He has the wisdom of someone who has seen it all and come through.

•

He and Jim treat each other with contemptuous affection.

27

•

REGGIE Hey white boy, you ready for your beating? JIM Old man, your mouth's making promises your body can't cash. Jim caps his pen and carefully puts his journal in his jacket pocket. REGGIE I'll shoot for it. Reggie swishes a thirty footer. JIM So it's gonna be like that, huh? He checks the ball to Jim, then blows past him to the basket with deceptive quickness. But Jim recovers, leaping high and pinning Reggie's shot to the backboard. Jim LAUGHS as he puts in an easy lay up.

•

Reggie steals the ball from Jim and dunks two handed. He hangs on the rim to further embarrass Jim • They start playing the roughest, most intense game of one on one you've ever seen. A CROWD gathers around the fence to watch them. They trade baskets and insults, example for Jim: "Time out! Geritol break for Reggie ... ", example for Reggie, "I didn't know Richie cunningham had a fuckin' jumpshot. 1l Herbie, Neutron and Pedro enter the playground and see Jim playing with Reggie. PEDRO Oh, shit, here they go again ... Jim scores on an acrobatic lay up over Reggie's outstretched arms. Reggie checks Jim the ball, Jim TAUNTS him. JIM You see that, Reggie? I'm not White, I'm just pale ...

•

Jim tries to go to the hoop, but Reggie knocks him down hard, bloodying Jim'S nose . REGGIE You want the foul?

28

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Jim shakes his head "no". Reggie puts in the easy lay up. The game continues, harder than ever. HERBIE Yo, Jim! What's the score, man? We gottago ... NEUTRON They don't keep score, Herbie. HERBIE What? Jim, corne on! We're gonna lose the sun. Jim ignores him, he's locked in his battle with Reggie. HERBIE Jim! (to Pedro and Neutron) Wanna see me put ~ charge in his ass? He goes over to Jim's jacket and takes out his journal ..

•

HERBIE (loudly, so Jim can hear) Oh, what's this? It looks like Jim's secret diary that he's always writing in. Let's see what he says about me ... But Jim is still too involved in the game to pay attention to Herbie. So Herbie leafs through the journal. He starts to read out loud from the journal at the top of his voice, to get Jim's attention: HERBIE (reading) "SPRING '93 - Herbie ... ", Hey, there I am, "Herbie takes out a bottle of carbona cleaning fluid and suggests we do a little sniffing to get high .. ". JIM Herbie, put that down! Herbie winks to Pedro and Neutron. Jim moves to Herbie.

•

HERBIE (keeps reading) "After four deep whiffs, we were sailing someplace else, bells ringing through

29

•

my ears and little lights flashing through my eyes •.. " JIM I'm serious, mant Jim tries to grab the journal, but Herbie holds him off and keeps READING. HERBIE (GIGGLING) " ... 1 pictured myself paddling across a river with black water, only the canoe was· going backwards instead of forwards, with clouds that were faces' laughing spooky funhouse laughs which wouldn't stop echoing ... " What is this shit, Jim? REGGIE (impressed, to Jim) You wrote that? Jim jumps up and grabs his journal from Herbie. JIM You're a fuckin' shmuck, Herbie.

•

HERBIE You were keeping us waitin', man ... JIM (serious) Don't do that again, you understand, it's private. Herbie shrugs. REGGIE Hey, Shakespeare, you gonna finish the game? JIM This game never ends, Reggie. You know that ... They slap hands goodbye. Jim, Herbie, Neutron and Pedro walk out to Sixth Avenue and hail a cab. They all pile in, Pedro is last, he sits up front with the Pakistani Cabdriver. CABBIE

•

Where you go?

)0

•

HERBIE (reacting·to his halting English) Oh shit ... JIM The Cloisters ... CABBIE Huh? HERBIE The Cloisters, motherfucker, you want me to sign it for you? Herbie goes into an grotesque imitation of sign language. CABBIE You bad mouth, you get outta my fokkin' cab, motherfokker you!

JIM Chill, chill, I'li get you there, swami ...

•

Herbie and Neutron start LAUGHING. Herbie starts rolling a joint as they dissapear down the street. CUT TO: The cab pUlling up at light all the way uptown. The doors suddenly fly open and Jim, Neutron and Herbie sprint out, stiffing the driver. Pedro is not quick enough, the Cabbie grabs him by the neck. CABBIE You pay! You pay! Herbie comes running over. He rips Pedro out of the Cabbie's clutches. CABBIE Police! Police! Herbie and Pedro haul ass down the block. PEDRO (as they run) Thanks, Herbie!

•

HERBIE What were you doing back there, teaching him English?

31

•

EXT. 225th STREET - DAY The Gang walk up 225th Street to the Bridge, BULLSHITTING with each other.

JIM Can you imagine that guy trying to. describe us to the police? HERBIE (imitating the Cabbie's accent) "Dere were four bad mouth bastid motherfokkers my fokkin' cab ... " They all LAUGH. Pedro points to a street sign. PEDRO Hey, look, Seamen Street. Get it, like "semen" street? HERBIE Yeah, I get it, whaddya think, I'm brain dead?

•

NEUTRON I knew a girl lived on the corner of Seaman and Cummings street, no shit. She fucked her weight in guys, but living on a corner with names like that no one could blame her.

JIM Dyke street's two blocks up. HERBIE Dyke Street? No shit?

JIM No shit ... They all LAUGH harder. PEDRO The whole fuckin' neighborhood's perverted ... They shimmy down the bridge to the railroad tracks. They start climbing up a mountain about a fifty feet from the tracks.

•

Herbie finds a broken crutch on the ground, he uses it as a walking stick .

32

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JIM (V. O. )

Every crowd has it's little games to prove if you're a punk or not. My cousin in Newark plays "chickie ll , which is two cars heading towards each other at about 80 miles per hour. The first driver to serve out of the way is, of course, chicken. On the lower east side, they'd make you press a lit cigarette onto your arm and have it burn all the way up to the filter without the slightest flinch ... Jim and his Boys are climbing up the steep moutain, higher and higher, passing around a joint and a forty ounce Olde English, getting fucked up.

•

JIM (V.O. cont.) Us Manhattan boys jump off cliffs into the Harlem River, which is literally shitty because there are giant sewer deposits where half a million toilets empty their goods daily. There are lines of shit about five feet wide that come by every forty seconds or so. They get to the top of the mountain, and stand on top of a huge rock. They look down and there it is, stretched endlessly in front of them, the Harlem River, the water green and ominous, a good 150 feet down. They keep smoking and drinking, working up their courage. JIM Cant.) You have to time your jump in between the lines just like those jitterbugs down in Acapulco got to time their jumps so they hit the water just as the wave is beginning to break. (V. o.

They poke around the bushes at the base of the rock to find their hidden bathing suits and jocks.

•

They are down to their scivvies when they hear GIGGLES from the bushes. They turn to see THREE THIRTEEN YEAR OLD GIRLS trying to get a free show. Herbie pulls down Pedro's underwear, exposing his privates. Pedro lets out a high pitched SCREAM and covers himself.

•

PEDRO I'm gonna fuckin' kill you, Herbie! The GIRLS are LAUGHING uncontrollably. HERBIE Let's get 'em! They charge after them, only in their underwear, slinging their jockstraps in the air. Their true purity exposed, the Girls are off like a breeze. LAUGHING, the Guys change into their suits. Herbie puts all their stuff in a plastic bag and throws it onto the rocks below. Pedro is sullen. Herbie puts him in a good natured headlock. HERBIE Come on, little man, you know I love

ya ... He lights another joint and hands it to Pedro.

•

HERBIE Truce, O.K.? Pedro takes a long toke and looks down into the faraway water. PEDRO Long way down ... HERBIE Oh, come on, Devil's Toe ain't no big fucking deal. We've all done it plenty of times. PEDRO I never done it. HERBIE Bobby used to do backflips off this fucking rock, man. He was fucking awesome. JIM Don't talk about him like he's dead. He's not dead. Herbie gives Jim a strange look .

•

34

•

NEUTRON Hey, check it out, it's the Circle Line ... Sure enough, the Circle Line, a large sightseeing boat loaded with TOURISTS slowly cruises by. They wave at Jim and the Boys, who drop simultaneously drop their trunks and moon them. Herbie takes a huge swig from the 40 ounce. He hands it to Pedro and gets ready to jump. The whole Circle Line is watching him. He suddenly jumps. He has one hand covering his balls, the other holding his nose. He clears a tree hanging dangerously over the rock, and goes down, down, down into the water like a rocket, narrowly missing the thick line of shit that floats past him. It takes him a few moments to surface. He puts up his hands like a boxing champion, then motions for them to jump, too. PEDRO

I'm gonna walk down ...

•

JIM What're you crazy? There's no way to walk down. PEDRO I'm not jumpin'.

JIM Your clothes are down there, man. NEUTRON You can make it, Pete ... Come on, you don't want Herbie teasing you, do ya? Pedro takes two more drags from the joint and steps to the edge of Devil's Toe. PEDRO (muttering to himself) Fuck it ... He crosses himself and jumps, YELLING "FUCK IT!" really loud. It looks bad right from the start.

•

JIM Oh, no ... Bad form ...

l

•

f~N )LUILL'j 1'{206', m(G~e'0\05

Jim SIGHS as he watches Pedro hit the water like an octopus, limbs flying everywhere, the SMACKING SOUND of the splash carries clear up to Jim and Neutron on the rock. Pedro surfaces after a moment, shaking his head in anger and pain. A thick wedge of shitty water floats right over him. He is absolutely miserable. JIM (holding back laughter) You alright? Jim and Neutron crack up hysterically as Pedro paddles painfully to shore. NEUTRON Yo, Jim, don't tell the other guys, but after we get finished with everything tonight, I got a big surprise for us ... JIM What is it?

•

NEUTRON (smiling mischievously) Trust me ... They step up to the the edge of the rock. The Tourists on the circle Line are waiting expectantly. NEUTRON You ready? One ... Two ... Three ... They dive athletically in unision, floating through the blue sky in SLOW MOTION like a pair of beautiful birds. They dissapear into the inky blackness of the water with almost no splash at all. We hear the APPLAUSE of the Tourists. THE SCREEN IS BLACK FOR A MOMENT. Slowly, our eyes get adjusted to the darkness. Finally, we focus in on Jim, Neutron, Pedro and Herbie are in an alley in the ritzy Upper East Side. Night is just falling. Herbie peaks out onto the street and SEES: A WEALTHY WOMEN walking alone, fiddling with her purse.

•

HERBIE (whispering) Here she comes ...

7-

""S \ ,lye-,

36

•

They all cover their faces like bandits with their bandanas. HERBIE Get ready,

Pedro~ ..

PEDRO I'm not doing it. HERBIE You're doing it! PEDRO It's always me ... Fuck you ... NEUTRON She's coming! Herbie peaks out and takes a look at her. HERBIE I'll do it, I'll do it •.• Herbie takes off his bandana and stuffs it in his back pocket. He walks onto the street as casually as he can.

•

The Wealthy Woman is walking towards him. Herbie makes himself appear young and All American. HERBIE Excuse me, Miss, can you tell me where I can find the subway? WOMAN Just go down 68th Street and turn right on LexingtonShe points up the block, her purse dangling off her elbow. Herbie makes a quick grab for the purse, but she holds onto it. They get into a mini tug of war, this lady is much feistier than he expected. Jim, Neutron and Pedro leap out of the alley in their bandanas to help Herbie. She starts hitting Jim in the head with her other bag. There is something hard in the second bag, a bottle of something and blood trickles down Jim's forehead.

•

Finally, Herbie viciously rips the bag out of her hand, sending it flying in the air. He pushes her very roughly to the street as Jim looks on in disgust at the unnecesary violence.

37

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Pedro snatches the purse off the ground and puts it under his shirt. WOMAN Help! Help! They run away down the street. Jim looks back at her in a combination of horror and guilt, his blood still flowing. EXT. ANOTHER ALLEY - SAME NIGHT Jim, Neutron, Herbie and Pedro silently split up the money. Jim presses his bandana over his cut and bruised head, sipping from a fifth of Scotch. Each man has a stack of twenties. They are still a little keyed up. Pedro is LAUGHING almost uncontrollably. PEDRO That was so funny when she was crackin' Jim in the head with her ba9' Jim was like "Oh, shit, this bitch hits like Tyson. II

•

He keeps on GIGGLING. The rest of the GUys are annoyed with him. Herbie suddenly smacks Pedro in the head, hard. HERBIE Now you got cracked in the head, is it funny now, you motherfuckin' dwarf spic? JIM Go, easy, Herbie, he's just goofin' on me ... Jesus ... There is awkward silence between the Friends. JIM What the hell are we fighting for? Let's go spend some of this money. Herbie and Pedro won't look at each other. JIM Come on, guys, whaddya say? They both nod, still not looking at each other.

•

:rl fT\ff\'j U0\D \Ne\J\~CJJ'J 38

•

INT. "POOL BAR" - DOWNTOWN NEW YORK CITY Jim, Neutron, Herbie and Pedro stand at the bar in the incredibly crowded, low ceilinged PoolBar, so named because the tiny joint is dominated by a large pool table in the middle of the club that WOMEN dance on. An EARSPLITTINGLY LOUD PUNK BAND is PLAYING and the YOUNG CROWD is slam dancing and stage diving with crazy energy. Herbie and Pedro, buddies again, are kidding around with the BARTENDER. PEDRO (to the Bartender) Let me have a Lincoln Continental. BARTENDER What's in a Lincoln Continental? PEDRO Power steering, bucket seats. Pedro and Herbie crack up LAUGHING. The Bartender is staring at them impassively.

•

HERBIE We're just fucking with you. Give us two more shots of Jack. The Bartender serves them the shots and Pedro and Herbie down them immediately. They run full speed to the dance floor and hurl themselves wildly into the CROWD. Jim and Neurton watch them with bemused looks. Jim holds an ice cold beer to his swollen head. NEUTRON You still up for your surprise? JIM What is it, man? My head is killing me. Neutron grins wickedly. NEUTRON I think this will ease your pain. Neutron puts some money on the bar .

•

39

••

EXT. STREET - NIGHT Jim and Neutron walk up to a nice doorman building on Riverside Drive. Their noses are buried in the New York Post as they walk. NEUTRON Unbe-fuckin'-lievable It's in the fuckin' paper already . We get a look at the headline - "Diaper Bandits strike Again." NEUTRON (reading) " ... this gang of pUbescent thugs is wanted in connection with six savage muggings in the Manhattan area ... " You think we're savage, Jim? JIM Does it say anything about the woman? She went down hard ... NEUTRON (reading) Here it is ... "51 year old Barbara Fleming is in guarded, but stable condition in Roosevelt Hospital with a fractured jaw and a concussion ... "

•

JIM Christ ... We gotta cool Herbie out •.. They enter INT. BUILDING - NIGHT They walk through the lobby. Neutron nods to the DOORMAN. NEUTRON What's up, Manny? Jim and Neutron disappear into the elevator. EXT. HALLWAY - MOMENTS LATER Neutron knocks on the door of one of the apartments. He smiles confidently at Jim.

•

A sexy, curvaceous young BLONDE, about 16 years old, answers the door and smiles sleepily, she appears wasted. She's dressed in a groovy, seventies style clothes.

40

•

NEUTRON This is Winkie ... Behind Winkie steps another, identical looking young blonde. NEUTRON ... and this is Blinkie ... Jim smiles at her. INT. APARTMENT - LATER Jim and Blinkie, Neutron and Winkie sit on a huge couch in their beautiful, but hopelessly messy apartment. Incense burns, COOL MUSIC plays from a CD player, there are pillows allover the floor and exotic tapestries on the walls, cigarettes fill the ashtrays, empty bottles seem to be everywhere. This party has been going on awhile. Wherever their parents have gone off to, they better get back soon.

•

Neutron and Winkie are furiously making out, he has his hand under her halter and she is MOANING LOUDLY. Jim is uncomfortable. Blinkie is arranging a line of cocaine on the glass coffee table, unfazed by the sexual activity taking place right next to her. She smiles at Jim invitingly. BLINKIE I've seen you play ball, Jim •.. You're a very beautiful player ... Very Zen ... JIM Thank you ... BLINKIE I saw your red hair and I thought to myself, "He must taste like strawberry's ... " Neutron pulls off Winkie's short shorts - She is wearing leather panties with fringes. Jim sneaks a peak, he's a little jealous. Blinkie snorts an enormous line of coke through a hundred dollar bill.

•

she hands Jim the bill and nods to the cocaine. The way Jim looks at the coke, we know he's never done it before. Blinkie leans over and WHISPERS in his ear.

41

•

BLINKIE It'll make you fuck like superman ... She kisses his ear sexily. BLINKIE Faster than a speeding bullet ... She kisses his neck. BLINKIE More powerful than a locomotivie ... She rubs his cock over his pants. BLINKIE Able to, able to, uh •.. (giggles spacily) I can't think of anything for the single bound ... Jim again looks over at Winkie and Neutron who are really going at it, then he looks at Blinkie who nods seductively to the line of cocaine on the table.

•

She hands him the hundred dollar bill and Jim is frozen for a moment in indecision. Jim snorts a line. He shakes his head from the jolt, his eyes glassy. He snorts another line immediately off the coffee table. Blinkie blows a freeze of cocaine into his mouth, then they french kiss in a slow passionate rhythm. Blinkie stands up and extends her hand to Jim. BLINKIE Come on ... DISSOLVE TO: Blinkie doing a sexy striptease for Jim who lies back on her enormous white bed. She pulls off her short shorts to reveal identical leather panties with the fringes. Jim looks excited and nervous. BLINKIE Do you have any protection?

•

Jim takes out a condom from his pocket •

42

•

Jrn (trying to make a joke) Got my jimmy hat .•. This one's guaranteed pleasure proof .. Jim LAUGHS nervously. BUNnE What are you waiting for? JIM Huh? BLINKIE Take off your clothes ..• Jim looks uncomfortable. JIM Turn off the light ... She smiles, turns off the light, leaving us in the darkness.

FADE IN:

•

Jim and Blinkie fucking, she is WHISERING in his ear, teaching him. In a stripe of light from the window, we see Jim's heavenly smile. FADE TO BLACK.

FADE IN: Blinkie is crashed out sleeping. But Jim is still wired, writing furiously in his journal. FADE TO BLACK.

FADE IN: Jim is pacing the living room nervously. Neutron'and Winkie are asleep on the floor. The colorful tapestries on the walls are taking on an ominous look. The first sunlight of the day is on his face. He rubs his eyes, he's starting to get a little crazy. He desperately wants to sleep. He walks into the modern, black tiled bathroom and starts tearing through the medicine cabinet. He finds some valium and downs three. He puts the whole vial in his jacket pocket. He takes a big swig of cough medicine with codeine and puts that in his jaCket, too.

•

He steals another vial of seconal, closes the medicine cabinet and comes face to face with himself in the mirror.

43

•

His own reflection shocks him - His eyes are bloodshot and wild, with dark circles underneath, there are cocaine traces on his nose and dried blood on his forehead and matting his hair. He stares at himself, horrified, for a.moment, then his lids start drooping from the effects of the cough medicine and valiums. FADE TO BLACK. The Legend FALL appears, then disappears on the screen. FADE IN: A BIRO'S EYE VIEW of Bobby Sachs in his open casket, hands folded in front of him, wearing a dark suit. Jim is kneeling in front of the coffin, tears in his eyes, he tentatively reaches out and touches his dead friend's hand.

• knew

JIM (V.O.) I looked at his body and it was death for the first time. His face was thin and wrinkled, almost ape like, his hair just grey patches on his scalp . He looked sixty years old, and he was sixteen. I couldn't believe how skinny his arms were, much skinnier than they were even in the hospital •.• It was like having the skeleton of someone you put in front of you ••.

EXT. STREET - NIGHT Jim, Neutron, Herbie and Pedro walk through the streets in their suits, a light rain falls, as if the night itself is crying. JIM (V.a.Cont.) I felt dazed, like I had just come out of a four hour movie I didn't understand. I kept thinking about his face, and death, and what a cheat the whole thing was •.. EXT. PLAYGROUND - LATER THAT NIGHT

•

The Boys are sitting on the stone bleachers overlooking the playground, reminiscing, drinking and smoking. Jim is

uet>bl,

•

feb(tGJ)~01LLY13IfM\'iJ'~!~ \edroJw:f~Q./~uVa\ ')

" t ant an d s~'1 ent, ta k'~ng strange 1 y d ~s blow from a little spoon and bottle.

'1 occas~ona

snorts of

PEDRO Remember that Halloween when Bobby filled that paper bag with dogshit and lit it on fire outside Father Dunne's door? We hid behind the dumpster and watched him stamp it out with his foot. Remember the . expression on the Father's face? I was picturing him wiping his slippers off over the john with " toilet paper ... He LAUGHS. PEDRO You think that'll keep him out of heaven? . HERBIE Nah ... Jesus Christ himself woulda laughed at that. It was fuckin' hilarious ...

•

NEUTRON Or that time at the Formal when Bobby got caught with Mary Ann Dugan in the boy's bathroom and he's going, "We weren't doing anything, Father, we were just talking ... " and there's this, like, giant wad of cum hanging off her hair ..• They all LAUGH. HERBIE Bobby was a pisser. PEDRO It was weird seeing him today. He was all shrunk and wrinkly, like my GrandfatherNEUTRON Like it wasn't even Bobby, reallyPEDRO It was freaky-

•

NEUTRON He was such a strong guy-

44

5\~~

45

•

PEDRO I know •.. Remember San Gennaro? He hit that thing with the hammer and the bell rung. NEUTRON Uh-huh. PEDRO Even Herbie couldn't do it •.• There is a silence, Jim still hasn't said anything. PEDRO You see his Mother? She was crying so hard she couldn't even breathe ... HERBIE It's better he died. He was in a lot of pain.

•

JIM (suddenly exploding) How the hell would you know, Herbie? You never went to visit him. None of you did ..• They are all shamed into silence. NEUTRON I didn't know what to say to him, Jim ... They all nod as if that was their problem, too. PEDRO My Mom didn't let me go. She was afraid I was gonna catch something. Herbie tries to suppress a sudden case of the GIGGLES. HERBIE Your Mom was afraid you were gonna catch something? She should worry about catching something herself. His GIGGLE bursts out. Pedro's eyes well up.

•

NEUTRON Herbie, can you shut the fuck up for one night? Have some respect, huh ...

46

•

JIM (quietlY) Pedro, tell your Mother you can't catch leukemia, O.K.? ~t's not contagious ... There is silence as the rain steadily FALLS. HERBIE Look, Jim, his time came, alright? What can you do? My Brother's old Girlfriend caught a bullet in Fort Tryon park, just got in the middle of something, I guess. She was eating a sandwich, next thing'. she's dead. NEUTRON Or Little Teddy Rayhill, 'member, he was doing poppers that time and he fell off the roofHERBIE Just the way it was meant to be.

•

JIM Fuck that! It fuckin' sucks! Bobby was the best fuckin' guy around . He deserved better, he ••• Jim puts his head in his hands. Neutron pats his back. NEUTRON Maybe you should talk to one of the Priests, Jim. JIM I wouldn't ask one of those cocksuckers for directions! Nobody says anything, they sit around feeling shitty for a long moment. Suddenly, Herbie stands up like a crazy man. HERBIE (screaming) Would everybody fuckin' lighten up! ! ! Herbie runs over to the park house and SUddenly picks up a garbage can. He throws it through the window of the park house.

•

NEUTRON What the hell is he doing?

47

•

Herbie comes out of the park house dribbling a basketball. He goes on the court and viciously dunks the ball. Once, twice, a third time. The rain is really coming down, soaking his suit. Pedro runs onto the court and steals the ball from Herbie. Herbie chases him around, angry at first, but then he starts to LAUGH as Pedro throws it over his head to Neutron in a game of keep away. Jim finally joins his Friends. He throws the ball from halfcourt to the opposi~e basket, it careens against the rim and bounces off, almost going in. The crazy game that follows is SCORED.to Jim Carroll's frenetic, oddly euphori'c ode to teenage death, II PEOPLE WHO DIED". They start letting out all They take wild shots, lift and let him dunk the ball, AND YELLING, all the while cheap wine~

•

the tension from the funeral. Pedro on their shoulders they tackle each other, SCREAMING swigging down large quantities of

The rain is coming down in sheets. They strip off their suits until they are down to their underwear. They are really out of their mindS, running wild in the unbridled madness of the moment. Jim dunks the ball backwards with such ferocity that it rips two of its screws off the backboard. Jim hangs off the precariously dangling rim, like a monkey, a wild look on his face, his hair completely soaked with rain. This image FREEZES. We hear Jim's VOICE, older, harder edged: JIM (V. O. )

Did I ever tell you about the first time I did heroin? We see a door, open a CRACK, we hear someone GAGGING.

(v.a. )

JIM

I went down to the cellar of Herbie's building, all sorts of characters were in this storage room shooting gallery. I was just gonna sniff a bag, but a guy says, "if you're gonna sniff, you might as well pop it, and if you're gonna pop it, you might as well mainline." I was scared of needles, but I gave in ...

48

•

We MOVE into the room, Jim is leaning over the toilet in his bathroom, really nauseous, desperately wanting to throw up. He's still high, nodding from the effects of the heroin. JIM (V. O. cont.) It was like one long heatwave through my body, any ache or pain or sadness or guilty feelin' was completely flushed out .•. Jim sticks his finger down his throat and finally vomits. JIM (V.O. cont.) You can never top that first rush, it's like ten orgasms .•• There is nothing left in his stomache, but his throat keeps convulsing.

•

. MOM (O.S.) Jim, there's a strawberry poptart on the table for you .•• She comes to the door, dressed in a cleaning woman's uniform, and KNOCKS. MOM Are you O.K.? You been in there awhile ••. JIM (trying to get his breath) Yeah, yeah ... Oon't worry .•• She opens the bathroom door and sees Jim kneeling above the bOWl, facing away from her. MOM You usually get sick after you eat my breakfast. Jim doesn't respond to her joke. MOM You're really sick, aren't you?

•

JIM Had some bad chinese last night ... Go to work, I'll be O.K ....

49

••

She picks up a towel and turns his face to her. His pupils are almost completely dilated, he's trying desperately to keep his head up. She looks at him, horrified.

MOM Oh, Jim, what are you doing to yourself? She wipes off his face with the towel.

JIM I just gotta little food poisoning ... MOM You think I'm stupid? JIM I shouldn't eat in them little joints, that's alL .. MOM What's bothering yqu so much, you gotta do this?

•

JIM Mom, I gotta headache, I'm not in the mood for your dimestore psychology! MOM How you gonna do school like this, huh? How you gonna do school? He tries to push her

away~

MOM I'm not gonna live with this, Jim. I'm warning you.

JIM You're always warning me ... Blah blah blah in my fuckin' ear! Blah blah blah blah blah! You don't understand anything ... Get outta here, go clean toilets or whatever the fuck you do. You can clean this one when you get home. She smacks him very hard in the face, twice. He smiles at her sarcastically. She smacks him again.

•

1MOM You're ndL,the only one here with a temper!

50

•

J'IM (sarcastic, nasty) Gee whiz, Ma, we gotta have these heart to hearts more often. Golly gee willickers •• ~ MOM J'esus Christ, what is wrong with you? There is a silence between them. MOM I can't believe this is you, Jim, I really can'tJ'IM (finishing her sentence) I know, I was such a good little boy •.. with so much potential ... She looks at him sadly. MOM You really were •.• I don't know what's happening •••

•

JIM I don't know either ••. INT. J'IM'S KITCHEN - NIGHT Jim is sitting at the kitchen table, slumped over his history book. His reading lamp the only light in the dark room. He stares at the page and rubs his eyes, unable to concentrate. He is obviously high. (V. o.

)

J'IM

First, it's a Saturday night thing, and you feel cool, like a gangster or a rock star. It's just something to kill the boredom. They call that a Pepsi- Cola, a small habit. Then it feels so good you start doing it on Tuesdays, then Thursdays, then it's got you •.. Every wise ass punk on the block says it won't happen to them, but it does ... INT. GYMNASIUM - DAY

•

Jim, Neutron, Herbie and the rest of the team are gathered around Lefty in the huddle. The gym is crowded with FANS and CHANTING CHEERLEADERS. Jim looks completely exhausted.

51

•

LEFTY You're my man, Jim, right? I'm counting on you~ .. A BUZZER SOUNDS. Jim looks up at the scoreboard - HOME - 69, AWAY - 70. Eight seconds left on the clock. Lefty pats him on the ass as he jogs onto the court. Herbie passes the ball in to Jim, who dribbles quickly over the time line, to the top of the key. Neutron comes over to pick Jim's man. Jim makes his move and ... dribbles the ball off his foot! The ball rolls slowly towards the out off bounds line. Everyone is SCREAMING for him to PICK-UP THE BALL, but Jim just watches it, seemingly transfixed. Time runs out on the clock, they've lost the game. Jim slumps over at halfcourt, with fatigue and dissapointment. INT. JIM'S KITCHEN - NIGHT Jim is still sitting at the kitchen table, under the lamplight in the darkened room, but now he is scribbling maniacly in his notebook •

•

(V. o.

)

JIM

Your nose is running, your stomache cramps, your legs feel like you just played six games right on top of each other ... And the voice is always there, in the back of your head, "Just one more time, then we'll stop ... " EXT. PARK - DAY

A beautiful fall day, leaves fall gracefully from the trees. A GYM CLASS OF BOYS make their way to the soccer field. They are RAZZED by the tough DENIZENS of the Park about their corny matching shorts and t-shirts. Jim, carrying his gym bag, and Lefty, who just happens to be the gym teacher, lag behind. Jim catches eyes with a rail thin LONG HAIRED WHITE MAN sitting on one of the benches. They nod silently to each other. JIM Lefty, I'm gonna take a leak, O.K.?

•

52

•

LEFTY You gotta bladder like a woman, Jim, you go everytime we're out here •.. Jim ducks away, into the woods. He exchanges drugs for money with the Black Man. Jim sits down, mostly hidden by some bushes. The Soccer game is going full blast. Lefty walks over to Jim in the woods. Jim hears him coming and we see him scurrying to hide his paraphenalia in the bushes. LEFTY I thought you were taking a piss ... What are you doing out here every gym class? Jim doesn't say anything. . LEFTY Have you been waiting for me, Jim? Giving me some kind of signal?

•

JIM What are you talking about? LEFTY Don't act surprised ..• Lefty smiles and leans down to Jim. He makes sure noone can see them and then he reaches into his pocket and produces a twenty dollar bill. He offers it to Jim. LEFTY Do we understand each other? Jim doesn't take the money. JIM Get the fuck away from me, Lefty. LEFTY Take it, take it ... Lefty takes out a second twenty.

•

LEFTY You want rnore ... Here, just let me do it, O.K.? Lefty reaches for Jim's fly. Jim pops him in the face, hard.

53

•

Lefty's nose bleeds. Jim gets to his feet quickly, ready to hit Lefty some more.

LEFTY (in a ~anic) Whoa there, Jim, take it easy ... Lefty wipes the blood from his nose with a hanky. LEFTY You can't blame an old man for trying ... Jim just stares at him.

LEFTY (quickly) I made a mistake, alright? Let's just pretend it never happened. Things'll go back to exactly how they were, O.K.? O.K.? Here, keep the money, keep the money ... Just don't tell anybody, O.K.?

•

He holds the forty bucks out to Jim, but Jim doesn't take it •

LEFTY (suddenly angry) Good, tell anybody you fucking want! Nobody's gonna believe a drughead like you anyway .•. You think we don't know what you're doing? Jim snatches the forty bucks from Lefty. JIM Now get the fuck outta here ... Lefty walks away from Jim, moving so fast he's almost running. Jim sits back down and reaches into the bushes for his works. INT. JIM'S APARTMENT - NIGHT Jim working at the table as his Mother washes dishes in the sink.

•

MOTHER How's your homework coming? Jim GRUNTS SOMETHING TO HER. The CAMERA moves in a circle around the kitchen, catching both of them doing their work,

54

•

in their own universes, giving the scene a disjointed feeling. Jim leans back over his books and starts writing again. JIM (V. O. )

... and you wanna stop, you really do, but it's 1 ike a dream, and you can "t stop dreams, they move in crazy pieces, anyway they want ..• The CAMERA ZOOMS in over his shoulder so we can see what's he's doing: Jim's writing has spilled out of his notebook and he is now scribbling furiously on-the table top in an increasingly wild hand. It is a scary sight as his head hangs down about an inch from his pen. EXT. PLAYGROUND - CATHOLIC SCHOOL - DAY

•

Jim discreetly hands a little bag'of pills to a STRAIT LACED LOOKING STUDENT who hands him some money. Jim looks up and catches eyes with Father McNulty, who has seen the whole thing. CLOSE ON JIM'S EYES, shifting nervously, paranoid. JIM ) .•. and suddenly, you're capable of anything ... (V.o. cont.

INT. CATHOLIC SCHOOL - DAY REVERSE ANGLE ON JIM, wearing a long coat, walking through the long, ominous hallways of the school. Jim arrives at a classroom and kicks in the door. He whips out a machine gun from under his coat and randomly annhilates the students in a hail of bullets and blood. He saves Father McNulty for last. Jim levels the gun at the Priest who is on his knees in front of Jim, BEGGING FOR HIS LIFE. Jim listens impassively, then calmly pulls the trigger. BOOM!

•

BACK TO REALITY - The BOOM! is Father McNUlty slamming his paddle on Jim's desk, waking him from his dream with a start. All the other STUDENTS are walking out of the classroom already.

55

•

FATHER MCNULTY Wake up, Mr. Carroll, it's later than you think .•. INT. CATHEDRAL - DAY Jim, Herbie, Pedro and the rest of the CLASS wait in line for confession inside the cavernous, gothic Cathedral. Herbie nods towards the confession booths.

open

HERBIE They remind me of them peep booths on 42nd Street. I'm on my knees, thinking the·door's gonna slide and there's gonna be some woman dancin' with her top off. I always wind up confessing with a hard on. JIM . A hard on? Man, they're like phone booths to God. I can't tell a lie in there •..

•

A STUDENT comes out of one of the confessionals - It's now Jim's turn. He looks incredibly nervous • Father McNulty 1

JIM

Father McNulty turns to Jim. JIM I don't want to go in. FATHER MCNULTY Why? What are you scared of? Nothin' today .

JIM I just don't wanna go in

FATHER MCNULTY (with a wry smile) I imagine you have more to confess than anybody here ... Unburden yourself ... Jim sees there is no negotiating with Father McNulty. He opens the ornately carved door of the confessional .

•

56

•

INT. CONFESSIONAL - DAY Jim kneels in the tiny, dark booth. He can see the silhouette of a PRIEST behind a "screen. He makes the sign of the cross. JIM Bless me father for I have sinned.:. It's been, uh, four months since my last confession ... There is a long pause. Jim doesn't know what to say. He looks terrified. PRIEST (deep, reassuring voice) Yes, my son? JIM I don't know where to start, Father •.. There is another long pause. Jim is starting to sweat with nervousness .

•

•

57

•

PRIEST Have you taken the name of Jesus Christ in vain? JIM Uh-huh •.. PRIEST Have you disrespected your Mother and Father? JIM Yes, I have •.. PRIEST Have you stolen, or cheated your fellow man? JIM Yeah, but I'm not proud of it ... PRIEST Have you had impure thoughts or engaged in impure deeds?

•

JIM Oh, Father, you have no idea •.. PRIEST Is there anything else you want to tell me? In your own words? JIM Oh, man ... I've done all kinds of crazy shit ••. (catches himself) Oh, I'm sorry! I didn't mean to curse ... Christ, I gotta dirty mouth. Oh, damn, there I go again, excuse me, Father, I'm ... Jim shakes his head in disgust at himself. He wipes the perspiration off his face. There is silence in the confessional. PRIEST Ten Hail Mary's, five Our Father's ...

•

JIM (Surprised) That's it? That's my punishment for everything?

58

•

Jim looks dissapointed, almost angry. JIM I don't understand, Father. My friend Bobby was the best and he's dead. It's not fair, you know? It's not fair. EXT. SCHOOL GYM - DAY The CROWD is filing into the gymnasium. There are two police cars parked in the parking lot. THE OFFICERS are TALKING with Father McNulty. INT. LOCKER ROOM - DAY Jim, Herbie,' dressed in their uniforms, are in secret consultation with Pedro in a corner of the locker room. Pedro has a pile of pills, half pink, half red and black in his open palm. JIM I've never seen these before. Which are the ups?

•

PEDRO I never asked, I thought you'd know. JIM Oh, shit •.. HERBIE The red and blacks are ups. JIM You sure? HERBIE (uncertain) Yeah ... I

JIM think the pinks are ups ... PEDRO

Why?

•

JIM 'Cause I associate pink with lightness, and the others seem hardcolored, like they might knock you on your ass .

59

•

HERBIE Maybe they're faded seconals? PEDRO No, man, if they"re faded, they'd be sticky. HERBIE Bullshit. PEDRO Fuck your-mother, prick ••• JIM All right, all right, everybody cool out ••. Jim takes a hat out of his locker. He takes the pills from Pedro and puts them in the hat. JIM Herbie, pick a pill ... Herbie picks out a black and red.

•

JIM That's what we're all taking ..• HERBIE You sure? JIM You got a better idea? CUT TO: A BASKETBALL bouncing off the rim on a missed shot - FOUR PLAYERS, including Jim, crash the boards hard. Through the maze of flying elbows and leaping bodies, Jim comes down with the ball. He dribbles upcourt and finds Herbie in the corner. Jim cuts through the lane and makes a lay-up over the HUGE BLACK OPPOSING CENTER on the return pass. Jim pump fakes, takes two dribbles, then hits a pretty jump shot from the left side.

•

AN OPPOSING GUARD slices into the middle and drives for the basket. Jim moves in front of him and is knocked to the floor, taking the charge. Scoreboard reads HOME - 23, AWAY - 19. Everything is cool so far.

60

•

Herbie boxes out for a rebound, but HIS MAN soars over him. Herbie only got about a half inch off the floor. Jim tries to drive toward the basket, he fakes once, then tosses the ball over the backboard. He and Herbie exchange worried looks. QUICK CUTS of OPPOSING PLAYERS whizzing by Jim and" Herbie with exaggerated speed, like sports cars passing hitchikers on the highway. Jim and Herbie are walking upcourt together. HERBIE You and your fucking pick from the hat trick ... They both supress a LAUGH, totally downed out. The REFEREE gives Jim the ball on the foul line. Jim's eyes are drooping so bad he can barely keep them open.

•

The POLICE enter the gymnasium and watch Jim, who stares at the basket for a long time. Pedro, seeing the cops, leaves the gym floor immediately . REFEREE (to Jim) Are you alright, Son? Jim and Herbie bust out LAUGHING. Jim shoots the foul shot: it lands about five feet short of the rim. The CROWD is BOOING. The SLICK BLACK PLAYERS from the other team are LAUGHING with Jim and Herbie: they know what's going on. Lefty pulls Jim and Herbie out of the game and sits them down on the bench. LEFTY (livid) You two are off the fucking team! Jim and Herbie scrunch down on the bench, still GIGGLING. Jim covers his head with a towel. INT. LOCKER ROOM - AFTERNOON

•

There is a big crowd in the locker room, including the important looking HEADMASTER, Father McNulty, Lefty and the REST OF THE TEAM as the POLICE clip open Jim and Herbie's lockers.

61

•

Jim and Herbie are sweating it out, knowing they are busted. The cops toss everything out of the lockers, but they can't find a thing. Jim and Herbie look at each other quizzically, in great relief. Father McNulty is staring at Jim hatefully. HEADMASTER You think you're awfully smart, don't you boys? You're both suspended for a week. LEFTY And you'll never play basketball here again ... That you can bet on ... JIM You can't kick me off the team, Lefty ... Oh, why is that?

•

LEFTY

JIM 'Cause I quit the team, the school and this whole fuckin' fag ass scene! Me, too! Do you mean that?

HERBIE HEADMASTER

Jim looks confused for a moment, trying to decide if he wants to take it back. HERBIE Of course, we mean it ... There is another tense silence. Jim looks like he's' going to say something, then doesn't. HEADMASTER We accept your resignations ... Everyone is staring at Jim and Herbie. It is silent in the locker room. Jim walks slowly towards the locker room door. He turns to Lefty, who looks away from Jim nervously.

•

JIM Don't worry, Lefty, I'm not gonna rat you out ...

62

•

He walks over to Father McNulty and stands about three inches from his face. JIM In the next life? Father, I'll have the fucking paddle ... Jim smiles wickedly. EXT. SCHOOL - SAME DAY Jim and Herbie walk down the street, away from the school.' HERBIE What do you think happened to the pills? JIM I don't know ...

•

HERBIE Fuckin' cops probably stole it, they do that all the ti~e, then they sell it themselves ... We just lost about forty bucks worth of pharmacuticals. Goddamnit! Pedro runs up to them from the school, out of breath and smiling. HERBIE What the fuck are you so happy about? Pedro reaches into his pocket and holds up the full bag of pills. Herbie grabs him in an affectionate headlock and kisses his cheek. HERBIE All right, Litte Man saves the day! JIM Fuck the day, how about a night in the Tombs ... Jim looks up and notices Reggie Porter across the street, staring at him. Jim locks eyes with him, pops the pill in his mouth and swallows it down. Reggie shakes his head dissaprovingly. Jim, Pedro and Herbie walk on down the street. Jim turns around and looks back at the school, one last time.

•

INT. KITCHEN - JIM'S APARTMENT - NIGHT Jim and his Mother are in the middle of a blowout fight:

63

•

MOTHER You never sold any pills out in the schoolyard? JIM They didn't find anything in my locker, did they? MOTHER So It's all just a big conspiracy against you, right Jim? JIM Yeah, maybe it is! MOTHER You're lying to me right through your Goddamn teeth .•. She goes into the cupboard and takes out a bag of pills from behind the Campbell's Soup cans.

•

MOTHER Did you miss these, Jim, huh? What are you gonna tell me, they're Flintstone Chewables •.. ? JIM Fuck you ... MOTHER Get the hell outta my house ... JIM Is that what you want? MOTHER Get out! JIM No problem ... Jim runs to his room and slams the door, SCREAMING OUT "YOU FUCKIN' BITCH!". She runs after him and BANGS furiously on the door. INT. JIM'S ROOM - NIGHT

•

Jim is packing his meager possessions into his gymbag. His Mother is SCREAMING at him through the door .

64

•

MOTHER What did you call me? What did.you call me, you piece ot shit?! We hear a dish SHATTER. She is really out of her mind with anger. Jim is impassive as he zips up his bag. INT. STAIRWAY - MOMENTS LATER Jim is walking down the narrow, seedy staircase. His Mother is hanging out of her apartment door, still SCREAMING INVECTIVE down on him. She runs back into the house for a minute and returns with a few of Jim's basketball trophies. She throws one at his head, but misses. The trophy SHATTERS off the wall. She throws the other two trophies, but they miss Jim, too. One of the statues doesn't break, Jim picks it up off the floor. EXT. STREET - MOMENTS LATER

•

Jim walks down his block, alone, holding his basketball trophy in his righthand, like a nightstick. His Mother hangs out the window, still SCREAMING and CRYING. JIM (v.O.) It was a dream, not a nightmare •.. A beautiful dream I could never imagine in a thousands nods ... Jim doesn't turn back to her, he just keeps walking until he dissapears into the shadows. We STAY IN BLACK.

(v.a. I saw this girl beautiful until felt that smile waves following, body and out my of color ...

JIM cant.) next to me who wasn't she smiled, and I come at me and heat soaking through my fingertips in shafts

FADE IN:

•

Headquarters - a rundown, two story dive in Alphabet City. A HOMELESS MAN walks by the building, shivering, his breath is visible in the cold, morning air.

65

•

The leqend WINTER appears, then disappears on the screen. JIM (V.O. cant.) and I knew somewhere in the world there was love for me ••. CUT TO: A SCEEVY FEMALE DOPEFIEND dozing openmouthed by the radiator. The CAMERA moves from her and PANS across Headquarters, revealing a Whole row of sleeping junkies trying to escape the first light of day. They are like vampires in glass coffins. The room is unspeakably filthy, a black and White t.v. plays soundlessly, endlessly in the corner. (V. o.

)

JIM

Headquarters ••• Home, on and off, to every down and out junkie and· wino from 14th street to the Bowery .•. It's like a fuckin' all star team •••

•

We see an OBESE

MAN

sleeping heavily on a filthy mattress • (V. o.

)

JIM

Ju-Ju Johnson, the fattest junkie in New York. He can hide a complete set of works, a cooker and innummerable bags of dope in the layers of fat that flop one by one down towards his belt like a drenched wedding cake ... I've seen him do it •.. . The camera picks up a nattily dressed BLACK MAN IN SUNGLASSES sleeping sitting up on an old sofa. (V. a .

)

JIM

Black Earl, he is a man who all day just cleans his nails ... We'll bury him with his file, understand? Among the tangle of YOUNG ADDICTS, the camera spots Herbie sleeping besides the couch, a stack of comics on the floor next to him, then Pedro, curled up with an angel faced TEENAGE GIRL who's even smaller than he is.

•

An ancient, skin and bones DRUNK in a wrinkled, filthy suit, WHEEZES as he sleeps against a graffitied wall.

66

•

JIM cont.) Willie Bender, King of the Drunks, drinks two quarts of straight whiskey a day. IINo wino me ll , he'd say, "Give me a Johnny Walker Red or go fuck yoursel! ... "

(v.o.

The camera finally reveals Jim in the corner with an old hardcore addict named FRANKIE PINEWATER. They are the only ones awake, so they TALK QUIETLY as they cook up their morning shot. ~

....

•

•

FRANKIE Last Sunday, my Mother' drags me off to High Mass and we go through the whole bit, right? I'd been reading the Bible some lately, and it was making a certain amount of sense, so I was up for a play at Mass again. And what the hell, I tried every other cure in the book, so why not the religous route, right? So I'm sitting in the pugh there and I hadn't had my morning shot yet, 50 I was craving bad. If a miracle was gonna happen it was gonna have to be a biggie • So I'm sitting there with a side altar to my right stacked with hundreds of those tiny candles in the red glass, just like the ones we clipped to get a nice solid flame to cook up the dope on windy nights in the park. So I'm staring at these candles imagining a little spoon or a twist off bottle cap over each with bubbling dope inside. Then the altar boy walks to the altar lugging a giant candle and it's visions of glassine stamp holders, you know, the size of shopping bags and a ten foot long spoon over that candle cooking pounds of junk from powder to sweet juice. I'm goin' fuckin' loony and my Mother's lookin' at me funny ... I'm trying to pretend I'm picking up a revelation from God or some shit ... Then the topper comes, ... the priest starts shaking the incense burner out to the people and it's got the absolute, exact same smell as dope when it's cooking, no mistake about it ... JIM What happened then?

67

•

FRANKIE What the hell you think happened, for Christ's sake? I got up, left and tore ass home to my bottom drawer and emptied my entire stock into the cooker and over the red candle ••• Stoned ••• ZOOM IN SLOWLY on the flame of Frankie's lighter under the bubbling liquid on the spoon. EXT. STREET - DAY

~

....

Jim, Pedro and Herbie walk up the block, into a Pudgie's Chicken joint with a big "Grand opening" sign in front. (V. o.

•

)

JIM

People are always branding junkies the slob wastes of society. Not so, chumps. The real j~nkie should be raised up for saying fuck you to all this shit city jive, for going on with all the risks and hassles and can, willing to face the rap ••. INT. PUDGIE'S - MOMENTS LATER The FRIENDLY COUNTERMAN puts the last of the food in a huge, overstuffed take-out bag. Another equally large bag sits on the counter next to it. Pedro and Herbie hang back behind Jim. JIM (smiling) We've gotta hungry poker crowd upstairs ... The Counterman starts tallying the bill. COUNTERMAN That's two twenty piece Pudgie's Chicken dinners, fourteen Wingee's Hot Wings, twenty buttermilk biscuits and fifteen cokes •.. Anything else?

•

Jim shakes his head "no".

68

•

HERBIE You gotta enough to handle it, right, Jim'? Jim takes out his wallet. JIM Yeah, I got it ••• Pedro and Herbie take the bags off the counter and start creeping out of the store.

...........

JIM Oh, Jesus, I just remembered, one coffee for my Old Lady .•• The Counterman spins and pUlls the coffee knob. Off Jim goes, out the door •.• up the block ... down an alley ... over a fence .•• running his balls off toward freedom. CUT TO:

•

An insane party at Headquarters, we see Herbie, Pedro, Frankie Pinewater, JuJu Johnson and OTHER FAMILIAR FACES, as well as various DRUNKS, PROSITUTES and UNDERAGE GIRLS, who are dancing wildly to the HIGH DECIBEL MUSIC. Everybody is feasting on Pudgie's chicken. DIANE MOODY, on the make, walks up to Jim and his Friends in the corner. She doesn't know that it's him. She lifts Jim's face with her hand, he looks up into her eyes. DIANE (recognizing him) You're lookin' good, Jim •.. Who's your embalmer? Jim smiles at her for a moment, but she doesn't smile back, holding her grudge against him. His head starts nodding to his chest. (V. a

.)

JIM

We've mastered the life of doing nothing, which when you think about it, may be the hardest thing of all to do ...

•

69

•

COT TO: JIM shoving a slapjack into a sidedoor lock of a late model Porsche, destroying the tumbler, popping the button. Herbie and Pedro are on lookout. JIM (V.o.cont.) We just gotta raise enough enough cash to keep our heads straight .•• Luckily, finding money in New York is like getting laid at the prom, easy ..•

"""~~

Jim opens the door and Pedro crawls into the car and lays on his back under the steering wheel, hot wiring the car. Finally, the engine ROARS to LIFE. INT./EXT. PORSCHE - STREET - NIGHT The car careens down the West Side Highway at high speed, zipzagging through traffic, an accident waiting to happen. HIP HOP MUSIC is blasting from the car..

•

HERBIE My brother says he can get us twenty five hundred for a car like this •.. Jim WHISTLES in appreciation of the money. Herbie is cooking up his smack, breathing in the smell. PEDRO Wow, that's like six hundred each ... HERBIE We should buy some shit in bulk and put it on the street, make some real money ... JIM I wanna maybe spend a week at Action Park or something ... Get wrecked and go on the Great American Scream Machine on one big fuckin' nod ...

•

PEDRO No, man, I'm gonna go to Puerto Rico and see my girl, soak up some rays ...

70

•

HERBIE I neVer even seen a picture of this woman, I bet she's about five hundred pounds and got a"fuckin' mustache-

PEDRO No, Herbie, that's your Mother. My girl's in one them swimsuit calendars, man! She's got a booty that stops traffic-

HERBIE ~

..

Get the fuck outta here! She probably doesn't even exist. Pedro tries to cut into the right lane, but a car cuts him off.

JIM Whoa, Pedro! Mira! Mira!

•

Pedro swerves away at the last minute. Then he dances to the music on the radio, driving with no hands, as he speeds down the highway •

CUT TO: Jim, Herbie and Pedro waiting at a phonebooth in front of a diner in Lower Manhattan.

KENNY, Herbie's older, bigger, and crazier brother, pulls up in a black Trans Am and gets out of the car. The Boys seem suddenly very young next to him.

KENNY (all business) Where is it, Herbie? I'm in a hurry ... Kenny follows Herbie, Pedro and Jim around the block, onto a deserted side street. They sag in amazement and disappointment when they see their precious Parsche hooked to the back of a tow truck with it's yellow light spinning. Kenny is silent, but obviously very pissed off. Herbie looks at his brother fearfully as the tow truck pulls away with the car.

•

HERBIE I don't believe this ...

71

•

PEDRO Where's the sign? Huh? Show me the freakin' sign ... KENNY It's right there, you stupid, fucking morons! I should kick all your junkie punk asses ... He points to a sign that clearly reads TOW AWAY ZONE ... NO PARKING AFTER 6 P.M. KENNY Can you mental defectives even read? Kenny' suddenly twists Herbie's arm behind his back painfully. Hey!

HERBIE

He twists Herbie's arm back even further, Herbie SCREAMS IN PAIN.

•

HERBIE Kenny, come on, man ••. Kenny twists his arm back even further, theatening to snap the bone. KENNY

John Halligan is waiting for the car right now. I got him out of bed with his wife ... You know how this makes me look? Tears of pain are running down Herbie's face. KENNY

You are too fuckin' stupid to be my brotherI'm sorry, alright?

HERBIE

Herbie is now laying on the sidewalk face first as his brother digs his knee into Herbie'S back, still twisting his arm upwards. Jim moves to help Herbie, but he is scared .

•

JIM Yo, Kenny, go easy, man ..•

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KENNY Shut the fuck up, Carroll, or I'll give you some, too ... Jim doesn't know what to do, so he does nothing. Kenny keeps the pressure on Herbie's arm. Herbie suddenly struggles desperately to get away -from Kenny's grip, but Kenny slams him back on the pavement face first.

KENNY You tryin' to be a tough guy in front of your friends? Huh? You a tough guy? HERBIE No ... No!!!

Jim and Pedro look away in embarrassment and fear as the humiliating assault on Herbie continues. CUT TO:

•

THE PARK, night. Jim, Pedro and Herbie sit at the edge of a raised concrete trail, their legs dangling down into the shadows. Herbie's left arm is in a cast and he is unusually quiet and sullen. Jim is swigging from a bottle of coca cola. PEDRO Gimme a sip of that soda, man •.• Jim hands him the soda. Pedro wipes off the top of the bottle with his shirt before taking a sWig. He gives Jim back the bottle, then picks up the bloody set of works that Herbie just used and starts preparing his own shot.

•

JIM (incredulous) I don't get it, Pedro ... You wipe off the fucking bottle before you'll take a sip of soda, but you don't think twice about sharing Herbie's works? You think you're gonna get something from the bottle you're not gonna get from the needle? Pedro shrugs as he ties up.

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JIM You believe this guy, Herbie? Herbie manages a weak smile as he enjoys his high.

JIM Reminds me of this girl I used to fool around with who had my tongue in her mouth for like, ten hours straight, but would have a fuckin' fit if I used her tooth brush ... Jim tosses Pedro a fresh set of works.

JIM You wanna kill yourself, jump off the Empire state Building, set yourself on fire, do something creative at least .•. They HEAR A POLICE MINICAR coming around the trail towards them like a predatory animal. They panic, jumping to a wooded area about fifteen feet down. The Cops pass by above them.

•

The red and blue police lights dance off Jim's face as he hides out in the underpass. He waits a moment, the lights fade. DISSOLVE TO: SNOWFLAKES falling gracefully out of blue sky. We're in Rockefeller Center in the midst of the Holiday crush. TOURISTS and SHOPPERS gather around the tremdendous Christmas tree. Jim leans against a festive display window, smoking a cigarette, looking old and hard. JIM (V. O. )

•

This hustling scene is getting hairier and hairier. You wouldn't believe what people need just to get off ... Last week, this woman had her pet parrot eating grapes out of my pUbic hair, with a leather muff over my cock to make sure the dumb bird doesn't rob me of my main asset. It's all out of hand as far as I'm concerned ...

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GLADYS (0. S. )

Whip the cat and jerk yourself off into my mouth .•• Jim doesn't move. He stands silhouetted in the bathroom door with the whip. GLADYS (0.5.)

What part of that didn't you understand? Jim still doesn't move. GLADYS (0.5.)

I said, do it! Do it now .•. You want to get paid, don't you? Jim moves into the bathroom with the whip. We hold on the entrance of the bathroom. A GREAT'SCUFFLE is heard from inside. We hear GLADYS SCREAMING:

•

GLADYS (0.5.)

No! No! That's not what I want! We hear more SCREAMS and the hair raising SCREECHING OF THE CAT. Finally, Jim emerges with a beautiful CALICO CAT under his arm. He goes into Glady's coat, takes several twenties out of her wallet and shoves them in his pocket. Gladys crawls pathetically out of the bathroom, HYSTERICALLY CRYING. GLADYS You said you'd help me •.. You said yOU'd help me •.. Jim hurriedly throws on his shirt and jacket and runs out of the apartment with the Cat under his arm, leaving her alone. CUT TO: NIGHT - Jim stands in a shadowy doorway on his old block, smoking a cigarette .

•

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A Mercedes pulls up to the curb and GLADYS, a thin, well dressed woman in her mid forties gets out of the car and goes to Jim. Something about the Woman is nat quite "right" her eyes have a crazy gleam and a slight twitch, as if she's medicated or psychotic. She WHISPERS something in Jim'S ear. He nods "yes". CUT TO: Jim, in baggy jeans and no shirt, walking through the spacious, modern apartment and looking out the window to the magnificent park views. He hears the SOUND of a cat SCREECHING as he walks to the open bathroom door. (V. o.

)

JIM

I want to run this one case down on paper before I develope some heavy guilt feelings . . . . He hears her VOICE coming from the bathroom.

•

GLADYS (O.S.) Under the big painting is a bureau ... I want you to open the middle drawer. Jim goes over to the bureau and does what he's told. GLADYS Take out the whip and come to me ... Jim takes a mini-Whip with leather fringes out of the drawer. He walks to the open door of the bathroom and looks inside. We see Jim from behind, the whip dangling in his hand. The cat continues to SCREECH HORRIBLY, as if it's being tortured. GLADYS (O.S. ) I want you to whip the cat ...

JIM (taken aback)

•

What?

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JIM (V. O. )

She haunts me, that woman haunts me sometimes ..• Jim watches the stooped figure of his Mother walk past him carrying a big bundle of groceries. From his eyes we see he wants to callout to her, but he doesn't. He watches her fumble with her key and disappear into her building. CUT TO: MORNING - Jim, Frankie Pinewater and Herbie bag smack for distrubution on a linoleum table in Headquarters. The Calico Cat drinks from a saucer of milk at Jim's feet. CUT TO: JIM exchanging money for drugs with a SKINNY BLACK MAN in the smoky haze of Julian's Billiards, a downtown poolhall. Jim looks like a sleazy, skinny, old drug dealer. A huge, tattooed SKINHEAD walks purposefully to Jim and . pushes him hard against the wall.

•

JIM What's your problem? SKINHEAD (screaming) You sold me some shit the other day almost killed my girlfriend! What did you cut it with, rat poison? Jim motions for him to keep his voice down. JIM (calmly) It's not my fault your lady can't handle her drugs. SKINHEAD I want my fucking twenty dollars back!

•

JIM There's no money back guarantees, I'm not selling refrigerators here. But I'll cut you a great deal on some dynamite Mexican shit, O.K.?

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SKINHEAD Give me twenty dollars now or get your faggot ass outside! JIM If we go outside one of us going to get hurt. The Skinhead smiles and Jim follows him to the exit. CUT TO: A VIOLENT CONFLICT BETWEEN JIM AND THE SKINHEAD in the stairwell. He punches Jim in the face ,and stomache, hard, then he slams him against the wall. Jim falls down, bleeding from the eye and mouth. The Skinhead kicks him in the face and body over and over. Jim tumbles hard down the long flight of stairs. He looks up to the Skinhead at the top of the landing and manages a smile through his split lips.

•

JIM I told you one of us was going to get hurt. Jim, his energy spent, slumps against the wall of the entranceway, closing his eyes to the pain. JIM (V.O~)

It's been hard, the writing, lately •.. a terrible numbness, then suddenly, it comes ... in beautiful fragments, or terrible dreams •.. like nods ... so high ... CUT TO: JIM, in SLOW MOTION rising and rising to the basket, on his way to a magnificent tomahawk dunk. The Golden Arches of the McDonald's Logo loom above him on West 4th street. Everything is seen in neon, surreally bright colors. He continues to rise, impossibly high, floating in the air towards the basket.

•

Then, at the apex of his jump, a shotgun blasts rips through his chest, blood leaps in geysers from the open wound.

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Jim collapses to the ground like a strange, broken bird, a pUddle of shocking red blood spreads in a circle around his body. MATCH CUT TO: Jim lying in the snow on the West 4th Street basketball court in the exact same position as the previous shot, except instead of a pUddle of blood around him, it's piss. His face is still misshapen and scabbed from the night before. Reggie Porter stands above him, poking at Jim with his foot. REGGIE Get your ass up, come on! I'm talking to you, boy ... He gets scared when Jim doesn't respond: He kneels down and sees frozen snow on Jim's eyelashes and a blueish bruises on his eyes and cheekbones. Reggie feels his neck for a pulse: Jim is still alive.

•

REGGIE Jesus Christ ... With great effort, Reggie lifts Jim out of the snow and over his shoulder. He carries Jim to the street and disappears down the block. ESTABLISHING SHOT - REGGIE'S APARTMENT BUILDING - NIGHT CAMERA favors a lighted room over a Korean deli in the East village, a fire-escape hangs down towards the street. DISSOLVE TO: INT. REGGIE'S APARTMENT - MORNING Jim, wrapped in several old blankets, jerks awake in the neatly furnished, small apartment. All available wall space is taken up with shelves filled with books and records. Reggie is eating bacon and eggs at a desk near the window, reading from Jim's diary. JIM Reggie?

•

Reggie nods "hello" to Jim and sees that Jim looks unsure of where he is.

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REGGIE Don't worry, you're "not dead .•. yet ... Jim GROANS, rubs his eyes dizzily. Reggie holds up Jim's diary and smiles. REGGIE Not bad ... JIM Gimme that! Reggie tosses the diary to Jim on the 'couch. JIM Why the fuck is it wet? REGGIE 'Cause you pissed on it •••

•

JIM (disoriented) I didn't say you could read it, did I .•. ? You been going through my pockets? Reggie says nothing, takes a big bite of his eggs. The sight of food nauseates Jim. JIM My jacket •.. My jacket •.• ? Reggie points with his head to the coatrack. Jim stands up unsteadily. I

JIM gotta get the fuck outta here ... REGGIE

Your welcome ... JIM What the hell am I thanking you for? REGGIE You were frozen in the snow like a fuckin' creamsickle ...

•

Jim grabs his coat and looks hurriedly through the pockets: he doesn't find what he's looking for.

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JIM Where is it? REGGIE What? JIM You know what •.. Don't fuck around with me, Reggie. Reggie holds up a small, tinfoil package. REGGIE You mean this? Jim moves shakily towards Reggie, furious, but already a little sick without his wake up shot. JIM Gimme my shit! Reggie shakes his head "noll. Jim .pounds on Reggie's desk with his fist.

•

JIM I'll cut your fuckin' throat, Reggie!!! REGGIE (calm) I'm gonna make you an incredible offer. I'm gonna save your life twice in one day ... Jim makes a lunge for the package. Reggie easily fights off the weakened, defeated Jim, who crumbles with sickness and frustration to the floor. Reggie locks the package in a drawer of his desk. JIM You should've left me in the fucking snow •.. Jim starts to CRY, clutching his journal. Reggie goes back to his desk and calmly takes another bite of his eggs. JIM I'm not gonna suck your dick, man. I don't hustle for nobody ...

•

REGGIE Who wants to suck your dick?

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JIM Why do you care, Reggie? What's in it for you? REGGIE Once upon a time, someone helped me ... I always pay what I owe ... CUT TO: A DARK ROOM - Jim, in bed, writhing in agony, his guts crawling with sickness, intense heat, then shivering chills hit his body, his muscles spasm. JIM Gimme something, Reggie, please, just a taste, just a little taste, please! ! ! Reggies just sits in a chair by the bed, gripping Jim's hand as he BEGS and MOANS with an almost inhuman sound. We hold on him for a long moment as the p~isons pour out of him. Jim is indeed in hell.

•

The CAMERA moves in, closer and closer, on Jim's face until his delirious, burning, strangely beautiful eyes fill the frame. We move through his eyes, into darkness and we ... DISSOLVE TO: A BIRD'S EYE VIEW OF A TOILET BOWL. PULL BACK TO REVEAL Jim,

sick, kneeling before the bowl, GASPING FOR BREATH, sweat pouring down his face, His delirium is worse, his eyes seem to be on fire. He kneels in front of the toilet, he seems to remember something. He puts his hands in a praying position and STARTS RECITING THE PENANCE the Priest gave him when he went to confession. JIM (mumbling weakly) Hail Mary, full of grace the Lord is with thee ... Blessed are thou amongst women and blessed are the fruits of thy womb, Jesus ... Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for our sinners now and at the time of our death ... Amen ... Hail Mary full of grace the Lord is with thee ...

•

Reggie watches intently from the open door as the Jim's PENANCE continues.

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DISSOLVE TO: Jim propped up in bed, still very sick, but looking a little better. Reggie is feeding him chicken soup. The sun is pouring in through the window. REGGIE .•• You can't go left, that's your whole problemJIM I can go left-

REGGIE No, you make that same' stupid move down the lane everytime, so fuckin' predictable. That's why you can't even beat me an old timer like me .. JIM How the hell you know that? We don't keep score.

•

REGGIE I keep score in my head, you've never won. JIM BUllshit, that is such bullshit. Jim takes an angry SLURP of soup, competitive fires burning for a moment in his pale, sick face. CUT TO: Jim sitting on Reggie's couch, eating some plain toast, watching the Knick game on Television, holding a basketball on his lap. He looks a lot healthier, although he is still pale and shaky. Reggie come out of the back bedroom, his security guard uniform hanging open as he zips up his pants. There are two ugly scars on his body, one on his chest, one near his neck. JIM Jesus Christ, Reggie, what happened to you?

•

REGGIE Whaddya think happened? Some motherfucker shot me, woke my black ass up ...

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JIM Shit ••. Reggie tucks in his shirt, ready to leave. REGGIE I'll be back in in the morning, Jim. Just stay cool, you're almost there •.. Seriously, you get panicky, write about me in that book of yours. I was a little hurt I wasn't mentioned ... JIM You really like my writing, hUh, Reggie? REGGIE I told you four times already, whaddya want me to do, bend over and kiss your ass? Jim smiles with embarrassment, but he's secretly pleased. Reggie goes to the door.

•

JIM Yo, Reg, pick me up a nickel bag while you're out, O.K.? Reggie gives him a knowing look. JIM Just kiddin', just kiddin', Jesus ... Jim LAUGHS like a wise ass. Reggie shakes his head and leaves the apartment. He locks the door behind him, leaving Jim alone. Jim takes a bite of his toast and tries to get into the Knick game, but he's restless, distracted. He starts changing the channels, never staying with anything for more than five seconds. He goes back to the Knick game, feeling suddenly anxious. He looks at the steam pouring off the radiator. A CAR ALARM SHRIEKS endlessly outside. DISSOLVE TO:

•

Jim hyperactively dribbling the basketball in the apartment, passing it to himself off the walls. Finally, SOMEONE POUNDS on the ceiling and YELLS, "STOP BANGING!!!" Jim starts to pace without dribbling the ball.

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DISSOLVE TO: Jim picking up his diary and uncapping his pen. He looks intently at the blank page, but nothing comes to him, he can't seem to concentrate. The white page blurs in his eyes. He closes his diary, feeling sick. DISSOLVE TO: Jim, driven by some inner demon, at the desk trying to open up the drawer where he thinks Reggie stored his drugs, but the drawer is locked. Jim tries to pry it open with a letter opener, but still it won't budge. He tears through the papers and drawers of Reggie's desk until finally he finds the key in the bottom of one of the file cabinets. He opens the drawer with the key, his hands shaking, but the package is not inside. He angrily rips the drawer out the desk and it CRASHES to the floor.

•

Frantically, he looks on top of the books, under the stereo, between albums, in the freezer, but he still can't find his smack. He puts on his coat and tries to leave the apartment, but the door is locked from the outside. Jim SLAMS his hand against the door in frustration and rage.

JIM Fuck! ! ! Jim bangs his shoulder against the door hopelessly. Finally, he wraps his hand in a towel and smashes his fist through the window. CUT TO: Jim smashing his fist through the backdoor window of an old fashioned ice cream shop. Pedro crawls through the opening and opens the door for Jim and Herbie. They are all obviously wacked out of their heads. INT. OLD FASHIONED ICE CREAM PARLOR - AFTER HOURS Jim is fiddling nervously with the cash register, having alot of trouble getting the old machine to open.

•

Herbie, his left arm still in a soft cast from his sCUffle with his brother, is rifling though boxes behind the

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counter. He opens a cigar box and finds a .38 special. He holds it up with awe. HERBIE Holy shit ... Jim looks fearfully at the gun as Herbie moves to the door to stand guard, assuming a stance with the weapon 'that is right out of a T.V. cop show. Pedro, a glassy look in his eyes, is behind the counter, scooping heaping mounds of different flavor ice cream into an old fashioned float glass. He licks his lips in anticipation. Herbie gives Jim a murderous look as he continues to struggle with the register. PEDRO (licking his fingers) I always wanted to use those syrup pumps and those professional ice cream scoopers and shoot in that seltzer like old Gussie does ...

•

Pedro pumps in the chocolate syrup and pours in the seltzer • PEDRO They don't make 'em like this anymore. Pedro goes around to the front of the counter and casually sits down to drink his ice cream soda with a straw. Jim and Herbie look at him incredulously. HERBIE Am I having a fucking hallucination here? Herbie goes to the cash register and pushes Jim out of the way. He FIRES THREE LOUD SHOTS into the register and finally, it jerks open. All he finds is change, no bills. HERBIE Oh, shit, there's no fuckin' money ... He shoves as many quarters in his pocket as he can, then he moves to the back door. HERBIE e'mon, let's get outta here!

•

Jim checks the -register, sees the terrible truth, then he's right behind Herbie, ready to run.

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JIM Pedro, let's go! Pedro doesn't look up. He's in his own world, calmly drinking his ice cream soda. Herbie runs over to Pedro and puts the gun to his head. HERBIE If you take one more sip of that fucking soda, I'm gonna blow your brains allover the fucking coun~er... We hear distant SIRENS from the street. JIM Pedro, you're gonna get us all nailed, come on! With the gun pressed to his head, Pedro lifts up his glass and tries to finish the ice cream soda in one gulp. It spills down his chin as he drinks. Herbie's eyes go black with rage.

•

HERBIE Don't fuck with me, motherfucker .•. He clicks the safety off the gun and cocks back the hammer. Pedro just keeps drinking in the sweet soda. Herbie's finger starts to squeeze the trigger. JIM Hey! Hey! What're you crazy? Pedro finishes the ice cream soda with a final, satisfied gulp and slams the glass down on the counter in triumph. Suddenly, Herbie viciously pistol whips Pedro, knocking him unconscious. HERBIE Let the little spic rot ... Herbie puts the gun in his pants and runs out the back door of the street with the money. Blood is running down the unconscious Pedro's face, mixing with the ice cream. The blue and red police lights are shining surreally through the window as they speed up the street. Jim is momentarily frozen with panic and indecision. Does he run or help his friend?

•

He hears the Police Car SQUEAL to a halt outside the store and the car door slam. Pedro is MOANING.

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A POLICEMAN SMASHES his shoulder into the door, the old wood starts to give. Jim starts backing out of the store. Pedro slowly comes to, he opens his eyes as the door is about to give. PEDRO (terrified) Jim, help me! The Cop breaks down the door. Jim runs full speed out the 9ack, leaving Pedro behind. The Policeman trains his gun on Pedro. POLICEMAN On your stomache now! Hands behind your head! Pedro does what he's told. The Cop cuffs him and leads him outside. They push Pedro's head down roughly as they shove him into the police car. We see his face pressed against the window of the squad car.

•

PAN UP to Jim and Herbie hiding out on a rooftop five stories above the ground, watching the police car move down the street. JIM Why'd you fuckin' hit him, Herbie? Herbie doesn't answer, so Jim smacks him in the shoulder, really angry. JIM I'm talking to you, asshole ... Herbie watches the Police car disappear around a corner with a lopsided weird smile. HERBIE I sure hope he enjoyed that ice cream soda •.. EXT. BUCKET OF BLOOD - LATER THAT NIGHT Jim and Herbie walk up the street into the Bucket of Blood, a skanky dive bar in the meat district in Manhattan.

•

INT. BUCKET OF BLOOD - MOMENTS LATER Jim and Herbie sidle up to the bar. A college basketball game is on the T.V.

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HERBIE Check this out, man, this is all of it ••. He dumps a handful of change on the bar. HERBIE I bet that old Jew keeps all his money under his fucking pillow ... And Pedro, Christ, he went right over the fucking bend, there was nothing I could do ... The TOUGH IRISH BARTENDER comes over to them. He sees the bruises on Jim's face. BARTENDER What happened, your mother kick your ass? JIM Very funny, now give us a coupla cokes ...

•

The Bartender goes to get their drinks. Herbie pays him in quarters. HERBIE Fuck, man, I'm starting to jones. We gotta get some money to cop ... Jim is staring transfixed at the T.V., he doesn't answer Herbie. Herbie passes his hand in front of Jim's face to get his attention. HERBIE Yo, Jim, you with me here? Jim points to the T.V. JIM Check it out ... Herbie looks up and sees Anton Neutron shooting free throws on T.V., looking spiffy in his red St. John's uniform, his name printed on the screen along his stats. HERBIE Hey, it's Neutron ...

•

Herbie watches for a second, then is quickly distracted.

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HERBIE Who can we hit up for some cash? Jim just keeps staring at Neutron on the tube with a terrible combination of loss, self hate and burning jealousy: He knows that could've been him. FADE TO BLACK. FADE IN: EXT. TENEMENT BUILDING - NIGHT Jim and Herbie BUZZ the buzzer repeatedly, but get no reply. They are sweating and fidgety, starting to go through withdrawals. A MAN leaves the building and they catch the door before it closes. INT. TENEMENT BUILDING - MOMENTS LATER Jim and Herbie bang on an apartment door over and over and over until the door finally CREAKS open.

•

A double barreled sawed off shotgun is leveled at their faces. Jim throws his hands up in surrender. JIM It's cool, man, it's cool ... Jim and Herbie back off slowly down the piss stained corridor, then haul ass down the stairs. EXT. WINKlE AND BLINKIE'S SWANKY BUILDING - LATER Herbie is doubled over with stomache cramps, sweat pours down his face. Jim is sick, too, but he tries to make himself look presentable by combing back his greasy hair with his hand. JIM I'll be right back ... INT. HALLWAY - WINKlE AND BLINKIE'S BUILDING - LATER MANNY, the doorman, reads his newspaper in the lobby. Jim tries to walk by him casually the way Neutron did the last time they came here.

•

JIM What's up, Manny?

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Manny sees Jim, who looks like a common, dirty bum, walk into the elevator. MANNY Hey! stop! INT. HALLWAY - WINKlE AND BLINKIE'S APARTMENT - LATER Jim stumbles quickly down the hallway and BANGS on" the door several times, looking behind him for a sign of Manny. Finally, the door opens revealing a large, distinguished, angry MAN. MAN

What do you want? It's one o'clock in the morning? JIM I'm looking for Winkie and Blinkie ... MAN Who the hell is Winkie and Blinkie?

•

Behind the Man's back, Winkie and Blinkie appear, dressed conservatively in matching pajamas and cute haircuts. They gesture for Jim to leave. It's all a little surreal to Jim . MAN

Karen, Amy, do you know this man? No, Daddy ...

AMY AND KAREN

Jim slumps against the back wall, sick, as he sees Manny come out of the elevator with a baseball bat, pissed off. JIM I'm goin', I'm goin' ... Manny grabs him roughly, Jim puts up no resistance. MANNY (to the Father) Sorry, Mr. RUbin, he got past me ... Jim and Mr. Rubin lock eyes as Jim is shoved down the hallway. CUT TO:

•

Jim and Herbie panhandling on the subway, JINGLING CHANGE in styrofoam cups, very shaky from withdrawals. Herbie WARBLES

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a terrible off-key version of whitney Houston's "1'11 Always Love You" as Jim makes his PITCH: JIM Ladies and Gentleman, we don't mean to disturb you, but me and my brother ... He looks over at Herbie SINGING THE WRONG WORDS TO THE SONG and weaving unsteadily as he walks through the car. JIM ••• me and my mentally retarded brother are homeless at the moment and we haven't eaten for two whole days. Any donation, large or small, would be greatly appreciated. Herbie is getting frustrated, He shakes his cup agressively in PEOPLE'S FACES, SINGING LOUDER AND LOUDER IN A PIERCING FALSETTO, -but nobody gives him a cent. ALL THE SUBWAY RIDERS look away from Jim, too, except for a CLEAN CUT BLOND TEENAGER who stares Jim right in the eye..

•

This image of innocent youth haunts Jim: Now he'S the bum getting the sympathetic looks. The Kid puts a dime in Jim'S cup. Herbie sidles up to Jim in the subway. HERBIE Maybe we'll have better luck alone. I'll meet you back at Thompkins Square in a coupla hours, O.K.? Jim nods, still staring at the Kid. EXT. ANOTHER STREET - LATER THAT NIGHT Jim stumbles through the streets in the deep pain of cold turkey. He sees a vision of Diane Moody, the crack whore from the beginning of the movie, through his stinging, tearing eyes. Diane is dressed well, clear eyed, it is Obvious she has gotten herself together. Jim moves frantically to her, grateful to see someone he knows. JIM Diane, Diane, hi! You look great ...

•

DIANE

Thanks ...

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JIM (wiping his nose) You holding? She shakes her head "no". JIM Lend me a five, will ya? Just a five •.. Diane reaches into her purse, Jim waits expectantly. She hands him two 'quarters. DIANE (smiling) BUy yourself some pretzels ... INT. GRAND CENTRAL TERMINAL - LATER THAT NIGHT Jim, deliriously sick, walks into the terminal bathroom. INT. BATHROOM - MOMENTS LATER

•

Jim makes eye contact with a STRANGER in the crowded john. Jim sidles up to next to him at adjoining urinals and flashes three fingers. The Stranger hands him thirty bucks, then disappears out of frame, on his knees in front of Jim. We hear Jim's zipper being PULLED DOWN. CLOSE ON JIM'S FACE as the Stranger goes about his business. We see the pain and tears in Jim's eyes. He SCANS the hordes of faces watching him in the bathroom, they are a surreal mixture of the strange and the ordinary: FEMM:ES IN DRAG, NASTY S&M FREAKS with their hard butch crewcut stares, OLD GREY MEN, SHY YUPPIES, TEEENAGERS. Jim swears he even sees coach Lefty's face LAUGHING CRAZILY at him in the midst of the CROWD. EXT. THOMPKINS SQUARE PARK - NIGHT Jim and Herbie, hands shaking, exchange money for drugs with a tough looking PUERTO RICAN DEALER with a muskrat on his shoulder.

•

INT. ALLEY - EAST VILLAGE - MOMENTS LATER Jim and Herbie, sick with anticipation, rip open the bag hungrily. Herbie puts it on his spoon to cook up.

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Jim holds his portion of smack in his hand, something doesn't look quite right to him. JIM Taste it, man, I"gotta hunch •.. HERBIE Brown can be dynamite, come on, Jim! Jim wets his finger and dips into the stash, raising a small taste to his mouth. Jim leaps up sUddenly, shocked, and tosses the rest of the smack down the alley. HERBIE What the fuck are you doing? JIM Taste it! Taste it! Herbie takes a taste.

•

HERBIE (furious) It's Ovaltine, it's fuckin' Ovaltine! CUT TO: Jim and Herbie running madly toward the Puerto Rican Dealer, who dashes away, his muskrat falling off his shoulder and scrambling away in the night. A CHASE ensues: Jim and Herbie follow the Dealer through the streets, into a building, up the stairs. EXT. ROOF - TENEMENT APARTMENT - NIGHT Jim, GASPING FOR BREATH from running, trails Herbie to the roof. Herbie, totally out of contrOl, has the Dealer by the neck and is shaking him violently, pushing him closer and closer to the edge of the rooftop. Jim watches transfixed from the doorway, about forty feet from the action. HERBIE (screaming) Where's my money? Where's my money?

•

Suddenly, the Dealer's foot slips accidently off the roof. He grabs instinctively for Herbie as he topples backward, but Herbie misses his hand.

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JIM Nooooooooooo! The Dealer sommersaults SLOW MOTION through the air and SPLATTERS on the pavement below. The last PITIABLE SCREAMS of his life echo in the night. Jim slowly walks to Herbie from the doorway. HERBIE We killed him ..• JIM Whaddya mean "we"? I didn't even touch him! Don't even try to pull that shit, Herbie! There is a moment of silence. JIM (horrified) You sure he's dead •.. ?

•

HERBIE Of course he's fucking dead, he fell six stories .•• Let's get outta here ••. JIM This is crazy ..• Herbie takes off. Jim is frozen in time, dazed. A LIGHTNING FLASH OF IMAGES TEAR THROUGH JIM'S BRAIN: Bobby Sachs in his coffin with his ape-like old man face and his hands folded in front of him. The first Lady he mugged staring sadly up at him from the pavement. bloody. Gladys crawling naked out of the bathroom, crying hysterically, "You said you'd help me ... " Pedro in the ice cream shop SCREAMING as the red and blue lights of the police close in on him. "Help me, Jim ... "

•

Jim sees himself, in neon colors, being shot out of the air in the middle of a soaring dunk . Then he looks down and sees a CROWD already forming around the Dealer's Corpse, like flies BUZZING around dogshit.

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He hears SIRENS approaching and rouses himself, scrambling across to the roof of the building next store, disappearing. EXT. STREET - MOMENTS LATER A MOB OF NEIGHBORHOOD GUYS chase Herbie through the streets, SCREAMING, "THAT'S THE GUY! THAT'S THE GUY WHO THREW PINO OFF THE ROOFJ" Herbie is sick, his stomache cramping, his running gets slower. SIRENS WAIL from nearby. He finally gets tackled near a subway entrance. They hold him down and stomp him as a Police Car SCREECHES to a halt. The POLICEMEN get the Neighborhood Lynch Mob off the bloody Herbie and cuff him. EXT. JIM'S APARTMENT - NIGHT Jim stumbles into his old apartment building, very sick. INT. HALLWAY - NIGHT JIM BANGS desperately on his apartment door.

•

JIM Ma! Let me in, Goddamnit! CUT TO: Jim's Mother on the other side of the door. Jim's banging is as loud as shotgun blasts. She looks through the peephole and gets a fisheye look at Jim's desperate face. JIM (O.S.) Ten bucks, come on, that's all I'm asking for! Please ..• PleaseJ I know you're in there. You can slip it under the door ... COME ON!! J CUT TO: Jim, with the last of his energy, slamming his shoulder into the door trying to break it down. His SCREAMING and BEGGING continues, but it is angrier now. CUT TO: Jim's Mother on the phone. She is really frightened .

•••

MOTHER (on phone, frantically) Someone is breaking into my apartment.

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He has a knife, please help me! CUT TO: Jim in the hallway, so weak and'sick that he is sliding onto the floor, holding onto the doorway for leverage. JIM (weakly) I never asked you for a fuckin' thing, not a fuckin' thing .•. SIRENS WAIL close by as he slides all the way to the floor. EXT. STREET - SAME NIGHT Jim's Mother watches out her window as the police lead her handcuffed son to the squad car. Jim turns around to look at her. Her eyes seem to say, "I didn't know what else to do." Jim shakes with sickness, his eyes are absolutely insane. THE SCREEN GOES BLACK.

•

FADE IN: On a very TIGHT SHOT of Jim's eyes, shrouded in darkness, stiped by the shadow of prison bars. JIM (V. O. )

I did three months in Riker's Island Juvenile Reformatory for robbery, assault, resisting arrest and possession of narcotics ... We PULL BACK SLOWLY, almost imperceptibly, to REVEAL more of his face in this ominous place. (V. o.

)

JIM

Today, I walked out of those gates a "free man", feeling like a cartoon about to run off it's reel •.. I'm putting these past months behind me for now, and for later and we won't have any more about it ••.

•

We now see him from the shoulders up, in his prison blues as The CAMERA CONTINUES ITS SLOW REVEAL .

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JIM (V. O. )

Suffice to say I am· finished with eating meat that tastes like something from the remote inner guts of a very sick animal, suffice to say that I am finished with the asshole bandits of shower room rape ... The CAMERA has PULLED BACK enough to fully reveal Jim sitting on the floor, his entire body striped by the shadows of the bars. The CAMERA MOVES around him, catChing him in profile for a moment. His mouth moves along with the words he writes in the diary on his lap.

•

JIM (V. o. cont. ) Suffice to say that those swine for guards won't draw blood from my ankles again: suffice to say nobody will hang himself one night on the other side of a wall six inches from Where I sleep ... Suffice to say that I found a broom closet at the end of my cellblock Where I could hide from the ugly screws and filthy cock and sad eyed forms and learn to love silence and SUffice to say that, though I spent four hours a day in that closet, sweating out a horrible cure, I didn't become pure on Riker's Island •.. There is a moment of silence, then an EXPLOSION OF APPLAUSE. FROM OVER JIM'S SHOULDER, we see that he has been reading from his diary in a staged performance piece in front of a large audience. He gets up from his "Cell" and nods his head to the APPLAUSE. A TRENDY M.C. takes the mic from Jim. M.C. Jim Carroll ... Let's give a hand to Jim carroll ..• A MAN IN A BERET turns to his INTELLECTUAL FRIEND and SAYS, "How old is that kid?"

•

Jim is receiving CONGRATULATIONS from EVERYBODY after he comes off the stage. Last in line is Frankie Pinewater, who smiles his rotten toothed smile.

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FRANKIE We gotta party going down at Headquarters, Jim ... Everybody wants to see you': .. Frankie WHISPERS SEDUCTIVELY in Jim's ear. FRANKIE I want the honor of preparing you a syringe filled with the finest junk in Manhattan ... Jim is tempted, we see it in his eyes. The M.C. CALLS to Jim from across the room, he's standing with the Man in the Black Beret. M.C. Jim, come over here a minute, someone wants to meet you! FRANKIE Shit is dynamite, baby •••

•

Jim is torn. After a moment, he nods to himself and starts backing away from his Old Buddies. JIM I gotta go meet this guy .•. I gotta go ... Frankie smiles at Jim. FRANKIE You'll be back .•. Jim shrugs as if to say "we'll see" and disappears into the CROWD. EXT. STREET - SAME NIGHT Jim turns onto his block and spots Pedro standing on the stoop of a brownstone, looking hard and old. He's obviously dealing drugs. Jim goes up to him. Pedro seems distant and distracted. JIM Pedro, how are you, man?

•

PEDRO I'm good, I'm good •..

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JIM Listen, I'm sorry I left you in Gussie's that night. I don't know whatPEDRO Shit happens ..• JIM I

know, but-

PEDRO (Cutting him off) Tryon turned out to be cool, so don't sweat it ••. JIM Yeah?

•

PEDRO Yeah, I was playing shortstop for the baseball team, we had all these tournaments against the other reform schools ... And I had cable in my room and the food was good, so what the fuck, you know? I'm planning on going back there in the winter. Jim LAUGHS. JIM You're still growin', maybe you'll give football a shot ••• Pedro smiles, looks past Jim down the street. JIM Good to see you, Pete, seriously. Pedro nods, but the old magic somehow isn't there. PEDRO You hear about Herbie, that scumbag? Jim shakes his head "no". PEDRO He's doin' five to fifteen for throwing some chump off a roof. They tried him like an adult.

•

JIM Shit ...

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A SKINNY DRUG DEALER comes over and WHISPERS SOMETHING in Pedro's ear. Pedro's eyes narrow as he watches a Cop car creep slowly down the block toward' them. Pedro slaps Jim/s hand goodbye." PEDRO Catch you on the flipside, Jim, alright? Jim nods as Pedro and the Drug Dealer go down the stairs of the brownstone. Trouble is in the air. JIM Take care of yourself,' little man .... Pedro turns around and winks at Jim. He disappears into the basement. They hoth know that things will never be the same. The cop car moves up the block and the POLICEMAN stares hard at Jim. Jim stares right back. INT, JIM'S APARTMENT - DAY

•

Jim comes out of his room in his Mother's apartment, dressed in shorts and t-shirt, carrying his basketball . He takes an apple out of a bowl and takes an enormous bite. Sun is pouring in through the windows. He writes a note for his Mother on a napkin and leaves it on the kitchen table: "Be Back For Dinner." CUT TO: Jim dribbling his basketball down a west Village street. He looks healthy and strong as he whips it between his legs. (V. o.

-.

)

JIM

Know this: There's different type users of junk. You have your rich diletantte square ass who dabbles now and then, always has the cash handy to take off to the Riviera if he feels he's fucking around to the danger point. Street junkies hate these pricks, hut theY/re all suckers and their money makes them tolerable. Then there/s the upper middle class Westchester Preppies, same as the other basically. What they're good for is opening their Mommy and Daddy's

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eyes to this social virus and putting pressure on the Government to do something about it •.• Jim dribbles on down the street: JIM (V.O.cont.) Then there's us street kids that start fucking around very young, thirteen or so, and think we can control ourselves and not get strung out. It rarely works, I'm living proof ..• ln the end, you gotta see that junk is just another nine to five gig, the hours are just a bit more inclined to shadows ••• Jim comes up to the West 4th Street basketball courts and sees Reggie leaning against the fence, sweating, swigging down some Gatorade.

•

Jim goes over to him and slams the basketball into the fence right above Reggie's head, startling him . JIM I've been lookin' for you, Old Man ..• Reggie looks up at Jim, surprised. Jim offers him some money. JIM For your window .•. Reggie doesn't take the money. JIM Take it, Reggie, come on ... I pay what lowe, too ... Reggie smiles wickedly and gets off his ass. REGGIE I'll play you for it .•• He checks the ball to Jim. Jim fakes right, then blows by Reggie to the left and dunks the ball.

•

JIM I thought I couldn't go left, Reggie •.. Reggie LAUGHS and checks the ball to Jim again.

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•

JIM

This time, we keep score ••. They start to play their usual, "intense, TRASH TALKING game of one on one. The CAMERA PULLS BACK until they are TWO TINY FIGURES playing ball on a little square of asphalt in an early morning New York just beginning to fill it's streets with

PEOPLE. THE END

•

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