THE TRUTH-THE DIRECTORS SCRIPT
Introduction: The film fades into a landscape mountain shot, designed to set the scene. Following in succession are 2-3 second long, broad landscape shots, no fading just cutting, on the fourth shot at the back of the screen, in shadows a man lifts a gun straight at the other man-a shot rings out and as soon as it does the screen cuts instantly to black, the next image is of the ground (with blood rolling into the frame), the camera moves from the blood and up the leg of our protagonist until it reaches his face, showing his eyes. The next shot is a medium shot of him walking away, I fade out of that and into the next scene. (There will be Man 1’s opening dialogue over the shots, and potential classical music).
Over this ‘No Country for Old Men-esque’ montage. When it fades to black, the gunshot rings to silence.
Actors/directors note: You first see the character on the line ‘but I don’t think that’s the truth’. Its delivered in a rambling, staggered way, except for the underlined part of the sentence which is emphasised.
Man 1: My Grandfather always told me that in this land mercy turns to dust, forgiveness leads to repentance and happiness or was it love or life? Or something like that doesn’t exist. But I don’t think that’s the truth and whether people accept it or not this this land bears fruit. Emphasis on the final 4 words. Man 2 is off doing something but listening, she’s looking at him and her task, definitely listening.
Man 1: (eye balling the camera) Do you want me to finish now or can I keep going? Because I can (laughs, trying to charm) talk the hat off a donkey. (The man lets off a wry smile). Note: The shot hasn’t changed, its still a close up of man 1.
Man 2: (distracted from her task) How old are you?
Man 1: I’m 19. (Sarcastically, Wryly) How old are you? (as if he doesn’t want to partake in this shallow activity)
Man 2: I’m 19 . (again, dryly, phlegmatically, returning back to her task)
Man 1: And you have a gun. (as if stating the obvious, not concerned)
Man 2: Yep. (dismissively)
Man 1: And, of course, you know who I am?
Man 2: Yep.
Man 1: Ok, now we’re getting somewhere (optimistically, no pause between somewhere and the next line) Would you like me to keep talking? (smiling, once again trying to charm)
Man 2: Please keep going
Man 1: Well what would you like me to talk about?
Man 2: (straight away, judgementally) How this land bears fruit……..What do you see in it? (she thinks this place is completely baron, she says this very judgementally as if Man 1 is definitely wrong)
Man 1:I see…..(man 1 closes his eyes and thinks for a few seconds). This place has the potential to exist solely in an imagination; it’s as if it’s been filtered through a dream- separated from reality.) How wonderful. (Too himself, looking down)
Man 2: It’s just a whole lot of grass and trees. (almost cutting him off)
Man 1: (assertively yet optimistically and ecstatically) Its fiction. And its beautiful.
Man 2 smirks and continues on with her activity, she then looks down and continues on. She looks to the right of her. I do the classic Fargo shot of showing the image of what her eyes see. She sees Man 1 just staring at her, smiling. She then looks down and forward left. I feel as though she should look at a pretty flower or tree or something and then kind of smirk to herself, as if to say, ‘yeah that is beautiful’ and then she continues on with her activity, she grins as if admitting man 1 is right. A few moments of nothingness occurs (she should take her time here, especially at the start of the moment).
Man 1 (breaking the silence): I think I’ve said enough (trying to strike up conversation, half shouting from the back of the frame, this is quite a long shot) I’d like to hear something from you (half shouting, enthusiastically).
Man 2: Well what would you like to hear?
Man 1: Something truthful, something honest. (not getting too worked up here)
Man 2: Would you like to know why I am here?
Man 1: Not really……I just want you to tell me the truth. (I think he should get closer to her now) (there is distance between them so all of these lines are half shouted).
Man 2: Ok, well, I was born in Brisbane, I now live in Melbourne. My Dad Jeremy died 5 years ago and my Mum Loraine lives by herself in our old house in Queensland. (she says this rushed, annoyed by the question).
Man 1: Is that it?
Man 2: Yep. (dismissively, as if trying to end the conversation)
Man 1: All you’ve got? (looking more surprised, he walks to her) That’s all you’ve got? You can tell me anything in the world, and that’s all you’ve got to say? (getting animated)
Man 2: Yep. (dismissively)
Man 1 approaches her, he goes right up to his face, he’s quite fired up now, he’s almost crying.
Man 1: I’ve asked you to give me something honest, I’ve asked for a feeling, a memory, something from your soul. I’m offering take your pain or recognise your happiness. (pause) he then kind of paces away, his back too hers. I couldn’t care less that you moved from Brisbane to Melbourne (gesturing to no one) I want to explore your mysteries (still with his back to her, he is declaring this) I want to see a memory tinged in emerald (shouting, he then walks back to her, quite close now) Now take a feeling, a truth, and put it on this plate. he picks up a plate and hits it. He gestures at the plate boldly in front of her. This is quite a tense moment, this is escalating conflict.
Man 2, walks to the other side of the abandoned camp site, she shakes her head and thinks for a moment, or at least she appears too, Man 1 watches her do this for a little bit, waiting, he walks and sits ten metres directly from the left of her. He then walks over to the campfire and lights a fire, or something as like it whilst sort of half looking at her, he walks back to where he was. As he does this she holds a gun continually at him, watching him, every step he takes the gun is tracking him. She drops the gun and continues to look at him, she closes her eyes. I like the idea of this all being one shot, of Man 2 in the bottom left of the screen, all the audience focuses on his her, we also see Man exit the shot to do whatever activity he wants to do. Maybe he could exit the shot and you just see Man 2 holding the gun tracing him, that’s kind of cool.
He then walks back into the shot and sits on the right hand side of the frame-the shot is perfectly symmetrical.
She walks over to Man 1 and gives him the gun, she says nothing and walks back and sits where she was. She walks calmly back to her spot. Man 1 looks at the gun and doesn’t pick it up. The shot still hasn’t changed.
Man 2: Well, when I wake up I feel like I’ve woken up on a boat, or in a plane but not on solid ground. I take a step out of my bed and I feel like I’m falling, that at any time, in any moment my life could just evaporate into nothingness and I could be erased and I wouldn’t have changed the world, I would just be another person that lived and faded and no one really knew them.
Man 1: That’s exactly how I feel.
Man 2: That’s not how you feel (sternly, smirking)
Pause/Cut into a much longer, deeper shot. Man 2 is at the other end of the frame, staring at nothingness as is man 1, who is small in the frame just like man 2.
Man 1: How come I haven’t been given anything, I’m not virtuous, I’m not handsome……I’m not anything. (I could try him looking directly at the camera, here he is kind of pleading) (Think about music here)
Man 2: Trapped in a frustrated mind. (to herself really, while he says her bit, she should treat her line and this line as the same ‘monologue’)
Man 1: I’m not good at football, I can’t drive a car (Angrily)
Man 2: Unable to act
A moment of silence occurs.
Man 2: Why did you kill the farmer? What did he do? (she’s angry)
Silence for a significant amount of time, until the original question has been diffused.
Man 1: Please don’t hold this against me but I don’t know how to fight loneliness as well as you.
Man 2: You’re a liar.
Man 1: Thanks for telling the truth. (earnestly, mellowly, calmly)
Fade to black.
By Brydan Meredith