EGO, LOVE AND VENGEANCE - SCRIPT SAMPLES
Writers Guild Registration No. 1482071
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Pages 1-2 EXT – IN FRONT OF KUWAIT EMBASSY, BEIRUT – DAY TWO MIDDLE EAST TERRORISTS are sitting in the front seat of an old Peugeot sedan parked along a tree-lined parkway. They are watching the ENTRANCE TO THE KUWAIT EMBASSY COMPOUND. The embassy building and ambassador’s residence are obscured by trees. An English/Arabic sign marking the driveway reads: KUWAIT EMBASSY, BEIRUT LEBANON in polished brass letters on a dark green background. The DRIVER watches in the rearview mirror as a black chauffeured Mercedes sedan approaches, and then passes and turns right into the Embassy driveway in front of him. DRIVER That’s the Parliament Emissary’s car coming back to pick him up. Get ready brother, we’ll get him when he comes back out. The PASSENGER brings up an AK47 assault rifle and loads the first round in the chamber. INT – MARIA’S APARTMENT, BEIRUT, LEBANON – DAY NANCY (41), a blond gregarious full figured neighbor wearing shorts and a tank top, steps in the main door. MARIA (39), a perfect 10 in a black sports bra and jogging shorts, appears while pulling on a tee shirt. She has a Lebanese look with a tan, dark hair and black eyes. NANCY Did you get your husband, Ray, off okay on his trip back to the States this morning?
MARIA Yeah, I got him off. He's launching a new project that has his ego pumped up and his head in a dither.
NANCY Do I detect a hint of sarcasm, Maria? That’s not you.
MARIA Sorry Nancy. It’s just that Ray said something at the airport that ticked me off. Since that Member of Parliament was gunned down leaving the Kuwait Embassy Ray’s making a big deal out of the kids and I being here in Beirut while he’s away. I’m on my way out to jog. Maybe that’ll help.
NANCY Let’s have lunch. I’ll catch you on the way back, down at the sidewalk café on the promenade. Maria wraps a pouch around her waist and flashes a tenuous grin as she moves to the door. MARIA That sounds good. Give me an hour. EXT – SIDEWALK café – DAY Maria and Nancy are seated at a table in the open-air café. Maria has a bottle of Perrier and a large glass of wine in front of her. Nancy has a double martini on the rocks. They are both having a club sandwich for lunch. NANCY The wine is your favorite, Lebanese Kasara Rosé.
MARIA You’re sure doing your part to pick me up after a bad start this morning. Nancy sips her martini while watching Maria drink her wine. NANCY Jeez, Maria, you have a perfect shape and eye catching feminine beauty even after jogging. If I’d exercise like you and stop drinking so damn many martinis I’d lose some of these extra pounds.
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pages 48-49
HADIE I think the first roadblock guard gave us a clue. If we can find a prostitute in Alayh who visits the compound, she may know if Gina is there.
KARIM Good point. But how are we going to find the prostitute?
HADIE
KARIM I’ll just do that. There’s only three taxies in this small town. INT – HIGHLANDS HOTEL LOBBY, ALAYH, LEBANON – NIGHT The concierge is on his phone to Kamil Mozahim. CONCIERGE Hello Kamil, this is Hammed, the concierge at the Highlands. There is a woman staying here that is asking questions about an American woman named Gina Spinato.
KAMIL (on phone) What is the woman’s name?
CONCIERGE She is registered as Hadari Monia, a Lebanese Christian. She is here with her husband, Karim. He’s a Muslim. They are traveling light with only one suitcase. She showed me a picture of Gina Spinato. I remember seeing Gina at the hotel once with one of your guards.
KAMIL (on phone) Good, Hammed. Now keep watch on her for me. I’ll send my guards.
CONCIERGE I will Kamil. She’s now in the dining room having dinner. LATER. Hadie is holding Karim’s arm as they exit the dining room. Hadie is wearing her black scarf, long sleeve sweater and long skirt, and has her handbag strap over her shoulder. HADIE That was a nice dinner. Their lamb chops with mint jelly were delicious. The concierge approaches them and speaks to Karim. CONCIERGE Mister Monia?
KARIM Yes.
CONCIERGE Security has asked that you go to your car in the parking lot. It will need to be moved. Karim gives Hadie a melancholy look. KARIM I’m sorry Hadie. I’ll only be a minute.
HADIE I’ll wait for you up in our room. They separate, and Hadie walks to the elevator and presses the up button. When the elevator door opens Hadie steps in. Two compound guards, dressed in black clothes and baseball type caps suddenly appear and step into the elevator. The door closes behind them.
The
elevator floor indicator does not move. Then finally it
indicates the elevator has moved to the basement. |
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Pages 70-73 MOUSA Rahman, a husky Lebanese man with a face filled with bitterness, steps forward into the light with an AK47 slung over his shoulder. Mousa points to concrete blocks on the dirt floor. He and Karim then sit facing each other. MOUSA I still consider you a friend.
KARIM
MOUSA I remember your wife was killed the night we last saw each other. Mohammed Imad Muzaraf ordered it done. Did you know? Karim stares at Mousa, grimacing. MOUSA Imad is a warlord south of Beirut. He ordered his men to ambush my brother and his guard for what he called a territory violation. But it was simply a grudge killing. I assume you have returned to Beirut to avenge the death of your wife; in which case we have a common mission to carry out, a mission worth dying for.
KARIM Yes, Mousa, we have a mission worth dying for. Also, you once worked for Ferris Sharer, correct?
MOUSA
KARIM MOUSA I was doing what I was told. I was not in a position to ask questions.
KARIM But Mousa! He was killed in London because of that flyer.
MOUSA
KARIM
MOUSA
KARIM
MOUSA What do you have in mind?
KARIM
I have a
journalist with me who is seeking information on Ray Lewis’s
murder for his widow, and he needs your help. MOUSA All right, we shall work together. I’ll help your journalist and you help me get Imad. Karim and Mousa shake hands earnestly. KARIM Thank you, Mousa, for confirming it was Imad. I’ll locate him, and I promise he will pay with his life.
Karim
stands to leave.
KARIN One more thing, Mousa. What do you know about the Zahid compound, located near Alayh. Mousa stands. MOUSA It’s interesting you should ask. I’ve heard that Imad has been seen going up there at night in his black Mercedes sedan. But it is an armed camp up there. INT – KAMIL’S SUITE, ZAHID COMPOUND – DAY Gina and Hadie are seated on the sofa enjoying their drinks. Gina is wearing a fancy blouse that generously displays her cleavage, while Hadie is more conservatively dressed. Gina rises from the sofa with her empty glass, and takes Hadie’s glass from her hand and goes to the bar. Gina half fills her glass with Johnnie Walker Black Label, then tops it off with ice and Perrier. She refills Hadie’s half empty glass with gin and tonic and returns it to her.
GINA Hadie stands to leave with Gina. Kamil Mozahim steps in the side door from THE PRIVATE OFFICE SIDE OF THE SUITE.
KAMIL Gina turns to Kamil with a broad smile.
GINA
KAMIL
GINA Thank you for the invitation, Kamil. We’ll be there tonight. INT – GINA’S ROOM, ZAHID COMPOUND – DAY Hadie and Gina enter with their drinks and sit at the small table. Gina continues drinking her Scotch, and it loosens her tongue. GINA I love having you here to talk to, Hadie. The boredom was nearly unbearable before you arrived.
HADIE
GINA
HADIE What do you do when you’re there?
GINA Just drink and listen to the music. Kamil use to run an escort service in Geneva, and he likes to have women around to provide atmosphere. I usually go there after dinner.
HADIE |
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Pages 110-112 EXT – CEMETERY, CINCINNATI – NIGHT HEADLIGHTS from Maria’s Car illuminate the scene with RAY LEWIS’ GRAVE MARKER in view. Maria, in a windbreaker with her hair pulled back tight in a ponytail, is at the head of the grave. She has finished digging a hole, placing the dirt on a sheet of plastic. She puts down a shovel and picks up something in a black scarf. She slowly unwraps it and turns to the light to see it. CLOSE-UP: Hadie’s bloodstained dagger in the scarf. Maria quickly wraps it again, and drops it in the hole in the grave and starts replacing the dirt with the shovel. INT – TONY MARINO’S KITCHEN – NIGHT Maria is still wearing her windbreaker after returning from the cemetery. The front is now unzipped. Tony, with his arm around Hadie, leads her to the kitchen table and they sit together. TONY Are you all right, Maria? Maria is somber and ignores his question. She looks down at her folded hands in front of her, ruminating. MARIA I had to do it for Ray. I went over there to find the truth, and now that it’s over I feel I understand Ray better than I ever did when he was living. I admit vengeance was driving me.
TONY When I was with Shib in Lebanon she said something that I’ll never forget. She said you must have loved Ray a terrible lot to want to avenge his death so badly. Maria looks away and bits her lower lip and struggles to hold back tears.
TONY The documents I recovered from the agent’s office in Beirut provide clear evidence of the conspiracy against Ray. You see, Loran VP Russell Harding was receiving kickbacks on commissions paid to Ferris Sharer, and Ray disrupted their covenant. And it was the incriminating evidence that Ray provided the FBI that finally implicated Kamil Mozahim and sent Loran VP Russell Harding to jail.
MARIA And that’s why Kamil recruited a terrorist to murder Ray.
TONY Precisely.
MARIA And Gina?
TONY The British only wanted her for questioning. Karim was taking her back to Tunis with him to teach his children in English.
MARIA Then he’ll decide her fate. Karim’s a good man. And I want you to know that the diamonds I took off Kamil after I killed him were left with Karim and Shib. And the money I took over there was left with Karim for his children’s college fund.
TONY Maria, our children are home waiting for us to talk to them about our marriage plans.
MARIA
TONY The past is past. We should leave it there. I don’t want to know.
MARIA But Tony, you must know. When I arrived at the compound the number two man there, Sayeed, came to me with a photocopy of my ID card that the Militia had just given to him. They wanted me, but they didn’t tell Sayeed I had killed two of their comrades. Thank God Sayeed sent them away and didn’t reveal I was there. He saved me from a torturous death. Maria takes Tony’s hand. MARIA Sayeed was my savior and made my escape possible. He was truly concerned for my safety and recruited his outside friend to help me. But I betrayed him and his friend by destroying the compound and killing five guards. Tony frowns and looks hard at Hadie MARIA Can’t you see? I’ve become a different person. I killed eight men and I wasn’t celibate. I didn’t even try to be. And I’m harboring emotional feelings that I can’t hide or explain.
TONY I respect your feelings for Karim and others who helped you. But you're still my Maria, the only woman I ever really loved and nothing that Hadie did is going to change that. I want you to be my wife more than anything else in the world.
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