THE TRIAL Written by - Rizwan Ahmad

T H E T R I A L

(Sample Script)

Written by – Rizwan Ahmad

SCENE 1 [PRISON BUILDING (EXT.) - LATE AFTERNOON]

Extreme Long shot of the outer wall of the correctional facility (Prison).

SCENE 2 [PRISON’S CELL (INT.) - EVENING]

Prisoner “Adam Jacobowitz” lying down on the lower bed of his bunk bed in his cell. He is thinking. He seems upset and terrified. He looks bored and traumatic. He gets off the bed and walk up to the window. He tries to stare the outside world.

SCENE 3 [PRISON CAMPUS (INT.) - EVENING

Green trees. Birds are flying and chirping. Prisoners strolling outside. Guards are standing and looking around.

SCENE 4 [PRISON CELL (INT.) - EVENING]

Adams seems to have lost in thoughts. His face looks pale and restless.

SCENE 5 [ GARDEN & LANDSCAPE (EXT.) - AFTERNOON

Adam is walking down the garden with his girlfriend “Nicole”. Both of them are laughing. They seem very happy. They both are eating ice-cream cone. He tries to kiss her. She shrugs him off.

ADAM

It tastes like .....

NICOLE

ice-cream.

Nicole giggles.

ADAM

Well...it could taste better only if you want it.

Sharon shrugs him off. They laugh together.

SCENE 6 [PRISON CELL (INT) - EVENING]

Prisoner looking out of the window. He is looking out in an empty space. He looks stressed out. He gets off the window. He slowly walks upto his bed, grabs his face with his hands for a while and then lies down on the bed. He seems very restless and scared. He seems to have lost again.

SCENE 7 [BEDROOM (INT.) - NIGHT]

Adam is sitting on a chair and writing a card. The card has an envelope pasted on it. The card says, “ Dearest Nicole .....confidential... A million dollar check inside”. He is lookin at the card and smiling. Suddenly the phone rings. He picks up the phone. Nicole is on the line. She sounds very sweet.

NICOLE

Hi!

Adam seems to be very happy.

ADAM

Hey Sweetyyyy.

Nicole laughs.

NICOLE

What are you doing?

ADAM

What am I doing?

well...take a guess.

Nicole tries to think and says sarcastically.

NICOLE

Serfing!!..O No..Wait a sec.

I think you are on the

internet chatting with some girl.

Adam smiles.

ADAM

OYeah. I am chatting

right now...with some

girl .... not on

the internet but....over phone.

Nicole giggles. Adam also smiles.

ADAM (CONT’D)

By the way, Nicole..I..

I have a very big surprise

for you.

NICOLE

Surprise!!!

ADAM

Yup surprise.

NICOLE

Wao!!!What is it?

ADAM

Well...I can’t tell you

right now. You will have to

wait until you receive it in mail.

Nicole seems inquisitive. She innocently says.

NICOLE

But why? I ..I don’t

wanna wait.

ADAM

No you better wait. It is

...it is extremely confidential

because .....it has a million

dollar check for you...and

only for you.

Nicole starts laughing.

NICOLE

What...a million dollar

check... and ...that’s

why it is extremely confidential.

ADAM

Yeah That’s why....

NICOLE

Even now..

Suddenlly, Adams realizes that it is no more a surprise or confidential. They both start laughing.

SCENE 8 [PRISON CELL (INT) - EVENING]

Adam looks tensed and restless. He sits on the bed with both hands on his face, gets up, walks up a few steps, comes back and sits again. He again seems to be thinking.

SCENE 9 [MANSION/YOUTH HOSTEL (EXT.) - EVENING]

Extreme long shot of the house or youth hostel.

SCENE 10 [MANSION/YOUTH HOSTEL (INT.) - EVENING]

Adam and Nicole is on the dinner table. They are eating dinner.

NICOLE

I fail to understand

how they could have done this?

ADAM

Greed....Human nature…..

You can't help it.

Nicole is eating dinner. She is serious and seems to be thinking .

NICOLE

What ? Killing an

innocent person ! How

could one do it? He should be

put on trial and Punished

severely. He must not get away....

Adam looks at her while eating a piece of bread.

ADAM

Just don't worry about it.

Let's finish eating.

We got to leave.

Nicole looks surprised.

NICOLE

But I wanna stay here

for a while. Look at the

trees outside …and

the birds… This place is so cool.

Adam looks upset.

ADAM

But we can't stay here.

I mean, we just can't.

We…... We got to leave.

Nicole is taken a back for a while.

NICOLE

But… But Why…..

Why can't we stay?

Adam looks upset and scared.

ADAM

I … I don't know.

I .. I feel we should

leave right now. I am

having a kind of intuition...

Nicole is looking at his face. She seems confused.

ADAM (CONT’D)

I….I feel something terrible

is gonna happen. We should

leave before it's too late.

I mean we have got to.

Nicole smiles.

NICOLE

Do you love me?

Adam looks at her. Nicole smiles again.

NICOLE (CONT’D)

Well ? Do You?

ADAM

..Yes…

NICOLE

That's why, then. We've still

got each other.. As long as

we have got each other,

the world is not coming

to an end. Don't worry…

nothing is gonna happen…

Because you love me and

I…. I trust you.

SCENE 11 [PRISON CELL (INT) - EVENING]

Adam’s eyes are full of tears. He gets up and starts walking to and fro. He looks very traumatic. Another prisoner “Jerry Mcnaughton” is lying on the upper bunk bed watching him walk restlessly. Adam hears a sound. He looks in the direction.

JERRY

You look very upset.

I have been watching you.

Adam looks at him and looks down and then looks straight.

ADAM

Hoon. I....I .......

I don’t know. I mean

I don’t know what

is gonna happen.

I...I don’t wanna die.

I am .....I am very scared.

Adam looks up. He seems very scared. His heart seems to be thumping fast. Jerry is curiously looking at him.

JERRY

Scared.....but why?

Adam seems very upset.

ADAM

I mean I.....I feel

I am already dead...

a living corpse.

I...I don’t know what to do.

He holds his head with both his hands. He gets up and starts walking to and fro restlessly. He turns around and looks at him. Jerry is watching him.

ADAM (CONT’D)

But nobody could

understand my suffering

....the tribulation

I am going through. I ....I

am alone in this....

absolutely alone ...

in the middle of ocean.

Adam walks to the end and against the wall of the cell and sits down on the floor. Jerry is thinking. He becomes philosophical.

JERRY

Suffering....Tribulation...But tribulation leads

to happiness...peace...peace

for ever with the eternal world

...the world which is

yet to be unearthed..

the world which nobody has seen

... like an ocean ..

a repository of ..vast knowledge

and... secrets and we still

know very little about it...

willing and ready to be

assimilated and become

a part of it....

Isn’t it exhilarating?

Adam is looking at him. He is feeling little better. Suddenly he starts getting disturbed again. He looks down.

ADAM

But ...But....

He takes a pause for a second and then looks up.

ADAM (CONT’D)

But the trial. The trial.

Jerry is looking at him.

JERRY

The trial! The whole world

is a trial my friend.

Inside we are on trial...

because we know our sequel.

Outside they are on trial

....because they don’t

...They don’t.

Adam looks down.

ADAM

I feel I feel...I am entangled

in the bushes filled with

thorns and...

He takes a pause, gets up slowly and walks forward a few feets. He turns around and looks at Jerry.

ADAM (CONT’D)

And...And every minute seems

like a decade. I feel like

thousands of insects

...carnivorous insects running

into me ...prodding their

sharp edged teeths,

shoving their tentacles,

protruding their clasps

...into my eyes, my ears,

my brain...all..all over me

...trying to take full control

of my body and ...and I

can’t even scream. They relish

my pain. I can only experience

....only experience and

feel ..an unrelented pain.

Jerry is Listening to him. He tends to rest on the pillow. He takes a deep sigh and looks at him.

JERRY

But ...But why did you do this?

Adam looks down, turns around, walks slowly and sits against the wall on the chair. He smiles sarcastically. He takes a deep breadth.

ADAM

Why…. I…...I wish I knew.

I wouldn't have been here.

JERRY

I've been here for a long time.

I have seen people go through this.

You are not the first one.

Adam seems inquisitive.

ADAM

Do you?

Adam takes a pause.

ADAM (CONT’D)

Do you remember anybody?

Jerry is looking at him.

JERRY

John...John Travolta.

He takes a pause and takes a sigh.

JERRY (CONT’D)

...a beautiful death...

it really was..A wonderful unison.

Adam seems to be astonished.

ADAM

Really?

JERRY

Really. And to be perfectly

honest. I was surprised.

He looked so content.

He takes a deep breadth.

JERRY (CONT’D)

…It seemed...…it seemed

he was getting into

a new life...pure...a sinless life..

He was smiling. A smile...

I cannot describe...Probably,

I was lucky...

He takes a pause, looks down and then looks straight. Adam is looking at him and listening curiously.

JERRY (CONT’D)

I was..I was lucky

to be there…...by his death.

But the knowledge that

it's possible-that's something.

Adam seems to have felt relieved. He turns his head, looks down for a while and looks at him again.

ADAM

Did he say something?

JERRY

O yeah. He did….

He takes a pause. Adam is looking at him and listening carefully.

ADAM

He said the light.....

the light... …the light is blinding.

Adam turns his head, looks down. He is looking in an empty space. He is smiling. He is feeling better now.

SCENE 12 [BEDROOM (INT.) - NIGHT]

Nicole and Adam are both on the bed making out. They both are kissing passionately. They are making love.

SCENE 13 [PRISON CELL (INT) - NIGHT]

Adam looks down and takes a sigh. He grabs his head with both his hands. Jerry is looking at him. He seems inquisitive.

JERRY

Who is she?

Is she still with you?

Adam looks at him and takes a sigh.

ADAM

Nicole…Nicole Wagner.

She was seventeen when I

fell in love with her.

She used to live with

her parents in those days

at a small white house

surrounded by heavy laden mango

orchards and a pavement going

through the ridge. She was

a small, delicate creature.

And a very lively being.

I felt full of life

when I was with her.

Jerry is listening to him. He smiles. Adam takes a deep breadth.

ADAM (CONT’D)

we used to go on long walks

together everyday through

the ridge. She was so shy

that I hesitated to tell her

what I felt for her.

Adam starts getting lost in the world of his own creation. He looks restless and terrified.

SCENE 14 [LONG DARK BUSHES (EXT.) - EVENING]

Nicole is walking all alone in the bushes. She seems entangled in the thorned bushes. She looks sad and confused. She seems to be crying.

SCENE 15 [PRISON CELL (INT) - LATE NIGHT/EARLY MORNING]

Adam becomes very restless and looses patience. He looks very disturbed and hysterical. Jerry seems confused. He doesn’t know what to do.

ADAM

Look she is there.

She is waiting for me.

Please....please take me there.

Adam covers his face with both his hands and starts crying.

ADAM (CONT’D)

I ...I wanna touch her

......I wanna feel her.

Adam is extremely restless. Suddenly, the cell door opens. They both look at door. The warden and a guard enters. They both look at them. Adam is getting upset. Jerry is also scared. The warden and the guard look at John.

GUARD

Come’n buddy. Let’s go.

Your time is up.

Adam starts getting terrified. He looks shocked. He starts breathing heavily. He looks at Jerry and then at guard and then back at Jerry. Jerry looks at the guard and then looks at him and then slowly looks down.

JERRY

You are on your own John.

Adam starts shivering. He looks at the guard.

WARDEN

Do you have any last wish?

Adam is extremely horrified. He is breathing heavily. His entire body is shivering. He is almost on the verge of collapse.