Blackthorne--Scene Twenty-Seven

image borrowed from bing

Blackthorne

Cinemagenic Twenty-Seven

Detainment

“An artist should not be conscious of his insights, should not

recognize or detain them--just allow them to transform themselves

into a beautiful work.”--Rainer Maria Rilke.

1(sound cue) slow snare drum baps,

2(medium 2-shot) angle on Buck’s back, weapons lowered, facing

the Sheriff.

--Sheriff: My name’s Joe Hop. I represent the law in this town; set

your bangers down & point those fingers at the sky.

Buck squatted down slowly & gently put the pistol & sawed off on the boardwalk.

3(CU) on Buck, wearing a small smile.

--Buck: Yeah, the barber was just jawing about you when we got

interrupted. (putting his hands up from the elbows only).

4(cut to a medium wide shot) a lath-thin deputy stepped out of the barber shop

5(sound cue) Broken glass popping under his boots, with harmonica huffing.

6--& stood alongside Hop, easily a head taller.
--Hop: (keeping his eyes on Buck) Talk to me, Marcus.

--Deputy: Barnes is gut-shot but breathing; I sent Bob for Doc Kellner.

The Sheriff handed his shotgun to his deputy, then bent down & picked up

Buck’s irons. He slipped the pistol into his own belt, & pointed the sawed-off

directly at Buck’s chest. 

7(Switch to a reverse shot) Behind Hop & Marcus, angle on Buck’s angry face.

8(sound cue) elongated soft violin bowing.

9(hold the reverse medium wide shot) The Sheriff pulls out the pistol.

10(Cut to medium CU) The Sheriff inspects the pistol, then sniffs the cylinder.

--Hop: This gun’s been fired recently.

11(reverse shot) Hop’s shoulder, Buck’s face:

--Yup, twice; had a little scuffle over to the CHINA DOLL. Feller named Ramos

gave me no choice in the matter.

12(sound cue) acoustic guitar strumming.

13(close-up) Hop: Did you shoot our barber? Hell, he is the only one we got.

--Buck (VO): I had no call to do that. 

14(cut to a crane shot) pulling back wide, revealing that a crowd of townspeople

was beginning to gather.
15(two-shot) 

--Hop: You got a name?

--Buck: Buck.

--Hop: Just Buck?

--Buck: Rod Buck.

--Hop: Where you from?

--Buck: South.

--Hop: (chuckling) Kind of vague--South.

--Buck: The mountains, Mexico, the big Out There.

--Deputy: You’d better answer the Sheriff’s questions, Hoss--

you’re in a shit pot of trouble.

16(sound cue) Indian Snake Rattle, castanets.

17(medium close up) Buck: I suppose you figure I just shot this fellow

for the hell of it, & then stood calmly out here in the street waiting for

you two to get the drop on me?

18(Cut to a wide shot) Angle on a aproned figure with a wild shock of

white hair pushing his way through the crowd. It was Henry Wallace,

the storekeeper. 

Wallace: He’s innocent, Joe, so climb the deuce off his back.

19(medium wide shot) Wallace standing beside Buck, with Hop & the Deputy

facing them. 

--Hop: Alright, Henry, tell us all what the Sam Hill happened here?

--Buck: I was just fixin’ to tell you that.

20(sound cue) accordion & juice harp.

21(medium CU) Hop: Am I talking to you? You just stand there keeping those

hands in the air.

22(CU) Wallace: Christ, Sheriff, I wasn’t the only one who saw it. God damn it,

a person can get shot right here in the middle of the street, & everyone will just

step over him--like he wasn’t there!

--Hop (VO) Rein up some there, Henry.

--Wallace: So where in the hell were you a while ago when that ruckus broke out

in Bronson’s pig wallow? Probably off somewhere fishing or chasing a lace
petticoat, right?

23(sound cue) low notes on a clarinet, reedy.

24(medium close up) Hop: Why Mr. Wallace, your accusations wound me to the

gristle,

25(pull back to a wide shot) Two dozen people have gathered around them now.

--Hop: For everyone’s information, I was over to see Judge Jeremy in King City,

& I just came back to town a short while ago--just before all this affair developed, &

my deputy didn’t have time to fill me in on what might have occurred in my absence. 

26( Angle on Wallace)

--Hop (VO): So please tell me now, what did you see?

27(sound cue) French horn low riffs.

28(medium close up) Wallace: Two masked horsemen, riding Bronson Ranch

jugheads, came busting down the street & when they passed the barber shop

they blasted the window out of it; never slowing down, they turned into that

alley & rode like blue blazes out the other end. 

29(pull back to medium wide shot) A stocky farmer, a big Swede, in bibbed

overalls stepped up: Das right--he told it true. I seen the same thing. 

30(medium two-shot) 

--Hop: That’s all?

--Wallace: Pretty much.

--Hop: Where were you when this happened?

--Wallace: I was in front of my store loading supplies on this gentleman’s

horse( to Buck ) What did you say your name was?

31(medium CU) Buck dropped his hands, folded his thick arms across his

massive chest, staring at the Sheriff.

--Hop (VO): Buck, he said it was Rod Buck. 

32(sound cue) Saloon piano & Indian flute.

Glenn Buttkus

Posted over on dVerse Poets OLN  

Would you like the author to read this Cinemagenic poem to you?