The Great Gatsby - Scene

The Great Gatsby

By:  F. Scott Fitzgerald

Screenplay by Shannon Berke

FADE IN:

Int. Room – Sunset (Apocalyptic West Egg -New York where books are a very rare and dangerous commodity)

Small room lined with bookshelves and cardboard boxes along the floor. Looks like it could have been used as a decent sized office at one point if not for all of the books.

Two people enter in dusty, unkempt clothes. The man holds a rifle low but is clearly wary and shifts from side to side, always keeping an eye on the windows. The female closes the door quickly behind herself and they enter the room. She stays by the door a moment as if to check if they were followed.

A man kneeling on the floor already in the room stands. He has the same weathered demeanor as the other two with very large owl eyed spectacles.  He has an “off” look about him. He looks startled but calms himself when he realizes who has entered. He gestures around himself to the room crammed with books.

Glasses Man –

“So what do you think?”

Man  -

“About what?”

Glasses Man –

Gives a slight chuckle at the clearly dimwitted man

“About that”

He kicks over a cardboard box close to him spilling the contents of many books. They tumble out onto the floor falling at the woman’s feet.

 Woman bends to pick one up.

Glasses Man –

“As a matter of fact you needn’t bother to ascertain. I ascertained. They’re real.”

Man –

“The books?”

Woman –

Cracks open the old, dusty book she just picked up

Glasses Man –

“Absolutely real! Have pages and everything. I thought they’d be a nice durable cardboard. Matter of fact, they’re absolutely real! Pages and – here lemme show you”

He steps towards the woman and grabs the book from her.

“See! It’s a bona-fide piece of printed matter. It fooled me. This fella’s a regular Belasco. It’s a triumph. That thoroughness! What realism! Knew when to stop, too – Didn’t cut the pages. But what do you want? What do you expect?”

He closes the book with a snap. She jumps and looks annoyed

“Who brought you? Or did you just come? Most people were brought.”

Woman

“I was brought by a woman name Roosevelt. She said you had goods to sell but, --I see you might be busy”

Glasses Man -

A little bit, I think. I can’t tell yet. I’ve only been here an hour. Did I tell you about the books? They’re real. They’re”

Man –

“You told us”

The Man and Woman leave the office clearly disgruntled with the Glasses man. The woman makes sure to slam the door when she leaves.