Manners in an Elevator

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MANNERS IN AN ELEVATOR

By

Michael James

2011



EXT. DIRT RUNNING TRAIL. DAY

At sunset a young woman, SUSAN, is finishing her run. Shecatches the attention of a handsome couple, BEA andFREDERICK, who enter the trail. Both are clad in streetclothes and, incongruously for the lateness of the day, inmirror-sunglasses.

EXT. PARKING LOT OF LORAL-CONIC. NIGHT

SUSAN exits her BMW, clad in business casual, and walkstowards us, en route to her evening shift at work. As sheenters, we see a establishing shot of her workplace, a largeominous looking building complex.

INT. ELEVATOR

SUSAN and two others are in transit between floors. It is a

modern elevator, shiny, mirrored, and a backgroundelevator-musak is playing. Just then the elevator lurchesand halts its movement. The musak stops and the lights blinkoff, then on again. A beat. SUSAN presses some buttons onthe column. No effect. SUSAN, agitated, pulls out hercellphone and turns it on.

SUSANThere’s no reception. Usually theelevator is the best place. What isUP here..?

SUSAN looks at the other two people for their reactions. Theman and the woman show no surprise at the malfunction; theirfaces are impassive, their bodies calm. SUSAN recognizes thesame couple of earlier from the running trail, minussunglasses. Both BEA and FREDERICK exchange a smile. Theyeye her in silence. A beat.

BEAWho knows how long this elevatorwill stay jammed, you may want toloosen that chain around your neck,so you can breathe.

SUSANConsiderate of you, but I’d ratherkeep it on. I’m not a practicingCatholic, but I’m a fairlyobservant person, and I noticedthat neither of you show anyreflection on these walls. So I’lljust keep my cross on, thank you.At least it’s good for something.

(CONTINUED)





CONTINUED: 3.

SUSANDepends. If it were a woman asking,I might.. maybe not right away.

BEAFrederick, I think we can talk a

little, now that we’re all gettingpersonal. --My name’s Bea, by theway. You remember. From the trail.

FREDERICK--And mine is Frederick. [theyshake hands] Careful, you heardabout the vampire having thestrength of ten men .. I’ll trythis: ’am I a pig when I drink?’Well, part of it depends on howhungry I am. But it also depends onmy upbringing, you know. I enjoy

good conversation.

BEA(to FREDERICK) Remember how youstarved you were with me. Nopreliminaries, no foreplay..(Bothlaugh)

FREDERICK..so it depends on whom I’m with,how they want it But it takes two.I want her to feel good.

BEAIt’s similar to you regulars-that’s what we call you- when youmake love.

SUSANDo you?

BEAYes but there’s more. No offense,but we have more possibilities.Life..

SUSANLife..

BEAExistence.. is more interesting. Iused to be like you..

(CONTINUED)



CONTINUED: 4.

FREDERICKWe’re not prosthelytizers, youknow. We’re usually low key.

SUSANYou must find me boring.

(BOTH)Oh no!

BEABut Susan, it’s really postponementof gratification. Would hungrypeople get very far in the grocerystore if they started grabbingwithout paying? Eating right there.Well, it wouldn’t work. Youwouldn’t want to hang out withthose types of people. Well,

neither would we. Civilisation isbuilt on restraint. Peopleunderstand that less in the States.Well, we prefer Europe. But, youknow, why do you think there are nodemographics on us? People don’teven know we exist! But we’reeverywhere, and it’s all because wecan restrain ourselves.

FREDERICKWe enjoy good manners, goodconversation.. Others out there of

our kind exist who behavedifferently. They, too, are polite,but they’re Sadeans who say thatthose who restrain their desire doso because their desire is weakenough to be restrained. But Ithink they’re not long for thisworld, you know. One has to be arealist and know how to survive.

BEAGod, I need a drink! (all threelaugh, SUSAN nervously) No, no!

SUSANWell, you don’t drink alcohol.

BEAThat’s right, SUSAN, we don’t.

(CONTINUED)



CONTINUED: 5.

FREDERICKNever touch the stuff.

BEAAnd when we drink from someone whodoes, well, we get sick, especially

if you run into more than one in arow, like that. Because alcohol’sbad for you.

SUSANAnd you get high from life, right?

FREDERICKThat’s good, SUSAN.

BEARight. Good way of putting it.. Ohrelax!

FREDERICKYou’ve got that cross on, remember?

BEANo, actually that’s just an oldrhetorical habit, "god I need adrink."

FREDERICKIt’s just like people who aren’tChristian, taking the lord’s namein vain. [machine sounds] Hello,

we’re starting back up.

BEAYou see? Saved.

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Manners in an Elevator