Michael Roemer - Film Stories

Film Stories IV Film Stories Volume IV Michael Roemer ROWMAN & LITTLEFIELD Lanham Boulder New York London Published by Rowman & Littlefield A wholly owned subsidiary of The Rowman & Littlefield Publishing Group, Inc. 4501 Forbes Boulevard, Suite 200, Lanham, Maryland 20706 www.rowman.com Unit A, Whitacre Mews, 26-34 Stannary Street, London SE11 4AB Copyright 2015 by Michael Roemer All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the publisher, except by a reviewer who may quote passages in a review. British Library Cataloguing in Publication Information Available Library of Congress Control Number: 2001020225 ISBN: 978-1-4422-5349-0 (pbk. : alk. paper) ISBN: 978-1-4422-5350-6 (electronic) The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of American National Standard for Information SciencesPermanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials, ANSI/NISO Z39.48-1992.

Printed in the United States of America Contents Preface The most telling detail in these stories was observed, not invented. I saw someone do it or heard someone say it. Though the form in which the details cohered into a narrative was governed by my own needs and experiences, the structure, too, was recorded rather than borrowed or imagined. Since early in life a woman came close to annihilating me and another made life not only possible but enriched it immeasurably, women are at the core of these storiesthe force that compelled me to tell them. * * * Apart from raising a child, surely the most useful thing we can do is to prevent or alleviate sufferingsomething few stories can hope to do. My oldest friend, a painter, once said if he knew that in a hundred years a man or woman would happen on one of his paintings and say : I like that! it would make him happy.

Though his work could not prevent suffering, someone might take courage from seeing that another had traveled the same roadthat there is a way forward. Many solitary travelers have found hope and a home in art and stories. Call me Ishmael. * * * Early on when a film of mine met with praise, a wise friend said, Pass it on. At the time, I was so caught up in the excessive effort needed to get a film made, I had no idea what he meant. Fifty years later, I do.

I now know that the more a story is mine, the less valid it is. I started out making movies to prove I exist, but came to see that the only way I might succeed was by rendering the extraordinary existence and experiences of others. All those who have, intentionally or unintentionally, shared a part of their lives with me are the co-authors of these stories, and I, their nominal author, have fared best when I observed their situations and relationships as carefully as I could. In the end, of course, I must reconcile my observations with the intrusive assertions of my own needs and assumptions. Whatever we are limits our stories. * * * The films of others have been of critical helpamong them The Gold Rush, City Lights, The Seven Samurai, Zero de Comduit, LAtalante, A Man Escaped, LAvventura, The Nights of Cabiria, Raging Bull, The Titicut Follies , and Hospital .

Along with scenes and moments from many others, they have been deeply meaningful to me and are never far from my thoughts and feelings. They dont just serve as aesthetic models but embody the commitment and values that have sustained human existence among people everywhere. * * * BEDROCK For Frank and Julia INT. LUTHERAN CHURCH, STONE RIVER, NEBRASKA A large funeral is in progress. A man in his 50s is in the middle of his tribute to the deceased SPEAKER ... until the day he left us, Ted was the Treasurer of our church, helped us to build the Stone River Public Library, and served as Chairman of the Hospital Advisory Committee.

The door at the back of the church is opened quietly and a young woman comes in. She stops inside the door Near her, in back of the last pew, a girl of five or six is sitting on the floor blowing soap bubbles to keep a boy of three quiet. He tries to catch them. Some of the bubbles float out over the congregation. The young woman watches them while we hear the tribute conclude SPEAKER It was my good fortune to be Teds roommate at St. Olavs.

Ive lost my oldest and dearest friend. He sits down and the minister rises MINISTER Thank you, George. Im glad to see that Gracie Turner has joined usWelcome home, Gracie. The congregation turns to the young woman MINISTER Perhaps theres something youd like to say. Gracie shakes her head emphatically, but then changes her mind GRACIE Yes, there is. (she pauses; then the words pour out) My father had many friends, but the person he felt closest to was my mothereven after she was gone.

I know you all thought she was a pagan, but he loved her, and I love both of them. Fighting tears, she turns, and leaves the church. EXT. CHURCH A sunny summer day. Gracie sits in a rental car across the street and watches members of the congregation get into their vehicles behind the hearse. The homes on the tree-lined street reflect a middle-class Midwestern community.

CEMETERY Gracie stands at the edge of the large group around the open grave, holding a bouquet of small field flowers. She can hear but not see the commitment service. After a moment, she walks a short distance away and stops at a grave sited apart from others. She places half her bouquet next to the head stone, a rough-hewn rock one might find in a field. It reads: Janie Shaskova Turner. A girl of 15 joins her GIRL (shyly) Hi.

GRACIE Hi, Lauren. She clearly likes the girl and kisses her. LAUREN Please come to the house. GRACIE Did your mom send you? LAUREN We all want you to come. GRACIE Thanks. Lauren leaves, and Gracie turns in the direction of the funeral.

The mourners are leaving, and two cemetery workers lower the coffin. Gracie stops at the open grave and places the other half of the bouquet at the head. When she rises, the man who spoke at the church joins her GRACIE Hello, George. GEORGE Im glad you made it. GRACIE She didnt call me till yesterday. GEORGE We didnt know where to reach you.

GRACIE (indicating her mothers grave) He should be over there. She walks away. George follows her. EXT. TURNER HOME Inside the house, someone is playing a hymn tune on the piano. Gracie makes her way among guests on the lawn.

A few say hello, but she barely acknowledges them. FRONT PORCH An old woman in her simple Sunday best is sitting on a rocker with her eyes closed. Gracie has come up the steps GRACIE (softly) Tante Teena. The old woman opens her eyes. The instant she sees Gracie, she comes to life. TANTE TEENA Oh my dear! Gracie embraces her.

TANTE TEENA ( with the trace of a Scandinavian accent) My dear, dear girl! Tears of joy are running down her face, and Gracie tenderly brushes them off with her fingertips. TANTE TEENA Just like your mother. GRACIE Youre still upstairs. TANTE TEENA No, noI cant do the work anymore. GRACIE So she put you out. Her eyes catch an off-screen figure.

WOMANS VOICE Hello, Gracie. Gracie faces her stepmother, the second Mrs. Turner, but says nothing. MRS. TURNER It was so suddenwe didnt know where to find you. MRS. MRS.

TURNER Dont do this, Gracie! Gracie says nothing. MRS. TURNER You need to see Georgehes the executor. GRACIE I saw him. The one thing I want is my mothers quilt. MRS.

TURNER Id think about that if I were you Gracie turns back to Tante Teena and embraces her. MRS. TURNER (a last try) Is there anything I can do? GRACIE Take care of his kids. MRS. TURNER Theyre mine, tooarent they?! Gracie leaves. EXAMINATION ROOM, CITY HOSPITAL Columbus, Ohio.

The door opens and a young man in hospital whites enters. He is looking at a clipboard. Gracie is lying in a gynecological chair, with her legs in the stirrups and a sheet covering the lower part of her body. YOUNG MAN ( shy, unpracticed ) Hi. Im Clyde, fourth year med school student. Dr.