"MOONSTRUCK" by John Patrick Shanley Final Draft FADE IN: INT. ZITO'S BREAD STORY - DAY Several dozen loaves of golden Italian bread are standing on end in a shaft of morning sunlight. They are standing on end in bins. In the window, ZITO'S can be read in reverse. We leave the loaves and DRIFT DOWN TO a Progresso Products calendar, which hangs from the wall by a nail. The month is November. Various phone numbers and delivery dates have been penned in in a rough scrawl. Now WE GO TO a white formica counter, scuffed and pocked from long use. On the counter, in a rinsed out olive jar filled with water, are three fat red roses. The TITLE APPEARS IN BLACK SCRIPT AGAINST THE WHITE BACKGROUND. MOONSTRUCK Now WE FAINTLY HEAR THE VOICE of Zito himself, and a low TAPPING SOUND. SOME CREDITS ROLL. ZITO'S VOICE (barely discernable) Three times they cancel the order with me, and three times they come back. Who they kidding? They cheap, cheap, cheap. The other bread they get is no good. They save pennies. Everybody complain and they come back. "Zito, your bread is the best." They're like children stupid in school who cannot learn. The water. It's the water. You buy bread in Hoboken, you get Hoboken water. Hoboken water is dry. Ask anybody who knows. Ask your father. He knows. During Zito's plaintive words, WE LEAVE the roses and MOVE DOWN the counter TO a calculator being tapped very efficiently with the eraser end of pencil. When the results appear, the pencil notes the figure in a threadbare old ledger. NOW WE SEE ZITO He's a middle-aged Italian man with a kind face. But it's early in the day, and he's already been working for hours, so he's a little tired and disgruntled. ZITO You want me to make you some coffee? NOW WE SEE LORETTA FOR THE FIRST TIME She's entering a few final figures in the ledger. LORETTA is Italian, 37. Her hair black, done in a dated style, is flecked with grey. She's dressed in sensible but unfashionable clothes of a dark color. LORETTA What d'you know about coffee? Gimme a loaf of bread. EXT. ZITO'S BREAD STORE - DAY Loretta emerges with her little weathered leather bookkeeping satchel and a loaf of Zito bread in a white paper bag. She moves off briskly. EXT. A.J. CONTI FUNERAL CHAPEL - DAY This is a little Italian funeral parlor. INT. THE "WAKE" ROOM" A generic little room filled with many flowers and wreathes, many folding chairs, a few OLD PEOPLE sitting and, up front, the star of the show, the CORPSE on display in his gold and formica casket. Before the casket is a little kneeler. We discover an OLD LADY there, who crosses herself and rises. She goes and sits by RUBY, another old women. She leans over and says. OLD WOMAN He looks great. RUBY That Al Conti is a genius. INT. OFFICE OF THE FUNERAL PARLOR First WE SEE a name plate on a desk. The plate reads ALFONSO CONTI. We HEAR his VOICE. CONTI'S VOICE I am a genius. The SHOT WIDENS TO INCLUDE the loaf of bread which is half cut up and being buttered. Next to the bread are two steaming mugs of coffee. We HEAR the subdued TAPPING of Loretta's tabulations. LORETTA'S VOICE If you're such an artistic genius, why can't you keep track of your receipts? How am I going to do your income tax? CONTI'S VOICE I am an artistic genius. The SHOT WIDENS and now we can see Al Conti and Loretta sitting at the desk having Zito's buttered bread and mugs of coffee. Loretta's got her calculator going and is entering figures in Al's black, gold-lettered ledger. LORETTA If you're an artistic genius, how come you got butter on your tie? He looks down and sees the stain. He's at a loss. LORETTA Give it here. I'll give you this, Al, you make good coffee. She downs her coffee, accepts the stained tie which Al has taken off, and slams the ledger shut. INT. ROBERT'S DRY CLEANERS - DAY - MORE CREDITS ROLL We are looking at a wall of dry-cleaned clothes bags. They are hanging from an automated grid. As we watch, the wall starts to move off to the left. A gap appears where no clothes are hung. The gap creates visual frame. In the frame is ROBERT. He is operating the grid with a little stick shift. He stops it and takes down a garment. He leaves the frame, heading off to the counter. When he moves away, WE SEE that Loretta is behind him, working her calculator, entering in a ledger. She slams the ledger shut, waves goodbye, and goes. After beat she reappears, produces Conti's tie, says something to Robert, who is out of view, leaves the tie, and INT. BUTCHER SHOP - DAY WE SEE a cleaver whacking an oxtail into section. Now WE SEE Loretta, a few feet away, tabulating on a chopping block that is partially obscured by a row of hanging rabbits, unskinned. INT. A FLORIST SHOP - DAY A long white box is being filled with red roses. We HEAR the FLORIST'S VOICE. FLORIST'S VOICE Red roses. Very romantic. The man who sends these knows what he's doing. Now WE SEE Loretta tabulating and the Florist working on the box of roses. LORETTA The man who sends those spends a lot of money on something that ends up in the garbage can. The Florist gives her a look and then smiles. FLORIST I'm glad everybody ain't like you, Loretta. I'd be outta business. LORETTA Without me, you'd be out of business. I like flowers. She gives him a sudden, brief, blinding smile. It's the first time we've seen her smile. She has gold work around one of her two front teeth. The Florist grunts and hands her a red rose. Camera moves close to Loretta and the rose. END OF CREDITS DISSOLVE TO: EXT. THE GRAND TICINO - AN ITALIAN RESTAURANT - NIGHT A red neon sign hangs in the window. It's a quaint downstairs restaurant in Greenwich Village. A YOUNG COUPLE stop, look at the menu, become more interested in each other, kiss, and decide to go in. INT. THE GRAND TICINO - NIGHT White tablecloths and dark green walls, a tiny bar up by the door. The WAITERS all look a little alike. That's because they're all related. The place is about half full, and bustles along pleasantly. MUSIC A VIOLIN PLAYS a melancholy Neapolitan air. MR. JOHNNY and Loretta sit at a table for two talking quietly. They have their menus and glasses of red wine. Mr. Johnny is Italian, around 42. His wavy salt-and pepper hair is impeccably combed back; but there is so much that it threatens to fall forward someday and engulf his face. He is wearing a pinky ring, a dark suit, a gold watch, and, on his face, a mustache and a look of incredible seriousness. Loretta is Italian, 37. Her black hair, done in a dated style, is flecked with grey. She is wearing a dark blouse, black skirt, and high heels. One of her teeth is framed with gold work. Mr. Johnny is really timid of life, an overgrown boy, who hides these qualities behind a veil of dignity. Loretta is tough and efficient, loyal and watchful; she watches out for Mr. Johnny, and defends him against life. BOBO, an Old World Italian waiter, comes over to take their order. BOBO Are you ready? MR. JOHNNY Hello, Bobo. How are you tonight? BOBO Very good, Mr. Johnny. MR. JOHNNY We will both have the Salad Ticino. BOBO Uh-huh MR. JOHNNY And I'll have the special fish. LORETTA You don't want the fish. MR. JOHNNY No? LORETTA It's the oily fish tonight. Not before the plane ride. MR. JOHNNY Maybe you're right. LORETTA Give him the manicotta, Bobo. Me, too. BOBO Yes, Miss Loretta. LORETTA (to Mr. Johnny) That will give you a base. For your stomach. You eat that oily fish, you go up in the air, halfway to Sicily you'll be green and your hands will be sweating. MR. JOHNNY (smiles) You look after me. They HEAR a distinguished MAN'S VOICE rise out of the babble. They turn and look. The man's name is PERRY. PERRY AND PATRICIA FROM LORETTA'S POV Perry is a university professor. PATRICIA is his girlfriend/student. He's in his 50's. She's about 25 years younger. She's getting her coat on in a huff. PERRY Patricia, please don't go! PATRICIA What do you think I am, a talking dog? PERRY I was just making a point about the way you said... the way you stated your aspirations. PATRICIA You can kiss my aspirations! Professor! She storms out, leaving Perry muttering to himself. PERRY Kiss my aspirations. Oh, very clever. The height of cleverness. Waiter! An abnormally SHY WAITER stops. SHY WAITER Yes? PERRY Could you do away with her dinner, and any evidence of her, and bring me an big glass of vodka? SHY WAITER But absolutely! THE SHY WAITER begins to efficiently clear. MR. JOHNNY AND LORETTA EXCHANGE A GLANCE Mr. Johnny is amused. Bobo serves them their salad. MR. JOHNNY A man who can't control his woman is funny. LORETTA She was too young for him. Mr. Johnny considers this a point well taken. BOBO AND HIS NEPHEW EDDIE STAND NEAR THE KITCHEN Which can be seen through a serving window. They can look out over the restaurant tables. Bobo is melancholy and philosophical. EDDIE is a young waiter. EDDIE What'samatter, Uncle Bobo? BOBO Tonight Mr. Johnny's gonna propose marriage. EDDIE How you know that? BOBO He arranged it with me. When he asks her, then he'll wave to me and I'll bring champagne. Good bachelor customer for twenty years. But who knows? Maybe he'll lose courage. EDDIE Heavy duty stuff. PERRY, FEELING NO PAIN, COLLARS THE SHY WAITER He holds out his empty glass. PERRY Can I get another one of these? SHY WAITER Definitely! Perry takes his arm. PERRY May I presume to ask you a question? SHY WAITER Sure! PERRY Do you have a girlfriend? SHY WAITER I am alone in the world. Perry lets go of his arm. He and the Shy Waiter commiserate a moment. Then, wordlessly, the Shy Waiter goes. PERRY That's very sad. BOBO IS CLEARING THE REMAINS OF MR. JOHNNY'S DINNER. He's already cleared Loretta's. BOBO How's things? LORETTA Fine, Bobo. We'll take the check. MR. JOHNNY No, I want to see the dessert cart. BOBO Very good. Bobo goes. Loretta is surprised. LORETTA You never have dessert. MR. JOHNNY Never is a long time. Mr. Johnny is uneasy. He massages his head. LORETTA What's the matter? MR. JOHNNY My scalp is not getting enough blood sometimes. Loretta looks at him strangely. Bobo rolls up the dessert cart. WE SEE Loretta and Mr. Johnny through the frame of the dessert cart. They turn and look at the desserts. MR. JOHNNY Have Something. LORETTA I shouldn't. MR. JOHNNY Will you marry me? LORETTA What? MR. JOHNNY Will you marry me? LORETTA Bobo, take the cart away. He does. LORETTA (continuing) Are you proposing marriage to me? MR. JOHNNY Yes? LORETTA You know I was married and that my husband died. But what you don't know is I think he and I had Bad Luck. MR. JOHNNY What do you mean? LORETTA We got married at the City Hall and I think it gave bad luck the whole marriage. MR. JOHNNY I don't understand. LORETTA Right from the start we didn't do it right. Could you kneel down? MR. JOHNNY On the floor? LORETTA Yes, on the floor. MR. JOHNNY This is a good suit. LORETTA I helped you buy it. It came with two pairs of pants. It's for luck, Johnny. When you propose marriage to a woman, you should kneel down. MR. JOHNNY Alright. Mr. Johnny slowly gets out of his chair. There's not enough room for him to kneel down. He has to ask two off-duty PRO WRESTLERS who are eating dinner to move their chairs. They do so with bemused expressions. Their names are BOB and MOOK. SHY WAITER BRINGS PERRY A FRESH GLASS OF VODKA ASKS THE SHY WAITER PERRY Is that man praying? MR. JOHNNY ON HIS KNEES ADDRESSES LORETTA JOHNNY So. Will you ma... LORETTA (interrupting) Where's the ring? MR. JOHNNY (at a loss) The ring? BOB AND MOOK ARE WATCHING MR. JOHNNY'S PERFORMANCE They are deadpan mugs. BOB (to Mr. Johnny) A ring. That's right. MOOK I woulda sprung for a ring if it was me. BOBO AND EDDIE STAND NEAR THE KITCHEN WATCHING BOBO She's got him on his knees. He's ruining his suit. LORETTA AND MR. JOHNNY LORETTA You could use your pinky ring. MR. JOHNNY I like this ring. LORETTA You propose to a woman you should offer her a ring of engagement. Mr. Johnny takes off the ring and holds it out to her. MR. JOHNNY Loretta. Loretta Castorini Clark. On my knees. In front of all these people. Will you marry me? She meekly accepts the ring from him and takes his hands. LORETTA Yes, Johnny. Yes, John Anthony Cammareri. I will marry you. I will be your wife. Mr. Johnny slowly stands up, brushes off his knees. The restaurant has fallen utterly silent. Loretta smiles. They embrace. Loretta kisses him quickly. A MIDDLE-AGED WOMAN, SUSAN, IS MAUDLIN FROM THE PROPOSAL Bobo stands very near her table. She is about to applaud the proposal. She brings her hands together. Bobo's hand flashes out and neatly captures her hands before they can part again. The single sound dies abruptly in the silent room. LORETTA AND MR. JOHNNY Mr. Johnny is in control now. He looks around once, regally. MR. JOHNNY Bobo! The check! PERRY AND THE SHY WAITER LOOK AT MR. JOHNNY AND LORETTA PERRY I feel like I have just witnessed a car accident. The Shy Waiter sits down at Perry's table. SHY WAITER When I was twenty-seven years old, in Jersey City, I asked a woman to marry me. She had red hair. She smelled a jasmine. She wore black shoes with pointy white tips. PERRY What happened? SHY WAITER She didn't hear me. She asked me to repeat, so she could understand what I said. But I wouldn't repeat it. Outta shyness. So I'm a bachelor. MR. JOHNNY AND LORETTA He's helping her on with her coat. LORETTA What time is it? MR. JOHNNY Seven-thirty. LORETTA So we'll pick up the car, we'll make the plane in plenty of time. Mr. Johnny puts on his coat. MR. JOHNNY My mother will be happy I'm getting married. Bobo approaches with the bucket of champagne. He's flustered. BOBO I forgot to bring the champagne, Mr. Johnny. MR. JOHNNY I forgot to wave. We'll have it at the wedding. EXT. MIDTOWN TUNNEL - A CREAM COLORED LTD SPEEDING - NIGHT INT. THE CREAM LTD - NIGHT Loretta driving and Mr. Johnny sitting beside her. In the back seat are two suitcases. LORETTA What about the wedding? MR. JOHNNY My mother is dying. When she is dead, I'll come back and we'll be married. LORETTA How near is she to death? MR. JOHNNY A week. Two weeks. No more. LORETTA Then let's set the date. LORETTA How about a month from today? MR. JOHNNY Must it be so definite? Can't we just say that we will be married when I get back? LORETTA Where? At the City Hall? No! I want the whole wedding or we will have Bad Luck. For a whole wedding to be planned, a date must be set. MR. JOHNNY Alright. A month. In a month. LORETTA A month from today? MR. JOHNNY Yeah. LORETTA I'll take care of it, Johnny. I'll take care of the whole thing. All you have to do is show up. INT. A TERMINAL AT KENNEDY INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT - NIGHT CLOSE UP ON TV MONITOR - VIDEO INSERT Dialogue on clip: (Close-up on Ava Gardner & Gregory Peck kissing. Length of clip is 1:25) AVA Oh, you're not going. You're staying. GREGORY No, I'm going. AVA The Shawfish? GREGORY Just across the bay, at the fuel depot. The men wanted to try to get home. I can't explain. AVA Then, I suppose the time has come say it's been nice Dwight Lionel. It's been everything. Oh, Dwight, I'm frightened. GREGORY I know, I am so sorry for so many things. I love you, Moira. I love you. I love you. INT. A TERMINAL AT KENNEDY AIRPORT - NIGHT Many PEOPLE, most of them Italian, are lined up to board the plane. A VOICE can be heard over the P.A. system. VOICE (over P.A. System) International Flight Number Six-ohfour boarding for Rome and Palermo at Gate Twenty-six. MR. JOHNNY AND LORETTA ARE SAYING GOODBYE LORETTA Call me when you get in. MR. JOHNNY I'll call you when I get to Mama's house. LORETTA You've made me very happy, Johnny. He takes a piece of paper from his wallet. MR. JOHNNY There's one thing about this wedding I want you to do. Call this number. It's a business number. Ask for Ronny. Invite him to the wedding. LORETTA Who is he? MR. JOHNNY He's my younger brother. LORETTA You have a brother? MR. JOHNNY We haven't spoken in five years. There was some bad blood. I want you to call him and invite him to the wedding. Will you do it? LORETTA Sure. VOICE This is the last call for International Flight Number Six-ohfour boarding at Gate Twenty-six for Rome and Palermo. MR. JOHNNY I've got to go. He clumsily kisses her. Then he quickly turns and leaves. She waves, but he doesn't look back. EXT AIRPORT RUNWAY - NIGHT Close shot on plane's wheels and under belly as it slowly begins to move. Red lights are flashing. AN OLD ITALIAN CRONE IS LOOKING OUT THE TERMINAL WINDOW In the background we see the accordion like ramp that was loading to the departing aircraft, slowly fold up. Loretta walks up beside her, and looks out the window, too. The crone is dressed in black and has a black scarf on her head. The Crone notices Loretta. CRONE Do you have someone on that plane? LORETTA Yeah. (smiles) My fiancé. CRONE I have put a curse on that plane. My sister is on that plane. I have put a curse on that plane that it should explode. Burn on fire and fall into the sea. Fifty years ago she stole a man from me. Today she told me that she didn't even love him. She took him to feel strong with me. Now she goes back to Sicily. I have cursed her that the green Atlantic water should swallow her up. LORETTA I don't believe in curses. CRONE (smiles) Neither do I. The plane takes off. Loretta looks after it anxiously. All her hopes are on that plane. INT. A PARKING GARAGE IN LITTLE ITALY - NIGHT The LTD pulls into the entrance and Loretta gets out. An ATTENDANT appears. ATTENDANT Mr. Johnny's, right? LORETTA Right. The key's in it. ATTENDANT Good night. LORETTA Night. Loretta walks of into the night. EXT. THE SWEETHEART LIQUOR STORE - NIGHT Camera frames the window with a sweetheart in neon. EXT. THE SWEETHEART LIQUOR STORE - NIGHT Loretta walks up the street and enters the store. INT. THE SWEETHEART LIQUOR STORE - NIGHT Loretta walks in. IRV and LOTTE, the middle-aged couple who own and run the place, are having an argument. LOTTE I've seen how you look at her and it isn't right. IRV How do I look at her? (to Loretta) Can I help you? LORETTA A split of Moet. LOTTE (to IRV) Like a wolf. IRV (getting the split) Like a wolf, huh? You never seen a wolf in your life. IRV (to Loretta) That's seven-fifty-seven. Loretta pays and waits for her change. LOTTE I seen a wolf in everybody I ever met and I see a wolf in you. IRV (giving the change) That makes ten. Thanks. Have a nice night. LORETTA You, too. Loretta walks out. IRV You know what I see in you, Lotte? LOTTE What? IRV The girl I married. Lotte, caught off-guard, blushes. EXT. THE CASTORINI HOUSE - NIGHT It's a big, old eccentric, three-story corner house. To one side, it's got a qated arch that leads to an inner courtyard where three cars could park. It's got two cast-iron balconies. About a third of the windows in the house are lit. From within can be HEARD the faint strains of VICKI CARR SINGING and one DOG BARKING. Loretta appears, carrying champagne, approaches the front door, unlocks it, and goes in. INT. THE CASTORINI HOUSE - THE FRONT HALL - NIGHT MUSIC VICKI CARR is SINGING "IT MUST BE HIM." The front hall is typical of big old brownstones. There's a big old oak coat rack with a built-in mirror and an umbrella stand. There are several coats hanging from it. The floor is littered with boots. There's also a side table. On the table is a large cut-glass bowl filled with a couple of pounds of hard candy. Loretta comes in and takes off her coat. A single MAD HOWL is HEARD, followed by a PANDEMONIUM OF BARKING. FIVE DOGS charge into the hall to greet Loretta. They are totally cockeyed, crackpot mutts. Their names are JUDAS, LUCY, LEO FATBOY, AND JONES. LORETTA Hello, boys and girls. Guess what happened to me? The VOICE of the OLD MAN is heard calling out from upstairs. OLD MAN'S VOICE How long must I wait? Quanto tempo devo aspettare? The Five Dogs turn away from Loretta and charge up the stairs toward the voice. Loretta walks toward the living room. INT. THE CASTORINI HOUSE - LIVING ROOM - NIGHT This is the source of the Vicki Carr song, which is just ending. COSMO CASTORINI, Loretta's father is just turning off the old stereo. He is a powerful man, about 65, with a huge shock of white hair and gold wire glasses. He's wearing a big old red silk robe over blue pajamas, and royal blue slippers. The room it filled with lumpy upholstered furniture, once grand, now threadbare; shawls and doilies cover holes in failing fabric. There's a fireplace containing a dying fire. Cosmo's wing chair, with his newspaper on it, is beside a lit fringed lamp. Cosmo sees Loretta as she comes in. COSMO Hi. He sits in his chair and puts his feet up on an old needlepoint ottoman. He starts to read the paper. LORETTA Where's Ma? COSMO Bed. LORETTA You're not sleepy? COSMO I can't sleep anymore. It's too much like death. LORETTA Pop, I got news. Cosmo puts down the paper and takes his feet off the ottoman. COSMO Alright. Let's go in the kitchen. Cosmo gets up and heads for the kitchen. He hums and continues as Loretta opens champagne. INT. THE CASTORINI HOUSE - KITCHEN - NIGHT Loretta and Cosmo sit at the kitchen table. It's a big tin table with a black-and-white design. Loretta has put two old- fashioned champagne glasses on the table, the split of champagne, a bag of sugar cubes, and a bottle of bitters. She pours the champagne, drops a little lump of sugar into each glass, and adds a dash of bitters. She hands one of the drinks to Cosmo. LORETTA Here. (She Toasts) Ti amo. (Translated: I love you.) COSMO Ti amo. LORETTA You look tired. COSMO What's your news? LORETTA I'm getting married. COSMO Again? LORETTA Yeah. COSMO You did this once it didn't work out. LORETTA The guy died. COSMO What killed him? LORETTA He got hit by a bus. COSMO No! Bad luck! Your Ma and I been married fifty-two years an nobody died. You were married, what, two years, and somebody is dead. Don't get married again, Loretta. It don't work out for you. Who's the man? LORETTA Johnny Cammareri. COSMO Him? He's a big baby. Why isn't he here with you telling me? LORETTA He's flying to Sicily. His mother's dying. COSMO More Bad Luck! I don't like his face, Loretta. I don't like his lips. When he smiles I can't see his teeth. When will you do it? LORETTA In a month. COSMO I won't come. LORETTA You've got to come. You've got to give me away. COSMO I didn't give you away the first time. LORETTA And maybe that's why I had the Bad Luck. Maybe if you gave me away, and I got married in a church, in a wedding dress, instead of at the City Hall with strangers standing outside the door, maybe then I wouldn't had the Bad Luck I had. COSMO Maybe. LORETTA I didn't have no wedding cake, no reception or nothing. Johnny got down on his knees and proposed to me at The Grand Ticino. COSMO He did? LORETTA Yeah. COSMO That don't sound like Johnny. Where's the ring? Loretta shows it. Cosmo examines it. LORETTA Here. COSMO It looks stupid. It's a pinky ring. It's a man's ring. LORETTA It's temporary. COSMO Everything is temporary. That don't excuse nothing. LORETTA So you'll come to the wedding, right? COSMO Let's go tell your Mother. She smiles. He doesn't. They rise from the table. THE CASTORINI HOUSE - DARKENED MASTER BEDROOM - NIGHT The door to the hall opens, and the light from without dimly illuminates a massive four-poster bed. Cosmo enters, followed by Loretta. He speaks into the dark a calm and measured summons. COSMO Rose. Rose. Rose. Rose. A lamp is switched on by the bed. By ROSE. Rose is in her 60'S, and is very, very beautiful. Her abundant white tresses frame a face of porcelain delicacy. She's wearing an old and richly beautiful white nightgown. ROSE Who's dead? COSMO Nobody. Loretta is getting married. ROSE Again? Johnny Cammareri. Cosmo goes and sits on the bed. COSMO I don't like him. ROSE You're not gonna marry him, Cosmo. Do you love him, Loretta? LORETTA No. ROSE Good. When you love them they drive you crazy cause they know they can. But you like him? LORETTA Oh yeah. He's a sweet man. I wanna have a big church wedding, Ma. And a reception. ROSE And who's gonna pay for that? LORETTA Pop. COSMO WHAT? Rose starts laughing. LORETTA Father of the bride pays. Cosmo walks out. COSMO I have no money! ROSE You're rich as Roosevelt. You're just cheap, Cosmo. Cosmo shouts from the stairs. COSMO I won't pay for nothing. ROSE He didn't used to be cheap. He thinks if he holds on to his money, he will never die. LORETTA It's his duty as a father to pay for my wedding, Ma ... MUSIC VICKI CARR, SINGING "IT MUST BE HIM", starts playing. Rose looks weary. ROSE Now he's gonna play that damn Vicki Carr record. And then when he comes to bed, he won't touch me. EXT. THE CASTORINI HOUSE - MORNING The first golden rays of sunlight touch the great old house. The front door opens. Close shot of dogs coming into camera as door opens. The OLD MAN comes out. The Old Man, who is Cosmo's father, is 83 years old. He is taking the Five Dogs out for their morning walk. He has their five leashes bundled in one hand. In the other hand, even though it is a cloudless November morning, he open black umbrella. He walks off down the block with the dogs. EXT. A SMALL CITY PARK SURROUNDED BY HURRICANE FENCE - DAY The Old Man and the Five Dogs appear and enter the park. He approaches a park bench where FELIX and LUCY are already sitting. Felix and Lucy are about the same age as the Old Man. They each have a well-behaved DOG. When the Old Man sits down, he lets the Five Dogs go. The Dogs run off, BARKING like mad. FELIX It's wrong to just let them go. OLD MAN (ignoring Felix) Good morning, Lucy. LUCY Good morning. FELIX They run around, they mess up the whole park. OLD MAN What do you want me to do? Pick up after five dogs? I'm eighty-three years old. God in his heaven understands that I cannot pick up after five dogs. FELIX You have too many dogs. The dogs can be HEARD in the distance. It sounds like they're killing each other. OLD MAN (goes back to ignoring Felix) Lucy. There are big things going on in my house. My granddaughter Loretta, the only daughter of my son Cosmo, has engaged herself to be married a second time. LUCY I have heard that Johnny Cammareri got down on his knees in The Grand Ticino and proposed to her. OLD MAN My son does not like this Johnny Cammareri. He says he is a big baby. FELIX You should have one dog. Like Lucy. Like me. I wish I hadda gun. If I hadda gun, I would shoot four of your dogs. The Old Man makes a low, threatening noise. LUCY Don't fight. OLD MAN My granddaughter wants my son to pay for the wedding. But he does not want to pay. LUCY He should pay. OLD MAN I don't know. LUCY He owes her a wedding from the first time when there was none. OLD MAN Maybe. I don't know. He has not asked my advice. If he asks my advice, I don't know what I will say. The SOUND of the DOGS becomes intense again. FELIX I won't have to shoot those dogs. They will kill each other. OLD MAN You think so, huh, Stupid? Those dogs love each other. EXT. THE CASTORINI HOUSE - DAY The gates in the big archway are opened from the inside. It's Cosmo. He's wearing a good but old-fashioned suit, an overcoat, and a homburg. He's pulled his car, a 1965 black Buick, up to the gate. Now that he has the gates open, he gets in the car and drives out to the curb. He gets out and goes back to lock the gates. As he does this, the Old Man approaches the house with the Five dogs and the open umbrella. The Old Man and the Dogs go to the front door of the house. Cosmo goes to the door of his car. The two men, father and son, see each other at the moment they grab their respective door handles. They each raise a hand in greeting; it is the same gesture for both men, an eccentric chopping motion. Then they open their respective doors. The Old Man disappears within the house. Cosmo drives slowly away in his car. INT. THE CASTORINI HOUSE - KITCHEN - DAY A RED-HOT, WELL-SEASONED CAST IRON FRYING PAN Receives a big lump of butter with a hissing gasp of satisfaction. A wooden spoon pushes the sinking lump around until the pan is coated. Two square slices of yellow bread with round holes punched in their middles land in the pan. Two circles of green pepper land next to the bread. A spatula flips over the bread which has become glistening gold on the cooked side. Two eggs are broken and dropped sunnyside into the holes in the bread. The circles of green pepper are pushed around by the spatula, scooped up deftly, and each is made to frame one of the eggs. A WOMAN'S HAND garnishes each bright yellow yolk with a slash of red pimento. The spatula reappears and lifts the results from the pan, and slides them onto two small dark blue plates. Now WE SEE that Loretta is just finishing setting the tin table for two. In the b.g., Rose is turning away from the big, old-fashioned six range gas stove where an old speckled coffee pot is steaming up a sun-drenched window. Rose comes toward the table with the laden blue plates. She's wearing a nice old apron over a blue housedress. She's thoughtful. As Rose comes to the table, Loretta in a blue denim work shirt and pants, goes to the stove and gets the coffee. As Rose puts breakfast on the table, she speaks to Loretta, who's at the stove. ROSE Will you live here? LORETTA No. ROSE Why not? LORETTA Pop don't like Johnny. Loretta returns with the coffeepot to the table, and pours. Then she takes the pot back to the stove. ROSE So we'll sell the house. LORETTA I got married before, you didn't sell. Loretta comes to the table. They sit down to breakfast. ROSE Grandma was still alive. Chiro was still home going to school. Now he's married and gone to Florida. If you and Johnny moved in, had a baby... LORETTA I'm thirty-seven years old. ROSE What's thirty-seven? I had Chiro after I was thirty-seven. It ain't over till it's over. LORETTA Johnny has a big apartment. We'll live there. ROSE And we'll sell the house. LORETTA I'd like to stay, Ma. I love the house. But Pop don't like Johnny. ROSE No. He don't. The WALL PHONE in the kitchen RINGS. Loretta goes and answers it. LORETTA Hello? Yea, this is Loretta Castorini - yeah. Is that you Johnny? INT. A DARKENED BEDROOM IN PALERMO - DAY Mr. Johnny is calling on an old European-style phone. In the b.g. is the sickbed. In the sickbed lies VESTA, Mr. Johnny's mother, her grey hair spread out on a golden pillow. By the bed are THREE MOURNERS, old crones dressed in black. One clutches a missal, the other two clutch rosaries. All three are grieving in a steady low wordless whine. Mr. Johnny speaks into the phone in a confidential manner. There is some long-distance CRACKLE. MR. JOHNNY Ssh, it's me. I'm calling from the deathbed of my mother. LORETTA ON THE PHONE LORETTA How was your plane ride? MR. JOHNNY ON THE PHONE MR. JOHNNY The waitresses were very nice. (glances over at his mother) My mother is slipping away. LORETTA ON THE PHONE VESTA (calling to the Heavens) Quanto tempo devo aspettare? (now she aims more at Johnny) How long must I wait?! MR. JOHNNY I can't talk long. LORETTA Have you told her we're getting married? MR. JOHNNY ON THE PHONE MR. JOHNNY Not yet. I'm waiting till a moment when she's peaceful. We HEAR Loretta's VOICE over his receiver. LORETTA'S VOICE Just don't wait until she's dead. MR. JOHNNY Have you called my brother? LORETTA'S VOICE Not yet. MR. JOHNNY Will you do it today? Call him, make him come to the wedding. Five years is too long for bad blood between brothers. Nothing can replace your family. I see that now. LORETTA ON THE PHONE LORETTA Alright. I'll call him. Today. Listen, Johnny. Call me after you tell your mother. Alright? Alright. And don't stand directly under the sun. You've got your hat, use your hat. Alright. Bye-bye. Loretta hangs up the phone. She thinks. Rose speaks from the table, where she's still sitting. ROSE How's the mother? LORETTA She's dying. But I could still hear her big mouth. ROSE Did he tell her? LORETTA Not yet. That old lady makes him sweat. (to herself) Where's that card? Rose gets up and takes the dishes to the sink, Loretta fishes in her pocket and comes out with the business card Mr. Johnny gave her. She dials the number. ROSE Who Are you calling? INT. CAMMARERI PASTRY SHOP - DAY (INTERCUT W/LORETTA IN KITCHEN) CHRISSY, a woman with a Queens accent, answers. CHRISSY Cammareri's Bake Shop. LORETTA Is Ronny there? CHRISSY Hold on. (yells into intercom) Ronny, the phone! INT. CAMMARERI PASTRY SHOP - OVEN ROOM - DAY (INTERCUT W/LORETTA IN KITCHEN) RONNY Yeah, this is Ronny. LORETTA I'm calling for your brother Johnny. He's getting married and he wants you to come. There's a long pause. Ronny's voice returns, hoarse with emotion. RONNY Why didn't he call himself? LORETTA He's in Palermo. RONNY What's wrong can never be made right. (hangs up phone) LORETTA Let me come and talk to you. Loretta hangs up the phone. She looks at the card again, makes a decision and pockets the card. THE TOWNHOUSE/INT. THE BUICK - DAY As Cosmo drives away. He's in a very good mood. He's WHISTLING. He laughs to himself. CAMMARERI'S PASTRY SHOP - DAY And the street in front of it. Loretta arrives. She's wearing a long, navy-blue cloth coat and a knit hat. She looks up at the sign and at the business card in her hand, and enters the shop. INT. CAMMARERI'S PASTRY SHOP - DAY It's a nice Italian bake shop. Three Italian women, CHRISSY, BARBARA, and MA wait on THREE WOMEN SHOPPERS at the counter. CHRISSY and BARBARA are in their late 20's or early 30's; MA is old, old. Loretta comes in and speaks to CHRISSY. LORETTA Is Ronny Cammareri here? CHRISSY He down at the ovens. What do you want? LORETTA I would like to speak to him. EXT. CAMMARERI'S PASTRY SHOP - DAY Chrissy comes out and Loretta follows. They walk around to an outdoor staircase that descends into the sidewalk. Chrissy shouts down. CHRISSY Hey, RONNY. EXT. AN OLD DOOR AT THE FOOT OF THE STAIRCASE - DAY The door slides open, revealing ROCCO, a baker missing a few teeth. He is surrounded by bread. ROCCO What! CHRISSY'S VOICE Somebody to see Ronny. Rocco slides back the door all the way. Chrissy and Loretta make their way past him. He slides the door three quarters shut behind them. INT. THE BASEMENT OVEN ROOM - DAY There are two coal-fired ovens, one at either end of the room. There is a large wooden table roughly center. And various pieces of baking equipment, dough-mixers, etc., scattered willy-nilly. And everywhere there is bread. PIETRO, a baker, is working at one of the ovens with a long wooden spatula. RONNY is working at the other oven. Actually, he is just staring in the open door at the baking bread and burning coals. He's dressed in black jeans streaked with flour, a white restaurant shirt, white cotton gloves, and around his neck, a red handkerchief. He is black-haired, handsome and intense. ROCCO Ronny! RONNY What! ROCCO Somebody here to see you. Ronny turns and takes in Loretta. RONNY Have you come from my brother? LORETTA Yes. RONNY Why? LORETTA I'm going to marry him. RONNY You are going to marry my brother? LORETTA Yes. Do you want... RONNY I have no life. LORETTA Excuse me. RONNY I have no life. My brother Johnny took my life from me. LORETTA I don't understand. Everything in the oven room has stopped and everyone is watching. RONNY And now he's getting married. He has his, he's getting his. And he wants me to come? What is life? He picks up the wooden spatula and slides it into the oven. LORETTA I didn't come here to upset you. Ronny slides a bunch of loaves out of the oven on the spatula, turns them around, and slides them back in. RONNY They say bread is life. So I bake bread, bread, bread. (He's picking up loaves of bread from one of the boxes on the floor, and casually tossing them across the room.) And the years go by! By! By! And I sweat and shovel this stinking dough in and outta this hot hole in the wall and I should be so happy, huh, sweetheart? You want me to come to the wedding of my brother Johnny?!! Where is my wedding? Chrissy! Over by the wall! Gimme the big knife! CHRISSY No, Ronny! Barbara appears in the doorway and comes down the stairs into the room. RONNY Gimme the big knife! I'm gonna cut my throat! LORETTA Maybe I should come back another time. RONNY No, I want you to see this! I want you to watch me kill myself so you can tell my brother on his wedding day! Chrissy, gimme the big knife! CHRISSY I tell you I won't do it! RONNY (to Loretta) Do you know about me? BARBARA Oh, Mr. Cammareri! RONNY Nothing is anybody's fault, but things happen. (holds up his left hand to Loretta) Look. He pulls off the glove. The hand is made of wood. RONNY It's wood. It's fake. Five years ago I was engaged to be married. Johnny came in here, he ordered bread from me. I put it in the slicer and I talked with him and my hand got caught cause I wasn't paying attention. The slicer chewed off my hand. It's funny 'cause - when my fiancé saw that I was maimed, she left me for another man. LORETTA That's the bad blood between you and Johnny? RONNY That's it. LORETTA But that wasn't Johnny's fault. RONNY I don't care! I ain't no freakin monument to justice! I lost my hand, I lost my bride! Johnny has his hand, Johnny has his bride! You come in here and you want me to put away my heartbreak and forget? He goes to the big table, which is floured and covered with bread. He sweeps everything off the tabletop during the next. RONNY Is it just a matter of time till a man opens his eyes and gives up his one dream of happiness? Maybe. Maybe. All I have... Have you come here, Stranger, Bride of my Brother, to take these last few loaves from my table? Alright. Alright. The table is bare. He stares at it blankly. He wanders away, to the back room where the flour sacks are kept. We hear a single sob escape him from that room, and then silence. Everyone in the oven room looks after him. Then Chrissy approaches Loretta. She holds the big knife at her side. CHRISSY This is the most tormented man I have ever known. I am in love with this man. He doesn't know that. I never told him cause he can never love anybody since he lost his hand and his girl. She holds out the knife. CHRISSY Here. Why don't you just kill him? It would be so much more kind than coming here and inviting him to a wedding like he'll never have. Loretta considers Chrissy, decides what she's going to do, and goes to the flour room. INT. OF THE FLOUR ROOM - DAY Many 50 lb. bags of flour are stacked under a bare electric bulb. A rough stone staircase opposite is lit by daylight from above. Ronny, quietly distraught, stands leaning by his forehead against a stack of flour. Loretta approaches him. She feels for him. LORETTA Where you live? He points to the stone staircase. RONNY Upstairs. She touches his shoulder. LORETTA Come on. He follows her up the stairs. EXT. THE STAIRCASE ENTRANCE ON THE STREET Loretta and Ronny emerge. He gestures. They enter the apartment building behind the bakery. INT. THE PEACOCK CAFE — DAY It's a dark Italian coffee and dessert house. Reproductions of Roman statuary adorn grottos and alcoves. In the back is a glass case displaying various desserts, and behind the case, a big burnished gold cappuccino machine. The place is almost empty. MUSIC An album of "NEAPOLITAN FOLK SONGS" is PLAYING on the cafe's SOUND SYSTEM. The CAMERA TRAVELS along the face of an exposed brick wall, DISCOVERING busts of Romans occasionally, and then IT COMES TO the figure of COSMO. He's sitting at a table which is inset into a nook, so we cannot see who he's with. DARK NOOK IN THE CAFE At a little table away from prying eyes, Cosmo sits with MONA, his girlfriend. Mona is a pretty but overripe Italian woman in her late forties. She's all done up, and she looks at Cosmo with adoration. COSMO And then there is copper, which is the only pipe I use. It costs money. But it costs money because it saves money. MONA And what did they say? COSMO The man understood me. The woman wanted to be cheap, but the man saw that I was right. MONA You have such a head for knowing. You know everything. COSMO I brought you something. He takes out a small velvet box and hands it to her. COSMO It's a present. She opens the box. It's a gold bracelet with a pattern of stars and birds. MONA Oh, Cosmo! COSMO They are little stars and birds. Birds fly to the stars, I guess. EXT. RONNY'S APARTMENT BUILDING - DAY A three-story walk-up above Cammareri's Bakery. INT. RONNY'S APARTMENT - DAY It's a two-bedroom apartment. The decor reflects Ronny's love of the opera. The furniture is overstuffed, fringed in the colors of Italian passion. But it is all a bit faded, the remains of an old flamboyance. The walls are decorated with opera posters; and over the fireplace there is a painting depicting a scene from "La Boheme": Mimi is standing in the snow. Ronny stares at the picture of Mimi in the La Boheme poster. Loretta comes in from the kitchen and sets down a cup of coffee. LORETTA You ready for the coffee? Loretta moves back into the kitchen. Ronny turns and watches as she walks down the hall. RONNY Loretta. What's that smell? LORETTA I'm making you a steak. RONNY You don't have to help me. LORETTA I know that. I do what I want. RONNY I like it well done. LORETTA You'll eat this bloody to feed your blood. INT. RONNY'S APARTMENT -DINING ROOM - DAY CU of Ronny's artificial hand, holding a fork stuck in a steak. With his right he is cutting his steak. He switches hands and eats hungrily. Loretta watches. RONNY This is good. Uhh... LORETTA Loretta. RONNY Where'd Johnny find you? LORETTA He knew my husband who died. RONNY How'd he die? LORETTA Bus hit him. RONNY Fast. LORETTA Instantaneous. RONNY When you get engaged? LORETTA Yesterday. Ronny drops his knife and fork and turns away. Loretta is not surprised and does not move. RONNY Why? LORETTA Why what? RONNY I don't know. LORETTA (smiles) So. Five years ago your hand got cut off and your woman left you for another man. No woman since then? RONNY No. LORETTA Stupid. RONNY When your husband get hit by the bus? LORETTA Seven years ago. RONNY How many men since then? LORETTA Just Johnny. RONNY Stupid yourself. LORETTA No. Unlucky. I have not been lucky. RONNY I don't care about Luck, you understand me? It ain't that. LORETTA What? Do you think you're the only one ever shed a tear? RONNY Why you talking to me? LORETTA You got any whiskey? How 'bout giving me a glass of whiskey? EXT. STREET NEAR BAKERY - DAY SHOT OF COSMO & MONA IN THE BUICK The car has just come to a stop. We see Cosmo & Mona kiss. She exits car. Cosmo glances around with a slightly guilty look and pulls away. LORETTA AND RONNY AT THE TABLE WITH A BOTTLE OF WHISKEY Camera is close on Scotch being poured into two glasses. Loretta picks up her glass and swallows a healthy dose. RONNY She was right to leave me. LORETTA You think so? RONNY Yes. LORETTA You really are stupid, you know that. Loretta pours herself another shot. RONNY You don't know nothing about it. LORETTA I was raised that a girl gets married young. I didn't get married until I was twenty-eight. I met a man. I loved him. I married him. He wanted to have a baby right away. I said no. Then he got hit by a bus. No man. No baby. No nothing! I did not know that man was a gift I could not keep. I didn't know... You tell me a story and you think you know what it means, but I see what the true story is, and you can't. (she pours them both another drink) She didn't leave you! You can't see what you are. I can see everything. You are a wolf! RONNY I'm a wolf? LORETTA The big part of you has no words and it's-a wolf. This woman was a trap for you. She caught you and you could not get away. (She grabs his wooden hand) So you chewed off your foot! That was the price you had to pay to be free. (throws his hand down) Johnny had nothing to do with it. You did what you had to do, between you and you, and I know I'm right, I don't care what you say. And now you're afraid because you found out the big part of you is a wolf that has the courage to bite off its own hand to save itself from the trap of the wrong love. That's why there has been no woman since that wrong woman. You are scared to death what the wolf will do if you make that mistake again! RONNY What are you doing! LORETTA I'm telling you your life! RONNY Stop it! LORETTA No! RONNY Why are you marrying Johnny? He's a fool! LORETTA Because I have no Luck! RONNY (pounding on the table) He made me look the wrong way and I cut off my hand. He could make you look the wrong way and you could cut off your whole head! LORETTA I am looking where I should to become a bride! RONNY A bride without a head! LORETTA A wolf without a foot! Ronny stiff-arms everything off the dining table and grabs Loretta. They kiss passionately. He pulls her up on the table and over the table to him. They are in each other's arms. They are on fire. Loretta pushes him away, gasping for air. LORETTA Wait a minute! Wait a minute! She changes her mind and lunges into another kiss. They stop again after a long moment. They really haven't breathed. They both suck in air and look at each other in wonder and fear and passion. RONNY It's like I'm falling! It's like I'm in the ocean! They kiss again. When they pull apart again, Loretta is crying. LORETTA I have no Luck! He picks her up in his arms. RONNY Son of a bitch! LORETTA Where are you taking me? RONNY To the bed. LORETTA Oh. Oh God. I don't care about anything. I don't care about anything! Take me to the bed. He carries her away, into the bedroom. MUSIC: "O SOAVE FANCIULLA", from "La Boheme." The MUSIC CONTINUES THROUGH THE NEXT SCENE. INT. RONNY'S APARTMENT - BEDROOM Ronny is laying her down in the bed. He is over her. They look into each other's eyes. RONNY I can't believe what is happening. LORETTA Me neither. RONNY I was dead. LORETTA I was dead, too. They kiss. When they part there is a drop of blood on Loretta's lips. RONNY Your blood. LORETTA All my life I have never reached a man. I knew that I would reach my husband, but I took my time and he was dead. Ronny. RONNY Loretta. LORETTA I want to cut you open and crawl inside of you. I want you to swallow me. RONNY I've got you. LORETTA Get all of me. Take everything. RONNY What about Johnny? LORETTA You're mad at him, take it out on me, take your revenge on me! Take everything, leave nothing for him to marry! Hollow me out so there's nothing left but the skin over my bones. Suck me dry! RONNY Alright. Alright. There will be nothing left. Their eyes are boiling with fierce animal tears. They have opened their souls to each other and they are coming together. The MUSIC SWELLS to a terrible triumph. EXT. THE CASTORINI HOUSE - NIGHT Dog whines over exterior. INT. THE CASTORINI HOUSE - AN UPSTAIRS BEDROOM - NIGHT With five beds for dogs. Four of the beds are empty and on the fifth Judas is whining. He looks around at the other beds. Where is everybody? He goes out the bedroom door. THE CASTORINI STAIRCASE - NIGHT Judas is running down the stairs and into the hall. We FOLLOW HIM down the hall. The hall is only dimly lit. He finds the four other dogs. They are crowded at a narrow doorway. From the doorway comes a golden light. INT. THE CASTORINI HOUSE - DINING ROOM - NIGHT THE PLEASED FACE OF COSMO THROUGH A VEIL OF STEAM The CAMERA PULLS BACK. We are in the Castorini dining room. Cosmo sits at the head of the table, a napkin tucked into his shirt. Rose has just laid down a massive platter of steaming baked fish. Already on the table is a platter of pasta, loaves of bread, a big bowl of salad, two bottles of wine, and an appetizer plate of salami and pimento. Seated at the table is COSMO, the Old Man, and RAYMOND and RITA CAPPOMAGGI. Raymond is rotund, moon-faced, bald, somewhere in his fifties. He has a pencil-thin mustache over his small mouth. His wife, Rita, looks very like him, except she has hair on her head and none on her lip. Raymond is Rose's brother. There are two empty places at table, for Rose and Loretta. COSMO Where's Loretta? We're gonna start without her. ONE OF THE ENTRANCE WAYS TO THE DINING ROOM There is an accordion gate across it. Behind the gate, the Five Dogs stare at the people having dinner. ROSE'S VOICE She must be eating out. RAYMOND'S VOICE She don't know what she's missing. ROSE'S VOICE It's not like her not to call. RITA'S VOICE Well, she's got a lot on her mind. THE DINING TABLE - RITA IS LOADING UP HER PLATE RITA I mean, can we talk about it, Rose? Everybody's heard. She's getting married again. COSMO I don't wanna talk about it. RAYMOND Johnny Cammareri. I think it's great and about time. What's she gonna do with the rest of her life she don't get married? COSMO I don't wanna talk about it. The Old Man has piled his plate high with food. Now he stands up, walks over to the Dogs, and puts the plate down in their midst. The Dogs attack the food and each other. The Old Man walks back to the table and sits down. He looks down at the empty place in front of him, a little sad. COSMO My father needs a plate. Rose gets another plate from a sideboard and puts it in front of the Old Man. He immediately, methodically begins to fill his new plate. Rose goes to her place and sits down. RAYMOND Cosmo. Many years ago, when they told me you were marrying my sister, I was happy. When I told Rose I was marrying Rita, she was happy. RITA Marriage is happy news. The Old Man laughs uproariously, subsides, goes back to filling his plate. COSMO Rose, pass the wine. RAYMOND I never seen anybody so in love like Cosmo back then! He'd stand outside the house all day and look in the windows. I never told you this cause it's not really a story. But one time I woke up in the middle of the night cause this bright light was in my face. Like a flashlight. I couldn't think a what it was. I looked out the window, and it was the moon! Big as a house! I never seen the moon so big before or since. I was almost scared, like it was gonna crush the house. And I looked down, and standing there in the street was Cosmo, looking up at the windows. This is the funny part. I got mad at you, Cosmo! I thought you brought this big moon over to my house cause you were so in love and woke me up with it. I was half asleep I guess and didn't know no better. COSMO You were altogether asleep. You were dreaming. RAYMOND No. You were there. Raymond stares at Cosmo, nodding, remembering. There's a lull at the table, the SOUND of SILVERWARE. COSMO I don't wanna talk about it. ROSE (suddenly angry) Well, what do you wanna talk about! COSMO Rita. Pass the wine. ROSE Why you drinking so much? The Old Man gets up with his newly filled plate and heads for the Dogs. ROSE Old Man, if you give another piece of my food to those dogs, I'm gonna kick you till you're dead! The Old Man reverses direction and heads back to his chair. He sits down and starts to eat. EXT. THE CASTORINI HOUSE - NIGHT Over the house is a great big full moon. INT. THE CASTORINI HOUSE - MASTER BEDROOM - NIGHT The lights in the bedroom are still on. Cosmo is in bed, in his pajamas, asleep. Rose comes in her nightgown. She looks at Cosmo. He's snoring lightly. ROSE Cosmo? He doesn't stir. She goes to him and runs her hand through his hair. ROSE You drank too much and now you sleep too hard, and later you'll be up when you should be down. She kisses his cheek. Then she turns out the lights. When the electric lights go out, moonlight floods the room. She goes to the window and looks out through the curtains at the moon. Rose puts her face in her hands and quietly cries. EXT. ROSE'S POV SHOT OF MOON FROM CASTORINI HOUSE - NIGHT RESUME INT. CASTORINI HOUSE - MASTER BEDROOM - NIGHT (Rose crying. INT. RONNY'S APARTMENT - BEDROOM - NIGHT The bedroom is flooded by moonlight. Loretta wakes up, a little alarmed. LORETTA What's that? Ronny wakes up, a little alarmed. RONNY What? LORETTA That light. RONNY I don't know. I think it's the moon. Loretta goes to the window wrapped in a white sheet from the bed. The window is glowing with moonlight. The moonlight strikes her, and she is caught in its spell. LORETTA Oh. Ronny appears behind her, pulling on a robe. They speak in low voices, as if they were in church. RONNY It's so bright. LORETTA I've never seen a moon like that. RONNY It makes you look like an angel. She turns and looks at him. They kiss. They break apart. Ronny looks up at the moon. RONNY Yeah. Looks like a big snowball. EXT. THE CAPPOMAGGI HOUSE NIGHT Shot of the house with the moon overhead. INT. RAYMOND AND RITA CAPPOMAGGI'S BEDROOM - NIGHT There is a big window right by the bed, and in the window is the moon. Raymond and Rita are in their bed, asleep. Raymond wakes up, and sees the moon in the window. He's stunned and excited, but he too speaks in this low voice of respect. RAYMOND Rita. Rita. RITA (waking up) What? What? RAYMOND Look. RITA Oh. RAYMOND It's Cosmo's moon. RITA What are you talking about, Raymond? Cosmo can't own the moon. RAYMOND I mean it's that moon I was talking about at dinner. (looks through the window, down into the street) Is he down there? No. RITA Is who down there? RAYMOND Cosmo. RITA What would he be doing down there? RAYMOND I don't know. RITA You know, in this light, and with that expression on your face, you look about twenty-five years old. Raymond smiles at her meekly. EXT. THE CASTORINI HOUSE - NIGHT Over the house is still the great big full moon. The front door opens and out comes the Old Man with the five Dogs. The Old Man is in a greatcoat and a felt hat, and he's smoking a cigar. He stops on the top step and lets go a huge plume of cigar smoke. Then he starts off with the Dogs down the street. EXT.. EAST RIVER - NIGHT The moon and nothing else. Then a cigar is thrown into it and sends it shimmering. It was the moon reflected in water. Now the CAMERA PULLS BACK and WE SEE the Old Man and the Five Dogs are standing on a ruined pier. The moon gleams up from the Hudson River. The Old Man speaks to the Dogs. OLD MAN Alright now. Howl. Howl. The Dogs do not howl. So the Old Man, by way of demonstration, howls at the moon. He looks to the Dogs to follow suit. They do nothing. He howls at the moon again. The Dogs do nothing. The CAMERA CONTINUES TO PULL BACK until WE CAN SEE the whole pier, with the Old Man and the Dogs on it, and the moon above them. The Old Man, frustrated now, cries out. OLD MAN How long must I wait? Quanto tempo devo aspettare! The Dogs start to HOWL. The Old Man, pleased as the Mad Hatter he is, laughs and laughs. EXT. EAST RIVER - DAY Transition from moon reflecting in the water to dawn. INT. RONNIE'S APARTMENT - BEDROOM - DAY Morning sun floods the room. Close on Loretta, she wakes up. LORETTA Oh my God. RONNY What? Loretta jumps from bed, grabs her clothes to cover herself, and backs into closet. LORETTA What? What have we done? RONNY (perturbed) Take it easy. LORETTA (from closet as she hurriedly gets dressed) This time I was trying to do everything right. RONNY (he grabs a bathrobe, pulls it on, puts it on and moves towards the closet.) Don't just become excited. LORETTA I thought if I stayed away from the City Hall, I won't have that Bad Luck I had again. RONNY You're trying to make me feel guilty. LORETTA I'm marrying your brother! RONNY All right, I'm guilty. I confess! LORETTA You're invited to the wedding! It's in a few weeks. Why didn't you do like him and be with your dying mother in Palermo? RONNY She didn't like me. LORETTA You don't get along with anybody! RONNY What did you do? LORETTA What did I do? RONNY You ruined my life. LORETTA That's impossible! It was ruint when I got here! You ruint my life! RONNY Oh no I didn't! Loretta emerges from the closet, tucking in her blouse. LORETTA Oh yes, oh yes you did! You've got those bad eyes like a gypsy! Why didn't I see it yesterday! Bad Luck! Is that all I'm ever gonna have? Why didn't I just pick up a stone and kill myself years and years ago? I'm gonna marry him! RONNY What? LORETTA Last night never happened, you hear me? I'm gonna marry him anyway and last night never happened, and you and I are gonna take this to our coffins! RONNY I can't do that! LORETTA Why not? RONNY I'm in love with you! Loretta stares at him in alarm, slaps his face, then studies his face to see the effect of the slap. She is dissatisfied and slaps him again. LORETTA Snap out of it! RONNY I can't! LORETTA Alright. Then I must never see you again. The bad blood will have to stay there between you and Johnny for all time. You won't come to the wedding. RONNY I'll come to the wedding. LORETTA I'm telling you you can't. RONNY But he wants me to come! LORETTA But that's cause he don't know! RONNY Alright. I will not come. Provided one thing. LORETTA What? RONNY That you come with me tonight. Once. To the Opera. LORETTA What are you talking about? RONNY I love two things. I love you, and I love the Opera. If I can have the two things that I love together for one night, I will be satisfied to give up the rest of my life. LORETTA Alright. RONNY Alright. Meet me at the Met. LORETTA Alright. Where's the Met? CATHOLIC CHURCH IN LITTLE ITALY - DAY Camera moves from stained glass windows to confessional. Loretta is next in line of THREE SINNERS waiting to go into the confessional. A FORGIVEN WOMAN emerges from the curtained booth and walks off to pay her penance. Loretta goes into the booth. INT. CHURCH - CONFESSIONAL - DAY Loretta kneels. The slide opens and an OLD PRIEST'S FACE can be seen in outline through the screen. LORETTA Bless me, Father, for I have sinned. It's been two months since my last confession. PRIEST What sins have you to confess? LORETTA Twice I took the name of God in vain, once I slept with the brother of my fiancé, and once I bounced a check at the liquor store -- but that was really an accident. PRIEST Then it was not a sin. But what was that second thing you said, Loretta? LORETTA I... a... slept with my fiancé's brother. PRIEST That's a pretty big sin. LORETTA I know. PRIEST You should think about this. LORETTA I know. PRIEST Alright. This is your penance. Say two rosaries and... be careful, Loretta. Reflect on your life. LORETTA Alright. PRIEST I absolve you in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, Amen. INT. CHURCH - DAY Loretta comes out of the confessional and enters a pew. She crosses herself. Then she recognizes the back of a woman's head a few pews down. She gets up, walks down the aisle, and kneels down next to her mother, Rose. LORETTA Hi. ROSE (looking up from her prayers) Where you been? LORETTA I don't wanna talk about it. ROSE Just like your father. I lied to him. He thinks you came home last night. LORETTA Thanks. What's the matter with you? ROSE Cosmo's cheating on me. LORETTA What! How do you know? ROSE A wife knows. LORETTA Then you don't know. You're just imagining it. He's too old. Rose starts to reply, but then decides it's not worth the argument. LORETTA I won't be home for dinner. Loretta crosses herself quickly, gets up, and leaves. Rose looks after, and then goes back to her prayer. INT. CAMMARERI'S BAKERY - DAY Feminine hands apply the final decorative touches of blue icing to a wedding cake. Then the hands set the plastic bride and groom on the pinnacle. The CAMERA PULLS BACK. Barbara is viewing her handiwork, a wedding cake on a stainless steel wheeled cart. She's in the back part of the bakery. Barbara is pleased with her creation. We TRAVEL WITH HER as she rolls the cart out to the front of the store where Chrissy is waiting on a huge man named HARVEY. She hands him a tiny box, which he takes meekly. HARVEY See you tomorrow, Chrissy. CHRISSY Okay, Harvey. Harvey lumbers off as Barbara enters the front of the store with the cake on its cart. Barbara calls Chrissy's attention to the cake. BARBARA So what do you think? CHRISSY About what? BARBARA The cake! CHRISSY (without enthusiasm) Where's Ronny? How come he ain't come down? BARBARA How should I know? The PHONE RINGS. Chrissy answers it. CHRISSY Hello, Cammareri's? Hi. Uh-huh. Okay. She hangs up. CHRISSY That was Ronny. He don't feel good. He ain't gonna be down today. Chrissy comes out from behind the counter. She's staring at the cake. BARBARA What, is he still upset? Without warning, Chrissy whacks the little bride and groom off the cake and on to the floor. CHRISSY It's that bitch! Barbara looks at her, shocked. EXT. CAPPOMAGGI'S ITALIAN PROVISIONS - DAY An Italian specialty store in Little Italy. INT. CAPPOMAGGI'S STORE - DAY Provolones and salamis hang from above. To the one side is a deli counter, to the other a series of tables displaying cheeses by the pound, packaged cakes, etc. In the back are a few tables and a kitchen with counter. Up front, behind the deli counter, stands Rita Cappomaggi in a blue apron. Out by the tables, Raymond unpacks some jars of olives. In the back, a TRUCK DRIVER can dimly be seen eating his lunch. RAYMOND (to Rita) I feel great I got no sleep but I feel like Orlando Furioso! RITA (looks around cautiously, then speaks) You were a tiger last night. RAYMOND And you were a lamb. As soft as milk. RITA Shut up. They'll hear you in the back. RAYMOND So what? The pleasure of marriage is you sleep with the woman and then you don't worry about nothing. Hey, how about a date tonight, Rita. Let's eat pasta and roll around. RITA (scandalized) Raymond, Raymond, lower your voice! What's got into you? RAYMOND I don't know! That moon! That crazy moon Cosmo sent over! Loretta walks in. LORETTA Hi. RAYMOND Hey there (sings) ...YOU WITH THE STARS IN YOUR EYES... LORETTA (to Rita) What's the matter with him? RITA You got me. RAYMOND You see that moon last night? LORETTA (suspicious and guilty) What about the moon? RAYMOND Did you see it? LORETTA (she lies, nervous) No. RAYMOND Oh. LORETTA Listen, I gotta go. I'll take the deposit to the bank but I'll do the books tomorrow. I gotta go. RAYMOND You gotta date? RITA What are you talking about, you fool? Her fiancé's in Palermo. RAYMOND Oh. Right. LORETTA I got things to do. RITA Sure you do. You got all that wedding stuff. LORETTA Right. RAYMOND Well, that's romantic, too. (SINGS) ...ISN'T IT ROMANTIC... He is walking towards the back now. He shouts to somebody in the kitchen. RAYMOND HEY. Make me a bowl of minestrone. The women are left alone. RITA What's the matter? You look crazy. LORETTA I got a lot on my mind, Aunt Rita. INT. A CHURCH BASEMENT It's been set up for a church bazaar. There are several wheels of fortune, many stuffed animals, coffee urns, cakes, a game of ring toss, etc. AS THE CAMERA inventories the contents of the various stands -- a LITTLE NUN sleeps in one of them -- we HEAR the Old Man's VOICE. OLD MAN'S VOICE I've got a lot on my mind. Things are getting bad in my house. My daughter-in-law is mad at my son because he will not pay for the wedding. A TUB OF APPLES FLOATING IN WATER An old, gnarled hand reaches in and pulls one out, dries it with a towel. The CAMERA PULLS BACK REVEALING that the hand belongs to Lucy, who is standing behind a table with the Old Man and Felix. She hands the apple to the Old Man, who drives a small wooden stake into it with a little wooden hammer. Then the Old Man hands this staked apple to Felix, who dips it into a deep metal pot. It emerges shining with red candy goo. Then Felix sets the candled apple onto a papered tray where a dozen already sit. They repeat this process. But the Old Man, because his thoughts are elsewhere, takes forever to drive the stake into the apple. This frustrates Felix. OLD MAN At dinner, my daughter-in-law threatened to kill me. Things are very bad in my house. FELIX Hurry up. LUCY Don't fight. OLD MAN If I hit the stick too hard, the apple will split. If I am too timid, the apple will fall off the stick. FELIX We're supposed to do fifty apples. We only got twelve done. OLD MAN I don't know what to advise my son. I think he should pay for the wedding, but it is important that he don't look ridiculous. LUCY Don't make yourself sick. OLD MAN Cosmo drank five glasses of wine at dinner. LUCY Talk to him. OLD MAN I will. But I must find the right moment. LUCY Did you see the moon last night? The Old Man's eyes light up. He looks at Lucy. OLD MAN Yes! FELIX (in despair) Hurry up, hurry up. We open in five minutes. INT. CAPPOMAGGI'S STORE - DAY EIGHT NEAT STACKS OF MONEY BEING RUBBERBANDED By a woman's hands. The last stack is topped with a filled out deposit slip. The banded stacks are then stuffed into a night-deposit bag. The CAMERA PULLS BACK a bit to INCLUDE a ledger. A last entry is made, and the ledger is shut. The CAMERA PULLS BACK more, and now WE SEE Loretta reaching for her coat. She puts it on, picks up the deposit bag, and sees Rita. LORETTA Bye, Aunt Rita. RITA Bye, bye, honey. See you tomorrow? LORETTA Yeah, I'll be in. Loretta goes out the door, with Rita looking after, thoughtful. EXT. THE CINDERELLA BEAUTY SHOP - DAY Loretta walks-down the street and comes to the CINDERELLA BEAUTY SHOP, fidgets a moment, looks around to see if anybody's looking, and goes in. WE SEE her through the window talking to MILDRED, who handles appointments. Mildred nods, points, and Loretta goes back into the store. INT. CINDERELLA BEAUTY SHOP - DAY WE DISCOVER an uneasy Loretta sitting in a beauty chair with BONNIE, her hairdresser about to start. Bonnie is a little bored. BONNIE So? You want the usual? LORETTA I want you to get rid of the grey. TRANSFORMATIONAL MUSIC STARTS HERE AND CONTINUES THROUGH THE FOLLOWING SCENES. This music should convey that Loretta is turning from a frumpy pumpkin into a sleek and beautiful coach. Bonnie wakes up upon hearing this startling news and gets very excited. BONNIE I've been wanting to do this for three years! Let me show you some magazines! You've got to get a manicure! And your eyebrows! Sheila! I'm gonna need help! SHEILA, another beautician, joins Bonnie, and they both get very excited and start showing Loretta and each other magazines. They argue merrily about what they should do, leaving Loretta far behind. A MANICURIST joins them, with her stuff and starts soaking Loretta's nails. A MONTAGE FOLLOWS They're plucking her eyebrows. They're cutting and dying her hair. They're painting her nails. EXT. CINDERELLA BEAUTY SHOP-DAY Loretta comes out. Her hair is jet black and done in a much more stylish way. She looks great. She looks around as if she has committed a crime, and walks off quickly EXT. A DOWDY DRESS SHOP - DAY Loretta looks in the windows, is dissatisfied, and walks on. EXT. A BOLD DRESS SHOP - DAY A stylish dress shop called INSINUATION. Loretta looks in the window, is intimidated, and walks on. A moment passes. She reappears. Tentatively, she enters. INT. INSINUATION - DAY Loretta approaches a young woman, MER, who works there. Mer is about thirty, trendily dressed, and French. Mer and Loretta greet and talk. Loretta makes vague gestures trying to convey what she wants, but the truth is she doesn't know what she wants. Mer takes the situation in hand. There follows a MONTAGE of Mer showing Loretta various dresses, some outlandish, some beautiful, some incomprehensible. Loretta tries on several of the dresses in a big triple mirror. Some horrify her, some frighten her because they're so sexy, one bores her. We don't see the dress that she ultimately does buy. EXT. INSINUATION - DUSK Loretta walks out with a big shopping bag. She walks away down the street. WE FOLLOW Loretta away down the street. She comes to a BRIDAL SHOP with a big bride dummy shown off in the window She stops and looks at the bride. She walks close to the window and stares in hard. Then she slowly backs up from the bride. Two NUNS are walking by. Loretta, backing up from the dummy, bumps into the Nuns. She's flustered, makes a brief apology, and hurries away, casting a furtive last glance at the shop window. END OF MUSIC THE TRANSFORMATIONAL MUSIC COMES TO A CLOSE. EXT. THE CASTORINI HOUSE - DUSK Night is falling. Loretta appears and enters the house. INT. THE CASTORINI HOUSE - THE FRONT HALL - NIGHT As Loretta enters she drops her bag and, as she takes off her coat, calls. LORETTA Ma! Grandpa! No? Okay. A SINGLE BARK is HEARD from the top of the stairs. She looks up. A WOODEN ACCORDION GATE SEALS OFF THE TOP OF THE STAIRS Visible behind the gate are a couple of dogs. INT. THE CASTORINI HOUSE - KITCHEN - NIGHT Loretta goes through a door and into the kitchen. She opens the refrigerator and a cabinet, and makes herself a scotch on the rocks. She sips it and starts to HUM in an understated way. She takes her drink and wanders out of the kitchen. LORETTA WALKS INTO THE LIVING ROOM She walks to each lamp in the room and turns it on. There are many table and standing lamps throughout the room. LORETTA IS LIGHTING THE FIRE Which was already built in the fireplace. It catches on nicely. She puts her drink down and gets a big standing antique mirror on rollers from its place against the wall. She wheels it to a central place in the room. Satisfied, she picks up her drink again, leaves the room for a moment, and then returns with her shopping bag. She throws it on a chair. Then she goes to the stereo and looks through the albums. She selects one and puts it on. MUSIC Loretta waltzes around in front of the mirror, flirting with herself in a very serious way. She starts to unbutton her blouse. EXT. THE CASTORINI HOUSE -