Screenplay by Diane Drake
SUPER: 1968
On a darkened living room, a huge summer moon spilling silver
through a window.
We move slowly across the mantelpiece where a pair of candles
glow, illuminating family photos. Weddings two, maybe three
generations back -- brides in white, their young grooms at
their sides, frozen in time. As we pan, we hear two VOICES
offscreen: a BOY'S and a GIRL'S.
GIRL'S VOICE (O.S.)
Stop pushing it. You're not
supposed to force it. You're
supposed to just let it happen.
BOY'S VOICE (O.S.)
I'm not pushing it, you're pushing
it.
GIRL'S VOICE (O.S.)
I am not.
Silence. Until,
GIRL'S VOICE (O.S.)
You're pushing it again.
An exasperated sigh.
BOY'S VOICE (O.S.)
Well, hurry up. My foot's falling
asleep.
GIRL'S VOICE (O.S.)
Mo-mmm. Larry's pushing it.
Mom?
MOM (O.S.)
(from the next
room)
Larry, don't push it.
And now, we finally pan over to discover two KIDS playing with
a Ouija board. For future reference, the players are FAITH
(age eleven), and her brother LARRY (ten).
LARRY
I'M NOT PUSHING IT.
FAITH
Wait. I have to write this down.
A groan out of him. She grabs a piece of paper and starts
scrawling out a series of letters.
FAITH
Grandma told me everybody has a
soul mate.
FAITH
But most people never find theirs,
most people settle. I'm never
gonna settle.
She gazes up as the ripe summer moon slips behind a bank of
clouds.
FAITH
This way I'll know the name of the
man I'm supposed to wait for.
The arrow continues to move around the board, stopping on
various letters which she copies down.
LARRY
Yeah, but, what if this guy lived
a billion, trillion years ago?
Like, what if he was a cave man,
and now he's dead?
FAITH
Don't be stupid, Larry. If he's
my destiny, then, obviously, he
has to be alive.
Another letter.
LARRY
Yeah, but, what if he doesn't live
here? Like, what if he's a
cannibal in New Guinea or
something?
FAITH
If I live here, then he lives here.
Fate wouldn't make a mistake like
that.
(beat)
And stop talking. You're gonna
ruin the spell.
Another pause. Another letter. Then... Ever the devil's
advocate,
LARRY
(whispering)
Yeah, but... but, Faith, what if
he does live here, and one day you
just walk past him on the street?
I mean, you don't hear his name,
you don't get a chance to introduce
yourselves. You practically bump
straight into each other, but you
never even know it?
Right in his face,
FAITH
We'll KNOW.
LARRY
Okaaaaayyyy.
The arrow comes slowly to a halt. And she writes down the
final letter, as the moon again breaks through the clouds,
throwing a bright white beam of light directly onto the name
which reads:
FAITH (O.S.)
(a whisper)
Damon Bradley.
(she looks up,
spellbound)
He's the one.
Beat.
LARRY
Goodie. Can I ask about the Series
now?
CUT TO:
EXT. CARNIVAL - NIGHT
A screaming face. Whirling lights. A local carnival. The
small-town traveling kind.
SUPER: THREE YEARS LATER.
Up on the ferris wheel, a bunch of JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL BOYS
are distinguishing themselves by hurling water balloons down
at carnival-goers. Among the participants is Faith's brother
Larry.
PULL DOWN from them to "MADAME DIVINA'S FORTUNE TELLING
BOOTH". "Know Your Fate". Clustered in front of it are a
bunch of JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL GIRLS.
We should recognize Faith as one of them. Another girl,
LESLIE, is egging a friend on.
LESLIE
Go on, go on...
(to the rest)
She wants to know if she's gonna
marry Alex.
GIRL #2
I do not. I'm not gonna marry
Alex.
(obviously)
He doesn't even have a car.
LESLIE
But he's got pretty eyes. That
means your kids would have pretty
eyes. You can always get a car
later, but you can't always find
pretty eyes. You gotta think
ahead.
GIRL #3
Who cares about pretty eyes,
Leslie? I'm telling you, stocks,
bonds, real estate -- that's what
you wanna look for in a man.
GIRL #4
(dismissing)
Heh...
GIRL #3
What then?
GIRL #4
(the voice of
authority)
Definitely sex.
Somebody else pipes up,
GIRL #5
My mom told me you gotta want the
same things out of life. Have the
same values, be able to
communicate.
They all turn to look blankly at this poor, misguided soul.
GIRL #5
I'm just telling you what she said.
They're still looking at her.
GIRL #5
It's not like I believed her or
anything...
FAITH
I think you're all wrong.
LESLIE
What do you think the most
important thing is, Faith?
There is not a doubt in her mind.
FAITH
True love. I believe there's one
special person out there who's
meant for each of us. And when
your eyes meet, it'll be magic and
you'll both know it instantly.
A couple of dissenters roll their eyes.
FAITH
(turning to another
friend)
Don't you think so, Kate?
KATE's looking at the ground, trying to sound casual.
KATE
I don't know, I guess I never
really thought about it...
(in her next
breath)
Is Larry here?
FAITH
(she couldn't care
less)
Yeah. He's around somewhere.
Up above, Larry takes careful aim, then sends a water balloon
torpedoing their way. It hits the ground between them with
an enormous SPLAT. They SCREAM.
INT. FORTUNE TELLING BOOTH - NIGHT
We move past them, through a beaded window and into the booth
where a disheveled older WOMAN, MADAME DIVINA, is paging
through a copy of "Scientific American".
There's a TAP at the door. She checks her watch. Curses.
She shoves the magazine in a drawer, then hoists a bowling
ball, the kind with the iridescent swirls in them, onto an
opening in the center of the table, carefully positioning it
so the three holes aren't visible. She flicks on a flashlight
above it. Crystal ball.
Back outside, the girl everybody-thinks-is-going-to-marry-Alex
is nervous.
GIRL #2
But what if she tells me something
bad? I don't want to hear anything
bad...
KATE
They never tell you anything bad.
Nobody'd ever go to them if they
did.
The door opens. The WOMAN'S imposing hulk casts a shadow down
over them. They look up.
FORTUNE TELLER
Who knocked?
Like deer in the headlights.
GIRL #2
(pointing at Kate)
She did.
KATE
(pointing at girl
#2)
She did.
Nobody moves, until,
FAITH (O.S.)
I did.
Faith looks at her friends, shrugs, then gamely ventures
inside past the beads and sits down.
FORTUNE TELLER
What's your name?
FAITH
Faith.
FORTUNE TELLER
(lighting a candle)
What do you wanna know, Faith?
FAITH
Um, just basic destiny stuff, I
guess. But-- I don't want to hear
anything bad.
(beat)
If that's okay.
Madame Divina starts laying out a series of tarot cards.
Suddenly there's a loud KNOCK at the back door. Faith jumps.
FORTUNE TELLER
(dismissing)
Spirits.
She lays down a couple more cards. Then a persistent
"PSSSSTTTT", "PSSSSTTT". More BANGING.
FORTUNE TELLER
(hollering)
Harry, I'm outta change.
More KNOCKING. Harry is determined. Annoyed, Mme. Divina
finally gets up.
FORTUNE TELLER
How come I always wind up next door
to the freak show?
(as she goes)
Just because they're midgets does
that mean they don't have to go
to the bank like the rest of us?
She lumbers to the back of the booth, throws open a back door
and looks down.
FORTUNE TELLER
What?
Inside, Faith is nervously eying the cards. Her friend KATE
peeks in through the beads.
KATE
(mouthing the words
and pointing)
Is that a bowling ball?
Faith doesn't understand. Kate mimes a bowling motion,
swinging her arm. Faith shrugs. As the woman returns, from
outside we overhear,
BOY'S VOICE (O.S.)
Hey, Kate. Larry wants you.
LARRY (O.S.)
I do not.
Kate grins, ducks out. Mme. Divina sits back down. Closes
her eyes. Fingers the ball, entranced.
FORTUNE TELLER
Something is coming to me. I'm
getting... a name.
Faith leans forward.
FORTUNE TELLER
(straining)
This name is very important to
you... Da-- David. No-- no...
A faint breeze flutters through the room and the candle starts
to flicker.
FORTUNE TELLER
Damon.
Faith's heart skips a beat.
FORTUNE TELLER
His name is...
(her eyes pop open
with startling
intensity)
Damon Bradley.
It is, of course, the same name.
FAITH
Omigod. Omigod.
(getting up)
I have to go.
She seizes Faith's hand.
FORTUNE TELLER
Just a minute--
Faith freezes.
FORTUNE TELLER
Your destiny's two dollars.
Faith pulls out two bills, drops them on the table. Bolts
for the door. But the woman stops her again.
FORTUNE TELLER
Hey--
She leans in very close and pulls Faith toward her. We should
sense that this is not part of the act. This is for real.
FORTUNE TELLER
The truth is, no matter what the
cards say, you make your own
destiny. Don't wait for it to come
to you. You understand?
Faith nods. Still in shock.
FAITH
Can I be excused now?
CUT TO:
SUPER: TWENTY YEARS LATER -- SATURDAY NIGHT
We hear pouring rain. But what sounds like rain is actually
the shower, as we pull back to find Mitzi Gaynor washing that
man right out of her hair. "SOUTH PACIFIC" is on television.
We pull back even further to reveal three WOMEN watching.
A big Saturday night. There's a lot of chocolate on the
table.
The women are: the adult FAITH. Attractive, a little dreamy.
The walls of her apartment are adorned with reproductions of
famous works all featuring a similar theme, Rodin's "The
Kiss", Botticelli's "Birth of Venus", etc. Bookshelves are
crammed with volumes of poetry. She's absentmindedly pulling
the petals off a bouquet of flowers on the table.
Also in attendance: KATE, her childhood friend turned
housewife and sister-in-law. Kate is a pragmatist. She's
clipping coupons out of the newspaper as they watch. And,
doing her nails, LESLIE. Big hair. Good heart. Not the
sharpest tool in the shed.
As the movie cuts to a commercial,
LESLIE
I'm just saying I think it would
be a good idea.
KATE
(dubiously)
Date police...
LESLIE
Yes. A guy who says he's gonna
call, then doesn't, ought to get
slapped with a citation, that's
all.
Faith glances at Kate. They're used to Leslie.
LESLIE
(blowing on her
nails)
Anyway, like I said, I've given
it a lot of thought and I've
finally narrowed it down.
(beat)
A heterosexual with a job.
FAITH
Well, I don't think it's asking
too much to want to feel it in my
head and my heart and my body and
my soul all at the same time, and
to have that feeling to be mutual.
Pass the M&Ms please.
Her friends groan. They're used to Faith. Kate hands the
candy over.
LESLIE
Not as long as you're not hoping
to find it on planet Earth.
KATE
Leslie's right, Faith. You've got
to start being more practical.
Do you know what the statistics
are, the marriage odds for women
your age?
FAITH
I don't believe in statistics.
KATE
You're an accountant for cryin'
out loud.
Faith holds out both palms, gesturing that her point has been
made.
KATE
What about that guy you work with,
Mike what's-his-name?
FAITH
(shaking her head)
No. He smokes.
KATE
How about the other one? His
friend.
FAITH
Just moved in with his girlfriend.
KATE
(brightly)
How about that guy at the bank?
Faith pops another M&M.
FAITH
Scientologist.
KATE
(deflated)
Oh.
Beat.
KATE
So, you gotta be a little flexible.
Look at your brother and me.
Larry's not perfect, neither am
I. But we work it out. We're not
unrealistic in our expectations,
and we have each other.
(setting down her
scissors)
I think you've got the Door Number
Three Syndrome.
FAITH
Don't tell me, Oprah did a show--
LESLIE
Yeah, I saw that. Like on Let's
Make A Deal. You've got the Amana
freezer and you can keep it, or
risk it on what's behind Door
Number Three. Which usually turns
out to be a donkey.
Faith looks at Kate.
FAITH
I don't have an Amana freezer.
KATE
It's a metaphor. It's women who
always think there's some unknown
out there that's going to be better
than what's in front of them. And
instead wind up with nothing.
FAITH
Metaphorically, I still don't have
an Amana freezer.
KATE
I think if you're honest with
yourself, you'll admit you've had
a chance at a number of Amana
appliances in your lifetime.
She knows there's probably some ugly truth to this. Luckily,
the PHONE RINGS. Faith picks it up.
FAITH
Hello? Hi, Larry.
(beat)
Yeah, she's here. Hold on.
(turning to Kate)
It's your husband.
INT. LARRY'S KITCHEN - NIGHT
LARRY, Kate's husband, Faith's brother, is at the kitchen
table, munching the last crumbs out of a bag of potato chips
and watching television.
LARRY
Kate, you're still there? I
thought you'd be on your way home
by now.
INT. FAITH'S KITCHEN - NIGHT
KATE
You miss me?...
INT. LARRY'S KITCHEN - NIGHT
LARRY
Uh, yeah. Sure.
(gazing forlornly
into the
refrigerator)
Honey, did you forget the guys are
coming over tonight?
KATE (ON PHONE)
No, why?
LARRY
(helplessly)
Well, there's nothing here to eat.
INT. FAITH'S LIVING ROOM - NIGHT
Over the movie, we hear yelling -- Kate's half of the fight
-- in the background. Then the SLAMMING of the receiver.
When she comes back into the room, the "Some Enchanted
Evening" number is on. Faith is mouthing the words. Kate
starts picking up her coupons.
FAITH
Is everything okay?
KATE
Yes.
(glancing at the
tv, annoyed)
You know all the shrinks on Donahue
say that all those love songs about
some enchanted evening are just
a cruel hoax that feeds people's
fantasies.
FAITH
(a little
plaintive)
But somebody wrote those songs.
KATE
So, what's your point?
FAITH
Just that they came out of
somebody's experience is all.
KATE
No, Faith. They came out of
somebody's imagination.
EXT. FAITH'S DOOR - NIGHT
Faith walks her friends to the door, opens it.
FAITH
I wish you didn't have to go so
early.
KATE
(still annoyed)
Yeah, well, Larry and his friends
are hungry.
(relenting)
And I did say I'd try to pick
something up.
LESLIE
And I told Ted I'd be home later
if he wanted to stop by.
FAITH
I thought you said you thought he
had a date.
LESLIE
Well, after that.
As they talk, a slight GUY, one who might best be described
as, well, non-descript, walks by and heads into his apartment.
NON-DESCRIPT GUY
How's it going?
FAITH
Pretty well, Dwayne. How about
you?
DWAYNE
Can't complain.
He closes his door. Kate looks at Faith. Who shakes her
head.
FAITH
No.
KATE
Is he married?
FAITH
No.
KATE
Is he gay?
FAITH
I don't know. I don't think so.
KATE
So?...
FAITH
So, he's not my type.
(beat)
Let me walk you to the elevator.
They walk.
KATE
What's he do?
FAITH
I don't know, Kate.
KATE
You don't have any idea?
FAITH
He's a podiatrist or something.
KATE AND LESLIE
(in unison)
He's a doctor?
FAITH
Look, there's no chemistry there,
okay? There's no... thrill.
KATE
"Thrills"? That's what you're
waiting for? You know how long
that lasts? Besides, how do you
know? Have you ever been out with
him?
FAITH
No. He's never asked me.
KATE
Why don't you ask him?
FAITH
Why should I ask someone out who
I don't want to go out with in the
first place?
KATE
If you've never been out with him,
how do you know you don't want to
go out with him?
LESLIE
(almost more to
herself)
I thought he was kinda cute...
Faith sighs. Mercifully, the elevator doors finally open.
Kate and Leslie get in. As the doors close,
KATE
Take a chance, Faith... None of
us is getting any younger...
INT. FAITH'S APARTMENT - NIGHT
Faith re-enters her apartment. The answering machine light
is blinking. She plays the message back as she gets ready
for bed.
ANSWERING MACHINE
Hi, honey. It's Mom. I just
wanted to apologize if I upset you
at brunch today.
To herself in the bathroom mirror,
FAITH
If you upset me at brunch today?
ANSWERING MACHINE
(correcting
herself)
For upsetting you at brunch today.
Now, you know I don't think you're
a failure. And if you never get
married, that's perfectly fine with
your father and me.
Faith is applying eye cream. She leans in closer, carefully
examining the lines around her eyes.
ANSWERING MACHINE
Of course you're not a freak.
You're right, plenty of people
aren't married.
(trying to be
supportive)
The guy who cuts my hair isn't
married. Hey... maybe you tw--
(a voice in the
background)
He's gay.
(her mother)
Oh. Never mind. Anyway, if you
want to spend the rest of your life
alone, well, that's your choice.
And I respect it. I just want you
to be happy, that's all.
(beat)
Hold on, your Dad wants to say
something.
(male voice)
Good fruit salad today, Faith.
(Mom takes the
phone back)
We'll talk to you soon, sweetie.
The machine shuts off. Faith gets into bed. Reaches for the
light. Then, remem
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