"BASIC INSTINCT" (1992)

BASIC INSTINCT

Written by

Joe Eszterhas

It is dark; we don't see clearly. a man and woman make love on a brass bed. There are mirrors on the walls and ceiling. On a side table, atop a small mirror, lines of cocaine. A tape deck PLAYS the Stones "Sympathy for the Devil."

Atop him... she straddles his chest... her breasts in his face. He cups her breasts. She leans down, kisses him...

JOHNNY BOZ is in his late 40's, slim, good-looking. We don't see the woman's face. She has long blonde hair. The CAMERA STAYS BEHIND and to the side of them.

She leans close over his face, her tongue in his mouth... she kisses him... she moves her hands up, holds both of his arms above his head.

She moves higher atop him... she reaches to the side of the bed... a white silk scarf is in her hand... her hips above his face now, moving... slightly, oh-so slightly... his face strains towards her.

The scarf in her hand... she ties his hands with it... gently... to the brass bed... his eyes are closed... tighter... lowering hips into his face... lower... over his chest... his navel. The SONG plays.

He is inside her... his head arches back... his throat white.

She arches her back... her hips grind... her breasts are high...

Her back arches back... back... her head tilts back... she extends her arms... the right arm comes down suddenly... the steel flashes... his throat is white...

He bucks, writhes, bucks, convulses...

It flashes up... it flashes down... and up... and down... and up... and...

Winter in San Francisco cold, foggy. Cop cars everywhere. The lights play through the thick fog. Two Homicide detectives get out of the car, walk into the house.

NICK CURRAN is 42. Trim, good-looking, a nice suit; a face urban, edged, shadowed. GUS MORAN is 64. Crew-cut, silver beard, a suit rumpled and shiny, a hat out of the 50'sa face worn and ruined the face of a backwoods philosopher.

There's money here -- deco, clean, hip -- That looks like a Picasso on the wall. They check it out.

Past the uniformed guys... nods... waves... past the forensic men... past the coroner's investigators... they get to the bedroom.

They walk in, stare -- it's messy.

It's like a convention in here. LT. PHIL WALKER, in his 50's, silver-haired, the Homicide guys; JIM HARRIGAN, late 40's, puffy, affable; SAM ANDREWS, 30's, black. A CORONER'S MAN is working the bed.

They nod.

We see the white powder laid out in lines on the small mirror on the side table.

Nick and Talcott look at each other a beat, then --

Lt. Walker looks at the notepad in his hand.

Nick writes it down. He and Gus turn, leave. Captain Talcott watches them. He looks disturbed.

As they head out --

He stops, turns, sees Walker behind them. Walker comes up to them.

It is more a mansion than a house. They ring the bell. An Hispanic MAID answers. They flash their badges.

We'd like to speak to Ms. Catherine Tramell.

She leads them into a lavish, beautifully done living room that offers a sweeping view of the Bay.

They look around, impressed. There is a Picasso on the wall here, too.

Nick smiles -- and at that moment a beautiful BLONDE walks into the room. She looks like she has been asleep. She is in her early 20's. She wears a very sheer robe.

She looks at them a beat.

They start to head out.

A beat, they look at her, and go...

Foggy. Cold. It is an expensive spit of land on the ocean. Multi-million dollar "beach houses" with gardens and swimming pools. There are two Ferraris in the driveway -- one black, one white.

They get out of the car in front of the house. They see a woman in back of the house, sitting on a deck chair, staring at the sea, a blanket around her. As they get to her --

She takes a long look a Nick, then looks away.

CATHERINE TRAMELL is 30 years old. She has long blonde hair and a refined, classically beautiful face. She is not knockout gorgeous like Roxy; there is a smoky kind of sensuousness about her.

She doesn't look at them. She looks at the water.

Nick glances at Gus.

She closes her eyes a beat and then, still staring out, we see a thin smile. They see it, too, and glance at each other.

They glance at each other again.

Catherine looks at him -- that thin smile again.

She looks away.

They look at her a beat.

Catherine looks at him.

They stare at her. She looks out at the water.

She doesn't even look at them.

A long beat as they look at her.

The door says Dr. Elizabeth Gardner, Counseling. Nick opens the door, peeks in. The receptionist is not there. A clock says 3.

He walks in -- sees the inner door open, walks in.

DR. ELIZABETH GARDNER, the police psychologist, is a very good- looking, dark-haired woman. She is 30.

He sits down.

She watches him closely.

That embarrassed her; she looks away from him.

She shrugs. A beat.

She smiles.

And he starts heading out.

He doesn't even turn, pretends he didn't hear.

He walks in. Gus Moran gets up from his desk as soon as he sees him.

They start heading for Lt. Walker's office.

He and Gus sit there with Lt. Walker, Harrigan, Andrews and Captain Talcott.

Talcott gives him a look.

It hangs there.

They just stare at him.

It hangs there a long beat.

His apartment is very bare -- very few things -- with wide open spaces. There is a lot of chrome.

He sits on the couch, reading a book. It is a paperback.

We see the title -- Love Hurts, by Catherine Adams. He puts the book down a beat, then picks the phone up, dials.

Nick, Gus, Lt. Walker, Harrigan, Andrews, Captain Talcott -- and Beth Gardner. With them is an older, white-haired man, DR. ANDREW LAMOTT. There are copies of "Love Hurts" around the table.

Someone who wants to do the person who wrote this book harm read the book and enacted the killing described to incriminate the writer.

A long beat.

Some grins, titters.

A long beat -- as they think about it.

PROSECUTOR JOHN CORRIGAN, a big man in his 50's, with Captain Talcott, Lt. Walker, Nick, and Gus.

Corrigan is reading a file. He gets up, yawns, goes to his window, looks out.

A long beat; no one says anything.

They look at him.

Nicks says nothing.

Nick looks a Gus, grins.

They walk from the car to the door of the big beach house.

They ring the bell. They hear typing inside. The typing stops. She comes to the door in jeans and a tight-fitting sweatshirt.

They look at each other a beat.

He nods.

It is beautifully done in a Santa Fe motif. She goes to a bedroom of the living room.

Nick sits down on a couch facing the bedroom she's walked into. Gus sits across from him, his back to the bedroom.

There is a coffee table between them. She leaves the bedroom door halfway open.

An old newspaper is on the coffee table. Nick reaches for it. The headline says VICE COP CLEARED IN TOURIST SHOOTINGS. A headline underneath says GRAND JURY SAYS SHOOTINGS ACCIDENTAL. There is a photograph of Nick.

He stares at the paper.

Nick puts the paper down on the coffee table. He is lost in his thoughts. Gus picks the paper up.

Nick, facing the half open bedroom door, sees a mirror near the wall of the bedroom. The mirror reflects her in the other corner of the bedroom. She is taking her clothes off. He stares. She strips down. He sees her back. She has a beautiful body. Naked, she puts a dress on. She doesn't put any underwear on.

And she is suddenly out of the bedroom. She stands there, smiles. They look at each other a long beat.

They get up, head out.

They sit in the front; she is in the back. The car goes over the winding, two-lane Mt. Tamalpais road.

The fog is heavy. It's starting to rain. We see the beach far below.

She smiles, looks at him. A beat, and he turns away. Another beat, and she lights a cigarette up.

He turns back to her.

A beat, as she looks at him, and then he turns away.

He watches her in the rearview mirror.

He smiles at her in the mirror.

He turns back to her.

She looks right into his eye.

A beat, as they look at each other, and then he turns away from her. Gus watcher her in the rearview mirror.

It is large, fluorescent-lighted, antiseptic.

She walks in with Nick and Gus. In the room are prosecutor John Corrigan, Lt. Walker, Captain Talcott, Harrigan, and Andrews. There is a police stenographer a plain young woman in her 20's.

As soon as she comes in --

Corrigan and Talcott glance at Nick. She sees the look.

The two of them keep their eyes on each other.

She sits down. They sit around her. Nick sits directly across from her. She lights up a cigarette. They watch her.

She is poised, cool, in complete command of herself.

Ever so casually, she blows her smoke across at Nick.

She has control of the room; she looks from one man to the other as she speaks.

A beat, as they watch her. She is so matter-of-fact.

They stare at her.

They have their eyes on each other.

She smiles.

She holds his eyes a second, then --

She looks directly at Nick.

He watches her.

They are holding each other's eyes.

They don't take their eyes off each other for a second.

Their eyes are still on each other.

Their eyes are digging into each other.

A beat; he stares at her, expressionless.

She lights a cigarette. He stares at her.

He just stares at her, expressionless.

She looks at Nick.

She and Nick have their eyes on each other, then --

We see her in a glass-enclosed cubicle with a polygraph EXAMINER. Nick stands outside watching her with Gus and Lt. Walker. Her back is to them. The Examiner shuts the machine down, gathers rolls of papers, and comes out of the cubicle.

A long beat, then --

A long beat, Nick watches her as she sits inside.

The Examiner walks away. They stand there. Catherine stands at the door of the cubicle behind them --

She says nothing, has a thin smile.

They look at her a beat.

And he and Catherine walk away. Gus and Walker watch them.

It is an old, mint-condition silver Porsche. It is pouring rain; the wind is blowing a San Francisco winter storm. Nothing is said a long beat as he drives. She yawns. Stretches. He looks at her.

She looks at him and looks away. A beat.

He looks at her.

He says nothing, doesn't look at her.

He looks at her now.

He pulls up in front of her house on Divisadero, stops. He sees the white Ferrari in the driveway.

They look at each other a beat.

And she's out of the car. He watches her as she hurries in the rain -- his eyes on her until the moment she opens the door and is inside.

It is a police bar, San Francisco style. Ferns Joe Montana and Will Clark posters. The jukebox has a lot of Tony Bennett.

He walks in. He sees Lt. Walker at a back booth with Gus, goes to them, sits down.

A BARTENDER stays behind the bar, but yells to him.

He gets up, gets his drink --

He sits back down. He takes a big slug. They watch him.

He takes another big slug.

A beat, then --

Gus looks at him with concern. A man in his 50's -- LT. MARTIN NILSEN is suddenly there. He is overweight, florid.

He grins. Nick doesn't look at him.

Nilsen takes the drink, hands it to Nick.

Nick turns to him. He's sitting in the booth; Nilsen is standing there. Nick looks like he's barely restraining himself.

A beat, and then Nick gets up, faces him.

Lt. Walker and Gus get up and hold Nick back.

Beth Gardner, the police psychologist, is suddenly there.

And he walks away. Nick still looks like he wants to go after him. Beth pulls him away from the booth.

Nick looks at her a beat.

A beat. He looks at her again.

She looks at him a beat.

At the booth, Gus and Lt. Walker watch the two of them leave.

He is kissing her -- hard, rough. He forces her against the wall.

We hear her dress RIP. He kisses her harder -- we hear her panties RIP. He gets the dress off, pushes his hands under her bra --

He puts his mouth to her shoulder, bites it -- as they move down to the floor.

It is dark. The are still partially dressed. They are on the floor. He lies on his back, staring at the ceiling.

She lies next to him -- the torn dress wound around her.

There is a bite mark on her shoulder. A long beat, silence - - then --

She sits up, looks away. He looks at her, puts his finger on the bite mark idly, gently. A beat, and he kisses her shoulder gently, then lies back down.

He looks at her.

She looks at him.

They look at each other a long beat.

He says nothing, looks away from her.

He doesn't look at her a long beat, says nothing.

She keeps looking at him. He won't look at her.

A beat; he looks at her.

She looks at him a long beat.

They look at each other, a long beat, then away. He lies back down. Beth doesn't look at him, keeps sitting up.

He says nothing.

He looks at her; she won't look at him.

He walks in. He looks hung-over. He sees Gus with Harrigan and Andrews and Lt. Walker in Lt. Walker's glass-enclosed office at the end of this big room.

They look at him when they see him.

He and Nick look at each other a long beat, then --

The black Ferrari is in the driveway. He sits in an unmarked police car on a hillside above the house, watching. It is a bleak, leaden gray day.

Catherine comes out of the house. She is dressed casually.

She gets into the Ferrari.

He stays behind her at a safe distance on the winding panoramic highway -- a two-lane mountain road which leads from Stinson Beach into Marin County.

She suddenly starts speeding up on this dangerous road, cutting in and out, passing cars very fast.

He has to start cutting around cars to keep up. This woman really drives.

He cuts out and can barely pass a car without hitting a Grey Lines Tour Bus head-on. Close call: sheer drops on either side.

He looks frazzled.

He is behind her at a distance on a hilly Mill Valley road -- little streets, terraced hillsides, sharp turns.

He goes slowly, looks around, thinks he's lost her. And then he sees the black Ferrari parked in front of a house obscured by hedges.

He parks the car a distance behind the Ferrari, sits there a long beat. He gets out, goes carefully up to the hedges, looks. A small, nondescript house. He watches. He can't see anything inside the house.

A beat, he reaches over to the mailbox and opens it. He takes an envelope out, looks at the name Hazel Dobkins.

He watches as she comes out of the house. A frail old woman in her 70's is with her. She hugs the old woman, gets into the Ferrari, STARTS it up.

He waits a beat and then STARTS after her. He stays behind her at a distance -- she is going slowly. And then she suddenly GUNS it, cuts her lights -- her wheels SCREECH.

He GUNS his car after her. He makes a turn. She is gone.

There is a fork in the road. He turns one way, goes a few hundred feet.

Nothing. Blackness. He stops.

He pulls his car up to her house at Stinson Beach. The black Ferrari is in the driveway.

A light goes on in an upstairs bedroom. The curtain is drawn. He sees the outline of her body now.

She starts to take her clothes off -- there in the window, behind the curtain. He watches her body as she does an almost languorous strip. His eyes are intense... ravishing.

He is alone, nobody else in the big room.

He sits in front of a computer. We see the screen. He has punched in

37 HAZEL DOBKINS, WF, 145 ALBION RD., MILL VALLEY. 37

He is waiting for a response. We see it come on screen

NOTHING CURRENT.

A long beat, as he stares at the screen, and then we see these words

38 RELEASED, SAN QUENTIN, JULY 7, 1965. 38

We see him type in the words

39 PRIOR ARREST RECORD. 39

A long beat, and then it comes up

He stares at the screen a long beat.

Nick looks at him a beat.

Nick sits back a long beat, his eyes off somewhere.

Nice little kids -- nice husband, wasn't porkin' around -- no financial problems. One day -- outta the clear blue sky -- she does 'em. All of 'em. Used a knife. He got for a wedding present. Didn't even deny it. Sweet as honey. Said she didn't know why she done it.

Nick just stares at him.

He pulls up to the house, gets out of his unmarked police car. He stands there a beat, thinking. He walks down to the beach entrance of the house. He hears a Rolling Stones SONG playing inside. He stands there. The door suddenly opens. Catherine stands there, smiles. She wears very tight- fitting spandex leotards.

He looks at her a beat, then --

They have their eyes on each other. A beat, and she turns to go in.

She goes in ahead of him -- he follows her inside. He watches her body. His movements are tentative, off-balance. She turns the Stones DOWN.

On a table by the window, he sees a word processor. Spread around it are newspaper clippings. They are all about him.

We see the headline on one KILLER COP TO FACE POLICE REVIEW. She sees him glancing at the clips.

She smiles. He looks at her, expressionless.

She goes to the bar.

She is making herself a drink. She takes the ice out and then opens a drawer and gets an icepick. It has a fat wooden end. She uses the icepick on the ice, her back to him. He watches her.

She turns to him, icepick in hand, smiles.

She turns back to the ice, works on it with the pick. She raises her arm, plunges it. Raises it, plunges it. He watches her.

She puts the icepick down, pours herself a drink, turns to him.

He looks at her a long beat.

Their eyes are on each other.

A long beat, as they look at each other.

43 BEAT. 43

She looks at him a long beat, sips her drink, never takes her eyes off him.

He stares at her a long beat.

He stares at her, almost horrified.

She steps closer to him.

She puts her hand softly on his cheek, He grabs her hand roughly, holds it.

They are face to face. He is still holding her roughly by the hand.

He twists her arm back behind her -- their bodies are pressed against each other -- their eyes digging into each other.

He is twisting her arm, staring at her, pulling her against him. We hear the DOOR behind them. A beat, and he lets her go, turns away from her.

Roxy stands there, staring at them. Her hair is up. She wears a black motorcycle jacket, a black T-shirt, and black jeans and cowboy boots.

Roxy looks at Nick. Catherine goes to her, kisses her briefly on the lips, stands there with her arm around her -- both of them looking at Nick.

He walks by them, opens the door to go, his face a mask.

He doesn't look at her; he's gone.

He comes in. He looks like he's going to kill someone. A RECEPTIONIST sits there.

She gets up -- he goes closer to her; she backs away from him.

He goes closer to her; she backs away.

She says nothing, looks scared.

He storms into the big room. He sees MARTY NILSEN. He is sitting behind his desk in his glass-enclosed office inside this big room. About a dozen plainclothes policemen are in the big room. He goes by them into Nilsen's office.

He closes the door. Nilsen sees the look on his face, backs his chair away towards the wall.

He goes to him, picks him up by his lapels, slams him against the wall.

He slams him against the wall again. The glass EXPLODES behind them -- a chair comes into the room. Nick is frozen, holding Nilsen by the throat against the wall.

ONE OF THE I.A. GUYS Let him go, Curran. Nice and easy.

He looks back, sees two Internal Affairs men with their guns drawn, pointed at him. A beat, and he lets Nilsen go. He turns calmly and starts to walk out.

He gets into his old Porsche. He STARTS the car up. Gus Moran comes up to the window. They look at each other a

They look at each other a long beat.

They almost smile at each other, then --

A beat, and then Nick looks at him.

He sits in front of the TV, watching a lame sitcom. A bottle of Jack Daniels is half-empty in front of him. He is smoking a cigarette.

He looks at her, looks away at the sitcom.

He keeps watching the sitcom. A long beat.

He goes to the TV, shuts it off.

A beat, and she suddenly hurls herself at him in absolute fury, trying to claw at his face. He grabs her, blocks her. They look at each other a long beat and then he lets her go.

The emotion of the moment is gone now -- they turn away from each other.

Nick looks at her a beat.

A long beat, then --

She looks at him. He looks away from her.

He turns away from her.

He goes to the Jack Daniel's, pours some more. She looks at him pour it and turns to go.

He is asleep on the couch -- the TV is on to a blank screen. The Jack Daniel's is mostly gone. The phone on the coffee table RINGS. It RINGS again. He wakes, picks it up, listens.

He hangs it up. He sits there a long beat, staring. He looks disturbed.

He walks down the alley. There are lots of police cars, flashing lights, uniformed men, coroner's men.

As he walks down the alley, he sees Lt. Walker, Gus, and several of the Internal Affairs men we saw earlier in Nilsen's office. They are standing around a Lincoln Town Car.

They look at him as he comes closer to them -- then move aside.

He can see into the car now. Martin Nilsen lies against the front seat. He has been shot in the head. Nick stares.

Nick stares at Nilsen's body. They watch him.

A beat, and then Nick gives him his gun. Walker smells it, shakes his head, gives it to one of the Internal Affairs men.

He sits in the same room that Catherine sat in --surrounded by four or five Internal Affairs men, Lt.

Walker, Gus, and Captain Talcott. Lt. Walker and Gus sort of sit back -- I.A. is running the investigation. The same police stenographer -- the same plain young woman -- is sitting in the room who was there with Catherine.

Beth Gardner comes into the room. They look at her.

Nick gives her a look.

Nick looks at her, shrugs.

He looks at Beth.

She and Nick look at each other. He looks away and lights a cigarette.

It is the exact line that Catherine used. A long beat.

They look at him a beat.

He is by the elevators with Gus and Lt. Andrews. He spots Beth going for the stairway.

She stops. He catches up to her. They walk down the flights together. They speak quietly.

She looks at him, smiles. They keep walking down the steps.

She looks at him, smiles.

They get outside. Beth kisses him quickly, softly on the cheek.

He nods. She starts walking toward her car.

She goes to her car.

He is cleaning his desk out, putting things into a duffel bag. Only Andrews is in the room. We see Lt. Walker sitting in his glass-enclosed office.

He closes the duffel bag, looks at the place a long beat.

Andrews is watching him. He goes up to Andrews

A beat, and Andrews opens the file.

There were two previous repairs. There was a five-mil policy on both of 'em. A real heavy investigation. Zilch. Goose-egg. It was an accident.

He sees Lt. Walker looking at him. He goes into Walker's office.

Lt. Walker looks at him a long beat.

It is in the Marina District; on a street like Cervantes.

He gets out of his old Porsche; he sees her black Ferrari there. She is sitting on the front stoop. She wears an Indian jacket, jeans and a T-shirt. He goes up to her. She looks at him a beat.

She smiles.

She looks at him a beat.

He looks at her a beat.

They start walking inside. She walks ahead of him. He watches her. She turns suddenly.

And she turns, heads inside; he follows her.

They walk in. She looks at the bareness of the place.

She turns, smiles at him. He looks at the bottle of Jack Daniel's; there's not much left.

There is a palpable tension between them.

He takes the ice out, opens a drawer, takes out an icepick.

She smiles; a beat and he hands her the icepick. She takes it, starts to us the icepick, her back to him. He lights a cigarette.

He watches her working on the ice.

He does, steps to her. She parts her lips -- he puts it on her lip, watches it. Their eyes are on each other.

She works on the ice again, opens the cabinets for glasses.

She makes the drinks.

She hands him his drink, holds hers.

They look at each other a long beat, their eyes very involved.

Their faces are close together.

A beat, and she suddenly turns away.

She goes to her purse, takes a paperback book out of it. We see it -- The First Time, by Catherine Smith. He looks at it.

He stares at her. A long beat, then --

They look at each other a beat.

He watches her; she has turned away from him -- and then she turns back to him in a different mood.

She looks at him; she smiles.

They look at each other a long beat.

He nods, say nothing as she goes to the door --

She looks at him a long beat; and she's gone.

As she is going down the stairs, Gus Moran is coming up.

He does a real double-take as he goes by her.

He looks at him a long beat, and he goes upstairs, into Nick's apartment.

Nick stands at the window, watching her outside. A long beat, and he looks at Gus.

It is dark, cavernous there are a thousand people in here. The MUSIC is ear-splitting, pulsing. Lights flash.

The floor is huge. At one time, this club was a church.

He walks around the sides, a drink in his hand, looking for her. He doesn't see her.

The he catches a glimpse of Roxy. She is dancing with another woman. He watches her. She is wearing pants and a jacket, her hair off to the side. She looks very masculine tonight.

Roxy laughs at the other woman, leaves her on the floor, starts moving through the sea of dancers. He follows her through the press of bodies. She goes towards the men's room. She walks in.

It is large, dark, shadowy It was once the sacristy.

A crowd scene men and women. Roxy presses through them.

A haze of crack smoke; we see people doing poppers.

She opens the door to a toilet stall, walks in. Nick is behind her. As the door opens, he sees Catherine.

She wears a black motorcycle jacket, a very short skirt, stiletto heels. Her hair is up. He make-up is severe, In the darkness, in the shadows she looks about 19. A hot 19.

A hot flash-trash 19.

She is in there with two men -- one of them is a big, body- built black guy. She has a vial of something near her face.

She sees Nick watching her. She whispers something to the tall black guy. He looks at Nick, smiles a condescending smile. The door to the stall closes

He is walking along the side, watching the floor, a drink in his hand. The song ends and it seques right into the Stones's "Miss You."

He sees her. Her black leather jacket is off.

She wears a very tight, flimsy top, the short skirt, the heels. She is dancing with Roxy and the black guy. He watches her move... watches her body.

She turns, sees him, dances, watches him... gets between Roxy and the black guy... they sandwich her with their bodies... keeps moving, turning... eyes on him... playing to him with her body. He watches.

A long beat, and he goes up to them. His movements are

almost trance-like. They look at each other. A long beat.

Catherine stops dancing. he reaches for her. She moves away. A beat their eyes are on each other. She moves a step towards her. A beat, as they look at each other... and they start to move together.

Their eyes are on each other as they move, the eyes burning... the movements tighter, hotter... and he suddenly grabs her and kisses her... as they keep moving... the song seques into the Stones's "Gimme Shelter."

She is melting into him now, kissing him... Tex watches, expressionless... the black guy is gone... he holds her by the back of the neck, kissing her... their bodies pressed into each other... his hands are on her butt now, pulling her into him now, almost holding her up now... and then under her skirt, under her panties... as he kisses her neck.

People around them stare... he moves his hands under her top as she keeps moving with the song, her head back, her back almost arching... cups her breasts now... she keeps moving... the song sweeping them into its rhythm "it's just a shot away, it's just a kiss away, a kiss away..."

They devour each other. Right there on the floor. Barely able to hold it back. As Tex watches expressionless. As people stop dancing and stare.

It is dark. We can't see clearly. A side table, lines of cocaine on a small mirror. A CD player The Stones play "Love In Vain."

There are mirrors all over the walls and ceiling. They are in bed. The bed is big and brass.

Atop her... he kisses her neck... his hands under her, raising her... he moves down, kisses her breasts... puts his mouth around a breast... she arches, moves... he kisses her shoulder... biting into it... she opens her mouth... we hear no cry... we hear the Stones.

The Stones play "Monkey Man."

Atop him... she kisses his chest, licks it, lowers her head... lower... lower... he arches his back... her mouth comes up... her mouth on his lips again... he turns her.

Atop her... he moves her legs apart... (the CAMERA is behind them)... she holds his back... digs in her nails... rakes his back with them... digs in again... his back bleeds... he moves inside her... harder... the nails dig... blood trickles down his back.

The Stones play "Wild Horses."

He is behind her... she is on her stomach... he rises her by her hips... kisses her back... races her spine with his tongue... traces her lower back... he kneels...

moves into her... kisses her neck... his fingers are in her mouth... as he moves.

The Stones play "Sympathy for the Devil."

Atop him... she leans close over his face, her tongue in his mouth... kneeling over him... she moves his arms above his head... moves higher atop him... her breasts in his face... she reaches over to the side... a white silk scarf is in her hand... she moves higher above him... kneeling over his face... moving oh-so-slightly... his face strains towards her.

The scarf in both hands now... she starts to tie his hands with it... his eyes are open, watching her... she ties it loosely, gently... it isn't tight... but his hands are tied to the brass bed.

She kisses him... moving her hips lower now... over his chest... lower...

And he is inside her... her arms above him... his eyes open... she kisses his neck... bites but not hard... moves... grinding hard against him now.. she is on her knees... head arches back.. her breasts high.. still grinding.

Her back arches, strains... he strains toward her... she holds her arms high... she comes out of the arch... shivering... falling over him... the scarf loosens... his arms come forward and hold her close.. closer... closer... as she moves with slight... shivery... movements.

It is dark, quiet. Pindrop quiet. He is sitting on the side of the bed, his head down... his back a line tracing of dried blood. She is asleep nest to him, naked.

He looks around the room. The white scarf around the bedpost... the coke on the side-table... clothes all over the floor.

He gets up, walks into the bathroom.

The light is too bright. He looks at himself in the mirror. He pours the water, lowers his head, puts cold water on his face. A long beat, he comes back up, opens his eyes. Roxy is in the mirror behind him. She startles him.

He looks at her in the mirror a long beat, doesn't turn.

She is expressionless; she wears the same thing she wore at the club.

He lowers down into the basin again, puts more water on his face, comes back up, uses a towel this time, finishes with the towel. She is still looking at him in the mirror the same way. He looks at her in the mirror, doesn't turn.

He looks at her a beat, then turns --

For a second, she looks like she's going to spring at him, then controls it and turns to go.

And she turns and she is gone.

He lies on the bed in the dark, quiet room. He is on his back, his eyes open. He has his arm around her. She is asleep.

He looks at her.

He wakes up. She is not there. He looks around. The white scarf is gone. The coke on the side table is gone.

In its place, a scrawled note "The Beach -- C."

A cold and foggy day. He gets out of his old Porsche, walks down the driveway. He sees her out on the beach by the water. A small bonfire is near her. He walks towards her.

Roxy watches him, expressionless, from an upstairs window of the house. He doesn't see her.

He walks up to Catherine. She has an Indian blanket over her and is wearing a black felt English derby hat, her hair loose underneath.

She doesn't look at him -- he smiles slowly. She doesn't smile and she doesn't seem to like his smile, either. She walks along the beach. He walks with her. A long beat.

She looks at him. He looks like he is trying to hide a smile.

That wipes the hidden smile off his face. He looks at her, walks with her. A long beat.

She looks at him; he's smiling now.

He's serious. She looks at him. She smiles slowly.

He can't hide his smile anymore. She says nothing, keeps walking.

They look at each other. They keep walking. A long beat.

He looks at her: she's serious.

She looks at him.

They keep walking. A long beat.

She stops, looks at him. A long beat.

A beat, he looks at her --

The keep walking.

She looks a him. A beat. She smiles slowly.

They keep walking. A long beat.

He looks at her.

They look at each other. A long beat.

Their eyes are into each other.

A long beat. They look at each other.

A beat, and she walks away towards the house. He watches her.

Nick walks in. Waylon Jennings is on the JUKEBOX. Gus is sitting at the bar wearing jeans, a cowboy shirt, and a cowboy hat.

Nick goes, sits next to him.

He glances around.

He is drunk, slurring. Nick sees it.

Gus takes a long, drunken look at him.

Gus is eating chili, drinking coffee. Hick keeps pouring him more coffee.

Nick pours him more coffee; Gus guzzles it.

It gets some looks from the other people in her -- Nick shushes him, pours him more coffee. He drinks it.

Some people here really give him the looks now. Gus looks angrily away from them, drinks more coffee.

They look at each other a long beat. Gus drinks more coffee. He sits back, pulls his cowboy hat over his eyes.

A long beat.

He looks at the fat woman again -- leers at her obscenely.

She looks away.

Nick looks at him and smiles a thin smile; he's not there, he's completely preoccupied.

Someone is watching as he and Gus come out of the diner.

He stands by Gus as Gus gets into his battered, rusted, vintage Cadillac.

And he steps on the gas and ROARS out of there, forcing Nick to get out of the way. Nick looks after him a long beat, shakes his head.

Someone is following him slowly as he walks down the street. He turns a corner, walks down the alley towards his Porsche, parked behind the country and western bar.

The car suddenly speeds up -- ROARS down on him from the back, full bore.

He hurls himself across the Porsche's hood... barely avoiding the car. He sees the car at the end of the alley, turning out It is a black Ferrari.

He GUNS it down the alley, makes a wild turn in the direction the Ferrari turned.

The Porsche dodges around cars very fast, almost side- swiping them, looking almost out of control, its MOTOR screaming.

He sees the Ferrari turn ahead. When he gets to where it turned, he turns wildly.

The Ferrari is making fast, wild turns into little streets in North Beach, its MOTOR screaming -- the Porsche is gaining ground behind it, making turns.

The Ferrari is up ahead and makes a wild right turn onto a road going up a hillside. He yanks the wheel hard.

The Porsche rockets up the steps -- bouncing high into the air, almost out of control.

As it crests the steps and gets to the street. Nick GUNS it and it looks like it flies high down the hill-side into blackness.

But it lands on more steps -- heading downward -- bucking, almost spinning, it bounces onto the next street.

Another set of steps leading up he GUNS it, it rockets up, ROARS, bucking --

And lands on the next street. Nick makes a wild right turn onto the street. And the black Ferrari appears from around a curve to the right, heading right for him.

Nick steps on the GAS and heads head-on for the Ferrari.

The Ferrari SCREAMS head-on for him.

And at the last moment, in the game of chicken, the Ferrari tries to swerve around him on this narrow road, goes out of control and over the side, turning over and over as it rolls down the hillside.

The Ferrari has landed right-side up.

He runs down the hillside and gets to it. A beat, and he opens the car door.

Roxy lies hunched over the wheel, her eyes open. Her neck is broken. She is dead.

Police lights have been set up. He stands there with Lt. Walker and several of the Internal Affairs men.

He and Nick look at each other a long beat. Andrews comes up to them with a piece of paper in his hand.

Lt. Walker looks at Nick like he's going to kill him. Nick looks calmly away.

Walker looks at him in absolute disbelief.

They stare at him. He watches as Roxy's body is taken away.

He walks in. He looks good, in control. Beth Gardner is sitting there with two middle-aged MEN, both of them wearing suits, who smile and scrutinize him the instant he walks in the door.

They shake hands with him.

Nick gives him a look: What did he think he was going to do - - stand there?

He sits down, looks at them. A beat, as they look at him, then --

Nick looks at them a long beat in disbelief.

Number four I don't wet the bed and haven't for some time. Number five You can go fuck yourselves because I'm out of here.

He is walking away quickly. Beth is with him, trying to keep up. She is very angry.

A beat, he stops looks at her, then keeps walking.

He stops, looks at her.

She looks at him a long beat.

A beat, and she turns and walks away.

Nick is driving down winding road to Stinson house. He is driving very fast, passing other cars on the winding and twisting road.

Nick enters and shuts door. Looking around, he does not see her.

Finally he sees her sitting by the window. He walks over to her.

She is about to break into uncontrolable sobbing. Nick puts his arms around her.

They are seen rolling and turning around on each other.

Their love making is sensual, sincere.

Later in bed.

A long beat, he looks at her.

It is a bright, sunshiny day. He is out there looking at the water. She comes up behind him, hugs him.

He looks at her.

She looks hurt.

They have their eyes on each other.

She turns away from him. He watches her.

A beat, she looks at him.

She turns away from him.

Their eyes are on each other.

And she kisses him slowly, with more and more heat, on the lips.

The cordless phone on the deck table goes off. It keeps RINGING. She breaks finally from the kiss, picks it up.

She listens a beat, then hands him the phone.

He takes the phone.

Catherine sees him smile.

She watches him.

In CLOSEUP: We see a large, glossy photograph of Roxy.

She looks about thirteen. She has braces in her teeth.

Nick is looking at the photo -- it is in a file in his hands. He sits there with Gus in front of a woman juvenile officer.

He turns the file and we see a glossy of a little boy in a pool of blood.

Nick looks up at the woman.

(she shrugs) The razor just happened to be there.

They stare at her.

It is a small, old, rural buildinga lot of Four-H type stuff on the walls.

They are going to their cars, parked side by side. The Porsche looks pretty badly banged up.

Nick looks at him.

Nick get into his car, sits there a beat.

Nick looks at him.

A young woman is checking a computer. Nick is with her.

She gives him a look, but punches it in again.

He looks at her.

He gets out of the Porsche, starts to go in. He looks disturbed Catherine comes out of the house with Hazel Dobkins, the old woman we saw with her in Mill Valley. Nick watches them a beat, then goes up to them.

He looks at her a long beat.

He looks at her sort of warily.

The old woman starts going to the Ferrari.

Nick looks at Hazel a beat, then at Catherine.

He looks at her a long beat.

She smiles. He looks at her, doesn't know what to say.

He looks at her What did she say?

America's Most Wanted? She turns to go.

She stops, looks at him a beat.

He says nothing. A long beat, she looks hurt.

And she's gone.

He is on the phone.

He waits.

He sits in front of a computer screen with Andrews.

We see the computer screen. The screen says LISA HENDERSON DMV LICENSE CHECK We wait and then we see the words 1983 RENEWAL --

111 ELIZABETH GARDNER, 147 QUEENSTON DRIVE, SALINAS, CAL. 111

Nick stares at the screen.

A beat, and then we see the license itself It is Beth Gardner on the photo. Nick stares.

A beat, and the license comes up. We see a young Beth Gardner on the photo. She has blonde hair.

Nick stares.

She walks in. The apartment is dark.

She is startled.

A beat, she looks at him.

She looks at him a long beat, then turns away --

She looks at him, sees his look.

He looks at her a long beat.

A long beat as they look at each other.

Phil had you copied. You never said anything!

I was embarrassed. It's the only time I've been with a woman.

She turns to him.

Nick looks at her a long beat.

He gets up. He looks at her a long beat.

He turns to go.

He looks at her.

He gets out of his Porsche. He walks toward the door.

He starts going up the dark stairway. There is a hand on his neck. He spins.

He looks at her, doesn't say anything.

He looks at her, doesn't say anything.

Catherine looks at him a beat, then smiles.

He just looks at her.

And she's gone.

He stands with an old CAMPUS COP. He is going through files.

He stops at a file, opens it.

Nick doesn't get it.

Nick says nothing.

He and Gus sit there -- they look tired, upset.

Gus thinks about it.

There's gotta be somebody at Berkeley who knows what the hell happened.

He has his key out to open his door. He hears MUSIC inside.

A beat, and he opens the door.

It is dark. We hear a Rolling Stones SONG. He sees Catherine standing by a window, watching him. She wears black jeans and the black motorcycle jacket.

They look at each other a long beat.

He walks up close to her.

She unzips her motorcycle jacket slowly. She wears nothing underneath it.

She reaches for him.

She pulls him close.

They sit in the window seat, naked. His back is against the wall. She sits against him. He has his legs around her. They don't look at each other. She is smoking.

He walks in; it is a small valley hospital. He goes up to the desk. There are two women there.

Nick sits with a sheriff's DETECTIVE.

A long beat, then --

He walks around the house; he sees her sitting out on the deck, a portable word-processor in front of her. She is smoking.

He goes up to her.

He moves toward her. She moves away, kills her cigarette.

They look at each other a long beat.

He stares at her. A long beat.

He stares at her. He can't believe what she is saying.

He stares at her.

Nick looks -- Hazel Dobkins is there.

Catherine still has her eyes on him.

A beat, and then she turns to go inside. Hazel Dobkins smiles slowly at him.

He sits in his Porsche, staring ahead. He is parked next to Gus' Cadillac. Gus is suddenly there, onway to his car.

Nick just stares ahead.

Nick looks at him.

Gus drives.

Nick doesn't even respond. Gus looks at him.

Nick doesn't say anything, stares ahead.

Gus gets out with Nick. It is an old building.

A beat, and Nick gets back in the car.

Gus is on the first floor. There is no one around. He hits the elevator button. A beat, and it comes. He steps in.

He hits the button for the fourth floor.

The elevator rises a floor, stops. The door opens. There is no one there. Then it starts going up again. It rises to the third floor. It stops. The door opens. There is no one there. Then it starts to rise again.

Nick sits there, staring ahead.

As it goes up. It stops. The door starts to open. As it does -- a figure in a hooded raincoat sweeps into the elevator. It happens very fast. We see blonde hair around the face.

But we don't see the face itself -- the head is down, the hood up. There is an icepick in the figure's hand. The figure explodes into Gus. The icepick goes into his neck.

Nick tears desperately up the stairway -- he hits the fourth floor door. It explodes open.

He stands there a beat, sees the elevator door open. He runs there, He sees Gus, crumpled into the corner of the elevator.

He goes into the elevator -- holds Gus. He is dead. A long beat. He sees the gun in Gus' hand -- he takes the gun out of his hand. He runs out of the elevator.

He hears something. Gun in hand, he runs towards the SOUND. He stops, gun in hand, listens again. He runs again, hears nothing.

Behind him, we see a figure.

He spins suddenly, gun, in hand. Beth Gardner is there.

She wears a windbreaker. She has her hands in the pockets.

She stares at him.

She smiles a strange smile. She takes a step toward him.

She smiles strangely again, takes a step toward him.

She moves a hand in a pocket and moves towards him fast --

And he FIRES the gun. She is hit in the chest, goes down.

A long beat, and then he goes to her. He gets down on the ground. Her eyes are open. He empties the pockets of the windbreaker -- first one, then the other the pockets are empty.

And she dies.

A lot of policemen, coroner's guys, photos being taken.

Nick stands there with Lt. Walker, Harrigan, and some of the Internal Affairs guys.

Nick says nothing; he looks like a zombie.

Andrews yells to them from the stairway door.

A FORENSICS MAN very carefully handles a hooded rain coat in a stair landing. He wears gloves.

Nick is there with Lt. Walker.

The Forensics Man picks the raincoat up -- a long blonde wig falls out of it. There are flecks of blood on it.

He reaches into the pocket and pulls out an icepick. It has a thin steel handle and is bloody. He hands the icepick to an assistant.

He looks at the raincoat. It has blood on it.

Nick with Lt. Walker. Nick looks like a zombie. Andrews comes up to them. He has a gun in his hands.

Bottom drawer, bureau in the bedroom.

Harrigan comes out.

Lt. Walker goes into the kitchen. Nick follows him.

There are several cops around a kitchen cabinet. A drawer is open.

Walker looks -- we look with him. We see a copy of Love hurts, Catherine's paperback book, and a stack of photos of Catherine.

Walker picks the photos up, goes through them -- we see shots of Catherine in college -- Catherine at a fight -- Catherine with Johnny Boz -- Catherine with Roxy.

He hands the photos to Nick.

Nick stares at them.

Nick sits, his feet up. He looks like a zombie. With him are Lt. Walker, Andrews, and Captain Talcott.

We see other plainclothesmen in the b.g. -- a flurry of activity, people on phones. A long beat.

Nick says nothing, stares off.

A DETECTIVE comes over to them.

An INTERNAL AFFAIRS MAN comes over to them.

A long beat -- the phone RINGS. Andrews picks it up, listens.

He hangs up.

A long beat -- Nick just stares.

Harrigan comes up to them.

Johnny Boz's psychiatrist says he thinks he remembers Dr. Gardner and Boz meeting at a Christmas party at his house a year ago.

A long beat.

He and Nick look at each other a beat.

Nick looks at him, expressionless.

He parks his car. It is dark. Foggy.

He starts heading inside.

He goes in. He starts to walk up the dark stairway, we see him walking up several flights of steps.

He opens his door with his key.

He walks in. The apartment is dark.

It is a whisper, almost a hiss. He spins, fast. Catherine stands there, pressing herself against a wall. They look at each other a long beat. She looks like she is almost in a trance.

He looks at her, expressionless. A long beat, their eyes are into each other. She looks like she is almost shivering.

She looks very emotional. He moves towards her, puts his arms around her, holds her very close.

He presses her closer and closer to himself, holds her.

It is dark; we can't see clearly.

Atop her... he makes love to her... gently... tenderly... hardly moving inside her... there are tears in her eyes...

Atop him... she is on her knees, straddling him... he is on his back, his eyes are closed... her head arches back... her breasts high... he strains toward her with his body... she holds her arms high... her right hand is in a fist...

(we only see the back of her hand and arm)... it comes down suddenly... he bucks... writhes... then her whole body falls on top of him.

A very long beat...

We can't see him... her body completely covers him...

And then finally he moves... turns her to the side... kisses her.

The Stones play "Sympathy For The Devil" in the b.g.; the MUSIC is low.

They lie next to each other on the bed. The CAMERA faces them. He lies, staring at the ceiling, on the left side of the bed, smoking a cigarette. She is curled away from him toward the right side of the bed. A long beat, then --

We see her right arm go to the side of the bed and then over. He stares at the ceiling.

We see from an ANGLE to the left side of the bed now Her face is expressionless. Her right arm dangles over the right side of the bed. Her right hand is clenched. Is she holding something in it against her arm?

We see them from an ANGLE to the left side of the bed now: He turns his body away from her to put out his cigarette.

We see her behind him slowly turning towards him and the CAMERA. A beat, and he turns towards her.

They look at each other. A long beat as the SONG gets louder. We see them in CLOSEUP. We don't see her right arm.

A beat, and he kisses her. The CAMERA BACKS AWAY from them slowly to the right side of the bedroom as they kiss, and we --

... A long beat, as the SONG keeps playing... and we...

FADE IN:

We see them from the right side of the bedroom. And then the CAMERA LOWERS SLOWLY as they kiss with more and more passion.

It keeps going LOWER.

There is something under the bed. The CAMERA MOVES CLOSER towards it as "SYMPATHY FOR THE DEVIL" plays louder. We see it now in CLOSEUP as the bed rustles above...

It is a thin, steel-handled icepick.

The SONG plays LOUDER and LOUDER, and we --

145 THE END 145