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                    LAND OF THE DEAD





                  ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY





                           BY





                    GEORGE A. ROMERO








                     AUGUST 24, 2004


                ATMOSPHERE ENTERTAINMENT


              ROMERO-GRUNWALD PRODUCTIONS







              Copyright 2004 All Rights Reserved










BLACK. THE SOUND OF CHANNELS BEING TURNED ON A TV. TITLE UP:    


"SOME TIME AGO".                                                


                   NEWSCASTER (O.S.)                            

         It's hard for us here to believe
         what we're reporting to you, but it                    
         does seem to be a fact.                                
CLICK! In a corner of the BLACK SCREEN, A SMALL TV APPEARS.     
On it, in BLACK & WHITE, A NEWSCASTER sits at an anchor desk.   

                   NEWSCASTER (O.S.)                            

         Bodies of the recently dead are
         returning to life and attacking the                    
         living.                                                
CLICK! With each CLICK, the TV disappears, then reappears in
a new position ON SCREEN. CREDITS ROLL in the surrounding       

                                                                


BLACK.


                                                                


                   NEWSCASTER (O.S.)

         Murder victims have shown signs of
         having been partially devoured by                      
         their murderers.                                       
CLICK! ANOTHER NEWSCASTER is on the TV now, sitting in a more
modern studio. The broadcast remains in BLACK & WHITE.          

                   SECOND NEWSCASTER                            

         Because of the obvious threat to                       

                                                                

         untold numbers of citizens, due
         to the crisis that is now                              
         developing this radio station will                     

                                                                

         remain on the air day and night.

                                                                

CLICK! The second newscaster looks more and more dishevelled.




                   SECOND NEWSCASTER (O.S.)                     

         It has been established that persons                   
         who have recently died have been                       
         returning to life and eating the                       
         flesh of the living.                                   

CLICK!





                   SECOND NEWSCASTER (O.S.)

         We must not be lulled by the                           
         concept that these are our family
         members or our friends. They are not.                  
         They must be destroyed on sight.                       
CLICK! A THIRD NEWSCASTER, more haggard than the others, sits   
at an ANCHOR DESK on a barren set, still in BLACK & WHITE.      




                                                                     














                                                           2.











                       THIRD NEWSCASTER (O.S.)                       

             Every dead body that is not                             
             exterminated becomes one of them.                       
             It gets up and kills. The people it                     
             kills get up and kill. They kill                        
             for one reason. They kill for food.                     

    CLICK!                                                           


                       THIRD NEWSCASTER (O.S.)                       

             If this situation is allowed to                         
             continue, there will be nothing                         
             left. Nothing.                                          

    CLICK!





                       THIRD NEWSCASTER (CONT'D)                     


                                                                     

             It's over. Finished. Finished. It's
             their world now.                                        




                                                                     


    CLICK! IN ABSOLUTE BLACK, A SINGLE WORD FADES UP: "TODAY". A

    SOUND FADES IN TOO. TCHICK! KA-TCHICK-TCHICKY-TCHICK! Soft.      
    Metallic. It makes us nervous.                                   

    EXT. UNIONTOWN - NIGHT


1                                                                1





                                                                     

    IN COLOR: A FULL MOON shines over a picture-perfect American
    town. PEOPLE, seen in SILHOUETTE, stroll past quaint shops
    whose signs promise RELIABLE APPLIANCES, WELL-MADE CLOTHES,      
    SOLID VALUES. A DINER has a neon sign that offers the "BEST
    EATS IN TOWN". But something is wrong. The neon isn't lit.
    Nothing in town is lit. Street lamps, windows, are all dark.     
    TCHICK! KA-TCHICK-TCHICK. That DISTURBING SOUND continues.



    Some of the PEDESTRIANS drift into "UNIONTOWN PARK", milling
    around a GAZEBO, where THREE "MUSICIANS" are struggling with     
    a trombone, a saxophone, and a tambourine. They can't seem to
    make the instruments work, except for the tambourine player,
    who is rattling out a few very unrhythmic beats. That's where    
    that sound is coming from. TCHICK! KA-TCHICK-TCHICKY-TCHICK.     
    A CLOSER INSPECTION REVEALS: The "MUSICIANS" are DEAD. So are    
    the "PEDESTRIANS". Flesh is rotting off their bones. The town
    itself, which at first looked so perfect, is ROTTING TOO.        

                       MIKE (O.S.)

             They're trying to be us.                                

                       RILEY (O.S.)                                  

             They used to be us.                                     




                                                                     














                                                                     














    A








                                                                     





             N














                                                                     














                                                           3.











    EXT. HILLTOP ABOVE UNIONTOWN - NIGHT


2                                                                2   


                       RILEY                                         

             (Worried) They're learning how to be
             us again.                                               
    RILEY DENBO watches the town through binoculars. 32, made        
    rugged by realities, he has a heart beneath his tough
    exterior. MIKE CONVERSE, 21, young and unseasoned, has the
    eagerness and passion of someone young and unseasoned.




                       MIKE

              o way. Some germ or some devil got
             them things up and walkin'. But
             there's a big difference between
             them and us. They're dead!




3                                                                3


    EXT. "UNIONTOWN TEXACO" - NIGHT




      DEAD TEENAGE COUPLE walks hand-in-hand near the gas pumps
    of a defunct TEXACO STATION. The boy steps on the little hose
    that BINGS when a car pulls in. Out of the building comes...




                                                                     

    ...AN ATTENDANT. It was once tall and handsome. Now his face
    is a wrinkled map of death. He has lost its left arm. Dried      
    blood darkens the shoulder of its jump-suit, where the arm
    was torn away. A "TEXACO" PATCH tells us the Thing used to
    work here. Embroidery tells us his nickname was once "BIG        
    DADDY". He goes to the pump and removes the nozzle. Turns, as    

                                                                     

    if searching for a car to fill with gas. There is none.




                       MIKE (O.S.)


                                                                     

             It's like they're pretending to be
             alive.                                                  

    EXT. HILLTOP ABOVE UNIONTOWN - NIGHT


4                                                                4   


                       RILEY                                         

             Isn't that what we're doing, son?                       
             Pretending to be alive?                                 

    EXT. DUMP - NIGHT


5                                                                5

    THE SOUND OF GROANING WOOD as THREE heavily-armed GUERILLAS      
    push a large CRATE over a PRECIPICE into a deep GARBAGE PIT      
    below. FIVE SIMILAR CRATES lie amid the rubble.                  
    Insects BUZZ. RATS crawl. HUMAN SKELETONS, most HEADLESS, lie
    everywhere, no flesh left on their bones. Those with heads       
    show various wounds to their skulls. Except for one, which...    
    ...suddenly, startlingly MOVES! Its bony arm reaches up from     
    the bottom of the pit toward...                                  




             (














                                                                       














                                                                       














                                                                       














                                                                       








                                                                       














                                                              4.










    ...CHOLO DeMORA, a Latino in his 20s, handsome, roguish, and       
    confident...a bit too confident. He reaches over his shoulder      
    and unstraps a CROSSBOW.                                           

                       CHOLO

             Poor bastard.                                             
    WFFFFT! Cholo shoots the skeleton. His arrow goes completely
    through the WHITE SKULL.                                           

    EXT. MOVING VAN - NIGHT


6                                                                  6   

    The doors of a beat-up WHITE MOVING VAN open. Cholo reaches
    in, throwing back an oilcloth that covers ANOTHER CRATE.           

                       GUERILLA

             Whole lotta trash this week.                              

                       CHOLO                                           

             That's life, brother. A whole                             
             lotta trash.



    As the men tip the crate onto a dolly, MAGGOTS are revealed        

                                                                       

    in the darkness beneath, squirming in a POOL OF BLOOD.
    (What's in that crate?)                                            




7                                                                  7   


    EXT. HILLTOP ABOVE UNIONTOWN - NIGHT




    RILEY and MIKE watch THREE DEAD THINGS lumber toward them

                       R

    from the town below.




                        ILEY


                                                                       

             They know we're here. They can
             smell life. Smell blood.




    EXT. "UNIONTOWN TEXACO" - NIGHT


8                                                                  8

    THROUGH THE BINOCULARS: BIG DADDY replaces the nozzle in the
    gas pump. Sensing something, it looks around. Up. His dead         
    eyes lock on Riley's. Big Daddy grunts. Responding to him...       

    EXT. HILLTOP ABOVE UNIONTOWN - NIGHT


9                                                                  9   

    ...the THREE DEAD THINGS move up the hillside with more            
    determination.                                                     

                       RILEY                                           

              Glancing at Mike's guns) You any
             good with those?




                       MIKE

             Dunno. It's my first trip. Never                          
             had to use `em before.




                                                                      














     M











     R














                                                               5.











                        RILEY

              Great. I'm out here with a guy who
              can't shoot. Let's go.



     Mike stands, turns, and...                                       
     ...is GRABBED from behind by a ZOMBIE! It's not one of the       
     three they've been watching. This one wears the remains of a     
     CLOWN SUIT. Half its bulbous red nose has been eaten away.       
     Painted eyelashes make its stare alarming. Its ORANGE HAIR is    
     crawling with SPIDERS. It wrestles Mike to the ground. Opens     
     its lipsticked mouth. Is about to bite Mike's neck when...       
     ...Riley FIRES his .45. BLAM! A bullet SHATTERS the Clown's      
     SHOULDER CAP. The dead thing is pitched backward, but seems
     to feel no pain. It hunkers over Mike again.




                                                                      

      iley FIRES four more times. THREE BULLETS RIP into the
     Clown's CHEST, NECK, CHEEK. Finally, the FOURTH PUNCHES A        
     HOLE above the thing's left eyebrow. The Clown DROPS.            
      ike looks at Riley.

                        M


                         IKE

              Jesus. You can't shoot, neither!




10                                                               10


     INT. DEAD RECKONING - NIGHT




     RILEY and MIKE step into a tight, uncomfortable space.           

                                                                      

     Generators whir. Gears turn. The two men open a storage
     locker and strap on ammo belts as...                             




                                                                      

     ...SOMETHING TERRIBLE LOOMS out of the shadows! It moves
     toward Riley and Mike, who can't see it from behind the          
     locker. The LEFT SIDE OF THE THING'S FACE has been BURNED        
     AWAY. Only scar-tissue remains, and a single usable eye
     bulging from a socket.



     Riley turns. Sees the thing. And, surprisingly, he relaxes,      
     recognizing CHARLIE HOUK, a heavily-armed guerilla whose
     intellect is as burned as his face.




                        CHARLIE

              Tcha doin', Riley?




                        RILEY

              Havin' a bad dream.




                        CHARLIE

              I have bad dreams. Hell, yes. Just
              look at me, you can tell that I
              have terrible dreams.




                                                                














                                                       6.











                   RILEY

         The town is full of walkers.




                   CHARLIE

         Every town is full of walkers.




                   RILEY

         These aren't just walking. They're
         like...regular folks.




                   CHARLIE

         But they're dumb, Riley. Hell, dead
         folks is near as dumb as me!




                   RILEY

         You learned how to make yourself
         useful. That's what they're doing.                     

                   WOMAN'S VOICE (O.S.)

         They dumped the trash. Cholo's on                      
         his way.



Riley and Mike look across the room in the direction of the     

                                                                

voice. Twenty feet away, a WOMAN sits at the controls of what
looks like a scavenged airplane cockpit that's outfitted with   
a mixture of high- and low-tech equipment. She wears a black    

                                                                

leather jacket with "PRETTY BOY" emblazoned across the back.




                   MIKE                                         


                                                                

         (Surprised) Pretty Boy's a dame?




                   RILEY


                                                                

         This one is. Last one was a guy.




                   MIKE                                         

         What happened to him?                                  
Pretty Boy turns, poking her finger through a BULLET HOLE       
encrusted with year-old BLOOD in the chest of her jacket.       

                   PRETTY BOY                                   

         I kept his jacket. For good luck.                      

                   MIKE                                         

         Luck?                                                  

                   RILEY                                        

         Put some flowers in the graveyard.                     
Pretty Boy reaches out and flips a toggle switch on the         
control panel. THOOMB! THOOMB! DEEP CONCUSSIVE SOUNDS can be    
felt as much as heard as...                                     




              I













              y













                        C














                        C














                                                                     














                                                            7.











     EXT. DEAD RECKONING - NIGHT


11                                                            11     

     ...RILEY, CHARLIE, and MIKE step out of A VEHICLE the size      
     of a city bus. The words DEAD RECKONING are painted on its      
     side. This is no bus. It's a war wagon, built of SCAVENGED      
     PARTS with a RIVETED STEEL SKIN. GATTLING GUNS protrude from    
     a MEAN-LOOKING SNOUT. A ROOF TURRET supports two FOURTEEN       
     INCH-CANNONS. Rotating lights SHINE in all directions,          
     piercing the night.                                             
     THOOMB! THOOMB! THOOMB! That sound again. MORTAR TUBES on the   
     vehicle's roof are launching FIREWORKS that BURST in the sky.   

                        CHARLIE

              (Looking up) `Flowers in the                           
              graveyard'. Why do you call `em
              that, Riley? I don't get it. These
              here flowers ain't the kind you lay
              down on the ground. These here are
              sky flowers. Way up in Heaven.

                        R


                         ILEY

              I love ya, Charlie. Know why?
              Cuzz you still believe in heaven.



     THE WHITE MOVING VAN rolls in and parks beside Dead Reckoning. 

                                                                    

     CHOLO jumps out with the THREE GUERILLAS from the dump.




                         HOLO

              You guys scope out the town?




                        RILEY

              Looks like nobody's hit it before.



     FOUR GUERILLAS get into an old T-BIRD CONVERTIBLE mounted with 
     machine guns. TWO OTHER ARMED MEN climb onto MOTORCYCLES. The 
     very night seems to GROWL as everyone starts their engines.    

                         HOLO

              Ready?




                        CHARLIE

              Always ready. Just look at me
               ou can tell I'm always ready.




                        CHOLO

              I look at you, all I see's an idiot.                   

                        CHARLIE

              I don't think that's all you see.
                bet you see this iron, too.




                                                                      














     R














                        R














                                                            8.










     Charlie is wearing four holstered sidearms, two shouldered
     automatic rifles, a REMINGTON...and a sly smile that makes us
     wonder whether he's an idiot or not.




                        CHOLO

              Let's go have some fun.




                        RILEY

              Ain't about fun, Cholo.



     VROOOM! The T-Bird and the motorcycles pull out toward town.     

                          ILEY

              We go in, do our job, and get out,
              all of us alive, okay? I don't want                     
              any fuck-ups on my last day out here.

                        C                                             


                         HOLO

              (Grinning) My last day, too.




                                                                      

      iley looks surprised. Cholo mounts a MOTORCYCLE, REVS the
     engine, and heads out.                                           

                        CHOLO (CONT'D)


              YEEEE-HAAAAAAAA!





                         CHARLIE

              What'd he do, hit the lottery or
              somethin'?




                        RILEY

              Somethin'. (Wondering) Somethin'.



     Riley and Charlie start to get back into Dead Reckoning. Mike    
     follows, pausing to look up at the "sky flowers".                

                        MIKE

              Do those things really work?                            

                        RILEY

              Yup. (Almost sadly) Stenches can't                      
              take their eyes off `em.




     EXT. MAIN STREET - UNIONTOWN - NIGHT


12                                                               12

     DEAD THINGS stand completely frozen in the middle of main        
     street, like statues, mesmerized by the FIREWORKS.               
     Only one figure is moving. BIG DADDY. He weaves between his
     brothers and sisters, urgently waving his one good hand,         
     like Frankenstein's monster, as if to say "Bad! Bad!" He has     
     learned that fireworks bring danger.                             




                                                                     














     R














                        C














                                                                     





                                                                     














                                                                     








                                                                     














                                                            9.










     A DEAD TEENAGE CHEERLEADER, holding filthy pom-poms, looks at   
     Big Daddy, unable to grasp what he's trying to communicate.     
     A SPEAR is DRIVEN through the Cheerleader's face! The spear     
     is held like a lance by HARRY, a guerilla who roars past on     
     his motorcycle hooting like a cowhand on round-up. Other        
     BIKERS rumble down the street, firing guns.                     
     Big Daddy watches the Cheerleader fall. It throws its head      
     back and lets out a great HOWL.                                 

     INT. DEAD RECKONING - NIGHT


13                                                            13

     THROUGH THE WINDSHIELD: RILEY recognizes BIG DADDY from the
     gas station. He also recognizes the Thing's anguish as...       

     EXT. TOP OF MAIN STREET - UNIONTOWN - NIGHT


14                                                            14     

     ...DEAD RECKONING, mortars still shooting FIREWORKS, stops on
     the edge of town. CHOLO pulls up alongside on his bike.         

     INT. DEAD RECKONING - NIGHT


15                                                            15





                                                                     

     THROUGH THE WINDSHIELD: RILEY and MIKE watch the T-BIRD ROAR
     down MAIN STREET. The FOUR GUERILLAS inside laugh gleefully     
     as they use the MACHINE GUNS to MOW DOWN HAPLESS ZOMBIES.

                        M                                            


                         IKE

              I thought it was gonna be a battle.
              This is a fucking massacre.




                         HOLO


                                                                     

              (Through an open hatch) Kid, these
              are the toughest guys in the `hood.
              You can't keep `em from wantin' to
              get some chuckles.



      iley gives Cholo an irritated look.




                        CHOLO (CONT'D)

              Hey, not me, Boss. You told me not
              to have any fun, I'm not having any
              fun at all. (To Mike) Come with me,
              kid. I'll show you the ropes.                          
     Mike climbs out and gets on the back of Cholo's motorcycle.




                        RILEY

              Where you goin'?




                        CHOLO

              To get supplies. Essential supplies.
              That's job our job, ain't it?




     G














                                                                      














                                                                      














     R














                                                             10.











     EXT. UNIONTOWN FOODMART - NIGHT


16                                                               16

     THE WHITE MOVING VAN pulls up to a supermarket. THE DEAD         
     THINGS in the parking lot, gazing at the FIREWORKS, barely
     notice the vehicle. MARKSMEN keep the lot covered as             
     GUERILLAS carry CASES OF CANNED GOODS out of the supermarket
     and into the van. The team has this down to a science.           
      ILEY'S VOICE comes over one Guerilla's hand-held radio.




                        RILEY (O.S. RADIO FILTER)

              How's the food?




                        GUERILLA #1

              (Into his radio) Lousy, but there's
              lots of it.




17                                                               17   


     EXT. UNIONTOWN SIDE STREET - NIGHT




     DEAD RECKONING RUMBLES down a side street, its steel skin

                                                                      

     reflecting the FLASH of fireworks.




     INT. DEAD RECKONING - NIGHT


18                                                               18   

     PRETTY BOY drives. RILEY stands beside her.




                        RILEY

              (Into radio) Number Two, what's
              your location?




                        GUERILLA #2 (O.S. RADIO FILTER)


              D

               rug store. Need an aspirin? I got
              a million of `em.




                        RILEY

              (Into radio) Antibiotics. We need                       
              antibiotics.                                            

                           GUERILLA #2 (O.S. RADIO FILTER)

              We're set.




                        RILEY

              (Into radio) Number Three?




     EXT. UNIONTOWN GUN STORE - NIGHT


19                                                               19   

      UERILLAS load boxes of ammo into a JEEP.                        

                        GUERILLA #3

              (Into radio) Guns and ammo, Boss.




                                                                     














                                                                     














                                                                     





                                                                     














                                                                     











     H








                                                                     





     A











                                                                     














                                                           11.











     EXT. MAIN STREET - UNIONTOWN - NIGHT


20                                                            20

     HARRY, the biker with the spear, is making another run toward   
     a WALKER, who stands mesmerized by the fireworks, when...       
     WHAP! Harry is sent FLYING!



       DEAD WOMAN, once pretty, wearing a softball uniform that      
     bears the NUMBER NINE, has used its bat to hit a home run.      
     Harry's riderless motorcycle fishtails up the street and hits
     the side of a building.                                         
      arry tries to get up. TWO DEAD THINGS attack him. Another      
     motorcycle, driven by ANCHOR, who looks like Popeye, RUMBLES    
     up in the nick of time.                                         

                        ANCHOR

              Harry, jump on!




                                                                     

     Fighting off the Dead Things, Harry gets on and speeds away.




     INT. DEAD RECKONING - NIGHT


21                                                            21

     PRETTY BOY turns a corner. Out the windshield, RILEY sees...




22                                                            22


     EXT. MAIN STREET - UNIONTOWN - NIGHT




     ...CHOLO and MIKE, on Cholo's bike, joining up with FOXY, a     

                                                                     

     red-haired guerilla on his own motorcycle. The three drive
     toward the end of town.                                         

                        RILEY (O.S.)

              What the fuck?                                         

     EXT. UNIONTOWN STATE STORE - NIGHT


23                                                            23     

     CHOLO SCREECHES to a stop at a LIQUOR STORE with MIKE and       
     FOXY. All dismount and start toward the entrance. They stop     
     as DEAD RECKONING pulls up and RILEY and CHARLIE climb out.     

                        CHARLIE

              Nothin' in there but booze. Booze
              ain't essential.                                       

                        FOXY

              A jug of good Kentucky goes for
              fifteen hundred back in town.




                        RILEY

              (To Cholo) I'm not risking anybody's
              ass just so you can pick up some
              side money.




                                                                      














                                                                      














                                                                      








                                                                      











                                                                      














                        R








                                                                      














                                                           12.











                        CHOLO

              Not askin' you to.



     Cholo and Foxy start into the liquor store. The doors are
     wide open. All that can be seen from outside is darkness.        

                            ILEY

              Mike! Wait!                                             
     But Mike has followed the others inside.

2                                                                     


     INT. UNIONTOWN STATE STORE - NIGHT


 4                                                               24   

     CHOLO unstraps his crossbow and leads the way cautiously         
     into the dark space. Every subtle SOUND in the SILENCE puts      
     MIKE more on edge. His hand tenses on his gun as SHADOWS loom    
     in front of him. Shadows that could be zombies, but are not.     
     Behind the dusty glass doors of a once-refrigerated wall-        
     unit, Cholo sees a CASE OF DOM PERIGNON. He goes to the          

                                                                      

     refrigerator. Re-strapping his crossbow, he opens the door.
     Reaches in for the case of champagne. His two hands grab it.     




                                                                      


     A THIRD HAND GRABS IT!




     Cholo looks up. The refrigerator has no back wall. A DEAD

                                                                      

     THING with a Manson-like SWASTIKA tattooed in the center of
     its forehead has stepped in from the shadows of a loading        
     area beyond. It GRABS Cholo with a terrifying GROWL.             
     Cholo falls under the weight of the champagne, and the
     weight of the Dead Thing, which drops on top of him. They        

                                                                      

     roll, struggling. The Thing holds Cholo in a death grip.



     At the front of the store, Mike fumbles with his rifle.          
     Foxy shoots at the Dead Thing and misses.



     Cholo PUNCHES the Thing with his free hand. The Dead Thing's
     head recoils, but lowers again toward Cholo, the Swastika        
     looming, drooling teeth baring for a bite. Cholo's eyes          
     flash. It's the first time we've seen him scared.                
     BLAM! CHARLIE FIRES one round, right into the center of the      
     swastika on the Zombie's forehead. The Thing crumples.           

                        MIKE

              Nice shootin'.                                          

                        CHARLIE                                       

              Good shootin'. Ain't no such thing                      
              as nice shootin'.                                       




R













         o













                      R














M














                                                                








                                                                














                                                                














                                                      13.










A FOOT KICKS the Zombie off Cholo, who looks up to see...       
...RILEY extending a hand to help him to his feet.              

                      RILEY

         Close one.                                             

                   CHOLO                                        

         I'm still here, ain't I?                               
Everyone relaxes. Cholo picks up the case of Dom. The others    
head toward the front of the store.                             
TILT DOWN TO THE FLOOR as their feet move past. In the gloom
behind stacks of cartons...                                     
...A DEAD HAND appears. Reaching.




                   CHOLO                                        

         Shit! Look out, kid!                                   
The hand grabs Mike around the ankle! Mike turns, raising his   
gun. Too late.                                                  
A DEAD UNIFORMED POLICEMAN, the skin on half its face STRIPPED 
DOWN TO BONE, RIPS A HOLE IN HIS LEG with its teeth!           
 ike SCREAMS, staggers into a wall, and drops to a seated       
position on the floor. Riley and Charlie spin around at the     

                                                                

sound of his cry. Cholo, closest to Mike, pulls his crossbow
and fires an arrow through the Zombie's head.

                   C                                            


                    HOLO

         Fuckin' rookies.



Cholo tucks away the crossbow, grabs a box of Cohibas off a     
counter, and runs outside with Foxy. Riley goes to Mike.        

                    ILEY

         (Kneeling) It's alright, son.
         You're gonna be alright.




                   MIKE

         No. I'm dead. You get bit by one
          f those things and you become what
         they are.



Riley wraps a strong arm around Mike and lifts him. Mike
quickly plants the barrel of his .45 under his chin and...      

BLOWS HIS OWN BRAINS OUT!




 iley, stunned, lets the corpse slide to the floor. He looks
into the rookie's open eyes, devastated.




                                                                     














     B














                                                                     














                                                           14.











     EXT. MAIN STREET - UNIONTOWN - NIGHT


25                                                            25

     THE WHITE MOVING VAN, THE T-BIRD, AND THE JEEP roll out of
     town in a convoy. Trailing them, THREE SADISTIC GUERILLAS on    
     MOTORCYCLES ROAR past, firing...                                
     ...a HAIL OF BULLETS at A DEAD FAMILY on the sidewalk. The      
     MOTHER FALLS. Not shot. It has been GRABBED and SHOVED down
     to the ground by...                                             
     ...BIG DADDY! Who GRABS the little GIRL next, thrusting her
     roughly behind the protection of a wrecked car. The FATHER is
     last. Big Daddy grabs it from behind, by its hair, just as...   
     ...ROUNDS from an UZI DRILL A DOTTED-LINE across the Father's   
     neck. Big Daddy is unhurt, but spattered with BLOOD. Not red,
     greenish-black. The blood of the dead.

     T

      here's a RIPPING SOUND as the Father's NECK is PULLED APART
     by the weight of its limp body. The body DROPS to the street.

                                                                     

     The HEAD remains suspended in Big Daddy's hand. His face
     contorts. His mouth opens and closes, trying to utter sounds.   
      ig Daddy drops the head, looking down at its befuddled eyes
     with sympathy. After a moment, the sympathy is joined by
     rage. Big Daddy lifts his right foot and brings it STOMPING     
     DOWN on the disembodied head, CRUSHING ITS SKULL.



     The convoy ROARS off, leaving a cloud of exhaust. Big Daddy     

                                                                     

     sees Harry's downed motorcycle lying in the street. The butt
     of an AUTOMATIC RIFLE protrudes from a saddlebag.               




                                                                     

     Big Daddy goes over. Pulls out the rifle. Tests the weight of
     it in his hand. Curls his finger in through the guard and       
     pulls the trigger.                                              
     BLAM! A bullet ricochets off a brick wall. Big Daddy is
     startled at first. Then, he relaxes, realizing the rifle's      
     power. With surprising dexterity, he slings the weapon's        
     strap over his head and across his chest, patting the strap     
     as if comforted by it. Turning, he looks toward...              
     ...THE DISTANT GLOW OF A SKYSCRAPER that can be seen ON THE     
     HORIZON. That's the direction the convoy is headed. That's      
     where the bad men came from. That's where he wants to go.       

     REVERSE ANGLE:                                                  

     With the city in the distance, Big Daddy starts walking.
     NUMBER NINE falls into step beside him. Soon there are MORE.    
     None of them knows where they are going. Or why. All that       
     seems to matter is that they have a leader.                     




                                                                      














                                                                      














                                                                      








                                                                      














                                                           15.











     EXT. DEPOT - PRE-DAWN


26                                                               26   

     DEAD RECKONING, emitting tendrils of HOT STEAM from twenty       
     steel nostrils, stands parked in a corner of a fenced-in         
     outdoor yard. (We don't see how big the yard is. Yet.) A         
     SEARCHLIGHT sweeps the darkness as GUERILLAS unload the
     supplies they took from Uniontown and carry them toward...       
     ...a set of RUSTY STEEL DOORS, above which is a FADED SIGN       
     that reads "SUBWAY (TO CITY)".                                   
     In the bustle of activity, HARRY, the biker who was attacked
     in town, perspires as he helps unload. He looks ill.             
     RILEY walks past, handing out bottles of beer to the men.        

                        RILEY


                                                                      

              Harry. Beer?



     Harry doesn't answer.                                            

                        RILEY (CONT'D)                                

              Harry?                                                  
     Harry SPINS! GROWLS! LUNGES at Riley like a beast!               
     Riley has no time to reach for his gun. The Harry-Thing is
     strangling him. SMASHING the neck of a beer bottle on the        
     snout of Dead Reckoning, Riley JAMS THE JAGGED GLASS into        

                                                                      

     the Harry-Thing's forehead. Its body drops to the ground.




                        PRETTY BOY                                    


                                                                      

              Got knocked off his bike in town.
              Must have been bit.                                     
     Riley looks down at the body with a mixture anger and regret.    

     INT. SUBWAY TUNNEL - DAWN


27                                                               27   

     A mile-long subway tunnel extends into BLACKNESS. A wide         
     PLATFORM runs the length of the tracks, at the head of which     
     A DERELICT TRAIN is parked.                                      
     A CARGO CARRIER pulls out, driving along the platform, its       
     flatbed piled with supplies, while ANOTHER CARRIER is being      
     loaded with boxes of food, pharmaceuticals, ammunition, and...   

     TWO BODY BAGS.                                                   


                        CHARLIE

              Shit happens, Riley.                                    

                        RILEY                                         

              (Blaming himself) Only if you let it.                   




                                                                     





     T














                                                                     














                                                                     








                                                                     














                                                                     














                                                            16.










     The cargo carrier that was first to pull out drives into the    
     tunnel. CEILING LIGHTS spaced far apart STUTTER on and off.     
     Two guerillas, ANCHOR and MOUSE, who looks like a mouse, ride   
     on the open flatbed with the cargo.                             
     The tunnel is filled with looming steel shapes that cast
     menacing shadows. Mouse shifts nervously. Suddenly...           
     ...PLINK! SOMETHING WET FALLS ON HIS FACE! He JUMPS.            
     Recovers. Wipes his cheek with his sleeve.                      

                         MOUSE                                       


                                                                     

              I hate going under the fuckin' river.



     He takes out a joint. Lights up. The match FLARES. SPLAT!       
     Mouse and the match are soaked by WATER dripping from above.    

28                                                              28


     EXT. THE CITY - DAY




     RIVERS flank a TRIANGLE OF LAND where A CITY glows in the       

                                                                     

     sunrise. Once proud and prosperous, its buildings now seem
     like tombstones. SEVEN BARRICADED BRIDGES span the rivers.      




                                                                     


                        ANNOUNCER (O.S.)

              Protected on three sides by mighty                     
              rivers, the city stands as a monument                  

                                                                     

              to man's ingenuity. At the center of
              it all is Fiddler's Green.                             




29                                                              29


     INT. SUBWAY TUNNEL - DAWN




     A TV MONITOR broadcasts views of A KITCHEN, A PLUSH LIVING      

                                                                     

     ROOM, A DEN with a VIDEO FIREPLACE.




                        ANNOUNCER (O.S.)

              Luxury living in the grand old style.                  
              Dine at one of three restaurants.
              Look for that perfect gift in our
              fabulous shopping mall.



      he monitor shows a huge ATRIUM with shops and restaurants.     

                        GUERILLA (O.S.)

              They make it sound nice.                               

                        CHOLO (O.S.)                                 

              It is nice.                                            
     Holding his case of Dom Perignon and his box of Cohibas,        
     CHOLO looks with FOXY at a monitor mounted to a white-tiled     
     subway station wall. Down the tunnel behind them, the other     
     GUERILLAS unload supplies from CARGO CARRIERS parked on the     
     platform. A sign reads, "GOLDEN TRIANGLE/FIDDLER'S GREEN".      




         M














C

         f

         E














         W














R














                                                      17.











                   RILEY                                        

         (Approaching) Cholo.                                   
Foxy moves away, leaving Riley and Cholo alone.                 

                   RILEY

         Two people dead. That kid, Mike. He                    
         should be here with us right now.

                   C                                            


                    HOLO

         I didn't kill him. He got bit and
         he killed himself. Same thing I
         woulda done. And you!



 iley lunges at Cholo, takes hold of his shirt, and SLAMS       
him against the wall.




                   RILEY

         The fuck are you turning into, man?                    

                   CHOLO

          e take money to do nasty shit.
         Shit that nobody else is dumb
         enough to do. We go in knowing the
         risks. The kid did too. His number
         came up, that's all.




                   RILEY

         We take the risk to bring in things                    
         people need. Not to make a few
         extra bucks selling liquor. You                        
         used to know that.                                     

                   CHOLO

         Everybody makes their own way.
          verybody makes their own
          ucking way!



 holo shrugs out of Riley's grasp. Behind them, the guerillas   
continue to unload cargo.                                       

                   CHOLO (CONT'D)

          y daddy...he picked fruit, penny-
         a-piece. He never went for
         anything, so he never had anything.
         I'm gonna have a place, Riley. My                      
         own place! And now I got enough                        
         money to buy my way in.

                   A


                    NNOUNCER (O.S.)

         Isn't it time? Isn't it your time?
         For Fiddler's Green.




     B














                                                                         














                                                                         














                        R














                                                             18.










     Cholo looks up at the TV monitor. Riley follows his gaze,           
     seeing well-dressed PEOPLE sipping cocktails in a club room.




                         ILEY

              You're dreaming, Cholo. They'd
              never let me in. They'll never let
              you in. We're the wrong kind.



     The image on the TV MONITOR changes to an overhead view of
     the city and its rivers. Animation draws a RED LINE along the       
     base of the "golden triangle", a zone known as "THE THROAT".        

                        ANNOUNCER (O.S. CONT'D)                          

              Bask in the security of a city
              protected not only by its natural                          
              boundaries, but by hand-picked                             
              members of its own private militia.                        

     EXT. THE CITY - "THE THROAT" - DAWN


30                                                               30      

     In live action, not on the   monitor, WEARY TROOPS, sloppily
     uniformed, guard four rows   of electrified, barbed-wire FENCING.
     DEAD THINGS cluster by the   DOZENS outside the barricades.

                        M

     CORPSES hang all along the   stretch, suspended on the barbs.




                         ILITARY WOMAN

              Stench! Ten o-clock!



     A WALKER lumbers in and touches the fencing. SPARKS FLY! The
     Thing's flesh is literally COOKED! BOILS develop, POPPING
     OPEN, emitting SMOKE. Still the Thing remains animated.




                        MILITARY MAN

              Take its fuckin' face off.



      UDDA-BUDDA-BUDDA! The Military Woman FIRES. The Thing is
     decimated. Its body hangs, welded to the SPARKING barbs.

3


     INT. FIDDLER'S GREEN CENTRAL MALL - MORNING


 1                                                               31

     CHOLO approaches a CHECKPOINT manned by TWO SECURITY GUARDS.        
     Setting down the champagne and Cohibas, he unstraps his             
     weapons and hands them over.                                        

                        CHOLO                                            

              DeMora. Supply unit                                        

                        SECURITY GUARD                                   

              What's in them boxes?                                      

                        CHOLO                                            

              Essential supplies. For the man                            
              upstairs.                                                  



              l













     R














                                                           19.










     The Guard takes Cholo's weapons and returns a claim check.       
     CHOLO collects his boxes and steps onto an escalator that        
     carries him up into an ENORMOUS ATRIUM. The "mall" we saw on     
     TV. SUNLIGHT splashes through glass walls onto box-planted
     trees. Caged birds CHIRP seemingly in tune with the Chopin       
     that lilts over a sound system. SHOPPERS, expensively over-      
     dressed, stroll past stores. OTHER RESIDENTS lunch at            
     "outdoor" cafes. Cholo pulls out a kerchief and wipes the        
     smudges off his face, trying to make himself presentable.

3                                                                     


     EXT. "GOLDEN TRIANGLE" - MORNING


 2                                                               32   

     FIDDLER'S GREEN, a heavily protected HIGH-RISE in the center
     of the city, dominates the skyline. It's where the Fat Cats
     live, protected from urban decay. The building is surrounded
     by unoccupied high-rises that define "the golden triangle", a
     clean section in the center of the city. No ugliness in view.



     RILEY and CHARLIE cross a manicured plaza to a CHECKPOINT        

                                                                      

     manned by TWO SECURITY GUARDS. Riley hands over his ID.




                        RILEY                                         


                                                                      

              Quittin' time, Deke.




                         SECURITY GUARD                               


                                                                      

              (Holding up the ID) You're gonna
              need this.                                              




                                                                      


                        RILEY

              (Walking on) Nope. When I said                          
              quittin' time, I meant quittin'                         

                                                                      

              time.




     EXT. "GHETTO" - MORNING


33                                                               33   

     RILEY and CHARLIE walk down a street into the city's "ghetto"    
     zone, which is lined with taverns, gambling clubs, strip
     joints, like a boom town from Alaskan gold-rush days. BUYERS
     and SELLERS lurk in the shadows, copulating, dealing drugs.



      iley is welcomed by nearly everyone he passes, greeting         
     them in return with a smile and a nod, handing some bills to
     a FATHER with a YOUNG SON, patting an OLD MAN on the back.




                        CHARLIE

              Wanna get a drink, Riley? Just
               ook at me, you can tell I could
              use a drink.




                        RILEY

              Later. Gotta see a man about a car.




                                                                














                                                                














         (














                                                      20.










Charlie follows Riley, who strides into...                      
...an alley, surprised to find a cadre of rough-looking         
REVOLUTIONARIES, led by MULLIGAN, a defiant man who stands      
on a soapbox. A small audience is gathered in front of him.     
He takes a swig from a bottle of whiskey.                       

                   MULLIGAN                                     

          Irish accent) How long are you                        
         gonna let him push you around? If                      
         there was enough of us...if you all                    
         would join up with us...we could                       
         pull him down off his throne!                          
Some of the people in the audience nervously shift their eyes   
to the FIDDLER'S GREEN HIGH-RISE ten blocks away.               

                   RILEY

         You can't fix a place like this,                       
         Mulligan. You just have to get out                     

                                                                

         of it.




                   MULLIGAN                                     


                                                                

         We've got the firepower, Riley. If
         you and your friends would come in                     
         with us, we'd be unstoppable.                          
Mulligan holds out his bottle to Riley, who passes it to
Charlie, who takes a swig.




                   RILEY                                        

         Everyone's stoppable.                                  
We hear the sound of a boy coughing. Mulligan's son BRIAN
stands behind him, looking feverish.                            

                   MULLIGAN                                     

         You alright, son?                                      

                   BRIAN                                        

         I'm fine, dad.                                         
As Riley starts past, he stops, pulls something from his        
pocket, and presses it into Mulligan's palm.                    

                   RILEY                                        

         Antibiotics. For your boy.                             
Mulligan looks down with gratitude at a bottle his hand.        
When he looks up again, Riley is gone.                          




                                                                    














                        H














                        H














                                                           21.











     EXT. GARAGE - MORNING


34                                                            34    

     Turning a corner, RILEY and CHARLIE stop in front of a         
     rundown GARAGE with a tarp hanging down instead of a door.
     Riley pulls it aside and looks in. A HOBO lies asleep on a
     grease-stained floor, curled under some old newspapers.




                        RILEY

              Where's the car?




                         OBO

              (Waking) What car?




                        RILEY

              My new car. I paid for it. I was                      
              here yesterday. There were two guys
              getting it ready for me.




                         OBO

              There was nobody here this morning.




                        RILEY

              Sonofabitch!




                        CHARLIE

              What happened, Riley. Didja get
              fucked?



     Riley stands there, grim-faced.




                        RILEY

              (A whisper) Come on.




     INT. PENTHOUSE CORRIDOR - FIDDLER'S GREEN - DAY


35   B                                                        35

      ING! An elevator door opens. CHOLO, carrying the champagne
     and Cohibas, steps out, walks to "PENTHOUSE NUMBER ONE", and   
     rings the bell. An instant after he pushes the button...       
     ...the door is JERKED OPEN by TYLER KNIPP, 50-something, an    
     African American man in a white butler's jacket. Frightened,   
     he's wielding a SCISSORS, poised to strike.                    

                        KNIPP

              (Lowering the scissors) Oh, Mister                    
              DeMora. Mister Kaufman ain't home                     
              and there's some shit goin' down.                     
              No lie. I heard...                                    
     A SCREAM RINGS OUT down the corridor!                          

                        KNIPP (CONT'D)                              

              I heard that!                                         




                                                                     














3














                                                           22.











     ANOTHER SCREAM.                                                 


                        KNIPP (CONT'D)                               

              Oh, man. Mister K. sure gonna be                       
              upset about this.                                      
     Cholo drops his boxes and moves down the corridor.              

                        KNIPP (CONT'D)                               

              I called Security. They should be                      
              here...                                                
     Cholo reaches the door to PENTHOUSE NUMBER TWO. It's locked.    
     ANOTHER SCREAM from inside. He FLINGS himself at the door.      
     The LATCH SPLINTERS out of the frame. The door BURSTS open...   

     INT. PENTHOUSE NUMBER-TWO - FIDDLER'S GREEN - DAY


 6                                                            36

     ...and CHOLO enters a dark foyer. The only light comes from     
     another room somewhere inside. A soft, rhythmic SQUEAK, like    

                                                                     

     a child's swing moving back and forth, ECHOES through the
     apartment. It's an eerie, incongruous sound.                    
     On guard, eyes straining, Cholo moves inside. The squeak gets
     louder, the light brighter as he turns a corner and sees...     




                                                                     

     ...a MIDDLE-AGED MAN, HANGING DEAD from a HOMEMADE NOOSE
     suspended from a light fixture in the kitchen! THE BODY SWAYS   
     slowly, the harsh glare making the man's face even whiter       

                                                                     

     than it is. A toppled chair lies on the floor at his feet.



     Cholo stands transfixed for an instant. And in that instant... 



     ...HE IS GRABBED FROM BEHIND! He whirls, ready to kill, but     
     finds only a MIDDLE-AGED WOMAN, 60-something, wearing a         
     tailored suit and expensive jewelry, her perfectness            
     blemished only by her hysteria.                                 

                        WOMAN

              My Johnny, he killed himself, he                       
              killed himself. My Johnny! My                          
              Johnny!                                                
     Cholo shakes her, hard.                                         

                        CHOLO                                        

              Keep it together, lady.                                
     Behind them, in the kitchen, unseen, a dazed YOUNG MAN, walks   
     up to the hanging corpse. He rights the toppled chair and       
     steps on it, lifting a paring to knife cut through the noose.   




                                                                














                                                                














                                                      23.











                   YOUNG MAN                                    

         (Softly, to himself) Dad. Oh, Dad.                     

                   WOMAN

         (To Cholo) Se-Security. Are you                        
         Security?




                    CHOLO

         No, I...




                   WOMAN

         Then, for God's sake, who ARE YOU?!



She resumes her SCREAMING.                                      
In the kitchen, the Young Man is slicing through the rope
when his DEAD FATHER'S EYES POP OPEN! The Young Man is too      

                                                                

busy with the rope to notice. THE HANGED MAN'S EYES BLINK.
Once. Twice. Three times. Its body TWITCHES. And then...        




                                                                

...the Hanged Man turns, making a move on the Young Man. The
motion increases the strain on the light fixture, which pulls   
away, SPARKING, from the ceiling and CRASHES TO THE FLOOR,      

                                                                

along with the Hanged Man and his son.



The entire apartment is PLUNGED INTO DARKNESS. The woman        

                                                                

stops her screaming. Almost as soon as she does, a SNARL can
be heard from the kitchen, followed by another SCREAM, this     
one coming from the Young Man.                                  
Cholo rushes to a nearby fireplace and grabs a POKER and a      
MATCHLIGHT, which looks like a pistol, but shoots FIRE from     

                                                                

its tip. He approaches the kitchen, using the FLAME to light
his way. In the FLICKERING GLOW, he sees...                     
...the Young Man lying on the floor. CHUNKS have been bitten
out of his neck and wrist. The body is CONVULSING in the last   
moments of life. THE HANGED MAN IS NOWHERE TO BE SEEN.          
Cholo stands over the Young Man and stabs him in the head       
with the poker, jabbing the point all the way through. The      
woman SCREAMS again from the kitchen doorway.                   

                   CHOLO                                        

         Shut up! I gotta hear. Where'd he                      
         go? Where'd the other guy go?                          
Silence. Cholo pulls the poker out of the Young Man's head.     
SHUFFLING sounds. He follows them to the other end of the       
kitchen, probing the darkness with his matchlight.              
The sounds are LOUDER here. Cholo lifts the poker, ready to     
strike. Just as he does...                                      




                                                                








                                                                














                                                                














                                                                














                                                       24.










...the back door of the apartment BURSTS OPEN and a SECURITY    
GUARD lunges into the kitchen, rifle in hand.                   

                   SECURITY GUARD                               

         (To Cholo) Drop it!                                    
Cholo drops the poker and holds up his hands.




                   CHOLO                                        

         Hey, no problem.                                       
TWO MORE SECURITY GUARDS come through the apartment's front
door and rush into the kitchen.                                 

                   CHOLO (CONT'D)                               

         No problem, no problem! But there                      
         is a problem. There's a dead guy                       

                                                                

         walkin' around in here.



THE HANGED MAN appears without warning, attacking one of the    

                                                                

guards who just entered, BITING OFF half his left CHEEK,
including the EYE.                                              




                                                                

Before his partner can raise his gun, THE WOMAN GRABS IT FROM
HIM! Aims at the Hanged Man.                                    




                                                                


                   WOMAN


         YOU SELFISH BASTARD! YOU LEFT ME                       


         ALONE HERE!                                            

She fumbles with the weapon, not knowing how to make it work.   




                                                                

The bitten security guard starts to lose all strength in his
legs. The Dead Thing holds him up, as if waltzing with him,     
BITING HIM again and again.                                     
Cholo takes the gun from the woman and shoots the Hanged Man.




                   BITTEN SECURITY GUARD                        

         I need help. I need help!



Cholo kills the bitten security guard, too.                     

                   SURVIVING SECURITY GUARD                     

         You...FUCK!



Cholo turns the gun on the surviving security guard.            

                    CHOLO

         You wanna talk about this? I did                       
         what I had to do. I only did what I                    
         had to do!




                        R














     T








     R














     R














                                                                     














                                                                     














                                                           25.











     INT. "THE ARENA" - DAY


37                                                            37

     RILEY and CHARLIE step into the CELLAR of an old BROWNSTONE.
     Dirt floor. Stone walls. The place is filled with smoke and
     BUZZING with FLIES. As Riley and Charley turn their guns over   
     to TWO BIG BRUISERS inside, a TOUT named ROACH sidles over.     

                        TOUT

              (Eyeing the weapons) Supply run last                   
              night, uh? Bet you have some money in                  
              your pocket. I can show you how to                     
              turn that money into more money.                       

                        RILEY                                        

              Roach. Where's Chihuahua?                              

                        TOUT                                         


                                                                     

              Maybe I can find him for you. Come
              on in.                                                 




                                                                     

     Riley is already in. He has pushed past the Tout and is
     striding into a fog where GAMBLERS are rushing to place bets    
     with heavily-armed BOOKIES. We're reminded of a cock-fighting   

                                                                     

     joint in a Pancho Villa movie.




                        RILEY


                                                                     

              Lot of action tonight.




                        TOUT                                         


                                                                     

              Gotta new kind of game.



      iley strides toward a cluster of BETTORS. A very tall man      

                                                                     

     stands among them, wearing a Texas Stetson that sticks up
     high above all other heads, its peacock feathers poking even
     higher out of a snake-skin hat band.



      iley grabs him and spins him around.



      he man's feet are off the ground. Way off the ground. Far
     from tall, he's a little person, who has been standing on a
     platform, wearing a purple satin pimp-suit. He's a Latino,
     who looks like a Chihuahua. And that's his name. CHIHUAHUA.

                        C


                         HIHUAHUA

              Put me down! Put me down!




                         ILEY

              What happened to my fucking car?




                        CHIHUAHUA

              What? They're fixing it up.




                                                                     














     B














4














                                                           26.











                        RILEY

              I went over to the garage. Your
              guys aren't there. The car's not
              there. My dinero's not there.




                        CHIHUAHUA

              Hey, this is not me. I did not do
              this to you. I am your friend. Put
              me down. Come on. I find out what
              went wrong.




                        RILEY

              Just get me the car, or they'll
              carry you out of here inside that
              fucking hat.




     INT. BACKSTAGE - "THE ARENA" - DAY


38                                                            38

     In a dark CATACOMB, DEAD MEN are chained to the walls. WHAM!    
     A POLE shoots out. A NOOSE on the end encircles the neck of a   
     captive Dead Man and is cinched tight. TWO MEN hold the pole
     while A THIRD sprays RED PAINT on the Thing's face. ANOTHER     
     DEAD THING is dragged in and sprayed with BLACK PAINT.




     INT. BACK OFFICE - "THE ARENA" - DAY


39                                                            39

     Cursing in Spanish, CHIHUAHUA pulls a GLOCK out of a filing
     cabinet and jams a magazine up its butt.




 0                                                            40


     INT. CENTER RING - "THE ARENA" - DAY




     RILEY and CHARLIE drift into a large room that's packed with
     BETTORS hooting and hollering like football fans. They're all
     jammed onto tiered wooden viewing stands arranged around an
     IRON-MESH STRUCTURE that looks like a lion-tamer's cage.



     Gates open. THE PAINTED WALKERS are thrust inside the cage.
     Their nooses are released. The gates are locked behind them.

     D

      EAD RED, alarmed by the color of DEAD BLACK's face, reaches
     out and gently touches the paint. Its fingers come away with
     blackened tips.



      lack follows suit, staining its fingers red. Black licks its   
     hand, spitting when it identifies not blood, but something      
     distasteful.                                                    
     BOOKIES drift among the spectators, taking bets with fists      
     full of cash.                                                   

                        CHARLIE

              What are they betting on, Riley?                       




                                                               











S














                                                               








                                                               











.














                                                      27.











                   RILEY                                       

         Red or Black. Who's gonna win the                     
         fight.                                                

                   CHARLIE                                     

         What fight? Stenches don't fight.                     

                   TOUT (O.S.)                                 

         They do when there's food.                            
The TOUT sidles over.                                          

                   RILEY                                       

         What's on the menu today? Cat or                      
         dog?                                                  

                   TOUT                                        


                                                               

         I told you. Today it's something
         new.                                                  
CLANG! Another gate opens in the cage. A hush falls as
everyone awaits what will come. Including the Dead Men, who
gaze with anticipation at the opening. What comes is...



 ..A WOMAN! Alive, badly bruised, her dress in tatters.
Despite tarnish, she still looks sexy. Last night she was a

                                                               

hooker known as SLACK. Now she's meat in a lion cage.




                   RILEY


                                                               

         Jesus fucking Christ.



The gate SLAMS shut. The Dead Things walk toward the woman.



Riley rushes off. Charlie follows.

S                                                              

 lack backs up, hits the wall of the cage and, terrified,
starts to circle its iron perimeter. The Dead Men flank her.   
Black is the first to touch her. The crowd HOWLS.



 lack's terror turns to determination. She punches Black
three times in the face. The Thing recoils as she glides out
of its grasp.



RILEY and CHARLIE reach the BRUISERS who took their weapons.




                   RILEY                                       

         Give us our guns.                                     

                   BRUISER                                     

         (Handing over the weapons) You                        
         leavin'?                                              
Riley cocks his M-16.                                          




T














                                                                














                                                         28.











                   RILEY                                        

         In a little while.                                     
In the ring, BLACK reaches for SLACK again. With one            
lightning-fast move, she kicks it in the chest, sending it
flying into Red's arms. Red shoves Black aside.



Black makes another try for the woman. Red grabs its rival.
This time Black hangs on to Red's shirt. The two twirl around
in a staggering lampoon of a wrestling match.                   
Slack rushes to the side of the cage and starts to climb.
She's agile. Strong. But she almost falls as the cage SHAKES
with the force of...                                            
...Red SLAMMING Black against the mesh.                         
On their way back through the arena, RILEY and CHARLEY push
through the crowd, trying to reach the center ring. A GOON      
steps in front of them.                                         

                   GOON                                         

         No guns in here!                                       
Riley gives him a rifle butt in the face and moves on.

S                                                               





                                                                

 lack continues to climb the cage, almost out of reach, but
Black grabs one of her ankles, pulling her down and slamming
her to the ground.



Black hunkers, drooling, over Slack. As it is about to bite,    
RAT-A-TAT! A short burst from Riley's M-16 shatters Black's     

                                                                

collarbone. Cheekbone. Skull. The Thing drops.



Red lunges for Slack. Riley kills it with another short BURST. 



 he crowd PANICS, stampeding toward the exit. Suddenly MORE
BULLETS FLY, this time from a GLOCK, FIRED by...



...CHIHUAHUA, who, in a rage, is pushing through the LEGS of
the fleeing crowd. He makes it to a clear spot and draws a
steady bead on a target...Charlie. Chihuahua pulls his
trigger. Riley beats him by an instant, FIRING the M-16.



Just as Chihuahua's gun GOES OFF...a LINE of BULLET HOLES
PERFORATES the little man's belly. The round from his Glock
misses Charlie completely.



Riley runs to the cage, where Slack stands, trembling, just
on the other side of the bars.

                   R


                     ILEY

         You okay?




         F














C














                                                      29.










She nods gratefully.



 hihuahua is still on his feet. And now he is really pissed.
Not because of the holes in his gut, but because...




                   CHIHUAHUA

         My suit! You fucked up my new suit!



Riley turns to Chihuahua, but doesn't have time to lift the
M-16 before...BLAM! The little man FIRES at him. Slack
delivers a powerful KICK into the flexible fencing, sending    
Riley sprawling to the ground and saving him from...



...Chihuahua's round, which misses Riley...but HITS SLACK!
Spun around by the impact, she falls face down.



Chihuahua continues to FIRE. Riley Marine-crawls as bullets
PUNCH around him, SPARKING off the cage. Chihuahua keeps
coming, keeps FIRING, until...



...A SINGLE SHOT from Charlie's .45 shatters his skull. He
drops like a broken pinata.




                                                               

Riley looks up, seeing TWO OTHER MEN with guns. Chihuahua's
GOONS. For a moment it seems as if a major shooting match is
going to break out. But before it does...




                    POLICEMAN (O.S.)                           

         Hold it!

.                                                              

 ..FOUR POLICEMEN burst in. The Goons lower their weapons.     
Riley runs back to the cage, BLASTS the lock on the nearest
gate, and rushes inside. Slack's body is lying on the floor.
He suspects she's dead. When her BODY MOVES, he suspects
worse. He plants the barrel of his M-16 against her temple.




                   SLACK

         I'm alright, I'M ALRIGHT!



Slack uses her left arm to push herself up to a sitting
position. Her right arm is BLEEDING, up near the shoulder.




                   SLACK (CONT'D)

          ucker got my right arm. I'm a lefty.



They look into each other's eyes.                              

                   RILEY                                       

         Seen you around.                                      

                   SLACK                                       

         Seen you around.                                      




              Y














              I








                                                                      














                                                                      














                                                           30.










     A POLICEMAN steps over.                                          

                        POLICEMAN

              The hell happened here?




                        RILEY

              Somebody shot the little fat man.




                        POLICEMAN

              Yeah, I see that. You're under
              arrest.




     INT. BOARD ROOM - FIDDLER'S GREEN - DAY


41                                                               41

     A UNIFORMED GUARD leaves CHOLO in a PRISTINE WHITE conference
     room with glass walls overlooking the rotting CITY far below.
     Cholo sets the case of champagne and the box of Cohibas on a
     conference table. A SMAN stands in SILHOUETTE at the windows.




                         ILHOUETTED MAN

              How was Uniontown?




                          CHOLO

              Dead.




                        SILHOUETTED MAN


                                                                      

              Death intrudes on us even in the
              Green, I'm afraid. I heard about                        
              what happened with my neighbors.                        

                                                                      

              I'm grateful for your help.




                          CHOLO


                                                                      

                  brought you back some presents.



     Cholo opens the case of champagne. He pulls a bottle out,        
     untwists the wire, and uses his strong thumbs to pop the         
     cork. FOAM runs.                                                 

                        CHOLO (CONT'D)

               ou probably want a glass, don't
              you? Sure, a high-toned man likes
              to drink out of a glass.



     Cholo grabs a highball glass from a cupboard, pours champagne
     into it, and brings it, overflowing, to the Silhouetted Man.




                        CHOLO

              I got something else, too.



     Cholo tears open the box of Cohibas. He picks up two cigars,
     bites off the tips, puts one in his mouth, then, walking back
     to the Silhouetted Man, puts the other in his mouth, lighting
     them both with a wooden match that he strikes on his jeans.




         F














                                                      31.











                      SILHOUETTED MAN

         Thank you.




                   CHOLO

         No, thank you! Twenty grand. That's
         what I got comin' for last night. I
         never bothered to pick it up.

                   S


                       ILHOUETTED MAN

         You didn't?




                   CHOLO

         Nope. I left it in the bank. Your
         bank. With all my other dough.
          rom all those other nights. I got
         enough now to buy me a place.




                                                              


                   SILHOUETTED MAN

         You mean here? In the Green?                         
The Silhouetted Man steps away from the window. Expensively
dressed, in his early 60s, he is PAUL KAUFMAN. He sets down
the highball glass Cholo gave him, gets out a proper          
champagne flute, and fills it from the bottle, smiling
politely at Cholo.




                   KAUFMAN

         I'm sorry, Mister DeMora, but
         there's a very long waiting list.




                      CHOLO

         How long?




                   KAUFMAN

         This is an extremely desirable
         location. Space is limited.




                   CHOLO

         You mean restricted.




                   KAUFMAN

         Well, I do have a board of
         directors, a membership committee
         that has to approve...



A wave of incomparable sadness sweeps over Cholo's face.

                   C


                    HOLO

         I guess it takes more than money to
         become a "member".




              (














              Y














                        K














                                                           32.











                        KAUFMAN

              Take my advice. Withdraw your funds
              from the bank and spend them
              somewhere else.




                        CHOLO

              (Quietly) Don't do this to me. Don't
              do this to me.




                         AUFMAN

              I'm sorry, but...




                        CHOLO

              No, no, no. Three years! Three
              years I been cleaning up after you,                    
              taking out your garbage, and you
              tell me I'm not good enough? You're
              the one who's no good. You are no
              fucking good. And you are gonna let
              me in. You know why? Because I know
              what goes on around here. How many
              of your fucking "members" know
              what's in that garbage I take out
              for you?



     Cholo lunges at Kaufman, grabs him by the collar.




                        CHOLO (CONT'D)


               OU'LL LET ME IN OR I'LL...




     Cholo feels the barrel of a .45 against his waist. Kaufman,
     who has drawn the pistol from his jacket, is still smiling.




                        KAUFMAN

              Maybe we should talk about this
              when you're less excited.



     Kaufman presses a button under the table. THREE SECURITY
     GUARDS rush in, GRAB Cholo, and drag him away. Kaufman stops
     one of the guards at the door.




                        KAUFMAN (CONT'D)

               Softly) I won't be needing this
              man any more.




     INT. STAIRWELL - FIDDLER'S GREEN - DAY


42   T                                                        42

      HE SECURITY GUARDS lead CHOLO down the stairs. Cholo WHIRLS
     like a Ninja. He SLUGS one guard, kicks another in the groin,
     the third in the face, and escapes through a fire door.



              c

              I













              w













                                                           33.











     INT/EXT. JAIL - AFTERNOON


43                                                            43

     RILEY RIPS off part of his shirt-sleeve and starts to bandage
     the wound on SLACK'S arm. They are in a jail cell that has
     brick walls and a small barred window facing a dark alley.
     CHARLIE, stripped of all his guns, stares outside longingly.




                        RILEY

              (To Slack) Why you? In that arena.
              Why did the little fat man throw
              you in with those things?




                        SLACK

              It wasn't the little man. It was the
              big man. The man upstairs. He's got
              his fingers in everything down here.
              If you can drink it, shoot it up,
              fuck it, or gamble on it, it belongs
              to him. He's just seein' that we get
              a few cheap kicks so we don't go
              thinkin' too hard about why he's
              eating steak and the rest of us are
              lucky to get the bones.




                        RILEY

              Same question. Why you?




                         SLACK

              They found out I was working with
              Mulligan and his people. Tired of
              eatin' off Cbones.




                         HARLIE

              What can you do? Every place is the                    
              same.




                        RILEY

              Places with people. I'm gonna find
              me a place where there ain't no
              people. North. Canada.




                        SLACK

              Wherever you're going, take me                         
               ith you.




                         CHARLIE

              He won't. Riley likes to be alone.
              He might take me. Cuzz havin' me
              around is pretty much the same as
              bein' alone. (Glancing at Riley)
                can make myself useful. And I
               an shoot.




                     C














                     S














                                                      34.











                   SLACK

         I can shoot. And I can be pretty
         fucking useful. I had training. I
         was gonna join the Army. Up the
         Green. Till somebody figured I'd be
         a better hooker than a soldier.




                   RILEY

         I don't need to hear your story.
         Everybody's got a story, and I'm
         tired of hearin' them all!




                   SLACK

         What's your story, Riley?



They look at each other, clearly attracted.

                   R                                            


                    ILEY

         I said everybody has a story. That
         was wrong. I don't have one. Daddy
         was a preacher. Mama kept the
         house. School. Engineering. Nothing
         bad ever happened to me...(turning
         away)...till everything changed.




                    LACK

         Everything changed for all of us.
         Whether we had a story or not.




                                                                

A SOUND outside the window. Charlie glances through the bars.




                     CHARLIE

         Hey...



Riley and Slack look out the window. FOUR SECURITY MEN are      
chasing MULLIGAN into the alley outside. They drive him like    
an animal against a wall, club him, and drag him away.




                     RILEY

         Mulligan.



RILEY instinctively reaches through the window's bars, but
there's nothing he can do. It's a helpless feeling.




                    HARLIE

         What are they gonna do? Kill him?                      

                   SLACK                                        

         Not right away. First, they'll try                     
         to get what they can out of him.                       
         About people like me.                                  
Riley puts his hand on her back.                                




                                                                     





                                                                     








                                                                     













              g












              t













                                                           35.











     INT. BEDROOM - AFTERNOON


44                                                            44

     In a ratty bedroom, FOXY is wakened out of a snore by CHOLO.




                        CHOLO

              We're taking the truck out. Get
               he guys.




                          FOXY

              Riley?




                        CHOLO

              No, not him. Just the regular
               uys. Know what I mean?




     EXT. DEPOT - NIGHT


45                                                            45

     CRANE DOWN FROM A FADED SIGN, TONY'S AUTOMANIA, high above
     what was once a car dealership, but is now a fenced-in DEPOT
     full of VEHICLES. A huge WHITE FACE with black cartoon eyes     

                                                                     

     POPS into view, attached to a TEN-FOOT-TALL BODY emblazoned
     TONY BALONEY. It's one of those vinyl ADVERTISING DUMMIES
     that does the hula as air pumps through it. Tony's arms wave
     wildly, like a giant zombie, comic yet oddly unnerving as...



     BLAM! BLAM! Bullets hit it in the face and neck. GUS, a young
     soldier, and his partner BARRETT, are shooting outside the
     SALES OFFICE of the car-lot-turned-depot. A sign is printed
     on the window. "BEST DEALS IN TOWN AND THAT'S NO BALONEY!"

                        B


                         ARRETT

              (Handing Gus a five) You win. You                      
              got him in the brain.




     INT. SUBWAY TUNNEL - NIGHT


46                                                            46

     SCREECH! CHOLO pulls a CARGO CARRIER to a stop along the        
     platform of the tunnel. FOXY, PRETTY BOY, MOUSE, ANCHOR, and    
     SCAR, the youngest of the team, leap off the flatbed.           

     EXT. DEPOT - NIGHT


47                                                            47

     The steel doors under the "SUBWAY" sign open and CHOLO strides 
     out with his TEAM. A DEPOT GUARD steps forward as the doors    
     close and lock automatically behind them.                      

                        DEPOT GUARD                                  

              What's up, Cholo?




                        CHOLO

              (Flashing an official-looking
              paper) Takin' the truck out.




                                                                      














                                                                      














                                                           36.











                        DEPOT GUARD                                   

              You just got back in this morning.                      

                        CHOLO

              Nobody gets a day off these days.




                        DEPOT GUARD                                   

              (Taking Cholo's paper) Hey, wait a                      
              minute this is from yesterday.                          

                        CHOLO

              (Keeping his cool) Oh, I must have                      
              given you the wrong one. Here...



     Cholo reaches down, but not into his pocket. For his gun.        
     Just before he draws it...SHOTS ring out.                        

                        CHOLO (CONT'D)

              What's that?                                            




                                                                      


                        DEPOT GUARD

              Relax. Just target practise.




48                                                               48   


     EXT. DEPOT - TONY'S AUTOMANIA SALES OFFICE - NIGHT





                        GUS

              Double or nothing?




                        BARRETT

              Sure.



     GUS aims his rifle at the jerking head of TONY BALONEY. As he    
     is about to fire, there's a SOUND at his back.




                        GUS

              Quit scratching around back there.
              You're tryin' ta fuck up my aim.




                        BARRETT

              I'm just standin' here. I'm not
              doin' nothing.



     The SOUND comes again. From the woods that adjoin the lot.
     Barrett grabs the handles of a KLIEG LIGHT mounted on a pivot    
     and swings it so that it ILLUMINATES the tree-line.

     T                                                                

      here's nothing there. Nothing but BRANCHES being slapped by     
     erratic gusts of wind.



     Barrett pivots the Klieg light back to its original position,
     jumping out of his skin when the bright white beam reveals...    
     A DEAD THING within arm's length.                                




5














                                                           37.










     Barrett FIRES! The dead thing DROPS OUT OF FRAME, REPLACED BY    
     ANOTHER. BLAM! Barrett SHOOTS again. This creature collapses.    
     It is also replaced by another, which is also shot, as...        
     BLAM! The top of Barrett's head is taken off by a rifle shot.    
     The rifle was fired by BIG DADDY. The barrel is still smoking.   
     In the darkness behind him stands NUMBER NINE. Behind Number     
     Nine are the SHUFFLING SHADOWS of many more dead things.         

     GUS SCREAMS.





     EXT. DEPOT - NIGHT


49                                                            49      


                        CHOLO

              What's that? Screaming practice?                        

                         GUNNER (O.S.)


                                                                      

              Stenches! Jesus! They're all over
              the place!                                              




                                                                      

     THE DEPOT GUARD turns and runs toward his men. CHOLO'S TEAM
     unstraps weapons and gets ready for battle.                      




                                                                      


                        CHOLO

              (Stopping them) Ain't our fight.                        
              Stenches are making it easy for us.                     

     C                                                                

              Let's grab the truck.



      HOLO and his team sprint across the lot to DEAD RECKONING.      

                                                                      

     A GUNNER at a machine-gun battery opens fire on the WALKERS.
     Many of the rounds SPARK off the wire fencing.




 0                                                            50


     INT. DEAD RECKONING NIGHT




     CHOLO and his TEAM scramble into the vehicle.




                        FOXY

              Should we send up some `sky flowers'?




                        CHOLO

              No. Those things want to get in
              here...let `em in.




     EXT. DEPOT - NIGHT


51                                                            51

     THE WALKING DEAD march through MACHINE GUN FIRE behind their     
     "leader". BIG DADDY. He is the first to reach the fence          
     surrounding the lot. Pushing against the wire, he is soon        
     joined by NUMBER NINE. Then OTHERS. The FENCE COLLAPSES. The
     Dead Things SWARM into the depot.



     VROOOM! DEAD RECKONING pulls out. Rumbling over the section      
     of fencing the zombies pushed down, it drives into the night.    




              K














                                                                      














                                                             38.










     SOLDIERS abandon their stations and scatter, shooting wildly.    
     NUMBER NINE knocks one of them cold with its baseball bat.       
     The soldier falls, losing his M-16. BIG DADDY grabs the bat      
     and throws it aside. Picking up the soldier's M-16, he           
     presses the weapon into Number Nine's hands, even arranging      
     Number Nine's fingers on the trigger.                            
     RATATATAT. With the gun aimed at the ground, Number Nine         
     fires a BURST that sends her into a spastic dance. The           
     soldier sits back up. Draws a pistol. Big Daddy grabs the        
     barrel of the still-firing M-16 and guides it along the          
     pavement to...                                                   
     ...the soldier's legs. Bullets march up his groin, belly,
     chest, and, finally, head. He drops.                             
     ANOTHER SOLDIER attacks. This time, Number Nine aims her

                                                                      

     weapon purposefully and scores a direct hit.



     OTHER DEAD THINGS SMACK at the steel doors that lead down to     

                                                                      

     the subway. They can't get through. Losing interest, they
     drift slowly away, until their attention is refocused by...      




                                                                      

     ...a GRUNT from Big Daddy, who is gazing toward the GLOW of
     the FIDDLER'S GREEN HIGH-RISE across the river, closer now       
     than before. The city. That's where he wants to be. That's       

                                                                      

     where he's determined to go.




     INT. KAUFMAN PENTHOUSE - FIDDLER'S GREEN - NIGHT


52                                                               52

     KAUFMAN RIPS a TURKEY LEG off a cooked bird on a platter in
     front of him and eats. Across the table sits one of his board
     members, HARRISON SUTHERLAND. KNIPP enters.




                        KNIPP

              Phone call, sir.




                        KAUFMAN

              Thank you, Knipp. I'll take it.



     Knipp brings a radio-phone to the table. Kaufman picks up the
     receiver and lifts it to his ear.




                         KAUFMAN

              Yes?




                         CHOLO (O.S.)

               aufman?



     Kaufman tenses, just enough for Sutherland to notice.




                        KAUFMAN

              Ah. The one that got away.




                         S














                                                        39.











                        CHOLO (O.S.)

              You said we should talk when I was
              less excited. I'm a lot less
              excited now.




                        KAUFMAN

              What do you want, Mister DeMora?

5


     INT. DEAD RECKONING - NIGHT


 3                                                        53


                        CHOLO

              I can't have a place in the Green,               
              fine. I'll go find another place.                
              But you know what I'm gonna need?                
              Money. I want my money out of your               
              bank. And I want the rest of the
              money out of your bank. And if you
              don't give it to me, I'm gonna blow
              you out of your fuckin' ivory
              tower. I've got Dead Reckoning.                  

     INT. KAUFMAN PENTHOUSE - FIDDLER'S GREEN - NIGHT


54                                                        54


                        KAUFMAN

              That's unfortunate.




                        CHOLO (O.S.)

              Put the money on a boat and send it
              across the river to the South Side.
              Tenth Street Pier. One man to drive
              the boat, no more. You've got till
              midnight. Four hours. I won't be
              there. Dead Reckoning won't be
              there. But I'll know if it happens.
              I'll know if it doesn't happen.



     CLICK! CHOLO hangs up.




                          UTHERLAND

              Trouble?




                        KAUFMAN

              In a world where the dead are
              returning to life, the word
              `trouble' loses much of its
              meaning. (Beat) He wants money.                  

                         SUTHERLAND

              Pay him.




                        KAUFMAN

              We don't negotiate with terrorists.
              There are other options.




                           K














                                                             40.











     INT. JAIL - NIGHT


55                                                             55

     CLANG! A FIDDLER'S GREEN SECURITY GUARD opens a cell door.

                        S


                         ECURITY GUARD

              Which one of you is Denbo?



     RILEY, CHARLIE, and SLACK exchange glances. What now?




     INT. FIDDLER'S GREEN BOARDROOM - NIGHT


56                                                             56   

     KAUFMAN sips a Scotch. SUTHERLAND is present, with a middle-   
     aged board member named CHANDLER STYLES and CLIFF WOODS, who   
     is young and ambitious. All of them are nervous, pacing. A     
     door opens and RILEY is ushered into the room.




                        KAUFMAN

              Mister Denbo. Come in. Can I offer
              you a drink?




                        RILEY

              I don't drink.




                        KAUFMAN

              Well, then...please sit down.




                        RILEY

              Nobody else is sitting. I think
              I'll just stand here, like the
              rest of you. While you tell me
              why I'm standing here.




                          AUFMAN

              We need you to repossess a vehicle
              that belongs to us. The vehicle you
              designed, Mister Denbo. Dead
              Reckoning has been stolen. By your
              second in command. I want him
              captured. Or killed. And I want my
              two-million-dollar piece of
              equipment returned.

                        R


                            ILEY

              The truck.




                        KAUFMAN

              Which has guns. Big guns. That
              could do a great deal of damage if
              he were to aim them at this city.




                        RILEY

              Why don't you just send out your
              troops?




         C














H














                                                              














                                                      41.











                    KAUFMAN

         I don't want to lose them. I could
         send five hundred men against that
         thing and they'd all come back in
         body bags. It's your vehicle. Cholo
         was your man. You might be able to
         get close enough to...do what has
         to be done. (Refilling his scotch)                   
         Do this for me and I'll grant you                    
         something in return. Residence in                    
         the Green.                                           

                   RILEY

         Not me. That's what Cholo wanted,                    
         and you didn't give it to him, did                   
         you? That's why he's out there                       
         waving a cannon at your ass.                         
Kaufman won't admit that Riley's right, but he looks at him   
with a glimmer of respect.                                    

                   RILEY (CONT'D)                             

         Give me one of those vehicles, over                  

                                                              

         in the depot, weapons, and enough
         ammunition to go north.




                   KAUFMAN

         But...there's nothing up north.




                   RILEY

         That's the idea.




                   KAUFMAN

         Alright. You've named your price.
         An easy one to pay.

                   R


                     ILEY

         One more thing. My friends. They
         go with me.




                      KAUFMAN

         Take them.



 e looks at Riley, a hint of desperation behind his eyes.




                   KAUFMAN (CONT'D)

          an you find Dead Reckoning?
         Quickly?




                   RILEY

         How quickly?                                         




                                                                      











                                                                      














                                                           42.











                        KAUFMAN                                       

              By midnight.                                            

                        RILEY                                         

              I have a way.




     EXT. INDUSTRIAL STREET - NIGHT


57                                                               57   

     DEAD RECKONING RUMBLES along a dark street, plowing into a       
     DERELICT CAR, knocking it aside and rolling it down a small      
     embankment, pinning THREE DEAD THINGS beneath.                   

     INT. DEAD RECKONING - NIGHT


58                                                               58   

     CHOLO'S TEAM laughs raucously at the fate of the zombies.        

                        CHOLO                                         


                                                                      

              (Tense) Knock it off!




     EXT. INDUSTRIAL STREET - NIGHT


59                                                               59   

     BIG DADDY steps out of the darkness, watching the lights of      
     DEAD RECKONING recede. He hears desperate SQUEALING coming       

                                                                      

     from under the toppled car.



     He lumbers down the embankment. Pushes on one of the upturned

                                                                      

     tires. He can't turn the car by himself. He looks back to the
     road. Grunts.                                                    
     NUMBER NINE and OTHERS OF BIG DADDY'S GATHERING FORCE hurry
     to the car. They push. The car rolls over, freeing THE THREE     
     DEAD THINGS. One of them used to be a BUTCHER. Still wearing     

                                                                      

     a blood-stained apron, carrying a meat cleaver, he looks at
     Big Daddy with something resembling gratitude.                   

     INT. FIDDLER'S GREEN WEAPONS STORAGE - NIGHT


60                                                               60

     SOLDIERS pass out monster weapons to RILEY, CHARLIE, and
     SLACK. Riley straps on a K-90. Charlie turns one down.




                        CHARLIE

              I like the iron I already got.




                        SOLDIER

              This piece fires fourteen rounds
              a second.



     Charlie unstraps his own REMINGTON. A la Sergeant York, he
     licks his thumb. Wets the sight. And BLASTS a COCKROACH
     climbing on a wall twenty feet away.

                        C


                         HARLIE

              I don't norm'ly need fourteen rounds.




         M











                                                                 








                                                                 








                   K














                   C














T














                                                      43.











                   SLACK

         I'll take that gun.                                     

                   SOLDIER

         Can you handle it?




                   SLACK

         Better'n you. The safety's off.



 he Soldier checks the gun. The safety is off. He clicks
it on and embarrassedly hands the weapon to Slack.




                   RILEY

         (To Slack and Charlie) You guys
         don't have to come out with me if
         you don't want to.



Slack ties her hair back with a bandana. Checks her gun clip.




                   SLACK                                         

         I'd feel like a dick if I didn't.




                    HARLIE

         Me too. Just look at me you can
         tell I'd feel like a dick.




                                                                 


                   SLACK

         Some shit, ain't it? Goin' out to                       
         save a place we don't give a fuck                       

                                                                 

         about.




                   RILEY                                         


                                                                 

         It's not the place. It's the people
         in it.                                                  

                    AUFMAN (O.S.)                                

         Mister Denbo.



Riley turns. KAUFMAN and SUTHERLAND enter with several OTHERS.




                   KAUFMAN (CONT'D)

         Your friends are going out with
         you. I want some of my friends to
         go along, as well. (Turning)                            
          anolete.



AN HISPANIC MAN steps forward.




                   MANOLETE

         That's how I am called...Manolete.
         After the bullfighter.




6










              m













              (














              P














                                                           44.











                           KAUFMAN

              Teahouse.



     TEAHOUSE steps forward. A mean-looking Asian right out of
     Mortal Kombat. He joins his hands, as if in prayer, and bows.




                           KAUFMAN (CONT'D)

               illsbury.

     P

      ILLSBURY is a woman, a Sumo-sized Samoan, six hundred pounds
     and seven feet tall, swaggering, decked out in a clatter of
     fighting gear.




                        SLACK (CONT'D)

               Impressed) Damn.



     Pillsbury speaks with a voice as deep as the Mindanao trench.




                        PILLSBURY

              I come here to do sumthin'. Not
              stann aroun'. Why we stann aroun'?
              Less go do sumthin'.




61                                                            61


     EXT. 10TH STREET PIER - NIGHT




     A LONG DOCK juts into the RIVER. DEAD RECKONING stops beside    

                                                                     

     it. MOUSE jumps out. CHOLO stands in an open hatch.




                        MOUSE                                        


                                                                     

              (Looking around nervously) Don't
              leave me alone here long.                              

                        CHOLO

              At midnight. Give me a call. Let
               e know if we're rich or not.



     Mouse nods, running off to hide in a BOAT SHED.




     EXT. DEPOT - NIGHT


 2                                                            62     

     The steel doors to the subway tunnel open. RILEY and his TEAM   
     step out. The depot has been DEVASTATED. FIRES BURNING.         
     FENCES DOWN. Only TONY BALONEY moves, still waving spookily.

                        C                                            


                         HARLIE

              Geez. Cholo made a mess.




                        RILEY

              Cholo didn't do all this.



     Clouds of thick black SMOKE from the fires BILLOW across the
     depot, restricting visibility. Ever-shifting OPENINGS in the
     clouds reveal glimpses of torn BODY PARTS.




                                                               














                                                               














                                                      45.











                   RILEY (CONT'D)

         Stenches have been at this place.



He leads the way into the depot, his M-16 at the ready.        
Behind him, all eyes peer nervously into the smoke. Everyone   
speaks in HUSHED tones.                                        

                   MANOLETE

         When the truck pulled out, it must
         have knocked the fence down. That's
         how they got in.




                   RILEY

         That fencing was pushed in from
         outside.




                   TEAHOUSE

         You know how many stenches it
         would take to do that?




                   RILEY

         There's a thousand of them out
         there for every one of us.




                   CHARLIE

         Good thing we're smarter.




                   SLACK

         Look who's talkin'.




                   RILEY

         They're getting smart. I saw it in

                                                               

         Uniontown, last time out. They're
         learning how to work together.                        
Thoughts darken. So does the SMOKE, which billows thicker,
virtually blinding the team. SOUNDS come. The MOANING of the   
WIND. The POPPING of burnt metal and wood.                     

                   TEAHOUSE

         What do they want?                                    
Slack looks back as she walks. The zombies have taken down     
another section of the depot fence, beyond which lies a        
suburb. Beyond which is the river. Beyond which is the glow    
of the FIDDLER'S GREEN HIGH-RISE.                              

                   SLACK                                       

         They want the city.                                   

                   RILEY                                       

         The city is us. They're after us. We                  
         pissed `em off one too many times.                    




                   M








         O














                   S














T














                                                        46.











                   MANOLETE                                     

         They'll never get across the river.                    

                   CHARLIE                                      

         Thank Heaven.                                          

                   RILEY                                        

         Gotta love the guy. He still believes                  
         in Heaven. Anyone got a radio?                         
Teahouse pulls a Motorola from his belt. Just as he tosses
it to Riley, they hear...GROWLING!



 he team draws their weapons, standing in a loose circle,
their backs to each other, guns searching for a target.
Darting eyes peer into the void. MORE NOISES emanate from       
somewhere. Everywhere. Slowly...



...Charlie unstraps his Remington. Licks his thumb. Wets the
sight of the rifle.




                    LACK

         (A whisper) Why do you do that?                        

                   CHARLIE

         (Whispering back) Catches the                          
         light. Right now it's moonlight.
         Lets me see where I'm aimin'.



BLAM! Charlie FIRES! A single shot into the black smoke.




                   SLACK

         The hell you shooting at?




                   CHARLIE

         That thing.

A

  DEAD MAN steps out of the smoke! Before anyone can react, it
grabs Slack's shoulder from behind! She whirls around. Pulls
away. Is about to shoot when she sees AN ENTRY WOUND on the    
left side of the Thing's forehead.




                   CHARLIE (CONT'D)

          ff-center. But I got him.



The Thing relaxes its grip and drops at Slack's feet.




                    ANOLETE

         (Hysterical) There's more of `em out                   
         there. I can hear `em. THERE'S MORE!



There are SHUFFLING SOUNDS in the smoke. Manolete backs away.
Pillsbury grabs him. Slaps him, hard, across the face.




                          M














     R













              y













                                                           47.











                        PILLSBURY

              If they is more, we gonna need
               o guns. Pull `em out n'stann up
              wid us, like de man you ain't.



     Riley lifts Teahouse's Motorola and pushes "Send".




                        RILEY

              Riley Denbo. Calling the Green.




     INT. FIDDLER'S GREEN BOARDROOM - NIGHT


63   C                                                        63    

      LOSE ON: SUTHERLAND'S alarmed face.




                          SUTHERLAND

              What?



     A TROOPER, equally alarmed, is reporting.




                        TROOPER

              Wiped out! That's what he said!
              Denbo! He said the depot was
              wiped out by stenches!                                

                        KAUFMAN

              Thank you. Keep us informed.                          

     EXT. DEPOT - NIGHT


64                                                            64

     RILEY and his TEAM move through DRIFTING SMOKE. VEHICLES are
     scattered about. They stop at the T-BIRD. There are no keys    
     in the ignition.




                        CHARLIE

              Gotta go get the keys, Riley.



      iley looks across the lot to the CHARRED RUIN of a shack.
     Tire fires BURN around it. Debris smolders.




                        RILEY

              Ain't no keys to get. Melted.




                         ANOLETE

              Screw keys. Hot wire the fucker.



     MANOLETE climbs in and goes to work under the dash.




                        PILLSBURY


              H

               e feelin' better since I hit `im.



     Suddenly, CHARLIE draws his .45 and FIRES AT SLACK! BLAM! The
     bullet buzzes just above her ear, blowing a WISP OF HAIR as... 




.








C





T














                     S














                                                      48.










...A DEAD OLD MAN BEHIND HER DROPS, a HOLE in its head.        

                    LACK

         Thanks, Charlie. That was useful.



The WIND shifts and black SMOKE envelopes them.




                   MANOLETE

         I can't see!



Riley pulls out a flashlight and shines it under the dash.



 he team fans out around the T-Bird. The smoke is so thick     
they can't make out anything. Including each other.



 harlie peers into openings that shift on the breeze. What
he doesn't see, what he can't see, is what's behind him...



 ..a FEMALE WALKER, wearing the soiled and tattered remnants
of a bridal gown. The fabric seems to glow in the smoke.       
The bride shuffles toward CHARLIE. We see it coming. No one    
else does. Just as it opens its mouth to bite...               
BLAM! Slack SHOOTS! Her bullet cuts closer than the one
Charlie fired, CLIPPING OFF THE TOP OF HIS EAR before          

                                                               


DROPPING THE BRIDE.





                   SLACK

         Even-Steven.




                   CHARLIE

         Not! That hurt! I didn't hurt you!



Manolete fumbles with colored wires under the dash.




                     RILEY                                     

         Hurry up.                                             

                   PILLSBURY

         (Impatient) Yellow to red!




                   TEAHOUSE

         What the fuck does a Samoan know
         about hot-wiring cars?




                   PILLSBURY

         Five thousand cars. Stole. Every
         year in Samoa.




                   MANOLETE

         Fifty thousand in Mexico.




                   R














                                                         49.











                   PILLSBURY

         Mexico got a million cars. Samoa got
         five thousand. Every one. Stolen.




THE T-BIRD'S ENGINE REVS.                                       


                   MANOLETE


         I GOT IT! LET'S GET OUT OF HERE!




Riley leads the team into the T-Bird. Manolete starts to get    
out from under the dash. As TEAHOUSE settles into a seat by     
the door...                                                     
...SOMETHING heavy and wet SMACKS his shoulder. It's a          
FOREARM! It drops onto Teahouse as if thrown at him.




                   TEAHOUSE

         God! Oh, GOD, WHAT'S THIS?!



Teahouse HURLS the bloody thing onto the asphalt. Shockingly,
the ARM SPRINGS BACK, THUMPING against Teahouse's face! A
twist of torn muscle, no thicker than clothesline, is keeping
the limb loosely attached to...



...A DEAD THING that has crawled beside the T-Bird. Lifting     
itself, it BITES a large filet out of Teahouse's arm. CHARLIE

M

SHOOTS it.



 anolete climbs up behind the wheel and...VROOOOOM!...pedal
to the metal he pulls out of the depot. Slack glances at
Teahouse, then, wind in her hair, leans in close to Riley.      

                   SLACK

         (Softly) How long does he have?




                   RILEY

         I had a brother. Real brother, by
         birth. Bit. Hung on for six days.
         Before he turned. I was the one had
         to shoot him.




                   SLACK

         And you said nothin' bad ever
         happened to you.




                   RILEY

         That happened to my brother.




                   SLACK

         (Into his eyes) But you kept going.




                    ILEY

         Got to, right?




                        C


              B





                        K














                        K














              S


                        S











              Y














                                                           50.











                        SLACK

               up. Dead is dead. And that ain't
              you. And that ain't me.



     Slack turns to Teahouse.




                         LACK (CONT'D)

               orry, man. I truly am.



     She draws her .45, aims at Teahouse, and FIRES.                

     INT. FIDDLER'S GREEN BOARDROOM - NIGHT


65                                                             65   

     KAUFMAN paces with a cigar, passing SUTHERLAND, STYLES,
     and CLIFF.




                          AUFMAN

              I recognize that some of you are
              concerned. We've been threatened by
              a disgruntled employee. I've sent
              people out to take care of the
              problem. However, should something
              go wrong, I want to assure you that
              measures have been taken. I've
              established outposts. With food and
              supplies to support us on our way.

                        C


                         LIFF

              On our way? To where?




                        KAUFMAN

              Alternate sites have been chosen.
              Air transport has been arranged.
              For us and our families. As well as
              necessary support personnel.




                        CLIFF

              What about all the others?



     Kaufman looks at Cliff, as if expecting him to understand.




                         AUFMAN

              All the others can be replaced.
               y others.




                         LIFF

              But...




                        KAUFMAN

              Cliff, let me talk to you for a
              moment.



     Kaufman leads Cliff into...




                                                      51.










...an alcove on the far side of the room, shutting two pocket
doors made of sandblasted glass. Sutherland and the others      
can't hear, but can see, Kaufman and Cliff in SILHOUETTE.       
ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE DOORS: Kaufman leans close to Cliff,   
smiling, his eyes blinking a bit too rapidly.                   

                   KAUFMAN (CONT'D)

         You interrupted me. I was just                         
         talking about how people can be
         replaced. You don't want to be
         replaced, do you?




                   CLIFF


         (

          Nervous) No.




                    KAUFMAN

         No, and I don't want to replace
         you. You have promise. A day may
         come when you earn yourself some
         responsibilities. Right now, the
         responsibilities are mine. All                         
         the responsibilities. It was my                        

                                                                

         ingenuity that took an old world
         and made it into something new. I                      
         put up fences to make it safe. I                       
         hired soldiers and paid for their
         training. I keep the people on the
         streets away from us by giving them
         their games and vices. It costs me
         money! But I spend it because the
         responsibility is mine! Now do you                     

                                                                

         understand "responsibility"?




                   CLIFF

         Yes, but...




                    KAUFMAN

         No buts.




                    CLIFF

         But...



Kaufman looks disappointed. Taking Cliff by the arm, smiling
again, he leads him over to an outer door and opens it. An
armed SECURITY GUARD stands in the corridor outside.




                   KAUFMAN

         Take him out with the rest of the
         garbage. I won't be needing this
         man anymore.




     W














                                                                      














6














                          F














     O














                                                              52.










     At the conference table, Sutherland sees the light coming in
     from the outer corridor, better defining the silhouettes as
     the Security Guard drags Cliff away.

                        S


                         UTHERLAND

              (To Styles) Pretty soon it's going
              to be one of us.




     EXT. CARNEGIE - NIGHT


66                                                               66

      n an overgrown suburban street, a LAWN TRACTOR, driven by a
     GARDENER in work clothes, drives back and forth, back and
     forth, over a swath of dead grass. The gardener is DEAD too.




     INT. DEAD RECKONING - NIGHT


67                                                               67

     CHOLO watches the GARDENER through the windshield.




                        CHOLO

              If I don't have this truck, I'm no
              different to Kaufman than that poor
              Mexican bastard out there.




     CLOSE ON: CHOLO'S WATCH. 11:20.





                         OXY


                                                                      

              He's never gonna pay.




                        CHOLO

              He knows it's his ass if he doesn't.



     Cholo slides open a small window, grabs his crossbow, and        
     SHOOTS the Gardener in the head.




     EXT. ALLEY - NIGHT


 8                                                               68   

     ANGLE ON: A SOLID WALL OF WOOD. BIG DADDY, NUMBER NINE, and
     OTHERS OF THE DEAD push against it. The wood holds.



     Big Daddy turns, surveying his troops. Focusing on the
     BUTCHER. On the meat cleaver it has in its hand.                 
     Big Daddy pounds on the wood, demonstrating. Points at the       
     meat cleaver. Pounds again. The Butcher gets it. Approaches      
     the wall.                                                        
      HACK! The meat cleaver chops into wood, splintering it.         
     REVERSE ANGLE: from the other side of the wall as the wood
     splinters to reveal BIG DADDY'S EYES staring through at...       
     ...the FIDDLER'S GREEN HIGH-RISE, looming closer than it was     
     before, though it's still across the river.                      




     S














                           R














                           R














                                                           53.











     EXT. MCKEE'S ROCKS - NIGHT


69                                                            69

     CLOSE ON: a small, electronic unit, the size and appearance    
     of a "Game Boy". AN LED SCREEN shows a BLINKING RED DOT        
     moving along a MAP.                                            

                        RILEY (O.S.)                                

              Turn left up here.                                    
     SLACK, driving the T-BIRD now, makes the turn. The car blows   
     through a deserted town, moving fast. Riley notices that       
     Slack is effected by the desolation she sees.                  

                         ILEY

              How long since you been out here?




                        SLACK

              Never been out. Lived in the city
              since...it was a regular city.




                            ILEY

              Pull over.




                        SLACK

              (Surprised) Huh?




                        RILEY

              You said you were going to make
              yourself useful. Right now what I
              could use is for you to pull over.



      he does. The T-Bird stops along a road bordered by a MARSH    
     thick with tall CAT TAILS. Unexpectedly, Riley stands and
     points his automatic at PILLSBURY and MANOLETE.




                        RILEY

              I made a deal with your boss. Find
              Cholo. I'm gonna do it. Keep him from                 
              blowing up the Green. I'm gonna do
              it, I don't want people to get hurt.
              Bring back Dead Reckoning... Sorry.
              That's where I stop. I didn't ask him                 
              for much, just guns, ammo, and a car.
              I've got the guns. I've got the ammo.
              And if I find Dead Reckoning I'm
              gonna have the best fucking car                       
              that's ever been built, and I'm
              taking it to Canada. If any of you
              don't like that idea...



     Riley reaches down and opens the passenger door. Manolete
     looks out and sees the CAT TAILS MOVING. THREE WALKERS are
     slogging through the marsh.




                                                                











                   C














                   R














                                                                














                   R














                                                      54.











                   MANOLETE

         Some choice.




                   PILLSBURY


         G

          ood choice. I like see Canada.



Pillsbury reaches out and slams the car door closed again.




                    ILEY

         Charlie, keep these two covered.



Charlie pulls his .45.                                          
Riley turns around his seat, glancing down again at the "Game
Boy" in his palm. The RED DOT has moved on to ANOTHER MAP.      

                   RILEY (CONT'D)                               


                                                                

         Take a right onto Route Six.



Slack pulls out.                                                

                   SLACK

         This is what you were thinking
         about all along. You got me out
         here figuring I'm a boy scout, and
         now you're telling me we're just                       

                                                                

         stealing a fucking car?




                    ILEY

         You have a problem with that?




                   SLACK


                                                                

         No. I like the way you think.




                    HARLIE

         I like the way he thinks, too.
         Just look at me you can tell I
         like the way he thinks.




                   RILEY

         Take another right.                                    

                   SLACK                                        

         How do you know which way you're                       
         going?                                                 
Riley holds up the "Game Boy". It BEEPS SOFTLY as the RED DOT   
shifts onto another MAP.                                        

                   RILEY                                        

         I built a homing device into Dead                      
         Reckoning. If Cholo's anywhere within                  
         fifty miles, we can track him.                         




                                                                     














                                                                     














                                                           55.











     EXT. ROAD - NIGHT


70                                                              70   

     DEAD RECKONING stops on a long road, at the end of which        
     stands...                                                       
     ...a MILITARY COMPLEX. THE BEAM of a SEARCHLIGHT sweeps back    
     and forth over the buildings, a sign of life.                   

     INT. DEAD RECKONING - NIGHT


71                                                              71

     CHOLO checks his watch. 11:29. He speaks into a TRANSMITTER.    

                        CHOLO                                        

              Mouse. Anything?                                       

     INT. SHED - 10TH STREET PIER - NIGHT


72                                                              72   


                                                                     

     MOUSE stands in the shed, holding a transmitter of his own.




                        MOUSE                                        


                                                                     

              Not yet. No boat. No money. No
              nothing.                                               




73                                                              73


     INT. DEAD RECKONING - NIGHT





                        PRETTY BOY                                   


                                                                     

              I'm telling you, he's never gonna
              pay.                                                   




                                                                     


                        CHOLO

              That's why we're here.                                 




                                                                     

     CHOLO looks out the window to the searchlight sweeping over
     the military complex in the distance.                           

     INT/EXT. IMPALA - COUNTRY ROAD - NIGHT


74                                                              74   

     SLACK drives as RILEY monitors his "Game Boy".                  

                        RILEY                                        

              Shit. He's going to Ross Park.




                        SLACK                                        

              What's there?                                          

                        RILEY                                        

              Powder magazine. Where they keep                       
              the big boomers. Rockets. For Dead                     
              Reckoning's cannons.                                   




                                                                     














                                                                     














                                                                     














                                                                     














                                                                     














                                                           56.











     INT. SHED - 10TH STREET PIER - NIGHT


75                                                            75     

     MOUSE looks at a GRIMY WINDOW as the SHADOW of a WALKER stops   
     just beyond the glass. Mouse FIRES a BURST shattering the       
     window and dropping the Walker.                                 
     Silence. Mouse takes a tentative step toward the window. A
     SCRATCHING SOUND. SOMETHING climbs up onto the sill from        
     outside. Mouse raises his gun, but hesitates when he sees...    
     ...it's a child. A GIRL SCOUT. It died at age nine, still       
     wearing its uniform. Now, it's voracious. It grabs Mouse's      
     gun-hand. The weapon FIRES harmlessly into the floor. Mouse     
     is about to be chomped when...                                  
     ...a STALAGMITE OF GLASS in the top of the shattered window     
     drops, PIERCING the Girl Scout's head.                          
     Mouse runs SCREAMING to the door, where he is grabbed by        
     another DEAD THING. And another. As he is TORN APART, he sees   

                                                                     

     that there are DOZENS MORE.




     EXT. RIVER - NIGHT                                              


     CRANE UP TO REVEAL:





     ...AN ARMY OF THE DEAD LINING THE RIVERBANK FOR AS FAR AS THE


     EYE CAN SEE.                                                    





                                                                     

     CLOSE ON: BIG DADDY. Only the river now flows between he and
     his goal: FIDDLER'S GREEN HIGH-RISE, so near and yet so far.    




76                                                            76


     INT. KAUFMAN PENTHOUSE - NIGHT




     WHAM! The door SLAMS behind KAUFMAN as he enters the foyer.     
     KNIPP emerges from the rear.                                    

                        KNIPP                                        

              Any word from Mister Denbo, sir?                       

                        KAUFMAN                                      

              No. Pack us up. We might have                          
              to be leaving.




                        KNIPP                                        

              In the helicopters?                                    

                        KAUFMAN                                      

              We'll only need one of them.                           




                                                                     











                                                                     














                                                                     








                                                                     














                                                           57.











     INT/EXT. DEAD RECKONING - NIGHT


77                                                            77     

     PRETTY BOY eases the vehicle up the road to the complex of      
     buildings: ROSS PARK, a sprawling munitions depot.              
     The searchlight continues to sweep across the night, but NO
     ONE is manning it. It's mounted to an automatic rotator on      
     the roof of the main building.                                  

                        FOXY

              Looks like no one's here.                              
     The gates stand wide open. There's no sign of life.



     CHOLO punches a button. The SIDE HATCH HISSES OPEN.             

                        CHOLO                                        


                                                                     

              Foxy. You're elected. Get out there
              and see what the fuck.                                 




                                                                     

     Foxy moves out through the open hatch.




                        CHOLO (CONT'D)


                                                                     

              Somebody go out and help.



     SCAR grabs his weapons.                                         

                          SCAR

              I'll go.                                               

     EXT. RIVER - NIGHT


78                                                            78     





                                                                     

     ONE OF THE DEAD TOPPLES face first into the water, dropping
     out of sight. ANOTHER FALLS. BIG DADDY looks at the spot        
     where his brothers fell in. He looks for a long time, cocking   
     his head like a puppy trying to understand a high wind.         
     The first Dead Thing slowly rises out of the water. Then the    
     Second. They stand, waist deep, in the shallows.                
     Big Daddy gazes down at the water, a concept dawning. Then,     
     with grim purpose, he steps deliberately off the low wall.      
     Hitting the river, he manages to stay on his feet. Standing,    
     waist deep, with the others, he scoops up water with his one    
     good hand. Sniffs it. Tastes it.                                
     He looks up. Sees the CITY LIGHTS REFLECTED ON THE RIVER. He    
     tries to express his thoughts. All that comes from his mouth    
     is a series of inarticulate moans. He's incapable of            
     transmitting his idea. So he does what he's been doing since    
     Uniontown. He leads. He walks toward the city. Out of the       
     shallows. Into deep water. Over his head.                       




                                                                     














                                                                     














                                                                     











                                                                     














                                                             58.











     INT. UNDERWATER - NIGHT


79                                                             79    

     There are AUTOMOBILE TIRES, GARBAGE CANS, a rusted ANCHOR, a    
     sunken MOTOR BOAT, HUNDREDS of BEER BOTTLES...AND THOUSANDS     
     OF DEAD THINGS...WALKING...ON THE RIVER BOTTOM...following      
     BIG DADDY through the debris.                                   

     INT. TENEMENT - NIGHT


80                                                             80    

     A knock on a door is answered by A MAN who looks a bit too      
     greasy to be important. SUTHERLAND is outside.                  

                        SUTHERLAND                                   

              How much is Kaufman paying you and                     
              your men?                                              

                        GREASY MAN                                   


                                                                     

              Four hundred a day. Each.




                        STYLES                                       


                                                                     

              I'll pay you five thousand a day.
              Each.                                                  




81                                                             81    


     EXT. T-BIRD - NIGHT




     The car speeds down the road with SLACK at the wheel.




     INT. T-BIRD - NIGHT


82                                                             82    

     RILEY looks at his watch. 11:40.




     EXT. ROSS PARK AMMUNITION DEPOT - NIGHT


83                                                             83    

     The unmanned SEARCHLIGHT scans the yard, casting intermittent   
     shadows.                                                        

                        SCAR

              This place is important. The men                       
              here wouldn't just walk out.                           

                        FOXY                                         

              Maybe they had no choice.                              
     FOXY and SCAR move toward a large STORAGE BUILDING where a      
     door swings in the night breeze, SLAPPING alarmingly against    
     the wall. Beyond the opening is a BLACK MAW, like a velvet      
     curtain, past which nothing can be seen.                        

                        FOXY (CONT'D)                                

              There could be stenches in there.
              (Readying his M-16) Got a flashlight?                  




                                                                      














                                                                      














                                                           59.










     Scar nervously pulls out a flashlight. As he CLICKS on the       
     BEAM, he loses his grip. The flashlight drops to the ground.     
     Scar reaches for it. His fingers tip it and it spins. The        
     beam WASHES across his shoes. Then Foxy's shoes. Then finds...   
     ...ONE OTHER SHOE. Someone else's. Gasping, Scar grabs the       
     flashlight, shining the beam up onto what should be a leg,       
     but there's nothing left above its bloody shin.                  
     PLIP! PLOP! PLIP! Beads of BLOOD hit the floor, dropping
     from the DARK FIGURE of a SOLDIER who is approaching. Scar       
     aims the flashlight at the figure's face, recognizing...         

                        SCAR                                          

              Brubaker! You okay? Where's the                         
              other guys? What happened here?                         

                                                                      

     Brubaker keeps coming. He has BULLET HOLES in his chest, but
     they're not what's dripping blood. It's another half-eaten       
     FOOT that he's carrying. BRUBAKER IS DEAD. Foxy shoots him.      
     Foxy and Scar move into a hangar-like space. Pitch black.        
     Except for the mote-filled BEAM from Scar's flashlight, which    

                                                                      

     illuminates a supply of enormous cannon shells, lined up on
     storage shelves. THE "JOHNSONS".                                 
     SIX DEAD SOLDIERS are hunkered in the shadows, EATING the
     REMAINS of OTHER DEAD SOLDIERS.                                  




                                                                      

     Foxy grimly raises his weapon. As he squeezes the trigger,
     the sound of the gunfire OVERLAPS into...                        




84                                                               84


     INT. DEAD RECKONING - NIGHT




     ANCHOR and SCAR wrestle TWO "JOHNSONS" into place.               

                        CHOLO

              That's good. That's all we need.                        

                        FOXY                                          

              (Sober) To blow up the Green.                           

     INT./EXT. T-BIRD - HILLSIDE ROAD - NIGHT


85                                                               85   

     THE T-BIRD rumbles along a road lined with large HOMES, once     
     prized for their panoramic views. RILEY'S "Game Boy" BEEPS.
     The display shows the RED DOT moving along a MAP.                

                        RILEY

              Cholo's moving out. Looks like he's                     
              heading right for us.




                                                                     














                                                                     





                                                                     





                                                                     


              T














              S














                                                           60.










     Riley looks outside. Beyond the homes he can see THE CITY.




                        RILEY (CONT'D)

               hit. Off this hillside...they can
              shell the Green. Pull in! There!



     SLACK pulls into a driveway, stopping the T-Bird in the         
     shadow of one of the houses.




                        RILEY (CONT'D)

               hey'll be coming up this road.




     INT. BANK - FIDDLER'S GREEN - NIGHT


86                                                              86

     In a walk-in STEEL-WALLED SAFE, KAUFMAN pulls out banded        
     STACKS OF MONEY and stuffs them into TWO PRADA DUFFELS.         

87                                                              87   


     EXT. BOAT RAMP - NIGHT




     ONE HEAD RISES out of the river. It's BIG DADDY, rivulets of    

                                                                     

     water running down the creases of his face. Another head
     rises. And another. NUMBER NINE and the BUTCHER ZOMBIE.         
     More and more heads break the surface. The water FILLS with
     BODIES emerging from the deep. HUNDREDS OF THEM. The CITY       
     LIGHTS REFLECT off their wet clothes as the ARMY OF THE DEAD    

                                                                     

     clambers up a boat ramp on the city side of the river.




     EXT. HILLSIDE HOME DRIVEWAY - NIGHT


88                                                              88   

     RILEY and HIS TEAM wait in the shadows of the driveway they     
     pulled into. They HEAR the distant GROWL of DEAD RECKONING.     

                                                                     

     Looking over a hedge-row, Riley can see HIGH BEAMS advancing.




                        RILEY                                        

              (To the Others) Y'all stay here.                       

                        SLACK                                        

              You're goin' out there alone? You                      
              need our guns.                                         

                        RILEY                                        

              Dead Reckoning's got steel skin an                     
              inch thick. You can't shoot your                       
              way in. I'm hopin' I can talk my                       
              way in.                                                

                        MANOLETE

              He's gonna steal the truck and                         
              leave us here.                                         




                                                                      














                                                                      














                                                                      














                                                           61.











                        CHARLIE                                       

              Riley'd never do that. Just look at                     
              him, you can tell he'd never do that.                   

                        RILEY                                         

              Keep an eye on the hatches. If I                        
              get in, I'll try to leave one open.                     
     Riley takes off. Charlie looks torn. He wants to go with
     Riley, but he has to keep PILLSBURY and Manolete covered.        

                        PILLSBURY                                     

              I like dat man. You go help `im.                        
              I take care of dis sissy.



     Pillsbury, moving fast for a big woman, POUNDS Manolete's        
     temple with a mighty fist. He drops like a lead weight.          

     EXT. ROOFTOP - FIDDLER'S GREEN - NIGHT


89                                                               89   





                                                                      

     The door to the roof opens and the GREASY MAN from "downtown"
     steps out of a fire stair with ANOTHER GREASY MAN. SUTHERLAND    
     remains inside the door.                                         

                        GREASY MAN                                    

              I don't know about this. I mean...                      

                                                                      

              leavin' people behind...




                        SUTHERLAND                                    


                                                                      

              Kaufman was gonna leave people
              behind. So we're leaving him.                           




                                                                      

     The Greasy Men go trotting across the rooftop. As they climb
     into TWO HELICOPTERS, we realize that they are PILOTS.           

     EXT. HILLSIDE STREET - NIGHT


90                                                               90   

     RILEY walks down the road. The GROWLING of the diesels is        
     getting louder, the GLOW from the high-beams brighter. Riley     
     is startled by a NOISE behind him. He whirls around and sees     
     CHARLIE approaching.                                             

                        CHARLIE                                       

              Everything's cool back there.                           
     Riley is about to object, when DEAD RECKONING comes rumbling     
     around a corner a hundred yards down the street. Riley checks    
     his watch again. 11:52.                                          

                        CHARLIE (CONT'D)

              Too late to send me back.




                                                                     














                                                                     














                                                                     














                                                                     














                                                                     














                                                              62.











                        RILEY                                        

              Put on your Sunday smile. Try to                       
              look friendly.                                         

                        CHARLIE                                      

              I am friendly. Just look at me you                     
              can tell I'm friendly.                                 

     INT. DEAD RECKONING - NIGHT


91                                                              91   

     In the cab, PRETTY BOY eases off the gas. CHOLO looks out the   
     windshield as the headlights strike...                          

                        CHOLO                                        

              Denbo. And his idiot. (Beat) Stop.                     
              Gimme the mike.                                        

                                                                     

     The vehicle crunches to a stop forty yards away. Pretty
     Boy hands Cholo a microphone. Cholo speaks into it.             




                                                                     


                        CHOLO (CONT'D)

              How'd you get up here, Riley?




                                                                     


     INTERCUT: BETWEEN THE STREET AND DEAD RECKONING'S CAB.





                        RILEY                                        


                                                                     

              Grabbed the T-Bird.




                        CHOLO


                                                                     

              What are you doin' up here?




                        RILEY                                        


                                                                     

              Tracking you. With this.



     Riley holds up his "Game Boy". Cholo looks surprised.




                        RILEY (CONT'D)                               

              Truck's got a little transmitter in
              her belly. Sorry I never told you.                     

                        CHOLO                                        

              You were always a smart guy, Riley.                    
              Much smarter'n me.                                     

                        RILEY

              You went and took off without                          
              inviting us along.                                     

                        CHOLO                                        

              You weren't around to get invited.                     
              Anyway, I figured you wouldn't                         
              want in on this.




                                                                      














                                                                      








                                                                      














                                                                      














                                                           63.











                        RILEY                                         

              We want in on anything you got goin'.                   

                        CHOLO

              (To Pretty Boy) Open up.                                

                        FOXY                                          

              What're you, nuts?                                      

                         CHOLO                                        

              Open up!                                                

     EXT. HILLSIDE HOME DRIVEWAY - NIGHT


92                                                               92   

     SLACK and PILLSBURY watch from the shadows as a HATCH OPENS.     

     INT. DEAD RECKONING - NIGHT


93                                                               93   

     RILEY and CHARLIE step on board. PRETTY BOY is at the            
     controls. FOXY, ANCHOR, and SCAR stand nearby. Charlie is        

                                                                      

     grinning like a badly scarred Cheshire cat.




                        CHOLO                                         


                                                                      

              The hell you so happy about?




                        CHARLIE                                       


                                                                      

              Riley told me to smile. So's you'd
              let us come in.                                         




                                                                      


                         CHOLO

              I'd rather have you in here than                        
              out there.                                              
     KA-CHUNK! Cholo lifts his crossbow, pressing a loaded arrow      
     up under Riley's chin. BLOOD TRICKLES.                           

                        CHOLO (CONT'D)                                

              Who's the smart one now?



     Charlie is about to react when he feels Foxy's M-16 poking       
     into his back.                                                   
     Cholo looks into Riley's eyes.




                        CHOLO (CONT'D)                                

              Thought you were gonna quit. Here
              you are still working for the man.                      
              Kaufman sent you out here, didn't                       
              he? To get the truck back.                              

                         RILEY

              Yes.                                                    




                                                                     





                                                                     








                                                                     














                                                                     














                                                                     














                                                           64.











     EXT. HILLSIDE HOME DRIVEWAY - NIGHT


94                                                              94   

     SLACK and PILLSBURY creep forward, freezing as they see         
     RILEY with the crossbow at his neck. Slack aims her K-90 at     
     CHOLO, RUSTLING branches as she moves.                          

                        SLACK                                        

              That man pulls the trigger, he's                       
              dead.                                                  

     INT. DEAD RECKONING - NIGHT


95                                                              95

     CHOLO cocks his head outside.                                   

                        CHOLO                                        

              Who else is out there?                                 

                                                                     


                        RILEY

              Kaufman sent some guys with us.                        
              We took care of `em. I know you

                                                                     

              been up to Ross Park. Picked up
              some Johnsons, huh?                                    




                                                                     


                        CHOLO

              Yup. Pretty Boy, set the cannons.                      




96                                                              96   


     EXT. DEAD RECKONING - HILLSIDE - NIGHT




     With great WHIRRING SOUNDS, the vehicle's largest guns begin    

                                                                     

     to ROTATE slowly toward the city across the river.




                        SLACK                                        


                                                                     

              We're running out of time here.
              C'mon, Riley. Make yourself useful.                    
     MANOLETE begins to stir on the ground beside THE T-BIRD.        

     INT. DEAD RECKONING - NIGHT


97                                                              97

     RILEY keeps cool.                                               

                        RILEY

              Don't do it, Cholo.                                    

                        CHOLO

              Kaufman's got it coming.                               

     EXT. DEAD RECKONING - HILLSIDE - NIGHT


98                                                              98   

     SLACK and PILLSBURY watch THE GUN TURRET continue to turn,      
     the cannon barrels angling toward FIDDLER'S GREEN.              




                                                                       











                                                                       














                                                                       














                                                               65.











      INT. DEAD RECKONING - NIGHT


99                                                                99   

      PRETTY BOY lifts a clear cover off a RED FIRING BUTTON.          

                         RILEY

               Hit the tower square, you'll kill a                     
               lot of innocent people. Miss and                        
               hit the city, you'll kill a lot of                      
               our friends. Your beef's with                           
               Kaufman, not them.                                      
      The turret on the roof GROANS as the cannons rotate.             

                         CHOLO                                         

               He's killed a lot of our friends.                       
               Every week we took out the garbage,                     
               you and me. Every month I took out                      

                                                                       

               Kaufman's garbage. People he wanted
               off the streets. He turned me into a                    
               goon and then he pissed all over me!                    

                                                                       

               Foxy, keep `em covered.




      EXT. DEAD RECKONING - HILLSIDE - NIGHT


100                                                             100    

      The turret stops, cannons aimed directly at the GREEN.           




101                                                             101    


      INT. DEAD RECKONING - NIGHT




      CHOLO moves to the RED FIRING BUTTON.                            

                         CHOLO                                         

               When the smoke clears, I'm gonna

                                                                       

               roll in, hit the bank, take the
               money, and pick up any other fancy                      
               shit I can get my hands on.                             

                         RILEY                                         

               There won't be any fancy shit left.                     
               And money burns.                                        

                         CHOLO                                         

               Not when you keep it in a safe.                         

      EXT. DEAD RECKONING - HILLSIDE - NIGHT


102                                                             102    

      MANOLETE pulls one of the MACHINE GUNS out of its mount on
      the T-BIRD. Shouldering it, he creeps toward DEAD RECKONING.     

      INT. DEAD RECKONING - NIGHT


103                                                             103


      ON THE CONTROL PANEL: A CLOCK CLICKS DOWN TO MIDNIGHT.           

      4...3...2...1...CHOLO reaches down and pushes the button.        




                                                                      














                                                                      














                                                             66.











      EXT. DEAD RECKONING - HILLSIDE - NIGHT


104                                                             104   

      The GUN BARRELS are cold. SILENT.                               

      INT. DEAD RECKONING - NIGHT


105                                                             105   

      CHOLO punches the button again. Again. Nothing happens.         

                         CHOLO                                        


               WHAT THE FUCK?                                         

      CHOLO'S eyes fall to the "Game Boy" in Riley's hand.            

                         CHOLO                                        

               You did something, didn't you?                         
               With your FUCKING TOY!                                 

                                                                      

      Riley pushes another button on the "Game Boy". Outside...




      EXT. DEAD RECKONING - HILLSIDE - NIGHT


106                                                             106   

      ...TWO STEEL LOCKING RINGS swing up to cap the cannons. Just    
      beyond the barrels we see MANOLETE closing in on DEAD           

                                                                      

      RECKONING, raising his machine gun. A DEAD THING advances
      behind him.                                                     




107                                                             107   


      INT. DEAD RECKONING - NIGHT




      CHOLO charges RILEY. Grabs him around the throat.               

                         CHOLO                                        

               Fix it!                                                

                         RILEY                                        

               Not a chance.                                          
      Riley tosses the "Game Boy" out the open hatch. Cholo reaches   
      out after it.                                                   

      EXT. DEAD RECKONING - HILLSIDE - NIGHT


108                                                             108

      MANOLETE has the machine gun aimed at DEAD RECKONING'S open     
      hatch. Where CHOLO is standing.                                 
      Out of the corner of his eye, RILEY sees Manolete's machine
      gun barrel flash in the moonlight. MANOLETE FIRES! RATATAT!     
      RILEY PUSHES CHOLO OUT OF THE WAY JUST IN TIME! He drops from   
      the hatch onto the pavement, wounded in the shoulder.           
      The Walker starts to rip Manolete apart. Slack SHOOTS HIM in    
      the head. Then she and PILLSBURY open fire on the Walker,       
      destroying it.                                                  




                                                                      














                                                                      














                                                            67.











      INT. DEAD RECKONING - NIGHT


109                                                           109     

      FOXY, distracted by the mayhem, lets CHARLIE get the drop on    
      him. ANCHOR and SCAR go for their guns. RILEY unslings his      
      M-16 and holds them at bay.                                     

                            RILEY                                     

               Easy boys.                                             
      Riley looks at the clock on the control panel. 12:01. Charlie   
      follows his gaze.                                               

                         CHARLIE                                      

               Geez. We just made it.                                 
      Riley CLICKS the transmitter on.                                

                                                                      


                         RILEY

               Riley Denbo calling the Green.                         




110                                                           110     


      INT. PENTHOUSE CORRIDOR - FIDDLER'S GREEN - NIGHT




      BING! KAUFMAN steps off the elevator, carrying his two Prada

                                                                      

      bags full of money. A TWO-WAY RADIO in his pocket RINGS.




                         KAUFMAN                                      


                                                                      

               (Into radio, urgent) Yes?




                         RILEY (O.S.)                                 


                                                                      

               We got Cholo.




                         KAUFMAN                                      


                                                                      

               (Sagging with relief) I owe you,
               Mister Denbo.                                          

      INT. DEAD RECKONING - NIGHT


111                                                           111     


                         RILEY

               I'm glad you feel that way. Because                    
               I'm taking your fucking truck.                         

      INT. KAUFMAN'S PENTHOUSE - FIDDLER'S GREEN - NIGHT


112                                                           112     

      KAUFMAN rushes in with his bags, dropping them beside other     
      luggage that is already packed.                                 

                         KNIPP

               (Frightened) Mister Kaufman, sir. I                    
               dunno what's happening, sir, but it                    
               sounds bad.                                            




                                                                      














                                                            68.










      The windows are sealed so the NOISE Kaufman hears is MUFFLED,   
      but it is definitely the SOUND OF DISORDER. He goes to a        
      window. Looks down and sees...                                  
      ...flashes of LIGHT from gunfire. SMOKE rising from an          
      EXPLOSION. PEOPLE running. THE DEAD swarming into the city      
      like ants. A war has begun.                                     

      EXT. ROOFTOP - FIDDLER'S GREEN - NIGHT


113                                                           113

      SUTHERLAND stands at the edge of the roof, looking down at      
      what Kaufman just saw.                                          

                         SUTHERLAND                                   

               All this time Kaufman's been                           
               worried about a revolution on the                      
               streets. He never thought it would                     

                                                                      

               come from across the river.



      Sutherland, STYLES, OTHER BOARD MEMBERS, and their FAMILIES     

                                                                      

      get into the TWO HELICOPTERS.




      INT. KAUFMAN'S PENTHOUSE - FIDDLER'S GREEN - NIGHT


114                                                           114     

      THE SOUND OF RUMBLING. The CEILING VIBRATES, knocking tear-     
      shaped baubles off a CHANDELIER. The SOUND BUILDS in            

                                                                      

      intensity. Then suddenly eases off. Through the window,
      KAUFMAN sees the things that caused the rumbling...             




                                                                      

      ...TWO HELICOPTERS, SOARING off into the night.




                         KAUFMAN (CONT'D)                             

               No. No. They can't leave. Not
               without me!                                            

                         KNIPP                                        

               I think they just did, sir.                            

      EXT. DEAD RECKONING - HILLSIDE - NIGHT


115                                                           115     

      RILEY jumps out onto the street where CHOLO lies, bleeding      
      from the top of his left shoulder.                              

                         CHOLO                                        

               I hate you, Riley. There's                             
               something about you I've always                        
               fucking hated.                                         

                         RILEY                                        

               (Smiling) Same here.                                   

                         SLACK                                        

               Riley. Look out there.                                 




                                                                














                                                                








                                                                














                                                         69.










Riley looks where SLACK is pointing. From across the river      
comes a flickering ORANGE GLOW.                                 
Riley moves to a spot where he can see between the houses on
the hillside. In the distance, FIRE rises from the city.        
Cholo sits up, cackling.                                        

                   CHOLO

         I didn't have to blow the fucking                      
         place up. Somebody else did for me!                    

                   RILEY                                        

         (Stunned) The stenches. They got                       
         across the river. They got across                      
         the fucking river. (To the others)                     
         Get him inside.                                        
PILLSBURY steps in and lifts Cholo easily to his feet.          




                                                                


                   CHOLO

         Wait, wait, wait. What are we                          
         doin'? Where we goin'?                                 

                   RILEY                                        

         Back to the city.                                      

                   CHOLO

         Not this horse. You got the T-Bird?                    

                                                                

         I'll take that.




                    FOXY                                        


                                                                

         Me, too.



FOXY jumps out of DEAD RECKONING and stands at Cholo's side.    
Riley, Slack, and Pillsbury climb aboard. Riley looks down at   
Cholo and Foxy.                                                 

                   RILEY                                        

         You guys'd be safer coming with us.                    

                   CHOLO                                        

         Nah, you'd never let me have any                       
         fun.                                                   

                   RILEY                                        

         T-Bird's down that driveway over                       
         there. Guns and ammo inside.                           

                    CHOLO                                       

         Thanks.                                                




                                                                       











                                                                       














                                                                       














                                                                       











                                                                       














                                                            70.











      INT. DEAD RECKONING - NIGHT


116                                                              116   

      RILEY closes the hatch. Blood trickles from under his chin       
      where Cholo stuck him with the crossbow.                         
      SLACK reaches up and pulls off the bandana that holds back
      her hair, which cascades down. She uses the fabric to clean      
      the blood off Riley's neck.                                      
      He looks at her, touched by the familiarity of the gesture.      

                         SLACK

               Almost lost you there.                                  

                          RILEY                                        

               I don't get lost so easy. (To                           
               PRETTY BOY) We gotta get across                         
               the water.




                         PRETTY BOY                                    


                                                                       

               The bridges into the city are all
               bricked up.                                             




                                                                       

      PRETTY BOY hits a button. A MAP appears on a MONITOR, showing
      the "GOLDEN TRIANGLE" bordered by the rivers and the             
      barricaded bridges spanning them.                                

                         SLACK                                         

               We could blast our way through.                         

                         RILEY                                         

               Don't want to. If the stenches got                      

                                                                       

               in, there's a war going on in the
               city. We take any of those bridges                      
               we'll end up right in the middle                        
               of it.                                                  
      Riley runs his finger along the monitor, outlining the           
      natural and man-made barriers that protect the triangle.         

                         RILEY (CONT'D)

               We've gotta come in above the                           
               throat.                                                 
      His finger continues down the monitor to "THE THROAT" at the
      base of the triangle, where the long FENCE runs between the      
      two rivers.                                                      

                         RILEY (CONT'D)                                

               What was built to keep folks safe                       
               is gonna trap them inside. We've                        
               gotta give them a way out.                              




                                                                      








                           C














                           C








      E














                           C














                           C














                                                              71.











      EXT. FIDDLER'S GREEN - NIGHT


117                                                            117    

      CLOSE ON: KAUFMAN staring out his PENTHOUSE WINDOW, aghast.     
      LICKS OF FIRE reflect on the glass. SOUNDS OF WAR can be        
      heard from far below.                                           

      EXT. "GOLDEN TRIANGLE - NIGHT


118                                                            118    

      In the pristine plaza that surrounds the building, WALKERS      
      swarm. CITIZENS run, screaming, including SOLDIERS, driven
      from their posts, who SHOOT at the Dead Things.



      CLOSE ON BIG DADDY. Who looks back and forth, as if torn, at
      the FIDDLER'S GREEN HIGH-RISE, at the violence in the streets,
      back at the building, back at the streets. A SOLDIER fires at 
      him! Misses. Big Daddy raises his rifle and blows him away.    

119                                                            119


      EXT. HILLSIDE HOME DRIVEWAY - NIGHT




      CHOLO and FOXY run up the road to THE T-BIRD. Seeing a WALKER   
      lurking ahead, they duck into the dark cover of the trees.




                            HOLO

               I got it.



      WFFFFT! Cholo picks off the Walker with his crossbow.           

                          HOLO (CONT'D)

               Come on, let's go.



      He slaps a hand on Foxy's back.



       XCEPT IT'S NOT FOXY! It's ANOTHER WALKER that has moved
      between the two men. It grabs the hand that slapped him and
      BITES it.




                          HOLO


               AHHH...FUCK!




      Foxy, a few yards away, whirls, aiming his gun at the Walker.
      Cholo is faster. With no time to reload, in agony, he pulls     
      a FISTFUL OF ARROWS from his quiver and DRIVES THEM THROUGH     
      THE WALKER'S FACE AND SKULL. The Walker falls. So does an       
      ominous silence.




                          HOLO (CONT'D)

               I can't fucking believe it. (A sad
               chuckle) Nothin' works out. It's                       
               like...the world is spinning around                    
               and we're just...caught in the                         
               wind. Nothin' works out. Some damn                     
               thing always comes around the                          
               corner and gets you.                                   




                                                                      














                                                                      








1














      D














               I














                                                             72.










      Foxy aims his rifle Fat Cholo's forehead. Their eyes connect.




                          OXY

               Your choice.



      For a moment, Cholo looks despondent. Then he forces a smile.




                         CHOLO

               No, don't shoot. (A dark chuckle)
                 always wanted to see how the
               other half lives.



      Foxy lowers his gun.                                            

                         CHOLO (CONT'D)                               

               Take the car and get outa here.                        

                                                                      


                         FOXY

               I'll get outa here. You take the                       
               car.                                                   

      INT/EXT. DEAD RECKONING - RIVER ROAD - NIGHT


120                                                             120





                                                                      

       EAD RECKONING drives upriver. THROUGH THE WINDSHIELD: THE
      CITY can be seen BURNING in the distance.




                         PRETTY BOY

               The old J&L'll take us over. Right
               outside the throat.




      EXT. J&L DRAWBRIDGE - NIGHT


121                                                             121





                                                                      

      A drawbridge spans the river. Or would span it if it wasn't
      open, its rusted metal roadbed rising into the sky.             

      INT. DEAD RECKONING - NIGHT


 22                                                             122


                         RILEY

               Gotta get it down.                                     

                         PRETTY BOY

               The controls are in that booth up                      
               there.                                                 

      EXT. CONTROL BOOTH - J&L DRAWBRIDGE - NIGHT                     


      RILEY'S POV:




      A CONTROL BOOTH is built into the superstructure of the         
      bridge, about fifteen feet off the ground, on DEAD              
      RECKONING'S side of the river.                                  




                                                                       














                                                                       














                                                                       














                                                                       














                                                                       














                                                            73.











      EXT. J&L DRAWBRIDGE - NIGHT


123                                                              123   

      RILEY jumps out of DEAD RECKONING. SLACK is right behind him.    

                         RILEY                                         

               Get back in there. What are you                         
               doing?                                                  
      BLAM! She shoots a WALKER that has come out of the night.




                         SLACK                                         

               Making myself useful.                                   

      EXT. DEPOT - NIGHT


124                                                              124   

      CHOLO jumps out of the T-BIRD and runs to the steel doors,
      unlocking them with a mag-key.                                   

      INT. SUBWAY TUNNEL - NIGHT


125                                                              125   





                                                                       

      CHOLO walks with determination along the deserted tracks
      under the river.                                                 




126                                                              126   


      EXT. J&L DRAWBRIDGE - NIGHT




      RILEY ducks under a caution gate at the entrance to the          

                                                                       

      bridge and starts across the roadway. Behind him...



      ...SLACK and CHARLIE stand, weapons ready, eyes alert for        

                                                                       

      danger.



      As Riley runs...                                                 
      ...SOMETHING SKITTERS across the road, chasing him. Not a        
      zombie. Much smaller. A RIVER RAT.                               
      Charlie draws his REMINGTON. Wets the sight with his thumb.      

      BLAM!                                                            

      Riley stops running. Looks back to see what's being shot.




                         SLACK                                         

               You missed.                                             

                         CHARLIE

               Nope. I blew its ass off.                               
      The rat is now half a rat. Its ass has been blown off. Yet       

      IT'S STILL RUNNING!                                              


                         CHARLIE (CONT'D)

               Just didn't hit it in the head.                         




                                                                      














                                                            74.











                         SLACK                                        

               (Realizing) Jesus. It's dead.                          

                         CHARLIE

               They all are.                                          
      SKREEEEEEEE! ZOMBIE RATS crawl up onto the roadbed. DOZENS.     
      Riley takes off away from them. Slack and Charlie hurry         
      closer, firing, trying to pick the critters off.                
      The rats reach Riley! Nip at his heels. He leaps. Swings onto
      a girder. Climbs to the control booth. The rats don't follow.   
      Slack heaves a sigh of relief just before...                    
      ...SKREEEEEEEE! A second pack of rats scurries toward her!      
      She vaults over a railing, dropping several feet to...          
      ...the riverbank below. But there are rats here too! Charlie    
      fires at them from above. BLAM! BLAM! BLAM! FUR AND BLOOD       

                                                                      

      FLY. But there are too many. He can't shoot them all.




      INT. CONTROL BOOTH - J&L DRAWBRIDGE - NIGHT


127                                                           127     

      RILEY reaches the control booth. Draws his .45, expecting       
      danger within. He steps through the opening...                  
      ...but nothing's there. Just a SPIDER WEB that sweeps over      
      his face as he moves toward a RED SWITCH that activates a       

                                                                      

      generator. He flips it. The motor roars to life.



      He turns toward a giant lever that operates the roadbed. It     

                                                                      

      GROANS from disuse as he pulls it.




      EXT. J&L DRAWBRIDGE - NIGHT


128                                                           128     

      RED LIGHTS on the caution gates BLINK, tinting the night.       
      The silence is shattered by a LOUD SIREN that ECHOES across     
      the river. The bridge's roadbed begins to CREAK down slowly.    

      EXT. RIVERBANK - NIGHT


129                                                           129     

      THREE DINGHIES lie, upside down, next to the water's edge.      
      SLACK shoves one into the river, climbing onto its upturned     
      bottom. She pushes off. The boat doesn't budge. A tether        
      holds it within inches of the shore.                            
      Slack pulls out a jackknife and goes to cut the rope, but...



      ...rats SNAP at her hands. Slack recoils, but keeps cutting.    
      Finally, the rope frays, enough for the boat to pull free.      




      T














                                                                      








                                                                      














                                                                      














                                                                      














                                                            75.










      Slack crouches on top of the upturned hull. No way to steer.    
      No paddles. The current carrying her away.                      

                           CHARLIE

               Slack!                                                 

      INT. CONTROL BOOTH - J&L DRAWBRIDGE - NIGHT


130                                                           130     

      Hearing the scream, RILEY looks out the control booth window    
      and sees...                                                     
      ...SLACK being taken downstream.                                

      EXT. J&L DRAWBRIDGE - NIGHT




      RILEY bursts out of the booth, only to be confronted by...      

                                                                      

      ...the BRIDGEKEEPER. Drooling. Dead. It grabs Riley, pushing
      his head back toward the enormous GEARWORKS of the bridge.      




                                                                      

      Riley struggles. Bests the creature. Spins him around toward
      the gearworks and...                                            




                                                                      

      ...SSSNIPPPP! THE BRIDGEKEEPER'S HEAD is scissored off! It
      drops with a PLUNK into the river below.                        




131                                                           131     


      EXT. RIVER - NIGHT




      SLACK, adrift on the boat, lies prone at the bow and begins     

                                                                      

      to paddle with her hands. One of which hits something long
      and slimy. It looks like a snake!                               
      But it's not. It's only a moss-covered rope. Slack grabs on.
      Pulls hand over hand. It seems to take forever for the rope     
      to become taut.                                                 

      A FACE BOBS OUT OF THE WATER!




      Slack SCREAMS.                                                  
      It's the BRIDGEKEEPER'S HEAD, its eyes blinking as it floats    
      off on the current.                                             
       he rope is attached to a stanchion on the opposite shore.      
      Slack's muscles strain as she pulls on it until...              
      ...her boat reaches the stanchion and she jumps off, finding    
      herself at the same boat ramp the army of the dead used. The    
      river has carried her into the very part of the city Riley      
      and the team were trying to avoid. SCREAMS rise nearby. She's   
      in the war zone.                                                




                                                                       














                                                                       














                                                                       














                                                                       














                                                              76.











      EXT. J&L DRAWBRIDGE - NIGHT


132                                                              132   

      THE BRIDGE IS LOWERING SLOWLY. Too slowly. RILEY scrambles       
      up the incline of the roadbed and calls back to CHARLIE.

                         R                                             


                          ILEY

               Bring her over as soon as you can!



      Charlie pops back into DEAD RECKONING.                           
      Riley climbs to the top of the descending roadbed and...         
      ...LEAPS across the narrowing gulf to the other side.            
      He lands. Falls. Rolls. Gets to his feet and runs toward
      Slack and the city.




133                                                              133


      EXT. "GOLDEN TRIANGLE" - NIGHT




      SLACK runs past hysterical PEOPLE toward the FIDDLER'S GREEN     

                                                                       

      HIGH-RISE. BRIAN, Mulligan's young son, rushes by her in a
      panic. Slack grabs him.                                          




                                                                       


                           SLACK

               Brian!                                                  




                                                                       


                         BRIAN

               We can't get out! There's no way out!




                         SLACK

               There will be. Come with me.




                         BRIAN

               Daddy! Daddy's still locked up.                         
      Slack runs off with Brian, past a MANHOLE surrounded by          
      canvas fences, "CAUTION" signs, and flaming OIL POTS. As
      MAINTENANCE WORKERS scramble out of the manhole...               
      ...DEAD THINGS close in. The Workers, unarmed, pick up the
      ball-shaped pots and BOWL them at the Walkers. As the "balls"
      roll, their FIRES SWIRL, making them look like flaming comets.

      S

       ome of the   pots CRACK OPEN, creating POOLS OF FIRE on the
      street. One   of the "balls" remains whole until it smacks
      against the   feet of a Walker. Then it opens. And the Walker
      is engulfed   in flames.



      Big Daddy looks at the Walker with sadness. He lifts his
      rifle again and shoots the flaming creature in the head.         




      B














                                                                      








                                                                      














                                                            77.










      Big Daddy walks to the manhole. TOOLS are strewn around it,     
      pickaxes, sledges, chainsaws, and a pneumatic hammer which is
      lying on the street...RATTATATTAT...still running.



      Big Daddy looks at the FIDDLER'S GREEN SKYSCRAPER. His goal.    
      Finally in reach.                                               
      He looks down at the pneumatic hammer, and picks it up by the
      handle. With the heavy tool vibrating in its hand, Big Daddy
      walks toward the building.



      He doesn't get very far before the hammer's electrical cord
      is pulled out of the extension it's plugged into. The hammer
      stops running. Big Daddy looks at it. Puzzles over its
      stillness for a moment. Then...



      ...he looks at the building. At its doors, abandoned by         
      guards. Doors that are made of glass.



      The barrel of an M-16 is planted against Big Daddy's temple     
      by a MILITIAMAN.



       UDDA-BUDDA-BUDDA! The Militiaman FLIES BACK. It wasn't he

                                                                      

      who fired. It was NUMBER NINE, standing nearby with her M-16.
      The Militiaman lies on the ground, his dead eyes staring at
      Number NINE in utter surprise.



      Seeing what has happened, ANOTHER SOLDIER grabs a grenade,      
      pulls the pin, and is about to toss it at Big Daddy when...



      ...his HAND IS CUT OFF at the wrist by a meat clever held by
      THE BUTCHER. The Soldier's hand, still clutching the grenade,   

                                                                      

      PLOPS into the street. The Soldier looks down in horror, then
      collapses on top of his hand. A MUFFLED EXPLOSION makes jelly
      of his mid-section.



      Big Daddy continues to walk toward the building, carrying the
      pneumatic hammer, as OTHER DEAD THINGS collect sledges,
      pickaxes, lengths of pipe, and follow their leader.

1                                                                     


      INT. FIDDLER'S GREEN ATRIUM - NIGHT


 34                                                             134

      KAUFMAN and KNIPP, carrying the Prada duffles, rush out of an
      elevator with FOUR SECURITY GUARDS. Kaufman carries a gun.

      T                                                               

       hey race into the street level of the three-story ATRIUM.
      Chopin LILTS, caged birds SING. RESIDENTS SCREAM, running
      crazily in all directions.



      A bank of GLASS DOORS leading to the street is under assault
      by WALKERS, ten deep.




         T


         I














C











         I














         G














                                                      78.











                   KAUFMAN

         They can't get in. Downstairs.                         
         The car.                                               
The Dead Things POUND at the doors. One Guard runs away. The
Other Three follow.




                   KAUFMAN (CONT'D)

          et back here! GET BACK HERE!



Kaufman FIRES THREE ROUNDS at the men! He's not a marksman,
but ONE of the GUARDS is WINGED. Whirls around and levels his   
M-16 at Kaufman.




                   SECURITY GUARD


         YOU STUPID OLD FUCK!




He's about to fire when Knipp steps in front of Kaufman.




                   KNIPP

         DON'T SHOOT! (Grabbing Kaufman's
         gun hand) Boss? Don't you shoot,
         neither. We're all on the same

                   S

         side. Least we're supposed to be.




                    ECURITY GUARD

         I'm on my own side now.



The Guard takes off after his comrades.




                   CHOLO (O.S.)

         Need some help, Mister K.?



Kaufman spins around to see CHOLO walking toward him across     
the atrium.




                   CHOLO (CONT'D)

           been bit, Mister K. I'm a dead
         man, so I don't care about nothin'
         no more. Still care about you,
         though. I wanna make sure you come
         to the same end as me.



 LANG! CLANG! CLANG! The Dead Things at the glass doors are
POUNDING now with shovels, pickaxes, and lengths of pipe.




                   CHOLO (CONT'D)

          hey're going to get you, Mister K.
           want them to get you.



Kaufman raises his gun and aims at Cholo, who aims back with    
his crossbow.                                                   




K














                   K














K











         P














                                                      79.











                   CHOLO (CONT'D)

          ut it down, old man, unless you'd
         rather die right now.



BIG DADDY appears outside the doors. Uses his pneumatic
hammer to POUND at the safety glass.



 aufman can't take it anymore. He bolts for a stairway door.
Cholo shoots. An arrows hits Kaufman in the back of his left    
calf. Kaufman sprawls, dropping both his bag of money and his   
gun, which skitters Kaway. Knipp rushes over to help Kaufman.   

                    NIPP

         Just let us go, Mister DeMora. Let
         us get out of here.




                   CHOLO


                                                                

         (Calmly reloading) You can go,
         Knipp, but not him.




                                                                

Kaufman shakes Knipp off. His gun is ten feet away. He heads
for it. Dragging himself on hands and knees.



CRUNCH! The chisel on Big Daddy's pneumatic hammer is the
first tool to PENETRATE the doors. The glass doesn't shatter;
it COBWEBS into tiny crystals stuck together by a thin
plasticine coating. ALARM BELLS SOUND!



Puzzled by the sudden transformation of the glass into
something that looks different, Big Daddy drops the pneumatic
hammer and reaches out. The glass is different. It's soft.
Flexible. Big Daddy POKES HIS HAND right through.



Kaufman has almost reached his gun. Cholo shoots another        
arrow. This one hits Kaufman in the shoulder.                   

                    AUFMAN

         You fucking spic bastard!




                   CHOLO

         I think we should talk when you're
         a little less excited.



Kaufman has a will of iron. He keeps going, gritting his
teeth against the pain, reaching out for his gun, as...



CRUNCH! CRUNCH! CRUNCH! More tools PENETRATE the doors. More
HANDS POKE through.



 aufman looks at his worst nightmare...Dead Things ripping
their way through the cobwebbed doors, invading his temple.




      R














                                                                       








                                                                       














      M














                                                            80.










      The commotion distracts Cholo just long enough for Kaufman to    
      lift his gun and FIRE nine rounds.                               
       ost of the shots miss. TWO hit Cholo, one in the belly, one
      in the heart. He is slammed against the wall, his glazing
      eyes staring up into the atrium, the place he so desired.
      It's the last thing he sees before he keels over, dead.          
      Knipp pulls Kaufman onto his feet. They look up to see...



      BIG DADDY leading his army into the atrium. Kaufman aims and
      FIRES. A BULLET HITS BIG DADDY in the upper chest, blowing       
      DEAD FLESH out of his back. The Dead Man feels no pain, but      
      it focuses on Kaufman and starts after him with purpose.



      Kaufman sees something in Big Daddy's eyes. Something that's
      not dead. Kaufman fires again. CLICK! He's out of ammo.

                         K


                          NIPP

               Boss. We gotta get outa here!



      Knipp pulls Kaufman to a stairway door. They rush inside. The
      moment they're out of sight, the Walkers forget about them,
      moving on into the atrium. All except Big Daddy. That rage is
      still in its face as he lumbers toward the stairway door.        




135                                                           135


      EXT. J&L DRAWBRIDGE - NIGHT




      TH-BOOOOM! The roadbed of the drawbridge drops into place.
      VROOOM! DEAD RECKONING rumbles across the span.




      INT. JAIL - NIGHT


136                                                           136      

      KEYS TURN in the locks of cell doors, which SLACK and BRIAN
      pull open. MULLIGAN and his REVOLUTIONARIES emerge. Mulligan     
      embraces his son and looks gratefully at Slack.                  

                         MULLIGAN

               (To his men) Let's go get our guns,                     
               boys.                                                   

      EXT. NEAR THE "THROAT" - NIGHT


137                                                           137

       ILEY runs out of a line of trees. In the distance, he sees...



      ...the "THROAT", where much of the CITY'S POPULATION is
      trapped, herded by HUNDREDS OF WALKING DEAD against the layers
      of electrified fencing that were erected to protect them.
      There's no escape. People are being TORN apart and EATEN. The 
      fencing SPARKS as bodies touch it and are ELECTROCUTED.
      Terrible SCREAMS fill the air.




                         R














                         C














1














      .














                                                            81.










      Riley hears the distinctive ROAR of DEAD RECKONING'S engines,
      the CLATTER of its treads. He moves toward the sound as...



       ..a DEAD THING looms three feet away. Riley lifts his pistol
      and puts a shell through the thing's skull. Blood flies,
      taking on the sudden glow of a halo as it is BACKLIT by...



      ...the glare of DEAD RECKONING'S approaching headlights. The
      dead thing falls to the road, where...



      ...it is turned to apple butter by Dead Reckoning's enormous
      treads. Riley stands right in the vehicle's path.




                         PRETTY BOY (O.S. LOUDSPEAKER)


               G

                et outa the way, Riley!                               

      INT. DEAD RECKONING - NIGHT


 38                                                           138

      THROUGH THE WINDSHIELD: RILEY looms larger and larger as the
      vehicle closes in. He doesn't move. PRETTY BOY tries to turn
      the wheel. Too late. RILEY DISAPPEARS!




                          HARLIE

               (Pure anguish) RILEY!



      Three seconds later, Riley's figure comes scrambling across     
      the windshield, climbing up toward...




      EXT. DEAD RECKONING - NIGHT


139                                                           139     

      ...the two fourteen-inch cannons on the vehicle's turrets.




                          ILEY

               We gotta blow the fences!




                         PRETTY BOY (O.S. LOUDSPEAKER)

               Johnson's are loaded!




                         RILEY

               Yeah, but they're capped!                              
      The barrels of the two fourteen-inchers are still capped.
      DEAD RECKONING keeps rolling. RILEY climbs out onto one of
      the cannon barrels.



      WHAM! A WALKER grabs him by the leg from the road. Riley
      blasts him with his .45. As OTHER WALKERS approach, he shoots
      them with one hand, Rusing the other to uncap the cannon.




                           ILEY

               Number One is clear! I'm going for
               Number Two!




                         K














      K













               n







                         K














      S














                                                            82.











                         CHARLIE (O.S. LOUDSPEAKER)

               I don't norm'lly need two shots,
               Riley.



      Riley turns. The road is now filled with WALKERS.



       tanding ASTRIDE the vehicle, riding it as if it were a
      living beast, Riley picks some of them of with his .45.         

      INT. FIDDLER'S GREEN PARKING GARAGE - NIGHT


140                                                             140

      FOOTSTEPS ECHO as KNIPP, carrying one of the Prada duffles,
      helps the wounded KAUFMAN across an underground PARKING         
      GARAGE, a dark and spooky place, made more so by the SOUNDS
      of distant SCREAMING. Kaufman disdainfully SNAPS OFF the        
      shanks of the arrows in his leg and shoulder.                   
      The two men reach a stretch LINCOLN. Knipp BEEPS the doors
      open and they get inside, Knipp behind the wheel, Kaufman in
      the luxurious back compartment, where he pours himself a
      scotch from the built-in bar.



      Knipp starts the engine. The SOUND ECHOES big-time in the
      concrete tomb.




                          NIPP

               (Looking at the fuel gauge) We
                eed gas.



      Kaufman moans. Knipp steers the car slowly, carefully through
      the shadows, pulling in beside a GASOLINE PUMP near the base
      of a RAMP that leads up to the street. Knipp pushes a button
      that pops open the gas tank. He shuts the engine off and gets
      out, taking the keys, which have a Mag-Card attached to them.

      H

       e slides the Mag-Card into a slot, activating the pump. An
      LED scrolls "Thank you, Mr. Kaufman". Knipp pulls the nozzle.
      Freezes when he hears...



      ...FOOTSTEPS ECHOING. A DARK FIGURE is approaching through
      the shadows.



       nipp drops the nozzle. Ducks into the car. SLAMS the door.



      WHAM! A SINGLE HAND SMACKS against the driver-side window.



      A FACE leans in behind the hand. A face full of rage. BIG

      DADDY'S FACE.





                          AUFMAN

               Shoot it! Shoot the damn thing!




         L














         L














                                                      83.











                   KNIPP

         You didn't gimme no gun, sir.



Big Daddy moves to one of the rear windows. He can't see        
inside. The window is tinted. He returns to the clear           
windshield, looks back, at an angle, and sees Kaufman in the
rear compartment. Big Daddy recognizes him. From upstairs.      
It's the man who shot him.                                      
The Dead Thing looks up. Sees the gasoline pump. His hand       
drops to the embroidery on its jump-suit..."Texaco". He moves   
deliberately toward the pump.




                   KAUFMAN

         Pull out! PULL OUT!

                   K


                    NIPP

         Sorry, sir. Keys are in the pump.



Big Daddy sees the nozzle on the cement. Picks it up, feeling
the familiarity of it. Pulls the trigger. Gasoline squirts.
The rage in his face turns to a kind of satisfaction.           




                                                                

Using the nozzle as he did the pneumatic hammer, Big Daddy
POUNDS on the windshield, three times, before the SAFETY
GLASS COBWEBS. He POKES the nozzle through the flexible         
fabric and pulls the trigger until it locks. Gasoline FLOODS
into the car.




                   KNIPP (CONT'D)

          ord!



TCHUNG! Big Daddy pulls the driver side door open. As Knipp
tries to run, he is GRABBED by Big Daddy.




                   KNIPP (CONT'D)


          ORD!




Big Daddy looks at the butler. Sniffs him. Then flings him
aside. Knipp is not his prey. With a glance at Kaufman,
cowering in the back seat, Big Daddy slams the car door and,
surprisingly, walks away. Up the ramp toward the street.



The nozzle remains stuck in the "fabric" of the windshield.
Gasoline continues to flow into the car. Kaufman crawls into
the front seat, wincing from his wounds, and KICKS the nozzle
out of the window with his good leg, getting soaked with gas
in the process. He opens the door. Limps to the pump. Grabs
the keys. As he starts back toward the car...



...WHAM! SOMETHING is standing right in front of him. It's
one of the WALKING DEAD. It's...




1














1














         T














         K














         K














                                                                84.











         ...CHOLO.




          aufman shakes his head in disbelief.




                               KAUFMAN

                     N-no, y-you're dead. (Realization
                     dawning) Oh my God. You're dead!



         THE CHOLO THING reaches for Kaufman, vengeance in its eyes.



           aufman breaks for the driver's door. He never makes it. The
         Cholo Thing grabs him and SLAMS him down across the hood.
         Leans over him. Opens a drooling mouth. Kaufman whimpers.

         B                                                               

          RRRUMBLE-UMBLE-UMBLE! The SOUND of a bowling ball.



         Kaufman looks up. It's not a bowling ball. It's an OIL POT,
         rolled down the ramp by Big Daddy. Kaufman SCREAMS. The fire
         ball approaches the gas-soaked Lincoln, the gas-soaked
         Kaufman, and...



         ...WHOOOMPH! Kaufman and The Cholo Thing are IMMOLATED. The
         FIREBALL removes everything from sight, except a few floating
         HUNDRED DOLLAR BILLS, burning in mid-air.



          HROUGH LICKS OF FLAME we see...Big Daddy is almost smiling.




         EXT. "THE THROAT" - NIGHT


141                                                               141    





                                                                         

         DEAD RECKONING approaches the electrified fences from beyond.




                               PRETTY BOY (O.S. LOUDSPEAKER)


                                                                         

                     Get back! Get back! We're gonna
                     blow the fences!                                    
         The CROWD screams and starts to clear the area.                 

         INT. DEAD RECKONING - NIGHT


    42                                                            142    

         CHARLIE works a joystick. The cannon turret GRINDS above.       
         He takes aim at an area of the fences that is rapidly           
         emptying of people.                                             

 43      EXT. THE "THROAT" - NIGHT                                143    

         The fourteen-incher turns toward the fences. RILEY rides it.




                               RILEY

                     Shoot!




                               CHARLIE


                     O

                      kay, but you best get off the gun.




                                                                       














                                                                       





                                                                       














      T














      R














      I














                                                            85.










      Riley leaps down. The instant he's clear...



      KA-BLOOOOOOOOOOOOOM. The ELECTRIFIED FENCES are BLOWN APART.



       n the dissipating SMOKE, RILEY is the first one through the
      opening. Within seconds, CITIZENS start toward it, heading
      the other way. Riley finds himself running against the tide.
      Searching. Desperately searching. Behind the surging crowd...



      ...WALKERS appear, grabbing people. Dropping them to the
      ground. Eating them.



       iley FIRES in all directions. WALKERS DROP around him. He       
      saves a WOMAN with a BABY...a YOUNG COUPLE...a PRIEST. CLICK.    
      He runs out of ammo. WALKERS close in. The situation seems       
      hopeless until...




144                                                              144


      INT. DEAD RECKONING - NIGHT




      CHARLIE hits a button on the console.




      EXT. THE "THROAT" - NIGHT


145                                                              145

      PTOOOM! PTOOOM! FIREWORKS "BLOOM" in the sky.



       HE DEAD THINGS gaze upward, mesmerized.                         

      THE HUMANS ESCAPE.                                               





                                                                       

      RILEY finds himself standing in the midst of FIFTY WALKERS,
      frozen like statues around him.                                  
      Other than the intermittent BOOM of the fireworks, SILENCE.
      Out of which...                                                  

                         SLACK (O.S.)                                  

               (A whisper) Riley.                                      
      Riley turns.                                                     
      Slack emerges from behind one of the immobile dead things.



      Riley moves toward her...



      ...she to him...                                                 
      ...both of them weaving a cautious path between the statues.     
      They reach each other and embrace, surrounded by dead things     
      that don't even know they are there.                             
      RATATATATATAT. GUNFIRE EXPLODES around them!




                                                                         














                                                                         














                                                                         














                                                                         














                                                            86.










      HAPLESS DEAD THINGS are MOWED DOWN the way they were back          
      in Uniontown. This time by...                                      
      ...MULLIGAN and his REVOLUTIONARIES...who slaughter every          
      zombie in the area. BRIAN is shooting, too, raring to go.          
      When it's all over...




                         MULLIGAN                                        

               We could still use you, Riley.                            
      Riley looks out at the city, where there is still scattered        
      distant gunfire. He looks at Brian, standing at Mulligan's         
      side, his innocent face speckled with the blood of the dead.       
      Riley shakes his head.




                                                                         


                         RILEY

               It's all yours, Mulligan.                                 

146                                                                146


                                                                         


      EXT. OUTSIDE THE CITY - NIGHT




      FIREWORKS EXPLODE. A ZOMBIE looks up toward the "blooms". A        

                                                                         

      strong hand grabs the collar of its shirt, pulls its gaze
      away from the sky, and herds it onward.                            




                                                                         

      The hand is BIG DADDY'S. He herds OTHERS along, too. A small
      group of TWO DOZEN, including NUMBER NINE and the BUTCHER.         




147                                                           147        


      EXT. DEAD RECKONING - NIGHT




      One of the GATTLING GUNS RATCHETS into position, taking aim        

                                                                         

      at BIG DADDY.




      INT. DEAD RECKONING - NIGHT


148                                                           148

      PRETTY BOY sits at the controls, about to push the firing          
      button when...                                                     
      ...RILEY grabs her hand.




                         RILEY                                           

               Stop.                                                     
      Riley picks up a pair of binoculars and looks through the          
      windshield at BIG DADDY.                                           

      EXT. OUTSIDE THE CITY - NIGHT


149                                                           149        

      THROUGH THE BINOCULARS: BIG DADDY looks at DEAD RECKONING.
      For an instant, his eyes meet Riley's, as they did in              
      Uniontown.                                                         




                                               F














1


               (








                         R














                                                                        














                                                                        














                                                                 87.











      INT. DEAD RECKONING - NIGHT


150                                                               150   

      RILEY lowers the binoculars.                                      

                         RILEY                                          

               All they want is somewhere to go.                        
               Same as us.                                              

      EXT. OUTSIDE THE CITY - NIGHT                                     

      BIG DADDY leads his band into the future.



      DEAD RECKONING rolls into the future, too, but in a different     
      direction.                                                        

      INT. DEAD RECKONING - NIGHT                                       


                         CHARLIE

               Canada. That's where we're goin',                        
               ain't it, Riley?                                         

                         RILEY

               If no one has any objections.



      ANCHOR, SCAR, and PILLSBURY all shrug. Riley looks at Slack.      

                         SLACK

               No, we'll take you along with us.




                          ILEY

               I'll try to make myself useful.
                To PRETTY BOY) Take us North.




      EXT. ROAD NORTH - JUST BEFORE SUNRISE


 51                                                               151

      DEAD RECKONING growls off into the early dawn, a lethal
      weapon...



      ...shooting off FIREWORKS worthy of Independence Day.




                                                 ADE TO BLACK.          







Land of the Dead



Writers :   George A. Romero
Genres :   Action  Horror  Thriller


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