OCEAN'S 11
screenplay by
Ted Griffin
based on a screenplay by
Harry Brown and Charles Lederer
and
a story by
George Clayton Johnson & Jack Golden Russell
LATE PRODUCTION DRAFT
Rev. 05/31/01 (Buff)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 1/8/01
FADE IN:
1 EMPTY ROOM WITH SINGLE CHAIR 1
We hear a DOOR OPEN and CLOSE, followed by APPROACHING
FOOTSTEPS. DANNY OCEAN, dressed in prison fatigues,
ENTERS FRAME and sits.
VOICE (O.S.)
Good morning.
DANNY
Good morning.
VOICE (O.S.)
Please state your name for the
record.
DANNY
Daniel Ocean.
VOICE (O.S.)
Thank you. Mr. Ocean, the purpose
of this meeting is to determine
whether, if released, you are
likely to break the law again.
While this was your first
conviction, you have been
implicated, though never charged,
in over a dozen other confidence
schemes and frauds. What can you
tell us about this?
DANNY
As you say, ma'am, I was never
charged.
2 INT. PAROLE BOARD HEARING ROOM - WIDER VIEW - MORNING 2
Three PAROLE BOARD MEMBERS sit opposite Danny, behind a
table.
BOARD MEMBER #2
Mr. Ocean, what we're trying to
find out is: was there a reason
you chose to commit this crime, or
was there a reason why you simply
got caught this time?
DANNY
My wife left me. I was upset. I
got into a self-destructive
pattern.
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 1/8/01 2.
2 CONTINUED: 2
BOARD MEMBER #3
If released, is it likely you
would fall back into a similar
pattern?
DANNY
She already left me once. I don't
think she'll do it again just for
kicks.
Glances dart between the Board Members.
BOARD MEMBER #1
Mr. Ocean, what do you think you
would do if released?
Danny considers.
DANNY
(deadpan)
I don't know. How much do you
guys make a year?
3 INT. MINIMUM-SECURITY PRISON - CHECK-OUT STATION - DAY 3
GUARD #2
Ocean, Daniel.
Danny steps forth, and GUARD #1 doles out his possessions
and a form certifying their return to Danny.
GUARD #2
Sign.
(adding a piece of
mail to the pile)
This came today for you. Rest'll
be forwarded to your parole
officer.
GUARD #1
(reading its return
address over Danny's
shoulder)
Those your lawyers?
DANNY
My wife's.
He opens the letter, and as his eyes gaze over the papers
within, he smirks just a little.
GUARD #1
What's it say?
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 1/8/01 3.
3 CONTINUED: 3
DANNY
I'm a free man.
4 INT. CHANGING CUBICLE 4
Danny pulls on civilian clothes and there's not a bare
thread among them. He tugs his cuffs and smiles: The
old skin feels good. One last item to don: a silver
wedding band. Danny considers it. Will he put it on?
5 EXT. MINIMUM-SECURITY PRISON - FRONT GATE - AFTERNOON 5
A sign reads: "NEW JERSEY STATE MINIMUM-SECURITY
CORRECTIONAL FACILITY." Someone has graffitied below it:
"If you were in prison, you'd be home now."
The great metal door opens, and Danny stands within its
frame, ready for release. (If it matters -- and if you
notice -- he's wearing his wedding ring.)
He hovers there for a moment, on the precipice of
freedom. The WIND WHISTLES a little on the other side of
the gate, and the view ahead is not pleasant (New
Jersey): Life is hard out there.
But Danny musters his courage, then takes his first step
into free America...
A6 EXT. ATLANTIC CITY BOARDWALK - DUSK A6
Any empty wintery boardwalk.
6 INT. CASINO (ATLANTIC CITY) - NIGHT 6
... And his wingtip lands squarely on plush red
carpeting.
As we PULL UP TO Danny's face and SPIN AROUND him, we
hear, then see the BUZZ of a CASINO floor: the HUM of
CONVERSATION, the DING-DING-DING and THUNK-THUNK-THUNK
from the SLOTS, the brisk WHIR of SHUFFLED CARDS.
And to Danny, it's a hearth and fire and a comfy chair
and a snifter of brandy. He's home.
ON DANNY'S WALLET
As he pulls out several crisp one hundreds, sets them on
green felt, then sees them replaced by a neat pile of
chips.
4.
7 AT BLACKJACK TABLE 7
Danny cranes his neck about the casino, looking for
someone -- a friend, somebody who should be here -- but
without success. He turns his attention back to his
cards, and the cards of the dealer.
Nine-ten. Stay. Dealer -- seventeen. Danny wins.
King-four. Dealer shows a six. Stick. Dealer busts.
Queen-ace. Twenty-one. Danny wins again.
A second dealer relieves the first, and Danny recognizes
him with a smile -- this wasn't the friend he was
scouting for, but two hours out of the joint any familiar
face is welcome.
DANNY
Hello, Frank.
The new dealer (FRANK CATTON) glances up at Danny, and
his eyes go wide, like a priest who's discovered he's
dealing communion wafers to the pontiff himself. He
quickly hides his astonishment.
FRANK
I beg your pardon, sir. You must
have me confused with someone
else. My name is Ramon. See?
He taps the name embroidered on his vest, although he is
the most African-looking Ramon you've ever seen. A pit
boss circles close by and glares at them both.
DANNY
My mistake...
(collecting his chips,
doubled)
Table's cold anyway.
FRANK
You might try the lounge at the
Grand, sir. It gets busy around
one.
DANNY
(as he goes)
Thanks.
8 INT. LOUNGE AT GRAND 8
Danny checks his watch -- 12:58 -- then the lounge around
him: prison had more nightlife. He nurses a bourbon,
folds back the New York Times and scans.
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 10/24/00 5.
8 CONTINUED: 8
His eyes move down the page and stop at a header --
"Vegas' Paradiso to be Razed; Former Owner Denounces
Plans" -- accompanied by two photographs...
The first: Tan, well-coiffed developer and new owner of
the Paradiso, Terry Benedict, with a beautiful (if barely
visible) woman on his arm. The second: scowling former
owner, Reuben Tishkoff.
FRANK (O.S.)
Catching up on current events?
Danny lowers the paper; Frank is sitting across from him,
changed out of his dealer's threads.
DANNY
Ramon?
FRANK
Glad to meet you. Frank Catton
wouldn't get by the gaming board.
(beat)
You just out?
DANNY
This afternoon.
FRANK
(re: Danny's drink
and whereabouts)
And already turning over a new
leaf.
Frank signals a passing waitress; she ignores him.
DANNY
(directly, this is
why he's here)
You seen him?
FRANK
Last I heard he was in L.A.
Teaching movie stars how to
play cards.
(beat)
Why? You don't have something
planned already?
DANNY
You kidding? I just became a
citizen again.
Frank stares at Danny a moment, finally catches his eye,
and Danny can't help but grin: of course he has.
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 1/8/01 6.
8 CONTINUED: (2) 8
Frank turns his eyes to heaven...
FRANK
Jesus...
9 INT. SUB SHOP - NIGHT 9
MOVING WITH Danny and Frank.
FRANK
It's tough now, our line of work.
Everybody so serious. Too many
guns, too many computers. Whadda
you gonna do? Steal from ordinary
people?
DANNY
That would be criminal.
FRANK
So what's left? Banks? Hah.
Banks got no money. It's all
electronic. Only place that still
takes cash is...
DANNY
Casinos.
FRANK
(realizing)
Oh, no...
DANNY
Oh, yes...
FRANK
When?
DANNY
Soon. Interested?
Frank smiles. Danny has his answer.
10 INT. SUB SHOP - FOYER - NIGHT 10
Danny pulls a business card from his jacket, picks up the
phone again, and dials the card's number.
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 5/31/01 7.
10 CONTINUED: 10
DANNY
Yes, Officer Brooks? My name is
Danny Ocean. I'm just out, I'm
supposed to check in with you
within twenty-four hours.
(listens)
No, sir, I haven't gotten into
any trouble. No drinking, no sir.
(listens, finishes
his bourbon)
No, sir, I wouldn't even think of
leaving the state.
OFF the sound of a JET fly-over we...
CUT TO:
A11 EXT. HOLLYWOOD CLUB (DEEP) - REAR ENTRANCE - NIGHT A11
PULLING OFF the Capitol Building, we PICK UP Rusty
(tall, angular, ebony) leaning against his Ford Falcon.
TOPHER (O.S.)
Hey! Hey, Rusty!
Rusty turns to the voice and --
CUT TO:
ANOTHER ANGLE
MOVING WITH him and Topher Grace, the actor, as they push
down a back alley.
TOPHER
Hey, I don't know if you're, uh,
you know, incorporated or anything,
like Rusty Ryan. And, I don't know,
incorporated, but you should think
about it, really, 'cause I was
talking to my manager yesterday --
RUSTY
Bernie?
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 5/31/01 8.
A11 CONTINUED: A11
TOPHER
No, not Bernie, I mean not, not
that Bernie, my business manager,
he's also Bernie, he was telling
me that since this, what we do,
could be considered research for,
you know, a future gig, that I
should be able to write it off as
a business expense. So he suggested
that it'd be better if I wrote you
a check, and thereby --
Rusty looks at him: are you stoned?
TOPHER
Or, or we could keep it cash.
By this time, they should have entered --
11 OMITTED 11
A12 INT. HOLLYWOOD CLUB (DEEP) - NIGHT A12
-- where they must weave through hordes of young
Hollywood nightclubbers.
RUSTY
Alright. Who's here?
TOPHER
Josh is here. Seth is here.
David couldn't make it. He's got
two weeks of reshoots on Lusitania
because somebody just figured out
forty percent of the budget is
coming from Germany.
RUSTY
That's a problem.
TOPHER
Barry is here.
RUSTY
I thought they let him out to do
that H.B.O. thing in Vancouver.
TOPHER
Couldn't work the dates. Oh, and
he brought his girlfriend.
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 5/31/01 9.
A12 CONTINUED: A12
RUSTY
Not the one from --
TOPHER
Uh-huh.
RUSTY
(beat)
I quit watching when Kate left Don
after his accident.
They pass on, and into --
12 OMITTED 12
A13 INT. BACK ROOM - NIGHT A13
Small but stylish. Rusty enters, Topher in tow.
RUSTY
Good evening, guys. Let's play
some cards...
A glance at the table reveals: the three waiting players
are all young TV stars (Josh Jackson, Seth Green, Barry
Watson) here for a group poker lesson with Rusty. (One
star, indeed, has brought his girlfriend, Katie, also
a known actress, to observe.)
A glance back at Rusty reveals: he's in for a long
night.
RUSTY
... and let's play some cards.
AT TABLE - LATER
The group lesson has begun.
TOPHER
A hundred bucks to me...
(mulling it
over)
Ah, what the hell. Pocket
change. Call.
Rusty leans into Topher's ear, whispering:
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 5/31/01 10.
A13 CONTINUED: A13
RUSTY
Why you bet a certain way is your
business. But you have to make
them think you're betting for a
reason. Understand?
SAME SCENE - LATER
To another player:
RUSTY
Seth. You know what you have.
Looking at them doesn't change
them. Leave 'em where they are
and make your bet.
SAME SCENE - LATER
To another player:
RUSTY
You're showing. Yeah, I know she's
your girlfriend, Barry, but you
can't... Thank you.
SAME SCENE - LATER
To another:
RUSTY
Josh. Deal to your left.
SAME SCENE - LATER
A WAITRESS enters from the club, and DANCE MUSIC with
her. As she distributes a fresh round:
WAITRESS
One McCallum neat. And four
bottled waters.
Rusty takes in the sight -- bottled fucking water on a
poker table.
SETH
(triumphantly)
Two pair -- nines and twos.
Rusty checks his hand: a full-house full of face cards.
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 5/31/01 11.
A13 CONTINUED: (2) A13
RUSTY
(folding)
You got me.
(as Seth rakes in
his winnings)
Let's take a little break.
13 OMITTED 13
A14 INT. HOLLYWOOD CLUB (DEEP) - NIGHT A14
At the bar, Rusty orders a double. He needs it.
BARTENDER
(shouting over music)
How's the game going?!!
RUSTY
It's been the longest hour of
my life.
BARTENDER
What?!
RUSTY
(at the same volume)
I'm running away with your wife.
The Bartender, not able to hear him, smiles and flashes
a thumbs-up before moving away.
BARTENDER
Cool, man!
Behind the bar two go-go dancers writhe behind red-light-
district windows, and Rusty catches his own fatigued
expression in their reflection. Then, out the corner
of his eye, he catches sight of a man passing through
the pulsating crowd. Someone familiar to him. He
follows.
14 OMITTED 14
A15 INT. HOLLYWOOD CLUB (DEEP) - BACK ROOM A15
Rusty returns.
TOPHER
Hey, Rusty, we got another player,
if that's alright.
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 5/31/01 12.
A15 CONTINUED: A15
Topher indicates the new arrival: Danny. Rusty looks
as if there's a bad smell in the room.
RUSTY
What's this?
DANNY
The bouncer mentioned there was
a game in progress. I hope I'm
not intruding.
TOPHER
No intrusion at all --
RUSTY
What was his name, the bouncer's?
DANNY
I don't remember.
RUSTY
A card player with amnesia. This
should be fun.
AT TABLE - MOMENTS LATER
Rusty deals the next hand.
TOPHER
What do you do for a living,
Mr. Ocean? If you don't mind
my asking.
DANNY
Why should I mind? Two cards,
please...
(long beat)
I just got out of prison.
TOPHER
Really?
(a glance among the
other players)
Really...
RUSTY
(half to divert
attention)
Barry, you're showing again.
BARRY (O.S.)
Sorry.
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 5/31/01 12A.
A15 CONTINUED: (2) A15
JOSH
What'd you, uh, go to prison for?
DANNY
I stole things.
JOSH
What, like jewels? Diamonds?
A beat, then:
RUSTY
Incan matrimonial headmasks.
Looks are exchanged. Everyone digests that.
JOSH
From a museum?
DANNY
Gallery.
SETH
There a lot of money in those?
Incan matrimonial...
DANNY
Headmasks. Some.
RUSTY
Don't let him fool you, Seth.
There's boatloads. If you can
move the things...
(finishing his deal)
One card to me.
(to Danny, pointedly)
... but you can't.
DANNY
My fence seemed confident enough.
RUSTY
If you're dealing with cash, you
don't need a fence.
DANNY
Some people just lack vision.
RUSTY
Probably everybody in cell block E.
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 5/31/01 12B.
A15 CONTINUED: (3) A15
Now the other players realize. These guys have a
relationship. In fact, a criminal one. And, judging
from their steely glares across the table, not a happy
one.
DANNY
Well, that's all behind us now.
RUSTY
I should hope so.
Danny smiles, icily -- of course, it's not -- then pulls
out his wallet.
DANNY
I raise you five hundred dollars.
A hush in the room. Danny has thrown down the gauntlet.
He and Rusty hold each other's stares.
RUSTY
Guys: Day One: what's the first
rule of poker?
BARRY TOPHER
Um, never bet on, uh, on 'Leave emotion at the
a -- door.'
RUSTY
That's right. My friend here just
raised me out of pique.
(beat)
Today's lesson. How to draw out
a bluff. This early in the game,
that much money, I'm thinking he's
holding nothing better than a pair
of face cards.
(beat)
Seth, raise him.
SETH
Okay. Uh, your five hundred and...
another two?
Rusty nods, and Seth pushes in his chips.
RUSTY
Tophe...
TOPHER
Seven to me. Plus three. What
the hell.
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 5/31/01 12C.
A15 CONTINUED: (4) A15
RUSTY
Indeed. But be careful you don't
push him too high too fast. Want
to keep him on the leash. I call.
It's Josh's turn. He hesitates...
JOSH
What's that to me? A thousand?
RUSTY
All you have to do is call.
DANNY
(off Josh's further
hesitation)
What? Your girlfriend holding
your purse?
That does it. Josh is in. The bet's to Danny. He
checks his hand, and Seth starts to whisper to Topher.
DANNY
Contrary to what Mr. Ryan may say,
Seth, I always check my cards
before I make a bet. But be
cafeful. I could tell from your
face you're holding three of a
kind or better.
(digging his wallet
out)
Five hundred to call. And two
grand more.
Danny stares Rusty down. The others look a little pale.
RUSTY
Guys, you're free to do what you
like. It's a lot of money. But
I'm staying in. He's trying to
buy his way out of his bluff.
Nobody looks too eager to call, but nobody wants to
leave a grand on the table, either. Finally, Seth
ponies up, and the others -- not be outdone -- do, too.
RUSTY
We call.
Danny sets down his hand. Four nines. It's a winner.
The others, jaws dropped, throw in their cards. For the
first time tonight, Rusty blanches.
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 5/31/01 12D.
A15 CONTINUED: (5) A15
RUSTY
Shit. Sorry, guys. I -- I was
sure he was bluffing.
As Rusty plummets in the estimation of all the guys
around him, Danny rakes in his pot.
DANNY
Thanks for the game, fellas.
(then)
Hey, I hate to ask this, but
could you sign something for me?
It's for the guys in the joint.
They just love all your shows.
15 OMITTED 15
A16 EXT. HOLLYWOOD CLUB (DEEP) - NIGHT A16
A queue of clubgoers erupt in a frenzy as Topher and
company exit, and they begin signing autographs. Danny
and Rusty exit, too, but of course nobody gives a shit
about them.
16 INT. RUSTY'S FALCON - MOVING - NIGHT 16
Danny and Rusty ride silently, staring out opposite
windows at Sunset Boulevard.
RUSTY
That was, that was just...
DANNY
Unprofessional.
Rusty agrees.
RUSTY
How was the clink? You get the
cookies I sent you?
DANNY
Why do you think I came to see you
first?
Danny pulls out a wad of bills from his jacket, peels off
half, and hands it to Rusty.
DANNY
Ten grand. Half of it's yours.
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 5/31/01 12E.
16 CONTINUED: 16
RUSTY
You barge into my new workplace,
ruin my professional reputation,
least you could do is tell me
you've got something better for
me.
DANNY
I've got something better for
you.
17 INT. CANTER'S DELI - NIGHT 17
They're sitting in a booth over coffee.
RUSTY
How's Tess?
Danny stares at him: next subject, please.
RUSTY
Alright. Tell me.
DANNY
It's tricky. No one's ever done
it before. Needs planning, a
large crew.
RUSTY
Guns?
DANNY
Not loaded ones. It has to be
very precise. There's a lot of
security. But the take...
RUSTY
What's the target?
DANNY
Eight figures each.
RUSTY
What's. The. Target.
(CONTINUED)
13.
17 CONTINUED: 17
DANNY
(deep breath, then)
When's the last time you were in
Vegas?
RUSTY
What? You wanna knock over a
casino?
Danny puts down his coffee. And shakes his head. And
lifts three fingers: three casinos. Rusty must put down
his coffee, too.
18 EXT. DOWNTOWN L.A. - NIGHT 18
It's after hours downtown. Dark, empty, dead...
19 INT. LIBRARY TOWER - 40TH FLOOR CORRIDOR - NIGHT 19
Lights out on the 40th. Engraved brass announces: J.A.
KUEHN & ASSOCIATES, ARCHITECTS.
Two flashlight beams strafe wood-paneled, elegant
offices: Danny and Rusty on late-night reconnaissance.
As Danny prowls a cabinet full of blueprints, Rusty
passes the time switching papers from a desk's in box to
its out box.
At last, Danny finds the right set of blueprints and
drapes it across the desk; we, however, never see it.
DANNY
The vault at the Bellagio.
A beat as Rusty scans the document, then another
underneath it.
RUSTY
If I'm reading these right -- and
I think that I am -- this is
probably the least accessible
vault ever designed.
(beat)
Oops. Actually, you know what,
I'm wrong. It's definitely the
least accessible vault ever
designed.
DANNY
Yep.
Rusty's brow furrows just a little.
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 1/8/01 14.
19 CONTINUED: 19
RUSTY
You said three casinos...
DANNY
(flips to next
blueprint)
These feed into the cages at both
the Mirage and the M.G.M. Grand.
(tapping vault)
But every dime ends up here.
RUSTY
The Bellagio, Mirage, and... These
are Terry Benedict's places.
DANNY
Yes, they are. Think he'll mind?
RUSTY
More than somewhat.
20 AT 40TH FLOOR ELEVATOR BAY 20
No ding. The elevator just arrives. Its doors part to
reveal a SECURITY GUARD within, here to make his tour; a
large fellow, he has to duck to exit.
21 BACK WITH DANNY AND RUSTY 21
As Danny rolls up the set of blueprints, Rusty considers
the plan (which, in our absence, Danny has pitched him).
RUSTY
You'd need at least a dozen guys,
doing a combination of cons.
DANNY
Like what, you think?
RUSTY
Well, off the top of my head, I'd
say you're looking at a Boesky, a
Jim Brown, a Miss Daisy, two
Jethros, and a Leon Spinks. Oh,
and the biggest Ella Fitzgerald
ever.
(beat)
Where do you think you're gonna get
the money to back this?
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 1/8/01 15.
21 CONTINUED: 21
DANNY
As long as we're hitting these
three casinos, we'll get our
bankroll. Terry Benedict has a
list of enemies.
RUSTY
But does he have enemies with
loose cash and nothing to lose...
(smiles, realizing)
Aha.
DANNY
(smiles, too)
Aha.
RUSTY
Reuben.
22 MOVING WITH SECURITY GUARD 22
as he approaches Danny's and Rusty's voices...
23 BACK WITH DANNY AND RUSTY 23
DANNY
So...
RUSTY
So, here's what I think: You
should take this plan, kick it
around for a week or two. Sleep
on it. Turn it over in your head.
Then: never bring it up to me
again.
DANNY
Uh-huh. So what are you saying?
RUSTY
I'm saying: this is like trying
to build a house of cards on the
deck of a speeding boat.
DANNY
Really? I thought it was much
harder than that --
Suddenly the Security Guard's flashlight beam hits them
square in the eyes. Danny and Rusty put their hands up
to block the light.
DANNY
Jesus, Oscar, lower it a little,
will ya?
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 10/24/00 16.
23 CONTINUED: 23
SECURITY GUARD
Sorry.
(lowers beam)
You two done up here? Find what
you wanted?
DANNY
Yeah, thanks. You mind if we
borrow a couple drawings for the
night? Make some copies.
SECURITY GUARD
Whatever you need.
Danny withdraws his money clip, peels off a couple
hundreds, and buries them in the Security Guard's hand.
DANNY
'Preciate it.
24 AT 40TH FLOOR ELEVATOR BAY 24
Danny and Rusty wait for an elevator. When its doors
open, Rusty stops Danny from boarding.
RUSTY
I need a reason. And don't say
money.
(beat)
Why do this?
DANNY
Why not do it?
Rusty stares at him: enough bullshitting around.
DANNY
Because yesterday I walked out of
the joint wearing my entire
wardrobe and you're colddecking
TeenBeat coverboys.
(beat)
Because the house always wins.
You play long enough, never
changing stakes, the house takes
you. Unless, when that special
hand comes around, you bet big.
And then you take the house.
A beat. Rusty smiles.
(CONTINUED)
17.
24 CONTINUED: 24
RUSTY
You're been practicing that
speech, haven't you?
DANNY
A little. Did I rush it? It felt
like I rushed it.
RUSTY
No, it was good.
They step aboard the elevator. As the door closes:
RUSTY
I wonder what Reuben will say?
Danny and Rusty look at each other.
TISHKOFF (V.O.)
You're out of your goddamn minds.
25 EXT. TISHKOFF'S OPULENT BACK YARD (LAS VEGAS) - DAY 25
REUBEN TISHKOFF, the grimace of a man in mid-movement,
forever cemented on his face, scrutinizes his two lunch
guests (Danny and Rusty) at his poolside.
TISHKOFF
Are you listening to me? You are,
both of you, nuts. I know more
about casino security than any man
alive. I invented it, and it
cannot be beaten. They got
cameras, they got watchers, they
got locks, they got timers, they
got vaults. They got enough armed
personnel to occupy Paris. Okay,
bad example...
DANNY
It's never been tried.
TISHKOFF
Oh, it's been tried. A few guys
even came close. You know the
three most successful robberies in
Vegas history?
26 FLASHBACK - INT. SANDS CASINO FLOOR (1965) 26
An Adlai Stevenson-lookalike approaches a lockbox carrier
from behind and snatches the box.
(CONTINUED)
18.
26 CONTINUED: 26
He takes almost three steps before five security men leap
at him and -- FREEZE FRAME on his wide-eyed expression of
horror...
TISHKOFF (V.O.)
Number three. The bronze medal.
Pencilneck grabs a lockbox at the
Sands. He got two steps closer to
the door than any living soul
before him.
RESUME ACTION: Adlai Stevenson gets a taste of what NFL
quarterbacks experience every Sunday... five fold.
27 INT. FLAMINGO CASINO FLOOR (1971) 27
A hippie races toward the electronic sliding doors,
clutching a tray full of chips, and as the doors begin to
part for him -- FREEZE FRAME: A billy club appears out
of nowhere...
TISHKOFF (V.O.)
Second most successful robbery.
The Flamingo '71. This guy
actually smelled fresh oxygen
before they got him.
RESUME ACTION: The billy club comes down -- whap! --
across the hippie's skull and it's Chicago '68 all over
again.
TISHKOFF (V.O.)
Course, he was breathing out of a
hose the next three weeks, goddamn
hippie.
28 EXT. REUBEN TISHKOFF'S BACK YARD - DAY (PRESENT) 28
TISHKOFF
And the closest any man has gotten
to robbing a Las Vegas casino...
29 FLASHBACK - EXT. CAESAR'S PALACE ENTRANCE (1987) 29
Tourists and valets scatter as a Euro-thief (pastel
T-shirt beneath a white linen suit) bursts from the
casino and takes five steps before -- FREEZE FRAME:
GLASS EXPLODES from three different doors behind him and
he arches his back in agony...
(CONTINUED)
19.
29 CONTINUED: 29
TISHKOFF
Outside of Caesar's in '87. He
came, he grabbed, he got
conquered.
RESUME ACTION: BULLETS rip the man to shreds and he
collapses on Caesar's steps a bloody pulp.
30 EXT. REUBEN TISHKOFF'S BACK YARD - DAY (PRESENT) 30
TISHKOFF
But what am I saying? You guys
are pros, the best. I'm sure you
can make it out of the casino. Of
course, lest we forget, once
you're out the front door, you're
still in the middle of the fucking
desert!
Both Danny and Rusty look chastened.
RUSTY
You're right.
(to Danny)
He's right.
DANNY
Reuben, you're right. Our eyes
are bigger than our stomachs.
RUSTY
That's exactly it. Pure ego.
TISHKOFF
Yeah yeah blah blah.
DANNY
Thank you so much for setting us
straight. Sorry we bothered you.
They both rise to go.
TISHKOFF
Look, we all go way back. I owe
you from that thing with the guy
in the place, and I'll never
forget it.
DANNY
It was our pleasure.
RUSTY
I'd never been to Belize.
(CONTINUED)
20.
30 CONTINUED: 30
TISHKOFF
Give Dominic your addresses, I got
some remaindered furniture I wanna
send you.
Danny and Rusty begin to circle the pool to leave.
Tishkoff, of course, won't let them go that easily.
TISHKOFF
Just out of curiosity, which
casinos did you geniuses pick to
rob?
Danny stops, almost as if he's been waiting for this
question, which of course he has.
DANNY
The Bellagio, Mirage, and the
M.G.M. Grand.
TISHKOFF
(nostrils flared,
smelling a rat)
Those are Terry Benedict's
casinos.
RUSTY
Say, you know, he's right.
Tishkoff waves them back, sipping on his umbrellaed
cocktail.
TISHKOFF
You guys... Whadda you got against
Terry Benedict?
DANNY
What do you have against him?
That's the real question.
TISHKOFF
He torpedoed my casino, muscled me
out, now he's gonna blow it up
next month to make way for another
fuckin' eyesore. Don't think I
don't see what you're doin'.
RUSTY
What are we doing, Reuben?
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 1/8/01 21.
30 CONTINUED: (2) 30
TISHKOFF
You gonna steal from Terry
Benedict, you better goddamn know.
This sorta thing used to be
civilized. You'd hit a guy, he'd
whack you. Done. But Benedict...
(bristles)
At the end of this he better not
know you're involved, not know
your names, or think you're dead.
Because he'll kill you, and then
he'll go to work on you.
DANNY
That's why we've got to be very
careful. We have to be precise.
We have to be well-funded.
TISHKOFF
Yeah, you gotta be nuts, too. And
you're gonna need a crew as nuts
as you are.
(pregnant silence)
Who do you have in mind?
Danny and Rusty both smile; they've hooked their fish.
And so it begins...
RUSTY (V.O.)
Alright. Who's in?
DANNY (V.O.)
Frank C. is in.
31 INT. CASINO OFFICE (ATLANTIC CITY) 31
Frank Catton coughs mightily into a handkerchief. Across
a desk, his boss fills out paperwork.
DANNY (V.O.)
Frank C. has developed a bad case
of bronchitis and is putting in
for a transfer to warmer climates.
32 EXT. LAS VEGAS AIRPORT - DAY 32
Frank carries his bag toward the taxi bay. He stops to
light a cigarette, inhales with deep satisfaction before
a banner: "WELCOME TO LAS VEGAS."
DANNY (V.O.)
What about drivers?
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 1/8/01 22.
33 EXT. VACANT, WEEDY DRAG RACETRACK - DAY 33
CLOSE ON a souped-up tractor-wheeled monster truck, its
ENGINE ROARING before a starting line, itching to cross
it. Now take a step back...
That souped-up monster truck stands a foot-and-a-half off
the ground and sprouts an antenna from its back bumper.
It's a remote-controlled toy.
The ROARING ENGINE comes from the vehicle next to it: an
actual monster truck. Both vehicles peer down the track
at a finish line a hundred yards away. This is a race.
The drivers stare each other down: TURK (behind the
wheel of the truck) and VIRGIL (track-side, remote
control in hand) MALLOY. They're nice boys. Really.
Peckerwoods, sure, but nice.
RUSTY (V.O.)
I talked to the Malloys yesterday.
DANNY (V.O.)
The Mormon twins?
RUSTY (V.O.)
They're both in Salt Lake City,
six months off the job. I got the
sense they're having trouble
filling the hours.
Lights flash red-to-yellow-to-green and while the TRUCK
COATS RUBBER on the track, Virgil's toy zips to a lead.
It's looking to be an embarrassment for Turk until he
jerks his wheel a little and -- ka-thunk -- flattens his
brother's vehicle.
Virgil pouts as he plucks up the wreckage of his entry.
DANNY (V.O.)
Electronics?
RUSTY (V.O.)
Livingston Dell.
34 INT. SURVEILLANCE VAN - DAY 34
On a black and white monitor: Two mobsters, on a meet in
a public park, peer over their shoulders, making certain
no one is watching them. Little do they know...
... LIVINGSTON DELL, audio-visual junkie, and victim of a
continual flop sweat, crouches before their image,
masterfully controlling his surveillance camera with a
joystick in his left hand. He is flanked by FBI MEN.
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 1/8/01 23.
34 CONTINUED: 34
RUSTY (V.O.)
Livingston's been doing freelance
surveillance work of late for the
F.B.I. Mob Squad.
DANNY (V.O.)
How are his nerves?
RUSTY (V.O.)
Okay.
(beat)
Not so bad you'd notice.
As a FBI Man reaches to adjust a monitor...
LIVINGSTON
D-don't, don't-don't... touch... it.
FBI MAN #1
What?
LIVINGSTON
Do you see me pulling the gun out
of your holster and firing it?
FBI MAN #2
Hey, Radio Shack: relax.
35 EXT. SANTA MONICA BOARDWALK - LATER 35
Livingston walks down the boardwalk. A rollerblader with a
dog on a leash approaches and Livingston gets caught
between the two. As he struggles to untangle himself from
the leash...
36 INT. CAFE 36
With a view of Livingston on the boardwalk... Danny and
Rusty wait for him over espressos.
RUSTY
(next item on his
list)
Munitions.
DANNY
Phil Turentine.
RUSTY
Dead.
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 1/8/01 23A.
36 CONTINUED: 36
DANNY
No shit? On the job?
RUSTY
Sun cancer.
DANNY
You send flowers?
RUSTY
Dated his wife a while.
DANNY
(onto next candidate)
Basher...
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 10/24/00 24.
36 CONTINUED: (2) 36
RUSTY
(checks his watch)
We may be too late.
37 INT. BANK - CLOSE ON BASHER TARR - NIGHT 37
the explosives expert. A pair of goggles over his eyes
reflects a match being struck, then touched to a fuse.
BASHER
Sweet...
BANG! Wood shards and SPLINTERS of GLASS fly all around;
Basher merely ducks his head and whistles. As the dust
settles, three men move quickly past Basher and into
(what the settling fog now reveals to be) a dynamited
bank vault. ALARMS begin to sound: this is bad news.
BASHER
(to the rest of his
gang, his temper
flaring)
You know, you guys had one job to
do.
38 EXT. BANK - ONE MINUTE LATER 38
The men exit through the front doors, their hands over
their heads, Basher trailing them. Policemen and SWAT
members encircle the group, weapons trained on them,
chock full of instructions.
39 EXT. POLICE CAR - LATER 39
Basher sits in the rear, handcuffed behind his back, feet
on the pavement. An explosives COP kneels in front of
him.
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 1/8/01 25.
39 CONTINUED: 39
COP
And that's all you used during the
event? Nothing else?
BASHER
Are you accusing me of booby-
trapping?
COP
Well, how 'bout it?
VOICE (O.S.)
Booby traps aren't Mr. Tarr's style.
The Cop turns; standing behind him, stone-faced, is
Rusty, in a dark suit and shades.
RUSTY
Isn't that right, Basher?
BASHER
That's right.
RUSTY
(flashing badge,
briefly)
Peck, A.T.F. Let me venture a
guess. A simple G4 mainliner,
double-coil, backwound, quick
fuse with a drag under 20 feet.
(off Cop's reaction)
That's our man. Tell me something
else. Have you checked him for
booby traps on his person? I mean
really checked, not just for
weapons...
The Cop looks bewildered. Rusty steps forward, yanks
Basher onto his feet, spins him around. He moves his
hands up and down Basher's legs, around his waist, under
his arms.
RUSTY
Will you go find Griggs and tell
him I need to see him?
COP
Who?
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 1/8/01 26.
39 CONTINUED: (2) 39
RUSTY
(loud)
Just go find him, will you?
(as Cop stalks off;
under his breath)
How fast can you put something
together with what I passed you?
BASHER
Done. Thirty seconds all right?
RUSTY
From when?
BASHER
(as we hear something
SNAP from behind his
back)
Now.
40 MOVING WITH RUSTY AND BASHER 40
They're hurrying; ahead of them is a wall of squad cars,
a police cordon, and a crowd of onlookers.
RUSTY
Ten seconds?
BASHER
Not quite. Is Danny here?
RUSTY
Around the corner.
BASHER
Be good working with professionals
again.
(beat)
Okay: go.
And they both start running.
RUSTY
Everyone down! Get down! There's
a bomb in the...
And behind them the SQUAD CAR ERUPTS with a BANG! A
collective SCREAM rises from the crowd, everyone ducks,
cops hit the ground and cover their heads. Rusty and
Basher move briskly past them, dodging their splayed legs
like tires on an obstacle course. By the time the
Explosives Cop thinks to look around for Basher, they've
both disappeared.
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 1/8/01 27.
41 OMITTED 41
42 INT. UNDER BIG TOP - DAY 42
The Chinese National Circus, currently on tour in the
Western United States. Trapeze artists, gymnastic teams,
and trampoline daredevils fly, somersault, spin, and
swing through the air.
A full house applauds every feat. Danny and Rusty sit in
the bleachers, surrounded by parents and kids munching on
spindles of cotton candy. Tough guys in toyland.
ANNOUNCER (V.O.)
(in Chinese, then
English)
Ladies and gentlemen: the amazing
Yen.
A funambulist (YEN) begins his high-wire act...
DANNY
So he can walk on a rope.
RUSTY
More than that.
DANNY
So he can juggle. We need a
grease man, not an acrobat. Who
else is on the list?
RUSTY
He is the list.
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 10/24/00 28.
42 CONTINUED: 42
DANNY
Who else?
RUSTY
Watch.
Halfway across the wire, the funambulist sits. And very
slowly, but without hesitation, he contorts himself into
a ball, never losing his balance. Even Danny is
impressed.
RUSTY
There's your grease man.
43 EXT. SANTA MONICA PIER PARKING LOT - DAY 43
Danny and Rusty exit the circus tent, head for their car.
DANNY
We need Saul.
RUSTY
He won't come. He swore off the
game a year ago.
DANNY
He get religion?
RUSTY
Ulcers.
DANNY
You can ask him.
Rusty stops, stares at Danny, sighs.
(CONTINUED)
29.
43 CONTINUED: 43
RUSTY
I can ask.
44 EXT. DOG TRACK/BETTING WINDOW (MIAMI, FLA) - DAY 44
SAUL BLOOM, 50s, befuddled, wearing a corduroy jacket
patched at the elbows and a duffer's hat, counts out
money through the window, lists his bets. He checks his
tickets, plunges them into his pants pocket, and moves
off...
45 THROUGH TRACK LOBBY 45
Rusty appears in the f.g. behind a pillar, as dapper as
Saul is down-at-heel, watching him go. When Saul
disappears into the tunnel, he moves.
46 IN INFIELD 46
Saul sits on one of the long, general admission steps
under the box seats. He produces an orange from his
pocket, starts to peel it. A pair of well-shined shoes
appears behind him. Saul senses their presence, but
doesn't turn around.
SAUL
I saw you in the paddock before
the second race, outside the men's
room, when I placed my bet. I saw
you before you even got up this
morning.
RUSTY
How ya been, Saul?
SAUL
Never better.
RUSTY
What's with the orange?
SAUL
My doctor says I need vitamins.
RUSTY
So why don't you take vitamins?
For the first time, Saul cranes his neck and shoots a
look up at Rusty.
(CONTINUED)
30.
46 CONTINUED: 46
SAUL
You come here to give me a
physical?
RUSTY
I got a box seat. Come on.
47 EXT. BOX SEATS - LATER 47
A waiter serves coffee to Rusty and Saul.
RUSTY
I thought you drank bloody Mary's
at the track, Saul.
SAUL
A man shouldn't drink on the job.
RUSTY
(re: race)
Who we rooting for here?
SAUL
Number four.
There's the BELL; the electronic rabbit is released and
the dogs break out of the gate. From this point on
Saul's eyes never leave the race.
SAUL
You gonna ask me? Or should I
just say no and get it over with?
RUSTY
Saul, you're the best there is.
You're in Cooperstown. What do
you want?
SAUL
Nothin'. I got a duplex now, I
got wall-to-wall and a goldfish,
I'm seeing a nice lady, she works
the unmentionables counter at
Macy's. I've changed.
RUSTY
Guys like us don't change, Saul.
We stay sharp or we get sloppy,
but we don't change.
SAUL
Quit connin' me.
(CONTINUED)
31.
47 CONTINUED: 47
They watch the race.
RUSTY
That your hound way in the back
there?
SAUL
He breaks late. Everyone knows
this.
On the track: The dogs are now coming around the back
stretch, and the crowd on the bleachers rises, cheering.
SAUL
You gonna treat me like a grownup
at least? Tell me what the scam
is?
Under the noise: Rusty leans in and whispers in Saul's
ear. Saul's eyes widen, then glaze over as all around
him people are standing and shouting.
Rusty places an envelope in Saul's lap, then gets up and
walks out as, on the track, the #4 dog crosses the finish
line... last by several lengths.
Saul considers his options. In one hand: a fan of
losing tickets. In the other (courtesy of Rusty): a
ticket to Las Vegas.
DANNY (V.O.)
And Saul makes ten.
48 INT. BAR - NIGHT 48
Danny and Rusty look weary from all this recruitment. A
nearby TV with the sound off plays a promo for an
upcoming Tyson fight.
DANNY
Ten should do it, don't you think?
(as Rusty shrugs)
You think we need one more?
(as Rusty shrugs)
You think we need one more.
(as Rusty shrugs)
Okay. We'll get one more.
49 INT. CROWDED SUBWAY CAR (CHICAGO) 49
Native Chicagoans demonstrate their indigenous sixth
sense -- L-car balance -- as the TRAIN bends and SHAKES
at a corner.
(CONTINUED)
32.
49 CONTINUED: 49
One passenger in particular keeps his footing, a young
man in a frayed jacket: LINUS.
Two overgroomed STOCKBROKERS stand with their backs to
the young man, yammering about high interest yields, and
consequently they don't notice (and neither do we, not at
first) that Linus is slowly picking one of their pockets.
The thievery is glacier-paced: Linus, his face always
forward and inscrutable, gingerly raises one tail of his
target's Brooks Brothers jacket and then, with
incomparable dexterity, unbuttons his wallet pocket with
a flick of his thumb and forefinger.
From halfway down the train car, nothing appears amiss,
and no passenger looks the wiser. Or so it seems...
A copy of the Chicago Sun-Times, opened and upheld,
lowers just enough to allow its reader a peek at Linus.
It is Danny, smirk on his lips: He (and he alone) is
aware of the ongoing heist.
Back to Linus, his spoils (a Gucci wallet) now in sight,
but he waits for just the right moment, and then, when
the train hits another curve...
... he stumbles forward, his left hand finding support on
the Stockbroker's shoulder as his right relieves the man
of his wallet.
LINUS
Sorry 'bout that.
STOCKBROKER
No problem, guy.
The Stockbroker resumes his yacketing, oblivious, as
Linus tucks his prize into his own jacket pocket, face
betraying nothing. Only Danny appreciates the artistry
performed here today. He folds the Sun-Times under his
arm as...
50 INT. UNION STATION - SUBWAY STATION 50
... The SUBWAY SQUEALS to a stop. Linus jumps out,
leaving his prey aboard, and a few moments later, Danny
steps off, too.
51 INT. UNION STATION - EVENING 51
The hurly-burly of rush hour in Union Station.
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 10/24/00 33.
51 CONTINUED: 51
Commuters zig and zag, this way and that, all on furious
schedules, and Linus slips blithely through them, in no
hurry, a man who's pulled this job a thousand times
before.
He dodges and sidesteps crazed commuters, and except for
a brief brush with one well-dressed man (the Sun-Times
tucked under his arm), he escapes the station without
incident.
52 EXT. UNION STATION - EVENING 52
Linus exits, casually reaching into his jacket to count
his winnings. And his face falls.
All he finds where the stolen wallet once resided is a
calling card. On one side, in engraved printing:
"DANIEL OCEAN." On the flip side, in handwriting: "Nice
pull. Murphy's Bar, Rush & Division."
53 INT. MURPHY'S BAR - FIVE MINUTES LATER 53
On a tabletop: the Gucci wallet beside a half-drunk
Guinness. Linus enters the front door, cases the joint,
spots the wallet on the table, and Danny behind it.
DANNY
Hi, Linus. Sit down.
LINUS
Who are you?
DANNY
A friend of Bobby Caldwell's. Sit
down.
Linus balks, prideful, but sense finds a way, and he
sits.
DANNY
Bobby told me about you. Said you
were the best set of hands he ever
saw. Didn't expect to find you
working wallets on the subway.
LINUS
That wasn't work, that was
practice.
Danny reaches into his jacket and sets a plane ticket on
the table. He keeps his hand over it.
(CONTINUED)
34.
53 CONTINUED: 53
DANNY
You're either in or out, right
now.
LINUS
What is it?
DANNY
A plane ticket. A job offer.
LINUS
You're pretty trusting pretty
fast.
DANNY
Bobby has every faith in you.
LINUS
Fathers are like that.
(off Danny's reaction)
He didn't tell you?
(as Danny shakes
his head)
He doesn't like me trading on his
name.
DANNY
You do this job, he'll be trading
on yours.
LINUS
What if I say no?
DANNY
We'll get someone else who won't
be quite as good. You can go back
to feeling up stockbrokers.
Linus considers. He looks down at the ticket, then at
the wallet. It's one or the other.
A waitress passes, and Danny signals her for his bill.
When his attention returns to Linus, the wallet
remains... but the ticket beneath his hand is gone.
Linus is reading it.
DANNY
That's the best lift I've seen you
make yet.
LINUS
Las Vegas, huh?
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 10/24/00 35.
53 CONTINUED: (2) 53
DANNY
America's playground.
And our MAIN THEME KICKS IN as we...
CUT TO:
54 LAS VEGAS - AERIAL VIEW - ESTABLISHING - DUSK 54
The city looms out of the desert like an infernal
machine, lights flashing, skyline pulsing, a neon
fortress.
One thing in particular catches our eye: an enormous
billboard with an ad for the upcoming boxing match
between Mike Tyson and Lennox Lewis. Below it, a
promoter hands out fliers for strip joints and call
girls.
55 OMITTED 55
56 INT. REUBEN TISHKOFF'S MANSION (LAS VEGAS) - NIGHT 56
Frank Catton is already here, mixing a drink, when --
DING DONG -- the DOORBELL CHIMES. Tishkoff shuffles
toward the front (he's given the help the night off) and
opens his door to find...
LIVINGSTON
Trick or treat.
... Livingston, Basher, Yen, the Malloys, Saul and Linus
crowding his doormat. A taxi-van pulls away behind them.
TISHKOFF
What, you guys get a group rate or
something?
57 INT. TISHKOFF'S LIVING ROOM - LATER 57
Along one wall, a buffet table has been set up, and while
Virgil and Turk pile shrimp onto plates, Saul pockets an
orange for later.
TURK
You make it out to Utah much,
Saul?
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 10/24/00 36.
57 CONTINUED: 57
SAUL
(last man you'd see
in the Tabernacle)
Not as much as I'd like.
TURK
You should. You'd like it. You'd
like Provo.
VIRGIL
(scarfing a jumbo
shrimp)
Anybody see the salsa goes with
this?
At the wet bar, Basher mixes a drink for Livingston; on a
couch, Yen balances coffee-table ornaments into a
skyscraper, to Frank's astonishment. In a corner, off on
his own, Linus watches the company, his eyes narrowing,
wary. Until...
DANNY (O.S.)
Gentlemen: welcome to Las Vegas.
Danny stands at the top of the stairs leading into the
room, flanked by Rusty and Tishkoff. He starts down...
DANNY
Everybody eaten? Good. Everybody
sober? Close enough. Most of you
know each other already. You
probably haven't met Linus
Caldwell before, he's Bobby's kid
outta Chicago.
Linus trades nods around the room.
DANNY
Okay. Before we start, nobody's
on the line here yet. What I'm
about to propose to you happens to
be both highly lucrative and
highly dangerous. If that doesn't
sound like your particular brand
of vodka, help yourself to as
much food as you like and safe
journey. No hard feelings.
(pauses, soberly)
Otherwise, come with me.
He turns and walks out of the living room, into another.
Rusty is close behind; he turns briefly, casts an eye
over the assembled and keeps going. The guys look each
other over, sizing things up.
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 10/24/00 37.
57 CONTINUED: (2) 57
BASHER
What the hell.
And he follows, along with Frank and Livingston. Then
Virgil, Turk and Yen. Then Saul. That leaves Linus,
watching the line of men disappear. He turns to find
Tishkoff by his side, staring at him.
LINUS
Hi.
TISHKOFF
You're Bobby Caldwell's kid, huh?
LINUS
Yeah.
TISHKOFF
From Chicago?
LINUS
Yeah.
TISHKOFF
It's nice there. You like it?
LINUS
Yeah.
TISHKOFF
That's wonderful. Get in the
goddamn room.
58 INT. GAME ROOM 58
A tournament-level pool table holds center stage here.
Atop its green felt sits a raised, elaborate miniature of
Terry Benedict's Las Vegas: three casinos and hotels
with the Strip running between them.
As the eleven surround the table and the model...
DANNY
Gentlemen: the 14000 block of Las
Vegas Boulevard. Otherwise known
as the Bellagio, the Mirage,
the M.G.M. Grand. Together,
they're the three most profitable
casinos in Las Vegas...
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 10/24/00 38.
58 CONTINUED: 58
Danny removes the Strip from the model. Revealed beneath
is a complex substructure, featuring three tunnels, each
leading from a casino to a single freight-sized elevator
shaft which descends into an enormous vault.
DANNY
Gentlemen: the Bellagio vault.
Located below the Strip, beneath
two hundred feet of solid earth.
It safeguards every dime that
comes through each of the three
casinos above it.
(beat)
And we're going to rob it.
Everyone takes a breath, awed.
LINUS
Smash-and-grab job, huh?
RUSTY
It's a little more complicated
than that.
Danny picks up a remote control and flips on a panel of
Tvs.
DANNY
Courtesy of Frank Catton, new
blackjack dealer at the Bellagio,
security tapes from the three
casinos.
On the monitors: three montages of black-and-white
security tapes, starting within the three casinos' cages,
moving into the tunnels, then (as the TVs unite in their
images) pushing into the elevator and eventually the
vault.
As the group's glances shoot back and forth from the TV
to the corresponding section of the model, i.e. from a
POV of the tunnel to the miniature tunnel itself...
(CONTINUED)
39.
58 CONTINUED: (2) 58
DANNY
Okay. Bad news first. This place
houses a security system which
rivals most nuclear missile silos.
First: we have to get within the
casino cages --
RUSTY
(indicating)
-- here, here, and here --
DANNY
-- which anyone knows takes more
than a smile. Next: through
these doors, each of which
requires a different six-digit
code changed every twelve hours.
Past those lies the elevator, and
this is where it gets tricky: the
elevator won't move without
authorized fingerprint
identifications --
RUSTY
-- which we can't fake --
DANNY
-- and vocal confirmations from
both the security center within
the Bellagio and the vault below - -
RUSTY
-- which we won't get.
DANNY
Furthermore, the elevator shaft is
rigged with motion detectors --
RUSTY
-- meaning if we manually override
the lift, the shaft's exit will
lock down automatically and we'll
be trapped.
DANNY
Once we've gotten down the shaft,
though, then it's a walk in the
park: just three more guards with
Uzis and predilections toward not
being robbed, and the most
elaborate vault door conceived by
man. Any questions?
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 10/24/00 40.
58 CONTINUED: (3) 58
Silence. For a moment, each man keeps his two dozen
questions or more to himself. At last, one speaks up...
The Amazing Yen. In Cantonese. Of course, no one
understands him. Except Rusty.
RUSTY
(in response)
No. Tunneling is out. There are
Richter scales monitoring the
ground for one hundred yards in
every direction. If a groundhog
tried to nest there, they'd know
about it. Anyone else?
Another silence. Either the guys are too dumbfounded by
that bilingual exchange or too numbed by the task ahead
of them to speak.
TURK
You said something about good
news...
DANNY
(smiles, happy
someone asked)
The Nevada Gaming Commission
stipulates: a casino must hold in
reserve enough cash to cover every
chip at play on its floor. As I
mentioned, this vault services
each of the three casinos above
it. That means: during the week,
by law, it must hold anywhere from
sixty to seventy million dollars
in cash and coin. On a weekend,
between eighty and ninety million.
On a fight night, like the one two
weeks from tonight, the night
we're going to rob it, at least a
hundred and fifty million. Without
breaking a sweat.
(gazing about room)
Now there are eleven of us. Each
with an equal share. You do the
math.
MOVING AROUND the table ON ten faces, as everyone does
precisely that, in their heads, except for Virgil who
does it on his fingers. He whistles.
RUSTY
That's what I said.
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 10/24/00 41-43.
58 CONTINUED: (4) 58
Everyone seems suitably impressed by their share.
SAUL
I have a question.
(as Danny turns
to him)
Say we do get into the cage, and
through the security doors there,
and down the elevator we can't
move, and past the guards with
guns, and into the vault we can't
open...
RUSTY
Without being seen by the cameras.
DANNY
(off everyone's
astonishment)
Oh, right. Sorry. I forgot to
mention that.
SAUL
Say we do all that. We're just
supposed to walk outta there with
a hundred million dollars in cash
on us without getting stopped?
Danny smiles, his broad, sure-of-himself grin, the one
Rusty couldn't deny earlier and these guys won't deny
now.
DANNY
Yeah.
Saul looks panic-stricken; like that, his ulcer has
flared up, and he pops a Rolaid in his mouth.
DANNY
Alright. Here's how we'll begin.
59 OMITTED 59
60 INT. MGM GRAND CASINO - DAY 60
MOVING WITH a cash cart as security guards push it past
tourists, past cocktail waitresses, past Linus sitting at
a blackjack table.
(CONTINUED)
44.
60 CONTINUED: 60
DANNY (V.O.)
First task: reconnaissance. I
want to know everything that's
going on in all three casinos.
From the rotation of the dealers
to the path of every cash cart...
61 INT. BELLAGIO - BREAK ROOM - DAY 61
Two security TECHNICIANS on a smoke break grumble about
their sex lives. Across the room, Frank sits innocently
doing a crossword.
DANNY (V.O.)
I wanna know everything about
every guard, every watcher, anyone
with a security pass. I wanna
know where they're from, what
their nicknames are, how they take
their coffee...
BETTER VIEW
REVEALS: On his crossword, Frank has scribbled a
transcript of the Technicians' conversation. As he
glances up at an electronic keycard clipped to one
Technician's belt...
62 INT. MIRAGE CASINO - DAY 62
... an identical keycard is swiped through a keypad, its
light flashing red to green, admitting a guard into an
"Employees Only" doorway.
The Malloys, who've shadowed the guard here, note a
sentry standing watch by the door as well as a security
camera embedded in the ceiling above: No one walks
through that portal unchecked.
DANNY (V.O.)
Most of all, I want you guys to
know these casinos. They were
built as labyrinths, to keep
people in. I want you guys to
know the quick routes out.
Their job done, the Malloys start toward the casino's
exit... in different directions. They begin to argue:
The exit's that way -- no, it's that way.
45.
63 EXT. LAS VEGAS BOULEVARD - OUTSIDE THREE CASINOS - DAY 63
With two dozen other tourists, Basher crosses the street
and when he meets a manhole cover he stops and,
extracting a small metal hook from his jacket, removes it
from its perch, so casual about the action that no
passerby looks twice at him.
DANNY (V.O.)
Second task: power. On the night
of the fight, we're gonna throw
the switch on sin city. Basher,
it's your show.
Basher drops into the hole, pulling the cover over him,
as we PULL UP OVER the Bellagio and...
DISSOLVE TO:
64 INT. BELLAGIO SECURITY CENTER - EYE IN THE SKY 64
Dozens of monitors manned by dozens of watchers canvas
dozens of casino tables; only NASA's control rooms house
more technology.
Apart from the fray, another bank of monitors manned by
two watchers (let's call them, for no particular reason,
FAT and SLIM) oversee a different section of the casino:
the cage, its tunnels, the elevator, and the vault it
leads to; everything, in fact, which our team saw in the
game room.
DANNY (V.O.)
Third task: surveillance. Casino
security has an eye and ear on
everything, so we'll want an eye
and ear on them. Livingston...
65 INT. BELLAGIO - LIVINGSTON'S ROOM - CLOSE ON SET OF 65
SCHEMATICS OF BELLAGIO - NIGHT
A page of the set Danny and Rusty "borrowed" from Kuehn &
Associates. Danny and Livingston study it.
WIDER
LIVINGSTON
Well, it's not the least
accessible system I've seen, but
it's close. I don't suppose they
have a closed-circuit feed I could
tap into?
(CONTINUED)
46.
65 CONTINUED: 65
Danny shakes his head: no such luck.
LIVINGSTON
Then this is definitely a black
bag job. Do they employ an in-
house technician?
Danny looks to Rusty who, behind them, tampers with
Livingston's audio-video setup: several portable
monitors, a laptop and modem, telephone headset, etc.
RUSTY
Two. And one of them is lonely.
DANCE MUSIC overwhelms the SOUNDTRACK...
66 INT. OLYMPIC GARDENS STRIP CLUB - NIGHT 66
... as we join a lap dance already in progress. A
security Technician (one of the two Frank eavesdropped on
in the break room) shells out twenty bucks every three
minutes for a DANCER to grind her pelvis against his
chest...
... and while the Technician grins not-very-soberly and
ogles her perfect breasts and paws at her midriff, the
Dancer secretly removes the keycard from his belt.
DANCER
I'll be right back, honey. Don't
move a muscle.
TECHNICIAN
(drunk and in
love)
Depends on the muscle.
She pouts, flirtingly, as she does for every idiot who
drops a line like that, then makes her way to...
67 EXT. OLYMPIC GARDENS STRIP CLUB - NIGHT 67
... where Rusty waits for her, and when she slips him the
keycard, he slips her a c-note.
RUSTY
Thanks, Charmaine. I'll have it
back within the hour.
(as he goes)
Say hello to your mom for me.
DANCER
Say it yourself. She'll be
onstage in five minutes.
47.
68 INT. BELLAGIO CASINO - NIGHT 68
FOLLOWING a bunch of balloons -- all congratulating
"Happy Anniversary!" -- as a delivery boy carries them
through the casino, and just as he's passing an
"Employees Only" door (complete with sentry and embedded
ceiling camera)...
... he bumps into a TOURIST, and the balloons drift out
of his hand and into the camera...
TOURIST
Hey, watch it, bud...
69 INT. BELLAGIO SECURITY CENTER - EYE IN THE SKY 69
As the balloons fill the frame of one monitor...
SLIM
433, we have visual impairment on
the east door camera.
70 INT. BELLAGIO CASINO - BY CAGE DOOR - NIGHT 70
The SENTRY (#433) hears this and spots the balloons
covering the embedded camera and approaches the delivery
boy (who by freak accident happens to be Virgil
Malloy)...
SENTRY
Excuse me, sir: You're going to
have to move your balloons.
... but Virgil's too busy picking a fight with the
Tourist (surprise, surprise: Turk Malloy) to listen.
VIRGIL
Who you calling 'bud,' pal?
TURK (TOURIST)
Who you calling 'pal,' friend?
VIRGIL
Who you calling 'friend'...
(can't think of
another)
... bud...
And with the Sentry out of position...
... Livingston (dressed now in a technician's uniform,
don't worry about how he got it) goes quickly to the door
and swipes the newly-acquired keycard and when it flashes
red-to-green, he enters...
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 10/24/00 48.
71 INT. CAGE - HALLWAY 71
He's in. Livingston takes a moment, his brow perspiring
(he's in the lions' den now), then checks his palm:
drawn there in ballpoint is a diagram of the cage
corridors.
72 INT. BELLAGIO SECURITY CENTER - EYE IN THE SKY - ON 72
MONITOR NEXT TO BALLOON-CLOUDED ONE
Livingston appears and, as nonchalantly as he can, he
ambles down a hallway, then another, until he reaches...
73 INT. CAGE - HALLWAY 73
... an unmarked door next to the entrance to the security
center. Livingston swipes his keycard to enter...
74 INT. CIRCUITRY ROOM 74
A giant walk-in closet/switchboard full of wires, plugs,
lights, etc. Livingston goes to work:
FLURRY OF SHOTS
He splices into all sorts of wires and lines and cables.
Meanwhile...
75 INT. BELLAGIO CASINO - BY CAGE DOOR - NIGHT 75
... Virgil and Turk argue, nose-to-nose, "accidentally"
blocking the Sentry from the balloons...
VIRGIL
You hear about this new medical
discovery they made? It's called
a 'sense of direction.'
Apparently we're all supposed to
have one...
TURK
Yeah yeah yeah, whatever, balloon
boy.
SENTRY
Gentlemen, gentlemen...
49.
76 INT. CIRCUITRY ROOM 76
Livingston's work here is almost done: he clips a small
mechanism (known in his industry as a "spider" -- it's
small, black, antenna-less and hides in dark places) to a
main conduit, then verifies a tiny receiver he holds is
picking up the spider's feed.
One last click into place...
77 INT. BELLAGIO SECURITY CENTER - EYE IN THE SKY 77
... causes a brief, unnoticed blip on Slim's monitors...
78 INT. BELLAGIO - LIVINGSTON'S ROOM - NIGHT 78
... and transmits all the views of the cages onto the
monitors upstairs. Danny and Rusty witness their
appearance.
DANNY
Why do they paint hallways that
color?
RUSTY
They say taupe is very soothing.
79 INT. CAGE - HALLWAY 79
Livingston steps outside. His job done, he exhales and
wipes the sweat from his brow and checks his palm for
directions and...
Whoops. His sweat just smeared the ballpoint. He's
flying blind. He looks left down a corridor, then right,
trying to remember which way he came from. No idea.
80 INT. BELLAGIO - LIVINGSTON'S ROOM 80
DANNY
Uh-oh.
81 INT. CAGE - HALLWAY 81
MOVING WITH Livingston as he tries to find his way out.
He takes a left...
Whoops again: here comes Fat, dead ahead. Livingston
has no recourse but to march right by him.
(CONTINUED)
50.
81 CONTINUED: 81
FAT
Hiya.
LIVINGSTON
Fine, thanks.
Livingston continues on, and maybe for a second he thinks
he's in the clear, especially when he sees the exit
looming ahead, but then Fat turns behind him and hails
him back...
FAT
Hey...
82 INT. BELLAGIO CASINO - BY CAGE DOOR - NIGHT 82
At last, the Sentry outmaneuvers Virgil and Turk and
grabs the balloons himself. Virgil quickly snatches them
back...
VIRGIL
Hey... get your own balloons.
83 INT. CAGE - HALLWAY 83
Livingston approaches the exit's keypad and swipes his
keycard: the light does not flash red-to-green.
FAT
(on his tail)
Hey...
Livingston looks: he swiped the wrong side of his
keycard. He tries again. Red flashes to green. He
pulls the door...
... but Fat blocks it. Livingston peers up, certain he's
had it.
84 INT. BELLAGIO - LIVINGSTON'S ROOM 84
Danny and Rusty simultaneously lean forward.
85 INT. CAGE - HALLWAY 85
FAT
You dropped this.
Fat holds out Livingston's receiver and drops it in his
hand.
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 1/8/01 51.
85 CONTINUED: 85
LIVINGSTON
Thanks.
And he's out.
86 INT. BELLAGIO - LIVINGSTON'S SUITE - NIGHT 86
Danny and Rusty exhale.
DANNY
Well...
RUSTY
Yeah...
DANNY
Fourth task: construction...
87 INT. WAREHOUSE - DAY 87
The gang hauls building materials -- lumber, tools,
paint, etc. -- and Yen hauls three times his share,
carrying objects on his head/shoulders/arms, a circus
act in a hardware store.
DANNY (V.O.)
We need to build an exact, working
replica of the Bellagio vault.
RUSTY (V.O.)
For practice.
DANNY (V.O.)
Something like that.
As Linus hauls in materials, Danny takes him aside.
DANNY
Fifth task: intelligence. We
need those codes, Linus. From the
only man who has all three.
LINUS
Benedict.
DANNY
Learn to love his shadow.
(back to the team)
Sixth task: transport...
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 1/8/01 52.
87 CONTINUED: 87
LINUS
(young and eager)
Wait, wait, wait. All I get to do
is watch him?
DANNY
For now. You gotta walk before
you crawl.
RUSTY
(to Linus, correcting Danny)
Reverse that.
DANNY
(toward the Malloys)
Sixth task: transport...
88 EXT. BILLY TIM'S VAN AND TRUCK DEALERSHIP - OFFICE - DAY 88
Outside a window: Turk and Virgil jump up and down on
opposite bumpers of a van, testing its durability.
Inside, Frank negotiates with BILLY TIM, a Cal-
Worthingtonesque redneck car dealer, who half-pays
attention to him, half-frets over the Malloys outside.
BILLY TIM
I'm sorry: eighteen-five each is
the best offer I can make you.
FRANK
(playing a bit of
a dandy)
Oh, I understand perfectly. They
are beautiful vans. Well, I thank
you for your time, Mister...?
BILLY TIM
Denham. Billy Tim Denham.
FRANK
Yes, Denham, like a jean.
(they shake)
You know: you have lovely hands
-- do you moisturize?
BILLY TIM
I'm sorry?
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 1/8/01 53.
88 CONTINUED: 88
Frank's not letting go of the man's hand, the object now
is to force Billy Tim into lowering his price just to get
Frank out of his office.
FRANK
I swear by it. I try all sorts of
lotions. I went through a
fragrance-free period last year,
but now I'm liking this new brand
fortified with rose hip. My
sister, you know, she uses the
aloe vera with the sun screen
built in...
BILLY TIM
(just can't get
his hand back)
Uh-huh. You said you'd be willing
to pay in cash?
FRANK
I did. You know: they say
cinnamon is wonderful for your
pores. Read that on the internet.
And that ideally you should be
wearing gloves to bed, but I find
that would interfere with my
social agenda. Problem is: I get
a reaction to camphor so I can't
use traditional remedies...
BILLY TIM
If you could pay cash, I could
probably drop the price a little.
To, say, seventeen...
(as Frank squeezes
a little)
... sixteen each.
FRANK
(big smile)
That would be lovely.
89 INT. WAREHOUSE - BACK TO DANNY - DAY 89
overseeing the construction, reviewing his list of tasks
on his fingers, suspecting he's missed one.
DANNY
... Power, surveillance,
transport...
(CONTINUED)
54.
89 CONTINUED: 89
TISHKOFF
Anything I can do?
Danny's eyes flash from Tishkoff to Saul, behind him,
dressed in his usual frumpy attire: that's what he
missed.
DANNY
Get your wallet.
90 INT. HABERDASHERY 90
A tailor fits Saul for the finest suits Tishkoff's money
can buy. As Saul smoothes out a coat sleeve...
SAUL
This is nice material.
DANNY
It's Armani, Saul.
SAUL
It's very nice.
Saul's not fooling anyone: he's scared, right down to
his Florsheims. Danny nods to the tailor: "Give us a
moment."
DANNY
Saul, you sure you're ready to do
this?
Saul turns away, and when he faces Danny again, his
entire aspect has changed: His features stone, his eyes
icicles.
SAUL
If you ever question me again,
Daniel, you won't wake up the
following morning.
They exchange a long, fierce glance; Saul's eyes never
waver.
DANNY
You're ready.
Danny signals Tishkoff: let's pay, and Saul immediately
slumps into his old self. To a mirror, he practices...
SAUL
Hello. My name is Lyman Zerga...
(this time a little
deeper)
My name is Lyman Zerga...
55.
91 INT. LIMOUSINE - DAY 91
Saul's dressed completely (and immaculately) now in
Armani, with his hair slicked back, a brief moustache on
his lip, and impenetrably dark glasses riding the bridge
of his nose. He continues to practice, his accent even
deeper now and specifying no geographic origin -- could
be Scottish, could be Israeli...
SAUL
My name is Lyman Zerga... My name
is Lyman Zerga...
Danny passes him an envelope full of $100 bills.
DANNY
There's a little over twenty grand
there, Saul. Try to make it last.
Saul pats down his pockets for something he can't find...
SAUL
You seen my...
DANNY
(handing him Rolaids)
Bought you a fresh roll.
The limo pulls to a stop, and outside there is a flurry
of FOOTSTEPS before Saul's door swings open, and Turk and
Virgil (both costumed as bodyguards) stand waiting for
him.
VIRGIL
Mr. Zerga, we're here.
DANNY
Good luck, Lyman.
SAUL
(hesitates, then gets
out)
Luck is for losers.
92 INT. BELLAGIO CASINO - DAY 92
Saul, as Lyman Zerga, makes as low-profile an entrance
into the Bellagio as he can with bodyguards preceding and
trailing him. He approaches a V.I.P CONCIERGE...
V.I.P. CONCIERGE
Good afternoon, sir. How can I be
of service?
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 1/8/01 56.
92 CONTINUED: 92
SAUL
My name is Lyman Zerga. I'd like
a suite, please.
V.I.P. CONCIERGE
Do you have a reservation with us?
SAUL
(long glare at him)
I don't make reservations.
A longer glance at Lyman's bodyguards tells the Concierge
this is not a man to be denied. As he jumps to it...
A93 INT. OUTSIDE RESTAURANT'S ENTRANCE - DAY A93
Outside a restaurant's entrance, Rusty and Linus sit
before two slot machines, idly dropping in quarters as
they watch Saul receive the royal treatment.
RUSTY
Okay. Tell me about Benedict.
LINUS
The guy is a machine.
93 EXT. BELLAGIO CASINO - DAY (SUPER SLOW MOTION) 93
TERRY BENEDICT emerges from a Town Car and, from his
haircut to his smile to his pant-cuffs, he is effortless
perfection. He is Vegas royalty, yet he denies eye
contact to no man. He strides into his casino and,
appearing behind a pillar, Linus follows him in.
LINUS (V.O.)
He arrives at the Bellagio every
day at two p.m. Same Town Car,
same driver. Remembers every
valet's name on the way in. Not
bad for a guy worth three-quarters
of a billion.
94 INT. BELLAGIO - ELEVATOR BAY (SUPER SLOW MOTION) 94
The doors open, and Terry Benedict steps out. Linus
watches from a craps table.
LINUS (V.O.)
Offices are upstairs. He works
hard, hits the lobby floor at
seven on the nose.
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 1/8/01 57.
95 INT. BELLAGIO CASINO - NIGHT (SUPER SLOW MOTION) 95
From a balcony, Benedict stands overlooking the casino
floor. His CASINO MANAGER approaches and they confer.
LINUS (V.O.)
Spends three minutes on the floor
with his casino manager.
RUSTY (V.O.)
What do they talk about?
LINUS (V.O.)
All business. Benedict likes to
know what's going on in his
casinos. There's rarely an
incident he doesn't know about
or handle personally.
96 INT. HIGH ROLLERS' ROOM (SUPER SLOW MOTION) 96
Benedict works the room. He speaks to a Japanese High
Roller in Japanese, to a Swiss in German, etc.
LINUS (V.O.)
He spends a few minutes
gladhanding the high rollers.
He's fluent in Spanish, German and
Italian, and he's taking Japanese
lessons, getting pretty good at
it. He's out by seven-thirty,
when an assistant hands him a
black portfolio. Contents: the
day's take and new security codes.
Then he heads to the restaurant.
Indeed, as Benedict makes his exit, an assistant hands
him a black portfolio.
97 INT. BELLAGIO CASINO - OUTSIDE RESTAURANT 97
Rusty and Linus watch the entrance: No one enters.
LINUS
Give him another ten seconds.
Around the corner comes Benedict, carrying his black
portfolio.
LINUS
As I said: a machine.
RUSTY
And that portfolio contains the
codes to all the cage doors?
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 3/30/01 58.
97 CONTINUED: 97
LINUS
Two minutes after they've been
changed, he's got 'em in hand.
(beat)
I'll tell you: you guys picked
a helluva target. He is as smart
and ruthless as they come. The
last guy caught cheating here,
Benedict not only sent him up for
ten years, he got the bank to
seize the guy's home and
bankrupted --
RUSTY
-- his brother-in-law's tractor
dealership, I heard.
LINUS
He doesn't just go after your
knees, he goes after your
livelihood. And everyone-you-
ever-met's livelihood.
RUSTY
You scared?
LINUS
You suicidal?
RUSTY
Only in the morning.
(beat)
Now what?
LINUS
Now comes the girl... if she comes
in after he does, that means
they're in a snit.
RUSTY
Where's she come from?
LINUS
The museum downstairs. She's the
curator there. Wait... here she
is. You'll like this.
Rusty looks up as...
... a beautiful woman (the one Danny saw on Benedict's
arm in the New York Times photo) appears. Elegantly
dressed, a knockout, she moves very much in her own
private space. And Rusty's face just about drops at the
sight of her.
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 3/30/01 58A.
97 CONTINUED: (2) 97
LINUS
I don't know if we can use her
yet. I haven't even caught her
name.
RUSTY
Tess.
LINUS
What?
RUSTY
(looks very certain
about this, very
certain and very
upset)
Her name is Tess.
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 1/8/01 59.
98 EXT. WAREHOUSE - NIGHT 98
Construction continues into the wee hours.
99 INT. WAREHOUSE - NIGHT 99
A facsimile of the Bellagio vault sprouts into shape.
Livingston fixes a security camera in a corner, then
matches its image (of Frank staple-gunning floorboard
into place) to a security tape of the real McCoy.
On the other side of the garage, Turk and Virgil go to
work on their newly-purchased vans, with wrenches and
blow torches. Tishkoff recognizes a gasket Virgil
handles.
TISHKOFF
This looks familiar. Where'd you
get this?
VIRGIL
Off your Rolls.
TISHKOFF
Danny! Tell 'em not to touch the
Rolls!
Overlooking the whole enterprise is Danny, grinning from
ear to ear, happy in his work. He checks a stopwatch in
his hand as...
... the false top to the cash cart before him flies open,
revealing Yen within, his arms, legs and torso folded
into a three-by-four foot space. He whips an air hose
from his mouth and inhales deeply. Danny checks his
watch.
DANNY
29:47. Everything okay in there?
Yen responds. Of course, Danny doesn't understand him.
But Rusty does, appearing behind him.
RUSTY
But what doesn't beat the shit out
of being a circus performer?
Danny turns to Rusty: he looks very, very serious.
100 EXT. WAREHOUSE - NIGHT 100
Danny and Rusty adjourn from the warehouse.
(CONTINUED)
60.
100 CONTINUED: 100
DANNY
What is it?
RUSTY
Tell me this isn't about her. Or
I'll walk off the job right now.
(off Danny's reaction)
Tess. She's with Terry Benedict
now. Tell me this isn't about
screwing the guy who's screwing
your wife.
DANNY
Ex-wife.
RUSTY
Tell me.
DANNY
It's not. About that. Entirely.
A beat.
DANNY
You said you needed a reason.
Well, this is mine.
(beat)
When we started in this business,
we had three rules. We weren't
gonna hurt anybody. We weren't
gonna steal from anybody didn't
have it coming. And we were gonna
play the game like we had nothing
to lose. Well, I lost something.
Someone. That's why I'm here.
A beat.
RUSTY
Here's the problem: we're
stealing two things now. And when
push comes to shove, if you can't
have both, which are you gonna
choose? And remember: Tess
doesn't divide eleven ways.
A beat.
DANNY
If things go to plan, I won't be
the one who has to make that
choice.
The two men stand quietly for a moment.
(CONTINUED)
61.
100 CONTINUED: (2) 100
DANNY
How'd she look by the way?
Tess...
RUSTY
I've seen her happier.
CLOSE ON PICASSO'S WOMAN WITH GUITAR
TESS (V.O.)
'Radiant' is the word. Absolutely
radiant.
101 INT. BELLAGIO ART GALLERY - DAY 101
The painting hangs under a portrait lamp on a wall
between a van Gogh and a Monet.
At a distance, admiring it, are Tess, the SELLER and the
seller's AIDE-DE-CAMP. A staff photographer and other
personnel mill nearby.
Off to the side, in a sharp blazer, Tess stands
transfixed by the painting.
TESS
He painted it in the summer of
1912, after the break-up with
Fernande Olivier.
SELLER
She must have put him through
hell.
TESS
You can see the conflict. He
makes her both erotic and
grotesque. He's hopelessly drawn
to her, and yet she drives him
crazy.
AIDE-DE-CAMP
(checking his watch)
Mr. Santaniello has an early
flight. Do you think Mr. Benedict
will be late?
TESS
Mr. Benedict is never late.
Just then the double doors to the gallery swing open, and
Terry Benedict enters, right on time.
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 5/31/01 62.
101 CONTINUED: 101
He is elegant, beaming, commanding. All that's missing
is a blare of trumpets.
BENEDICT
Am I late?
TESS
Not at all, Mr. Benedict.
(greeting him)
Allow me to introduce to you Mr.
Jean Santaniello.
BENEDICT
(to Seller)
Mr. Santaniello, I apologize if I
kept you. I had to iron out a few
issues with my fight promoter. I
gave him an unlimited budget, and
he exceeded it.
SELLER
I understand it's going to be a
hell of a fight.
BENEDICT
We hope.
Tess angles Benedict toward the painting.
TESS
Here it is.
Benedict moves toward the painting, and as he does he
catches Tess in his glance, and his smile deepens. Then:
BENEDICT
Magnificent! I've been following
her for fifteen years now. At
last I've made her a home.
(to Tess)
All the arrangements and so
forth...
SELLER
Done. She's yours.
BENEDICT
Not mine. She belongs to everyone
who comes into my hotel. Isn't
that right, Ms. Ocean?
(CONTINUED)
63.
101 CONTINUED: (2) 101
TESS
Yes, Mr. Benedict.
BENEDICT
She's lovely, isn't she?
(as the Seller is
confused; Benedict
specifies painting)
I can't be the only one who was
after her.
SELLER
You're the only one who met my
price.
BENEDICT
Ah, but this... You can't put a
price on beauty. But I shouldn't
philosophize. I own casinos,
after all.
AIDE-DE-CAMP
Can we get a quick shot? Mr.
Santaniello has a plane to catch.
BENEDICT
Of course, of course.
Tess understands: she is not to be part of the photo.
Benedict and the Seller pose together and...
Flash!
102 INT. BELLAGIO ART GALLERY - LATER 102
The Seller exits with the Aide-De-Camp in tow. Benedict
remains, enthralled by the painting. Tess appears beside
him.
TESS
You like it?
BENEDICT
I like that you like it.
(beat)
I have some bad news from the
world of high fashion. It seems
Mike Tyson will be wearing red on
Saturday night. Red trunks with a
white stripe.
TESS
Oh?
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 1/8/01 64.
102 CONTINUED: 102
BENEDICT
And you, as I recall, will be
wearing a red Donna Karan? And
when the TV cameras pick us up in
the front row, that red dress...
TESS
I see.
BENEDICT
He's a charming man, but no one's
going to be watching him when they
can make a study of you. I've
asked Paolo to find three or four
things for you to try. I hope
you're not too disappointed.
She is, but she buries it.
BENEDICT
Are you sure?
She nods, smiles faintly.
BENEDICT
I'll see you tonight.
Instinctively she leans in to kiss him. He recoils ever
so slightly.
TESS
What? We're alone.
He lets his eyes wander along the length of the ceiling,
over all the eye-in-the-sky cameras hidden there. She
follows his look.
BENEDICT
In my hotels, there's always
someone watching.
But he kisses her anyway.
TESS
I'll see you tonight.
He glances once more on the Picasso as he moves away.
BENEDICT
Actually, I do like it.
And Tess remains, thinking: he's rich, he's handsome and
wooing, but is she happy?
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 10/24/00 65.
103 OMITTED 103
thru thru
105 105
106 INT. HIGH ROLLERS' ROOM - NIGHT 106
Quiet, elegant, tense. One table is operating only, in
the corner, and at it Saul, as Lyman Zerga, furtively
peels at the roll of Rolaids and slips one in his mouth.
HIGH ROLLER #1
Weak stomach, Mr. Zerga?
SAUL
I don't believe in weakness. It
costs too much. I don't believe
in questions, either.
(CONTINUED)
66.
106 CONTINUED: 106
This shuts the High Roller up fast. Saul looks up from
the table, just perceptibly, to spot Terry Benedict, on
his way in, right on schedule. He approaches the PIT
BOSS by the entrance.
BENEDICT
Eddie. Anything for me?
PIT BOSS
Mr. Zerga, sir. Lyman Zerga. In
the third position. Wishes to
speak with you privately.
BENEDICT
Who is he?
PIT BOSS
Businessman of some kind, working
mostly in Europe. He's very
vague, but I asked around. Word
is he deals primarily in arms.
One of the biggest.
BENEDICT
Zerga? Never heard of him.
PIT BOSS
Yessir. That's why I don't doubt
it.
BENEDICT
He's staying here?
PIT BOSS
Checked in two nights ago, sir.
He's in the Mirador suite.
BENEDICT
How's he doing?
PIT BOSS
Up. Almost forty grand.
BENEDICT
(knowing he can't
duck this)
Good for him...
107 INT. BELLAGIO - RESTAURANT - SAME TIME 107
Tess Ocean sits in a booth and sips at a glass of wine
and checks her watch: Benedict is late or very close to
being so...
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 10/24/00 67.
107 CONTINUED: 107
... when a pair of hands slips over her shoulders and
starts to caress her arms.
TESS
(without looking
at him)
You're thirty seconds late. I was
about to send out a search
party...
(recognizing the hands,
she turns, stunned)
Danny...
DANNY
(standing over her,
grinning)
Hello, Tess.
TESS
(thrilled and petrified
and stunned to see
him, but outraged
mostly)
What are you doing here?
DANNY
I'm out.
TESS
You're out.
DANNY
Of prison. You remember. The day
I went for cigarettes and never
came back. You must have noticed.
TESS
I don't smoke.
(as he sits)
Don't sit --
DANNY
(but he does)
They said I'd paid my debt to
society.
TESS
Funny, I never got a check.
Danny smiles. Tess stares daggers.
TESS DANNY
You can't stay. It's good to see you.
(CONTINUED)
68.
107 CONTINUED: (2) 107
DANNY
You're not wearing your ring.
A beat.
TESS
I sold it. And I don't have a
husband. Or didn't you get the
papers?
DANNY
My last day inside.
TESS
I told you I'd write.
Danny reaches his hand (ringed) for hers (ringless), but
she removes it from the table.
TESS
Danny. Go. Now. Before...
DANNY
Benedict?
She freezes: Danny knows. He smiles: it's okay. Then,
to a passing waiter:
DANNY
(his fingers two
inches apart)
Whiskey and --
(then one inch
apart)
-- whiskey.
TESS
Danny...
DANNY
You're doing a great job curating
the museum.
She sighs, exasperated.
DANNY
The Vermeer is quite good. Simple
but vibrant. Although his work
definitely fell off as he got
older.
TESS
Remind you of anyone?
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 1/8/01 69.
107 CONTINUED: (3) 107
DANNY
And I still get Monet and Manet
confused. Which one married his
mistress?
TESS
Monet.
DANNY
Right. Manet had syphilis.
TESS
They also painted occasionally.
A beat.
DANNY
You don't know how many times I
played this conversation out in my
head the last two years.
TESS
Did it always go this poorly?
DANNY
Yes.
TESS
Sounds frustrating.
DANNY
You were never easy.
(as she shrugs)
Okay. I'll make this quick. I came
here for you. I'm gonna get on with
my life, and I want you with me.
TESS
You're a thief and a liar.
DANNY
I only lied about being a thief.
But I don't do that anymore.
TESS
Steal?
DANNY
Lie.
TESS
I'm with someone now who doesn't
have to make that kind of
distinction.
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 03/20/01 70.
107 CONTINUED: (4) 107
DANNY
No, he's very clear on both.
TESS
Nice. Work on that for two years, too?
DANNY
Year and a half.
A light smile from Tess.
TESS
Do you know what your problem is?
DANNY
I only have one?
TESS
You've met too many people like you.
(then)
I'm with Terry now.
DANNY
Does he make you laugh?
TESS
He doesn't make me cry.
108 INT. HIGH ROLLERS' ROOM - SAME TIME 108
At the table, Saul bets heavily for the bank. Benedict
approaches, stands off to the right, watching.
HIGH ROLLER
(to Saul, noticing his
heavy bet)
You don't want to get in the hole
too heavy to this Benedict. A
friend of mine once borrowed a
hundred g's from the guy. Two
months went by, Benedict hadn't
heard from him, he calls my friend
up, asks 'Where's my money?' I'll
get to it when I get to it,' my
friend says. Half hour later
Benedict's in my friend's hotel
room, dangling him off his 10th
floor balcony by his feet. 'You
gonna get to it now?'
High Roller turns over a nine. Saul wins.
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 03/20/01 70A.
108 CONTINUED: (A1) 108
FRANK
Bank wins -- natural nine.
Benedict steps forward.
HIGH ROLLER
Hiya, Terry.
BENEDICT
Mr. Weintraub. How's everything?
HIGH ROLLER
Eh. They put too much grenadine
in my Shirley Temple.
BENEDICT
And here I thought you were
drinking vodka.
(turning attention to
Saul)
Mr. Zerga.
SAUL
Mr. Benedict. I recognize you
from the TV. You know, nine
casinos out of ten, owner comes
up in the middle of the hand to
ask me what I want. I respect
your waiting.
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 10/24/01 71.
108 CONTINUED: 108
BENEDICT
You're the guest, sir.
SAUL
And I have to impose on your
hospitality. Can you sit in for a
hand?
BENEDICT
I'd love to, Mr. Zerga, but the
gaming board would feed me to my
white tigers.
SAUL
That's a shame. You're the king
of Vegas and you have to play
craps in the alley.
BENEDICT
No shame at all. Reminds me of my
youth.
CORNER - MOMENT LATER
Benedict and Saul are huddled in a corner.
SAUL
The fight is Saturday, is it not?
BENEDICT
Yes. I can get you seats...
SAUL
No, no. Hand-to-hand combat
doesn't interest me. I have a
package arriving here Saturday
evening. A black briefcase,
standard size, the contents of
which are very valuable to me.
BENEDICT
I'd be happy to put it in the
house safe for you.
SAUL
The house safe is for brandy and
grandmother's pearls. I'm afraid
I need something more secure.
BENEDICT
I can assure you, the house safe
is utterly...
(CONTINUED)
72.
108 CONTINUED: (2) 108
SAUL
(his looks stops
Benedict)
I can assure you, Mr. Benedict,
your generosity in this matter
will not go overlooked. Now:
what can you offer me besides the
safe?
Saul's eyes are pure steel: he is not a man familiar
with being denied. And Benedict recognizes that fact.
109 INT. BELLAGIO - RESTAURANT - SAME TIME 109
TESS
See, the kind of people you steal
things from, they have insurance
to compensate them. They get made
whole again. I had to leave New
York to get away from what
happened. How do I get my five
years back, Danny?
DANNY
You can't. But what you can do is
not throw away another five years.
TESS
You don't know anything about --
DANNY
(leaning in)
Listen, you don't love me anymore,
you want to make a life with
someone else? Fine, I'll have to
live with that. But not him.
TESS
Spoken like a true ex-husband.
DANNY
I'm not joking, Tess.
TESS
I'm not laughing.
(beat)
You have to admit there's a
conflict of interest when you give
me advice about my love life.
Danny exhales and leans back.
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 1/8/01 73.
109 CONTINUED: 109
DANNY
Yes. But that doesn't mean I'm
wrong.
She looks at him, and maybe part of her knows that he
isn't. She looks down at his ring, somewhat wistful.
He sees her looking at it.
TESS
Do you remember what I said to you
when we first met?
DANNY
You said: you better know what
you're doing.
TESS
Do you? Now? Because -- truly --
you should walk out the door if
you don't.
DANNY
I know what I'm doing.
BENEDICT
What are you doing?
Terry Benedict is hovering over them, fresh from his
meeting with Saul.
DANNY
Catching up.
TESS
Terry, meet my ex-husband...
DANNY
(extending his hand)
Danny Ocean.
BENEDICT
(taking it)
Mr. Ocean.
(to Tess)
Forgive me for being late. A
guest required my attention.
TESS
Danny was just walking through the
restaurant and spotted me.
BENEDICT
Is that right?
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 1/8/01 74.
109 CONTINUED: (2) 109
DANNY
I was shocked myself. Imagine the odds.
BENEDICT
'Of all the gin joints in all the
world...'
(beat)
You've been in prison until
recently, isn't that right? How
does it feel to be out?
DANNY
About the same. Everything you
want is still on the other side.
BENEDICT
There's the human condition for
you.
TESS
Terry, Danny was just about to...
DANNY
I just wanted to say hello. For
old time's sake.
BENEDICT
Stay for a drink, if you like.
TESS
He can't --
DANNY
(simultaneously)
-- I can't.
An awkward silence. Benedict takes Tess's hand in his.
BENEDICT
Well, then I don't imagine we'll
be seeing you again, Mr. Ocean.
DANNY
You never know.
BENEDICT
I know everything that happens in
my hotels.
DANNY
So I should put those towels back.
BENEDICT
The towels you can keep.
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 10/24/00 75.
109 CONTINUED: (3) 109
DANNY
(smiles, rises)
Good seeing you, Tess.
TESS
Take care, Danny.
Danny goes. When he's out the door...
TESS
I'm sorry --
BENEDICT
(like lightning)
Don't be.
110 OUTSIDE RESTAURANT 110
MOVING WITH Danny as he exits, his fingers snapping, he
saw the mist in Tess's eyes just now, he knows he's got a
fighting chance with her, but what he does not know is...
... Linus is tailing him, ten steps back. He stops,
glances back at the restaurant quizzically, then
continues following Danny.
111 INT. BASHER TARR'S HOTEL ROOM - DAY 111
Nobody lights a match, this place is a powder keg.
Basher sits on his bed, surrounded by combustibles,
whittling and polishing a plastic explosive into an
emerald shape. There's a KNOCK at the door...
MAID (O.S.)
House cleaning.
BASHER
(eyes never leave
his work)
Just jumping into the shower, can
you come back later?
The maid moves on, on TV: A Reporter broadcasts live...
REPORTER (V.O.)
We're here at the historic
Paradiso Hotel and Casino, once
the prize resort of Las Vegas, now
seconds away from demolition...
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 10/24/00 76.
112 EXT. PARADISO HOTEL (ON STRIP) - DAY 112
Just down the block from the Terry Benedict Trinity
stands (for a few remaining moments) the edifice of the
Paradiso, Reuben Tishkoff's bankrupted hotel-casino.
A crowd has gathered to witness its destruction: Terry
Benedict, for one, his finger on the button and his face
in the spotlight; Tess another, standing (near)by her
man; Danny, too, hidden within the masses, eyes fixed on
his ex; and Linus, who keeps a steady bead on Danny.
REPORTER
... and here's Reuben Tishkoff,
former owner of the Paradiso, come
to bid farewell to his fabled
resort and wish Terry Benedict all
the best with his future plans for
the property...
Terry greets Reuben before the TV cameras and newspaper
reporters, and everyone's smiling and shaking hands, but
behind those smiles and under their breaths...
BENEDICT
Good to see you.
REUBEN
Go shit in your mouth.
Tess, her eyes roaming the crowd, finds a pair staring
back at her: Danny's. She holds his glance a moment --
long enough for both Linus and Benedict to notice --
before turning away, to...
... Benedict, who puts his public smile back on and steps
up to a podium alongside MIKE TYSON and LENNOX LEWIS, and
together they all put their hands on "the plunger" and
Benedict leans into a microphone...
BENEDICT
I hope there's as much dynamite in
the Paradiso as there will be in
this Saturday's fight.
... and -- WHOOMPH -- the PLUNGER comes down and -- write
your own onomatopoeia here -- the PARADISO IMPLODES.
Reuben wipes a tear from his eye.
REUBEN
G'bye, honey...
113 INT. BASHER TARR'S HOTEL ROOM - SAME TIME 113
As the Paradiso crumbles outside his window, the lights
and TV in his room flicker and go out.
(CONTINUED)
77.
113 CONTINUED: 113
BASHER
Shit.
As he scrambles out the door, making sure to post a "Do
Not Disturb" sign...
RUSTY (V.O.)
Saturday day is yours. Do
whatever you like with it.
114 INT. TISHKOFF'S - GAME ROOM - NIGHT 114
FROM ABOVE, SLOWLY DESCENDING: Ten of our eleven (Basher
is missing) surround the model of the three casinos.
Rusty leads everyone in a run-down of the heist...
RUSTY
Call is at five-thirty. Makeup
and costume. Saul's package
arrives at seven-fifteen, and
Linus grabs our codes. All goes
well there and we're a go. Seven-
thirty Virgil and Turk deliver Yen
and we're committed. From that
point, we have thirty minutes to
blow the power or he suffocates.
We DESCEND ONTO the miniature of the vault, then --
DISSOLVE TO:
115 INT. BELLAGIO VAULT - NIGHT 115
FROM ABOVE, DESCENDING STILL: This is the Real Deal.
The Bellagio vault. A clock reads: 8:03.
RUSTY (V.O.)
Once the electricity goes, all
entry points to the vault and its
elevator will automatically lock
down for two minutes. That's when
we make our move...
Two guards wheel in a cash cart and leave it in the
vault's center and march out again, closing the thick
metal door behind them. When the vault LOCKS CLICK...
... We STOP DESCENDING, just above the cash cart. There
is silence for a spell, the lights flicker out, then...
... the false top of the cart springs open, revealing Yen
within, folded neatly.
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 1/8/01 78.
115 CONTINUED: 115
He inhales deeply, then slowly unspools himself from the
cash cart until, at last, he crouches atop it. He takes
in the room: vacant and silent.
Except for Rusty, who walks right by him, incongruously.
RUSTY
Okay: they've put you in the
middle of the room, far from
everything. You have to get from
here to the door without touching
the floor. What do you do?
A WIDER ANGLE reveals we're...
116 INT. WAREHOUSE - NIGHT 116
The Bellagio vault has been fully reproduced here, and
what we've been watching has been a trial run. Ten of
the eleven (Turk and Virgil in guard costumes, Basher is
still missing) watch from offstage, like a film crew
watching a dress rehearsal.
FRANK
Fin says he shorts it.
LIVINGSTON
Make it a sawbuck.
From a dead squat, Yen leaps, hands first, from the cash
cart to a ledge five yards away, and grips it safely with
both hands without touching the floor. From this
position, he'll inch his way to a counter, then, to the
door...
Frank pays up. Behind him, a DOOR SLAMS, and he turns to
see Basher, at last. Sniffing the air, he double-takes
-- Basher's covered head-to-toe in sewage.
BASHER
(and he's not happy)
We're in deep shit.
117 EXT. WAREHOUSE - NIGHT 117
Linus hoses Basher off, his accent angry and thick as he
spits out water and the story of his afternoon and if
nobody understands a word he's saying, that's okay...
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 10/24/00 79.
117 CONTINUED: 117
BASHER
The damn demo crew didn't use a
coaxial lynch to back the
mainline! Onioned the mainframe
couplet!
Reuben leans into Livingston...
REUBEN
You understand any of this?
LIVINGSTON
I'll explain later.
BASHER
Blew the backup grid one by one!
Like dominoes!
DANNY
(as he hardly
understands
this either)
Basher. What happened?
118 FLASHBACK - INT. VEGAS SEWERS - THAT AFTERNOON 118
A cabal of city engineers investigates subterranean fuse
boxes, and Basher tails them, hiding near a waterfall of
effluent.
BASHER (V.O.)
They did exactly what I planned to
do. Only they did it by accident.
Now they know their weakness. And
they're fixing it.
An ECHOING FOOTSTEP draws the attention of the city
engineers, and Basher retreats into the waterfall.
119 INT. TISHKOFF'S LIVING ROOM - NIGHT (PRESENT) 119
Basher towels off his hair...
DANNY
So...
BASHER
So unless we decide to do this job
in Reno, we're screwed.
Danny rises and paces, frustrated. He's come too far for
things to go awry now.
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 10/24/00 80.
119 CONTINUED: 119
RUSTY
We could --
DANNY
By tomorrow?
Danny keeps pacing; Rusty hangs his head and thinks;
Basher dries his hair.
BASHER
(an idea occurs
to him)
We could use a pinch.
Danny stops; Rusty looks up.
DANNY
What -- is a pinch?
120 INT. LAB - DAY 120
Scientists demonstrate the pinch, a lithium wire in a
glass vacuum tube the size of a small refrigerator.
BASHER (V.O.)
A pinch is the equivalent of a
cardiac arrest for any broad-band
electrical circuitry. Or better
yet: A pinch is a bomb... but
without the bomb. Every time a
nuclear weapon detonates, it
unleashes an electromagnetic pulse
which shuts down any power source
within its vicinity. That tends
not to matter in most cases
because the nuclear weapon
destroys everything you might need
power for anyway. Now a pinch
creates a similar electromagnetic
pulse, but without the headache of
mass destruction and death. So
instead of Hiroshima, you get the
Seventeenth Century.
A121 INT. TISHKOFF'S LIVING ROOM - NIGHT A121
RUSTY
For how long?
BASHER
About ten seconds.
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 1/8/01 81.
A121 CONTINUED: A121
DANNY
Could a pinch take out the power
of an entire city? Like, I
don't...
BASHER
Las Vegas?
(beat)
But there's only one pinch in the
world big enough to handle it.
Danny and Rusty trade a look: They have their answer.
DANNY
Where?
BASHER
(a beat, then balefully)
Pasadena.
B121 EXT. CAL TECH CAMPUS - NIGHT B121
Headlights hit a sign: "Cal Tech. HIGH-SECURITY AREA.
KEEP OUT." A white VAN SHOOTS PAST it.
121 OMITTED 121
122 INT. WHITE VAN - NIGHT 122
Turk and Virgil man the front seats as Danny, Basher, Yen
and Linus huddle in the back. Basher and Yen both
prepare equipment for their raid: hooks and a rope for
Yen, a small blowtorch and a drill for Basher.
DANNY
(to Basher and Yen)
You two ready?
They nod and, with Danny, start out the van's rear door.
Linus starts to follow but...
DANNY
What are you doing?
LINUS
Coming with you.
Danny smiles and shakes his head.
LINUS
(furious)
But...
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 1/8/01 82.
122 CONTINUED: 122
The van door slams in his face.
123 EXT. LABORATORY - AT PERIMETER DOOR - NIGHT 123
Danny picks a lock, then he, Yen, and Basher disappear
into the lab's interior.
124 INT. WHITE VAN 124
Linus twiddles his thumbs, tired of being seated at the
kids' table. Meanwhile, up front, another Mensa meeting
has been called to order...
VIRGIL
Are you a man?
TURK
Yes. Nineteen.
VIRGIL
Are you alive?
TURK
Yes. Eighteen.
VIRGIL
Evel Knievel.
TURK
Shit! Okay, your turn...
SAME SCENE - LATER
VIRGIL
Co-sign squared over .0455.
TURK
No. Co-sign squared over .0415.
VIRGIL
.04-five-five.
TURK
One-five.
VIRGIL
You're so wrong.
TURK
You don't know your string theory,
bitch.
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 1/8/01 83.
124 CONTINUED: 124
SAME SCENE - LATER
After a spell of silence...
VIRGIL
Mom told me she loves me more.
TURK
She told me she was going to tell
you that.
ON LINUS
TURK (O.S.)
Stop it.
VIRGIL (O.S.)
Make me.
TURK (O.S.)
Stop it.
VIRGIL (O.S.)
Make me.
They can be heard WRESTLING. Linus has had enough. He
sneaks out the van's back door without the Malloys
hearing him.
125 AT PERIMETER DOOR 125
Linus sulks along the laboratory's perimeter, finds the
door Danny pick-locked, and disappears inside.
A moment passes.
A moment passes.
And the next door opens, and Danny, Basher, and Yen
appear, pinch in hand -- they've succeeded. They weave a
path to the van...
126 INT. VAN 126
Turk and Virgil are still wrestling as the trio appears.
Danny, Basher and Yen pile in the back...
DANNY
We got it. Let's go.
Turk floors it, and they're off.
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 1/8/01 84.
126 CONTINUED: 126
DANNY
Wait a minute.
Turk brakes, and they're not.
DANNY
Where's Linus?
Everyone realizes: he's not here. Just then:
SIRENS and ALARMS and lights come to life. Uh-oh.
Danny spins to look out the back of the van, Basher by
his side. His eyes scan the compound, then:
DANNY
There he is.
DANNY'S POV
of the lab, and its beveled-glass stairwell. Linus
scrambles up its steps, a flight ahead of a duo of chasing
guards. As he ascends out of sight...
Danny shifts his focus to -
DANNY'S POV
The other side of the building, and two more guards
arriving on the roof and moving toward the staircase:
Linus will be trapped.
BACK TO SCENE
Danny, Basher, and Yen squat side-by-side-by-side,
watching all this. Yen makes a colorful observation about
Linus's predicament; of course, no one understands it.
VIRGIL (O.S.)
One of us should help him.
BASHER
(who speaks Danny's mind)
Then there'll be two of us who
need saving.
DANNY
He knows where we are.
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 1/8/01 85.
126 CONTINUED: (2) 126
DANNY'S POV
Both sets of guards appear on the rooftop, and find no
Linus between them -- he's disappeared.
TURK (O.S.)
Where'd he go?
BACK TO SCENE
Danny and Basher slowly turn: Turk and Virgil crouch
inches behind them, wanting to spectate as well.
TURK
(off Danny's look)
What?
(then, realizing their
goof, to his brother,
remonstratively)
Would you -- shouldn't someone be
behind the wheel?
CRASH!
127 OMITTED 127
& &
128 128
129 EXT. LABORATORY - NIGHT 129
A second-story WINDOW EXPLODES as a desk chair flies
through it, followed shortly by Linus who leaps onto a
steel-mesh overhang running alongside the building.
130 OMITTED 130
A131 INT. VAN A131
DANNY
Alright, back it up, back it up!
Virgil leaps into the driver's seat, shifts into reverse.
B131 EXT. VAN B131
Linus runs along the overhang, then leaps down, onto the
reversing van, and rolls along its roof and down its
windshield.
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 1/8/01 86.
B131 CONTINUED: B131
THROUGH the windshield: Virgil jabs his thumb over his
shoulder: get in the back.
DANNY
(appearing from
the rear doors)
C'mon, c'mon...
Linus scrambles back over the van, and Danny and Yen pull
him in. Virgil hits the gas for a quick getaway, but he
does so before the rear doors are closed, and one of them
slams shut right on Yen's hand -- CRUNCH!
YEN
Ahhh!
131 INT. WHITE VAN 131
as it hurtles away. Basher tends to Yen, cradling his
hand, and Danny stares down Linus, breathless.
DANNY
I say stay in the van, you stay in
the van, got it? 'Cause you lose
focus for one second in this game,
and someone gets hurt.
LINUS
(he's had just
about enough of
Danny's shit)
I got it.
They continue staring daggers at one another as...
A132 EXT. VAN A132
The van pulls away into the night...
JIM LAMPLEY (V.O.)
It's fight night in Las Vegas...
132 EXT. LAS VEGAS - DAY 132
Incoming lanes of the I-15 reflect bumper-to-bumper
steel; planes in the air are stacked for five miles over
the desert; even Gila monsters below seem Vegas-bound.
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 1/8/01 87.
132 CONTINUED: 132
JIM LAMPLEY (V.O.)
... people are flooding in from
all over the country to see what
has been dubbed the 'Fight to End
All Fights'...
133 EXT. LAS VEGAS - DAY 133
JIM LAMPLEY broadcasts live from a mobbed Strip.
JIM LAMPLEY
... and even though it's still
five hours 'til the opening bell,
the energy here is fever-pitched.
134 INT. BELLAGIO CASINO 134
Every table is in play, every seat filled.
88.
135 INT. BELLAGIO SECURITY CENTER - THE EYE IN THE SKY 135
The Bellagio's CASINO MANAGER (the one Linus spied with
Benedict before) checks in with his watchers.
MANAGER
How we doing?
136 INT. MIRADOR SUITE - DAY 136
Livingston has moved A/V operations into Lyman Zerga's
suite. As he scours the same images the watchers
downstairs do, he eavesdrops on their communications
through his headset.
WATCHER (V.O.)
(over Livingston's
headset)
Cotton couldn't be taller.
137 IN MIRADOR SUITE BATHROOM 137
Lost in the luxury his role dictates, Saul floats in a
full-sized Jacuzzi and chews on a hundred dollar cigar;
Reuben, meanwhile, paces the floor, nervously.
TISHKOFF
Where are they? That's what I
want to know. Where are they?
SAUL
(as Lyman)
They'll be here.
TISHKOFF
(to himself, mocking
"Lyman")
'They'll be here.' Thanks a lot,
Fidel.
138 AT LIVINGSTON'S CONSOLE 138
Punching up a new set of views from the Eye In The Sky,
Livingston thrusts forward, alarmed by one.
LIVINGSTON
Yikes.
139 INT. BELLAGIO CASINO - LOBBY - DAY 139
Rusty keeps watch on the hotel's side entrance.
(CONTINUED)
89.
139 CONTINUED: 139
He glances at his watch, then outside again as the white
van arrives, dropping off only Linus and Danny, who slaps
the van's roof before it pulls away.
As Danny and Linus enter the lobby, Rusty falls into step
with them, exchanging a smile with Danny but not Linus,
he still looks chastised from the car-trailer.
140 INT. ELEVATOR 140
Riding up...
RUSTY
You boys have a nice trip?
Rusty, smiling, looks to Linus, glowering, then to Danny.
Before Danny can explain the doors part at the Mirador
Suite, where Livingston greets them urgently.
LIVINGSTON
We have a problem.
141 INT. MIRADOR SUITE - ON LIVINGSTON'S LAPTOP - DAY 141
A mug-shot of Danny, complete with vital information:
height, weight, criminal history.
LIVINGSTON
You've been red-flagged. It means
the moment you step on the casino
floor, they'll be watching you.
Like hawks. Hawks with video
cameras.
DANNY
This is a problem.
A pall falls over the room: this is more than a problem,
this is disastrous. Only SAUL dares make a noise,
HUMMING and SPLASHING in the next room.
RUSTY
Saul: time to get out.
SAUL (O.S.)
(as Lyman)
It's time when I say it is.
RUSTY
Now!
We hear HIM JUMP-TO-IT out of the tub...
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 10/24/00 90.
141 CONTINUED: 141
SAUL (O.S.)
(himself again)
I'm out.
RUSTY
(back to Danny)
You have any idea how this
happened?
Before Danny can answer...
LINUS
I do. He's been chasing
Benedict's woman. Got into a real
snarl with him two nights ago.
(off Danny's look)
I was tailing you.
DANNY
Who told you to do that?
Before Linus can answer...
RUSTY
I did.
(he and Danny
hold a stare)
I knew you couldn't leave Tess
alone.
TISHKOFF
Who's Tess?
DANNY
My wife.
RUSTY
Ex-wife.
SAUL
(appearing in a
bathrobe)
Tess is here?
RUSTY
(eyes still on
Danny)
I'm sorry. I didn't know if it
would sting you, but it did.
(the most difficult
words he's ever
had to say)
You're out, Danny.
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 10/24/00 91.
141 CONTINUED: (2) 141
TISHKOFF
He's out?!
RUSTY
It's that or we shut down right
now. His involvement puts us all
at risk.
Danny and Rusty face off, furious with each other.
DANNY
This isn't your call.
RUSTY
You made it my call. When you put
her ahead of us. You made it mine.
DANNY
This is my job.
RUSTY
Not anymore.
Danny stares daggers at Rusty. But he can see: everyone
in the room is on Rusty's side. Defeated, he stalks out
of the room, onto a balcony, but not without staring down
Linus.
TISHKOFF
But, but... he can't just be out.
Who's gonna take his place?
Rusty turns to Linus.
RUSTY
Kid, you up for it?
Linus's eyes drift to Danny outside -- whatever acrimony
he felt before, he never meant to kick Danny off the job.
He nods, half-cocksure/half-scared-pissless: he's up for
it.
RUSTY
(to Livingston)
Find everyone else. Let 'em know
the change in plan. Curtain goes
up at seven.
Livingston exits. Everyone else in the room staggers
about, like witnesses after an execution. Rusty steps
out onto the balcony, perhaps to console Danny, but (as
Linus watches them from inside) their words cannot be
heard.
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 10/24/00 92.
141 CONTINUED: (3) 141
SAUL
Tess is with Benedict now?
(as nobody responds)
She's too tall for him.
142 OMITTED 142
& &
143 143
144 INT. BENEDICT'S SUITE - DRESSING ROOM - NIGHT 144
Tess, readying herself for the big evening, meets her own
glance in a dressing mirror, then spots Benedict in its
reflection, pacing the bedroom behind her.
BENEDICT
(on phone)
Yes. Yes. No. Very much no.
(beat)
Then inform Mr. Levin he'll find a
better view of the fight in front
of his television. Surely he must
have H.B.O.
Hanging up, Benedict approaches her, puts his hands on
her shoulders...
BENEDICT
What are you thinking about?
TESS
You.
She smiles at him in the mirror. His glance in it,
turns from her to himself.
145 INT. EXECUTIVE ELEVATOR 145
Riding down, Terry Benedict checks his watch. The
elevator doors open and...
146 INT. BELLAGIO CASINO - ELEVATOR BAY 146
... he steps onto his casino's floor, the king of Las
Vegas.
The time is 7:00.
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 10/24/00 93.
147 ON BALCONY OVERLOOKING CASINO FLOOR 147
Benedict meets his casino Manager, according to schedule.
BENEDICT
Any sign of Ocean?
MANAGER (WALSH)
Not in a couple hours. You want
him out? I can bounce him from
the state for parole violation if
you like.
BENEDICT
(shakes his head)
Put a guy on him. He's here for a
reason. I'd like to know what it
is. But if he comes anywhere near
Tess, take it to the next level.
MANAGER
Bruiser?
Benedict nods, goes on his way.
148 AT CASINO ENTRANCE 148
Saul, as Lyman Zerga, stands ramrod straight, looking
through sliding glass doors out at the valet station.
From behind, Terry Benedict approaches, two security
guards walking half a pace behind him. Saul spots him in
the glass's reflection; he does not turn.
SAUL
Mr. Benedict.
BENEDICT
Mr. Zerga. It's a very busy night
for me. Are we on schedule?
SAUL
I have no reason to suspect
otherwise. My couriers should be
here momentarily.
A beat as Benedict studies Saul.
BENEDICT
It's a nice evening. Shall we
wait outside?
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 10/24/00 94.
149 POV THROUGH BINOCULARS - ON BELLAGIO VALET AREA 149
Benedict and Saul emerge, guards positioned around them.
TURK (V.O.)
They're in position.
LIVINGSTON (V.O.)
(over STATIC)
Okay. We're a go.
150 EXT. BELLAGIO CASINO - VALET AREA - SUNSET 150
A white, unmarked van pulls in from the street and races
up to the curb where Saul and Benedict wait.
Turk Malloy gets out the passenger's side, a briefcase
handcuffed to his wrist, as Virgil comes around from the
driver's side, both of them dressed in their bodyguard
suits.
TURK
Mr. Zerga. A gift from Mr. Hesse.
Turk extends the briefcase to Saul, so that they both
clasp the handle, as Virgil produces a key, unlocks the
cuff on Turk's wrist, transfers it to Saul's, clamps it
shut, and hands Saul the key.
SAUL
Thank you, Friedrich, Gunther.
He turns, nods to Benedict, and they retreat into the
hotel, the security guards and Malloys flanking them.
151 INT. BELLAGIO CASINO 151
Frank deals blackjack to a full table. His eyes gaze
past his players to Saul, the guards and Benedict passing
by.
FRANK
(as he busts)
Lookin' like a bad night for the
house.
MOVING WITH Benedict as he spies out of the corner of his
eye Danny, lurking at a slot machine. To one of his
guards...
BENEDICT
Find Mr. Walsh. Tell him Mr.
Ocean's in the west slots.
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 10/24/00 95.
151 CONTINUED: 151
The guard goes, and Benedict continues with Saul...
BENEDICT
I'm afraid I can't allow my
private security personnel
inside the casino cages. I hope
you don't mind...
SAUL
Of course not.
Saul turns to dismiss Virgil and Turk when...
... passing by, on his way to a sports betting window, an
old RACETRACK DENIZEN happens past this cabal and, worse
yet, happens to recognize Saul.
RACETRACK DENIZEN
Saul? Saul Bloom, is that you?
Saul does his best to ignore the man. But even Benedict
notices: this guy seems to know Lyman Zerga.
RACETRACK DENIZEN
Saul, it's me. Bucky Buchanan,
remember? From Saratoga.
At last Saul turns to face this man, with shark's eyes.
SAUL
Friedrich, Gunther.
An order: dispose of this man. Virgil and Turk pick up
the Denizen by his elbows and haul him away.
SAUL
Mr. Benedict...
(gesturing to the
cage; re: his
briefcase-cuff)
Please: I have never enjoyed the
touch of steel to my skin.
They proceed.
152 AT SLOTS 152
Danny sits in a row of octogenarians, all vacantly
dropping $1 coins and pulling levers. As he watches Saul
and Benedict disappear into the cage...
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 10/24/00 96.
152 CONTINUED: 152
DING! DING! DING! DING! Four cherries. Danny smiles,
a big winner, but he's got bigger pots to win tonight.
He steers a neighboring senior citizen (blind as a bat)
to his slot machine...
DANNY
Pops, you won.
... then slips away.
A153 INT. MIRADOR SUITE A153
Linus stands dressed in a sharp, conservative suit -- a
far cry from the threadbare thief in Chicago. Rusty
circles him, inspecting.
RUSTY
Where you gonna put your hands?
Linus clasps them.
RUSTY
No...
Linus goes for his pockets.
RUSTY
Not the pockets, either. And
don't touch your tie. Look at
me...
Linus does.
RUSTY
That how you gonna stand?
Linus shifts his balance.
RUSTY
Wrong again. I ask you a
question, you have to think of the
answer, where you gonna look?
Linus looks down.
RUSTY
Death. You look down, they know
you're lying --
Linus looks up.
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 1/8/01 97.
A153 CONTINUED: A153
RUSTY
-- and up they know you don't know
the truth. Don't use three words
when one will do, don't shift your
eyes, look always at your mark but
don't stare, be specific but not
memorable, funny but don't make
him laugh, he's gotta like you
then forget you the moment you've
left his sight, and for God's
sakes whatever you do, don't under
any circumstances --
LIVINGSTON (O.S.)
Rust, can you come here a sec?
RUSTY
(wandering off)
Sure thing.
Linus is left utterly bewildered, a thousand commandments
to remember and fifteen minutes to remember them in.
153 EXT. ALLEY - DUSK 153
Turk and Virgil's white van whips around a corner and
shoots inside...
154 INT. WAREHOUSE - SECOND VAN POV 154
Of which, importantly, we never see the exterior, just an
air freshener hanging from the rearview mirror...
The white VAN SCREECHES to a halt inches from Basher who
stands ready beside the pinch (and the now-gutted and
dismantled mockup of the Bellagio vault) and faster than
a NASCAR pit crew Basher, Turk and Virgil load the pinch
into the white van's rear and before you can say
"electromagnetic pulse" the VAN SCREECHES back out of the
warehouse fully loaded.
The time is 7:16.
155 INT. BELLAGIO CAGES - EMPTY COUNT ROOM 155
The room is empty save for a large table. Saul places
his briefcase on it, adjusts its numbered combination
locks, and opens it.
Inside the case: five rows of glittering emeralds.
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 10/24/00 98.
155 CONTINUED: 155
BENEDICT
They're very beautiful. A gift.
Saul stares at him: none of your fucking business.
BENEDICT
Can you lift them out, please?
Saul lifts the velvet tray out of the case, and Benedict
pats down the case's interior. Saul replaces the tray.
BENEDICT
Alright, Mr. Zerga. I acknowledge
that the case does not contain any
dangerous or illicit material. I
further agree to take custody of
your case for a twenty-four hour
period to store in our secured
vault. While I cannot permit you
to accompany the case to the
vault...
SAUL
Why not?
BENEDICT
Insurance, for one. Security,
another. And I don't trust you.
There is a KNOCK at the door, and Walsh the casino
manager enters. He speaks low in Benedict's ear.
WALSH (MANAGER)
I put two plainclothes on Ocean.
He's at the keno bar now.
Walsh nods, and Benedict turns back to Saul.
BENEDICT
Mr. Zerga, this is Mr. Walsh, my
casino manager. If you will allow,
he will arrange for your briefcase
to be stored inside our vault while
you watch on a security monitor.
(beat)
Those are my terms. Yes or no?
Saul and Benedict eyeball each other.
SAUL
You leave me no choice.
Saul unlocks the cuff from his wrist.
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 10/24/00 98A.
156 EXT. BELLAGIO CASINO - KITCHEN ENTRANCE - NIGHT 156
The white van slows enough to unload Virgil and Turk,
changed into waiter uniforms, and they hurry a table-
clothed room service cart inside as Basher pulls away.
157 INT. BELLAGIO CASINO - BY CAGE DOOR - NIGHT 157
RISING FROM a spotless pair of wingtips shifting side-to-
side, OVER hands flexing and stretching, UP TO Linus
Caldwell. He keeps an eye on the cage door, waiting for
Benedict to appear, as he tries anything to shake out his
nerves. Then, from a discreet earpiece he wears, comes:
LIVINGSTON (V.O.)
Deep breaths. You'll do fine.
LINUS
(breathes deep)
Thanks.
LIVINGSTON (V.O.)
No sweat, kid. You're a rock.
(as Linus smiles,
feeling good about
himself)
Now don't fuck up.
158 INT. MIRADOR SUITE - ON LIVINGSTON'S MONITOR - NIGHT 158
Linus's smile disappears as he continues to bounce.
There's a KNOCK at the door.
(CONTINUED)
99.
158 CONTINUED: 158
VOICE (O.S.)
Room service.
Rusty checks through the peephole, then ushers in Turk
and Virgil in costume with their room service cart.
TURK
Who ordered the penne?
Livingston raises a hand, and as Turk serves him his
plate, Virgil whips off the cart's tablecloth:
underneath it's the false-lid cash cart. Rusty turns to
a corner.
RUSTY
You ready?
In it, Yen finishes bandaging his busted hand and nods.
159 INT. BELLAGIO SECURITY CENTER - THE EYE IN THE SKY 159
Fat and Slim sit before their monitors, feet kicked up,
as behind them Walsh, Benedict, and Saul enter.
WALSH
This is our security center, where
we oversee all gaming in the
casino as well as our vault.
You'll be able to monitor your
briefcase from here.
Walsh, finding Fat and Slim as they are, coughs; the two
watchers leap immediately to their feet. Benedict checks
his watch.
SAUL
Don't let me keep you.
BENEDICT
Mr. Zerga...
And Benedict takes his leave...
160 INT. MIRADOR SUITE - NIGHT 160
RUSTY
Linus... you're up.
161 INT. BELLAGIO CASINO - BY CAGE DOOR - NIGHT 161
Linus nods, shakes out his hands some more...
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 10/24/00 100.
161 CONTINUED: 161
LINUS
Deep breaths, deep breaths.
... and here comes Benedict, exiting the cage just as his
assistant arrives with his portfolio. As he turns toward
the restaurant...
LINUS
Mr. Benedict...
BENEDICT
Yes?
LINUS
(presents proper
identification)
Sheldon Wills. Nevada Gaming
Commission. Could I have two
minutes of your time?
Benedict sighs -- his evening's been sidetracked enough
already -- but...
BENEDICT
Of course. Anything for the
N.G.C.
162 AT KENO BAR 162
Danny watches Benedict escort Linus toward the blackjack
tables, unaware that TWO PLAINCLOTHES SECURITY GOONS
watch him from across the bar, and when he turns in their
direction, they look away, acting incognito, but it's not
them he's turning toward...
... it's Tess, rounding a corner toward the restaurant.
Danny jumps to his feet, throws a tip on the bar, and
goes.
163 INT. MIRADOR SUITE - NIGHT 163
The time is 7:27.
Yen tucks himself into the cash cart's hidden compartment
with a slim oxygen tank for company. Meanwhile, Rusty
drills Virgil and Turk...
RUSTY
Okay: when do you make the
deposit?
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 10/24/00 101.
163 CONTINUED: 163
TURK
Not until we get your signal.
VIRGIL
Hey. What do we look like: a
couple of peckerwood jackasses or
something?
No one responds.
RUSTY
(turning his attention
to Yen, squeezed into
the cart)
Amazing: how's it feel? You
alright?
(as Yen nods)
Want something to read? Magazine?
From the tangle of limbs, a middle finger protrudes to
show Rusty what he can do with a magazine.
RUSTY
Okay. I'm counting down. Thirty
minutes of breathing time
starts... now.
On "now" a RUNNING CLOCK APPEARS ON-SCREEN, descending
from 29:59. It will REMAIN there for the duration of the
pre-pinch heist, jumping at times BETWEEN SCENES.
Rusty seals Yen inside the cash cart, then gives the top
a tug: it's shut tight. As Virgil redresses it with the
tablecloth, Turk snatches back Livingston's penne on the
way to the door.
LIVINGSTON
You get no tip.
164 INT. CASINO FLOOR - 28:37 164
and counting. MOVING WITH Benedict and Linus into the
Pit Boss's station.
LINUS
It only came to our attention this
morning, Mr. Benedict. Apparently
he has a record longer than my
arm.
BENEDICT
If he is who you say he is.
(hailing a PIT BOSS)
Charlie. Call over Ramon
Escalante.
(CONTINUED)
102.
164 CONTINUED: 164
PIT BOSS
Certainly, Mr. Benedict.
Benedict and Linus wait, side-by-side. While Linus does
his best to play it cool, Benedict dips into his
portfolio.
165 INT. MIRADOR SUITE - ON LIVINGSTON'S MONITOR - NIGHT 165
An overhead view of Benedict as he pulls out the
combination to the vault, reads it, then buries it in his
jacket pocket.
RUSTY
Did you make it out?
LIVINGSTON
His head blocked the last two
numbers.
(into his microphone)
We missed it, Linus. You gotta
grab the combination yourself.
166 INT. BELLAGIO CASINO - NIGHT 166
Linus half-nods in response, and Benedict notices.
Suspicious of the young man, he decides to test him.
BENEDICT
You new at the commission?
LINUS
Been there about two years.
BENEDICT
I know Hal Lindley over there.
You work with him at all?
LINUS
(a pause; will he
pass?)
Not since he died last year.
He passes. The Pit Boss returns with Frank in tow.
BENEDICT
Mr. Escalante. Would you come
with us, please?
FRANK
What's this about?
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 10/24/00 103.
166 CONTINUED: 166
BENEDICT
I think it's better if we talked
off the floor.
Linus and Benedict lead Frank away. As they pass an
elevator...
... its doors open, revealing Turk and Virgil, dressed
now as security guards, pushing out the false-lid cash
cart. They leave behind a pile of dishes, waiter
uniforms, a tablecloth.
167 INT. RESTAURANT - 24:26 167
and counting. A MAITRE D' scours his reservations list,
then peers up to find Reuben Tishkoff approaching, on
either side of him two gorgeous young women, all blonde
hair and breasts and legs, women who wouldn't give Hefner
the time of day.
MAITRE D'
Good evening, Mr. Tishkoff.
TISHKOFF
Good evening, Marcel. My nieces
and I would like a table.
Something quiet before the fight.
MAITRE D'
I can put you at 19 in just a
couple minutes.
TISHKOFF
Quick as you can.
(re: the girls)
The meter's running here.
The Maitre d' turns to his next customer: Tess. She, of
course, merits a table instantly.
MAITRE D'
Good evening, Miss Ocean. Right
this way...
Reuben can't help but stare as Tess passes by. His eyes
linger a little too long and a little too low...
VOICE (O.S.)
Hey...
Reuben pivots; it's Danny, and he strolls past Reuben and
his lady friends and into the restaurant...
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 10/24/00 104.
167 CONTINUED: 167
DANNY
Try to keep your tongue in your
mouth.
TISHKOFF
(shocked to see Danny;
thinks he's off the
job, but covering)
Yeah, pal, well only if you take
your thumb out of your...
... Reuben gets brushed from behind by the two
Plainclothes Goons following Danny.
TISHKOFF
(outraged)
Hey: you have any idea who I
think I am?
168 AT TESS'S USUAL TABLE 168
Just as she's sitting, Danny approaches. She goes
straight at him, apoplectic.
TESS
Danny: No.
DANNY
I'll just be a moment.
TESS
I'm having you thrown out of
here.
She starts past him; he grabs her arm to keep her, and
she wheels on him.
TESS
You're up to something, Danny.
What? And don't say you came here
for me. You're pulling a job,
aren't you?
DANNY
Tess...
TESS
Well, know this: no matter what
it is, you won't win me back. I
can't afford it.
DANNY
I just came to say good-bye.
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 10/24/00 105.
168 CONTINUED: 168
This surprises Tess, and, truth be told, saddens her; she
studies him a moment, unsure of what to say.
TESS
Oh... then... good-bye.
DANNY
Good-bye.
Danny starts for her cheek, stops to see if it's alright
with her -- she, sad-eyed, does not recoil -- and then
gently kisses it...
DANNY
Be good.
Danny leaves her. Tess watches him go.
TESS
(already missing him)
Good-bye, Danny.
169 AT RESTAURANT'S ENTRANCE 169
Danny runs smack into the Plainclothes Goons.
PLAINCLOTHES GOON #1
Mr. Ocean. Mr. Benedict would
like to see you.
DANNY
(resignedly, these men
are much too big to
tangle with)
I thought he might.
The Plainclothes Goons escort Danny away, right past
Reuben who frowns, concerned.
170 INT. BELLAGIO CASINO MANAGER'S OFFICE - 18:25 170
Frank stands at attention before Linus and Benedict.
Linus, straddling a desk, takes a beeper off his belt
when it pinches him. Benedict checks his watch: the
fight's opening bell is growing closer and closer.
LINUS
Thank you for your cooperation,
Mr. Escalante.
(as Frank nods,
not at all)
Or should I call you Mr. Catton?
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 10/24/00 105A.
170 CONTINUED: 170
Frank bristles, tries not to let it show. Linus pulls
out a Xeroxed mug shot and bio of him.
LINUS
You are Frank Catton? Formerly of
the Tropicana, the Desert Inn and
the New York State penitentiary
system?
(MORE)
(CONTINUED)
106.
170 CONTINUED: 170
LINUS (CONT'D)
(as Frank remains
quiet)
Your silence suggests you don't
refute that.
(to Benedict)
Mr. Benedict, I'm afraid you've
been employing an ex-convict. As
you know, the N.G.C. strictly
forbids...
FRANK
(under his breath)
Goddamn cracker...
LINUS
(a pause; he can't
believe he just
heard that)
Pardon me.
FRANK
(leering at Linus,
simmering)
You heard me. Just 'cause a black
man tries to earn a decent wage in
this state...
LINUS
That has nothing to do with...
FRANK
(over him, ranting)
... some cracker cowboy like you's
gotta kick him out on the street.
Want me to jump down, turn around,
pick a bale of cotton, won't let
me deal cards, might as well call
it whitejack.
LINUS
(a beat, then)
I resent your implication that
race has anything to do with this.
(to Benedict)
Now, as I was saying, the Nevada
Gaming Commission strictly forbids
the employment of the colored...
(whoops)
... I mean...
That does it: Frank attacks Linus, lunging at the man,
and as Benedict steps in to separate the two...
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 3/30/01 107.
170 CONTINUED: (2) 170
... Linus's hand dips into his tuxedo jacket and
withdraws the vault combination.
FRANK
Okay, okay, I'm cool.
BENEDICT
(to Linus)
You alright?
LINUS
(a beat, then)
Yeah.
171 INT. MIRADOR SUITE - NIGHT 171
RUSTY
(hearing this)
He's got it.
(into his mike)
Virgil, Turk: deliver your
package.
172 INT. BELLAGIO CASINO - BY CAGE DOOR - 14:05 172
Two guards stand sentry outside the cage door. Virgil
and Turk move up with their cash cart, and when Virgil
reaches for his keycard... it's gone.
VIRGIL
Aw, I think... Jesus. I lost my
card.
The guards frown at him. A SECURITY OFFICER approaches.
SECURITY OFFICER
What's going on here?
VIRGIL
I think... Jesus! I lost my
keycard.
SECURITY OFFICER
(and this, he knows, will
get this guard fired)
Okay. Leave the cart. Go find
it.
(to one of the
sentries)
Take this cart inside.
The sentry nods, swipes his keycard, and enters with the
cash cart. Turk and Virgil hesitate a moment to watch it
enter, then hurry off.
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 1/8/01 108.
173 INT. BELLAGIO SECURITY CENTER - EYE IN THE SKY 173
On a monitor: The sentry pushes the cart down a cage
corridor. On another: Saul's briefcase is escorted by
another guard to the vault elevator. On another: Danny
is escorted inside the cage by the Plainclothes Goons.
WALSH
There it is now.
SAUL
(beginning to sweat
this a bit, nerves
overtaking him)
Wonderful.
ON MONITORS
The yen-filled cash cart joins Saul's briefcase on the
elevator. PULL OUT to...
174 INT. MIRADOR SUITE - 11:19 174
RUSTY
That's my cue.
(as he exits)
Give Basher the go.
LIVINGSTON
(into mike)
Bash, what's your status?
175 EXT. BELLAGIO PARKING LOT - MOVING WITH BASHER - NIGHT 175
driving the white van, listening to a books-on-tape of
Jane Eyre.
LIVINGSTON (V.O.)
Bash!
BASHER
(turning Bronte down)
No need to yell.
LIVINGSTON (V.O.)
What's your status?
BASHER
I'm there.
And he SCREECHES to a halt on the parking structure's
top level. Vegas can be seen in every direction.
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 10/24/00 109.
176 INT. CAGE/HALLWAY - 08:36 176
and counting. Benedict exits the casino Manager's office
with Linus and Frank. Benedict hails two GUARDS...
BENEDICT
Please show this man off the
premises.
(to Frank)
Don't step foot in my casino
again.
FRANK
(as he's led away,
over his shoulder,
to Linus)
Cracker.
Benedict checks his watch again: he's really running
late.
BENEDICT
Mr. Wills, if you don't mind...
(as Linus forgets
to respond)
Mr. Wills?
LINUS
Of course.
They start toward the exit. But halfway there...
LINUS
My beeper. I'm sorry. I forgot
it.
Benedict hesitates: He's in an enormous hurry now, he's
behind schedule -- he hates being behind schedule -- but
leaving even a member of the Gaming Commission alone in
his cage is a security risk. One glace at the cameras
all about and he decides to risk it.
BENEDICT
You know how to get back out?
LINUS
Of course. Enjoy the fight.
BENEDICT
(shaking his hand,
then hurrying away)
Thank you.
Linus smiles after him, withdrawing the page of
combinations he lifted off the man.
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 10/24/00 110.
177 EXT. BELLAGIO CASINO - 06:47 177
and counting. The Guards show Frank out. Frank tries
to tip them...
FRANK
Thanks, fellas.
... but they snarl at him before returning inside. Frank
smiles and goes on his way, his job complete.
178 INT. INTERROGATION ROOM - 06:36 178
Danny sits opposite two Plainclothes Goons in absolute
silence, waiting.
DANNY
How much longer do you think Mr.
Benedict will be?
GOON #1
Just a few minutes more.
He scans the room.
DANNY
No cameras in this room, huh?
Don't want anyone seeing what
happens here?
The Goons say nothing. Danny checks his watch.
DANNY
He's not coming, is he?
The Goons look at each other; Danny has called their
bluff.
DANNY
Who is?
There's a KNOCK at the door, and the Goons smile:
Danny's about to find out who. One Goon rises to usher
in...
... the BRUISER, come to beat the shit out of Danny
Ocean. The guy's at least six-six, three hundred pounds,
but it's not his size that draws attention, it's his
teeth...
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 10/24/00 111.
178 CONTINUED: 178
... or the lack thereof; the Bruiser doesn't hold a
single incisor, molar or bicuspid in his mouth. Gum
city. And there's something really terrifying about the
sight.
DANNY
I guess Mr. Benedict didn't like
me talking to his girl.
The Goons shake their heads. Danny smiles at the
Bruiser, and the Bruiser snarls back, showing off those
gums. He rolls up his shirtsleeves, itching to tear a
hole in this man. The Goons head for the door.
GOON #1
We're gonna step outside now.
Leave you two alone to talk things
over.
The Goons exit. Danny and the Bruiser face off. And as
Danny opens his mouth to speak, Bruiser's fist flashes
out and knocks him down. Danny rises, wiping a little
blood from his lip.
DANNY
Jesus, Bruiser, not 'til later.
BRUISER
Sorry, Danny. I -- I forgot.
DANNY
S'okay.
(shaking it off)
How's the wife?
BRUISER
Pregnant again.
DANNY
Then we better get to work.
179 OUTSIDE INTERROGATION ROOM 179
Standing guard outside, the Goons hear PUNCHES and GROANS
from inside as...
180 INT. INTERROGATION ROOM 180
... Danny climbs onto Bruiser's shoulders and pushes
through the ceiling rafters, groaning every time Bruiser
slaps his fist into his hand.
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 1/8/01 112.
A181 INT. VAULT A181
A guard wheels in the Yen-filled cash cart, parks it in
a station next to its twin, then -- as an afterthought --
plants Saul's briefcase right on top if it -- clunk -- an
unforeseen obstacle to Yen's escape.
B181 INT. MIRADOR SUITE B181
LIVINGSTON
Oh shit...
181 INT. BELLAGIO SECURITY CENTER - 04:30 181
Saul witnesses this, too, and stifles a reaction.
WALSH
Does that satisfy you, Mr. Zerga?
SAUL
Yes, I'm very satisfied.
WALSH
(to Slim)
Close it up.
On the monitor, the vault door closes, but Saul looks
anything but satisfied. He's sweaty, his mouth's so dry
he can't swallow, and he keeps patting down his pockets
for his Rolaids, without finding them.
FAT
You alright, sir?
182 INT. CAGE/HALLWAY - MOVING WITH LINUS - 04:02 182
as he circumspectly approaches the vault-elevator door,
checking up and down hallways for guards.
183 INT. MIRADOR SUITE - NIGHT 183
On a monitor, Linus comes into view...
LIVINGSTON
Almost there, kid.
184 INT. BELLAGIO SECURITY CENTER - EYE IN THE SKY 184
... and Saul spots him, but so does Fat...
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 1/8/01 112A.
184 CONTINUED: 184
FAT
Who's that?
... and Saul can't handle the suspense: He grips his arm
and groans and this is no ulcer problem, this is a full- fledged
cardiac, and Walsh, Fat, and Slim all attend to
him, their backs turned as...
185 INT. CAGE/HALLWAY - 03:42 185
... Linus hurries to the elevator, punching Benedict's
combination into a keypad. The elevator doors open for
him.
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 10/24/00 113.
186 INT. MIRADOR SUITE - NIGHT 186
Livingston punches a few keys...
LIVINGSTON
Going to video now.
187 INT. BELLAGIO SECURITY CENTER - EYE IN THE SKY 187
As Saul and his heart attack hold the spotlight, a
security monitor flips from a shot of Linus entering the
elevator to a Livingston-fed videotape of an empty lift.
WALSH
(as Saul passes out)
Call for a doctor.
188 INT. ELEVATOR - 03:15 188
Linus immediately reaches up to the elevator's ceiling,
rips down its panel to reveal a trap door. As he starts
to push it open...
... a hand yanks it free from above. It's Danny.
DANNY
You didn't really think I was
gonna sit this one out, did you?
LINUS
What, didn't you trust me?
DANNY
I do now.
He reaches down and pulls Linus, wide-eyed, up to the
roof of the elevator.
189 INT. MGM GRAND GARDEN ARENA - 3:00 189
The boxers enter the ring before a full, cheering house.
Benedict and Tess find their ringside seats, a row in
front of Reuben and his "nieces."
RING ANNOUNCER
Ladies and gentlemen!!
190 INT. BELLAGIO CASINO - BY CAGE DOOR - 02:56 190
Rusty approaches the sentry on duty at the cage door.
RUSTY
Someone called for a doctor?
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 10/24/00 114.
191 INT. ELEVATOR SHAFT - ABOVE ELEVATOR - 02:21 191
Danny rips off his jacket and shirt to expose a rappelling
line wrapped around his torso. Linus does the same.
LINUS
How'd you get here?
DANNY
Crawlspace. And I had to give
away a couple mil.
LINUS
But what about -- I mean, that
whole thing with Rusty...
Danny just smiles at him.
A192 FLASHBACK - EXT. MIRADOR SUITE - BALCONY A192
Earlier that night, just after Rusty kicked Danny off
the job. As Linus watches from inside, deaf to their
conversation, blind to their expressions, Danny and
Rusty confer.
DANNY
You think the kid bought it?
RUSTY
Hell, I think Reuben bought it,
and he knew we were screwing
around.
(beat)
You sure about this?
DANNY
(nods)
Bobby Caldwell threw me into the
pool first time. Least I could do
is give his kid a push.
B192 INT. ELEVATOR SHAFT - ABOVE ELEVATOR (PRESENT) B192
LINUS
Why'd you make me go through all
this? Why not just tell me?
DANNY
Well, where's the fun in that?
(starting toward
elevator shaft
ladder)
C'mon: Yen's got about three
minutes of air left.
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 10/24/00 115.
B192 CONTINUED: B192
Danny leads Linus down and around the elevator and side-
by-side they crawl onto the bottom of the elevator,
gripping the undercarriage of the lift to keep from
falling. Meanwhile, we DESCEND QUICKLY DOWN the shaft,
just to illustrate how very high up they are.
192 INT. BELLAGIO SECURITY CENTER - 00:53 192
Rusty, playing doctor, inspects Saul. At the same time,
he inspects a monitor: the vault door closing with the
Yen-filled cash cart and Saul's briefcase inside.
Rusty stops, listens to Saul's chest, then drops his
head...
RUSTY
He's gone.
Walsh, Fat and Slim all bow their heads. At the door,
two paramedics arrive with a stretcher.
WALSH
You're too late, guys. He's dead.
The first paramedic turns to his partner and admonishes
him:
VIRGIL
(to Turk)
I told you to hurry.
193 INT. ELEVATOR SHAFT - BELOW ELEVATOR - 00:42 193
As Danny and Linus work, affixing suction-cupped anchors
to their rappelling lines...
DANNY
Who do you like tonight?
LINUS
Huh?
DANNY
Tyson or Lewis.
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 10/24/00 116.
193 CONTINUED: 193
LINUS
The fight...?
(as Danny nods)
Lewis.
(as Danny shoots him
a look)
You like Tyson?
(as Danny nods)
How strongly do you feel about it?
DANNY
You looking for action?
LINUS
(shrugs)
I'd go in for a buck.
DANNY
A buck it is.
And they're ready, poised at the top, looking into the
abyss of an elevator shaft scattered with infrared
sensors.
DANNY
(into his mike)
Livingston, we're set.
A194 INT. CASINO FLOOR - OUTSIDE CAGES A194
Rusty leads the "paramedics" out, with "dead" Saul on
their gurney.
RUSTY
(into his mike)
Livingston, we're set.
194 INT. MIRADOR SUITE - 00:21 194
LIVINGSTON
(hearing this, into
his mike)
Basher, we're set.
195 EXT. BELLAGIO PARKING LOT - TOP LEVEL - 00:17 195
BASHER
(fixing the pinch atop
his van)
Just give me a minute.
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 10/24/00 117.
195 CONTINUED: 195
LIVINGSTON (V.O.)
We don't have a minute. Yen's
gonna pass out in thirteen
seconds.
BASHER
Then give me thirteen seconds.
And Basher leaps down to hook up the pinch's wires to his
van's engine.
196 INT. MGM GRAND GARDEN ARENA - 00:10 196
The opening BELL RINGS -- round one. The fighters break
from their corners, feinting, jabbing...
Sitting ringside: Benedict looks at Tess and smiles as
she winces at the first sharp blow.
197 INT. ELEVATOR SHAFT - BELOW ELEVATOR - 00:05 197
Peering down into blackness, Danny and Linus prepare to
let go any moment...
LINUS
You ever rappelled before?
DANNY
Never. You?
LINUS
Nope.
198 EXT. BELLAGIO PARKING LOT - TOP LEVEL - 00:01 198
Basher finishes preparations.
BASHER
(into his mike)
Ready.
LIVINGSTON (V.O.)
(over earpiece)
Then hit it.
Basher flips the switch. BOOM! A quick TREMOR, then
stillness. He picks a point on the horizon, like Babe
Ruth, and suddenly...
BASHER
... One...
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 10/24/00 118.
199 HIGH ABOVE LAS VEGAS 199
whole blocks of lights disappear. Casinos vanishing one-
by-one.
FLAMINGO
Every pink light vanishes.
BELLAGIO
The fountain goes flaccid.
BASHER (V.O.)
... two, three...
NEW YORK, NEW YORK
The roller coaster stops dead; its passengers keep their
arms raised, not sure what to do.
200 MGM GRAND GARDEN ARENA 200
Both fighters move in simultaneously, sweat flying, both
reach back, both going for the lights-out power cut to
the jaw, when... lights out.
BASHER (V.O.)
... four, five...
201 OMITTED 201
202 INT. ELEVATOR SHAFT 202
Blip -- out go the infrared sensors.
DANNY
Now!
And he and Linus lean forward and fall...
203 HURTLING WITH DANNY AND LINUS 203
DOWN the elevator shaft.
Upside down, heads curled, and all we hear is the WHOOSH
of their bodies in motion and the WHIRL of their CORDS
UNCOILING.
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 10/24/00 119.
203 CONTINUED: 203
BASHER (V.O.)
... six, seven.....
And now, looking STRAIGHT DOWN, the ground is rising up
fast to meet them, a flat slab of gray concrete -- fifty
feet, forty feet, thirty feet, twenty...
BASHER
... eight, nine...
And SNAP -- the CORDS reach their full extension, and
Danny and Linus bounce up, watching the floor recede.
LINUS
Aaaaahhhhh!
204 EXT. BELLAGIO PARKING LOT - TOP LEVEL - NIGHT 204
BASHER
... ten...
In the distance, lights come up again, first at the
Mirage, then the MGM, gradually approaching...
205 INT. ELEVATOR SHAFT - BOTTOM 205
Coming to a rest about ten feet from the floor, Danny
quickly pulls a slim blade and slashes the two coils
straight across. He and Linus go tumbling to the floor
as their drop lines recoil lightning fast to their
elevator anchors, just before...
... the infrared lights go back on-line.
206 INT. MGM GRAND GARDEN ARENA 206
The lights suddenly flash back on, revealing...
... both fighters standing, and Tyson takes advantage of
Lewis's disorientation and throws a sucker punch to his
jaw. Down goes Lewis, and up goes the crowd, roaring.
REF
... One, two, three...
Benedict makes a quick survey; the arena is apoplectic
from the blackout-knockout.
BENEDICT
What the hell was that?
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 1/8/01 120.
206 CONTINUED: 206
He cranes his neck, looking around the room, surveying
his empire: he smells a rat. His eyes fall on Reuben
behind him, but Reuben just shrugs: "I didn't pull the
plug."
BENEDICT
(to himself)
The first goddamn round.
207 EXT. BELLAGIO PARKING LOT - TOP LEVEL - NIGHT 207
All the lights are back on, and Basher observes his
achievement with great pride, his job complete.
BASHER
Viva Las Vegas.
208 INT. ELEVATOR SHAFT - BOTTOM 208
Linus and Danny arise from where they've fallen,
clutching their heads and rubbing bruises. Danny doesn't
recover as quickly.
LINUS
You alright?
DANNY
No, but you're sweet to ask.
209 INT. BELLAGIO VAULT 209
Lights are just flickering on here when...
... the false lid of the cash cart thrust upward
slightly. It's Yen trying to get out, out of air and
only now alert to Saul's heavy case resting atop him.
210 INT. MIRADOR SUITE - NIGHT 210
Livingston watches this on his monitors, just coming
back on, his finger poised on a play button, as Frank
comes in the door.
FRANK
Are they in?
LIVINGSTON
One second.
(a look at him)
I thought you got kicked out?
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 1/8/01 121.
210 CONTINUED: 210
Frank shrugs. Suddenly one of the monitors aligns itself,
and Livingston presses play.
ON MONITOR A
Overhead security-cam view of the vault corridor: the
three Uzi guards stand idly, on duty. And of the vault
itself: Yen trying to get out of the cash cart.
ON MONITOR B
Overhead security-cam view of the vault corridor: the
three Uzi guards stand idly, on duty... and in totally
different positions. Of the vault: no cash cart, but no
Zerga briefcase, no Yen.
LIVINGSTON
LIVINGSTON
This tape's from last night. Same
guards, same...
His eyes fixing on Saul's briefcase pushing closer to the
edge of the cash cart as Yen tries to free himself.
LIVINGSTON
... shift.
211 INT. BELLAGIO SECURITY CENTER - EYE IN THE SKY 211
The room is abuzz with activity. The monitors here
flicker back on, too, displaying the images from monitor
B, but every watcher in the place is watching a table
because...
212 INT. BELLAGIO CASINO - NIGHT 212
... the floor is going nuts. After the ten seconds of
darkness, all bets are off. Some players doubled-down
during the blackout, others miraculously halved their
bets. Consequently, Livingston's video feed switch goes
unnoticed.
213 OMITTED 213
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 1/8/01 122.
214 INT. CORRIDOR/OUTSIDE VAULT 214
Danny and Linus pry open the elevator doors and squeeze
out. Just beyond the next doorway stand...
... three UZI-CARRYING GUARDS, hovering outside the vault
door and wondering what the hell just happened to the
lights.
A215 INT. VAULT A215
Yen continues to push up on the cash cart lid, and the
more he pushes, the more Saul's briefcase slides off.
Yen stretches his hand out to grab it, but it's slid
beyond his reach, to the edge of falling.
B215 INT. CORRIDOR/OUTSIDE VAULT B215
The Uzi-Carrying Guards turn their backs to the elevator
shaft...
... and Linus and Danny appear in the doorway; they both
snap gas pellets and slide them into the corridor.
UZI-CARRYING GUARD #1
(sniffing something)
Jesus, Ron, was that you?
215 OUTSIDE VAULT CORRIDOR 215
Linus and Danny wait, Danny silently mouthing a three-
count before... THUD, THUD, THUD. They peer around the
corridor to find...
All three Uzi-carrying guards lie unconscious on the
ground. Linus starts in, Danny holds him back...
DANNY
Not yet.
(a beat; another
beat; then)
Okay.
216 INT. VAULT CORRIDOR 216
Danny and Linus enter, waving the faint remnants of the
gas from their noses, tiptoeing past the guards' bodies.
LINUS
You think Yen made it out okay?
DANNY
I'm sure he's fine.
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 1/8/01 122A.
A217 INT. VAULT A217
Saul's briefcase inches closer to falling off the cash cart,
which of course would trigger the floor sensor and terminate
this heist here and now. Yen's hand stretches farther out to
grab it, pushing up just a little more on the false lid
until...
... the briefcase tumbles toward the floor...
... but not before Yen snags the handcuff chain attached to
it and swings it round. He's got it. That threat over, he
throws open the cash cart lid and takes the biggest breath
of his life.
B217 INT. VAULT CORRIDOR B217
Linus punches in the code for the door to the vault
anteroom (the one he stole from Benedict). He steps back
as it slides open, revealing --
-- the vault door: it is sleek and immense and
impregnable.
LINUS
(jaw dropping)
Jesus...
DANNY
There's a Chinese man with a
hundred sixty million dollars
behind that door. Let's get him
out.
Danny takes a flat hand and slaps the door hard.
217 INT. VAULT 217
Yen now sits perched atop the cash cart, Saul's briefcase
opened beside him (he has removed half of Lyman's
"emeralds"). He hears the muffled Danny's slaps and he
knows: it's time for his leap. It's the same distance
as the leap he made in the practice session, but this
time he's only got one good hand.
218 INT. MIRADOR SUITE 218
Frank and Livingston watch nervously.
FRANK
Fin says he shorts it.
LIVINGSTON
No bet.
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 1/8/01 123.
219 INT. VAULT 219
Yen prepares for his leap, then springs...
... across the room, to the ledge he must grab...
... and he grabs it, but with only one hand he's slipping
right away, and in a second he'll hit the sensored
floor...
... but, in a flash, he spins and splits his legs,
propping himself up between two walls, inches above the
floor. An acrobatic wonder.
220 INT. MIRADOR SUITE 220
Frank and Livingston exhale.
LIVINGSTON
(wishing he had bet)
Shit.
221 OUTSIDE VAULT 221
Danny, oblivious to this close call, slaps the door
again. A moment passes, then: Yen responds with a slap,
too.
DANNY
Okay.
222 INT. MIRADOR SUITE - NIGHT 222
As Basher enters, Livingston and Frank watch on a monitor
Linus punching in the combination he stole from Benedict
as Danny unravels a thin electrical wire connected to a
detonator.
FRANK
That's it?
LIVINGSTON
There's still the five pins and
the floor sensor. Not much we can
do about that from this side of
the door. But from this side...
He punches up the image of Yen in the vault.
BASHER
... a little bit of Semtex should
do the trick.
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 1/8/01 124.
223 INT. VAULT 223
Yen sets the last of Lyman's emeralds against the vault
door like a plastic explosive... which, of course, it is.
He affixes a detonator receiver (the size of a golf ball
pencil) to it, then slaps the door twice: all set.
A224 OUTSIDE VAULT A224
Danny responds with two slaps of his own. He steps
back, detonator in hand, its wires attached to the vault
door.
DANNY
Counting down from twenty --
(checking watch)
-- now.
B224 INT. VAULT B224
Yen starts his retreat from the door, but gets yanked
back.
His hand's bandage is caught on the door.
C224 OUTSIDE VAULT C224
DANNY
-- seventeen, sixteen, fifteen --
D224 INT. VAULT D224
Yen tries to free himself, but he can't use his other
hand lest he drop to the floor. He tries gnawing at
his bandage, which brings his face within inches of a
plastic explosive.
E224 OUTSIDE VAULT E224
DANNY
-- eleven, ten, nine --
F224 INT. MIRADOR SUITE F224
Livingston et al. are alert to the danger.
LIVINGSTON
(into his mike)
Linus, can you read me? Linus,
do not blow the door, you're
about to kill Yen.
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 1/8/01 124A.
G224 OUTSIDE VAULT G224
Linus hears nothing through his earpiece.
LINUS
-- five, four, three --
H224 INT. VAULT H224
Yen finally frees himself just as --
-- ZOOMING INTO a plastic explosive --
I-224 OUTSIDE VAULT I-224
DANNY
-- one --
He presses his detonator.
Nothing.
J224 INT. VAULT J224
Yen, still on the door, remains frozen. Trembling.
A beat.
Then, he starts to creep back, leaping onto a money
shelf, then another, as far from the explosives as he
can get.
K224 OUTSIDE VAULT K224
Danny presses it again. Still nothing.
LINUS
What's wrong?
DANNY
I don't know.
Linus comes over to look.
LINUS
You check the batteries?
Danny blanches. Linus shoots him a look.
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 1/8/01 124B.
224 INT. MIRADOR SUITE - NIGHT 224
Livingston, Frank, and Basher watch the monitors in
disbelief...
Saul enters, alive and dressed as himself again. His
job is complete.
SAUL
Everything going okay?
225 INT. VAULT CORRIDOR - OUTSIDE VAULT 225
As Danny checks his batteries (the types with built-in
power meters: both at zero percent), Linus ransacks the
Uzi-carrying Guards' gear for replacements. He finds
AA's in their flashlights.
LINUS
You know, you lose focus for one
second in this game --
DANNY
-- and someone gets hurt, yeah
yeah. I don't hear Yen complaining.
He takes the batteries, inserts them in his detonator,
then slaps the door twice more.
A226 INT. VAULT A226
Yen catches his breath on the far end of the room. He
hears the slap, rolls his eyes, and ducks out of the
line of fire.
B226 OUTSIDE VAULT B226
Danny presses the detonator.
C226 INT. VAULT C226
The "EMERALDS" EXPLODE.
D226 OUTSIDE VAULT D226
Several MUTED but powerful BLASTS.
Linus inches forward, almost dreading this moment,
pauses...
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 1/8/01 124C.
D226 CONTINUED: D226
DANNY
Do it.
Linus pulls... and the door opens.
226 INT. VAULT 226
Danny and Linus enter. Silence. The cash carts have
crumpled, and the vault gratings, blackened, have held.
DANNY
Amazing?
Linus goes to one of the racks and tentatively opens
it...
Yen pops up from within, his hair on end, looking like he
just dropped out of a cyclone.
YEN
(his only English)
Where the fuck you been?
227 INT. MIRADOR SUITE - NIGHT 227
Livingston, Frank, Saul, and Basher watch as the first
wave of bills gets tossed onto the vault floor. Smiles
all around.
SAUL
Ever been in love?
FRANK
(considers it for
a moment)
No, I guess not. Not really.
SAUL
This is better.
125.
228 INT. CASINO - OUTSIDE FIGHT ARENA 228
Rusty steps forward as people stream past him out of the
fight arena. He dials his cell phone, listens...
229 INT. MGM GRAND GARDEN ARENA 229
MOVING WITH Benedict and Tess, pushing their way out
through the crowd. A PHONE is RINGING nearby... again
and again...
BENEDICT
You gonna answer it?
TESS
I don't have a cell phone.
They keep moving, but the RING pursues them. Finally,
Benedict stops, pulls Tess's purse from her shoulder and
opens it: inside, he finds a CELL PHONE, RINGING.
TESS
It isn't mine.
BENEDICT
See who's on the other end.
She takes the phone, activates it.
TESS
Hello?
RUSTY (V.O.)
May I have a word with Mr.
Benedict, please?
Tess looks up, confused.
TESS
It's for you.
Benedict takes the phone.
BENEDICT
Who the hell is this?
ON RUSTY
in the distance, at the arena's exit, unseen by Benedict
or Tess, on the phone...
RUSTY
The man who's robbing you.
126.
230 INT. BELLAGIO SECURITY CENTER - EYE IN THE SKY 230
Benedict enters, and fear enters with him. And, of
course, Tess. As the room buzzes with activity, he keeps
the cell phone pressed to his ear.
BENEDICT
What the hell is going on down
there in the vault?
FAT
Nothing, sir. All normal.
BENEDICT
Show me.
Fat points to the security-cam view of the vault corridor
and vault -- Livingston's tape.
FAT
All quiet.
BENEDICT
(on phone,
venomously)
I'm afraid you're mistaken.
231 INT. MIRADOR SUITE - NIGHT 231
Frank, Basher and Saul watch over Livingston's shoulder
as this phone conversation is broadcast over a small
speaker.
RUSTY (V.O.)
You're watching your monitor?
Okay, keep watching.
Livingston punches in numbers...
232 INT. BELLAGIO SECURITY CENTER - EYE IN THE SKY - 232
ON FAT'S MONITOR
New images suddenly appear. Three masked men in the
vault throw stacks of money onto the floor; the three Uzi
Guards lie bound and unconscious in the corridor.
The security center, understandably, erupts in activity.
BENEDICT
Jesus Christ...
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 10/24/00 127.
233 INT. BELLAGIO CASINO - NIGHT 233
Rusty strolls so casually there's no reason anyone
passing would suspect he was doing more than ordering a
pizza.
RUSTY (V.O.)
In this town, your luck can change
just that quickly.
234 INT. BELLAGIO SECURITY CENTER 234
BENEDICT
(close to apoplectic,
takes a breath and
cups the phone, then
barks at Walsh)
Find out how much money we have
down there.
Tess, amid all this chaos, is still curious: how did
that cell phone get into her handbag? And suddenly it
hits her...
A235 FLASHBACK - INT. RESTAURANT - EARLIER THAT EVENING A235
DANNY
Good-bye.
Danny starts for her cheek, stops to see if it's alright
with her -- she, sad-eyed, does not recoil -- and then
gently kisses it...
... as he slips the cell phone into her handbag,
unnoticed.
BENEDICT
(on phone)
Alright. You've proved your
point. You've broken into my
vault. Congratulations: you're a
dead man.
Tess leaves.
RUSTY (V.O.)
Maybe.
BENEDICT
May I ask: how do you expect to
leave here, hmm?
INTERCUT WITH:
235 INT. CASINO FLOOR 235
BENEDICT
Do you believe I'll simply allow
you to parade bags full of my
money out my casino doors?
A distance beyond Rusty, Tess exits the cages. She
stops, puzzling over what to do, happens to spot him.
RUSTY
No. You're gonna carry it out for
us.
BENEDICT
(has to laugh)
And why would I do that?
RUSTY
Take a closer look at your
monitor...
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 10/24/00 128A.
236 INT. SECURITY CENTER 236
Benedict does. As the three masked men stuff money into
large canvas bags and mark the bags with X's, another
portion of cash remains untouched, booby-trapped.
RUSTY (V.O.)
As your manager's probably
reporting to you by now, you have
a little over a hundred sixty
million in your vault tonight.
And, as if Rusty was in the room watching, Walsh
approaches with the night's cash count: $163,156,759.
RUSTY (V.O.)
You may notice: we're only
packing up about half that. The
other half we're leaving in your
vault, booby-trapped, as a
hostage.
237 INT. CASINO FLOOR 237
RUSTY
You let our eighty million go, and
you get to keep your eighty.
That's the deal. You try and stop
us, we'll blow both cash loads.
(CONTINUED)
129.
237 CONTINUED: 237
He spins and -- gasp -- comes face-to-face with Tess.
She stares at him directly: she knows.
RUSTY
(holding her glance)
Mr. Benedict: you can lose eighty
million dollars secretly tonight
or you can lose a hundred sixty
million dollars publicly. It's
your decision.
He cups the phone.
RUSTY
Hi.
238 INT. SECURITY CENTER 238
Benedict cups his phone, too, and vents his rage. He
knows what he should do -- let the money go -- and he
knows what he wants to do -- stop these sonsabitches. He
makes his choice...
BENEDICT
(to Walsh)
Make the call.
Walsh grabs a phone, punches numbers...
VOICE (V.O.)
911. Emergency response...
239 INT. MIRADOR SUITE - NIGHT 239
Livingston listens in on the call...
WALSH (V.O.)
Hello, this is Mr. Walsh at the
Bellagio.
240 INT. SECURITY CENTER 240
WALSH
We have an incident here...
BENEDICT
(uncupping his
phone)
Okay. You have a deal.
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 10/24/00 130.
241 INT. CASINO FLOOR 241
Tess and Rusty hold a stare as Rusty holds the phone.
TESS
Where's Danny?
RUSTY
He's fine. He wants you to go
upstairs, and watch TV.
TESS
(a little pissed)
He does?
BENEDICT (V.O.)
You have a deal.
RUSTY
It's alright, Tess. I promise.
(back on phone)
Good. Here's what you do. Five
minutes from now, the men in the
vault are going to deposit six
bags in the vault elevator.
Tess isn't sure what to do. As Rusty continues on the
phone, she backs off, debating: can she blow the whistle
on her ex?
242 INT. VAULT ELEVATOR - CLOSE ON SIX CANVAS BAGS 242
each sealed tight, each marked with an X, loaded onto
the vault elevator.
RUSTY (V.O.)
If they meet anyone, we'll blow
the money in the bags and the
money in the vault.
243 INT. CAGE - OUTSIDE VAULT ELEVATOR 243
A small cadre of guards await the arrival of the vault
elevator. Its doors open to reveal the six large canvas
bags, each sealed tight, marked with an X.
RUSTY (V.O.)
One minute after that, the
elevator will rise to your cages.
Six of your guards will pick up
the bags and carry them out into
the casino.
Six guards do precisely that.
131.
244 INT. CASINO - NIGHT 244
MOVING WITH Rusty PAST slot machines...
RUSTY
If they take more than twenty
seconds to reach the casino floor
or if there's any indication a
switch has been made, we'll blow
the money in the vault and the
money in the bags.
A SLOT MACHINE RINGS behind him...
245 INT. BELLAGIO SECURITY CENTER - EYE IN THE SKY 245
... and Benedict hears it.
BENEDICT
(to Walsh)
He's in the casino right now.
RUSTY (V.O.)
Of course, I'm in the casino. In
fact, I'm staying in your hotel.
And I have two words for you:
mini-bar.
(back to business)
Now as soon as your guards hit the
casino floor...
246 INT. BELLAGIO CASINO - NIGHT 246
The six guards appear from the cage door, carrying six
canvas bags marked with X's; Bellagio security escorts
them from the building.
RUSTY (V.O.)
... a white unmarked van is going
to pull up in your valet station.
247 EXT. BELLAGIO CASINO - NIGHT 247
The white VAN (now clean of the "Nevada Telecom" sign)
IDLES before the Bellagio, its windows tinted, the
driver's identity inscrutable. It is swarmed by
security, but they maintain a wide perimeter.
RUSTY (V.O.)
Your guards will load the bags
into the van's rear. If anyone so
much as approaches the driver's
door, we blow everything.
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 10/24/00 132.
247 CONTINUED: 247
The guards carry out the money and load it into the van's
rear. There, they find a video camera mounted within the
back seat of the van monitoring them. Still they cannot
catch a glimpse of the driver. They close the van doors.
248 BELLAGIO - FROM HIGH ABOVE 248
The white van departs the valet station in front,
clandestinely shadowed by five sedans. Meanwhile, behind
the casino, a SWAT van arrives and unloads its squad.
BENEDICT (V.O.)
Now what?
RUSTY (V.O.)
Now, when I get word that the van
hasn't been followed, that the
money is secure, my men will exit
the building, and once their
safety is confirmed, you'll get
your vault back.
249 INT. BELLAGIO SECURITY CENTER - EYE IN THE SKY 249
Walsh mouths to Benedict: "SWAT team is here." Benedict
nods and throws him a thumbs-up.
BENEDICT
Sir, I have complied with your
every request, would you agree?
RUSTY (V.O.)
I would.
BENEDICT
Good. Now I have one of my own.
RUSTY (V.O.)
Yes?
BENEDICT
(at last, his venom
released)
Run and hide. If you get picked
up next week buying a $100,000
sports car in Newport Beach, I'll
be supremely disappointed.
Because I want my people to find
you. And rest assured: when they
do, they won't hand you over to
the police.
(beat)
Run and hide. That's all I ask.
And during the above rant by Benedict, we view...
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 10/24/00 133.
250 MIRADOR SUITE 250
now empty, Livingston's monitors still displaying the
masked men in the vault.
251 WHITE VAN 251
navigating the streets of Las Vegas.
252 FIVE SEDANS 252
tailing the van, security goons piled into each, and
maybe we NOTICE (or maybe not) the Rolls-Royce tailing
them.
253 TESS 253
pacing in Benedict's suite, biting her nails, debating
whether to blow the whistle on Danny. ON TV: a newscast
of the contentious aftermath of the prize fight.
A254 UZI GUARDS, A254
bound and unarmed, unconscious to the activity within the
vault.
254 RUSTY'S CELL PHONE 254
opened and unmanned.
A255 BENEDICT A255
listens -- the line has gone dead. He hangs up.
WALSH
Our guys say the van is headed
toward McCarren Airport.
BENEDICT
Get everyone in position. I want
my vault back before that van hits
the tarmac.
LONGER MONTAGE now, CUTTING BETWEEN:
255 SWAT TEAM 255
(six in all) hustling through the cage corridors, armed
to the teeth, with body armor and helmets and vision
guards: they're as faceless as storm troopers.
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 10/24/00 134.
256 WHITE VAN CONVOY 256
as it approaches McCarren Airport.
257 MONITORS OF THE VAULT 257
The three masked men pace beside the booby-trapped money.
A258 INT. SECURITY CENTER A258
BENEDICT
(on second
inspection)
Where's Zerga?
(off Walsh's sheepish
look)
Mr. Zerga? With the briefcase?
WALSH
He's -- he died.
Benedict shoots him a slow, sideways glance.
258 SWAT TEAM 258
rappelling down the elevator shaft -- its ultraviolet
sensors turned off by Walsh -- then moving into
position...
259 INT. BELLAGIO SECURITY CENTER - EYE IN THE SKY 259
SWAT LEADER (V.O.)
(over radio, on
monitor)
Night goggles on. Prepare to cut
power.
Fat mans the power switch.
FAT
Ready when you are.
Benedict scours the monitors: The masked men continue to
pace on one screen. The SWAT team prepares to invade on
another.
BENEDICT
Do it.
SWAT LEADER (V.O.)
(over radio)
Cut it.
Fat flips the power switch.
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 10/24/00 135.
260 INT. MIRADOR SUITE 260
Livingston's monitors all go black.
261 INT. BELLAGIO SECURITY CENTER - EYE IN THE SKY 261
The monitors here go black as well. Benedict listens
closely to the SWAT frequency.
SWAT FREQUENCY (V.O.)
(Leader's voice)
First wave, in! Second wave, now!
(there is RUNNING,
PANTING, then Linus's
voice, distant and
panicked)
Guys, someone's here!
(Leader's voice)
Take him down! Now!
A brief SPURT of GUNFIRE, then... BARRROOOOOOM!
Dead silence in the Eye in the Sky. Slim stares deep
into a monitor's dark pitch. Then...
SWAT FREQUENCY (V.O.)
(Leader's voice)
Lights! We need power now!
Fat flips the power back on, and on the monitors...
... visions of destruction down below... smoke fills the
vault as two SWAT members push through it... other SWAT
members help evacuate the unconscious guards...
BENEDICT
(into intercom)
What's the situation down there?
SWAT LEADER (V.O.)
They blew it. They blew the...
Oh, Jesus... If there was anyone
in there, they're not in one piece
anymore.
BENEDICT
(to Walsh, soberly)
Tell them to take the van. I'm
going down there.
(as an afterthought,
to Slim)
Find out how they fiddled with our
cameras.
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 10/24/00 135A.
262 EXT. McCARREN AIRPORT - NIGHT 262
As the white van arrives at a charter airline's entrance,
the five sedans converge upon it, TIRES SCREECHING, Goons
emerging, weapons drawn.
HEAD GOON
Get out of the van, now! Now!
No response within the van. The Head Goon signals and
the others SHOOT the van's tires.
136.
263 INT. CIRCUITRY ROOM 263
Slim investigates the Eye in the Sky's wiring. Reaching
deep into a mesh, he finds a foreign object:
Livingston's "spider."
264 INT. VAULT CORRIDOR 264
The vault elevator doors open and Terry Benedict makes
his way into his smoke-filled vault corridor. He passes
the Uzi Guards, awake now and stumbling to the elevator
with SWAT members' assistance, then arrives before his
decimated vault: Anything within -- people, money, Lyman
Zerga's emeralds -- could only have been destroyed.
OVER SWAT LEADER'S SHOULDER
as he approaches Benedict.
SWAT LEADER
Mr. Benedict...
BENEDICT
Yes.
SWAT LEADER
We couldn't find any survivors.
Or, I'm afraid, any of your money.
I'm sorry, sir.
BENEDICT
(doesn't want to hear
anymore; the SWAT
team failed him)
Take your men out now.
HOLD ON Benedict, seething, as the SWAT Leader steps
away...
SWAT LEADER
Okay, guys, grab your gear and
clear out.
BENEDICT
(into walkie-talkie he
has with him)
Walsh: How are we with the van?
265 EXT. McCARREN AIRPORT - NIGHT 265
The stalemate with the van continues. Still no movement
from inside.
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 10/24/00 137.
265 CONTINUED: 265
HEAD GOON
Out of the van now! Hands up!
An EMPLOYEE from the charter airline sticks his head out
of his office door.
EMPLOYEE
(innocently)
Hey, what's going on here?
Half-a-dozen firearms turn and point in his direction.
The Employee disappears back inside his office.
The Head Goon cautiously approaches the van, reaches for
the driver's door, and yanks it open...
Inside: There is no driver. Just a video camera mounted
at eye-level. The Head Goon cranes back his head,
befuddled, when he notices for the first time (and maybe
we do, too) an enormous antenna sprouting from the van's
rear bumper.
The van suddenly lurches.
266 SHORT DISTANCE AWAY - CLOSE ON REMOTE CONTROL 266
complete with a tiny video monitor (displaying the van
driver's POV) and a steering mechanism -- it's a near-
replica of the one Virgil Malloy used in the monster
truck drag race against his brother.
And Virgil's using it now, too, as he sits next to Reuben
Tishkoff in one of Reuben's Rolls and watches the Goons
scramble back from the flat-tired van.
TISHKOFF
Enough monkey business.
Virgil brings the van to a stop, then readies a
distinctive red button on his remote.
267 BACK WITH VAN 267
As the Head Goon reaches for the rear door, his hand
inches away when...
... BARROOOOM! The door EXPLODES open!
Knocked on his ass, the Head Goon watches as the canvas
"X" bags within burn to cinders. He does, however,
happen to notice one burning shred of paper dislodged
from a bag: It's a promotional flier for a call girl
service.
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 10/24/00 138.
268 INT. BELLAGIO VAULT - NIGHT 268
Benedict steps over the scattered remains of his vault.
He picks up a fragment of a cash cart, burnt to a crisp,
then lets it drop.
WALSH (V.O.)
(over walkie-talkie)
Mr. Benedict...
BENEDICT
Yes?
WALSH (V.O.)
They took the van.
BENEDICT
And?
WALSH (V.O.)
(hesitantly, this is
bad news)
And they blew up the bags, sir.
BENEDICT
(dropping his walkie-
talkie to his side)
Shit.
WALSH (V.O.)
Sir... sir...
BENEDICT
What, Walsh?
WALSH (V.O.)
They say it doesn't look like
there was any money in the bags,
sir.
BENEDICT
What?!
WALSH (V.O.)
They say the bags were filled with
fliers. For hookers.
BENEDICT
What do you mean there was no
money in the bags?
WALSH (V.O.)
That's what they said, sir. I
don't understand it: we both saw
them putting money inside those
bags.
(CONTINUED)
139.
268 CONTINUED: 268
Benedict stops cold. He stares up at a wall where an
engraved sign reading "Bellagio" has been smoke-stained.
BENEDICT
Walsh, cue up the tape of the
robbery.
269 INT. BELLAGIO SECURITY CENTER - EYE IN THE SKY 269
Walsh stands before several monitors as Slim cues up the
"masked men robbing the vault" image of a few minutes ago
beside the present image of Benedict staring at the vault
wall.
BENEDICT (V.O.)
Does it say 'Bellagio' on the
south wall of the vault?
In the masked-men image it does not, in fact, say
"Bellagio" there.
WALSH
(on walkie-talkie)
No, sir. It doesn't. I -- I
don't understand...
270 INT. VAULT 270
Benedict exhales.
BENEDICT
We had that installed on Tuesday.
The image we saw of the men
robbing us was a tape.
WALSH (V.O.)
What?
BENEDICT
Someone built a double of my
vault, then made a tape of them
robbing it. When we saw them
putting money in those bags, that
wasn't actually happening.
271 INT. SECURITY CENTER 271
Walsh's jaw drops as he watches the tape again.
WALSH
Then, sir...
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 10/24/00 140.
272 INT. BELLAGIO VAULT - NIGHT 272
Benedict is absolutely fucking furious.
WALSH (V.O.)
... what happened to all the
money?
273 INT. BELLAGIO CASINO - CLOSE ON SWAT DUFFEL BAG - NIGHT 273
carried through the Bellagio casino, held by the SWAT
Leader leading his men out (now eight in all), and at
last we PULL UP to see his face for the first time...
It's Rusty, in full regalia, leading Livingston, Turk,
Saul, Frank, Basher, Yen and Linus out of the casino,
each dressed as a SWAT member, each carrying a duffel bag
with nearly $20 million dollars inside.
As we PASS each man, under the HUM OF the CASINO, we see:
274 FLASHBACK - INT. MIRADOR SUITE - LIVINGSTON 274
takes the call from Walsh in the Mirador suite as Basher,
Saul, and Frank dress behind him.
LIVINGSTON
9-1-1. Emergency response.
275 TURK 275
dressed as a SWAT member, hustles down a cage corridor.
276 SAUL 276
has trouble rappelling with the rest.
277 BASHER 277
takes position next to Rusty at the elevator shaft's
bottom. They're on-camera, but just a few feet away and
(off-camera) Danny sits smiling.
RUSTY
(hiding his voice)
Prepare to cut power!
278 YEN 278
lights a short fuse leading into the vault...
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 4/16/01 141.
279 LINUS 279
feigns hysteria...
LINUS
Guys, someone's here!
280 RUSTY 280
FIRES a SPURT of BLANKS.
BARRROOOOM! No one is hurt. Nor is the money, stacked
neatly in a corridor, ready to be packed into the phony
SWAT team bags, body armor, etc.
281 EXT. BELLAGIO CASINO - NIGHT (PRESENT) 281
The SWAT team exits and boards the second vehicle Turk
and Virgil have been working on all this time, the one in
the warehouse with an air freshener hanging from its
rearview mirror: it's a replica of a SWAT van.
Turk takes the wheel as the others jump in the back.
Rusty flips open another cell phone...
RUSTY
Las Vegas P.D. This is Officer
Brooks, New Jersey Probation
Division. I have a violator in
your jurisdiction...
(cupping phone)
Hit it.
Turk hits the gas and the VEHICLE PEELS away, carrying its
cadre of new multi-millionaires far away from the
Bellagio Hotel and Casino.
282 INT. BELLAGIO VAULT 282
Benedict squats down to inspect a burnt scrap of paper on
the vault floor. It's a flier for a strip joint.
BENEDICT
(and it finally occurs
to him)
Ocean...
283 INT. CAGE/HALLWAY - MOVING WITH BENEDICT 283
Heated, he approaches the interrogation room, where his
Plainclothes Goons keep watch.
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 4/16/01 141A.
283 CONTINUED: (A1) 283
BENEDICT
Where's Ocean?
PLAINCLOTHES GOON #1
Still inside, sir. With Bruiser.
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 10/24/00 142.
283 CONTINUED: 283
Benedict straightens his cuffs, cools himself, then:
BENEDICT
Open that door.
284 INT. INTERROGATION ROOM 284
Bruiser throws a mean left hook across Danny's face as
the door swings open and Benedict steps in. Bruiser sees
him and steps away, toweling off his bloodied knuckles.
Benedict studies Danny: the man is a bloody mess, head
rolling, eyes puffed up.
BENEDICT
Wake him up.
The Goons step in, slap Danny alert. At last, Danny
recognizes Benedict in the room.
DANNY
(a little punchy)
Heya, Benedict... How's the other
fight going?
Benedict keeps his cool.
BENEDICT
Did you have a hand in this?
(beat)
Did you?
DANNY
Did I have a hand in what?
Benedict scrutinizes Danny: Is he bluffing? He looks at
Bruiser, then Danny again, and decides: no.
BENEDICT
Get him out of here.
As the Goons scoop him up and drag him out, Danny catches
Bruiser's eye for just a moment. And barely winks.
285 INT. BENEDICT'S SUITE 285
The PHONE RINGS. Tess plucks it up.
TESS
Hello?
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 1/8/01 143.
285 CONTINUED: 285
VOICE (V.O.)
(if you must know,
it's Livingston's)
Turn to Channel 88.
CLICK. Tess does so.
On her TV: A security-angle of the cage hallway. The
Goons appear, escorting bloodied Danny out.
As Tess gasps, we go live to...
286 INT. CAGE/HALLWAY 286
Where Benedict follows the Goons and Danny out, brooding:
what's his next step? Walsh approaches.
DANNY
You get robbed or something,
Benedict? Geez, that's a shame.
Benedict looks up, suspicious.
BENEDICT
Stop there.
The Goons stop, spin Danny around to face Benedict.
BENEDICT
Where. Is. My. Money.
They hold each other's eye.
DANNY
What would you say if I told you
you could get your money back...
(beat)
... if you gave up Tess?
(beat)
What would you say?
BENEDICT
I would say yes.
287 INT. BENEDICT'S SUITE 287
She's crestfallen.
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 1/8/01 144.
288 INT. CAGE/HALLWAY 288
DANNY
Well, that's very interesting...
(beat)
... but I didn't have anything to
do with it.
He grins. Benedict sinks.
BENEDICT
(to his Goons)
Escort Mr. Ocean to the exit. And
contact the police. I would
imagine Mr. Ocean is in violation
of his parole.
289 INT. BENEDICT'S SUITE - ON TV 289
The Goons haul Danny out. Tess has left, heartbeats ago:
the room's door is just closing.
A290 INT. CAGE/HALLWAY A290
WALSH
Maybe we should have held him.
BENEDICT
No. Follow him. Everywhere.
290 INT. CASINO FLOOR - OUTSIDE CAGES 290
Benedict exits. Takes in his casino. It's been a bad
night: he's down a hundred fifty million. He starts
for...
291 INT. CASINO FLOOR - ELEVATOR BAY 291
As he arrives, the elevator doors open and Tess steps
out. She breezes right past him.
BENEDICT
Tess...
(as she doesn't
stop)
Tess?
TESS
You of all people should know,
Terry: in your hotel, there's
always someone watching.
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 1/8/01 145.
291 CONTINUED: 291
She keeps going. Benedict, now down a hundred fifty
million and one woman, boards the elevator. Its doors
close on him.
292 EXT. ALLEY/VACANT WAREHOUSE - EARLY MORNING 292
The SWAT van rounds a corner and ducks inside the
warehouse.
Three-and-a-half seconds pass.
And the eight SWAT members reappear, now all in suits,
perfectly pressed, and with grins on their faces and
change in their pockets, they begin their victory stroll,
single-file and sloppy... right down the...
293 STRIP - MOVING WITH THEM 293
Turk, Livingston, Frank, Basher, Yen, Saul, Linus and
Rusty march down the strip single-file, and when they
come to an intersection...
... Virgil and Reuben, also in suits, fall into stride
for a victory lap in front of the Bellagio fountains.
Then, one-by-one, the group splinters off, strolling into
different hotels or grabbing cabs, until there are only
two left: Rusty and Linus.
They take each other in, shake hands, and part.
294 EXT. BELLAGIO CASINO - NIGHT 294
Tess exits, searching for Danny. She rounds the building
to...
295 EXT. SERVICE ENTRANCE 295
Where a LVPD squad car has just arrived to take goon-held
Danny away. She runs toward it.
TESS
Wait!
They do. As Danny is handcuffed and prepared for loading
in the back, he and Tess hold each other's glance.
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 1/8/01 145A.
295 CONTINUED: 295
TESS
Danny...
(beat)
I'm sorry.
DANNY
I knew what I was doing.
A beat.
TESS
I didn't.
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 10/24/00 146.
295 CONTINUED: 295
A cop lowers Danny's head as he directs him into his
seat.
TESS
How long will you be?
DANNY
(shrug)
Three to six months, I should
think.
The squad car door closes him in and Tess stands vigil as
it pulls away.
296 ACROSS STREET 296
Rusty watches Danny being driven back to prison, too.
DISSOLVE TO:
297 EXT. FRONT GATE - MINIMUM-SECURITY PRISON - DAY 297
SUPERIMPOSE: THREE TO SIX MONTHS LATER.
The great metal gate opens once more, revealing Danny
Ocean in its frame again, ready for release.
He looks forward -- no one's there to greet him, and the
view of New Jersey looks no brighter than it did before.
He takes his first step into free America...
... to discover Rusty leaning against the prison wall.
Beyond him sits his second-hand Mercedes from L.A.
RUSTY
Looking for someone?
DANNY
Thirteen million and you drive
that piece of shit cross country
to pick me up?
RUSTY
Hello to you, too.
They shakes hands. Rusty looks Danny over.
RUSTY
Your hair's grayer.
(CONTINUED)
147.
297 CONTINUED: 297
DANNY
Your eyes got closer together.
(beat)
How's life?
RUSTY
Life... is a roomful of pillows.
(beat)
C'mon...
MOVING WITH Danny and Rusty toward the Mercedes, together
again.
RUSTY
Where do you want to go first?
DANNY
To a phone.
Rusty had anticipated this.
RUSTY
I stopped and picked up your
personal effects, put them in the
back seat.
DANNY
My what?
Danny gets to the passenger door and looks in to see Tess
sitting in the back. She smiles at him.
DANNY
(smiling back,
then)
I'm not sure these belong to me.
TESS
Sure they do.
Danny and Rusty get in. Danny kisses Tess. Rusty STARTS
the CAR.
DANNY
We need to find Rusty a girl.
RUSTY
There's a women's prison just down
the road...
(CONTINUED)
OCEAN'S 11 - Rev. 1/8/01 148.
297 CONTINUED: (2) 297
He drives off. In the back, Danny takes Tess's hand in
his. Notices a silver wedding band on it.
DANNY
You said you sold this.
TESS
That's what I said.
DANNY
Liar.
TESS
Thief.
As they drive away...
... another car STARTS its ENGINE begins to follow. At
the wheel: Benedict's goons.
THE END
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