Kinetic - Writing Sample

7/28/2019 Kinetic - Writing Sample

1/14

INT. HALLWAY OF THE PROGRAM - DAY

FATHERs face, insane with rage and grief. He is middle-aged, tall, otherwise unremarkable.

He is held by two SOLDIERS in the middle of a stark whitehallway. He struggles wildly, howling and screaming at thetop of his lungs.

FATHER(guttural)

My children! My boys!! My children!

Heavily armed SOLDIERS pour down the hallway. BOYS AND GIRLSof various ages in white hospital gowns are lined up againstthe wall. Small yellow tags, signifying them as kinetics,are forcibly attached to their ears. Then black bags are putover their heads and heavy cuffs on their hands.

Scattered on the floor are the bodies of several children andsoldiers. Two soldiers kick down a door and run inside. Asecond later their bodies are hurled back into the hallway.Three more soldiers pour into the room, guns firing.

INT. PROGRAM BEDROOM - DAY

Two boys - ETHAN BLANK (12) and SAMSON (8) - are crouchedbeside an air vent in a white, clinical bedroom. In thedistance they hear screams and gunshots.

SAMSONFather. Father is shouting.

Blank tears the cover off the vent and tosses it aside.

BLANKAre you ready?

Samson doesnt respond.

BLANK (CONT'D)Are you ready?

SAMSONBut Father-

Blank grabs Samson by the shoulders.

BLANKYou cant listen to him. You needto run.

Samson begins to cry.


2/14

SAMSONBut theyll catch me. Theyllshoot me.

BLANKNo. Theyll never catch you.

SAMSONWhy not?

BLANKFor the same reason you cantlisten to Father, or me, or anyoneelse ever again.

(he leans in)Because theyre weak. Theyre allweak. And youre not. Yourestronger than they could ever be.

SAMSONAre you sure?

BLANKIts us and them. No, its not eventhat. Its you and everyone else.And youre going to win.

They hear noises, closer now. Blank grabs Samson and pusheshim to the vent.

BLANK (CONT'D)

Go!

Samson climbs into the vent. Theres a bang at the door.

SAMSON (O.S.)Ethan?

Another bang. Blank puts the cover back on the vent andturns to face the door.

SAMSON (O.S.) (CONT'D)Ethan??

BLANKRun!

The door explodes inward. Soldiers swarm in.

SOLDIERSGet on the ground! / Hands up! /Down on the floor!

2.


3/14

Blank snarls and points his palms outward at the soldiers.Energy curls up his wrists. The furniture shakes, the wallsand floor tremble. The soldiers shout. Noise and light floodthe room.

Black. Silence. Seconds pass.

WATTS (O.S.)Jesus. What a mess.

INT. DINGY APARTMENT LIVING ROOM - NIGHT - PRESENT DAY

A body - male, late 60s - lies on the floor of a rattyapartment. Dried blood stains trail down from his mouth,nose, chest. The body is sunk several inches into the floorat the center of a shallow crater. Deep, jagged rips criss-cross the walls of the apartment.

DETECTIVE JAMES WATTS and a YOUNG COP squat over the body.Watts is shrewd, flippant, late 30s, dressed in a tattered,colorful suit that mightve been fashionable a decade agowith a hat pulled low over his eyes.

The young cop appears to be nervous.

WATTSSo, what do you think?

YOUNG COPUh, it looks like, like thought

crime. I mean internal impact.

WATTSYep.

YOUNG COPBut...thats illegal.

WATTSWell I guess that makes this acrime scene.

EXT. DINGY APARTMENT BUILDING - NIGHT

Rain, police lights. The brick apartment building is about adozen stories tall, and two COPS man the entrance. SomeTENANTS slowly trickle back inside.

Another police car pulls up. ETHAN BLANK steps out, only nowa quarter decade older. He is courteous, very reserved, mid30s.

3.


4/14

Hes also dressed in a suit and hat, but both are somehowrattier and more wrinkled that Watts. His yellow kinetic tagdangles from a chain around his neck.

As he exits the car, the keys snap from the ignition straightinto his hand. He looks up at the building, tucks hisnecklace under his shirt, and shuffles toward the entrance.The two cops grow quiet the second they see him.

BLANKBoys.

COP 1Detective Blank.

BLANKTwo of you?

COP 2Rough neighborhood.

BLANKUh-huh. Which floor?

COP 1Its on the 7th floor. Sir.

BLANKThanks.

As Blank walks through the door the two cops begin whispering

to one another. One looks after Blank and spits derisively onthe ground.

INT. DINGY APARTMENT LIVING ROOM - NIGHT

Watts reaches into the dead mans pocket.

YOUNG COPUm, sir, shouldnt we wait for the-

Watts pulls out a license.

WATTS(reading)

Alexi Tarasov. Organ donor.

Watts tosses the card behind him, stands, and sighs.Something catches his eye. He begins searching around theroom, touching different items.

4.


5/14

INT. DINGY APARTMENT BUILDING HALLWAY - NIGHT

Blank exits the elevator. Two COPS are knocking on doors,looking for witnesses. An OLD WOMAN emerges from one door.

COPDid you see anything maam?

OLD WOMAN(exasperated)

Other than some very rude policeofficers? The fire alarm went off,I hurried outside, then I came backin. What would I have seen?

An OLD MAN peeks out behind her.

OLD MAN

Its them, isnt it? I dont wantany of their kind here!

OLD WOMANHarold, go back inside!

OLD MAN(pointing to cop)

Look at him! Hes not denying it!

Blank walks past to an open apartment door barred by policetape. He peeks inside and sees Watts. Blank doesnt enter.Hes not up to it, at least not yet. Instead he turns and

slumps up against the hallway wall.


Watts is looking at objects around the room.

YOUNG COPAre there any certain procedures weshould be following due tothe...nature of the crime?

WATTS

(amused)And what would that be?

YOUNG COPKinetic crime.

Watts runs his finger across one of the cabinets and smiles.

WATTSNo. No it isnt.

5.


6/14

YOUNG COPBut, I thought you said-

WATTSIntra-kinetic crime.

For a moment the cop doesnt get it.

YOUNG COPThe victim? Also a kinetic? Butthis apartment isnt on the kineticregistry.

WATTSMaybe he was trying to hide it.

YOUNG COPWhy would a kinetic hide his

abilities?

WATTSWell hes dead, so theres that.


Blank watches as several cops continue to knock on doors.One COP knocks on a door several times but no one answers.


Watts moves around the room as he points out objects.

WATTSA nice television, but no tvremotes. No scuff marks on thefloor.

(opens a small set ofdrawers)

The cabinet handles are dusty, butthe stuff inside seems new. And Ibet you havent found any prints atall.

The young cop nods.

WATTS (CONT'D)(looking at door)

No sign of forced entry or exit.Chances are they knew each other.

YOUNG COPYou should really see the kitchen.

6.


7/14

WATTSIn a minute - well go room byroom.


Blank watches the cop continue to bang on the door.Something isnt right.

COPSir! Sir! I can hear you sir! Wejust have a few questions.


YOUNG COP

But the kitchen - ok, so whatsnext then?

WATTSWell anyone who knew the victim wasa kinetic in hiding Im sure alsoknew internal impact is a capitaloffense. My guess is theyreprobably long gone.

BOOM!! An explosion from the hallway rocks the room. Theforce blows open the door, sweeping in a cloud of dust anddebris.

COP (O.S.)Hes here, hes here!

Watts rushes into:


Dust, noise. At one end of the hallway three COPS stumble totheir feet. At the other end PETER MALKONEY - a lanky, wild-eyed kinetic dressed in dirty clothes - clambers out into thehallway. Theres a chunk missing from his left ear where his

kinetic ear tag should be.

Watts helps a man to his feet and sees that its Blank.Watts eyes go wide. Blank gives him a slight wave.

At the end of the hall Peter raises his hand. Blank andWatts throw themselves flat against the wall. The other copsdont react in time and are hurled backwards by an invisibleblast of force.

7.


8/14

Peter takes off down the hall, and Watts and Blank tear afterhim. Watts snatches a radio off a downed cop as he rushespast.

WATTS(into radio)

We have a rogue kinetic, DorchesterSt. crime scene, 7th floor - I amin pursuit!

He throws down the radio as they round the corner. Petersends errant blasts over his shoulder as he runs, and Wattsand Blank shield their faces as hallway light fixturesshatter, showering glass shards upon the detectives.

Its clear that this isnt a new experience for the two men,but theyre rusty and dont seem to really be workingtogether.

Blank raises his hand and Watts swats it away.

WATTS (CONT'D)(to Blank)

No! Not now!

Racing toward the elevator Peter rips the doors apart andleaps into the elevator shaft. He barely catches the cableand spins around, firing another blast that sends thecrumpled elevator doors straight at Watts and Blank.

Watts hurls himself left against the wall; Blank hurls

himself right through a window out onto a fire escape. Peterblows a hole in the elevator door for the floor below andleaps down, with Watts scrambling in pursuit.

EXT. DINGY APARTMENT BUILDING FIRE ESCAPE - NIGHT

Blank races down the fire escape, swatting laundry aside ashe tries to keep pace with Peter. A TEENAGE GIRL sits on thefire escape talking on the phone and Blank vaults over her.

Peter rounds a hallway corner and sees Blank through thewindow. Before Blank can react Peter thrusts his hand

outward, shattering the window and causing a chunk of thefire escape to buckle and detach.

Blank leaps off the collapsing section of the fire escape,but glancing back sees that the Teenage Girl has lost herfooting and is sliding toward the gap.

Blank jumps the gap and hoists her up, pushing her onto awindowsill.

8.


9/14

BLANKYou ok?

TEENAGE GIRLWhat the hell is going on??

BLANKAlright.

Blank turns, jumps the gap again, and redoubles his sprintdown the fire escape, trying to make up for lost time.

INT. DINGY APARTMENT BUILDING VARIOUS ROOMS - NIGHT

Peter knocks down an apartment door and rushes inside,blowing holes through the walls as he creates his own path.The various residents - a SMALL CHILD playing with action

figures while watching cartoons, a FAMILY eating dinner, aBODYBUILDER lifting weights - barely have time to get out ofthe way. Watts chases after him and unholsters his sidearm.

Peter gestures and electrical wires surge out of theirsockets, creating triplines across the floor. Watts divesover them.

Peter blows a hole in the floor and leaps to the floor below.Watts follows.

EXT. DINGY APARTMENT BUILDING BACK ALLEY - NIGHT

Peter jumps out a window down to the ground, shattering thewindowpane outward with his mind before he hits it. Threeteenage THUGS step menacingly out of the shadows, butimmediately recognize Peter.

THUGP, you ok?

PETERPigs, pigs, stop em!

Peter races around the corner just as Watts jumps out the

window after him. But Watts doesnt stick the landing; hefalls and his gun goes skittering out of his hand.

THUGSPig! / Son of a bitch! / Get him!

They charge Watts and fall upon him, kicking and punching ashes balled up on the ground. Blank makes it down the lastfire escape to the ground. He sees the thugs on Watts andrushes to help.

9.


10/14

BLANKPolice! Step away!

They dont respond. He tries to pull one off but they shovehim away. Blank instinctively raises his hand. The thugs gosailing off Watts in different directions, smacking againstthe alley walls. Watts rises and picks up his gun, wipingblood from his nose.

BLANK (CONT'D)You alright?

Blank reaches for Watts shoulder but Watts shrugs him off.

WATTSI dont need your help. Not likethat.

The two round the corner and jump back just as fast as a pileof bricks sail past them. Peter is cornered at a dead end.He tries blasting through the walls but theyre too thick.He tries to put dents in the brick wall to climb, but hestoo exhausted and slips off.

A squad of SWAT COPS in full riot gear rush up behind Wattsand Blank.

BLANKHes trapped in the alleyway, but Idont know for how long.

SWAT COPRoger - we can take him.

WATTSNo, Ive got him.

SWAT COPSir-

WATTSIf I wanted a body Id shoot himmyself.

(shouting around corner)

Im coming out! And Im unarmed!

PETERScrew you!

WATTSStill coming out! Still unarmed!

Peter stands at the end of the alley. He is panicky - hishands are shaking, his eyes darting around nervously.

10.


11/14

Watts rounds the corner slowly with his hands up. Only nowhes wearing sunglasses and no shoes.

PETERWhat, what do you want? I didntdo anything!

WATTSThats fine - I just want to talk.

Watts slowly approaches, halving the distance between them.

PETERIm not going back to, I mean, youcant make me...why arent youwearing shoes?

Watts doesnt respond.

PETER (CONT'D)Wait, stop - thats far enough!

WATTSYes, it is.

Watts has earplugs stuffed in his ears, and behind one of hishands is a flashbang grenade, its ring hanging off hisfinger. Watts drops the grenade. Peter looks down at it.It explodes in a flash of light and noise.

Peter screams, grabbing his eyes with one hand and firing

blindly with the other, but he cant hit what he cant see orhear.

Watts rushes Peter at an angle, tackling him at his mid-section. Before Peter can react Watts clocks him with a solidleft hook. Peter slumps unconscious to the ground.

The cops and Blank rush around the corner. Blank looks downat Peter.

BLANKRough neighborhood.

EXT. DINGY APARTMENT BUILDING - NIGHT

More cop cars, a fire truck, and an ambulance are now parkedin front of the building. Watts and Blank are being checkedout by an EMT.

WATTSI told you, Im fine.

11.


12/14

EMT(sarcastic)

Well why didnt you say so.(keeps looking over Watts)

Looks like just cuts and bruises.

The EMT moves on to Blank.

WATTSWhat are you doing here?

BLANKThe Chief assigned me secondary onthis. He thought I might be ofsome, uh, assistance.

WATTS(sharply)

I can handle it myself.(softening)Youre supposed to have anothercase anyway, right? Forged plates?

BLANKPut on hold for this. And Imalright.

WATTSIts only been six months sinceBerkow.

BLANKI said Im alright.

EMTAll done.

He hands Blank a lollipop. Blank takes it.

WATTSYou give grown men lollipops?

EMT(shrugs)

Everyone likes lollipops.

WATTS...Do I get one?

EMT(walking away)

No.

12.


13/14


14/14

Kinetic - Writing Sample

Documents

Transcript of Kinetic - Writing Sample