Brazil

HELPMANN

Fine, thank you. Hello, Sam. Ida said you might be here. Have you got a minute?

(to Jack)

Would you excuse us?

Jack is taken aback, envious and eager to please.

JACK

Of course... of course... Come on Alison – Barbara

Jack propels his wife away.

HELPMANN

I need your help, Sam.

INT. BATHROOM – NIGHT

It's the sort of bathroom you would expect of Mother, an adjunct to her boudoir. The pink or purple lavatory is in the process of flushing, while Sam holds Mr. Helpmann vertical, grasping him under the armpits, while Mr. Helpmann is zipping his fly.

HELPMANN

Thanks very much Sam.

SAM

That's all right Mr. Helpmann. Glad to help.

He is lowering Helpmann into the wheelchair.

HELPMANN

If I can help you...

SAM

(broaching the subject)

Well, I...

In maneuvering Helpmann Sam clumsily knocks over one of the pretty pots which fussily decorate Mother's bathroom shelf. A thin layer of powder is spread over the wash-stand.

SAM

Sorry...

HELPMANN

Your father and I were very close. Of course Jeremiah was senior to me but we were close friends... especially after the bombing...

(he indicates his legs)

... and I...

(chuckles)

... keep his name alive at the office every day.

With his finger Helpmann is tracing letters in the powdered surface.

HELPMANN

It's as though he's there speaking to me – "'ere I am, J.H.!" The ghost in the machine.

We see that Helpmann has traced the letters "EREIAMJH" in the powder.

HELPMANN

I know he would have wanted me to help you... And I promised your mother I'd take you onto the team at information Retrieval. But I gather that...

SAM

Mr. Helpmann. I've changed my mind. I'd like to accept the transfer – am I too late?

HELPMANN

Too late? That's for me to say.

SAM

Well... well, I...

Helpmann puts out his hand. Sam takes it.

HELPMANN

Welcome to Information Retrieval!

Helpmann blows away the spilled powder and "EREIAMJH" with it.

INT. INFORMATION RETRIEVAL LOBBY – DAY

CUT TO WIDE SHOT of massive imposing lobby – much like the Records lobby – but this one is very austere. No crowds. No statues. No decoration. Not even the ever-present security checks. Impressive. And a bit unnerving. Framed in the doorway is a lone TINY FIGURE. CUT TO CLOSEUP. It's Sam. He hesitates and then enters.

CUT TO:

VIDEO SCREEN

The video camera follows Sam across the lobby – til he stops in tight profile at Reception Desk. We tilt up revealing Sam standing facing us just beyond the monitor which is on the desk.

SAM

(diffidently to the porter)

My name is Sam Lowry. I have to report to Mr. Warren.

PORTER

(looking down his nose at Sam's unsleek clerk's suit and then handing him an I.D. badge)

Thirtieth floor, sir. You're expected.

SAM

Er, don't you want to search me?

PORTER

No, sir.

SAM

(taken aback. Reaching into his pocket)

My I.D. cards.

PORTER

No need, sir

SAM

(nonplussed)

But I could be anybody.

PORTER

No you couldn't, sir. This is Information Retrieval.

(indicating to the right)

the lift's arrived, sir.

INT. 30TH FLOOR CORRIDOR – DAY

Sam steps out of the lift.The lift doors close. Sam looks up and down the corridor hearing nothing. Silence. Then he, and we, begin to hear a sound. It is a curious whirring murmuring tummeling sound, and it seems to be growing closer. Suddenly a scrum of PEOPLE swings into view around a corner at the far end of the rather long corridor. At the centre of the scrum is a TALL MAN with a magisterial expression and an air of eternal bustle. This is MR. WARREN. He is surrounded by the EXPEDITERS who are competing for his attention with bits of paper and bits of sentences. Mr. Warren is snapping out decisions. Satisfied Expediters drop out of the scrum at intervals, disappearing one at a time through one of the many doors which line both sides of the corridor.The scrum doesn't get any smaller because new Expediters dart out of other doors and join the milling MOB. The whole circus is coming by Sam at the rate of knots. The sound it makes breaks down into something like this.

EXPEDITER #1

(waving pager)

Mr. Warren, this order...

EXPEDITER #2

(waving same)

Mr. Warren...

EXPEDITER #3

(ditto)

About this invoice... Victim's list...

WARREN

(dealing on all sides)

Yes... No... send that back... wrong department... of course... of course not... yes... no... maybe.

CUT TO Sam watching this caravanserai with awe as it starts pass him.

EXPEDITER #4

... about these requisitions...

EXPEDITER #5

Mr. Warren... EX/27 has 15 suspects still outstanding.

EXPEDITER #6

... a decision, Mr. Warren...

 WARREN

... cancel that... okay... put half as terrorists, the rest as victims... yes... yes... no... definitely no...

Sam doesn't have the nerve to jump into this. The scrum sweeps by and fades away along the corridor, and finally disappearing around the corner at the other end. Sam follows. Silence has descended again.

INT. CORRIDOR – DAY
 

Sam gets to the corner of the corridor and finds a similar corridor at right angles. He hesitates and continues. Then he starts to hear the sound again. It is coming up from behind. Mr. Warren has circumnavigated the building. The same sort of business is being enacted at the same pace. As the scrum reaches Sam he gathers his nerve and jumps right in beside Warren, and keeps going.

SAM

(in a hurry)

I'm Lowry, Mr. Warren... Sam Lowry.

WARREN

(putting arm around Sam)

Ah. Lowry... yes.

(still dealing with Expediters)

... no, cancel that... glad to have you aboard... yes... no... don't be ridiculous Jenkins... Yes, yes, yes... you'll like it up here... send that back... we've got a crack team of... are they kidding?... decision makers... No, in triplicate... I'm expecting big things... two copies to Finance... of you... send that to Security... uh, uh, uh.

(poring over forms)

Uh, don't let Progress see this... between you and me, Lowry, this... no, no... department... tell Records to get stuffed... is about to be upgraded and...

Warren suddenly pivots around, swinging Sam 240 degrees in the direction they came from plus a bit.

WARREN

Ah, here we are!

(they are standing facing a door – one of the hundreds of identical doors lining these corridors)

What do you think?

The door says: "OFFICER DZ/015"

Sam has no idea what he ought to say.

WARREN

(solemnly)

Your very own number... on your very own door... and behind that door

(he turns the knob and opens the door)

... your very own office. Congratulations, DZ/015, welcome to the team.

Warren whirls off in a flurry of paperwork and Expediters leaving Sam standing dumfounded at the entrance to his office.

CUT TO:

SAM'S POV OF THE OFFICE

It is about four feet wide. A small blacked-out window high on the far wall is bisected by what looks like a recently constructed side wall. The room is bare except for a chair and a desk which is also bisected by the new wall. Pneumatic tubes hang from the ceiling. Sam slowly enters the room.

INT. SAM'S OFFICE – DAY

Sam looks lost... disoriented. He doesn't know where to begin because there's nothing to begin with. He squeezes in behind his desk and for want of anything else to do starts arranging his "in" and "out" baskets. There in his "in" basket is one of the ubiquitous executive toys – gaily wrapped with a card from Helpmann – Merry Xmas & Welcome. Sam can't quite believe. He returns to lining up his pencils, placing a couple of bocks (phone books) against the wall on the left extreme of his desk. Sam turns his attention away from the books when suddenly they both fall over with a "plop". Puzzled, he stands the books up again, turns his eyes away and "plop". Same result. Intrigued, a bit exasperated, Sam carefully, and before his very eyes, the desk begins to disappear into the wall, and "plop", the books topple over. Puzzled, Sam grabs hold of the desk and begins to try to pull it back through the wall. The desk moves back an inch or so, but then stops, somehow held stubbornly. Sam grits his teeth, reallllly pulls, grimacing a bit, but the desk won't budge. Intrigued, Sam gets up, goes around his desk and heads for the door.

INT. CORRIDOR – DAY

CUT TO Sam coming out of his office, turning right and walking to the next door, the nameplate of which reads:

"OFFICER DV/048."

As is his custom, Sam opens the door without knocking.

INT. LIME'S OFFICE – DAY

CUT TO SAM'S POV. Here is an office much like his. It's the other half of his room bisected by the partition wall. The other half of his desk is occupied by a slimy looking, round-headed little JUNIOR EXECUTIVE wholly occupied with trying to drag a bit more of the desk into his office. He is unaware of Sam.

SAM

Hello.

Lime startled, lets go of his desk and vents his irritation on Sam whom he mistakes for someone else.

LIME

No, you can't have any more chairs! There's only one left in here now, and I need that to sit on!

(realizing his mistake)

Oh... er, sorry. Who are you?

SAM

Sam Lowry.

LIME

(becoming unctuous)

Ah, yes, you're the new boy from next door, ha ha!

(he advances toward Sam with hand out to shake; shaking hands)

My name's Lime. Harvey Lime. Welcome to Expediting.

SAM

Ah.

(he pauses – looking around)

Would you mind if I borrowed your computer console?

LIME

What?

SAM

I'll bring it back in ten minutes.

LIME

You want to take my console into your office?

SAM

Yes.

LIME

(after a moment's consideration)

I'll tell you what... You tell me what and I'll do it for. I'm a bit of a whizz on this thing.

(indicates computer console)

Sam hesitates, but sees that there's no other way.

SAM

(taking print-out on Jill from his pocket)

Alright. There's someone I want to check out. A woman called Gillian Layton.

LIME

(leering)

A woman eh? I see.

SAM

(trying to ignore this)

I know her age and distinguishing marks. But I need an address or a place of work or something

LIME

(continuing to leer)

This is your dream girl, is it?

SAM

(taken aback)

What?

(recovering)

Look, let me use the console for a few minutes.

LIME

(trying to be jocular)

You must be joking –

(entirely unconvincing)

When there's a woman involved – there's no stopping me. Now, let me have that sheet.

He takes Jill's print-out sheet from Sam and begins to punch the keys laboriously with one finger. Nothing happens.

LIME

Sod it, it's broken!

SAM

You haven't switched it on.

LIME

Oh – yes. Look you're putting me off, standing there! Go back to your office and I'll give you a knock when I've finished.

Sam hesitates, but goes.

LIME

Go on. I'm not going to elope with her.

Sam exits.

INT. SAM'S OFFICE – DAY

Sam is sitting in his office listening to the protracted one finger exercise which is going on next door. He stares dumbly at the shining, absolutely useless, executive toy.

EXT. ICY SEA ANTI – DAY

The CAMERA skims along over an icy sea. This is SAM'S POV as he wings his way over the water with his new gleaming wings. In the distance rises a strange massive ship.

As he gets closer we can see that the snip is listing heavily to one side. In fact it is barely afloat. Closer still, it becomes apparent that the ship is made of stone. Dark, evil, grey blocks of granite form not only the hull, but the super-structures and smokestacks. It looks like a massive medieval fortress gone to sea. The screen is engulfed in stone. The CAMERA heads up the side of the ship. Higher and higher we climb – past course after course of mammoth stones. Reaching the first deck, we continue upwards. There appears to be no entrance. Sam is looking frustrated and angry. But then he spots an opening. A few stones have come loose – one of them juts out forming a ledge. As the cage passes, Sam jumps and managed to gain a foothold on the outcropping. Squeezing thru the gap in the rocks, he makes his way thru a dark passage. Emerging from the opening he finds himself teetering over an enormous abyss formed by the outer hull and the inner stone core of the ship. Great stone ribs curve downwards thru the darkness broken only by narrow shafts of brilliant light streaming from occasional cracks and fissures in the stone core. For a brief moment Sam gets a glimpse of blue sky thru one of the openings but his attention is distracted by a distant moan. Huddled far below him at the bottom of the dark abyss are hundreds of grey shrouded Prisoners. Their moan blends with the creaks and groans of the stones as the ship slowly wallows back and forth. Suddenly a great boom resounds throughout the ship. Sam is unsure where it comes from. And then another boom reverberates about him. He has to steady himself as the ship quivers from the noise. Another book. He clutches at the wall.

INT. SAM'S OFFICE – DAY

Sam's head is leaning against the wall of his office. The boom repeats. LIME is knocking on the other side. Sam leaps up. As he leaves his office he looks back to see the desk creep through to Lime's office a little bit more.

INT. LIME'S OFFICE – DAY

Sam enters. Lime is standing, proudly holding out a sheet of paper.

LIME

Computers are my forte.

SAM

(reading)

Gillian Layton, age twenty three, eyes, blue, hair, black, weight, one hundred and twenty-one pounds, distinguishing marks, blemish on right shoulder, scar on left elbow

He stops, having come to the end. He looks at the other side of the paper but there's nothing there.

SAM

Is this all you got?