The Night of the Hunter

                                        CUT TO

INT. WILLA'S AND THE PREACHER'S BEDROOM -- FULL SHOT -- WILLA ON BED --
PREACHER IN BACKGROUND
WILLA lies in profile on the bed along the bottom of the frame.  A prim, old
woman's nightdress makes her look like a child.  Her hands are clasped. 
PREACHER, fully dressed, stands at the window, which is in BACKGROUND towards
foot of bed.  His coat, hung over a chair, is in silhouette.  River mist
outside window halated by exterior gas-lamp.  The window shade is up.  She is
mumbling in prayer.  She stops.

                    PREACHER
               (his back still turned)
          Are you through praying?

                    WILLA
          I'm through, Harry.

He turns.  WILLA is calm and immobile with the ecstasy of a martyr.

                    PREACHER
          You were listening outside the parlor window.

                    WILLA
          It's not in the river, is it, Harry?

                    PREACHER
          Answer me!

                    WILLA
          Ben never told you he throwed it in the river.
          Did he?

PREACHER hits her across the mouth.  A pause.

                    WILLA
               (continues, unruffled)
          Then the children know where it is hid?  John
          knows?  Is that it?  Then it's still here,
          somewhere amongst us, taintin' us?

CLOSE SHOT -- PREACHER, LISTENING FOR A VOICE

RESUME TWO-SHOT

                    WILLA
          So you must have known it all along, Harry.

CLOSE SHOT -- PREACHER, LISTENING
After a moment, the river boat whistle blows, nearer.  HOLD CLOSE-UP for a
moment after whistle.

CLOSE DOWN-SHOT -- WILLA, SAINT-LIKE

                    WILLA
          But that ain't why you married me, Harry.  I
          know that much.  It couldn't be that because
          the Lord just wouldn't let it.

RESUME TWO-SHOT -- WILLA

                    WILLA
          He made you marry me, so's you could show me
          the Way and the Life and the Salvation of my
          soul!  Ain't that so, Harry?

CLOSE SHOT -- PREACHER
He has heard the voice and starts to move out of CLOSE SHOT.

RESUME TWO-SHOT
He has moved over to the coat on back of chair.

CLOSE SHOT -- COAT
His hand goes into the pocket and brings the knife out.  (It is the same
coat, and pocket, as in the wedding-night scene.)

RESUME TWO SHOT

                    WILLA
          So you might say that it was the money that
          brung us together.

He pulls down the blind.  He moves toward the bed.

                    WILLA
          The rest of it don't matter, Harry.

INSERT -- PREACHER'S HAND AND KNIFE
It clicks open.

RESUME TWO-SHOT
As he raises his arm to strike:

HEAD CLOSE-UP -- WILLA
...with foolish, ecstatic eyes.

                    WILLA
          Bless us all!

                                        DISSOLVE TO

INT. CHILDREN'S BEDROOM -- FULL SHOT -- THE SHADOWS ON THE WALL
They are shaped as in earlier scene, but altered by mist.  Set-up as in
earlier scene.  Over them we hear the whinny-and-catch and the failure of the
Ford being cranked; once; then again: then JOHN's shadow moves on the wall
and on a third cranking which engages the engine, we PAN TO WINDOW, shooting
over JOHN, who peers out, into blind mist.  The gears of the car shift; the
car moves away unseen; its sounds diminish slowly, and die.  A moment of
silence; then JOHN turns and we PAN him to the bed.  He gets in beside PEARL,
who is asleep, and, as we TIGHTEN IN CLOSE, puts his hand across the face of
the doll.

                                        DISSOLVE TO

HEAD CLOSE-UP -- ICEY
An ominous expression.  She looks sharp to WALT, beckoning secretly, through
rear screen door of kitchen, onto porch.

                    ICEY
               (loud whisper)
          Walt!  Come quick!

FULL FIGURE SHOT -- WALT
He is scrubbing out an ice cream container on the back porch.  He looks up
and moves towards her.

                    WALT
               (natural voice)
          What's wrong, Mother?

MEDIUM CLOSE -- ICEY, THEN WALT

                    ICEY
               (whisper)
          Sshhh!  He's in there.

WALT ENTERS SHOT with pipe.

                    WALT
          Who?

                    ICEY
               (whisper)
          Mr. Powell!
               (Walt looks enquiry)
          Willa has run away!

                    WALT
          I'll be switched! ...

They enter the kitchen.  We hear muffled sounds of sobbing o.s.

MEDIUM CLOSE -- TWO-SHOT

                    WALT
          Just went?

                    ICEY
          She took out some time during the night -- in
          that old Model-T --

WALT clucks his tongue.

                    WALT
          Is he hit pretty bad?

                    ICEY
          All to pieces!

WALT moves towards kitchen cabinet.

                    WALT
          There's a little peach brandy -- maybe a sip?

                    ICEY
          A man of the Cloth?

MEDIUM CLOSE SHOT -- WALT
He pours, snaps it down; weak-defiance.

MEDIUM CLOSE SHOT -- ICEY

                    ICEY
          Walt Spoon, that's for sickness in the house!

MEDIUM CLOSE SHOT -- WALT
He looks towards o.s. sobbing.

                    WALT
          What can we do, Mother?

TWO-SHOT

                    ICEY
          I thought if you went and talked to him --
          another man --

MEDIUM SHOT -- PREACHER
He sits at a table, his back towards us, mumbling over his Bible.

TWO-SHOT -- WALT, ICEY BEHIND HIM, ENTERING THROUGH DOOR

                    WALT
          Mister Powell?

                    PREACHER
               (suddenly loud)
          A strange woman is a narrow pit!

                    ICEY
               (a reverent whisper)
          Amen!  Amen!

                    PREACHER
          She lieth and wait as for a prey.  And
          increaseth the transgressors among men.

He closes his Bible and turns to them with weepy eyes and a brave little
smile.

                    PREACHER
          My dear, dear friends!  Whatever would I do
          without you!         

CLOSE SHOT -- ICEY

                    ICEY
               (wailing)
          Mister Powell!

THREE-SHOT -- NEW ANGLE

                    WALT
          Is there anythin' -- anythin' ...?

                    PREACHER
          It is my shame -- my crown of thorns.  And I
          must wear it bravely.

                    ICEY
          What could have possessed that girl?

                    PREACHER
               (simply)
          Satan.

                    ICEY
          Ah.

WALT sits across from PREACHER.  ICEY is at PREACHER's elbow.

                    WALT
          Didn't you have no inkling?

                    PREACHER
          Yes; from the first night.

                    WALT
          The first night?

                    PREACHER
          Our honeymoon.

CLOSE SHOT -- WALT

                    WALT
          How's that?

TWO-SHOT -- PREACHER AND ICEY

                    PREACHER
          She turned me out of the bed.

                    ICEY
               (with pleasure)
          Nnnoooo!!

CLOSE SHOT -- WALT
Filling his pipe.

                    WALT
          What do you figure to do?

TWO-SHOT -- PREACHER AND ICEY

                    PREACHER
          Do?  Why, stay and take care of them little
          kids.  Maybe it was never meant for a woman
          like Willa to taint their young lives.

                    ICEY
               (hands clasped; with approval)
          Mmmmm!

CLOSE SHOT -- WALT
Dabbing at moisture in the corner of his eye.

                    WALT
          That's mighty brave of you, Reverend.

TWO-SHOT -- PREACHER AND ICEY

                    PREACHER
          I reckon it's been ordained this way, Brother
          Spoon.

CLOSE SHOT -- WALT

                    WALT
          Didn't-- didn't she leave no word?

TWO-SHOT -- PREACHER AND ICEY

                    PREACHER
          A scrawl.  On a piece of notepaper on the
          bureau.

ICEY smiles sideways.

                    PREACHER
          I burned it.

PREACHER holds out his hand, stares in disgust, and wipes his palm
dramatically on his coat sleeve.

                    PREACHER
          I tore it up and burned it -- it stank so
          strong of hellfire.

                    ICEY
          Amen.

                    PREACHER
          The pitcher has went to the well once too often,
          my friends.

CLOSE SHOT -- WALT

                    WALT
          She'll come draggin' her tail back home.

CLOSE SHOT -- PREACHER

                    PREACHER
          She'll not be back.  I reckon I'd be safe in
          promising you that.

CLOSE SHOT -- WALT

                    WALT
          Maybe she's just run off on a spree.

                    PREACHER'S VOICE (o.s.)
          No!

                    WALT
          Well, there's no harm in hopin'.

TWO-SHOT -- PREACHER AND ICEY

                    PREACHER
          Ain't no sense in it, neither.  I figured
          somethin' like this was brewin' when she went
          to bed last night.

                    ICEY
               (all woman)
          How?

                    PREACHER
          She tarried around the kitchen after I'd gone
          up, and when I went downstairs to see what was
          wrong...

                    ICEY
               (eagerly)
          What?

                    PREACHER
          She'd found this fruit jar of dandelion wine...
               (Icey touches him)
          ... that the husband -- Harper -- had hid
          somewheres in the cellar.
               (playing his ace)
          She was drinking.

CLOSE SHOT -- ICEY
ICEY is happy to let her mouth fall open and let out a gasp.

CLOSE SHOT -- WALT
Sniffling.

THREE-SHOT -- PREACHER, ICEY, WALT

                    PREACHER
          I tried to save her.

                    ICEY
          I know you did, Reverend.  Oh, I know how you
          tried!

                    PREACHER
          The devil wins sometimes!

CLOSE SHOT -- PREACHER

                    PREACHER
               (eyes upturned)
          Can't nobody say I didn't do my best to save
          her!

                                        DISSOLVE TO

CLOSE UNDERWATER SHOT (Tank)
We PAN, with slowly streaming weeds, and bring in WILLA in close profile; the
current, coming from behind her, drifts her long hair across her throat.

MEDIUM SHOT -- WILLA AND CAR
She is in profile as before--

CLOSE SHOT -- A BAITED HOOK
It descends and catches on the windshield, and the line tautens; then tugs. 
We start to follow the line up.

CLOSE SHOT -- ABOVE WATER -- THE LINE
We continue to follow the line up, and bring in, close, the stern of BEN
HARPER's skiff.

MEDIUM SHOT -- UNCLE BIRDIE
He sits back, tugging unconcernedly at the line.  Then he leans over to see
what's wrong.

CLOSE SHOT -- BIRDIE
... as he peers over side.

DOWNSHOT -- FULL SHOT OF CAR AND WILLA; BIRDIE'S VIEWPOINT

CLOSE SHOT -- BIRDIE, HORROR-STRICKEN

MOVING UNDERWATER SHOT -- WILLA
We hear PREACHER's voice o.s., singing: