Raising Arizona

NURSERY

Florence is holding one of the babies cradled against her shoulder. She is facing the hallway door; her back is to the crib and window. The baby, peeping out over her shoulder, is facing the window.

CLOSE ON BABY

Looking.

BABY'S POV

Of the window, as Hi's head appears in it.

BABY

Looking.

HI

Looking back, he holds a finger to his lips.

BABY

Florence starts bouncing it, patting it on the back.

BABY'S POV

Hi and the window bouncing up and down.

LIVING ROOM

Nathan is leafing through the lingerie ads in the newspaper.

We can hear Florence's returning footsteps. Muttering:

NATHAN

Christian Dior my butt...

Florence enters.

NATHAN

... They pay money for that?

FLORENCE

Yes dear.

NATHAN

How're the kids?

FLORENCE

Fine dear.

NATHAN

Fuckin' kids, I love 'em.

We hear the bleat of the squeeze-me toy. Florence and Nathan look at the ceiling for a beat, then Nathan clears his throat and returns to the newspaper.

CHEVY

Ed sits anxiously waiting in the driver's seat, peering intently through the windshield. As she catches sight of something she breaks into a broad smile, unlocks the door, and slides over to the passenger seat.

Hi is opening the door with one hand, cradling a baby in the other.

ED
Which one ya get?

As he gets into the driver's seat:

HI

I dunno. Nathan Jr., I think.

ED

Gimme here.

He hands her the infant, then hands her the copy of Dr.Spock's Baby and Child Care.

HI

Here's the instructions.

ED

Oh, he's beautiful!

Hi nods as he pulls away from the curb.

HI
He's awful damn good. I think I got the best one.

Ed is gushing and kissing the baby through the rest of the conversation.

ED

I bet they were all beautiful. All babies are beautiful!

HI
Yeah. This one's awful damn good though.

ED

Don't you cuss around him.

HI

He's fine, he is. I think it's Nathan Jr.

ED

We are doin' the right thing, aren't we Hi? – l mean, they had more'n they could handle.

HI

Well now honey we been over this and over this. There's what's right and there's what's right, and never the twain shall meet.

ED

But you don't think his momma'll be upset? I mean overly?

HI

Well a course she'll be upset, sugar, but she'll get over it. She's got four little babies almost as good as this one. It's like when I was robbin' convenience stores –

Ed suddenly bursts out crying.

ED
I love him so much!

HI

I know you do, honey.

ED

(still sobbing)

I love him so much!

 TRAILER LIVING ROOM

As the lights are thrown on. The room is hung with streamers. A string of cut-out letters reads "Welcome Home Son!"

HI (O.S.)

Okay, bring him in!

REVERSE

Ed is entering with Nathan Jr.

HI
This is it young Nathan Jr. Just feast your eyes about, old boy!

ED

Don't be so loud around him, Hi.

HI

(softly)

Damn, I'm sorry honey.

ED

And don't you cuss around him.

HI

Aw, he don't know a cuss word from shinola.

ED

Well see that he don't.

HI

(jovially)

He's all right, he is.

He reaches for the child.

HI

... Come on over here, Nathan Jr., I'll show you around.

He takes the baby in both hands and holds him out at arm's length, pointing him at the various places of interest. The baby looks goggle-eyed at each one.

HI

... Lookahere, young sportsman. That – there's the kitchen area where Ma and Pa chow down. Over there's the TV, two hours a day maximum, either educational or football so's you don't ruin your appreciation of the finer things. This – here's the divan, for sociahzin' and relaxin' with the family unit. Yessir, many's the day we sat there and said wouldn't it be nice to have a youngster here to share our thoughts and feelin's –

Impatient with the nonsense:

ED

He's tired, Hi.

HI

Well we'll just sit you right there, boy...

He is propping Nathan Jr. up in the corner of the couch. Hi sits at the other corner and Ed sits in a facing chair.

HI

... Just put those dogs up'n take a load off.

Hi beams at Nathan Jr. Ed smiles at Nathan Jr. Nathan Jr. looks from one to the other, deadpan. They seem to be waiting for him to contribute to the conversation.

Silence.

Suddenly Hi slaps his knee.

HI

What are you kiddin'?! We got a family here!

Ed is getting up.

HI
... He's a scandal, honey! He's a little outlaw!

As she picks up the baby:

ED

He's a good boy.

HI

He ain't too good! You can tell by that twinkle in his eye!

ED

Don't you think we should put him to bed?

HI

Hang on, honey...

He is frantically reaching for a Polaroid camera.

HI

... Let's us preserve the moment in pictures!

ED

Just one, okay?...

She sits down on the couch with Nathan Jr. as Hi starts screwing the camera into a tripod.

ED

... I gotta tell ya, I'm a little scared.

Absently, as he sets up the camera:

HI
How come is that, honey?

ED

Well we got a baby, Hi. It's an awful big responsibility.

As he peers through the lens:

HI

Honey, could ya slide over a tad and raise the nipper up?

As she complies:

ED

I mean we never done this before and I'm kinda nervous.

HI

You're doin' real good, sugar.

Hi sits on the couch, holding the camera's cable release. He puts his arm around Ed and smiles at the offscreen camera.

Ed nestles her head against Hi's shoulder.

ED

I love you, Hi.

HI
We're set to pop here, honey.

ED

You're gonna help, aren't ya?

Through his teeth as he continues to grin at the offscreen camera:

HI

How's that, honey?

ED

Give Nathan Jr. a normal family background, just quiet evenings at home together...

We begin to hear distant thunder.

HI

You can count on it, honey.

ED

... Everything decent'n normal from here on out.

HI

Uh-huh.

As he squeezes the cable release – FLASH – the image momentarily freezes on Hi beaming, Nathan Jr. staring, and Ed looking at Hi with a little bit of concern.

DARK FIELD SAME NIGHT

The rolling thunder has built to a thunderclap at the cut, and the flash of the Polaroid match cuts to lightning throwing a momentarily harsh glare on the field.

Rain beats down on the bare patch of ground we are looking at – by now just a patch of mud.

Faraway lightning flickers and we hear the rumble of more thunder approaching, then suddenly:

THWACK – A head pops up out of the mud. It is Gale, the con we saw in group therapy. He bellows as lightning and thunder flash and crack nearby.

His head is covered with mud, although the driving rain is already starting to wash it away.

We are beginning to track in an arc around Gale's head, who is now struggling, working to get his shoulders and arms up out of the mud. The end of the 180-degree arc and a flash of lightning reveal, way in the distance, the wire-topped walls of a penitentiary.

Still bellowing, as if in some primal rage, Gale has gotten his muck-covered arms up out of the earth and is now pushing down to haul up the rest of his body. It comes with much effort, and with the loud sucking-popping sounds of the fiercely clinging mud.

Finally he is free.

With a great cry, the mud-covered man plunges his right arm straight back down into the earth, all the way up to his shoulder. He gropes intently and then, apparently having grabbed hold of something underground, he starts pulling.

His arm comes slowly back up out of the mud. Clasped in his hand is – a human foot.

Bellowing with effort he continues to pull, liberating the foot... leg... torso of his companion, and finally his head.

As the rain starts to wash the mud off his companion's head we see that it is his friend Evelle.

Both are bellowing.

Mud sucks and pops.

Thunder crashes.

INT. GAS STATION MENS ROOM

At the cut the ear-splitting thunder drops out to quiet. We hear only the muffled patter of rain and the hum of a bare fluorescent.

The two bedraggled escaped cons are standing side by side, combing their hair in the mirror. The men seem absorbed in their task, using hair jelly from a jar that sits on the shelf between them to restore their duck's-ass haircuts.

Evelle cracks the bathroom door and looks out into the rain.

EVELLE
... Okay.

GALE

What is it?

EVELLE

Mercury. Looks nice.

EXT. GAS STATION

The two men are trotting out to a Mercury that sits untended at a gas island, a gas hose on automatic stuck in its tank.

As Gale starts up the car Evelle yanks the hose out and drops it to the ground. Gale is already starting to peel out as Evelle gets in.

WIDE SHOT TRAILER LIVING ROOM

Late at night. Hi sits asleep on the sofa at the far end of the room, in a pool of lamp light.

We hear faint, distant knocking. As we track in toward Hi the knocking becomes louder and more present.

As we approach Hi we see that several Polaroids are spread over his gently rising and falling chest.

By the time we tighten on his face the knocking has become quite loud.

VOICE
Open up!

Hi starts awake with a grunt.

VOICE

... Open up in air!

He looks up, alarmed.

HI'S POV

The front door of the trailer. Someone is pounding insistently.

VOICE
Open up! It's a police!

BACK TO HI

He sits up and tenses. He looks around.

Ed stands in her nightgown at the mouth of the hallway, holding Nathan Jr. and squinting at Hi. She hisses:

ED

Hi! What's goin' on?

VOICE

Po-lice, son! Open her up!

Hi gets to his feet, hurriedly tosses the Polaroids under a cushion of the couch and takes out a gun.

HI

Get in the bedroom.

ED
They ain't gonna take Nathan?!

HI

Well I'd like to see 'em fly.

As Ed turns back to the bedroom:

VOICE

Open up and maybe we'll letcha plea-bargain.

BEDROOM

As Ed enters and shuts the door. She listens hard at the door:

Hi's footsteps cross the living room, the click of the door opening, silence... a burst of raucous male laughter.

HI'S VOICE

... Honey! Come on out here! Want you to meet a couple friends of mine!

LIVING ROOM

As Ed enters, carrying Nathan Ir. All three men – Hi, Gale, and Evelle – are beaming at her.

HI
Honey, like you to meet Gale and Evelle Snopes, fine a pair as ever broke and entered.

Gale roars with laughter.

HI

... Boys, this – here's my wife.

GALE

Ma'am.

EVELLE

Miz McDunnough.

Ed smiles politely, then squints at Hi .

ED
Kind of late for visitors, isn't it Hi?

HI

Well yeah honey, but these boys tell me they just got outta the joint. Gotta show a little hospitality.

Gale is admiring the baby.