The Boy and the Great White Shark

THE BOY AND THE GREAT WHITE SHARK
All dialogue in Patois with subtitles
.
EXT. HUT-DAWN JUST BEFORE 001 TITLES OVER
PACIFIC ISLAND ATOLL.
TITLES OVER MS 001
Flickering torches in the dark of two figures light up a bucket full of bait fish, fish line, faded kanga, old plastic bottle full of water, some bread and food in a plastic container. We make out that the two figures are male, one an old thin fellow who moves with some difficulty, obviously in some pain and having very low energy. He is Old Papa. The other is an 11 year old native boy in ragged old clothes, but energetic and cheerful and doing most of the work. He is Kimo, son of Old Papa. We follow them as they gather the bits and set off through the scrub with the sky just beginning to brighten
TITLES OVER
"THE BOY AND THE GREAT WHITE SHARK"
DISSOLVE TO:
EXT. BEACH SCRUB - DAWN JUST BREAKING 002 TITLES OVER
We follow the pair through the scrub and hear a roar in the background. The scrub gives way to a ribbon of beach to left and right, and the roar is from the surf breaking onto the coral.
CUT TO:
EXT. BEACH-DAWN 003
we see Old Papa and Kimo as they put their gear in an outrigger canoe, secure with a line, and pull it together across the white sand, to the sea, and launch it through the surf, then leap in aand paddle hard to get past the curling breakers. Once past they settle down to paddle out into the Pacific. we see them as they move to sea, and behind them far out we see the silhouette of a large ship we will later learn is a Russian Fish Factory ship. There are a few other smaller vessels round it, two of which are alongside.
CUT TO:
EXT. SEA OFFSHORE.004
In the canoe boy and man are baiting the weighted line with baitfish and paying it out hook by hook. They pay out a good deal of line, and we hear in the distance the sound of engines which grows louder, and the pair look up
PAPA
(patois w subtitles)
... here she comes, that ruskie bitch...
CUT TO:
EXT. SEA OFFSHORE-POV FROM CANOE AM 005
we have our first sight of a rusting old trawler heading straight for us, belching black diesel fumes. On the flying bridge we see a figure watching the tiny canoe. It is our first sight of Kapitan Lisa Alexeyey mistress of this bucket from hell CPT-4184.
DISSOLVE TO:
EXT. SEA OFFSHORE-BRIDGE OF TRAWLER AM 006
We zoom in on the flying bridge of the trawler to Kapitan Alexeyey, a bull of a woman whose pisshole in the snow eyes are focussed on the tiny canoe as it bears straight down on it.
DISSOLVE TO:
EXT. BRIDGE OF TRAWLER. AM- BRIDGE POV TO CANOE 007
The heavy bow bears down on the canoe and just as it seems certain it will smash the canoe to bits, Alexeyey shouts something to the helm in the wheel house
CUT TO:
INT.WHEELHOUSE OF TRAWLER-AM OO8
In response the skinny helmsman frantically throw the wheel over, so the ship heels wildly as it turns away, and the wake hits the canoe slap on causing it to bucket and toss while Papa and Kimo hang on for grim death.
CUT TO:
EXT. BRIDGE OF TRAWLER-AM 009
Over the stern we see the canoe bobbing in the wake. Alexeyey toots the horn and laughs as they head away out to sea. Her laughter hangs on the breeze
DISSOLVE TO:
EXT. OFFSHORE - CANOE. 010
The pair continue to bait and lower the line into the clear waters. And finally settle down under the rough shade of a kanga from the sun.
DISSOLVE TO:
EXT. SEA OFFSHORE - CANOE DUSK .011
as the night begins to close in the pair are pulling their line in, and reveal they have caught three fish which they dehook and put in the bucket. Carefully coiling the line, the start to paddle home, and we see the lights of shore in the distance in the gathering darkness.
DISSOLVE TO:
INT./EXT. FISH MARKET STALL-NIGHT 012
in the darkness we see the twinkle of single bulbs hanging over the stalls laid out in the small village centre. The middle aged fishmonger is laying out his fish neatly on his ice covered counter. Kimo enters with his bucket
FISH SELLER ST
what you got for me today Kimo??
Looks in bucket.
hmm not much Kimo.. hows Papa, haven't seen him for a while..
KIMO
Hmmm. ok
Seller takes fish from bucket,and lays it on his ice tray, goes to the till and takes out some coins, dropping it into Kimo's open palm. Kimo looks at the coins silently.. its not much. The seller looks at Kimo, picks up his bucket and goes to a bin and picks out a handful of baitfish, and drops it in..
At that moment Mano enters. 35ish, with a a large polystyrene box piled high with fish, on top of another one. Mano gives Kimo a look
MANO
Kimo! Still at it..
(Eyes the shop, the bucket with the baitfish and the two fish on the ice)
not too good I guess.. you need to get with it boy. Decent boat, coupla guys.. maybe you come work for me sometime..?
Sense of antagonism between Kimo and Mano. The boy eyes Mano picks up his bucket and eyes the frishmonger thankfully and leaves. We follow him through the market to a stall with a green neon cross and we see him enter.
CUT TO:
INT KIMO SIMPLE HUT- JUST BEFORE DAWN. 013
Old Papa is lying on his mattress, clearly on his last legs, he is sleeping. Kimo enters and sit down opposite the sick man. He drops a packet of Aspirin on the table, with one of the coins. It wakes Old Papa who struggles to sit up. Kimo opens the Aspirin, takes two out, fills a chipped enamel cup with water and offers it to his father, who swallows and drinks.
KIMO
How you feel today Papa?
OLD PAPA
(wheezes, coughs)
KIMO
I am worried Papa...
Old Papa falls back exhausted on his sweaty pillow..There follows a sequence as Kimo does all he can to make his sick father comfortable, with a bowl and cloth and so on.Finally Old Papa is sitting up in bed with a cup of tea steaming in his cupped hands, his hair combed neatly.
KIMO
You must rest today Papa. I will go
OLD PAPA
WE will go Kimo...I will be fine.
KIMO
No you must rest today, tomorrow maybe
OLD PAPA
(looks so weak)
...too much, too heavy,...
The cup slips from the old mans hands as he dozes off, and Kimo grabs it from him. He then lays the old man carefully down and makes him as comfortable as possible, and quietly gets his water bottle, hat and so on and leaves the hut.
CUT TO:
EXT. KEIRA HUT-DAWN JUST BEFORE. 014
Kimo is outside a different hut. He puts his face to the door..
KIMO
(whispers loudly)
Keira, Keira
there are rustley noises within, then the door opens and the sleepy face of a girl about Kimo's age pops out, recognizes Kimo and smiles. She is very lovely, and there is more to the scene that we are aware of.
KEIRA
Hey Kimo, whatsup at this hour..
KIMO
Papa is not good.. would you look in on him for me
KEIRA
You going out?
KIMO
ya, gotta
KEIRA
On your own???
(Kimo shrugs)
Let me give you a hand, to get out anyway...
The couple head off through the scrub with the gear, Keira carrying some of the stuff, to the canoe where the two kids load it up
DISSOLVE TO:
EXT. BEACH SCRUB-DAWN 015
The two youngsters load the canoe and together pull it down to the Pacific edge, and out into the water. We see the factory ship In he distance as usual. Kimo pushes and then jumps in and Keira with a last push leaves Kimo to paddle like mad to get through the larger surf waves. Keira stands up to her waist in water watching, and finally Kimo is past the surf and looks round triumphantly and waves happily, and she waves and turns and walks back towards the village.
DISSOLVE TO:
EXT. SEA OFFSHORE-DAWN LATE 016
Kimo is at his usual fishing place busily baiting his line with the baitfish the fishseller has given him.. he is immersed in his work as the sun gets higher and hotter. He is doing the work of two now, and his fingers are cut and painful as he works. We then hear the familiar distant throb of old diesels getting louder. Once again we see the OLEG bearing down on the canoe with Alexeyey on the bridge enjoying the moment.
RUSSIAN HELMSMAN
(Russian w ST)
Now?
KAPITAN LISA ALEXEYEY
Net!
Getting closer
RUSSIAN HELMSMAN
(Russian w ST)
Now?
KAPITAN ALNGELINA ALEXEYEY
Da!

The helmsman spins the wheel and the ship leans and bears away at the last moment, creating a large wake that makes the canoe bob like a cork almost swamping it.
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EXT. OFFSHORE-CANOE AM 017
Kimo finishes baiting and as he comes to the end of the line he notices a disturbance in the sea a way off. We cannot really see what it is, but we can see a huge shape curling over and down in the calm sea, in some strange sort of action. Kimo finds the commotion in the sea fascinating. Putting an old plastic bottle on the end of his line as a marker, he paddles slowly towards the disturbance.
DISSOLVE TO:
EXT. SEA OFFSHORE AM DRONE SHOT 018
From above we see the huge expanse of sea, and the tiny canoe traversing towards the disturbance. From this high poinr we can see what the disturbance is. A Great White Shark has become entangled with a trawl net, and is unable to break free. A shark has to move to stay alive and the more it twists and turns the tighter the mess is round him, and the less he can move. The sequence is quite long in that initially the flailing of the huge fish is desperate but it becomes increasingly less so, as it loses the battle to become free. As Kimo comes closer to the beast the shark is barely able to move, clearly suffering.
DISSOLVE TO:
EXT. SEA OFFSHORE-AM SURFACE 019
From the canoe we are with Kimo as he comes closer to the gleaming side of the shark, and we can see the fine net cutting into the skin. Fascinated Kimo comes to within a few feet of the creature and his dark eyes lock for a moment with the sharks eye. He reaches out and touches the shark and runs his fingers over it.
Kimo appears to make a decisions and reaches for the fish knife in the canoe, and is able to lean out and start to cut at the net which is huge, no easy task. The shark is exhausted and its huge and terrible mouth gasps, revealing the ghastly rows of teeth as the boy hacks away. He makes good progress and the mass of net hangs deep into the transparent waters. But the line has formed a kind fo rope round the edge of the mouth, and to get at it there is only one way. Kimo makes another decision and leaps out of the canoe into the water
CUT TO:
EXT. SEA OFFSHORE-AM UNDERWATER- 020
WA TO MS TO WA
Through the clear water we look up at the underside of the canoe, and we see the shape of huge shark, with the cut net hanging 4 meters below it still attached in part, and we see the skinny figure of the boy in the sea alongside cutting away like mad at the remaining net that has formed a rope round the jaws of the fish. It can barely move its tail, and as it begins to sink Kimo manages to finally cut the last strands, and the heavy net falls slowly away into the black below. We watch as the great fish slowly rolls as it sinks deeper and deeper into the fathomless depths, clearly drowning and about to die into the darkness of the deep.
Meanwhile the boy kicks his feet, sticks he knife between his teeth watching, and clambers back into the canoe.
DISSOLVE TO:
EXT. SEA OFFSHORE - AM UNDERWATER 021
we zoom up so we see the surface of the sea with the outrigger, and kimo's face as he looks down at the last of the shark and finally he puts his face into the sea for a last look round
CUT TO:
EXT. SEA OFFSHORE - EARLY DUSK 022
We are back in the canoe and Kimo pulls in the last of the hooks; he has three fishes in his bucket. He is packs up, and has a breeze so rigs his little sail for home as the light drops. Kimo looks round at the sea as if expecting to see something, but finds nothing. With sail and paddle we follow the little craft towards the twinkly lights of shore, when a glisten dark shape breaks the surface alongside and is followed by the vast shape of the shark.
The boy looks round and becomes aware of the shape and is initially terrified,for the creature is twice the length of the canoe, but it moves slowly and without menace and in a while Kimo takes a more inquisitive interest, and then smiles as the huge eye locks with his...he continues to paddle home eyeing this gian companion.
Heading to shore, we see a slim figure on the beach.. it is Keira,
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EXT.SEA OFFSHORE CANOE EARLY NEXT MORNING- 023
Aboard Kimo pays out the last of his line, and settles down to wait the hours out..rigs the little canopy and lies back with his old straw hat pulled down, to rest. He settles back for a minute or two and his eyes close and he starts to doze off, when
SUDDENLY the boat rocks wildly to one side, and Kimo grabs the canoe sides and holds on for grim death as the canoe tips almost to go over. Kimo looks around half expecting to see the trawler but there is nothing but the wind and sea slap. But the line turned onto the outrigger arms is thrumming tight, and jerking madly. Kimo reaches for his fishknife and is about to cut the line but has a second thought and instead grabs the line and tries to pull it in. The line cuts his hand, so he grabs the old glove they use and with it protecting his hand he pulls the line in and the first hook breaks the surface and we see the beautiful fish caught on it.. at the same time we see that the water round the canoe begins to go mad as thousands of fish in a feedubg frenzy make the water boil madly.
Kimo sits in the circle of water boiling with the silver flashes of fish, hauling in fish after fish, his face a mixture of amazement and bewilderment. It is a turmoil of spray and the sound as if the sea is alive.
As Kimo hauls the fish in, hand over hand in he midst of all this, suddenly we see the massive shape of the Great White with its great dorsal break surface for a moment, arch then with a triumphant splash disappear below the surface.
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EXT. SEA OFFSHORE EARLY MORNING - 024
UNDERWATER WA
Through the clear blue water we see a miraculous sight which explains what is happening. The canoe is seen against the sky, while beneath it are thousands upon thousands of terrified fish forming a shoal rushing around being shepherded by our Great White, as a kind of marine sheepdog!
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EXT. SEA OFFSHORE-EARLY MORNING - INT CANOE 025

chaos in the boat; each hook as a fish on it, a rainbow of colours and sizes, the boat is filling up. Kimo's line has about 40 hooks on it, and as soon as the last one is cleared, Kimo with his hands bleeding and cut pauses,
DISSOLVE TO:
EXT. SEA OFFSHORE AM DRONE - 026
Canoe in centre of boiling sea, the shark breaks once again The canoe is full of kicking fish. We see Kimo stand and raise his arms to heaven throw back his head and scream exultantly
KIMO
(exultant arms waving)
..YEAH...
In a moment or two he drops to his knees and with bleeding fingers rebaits and drops over the line hook by hook.
CUT TO:
INT. NIGHT. FISH MARKET - 027
We are inside the fishsellers little shop with his concrete counter. The fishseller is busy laying out some fish on ice on top, behind him is a big industrial fridge which he goes to get some wonderfully coloured fish. Kimo and Kiera enter each with a bucket overflowing with fish, and a bin bag which is also filled with fish.

FISH SELLER MR GOLA
(eyeing the bucket)
...HEY Kimo! Whats this...? back again?