Tempus Fugit Screenplay

Tempus Fugit

By James Cowen

“your clock is ticking”

Characters:

Robert Crane – Mike Hartley

Dr. Pinchello – Mario Pisano

Joseph Crane – James Cowen

Ben Gordon – Matt Deacon

Moonpie Logo

As the Moonpie Logo fades we hear some tick tocking of a clock. It is cut out by the noise of Pornography by The Cure as the backward voices fade in. We get about 2 minutes of the opening music. During this the screen is a grey smoky foggy mess. The credits blur in and blur out. There are also some clock graphics fading in and out.

FADE IN:

In stark black and white there are various shots of analogue clocks ticking loudly.

Voice over

Tick Tock, Tick Tock

We cut to a shot of some tired and pale looking eyes with deep black bags underneath.

Voice Over

Time moves quickly when you’re not looking.

The eyes blink and as they do we cut to various shots of train, traffic, commuters speeded up. General life zooming past in a couple of seconds. We cut back to the eyes opening, back to silence apart from the tick tock of the clocks. We see a shot from behind of Crane watching the clock. A close up of the mouth saying those words.

Voice Over

Stop watching the clock and the noiseless foot of time will pass you by.

A wider shot now of Crane staring at the clock. His face is blank, the camera cuts to various angles of the same shot.

Voice Over

My name is Robert Crane, I have been alive for 30 years 3 months and 6 days. I have a debilitating affliction that stops me living a normal life. I’m scared of time and fear it passing. I find it impossible to appreciate the present for the fear it must come to an end. This condition is not unique, many people suffer a similar if much milder form of the same affliction. For example, you may find it impossible to appreciate Sunday with the burden of the knowledge that it is followed by Monday. I find it impossible to enjoy life knowing that whatever I do it will end some day. (maybe a fading low opacity shot of a gravestone fades into his face as he says this)

The picture fades into a kitchen scene with the voice over still going. Two men are listening to a tape recorder. One is drinking a coffee while the other appears to be taking notes. They are listening to a tape of the voice over.

Joseph Crane

Before all of this he was pretty normal, he had a good job which paid for this house, a girlfriend who he was engaged to. But when our parents died, both within a matter of months of each other, he changed. He became obsessed with mortality and time.

Gordon

What happened to the girl?

Joseph Crane

She left him. She came home one day to find the television and most of the household appliances smashed into bits in the front garden. He claimed they were stealing time.

Inspector gordon clicks the tape recorder back on and we cut back to crane’s house. Here the voice over is interspersed with visuals.

Voice Over

Einstein said that time moves at different rates for different people. ( a shot of Einstein pops up) For the relics of society in the decline of their lives on the slow march to the grave, time will crawl.

We see an old person from several angles sitting in a chair looking miserable, staring into space through a window reflecting on the life they don’t have anymore.

Voice Over

For the young and full of energy time will accelerate as they find more and more ways to fill it.

We see some children playing firing toy guns at each other, city suits walking to work, a woman laughing on the phone, kids playing video games.

I spend my day doing all I can to draw out time, keeping it running as slowly as I can. Have you ever watched an egg boil? Notice how long it takes?

We cut back to the kitchen again. Gordon turns off the tape, he looks interested but frustrated that this is not anything to do with his investigation.

Gordon

Mr Crane, this is interesting stuff but I’ve been hired to investigate the disappearance of Marcus Pinchello.

Joseph

Yeah, I’m coming to that. I have a feeling that my brother has something to do with it. Marcus Pinchello is a friend of mine, I asked him to talk to Rob and see if he could help or at least give me an idea of what was happening to him. If we play the tape some more it will become clearer.

He clicks the tape back on.

We see a shot of Crane up really late watching a clock that says 4.21am on it. He is wrapped in blankets and has a wooly hat on. He is watching it and slowly nodding off. The clock is a flip clock, there is a shot of it tripping to 4.22 in slow motion with a loud crash as it does so.

Voice Over

I don’t like sleeping. I go to bed at 5am and get up at 6. While I’m asleep I have no control over the passing of time. I HAVE to stay awake.

voice over

Each day is spent working out ways of slowing the passage of time. I have five basic methods of doing this.

Number one. Diet. It is important to watch my diet as failure to eat will make time slow down. I will eat very little and what I do has to taste bad. I usually eat a paste of basic sustenance in the morning and that will be all. When I need to drink I will watch the kettle boil and make a cup of weak tea. I will watch the tea go cold before drinking it.

Number two. Heat. Heat slows time so I make sure my central heating is on full and the house is as hot as it can be. I also wrap myself in several layers to insulate my body keeping the temperature as high as I can.

Number Three. Pain. Time will appear to go slow while experiencing pain. For this I will tend to expose my body to extreme temperatures. I may put a hand in a bucket of ice and leave it there or in a bowl of hot water. Extreme cold is preferable as it leaves less damage and I don’t pass out. Passing out is bad. I refer you back to the issue of sleep.

Number Four. Lack of stimulation. I have destroyed anything in the house that may give me pleasure or stimulate me. Enjoying yourself clouds your perception of time. I will watch the clock or watch the kettle boil or even watch the grass grow.

Number Five. Marijuana. This wonderful drug when smoked will create strong time distortion effects. Minutes can last hours. However, it can conflict with my diet as Marijuana gives you an insatiable appetite. I grow my own, this way I can smoke and also spend days just watching it growing.

During this dialogue we have lots of cut-aways of what is going on. Turning up central heating, putting on layers, putting hands in buckets,sitting staring at a clock or the kettle etc. Fade back to kitchen.

Gordon

That’s how he spends all his time? Working out ways to slow it down? That’s ridiculous. How long has he been like this?

Joseph

It’s been just over 3 years. He never goes out and he won’t see anyone. He’s got no phone and even if he did I imagine he wouldn’t answer it. The only way I can get contact is to go round there. He’s never let me inside though. He says that I’m killing him as I was speeding his time up. I didn’t know what to do. That’s why I called Marcus.

Quick cutaway of joseph banging on the door and shouting through the letterbox. No sound in thus cutaway.

gordon

So Pinchello was treating him?

joseph

Yeah, kind of. It was off the record, he was doing it as a favour to me.

We see a short man in glasses walk up to a house. He rings the doorbell twice, he bangs on it. He looks up at the windows. He puts his mouth to the letterbox.

dr. pinchello

Hello, Mr. Crane? My name is Dr Pinchello. I’m a friend of Joseph’s. He asked me to pop round and see you. He’s worried about you. I promise I won’t take much of your time.

The door opens. Crane is standing there dressed in lots of layers.

crane

I haven’t got any time to give. Please go away and tell my brother not to worry about me.

pinchello

Please, let me come in, I think I could help you.

Crane

Nobody can help me.

Crane shuts the door and Pinchello sighs and walks off. As he shuts the door we see a quick cutting montage of locks being applied in an homage to Darren Aranofsky. We cut back to the kitchen.

gordon

What happened next?

joseph

Marcus specialised in hypnotherapy and thought he could convince Rob that he could actually help him achieve his goal.

gordon

Which was?

joseph

To stop time!

We see Pinchello again approaching the door. He knocks again and then shouts through the letterbox.

Pinchello

Mr Crane, Robert. Its Dr Pinchello again. I’m interested to hear about your theories on time.

Nothing happens, he waits.

Mr Crane, I have some of my own you may be interested in.

He waits. Suddenly the door opens. Crane says nothing as if waiting for him to tell him.

pinchello

Can I come in?

crane

What are they?

Crane keeps checking his watch.

pinchello

I use hypnosis.

Crane

How?

Cranes responses are quick and demanding.

pinchello

Okay, well, dream researchers have found that one minute of a dream can seem to last more than an hour. So some experiments were conducted where subjects were hypnotised and given mental tasks to complete. These tasks would take an hour but those hypnotised did it in 10 seconds as under hypnosis they had a lot more time.

Crane looks interested. He opens the door wide and Pinchello walks in. Crane stands as Pinchello sits down.

Crane

How does it work? You’ve got one minute.

Crane starts an old fashioned stop watch that he pulls from his pocket.

Pinchello

It was developed as a way of accelerated learning. Subjects could be hypnotised and taught under distorted time. Learning through time distortion is harnessing the subconscious through conscious direction.

Crane is looking at Pinchello suspiciously and also glancing at the clock.

Research showed that people could learn complex things in seconds. There was a case of a concert violinist who was put into a hypnotic trance and through time distortion practiced her finger movements. She was able to mentally practice long pieces over and over in very brief "world" time periods. When awakened the subject had experienced intricate and accurate detail in their inner perception that seemed to them to last for hours.

The stopwatch clicks to zero but Crane hasn’t noticed. He is thinking about it.

Crane

You have to let me try it.

Pinchello

That’s why I’m here.

Pinchello goes to his bag and pulls out a metronome.

Pinchello

I need you to sit down and relax.

Crane sits and watches Pinchello place the metronome in front of him.

Pinchello

I’m going to start this metronome at 60 beats per second. I want you to listen to it carefully and notice that the time it takes for each beat will get longer.

Pinchello starts the metronome.

Crane

Why are you doing this?

pinchello

Your brother wanted me to help you so I’m doing what he wanted.

crane

What’s he paying you?

pinchello

He’s not. Trust me, you will be very interested in what I’ve got to show you. What have you got to lose?

crane

Time.

pinchello

After this you won’t worry about losing time ever again.

Crane can’t help but be curious, he looks at the clicking metronome and after a short pause says...

Crane

Okay. Let’s try it.

Crane watches the metronome intently. The camera focuses on the metronome, cutting to different angles as the gentle beat goes on. We cut to Crane and then to Pinchello. Pinchello then says the following sentences in a soothing voice. We cut between him, Crane and the metronome which slowly slows down.

Pinchello

You are feeling good, you are feeling wonderful. The beats are slowing now, slower and slower. The time between each beat is longer and longer. You are relaxed and have lots of time. Time is only relative to what you want it to be. There is lots of time. Time is slowing down. You feel relaxed and at peace with yourself.

Crane is watching the metronome slow down. The metronome beats deeply as it ticks past the center. As it nearly stops some revelatory music comes on and Cranes face is one of wonder and happiness. We hear Pinchello’s voice slowly fade in counting down from ten. It gets louder and as it he says ‘one’ we are rushed back to the real world. Crane looks annoyed he’s been pulled out but can’t help thinking how amazing it was.

Crane

Put me back under.

Pinchello looks at him and shakes his head.

crane

No? Why?

Pinchello

Well, there’s a catch. I’ll put you under again but you have to do something for me.

crane

What? If it’s money I’ve got money. How much?

pinchello

I’m not doing this for money. I’m doing this to help you.

crane

Then what do you want?

pinchello

I want you to come outside.

Crane gives a slight knowing smile and scoffs.

crane

Outside… why?

Pinchello

As I said, I want to help you.

Crane

I can’t do that. I don’t go outside.

Pinchello

Why?

Crane

Time runs faster outside.

pinchello

Yes you’re right, time does run faster out there. Often too fast. However, anything you lose I could make up for you.

crane

You can’t make up time.

pinchello

Well, I’m afraid I can’t do anything more for you then.

Pinchello picks up his metronome. Crane grabs his wrist firmly stopping him.

Crane

What are you doing?

Pinchello

Leaving.

crane

You have to put me back under

pinchello

You know the deal.

crane

I demand you put me under

Crane is getting slightly aggressive.

Pinchello

Come out with me this afternoon and I’ll put you under for a day. It will make it seem like weeks.

Crane relaxes his grip, he is seriously thinking about it as it would be amazing to turn a day into weeks.

Pinchello

We can go anywhere you want as long as it’s outside, there are people and it’s more than a couple of miles away. They’re my rules.

Cut to various shots of Greenwich, maybe some taken from a fly by of a boat. All the famous landmarks are present, the cutty sark, the observatory, pubs, the tunnel entrance, view across the river and that other little boat. We see them leave the DLR station. Pinchello is holding a guide book and looking around. Crane is standing with his hands in his pockets looking bored and worried. He looks at his watch. He suddenly walks off. Pinchello doesn’t see him go. He looks around a bit and then walks off after him. When he catches up Crane is staring into a clock shop at the clocks. Pinchello has to drag him away. We see a shot of the two of them walking up to the observatory. They stop at a railing fence with the observatory above them.

Crane

This was a bad idea, we have to go back.

Pinchello

We’ll take a look at the observatory and then we’ll go back.

As they approach the observatory they walk towards a man with his back turned. He is looking out over East London and Greenwhich park. He turns around.

Joseph

Hello Rob

Crane says nothing and looks at him. He turns to Pinchello

Crane

We have to go back now.

Joseph

Please Rob, will you just talk to me for a minute, I’m worried about you.

Crane

I’m fine. (to Pinchello) Let’s go.

Joseph

You’re not fine. You never answer your door or come out, you don’t eat properly, you look awful.

Crane

I’d rather you stayed away from me. I’m fine, what I do is none of your business.

joseph

You’re ill Rob, you have to realise that if you want to get out of this mess. We can’t help you unless you admit you’ve got a problem.

crane

As I said I’d rather you stayed away. The only problems I have are the people who think they can tell me what I do and don’t need.

joseph

We just want you to get better.

Crane

We all want to get better. (to Pinchello) I’m going back.

joseph

Please…..Rob…..please.

Crane stops and turns around.

Crane

Joe, don’t think I don’t care about you. I do, I just don’t have the time. But if you cared about me you’d leave me alone.

Crane then walks off. Pinchello shrugs.

Pinchello

I’ll be in touch.

Pinchello then turns and follows. The camera waits on Joseph watching them walk away.

We cut to a swift montage of Crane going under again. The metronome ticks, we see Pinchello mouthing words, we see Cranes eyes and suddenly everything stops, music as well. Fade to black.

We cut back to the kitchen.

Gordon

So he wouldn’t even talk to you?

joseph

No, In fact that meeting in Greenwich was the last time I saw Rob before we found him (beat) you know, as we found him.

gordon

What about Pinchello?

Joseph

I only saw him one more time. We had lunch to discuss his progress.

Fade to a scene in a coffee shop or other location, maybe outside. Pinchello and Joseph are talking.

Pinchello

I’m worried.

joseph

Why? I thought he had been making progress.

pinchello

He has to an extent. We’ve been outside lots of times and he has become more and more relaxed. Problem is, on the last outing he had a relapse.

joseph

Relapse? Why, what happened? Did he refuse to go?

pinchello

No, it was something a little more unexpected.

As he says the words we fade into a park scene.

We see Pinchello and Crane walking through the park. Crane is slightly different. He looks less intense and calmer than usual. He is looking around at some of the nature. They stop at a fence. Through the fence we some animals. Crane is watching them.

Pinchello

What do you think?

Crane

They’re beautiful.

Pinchello

They are. The world is full of beautiful things. You’re missing all of this.

Crane says nothing, he stares at the animals and looks slightly happy. Pinchello urges him to move off and looks pleased that the therapy is working. There are various shots of them looking at stuff in the park. After a few shots of them strolling and looking at stuff a man approaches and asks the time. Crane realises and looks at his watch. He’s horrified.

Crane

Oh, my god, the time. I wasn’t watching.

Crane is really distressed he panics and runs. Pinchello looks disappointed as he and the man watch Crane run into the distance. The man asking for the time looks a bit confused and worried.

Man asking time

Was it something I said?

Pinchello looks at him.

We cut back to the café scene.

Pinchello

He just ran off. I couldn’t catch up with him. I found him back at the house. He wouldn’t let me in but I could see him through one of the windows. It looked like he was wrapped in polythene with his hand stuck in a bucket.

We see a quick cut-away of a voyeuristic shot of what he has described.

Pinchello

I’ve left him alone for a couple of days. I’ll go and see him tomorrow.

We fade from a shot of Joseph and Pinchello to a shot of Joseph and Gordon juxtaposed in a similar position.

Joseph

That was the last time I saw him.

Gordon

What makes you think your brother is the reason behind his disappearance?

joseph

The tape we are listening to was found with my brother. It’s a diary (beat) of sorts.

Joseph looks at Gordon as he clicks the tape recorder back on. We start to hear Cranes narration. Jospeh looks at Gordon while the narration goes on and fades into a shot of Pinchello walking along the street up to the house.

Cranes Voiceover

Pinchello has betrayed me. He has stolen something that can’t be replaced. His hypnosis however is the key to what I’m looking for. I have to go under and not return.

We see Pinchello at the door of the house. He knocks

Pinchello

Robert, are you in?

The door opens immediately. Crane is looking slightly cheerful for once.

Crane

Come in Marcus, I’m sorry about the other day, I guess I just panicked.

pinchello

That’s alright, I’m just glad to see you’re okay.

Pinchello doesn’t notice his strangely upbeat manner. He walks in.

Crane

Cup of coffee?

Pinchello looks surprised at the gesture

Pinchello

Erm, yes, thankyou

Crane fills up the kettle. He turns as he is doing it.

Crane

I think we’re making real progress Marcus.

Crane gives him the coffee. Pinchello takes a sip, he seems to notice an odd taste and savours the taste.

Pinchello

I think you’ve come a long way in quite a short time.

Pinchello looks like something is wrong, he squints and rubs his eyes under his glasses. He puts the coffee down.

Pinchello

I don’t feel too good.

We cut to see Crane coldly watching. We cut back to Pinchello as he tries to get to his feet. He looks at Crane as if he knows and then crashes down, the camera clouds to black as he goes down.

We fade back in slowly on Pinchello’s face. He is slightly cut. We track out and see he is gagged and tied to a chair. We cut again to see Crane sitting in front of him. He has set up the metronome and is sitting waiting to be hypnotised. There is a large knife on the table. Crane speaks slowly and clearly.

Crane

Marcus, I’m going to take your gag off and then you have to hypnotise me. If you don’t I’m going to kill you.

Pinchello looks scared

Crane

If you shout or scream I’ll stab you in the heart. I’m taking the gag off now.

Crane removes the gag. Pinchello breathes heavily.

Pinchello

Why are you doing this?

crane

I have to. You’ll never understand.

pinchello

I just wanted to help you.

crane

You have. Now you have to hypnotise me.

pinchello

I can’t.

crane

Do it or I’ll stab you here and now.

pinchello

Okay okay.

Crane starts the metronome sits down and watches it.

Pinchello

You are feeling good. The beats are slowing now.

Pinchello is struggling and finding it hard to get the words out.

Pinchello

The time between each beat is longer and longer. You are relaxed and have lots of time. Time is only relative to what you want it to be. There is lots of time. Time is slowing down.

We cut to Cranes face and then the metronome. The beats aren’t slowing. It’s not working

Crane

It’s not working.

Pinchello

I’m sorry, I can’t do it like this.

Crane gets up in a rage and grabs the rope around his neck.

Crane

Do it Pinchello or I’m going to cut off your face.

Pinchello is being strangled. Crane is angry and is snarling.

Crane

You’re doing it on purpose. Put me under and don’t bring me back. I don’t want to hurt you but I will to get what I want.

All the time Crane is pulling on the rope around his neck. Pinchello struggles and suddenly his head falls forward. Crane walks away and sits back in his seat. Pinchello just sits there head lolling forward. Seconds past until Crane realises. His face drops and he realises that he’s killed someone. Cut to the metronome clicking. Cut back to a shot of Crane with his hands on his head looking panicked. Cut to a shot of Crane dragging a bag out of the door. We just see Pinchellos shoes being dragged across the floor.

We then see a montage of Crane preparing an experiment. He puts out a bucket of ice, sets up the metronome, rolls a joint, jacks up the central heating, wraps his chest in polythene and then puts on a coat and hat. He then sets down a tape recorder. He starts the tape. Its his voice going through what Pinchello had said.

Cranes voiceover

As the tape plays and he sits there watching the metronome time slows, its working. We see similar montage sequences as the first time he goes under. Time slows and finally with a deep booming click of the metronome and a shot of the clock ticking it stops. We then cut away to various shots of Crane sitting there catanonic as some music kicks, he has a slight smile.

Caption: Three Weeks Later

We see Joseph and some others breaking into the house. They walk into the room to see Crane still catatonic. We see them shine a light in his eyes and try to talk to him. They pick up the tape player next to him. Joseph is just standing looking utterly devastated while the others check him over. We cut to Cranes face again looking oddly happy then fade to a similar shot of him looking the same, this time his head is shaved and as we pan out a bit we see he is sitting in the corner of a hospital bed. He is staring into space.

We then fade back to Joseph and Gordon.

Joseph

Nobody knows what he did with Marcus, I suppose we’ll never know.

Gordon

We’ll find him.

Gordon takes the tape from the machine and gets up. He shakes Josephs hand.

Gordon

I’m very sorry about your brother. I’ll be in touch.

Joseph nods and acknowledges him. We then see Gordon leave the house and drive off (a high camera aerial shot). We cut back to a shot of Joseph Crane framed in the doorway looking empty as the camera moves away while haunting music is played over the top.

Fade to black.

Cranes Voiceover

But all the clocks in the city began to whirr and chime: ‘o let not time deceive you, you cannot conguer time.’

The End