A Level of Stupid

by
Glenn Orgias

Copyright Glenn Orgias 2016

glenn_orgias@hotmail.com
FADE IN:

EXT. MOTEL - DUSK

A single story motel with four police vehicles

haphazardly parked in the nearly empty courtyard.

CLOSE-UP: a dead police officer lying on bitumen.

TITLE CARD:
HIDALGO COUNTY, TEXAS
30 MILES FROM MEXICO

INT. MOTEL – DUSK

A basic motel room with two single beds, broken glass on

the carpet, a large, empty window frame, and translucent
curtains blowing in and out of the frame.

We hear raspy breathing.

A tough, hipster, JAWBONE, sits near the window with his

back against a wall and his legs stretched out in front.
His feet are bare and bloody and he wears blue jeans and
a button-down work shirt. He is bearded & very hairy; his
hair is perfect though – he will never go bald. Near him
is a partly open sports bag full of cash.

JAWBONE loads bullets into the clip of a strapless H&K

MACHINEPISTOL.

We hear a WOMAN’S VOICE, OFF SCREEN;

THE WOMAN (OS)

You know what? Fuck you.

JAWBONE
Oh. Nice. That’s adult.

THE WOMAN (OS)

Fuck. You.

JAWBONE
You abusing me and cursin’ me. It’s
interesting...seems like when you do
it...you think it’s okay!

The WOMAN crawls out from her hiding spot between the
single beds. Her face is livid. This is HIGH SCHOOL
MAISY, she is skinny in the most sensational way, and she
wears a gown that is either a blackened wedding dress or
a costume from a theatre; her eyes are blacked with make-
up, like a panda; she sweats freely.

MAISY
(smiling)
Good idea. Come to Texas, shoot a
cop!

A CLOSE-UP of JAWBONE’S bearded lips as he curses under

his breath.

CUT TO

Looking OUT the window, we see a blood covered blonde

female, in a grey Hidalgo County Constable’s Uniform,
attempting to crawl away from the scene.

BACK INSIDE

MAISY
It was because she was a woman,
wasn’t it? And she dared question you
about your car-

CUT TO

OUTSIDE; a spectacularly presented 1975 Plymouth Duster;

black with chrome trim.

INSIDE

JAWBONE
It had nothing to do with her bein’ a
woman. She was a cop.

MAISY
A traffic cop!

JAWBONE
She knew my name.

MAISY
Well, you’re a scofflaw! You didn’t
consider maybe payin’ some traffic
fines before you dragged us back
here.

JAWBONE
She knew who I was. She asked me. Am
I...George...Bone.
 MAISY
(yelling)
So you shot her! You didn’t think
about just sayin’ no?

JAWBONE
(yelling)
Wouldna’ matter what I done-
(beat)
Nothin’s ever good enough.

While they continue arguing, we see someone’s SHADOW,

their head and shoulders, appear against a wall.

JAWBONE (CONT’D)
Nothin’ ever suits you-

Jawbone clocks the SHADOW, and spins onto his knees and
opens FIRE out the window.

The SHADOW disappears...THEN...it is all quiet,

except...OFF SCREEN an INFANT CHILD begins to wail.

GUNFIRE interrupts.

Maisy and Jawbone flatten to the carpet. Bullets strafe

the room. The curtains are torn to shreds.

When the SOUND of GUNFIRE stops, there is, again, only

the sound of the INFANT wailing.

MAISY
Jesus Christ! The level of stupid
you’ve just got to Jaw, it’s absolute
genius! What the fuck is wrong with
you?

JAWBONE is not listening, he has turned and is facing the

window.

MAISY crawls back between the beds at the same time as we

see a red sniper beam roaming over the walls.

A MONTAGE: Maisy hunched over a bundled child; the

flashing lights of the posse outside making the walls
blue, making the carpet blue; JAWBONE crouching below the
window; hands on a MACHINEPISTOL.

MAISY (OS)
Oh Jaw, they hurt him.
 JAWBONE
(concerned)
What? He’s bleedin’?

MAISY (OS)
No, but they gonna hurt him ain’t
they? We got to stop shooting and get
out of here.

JAWBONE
(unconcerned)
Oh. She wants to leave. That’s
brilliant.

Jawbone looks over his shoulder from the window sill and
moves his feet out of the path of the SNIPER BEAM.

MAISY (OS)
Jaw?

JAWBONE
(turned away)
What?

MAISY (OS)
Them cops don’t know who we are.

JAWBONE
(contemptuously)
What?

MAISY (OS)
They don’t know we’re together, so
you take me hostage, and we walk out-

JAWBONE
They got snipers.

MAISY (OS)
Well, what if I take you hostage
then, put a bag over your head, and I
walk you out-

JAWBONE
(still turned away,
mumbling)
Ain’ no one on EARTH gonna believe
you taking a hostage.
 MAISY (OS)
You goddamn chauvinist, peckerwood-

JAWBONE lifts the pistol and fires a whole clip at the

posse. It is hellishly noisy. When he’s finished it’s
quiet.

MAISY (OS)
(yelling)
Stop! Shooting!

The INFANT wails.

JAWBONE removes the MACHINEPISTOL CLIP and slaps in a new

one.

Then...
...there is a return barrage of gunfire. A shitstorm
engages itself inside the room like a fireworks
hurricane; it strips paint, lifts the bed sheets, smashes
the TV, snaps the hinges off the bathroom door and breaks
the door in two...blades from the ceiling fan fly off and
wedge themselves into the walls, wobbling like thrown
knives.

CLOSE-UP: MAISY’S forehead on the carpet. Maisy

screaming. But we can’t hear her over the GUNFIRE.

The soundtrack suddenly cuts out, and it’s silent.

In slow motion JAWBONE gets up, machinepistol in hand.

CLOSE-UP: the MACHINEPISTOL spitting fire, recoiling.

JAWBONE is standing near the window shooting when he is

hit. Blood explodes from his thigh. The soundtrack cuts
back in, and we hear GUNFIRE and JAWBONE’s scream.

JAWBONE collapses. BLOOD gushes between his fingers. He’s

panicky as he ejects the MACHINEPISTOL clip and takes a
new clip from his pocket. Then...

...Bam. Bam. JAWBONE is shot twice in the chest.

MAISY
is lying on the floor pointing a nickelplated .45
automatic at Jawbone. A curl of smoke rises from the
barrel. She lowers the hammer, her eyes brimming.

The GUNFIRE stops.

The INFANT wails.

MAISY
(crying)
Oh baby.

JAWBONE coughs blood, the MACHINEPISTOL slips from his

grasp.

MAISY drops the gun and crawls over to Jawbone, cradles

his head in her lap.

MAISY
You okay?

Jawbone coughs blood all over himself. He looks at her

quizzically, but lovingly.

MAISY
You done real good Jaw.
(beat)
We made us the best little baby in
the whole wide world, didn’t we?
(whispering)
You the best baby daddy a little boy
done ever had. You’ve taken good care
of us.
(stroking his hair)
Not a hair out of place on you, is
there? Not a hair, baby.

Jawbone nods slightly, confused; he ties to say something

about his son whom now is quiet...but Maisy lays Jawbone
down.

MAISY
(yelling to the cops)
There’s a child in here, you sons-of-
bitches!

MAISY crawls to the infant and quickly wraps him.

MAISY
S’okay little boy. S’okay baby. Mummy
won’t let no one hurt you.

She’s holding the child as she kicks open the splintered

FRONT DOOR and throws the MACHINE PISTOL out the door; it
clatters on the courtyard.

MAISY
 Don’t shoot! I’m commin’ out with the
baby.

JAWBONE’s eyes slide across his face.

MAISY stands in the doorframe, and in a CLOSE-UP we see

the NICKELPLATED .45 tucked into the waistband of her
gown.

Maisy exits and is silhouetted in bright spotlights. She

looks like an angel. We see her trip over the now DEAD
CONSTABLE and fall in a heap...THEN...she stands up,
consoling the infant.

The MOTEL ROOM

is in total disarray.

JAWBONE
coughs one last time, and then his face slackens.

From OUTSIDE
we hear the INFANT’s plaintive cry.

CUT