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260 INT -- NORTON'S OFFICE -- DAY (1966) 260
Norton is staring out the window as they approach the building.
He goes to his desk, opens a drawer. Inside lies a revolver and
a box of shells.
RED (V.O.)
Norton had no intention of goin' that quietly.
261 INT -- PRISON CORRIDORS -- DAY (1966) 261
The D.A. marches along amidst a phalanx of TROOPERS.
262 INT -- NORTON'S OFFICE -- DAY (1966) 262
Norton sits blankly at his desk, revolver before him. The doorknob
rattles, a VOICE is heard:
D.A. (O.S.)
Samuel Norton? We have a warrant for your arrest! Open up!
The POUNDING starts. Norton dumps the box of bullets out on thr
desk. He starts sorting them to see which ones he likes.
263 OUTSIDE HIS OFFICE 263
Troopers hustle the hapless duty guard to Norton's door as he
fumbles nervously with a huge key ring.
DUTY GUARD
I'm not sure which one it is...
He starts trying keys in the lock. And as the keys go sliding
in one after another...
264 INT -- NORTON'S OFFICE -- DAY (1966) 264
...so do the bullets. Norton is riveted to the door. For every
key, he loads another bullet. Methodical and grim. He gets the
final bullet in just as the right key slams home. The door bursts
open. Men muscle in. Somebody SHOUTS. Troopers dive in all directions
as Norton raises the gun --
-- and jams it under his chin. His head snaps back as the wall
goes red. His swivel chair does a slow half-turn and creaks to
a final stop. Troopers rise slowly, gazing in horror.
RED (V.O.)
I like to think the last thing that went through his head...other
than
that bullet...was to wonder how the hell Andy Dufresne ever got
the
best of him.
PUSH SLOWLY to the wall to reveal Mrs. Norton's framed sampler
trickling blood and brains...and we get our final Bible lesson
for today: "HIS JUDGMENT COMETH AND THAT RIGHT SOON."
265 EXT -- PRISON YARD -- DAY (1966) 265
Mail call. Red hears his name. They pass him a postcard.
RED (V.O.)
Not long after the warden deprived us of his company, I got a
postcard in the mail. It was blank. But the postmark said, "McNary,
Texas."
266 INT -- LIBRARY -- DAY (1966) 266
Red sits with an atlas, tracing his finger down the page.
RED (V.O.)
McNary. Right on the border. That's where Andy crossed.
(shuts the book)
When I picture him heading south in his own car with the top down,
it
makes me laugh all over again...
267 EXT -- MEXICO -- HIGHWAY -- DAY (1966) 267
A red convertible rips along with Andy at the wheel, cigar jutting
from his grin, warm wind fluttering his tie.
RED (V.O.)
Andy Dufresne, who crawled through a river of shit and came out
clean on the other side. Andy Dufresne, headed for the Pacific.
268 INT -- MESS HALL -- DAY (1966) 268
Heywood is regaling the table with some anecdote about Andy.
RED (V.O.)
Those of us who knew him best talk about him often. I swear, the
stuff he pulled. It always makes us laugh.
A wild burst of laughter. PUSH IN on Red. Feeling melancholy.
RED (V.O.)
Sometimes it makes me sad, though, Andy being gone. I have to
remind myself that some birds aren't meant to be caged, that's
all. Their feathers are just too bright...
269 EXT -- FIELDS -- LATE DAY (1966) 269
Convicts hoe the fields. Guards patrol on horseback.
RED (V.O.)
...and when they fly away, the part of you that knows it was a
sin to
lock them up does rejoice...but still, the place you live is that
much more drab and empty that they're gone.
A DISTANT RUMBLE OF THUNDER. Red pauses, gazes off. Storm clouds
coming in, backlit by the sun. A light drizzle begins.
RED (V.O.)
I guess I just miss my friend.
270 INT -- PRISON CELL -- NIGHT (1966) 270
Red is sleeping. He wakes with a start.
RED (V.O.)
But there are times I curse him for the dreams he left behind...
He senses a presence, looks over his shoulder. There's a Rita
Hayworth poster on his wall. He gets out of bed. Rita just
keeps smiling, inscrutable. As Red watches, a brilliant round
glow builds behind the poster, shining from the tunnel. The poster
rips free, charred to ash in the blink of an eye as a shaft of
holy white light stabs into the cell. Sunlight. Red staggers back
against the glare.
A whirlwind kicks up, whipping everything into the air. The hole
in the wall is like a giant vacuum cleaner -- papers, book, toiletries,
bedding -- if it ain't nailed down, it gets sucked down the hole
toward the light. Red fights it, but the suction drags him closer
and closer...
271 RED'S POV 271
...and CAMERA rockets into the hole, getting sucked down an endless
tunnel at impossible speed, the ROAR of air mixing with his drawn-out
SCREAM, closer and closer to the light...
...and erupting out the other side into total silence and a beautiful
white beach. The Pacific Ocean before us. Enormous. Mind-blowing.
Beautiful beyond description. All we hear now are the gentle sound
of waves.
RED (V.O.)
...dreams where I am lost in a warm place with no memory.
A lone figure stands at water's edge. CAMERA KEEPS MOVING,
coming up behind him and TRACKING AROUND to reveal -- Red.
RED (V.O.)
An ocean so big it strikes me dumb. Waves so quiet they strike
me deaf. Sunshine so bright it strikes me blind. It is a place
that is blue
beyond reason. Bluer than can possibly exist. Bluer than my mind
can possibly grasp.
272 AERIAL SHOT 272
Nothing for a million miles but beach, sky, and water. Red is
a tiny speck at water's edge. Just another grain of sand.
RED (V.O.)
I am terrified. There is no way home.
273 INT -- RED'S CELL -- NIGHT (1966) 273
Red wakes from the nightmare. He gets out of bed. Moves to the
barred window of his cell. Peers up at the stars.
RED (V.O.)
Andy. I know you're in that place. Look at the stars for me just
after
sunset. Touch the sand...wade in the water...and feel free.
FADE TO BLACK
274 AN IRON-BARRED DOOR 274
slides open with an enormous CLANG. A stark room beyond.
CAMERA PUSHES through. SIX MEN AND ONE WOMAN sit at a long table.
An empty chair faces them. We are again in:
INT -- SHAWSHANK HEARINGS ROOM -- DAY (1967)
Red enters, sits. 20 years older than when we first saw him.
MAN #1
Your file says you've served forty years of a life sentence. You
feel
you've been rehabilitated?
Red doesn't answer. Just stares off. Seconds tick by. The parole
board exchanges glances. Somebody clears his throat.
MAN #1
Shall I repeat the question?
RED
I heard you. Rehabilitated. Let's see now. You know, come to think
of it, I have no idea what that means.
MAN #2
Well, it means you're ready to rejoin society as a--
RED
I know what you think it means. Me, I think it's a made-up word,
a politician's word. A word so young fellas like you can wear
a suit and tie and have a job. What do you really want to know?
Am I sorry for what I did?
- -----
MAN g2
Well...are you?
RED
Not a day goes by I don't feel regret, and not because I'm in
here or because you think I should. I look back on myself the
way I was...stupid kid who did that terrible crime...wish I could
talk sense to him. Tell him how things are. But I can't. That
kid's long gone, this old man is all that's left, and I have to
live with that.
(beat)
"Rehabilitated?" That's a bullshit word, so you just
go on ahead and
stamp that form there, sonny, and stop wasting my damn time. Truth
is, I don't give a shit.
The parole board just stares. Red sits drumming his fingers.
CLOSEUP -- PAROLE FORM
A big rubber stamp SLAMS down -- and lifts away to reveal the
word "APPROVED" in red ink.
275 EXT -- SHAWSHANK PRISON -- DAY 275
TWO SHORT SIREN BLASTS herald the opening of the main gate. It
swings hugely open, revealing Red standing in his cheap suit,
carrying a cheap bag, wearing a cheap hat. He walks out, still
looking stunned.
276 INT -- BUS -- DAY 276
Red rides the bus, clutching the seat before him, gripped by
terror of speed and motion.
277 EXT -- BREWSTER HOTEL -- LATE AFTERNOON 277
Red arrives at the Brewster, three stories high and even less
to look at than it used to be.
27B INT -- BREWSTER -- LATE DAY 278
A BLACK WOMAN leads Red up the stairs toward the top floor.
279 INT -- RED'S ROOM -- LATE DAY 279
Small, old, dingy. An arched window with a view of Congress Street.
Traffic noise floats up. Red enters and pauses, staring up at
the ceiling beam. Carved into the wood are the words: "Brooks
Hatlen was here."
280 INT -- FOODWAY MARKET -- DAY 280
Loud. Jangling with PEOPLE and NOISE. We find Red bagging
groceries. Registers are humming, kids are shrieking. Red calls
to the STORE MANAGER:
RED
Sir? Restroom break sir?
MANAGER
(motions him over)
You don't need to ask me every time you go take a piss. Just go.
Understand?
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