Into the Woods
ONE MOMENT, MY DEAR–
MOTHER SAID, / “COME WHAT MAY, / FOLLOW
THE PATH / AND NEVER STRAY.”
JUST SO, LITTLE GIRL– / ANY PATH. /
SO MANY WORTH EXPLORING. / JUST ONE
WOULD BE SO BORING. / AND LOOK WHAT
YOU’RE IGNORING…
He ushers LRRH off the path to a lush meadow blanketed with exquisite purple flowers and wild berries.
WOLF (CONT’D) (working himself up)
THINK OF THOSE CRISP, / AGING BONES, /
THEN SOMETHING FRESH ON THE PALATE. /
THINK OF THAT SCRUMPTIOUS CARNALITY /
TWICE IN ONE DAY… / THERE’S NO
POSSIBLE WAY / TO DESCRIBE WHAT YOU
FEEL / WHEN YOU’RE TALKING TO YOUR
MEAL!
The WOLF picks a flower and hands it to LRRH.
WOLF (CONT’D) For Granny.
MOTHER SAID / NOT TO STRAY. / STILL, I
SUPPOSE, / A SMALL DELAY– / GRANNY
MIGHT LIKE / A FRESH BOUQUET… /
Goodbye, Mr. Wolf.
WOLF Goodbye, little girl./ AND HELLO… The WOLF climbs to the top of a precipice where he is silhouetted by the red hot sun. He lets out a mighty howl.
EXT. WOODS – FLOWERED PATH – DAY – CONTINUOUS
LRRH goes about her business picking flowers further from her path. ANGLE ON THE BAKER who has been observing LRRH from a distance. Like a bat, the WITCH swings upside down from a tree above the BAKER:
WITCH Why are you standing there?! Go get the cape!
BAKER You frightened me! The WITCH swings to the ground.
WITCH Get it! Get it! Get it!
BAKER How am I supposed to get it?
WITCH You go up to the little thing, and you take it.
BAKER I can’t just take a cloak from a little girl. Why don’t you take it!
WITCH It’s the rules. Why do you think I asked you in the first place? I’m not allowed to touch any of the objects! We suddenly hear the lilting sound of a young voice singing in the distance. The WITCH, almost intoxicated by her sound, swoons with delight. Then:
(YELLING) Get me what I need! Get me what I need! She wraps the cape about herself and disappears in such a strong blast of wind that it knocks the BAKER to the ground.
BAKER This is ridiculous! ANOTHER ANGLE. LRRH is picking flowers off the path, blithely unaware of anything else. The BAKER gets up and hurries over to her.
BAKER (CONT’D) Hello there little girl.
LRRH Hello, Mr. Baker.
BAKER Have you saved some of those sweets for Granny?
LRRH I ate all the sweets and half the loaf of bread.
BAKER So I see! Now tell me…where did you get that beautiful cape?
LRRH My Granny made it for me.
BAKER Is that right? I would love a red cape like that.
(GIGGLING) You’d look pretty foolish.
BAKER May I take a look at it? He quickly unties it.
LRRH No!
He pulls it off her back, she grabs the other side.
BAKER I need it badly.
LRRH Please — give it back! They have a tug of war. The BAKER pulls free and runs off with the cape. LRRH stands there momentarily stunned, then lets out a loud scream. ANGLE ON THE BAKER. He stops cold, realizing what he’s done, then runs back to LRRH and places the cape around her shoulders.
BAKER I’m sorry. I just wanted to make sure that you really loved this cape. Now off you go to Granny’s — and be careful that no wolf comes your way.
LRRH I would rather a wolf than you any day. LRRH stamps on his foot. The BAKER hops on his good foot.
(DISTRAUGHT) This is hopeless. I’ll never get that red cape or find a golden cow and a yellow slipper — or was it a golden slipper and a yellow cow?
THE COW AS WHITE AS MILK, / THE CAPE AS
RED AS BLOOD, / THE HAIR AS YELLOW AS
CORN, / THE SLIPPER AS PURE AS–
He stops in his tracks.
BAKER What are you doing here? The WIFE steps out from behind a thicket.
WIFE You forgot your scarf.
BAKER You shouldn’t be here. It’s not safe in these woods!
WIFE I want to help. She goes to tie the WOOL SCARF around his neck but he pulls away.
BAKER No! THE SPELL IS ON MY HOUSE–
ONLY I CAN LIFT THE SPELL, / WE MUST LIFT THE SPELL
THE SPELL IS ON MY HOUSE–! / TOGETHER! / THE SPELL IS ON–
THE SPELL IS ON–
The two stop cold when they notice JACK and his COW coming down the path towards them.
(MURMURED) A cow as white as … They look at each other.
BOTH … milk. The WIFE pushes the BAKER in JACK’S direction, then follows.
BAKER Hello there, young lad.
JACK Hello, sir.
BAKER What might you be doing with a cow in the middle of the forest?
JACK I was heading toward market — but I seem to have lost my way.
(COACHING BAKER) What are you planning to do there?
BAKER And what are you planning to do there?
JACK Sell my cow, sir. No less than five pounds.
BAKER Five pounds!
(TO WIFE) Where are we to get five pounds? The WIFE moves forward to JACK as the BAKER goes through the pockets of his hunting jacket looking for money.
WIFE She must be generous of milk to fetch five pounds?
(HESITANTLY) Yes, ma’am.
WIFE And if you can’t fetch that sum? Then what are you to do?
JACK I hadn’t thought of that…
(TO WIFE) This is all we have… She inspects his hand, which holds a few coins and the six magic beans.
WIFE (loudly, for the benefit of the boy) Beans? We mustn’t give up our beans! Well, if you feel we must…
BAKER Huh?
JACK Beans in exchange for my cow?
WIFE Oh, these are no ordinary beans, son. These beans carry…magic.
JACK Magic? What kind of magic?
(TO BAKER) Tell him! The BAKER has no idea. He makes something up.
BAKER Magic that defies description.
JACK How many beans?
BAKER Six.
WIFE Five!
(TO JACK) They’re worth a pound each, at least.
JACK Could I buy my cow back someday?
(UNEASY) Well … The WIFE gives him a little poke.
WIFE Yes.
BAKER …possibly. Here. He hands JACK the five beans, carefully dropping them one at a time into the boy’s hand. The WIFE quickly takes the SIXTH BEAN and puts it in her pocket.
BAKER (CONT’D) Good luck there, young lad. As the BAKER takes the cow’s leash, JACK wraps his arms around the bony animal.
JACK One day, I’ll buy you back — Promise! JACK kisses the cow. The BAKER looks to his WIFE guiltily. Overcome with emotion, JACK runs back into the woods.
BAKER Take the cow and go home!
WIFE I was just trying to help.
BAKER Magic beans! We’ve no reason to believe they’re magic! Are we going to dispel this curse through deceit?
WIFE No one would have given him more for this creature. We did him a favor. At least they’ll have some food.
BAKER Five beans?!
WIFE Do we want a child or not?
BAKER Of course. But…
WIFE We have one chance. Don’t you see that? And if we fail…
BAKER I’m just not sure I’m cut out to be a father.
WIFE Why do you say that?
BAKER Because of my father.
WIFE You’re not him.
BAKER I don’t know…
WIFE If you can’t do this for yourself, can’t you at least do it for me?
BAKER All right. You take the cow and go home. I’ll find the rest of the things. On my own. The BAKER walks away.
EXT. WOODS – DAY
RAPUNZEL’S PRINCE glides through the woods on a white stead. It’s difficult to say who is more beautiful, the PRINCE or the HORSE. From the corner of his eye he notices something in the distance. He slows down and circles back, and HEARS the melodious singing of RAPUNZEL. He dismounts and slips through the brush to see:
EXT. WOODS – RAPUNZEL’S TOWER – DAY
R-PRINCE POV An exquisite tower, surrounded by a thicket of tall rose bushes, with no entryway, just a lone window at its peak. At the bottom of the tower, the WITCH looks upward:
WITCH Rapunzel. Rapunzel. Let down your hair to me. The PRINCE, hiding within the brush.
R’S PRINCE (savoring the name) Rapunzel… At the window, the gorgeous young blonde girl, RAPUNZEL proceeds to lower the longest stretch of hair you’ve ever seen. The WITCH scales up the tower. (This causes more than a little discomfort for RAPUNZEL.)
BAKER (V.O.) The old enchantress had given the name Rapunzel to the child she had hidden away and locked in a a doorless tower. But little did she know that the girl’s lilting voice had caught the attention of a handsome Prince.”
R’S PRINCE Rapunzel… The PRINCE dashes back to his horse and gallops off. The WITCH arrives at the window.
WITCH Don’t you look lovely today, my dear.
RAPUNZEL Thank you, Mother.
WITCH I brought your favorite. Blackberries, fresh from the garden.
EXT. GRANNY’S HOUSE – DAY
LRRH walks over a rickety bridge that spans a brook. She stops and stares at the cottage which is built into a large
OAK TREE.
BAKER (V.O.) As the little girl approached her Granny’s oak tree, she was surprised to see the door standing open.
LRRH Oh dear, how uneasy I feel. Perhaps it’s all the sweets.
INT. GRANNY’S HOUSE – DAY
LRRH makes her way down a curved staircase in the house. She sees the CURTAINS drawn around her GRANNY’S BED and, behind them, the SILHOUETTE of what “looks like” GRANNY.
LRRH Granny?
WOLF (In a granny voice) Come in, my deary. LRRH moves towards the bed with trepidation and slowly pulls back the curtain. The WOLF is revealed, lying under the covers, dressed in GRANNY’S nightcap and robe.
LRRH My, Grandmother. You’re looking very strange. What big ears you have!
WOLF The better to hear you with, my dear. The handsome WOLF flashes a smile that reveals a set of gleaming white FANGS.
EXT. GRANNY’S HOUSE – DAY
The BAKER crosses the bridge and heads towards the cottage. He suddenly hears LRRH scream. Nervously he pulls the knife from his belt.
BAKER (V.O.) And with a single bound, the wolf had devoured the little girl. Well, it was a full day of eating for both.
INT. GRANNY’S HOUSE – DAY – CONTINUOUS
The BAKER enters and hears a loud SNORE. Brandishing the knife, he moves towards the bed where he sees the WOLF DRESSED AS GRANNY, sound asleep, a piece of the red cloth sticking out of it’s mouth. Squeamishly, he pulls back the sheet to see the WOLF’S SWOLLEN STOMACH. He raises his knife and as he brings it slashing down we hear a loud HOWL from the WOLF.
EXT. GRANNY’S HOUSE – DAY – LATER
FADE UP ON THE BAKER, clearly shaken, leaving the cottage and walking away.
BAKER I can’t believe I just did that. LRRH and GRANNY appear at the doorway behind him.
(CALLING) Wait!
GRANNY Aren’t you going to help us skin that beast?
BAKER No thanks!
GRANNY What kind of hunter are you?
BAKER I’m a baker.
GRANNY gives him a disdainful look and goes back into the house. LRRH in her cape runs after the BAKER as he approaches the rickety bridge.
LRRH Wait a minute. I never thanked you.
BAKER You need to be more careful, young lady.
LRRH I’m sorry. I should have known better.
MOTHER SAID, / “STRAIGHT AHEAD,” / NOT
TO DELAY / OR BE MISLED. / I SHOULD HAVE
HEEDED / HER ADVICE… / BUT HE SEEMED
SO NICE.
AND HE SHOWED ME THINGS, / MANY
BEAUTIFUL THINGS, / THAT I HADN’T
THOUGHT TO EXPLORE. / THEY WERE OFF MY
PATH, / SO I NEVER HAD DARED. / I HAD
BEEN SO CAREFUL / I NEVER HAD CARED. /
AND HE MADE ME FEEL EXCITED– / WELL,
EXCITED AND SCARED.
LRRH relives her nightmare.
INT. GRANNY’S HOUSE – DAY – NIGHTMARE
LRRH walks down the staircase towards GRANNY’S bed. She sees the WOLF’S silhouette through the bed curtains.
WHEN HE SAID “COME IN!” / WITH THAT
SICKENING GRIN, / HOW COULD I KNOW WHAT
WAS IN STORE? / ONCE HIS TEETH WERE
BARED, / THOUGH, I REALLY GOT SCARED– /
WELL, EXCITED AND SCARED. /
LRRH grabs hold of the bed curtains and pulls them around herself.
INT. THE WOLF’S BELLY – NIGHTMARE
LRRH falls down a dark cavernous void.
BUT HE DREW ME CLOSE /AND HE SWALLOWED
ME DOWN, / DOWN A DARK, SLIMY PATH /
WHERE LIE SECRETS THAT I NEVER WANT TO
KNOW, /
She lands and sees a blurry form in the distance before realizing it is GRANNY.
AND WHEN EVERYTHING FAMILIAR / SEEMED
TO DISAPPEAR FOREVER, / AT THE END OF
THE PATH / WAS GRANNY ONCE AGAIN.
GRANNY reaches out her arms blindly until the two are united in a warm embrace.
SO WE LAY IN THE DARK / TILL YOU CAME
AND SET US FREE,
LRRH POV — A crack of light widens until it’s clear that she is seeing a KNIFE opening the WOLF’S STOMACH that creates the blinding light. The BAKER’S EYE peeks through the slit.
AND YOU BROUGHT US TO THE LIGHT,
LRRH reaches for the BAKER…
EXT. GRANNY’S HOUSE – DAY
…the BAKER takes her hand.
AND WE’RE BACK AT THE START.
She continues her story.
AND I KNOW THINGS NOW, / MANY VALUABLE
THINGS, / THAT I HADN’T KNOWN BEFORE: /
DO NOT PUT YOUR FAITH / IN A CAPE AND A
HOOD,
She takes off her cape.
THEY WILL NOT PROTECT YOU / THE WAY
THAT THEY SHOULD. / AND TAKE EXTRA CARE
WITH STRANGERS– / EVEN FLOWERS HAVE
THEIR DANGERS. / AND THOUGH SCARY IS
EXCITING, / NICE IS DIFFERENT THAN
GOOD.
Mr. Baker. You saved our lives. Here. LRRH hands him the cape.
BAKER Are you certain?
LRRH Yes. Maybe Granny will make me another with the skins of the wolf.
BAKER Thank you. Thank you! Impulsively he gives her a kiss on the cheek and as he leaves, the girl wipes it off.
LRRH Yuck!
She makes her way back to GRANNY’S.
NOW, I KNOW: / DON’T BE SCARED. / GRANNY
IS RIGHT, / JUST BE PREPARED. / ISN’T IT
NICE TO KNOW A LOT? / AND A LITTLE BIT
NOT…
EXT. JACK’S FARMHOUSE – TWILIGHT
Having just greeted JACK on his return, his MOTHER stares at the beans he has just handed her.
(DESPAIRING) How could you do this? What sort of boy would exchange a cow for beans?
JACK But they’re magic — the man said —
JACK’S MOTHER Get your head out of the clouds! She angrily THROWS the beans to the ground.
JACK Mother — no! She turns to grab JACK’S ear, failing to see the electric sparks that flare when the beans strike the ground.
INT. JACK’S FARMHOUSE – TWILIGHT – CONTINUOUS
Dragging him up to the hayloft and pushing him on to his cot.
JACK’S MOTHER You and your worthless adventures! Will you never learn, Jack?! To bed without supper for you! She storms away. JACK lies on his bed bereft. He sees his sling on the floor and picks it up cradling it as he closes his eyes. THE CAMERA travels to a hole in the wall and looks below to see five bean stalks already growing and intertwining, quickly reaching skyward.
EXT. KING’S CASTLE – NIGHT
WIDE SHOT. Sitting on a hilltop surrounded by the woods on all sides, a magical and ageless castle sits aglow. A huge FULL MOON hangs in the sky, but there’s already the slither of a SHADOW beginning to cross its face. We hear MUSIC in the background along with the jovial sounds of the ball.
BAKER (V.O.) The first night of the festival ball brought Cinderella her wish. The Prince danced only with her, `til he turned and she had slipped away. Suddenly CINDERELLA in her ball-gown rushes out of a back entrance and onto the terrace disappearing around a corner.
ANOTHER ANGLE – THE STEPS
She descends a long stretch of ancient stone steps that lead to the outside grounds.
ANOTHER ANGLE – CONTINUOUS
She appears running down a garden path below and into the woods. A beat later, CINDERELLA’S PRINCE, dashes out on to a drawbridge where he spots CINDERELLA below. He is tall, dark and impossibly handsome. His STEWARD and other attendants join him.
C’S PRINCE I must find that girl!
EXT. WOODS – PATHWAY TO THE CASTLE – NIGHT
The BAKER’S WIFE is trying to find her way back to the village, pulling an obstinate MILKY-WHITE on a leash behind her. We see a piece of the castle in the distance. We TRACK CINDERELLA racing through the brush — not an easy feat in a ball gown and gold slippers. We hear VOICES in the distance and the NEIGHING OF HORSES. CINDERELLA stumbles on a knoll, loses her footing and rolls over and over to the bottom landing with a spectacular THUD just yards from the
WIFE.
WIFE Are you alright, miss?
(STARTLED) Yes. I just need to catch my breath.
WIFE What a beautiful gown you’re wearing. Were you at the King’s Festival? CINDERELLA, preoccupied, collects herself so she can continue on her way.
CINDERELLA Yes.
WIFE Aren’t you the lucky one. Why ever are you in the woods at this hour? We hear the PRINCE’S ENTOURAGE approaching.
STEWARD (O.S.) This way!
CINDERELLA Please. Don’t let them know I’m here. She quickly hides herself in the brush. The WIFE turns around and looks to the top of the rise to see C-PRINCE on a black stallion, with his STEWARD and ATTENDANTS in tow. He calls down to the WIFE.
C’S PRINCE Have you seen a beautiful young woman in a ball gown pass through?
WIFE (Breathless as she
BOWS) I don’t think so, sir.
(POINTING) If I may, my lord, I think I see her over there. The ENTOURAGE races off and CINDERELLA reappears and sits, catching her breath.
WIFE I’ve never lied to royalty before. I’ve never anything to royalty before!
CINDERELLA Thank you.
WIFE If a prince were looking for me, I certainly wouldn’t hide.
CINDERELLA Well, what brings you here — and with a cow?
WIFE Oh, my husband’s somewhere in the woods.
(WITH PRIDE) He’s undoing a spell.
(IMPRESSED) Oh?
WIFE Oh, yes. But tell me, the Prince, what was he like?
HE’S A VERY NICE PRINCE.
AND– / IT’S A VERY NICE BALL.
AND– / WHEN I ENTERED, THEY TRUMPETED.
AND–? / THE PRINCE–?
YES, THE PRINCE!
WELL, HE’S TALL.
The WIFE sits down next to CINDERELLA admiring her dress as they chat.
IS THAT ALL? / DID YOU DANCE? / IS HE
CHARMING? / THEY SAY THAT HE’S
CHARMING.
WE DID NOTHING BUT DANCE.
YES–? AND–?
AND IT MADE A NICE CHANGE.
NO, THE PRINCE!
YES, THE PRINCE.
HE HAS CHARM FOR A PRINCE, I GUESS…
GUESS?
I DON’T MEET A WIDE RANGE.
AND IT’S ALL VERY STRANGE.
WIFE But why would you run away?
CINDERELLA It’s not quite what I expected.
WIFE Princes, castles, gowns…
CINDERELLA I have no experience with those things. We hear the far off CHIMES OF MIDNIGHT from the castle.
WIFE But you will return to the Festival tomorrow eve?
CINDERELLA Yes… No… I don’t know…
WIFE You don’t know? What I wouldn’t give to be in your shoes. (looking to her
SHOES) …I mean your slippers.
(EXCITED) As pure as gold?
CINDERELLA I must get home. CINDERELLA runs off.
WIFE Wait! I need your shoes! The WIFE goes after CINDERELLA but then hears a distant COW MOAN. She turns around to discover that MILKY-WHITE has taken off.
WIFE (CONT’D) Milky-White! The WITCH appears from nowhere.
WITCH One midnight gone!
WIFE Already?!
WITCH Get that cow! The WIFE takes off after the cow as the CAMERA RISES above tree level. The BLUE SHADOW has moved a little further across the face of the MOON.
EXT. JACK’S FARMHOUSE – THE NEXT DAY – DAYBREAK
A STRAGGLY ROOSTER crowing, the sun cutting across its path.
INT. JACK’S FARMHOUSE – DAYBREAK – CONTINUOUS
JACK’S MOTHER is woken by the rooster crow to find something ticking her nose. She opens her eyes, brushing the “something” away — then sees that it’s a huge LEAF pushing in through an open slat in the wall.
EXT. JACK’S FARMHOUSE – DAYBREAK – EXTREME WIDE SHOT
The cottage, now dwarfed by a giant BEANSTALK. JACK’S MOTHER, a tiny figure from this distance, comes running out of the house, takes one look at the giant plant and screams.
EXT. WOODS – TALL TREES – DAY
Various angles of JACK, running feverishly through the woods in search of the BAKER. He carries a huge sack of LARGE-SIZED COINS over his back. He occasionally calls out: “Mr. Baker!” The BAKER, peacefully asleep is curled up in a large root, clutching the red cape like it was his blankie. Suddenly JACK leaps from atop calling his name and waking him.
(SHOUTING) Mr. Baker! Mr. Baker!
(HALF ASLEEP) What?
JACK Good fortune! Good fortune, sir! Look what I have! Five gold pieces.
(SKEPTICAL) How would you come by five gold pieces?!
THERE ARE GIANTS IN THE SKY! / THERE
ARE BIG TALL TERRIBLE GIANTS IN THE
SKY!
JACK throws him the bag and begins to scale up the root of the tree.
WHEN YOU’RE WAY UP HIGH AND YOU LOOK
BELOW / AT THE WORLD YOU’VE LEFT AND
THE THINGS YOU KNOW, / LITTLE MORE THAN
A GLANCE IS ENOUGH TO SHOW / YOU JUST
HOW SMALL YOU ARE.
WHEN YOU’RE WAY UP HIGH AND YOU’RE ON
YOUR OWN / IN A WORLD LIKE NONE THAT
YOU’VE EVER KNOWN, / WHERE THE SKY IS
LEAD AND THE EARTH IS STONE,
EXT. BEANSTALK – DAY – FLASHBACK
JACK is now climbing the BEANSTALK.
YOU’RE FREE TO DO / WHATEVER PLEASES
YOU, / EXPLORING THINGS YOU’D NEVER
DARE / ‘CAUSE YOU DON’T CARE, / WHEN
EXT. WOODS – DAY – PRESENT
JACK is half-way up the tree with the BAKER below.
A BIG TALL TERRIBLE GIANT AT THE DOOR.
BAKER A giant?
A BIG TALL TERRIBLE LADY GIANT
SWEEPING THE FLOOR. / AND SHE GIVES YOU
FOOD / AND SHE GIVES YOU REST, / AND SHE
DRAWS YOU CLOSE / TO HER GIANT BREAST, /
JACK (in the tree).
AND YOU KNOW THINGS NOW THAT YOU NEVER
KNEW BEFORE, / NOT TILL THE SKY.
The BAKER listens intently.
ONLY JUST WHEN YOU’VE MADE A FRIEND
AND ALL, / AND YOU KNOW SHE’S BIG BUT
YOU DON’T FEEL SMALL, / SOMEONE BIGGER
THAN HER COMES ALONG THE HALL / TO
SWALLOW YOU FOR LUNCH.
AND YOUR HEART IS LEAD AND YOUR
STOMACH STONE / AND YOU’RE REALLY
SCARED BEING ALL ALONE, / AND IT’S THEN
THAT YOU MISS ALL THE THINGS YOU’VE
KNOWN / AND THE WORLD YOU’VE LEFT AND
THE LITTLE YOU OWN.
EXT. BEANSTALK – DAY – FLASHBACK
JACK scurries down the BEANSTALK, with the large SACK OF COINS over his shoulder, occasionally looking up to see if he is being followed.
THE FUN IS DONE. / YOU STEAL WHAT YOU
CAN AND RUN!
JACK (V.O.) (CONT’D)
AND YOU SCRAMBLE DOWN / AND YOU LOOK
BELOW, / AND THE WORLD YOU KNOW / BEGINS
EXT. WOODS – DAY – PRESENT
JACK looks down to the BAKER.
THE ROOF, THE HOUSE, AND YOUR MOTHER
AT THE DOOR. / THE ROOF, THE HOUSE, AND
THE WORLD YOU NEVER THOUGHT TO
EXPLORE. / AND YOU THINK OF ALL OF THE
THINGS YOU’VE SEEN. / AND YOU WISH THAT
YOU COULD LIVE IN BETWEEN, /
JACK now scurries down the tree.
AND YOU’RE BACK AGAIN, / ONLY DIFFERENT
THAN BEFORE, / AFTER THE SKY.
THERE ARE GIANTS IN THE SKY! / THERE
ARE BIG TALL TERRIBLE AWESOME SCARY /
WONDERFUL GIANTS IN THE SKY!
JACK jumps from the tree and lands in front of the BAKER. He up-ends the sack and dumps the five gold coins on the ground.
JACK (CONT’D) So, here’s your money, sir! Five gold pieces. Where is my Milky-White?
(HESITANTLY) Milky-White is back home with my wife.
JACK Let’s go find them! JACK grabs the BAKER and excitedly tries to pull him along.
BAKER Wait a minute! I’m not sure I want to sell.
JACK But you said I could buy her back. Do you want more money?
BAKER No, no, no! It’s not that–
(IGNORING HIM) You keep that. I’ll fetch some more.
BAKER Wait. I didn’t say– But JACK doesn’t wait to listen. Taking the EMPTY SACK, he runs off excitedly.
BAKER (CONT’D) Hey, come back!
EXT. WOODS – TALL TREES – DAY – CONTINUOUS
The BAKER follows after JACK and collides into his WIFE, dropping his satchel and revealing the red cape. He hides the money sack.
BAKER What are you doing here?
WIFE Well… She doesn’t want to tell him she’s lost MILKY-WHITE.
WIFE (CONT’D) I see you’ve got the red cape!
BAKER Yes. I’ve got the cape. Only two items left.
(SHEEPISH) Three.
BAKER Two. We’ve the cape and the cow.
(FAKED ENTHUSIASM) You’ve the cape…
BAKER What have you done with the cow?!
WIFE She ran away. I never reached home. I’ve been looking for her all night.
(ANGRY) How could you?
WIFE She might just as easily have run from you!
BAKER But she didn’t!
BUT SHE MIGHT HAVE!
BUT SHE DIDN’T!!!
WHO CARES!
The WITCH appears in the tree directly above them.
THE COW IS GONE! GET IT BACK! GET IT
BACK!!!
BAKER We were just going to do that. Here. He climbs towards her with the cape.
BAKER (CONT’D) You can have this–
DON’T COME NEAR ME WITH THAT, FOOL!! I
can’t touch it! By midnight tomorrow bring me the items or that child you wish for will never see the light of day! With a grand sweep of her cape, the WITCH throws off dirt and muck over the BAKER and the BAKER’S WIFE as she disappears into a cloud of dust. The BAKER wipes dirt from his mouth.
BAKER I don’t like that woman.
WIFE I’m sorry I lost the cow.
BAKER I shouldn’t have yelled. (firmly but kindly) Go back to the village. I will make things right. And then we can just go about our life. No more witches or dim- witted boys or hungry little girls. The BAKER’S WIFE starts to speak.
BAKER (CONT’D) GO!, please — go. She goes.
EXT. WOODS – PINE FOREST – DAY
WIDE SHOT. We hear the hoofbeats of horses coming from both directions. Crossing the frame and each other are CINDERELLA’S PRINCE on his BLACK stallion and RAPUNZEL’S PRINCE on his WHITE steed. They pass out of the frame. After a few beats, they return trotting, meeting in the middle.
R’S PRINCE Good brother. I was wondering where you’d gone.
C’S PRINCE I have been looking all night for her.
R’S PRINCE Her?
C’S PRINCE The beautiful one I danced the evening with.
R’S PRINCE Where did she go?
C’S PRINCE Disappeared, like the fine morning mist.
R’S PRINCE She was lovely?
C’S PRINCE The loveliest. They dismount and walk their horses through the forest.
R’S PRINCE I am not certain of that! I must confess, I too have found a lovely maiden. She lives here in the woods.
(INCREDULOUS) The woods? In the background we see the WIFE, who has wandered by on her way back home. She stops to EAVESDROP on the PRINCES.
R’S PRINCE Yes! In the top of a tall tower that has no door or stairs.
C’S PRINCE Where?
R’S PRINCE Two leagues from here, due east, just beyond the mossy knoll near the rose thickets.
C’S PRINCE And how do you manage a visit?
R’S PRINCE I stand beneath her tower and say, “Rapunzel, Rapunzel, let down your hair to me.” And then she lowers the longest, most beautiful head of hair – yellow as corn – which I climb. The WIFE is thrilled by this news, and runs off.
C’S PRINCE Rapunzel, Rapunzel! What kind of name is that? You jest! I have never heard of such a thing.
R’S PRINCE I speak the truth! She is as true as your maiden. A maiden running from a prince? None would run from us.
C’S PRINCE Yet one has. The PRINCES lead their horses to a stream that cascades into a magnificent waterfall.
DID I ABUSE HER / OR SHOW HER DISDAIN? /
WHY DOES SHE RUN FROM ME? / IF I SHOULD
LOSE HER, / HOW SHALL I REGAIN / THE
HEART SHE HAS WON FROM ME?
AGONY–! / BEYOND POWER OF SPEECH. /
WHEN THE ONE THING YOU WANT / IS THE
ONLY THING OUT OF YOUR REACH.
HIGH IN HER TOWER, / SHE SITS BY THE
HOUR, / MAINTAINING HER HAIR. / BLITHE
AND BECOMING, / AND FREQUENTLY HUMMING /
A LIGHTHEARTED AIR: / “AH-AH-AH-AH-AH-
AGONY–! / FAR MORE PAINFUL THAN
YOURS, / WHEN YOU KNOW SHE WOULD GO
WITH YOU, / IF THERE ONLY WERE DOORS.
AGONY! / OH THE TORTURE THEY TEACH!
WHAT’S AS INTRIGUING–
OR HALF SO FATIGUING–
AS WHAT’S OUT OF REACH?
C-PRINCE studies his reflection in the water.
AM I NOT SENSITIVE, CLEVER, / WELL-
MANNERED, CONSIDERATE, / PASSIONATE,
CHARMING, / AS KIND AS I’M HANDSOME, /
AND HEIR TO A THRONE?
YOU ARE EVERYTHING MAIDENS COULD WISH
FOR!
THEN WHY NO–?
DO I KNOW?
THE GIRL MUST BE MAD.
The R-PRINCE scales a hanging vine as if it were RAPUNZEL’S hair.
YOU KNOW NOTHING OF MADNESS / TILL
YOU’RE CLIMBING HER HAIR / AND YOU SEE
HER UP THERE / AS YOU’RE NEARING HER, /
ALL THE WHILE HEARING HER, / “AH-AH-AH-
AGONY!
MISERY!
WOE!
THOUGH IT’S DIFFERENT FOR EACH.
