Platoon
BARNES Yeah sure it was. What about all that fucking rice and the weapons … who they for? (looking at the Village Chief) Cocksucker knows what I’m saying … don’t you Pop? (a blank look)
ACE You’re goddamn right he does!
Lerner translating. The Village Chief’s WIFE is now on the scene, a middle-aged woman with angry features, yelling at Lerner trying to answer for her husband, a high-pitched barrage of indignant words directed mostly at Barnes, and interspersed with the spitting of her betel nuts on the ground.
The Village Chief trying to talk her down. But things are definitely getting out of control. And the heat from the sun is only aggravating the situation, pounding down on the actors in the drama, their fatigues soaked in sweat and anger.
LERNER (finally) He swears he doesn’t know anything! He hates the NVA but they come when they want and …
JUNIOR He’s lying through his teeth!
TONY Waste the fucker, then see who talks.
BARNES What’s the bitch saying?
LERNER (overwhelmed) She’s going on, I don’t know – why are we shooting the pigs, they’re farmers … they got to make a living, all that crap …
The Woman is still ranting when Barnes turns to her, quite casually levels his M-16, and puts a bullet in her head. She goes down as if pole-axed.
A stunned pause. The Chief looking at his wife. The Villagers in background reacting.
Wolfe looking … Chris looking, shocked. Doc, possibly the straightest of them all, very uncomfortable. They are all shocked insome way, but do nothing against the power of Banres. Barnes walks over to the pig pen with the other Villagers, very casually, confronts them.
BARNES (to Lerner) Tell him he talks or I’m gonna waste more of ’em.
Lerner shaken up, muttering to the Village Chief who is in shock, kneeling next to the body of his wife, muttering in a high whine of pain.
BARNES (CONT’D) Go ahead, Lerner, ask him.
A group of Villagers huddle to one side.
Lerner, shaken, is yelling at all of them, demanding an answer.
LERNER They don’t know Sarge, they don’t know! (half believes it)
Barnes turns his attention on the other villagers, his intentions apparent. Everybody feels them. They’re next. Barnes is unperturbed, very much in command of the situation, no rage, no emotions expressed.
Chris has never seen such a thing in his life – but can’t react. Can’t stop it, just watches it like he’s not quite there.
The same goes for Lieutenant Wolfe, for all of them. The very outrageousness of Barns’ killing seems to quell all protest.
ACE (sensing the impending massacre) Hey Sarge can we get in on this.
Tony advances, the hairy Italian kid from Boston.
TONY Let’s go all the way, let’s go for it! Let’s do the whole fucking village. Come on, Sarge.
Chris’ eyes … Rodriguez next to him, is neutral but willing.
Francis is hesitant.
Fu Sheng and Junior are ready to go for it. Lt.Wolfe is powerless, frozen.
Sgt.Warren stepping up. The massacre is just about to break.
The Villagers know it, kneel in prayer, mutter.
Barnes suddenly grabs and drags a young 19 year-old Woman, the Village Chief’s daughter, across the pen, throws her down on her knees, in front of the stunned Village Chief. She’s screaming.
BARNES This his daughter, right?
Lerner nods. Barnes pulls his .45, puts it alongside her head.
BARNES (CONT’D) (to Village Chief) You lie … You Vee Cee … I caca ado Vee Cee!
He chambers the .45, the Woman begging Barnes for her life, cradling his knees. He sticks the gun down above her skull.
Chris wanting to cry out, to do something – but can’t!
A FIGURE suddenly flares out in the sun, advancing on them. It is Elias.
ELIAS BARNES!!
Barnes looks around. They all look around.
Elias walks right up to him, followed by his men – King, Rhah, Crawford, others from the rear party. He looks around. The corpse of the Wife … the Young Daughter sobbing.
ELIAS (CONT’D) WHAT THE FUCK YOU DOING!
BARNES (pissed) Stay out of this Elias. This ain’t your show.
ELIAS YOU AIN’T A FIRING SQUAD, YOU PIECE OF SHIT!!
The stock of his rifle swings up fast and hard smacking Barnes full in the face, breaking two teeth.
Barnes staggers back, hurt, bleeding. Elias is on him like a leopard. Battering him with his fists.
They struggle in the dust, two titans, their faces equally consumed with rage, clawing, spitting, punching, kicking, pounding each other’s skulls in the dirt. A dust storm swirls around them, the men closing around like excited apes at a bloodfeast.
Most of the men seem to be pulling for Barnes – Chris just watching neutral.
LIEUTENANT WOLFE BREAK IT UP! ELIAS! BARNES!
But they rool on, smashing each other’s faces in. Both quick, fast, agile, mean fighters. Sgts.O’Neill and Warren drag them apart.
BARNES You’re dead, you’re fucking dead Elias!
ELIAS YOU – you’re going to fuckin’ jail, buddy, you ain’t getting away with this one!!!!!
WOLFE All right! All right! All right!!! NOW BREAK IT UP. LET’S GO …
They compose themselves, the Villagers looking on, grieving over their loss.
WOLFE (CONT’D) Alright, Six says torch this place! Blow the weapons in place. Round up all suspected Vee Cees and shake it up! We ain’t got much light left.
ELIAS (to Wolfe) Why the fuck didn’t you do something Lieutenant!
WOLFE What are you talking about! (turns away, goes about his business)
ELIAS (spins him around) You know what I’m talking about!
WOLFE No I don’t. I don’t know what the fuck you’re talking about, Elias! (goes)
Who wants to be reminded? A silence of shame. The Men moving away, Warren, Ace, Tony, Rodriguez, Barnes looking back once, a cold glare.
The Village Chief is a broken-looking man, huddled over his wife’s body.
Elias stands there, frustrated.
Chris glances at him, moves out.
EXT. SMALL VILLAGE – DAY
A zippo cigarette lighter with the engraved initials: ‘From Mai
lin to my Bunny Boy’. It sparks a thick flare as Bunny lights the dry straw on the roof of the Hutch where he killed the Old Woman and Young Boy.
Their legs sticking out at the threshold. The hooch burning fast, aided by the strong sun.
Bunny watches with awe.
EXT. SMALL VILLAGE – DAY
Sgt.Warren and Rodriguez lighting another hooch on fire.
EXT. VILLAGE RICE STORE – DAY
Fu Sheng yelling ‘FIRE IN THE HOLE!’ throws white phosphorus into the rice stores.
EXT. VILLAGE – WEAPONS CACHE – DAY
Barnes and Huffmeister, a big German kid from Texas, are laying the cord to blow the weapons cache.
EXT. SMALL VILLAGE – WELL – DAY
Adams and Parker are poisoning the well with a white phosphorus grenade: ‘FIRE IN THE HOLE!’
EXT. SMALL VILLAGE – DAY
Wolfe, Ace, Tubbs, Warren, Rogriguez rope the DOZEN SUSPECTED VILLAGERS together to take them back for questioning.
Elias watches the Villagers mourn their losses. In the background, explosions, hooches popping with flames, the yells of the violations of the Village winding down.
EXT. SMALL VILLAGE – DAY
Chris wanders through this wreckage in the sun, like a dazed visitor from another planet, not believing it. He sees something, goes towards it – knows what it is.
EXT. VILLAGE – EDGE OF WOODLINE – DAY
Hidden at the edge of the woodline, King hands back a bowl of grass to Rhah, the chief head. They’re puffing away.
KING Whew! – where that come from?
RHAH Found it. Growing in a garden.
KING (smokes) Sheeit, beats burning hutches anyway …
They meditatively look out at the Village – burning hutches sending up spirals of smoke. Shouts. Shots. Chaos.
RHAH Yeah – stoned’s the way to be …
EXT. VILLAGE – DITCH – DAY
In a ditch running alongside the Village, partially concealed by foliage and anthills, Tony, Morehouse, and the ubiquitous Bunny have a 12-YEAR-OLD VIETNAMESE GIRL pinned to the ground, gagged and squirming, naked. They are fucking her to death. Junior looks on, both curious and disgusted, but doesn’t take part.
TONY Take her up the ass …
As they roll her over, like excited dogs in heat.
