Halloween: H2O
FADE IN:
EXT. STREET - NIGHT - SUBURBIA
Langley, Illinois. A quiet suburb located fifty miles
outside of Chicago.
SUPER the legend: "Langley, Illinois. October 28th 1998"
A HOUSE
nestled in the middle of a tree-lined street. A Honda Civic
pulls into a darkened driveway, the headlights are
extinguished...
PAMELA WHITTINGTON, a middle-aged woman in full registered
nurse attire, emerges from the parked car.
An unlit cigarette dangles loosely from her lips. She heads
to the porch, digging through her purse in search of a
light...
CRUNCH!
Pamela stops in her tracks, looks down at her feet to discover
GLASS
scattered across the porch. She looks at the porch light
hanging above her head.
A SHATTERED LIGHT BULB occupies the socket.
Pamela turns her attention to the front door... it's slightly
ajar. She pushes on it gently.... the door swings open
freely, revealing the darkened interior.
PAMELA
Shit...
Pamela drops her purse... darts across some hedges into the
neighbor's yard...
EXT. THE HOUSE NEXT DOOR
Pamela runs up to the porch, decorated with carved
pumpkins... POUNDS furiously on the front door, decorated
with a CARDBOARD SKELETON.
NO ANSWER.
She POUNDS again... HARDER. Suddenly, the door SWINGS open
to reveal
AN OMINOUS FIGURE
looming in the doorway. A HOCKEY MASK cloaks his face.
A PAIR OF EYES
glare at Pamela from behind the cut-outs in the plastic
vizard.
PAMELA
gasps, stumbles backward.
THE FIGURE
flips up his mask to reveal
JIMMY HOWELL
a gangly teen, wearing a hockey jersey... skates slung over
his shoulder.
JIMMY
Hey, Mis Whittington, what's up?
PAMELA
My blood pleasure. You scared the
hell out of me.
JIMMY
Oh. Sorry. I'm on my way to the
ring and --
PAMELA
(interrupting)
I think someone broke into my
house.
JIMMY
No shit?!
PAMELA
No shit.
CUT TO:
INT. LIVING ROOM - MINUTES LATER
Pamela sits on the couch taking hits off a lit cigarette.
Jimmy paces the room, portable phone pressed against his ear.
JIMMY
(into phone)
3037 Keystone.. yeah... gotcha.
Jimmy hangs up the portable...
JIMMY
(continuing)
Said to give 'em fifteen minutes.
They'll send someone by.
Jimmy grabs his hockey stick, heads for the door.
PAMELA
Jimmy, what are you doing?
JIMMY
Checking out your place.
PAMELA
No. Wait for the police.
JIMMY
And miss the big game? No way.
CUT TO:
EXT. HOUSE - MINUTES LATER
Pamela stands at the foot of her driveway... watches as Jimmy
climbs the steps to her porch, hockey stick perched high on
his shoulder.
JIMMY
moves toward the front door, stepping on pieces of shattered
light bulb beneath him.
He swings open the front door with the tip of his stick...
looks inside the darkened house.
He enters cautiously, stick at the ready.
PAMELA
lights up another cigarette, watches nervously as Jimmy
disappears from view...
INT. HOUSE
Jimmy enters the dimmed foyer.
JIMMY
(calling off)
Hey, man, don't mess with me!
I'll knock your head clean off
your body!
He moves stealthily through the house, hockey stick poised
high in the air... room-by-room he checks for intruders...
Jimmy finds his way to the rear of the home, crosses to a
back bedroom, stands in the doorway...
JIMMY
(continuing)
Oh, shit...
ON THE BEDROOM
Converted to a home office... ransacked... file cabinets
overturned, pictures hang crooked on the walls, papers carpet
the floor...
JIMMY
drops the stick to his side, convinced he is now alone in the
house.
He crosses back into the kitchen... steals a cookie from a
cookie jar... opens the fridge... takes a swig from an open
milk carton... completely unaware that --
THE BEDROOM CLOSET DOOR
is opening slowly behind him, then suddenly --
CRASH!
An IRONING BOARD topples out from inside, slams against his
back, hard.
JIMMY
snaps the hockey stick into position... spins around...
swings wildly with the wooden baton. He makes contact with...
A POT RACK
suspended above the island... pots dangling from their hooks
come clanging down on top of him...
The dust settles... Jimmy realizes he's been beating the
stuffing out of an ironing board. He sheepishly exits the
kitchen...
EXT. HOUSE - MINUTES LATER
Pamela stands at the foot of the driveway, trying to see in
to the darkened house...
PAMELA
Come on, damn it...
Jimmy emerges from the house... looks like Wayne Gretsky
after slamming in his record goal. He smiles at Pamela
smugly...
JIMMY
Nothing to fear. The coast is
clear.
PAMELA
You sure?
JIMMY
Totally. I checked all the rooms
and closets...
PAMELA
Nothing's missing?
JIMMY
Don't think so. But they sure did
a real number on your office.
Crap everywhere.
PAMELA
My office?
JIMMY
Yeah. Oh, and they messed up your
kitchen pretty good, too...
Goodnight.
Jimmy scurries off, avoiding any more questions.
Pamela heads back to the house.
INT. HOUSE
Pamela enters the house, LOCKS AND BOLTS the front door
behind her. She breathes a heavy sigh of relief, back
against the door... she flicks on a light switch... NOTHING.
PAMELA
Christ, Jimmy... didn't you try
the goddamn lights?!
Pamela moves down the hallway to the laundry room... she
opens the door to the FUSE BOX... toggles some fuses on and
off... tries the laundry room light... still NOTHING,
darkness.
PAMELA
(continuing)
Shit.
She grabs a flashlight out of the nearby cupboard, and
proceeds down the hall to --
INT. OFFICE
The converted bedroom in complete disarray... Pamela
navigates through the wreckage, carving a path with the beam
of her flashlight. She approaches --
A DESK
completely bare except for a single FILE FOLDER resting on
its top.
PAMELA
shines the beam on the lone file folder.
ON the folder... the index tab reads "KERI TATE." Pamela
opens the folder, it's EMPTY.
PAMELA
gasps, the blood rushes from her face. She immediately
rushes for the phone.
CLANK!
A noise is heard. She's not alone in this house. She moves
through the hallway to discover the front door wide open.
Shit. She bolts.
EXT. HOUSE
Pamela runs out the door and back to Jimmy's house. She
opens the front door, disappears inside.
INT. HOUSE
Pamela shuts the door behind her... cranes her neck,
searching for any signs of Jimmy --
She HEARS the sounds of a television emanating from deep
within the house.
PAMELA
(calling off)
Jimmy! You still there?!
CAMERA FOLLOWS Pamela as she makes her way from one darkened
room to the next... she crosses into the den to discover
JIMMY
seated in an easy-chair, watching an episode of "SEINFELD."
his back to Pamela... only his legs are visible from her
point-of-view.
Pamela approaches him --
PAMELA
Goddamnit, Jimmy! Someone's still
in my house!
Pamela spins the easy-chair around to reveal --
A HOCKEY SKATE
embedded deep into Jimmy's face... the blade slicing through
flesh, from forehead to chin... eyes wide open in terror...
blood cascades down his jersey...
PAMELA
screams... bolts through the house, reaches the front door to
find --
A CHINA CABINET
pushed in front of it, blocks her way! She tries fiercely to
move the wooden hutch, but can't...
Pamela runs back through the house, frantic... in desperate
search of an exit.
She crosses into the kitchen, spots her escape... moves to
the rear door, opens it to reveal...
THE SHAPE
standing, poised, evil eyes burning through slits in his
trademark mask.
PAMELA
shrieks... grabs a knife out of a nearby butcher block...
heads back to the living room.
THE SHAPE
moves after her, the hunt is on...
INT. LIVING ROOM
FLASHING RED AND BLUE LIGHTS
illuminate the room...
PAMELA
runs to a window...
ANGLE THROUGH WINDOW
A squad car arrives in front of Pamela's house. Two
UNIFORMED COPS emerge from the vehicle, head up her driveway.
PAMELA
Struggles to open the window... she can't manage to disengage
the lock... she pounds feverishly on the glass --
PAMELA
(yelling)
HELP! GODDAMNIT IT! OVER HERE!
GOD PLEASE!
THE SHAPE
appears behind her... grabs an IRON POKER from a group of
fireplace utensils.
PAMELA
spins around, swings at the Shape with the knife...
PAMELA
Stay the fuck away from me!
The Shape swings the iron poker... delivers a severe blow to
Pamela's arm... breaks it... the knife falls to the floor
below.
Pamela howls in pain... drops to her knees, nurses her arm...
The Shape raises the poker high into the air, comes down
hard... drives the tip of the poker through her skull...
CRACK!
EXT. PAMELA'S FRONT PORCH - SAME TIME
In the f.g. two cops climb the porch steps and move into the
house.
In the b.g. we can see the Shape through the neighboring
window as he repeatedly stabs Pamela with the poker.
CUT TO:
EXT. HILLCREST ACADEMY - ESTABLISHING - MORNING
CLOSE ON A PLAQUE
"HILLCREST ACADEMY. ESTABLISHED 1874"
THE CAMERA PULLS BACK TO REVEAL a co-ed boarding school...
set behind massive wrought-iron gates on acreage in a
secluded region of Wisconsin.
SUPER the legend: "Ferndale, Wisconsin. October 29th 1998."
The academy's gothic architecture and rich history can be
seen throughout the entire campus, consisting of a cluster of
buildings: the school, the dorms, a gymnasium with indoor
swimming pool, a bell tower, a guard house and --
A GROUP OF FACULTY HOUSES
litters the far end of the campus.
CLOSE ON a kitchen window. Inside KERI TATE, mid-thirties,
stands behind a sink washing dishes.
On closer inspection, we see that this face is none other
that LAURIE STRODE.
INT. KITCHEN - MORNING
Keri stands with her back to JOHN, 16, chiseled good looks.
He stands behind her in the doorway... They are in mid-
conversation --
KERI
Nothing's changed since yesterday,
or last week, or last month... the
answer's still "no."
JOHN
You're so predictable.
Keri grabs the sprayer, squirts John from across the room.
JOHN
(continuing)
What the --
KERI
Betcha' didn't predict that.
Keri throws John a dishtowel... he dabs at his shirt.
JOHN
I'm sixteen, Keri. I should be
able to live wherever I want.
KERI
And I should have a son who calls
me "Mom". Looks like we're both
shit out of luck.
JOHN
Okay, you win. I'll call you Mom.
Now can I move into the dorms?
KERI
No.
Keri hands John a stack of clean dishes. John doesn't
budge...
JOHN
Well, Dad thinks it's okay.
KERI
You're father thinks it's okay to
run off to Cancun with a blonde
bimbo in a halter top. Somehow
his opinion doesn't count.
JOHN
I promise not to run off to Cancun.
KERI
Forget it.
JOHN
(pointing out the
kitchen window)
The dorms are only fifty feet
away. You could practically see
into my window. So, what
difference does it make?
KERI
My point exactly. See, we both
agree.
Keri takes the dishes back from John, puts them away in an
overhead cupboard.
JOHN
Alright, I was wrong. There is a
big difference between rooming
with your buddies and living with
your mother and school headmaster.
KERI
I took the padlock off your door.
What more do you want?
JOHN
My life is a living hell.
Keri raises an eyebrow...
KERI
It's not, trust me.
John gives up, heads out of the room...
KERI
(continuing)
Where are you going?
JOHN
To the bathroom. Can I do that
alone or do you want to watch?
KERI
I thought you'd never ask.
Keri puts her arms around John, escorts him out of the
kitchen...
JOHN
You're twisted.
KERI
I know.
CUT TO:
EXT. HILLCREST ACADEMY - DAY
Keri moves across campus toward the school, a leather
briefcase slung over one shoulder.
Passing STUDENTS ad-lib "Hellos," their admiration for Keri
made evident by their favorable rapport with her.
Keri passes in front of --
A ROW OF SCHOOL BUSES
parked alongside the school. An older bus on the far end
sits empty, hood up.
WALLY BECKETTE, a rather portly man in his early sixties, and
the school custodian, fiddles with the exposed engine.
KERI
Wally, you've been under that hood
for months. Why don't we just
call a mechanic?
Wally stops what he is doing... comes out from beneath the
hood... wipes his hands on his pants.
WALLY
Miss Tate, I serviced B-1 Bombers
in W-W-2. This here is child's
play.
KERI
So you're saying I should call a
child to come give you a hand?
Wally chuckles softly, charmed by Keri like the rest of the
staff.
WALLY
I'm saying she'll be purring like
a kitten before you know it.
KERI
There's your problem, Walter. You
don't want it to purr, you want it
to start.
WALLY
And she will, Miss Tate. She will.
Keri continues toward the school. Wally watches with
admiration as she heads into the building...
WALLY
(continuing)
Mmmm-mmm. If they had teachers
like you when I was a boy, I'd be
a rocket scientist.
Wally goes back to tinkering with the engine...
ON HATTIE SMITH, mid-sixties, dressed in a guard uniform...
approaches Keri, looking very official... holds a key in her
hand.
KERI
Good morning, Hattie.
HATTIE
Went into town. Had that
duplicate key made.
Hattie hands Keri the key.
KERI
Thank you.
Hattie extends an open hand.
HATTIE
Thank me with two bucks.
KERI
Oh... right.
Keri digs through her pocket, produces a handful of change...
gives it to Hattie.
HATTIE
(dripping sarcasm)
Just what I wanted... more change.
Hattie heads back toward the guard house, turns back to
Keri --
HATTIE
(continuing)
And next time you lose a gate key,
young lady, you'll be climbing
your way out of here.
Keri holds the key to her chest.
KERI
I'll be more careful next time.
Hattie dismisses Keri with a wave of her hand, continues
across campus to the guard house.
Keri smiles, places the key in her pocket and disappears
inside the school...
CUT TO:
EXT. JIMMY'S HOUSE - AFTERNOON
Pouring rain. In stark contrast to the sunny campus of
Hillcrest...
EMERGENCY VEHICLES litter the landscape, lights FLASHING.
OFFICERS wrap yellow crime scene tape around the perimeter,
keeping curious NEIGHBORS at bay...
RICHARD CARTER
a middle-aged police detective, eyes bloodshot from too
little sleep and one too many hours in front of a computer
screen, emerges from a dark Sedan... a lit cigarette dangles
loosely from his lips.
Carter approaches a young OFFICER standing outside the front
door --
CARTER
(flashes his badge)
Detective Richard Carter,
Haddonfield P.D. Detective Blake
called my office...
The Officer motions to the door --
OFFICER
Go on in. She's been waiting for
you.
Carter heads towards the door, the Officer grabs his arm...
OFFICER
(continuing)
You might need this...
The Officer offers him a small jar of petroleum jelly.
Carter waves it away.
OFFICER
(continuing)
Some serious shit in there,
Detective.
Carter reconsiders, smears the Vaseline under each nostril...
heads for the house.
INT. JIMMY'S HOUSE
Carter crosses through the front door, watches as
A TEAM of latex-gloved FORENSIC SPECIALISTS
dust door and windows for fingerprints, swab at blood drops,
and collect carpet fibers for later analysis...
Carter crosses into the living room, winces at
PAMELA WHITTINGTON
sprawled across the floor in front of blood-soaked
curtains... the wrought-iron poker jammed up her nose, exits
through the top of her skull... a kitchen knife lies beside
her...
Carter takes another hit off the cigarette, blows smoke into
the room...
VOICE (O.S.)
Double homicide.
Carter turns to see
TONI BLAKE
standing behind him... mid-twenties, attractive yet
approachable...
BLAKE
Her name's Pamela Whittington,
next door neighbor to victim
number two... James Howell.
Carter motions in the direction of the den where
A CRIME SCENE PHOTOGRAPHER
takes snapshots of the teenage corpse.
CARTER
Let me guess... he's the guy with
the hockey skate for a nose ring.
BLAKE
crosses to Carter, extends a dixie cup in his direction --
CARTER
No thanks, I'm not thirsty.
BLAKE
It's for your cigarette. I prefer
not to contaminate my crime scene
with micropollutants.
Carter takes a final puff off the cigarette, drops it into
the cup...
CARTER
Why am I here?
BLAKE
They said on the phone you were
assigned to the Meyers case.
CARTER
With all due respect, detective,
you can't go blaming every brutal
murder in Illinois on Michael
Meyers.
BLAKE
Pamela Whittington was a long time
associate of Dr. Loomis. Her home
office was ransacked. It was
chock full of Loomis' files on
Meyers. It'd say that makes
Meyers a suspect, wouldn't you?
CARTER
Well, when you put it that way.
BLAKE
Right. So why don't we get on
with this investigation?
CARTER
I like a woman who takes control.
Blake ignores the comment, crosses to the front door...
Carter follows.
During the following dialogue, Blake walks Carter through the
crime scene reenacting the prior evening's brutal events...
BLAKE
Pamela entered the house and
walked into the den where she
discovers James Howell's body...
Carter and Blake stand in front of the mutilated face of the
teenage boy...
BLAKE
(continuing)
Shaken, she returns to the front
door to find the hutch blocking
her exit...
ON gouges across the wood planks, forming tracks from the
dining room to the front door...
BLAKE
(continuing)
She runs to the kitchen, where she
is ambushed at the back door by
the killer.
Carter and Blake stand in front of the door, which is still
open. Carter kneels down, looks at the kitchen floor...
CARTER
One set of muddy shoe prints.
BLAKE
That don't match either of the
victim's.
Carter stands up, moves to a butcher block on the counter...
he's starting to enjoy this dance --
CARTER
She grabs a knife from the butcher
block.
ON the butcher block, an empty slot where the knife once
resided...
BLAKE
Heads to the living room...
They cross back into the living room...
Carter moves to the
WINDOW
covered in fingerprint powder, exposing a plethora of prints.
CARTER
Where, judging by the looks of the
finger and palm prints, she
struggles to open the window
before banging on it like hell.
BLAKE
Unable to escape, she turns and
attacks the killer, but doesn't
connect.
CARTER
No blood on the knife.
ON the knife, clean as a whistle...
CARTER
(continuing)
The killer knocks the knife out of
her hand with the wrought-iron
poker.
BLAKE
Broken blood vessels on her right
forearm.
ON Pamela's arm, a bruise forming under the skin...
CARTER
As which point she drops to her
knees in pain...
BLAKE
Explaining the low height of the
blood splatter on the curtains...
ON the curtains, blood stained four feet and below...
CARTER
Impressive, Blake. Where'd you
learn how to do that?
BLAKE
Girl scouts.
Carter chuckles... she has a sense of humor, too...
CUT TO:
INT. SCHOOL - HALLWAY - AFTERNOON
A BELL RINGS.
The hallway is flooded with STUDENTS, books in tow...
ON MOLLY CARTWRIGHT
a young seventeen, friendly eyes and a face to match.
Walking beside her is...
LINDA KANG, same age, unconcerned, full of spunk... multiple
body piercings, doesn't quite fit in here or anywhere...
LINDA
You aced it, didn't you?
MOLLY
I did alright.
Linda grabs Molly's test, peeking out from her biology book...
LINDA
Fuckin' A.
MOLLY
He gave me a fuckin' A? Wow.
Linda punches Molly playfully in the arm. They stop at
neighboring lockers, retrieve books from inside...
AMY KRAMER approaches, book pressed against an ample chest,
smacking on a wad of gum...
Eye-catching good looks, a real stunner... a bit short on the
gray matter though --
AMY
These lockers are totally girl
unfriendly.
MOLLY
Break another nail?
AMY
Pointer finger. And the dance is
in two days...
LINDA
Life's a bitch.
The girls head down the hall...
AMY
Eddie's working late at Freeman's
tonight... all alone.
MOLLY
I thought Eddie left for N.Y.U.?
AMY
Guess he couldn't tear himself
away from me.
LINDA
Guess he couldn't pass admissions.
AMY
Shut up, pinhead.
John approaches them from behind, drapes his arms around
Molly...
JOHN
There you are.
(to Amy)
You tell 'em about tonight?
AMY
I just got here.
John removes a key from his jacket pocket, drops it in
Molly's hand...
MOLLY
What's this?
LINDA
You say, "The key to my heart,"
and I'm gonna hurl.
JOHN
Shelve the barf bag. It's the key
to the main gate.
MOLLY
Where'd you get it?
JOHN
Swiped it from my mom's desk
yesterday.
MOLLY
You stole it?
JOHN
I borrowed it.
AMY
Party at Freeman's tonight.
LINDA
I am in need of some serious
partying.
MOLLY
Not me.
JOHN
Why not?
MOLLY
I can't afford to get caught.
LINDA
Molly, you're the resident
assistant. What are you gonna do,
narc on yourself?
THE BELL RINGS.
Students clear the hall, move inside their classrooms.
John kisses Molly on the lips...
JOHN
Just meet me in front of the gate
after lights out.
He takes off down the hall --
MOLLY
(calling after him)
Wait... John...
He's gone. A teacher guides the girls inside a classroom and
shuts the door...
CUT TO:
INT. GYMNASIUM - AFTERNOON
A bevy of STUDENTS scurry about the gym making final
preparations for the impending Halloween Festivals: hanging
decorations on walls, carving pumpkins, spinning cob webs
along refreshment tables...
ON WILL BRENNEN, a well-favored Chemistry teacher in his mid-
forties, thinning hair, more salt than pepper... supervises
the action... a coffee mug in hand... his attention focused
on...
KERI
sitting atop the bleachers. Will climbs the benches, sits
beside her...
WILL
What a sight for sore eyes...
He kisses her softly on the lips.
WILL
(continuing)
... and ears...
He kisses her again.
WILL
(continuing)
...and lips...
He engages her in a lingering kiss.
A GROUP OF STUDENTS
point and giggle at the smooching faculty members.
Keri notices, pulls away...
KERI
Will...
She motions toward the students below.
WILL
What? They've all taken sex ed.
He leans in for another kiss, she playfully keeps him at arms
length...
KERI
And this isn't the place for a
live demonstration.
Will relents, settles for holding Keri's hand...
WILL
Aren't they doing a terrific job
this year?
KERI
(distracted)
Looks great. It does.
WILL
You okay? You seem a little off.
KERI
Nothing a good stiff drink can't
fix.
Will doesn't find the humor, eyes her uneasily.
KERI
(continuing)
That one always goes over big at
the AA meetings.
An awkward beat, then...
WILL
It's John, isn't it?
KERI
It's always John.
WILL
Still wants to move out?
KERI
He's been living out of moving
boxes for three months.
WILL
This kid just wants his freedom.
KERI
It's not going to happen.
WILL
The tighter you squeeze, the
harder he'll try to break free.
KERI
Oh, please... you get that out of
a fortune cookie?
WILL
Doesn't make it bad advice.
Keri manages a smile...
WILL
(continuing)
God I love that smile.
Keri stands. Will follows suit.
KERI
I'm going into town... run a few
errands before dark. Need
anything?
WILL
A box of fortune cookies... I'm
running out of advice.
KERI
Bye Will.
Keri heads down the bleachers. Will watches her leave,
completely enamored...
CUT TO:
INT. NIELSEN'S MARKET - LATE AFTERNOON
A family-owned grocery mart in the heart of Ferndale. A half-
dozen CUSTOMERS mingle through the aisles.
ON Keri, standing in front of a CASHIER as he rings up a
dozen items...
Keri glances at the wall of tabloids in front of her, one of
them catches her eye --
CLOSE ON: THE GLOBE
A headline reads: "SERIAL KILLER MICHAEL MEYERS REALLY ALIEN
FROM OUTER SPACE." Beneath the headline is a mock photo of
the Shape, holding the infamous mask in his hand, revealing
an alien head underneath....
Keri can't help but smirk at the absurdity of it all. The
cashier hands Keri her change...
CASHIER
Happy Halloween.
Keri manages a polite smile, and exits...
CUT TO:
EXT. NIELSEN'S MARKET - MINUTES LATER
Keri moves down the tree-lined street, groceries tucked
securely under her arm.
She pauses at a storefront window. "KESSLER JEWELERS. EST.
1963" emblazoned across the glass.
ANGLE ON WINDOW
An assortment of wedding rings glimmer behind the glass.
KERI
holds her left hand up to the window, moving it slowly from
ring to ring... then she sees --
THE SHAPE
in the reflection... standing across the street, staring
right through her... taunting her. This is no alien...
KERI'S
heart stops... she stands frozen, totally immobile.
A TRUCK
passes between them.
KERI
takes this opportunity to spin around. The truck passes --
THE SHAPE HAS VANISHED.
KERI
I hate this fucking holiday...
Keri climbs into the driver's seat of her Ford Explorer,
tosses the bag of groceries on the passenger seat...
She starts the engine...
"MR. SANDMAN" blares over the radio... scares the shit out of
her. Keri quickly changes stations... heads back to the
school.
CUT TO:
INT. CARTER'S APARTMENT - NIGHT
Sparsely decorated. Scattered Chinese food containers litter
the counters.
On a glass dining room table, a table dozen cardboard boxes,
"DR. LOOMIS" in black sharpie scrawled across their sides.
The CAMERA PANS across the table where...
CARTER
sits, eyes glazed over... shuffling through a stack of
photographs.
ON THE PHOTOGRAPHS
Of a young Michael Meyers playing with a fire truck in the
den... running through sprinklers in the backyard... riding
horses at the county fair... no signs of the evil lurking
inside.
CARTER sets the photographs aside, digs through a file box...
pulls out a film canister marked "MEYERS' HOME MOVIES."
ON A PROJECTOR
CARTER threads the Super 8 film through it, turns it on...
images of a young Michael Meyers are projected on a bare wall
in the darkened room.
CARTER settles into the recliner, fights to stay awake...
THE SHAPE APPEARS IN FRONT OF THE WALL.
The home movies projected on his pale mask. He moves slowly
toward the sleeping CARTER, a knife in his grip.
The SHAPE raises the knife to CARTER's throat, slices it from
ear to ear. CARTER grabs his throat, blood gushes through
his fingers. Then...
THE TELEPHONE RINGS.
CARTER WAKES UP.
Gasps for air... he feels for his throat... no blood, all is
well.
The Super 8 films slaps against the projector, the reel now
over...
CARTER catches his breath... surveys the room... he is alone.
He picks up the phone --
CARTER
(into phone)
Carter.
BLAKE
It's Blake. Meet me at Grand View.
CARTER
Where?
BLAKE
The cemetery...
CARTER
Yeah, alright... I'll be there in
ten.
Carter hangs up the phone, massages his throat...
CUT TO:
INT. FREEMAN'S DRUGSTORE - NIGHT
CLOSE ON THE PALE WHITE HALLOWEEN MASK
CAMERA PULLS BACK TO REVEAL a mannequin sporting the mask and
dark overalls made notorious by Michael Meyers... its arm
posed high in the air, wielding a meat cleaver.
Gathered around the mannequin is the gang:
Linda is in the arms of her boyfriend, SHANE McCLOUD... a
tall and spindly teen, book smart and street dumb...
John riffles through a rack of Halloween costumes. Molly
leans against a nearby counter... she checks her watch,
visibly uncomfortable being here at all.
EDDIE CATERO, two years out of high school and still wearing
his letterman jacket, 'Nuff said.
He stands proudly by his display, nursing a beer... his arm
draped around Amy, who's painting her nails with a nail
polish plucked from a nearby display...
EDDIE
(re: the display)
Pretty wicked, huh?
LINDA
I think it's twisted.
EDDIE
This coming from the girl with a
stake through her tongue.
LINDA
You're glorifying the big creep.
SHANE
Besides, it's historically
inaccurate.
EDDIE
What the fuck are you talking
about?
SHANE
Michael Meyers never used a meat
cleaver. It was a butcher knife.
EDDIE
Who are you, the serial killer
police? What difference does it
make?
SHANE
It's not historically accurate,
that's all.
AMY
He could be holding a swizzle
stick, it still gives me the
willies.
JOHN
Don't worry... I hear he only
kills virgins.
SHANE
Another historical inaccuracy.
EDDIE
Would somebody shut this guy up?
MOLLY
Come on, we better get back before
Mrs. Sullivan makes her rounds.
Linda looks at her watch.
LINDA
Oh, shit. Molly's right. It's
eleven-thirty.
The gang heads for the front door...
AMY
You guys go on. Eddie's gonna
take me back after he closes up.
Bells hanging from the door JINGLE as they exit... John
turns to them as he leaves --
JOHN
Condoms are on aisle four...
EDDIE
Out.
Eddie pushes John out the door, shuts it behind him...
EXT. FREEMAN'S DRUGSTORE
The group moves down the deserted street, headed for
Hillcrest. John's arm around Molly. Shane's around Linda...
CUT TO:
INT. FREEMAN'S DRUGSTORE
ON A "CLOSED" SIGN
Being hung on the front door.
CAMERA PULLS BACK TO REVEAL Amy, holds up her newly polished
nails to Eddie...
AMY
How do you like the color? It's
called "Bloodshed Red."
EDDIE
Yeah, yeah... looks good...
Eddie grabs Amy by the waist, pulls her in... kisses her
passionately.
EDDIE
(continuing)
Let's go in back and check out the
"inventory."
AMY
Mmmmm, sounds good.
Eddie and Amy head to the --
INT. BACK ROOM
Eddie and Amy get hot and heavy amongst a room full of
cardboard boxes, Halloween costumes, and mask...
As Eddie prepares to do the one-hand bra release...
JINGLE-JINGLE.
The bells hung on the front door chime.
EDDIE
Shit. Can't people read? Don't
move. I'll be right back.
Eddie exits, leaving behind a half-naked Amy.
INT. FREEMAN'S DRUGSTORE
Eddie moves toward the front of the store, heads down the
center aisle. He hears the SHUFFLING OF FEET in the aisle
next to him...
EDDIE
(calling off)
Hey, we're closed!
Eddie rounds the corner, runs smack into --
THE SHAPE.
EDDIE
(continuing)
Shit!
It's only the mannequin, which isn't where Eddie left it...
arm poised high in the air, knife missing.
Eddie turns around to see --
THE SHAPE
standing right behind him, wielding the meat cleaver.
Eddie's seeing double...
EDDIE
What the hell...
The Shape attacks, slices through his skull with the meat
cleaver...
INT. BACK ROOM - SAME TIME
As Amy sifts through a box of scary masks, she hears...
A SCUFFLE
outside the door... she throws on her blouse, peeks outside.
AMY
Eddie?
A RUSTLING SOUND.
AMY
(continuing)
Damnit, Eddie! Stop fooling
around.
Still nothing... Amy cautiously moves into the store, looking
for her missing partner... she passes
THE MICHAEL MEYERS MANNEQUIN
AMY
If you think you're gettin' any
after this, you're dead wrong.
She stumbles, looks down to reveal...
EDDIE
sprawled on the floor, the meat cleaver buried in the middle
of his forehead... eyes wide open in terror!
Amy SCREAMS... can barely stand... she stumbles to the front
of the door... it's locked!
The Michael Meyers mannequin behind her comes to life, begins
to move toward her...
Amy beats frantically on the glass door, struggling to free
the lock... she turns to see...
THE SHAPE
closing in behind her... she SCREAMS.
The SHAPE attacks, grabs Amy by the back of the neck...
pushes her face through the glass door, cuts it to bits...
He lifts Amy high into the air, she struggles to free
herself... the Shape impales her body on a large shard of
glass.
ON Amy's feet... dangling a foot off the ground... then...
Her body goes completely limp... lifeless.
ON Amy's hand... blood cascades down her fingers, matches the
shade of her nail polish...
The SHAPE looks at her breathless body quizzically...
CUT TO:
EXT. GRAND VIEW CEMETERY - NIGHT
A well manicured graveyard... lush green lawns, thriving oak
trees, and patches of blooming flowers...
FRED WILLIAMS, an elderly caretaker, leads Carter and Blake
through the darkened cemetery... a flashlight illuminating
their path.
CARTER
You take all your dates here.
Blake?
BLAKE
Only the real stiffs.
CARTER
I can be real stiff.
BLAKE
Charming.
FRED
Hey! Watch my geraniums.
Carter looks down at his feet, finds himself standing in the
middle of a group of flowers... he quickly hops back onto the
grass...
FRED
(continuing)
Beautiful, aren't they? Rotting
corpses make the best fertilizer,
ya' know. Especially those Irish
folk. They push up the daises
like a son-of-a-bitch...
CARTER
I'll remember that.
FRED
Hell, I can tell you where every
Mick is buried by the ground cover
growing above 'em.
Fred shines his flashlight on a distant grave.
FRED
(continuing)
Irish...
(shining the beam on
another grave)
...Irish...
They stop in front of a gravesite... TOMBSTONE missing...
patchy grass covers the grave.
FRED
(continuing)
Never could get anything to grow
cover this one...
BLAKE
And you're sure this is Laurie
Strode's grave?
FRED
Sure as I'm standing here.
Fred shines the beam of the flashlight on an adjacent
headstone...
FRED
(continuing)
Buried her daughter right next to
her not too long ago. You don't
suppose that Meyers fella took the
tombstone?
CARTER
Probably just a couple of kids
playing a Halloween prank.
BLAKE
Tee-peeing a house, yes. A bag of
burning shit on a porch, maybe.
Digging up tombstone? I don't
think so.
Carter shrugs his shoulders, take a drag off his cigarette.
CARTER
I'm going to bed.
Carter heads back to his car. Blake runs after him...
BLAKE
That's it?
CARTER
Care to join me?
BLAKE
Come on, Carter. You know it's
Michael.
CARTER
What do you want me to do, put out
an A.P.B. on a man in overalls
wearing a white mask dragging a
headstone?
BLAKE
Yes.
CARTER
Sweet dreams, Blake.
Carter climbs into his car, heads for home...
CUT TO:
INT. BEDROOM - NIGHT
Keri tosses and turns in her bed, unable to exorcise the
demons from her mind... eyes wide open, watches the moonlight
cast the shadows of dancing leaves on the ceiling above her...
Then, the shadow of something altogether unnatural appears
above her...
THE SHADOW OF A MAN
hair tattered and tousled by the wind.
ON Keri lying frozen in fear, eyes unblinking.
THE SILHOUETTE
grows larger, nearly engulfs the entire ceiling... then
suddenly disappears from view... the dancing leaves return.
CLANK!
A noise from outside her window. FOOTSTEPS quickly make
their way around the house...
Keri jumps out of her skin, holds her breath...
A JIGGLING SOUND emanates from the living room, as if
someone's trying to get in through the front door...
Keri jumps out of her bed, slides a metal box out from under
the bed... pulls a SMITH AND WESSON from inside... heads
for --
INT. LIVING ROOM
Keri moves silently through the hallway into the living room,
gun at the ready... hands trembling... eyes locked on the
front door as --
THE DOORKNOB
slowly twists and turns... the SHADOW of a man behind the
curtain of the window flanking the side of the door.
KERI
raises the gun... uses both hands to steady her aim... her
breathing becoming more shallow with each passing second...
THE DOOR
swings open revealing...
JOHN
house key in hand... busted.
KERI
lowers the gun, fights back in tears...
John closes the door... if he's surprised that his mother's
pointing a gun in his face, he doesn't show it...
KERI
Shit, John! What the hell were
you doing out there?!
JOHN
Nothing.
KERI
You're kidding with that answer,
right?
JOHN
I just went for a walk. It's no
big deal.
KERI
Wrong. There are rules in this
house and you're going to follow
them whether you like it or not.
JOHN
Or what? You're gonna shoot me?
KERI
It's an option.
JOHN
Well, maybe if you'd let me live
in the dorms, I wouldn't have to
sneak out to spend time with my
friends.
KERI
Oh, so now it's my fault?
JOHN
Just forget it...
John storms down the hall, disappears into his bedroom...
slams the door behind him.
CUT TO:
INT. BEDROOM - MINUTES LATER
Keri enters the room, passes by the window... glances out
into the night and sees --
THE SHAPE
standing between sheets that blow in the clothesline.
KERI
closes her eyes, takes a deep breath... opens them... now
both the Shape and the sheets blowing in the clothesline have
VANISHED.
CUT TO:
INT. CLASSROOM - MORNING
Keri substituting for the absentee English Lit teacher. Mr.
Elliot.
A STUDENT has just finished her oral report and heads back to
her seat.
Keri stands, crosses to the chalkboard --
KERI
I'm sure Mr. Elliot will go over
this when he returns on Monday,
but Julie hit on a very important
aspect of Virgil's "The Aeniad."
She scrawls the word "FATE" across its surface...
KERI
(continuing)
F-A-T-E. Fate. The Romans
believed in the three goddesses of
Fate, called "the Fate." Nona,
Decuma, and Morta. These
goddesses determined your fate.
They were to blame when things
went wrong, and were to be praised
when --
Keri passes in front of the classroom, glances out the window
and sees --
THE SHAPE
standing behind the gates of the academy, waiting patiently
for his chance... eyes burning a hold right through her.
THE STUDENTS
wait for Keri to complete her thought... mumble softly
amongst themselves...
KERI
closes her eyes for a moment, takes a deep breath... looks
outside again... the Shape is STILL THERE!
THE BELL RINGS.
The students make a mad dash for the hall.
KERI
moves swiftly through the throng of students, pushing
bewildered pupils aside as she makes her way to the school
entrance...
CUT TO:
EXT. HILLCREST ACADEMY - DAY
Keri emerges from the building, moves across the campus
toward the iron gates... runs smack into --
WILL
throws his arms around her waist...
WILL
Whoa... what's the hurry? I'm not
going anywhere...
Keri doesn't respond, is too busy looking over Will's
shoulder --
KERI'S POV of the gate... the SHAPE has once again
disappeared.
Keri eyes the perimeter of the campus, searching for her long
lost brother.
WILL
(continuing)
Hey, you alright?
KERI
(distracted)
What?
WILL
What are you looking at?
KERI
I'm fine. I just need to lie
down...
Keri breaks free from Will's grip, heads toward the faculty
housing, determined. Will watches her leave, face laced with
concern...
CUT TO:
INT. HOUSE - KITCHEN - MINUTES LATER
Keri climbs atop a foot stool, retrieves a BOTTLE of Vodka
concealed behind bags of flour on the top shelf of the
pantry...
She spins off the top... brings the lip of the bottle to her
mouth, hands trembling...
She stops short of taking the drink, bring the bottle down
from her lips...
Keri climbs off the foot stool, crosses to the kitchen sink
and pours the Vodka down the drain...
CUT TO:
INT. LANGLEY POLICE DEPARTMENT - BLAKE'S OFFICE - DAY
Blake sits behind her desk leafing through the double
homicide case file, looking for some stone that's been left
unturned...
She removes a FILE FOLDER from an evidence bag, "KERI TATE"
in type across the index tape...
Blake opens it... still empty.
ON THE FILE FOLDER.
The light from her desk lamp falls across the open folder,
reveals a series of indentations in the left hand corner of
the manilla paper...
BLAKE
struggles to make out the ghost writing... grabs a pencil,
moves the side of the lead swiftly across the folder...
"6089244325"
The numbers pop out against the shaded background...
BLAKE
jots the numbers down on a nearby pad.
ON THE PAD
Blake tries formatting the numbers into a Social Security
number: "608-92-44325" too many numbers. She scratches it
out...
She tries again... puts parenthesis around the first three
numbers and a dash after the sixth number: "(608) 924-
4325" -- BINGO. A telephone number...
BLAKE
picks up the telephone, dials the number...
SECRETARY (O.S.)
Hillcrest Academy, may I help you?
CUT TO:
CLOSE ON: NEWSPAPER CLIPPINGS
from the "Haddonfield Leader" pinned to a large BULLETIN
BOARD, tales of the Michael Meyers' slayings splattered
across the headlines.
A TELEPHONE RINGS in the b.g.
CAMERA PANS ACROSS the board, finds...
CRIME SCENE PHOTOS
of Meyers' slain victims... bloody, graphic images assault
the eye.
CAMERA PULLS BACK to reveal we are in --
INT. CARTER'S OFFICE - HADDONFIELD POLICE DEPARTMENT - DAY
Carter sits beneath a desk... searches for the phone, finds
it buried beneath a sea of reports --
CARTER
(into phone)
Carter.
BLAKE
It's Blake. How do you feel about
Wisconsin?
ON Carter's puzzled expression...
CUT TO:
EXT. FREEMAN'S DRUGSTORE - AFTERNOON
A YELLOW SCHOOL BUS
parked across the street, filled to capacity with students.
ON John watching from outside the school bus as
AN OFFICER
strings yellow crime scene tape across the front of the
drugstore.
MOLLY
stands next to John, arm around his waist... watching
curiously...
LINDA
leans against the side of the bus next to Shane...
LINDA
Look, they're staring right at us.
SHANE
(to John)
You think your mom knows we snuck
out last night?
JOHN
Nah, I didn't tell her where I
went.
MOLLY
Is that all you guys can think
about? Amy never came back last
night. Maybe she's in trouble.
LINDA
Better her than me.
MOLLY
You're unbelievable.
SHANE
Linda's right. I have Yale to
think about. Amy's going to the
Barbizon School of Beauty -- if
they let her retake her boards...
ON BRUCE CLARK, a young deputy ducks under the yellow tape,
approaches...
KERI
stands in front of a squad car, craning her neck to get a
look at the proceedings...
KERI
Bruce... what's going on? The