Ken Russell's Dracula (9 page)

LUCY

(
smitten
)

As brave as Doug Fairbanks!

Mina is impressed too, but equally
aware of the virtues of Dr. Seward.

MINA

You’re lucky in both

Your boyfriends, Lucy.

She goes to help Dr. Seward tie his
improvised splint. Not wishing to be left out Lucy joins her just as the
gangplank arrives, supervised by a POLICEMAN.

HARBOURMASTER

Stay on duty here,

Constable, and make sure

you let no one on board.

POLICEMAN

What about the Doctor here,

Sir?

(
darkly
)

You never know...

The Harbourmaster stops in his
tracks, glances at the deserted ship and nods approval.

HARBOURMASTER

Doctor, you’d best come

along as well - this could

be a case for quarantine.

DR. SEWARD

I’ll be right with you.

So saying he relinquishes his
patient to a COUPLE OF AMBULANCE MEN and makes his way to the gangway followed
by the two girls who are stopped by the Policeman.

POLICEMAN

I’m sorry ladies - no

sightseers.

Lucy becomes petulant.

LUCY

Oh really, Constable,

we only ...

MINA uses guile.

MINA

(
interrupting
)

We are both qualified

nursing sisters, Officer,

as Dr. Seward will testify.

The Policeman looks questioningly
at Dr. Seward who nods approval.

DR. SEWARD

That’s quite in order,

Constable.

The next moment they are climbing
the steep gangway towards the deck as the engines grind to a halt.

INT. SS DEMETER. CREW’S
QUARTERS. DAY.

QUINCEY pokes his head around
various doors to find nothing but a deserted ship until the sound of movement
from a cabin causes him to draw a Colt revolver from his belt and approach with
caution. Kicking the door open, he jumps inside, gun at the ready ... Nothing
except for the ship’s cat, a sinister black animal who bristles at Quincey who
frowns, slips the gun away and makes for the topdeck.

DR. SEWARD

Oh, I’m sorry, excuse me.

QUINCEY

(simultaneously
)

Pardon me, Sir, after you.

LUCY brushes between them dispensing
introductions as she goes.

LUCY

Dr. Seward, Mr. Morris,

Quincey, Martin ...

By the time the men have shaken
hands watched by an amused Mina, Lucy has reached the top of the companion-way
where a strange sight greets her.

INT. BRIDGE. DAY.

INSERT: A crucifix entwined in
rosary beads clasped in praying hands held fast by rigor mortis.

ZOOM BACK to reveal THE CAPTAIN, his
face set in a terrified grimace, lashed to the wheel. DR. SEWARD rushes forward
to examine him followed by the others watched by BLACK CAT who seems to be
trailing QUINCEY.

QUINCEY

How long has he been gone?

DR. SEWARD

Several hours at least.

LUCY

Then how did he steer

the ship?

QUINCEY

I reckon someone else did

The steering.

LUCY

Then they’re still aboard.

This observation gives pause for
thought, until...

MINA

Look at this, the pages of

The entire voyage have been

torn from the log.

Mina offers up the ripped log book
in evidence.

DR. SEWARD

This has all the signs of

mutiny.

QUINCEY

Mutiny without a crew?

T’weren’t as much as a mouse

down below. Let’s see what

the Harbourmaster comes up

with.

THE DECK OF THE SS DEMETER:

HARBOURMASTER

Not a soul. I’ve searched

The whole ship from stem to

stern - everywhere but the

hold.

QUINCEY

Right, I’ll take care of

that. Doc’s up on the

bridge with the corpses,

best you give him a hand.

The Harbourmaster blanches.

HARBOURMASTER

Well, I don’t know ...

QUINCEY

(
briskly
)

Look sailor, as first man

on board I claim this vessel

as salvage and accordingly

take command, so either jump

to it, or jump off!

As the Harbourmaster hurries off he
almost bumps into the TWO GIRLS about to take their leave.

LUCY

I’d love to join the

manhunt, Quincey, but I

really must be off to the

theatre. You are coming

tonight?

QUINCEY

Wild horses couldn’t keep

me away, Lucy.

He takes his hat off and kisses her
on the mouth, an action noticed by Dr. Seward with a pang of jealousy from his
vantage point on the Bridge.

QUINCEY

... and all the luck in

the world.

LUCY

Thank you, darling,

see you later.

MINA

Your tickets will be at

the box-office and don’t

forget the party at Lucy’s

afterwards.

QUINCEY

(
winking
)

Yer darn tootin’ honey.

As he makes his way towards the
hold, and the girls head for the gangway, Lucy blows a kiss to Dr. Seward who
is carrying the dead body down from the Bridge with the assistance of the
Harbourmaster.

LUCY

Till tonight!

As Quincey sees this and the look
of admiration in Dr. Seward’s eyes, it is his turn to be jealous. Even the
ship’s cat who continues to follow Quincey around arches its back in protest.

INT. HOLD OF THE SS
DEMETER. DAY.

QUINCEY breaks open the lids of the
boxes with a crowbar and snorts with disgust at the worthless treasure trove of
dirt. Suddenly a figure we recognise as DRACULA is silhouetted in the open
hatchway above.

DRACULA

You will derive little

profit from fifty boxes of

clay, sir. I am the customer

to whom they are consigned.

May I take them off your

hands?

Quincey looks up and wipes the sweat
from his brow.

QUINCEY

Fifty boxes of gosh darn

dirt!

He laughs to himself and shouts up
to Dracula.

QUINCEY

It’s all yours, partner,

take it away. I’ve still got

plenty reason to celebrate.

He lets out a great whoop of joy at
his salvage prize as the hatch covers come off in a blaze of light.

THE GRAND THEATRE, SOUTHAMPTON,
NIGHT.

From his armchair in the Royal Box,
QUINCEY, as elegantly dressed as any member of the smart audience beneath him,
sips iced champagne and listen entranced to LUCY’S golden voice soaring
magically from the brilliantly lit stage on which she is giving the performance
of her life as Joan of Arc in Tchaikovksy’s Opera, Maid of Orleans.

From his seat in the front row of
the stalls, DR. SEWARD also watches, fighting a losing battle to hold back the
tears. In the wings, MINA too is carried away by the pathos of the moment. Lucy
being the focus of her attention, she is unaware of a cloaked figure watching
from the shadows in the wings opposite. But not so Lucy. As she is dragged by
her captors to the stake close to where he is standing, she gives a start of
recognition at the imposing sight of DRACULA haloed in the glow of a score of
spotlights. He too is transported by Lucy’s song which reaches its climax as
she is engulfed in shimmering flame. Waves of tumultuous applause drown the
orchestral finale as the stage is deluged with flowers. Lucy bows

to all corners of the auditorium,
then smiles at Quincey and Dr. Seward who are on their feet frantically
applauding with everyone else. But of the mysterious stranger there is no sign.
Lucy gives a tiny frown of disappointment before smiling once again to her
public as the ovation continues.

EXT. LUCY’S ESTATE. NIGHT.

An elegant floodlit mansion forms a
picturesque backdrop to the dancing COUPLES and jazzing BAND which are the
centre of Lucy’s midnight garden party. Elsewhere, the GUESTS stroll among the
statues strung with Chinese lanterns or smooch in the shadows of the towering
trees. From the dark recesses of a rose bower, DRACULA looks through a pair of
opera glasses at LUCY dancing a slow rag with DR. SEWARD.

From Dracula’s close-up POINT OF
VIEW, it is easy to guess that Dr. Seward is proposing to Lucy, even though we
are too far off to hear the words, and that she is responding sympathetically.
Suddenly the binoculars sweep through the dancing crowd until they find QUINCEY
whispering to the BAND LEADER and slipping him a pound note. That does the
trick, and soon the maestro is leading his boys into a jazzed up square dance.
Now the binoculars follow the grinning Quincey onto the floor where everyone is
at a loss as how best to cope with this new crazy rhythm. Not so Quincey, who
takes Lucy away from Dr. Seward with a cheeky bow, and leads her into a
hilarious conglomeration of Charleston-cum-Hoedown. Dr. Seward showing a
mixture of anger and concern falls back with the rest of the crowd to watch the
cavorting couple go through their expertly-improvised paces. And though Lucy
soon begins to tire she becomes furious when Dr. Seward orders the band leader
to stop. Some of the onlookers are puzzled while others seem to guess the
reason for the termination of the strenuous number. Quincey sees it as a
personal challenge, and being somewhat the worse for drink, takes a swing at
Dr. Seward and knocks him down. Before Dr. Seward can pick himself up to retaliate
Lucy has burst into tears, run off the floor, and disappeared into the darkness
before anyone can stop her. An ugly scene is averted by the band leader who
swings the orchestra into the Black Bottom which sets everyone dancing again -
except for Quincey and Dr. Seward who glare furiously at each other across the
dance floor.

Lucy’s flight takes her close to
Dracula’s hidden vantage point where MINA, who has followed her from a discreet
distance, catches up with her.

MINA

Do forgive them, Lucy, the