"A BAND ON THE RUN"

By

Don Coorough

Screen Treatment

The movie opens with Paul seeing Linda off at the airport as she returns to England. Paul explains he should just be a day or two behind her since mixing of the album is almost finished. He suggests she get them packed for the tour and asks her to make sure the rest of the band gets ready as well.

Paul stands at a window and watches Linda's plane take off. The song "Hi, Hi, Hi" plays as the jet takes off into the sky and the credits continue. In a quick sequence of scenes, we see Paul leave the airport, drive through some highway interchanges, then off the highway and onto a dark, dirt road at dusk. The driver of an oncoming car seems to be drunk, and then runs Paul off the road. When Paul regains consciousness, he finds himself tied up and looking up at Blowfish. Paul says, "What's all this now?"

Paul is imprisoned in an old, run-down, abandoned shack of a holding cell probably used for transporting illegal contraband for years. While in his cell, we see him start the song, "Band on the Run," solo, on his acoustic - "Stuck inside these four walls / sent inside for ever / never seein' no one / nice again, like you, mama, you," and during this part he's thinking and dreaming about Linda, so we see her in the next segment which is then filled in with the sound of the recording.

When Linda arrives home, there is a telegram waiting for her. It's the ransom note. Linda is to hide from the world, the news and the authorities that Paul has been kidnapped. The ransom demand is for $50,000,000. Blowfish claims he can and will guarantee world peace if she agrees and pays the ransom. She is warned not to go to any authorities, especially the police. We hear Linda mutter, "I wouldn't go to the police anyway, all they'd likely want to do is bust me for marijuana possession."

Blowfish meets with his accomplice, Richard Nixon. They proceed with putting their plans to use the funds to purchase a highly secret and extremely powerful new weapon. With this weapon, they will extort power from all the national governments in the world, and usurp control. Under their rule, they will put an end to all conflict, but they will also exert the power of absolute dictatorial authority and gain extreme financial wealth.

We see John's character introduced through the song, "Watchin' the Wheels," as a homebody daddy in love with Yoko, taking care of Sean. Linda calls John to explain about the kidnapping. When John is told of Paul's predicament, John says, "Nobody messes with me mate," and promises to help.

George's character is introduced with the song, "My Sweet Lord," as living in Malibu, near enough to the beach to have an ocean view. The setting suggests George's character to be spiritual and sincere. John gives George a call to explain about Paul's plight. George is practicing his meditation when the call comes in. George takes the call, listens to John's description of the problem. Then, George explains by way of a reply to John, "We can't have Paul in the hands of anyone more dastardly that he is himself, so count me in," as he agrees to help rescue Paul.

Ringo is introduced with the song, "It Don't Come Easy." We watch him playing golf with Derek Flint and Alice Cooper at a golf course in LA. As we see them play the first hole, Alice tees off initially and hits a long drive down the fairway, a very good shot. Next up, Flint hits one out into the fairway a good distance, but not as far as Alice's drive had carried. Alice asks Ringo, are you sure you've played golf before? Ringo looks around sheepishly, then grins back at Alice saying, of course I have. But, when Ringo swings mightily at the ball, he misses it entirely with club. However, the force of the swing does cause the ball to fall an inch forward, just off the tee. Alice gives Ringo a pathetic shake of his head and says, "I've seen better swings on a playground, Ringo." Immediately thereafter, George comes driving up on a golf cart and tells Ringo, Flint and Alice about Paul's kidnapping. Ringo agrees to join in the rescue saying, "Well, we can't have that now, can we? I mean, Paul might actually end up dead this time."

Flint becomes fascinated by the part about Blowfish being involved in the kidnapping and tells the others it must be a plot to take over the world. Naturally, as a super-spy, he has to get involved. He explains, "The world is in desperate trouble, and once again, it needs me Derek Flint save it from certain doom." Then, turning to George and Ringo, he adds, "And of course, who better than I to help extricate Paul as well." Alice wants in on the rescue as well, saying, "We can't let Paul remain kidnapped, it'll ruin his legend."

So, Alice and Flint join in with George and Ringo. They fly to New York to join up with John, and then all five of them fly off to the airport in Lagos.

Upon arriving, Alice and Flint lead a reconnaissance mission as the others wait in their rooms at the ready to the song "Whatever Gets You through the Night." We watch Flint and The Coop go into bars, get a lead on Blowfish and learn that Blowfish is working with Nixon on this plot. Flint and Alice also discover the nature of the dastardly plan, to buy the weapon, usurp power, and rule the world as dictators while also extorting vast sums of wealth.

Surreptitiously, Alice and Flint find their way to where Paul is

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being held during the song, "Crackerbox Palace." We see them spy out the location of the building in the compound where Paul is being held. As is the case with Flint's character, he knows everything about everything, so he knows the history of the place, where the holding cell is located, and develops a plan for springing Paul from his captivity.

In a change of perspective, we go back to Paul's POV. We see him pining for Linda, and her for him too, and both of them remembering certain special moments together to the song "My Love." When they remember the same thing at the same time, they are seen in the same scene through the split screen technique, letting them almost seem to be together. This would lead up to a kiss that doesn't really happen, but does seem to occur through the split screen technique and lining up their lips as they imagine the kiss.

We see the boys put their heads together along with Flint and Cooper during the song "Got My Mind Set on You." They gather up their accoutrements and engage in undertaking Flint's rescue plan. The battle unfolds to the song, "Instant Karma." Flint and Lennonseek out Blowfish in order to neutralize him. George and Ringo go straight to the building where Paul is locked up to free him. George and Ringo get caught up fighting off many henchmen on their way to freeing Paul. Alice is left with the task of fighting off Richard Nixon. When he finally defeats Nixon, he remarks to himself, "I've got to get a guy like this to do battle with on my next tour." As John and Flint go after Blowfish, they are confronted by too many henchmen, and Flint has to fight them off. So, Lennon has to chase Blowfish by himself.

The great struggle of wills during the battle between Lennon and Blowfish is fought out to the song "Mind Games." There are many technological devices which Blowfish employs to do battle with John by attacking his mind with a kind of force field device run by Blowfish's mind. John fights back. The dials spin. The meters rise. Then, the equipment blows up and John forces his way in. When the two men finally meet, John overpowers Blowfish and defeats him.

Paul is freed by the others as they overcome his guards to the song, "When We Was Fab." As Paul is rescued and reunited with his former band mates, John turns to him and says, "You can't ever tell anyone about this you know." Paul asks, "Why not?" John explains, "People will think we're friends again, and they'll wonder when we're getting the band back together. That would just kill our solo records' sales."

After Paul's rescue, they'll all be whisked away to the site of Paul's first concert just in time for him to get on stage and play "Venus and Mars/Rock Show" as the opening number. Then, John, George and Ringo sit in with Paul and the four perform "Photograph."

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