mitchell judd- private eye

8/9/2019 Mitchell Judd- Private Eye

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Mitchell Judd: Private Eye

By

Tom Blagden


2/26

EXT. SUBURBAN STREETS - DAY

We move through empty, peaceful suburban streets. The sunis shining, and there is nary a problem to be seen.

We rest on a single house as a SHABBY TEENAGER walks out

of the front door, shutting it behind him. We followShabby Teenager as he walks off down the street.

Eventually, Shabby Teenager turns into an alley. We movebackwards to partially reveal MITCHELL JUDD leaningagainst a wall and writing in a notebook. We cant see hisface, but he is wearing a suit and tie.

Mitchell sets off after Shabby Teenager with a sense ofpurpose, placing his notebook in his pocket.

EXT. ALLEY - DAY

Shabby Teenager walks down the alley, hands in pockets,with Mitchell in pursuit. His body is primed and ready foraction.

Shabby Teenager pulls a chocolate wrapper out of hispocket and drops it onto the ground.

MITCHELLHey.

Shabby Teenager stops and turns around. Upon seeing

Mitchell, he is struck by confusion.

MITCHELLI think youre going to pick thatup.

They stand frozen, staring at each other.

SHABBY TEENAGER...No.

He turns back and continues on his path. Mitchell moves

slightly as if to walk after him A mobile rings. Mitchelltakes it out of his pocket and looks at the screen. Heraises it to his ear and presses a button.

MITCHELLHi, mum.

FREEZE FRAME

TITLE: MITCHEL JUDD: PRIVATE EYE


3/26

2.

INT. MITCHELLS ROOM - DAY

Mitchell sits at his desk in his small, cluttered bedroom.A textbook lies open in front of him as he does hishomework. There is a sudden knocking on the door.

MITCHELLBut if x is five, then...

MOTHER (O.S.)Mitchie? Theres a girl here tosee you.

MITCHELLWho?

MOTHER (O.S.)Rachel Finnegan.

Alarmed, Mitchell quickly clears his desk of anythingschool related and begins littering it with props.Notebooks, photographs, a magnifying glass and a bottle ofwhiskey.

MITCHELLOk, come in.

The door opens and in steps RACHEL FINNEGAN, 16. Prettyand sharp, Mitchell fixates his eyes upon her hungrily,leaning back in his chair in a futile attempt to look moreimpressive.

MITCHELL (V.O.)She didnt just walk into myoffice. She glided... glade...uh, glid? Glid. She glid in likea mermaid, or some other mythicalcreature. Perhaps a unicorn.

RACHELUh, hello?

Suddenly snapping back to reality, Mitchell jumps to his

feet.

MITCHELLRachel Finnegan.

RACHELYes. Thats my name.

MITCHELLIts been a while.

RACHELSince the end of term, yes.


4/26

3.

MITCHELLPlease.

He gestures for her to sit down on his bed.

MITCHELLHave a seat.

Rachel perches on the edge of the bed uneasily. Mitchellreturns to his chair and reclines.

MITCHELLI take it youve reconsidered myoffer?

FLASHBACK: EXT. PARK - DAY

MITCHELL

Want to go out some ti-

RACHELNo.

MITCHELL(beat)

So, no, the-

RACHELNo.

Mitchell awkwardly walks away, defeated.


RACHELUh, no. I havent done that.Actually, I need your help.

Mitchell leans forward in his chair, suddenly allbusiness.

MITCHELL

Youve got a case for me?

RACHELIf you want to call it that.

MITCHELLI do. Oh, Rachel, I do. But whynot go to the police?

RACHEL...I cant trust the police. Mybag got stolen. Its got valuable

stuff in it. Theyd just take it.


5/26

4.

MITCHELLOf course they would. Theyre allcorrupt. Theyd see a bag oftreasures like yours and sell iton eBay to fund their crackaddictions. But Im not addicted

to crack. You can trust me. Sotell me what happened.

RACHELI was in town, and somebodygrabbed my bag and ran off withwith it.

Mitchell quickly puts a finger to her lips.

MITCHELLShh, shh, shh. Start from the

beginning.

He takes out a notebook and pen.

RACHEL(slowly)

Ok. I was in town...

EXT. HIGH STREET - DAY

FLASHBACK: Rachel walks down the street unhurriedly,looking in the windows of the shops. The BAG-SNATCHER runs

up to her.

BAG-SNATCHERGive me that bag, you filthywhore.

He grabs it and runs off, leaving behind a stunned Rachel.


RACHEL

...And somebody grabbed my bagand ran off with it.

MITCHELLOh right, that was it. What didhe look like?

RACHELWell, he was skinny. Tall.Blonde.

Mitchells eyes widen.


6/26

5.

MITCHELLNo.

RACHELWhat?

He flips back through his notebook.

MITCHELLIt cant be.

RACHELWhat cant?

He flicks through it more, double checking his notes.

MITCHELLIve got two other open cases

that are exactly the same. Itsalways a perp matching thatdescription.

RACHELIts quite a common description.

MITCHELLNo. This is the same ghost Ivebeen chasing for months.

Mitchell gets up and walks to the window, looking outgravely. He takes out a cigarette and lights it.

MITCHELLDo you believe in evil, Rachel? Ido. Ive seen it. Ive seenthings that would make your skincrawl. Your mind is innocent andfeeble. I was like you once. Iwish I could be like you know.

He takes a drag from the cigarette and immediately startscoughing - he is clearly not very experienced.

RACHELAre you ok?

MITCHELLIm fine. Theres tar on mylungs, Rachel. The tar of crime.And its going to kill me unlessI kill it first. I think yourethe victim of a skinny tallblonde serial bag-snatcher, and Iwill do everything in my power tobring him to justice. Maybe evenkill him.


7/26

6.

RACHELOk.

(beat)I just want my bag back.

Mitchell sits down on the bed next to Rachel, who

immediately shifts further away.

MITCHELLAnd youll get it back. Ill goto the ends of the earth to findthat bag, Rachel. Even if I haveto sacrifice my own life, Illget your treasures back for you.

Suddenly, there is banging on the door.

MOTHER (O.S.)

Mitchell, are you smoking inthere again?

MITCHELLNo, mum!

MOTHER (O.S.)You know what I told you!

MITCHELLIm not smoking!

(beat)You were right to come to me.

Clever girl. Clever, beautifulgirl. Clever, beautiful,mesmirising girl.

He tries to brush a strand of hair out of Rachels face,but she moves away.

RACHELWhen are you going to startlooking for my bag, exactly?

MITCHELL

Right now.

He jumps to his feet and grabs his suit jacket, headingfor the door.

RACHELWhere are you going?

Mitchell turns to face her, slowly and dramatically.

MITCHELLHunting.


8/26

7.

MONTAGE - MITCHELL INTERVIEWING WITNESSES

1)

MITCHELLHave you had your bag or purse

stolen recently?

WITNESS 1No, but my house was broken intolast week.

MITCHELLInteresting. Does your house inany way resemble a purse?

2)

MITCHELLIm looking for a bag-snatcher.

WITNESS 2Oh, I can tell you like gettingyour bag snatched at.

MITCHELLI dont know what that means.

3)

MITCHELL

How tall would you say he was?

WITNESS 3I told you. I havent had a bagstolen.

MITCHELLBut if you had, how tall do youthink the criminal might be?

EXT. BROADWAY - DAY

MITCHELLHes supposedly tall and skinnywith blonde hair

WITNESS 4(pointing)

There he is.

Mitchell turns and sees Bag-Snatcher trying to wrestle apurse away from a girl.


9/26

8.

BAG-SNATCHERTake that, you slimy bint!

Mitchell approaches slowly.

MITCHELL

Hey.

Bag-Snatcher looks up and sees him.

MITCHELLThere are ladies present. Watchyour language, you vulgar son ofa bitch.

BAG-SNATCHERYoud better leave me alone orIll stir-fry your balls, you

saucy prick.

MITCHELLOh really?

BAG-SNATCHERIll marinate your spleen in adelicious sauce made out of youreyelids.

MITCHELLYou dont scare me.

BAG-SNATCHERIll cut off your head and hollowout your skull and fashion yourskull into a chalice and drinkyour blood from the chalice.

MITCHELL(beat)

Ok, thats actually quite scary.

Bag-Snatcher turns to run off, but he trips over. Mitchellkicks his motionless body before taking a wallet out of

his back pocket. He removes a card identifying the thiefas Floyd Bellamy.

MITCHELLFloyd Bellamy, eh? Youd betterchange your name to Bellafree.And then change it again toBellanotfree. Because youregoing to jail.

He removes a business card from the wallet - a simplewhite rectangle with a single word - Leroy.


10/26

9.

MITCHELLLeroy. I should have known youdbe the top dog behind the bottomof this.

EXT. BASKETBALL COURT - DAY

Mitchell makes his way across an empty basketball court,surveying his surroundings carefully. He approaches asmall goon, NORMAN.

NORMANWhat are you doing here?

MITCHELLIm here to talk to your boss,Norman. Its grown ups business.

NORMANShut up, Mitchell! If Id beenborn three days earlier, Id bein the same class as you.

MITCHELLYou should have been stronger,Norman. You should have beenfaster. Wheres Leroy?

LEROY (O.S.)Mitchell Judd.

Mitchell turns to face LEROY, a teenage crime lord.

MITCHELLLeroy.

LEROYMitchel Judd.

MITCHELLLeroy.

LEROYBeen a long time, playa.

MITCHELLLeroy.

(beat)Oh, right.

LEROYYou shouldnt be here, homie.These is the mean streets. Ididnt know you had it in you.


11/26

10.

MITCHELLOh, Ive got a lot in me.

NORMANYeah, I bet.

LEROYShut up, Norman. Go and coloursomething in.

NORMANIm out of your year by threedays!

LEROYYou here to take me down, homes?Here to bust me?

MITCHELLNo. Im frying smaller fishtoday. Im frying an anchovy.

LEROYWho?

MITCHELLOne of your bag-snatchers.

LEROYI dont know what that is.

MITCHELLYou and I both know that you hirelowlife scum, probably inbred, tosteal purses, and then you selloff whatevers in them. I want toknow where one of them lives.

LEROYI cant possibly confirm or denythat accusation, but if I wereinvolved in the activities suchas which you just described, I

would inform you that I would bewilling to trade information suchas which you just requested foryour guarantee to turn a blindeye to my legitimate businessoperations from this junctureonward. Playaaaaa.

MITCHELLI dont make deals withcriminals.


12/26

11.

LEROYDo you want the address or not?What do you even need it for?

MITCHELLThis guy stole something from a

friend of mine. I just want toget it back.

LEROYWho?

MITCHELLRachel Finnegan.

LEROYOoh, Randy Rachel. FertileFinnegan. Nice. Shes a choice

piece of ass.

MITCHELLI know.

LEROYAnd if you want to impress her,youll need to cut a deal.

Mitchell considers this for a long while before grudginglyextending his hand.

MITCHELL

Youve got a deal, you sack ofshit.

LEROYAlways a pleasure doing businesswith the po-lice.

MITCHELLIm not the pigs, Leroy.

LEROYWell see about that. Whos the

guy?

Mitchell gives him the ID card.

LEROYAh, Floyd Bellamy. Yes, hes apiece of work alright. Look, thispunk-ass bitch has been causingme nothing but trouble. He keepshalf the shit he steals forhimself.


13/26

12.

MITCHELLI guess crime doesnt pay afterall, eh Leroy?

LEROYIt actually pays very well,

playa. My papers looking realgood. But what Im saying is, Idont have a problem giving himup to the po-lice.

MITCHELLI said Im not the pigs.

LEROYIf you say so. Ill get Norman totext you the address.

NORMANIm going to do what?

LEROYShut the fuck up, Norman, and gohome. Its almost your curfew.

NORMANJesus Christ, three days!

Norman storms off. A SHOPLIFTER GIRL walks onto the court,carrying a stuffed full handbag.

SHOPLIFTER GIRLI got the shit you wanted.

LEROYThanks, bitch.

SHOPLIFTER GIRLMy name is Esmerelda.

MITCHELLWhats this?

LEROYOh, this set-up is tight, homie.I get these girls to go intoshops and steal shit. Then I sellit for mad cheddar, yo.

MITCHELLIll leave you to your bloodmoney, Leroy.

(beat)Its almost my curfew too.


14/26

13.

EXT. FLOYDS HOUSE - DAY

Mitchell creeps around the outside of the house, peeringin through the window. Moving to the door, he takes out atool and starts trying to pick the lock. Unsuccessful, hestands up and leans his head against the door in

frustration. It opens with the lightest touch, and hefalls inside.

INT. FLOYDS ENTRANCE HALL - DAY

He falls onto the floor and slowly picks himself up.

MITCHELL (V.O.)The crime in this town doesntjust take a physical toll.

Mitchell stands up and starts looking around.

MONTAGE - MITCHELL SEARCHING FLOYDS HOUSE

1) Mitchell enters a bathroom and tries on a spray ofcologne.

MITCHELL (V.O.)It takes a mental one too.

2) Mitchell enters the kitchen and begins eating from abox of cereal he finds.

MITCHELL (V.O.)Crime walks into the restaurantof the mind, racks up a bill andthen leaves without paying.

3) Mitchell lies down on a bed.

INT. LIVING ROOM - DAY

Entering the living room, Mitchell sees a pile of handbags

lying on the coffee table. Rummaging through them, hefinds one embroidered with a letter R.

MITCHELLThere are your treasures.

The sound of a car pulling up outside startles Mitchell.He slowly looks up out of the window and sees Floydapproaching the front door, key in hand.

MITCHELLBalls.


15/26

14.

He hears Floyd entering the house and moving towards theliving room. Mitchell panics and hides behind the door asit opens. Floyd comes into the room holding a handbag andcollapses onto the sofa, rummaging through the contents.

FLOYD

What a load of gypsy ornaments.

He tosses the bag onto the pile and turns on the TV,tuning in to Sex and the City. Mitchell is bemused.

FLOYDOh, Samantha. Youre such awhore.

Mitchell tries to sneak into the open doorway, but Floydnotices him.

FLOYDYou! Faggot legs!

Mitchell bolts out of the house, slamming the door inFloyds face and knocking him out. He ducks his head backin, his expression smug at his botched escape.

MITCHELLLooking good, Mitch.


As he leaves Floyds house, Mitchell opens the bag andlooks inside, finding several articles of clothing withsecurity tags still on them.

MITCHELLTheyve still got the securitytags...

FLASHBACK: BASKETBALL COURT - DAY

LEROY

I get these girls to go intoshops and steal shit. Then I sellit for mad cheddar, yo.

FLASHBACK: MITCHELLS ROOM - DAY

MITCHELLWhy not go to the police?

RACHELI cant trust the police.


16/26

15.


LEROYThen I sell it for mad cheddar,yo.


RACHELI cant trust the police.


LEROYMad cheddar, yo.


RACHELMad cheddar, yo.


MITCHELLNo...


Mitchell walks down the street, head hung low.

MITCHELL (V.O.)Rachel Finnegan. I should haveknown youd be trouble. You werea femme fatale, when all thistime, I thought you were just afemme. How could I have been sostupid?


Mitchell sits with Rachel, staring at her accusingly.

RACHELSoooo... Have you found my bagyet?

MITCHELLIll tell you in a minute. Ithink youre going to need adrink.


17/26

16.

He opens the bottle of whiskey and begins pouring someinto a glass.

RACHELIts, like, two oclock.

Mitchell forces the glass upon her.

MITCHELLDrink.

RACHELJesus, fine.

She takes a sip.

RACHELIs this apple juice?

Mitchell jumps to his feet in anger.

MITCHELLWhy did you do it, Rachel?

RACHELWhat?

MITCHELLYou double crossed me. You mademe a patsy. A fall-guy. A loser.A fool. My reputation will be

worthless.

RACHELWhat are you talking about?

MITCHELLIm talking about you and Leroy.

EXT. BASKETBALL COURT - DAY

Rachel hands a fully stuffed bag to Leroy.

MITCHELL (V.O.)He was paying you to shopliftgoods for him so he could sellthem on.

Leroy hands Rachel a stack of cash.

MITCHELL (V.O.)But maybe you got greedy. Maybeyou started stealing so much thatyou were attracting too muchattention.


18/26

17.

EXT. HIGH STREET - DAY

FLASHBACK: Rachel walks down the street unhurriedly,looking in the windows of the shops. The BAG-SNATCHER runsup to her.

MITCHELL (V.O.)

So he hired Floyd Bellamy to robyou and scare you into stopping.

BAG-SNATCHERGive me that bag, you filthywhore.


MITCHELLWhy did you do it, Rachel? Was it

the money? Are you fundng a drughabit, Rachel? Are you addictedto crack, Rachel? Is that it? Areyou addicted to crack?

RACHELNo!

MITCHELLWhat made you want to steal fromhard-working store owners withthis bag?

He tosses the R bag at her. She examines it.

RACHELThis isnt my bag.

MITCHELL...What.

RACHELThis isnt my bag. Id never getmy own initial on my own bag.What, is it in case I forget how

my name starts?

MITCHELLSo you-

RACHELI never stole anything. I donteven know who youre talkingabout. Whos Floyd Bellamy?

MITCHELLBut you said you couldnt trust

the police.


19/26

18.

RACHELOk, fine. I had a bottle of vodkathat my brother got for me. Imnot 18 yet.

MITCHELL

...and by vodka, you mean crack.

RACHELNo! What is it with you andcrack?

MITCHELL...Im sorry, Rachel.

RACHELYeah, Ill bet.

MITCHELLI shouldnt have accused you.

RACHELNope.

MITCHELLIm sorry I called you a crackaddict. Youre not a crackaddict.

RACHELNo.

He once again tries to brush a strand of hair our of herface, and she moves away even faster this time.

MITCHELLI was too blinded by your beautyto see the truth.

RACHELGetting creepy now.

Mitchells phone rings. He answers it.

MITCHELLHello?

LEROY(over phone)

Youre in big trouble, playa.

MITCHELLLeroy?

LEROYI gave you that address so youcould steal that stupid bag, not


20/26

19.

LEROYknock out one of my guys! Floydspissed, homie. He wants blood.

MITCHELLMy blood?

LEROYYes, your blood! We need to meet.Be at the park in an hour.

MITCHELLJust you and me?

LEROYJust you and me.

He hangs up.

RACHELWhats going on?

MITCHELLI think Im about to walk into atrap.

RACHELWhat are you going to do?

MITCHELL (V.O.)What can I do? What can I do when

evil knocks on my door? My turnscome. My numbers up. I cantescape from Floyd. Hes got thetenacity of a bloodhound and thefury of a tencaious bloodhound.Hell always catch up with me ifI run.

RACHELMitchell?

Mitchells face stiffens with renewed determination.

MITCHELL (V.O.)So I wont run. Ill stand myground. Ill be a detective. Illbe a private eye. Ill be a man.The criminals have run this townlong enough. The people need alight shining in the dark. Theyneed a protector. They need aguardian.

Mitchell gets up and heads for the door.


21/26

20.

MITCHELL (V.O.)Right now, they need a fuckingchampion.

RACHELMitchell, what are you going to

do?

Once again, he slowly turns around to face her.

MITCHELLIm going to walk like a badass.


With steely eyes, Mitchell walks with determination to hisfate. It is not long, however, before he becomes tired and

gives up.

MITCHELLOh, fuck this.

He takes out his mobile phone and dials a number.

MITCHELLHi, mum. Can I have a lift?

EXT. PARK - DAY

Leroy is already at the park when Mitchell arrives,standing in the long grass.

LEROYYou had to pull a bitch move onme, didnt you?

MITCHELLIt was me or him, Leroy.

LEROYWell, its you or him now, too.

Are you alone?

MITCHELLIts just me and you.

LEROYI could end this whole thing andkill you right now.

MITCHELLNo, you couldnt.


22/26

21.

LEROYYes I could.

MITCHELLNo.

LEROYWhy not?

MITCHELLBecause... because Ive got agun.

Leroy is taken aback. Even Mitchell seems slightlysurprised by his own lie.

MITCHELL(with conviction)

Because Ive got a gun.

LEROYNo you havent.

MITCHELLYes I have.

LEROYShow me.

MITCHELL...No.

LEROYShow me the gun.

MITCHELLNo.

LEROYShow me the gun.

MITCHELLIm not going to show you thegun.

LEROYIf youre strapped, show me.

MITCHELLYou dont get to see the gun. Notuntil I... Not until I shoot youin the fucking face.

LEROYOh, for real? Well, how are yougoing to shoot three people in

the face?


23/26

22.

MITCHELLThree people?

Leroy claps his hands. Floyd and Norman stand up, havingbeen crouched in the longgrass the whole time.

LEROYSurprise, motherfucker! I broughtmy boys.

MITCHELLYou son of a bitch.

LEROYIf youre going to do something,Floyd, do it now.

FLOYD

Ive got my fine china croqueryall set up for this gashface.

He advances on Mitchell, brandishing a knife.

MITCHELLWait! Hold on! We can make adeal!

LEROYNo deals, Judd. Floyd eitherkills you or me. And Im notabout to give my fine ass up.

MITCHELLI know what Mrs. Cranston set forsummer homework!

Fear flushes Leroys face.

LEROYWAIT!

Floyd stops in his tracks, angered.

LEROYShe set summer homework!

MITCHELLYes! And you wont know what itwas unless I live.

LEROYGoddamn. She said shed give medetention if I didnt do myhomework again.


24/26

23.

MITCHELLThat can all be avoided.

NORMANI could find out what it was foryou.

LEROYYo, shut the fuck up, Norman.Its big boy work.

NORMANTHREE! BLOODY! DAYS!

MITCHELLIll tell you what it was on twoconditions.

LEROYIm listening.

MITCHELLOne: Floyd doesnt kill me.

LEROYFloyd, hes off-limits.

Floyd turns on Leroy.

FLOYDYou origami dick!

LEROYIll give you a stack of dough,man. Just leave it be. Mitchellssorry.

MITCHELLIm sorry.

Floyd considers this.

FLOYD

Ten thousand guineas.

LEROYWhat?

FLOYDTen thousand guineas.

LEROY...Yeah. Yeah, sure, homeboy.Whatever you want.

Floyd skulks off, muttering under his breath.


25/26

24.

LEROYAnd condition two?

MITCHELLOh, right. Condition two. Youstop using girls to steal for

you.

LEROYWhat is this, the fuckingSuffregette movement?

MITCHELLDo you want the homework or not?

LEROY...Fine.

Leroy slowly extends a fist. Mitchell also offers his, andthey fist pound.

LEROYYou drive a hard bargain. Wecool?

MITCHELLYeah. We cool.

EXT. PARK EXIT - DAY

Mitchell walks to the exit of the park, where Rachel iswaiting for him.

RACHELYoure still in one piece.

MITCHELLI am.

RACHELWhat happened?

MITCHELLI did it. I stared Leroy down. Ishut down the black market. I didit all! And I did it with a knifepointed at me. I beat him. I won!

RACHELYou didnt get my bag back.

MITCHELL...No. No, I didnt.


26/26

25.

Struggling to find something to say to redeem himself,Mitchell instead resolves to say nothing and stands insilence with Rachel for a while before mustering up thecourage to make one last request of her.

MITCHELL

So do you want to go out some ti-

RACHELNo.

MITCHELLOk.

CUT TO BLACK.

END.

mitchell judd- private eye

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