i totally break the voice-over rule, but fuck-it. it’s about packing it into 5 pages.
Hiroshima
INT. CHILD’S NURSERY/JAPANESE HOUSE – DAY
INSERT TITLE: MAY, 1945
A small, bare Japanese bedroom with a tatami bed is being
transformed into a joint bedroom-nursery.
An elderly handyman (MR. YAMAMOTO), his face and hands world
worn, assembles a bamboo crib as a luminescent pregnant woman
in her 20’s, her long, beautiful hair neatly pleated to frame
her smooth, radiant face, sits near a window, knitting. This
is HANA TAKAHASHI, 6 months pregnant. On the dresser, is a
black & white wedding photo of her with her husband, TAKAO, a
handsome man in a pilot’s uniform.
MR. YAMAMOTO
Where is Takao now?
HANA
Flying supplies in Manchukuo. He
can’t say much about his missions,
but he hopes to be home in time for
the baby.
Hana looks out the window towards the blue skies. Her face is
stoic but can not hide the worry.
MR. YAMAMOTO
(kindly)
You and Takao will have a long and
blessed life with this child.
HANA
Thank you, Mr. Yamamoto.
There is a knock at the door, and Hana lumbers to her feet to
answer. It is a TELEGRAM MESSENGER, a young boy with head
bowed, hands her a telegram. He can not meet her eyes. She
rips open the envelope and reads.
HANA
No…
Mr. Yamamoto runs and catches her before her body hits the
ground.
INT. CHILD’S NURSERY/JAPANESE HOUSE – LATER
Hana wakes to see the worried face of Mr. Yamamoto. She is
laying on the tatami, a wet towel over her forehead.
MR. YAMAMOTO
I made tea if you’d like…
Hana struggles to sit up.
MR. YAMAMOTO
Please, lay. Too much excitement is
not good for the baby.
HANA
Takao–
MR. YAMAMOTO
Yes, the telegram.
HANA
Dead.
MR. YAMAMOTO
Missing.
HANA
Missing means they haven’t
recovered the body.
MR. YAMAMOTO
You must not think such thoughts.
Until you know, do not open your
door to darkness.
Outside, the sound of low-flying planes buzzes the air, a
patrol squadron, but the sound floods Hana’s heart, a single
tear falling, leaving a wet trail of sorrow.
INT. CHILD’S NURSERY/JAPANESE HOUSE – DAY
INSERT TITLE: JULY, 1945
Hana is sitting in her usual spot by the window, knitting.
Her stomach is bigger now. In the corner, the crib sits,
assembled. Every sound of planes draws her eyes to the sky. A
KNOCK comes at the front door. It’s the MAILMAN with a
letter. She opens it and lets out a scream of joy.
TAKAO (V.O.)
Dearest Hana. I am writing to let
you know I am alive.
EXT. PLAINS/MANCHUKUO – DAY
A plane crashes to the ground. It’s a terrible crash. The
navigator slumps in the back, the pilot is bloody but
breathing.
TAKAO (V.O.)
Our plane went down in the
uninhabited plains of the mainland,
my navigator Kenji was killed on
impact. It was only by sheer
miracle that I lived, though my
body was crushed and useless. For 4
days, I lay trapped, the only water
from light rainfall, no food,
waiting to be rescued, waiting to
die, waiting for some way out of
the twisted metal that had become
my world. Days into night, I felt
the crushing hopelessness, as
overwhelming as the pain of my
broken body. I would have gone
insane if it wasn’t for you–your
spirit, your voice, whispering in
my ear at my most desperate
moments, to hold on. By the 3rd
night, I was overcome by fever,
convinced I was nearing the end.
EXT. OCEAN – NIGHT
A man is struggling in the water under a full moon.
TAKAO (V.O.)
In fever, I dreamed, of a dark
ocean smelling of metal, burning
and death. The smells of war. In
the distance, I could hear the
moans of the dying. I was drowning
in it, wave after wave like human
hatred, pushing my head underwater.
I screamed your name over and over,
Hana…I wasn’t ready to let you
go. Suddenly, I looked up, and
there was a little girl standing
above me. You wouldn’t believe it.
She had your eyes, your long,
beautiful hair, an angel. She said
her name was Fumiko, and she’d come
to save me. She reached out a tiny
hand, and I took it, and with
complete ease, she pulled me into
the moon, a place so white and full
of grace, the black waters could no
longer drown me. I knew I was
saved. When I woke, I was in a
hospital in Changchun, having spent
weeks in and out of consciousness.
Hana, they say as soon as I can
walk, I’m coming home. Please
forgive me for what grief I have
caused you, a husband lost for
dead. My body is broken, but your
love saved my life. Just know that
I am fighting to get back to you,
and soon our lives will be one.
INT. CHILD’S NURSERY/JAPANESE HOUSE – DUSK
Hana clutches the letter to her chest, looking out the window
at the darkening sky. She cries tears of relief.
INT. CHILD’S NURSERY/JAPANESE HOUSE – EARLY MORNING
INSERT TITLE: August 6, 1945
Mr. Yamamoto is painting the walls a clean, cream color. Hana
brings in a tray of tea. She hands him a small cup and he
comes to sit next to her.
MR. YAMAMOTO
Takao will be here by the end of
the month?
HANA
Yes, he’s coming by train. He uses
a cane, but he can walk.
MR. YAMAMOTO
A miracle. You can’t ask for more.
Suddenly, Mr. Yamamoto’s expression changes to one of
confusion. Hana follows his gaze out the window.
MR. YAMAMOTO
I saw a flash.
As they look out the window, the sky suddenly turns red and
the air in the room wavers with heat, the glass of the window
seeming to bend. Air raid sirens SCREAM. Mr. Yamamoto pulls
Hana to the floor just before the glass bursts. Everything
rumbles around them.
Hana cries in pain. Her water breaks.
EXT/INT. TRAIN – DAY
Takao sits on a train, staring at the passing scenery. A
group of soldiers nearby are tuning a handheld radio
broadcasting Emperor Hirohito’s address of surrender. ANGRY
UPROAR. A SOLDIER with a bandaged arm that ends with a stump
sits down next to him.
SOLDIER
It’s over now. We’ve lost.
Takeo shakes his head.
SOLDIER
Where’s home, brother?
TAKAO
Hiroshima.
INT. CHILD’S NURSERY/JAPANESE HOUSE – NIGHT
Takao rushes in, leaning on a cane.
TAKAO
Hana?
By the window, Hana turns, a warm bundle in her arms. Her
hair is long and sleek, down to her back. She bounds towards
him and they embrace, tears flowing. She holds out the baby.
HANA
Fumiko.
TAKAO
The angel who saved my life.
Takao takes the bundle, and holds her, her tiny hand reaching
out for him. He clasps it in his.
TAKAO
And to think, each day, her hands
will never be this small again.
He looks at his wife, eyes full of love. He embraces her like
he’ll never let her go and kisses her. But something’s wrong.
Her hair hangs limply against her back from his hand. He
looks up and sees that she is bald, her hair a wig that’s
fallen. She’s sick. Her face is wet with tears.
HANA
I’m so sorry, Takao.