Page 6
MORNING
A beautiful morning, like one wishes everyone to be.
Léon in the bed. It's the first time one sees him in a bed and, furthermore, he sleeps.
By his side, on a small table, a gun.
You never know. On the other side, Mathilda looks at him, smiling, because he's almost nice while he sleeps. She starts moving to stand up. Léon abruptly wakes up.
His hand reaches for the gun. He sees Mathilda and the room.
Mathilda puts a hand on his chest and kindly forces him to lay down.
MATHILDA Did you sleep well?
LÉON ...I never really sleep.
Mathilda smiles.
MATHILDA Huh, yes? I forgot! ...When you fake sleeping, you'd better not snore!
LÉON (trapped) ...I snore?
MATHILDA Like a baby!
She stands up and wears jeans.
MATHILDA I go looking for some milk for breakfast... I come back. [She kisses him.] ...I love you, Lèon.
Lèon is shy.
LÉON You... You knock the code, when you come back, OK?
MATHILDA Yes.
LÉON Three times, then two times.
She nods her head yes. She tenderly looks at him.
MATHILDA May I ask you a personal question?
LÉON ...Yes.
MATHILDA What do you do, with the money you earn?
LÉON Nothing, for the moment.
MATHILDA Maybe it's the time to do something, isn't it?
LÉON Yeah, what?
MATHILDA I don't know... Getting far away, the two of us, for exemple... And forgetting all this...
LÉON (pause) ...Far... Where?
Mathilda smiles.
MATHILDA I'm gonna buy a globe, you'll see. Bronx isn't even marked, so much the rest is big. [She walks toward the door.] ...Think...
Mathilda gets out. Léon relaxes himself in the bed. He shily opens his arms and learns how to exploit a bed.
* * * * * * * * * *
INSIDE THE BUILDING
Mathilda comes back with her milk. She gets out of the lift and a hand covers her mouth.
The man is member of a SWAT team: bullet-proof jacket, gloves, and uzi at hand. He's not alone. They're seven.
THE BOSS (low voice) From now, you don't make a noise and reply by nodding yes or shaking your head no, OK?
Mathilda nods yes. She learns quickly.
THE BOSS Is he alone?
"Yes" from Mathilda.
THE BOSS Does he expect you?
"Yes" from Mathilda.
THE BOSS Have you got apartment's keys?
"Yes" from Mathilda. She hands him the keys.
THE BOSS Is there a code, a way to knock the door or something?
"Yes" from Mathilda.
She approaches her hand to the wall: two knocks, three knocks, two knocks. Wrong code.
The boss is satisfied anyway. He signs the group, they get in position. Mathilda in a corner, a man remains with her.
MAN Don't fear.
MATHILDA I have no fear.
The first three cops are in position. The leader is nervous. Everyone is ready. He knocks the code on the door.
Reply isn't late. Inside, a classical music starts. Cops get in, one by one, commando style.
From the corridor, one clearly sees apartment's open door, and one clearly sees also the hand above the door, that sweetly closes.
In the corridor, the other cops have no time. They hear the slaughter in progress: shouts and shots, for twenty seconds. Then door opens again. Three corpses in the apartment's corridor. The man with Mathilda uses his walkie-talkie.
MAN Shit! We need reinforcements! Maximum! Come on!
Mathilda puts a hand in her parcel and pulls out a gun she keeps along her body. On door's side, a small reflex. It's Léon's periscope, checking the other three cops' progression.
Two of them progress behind armoured shields.
Suddenly, Léon's voice breaks the silence.
LÉON (shouting) Mathilda? ...Now.
Léon appears from nowhere and empties his kalashnikov in the corridor. The three cops don't shoot for a long. Mathilda lifts her arm, kills the cop at lower landing and aims at the cop who kept her.
LÉON (loud) Mathilda?!
She appears in the corridor, her hostage before her, still her milk with her. Léon is relieved.
LÉON Don't expose your back! Turn!
Mathilda obeys and walks backward.
She needs her hostage for protection and he remains in front of her. Léon covers her from the apartment.
A group of cops, a dozen, gets upstairs.
Léon breaks the fire equipment niche's glass, unrolls the pipe in the corridor, throws the axe into the apartment and opens the water at full pressure. The pipe twists and beats all around the corridor.
Léon shoots. Reply is immediate. Fortunately, Mathilda is behind her hostage, his bullet-proof jacket is insufficient. Léon and Mathilda get back in the apartment and close the door, leaving the hostage crucified on it.
Mathilda is nervous.
Léon is concentrated.
MATHILDA Why did you unleash the pipe, I don't know?
LÉON It will take them five minutes! How long ago did they arrive?
MATHILDA I don't know... Five minutes.
LÉON Good! Snipers can't be in position.
Léon gets close to the wall and gets rid of the tents, allowing light to explode.
Window explodes too: they shoot like never before.
LÉON ...Ten minutes at least... Not five.
In the corridor, cops eventually catch the pressurised pipe and close the water. On all fours, Léon and Mathilda get in the kitchen. He gets the axe and the violin case by the way. Mathilda is more and more nervous. Léon is more and more concentrated.
MATHILDA How shall we get out now, Léon?
LÉON Let me work. We'll get out, I tell you!
He shoots at the dustbin duct and makes it explode. He enlarges the hole by axe. Léon throws in the duct his overcoat, his sack's content, and his violin (granades, weapons, etc...). Mathilda then throws in her teddy bear and polaroid.
In the corridor, sand bags are becoming a wall, armoured shields and cops multiply.
A cop gets in position with a rocket-launcher and shoots. The door explodes and smoke floods the interior.
Léon helps Mathilda to get into the duct. She's half in when she seems to realize something.
MATHILDA But... Léon? You'll never get in it! It's nearly too small for me!?
LÉON (smiling) I know, my love!
Mathilda starts crying.
MATHILDA No! I don't want to leave you!!
LÉON Mathilda, listen!
MATHILDA No, no! I don't want to go! I don't want!
He rudely takes her face in his hands.
LÉON Listen to me, shit! We've got no chance to get out together! Alone, I will get out! Trust me! I'm in perfect shape, Mathilda, now! I slept well! I love you! I'm happy! And I thought! I'll get all the money Tony keeps for me and we'll leave, OK? Together! We'll leave tomorrow.
MATHILDA You say it just to calm me!
LÉON Not at all, Mathilda! I tell you because it's true! You'll buy the globe you told me about and you will choose, OK? We'll go where you want! I swear, you'll see, Mathilda!!
He kisses all over her face. Mathilda is a little confused.
LÉON Come on, go! Don't let them find you! I finish this work and we meet at Tony's, OK? Spread your arms to do not fall too fast. So, good. At Tony's! One hour or two, OK? I love you, Mathilda!
He kisses her again.
MATHILDA I love you too, my darling.
He pushes her. She disappears in the duct.
Léon pushes his back against the hall and dries up his tears.
He shouts: terrifying.
In the corridor, three first line cops progress with gas masks; they decide to get in through the destroyed door.
Mathilda gets in the trash bin. She carefully looks out: nobody around.
She gets out and recovers some weapons.
APARTMENT
A wounded cop, mask on his face, gets out of the apartment and out of the smoke cloud.
He's therefore protected and taken over by another cop.
He accompanies him a little farther.
A BOSS Get downstairs, guy, get down!
He slaps him on his shoulder. The wounded cop obeys and gets to the lower floor. He's someway surprised when he realizes the stairs are literally full of cops everywhere.
The wounded cop passes by his colleagues and gets down.
Cops everywhere, sandbags. It looks like a trench warfare. He didn't yet pull his mask off.
One makes him sit on a bench and starts pulling off his mask.
A doctor comes in and checks out cop's arm. He pulls off his mask. It's Léon.
DOCTOR It's deep. You'd better get down to the ambulance, they'll care you properly.
A cop chief doesn't recognize Léon.
CHIEF 3rd district? ...A mess up there, isn't it.
Léon nods yes.
DOCTOR Let him breathe five minutes!! [to Léon] Would you like me to take you down?
Léon shakes his head no.
LÉON Let me put my mask on. I breathe better with it.
DOCTOR Yeah, right. Get down and wait for ten minutes. I'll get to check you, OK?
LÉON OK.
The chief gets away. Everything seems to work properly. There's just one thing Léon didn't notice: it's STANSFIELD's right hand, climbing upstairs, who identifies him and gets back down. Mathilda got out.
She observes, from a corner, the movements in the street. Police cars and ambulances all around.
IN THE APARTMENT
A cop's checking out the apartment, he pushes kitchen's door and a granade falls to his feet.
The explosion shakes the whole corridor. Cops crowd it.
Below, Lèon exploits the moment to stand up and discreetly walk downstairs. Floor after floor without problems.
SLOW MOTION
Behind him, unheard and unseen, STANSFIELD follows him.
STANSFIELD rises his arm. A gun at hand. The gun aims at LÉON's back of the neck.
Léon advances and can see just the lightful exit, synonym of freedom.
But his vision gradually gets paler and the image tilts, without noise.
The image is now completely inclined and gets paler and paler. Overexposed image, then suddenly: BLACK.
Léon's died. Without even realizing it.
Mathilda is still observing.
Stansfield's right hand gets out of the building and lifts an arm to the sky. He wants everyone's attention.
RIGHT HAND It's alright! We got him! It's over!
Some cops clap, others whistle. Mathilda leans on the wall and cries.
Stansfield is in the corridor, near Léon, officers are congratulating him.
CHIEF Shit! Never seen anything like this before!
ANOTHER He almost fucked me, furthermore!
STANSFIELD He killed Richmond, my boss, two days ago... And Rinaldi too! We've been on him for months.
A chief slaps on his shoulder, but he's embittered, he lost many men too.
CHIEF Nice shot.
SLOW MOTION
Mathilda appears. She wears Léon's large overcoat. A silenced gun at hand. Her face is harsh and immobile like never before. In front of building's entry, two cops look at her, stunned. This will be their last expression.
She gets in the corridor. At the end, STANSFIELD laughs together with his colleagues.
Mathilda advances until the white sheet on the ground. She crouches down, lifts one end. Léon's got blood everywhere, but his expression is sweet and relaxed. Mathilda caresses his cheeks.
A man tips on STANSFIELD's back. The group turns and sees the little girl crouched near the corpse.
Mathilda kisses Léon's mouth and stands up. She leaves her gun on the floor.
She looks at STANSFIELD, straight in his eyes, with a big smile.
STANSFIELD doesn't understand. Mathilda pulls her hand out of a pocket and launches something to him.
STANSFIELD catches the object. It's a metal ring.
STANSFIELD understands lesser and lesser.
Mathilda opens her overcoat: inside, a dozen of granades everywhere. One lacks its ring.
STANSFIELD UNDERSTANDS EVERYTHING.
COMPLETE, GENERAL, ABSOLUTE EXPLOSION
The shockwave shakes everyone in the street.
Still in slow motion, thousands of debris fall on the street.
A rain which is even sadder than usual.
THE END
[Translator's note: I dedicate this someway illegal, likely inaccurate, sure undemanding work of mine to the true genius who CREATED it in first place. But, please, let me consacrate it also to the angel who showed me dreams CAN get true: je t'aimerai pour toujours, Diane, mon ange. N'importe où tu est allé.]
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