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I, UNSEEN / THE MISUNDERSTOOD
First he gets murdered - then his adventure begins.
PLOT SUMMARY
It’s 1967. Flamboyant rock band The Misunderstood cross the Atlantic from America and become poised on the brink of stardom in swinging London. With a major deal in the bag, they’re ready to rock the world, but the dream is shattered when lead singer Rick is drafted into the US Army.
Forced back to the US, Rick is shipped off to boot camp, next stop Vietnam. At his wits’ end, and unwilling to “kill, kill, kill,” he flees in desperation. With a little help from his friends, Rick escapes the US, becoming estranged from his family, living destitute as a fugitive in India.
After spending seven years as a Hindu devotee in a primitive ashram, Rick is again forced to run as
the feds close in. Trekking into the Himalayas, he
seeks refuge with 100-year-old mystic Kali Baba.
Pursued and nearing the end of his rope, Rick learns of a secret ruby mine, which offers the promise of untold riches and a shot at redemption.
Torn between the claims of two competing gurus, a wanted man, and with nothing left to lose, Rick plunges over the edge into the seedy Asian underworld - uncertain of where fate might lead and unaware of the shocking life-secret he is bound to uncover.
Inspired by a true story.
CAST OF CHARACTERS
BAND IN UK:
Rick -- 20-32. Our lead. Band’s singer, tall. Blond hair.
Steve -- 22, band’s bass player, big, brooding. Brown hair.
Moe -- 19, band’s drummer, short and humorous. Brown hair.
Greg -- 20, band’s first guitar player, lanky. Blond hair.
Glenn -- 22, band’s steel guitarist, frail. Very long brown hair.
Tony -- 20, band’s English guitarist, medium. Black hair,
Nigel -- 24, band’s English manager, snob, mod. Brown hair.
Dick -- 26, band’s record producer. Tall, slim. Brown hair.
Jack -- 52, band’s record company president, medium. Balding.
John -- 25, band’s DJ friend, short, stout, British. Brown hair.
RICK’S FAMILY:
Col. Brown -- 43, Rick’s father, big Air Force officer. Gray hair.
Bette -- 41, Rick’s Mother, medium, pretty. Reddish hair.
Suzie -- 17, Rick’s oldest sister, pretty. Blond hair.
Holly -- 15, Rick’s younger sister, pretty. Brunette hair.
ARMY:
DI -- 35, Boot camp ID, big, Negro.
Redneck -- 20, Draftee in boot camp. Army cut hair.
1ST LT – 24, Boot Camp Commander, tall. Brown hair.
2nd Lt. Bill -- 22, Rick’s Army boot camp commander. Blond hair.
HIPPIES:
Harvey -- 20, Rick’s hippie friend, stout. Long black hair.
Sue -- 20, Harvey’s girlfriend, fat hippie girl. Brown hair.
Paulette -- 19, Rick’s girlfriend, petite, foxy girl. Blond hair.
DEVOTEES:
Mukunda -- 21, Rick’s devotee friend-1, medium. Brown hair.
Shyam -- 22, Rick’s devotee friend-2, tall. Red hair.
Swamiji -- 72, Rick’s 1st Indian guru, frail. Shaved head.
Dev -- 26, Rick’s devotee friend-3, medium height. Brown hair.
INDIANS:
Old Baba – 80, sadhu on train, frail. White hair and beard.
Gurudev -- 70, Rick’s 2nd Indian guru, frail. Shaved head.
Swami Madhav -- 80, Rick’s ashram mentor, Swami, frail. Bald.
Dr. Gopal -- 35, Rick’s Indian doctor, short. Black hair.
Gopesh -- 30, -- Gurudev’s servant, Indian Swami. Shaved head.
Babaji -- 70, Gurudev’s monk friend, enthusiastic. Bald.
Ramesh -- 40, Rick’s saint friend, near-naked saint. Bald.
Gupta -- 70, mayor of Delhi, gentleman. White hair.
Kasi -- 45, police chief of Jaipur, stout. Balding.
Dalmia -- 65, billionaire Indian industrialist, thin. White hair.
V.V. Giri -- 70, President of India, VVIP. White hair.
Singh -- 35, Indian plain clothes CID agent, slim. Black hair.
Bala -- 50, Indian ruby mine owner, medium. Black hair.
Gary -- 28, Aussie scammer, big. Brown hair.
Lucky -- 30, Indian gangster, small. Black hair.
Moses -- 45, Indian gangster, hugely obese. Bald.
NEPAL:
Paul -- 35, American hippie in Nepal, beard. Long brown hair.
Aussie Girl -- 20, hippie girl, sexy. Blond hair.
Randy -- 32, black hippie man in Nepal. Long black hair.
Kali Baba -- 100, old sadhu, orange robes. White beard and long hair.
BP -- 30, owner Dhulikhel Lodge, medium. Black hair.
Ira -- 40, hippie poet, Merlin-alike. Long black hair and beard.
THAILAND-USA:
William -- 45, American gemologist in Bangkok, big. Balding.
Cary -- 35, William’s gemologist partner, short, stout. Bald.
Anant -- 55, Thai gem dealer, stocky. Balding.
Bhu -- 27, Rick devotee friend-4, big American. Brown hair.
Karandhar -- 28, Rick devotee friend-5, muscular. Blond hair.
Joan Dunn -- 45, English lady psychic, short. Brown hair.
BLACK
SFX. Shouts, screams in HINDI. Sounds of rioting.
FADE IN:
EXT. MID-1940s NORTH INDIAN TOWN - DAY.
Muslim Indians rioting, burning buildings and looting. SHOCKING VIOLENCE. People are dragged out of their burning homes and stabbed to death.
FX. Text: India, 1947
Indo-Pakistan Partition Riots
EXT. INDIAN STEAM TRAIN - DAY.
Train roof is crowded with poor people. Among them is an old Indian MONK, long white beard, 80 years old.
Zoom to MONK'S FACE.
EXT. INDIAN STEAM TRAIN - DAY.
Train moves through open north Indian LANDSCAPE.
Train crosses a wooden BRIDGE over a river. Pan to BODIES, human and animal, floating in the river.
INT. TRAIN BOILER ROOM POV.
Riots at the next station. Crowds fighting. Burning CART is pushed onto the track to stop the train. Engineer opens full-throttle.
SFX. Train jerks and picks up speed again.
INT. TRAIN CARRIAGE.
Passengers are jolted.
EXT. TRAIN ROOF - DAY.
Monk and others are jolted.
EXT. BURNING BLOCKADE. ONCOMING TRAIN POV - DAY.
Train crashes through burning cart - sending debris flying in a shower of flames.
INT. TRAIN CARRIAGE.
Passengers are thrown to the floor.
EXT. TRAIN ROOF - DAY.
Some people FALL OFF and are attacked by Muslim mob. Shocking violence and murders.
EXT. TRAIN. SIDE OF THE TRAIN PASSES BY - DAY.
EXT. TRAIN ROOF - DAY.
The monk and others pick themselves up.
Behind the monk POV, the BURNING STATION grows smaller.
CU OF MONK'S FACE.
Hey Bhagavan, meri raksha koro.
EXT. TRAIN CHUGS ALONG. SUN SETS - NIGHT.
ZOOM TO ROOF --
CU MONK'S FACE. He sighs then lays on his back and looks up at the night sky.
EXT. STARRY SKY - NIGHT.
FX. Monk's POV - stars form into a skull.
EXT. SUN QUICKLY RISING.
EXT. TRAIN STATION SIGN, "RISHIKESH" - MORNING.
EXT. CU OF MONK'S FACE - MORNING.
Monk squints at the station sign, bows, and prays.
EXT. PAN RIVER AT RISHIKESH, GHATS AND TEMPLES -
MORNING.
SFX. Religious chants, Indian music, loud flowing river.
EXT. TRAIN STATION - MORNING.
Monk climbs off the train and falls. He gets up, shaking his head. Grabs his bag and starts to walk.
Ram teyree maya!
Monk hobbles past a temple and approaches the river.
EXT. GANGES GHAT - MORNING.
The monk descends steps to the river's edge, where he disrobes to loincloth and bathes by taking three dips.
SFX. Quick heartbeats, breathing.
The monk exits the icy water. Hand-wipes himself dry. Puts on a clean loincloth. Then he sits in meditation, reciting mantras, glad to be safe.
SUDDENLY --
SFX. Truck engines roar and screech. Breaking glass. Shooting. People scream in Hindi and Urdu.
INS. CU MONK'S STARTLED FACE.
EXT. BAZAAR ABOVE RIVER - MORNING.
Market is invaded by trucks of Muslim rioters.
EXT. RIVER GHAT - MORNING.
Crowds of terrified people rush down the riverside steps. Bricks, rocks, bottles and bullets rain on the crowd. Some jump into the river. Others are pushed in. The monk stands up and begs the attackers with outstretched arms to stop.
Nahi, nahi.
SFX. A GUN FIRES.
SLOW MOTION --
FX. BULLET. ONCOMING POV - SPINNING.
Monk's side POV - bullet rips through his NECK. Knocks the monk backwards into the river.
SFX. Splash. Sounds stop.
BLACK
SFX. Song: I'm Not Talking by The Misunderstood.
FADE IN:
WHIRL OF NEON COLOR - 1966 LONDON MOD SCENE - NIGHT.
FX. Text: London, 1966.
EXT. SOHO LONDON. THE MARQUEE CLUB SIGN- NIGHT.
"LIVE - The Misunderstood from America"
INT. MARQUEE CLUB STAGE. LIGHTS FLASH.
CU of RICK, 20, tall, blond, lead vocalist, singing.
All right boys, my turn. I'm not
talking. That's what I got-ta say.
PAN BACK --
Band onstage, viz., Rick, GREG, 20, tall, guitarist, MOE, 19, short, drummer, STEVE, 22, big, bass player, and GLENN, 22, frail, long hair, steel guitar.
PAN THE PACKED AUDIENCE.
PAN TO BACK OF THE CLUB:
NIGEL, 24, thin, mod, band manager, talks to record company A-n-R man, DICK, 27.
Mickie Most called me yesterday, but I don't
know if Mickie's right for these boys. I mean,
they're not exactly Herman's bloody Hermits?
DICK
Well, I have to tell you, Nigel, I'm very impressed.
A little rough around the edges - you know, visually.
NIGEL
Yeah, we're working on polishing up
their image. Don't worry about that.
DICK
Good. Call me on Monday, we can
set up a showcase with Fontana.
SFX. Music on stage swells to a deafening crescendo.
(mouthing the words)
Right, I'll call you then.