The Eye of the Storm
[We hear a sputnik beeping as we see the standard WB shield zooming in from the darkness and into the red looney tunes rings. The banner appears around the shield with the words "FEATURE ANIMATION", and the shield comes to a stop. The byline "A TIME WARNER ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY" fades in afterwards, and the logo darkens as it fades away as the sputnik beeping sounds begins to disappear to silence. "WARNER BROS. presents" fades in on-screen for a few second and fades out and the film's title fades in and it zooms in slowly and then rapidly towards the viewer.]
[Then it cuts to space, the sputnik orbits from the distance to the right and to the left towards the viewer as the camera pans to reveal the planet earth and the sunrise. "EARTH 1957" fades in below, and fades out afterwards. The storm is brewing around the side of North America, the sputnik orbits away and the camera pans past the moon and we see a bright dot in the distance. It zooms in rapidly past the viewer to reveal itself as a comet and the camera pans back to planet earth where the comet is heading towards the eye of the storm. The camera zooms in towards the storm, and the flash transitions the scene to the an ocean waving rapidly. "SOMEWHERE OFF THE COAST OF MAINE" appears below, and fades out as a boat appears in the ocean.]
Captain: Mayday! Mayday!
Earl Stutz: [the scene changes to Earl piloting his boat] This is fishing ship "Annabelle"! We're floundering and taking on water!
Sailor #1: Mayday! Mayday! [an enormous wave smashes against the bow of the ship, throwing everyone in the cabin off balance. A glass shatters.]
Voice on the radio: What's our position?
Sailor #2: [grim] I don't know.
Captain: If you don't know where we are then you don't know where we're going! You could be running us right into the rocks!
Voice on the radio: Coast Guard Portland Station to Annabelle. Do you read me?
[as the mate starts to answer, lightning strikes the huge mast. It crashes through the pilothouse window, smashing the radio. Glass, radio parts fly. Earl's shoulders slump, now they're done for.]
[Earl comes out on deck, his men stare at him, eyes full of fear, desperation. Then, impossibly... the winds trail off. In seconds, the sea flattens into a sheet of glass. All is dean calm. It's eerie. Ropes creak.]
Captain: It's not over, you idiot! It's just the eye of the storm!
[the men look around, far off on the horizon, the raging storm still surrounds the ship, but overhead, stars appear. t's eerie, strange.]
Earl Stutz: Look!
[Overhead, a new, brilliant star appears, and it's quickly growing larger. The blazing light speeds toward the startled sailors, impossibly fast, intensely bright, blinding, all goes white.]
[Kawhoosh! The light crashes into the sea. Water files, the sea boils, churning, roaring, the water green-lit from below. Great clouds of steam billow and hiss.]
[Then, without warning, the raging storm roars back with a vengeance, a huge wave slams into the ship. Again the fishermen fight for their lives.]
[But then a dim light appears, far off in the rain, a barely visible beam sweeps back and forth in the storm.]
Earl Stutz: The lighthouse! Head for it!
[The lightbeam turns around and another lightbeam appears, Earl's relived look fades away. The boat then crashes into the metallic structure, causing the hull to break apart and Earl to fall through the window and on deck. Earl looks up and gasps and as the camera pans upwards to reveal the silhouette of a giant robot with glowing white eyes. The fishermen slowly backs away, but the aves engulf him and wash him off the boat. The captain begins to swim up the surface as the boat sinks, the waves crash into the rocky cliff and they drain away to reveal Earl had made it on one of the rocks. He looks up as the camera pans up several rocky features to see an actual lighthouse, its lightbeam engulfs the screen. We push through the storm towards an upstairs window, and into. A flashlight beam illustrates the storm smashing against a window.]
Annie: [offscreen] Hogarth?
[The door flies open and Hogarth's mother, Annie is there. Late twenties, attractive.]
Annie: Are you alright, honey?
Hogarth: Yeah, Mom, I'm okay...
[Annie turns to the shattered window pane, then pushes Hogarth's bookshelf in front of it to block the wind. Hogarth stares at his monther. She looks spooked.]
Hogarth: ...are you?
Annie: I hate when the power goes out. But... yes, I'm fine.
[Outside, the wind howls.]
Hogarth: Wanna stay up with me for a while? [coaxing] I could tell you a story...
[Annie smiles, touched.]
Annie: A story, huh? What have you got for me this time?
Hogarth: Well, it's a story about...
[Hogarth scans the toys and souvenirs on his bedside table. With a sudden flash of inspiration, he grabs a baseball card.]
Hogarth: Mickey Mantle. He had a magic bat, Mom. Everybody says so.
[As Annie watches Hogarth with motherly adoration, Hogarth picks up a plastic dinosaur.]
Hogarth: Anyway, this is the story of Mickey's adventures with the stegosaurus. It's got action and romance. And the best part is, it's all true.
[Annie laughs and touches a fingertip on Hogarth's forehead.]
Annie: You've got a lot going on in there, don't you, Hogarth? [wistfully] Just like your father...
[For a moment Hogarth beams. He looks over at a framed photo that sits on his nightstand, that shows a handsome man dressed in an army uniform. And as he stares at the photo, a sad, pensive look comes over Hogarth's face. Annie sees it.]
Hogarth: I can't wait until he comes back.
Annie: [gently] We've been through this before, honey...
Hogarth: They found his plane, mom. They didn't find him. He's gonna come back.
[Annie sees the resolute look in her son's eyes and decides to change tack.]
Annie: So what could he do with that magic bat of his?
Hogarth: [lost in thought] Huh?
Annie: Mickey Mantle. Could he cast spells with it, like a magician?
Hogarth: Oh... [brightening] Yeah. Yeah that's exactly what he could do. And that's why he was known as the Wizard of Sherwood Forest.
Annie: Sherwood Forest, huh?
Hogarth: Right. And then one day, this Stegosaurus shows up. And he says, [deep voice] "Who thinks he is mightier than me, the mighty thunder lizard?"
Annie: And this is all true, now?
Hogarth: Every word, Mom... I wouldn't make this up. So Mickey says, "I'm the two time American League batting champ. I was MVP of the All-Star game three times running. I go anywhere I please in this forest..."
[We drift back from mother and son, hunkered down in a pool of warm flashlight, surrounded by darkness.]
Rocket in Pocket
[It transitions to a bright early morning sunrise in Rockwell. The camera pans through the pier and zooms towards the hill, a young boy who is Hogarth Hughes cycles down the street and stops outside Chat 'n' Chew diner. He enters the diner and looks around to see if his mother is around]
Annie: Over here, Hogarth!
[Hogarth notices his mother at the bar and he approaches it with a box in his arm]
Hogarth: Hey, Mom! You won't believe our good luck! Look what I found...
[He makes his way through the coffee shop to the counter. As he passes by, various local ladies "THE BUSYBODIES" look up from their breakfasts, mouths downcast and eyes half, lidded, ever ready to cast judgement, should the precious opportunity arise.]
[Hogarth arrives at the counter opens the shoebox for Annie. A baby squirrel pokes its head out. Annie rolls her eyes.]
Hogarth: His tree musta gotten knocked down in the storm! Can I keep him?
Annie: Hogarth, we've been through this before. No pets...
Hogarth: But he's not a pet, Mom.
