Demolition

Synopsis: Davis (Jake Gyllenhaal), a successful investment banker, struggles after losing his wife in a tragic car crash. Despite pressure from his father-in-law, Phil (Chris Cooper), to pull it together, Davis continues to unravel. What starts as a complaint letter to a vending machine company turns into a series of letters revealing startling personal admissions. Davis' letters catch the attention of customer service rep, Karen (Naomi Watts), and, amidst emotional and financial burdens of her own, the two form an unlikely connection. With the help of Karen and her son Chris (Judah Lewis), Davis starts to rebuild, beginning with the demolition of the life he once knew.
Genre: Comedy, Drama
Director(s): Jean-Marc Vallée
Production: Fox Searchlight
  1 win & 2 nominations.
 
IMDB:
7.0
Metacritic:
49
Rotten Tomatoes:
52%
R
Year:
2015
101 min
$1,656,098
Website
4,886 Views


1

D'you mind if I turn this down?

No.

You're on with Phil.

Davis. Where are we

with the lightyear deal?

The banks won't budge, you know.

They're claiming

regulations as an excuse.

Same thing they did

with Haskell athletic.

Yeah, yeah...

What, they want more cushion?

Yup. 5%.

All right, very good.

Is my daughter with you?

Hey, dad.

Hey, your mother's upset.

Why aren't you talking?

That's between me and mom.

Well, you should

call. She's hard-headed.

Well, I guess that's

where I get it from.

Well, we'll talk it out on

Sunday at dinner, okay?

Okay. Bye, dad.

All right love. Bye-bye.

Have you looked

at the refrigerator yet?

Huh? The refrigerator?

Yeah. The box in our kitchen

that keeps things cold.

Yeah.

No. Uh, what about it?

It's leaking... it's been

leaking for two weeks.

The refrigerator's leaking.

Please don't do

that thing where you

repeat part of what I said

so I'll think

you're paying attention.

I'm not doing anything.

The refrigerator's leaking,

I didn't notice.

Can't you just fix it?

Your father

gave you those tools.

I have tools?

Yes. From two Christmases ago.

"Not my chair,

not my problem."

Is that what you say?

Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa!

Davis...

Davis...

She's gone.

The machine over there?

Uh, my candy's stuck.

It happens sometimes.

Do you have a key or something

we can open it up with?

The machine doesn't belong

to the hospital.

It's a vending company.

Davis, it's mom and dad.

We tried your

cell phone but we...

We can't get a hold

of you, and then...

Oh, honey...

We're... we're coming, son.

You have one saved message.

Hey, it's me,

your mailbox was full.

There's supposed to be

a package delivered,

so if you beat me home,

answer the doorbell, okay?

Love.

Oh, honey...

- Yeah! Again! Again!

- Again?

Dear champion

vending company, comma.

This letter is in regards to

a poor vending experience

at St. Andre's...

No, wait.

In regards to

vending machine number 714

located in

the intensive care unit

of Saint Andre's hospital.

I put five quarters

in the machine,

and proceeded to push b2,

which should've given me

the peanut M&M's, period.

Regrettably, it did not.

I found this upsetting

as I was very hungry.

And also, my wife had died

10 minutes earlier.

I'm not saying

that was your fault.

We were in a car accident.

Remarkably,

I escaped without a scratch.

I'm not trying to

dramatize my claim,

I just wanna be thorough.

Maybe I should start

from the beginning.

I get up every

morning at 5:
30.

I work in the markets

so it's important

to get an early start.

Not to imply that it's

any more important than, say,

a Baker or a toll collector.

Those are fine,

respectable jobs.

I just mean that I commute.

I catch the 7:
15

out of white plains.

It's pretty much the same

crowd during the week.

John works the ground crew

at Yankee stadium.

The first time we met,

he asked what I did,

and I told him...

Uh, retail mattresses.

Retail mattresses?

That's amazing...

I don't know why.

It just popped into my head.

I avoided him after that 'cause

I couldn't stand

his hot coffee breath.

Excuse me...

I think he knew.

I never thought I'd

be one of those people

who carried a briefcase.

It always reminds me of

carrying a lunch box to school.

Do they still make those?

Mister Mitchell.

Morning.

Julia's father is

a founding partner

at the investment firm

I work at.

Nepotism in its truest form.

He started grooming me

when I was 27.

I hate that word.

Monkeys groom.

Wavin' at you from over here.

Can you see me, buddy?

It's a small firm,

but we handle

quite a bit of money.

I don't wanna say how much,

'cause I think

it would be inappropriate.

Just look over

where the money is.

Okay, it's $6 billion.

Emerging markets,

infrastructure,

power plants, telecom, seaworld,

windshield wipers...

Mmm-hmm.

You name it.

Doesn't matter what industry.

We buy 'em cheap,

and we sell it for a bundle.

But none of it's real.

Nothing to hold in my hands.

It's all just numbers.

Computer codes being transferred

electronically through the air.

Right in front of us.

The French poet, Paul Valery,

was right when he said,

"the future isn't

what it used to be."

Phil Eastwood.

My father-in-law.

F-i-l. Phil.

I think

the acronym is hysterical.

I know Phil is

spelled with a p-h,

but it still makes

me laugh in my head.

Davis.

Bullshit.

I met Julia at a party.

Who put

that goddamn chair there?

Not my chair...

Not my chair, not my problem,

that's what I say.

A mutual friend said

she thought I was hot.

I returned the compliment.

I like things with

seashells and seahorses

on 'em,

like blankets and towels...

We had sex about

three hours later.

Forever...

Forever...

I don't think Phil

liked me that much at first.

I grew up in Jersey.

I didn't come from money.

And I puked on the ice sculpture

at our engagement party.

Also, he told me once...

I don't like you, Davis.

Julia was a nice girl.

A good person.

She worked with

special needs children,

she snorted when she laughed

and cried every time they showed

footage of the towers falling.

Other than that,

I don't think I knew

who she really was.

She always said

I didn't pay attention.

Perhaps you'll find

this information irrelevant

in your deliberation

of my refund,

but I think you deserve

the whole story.

Rate this script:0.0 / 0 votes

Bryan Sipe

All Bryan Sipe scripts | Bryan Sipe Scripts

0 fans

Submitted on August 05, 2018

Discuss this script with the community:

0 Comments

    Translation

    Translate and read this script in other languages:

    Select another language:

    • - Select -
    • 简体中文 (Chinese - Simplified)
    • 繁體中文 (Chinese - Traditional)
    • Español (Spanish)
    • Esperanto (Esperanto)
    • 日本語 (Japanese)
    • Português (Portuguese)
    • Deutsch (German)
    • العربية (Arabic)
    • Français (French)
    • Русский (Russian)
    • ಕನ್ನಡ (Kannada)
    • 한국어 (Korean)
    • עברית (Hebrew)
    • Gaeilge (Irish)
    • Українська (Ukrainian)
    • اردو (Urdu)
    • Magyar (Hungarian)
    • मानक हिन्दी (Hindi)
    • Indonesia (Indonesian)
    • Italiano (Italian)
    • தமிழ் (Tamil)
    • Türkçe (Turkish)
    • తెలుగు (Telugu)
    • ภาษาไทย (Thai)
    • Tiếng Việt (Vietnamese)
    • Čeština (Czech)
    • Polski (Polish)
    • Bahasa Indonesia (Indonesian)
    • Românește (Romanian)
    • Nederlands (Dutch)
    • Ελληνικά (Greek)
    • Latinum (Latin)
    • Svenska (Swedish)
    • Dansk (Danish)
    • Suomi (Finnish)
    • فارسی (Persian)
    • ייִדיש (Yiddish)
    • հայերեն (Armenian)
    • Norsk (Norwegian)
    • English (English)

    Citation

    Use the citation below to add this screenplay to your bibliography:

    Style:MLAChicagoAPA

    "Demolition" Scripts.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 28 Apr. 2024. <https://www.scripts.com/script/demolition_6700>.

    We need you!

    Help us build the largest writers community and scripts collection on the web!

    Watch the movie trailer

    Demolition

    Browse Scripts.com

    The Studio:

    ScreenWriting Tool

    Write your screenplay and focus on the story with many helpful features.