Malcolm X Page #2

CHOLLY:

Git his forehead and eyebrows.

SHORTY:

I know what I'm doing.

Shorty applies the Vaseline to that area. Now he brings

over the steaming jar and places it nearby.

SHORTY (CONTD)

Listen. You pull my coat if it's

still stinging when I get through

'cause this sh*t can burn a hole

through cement.

CHOLLY:

Hold tight, baby, and keep your eyes

shut.

Malcolm nods his head, clenches his eyes and grits his teeth.

Shorty applies the congolene with a comb, working it into

Malcolm's hair.

CLOSE - MALCOLM

MALCOLM:

I thought you said it was gonna

sting... this ain't nothin'.

For a moment nothing happens, then the heat hits him. He

yells, tries to catch his breath: his head is on fire.

MALCOLM (CONTD)

You motherf***er. You're killing

me. I'm burning up. My damn head is

on fire.

He nearly leaps out of the chair, but the barber restrains

him.

Shorty, utterly unmoved by the outburst, continues working

the congolene into his hair.

Malcolm breaks out of the chair wildly. But the three men

drag him to a basin where Shorty has attached the shower

spray. His cries filling the room, Malcolm is ducked under

the spray. Shorty starts rinsing out his hair.

SHORTY:

Don't fight me, man. Let me git it

out.

Malcolm is a little relieved, he tentatively opens his eyes,

then he feels the congolene again and there is another

outburst. Shorty forces his head under the spray, spurts the

water all over his head, wetting Malcolm and the shop in the

process.

INT. CLOTHING STORE - DAY

SHORTY:

Well, Homeboy, you almost there.

Turn around.

Shorty is supervising as Malcolm tries on a zoot suit. He

slips into the jacket...

Rate this script:4.0 / 7 votes