FADE IN:

CLOSE ON SAM BALDWIN

A card:
Chicago.

He's in his thirties. His neck is pinched into a crisp

dress shirt and tie. His expression is vacant, faraway.

A breeze blows but he doesn't react to it. In the

distance the architecture of the Chicago skyline.

SAM:

Mommy got sick and it happened

just like that and there was

nothing anybody would do.

(continued)

And pull back to reveal:

EXT. CHICAGO - A GRAVESITE - DAY

Next to Sam is his son Jonah, age 9. Sam's hand is on

his shoulder. As the mourners go past and each takes a

turn shoveling a clod of dirt into an open grave --

SAM:

If we start asking why we'll go

crazy. So, rule number one.

We don't ask why.

CUT TO:

CLOSE ON ANNIE REED

Pretty, blonde, animated. Jeans, a T-shirt, a Baltimore

Orioles hat.

ANNIE:

Why? I just want to know why?

That's my first rule. I always

ask why. Come on. Tell me.

C'mon, c'mon, c'mon --

And pull back to reveal:

EXT. CHICAGO ALLEY - DAY

Annie is talking to her boyfriend, a good-looking guy

named SETH. They're carrying packing boxes into the

house they share in the Old Town section of Chicago.

The same stunning architecture in the b.g. They go up

the back wooden staircase to the house.

SETH:

There's no why, Annie. I'm

just not up for it. I never

said I was.

ANNIE:

Is there somebody else?

SETH:

Nope.

ANNIE:

You don't love me, is that it?

SETH:

Nope.

Follow them into:

INT. KITCHEN - DUSK

As they set down the packing boxes and Seth starts to

assemble them.

ANNIE:

How about ... you're too

narcissistic to commit to

another human being in a long-

term way.

SETH:

(agreeably)

That's good.

CUT TO:

INT. SAM'S CHICAGO TOWN HOUSE - DAY

An attractive, thirtyish couple, SUZY and GREG are

stocking Sam's freezer with enough Ziploc meals for a

months. A number of friends and relatives talk quietly

in the living room beyond. Sam stands alone by a window

that looks into the backyard. We can see a garden of

flowers -- clearly planted by Sam's wife.

SUZY:

Five minutes in the microwave.

Any one of them, five minutes

and done. Ready to eat. Do

you know how to make juice?

SAM:

Microwave. Five minutes.

CUT TO:

ANNIE'S KITCHEN - SEVERAL DAYS LATER

Packing boxes. Seth is moving out.

ANNIE:

You take the microwave?

SETH:

What am I going to do with a

microwave?

ANNIE:

You turn it on, you open it and

you stand in front of it for a

very long time.

SETH:

So you're angry. Big deal.

CUT TO:

SAM'S OFFICE - DAY

A large modern architectural firm in a Chicago high-

rise. Lake Michigan out the window. A large space with

several architects consulting, drafting, etc. Sam is at

his desk, working. An older colleague, ROB, comes over

to him. Rob has a mustache, smokes a pipe; he's kind

but a little stuffy.

ROB:

Young man, it's none of my

business, but maybe you should

talk to someone. I myself

have consulted a professional.

I used to be up tight.

On Sam's face. It's hard to imagine Rob being any more

uptight than he is. Sam takes some business cards out

of his shirt pocket and reads them off.

SAM:

Hypnotherapy...Shiatu Massage...

Loss of Spouse support groups...

Single parent discussion nights...

Parents without partners.

(starts riffling, angry)

Partners without parents.

People who need people. Guys

who go into the woods, beat

drums and bond. Get a shrink.

Hug a friend. Hug yourself.

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