Along the Roadside (pdf format) by Brian Wind
A murderous drifter meets his match along a desolate stretch of rural road.
Gotta love any script that manages to intertwine a geriatric crocheting in the back seat of a sedan with serial killer butcherings…
Which is exactly what Along the Roadside, from Brian Wind, manages to great comedic effect. Of course that’s comedy as black as the La Brea Tar Pits!
Let’s join sweet old couple Parker and Taylor as they take a leisurely drive down a rural road. A figure in the distance waves them down, so they stop to offer the stranger a lift. That lonely figure is Yancy – the kind of hitcher the geriatric couple should leave stranded at the curbside, choking on their diesel dust. But hey – they’re old, naive and trusting. Just what Yancy’s counting on.
Did I mention that Yancy kills people who pick him up? Yep – that’s his standard M.O.
In fact, he mentions that detail to his over friendly benefactors, who seem to take it far too well (beyond a Waltons-esque exclamation or two). Even Yancy is puzzled. For awhile.
You can probably work out the twist by now. Or at least part of it. But there’s an Easter egg or two in this one, pertaining to Taylor’s name…
A great example of less being more, Along the Roadside packs a hell of a lot into five pages and limited characters. With an overload of dark humor.
Pages: 5
Budget: A very affordable shoot: limited location – small cast. We’ve only got one warning: budget for a quick trip to the grocery store.
About the writer: Brian Wind can be contacted at bwind22 “at” yahoo!
About the reviewer: Anthony Cawood is an award winning screenwriter from the UK with four shorts produced, two in post production and another 10 short scripts optioned/sold. You can find out more at AnthonyCawood.Co.Uk
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This screenplay may not be used or reproduced for any purpose including educational purposes without the expressed written permission of the author.
2 Comments so far
1.
KP Mackie
April 7th, 2015 at 11:50 pm
Short and sweet (the length of the story, that is ) with a nice twist.
Snappy dialogue. A breeze of a read. Well done. 🙂
2.
DCALL
December 1st, 2016 at 4:33 pm
Awesome script. Nice and easy read. Very visual I can see everything the writer wrote. I like the play on the hitchhiker lore.