Fine Line - a feature movie script by Pete Silverman synopsis (courtesy of Carl Andrews, editor) This story is about the sometimes conflicting and sometimes comical juxtaposition of reality, insane delusions, and spiritual growth/ connections with spirit. The story is seen mostly through the experiences of Briget, a musically talented young woman whose incredibly difficult struggles with her life include a dysfunctional wealthy family, drug addictions, and tragic events, leading to severe mental illness. Her life seems to conspire against her mental health, first through a childhood event where her un-restrained anger accidentally turns deadly– converting her alcoholic mother into an insidious enemy, then later the tragic death of her husband and daughter, at the hand of alcohol, and then, as she continues to spend years in and out of a mental hospital, through the cold and anti-spiritual methods and dark personalities she finds there. . . Brigetʼs personality is always rough and deeply damaged, yet her talent for flirtatious and creative fantasy teases and awes most people she meets. In many subtle but significant ways, the slow miracle of her spiritual and musical growth is subtly and eventually woven into her life, among the many delusions and wild turns she and her psychopathic buddies make. While it seems more and more impossible that she will survive herself and become a balanced woman, unseen forces combine with her musical talent and her urge to become a successful musician, and at the very end she overcomes and resolves her past. Laced with a continuous parade of episodes of comedic fantasy, thrilling special effects, disturbing paranoid delusions, and musical transcendence, the journeys of Briget and her nut-house buddies constantly elude our ability to predict what happens next, and result in deeply moving entertainment, impressive glimpses into the possibilities of the spirit world, episodes of fantasy & musical frolics, and a roller coaster of triple exposure between reality, paranoid machinations, and spiritual revelations. In act one, an interwoven repeating segue of special effects relates her struggles thematically to the spiritual world, represented by butterflies, revealing an esoteric spiritual connection with the spirit of her deceased daughter, who speaks to her through the butterflies, nudging her onto the track to develop her musical talent, and to heal from her deep despair and delusional, sometimes suicidal escapism. Briget gets released from the Hospital, marries Ross, settles down, has a daughter. They live happily on a farm, where Briget develops her songwriting and even gets a hit on the radio. But then one day, her husband and daughter both die is an accident. Briget tries to commit suicide, and is put back into the mental hospital. In act two, Tony, a musician, and an old boy friend from high school, begins to visit Briget, trying to help her get well. Briget trips, into delusions of grandeur, with Arron, a hallucinated music business agent. She also visits a Psychic, who reinforces her connection with Sarah, her deceased daughter. During a suicidal episode, her connection to the spirit world strengthens, via special effects on the spirit essence of butterflies. . she then gains friendships with a volunteer musician lady, who gives her voice lessons. Her music forms bonds with a few of the other patients with musical tendencies, and at the climax, the musician Lady helps her to differentiate and embrace her spiritual visions and connection to "God" as positive and separate from her delusions and hallucinations. In act three, after Briget has more hallucinations, creating conflicts within the mental institution and with her parents. Briget receives money from an insurance settlement, and her delusions of grandeur spur her to use her money to take her nutty buddies, along with the nurses and the audience, on a wild comical ride for a while as she and her psychopathic buddies purchase musical instruments and then imagine they travel on a fantasy pop music band tour. The mental patients learn to channel their absurd behaviors into an 'act' of musical harmony. Just when she seems to have hope to transcend the mental hospital environment, a brain illness makes things look hopeless again. But her conflicts with her parents are resolved in the threat of her dangerous illness. Now her strong connections to the spiritual world are aided by her mother's belated loving acceptance of her condition, and she finds the way to a miraculous spiritual healing– leaving behind not only her chronic delusions but also her physical disease. Finally her now– developed singing voice wins over the affection of Tony, her high school (estranged) lover, who is also a
musician and – to his surprise – the father of her deceased daughter, and who has been growing spiritually in his belated quest to help her. In the end, through an intensely cinematic transformation of delusion into reality, we are witness to the parallel triumphs of Briget finally harnessing her wild will power as she rises to the challenge of her devilish drugged delusions and her life circumstances; and her familyʼs resolution of conflict. All of this inspires her ex-boy-friend to return to her side, and leads her to connect well with her new-found audience on television as she tells her amazing story. Locations / settings: 1) 'Lakes Crossing', an upscale, high-security mental hospital with extensive facilities and beautiful grounds, including a music room, social room, gazebo, gardens, tree-studded lawns, steps leading to entrance, heavily padded cells, light security areas, an on-grounds cafe, bus stop, and a patio/ sun-room with many windows. scenes take place in all over this compound, at all times of day and night. 2) 'Hobby Farm' - little farm house, various farm animals, etc. 3) fishing boat marina 4) Hillbilly farm, with horses, hillbilly musicians, TENNESSEE -GREEN MOUNTAINS -DAY 5) Psychic's office 6) rock band tour 7) karaoke bar 8) estate of a wealthy family, interior- bedroom esp. evening. 9) Reno, ( or similar desert city) deadbeat section of town 10) interior and exterior of a city bus 11) interior and exterior of large black sedan 12) Concert Hall in Los Vegas 13) Beauty Salon, with sign that says: "SUZIE'S SALON" -NIGHT 14) Television talk show 15) Railroad Crossing 16) CEMETERY -SPARKS -NEVADA 17) 'Young Sneeze' recording studio 18) Courtroom
Characters ( in order of role importance ) Briget, (lead) an attractive female who is shown from age 9 to age 26 through the progress of the movie. Wild, hypersensitive, bent on exaggeration, a great vocalist, sometimes flirtatious, spontaneous, unpredictable, and a deeply addictive, clinging personally, she struggles with deep feelings of guilt about the consequences of her often reckless behavior. Sharon: Brigetʼs mother, a spoiled, nagging, alcoholic, vindictive and gullible, caught in the throws of submerged grieving over her lost daughters, and her emotionally flat husband. Sarah: Brigetʼs daughter, who is shown from age 4 to age 10 in the movie, and later speaks through a butterfly and through the spirit world to Briget. Ross: a young muscular fisherman, who becomes Brigetʼs husband and has dominant role in Act 1 (of three), but dies, along with Sara, before his character is fully developed. Tony Pietro: Brigetʼs high school sweetheart, a very handsome and smart musician, somewhat superficial and a socialite-- shown briefly at age 19, and from age 25 to 28. Arron Stone: businessman, 40's, has the air of success, wealth, ease, etc. Arron is a hallucination of Briget, and in the end implodes through self-contradictions and his clinging to Briget as his “rising star”. Andy: A tall, lanky 29-yr-old mental patient with a light character, comical boyishness and talent for playing the drums.
Piano Lady: a retired music teacher, in her 50s, volunteer at the mental institution, develops an intimate relationship with Briget through singing lessons Sandy: a Seasoned Counsellor at Lakes Crossing. interacts frequently with Briget. Halle: a new counselor in the mental hospital. 33, heavy-set, not terribly sharp. Sunshine Sally : a new age enthusiast, mental patient, who befriends Briget, and convinces her to go see a psychic. Shelah: 31 year-old redhead, lesbian, a patient in light-security mental ward, has an eye twitch, musical, plays rhythm guitar. plays minor role throughout the movie. Lloyd: Brigetʟs father, a stallwart logician, a highly successful architect by trade, unwittingly stuck in the role of arbitrator between the conflicting daughter and mother, a deadpan, yet apparently caring personality. Minor role in acts 1 and 2. Gray: a 40's age man, roudy-looking but mild-mannered lead guitarist, plays role of a street person who joins up with mental patients in their fantasy pop band tour. Amber: a sassy, 20-yr-old female bass player, very cute, mental patient, thin, who admires Briget and hangs out with/ argues with Shelah. she talks rapidly. Doctor Dollty MD: European psychiatrist with a dry manner Doctor Athena, 40's female psychiatrist. minor role in Act 3 Nurses: 4 or 5 women. some limited speaking parts, no major relationships with main characters. Veronika: female 25, plays keyboards, an old friend of Briget's. Mary: Briget's friend Suzie: Salon owner Pusher Man Karaoke Operator Judge SOURCE of the script: This story was authored as a movie script only, directly from the experiences of the author, Pete Silverman, who worked in a mental institution and had a brother who was a chronic mental hospital tenant. Pete has also experienced the process of the 12– step program intimately, and has worked in the fitness industry as a motivational coach. A Canadian, Mr. Silverman has written many original songs, poems, and other stories as well, and studied script writing privately and through courses.