Dialogue Activities (Exploring Spoken Interaction in the Language Class) || From the film Mulholland Drive

Cambridge Books Online

http://ebooks.cambridge.org/

Dialogue Activities

Exploring Spoken Interaction in the Language Class

Nick Bilbrough

Book DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511733130

Online ISBN: 9780511733130

Paperback ISBN: 9780521689519

Chapter

Dialogue Bank A - From the film Mulholland Drive pp. 222-225

Chapter DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511733130.011

Cambridge University Press

Dialogue Bank A

From the film Mulholland Drive by David Lynch

Box 84

Scene 1

Betty begins to explore the apartment. After walking a circle in the living room shepasses through the kitchen. She moves down a hallway looking at paintings andposters. She goes into the bedroom. She smiles when she sees the bed whichhas a huge ornately carved head and foot board. She notices the soiled dress onthe floor and she frowns as she looks closer. She stands back up, shrugs andgoes into the bathroom which has all the original thirties fixtures and floor toceiling tiles. As she goes toward the sink she smiles to herself in the mirror aboveit. Suddenly something catches her eye and she opens the shower stall. Therebefore her is the naked, beautiful dark-haired woman.

BETTYOh my!

She quickly closes the shower door.

BETTY (cont’d)I’m sorry. My Aunt . . . Ruth didn’t tellme someone was going to be here. I’m sosorry.

DARK-HAIRED WOMANThat’s okay.

BETTYI’m Ruth’s niece. My name’s Betty. I’msure she told you I was coming.

There’s a silence.

DARK-HAIRED WOMANThere was an accident. I came here.

BETTYI understand. I saw the dress. I . . . I’msorry. Are you all right?

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Dialogue bank A

223

There is another silence.BETTY (cont’d)

What happened?DARK-HAIRED WOMAN

A car . . . a car accident.BETTY

Are you okay?DARK-HAIRED WOMAN

I think so. I was just taking a shower.BETTY

Oh my god. I’m sorry. I’ll let you getback to that. I’m going to get unpacked.

Betty goes to the bathroom door and is closing it when she stops and looks back in.

BETTY (cont’d)What’s your name?

We see a close-up of the dark-haired woman. We see her eyes widen with a kind offear. She’s frantically thinking – searching her mind for an answer.

BETTY (cont’d)I’m sorry. I’ll get out of here and wecan talk later.

Box 85

Scene 2

APARTMENT BEDROOMBetty is unpacking in the bedroom and putting her belongings in the closet andthe dresser drawers. Many of her Aunt’s things are still there.

CUT TO:APARTMENT BATHROOMThe dark-haired woman is looking at herself in the mirror. She turns and beginslooking around the bathroom at shampoos, cosmetics, until her eyes fall on aposter of Gilda starring Rita Hayworth.

CUT TO:APARTMENT BEDROOMThe bathroom door opens and the dark-haired woman comes out wrapped in atowel. She’s drying her hair with another. She and Betty stare at one another.

DARK-HAIRED WOMANMy name is Rita.



BETTYHi . . . do you work with my Aunt?

RITANo . . . I

BETTYI . . . I mean . . . I . . . it’s none of mybusiness.

RITAShe has pretty red hair . . . she is verykind I think.

BETTYShe sure is. She’s letting me stay herewhile she’s working on a movie that’sbeing made in Canada, but I guess youknow that. I couldn’t afford a placelike this in a million years. Unless ofcourse I’m discovered and become a moviestar. Of course, I’d rather be known asa great actress than a movie star, butsometimes people end up being both andthat is, I guess you’d say, sort of why Icame here. I’m sorry, I’m just soexcited to be here . . . I mean I just camehere from Iowa and now I’m in this dreamplace. You can imagine how I feel.

RITAI think I’ve been hurt.

BETTYOh . . .

Betty goes to Rita.BETTY (cont’d)

Sit down . . .Betty sits Rita on the bed. She leans down and looks at her head and face.

BETTY (cont’d)Where were you hurt?

Rita motions to her head above her forehead. Betty looks through her hair andfinds her wound which has stopped bleeding but is surrounded by a very largeblue black bruising.

BETTY (cont’d)We should get a doctor.

RITANo.

Dialogue Activities

224



Dialogue bank A

225

BETTYBut, this could be serious.

RITANo . . . I need to sleep.

BETTYIf you have a concussion you shouldn’tsleep.

RITAIt will be okay if I sleep. I need tolie down and sleep.

BETTYAll right, but . . . I’m going to check onyou.

Rita lies down and is instantly asleep. Betty leans over her and listens to herbreathing. She gets a blanket and drapes it over the beautiful sleeping Rita, thenleaves the room.

© Cambridge University Press 2007



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Dialogue Activities (Exploring Spoken Interaction in the Language Class) || From the film Mulholland Drive