A drama dealing with grief, friendship and addiction.
Logline
A recently-widowed pensioner attempts to give away all of his money in the hope of reaching enlightenment.
Synopsis
Following his wife’s funeral, BILL, in his eighties, struggles to adapt to life on his own, without any children or friends. Contemplating suicide, he stumbles upon a TV program about Indian Sadhus and their way of living. Having found purpose in reaching enlightenment, he leaves his house with only the clothes on his back and begins roaming the streets. It does not take long until he finds himself exploited for the money he took with him and ends up all alone again and shivering in a car park.
Luckily, MANDI, a homeless ex-addict, discovers Bill and convinces him to let her help him. Soon enough, they find themselves back at his house, where she treats his fever while he lets her stay for company and occasionally gives her money for groceries. Unfortunately, their peace is disturbed when DEAN, a drug dealer who forced Mandi into prostitution and recently got out of prison, re-enters her life.
It does not take long before he gets Mandi to fall off the wagon and begins exploiting Bill for his house, moving in his gang to take over the place. Time goes by, and matters get even worse as Mandi becomes more and more addicted to drugs. Meanwhile, Dean continues to physically abuse her, while his gang torments Bill and his neighbourhood. At the same time, in a drugged daze, Mandi accidentally mentions Bill’s stash of money, which Dean is immediately after.
After Dean directly threatens the old man, Mandi finally comes to her senses, and she and Bill depart for Blackpool, attempting to escape further trouble. However, the addict cannot stop herself and attacks Bill for his money, nearly killing him. Yet, the old man does not give up, and after being hospitalised, he makes it back home to an uncertain future. Dean and his gang may have been cleared out by a police raid, but they left Bill in a ransacked house and, as before, all alone again.
Inspiration
Saddo was initially inspired by the death of my father-in-law and the helplessness of those left behind. Years later the project was fully realised when drug dealers moved in next door to me and caused chaos, leaving me feeling highly vulnerable and fearful for my young family. My daughters would splash merrily in the puddles in the street where minutes earlier balaclava-clad bikers sold crack to the cuckooed prostitute next door. I was terrified of someone turning up with a gun and a grudge and hitting the wrong house. Writing this script proved cathartic until we managed to move away but the worst thing at the time was feeling that there was nothing I could do to change the situation. So many others out there, the central character of this screenplay included, don’t have the strength I managed to muster, nor the luck that granted me an escape.
Genre: Tragedy
Format: Screenplay
Length: 86 pages
For further information or to request the treatment or the script, please email james@jamesagray.co.uk