TALES FROM THE TWENTY-FIRST CENTURY The Series
Screenplay © By David Collins and Peter Devonald
It is the future... An eccentric Grandmother reads a series of dark and intelligent horror stories to her grandchildren. The tales explore notions of power, sex, death, love, morality, happiness, revenge and Faustian mythology. With each story, the suspense builds, and the children become more and more entranced. By the final tale, the grandmother malfunctions and explodes. The kids are horrified - grandmother is a robotic house appliance. This kind of thing happens all the time. After all, this is the future.
THE VOID Conrad changes from being a bullied low-life data input clerk to a star when he discovers a magic camera, and a void.
THE BILDERBERG GROUP Anna’s father investigates the sinister Bilderberg Group – a group of statesmen and industrialists who rule the world.
YOU CAME BACK Do we learn the lessons of life, or are we doomed to repeat them, through re-incarnation?
THE PRINCESS Terrified on a long bus journey, Bobby makes a promise to a mysterious passenger in return for his survival…
THE ILLINOIS ENEMA BANDIT A bandit injects women with enema in a bizarre clean up campaign across America.
DISCO BOY Students get violently chewed up in Paris, and a famous movie star is implicated in the crimes…
THE SPIDER Spider is involved in a bank heist… but nothing is what it seems.
DO YOU LIKE WORMS ? Death, worms and ambiguous dreams…. what goes around comes around.
DESTINY.COM When Sarah finds a programme on her computer that foretells destiny, she thinks she’s been sent a gift from God… But when those around her start to die, she’s not so sure…
WALKING DESTINIES Ben fights to hold onto his sanity when he becomes entangled in corporate and virtual reality games of financial exploitation.
JAZZ MAN Milo is the test case for electronic limbs. He seems to have his life back, but the limbs have a life of their own.
THE WITCH A burnt out rock star sells his soul in return for musical energy.
TALES FROM THE TWENTY-FIRST CENTURY The Series
© By David Collins and Peter Devonald
TWELVE PART SERIES – 45 minutes each episode
ALL QUOTES @ ZOETROPE
A Grandmother tells a series of dark, extreme and intelligent horror stories, which explore notions of power, sex, death, love, morality, happiness, revenge and Faustian mythology.
The Void
Conrad changes from being a bullied low-life data input clerk to a star when he finds a magic camera. Whatever image the camera captures can be erased in the void; once it’s erased as a photo it’s erased in real life. Conrad takes revenge on those that bullied him… but he’s about to learn that with the ultimate power comes the ultimate responsibility.
‘The Void’ was a pleasure to read. Its characterisations were strong, and consistent through dialogue. Its visual elements were purposeful. The writing quality was of a high standard.
This is one of the most imaginative stories I've read here in the Film School…
This has a good Twilight Zone feel.
I laughed out loud many times… Your "loser character" reminded me of Woody Allen and Rodney Dangerfield. The camera and its magic are a nice trick; and the ‘total void’ in the basement is very good cinematically. The plot is good and solid. The dialog very good. Story was very funny…
'The Void' has a good main character, Conrad, the classic loser trying to get by. The idea of the 'magic device', this time an ancient camera that can take photos which leads to a alternate void is a good one.
A really neat idea, unusual and exciting. It sets the film up well and transported me to a completely different place. I really liked the ending. Conrad is set up as a wholly believable character, and I felt so much sympathy for him. All in all a unique story with a very clever twist, and perhaps my favorite of all the tales.
You left me curious, which is very good!
Conrad in 'The Void' has a great set-up into his life. I cared for this guy and wanted to see just what would happen.
The Bilderberg Group
A journalist investigates the Bilderberg Group – a group of statesmen and industrialists who rule the world. He finds out more than he bargained for… Years later, Anna, his daughter, tracks down the organisation and breaks into a secret meeting... Questions of power, paranoia and conspiracy proliferate in this tale of intrigue and denial.
This was a nice conspiracy story, laced with other tasty morsels. Nice twist… Looks like good TV fare with wide appeal.
An enjoyable read which led to a surprising and unusual denouement.
Ooooh this gave me the creeps! Ali was an excellent secondary character and Charlie and Anna stayed true to their slacker/pursuer image the whole time.
I enjoyed the characterisation of the pot-smoking Persian. That was actually pretty funny. And there is some rather witty dialogue.
You Came Back
Jack had everything; the great job, the great wife, the huge house... Trouble was, he was getting old, and he suddenly lost it all… A kindly Indian gives him the chance to start again through a potion enabling re-incarnation. But would he learn the lessons of his life, or would he be doomed to repeat them? He discovers the truth as an actor, a baseball star and the President in this extraordinary tale of identity and potential.
The story moved quite briskly and I was with it every step of the way. Good transitions…tying the scenes together, and well-written dialogue. Good pacing and imagery.
A good story that progressed well. I really liked the ideas tackled in this story, and feel that it has great potential.
I enjoyed this one too, although I wasn’t sure what the point of the dehumanisation was. I did like the allusion to the chain of being.
My favourite story was the one about Jack. Middle aged failure who goes from skid-row stew-bum to an un-recycled plastic Coke bottle buried in a gigantic landfill somewhere (Staten Island, NY comes to mind right away. It's HUGE!) The story was fine. The concept was fine.
What a bizarre little story, especially the end, but I liked that best of all. Very imaginative.
The Princess
Terrified on a long bus journey, Bobby offers anything to an African stranger in return for his survival… Little does he realise what anything means. In Casablanca everything seems normal, but amidst signs of impending doom he falls for a beautiful Moroccan woman. Little does he realise that she is part of the penance for his survival.
A good story and it works in the context of the other films.
This was a good story.
This one was interesting and sexy in a bizarre sort of way.
The characters felt real and the setting was interesting… the story is clever, exciting and particularly gruesome (maybe make slightly more of this!).
Liked this one as well. It wasn't my favourite, but it was real close. I think this is the most well written of them in that it flies without much work. The reader is lulled into a sense of lethargy about Bobby's promise "to do anything" to save the bus when he meets the seemingly harmless blowjob princess. Quick, quirky, memorable story-wise with a shocking ending. The kind of thing you could tell around a campfire at Boy Scout camp or at the water cooler to friends on a Monday morning when you discuss the weekend's movies.
The Illinois Enema Bandit
A bandit injects women with enema in a bizarre clean up campaign across America. Two detectives desperately try to stop him, but find themselves involved personally (and intimately) with the Bandit’s next solution…
A good story, very dark and different. This is one of my favorite of the tales, and I can’t wait to see it on the big screen!
LOL this one’s just disgusting but it made me laugh pretty hard. Clearly, the product of a sick mind. Eeny, meeny, miney, moe...Urine! There we go! Yikes! I love it!
The Spider
Spider is involved in a bank heist, and escapes with some top secret documents… On the run, he makes it to a small rural town. Approached by the police, he takes a café waitress hostage. He explains to her that the documents reveal the truth about the Bilderberg group – a group of industrialists who rule the world. He forms a bond with her, but she’s soon killed. After picking up a mysterious hitchhiker, Spider ends up back in the same rural town again, and the waitress is still alive… And things are only just beginning to get wierd.
A neat story. Reminded the reader of an X-files episode.
‘The Spider’ was interesting, and I felt it had the most potential. When Spider kept showing up in the town, it creeped me out a bit…
Disco Boy
Disco kids are being violently chewed up in Paris. Victims suggest a famous movie star is behind the killings… but three film students seem to be involved. Can the detectives find the killer(s) before (s)he they strike again?
The reader's favourite tale simply because Adam was so well drawn. A struggling film school student. That rings a bell.
A story that’s been greatly improved… a clever, classic who-dunnit, where everyone has a motive and reason… very good work.
Clever analogy between the killings and films… a lot of depth leads to a devastating denouement.
Do You Like Worms ?
Delsin was always a peculiar kid, far more interested in worms than human beings. His father bullied him, the locals spat at him and no one understood him… But three girls seemed to understand… until their kindness led to his violent death. Years later, somebody sends the three girls threatening and ambiguous messages… And they are about to realise that what goes around comes around…
‘Do You Like Worms ?’ made sense, and as a fellow social outcast, I can somewhat identify. The dialogue was good in this one, and the story fit well together.
I liked the worms...
This was very easy to read, very tight and well structured. It consistently transported me to a completely different place, land and world. A very good piece of work.
Destiny.com
When Sarah finds a programme on her computer that foretells destiny, she thinks she’s been sent a gift from God… But when those around her start to die, she’s not so sure…
A unique and killer twist. A great read.
Strange and interesting story, very bizarre. The script had a lot going for it.
Totally gripping and different. Everything a suspense thriller should be and more. Would make a great feature film…
Walking Destinies
It was an important day for Ben Fielding. If he got his proposal right he could go on the fast track to promotion. Little does he know the consequences of his actions… He finds out in a complicated game of bluff and counter bluff… chases, explosions and ambiguous dreams…
I enjoyed reading your suspense thriller. It is well written and the main characters, especially Ben and Sarah, are well developed and likeable. The plot is also interesting... Your script reminded me of John Grisham's work, only on a corporate level instead of a law firm.
BBC Film and Single Drama, Development (Film version.)
Jazz Man
Milo is a famous saxophone player whose life is about to go very wrong… Saddled with debts an unscrupulous debt collector takes more than his money… Months later the limbless Milo is the test case for electronic limbs. He seems to have his life back, but the limbs have a life of their own… and start taking other peoples lives...
‘Jazz Man’ is a pretty solid story. Solid dialogue. Flowed nicely. Pacing - reads fast and well. A damn good little screenplay. An odd and decidedly twisted script.
For me, the most terrifying story was the jazz man. Having your limbs chopped off with a chainsaw, and then robot limbs with a mind of their own attached instead. Nice touch about the kids in the museum at the end. The story was enjoyable.
The Witch
Danny Wilson used to be a successful musician, but he’s burnt out. A witch offers him a cure in return for three wishes. Suddenly wildly successful again, the witch asks him for the three things… half his total profits… to be written into his will… and finally, his penis. Desperately he fights to save his manhood, but a contract and a promise are binding… but binding’s going to be the least of his worries if the witch catches up with him.
‘The Witch’ was my favourite. I myself have often thought of striking a deal with the other side, but after reading this, I'd definitely think twice. Yol could even extend this to a feature length script if you so desired. Danny is good as a desperate musician and Cocco as his dark salvation. The writing style was distinct from the others.
OVERALL
All the stories were interesting. Groovy ending! I absolutely loved it. As a whole this is a good screenplay. The kids were consistent. A good collection of stories that work together on many levels. The film cleverly combines different genres – detective, conspiracy, horror, sci-fi and even reincarnation magical realism! All in all a clever piece of work that I enjoyed immensely.
The stories were good and engaging and fairly original in the manner in which they were told.
So the Grandmother was a robot. Interesting. I kept wondering why she was putting up with all their foul talk, and reading them stories like that, but it made it all come together. As a whole this is a good screenplay. The kids were consistent.
Overall, I'm impressed. These are very original stories, no doubt, and I was pleasantly surprised. These are definitely no card-board cut-outs, and feature strong concepts and a delivery that reminds me of more older horror movies in the vein of Romero and such.