[Movie Script]Adaptation

ADAPTATION

by

Charlie Kaufman and Donald Kaufman
adapted from the book
      THE ORCHID THIEF



by
Susan Orlean
September 24, 1999

Second Draft



EXT. ROCKY TERRAIN - DAY



Endless barren landscape. No sign of life. The atmosphere

is hazy, toxic-looking. Volcanoes erupt. Meteors bombard.

Lightning strikes, concussing murky pools of water. Silence.
INT. LARGE EMPTY LIVING ROOM - MORNING



SUBTITLE: HOLLYWOOD, CA, FOUR BILLION AND FORTY YEARS LATER



Beamed ceilings and ostentatious fireplace. A few birthday

cards on the mantel, two of them identical: "To Our Dear Son

on His Fortieth Birthday." Charlie Kaufman, a fat, balding

man in a purple sweater with tags still attached, paces the

room. His incantational voice-over carpets the scene.
                    KAUFMAN (V.O.)


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