5d (edited) • General discussion
Terra, Aria e Mare update
A young Sicilian man immigrates to New York in the years leading up to WWII. After he enlists in the Army, he finds himself fighting against his own family.
S1E1: "La Tartuca"
Written by Max Russo
SUPER: Cefalù, Palermo, Sicily, Italy, 1919
Boats move on top of gentle waves
A bird perches on La Tartuca, the family boat, savors the moment to dry his feathers and enjoy the view
A rock flies at the bird, nearly missing him. The bird flutters away
Luca, 11, teaches younger brother Marco, 8, how to use a slingshot, both giggle behind their partially ajar bedroom window facing the water
INT. kitchen
Niccolo (father) ceases pouring his coffee, rolls eyes
He makes eye contact with Gloria (mother) and sighs
They proceed to the boys' bedroom and open the door. Gloria yanks both of their ears and they wail
The slingshot falls to the ground
Gloria
Wasn't planning on cooking seagull tonight, boys.
She kneels down, grabs the slingshot and gently tucks it into her apron, gazes at the boys with equal parts pity and admiration. The boys nurse their ears on the floor
Niccolo
For Christ's sake! We're pescatori, not uccellatori.
Luca
Maybe you are, but I still haven't been out on the boat!
Niccolo, smiling wryly
Tell you what, Luca. I'll take you out on the boat right now.
Luca
Oh Papa, you mean it?
Niccolo, emphatically leading his son out of the bedroom
Sure! And you ain't coming off until that mark you left is well sanded and painted over. How does that sound?
Luca
It was Marco!
Niccolo
Right, he just taught himself I suppose.
Niccolo nudges him out the door. Luca groans and glares at Marco
Gloria, to Marco
It wasn't the worst shot I've ever seen.
Marco
Thanks.
Gloria
Go on and see if those two could use some help.
Marco eagerly makes his way to La Tartuca
EXT. Dollhouse of Marco running through the threshold out onto the beach, joining up alongside Niccolo and Luca
Luca
I just didn't want that bird shitting all over our boat, Pop.
Niccolo, swiftly tapping the rear of his skull
Congratulations, now you've earned a swab of the deck with that foul mouth.
Luca winces and soothes the rear of his skull
Marco
I'll get the water!
Niccolo, halting Marco
So kind of you, Marco. But it's Luca the Sailor Mouth's job now.
Luca groans and gives Marco a searing glare
Niccolo, to Luca
And next time you're feeling so strongly about "our boat's" hygiene, you have my permission to scrub it any time.
Niccolo and Marco chuckle
Niccolo hands Luca a seasoned mop and nudges him towards the water source
Gloria observes Niccolo, Luca & Marco through the bedroom window
Gloria admires the craftmanship of the slingshot
Luca swabs the deck while Niccolo smokes his pipe and shows Marco the proper sanding/painting technique
Niccolo gives Marco a tour around the boat, Luca continues to swab the deck begrudgingly
Peppe, Cefalese fisherman aged 41-44, drunkenly from his boat approaching shore
Nico! Another voyage empty handed I see.
Niccolo
Peppe, I'm always amazed to see you return from the sea with the way you put down those jugs of wine, my friend!
Everyone chuckles
Luca cracks a smile and glances up
Niccolo
Boys, where are your manners? What do we say to Signore Alfieri?
Luca & Marco disjointedly
Buon giorno, Signore Alfieri.
Peppe, slowing down the boat
Per favore, ragazzi. Signore Alfieri's been dead for years, call me Peppe.
Peppe notices Luca swabbing the deck
Peppe, indicating to Niccolo
Uh oh, what'd he do?
Niccolo
Kid thinks he's earned the fisherman's vocabulary already.
Giuseppe, sarcastically
Ah yes, I remember the day my father wrote me the certificate like it was yesterday.
Niccolo
I thought your father couldn't read or write.
Giuseppe
Man, could he curse though.
They all laugh then cross themselves.
Niccolo
Greatest anchovy fisherman in the seven seas, if I ever saw one.
Marco
Even better than you, Papa?
Niccolo, putting his arm around Marco and glancing at Peppe
We all learned from the best.
Luca
When are you going to teach us how to fish, Papa?
Peppe, egging Niccolo on
Yeah, Papa. What are you waiting for?
Luca rests on the mop, Marco approaches closer
Niccolo makes eye contact with all three, shrugs, then sighs
Niccolo
Luca, put that mop away. I'm gonna untie us.
Luca and Marco rejoice.
Niccolo, shouting to Gloria
Glo! Glo!
Gloria emerges from the kitchen window
Gloria
You're not doing what I think you're doing, are you?
Niccolo, sighing to himself and shrugging
They gotta learn some day.
Gloria smiles softly
Niccolo smiles back
Peppe, waving
Have fun, boys.
Pan out Luca and Marco continue to celebrate while Niccolo prepares the boat
Niccolo, Luca and Marco sail for the horizon
Luca and Marco stare out at the ocean
Niccolo admires them admiring the ocean
A school of dolphins emerge out of the water in mesmerizing fashion
Marco
Wow!
Luca
Oh fuck!
Niccolo
Hey, I can find more chores for you if you don't watch that mouth!
Luca rolls his eyes
Marco
Papa, have you ever seen so many at one time?!
Niccolo
Your Uncle Tumasi and I almost got overtaken by a school of dolphins before you guys were born.
Luca
Ain't a creature in the sea that could sink La Tartuca!
Niccolo knocks on the bow
Marco
How do you know where the good spots are, Papa?
Niccolo, indicating towards the dolphins
The dolphins always tell me.
Marco
You can speak Dolphin?
Niccolo imitates the dolphins
They all laugh.
Luca, still chuckling
What are they saying?
Niccolo
Anchovies about 2 knots north.
La Tartuca continues towards the horizon while the dolphins eventually outpace the boat and disperse
Niccolo steers the boat attentively then indicates they've arrived at a good spot
Niccolo
Let me show you guys how to drop the net.
Niccolo demonstrates, getting the process started
Niccolo steps away, then the boys resume dropping
Niccolo
Don't let the net drop too fast now, don't want to give ourselves away.
Marco, whispering
You think they can hear us?
Niccolo
They don't really have much in the way of ears. But they're real sensitive to movement - mind that net, you two...nice and easy.
Luca
I think that's as low as it goes, Papa.
Niccolo examines the net, then affirms
Niccolo
Nice work, guys.
Marco
Now what?
Niccolo
Now we wait.
Marco
How long?
Niccolo, brandishing his pipe and tobacco
Just long enough.
He packs the pipe then sparks a match on his thumb, toking artistically
Marco
Papa, won't the fish be able to smell you? We'll give ourselves away.
Luca shakes his head defiantly
Niccolo, amused
Hasn't tipped them off yet.
They all wait silently, then the boat jerks abruptly.
Luca
Whoa! This will be the catch of the year!
Marco
That must be the biggest anchovy in the world!
Niccolo watches the water anxiously
Niccolo, beginning to panic
That's no anchovy, boys. Step back!
The boat capsizes epically and they all fall into the water
Niccolo, treading, looks about frantically
Niccolo
Luca! Marco!
Niccolo continues to scan
Luca, treading
Papa!
Niccolo, making eye contact
Luca! Are you alright?! Where's Marco?!
They both scan 360 degrees frantically
Marco, sputtering amongst the boat debris
Papa! Luca!
Niccolo
Marco, stay right there!
Niccolo and Luca swim towards Marco
Marco hugs Niccolo
Niccolo
You alright?
Marco hyperventilates and cries
Niccolo
Hey, hey, it's going to be alright. You remember how to tread water right? Just like I showed you.
Niccolo release one arm, then the other. Marco starts to tread reliably
They all stare in defiance at the shredded boat and seemingly endless horizon on all sides.
Marco
What was that thing, Papa?
Niccolo continues to stare defiantly, then notices a piece of debris moving mysteriously towards them, eventually presenting a shark fin
Niccolo
Swim away! Swim away!
Luca and Marco appear confused
Niccolo submerges abruptly
Luca and Marco together
Papa! No!
Niccolo's hands flap slightly above the surface, then nothing
Underwater shot of Niccolo wrestling with the shark, then the shark adjusts his bite grip onto his ankle while entangled in the net
Nico reaches for a knife in his pocket and stabs the shark in the eye repeatedly
Marco and Nico are beside themselves, holding onto each other above water
Niccolo appears, sputtering and shouting
Marco and Nico
Papa!
Luca and Marco
Papa! Are you okay?
Niccolo, wincing hard
I think old boy got my foot pretty good.
The shark rises to the surface bleeding
Luca and Marco are awestruck
Niccolo makes a gesture for his necklace, then passes out and begins to submerge
Luca and Marco
Papa! Papa!
Luca and Marco swim down and coordinate an effort to hoist him above water
Luca and Marco try to shake him awake to no avail
Luca and Marco drape their father's arms around their necks and continue to tread with difficulty
Luca notices the shark
Luca and Marco look at each other
Marco looks defiantly at the whole scene
Luca
I think that shark's our best bet at a life raft right now.
Marco
I'm not going anywhere near that thing.
Luca
We're already near it! So unless you want all three of us to drown, let's get Papa on the shark.
Marco grimaces, fighting back tears then relents
They swim towards the shark, hoist their dad over-barrel and grab onto whatever they can of the shark to stay afloat
Marco notices a light reflecting off the whistle on Niccolo's necklace then tries to blow it repeatedly
Luca
Must be waterlogged. Let me see that thing
Luca rips the necklace off of Niccolo
Luca sucks the water out, coughs then gets the whistle to work
Luca lets the sound ring out, then blows again
Peppe unloads his catch ashore, then hears the whistle
Marco and Luca hang on to the shark and struggle to keep Niccolo over-barrel as choppy waves intensify
Luca continues to blow the whistle then appears exhausted
Marco
Let me give it a try.
Luca hands Marco the whistle
Marco struggles to produce a meaningful whistle
Luca
Gotta keep your lips tight.
Marco corrects himself then produces a meaningful whistle
Beat
EXT. Cefalù port
Peppe unloads his fish ashore then hears the whistle
EXT. Ocean amidst the wreck
Luca manages to cross himself while gripping the shark then begins praying
Marco follows suit
Peppe, mortified by the scene
Boys! Nico!
Luca and Marco can't comprehend the sight of Peppe
Peppe approaches closer to the boys and goes to the starboard side of his boat frantically
Peppe, relieved by the sight of the boys
You guys alright?
Beat
Peppe
Nico! Nico!
Peppe realizes he is on the brink of death
Peppe, to the boys
Come on, give me his arms!
Peppe reaches out towards Nico and brings him onto the boat with the boys' laborious assistance
Peppe
Get on! Get on!
Peppe brings them both onto the boat
Peppe examines Nico for a pulse, begins mouth-to-mouth
Beat
Peppe continues
Beat
The boys wait with baited breath
Nico sputters awake, dazed and confused
Marco and Luca
Papa!
Nico shakes his head from side to side and groans
Peppe
Don't move.
Peppe grabs a canteen and attempts to make Niccolo drink some water
Niccolo ingests a little then coughs it up
Niccolo groans in pain and squirms
Peppe rips his belt off and forms a tourniquet above Nico's foot
Peppe takes his jacket off and wraps it around Nico's foot
Peppe
Keep the pressure on and keep him awake, boys.
Peppe approaches the helm at an accelerated pace
EXT. Cefalù port
Peppe pulls into the port abruptly, disturbing the dock as much as the fishermen catching up after a day on the water
The fishermen react angrily
Fisherman #1, to Peppe
What the fuck are you doing, you drunk bastard?
The fishermen gasp in disbelief at the sight of Marco, Luca and Peppe carrying Nico ashore, crossing themselves
Nico, shouting in pain
Ah! Stop! Put me down!
Peppe
We gotta get you to Dr. Caputo.
Nico
Put me down now!
Peppe, Luca and Marco relent
Nico groans heavily, squirming on the ground
Fisherman #1
What the fuck happened?
Peppe
Shark
The men shake their heads defiantly
Peppe
Nico, we gotta get you to the doc! I need you to be strong now!
Fisherman #1
Hey, I'm no doctor, but moving him up that hill might make him lose more blood.
The other fishermen gently nod in agreement
Peppe surveys the crowd and makes meaningful eye contact with the boys
Fisherman #2
I'll get the doc.
Peppe continues trying to keep Niccolo awake with the boys' assistance
INT. Doctor's office
Dr. Caputo smokes a cigar while sipping wine
Fisherman #2 bursts the doors open, sweating and breathing heavily
Dr. Caputo
Oh goodness, back already? I told you to quit sleeping with that girl! This'll be the third time this year!
Fisherman #2, out of breath hunching over
Nico...
Fisherman #2 struggles to catch his breath
Dr. Caputo, confused
Nico what?
Fisherman #2, still hyperventilating
Nico's...hurt...
Dr. Caputo
Well, why didn't you bring him here?
Fisherman #2 catches his breath, rushes towards him, flips the table over and grabs him by the lapels
Fisherman #2
Get your fucking saw and get your ass to the port now!
Dr. Caputo, alarmed and still confused
My...saw?
EXT. back at the port
Fisherman #3, anxiously
What the fuck is taking them so long?
Luca, dejectedly
Better watch your language around my father, he might have you swab the...
Luca realizes the boat is gone
All waiting anxiously, eyes fixed to Nico
Peppe
Come on, Nico. Hold on! Hold on!
Nico is unconscious, breath shallowing
Marco
Papa! Papa!
Luca
Come on, Papa!
Dr. Caputo and Fisherman #2 return hurriedly
Peppe
Thank God.
Everyone steps away to give Dr. Caputo room to work
Dr. Caputo, attempting to wake him
Nico? Can you see me? Do you hear me?
Nico appears barely alive, breathing continuing to shallow
Dr. Caputo gazes at the blood-soaked jacket and tourniquet, doing his best to maintain bedside manner
Dr. Caputo, to Peppe
Peppe, take the boys home and get Gloria. Meet me at the office in an hour.
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