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                                                     Script Synopsis of SPRAYED

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TITLE: SPRAYED                                       READER: M. Seerock

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Surviving a malicious attempt on their lives by a revengeful intimidator, a family fights back from the brink to win back their lives.

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COMMENTS SUMMARY:

Sprayed is a drama about overcoming physical and emotional odds. The Premise of truth ultimately wins is nicely executed. The Story Line begins and ends with consequences as a result of revenge. The Characterization is distinct and done well. The Dialog is believable for each character and their personality. The Setting takes advantage of interesting locations.

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WRITER RECOMMENDATION:             SOLICIT ADDITIONAL PROJECTS

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DONNA BAIN, 24 and pretty, is at her home watching the race on TV and cheering her father Reggie's efforts while her husband is working in the Mideast. She is fussing with the broken garbage disposer and on the phone when RAY GARLAND, 24, from Weston Pest Control pulls up a day early. She reluctantly waves him in, keeps a distance and asks him to come back on Monday, the appointed day. He is obnoxious and makes advances toward her because they had been lovers when they were younger. He grabs her, she tells him to leave, he gropes her, she slaps him, yells at him to leave, and bolts out of the kitchen, shutting the door. Furious at the rejection, Ray maliciously sprays the entire Dorfus insecticide container all over the kitchen, in the food, the dog dish, the counters and the sink. Afraid to remain in the house alone with only her one year old NIKKI and Pluto the dog, Donna packs them up and leaves for her brother NOLAN KENT'S house.

Donna, Nolan and his wife SUSAN KENT talk about Nikki's pending birthday party. Nolan, Reggie's son, does not want LINDA, Reggie's new wife, to attend, and he falsely blames her for breaking up his parent's marriage.

Convinced it is only a stomach virus, the doctors keep her for a couple of days. The neighbors, BILL and WANDA KRAMER, and Reggie's daughter-in-law Susan arrive at Donna's for the party. Reggie's son Nolan instead visits his sister Donna at the hospital because he can not stand Linda. After the party, Reggie tries to fix the garbage disposer under the sink and cuts his finger on something in the packed disposer.

The next day at dinner with the Kramers, Reggie complains about nausea and later violently vomits. He is sicker than Donna and is taken to the hospital. In the emergency room, DR. KAPLAN thinks it might be stomach flu, but Reggie does not respond to the usual medications. Leaving Reggie to sleep for the night, Linda and Wanda begin to complain about stomach pains. The next day, DR. PRESTON RENQUIST, the family doctor arrives and finds Reggie in Intensive Care and Reggie's breathing now has become impaired. Dr. Preston orders blood work for a number of tests, including metallic poisons.

Susan arrives at the hospital to see about Reggie. She complains about stomach problems as well as the Kramers. Nolan calls the hospital laboratory, learns Reggie has Arsenic in his blood and blames Linda. He finds her in the waiting room, now very much in pain, and accuses her of poisoning Reggie because she made the food and the cake. He calls the police over the objections of his wife Susan. Reggie's condition deteriorates into pneumonia, a ruptured lung sac, and requires surgery. Linda tells Dr. Renquist that Donna had her house sprayed, and now Dr. Renquist suspects a toxic substance and calls in the Public Health Department to check out Donna's kitchen and food. The amount of Arsenic in Reggie's blood is the same as everyone's and it is not the cause of his illness.

Dr. Renquist calls Weston Pest Control about Dorfus insecticide and the owner, MELVIN WESTON, assures him it is harmless. After the call, Melvin argues with Ray Garland about what Ray did. Melvin suspects Ray did not dilute it from its toxic state and he has again aggravated a woman. Ray smugly denies everything.

Reggie is getting worse. X-rays show growing abscesses in his lungs. Linda visits West Pest Control for more information about Dorfus. Melvin assures her it is very safe and his man administered correctly. Chest surgeon DR. WARREN LAKE and Dr. Renquist are very concerned about Reggie's worsening condition and they order a blood Cholinesterase test which would show poisoning from organophosphates, chemicals commonly found in pesticides. Donna and Nolan visit the veterinarian and find Pluto has died.

The next morning Reggie is wheeled into surgery. Dr. Renquist meets with the Public Health Lab and discovers that their swabs show high concentrations of Dorfus throughout Donna's kitchen, especially in the disposer and on the counters. The operation is successful and Reggie should recover. A small party is thrown for him to cheer him up. Dr. Renquist feels he may return to work in some capacity within 2-3 months, probably never again full time. Reggie's insurance will pay 80% of the hospital bill and Reggie feels Weston should at least pay the remaining 20%. Coughing up blood, his lungs still are in terrible shape.

Home at last, Reggie continues recovering. Linda visits Weston to get him to pay the 20%, but he refuses, citing his company did nothing wrong and it was not a pesticide that made Reggie ill. Linda is angry with him and decides to sue. With no endurance and many coughing spells, Reggie has difficulty getting his life back together. He talks with his boss at the plant, WILT LANDIS, and they agree to his return at part time with flexible hours.

Ray drops by Donna's house and staggers drunk up to the door. Horrified and very angry with him, she slams the door in his face. Nolan stops Ray's car and pushes him around. Reggie returns to work at Futura Motor Car Company and does his best. He coughs spasmodically, constantly visits the bathroom and has the chills. Wilt Landis is concerned for Reggie and sends him home until he grows stronger. Reggie tries several times to go back to work, with the same result. Dr. Renquist continues unsure Reggie will ever be able to work a full day.

Reggie and Linda hire a lawyer, LARRY BRANCH, for their case against Weston, and he believes it will be an easy open and shut case. In spit of all that Reggie has done for Futura, they place him on disability and let him go. There goes his insurance for future medical care. Larry thinks this will help increase the damages awarded. Reggie decides to get his job back no matter what and sets out to do exercise and to design a new engine.

In court, Larry Branch strives to show the incapacitation was caused by Weston's insecticide and BLAKE STRAUB, lawyer for Weston, strives to show Reggie's illness was the result of other causes. Blake stresses Dorfus has an odor but Reggie did not smell anything, everyone other than Reggie could have had nothing more than the stomach flu, any number of household sprays already at Donna's house contain Dorfus, the insecticide may not have been put in the disposer until later, other non-related factors could lower the cholinesterase level, and he brings in a scientist as an expert witness on Dorfus who claims it is safe. Larry Branch stresses how much time at work was lost, the obviousness of the poisoning, the source of the poison, the loss of Reggie's job, and that Dorfus is indeed toxic. Ray Garland takes the stand and tells one lie after another about how Donna threw herself at him, he carefully administered the Dorfus according to proper methods, and Donna promised to get even with him.

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COMMENTS:

The Story Line begins and ends with consequences as a result of revenge. Ray's appalling action to spray the entire kitchen with toxic insecticide in revenge of Donna's continued rejection to his out-of-line groping advances, causes many innocent people to become very sick. Not knowing what hit them, they research and find the medical reason for the sickness and uncover the source, Ray at Weston Pest Control. Reggie grows worse every day and finally loses even his job. Getting no response from the responsible parties of Weston and his insurance company, Reggie takes them to court. The legal system does not find the truth and Weston is acquitted. Ray is fired as a result of both the negative publicity Weston received and he was guilty. Vowing revenge against Weston, Ray sets out to tell the truth to the judge and sets the stage for a second court battle. This time Reggie will win.

The Characterization is distinct and done well. Reggie is an effective mechanical engineer who can dream up futuristic automotive engine designs. Ray is a completely self centered antagonistic troublemaker. Weston is a slippery business man with a limited range of ethics, as long as it does not cost him. Linda is a supportive second wife who perseveres through rejection, sickness and discouragement. Nolan is a narrow minded stubborn bigot. The lawyers jockey for position and perception in their dance around the truth.

The Setting takes advantage of a variety of interesting locations, such as the Indianapolis 500 speedway, Midwest suburbia, a hospital, a high tech engine design lab and a courtroom.

This script seems excellently designed for a Movie of the Week audience, showing a family beset by multiple adversities, yet who refuse to accept defeat and immorality and fight on to eventual victory.

Hey, Mike, did you take one sniff too many of that pest stuff?  I want to read the entire script.  Send me a copy.

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