1、 SCRIPT OF FLIPPEDBRYCE: All I ever wantedwas for Juli Baker to leave me alone.It all began in the summer of 1957,before the start of second grade.STEVEN: Here we are.PATSY: Ha, ha.- What do you guys think?LYNETTA: I like this place.BRYCE: Its cool.LYNETTA: Uh, what color is my room?Just you wait.BR
2、YCE: Lets see whats inside.STEVEN: Hey, come on, buddy Bryce.Why dont, uh, you and Igo help unload the van.and the womenfolk herecan get in the kitchen and start setting up.Okay, Dad.BRYCE: For me, it was the beginningof what would be.more than half a decade ofstrategic avoidance and social discomfo
3、rt.- Hi, Im Juli Baker.- Hey, hey, what are you doing?Dont you want some help?No. Theres somevaluable things in there.- How about this one?- No, no, no.Run home. Your mothersprobably wondering where you are.Oh, no, my mom knows where I am.She said its fine.BRYCE: It didnt take long to realizethis gi
4、rl could not take a hint.- Its crowded in here with three people.- I dont mind.BRYCE: Of any kind.- You wanna push this one together?Bryce, isnt it time for youto go help your mother?Huh?Oh, yeah.BRYCE:I mean, nothing would stop her.I was about to tell her to get lostwhen the weirdest thing happened
5、.I couldnt believe it.There I was holding handswith this strange girl.- How did I get into this mess?PATSY: Well, hello.- I see youve met my son.- Uh-huh.BRYCE: Finally, I did the only manlything available when youre 7 years old.BELL RINGINGHowever, my troubles were far from over.The minute I walked
6、into Miss Yelsons classroom.Bryce? Youre here.BRYCE:.it was clear:School would not be a sanctuary.CHILDREN LAUGHINGHey, Bryce, wheres your girlfriend?BRYCE:I was branded for life.Hey, Bryce,why dont you ask her to marry you?GIRLS SINGING:Bryce and Juli sitting in a treeK-l-S-S-l-N-GBRYCE:My first ye
7、ar in town was a disaster.GIRL:Look at them.BRYCE:And the next three werent much better.But finally, in the sixth grade,I took action.I hatched the plan.Sherry.Sherry, wait up.Hi, Bryce. Heh.BRYCE:I asked out Sherry Stalls.I was wondering if you wanted to go.BRYCE: To full appreciatethe brilliance o
8、f this plan.you have to understandthat Juli hated Sherry Stalls.though I never understood why.Sherry was nice, friendlyand she had a lot of hair.At first, my mother wouldnt let meget my ears pierced, but I begged.BRYCE: The idea was that Sherrywould eat with me.maybe wed walk around together,and hop
9、efully Juli would lose interest.But I still cant get the hoops till Im 16.Oh, thats a shame.So Melanie wanted to get her ears pierced,but of course her mother said no.So she threw a fit and smashedher Johnny Mathis Greatest Hits album.LAUGHS.and she got grounded, so now she cantcome to my pajama sle
10、epover party.BRYCE:Things were unfolding quite nicely.What are you doingfor your science project?BRYCE: That is, until my supposedbest friend, Garrett Einbinder.took an interest in Sherry himself.I was thinking of showing how split endsreact with different hair conditioners.Thats fascinating.BRYCE:
11、Loyalty gave way to desireand Garrett, the turncoat.told Sherry what I was up to.SHERRY:Jerk.BRYCE:She didnt take it well.Word got back to Juli, and pretty soonshe started up with the goo-goo eyes again.Only this time it was worse.She started sniffing me.Thats right, sniffing me.What was that all ab
12、out?My only consolationwas that next year would be different.Junior high, bigger school.Maybe wed be in different classesand it would finally, finally be over.JULl:The first day I met Bryce Loski, I flipped.It was those eyes,something in those dazzling eyes.You wanna push this one together?JULl: His
13、 family had just movedinto the neighborhood.and Id gone over to help them.Id been in the van all of two minuteswhen his dad sent him off to help his mom.I could see he didnt wanna go.So I chased after him to see if we couldplay a little before he got trapped inside.The next thing I know,hes holding
14、my hand.and looking right into my eyes.My heart stopped.Was this it?Would this be my first kiss?- But then his mother came out.- Well, hello.JULl: And he was so embarrassed,his cheeks turned completely red.I went to bed that night thinkingof the kiss that might have been.I mean, it was clear he had
15、feelings for me,but he was just too shy to show them.My mother said boys were like that.- So I decided to help him out.- Bryce? Youre here.CHILDREN GIGGLINGJULl: I would give him plentyof opportunity to get over his shyness.By the sixth grade,Id learned to control myself.Then Sherry Stalls entered t
16、he picture.Sherry Stalls was nothing but a whiny,gossipy, backstabbing flirt.All hair and no substance.And there she was.holding hands with Bryce. My Bryce.The one who was walking aroundwith my first kiss.My solution was to ignore her.I knew a boy of Bryces caliber.would eventually see througha shal
17、low conniver like Sherry Stalls.It took all of a week.They broke up at recess.She didnt take it well.Now that Bryce was out of Sherrysevil clutches, he started being nicer to me.- Hi, Juli.- Hi, Bryce.JULl:He was so shy and so cute.and his hair,it smelled like watermelon.I couldnt get enough of it.I
18、 spent the whole yearsecretly sniffing watermelon.and wonderingif I was ever going to get my kiss.BRYCE:Seventh grade brought changes, all right.But the biggest onedidnt happen at school.It happened at home.My grandfather came to live with us.Mom said he stared like thatbecause he missed Grandma.Tha
19、t was not something Grandpawould ever talk about with me.As a matter of fact, he never talkedabout much of anything with me.That is, until Juli appearedin the local newspaper.- Oh, Bryce. May I speak with you?- What?Have a seat, son.Tell me about your friend Juli Baker.Juli. Shes not exactly my frie
20、nd.Oh. Whys that?Why do you wanna know?BRYCE: Now, Juli Baker did notwind up in The Mayfield Times.for being an eighth-grade Einstein.No, she got front-page coverage becauseshe refused to climb out of a sycamore tree.Juli Baker and that stupid sycamore tree.She always thought it was Gods giftto our
21、little corner of the universe.Hey, Bryce. Wanna come climb the treewith me and my brothers?No, thanks.Bryce. Come up here. Its fun.- You can see everything.BRYCE: I cant.My dad needs me to help him fix.a thing.BRYCE:Thats all I needed.Climb up a tree with Juli Baker.Id be dragged right backinto the
22、second grade.Bryce and Juli sitting in a tree.Why dont you just make me eat lima beansfor the rest of my life.JULl:Its three blocks away.Two blocks.One block away.- Like thats valuable information.- I hate it when she does that.I like to think theres at least a chancethe bus wont show.I think the tr
23、ee looks particularly beautifulin this light. Dont you?If by “beautiful“ you mean “unbelievablyugly,“ then, yes, I would agree.Youre just visually challenged.I feel sorry for you.BRYCE:“Visually challenged“?“Visually challenged“?This from the girl who lived in a housethat was the joke of the neighbo
24、rhood?They had bushes growing over windowsand weeds all over the place.It bugged my dad bigtime.Oh, there he is.The bricklayer who thinks hes a painter.That trucks not ugly enough in real life?Hes gotta make a painting of it?No, he does landscapes.Sells them at the county fair.People say theyre beau
25、tiful.Landscapes? Let me tell you something.The world would havemore beauty in it.if hed do a little landscapingon that piece of crap he calls a yard.PATSY: I feel bad for his wife.She married a dreamer.Because of that, one of the two of themwill always be unhappy.Yeah, fine.But why do we have to be
26、 unhappy?BRYCE: As annoying as the yard wasto my dad.it was nothing compared to how annoyingJuli Baker was in that tree.JULl:Three blocks away.BRYCE: Every morningwe had to listen to the sound.of her blow-by-blow traffic report.JULl:Two blocks.WOMAN:There you go.Why do they call it The Three Stooges
27、?- I mean, theres five of them.- What?Well, yeah, theres Moe, Larry, Curly,Shemp and Curly Joe.- Yeah, but they only have three at a time.- Yeah.You know, I hate Curly Joe.I mean, he shouldnt even be a Stooge.MAN: Listen, girl,Im this close to calling the police.You are trespassing and obstructingpr
28、ogress on a contracted job.GARRETT: Whats going on?MAN: Either you come down.or were gonna cut you down.JULl: You guys, come up here with me.They wont cut it downif were all up here.- Bus, bus, bus.BRYCE: Juli was frantic.They wanted to cut down her tree.I couldnt understand whythat mutant tangle of
29、 gnarly branches.meant so much to her.JULl: Bryce, please.BRYCE: I felt bad for her.GARRETT: Leave her.BRYCE:But I wasnt about to cut school over it.GARRETT:Come on, bro.CHET:Why isnt she your friend, Bryce?Youd have to know Juli.Well, Id like to.Why?That girl has an iron backbone.Why dont you invit
30、e her over sometime?An iron backbone?Shes just stubborn.and shes pushy beyond belief.Is that so?And shes been stalking mesince the second grade.Well, a girl like thatdoesnt live next door to everyone.Lucky them.Read this.Without prejudice.BRYCE: Like I needed to knowanything more about Juli Baker.Ju
31、li wasnt at the bus stopthe next morning.Or the morning after that.She was at school,but youd never know it.- Little Joe? Hes got so much makeup on.- He doesnt age.BRYCE:I told myself I should be glad about it.I mean, isnt that whatId always wanted?But still, I felt bad for her.I was gonna tell her
32、I was sorry,but then I thought, hey, no.thats the last thing I needed:Juli Baker thinking I missed her.I see why you like to come out here.Would you mind explaining itto your mother?JULl:I loved to watch my father paint.Or really, I loved to hear him talkwhile he painted.I learned a lot about my dad
33、 that way.He told me all sorts of things.like how he got his first job delivering hayand how hed wished hed finished college.Then one day he surprised me.Whats going on with youand, uh, Bryce Loski?What do you mean? Nothing.Oh, okay.My mistake.Why would you even think that?No reason.Just that you.ta
34、lk about him all the time.I do?Mm-hm.I dont know.I guess its something about his eyes.Or maybe his smile.But what about him?- What?- You have to look at the whole landscape.What does that mean?A painting is morethan the sum of its parts.A cow by itself is just a cow.A meadow by itself is just grass,
35、flowers.And the sun peeking through the treesis just a beam of light.But you put them all together.and it can be magic.JULl: I didnt really understandwhat he was saying until one afternoon.when I was up in the sycamore tree.I was rescuing a kite.It was a long way up,higher than Id ever been.And the
36、higher I got,the more amazed I was by the view.I began to noticehow wonderful the breeze smelled.Like sunshine and wild grass.I couldnt stop breathing it in.filling my lungswith the sweetest smell Id ever known.Hey, you found my kite.Bryce, you should come up here.Its so beautiful.I cant. I sprained
37、 my, um.I have a rash.JULl: From that moment on,that became my spot.I could sit there for hours,just looking out at the world.Some days the sunsetswould be purple and pink.And some daysthey were a blazing orange.setting fire to the cloudson the horizon.It was during one of those sunsetsthat my fathe
38、rs idea.of the whole being greaterthan the sum of its parts.moved from my head to my heart.Some days I would get there extra earlyto watch the sunrise.One morningI was making mental notes.of how the streaks of lightwere cutting through the clouds.so I could tell my dad.when I heard a noise below.Exc
39、use me.Excuse me. Im sorry, but you cantpark there. Thats a bus stop.Hey, what are you doing up there?You cant be up there,were gonna take this thing down.- The tree?- Yeah. Now come on down.- But who told you, you could cut it down?- The owner.Why?Hes gonna build a house,and this trees in the way.-
40、 So come on, girl, we got work to do.- You cant cut it down. You just cant.Listen, girl.Im this close to calling the police.You are trespassing and obstructingprogress on a contracted job.Now either you come down,or were gonna cut you down.Go ahead. Cut me down.Im not coming down.Im never coming dow
41、n.Bryce. You guys, come up here with me.They wont cut it downif were all up here.Bryce, please dont let them do this.Come on, you guys.Bryce, please. You dont have tocome up this high. Just a little ways.Bryce, please. Please.JULl:What happened after that was a blur.It seemed like the whole town was
42、 there.But still I wouldnt move.Then my father showed up.He talked a fireman into letting him come upto where I was.Sweetie, its time to come down.Daddy, please dont let them do this.- Sweetie.- Daddy, look.You can see everything.You can see the whole world from here.No view is worth my daughters sa
43、fety.Now, come on.I cant.Julianna, its time to come down now.Please, Daddy.Its time.JULl:And that was it.I mustve cried for two weeks straight.Oh, sure, I went to schooland did the best I could.but nothing seemed to matter.TEACHER: Juli?- Huh?Do you know the answer?Uh, the Peloponnesian War?Im sure
44、thats the answerto something.but I was looking for the areaof a rhomboid.CHILDREN LAUGHJULl: Somehow, rhomboidsand isosceles right triangles.didnt seem so important.I rode my bike so I wouldnt have to passby the stump.that used to be the earthsmost magnificent sycamore tree.But no matter what I did,
45、I couldnt stop thinking about it.KNOCKING ON DOORAre you okay?It was just a tree.No, it wasnt just a tree.I never want you to forget how you feltwhen you were up there.Thanks, Dad.JULl:It was the first thing I saw every morning.and the last thing I sawbefore I went to sleep.And once I could look at
46、itwithout crying.I saw more than the treeand what being up there meant to me.I saw the day that my view of thingsaround me started changing.And I wondered,did I still feel the same things about Bryce?BRYCE:Ive never been a huge fan of eggs.I mean, I could always just take themor leave them.That is,
47、until one dayin Skyler Browns garage.when my feelings about eggswere solidified.BAND PLAYING ROCK MUSICHey, hey, hey. Guys.Ednas found her breakfast.BRYCE: I mean, if a slimy reptilefound them appetizing.there was certainly no place for themin my diet.MATT:Oh, man, thats so cool.She doesnt even have
48、 to chew.I mean, think of all the time youd save.BRYCE: I couldve gone my whole lifenot knowing that snakes eat eggs raw.if it hadnt been for Lynetta.She had a major-league thingfor Skyler Brown.I think its gross.BRYCE: He and Julis brothers,Matt and Mark, had formed a band.And Lynetta would watch t
49、hem practice.MATT:That is so neat.How about that, huh, Bryce?Yeah. Neat.So, Brycie, how do you thinkhes gonna digest that?- Stomach acid?- Youd like to think that.Wait, everybody quiet. Here he goes.SHELL CRACKINGEggs over easy.Gross. Gross, gross, gross.Wait, wait.You havent seen the best part.LYNETTA:Ugh!Gross.BRYCE: I tried to be casual about it,but it didnt take.I started having bad dr
