Daily Dialogue — June 3, 2012

INT. NIGHT. JAPANESE RESTAURANT

A Japanese MAITRE D’ greets Sonny, Donnie, Nicky and Boobie
at the door.

MAITRE D’: Good evening. Please step this way.

The Maitre d’ ushers them inside. Donnie lingers behind,
NERVOUS…

NICKY: My wife says it’s very in, Japanese. She heard it on John Gambling. Very big now.

The Maitre d’ stops them.

MAITRE D’: Please to remove your shoes.

DONNIE’S COWBOY BOOT

with the Nagra in it. The Maitre d’ waits for Donnie’s shoes,
GESTURES… Donnie thinking fast…

DONNIE: Get a load of this guy. (to Maitre d’) How about you take off your fucking pants?

NICKY: That’s part of the thing of it, Donnie. You take off your shoes and sit on the floor.

DONNIE: I’m not taking my shoes off for this guy.

MAITRE D’: I’m afraid is necessary.

SONNY: C’mon, Donnie. Just take off your fucking shoes and let’s eat.

BOOBIE: What’s the big deal?

DONNIE: Hey, Boobie, who won the fucking war?

SONNY: Donnie — I’m hungry and I ain’t in the mood.

DONNIE: I ain’t doing it.

SONNY: Take off your fucking shoes or I’m gonna chop off your fucking legs.

MAITRE D’: Is house rule.

DONNIE: I grew up an orphan because my Dad took a fucking bullet in Okinawa, and I’ll lose my boot up his fucking asshole before I’ll take orders from fucking Mr. Moto here.

MAITRE D’: Is house rule.

SONNY: I wanna fucking eat, Donnie.

MAITRE D’: Rule of house.

The moment of truth.

DONNIE BLOWS

GRABS the Maitre d’ and RAMS him through the doors of the
MEN’S ROOM.

CUT TO:

INT. MEN’S ROOM

Donnie and the Maitre d’ go at it. The little guy’s game,
quick and tough. Then the other SWARM inside. And the MASSACRE
begins.

FISTS AND KICKS

crunch down on the Maitre d’. Donnie in with them — EXCITED
by the fray, the adrenaline RUSH. He KICKS the Maitre d’
hard… The Maitre d’ SCREAMS…

— Donnie (Johnny Depp), Sonny (Michael Madsen), Maitre D’ (Keenan Shimizu), Donnie Brasco (1997), screenplay by Paul Attanasio, based on a book by Joseph D. Pistone and Richard Woodley

The Daily Dialogue theme for the week is lies, suggested by BillieJeanVK. Today’s suggestion by Teddy Pasternak.

Trivia: The movie ends with the implication that Lefty was killed after being “sent for”. In real life, the FBI intercepted Lefty on the way to being killed and arrested him. Sonny Black, however, was “sent for” and subsequently murdered, his body turning up a year later on Staten Island. The individual who had orchestrated his murder, Joe Massino, wasn’t convicted until 2005. Lefty was convicted of conspiracy to commit murder, extortion, distribution of a controlled dangerous substance, and running an illegal gambling operation; he was sentenced to 20 years in prison, but received early parole in 1992 after it was discovered he was suffering from terminal cancer. He died of lung cancer in 1994.

Dialogue On Dialogue: This is a case of Donnie knows about his lie… and we know about his lie… but Sonny does not know. That makes the scene work, the threat of Donnie being exposed at the center of its conflict.

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