Script To Screen: “The Cider House Rules”

The ending sequence from the 1999 movie The Cider House Rules, screenplay by John Irving based on his novel.

Plot Summary: A compassionate young man (Homer), raised in an orphanage and trained to be a doctor there, decides to leave to see the world.

Here that young man returns to the orphanage:

INT. MOVING TRAIN - PASSENGER CAR - NIGHT A CONDUCTOR, taking tickets, comes to Homer, who is
better dressed than we've ever seen him; he is
looking at his sober reflection in the black window
glass of the night train when the conductor gets his
attention. When the conductor moves on, Homer takes
Angela's letter out of his breast pocket; he skips
ahead to the end. ANGELA (V.O.)
Dr. Larch often wondered how the
world was treating you. EXT. ST. CLOUD'S - GRAVEYARD - AFTERNOON ANGELA (V.O.)
He talked a lot about you, hoping
you would be of use, whatever you
were up to. Angela and Buster and Mary Agnes and Edna carry
Larch's coffin; they set it down by the raw hole. The
pile of fresh dirt stands out against the new snow;
the hole is black against the new white. EDNA (O.S.)
"Oh, Lord, support us all the day
long..." We see the wheelbarrow with the gravestone. EDNA (O.S.)
"...until the shadows lengthen and
the evening comes, and the busy world
is hushed, and the fever of life is
over, and our work is done." INT. GIRLS' DIVISION - NIGHT We see the faces of the girls praying for Larch (Mary
Agnes, too) as Edna finishes her favorite prayer. EDNA
"Then, in Thy mercy grant us a safe
lodging, and a holy rest, and peace
at the last." INT. MOVING TRAIN - PASSENGER CAR - NIGHT Camera closes on Homer, sleeping to the sound of the
rocking train. Angela's letter lies in his lap. THE GIRLS (O.S.)
Amen! Amen! Amen! EXT. ST. CLOUD'S - TRAIN STATION - EARLY MORNING The train stops, blowing snow. Homer steps off the
train carrying a suitcase and Dr. Larch's bag. The
disapproving stationmaster is still disapproving.
Music plays Over, something triumphant. EXT. ST. CLOUD'S - THE HILL - EARLY MORNING Homer makes his way up the hill toward the orphanage.
Music Over. EXT. ORPHANAGE - EARLY MORNING Edna is breaking up fights; this time, instead of
fighting over snowballs, the orphans are fighting
over their pumpkins. Suddenly Homer tops the brow of
the hill and they all see him. Buster is the first to
catch sight of Homer; he runs toward him. Mary Agnes
also sees Homer; she immediately turns away and runs
inside. Music FADES OUT Over. INT. LAVATORY - EARLY MORNING Mary Agnes crashes into the bathroom and stumbles up
to the mirror; she starts to fix herself up with
shaking hands. INT. ORPHANAGE, FRONT HALL - EARLY MORNING Everyone has heard the news; they come on the run.
The children flock around Homer, hugging him. Homer
takes Angela and Edna in his arms. Mary Agnes joins
the group. Homer takes in how changed, how attractive
she is. They smile awkwardly at each other. INT. BOYS' DIVISION - EVENING Homer's suitcase is open on the bed; we see Homer's
hands as he begins to unpack. Smaller hands reach in
and root through the clothes. CURLY (O.S.)
Did you bring something for me? Curly continues his search. Homer thinks for a
second; then reaches into his pocket and pulls out
the piece of pale-green glass. HOMER
You know what? I did. Homer hands the piece of glass to Curly. HOMER
It's from the ocean. It's for you. Curly is duly impressed; he walks away to examine his
new treasure. Homer continues unpacking. He pulls his
X ray out and puts it aside. BUSTER
What are you doing here? Homer turns to see Buster, Mary Agnes, Angela, and
Edna in the doorway. MARY AGNES
We made up a room for you. ANGELA
Wouldn't you be more comfortable by
yourself? Homer smiles; he nods. Angela and Mary Agnes start to put Homer's things
back in his bag. Edna picks up the X ray and looks at
it with a somber expression. EDNA
Homer, do you know what this is? HOMER
Sure. It's my heart. ANGELA
(shakes her head)
Actually, it's Fuzzy's. There's
nothing wrong with your heart. HOMER
Fuzzy's?! EDNA
Dr. Larch wanted to keep you out of
the war, Homer--that's why he did
it. That's why he told you it was
yours. Homer is stunned; he puts his hand to his heart. ANGELA
I think he worried about his own
heart. He said it would never stand
up to Homer Wells going off to war. Homer takes that in; he nods. Mary Agnes touches him
sympathetically. INT. LARCH'S OFFICE - NIGHT Homer looks at his fake diplomas; they are now framed
and hanging on the office wall. Homer surveys the
office, as if for the first time; he sits down in the
desk chair, as if slowly getting used to his new
position. INT. BOYS' DIVISION - NIGHT Homer reads to the boys from "David Copperfield".
While his voice is strong--positive, optimistic,
certainly reassuring to the boys--there is in the
conclusion of the chapter something that distracts
him. He seems to hesitate; he misses a line or two,
and perhaps he purposely skips one or two others.
(Possibly Homer's eyes wander ahead, to the title of
the next chapter: "I Make Another Beginning.") HOMER
"Thus I began my new life, in a new
name, and with everything new about
me... I felt... like one in a dream...
The remembrance of that life is
fraught with so much... want of
hope... Whether it lasted for a year,
or more, or less, I do not know. I
only know that it was, and ceased to
be; and... there I leave it." Homer stops and looks at the boys' faces. CURLY
What happens next? Homer smiles. HOMER
That's tomorrow, Curly. Let's mot
give the story away. Homer puts out the lights and leaves the boys in the
familiar semi-darkness. Seconds, later, the closed
door to the hall is flung open, flooding the room
with light from the hall, and Homer, dressed in his
long white laboratory coat and looking every inch the
doctor, delivers his best imitation of Larch's
popular blessing. HOMER
Good night, you Princes of Maine!
You Kings of New England! On Copperfield and Steerforth and Curly as the door
to the hall is closed and semi-darkness prevails in
the room again. Copperfield, smiling, shuts his eyes.
After a second, the wide-eyed Steerforth shuts his
eyes, too. Then Curly. The last to close his eyes is Buster. FADE TO BLACK: THE END

Here is most of the movie version of the scenes:

This is a powerful movie with some stellar performances, most notably Michael Caine, and a compelling story as penned by Irving. Given the fact Irving is a novelist — to my knowledge this is his only screenwriting credit — it’s interesting to study his approach to screenplay style. His stage direction, including camera shots and music cues, is typical of scripts from decades earlier (the 70s and before). Given how closely the movie hews to the script, I suspect director Lasse Hallström worked closely with Irving to make sure the script reflected their shared vision of the movie. In any event, if you haven’t seen The Cider House Rules, watch it.

One of the single best things you can do to learn the craft of screenwriting is to read the script while watching the movie. After all a screenplay is a blueprint to make a movie and it’s that magic of what happens between printed page and final print that can inform how you approach writing scenes. That is the purpose of Script to Screen, a Go Into The Story series where we analyze a memorable movie scene and the script pages that inspired it.

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