Happy 50th Anniversary, Night of Dark Shadows

[Mysterious Benefactor]

Revisiting how the beginning of Scene 185 is scripted:

Beginning the next scene as scripted (using Grayson's script):

LAURA 185    SAMANTHA - QUENTIN'S P.O.V.                        185        SUBCONSCIOUS MEMORY CUT                                   Laura        It is no longer Tracy but Samantha who stands there,        as he begins to re-enact the moment of her death.        INTERCUT these MEMORY SHOTS throughout the rest of        the scene.        QUENTIN - TRACY        As Quentin slowly moves toward her, Tracy begins to        back away.

And that's when yesterday's quote -

Page 86/Scene 185 - Quentin: 'Isn't it enough that you killed her?...Won't you ever leave us alone?...ever?'

- comes up.

And when it comes to differences in the dialogue, after Quentin asks the first part of his quote ("Isn't it enough that you killed her?"), in more unscripted dialogue, Tracy asks -

"What are you talking about?...What's wrong with you?..."

- after which Quentin asks the second part of his quote ("Won't you ever leave us alone?...ever?") - and then in more unscripted dialogue, a somewhat anxious and confused Tracy says -

"Quentin, it's me."

And when it comes to the differences in the descriptions and directions, Quentin doesn't actually see Laura until after Tracy asks what's wrong with him -

- and before she makes a gesture of nodding her head no and tries to tell him that it's her.

   And as far as "yesterday's quote" goes, it was from May 20th this time around.

 

[Mysterious Benefactor]

Revisiting the rest of how Scene 185 is scripted:

Wrapping up Scene 185 as scripted (using Grayson's script):

QUENTIN - CLOSE-UP - TRACY'S P.O.V.        Now only a few feet from her, the look of incredible        hate in his eyes burns into the CAMERA.

And that's when yesterday's quote -

Page 86/Scene 185 - Tracy (O.S.) (hysterical): 'Quentin!...Quentin! It's me...It's me...please!...'

- comes up in the script, followed in the script by:

Reaching TOWARD CAMERA, with his face almost in the       lens.

And that's when today's quote -

Page 86/Scene 185 - Quentin: 'No, Laura. I'm going to make sure you'll never interfere again.'

- comes up in the script, followed in the script by:

TRACY - QUENTIN - HAND HELD        As he grabs her and drags her, screaming and kicking,        to the edge of the pool and plunges her into the        filthy dark water.  Holding her head under, she        futilely claws and scratches at his hands and arms.        HOLD ON THIS as her movements become weaker and        weaker, and, finally she starts to sink to the bottom        of the pool.  Quentin then slowly rises and moves        AWAY FROM CAMERA.

End of scene.

And when it comes to differences in the dialogue, yesterday's and today's quotes are actually flipped in the film with Quentin's coming first -

"No, Laura. I'm going to make sure you'll never interfere again."

- and Quentin seems to deliver his lines exactly as scripted but Tracy's hysterical delivery is so loud that it appears to cut off the word "again" - and when it comes to Tracy's quote -

"Quentin!...Quentin! It's me...It's me...please!..."

- what she actually says is "No, look, it, it's me!...Stop it, Quentin, it's me!..." and she cries out as she's about to hit the water, and she continues to cry out as Quentin repeatedly dunks her under the water.

And when it comes to the differences in the descriptions and directions, Quentin doesn't actually reach toward camera because as we saw in yesterday's capture above, he reaches around Tracy's throat, but his face is -

- almost in the lens - and as Tracy screams "me!...Stop it", it's actually Laura -

- who Quentin sees before he angrily throws Tracy -

- into the water - though one thing I find very interesting is that Quentin's face shifts to almost expressionless as -

- Tracy is about to fall into the water - but I absolutely love how David Selby inadvertently splashes himself in the face while he's dunking Kate Jackson -

- and especially Quentin's crazed expression as he pulls back after Tracy stops -

- fighting him.

And interestingly enough, even though Carlotta doesn't appear in Scene 185, Grayson has several notes in her script. In part she writes that Carlotta has done what she promised, that Quentin is Angelique's forever, and that she and Angelique are smiling at each other. It can also be made out that Carlotta is kissing the lock of hair (though we never do actually see that lock of hair in the film) and somehow she offers it as a symbol of victory. Also, she writes that they have won because (she believes, anyway, that) Tracy is dead...

   And as far as "yesterday's quote" goes, it was from May 21st this time around, and "today's quote" is indeed today's, May 22nd's, quote.

 

[Mysterious Benefactor]

Moving on to revisit the subtitles and closed captioning from what is really Scene 185:

...

After Quentin, thinking she's Laura, asks if she won't ever leave them alone, Tracy tries to point out in more unscripted dialogue that's reflected in both the subtitles -

- and the closed captioning -

- and after Quentin, still thinking she's Laura, vows that she'll never interfere and makes a grab for Tracy's throat, Tracy follows that up by screaming "No, look, it, it's me!" - but the subtitles have -

- and the closed captioning has -

- and Tracy follows that by screaming "Stop it, Quentin, it's me!" - but the subtitles have -

- and the closed captioning has -

To be continued...

...