Creative Notes:
This is the third and final part of my filmed table read of the Highwaymen
The Highwaymen
Mick, a highwayman in debt to the kingpin of the London underworld and his unlikely apprentice, Augy, a street urchin with a dangerous secret, ride from London to Edinburgh on a mission of robbery and revenge.
Synopsis:
The Highwaymen is set in the gritty underworld of mid-18th century England where crime was rampant and no police force existed.
Bisexual highway robber Mick Redon arrives in London short the quota of loot he owes the Dutchman, head of the London underworld. He soon learns that an old enemy, Tom Boyd is in town as well and has put a price on his head. Mick saves Augy, a little street urchin with a crippled leg from being drowned in a fountain by a prostitute whose pocket he tried to pick and finds himself smitten with the boy. Augy reveals to Mick that he is in fact the heir to a great estate in Scotland, stolen from him by his uncle who left him for dead in London five years ago. Augy tells Mick that if he will only help him get to Edinburgh he can have anything from the estate he wants. All that matters to Augy is to revenge himself on his Uncle and cousin for what they did to him and his father. With no other options in sight Mick agrees to take Augy along. They leave London, unaware that Tom Boyd and his gang are hot on their tail, and in the pay of Lord Robert, Augy’s uncle. Lord Robert’s only desire is to secure a high place for his beloved son John, despite John’s protests that he never asked his father to perform acts of violence in his name. As they travel from London to Edinburgh Mick teaches Augy how to be a “knight of the road” and to Mick’s surprise, Augy soon proves even more proficient at the trade than Mick himself. After years of being ground into the pavement by the bootheel of society, Augy revels in the power he now commands from the back of a horse with a gun in his hand. After their horses are stolen by an unscrupulous innkeeper, Augy and Mick are forced to walk the entire way to a nearby village. When Augy faints from exhaustion and Mick notices the blood under his arm from a recent fall, Mick tries to remove the boy’s shirt to examine the extent of the injury. When Mick discovers Augy is in fact a girl and that he has been lied to he is furious. Mick and Augy travel on, no longer speaking to one another. After Augy commits an act of violence Mick disapproves of he rides off on his own, only to be captured by Boyd. Boyd tries to hang Mick, but Augy comes to the rescue, killing Boyd and injuring Boyd’s companion. They discover the payment from Lord Robert on Boyd’s body. Now rich, Mick suggests to Augy that they need not risk their lives in violent revenge, but buy legitimate justice in the form of a lawyer. Augy grudgingly agrees to try this route, but instead, Augy waits until nightfall, when Mick is asleep and rides off on her own to face Lord Robert and Cousin John. What she doesn’t know is that Boyd’s injured companion who got away managed to warn Lord Robert and he is now prepared. Augy arrives at the MacInnis mansion to find her Cousin John drunk and standing guard. Much to her fury, John doesn’t recognize or remember her and has no desire to fight. As Augy yells at John, Lord Robert comes up behind her and shoots her at close range. Augy falls, but to Lord Robert’s horror the bullet has gone through her crutch and struck his son John in the throat, instead. Mick arrives on the scene to find Lord Robert sobbing over the body of his dead son. Mick takes Augy in his arms and rides away. Meanwhile, Lord Robert kills himself for what he has done to his son. Mick rides until he gets to the ocean where he tends to Augy. He hurls their weapons into the water, as he and Augy watch the dawn together, a sight Augy admits she never expected to see.
Bisexual highway robber Mick Redon arrives in London short the quota of loot he owes the Dutchman, head of the London underworld. He soon learns that an old enemy, Tom Boyd is in town as well and has put a price on his head. Mick saves Augy, a little street urchin with a crippled leg from being drowned in a fountain by a prostitute whose pocket he tried to pick and finds himself smitten with the boy. Augy reveals to Mick that he is in fact the heir to a great estate in Scotland, stolen from him by his uncle who left him for dead in London five years ago. Augy tells Mick that if he will only help him get to Edinburgh he can have anything from the estate he wants. All that matters to Augy is to revenge himself on his Uncle and cousin for what they did to him and his father. With no other options in sight Mick agrees to take Augy along. They leave London, unaware that Tom Boyd and his gang are hot on their tail, and in the pay of Lord Robert, Augy’s uncle. Lord Robert’s only desire is to secure a high place for his beloved son John, despite John’s protests that he never asked his father to perform acts of violence in his name. As they travel from London to Edinburgh Mick teaches Augy how to be a “knight of the road” and to Mick’s surprise, Augy soon proves even more proficient at the trade than Mick himself. After years of being ground into the pavement by the bootheel of society, Augy revels in the power he now commands from the back of a horse with a gun in his hand. After their horses are stolen by an unscrupulous innkeeper, Augy and Mick are forced to walk the entire way to a nearby village. When Augy faints from exhaustion and Mick notices the blood under his arm from a recent fall, Mick tries to remove the boy’s shirt to examine the extent of the injury. When Mick discovers Augy is in fact a girl and that he has been lied to he is furious. Mick and Augy travel on, no longer speaking to one another. After Augy commits an act of violence Mick disapproves of he rides off on his own, only to be captured by Boyd. Boyd tries to hang Mick, but Augy comes to the rescue, killing Boyd and injuring Boyd’s companion. They discover the payment from Lord Robert on Boyd’s body. Now rich, Mick suggests to Augy that they need not risk their lives in violent revenge, but buy legitimate justice in the form of a lawyer. Augy grudgingly agrees to try this route, but instead, Augy waits until nightfall, when Mick is asleep and rides off on her own to face Lord Robert and Cousin John. What she doesn’t know is that Boyd’s injured companion who got away managed to warn Lord Robert and he is now prepared. Augy arrives at the MacInnis mansion to find her Cousin John drunk and standing guard. Much to her fury, John doesn’t recognize or remember her and has no desire to fight. As Augy yells at John, Lord Robert comes up behind her and shoots her at close range. Augy falls, but to Lord Robert’s horror the bullet has gone through her crutch and struck his son John in the throat, instead. Mick arrives on the scene to find Lord Robert sobbing over the body of his dead son. Mick takes Augy in his arms and rides away. Meanwhile, Lord Robert kills himself for what he has done to his son. Mick rides until he gets to the ocean where he tends to Augy. He hurls their weapons into the water, as he and Augy watch the dawn together, a sight Augy admits she never expected to see.
Latest Work
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Test Movie 4 - the Highwaymen table read, part307/04/11
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Script 2 - Adira's 2nd Draft03/18/11
Creative Notes:This is another version I did to iron out some of the bugs in the earlier version, such as characters being called by the wrong name at times and some places where the format was messed up. The biggest change I made was in restoring the original ending dialogue. Before I had cut it in half, because I was told the script should be shorter.
All Work
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Test Movie 3 - Part 2 of 306/23/11
Creative Notes:This is Part 2 of 3 parts
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Test Movie 2 - Table Read: Part 1 of 306/05/11
Creative Notes:This is part 1 of 3 of the table read of the Highwaymen.
The sound is a little quiet on it, so to hear it you have to really pump the sound up to max on your computer. Thank you. -
Test Movie 1 - Dialogue Track05/19/11
Creative Notes:First Dialogue Track for a test movie.
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Script 1 - Adira's Original Draft11/28/10
Creative Notes:I began this script as a MFA Screenwriting student while I was at USC. Since then it has gone through a number of changes, most notably after submitting it to the Bluecat Screenwriting contest in the spring of 2010. After I undertook the rewrites advised, the script was chosen as one of the quarterfinalists of the contest.