Siege on the Castillo is a "green" black comedy about a grandfather teaching his grandson about taking a stand for something in which you believe. And maybe changing your little corner of the world for the better in the process. If you don't get killed in the process.
Synopsis:There is a castle in a small Florida town, built by the Spanish 400 years ago that, to this day, has never been taken by siege.
Wendell Hope, a phenomenally wealthy inventor and entrepreneur, buys the castle from the National Parks Service, who are selling off some of their more esoteric properties in this lousy economy. Part of the deal involves allowing tourists visits once a month, not unlike the Brits and their royal castles. Makes Wendell a little cranky, these tours.
What also makes Wendell cranky is the greedy disregard a paid-off city commission exhibits by granting a permit for an unnecessary coal-fired power plant in the city’s back yard. Florida + sulfur dioxide emissions + rain = acid rain. Which would destroy the ancient, Spanish-influenced landmark buildings (including his Castillo) upon which the local economy depends. Which would change the alkalinity of the local farmers’ soil, creating a dust bowl eventually. So Wendell funds some local radicals who unsuccessfully try to defeat the plant’s siting.
At the same time, Wendell is guardian to his 18 year old ne’er-do-well surfer grandson, who would rather be riding the waves than hitting the books during his freshman year in college. The kid needs to learn to stand for something outside his own, solipsistic life. He needs to learn to grow a backbone.
So Wendell decides to tackle two thorny problems at once. He declares war on the city where he lives from the Castillo, using the canons and mortars and a moat surrounding the old fort; and he enlists his grandson, against his will, as his aide de camp, as well as a few of the quirky locals who support Wendell’s cause – fighting corrupt corporate bullies.
Wendell’s ingenuity enables him to stave off the local constabulary who lay siege, a SWAT air attack, an attempt by a black ops corporate team, while drawing the attention of the national media through efforts of a beautiful young TV reporter who has designs on a network desk, and maybe Wendell too.
If Wendell has a favorite quote, it would be from Margaret Mead: "Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has."