Dry Days (8 pages in pdf format) by Mitch Smith

In a dystopian society where water has all but vanished, two deserters find a mysterious corpse that appears to have died from drowning.

Manhunt movies. A thrilling genre, to say the least. Heart pounding action at its best.

North by Northwest. The Fugitive. Silence of the Lambs. We keep watching – no matter how far into the nightmare dark they lead us. Why? Well, in part to see the hero win the day. But also because the best of such films contain some sort of mystery, which drives us to never turn our eyes away (at least until the secrets are revealed.)

Following in the footsteps of such cinematic greats is Dry Days. Written by talented scribe Mitch Smith, the script packs a mean action punch. And also asks the thematic question: “Can you have too much of a good thing?” – in a clever and entertaining way.

Set in a future where food and water are in desperately short supply, the story opens with our hero and heroine dragging themselves across the blazing hot desert. Being hunted by someone. Or something.

Exhausted and dehydrated, our fleeing couple are almost at death’s door. They encounter the corpse of a man lying half buried in the sand – a grim reminder to their pending fate. They’re on the verge of giving up… when our heroine – a former nurse – realizes the dead man drowned!

She deduces there must be water nearby. But how could someone drown in the desert?!

Hopes renewed, the two begin searching for water. Their quest is cut short by the arrival of Raze, a bone-thin deserter-hunter – with wild eyes and a loaded gun.

The dry blood around his mouth and ravenous look leaves us little doubt about his intentions.

Will our couple live to see another day? Or will survival of the fittest reign?

If you’re a director looking for the next Mad Max, then give Dry Days a spin. It’s easy to shoot, and action packed – with a fresh twist on the usual dystopian fare!

Budget: Fairly low. A sunny beach for the desert and a hallway made to look like a hospital. Throw in a handful of actors, a dune buggy and that’s pretty much it!

About the writer: Mitch Smith is an award winning screenwriter whose website offers notes, script editing and phone consultations. You can also reach him at Mitch.SmithScripts (a) gmail and follow Mitch on twitter @MitchScripts.

About the reviewer: Gary Rowlands cut his teeth writing sketch comedy and was a commissioned writer on the hugely popular Spitting Image broadcast on national television in the UK. He has since branched out into writing features and is actively seeking representation. He can be contacted at gazrow at hotmail dot com.

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This screenplay may not be used or reproduced for any purpose including educational purposes without the expressed written permission of the author.