Blog #3

Californication Season 1 Episode 7 ending -- link

FADE IN

INT. BECCA’S ROOM – NIGHT

HANK walks into BECCA’S room. Becca is laying in bed with her eyes closed and her earbuds in her ears with her iPod playing “Passenger’s Seat” by Death Cab for Cutie. Becca opens her eyes and shortly notices Hank in the room.
                BECCA
               (with “Passenger‘s Seat“ playing in the background)
Hey.

Hank smiles and walks to Becca’s beside and sits.

                HANK                                              
              (with Passenger’s Seat” playing in the background)                              
         Hey. What are you listenin’ to there? A little fallin’ asleep music? Little Jonie Mitchell Blow on the Tracks?
                BECCA
               (with “Passenger’s Seat” playing, looking down)
        Death Cab for Cutie.
                HANK
                (with Passenger’s Seat” playing in the background)
        Wow, you really know how to hurt a guy.
        … … …
        Hey…uh…I know, tonight, got a little ruined.
                BECCA
                (with Passenger's Seat” playing in the background)
        I know. I’m used to it.
                HANK
                (with Passenger’s Seat” playing in the background)
        Yeah well I’ll uh…I’ll make it up to you, I swear.
                BECCA
                (with Passenger’s Seat” playing in the background)
        I know.
                HANK
                (with Passenger’s Seat” playing in the background)
        Do ya?
                BECCA
                (with Passenger’s Seat” playing in the background)
        Sure. You never mean to let me down…but’cha do.

Hank sighs.

                HANK
                (with Passenger’s Seat” playing in the background)
        Yeah, I guess I do.
                BECCA
                (with Passenger’s Seat” playing in the background)
        You know, it’s all well and good to talk about happy endings…but if a person can’t deliver, if he keeps screwing up…well eventually I guess you kinda just have to say fuck you. Or words to that effect.

…

Hank looks breathe-taken.

Becca reaches to the table and grabs a bill from her nightstand and hands it to Hank.

                BECCA
                (with Passenger’s Seat” playing in the background)
        You can keep the change.

Becca turns to her left and sleeps.

Hank looks down with a disappointed look on his face.

FADE OUT

This scene is made for me just because of the underlying music in the background. This scene is done extremely well, using sound to its advantage. The listening mode in this scene is mostly semantic because you're accidentally hearing the song in the background as you're listening to Becca and Hank go back and forth. The song talks about trouble times and needing direction, two things Becca definitely is experiencing at the time of the scene because of her dad's unfortunate irresponsibility. The song also sets a depressing mood for the scene, being a slower song with a soft-spoken singer. Time is also executed superbly in this scene; while Hank and Becca are talking about their terrible night, the song talks about feelings within the same tone. You can constantly find yourself fading in and out between the scene and the song if you watch the scene a few times. The meaning of the song definitely drives home the mood of the scene at the end, when the song plays over silence, rather than the two characters conversing.