MELVILLE
An FBI profiler learns first hand that killing has consequences... some worldly. Some other.
Justice has a name… and it’s Melville.
SHADOW MAN
Killing has consequences…
some worldly, some other.
Sometimes the bad guys get away with it. Be it a failure of justice or the cruelty of circumstance, some deeds look set to go unpunished - at least by the law as we know it.
COBB
My name’s Alex.
I work with the FBI.
I’m what they call a ’profiler’.
LOUIS
You’ll catch the bad guys?
COBB
That’s the plan.
But I need a partner.
Think you can help me?
LOUIS
I- I- I’m just a kid.
COBB
My uh, ’other’ partner says,
’The best way to catch a bad guy is together, as one.’
LOUIS
Is he a profiler too?
COBB
No. Not exactly...
This partner is the Shadow Man. An ethereal being, who centuries has watched over us; working together with a few chosen lawmen to ensure the worst of humanity face the consequences of their crimes.
Now, following the death of his former mentor and partner, hard-nosed detective Louis Taylor finds himself heir to this unlikely agreement.
Skeptical at first, the deeper Louis digs the more he comes to understand the truth about his former friend and colleague. A truth that forces Louis to reconcile his own tormented past and accept a pursuit of justice that lies far beyond our mortal realm.
LOUIS
So either I’m crazy or you’re real.
Neither of which gives me the warm fuzzies.
MELVILLE
But raining hell fire down on the most nasty of nasties
has gotta warm your heart, right?
Louis glances at the black folder next to him. He shuffles it to one side to reveal a BLUE folder underneath. The folder reads: "BILL".
Louis studies Melville in the rear view mirror, and then back out again at the house, deliberating.
LOUIS
Cobb used to say...
"You only get the pot of gold..."
MELVILLE
"...if you’re willing to find the end of the rainbow".
For Louis, like Cobb and the lawmen before him, the Shadow Man is a way to strike back against evil. To right past wrongs and bring closure to those suffering injustice. All Louis has to do is say the word...
Jeremy Storey’s Melville offers a dark crime noir with a supernatural twist. This script serves as a potential teaser - a prelude to a story greater in scope than the usual short scripts.
The Shadow Man offers up a hero for the ages: a pipe smoking, Stetson wearing avenger with a slick tongue and a penchant for restoring karmic balance with an ice-pick. For filmmakers looking for a bold new project, Melville offers a chance to take their craft to the next level.
