FADE IN.
Act 1
INT. STUDY - DAY
Watching a TV interview, PETER's eyes suddenly become wide open.
PETER (V.O.): The interviewee suggests that humans, due to fear of death during the pandemic, would take time travel to the past.
Peter puts his hand on cheek.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd) : He adds that's humans' mental defence mechanism to cope with change.
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): I often feel nostalgic. Have I got a mental condition?
Reflecting.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): But I don't I feel it at all!
Pondering.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): I must be alert to the truism that I don't know what I don't know.
Wondering.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): I must investigate. I need to understand my mental state more.
Act 2
FLASHBACK
EXT/INT. CAR PARK - CONTINUOUS
Peter drives a new Beetle to the entrance. Inside the car, we hear time check and then some energetic music before the news.
PETER (V.O.): It was the captivating theme music in the film 633 Squadron. The wing commander was leading his squadron to accomplish a bombing mission.
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): That was around 1964. I was 10. The cinema was the most entertaining place.
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): And life was hard but pretty happy too.
FLASHBACK UPON FLASHBACK
INT. HAWKER SHELTER, HUNG SHUI KIU - DAY (1964)
Early morning. Peter (10) in primary school uniform passes a 10-cent coin to a HAWKER (20s) at a cooking broth.
PETER: A bowl of plain noodles.
The hawker then dumps some yellow-coloured noodles into a pot of hot water, stirring them with a pair of long chopsticks.
PETER (CONT'D): Could you please add me some beef sauce to my bowl of plain noodles?
HAWKER: No problem!
The hawker does what he is asked. Getting his bowl of noodles, Peter finds a seat and begins to enjoy it.
PETER: Very delicious!
END FLASHBACK UPON FLASHBACK
Having parked his car, Peter takes a photo of it.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): There was another Hollywood blockbuster The Love Bug, featuring the Beetle. I bought this car as my delayed nostalgic response to the film that I loved.
END FLASHBACK
Peter looks up at the ceiling.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): So the theme music, the noodles breakfast and the films all come back to me warm and strong.
Peter taps a few times on the screen of his iPad Mini. We hear the theme music of 633 Squadron and then we see the trailer of The Love Bug.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): As to the taste of the bowl of plain noodles, I still recall the beef sauce added created a very delicious flavour.
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): But how can it beat a bowl of sirloin noodles now?
Reflecting.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Am I fooling myself by insisting that the one I had in the 1960s was better than any perfect substitutes now?
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Was life when I was young bitter or sweet?
Act 3
INT. STUDY - CONTINUOUS
Peter surfs the web again and studies some small prints.
PETER (V.O.): Nostalgia derives from the Latin words of Nostos (homecoming) and Algos (longing). It was initially diagnosed as a neurological disease. And then in the beginning of the 20th C as a mental condition like depression.
Looking shocked, Peter reads on.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Decades later, the condition was better understood and was expanded to include homesickness and general longing for the past.
Peter nods.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): And then nostalgia is seen scientifically as a poignant and pleasant experience. Yes, having heard the 633 Squadron theme music, I associate it with other good experience. I wasn't in the negative mood.
Peter reads on.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): By sharing one's nostalgia would even enhance one's social belonging and psychological growth. Ah! That's why I feel bitter sweet when blending the past and the present into the future.
Peter nods.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): That's also why people in adversity would naturally use nostalgia to reduce distress and restore well being. Oh, that's what the interviewee on TV was talking about.
Peter takes a deep breath.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Do I fear of death?
Reflecting.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): A person who lives a fulfilling life is prepared to die at any time.
Peter winks.
FADE OUT.
THE END
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