One's Competitiveness
- Peter K F Cheung SBS
- Mar 13, 2020
- 3 min read
FADE IN.
Act 1
INT. SITTING ROOM - NIGHT
PETER and his WIFE are watching TV news.
PETER: Oh, the whole Hong Kong tour group to Egypt has contracted COVID-19. One of them has visited Laguna Park upon return.
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.): I haven't been to Egypt due to my perception of safety there...
INT. STUDY - DAY
Peter is multi-tasking, working on his computer, and watching TV news.
PETER (V.O.): Oh, US has banned traffic from the European Continent.
More TV stories.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Oh, Tom Hanks and his wife have got infected with COVID-19 too. They're 63, and are staying at Ivory Coast. Nice place, my wife and I were there in 2018 to support our son's fencing competition there.
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Tom Hanks is my favourite actor and I've seen nearly all of his films - from Big to Forrest Gump. He's highly competent as an actor.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): My wife and I have a fixed trip to UK in April, and hope to visit Australia in May...
We hear the TV anchor referring to the term pandemic all the time.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): How can we be competitive in the pandemic context?
Act 2
INT. STUDY - CONTINOUS
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Incidentally, when did I first watched Tom Hanks' Big? It was a sweet and funny fantasy-comedy.
Peter surfs the web.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Oh, it was a 1988 film - budget: US$18 million, and box office: US$151.7 million.
Peter surfs the web again.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Forrest Gump 1994 is based on a true story... but there're a lot of fictional dramatic twists and turns - budget: US$55 million, and box office: 678.2 million.
Wondering.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Without a good screenplay, there wouldn't be a good film. To pay a screenwriter US$1 million or so for the screenplay copyright is really nothing...
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): In Forrest Gump, Tom Hanks won an Oscar as the best actor in the leading role. He deserves that...I doubt if I can act.
Remembering.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): My late wife didn't know about Forrest Gump...she died two years earlier at the age of 36.
Reflecting.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): When I reflect on life now, it's just a matter of time-space. We live for today, remember the past and fantasize about the future.
INT. SITTING ROOM - NIGHT
Peter's wife returns home.
PETER: I've got an invitation from Cathay Pacific's Marco Polo Club that I can cancel my April flight and refix a new one at no charge. Should we heed our younger daughter's advice not to visit her?
His wife thinks about it but makes no response.
PETER (V.O.): I know she wants to see our younger daughter very much.
Peter takes a deep breath.
Act 3
INT. PARK - DAY
Peter is jogging.
PETER (V.O.): I slept very well last night and feel strong - keeping myself fit is always important.
INT. STUDY - DAY
Having switched on the TV, we hear top TV news stories about the coronavirus and the freefall of stock prices.
PETER (V.O.): Which is more important these days - money or health?
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): The coronavirus recognizes no borders and no persons, whether celebrities or not.
Remembering.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Someone sent me a self-testing mobile game about one's immunity system...
Phone in hand, Peter taps a link and then the options of yes or no a couple of times.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Oh, I'm just average. I don't drink one liter of water a day...Let me make my energizer-drink.
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Everyone's competitiveness lies in the strength of one's immunity system these days.
Peter goes to the kitchen.
FADE OUT.
THE END.
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