Feature Script: PREY FOR ME, by Pat McManus

PREY FOR ME
Pat McManus
Horror/thriller

CIA profiler, Macy Roth, conducts an experiment to find out if a killer is born evil or if it stems from his childhood and if you erase his childhood would he still be evil? After being granted a serial killer from death row as a guinea pig, she finds out that even after wiping his memory bank clean, she can’t remove his urge to capture his next prey. (same eeriness as, The Silence Of The Lambs)

The dark thoughts that fester behind the vacant eyes of a serial killer are terrifying, but what happened to him as a boy to have these thoughts is even more chilling. Cain Yorger came into this world as an innocent child with no say on how he was raised and too small to fight back against his father. Soon his bright eyes were dim, his flesh was bruised and his body was soulless. He was left for days in a metal cage that doubled as a baby-sitter.

Through the dark nights his only friend was his bird, Jemi. His only playground was his mind and his only toys were his thoughts. Now as an adult, he’s confined once again, but this time his cage is on death row.

Dr. Macy Roth, psychiatrist, who creates pro-files for the CIA, feels compelled to help people like Cain. Because she feels some children who were abused will grow up and abuse others, she sets up an experiment using a drug called “Tetro” which permanently erases sectors of the brain that control long term memory. Driven by the inner damage caused by her own childhood abuse, she hopes it will wipe out their past “learned behaviors” and stop the never-ending cycle of abuse.

After being denied funding from the FDA, the CIA makes a surprising proposal. Under the guise of wanting to rid society of predators, they offer to fund her experiment. Unfortunately for Dr. Roth, the CIA’s real motive is much more devious. They set her up with a special lab and special lab rat, Cain Yorger.

But this top-level security experiment goes awry. Because of the CIA’s secret involvement in these proceedings, Cain is allowed to be tested outside the prison by Dr. Roth. Security for the prisoner appears to be adequate, but since Cain’s secret release, disappearances have occurred.

In addition, Cain’s beloved pet bird is weaved into the plot of the story creating a modicum of pity for the killer and an extremely eerie ending. The doctor wanted to cure, the CIA wanted to manipulate and Cain wanted his next prey.

Resume:

Screenplay has been critiqued by Valerie Feldner, former story analyst of Warner Bros. and now an editor for the New Yorker Magazine. I attended N.Y.U. for screenwriting. I have a degree in Criminal Justice and a minor in Psychology.