The Golem of Cotopaxi

Project Overview

THE GOLEM OF COTOPAXI
Feature Film – 99 Pages – Supernatural Western
Jaws meets Frankenstein in the Wild West

The Jew in the Wild West isn’t an ironic punchline.
We were there, part of the history, shaping the frontier from St. Louis to San Francisco. But – a few comedies aside – we have been excluded from the Great American Myth. To correct this omission, it’s not enough to just drop a few Jews into a Western story. Their Jewishness must figure into – even drive – the narrative. As such, I aim to tell a story that is necessarily Jewish, and necessarily American.

My goal is no less than the blending of mythologies.
So I offer both a classic Western railroad story and an ageless tale from the rich annals of Jewish folklore. A new American legend: The Golem of Cotopaxi.

~~~

Fremont County, Colorado in 1887. Frank Wilson, Sheriff, thinks he’s tough, principled and fair… but “Mild Bill” Jackson, the local railroad tycoon has him on a tight leash.
When two Chinese railroad workers turn up dead, Mild Bill wants to pin their deaths on the Ute Indians who’ve been blocking the railroad’s westward expansion. So the case becomes Frank’s top priority. But this isn’t a typical murder case. The victims’ tent is shattered, their bodies crushed. What could have caused this carnage?
Going against his benefactor’s wishes, Frank pursues a legitimate investigation. His adventure brings him into Ute territory, where he teams up with a scout named Ruth – a European woman who the Ute had taken in some years back. Ruth knows more than she lets on about the mysterious killer. She sends Frank to the only person who might be able to stop it: an old barroom drunk named Grupitzky.
Grupitzky is a Rabbi, the leader of a group of Russian Jews who came in search of a better life. They settled in Cotopaxi, but their colony disbanded after three harsh winters. It was during that time that Grupitzky tried to create a golem – a monster made of river mud and animated with mystical incantations. It was supposed to be a helper for the Cotopaxi Jews, but Grupitzky was never able to bring his golem to life. When Grupitzky left Cotopaxi, he left the inanimate golem behind. Someone must have found it. Someone who knew how to give it life. The clues to its whereabouts – and the key to stopping it – are buried under the floorboards in the Rabbi’s old house – in the ruins of Cotopaxi.
While Frank’s investigation proceeds, Mild Bill loses patience. He mobilizes a heavily-armed posse to attack the Ute village. Grupitzky confronts Frank about this. If he’s really fighting for justice, he must stop both the monster and Mild Bill’s posse.
So the Sheriff and the Rabbi ride hard for Cotopaxi, while the Scout dashes back to warn her Tribe about the impending attack.
In a final white-knuckle battle, Grupitzky and Frank fight to kill the golem as Bill’s train – carrying hundreds of armed men – whistles into the canyon. At the last minute, Ruth returns with a group of Ute warriors who join the fight. With their help, Frank manages to bring the golem down – into the path of the train! In one fell swoop, the monster is destroyed, and the massacre averted. But there’s one more monster that needs to be stopped.
Together with Ruth, Grupitzky and the Ute warriors, Frank makes sure Mild Bill will never terrorize Colorado again.