TODAY'S NUGGET: To Live & Die in LA (1985) - A Good Example of "It's All About the Relationship" as Motive

[Quick Summary: A Secret Service agent pulls out all the stops to chase the counterfeiter who killed his partner.] 

I still hate the pat answer, "It's all about the relationship between the characters," because whatever does that mean?

Today's script partially answered that question for me.  It's a great example of how a relationship can motivate a loner (here, the protagonist).

In the scene below:
- Chance is the protagonist.
- He and Hart are Secret Service partners. Hart retires in 3 days.
- Because there's so much betrayal in his work, Chance trusts very few people, and is very loyal to them, especially Hart.
- This scene shows that rare moment where Chance feels safe. It explains so much of why he'd chase Hart's killer to the ends of the earth.
- Also notice the end of the scene when Chance feels the threat to his prized friendship.  There's a subtle change in tone and mood, i.e., character motivated.

EXT. PARKING LOT - UTRO'S - LATE DAY

Chance and Hart walking toward their cars.

CHANCE: Got something for you.

He opens the lid of his trunk and removes a graphite fishing rod folded into a 15-inch leather carrying case. 

CHANCE (continuing): Your retirement present.

HART: You're a week early.

CHANCE: It's burning a hole in my trunk.

Hart opens the case and brings the rod to full seven-foot extension.

HART: What the hell --

CHANCE: They tell me the trout jump all over it.

Hart puts his arm around Chance. They embrace warmly.

CHANCE: I'm gonna miss you, Amigo.

HART: Me, too.

CHANCE: Listen, I know you got somethin' goin' tomorrow.

HART (smiling): You readin' my mail again?

CHANCE: Master. (pause) Where?

Hart shakes his head 'No".

CHANCE (continuing): You're not goin' out alone.

HART: I got three more days on the job and I want to make the most of 'em. No sense the two of us running down the same lead.

CHANCE: We're partners.

HART: Damn straight we are. And when the bust goes down it's ours. Like always.

WHAT I'VE LEARNED: This script helped me see better that what Chance wanted most was that connection, and how resulted in his behavior (also known as "character motivated action"). 

To Live & Die in LA (1985)(11/8/84 draft)
by William Friedkin and Gerald Petievich

TODAY'S NUGGET: Wait Until Dark (1967) - Four Excellent Elements of a Thriller + Good "NOTEs"

[Quick Summary: After her husband misplaces a drug-stuffed doll that he accepted from a fellow passenger, three cons attempt to get his blind wife to disclose where the doll is hidden.]

TWO THOUGHTS: 

1) FOUR EXCELLENT ELEMENTS OF THIS THRILLER ADAPTATION:

 - The TONE is fun. 
- The ATMOSPHERE is suspenseful, ex. we're worried about the 3 cons finding the neighbor kid who's helping the protagonist.
- The STRONG THROUGH LINE is easy to explain, i.e.,  a blind woman confronts three cons.
- The MOOD is uplifting, then turns dark, which is great for visual drama.

2) THE WRITERS INCLUDED HELPFUL "NOTEs".

A "NOTE:" to the reader is generally an aside or a helpful tip. They're generally frowned upon because they're distract from the narrative and/or are poorly written.

So when is a "NOTE" helpful? 

One good use is in the explanation of overall conventions in the script. This saves on the need to repeat explanations and avoid confusion. 

In this script, for example, the writers used "NOTEs" to explain: 

a) How phone conversations would be filmed. 

NOTE: The telephone convention used here is as follows: When someone is speaking on the phone in CLOSEUP, with the receiver big in SHOT, we can hear what he hears (i.e., the other voice ON FILTER); when anyone is speaking on the phone in the b.g. of a LONG SHOT, we can only hear what someone else as distant as the CAMERA could hear (i.e., a one-sided conversation). This convention is observed throughout the film. 

b) How the three cons would have multiple roles. They're pretending to be several people, in order to confuse the blind protagonist.

[NOTE: Mike and Carlino have played these parts, or parts very like them, before and they are superb at it. In fact, the one thing that holds all three men together - Rost, Carlino and Mike - is that all of them, to their own degree and in their own way, are most at their ease when playing  a part. In Rost's case, the characters he selects are much more dangerous, much harder to pull off. But Mike and Carlino (within the area they select) are perfect. And there is never one moment when any of the three fall out of character. All three derive some personal pleasure from their performances.)

WHAT I'VE LEARNED: My favorite element was the clarity of the through line. 

Also, one good purpose for a "NOTE" is to avoid confusion for the reader (vs. a bad purpose, such as for the writer to micro-manage the production).

Wait Until Dark (1967)(11/25/66 draft)
by  Robert and Jane-Howard Carrington
From the play by Frederick Knott

TODAY'S NUGGET: The Limey (1999) - Do You Know How (& More Importantly, WHEN) to Use the "Flash Cut"?

[Quick Summary: An unpredictable English ex-con comes to L.A. to kill the man whom the con thinks killed his daughter.]

I like to see how other writers use literary devices because knowing about a tool isn't the same as knowing how (and more importantly, when) to use it.  

For example, in today's script, writer Lem Dobbs uses the "flash cut" as a device to peer into a character's present thinking (i.e., subjective mental state).*

A good example is the scene below:
- Wilson is a criminal who has an estranged daughter Jenny.
- Jenny left the UK and moved to California and died.
- Jenny's boyfriend at the time was Valentine.
- Wilson thinks Valentine killed Jenny but doesn't know why yet.
- Valentine is now living with Adhara. This scene occurs at their home when a party is about to begin. 
- All these flash cuts are from Wilson's POV. Nothing has happened yet. 
- Note how it gives the audience a SUBJECTIVE feel what Wilson is thinking.

INT. HOUSE

Valentine turns to greet Adhara who's come downstairs looking great.

ADHARA: Gee, for someone who doesn't like buffets...

VALENTINE: Do you see me eating? 

FLASH CUT:

WILSON, walking toward Valentine. Something in his face says violence is imminent.

VALENTINE glad handing more guests.   

WILSON

watching.

FLASH CUT:

WILSON. Again, walking toward Valentine. This time his hand reaches into his jacket. For the gun.

WILSON

hands Ed his drink.  

ED: Where you going?

Wilson says nothing. Starts to move inside the house.

ED: You're not gonna do nothin' in front of all these people...

FLASH CUT:

WILSON. Getting closer to Valentine.

VALENTINE. Oblivious.

WILSON. Closer. The hand is coming out. With the gun.

WILSON

Part of the way across the living room. Wearing the same expression we saw int he first flas cut: violence.

VALENTINE

chatting away.

WILSON

closer.  

FLASH CUT:

WILSON. Just a couple of feet away. Gun out.

VALENTINE. Sensing trouble. Turning toward Wilson...

WILSON

still moving through the crowd, getting closer. Hand reaching into his jacket.

VALENTINE

smiling, talking.  

FLASH CUT: 

WILSON. Five feet away. Gun extended now. 

VALENTINE. Facing the barrel. About to die.

WILSON. Closer still. The crowd seems to be getting thicker. Hand still in his jacket. 

VALENTINE. Still doesn't know what's coming.

 WHAT I'VE LEARNED: The writer used the "flash cut" judiciously.  Its purpose is psychological, to create a mood, and not simply to dump information.  

The Limey (1999)(9/17/98 draft w/revisions)
by Lem Dobbs 

* This is an unusual purpose than other flashes of time:

- the "flash back" which takes the audience back into the character's subjective memory, or
- the "flash forward" which  is most often used to show objectively what will happen in the future.