[Quick Summary: A child psychologist tries to help a child who sees dead people (but doesn't know they're dead).]
When The Sixth Sense came out, I avoided it like the plague.
I don't like scary stuff, or reading scary stuff, or watching scary stuff.
But this script is on the official WGA list, so I read it.
Now I can confidently say that if you haven't read this script, you should for 2 reasons:
1) The reading is wonderfully vertical (thus the reading speed is very fast).
2) Everyone thinks the big reveal at the end makes this script special. But I've broken down and rebuilt enough stories to know that Shyamalan's skill is really shown in how he constructs the setup.
ex. Throughout the script, Anna avoids speaking to Malcolm in realistic ways:
- He thinks she's speaking to him, but she's actually speaking on the phone.
- She laughs with someone, and he turns away, hurt that she's not laughing with him.
We think she's mad at him (setup), only to find out later she isn't (reveal).
WHAT I'VE LEARNED: I like that this script is devoid of "Look at me! See how clever I am!" tricks and gimmicks.
Instead, there are solid story building blocks put together in a clever way.
The Sixth Sense (1999)
by M. Night Shyamalan
Monday, December 5, 2011
Saturday, December 3, 2011
TODAY'S NUGGET: #51 WGA Script of All Time - Broadcast News (1987)
[Quick Summary: A driven female news producer is torn between two men: the new, handsome, not-so-talented news anchor, and the older, talented news anchor-on-the-way-out who is her friend.]
The more I read scripts, the more I see that scripts operate on two levels: spectacle & heart. You need both parts.
The better the two blend, the better the movie.
Broadcast News is a perfect example.
It's got the spectacle and rush of the big news room.
But it's also got the heart of a woman, torn between a guy who's probably the devil but exciting, and a schlub who's like a pair of old sneakers but brilliant.
The love story is enhanced by the spectacle of the news room. If Jane doesn't pick the right guy, the level of journalism could disintegrate.
The spectacle is enhanced by the romance. If Jane demands the journalistic integrity she's worked so hard for, she could be alone for the rest of her life.
WHAT I'VE LEARNED: The right amount of spectacle + heart = Fantastic story.
Too much spectacle = There's no heart.
Too much heart = It's maudlin & boring.
Broadcast News (1987)
by James L. Brooks
The more I read scripts, the more I see that scripts operate on two levels: spectacle & heart. You need both parts.
The better the two blend, the better the movie.
Broadcast News is a perfect example.
It's got the spectacle and rush of the big news room.
But it's also got the heart of a woman, torn between a guy who's probably the devil but exciting, and a schlub who's like a pair of old sneakers but brilliant.
The love story is enhanced by the spectacle of the news room. If Jane doesn't pick the right guy, the level of journalism could disintegrate.
The spectacle is enhanced by the romance. If Jane demands the journalistic integrity she's worked so hard for, she could be alone for the rest of her life.
WHAT I'VE LEARNED: The right amount of spectacle + heart = Fantastic story.
Too much spectacle = There's no heart.
Too much heart = It's maudlin & boring.
Broadcast News (1987)
by James L. Brooks
Monday, November 28, 2011
TODAY'S NUGGET: #52 WGA Script of All Time - Lady Eve (1941)
[Quick Summary: After a con woman and a rich, gullible ophiologist (a snake scientist) fall in love and split up, she disguises herself as English aristocracy to dupe him once more.]
Farce is a tough genre. It's just too easy to go too far with the satirical comedy or improbable plots.
So why does it work here?
According to Roger Ebert, this story avoids the mistake of many films and gives a "baseline of sanity to measure the characters against....Henry Fonda is the rock."
Fonda is the gullible (but not stupid) snake scientist. He doesn't want to use Barbara Stanwyck for his career. He's sincere and earnest as he pursues her. He's puzzled by the "coincidences" but chalks it up to feeling more alive just by being with her. He's truly, madly, crazy in love.
So when he doesn't realize Barbara's dad is blatantly hustling him at cards, we believe him.
When he "happens" to get a photo showing Barbara is a con, we're crushed along with him.
When Barbara creates an English persona and Fonda does not recognize her AT ALL, it all makes sense.
We believe in Fonda, even if everything else is truly preposterous.
WHAT I'VE LEARNED: Farce can be way, way over the top - but only if there's at least one person who makes it feel real.
Lady Eve (1941)
by Preston Sturges
Farce is a tough genre. It's just too easy to go too far with the satirical comedy or improbable plots.
So why does it work here?
According to Roger Ebert, this story avoids the mistake of many films and gives a "baseline of sanity to measure the characters against....Henry Fonda is the rock."
Fonda is the gullible (but not stupid) snake scientist. He doesn't want to use Barbara Stanwyck for his career. He's sincere and earnest as he pursues her. He's puzzled by the "coincidences" but chalks it up to feeling more alive just by being with her. He's truly, madly, crazy in love.
So when he doesn't realize Barbara's dad is blatantly hustling him at cards, we believe him.
When he "happens" to get a photo showing Barbara is a con, we're crushed along with him.
When Barbara creates an English persona and Fonda does not recognize her AT ALL, it all makes sense.
We believe in Fonda, even if everything else is truly preposterous.
WHAT I'VE LEARNED: Farce can be way, way over the top - but only if there's at least one person who makes it feel real.
Lady Eve (1941)
by Preston Sturges
Thursday, November 17, 2011
TODAY'S NUGGET: #53 WGA Script of All Time - All the President's Men (1976)
[Quick Summary: In 1972, two rookie journalists piece together that a minor burglary at the Watergate building is a front for a much bigger political scheme.]
Dang, William Goldman can really write.
This script sucks you in & makes you care, the hallmarks of an exceptional storyteller.
One thing I picked up is his use of point of view.
The script focuses on the reporters Woodward and Bernstein. When they find out information, so does the audience, and thus the reveals are very natural. The audience is truly along for the ride, and becomes invested in the outcome.
But what if Goldman chose to follow the campaign workers or the crooks as the main characters instead?
I think the story would not have been as good.
In the script, Woodward and Bernstein were on the offensive, and literally chased down clues.
A story about the campaign workers would've been more about damage control and defensive p.r....not as interesting.
WHAT I'VE LEARNED: The right point of view can really make the story flow.
The wrong one often lends itself to a clunky story.
All the President's Men (1976)
by William Goldman
Dang, William Goldman can really write.
This script sucks you in & makes you care, the hallmarks of an exceptional storyteller.
One thing I picked up is his use of point of view.
The script focuses on the reporters Woodward and Bernstein. When they find out information, so does the audience, and thus the reveals are very natural. The audience is truly along for the ride, and becomes invested in the outcome.
But what if Goldman chose to follow the campaign workers or the crooks as the main characters instead?
I think the story would not have been as good.
In the script, Woodward and Bernstein were on the offensive, and literally chased down clues.
A story about the campaign workers would've been more about damage control and defensive p.r....not as interesting.
WHAT I'VE LEARNED: The right point of view can really make the story flow.
The wrong one often lends itself to a clunky story.
All the President's Men (1976)
by William Goldman
Friday, November 11, 2011
TODAY'S NUGGET: #54 WGA Script of All Time - Manhattan (1979)
[Quick Summary: A unhappily divorced man falls for his best friend's mistress. Woody Allen type chaos ensues.]
This story is about a guy who falls for his friend's mistress against his better judgment, & is left with egg on his face when the mistress goes back to the friend.
The script is approx. 90% dialogue & it's ok there's very little narrative.
Why? The emotional conflict is so primal, so full of contradiction, so ripe for heart break again & again that it totally engrosses you.
MARY (chuckling): Oh well, how about Vincent Van Gogh (pronouncing it "Goch")...or Ingar Bergman?
IKE: (overlapping) Van Goch? (Aside, to Tracy) Did she say "Van GOch"?
MARY (to Yale): How about Ingmar Bergman?
IKE (overlapping, shaking his head): Van Goch.
WHAT I'VE LEARNED: Above all, keep the emotion raw.
Manhattan (1979)
by Woody Allen
Four Films of Woody Allen (book published 1982)
This story is about a guy who falls for his friend's mistress against his better judgment, & is left with egg on his face when the mistress goes back to the friend.
The script is approx. 90% dialogue & it's ok there's very little narrative.
Why? The emotional conflict is so primal, so full of contradiction, so ripe for heart break again & again that it totally engrosses you.
MARY (chuckling): Oh well, how about Vincent Van Gogh (pronouncing it "Goch")...or Ingar Bergman?
IKE: (overlapping) Van Goch? (Aside, to Tracy) Did she say "Van GOch"?
MARY (to Yale): How about Ingmar Bergman?
IKE (overlapping, shaking his head): Van Goch.
WHAT I'VE LEARNED: Above all, keep the emotion raw.
Manhattan (1979)
by Woody Allen
Four Films of Woody Allen (book published 1982)
Friday, November 4, 2011
TODAY'S NUGGET: #55 WGA Script of All Time - Apocalypse Now (1979)
[Quick Summary from IMDB: During the on-going Vietnam War, Captain Willard is sent on a dangerous mission into Cambodia to assassinate a renegade Green Beret who has set himself up as a God among a local tribe.]
I know this is considered a classic, a movie of its time, among the first about Vietnam.
I know Rotten Tomatoes calls it a "masterpiece" & "brilliant", & gives it an extremely rare 99%.
But I don't get this script. I barely understood it until p. 100 of 155 pages. I even had to use the logline from IMDB because I was unable to make up my own.
Coppola clearly had a vision, given the finished film. But I couldn't see it on the page.
I didn't know why Willard is really on this journey. Tell me again why I want him to succeed?
I don't know what is the purpose of locating crazy Kurtz. To show the fruitlessness of war? To criticize the decision to go to war? I have no idea.
I exited the jungle very dissatisfied...but even worse than that, I learned squat.
WHAT I'VE LEARNED: I simply don't get this script, but wish I did. Anyone care to comment?
Apocalypse Now (1979)
by John Milius and Francis Ford Coppola
Based on the novel by Joseph Conrad
I know this is considered a classic, a movie of its time, among the first about Vietnam.
I know Rotten Tomatoes calls it a "masterpiece" & "brilliant", & gives it an extremely rare 99%.
But I don't get this script. I barely understood it until p. 100 of 155 pages. I even had to use the logline from IMDB because I was unable to make up my own.
Coppola clearly had a vision, given the finished film. But I couldn't see it on the page.
I didn't know why Willard is really on this journey. Tell me again why I want him to succeed?
I don't know what is the purpose of locating crazy Kurtz. To show the fruitlessness of war? To criticize the decision to go to war? I have no idea.
I exited the jungle very dissatisfied...but even worse than that, I learned squat.
WHAT I'VE LEARNED: I simply don't get this script, but wish I did. Anyone care to comment?
Apocalypse Now (1979)
by John Milius and Francis Ford Coppola
Based on the novel by Joseph Conrad
Thursday, October 27, 2011
TODAY'S NUGGET: #56 WGA Script of All Time - Back to the Future (1985)
[Quick Summary: When a teenager accidentally gets sent back to the past & meets his parents, he must ensure they fall in love, or he'll cease to exist.]
I was really worried for Marty McFly. There are real, urgent consequences to his situation.
If he doesn't get his dad to the dance, his parents won't meet, & he'll cease to exist.
If he doesn't push his mom toward his dad, they won't fall in love, & he'll cease to exist.
If he doesn't find Doc, he's stuck in the past without any help.
If he doesn't get to Main Street at the exact time, he will miss his one chance to get home.
If Marty fails, the world won't end, but the consequences are important TO HIM. And that's why I really worried.
WHAT I'VE LEARNED: Tell me what is so urgent. I need to know why the character MUST succeed.
Back to the Future (1985)
by Robert Zemeckis & Bob Gale
I was really worried for Marty McFly. There are real, urgent consequences to his situation.
If he doesn't get his dad to the dance, his parents won't meet, & he'll cease to exist.
If he doesn't push his mom toward his dad, they won't fall in love, & he'll cease to exist.
If he doesn't find Doc, he's stuck in the past without any help.
If he doesn't get to Main Street at the exact time, he will miss his one chance to get home.
If Marty fails, the world won't end, but the consequences are important TO HIM. And that's why I really worried.
WHAT I'VE LEARNED: Tell me what is so urgent. I need to know why the character MUST succeed.
Back to the Future (1985)
by Robert Zemeckis & Bob Gale
Friday, October 21, 2011
TODAY'S NUGGET: #57 WGA Script of All Time - Crimes & Misdemeanors (1989)
[Quick Summary: An opthamologist has his mistress killed, & a documentary filmmaker falls for another woman.]
I couldn't find this script available anywhere (boooooo!)
So I re-watched the movie instead (yayyyyyy!)
But it wasn't the same (boooo!)
I was particularly disappointed because this film has many, MANY flashbacks, and it's rare to see flashbacks done right.
(And by "right", I mean flashbacks are there for a specific reason, and not just information dumping.)
In this film, Woody Allen uses flashbacks to show a character's PRESENT EMOTIONAL STATE. That's right - he uses the past to show motives, and/or what the character is feeling NOW.
ex. The mistress waits for her married lover Judah.
The scene goes back to a happy moment when she and Judah walked on the beach. Judah voices doubts: "I don't think we should do this here." She distracts him and mixes up Schubert with Schuman. Judah reassures her: "I'll teach you...some day we'll have a lot of time."
Why is the flashback there? It shows us why the mistress is holding on so tight to Judah NOW.
In the past, they had fun together. He was debonair, he cared about her. He even seemed to promise a future together ("some day we'll have a lot of time").
When the scene returns to the present, it's clear why the mistress feels the way she does.
WHAT I'VE LEARNED: The flashback can show motive & PRESENT emotional stakes.
ex. If the mistress loses Judah, she loses the only joy her life seems to have.
Crimes & Misdemeanors (1989)
by Woody Allen
I couldn't find this script available anywhere (boooooo!)
So I re-watched the movie instead (yayyyyyy!)
But it wasn't the same (boooo!)
I was particularly disappointed because this film has many, MANY flashbacks, and it's rare to see flashbacks done right.
(And by "right", I mean flashbacks are there for a specific reason, and not just information dumping.)
In this film, Woody Allen uses flashbacks to show a character's PRESENT EMOTIONAL STATE. That's right - he uses the past to show motives, and/or what the character is feeling NOW.
ex. The mistress waits for her married lover Judah.
The scene goes back to a happy moment when she and Judah walked on the beach. Judah voices doubts: "I don't think we should do this here." She distracts him and mixes up Schubert with Schuman. Judah reassures her: "I'll teach you...some day we'll have a lot of time."
Why is the flashback there? It shows us why the mistress is holding on so tight to Judah NOW.
In the past, they had fun together. He was debonair, he cared about her. He even seemed to promise a future together ("some day we'll have a lot of time").
When the scene returns to the present, it's clear why the mistress feels the way she does.
WHAT I'VE LEARNED: The flashback can show motive & PRESENT emotional stakes.
ex. If the mistress loses Judah, she loses the only joy her life seems to have.
Crimes & Misdemeanors (1989)
by Woody Allen
Friday, October 14, 2011
TODAY'S NUGGET: #58 WGA Script of All Time - Ordinary People (1980)
[Quick Summary: After his well-liked older brother dies, a teenage boy grapples with his feelings, his concerned father, & a bitter mother.]
I really like how this script resolves a household in hell.
In Act 3, Conrad (the son) has a significant breakthrough. The only thing left to wrap up is the subplot of the parents' rocky marriage.
- The husband sees Conrad healthy for the first time, & also sees that it's such a stark contrast to the wife's (antagonist) unrelenting indifference.
- The husband breaks down & weeps. He can't go back to the way things were.
- The wife tells Conrad she's leaving. She's bewildered & has no idea what really just happened.
- The wife breaks down in her bedroom. "She can't find safety [in her familiar surroundings]."
What a satisfying emotional ending! The good guys learned & grew.
The antagonist continues her superficial existence because she refused to learn or change.
WHAT I'VE LEARNED: When the protagonists are better off than when they started, it's a good day.
Ordinary People (1980)
by Alvin Sargent
I really like how this script resolves a household in hell.
In Act 3, Conrad (the son) has a significant breakthrough. The only thing left to wrap up is the subplot of the parents' rocky marriage.
- The husband sees Conrad healthy for the first time, & also sees that it's such a stark contrast to the wife's (antagonist) unrelenting indifference.
- The husband breaks down & weeps. He can't go back to the way things were.
- The wife tells Conrad she's leaving. She's bewildered & has no idea what really just happened.
- The wife breaks down in her bedroom. "She can't find safety [in her familiar surroundings]."
What a satisfying emotional ending! The good guys learned & grew.
The antagonist continues her superficial existence because she refused to learn or change.
WHAT I'VE LEARNED: When the protagonists are better off than when they started, it's a good day.
Ordinary People (1980)
by Alvin Sargent
Friday, October 7, 2011
TODAY'S NUGGET: #59 WGA Script of All Time - It Happened One Night (1934)
[Quick Summary: When a spoiled heiress tries to make it home to New York with only a few dollars in her pocket, a journalist helps her out in order to scoop a story, but inadvertently falls in love with her.]
This script is 67 years old, yet it's got more romantic zippity-do-dah than many rom-coms today.
1) Peter (Clark Gable) gets Ellie (Claudette Colbert).
ex. When Ellie gives a poor boy their last dollar, Peter silently admires her for it.
2) Ellie gets Peter.
ex. She silently realizes he's conning the police...& she plays along without missing a beat.
3) They have fun, exasperating adventures together.
ex. Ellie complains that she's hungry. After Peter slips away to find food, Ellie panics. She yells for him, since she's never really been alone before. Peter comes running. She says she's so scared that she's no longer hungry. Peter wants to wring her neck.
WHAT I'VE LEARNED: I want more "they belong together." I want more of this thing called "chemistry".
It Happened One Night (1934)
by Robert Riskin
This script is 67 years old, yet it's got more romantic zippity-do-dah than many rom-coms today.
1) Peter (Clark Gable) gets Ellie (Claudette Colbert).
ex. When Ellie gives a poor boy their last dollar, Peter silently admires her for it.
2) Ellie gets Peter.
ex. She silently realizes he's conning the police...& she plays along without missing a beat.
3) They have fun, exasperating adventures together.
ex. Ellie complains that she's hungry. After Peter slips away to find food, Ellie panics. She yells for him, since she's never really been alone before. Peter comes running. She says she's so scared that she's no longer hungry. Peter wants to wring her neck.
WHAT I'VE LEARNED: I want more "they belong together." I want more of this thing called "chemistry".
It Happened One Night (1934)
by Robert Riskin
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