[Quick Summary: Dorothea (55), her son Jamie (15), the renter upstairs, Abbie (28), and Julie (17) try to make sense of life in the 1979.]
In this script, Dorothea tries to connect with her son, but it's awkward and imperfect, as real life parenting often is.
To me, this script really stands out because it conveys the day-to-day uncertainty and vulnerability of life so well as a parent, a child, or just a person.
I liked how each character continues to pursue their needs in the face of uncertainty.
I liked that the writer allows the characters to be hurt and vulnerable, i.e., human.
For example, in the scene below:
- Dorothea (mom) wants to connect with Jamie (son)
- Jamie wants to be cool and grown up and doesn't know how
- Abbie wants to "jam on" and forget her present life
ex. "INT. ABBIE'S ROOM - NIGHT
Jamie and Abbie sit together, listening to The Raincoats - Fairytale In The Supermarket. Abbie's looking at the cover, Jamie's looking through her other records.
Dorothea appears in the doorway, observing her son, and his obvious love of this. She enters, sits down and listens with them, an awkward moment.
DOROTHEA: What is that?
ABBIE: It's The Raincoats.
She nods awkwardly to the beat, trying to relate.
DOROTHEA: Can't things just be pretty?
JAMIE: "Pretty" music's used to hide how unfair and corrupt society is.
DOROTHEA: Ah, okay so... they're not very good, and they know that, right?
He just looks at her - 'why're you still here' - she looks at him confused by his pushing her away. Seriously curious.
ABBIE: Yea, it's like they've got this feeling, and they don't have any skill, and they don't want skill, because it's really interesting what happens when your passion is bigger than the tools you have to deal with it. It creates this energy that's raw. Isn't it great?
CU on Dorothea feeling like an outsider, lost."
WHAT I'VE LEARNED: For me, the gateway into these characters were their uncertainties and vulnerabilities.
I connected because they didn't have all the answers, but kept trying.
20th Century Women (2016)
by Mike Mills
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