MONDAY'S SCRIPT TIP:
THE DRAMA OF INACTION
I think you all know that I'm an action guy - I not only like action movies and write action
movies, I preach the use of actions to tell your story. When I teach my Script Secrets
Screenwriting Class I often write on the blackboard "If you don't show it the audience
can't know it." Action *is* character. Having a character slap another character is more
dramatic than having them say, "I hate you." You want your characters to show us what
they're feeling - that way the actors can actually do some acting.
So today's tip may shock some of you - sometimes it's more dramatic to have a
character do absolutely nothing. Just stand there - without any trace of emotions at all.
Some of you may be shocked that I'm advocating something that sounds suspiciously
like subtlety, but that's exactly what I'm doing. But even when you're being subtle,
remember that film is communication - which means we STILL have to get that
emotional information to the audience - we're just not going to be using our character to
do that. We're going to use the situation which surrounds our character. The
*character's reactions* may be subtle, but the *situation the character is in* will have to
give the audience all of the necessary information (and probably won't be subtle).
One of my favorite films from a couple of summers ago was the new MAD MAX movie FURY ROAD with
Tom Hardy and an almost unrecognizable Charlize Theron. The last time Theron was in a movie about cars
was a surprise hit from a few summer's back, the remake of THE ITALIAN JOB written by Donna
& Wayne Powers. The original film was a clever caper film about the planning of a
robbery - with a swell Cooper Mini car chase at the very end. The new version has an
entirely different story - only the Cooper Minis and the title remain.
In the new version, Donald Sutherland leads a team of thieves in a daring gold robbery
in Venice Italy. It will be Sutherland's last job - he's handing over the reins to one of his
two trusted lieutenants - Marky Mark and Ed Norton. Right away, we have a nice, juicy
situation. A father who must choose one son over the other. Sutherland has chosen
Marky Mark to run the team after he retires... and Ed Norton is probably not happy
about this. Norton is unable to react because they have to pull the robbery... but when
they have gotten away with the gold, Norton shows his displeasure with the decision
with strong actions - he murders Sutherland, double crosses the rest of the team
(leaving them to die) and steals the gold. Of course, Marky Mark and the team survive
(or we wouldn't have a movie). They decide to get revenge - to steal the gold back from
Ed Norton. To do this, they will need a safe cracker to replace Sutherland... so they go
to his daughter Charlize Theron. Would she like to get revenge against the man who
murdered her father? Damned right she would!
SCENE SITUATION
The first step in stealing back the gold is to get someone inside Norton's house to case
the place. They need someone that Norton has never seen before, someone who is
*not* a member of the team. Only one person fits that description - Theron. They give
her a uniform, tool belt, and truck and send her in as a technician who can repair
Norton's DSL line. Her job is to find out where the gold is being stored, find out what
kind of safe it's in and what sort of alarms and safety precautions Norton has...
But like all good scenes, this one does several things at once. Theron is going to come
face-to-face with the man who murdered her father. The man she wants to kill. And she
has to act like she doesn't know who he is, act like this is all about repairing the DSL
line, act bored and unemotional. She wants to slug this guy. She wants to hurt this guy.
She wants to perform some violent actions on his face... but she does nothing.
And doing nothing is what makes it a great scene. Her *inaction* is more dramatic than
any action could be. We *feel* her rage bubbling below the surface.
Norton is a callous jerk throughout the scene. He keeps hitting on her - pushing her
buttons, doing things that would provoke anyone else to slap him. But Theron does
*nothing* - she politely flirts back with him. She acts charmed by everything offensive
that he does. His arrogance makes us want to punch his lights out, but Theron smiles at
him the entire time. We *know* that behind the smile is anger - and that makes this the
most dramatic scene in the entire movie. A big, juicy *acting* scene. Subtle, explosive,
emotional, gut wrenching. The more she DOESN'T show her emotions, the more
emotional the scene becomes.
GOALS VS. SITUATION
Theron's goal in the scene is to find out where the gold is hidden and how to steal it.
The physical obstacle that gets in the way of that goal is Norton - he follows her around
the house as she "looks for the problem". The reason why he follows her - his goal in
the scene is to sleep with her. She's a woman, right? Norton is the kind of guy who
believes every woman in the world wants to sleep with him. Theron's *emotional
obstacle* in the scene is that she hates Norton and really wants to kill him (or at least
mess up his face pretty good). All of these goals collide with each other - and the
scene ends with Theron finding out the necessary information about the gold... but also
agreeing to go on a date with Norton (twist!).
After the scene is over and Theron is safely back with the team, she's able to express
her emotions. Now the audience is shown how she feels through an explosion of
emotions. A big dramatic *active* scene.
Let's say you want to write a big juicy *subtle* scene like the one in ITALIAN JOB...
here are the things to remember:
1) If the character isn't providing the drama, the SITUATION must provide the drama.
2) You must set up the situation so that the audience fully understands what's going on
inside the character - we know in advance that Theron wants to kill Ed Norton. We
know WHY she wants to kill him. We understand her reasons. We feel her anger. We
know that putting these two in the same scene *should* result in violence. We *expect*
it to result in violence.
3) There must be a REASON why violence can not erupt - a reason why the character
can NOT show their emotions. Because Theron is undercover, she CAN'T show her
emotions. If the character doesn't' have a compelling reason not to show their
emotions, they'd react like any normal person would.
4) The scene's antagonist must keep pushing their buttons. Pushing them to react.
Every time Norton pushes Theron's buttons we EXPECT a reaction - and that's the only
way we can see the *lack* of reaction. If Norton was a polite guy throughout the scene,
we would know that Theron wants to kill him, but it would be something in the
background of the scene. By making Norton a jerk in the scene who keeps pushing
Theron's button's again and again we push her hatred to the foreground of the scene.
We create a series of situations where we expect her to react - and when she doesn't,
we can "see her lack of reaction". The more you press your character into reacting, the
more we can "see" their lack of reaction.
5) The following scene they have to let their emotions go. It's only natural. The great
thing about showing the character's fury after the incident is that their fury doesn't
resolve the problem. Charlize Theron can explode in front of Marky Mark and it won't
help her get revenge against Norton. We know the emotions are there - we know the
rage is there... and in the scene where she goes on the date with Norton? We can't
help but wonder if she'll kill him before the appetizer comes.
ITALIAN JOB does a great job of creating situations that provide the raw emotions so
that the characters can struggle to remain cool... and the car chase really kicks ass.
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*** RESEARCH & WORLD BUILDING BUILDING! ***
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All About LOGLINES, TREATMENTS, and PITCHING!
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*** BREAKING IN BLUE BOOK ***
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STORY IN ACTION SERIES!
THE MISSION IMPOSSIBLE MOVIES
NEW: Updates On Films 7 & 8 Casting!
The First Six Movies analyzed! All of the mission tapes, all of the “that’s impossible!” set pieces and stunts, the cons and capers - and how these scenes work, the twists and double crosses, the tension and suspense (and how to generate it), the concept of each film as a stand alone with a different director calling the shots (broken in the sixth film), the gadgets, the masks, the stories, the co-stars and team members (one team member has been in every film), the stunts Tom Cruise actually did (and the ones he didn’t), and so much more! Over 120,000 words of fun info!
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*** THE TERMINATOR MOVIES ***
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HITCHCOCK FOR WRITERS!
Strange Structures!
*** HITCHCOCK: EXPERIMENTS IN TERROR! ***
Contained Thrillers like "Buried"? Serial Protagonists like "Place Beyond The Pines"? Multiple Connecting Stories like "Pulp Fiction"? Same Story Multiple Times like "Run, Lola, Run"?
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LEARN SUSPENSE FROM THE MASTER!
*** HITCHCOCK: MASTERING SUSPENSE ***
Alfred Hitchcock, who directed 52 movies, was known as the *Master Of Suspense*; but what exactly is suspense and how can *we* master it? How does suspense work? How can *we* create “Hitchcockian” suspense scenes in our screenplays, novels, stories and films?
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FICTION
Featuring Shelly Steele !
*** THE SHOTGUN APPROACH ***
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Featuring Smart & Final !
*** A FINE UPSTANDING CITIZEN ***
25 years ago Senator Milano killed a man. Now he's one of a dozen suspects in an information leak.
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A FINE UPSTANDING CITIZEN (CRIME TIME THRILLER) 86 pgs!
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Crime Time Thriller !
*** FOLLOWED HOME ***
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*** PRIME RATE ***
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MITCH ROBERTSON MYSTERIES
Mitch Robertson #1
*** THROUGH THE RINGER ***
Screenwriter Mitch Robertson just wants to sell a script, but ends up solving the mystery of a whiz kid writer whose new script stinks.
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THROUGH THE RINGER
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Mitch Robertson #2
*** THE FAMILY'S JEWEL ***
"The Presidential Suite of the Hollywood Hoover Hotel looked like a bloody battlefield: bodies everywhere, furniture broken, red liquid dripping from the walls, dead soldiers littering the elegant Berber rug as clouds of smoke overhead bounced between two air conditioning vents.
Mitch Robertson stepped over the body of an ex-child star turned sex tape star turned pop star and entered the room, spotted a gun on the floor and picked it up... careful not to spill his coffee with three pumps of mocha syrup from Penny’s Coffee Shop. That coffee was gold, the only thing keeping him going in this dazed state of wakefulness. The gun felt light. Holding it, he saw the silhouette of an 80s action star sitting sideways on a tipped over chair. Motionless. Was he dead? Mitch was still hung over from the Awards Party the night before, and wondered whether this was all some sort of crazy nightmare that he would wake up from... but when he tripped over the brown legs of a bottomless Superhero, flaccid junk encased in a condom but still wearing his mask, and hit the edge of the sofa, gun skittering and coffee spilling, he realized that it was all very real. What the hell had happened here?"
Short Novel. Only 99 cents! - Kindle Version
Mitch Robertson #3
***
THE UNHAPPY MEDIUM ***
When Warren Moultie, the "Psychic To The Stars", private files, with dirt on everyone in Hollywood, are stolen, Mitch must find them and the
thief before the blackmail begins! But when studios and movie stars and pop music stars and TV stars begin receiving demands for millions
typed by an ancient typewriter on cheap paper, the entire Entertainment Industry is depending on him. Who stole the files? The Psychic? His wife?
His mistress? One of his famous clients?
Novella. Only 99 cents! - Kindle Version
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