Screenwriting Stuff of Interest
One of the most incisive and brilliant posts I've ever seen on the current state of blockbusters-only movie making and why most of them suck:
Still, you could make a good movie within those parameters. It wouldn't *hurt* your appeal to the all-important demo to make it have funny joke rather than unfunny jokes, to close gaping plot holes, etc.
Unfortunately this alone would not make it a good movie.
It is VERY VERY HARD to write a good movie within the action/adventure paradigm. You need a compelling and original concept. You need to go operatic in an original way every ten minutes, and you cannot have extended dialogue sequences (by extended I mean more than a page -- that's one minute -- long. Moreover, if it is supposed to be PG13 -- which it IS, trust me -- you can't show blood and you can't have any real cursing.
You also can't do anything which is going to offend, upset or confuse the audience. Your protagonist must be sympathetic at all points. He (and it must be a he) must be physically attractive and proactive. He must have a romantic interest with a female who must also be attractive. Your movie must not be too dark. Your character must follow a well-trodden hero's journey. There must be a ticking clock and an existential threat (a thing-which-will-destory-the world). America must not be painted in a bad light. You must not use any long words.
You MUST have an up ending. You MUST continually throw twists at the audience (one every ten minutes, like the opera).
Oh, and your movie must also be directly comparable to the last two or three smash hits in its genre. Currently, Avatar, Dark Knight, Star Trek, Iron Man, all cool with the studios.
Believe it or not, none of this would be too bad if that were all that was required. These things are at least quantifiable. Existential threat? Check! Operatic action? Check! Compelling and original concept? Check!
But your movie must also be fresh, and edgy. Above all, it must be marketable.
Guess what? Execudroids -- even the good ones -- have no fucking idea whatsoever what these terms mean. And neither do I.
So, do you understand? Your movie must be fresh, but follow exactly the same formula as every other movie in Hollywood. It must be edgy, but not offend anyone. It must be sexy without any actual sex.
Oh, yeah. And marketable. Which means it must have two A-list stars (change weekly), lots of shiny things for the trailer, a clear and popular genre (only scifi/superhero/heist and a couple of others need apply) and a whole bunch of other stuff that marketing pull out of their ass to project foreign sales.
Oh, yeah, and they need to be confident they can attract an A-list director. Raimi, Greengrass, Howard, Cameron, one of the Scotts, you get the picture. Kevin Smith and Tarantino need not apply.
And they need to see this IN THE SCRIPT, before anyone is attached.
If your script does not supply ALL OF THESE THINGS you will be sent helpful notes from Your Dear Leaders describing ways you could put these things in the movie. And you will go away and attempt to do just that, repeatedly, without destroying what only you know is the heart of the movie, and the reason you got involved in the first place.
Does your brain hurt yet? Good. This is why they pay you the big bucks.
The miracle is not that movies suck, but that good movies are still made. DARK KNIGHT, for all its faults, was one of those miracles. Ditto IRON MAN. Ditto, well you get it.
posted by unSane at 6:16 AM on July 3 [44 favorites]
The whole discussion is here: http://www.metafilter.com/93407/INT-HOMELESS-SHELTER-WRITERS-ROOM-NIGHT#3166739 and well worth a read.
Still, you could make a good movie within those parameters. It wouldn't *hurt* your appeal to the all-important demo to make it have funny joke rather than unfunny jokes, to close gaping plot holes, etc.
Unfortunately this alone would not make it a good movie.
It is VERY VERY HARD to write a good movie within the action/adventure paradigm. You need a compelling and original concept. You need to go operatic in an original way every ten minutes, and you cannot have extended dialogue sequences (by extended I mean more than a page -- that's one minute -- long. Moreover, if it is supposed to be PG13 -- which it IS, trust me -- you can't show blood and you can't have any real cursing.
You also can't do anything which is going to offend, upset or confuse the audience. Your protagonist must be sympathetic at all points. He (and it must be a he) must be physically attractive and proactive. He must have a romantic interest with a female who must also be attractive. Your movie must not be too dark. Your character must follow a well-trodden hero's journey. There must be a ticking clock and an existential threat (a thing-which-will-destory-the world). America must not be painted in a bad light. You must not use any long words.
You MUST have an up ending. You MUST continually throw twists at the audience (one every ten minutes, like the opera).
Oh, and your movie must also be directly comparable to the last two or three smash hits in its genre. Currently, Avatar, Dark Knight, Star Trek, Iron Man, all cool with the studios.
Believe it or not, none of this would be too bad if that were all that was required. These things are at least quantifiable. Existential threat? Check! Operatic action? Check! Compelling and original concept? Check!
But your movie must also be fresh, and edgy. Above all, it must be marketable.
Guess what? Execudroids -- even the good ones -- have no fucking idea whatsoever what these terms mean. And neither do I.
So, do you understand? Your movie must be fresh, but follow exactly the same formula as every other movie in Hollywood. It must be edgy, but not offend anyone. It must be sexy without any actual sex.
Oh, yeah. And marketable. Which means it must have two A-list stars (change weekly), lots of shiny things for the trailer, a clear and popular genre (only scifi/superhero/heist and a couple of others need apply) and a whole bunch of other stuff that marketing pull out of their ass to project foreign sales.
Oh, yeah, and they need to be confident they can attract an A-list director. Raimi, Greengrass, Howard, Cameron, one of the Scotts, you get the picture. Kevin Smith and Tarantino need not apply.
And they need to see this IN THE SCRIPT, before anyone is attached.
If your script does not supply ALL OF THESE THINGS you will be sent helpful notes from Your Dear Leaders describing ways you could put these things in the movie. And you will go away and attempt to do just that, repeatedly, without destroying what only you know is the heart of the movie, and the reason you got involved in the first place.
Does your brain hurt yet? Good. This is why they pay you the big bucks.
The miracle is not that movies suck, but that good movies are still made. DARK KNIGHT, for all its faults, was one of those miracles. Ditto IRON MAN. Ditto, well you get it.
posted by unSane at 6:16 AM on July 3 [44 favorites]
The whole discussion is here: http://www.metafilter.com/93407/INT-HOMELESS-SHELTER-WRITERS-ROOM-NIGHT#3166739 and well worth a read.