I'm currently working on a solo golden fleece script that is a roadtrip and am considering talking to the audience during certain parts of the drive like in High Fidelity. What's your opinion before I begin the script's trip? Still in its Act One 'status quo' stage, so I still have time to decide...
Screenwriting : High Fidelity - thoughts on breaking the 4th wall - talking to audience by Brian Shell
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Hey Brian, may I move this post to Screenwriting? Seems like a better fit there for discussion. :)
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Of course Beth... funny thing, today, I found my journal from 1997 Seattle that contains two tickets to Bainbridge Island via ferry... thought of you, and lo and behold, your post.
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Haha! Yes, love that ferry. It's great in the summer. :) Oh, late the other night, I caught just the beginning of the movie "Disclosure" with Michael Douglas, Demi Moore—not the greatest of films! Anyway, it's set in Seattle and shows him running for the ferry, boarding where they load cars—which they would not let you do, nor would they EVER hold the boat for anyone—and I suddenly realized, hey, that's Bainbridge! That's our ferry terminal! Lol!
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As far as breaking the 4th wall, I like it as long as it's done well and doesn't seem "forced" or overly contrived—does that make any sense? In Ferris Bueller's Day Off it works well. High Fidelity is great. When I first saw House of Cards, it threw me for the first couple of episodes. It took some getting used to. Lol!
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4th wall is definitely an option. Adding a character might be better. He could talk into a voice recorder like John Cusack in 1404? He could be a guy who just talks to himself? Imaginary friend? Acts out conversations with people (like we do in the shower before an argument). There are definitely options, some better than others, all depends on your story. Good luck.
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I love the comedic fourth wall-breakers the best. Whenever I see someone do it, I think of Mel Brooks, Ernie Kovacs, Groucho Marx, Oliver Hardy and W.C. Fields.
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Exactly Bill, as in History of the World with It's good to be the king. @Dale, talking to himself is exactly the opposite perception the protagonist wants to project... which is why I'm thinking High Fidelity and its use of 4th wall breaking. @Beth, my two separate Bainbridge trips were in December and January before moving to LA in March of 1998 to try and sell my Seattle-based supernatural script to Hollywood... in order to give it that Twin Peaks feel with regards to location.