Are there screenplays that inspire you because of the writing, as much as the story they are telling?
I've read just over 50 scripts this past year, and my favorites so far are:
'Juno' by Diablo Cody, 'Inception' by Christopher Nolan, and the new 'Dune' screenplay by Denis Villeneuve, Jon Spaihts, and Eric Roth.
Juno, because it feels like it was written by the main character, and I didn't know that was possible. It was just a pleasure to read.
Inception because it is the type of story I strive to write, written in a style that suits my own skills.
And finally Dune, because I like how it sprinkles the script with little character clues for the actors without trying to do direct them.
So, what are your favorites and why?
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Probably Shane Black's Lethal Weapon... because he was 21/22 years old, wrote about auto handguns, vietnam vets, mixed martial arts- way before anyone has seen in Hollywood movies, and he somehow reinvented the modern screenplay.
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"Bone Tomahawk" by S. Craig Zahler. The finest combination of action, character, description, dialogue, theme and horror I've ever come across. The script was even better than the movie, and the movie was very, very good.
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Joseph, my two favorites are the screenplays to "American Graffiti" and "The Help."
For me, it came down to style in both cases. I liked "American Graffiti's" descriptive style (and found myself trying to copy it)...and I liked "The Help's" dialog.
All the VERY BEST to you...so glad you're here on Stage 32!
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Coming to America. They cut sooooo many hilarious scenes from the beginning, but it's still one of the greatest comedies ever written and I love reading the screenplay itself.
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Definitely THE FATHER for the important theme dementia.
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“Hell or High Water”. That is my go to for every question.
What should I read to learn HHW.
What screenplay has great character description HHW
What is the best….
Doesn’t matter the question “what goes great with a steak?” HHW.
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@Bamutiire, you should listen to him discuss that on the BAFTA podcast. You’ll get even more of an insight into the screenplay.
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I bought The Dark Knight production book and it had the entire screenplay in it. Along with scenes not in the film. read it about 20 times. Still refer to it when I think about writing.
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Kill Bill, you won't believe the running battle in the middle of LA
GOGO's twin sister out 4 revenge.
When she's not busy hugging mickey at disneyland.
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Not the best example of a movie, but the best example of a script:
Predators by Robert Rodriguez. It's formatting is perfect. Just like Juno, the writing's pacing on page nearly matches beat-for-beat what happens on screen. If you read a 1-minute length of a page, it runs parallel with 1-minute of what's on screen. Even better: It doesn't compromise it's creative writing in the process; Rodriguez's voice still shines.
If you want to model your script after something - don't go with Lengthy Koepp writing or Novelesque Tarantino writing, but go with this.
Or better yet: Edgar Wright's Baby Driver.
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The Battlestar Galactica miniseries is phenomenal IMO
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Yeah I like Juno also. Not many people know that it started out as a 200+ page rant concerning predigital treatment of pregnant teens. Hats off to Jason Reitman for understanding the limited market for rant films. My copy of the production script is 103 pages and is full of deleted/replaced scenes. The only scene that touches on that is the Nurse in the ultrasound scene. The careful use of voice over is one of the things that makes it seem personal and present tense.
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"Buried" - read it, see why...."Pulp Fiction", a lecture on story development, and some more...
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from a screenplay perspective, I really like Jerry Maguire. (and I like it as a film too)
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Reading the script for Die Hard is almost as entertaining as watching the movie (the only thing the script is missing is Alan Rickman's delivery) and the script for Back to the Future is exceptional for many reasons.
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I'm a fan of the screenplay for BIG FISH. Really well-written as a piece of literature. I also really loved reading INGLORIOUS BASTERDS.
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Thelma & Louise is a masterclass in screenwriting
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THE THING has great horror and suspense mixed with ensemble character work and tight action. Always recommend this one and it is short, shows you how to really keep your story tightly knit.