Date: 4 June 2004
Summary: "Stay" away from this movie......
Well folks,
I saw this movie last eve at its first test screening in Pasadena. The copy that was shown was a "work print," so that means that there is a lot of work left in post. Believe me, upon seeing this there are major amounts of work to be done.
Set in New York, the very confusing plot consists of a "prediction" that takes the whole movie to just spew out. I found myself rather bored and anxious through out all this. The poor dialog and the cheap punchlines made that feeling even worse. The biggest weakness I saw in the movie were the many plot twists that make absolutely no sense to anything else seen in the its entirety. With the loss of I guess we can say continuity, the ending was just like the rest of the film, non-sense. Despite all the negative things about this movie, there was one thing I really enjoyed; that being the cinematography/photography. It reminded me of a really "artsy" movie with lots of visual effects to stimulate that lover of this type of art. In the end, I found that it will be an hour and a half I will never get back.
The acting was not bad but Ewan McGregor should stay a Jedi master. Although Naomi Watts' performance was not bad, I still prefer the Naomi we saw in the Ring. Henry, played by Ryan Gosling, gave probably the best performance out of the main characters. Playing a confused person Gosling delivered above expectations. I guess the one single biggest comment I have on the acting is that this movie goes to prove that talent can be wasted as easily as the poor consumers that will eventually pay money to see the film in theaters.
On a final note, we all need to remember that what I saw is probably still a "work in progress" but lots need to be done. After talking to a few other people in the audience who agreed with me on how bad this movie is so far, I doubt if this will even be released at all in theaters.
All of us creative types have things we're naturally good at, and things we've learned to do, and things we aren't that good at (yet). This creates a creative trap: when approaching a project, we often work on the part we understand best — the part that scares us least. So if you're good at plot, you write the plot first, and then fill in the characters later. If you're good at characters, you write up the characters and then feel your way towards a plot.
Everyone pursuing a screenwriting career will eventually realize this journey is not for the thin of skin or for those who cannot handle the emotional ups and downs this business brings. If you haven’t yet experienced the soul crushing disappointment of finally having written a script that goes into development, but it doesn’t make it to production and sits on a shelf, I don’t envy you. It’s happened to me a handful of times out of my nearly two dozen paid screenwriting assignments. Learn this early — there are no guarantees in the screenwriting game. You take your lumps, heal, and move on to the next screenplay and the next one.
I love Readers! Yes they are the gatekeepers to the Promised Land and like it or not they do have power. But just how much? Well, I’m here to show you. I got my hands on a classified document folks, the holy grail… An actual copy of a real STUDIO MEMO covering GUIDELINES for their READERS.
Scenes must have a reason to exist in your screenplay. Each scene must advance the plot forward through dialogue and/or visual storytelling. Characters’ journeys drive the script’s narrative, and each scene must steer their journey forward. Although some scenes might not even contain any characters, these scenes must still provide information about your plot, as well as your characters’ lives and actions. There is no set rule as to how many lines, paragraphs, or pages constitute a scene.
The following has nothing to do with wet t-shirts. This entry is actually about screenwriting contests - a subject with little marquee value. One of the most popular category of questions that I find in my e-mail box is about screenwriting contests. As I say over and over, I believe that most are a waste of energy and entry fee. Some - like the Nicholl and Disney Fellowships - are very reputable and have launched a few Hollywood careers. Regardless of how reputable any contest might be, the screening process for most seems tenuous. Low fees for contest readers and a bulk of scripts guarantees a sloppy vetting system.
"Lowtide" writer, director and producer Kevin McMullin has sold his short story "Bomb" and is tabbed to write the script for "low seven figures" and "Gladiator" director Ridley Scott is attached to Direct. According to reports, 20th Century beat out studios Apple, Netflix, Sony, and Warner Bros.
Books are the fastest and easiest way you can learn from an expert. In screenwriting, it’s no different. Some of the best screenwriters and those who have mastered the craft, have created countless books trying to encapsulate all they’ve learned in their work. If you’re a new screenwriter and looking to improve or simply to learn how to create better scripts, these three books will help you out.
Everybody has a perspective. Everybody in your scene has a reason. They have their own voice, their own identity, their own history… But if you don’t know who everybody is and why they’re there, why they’re feeling what they’re feeling and why they’re doing what they’re doing, then you’re in trouble.
What is a successful second act? One that keeps the reader engaged, moves the story forward, and successfully delivers it into the falling action; that being the third act climax and the denouement. A bad screenplay has a second act that simply doesn't keep the narrative trajectory in place and thus the spine of the story sags; meaning rising tension and conflict is not taking place.