Good Scripts, Bad Scripts : Learning the Craft of Screenwriting

by POPE, TOM

• ISBN13: 9780609801192
• ISBN10: 0609801198
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Trade Paper
• Copyright: 1998-04-01
• Publisher: Three Rivers Press

Summary

In this unique volume, respected screenwriter Thomas Pope offers an innovative and practical approach to teaching the craft of screenplay writing, in the process providing an engaging, behind-the-scenes look at the way the film industry really works. Each chapter deals with a different component of the art of screenwriting, from character development, to the nurturing of subplots, to the fundamentals of good dialogue, illustrating everything through the virtues or mistakes of a particular film. The book encompasses the best and worst of films throughout the years, includingCitizen Kane, Pulp Fiction, Chinatown, Singing in the Rain, Bonfire of the Vanities, and many others. With its trenchant analysis and keen insight into the reasons films succeed or fail,Good Scripts, Bad Scriptsis not only an invaluable guide for potential screenwriters, but a rich resource for any student interested in film and film history.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments	ix	(2)
Preface	xi	(4)
Introduction: The Theory	xv
PART ONE: STRUCTURE	3	(154)
1. The Abyss The Narrative Spine Needs a Chiropractor	3	(5)
2. Cutthroat Island Shiver Me Structure!	8	(6)
3. Inherit the Wind The Play's the First Thing, the Screenplay's the Second	14	(13)
4. Singin' in the Rain The Perfect Film That Shouldn't Work	27	(13)
5. Pulp Fiction Reinventing Structure	40	(12)
6. The Usual Suspects The Great Script That Could Have Been Greater	52	(8)
7. High Noon Aristotle Goes Out West	60	(10)
8. Citizen Kane Flashback As Narrative	70	(10)
9. The Bonfire of the Vanities Third Act Suicide	80	(12)
10. Last Action Hero Deconstruction Self-Destructs	92	(10)
11. Fargo Satire Isn't Always What Closes on Saturday Night	102	(6)
12. The Jewel of the Nile Your Subtext Is Showing: The Problem of the False Second Act	108	(11)
13. Groundhog Day The Unexpected, Expected Structure	119	(6)
14. The Searchers The Third Act Hiccup	125	(8)
15. The Verdict Dialogue As Litany	133	(7)
16. Tender Mercies Less Is More, Lots More	140	(7)
17. Some Like It Hot Fewer Scenes, Bigger Laughs	147	(10)
PART TWO: CHARACTER	157	(74)
18. Prizzi's Honor The Passive Second Act Protagonist	157	(9)
19. The Day of the Jackal The Antagonist As Protagonist	166	(9)
20. Network The Catalytic Monster	175	(8)
21. Chinatown The Elusive Antagonist	183	(10)
22. Casablanca The Antihero As Protagonist	193	(11)
23. Havana Casablanca Lite	204	(6)
24. The Treasure of the Sierra Madre The Greatest Adventure	210	(13)
25. Falling in Love The Good Guys Ought to Be the Bad Guys	223	(8)
Resources	231