What makes a good movie/script

[SuperSanchez]

As an aspiring filmmaker I want to hear your opinions. What do you think makes a good movie/screenplay/script?

 

[jokesonm3]

Well more substance over style according to the reviews of Man from UNCLE for starters

 

[TheBat812]

Relatability. Understandable motivations for characters. Emotional connection. A strong and universal theme that everything revolves around and can be followed as the lynchpin of why you're writing the story.

High concept ideas are fun, but like JJ Abrahams has said, all the flash and danger in the world will be meaningless if you don't feel the stakes for your characters.

 

[Spider-Aziz]

Good characters and a good story.

 

[Sundancer]

Understanding of the 3 act structure...and those who have, against odds, broken it.

 

[SuperSanchez]

Relatability. Understandable motivations for characters. Emotional connection. A strong and universal theme that everything revolves around and can be followed as the lynchpin of why you're writing the story.

High concept ideas are fun, but like JJ Abrahams has said, all the flash and danger in the world will be meaningless if you don't feel the stakes for your characters.

I don't understand what people mean when they say "Universal" in terms of story. Like for example I was watching a Guardians of the Galaxy interview last night and Lee Pace said that "Ronan is a very universal character" But I don't really understand the term.

 

[66 Face]

Story and pace more than anything.

 

[Erzengel]

Lots of nudity.

 

[SuperSanchez]

Lots of nudity.

I'm not making a porno.....

 

[Snow Queen]

Half naked women, American flags, racism, sexism and firework explosions.



Shouldn't this be in Misc. Films?

 

[Immortalfire]

Half naked women, American flags, racism, sexism and firework explosions.

Michael Bay?

 

[hopefuldreamer]

Relatability. Understandable motivations for characters. Emotional connection. A strong and universal theme that everything revolves around and can be followed as the lynchpin of why you're writing the story.

High concept ideas are fun, but like JJ Abrahams has said, all the flash and danger in the world will be meaningless if you don't feel the stakes for your characters.

Yeah, couldn't have put it better myself.

 

[Snow Queen]

Michael Bay?

No, Michael Haneke.

 

[Spider-Aziz]

It carries the name Uwe Boll as a creator.

 

[CyclopsWasRight]

As an aspiring filmmaker I want to hear your opinions. What do you think makes a good movie/screenplay/script?

The font and size. Being a page turner.

 

[MadVillainy]

Good characters over everything. I mean Im not saying have a crappy story. But I personally think likable, compelling characters are the most important aspect.

You can have a good story but have s*** characters and the movie wont be that good. For example, imo, American Hustle. I hated the characters, liked the story and overall I didn't like the movie. On the other hand if you have good characters, and a bad-mediocre story and you can enjoy the film.

 

[Steyin]

Entertainment. Hold my attention or be gone.

 

[Schlosser85]

An entertaining or at least engaging/intriguing story. Something to hook the viewer.

Characters who are relatable/sympathetic or if not sympathetic, at least interesting. Understandable motivations for characters, including the "villains".

A clearly delineated arc/acts. A build up and payoff/climax.

A certain level of unpredictability.

 

[Schlosser85]

I know stuff that makes a movie better for me is when it doesn't follow a cookie cutter formula from Point A to Point B, there's some intelligence and unpredictability, and the villain has some credible motivation besides just sneering and twirling his mustache and being a dastardly evildoer.

 

[moviedoors]

Every scene has a purpose and pushes the story forward whilst also serving the characters, who should have clearly delineated wants and needs. For the most basic breakdown of how structure and thematic arcs work, google "Dan Harmon Story Structure." He literally breaks down story and structure into a graphical form. Learn this form, use it to deconstruct your favorite movies, then dive in and suck at it for years until you finally start getting the hang of it.

 

[TheBat812]

I don't understand what people mean when they say "Universal" in terms of story. Like for example I was watching a Guardians of the Galaxy interview last night and Lee Pace said that "Ronan is a very universal character" But I don't really understand the term.

Universal means that a broad range of people can empathize and relate with it. A very simple example is love. A more nuanced example would be a persons sense of self worth or lack thereof. These are elements that everybody can relate to on some level. The interesting part is the particulars of your character and how you can make the audience understand his feeling in a new context.

Breaking bad, true detective, etc, all the best take universal themes and put them in a unique context.

 

[roach]

ahem...No one knows the answer to this. The studios spend millions of dollars on making movies...all of which they think are good...some of which are not.
As a director you should be studying and shooting and shooting and studying...go see movies that are considered good and movies considered bad.
As a writer you should be writing everyday...read...write...read...write. Read good scripts and bad ones.

Do not be afraid to make bad stuff. Your early stuff will be bad. Learn from it.

 

[redmarvel]

I only know what helps me enjoy a movie:

1. A plot that goes from point A to Z in order. Please don't skip back and forth in the character's timeline (unless it's a story about time travel).

2. Characters people can relate to. You need recognizable people, your geek, your freak, your Normal, your tough guy / gal and so forth.

3. The right music. I enjoy movies with a good sound track more than those without. GOTG had a great sound track, so did Wreck it Ralph. Give me at least 1 great song to hum.

4. The feels. Make me laugh or make me cry but don't leave me feeling blah.

5. Humour. Yes even a movie that makes you cry can make you laugh at least once if done right. A bit of innuendo would make it even better.

6. Let me see the action. If it's an action movie don't make the action scenes too fast, slow down some of the fights and explosions to let me see what's happening. Don't have them happen in "darkness" to hide your lack of special effects.

7. Suspense. Give me the will it / won't it feeling at some point in the movie.

 

[Blind_Lawyer]

Truthfully, a good script and a good movie aren't always the same thing. You can have a, technically, good script and have it result in a bad movie.

What the industry considers a good script relates mostly to structure and format. Your inciting incident should come before page 10; show, don't tell; establish the main theme of the movie, the hero and his goals before the end of act I on page 30; create conflict in every scene; raise the stakes throughout act II; resolve things in act III; etc.

It sounds shallow, but it's true. You can write about the shallowest subject matter, but if the script is solidly formatted--with all the beats in the right place--then, it's a winner.

Or, you could have some deep, poignant, material, and if it's formatted wrong--if you ignore things like character arc, the three act structure, dialogue that moves the story forward--it won't work.

Ultimately, a director is going to take a script and make it his. A perfectly written script could result in a horrendous movie in the hands of the wrong director. The opposite is also true. A poorly-written script--though, technically sound with proper screenplay structure--can be turned into something remarkable in the hands of the right director. A good example of this is Saving Private Ryan. I remember years ago finding the original Robert Rodat screenplay online and it was laughably bad. It was essentially a Dirty Dozen rip off (a squad of soldiers going behind enemy lines on a suicide mission) and was full of war movie cliches like the grizzled sergeant (the Tom Sizemore character) chomping on a cigar and charging out of the landing craft at Omaha Beach, roaring at the top of his lungs. It was a straight up action movie filled with caricatures instead of characters. In Spielberg's hands, however, it become a historical account of the brutality of war played out in the microcosm of the question of whether saving one life was worth risking eight, and, ultimately, what the expenditure of human lives really costs.

Reading the original draft of the script and seeing the movie is a good lesson on what can be done with any script.

If you're a very serious screenwriter, I cannot recommend Blake Snyder's Save the Cat book enough. Of all the screenplay books I've read, that was the one that really made me "get it."

Check this site out if you get the chance. I don't think you'll be disappointed with what you learn: http://www.savethecat.com/

 

[roach]

Truthfully, a good script and a good movie aren't always the same thing. You can have a, technically, good script and have it result in a bad movie.

What the industry considers a good script relates mostly to structure and format. Your inciting incident should come before page 10; show, don't tell; establish the main theme of the movie, the hero and his goals before the end of act I on page 30; create conflict in every scene; raise the stakes throughout act II; resolve things in act III; etc.

It sounds shallow, but it's true. You can write about the shallowest subject matter, but if the script is solidly formatted--with all the beats in the right place--then, it's a winner.

Or, you could have some deep, poignant, material, and if it's formatted wrong--if you ignore things like character arc, the three act structure, dialogue that moves the story forward--it won't work.

Ultimately, a director is going to take a script and make it his. A perfectly written script could result in a horrendous movie in the hands of the wrong director. The opposite is also true. A poorly-written script--though, technically sound with proper screenplay structure--can be turned into something remarkable in the hands of the right director. A good example of this is Saving Private Ryan. I remember years ago finding the original Robert Rodat screenplay online and it was laughably bad. It was essentially a Dirty Dozen rip off (a squad of soldiers going behind enemy lines on a suicide mission) and was full of war movie cliches like the grizzled sergeant (the Tom Sizemore character) chomping on a cigar and charging out of the landing craft at Omaha Beach, roaring at the top of his lungs. It was a straight up action movie filled with caricatures instead of characters. In Spielberg's hands, however, it become a historical account of the brutality of war played out in the microcosm of the question of whether saving one life was worth risking eight, and, ultimately, what the expenditure of human lives really costs.

Reading the original draft of the script and seeing the movie is a good lesson on what can be done with any script.

If you're a very serious screenwriter, I cannot recommend Blake Snyder's Save the Cat book enough. Of all the screenplay books I've read, that was the one that really made me "get it."

Check this site out if you get the chance. I don't think you'll be disappointed with what you learn: http://www.savethecat.com/

I was with you until this. Save The Cat is good for people just starting out but its very cookie cutter-y. Most of the professional screenwriters despise this book. It's paint by numbers. Writing a screen play is part art, part science. I recommend two books by Syd Field. "Screenplay" and "Screenwriter's Workbook".