Hip hip hooray! You guys did it. By putting Source Code at the top of the Reader List, you convinced Hollywood to take the project seriously and put it into production. All jokes aside (or am I joking) this is really exciting. In one month, my two favorite scripts both got green lights! Today, Source Code nabbed Gyllenhall for the lead, which is a great choice. I think he’s perfect for the role. Also “Moon” helmer, Duncan Jones, will be directing! Now we just need to get Brigands of Rattleborge made and all will be good with the world. Here’s the story in Variety.
So, there have been some new people to jump on the site recently (probably due to the Top 25 List) and it’s been awhile since I’ve really talked about Scriptshadow, so I figured it was a good time to recap how you can get the most out of the site.
Facebook and Twitter – I have both a Facebook Fan Page and a Twitter account. It’s a good idea to become a fan for a key reason. I announce new blog posts the second they go up, and since occasionally writers and producers will ask me to take a script link down, you may be able to get to that link before it’s removed. So stop messing around and join my Facebook and Twitter pages!
Comments – My original vision was to have Scriptshadow become the de facto site for discussing screenplays. Although I believe I’ve achieved that, not enough of you know about or visit the comments section. I know it may be annoying initially, but go sign up for a “Disqus” account so you can start commenting! Since your e-mail is then shown to me, if you leave a comment or ask a question (“I’m looking for this script. Where do I find it?”), I can e-mail you directly with an answer. It’s an alternative way to get in direct contact with me.
I know for some of you, you’ve had trouble with the commenting system. I’ve tried four major commenting programs now, and this is the one with the least amount of hassle. If it’s not working for you, try another browser (Internet Explorer, Firefox, Google Chrome, or Safari). My experience has been that Mozilla Firefox on a PC works best. Macs have had the most trouble in the commenting department, but trying alternative browsers seems to solve most of the problems. I apologize that the comments are such a disaster for some people, but I’ve spent many hours on it and this is the best I’ve been able to come up with.
Scripts I’m Looking For – This site cannot exist without the generosity of its contributors. Over to the top right there is a list of scripts I’m looking for. If you have anything on the list, help out and send it along so I can review it. If it makes you nervous, send from a fake e-mail.
More About Me – I don’t talk about myself much on the site, but I did do an interview with Kristy at Matriarchal Script Paradigm awhile back. Looking back at it now, I come off as a sex-addict for some reason. So if you can get past that, you might learn a thing or two about me.
These ten scripts, while not in the Top 25, may have fared better had they been reviewed on the site. So in the spirit of equal opportunity, I present the top 10 ranked scripts not (yet) reviewed on Scriptshadow. If you’d like to see the original Top 25, head on over to this post.
10. (21 pts) Suspension by Joss Whedon – Action – Back in the days when every action pitch had to have “Die Hard” in it, Joss Whedon wrote Die Hard on the George Washington Bridge.
9. (32 pts) Torso – In 1935, Elliot Ness and his gang (known as “The Unknowns”) chase a notorious serial killer who would famously leave a number of headless torsos in his wake.
8. (49 pts) Devil In The White City – Drama/Thriller – An architect works to build up the 1893 Worlds Fair, while a serial killer uses the fair to attract and kill women.
7. (54 pts) Edward Ford by Lem Dobbs – Dark Comedy – Edward Ford, considered by some to be the greatest unproduced screenplay ever, is about a wannabe actor whose life goal is to snag a SAG card. We follow him through three decades as he experiences a world of disappointment.
6. (58 pts) The Grackle – Comedy – A New Orleans barroom brawler starts his own business settling disputes for people who can’t afford a lawyer.
5. (88 pts) Roundtable – Comedy – A twist on the King Arthur legend in which the wizard Merlin assembles a ragtag group of modern-day knights to battle an ancient evil foe.
4. (94 pts) At The Mountains Of Madness by Guillermo Del Toro – Horror – A group of explorers journey to the Arctic where they uncover an ancient race of beasts.
3. (97 pts) Farragut North by Beau Willimon – A young, idealistic communications director for a fast-rising politician falls prey to backstabbing and trickery while working on a presidential campaign.
2. (115 pts) Solo by David Coggeshall – Horror/Thriller – A “Misery”-style thriller for the teen set, with elements of “Lord of the Flies” and “Blue Lagoon.”
1. (138 pts) Stanford Prison Experiment by Chris McQuarrie & Tim Talbott – Drama – Based on an experiment conducted in the summer of 1971 at Stanford University, where undergraduate students assumed the roles of prison guards and inmates. Within a single day, the psychological profiles of the students had changed, and the interaction between prisoners and guards grew violent.
My good friend and professional reader, Ralphy, has reviewed the #6 script on your reader faves list, The Brigands Of Rattleborge. I’ve been meaning to get a review up for this for awhile but because I knew I couldn’t half-ass it, that it would take a considerable amount of time, I’ve opted for avoidance instead. Ralphy to the rescue. Here’s an excerpt…
This is a simple story. In fact, despite some requisite—and fully set up—twists and turns, it’s so simple that it allows Zahler to explore complex characters and themes in the way a complicated plot would not. We’re thrust immediately into the open plains of the Wild West, where the dapper BILLY LEE and his sidekick, uncouth RODNEY, are about to make their way down to a Native American encampment, despite the obvious danger. Billy Lee has all the answers, knows all the moves, his tone meant to be reassuring as Rodney sits atop his steed, one nervous spasm away from shitting his pants. They ride into the village, where they’re met by the welcoming committee, armed with spears and arrows. With an air of calm authority, Billy Lee asks to speak to the chief. His request falls on uncomprehending ears, however, so he shows the distrustful men a scarf belonging to the chief’s daughter. Apparently, she’s been kidnapped, and Billy Lee makes it known to the tribe’s half-caste, who speaks English, that he knows her whereabouts and the men who took her.
For the rest of the review, head on over to Matriarchal Script Paradigm…
Note: I recently took down the 2nd Fellowship script review, Dream Before Waking, as I learned that it was a vastly different draft than the one entered in the competition.
Genre: Drama
Premise: In 1918 British occupied India, two 12 year old girls, one the daughter of an Indian servant, the other the daughter of a British Colonel, form a friendship.
About: Our third 2009 Nicholl’s Fellowship winner.
Writer: Nidhi Verghese
We had a brief dip into the high-concept pool with our last Nicholl entry. Now it’s back to the land of socio-political intensely dramatic period pieces for our third, and likely final, Nicholl submission (unless one of you can find me Sand Dogs). Jallianwala Bagh, for those who don’t know, is the site of a horrible massacre that occurred in India during the British Occupation.
Not to belittle the people who lost their lives that day, but what the hell man? At what point would I need to inject caffeine into my veins to keep from going into a weeklong slumber. Page 10? 20? It’s been awhile since I actually had fun reading a script and I was looking for a little escapism here. But the only escaping I was going to be doing was into the dreamworld. Yet I didn’t even have that anymore after having to take down the last Nicholl script. Ah but that’s the great thing about screenplays. Just when you think you’ve got’em figured out, they go and surprise you. As I began to read this, I found myself connecting with the story immediately. There’s a voice here. A story that needs to be told. And there’s a genuine emotional connection you form with the characters (and that the characters form with each other). For that reason, Jallianwala Bagh is my favorite of the four Nicholl scripts I’ve read.
Widower Colonel Foster has been sent to India during a very turbulent time in Britain’s occupation of the country. Indians are getting restless and are retaliating against the occupation more aggressively every day. They are burning flags. They’re attacking soldiers. Gandhi himself seems to be the only thing keeping the Indians from full out war.
Back at Colonel Foster’s mansion, we meet his whip-smart but rebellious 12 year old daughter, Alison, whose Governess, Jane, is the physical embodiment of nails on a chalkboard. Since her mom is dead, and she’s home-schooled, Alison has never had anyone she could truly call a friend. Over in the servant house a new family has arrived, led by a man with more anger inside him than any character I’ve read in recent memory, the imposing and heartless Amarjeeth. Amarjeeth is father to a son and a 12 year old daughter, the curious and beautiful Jusmeen.
Immediately we sense that something isn’t right about their arrival. Securing this particular job didn’t happen by chance. Amarjeeth has no intention of making Colonel Foster’s garden the prettiest in India. He is planning something horrible, and he will do anything, including putting his own daughter at risk, to achieve his goal.
It is for this reason that when Jusmeen meets Alison, we fear that their friendship can only end badly. It is this unique and forbidden friendship where the script really shines. These two girls “from different sides of the tracks” can only meet in secret, as the Indian-British tensions have worked their way into the household. This creates a great source of conflict as we know that if either of them is caught talking to the other, the consequences will be catastrophic.
As Jusmeen and Alison’s friendship deepens, Jusmeen finds herself in a key servant role which allows her access to the entire house. Amarjeeth realizes how valuable his daughter has now become, and pulls her into his plan, forcing her to make a choice between her friendship with Alison and her family.
As I read Jallianwala Bagh, I kept trying to figure out how this script kept me interested, where Victoria Falls lost me. There are a lot of similarities between the two scripts (so many that it concerns me just how open the judges were to all material). Both are about best friends from different sides of the tracks amidst countries in turmoil. What I realized was that Jallianwala Bagh gave the friendship between its main characters more importance, more weight. In Victoria Falls, the opening scene leads you to believe the script will be about these two young boys and their friendship. However a quarter of the way through, one of them leaves the country. The script then switches gears and becomes about the other friend protecting a farm. I think that choice left me cold and, ultimately, confused. I felt like I’d ordered a Big Mac and gotten a chicken sandwich.
Jallianwala Bagh works its way up to the friendship delicately, painting these two young girls’ lives as vastly different, so that when they actually meet, we know that there’s no way their friendship can last. The world they live in won’t allow it. So there’s this consistent urgency beneath every scene – one where we’re always wondering, “Will this be their last time together?” Even when the script shifts into Amarjeeth’s master plan, everything always comes back to that friendship.
It is another friendship, that between Hollywood and India, that gives this tiny story a chance to be made. It may be a period piece but it would be cheap if shot in India, and there aren’t that many locations needed. You might even be able to convince Ben Kingsley to come back and play Gandhi. Jallianwala Bagh is a beautiful and heartbreaking story that I suspect will reward those who give it a chance.
[ ] What the hell did I just read?
[ ] barely kept my interest
[x] worth the read
[ ] impressive
[ ] genius
What I learned: Forbidden relationships make for great drama. Any time you put your characters in a position where, if they get caught, they’ll suffer horrible consequences, it gives their scenes together an exciting undercurrent. It’s no secret why Romeo and Juliet is one of the greatest stories ever told. The consequences for them getting caught by their respective families is devastating. Here in Jallianwala Bagh (a very fun title to type by the way – go ahead, try it) Jusmeen’s father is such a tyrant, we’re terrified of what he’s capable of doing to Jusmeen if he catches her. Forbidden relationships are almost always more interesting than come-and-go whenever you want ones.
