Emotional Impact in a Film

[Ed Hocken]

Only if you wanted to write a trashy horror movie. It depends what kind of story you want and what I think is most important. You write something you'd like to see.

[BillyG]

What I'm really going for here is HOW to write this kind of emotion into the script. Should you rely on the director taking the words and 'getting' what you're going for?

I think it's tough to evoke emotion in a screenplay. Obviously not for everyone, but for amateur/first time screenwriters. A scene that is trying to get a lot of emotion is probably going to require a bit of improv on the part of the director and actors (not to mention a good editor). Just remember to write subtlety. A good director should find the performance in the actors.

[Matt]

Look at the death of John Doe from Freddy's Dead. Rachel Talalay BLEW IT.

I don't remember that (only saw the film once), but yeah...I'd like some good examples of emotional scenes that blew it.

My prime example: the confession of love scene between Padme and Anakin in 'SW2:AotC'. It was poorly written, acted, and directed. It generated laughter rather than pathos.

[Abraham Smashington]

I understand why it was written like it was though. As a 16 year old kid, being romantic/expressing love isn't easy and smooth as say a 30 year old. It came down to having a shitty director and a shitty lead actor.

[Shit Dickface]

Most of my emotional impact moments hit when the moments ape something in my life (either current or past). Most recent example:

I saw UP a couple of months after my grandmother died - I did my best to get back to Texas to see her before she passed, but got stuck in a snowstorm in fucking Denver and got a call that she had died. I made a beeline for the nearest bar, got maudlin-drunk, and then an hour later my flight was ready to take off. I arrived hating everything and wanting to strangle everyone, seeing my uncle all whacked out on meth with some disgusting mosquito-looking tweaker bitch of a girlfriend, hearing my mom bitching about bills and everything while avoiding answering the phone due to bill collectors as she practically killed herself working multiple shifts at Wal-Mart as my stepdad continued to sit on his ass and not get a steady job.

ANYWAY. The crowning moment was getting to see my step-granddad and help him deal with it all - he's a solid dude who took care of her in some of her worst times post-stroke and I seriously love the shit out of him, but it was hard seeing him just sort of aimlessly dicking around the house when he wasn't busy talking to the funeral home, using his military pension to pay for her cremation, etc. He just seemed lost. We were cleaning out stuff and came across some pictures of her and he started crying - it was the first time I had ever seen him cry in my 24 years. He didn't even cry when we went to the funeral home to have one last viewing of the body of the woman who pretty much raised me.

So yeah, within the first fifteen minutes of UP I was weeping uncontrollably in the theater. I think some people moved away from me at that point, but jesus christ that killed me.

[Matt]

That's powerful stuff, Jake.

[Shit Dickface]

I think I scared the shit out of most of the kids in the theater.

[V]

Jake,

Open this...



I'll get the glasses...

[Abraham Smashington]

"Mommy, why is Hulk crying?"

[nerdious dorkus]

Has anyone ever seen Grave of the Fireflies? A friend got it for me for my birthday back in my "emo days" and I still haven't seen it. I've heard that it's broken a lot of hearts.

[Abraham Smashington]

Meh. Did nothing for me. But I'm not AZN.

[Abraham Smashington]

Also, for me a piece of music can take a so-so scene and push it over the edge to choking up territory.

[Ed Hocken]

Unfortunately, such music can be overused to such a point that it becomes parody.

[V]

ala Barber's 'Adagio For Strings'...

[Ed Hocken]

Or The Two Towers score from Requiem of a Dream