Gangster/Mafia scripts, Studios love them but they're not respected by some! WHY?

[Ben]

Hey I'm a big fan of writing Gangters/Mafia/Crime screenplays.

Currently, I'm busy promoting my own feature screenplay-- "DANCE DESIRE VIOLENCE".

But got a controversial question for DD members --

Respectfully -- why is it that INDY producers and female producers tend to hate this genre.

Don't they want to make money and make a film that can be cherished and loved by the new generation?

I really don't get it.

I'm tired of getting criticized and picked on by INDY producers and female producers for writing on this genre.

Respectfully -- www.unknowscreenwriter.com had a post on this and he did not give this genre a chance to express itself by posting some samples. No worries, that's just an aside. I don't want to start a war here on this topic.

Just wondering -- do you write gangster/mafia scripts?

Any success with them lately?

Yes -- most gangster/mafia scripts consists of what you see in Sopranos and Goodfellas. Isn't that a good thing. You know, it's entertaining.

Cheers,
Benjamin Ray
brscreenwriter@gmail.com
www.hollywoodtoronto.com

[EvilRbt]

Ben, I read at least one mob/mafia script per week and 99.9% of them are the same.

They often read something like this...
Tony whacks Marco. Gino gets revenge by whacking Tony. He then throws him in a trunk, buries the body in Jersey. Then Sal orders Vinny to take out Gino. But Vinny's an undercover cop who's trying to stop a turf war from breaking out between the families. Etc. Etc...

After you read 100 of these, you get tired of them and almost every reader, producer, financier has read more than 100. Ironically, I've just finished reading a script exactly like this and I have to write the coverage up this afternoon.

So unless you have a unique, brilliant take on the subject there's no point in tackling this subject matter. THE DEPARTED was decent because it had a strong hook, and PUBLIC ENEMIES looks promising because it's period and all of the elements are great (i.e. Mann, Bale, Depp). But if your story is the same old, same old I'm afraid it won't go anywhere.

[gs1979]

I don't think people hate the Genre, I actually love it... but the truth is, that most of the best movies ever made are gangster movies and it feels like it's been done to death. Sopranos was something a bit different, so it stuck with audiences... but It's very hard to find a clever twist to the typical gangster movie and most scripts on that genre usually suck because they don't bring anything new to the table. Analyze this for better or for worse brought that...

I sincerely believe that if you have something fresh on any genre, people will pay attention. So, if you have something that kicks ass with a great twist on the gangster movie... you won't have any problems gettin' it around town.

Good luck.

[EvilRbt]

Having said that, I feel your pain. I'd love to write WWII movies all day long, but Hollywood won't touch them.

[bioprofessor]

Originally Posted by EvilRbt

Ben, I read at least one mob/mafia script per week and 99.9% of them are the same.

They often read something like this...
Tony whacks Marco. Gino gets revenge by whacking Tony. He then throws him in a trunk, buries the body in Jersey. Then Sal orders Vinny to take out Gino. But Vinny's an undercover cop who's trying to stop a turf war from breaking out between the families. Etc. Etc...

After you read 100 of these, you get tired of them and almost every reader, producer, financier has read more than 100. Ironically, I've just finished reading a script exactly like this and I have to write the coverage up this afternoon.

So unless you have a unique, brilliant take on the subject there's no point in tackling this subject matter. THE DEPARTED was decent because it had a strong hook, and PUBLIC ENEMIES looks promising because it's period and all of the elements are great (i.e. Mann, Bale, Depp). But if your story is the same old, same old I'm afraid it won't go anywhere.

Well then, maybe I'm on to something after all with my latest Mafia script, which has garnered three read requests so far. I'd argue that it definitely has a unique Romeo-Juliet type hook...

A defiant Mafia princess and her forbidden mountain-boy lover flee to the hills of Appalachia, sparking a deadly confrontation between the boy’s kin folk and a team of assassins led by the girl’s blood-thirsty brother.

[EvilRbt]

Originally Posted by bioprofessor

Well then, maybe I'm on to something after all with my latest Mafia script, which has garnered three read requests so far. I'd argue that it definitely has a unique Romeo-Juliet type hook...

A defiant Mafia princess and her forbidden mountain-boy lover flee to the hills of Appalachia, sparking a deadly confrontation between the boy’s kin folk and a team of assassins led by the girl’s blood-thirsty brother.

Obviously, I can't judge it without reading the entire narrative but I can say it sounds like a fresh take. My only concern would stem from any similarities to Swayze's NEXT OF KIN which is considered a cult classic in a laughable way. Just be careful with the hillbillies.

[bioprofessor]

Originally Posted by EvilRbt

Obviously, I can't judge it without reading the entire narrative but I can say it sounds like a fresh take. My only concern would stem from any similarities to Swayze's NEXT OF KIN which is considered a cult classic in a laughable way. Just be careful with the hillbillies.

Thanks. Yeah, I watched NOK after someone here referenced it after I posted in the logline forum. No worries, I've taken great pains to steer clear of the sterotypes (on both sides) and delve deep into the organic forces (religion, bigotry, jealousy, etc) that drive the characters to such drastic ends.

I think one of the fatal flaws in a lot of Mafia/gangster stories is that the writer focuses on the violence and greed associated with crooked business dealings as the main driving force that compels gangsters to do what they do. So, most movies in this genre are merely descriptive. That is, we're told Tony wants into the business so he kills Johnnie, whose brother seeks revenge, blah, blah, blah.

The more interesting story explores the origins of the Sicilian mindset. What were the origins of Sicilian desperation and insecurity that drove them to America? Would they have chosen crime if the cities weren't already bulging with thousands of immigrants looking for the same thing? If a young boy in Sicily sees his father's tongue cut out by a rival clan and then is chased by his father's assassins, would he not naturally consider the American descendents, several generations removed, enemies?

I have two books in my library that dig this deep, and will (hopefully) provide the organic material that allows me to go beyond the descriptive story, one in which challenges the audience to understand how and why the Sicilian experience over many generations would allow a brother to even consider killing his pregnant sister in my story.

I just wanted to add that I think a lot of screenwriters would achieve a better and deeper product by submerging themselves into the culture, locale etc, before they begin, a strategy that many successful novelist employ. In my case, I kind of lived it.

[NYNEX]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anti-Italianism

Check out that wikipedia article on anti Italianism. Apparently, some people feel that mafia films were perpetuating negative stereotypes about Italians.

Also, during the "heyday" of the mafia, if you will, there was considerable discrimination against Italians, and they were often living in certain neighborhoods in certain segregated cities. That probably allowed a certain criminal element to flourish.

But this isn't the 40s, and Italians live everywhere now. I think the mafia films are played out. I mean, you will always have crooks in all ethnic groups, but the mafia isn't the biggest villain of our time.

The Madoff and crooked bankers that caused the country to COLLAPSE are.