I'd just like to go on record and say that I thought In Bruges was one of the worst films I had ever seen.
i'd just like to go on record and say you're crazy. in bruges was a phenomenal combination of great acting, directing, and writing. one of the best films of last year.
also, i have a sneaking suspicion that shari hari is a midget...
Desperately trying to get this back on track... I was just watching one of my all time favorites (and my favorite crime movie), Heat. There is a great little scene where Robert Dinero is talking to Val Kilmer in his place about Kilmer's attachment to his wife. Dinero basically states the theme in his great little monologue about how you don't get involved in anything you can't walk away from in 30 seconds if you spot the heat around the corner.
Then Kilmer replies, "For me the sun rises and sets with her." He delivers it so perfectly that you know he's in love with his wife. However, I don't know about you, but on the page I would've seen this line and went, "Too much". It sounds cheesy on the page. It could easily be overdone. Something that woulda been admittedly more bland but easier to see in this "tough guy" script is something like, "I'm sorry. I can't live without her."
This brings up an interesting problem, which is, an actor can bring a very BADLY WRITTEN or CHEESY looking line to life if he says it the right way. In fact, some of the most famous lines ever are just because of the way the actor delivers them. "I'll be back."
So keeping this in mind, how are you supposed to write dialogue? Do you take a chance, assuming that Val Kilmer is going to deliver your line perfectly once they're shooting, even if it means having a reader read that line and say, "This line sucks?" Or do you play it a little safer and try for something that looks better on the page but maybe doesn't have that punch once it gets up onscreen?
Comment