Spaihts VS Lindelof

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  • Spaihts VS Lindelof

    On the bluray there are multiple screenshots of versions of both Spaihts & Lindelofs scripts. I have transcribed some of it below. Very interesting to see the different styles of writing on essentially the same scene.

    FYI some sections were missing as noted.

    Spaihts version

    The Engineer removes his helmet.

    His revealed head is as handsome as the helmet is grotesque. Heavy-featured like a Greek statue. The hairless skin bone-white, the serene eyes entirely black.


    The Engineer extends a hand to the dark opening.


    BLACK INSECTS boil out and swarm over his glove. Glittering scarabs that chitter and bite. The swarm grows.


    Under the swarm his hand dwindles and melts away. They are devouring him.


    FLASH ON:


    A fevered glimpse of the microscopic: cells rupture and bleed. Protein chains unfold. A DNA spiral unravels.


    The scarabs fill their bellies with genetic material.


    ON THE ENGINEER


    As he spreads his arms. Stands cruciform, his head lifted.


    His arm is engulfed by the swarm. His hand is gone, his forearm dwindling. The swarm reaches his shoulder.


    The Engineers serenity falters. A flicker of troubled thought. He turns his head. Looks up.


    Behind him a PYRAMID hangs in the sky, huge and ominous. It recalls the Aztec, the Inca, the Egyptian...but its dark surface is ribbed and veined almost organically.

    (section missing)

    Where the Engineer fell, nothing remains.

    The pyramid drifts weightlessly away across the sea.

    EXT. FOREST - DAY

    Majestic old-growth trees. A pristine wilderness.

    At the foot of a giant tree, a PRIMITIVE MAN squats, digging grubs out of the bark with a sharpened stone.

    Lindelof version

    The Elder rises, joins the other Engineer. One last look between the three -- a sense of IMPORTANCE -- Something MEANINGFUL is about to happen here. And then --

    The TWO ENGINEERS depart -- Walking back up the GANGPLANK into that enormous VESSEL that we NEVER SEE. And as we begin to hear the IDLING HUM of a RISING ENGINE --


    The Engineer left behind slowly begins to remove his clothing. Somehow...there is something SAD about it.

    Now the MIGHTY SOUND of SOMETHING LIFTING UP AND AWAY -- The Engineer lifting his face to watch the DEPARTING SHADOW as he removes the last of his clothes, PULLING BACK as it goes as we REVEAL --

    The lone Engineer stands a hundred feet from the precipice of a MIGHTY WATERFALL. Breathtaking in its SHEER POWER.

    (section missing)

    He CLOSES HIS EYES NOW -- deep REVERENCE -- A CLEAR CEREMONY to this as he slowly opens his mouth, lifts the cake into his mouth as if taking communion...

    And swallows it.

    A moment as the Engineer takes in the pastoral beauty of all that surrounds him. Pure calm. The sound of the rushing water. The ORANGE LIGHT of the setting sun.

    And then.

    HE CONVULSES. Violent. FRIGHTENING. CLOSE ON THE ENGINEER'S EYES as they suddenly go DARK BLACK -- He PITCHES FORWARD, CLUTCHING HIS STOMACH -- TREMENDOUS PAIN.

    His body starts to CONTORT -- JESUS -- We hear his BONES CRACK FROM THE INSIDE -- or are they GROWING?!?

  • #2
    Re: Spaihts VS Lindelof

    That's great.

    Also reminded me I still don't fully understand that first scene.

    Comment


    • #3
      Re: Spaihts VS Lindelof

      I love both Lindelof and Spaihts so much.

      I would love to read both versions of this script. Do you think either version will surface on the internet?

      Comment


      • #4
        Re: Spaihts VS Lindelof

        I think we've all learned a valuable lesson about the importance of CAPS and underlining in the post-literate era.

        Comment


        • #5
          Re: Spaihts VS Lindelof

          i so regret only buying the normal blu ray. i didn't think about all the extra material. i love the material i've seen though, especially the cut dialogue of the engineers where weyland thinks they are gods.
          i also love that the thing about them looking for paradise.
          it's very interesting to see the process and how much that has been left out and why. i think it was a huge mistake to leave out all the character building scenes in the beginning of the journey. that is extremely important in terms of the audience experiencing suspense later on. i didn't care about any of them much. and why are there even so many people on board that ship? there should only have been like 5 or 6 people. what the hell are they doing there? red shirts doesn't work in movies like this.

          in fact, i had a problem with the directing and the way it was shot too. i can only think of a couple of great shots in the entire film. why do they show hands that press buttons on a screen every time someone needs to press a button?and it annoys me that they need to have something happen by altering tempo instead of creating suspense. the only thing that drives the story is to see the end of the journey and the mystery of the aliens. problem is that those goals are too vague. there are no small objectives here, no real conflict that drive the scenes forward.

          i'm sure ridley scott had a hard time putting this thing together, because it's a mess. but i have gained more respect for the writers after seeing all this extra material. i love the ideas that are explored here, and i can see a lot of good intentions, even if the end result was a mixed bag.

          Comment


          • #6
            Re: Spaihts VS Lindelof

            Originally posted by Travis Fields View Post
            I think we've all learned a valuable lesson about the importance of CAPS and underlining in the post-literate era.
            Hahahaha. This is something that always troubles me. Orci and Kurtzman write this way too. Everytime I read any of them I always wonder and question "did that have to be capitalized or underlined?"
            INT. DR. GONZO'S HOTEL ROOM - NIGHT

            A glass of BOURBON in one hand and a COMPUTER MOUSE in the other,
            Dr. Gonzo contemplates getting off the message board and back to his script.

            Comment


            • #7
              Re: Spaihts VS Lindelof

              Originally posted by Travis Fields View Post
              I think we've all learned a valuable lesson about the importance of CAPS and underlining in the post-literate era.
              They can both be used quite effectively, and have been for quite some time. Check out the Deja Vu first draft at wordplayer.com (In Archives section, it's from 2004). It is possible to use both 'less' sparingly, yet in an artful way.

              Comment


              • #8
                Re: Spaihts VS Lindelof

                I like Lindelof's unrestrained style.

                Comment


                • #9
                  Re: Spaihts VS Lindelof

                  Originally posted by Crashlander View Post
                  I like Lindelof's unrestrained style.
                  Yeah, but Spaihts IS a better writer. His Descriptions versus Lindelof's -- no contest -- SPAIHTS WINS!


                  see what I did there?
                  INT. DR. GONZO'S HOTEL ROOM - NIGHT

                  A glass of BOURBON in one hand and a COMPUTER MOUSE in the other,
                  Dr. Gonzo contemplates getting off the message board and back to his script.

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    Re: Spaihts VS Lindelof

                    Originally posted by Dr. Gonzo View Post
                    Yeah, but Spaihts IS a better writer. His Descriptions versus Lindelof's -- no contest -- SPAIHTS WINS!


                    see what I did there?
                    Totally.

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      Re: Spaihts VS Lindelof

                      Yeah, but is Spaihts a better STORYTELLER?!? Also yes.

                      I just think Lindelof gets a lot of flack, when he's actually an extremely entertaining writer.

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Re: Spaihts VS Lindelof

                        Originally posted by Crashlander View Post
                        Yeah, but is Spaihts a better STORYTELLER?!? Also yes.

                        I just think Lindelof gets a lot of flack, when he's actually an extremely entertaining writer.
                        I'll agree with that. Lindelof gets a lot of hate for a bizarre reason.
                        People were so mad at the end of that series Lost for all the ambiguity... and then right after Prometheus for all the same reasons.
                        I wonder if he is going to lose his renowned ambiguity for his next project.
                        All that hate might affect him subconsciously.

                        (For the record I didn't watch Lost, maybe caught an episode out of context and I kinda liked Prometheus... so there it is.)
                        INT. DR. GONZO'S HOTEL ROOM - NIGHT

                        A glass of BOURBON in one hand and a COMPUTER MOUSE in the other,
                        Dr. Gonzo contemplates getting off the message board and back to his script.

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          Re: Spaihts VS Lindelof

                          Originally posted by Dr. Gonzo View Post
                          I'll agree with that. Lindelof gets a lot of hate for a bizarre reason.
                          People were so mad at the end of that series Lost for all the ambiguity... and then right after Prometheus for all the same reasons.
                          I wonder if he is going to lose his renowned ambiguity for his next project.
                          All that hate might affect him subconsciously.

                          (For the record I didn't watch Lost, maybe caught an episode out of context and I kinda liked Prometheus... so there it is.)
                          For the record, I detested LOST. But, that aside, I think the reason (some) fans hated the finale to the degree they did was that for years Lindelof & Cruse had said with great conviction that the island was not a metaphorical Purgatory / the survivors weren't really dead...

                          ...and then it ended up being a metaphorical Purgatory / everyone ended up being dead.

                          A bit of a middle finger to the viewers, don't you think?

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            Re: Spaihts VS Lindelof

                            They weren't dead the whole time. They were only dead in the flashbacks of the final season.

                            As for the topic, I generally prefer when people don't run wild with all caps and underlines. But I think it's interesting to see two successful writers take different style directions with the same material. It's good to remind everyone that there's more than one way to skin a cat.
                            Chicks Who Script podcast

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              Re: Spaihts VS Lindelof

                              I've had this frustrating argument many times before. But yeah, the sixth season was not the best, it should of been approached a lot differently because it didn't honor the character arcs, it diffused them, it didn't answer questions, it unanswered them. All in all it was an amazing show.
                              It's the eye of the Tiger, it's the thrill of the fight

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