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Tuesday, January 29, 2008

Stranger Things – Episode 02A: Sins of the Mother - post author Don

Stranger Things – Episode 02B: Sins of the Mother – script- from: StrangerThings.tv

After an unsuspecting patient fails a background check, a second-year intern is forced to make a difficult decision…

First watch the episode, then read the script (annotated in pdf format).

Sins of the Mother is the episode of StrangerThings that really cemented my love affair with Earl and the folks behind StrangerThings. This is where the acting, production values and the story really came together to tell a story that surpasses not only Earl’s previous works, but just about anything that has come out of short speculative television in the last few years. Earl and the StrangerThings team hit their stride on Sins of the Mother and carry it through on the next episode, One of those Faces.

Tuesday, January 22, 2008

2008 Oscar Nominated Scripts - post author Don

The nominations are out. No real surprises in the screenplay nominations. All but two of the nominated scripts are online by the hand of the studios.

Best Adapted Screenplay

Atonement by Christopher Hampton (based on the novel by Ian McEwan) – undated, unspecified draft script in zip/pdf format (hosted by Focus features)

Away From Her by Sarah Polly (based on the short story The Bear Came Over the Mountain by Alice Munro)

The Diving Bell and the Butterfly (Le Scaphandre et le papillon) by Ronald Harwood (based on the novel by Jean-Dominique Bauby) undated, unspecified (probably shooting) – draft script in pdf format (hosted by Miramax Films)

No Country for Old Men by Joel Coen and Ethan Coen (based on the novel by Cormac McCarthy) – undated, unspecified (probably shooting) draft script in pdf format (hosted by Miramax Films)

There Will Be Blood by Paul Thomas Anderson (based on “Oil!” by Upton Sinclair) – July 25, 2006 final shooting script in pdf format (hosted by Vantage Guilds 2007)

Best Original Screenplay

Juno by Diablo Cody – February 6, 2007 revised pink draft script in pdf format (hosted by Fox Searchlight)

Lars and the Real Girl by Nancy Oliver

Michael Clayton by Tony Gilroy – February 11, 2006 Final Shooting Draft script in zip/pdf format (hosted by Warner Bros)

Rataouille by Brad Bird (original story by Jan Pinkava, Jim Capobianco, Brad Bird) – undated, unspecified draft script in pdf format (hosted by Walt Disney Studio Awards)

The Savages by Tamara Jenkins – April 10, 2006 pink revised script in pdf format (hosted by Fox Searchlight)

Read scripts to other nominated movies over on the Oscar Nominatations Page. – Don

Monday, January 21, 2008

Pink Flyod The Wall script, Another Cliffhanger and Conspiracy Theory script - post author Don

Welcome Guardian readers. And if you are not a Guardian reader, check out the excellent article by Stuart McGurk about Script Collecting.

Speaking of which, there are three more scripts on the ‘net. Thanks to Vern for the heads up on this draft of Roger Waters Pink Floyd The Wall brought to you by A Fleeting Glimpse the most amazing Pink Floyd website on the ‘net. Note, the script is a huge 20 MB PDF file, so downloading patience is required.

Thanks to Donovan and Daily Script we have yet another draft of Cliffhanger. This is the final shooting draft with revisions by Sly Stallone. In total, thanks to Donovan, there are three drafts of Cliffhanger to compare and contrast over on the Movie Scripts page.

And lastly, again thanks to Donovan, there is a September 12, 1996 draft of Conspiracy Theory. Those and more on the Movie Scripts page.

Now, for those who read the Spoil Sport article and were confused by my “Stepmom was one of those…” comment. The question, as I recall, was something to the effect of have you decided not to see a movie you wanted to see based upon reading the script. My answer was to the contrary to the effect that if I was intrigued by an upcoming movie, reading the script would not change my mind about seeing a movie. On the other hand, there have been cases where I was not interested in seeing a particular movie, though I later changed my mind after reading the script and later decided to go see the movie. Step Mom was one of those cases where, based upon the trailer and the buzz, I had absolutely no interest in seeing the movie. However, after reading the script, I was intrigued enough to go see the movie. – Don

Sunday, January 20, 2008

31 Original scripts for your reading pleasure - post author Don

Good mixture of scripts up from the supernatural thriller in The Darien Club to another take on the Superman mythology with Man of Steel and horror (of course) with Quiet. There are twenty-eight other original scripts over on the Unproduced Scripts page. – Don

Thursday, January 17, 2008

Cloverfield review - post author Don

Alas, the Cloverfield script is not available online, yet. However, our own Chism has seen Cloverfield and has a review.

RELAX – NO SPOILERS

Obviously there’s been a huge amount of hype and mystery around this flick. And I’m happy to say that underneath it all is an absolutely kick ass monster flick. Cloverfield does not disappoint.

The Story:

Pretty much a group of friends are caught in a pickle as a giant monster that seems to have come from somewhere under the sea launches an attack on New York City. Receiving a desperate phone call from the love of his life, Rob (Michael Stahl-David), Lily (Jessica Lucas), Marlena (Lizzy Caplan) and Hud (T.J. Miller) set off to rescue her while trying to evade the skyscraper-sized, enigmatic, seemingly unstoppable creature.

What I Liked:

The performances of the film were very good. No one had any huge acting moments to speak of, because real life doesn’t have very many of them either. What the main actors do is provide very naturalistic performances that pull you into the story. I bought every member of the cast as just an average person. I suppose part of that is due to the writing, which for the most part sounds very natural as well (credit Drew Goddard for that).

The monster absolutely rocks IMO. I’m not going to give anything away, but you do see the monster very clearly fairly often. There are at least a half dozen really good moments, and towards the end of the film you can see it in an extended shot that is both awsome and terrifying. Not only was the idea of the monster very cool, but the visual effects used to create it are very convincing. At no time did the monster or any of the destruction it creates feel unreal.

I was expecting to be thrilled, but I wasn’t expecting to really get scared. Here is a thriller with genuine thrills, and a few guarenteed leaps. There is also a lot of tension in some moments. Director Matt Reeves creates very intense atmospheres in moments of quiet, such as when the group is attacked in the subway tunnels or when they must navigate their way through a tilted apartment building.

The ending, again I’m not going to give anything away, but it is pretty cool. A little depressing perhaps, but I don’t think they could have ended it any other way without it seeming cliched.

What I Didn’t Like:

No film is perfect, and there were some things about Cloverfield that kinda ticked me off. The first and most important is some of the camerawork. For the most part, it works. But there are moments that are a little nausiating, such as the aftermath of a helicopter crash or some shots of our heroes running down the street. The camera shakes from side to side, and up and down. It gets a little annoying. There are also moments where I wanted the camera to be pointed at something happening off screen (monster attacks, explosions, etc.) but it was aimed down at the cameraman’s feet. It was frustrating, I wanted to shout out “turn the camera around, wanker!”

Have you guys ever seen that Siskel & Ebert review of Poltergeist III? For those who haven’t, you should (it’s hilarious). For those who have, I was reminded of the review by some moments in the film. Anytime Rob walks more than ten feet away from the camera, Hud (the cameraman) relentlessly screams “Rob! Rob! Rob, come back! Rob! Rob! Where are you, Rob!” It also was annoying.

Bottom Line:

Cloverfield is a relenetlessly-paced, unapologetically intense experience. There was not a single moment from when the monster attacked that I was not on the edge of my seat. Drew Goddard, Matt Reeves and J.J. Abrams have created a modern classic. I think this film is going to remembered for years to come. An excellent way to start the new year of movies. If you’re looking for something exciting and unremittingly entertaining, then Cloverfield is for you. If you have a weak stomach, or if your nerves fail easily, then you should probably avoid it.

8/10.

Matt.

Copyright 2008 (c) Matt.

Discuss the movie.

Tuesday, January 15, 2008

Below script and Cliffhanger script (another draft) - post author Don

Two more up on Daily Script. Thanks to the most excellent Donovan (old timers know who he is) read a revised draft of Cliffhanger. Unlike last week’s Cliffhanger script which was the first draft, this one is a later draft revised by Terry Hayes.

Thanks to Leon (also excellent and long time conspirator of Donovan) for this draft of Below by Darren Aronofsky & Lucas Sussman with revisions by David Twohy. These two fine pieces of script-age can be found on the Movie Scripts page.

Please note, “Miracle at St. Anna” is up again on the Movie Scripts page.

Lastly, but not leastly, on the Unproduced Scripts page there are eight more original scripts. There are more to come. I am, as always, crazy behind in getting them on the ‘net. – Don

Sunday, January 13, 2008

Golden Globe Winner for Best Screenplay is No Country for Old Men - post author Don

Golden Globe Winner for Best Screenplay is Joel Coen and Ethan Coen for “No Country for Old Men”.

No Country for Old Men – undated, unspecified (probably shooting) draft script by Joel Coen and Ethan Coen (based on the novel by Cormac McCarthy) – hosted by: Miramax Films – in pdf format. Read also, in browser friendly text format, thanks to Weekly script, and Early draft and the Shooting draft of the script.

Llewlyn Moss (Josh Brolin), hunting antelope near the Rio Grande, stumbles upon a drug transaction gone horribly wrong. Finding bullet-ridden bodies, several kilos of heroin, and a caseload of cash, he faces a choice – leave the scene as he found it, or cut the money and run. Choosing the latter, he knows, will change everything. And so begins a terrifying chain of events, in which each participate seems determined to answer the question that one asks another: how does a man decide in what order to adandon his life?

Information courtesy of imdb.com

Thanks to Cinematical for the running commentary and update. And thanks to discussion board member Murphy for the heads up. View all the nominated screenplays. – Don

Friday, January 11, 2008

Writers Guild of America screenwriting nominated scripts - post author Don

wga imageThe Writers Guild of American writing nominations are out. Winners will be announced on February 9, 2008. below are the listings for Original and Adapted screenplay, tho you can see the full nomination list here.

Adapted Screenplay

No Country for Old Men by Joel Coen and Ethan Coen (based on the novel by Cormac McCarthy)(undated, unspecified (probably shooting) draft script pdf format hosted by Miramax Films)

There Will Be Blood by Paul Thomas Anderson (based on “Oil!” by Upton Sinclair) (July 25, 2006 final shooting script pdf format hosted by Vantage Guilds 2007)

The Diving Bell and the Butterfly (Le Scaphandre et le papillon) by Ronald Harwood (based on the novel by Jean-Dominique Bauby ) (undated, unspecified (probably shooting) draft script pdf format hosted by Miramax Films)

Into The Wild by Sean Penn (from the book Into The Wild by Jon Krakauer) (undated, unspecified draft script pdf format hosted by Vantage Guilds 2007)

Zodiac (Chronicles) by James Vanderbilt (based on the books “Zodiac” and “Zodiac Unmasked” by Robert Graysmith) (July 5, 2006 final shooting script zip/pdf format hosted by Paramount)

Original Screenplay

Juno by Diablo Cody (February 6, 2007 revised pink draft script pdf format hosted by Fox Searchlight)

Michael Clayton by Tony Gilroy (February 11, 2006 Final Shooting Draft script zip/pdf format hosted by Warner Bros)

The Savages by Tamara Jenkins (April 10, 2006 pink revised script pdf format hosted by Fox Searchlight)

Knocked Up by Judd Apatow (undated, unspecified draft script pdf format hosted by Universal Pictures)

Lars and the Real Girl by Nancy Oliver

With the exception of Lars and the Real Girl all the WGA nominated screenplays are already available online. Again, if anyone has a link to any nominated script online that I don’t have, please let me know.

And to the “Thanks! I lost my postcard” guys and gals. You are welcome. Glad you find the site of use.

Thursday, January 10, 2008

NAACP Image Award nominations for Outstanding Writing in a Motion Picture - post author Don

39th NAACP image awards nominations are out. Winners will be announced on February 14, 2008.

Nominations for Outstanding Writing in a Motion Picture (Theatrical or Television) are:

John Sayles ? Honeydripper (not online, yet)

Michael Genet and Rick Famuyiwa ? Talk To Me (zip/pdf) from Focus Features

Richard LaGravenese ? Freedom Writers (zip/pdf) from Paramount

Robert Eisele ? The Great Debaters (not online, yet)

Steve Zaillian ? American GangsterUniversal Pictures

And, yes. No updates in any additional award nominated scripts. If you see either The Great Debaters or Honeydrippers online, please let me know.

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