by Robert McKee
and comedy, 362
creating within, 177–79
and energy of story, 179–80
Love Serenade, 311–12
and point of no return, 208
Genres
and audience expectations, 89–90
conventions, 87–89, 178
creative limitations, 90–82
history, 79
lists and film examples, 80–86
mastery of, 89–90
mixing and
reinventing, 92–98
and setting, 183
and Shakespeare, 90
shift in, 225
Ghost, 96
Ghostbusters, 12
Glengarry Glen Ross, 72
Glory, 83, 309
Godard, Jean-Luc, 54, 65
Godfather, The, 348
Godfather, The: Part II, 46, 207, 311
Goethe, von, Johann, 79
Going in Style, 126
Gold Rush, The, 361
Goldman, William, 310
Good Son, The, 94
Graduate, The, 95
Grand Canyon, 126
Grand Hotel, 50, 137
Grand Illusion, 46
Great Gatsby, The, 81
Great Train Robbery, The, 46
Greed, 20, 46, 81, 109, 312
Griffith, D. W., 293, 366, 407
Gross Pointe Blank, 81
Groundhog Day, 3, 116, 117
Guest, Judith, 205
Hamburger Hill, 121
Hamlet (character of), 105, 111, 378
Hampton, Christopher, 83
Hand That Rocks the Cradle, The, 94
Hannah and Her Sisters, 17, 123, 126, 136, 344
Harold and Maud, 81
Hart, Moss, 352
Heidegger, Martin, 211
Hemingway, Ernest, 98, 321
High Adventure Genre, 82, 85
High Hopes, 137
His Girl Friday, 360
Historical Drama, 83
Hitchcock, Alfred, 88–89, 225, 394, 407
Holes, 370–72
Hollywood films, 3
“big hook,” 198
budget, 63–64
and clichés, 61
and inciting incident, 204
number distributed per year, 13
rebellion against, 66
script development, cost, 13–14
story analyst, 17–18
story submissions
accepted yearly, 13
studio system, 17
versus art film, 59–61
Hope and Glory, 136
Horror Film, 80, 213, 406
and Cheap Surprise, 355
Supernatural, 80
Super-Uncanny, 80
Uncanny, 80
Hospital, 257
Hour of the Wolf, 80
Hurd, Gail Anne, 406
Hurricane, 358
Husbands, 57
Husbands and Wives, 96, 344
Husserl, Edmund, 66
Hustler, The, 46, 55, 81
I Never Promised You a Rose Garden, 93–94
I Vitioni, 65
Idea, See Controlling Idea
II Postino, 59, 81
Image Systems, 400–408
Imaginary Invalid, The (Molière), 382
In-Laws, The, 313
In the Heat of the Night, 116, 117
In the Realm of the Senses, 47, 55, 307
Inciting Incident, 181, 189–94, 208, 311, 318, 356
and act design, 217–24
creating, 206–7
design of, 198–200
and flashback, 341
locating, 200–204
and Marx Brothers film, 361
quality of, 204–7
Inner monologues, 177
Interview with a Vampire, 143
Intolerance, 50
Irony, 128–29
dramatic, 351–55
in endings/climax, 125–28
ironic ascension, 298–300
negative, 128, 129
Isadora, 84
James, Henry, 206, 369
Jaws, 112, 124, 190–91, 197, 198, 199, 202–203, 288, 303, 356–57, 409
Jerry Maguire, 126
Jesus of Montreal, 225
JFK, 59, 345
Jhabvala, Ruth Prawer, 369
John and Mary, 76
Joy Luck Club, The, 222
Joyce, James, 54
Ju Dou, 46
Jurassic Park, 358
Kasdan, Lawrence, 92
Kaufman, Phillip, 352
Key Images, 312
Kid, The, 312
King Lear (Shakespeare), 376–77
Kiss of the Spider Woman, 107–8, 231–32
Kiss of the Spider Woman (Puig), 231
Koyaanisqutsi, 47
Kramer vs, Kramer, 112, 125, 126, 198, 202, 206, 215–16, 221, 236, 288, 307–8, 409
Kubrick, Stanley, 122
La Dolce Vita, 87, 129, 312, 409
La Notte, 198
La Promesse, 81
La Strada, 65
Lady Eve, The, 360
Last Days of Pompeii, The, 46
Last Emperor, The, 337, 338
Last Seduction, The, 97
Last Year at Marienbad, 47, 57, 63, 68
Law of Diminishing Returns, 244, 293, 393
Lawson, John Howard, 16
Le Feu Follet, 81
League of Their Own, A, 85
Lean, David, 368
Leaving Las Vegas, 3, 96, 198, 222, 307
L’Eclisse, 81
Lenny, 87
Les Diabolique, See Diabolique
Lethal Weapon, 94, 362
Life Story, 31–32
Like Water for Chocolate, 4
Limitation of story, 71
Lion King, The, 3, 85
Little Big Man, 337, 338
Little Mermaid, The, 85
Little Shop of Horrors, 361
Lone Star, 96, 294
Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner, The, 85
Longing Story, 96
Looks and Smiles, 408
Lord Jim, 81
Lost Highway, 47
Love Serenade, 311–12
Love Story, 80, 84, 85, 86, 92, 95–98, 114, 116, 178, 214, 226, 229, 289, 310, 352
Loved One, The, 88
Lumet, Sidney, 292
M. 46, 55
Macbeth (Shakespeare), 81, 142–43, 378
Maltese Falcon, The, 87
Mamet, David, 72
Man Bites Dog, 20, 59, 84
Man Who Would Be King, The, 55, 82
Manchurian Candidate, The, 325
Manhattan, 125
Manhunter, 94
Mark, The, 94
Marty, 46, 55
Marvin, Lee, 385
Marx Brothers films, 361
Masculine Feminine, 57, 58
M*A*S*H, 360
Maturation Plot, 81, 85, 90, 120
McQuarrie, Christopher, 70
Mean Streets, 80
Medical Drama, 82, 181
Melodrama, 370
Men in Black, 25, 295
Mephisto, 81, 326
Merrily We Roll Along (Kaufman & Hart), 352
Meshes of the Afternoon, 47, 55
Metamorphosts (Kafka), 202
Metz, 80
Michael Collins, 83
Midnight Cowboy, 189
Midnight Run, 92
Midsummer’s Night Dream, A (Shakespeare), 137, 227
Mike’s Murder, 90
Mind Worm, 374–75
minimalism. See miniplot
miniplot, 45–47, 64–65, 66
change versus stasis, 57–58
and film budget, 63
inconsistent realities, 53–57
internal conflict, 49
multiplot variation, 49, 56
negative ending, 59
open ending, 48, 57
protagonist, 49–51
and reversals, 222–24
Misanthrope, Th
e (Molière), 382
Miser, The (Molière), 382
Misfits, The, 87
Miss Julie (Strindberg), 217
Missing, 116, 117, 321, 396
Moby Dick, 195
Mockumentary, 56, 84
Modern Epic, 81, 84, 85
Modern Times, 20
Mogamo, 409
Moliere, 98, 382
Moment by Moment, 408
Montage, 343–44
Monty Python and the Holy Grail, 19, 47, 57, 64
Moonstruck, 197
Morning After, The, 94
Moulin Rouge, 299–300
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, 81
Mrs. Parker and the Vicious Circle, 81
Mrs. Soffel, 95–96, 193–94, 196, 226
Multiplot, 49, 56, 123–24, 226–32, 406
Murder Mystery, 82, 97, 342
Muriel’s Wedding, 81
Murnau, F. W., 407
Music Room, The, 47, 198
Musical, 84, 289
Musical Horror Film, 92–93
My Best Friend’s Wedding, 81, 409
My Dinner with Andre, 68, 292–93
My Favorite Season, 356
My Man Godfrey, 362
Mystery, 349–51
and backstory, 350
cliffhanger, 355
closed, 350
false, 354–55
open, 350
and red herrings, 350
Naked, 57, 58
Naked Gun, 360
Naked Lunch, 214
Nanook of the North, 47
Nash, Richard, 35
Nashville, 55, 56, 128, 137
Nasty Habits, 360
Network, 128, 360
Newspaper Drama, 82
Night and Fog, 47
Night at the Opera, 360
Nightporter, The, 348–49
1984, 81
Nixon, 84, 128
North Dallas Forty, 85, 126, 127
O’Bannon, Dan, 187–89
Objective correlative, 66
Obligatory Scene, 198–200, 303, 308
Officer and a Gentleman, An, 126
Oh! What a Lovely War, 121
Old Man and the Sea, The, 81
On the Waterfront, 201
Ordinary People, 6, 126, 189, 204–5, 295–96, 309, 323
Othello, 226, 298–99
Out of Africa, 126, 127
Outbreak, 340
Pacing, 289–91, 294
Paisan, 47
Paper Chase, The, 126
Parenthood, 3, 20, 49, 136, 228
Paris, Texas, 47, 48, 55
Parody, 82
Pascal, Blaise, 5
Pascali’s Island, 329
Passion de Jeanne D’Arc, La, 47
Passion Fish, 80
Pat and Mike, 198
Paths of Glory, 122
Pelle the Conqueror, 47, 50, 136, 369
People vs, Larry Flint, The, 81
Persona, 20, 47, 65, 112, 409
Personal story, bad script, 22–23, 24
Phantom of Liberty, 58
Piano, The, 408
Pitch, 413–14
Plato, 129, 130
Player, The, 13
Plot, 43, See also Archplot; Antiplot; Climax, Crisis; Inciting Incident; Miniplot; Structure; Subplot
Poetics, The (Aristotle), 5, 217
Point of View (POV) character’s, 363–64
shots, 362–63
“Pointless pace killer,” 179
Points of no return, 208–10
Police Academy, 360
Political Drama/Allegory, 82, 85, 229, 289, 310
Political Thriller, 116
Politics
of story design, 58–66
of story’s world, 182
Polti, 79–80
Poseidon Adventure, The, 82, 124
Posse, 93
Postcards from the Edge, 3, 59
Postman Always Rings Twice, The, 358
Premise, 112–13
Prison Drama, 82
Prizzi’s Honor, 88, 360
Producers, The, 360
Progression, 118–23, 209
complication versus complexity, 213–16
ironic, 298–300
law of conflict, 210–13, 261, 268
personal, 295–96
points of no return, 208–10
social, 294–95
symbolic ascension, 296–98
Protagonist, 136–41, See also Character
and audience bond, 141–43
and gap, 147–49, 151–52, 177–79, 270–71
and inciting incident, 181, 191–94, 198–207
Multiprotagonist, 136–37
Plural, 136
and quest, 196–97
screenplay of
Chinatown, 154–76, 178
single versus multiple, 49–50
and spine of story, 194–96
switch during story, 137
Private Benjamin, 360
Psycho, 137, 225
Psycho-Drama, 82, 92, 93–95
Psycho-Thriller, 75, 94–95, 114, 230
Puig, Manuel, 231
Pulp Fiction, 50, 136
Punitive Plot, 81, 84, 85, 128
Puzo, Mario, 312
Q & A, 59, 97, 119
Quartet, 369
Quest, 196–97
Quest for Fire, 124
Quiz Show, 126
Raging Bull, 85
Raiders of the Lost Ark, 19, 92, 220
Rain, 300
Rain Man, 126
Rainmaker, The, 34–35
Rambo, 103
Rashomon, 20
Ray, Satyajit, 4
Red, 96
Red Desert, The, 12, 47, 55, 250
Redemption Plot, 80, 81, 85, 92, 107, 126
Redford, Robert, 205
Regarding Henry, 126
Reiner, Rob, 56
Remains of the Day, 36, 96
Research, 72–76
and birth of characters, 74
fact, 73–74
imagination, 73
memory, 72–73
and progressive complications, 213
Reservoir Dogs, 20, 342
Resnais, Alain, 47
Resolution, 312–14
Return of the Jedi, 236, 341
Revenge Tale, 82
Reversal, 217–18, 220, 225–27
Reversal of Fortune, 3, 20, 59
Rhys, Jean, 369
Rhythm, 291–93
Risky Business, 81
River Runs Through It, A, 47
River, The, 191
Road to Morocco, 64
Road Warrior, The, 49
Robbe-Grillet, Alain, 63
Robocop, 119
Rocky, 201–2, 223, 229
Rocky IV, 402
Roma, 84
Romantic Comedy, 82, 360
Romy and Michele’s High School Reunion, 80
Room With a View, A (Forster), 369
Rose, The, 128
Rosemary’s Baby, 324
Rossen, Robert, 257
Rowe, Kenneth, 16
Ruling Class, The, 360
Running, Jumping, and Standing Still Film The, 47
Running on Empty, 59
Ruthless People, 299
Sacrifice, The, 47
Salt, Waldo, 189
Salvador, 59
Sanders, Lawrence, 230
Sargent, Alvin, 189, 205
Sartre, Jean-Paul, 211, 212
Satire, 82
Saturday Night Fever, 81
Scarlet Letter, The, 369
Scenes, 35–37, See also Composition
and beats, 217, 258–59, 270, 286–87
closing value, 259, 270, 286
crisis, 303–9
emotional transitions, 243–48
French Scenes, 292–93
Law of Diminishing Returns, 244, 293
length of, 291–92
mood, 247–48
number of in A
rchplot, 210
number of in three-act story, 218–19
number of in two-hour film, 291, 415
Obligatory, 199–200, 303, 308
opening value, 258, 259, 261, 270, 272, 286
“pointless pace killer,” 179
Sequence Climax, 234
Setups/Playoffs, 238–43, 271–72
text and subtext, 252–57
transition/Third Thing, 301–2
Turning Points, 74, 209, 217, 233–38, 243, 248–51, 259, 270–71, 286–87
writing, specifics to do, 395–400
Scene analysis, 257–59
Casablanca, 260–70, 287
Through a Glass Darkly, 271–87
Scent of Green Papaya, The, 56
Science Fiction, 85
Schiller, von, Johann, 79
Schindler’s List, 81, 126
Schrader, Leonard, 231–32
Scott of the Antarctic, 125
Screwball Comedy, 82
Sea of Love, 120, 229
Sequence, 38, See also act three scene example, 38–41
Serpico, 189
Setting, 68–72, 181–85, 217
and creative limitation, 71–72
duration, 68
and genre, 183
level of conflict, 69
location, 69
and mood, 247–48
period, 68
place, 69
politics of setting world, 182
rituals of setting world, 182–83
values of setting world, 183
versus story, 72
Setups/Playoffs, 238–43, 271–72
Seven, 94, 97, 119
Seven Samurai, The, 46, 55, 56, 136
Seventh Seal, The, 46, 312
Shaffer, Peter, 369, 391–92, 393
Shakespeare, William, 90, 95, 365, 369, 407
filmed works, 366
five act structure, 220–21
Shall We Dance, 47, 81
Sheltering Sky, The, 400
Shine, 12, 46, 120, 220, 323, 337
Shining, The, 80
Ship of Fools, 50
Shortcuts, 50, 57, 58, 137, 227, 228
Shot in the Dark, A, 382–83
Silence of the Lambs, The, 119, 349
Silence, The, 65, 393–94
Silent Era of film, 366
Single White Female, 94
Sitcom, 82
Six Guns and Society (Wright), 81
Sleeping with the Enemy, 94
Sleepless in Seattle, 96
Slice-of-life works, 58
Sling Blade, 312
Snake Pit, The, 93
Snow White and the Three Stooges, 129
Soap Opera, 213, 214, 216
Social Drama, 82, 84–85, 92, 121–22
Solaris, 85
Somebody Up There Likes Me, 85
Somewhere in Time, 85
Sound of Music, The, 400
Spartacus, 81
Speed, 119, 222
Spielberg, Steven, 202–3
Spine (through-line/superobjective) of story, 194–96, 338
Sports Genre, 85, 201, 229
Stand by Me, 81
Stanislavski, Konstantin, 65, 112
Star 80, 128
Star Wars, 85, 256, 305, 341, 409
Steel Magnolias, 314
Step-outline, 412–15
expansion of, 415
Stereotypical story, 4–5
Stolen Children, 47
Stone, Oliver, 345
Storm Over Asia, 366
Story event, 33–35, 37, See also scene