by Blake Snyder
Break into Three: They’ve been doing it pretty much Danny’s way: now they do it Mel’s way. “You’re going to have to trust me,” says Mel. A and B stories cross again as the call comes and the boys launch into action. By saving Danny’s daughter, maybe Mel can get over the loss of the woman in his life, too.
Finale: There are three scenes of violence in the ending: (1) the desert where a rescue goes wrong; (2) back in Hollywood at the nightclub lair of The General, where Mel is tortured (he’s tortured a lot, have you noticed?); and (3) Danny’s house, where Mel has a showdown with Gary after Danny frees his daughter and dispatches The General. Mel beats Gary in a cool martial arts-fest; then Mel and Danny, guns blazing, kill Gary together.
Final Image: Having come to terms with his wife’s death, Mel spends Christmas with Danny and his family. Danny is over his mid-life crisis, and Mel is no longer an insane person (no, I mean … nevermind!)
WHEN HARRY MET SALLY … (1989)
Of the romantic comedies featuring Meg and Tom, or Meg and Kevin, or Meg and Hugh, the imprimatur that made the world safe for the convenient use of Louis Armstrong tunes in lieu of actual screenwriting is director Rob Reiner’s urban fairy tale about Meg and Billy. And no “complication” in the way of two lovers — geography in Sleepless in Seattle, an outrageous accent in French Kiss, or a time-travelin’ portal in Kate & Leopold — can beat a man and a woman who are just too blockheaded to realize they’re perfect for each other.
Created from the real-life experiences of screenwriter Nora Ephron, and enhanced by the matching dating tales of director Reiner, the set-up is simple: the claim made by Billy on the first day he meets Meg that men and women cannot be friends. Men, Billy states, just want to sleep with women and nothing more. But hazzah! After a few broken relationships, and the agony of having Bruno Kirby as his best friend, Billy slowly begins to realize that When Harry Met Sally … he found perfect love.
Despite eerie similarities to Annie Hall and Manhattan, and a few moments that suffer from “a case of the cutes,” it’s the touchstone we look to as the “Rom-com Love” that tops them all. For when Billy surrenders and races through the streets to confess to Meg he loves it when she orders salad dressing on the side, somebody has transformed — him!
BL Type: Rom-com Love
BL Cousins: Pat and Mike, Pretty Woman, Sleepless in Seattle, You’ve Got Mail, French Kiss, Notting Hill, The Wedding Planner, Maid in Manhattan, Two Weeks Notice, Failure to Launch
WHEN HARRY MET SALLY …
Written by Nora Ephron
Opening Image: A running bit (previously used in Reds) is the “real” couples talking to the camera about how they met. Their stories detail the odd chase through life we lovers make, and the wrong turns that ultimately lead to the perfect match.
Set-Up: Meet Harry Burns (Billy Crystal) and Sally Albright (Meg Ryan) on the last day of college, 1978. Billy kisses his girlfriend goodbye as Meg waits to drive with him from Chicago to New York. They are totally different types. She is straight-laced, organized, and perky. He is a slob, a front-seat philosopher, and by his reckoning, a ladies man. At a roadside diner, we introduce Meg’s penchant for specific ordering of meals. They seem an unlikely pair. He’s beer stein half-empty; she’s champagne flute half-full.
Theme Stated: “It is impossible for a man and a woman to be friends.” Can, as Billy claims, men not resist the lure of sex and see women only as objects of lust? We shall see.
Catalyst: “We are just going to be friends,” states Meg and thus the gauntlet is thrown down. Meg and Billy part in New York City with a “thanks for the ride and nice knowing you.” It seems like they may never see each other again … but we know better, don’t we!
Debate: Is it over? Five years later: another departure, another shared trip. In a reverse of the first scene, a now older Billy sees Meg kissing her boyfriend goodbye at JFK. On the plane, we pick up where we left off: Meg is still naive and Billy is still a Neanderthal — yet getting married, much to Meg’s surprise. He proves he hasn’t changed with talk about how long he must hold a woman after sex. Is five seconds enough? Meg is horrified. By the time they land back in Chicago, the two reunited collegians decide they are still not right for each other. And Meg, for one, is glad she has a nice boyfriend whom she’s serious about.
Break into Two: Five years later, they are full-fledged adults, both looking again. Meg broke up with her boyfriend, who refused to marry her. Billy is in the process of a painful divorce. We are in the present and will remain here for the duration. Meg sees Harry in a bookstore (“Someone is staring at you in Personal Growth”) and they agree to meet. Before they can be together, they must test the premise and see if men and women can be friends. They decide to give it a try.
B Story: The B story here is Billy and Meg’s two friends, his best bud, Jess (Bruno Kirby), and Meg’s galpal, Marie (Carrie Fisher). In a sense, this film is a bit of a “four-hander” as Bruno and Carrie will get together and be the push Meg and Billy need to get them into Act Three. But for now they are Meg’s and Billy’s mentors, the ones they talk to about the theme of the movie.
Fun and Games: Billy and Meg as friends. Two single people find solace talking about their exes, aerobics, yoga, food, and shopping. They go out to Chinese dinner, where Meg gets it her way as usual. OCD Meg and forever unhappy Billy do things lovers do, but do so as friends — watching Casablanca in their own beds while on the phone with each other, plus lots of afternoons at the museum — all the cute couple stuff without the complications of s-e-x. The two even root for each other when they have dates. During this part, Meg does her famous “orgasm in the deli” scene (what is more Fun and Games than that?), and both are free to be themselves. The whole time we know they are perfect together — why … don’t … they?
Midpoint: At Minute 49 the stakes are raised at a New Year’s Eve party when they realize they’re falling for each other. They kiss as friends, trying to ignore the close call. To avoid this “complication,” they set each other up with their best friends as A and B stories now cross. But the plan backfires: Carrie and Bruno fall for each other instead.
Bad Guys Close In: While out with Meg, Billy sees his ex-wife with her new boyfriend. Billy realizes his dating life is not getting better. At Bruno and Carrie’s new place, Billy predicts their future — and it isn’t pretty. He even fights with Meg, mad at her for not getting upset about anything. She fires back, saying his cavalier attitude about sex isn’t helping. Now the “bad guys” include both Meg and Billy seriously dating others. But what else can they do?
All Is Lost: When Meg calls Billy because her ex is getting married, they make a fatal mistake and fall into bed. And though it all should be fine, the “death” is the death of their friendship — what are they now? The look on Billy’s face post-sex tells all: He still has the problem of figuring out how long to hold her before leaving.
Dark Night of the Soul: Despite the joy of confessing the deed to Carrie and Bruno, Meg and Billy realize their error.
Break into Three: They both decide to tell each other they made a mistake. Over dinner they do just that. By rejecting each other, they hope to save their friendship — but can they?
Finale: A and B stories cross as the two attend Bruno and Carrie’s wedding — and fight. Bruno and Carrie propose a toast to Meg and Billy: “If Marie or I found either of them remotely attractive, we would not be here today.” It seems it’s over. Billy calls her, but Meg won’t answer. On New Year’s Eve, the separated lovers realize they need Synthesis. The chase to the airport scene that ends most rom-coms, here is Billy running through NYC to be with Meg. Finally they kiss — this time as true lovers.
Final Image: A last couple: Billy and Meg tell the story of how they met.
TITANIC (1997)
The biggest movie ever made (at least when it was released) became the biggest hit of all time, and we would be remiss in our efforts if we didn’t try to understand why. You have a great primal set-up: a sin
king ship in the middle of an icy sea, the historic brand name of Titanic promising glamour … and death. But what makes this story work is that it’s about two star-crossed lovers who yearn to be together whatever the odds.
And that never fails.
In the “Epic Love” category, the “complication” is bigger than the lovers. We’re talking about Gone with the Wind and even more recent movies like Mr. & Mrs. Smith and True Lies. Whether there’s a sweeping historic backdrop, or a globe-hopping adventure, the story is about a man and a woman who love and need each other — which is precisely what director and writer James Cameron understood when he took on this monumental project.
When we begin, the ill-fated nature of this relationship is seen in the differences between these two lovers. She is a pampered Victorian mama’s girl about to marry the wrong guy, and he’s a starving artist who wins his ticket to ride in a poker game before the greatest ship ever built takes off on its maiden — and doomed — voyage. Though we know the ending, and still hope for the best, we realize that a perfect love such as this often ends in tragedy — if we’re lucky!
BL Type: Epic Love
BL Cousins: Gone with the Wind, Dr. Zhhivago, The Wind and the Lion, The Year of Living Dangerously, True Lies, The Last of the Mohicans, Mr. and Mrs. Smith, The Notebook, The Far Pavilions, The Painted Veil
TITANIC
Written by James Cameron
Opening Image: Sepia-tinted footage of Titanic launching. Now in the present, an underwater sub explores the wreckage of the ship. In the sub, Brock Lovett (Bill Paxton) commands a robot camera into the ghostly hallways and staterooms. We will be cutting between past and present for the duration of the tale.
Set-Up: Up top, the crew salvages an old safe. They were looking for a diamond and are disappointed. But inside is something more important: a drawing. Dated the day the ship went down, it’s a sketch of a nude girl wearing the very diamond they’re looking for: the “Heart of the Ocean” necklace. On the other side of the world, a 101-year-old woman, Rose (Gloria Stuart), sees the portrait on TV and claims the girl in the drawing is her. As Gloria is flown in by helicopter to the excavation ship, all wonder if she is who she claims. “Are you ready to go back to Titanic?” Bill asks her. At Minute 20, Gloria begins her story: “It’s been 84 years. Titanic was called the ship of dreams.” Now going back into the past again, Titanic launches. An old car is loaded on board as passengers arrive, and we meet Rose (Kate Winslet), a perfect Victorian “dish.” With her is her rich and pompous fiancé, Cal Hockley (Billy Zane). “To me,” Gloria says, “It was a slave ship taking me back to America in chains.”
Catalyst: Meet Jack Dawson (Leonardo DiCaprio), playing poker for tickets to Titanic. Since the A story is the love story, this game will directly affect both Kate and Leonardo. Leo wins passage for himself and a buddy — a “Save the Cat!” beat.
Debate: “Will Kate go through with her loveless marriage?” is dependent on “Will Leo get on board before Titanic leaves?”
Break into Two: Just as Titanic departs, Leo and friend leap onboard. Checking out the great liner, Leo stands at the bow watching dolphins and, James Cameron-like, proclaims: “I’m the king of the world!” But the true Break into Two comes when, after a stultifying dinner with her mother (Frances Fisher) and Billy, Kate runs to the back of the ship to commit le suicide. At Minute 41, Leo stops her, saying, “I’m involved now.” When Kate slips, Leo saves her and is accused of rape by the sailors who find them. But his heroics get him a dinner invitation the next night.
B Story: I’ve wrestled with this one, which would make for a nice classroom discussion, but I feel that the B story is … The Titanic! If the A story is the “love story” between Kate and Leo, the thing that prods that forward, and in fact forces the theme of the movie (read ahead if you want to know now) is the ship hitting an iceberg and sinking. I could also be talked into calling the diamond the B story. But that feels more like a C story, as it really is the final mystery we need to solve.
Fun and Games: The fun here, the “promise of the premise,” is two young people in love on the most amazing ship in the world. We see every inch of the vessel in the course of this movie. As they run from stem to stern, the two fall in love. We watch Kate discover Leo’s talent for painting and for bringing out her hidden side. As they fight the prejudice of society that abhors first class/low class love, we are rooting for them.
Theme Stated: At the dinner, Leo says “Make each day count.” Even Molly Brown (the Unsinkable Kathy Bates) is impressed.
Midpoint: After being tempted by Billy’s offers of a diamond necklace and a life of ease, Kate goes with her heart and picks Leo. He paints her portrait, and like any two American kids, they make love in the backseat of the car we saw loaded onto the ship at the movie’s beginning. Following this “false victory,” we get an immediate “raising of the stakes” and an epic “complication”: Titanic strikes an iceberg, in part because the lookouts were watching Kate and Leo. (Nice touch, James!) A and B stories cross as the oncoming disaster puts the theme to the test.
Bad Guys Close In: A “ticking clock” is introduced when the captain of Titanic asks: “How long have we got?” The ever-encroaching “bad guys” now include freezing water as the ship begins to sink. There are more complications when Kate and Leo return to warn Billy about the pending disaster, and Leo is accused of stealing the diamond. Kate’s not sure what to believe, but the look in Leo’s eyes as he’s hauled to the brig convinces her he’s innocent. What will she do? This is a nice “three-hander” as Billy, in his way, loves Kate, too.
All Is Lost: Passengers gather on deck as fear spreads, but no one knows of the real danger — except the ship’s designer whom Kate has befriended. He confesses: “All this will be at the bottom of the Atlantic.” Kate is pressured to stay with Billy, but realizes Leo is in danger below deck. In a breathtaking rescue, Kate courts the “whiff of death” and saves her true love from a half-submerged cell.
Dark Night of the Soul: As women and children head for the lifeboats, Billy and Leo put Kate onboard one too, along with her mother. Kate wears the coat Leo gave her — the diamond in its pocket. Briefly toying with a last chance to go back to her comfortable old life with her Mother and fiancé, Kate knows she must take a risk to be with the man she really wants: Leo.
Break into Three: A and B stories cross as Kate jumps back on the sinking Titanic to be with Leo and prove that one day with him counts more than all the days of a bleak future. She and Leo will now fight to survive together. After eluding Billy, and watching the chaotic mass of humanity struggle, they brace themselves for the ship’s sinking. They’re at the very place where they first met when Titanic upends and plummets into the icy sea.
Finale: Coming up to the surface, the two find debris and Leo puts Kate on a makeshift raft while he dangles in the freezing water. He makes her promise to live, then dies just as all romantic characters should! Finally rescued, Kate is pulled up to safety and asked her name. In a great moment of Synthesis, she says: Rose Dawson. She is a fusion of her true love and herself.
Finale Image: Back once again in the present, the mystery is solved, and her story verified, when Gloria drops the long lost diamond into the ocean. She then dies in her sleep surrounded by the images of a life transformed — thanks to epic love.
BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN (2005)
The buzz surrounding this Oscar®-nominated movie started early and often veered into the salacious, but after viewing director Ang Lee’s cowboy love story, audiences realized that it had much more to offer. For despite its controversial subject, it’s about the special world all lovers share.
Based on Annie Proulx’s short story, and adapted by Western writer/icon Larry McMurtry (Lonesome Dove) and Diana Ossana, the film is the very definition of the “Give me the same thing, only different!” rule; it shows that putting a new twist on a cliché setup adds new meaning. And as an example of “Forbidden Love,” it proves the movie’s premise: Expectation
is often what causes problems in the first place.
The story, which begins in 1963 and spans 20 years, is about two men who, while working in the high mountains of Wyoming, fall in love. Because of the society they live in, their guilt, and the need to be “men” in the tradition of the Old West, their relationship is doomed from the start. Despite the shared memory of their time together, they can’t overcome the obstacle of what this bond represents to their families and friends. Their secret life unravels amid anger and recrimination, but the BL rule holds true: Each man’s life changed for having known the other.
BL Type: Forbidden Love
BL Cousins: Lolita, Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner, Romeo & Juliet, Harold and Maude, The Blue Lagoon, An Officer and a Gentleman, Dirty Dancing, Beauty and the Beast, Benny & Joon, Venus
BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN
Screenplay by Larry McMurtry and Diana Ossana Based on the short story by Annie Proulx
Opening Image: Car headlights on a prairie highway at dawn. 1963. Signal, Wyoming. One Marlboro Man is dropped off by an 18-wheeler. Another arrives by pickup truck. Both wait for the trail boss. What would be called a “meet cute” in a typical love story now involves two lonesome cowboys eyeing each other.
Set-Up: Sheep rancher Joe Aguirre (Randy Quaid) needs to send two cowboys up to Brokeback Mountain. Their mission: Outwit the forest service by illegally grazing the herd. In a bar before the two take off for their mission, Ennis Del Mar (Heath Ledger) and Jack Twist (Jake Gyllenhaal) get to know each other. Each has a tale of woe about his past. Heath is from “ranch people” and doesn’t talk much; his shyness is caused mainly by the pain of his childhood, which we’ll learn more about later. Jake, for his part, “can’t please my old man” and joined up with the rodeo.