I’ve become a fan of the new screenwriting guru on the block, Blake Snyder. His book, Save the Cat!, and its follow-up software has proven very helpful for me as I work on my own screenplays. One of Blake’s main points is that it’s important to have a strong opening image and a strong closing image in your film. These images should summarize the complete journey that the audience has taken.
Having recently watched the masterful There Will Be Blood, I revisited P.T. Anderson’s Punch-Drunk Love (2002). He has an opening image that communicates the feeling of the protagonist (played by Adam Sandler) and a closing image that communicates his new situation. This two images summarize the essence of the entire film. I’ve included them below.
[SPOILER ALERT for the closing image. But as I always say, a good story is worth telling (and re-telling!) even if you know the ending]:
Opening Image:
Closing Image (it’s a moving shot, so I’ve included the start and finish):
Here are two other shots from the film. Each one tells a story:
My brother has a zip.ca membership, so I’ve been getting an education in obscure and foreign movies.
If you want a visually rich movie that tells the story with images more than the dialogue, I recommend the Japanese film, Maborosi. Watched it on the weekend. Fascinating. Gorgeous. Poignant.
If you want a strange movie, the Russian silent film “Earth” is your pick. http://san.beck.org/MM/1930/Earth.html. Apparently it was groundbreaking or poetic or something. Hmmmm.
Good insight into the opening and closing images. I didn’t catch onto that when I watched it. Love PT Anderson, if anything for what his films aspire for. TWBB was outstanding, but I wonder if it was Day-Lewis that made it so? Loved the film, but it was deeply flawed–yet I admire it for pushing so hard towards something it perhaps doesn’t quite reach. The sign of a great film maker in my mind.