Page One: “The English Patient” (1996)

Screenplay by Anthony Minghella, novel by Michael Ondaatje

Here is the opening credits sequence which dissolves into the very first part of scene as written on Page One. Unfortunately, I cannot find the attack on the airplane online, but perhaps that’s fitting. The language in the screenplay is so vivid, the images emerge easily into one’s mind.

This screenplay is great example for why I contend: There are no screenwriting rules. Write minimal description. No paragraphs of scene description longer than three lines. More white space than black ink.

Consider Minghella’s writing here. Scene description filling the page with black ink. Four paragraphs with five lines or more, the final seven lines. And the scene description?

...she cries in lament for her loved one, and the haunting melody winds around the heart.
The shadow of an ancient and rotting two-seater AEROPLANE swims over the contours of sand.
The plane shudders over a ridge.
Even his helmet is on fire, but the man makes no sound as the flames erase all that matters - his name, his past, his face, his lover...

It is the pitch perfect narrative voice for this story… and it serves as a reminder: Tell the story the way it needs to be told.

There are no rules. There are conventions and expectations, but a writer should never let those stand in the way of the story. If you have immersed yourself in your story and know the tone and atmosphere you need to evoke in scene description…

Write it that way.

Page One is a daily Go Into The Story series featuring the first page of notable movie scripts from the classic era to contemporary times. Comparing them is an excellent way to study a variety of writing styles and see how professional writers start a story.

For more Page One posts, go here.

You may follow the daily conversation on Twitter as I cross-post there: @GoIntoTheStory.