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Take 5: ‘Shotgun Wedding’ Uses Tried-and-True Tropes For a Modern Action Rom-Com

February 10, 2023

Darcy and Tom are soon-to-be bride and groom and have chosen to have their luxurious destination wedding on a Philippines island. Unfortunately, the wedding guests are taken hostage by a group of pirates who want $45 million.

Take 5: How ‘M3GAN’ uses the dark side of technology to scare

January 22, 2023

Dolls are creepy, especially when they get a mind of their own. The new film M3GAN follows in the footsteps of other possessed doll-like creatures such as Chucky, Annabelle and Slappy where a child’s toy comes to life and all hell breaks loose. What ...

Take 5: How ‘Wednesday’ creates a world around the Addams Family daughter

January 17, 2023

For the past 85 years, The Addams Family has been a part of the American life. Originally a single panel cartoon created by Charles Addams, this creepy and kooky family was turned into a TV series in 1964 which ran for 64 episodes followed by a movie...

Take 5: What ‘Babylon’ can teach writers about story, conflict and theme

January 13, 2023

Babylon gives audiences a glimpse into the wild west of Los Angeles when silent films produced the first movie stars and the thirst for fame, fortune and the pursuit of a dream brought people from around the world to southern California. With an ecle...

Character Breakdown: Finding complexity and depth in ‘The Whale’

January 13, 2023

When an actor gains or loses a tremendous amount of weight for a movie role it often leads to accolades and Oscar buzz. Over the last 25 years, performers like Charlize Theron, Tom Hanks, Christian Bale, Renée Zellweger, Jared Leto and Anne Hathaway ...

Take 5: What ‘Avatar 2: Way of the Water’ Can Teach Screenwriters of Any Genre

January 4, 2023

Not everyone has $350+ million to spend on making a technological marvel like Avatar 2: Way of the Water, but at the end of the day, it’s a movie that requires compelling characters and a story that excites the audience in order to be successful. Ava...

Take 5: ‘Glass Onion’ unravels another murder mystery

December 5, 2022

There is no such thing as a straight-forward ‘who dun it’ story. The point is to keep the audience guessing while dropping clues and sending the narrative on any number of constant twists and turns. In his latest film Glass Onion: A Knives Out Myster...

Take 5: Writing lessons from the Christmas Rom-Com 'Hotel for the Holidays'

December 5, 2022

Holiday romantic-comedies are a big business. These films appear on multiple cable channels and streaming services with each one trying to maintain originality while also having to play off similar tropes. Hotel for the Holidays is a new light-hearte...

Screenwriting lessons from Spielberg’s Origin Story: ‘The Fabelmans’

December 2, 2022

What was Steven Spielberg like before he became Steven Spielberg? In the new film The Fabelmans, Spielberg tells the true story of what drove one of the best filmmakers in the history of the industry to become the person he is today. This semi-autobi...