Tales From the Script
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We’re all familiar with the work that screenwriters do, and yet it’s commonly accepted—even by the writers themselves—although they come at the very beginning in the long chain of filmmaking, they don’t figure too prominently in the actual chain of command.
According to William Goldman, legendary author of such classics as Marathon Man and Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, this is because “everything’s so f*cking expensive and getting more so.”
In Tales From the Script, a new documentary by Peter Hanson, screenwriters are given the floor and they have a lot to say. It’s great to see what these guys look like (and I do mean guys—there are only about 5 women featured in the film) and hear them talk about their early experiences and getting their big Hollywood breaks, as well as reflect on their craft and their journeys.
The filmmaking itself is less than spectacular as even the most engaging storyteller and fascinating anecdote eventually can’t make up for the fact that this is primarily a lot of talking head footage intercut with clips from Hollywood films about itself. But it was wonderful to see one of my film heroes, Allison Anders (Gas, Food, Lodging), highlighted.
Other notable writers that appear in the doc include Naomi Foner (Running on Empty) Paul Schrader (Taxi Driver) and John August (Corpse Bride). In fact, this is the most enjoyable aspect of the film, that it has gone out of its way to allot screen time to the people that rarely get the accolades.
Tales From the Script opens in New York on Friday.
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| Posted on March 11, 2010
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