The three screenplays we have read are each given a unique voice from the author, which in turn gives each story a unique feel to it. With each author bringing something different to their screenplays each story is bound to have a differing authorial voice.
A Boy’s Life by Mathison reads almost like a novel. The abundance of description and the use of technical comments allow the reader to visualize what exactly is going on in a given scene, to picture it in their minds much in the same way a novel does. Because the description and action move scenes forward, we almost forget that there is an author. Her voice in seen through her descriptions of events, but little of her personality comes through. Meanwhile, in The Apartment Wilder’s personality is immediately evident. Though description and dialogue still move much of the action forward, there is a distinct personality and voice present in the narration. We never forget that there is an author despite the fact that we are still focused on the characters and events taking place. The importance of the author is taken a step further and beyond in Adaptation where Kaufman, the screenwriter, is actually telling his own story. In this script we see directly into the mind of the author, and his voice dominates everything else. We are focused on him and he is what drives the action forward, which I found to be a very unique read.
These three authors illustrate three different levels and types of authorial voice. On one end Mathison’s voice takes a very small role in telling the story, allowing characters and descriptions to move the story along, and on the other end we have Kaufman, whose voice is essentially the story. We find Wilder somewhere in the middle, where the characters are still the focus but his personality certainly comes through and plays a part in the telling. Overall, these three screenplays were each unique and enjoyable in their own way.
~Andrew Erdal
Discussion Questions:
1. Which authorial voice did you find to be most enjoyable and why?
2. How important do you think authorial voice is to the success of a screenplay?
1 comment:
1. I found Kaufman to be the most enjoyable because his authorial voice made for the msot entertaining screenplay.
2. Authorial voice definetely can make a screenplay sucessful because if done well it can help the audience interpret the author's meaning. I don't know if authorial voice actually makes the actual movie sucessful but it can add to it.
Post a Comment