Need a twist...

Need a twist... -screen writing ideas and discussion-


 





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Author Topic:   Need a twist...
TrollHunter
posted 01-27-2001 05:20 PM              
Ok... I need a good twist in a storyline. Any suggestions? If you need more info on the storyline, let me know by email or on this forum. Thanks!

TrollHunter

lyvewyer
posted 01-27-2001 09:31 PM              
three simple words that will add a perfect twist ending to any movie. "their all monkeys" think about it.

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if i could i would but i cant so i wont

www.novicepictures.com

Film_Scorer
posted 01-27-2001 10:00 PM              
Luke, I am your father.

Oh My god, it IS earth!

You mean I'm dead?

Tell us what the story is. otherwise its like reading the anthology of everything men know about wemon: 500 blank pages.

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*updated 12.22.00

Bread_12
posted 01-27-2001 10:48 PM              
These will add a twist to any story:

"I'm really a man..."

"I've got to tell you my deep dark, hideous secret..."

"I've got a serial killer on the family tree. And now he wants to come for a visit..."

"Holy ****! you're a what?!"

"Finkleman is Einhorn...Einhorn is Finkleman...I kissed a man!"

"Thank you for pressing the self destruct button. The world will now be destroyed. Have a nice day."

That's all I got. Ok, so they suck aye.

My Two Bits,

Bread

Skinned Fox
posted 01-27-2001 11:04 PM              
The president is a ventriloquist dummy!

Uh, what was the topic again?

TrollHunter
posted 01-29-2001 04:16 PM              
You people don't seem to be taking this all that seriously. Anyway... FOR PEOPLE THAT CAN ACTUALLY HELP ME... The basis of the story is the main character has to save a dying world from a perfect evil. Thus the main problem. The story seems to be too perfect. I need more confrontation with evil. This is a midieval story. I need something that will pose as a problem... something that will slow the heroes down a bit. NOT something that will confuse the viewers at the end.

Thanks for your previous suggestions,
TrollHunter

DigiteyeZ
posted 01-29-2001 07:40 PM              
what's wrong with joking around a bit?

anyway, i would like a little more detailed info (either post it here or email me at cablemp@onebox.com) you said the heroes are fighting a perfect evil... like what? a kind of creature? en evil human attribute like hate or jealousy?

you weren't actually asking for this, but i would say no evil is perfect. there has to be some flaw that the heroes find to eventually overcome the evil. maybe once i have a little more detail i can help with twists.

TrollHunter
posted 01-30-2001 02:55 PM              
Ok... There is nothing wrong with joking around but... posting a reply like, "The president is a ventriliquist dummy"?? That's a bit much. I really need help and they're having a grand old time.

Anyway... I agree there is no such thing as a perfect evil. I was just trying to get the point across that this story has a very powerful evil in it. This evil guy is the most powerful well of evil magic in the world.

The heroes also face a one hundred and some odd year old dragon and an army made up of the 20 year old+ male inhabitants of an entire continent the size of Africa. There are a few funny characters that get into a whole bunch of great situations and a griffon that is training a baby dragon to fly and fight. There are some faeries (a foreshadowing in quite a few events) that represent good natural magic.

All I really want are a few twists and turns along the way. I know I'm having a battle that one of the main characters is taken hostage... and the heroes retreat. Then they come back and overtake the evil king... blah... blah... blah... and they live happily ever after.

I hope you guys can help me,
TrollHunter

[This message has been edited by TrollHunter (edited 01-30-2001).]

Tn
posted 01-30-2001 04:53 PM              
TrollHunter, the reason these guys kept joking around was that you didn't give us anything to work with. It's kinda hard to come up with a twist for something we have no clue about. So what you see above is most likely the first thing that came to those guys' minds.

Anyway, now that we got more info on the story...

One of main heroes has been put under a spell by the evil guy, but none of the other heroes know.

The "perfect" evil is actually just a pawn of a "perfect" good. That could take some really good writing to convince people though.

DigiteyeZ
posted 01-31-2001 12:02 AM              
hmm, it would be getting away from your storyline, but how bout the powerful evil was doing everything to teach people that machines are man's enemy (assuming the people in "Africa" are machines). So heroes go out and fight their way to the dragon only to find that he is peaceful, and was warning them of what might happen if humans allow machines and computers to become more powerful.

actually, that's a dissapointing ending.... let me think some more...

TrollHunter
posted 01-31-2001 04:46 PM              
Ok... Thanks guys.
I like that idea about one of the heroes being under a spell.
I appretiate the help and hope I get some more ideas.
Uh... Digiteye, this is a mideaval story and the dragon is a female. Thanks anyway.

TrollHunter

E. Flask
posted 02-03-2001 11:43 PM              
You could give the evil dude the power to plague the heroes with nightmares. A few horrific dream sequences are always a cool twist.

Or you could have one of the adventurers be in the power of the evil dude and not even know it, which is always cool. Or the evil dude could end being the one who is controlled by someone.

"Whatever the mind can conceive it can achieve."-- Napoleon Hill

SeerSavant
posted 02-12-2001 10:25 AM              
Not to be critical, but... What sort of character development are we doing here? There's a lot of grand scale idea that has been portrayed in about a hundred films already, from Dragonheart, to Dragonslayer, to all sorts of medieval movies.
BUT! before you get bent outta shape, this story is done over and over because, done right, it normally works.
But with the general outline you've given, it's time to forget about the pagentry and scope of all of this and begin to develop characters fully. I hear general descriptions of heros and whatnot, but they need more depth.

A few suggestions.
The dragon can be pregnant, perhaps protected by an evil (On one point of view) wizard who is seen as putting all of humanity at risk for another reign of death and destruction by violent dragons. But to the wizard the dragon is the last of her kind and is not evil in a way, but simply following her instincts for self preservation.
In the end, perhaps it's the wizard himself who is killed by the dragon (Who, let's face it was simply being what she is, maybe... when he tries to move her eggs to a safer spot. In doing that she kills her best hope and dooms her offspring. Or to leave open a sequel, have the wizard actually succeed in hiding one of the eggs that hatches at the end.)
For our heros, if you have the time, an ensemble of different types is best, A young hero who has no choice but to do this (Vengance, or honor, you pick. Perhaps both) alongside a woman (Perhaps her child is to be sacrificed by her husband, the Wizard?, and she seeks to rescue it, financing the quest.) An aged knight who is seeking one last glory while teaching the young hero what he will need to win in the end. An aprentice wizard who seeks the dragon for some other purpose, perhaps for a spell, or maybe something like learning, or for some charm or whatever.
The point is, the ensemble needs to have both reasons for hanging together and strong reason to betray the others. This leads to conflice (As with the Wizard and the Dragon) and as we all know, Conflict is the glue that binds a good tale together.

Instead of adding the token comedy relief (Some like it, personally, I can't stand it.) add ons, ditch em. There's no need for cutesy and funny pauses when the time would be better spent developing the characters who are weakest.
If humor is needed to lighten a heavy mood, have it come from the characters themselves, a lighthearted or even morbid and dark banter between them.
It all depends on how you want to develop the story, light and airy full of wonders and magical things or dark and scary and full of the gritty realisms of medieval life and superstition.

I'd pick the darker path, the humor black (ala night of the living dead), and the characters flawed and human. I'd make them as real as possible. Cause if the people don't care about your characters, they wont care about the story.
A great time tested story like yours is too often killed by bland or stereotypical depiction and shoddy direction. To make it work, you have to be original or simply do it better.

As for the dragon, don't neglect her either. No reason to give her speech or to make her a potential pet, leave her wild and original.
A good way to do this is to watch a bunch of the nature shows that explain the behavior of a female bear, cheetah, lioness, whatever and how she relates to her offspring.

The dragon is the fulcrum around which you story revolves, she has to be developed well and full or else it all may collapse.

I hope some of this helps, sorry it was so long...

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Okay, who put the stop payment on my reality check???

TrollHunter
posted 02-12-2001 03:22 PM              
Ok...
here's what I've got:

The female dragon can change form (dragon to human) and in human form, is the lover of the evil dude. This will give birth to a new species of halfhumans, halfdragons... a new problem the heroes can face later.

I have a whole bunch of very varied characters- a dwarven servant(actually works at a bar), a female elf: the chosen one of a prophecy, a short wizard, an old sage, a minotaur warrior defending his country and home, the minotaur's father fighting alongside his son, a young human fighter in love with the female elf, a faerie, a teenage boy running from the law, a talented knight who's seeking glory, a griffon, and a troll that was once in the dark armies.

The comedy relief is the collage of tying together one of the characters... showing how he responds in situations. I feel all movies need a good comedy once in a while. As a viewer, a movie without any comedy in it at all is, well, a boring thing... unless the plot is good enough that it doesn't need anything like that. I'd say this story is more of a "light and airy full of wonders and magical things" type of movie.

Your insight has helped me on my quest.

Thanks

TrollHunter
posted 02-17-2001 01:15 PM              
The origional screenplay I was writing is now scrapped.
Now I'm starting over with a new storyline. I'm using the idea with the eggs - Half human, half dragon. I'm making the good-guys need the egg shells for something. If anyone has ideas based on this... I'd like to hear them.

All the characters are the same as they were before.

TrollHunter

[This message has been edited by TrollHunter (edited 02-17-2001).]

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