Friday, December 31, 2010

Epic Dialogue


      This video above is taken from the opening scene of Quentin Tarantino's directorial debut, Reservoir Dogs.  This scene is a perfect example of how to effectively construct believable and exciting dialogue.  The camaraderie of the actors on display here is palpably refreshing.  You get the idea that these guys hangout on a regular basis and this is just another morning at the local diner for them.  The beautifully rhythmic, real life conversational back-and-forth among the actors is superbly rendered.  Even the little physical machinations of the characters such as the way Madsen's character maneuvers his cigarette is impeccably executed.  Any aspiring screenwriter should take a page from Tarantino's book when it comes to creating true-to-life conversational dialogue that is engaging, exciting, and flows as fantastically as a well-told poetry reading. 

Happy New Year to everyone who reads my blog! 2011 should be a heck of a year!! 

4 comments:

  1. Hey. Saw your blog from thevoid99, who follows my blog. I like how you have everything set up here on your site. I clicked on this rant and saw Tarantino (one of my favourite directors).

    And you compared his dialogue to poetry, something I said to a friend and they laughed.

    Nice work here.

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  2. Hi Laura!

    Thanks for stopping by and sharing your thoughts. I'll definitely run by your site and follow! I want to connect with as many interesting fellow film junkies as possible.

    Tarantino is one badass dude. His dual stewardship of a film—directing and writing—is what impresses me the most.

    Lol, I'm glad we agree here :)
    I always thought he possessed an uncanny knack for creating dialogue that has a beautiful rhythm and flow to it. This scene encapsulates that 'poetic' idea so well.

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  3. Hello again. Thanks for the Follow. Just added you back.

    What I think is really incredible is his ability to cast the perfect actors to suit his dialogue. I know there have been a couple of occasions where he has written a character with a specific actor in mind, but for the most part he doesn't. With the exception of Eli Roth (yuck), his casting has always been incredible.

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  4. Awesome. Thanks!

    Perfect example of perfect casting, Pulp Fiction. Who would of thought Travolta could pull of such a role so charismatically. And Tarantino was the first to realize how badass Samuel L. Jackson is. He is brilliant.

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