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3.84 AVERAGE
3.84 AVERAGE
3.5/5
This is a great little book for those starting their journey into screenwriting; there are some great tips and structural strategies to consider, especially for me as I’m getting back into screenwriting after focusing on novels the last few years. The author’s voice and writing style was as blunt as it was entertaining, being very easy to read, but I could see it putting off some people. This is definitely a book I’ll come back to further down the line.
This is a great little book for those starting their journey into screenwriting; there are some great tips and structural strategies to consider, especially for me as I’m getting back into screenwriting after focusing on novels the last few years. The author’s voice and writing style was as blunt as it was entertaining, being very easy to read, but I could see it putting off some people. This is definitely a book I’ll come back to further down the line.
A great introductory book on screenwriting!
Will it be the last book on screenwriting I’ll ever need? I really don’t think so but Snyder’s advice is helpful, and he breaks down writing a script in a digestible way.
I’m currently writing my first film script and my biggest challenge has been the structure which this has book has been an immense help with.
I’d recommend the book for those starting out but if you already have some experience with screenwriting you may find it quite basic.
Will it be the last book on screenwriting I’ll ever need? I really don’t think so but Snyder’s advice is helpful, and he breaks down writing a script in a digestible way.
I’m currently writing my first film script and my biggest challenge has been the structure which this has book has been an immense help with.
I’d recommend the book for those starting out but if you already have some experience with screenwriting you may find it quite basic.
informative
lighthearted
fast-paced
Here’s what started the phenomenon: the best seller, for over 15 years, that’s been used by screenwriters around the world! Blake Snyder tells all in this fast, funny and candid look inside the movie business. “Save the Cat” is just one of many ironclad rules for making your ideas more marketable and your script more satisfying, including: The four elements of every winning logline The seven immutable laws of screenplay physics The 10 genres that every movie ever made can be categorized by ― and why they’re important to your script Why your Hero must serve your Idea Mastering the 15 Beats Creating the “Perfect Beast” by using The Board to map 40 scenes with conflict and emotional change How to get back on track with proven rules for script repair This ultimate insider’s guide reveals the secrets that none dare admit, told by a showbiz veteran who’s proven that you can sell your script if you can save the cat.
fast-paced
If this is the screenwriting bible, I’m an agnostic. The book is chock full of great writing advice which I will definitely take into my projects. It helped me realize some of the problems in my WIPs, and inspired me to keep working on them.
But I disagreed hard with him on so many points. His “my way or the highway” attitude and his one size fits all approach to writing really annoyed me, and also made his arguments and lessons weaker. He referenced “Four Christmases” as a good example, but dunked on so many beloved films such as Spiderman 1&2, Shrek 2, and the subversive masterpiece Memento. Many of his examples that went “if we changed the x to y, it wouldn’t work anymore,” but I’d kinda rather see the latter. Film is subjective so it’s ok if he has different tastes than me, but it seems he doesn’t feel the same and believes theres only one right way to make a film.
While it did feel like he cracked the code, it also feels like somewhere along the way he forgot that storytelling is art. He’s dissecting a flower, doing cold hard science to see how the thing works, but forgetting that it’s beautiful. There’s a lot more to filmmaking than having the most “demographically pleasing” characters and raking in millions. Maybe Memento was a box office flop, but it’s stood the test of time far better than Four Christmases, and it launched Nolans career to become one of the most acclaimed - and highest paid - directors of the modern era. Who cares if Spider-Man has “Double Mumbo Jumbo”? It’s fun, thrilling, and heartfelt. His rules can be very helpful in focusing the filmmaker, and making it marketable is important ti get the thing made. But adhering too strictly ti these rules, and focusing too hard in this metrics might distract the filmmaker from the more important questions: Is this a good movie? And Is this the movie I want to make?
But I disagreed hard with him on so many points. His “my way or the highway” attitude and his one size fits all approach to writing really annoyed me, and also made his arguments and lessons weaker. He referenced “Four Christmases” as a good example, but dunked on so many beloved films such as Spiderman 1&2, Shrek 2, and the subversive masterpiece Memento. Many of his examples that went “if we changed the x to y, it wouldn’t work anymore,” but I’d kinda rather see the latter. Film is subjective so it’s ok if he has different tastes than me, but it seems he doesn’t feel the same and believes theres only one right way to make a film.
While it did feel like he cracked the code, it also feels like somewhere along the way he forgot that storytelling is art. He’s dissecting a flower, doing cold hard science to see how the thing works, but forgetting that it’s beautiful. There’s a lot more to filmmaking than having the most “demographically pleasing” characters and raking in millions. Maybe Memento was a box office flop, but it’s stood the test of time far better than Four Christmases, and it launched Nolans career to become one of the most acclaimed - and highest paid - directors of the modern era. Who cares if Spider-Man has “Double Mumbo Jumbo”? It’s fun, thrilling, and heartfelt. His rules can be very helpful in focusing the filmmaker, and making it marketable is important ti get the thing made. But adhering too strictly ti these rules, and focusing too hard in this metrics might distract the filmmaker from the more important questions: Is this a good movie? And Is this the movie I want to make?
Great book, love how screenplay craft books are direct but have a sense of humour and candidness, and are filled with great detail on how to do it. As a novel writer, I gravitate more to these types of books these days than purely novel writing. I recommend this as a read as well as the derivative Save the Cat Writes a Novel.
This was a great introduction to the craft of screenwriting. I definitely want to learn more and get more opinions. It is a very practical way of writing that leaves little room for creativity, but I can see how the method works to sell a product. This book definitely make the art form seem like a job, which it totally is, but I want more creative freedom to push the boundaries.
informative
fast-paced
inspiring
lighthearted
fast-paced
informative
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced