Never Be Afraid To Ask

Over the past month or so, I’ve been working on a story idea and going around in circles, so I decided it was time to ask for help.  Best move I’ve made all year!

As luck would have it, I got the chance to discuss the story with none other than Jim Hull, author of the website Narrative First and administrator of the Dramatica website & forum.

Thanks to his insight, I was able to clarify a lot of story points and untangle ideas that were stuck in knots.  This is what I find to be the greatest challenge with writing something as complex as a screenplay — understanding what it is I’m trying to say.  Might sound stupid, but understanding oneself, or one’s own ideas, from an objective point of view is incredibly (if not impossibly) hard to do.  We’re all stuck in our own heads and can’t view ourselves, or our own work, objectively.  Only through the eyes of others can we hope to better understand who we are and what we’re doing.  The wiser the person observing us is, the better the insight we can receive from that person.

“You’re only as good as the people you work with.”

This is why I consider myself incredibly lucky to know Jim Hull.  Thank you, Jim!

Cyrano de Bergerac

To Seduce is to Deceive

In Cyrano de Bergerac, all of the men are interested in winning the heart of Roxanne. Cyrano would be the perfect match for Roxanne, only she’s unable to see past his nose and instead has eyes for the handsome Christian. Christian wants Roxanne, but is too boorish to express himself and relies on Cyrano’s letters to win her heart. The Compte de Guiche also loves Roxanne, but when he learns he’s lost her to Christian, sends him and Cyrano to war (maybe if they die, he still might have a chance).

Cyrano’s Nose

As a main character, Cyrano deals with his deformity by taking pleasure in thrusting it in everyone’s face (especially those he finds unworthy of respect) and making others fall in line with his way of thinking. In one of the opening scenes, Cyrano orders the ridiculous Montfleury to get off the stage because he pollutes French theatre with his pompous acting. When the audience members holler for Cyrano to shut up, he confronts all of them and takes control of the theatre singlehandedly, threatening to kill anyone who opposes him.

Interesting that, in the end, it’s these same random people who shut Cyrano up by ambushing him in a bit of street theatrics.

Contrary to his nature, Cyrano helps the boorish Christian seduce Roxanne after she expresses her love for the young cadet. But why would he do this? Why would Cyrano help someone who lacks eloquence, and in Cyrano’s eyes, any worth. Because Cyrano’s heart belongs to Roxane and when she asks him to protect Christian from danger, Cyrano can do nothing but say yes.

When Cyrano finally meets Christian and learns that the poor sod can’t even hold his own in front of a girl, he hands Christian the letter he’d already written Roxanne and orders him to give it to her. Once the first letter is sent, Cyrano finds a venue to express his feelings for Roxanne. Though he might never win her hand, he can at least win her heart. That, for the deformed Cyrano, is good enough. And this is why Cyrano does something that, on the surface, seems to contradict his nature. He loves Roxanne.

The Transformation of Roxanne’s Heart

As a protagonist, Cyrano’s objective is to change Roxanne’s point of view on love, to make her see beyond the physical and instead appreciate the beauty of a man’s soul. During the war, Cyrano manages to sneak through enemy lines and send Roxanne one, sometimes two love letters every night. During the intermission where Roxanne’s only contact with her husband is through the letters Cyrano writes her, Roxanne develops a deeper appreciation for love. Without being able to see or touch the handsome Christian, Roxanne’s love blossoms into a spiritual one.

Protecting the Handsome Man

Between Roxanne and Cyrano is Christian, the brave yet awkward cadet who becomes the focus of their lives, much like a boy who needs the love of a mother and the protection of a father, Christian is the focus of Roxanne and Cyrano’s attention.

Back to the Future & The Count of Monte Cristo

Watched The Count of Monte Christo the other night and suspect the writers of Back to the Future drew much inspiration, consciously or not, from the classic tale.

Briefly, both stories are about a young man under difficult circumstances. Marty McFly and Edmond Dante’s families are poor and live under the thumb of a higher power. Biff Tannen rules over the McFlys while Villefort controls the destiny of the Dantes. Through a series of missteps, both find themselves in an undesirable place. Marty is stuck in the past while Edmond is locked in the prison of Chateau d’If. Both Marty and Edmond struggle to find a way out of their predicament and, as a byproduct of their effort, also manage to improve their circumstances. Marty’s family becomes cool, successful and confident while Edmond, now the rich and powerful Count of Monte Cristo, reunites with the love of his life and son.

Of note, in both stories, Marty and Edmond hide their true identity while they manipulate the pieces of the puzzle and rearrange things to restore balance in the world. In Back to the Future, Marty must make his mother & father fall in love. This, he accomplishes by tricking his father into believing if he doesn’t ask Lorraine, Marty’s mother, out on a date, Darth Vader will melt his brain. In The Count of Monte Cristo, Edmond exposes the corruption of Villefort and Fernand Mondego by tricking them into stealing one of Monte Cristo’s shipments of gold and having them arrested for the crime.

Though both use deception and trickery to change their circumstances, adopting evil ways in order to do good in the world, it’s clear that Marty and Edmond return to being the good guys they were at the beginning of their respective stories.