Last week, I posted this question: What are the best opening scenes in movie history?
I was having this discussion with a writer the other day. So many fantastic opening scenes of all sorts. Some of them bombastic, some subtle, some of them funny, some brutal, all of them great. Tough to write, too, because it’s not only about being entertaining, it’s also about introducing the story universe and key characters, setting the mood and so forth.
And while we’re at it, let’s analyze the scenes as to why they’re so stellar, and hopefully get some takeaway as far as our own writing goes.
The list of suggestions was so great, I thought it would be a good idea to post some of them over the next week or two because here is the reality: A great opening scene or sequence can go a long way in how a reader perceives your script. In other words, they can be pivotal to the success of your screenplay.
On Monday, we featured Once Upon a Time in the West which focused primarily on visuals.
Yesterday we looked at Pulp Fiction which was heavy with dialogue.
Today let’s look at the opening to Back to the Future, suggested by Nuff McGreevey. Why does it work so well? What screenwriting lessons can we learn from it?
Unfortunately I couldn’t find a clip from the actual movie, but courtesy of some very clever high school students, here is a nifty remake of the opening:
Our analysis should start with the obvious: Notice how well the scene conveys a bunch of exposition. As Nuff said:
I love Back to the Future’s opening scene. In just a few moments in an empty room, it foreshadows several key elements we’re about to see AND tells us exactly who our main characters are.
This scene forever changed the DNA of my writing– inspiring me to always question “how can I show this element cleaner and faster?”
See you in comments for an analysis of this scene.
Tomorrow: Another opening sequence.
I love this movie. Throwing that out there first. Second, it’s not a perfect opening but it multi-taskes. You get character, story, and foreshadowing. No question there’s a ton of exposition. Regardless I think it moves the story in a way doesn’t bog down the movie.
One thing this opening does is do a little dance between exposition and surprise. As the camera tracks along, there’s some clocks, then the newspaper articles on the wall, then the coffee machine coming on, then the TV news item, then the burnt toast, and so on. It’s a way of doling out the information sandwiched between fun bits of business.
I recall reading an early draft of this flick during the 40 Day Script Challenge a while back, and it’s opening was completely different – started with Marty in a classroom, atomic bomb plumes reflected in his mirrored glasses as the class watch a educational film on plutonium (I think – it’s been ages since I read it).
However, most people have mentioned that this scene is chock full of exposition, but I feel it’s done well – probably because we, as viewers, are completely fascinated at the sight so many clocks at once!