Movie Analysis: “Trainwreck” — Themes

Another in our bi-weekly series in which we analyze movies currently in release. Why? To quote the writing mantra I coined over 5 years ago: Watch movies. Read scripts. Write pages. You will note which one comes first. Here are my reflections from that post about the importance of watching movies:

To be a good screenwriter, you need to have a broad exposure to the world of film. Every movie you see is a potential reference point for your writing, everything from story concepts you generate to characters you develop to scenes you construct. Moreover people who work in the movie business constantly reference existing movies when discussing stories you write; it’s a shorthand way of getting across what they mean or envision.

But most importantly, you need to watch movies in order to ‘get’ how movie stories work. If you immerse yourself in the world of film, it’s like a Gestalt experience where you begin to grasp intuitively scene composition, story structure, character functions, dialogue and subtext, transitions and pacing, and so on.

Let me add this: It’s important to see movies as they get released so that you stay on top of the business. Decisions get made in Hollywood in large part depending upon how movies perform, so watching movies as they come out puts you in the same head space as reps, producers, execs, and buyers.

This week’s movie: Trainwreck, written by Amy Schumer.

Our schedule for discussion this week:

Monday: General Comments
Tuesday: Plot
Wednesday: Characters
Thursday: Themes
Friday: Takeaways

For those of you who have not seen the movie, do not click MORE as we will be trafficking in major spoilers. If you have seen Trainwreck, I invite you to join me in breaking down and analyzing the movie.

It seems to me the central theme of the story arises from Gordon’s admonition to his young daughters: “Monogamy isn’t realistic.” In defense of his own adulterous ways, the perspective didn’t take root in one sister (Kim), but certainly did with the other (Amy).

The primary theme revolves around Amy’s transformation from the trainwreck she is in the beginning of the movie — a free-spirited lifestyle of casual, non-committed sex and lots of booze, seemingly based on or at the very least informed by Gordon’s statement to the girls — into someone who in choosing to be with Aaron rejects her father’s world view and the inhibiting influence it has had on her.

Amy has to find the inner strength to reject her father’s long shadow and the ‘tape’ which has been playing on a loop in her consciousness for decades. “Monogamy isn’t realistic” has translated itself into some significant negative associations about relationships. Her psychological journey in the story is to confront those associations and work her way through them.

So in my view, the central theme is not really about monogamy per se, but the power of parental propaganda.

There’s also this: The double meaning of monogamy. On the one hand, it refers to a potential of a single relationship, one which Amy denies. On the other hand, isn’t it ironic that Amy is monogamous with one male: Her father. She has steadfastly held onto the truth of her father’s words, ‘married’ to them for years. So in a way, in order to become monogamous with Aaron, she has to ‘break up’ with her father.

An interesting question: If Amy’s father hadn’t died, would Amy have found the intestinal fortitude to free herself from the shackles of the mantra, “Monogamy isn’t realistic”? Or would she have become someone in the vein of her boss Dianna?

What about you? What themes do you see at work in Trainwreck?

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