Script Analysis: “BlacKkKlansman” — Part 1: Scene By Scene Breakdown
Read the Oscar-nominated screenplay and analyze it this week.
Reading scripts. Absolutely critical to learn the craft of screenwriting. The focus of this bi-weekly series is a deep structural and thematic analysis of each script we read. Our daily schedule:
Monday: Scene-By-Scene Breakdown
Tuesday: Plot
Wednesday: Characters
Thursday: Themes
Friday: Dialogue
Saturday: Takeaways
Today: Scene-By-Scene Breakdown. Here is my take on this exercise from a previous series of posts — How To Read A Screenplay:
After a first pass, it’s time to crack open the script for a deeper analysis and you can do that by creating a scene-by-scene breakdown. It is precisely what it sounds like: A list of all the scenes in the script accompanied by a brief description of the events that transpire.
For purposes of this exercise, I have a slightly different take on scene. Here I am looking not just for individual scenes per se, but a scene or set of scenes that comprise one event or a continuous piece of action. Admittedly this is subjective and there is no right or wrong, the point is simply to break down the script into a series of parts which you then can use dig into the script’s structure and themes.
The value of this exercise:
- We pare down the story to its most constituent parts: Scenes.
- By doing this, we consciously explore the structure of the narrative.
- A scene-by-scene breakdown creates a foundation for even deeper analysis of the story.
This week: BlacKkKlansman. You can download a PDF of the script here.
Screenplay by Charlie Wachtel & David Rabinowitz and Kevin Willmott & Spike Lee, based on a book by Ron Stallworth
IMDb plot summary: Ron Stallworth, an African American police officer from Colorado Springs, CO, successfully manages to infiltrate the local Ku Klux Klan branch with the help of a Jewish surrogate who eventually becomes its leader. Based on actual events.
BlacKkKlansman
Scene by Scene Breakdown
By Julianna Hartke
GoIntoTheStory.comP 1–4: Stock footage and film scenes depicting racial stereotypes are intercut with 16MM color footage of Beauregard, a Klan member, speaking on the dangers of racial equality in the fashion of a propaganda film. There isn’t a single word coming from his mouth that isn’t offensive.
P 5–8: We are now in Colorado Springs in the Early 70s. Ron Stallworth (21, black) is interviewed by Chief Bridges (50s, White) of the police department, and Mr. Turrentine (40s, black), The Assistant City Personnel Manager. Ron is about to be the police department’s first black officer.
P 9–16: Ron is assigned to the records room. There, Officers Mulaney and Wheaton hurl racist slurs at Ron while asking for files on black men. Hating working in the records room dealing with demeaning cops, Ron asks Bridges for an undercover assignment. Bridges reluctantly agrees and gives Ron a narcotics undercover gig. His first assignment: go undercover and gather intel at Stokely Carmichael’s speech. As Carmichael is the former Prime Minister of the Black Panthers, Bridges worries he will “stir up trouble.” Although Ron initially cringes at Bridges’ view, he agrees to the job. He’s wired up and briefed by his partner, Flip Zimmerman and fellow narcotics officer, Jimmy Creek.
P 17–22: Arriving at the speech, Ron meets Patrice, President of the Colorado College Black Student Union, the club that invited Kwame Ture, formally known as Stokely Carmichael. Ture takes the stage, preaching Black Power, rejecting white standards of beauty, and championing the beauty of being black. He’s charismatic and the entire crowd is entranced, including Ron. When the speech is over, Ron asks Kwame if he believes war between blacks and whites is inevitable. Kwame pulls him close and tells Ron to arm himself: the revolution is coming. After, Ron asks Patrice on a date. She agrees to meet him at the Red Lantern.
P 22–25: Patrice is late to meet Ron because she and Kwame were stopped and searched by the cops. Officer Landers, whom Ron knows from the precinct, leads the unlawful search. Finding nothing, Landers eventually must let them go.
P 23–28: Back at the precinct, Ron briefs Bridges on Ture’s speech, insisting Ture was not serious about violence, it was only rhetoric. Ron points out he mood of the place was much different and Flip backs Ron up. Ron confronts Bridges about Patrice’s arrest, but it gets nowhere. However, Bridges is impressed with Ron’s work and transfers him to intelligence.
P 29–32: His first day on his new job, Ron sees an ad in The Colorado Springs Gazette to join the KKK. He calls and receives a pre-recorded message. Ron leaves a voicemail posing as someone interested in joining the KKK, earning him stares from the rest of the office, including Flip. To everyone’s surprise, Ron’s phone rings. Walter Breachway, a member of the KKK answers. Accidentally using his real name, Ron proclaims his hatred for anyone who isn’t a white Christian, Walter agrees to meet Ron. He hands up and the precinct bursts into laughter.
P32–34: With a meeting in place, Ron takes his plan to Sargent Trapp, who then passes the responsibility to Bridges. Ron then pitches his plan: he will continue his role over the phone, but a white officer will play him for Face-to-Face meetings. When Bridges voices his skepticism, Ron reassures him that, with the right white man, they can pull it off.
P 34–40: With his plan approved, Ron has chosen Flip as his white counterpart. As Ron briefs Flip and Jimmy, Flip jokes about how he has always wanted to be black. Ron has Flip practice talking like him by having Flip repeat the lyrics to James Brown’s “Say it loud — I’m black and I’m proud.” Jimmy reminds Flip to take off his Star of David before the mission, and Ron remarks that he didn’t know Flip was Jewish.
P 40–44 The first meeting. Flip approaches a man he believes to be Walter Breachway. Instead, he meets Felix, another, more paranoid member of the KKK. Felix instructs Flip to get into his pick-up truck, and they drive off. Ron and Jimmy follow close behind. Flip maintains his cover, but Felix, spotting Ron in the car behind him, instructs Flip to take a shotgun out from under the passenger seat and prepare to shoot. Realizing they’ve been spotted, Ron falls back just in time and Flip maintains his cover without having to use the gun.
P 44–50: Felix and Flip arrive at a Confederate bar. There, Flip meets other members of the organization, including Walter Breachway, the apparent leader of the group, and Ivanhoe, a drunk. As Flip plays pool with Walter, Ron and Jimmy listen in. Ivanhoe tells Flip that they mainly do cross burnings, but accidentally reveals they are planning something bigger, with “fireworks.” Walter takes Flip to the back, where the signal cut out for Ron and Jimmy. After Flip is almost discovered to be Jewish, Walter offers him a chance to join “The Organization.”
P 51–52: Back at the precinct, Ron and Flip celebrate their victory and get approval from Trapp to continue the investigation.
P 52–54: Ron and Patrice go out on a date. While Patrice only wants to talk about politics, Ron just wants to get to know her better. It’s clear they have some political differences, and Ron, seeing that Patrice hate cops, lies and tells her that he isn’t a cop.
P 52–55: Ron receives another call from Walter, inviting Ron to meet the rest of the brotherhood. Shortly after, Trapp informs Ron that Devin Davis, current Grand Wizard and “National Director” of the Klan, has plans to pursue political office. Ron brushes it off, saying no one would elect a man like Davis for president. Trapp simply calls Ron naïve.
P 56–65: Flip meets the rest of the brotherhood at Felix‘s house, Connie, Felix is overzealous wife, also shares the racist sentiments of the KKK, but is excluded from the discussion. Felix, still suspicious of Flip, takes him into the basement, and locks the door, demanding Flip take a polygraph test to determine if he is a Jew. Walter, who trust Flip, tries to dissuade Felix, but Felix claims that it is “his house, his rules.” Ron, listening via the wire, hears Flip is in trouble and throws a rock through the house window, causing a distraction. Felix grabs his gun and aims to shoot at Ron, but Flip grabs the pistol from Felix‘s hand and shoot it himself, purposefully missing Ron.
P 66–68: after hearing about the disaster of a meeting, Trapp is furious. At Ron’s suggestion, Trapp decides to hide the report from Bridges to save them all the headache. Trapp isn’t the only one upset. Flip, after almost being killed on the mission, accuses Ron of turning the job into a sort of personal crusade. Ron retaliates, saying Flip is passing as a Christian and not embracing his Jewish heritage. When Ron asks Flip why he isn’t more adamant about taking down the Klan, who are also targeting Jews, Flip refuses to answer. Still, he silently accepts it when Ron insists he will get the KKK membership card, so Flip can attend the cross burning and continue the investigation.
P 69–70: Perusing his KKK membership materials, Ron calls the KKK Headquarters. To his delight, Devin Davis answers the phone, and believes he’s speaking to a “True White American.” As they talk, we see Davis sitting in a pristine office, wearing a three-piece suit and chewing Juicy Fruit Gum. Davis takes a liking to Ron and personally sees to it that Ron’s membership card is sent out.
P 70–71: After bumping into Officer Landers, Ron asks Flip if landers was the one to stop Kwame Tume. Flip tells Ron that it is rumored that Landers killed a black kid, claiming he had a gun. When Ron asks why he puts up with it, he says that good or bad, cops stick together. Although Flip claims Ron might appreciate “the blue wall of silence” one day, Ron remarks that the mentality reminds him of the KKK.
P 72–74: Flip joins the KKK for target practice while Ron secretly photographs the Klansmen. As the Klansman and Flip shoot racist silhouettes of black men, they are joined by Steve and Jerry, two well-dressed men, whose jobs are “classified” according to Felix. When they all leave, Ron surveys the scene. The silhouettes, riddled with bullet holes are an unnerving sight.
P 74–78: Ron and Patrice are on another date, walking along the bridge discussing their favorite films. The conversation turned to cops, and Ron tries to convince Patrice that one can change the system from the inside, that’s black cop can exist and change things for the better. Patrice doesn’t believe change from the inside is possible, since the system itself is racist. She quotes Dubois’ idea that being American and Negro is like having two souls, two warring ideals. Patrice insists they shouldn’t have to live double lives and they deserve change immediately. Despite Ron believing change can’t happen so quickly, their date continues, and the topic turns back to their favorite films.
Later that evening, Ron and Patrice are at Ron’s apartment when there’s a knock at the door. It’s Felix, who awkwardly says he has the wrong address before leaving. Later, Felix confronts Flip, saying he has a “twin.” Flip covers, saying his address is unlisted so Felix must have gone to the wrong place.
P 79–81: At the precinct, Flip tells Ron that Patrice may now be a target. The two of them go over their wall of confirmed members, including Davis and their mystery men: Steve and Jerry. Ron shows off his KKK membership card and while Flip is excited they are making headway, he admits that Ron was right earlier when he said Flip was passing as Christian. Flip admits that being Jewish had never been a big part of his life growing up, but having to deny his heritage in front of Felix made him realize that he had been ignoring a part of himself.
P 82–85: The Klan posts flyers, threatening Patrice and the Black Student Union. Ron assures her that everything will be fine. Later, Flip joins the Klan for the potential cross burning, but Ron make sure cop cars pass by often enough they are forced to postpone.
P 86–88: Ron speaks at length with Davis over the phone. Davis tells Ron that he doesn’t hate blacks and had a black nanny who was like a mother to him. Ron tells Davis that he had a black neighbor growing up named Butter Biscuit. One day, his father came out and told him that he couldn’t play with “Butter Biscuit” because he was black. Davis, who is now growing fond of Ron, tells him that he will be at his initiation in Colorado Springs.
P 88: Patrice is at the library, looking at microfilm images of lynchings.
P 89–92: Walter announces that he is planning to step down as president of his chapter. He nominates Ron Stallworth to take his place, but Flip declines, saying he can’t be a consistent leader because he must take care of his sick father. Unfortunately, Flip slips up and accidentally says his father is in Dallas instead of El Paso. He manages to cover his mistake, but it’s a close call. Felix is instead appointed the new leader.
P 92–93 Ron is again on the phone with Davis, this time inviting Trapp to listen in on the conversation. Ron asks Davis if he is ever worried that a black man will call him posing as white. Davis and says that he can tell the difference between how a white man and a black man talk. As Davis gives (awful) examples, Ron and trap barely contain their laughter. No sooner does Ron hang up, the phone rings again. It’s Felix, demanding Ron meet him immediately.
P 94–100: Felix and other members, minus Walter, brandish weapons. Felix gives one to Flip and tells him to prepare for “A War.” Davis is arriving in Colorado Springs on Sunday. Later that night, Connie lies in bed with Felix, excitingly looking forward to Davis’s arrival and the chance to kill black people. Their love for one another is rooted in their deep hatred and racism.
P 100–102: Ron finds a note with a meeting place and time on his desk. The notice simply signed “Agent Y, FBI.” Ron meets Agent Y at an old abandoned factory and gives him his list of clan members. Steve and Jerry, the mystery men, work for NORAD. Agent Y warns Ron that some C4 had recently gone missing and he suspects an attack will happen soon. He doesn’t give Ron any more information but tells Ron that his investigation is impressive.
P 103–105 Felix and Flip prepare for Davis’s arrival. Felix admits that his sister married a black man and they had a child. Meanwhile Ron is with Patrice. The black student union is planning on protesting Davises arrival, and run urges Patrice not to go. He tells her that he has been working undercover infiltrating the KKK and knows there will be an attack. Patrice, betrayed, leaves him.
P 105–107 Ron gets a call that the Klan March has been called off. Still, there have been credible death threats against Davis, so the police have been assigned protection detail. Bridges puts Ron as Davis’s personal bodyguard, claiming no one else is available. Despite Ron and Flip’s legitimate concern that it could compromise their entire investigation, Bridges is insistent.
P 107–110: The Klan members prepare to bomb the house in which Patrice has gathered the Black Student Union to hear a speaker. Connie is given the bomb.
P 110–113: At the Steakhouse, Ron arrives on street clothes and finally meets Davis face-to-face. He introduces himself as Davis’s bodyguard, stating that he doesn’t agree with his philosophies, but he is a professional and will do his job to protect Davis. Ron changes his voice slightly, and no one seems to be the wiser. Inside, Flip joins the rest of the Colorado Klan and lines up to meet Davis. When he shakes Davis’s hand, Davis hesitates when he hears Flip’s voice.
P 113–121: Flip is taken to a private room with other Klan inductees as Jesse Nayyar begins the initiation ritual. Ron pays off a black waiter and watches the ritual through a small window. Meanwhile, Patrice and the Black Student Union members have gathered in the Freedom House as they listen to Jerome Turner tell his story. His friend, Jesse Washington, was wrongfully accused of rape and later brutally lynched by a mob. Turner’s description of his friends brutal lynching is intercut with Davis’s white supremacy speech to the Klan inductees. As Flip is inducted into the Klan, pictures from Jesse’s murder flash across the screen. Brutal and bloody images juxtaposed with clean white hoods and biblical quotes. As turner tells the crowd that Jesse’s lynching was inspired by Birth of a Nation, the Klan members gleefully watch the very same film, cheering.
P 122–127: Ron returns to the banquet room as Davis addresses and all the Klan members, thanking them for protecting the “real America.” One member, Walker, recognizes Flip as the cop who sent him away for armed robbery. He exposes Flip to Felix. Felix, recognizing the real Ron, realizes that Flip and Ron are in it together. Meanwhile, Ron asks Davis and Jesse for a photo, giving the camera to Flip. Right before Flip takes the picture, Ron puts his hands around Davis and Jesse, freaking them out. As Ron grabs the Polaroid, he warns Davis he’ll arrest them for assaulting a police officer if they try anything. Ron, seeing Connie leave, heads out the door, but not before Felix grabs him to ask, “How is Patrice?”
P 128–131: Ron dashes to his car, calling for backup at the Freedom House. Meanwhile, Flip sits at the table with Davis, Walker, and Felix. He is still playing it cool. Just before Felix can expose Flip, he receives an emergency phone call: it’s Connie. In a telephone booth, Connie is frantic. Police are all around the Freedom House, so she can’t plant the bomb. Felix tries to calm her down, reminding her of Plan B. He promises he will be right there and he leaves with the gang. Flip follows close behind.
P 132–137: As Felix and his gang drive toward Patrice’s house, Connie has already arrived. She pulls the C4 bomb from the purse and flips the trigger switch. She moves to put the bomb in the mailbox on Patrice’s front porch just as Patrice and her friends arrive. Still unnoticed, Connie panics and moves to put the bomb back in her purse. She moves toward Patrice’s car as Patrice and her friends head inside the house.
Ron pulls up just as Connie is leaving and tackles her in the street. He demands to know where the bomb is, but she simply screams. Other officers arrived at the scene, and seeing Ron, a black man dressed in plainclothes, assume Ron is attacking Connie. Connie yells at the officers that Ron tried to rape her. Although Ron tries to explain that he is a cop and Connie is a terrorist, the other officers don’t listen. When Ron moves to pull his badge out of his pocket as instructed, the officers think he is reaching for a gun. They push him to the ground and cuff him, just as Felix and the Gang arrive. As Ron yells that Connie has a bomb, Patrice steps onto the porch. Connie looks up and sees that Felix is parked beside Patrice’s car. She shouts for him to stop, but it’s too late.
Felix pulls the detonator out and pushes it. Patrice’s car explodes, blowing up Felix and the gang with it. As the dust settles, Flip arrives, flashing his badge and telling the two officers that Ron is undercover.
P 136–138 Ron and Patrice share a drink at a dive bar, when Officer Landers arrives. Landers harasses Patrice and tells her he will shoot her if he feels like it and nothing will ever happen. Ron turns around and shouts “You get it, Flip?” Flip waves from the back of the bar, wearing headphones attached to a recording device. Runner videos he’s wearing a wire, and Trapp and Bridges arrest Landers.
P 139–141: Later, at the precinct, Bridges congratulats Ron and Flip on a job well done. Still, he orders them to end the investigation because there are no more “tangible threats” and the precinct is suffering from budget cuts. Bridges also demands that Ron destroy all the evidence he gathered and cease all communication with the KKK. The department doesn’t want the public knowing about the investigation. Ron storms out. Back at his desk, he chooses to sweep the files into his briefcase instead of shredding them. The undercover phone rings, but he doesn’t answer.
P 141–142 Ron returns to his desk, this time with Flip, Jimmy, and Trapp. They call Davis for one last prank call. Ron reveals his identity in a flurry of racial slurs, leaving Davis dumbfounded and the entire office doubled over in laughter.
P 143–145: Ron tells Patrice that has undercover work at the KKK is finished, but he is still a cop and has always wanted to be a cop. Suddenly there’s a knock at the door. Ron grabs his revolver and opens it. We see quick flashes of black bodies hanging from trees and old Klan rallies. We track down the hallway with a Ron and Patrice. Out the window there is a cross burning.
P 146: Modern day stock footage of the Klan, alt right groups, white nationalists, and neo-Nazis marching as American terrorists chant with tiki torches “You will not replace us.”
Writing Exercise: I encourage you to read the script, but short of that, if you’ve seen the movie, go through this scene-by-scene breakdown. What stands out to you about it from a structural standpoint?
Major kudos to Julianna Hartke for doing this week’s scene-by-scene breakdown. Julianna is a DePaul University School of Cinematic Arts senior getting a B.F.A. with a concentration in screenwriting and took time out of her busy academic schedule to read the script and do the breakdown.
To download a PDF of the breakdown for BlacKkKlansman, go here.
To read my in-depth interview with the screenplay’s co-writers David Rabinowitz and Charlie Wachtel, go here.
I am looking for volunteers to read a script and provide a scene-by-scene breakdown for it to be used as part of our weekly series. What do you get out from it? Beyond your name being noted here, my personal thanks, and some creative juju sent your way, hopefully you will learn something about story structure and develop another skill set which is super helpful in learning and practicing the craft.
There are a lot of 2018 scripts which have been made available by movie studios and production companies. You can see that list here. Here are some noteworthy scripts just waiting for someone to read and break them down: Crazy Rich Asians, Eighth Grade, First Reformed, The Green Book, On the Basis of Sex, Sorry to Bother You, A Star is Born.
The latest volunteers [BOLD signifies they have sent me their breakdown]:
The Ballad of Buster Scruggs / Jeff Messerman
BlacKkKlansman / Julianna Hartke
Black Panther / Stacey Wright
Destroyer / Roo Black
The Favourite / Matthew Oglesby
First Man / Rose Banks
If Beale Street Could Talk / Kirby Marshall-Collins
A Quiet Place / Mark Furney
Roma / Julianna Hartke
Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse / Halil Akgündüz
Stan & Ollie / Andrew Lightfoot
Vice / Fables to Film
Thanks to the folks who have already sent me their breakdowns. This will enable us to begin our 2019 bi-weekly script read and analysis series.
Now is YOUR chance to contribute to this most worthy cause and provide an additional resource for the online screenwriting community.
Thanks, all!
Even if you do not participate in the analysis, discussion, or write up a scene-by-scene breakdown, I strongly encourage you to read these scripts.
So seize this opportunity and join in the conversation!
I hope to see you in the RESPONSE section about this week’s script: BlacKkKlansman.
Onward!
