The Big Sick follows its formula, but it works. Photo courtesy of Lionsgate.
One of the worst things that can be said of a film (or your script) is that it’s too formula. This is a common criticism among reviewers, audiences and probably even members of your writing group. This criticism is taken so seriously that I’ve seen young writers doing everything in their power, and wasting a lot of time, trying to avoid formula and instead be original. So let’s get one thing out of the way right off the bat…
You Cannot Be Original
It’s foolish to attempt to be original. The sheer number of films written before you sat down and typed FADE IN: makes originality impossible. What you want to be is fresh. You want to be writing things that haven’t been seen in a while. You want to write scripts that turn convention on its head. And you want to combine elements in ways that other writers haven’t thought of. But you don’t want to reinvent the wheel because…
Even If You Could Be Original You Don’t Want to Be
If you think about your own movie-going experience you’ll realize that what an audience wants is for a film to meet their expectations. If you’re expecting a comedy, there should be jokes. If you’re expecting a horror flick there needs to scares. It’s that simple. Except it really isn’t. Your audience wants to get exactly what they’re expecting and they want to be surprised while they get it.
So What’s the Real Problem with Formula?
Why is it such a cutting criticism to say that a film is too formula? Well, what this criticism really means is that the formula is showing. It’s not that the writer shouldn’t have used a formula it’s that they didn’t cover it up well enough. How do you cover up formula? You write fresh, interesting characters who we don’t see every day. You write great, unforgettable scenes. You look at the way things are traditionally done and turn things on their head. That’s how you hide your formula, and how you surprise and audience.
Hugh Grants proposes in the rain in Four Weddings and a Funeral. Photo courtesy PolyGram Filmed Entertainment.
A great example of this—though it is an older film—is the proposal scene from Four Weddings and a Funeral. It’s very common in romantic comedies for the male lead to propose marriage to the female lead. But in this film, the male lead proposes that they not get married, that they share their lives without marriage. The scene is completely formulaic; the execution is not.
Does Formula Really Work?
Absolutely. A film formula that’s been in use since the days of silent films is boy meets girl—boy gets girl—boy loses girl—boy gets girl back. This formula was recently used to great effect in the film The Big Sick. When you watch the movie it doesn’t feel formulaic because the scenes are very specific and very personal to the writers. The film is based on things that really happened to them, and yet it is still a formula film.
In the event that someone says your script is too formula, what you need to do is not reject formula. Instead, you need to look at all of the other elements to see what you need to strengthen. Like many of the notes you’ll receive, it’s a note that’s not about what it seems to be about.
Try It You’ll Like it
One of the ways to use formula that may not be apparent is to take the formula from one type of movie and apply it to another type. If you take the recent film, Megan Leavey, on the one hand, it’s a pretty straight-forward bio-pic and follows the rules of that genre. On the other hand, it also follows the rom-com formula used in the Big Sick except, this time it’s girl meets dog—girl gets dog—girl loses dog—girl gets dog back.
Kate Mara falls for her dog in Megan Leavey. Photo courtesy Bleeker Street Media.
So, what are your favorite movie formulas?