[jonathan Paton]

What makes this scene great from a writing perspective?

So many places to start, but here goes:

1. Iconic Image: the image of the Joker holding his mask in his hands. This shot made it into promos and movie posters, etc. It might be something we see in the movie, but a writer put that in the script. But besides looking cool, it basically sets up the end of the scene when the Joker pulls off the mask and we discover he’s basically wearing another mask (makeup) underneath. This movie is a lot about identity and who the Joker is, so I think the beginning and ending of this scene are bookends of what we will see later, but they are entertaining in their own right.

2. Mystery: There are a lot of questions we are forced to ask in this scene, some of which get answered, some don’t. That mystery and these questions keeps us wanting to find out more:

a. Who are these guys?

b. What kind of bank is this? (A version of this is flat-out asked by the bank manager, when he says, “Do you know who you’re stealing from?”).

c. What kind of bank has a manager with a sawed-off shotgun?

d. Who is going to get killed next?

e. Which one of them is the real Joker?

3. Intrigue: All of the double-crossing makes us believe a lot is happening below the surface from the start and the pay-off is when we finally get to see the Joker as the last man standing who set this all in motion. We want to learn more about what is happening beneath the surface. Also, we have entered a world in which the mob controls a bank. That’s clearly a dark and broken world, which intrigues us more.

4. Surprises: Each time a robber gets killed it’s a surprise. From questioning the amount of ammo that’s left to the bus smashing the last one—all surprising. Then the last surprise is that the bank manager has a grenade in his mouth but it’s only a smoke bomb. The Joker taking off his mask, surprises us by revealing he’s the real Joker but he’s still in costume. Even the last line has a surprising kicker at the end, “That which does not kill us makes us stranger…”

5. Character Intro: This scene introduces the Joker by showing he is clever, manipulative, a loner, somewhat suicidal (he goes after a mob-run bank) and is someone who loves chaos. This sums up the Joker in a nutshell in an entertaining way under five minutes. The scene does this through concrete actions the characters take, but also through dialogue. We learn about the Joker through the conversations the characters have about him (one of whom actually is the Joker, which is funny in hindsight). They build him up in kind of the same way that Vincent and Jules built up Marsellus Wallace did in “Pulp Fiction.” (a movie, by the way, which also introduces a character by only showing the back of his head at first). These other characters and their dialogue create a reputation for the Joker long before we actually meet him and the cool thing is that his actions at the end of the scene rise to meet that larger than life reputation.

6. Serves the Story: All of these things previously mentioned are cool and entertaining, but they are not just random crap thrown out there to amuse us, they all have a purpose within the story. This scene serves the story by:

a. introducing the antagonist as a clever and dangerous opponent

b. creating an incident that the underworld will have to respond to, which moves the plot along

c. establishing the kind of story this is (an action story)

d. establishing the tone of the story (dark and mysterious)

e. introducing themes that will carry through the entire story (how one man can create chaos and the nature of identity).

It’s a scene that does double and even triple duty and you couldn’t take out any moment which would not have taken out a crucial story element. Nothing was wasted. The final line, “That which does not kill us makes us stranger” could very well be a freaking mission statement for how the Joker looks at the world!

[jonathan Paton]

Jonathan Paton

I agree:

As a member of this group, I agree to the following:

1. That I will keep the processes, strategies, teleconferences, communications, lessons, and models of the class confidential, and that I will NOT share any of this program either privately, with a group, posting online, writing articles, through video or computer programming, or in any other way that would make those processes, teleconferences, communications, lessons, and models of the class available to anyone who is not a member of this class.

2. That each writer’s work here is copyrighted and that writer is the sole owner of that work. That includes this program which is copyrighted by Hal Croasmun. I acknowledge that submission of an idea to this group constitutes a claim of and the recognition of ownership of that idea.

I will keep the other writer’s ideas and writing confidential and will not share this information with anyone without the express written permission of the writer/owner. I will not market or even discuss this information with anyone outside this group.

3. I also understand that many stories and ideas are similar and/or have common themes and from time to time, two or more people can independently and simultaneously generate the same concept or movie idea.

4. If I have an idea that is the same as or very similar to another group member’s idea, I’ll immediately contact Hal and present proof that I had this idea prior to the beginning of the class. If Hal deems them to be the same idea or close enough to cause harm to either party, he’ll request both parties to present another concept for the class.

5. If you don’t present proof to Hal that you have the same idea as another person, you agree that all ideas presented to this group are the sole ownership of the person who presented them and you will not write or market another group member’s ideas.

6. Finally, I agree not to bring suit against anyone in this group for any reason, unless they use a substantial portion of my copyrighted work in a manner that is public and/or that prevents me from marketing my script by shopping it to production companies, agents, managers, actors, networks, studios or any other entertainment industry organizations or people.

This completes the Group Release Form for the class.

[jonathan Paton]

Jonathan Paton

As a member of this group, I agree to the following:

1. That I will keep the processes, strategies, teleconferences, communications, lessons, and models of the Binge Worthy TV class confidential, and that I will NOT share any of this program either privately, with a group, posting online, writing articles, teaching a class, through video or computer programming, or in any other way that would make those processes, teleconferences, communications, lessons, and models of the Binge Worthy TV available to anyone who is not a member of this class.

2. That each writer’s work here is copyrighted and that writer is the sole owner of that work. That includes this program which is copyrighted by Hal Croasmun. I acknowledge that submission of an idea to this group constitutes a claim of and the recognition of ownership of that idea.

I will keep the other writer’s ideas and writing confidential and will not share this information with anyone without the express written permission of the writer/owner. I will not market or even discuss this information with anyone outside this group.

3. I also understand that many stories and ideas are similar and/or have common themes and from time to time, two or more people can independently and simultaneously generate the same concept or movie idea.

4. If I have an idea that is the same as another group member’s idea, I’ll immediately contact Hal and present proof that I had this idea prior to the beginning of the class. The easiest solution if you have similar ideas is to either not look at each other’s work or to agree to take your shows in different directions.

If Hal deems them to be the same idea or close enough to cause harm to either party, he’ll request both parties to present another concept for the class.

5. If you don’t present proof to Hal that you have the same idea as another person, you agree that all ideas presented to this group are the sole ownership of the person who presented them and you will not write or market another group member’s ideas.

6. Finally, I agree not to bring suit against anyone in this group for any reason, unless they use a substantial portion of my copyrighted work in a manner that is public and/or that prevents me from marketing my script by shopping it to production companies, agents, managers, actors, networks, studios or any other entertainment industry organizations or people.