Roddy Blelloch
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Scene arc: from majority who believe in guilt to the creation of doubt – did the prosecution prove it?
Conflict: 11 jurors must convince one man that he is wrong.
2nd Watch: The challenging situation shifts from the one juror having to explain his belief to the majority having to face their hasty decision and explain themselves. The majority is suddenly thrust into taking their civil responsibility seriously and actually examining the evidence.
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What I found so appealing with this scene is how the conflict was launched – not by the count of 11 to 1, or the one naysayer but the reaction of the juror who was most adamantly in opposition to the possibility of innocence – “Boy oh boy, there’s always one.” In an other wise low key opening this draws a line in the sand and suddenly intensifies the conflict. I felt my adrenaline rise instantly. This moment pushed the story forward and made me want to know how it would resolve itself.
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Dialogue is action and it needs to a advance the story.
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The scene sets up the violent tone of the movie and introduce us to the Joker who is a conniving, cold blooded killer who cannot be trusted. You’re first introduced to a coordinated bank robbery where the conflict is created when it is revealed that none of robbers know each other and they are instructed to turn on each other. Who will be left? When everything appears to be going the robbers way we are then set up again when the bank manager fires back, kills one of them and then reveals that they are doomed because they are stealing from the mob. Ultimately, the mastermind Joker is the last man standing and his ruthless character reveals an irony – he is also witty and strange, too. Compact and tight lipped – the characters speak only when it’s necessary to tell the audience something important that the action can’t reveal like the car ride when the driver and passenger reveal that they plan on betraying the Joker.
Not a lot of subtext – it really infers that the Joker wants to engage the mob by stealing their money.
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I’m Roddy Blelloch. I’ve been a director of photography for more than 25 years shooting docs, corporate and magazine style shows. I’ve written numerous shorts and a feature, and am now settling into writing the pilot for a TV series.
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