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Usenet Posted 21 years ago
Screenwriting

What Makes It A Movie?

There's this debate going on over on the Wordplay site about what makes a movie a movie. If you film two people sitting across from each other and talking for 2 hours, is that a movie?
I know you guys know my answer to that, but what do you think?

Of course, all of this relates to screenwriting, because what we write ends up on screen, and if all we write is a series of scenes where people sit and talk, we end up with a bunch of talking heads on screen. If we write scripts where characters do things, that's what ends up on screen. So, what's a movie?
- Bill
  

Top answer

[/nq] If I knew I'd try writing one. But a story, in my opinion requires 1) character(s) you're interested in and 2) something interesting happening. somewhere"

  • [/nq] If I knew I'd try writing one.
  • But a story, in my opinion requires 1) character(s) you're interested in and 2) something interesting happening.
  • somewhere"
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24 Answers
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[nq:1]So, what's a movie?[/nq]
If I knew I'd try writing one.
But a story, in my opinion requires 1) character(s) you're interested in and 2) something interesting happening.

RonB
"There's a story there...somewhere"
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Drama? Don't all other genres still fall under this? A conversation could constitute a movie if it has a problem and a solution of sorts.

Also, a movie is different than a FILM. A film could just show them sitting there for five hours. And it might be good to scratch the film a bit and draw on it.
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[nq:1]There's this debate going on over on the Wordplay site about what makes a movie a movie. If you film two people sitting across from each other and talking for 2 hours, is that a movie?[/nq]
That's My Dinner with Andre. Yeah yeah, I know about the bus scene.
[nq:1]I know you guys know my answer to that, but what do you think?[/nq]
If it's filmed and it entertains people when shown
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What makes it a movie - what defines a movie and makes it different than any other story form?
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[nq:1]There's this debate going on over on the Wordplay site about what makes a movie a movie. If you film ... If we write scripts where characters do things, that's what ends up on screen. So, what's a movie? - Bill[/nq]
Interesting question, Bill, and yeah, I probably know the answer you're looking for, but just in case I don't, consider: Who'da thunk you could make a movie about a dozen jur
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[nq:1]There's this debate going on over on the Wordplay site about what makes a movie a movie. If you film ... If we write scripts where characters do things, that's what ends up on screen. So, what's a movie? - Bill[/nq]
In the UK, a movie is a film.
Matthew
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[nq:1]What makes it a movie - what defines a movie and makes it different than any other story form?[/nq]
The story must contain an **** rape scene?
.. which would obviously require movement.
Ummm... I'll just leave it at that. It's starting to sound a bit nasty.
Doug
Just a virtual guy... in a virtual world
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[nq:1]What makes it a movie - what defines a movie and makes it different than any other story form?[/nq]
I think what you're getting at is a feature film that people give a **** about (whether you do or not), as in "Now THAT was a MOVIE."

Or maybe not.
Maybe you mean "****, anything Bill Martell writes, THAT's a movie."
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Which is 'more' a movie:
a) A fast moving extravaganza with crashes, love scenes, big names that leaves
the audience yawning, going for coffee and chatting about the weather.

b) A single medium shot of a man talking about his experiences making a movie that has the audience rapt, sitting motionless and shhing each other
for laughing too long.
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[nq:1]There's this debate going on over on the Wordplay site about what makes a movie a movie. If you film ... If we write scripts where characters do things, that's what ends up on screen. So, what's a movie? - Bill[/nq]
Why is it that nobody ever has this discussion about what makes a novel?
Do we really look at various book-length works of narrative fiction and classify some as being of

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