Screenwriting has not changed much in the century during which it's been developed. Sure, some of the conventions have changed, and of course, vernacular has changed since the early 1900’s, but in terms of form, not much has changed. A major contributor to this is time. Just as few songs have broken into radio fame when outside the 3-minute standard length, the vast majority of feature films are 1.5 to 2 hours in length. (Yes, both films and songs can be argued to have gotten longer over the years… but it’s not by much. See Allain 2014 and Follows 2019). The reason that screenplay length is so standardized is because pages are directly correlated to time. Each page generally equals one minute of screen time, so space is at a premium in the format. As a result of this, unlike stage plays, screenplays do not include stage (or camera) direction unless it is absolutely vital to tell the story. Why waste space directing? That’s someone else’s job.
In the service of space-saving, several additional storytelling conventions have arisen in the screenwriting craft. Style takes second place to function. Setting is established upfront in scene headings that generally do not go exceed a single line. There are, of course, exceptions to this rule. In the beginning of both Forgetting Sarah Marshall and Some Like It Hot, a much more extensive scene description is included in the action at the very opening. This serves the purpose of establishing tone and temporal setting upfront. Some Like It Hot performs this especially well in its first line. It establishes the setting, the period, and the time of year in its first action sentence.
CITY AT NIGHT
A hearse of Late Twenties vintage is proceeding at a dignified pace along a half-deserted wintry street.
I would argue that the opening for Forgetting Sarah Marshall is a bit more clunky, but it also serves to (through omission, as it is not a period piece) establish these, as well.
INT. PETER’S APARTMENT - LATE AFTERNOON.
PETER BRETTER (26) watches television alone in his dark, creepy apartment.
SLIT (as I will refer to Some Like It Hot from now on) has a much more prosaic style than FSM (as I will refer to Forgetting Sarah Marshall from now on). In the opening, and continued throughout the piece, SLIT continues to use more vivid descriptive terms for lengthy action sequences than does FSM. The latter is more concerned with brevity and dialogic humor. (There are also humorous physical sequences in FSM, but the humor is much more focused on dialogue and reactions even in these sequences.)
Treatment of the characters is strikingly similar in both screenplays. Characters are introduced with minimal descriptors, frequently just a name and brief descriptor. Jerry and Joe are simply introduced as musicians in SLIT. Peter is only given an age in FSM. The love interests of both films are given a little more descriptive treatment. Sugar is described as “the dream girl of every red-blooded American male” in SLIT. Rachel and Sarah are both described as “beautiful” in FSM. One can’t help but wonder if this is a vestige of Hollywood sexism wherein men can be average but women must be beautiful. Or perhaps it is simply an extension of the male screenwriters’ imagination.
The narrative structure of both screenplays introduce our conflicts early, as is standard structure for most films. The initial conflict sets our characters on their journey for the remainder of the film, and while it isn’t necessarily life-changing in itself, it drives our characters to change their lives as their conflicts develop and intensify. Jerry and Joe have no money. They are musicians in the prohibition era. The jazz halls have closed. They’re struggling to find jobs. Thus, they find themselves working in an illegal speakeasy during a raid. The operation, of course, is shut down before they can be paid. To make things worse, Joe has a gambling problem. As the story progresses, the two literally lose the clothes off their back in the frigid Chicago winter. Desperate, they end up witnessing a mob hit and must get out of town fast. Of course, they kill two birds with one stone and hijack a job in a women’s band. It’s a complicated, but fully logical set of events that sets up a desperate situation for our main characters while also giving us time to get to know them before the true hijinks ensue.
Much more simply, Peter’s journey begins when Sarah Marshall dumps him. We are given a few pages of exploration into Peter’s character before this event occurs, but it is relatively brief. We learn that he is a slob who is mired deeply in depression. He’s not introduced as a particularly lovable character, though he is relatable, especially once he has been dumped. One especially effective detail, in my opinion, is when Peter pawns the engagement ring for Sarah, getting only $6,000 of his $24,000 back. Of course, he spends this cash on a vacation to Hawaii, where he immediately runs into Sarah… and her new boyfriend. The story progression of FSM is simple. Peter’s main enemy is himself; his own grief and attachment to Sarah is what holds him back.
The theme of each film is delivered by the narrative, of course, but neither film has much of a serious message. The object is comedy and the theme is open to interpretation, as in many effective films. “Love conquers all” works. So does “love can save you.” Or you can find a different read in each movie. The gender bending (potentially extremely controversial in the 1950’s) in SLIT could lead you to find the main theme in those storytelling aspects. Jerry’s move away from womanizer to man in love is a major progression for his character. Additionally, you can read “time heals the wounds of love” in FSM, as Peter and Rachel don’t get together until after Peter has time by himself to get his life together. You can argue on which thematic element is primary for each film, as you can argue in any good story. At the end of the day, these two screenplays tell one hell of a good story.
Works Cited
Allain, Rhett. “Why Are Songs on the Radio About the Same Length?” Wired, 11 July 2014, https://www.wired.com/2014/07/why-are-songs-on-the-radio-about-the-same-length/.
Follows, Stephen. “Stephen Follows: Film Data and Education.” Stephen Follows: Film Data and Education, 16 Sept. 2019, https://stephenfollows.com/are-movies-getting-longer/.
“Forgetting Sarah Marshall.” By Jason Segel, directed by Nicholas Stoller, Apatow Productions, 18 April 2008.
“Some Like it Hot.” By Billy Wilder and I. A. L. Diamond, directed by Billy Wilder, Mirisch Company, 29 March 1959.