FrankenScript :: Lee Gabel's Screenwriting Journal/Blog

I was surprised that I ended up liking this film, even though there were lots of things I disagreed with. For example, introducing one character and never showing them again for more than an hour, until they’re really needed, feels like a big cheat. The seemingly endless action and CG sequences can get tiring. The [...]

There’s a point in this film where you just don’t know where it’s going to go. It’s exciting. Moral conflict. Then something happens and chunk, chunk, chunk, pieces of story fall into place and film becomes predictable. Although, one could argue that “something” was done to increase tension and suspense, and it does for a [...]

This is a film you are either going to love or hate. Well, let me back up. You’ll either kinda love it or really hate it. There’s no middle ground. It sets up situations and never adequately resolves them. And if logic flaws irritate you, there are several in this, such as when running a [...]

After seeing Jimmy Neutron the previous day, there’s no comparison. However, the story here is good and it’s what saves this film. The visuals pull this film down. It looks cheap and to be fair, this film was made with ten million dollars less than Jimmy Neutron. Visuals suffer with smaller and smaller budgets. If [...]

Even though this is inspired by true events, the story is still predictable and uninspired. People get trapped, people die getting out. I really dislike it when the story sets up a rule that can’t be broken, shows repeatedly why it can’t be broken (dead characters), then breaks it just to move the story forward [...]

Other than this story centering on Hasidic Jews, there’s not much else that makes this film different than any other drug smuggling story. And the Jewish focus lacks the ability to make this film different enough. It interesting that this was based on a true story, but the viewer isn’t going to care if the [...]