Words in Action. Forms and techniques of film dialogue

In a screenplay, the secrets of well written dialogue are hidden in the construction of the scene, where every word should stem from the theme of the story. At the light of this basic assumption, the book explores how Hollywood screenwriters create verbal duels assigning characters dif- ferent frames of values and making the hero win by “re- framing” what is at stake in the scene. The author elabo- rates on how Oscar winner authors such as Paul Haggis, Aaron Sorkin and Steven Zaillian create subtext. Finally, the book highlights the screenwriting techniques to cover ex- position, an issue which gives the author also the opportu- nity to concentrate on the differences between dialogues in movies and in TV drama.