StoryNotesNewsletter

ISSUE #11:

(This is a continuation of the
article which began in Issue #10; see
the online archive at yahoo-groups if
you did not receive or save Issue 10:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/StoryNotesNewsletter)


PART 2 (OF 2):


* * * K E Y F L A W * * *



EXAMPLES OF KEY FLAWS

BACK TO THE FUTURE: Marty lacks confidence in his ability to
pursue his passion (music). He needs to get rid of the "I can't"
philosophy he inherited from his dad, and learn to take the risks
necessary to gain a chance of success.

ON THE WATERFRONT: Terry goes along with injustice because
he feels that in this world you must "Do it to the other guy
before he does it to you."

KARATE KID: Daniel acts rashly without thinking things
through. He needs to consider possible outcomes of his actions,
and realize that appearances and reality are not always the same.
In short, his thinking is too limited; he doesn't see beneath the
surface, or beyond the moment.

TOOTSIE: Michael Dorsey is not an honest person, especially
with women. Those he finds attractive he pretty much views only
as sex objects, and is willing to lie, manipulate, and take
advantage of them in order to score. Significantly, he has no
lasting relationship. And this same "Me" attitude has damaged
his career, as well.

MACBETH: Ruthless ambition. Ambition is well and good, but
he is willing to commit illegal and cruel deeds to attain his
ambitious goals.

ROMEO AND JULIET: Romeo is rash. He has a tendency to act
without thinking, for being reckless. It tends to either get him
into trouble, or, once in, to deepen that trouble.

THE CLIENT: Mark Sway is unable to accept help, even when
it's sincerely offered and when he badly needs it. He cannot
succeed until he realizes how this continues to hold him back.

GHOST: Here it's simply the man's inability to express his
love in words.

TITANIC: Rose needs to be more self-assertive. She has
several weakness – she lacks hope, self-confidence, courage, and
clarity, which together would allow her to escape the stifling
constraints of high society, and the loveless, controlling
marriage for money that she is about to enter. But the main
thing she must overmaster is her timidity of thought, which has
been holding her back, keeping her down. It's mainly due to
cultural conditioning, but until she overcomes it, she won't
escape her "prison." Jack, through his love for her and by his
own example, helps her to do that.

Often, no one fault or weakness stands out. Several traits
and/or errors in thinking are holding the character back,
providing internal conflict. When that's the case, usually these
two or three flaws are somewhat related, and are acting together
to create a problem or hold the character back.

STAR WARS: Luke at first lacks the self-confidence to join
with the Rebellion. Related to this is a skepticism that he
could make any difference.

Later, it's his lack of trust in himself, his potential, and
in the ways of The Force that holds him back or endangers him,
his friends, and the cause. At the end of the first movie,
Obi-Wan must urge him to use the Force, to trust.

And in the second movie, Yoda points out that it's his lack
of trust, his lack of belief that he can tap into the Force
sufficiently, that is leading to his failures.

HAMLET: Once again, there are several flaws or weaknesses,
none of which predominate. Hamlet has been sheltered. He has
been seeing the world through rose-colored glasses. Events and
discoveries have ripped these glasses off, and he cannot cope
with what he sees. The key fault, perhaps, is a lack of
*balance*.

Before, he saw the world and people as better than they were,
now he sees them as worse than they are. He lacks a balanced
view.

He has no balance between thought and action. First he
considers too much without taking action: paralysis by analysis.
And when he *does* act, it's often rashly, without thinking.

He can't find the balance between thought and passion. He is
overly analytical *and* overly emotional. They work against each
other, and tear him apart.

Hamlet is an unbalanced person, full of extremes. "The time
is out of joint," he says. But so is he.

And going from the sublime to the ridiculous:

HOME ALONE: Kevin's flaws: He's overly fearful and
helpless. Again, the two flaws are related, and they combine to
keep him weak.

And often it's not just the main character who has a Key Flaw
(or two). Sometimes the same or a similar flaw, weakness, or
error in thinking is shared by the antagonist – who usually
doesn't come to recognize the flaw, or at any rate to eliminate
it. Or, the antagonist's flaw may be the exact opposite of the
main character's flaw. Frequently, there is a correlation.

And often a major secondary character has a different flaw.
Together, the two characters help each other to fulfill their
needs and to conquer their flaws.

In PRETTY WOMAN, as in many romances, both persons exert a
positive influence on the other.

In KARATE KID, Mr. Miyagi – due to the death years earlier of
his wife and infant son – has a fear of becoming close to anyone.
In helping Daniel, Mr. Miyagi overcomes his own fear.

THE ORIGINS OF THE FLAW

What gives rise to the Key Flaw?

Sometimes the Inner Need (the internal void or wound)
provokes the flaw. The frustration, emptiness, or pain felt due
to the unmet Inner Need may give rise to an error of thinking
and/or behaving – the Key Flaw. It's a response to the Need –
but an inappropriate response. It's a kind of "acting out," a
misguided, knee-jerk reaction. And while the Flaw may be a
reaction to the unmet Inner Need, it can, ironically, be
counter-productive; it can act as an obstacle to the Inner Need,
and/or to the Goal.

For instance, someone who craves friendship (need) but is
afraid of rejection (flaw) may unknowingly adopt behavior –
sarcasm, perhaps – that is offensive or unpleasant to others.
Thus, the individual rejects others before they are able to
reject him. But it's self-defeating, since his sarcasm is an
obstacle to friendship.

Similarly, a student from a dysfunctional home may need adult
acceptance and nurturing, but instead, due to repressed anger
from his home situation, he misbehaves in class, thus receiving
anger and disapproval from the teacher. The flaw works against
the Inner Need.

Sometimes, however, rather than being an inappropriate,
counter-productive response to an unmet Inner Need, a significant
Backstory Event may create the Inner Need and the Key Flaw at pretty
much the same time. It's flexible.

SUMMARY

So ... you might want to examine some of your favorite
movies. In most, the main character(s) will have not just one,
but several flaws, weaknesses, or errors in thinking.

In some of these movies, one of these flaws will stand out,
and become the thematically important Key Flaw.

In others, all the flaws will be pretty much equal, and
together will play an important role. That is, sometimes two or
three flaws, acting as a unit, create a problem for their main
characters, and/or hold them back in terms of fulfilling an Inner
Need and/or achieving a goal.

What about the characters in *your* upcoming screenplay?

Are there one or two traits or errors in thinking that
frequently trip them up and jeopardize their success? Could
there be a goal- and/or theme-relevant flaw?

A Key Flaw can humanize your character. It can make him or
her more plausible, and more interesting. It's one way to give
your character more dimension.

And it can help to unify your story. It can make the events
of your story seem less random – by tying the flaw into goal
and/or theme, by associating this flaw with the Inner Need, and
by making the defeat of the flaw (in movies with positive
endings) part of the Character Arc. Thus, character, plot, and
theme become more intertwined.

Giving your main character a Key Flaw may be one of the keys
to screenplay success.

# # #


Copyright Jeff Newman, 2001


JEFF NEWMAN is a screenplay consultant -- rated #2 out of 17
script analysts reviewed and ranked by "Creative Screenwriting"
(March-April 1999).

Author's Note: I now offer a $300 screenplay evaluation,
consisting of on-script notes, a tape recording elaborating on
the notes, 10 pages or more of written evaluation (6 pages or
more of written commentary, and a 4-page checklist), and a
follow-up phone consultation.

For details, and info on my other evaluation services, please see my
humble homepage: http://www.storynotes.net

To read my bio, scroll down to the very bottom of the home page
and click on "Credentials."

There is also a "Testimonials" link -- feedback from some writers
who have used my evaluation services. If you'd like, you may
call me in Los Angeles at (310) 715-6455.

To see other of my articles on screenwriting, go to:

http://hollywoodnet.com/StoryNotes/films.html

http://hollywoodnet.com/StoryNotes/board.html

http://creativescreenwriting.com/storynotes/storynotes.html


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QUESTIONS? COMMENTS?

Suggestions? Criticisms? Compliments? Caveats?

I'd like to hear them. If I think they would be of interest
to others, I'll post a special issue along with my replies. Send
them to: storynotes@...

I hope you've found this article of interest, and that it
proves helpful in your present and future scripts.

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