I had the great pleasure of attending Robert McKee’s Story Seminar this past weekend – four super intensive days of lecture by story master Robert McKee. No joke, this man is a pro (you may remember him from as the role Brian Cox portrayed in Adaptation. The seminar wasn’t about how to sell your script in Hollywood or how to put this event on that page – it was about the fundamentals of story and why the audience feels emotions when certain events take place. I highly recommend anyone interested in screenwriting or any narrative art at the very least read his book and seriously consider taking his seminar if you get a chance.
Now, for the sake of my memory (and entertainment), here is my list of 15 movies to see or books to read coming out of the seminar:
1. Ju Dou – Gong Li stars in this 1990 film by Zhang Yimou that (for me) somehow slipped through the cracks. IMDB | Amazon
2. Week End – This hard to find 1967 offering by Godard is used by McKee to exemplify some odd characteristics of anti-plot. IMDB | Amazon
3. The Fisher King – I’m embarrassed to have never seen this 1991 Terry Gilliam classic that stars Jeff Bridges. IMDB | Amazon
4. The Big Chill – After landing his first job rewriting The Empire Strikes Back, Larry Kasdan went on to write Raiders of the Lost Ark, Body Heat and Return of the Jedi before penning this film widely considered his finest work. IMDB | Amazon
5. The Verdict – Paul Newman stars in this 1982 courtroom drama directed by Lumet and penned by Mamet. IMDB | Amazon
6. Tender Mercies – Horton Foote’s screenplay for this 1983 Robert Duvall starrer wins the award for most discussed script by McKee (after Casablanca). IMDB | Amazon
7. Carnal Knowledge – I had sadly never even heard of this 1971 Mike Nichols film starring Nick Nicholson that earned Ann-Margret a Best Supporting Actress Oscar nom. IMDB | Amazon
8. The Ragman’s Son – After penning this highly respected autobiography, Kirk Douglas turned to Robert McKee to give him the knowledge of story needed to continue his new career as a novelist… at age 73! Amazon
9. Leaving Las Vegas – The only film on the list I have previously seen, Mike Figgis’s 1995 masterpiece deserves a rewatch for the ways it uses characters around the protagonist to drive the story forward even though Cage’s character’s desires never change. IMDB | Amazon
10. Kramer vs. Kramer – Robert Benton’s 1979 Best Picture winner is used over and over by McKee to exemplify character motivation and story structure. IMDB | Amazon
11. Ordinary People – Robert Redford’s directorial debut was this 1980 film which McKee examines in great detail for its use of overlapping plots. IMDB | Amazon
12. The Art of Fiction – Henry James’s collected thoughts on writing. Amazon
13. The In-Laws – Peter Falk and Alan Arkin star in this 1979 action-comedy about two soon to be in-laws rushing off to Central America to save the International Financial System. IMDB | Amazon
14. Alice – This 2005 Portuguese film by Marco Martins comes highly recommended by McKee. IMDB | Amazon
15. Beat the Devil – John Huston’s 1953 film based on Truman Capote’s script stars Bogart in yet another towering performance. IMDB | Amazon
One final quick shout out for a book that has influenced me greatly (as many of you know). I’ll continue to read Steven Pressfield’s The War of Art all through my life. McKee actually wrote the book’s forward and recommends it just as whole heartedly as I do. If you are looking for inspiration to put behind you all life’s distractions and focus on what you really want to do, read this book! Amazon
