Dialogue

How to Use Dialogue Correctly

If youve never learned the rules of using dialogue in fiction, it can be

bewildering when you hand your first short story in to a teacher and get it
back covered in red marks. Nevertheless, the rules of dialogue are an
essential and rarely broken law, for good reason: without these standards of
how to use dialogue, it would be hopelessly confusing as to who was
speaking in a story. If youre unsure about some of the unwritten rules for
dialogue use, brush up on your skills and read on.
Rule #1: A new speaker makes a new line.
If you have two characters speaking in a story, its important to keep it clear
whos speaking. Hemingway often makes things challenging by having long
back-and-forths between characters without dialogue tags (tags are he said
and she said). Thats allowed, as long as you make a new line every time
someone else is speaking.

The wrong way:

I wish I could fly, John said longingly. Why dont you grow wings, then?
Sarah snapped back.

This is wrong because we dont know it is Sarah speaking until we get to the
end of the dialogue. The convention tells us that it is still John speaking.

The right way:

I wish I could fly, John said longingly.

Why dont you grow wings, then? Sarah snapped back.

With the line break, it keeps the reader on track, knowing that someone else
is speaking.
Rule #2: Quotes, quotes, and quotes
Even a small thing like using the wrong quotation marks can reflect poorly on
your story, particularly if its being read by an editor or agent. Here are the
rules to remember for American standard dialogue use.

Two quotation marks for speech; one mark for speech within speech

You wouldnt believe how he treated me, said Mark. He said, Go back
where you came from!'

This way, we know for sure who is speaking and whether what is said is a
direct quotation or not.

After the jump: rules of thumb for effective dialogue.

Rule #3: Break up dialogue into two parts

Its awkward in speech to wait until the end of a speech to give the dialogue
tag, because then we dont know who is speaking for a long time. Instead,
give the first thought, then a comma and tag, then go back into dialogue.
That way, your reader will be able to picture who is speaking throughout the
speech.

The wrong way:

I cant believe I failed the test. I studied and studied, but somehow I choked
and left most of it blank. Im probably going to have to retake it, Mark said.

The right way:

I cant believe I failed the test, said Mark. I studied and studied, but
somehow I choked and left most of it blank.

Rule #4: Avoid flashy dialogue tags.

Heres a bit of shocking news: your elementary school teachers were wrong.
They urged you to stretch your vocabulary by using every big word you knew
for dialogue. If you do that, though, you end up with a clunky, distracting
mess. Heres an example:

The wrong way:

You broke my heart! she screamed.

Its not my fault! he growled.
But you cheated on me! she wailed.
Im sorry it just happened, he stammered.

The problem with this passage is that the tags start overshadowing the actual
words being spoken. Theyre completely unnecessary. They are often
crutches in our writing; in reality, the words themselves should suggest the
tone with which they are spoken. In fact, using he said and she said is so
familiar to readers that the words blur into the background, retreating so that
the main action of dialogue can come to the fore. Thats why its best to keep
wordy dialogue tags to a minimum and just use said for most of your
dialogue. You can also drop tags entirely when its clear only two people are
talking back and forth.

The right way:

You broke my heart! she said.

Its not my fault! he said.
But you cheated on me!
Im sorry it just happened.

Rule #5: Use action to show who is speaking

Now that you know dialogue 101, youre ready to move on to advanced
dialogue. It can still get tedious to have long strings of back-and-forth
dialogue. Instead of using he said and she said back and forth endlessly,
use action both to break up the dialogue and indicate who is speaking. If you
have dialogue without tags, whoever is given an action afterward is the
implied speaker. Let me show you what I mean.

The wrong way:

Sarah stood up. I love you, John. He shrank away shyly.

This is not technically wrong, but it is very unclear, because the convention is
that the speaker is who is given action after the dialogue. In this passage, it
sounds like it is John who has said I love you, John. Heres how you can
make it clear.

The right way:

Sarah stood up. I love you, John. She reached out to him longingly.

As you can see, its very clear in this passage who is speaking and how her
words are linked to her actions. Thats another rule of thumb to keep in mind:
most of us talk while doing other things. Dont stop the story so that your
characters can give soliloquies; instead, give them things to do as they talk,
whether its chopping vegetables or fidgeting nervously.

Qualities of good dialogue:

1. Good dialogue is not weighed down by exposition

When the dialogue is carrying exposition and trying to tell the

reader too much, characters end up saying a lot of very unnatural
and unwieldy things. You'll see things like:

"Remember that time we stole the frog from Miss Jenkins and she
ended up giving us two hours of detention and that's how we met?"
"Yeah, totally! And now we're in 6th Grade and have to dissect frogs
for our science project, which is due tomorrow. I don't know how
we're going to get it finished in time."

So much of this dialogue would already be already apparent to the

characters. They'd know how they met without having to talk about
it, they'd know they're in 6th grade without having to talk about it,
they'd know the science project is due without talking about it. So
it's very clear to the reader that they're not talking to each other:
they're really talking to the reader.

Exposition and dialogue only really mesh when one character

genuinely doesn't know what the other character is telling them and
it's natural for them to explain at the moment they're explaining it.
Otherwise, if you're just trying to smush in info, your reader is going
to spot it a mile away.

2. Good dialogue has a purpose and builds toward something.

Sometimes you'll see characters in novels bantering back and forth

in a way that is meant to reveal character or fill space. Unless it's
just so insanely unbelievably clever that the writer makes it work,

usually this feels hollow and, well, boring.

A good conversation is an escalation. The dialogue is about

something and builds toward something. If things stay even and
neutral, the dialogue just feels empty.

Characters in a novel never just talk. There's always more to it.

3. Good dialogue evokes the way people actually talk in real life
without actually sounding precisely like the way people talk in real
life.

Paraphrasing Elmore Leonard, good writers leave out the boring

parts. This goes doubly for dialogue: it's usually best to cut to the
chase rather than spending time on the pleasantries that normal
people use in everyday conversation.

In real life our conversations wander around all over the place, and a
transcribed real life conversation is a meandering mess of free
association and stutters. In a novel, a good conversation is focused
and has a point.

And in a novel, dialect, slang, and voice is used sparingly. Just a hint
of flavor is enough. As my client Jennifer Hubbard wrote, "good
dialogue sounds like conversation, but is not an exact reproduction
of conversation."

4. Good dialogue reveals personality, and characters only very rarely

say precisely what they are thinking.

Human beings are not very articulate creatures. Despite all the
words at our disposal, words tend to fail us at key moments, and
even when we know what we want to say we spend a whole lot of

time trying to describe and articulate what we feel without being

quite able to do it properly. We misunderstand, overemphasize,
underemphasize, grasp at what we mean, and conversations go
astray. So when two characters go back and forth explaining
precisely what they are feeling or thinking to each other, it doesn't
seem remotely real.

Good dialogue is instead comprised of attempts at articulation.

There's a whole lot that is kept back, because we humans only rarely
really truly put our true feelings out there.

Now, this shouldn't be taken too far and a conversation shouldn't be

an endless string of misunderstandings (unless you're Samuel
Beckett), but the way in which characters express their feelings and
how they articulate what they're feeling is one of the most important
ways of revealing character. Are they reserved? Boisterous? Do they
bluster? Hold back?

Characters who say exactly what they mean are generic. Characters
who talk around their emotions and objectives are much more
interesting.

FIVE DIALOGUE FUNCTIONS:

Whatascript!:
Colonel, does that mean that any dialogue should fulfill one of these
functions?

Col. Jessep:
Yes, at least one. Potentially more.

Sometimes when I speak I have one movie dialogue function in mind.

Sometimes 2 or 3 - with one function being predominant.

And sometimes I speak in such a way that I fulfill all the 5 movie dialogue
functions at the same time.

Whatascript!:
Colonel, can you give us an example of this multifunctional use?

Col. Jessep:
The climax scene at the end of the script with this Navy Lawyer LieutenantSmartass guy who pins me on a technicality.

In that scene I fulfill all 5 movie dialogue functions. I bring conflict, character,
information, emotions, and move the story forward.

Whatascript!:
I see. Could you elaborate on the first movie dialogue function, moving the
story forward?

Col. Jessep:
I'd appreciate it if you addressed me as Colonel or Sir. I believe I've earned it.

Movie dialogue function #1: Moving the story forward

Whatascript!:
Colonel, could you elaborate on the first function?

Col. Jessep:
No problem, son. I'm here to help anyway I can.

Whatascript!:
Thank you.

Col. Jessep:
You believe that, don't you? son? That I'm here to help anyway I can?

Whatascript!:
Of course.

Col. Jessep:
I'll answer all your questions. But you have to ask me nicely.

Whatascript!:
Colonel Jessep... if it's not too much trouble, could you elaborate on the first
movie dialogue function? and move this interview ... uh ... forward?

Col. Jessep:
No problem, son.

If your words stop the action, do not add anything to the story or do not have
the plot in mind, then you do NOT move the story forward.

I never did that.

Considering the fact I used to eat breakfast 80 yards away from 4000 Cubans
who were trained to kill me, I had neither the time nor the inclination to chit
chat or not to be focused on my mission.

Whatascript!:
Colonel, could you give us an example of the application of this first movie
dialogue function?

Col. Jessep:
You may recall when Jo and Danny ...

Whatascript!:
You mean Commander Jo Galloway and lieutenant Kaffee, Colonel?

Col. Jessep:
Yes, as I said, when Jo and Dany came to see me at Guantanamo Bay to find
out about the incident with young William ...

Whatascript!:
You mean the death of PFC Santiago, Colonel?

Col. Jessep:
Son! Don't ever interrupt me again. I don't have time to repeat myself. Now if
that's a source of problem for you, well, I don't give a shit.

So, like I said, in that meeting:

I talk about the practice of Code Red (information),

I say what I think about it (it reveals my character)

I gladly put Kaffee down (conflict)

by addressing the fact that a woman gives him orders (pushing his buttons
and calling forth his emotions).
And all of what I say moves the action forward.

JO
(to JESSEP)
I was wondering if you've ever heard
the term Code Red.

KAFFEE
Jo --

JESSEP
I've heard the term, yes.

JO
Colonel, this past February, you
received a cautionary memo from the
Naval Investigative Service, warning
that the practice of enlisted men
disciplining their own wasn't to be
condoned by officers.

JESSEP
I submit to you that whoever wrote
that memo has never served on the
working end of a Soviet-made Cuban
Ml-Al6 Assault Rifle. However, the
directive having come from the NIS,
I gave it its due attention. What's
your point, Jo?

KAFFEE
She has no point. She often has no
point. It's part of her charm. We're
outta here. Thank you.

JO
My point is that I think code reds
still go on down here. Do Code Reds
still happen on this base, colonel?

KAFFEE
Jo, the colonel doesn't need to answer
that.

JO
Yes he does.

KAFFEE
No, he really doesn't.

JO
Yeah, he really does. Colonel?

JESSEP
You know it just hit me. She outranks
you, Danny.

Whatascript!:
Colonel, have you ever heard the term "on the nose" dialogue?

Col. Jessep:
I've heard the term, yes... That's a characteristic of weak characters.

I submit to you that they have never served on the working end of a Sovietmade Cuban Ml-Al6 Assault Rifle. They do not live in the urgency. They just
chit-chat, say what they do, and express what they feel the way it is. All the
time. No subtext. No creativity. No nothing. Just a flat dialogue.

They might as well go to Dialogueville and jump off the "Nose" rock.

Whatascript!:
Do you have any recommendation for the screenwriters who are at the
source of such flat dialogues, colonel?

Col. Jessep:
Maybe -- and I'm just spit balling here -- but maybe writers have a
responsibility to their audience that their characters charged with its
entertainment are trained to speak properly.

#2
We asked the Colonel Jessep from the screenplay "A Few Good Men", written
by Aaron Sorkin, to lead us through the 5 movie dialogue functions.

Why? because he's an extraordinary character who uses one or more of these
functions every time he speaks.
And he has no issue letting us know the "truth" about what they are and how
to use them.

Whatascript!:
Colonel, in the previous article about the first movie dialogue function,
"Moving the action forward" you covered the 5 movie dialogue functions as
well as their purpose and gave your views about "on the nose dialogue".

Can you let us know about the second movie dialogue function, "revealing
character"? what do you mean by that?

Col. Jessep:
What people say and how they say it, defines them. Their way of speaking
reflects their background, education and values.

A marine will speak differently from a lawyer, a priest or a politician in

Washington.

Look at me. I live in a world that has walls. And those walls have to be
guarded by men with guns. I have a great responsibility. I am in the business
of saving lives. That gives my speaking.

Whatascript!:
Colonel, could you give us an example?

Col. Jessep:
No problem, son. I'll give you three. And then I'll ask you what it says about
me.

Example #1: these are the first lines I say in the screenplay to Lt Kendrick
about the Private Santiago who wants to be transferred off the base.

JESSEP
Who the fuck is PFC William T.
Santiago.

KENDRICK
Sir, Santiago is a member of Second
Platoon, Delta.

JESSEP
Yeah, well, apparently he's not very
happy down here at Shangri-La, cause
he's written letters to everyone but
Santa Claus asking for a transfer.

And now he's telling tales about a

fenceline shooting.
Example #2: I speak to Lt Daniel Kaffee about commander Galloway (in her
presence).

JESSEP
I want to tell you something Danny
and listen up 'cause I mean this:
You're the luckiest man in the world.
There is, believe me gentlemen,
nothing sexier on earth than a woman
you have to salute in the morning.
Promote 'em all I say.
Example #3: I have a conversation with the late Captain Markinson about the
transfer of private Santiago.

JESSEP
Transfer Santiago. Yes I suppose
you're right. I suppose that's the
thing to do. Wait. Wait. I've got a
better idea. Let's transfer the whole
squad off the base. Let's -- on second
thought -- Windward. The whole
Windward division, let's transfer
'em off the base. Jon, go on out
there and get those boys down off
the fence, they're packing their

bags.
(calling out)
Tom!

The ORDERLY cones in from the outer office.

ORDERLY
Sir!

JESSEP
Got me the President on the phone,
we're surrendering our position in
Cuba.

ORDERLY
Yes sir!

JESSEP
Wait a minute, Tom.

The ORDERLY stops.

JESSEP
(continuing)
Don't call the President just yet.
Maybe we should consider this for a

second. Maybe -- and I'm just spit

balling here -- but maybe we as
officers have a responsibility to
train Santiago. Maybe we as officers
have a responsibility to this country
to see that the men and women charged
with its security are trained
professionals. Yes. I'm certain I
once read that somewhere. And now
I'm thinking that your suggestion of
transferring Santiago, while
expeditious, and certainly painless,
might not be in a manner of speaking,
the American way. Santiago stays
where he is. We're gonna train the
lad. You're in charge, Jon. Santiago
doesn't make 4.1 on his next fitness
report, I'm gonna blame you. Then
I'm gonna kill you.

So, looking at this second movie dialogue function, "revealing character",

what do all these dialogues say about me?

Whatascript!:
Permission to speak freely, Sir!

Col. Jessep:

Permission granted, son.

Whatascript!:
You've got a sense of humor - borderline sarcastic, are theatrical, mysoginist,
arrogant, full of yourself, enjoy dominating and humiliating others, and
nobody should ever f.. around with you - excuse my French.

How am I doing? Sir!

Col. Jessep:
I'm gonna tear your eyes right outta your head and piss in your dead skull.
You f.. with the wrong marine.

Movie dialogue function #3: Communicating information

We asked the Colonel Jessep from the screenplay "A Few Good Men", written
by Aaron Sorkin, to lead us through the 5 movie dialogue functions.

Why? because he's an extraordinary character who uses one or more of these
functions every time he speaks.
And he has no issue letting us know the "truth" about what they are and how
to use them.

Whatascript!:
Colonel, you covered so far 2 out the 5 movie dialogue functions:

Moving the action forward and

Revealing character
Col. Jessep:
Right. Let's jump now to the third of these 5 movie dialogue functions:

communicating information.

There are things I know as a character that I need to let you know, the
audience, otherwise you will not follow the plot.

You will not be able to understand what I am doing and what's going on.

We call that exposition.

Whatascript!:
This seems easy to do --

Col. Jessep:
Well, it's not, son.

It's very much like training private Santiago to run and not fall from
exhaustion.

The dialogue rule #10 "Fire Bob, his family and friends" talks about exposition
and how to deal with it.

The recommendation is to give information through conflict.

This is what I do. This way I keep you interested, it does not look too obvious
and you discover new aspects of my character when I deliver this
information.

Whatascript!:

Colonel, can you give us some examples?

Col. Jessep:
No problem, son.

There is this scene when I let the audience know about the relationship I have
with the late Captain Markinson.

But what you are left with, is not the back story, the background information,
no, you are left with the tension between us.

And yet, you get the information, which allows you to better understand why
Markinson has difficulty with me.

MARKINSON starts to stand --

JESSEP
(continuing)
Matthew, siddown.
(beat)
We go back a while. We went to the
Academy together, we were commissioned
together, we did our tours in Vietnam
together. But I've been promoted up
through the chain with greater speed
and success than you have. Now if
that's a source of tension or

embarrassment for you, well, I don't

give a shit. We're in the business
of saving lives, Captain Markinson.
Don't ever question my orders in
front of another officer.

It of course reveals my character as well (which is the second of the 5 movie

dialogue functions I talked about).

I'll give you another example about giving information.

This time, it is in a scene between the very special Commander Jo Galloway

and Lieutnant Kaffee.

Jo moves close to KAFFEE to say this with a degree of

confidentiality.

JO
I do know you. Daniel AlliStair
Kaffee, born June 8th, 1964 at Boston
Mercy Hospital. Your father's Lionel
Kaffee, former Navy Judge Advocate
and Attorney General, of the United
States, died 1985. You went to Harvard
Law on a Navy scholarship, probably
because that's what your father wanted

you to do, and now you're just

treading water for the three years
you've gotta serve in the JAG Corps,
just kinda layin' low til you can
get out and get a real job. And if
that's the situation, that's fine, I
won't tell anyone. But my feeling is
that if this case is handled in the
same fast-food, slick-ass, Persian
Bazaar manner with which you seem to
handle everything else, something's
gonna get missed. And I wouldn't be
doing my job if I allowed Dawson and
Downey to spend any more time in
prison than absolutely necessary,
because their attorney had predetermined the path of least
resistance.

Whatascript!:
Colonel, in both cases the information is introduced through conflict. Can you
give us a more "peaceful" approach?

Col. Jessep:
What's your problem, son?

Story is conflict. Life is conflict. My life is conflict.

I eat breakfast 80 yards away from 4000 Cubans who are trained to kill me.

But alright! I'll give you an example.

This time, it's about creating a situation, that allows you to give information
in a natural manner.

I've got a daugher, Skylar. She met this guy, Will something. Absolutely no
material for the marines.

He comes from a script written by Matt Damon and Ben Affleck, Good Will
Hunting.

She says he's a genius in maths, which I couldn't care less here at Windward
base.
The truth is, he's a trouble maker who has that luxury of doing nothing with
his life while I stand on the wall of freedom, defending it, day and night.

Anyway, that's what Judge Malone said to this Will character in court after he
got arrested for assault. And that's how he communicated backstory
information to the audience.

JUDGE MALONE
March, '94 public drunkenness, public
nudity, assault. 10/94 mayhem.
November '94, assault. Jan. '95
impersonating a police officer,
mayhem, theft, resisting -- overturned--

The Judge takes a beat. Gives Will a look.

JUDGE MALONE
You're in my courtroom, now and I am
aware of your priors.
(beat)
I'm also aware that you're an orphan.
You've been through several foster
homes. The state removed you from
three because of serious physical
abuse.

Movie dialogue function #4: Creating conflict between characters

We asked the Colonel Jessep from the screenplay "A Few Good Men", written
by Aaron Sorkin, to lead us through the 5 movie dialogue functions.

Why? because he's an extraordinary character who uses one or more of these
functions every time he speaks.
And he has no issue letting us know the "truth" about what they are and how
to use them.

Whatascript!:
Colonel, you covered so far for us the basics of dialogue and three of the 5
movie dialogue functions:

Moving the action forward and

Revealing character
Communicating information
Can you tell us your views on the fourth of these 5 movie dialogue functions:
conflict?

Col. Jessep:
With pleasure.

"Conflict is what every story is really about."

It's about someone who wants something and someone else gets in his way
of getting it.

And the bigger the want and the opposition are, the bigger the conflict is.

Nobody would have come to see me in "A Few Good Men", if I had agreed
with everybody on everything.

You see, there would have been no conflict with private Santiago if I had
transferred him.

No conflict with Captain Markinson if I hadn't given the Code Red and handled
Santiago.

No conflict with Lieutenant Kaffee if he had agreed to leave me in peace.

No conflict with the Cubans if they had agreed to stay away from our borders.
And so on.
But we ALL disagreed. BAM! Conflict. One, two, three, plenty of conflicts.

And the movie dialogue - in the said or unsaid (subtext) - allows to express
that conflict and build tension in the story.

Whatascript!:
Colonel, can you give us some examples to illustrate this movie dialogue
function?

Col. Jessep:
I'll give you three, son.

Example #1:
the commander Galloway comes to Guantanamo to see mee and asks me
about the Code Red.

JO
Colonel, the practice of code Reds
is still condoned by officers on
this base, isn't it?

JESSEP
You see my problem is, of course,
that I'm a Colonel. I'll just have
to keep taking cold showers 'til
they elect some gal President.

JO

I need an answer to my question,

sir.

JESSEP
Take caution in your tone, Commander.
I'm a fair guy, but this fuckin'
heat's making me absolutely crazy.
You want to know about code reds?
On the record I tell you that I
discourage the practice in accordance
with the NIS directive. Off the record
I tell you that it's an invaluable
part of close infantry training, and
if it happens to go on without my
knowledge, so be it. I run my base
how I run my base. You want to
investigate me, roll the dice and
take your chances. I eat breakfast
80 yards away from 4000 Cubans who
are trained to kill me. So don't for
one second think you're gonna come
down here, flash a badge, and make
me nervous.

Example #2:
It follows above scene. Lt Kaffee who's there with commander Galloway asks
me about the transfer order of Private Santiago.

KAFFEE
Let's go. Colonel, I'll just need a
copy of Santiago's transfer order.

JESSEP
What's that?

KAFFEE
Santiago's transfer order. You guys
have paper work on that kind of thing,
I just need it for the file.

JESSEP
For the file.

KAFFEE
Yeah.

JESSEP
(pause)
Of course you can have a copy of the
transfer order. For the file. I'm
here to help anyway I can.

KAFFEE

Thank you.

JESSEP
You believe that, don't you? Danny?
That I'm here to help anyway I can?

KAFFEE
Of course.

JESSEP
The corporal'll run you by Ordinance
on your way out to the airstrip. You
can have all the transfer orders you
want.

KAFFEE
(to JO and SAM)
Let's go.

The LAWYERS start to leave.

JESSEP
But you have to ask me nicely.

KAFFEE stops. Turns around. Sam and JO stop and turn.

KAFFEE
I beg your pardon?

JESSEP
You have to ask me nicely. You see,
Danny, I can deal with the bullets
and the bombs and the blood. I can
deal with the heat and the stress
and the fear. I don't want money and
I don't want medals. What I want is
for you to stand there in that faggoty
white uniform, and with your Harvard
mouth, extend me some fuckin'
courtesy. You gotta ask me nicely.

KAFFEE and JESSEP are frozen. Everyone'staring at Kaffee;

The OFFICERS at their tables... KENDRICK... SAM...
MARKINSON... JO... KAFFEE makes his decision.

KAFFEE
Colonel Jessep... if it's not too
much trouble, I'd like a copy of the
transfer order. Sir.

JESSEP smiles.

JESSEP
No problem.

Example #3:
It regards a colleague of mine, the Emperor Commodus. He passed away in
very tragic circumstances. He was in a script written by David Franzoni and
John Logan, Gladiator. In this scene he talks to Gracchus, a representative of
the Senate.

Gladiator - Conflict between Gracchus and Commodus

COMMODUS
... I shall hold them to my bosom
and embrace them tightly --

GRACCHUS
Have you ever embraced someone dying
of plague, sire?

Commodus stops. Looks at him. A lethal moment.

COMMODUS
No. But if you interrupt me one
more time I assure you that you
shall.

A family member of mine, Aaron Sorkin , said in an interview:

Any time you get two people in a room who disagree about anything, the
time of day, there is a scene to be written. That's what I look for.

Conflict is at the heart of the story. Always.

Conflict is also the best way to:

deal with exposition as illustrated by this example of Enemy of the State, and

write unexpected movie dialogue as shown in this example of Good Will

Hunting.

Movie dialogue function #5: Calling forth emotions

We asked the Colonel Jessep from the screenplay "A Few Good Men", written
by Aaron Sorkin, to lead us through the 5 movie dialogue functions.

Why? because he's an extraordinary character who uses one or more of these
functions every time he speaks.
And he has no issue letting us know the "truth" about what they are and how
to use them.

Whatascript!:
Colonel, you covered so far for us the basics of dialogue and four of its 5
movie dialogue functions:

Moving the action forward

Revealing character
Communicating information
Creating conflict between characters
Can you tell us your views on the last of these 5 movie dialogue functions:
calling forth emotions?

Col. Jessep:
Think of the screenplays or movies you like.

Many times a character says something and it echoes where you are. You get
moved, angry, sad, joyful.

Whatever you feel, that's primarily a function of the dialogue you just heard
or of a combination of the picture and the dialogue.

Whatascript!:
Colonel, can you give us some examples of the application of this movie
dialogue function?

Col. Jessep:
If you paid attention, you'll have noticed that basically all the examples I
gave about

"revealing character" and

"creating conflict between characters"

qualify.

They elicit an emotion while you hear them, right?.

The same applies to the last scene of my story, when this Danny boy with his
Harvard mouth and faggoty uniform puts a whole nation in jeopardy by
having me arrested.

How dare did he play a trick on me? I gave him his freedom by risking my life
every day.

Everybody in the court was filled with anger. And wanted to grab the bastard.

JESSEP
I'm being charged with a crime? I'm -that's what's happening? This -- I'm -this is funny, you know that, this
is --

And JESSEP lunges at KAFFEE, and KAFFEE would be dead but

for the three M.P.'s who've leapt in to restrain JESSEP.
SAM and JO have come to their feet and stand behind KAFFEE.

JESSEP
(continuing; to Kaffee)
I'm gonna tear your eyes right outta
your head and piss in your dead skull.
You fucked with the wrong marine.

And then everybody got filled with a feeling of injustice. Everyone was just
dumfounded, flabbergasted, stupefied, and ...

Whatascript!:
thunderstruck?

Col. Jessep:
Right! JESSEP (continuing) You fuckin' people. (beat) You have no idea how to
defend a nation. (continuing; to KAFFEE) All you did was weaken a country
today, Kaffee. That's all you did. You put people in danger. Sweet dreams,
son.

Whatascript!:
Colonel, these were effectively very ... uh ... dramatic circumstances.
Any other example - outside your own domain - maybe less tragic?

Col. Jessep:
Yes, son. It's about a man fighting. Not the Cubans like I did, but another big
C, terminal cancer.

In this scene, George, from the screenplay Life as A House written by Mark
Andrus, tells his estranged son, Sam he's dying.

GEORGE
I'm having a problem with cancer.

Sam stops flipping through the CD's.

SAM

I don't know what that means. What kind

of problem?

GEORGE
The kind where there isn't really an
answer.

SAM
I still don't know what that means.

GEORGE
I wanted you here so we could have a few
months together. Maybe everything
happens for a reason. Something bad to
force something good.

Sam looks somewhat panicked.

SAM
What? Are you dying?

George nods his head.

SAM (CONT'D)
And you told Mom today?

GEORGE
Yes.

Sam whacks the CD's off his stomach; they scatter across
the floor. Guster scoots off the bed in a panic.

SAM
Fuck you! You knew you were dying from
the start!

Sam bounds out of bed in a rage.

GEORGE
We're all dying from the start.
(beat)
I just got picked for Advanced Placement.

SAM
You lied to me!

GEORGE
I would have lied to me if I thought I'd
believe it.

SAM
This was all for your sake, wasn't it?

Having me here? Trying to get me to like

you.

GEORGE
I never tried to get you to like me.
(beat)
I tried to get you to love me.

SAM
Well, congratulations! You fucking
pulled it off!

Sam storms out of the garage.

Col. Jessep:
At least this George guy, got appreciated.

Whatascript!:
Yes. Hmm. Colonel, this concludes our series of interviews about the 5 movie
dialogue functions. Thank you for coming out of your jail and speaking to me.

Col. Jessep:
You're welcome, son.

Whatascript!:
You believe that, don't you Colonel, that I'm thankful?

Col. Jessep:

Of course, son.

Whatascript!:
Don't call me son!

I'm a screenwriter and a reporter of a great country and I'd prefer deal with
the bullets and the bombs and the blood than spending 5 more minutes with
you, and your condescending arrogance, son...ofabitch.

Guard, the prisoner is excused!