A good movie is nothing without a great script behind it. Whether it’s great lines, non-stop action, or impeccable pacing, great writing can carry just about any film.
These are the movies with the “tightest” scripts that keep the story moving forward with no wasted motions.
Training Day
Not only is every scene in Training Day essential to its story, but it’s also so incredibly entertaining.
There’s always something vital happening, capturing the viewer’s imagination and demanding their attention. The story is also aided by the fact that we’re essentially riding along with Jake Hoyt (Ethan Hawke) on his one-day evaluation on the narcotics team alongside Alonzo Harris (Denzel Washington).
Jaws
A prime example of the movie being better than the book, every moment of the movie is spent moving the story forward.
You learn everything you need to know about the characters without a single second of downtime. Plus, unlike the book, you aren’t actively rooting for the shark.
Jurassic Park
Man, that Steven Spielberg is something special, isn’t he?
One thing that stood out to me about Jurassic Park after watching it recently was how quickly the movie flies by. 127 minutes, none of it wasted, and every second is packed with intrigue, thrills, and entertainment.
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Back to the Future
It’s the perfect movie from beginning to end. It does such a good job of setting the stage of 1985 Hill Valley and its citizens juxtaposed to 1955 Hill Valley.
Best of all, the film doesn’t waste any time. There were so many open opportunities for it to overstay its welcome or be a little too tongue-in-cheek, but it keeps building momentum through the end.
Chinatown
The last movie my professor had us watch in a film noir class was Chinatown. Despite the fact that it was released two decades after the golden age of film noir (1940s through 1950s), the film is still very noir-esque, but is catapulted thanks to its impressive script.
It’s such a brilliantly made movie that I’m glad it was the last movie we saw and discussed in that class.
L.A. Confidential
Speaking of noir-inspired films, let’s talk about L.A. Confidential.
Based on the 1990 novel by James Ellroy, there are a lot of moving parts that would normally overwhelm a movie, but the tight screenplay not only holds everything together, but also successfully connects the dots of everything that’s happened leading into the movie’s third act.
Double Indemnity
Might as well talk about an actual film noir classic, no? So many of these movies are hampered by obvious MacGuffins or storytelling that only exists to propel the plot forward.
Not Double Indemnity. Barbara Stanwyck’s Phyllis Dietrichson is one of the best-written femme fatales in movie history. It’s a treat to watch her work her magic.
Shaun of the Dead
Edgar Wright is a magician when it comes to scriptwriting, and Shaun of the Dead ranks as not just one of his best but the best scripts in movie history.
The moment the movie replays the convenience store scene, showing us how oblivious Shaun is to what’s happening around him as he performs the same actions he does on a daily basis, proves that we’re in for a treat.
Hot Fuzz
Take everything I just said about Shaun of the Dead and multiply it by ten. That’s how well written Hot Fuzz is.
Not only is the film packed with an infinite amount of jokes and references, but you can argue that the entire movie is building up to one spectacular joke at the end. No, it’s not the Point Break or Bad Boys II references. It’s the Aaron A. Aaronson joke.
Home Alone
Okay, hear me out. Is Home Alone the type of movie you’d expect to be in this company? Probably not, but think about it for a second.
We quickly run through how dysfunctional the McAllister house is, sympathize with Kevin, and suspend our disbelief that an eight-year-old can not only function on his own, but take down two experienced thieves.
The Social Network
Surely there’s no way they can make the story behind Facebook one of the best movies of the 2010s, right?
Screenplay by Aaron Sorkin.
Ah, well then. I guess they can! Seriously, though, the pacing for this movie is off the charts, with the action and stakes building at breakneck speed like a house of cards, perfectly mirroring the meteoric rise of the social media site.
Tremors
Every single line of dialogue is building to something. I’m actually sad that I never had the chance to watch the movie in film school or discuss the merits of the script, because we absolutely should have.
The way everything gets a payoff after an intentional setup is a work of art.
The Terminator
I’d argue that the sequel is a better movie, but it’s hampered by a weaker script that could have used some trimming.
The original Terminator isn’t bogged down in the same way, with every word of the script being put to good use.
Groundhog Day
The defining mark of how good Groundhog Day‘s script is how effectively it communicates how long Phill Connors (Bill Murray) has been stuck in the time loop without coming out and saying it.
I feel like if the movie were made today, it would mention several times that Phil has been trapped for thousands of years. We’d hear about everything he’s perfected and manipulated. Danny Rubin and Harold Ramis’ script shows us everything we need to know.
Dogville
When Quentin Tarainto praises your movie for having one of the best screenplays of all time, you may be on to something.
There isn’t a single wasted moment in Dogville. Every line of dialogue, every action by its cast, and every moment all have a purpose.
Ocean’s 11
Yes, Ocean’s 11 is a Steven Soderbergh film through and through, but Ted Griffin’s script does as much heavy lifting as anything else.
These are some of the most well-written characters I’ve ever seen in a movie; I could watch George Clooney talk about planning a Vegas heist as Brad Pitt eats food all day long.
Die Hard
Normally, action movies are jam-packed with fat as an excuse to slow things down, add in some exposition, and build momentum back up.
Not Die Hard. The script is structured in a way where that feels like there’s a constant clock ticking down until John McClain (Bruce Willis) finally faces off against Hans Gruber (Alan Rickman). The way the movie keeps the action flowing without tiring out the viewer is impressive.
The Fifth Element
Another Bruce Willis action film with a tight script. Maybe he just knew how to pick ’em?
What impresses me most about The Fifth Element is how it doesn’t bog the film down with unnecessary explanations. There’s a certain magic that comes with the magic and intrigue of its sci-fi setting. Keeping certain things mysterious (looking at you, great evil) kept me invested throughout.
The Sixth Sense
Say what you want about the more recent works of M. Night Shyamalan, there’s no denying he was correctly slated as the modern Alfred Hitchcock after The Sixth Sense.
I’ve never seen a movie that so effectively tells you what’s happening (we saw Bruce Willis die!) but convinces you that’s not the case until it’s time for the grand reveal.
The Devil Wears Prada
God, I truly do love this movie, and I am so hopeful for its sequel.
What works the most about The Devil Wears Prada‘s script is how you truly do feel for all of its characters. They’re all flawed in their own way, but you can’t help but root for them. That’s the sign of a good script.
Except for Andy’s friends, they suck.
The Birdcage
The most obvious strength of The Birdcage‘s script is how elegantly it sets everything up for the dinner scene, where the jokes do not stop coming.
One thing that I feel like is underappreciated, though, is how well it portrays Armand and Albert (Robin Williams and Nathan Lane). They’re not caricatures of what society views them to be, and are instead portrayed as real people dealing with real problems.
Alien
An unfortunate trend in modern movies is the constant need for exposition or an overreliance on telling viewers exactly what’s happening rather than letting them piece things together.
Alien works so well because it doesn’t fall victim to these pitfalls, instead trusting everyone to understand what’s happening on screen and putting the pieces together for themselves. It helps, too, that the characters are actually intelligent and act like real people, rather than actors in a movie who are simply moving the plot from point A to point B.
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