# What do you think of my movie concept?



## apdscott (Aug 13, 2007)

I have come up with the following high concept movie.

A man wakes up in an abandoned factory with no memory of who he is. His only clues a Phone, a number and a ripped photo of a woman who looks to be in bad shape.


What does everybody think? Does it interest you?

Alan


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## Linton Robinson (Aug 13, 2007)

That is not a "high concept"   It's an opening scene.   We have no idea where it goes from there.  It could be a rehash of many similar films.  Or it could be something very cool.

We have not idea from what you've said.

But it is NOT "high concept".    High concept is like "mother and daughter change bodies"   or "pro wrestler turns kindergarten teacher"


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## evlddd (Aug 13, 2007)

From what you have described, it could be good, but it is definetly not high concept. You should write more of the plot before asking anyone to make judgement.


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## mammamaia (Aug 13, 2007)

as noted, it's not 'high concept' but could be interesting enough, depending on where you go from there... could also be nothing more than a cliche ripoff of the many others with a similar 'mc w/ amnesia' start... asking for an opinion at this stage is a waste of time, sorry to say...

love and hugs, maia


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## Linton Robinson (Aug 13, 2007)

Hey, why didn't the rest of think of saying that?


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## mammamaia (Aug 13, 2007)

gee, _two_ of us did!... didn't know there was a rule that only one person per thread can offer the same advice and no one after that could or should agree with it... gosh, i wonder if my pay'll get docked for committing that breach of whatever!


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## Linton Robinson (Aug 13, 2007)

Well, gee.  It's not a crime.  It's just that usuaslly people are trying to help the OP.  ANd your last four posts on the forum were all just repeating what had already been said, therefore no help at all.

Which is sort of germain.  If somebody is posting not to help or inform people who ask questions, but for private reasons... how valuable is anything they say?  How trustworthy?   How good of an idea is it to send your email address to somebody who is running their own agenda and just trying to "be present' even if they have nothing to say?

Worth thinking about.

I mean, you can do that if you want.   But why?

What pay?


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## rocky (Aug 14, 2007)

Ever saw the movie SAW. That bits sounds a bit like how that movie started. Going with what was mentioned above, we need to know where this is going or it may well be a cliched plot.

Rocky


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## Merforga (Aug 14, 2007)

Sounds interesting enough but it' not really an idea as mentioned above ,it's just the bare bones opening of your script.


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## Linton Robinson (Aug 14, 2007)

> You can not make peace where peace does not exist , you can only make peace by winning"



Not true.   You can often make peace by just leaving or shutting up.

It's true.   Read your newspapers.


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## Merforga (Aug 14, 2007)

lin said:


> Not true.   You can often make peace by just leaving or shutting up.
> 
> It's true.   Read your newspapers.


It's a quote from a military person so there isn't much room for diplomacy there .


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## Linton Robinson (Aug 14, 2007)

Ah.

The sad thing is that peace, like so many things, can be quickly and easily destroyed, while requiring years of effort to create.


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## mammamaia (Aug 14, 2007)

> ANd your last four posts on the forum were all just repeating what had already been said, therefore no help at all.


 
'my last four posts,' huh?... i'm wondering how you'd know what my last four _were_, since i make many more than that number daily and post replies in quite a few of the many sections on this site alone... it's too bad you haven't anything more worthwhile to do with your time than to keep track of all my posts [anyone else's, or am i the only lucky one?], so you can make such an unnecessarily judgmental statement... as if you've _never_ posted an agreement with a prior post yourself, right?... like the shady lady in the song of old, you're more to be pitied than scorned, fella... 

love and peaceful condolences, maia


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## Linton Robinson (Aug 15, 2007)

Running out of meds?   Alimony check late?   Slipping a few gears?

You want change?   BE it.


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## apdscott (Aug 15, 2007)

How's this for a more complete synopsis.

A man wakes up with no memory, and find himself a contestant in a twisted and dangerous game show.


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## Linton Robinson (Aug 15, 2007)

Been there, done that.


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## Siglark (Aug 16, 2007)

There was an episode of Dr. Who that handled that premise quite well. You should be able to find it on youtube. It's called "Bad Wolf".


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## nightfire117 (Aug 16, 2007)

And the fact that Battle Royale was exploited publicly in almost a game-show-esque way, well, that's another thing to consider.

~Night


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## TruthSeeker (Aug 18, 2007)

it reminds me with *Memento* somehow!


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## apdscott (Aug 21, 2007)

Thanks for the feedback. I also had another idea I wanted peoples thoughts on.

A clerical error allows Steven Jameson, an antisocial, alcoholic jerk, to avoid hell, and instead become a guardian angel. 

Alan


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## Wild Card (Aug 21, 2007)

If I were gonna be a stickler, I'd point out that you don't become an angel when you die according to the traditional mythology; you just chill with the extant angels in the hereafter.

But I'm not really a stickler, so I won't.

I'll be honest, it's neither the most unique nor original concept. The not-so-angelic Angel thing has been done many times before, from the forgettable John Travolta vehicle "Michael" to Kevin Smith's far less forgettable "Dogma". I personally don't like it, but fortunately my opinion is not the only one that matters here.


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## Linton Robinson (Aug 25, 2007)

> you don't become an angel when you die according to the traditional mythology



Actually you talking about Biblical interpretation there.   The mythology of angels is what you see on the jillion angel sites and books and calendars.  Mythology lives.


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## Guitar_chick133 (Sep 8, 2007)

apdscott said:


> I have come up with the following high concept movie.
> 
> A man wakes up in an abandoned factory with no memory of who he is. His only clues a Phone, a number and a ripped photo of a woman who looks to be in bad shape.
> 
> ...


 
wow!! you named the premise for the movie "Unknown" an Independent film.
you can IMDB it...it has Jim Caviezel in it.

that happends to me alot...pisses me off real bad too.


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## paroma (Sep 8, 2007)

hello?!!...did you ever see the movie "MOMENTO"????...thats how that movie works..infact exactly like that...are you sure you havent seen it...
incase you havent checkit out..its a very cool concept..


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## Guitar_chick133 (Oct 18, 2007)

hey, here's one you could try... thats probably been done, LOL!

oh, and by the way, about 90% of stuff thats been made or being made is always reminecint of something else. 

anyway... this is how I wrote it down. ( one of my many idea pieces I spew onto the pages of my note book, and then hopefully getting a good story by putting the pieces together  lovely imagry right? lol.)

this started out as a line from a book called "the Pocket muse" that my sister has ( she is a writer as well.)

Todays Horoscope: A dull person will suddenly become interesting.

so I wrote:

"He came into work, same as always. He walked by the same people, said the same things, he even mouthed their same responses to himself, everyday. He sat down at his same old desk, and turned around in his same old chair to greet his same old friend. Only today, he wasn't there."


it's a piece of an idea I tried to work into a story, but havn't got around to it yet.


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## Wallmaker (Oct 26, 2007)

Okay, your second logline is much clearer... and some feedback has already stated that, as is, it's a little too derivative...  

Now, that doesn't mean it can't work.  This sick Gameshow's a little old hat, but what if he finds it's all part of something else?  Or maybe he doesn't have amnesia, but chooses to be part of the Gameshow with Battle Royale do or die contestants...?  

I'm not a fan of amnesia... it makes it hard to relate to a protagonist when you don't know who they are... and they don't either.  Plus.. it usually leads to the inevitable plot twists that they aren't the victims, but the killers... etc.  That conflict of.. is it me or someone else doing this?  I just sooo... overdone.  I've read so many scripts that try to pull off that Fightclub style twist ending... and you can't cause audiences are ready for it. 

So, a few questions:  What's important about him having amnesia?  Who is this guy as a character, what's his goal in the story, emotional and plotwise?
What's the Genre?  Seems to be thriller/horror?

Keep asking yourself these questions... these answers will become clearer and your logline will become more specific and begin to have a life of its own.


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## MSWordUp (Nov 30, 2007)

I'm convinced that every new writer, every one, myself included, writes the obligatory amnesia story, in some manner or another, when they begin writing.

Every one.


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## Alex R (Nov 30, 2007)

i havent. Never will.

I like the plot, but be carefull that you do not rip from other stories 

When i write i try to say to myself that every idea i have has to be new


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## Linton Robinson (Dec 1, 2007)

There is no way that every idea you have can be new.   Or even that you could find that out.

Watch out for those sweeping rules and pronouncements, they cripple your creativity.


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## AnAmericanImmigrant (Feb 5, 2008)

Alex R said:


> i havent. Never will.
> 
> I like the plot, but be carefull that you do not rip from other stories
> 
> When i write i try to say to myself that every idea i have has to be new





lin said:


> There is no way that every idea you have can be new.   Or even that you could find that out.
> 
> Watch out for those sweeping rules and pronouncements, they cripple your creativity.


That is true. Awhile back, I thought I had a new and very creative idea about a Muslim immigrant journalist from a third world country who comes to study in U.S.A. to learn about the American culture and lifestyle.

I wrote about a paper or two on that and even showed it a friend of mine. Then all the sudden, my friend told me that there's a new movie called "Borat" and he said it sounded so similar to my idea. We went to see it and honestly some of the movie's concepts matched my ideas.

To be honest, I was unaware about Sacha Baron Cohen's Borat character on HBO. I've heard of his Ali G character. From that day I saw Borat, it kind of made me forget about writing at all. Borat was so good that I scrapped it. I don't know, just seems like every "new" idea has already been taken.


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## Industrial (Feb 5, 2008)

I liked your first introduction. I don't think you really understand the concept of a concept. You are really just introducing a setting, it could go anywhere as lin mentioned. 

I need more information to tell you what I think, It could be really chill ass, or it could suck.


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## Katastrof (Feb 5, 2008)

MSWordUp said:


> I'm convinced that every new writer, every one, myself included, writes the obligatory amnesia story, in some manner or another, when they begin writing.
> 
> Every one.



I have no recollection of this event. 

Anyways: apdscott, it doesn't matter if you're idea is good or has been done before, its what develops from that idea that is important. Many ideas can be stupid at first, but once action has been taken to implement them, they could have the potential to become great. 

Stop worrying that your idea might not be good; make it good.


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## Linton Robinson (Feb 7, 2008)

> I'm convinced that every new writer, every one, myself included, writes the obligatory amnesia story, in some manner or another, when they begin writing.
> 
> Every one.


That's a VERY peculiar conviction.   Where did you come up with that idea?


BTW, I was just posting on another site and said,  "Any writing "rule" with the word EVERY is bullshit."   Some more than others, or course.


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## Dwood (Feb 20, 2008)

apdscott said:


> How's this for a more complete synopsis.
> 
> A man wakes up with no memory, and find himself a contestant in a twisted and dangerous game show.




I'd say the movie Saw combined with Doctor Who.


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## Vee (Feb 21, 2008)

You do what you think is right.  Don't worry about all these people saying its been done.  There's no such thing as an original work.  It does not matter if it is cliche.  Cliches exist because they are truisms.  They become like proverbs and old wives tales.  It is impossible to have an original concept, so don't you worry about it. 

"There's nothing new under the sun" - someone famous/infamous


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