25: Cary and Deborah enter Cary's grandmother's home. Deborah: "It's perfect, something about it makes you want to whisper." He talks about his grandmother and she enters. They hug. He introduces Deborah. They like each other very much. The birth of something new.
45: She thanks him for the loveliest day she's ever known. She plans to write to Cary's grandmother. They walk, stop, and he kisses her; interesting angle: we only see them from the waist down when they kiss. "No more tears." "Rough seas ahead" as they plan to change course because of their affection. They say good night, it rains. Now that I'm aware.
60: The ship arrives in NYC, they each see, wave, and go to their fiance and go their separate way. He kisses and touches her hand before leaving. There's no going back now.
-45: Ken realizes Deborah has fallen for another. He tells her to be realistic and consider Cary's reputation. "He'll never be able to support you." He tries to convince her but when he asks "Can't you see I'm in love" she replies "So am I." We see her looking at the Empire State Building. Cary visits his friend the art gallery owner. "The old is dead and the new is starving." Cary wants the thrill of that first sale of his art. Discovery.
-25: Deborah conducts a children's choir and orchestra, it's a song about listening to your conscience. Cary visits a friend who critiques his paintings. He mentions a particular painting and we see it. "Here you became a painter." This is the painting at the end of the movie and when he sees it he knows Deborah is unable to walk and that's why they didn't meet before. The final turning point.
The Secret Life of Walter Mitty
25: Walter (Danny Kaye) jokes with fellow airmen in a fantasy. His mother nags and bosses him around. Rosalind, the girl in Walter's recent fantasy sits next to him. Rosalind is followed and knows it, she kisses Walter and exits. They meet and kiss again and take a cab together. She says she thinks she can trust him. The birth of something new.
45: Walter is in a store, he sees a man with a knife following him. He buys dog biscuits and eats them. He nervously hides and for a while wears a dog mask. Now that I'm aware.
60: In a fantasy, Walter gambles and drinks a mint julip aboard a riverboat. He beats someone at cards and as bubbles crowd the scene he gives Rosalind the deed to the plantation. There's no going back now.
-45: Rosalind cries, Walter says he'll help. They look in the phone book for an address and arrive at the house. They eventually find the book that they're looking for. Rosalind gives Walter her golden wooden shoes to ward off evil. Discovery.
-25: Rosalind hides the book in a drawer and pretends Walter has it. The professor places something in Walter's drink and he falls to the ground after drinking. The professor reveals he is the antagonist and his assistants make their presence known. Walter wakes up. Eventually he becomes more of a man of action and gets together with Rosalind. The final turning point.
45: Walter is in a store, he sees a man with a knife following him. He buys dog biscuits and eats them. He nervously hides and for a while wears a dog mask. Now that I'm aware.
60: In a fantasy, Walter gambles and drinks a mint julip aboard a riverboat. He beats someone at cards and as bubbles crowd the scene he gives Rosalind the deed to the plantation. There's no going back now.
-45: Rosalind cries, Walter says he'll help. They look in the phone book for an address and arrive at the house. They eventually find the book that they're looking for. Rosalind gives Walter her golden wooden shoes to ward off evil. Discovery.
-25: Rosalind hides the book in a drawer and pretends Walter has it. The professor places something in Walter's drink and he falls to the ground after drinking. The professor reveals he is the antagonist and his assistants make their presence known. Walter wakes up. Eventually he becomes more of a man of action and gets together with Rosalind. The final turning point.
Bolt
25: Bolt arrives at Times Square in NYC via a package. After a number of attempts to get things done, he discovers that his superpowers aren't working. The birth of something new.
45 and -45 (129 - 45 = 44): Rhino the hamster talks about Bolt's superpowers and shows off his birth mark. Rhino tells Mittens that Penny loves Bolt: "How dare you disrupt that relationship." Rhino wants to be with Bolt and tells him he could be a valuable addition because of his reflexes, stealth, and would keep the cat in check. Rhino joins Bolt and Mittens on their journey to Hollywood. The dog becomes aware that the hamster has been watching him, which is a surprise. Rhino leads them to a train and a bridge they must jump off. Discovery and Now that I'm aware.
60: Bolt and Rhino free Mittens from the animal shelter. Mittens is really surprised they came back for her. There's no going back now.
-25: Inside a home hauled by a truck, Mittens talks about her past life inside a house. Mittens directs Bolt to stick his head outside the window. During a song we see a montage of interesting places as they journey across the country. Eventually, Bolt reaches Hollywood and becomes a real hero after saving Penny in a fire. The final turning point.
45 and -45 (129 - 45 = 44): Rhino the hamster talks about Bolt's superpowers and shows off his birth mark. Rhino tells Mittens that Penny loves Bolt: "How dare you disrupt that relationship." Rhino wants to be with Bolt and tells him he could be a valuable addition because of his reflexes, stealth, and would keep the cat in check. Rhino joins Bolt and Mittens on their journey to Hollywood. The dog becomes aware that the hamster has been watching him, which is a surprise. Rhino leads them to a train and a bridge they must jump off. Discovery and Now that I'm aware.
60: Bolt and Rhino free Mittens from the animal shelter. Mittens is really surprised they came back for her. There's no going back now.
-25: Inside a home hauled by a truck, Mittens talks about her past life inside a house. Mittens directs Bolt to stick his head outside the window. During a song we see a montage of interesting places as they journey across the country. Eventually, Bolt reaches Hollywood and becomes a real hero after saving Penny in a fire. The final turning point.
Rosemary's Baby
This movie helped launch Roman Polanski, Robert Evans and Paramount. Notice the use of red and green to represent evil and good.
25: Rosemary and Guy eat dinner with their strange new next door neighbors, they talk about travel, ridicule religion, and Guy's acting career. There's something about Minnie and Roman that doesn't seem quite right, and later Rosemary notes that some of the paintings have been removed from the walls. The birth of something new.
45: Rosemary is awake but drugged, not fully aware that she's being raped by the Devil. She's hallucinating she's on a sailboat in a storm. She's tied to a bed "down below" near a furnace and a group of chanting naked people including her husband, Minnie and Roman as red paint is brushed over Rosemary's body. In her drugged state, Rosemary apologizes to the Pope and says she was bitten by a mouse - earlier she ate chocolate mousse that contained a drug. Now that I'm aware.
60: Rosemary gets a new haircut and feels a sharp pain in her stomach. Dr. Sapirstein, her new doctor, says it's a natural expansion but the pain continues. It rains, she looks awful but her husband says she looks great. She cuts a steak, heats it for a few seconds, and eats it nearly raw. Her friend Hutch visits, learns she's pregnant, and wonders why she's lost so much weight. Roman visits while Hutch is there and they discuss the Tanis root necklace she wears. Hutch says he'll do some research on Tanis root and other things. Later, Hutch goes into a coma and dies. Earlier, two others who seemed to be in the way of Roman and Minnie were killed, so Hutch's coma doesn't come as a surprise. There's no going back now.
-45: Rosemary uses Scrabble pieces to discover that Roman is the son of a well known witch from a book Hutch gave her called "All of Them Witches." Rosemary gives her husband the book, which he later throws away. Rosemary visits Dr. Sapirstein and tells him about Roman and Minnie, and soon Roman and Minnie leave the building and say they won't be coming back for a long time. Discovery.
-25: Rosemary is in Dr. Hill's office and says "God bless Dr. Hill," she believes everything is going to be okay, she thinks she's going to a nice clean hospital with no visitors. From her purse, she removes pills that Dr. Sapirstein prescribed. "Unspeakable monsters" she says repeatedly. She has a quick dream of her with a perfect baby showing it to others. But her husband, Dr. Sapirstein, and Dr. Hill arrive and tell Rosemary to go with them or she's going to a mental hospital. Eventually, we see that Roman and Minnie never left the building and that the baby is the Devil's, and that her husband is in on it because they're helping him succeed as an actor. And the final resolution is a shocker: Rosemary intends to help the baby grow up. The final turning point.
25: Rosemary and Guy eat dinner with their strange new next door neighbors, they talk about travel, ridicule religion, and Guy's acting career. There's something about Minnie and Roman that doesn't seem quite right, and later Rosemary notes that some of the paintings have been removed from the walls. The birth of something new.
45: Rosemary is awake but drugged, not fully aware that she's being raped by the Devil. She's hallucinating she's on a sailboat in a storm. She's tied to a bed "down below" near a furnace and a group of chanting naked people including her husband, Minnie and Roman as red paint is brushed over Rosemary's body. In her drugged state, Rosemary apologizes to the Pope and says she was bitten by a mouse - earlier she ate chocolate mousse that contained a drug. Now that I'm aware.
60: Rosemary gets a new haircut and feels a sharp pain in her stomach. Dr. Sapirstein, her new doctor, says it's a natural expansion but the pain continues. It rains, she looks awful but her husband says she looks great. She cuts a steak, heats it for a few seconds, and eats it nearly raw. Her friend Hutch visits, learns she's pregnant, and wonders why she's lost so much weight. Roman visits while Hutch is there and they discuss the Tanis root necklace she wears. Hutch says he'll do some research on Tanis root and other things. Later, Hutch goes into a coma and dies. Earlier, two others who seemed to be in the way of Roman and Minnie were killed, so Hutch's coma doesn't come as a surprise. There's no going back now.
-45: Rosemary uses Scrabble pieces to discover that Roman is the son of a well known witch from a book Hutch gave her called "All of Them Witches." Rosemary gives her husband the book, which he later throws away. Rosemary visits Dr. Sapirstein and tells him about Roman and Minnie, and soon Roman and Minnie leave the building and say they won't be coming back for a long time. Discovery.
-25: Rosemary is in Dr. Hill's office and says "God bless Dr. Hill," she believes everything is going to be okay, she thinks she's going to a nice clean hospital with no visitors. From her purse, she removes pills that Dr. Sapirstein prescribed. "Unspeakable monsters" she says repeatedly. She has a quick dream of her with a perfect baby showing it to others. But her husband, Dr. Sapirstein, and Dr. Hill arrive and tell Rosemary to go with them or she's going to a mental hospital. Eventually, we see that Roman and Minnie never left the building and that the baby is the Devil's, and that her husband is in on it because they're helping him succeed as an actor. And the final resolution is a shocker: Rosemary intends to help the baby grow up. The final turning point.
Taken
Good writing to set up Liam's character so we understood why he resorted to the violence to get back his daughter. Good camera work, especially quick cuts of flashback moments as Liam examines the apartment where the girls were taken. Good editing/pacing of fights and car chases.
25: Liam (Bryan) talks to his daughter Kim over the phone. Kim tells her father men have entered the apartment and taken Amanda. Liam gathers info and after listening to his daughter scream he warns the kidnapper with memorable lines: "I will look for you, I will find you, and I will kill you." The birth of something new.
-45: (128 -45 = 43): Liam talks too much to a prostitute to provoke an Albanian pimp. Liam places a listening device on the pimp and along with a translator listens in on a conversation. Discovery.
45: Via an Albanian interpreter, Liam discovers that his daughter could be the "fresh merchandise" at a construction site. At the site, he enters a small prostitution enclosure, finds his daughter's jacket, fights off attackers, and escapes with the young woman who had the jacket. Later, the young woman provides new information, sending Liam to a new location. Now that I'm aware.
60 and -25: Liam pretends to be a government official extorting money from his daughter's kidnappers. He receives money from them and asks them to interpret something in Albanian. He hears one of the kidnappers say "good luck" and knows he's talking to the same man he warned he'd find and kill. Liam kills nearly all of them and searches many rooms. He find Amanda, Kim's friend, dead. Eventually, Liam finds his daughter and takes her back to Los Angeles. There's no going back now and The final turning point.
25: Liam (Bryan) talks to his daughter Kim over the phone. Kim tells her father men have entered the apartment and taken Amanda. Liam gathers info and after listening to his daughter scream he warns the kidnapper with memorable lines: "I will look for you, I will find you, and I will kill you." The birth of something new.
-45: (128 -45 = 43): Liam talks too much to a prostitute to provoke an Albanian pimp. Liam places a listening device on the pimp and along with a translator listens in on a conversation. Discovery.
45: Via an Albanian interpreter, Liam discovers that his daughter could be the "fresh merchandise" at a construction site. At the site, he enters a small prostitution enclosure, finds his daughter's jacket, fights off attackers, and escapes with the young woman who had the jacket. Later, the young woman provides new information, sending Liam to a new location. Now that I'm aware.
60 and -25: Liam pretends to be a government official extorting money from his daughter's kidnappers. He receives money from them and asks them to interpret something in Albanian. He hears one of the kidnappers say "good luck" and knows he's talking to the same man he warned he'd find and kill. Liam kills nearly all of them and searches many rooms. He find Amanda, Kim's friend, dead. Eventually, Liam finds his daughter and takes her back to Los Angeles. There's no going back now and The final turning point.
Introduction to the 5 moments
When editing a movie or organizing the story structure of a screenplay, do filmmakers follow a structural plan involving 5 moments? What if they did? Would you want to know about the 5 moments?
The next time you watch a good movie, notice what happens at 25 minutes into the film, 45 minutes into the film, 60 minutes into the film, 45 minutes before the film ends, and 25 minutes before the film ends: 25 45 60 -45 -25. Calculate -45 and -25 when the story ends, not when the final credits end.
Notice how movie professionals seem to place their most important moments at 25 45 60 -45 -25:
25 minutes into The Bourne Ultimatum the CIA finds Bourne and issues an order to kill him. 45 minutes into Straight Time Dustin Hoffman steals a car and handcuffs his parole officer to a fence on the freeway. 60 minutes into
In the above films, 25 45 60 -45 -25 are pivotal moments, inspirational, entertaining, emotionally turbulent moments that helped the screenwriter and filmmaker persuade the audience to care about their characters and what happens to them.
The 5 moments in
25: Tony Stark is in the cave, he examines a metal ring used to create the mini arc reactor that will fit in his chest. Soon, the light of the arc reactor turns on, his new power source is born. The birth of something new.
45: An emotionally intense Tony Stark tells the press he never said good-bye to his father. He declares that because his weapons have fallen into the wrong hands he's shutting down his company's weapons production. Now that I'm aware.
60: He's flying around the room, struggling to control his power, and he succeeds: "Yeah, I can fly." He's making real progress, there's no going back to the drawing board. There's no going back now.
-45 (1:57 - 45 = 1:12 into the film) Tony receives new information about a besieged village from a reporter, learns more about the situation and escalates his action: he flies to the village and starts rescuing people. Discovery.
-25 (1:57 - 25 = 1:32 into the film) Pepper discovers the video that proves Obadiah Stane wants Tony dead. Final turning point.
In every good film and screenplay you'll find these 5 moments:
25: The birth of something new.
45: Now that I'm aware.
60: There's no going back now.
-45: Discovery.
-25: The final turning point.
The symmetry of 25 45 60 -45 -25 obeys a dynamic truth of nature: What goes up, must come down. So it is in the beginning, so it is in the end: 25 45 60 -45 -25.
You'll find the 5 moments in all your old favorites. Examine the following 5 moments in Romancing the Stone, and notice that -45 comes before 60 because Romancing the Stone lasts an hour and forty-three minutes: 1:43 subtracted by 45 means 58 comes before 60.
25: Joan is alone on a mountainous road, the antagonist walks into frame, pulls out a gun and aims it at her. Jack Colton arrives and discharges a barrage of gunfire to chase away the antagonist. 25 is where the heroine is confronted by the antagonist and where the love affair begins. The birth of something new.
45: Joan and Jack sit in a torn up cargo plane. Jack offers Joan a bottle of tequila and wants to become aware of why Joan left NYC for Columbia. Joan lies about why she's in Columbia. Within two minutes Jack finds the treasure map, a discovery that ignites future turbulence between Jack and Joan. Now that I'm aware.
-45: (1:43 - 45 minutes = 58 minutes into the film) The ally with the monster truck opens the door and asks, "You are Joan Wilder, the novelist?" An almost unbelievable coincidence but since we love Joan and Jack we don't care. Because Juan (Alfonso Arau) learns Joan writes the books he loves he lets them in. Discovery.
60: Joan and Jack tour Juan's home and within minutes they're in a monster truck that jumps over a stream to escape the antagonists. There's no going back now.
-25: (1:43 - 25 minutes = 1:18) Joan and Jack reach Mother's Milk, a small pool where they find the green diamond. The final turning point.
Knowing where the 5 pivotal moments belong in a screenplay will fundamentally change how you look at movies and how you read and write screenplays. The 5 moments will beef up your confidence because they offer an objective formula pinpointing exactly when key moments happen. It's a precise structural tool to improve your ability to analyze and organize story structure so you can tell a better story.
If you've read a lot of books on screenwriting then you're aware of certain approximations when it comes to story structure (p. 10-20, p. 50-60, p. 80-90). If you're looking for precise guidance when it comes to story structure, the 5 moments offer a reliable, objective, naturally strong structural dynamic.
When the subject matter means the world to you, you owe it to yourself to know exactly where everything goes. Look at what the professionals are doing. They know exactly where everything goes. Shouldn't you?
War and Peace
25: Andre prepares to leave for war and meets with his father, a tough but lovable guy. Andre's sister gives him an heirloom he promises not to take off. Andre's father thanks Andre for doing his duty and keeping "the army before everything." Andre asks his father to get a doctor to care for his wife, he is concerned about her health. Andre's father tells Andre that if he dies in battle he'll be hurt, but if he doesn't behave honorably it will be worse, "I will be shamed." Andre asks that if he has a son and he dies in battle that his son not be taken away, "let him grow up here with you, please." His father agrees. The birth of something new.
45: Natasha's brother returns from war, Natasha sees him kiss her friend. Natasha: "I want to know what men are like." Natasha and her brother talk about love and marrying the right and best way. Andre returns, wounded. Andre's wife dies after giving birth. Now that I'm aware.
60: Two sleighs pulled by horses race in the snow. Laughter, singing, and Pierre (Henry Fonda) gives Natasha a friendly kiss. Later, during a hunt, Natasha is formally introduced to Andre. In the next scene during a dance, Andre's VO tells us he's going to marry Natasha if she turns and smiles at him. She turns and smiles. There's no going back now.
-45: Pierre is in prison awaiting execution. A fellow prisoner cheerfully talks about his unfortunate life and how a religious perspective, belief, and prayer have helped him: "the great thing is to live in harmony." Discovery.
-25: The old general discusses strategy on how to deal with Napoleon's retreating army. We watch thousands die as Napoleon's army leaves Russia. Eventually, Andre dies and Pierre and Natasha get together. There's no going back now.
45: Natasha's brother returns from war, Natasha sees him kiss her friend. Natasha: "I want to know what men are like." Natasha and her brother talk about love and marrying the right and best way. Andre returns, wounded. Andre's wife dies after giving birth. Now that I'm aware.
60: Two sleighs pulled by horses race in the snow. Laughter, singing, and Pierre (Henry Fonda) gives Natasha a friendly kiss. Later, during a hunt, Natasha is formally introduced to Andre. In the next scene during a dance, Andre's VO tells us he's going to marry Natasha if she turns and smiles at him. She turns and smiles. There's no going back now.
-45: Pierre is in prison awaiting execution. A fellow prisoner cheerfully talks about his unfortunate life and how a religious perspective, belief, and prayer have helped him: "the great thing is to live in harmony." Discovery.
-25: The old general discusses strategy on how to deal with Napoleon's retreating army. We watch thousands die as Napoleon's army leaves Russia. Eventually, Andre dies and Pierre and Natasha get together. There's no going back now.
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