Page One: “Milk” (2008)

Written by Dustin Lance Black

A trailer for the movie:

Milk is a good example of starting with an incident in the present, then recounting the story leading up to the event in the past. In essence, the bulk of the movie is an extended flashback.

Why begin with the assassination of Harvey Milk? It grabs one’s attention. While we now know what happens to the story’s Protagonist, that “answer” creates a larger question: Why?

The movie tells that story as well as the gay pride movement in San Francisco.

There is another draft of the script which is how I remember the movie starting: Harvey Milk speaking into a tape recorder saying, “This is only to be played in the event of my assassination.”

You may read that draft here.

FOR EDUCATIONAL PURPOSES ONLY!

Page One is a daily Go Into The Story series featuring the first page of notable movie scripts from the classic era to contemporary times. Comparing them is an excellent way to study a variety of writing styles and see how professional writers start a story.

For more Page One posts, go here.

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