Screenwriting 101: Jeffrey Boam

“Ultimately, plot is of little importance, more of a mechanical contrivance against which characters come to life. Plot tries to engage intellectually but that’s not how an audience responds… Critics have said that Lethal Weapon is brainless, but that’s not the point. I try to bypass the brain and go right to the senses. I want emotional reaction, not intellectual engagement. An audience wants to be wound up because it enjoys the pop at the end when it’s liberated… People go to movies because they have a deep-rooted need to see a heroic figure go through physical torture and come out victorious.”

— Jeffrey Boam (Lethal Weapon 2, The Lost Boys, Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade)

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