Script Analysis: “Beasts of No Nation” — Scene By Scene Breakdown

Here is my take on this exercise from a previous series of posts — How To Read A Screenplay:

After a first pass, it’s time to crack open the script for a deeper analysis and you can do that by creating a scene-by-scene breakdown. It is precisely what it sounds like: A list of all the scenes in the script accompanied by a brief description of the events that transpire.

For purposes of this exercise, I have a slightly different take on scene. Here I am looking not just for individual scenes per se, but a scene or set of scenes that comprise one event or a continuous piece of action. Admittedly this is subjective and there is no right or wrong, the point is simply to break down the script into a series of parts which you then can use dig into the script’s structure and themes.

The value of this exercise:

• We pare down the story to its most constituent parts: Scenes.
• By doing this, we consciously explore the structure of the narrative.
• A scene-by-scene breakdown creates a foundation for even deeper analysis of the story.

Today: Beasts of No Nation (2015). You may download the script for here.

Beasts of No Nation
Scene-by-scene Breakdown
By Jacob Holmes-Brown
GoIntoTheStory.com

Pages 1–2: Introduction to AGU (10), a mischievous but innocent boy. Agu and his friend, DIKE, use the frame of an old television to make money off the occupying ECOMOD (UN sanctioned) troops. They and their friends “act” out the television programs.

2–4: Agu’s BIG BROTHER (15) spots the two and ropes them into another money making scheme: blocking the road with branches then charging bush taxis a “tax” to remove the obstacle. Agu is a willing participant.
An OLD WITCH WOMAN confronts Agu and she curses him (on behalf of his family) for her displacement from her land.

4–7: Agu (through V/O) introduces his “good family”; his FATHER teaching in a school and helping build a refugee camp on the land they gave up; his MOTHER cooking and caring for his BABY BROTHER and LITTLE SISTER; and Big Brother (obsessed with his looks and getting the girls). Agu and Big Brother fight and annoy each other as siblings do. The family attends church and believes in God.

7–12: Continued introduction of family (incl. GRANDFATHER). Agu’s father makes Agu return his “earnings” to the ECOMOD soldiers; the food is meant for the refugees. The radio illuminates the political situation of Agu’s region: a military coup has established a new regime (NRC) that has announced all other parties illegal; the NRC aim to rid the country of the opposing PLF and NDF (Native Defence Force). Agu’s father reassures him that they are living in the safe “buffer zone”.

12–15: Agu’s father wakes the family for an emergency meeting at the church. On the way, Agu sees the NRC trucks roll into town.

The village elders and PASTOR argue over what the town should do: flee and abandon their belongings or fight for what is theirs? ECOMOD have offered to take women and small children to a safer area. Agu is looking for his friend Dike; Dike and his family have fled already.

15–20: Agu’s mother and father argue over their family’s safety. Father wins: he will stay whilst Mother and the children will leave.

There is not enough room on the ECOMOD truck: Agu must stay with the men.

20–25: NRC GOVERNMENT TROOPS clash with PLF REBELS and Agu, Big Brother, Father and Grandfather are forced to take shelter. They are captured by NRC troops who interrogate them and don’t believe that they are from the village. The Old Witch Woman is brought in identify them, she lies and says she doesn’t recognise them. The NRC SERGEANT sentences Agu’s family to death; Agu and Big Brother break free, trying to escape. Big Brother is shot.

25–33: Agu flees through the jungle, barely surviving. He is ambushed by a BOY with a machete and surrounded by NDF (Native Defence Force) SOLDIERS. Agu is beaten, tied up and expects to die.

Enter: the COMMANDANT, the powerful leader of the NDF, who asks what is being done with Agu. He questions his TWO-I-C about Agu and details to the crowd how a boy can be dangerous. Commandant asks Agu where he is from and promises to help the boy if he tells. Agu explains about the NRC troops and his town, and about fleeing. Commandant tells him that they have come from “Alpha Town” and that Agu’s father must be dead. He offers Agu a place in his army, to personally turn Agu into a warrior to fight the army that killed his father: Agu agrees, he has no other options.

33–36: Agu carries ammunition and distributes water on the way back to the NDF camp. Commandant leaves Agu with Two-I-C. Agu is placed with the other boys of the SBU (Small Boys Unit): STRIKA (the boy who ambushed him), HOPE, GRIOT, PREACHER, JUSTICE and CHICKEN LEGS. Agu is not given a ration, he is not yet a “real soldier”; he is jealous of Strika’s apparent preferential treatment by Commandant.

37–46: Agu trains with the NDF soldiers. He is told that their mission is to destroy those “who destroys the peace”. Agu (in V/O) tells Mother that he will find her after the war is won.
Two-I-C and Commandant explains that the NRC government is illegal and their enemy; they must destroy the NRC before the international community can be fed the lie that the NDF is causing the war.

Agu is initiated: he is laid in a shallow grave, the clearing drenched in smoke. Chickens and goats are sacrificed and stones are buried. Agu is pulled out “reborn”. The initiates run a gauntlet, being beaten. Then Agu is cut, his wounds bandaged and a PRIEST blesses him. He is now a soldier.

Commandant announces the intention to join forces with a greater army under Supreme-Commander DANA GOODBLOOD.

47–57: After initiation, Commandant takes Agu aside: “Have you killed a man before?” Hope and Chicken Legs assure him it is easy. Strika gives Agu some fruit as a peace offering.

The SBU prepare for an ambush. The other boys sniff brown-brown (cocaine mixed with gunpowder); Griot gives Agu some kind of alcohol to prepare him.

Chicken Legs fires an RPG and halts a convoy of Trucks and Lightly Armoured Vehicles. The PLF and NRC soldiers surrender immediately and Commandant executes them.

A survivor, a CORPORAL, is found. Commandant tells Agu that this Corporal is the one who killed his father and that he must kill him. The Commandant decides that Agu must kill the man with a machete. The Corporal begs but Agu focuses his anger, chopping the man up.

Agu vomits and Commandant tells him that God wanted justice. Agu thinks (in V/O) that he has committed a great sin and that he can feel it in his body.

The other soldiers celebrate their victory over the NRC.

Commandant rewards Agu with a new rifle and promotes both Agu and Strika to his personal “Special Guards”.

58–60: Commandant sells the SBU a dream of the “town of abundant resources”, where he will take them — a place of bountiful food, beautiful women and sexual release. They are interrupted by the arrival of CIVILIAN REFUGEES who claim that the NRC and PLF attacked their village.

Commandant makes the decision to go into battle.

60–65: Commandant surveys the battle whilst Hope shows Agu the remnants of the villagers: bodies with their hands cut off, allegedly the work of the PLF.

Commandant speaks to Two-I-C over the radio. Two-I-C explains that they are facing difficulty but Commandant expects them to take a bridge.

Commandant rallies up his SBU and they charge into battle. Led by Commandant it is as if they are invincible, untouchable and they successfully storm the PLF position.

65–69: In the aftermath the soldiers loot the bodies and finish off survivors. Agu barely notices that Chicken Legs is torturing his prisoner. Agu loots a body, finding a small bundle of gold nuggets.

Agu shows Strika the gold and Strika then takes him to see Commandant.

Commandant is speaking over radio to Supreme Commander Dada Goodblood; he is in line for a promotion.

Agu hands over the gold and Commandant is impressed, he offers Agu some brown-brown. Commandant explains the plan: they are travelling to Taro visit Dada Goodblood and then will be on to the Capital. Agu will be able to look for his mother.

Commandant tells Agu that he is his favourite and swears him to secrecy. He then commands Agu to fellate him.

69: Agu hobbles (presumably raped) and collapses into Strika’s waiting arms and cries. The two boys are alone in their pain and understanding.

70–76: The NDF soldiers prepare for battle on the outskirts of a rural village. Hope notices Agu hobbling in pain, and gives him brown-brown to take off the edge. Commandant prepares his soldiers by telling them that they are entering a land of enemies.

A convoy of UN vehicles passes them and Agu makes eye contact with a white woman in the convoy. He is provoked to anger by her apparent fear.

Agu enters a drug fuelled daze. He says (V/O) he is a servant to his gun and he trails after the violence wrought by the NDF.

From rural village — to salt flats — to a stairwell — to a candlelit den; each time Agu is unsure of how he got here.

Agu joins an assault on a fortified home. He challenges God (V/O) to witness his actions.

The SBU comes across a WOMAN and her DAUGHTER (10) hiding in a cupboard. Agu mistakes the woman for his mother and hugs her. She shrinks in fear. The boys drag her from the cupboard preparing to rape her. Agu is disgusted that the woman is not his mother and shoots her.

Agu’s attention is drawn to the rest of the village, a view of atrocities being committed.

77–84: Commandant gets the call: the NDF are to travel to Taro.

Taro, the “town of abundant resources” is full of heavily armed men and burnt out cars. Commandant doesn’t receive the welcome he expects, it is as if he isn’t expected at all.

Commandant must leave his troops on the outskirts and Agu and Strika accompany him to Goodblood’s HQ.

Whilst they wait at the HQ, Agu watches the delegations bring Goodblood tribute.
They are kept waiting until it is too late, Goodblood will see them in the morning.

84–88: Commandant attends his meeting with Goodblood with Two-I-C, Strika and Agu in tow. Commandant is suspicious of Goodblood’s motivations; Goodblood has decided not to take the capital, he now wants to play the game of international politics. Two-I-C is to take over Commandant’s battalion and Commandant will be “promoted” to Deputy Secretary of Defense. They are to ally with the UN and ECOMOD.

Commandant argues his “promotion” and Goodblood assures him that he won’t have any reward without obedience. Commandant appears to agree with the plan but he wants to spend one more night with his men. He tells Two-I-C to gather them.

89–96: Commandant takes the men to a whorehouse. The men are uneasy with Commandant’s calls for free flowing drinks and girls, he seems to have taken his news too well. Commandant calls for the MADAME to secure a “special” girl for Two-I-C, the request is loaded. The men go off with girls and Agu and Strika are left alone.

Two-I-C bursts from his room, he has been shot. The GIRL he was with claims ignorance, an accident. As Two-I-C accuses Commandant of organising his murder, Commandant orders Agu and Strika to gun down the girl and the madame for conspiring.

As Two-I-C dies he asks Agu: “Do you know you are just a boy?” And, “Was this all for nothing?”

Commandant tells Agu: “Sometimes, Agu, I am feeling sorry for you.”

Commandant uses Two-I-C’s death to undermine Goodblood’s command; his NDF battalion will go and claim their own territory.

96–99: The NDF battalion is ambushed whilst sleeping in the jungle and Agu and Strika are numb, clinging to each other. They gather what they can from the dead. All the men are exhausted but Commandant wants them to move out.

Strika is immovable and reveals that he was struck by shrapnel. Agu carries him.

Agu hears a distant song, like one his mother sang. He wants to know if Strika heard it too, but Strika is dead… Agu mourns.

99–106: Agu stands in a muddy trench and spies the girl from the whorehouse. She is now pregnant and struggling to get out of the trench. He refrains from shooting her and she is grateful, only to be killed moments later. Agu barely registers her death.

Agu hears his mother’s song from out of the surrounding mist. Preacher tells Agu that they are out of ammo and commands him to find more.

Agu, in a haze, finds Commandant, overseeing a flailing goldmine. He tells the Commandant that everyone is dead. Commandant instructs Agu that everyone will betray him eventually, but he (Commandant) will always look after Agu like a son.

Preacher confronts Commandant, he is leaving because there is no ammo and the conditions are poor. Other NDF soldiers rally behind him in agreement.

Commandant curses them with a vision of their future: rejected through fear from their home villages, condemned to a life lacking in education and purpose, just orphans.

Commandant walks up to Agu and points the boy’s rifle at his heart. Agu says that he wants to surrender and not fight. He leaves with the other NDF men.

Agu questions the sun (V/O) and why it must shine down and reveal all the evil things they have done.

The surrendering NDF troops are processed through a UN checkpoint.

106: Agu awakes in a clean bed, in a facility presumably for orphaned children. He watches the other CHILDREN play in the sea but he cannot join in. He speaks (V/O) of how he cannot shake off the reminders of war.

We see a series of flashbacks: Agu arriving at the facility; Agu sweating out his drug addiction; Agu fighting against the camp staff.

Preacher says goodbye to Agu, he cannot stay because all he knows is how to fight, to be a soldier.

Agu’s counselor, AMY, tries to get him to speak of his experiences. He explains to her that the terrible things he has seen are more than could be seen by twenty thousand men and that he wants to be happy, not to dwell on the horror.

He tells her that he is not only a beast or a devil, but also a boy who had a family.

Agu watches the other children play and he cannot help himself, he steps forward to join in.

END

Writing Exercise: I encourage you to read the script, but short of that, if you’ve seen the movie, go through this scene-by-scene breakdown. What stands out to you about it from a structural standpoint?

If you’d like a PDF of the Beasts of No Nation script, go here.

Kudos to Jacob Holmes-Brown for doing this breakdown.

For 100+ movie scripts broken down scene by scene, go here.