1. Title: Dead Between LA & Vegas Reader: PK
Author: Rainy Kerwin Coverage
Date:
January 20, 2015
Genre: Crime Comedy Writer:
Pass,
Consider,
Recommend
Recommend
Circa: Now Material:
Pass,
Consider,
Recommend
Recommend
Pages: 105
LOGLINE: ​Four dimwit filmmakers get mixed up in a murder conspiracy involving a
smooth-talking lowlife, a trunkload of cocaine and cash, and a high-roller who likes putting out
his cigars on strippers. Oh, and that high-roller is the guy who’ll be approving the budget for
the filmmakers’ upcoming film.
SYNOPSIS: ​On the last day of a film shoot, one of the actors is accidentally killed while
shooting the climactic shoot-out scene. After the majority of the crew has left, the four
remaining filmmakers -- Malone, the director; Carl, Malone’s brother; Ted and Kat, actors --
debate about what to do with the body. After much back-and-forth, they decide to haul the
corpse in one of the vehicles’ trunk - the Gran Torino - and go to a nearby diner to fuel up and
think on full stomachs. When they exit the diner, finally having come up with a plan, they
begin looking for the Gran Torino - and realize it’s been stolen. Panicked at first, they realize
this is great news: now they don’t need to worry about disposing the dead body! They get
started on cutting a trailer for their movie to show the studio executives on Monday morning
so they can get approval for the post-production budget of $75,000. In an unrelated story
track, Rocky and Tom are introduced; the former is an exotic dancer, the latter is a lowlife
drug dealer. Tom meets Verne and Morgan, two hoods working for big boss Vader, in the
backlot of a club. Tom is there to sell cocaine to Vader’s men, but Verne and Morgan attack
Tom and knock him out cold. Tom pretends to be dead, and Morgan stuffs him in the vehicle’s
trunk. On their way to make the drop, Verne and Morgan decide to dump Tom’s body off in

2. the desert. However, upon doing that, their vehicle refuses to start. Tom springs up and
scares the daylights out of Verne and Morgan. However, he strikes a deal with them: he helps
them get their car started and they let him go. Tom successfully starts Verne and Morgan’s
vehicle and the latter two stick to their word. Tom begins walking and eventually comes up on
the diner where the four filmmakers are replenishing themselves. He spots the Gran Torino
parked in a dark corner of the parking lot, breaks in, hotwires it, and gets the hell out of
there. He reaches back to Rocky’s apartment - and empties his pockets of the drugs which he
stole out of Verne and Morgan’s vehicle when he was pretending to be dead in the trunk. He
overheard where Verne and Morgan were supposed to make the drop and heads over there in
the Gran Torino. Upon reaching the hotel location, he finally notices the dead body resting in
the Gran Torino’s trunk. Freaked, he shuts the trunk, wipes the car down for his fingerprints,
and goes up to the buyer’s room. With the deal complete, Tom is on his way out when he
overhears the buyer’s name: this is the same guy who puts out his cigar on Rocky’s body.
Tom is livid and wants to coldcock the life out of him; however, he reins his emotions in. He
gets a clever idea: he suggests the buyer take Tom’s Gran Torino to get to Los Angeles on
time for his meeting. The buyer loves the idea and bids Tom adieu. In the meantime, the four
filmmakers arrive at the studio on Monday morning ready to show their work to the
executives. While waiting in the reception, one of them looks down into the parking lot and
goes white: the Gran Torino is parked there! Turns out, the buyer who bought Tom’s drugs is
the studio executive who’s gonna greenlight the budget for the movie’s post-production - and
now even he knows there’s a dead body in the trunk! After getting the chief studio executive’s
approval for the movie, the four filmmakers find themselves in the budgetman’s tiny office.
The budgetman is sweating buckets because he recognizes the Gran Torino he’s driving from
the movie and thinks the filmmakers are playing some kind of prank on him to get him to
approve the required budget of $75,000. Malone, the director, realizes this and leverages this
knowledge - and budgetman’s fear - to get the budget approved. While walking out of the
studio building, the filmmakers see that the Gran Torino is being towed for being parked
illegally in budgetman’s reserved parking spot. In the end, we see the Gran Torino being
dumped in a junkyard.
COMMENTS: ​Zany ain’t the word! This is a deliriously silly, mad, screwball of a screenplay
which hurtles along with breakneck speed and gathers enough momentum to make you ignore
the nonsensical parts along with the loopholes and the inconsistencies. Now that I’m thinking
back to certain parts of the screenplay, they are making me scratch my head and wonder how
exactly they all added up. But such is the force of the narrative that it takes you in its arms
and makes you forget the logic of it all while laughing at the certified insanity unfolding before
us. This screenplay takes inspiration from Guy Ritchie’s caper movies in terms of the
interlocking storylines and the unhinged craziness. The point is: don’t ask too many questions.
Just roll with it. Recommended!
● The ​premise is appropriately whacky. It has all the elements necessary for an
entertaining ride: drugs, sex, money, murder, and, perhaps most crucially, people who
are both smart and dumb in their own ways
● The ​story is good, as long as you walk in with tempered expectations. Does it all add
up perfectly? Not really. But if you’re gonna bring a calculator to this movie, you’ren’t
the audience for it.
● The ​characterization is suitably limited. This is the kind of screenplay that is
populated with types instead of characters. This is not the place for character

3. development. Once bodies are in place to set the plot in motion, that is all that’s
necessary.
● The ​plot is decent. At times, it drags a bit. But, overall, it carries us along despite our
intelligence wanting to kill the party.
● The ​dialogue is funny. The arguments are filled with great energy and vigor, and
despite the characters’ low IQ, it does not condescend. It has great affection for
everyone.
● The ​flow​is great. I zipped through this one. It is entertaining, funny, and drama-filled.
● The ​commercial appeal is high. This is a comedy in the vein of the ​Hangover movies.
It ought to attract a large audience looking for a good time and lots of LOLs.
● Castability should be easy. All the characters have well-etched roles to portray and
will provide them a great opportunity to showcase their talent and skill.
● The ​uniqueness quotient is good. It isn’t the most original story in the world, but it
strikes the right balance between novelty and familiarity.
● Writer’s attention to detail​is decent.
Excellent Good Fair Poor
Premise: X
Story: X
Characterization: X
Dialogue: X
Setting: X
Structure: X
Writer: X
Commercial Potential: X