1. Lucy Pratt 13u 13/11/18
Annotating a Film Script- Clue
1 | P a g e
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clue_(film)
"Cl ue i s a 1985 Ameri can ensembl e mystery comedy fi l m based on the board game of the
same name......In keepi ng wi th the nature of the board game; the theatri cal rel ease
i ncl uded three possi bl e endi ngs, wi th di fferent theaters recei vi ng one of the three
endi ngs. In the fi l m's home vi deo rel ease, al l three endi ngs were i ncl uded. The fi l m
i ni ti al l y recei ved mi xed revi ews and di d poorl y at the box offi ce, ul ti matel y grossi ng $14.6
mi l l i on i n the Uni ted States agai nst i ts budget of $15 mi l l i on, though i t l ater devel oped a
cul t fol l owi ng."
Style:This isa script fora film.The script
iswrittenas a shootingscriptwhich
differsfromthe TV show scriptI have
analysedasthat wasnot. The differents
isthat thisscript mentionssome of the
differentcamerapositionssuchas
‘INSIDECELLAR DOOR’.Thisis due to the
fact thisisthe scriptthat wouldbe given
to the technical team forguidance onthe
writersinitial ideasof the shottypes.The
TV scripthad some small camerashots,
such as followingthe arrow,togive the
actors an ideaof the feel of the scene but
thisscripthas more directionswithinit
for the technical teamandprobablythe
directortoo.
DuringWadsworthmonologues,where
he is explainingthe eventsof the
murders,the writerusesdashes,
connectingeachwordto helpemphasize
that itis spokensofastthat it all sounds
like one.
Content:Thisfilm,beinginspiredbythe familyboardgame Cludo,isamurderMysteryfilmwhere
an odd selectionof peopleare invitedtoadinnerpartythat endsupbeinga nightconsistingof
several murders.True tothe game,the filmdoesn’tjustsettle forone ending,itcontains4separate,
alternate endings.
Target Audience:My target audience analysisisonCanva.
2. Lucy Pratt 13u 13/11/18
Annotating a Film Script- Clue
2 | P a g e
Narrative Theory: Thisfilmdoeshave a beginning,the guestsall arrive andthe firstmurdertakes
place,middle,theyall splituptofigure outwhat is happening,andthe end.However,the endis
repeated4times,eachdifferent/alternativeversionsof the endingtothe film.Thisadheresto
Branigan’sTheory(1992). Alternatively,thisfilmdoesnotfollow Propp’stheoryof charactertypes
(1928). Thisisdue to the fact each
endingrevealsdifferentbackstories
for differentcharactersmakingthem
all Villainsduringthe course of the
filmfordifferentreasons. Intermsof
Todorov’stheory(1969) the
Equilibriumisthe entrance of eachof
the guestswiththe disruptionand
recognitionbeingthe firstmurderand
the otherones.The attemptto repair
thiswouldbe tryingto solve the
mystery,howeverthiscontinuesonto
4 alternative endingssothe new
equilibriumneverarrives.2Barthes
(1960s) codesthat I can talkabout fromthisfilmscriptwouldbe Referentialcode andthe Enigma
code.The Referential code referstothe information/explanationwithinthe script,inthiscase the 4
separate climax explanations.The Enigmareferstothe mysterythatthe audience cantry tosolve
throughoutthe filmonlytobe given4 endingstochoose from.Thisfilmdoesn’thave anybinary
opposition torepresentLevi-Strauss’sTheory(1972).Due to the differentendingsitisclearthatthe
Modular Narrative Cameronsuggested(2008) that linkstothisscript wouldbe ‘Forking-Path’asitis
aboutalternative versionsof the story,inthiscase the ending.
Genre Theory:This scriptisa perfectexampleof whatBuckingham(1993) andAltman(1999) are
tryingto say.This isdue to the fact the genre of thisscriptwouldbe Comedic,Mystery,Period
Drama. Comedydue towordingsuchas ‘He has demonstrated
all of thisat trulyphenomenal speed’,Mysterydue tothe fact
theyneedtosolve the murdersandperioddrama due to the
contextof the era and character back stories.Ryall’s(1978)
codesand conventions alsoapplytothis.Iconographies-The
unknownfactsand the fact that the storyprogresseswiththe
audience insteadof showingthemthe culpritandjust
watchingthe characters figure itout.Narrative- The different
endingsmeanthatthe film’smainendingisthenleftopento
the audience todecide.Representations- Comediccharacters
stereotypicallyconfuse othercharacters;thisisclearlythe case
withWadsworthduringthe firstendingwhencountingthe
bulletsthathave beenusedfromthe gun.Ideologies- These
are creativelyusedwithinthisfilm, forexample,theyuse the
fact that someone namedanddressedasabutlermustbe a
butler.Theyuse thistotheiradvantage insome of the endings
by revealinghistrue identity,workingwiththe policeoreven
the killer.
