Unveiling the Hidden Secrets Behind Every Scene in ‘1917’ — A Script Analysis Like No Other

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: 1917 (2019). Download the script here.

Written by Sam Mendes, Krysty Wilson-Cairns.

Plot Summary: April 6th, 1917. As a regiment assembles to wage war deep in enemy territory, two soldiers are assigned to race against time and deliver a message that will stop 1,600 men from walking straight into a deadly trap.

1917
Scene by Scene Breakdown
By Alexis Howell-Jones
GoIntoTheStory.com

1–6
ORDINARY WORLD

OPENING IMAGE: Distant thunder, as Blake and Schofield lie with their eyes shut, by a tree.

Lance Corporal BLAKE (19) is ordered to pick a man and bring his kit for a mission. He chooses SCHOFIELD (early 20s) who’s next to him with his eyes shut — of similar rank.

Schofield in script has a “Wound Stripe” — to indicate he was previously wounded in action — not obvious on screen, but info in script.

As they walk, Blake reads his mail. Schofield didn’t get any but doesn’t seem to mind. They talk of the minimal food they have.

Looking at the…