[…] Dialogue On Dialogue: Commentary from Kalen: “I think Lester’s voice over in American Beauty is the best …read more […]

SUGGESTION FOR THIS WEEK: My favorite movie of all time and some of the best use of VO in the history of cinema: TAXI DRIVER Trivia: Apparently, screenwriter Paul Schrader kept a loaded gun on his desk while writing the script to maintain a constant sense of danger. Dialogue On Dialogue: As Travis is a true outsider, his VO is an invaluable device, providing a window into the mind of a deeply disturbed man. This passage is particularly well crafted on many levels. First, the talk about “rain washing the garbage off the streets” bookends this passage, the first mention a literal sense, then at the end, on a metaphorical level. The VO begins more expository, explaining Travis’s work schedule and then trails off into personal commentary, immediately establishing this character’s attitude and point of view. And the line “someday a real rain will come” essentially sets up his character motivation. He is sickened by all the “garbage” on the streets and he becomes the “rain” by the end of the film, as he storms in, guns blazing, taking out a very big piece of trash in the form of Harvey Keitel. Dialogue On Dialogue on Dialogue: So essentially, all DeNiro wanted was to become a garbage man :) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kGTY-7e3iT0