Hey Scott,

Great example. The two things I notice are:

1. The absolute absence of any dialogue. Yelling, calling out to one another, etc, etc., and...
2. The absence of and narrative description, any focus on location.

This makes us focus only on action and lets the director focus on location and narrative.

marc

Good points, Marc, and very true. The scene is a nice reminder that movies are fundamentally a visual medium, a corrective against relying too much on dialogue.

However, there's something else Goldman noted about this sequence.

Any more guesses?

Each action lasers in on a single character, i.e,. Butch, Sundance, Several Policeman or Head Policeman, etc. This keeps the action focused and streamlined, builds anticipation as each action triggers a reaction and crescendos in a final, dramatic outcome.

Hey, Diana, and welcome. And definitely a good point re the action sequence. Goldman uses what used to be called Secondary Sluglines, now generally referred to as Shots, to 'direct the camera', from one shot to the next. It's a very effective way of writing action and avoids using 'scripty' lingo like ANGLE ON, TILT DOWN, PAN OVER, ZOOM IN.

But that's still not the point that Goldman makes about the sequence. And by the way, I didn't get it the first time I read it either -- wasn't until Goldman pointed it out in the book that I noticed this special feature of the sequence.

So keep guessing!

The entire scene is a single, run-on sentence.

And we have a winner! Judy is right -- if you track the entire sequence, you'll see that it's 293 words, straight through, until finally at the end, there's a period.

Next question: why do you think Goldman approached the sequence this way, as one long sentence?

Ok -- Go fer two... Go fer two...

Because there IS no break in the action -- it's run-on action -- and it reads so fast that the reader SEES it that way.

Yes, Judy, that's basically it. His rationale behind making it one long run-on sentence was to not give the reader a break, to suggest one continuous flow of action and sentences with periods would have, in his view, interrupted the flow.

Here's another website about Goldman. Incredibly impressive opus.