Sample Coverage - Consider

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TITLE: CONFIDENTIAL

WRITER: Confidential

SUBMITTED TO:		ANALYST:
SUBMITTED BY:		DATE:	April 26, 2007
AGENCY/COMPANY:		LOCATION:	NYC, Maine
FORM/LENGTH:	SP/112p	CIRCA:	Present
DRAFT/PUBLISHER:	First	GENRE:	Romantic Comedy

LOGLINE: During their summer vacation, a meddlesome middle-aged couple try to sabotage their son’s current relationship and reunite him with his ex-girlfriend.

COMMENTS: This project has all the ingredients for a successful comedy. It’s well-written and very funny. It’s extremely castable and commercial. It will also appeal to two separate demographics (20-30s and 40s-60s). Ultimately then, this is a screenplay CONFIDENTIAL should consider right away, otherwise there’s going to be a bidding war and someone else will wind up producing this sure-to-succeed comedy.

ELEMENTS/NOTE:

			Excellent	Good	Fair	Poor
		PREMISE	X	X
		CHARACTORIZATION		X
PROJECT:	CONSIDER	DIALOGUE		X
WRITER(s):	CONSIDER	STORYLINE	X	X

SYNOPSIS:

Every summer, the Lydecker family heads to their beach house on the coast of Maine. This year, HARRY and ALICE (50s) arrive at the house earlier than normal because it’s the only time their son MATT (30s) can bring his new girlfriend RENEE. Harry and Alice have been having marital problems but she’s determined to keep it from Matt and his divorcee sister JOANIE. Harry is upset that Alice expects him to sleep on the floor because he still loves her and he’s sad about the demise of their marriage. Meanwhile, Matt ushers his dog KIPLING into his Prius and calls Renee at her office, warning her to be ready soon or they’ll hit traffic. Matt’s ex-girlfriend KATE KOENIG is going on vacation with her new boyfriend, cop KENT, but they don’t have to worry about traffic because he has his squad car. Kate and Kent are driving up to the same coastal town and they’re booked into the Biltmore Hotel. She confesses to Kent that she used to go up there with her ex and his family, but they only vacation there at the end of the summer.

When Matt and Renee arrive, Harry and Alice give them a warm welcome. They loved Kate dearly but they’re willing to make an effort with Renee. Alice is impressed when she gives them thoughtful gifts, but Harry suspects it is all an act. Later, Harry overhears Renee on her cell phone, ordering an assistant to book her a room at the Biltmore because she finds the beach house disgusting. Harry tries to tell Alice about Renee’s true colors, yet she refuses to believe him. Meanwhile, Matt hides an engagement ring in a pair of socks. The next morning, Harry overhears Renee on the phone again and this time he hears every word. She really isn’t as sweet as she made out. Alice has made a lasagna but she needs to buy a few things in town so she asks Matt to pop it in the oven. He needs to shower so Renee offers to do it. As they walk to the car, Harry tells Alice about his suspicions and he sneaks through some trees to spy on Renee. Alice reluctantly follows then watches in horror as Renee feeds the lasagna to Kipling.

Later, when Harry and Alive return, they find Matt comforting a tearful Renee. She’s devastated about the lasagna and insists on taking them to a restaurant in town. After dinner, Harry spots Kate entering a diner across the street with Kent. He grabs Alice and shows her his discovery. They are thrilled to see Kate and ponder what to do next. Alice fears Matt will hate them if they’re honest about Renee, so they have to hope he’s not serious about her. Back at the house, however, they see Kipling holding the ring box in his jaws. Terrified that Matt intends to propose, Harry and Alice hide the ring and set out to get Kate and Matt back together. The next morning, Harry heads into town and follows Kate. He then calls Alice and has her give Matt errands to run that will cause them to bump into each other. Unfortunately though, they miss each other at a bakery and bookstore so Alice sends Matt into a waxing salon. Finally, Matt and Kate meet and they’re stunned. When they each reveal they’re with new partners, it gets a little awkward and they part ways. Meanwhile, Harry spots Kent buy a porn magazine and hide it in an NY Times. Subsequently, Harry buys a few more and hides them in Kate’s hotel room to expose Kent as a pervert.

When Joanie arrives at the beach house, her four demonic kids are all sleeping in the minivan. Sensing that Renee doesn’t like kids, Harry wakes up the children and feeds them chocolate bars. He then gives them instructions on how to maul Renee and attack her with water balloons and bugs. Meanwhile, Alice has to attend the waxing appointment she didn’t really want and unwittingly winds up with a “Brazillian.” Although shocked and in pain, she’s delighted to run into Kate and persuades her to come out to the house for a BBQ with Kent. Kate suspects it will be awkward but she doesn’t have the heart to say no.

Later, when Kate and Kent arrive, Matt is surprised and Renee is pissed. During a water-skiing jaunt aboard Harry’s boat, Renee tries to prove she’s as fun as Kate by taking her turn on the skis. But she winds up falling and exposing her breasts, much to the delight of Joanie’s boys. Once they’re back at the house, Alice asks Matt and Kate to go and pick some berries for her to make a pie. Whilst doing so, Matt and Kate discuss why they broke up. He can’t even remember what they fought about and Kate was sad that he never chased after her ferry when she left. After a berry-fight, Kate’s shirt gets entangled in the thorns and Matt has to rip it off. At that very moment, Renee and Kent show up and they’re furious. Fortunately, Alice steps in and explains it was all very innocent.

That night, everyone plays Scrabble. Renee isn’t very good at the game and she’s getting drunk on wine. Consequently, when Kate scores 374 with a single word, Renee stomps into the kitchen and has a meltdown. Matt is trying to console her when Kipling shows up with the ring box. Renee spots it first and whoops with excitement. Everyone else turns to see Matt on his knees. He was having doubts, but now he is forced to pop the question and Kent insists on champagne. Back at their hotel, Kate finds Kent’s porn. Upset at having seen Matt propose right in front of her, she’s already in a bad mood and the porn discovery prompts her to break up with Kent. At the beach house, Harry and Alice rediscover their passion for each other while Matt reflects on his predicament and Renee sleeps off the wine.

The next morning, while Renee nurses a hangover, Matt heads to his favorite spot, Miller’s Point. Kate takes a cab there too and they run into each other. As he tries to explain that he didn’t intend to propose to Renee (and he actually planned to propose to Kate years ago), Matt realizes that his parents have been behind everything. He even found a receipt in his Harry’s jacket for the porn magazines. It dawns on Kate that Harry and Alice want her and Matt to get back together. Matt is furious and goes to confront them. In his wake, Kate sadly returns to town and checks out of the hotel. After yelling at his parents, Matt leaves the house with Renee and drives her to Miller’s Point. He explains that this where he planned to propose and he has a big surprise. Earlier that day, he ran into LEFTY who owns the nicest house on the point. He’s selling up so Matt made him an offer. Renee is horrified by this idea. She loathes Maine and would rather be in the Caribbean. A huge fight ensues, after which they break up and she takes his car.

Matt calls Harry and Alice, who have been fighting about the unsuccessful outcome of their scheming, and begs them to pick him up at Miller’s Point. He wants to track down Kate before she leaves town. Harry and Alice pick him up in their boat then learn that Kate is on the last ferry off the island. Harry speeds the boat to the ferry route, narrowly missing countless obstacles along the way, and pulls beside the ferry. Matt spots Kate reading on the deck and tries to get her attention by yelling and waving. But Kate is oblivious. Desperate, Matt strips naked to draw the attention of the other passengers and Harry joins him by stripping off his own clothes. Unfortunately, this also draws the attention of the coast guard and they board Harry’s boat to arrest them. Having finally noticed Matt, Kate realizes he’s trying to apologize and he still loves her. She jumps off the ferry and swims to the boat. While their son reconciles with his ex, Harry tells Alice that he loves her and he wants to renew their vows.

Months later, Matt and Kate are married on Miller’s Point and the entire family is together and blissfully happy…

COMMENTS:

The best romantic comedies are relatively simple, not too contrived, and span generations. That’s exactly the kind of comedy on offer in these 112 pages and the result is an absolute delight. Very similar in tone to MEET THE PARENTS, this movie centers on a family vacation during which a meddlesome middle-aged couple plot and scheme to sabotage their son’s new relationship and reunite him with his ex-girlfriend. The writing here is so strong and confident that we become immersed in the narrative from the very beginning. Then, once Harry and Alice begin their crafty plan to get Matt back together with Kate, we’re completely hooked and entertained to the very end.

Throughout these pages, we never get the feeling that we’re watching an orchestrated farce. None of the set-pieces feel forced or contrived. The writers simply came up with a solid premise and found a means to execute their story in a natural, fluid manner. It’s one of those ideas which almost writes itself, yet this screenwriting duo have brought their characters to life in a way that keeps the laughs coming thick and fast. Simply put, this is a wildly enjoyable comedy which will be easy (and fun) to cast and should have no problem finding substantial success at the box-office. Clearly then, this is a piece of material NRP should immediately consider because someone will definitely buy this.

All too often, writers try to come up with original ideas for a comedy which require the most contrived execution in order to work. That’s why some of the simplest ideas spawn the strongest comedies. The aforementioned MEET THE PARENTS is a perfect example. The concept of an accident-prone guy meeting his potential in-laws for the first time is incredibly simple and rife with comedic potential. This movie has the same kind of premise. There’s intrinsic appeal for anyone whose parents have interfered with their relationship, but filmgoers who share the parents’ age will also find much to relate to and will likely relish every act of sabotage Harry and Alice carry out.

In both movies, the humor is organic to the premise. There’s little reason to contrive the farce because the narrative is naturally chockfull of it. Once Harry and Alice unite in their mission to sabotage Matt’s relationship with Renee, the authors deliver one successful set-piece after another. For instance, the sequence during which Harry spies on Kate and coordinates with Alice to send Matt bumping into her is classic. From thereon in, there’s no shortage of funny, memorable moments. The Act II set-piece during which Harry conspires with his four grandkids to torment Renee is classic.

Overall, this project has all the ingredients for a successful comedy. It’s well-written and very funny. It’s extremely castable and commercial. It will also appeal to two separate demographics (20-30s and 40s-60s). Ultimately then, this is a screenplay CONFIDENTIAL should consider right away, otherwise there’s going to be a bidding war and someone else will wind up producing this sure-to-succeed comedy.

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