LA Screenwriter

Meredith Alloway of The Script Lab has posted a great list of the top ten revelation scenes. These scenes give excellent examples of how to reveal information both to your audience and to your characters. Take a look:

Some of the most crucial scenes in cinema come when important information is revealed to us. This key information can be learned at the same time the character does, it can be revealed to us before the character finds out, or we may discover it after the character already knows. Often, however, the revelation occurs with the character because when it’s a simultaneous discovery, we empathize, often experiencing the exact same emotions that the character feels, and this usually creates a closer connection to that character. But regardless of how we find out, an good revelation scene is not just about the moment when the twist occurs, when things are revealed and surprise ensues, but also about what leads up to this scene. If characters are developed properly, and the information is withheld until the right moment in the plot, BAM! Revelation!

10. Fight Club (1999)

This revelation scene is both jarring to the narrator (Edward Norton) and the audience. Up until this point, the narrator is influenced by the stronger, better looking and more ferocious Tyler Durden (Brad Pitt).

read more »