A Few Good Men – Script Review

As I type this, I’m waiting for the electrician to knock on my door to fix the broken doorbell. In an earlier post, I said that my next script will have something to do with U.S. Filipino Navy Veterans and their families. I’m thinking about wrapping that theme around a courtroom drama – something I have yet to see involving a filipino family, but an idea that’s been floating around since that kid got busted for planning a Columbine attack on DeAnza JC in Cupertino. Anyways, in trying to figure out how to attack writing the play I’m starting with some research, which brings me to A FEW GOOD MEN by Aaron Sorkin. I love this movie and I also loved THE AMERICAN PRESIDENT which he also penned. But I needed to see how it read for the stage.

SYNOPSIS
In this dramatic courtroom thriller, Lt. Daniel Kaffee, a Navy lawyer who has never seen the inside of the courtroom, defends two stubborn Marines who have been accused of murdering a colleague. Kaffee is known as being lazy and had arranged for a plea bargain. Downey’s Aunt Ginny appoints Cmdr. Galloway to represent him. Also on the legal staff is Lt. Sam Weinberg. The team rounds up many facts and Kaffee is discovering that he is really cut out for trial work. The defense is originally based upon the fact that PFC Santiago, the victim, was given a “CODE RED”. Santiago was basically a screw-up. At Gitmo, screw-ups aren’t tolerated. Especially by Col. Nathan Jessup. In Cuba, Jessup and two senior officers try to give all the help they can, but Kaffee knows something’s fishy. In the conclusion of the film, the fireworks are set off by a confrontation between Jessup and Kaffee. Written by Matt Curtolo {curt@epix.net} Unfortunately, I didn’t like the ending in the play as much as I liked the ending of the movie, however, I’ll give it a pass since Sorkin wrote the screenplay as well. The movie ending was MUCH MORE taught including the moving of the famous ‘You can’t handle the truth!’ line.

WHAT I’LL STEAL LEARN TO USE
– I LOVE Arron Sorkin’s INSANELY quick humor and one-liners. But each one liner has a background to them as well as planted history. Example, we first meet JO (played by Demi Moore in the movie) in WHITAKER’S office because she wants to be assigned to the Santiago case. History is planted because JO made his staff handwrite court documents during Christmas. Almost 50 pages later, when ROSS (Kevin Bacon) first meets JO, he brings up, ‘Ebenezer Galloway?’ Genius. There’s more examples of this in the link provided below.
– Like EQUUS and HYSTERIA, Sorkin used a device of “flashback” through a letter from PFC SANTIAGO.

WHITAKER
This letter that Santiago wrote wasn’t the first.

JO
In fact, it was his twelfth…

(Lights up on SANTIAGO)

SANTIAGO
Dear Senator, My name is PFC William T. Santiago. I am…

FAVORITE LINES
here’s a link with some of my favorite lines… which makes me think. I’ll do this to moving forward – a new section with my favorite lines/stage directions pulled from the printed text.
A Few Good Men Lines