Current Events > denis villeneuve says he hates dialogue

(+) Yeah! (+)

If he hates dialogue, then he picked the wrong movie to direct. Jus' sayin'.

No, I'm a sucker for good writing / character arcs / dialog.

I think Dune 2 was good (though may have lose some of the books moral complexity). But he is off his rocker. Most cinema moments people remember accompany a line of dialogue

I agree with the premise that movies have too much dialogue in general, when they would benefit by more of a show dont tell approach.

Doe posted...

I think Dune 2 was good (though may have lose some of the books moral complexity). But he is off his rocker. Most cinema moments people remember accompany a line of dialogue

...how have you seen a movie that won't be released until Friday?

Xenogears15 posted...

If he hates dialogue, then he picked the wrong movie to direct. Jus' sayin'.

i was also confused. dune is like 50% exposition. just people explaining galactic politics and sand planets and messianic shit. mad fucking boring.

Xenogears15 posted...

...how have you seen a movie that won't be released until Friday?

https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/boards/400-current-events/80706006

Xenogears15 posted...

...how have you seen a movie that won't be released until Friday?

there was a nationwide preview screening last night or night before idr

I hate movies so idk

Well damn. I'm jealous as hell.

We should go back to silent films.

Zithers posted...

I dont remember movies because of a good line, I remember movies because of a strong image.

I like the guy but he's talking out of his ass here. You don't have to sacrifice one for the other either so I don't get the point. Does explain his short films tho.

Zithers posted...

would you watch a wordless villeneuve movie? is television ruining movies? do you remember dialogue from movies?

No. No. Yes.

Maybe he needs to watch the Fountian. For me it had a nominal dialog and gorgeous imagery. It's a great movie

Side note. I don't how I will take a watch of that nowdays

I kinda feel the same, but not to the extent he does.

The first rule of screenwriting is "show, don't tell" but A LOT of writers disregard that rule and use dialogue as a crutch, whether to explain what's happening in a scene, declare a character's motive or mood, or to worldbuild. And because media literacy is so terrible nowadays, people seem content for things to be this way.

Your first order of business as a filmmaker should be "how can I show or convey what's happening without a character speaking?"

No talking, just vibes

I mean, if there was one director working today who could have this opinion and not be completely full of shit about it, it would be the guy who directed Blade Runner 2049. That's one of my favorite movies of the last decade, and he's right: it's not the dialogue that stuck in my brain. imo 2049 stood out as a worthy cinematic successor to Stalker in the sense that it's like watching a painting slowly come to life, and yet it managed to keep me enraptured the whole runtime.

Haven't watched Dune 1 or 2 yet, though - like others have said, adapting a lore-heavy scifi novel might go contrary to Villeneuve's message here.

I mean dialogue is a tool like anything else. You can overdo it but it still has a place.

Also people absolutely remember movies because of dialogue. Pulp Fiction is a classic almost entirely because of its dialogue.

Doom_Art posted...

The first rule of screenwriting is "show, don't tell" but A LOT of writers disregard that rule and use dialogue as a crutch, whether to explain what's happening in a scene, declare a character's motive or mood, or to worldbuild. And because media literacy is so terrible nowadays, people seem content for things to be this way.

At the same time there's plenty of moments where you should tell and that the repeating of "show don't tell" is just as bad as ignoring it

Zithers posted...

Villeneuve: "Exactly. In a perfect world, Id make a compelling movie that doesnt feel like an experiment but does not have a single word in it either, he continued. People would leave the cinema and say, Wait, there was no dialogue? But they wont feel the lack.

I think that could be done with a Mr. Bean type character. They made him talk more in the movies, but I think in the show he said very little or spoke in gibberish. Maybe make a character like that that we mostly understand through their body language and facial expressions, maybe occasional noises, but in some kind of gibberish language so that it would be the same to every person on the planet.

Movies with little to no dialogue can be good if done right. But it takes a level of creativity a lot of directors/producers lack.

mercurydude posted...

I think that could be done with a Mr. Bean type character. They made him talk more in the movies, but I think in the show he said very little or spoke in gibberish. Maybe make a character like that that we mostly understand through their body language and facial expressions, maybe occasional noises, but in some kind of gibberish language so that it would be the same to every person on the planet.

well, that's already been done by jacques tati

and its silent but chaplin made the gold rush with only 21 intertitles

ssk9716757 posted...

I mean dialogue is a tool like anything else. You can overdo it but it still has a place.

Also people absolutely remember movies because of dialogue. Pulp Fiction is a classic almost entirely because of its dialogue.

steve jobs is another movie that stands out because of this

the whole movie is basically three long dialogue scenes but because of the way it's shot and written, it works.

Kevin Smith described it as "an action movie but with dialogue instead of guns"

Hinakuluiau posted...

At the same time there's plenty of moments where you should tell and that the repeating of "show don't tell" is just as bad as ignoring it

I think unless you're a generational talent at writing expository dialogue like Sorkin or Tarantino you should focus on figuring out creative ways to show first and use telling as a last resort.

Like you're absolutely right that there's plenty of moments where it can be used, but many filmmakers just use dialogue as a crutch.

Dialogue is important to movies, but I do think movies are a visual medium and a good filmmaker will always take advantage of that. In general, anything that can be conveyed just as well if not better through visuals than through a line of dialogue should be.

Theres strength in both. Theres a reason people say its better to show and not tell and plenty of arthouse movies are silent and with critical acclaim. But it also has its limitations.

While I agree with him to a point, Prisoners had some heavy dialogue too.

But he's a tremendous director, arguably one of the best, so whatever he personally feels, I'll listen. Same reason I actually give thought to what Scorsese has to say, or Tarantino, or Nolan, or whomever else.

Zithers posted...

Frankly, I hate dialogue. Dialogue is for theatre and television. I dont remember movies because of a good line, I remember movies because of a strong image. Im not interested in dialogue at all. Pure image and sound, that is the power of cinema, but it is something not obvious when you watch movies today. Movies have been corrupted by television.

That settles it. Avatar is therefore the best movie of all time since no one remembers any lines from it but they can all remember the pictures.

The first thing I thought of was dialogue in Nolan movies.

Where they're trying to set up some "palace intrigue" and naming off all these random people like it's common knowledge who they are, and the sound mix makes it sound like everyone is gargling water, yeah it's always the weakest part by a lot.

Turtlemayor333 posted...

The first thing I thought of was dialogue in Nolan movies.

Where they're trying to set up some "palace intrigue" and naming off all these random people like it's common knowledge who they are, and the sound mix makes it sound like everyone is gargling water, yeah it's always the weakest part by a lot.

You can hear the words in a Nolan movie?

Turtlemayor333 posted...

The first thing I thought of was dialogue in Nolan movies.

Where they're trying to set up some "palace intrigue" and naming off all these random people like it's common knowledge who they are, and the sound mix makes it sound like everyone is gargling water, yeah it's always the weakest part by a lot.

I actually went to see Tenet in theaters last night since theyre doing a 70mm rerelease, and that movie is absolute trash in this regard. Just the most convoluted exposition buried under an indecipherable sound mix. And the fact that Nolan defends it as a stylistic choice is baffling.

The beginning of Up was pretty good with no dialogue

solosnake posted...

The beginning of Up was pretty good with no dialogue

Same with the beginning of WALL-E.

ssk9716757 posted...

I actually went to see Tenet in theaters last night since theyre doing a 70mm rerelease, and that movie is absolute trash in this regard. Just the most convoluted exposition buried under an indecipherable sound mix. And the fact that Nolan defends it as a stylistic choice is baffling.

They had Michael Caine delivering exposition while chewing on his salad. It's fucking nuts lol

https://twitter.com/tnyfrontrow/status/1762289237901406546

damn richard brody just did a 360 windmill dunk from the top rope