The last time you browsed what was on at your local cinema, you scrolled through the sea of movies only to stop at the one with the catchiest description. Also known as a synopsis, it is designed to summarize the key elements of a script into a short, succinct read. It’s always short and catchy to keep the readers interested, but also detailed enough to give all the info one needs.
However, the first thing that really gets our initial attention is a logline, a burst of info compressed into one sentence that perfectly captures the essence of the whole movie. Much like slogans in advertising, the logline is somewhat of an art form in itself.
#6 Stole A Loaf Of Bread, Went To Jail, Given Riches By Someone, Gained Political Office, Took Part In Rebellion Against The Government, Has Longstanding Feud With Government Official, Ultimately Influences His Enemy To Defeat Himself. With Singing!
Back in the early days of Hollywood, loglines were used so producers could read a short explanation of a script (most often printed on the spine of the screenplay), allowing them to skip over uninteresting screenplays without even pulling them out from the shelf.
These days, loglines are no longer printed on the screenplays, but they still serve the exact same purpose: to efficiently represent the story in one sentence. And if you’ve ever tried to explain an entire film to someone in one sentence, you’ve surely realized it’s more challenging than one would think.
According to IndieWire, the screenwriting guru Blake Snyder has often referred to the logline as the DNA of your film. Thus, the perfectly constructed logline should resonate in every scene of the film.
So, let’s take a look at some of the top box office loglines. “A computer hacker learns from mysterious rebels about the true nature of his reality and his role in the war against its controllers” speaks of The Matrix.
The logline of Pulp Fiction reads as follows: “The lives of two mob hit men, a boxer, a gangster's wife, and a pair of diner bandits intertwine in four tales of violence and redemption.”
Meanwhile, The Godfather is described by this one sentence: “The aging patriarch of an organized crime dynasty transfers control of his clandestine empire to his reluctant son.”
#12 A Child Is Taken Away, And A Parent Will Go To Great Lengths To Rescue Them
#13 A Bitter Old Man Loses His Wife, Befriends His Young Asian Neighbour Who Helps Him Overcome His Bitterness And Cyncism
#16 The Protagonist Discovers He/She Has Been Living In A Fantasy World Where All His/Her Actions Are Controlled, And Has To Learn To Fight The Forces Of Evil Using Innate Skills That Look Like Magic To Those Observing
#19 Crazy Manipulative Lady Pretends To Be A Girls Mother, Essentially Keeps Her Hostage And Eventually Tries To Kill Her 'Daughter' When She Tries To Escape
