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"The Poet's Tree"

OK guys, so I'm going to go out on a limb with this one and see what you guys think. Praise is good, criticism is appreciated, but let me down easy where necessary.

The Poet's Tree is kind of a love story, but with a very unusual twist. It only has one lead and it is not about a traditional relationship. Here's the plot and main story idea.

Joel Hadley is a 32 year old stock broker who's made his money and is looking to settle down, get married and begin to enjoy life a little. He finds a cottage out in "the sticks" next to a rolling river and begins "living". He's not a proud man, but the city has made him a ruthless businessman and an even tougher human being. Enter Theresa, a 29 year old bombshell. A calm, smart, well connected small-town socialite with a keen ability to push people's buttons, Theresa sometimes pushes folks to the point of anger. Joel falls fast, hard and completely for the lady who makes fun of his "button-down" clothes, washed, waxed and polished BMW and his hair that never moves...even in medium gusts.

Joel begins building his future around making Theresa's dreams come true. An entire year of life treats them well. Theresa opens her art studio, Joel gets involved in small-town politics and they seem to have it all together...until They go to bed. The next morning Joel makes Theresa's breakfast, over-easy eggs, lightly buttered toast with no crusts and a small glass of lemonade...which Joel found a great deal of humor in. Theresa doesn't come out to greet Joel as usual and she doesn't respond to his joking taunts. Theresa doesn't awake. Joel never got to tell his bride-to-be how much he loved her, how much he loved being part of her life and how much she had made him realize that money wasn't where his heart was.

Joel takes up poetry. He begins writing page after page of poem after poem to his sweetheart. He sits every day unde the tree where they had hung a tire swing as a promise to each other of a future with children. He scribles out page after page of anger, love, confusion and heartache, mostly in the form of philisophical verses...but no one can share his grief. No one can shoulder the burden of being completely alone...and he is, all alone.

He begins to find comfort in talking to the tree. He tells the tree everything that he'd have told Theresa. He crys when he's in pain, he laughs when he experiences joy and he explains away life's problems with the tree being the benefactor of his conversation.

HERE'S THE TWIST.

Joel seems to finds that his love for Theresa is stronger than he ever knew. He begins to share his stories, his work and sadness, of grief. As the stories make their way to the city, Joel finds that he's spending more and more time away from his chosen home in order to tell the world of his love. He travels from NYC to LA to Seattle to Miami, just to promote his writings...to be seen and let his work speak for him. One night, after a particularly grueling radio show, Joel goes to sleep and dreams that he is with his Theresa. He holds her, he dances with her, he runs his fingers through her hair...and then he begins to share some of his poetry. As he reads, Theresa begins to read word-for-word with him. She is annunciating every word as it was written. Her reading is so powerful that it overtakes Joel's own words. He stops and begins to listen. He hears Theresa's words so clearly that it seems as though she's right there, that she's right in front of him. And she is....except Joel isn't there. Joel died 35 years ago, and the tree that he's been sharing his life with forever is shown to be his beloved Theresa. She was the one left behind...with a child, a dream, and a broken heart. Joel finally realizes the facts as Theresa prepares to leave this world. She tells her children that She's old and tired nad that She misses their father so. As she dies, we see Joel and Theresa sitting on a dock watching the Sun go down over a giant Oak tree. The Sun's light bleeds through the trees to reveal their unearthly glow and we fade to black.


So, sure it's off-the-wall, and yes, it's going to appeal a lot more to a female viewing audience...but it's got funding and a good shot at getting some following if I can find the right talent. It's aleady entered for a standard US literary copyright and I'm expecting to see some interesting rejection letters from the people I'd like to play the lead.

So, what do you think?

MM
 
The name is what drew me in, 'the poet's tree'. There is a tree that has great meaning and significance to me, and many other people. The tree was on the grounds of a summer arts camp for kids, and we loved it very much. We called it the 'Poetree'. It was cut down last fall, I will be going back to the camp and for the first time it won't be there :( Anyways, just wanted to share my connection with this part of your story, and good luck
-Tine
 
It's a good story. I think any story like this is gonna draw comparisons to The Sixth Sense, but I wouldn't let that stop me. If it's done right you might have a very unique movie.

Poke
 
Thanks for the "Poetree" reference Tine. Believe it or not, I had a similar tree when I was much younger...but it was on my Grandparent's property. One of my best friends as a child, the tree lived to hear me read...or so I believed. It died after I got married about 15 years ago. Since then, I've wondered if trees actualy have spirits.

As for the comparisons to "The Sixth Sense", I'm counting on it, but being that the story involves an inanimate object as a chrachter, I believe that it will stand alone...to a degree. The storylines are clearly quite close...but then again The Sixth Sense was a take-off of a few films made in the 50's about life after death according to M. Night. Who knows, since we're putting it on celluloid...it might just make a good story for people who were too scared of the "ghosts" in The Sixth Sense.

So, what of the story though? Does it sound plausible? Would it interest you as a drama versus a triller? Does the story seem to breathe on it's own or would it be a better script if we gave our lead a lot more interaction with other "people"?

Just picking your brains.

Thanks,
MM
 
munkittrick said:
So, what of the story though? Does it sound plausible? Would it interest you as a drama versus a triller? Does the story seem to breathe on it's own or would it be a better script if we gave our lead a lot more interaction with other "people"?

Having the guy talking to a tree for two hours might be dull, so if you gave him a little more interaction with humans it might do wonders for the film, BUT if he interacts with folks, it would be hard to transition to the point where he realizes he is dead. Overall, that would be the moment that worries me most, when he realizes the truth. The movie depends on how you make that transition.

Poke
 
I completely agree, but my guy, unlike in The Sixth Sense, CAN actually see other spirits and they CAN communicate. He simply prefers not to as part of his pain. I supose that I could toss in a little extra twist, ala "What Dreams May Come" to include a familiar, yet different person from hi past...maybe an old "army buddy" type who stands by him...quietly. Does that make any sense? What would you suggest as a twist if this were on your desk? We're already getting funding to move into production and talent is being cast as we speak...so if I'm going to further fine tune this mamma-jamma, I better get to it very soon.

I appreciate your input and keep it coming.

MM
 
munkittrick said:
I completely agree, but my guy, unlike in The Sixth Sense, CAN actually see other spirits and they CAN communicate. He simply prefers not to as part of his pain. I supose that I could toss in a little extra twist, ala "What Dreams May Come" to include a familiar, yet different person from hi past...maybe an old "army buddy" type who stands by him...quietly. Does that make any sense?

Personally, I would stay as far away from What Dreams May Come as I could. I think having other spirits - that our protagonist thinks are actual town folk or an old friend - drop in on him and try to help him "move on" (figuratively and literally) would be a good route to take. But if you are interested in having the protag's realization of his death be a twist, you'd have to be very careful with these other spirits.

munkittrick said:
What would you suggest as a twist if this were on your desk?

To be quite honest, I can't answer that question. I would need to read the script, not just a synopsis. And to be honest with you, "twists" are not my strong point. I like your idea, I think it can work, I just think it will be a very delicate transition from the false reality (woman dead) to the actual reality (protag dead).

Poke
 
If you're worried about the "talking to the tree" bit being too boring, can't you cut it down? I'd say you have plenty of concept to fill a movie even if that is only a few-minute section.
 
The portion of time where he is actually "talking" to the tree is minimal on-screen, but the figurative and "flash-back" communication while he's doing other things is what defines it as a serious communication. I feel pretty strong about the idea that it might be twist enough to find out that he's been dead for a long time...but an aditional sub-plot twist would seal the deal.

As to the old-friends idea, after reading our current production script, we'd be going way out on a limb to have him "know" anyone...just bacause he's supposed to be terribly distraught. Maybe he "thinks" that he recognizes someone from time to time...or maybe he has a dream-like memory where he thinks that he's awake and alive but he is awakened to find that it was, in fact a dream.

Anyway, I really appreciate the help. Believe it or not, this is a HUGE help. If we didn't already have a shooting schedule, I'd pull the whole thing for a month to do a full re-write...again. But everything you guys are offering is valuable to the plot...so thanks.

MM

PS- What's the problem with "What Dreams May Come"? My partner helped produce that flick.
 
I'll have to admit, I was thinking a lot about the Smothers Brothers' routine of, "I Talk to the Trees" while reading that. Well worth picking up on CD on a "Best of", for some great radio comedy. :D

Seriously though, it sounds like the type of thing that will be relying on a lot of voice-overs... and that means the dialogue (and copious poetry) had better be darn good. Additionally, a lot of cinematic imagery that is able to be viewed (and make sense) on two levels. It needs to make sense before the "secret" is revealed... and on re-watching, it still needs to make sense it its new "knowing" context.

It's a very ambitious project... I hope you can pull it off well.
 
Munkittrick,

I have not been here is so long, but I saw this and thought I'd let you know that after the tree was cut down, the wood was used for paper that a book was printed on. For the camps 10th anniversary, an anthology of camper and staff writing was published, it's called "Under The Poetree". It's even sold in Chapters :) (Not sure if they have that bookstore in the states, but it's a major chain in Canada)
 
Sounds like an entertaining tale, and I'm not saying that just because I'm a chick.

Made me think of both The Sixth Sense and Somewhere in Time,- an 80's flick starring Christopher Reeve and Jane Seymour. I don't know of many people who have seen this movie as I think it was only for video release, but I can say it totally captivated me at the time.

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