Save the Cat! by Blake Snyder (Review)
If you’re in the business of writing for the screen, big or small, then you’ve probably heard about Blake Snyder’s infamous Save the Cat! (A.K.A. The Last Book on Screenwriting You’ll Ever Need). Film students and industry pros alike have referenced this book incessantly since it’s 2005 inception, and for many aspiring creatives it has become a bottom line, “must read to succeed” text. It has also managed to become the bane of many writers’ existence.
In an industry rife with constant change and unpredictable outcomes, it can be comforting to find that the rules of a good story are evergreen. Snyder seemingly aims to make these rules as easy to understand and fun to say out loud as possible. He also challenges writers to think of themselves and their screenplays as a business, rather than a creative venture. Take all of the daydreams of fame, fortune, and artistic expression out of the work and focus on the work itself. After all, as glamorous as it may seem, being a screenwriter is still a job and the writer, a working professional.
And to that end, I agree with Blake Snyder. Beyond that, not so much.
What I Liked:
Once the reader acclimates to the obnoxious tone of the author, it becomes clear that he is in fact quite knowledgeable about the industry. Perhaps he might even be honest about wanting to help emerging writers succeed. Snyder does a great job of backing up his claims with a variety of examples across genre and tone. Some were even admittedly referenced sight unseen (i.e. Four Christmases), further supporting his idea that any average viewer can deduce the gist of a good blockbuster pre-screening. He also provides original frameworks that, when used as intended, can help the writer create a well structured, textbook level, good script. Consider the obscurity surrounding this craft obliterated.
In what I believe to be the most valuable chapter, “Building the Perfect Beast,” Snyder sheds light on one of the most mysterious aspects of the screenwriting process: The Board. At face value, this looks like a whiteboard covered in multi-colored sticky notes. But, in fact, this is a tool writers use to outline their script scene-by-scene in a way that is presented clearly and that will allow them to shift things around as much as they want before actually taking fingers to keyboard.
Inherent though it may seem, the act of structuring a board is a beast itself. Snyder breaks down step-by-step how to build that elusive display in the background of every writer’s room ever created and how to read one should you be graced with the opportunity to see one belonging to an established professional. This is a concept largely glossed over in film school and I have yet to come across it in any other screenwriting book I’ve read. If you should read this book for nothing else, do yourself a favor and learn how to make a proper board.
Constructive Criticism:
I would be remiss if I didn’t throw a little shade about the “brag” to actual film credit ratio. Not to mention the fact that what little credits there are sit below a 10% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. There are countless mentions of amazingly talented screenwriting partners, millions of dollars made, and that one time he kind of worked with Steven Spielberg. Not only is it overkill, it’s distracting. It made it incredibly hard to read the actual guidance through all of the inevitable eye rolling. Reader be warned.
There is also heavy emphasis put on the fact that this is a book made for screenwriters seeking the big bucks by making blockbuster hits for the masses. Snyder brushes off any protest about indie filmmaking and small budget works, suggesting that writers seeking to go that route aren’t approaching this business in the most lucrative way.
And perhaps pre-COVID era, he was right? However, there seems to be a relative shift in the market since the theaters closed their doors in 2020. A major aspect of big budget filmmaking, premiering on the big screen, has ultimately been snuffed out for the foreseeable future, and could forever be changed with the influx of streaming premieres. Of course it’s something that Snyder couldn’t have foreseen at the time he penned this work, but considering the ever evolving nature of the industry, it makes the book feel extremely dated and mildly isolationist.
Perhaps he touches on this in future iterations, like Save the Cat! Strikes Back or Save the Cat! Goes to the Indies?
Famous Last Words:
Blake Snyder's Save the Cat! is a book I must begrudgingly recommend if only to allow the reader to enter the industry informed on the screenwriting standards most claim to adhere to. There is undoubtedly a lot to learn from this book. However, I would urge readers to look past the writer's pompous facade and take the overall teachings with a grain of salt. And remember, most of all, that the rules of a good story are evergreen and can be interpreted in a multitude of ways. And, for that reason, I don't believe this truly is "the last book on screenwriting you'll ever need."
*This book was rated on a five star scale system with five stars being the highest ranking and one star being the lowest ranking.
For more from this author: Blake Snyder’s Save the Cat!
For more from this publisher: Michael Wiese Productions
Other recommended articles:
Is This the End of Very Expensive Movies? By G.S. Perno
Is the era of the Hollywood blockbuster over? By Emma Jones
About the Writer
Mercedes K. Milner is a WODC Co-Founder and the Writers Group Coordinator. She is a staff writer for the WODC Blog, heads the Reading on Writing column, and hosts the original WODC podcast, Script to Screen Podcast. She also writes for the WODC original horror anthology podcast, A Bad Feeling Horror Podcast.