Blade fights

bluejester12 · Apr 13, 2006

My two characters engage in a climactic knife fight, each with two USMC (military) knives--and I'm thinking of changing it.

I can't think of a really good short blade fight scene, one without massive editing.

Does anyone know of any? I may change it, but I'd like to keep it if it could look good on film. They don't have to use knives, but I really want it to be hand-to-hand or melee combat.

-XL- · Apr 13, 2006

The only two I could come up with off the top of my head were in KILL BILL vol. 1 and THE HUNTED.

Try this: http://www.us.imdb.com/keyword/knife-fight/

(personally I love to watch knife fights, personal and brutal)

Ted · Apr 13, 2006

Sorry I can't help - knife fights / duels in life are a fantasy. Compound that with the fantsy of a movie and you are over the top.

Mi hermano is a movie fight director, guild certified for every edged weapon. You need slash and flash for a movie, not reality. Short knife is reality - long and bright is script.

Real knife work is Hannibal Lecter (sp?) cutting the guys femoral artery as he walks past him. Or the knife scenes of American Me, I think it was...

broughcut · Apr 13, 2006

What Ted said.

http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=384481

dpaterso · Apr 13, 2006

Alas I couldn't find Under Siege. Er, there's always Inigo Montoya and The Man In Black...

http://www.imsdb.com/scripts/Princess-Bride,-The.html

...admittedly with swords instead of knives, but could be useful, what with exchanges like:

INIGO

moving like lightning, and he thrusts forward, slashes,
darts back, all in almost a single movement and --

THE MAN IN BLACK

Dodging, blocking, and again he thrusts forward, faster even
than before, and again he slashes but --

...which I dare say isn't unlike how I'd write a knife fight, with occasional slashes to the face and forearms sprinkled for good measure. Sure, it's Hollywood, but if it's visual and has a bit of excitement and high stakes, who cares?

-Derek
My Web Page - naked women, bestial sex, and whopping big lies.
Take the critiques you get with a grain of salt. Invariably, some of the critics will be kooks, bitter curmudgeons, or complete fools. ~odocoileus

Blackheart · Apr 14, 2006

David Carradine and James Remar get into a pretty good knife fight in The Long Riders. I also remember Gary Cooper and Basil Rathbone going at it with knives in The Adventures of Marco Polo

And check out Young Guns 2. Christian Slater vs. Lou Diamond Philips

scripter1 · Apr 14, 2006

You guys are missing

a serious element though.

WHY make the change?
What does short knife work bring to the story that longer knives don't?

HOW does this change, IMPROVE the story and advance the plot?

If the use of short knives is vital to the story you will find a way to block it out.

Short knife scenes.

Second hand lions. Four teens against Hub.
Dune. Paul against Sting's character.
The Outsiders. Big gang fight scene.
That musical with the Sharks and the Jets.
Saving Private Ryan. Where the German kills the Jewish solidier up in the room.

I will certaintly agree though that normaly a short knife is used for quick, thrust and it's all over moments. The other person doesn't get much of a chance to make a one or two minute fight out of it.

SO, again, my question would be, WHY the change?

Jamesaritchie · Apr 14, 2006

Short

There are a couple of Steven Segal movies with pretty decent short blade fights, though darned if I can remember their titles.

dpaterso · Apr 14, 2006

The USMC knife has a 7-inch blade so it's not exactly short but it's not a longsword either. Methinks two trained Marines going at each other with Ka-bars in a gung-ho battle to the death would make good cinema. Post some pages sometime, bluejester.

-Derek
My Web Page - naked women, bestial sex, and whopping big lies.
Take the critiques you get with a grain of salt. Invariably, some of the critics will be kooks, bitter curmudgeons, or complete fools. ~odocoileus

icerose · Apr 14, 2006

Last of the Mohicans had a few great knife scenes in it. As did Mel Gibson's The Patriot.

xhouseboy · Apr 14, 2006

The Duelists had some cracking Kietel-Carradine one-on-one fight scenes throughout the film.

Unfortunately, about the only weapon they didn't use was short knives.

bluejester12 · Apr 15, 2006

Thanks guys

I'm going to change it a bit. It's more important that they attack each other with raw emotion, so they'll have knives but also grab whatever they can out of the environment, brawl etc.

I'm interested in seeing that Carradine/Remar fight.

WritingFool · Apr 16, 2006

i think its funny how fights get all blown out of proportion in the movies.
'attack eachother with raw emotion'.

My answer to your question of should you leave it or should you keep the knife fighting scene..is ..if you are willing to change it..then its not vital enough to the story the way you have it now. Hence you should change it so that it ends up being something there needed to convey your point.

If it was really important, you wouldnt be doubting whether to leave it or not.
And thats how youre entire script should be...everything is REQUIRED.
Keep it all required, direct and to the point.

Greetings everyone...Im back for a while

scripter1 · Apr 17, 2006

Yep.

You don't just go around arbitrarily changing things. (not speaking to you specifically Jester, just, really think about why it is you want to change what you've got.)
You change them because they 1) don't work. 2) can be made to better serve the story. 3) Reveal character better 4) advance the plot more forcefully 5) give us info we wouldn't otherwise have.

[okay, I may have repeated one or two]

If these guys grab anything they can find then you've got all kinds of stuff to research, play with, and just use your imagination.

I for one love Jackie Chan type fights. Hysterical and riviting.
You never know what will be pulled out. Total creativity.

This type of fight is a great way to show a range of characteristics and mood changes.

Platinum · Apr 17, 2006

Just because it has never been seen before doesn't mean you should change it. Leave it to the stunt coordinator or fight choreographer to work out. And if you really need good examples of knife fights, look at the fight in "The Hunted" or the kitchen one in "The Bourne Supremacy", both examples of extended knife fighting techniques and found weapons fights.

bluejester12 · Apr 17, 2006

WritingFool said:
i think its funny how fights get all blown out of proportion in the movies.
'attack eachother with raw emotion'.

Can't tell if you're commenting on my phrase or not. :Wha:

WritingFool · Apr 21, 2006

Well.
caught me funny how you worded it. Seems to artsy for its own good.
Last I knew, theres only one way to go after someone and beat the living Sh*t out of them.

How long you suppose to cook raw emotion before its ready to serve.
Does it go bad after 2 or 3 days, like chicken
can you flambe it?

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Blade fights

bluejester12

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Ted

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