Lessons from "Early Man": The Best Stakes are Binary
Watch party! Taking notes as I watch the Aardman film for the first time to see what I can learn about story structure, character arcs, and any other interesting little tidbits that surface.
THEME: Teamwork
GENRE: Performance
I’m really excited to watch this.
I love Aardman films. I’m a little nervous that this one won’t be so great because Nick Park is a brilliant animation “actor,” but I’ve been disappointed by his long-form storytelling skills. Hopefully, I’ll be proved wrong on this one.
Okay … here we go!
(Oh, yeah: Spoiler warning, if you’re traumatized by that kind of thing.)
Normal World
Protagonist: Dug, definitely.
Misbelief: “Our ancestors played football, so we can too!”
Nice example of a Misbelief that sounds positive on its face. Like Inside Out and Joy’s belief that the way to make Riley happy is to see to it that she is constantly positive and joyful. So what could be wrong with getting your inspiration from those who came before you?
Okay, the Tribe is all supernumeraries. But that’s typical with Aardman crowds. Got the expected British innuendo. Not a big fan, but you take British humor as it is. But starting to get a little nervous about Dug as an engaging protagonist: He doesn’t have the sweet determination of Ginger (Chicken Run) or quiet determination of Gromit. He’s feeling pretty flat at this point. Maybe that’s the point?
The Disturbance
Bronze machine arrives and threatens life in the Dug’s Valley. “Age of stone is over; age of bronze.” Clever. Is this guy the antagonist? I’m going to guess he is because so far I haven’t seen any mysterious foreshadowing or hints that things aren’t what they seem. The shots and music set him up pretty definitely.
Inciting Incident
Okay, Dug gets caught in the machine … brought back to the fortress. Wow, this town is much more visually interesting than the Valley. I’d love to spend more time checking this place out. That’s one thing I loved about Aardman’s Pirates! All the settings were so interesting to look at. Just hit me that the Valley wasn’t nearly so interesting.
Literal threshold doors lock behind him. I do like visual reminders to the audience that there’s no going back.
The Debate
So, Governor wants the Valley. Dug wants the Valley. Got our conflict.
Emotionally I’m not really feeling anything around this conflict. Don’t really feel why Dug loves the Valley (or even his Tribe) so much. Again, pretty low-key stakes emotionally because I don’t feel particularly attached to the Valley world or the Tribe.
Break Into II
Agreement to play game for with the Valley as the prize. Goal and stakes definitely stated.
“If we win, we get our Valley back.”
“If we lose, we spend the rest of our lives working down in the mines.”
Wait. There’s an “or”?
“We’ll just live in the Bad Lands.”
This is a problem. I don’t hear a binary choice. The Bad Lands better actually be really bad or this arguably-viable third option will ruin the stakes. And that’s assume working in the mines is horrific—which we have no visual evidence of yet. Dug seems to know it’s awful, but he just met this society, right? These stakes are feeling rather convenient and not particularly engaging.
“We did play football once. Our ancestors did.” Okay, I’m going to go with that this is definitely the Misbelief because Dug’s sticking to it.
Wait, the antagonist has multiple stakes too? So he has to win because:
Queen says he’d better not lose or it’ll be a great shame.
And he would lose his entrance fee wealth.
Ugh. I hate it when there are too many motivations. It makes it harder to understand the conflict.
I’m not really sure what the value of the Queen character is as a threat. She doesn’t seem to have any real control over the antagonist. If anything, I could see him defying her and not playing the game because she irritates him. I’m getting really serious “setting up a Finale ally” twist vibes here.
Fun and Games
Oh, boy. Now I actually like the Bad Lands more than the Valley. So that third option of just hanging out with dinosaurs feels actually kind of fun, not frightening. Even for the target audience of football-loving kids, you’re showing your audience that the choice to not confront the antagonist is not so bad. We’re into Act II and I’m already starting to worry that I don’t care enough.
And of course they’re terrible at playing football. Again, why should they keep trying when they can just take their now-smashed ball and go home.
Oh, wow. And the Chief even says it. “We’re okay here.” Exactly. Now, tell me why we aren’t, Dug, and tell this lazy guy to start caring about what’s going on so I can care too.
And Dug’s on about the ancestors again. Ugh. Look, yes, the Misbelief is important, but it isn’t motivation or stakes. The Misbelief only explains why the Protagonist keeps making the decisions he makes and what lesson he has to learn, not why we should care about the story.
End of scene and the Chief guy doesn’t care about the stakes and the audience probably doesn’t either. This is bad.
Okay, at least we’re heading back to the fortress village. That’s another place that’s interesting. (So far I’m liking every setting except the Valley.) I’m okay with the “gotta get a new ball” mini-quest. Again, I just wish I cared more about the stakes if he can’t get a new ball.
The Midpoint
The “new information” and “everything changes” is meeting a new character. Who … I like? Wow, love the Ginger energy. And she has an actual real goal of wanting to play football on the “sacred turf.” Finally, an emotionally-charged goal I can get behind. Name is Goona.
Oh, I think I see now why the Misbelief is a problem. Goona understands teamwork and capitalizing on an opponent’s weakness. And she has a vested interest in seeing Dug win beyond just being a nice person.
Oh, I like this: “Their weakness is that there are eleven players who think they are all the star.”
And she wins the Chief over? Just like that?
Uh, I’m starting to think this movie would have been a whole lot better if Goona had been the Protagonist and not the Mentor.
(Hognob better be the secret hero here, or this setup is going to make me mad.)
All right. We get our training montage. They make shoes. They make uniforms.
And all that’s happening for me is that I’m loving the Bad Lands more and more.
What if the movie stopped right now with Dug and his Tribe realizing that they like the Bad Lands and enjoy just playing football with their new girl buddy and decide to just walk away from the risk of being enslaved? Dug gets his “our ancestors played football” Misbelief confirmed and he has a new cute friend who believes in him (which is bonus). Done.
Midpoint Assessment
What I don’t like: The stakes don’t seem to matter.
If they mattered, I’d feel urgency right now that they get their training done and get good enough to beat the Bronze team. But right now I’m just so happy for Goona that she’s enjoying coaching her new friends and Dug’s getting his good football team.
What I like: Goona.
And I just met her. She lives in an interesting place, she’s a nice person, and she has goals that she cares about.
Bad Guys Close In
Governor dude, Nooth, discovers the cave people were playing football “longer than we have.” And Queen knows the Tribe is getting better. And now Nooth is threatened that he’ll go down into the mines if he doesn’t shut them down. Again, lots of motivations just being thrown at a wall to see which one sticks.
The thing I don’t get is wouldn’t they be upset with one of their own people helping these guys out? I’d love to be scared for Goona right now, but I don’t see any reason to.
Okay, something just got found that we don’t get to see but obviously is going to change everything.
Dug has a little moment where he looks back at the Valley. Definitely too little, too late. Chicken Run did it so much better where Ginger spends so much time throughout the film on the roof looking out at the fields beyond the farm.
Okay, Dug captured. Seriously, why? Capture Goona if you really want to mess up the Tribe’s chances at winning.
More about the mines. Seriously, I don’t care about the Valley. Set up your mines anywhere, boys. We’ll just stay in the Bad Lands.
Oh. I get it. They have to capture Dug because they have to mess with his Misbelief. Because the antagonist’s job is to help the plot. Ugh.
Dark Night of the Soul
Oh, wow. Now, this is actually a really interesting backstory. And what a great twist: The reason you can now becomes the reason you can’t. That’s clever. And I like that the Tribe were actually really nice people who just loved playing the game.
Okay, but Dug sticks to his Misbelief that his Tribe can play football because their ancestors did? Wait, is this the Dark Night of the Soul? Do I have the beats wrong?
“But I’m willing to offer you a deal.”
We get a little visual of the Tribe in the mines. Mines = bad. I think we get that. I’m still wondering why the Bad Lands aren’t a viable alternative however.
Hognob shows up.
Dug: “What if I’m wrong and the Chief was right all along? What if we are just a tribe of rabbit hunters. Forgive me, but I’ve got a deal to make. I’ve got to save the tribe.”
Hognob notices leaky faucet? Will this pay off later? (Spoiler: It doesn’t. Did I miss something?)
Nooth rejoicing in his entrance fee wealth.
Queen shows up. And she’s a socialist?
Dug appears alone in arena.
Break into III
Dug: “You’ll leave my people alone as you agreed?" Okay, now we know he agreed to something. “I forfeit the game. And volunteer myself for the mines. And our Valley is yours.”
Wait, what? I understand the forfeit and sacrificing himself for his Tribe. But after all that, his Tribe doesn’t get the Valley, either? How is this saving them? What kind of negotiation is this? I thought the Valley was the whole point! Oh, I am so confused as to what even matters anymore.
And unless I have the beats wrong, this is a terrible way to go into Act III. Dug hasn’t learned the lesson and his “action” plan is to do nothing and get nothing for it.
Assemble the Team
Giant duck brings the Tribe and Goona to the stadium.
So deal’s off then? Well, good, because Dug’s useless.
Queen: “Oh, goody! There is a game after all.”
Chief: “They’re just pictures. We’re what matters. We can play!”
Execute the Plan
Okay, finally. The game starts. We see the montage setup play out as each person shows what they learned.
Bronze team starts to fight each other, proving Goona true about each one wanting to be stars.
Nooth tries to shut the game down because Goona is a girl, but of course, the Queen’s not down for that. I hate “girls stick together” trope.
Oh, “suspended” means being hung upside down. Yuk, yuk.
High Tower Surprise
Nooth goes down to mess with the referee. Queen notices the money … and is upset? Upset that she doesn’t get any or that Nooth cheated people? I’m confused by the Queen — she’s sort of an antagonist, but she’s not consistent.
Nooth takes the referee’s place.
Only need one more goal to win. But with new “referee” it obviously isn’t going to happen. No fouls called on Bronze players cheating.
And the audience starts to get angry? Wait, they don’t like the home team because they cheat? Oh, no, no, no. This is bad. The audience should be on the antagonist’s side so the pressure mounts on the protagonist!
Oh, don’t tell me everyone hates Nooth now. This is so ridiculous.
Okay, Chief gets hurt. Yikes, is he dead? Oh … no. He’s snoring.
Me too, Chief. Me too.
Execute the New Plan
Okay, finally Hognob in as goalie. And audience loves it. Deflects ball.
Dug scores goal.
Audience cheers. Nooth humiliated. Bronze team won over. Queen: “You reminded us how the game should be played.”
Goona and Dug tag team to take Nooth out. Everyone gets their money back. Trophy to Dug. (For heaven’s sake, why does Dug get anything?)
And back to the Valley. New painting. Now have bronze-tipped spears and everybody’s hunting rabbits.
Closing Image:
Rabbit scares them off with shadow puppets.
THE END.
Oh, Nick. Nick, Nick, Nick ….
Lessons from Early Man:
It’s not enough to have a high-concept idea, interesting backstory, or a heart-warming theme. Execution matters.
Normal World should strongly establish stakes, especially what the Protagonist loves and fears.
Any crisis choices faced by the Protagonist should be binary.
Motivations must be concise, clear, and consistent.
If the Protagonist is being controlled by the plot and secondary characters are playing a more active role in driving the story forward, consider changing the Protagonist to the character that is driving the story.
In this case, I would have made Goona the Protagonist with possibly a flat arc. She believes in teamwork and teaches her new friend Dug and his family how to win at football. (Like Forrest Gump.)
Or if she had a positive arc, she has a prejudice against Dug’s abilities which mirrors how she has been treated and forces her to confront her contribution to the problem. (Like Zootopia.)
If you have more than one Antagonist, they should be aligned in some way that keeps their pressure on the Protagonist consistent.
If you will have a twist in which an “antagonist” is actually a Trickster, do not use the character as a deus ex machina.
Twists are less likely to disturb the audience’s suspension of disbelief if it makes things harder for the Protagonist, not easier.