Would like some help and advice with a feature screenplay I'm developing. I'm aiming for a low budget gritty thriller/horror and I'm planning to set it in London.
I've got the premise of the story, and I've written an outline, but as I try to add depth to the story, I find myself torn between which way I should play it.
My initial plan was to go quite dark and disturbing, but listening to other members on here, that route seems to limit the potential of the film. My next plan was a more restrained version, but I'm finding it hard to make it as exciting as the thrills I had in mind in my original idea. In particular, the draw/uniqueness of the killer.
The working title of the film is called "The Dark Site". The basic premise is a dysfunctional army vet is subjected to multiple injustices throughout his life and as a result becomes disenfranchised with the Criminal Justice System.
His view is that modern policing is no longer a deterrent, criminal sentencing is weak and society is moving to a place where violent criminals can act with impunity, leaving law abiding citizens with no recourse.
His solution. The Dark Site. A website on the dark web, untouchable by Law enforcement where anyone can nominate those who deserve to die for their sins. A series of blind votes are cast, a censored scoreboard is maintained, showing only the first letter of the name and the points they have. The points are determined using metrics of the severity of their crimes and the number of blind votes cast.
He then works his way through the league table, top to bottom, picking of his victims and subjecting them to torture methods in keeping with the pain they have themselves inflicted on others. As each victim is dealt with, he releases videos of their punishment over social media, explaining each victim's sins and then revealing their name on the scoreboard. In turn, earning himself a cult hero status among the general public for doing what the police can not.
The plot I have so far in essence is a doesn't-play-by-the-book detective vs a calculated insane villain, cat and mouse story.
Looking for other ideas to keep the story exciting, and the villain engaging without going too dark. Any suggestions welcome.
I've got the premise of the story, and I've written an outline, but as I try to add depth to the story, I find myself torn between which way I should play it.
My initial plan was to go quite dark and disturbing, but listening to other members on here, that route seems to limit the potential of the film. My next plan was a more restrained version, but I'm finding it hard to make it as exciting as the thrills I had in mind in my original idea. In particular, the draw/uniqueness of the killer.
The working title of the film is called "The Dark Site". The basic premise is a dysfunctional army vet is subjected to multiple injustices throughout his life and as a result becomes disenfranchised with the Criminal Justice System.
His view is that modern policing is no longer a deterrent, criminal sentencing is weak and society is moving to a place where violent criminals can act with impunity, leaving law abiding citizens with no recourse.
His solution. The Dark Site. A website on the dark web, untouchable by Law enforcement where anyone can nominate those who deserve to die for their sins. A series of blind votes are cast, a censored scoreboard is maintained, showing only the first letter of the name and the points they have. The points are determined using metrics of the severity of their crimes and the number of blind votes cast.
He then works his way through the league table, top to bottom, picking of his victims and subjecting them to torture methods in keeping with the pain they have themselves inflicted on others. As each victim is dealt with, he releases videos of their punishment over social media, explaining each victim's sins and then revealing their name on the scoreboard. In turn, earning himself a cult hero status among the general public for doing what the police can not.
The plot I have so far in essence is a doesn't-play-by-the-book detective vs a calculated insane villain, cat and mouse story.
Looking for other ideas to keep the story exciting, and the villain engaging without going too dark. Any suggestions welcome.
