10 Screenwriting Lessons You Can Learn From Jurassic World

2. Always Ask Yourself: "Would I Do That?"

Something that the Jurassic World screenwriters seemingly forgot to ask themselves each and every time they made a character do something is... "would I do that?" Because the characters in Jurassic World are dumb, dumb, dumb. At least, they all constantly make decisions that nobody in real life would ever make, which renders the film a bit silly. Like when Claire spends the movie wearing heels; or when Simon Masrani decides to pilot a helicopter without a license; or when Zach and Gray's parents send them both to Jurassic World in the first place for no real reason; or when Dr. Henry Wu considers the idea of weaponised raptors; or when Vic Hoskins forgets to shut that door; or when... It goes on. This is a relatively simple screenwriting rule to follow, though. Every time your character does something - anything - considered to be an "action," ask yourself: "Would I do that if I were them?" Had the writers bothered to stick to this notion as they sat down to write Jurassic World, the movie probably wouldn't have been branded a "big, dumb monster movie."