Write authentically, even breaking the rules

Crime and legal drama writers often struggle to develop authenticity in their stories. Authenticity is critical to keeping readers or viewers engaged because they need to believe in your characters and your story. The world of criminal law has its own procedures, language and rules. Knowing the rules of criminal law is essential to creating a story with authenticity. However, that does not mean that the rules should always be followed.

Breaking the rules for the sake of drama is perfectly acceptable and often even necessary to create a compelling story. The key is to first know what the rules are, so that you can then make an intelligent decision about how and when to break them.

One of the best courtroom drama scenes in movie history broke the rules and did so in a way that didn’t take away from the film’s authenticity. Do you remember this exchange?

Witness: Do you want answers?

Lawyer: I think I have the right to.

Witness: Do you want answers?

Lawyer: I want the truth!

Witness: You can’t handle the truth!

Of course, this is the height of court drama in A Few Good Men. This is the culmination of an epic battle between Tom Cruise as the defense attorney, Lieutenant Kaffee, and Jack Nicholson as the witness, the Colonel. Jessep.

This exchange is followed by Col. Jessep’s lengthy recitation of the importance of the military to our orderly society, even though we sometimes don’t like the way they go about their business.

This scene breaks the rules because the trials are held in a question and answer format. The lawyer asks questions and the witness answers. Here we have the opposite. The witness asks questions and the lawyer answers.

Then the witness gives a long speech that does not answer any questions. A witness’s testimony in an actual trial is required to be a direct response to the attorney’s questions. The objection to a speech so long that it doesn’t answer any questions would be “no answer” or “there are no outstanding questions.”

However, breaking these rules is necessary to advance the story of A Few Good Men because Tom Cruise’s character is trying to pressure Jack Nicholson’s character to admit that he gave the order that killed the victim. It is important for Col. Jessep to explain why he does some of the things he does out of military necessity, even though most people would consider such acts morally “wrong.” He eventually admits to his role in the contempt murder of Lt. Kaffee and everything he stands for, including courtroom rules.

More importantly, the movie is able to break these court rules for the sake of drama without losing credibility because most of the movie is so authentic. There is an understanding of how criminal cases and trials really work that permeates the entire film. That kind of authenticity throughout the story allows the viewer to forgive the occasional rule being broken. Especially when the result is great drama.

The lesson is that breaking the rules does not necessarily take away from the overall authenticity of a story when it is done conscientiously and with an understanding of the decisions being made.

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