Top Five Movies with Narration

As an aspiring screenwriter (and by aspiring, I mean I often sit in Starbucks while pretending to write stuff on my laptop), I have a love/hate relationship with movie narration. Sometimes it’s just awesome. Other times it’s in your face and hackneyed, as annoying as it is expository. So, while my verdict on the usefulness of the almighty narrator in movies still isn’t in, I thought it might be a good idea to share a few prime examples of when film and narration come together in a perfect, harmonious amalgamation–much like me when I get on a dance floor (my rhythm is a gift). So, without any further introduction, here are the top five movies with narration according to moi.

Little Children
Based on Tom Perotta’s best selling book, Little Children is a dramatic satire that examines the crazy and often dark world of suburban life. You’ve got your adulterous affairs, your broken marriages, your sex offenders—you know, the usual stuff. Often my big complaint when it comes to movies adapted from novels is the frequent attempt to shove a literary structure into a cinematic one. Here, the filmmakers embrace the story’s original paperbound roots by propelling the plot using a detached and omniscient third person narration. This gives the entire movie a very interesting and slightly sardonic tone—like we’re viewing the domestic squabbles on screen as tourists staring at caged animals in a zoo. Essentially, it’s like reading the book, except without the hard “reading” part—truly a win-win situation for all! nine out of ten illiterate YouTube commenters agree: not reading books is truly the wave of the future.

Forrest Gump
It seems lately it’s kind of trendy to bash on this movie, especially coming from angsty Tarantino fanboys who are still pissed it beat out Pulp fiction for best picture in 1994. Well, let me tell you all something—Forrest Gump is a good movie. Scratch that…Forrest Gump is a great movie and is perhaps Robert Zmeckis’s last truly remarkable film (before he became all obsessed with creepy motion capture). While there are several wonderful things in this film, I contest that the narration is what it makes it so perfect. Without Forrest’s simple, yet poignant voiceover, the entire story just wouldn’t work as well. It would be like peanut butter without jelly or porn without anal. Sure, some of the classic bits have become punch lines (e.g. “Life is like a box of chocolates), but there’s a reason why we keep repeating those infamous quotes over and over—quite simply, they’re really friggin’ good. Forrest Gump is one of those movies that will always be relevant. In fact, there’s a 65% chance that TBS is playing the movie right now. Go check. I’ll wait.

Fight Club
You might think that I’m some huge Fight Club fan because it has appeared on a few of my esteemed top five lists once or twice. Well, believe it or not, I’m not some douchey, Linkin Park listening, “I-wish-I-was-taller” Fight Club fanatic. That being said, I can totally appreciate that it’s just one of those movies that does a few things really goddamn well—one just happens to be narration. Very rarely does voiceover accomplish as much it does in this movie: it drives the story along, gives the entire film a unique and stylistic tone, helps build up to the ultimate “twist,” and even becomes the most memorable aspect of Ed Norton’s performance. Films like Fight Club give credence that movie narration is more than just a screenwriting crutch. Rarely has anarchy and brutal violence looked so good—just like like Brad Pitt’s six pack abs. Homeboy is pretty dreamy. Uh…I mean…*Grrr* Chicks are hot! Let’s go watch football!

The Shawshank Redemption
At this point, what more can really be said about the Shawshank Redemption? It’s a statistical fact baseless assumption of mine that if you were to group 100 people in a room, at least 45% would declare it to be the greatest film of all time.  Honestly, if you don’t like it, you’re probably some sort of deranged puppy killer who hates his parents and touches kids underneath the monkey bars.

Although it may be slightly over praised, it’s hard to deny that Shawshank is in fact a pretty awesome movie. Its greatest attribute? None other than Morgan Freeman’s snazzy narration as longtime prison inmate Red. Throughout the almost 3 hour film, Freeman’s pleasing and warm words provide us with feelings of fear, joy, and ultimately an unyielding sense of hope. His voiceover is so successful that this movie has contractually obligated Freeman to narrate every movie he has ever appeared in since. I mean, how else can you explain the Bucket List?  Shawshank Redemption is a movie that truly holds a special place in my heart—mainly because it helped me get over my fear of black people (that and Will Smith. Gotta love my Fresh Prince).

Goodfellas
To put it bluntly, Goodfellas is narration. I defy anybody to come up with a film that is more intrinsically tied to the art of voiceover than Martin Scorsese’s infamous 1990 film. From the iconic first lines—“As far back as I can remember, I always wanted to be a gangster”—to the hilarious descriptions and quips, Goodfellas is a movie that defies both genre and expectation. Heck, Martin Scorsese liked it so much that he even tried to remake it five years later with Casino. Oddly, Robert DeNiro couldn’t tell the difference…

So, if you’re ever sitting in a screenwriting class and your professor is droning on and on about the ineffectiveness of on-screen narration, loudly interrupt him with a fake cough while barking out “homo.” Then, pull out a DVD copy of the film and simply point to it. If you’re going for the trifecta, I’ve found it helps to grab your junk and nod knowingly. It’s just impossible to argue with that Aristolian type of logic.