Speeches are meant to educate, to change, or to inspire. But Hollywood screenwriters haven’t always gotten those aspects 100% right. Here at Ethos3, we’ve already reviewed some presentation techniques from films worth emulating. Here are some you should avoid.
“Canceling the Apocalypse”
– Stacker Pentecost, Pacific Rim
Guillermo del Toro’s white-knuckled monster-smashing thrill ride is one of the most enjoyable popcorn flicks to come out in years. But like most efforts in that genre, the dialogue is perhaps not its greatest strength. Idris Elba typifies that issue here with his trailer-ready “Canceling the Apocalypse” line, but frankly that’s the least of the speech’s problems.
There’s no doubting the control Pentecost has over the room; the only question is, does anyone understand what he’s talking about? He’s mixing metaphors like nobody’s business — since when does “hope” have an “edge”? — and there is a lot of general confusion about who is knocking on whose door. How is his audience going to remember what they’re supposed do if they’re still trying to figure out what they just heard?
“The Revolutionary Speech”
– V, V for Vendetta
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KKvvOFIHs4k
Hugo Weaving is gifted with a booming voice that stands out even in Hollywood, so it’s no surprise that the directing Wachowskis would envision him being able to give a rousing speech while wearing a face-obscuring mask.
But the truth is, facial expressions are extremely important for getting a message across to an audience, and a lack of eye contact can make a speaker seem untrustworthy or uninterested. Obviously for V’s purposes in the film, a mask serves a purpose other than clarity and comprehension, but most presenters don’t have that luxury. They’ll have to rely on such techniques as raising their head, lowering their eyebrows, and cutting back on the blinking.
“Who Will be My Brother”
– Snow White, Snow White & The Huntsman
Snow White’s volume and projection is all over the place here. Granted, at this point she has literally come back from the dead, so maybe we can cut her a little bit of slack for having a scratchy throat. But she touches all the bases of the classic bad voicework speech, sometimes speaking so softly that dwarves are elbowing each other out of the way to get closer, then overcorrecting into hoarse screams, and running out of breath much too easily.
There may not be any method of recording in the Snow White universe, but maybe a magic mirror can help her work on her delivery. Studies show that 38% of an audience’s opinion of your personality is derived from how you sound to them — that’s not a great number if you’re struggling with your tone as you rally the troops.
“Immortality”
– Achilles, Troy
Brad Pitt may look the part of a mythically powerful warrior, but this pre-war pep talk to his elite company of bloodthirsty soldiers sounds like he was reading it off a piece of college-ruled. Even great actors need to practice if they want to perform at the highest level, but it’s hard to watch this without thinking Brad had it all memorized. Knowing your lines is one thing, but memorizing them is another; you can’t give your presentation the gusto it deserves if your delivery is flat.
So, in summary: be clear in your message, use your non-verbal skills to your advantage, present yourself in a professional way, use a proper tone, and avoid looking bored to tears. You may not be fighting off space monsters or evil witches, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t pitfalls to be avoided.
