DRAMATIC STRUCTURE & PLOT THREADS: SMOKE

 

Resources for Teaching Film

What does life consist of?  Plot (choices), Story (narratives), Coincidence (happenstance), Confrontations (when plot heats up), and Healing (NOT Resolutions).

 

Part 1.

PLOT Paul walks into Auggie's store.  He looks rough, and orders some cigarettes . . .

STORY  Paul tells story of weighing smoke—then he leaves; Auggie tells story of Paul’s wife       being killed

COINCIDENCE Thomas saves Paul from being hit by garbage truck

PLOT  Paul feels thankful and wants to repay the favor . . .

PLOT At the café Paul invites Thomas to stay with him for a few days--

 

Part 2.

PLOT Auggie in the cigar shop is chatting with Vinnie about his big Cuban cigar deal

COINCIDENCE  Paul arrives at Cigar store just as it is closing; Paul notices the camera 

STORY Auggie tells story of taking photographs for 10 years

PLOT  Auggie decides to show the photographs to Paul—and he knows Paul may see

pictures of his late wife

HEALING  Seeing pictures of his wife provides a catharsis for Paul

 

Part 3.

PLOT  Thomas shows up again and Paul takes him in

CONFRONTATION  Paul gets tired of Thomas' clutter & noise & asks him to leave

CONFRONTATION Aunt Em just happens to find Paul and chastise him; after she

            Settles down, she tells him that Thomas is estranged from his father

 

Part 4.

PLOT  Thomas just happens to decide to look up his father Cyrus

CONFRONTATION Cyrus is bugged by this and threatened; so he tries to intimidate the kid

 

Part 5.

PLOT  Ruby shows up at Auggie’s to ask a favor

STORY  Auggie and Ruby rehash the old days; Ruby tells him about their daughter, Felicity

CONFRONTATION They argue some more and Auggie doesn’t give in and tells her to

take it out on the arches; Ruby calls him a cold-hearted bastard

 

Part 6.

PLOT  Thomas has spent the entire afternoon sitting across from the garage

PLOT After work Cyrus comes over to him again; Cyrus gives in and offers him a job after the

kid bugs him enough

 

Part 7.

PLOT  Cyrus and Thomas sit in the back of the pickup; Thomas asks Cyrus about his arm

STORY  Cyrus tells him the story of how he lost the arm

COINCIDENCE Cyrus’ wife and second child show up to take Cyrus home

PLOT Thomas sees the perfect family Cyrus has now

HEALING  He leaves behind a gift, his drawing of the garage

 

Part 8.

PLOT  Thomas just happens to show up on Paul's doorstep again with the television set

CONFRONTATION Paul yells at him because he knows that Aunt Em is worried

STORY  Thomas tells the truth about what happened with the Creeper

PLOT He doesn’t tell Paul about the money he picked up and stashed in the bookcase

HEALING  Paul advises Thomas to call his Aunt Em

HEALING Paul and Thomas sit in the apartment and watch a Mets game

 

Part 9.

PLOT Ruby picks up Auggie and takes her to Felicity’s apartment

CONFRONTATION  Felicity does not welcome them; in fact she tells them to get lost

HEALING  When Auggie & Ruby leave, Felicity’s face changes to show her fear

 

Part 10.

STORY  Paul tells Thomas the story about the father locked in ice for forty years

COINCIDENCE  Thomas tells Paul about his birthday

PLOT  At a bookstore, COINCIDENCE  the clerk recognizes Paul

PLOT   Thomas makes up story that he is Paul's father; Thomas invites April to a party

COINCIDENCE  at the party they just happen to see Auggie

PLOT  Paul asks Auggie if he can give the kid a job

HEALING Thomas accepts the offer and begin working at the cigar store

 

Part 11.

STORY  Paul tells Thomas the story about the guy who smoked up his novel

COINCIDENCE Paul reaches for a book and finds the bag of money and all is revealed

CONFRONTATION  Paul blows up at how stupid Thomas was

HEALING Paul tries to counsel Thomas when he realizes he is in big trouble

 

Part 12.

COINCIDENCE  Thomas leaves the water on; the cigars are ruined 

CONFRONTATION Auggie blows up when he realizes he has lost his $5000 investment

CONFRONTATION Paul and Thomas meet Auggie at the bar; Paul convinces Thomas to give the

money to Auggie in return for his losses

HEALING  Finally Auggie takes the money

 

Part 13.

CONFRONTATION  The creeper makes a surprise visit to Paul’s apartment

PLOT  Paul doesn’t tell them that Thomas has been staying with him

COINCIDENCE  Thomas returns to Paul's apartment in time to see the Creeper beating Paul up

 

Part 14.

PLOT The next day Paul shows up, bandaged, at the cigar store--he worries about Thomas

 

Part 15.

PLOT Auggie meets Ruby on a promenade; Auggie offers her the $5000 so she can get Felicity

into a rehab program so she can get off drugs

PLOT Auggie wants to know one thing—is he the father; but Ruby doesn’t know

HEALING  Auggie accepts that answer

 

Part 16.

PLOT  Paul and Auggie show up at the garage on a Sunday

COINCIDENCE Cyrus and his family have stopped by to invite Rashid to a picnic

CONFRONTATION Paul and Auggie work together to egg the kid on to reveal his identity

CONFRONTATION Thomas and his father have it out

HEALING  Everyone settles down at the picnic table

HEALING Thomas responds warmly toward his brother-in-law

 

Part 17.

PLOT  Paul has a problem because he needs a Christmas story

COINCIDENCE  At lunch, Auggie notices the newspaper story about the Creeper's death

STORY  After lunch Auggie tells him a doozie of a story

PLOT Paul thinks every word of it is true at first; then he realizes not every word of it is true

CONFRONTATION  Paul accuses Auggie of lying

HEALING  Paul laughs and praises Auggie and accepts the compliment

HEALING  Paul has his story and he publishes it

STORY  Then we see the story in the credits from Paul’s point of view and this film is over.

 

Notes written by Robert Yahnke
Copyright, Robert E. Yahnke,  © 2001
Professor, General College, Univ. of Minnesota, 
Reprinted by permission of the author for educational use only