Includes bibliographical references (p. 225) and index.

Why sequences? -- The origin of sequences -- How a screenplay works -- How sequences work -- Toy story: firing on all eight -- The shop around the corner: fractured symmetry -- Double indemnity: flashback to the future -- Fellini's nights of Cabiria: nocturnal episodes -- North by northwest: 1,700 miles in nine sequences -- Lawrence of Arabia: sixteen sequences and an intermission -- The graduate: passive main character -- One flew over the cuckoo's nest: midpoint reversal -- Air Force One: eight sequences eight miles up -- Being John Malkovich: the disappearing lead actor -- The fellowship of the ring: the shotgun approach.