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To be fair I, Claudius is purely about sexual and political intrigue within the Julio-Claudian dynasty, so it can't really be anything else.
Lasting Impact?
- Thread starter Toby Frost
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To be fair I, Claudius is purely about sexual and political intrigue within the Julio-Claudian dynasty, so it can't really be anything else.
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It occurs to me that while I can't think of any great dialogue from I Claudius, it would be quite easy to write a recognisable parody of it. The same with Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy. What that probably means is that they were very good at being their own thing, even if that didn't involve a lot of memorable quipping.
For what it's worth I think there are certain types of dialogue that it's easy to make sound deep, and "manly men swap hard-won knowledge" is definitely one. A lot of dialogue is finding new ways for characters to express the same old ideas: "Don't trust flatterers", "Men are strong but easy to manipulate", "Tough things that last are worth more than fancy things that break" or whatever. I'm sure I've seen the sentiment "Sometimes, a good pair of boots is more useful than the works of Shakespeare" expressed a lot of times (after all, it's true), but never as well as that.
(Also, the dialogue in Game of Thrones (and perhaps I Claudius to a lesser extent) isn't quite modern dialogue, as it's in the slightly stilted, slightly Victorian style that for some reason many fantasy writers use.)
If I had to nominate a good line of dialogue, I'd go for "I refuse to join a club that would have me as a member" (possibly not the exact wording), which is funny but also expresses quite a complex idea in a striking and succinct way. Not that all dramas need to sound like the Marx Brothers, of course.
For what it's worth I think there are certain types of dialogue that it's easy to make sound deep, and "manly men swap hard-won knowledge" is definitely one. A lot of dialogue is finding new ways for characters to express the same old ideas: "Don't trust flatterers", "Men are strong but easy to manipulate", "Tough things that last are worth more than fancy things that break" or whatever. I'm sure I've seen the sentiment "Sometimes, a good pair of boots is more useful than the works of Shakespeare" expressed a lot of times (after all, it's true), but never as well as that.
(Also, the dialogue in Game of Thrones (and perhaps I Claudius to a lesser extent) isn't quite modern dialogue, as it's in the slightly stilted, slightly Victorian style that for some reason many fantasy writers use.)
If I had to nominate a good line of dialogue, I'd go for "I refuse to join a club that would have me as a member" (possibly not the exact wording), which is funny but also expresses quite a complex idea in a striking and succinct way. Not that all dramas need to sound like the Marx Brothers, of course.
To be fair, those two 'quotes' can apply to everything from Friends to Raiders of the Lost Ark...
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For me, dialogue is 'good' when it suits the medium on which it is being represented. Also there are occasions where the written word doesn't always do justice to what is being said.
The climactic courtroom scene between Cruise and Nicholson in 'A Few Good Men' was quite brilliantly done. As was Bogey unravelling as Queeg.
Some of the dialogue in I, Claudius can appear contrived and cliched, and Blessed as Augustus is (as ever) over the top. But when John Hurt as Caligula questions his sanity, or Sian Phillips as Livia admits to murdering her husband - those lines are so exquisitely delivered as to be pure genius.
On the other hand you gave the absolutely awful dialogue in movies like Phantom Menace.
Of course, the very best dialogue ever written and performed is by Paul, Nigel and Derek is Yes Minister/Prime Minister.
The climactic courtroom scene between Cruise and Nicholson in 'A Few Good Men' was quite brilliantly done. As was Bogey unravelling as Queeg.
Some of the dialogue in I, Claudius can appear contrived and cliched, and Blessed as Augustus is (as ever) over the top. But when John Hurt as Caligula questions his sanity, or Sian Phillips as Livia admits to murdering her husband - those lines are so exquisitely delivered as to be pure genius.
On the other hand you gave the absolutely awful dialogue in movies like Phantom Menace.
Of course, the very best dialogue ever written and performed is by Paul, Nigel and Derek is Yes Minister/Prime Minister.
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The greatest scene from Last Crusade, with Connery and Ford tied to chairs in Castle Brunwald is essentially this.
GOT has "I urinate" as one of its central themes for great quotes apparently.
Judderman
The Iceman cometh
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If that isn’t a topic that will be relevant long in to the future what is?
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