Okay sure; this is supposed to be a site about covers. You're right. But since we're big fans of "Save the Cat" here, we though this would be a most useful list - A sorting of Log Lines for some of our favorite movies; all in one place; all sorted alphabetically.
In case you're not familiar with a Log Line, it's the essence of your story distilled in about two memorable sentences or less, and should serve as a method of both driving and pitching your story. If you're lost while writing the middle - Think of your Log Line. If someone asks you what your story is about - Same deal, repeat your Log Line.
Some of the most memorable Log Lines include a dose of irony too (read "How to Train Your Dragon" for great example).
We will be adding to this list as we go along. Our hope is that you can use it as an inspiration tool as your writing journey carries on. Good luck!
A
Alice in Wonderland - Nineteen-year-old Alice returns to the magical world from her childhood adventure, where she reunites with her old friends and learns of her true destiny: to end the Red Queen's reign of terror.
B
Bad News Bears (The) - An alcoholic former coach has to whip a team of misfits into being the best baseball team they can be.
Bladerunner - A blade runner must pursue and terminate four replicants who stole a ship in space, and have returned to Earth to find their creator.
Brave - Determined to make her own path in life, a feisty princess invokes a magic wish that forces her to face her own mother-turned-beast when the wish becomes a curse instead.
C
Coco - When his family refuses to even talk about music, an aspiring young musician must venture all the way to the Land of the Dead to seek his father - A legendary singer of Mexico!
Coraline - The lonely, and oft-ignored Coraline Jones uncovers a magic doorway that leads to the world of her dreams, where everything and anything is all about her, at last! But does this world come with a catch?
D
Dances with Wolves -A civil war hero gets "promoted" to the frontier lines to defend against the Indians, only to befriend them instead.
Doctor Strange - While on a journey of physical and spiritual healing, a brilliant neurosurgeon is drawn into the world of the mystic arts.
E
E.T. The Extra Terrestrial - A troubled child summons the courage to help a friendly alien escape Earth and return to his home world.
F
Finding Nemo - An otherwise neurotic and risk-adverse father must overcome his fear of the big, bad ocean in order to reunite with his kidnapped son!
G
Ghostbusters - Three former parapsychology professors set up shop as a unique ghost removal service.
Ghostbusters 2 - The discovery of a massive river of ectoplasm and a resurgence of spectral activity allows the staff of Ghostbusters to revive the business.
Gladiator - A former Roman General sets out to exact vengeance against the corrupt emperor who murdered his family and sent him into slavery.
H
How to Train your Dragon - A viking teen befriends a dragon despite his kind's vow to destroy them all.
Hunger Games (The) - Katniss Everdeen voluntarily takes her younger sister's place in the Hunger Games: a televised competition in which two teenagers from each of the twelve Districts of Panem are chosen at random to fight to the death.
I
Inside Out - When a displaced schoolgirl is forced to move away from home and face sadness for the first time in her life, the personification of her very emotions must find a way to contain the jumble of memories and experiences inside her.
J
Jurassic Park - During a preview tour, a theme park suffers a major power breakdown that allows its cloned dinosaur exhibits to run amok.
K
Kung-Fu Panda - A meek fanboy panda thinks he's in love with Kung-Fu; until he's mistaken as the legendary "Dragon Warrior" of China and charged with the task of defeating a terrifying Kung-Fu Villain!
L
Land Before Time - An orphaned brontosaurus teams up with other young dinosaurs in order to reunite with their families in a valley.
M
Monsters, INC - A pair of infamously "scary" Monsters must face down something far more frightening than even them - A stowaway toddler that has invaded their world!
N
Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind - Warrior/pacifist Princess Nausicaä desperately struggles to prevent two warring nations from destroying themselves and their dying planet.
O
Over the Hedge - A scheming raccoon fools a mismatched family of forest creatures into helping him repay a debt of food, by invading the new suburban sprawl that popped up while they were hibernating...and learns a lesson about family himself.
P
Princess Mononoke - Seeking to free himself of a curse, Ashitaka is caught up in an even greater curse when he uncovers a human mining town warring against the spirits of an ancient forest, and that forest's protector - the Princess Mononoke.
Q
Quantum of Solace (James Bond) - James Bond descends into mystery as he tries to stop a mysterious organization from eliminating a country's most valuable resource.
R
Robocop - In a dystopic and crime-ridden Detroit, a terminally wounded cop returns to the force as a powerful cyborg haunted by submerged memories.
S
Shrek - After his swamp is filled with magical creatures, Shrek agrees to rescue Princess Fiona for a villainous lord in order to get his land back.
T
Thor - The powerful, but arrogant god Thor, is cast out of Asgard to live amongst humans in Midgard (Earth), where he soon becomes one of their finest defenders.
Thor: The Dark World - When Dr. Jane Foster gets cursed with a powerful entity known as the Aether, Thor is heralded of the cosmic event known as the Convergence and the genocidal Dark Elves.
Thor: Ragnarok - Thor is imprisoned on the planet Sakaar, and must race against time to return to Asgard and stop Ragnarök, the destruction of his world, at the hands of the powerful and ruthless villain Hela.
Toy Story - A cowboy doll is profoundly threatened and jealous when a new spaceman figure supplants him as top toy in a boy's room.
U
Up - Seventy-eight year old Carl Fredricksen travels to Paradise Falls in his home equipped with balloons, inadvertently taking a young stowaway.
V
V for Vendetta - In a future British tyranny, a shadowy freedom fighter, known only by the alias of "V", plots to overthrow it with the help of a young woman.
W
Wall*E - In the distant future, a small waste-collecting robot inadvertently embarks on a space journey that will ultimately decide the fate of mankind.
X
X-Men - Two mutants come to a private academy for their kind whose resident superhero team must oppose a terrorist organization with similar powers.
Y
You've Got Mail - Two business rivals who despise each other in real life unwittingly fall in love over the Internet.
Z
Zoolander - At the end of his career, a clueless fashion model is brainwashed to kill the Prime Minister of Malaysia.
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