Synopsis/Details
New England, start of and during World War I. One night, accompanied by five of his pupils, a teacher decides to perform the ritual of burning dead leaves and branches. He admits that the idea scares him, because once just such a bonfire got out of control and the teacher was barely able to contain it. He also admits that the fire will frighten these children, too, even as warfare should. The children argue that war is for men, not for them, but their mentor quickly disabuses them of this notion: war is for everyone. Like a bonfire, moreover, such a conflagration, the moment it gets started, soon spreads beyond anybody’s control and leaves nothing behind except scorched earth. Scared though they now may be, the children follow the teacher up a hill to start the fire—and to have a laugh or two while they are doing it.
Story & Logistics
Story Type:
Pursuit
Story Situation:
Daring enterprise
Story Conclusion:
Ambiguous
Linear Structure:
Linear
Moral Affections:
Innocence, Intemperance
Cast Size:
Several
Locations:
Single
Special Effects:
Minor cgi
Characters
Lead Role Ages:
Female under 13, Male Adult, Male under 13
Hero Type:
Anti-Hero, Ordinary
Villian Type:
Anti-Villian, Authority Figure
Stock Character Types:
Boy next door, Everyman, Girl next door, Professor
Advanced
Adaption:
Based on Existing Fiction
Subgenre:
Action/Adventure, Childhood, Drama, Literary Adaption, Man vs Nature, Small-town Life, Social Commentary, War, World War 1
Action Elements:
Pyrotechnics
Life Topics:
Childhood, Childhood Adventure
Super Powers:
Physical or mental domination
Time Period:
Age of Oil (after 1901), Late modern period, Machine Age (1880–1945), World War I (1914–1918)
Country:
United States of America (USA)
Time of Year:
Spring, Summer
Relationship Topics:
Abuse, Activities, Affinity, Bonding, Child, Emotions and feelings
Writer Style:
Paul Schrader, Stanley Kubrick, Stephen King
