Save the Cat rankings

Ad Astra script analysis

Ad Astra script - Save the Cat beat sheet analysis

Engineer Major Roy McBride undertakes a series of escalating space missions—from GISA near Earth’s atmosphere, to the Moon, to Mars, and finally to Neptune—to contact his presumed-dead father, H. Clifford McBride. Along the way he faces technical failures, hostile forces, and personal revelations that challenge his stoic detachment. In the end, he discovers his father’s radical project and sacrifices to preserve its data before charting his lonely course back to Earth.

45 Save the Cat fit score 20% analysis confidence / 151 parsed scenes

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1

Opening Image

Scene 1 / Page 1 / 1% target

10%

Title card and serene Earth-from-space establish the film’s visual and emotional tone.

SUPERIMPOSE THE LEGEND: ONE HUNDRED YEARS FROM NOW.
2

Theme Stated

Scene 2 / Page 1 / 5% target

15%

Reporter defines humanity’s quest to find intelligent life, foreshadowing Roy’s search for his father and the film’s theme of connection.

REPORTER'S VOICE If this looks to you like something out of one of your children's comic book adventures,...
3

Set-Up

Scenes 4-10 / Pages 1-3 / 10% target

15%

We see Roy’s disciplined routine, his emotional reserve, and his strained relationship with his mother, setting up his character and stakes.

4

Catalyst

Scene 16 / Page 4 / 12% target

20%

USSPACECOM reveals Roy’s father is alive and requests he contact him, upending Roy’s mission objectives.

BRIGADIER GENERAL FALLON Major, I'm Brigadier General Fallon. This is Lieutenant General Sharpe, Director of SPACECOM Special Operations....
5

Debate

Scene 28 / Page 7 / 20% target

15%

Roy argues with mission leaders in the conference room about personal involvement and whether he alone can make contact—he must decide if he’s up to the task.

ROY MCBRIDE I believe the proper first step would be to get me to Mars, to the specified...
6

Break into Two

Scene 18 / Page 6 / 25% target

15%

Roy boards the lunar shuttle and leaves Earth’s orbit—he commits to the dangerous journey into the unknown.

LOUDSPEAKER VOICE Please use the safety straps for your wrists as you ascend. You will find them located...
7

B Story

Scene 46 / Page 11 / 30% target

10%

Roy meets Captain Blunt, who becomes his ally and proxy father figure, offering personal interaction beyond Roy’s mission obsession.

CAPTAIN LAWRENCE BLUNT Right-o. Welcome aboard.
8

Fun and Games

Scenes 32-36 / Pages 13-14 / 40% target

15%

Roy’s lunar convoy traverses hostile zones, fending off pirates and navigating war-torn far side, showcasing the adventure of space travel.

WILLY LEVANT Should be fine, but... We're gonna be going through what is still technically a war zone....
9

Midpoint

Scene 39 / Page 15 / 50% target

15%

Roy shoots attacking pirates; the action peaks and stakes jump as they enter permanent darkness, foreshadowing deeper challenges ahead.

RADIO VOICE COLONEL, WE DO CONFIRM YOU'RE FACING PIRATE ACTIVITY. Are you all clear now, over?
10

Bad Guys Close In

Scenes 60-66 / Pages 18-19 / 65% target

15%

On the Cepheus, Roy faces internal conflict and hostile monkeys; his crewmates impose mission detours and reveal unsettling truths, tightening external and internal pressure.

FRANKLIN YOSHIDA Major--we're receiving a "mayday" from a craft that's in our zone. Per regulation, it may require...
11

All Is Lost

Scene 70 / Page 20 / 75% target

15%

Roy discovers the dead Blunt and is overrun by primates, barely escaping—his mission seems doomed.

ROY MCBRIDE (RADIO FILTER) Captain?
12

Dark Night of the Soul

Scenes 74-75 / Page 21 / 80% target

15%

Roy contemplates death and purpose after recovering Blunt’s body, haunted by isolation and loss before forging on.

ROY MCBRIDE It was a scientific vessel--they lost control somehow. I tried to tell the Captain... ALL of...
13

Break into Three

Scene 120 / Page 26 / 85% target

15%

Roy straps in for the final autonomous journey to Neptune, resolving to finish the mission alone despite dire odds.

ROY MCBRIDE Destination, Neptune Moon Galatea coordinates.
14

Finale

Scenes 137-146 / Pages 30-33 / 95% target

20%

Roy arrives at Lima Station, learns his father’s new-universe project, secures the data, and releases his father’s body—climaxing his emotional arc and fulfilling the mission.

H. CLIFFORD MCBRIDE This will be the final message recorded by the Lima Project. Our efforts have come...
15

Final Image

Scene 151 / Page 34 / 99% target

10%

The 3-D printed craft fires toward Earth as SpaceCom acknowledges Roy’s coordinates—mirroring the opening’s solitude and hope.

SPACECOM VOICE Major McBride, this is SpaceCom. We have verified the authenticity of your coordinates and have begun...