Save the Cat rankings

FROM DUSK TILL DAWN script analysis

FROM DUSK TILL DAWN script - Save the Cat beat sheet analysis

Two outlaw brothers on the run take a seemingly innocent family hostage to cross into Mexico, only to wind up fighting for their lives against a horde of vampires at a desert bar. Personal stakes and reluctant alliances form amid fast-paced action and dark humor, leading to a desperate fight for survival. In the end, only a few survivors emerge as dawn breaks.

70 Save the Cat fit score 70% analysis confidence / 21 parsed scenes

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1

Opening Image

Scene 1 / Page 1 / 1% target

70%

Introduces a routine crime scene at the liquor store, setting the tone and genre.

2

Theme Stated

Scene 4 / 5% target

65%

The Fuller family’s conversation about travel and normal life foreshadows the theme of family bonds under extreme circumstances.

3

Set-Up

Scenes 1-3 / Page 1 / 10% target

75%

Establishes the Gecko brothers as dangerous criminals through the liquor-store robbery and murders.

Do you want this little girl to die?
4

Catalyst

Scene 3 / 12% target

70%

The brothers burn down the store after killing the officers, forcing them to flee immediately.

5

Debate

Scene 5 / 20% target

70%

Seth reacts in horror to Richard’s needless killing, questioning their methods and moral compass.

Oh, Richard, what's wrong with you?
6

Break into Two

Scene 6 / 25% target

75%

The Geckos decide to escalate by taking the Fullers hostage, marking a point of no return.

7

B Story

Scene 7 / 30% target

65%

The hostage situation reveals character dynamics between Seth, Richard, and the Fuller family, laying the groundwork for interpersonal drama.

8

Fun and Games

Scene 9 / 40% target

70%

On the motor home, they test boundaries with the hostages and build tension with cross-border stakes.

You help us get across the border without incident, stay with us the rest of the night without...
9

Midpoint

Scene 13 / 50% target

75%

Arrival at the Titty Twister bar feels like they’ve reached safety, but it’s a false victory as unseen dangers await.

That is me, and this is my class two license. This is a truck driver's bar, I am...
10

Bad Guys Close In

Scene 15 / 65% target

80%

The vampires reveal themselves and attack, turning a night of revelry into a deadly siege.

Everybody be cool, or you'll be just as dead as these fucks!
11

All Is Lost

Scene 18 / 75% target

75%

Sex Machine’s transformation and Frost’s biting signal the collapse of the survivors’ plan and a sense of hopelessness.

I been bit! He fuckin' bit me!
12

Dark Night of the Soul

Scene 19 / 80% target

80%

In the back room, the group mourns their losses and faces the grim possibility of turning into vampires themselves.

13

Break into Three

Scene 20 / 85% target

75%

They resolve to fight through the bar room, marking a shift to proactive survival and redemption.

14

Finale

Scenes 20-21 / 95% target

75%

A climactic battle ensues as survivors push to the front door and escape the vampire onslaught.

15

Final Image

Scene 21 / 99% target

70%

The survivors emerge at dawn, mirroring the opening image but transformed by their ordeal.