Michael Quinn
  • About
  • Book Reviews Quinn on Books Gay Sensibility
  • Critical Influences
  • Script Doctor
  • Personal & Reported Essays
  • Interviews
  • Contact

Michael Quinn

  • About/
  • Cultural Criticism/
    • Book Reviews
    • Quinn on Books
    • Gay Sensibility
  • Critical Influences/
  • Script Doctor/
  • Personal & Reported Essays/
  • Interviews/
  • Contact/
Hollywood Collage Photo Credit Michael Quinn.jpeg

Michael Quinn

Script Doctor

Michael Quinn

  • About/
  • Cultural Criticism/
    • Book Reviews
    • Quinn on Books
    • Gay Sensibility
  • Critical Influences/
  • Script Doctor/
  • Personal & Reported Essays/
  • Interviews/
  • Contact/

One film. 100 words.

A sharp diagnosis and a prescription to fix it.

Script Doctor is a blog where I apply a screenwriter’s lens to the films I watch—offering a quick summary and one or two script-level fixes to help the story land. Years ago, I was a reader for Paramount, evaluating which books were worth adapting for the screen. Now I’m turning that critical eye on the screenplays themselves.

Does my diagnosis hold up—or need a second opinion?


August 18, 2025

"Who Killed Teddy Bear?": Incel Rage in Jockey Shorts

August 18, 2025/ Michael Quinn
"Who Killed Teddy Bear?": Incel Rage in Jockey Shorts

A sweaty psychosexual thriller begging for a remake.

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August 18, 2025/ Michael Quinn/
script doctor, film review, cultural criticism, character study, queer cinema, horror, gay
Who Killed Teddy Bear, Sal Mineo, Juliet Prowse, Elaine Stritch, Jan Murray, queer cinema, gay, psychological thriller, exploitation film, incel rage, New York City, cult classic, 1960s cinema, gender politics, homoeroticism, film remake, voyeurism, identity, LGBTQ+ film history
August 05, 2025

"Winter Kept Us Warm": The Chill of Unspoken Desire

August 05, 2025/ Michael Quinn
"Winter Kept Us Warm": The Chill of Unspoken Desire

Even the cast didn’t know they were making a gay film.

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August 05, 2025/ Michael Quinn/
script doctor, film review, character study, queer cinema, gay
Winter Kept Us Warm, queer cinema, LGBTQ+, gay, gay love story, closeted characters, queer longing, coming-of-age, student film, missed opportunity, character study, emotional repression, cultural criticism, film criticism, John Labow, Henry Tarvainen, David Secter, 1960s cinema, Canadian film
June 02, 2025

"Indiscreet": Love Makes Fools of the Righteous

June 02, 2025/ Michael Quinn
"Indiscreet": Love Makes Fools of the Righteous

Lying in love isn’t funny—unless it’s absurd.

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June 02, 2025/ Michael Quinn/
script doctor, film review, character study, gay, queer cinema, cultural criticism, women in film
Indiscreet, romantic comedy, deception, self-betrayal, emotional repression, commitment issues, character study, missed opportunity, hypocrisy, visual storytelling, queer subtext, closeted characters, gay love story, LGBTQ+ film history, film criticism, representation on screen
May 04, 2025

"The Leather Boys": A Gay Love Story Rides the Brakes

May 04, 2025/ Michael Quinn
"The Leather Boys": A Gay Love Story Rides the Brakes

The film hints at something deeper between Reggie and Pete but never allows it to take center stage.

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May 04, 2025/ Michael Quinn/
script doctor, film review, character study, gay, queer cinema
gay love story, closeted characters, gay subtext, queer longing, queer cinema, LGBTQ+ film history, LGBTQ+, gay, The Leather Boys, British film, 1960s cinema, kitchen sink drama, working-class realism, romantic drama, repressed desire, Colin Campbell, Dudley Sutton, Rita Tushingham, Sidney J. Furie, film criticism, character study, missed opportunity, visual storytelling, male intimacy, emotional repression, motorcycle film, film review

Contact the Script Doctor to give a second opinion.

 

Script Doctor collage credit: Michael Quinn

© 2018-2025 Michael Quinn