Unusual plots, themes elicit viewers’ attention and patronage

THE 2015 film, “Trumbo,” is an unusual dramatic production because it focuses not on standard protagonists like superheroes, beautiful heiresses and such—it’s about the acclaimed yet controversial screenwriter Dalton Trumbo (played by Bryan Cranston).

The film zeroes in on Trumbo’s career in the 1950s, when Hollywood was rocked by allegations that Communists had infiltrated its ranks, fomenting un-American ideas and inputs to undermine the nation’s moral and ethical fabric.

Trumbo was one of the screen artists who were rumored to harbor Communist sentiments, so he was discriminated against by his timorous colleagues, and lost many writing assignments.

Still, he was such a gifted screenwriter that some producers didn’t want to give up his services completely. So, they hit upon the secret scheme to still get him to write scripts for them, but under a pen name, to avoid getting “tainted” by his “notoriety.”

The iconic denouement came when one of the scripts Trumbo had written under a pen name (for “Roman Holiday”) won the best screenplay award at the Oscars.

Another unusual film topic that got the recent Oscar awards’ attention was the theme of “Room,” whose female lead player (Brie Larson) copped the best actress trophy.

She played a young woman who was held prisoner for years by a psychological basket case and tormentor. She even gave birth in captivity, after which her most important objective was to enable her son to cope with what had happened to them without ending up as a basket case himself.

To do this, she created a complete fiction that he implicitly believed in, until they were liberated—and finally had to face the shocking, stunning, discombobulating truth.

Other unusual films

“The Martian,” about an astronaut left for dead on Mars—who must find a way to let his colleagues on Earth know that he is alive. “The Danish Girl,” about the “evolving” marriage of two artists, and his groundbreaking journey as a transgender pioneer.

“Colonia,” about a young woman’s desperate search for her boyfriend, who’s been abducted by a sect nobody has ever escaped from. “Legend,” about identical twin gangsters and their organized crime empire in London.

“Secret in Their Eyes,” about criminal investigators who are torn apart when they learn that their own teenage daughter has been brutally murdered.

“Straight Outta Compton,” about a group that emerges from the mean streets of Los Angeles and revolutionizes hip-hop culture with their music and stories.

“Ex Machina”—A programmer participates in a groundbreaking experiment in synthetic intelligence to create a thinking, feeling humanoid.

“Carol”—A young female photographer dares convention to enter into an intimate relationship with an older woman.

“Tomorrowland”—Two brilliant youths unearth the secrets of a mysterious place that exists in their collective memory.

“Concussion”—An accomplished pathologist uncovers the shocking truth about brain damage in football players.