Which films use actor improvisation?

Mean Streets (1973), New York, New York (1977).

What kind of technique is actor improvisation?

It is a narrative technique. Related narrative techniques include Expectation Collapse, Staged Performance Within Film.

Narrative technique · used in 2 films

Letting actors invent dialogue and action inside a scene's outline. The exchanges feel unrehearsed and a little dangerous.

Examples

Mean Streets
Martin Scorsese · 1973
Keitel and De Niro improvised the fight with the trash cans and the talk behind the bar. The scenes have the stop-start rhythm of real arguments. You believe these two have known each other for years.
Where to see it: The trash can fight: Charlie and Johnny Boy's friends scuffle in a messy, loose scene that the actors made up.
New York, New York
Martin Scorsese · 1977
Scorsese had his actors improvise within the large sets. The conversations between Jimmy and Francine stumble, overlap and go on past where a musical would cut. They sound like people, not like characters in a number.
Where to see it: The cab ride and morning after: Jimmy and Francine share a cab and start bickering in a loose, unscripted style.

Questions

What is actor improvisation in film?: Letting actors invent dialogue and action inside a scene's outline. The exchanges feel unrehearsed and a little dangerous.
Which films use actor improvisation?: Mean Streets (1973), New York, New York (1977).
What kind of technique is actor improvisation?: It is a narrative technique. Related narrative techniques include Expectation Collapse, Staged Performance Within Film.

Keep exploring