Screenwriting and dramaturgy

Entry thirty-one is la réécriture intégrale, and the adjective at the end of it is the trap. An English reader sees « integral » and hears essential, built in, part of the thing and not to be taken out: « an integral part of the plan », « the doors are integral to the design ». French intégral says nothing of the kind. It means whole, entire, with nothing left out, and it is the ordinary word for the unabridged form of anything. Le texte intégral is the full text, la version intégrale of a film is the long cut, un remboursement intégral is a refund of every penny, and l’intégrale standing alone as a noun is somebody’s complete recordings or complete works. The adverb goes the same way: rembourser intégralement is to repay in full. So une réécriture intégrale is a rewrite from page one, not a rewrite that matters. The damage is worse in the other direction, because English « integral » has to come out as essentiel, indispensable, or qui fait partie intégrante de — and that last phrase is the one place where the two senses touch, which is very likely where the confusion began.