When considering darkly comic noirs like “Get Shorty” (1995) and “Out of Sight” (1998), or the bleak futuristic thriller “Minority Report” (2002), one could envision a haunted, brooding writer comfortable only in a seedy dive bar. But screenwriter Scott Frank – both affable and boyish in his late 40s – has been a far cry from Raymond Chandler or Dashiell Hammett, possessing instead the demeanor of a friendly English teacher or a kindly neighbor who loans out his snow blower with no questions asked. Frank built a reputation as one of the most reliable and highly-paid screenwriters in the
