Narrative Theory

Narrative - the way in which a story is told in both fictional and non-fictional media texts

Vladimir Propp -

• Russian critic and literary theorist
• Analysed over 100 Russian fairy tales in the 1920's
• Proposed it was easy to classify the characters and their actions into clearly defined roles and functions

      Character roles -

• The hero (seeks something)
• The villain (opposes the hero)
• The donor (helps the hero by pointing out a magic object)
• The dispatcher (sends the hero on his way)
• The false hero (falsely assuming the role of hero)
• The helper (gives support to the hero)
• The princess (the reward for the hero, but also need protection from the villain) 
• Her father

Tzvetan Todorov - 

• Bulgarian literary theorist
• Suggest most narratives starts with a state of equilibrium in which life is 'normal' and protagonists are happy
• This state of equilibrium is disrupted by an outside force, which has to be fought against in order to return to normality 
• Can be applied to a range of films

Roland Barthes -

• French semiologist
• Suggested that narrative works with five different codes to make sense to the audience 

      Barthes Codes -

• Action - A narrative device by which a revolution is produced through action e.g a shoot out
• Enigma - A narrative device that teases the audience by presenting a puzzle or riddle to be solved. Works to delay the story's ending pleasurably
• Symbolic (connotation)
• Semic (denotation)
• Cultural - A narrative device which the audience can recognise as being part of a culture

Claude Levi Strauss -

• Social Anthropologist
• Studied myths of tribal cultures
• Examined how stories unconsciously reflect the values, beliefs and myths of a culture
• These are usually expressed in the form of binary oppositions
• His research has been adapted by media theorists reveal underlying themes and binary oppositions

     Binary Oppositions

• A conflict between two qualities or terms
• E.g  1970's western films: 

                      Homesteaders                                             Native Americans
                      Christian                                                      Pagans
                      Domestic                                                     Savage
                      Weak                                                          Strong
                      Garden                                                        Wilderness
                      Inside Society                                              Outside Society

Modular Narratives in Contemporary Cinema by Allen Cameron

"Articulate a sense of time as divisible and subject to manipulation"

Cameron has identified four different types of modular narratives

1. Anachronic modular narratives 

• Involves the use of flashbacks and/or flashforwards
• No clear dominance between any of the narrative threads
• Often repeat scenes directly or via a different perspective 
• E.g Momento

     2. Forking-path narratives

• Juxtapose alternative versions of a story
• Show the possible that might result from small changes in a single event or group of events
• Introduce a number of plot lines that usually contradict one another 
• E.g Run Lola Run

     3. Episodic narratives

• Organised as an abstract series or narrative anthology
• Characterised by the operative of a non-narrative
• Formal system which dictates organisation 
• Consists of a series of shorter stories which follow different people in the film
• E.g Love Actually

     4. Split screen narratives

• Divided into 2 or more frames, juxtaposing events within the same visual field
• E.g Time Code

Linear narrative - A plot moves forward in a straight line without flashbacks or digressions

Parallel narrative - 2 scenes observed as if happening at the same time by cross-cutting between them

 

Gender Representations in Thrillers - Alfred Hitchcock

Alfred Hitchcock's gender representation of females is unique and instantly recognisable. Hitchcock's choice of making his protagonist female emphasises his fascination with women and how powerful they appear to him. The opening scene of 'Psycho' demonstrates a stereotypical representation of the female protagonist, Marion, laying on a bed in a submissive position with Sam looming above her as a dominant male. Power is soon switched between the pair however in a exchange of dialogue which is understood by the audience to be Marion remaining strong in her views and opinions and not letting anyone change them. 

Hitchcock's leading ladies all have a similar 'blonde and beautiful' trait. This is played on in 'Psycho' by Hitchcock through the wardrobe choices of the protagonist. Before stealing the money, Marion is shown wearing white and a white bra, however after she has stolen the money, her dress changes to black and so does her bra. This is a representation of how females begin to break stereotypes and challenge expectations as all Hitchcock's female characters do. They reject the submissive expectations of females and create powerful, dominating characters to fulfil the roles given to them by Hitchock.

 

Coen Brothers - Auteurs

No Country For Old Men - Notes

• Italien/American accent
• Voice over (film noir feautre)
• Isolated setting
• death early on
• Bright, naturalistic lighting
• Shadows, dark/contrasting lighting
• Close up on feet walking (why? where?)
• Emphasised/exaggereated noise of flies - shows how quiet setting is
• Panning shot - shows isolation
• Sounds links 2 scenes together
• Blinds (film noir feature)
• Dual narrative
• POV shots

Auteur Theory - Alfred Hitchcock

'Hitch: Alfred the Auteur'

Alfred Hitchcock is a renowned auteur because of his original style that informs the audience he has directed it within the first 5 minutes. This documentary looked at his specific style and why he became so famous for it.

Notes:

• Hitchcock chose his actors specifically according to looks, he then taught them to act.
• He set up 'Transatlantic Studios' which then collapsed.
• He then went to Paramount, where his first picture for them was 'Rear Window' (1954)
• Grace Kelly - deemed the 'Ultimate Hitchcock Blonde'
• Hitchcock carried around a feeling of guilt, what he have liked to have done
• He talked about taking a woman who is in control of her life and putting them in a life changing situation - do they survive? how?
• Hitchcock was reliant on his relationship with his wife, he carried a constant fear of loosing her.
• 'Vertigo' was considered to represent Hitchcock's own transformation of female actresses - 'make someone over'
• He saw critics as 'nessicary evil' - he had no respect for them but they had a 'job to do'. He described their relationship as 'dealing with the enemy'
• The French loved Hitchcock - they dissected every scene, every shot to mean something individually . They recognised his talent
• 'Hitch persona' was relaxed for Truffaut
• Food analogy - 24 hours in the city
• Relished twists and introductions
• Cinema resented him, they doubted his productions
• 'Psycho' had the 'shock-factor' as his final picture for Paramount. It Incorporated film noir.
• He used his original team and his own (low) budget
• 'Psycho' was for changing audiences, to give them what they are
• Closed set - exposed to rumours - 'hype'
• Famous 'Shower scene' contains over 70 cuts and took over 7 days to shoot
• Hitchcock refused to let people walk in after the screening had started in cinema, he made critics queue with the general public
• Cost £800,000 to make and made £11million
• After this production, he moved to Universal
• Hitchcock was regarded as 'in competition with himself'
• He described the issues with making films - He had to make what the audience wanted (what they knew) but the critics wanted something 'different'
• He strived for respectability
• Hitchcock edited 'The Birds' (1963) as he went along
• It created real fear, for him, and exhaustion
• Irritated critics
• Created characters - he became obsessive and controlling 

Alfred Hitchcock's 'Psycho'

Notes

Editing

• Fades from one scene to the next - creates 'blur' - uncertainty for the audience - mystery
• Cuts between his and her face quicken - building tension
• Rule of thirds placing of objects on screen
• Over 70 cuts in famous shower scene - building tension and suspense - the unknown
• Graphic match between femme fatale face from one scene and telephone of the next
• Ellipsis - miss out a chunk of time - getting to the car - leaves audience filling in the gap for themselves
• Parallel editing - what he's doing/she's doing - keeps the audience up to date with both of the main characters

Camera Movement

• High angle POV shot of police officer creates power - low angle POV shot of woman creates fragility and weakness
• High angle when femme fatale is counting money in the bathroom - makes her seem weak - emphasises that what she is doing is wrong
• Over the shoulder shot of Norman Bates choosing the key to the room - delay and build suspension over the character upon meeting him
• Low angle used when Bates talks of his mother - vulnerability 
• Mid shot when Norman sits on the bed holding the newspaper containing the money just in shot - creates a sense of the audience knowing more than the character - they're one step ahead 
• When he is moving the body we see him doing it but not what he's actually doing - leaves a lot up to the audiences imagination - to fill in the gaps
• Tracking shot used - creates a sense of being watched
• Long shot of walking up the stairs - walking off camera - into the unknown

Mise-en-scene (CLAMPS)

• L - Bright, artificial lighting - 'spotlight' is on femme fatale because she is in the wrong - false impression she has been caught
• L - He is in the dark and she is in the light even though she's the one who has committed the crime - audience ask questions about what he has done to make him worse
• S - Isolated location - no body would know if something were to happen - adds suspense
• L - Shadows used a lot to in force fear of the unknown
• M/C - Wigs/costume used to enforce split personality

Sound

• Non-diegetic soundtrack (asynchronous) used to build tension (stringed instruments)
• Voice over - relays what's happening off scene - asynchronous sound
• Layering of diegetic/non-diegtic - 'busy' texture to noise
• Quiet soundtrack - loud footsteps - contrast
• Repetition of same piece of music - makes audience remember the same tension from before
• Voice over - releases to audience inner thoughts (two personalities)

John Fiske - Genre Theory

John Fiske

• "Attempts to structure some order into the wide range of texts and meanings that circulate in our culture for the convenience of both producers and audience"
• A way of categorising texts in our media - saturated culture
• Prepares audiences expectations
• Culturally dependent - different cultural groups construct different expectations
• Constructed through a series of signs (visual/aural) associated with that genre or through use of generic narratives and ideologies

Culture and Genre

• Dynamic concept which changes over time and cultural context
• Not gradual - could go unnoticed
• Changes may occur due to desensitisation or institutional developments
• Hybrid genre

Rick Altman - Genre Theory

Blueprint -

• Genre as a blueprint
• A formula that proceeds, programmes and patterns industry production

Structure -

• Genre as a structure
• A framework on which individual film are studied

Label -

• Genre as a label
• A name of a category central to the decision and communications of distribution and exhibitors

Contract -

• A viewing position required by each film genre of its audience

Simply - 

• Production (Blueprint)
• Text (Structure) 
• Exhibition (Label)
• Consumption (Contract)

Genre Theory

Genre Theory

What is genre?
Genre is a concept which involves a categorisation and labelling of matching characteristics and conventions which exist in certain sets of films.
It is useful for film production and distribution institutions and audiences.

Institutional use -

• Minimises economic risk - This means that making and producing a film from a known successful genre means it will succeed due to people knowing they like the genre. Because of this no money would be wasted on making the film, producing it and also advertising it.
• Advertising/promoting - This attracts the correct audience to the film, one who know they already enjoy this particular genre so are the most likely to appreciate and enjoy this film.
• Depend on past experience and foreknowledge - They rely on already successful films to capture their collective audiences.

Audience use -

• Predicable pleasure they know they will enjoy - Already large fans of the genre to know/expect to enjoy the new film in the same way that they have enjoyed previous films from the same genre.
• Known expectations - They know what to expect so look forward to it, knowing they'll enjoy it.
• Generic conventions - Expect a similar, generic plot or story lines but enjoy individual innovations and variations to make each film its own.

Generic conventions -

• Each genre is specifically defined by its individual characteristic. For example, a thriller's typical characteristics and conventions would vary greatly from those of a romantic comedy or even a horror film genre.
• Each film within a certain genre carries the same conventions however individual innovation is key in order to make each plot and film different to the other in order to keep it interesting for the audiences.
• Each genre's own conventions involve areas such as setting, iconography characterisation themes, narrative and film technique. All of the above allow genres to portray their individual characteristics but also maintain variety for individual films.
• Each different gene is culturally dependant. This means that different groups construct different expectations of what they want to watch and what they enjoy watching.
• Constructed through a series of signs (visual/aural) associated with that genre or through use of generic narratives and ideologies

Culture and genre -

•  Dynamic concept which changes over time and cultural context
• Not gradual so could go unnoticed
• Changes may occur due to institutional developments
• Hybrid genre - a branch of more than one genre.

Film Noir

Key Aspects:

• Realistic
• Unhappy endings
• Started in 1940's
• Canted angles
• Gangster mobs
• The Blue Lamps (example)
• Black and white
• Simplistic
• City Setting
• Post war
• Venetian blinds

Analysis of Alfred Hitchcock's 'Vertigo' opening

A non-diegetic soundtrack is used to initially open the scene. It uses a low pitch and brass instruments to build tension before the audience sees anything so they don't know what to expect. This enforces a 'fear of the unknown' to which thrillers are renowned for. The extreme close up of the femme fatales' eye is used to show her fear of what she is watching. Eye's have connotations of being the 'window to the soul' therefore it provides the audience with true emotion and to expect to be left to piece together the narrative themselves. Another connotation of the eye is the idea of the female watching something and the audience watching her. The contributes to Hitchcock's trademark of voyeurism. Graphic match is used between the extreme close up of the eye and the first image that forms the credits. Here, it portrays almost a hypnotic feel, like an optical illusion. This creates confusion and the idea that the narrative will be testing for the brain and involve a lot of thought to follow.

Notes on the Opening Sequence of Alfred Hitchcock's 'Vertigo'

Sound -

• Non-diegetic soundtrack - low pitch, brass instruments, build tension before seeing anything - audience don't know what to expect
• Gun shots (sound effects) - loud over soundtrack (contrast of loud and quiet)
• Synchronised sound and patterns - uneasy feel - fast paced, unpredictable tone

Editing -

• Graphic match of the eye to the credits images - optical illusion - confusion for audience - almost hypnotic
• Black background for credits - the unknown 
• Fade one shot into the next - confusion
• Depth of field - foreground in focus, background blurred - links to fear of the unknown (can see whats close, don't know what's surrounding that)

Mise-en-scene -

• Dark lighting - unsure what's coming next, keeps a lot hidden from the audience
• Red lighting - connotes danger

Camera movement -

• Close up of mouth then eyes - builds suspense as the audience can't see anything else except what the character is seeing
• Final shot - ignores rule of thirds to put audience at unease

Types of Thrillers

Black Swan is a 2010 American
psychological thriller film directed
 by Darren Aronofsky

Psychological Thriller 
Black Swan

• Focus on psychology and emotional state of its character (protagonist)
• Subculture of thriller genre
• Aronofsky renowned for 'hip-hop montage' - represents drug use
• Also for use of lighting and fast-pace jump cuts represent change in characters
• Famous for 'fade to white' trademark - going in to the light

Mystery Thriller 

• Revolves around a puzzle that protagonists tries to solve
• Is usually triggered by an unusual event occurring at the beginning 
• Normally ends with the 'solution of the puzzle' and explanation of the event

Common elements

Vertigo is a 1958 mystery thriller

 directed and produced by

Alfred Hitchcock

• Retired or amateur detective (not professional)
• No police force helping
• Detective risks safety while investigating
• Clues dropped throughout
• Plot twist/red herrings to confuse audience 

For example - Alfred Hitchcock's 'Vertigo'

• "Scottie" (retired police) asked to follow friends wife around - believes she is possessed - they fall in love - she commits suicide - he then finds a woman who looks similar - obsesses over her - makes her re-enact suicide 
• "Vertigo effect" - Zoom in and pull back 

Techno Thriller

IRobot is a 2004 American dystopian
science fiction techno thriller film
directed by Alex Proyas

• Large amounts of attributes - futuristic and involves things the audience want to see in the future
• Advanced technology

For example - Alex Proyas -iROBOT

• High tech/present day setting
• Advanced technology
• Hero figure not extravagant but knows hidden truth
• Colour and lighting clean and crisp
• Robotic sound effects

Disaster Thriller - 

2012 is a 2009 American science fiction
 disaster thriller directed and co-written
by Roland Emmerich

• Main conflict related to natural disaster e.g hurricane/earthquake etc

For example - Roland Emmerich - 2012

• People brought together through disaster (adds emotion)
• Science and tech play a key part
• Close up on faces are common
• Long/panning/tracking shots used to show the disaster/devastation
• Quick cuts build tension
• Non-diegetic sound draws out emotion
• Silence builds tension
• Key, recognisable settings

Thriller Mind Map