NON-LINEAR NARRATIVES & SLIDING DOOR PHILOSOPHY: Breaking Rules and Making Your Mark (Year 2)
A non-linear narrative in storytelling can be key to helping your story stand out. So...what exactly IS a non-linear narrative? It is a technique where events are portrayed out of chronological or traditional story order; the pattern of events jumps around. It is also called the disjointed or disrupted narrative. Click here to watch a complete definition of the non-linear narrative and how it is used.
Why do writers and filmmakers use it? Sometimes, it is used to fill in character development in a creative and unique way. Other times, it is used to hook in the audience--to shake things up a bit and get your story noticed. Stories that are told in reverse or divergent points of view or paths juxtaposed against each other (like in Sliding Doors) get noticed because they are different; they put the viewer to work and get them involved in piecing together the story and meaning.
TV is a great medium for this because you can use an entire episode for flashbacks or provide quick cutaway references to past seasons. One of the most groundbreaking TV shows to use this non-linear style was Lost, with its flash-forwards, flashbacks, flash-sideways, and even flash-through dimensions! Lost used this storytelling technique to trick the audience into believing things about characters and then subverting those expectations by jumping in time. Recently, This is Us has also used the same strategy: using brilliant transitions out of the normal narrative structure.
It is a bit trickier using nonlinear storytelling in movies. A film screenplay has only about 90-120 pages to get it right, so you need to be sure that your story really sells itself. It's great to take creative chances, but you also want to get things right--especially with (often) a lot of money on the line. Movies like Out of Sight split the narrative between two protagonists and jumps in time in both of their stories. We cut back to the prison setting to show information and then cut forward and behind in-between those scenes to tell the narrative throughline. This makes it feel slick, mysterious, and it provides a different riff on a familiar crime/love story trope. Godfather II also uses this form. We jump between Michael's story and Vito's to show the similarities and differences in their journeys, creating the father and son foils for the audience to consider and reflect upon. This bends time to its advantage; and, in fact, a majority of critics say that Godfather II is the best and most engaging of the trio.
Memento literally worked to put the Nolan brothers on the map and became their calling card. While it was certainly incredibly risky, it ultimately was a risk that worked, certifying them as visionaries in film. In this link, Christopher Nolan explains the true genius behind Memento.
1. Name the two you watched and why you chose them
2. Describe how each of the films used non-linear storytelling and how that impacted your viewing experience.
3. What other cinematic techniques were used within the non-linear storytelling that were noteworthy? Do you believe the non-linear storytelling was key in making this movie the best it could be?
1. Keep your story organized. Your outlining phase will need to be EXTREMELY intentional!
2. Clearly define your jumps on the script page (ie: FLASHBACK: INT. MEDIA ROOM - NIGHT) Be sure that the reader knows!
3. Link the narratives thematically. You want the stories or scenes to work off one another. If they are written with the same theme/purpose in mind, the story will feel cohesive, despite your non-traditional and disjointed style.
Happy (non-chronological/ non-linear/diruptive/interrupted) film viewing!
1. Name the two you watched and why you chose them
ReplyDeleteMemento and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
2. Describe how each of the films used non-linear storytelling and how that impacted your viewing experience.
Memento: The movie transitioning from black and white really helped me with transitioning my understanding. The movie at first, almost appears to be linear, with some strange color choices, however as the film goes on it becomes more and more clear that that cannot be further from the truth. It is a bit disoredenting with how non linear the movie is, but it draws the viewer in and keeps them on their seat for the movie, especially for the type of drama it’s building up.
Eternal Sunshine of the spotless mind: Appears linear at first but is truly nonlinear, it is rewarding to the detail oriented viewer. There are gaps in the story that can only really be spotted by someone who is very into the details of a movie, before the nonlinear aspects of the movie become more and more apparent.
3. What other cinematic techniques were used within the non-linear storytelling that were noteworthy? Do you believe the non-linear storytelling was key in making this movie the best it could be?
Memento: The photo at the beginning of the movie and how with each time it was waved the photo became more and more saturated until it became while, which related to how the film uses color for it’s non-linear story line. The sounds change with whether the film is in color or not.
I do believe that non-linear storytelling was key, since the whole structure of the characterization would be completely different and how the suspense was built up.
Eternal Sunshine of the spotless mind: Color, again, is used a lot as well as shadows and lighting
-Carol
For this assignment, I chose to watch Memento and Eternal Sunrise of the Spotless Mind, both movies that play with the idea of memories and how they affect our own perception.
ReplyDeleteIn Memento, the main character has issues with his own short-term memory due to an accident in his past, and the film uses this concept to tell a story in reverse order for the viewer to connect with the character and build intrigue as the story slowly unravels as more of what had happened is revealed. Similarly, Eternal Sunrise of the Spotless Mind uses memories as its own plot device revolving around the replay and merging of said memories during the movie's main body in order to tell a story we've only seen the "beginning" and end to.
Outside of these aspects, both movies also make use of other techniques to assist this kind of story. Memoir has occasional moments when repressed memories jump back into the spotlight suddenly, indicated by harsh cuts to and from the scene that was initially progressing, representing the sudden nature of the uncovering of such memories that works alongside the plot of the movie. Additionally, Eternal Sunrise of the Spotless Mind has moments where the real world begins to leak into the realm of memories, which is what initiates the attempts to preserve memories as they are being forgotten that is seen throughout the movie.
For both of these stories, the setup of a non-linear story is the best way to present each. In Memoir, there would be no mystery if we were only presented with events from start to end, while this style allows the viewer to piece events together as they watch and uncover more. Similarly, the memory sequences of Eternal Sunrise would have become redundant if we had already seen the events happen earlier in the movie, which would have created a much more drawn out and boring experience for the viewer.
Two for the Road and Sliding Doors
ReplyDeleteI chose Sliding Doors mainly because it seemed the most interesting to me. The other pair did as well but had a horror vibe which I’m not fond of.
Non linear storytelling is complex but easy to understand if done right. Sliding Doors used it in a way to depict fate and how no matter the journey, some things will always happen. There were many examples of montage to show the movement of time as well. The main way that helped the audience understand the different timelines were the physical changes in the character.
In Two for the Road it was different. It showed what is and what was simultaneously to show how the characters got to where they are. There was a use of time lapse to show the speed of a moment. The intercuttedness of all of the different timelines from pre marriage, newly married, and long after marriage showed many contrasts in the characters development.
These movies were made very well. I think there was no other way they could have been told other than in a non linear way.
I chose Memento and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind mostly because I had heard of Eternal Sunshine and was interested in what the film was about.
ReplyDeleteSince Memento focuses on memory, its is connected to the main characters memory and the health of hid mind, and in this film, the main character is suffering mentally dealing with the holes in his past and memory. With this concept being tied so closely to the main character, it causes the film to be structured in a way that causes the viewer to fill in the memory with the main character as the film progresses.
Eternal Sunshine causes the viewer to drop their guard with the film starting in a seemingly linear nature, but eventually spirals in a way where the viewer is question where they are and where the film is going. The film rapidly approaches a non linear timeline and causes the viewer to question what they have seen, and how it ties into the new events happening in the film
I think both the films relied on color to really expand on their non linear themes, causing them to visually explain what is happening and why this is the way it is, not leaving the viewer in the dust if they pay attention to the film and how it interacts with the color.