According to Stadler and McWilliam (2009) the basic structure of a movie narrative is structured into three acts: a state of equilibrium to begin with, followed by a complication or conflict which then leads into a resolution or a new sense of balance. Although this tends to be the most widely used and popular structure, fragmented and multi-strand narratives are becoming more frequent in mainstream film as audiences seek a new kind of stimulation from their viewing experience (pp. 156-157).
American Psycho (2000) is a character based film, set in the 1980s, which is structured in a classical narrative (three act) style. In the opening scene, the audience is introduced to the protagonist, Patrick Bateman, an attractive white male who is the embodiment of masculinity and materialism. The camera uses a low angle to indicate Bateman’s social standing and power while classical music plays in the background lending him an air of intelligence and wealth. This scene is frightening even though Bateman is simply going through the motions of getting ready to go to work, he gives a glimpse of the conflict to come, “Something horrible is happening inside of me and I don’t know why … I feel lethal, on the urge of frenzy.”
The equilibrium soon dissolves into conflict as Bateman goes on an all-out murdering spree to satisfy his blood lust. The story ends with a strange resolution when Bateman confesses his crimes to his lawyer but the lawyer doesn’t believe him. The lawyer believes the confession is a joke and the audience are left with a strange resolution, wondering whether Bateman actually killed anyone or if he was just completely delusional and imagined it all. American Psycho uses binary opposition throughout the movie with rich white men opposing women, homosexuals, poor people and African Americans. As the film’s protagonist is a totally unlikeable, it appears that the film intentionally exposes the dominant ideology of the capitalist white male.
Go (1999) is an example of multi-strand narrative which employs prolepsis in its first scene with one of the protagonists sitting in a diner having coffee with an unknown person. From the first scene, the audience is drawn in to the mystery of who the protagonist was having coffee with but the plot takes us back to the beginning of the story where we have to watch everything unfold in order to find our answer. The story centres around a drug deal gone wrong and is told from three points of view giving us three protagonists. The three individual narratives intersect at different points and in turn affect the outcome of each other’s stories. The multi-strand narrative worked well in Go as it captured the mood of the drug/rave scene by cutting abruptly between the narratives, emulating the fractured state of mind of those in the movie.
As I reflect on Stadler and McWilliam’s reading, a plethora of fantastic films and concepts swarm into my mind: the anachrony and analepsis of The Usual Suspects (1995), Gattaca’s (1997) challenge of identity assumption, and the way The Road (2009) uses binary opposition to sharpen the disparity between pre-apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic earth. The vast content each film carries is overwhelming, and it seems that I will never view them in the same manner again.
References
· American Psycho 2000, motion picture, Halsey Solomon, C. & Hanley, C., Toronto, Canada.
· Gattaca 1997, motion picture, DeVito, D., Shamberg, M. & Sher, S., Barstow, USA.
· Go 1999, motion picture, Freeman, M., Liddell, M. & Rosenberg, P., Los Angeles, USA.
· Stadler, J. & McWilliam, K. 2009, ‘Screen Narratives: Traditions and Trends’ in Screen Media: Analysing Film And Television, Allen & Unwin, Crows Nest, pp. 155-182.
· The Road 2009, motion picture, Schwartz, PM., Schwartz, S. & Wechsler, N., Pennsylvania, USA.
· The Usual Suspects 1995, motion picture, McDonnell, M. & Singer, B., New York, USA.
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