RESEARCH INTO TYPICAL SYNOPSIS
This page will try to make you understand that the typical synopsis of a narrative, how they are made, what are the conventions of narratives are and finally what is it that makes a good plot/story line. The narrative of a film is the story line and consists of characters interacting with each other and normally consists of a crisis or event, a villian or an agent of evil and finally a solution to the problems. This is all explained in Todorovs narrative system.
Todorov system was said to be applied to each and every narrative and there are 5 stages to this system.
1- Equilibrium:
Equilibrium is at the beginning of the film and is where everything is in balance and is also calm and is just normal. With no chaos and action, just every day life. In this section we are normally introduced to the protagonist however, we are not always introduced to the villian or antagonist. In some films there will not be a villian, there will be an agent of evil which can be elements such as a natural distaster or a illness. Or maybe a shark.
2- Disruption of Equilibrium :
This is when the villian or agent of evil is introduced and causes disruption to the peace/equilibrium. The main protagonist may or may not know about this disruption however, by the next stage the disruption is recognised.
3- Recognition of Disruption:
The main protagonist has realised the villian or agent of evil. This is normaly before the main climax of the film. Now the protagonist knows the evil presence he can try to take action.
4-An Attempt to Repair The Damage
This is when the main protagonist is now trying to solve the problem. This could be anything from killing a person to trying to get someone to fall in love with them. It is normally the climax of a film and is how the main plot becomes resolved. The plot being resolved, depending on the film can go both ways. The protagonist can be successful in the attempt to repair the damage or can be unsuccessful. Either way there will be an outcome to the film.
5- New Equilibrium
The new equilibrium is the ending to the story, and depending on whether the protagonist has been successful or not will depend on the ending. Normally good will always triumph over evil however, in some cases this will not happen. This will create a new equilibrium that will be different from the first, yet a calm period.
Plots of films.
INSIDIOUS:
This film follows the Todorov structure quite well. This film begins with a family moving into a new house, starting a new life with everything normal and calm. Until the disruption happens which is when the boy falls off the ladder and hurts himself. He goes into a coma and doesn't wake up. Paranormal actions start to happen around him with demons showing up in his room. The recognition of the disruption only happens when the family get some experts in on the matter and they realise that it is about a demonic presence who want the child. The attempt to repair the damage is when the father then travels into the demoic world called The Further and tries to save his son. He rescues his son from the demon and then takes him back to reality. However, he has not been successful in everything as he is now possessed by another demon and kills the expert helpers. This causes the end equlibium to be different to the first as it ends with the father being possessed and the son cured. This therefore leads the cycle to its beginning ready for number two where its about trying to rid the fathers body of the demonic presence.
THE CONJURING:
The story line of this film is about a family moving into a new house and finding out that the house is possessed. To start with everything is going fine until the souls start to attack the newly found residents. This is when the disruption of equilibrium and regonition of disruption happens as they know of these attacks but the don't do anything about them because they don't know what to do. They make contact with experts that agree to take on the case and find out about an old witch that has cursed the house and anyone who lives in it. An exorcism is needed for the house. This is when the mother of the family is possessed by the woman and tries to kill her children. This is the climax of the film when the father performs an exorcism on the possessed mother, banishing the witch from the house and setting their family free. This equlibrium is a good new ending as no-one is seriously harmed and the house is no longer possessed.
THE WOMAN IN BLACK.
The woman in black is about an estate agent trying to sell Eel Marsh house. The town that the house is in is cursed by the woman in black as everytime she is seen a child dies. The equilibrium at the start is one that is weighted on chaos, it is equilibrium in the fact that it is the towns natural state but the town is not in a time of peace. Once the estate agent shows up he discovers the disruption of the equilibrium by seeing the murder of three young girls after he sees the woman in black. After this he tries to solve the curse by reuniting the woman in blacks with her sons body that was lost in the marsh. After finding both bodies, he reunites them however, this attempt to repair the damage doesn't work and subsequently kills both the estate agent and his son. There is a silver lining to this as he is at rest with his wife and son, however, there is still the curse on the town and the new equilibrium is very similar to the starting one but just with more people dead.
