Todorovs Narrative Theory

Izetan Todorov was a Bulgarian structuralist linguist publishing influential work on narrative from the 1960s onwards. Todorov suggested that stories began with an equilibrium where any potentially opposing forces are in balance.
This is disrupted by some event, setting in chain a series of events. Problems are solved so that order can be restored in the world of fiction

Conventional Narratives
Todorov suggested tat conventional narratives are structured in five stages: 1) A state of equilibrium at the outset 2) A disruption of the equilibrium by some action 3) A recognition that there has been a disruption 4) An attempt to repair disruption 5) A reinstatement of the equilibrium This type of narrative structure is very familiar to us and can be applied to many mainstream film narratives.
Graph to show Todorovs theory

Disequilibrium (Where the action is happening)

Equilibrium (The film is at a calm, equal point)

Non-equilibrium (Action simmers down)

Film that follow Todorovs Theory

A film that follows Todorovs theory is Titanic, here we see the classic five point rule in the actions that are carried out in the movie: 1) Everyone is aboard the titanic 2) Jack and Rose want to be together but shes already engaged, and they see the iceberg 3) The captain crashes the titanic into the iceberg, Jack is captured and trapped 4) Rose finds Jack and frees him, everyone tries to escape, however Jack dies 5) Rose is an old lady, talking about her story and leads a normal life

2) Disequilibrium (Where the action is happening)

1) Equilibrium (The film is at a calm, equal point)

3) Nonequilibrium (Action simmers down)

How Grip relates

This is a convention of thrillers that Grip most definitely challenges. Instead of using the five point rule to guide our way through our opening we go against the guidelines and take a different route: As we can see, we start with an equilibrium when we first see the characters A problem then arises when Edward sees Steve and they start running The problem then seems to be solved in the shadow scene with Edward hiding However, instead of it staying normal we then leave the story on a cliff hanger

Steve sees Edward, starts running

Steve picks up the wrench and goes to Edward

First see the characters

Shadow scene, where Edward is hiding

How we used this to effect

Unique being one of little films that challenge this aspect

By challenging the normal structure rule we broke a common boundary in the thriller genre. By doing this, we were able to make the thriller:

Interesting Makes the viewers more intrigued as the normal ending they expect isnt going to happen, giving the element of surprise

Exciting Lets the audience explore a different story that doesnt take the twists and turns they think it will
Innovative Shows that within our research we were able to push boundaries within the thriller genre and experiment more with different aspects