Story - The sequence of events/ plot
Narrative - How the story is structured
Story of Inception
Inception functions like a typical heist film:
Backstory of characters
Reason for heist
Preparation + more character development
Heist - loss of characters, more character development
Pay off - Goal achieved
Values and Beliefs in Inception:
Family is the most important thing - whole plot is aimed for the protagonist to reunite with his family
Some crimes are morally ambiguous - the reason behind them make them less severe - the crime they're committing had multiple pay offs for different characters, including the antagonist
Perfection is impossible - no character is perfect, all of them have their faults shown, i.e. Cobb being the reason his wife died
How Inception presents an enigma that is resolved:
The protagonist not being able to return home is the enigma in Inception, which the whole plot revolves around. The way this is solved is the whole story of the film - the heist.
Does Inception follow Todorov's four (one example)?
Inception follows the last 3 of Todorov's four, in that there is disruption (Cobb not being able to see his family, the first operation resulting in a partner's death), there is an act against the disruption (heist attempted in hopes Cobb will be reunited with his family) and restoration of a state of equilibrium (Cobb can now see his family as he is no longer a criminal). However, there is no state of equilibrium at the start of the film, as the film starts with the mission failing and Cobb being a criminal, so the film doesn't follow this theory exactly.
What binary oppositions are present in Inception?
I don't think there are an binary opposites in Inception. This is because, even though the protagonists are criminals, they aren't presented as such, and no form of police of government is presented in the film. Also, the protagonists and antagonists appear similarly - dressed in suits, armed etc, so there is no class opposition or wealth opposition.
Stock characters in Inception:
Villain/ antagonist - Fisher, Mol, Cobb himself
Hero/ protagonist - Cobb
Helper/ supporter (sidekick) - Arthur (primarily), Ariadne (transitions from secondary to primary) and others
Princess - Cobb's family
Can be fluid character roles - roles that change person and vice versa
3 enigma codes in Inception:
(Link 1:30) Shows the building collapsing, makes the audience think of how Cobb is going to escape
(Link 3:14) Shows the building flooding, a seemingly possible event to survive. As the concept of death in dreams hasn't been explained, this seems very dangerous
(Link 3:47) The dangerous mob is presented as another shot, especially as they are shown to be getting closer, and the characters were previously shown to be worried about it.
3 action codes in Inception:
(Link 1:35) Showing the broken glass indicates a fight or attack with it, which is also encouraged by the conversation
(Link 3:00) A new enemy appearing and threatening a protagonist, promises him as a threat and violence to ensue
(Link 0:41) A gun being pulled by Arthur denotes violence in the next scene, which was only hinted at previously
Key Theory 1: Tim O'Sullivan (1998)
Media texts tell us some kind of story
Through careful mediation (specifically encoded/ put in), texts offer a way of telling stories about ourselves (as a culture) - these are ideologies (values and beliefs).
Values and Beliefs in Inception:
Family is the most important thing - whole plot is aimed for the protagonist to reunite with his family
Some crimes are morally ambiguous - the reason behind them make them less severe - the crime they're committing had multiple pay offs for different characters, including the antagonist
Perfection is impossible - no character is perfect, all of them have their faults shown, i.e. Cobb being the reason his wife died
How Inception presents an enigma that is resolved:
The protagonist not being able to return home is the enigma in Inception, which the whole plot revolves around. The way this is solved is the whole story of the film - the heist.
Does Inception follow Todorov's four (one example)?
Inception follows the last 3 of Todorov's four, in that there is disruption (Cobb not being able to see his family, the first operation resulting in a partner's death), there is an act against the disruption (heist attempted in hopes Cobb will be reunited with his family) and restoration of a state of equilibrium (Cobb can now see his family as he is no longer a criminal). However, there is no state of equilibrium at the start of the film, as the film starts with the mission failing and Cobb being a criminal, so the film doesn't follow this theory exactly.
What binary oppositions are present in Inception?
I don't think there are an binary opposites in Inception. This is because, even though the protagonists are criminals, they aren't presented as such, and no form of police of government is presented in the film. Also, the protagonists and antagonists appear similarly - dressed in suits, armed etc, so there is no class opposition or wealth opposition.
Stock characters in Inception:
Villain/ antagonist - Fisher, Mol, Cobb himself
Hero/ protagonist - Cobb
Helper/ supporter (sidekick) - Arthur (primarily), Ariadne (transitions from secondary to primary) and others
Princess - Cobb's family
Can be fluid character roles - roles that change person and vice versa
3 enigma codes in Inception:
(Link 1:30) Shows the building collapsing, makes the audience think of how Cobb is going to escape
(Link 3:14) Shows the building flooding, a seemingly possible event to survive. As the concept of death in dreams hasn't been explained, this seems very dangerous
(Link 3:47) The dangerous mob is presented as another shot, especially as they are shown to be getting closer, and the characters were previously shown to be worried about it.
3 action codes in Inception:
(Link 1:35) Showing the broken glass indicates a fight or attack with it, which is also encouraged by the conversation
(Link 3:00) A new enemy appearing and threatening a protagonist, promises him as a threat and violence to ensue
(Link 0:41) A gun being pulled by Arthur denotes violence in the next scene, which was only hinted at previously
Key Theory 1: Tim O'Sullivan (1998)
Media texts tell us some kind of story
Through careful mediation (specifically encoded/ put in), texts offer a way of telling stories about ourselves (as a culture) - these are ideologies (values and beliefs).
Key Theory 2: Pam Cook (1985)
The standard Hollywood narrative structure should have:
"Linearity of cause and effect within an overall trajectory of enigma resolution"
A high degree of narrative closure
A fictional world that contains verisimilitude especially governed by spatial and temporal coherence
Key Theory 3: Tzetan Todorov (1977)
Films have four stages:
Stage 1: A point of stable equilibrium
Stage 2: This stability is disrupted by some kind of force, which creates a stable disequilibrium
Stage 3: Action directed against the disruption
Stage 4: Restoration of a state of new equilibrium
Key Theory 4: Claude Levi-Strauss (1958)
Binary opposites
E.g. Good vs Evil, Rich vs Poor, Race A vs Race B
Key Theory 5: Vladimir Propp (1928)
Narratives feature stock characters and that audiences understood stories because of such features.
Villain/ antagonist
Hero/ protagonist
Helper/ supporter (sidekick)
Princess (the prize for the hero - not necessarily a person) one that is rescued/ saved/ helped
Key Theory 6: Roland Barthes (1977)
Narrative codes:
Enigma codes work to keep up setting problems or puzzles for the audience
Action codes work to inform the audience in terms of what is happening in the next shot/ scene
Key Theory 4: Claude Levi-Strauss (1958)
Binary opposites
E.g. Good vs Evil, Rich vs Poor, Race A vs Race B
Key Theory 5: Vladimir Propp (1928)
Narratives feature stock characters and that audiences understood stories because of such features.
Villain/ antagonist
Hero/ protagonist
Helper/ supporter (sidekick)
Princess (the prize for the hero - not necessarily a person) one that is rescued/ saved/ helped
Key Theory 6: Roland Barthes (1977)
Narrative codes:
Enigma codes work to keep up setting problems or puzzles for the audience
Action codes work to inform the audience in terms of what is happening in the next shot/ scene
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