Build A Story World

Sample Movie Deconstruction (1)

Any form of deconstruction is meant to examine the ‘behind the scenes’ explanation of how something got put together. From a literary point of view it’s an analysis to go deeper into a novel, or movie, to discover what made it work.

We deconstruct to understand craft, to sharpen skills, to identify weaknesses and to copy strengths in order to develop excellence in our own work. Which translates into personal observations. There is no one right answer.

Just as a group of art students will visit an art gallery to ‘copy’ one of the masters, and each learns something new from their assignment, so we will examine different aspects in movies over the next few weeks. “Scenes are the building blocks of fiction,” says James Scott Bell. Movie deconstruction provides novelists a way to study in the gallery.

Like critical reading it can be a surface examination or a detailed inquiry. It depends on what we require and how much time we can commit. But even a brief episode from a series can offer insights.

I’ll be following up with examples of each aspect with the Thursday Mythic Impact blog as well, looking at the additional influence of metaphors, maps, memory, and mystery.

For the sequence it would probably be best for you to choose a favorite movie or series that you have available because we’ll be going though it several times. But for this first one, please choose a movie you’ve never seen or it has been such a long time you’ve forgotten.

Then try not to watch all the preview stuff but go straight to the immediate opening. You are “reading” for immediate impression. Enjoy J

Movie Assignment:

Watch a movie, or a series episode, preferably one you haven’t seen before and be able to pause it.

1. Watch the opening for a few minutes and then hit pause.  

2. Journal as a free-write (don’t stop to think) for about five minutes. Based on what you’ve just seen, what do you expect this movie to be about? Why? Give reasons.

3. Watch the whole movie. At the end stop and journal again for about ten minutes. Did the movie meet your expectations? Why? Or, why not?

Share: What movie did you choose? Any surprises?