Deck 4: Narrative Form

Question 1

The organizing storytelling framework of a film is known as its ________.

A) narrative form
B) plot
C) foundation
D) theme

Answer 1

A

Question 2

The standard pattern that shapes narrative films is the ________ structure

A) three-act
B) five-act
C) eight-act
D) one-act

Answer 2

A

Question 3

The Russian term ________,or "plot," refers to the selection and ordering of events as they unfold onscreen.

A) syuzhet
B) fabula
C) plodtz
D) potemkin

Answer 3

A

Question 4

In ________ narratives,events are not tightly connected in a cause and effect sequence and characters do not focus on a single goal.

A) homeric
B) classical
C) expressionist
D) episodic

Question 5

A character's formative experiences before the beginning of the syuzhet but included in the fabula are known as ________.

A) memories
B) flashback
C) backstory
D) exposition

Question 6

Which of the following is an example of how a film's syuzhet might differ from its fabula?

A) Events from the future may interrupt the film's present tense.
B) The same event can be repeated several times.
C) Important details of a character's backstory may not be presented onscreen.
D) all of the above

Question 7

A(n)occurs when the audience temporarily shares the visual per?spective of a character or a group of characters.

A) establishment shot
B) point-of-view shot
C) close-up shot
D) medium shot

Question 8

The opening scenes of a film,during which a great deal of information about characters and situations is imparted,is known as the ________.

A) exposition
B) backstory
C) prelude
D) denouement

Question 9

Narrative that limits viewers to a single character's knowledge and understanding of events is known as ________.

A) restricted narration
B) second person
C) third person
D) omniscient

Question 10

Russian narrative theorist Tzvetlan Todorov argued that all narratives involve ________.

A) romantic entanglements
B) people
C) both personally and politically motivated action
D) the disruption of stability

Question 11

The Russian term ________ refers to the complete,chronological story of a film,including events that occur on and off screen.

A) fabula
B) chronotsz
C) plodtz
D) syuzhet

Question 12

Which of the following is an example of sound aligning viewers with a character at a less conscious level than point-of-view shot?

A) The sinking of Marion's car in Psycho.
B) The wine cellar scene in Notorious
C) The abrupt transition from training camp to combat in Full Metal Jacket
D) In the opening shot of The Conversation.

Question 13

The narrative technique used in The Cabinet of Dr.Caligari in which a character narrates an embedded tale to someone onscreen is called ________.

A) frame narration
B) layered narration
C) denouement
D) episodic

Question 14

Most films employ a system of ________ narration,which conveys external events as well as the knowledge,thoughts and feelings of one or two major characters without the intervention of an explicit narrator.

A) restricted
B) open-ended
C) episodic
D) first-person

Question 15

Details that are part of the story world the characters inhabit are _________________.

A) expository
B) diegetic
C) non-diegetic
D) omniscient

Question 16

The ________ is a series of events in the third act of the film that resolves the conflicts that have arisen.

A) denouement
B) conclusion
C) exposition
D) climax

Question 17

The 400 Blows is a good example of an ________.

A) episodic narration
B) classical narration
C) open-ended narrative
D) B and C
E) A and C

Question 18

Which of the following traditions is most commonly associated with classical narration?

A) art films
B) independent cinema
C) commercial Hollywood cinema
D) non-Western films

Question 19

The ________ is the day-to-day guide the director and cinematographer use during production. This document includes information regarding camera placement,cuts,and sound cues.

A) screenplay
B) spec script
C) shooting script
D) production script

Question 20

When a narrative concludes without resolving its conflicts,the film is said to be ________.

A) open-ended
B) abstract
C) experimental
D) up-for-grabs

Question 21

Despite the use of an elaborate frame narrative in Slumdog Millionaire,the film is fairly conventional in terms of providing characters with clear motivations and goals.

Question 22

In Finding Nemo,the exposition shows what motivates Marlin's fears and insistence that his son play it safe,allowing viewers to feel sympathetically toward what otherwise might seem an uptight character.

Question 23

Identify some ways that a film might exhibit unconventional characterizations. Incorporate examples from a film or films we have screened in class and explore the ways in which these characterizations relate back to overall themes of their film.

Question 24

Explain how Notorious manipulates the audience's emotions by exploiting moments of omniscience.

Question 25

Music always functions as a non-diegetic element.

Question 26

Point-of-view shots always result in the audience understanding or sympathizing with a character.

Question 27

In unconventional narratives,turning points can still signal important shifts,even though if they do not form the basis for a three (or four)act structure.

Question 28

The use of wipes throughout Slumdog Millionaire helps ___________________.

A) disorient the viewer
B) emphasize the tight causal connection between past and present
C) distance the audience from the characters
D) all of the above

Question 29

A non-character voice-over narrates The Royal Tenenbaums,while a visual device opens new "chapters" of the film,creating an analogy between the narration and the act of reading stories aloud to children. These elements are part of the film's diegesis.

Question 30

A narrative is an account of a string of events connected by the logic of cause and effect.

Question 31

Like Rashomon and Citizen Kane,Slumdog Millionaire uses an elaborate flashback structure to create multiple perspectives and leave the audience's interpretation of the events confused.

Question 32

Briefly describe the dramatic shift in narrative perspective that occurs a third of the way through Psycho?

Question 33

Audiences learn late in The 400 Blows,that Antoine's mother had wanted to have an abortion,a detail in the backstory that helps explain why the boy has difficulty getting along with her.

Question 34

The standard pattern that shapes narrative films is the three-act structure,though it has recently been argued that classical and contemporary Hollywood films actually exhibit a four-part structure.

Question 35

Stagecoach can be analyzed as having both a three part narrative structure and a four part narrative structure.

Question 36

Classical Hollywood filmmakers commonly used first-person narration throughout entire films,but the technique has fallen out of fashion recently.

Question 37

Typically,critical transitions between acts are marked by lines of dialogue,changes in setting or major events that suggest a shift in character or circumstance,such as Evey having her head shaved in V for Vendetta.

Question 38

Identify the two central plotlines,or lines of action,in Stagecoach.

Question 39

The "exposition" of a film is synonymous with a film's "first act."

Question 40

Slumdog Millionaire relies on ______________ to tell the story of two impoverished boys in India.

A) episodic narration
B) open ending
C) a frame story
D) unconventional characterization

Question 41

In what way(s)is this scene a turning point in the film? In other words,explain why this scene is so important in terms of the film's narrative structure. Identify at least one cue (visual or sound)that draws attention to the structural importance of this moment.

Question 42

Identify a moment from a film that has been discussed in class or in your textbook when the narration shifts from restricted to omniscient. What are some of the effects that this shift has on the film? On the audience? What might filmmakers' intentions be in creating such a shift?