Todorov's Equilibrium Theory

This theory proposes a basic structure for all narratives: there is a time of peace called equilibrium at the start of the narrative, which is then turned into disequilibrium, at time of unrest, and then the narrative goes back to a peaceful setting. This theory can be partly demonstrated in the trailers.

Psycho: This trailer is a bit different as it starts with a disequilibrium, a woman being murdered in a shower (backed by one of the most famous tunes in the motion picture universe). However, it then goes to a state of equilibrium when we see the motel and some of the characters. As the trailer advances, the state is slowly set back to disequilibrium when the viewer realises that the motel and some of the characters aren't all they seem to be. The trailer never really returns the narrative to a state of equilibrium, as the mysteries of the motel and the characters aren't resolved. But then again, that is the point of a thriller trailer. To make the viewers ask themselves enough questions to go and pay money to see the film.

Shutter Island: The state of equilibrium presented at the beginning of this trailer is 2 Federal Marshalls investigating the escape of a patient from a high security asylum. At this point , the viewer might think that this will be a simple story of finding clues and eventually discovering how the patient escaped. However, as the trailer goes on, we can see that it mostly involves Leonard Di Caprio's character, and the viewer can see him in scenes not set on the island, and scenes set on the island but where he doesn't look like a Marshall. The viewer then starts to realise Shutter Island may not only be about an escape, but also about how the asylum affects an outsider. This gives the viewer 2 reasons to see the film, and two reasons to part with a small amount of money. Once again, the trailer doesn't return the narrative to a state of disequilibrium.

Snakes on a Plane: In this trailer,. the viewer is immediately thrown into a state of disequilibrium by the sentences appearing on the screen and then seeing an unmanned plane.The snakes then progressively spread throughout the plane, increasing the state of disequilibrium. Once again, the state of equilibrium is never instated because the last part of the trailer shows a snake attacking.

My narrative will partly follow Todorov's Equilibrium theory, just like the above trailers do. I will start off with a state of equilibrium, as in known facts, then move to a state of disequilibrium. However, my teaser trailer will not return the narrative to a state of equilibrium.