Most writing advice would suggest you follow a certain formula, as if the best stories are something you create in the lab. And look, there’s plenty of good movies that follow familiar formulas. Most can be viewed in the idea of a three act structure: the setup, the confrontation, and the resolution. Some prefer five acts: introduction of conflict, rising action, climax, falling action, and resolution. But some of the best stories ever told are those that are cut right down the middle, with act structures that resolve and then start anew before the finale. Today I’m going to talk about three films that are split in half and still tell a compelling story — maybe two stories.
Ikiru (1952)
In Akira Kurosawa’s classic drama Ikiru (To Live), Takashi Shimura plays a government bureaucrat that learns he’s going to die soon (introduction of conflict). Understanding that he’s lived a wasted life (it’s a drama as much about failing yourself as it is about government bureaucracy failing society), he first spirals into a depressing woe-is-me attitude and suffers many misunderstandings with loved ones (confrontation). By the time he figures out how to make his days worthwhile, he dies (resolution). But that’s only the first half of Ikiru. The second half mainly takes place around his funeral where colleagues debate the dead man’s final days, and we see some of those events played out in flashbacks (setup). Perhaps what’s shocking is how much the others want to downplay his achievements (rising conflict). But someone in the group gets it. They see what the dying man was trying to do and they are changed (resolution). The movie hopes you are changed, as well. However, it seems to suppose that some viewers may downplay the accomplishments like the characters did. It’s a remarkable piece of storytelling. And, for my money, better than It’s a Wonderful Life (1946) at making a case to the viewer about living a better life.
King Kong (1933)
In basically all versions of the King Kong story except for Kong: Skull Island (2017), glory seeking adventurers travel to a deserted island looking for wonder (setup). On the island, they meet a tribe that is enamoured with the beautiful blonde. The tribe wants the woman, but the sailors say no (confrontation). The woman is taken by the great ape Kong and the ship crew must chase after her, contending with dinosaurs and other strange beasts on the way. Eventually they save the woman and subdue Kong (resolution). But this is only half of the story. The rest takes place in New York, with Kong up on broadway (setup). Kong escapes, terrorizes the city, and reunites with the woman from the island (confrontation). Then the monster ape climbs the Empire State Building and faces the airplanes (resolution). King Kong is a three-act structure followed by a three-act structure. And it works time and time again in remakes and imitations.
A.I. (2001)
In Speilberg’s adaptation of the unmade Kubrick film, A.I.: Artificial Intelligence, we’re introduced to the future of robotics: the android child (setup). We then meet a family whose son is sick and unable to return home. Grieving and lonely, they adopt one of these A.I. robot kids and take him home. The boy loves his parents as he is engineered to do but the mood in the house is cold and unpleasant. When their real son recovers, jealousy and questions of the robot’s usefulness take root (confrontation). Though she hates herself for doing it, the mother abandons the robot child in the woods and drives off (resolution). Again, this is only half the story. We begin a new structure as the robot child is abducted by robot hating humans, comes under the wing of an android jiggelow, and then goes off in search of the Blue Fairy that will make him a real boy and thus deserving of his mother’s love.
These movies are definitely not alone. Full Metal Jacket (1987) tells a complete story about boot camp before going off to war. From Dusk Till Dawn (1996) tells a crime story before switching into horror mode — though, in this case, one would argue that the first structure is incomplete without the finale, so it’s a different sort of beast.
You don’t need to follow any storytelling formula. But even if you do, you can still get creative with the rules. King Kong, Ikiru and others are classics for a multitude of reasons, but that restart in the middle stands out as one major point of storytelling interest. Consider if your story could do something similar.
