Lost Highway 6

Cognitive theories of narration 173

Bordwell also identifies several types of gap (the most recognizable cue in the text). When analysing gaps, we need to ask: Are they temporary or permanent? Most are temporary - that is, resolved by the end of the film. Second, are they flaunted or suppressed? A gap is flaunted when the spectator is madę aware that there is some information they need to know about the fabuła, whereas a suppressed gap does not cali attention to itself. Finally, are the gaps diffused or focused? A diffused gap is open ended, leading the spectator to generate a series of non-exclusive hypotheses, whereas a focused gap is clearly defined and leads the spectator to generate an exclusive hypothesis. A diffuse gap introduced at the beginning of a film can be gradually brought into focus as the film progresses.

The expositional moments in a film introduce pertinent background information about the settings, characters, and States of affairs. Exposition can be concentrated into a few scenes or, morę rarely, diffused throughout the whole film. If concentrated, it may be preliminary (appearing at the beginning of the film) or delayed until the end (as in detective films). The syuzhet can also set up false leads, complications in the action, and subplots to delay fabuła information. Or it may convey some information on several occasions (redundancy), to reinforce the importance of that information and ensure its effective communication. (This is why redundancy is a standard principle of classical narration.) We shall see that Lost Highway employs very little exposition. As the film unfolds, spectators gradually expect a delayed scene of concentrated exposition at the end. However, this explanation never arrives, which is one reason why the film is disorienting.

Morę generally, a filnTs syuzhet is constructed using broad narrational strategies, including knowledgeability, self-consciousness, and communica-tiveness. Under knowledgeability, Bordwell includes a syuzhet’s rangę of knowledge and its depth. Is the knowledge limited to what one character knows about fabuła events (restricted narration), or does it go beyond what any character knows (omniscient narration)? And is that knowledge deep (does it delve into the character’s mental life)? Or does it remain on the surface (simply showing the characters’ behayiour)? Second, a self-conscious narration displays a recognition that it is addressing an audience. Cues of self-consciousness include: characters looking into the camera, voiceovers addressing the spectator, and frontality of figurę position. Third, the narration may withhold from the spectator some of the available information. For example, if the narration shows us the fabuła through a characters eyes, is it willing to show us all the relevant information that character sees (in which case it is being highly communicative)? Or does the narration suddenly change perspective at a crucial moment, thus denying the spectator some important information (in which case it is less communicative)?

From these various principles we can begin to identify the filnTs internal