Warren Buckland has noted (Film Sudies, 2nd ed.) that events do not have to occur chronologically in film, and in many cases they don’t. He cites Pulp Fiction as an example of a particularly imaginative non-linear narrative structure and also mentions Kubrick’s The Killing, David Lynch’s Lost Highway, and Christopher Nolan’s Memento.
Another example that occurs to us is Alfonso Cuaron’s Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. Harry and Hermione travel back in time in order to prevent the death of a horse/falcon creature named Buckbeak, and we see an earlier sequence of events again from the perspective of the time travelers. John Williams, in his typical exemplary fashion, scores these dual episodes in a logical way that emphasizes the emotions of the protagonists in each “version” of the events. Since Harry and Hermione are in fact the main characters in both the original and “time-traversed” accounts of the sequence, the score reflects their feelings of sadness at the death of the creature during the initial episode and the mood of urgency and stealth that permeates their efforts to change the course of events during the trip back in time.
Though we doubt that anyone could score these film segments “better” than John Williams, we are fascinated by the alternative musical possibilites inherent in such a sequence. Would it have been possible (and convincing) to allow elements of the second, time-traversed version of the score to “bleed through” into the first and vice-versa, thereby creating another subliminal level of musical/ dramatic relationship?
More food for thought regarding chronolgy in film: Einstein’s theory of relativity postulates that “two events, simultaneous for some observers, may not be simultaneous for another observer if the observers are in relative motion.” How could this be applied in film, and further, how could the musical score contribute? We look forward to hearing your insights and comments.
Chris & Tony
Wow, you guys are brilliant, and so is Maeghan Donovan.
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Sure, feel free to quote the blog. Thanks for visiting the site–we’re always uploading new music so come on back!