What makes a good story? How do the greatest storytellers keep you locked in from start to finish, glued to the screen from the second a story starts to the moment the credits roll?
As it turns out, there’s a tried and tested formula for building a gripping plot, whether it’s a sci-fi horror or a wholesome animated tale.
Here’s what the most amazing stories, all streaming on NOW TV, have in common...
1. The Set-Up
First of all, we need to know where we are and who we’re spending our time with. The best stories catapult you into a world rich with characters who feel as flesh and blood as you and me.
Take Joker, for example. Right off the bat, there’s a creeping unease as director Todd Phillips serves up a garbage-ridden, rat-infested city whose citizens have reached breaking point.
We’re introduced to Arthur Fleck, a sad, downtrodden clown who is dealt a savage blow in the first few minutes of the movie.
“Is it just me, or is it getting crazier out there?” he asks his therapist as the simmering tension continues to bubble away. Coupled with a score saturated with long, drawn-out strings that threaten doom, the stage is set.
2. The Threat / Opportunity
Next, an event happens to our cast of characters that sets the wheels of the plot in motion. It can be good, or it can be very, very bad. Either way, this ups the ante and powers the plot forwards.
This plot device is excellently deployed in Lovecraft Country, where Atticus’s father Montrose goes missing, prompting Atticus, his uncle George and friend Leti to embark on a mission to find him.
Montrose’s disappearance is the catalyst for what lies ahead: a world full of horrors.
3. The Fallout
In the next plot device, the impact of The Threat or The Opportunity makes itself known and the story becomes more complicated.
It’s only then, in the cold light of day, that our characters can see what they’re truly up against.
An iconic scene in Chernobyl shows the people who live near where the explosion took place gathering outside. Flakes of a snow-like substance swirl through the air and settle on their clothing and in their hair. It’s fairytale-esque – until you clock what’s actually falling from the sky: deadly radioactive material.
You don’t have to be a scientist to know what that means…
4. The Twist
You almost certainly thought you knew where you were being led. The breadcrumbs have been scattered and you’ve followed them, one by one. But all is not as it seems…
Something that was once hidden has come to light, raising the stakes and keeping your interest in the plot piqued.
Take Frozen 2, where the dark history of Arendelle and the truth about Anna and Elsa’s royal ancestry is unveiled.
5. The Solution
The Solution is how the protagonists emerge victorious, banishing all that is dark and dangerous, in turn heralding a new dawn.
In Jumanji: The Next Level, the big, bad antagonist Jurgen the Brutal has one weakness – although there’ll be no spoilers here. If the team, including Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson, Kevin Hart, Awkwafina and Danny DeVito, can get their hands on it, they give themselves a fighting chance of survival.
Will they overcome their biggest test yet?
6. The Aftermath
Every story needs closure. The key movers and shakers, plus you, the viewer, must be given space to reflect on the journey so far and where it could go next.
In Two Weeks To Live, all Kim has ever wanted is to explore the big, wide world, ticking off her bucket list as she goes.
But when the dust has settled after forest shootouts with murderous gangsters, will she finally be on her merry way? And with her mum’s blessing? We’ll find out as the story concludes.
Cue the credits! That wraps up the perfect plot nicely. Unless there’s a post-credits scene…
Stream all these amazing stories and more on NOW TV. You can now watch on up to three devices at the same time in stunning HD with NOW TV Boost
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