Tzvetan Todorov was a Bulgarian-French theorist who proposed a five stage narrative theory in 1969 consisting of an initial equilibrium, a disruption to that equilibrium, recognition of the disruption, an attempt to repair the disruption, and a return to equilibrium. He suggested that all films follow this pattern, though the theory may be too basic to apply to narratives with cliffhangers or unhappy endings and would best suit fairytales.

1. TZVETAN TODOROV’S
NARRATIVE THEORY
Tzvetan Todorov was a famous Bulgarian- French
theorist, who is famous in media for his "narrative
stages" theory in 1969.

2. This states that any film
follows a five stage
system:
An equilibrium
e.g. In “Star Wars A
New Hope”, Luke lives
on the farm, but wants
to leave.

3. A disequilibrium ( or
disruption) from an event
e.g. His uncle and aunt are
killed, and so he decides to
join the rebel alliance.

4. A recognition of the
disequilibrium
e.g. they are briefed for the
mission

5. An attempt(s) to repair
disequilibrium
e.g. They attempt to blow up
the death star

6.  A return to equilibrium
e.g. They are rewarded for success, as
equilibrium returns.

7. CONCLUSION
He suggested that all films followed this pattern. In my opinion, I think
that this theory is very basic, and will not apply to narratives with cliff-
hangers or endings that are "unhappy". This theory would best suit a fairy-
tale. In the following posts , alongside "Propp's Character theory", I will
apply this theory to music videos, and asses whether it is successful. In my
Potential Ideas post, I will evaluate whether I will attempt to keep to this
theory.