Our narrative prison

Commercial and Structural Pressures

• Several commenters tie sameness in plots to financing and risk: big-budget films must reliably recoup costs, which pushes studios toward familiar structures and franchise extensions.
• Executives and screenwriters want formulas that “work,” so tools like the hero’s journey and Save the Cat become industrial templates rather than loose guides.
• Some argue that general financial security in society would enable more risk-taking and less market-driven storytelling.

Box-Ticking and Formula Fatigue

• Modern “tentpole” films are seen as burdened with mandatory checklists: action, romance, quips, diverse ensemble, effects, global appeal, etc., making them feel overdesigned and bland.
• Romantic subplots and juvenile humor (e.g., fart jokes) are cited as vestigial studio requirements, sometimes even historically tied to ratings and marketing logic.
• Others note romance has actually declined compared to mid‑20th century cinema, suggesting perception may be skewed.

Are All Stories the Same? Frameworks vs Reductionism

• Some think any story can be retrofitted into the hero’s journey or a simple “rise/fall” arc; this makes grand taxonomies feel almost meaningless.
• Others stress that the hero’s journey implies inner moral change, which is not universal and can be overused and boring, especially when it always blames individual flaws rather than systemic problems.
• A recurring complaint: codifying “rules” after the fact (in narrative or music) freezes a once-lively tradition into clichés.

Alternative Narrative Structures and Examples

• Commenters highlight non–three-act or less conflict-driven forms: kishōtenketsu, tragedies, flat character arcs, ensemble or “community changes” stories, historical/chronicle formats, and horror that prioritizes mystery over transformation.
• Foreign films, older cinema, anime, and Ghibli works are frequently cited as sources of different rhythms, stakes, and antagonists (or lack thereof).
• TV and long-form audio fiction are praised for experimenting with looser, history-like or mosaic structures that resist neat “question–answer” resolutions.

Globalization, Variety, and Access

• One view: globalization homogenizes mainstream culture and narrative patterns.
• Counterview: while theaters are dominated by formulaic products, cheaper production and online distribution have exploded stylistic and structural variety—there’s simply more than anyone can consume.

Narrative, Ideology, and Archetypes

• Some see dominant story forms as reinforcing patriarchy, racism, violence-as-solution, and “main character” narcissism; narrative choices are framed as politically consequential.
• Others push back, seeing this as overreach: Hollywood may just be pandering to audience taste, and systemic claims need stronger evidence.
• Jungian and archetype-based perspectives appear: recurring patterns may reflect deep psychological “attractors” rather than merely Western or capitalist impositions.

Medium Limits, Audience, and Attention

• Several comments emphasize practical constraints: 90–120 minutes, mass appeal, and continuous engagement severely limit how weird a film can be while still working for broad audiences.
• By contrast, novels, series, and YouTube‑style process videos can sustain slower, stranger, or more fragmented structures.
• Some speculate that current attention habits make cognitively demanding films rarer hits, though this is presented as hypothesis, not consensus.

Reactions to the Article Itself

• Enthusiastic readers appreciate its critique of monomyth dominance and franchise “narrative boundlessness” serving commerce.
• Skeptics find it muddled, historically naive, or clickbaity: lumping all change into “three acts,” overlooking rich counterexamples, and romanticizing non-narrative or anti-plot stances.
• A common middle ground: frameworks like the hero’s journey are powerful tools and valid lenses, but become a “narrative prison” only when treated as compulsory formulas rather than options among many.