NOTES:

TheMindGameFilm
ThomasElsaesser
InDecember2006,LarsvonTriersTheBossofItAllwasreleased.
ThefilmisacomedyabouttheheadofanITcompanyhiringafailed
actortoplaythebossofitall,inordertocoverupasellout.Von
Trierannouncedthattherewereanumberof(fivetoseven)outof
placeobjectsscatteredthroughout,calledLookeys:Forthecasual
observer,[theyare]justaglitchoramistake.Fortheinitiated,[they
are]ariddletobesolved.AllLookeyscanbedecodedbyasystemthat
isunique.[...]Itsabasicmindgame,playedwithmovies(inBrown
2006).VonTrierwentontoofferaprizetothefirstspectatortospot
alltheLookeysanduncovertherulesbywhichtheyweregenerated.Pg
1

Thereareotherfilmsthathavedonesimilarthings,theres
onethatofferedthiskindofregardwaybeforevontrier.Its
amysteryfilmfromthe40sor50sFINDTHENAME!
ANSWER:intheearlytomid1910s,whenthesocalledcinemaof

attractionswassaidtogivewaytothecinemaofnarrative
integration,aGermandirector,JoeMay,initiatedasuccessful,ifbrief
vogueforsocalledPreisrtselfilmeorprizepuzzlefilmsasasub
genreofthe(Danishinspired)detectivefilm,whereclueswereplanted
withoutbeingrevealedattheend.Instead,prizeswereofferedto
spectatorswhoidentifiedthem(Pehla1991).Sameessaypg17

abroaddescriptionofthemind
gamefilm.Itcomprisesmoviesthatareplayinggames,and
Firstofall,

thisattwolevels:therearefilmsinwhichacharacterisbeingplayed
gameswith,withoutknowingitorwithoutknowingwhoitisthatis
playingthese(oftenverycruelandevendeadly)gameswithhim(or
her):inJonathanDemmesSilenceoftheLambs(1991)theserialkiller
BuffaloBillisplayinggameswiththepolice(andthewomenhe
captures)andHannibalLecterisplayinggameswithClariceStarling
(andeventually,shewithhim).InDavidFinchersSe7en(1995),John
Doe,anotherserialkiller,isplayinggameswiththerookiepoliceman
playedbyBradPitt.InFinchersTheGame(1997),MichaelDouglasis
theonewhoisbeingplayedgameswith(possiblybyhisownbrother).
InPeterWeirsTheTrumanShow(1998),theeponymousheroleadsan
entirelifethatforeveryoneelseisagame,astagemanagedtelevision
show,fromwhichonlyTrumanisexcluded.Then,therearefilms
whereitistheaudiencethatisplayedgameswith,becausecertain
crucialinformationiswithheldorambiguouslypresented:Bryan
SingersTheUsualSuspects(1995),FinchersFightClub(1999),
ChristopherNolansMemento(2000),JohnWoosPaycheck(2003),
JohnMayburysTheJacket(2005),DavidLynchsLostHighway
(1997),andMulhollandDr.(2001)fallinthiscategory.The
informationmaybewithheldfrombothcharactersandaudience,asin
M.NightShyamalansTheSixthSense(1999)andAlejandro
AmenbarsTheOthers(2001),wherethecentralprotagonistsare
alreadydead,except[they]dontknowityet,toquoteoneofthe
openinglinesofSamMendesAmericanBeauty(1999).Sometimes,
themastersofthegamerevealthemselves(TheTrumanShow,
Se7en),butmostlytheydonot,andatothertimes,apuppetmasteris
caughtupinhisowngame,asinSpikeJonze/CharlieKaufmansBeing
JohnMalkovich(1999),thehypochondriacwriterinthesameteams
Adaptation(2002),orthetwomagiciansinNolansThePrestige

(2006).Pg1

Asdifferentfromthepuzzlefilm.
Otherfilmsofthemindgametendencyputtheemphasisonmind:
theyfeaturecentralcharacterswhosementalconditionisextreme,
unstable,orpathological;yetinsteadofbeingexamplesofcasestudies,
theirwaysofseeing,interactionwithothercharacters,andtheirbeing
intheworldarepresentedasnormal.Thefilmsthusoncemoreplay
gameswiththeaudiences(andthecharacters)perceptionofreality:
theyobligeonetochoosebetweenseeminglyequallyvalid,but
ultimatelyincompatiblerealitiesormultiverses:RonHowardsA
BeautifulMind(2001),DavidCronenbergsSpider(2002),Richard
KellysDonnieDarko(2001),ortheWachowskiBrothersTheMatrix
(1999).Thenatureofconsciousnessandmemory,therealityofother
minds,andtheexistenceofpossible/parallelworldsareequallyatissue
infilmslikeRichardLinklatersWakingLife(2001),ShaneCarruths
Primer(2004),MichaelGondry/CharlieKaufmansEternalSunshine
oftheSpotlessMind(2004),CameronCrowesVanillaSky(2001,a
remakeofAmenbarsAbrelosOjos,1997),andPeterHowitts
SlidingDoors(1998).

Thelasttwotitlesindicatethatthetendencyisnotconfinedto
HollywoodorNorthAmericandirectors.Tovaryingdegreesandin
sometimessurprisinglydifferentways,mindgamefilmsarealso
beingmadeinGermany,Denmark,Britain,Spain,SouthKorea,Hong
Kong,andJapan:TomTykwersRunLolaRun(1998),Larsvon
TriersBreakingtheWaves(1996),JulioMedemsTierra(Earth)
(1996),PedroAlmodovarsHablaconella(TalktoHer)(2002),Kim
KiiDuksBinJip(ThreeIron)(2004),WongKarwaisChungking
Express(1994),IntheMoodforLove(2000),and2046(2004).Park
ChanwooksOldboy(2003),MichaelHanekesFunnyGames(1997),

CodeInconnu(2000),andCach(2005),withtheirsadomasochistic
undertowofrevengeandguilt,alsoqualify,alongwithmanyothers,
someofwhicharediscussedandanalyzedinthisvolume.

SOmindgamefilmsareamoregeneraltermthatincludes
allfilmsthatinonewayoranotheremployinvolment
strategies,anddeliberatenarrativediscontinuities.Maybea
differentterm,itsnotentirelycorrect,thethingisMIND
gamefilmscomprisealargerspectrumoffilms.They
includefilmsthatarelinearinessencebutonlyerasesmall
partsofthelinearplotasopposedtofilmsthatrearrange
theplotinawaythatconvolutesandhampers,thatmesses
withinferenceandwithholdsinformationfromthe
audienceuntiltheend.Puzzlefilmsrequireamentalmodel
thatisdifferentfromothermindgamefilms,inthat,linear
modelsarealwaysstepbystepandtheaudienceexpects
whatcomesnext,eveninflashbacksorflashforwards,the
narrativeisovertlypushedforward,theaudienceknows
thatitsgoingforward(notsure,Imeantheaudience
alwaysexpectsthatwhateverispresentednextcontributes
inonewayoranothertotheirunderstandingofthestory).
Pg14
ALSOPUZZLEFILMSAREATENDENCYIN
NARRATIVERATHERTHANAGENREOFFILM.
theyaddressnotjusttheusual(genre)issuesofadolescentidentity
crises,sexuality,gender,theoedipalfamily,andthedysfunctional
community,butalsoepistemologicalproblems(howdoweknow
whatweknow)andontologicaldoubts(aboutotherworlds,other
minds)thatareinthemainstreamofthekindsofphilosophicalinquiry

focusedonhumanconsciousness,themindandthebrain,multiple
realitiesorpossibleworlds.
Pg15

MEaningthatpuzzlefilmsmayarisefroma
needtodiscusstheseissuesandthemes.
Theysplitawayfromtraditionalformto
challengethesestoryform,ortheyjustdoit
becauseitisinterestingandusually
engagingfortheaudience.
Yetoneoverridingcommonfeatureofmindgamefilmsisadelightin
disorientingormisleadingspectators(besidescarefullyhiddenor
altogetherwithheldinformation,therearethefrequentplottwistsand
trickendings).Anotherfeatureisthatspectatorsonthewholedonot
mindbeingplayedwith:onthecontrary,theyrisetothechallenge.
Thefactthataudiencesaresetconundrums,oraresprungtrapsfor
mindandeye,thattheyareaswithvonTriersLookeys
confrontedwithoddobjectsorpuzzling
16ThomasElsaesser
detailsthatdonotaddupeventhoughtheoverallexperience
makessensewouldindicatewearedealingwithaphenomenonthat
spectatorsrecognizeasrelevanttotheirownworlds.Mindgamefilms
thustranscendnotonlygenre,butalsoauthorialsignature(eventhough
recognizedauteursareprominent)andnationalcinema(eventhougha
EuropeEastAsiaAmericanindependentstrianglecanbediscerned).

whatisatstakearenewformsofspectatorengagementandnewforms
ofaudienceaddress(althoughnewherefunctionsmerelyasa
diacriticalmarkerofdifference:thegenealogyofthemindgamefilm
includessuchvenerablemastermagiciansofsurprise,suspense,and
thedoubletakeasFritzLang,LuisBuuel,AlfredHitchcock,and
OrsonWelles,aswellas1950s/1960sartcinemafilmsbyAkira
Kurosawa,AlainResnais,andIngmarBergman).
Assuch,mindgamefilmscouldbeseenasindicativeofacrisisin
thespectatorfilmrelation,inthesensethatthetraditionalsuspension
ofdisbeliefortheclassicalspectatorpositionsofvoyeur,witness,
observerandtheirrelatedcinematicregimesortechniques(pointof
viewshot,suture,restricted/omniscientnarration,flyonthewall
transparency,miseenscneofthelongtake/depthoffield)areno
longerdeemedappropriate,compelling,orchallengingenough.
Pg16

Hearguesthatmindgamefilmsareindeedharbingersofsuch
changesinaudienceaddressandspectatorengagement.Partof
thetransformationofnarrative,
Perhapsalogicalconclusionisadivergence
fromnarrativetowardssomethingdifferent,
ifanarativeissustainedchoicewillbe
issued,nopeopledontwanttochoose,they
wanttobeled,videogameseventhough
theyofferaninteractiveworldalso
experiencenarratives.Theendofitiswhen

weareabletoproduceemotionalresponse
withoutanarrativeorindentification,butin
anycaseifthatoccurswhatisthepointof
humanity.WEwouldbeabletoondemand
haveanyfeelingwedesire.
Listofcommonelementsinmindgame
films:
.
1Aprotagonistparticipatesin,oriswitnessto,
eventswhosemeaningorconsequencesescapehim:alongwith
him,thefilmasks:whatexactlyhashappened?Thereisa
suspensionofcauseandeffect,ifnotanoutrightreversalof
linearprogression(Memento,DonnieDarko,LostHighway).
.
2Aprotagonistseemsdeludedormistakenaboutthe
differencebetweenrealityandhis/herimagination,butrather
thanthisinnerworldbecomingaclearlymarkedsubjective
pointofviewofacharacter(asintheEuropeanartfilm),thereis
noperceptibledifferenceeitherinthevisualregisterorinterms
ofverisimilitude,betweenrealandimagined,realand
simulated,realandmanipulated.Asonecommentatorputsit:
filmslikeTheMatrix,DarkCity(1998),andTheTrumanShow
involveaheftyplottwist,onethatforcestheprotagonistto
questionrealityitself.Saidrealitytendstobenothingmorethana
simulation,andaconspiratorialsimulationatthat(Sankey
2001).
.
3Aprotagonisthasafriend,mentor,orcompanion
whoturnsouttobeimagined(FightClub,ABeautifulMind,
DonnieDarko,LostHighway).

.
4Aprotagonisthastoaskhimself:whoamIand
whatismyreality?(thePhilipK.DickadaptationsBlade
Runner[1982],TotalRecall[1990],PaycheckandMinority
Report[2002]),andevenamIstillaliveoralreadydead(Angel
Heart[1987],JacobsLadder[1990],TheSixth
Sense,TheOthers).
.
5Notonlyistheherounabletodistinguishbetween
differentworlds:he
orsheisoftennotevenawarethattheremightbeparallel
universes,andneitheristheaudienceuntilamomentinthe
filmwhenit

ThomasElsaesser
6
turnsoutthatthenarrativeandplothavebeenbasedonamistaken
cognitiveorperceptualpremise(FightClub,TheSixthSense,A
BeautifulMind).Thepointinthestoryatwhichitundergoessuch
drasticrevision,wherethegroundispulledfromundertheaudiences
feet,iscommentedonbyoneofthefansasfollows:Youwantthat
big,juicy,brainblasting,ohmygodeverythinghaschangedfeeling,
towhichanotherbloggerreplied:Yesbuttheohmygod
everythinghaschangedfeelinginTheSixthSenseisreinforcedbythe
gotchafeelingofreplayedscenesfromearlierinthemoviethatyou
nowunderstanddifferently.Theviewergetstohaveitbothways:have
theohmygodfeelingandwatchtheprotagonistexperienceittoo.
Acharacterispersuadedbyhisormoreoften,herfamily,friends,
orthecommunitythatsheisdeludedabouttheexistenceordisap
pearance,usuallyofachildaselfdelusionbroughtuponbytrauma,
excessivegrief,orotheremotionaldisturbance.He/sheinsistson
maintainingthisdelusionagainstallodds,andisusuallyprovenright,
byuncoveringaconspiracy,eitherofaverysophisticated,diabolical
kind,oronthecontrary,consistingofaveryscientific,bureaucratic,

orroutinetestormeasureorderedbythepowersthatbe(Minority
Report,TheForgotten[2004],TheVillage[2004],FlightPlan[2005]).
PAGE18

Inallofthem,oneoftheessential
componentsoftheaudiencesinvolvement
isthequestioningofreality,thepremises
andtherealityofthefilm,theydoubtallthe
waythroughthefilm.
issuesofnarrativeandnarratology(byconcentratingontheunreliable
narrators,themultipletimelines,unusualpointofviewstructures,
unmarkedflashbacks,problemsinfocalizationandperspectivism,
unexpectedcausalreversalsandnarrativeloops);onecanhighlight
questionsofpsychologyandpsychopathology(characterssuffering
fromamnesia,schizophrenia,paranoia,secondsightor
clairvoyance);
Pg18

explainthebutterflyeffectsofchaos
theory,thesensitivedependenceoninitial
conditionsthesis,(positive)feedbackloops
asopposedtolinearcausality
Formyfilm,theviewerofthealephsees

himselfwatchingthealeph,seesachainof
events,maybeaselffullfilledprophecyor
actuallythatitseemslikeitbutthwartsit
somehow.Reversingeverythinginthe
process.
thefilmsIgroupunderthemindgametendencyare
generatingabroadliteraturefocusingonthe
narratologicalissuesraised,withcorresponding
terminologies:sometalkofforkingpathnarratives
(DavidBordwell2002;seebelow)ormultipledraft
narratives(Bordwell;EdwardBranigan2002),others
refertothemas(psychological)puzzlefilms(Elliot
Panek2006),twistfilms(GeorgeWilson2006),complex
narratives(JanetStaiger2006),ortrytodefinethemas
specialcasesofmodularnarratives(AllanCameron
2006).JasonMittell(2006)hasalsostudiedthecomplex
puzzlenarrativeincontemporarytelevision.

Pg19
Letusassumethatthemindgamefilmsetsthevieweranumberof
narratologicalproblemsorpuzzles:Mindgamefilmsatthenarrative
level,offerwiththeirplottwistsandnarrationaldoubletakesa
rangeofstrategiesthatcouldbesummarizedbysayingthatthey
suspendthecommoncontractbetweenthefilmanditsviewers,which

isthatfilmsdonotlietothespectator,butaretruthfulandself
consistentwithinthepremisesoftheirdiegeticworlds,thatpermit,of
course,virtualworlds,impossiblepg19
20ThomasElsaesser
situations,andimprobableevents.Audiences,forinstance,feltcheated
byafilmlikeTheUsualSuspects(1995),becauseitinvolvednotonly
anunreliablenarrator,Keyser,butalsoamendaciouspointofview
shot,implyingthepresenceofawitnessinacrucialscene,whenthere
wasnone.Bonafidemindgamefilmsbycontrastmaintainabasic
consistencyandselfconsistencyortheyenacttheveryconditiontheir
herosuffersfrom,inthestructureofthefilmitself,asinMemento,
wherethefilm,asitwere,wipesoutitsownmemory,bybeingtoldin
shortsegmentsthatprecedeeachother,ratherthanfolloweachother.
FilmssuchasTheMatrix,DonnieDarko,andFightClubpresenttheir
parallelworldswithoutmarkingthemoffasdifferentby
superimposition,softfocus,oranyoftheotherconventionalmeansby
whichfilmsindicateswitchesofregisterorreference.Thequestion
thenbecomes:dothefilmslie,orisittheveryoppositionoftruth
andlie,betweentheactualandthevirtual,thesubjectiveandthe
objective,thatisatstake?Thedisorientationofthespectatorextendsto
therealitystatusofwhatwasbeingshown,andunlikeotherformsof
deception,illusionism,andmakebelieve,themindgamefilmdoesnot
involveamatterofocular(mis)perception,nordoesithavetodowith
perspectivism;itisneitheramatterofthehumaneyemissing
something(suchasthebodyinAntonionisBlowUp[1966],whichis
thenrevealedviathemechanicalcamera),norarewepresentedwith
severalversionsofthesameevent,asinKurosawasRashomon(1950).

precursorsofthecomplexstorytellingmodeandofmultiplepointof
viewnarration,suchasBergmansPersona(1966),theunreliable
narrationfromHitchcocksStageFright(1950),withitslying
flashback,FritzLangsWomanintheWindow(1944)andBeyonda
ReasonableDoubt(1956),orAlainResnaisHiroshimamonamour

(1959)andLastYearinMarienbad(1961),nottomentionOrson
WellesCitizenKane(1941)andFforFake(1974)oralmosttheentire
oeuvreofLuisBuuel,mindgameplayerparexcellence
Pg20

Aheadonexerciseindemystificationof
mindgamefilmshasbeenundertakenby
DavidBordwell(2002).Underthenameof
ForkingPathNarrativeshediscusses,
amongothers,TomTykwersRunLolaRun,
KrzysztofKieslowskisBlindChance,Peter
HowittsSlidingDoors,andWaiKaFais
TooManyWaystobeNo.1(1997)(whilein
anotherpublication,KristinThompsonset
outtoprovejusthowclassicalfilmslike
GroundhogDay[1993]are,appearancesto
thecontrary[Thompson1999]).Bordwells
mainlineofargument,forinstance,isthat
thepaths(ornarrativetrajectories)arestill
linearoncetheyhaveforked,thattheforks
aresignpostedandforeshadowed,thatforks
aremadetointersecteventually,thatall
pathsarenotequal:thereisahierarchy,and
thelastonetakenpresupposesallothers.

Andfinally,thattherearestilldeadline
structures(suchasinDonnieDarkoorRun
LolaRun),whichholdthenarrativeuniverse
togetherandinflectitwithalinearcausality.
Theproblemwithsuchapproachesisthattheytendtoreducethefilms
tobusinessasusual,makingonewonderwhythewriterordirector
wenttosuchtroubleinthefirstplace.Surely,inthesefilms(asindeed,
someearlieronesaswell),themostintriguingandinnovativefeatureis
thisinsistenceontemporalityasaseparatedimensionofconsciousness
andidentity,theplayonnonlinearsequenceorinvertedcausality,on
chanceandcontingency,onsynchronicityandsimultaneityandtheir
effectsoncharacters,agency,andhumanrelations:weareinworlds
thatoftenlookjustlikeours,butwheremultipletimelinescoexist,
wherethenarrativeengendersitsownloopsorMbiusstrips,where
theremaywellbeabeginning,amiddle,andanend,butthey
certainlyarenotpresentedinthatorder,andthusthespectatorsown
meaningmakingactivityinvolvesconstantretroactiverevision,new
realitychecks,displacements,andreorganizationnotonlyoftemporal
sequence,butofmentalspace,andthepresumptionofapossibleswitch
incauseandeffect.
Pg22