Parshall (emer., Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology) divides multiple-narrative films into two categories: "network" narratives, in which the film focuses on multiple characters and multiple plot lines, and "draft/database" narratives, in which the text tells the "same" story in different permutations. His examples of the former include Nashville (which is so scattered he actually calls it a "mosaic"), Pulp Fiction, Amores ... Read morePerros, Code Unknown, and The Edge of Heaven. He uses Virgin Stripped Bare by Her Bachelors, Run Lola Run, and The Double Life of Véronique to illustrate the latter category. Admirably international, the book brings readers' attention to not only cult favorites but also less familiar Korean and German-Turkish works....The readings of the individual films plumb the depths of these complicated movies with clear prose and great sensitivity. For several of these films, Parshall's discussion is the best analysis available, and teachers and students have much to learn from his searching intelligence. Summing Up: Highly recommended. Lower-division undergraduates and above, including professionals.
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A probing book on a broad storytelling strategy that goes by many names—thread structure, hyperlinked plots, network narratives. Altman and After: Multiple Narratives in Film provides incisive analyses of several films, while also offering an illuminating set of categories for understanding them. [This] is a fine addition to the growing list of books seeking to understand the permutations of today’s cinematic storytelling.
David Bordwell, coauthor of Film Art: An Introduction Show Less