Narrative technique · used in 3 films
Connecting two worlds or bodies so that events in one directly affect the other, and cross-cutting between them drives the story.
Examples
Guillermo del Toro · 2008
Nuada and his twin Nuala share a magical bond. Nuada can track her through it, and he finds her that way. The bond makes their relationship both a weapon and a weakness.
Where to see it: The attack on headquarters: Nuada tracks Nuala through their magical bond and abducts her in exchange for the final crown piece.
Makoto Shinkai · 2016
At first, the film lets you assume the body swaps are happening in the present. Then it reveals that Mitsuha lives 3 years in Taki's past. You have to rethink every swap scene, because the 2 of them were never living at the same time. The reveal turns a romance into something closer to a rescue mission across time.
Where to see it: Taki's discovery that the town was destroyed 3 years ago. This is the moment the film changes genre.
Steven Spielberg · 2018
In the finale, Wade fights in the OASIS while his friends fight in the real world. Their actions in the real world affect what he can do. The film gives you two battles and one goal.
Where to see it: The final battle: Wade and his friends fight a company's soldiers in the OASIS while their allies attack the company's base in the real world.
Questions