How to Write a Cinematic Fugue

It was at one time the highest test of the composer to construct a fugue. J.S. Bach, Ludwig Van Beethoven, Johannes Brahms, these were the likes of men who mastered this revered art. Since they have passed, fugue has been all but lost to popular artists, and the word itself has been out of the practical public lexicon for some time. Yet the word does get used occasionally, albeit in the completely wrong sense. The true meaning of the word has been utterly lost to the public. Here is a commonly used definition for the word, which would be regarded as legitimate by most modern music professors. “A fugue is a compositional technique in two or more voices, built on a subject (theme) that is introduced at the beginning in imitation (repetition at different pitches) and recurs frequently in the course of the composition.” That definition is from the wikipedia article detailing fugue, and is hardly practical. If you are not a music person you probably have no idea what it means. In this treatise, we will rediscover the fugue in its original intention as it relates to storytelling.
            “To fugue” means to chase. That is how Bach, Beethoven, Mozart, and Handel would have used the word. Here is an excerpt from Johann Josef Fux’s Gradus Ad Parnassum on counterpoint where he addresses the definition.

“Fugue takes its name from the [German] words fugere and fugare - to flee and to pursue - a derivation confirmed by a number of eminent authors.” - J.J. Fux, 1725

Thus, the combination of fugere and fugare led to the term fugue. It is a bit hard to imagine how a chase would be worked into a piece of classical music, however, upon gazing at a score of one of Bach’s fugues, the chase becomes clear.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?list=PL81D26D4A47388279&feature=player_detailpage&v=ipzR9bhei_o#t=170

(Please skip to 2:50 in the video for the beginning of this fugue.)

Developed from the musical round, fugue involves one musical line chasing another. Notice that the blue musical line in Bach's fugue enters first, then the orange line enters with the same gesture afterwards, and off they go! As it relates to storytelling, the equivalent of a musical line is a character, or a group of characters.
            There are seven story elements that comprise a fugue that I have observed; environment, character, condition, devices, goals,  dominance, and complexity. It should be noted that the order of presentation here says nothing of the hierarchical order of elements within a given fugal sequence. Each element may be just as important as the others, depending on the demands of the fugue itself.

Environment – The setting and forces relating to that setting in which the fugue takes place.

A character may go through many settings in the course of a chase. Each environment has its own unique obstacles and dangers. For this reason we break environment into two parts. The first part is that of things which both the character chasing and the character being chased must overcome, circumvent, or use to their advantage. Examples of these elements include stairs, crowds, corn fields, mud, etc. A character is presented with an obstacle that slows them down, thus putting them at risk of capture. The second part of environment is those elements of environment that threaten the very life of both parties. Examples of this type include mine fields, narrow bridges, falling trees, raging fires, collapsing buildings, traffic, quicksand etc. Adding this element to a scene adds a dimension of man vs nature, in addition to the already prevalent element of man vs man, man vs animal, or man vs machine, as is the case in James Cameron’s The Terminator. In both cases, lethal and non-lethal, gravity is added to the scene through a heightening of stakes, thus drawing in and holding the audience’s attention. One can easily see why considering environment would be a handy tool to any writer when planning out a fugal sequence. The more interesting the environment, the more interesting the action will be.

Character – the attitudes or nature of a character.
This is pre-established prior to the onset of a fugal sequence, and it may also develop during the sequence itself as we discover parts of a character that are only present in life-threatening situations. The nature of a character determines the structure that the fugue takes. If the character being chased is smart, he will take his pursuer through densely populated areas in the hopes of eluding him. If the character doing the chasing is fearless, then he will chase his prey to the ends of earth, no matter what conditions may be thrown at him. If the character being chased feels the heat on his heels, then he will throw things in the path of his pursuer in an attempt to trip him. If the character doing the chasing is unstoppable, then these things with be thrown to the side effortlessly. And so on and so forth.
Han Solo is perhaps one of the greatest fugal characters of all time. Take a look at what he does when being chased by star destroyers. His attitude and character is displayed perfectly with his iconic line, "Never tell me the odds."
The Empire Strikes Back - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uTp8mKFxmbg

Devices – The toys which the players use against each other.
This entails anything that the characters use to their advantage, be it a gun, a trashcan that they tip over to obstruct the other character’s path, or even their fists. Not only may a character use things that hurt their opponent, but they may also use things to aid themselves. A character with a broken leg would do well to grab a crutch when being chased by a healthy pursuer, just as a hunter would be wise to use his night vision goggles while searching for his prey.

Goals - What the players must do to survive.
In order to extend the scene to its full and complete form, characters can be given goals within the scene that they must achieve in order to get out of their circumstance. This is often determined by either the over-arching plot or one of the other elements of fugue. A character who is wounded in the leg must find a crutch; if a wall presents itself for the character, he must climb over it; if the damsel in distress is dangling from a speeding train, he must save or catch her while being chased, etc.
Notice in this scene how Malcolm must get his buttocks off of the gear shift in order for their vehicle to move fast enough to escape. In order for him to do so, he must first overcome his fear of the giant T-Rex.
Jurassic Park - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n1G6MhFi0cM

Condition – The physical state of the players.
This is both pre-determined before the onset of the fugal sequence, and determined during its development. The progress of condition is conveyed visually through the cues that the storyteller gives to the audience regarding the state of the character’s appearance, as well as vocally by the characters. If the character is bloody, then he’s probably not doing very well and the stakes are heightened. If a character is overweight, then the fugue will be short lived lest other elements come into play. He will have trouble jumping across rooftops, and he will roll down hills rather than run.
Take a look at Cameron’s The Terminator. In the final climactic battle, the two protagonists are badly injured from their struggles.  This hinders their flight. The terminator itself is also injured in the scene, hindering its persuit, but also making it that much more terrifying.
The Terminator (my apologies for the poor quality) - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2KeniFoiT-0

Dominance – who is chasing who, and the shifts of that paradigm.
 Often times in chases, the chaser becomes the one being chased. When this occurs, a shift results in the minds of the audience as to who is dominant in the scene. This element is a vital tool for the writer who wishes to develop a sequence while holding the audience’s attention. This shift may occur as a result of any of the previous elements listed. If the attitude of a character being chased becomes one of renewed vigor, then he may turn upon his pursuer, and either engage him or overwhelm him, in which case the direction of the chase would be reversed. This reversal, when coupled with catharsis and the already high stakes of the scene, can have a hugely intense effect on the audience. A famous example of this element used in a highly successful movie is in Bonnie and Clyde, when the gang of robbers led by Warren Beatty, having stolen Gene Wilder’s car, are being chased by Wilder through the country. Wilder has a change of attitude based on the notion that the people who stole his car may have guns. He turns his car around, and so do the gang. Thus, the chaser becomes the chased.

Complexity – How many players or teams of players there are.
            In music, there are two, three, and four part fugues. This means that in a four part fugue, there are four separate lines chasing one another. There are also double fugues, where two themes are fugued at once. A truly skilled writer will be able to craft a fugue where many characters are chasing many others, and multiple chases are going on at the same time.

Conclusion – The Integration of Elements
Each of the seven elements, when added to a scene and developed properly, results in a tug of war. If the character being chased has a strong attitude despite being shot in the leg while fighting their way through a crowd and being shot at, it will still appear as though the character is going to win. Conversely, if a character has a poor attitude but has every advantage, the audience will still feel an inevitable collapse in the character’s fortune sometime in the near future. The condition of a character will have a bearing on the audience’s impression of a character’s attitude, regardless of any corresponding change. When a character is shot in the leg but doesn’t miss a beat, the communicated message to the audience is that the injured character is invincible. Each of the four elements, when added individually, will resonate in the audience, and result in a shift of the other three elements. The tug of war between the elements of the fugal sequence that takes place during a fugue is what communicates who is winning in the sequence.
Stakes obviously play an enormous role in the development of fugue. Each of the elements is used to increase tension and stakes, thus making the audience member gravitate toward the sequence, and even come back for multiple viewings. The most intense form of chase is one where the sympathetic character is weak, bogged down, and being chased, while the antagonist is invincibly strong and chasing him with the intent of murder. This is because such a situation adds gravity to the sequence through heightened tension; the possibility for victory of our hero is low, and the possible outcome is of the highest intensity. 

I theorize that the appeal of fugue has its roots in our evolutionary makeup. Our Paleolithic ancestors participated in chases on a semi-regular basis, where they would be forced to flee from predators suddenly, and often through dense forest. One would think that such a thing would not be entirely pleasant, but mother nature is paradoxical. When we look at long distance runners crossing the finish line, or marathoners coming to a halt after so many miles, the look on their face is that of anguish and exhaustion. This is not so with sprinters. The look on a sprinters face, win or lose, is almost always one of joy. That is because our body reacts to the completion of short bursts of speed with pure happiness; the happiness of being alive after escaping a predator. It is possible that fugue has additional advantages as well. We know from recent studies that heavy exertions of energy such as sprinting and short bursts of intense weight training increases learning ability through the release of brain derived neurotrophic factor to the brain. [1][2] Think about it: you’re in the woods being chased by a cougar. It is completely necessary that you are able to process the world around you at a faster speed so as to escape, and those humans which evolved to do this would be those that survived to procreate. It is my theory that aesthetic fugues have the same effect; by imitating the experience of being chased, they release BDNF into the brain, connecting neurons and allowing you to process larger amounts of information. In other words, chase scenes make you smarter! Can it be that fugue is objectively both pleasurable and valuable to humans, and that Bach understood this fact intuitively? I most certainly think it is!

The following is a list of fugues which employ some or all of the elements which I have described. Be sure to pay attention to what is going on inside you as the scenes play out. I’m certain you’ll find that what was thought to be mindless action is in fact causing a very interesting effect inside your mind.

The Road Warrior - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bmf-HCCZYOg

Fast and Furious 6 - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4JZKEN_vpzY

The Terminator & Terminator 2 (Both films are essentially giant fugues) - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5I0EbZL8J5c

The Blues Brothers - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LMagP52BWG8

The Great Train Robbery (that’s right, what is popularily known as the first film was indeed a fugue) - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bc7wWOmEGGY

The Dark Knight - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nCQxhof9RlI

Raiders of the Lost Ark - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pr-8AP0To4k

Under Seige 2

Beethoven's "Great Fugue" - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xjUh11EPGcM

Sources
[1] http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12086747
[2] http://jp.physoc.org/content/587/13/3221.abstract