Dont Fall for the Training Movie Montage - The Muse

Dont Fall for the Training Movie Montage - The MuseDont Fall for the Training Movie MontageWhen Ren first insists on teaching Willard to dance in Footloose, the guy cant hear a beat to save his life. But three minutes later, hes a pro, showing off his moves while his mentor perches on a tractor and looks on proudly. To state the obvious, movies are fiction- even those that are based on or inspired by true stories tend to fictionalize for dramatic effect. And you should know that theyre not generally the best models for how things actually work offscreen. Just as the majority of romantic comedies dont get relationships quite right, most films dont get careers or accomplishments right. The list of ways thats true could fill a much longer article than this one, but lets focus here on the installation. (I was inspired to write about this after reading posts by Austin Kleon and David Wong.)Yep, the montage. You know the one Im talking about. The part of the movie where the underdog protag onist decides to give it their all- it being preparing for whatever competition or moment will later serve as the climax of the movie. The screen then flashes through snippets of practice scenes, starting with a struggle but quickly fast forwarding through stages of improvement toward excellence, while an uplifting soundtrack ties it all together. Heres the problem That montage is terribly misleading. It creates the illusion that mastery can be achieved faster, that success comes more easily, and that the whole process happens more smoothly than is actually the case. The montage is a convenient tool that helps move a plot along, but in many cases even the full period of time its condensing wouldnt be enough to pull off what countless movies suggest is possible. A month or two of rigorous training most likely isnt going to be enough to make you great. You cant catch up to, let alone triumph over, those whove been dedicated for far longer, no matter how much or how genuinely you want something. Regardless, the montage skims over and glamorizes the hardest, messiest work, packaging it into an arc with a clear upward trajectory toward winning or proving yourself. In the context of the full movie, getting good is a blip, and it flies by. In real life, you cant predict how long the struggle will last, and youre sure to fail frequently before you succeed. Lets look at one such sequence thats accompanied by one of my all-time favorite Disney songs. At the start of Ill Make a Man Out of You, Mulan and her fellow soldiers are, well, pathetic. The first two and a half minutes depict all sorts of flubs and fails- from trips and falls to missed bow-and-arrow shots to accidental explosions. But one early morning, Mulan, her brow furrowed in fierce determination, manages to climb up a tall pole with weights strapped to her wrists. From that moment on, the motley crew suddenly resembles a formidable army and Mulan, instead of trailing behind the men, is a star. Sure, the view er might learn that one small win can beget another and start a streak. But the drastic turning point does little to reveal what finally clicked for Mulan, let alone for her peers. We dont see her wrestling with different approaches or persevering through a rough bugfix of mixed results. Its all bad until its all good. The montage obscures the incremental lessons and improvements and the ups and downs of a real path to success.Even if you know, logically, that you shouldnt set your expectations based on how it happens in the movies, its hard to shake the internalized notion that things shouldnt be this hard for this long.But they are. I dont say that to discourage you. On the contrary, its meant to help you craft a more realistic plan that doesnt include an inevitable letdown. In other words, if you expect to will yourself to a meteoric rise, youre just setting yourself up for disappointment. So dont. Instead of counting on one turn of events to boost you straight to the top, focus your plan on sustained, and sustainable, work thatll add up in the long term. Be patient- because your dreams wont come true in a magical three-minute montage, but change will come with time and effort. And if a soundtrack helps in getting you there, by all means, crank it up. (BRB, going to create a montage playlist I can listen to on repeat.)