Toy Story: A tale of friendship created from 2 mythological tales
Est vs Actual domestic box office revenue: $142 – 173MM vs $192MM
94% of the events are borrowed from 3 mythological tales
The first movie from Pixar is about sentient toys who believe that their only purpose is to make a kid happy. The story is about two toys getting lost and overcoming multiple challenges to return back home. It explores basic human quests of tranquillity, honour and power. Mythosis uses 3 mythological tales to extract the plot structure of the movie.
1. Mythological tales reveal the invisible plot structure of any story
1A. 94% of the events are borrowed from 3 mythological tales
Woody’s quest is driven by the desire to return home and mirrors the tale of Odysseus from Greek mythology. Odysseus and Woody navigate their way back through hostile environment.
Buzz's quest is driven by the desire to serve their clan/order and mirrors the tale of Hanuman from Hindu mythology. Hanuman & Buzz demonstrate loyalty, showing a willingness to sacrifice themselves.
Sid’s quest is driven by the desire to dominate others and mirrors the tale of Ravan from Hindu mythology. Both Ravan and Sid take whatever they want without any concern for the consequences.
Detailed mirroring of each character to their respective mythological tales is in section“3A. Quests of characters and their mythological counterparts”
1B. 32 mythological tales are the source of all stories, even the untold ones
Human beings are driven by 16 fundamental desires. Every desire, whether encountering fulfilment or unfulfillment, gives rise to two distinct quests. Thus, a spectrum of 32 unique quests mirrors every human desire.
We have discovered mythological tales from across civilizations that uniquely portray each one of these 32 human quests. While each mythological tale stands as a distinct quest, the true magic unfolds when these tales are combined. This synergy is evident in the epics of Odyssey and Ramayan, where various universal quests seamlessly intertwine.
Combining any five tales from the 32, generates a staggering 24 million unique story plots. Take it a step further, by combining six tales the possibilities explode to an astounding 600 million!
The ideal plot structure of Toy Story is # 9,293 that emerges from interweaving the universal quests of Honour, Tranquillity & Power.
2. Plot structure potential of Toy Story: $142-173MM
2A. Plot structure evaluation of Toy Story
An analysis of Blockbuster, Hit & Flop plots has led to the discovery of Mythosis Code. The Code reveals the story principles shared by all Blockbusters. We use the Code to estimate a story’s potential.
All Blockbusters have at least 3 universal quests. Toy Story uses 3 universal quests of Tranquillity, Honour & Power.
In Blockbusters, each universal quest is mirrored by ONLY ONE character. Sid mirrors the universal quest of Power. Woody mirrors the quest of Tranquillity. Buzz mirrors the quest of Honour.
Every Blockbuster character borrows at least 35% of the universal quest. Woody borrows 39% events from the universal quest of Tranquillity. Buzz borrows 44% from the quest of Honour. Sid borrows 10% from the quest of Power.
Blockbusters interweave different quests to create a tight plot structure. Interweaving occurs when events of 2 quests occur simultaneously in the story. Blockbusters have a quest interweaving threshold of 0.5. Toy Story has a quest interweaving score of 0.67 and is above par. An example of interweaving the quests of Woody & Buzz:
2B. Measuring the revenue potential of Toy Story
Toy Story’s plot structure reveals that the only drawback with its script is a weak third quest.
We have created an algorithm by assigning weights to the principles of The Mythosis Code. The algorithm calculates the potency of a story’s plot structure and estimates its corresponding audience appeal. Blockbuster plot structures have a score of at least 0.64 and appeal to 20% of the audiences.
Toy Story has a script potential score is 0.42 and the movie will appeal to 12.05 – 14.73% of the population. Our estimate of the movie’s revenues from its audience appeal is $142 – 173MM in the domestic market. The movie’s actual revenue was $192MM.
3. The ideal plot structure of Toy Story
We have identified 32 universal quests that represent every human desire. These quests are the superset of thousands of stories across cultures that reflect our collective subconscious. Each quest has a structured sequence of events divided into 5 major arcs.
We map a character’s quest to the relevant mythological tale (universal quest) which reveals the gaps in their quest, if any. The ideal Plot Structure is constructed by plugging these gaps with the missing events from the tale. These events strengthen both the journey of characters as well as the weaving of quests without altering the story.
3A. Quest of characters and their mythological counterparts
Quest 1: Woody mirrors the universal quest for Tranquillity
Woody’s desire for Tranquillity stems from the need to be in a secure environment. The tale of Odysseus from Greek mythology is the universal quest for Tranquillity.
Quest 2: Buzz mirrors the universal quest for Honour
Buzz’s desire for Honour stems from the need to serve one’s clan/order. The tale of Hanuman from Hindu mythology is the universal quest for Honour.
Quest 3: Sid mirrors the universal quest for Power
Sid’s desire for Power stems from the need to dominate others. The tale of Ravan from Hindu mythology is the universal quest for Power.
Tags:1995, Andrew Stanton, Blockbuster movies, Buena Vista Pictures Distribution, Duryodhan, Hanuman, Honour, Joe Ranft, John Lasseter, Mythology, Odysseus, Pete Docter, Pixar Animation Studios, Plot Structure, Power, Prediction, Ravan, storytelling, Tranquillity, Vengeance
