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A narrative work beginning in medias res (Classical Latin: [ɪn ˈmɛdɪ.aːs ˈreːs], lit. "into the middle of things") opens in the chronological middle of the plot, rather than at the beginning (cf. ab ovo, ab initio).^[1] Often, exposition is initially bypassed, instead filled in gradually through dialogue, flashbacks, or description of past events. For example, Hamlet begins after the death of Hamlet's father which is later discovered to have been a murder. Characters make reference to King Hamlet's death without the plot's first establishment of this fact. Since the play is about Hamlet and the revenge more so than the motivation, Shakespeare uses in medias res to bypass superfluous exposition.

Works that employ in medias res often later use flashback and nonlinear narrative for exposition to fill in the backstory. In Homer's Odyssey, the reader first learns about Odysseus's journey when he is held captive on Calypso's island. The reader then finds out, in Books IX through XII, that the greater part of Odysseus's journey precedes that moment in the narrative. In Homer's Iliad there are fewer flashbacks, although it opens in the thick of the Trojan War.

First use of the phrase

The Roman lyric poet and satirist Horace (65–8 BC) first used the terms ab ōvō ("from the egg") and in mediās rēs ("into the middle of things") in his Ars Poetica ("Poetic Arts", c. 13 BC), wherein lines 147–149 describe the ideal epic poet:^[2]

Nor does he begin the Trojan War from the egg, but always he hurries to the action, and snatches the listener into the middle of things. . . .

The word "egg" reference is to the mythological origin of the Trojan War in the birth of Helen and Clytemnestra from the double egg laid by Leda following her seduction by Zeus in the guise of a swan. Compare the Iliad, which begins nine years after the start of the Trojan War, rather than at its beginning.

Literary history

With likely origins in oral tradition, the narrative technique of beginning a story in medias res is a stylistic convention of epic poetry, the exemplars in Western literature being the Iliad and the Odyssey (both 7th century BC), by Homer.^[3] Likewise, the Mahābhārata (c. 8th century BC – c. 4th century AD) opens in medias res.

The classical-era poet Virgil (Publius Vergilius Maro, 70–19 BC) continued this literary narrative technique in the Aeneid, which is part of the Roman literary tradition of imitating Homer.^[3] Later works starting in medias res include the story "The Three Apples" from the One Thousand and One Nights (c. 9th century),^[4] the Italian Divine Comedy (1320) by Dante Alighieri,^[5]^[6] the German Nibelungenlied (12th century),^{[citation needed]} the Spanish Cantar de Mio Cid (c. 14th century),^[7] the Portuguese The Lusiads (1572) by Luís de Camões,^[8] Jerusalem Delivered (1581) by Torquato Tasso,^{[citation needed]} Paradise Lost (1667) by John Milton,^[9] and generally in Modernist literature.

Modern novelists using in medias res with flashbacks include William Faulkner and Toni Morrison.

Edgar Allan Poe's "The Tell-Tale Heart" is written in medias res.^[10]

Cinematic history

It is typical for film noir to begin in medias res; for example, a private detective will enter the plot already in progress.^[11] Crossfire (1947) opens with the murder of Joseph Samuels. As the police investigate the crime, the story behind the murder is told via flashbacks.^[12] Dead Reckoning (1947) opens with Humphrey Bogart as Rip Murdock on the run and attempting to hide in a Catholic church. Inside, the backstory is told in flashback as Murdock explains his situation to a priest.^[12]

The technique has been used across genres, including dramas such as Through a Glass Darkly (1961),^[13] 8½ (1963),^[13] Raging Bull (1980), and City of God (2002);^[14] crime thrillers such as No Way Out (1987), Grievous Bodily Harm (1988),^[15] The Usual Suspects (1995),^[16] and Kill Bill Volume 2 (2004);^[17] horror films such as Firestarter (1984);^[18] action films such as many in the James Bond franchise;^[16]^[19] and comedies such as Dr. Strangelove (1964).^[13] Some have argued that Star Wars takes advantage of this technique because its first-released film, A New Hope, is the fourth episode of a nine-part epic.^[20]

Superhero films with a satirical edge such as Deadpool (2016) and Birds of Prey (2020) have utilized in medias res to frame their stories.^[21]

Animated films such as Grave of the Fireflies (1988), The Emperor's New Groove (2000), Hoodwinked! (2005), Happily N'Ever After (2006), Megamind (2010), and The Mitchells vs. the Machines (2021) have opening scenes in medias res, with a brief but significant scene that foreshadows the events that occurred earlier. This scene is then seen again afterwards (although in a different way than how it was shown at the beginning).

Many war films, such as The Thin Red Line (1998), also begin in medias res, with the protagonists already actively in combat and no prior domestic scenes leading up to the film's events.^[22]

References

^ "In medias res". Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved July 31, 2013.
^ Horace. Ars poetica (in Latin). nec gemino bellum Troianum orditur ab ovo; / semper ad eventum festinat et in medias res / [...] auditorem rapit
^ ^a ^b Murray, Christopher John (2004). Encyclopedia of the Romantic Era, 1760-1850. Taylor & Francis. p. 319. ISBN 1-57958-422-5
^ Pinault, David (1992). Story-Telling Techniques in the Arabian Nights. Brill Publishers. pp. 86–94. ISBN 90-04-09530-6.
^ Forman, Carol (1984). Dante Alighieri's Divine Comedy: The Inferno. Barron's Educational Series. p. 24. ISBN 0-7641-9107-1
^ P. Raffa, Guy (15 May 2009). The Complete Danteworlds: A Reader's Guide to the Divine Comedy. University Of Chicago Press. p. 12. ISBN 978-0226702704.
^ Leaños, Jaime (2018). "El Cid redentor". Rocky Mountain Review. 72 (2): 280-299. doi:10.1353/rmr.2018.0023. S2CID 166420522.
^ Dixon, Paul B. (1985). "History as Prophecy in Camões's "Os Lusíadas"". Luso-Brazilian Review. 22 (2): 145–150. JSTOR 3513451.
^ Kimaid, Michael (2015). Modernity, Metatheory, and the Temporal-Spatial Divide: From Mythos to Techne. Taylor & Francis. p. 132. ISBN 9781317565437.
^ Attolino, Paolo (2018). "Chapter Ten: The Tell-Tale Heart… of Mine: Poe Told by Stewart Copeland". In Amendola, Alfonso; Barone, Linda (eds.). Edgar Allan Poe across disciplines, genres and languages. Newcastle upon Tyne, UK: Cambridge Scholars Publishing. ISBN 9781527506985.
^ Knight, Deborah (2007). Conard, Mark T.; Porfirio, Robert (eds.). The Philosophy of Film Noir. University Press of Kentucky. p. 208. ISBN 978-0-8131-9181-2.
^ ^a ^b Mayer, Geoff; McDonnell, Brian (2007). Encyclopedia of Film Noir. ABC-CLIO. pp. 146, 161. ISBN 978-0-313-33306-4.
^ ^a ^b ^c Miller, William Charles (1980). Screenwriting for Narrative Film and Television. Hastingshouse/Daytrips. p. 66. ISBN 978-0-8038-6773-4.
^ "What is the term, In Medias Res?". Archived from the original on 2017-11-07. Retrieved 2011-11-01.
^ McFarlane, Brian; Mayer, Geoff (1992). New Australian Cinema. Cambridge University Press. p. 100. ISBN 978-0-521-38768-2.
^ ^a ^b Murfin, Ross C.; Ray, Supryia M. (2009). The Bedford Glossary of Critical and Literary Terms. Bedford/St. Martins. p. 245. ISBN 978-0-230-22330-1.
^ Chan, Kenneth (2009). Remade in Hollywood. Hong Kong University Press. p. 147. ISBN 978-962-209-056-9.
^ Muir, John Kenneth (2007). Horror Films of the 1980s. McFarland. pp. 135, 389. ISBN 978-0-7864-2821-2.
^ Donnelly, Kevin J. (2001). Film Music. Edinburgh University Press. p. 36. ISBN 978-0-7486-1288-8.
^ Danesi, Marcel (2008). "Chapter 6, Cinema and Video". Popular Culture: Introductory Perspectives. United States: Rowman & Littlefield. p. 177. ISBN 978-0-7425-5547-1. Retrieved July 25, 2020 – via Google Books.
^ "Film Review: Deadpool". Red Fence. 30 May 2016.
^ Glassmeyer, Danielle (2009). "Ridley Scott's Epics: Gender of Violence". In Detora, Lisa M. (ed.). wHeroes of Film, Comics and American Culture. McFarland. pp. 297–8. ISBN 978-0-7864-3827-3.

[1] "In medias res". Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved July 31, 2013.

[2] Horace. Ars poetica (in Latin). nec gemino bellum Troianum orditur ab ovo; / semper ad eventum festinat et in medias res / [...] auditorem rapit

[Murray-3] Murray, Christopher John (2004). Encyclopedia of the Romantic Era, 1760-1850. Taylor & Francis. p. 319. ISBN 1-57958-422-5

[4] Pinault, David (1992). Story-Telling Techniques in the Arabian Nights. Brill Publishers. pp. 86–94. ISBN 90-04-09530-6.

[5] Forman, Carol (1984). Dante Alighieri's Divine Comedy: The Inferno. Barron's Educational Series. p. 24. ISBN 0-7641-9107-1

[6] P. Raffa, Guy (15 May 2009). The Complete Danteworlds: A Reader's Guide to the Divine Comedy. University Of Chicago Press. p. 12. ISBN 978-0226702704.

[7] Leaños, Jaime (2018). "El Cid redentor". Rocky Mountain Review. 72 (2): 280-299. doi:10.1353/rmr.2018.0023. S2CID 166420522.

[8] Dixon, Paul B. (1985). "History as Prophecy in Camões's "Os Lusíadas"". Luso-Brazilian Review. 22 (2): 145–150. JSTOR 3513451.

[9] Kimaid, Michael (2015). Modernity, Metatheory, and the Temporal-Spatial Divide: From Mythos to Techne. Taylor & Francis. p. 132. ISBN 9781317565437.

[10] Attolino, Paolo (2018). "Chapter Ten: The Tell-Tale Heart… of Mine: Poe Told by Stewart Copeland". In Amendola, Alfonso; Barone, Linda (eds.). Edgar Allan Poe across disciplines, genres and languages. Newcastle upon Tyne, UK: Cambridge Scholars Publishing. ISBN 9781527506985.

[11] Knight, Deborah (2007). Conard, Mark T.; Porfirio, Robert (eds.). The Philosophy of Film Noir. University Press of Kentucky. p. 208. ISBN 978-0-8131-9181-2.

[MayerMcDonnell2007-12] Mayer, Geoff; McDonnell, Brian (2007). Encyclopedia of Film Noir. ABC-CLIO. pp. 146, 161. ISBN 978-0-313-33306-4.

[Miller1980-13] Miller, William Charles (1980). Screenwriting for Narrative Film and Television. Hastingshouse/Daytrips. p. 66. ISBN 978-0-8038-6773-4.

[14] "What is the term, In Medias Res?". Archived from the original on 2017-11-07. Retrieved 2011-11-01.

[15] McFarlane, Brian; Mayer, Geoff (1992). New Australian Cinema. Cambridge University Press. p. 100. ISBN 978-0-521-38768-2.

[MurfinRay2009-16] Murfin, Ross C.; Ray, Supryia M. (2009). The Bedford Glossary of Critical and Literary Terms. Bedford/St. Martins. p. 245. ISBN 978-0-230-22330-1.

[17] Chan, Kenneth (2009). Remade in Hollywood. Hong Kong University Press. p. 147. ISBN 978-962-209-056-9.

[Muir2007-18] Muir, John Kenneth (2007). Horror Films of the 1980s. McFarland. pp. 135, 389. ISBN 978-0-7864-2821-2.

[Donnelly2001-19] Donnelly, Kevin J. (2001). Film Music. Edinburgh University Press. p. 36. ISBN 978-0-7486-1288-8.

[20] Danesi, Marcel (2008). "Chapter 6, Cinema and Video". Popular Culture: Introductory Perspectives. United States: Rowman & Littlefield. p. 177. ISBN 978-0-7425-5547-1. Retrieved July 25, 2020 – via Google Books.

[21] "Film Review: Deadpool". Red Fence. 30 May 2016.

[22] Glassmeyer, Danielle (2009). "Ridley Scott's Epics: Gender of Violence". In Detora, Lisa M. (ed.). wHeroes of Film, Comics and American Culture. McFarland. pp. 297–8. ISBN 978-0-7864-3827-3.

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+{{Short description|Narrative technique}}
 {{Other uses|In Medias Res (disambiguation)}}
-A narrative work beginning '''''in medias res''''' ({{IPA-la|ɪn ˈmɛdɪ.aːs ˈreːs|classical}}, {{lit}} "into the middle of things"<!--in+acc (preposition) "into", medias (adjective, acc plural, from medius) "middle", res (noun, acc plural, from res) "things"-->) opens in the midst of the plot (<abbr title="compare">cf.</abbr> ''[[ab ovo]]'', ''[[ab initio]]'').<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |url= http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/284369/in-medias-res |title= In medias res |encyclopedia= [[Encyclopædia Britannica]] |access-date= July 31, 2013}}</ref> Often, [[Exposition (narrative)|exposition]] is bypassed and filled in gradually, through dialogue, [[Flashback (narrative)|flashbacks]] or description of past events. ''[[Hamlet]]'' begins after the death of Hamlet's father. Characters make reference to King Hamlet's death without the plot's first establishment of said fact. Since the play is about Hamlet and the revenge more so than the motivation, [[Shakespeare]] uses ''in medias res'' to bypass superfluous exposition.
+A narrative work beginning '''''in medias res''''' ({{IPA|la-x-classic|ɪn ˈmɛdɪ.aːs ˈreːs|lang|link=yes}}, {{lit}} "into the middle of things"<!--in+acc (preposition) "into", medias (adjective, acc plural, from medius) "middle", res (noun, acc plural, from res) "things"-->) opens in the chronological middle of the plot, rather than at the beginning (<abbr title="compare">cf.</abbr> ''[[ab ovo]]'', ''[[ab initio]]'').<ref>{{cite encyclopedia|url=https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/284369/in-medias-res|title=In medias res|encyclopedia=[[Encyclopædia Britannica]] |access-date= July 31, 2013}}</ref> Often, [[Exposition (narrative)|exposition]] is initially bypassed, instead filled in gradually through dialogue, [[Flashback (narrative)|flashbacks]], or description of past events. For example, ''[[Hamlet]]'' begins after the death of Hamlet's father which is later discovered to have been a murder. Characters make reference to King Hamlet's death without the plot's first establishment of this fact. Since the play is about Hamlet and the revenge more so than the motivation, [[Shakespeare]] uses ''in medias res'' to bypass superfluous exposition.
 Works that employ ''in medias res'' often later use flashback and [[nonlinear narrative]] for exposition to fill in the [[backstory]]. In [[Homer|Homer's]] ''[[Odyssey]]'', the reader first learns about [[Odysseus|Odysseus's]] journey when he is held captive on Calypso's island. The reader then finds out, in Books IX through XII, that the greater part of Odysseus's journey precedes that moment in the narrative. In Homer's ''[[Iliad]]'' there are fewer flashbacks, although it opens in the thick of the [[Trojan War]].
 == First use of the phrase ==
-The Roman lyric poet and satirist [[Horace]] (65–8 BC) first used the terms '''''ab ōvō''''' ("from the egg") and '''''in mediās rēs''''' ("into the middle of things") in his ''[[Ars Poetica (Horace)|Ars Poetica]]'' ("Poetic Arts", c. 13 BC), wherein lines 147&ndash;149 describe the ideal [[epic poetry|epic poet]]:<ref>{{cite book |last=Horace |author-link=Horace  |title=Ars poetica   |url=http://www.thelatinlibrary.com/horace/arspoet.shtml  |language=la |quote=nec '''gemino''' bellum Troianum orditur '''ab ovo'''; / semper ad eventum festinat et '''in medias res''' / [...] auditorem rapit}}</ref>
+The Roman lyric poet and satirist [[Horace]] (65–8 BC) first used the terms '''''ab ōvō''''' ("from the egg") and '''''in mediās rēs''''' ("into the middle of things") in his ''[[Ars Poetica (Horace)|Ars Poetica]]'' ("Poetic Arts", c. 13 BC), wherein lines 147&ndash;149 describe the ideal [[epic poetry|epic poet]]:<ref>{{cite book|last=Horace |author-link=Horace|title=Ars poetica|url=http://www.thelatinlibrary.com/horace/arspoet.shtml|language=la|quote=nec '''gemino''' bellum Troianum orditur '''ab ovo'''; / semper ad eventum festinat et '''in medias res''' / [...] auditorem rapit}}</ref>
 {{quote|Nor does he begin the [[Trojan War]] ''from the egg'',
 but always he hurries to the action, and snatches the listener ''into the middle of things''. . . .|}}
-The "egg" reference is to the [[mythology|mythological]] origin of the [[Trojan War]] in the birth of [[Helen of Troy|Helen]] and [[Clytemnestra]] from the double egg laid by [[Leda (mythology)|Leda]] following her seduction by [[Zeus]] in the guise of a [[swan]].
+The word "egg" reference is to the [[mythology|mythological]] origin of the [[Trojan War]] in the birth of [[Helen of Troy|Helen]] and [[Clytemnestra]] from the double egg laid by [[Leda (mythology)|Leda]] following her seduction by [[Zeus]] in the guise of a [[swan]]. Compare the ''[[Iliad]]'', which begins nine years after the start of the Trojan War, rather than at its beginning.
 == Literary history ==
+With likely origins in [[oral tradition]], the narrative technique of beginning a story ''in medias res'' is a stylistic convention of [[epic poetry]], the exemplars in Western literature being the ''Iliad'' and the ''Odyssey'' (both 7th century BC), by [[Homer]].<ref name="Murray">Murray, Christopher John (2004). ''Encyclopedia of the Romantic Era, 1760-1850''. [[Taylor & Francis]]. p. 319. {{ISBN|1-57958-422-5}}</ref> Likewise, the ''[[Mahābhārata]]'' (c. 8th century BC – c. 4th century AD) opens ''in medias res''.
+The [[Classics|classical-era]] poet [[Virgil]] (Publius Vergilius Maro, 70–19 BC) continued this literary narrative technique in the ''[[Aeneid]]'', which is part of the Roman literary tradition of imitating [[Homer]].<ref name="Murray"/> Later works starting ''in medias res'' include the story "[[The Three Apples]]" from the ''[[One Thousand and One Nights]]'' (c. 9th century),<ref>{{Cite book|title=Story-Telling Techniques in the Arabian Nights|first=David|last=Pinault|publisher=[[Brill Publishers]]|year=1992|isbn=90-04-09530-6|pages=86–94}}</ref> the Italian ''[[Divine Comedy]]'' (1320) by [[Dante Alighieri]],<ref>Forman, Carol (1984). ''Dante Alighieri's Divine Comedy: The Inferno''. Barron's Educational Series. p. 24. {{ISBN|0-7641-9107-1}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|title=The Complete Danteworlds: A Reader's Guide to the Divine Comedy|last=P. Raffa|first=Guy|date=15 May 2009|publisher=University Of Chicago Press|isbn=978-0226702704|pages=12}}</ref> the German ''[[Nibelungenlied]]'' (12th century),{{cn|date=July 2020}} the Spanish ''[[Cantar de Mio Cid]]'' (c. 14th century),<ref>{{cite journal|title=El Cid redentor|journal=Rocky Mountain Review|volume=72|issue=2|year=2018|page=280-299|last=Leaños|first=Jaime|doi=10.1353/rmr.2018.0023|s2cid=166420522}}</ref> the Portuguese ''[[The Lusiads]]'' (1572) by [[Luís de Camões]],<ref>{{cite journal|title=History as Prophecy in Camões's "Os Lusíadas"|last=Dixon|first=Paul B.|journal=Luso-Brazilian Review|volume=22|issue=2|year=1985|pages=145–150|jstor=3513451|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/3513451}}</ref> ''[[Jerusalem Delivered]]'' (1581) by [[Torquato Tasso]],{{cn|date=July 2020}} ''[[Paradise Lost]]'' (1667) by [[John Milton]],<ref>{{cite book|title=Modernity, Metatheory, and the Temporal-Spatial Divide: From Mythos to Techne|page=132|year=2015|last=Kimaid|first=Michael|publisher=Taylor & Francis|isbn=9781317565437}}</ref> and generally in [[Modernist literature]].
-With likely origins in [[oral tradition]], the narrative technique of beginning a story ''in medias res'' is a stylistic convention of [[epic poetry]], the exemplars in Western literature being the ''Iliad'' and the ''Odyssey'' (both 7th century BC), by [[Homer]].<ref name="Murray">Murray, Christopher John (2004). ''Encyclopedia of the Romantic Era, 1760-1850''. [[Taylor & Francis]]. p. 319. {{ISBN|1-57958-422-5}}</ref> Likewise, the technique features in the Indian ''[[Mahābhārata]]'' (c. 8th century BC – c. 4th century AD).
+Modern novelists using ''in medias res'' with flashbacks include [[William Faulkner]] and [[Toni Morrison]].
-The [[Classics|classical-era]] poet [[Virgil]] (Publius Vergilius Maro, 70–19 BC) continued this literary narrative technique in the ''[[Aeneid]]'', which is part of the Greek literary tradition of imitating [[Homer]].<ref name="Murray"/> Later works featuring ''in medias res'' include the stories "[[Sinbad the Sailor]]" and "[[The Three Apples]]" from the ''[[One Thousand and One Nights]]'' (c. 9th century),<ref>{{Cite book|title=Story-Telling Techniques in the Arabian Nights|first=David|last=Pinault|publisher=[[Brill Publishers]]|year=1992|isbn=90-04-09530-6|pages=86–94}}</ref> the Italian ''[[Divine Comedy]]'' (1320) by [[Dante Alighieri]],<ref>Forman, Carol (1984). ''Dante Alighieri's Divine Comedy: The Inferno''. Barron's Educational Series. p. 24. {{ISBN|0-7641-9107-1}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|title=The Complete Danteworlds: A Reader's Guide to the Divine Comedy|last=P. Raffa|first=Guy|date=15 May 2009|publisher=University Of Chicago Press|isbn=978-0226702704|pages=12}}</ref> the German ''[[Nibelungenlied]]'' (12th century),{{cn|date=July 2020}} the Spanish ''[[Cantar de Mio Cid]]'' (c. 14th century),{{cn|date=July 2020}} the Portuguese ''[[The Lusiads]]'' (1572) by [[Luís de Camões]],{{cn|date=July 2020}} ''[[Jerusalem Delivered]]'' (1581) by [[Torquato Tasso]],{{cn|date=July 2020}} ''[[Paradise Lost]]'' (1667) by [[John Milton]],{{cn|date=July 2020}} and generally in [[Modernist literature]].
+[[Edgar Allan Poe]]'s "[[The Tell-Tale Heart]]" is written ''in medias res''.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Attolino|first1=Paolo |editor1-last=Amendola |editor1-first=Alfonso |editor2-last=Barone |editor2-first=Linda|title=Edgar Allan Poe across disciplines, genres and languages|date=2018|publisher=[[Cambridge Scholars Publishing]]|location=Newcastle upon Tyne, UK|isbn=9781527506985|chapter=Chapter Ten: The Tell-Tale Heart… of Mine: Poe Told by Stewart Copeland}}</ref>
-Modern novelists known to extensively employ ''in medias res'' in conjunction with flashbacks include [[William Faulkner]] and [[Toni Morrison]].
-[[Edgar Allan Poe]]’s "[[The Tell-Tale Heart]]" is written in medias res.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Attolino |first1=Paolo |editor1-last=Amendola |editor1-first=Alfonso |editor2-last=Barone |editor2-first=Linda |title=Edgar Allan Poe across disciplines, genres and languages |date=2018 |publisher=[[Cambridge Scholars Publishing]] |location=Newcastle upon Tyne, UK |isbn=9781527506985 |chapter=Chapter Ten: The Tell-Tale Heart… of Mine: Poe Told by Stewart Copeland}}</ref>
 == Cinematic history ==
-It is typical for [[film noir]] to begin ''in medias res''; for example, a private detective will enter the plot already in progress.<ref>{{cite book |title = The Philosophy of Film Noir|first = Deborah|last=Knight|editor1-first = Mark T. |editor1-last = Conard |editor2-first = Robert |editor2-last = Porfirio |publisher = University Press of Kentucky |year = 2007|isbn = 978-0-8131-9181-2 |page = 208}}</ref> ''[[Crossfire (film)|Crossfire]]'' (1947) opens with the murder of Joseph Samuels. As the police investigate the crime, the story behind the murder is told via flashbacks.<ref name="MayerMcDonnell2007">
+It is typical for [[film noir]] to begin ''in medias res''; for example, a private detective will enter the plot already in progress.<ref>{{cite book|title=The Philosophy of Film Noir|first=Deborah|last=Knight|editor1-first = Mark T. |editor1-last = Conard |editor2-first = Robert |editor2-last = Porfirio|publisher=University Press of Kentucky|year=2007|isbn=978-0-8131-9181-2|page=208}}</ref> ''[[Crossfire (film)|Crossfire]]'' (1947) opens with the murder of Joseph Samuels. As the police investigate the crime, the story behind the murder is told via flashbacks.<ref name="MayerMcDonnell2007">
-{{cite book|title = Encyclopedia of Film Noir |first1 = Geoff|last1 = Mayer |first2 = Brian |last2 = McDonnell |publisher = ABC-CLIO |year = 2007|isbn = 978-0-313-33306-4|pages = 146, 161}}</ref> ''[[Dead Reckoning (1947 film)|Dead Reckoning]]'' (1947) opens with [[Humphrey Bogart]] as Rip Murdock on the run and attempting to hide in a Catholic church. Inside, the backstory is told in flashback as Murdock explains his situation to a priest.<ref name="MayerMcDonnell2007" />
+{{cite book|title=Encyclopedia of Film Noir|first1=Geoff|last1=Mayer|first2=Brian|last2=McDonnell|publisher=ABC-CLIO|year=2007|isbn=978-0-313-33306-4|pages=146, 161}}</ref> ''[[Dead Reckoning (1947 film)|Dead Reckoning]]'' (1947) opens with [[Humphrey Bogart]] as Rip Murdock on the run and attempting to hide in a Catholic church. Inside, the backstory is told in flashback as Murdock explains his situation to a priest.<ref name="MayerMcDonnell2007"/>
-The technique has been used across genres, including dramas such as ''[[Through a Glass Darkly (film)|Through a Glass Darkly]]'' (1961),<ref name="Miller1980">{{cite book |title = Screenwriting for Narrative Film and Television |first = William Charles |last = Miller |publisher = Hastingshouse/Daytrips |year = 1980 |isbn = 978-0-8038-6773-4 |page = 66}}</ref> ''[[8½]]'' (1963),<ref name="Miller1980" /> ''[[Raging Bull]]'' (1980), and ''[[City of God (2002 film)|City of God]]'' (2002);<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.innovateus.net/innopedia/what-term-medias-res |title=What is the term, In Medias Res? |access-date=2011-11-01 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171107011324/http://www.innovateus.net/innopedia/what-term-medias-res |archive-date=2017-11-07 |url-status=dead }}</ref> crime thrillers such as ''[[No Way Out (1987 film)|No Way Out]]'' (1987), ''[[Grievous Bodily Harm]]'' (1988),<ref>{{cite book |title = New Australian Cinema |url = https://archive.org/details/newaustraliancin00mcfa |url-access = registration |first1 = Brian |last1 = McFarlane |first2 = Geoff |last2 = Mayer |publisher = Cambridge University Press |year = 1992 |isbn = 978-0-521-38768-2 |page = [https://archive.org/details/newaustraliancin00mcfa/page/100 100]}}</ref> ''[[The Usual Suspects]]'' (1995),<ref name="MurfinRay2009" /> and ''[[Kill Bill|Kill Bill Volume 2]]'' (2004);<ref>{{cite book |title = Remade in Hollywood |first = Kenneth |last = Chan |publisher = Hong Kong University Press |year = 2009 |isbn = 978-962-209-056-9 |page = 147}}</ref> horror films such as ''[[Firestarter (film)|Firestarter]]'' (1984);<ref name="Muir2007">{{cite book |title = Horror Films of the 1980s |first = John Kenneth |last = Muir |publisher = McFarland |year = 2007 |isbn = 978-0-7864-2821-2 |pages = 135, 389}}</ref> action films such as many in the [[James Bond (film series)|James Bond]] franchise;<ref name="MurfinRay2009">{{cite book |title = The Bedford Glossary of Critical and Literary Terms|first1 = Ross C. |last1 = Murfin |first2 = Supryia M. |last2 = Ray |publisher = Bedford/St. Martins |year = 2009 |isbn = 978-0-230-22330-1|page = 245}}</ref><ref name="Donnelly2001">{{cite book |title = Film Music|first = Kevin J.|last = Donnelly |publisher = Edinburgh University Press|year = 2001 |isbn = 978-0-7486-1288-8 |page = 36}}</ref> and comedies such as ''[[Dr. Strangelove]]'' (1964).<ref name="Miller1980"/> Most notably, [[Star Wars|''Star'' ''Wars'']] takes advantage of the technique across its multi-part epic series of films with the first-released film, ''[[Star Wars (film)|A New Hope]]'', being the fourth episode in a nine-part epic.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Danesi |first1=Marcel |title=Popular Culture: Introductory Perspectives |date=2008 |publisher=Rowman & Littlefield |location=United States |isbn=978-0-7425-5547-1 |page=177 |chapter-url=https://www.google.com/books/edition/Popular_Culture/rcBR7u5wRTgC?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=%22in+medias+res%22+%22star+wars%22&pg=PA177&printsec=frontcover |access-date=July 25, 2020 |chapter=Chapter 6, Cinema and Video}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.starwars.com/news/heres-where-the-fun-begins-star-wars-in-media-res |title=Here's Where the Fun Begins: Star Wars and 'In Medias Res' |date=6 June 2016 |access-date=5 July 2019 |work=[[StarWars.com]] |first=Brendan |last=Nystedt |publisher=[[Lucasfilm Ltd.]]}}</ref>
+The technique has been used across genres, including dramas such as ''[[Through a Glass Darkly (film)|Through a Glass Darkly]]'' (1961),<ref name="Miller1980">{{cite book|title=Screenwriting for Narrative Film and Television|first=William Charles|last=Miller|publisher=Hastingshouse/Daytrips|year=1980|isbn=978-0-8038-6773-4|page=66}}</ref> ''[[8½]]'' (1963),<ref name="Miller1980" /> ''[[Raging Bull]]'' (1980), and ''[[City of God (2002 film)|City of God]]'' (2002);<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.innovateus.net/innopedia/what-term-medias-res|title=What is the term, In Medias Res? |access-date=2011-11-01 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171107011324/http://www.innovateus.net/innopedia/what-term-medias-res |archive-date=2017-11-07 |url-status=dead}}</ref> crime thrillers such as ''[[No Way Out (1987 film)|No Way Out]]'' (1987), ''[[Grievous Bodily Harm]]'' (1988),<ref>{{cite book|title=New Australian Cinema|url=https://archive.org/details/newaustraliancin00mcfa |url-access = registration|first1=Brian|last1=McFarlane|first2=Geoff|last2=Mayer|publisher=Cambridge University Press|year=1992|isbn=978-0-521-38768-2|page=[https://archive.org/details/newaustraliancin00mcfa/page/100 100]}}</ref> ''[[The Usual Suspects]]'' (1995),<ref name="MurfinRay2009" /> and ''[[Kill Bill|Kill Bill Volume 2]]'' (2004);<ref>{{cite book|title=Remade in Hollywood|first=Kenneth|last=Chan|publisher=Hong Kong University Press|year=2009|isbn=978-962-209-056-9|page=147}}</ref> horror films such as ''[[Firestarter (1984 film)|Firestarter]]'' (1984);<ref name="Muir2007">{{cite book|title=Horror Films of the 1980s|first=John Kenneth|last=Muir|publisher=McFarland|year=2007|isbn=978-0-7864-2821-2|pages=135, 389}}</ref> action films such as many in the [[James Bond (film series)|James Bond]] franchise;<ref name="MurfinRay2009">{{cite book|title=The Bedford Glossary of Critical and Literary Terms|first1=Ross C.|last1=Murfin|first2=Supryia M.|last2=Ray|publisher=Bedford/St. Martins|year=2009|isbn=978-0-230-22330-1|page=245}}</ref><ref name="Donnelly2001">{{cite book|title=Film Music|first=Kevin J.|last=Donnelly|publisher=Edinburgh University Press|year=2001|isbn=978-0-7486-1288-8|page=36}}</ref> and comedies such as ''[[Dr. Strangelove]]'' (1964).<ref name="Miller1980"/> Some have argued that ''[[Star Wars]]'' takes advantage of this technique because its first-released film, ''[[Star Wars (film)|A New Hope]]'', is the fourth episode of a nine-part epic.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Danesi|first1=Marcel|title=Popular Culture: Introductory Perspectives|date=2008|publisher=Rowman & Littlefield|location=United States|isbn=978-0-7425-5547-1|page=177 |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=rcBR7u5wRTgC&dq=%22in+medias+res%22+%22star+wars%22&pg=PA177|via=[[Google Books]]|access-date=July 25, 2020|chapter=Chapter 6, Cinema and Video}}</ref>
-[[Superhero films]] with a satirical edge such as ''[[Deadpool (film)|Deadpool]]'' (2016) and ''[[Birds of Prey (2020 film)|Birds of Prey]]'' (2020) have utilized ''in medias res'' to frame their stories.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://redfenceproject.com/redfence/?p=5763|title=Film Review: Deadpool|publisher=Red Fence}}</ref>
+[[Superhero films]] with a satirical edge such as ''[[Deadpool (film)|Deadpool]]'' (2016) and ''[[Birds of Prey (2020 film)|Birds of Prey]]'' (2020) have utilized ''in medias res'' to frame their stories.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://redfenceproject.com/redfence/?p=5763|title=Film Review: Deadpool|date=30 May 2016|publisher=Red Fence}}</ref>
+[[Animated films]] such as ''[[Grave of the Fireflies]]'' (1988), ''[[The Emperor's New Groove]]'' (2000), ''[[Hoodwinked!]]'' (2005), ''[[Happily N'Ever After]]'' (2006), ''[[Megamind]]'' (2010), and ''[[The Mitchells vs. the Machines]]'' (2021) have opening scenes ''in medias res'', with a brief but significant scene that foreshadows the events that occurred earlier. This scene is then seen again afterwards (although in a different way than how it was shown at the beginning).
-Many [[war films]], such as ''[[The Thin Red Line (1998 film)|The Thin Red Line]]'' (1998), also begin ''in medias res'', with the protagonists already actively in combat and no prior domestic scenes leading up to the film's events.<ref>{{cite book |title = wHeroes of Film, Comics and American Culture |chapter = Ridley Scott's Epics: Gender of Violence |first = Danielle |last = Glassmeyer |editor-first = Lisa M. |editor-last = Detora |publisher = McFarland |year = 2009 |isbn = 978-0-7864-3827-3 |pages = 297–8}}</ref>
+Many [[war films]], such as ''[[The Thin Red Line (1998 film)|The Thin Red Line]]'' (1998), also begin ''in medias res'', with the protagonists already actively in combat and no prior domestic scenes leading up to the film's events.<ref>{{cite book|title=wHeroes of Film, Comics and American Culture|chapter=Ridley Scott's Epics: Gender of Violence|first=Danielle|last=Glassmeyer |editor-first = Lisa M. |editor-last = Detora|publisher=McFarland|year=2009|isbn=978-0-7864-3827-3|pages=297–8}}</ref>
-Occasionally, adaptations of source material employ ''in medias res'' when the original version did not. For example, the [[Camelot (film)|film adaptation]] of the stage musical ''[[Camelot (musical)|Camelot]]'' employed ''in medias res'' while the original Broadway version did not (although revivals of the musical have).{{cn|date=July 2017}} [[Stanley Kubrick|Stanley Kubrick's]] 1962 [[Lolita (1962 film)|film adaptation]] of ''[[Lolita]]'' begins ''in medias res'' although the novel does not.{{cn|date=July 2017}} [[Herman Wouk]]'s stage adaptation of his own novel ''[[The Caine Mutiny]]'' begins ''in medias res'' as it opens with the court-martial that occupies the final section of the novel, telling the earlier part of the story through flashbacks in court-room testimony.{{cn|date=July 2017}}
 ==See also==
-*[[Reverse chronology]]
+* [[Cold open]]
-*[[Flashforward]]
+* [[Flashforward]]
+* [[Reverse chronology]]
 ==References==
+{{wiktionary}}
 {{Reflist|30em}}
-==External links==
-* {{wiktionary-inline}}
-{{Wiktionary|in|medias|res}}
 {{Narrative}}

v t e Narrative
Character	Antagonist Archenemy Character arc Character flaw Characterization Confidant Deuteragonist False protagonist Focal character Foil Gothic double Hamartia Hero Anti Byronic Tragic Narrator Protagonist Stock character Straight man Supporting character Title character Tritagonist Villain
Plot	Ab ovo Action Backstory Origin story Chekhov's gun Cliché Cliffhanger Conflict Deus ex machina Dialogue Dramatic structure Eucatastrophe Foreshadowing Flashback Flashforward Frame story In medias res Kishōtenketsu MacGuffin Pace Plot device Plot twist Poetic justice Red herring Reveal Self-insertion Shaggy dog story Stereotype Story arc Story within a story Subplot Suspense Trope
Setting	Alternate history Backstory Crossover Dreamworld Dystopia Fictional location city country universe parallel Utopia Worldbuilding
Theme	Irony Leitmotif Metaphor Moral Moral development Motif Deal with the Devil Conflict between good and evil Self-fulfilling prophecy Time travel
Style	Allegory Bathos Comic relief Diction Figure of speech Imagery Mode Mood Narration Narrative techniques Hook Show, don't tell Stylistic device Suspension of disbelief Symbolism Tone
Structure	Act Act structure Three-act structure Freytag's Pyramid Exposition/Protasis Rising action/Epitasis Climax/Peripeteia Falling action/Catastasis Denouement/Catastrophe Linear narrative Nonlinear narrative films television series Premise Types of fiction with multiple endings
Form	Drama Fabliau Flash fiction Folklore Fable Fairy tale Legend Myth Tall tale Gamebook Narrative art Narrative poetry Epic poetry Novel Novella Parable Short story Vignette
Genre (List)	Fiction Action fiction Adventure Comic Crime Docu Epistolary Ergodic Erotic Historical Western Mystery Nautical Paranoid Philosophical Picaresque Political Pop culture Psychological Religious Rogue Romance Chivalric Prose Saga Satire Speculative fiction Fantasy Gothic Southern Horror Magic realism Science Hard Utopian and dystopian Underwater Superhero Theological Thriller Urban Nonfiction Autobiography Biography Novel Creative
Narration	Diegesis First-person Second-person Third-person Third-person omniscient narrative Subjectivity Unreliable narrator Multiple narrators Stream of consciousness Stream of unconsciousness
Tense	Past Present Future
Related	Dominant narrative Fiction writing Continuity Canon Reboot Retcon Parallel novel Prequel / Sequel Genre List Literary science Literary theory Narrative identity Narrative paradigm Narrative therapy Narratology Metafiction Political narrative Rhetoric Glossary Screenwriting Series of works Storytelling Tellability Verisimilitude