Whydunit

The basis of most mysteries, WD can be literally applied to stories in which the audience knows what crime was committed, perhaps even by whom, but does not know why (INSIDE MAN). WDs contain a “detective”… who does not change. We do, by stepping into the world that he reveals, a “secret” that is so alluring or primal that we must know the answer to it, and a “dark turn” in which the detective will break any or all rules in order to get to the bottom of the secret – its allure is too strong. WD examples: The Big Sleep, Chinatown, The French Connection, Blade Runner, All the President’s Men, The Long Goodbye, The Big Lebowski, Mystic River, Fargo, Captain Marvel