The Unborn
A young woman fights the spirit that is slowly taking possession of her.
Despite a moderate budget of $16.0M, The Unborn became a financial success, earning $76.5M worldwide—a 378% return.
Plot Structure
Story beats plotted across runtime
Narrative Arc
Emotional journey through the story's key moments
Story Circle
Blueprint 15-beat structure
Arcplot Score Breakdown
Weighted: Precision (70%) + Arc (15%) + Theme (15%)
The Unborn (2009) showcases precise dramatic framework, characteristic of David S. Goyer's storytelling approach. This structural analysis examines how the film's 14-point plot structure maps to proven narrative frameworks across 1 hour and 27 minutes. With an Arcplot score of 6.8, the film balances conventional beats with creative variation.
Structural Analysis
The Status Quo at 1 minutes (1% through the runtime) establishes Casey babysits Matty in a typical suburban setting, establishing her normal life as a college student living with ordinary concerns and relationships.. Notably, this early placement immediately immerses viewers in the story world.
The inciting incident occurs at 11 minutes when While babysitting, Matty behaves violently and bizarrely, attacking Casey and claiming "Jumby wants to be born now," marking the supernatural intrusion into Casey's ordinary world.. At 12% through the film, this Disruption aligns precisely with traditional story structure. This beat shifts the emotional landscape, launching the protagonist into the central conflict.
The First Threshold at 22 minutes marks the transition into Act II, occurring at 25% of the runtime. This illustrates the protagonist's commitment to Casey actively chooses to investigate her family's past by visiting her elderly neighbor Sofi, who reveals the Holocaust connection and the dybbuk's origin in Auschwitz, committing Casey to uncovering the supernatural truth., moving from reaction to action.
At 44 minutes, the Midpoint arrives at 51% of the runtime—precisely centered, creating perfect narrative symmetry. The analysis reveals that this crucial beat The dybbuk's attacks intensify dramatically as Casey witnesses Romy's violent possession and death, raising the stakes from psychological horror to deadly physical consequences and making the threat undeniably real., fundamentally raising what's at risk. The emotional intensity shifts, dividing the narrative into clear before-and-after phases.
The Collapse moment at 65 minutes (75% through) represents the emotional nadir. Here, Casey realizes she is pregnant with Mark's child, providing the dybbuk with exactly what it wants—a new vessel to be born into—representing the death of her hope for escape and her darkest moment of despair., shows the protagonist at their lowest point. This beat's placement in the final quarter sets up the climactic reversal.
The Synthesis at 69 minutes initiates the final act resolution at 79% of the runtime. The exorcism ritual unfolds with Casey, Rabbi Sendak, and others fighting the dybbuk through Jewish mystical rites, resulting in casualties and a climactic spiritual confrontation where Casey must overcome the entity using both faith and her connection to her twin., demonstrating the transformation achieved throughout the journey.
Emotional Journey
The Unborn's emotional architecture traces a deliberate progression across 14 carefully calibrated beats.
Narrative Framework
This structural analysis employs structural analysis methodology used to understand storytelling architecture. By mapping The Unborn against these established plot points, we can identify how David S. Goyer utilizes or subverts traditional narrative conventions. The plot point approach reveals not only adherence to structural principles but also creative choices that distinguish The Unborn within the horror genre.
David S. Goyer's Structural Approach
Among the 2 David S. Goyer films analyzed on Arcplot, the average structural score is 7.1, reflecting strong command of classical structure. The Unborn takes a more unconventional approach compared to the director's typical style. For comparative analysis, explore the complete David S. Goyer filmography.
Comparative Analysis
Additional horror films include Lake Placid, A Nightmare on Elm Street and Cat's Eye. For more David S. Goyer analyses, see The Invisible.
Plot Points by Act
Act I
SetupStatus Quo
Casey babysits Matty in a typical suburban setting, establishing her normal life as a college student living with ordinary concerns and relationships.
Theme
Casey's father mentions "sometimes the past doesn't stay buried," foreshadowing the film's central theme about confronting inherited trauma and ancestral sins.
Worldbuilding
Introduction to Casey's world: her relationship with boyfriend Mark, best friend Romy, her father and his new wife, and the first disturbing nightmare featuring a blue-eyed boy and a dog with heterochromia.
Disruption
While babysitting, Matty behaves violently and bizarrely, attacking Casey and claiming "Jumby wants to be born now," marking the supernatural intrusion into Casey's ordinary world.
Resistance
Casey experiences escalating supernatural phenomena: visions of the blue-eyed boy, her mirror reflection acting independently, discovering she had a twin brother who died in the womb, and learning about the dybbuk from research and her optometrist.
Act II
ConfrontationFirst Threshold
Casey actively chooses to investigate her family's past by visiting her elderly neighbor Sofi, who reveals the Holocaust connection and the dybbuk's origin in Auschwitz, committing Casey to uncovering the supernatural truth.
Mirror World
Casey seeks help from Rabbi Sendak, introducing the spiritual mentor figure who represents faith and ancient knowledge as the counterpoint to Casey's modern skepticism.
Premise
The supernatural horror escalates: Casey witnesses possessed individuals, researches Jewish mysticism and dybbuks, experiences terrifying visions and physical manifestations, and learns the spirit's connection to her twin brother and Nazi experiments.
Midpoint
The dybbuk's attacks intensify dramatically as Casey witnesses Romy's violent possession and death, raising the stakes from psychological horror to deadly physical consequences and making the threat undeniably real.
Opposition
The entity closes in on Casey through multiple possessed victims, Mark becomes skeptical and distances himself, Casey's credibility is questioned, and Rabbi Sendak initially refuses to perform an exorcism, leaving Casey increasingly isolated and desperate.
Collapse
Casey realizes she is pregnant with Mark's child, providing the dybbuk with exactly what it wants—a new vessel to be born into—representing the death of her hope for escape and her darkest moment of despair.
Crisis
Casey confronts the full horror of her situation: the entity wants to be reborn through her unborn child, her father doesn't believe her, and she faces the terrifying prospect of becoming the vessel for an ancient evil spirit.
Act III
ResolutionSynthesis
The exorcism ritual unfolds with Casey, Rabbi Sendak, and others fighting the dybbuk through Jewish mystical rites, resulting in casualties and a climactic spiritual confrontation where Casey must overcome the entity using both faith and her connection to her twin.
Transformation
Casey appears to have defeated the dybbuk, but a final twist reveals the entity may have succeeded—a child with heterochromia eyes suggests the cycle continues, showing Casey transformed by trauma but not necessarily victorious.