Ah, the ending. I have a hard time with endings. Not as much a writer but as an audience member. I still feel strongly that the hardest part of writing for me is keeping the second act from sagging. As an audience member, in my younger days I was known for leaving the last chapter of a book unread, the point when you have to beat the boss of the game unfinished, and with a teary eye when my favorite sitcoms took their bow. I actually had a hard time reading this chapter and thinking about endings, the 11th hour drama, and well, conclusions in general. Writing a fantastic ending is exhilarating; seeing something you love end is depressing.
Many of today’s sections have to do with returning back. Now that the journey is over, we tend to go back to our ordinary world, and in some cases the ordinary world will no longer exist. I actually find this to be more true than having a “always available ordinary world” like many movies portray. Perhaps in many situations, like a week vacation to the Bahamas, the ordinary world will still be waiting upon the vacationers return, but after big moments in life I generally see the ordinary world fade. Heading into the special world is often not only necessary for the plot to move forward, but it’s a matter of survival as the ordinary world is destroyed, maimed, burned, and seized. This is definitely my bias as the hometown I knew before college and the family I had (have) are completely different from that time. I enjoy when endings do go back to their beginnings as it has a nice, circular feel to it. In fact, I recommend this in many cases as it can bring out power with characters when they are in their home but with the special world’s elixir.
I crave strong endings. As Vogler states, they should be kept simple. I think a powerful ending will sum up several plotlines all at once in a concise package. I feel like by the end the chaos of the story should be being streamlined rather than the spontaneous layout of the second act.
The sharp encounter with death, or the greatest sum parts of evil, is what I feel all stories are headed toward. I think the film the Prestige had a certain formula that I find appealing with the pledge, turn, and prestige.
Every film is in a sense promising a great encounter with what seems to be an impossible enemy to escape, then there is a turn where the hero seems dead, and then resurrection takes place and we have the prestige. In a sense, the entire film before the point of facing the sum of all evil is backstory for the pledge. If this has been effective on the audience it’ll be indicative if they are on the edge of their seats, perhaps yelling, and in anticipation of the next moment. If that sensation is not occurring for the audience, I think the jobs of the previous parts of the story may not be serving the pledge to the utmost. The next two parts (the turn and the prestige) will come rather quickly. Somehow the character based on information prior will have to reappear with enough strength to destroy her enemy; she has to be in alignment with her elixir or the sum of all evil will triumph over the protagonist.
Every film is in a sense promising a great encounter with what seems to be an impossible enemy to escape, then there is a turn where the hero seems dead, and then resurrection takes place and we have the prestige. In a sense, the entire film before the point of facing the sum of all evil is backstory for the pledge. If this has been effective on the audience it’ll be indicative if they are on the edge of their seats, perhaps yelling, and in anticipation of the next moment. If that sensation is not occurring for the audience, I think the jobs of the previous parts of the story may not be serving the pledge to the utmost. The next two parts (the turn and the prestige) will come rather quickly. Somehow the character based on information prior will have to reappear with enough strength to destroy her enemy; she has to be in alignment with her elixir or the sum of all evil will triumph over the protagonist.
