So, enter this thread at your own risk, the entire point of this discussion is to talk about what would ultimately be the climax of a movie/tv show, which is obviously majorly spoilery. So, if you don't like spoils, ,maybe don't look at this thread, because something as minor as just NAMING a movie, will spoil things, given the title of the thread. You have been warned. *dramatic music with lightning and thunder*
So I was just randomly thinking about a movie, that had come up in reference elsewhere, and one thing that stuck out, was how they ended the film. It was a standard hero action flick, with a Big Bad Guy that is trying to Rule the World, and a Reluctant Hero, Destined to Stop Him, but against trope, they didn't end up killing the bad guy. No, instead, they were able to talk him down, and, if not bring him to the good side, at the very least, make him realize that his plan was misguided, and built on a lie. And I found I REALLY enjoyed seeing that. It was such a refreshing change of pace. That film, was Aquaman. And I was just not expecting them to go this route with the ending. Looking back however, on how they presented Arthur's character, it makes total sense. He's very non-violent, non-confrontational, from the very beginning. He doesn't want to get involved in anything with the hero stuff, his home of Atlantis, etc. He just wants to go fishing, live with his dad, toss back some brews at the local pub, and at most, get into an enthusiastic selfie session with biker fanboys (which was my favorite moment in the entire film really). They play up the "I don't want my heritage" angle a lot, but while that is usually tied to being angry with the world tied to the heritage, which he is, I think it's also just a lot to do with his personality. Dealing with Atlantis, means fighting, he doesn't like to fight. He's GOOD at fighting, but how he is presented in Aquaman, it's not something he really enjoys much. So when it comes time for him to fight his brother, he doesn't kill him, he just keeps him busy long enough for his mother to show up, and prove to him that the entire motivation for his war, was wrong. And it works!
So it got me thinking, what other stories, movie or tv, did they go against type for an action film, and either just convince the badguy to stop, or actually get them to come over to the good side? Because it's WAY more common for movies to just use death as the resolution to the conflict, and I find that somewhat boring most of the time. It doesn't actually establish any statement about the conflict, just who had the better physical traits in a battle. Might Makes Right basically.
So yeah, what examples can you think of that use this method of resolution? To save us some time, I'll say we probably all, already know about Star Wars (converting Vader) , and Avatar: The Last Airbender.
Any other examples you got? I'd be curious to hear them.
So I was just randomly thinking about a movie, that had come up in reference elsewhere, and one thing that stuck out, was how they ended the film. It was a standard hero action flick, with a Big Bad Guy that is trying to Rule the World, and a Reluctant Hero, Destined to Stop Him, but against trope, they didn't end up killing the bad guy. No, instead, they were able to talk him down, and, if not bring him to the good side, at the very least, make him realize that his plan was misguided, and built on a lie. And I found I REALLY enjoyed seeing that. It was such a refreshing change of pace. That film, was Aquaman. And I was just not expecting them to go this route with the ending. Looking back however, on how they presented Arthur's character, it makes total sense. He's very non-violent, non-confrontational, from the very beginning. He doesn't want to get involved in anything with the hero stuff, his home of Atlantis, etc. He just wants to go fishing, live with his dad, toss back some brews at the local pub, and at most, get into an enthusiastic selfie session with biker fanboys (which was my favorite moment in the entire film really). They play up the "I don't want my heritage" angle a lot, but while that is usually tied to being angry with the world tied to the heritage, which he is, I think it's also just a lot to do with his personality. Dealing with Atlantis, means fighting, he doesn't like to fight. He's GOOD at fighting, but how he is presented in Aquaman, it's not something he really enjoys much. So when it comes time for him to fight his brother, he doesn't kill him, he just keeps him busy long enough for his mother to show up, and prove to him that the entire motivation for his war, was wrong. And it works!
So it got me thinking, what other stories, movie or tv, did they go against type for an action film, and either just convince the badguy to stop, or actually get them to come over to the good side? Because it's WAY more common for movies to just use death as the resolution to the conflict, and I find that somewhat boring most of the time. It doesn't actually establish any statement about the conflict, just who had the better physical traits in a battle. Might Makes Right basically.
So yeah, what examples can you think of that use this method of resolution? To save us some time, I'll say we probably all, already know about Star Wars (converting Vader) , and Avatar: The Last Airbender.