Realising What We Want and need: Analysing The Hollywood Ending

In a few of my posts, I have mentioned this idea of a viewer ‘getting what they want. I don’t believe I have explored what this means, though, so it is the topic of this week’s post. Going back to the classic example of a Hollywood film, the narratives were relatively basic, and even current films still follow this path. Typically, there is a hero, a villain, an event that causes change and a resolution, after which our main character has changed for the better. Of course, there are side characters and even side stories, but they are almost always used to progress the main plot and aid the main character.

Then the dynamics shifted, the plot changed; it wasn’t just good guys and bad guys anymore. We started to get anti-heroes, villains that weren’t evil, films with multiple main characters and intersecting storylines; the list goes on. Unless the film is a horror, most of the films from this list still end with the hero getting what they want, so they end with the viewer getting what they want.

Arthouse came along and decided to flip the script entirely (although more and more ‘mainstream films adopt the same techniques). Arthouse decided to stop giving the main character a happy story or a resolution. It stopped giving both the main character and the viewer what they wanted. When a character doesn’t get the classic Hollywood ending, the film usually tries to say something more significant; the film decides not to take the easy route. It is trying to teach us something, make us look at something or someone differently, say something about life. In this case - and as I have written before - (it is probably becoming an overused phrase at this point), the viewer may not get what they want, but they certainly get what they need. Just because the film does not go down a traditional route does not mean it isn’t satisfying.

When I was thinking about this post (as with all great ideas), I started thinking about Star Wars (now, as I write this, please note that The Force Awakens, The Last Jedi and The Rise of Skywalker are omitted). The franchise follows a pretty traditional pattern. There is an apparent battle between good and evil, perfectly reflected in the Force and its tempting evil side: the dark side. A hero faces an event that causes him to choose and go down a path that will cause much change and finish the journey with himself and the world, is better.

There is, of course, a villain, not just any villain, but the best villain of all time; kick-ass costume, their theme song and, most importantly, a fantastic back story. I think the difference between a good villain and a great one is a good back story. When somebody becomes evil, it has to make sense, but I will explore this more a little later.

When we are first introduced to Darth Vader, we have only known him to be evil, and the reasons behind this are slowly revealed across the three subsequent films. He is key to the viewer’s needs; Luke is the symbol of good, and Darth Vader must fight for his story to be complete and for his journey to be finished. These three films follow a very classic path and give the viewer exactly what they want. Even when it slightly deviates from an archetypal journey, it still provides the viewer with precisely what they want. The final scene of Return of the Jedi is one of the poignant and incredibly endings of all time. The journey has come full circle, and sound has won out over evil. Where this tale slightly strays is when Darth Vader returns to the good side of the force before his passing, but, at the same time, it still manages to give us what we want. It is in keeping with the story, and the emotional path it set the viewer on is completed. It provides us with an ending we didn’t even know we wanted.

Now, this idea becomes interesting when it comes to the prequels (don’t all scream at me once). I understand they get a bad rep. However, I think that is changing slightly, and they are getting more respect than before. Regardless of public opinion, they are a great set of films to examine regarding the topic I have become very interested in.

Here we watch the journey of a young Anakin transforming into the greatest villain of all time. The prequels follow a similar path to the originals; we are watching a battle between good and evil, all taking place in this young child and eventually a young man.

We still have our characters representing good: Obi-wan, Yoda, Qui-Gon Jinn and Anakin before he gives in to the dark side. In a way, we want the path of good to win out; that is what we traditionally root for and enjoy when we watch films, but we also know that if Anakin doesn’t take the path to the dark side, we will never get the villain we all love so much. Also, we already know Darth Vader exists, so we know what will happen, yet the films still manage to make it feel as though the side we are cheering for may still win out, which is a significant achievement in itself.

Maybe this was a bit of a repetitive rant, but I find it incredibly interesting how the viewer gets what they want every time, but the traditional path that the viewer typically wants changes. However, the same emotions are evoked and achieved. In the end, we get what we wish to conventionally and unconventionally. We don’t want Anakin to be evil, but we also do, and, in the future, good eventually wins out. It is a long journey that we go on, but we enjoy every second of it.