Vishnu Warrier
We often rave about how ingenious or shocking a movie plot-twist was. And there are just so many of them that happen to be among the best of all time, resonating with us on an emotional level. Plot-twists need to be convincing enough and fit in with what the story tries to tell. But so often it happens that they are used for mere shock value and barely do anything to the story. And then there are twists that make absolutely no sense. These are the kind that could destroy a good film in its entirety. Their blatant lack of logic does nothing but infuriate you to no end. This article takes a look at the list of really bad movie plot twists that make no sense at all. Here they are:
12. Now You See Me (2013)
There are a good number of films which I admire for their ability to entertain, enthral and captivate you with their energy. Some films do not offer anything more than pure entertainment and they could still be great films. But ‘Now You See Me’ is just blatant humiliation to the human intellect. What infuriates me the most about the film is how silly it poses itself to be. And then there’s that “plot-twist” where we are revealed that agent Dylan was the “fifth horsemen” of the team. So the FBI is a mere toy you could have fun with? A reputed FBI agent can team up with a bunch of stupid teenagers and fool his entire department and take revenge against the man who he feels is behind his father’s death. Well…
11. Planet of the Apes (2001)
Tim Burton‘s revival of the 1968 version of the film is, to be fair, quite a decent affair. But it suffers from one of the most terrible endings ever in cinema history. What possible explanation could you come up with for the final where Wahlberg travelling back in time and returning to the Earth only to find that General Thade has beat him and the world is now plagued by apes. We are clearly shown of his escape from the dreadful planet and has defeated Thade. How could he, in the exact same time as Mark Wahlberg had traveled, have returned and taken control of the Earth?
10. Signs (2002)
Don’t get me wrong on this. ‘Signs’ is a film much better than what most people make out to be. In fact, it is the best (if that’s the right word to be used here) film M. Night Shyamalan has ever made since ‘The Sixth Sense’. But the man once again manages to dig out another twist in finale that makes absolutely no sense at all. In fact the ending here could just be the very essence of the word “nonsensical”. We have a family, protecting themselves from an alien attack. The atmosphere is quite dark and creepy and the film leads up well on the finale. But in the end we are revealed that the Aliens are allergic to water. What possible explanation could be provided here considering that such smart creatures wouldn’t have thought of or at least equipped themselves before conquering a planet that is covered almost three fourths in water?
9. The Life of David Gale (2003)
Sometimes a film comes with such high potential but end up disappointing you in almost every way possible. ‘The Life of David Gale’ is exactly that kind of film. The plot focuses on tackling the contentious Death Penalty issue. We have Kevin Spacey and Kate Winslet playing out the lead roles. Spacey’s character is convicted of murder and happens to be a vehement detractor of capital punishment. Winslet plays a journalist who takes genuine interest in his case and investigates into it. The ending reveals that Spacey staged the entire murder scene in order to prove that innocent people get executed. The whole martyrdom act is totally ridiculous as the characters only end up contradicting themselves and fail to prove a point because what comes off of this act is nothing but the fact that people would get convicted when the case is backed by strong physical evidence. Just plain awful film-making.
8. The Village (2004)
Arguably one of the most hated movies of all time, ‘The Village’ depicts the lives of people living in an isolated village where a monster lurks around, troubling the tranquility of the land. In one of the most outrageous film endings of all time, Shyamalan reveals that the film is set in the present time and not centuries back, as we were led to believe initially. Masked as monsters the villagers helped protect the land from the outside world. But considering the film is set in the 21st century, it seems very hard to believe that nobody in their vicinity are aware of the land and the many people inhabiting in it. Also, how could one digest the fact these people paid off an entire government to keep their village secluded from the rest of the world?
7. Perfect Stranger (2007)
Sometimes a good film could be ruined by a terrible ending. And very rarely, at times, does a bad film redeem itself with a great pay off at the end. ‘Perfect Stranger’ belongs to the category of a downright terrible film ruined more by an outrageous twist in the end. Halle Berry plays a reporter who investigates a murder. However, it turns out that Berry’s character was the real killer. Apparently, the disturbing childhood memories of her father attempting to molest her and mother killing him with a fireplace poker has had a severe impact on her and this lead to her shockingly outrageous behaviour. Now, in the context of the entire film, this twist makes no sense at all. It comes out of nowhere and we aren’t given any subtle hints of Rowena’s tragic past up until the end. It doesn’t make any sense to believe after all that she committed the crime by just cropping up a backstory out of thin air.
6. The Number 23 (2007)
Another terrible film made worse by a laughable twist in the end. Directed by Joel Schumacher, ‘The Number 23’ tells the story of a man obsessed with a book titled “Number 23” as he begins to relate himself with the main character. So apparently we have a film that poses itself to be a psychological mystery thriller and so a plot-twist in the end shouldn’t come off as a surprise. Well, yes the book was written by our protagonist, Walter himself. In fact, he did so as result of the guilt he felt for killing a woman. And in the end he attempts to jump off the hotel room’s balcony to get himself killed in the exact same manner the main character of the book did. Funnily enough, that’s exactly how our emotions are by the time the film ends.
Read More: Best Plot Twist Movies of All Time
5. High Tension (2003)
‘High Tension’ is a bizarre yet unique cinematic experience. It tells the story of two women who are being attacked by a psychopath. It’s a brilliantly made film packed with gut-wrenching moments and some very disturbing scenes but the twist ending is one of the most ludicrous you’ll ever see. It is revealed in the ending that the killer had been the main character herself all along. The film clearly shows the truck driving man and many instances where he is physically present in the scenes. So, if Marie was meant to be the killer then who really is the other guy in the film? We don’t know — and neither does the film.
Read More: Best Movie Opening Scenes of All Time
4. Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2008)
The fourth instalment in the Indiana Jones franchise wasn’t well received but the film stands up to its previous instalments if not for that lame ending. The spellbinding sense of mystery displayed in the earlier films wasn’t to be found here as we are fed with another aliens plot-twist that does not make sense at all, especially in the context of the whole series. Prior to this film, aliens were never even part of the series. So for them to pop out from nowhere in the film comes off as lazy writing and feels totally out of place.
Read More: Best Movie Endings of All Time
3. The Devil’s Advocate (1997)
On paper, ‘The Devil’s Advocate’ seems like an excellent psychological thriller. But on-screen it certainly feels way too caught up in its own ambitions and and comes off as a ridiculously convoluted mess of a film. The final two twists in the film; the entire devil monologue sequence where Keanu‘s character is left with a choice on morality and the final “it was all a nightmare” revelation feel so ludicrously contrived and make no sense at all. The film starts off as a psychological thriller and then shifts itself into a supernatural mode towards the end. This move gave them more freedom to stuff in twists where logic wouldn’t matter at all.
Read More: Most Overrated Movies of All Time
2. Matchstick Men (2003)
Ridley Scott‘s ‘Matchstick Men’ is an excellent drama that gets most of its notes bang on except for the ending. It’s an ending that infuriates me to no end because this is clearly an outstanding film but it just had to blow it up with that ludicrous “daughter” twist in the end. So this con man, played by Nicolas Cage, tries to mend his ways after a complete stranger bursts out from nowhere, claiming to be his daughter. However, turns out that she wasn’t his daughter after all. His ex-partner and rival conned him using the woman to gain access to his safe deposit box. It’s an absurdly silly scenario as Cage doesn’t, for once, felt the need to contact his wife and verify the truth behind the girl’s story. It’s just the kind of twist a person with the most basic and simplest of human logic would find endlessly infuriating. A terrible end to an otherwise great film.
Read More: Most Ambiguous Movie Endings
1. Saw (2004)
‘Saw’ is not a film I’d love to bash. It’s actually a film that I happened to enjoy very much on a first outing. But the more I think of it now, the more stupid and contrived it seems. The plot is well set. There are two people chained in a room to different ends with a corpse lying in between them. There’s a serial killer behind the orchestration of the whole set-up. The sense of claustrophobia just creeps in. And then the much anticipated twist comes in; the mastermind was the corpse lying in between them! He was alive the whole time. So we are supposed to believe that the man wouldn’t even move a finger nail of his during the entire time? And how couldn’t the guys in the room catch him breathing? It’s a closed room with no noise so the sound definitely reverberates from a distance.
Read More: Best Twist Endings of All Time
