I just finished sci-fi where the climax consisted of the hero being betrayed by two of his friends, one leading a group of rebels, the other trapping the hero in such a way as to render him defenceless. The twist was that the protagonist had planned for the betrayal all along; the first friend had simply been finding and weeding out the traitors, the second friend tricked into rendering himself defenceless until he was imprisoned. This type of ending has many names but is commonly known as the Reversal. However, in this story, the Reversal left me feeling a bit ‘meh.’ The reason? Our hero was too powerfully removed from everything. There was never any point in which his victory was ever ultimately in doubt, and the myriad components of his plan clicked into place flawlessly.
So, what makes a good Reversal? First and foremost, it must be reasonable. Even if the plot itself is wildly outlandish, the components of the Reversal must be believable within the setting. The best example that springs to mind is the 1988 film Die Hard. Hans Gruber is initially presented as a terrorist, and if you follow the details while he is taking over Nakatomi Plaza, it’s clear that he is more than he seems. When the police and FBI shows up, he’s not upset – he planned their involvement all along to rob the vault! But if you look at all of Gruber’s actions, they are consistent and believable, and even show flexibility when John McClane starts screwing with things. An example where I was not sold was 1998’s noir thriller Wild Things, which throws personal betrayal upon personal betrayal within the “I planned it all along” trope until the final plan seems ridiculously unlikely. Although let’s be honest, I was a teenager and wasn’t watching it for the plot…
Next up, a Reversal should have a solid connection between the characters involved. A hugely enjoyable example is the 2011 Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows. The is the aforementioned hero performing his Reversal on Dr Moriarty, showing that while the Moriarty had been manipulating Sherlock’s actions, he has been studying the villain’s grand plan all along, learning significant details and stealing the key object that averts Moriarty’s plan for war. There’s a danger in this type of duelling plots, sometimes called Gambit Overload, which is mercilessly parodied in the 2019 Rick and Morty episode One Crew over the Crewcoo’s Morty.
Finally, the Reversal should reveal something about the character or relationships of the people involved. The hero should have learnt something as a result of their adventures that allows them to turn the tables on the villain, such as Aladdin tricking Jafar into imprisoning himself as a genie, or better yet, the Reversal should deepen the relationships that have already been established. My favourite example is Now You See Me, where the protagonist stage magicians run rings around the authorities, but the entire plot is revealed to be FBI Agent Dylan Rhodes’s decades-long revenge on the people responsible for his father’s death.
While everyone has their own favourite, the movie I think balances all these components is Ocean’s 11. While the heist seems ridiculous, the details are all foreshadowed, and has flexibility to deal with the plan going awry. The members of the conspiracy all have strong character connections, and the final Reversal is revealed to not be about robbing the casino vault but stealing away the hero’s ex-wife and the villain’s current love interest.
If you have a favourite Reversal, please leave a comment below, and if not, I hope this inspires you to write a Reversal of your own!
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