The plot twist remains one of the most enduring narrative devices in Hollywood cinema. It’s obvious why big reversals are frequently used by screenwriters, since these moments radically reshape the way a movie unfolds.
While the plot twist is commonly used in such genres as the spy thriller or the political film, it also crops up surprisingly often in kids' movies. Though some of these plot twists might be a bit controversial, particularly in films geared toward younger children, in fact they serve an important function, reminding audiences of all ages how the world can be an uncertain place.
The 1993 film The Sandlot brings together two of the best things about 1990s popular culture: coming-of-age narratives and sports. With its focus on Scott Smalls (Tom Guiry) joining a group of local boys in the 1960s who spend their time playing baseball and learning more about themselves and their friendship, it hits all of the right notes.
One of the biggest frights for the young boys is the neighboring house next to the Sandlot which holds a terrifying dog they call “the Beast.” So fearsome is the Beast that any ball hit over that fence is considered lost forever. However, once the boys get the courage to actually approach the owner of the house, Mr. Mertle (James Earl Jones), they learn he isn't the grumpy crank they imagined at all. In fact, he was a baseball player himself, who once had a friendly rivalry with Babe Ruth himself. He gives Smalls a new ball signed by several notable baseball players and forms a bond with them as they share their love of the sport. It’s a sweet and touching plot twist that perfectly completes the heartwarming movie.
Solid twist?Coco begins as a seemingly simple story about Miguel (Anthony Gonzalez), but once the young musician finds himself in the Land of the Dead, the tale complicates into an exploration of memory and legacy. At first, Miguel hopes to confirm that famous musician Ernesto de la Cruz (Benjamin Bratt) is his lost great-great-grandfather. Along the way, he meets a desperate soul named Héctor (Gael García Bernal) who pleads with Miguel to preserve a photograph of him in the living world so he won't be forgotten and fade away. Eventually, Miguel learns that Ernesto poisoned Héctor, his songwriting partner, and passed off all their songs as his own. Héctor is the true musical genius, and, in another twist, he's also Miguel's ancestor.
This reveal is achingly painful knowing that Miguel's family has completely forgotten Héctor due to Ernesto's lies. This paves the way for an emotional climax Miguel returns to the land of the living and sings Héctor's song “Remember Me” to his great-grandmother, Coco, and helps her remember her father in the process. With this twist, Coco proves itself as one of Pixar's most sophisticated stories.
Solid twist?Wreck-It Ralph is one Disney's most vibrant an ingenious offerings of recent years, following Ralph's (John C. Reilly) efforts to become more than just a villain as he explores other games in his arcade. As Ralph aims to earn a medal, he enters a racing game called Sugar Rush, meeting a glitch character named Vanellope (Sarah Silverman) and the ruler of the game, King Candy (Alan Tudyk).
At first, King Candy seems to be a beneficent ruler trying to protect Sugar Rush from the risk posed by the existence of a glitch character. Eventually, Ralph learns that not only is Candy an imposter - he's actually Turbo, a character who escaped the destruction of his old game, TurboTime. Since then, Candy seized power over Sugar Rush from its rightful ruler, Vanellope, and has hacked the game's code to force her glitches. Ralph and Vanellope team up to stop him, yet the revelation of King Candy's treachery remains one of the most pivotal moments of the story.
Solid twist?Zootopia is undeniably a fun film, with a story which is very much in the mold of a buddy-cop movie. Optimistic officer Judy Hopps (Ginnifer Goodwin) teams up with con artist Nick Wilde (Jason Bateman) to figure out who is responsible for the rash of predators abruptly going wild, ruining the peace of Zootopia.
At one point, Judy and Nick suspect the mayor Leodore Lionheart (J.K. Simmons) is involved - an easy assumption, since lions are apex predators. However, it turns out that the mastermind behind the scheme isn't a predator at all, but a shy and self-effacing sheep - Dawn Bellwether (Jenny Slate). Bellwether used her position as assistant mayor to orchestrate a scheme, dosing all of the predators with a drug in order to make them go wild, resulting in their imprisonment and Bellwether's rise to mayoral power. In typical villain fashion, she reveals all of this to Judy and Nick, who manage to record her and foil her nefarious scheme. The reveal is both surprising and a good reminder of the importance of not judging books by their covers.
Solid twist?Night at the Museum is in some ways the perfect family film of the 2000s. The story is anchored around Larry (Ben Stiller), a father who takes up a position as a night guard at the Museum of Natural History. The hitch, of course, is the fact the various exhibits in the museum come to life after the lights turn off. It’s filled with delightful and fun characters, whether it’s Robin Williams asTheodore Roosevelt or Rami Malek as Pharaoh Ahkmenrah.
Also notable are Dick Van Dyke, Mickey Rooney, and Bill Cobbs as a trio of older security guards who show Larry the ropes as they prepare for retirement. Though they seem innocuous at first, it soon becomes clear they are actually quite nefarious. Not only do the guards plan to steal the magical tablet which gives them energy just as it does to the exhibits, but they also set up Larry to take the fall for it. They are defeated with help from Larry and the various exhibits, but it's still a lovely twist, particularly since Van Dyke has long been known for playing affable and heroic characters.
Solid twist?The Lego Movie is a prime example of a kids' movie that's both ridiculous and sublimely clever. Additionally, it's exquisitely animated and boasts a talented voice cast including Chris Pratt, Morgan Freeman, and Elizabeth Banks With its story about a group of LEGO characters led by everyman Emmett Brickowski (Pratt) fighting to save their world from evil Lord Business (Will Ferrell).
As with the best animated films, however, there’s more going on here than meets the surface. In fact, the entire LEGO universe is the product of a young boy’s vivid imagination as he mixes and matches various LEGO sets. We glimpse Finn (played by Jadon Sand) and his father (played by Will Ferrell) in live-action as the origin of their game is revealed. Corresponding with how Ferrell voices the evil Lord Business in Finn's LEGO game, he's somewhat antagonistic in real life, chastising Finn for playing with the figures rather than leaving them carefully glued in place. In the end, Finn's father decides to allow him to continue playing as he has. More than just a great twist, this is also a reminder of the importance, and power, of the human imagination.
Solid twist?
