The Matrix and the Point of No Return
A storytelling lesson from the revolutionary sci-fi/action movie
One of the most iconic scenes in the already iconic sci-fi/action movie The Matrix is when Morpheus gives Neo the choice between two different colored pills. At that time in the movie Neo is just a lowly programmer on the run from some mysterious security men who had been rescued by Morpheus and his band of equally mysterious resistance fighters. But at this moment, Morpheus explains why he is fighting and gives Neo two options. he can either take the red pill, forget all of this ever happened and go back to his seemingly normal life, or he can take the blue pill, accept his new reality, and see where his new journey would take him. At this point, Neo takes the blue pill, and his life is forever changed, setting the story fully into motion. As well-known as this scene is, I submit to you that literally every good story has a similar crucial scene within it. This is the Point of No Return.
In every story, there will be a time where the Protagonist has gone too deep into the progression of the narrative to opt out or turn back. This is a moment where things have developed so far that all other options of dealing with the problem outlined at the outset of the story are no longer viable, and the only way the protagonist can get through the ordeal is to continue down the path he or she is traveling on. Every story has it, from the moment Joel hires the Lacuna Agency to erase the memory of his girlfriend in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, to the moment where Fortunado ignores Montressor’s urging to turn back in Edgar Allan Poe’s The Cask of Amontillado, to the moment Testuo nearly crashes his motorcycle into a mysterious child in the classic Manga/Anime Akira. This moment has to happen early in the story, but it doesn’t necessarily have to happen right at the beginning or even in the first chapter. The noir movie Memento’s point of no return literally happens in the final scene of the movie (which is fitting because the entire story happens in reverse).
Wizards of the Coast head of R&D (and former writer for the TV show Roseanne) Mark Rosewater has a prefect description of the three-act story structure: Act 1: get your protagonist stuck up a tree. Act 2: throw rocks at them. Act 3: get your protagonist down from the tree. In the 3 act structure, the Point of No Return happens somewhere in Act 1. That is when your character is firmly stuck up the proverbial tree. Or, at least, has climbed so far up the tree that it is pointless to go back down.
The benefit of knowing where your point of no return lies is that you can fully focusing on enhancing hat singular moment, and making it truly stand out dramatically. The Point of No Return for your protagonist should also be the point of no return for your reader, as well. This is the moment where the reader should be fully invested in seeing the protagonist through to the outcome of the story. So you really want to make that moment grip the reader and stick in their minds, leaving them wondering what is going to happen next.
When determining when your Point of No Return is for your protagonist, take a look at your narrative overall. It would help if you already have a story outline or a chapter-by-chapter synopsis, but those are optional. Look at how the story progresses and ask yourself at what point does the proverbial “sh*t get real”? This should be at an early point in the story. Ask yourself at what point do your central characters lose the option of turning back or changing course? There should be a moment where the protagonist becomes kind of locked in to the path they are heading down. It could be a crucial decision they make early on, or a particular situation they find themselves in, or a moment where they take responsibility for something or someone, or when they cross a line that they wouldn’t have otherwise crossed. it could even be when a set of events beyond the protagonist’s control happen at once, forcing their hand in a certain direction. A story I am seeking representation for as of this writing literally has my protagonist at the edge of the “wrong side of town.” realizing that his idyllic way of life has forever been altered and the only way to get back to some semblance or normalcy is to see his predicament through to its conclusion. This moment happens at the end of act one, and is his Point of No Return.
Even in my other stories, I tried to keep my Point of No Return towards the end of Act One, and I made it pretty obvious. In Godmode, it was when Elijah learned that his family was being held by Claudius Webster. That upped the ante and made it so that he could no longer afford the option of letting those monsters kill him. In Double Entry, that moment was when Melvin asked Dana if he could meet his estranged son. That took their interactions from purely business into something personal, and there was no way things could go back to the way they were now that he had made that intention known. For The Hand You’re Dealt, three were two points because there were two narratives being told concurrently. In the past, it was obviously when Tika and Jay shared their first kiss. But in the present, it was when Tika met her absentee father for the first time. I tried to make sure all of these moments had extra emotional impact, so that the reader will understand how that moment has changed everything.
I strongly recommend finding this singular moment in your story and emphasizing it. It will add to the drama of your story and help with keeping the reader engaged.
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