This image is part of what’s given the term its long life – the idea of introducing a character in such a strange, extravagant way underlines how out of place deus ex machina moments can be in otherwise well-structured stories. The term means ‘god from the machine,’ describing how – when a god appeared on stage to solve all the protagonist’s problems – the actor was either lowered by a crane or rose from under the stage via a trapdoor.
The concept of deus ex machina arises from ancient Greek theater. So how can this device that’s almost always a terrible idea sometimes be exactly what a story needs? How can you spot bad deus ex machina moments, and how can you fix them when they don’t work? That’s exactly what I’ll be covering in today’s article. The deus ex machina moment is hilarious and – more importantly – a satisfying solution to the problem at hand. Click To Tweetīut here’s the thing in The Hudsucker Proxy, it totally works. In a deus ex machina ending, the story is resolved by an unprecedented event or person that readers could never have seen coming. Deus ex machina events tend to be viewed with derision by modern readers, who take them as a sign that the author has written themselves into a corner and needs an easy way out. This is an example of deus ex machina – the moment in a story when an otherwise intractable situation is solved by the intervention of a person, power, or event that doesn’t have any precedent in the story. Seemingly speaking to the viewer, says, “Strictly speaking, I’m never supposed Of the office building’s giant clockface. In midair, and the camera cuts to a minor character who has jammed the mechanism The hero blinks, unable to understand why he’s suddenly floating
There’s nothing he can do to avert his fate, the movie hasn’t set up any way of saving him, and then… time stops. Corrupted by unearned power and driven to desperation by the antagonist, he jumps from the window of his office, tumbling towards the city streets. By the end of the Coen Brothers’ The Hudsucker Proxy, things are looking bad for the protagonist.