What every YouTuber Gets Wrong about Star Wars

My extremely specific and obtuse nitpick, and how it relates to screenplay structure as a whole

I’ve got a real problem with Youtube videos about screenplay structure. Specifically, with ones that use Star Wars as an example. And by “real problem” I mean “real-ly minor nitpick”

See it all has to do with this moment in classic Hollywood screenplay structure:

the one that’s highlighted… with the red arrows and such…

Call it what you want: “Crossing the Threshold”, “Break into Act II”, “The Point-of-no-Return”, it’s the point where the hero is thrust out of their everyday existence and steps foot into the world of adventure.

Now when it comes to Star Wars ep. IV: A New Hope (1977), pretty much everyone can agree on which scene functions as this moment:

…It’s when our hero Luke finds his home and family torched by the empire, leaving him nowhere to turn but former Jedi Obi-Wan Kenobi, and his quest to deliver adorable walking trashcan R2D2 to the rebel alliance.

No argument from me, this is definitely the point-of-no-return for our hero.

The problem… The PROBLEM is that every diagram of the hero’s journey, three-act screenplay, Dan Harmon Story Circle, et cetera, all show the point-of-no-return moment here:

So when a Story-Structure-Focused YouTuber talks about star wars, (like this one, or this one, or this one) they usually jot down the burning farm scene at that 25% point on the diagram. And this ignores my over-critical and persnickety point that the farm scene actually happens here:

*cricket noises*

Ok, fine, maybe it’s overly perfectionistic to demand everyone open up Disney+, log the exact timecode, and then calculate that the farm scene occurs at the 34% mark instead of the exact 25% point in the film. (which would be hypocritical because I used a bootleg VHS of the theatrical cut to get that figure)

I mean, I would be just an absolute dingus if I said that every single movie should take this list of plot points and follow it exactly to the millisecond:

…which is a good thing because I’m definitely not saying that.

See, here’s the thing, you can and indeed should vary the timing of key moments in your story to fit the needs of your story. Does your film feature a relatively simple protagonist and focus on using action to drive the exploration of character? nudge the point-of-no-return sooner.

For example, in Die Hard (1988), The inciting incident of the terrorists taking over Nakatomi Plaza also traps the hero in the building. (12% mark in the film’s run-time)

“Come out to the coast… have a few laughs… get roped into a complex terrorism/heist plot literally 15 minutes into the movie…”

On the other hand, is your story an origin tale or otherwise heavily reliant on the character or world’s backstory to drive the emotional journey? Go ahead and delay the point-of-no-return

Example: in Batman Begins (2005), Bruce Wayne doesn’t undertake his first appearance as a vigilante until a full 41% into the movie when he breaks into Gordon’s office to offer help. And he doesn’t even put on the suit and utter the words “I’m Batman” until the 48% mark (up to that point he was “Just some nut” in Gordon’s words).

“Hey, sorry for using a stapler to pretend to hold you at gunpoint. I like to think you’d do the same if you were in my bat-shoes…”

A New Hope is a mix of both of these. It features a very simple protagonist in Luke Skywalker. But the world of Star Wars is complex as heck. Luke isn’t even introduced in the film until the 15% point (there were earlier scenes of luke, but these were cut from the final release for adding nothing to the story).

As a result, the farm getting torched at the 34% mark is delayed in the scheme of the overall runtime of the film (34 vs 25 percent = 14% past the one-quarter mark). But it’s actually pretty quick in terms of Luke’s intro (34 minus 15 percent = 19% between meeting luke and his point-of-no-return: 6% faster than 25%)

So now I hear you screaming “Well if you agree with all these YouTubers that the farm really is the point-of-no-return point in the film and that it’s actually pretty clever how the film lays that out, then what’s your problem!?”

my extremely pedantic and nitpicky problem is that while 34% into the movie is perhaps the perfect spot for the “crossing the threshold” moment as it relates to the story, IT STILL DOESN’T ACTUALLY HAPPEN AT THE 25% POINT LIKE EVERYBODY SAYS IT DOES!!!

*Heavy Breathing* ok, calm down… calm down…

What I’m driving at is this: Just because you can adjust the timing of plot points to fit the needs of the specific story, something interesting still happens at the 25%, 50%, and 75% marks. it kind of has to. Audiences invest hours of their life in TV shows, Films, and Books. And something at least a little bit interesting has to be happening at any given moment to make it worth their while.

If you choose to move the point-of-no-return up earlier than the 25% point, and then don’t have anything interesting happen later when the one-quarter mark arrives; then you’ve blown your wad and the audience loses the momentum you built with a fast-paced opening.

Conversely, if you choose to delay the point-of-no-return past the 25% point, you need something interesting to happen in its place at the one-quarter mark, or a sizeable portion of the audience won't have the patience to get to the good stuff.

So what does happen at the 25% mark in A New Hope? if it’s not this:

…then what is it? Answer, it’s this:

Luke is attacked by a gang of nomads in the far desert but saved when the attackers are scared off by the arrival of former Jedi Knight, Obi-Wan Kenobi.

This scene is definitely lower stakes than the farm getting torched, (one life risked vs two lives lost. A band of nomads as danger vs. the entire galactic empire wanting Luke dead) but it still functions as a form of “crossing the threshold” as it were.

Luke may still have a choice to return back to the farm after meeting Obi-Wan. But in speaking to him, Luke learns details about his father that were previously kept from him. And he receives his father Lightsabre, a physical artifact of his backstory.

by meeting Obi-Wan at the 25% point, Luke took his first step into the world of laser wars and magic space wizards long before he actually leaves his home planet.

See, there are actually two story-circles going on here: the variably structured, plot-related circle where points happen when they need for the best effect:

…and the rigid “what-actually-happens-at-these-specific-time-codes” circle that keeps the film from dragging as we move from plot-point to plot-point:

few of these are hardcore emotional beats, but all serve to advance Luke’s character progression throughout the story.

Welp, that’s my point. Sorry for the clickbait title. See you next, uh, next… time… yeah.

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