7 Great Plot Twists That Totally Rescued Terrible Movies

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Unexpected plot twists are often the most enjoyable moments in films. When done effectively, they can genuinely surprise viewers without feeling forced or artificial.

This is especially true for bad movies. If a movie has a confusing plot or uninteresting characters, viewers need something to justify spending two or three hours watching it. Often, a surprising twist at the end can save an otherwise terrible movie, and occasionally, it can even make it seem great.

7) The Old Woman Is The Devil in Devil

The horror movie Devil is made on a very small budget, which unintentionally makes it feel like a spoof. The story follows five people trapped in an elevator who are killed off one by one. The killer isn’t a typical person, though—the Devil is manipulating events from within the group.

The movie’s silly story was made worse by its cramped setting, which tried to be frightening but just felt low-budget. The film did have one saving grace: a surprising twist at the end revealing that an elderly woman, presumed dead, was the supernatural villain. This unexpected reveal gave the otherwise uninspired movie a bit of a spark and gave audiences something to discuss.

6) Denzel Washington’s Character InThe Book of Eli is Blind

While featuring strong performances from Denzel Washington and Gary Oldman, The Book of Eli felt like a missed opportunity. The film is set in a post-apocalyptic world and centers on a conflict over one of the last remaining copies of the Bible.

While the movie featured a lot of fighting, the story mainly resonated with viewers who already believed in the Bible’s supernatural elements. Unfortunately, the action wasn’t anything special and felt very similar to other films.

The movie had a surprising reveal: the Bible was written in Braille, explaining how Washington’s character repeatedly defeated his enemies despite being blind. This clever twist distinguished the film from others like it and nearly made it a worthwhile watch.

5) Malignant’s Killer Is A Dormant Twin

Even for a low-budget horror movie, the story of Malignant is pretty outlandish. A woman starts having visions of murders after suffering a head injury. While this idea—similar to what Stephen King explored in The Dead Zone—could have been compelling, the film’s shaky camera work and abrupt movements were more distracting than scary.

The story reveals the woman has a hidden twin living inside her mind, and this twin is responsible for a series of murders. While this plot point is similar to many films that unfairly link Dissociative Identity Disorder to violent actions, a striking scene of the main character seemingly possessed while destroying a police station makes the movie stand out.

4) The Simulation in Ender’s Game Was a Real War

The novel Ender’s Game was much more successful than its film adaptation. Orson Scott Card’s science fiction story follows a young boy selected to defend Earth from aliens. While training at battle school, he struggles with his own morals and what kind of person he wants to be.

The movie adaptation stumbled by emphasizing the school’s use of video game-style simulations, making it feel more like a game itself than a compelling story. However, the plot twist – that the simulations were actually real battles, and Ender had unknowingly fought and won them at the cost of his innocence – ultimately redeemed the film, mirroring the book’s core message.

3) Final Destination 5 Leads to Final Destination

The Final Destination movies started with a smart concept, but by the fifth installment, the series had become predictable. While viewers anticipated creative and unusual deaths, they’d experienced so much of the same thing in the previous films that this movie offered little new or surprising.

Despite a somewhat predictable storyline, Final Destination 5 delivered a satisfying and memorable twist. The film cleverly connected back to the very beginning of the franchise, revealing that the plane explosion seen in the original Final Destination was the catalyst for everything. This clever connection made the movie a worthwhile addition to the series.

2) Don’t Worry Darling‘s Entire Ending

For most of its runtime, Don’t Worry Darling feels like a fairly standard and predictable update to The Stepford Wives. The story is set in a 1950s town where the men go off to work while the women stay home, but one woman begins to suspect something isn’t right and bravely investigates, putting herself in danger to uncover the truth.

The movie takes a shocking turn when it’s revealed the entire town is a simulation. It’s discovered that misogynistic men have kidnapped women and connected them to this virtual world to fulfill their desires. This twist elevates the film from a standard horror-thriller into something far more unsettling and unexpected.

1) The Protagonist Is The Possessed Killer In Fallen

Although the film’s title hinted at it, the twist in Fallen – that Denzel Washington’s character was actually possessed by the demon responsible for the murders – transforms it from a standard thriller into a truly clever one. The movie follows Washington’s character as he hunts a copycat killer, but the real danger is a demon that jumps between bodies, making the culprit incredibly difficult to identify and capture.

The search for the demon isn’t very exciting, but because we trust the main character, the reveal that he is the one he’s been looking for is a truly shocking and unforgettable scene.

What film do you believe really benefited from a surprising plot twist? Share your thoughts and discuss it with other fans at the ComicBook Forum!

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2025-11-08 03:44