Act Four: Confrontation

Act Four is all about confrontation.  All the subplots are wrapped up, all the pieces are in place, and it's time for the protagonist and antagonist to hash it out once and for all.

Act Four begins while the characters are still reeling from Turning Point Three.  Accordingly, Act Four should start with a Low Point scene of some kind.  Show us the protagonist at their worst; they're ready to give up and go back to their flawed status quo, even though they know it won't make them happy.

In A Few Good Men, this is the scene where Lt. Kaffee gets drunk and proclaims that the case is hopeless.  Not only is the plot frozen in its tracks (without Markinson's testimony, Kaffee will lose the case), but the character arc is also close to breaking (Kaffee is convinced he was a fool to take the case because he isn't a good trial lawyer).

Be as cruel as you can to the character.  Show the audience the very worst side of them.  It will make what's coming so much more worthwhile.

At or around this same time, it's good to show that the antagonist is sitting pretty.  Turning Point Three was a victory for them, and now they're Mounting Forces for the death blow.  The easiest way to incorporate this scene is to shift to your antagonist's POV.  This is easy enough to do in third person or omniscient, but if you're in first person, or if you're in third person, but you don't want to use the antagonist as a POV character, then you have to make the POV character aware that the antagonist is mounting forces.  Maybe there's a news story about it, or maybe the antagonist contacts the protagonist to gloat.  However you do it, this scene really amps up the stakes.

But then, just when all hope is lost, the Hero Gets a Boost.  This could be a pep talk from a supporting character, or the protagonist could uncover some crucial piece of information.  In A Few Good Men, Kaffee decides to take the ultimate risk and put Col. Jessup himself on the stand.

The Hero Gets a Boost scene is the earliest point where a character can ascend to unconscious competence.  Most often, they won't make that transition until they've defeated the antagonist, but in some stories, the protagonist needs to conquer their inner demons before they can face the antagonist.

The important part of the Hero Gets a Boost scene is that when it's over, the protagonist chooses to enter the Final Showdown.  The boost might originate from outside the protagonist's inner circle, but once they've received it they choose to sally forth and confront the antagonist--and their demons--once and for all.

But the protagonist might not be able to get directly to the antagonist.  There might be a Penultimate Showdown of some kind between them and the impending confrontation.  Conversely, once they're finished with the antagonist, there might be some kind of cleanup left to do, in which case this Penultimate showdown comes after the Final Showdown.

For example, if your action hero is headed into the badguy's lair, he might have to face off against the top henchman before he can get to the badguy.  Think of it like a miniboss in the final dungeon.

Another way this scene might play out is after the Final Showdown.  Say the knight has managed to best the evil wizard, and retrieve the antidote for the deathly sleep his love is locked in.  Now, he must rush to her side and cure her, so they can live happily ever after.

Whatever happens, at some point the characters must present themselves on the field of battle, and have their Final Showdown.  This is what everything has been building toward.  It's the ultimate climax between protagonist and antagonist, and only one of them can walk away the same way they walked in.

Depending on what kind of character arc you're working with, the protagonist will either win or lose, and that becomes the essence of your story argument.  Either they will achieve unconscious competence, or they won't.  Make sure you're saying what you want to say, and either way, make sure the Final Showdown is memorable.

One last thing to talk about: the Denouement.