10 Most Shamefully Lazy Plot Resolutions In Movie History

3. Deus Ex Machina Saves The Day - The Matrix Revolutions (2003)

The Wachowski siblings' 1999 smash hit The Matrix introduced audiences to a tantalising fictional world where malevolent machines enslaved humanity via a virtual reality program known as the Matrix. Fans clamoured for a deeper exploration of the mythology hinted at in the first Matrix film and the Wachowskis obliged them by filming two sequels back-to-back.

The first sequel, The Matrix Reloaded, ended on several cliffhangers including the imminent destruction of Zion and the potential destruction of the Matrix by an ever-multiplying Agent Smith. The Matrix Revolutions, released a scant six months after Reloaded, gave fans a lazy cop-out ending instead of providing a satisfactory conclusion to these plot threads.

With the machines threatening to annihilate humanity's last surviving city, our hero Neo breaks into the machine stronghold to speak with the machine leader: the Deus Ex Machina. In ancient Greek theatre when a play used the deus ex machina, an actor playing a God would intervene in the plot to rescue a hero from an impossible situation.

The Wachowskis didn't even try to hide the fact The Matrix saga would end with a lazy, miraculous plot device. Neo cuts a deal with Deus Ex Machina to leave humanity alone if Neo rids the Matrix of the pesky Agent Smith virus. Neo bests Smith, sacrificing himself in the process, and the machines retreat from Zion. The Wachowskis' shameless admission they will end their hours-long story with an unearned resolution lands them at number 3 on our list.