8 Ways Modern Blockbusters Trick You Into Ignoring Plot Holes

6. Comedic Hijinks

In The Hangover, Zach Galifianakis, Ed Helms and the handsome one from Silver Linings Playbook spend almost the entire movie searching for their friend, Doug (Justin Bartha), after they lose him on an ambitious boys' night out in Vegas. When they eventually discover him, redder than the sun and more dehydrated than a raisin up on their hotel roof, days have passed. Which means Doug just sat there the whole time; as far as he knew, he was going to die upon that roof. And yet we never question it, nor the fact that Doug probably would have died from heat exposure by this point anyway, because all manner of hilariousness has been going on. A number of other modern blockbusters have attempted to get their plot holes off they hook by using comedy to throw you off the scent. Transformers does it with a simple throwaway gag: that the MacGuffin-carrying Sam Witwicky's (Shia LaBeouf) eBay username is 'LadiesMan217' is, obviously, absolutely hilarious, but there's no recognition of the fact that the Decepticons could have just bought the film's MacGuffin from LadiesMan217 rather than hunted him down and tried to kill him for it. Iron Man 3 arguably uses the banterous interplay between Tony Stark and a helpful little kid in its entire second act to make you forget that the one Iron Man suit Tony is dragging round the Tennessee streets like it's the Cross to his Jesus, isn't that important €“ how can it be when he casually summons dozens of the things to help him do battle in the final third?