Screenwriting Tip # 519

While watching the new Chronicles Of Narnia film, I saw a technique that was used by the screenwriter that I felt worked very well. There was a scene where the protagonists had to descend into a dark cavern. The easy thing to do would have been to have the guy pull out a flash light. But then you would have to explain why he was carrying a flashlight to begin with. But instead, the writer managed to work the flashlight into the movie. first, the writer managed to get a quick joke out of it, by having another protagonist rip his shirt and create a torch. An ingenious act of cleverness, even if he wasn't able to obtain a match. The first protagonist then pulls out the flashlight and asks will this work; Information that could have saved the first protagonist from ripping his shirt to shreds. Then the flashlight also came into play later in the movie providing necessary points of strategy and humor. It was a clever add instead of relying on the old Deus Ex Machina. In one sense, it was never explained why he was carrying a flashlight in the first place, but it works because it provided humorous plot points.