My men were in charge of the remote this weekend. (Which meant I got a lot of reading done!) But, I did wander down to our home theater to take in the new Chris Hemsworth Netflix movie, Extraction.

I then stuck around for The Highwaymen (also Netflix) with Woody Harrelson and Kevin Costner (an interesting story about catching Bonnie and Clyde).

Both were a bit violent.

One had superb acting. And an intriguing story.

One had lots of action…and a story that resonated.

Let’s talk about the difference.

Let’s start with Extraction.

This is a lots-of-guns thriller about a wounded mercenary (starring Chris Hemsworth) who is tasked with recovering a boy kidnapped by a drug lord. He does it for money.

At first.

About half-way through the movie (maybe before), Tyler Rake, the hero, tells the boy, Ovi, his dark moment story of the past. The why behind his actions. It’s a deeeeep wound that we can readily understand. And, that dark moment story cements the motivation for all the out-of-character things he does from then on to save this boy.

We need to know the why for the story to really make an impact on us. For us to care.

Now, let’s compare that to The Highwaymen.

Like I said, it’s a fascinating story about the ex-Texas Rangers (Frank Hamer and Maney Gault,) who caught Bonnie and Clyde. Harrelson (Maney) and Costner (Hamer) were, of course, fantastic.

But I didn’t connect with either character. I liked Harrelson’s character, Maney, because he seemed like a regular guy who struggled with his life and choices. But I wasn’t sure how he got this way. Why did he keep following Hamer, who had put him in morally challenging situations?

The main character, Frank Hamer is likewise an interesting character, a justice-driven lawman who is committed to capturing Bonnie and Clyde. He, too, has a dark moment story that attempts to explain how he became the guy he is today.

Problem is, I didn’t care about his dark moment story. It was cerebral and delivered without emotion and frankly, didn’t endear me to the character. (which only reinforces the fact that the Dark Moment Story needs to be poignant, relatable and easy to understand.) (Although, because of this, the Highwaymen was probably a better movie for scintillating post-movie conversation!)

And remember, when we understand a character and his motivation, we become personally invested in his success. And this happens not only with the story stakes (catching Bonnie and Clyde, or rescuing a kidnapped child), but also by helping us invest in the personal stakes of the character.

And when we understand the personal stakes, it gives us the foundation of the character’s change—that thing he can do at the end that he can’t at the beginning.

While Highwaymen makes a small attempt at character change, Extraction is all about character change. It’s at the core of the story. Our hero goes from wanting to die to willing to live.

And that made all the difference.

Sure, it’s a bit of a shallow movie in comparison to the Highwaymen, But, I cared much more about Tyler Rake and his personal outcome than I did the Highwaymen because I understood him. I wanted to see him redeemed.

So, as you build your Dark Moment Story, go for the heart. Help us feel something. And if you want to catch a bad guy while doing it, even better.

Your story matters! Go, write something brilliant this week!

Susie May

P.S. If you’ve ever wondered what is involved in getting published, I’m offering a FREE Path to Publishing webinar this Thursday night, 7pm CST. Check it out here! (and even if you can’t make it, if you sign up you’ll get the webinar replay!)