The Three Act Hollywood Structure

Step Brothers
The first act of the Three Act Hollywood Structure is the beginning.  This act summed up in one word is the "introduction".  It is in this act that the characters, the setting, and situation are presented.  It usually lasts about thirty minutes.  Within the first few minutes of Step Brothers, the main four characters are introduced: Brennen, Dale, Nancy, and Robert. Nancy, Brennen's mother, and Robert, Dale's father, meet at a medical conference and end up getting married.  This event sets the premise for the entire movie.  During the majority of the beginning act, Dale and Brennen butt heads over sleeping arrangements, sharing parents, touching drum sets, play a series of pranks on each other, and even get into a physical confrontation in which Brennen uses a bicycle as a weapon and yells rape at the top of his lungs. However, every act has a mini climax.  This mini climax end the act, aid in transition, and propel the story forward.  The climax of the first act occurs when Dale and Brennen bond over their hatred for Derrick.  Brennen tells Dale that they can be friends who ride majestic, translucent steeds while shooting flaming arrows across the Bridge of Hemdale after Dale punches Derrick.  This newfound friendship thrusts the story into act two.  (Act 1 is 33 minutes long.)
The second act of the Three Act Hollywood Structure is the middle.  This act summed up in one word is the "complication".  In this act, the tension of the story rises as complications ensue.  The complication of Step Brothers is the fact that Robert does not approve of Dale and Brennen's lifestyle.  He believes that since these jagaloons are forty, they should grow up, move out, and get jobs.  Four minutes into act two, Robert is already pressuring Dale and Brennen to get jobs.  Robert decides to sell the house so he and Nancy can sail around the world together, so the two men have to move out.  They sabotage Robert and Derrick's efforts to sell the house.  Things come to a head when Dale and Brennen make a music video that ruins Robert's boat and dream.  Robert can't recover and this resentment results in him and Nancy getting divorced.  Dale and Brennen fight over the divorce.  The tension definitely rises within these scenes.  The climax of scene two occurs when Brennen buries Dale alive.  The two decide that the other one was just holding them back, and that they were never really brothers. This leads into act 3. (Act 2 is 34 minutes long)
The third act of the Three Act Hollywood Structure is the end.  This act summed up in one word is the "resolution".  It is in this act that the major climax of the movie takes place.  After the two step brothers fight, they both try to assimilate into society and "grow up".  They both move out, get jobs, buy toilet paper, and read books by Montel Williams.  The climax takes place at the Catalina Wine Mixer.  Brennen's company hosts a fundraiser and he hires Dale's catering company to supply the food.  When the singer of Uptown Girl, California's preeminent 1980's Billy Joel cover band, begins to yell at one of the partygoer's wife, the mixer takes a turn for the worse. Both Dale and Brennen pretend that they have outgrow their childish ways, but Robert knows differently.  He tells them that they must go up on stage and perform to save the mixer, their relationship, and their whimsy.  This is the climax of the movie.  After this scene, the two mend their friendship, rediscover their dinosaurs, and return to their old ways.  After this climax, there are only about 6 minutes left before all the complications are resolved.  Robert finally accepts his sons and this is shown when he gives them a boat treehouse, pirate hats, magazines, cross bows, and Chewbacca masks.