Tiresome/stale movie cliches

Why is it that decade after decade screen writers and directors will fall back to the tried and true, make that tired and predictable, cliches to provide that "moment of suspense". ie: Person, usually female, chased by killer to her car, fumbles with keys and then the car engine fails to turn over. Lengthy climactic fight in major city between hero & villain and the whole police force arrives at the same time moments after the hero narrowly kills off the baddie. It is rare that a really creative director or writer fools the audience with what Hitchcock used to call the "McGuffin". That is the surprise twist that the audience wasn't expecting. You must all have some favorite over used, formula, cliches that you knew were coming.

 

I love when someone is running from a car that's trying to run them over......they NEVER think to run onto the sidewalk or thru a store......they go STRAIGHT down the middle of the road!

 

The one cliche that gets me is how when someone gets shot, usually in the shoulder, it's really not a big deal. The shooting victim can continue driving, running, and even fighting. Blood loss, paralysis, shock or incapacitating pain is rarely an issue.

 

Oh, and corruption -- be it a police department, law firm, or corporate giant -- always goes straight to the top: city hall, the board of directors, even The White House. It's never a case of, say, inadequate supervision allowing multiple, uncoordinated abuses to fester. Nope, it's always a conspiracy.

This conspiratorial cliche ruined two otherwise good films for me: L.A. CONFIDENTIAL and TRAINING DAY.

 

My favorite is what I call the slo-mo-no.
The character(s) run toward the camera in slow motion while a big explosion is happening in the background. Of course the the character(s) are yelling "NOooooooooooo" at the same time.

 

I think they do this because they know that the majority of movie goers are thrilled by these cliches

 

Two more classic cliches. At the begining of the movie/tv show, you know these guys are going to get wacked:

Young rookie announces he has to get home for his kid's birthday party when his shift is over.

Veteran cop announces his retirement when his shift is over.

Hero revenge to follow.

 

So do I.

 

They don't make a movie like Hitchcock, the original Night of The Living Dead, a classic John Wayne movie, etc. anymore.

 

I get upset when characters in movies act in ways they never would, if they had ever seen a movie. Take Panic Room for example--if you're ever shopping for an apartment, and you find one with a panic room, KEEP LOOKING!! Jodi Foster should have known she and her diabetic daughter would wind up in there, the very first night!

In Se7en, Brad Pitt leaves his wife at home alone, when he knows there's a psychopath with a grudge after him? Try this: "Hey honey, I'm putting you on the next plane to Nepal until we catch this guy!"

Oh, and if you're the hero of an action movie, and you think the bad guy is dead, go back and MAKE SURE, 'cause we all know that he's gonna pop up again before the closing credits!

 

These cliches are the easy way and comfortable way out as well.

 

Twister is on right now.......great scene where they drive RIGHT THRU an exploding tanker truck.....come out "singe free".....what do you think the temperature is in there? 1500F!!!!!??? Not even a burnt eyelash!

 

How about the cat jumping out of the darkness??
Or when somebody is going to die they always have time for a few final words.
The bad guys, when about to kill somebody they always explain to them their whole plan and what they are going to do after they kill him.

 

Whenever a couple is shown hating each other, we can be 99.95643% sure they'll have sex before the end of the movie.

 

In Star Trek, whenever the crew beams down to a planet, you know the character that isn't a regular is going to die.

"We're gonna kill you, sheriff, but we're gonna kill you slow!"


Evan

 

My fave used to be the 'toppled fruit stand.' I swear every city from Nome to Cape Town has at least one fruit stand or cart strategically placed on a streetcorner, just so a car or truck can eventually run into it, send fruit & veggies flying, smashing on the pavement, rolling around all over the place. This tried + true nonsense isn't so prevalent anymore, but there was a time when you found it in so many movies and TV shows that I actually wondered if the L.A. produce people had some kind of deal going with Hollywood studios, whereby they got their surplus produced smashed about for a fee. Fairly ridiculous, and Roger Ebert picked up on it, also. Someone should assemble a database; the list would be fairly long, gotta think.

 

I forget now, but do they have the inside rear-view mirror inside the truck? Because usually there isn't one, so that the driver has to turn around and see what's happening behind him/her. By the time he/she turns her head back to the front, something horrific will generally happen so that he/she can have that shocked look....

 

I did like the toppled produce stand cliche.

 

Whenever a film or scene takes place in France, at some point or another you will inevitably glimpse somebody walking down the street with a grocery bag, from the top of which protrudes a baguette loaf. Two to one he/she will be donning a beret, as well.

 

My Trekkie friends and I always joke about that! Check the credits to see who played "Expendable Crewman #1."

Imagine this scene on board:

Capt. Kirk: "You, Lt. Jones, beam down with the away team."

Lt. Jones: "Ooooh no! Whattaya, crazy?? You think I wanna get zapped into a little cube and crushed by some alien! Throw me in the brig, but I ain't going!"

 

Have you seen 28 Days Later yet? The genius of that movie is that instead of having the zombies lurch and stumble toward you, arms outstretched, they coming running at you out of nowhere at a full sprint. It's quite unnerving.

 

Oh, you don't need to have a scene in France to make that baguette appear. All you need to do is have the movie be a romantic comedy, preferably with Meg Ryan or Kate Hudson.

 

I had a DP tell me the same thing, too. Also, back in the eighties it was also popular to lightly smoke a scene to highlight light coming through the windows. Spielberg used to do it all the time. I once knew a bunch of guys who worked on an Amblin production, and at the wrap party they all got jackets that said "Smoke It And Shoot It" on the back as a joke.