with the first thread being closed for some reason
-
jke903 — 19 years ago(March 21, 2007 04:39 PM)
- There is always a dial-tone on cell phones after the person on the other end hangs up.
- Taxi drivers seem to know where to go when yo say home.
- Every time a medicine cabinet is opened there is always a stick of deoderant, a tube of toothpaste, a tootbrush, and a razor.
- If you are a rapper in a horror movie, you will live.
http://groups.myspace.com/hottrakzmusic
-
telegonus — 18 years ago(April 16, 2007 11:24 PM)
This has probably been discussed before: whenever a character in a war movie (I'm talking vintage WWII-Korea) starts talking just a little too much about life back homeapple pie, visiting Aunt Eula out in the country, walking his girl-friend home on a warm summer night,anything like thathe's a goner. He's usually picked off by a sniper before the movie's even half over.
Whenever a cop in a crime-detective-thriller sort of film comes off as a little too dumb, a little too rough, a little too clueless, you know there's something up with him. He'll rally in the end, he's a good, capable guy after all, not so dumb as most people think, and a pretty good shot, too.
Also older films: college professors, scientists and the like, anyone we'd now call nerdy or geeky, never seem to have set foot in a pool hall, don't know how to handle alcohol, are physically awkward, tend to wear glasses, keep their ties on even when not at work, don't play tennis or golf, don't know about the Dodgers and the Yankees, and think that "Jitterbugs" are some kind of insect.
More older movie stuff: characters with prejudices, usually in supporting parts, who aren't pathological about it, always do an about face, usually in the last ten minutes of the film, when they invariably say something likle, "Gee, you (fill in the blanks: country boys, city boys, Limeys, flyboys, truckers, southerners) aren't so bad after all", or something to that effect, as they realize the hero or some other major character is really a pretty good guy. If, however, a character doesn't overcome his prejudices he's an out and out rotter and usually proves unreliable, untrustworthy, cowardly or downright evil. -
Aurabora — 18 years ago(August 07, 2007 10:50 AM)
When there's a struggle with a knife, the villian ALWAYS ends up on top of the hero with the knife inches from hero's face. It stays like this for a minute or so until said hero decides he can hold off villian with one hand while he reaches for some object with his other hand to save him.
-
DashTheGreat — 18 years ago(August 07, 2007 10:53 AM)
Yet, he wasn't able to stop the villain from further pushing the knife down with two hands, but he can keep the knife in one place with one. The object he grabs is always some form of debris from the scuffle / an explosion.
-
davywap — 19 years ago(March 22, 2007 06:13 AM)
- In every rough neighbourhood, there's always at least one person who wants to "go somewhere" and wants to "be somebody".
- Whenever two characters sleep together at one of their homes, when they wake up the next morning and kiss they never seem phased at all about each other's inevitably reeking morning breath.
I love lamp.
-
pjmcgill142 — 11 years ago(August 08, 2014 12:47 AM)
Haven't been able to read all the pages, but has anyone mentioned the ever observant cop who notices that 'it's June, and isn't it a little warm to be wearing a jacket?' that is concealing a bad guy's firearm grenade thermonuclear device.
For years, I used to think every single Hollywood movie was made in June. -
awdlnd — 11 years ago(August 24, 2014 07:45 PM)
Most annoying cliche is the computer sound effects. It is really distracting for me.
Crime Drama: Police address suspect as "Police!" 100 yards away from perp without taking measures to surround perp first, initiating a pointless chase.
The "one phone call" thing when arrested.
The timed phone call trace that never provides enough time to triangulate.
Any "too cool" characters. Horatio is the master of this and it's so comically done that he gets by with it. Another current example would be the Graceland cast. They always use the appropriate lingo and have to explain all the tricks they know to their fellow cops so the audience knows what they are talking about. Another would be Harmon on NCIS or LL not-so-cool J on NCIS:L.A. I would throw Hawaii Five-O in this category but that entire show is a cliche.
Crime shows where only one investigative team is needed. Sometimes it's the detective in charge, other times it's the CSI team. Also, situations where these people have free reign to go to some other country on some half military mission. -
Ceer — 11 years ago(September 01, 2014 12:30 AM)
When faced with an alien or supernatural there will always be the quick fix, the silver bullet, the answer, the rules. Shot to the head brings down a zombie, aliens fall prey to germs, vampires stake to the heart, werewolvesthe silver bullet.
I'm like a wild animal, girl I'm more scared of you than you are of me. -
Cuish — 11 years ago(September 05, 2014 02:15 PM)
- Whenever two characters are about to kiss, something always interrupts them so they don't do it. Like if a phone goes off or someone walks in on them or something.
- In superhero films, other characters that the hero is familar with don't recognise their voice if they happen to meet them in costume.
My blog:
http://cuish-common-room.blogspot.co.uk/
-
Ceer — 11 years ago(September 27, 2014 04:51 PM)
When the hero is tied up/tied down the villain will roll out a small table filled with knives. There are small knives, big knives, pointy knives, hooked knives, serrated knives, etc. The camera shows this all to us and the villain laughs evilly. The villain then ignores his collection of knives and punches the hero unconscious.
Of course the knives are to shock the audience and fill them with dread. I'm actually glad we don't get to see the knives being used. I'm not into torture porn. But it would be nice if they just skipped show of knives.
I'm like a wild animal, girl I'm more scared of you than you are of me. -
Aswena — 11 years ago(October 13, 2014 02:22 AM)
The most absurd cliché: police cars using their loud sirens when they go to the place the character they want to arrest is supposed to be even if the roads are completely empty or during the night, so that the character hears them coming and has enough time to hide or to escape
Some other clichés, certainly already mentioned:- when the hero has a family, there is a sequence in which he or she is looking at his or her sleeping children
- when the hero visits the victim or suspect's apartment, there are a lot of photos on walls or furniture and very often by chance one of these photos gives him a clue or the whole explanation to a mystery or investigation
- on standard quality photos it is possible to zoom in indefinitely with high resolution
- when the hero has to download a file it often takes a lot of time while somebody or the police are coming
- bombs are often stopped at the last second by the hero
- some characters seem not being aware they were shot by a bullet until they notice blood on their body
- villains always take their time to kill the hero so finally he can escape or is providentially helped by someone at the very last moment (the villain is killed at the same moment he was supposed to shoot the hero)
- key witnesses are rarely under sufficient protection by the police even if it is obvious the villain will kill them (it also works with the next likely victim in a series of murders)
-
Good-Will — 11 years ago(October 22, 2014 10:22 PM)
You have to wonder whether the writers of Sharknado (which is loads of fun) have been studying this thread and taking notes.
A more recent cliché is for the FBI to be portrayed as extremely incompetent.
That used to be the prerogative of the local police force (plod) when the big guns came in, but now the big guns themselves are depicted as making the most basic of mistakes.
Regarding the FBI:- The lead actor/actress playing an FBI agent will always decide to try to drive to the ongoing crime scene rather than call the local police to prevent the crime or the criminal(s) from escaping. A fast car speeding through traffic from 10+ miles away is always going to get there faster than the local plod.
- Apparently the FBI can track anyone anywhere if they have their mobile phone on unless they actually intend to commit a crime. In which case they have a burner who's messages they can't intercept even and whose origin they can't locate even when they call a suspect that they're monitoring.
- Rerouting web traffic through Lithuania and North Korea gives you at least 24 hours leeway before the FBI can trace the source of the email/video/website/whatever.
- The FBI can't locate the originator of a video posted on Youtube if it's posted anonymously.
I have more examples but these are just a few.
If the opposite of Love is indifference, what's the opposite of Hate?
-
Ceer — 11 years ago(November 02, 2014 06:38 PM)
No one ever just bumps into another person in television or movie. If it happens the bumped person was either pick pocketed, something was slipped into their pockets, or if there was blood drawn they've been either poisoned or infected.
I'm like a wild animal, girl I'm more scared of you than you are of me. -
Ceer — 11 years ago(December 06, 2014 07:45 PM)
One of the top 10 signs your dying. The coughee usually knows he/she is dying but will not tell anyone else until they, long after the audience, figure it out.
I'm like a wild animal, girl I'm more scared of you than you are of me. -
Cuish — 11 years ago(January 04, 2015 08:32 AM)
Romantic comedies:
You have two people, a handsome young man and a pretty young woman, bump into each other and they see a lot of each over the next few days and become friends as a result. However, when either of them has to leave and catch the plane (or the train or some other long-distance transport), one of them literally realises only at the very last minute that theyve fallen in love with the other and (depending on which one realises it) either rush back in the taxi to tell them so or catch up with them at the airport or train station. The other realises it also. Whether they do manage to catch up and tell them and they stay together or not are two other clichés altogether.
My blog:
http://cuish-common-room.blogspot.co.uk/ -
Ceer — 11 years ago(January 22, 2015 05:15 PM)
Just catch a newspaper that's blowing in the wind. In huge letters on the front page the situation will be explained in less than a dozen words.
I'm like a wild animal, girl I'm more scared of you than you are of me.