Movie devices you hate

[StoneGold]

Sex scenes with no nudity.


Seriously, if you aren't going to show me some nipple, just go to a fade out. We know they're having sex, I don't need to see the back of someone's knee rubbing against some unidentifiable body part for a minute and a half. It doesn't do anything for me, and it just puts a gaping hole in your narrative structure.

[BoosterBronze]

Internal montage.

NEVER show me scenes I've seen previously so as to explain to me what I should be feeling. If a guy has lost everything in his life, don't show me slow-mo clips of how happy he was earlier in the movie. It was (at most) an hour ago that I saw them, I remmeber them fine.

This does NOT apply to mystery films and thrillers, where replaying moments helps explain complicated plot points, just to sappy melodramatic moments.

[LtMarvel]

Tacked on happy endings that go against the grain of the movie.

(Back to the Future III: They spend the entire movie explaining how dangerous time travel is and how they should get rid of the machine...so Doc Brown of course shows up in a new one....)

[Legato]

Tacked on happy endings that go against the grain of the movie.

(Back to the Future III: They spend the entire movie explaining how dangerous time travel is and how they should get rid of the machine...so Doc Brown of course shows up in a new one....)

Having it ending whare Doc Brown stayed in the West with no way getting back would be a better ending. It would be like showing the consequences of what would happen when time traveling.

I dont mind a happy ending but sometimes when watching a movie you feel that hollywood just puts on a happy ending just for the sake of it.

[MaxofSteel]

Having it ending whare Doc Brown stayed in the West with no way getting back would be a better ending.

But then we wouldn't have had that awesome spin-off cartoon series!:p

Anyhow plot devices I hate generally involve locked doors/stalling cars in horror movies. Also dumb teenagers wandering into dark rooms.

Why doesn't anything ever WORK when they're are about to get killed!? Poor dumb teenagers...:(

[Legato]

But then we wouldn't have had that awesome spin-off cartoon series!:p

Anyhow plot devices I hate generally involve locked doors/stalling cars in horror movies. Also dumb teenagers wandering into dark rooms.

Why doesn't anything ever WORK when they're are about to get killed!? Poor dumb teenagers...:(

Im not going to argue with that since I do like the animated Series also.

[MaxofSteel]

Im not going to argue with that since I do like the animated Series also.

Damn yea!:D

[Nate Grey]

That series was awesome, I agree. Hope it gets put on DVD soon.

But yeah, whole movie explaining how time travel is dangerous, but then a) saves someone who history said was going to die, and then b) MARRIES AND PROCREATES with said person, creating two beings who didn't exist before. Mad ripples throughout time? It would have been funny if Marty brought this up and Doc just shrugged and goes "Eh."

[Your Imaginary Pal]

Not sure it's necessarilly a device, but for some reason I find it really annoying when they make it a point of putting the title of the movie into the dialogue. I can't think of an example right now. But in suspense movies I think that's the case often. It's not really a bad thing, it just seems that they often over dramatize that part to me.

Just like the media cliche in comic books. Where some random tv or news reporter gives the team or character a name inadvertantly.
example:
TV News reporter:
This group of New Warriors has just saved the day. (paraphrasing of course)

even though I might use it in a story one day.

[J. Robb]

Sex scenes with no nudity.
I'd like to add "Salma Hayek movies with no nudity." :p

Also, over-complicated set-ups. I hate it when we find out a good chunk of the movie was an elaborate ruse that, when you think about it, needed a million things to go perfectly right to pull off.

[Serik]

Also, over-complicated set-ups. I hate it when we find out a good chunk of the movie was an elaborate ruse that, when you think about it, needed a million things to go perfectly right to pull off.

I take it you're not a fan of the Ocean movies? :D

I was watching Deep Impact yesterday and could make a huge list of why it sucked, but I especially hated the ending: huge tidal wave wipes out Eastern seaboard, Western Europe, etc. and we hardly see any of it. Nope, fast-forward to some half-baked, quasi-inspirational speech delivered by Morgan Freeman in front of the under-construction US Capitol 2.0. Ya, Freeman can make any dialogue sound good, but it was still a terrible ending.

In short, I don't like condensed endings. I want some sense of conclusion that makes the past 2 hours worthwhile.

[Tages]

Completely tacked-on, contrived, unnecessary twist endings that make no sense, ala "Along Came a Spider."

[GrimShadow]

I'd like to add "Salma Hayek movies with no nudity." :p

Also, over-complicated set-ups. I hate it when we find out a good chunk of the movie was an elaborate ruse that, when you think about it, needed a million things to go perfectly right to pull off.

Despersdo had her in all her glory. Try again.

[nervmeister]

Cheapass parody movies that a chimpanzee could think up without much effort.

[StoneGold]

Cheapass parody movies that a chimpanzee could think up without much effort.

That's less of a device, more of a kind of movie you don't like.

[GrimShadow]

Cheapass parody movies that a chimpanzee could think up without much effort.

You dont like the trailer to Epic Movie either huh?

Spaceballs was one of the most well done parodys I have ever seen. That and the Two Austin Powers movies since it's obvious it's a parody off of James Bond.

[nervmeister]

You dont like the trailer to Epic Movie either huh?Definitely not. Also, I dislike bitchy wives in drug trafficking/organized crime movies who screw up their husbands rackets.

[Frodo-X]

Open endings.

You know, where you're supposed to figure out for yourself what happens?

I just paid you to tell me a story, and you expect me to come up with the end? That's crap! It's your job to tell the story, so tell me the whole friggin' thing!

[Black Atom]

It's high-time for the twist ending to go away.

[Scorpion13]

Open endings.

You know, where you're supposed to figure out for yourself what happens?

I just paid you to tell me a story, and you expect me to come up with the end? That's crap! It's your job to tell the story, so tell me the whole friggin' thing!

When its done right, its good.

When its not done right, its like you can almost see the writer in your head going "Oh crap, Ive written myself into a corner. How the hell am I going to end this. Hey! I know..."

[Buzz Dixon]

Computer hacking by ten year olds.

[TheLazy]

Tacked on happy endings that go against the grain of the movie.

(Back to the Future III: They spend the entire movie explaining how dangerous time travel is and how they should get rid of the machine...so Doc Brown of course shows up in a new one....)

Oh come on, can you seriously say you didnt wet yourself at the sight of the time travelling train?

That's less of a device, more of a kind of movie you don't like.

Yeah, but the s*** out these days pales in comparison to stuff like Space Balls:D and Blazing Saddles


I hate movies where the protagonist dies just to make him/her heroic. Titanic, KIDulthood, Siege, theres plenty of movies where it would have worked just as well with the protagonist surviving to learn his/her lesson.

:)

[StoneGold]

I hate movies where the protagonist dies just to make him/her heroic. Titanic, KIDulthood, Siege, theres plenty of movies where it would have worked just as well with the protagonist surviving to learn his/her lesson.

:)

What was the lesson in Titanic? Don't bang upper class chicks on unsinkable ships?

[Nyssane]

I hate movie trailers that are usually action-oriented, but still have that one snippit of either a sex scene or a chick in a bikini. I mean, jeez. It irritates me to no end.

[StoneGold]

I hate movie trailers that are usually action-oriented, but still have that one snippit of either a sex scene or a chick in a bikini. I mean, jeez. It irritates me to no end.

Similar tangent, but totally different, the romantic subplot that exists for no other reason than to draw women into the theater. Did the Dirty Dozen have a romantic subplot? Well, not unless you count Maggit and the German whore.

[Ontir]

I hate wordless trailers for foreign films. Just show us the damn sub-titles, and be done with it. Anyone who doesn't like sub-titles, is going to figure out that nobody's saying anything, because it's in French, anyway, and the rest of us don't care!

"_ _ _ year(s) later..." It's very rare that this device doesn't pull me right out of the film. There are other ways to do it, that are less transparent, and just better techniques/devices.

[Sanagi]

If at the beginning of the movie the female star is obviously made up to look frumpy and unattractive, you can figure out at least %50 of the plot right there.

[The Foreigner]

the romantic subplot that exists for no other reason than to draw women into the theater.

Oh, good gracious I hate this. Could anyone tell me the purpose of Halle Berry's character in Die Another Day? The movie sucked anyway, but you could have cut her out of that film entirely and it wouldn't have made one bit of difference as to how the story played out.

[cactusmaac]

Despersdo had her in all her glory. Try again.

I think that was a double.

[Atom_basher]

scenes that force you too hard to cry, see the end of John Q to see what i mean, id rather it be a genuine emotion than have it forced down my throat that i should be sad

[DonC]

I hate when the hero has some obscure skill that will become pivitol to saving his/her ass later in the movie. Like in one of the Lethal Weapon movies where Mel Gibson's character could dislocate his shoulder at will. Then, later in the movie, that saves when he's put in a straight jacket and thrown in the ocean.

[Atom_basher]

I hate when the hero has some obscure skill that will become pivitol to saving his/her ass later in the movie. Like in one of the Lethal Weapon movies where Mel Gibson's character could dislocate his shoulder at will. Then, later in the movie, that saves when he's put in a straight jacket and thrown in the ocean.

Or like in serenity when JUST SO HAPPENS, Mal has a cluster of dead nerve endings because of shrapnel, in the SAME spot where the operative uses his nerve strike

[parrish]

Movies that don't stop after they end. i.e., when the climax is over and the epilogue goes on and on.

[jessecuster3]

Unnecessary title cards drive me crazy. The best example I can think of is The Ring. If she watched the video on Monday and its now Tuesday they don't need to add Day 2 under Tuesday.

[Buzz Dixon]

Did the Dirty Dozen have a romantic subplot? Well, not unless you count Maggit and the German whore.You forget the graduation party scene.

[Buzz Dixon]

Death and resurrection unless that's the point of the film. Faux-deaths and resurrections in E.T., STAR TREK 2, etc., etc., and of course, etc. Unless it's a Biblical epic or a horror film, when somebody dies in a movie they should stay dead, dad-gummit!

[Dark Galaxy]

My husband can't stand the plot device when there is a big misunderstanding that makes everything go wrong. The only one I can sort of think of right now, is in Bend it Like Beckham. There is a part of the plot where Kiera Knightly's mom keeps thinking the two girls are lesbians. Everything that they are seen doing gets construed wrong because the mom thinks they are gay....hilarity is supposed to ensue. It doesn't.

[Your Imaginary Pal]

wasn't that the premise for every episode of Three's Company.
misunderstanding of words or intientions, only hearing half of a conversation and then spending the rest of the episode trying to stop said action.

[TheLazy]

What was the lesson in Titanic? Don't bang upper class chicks on unsinkable ships?

Yeah! Heres a medal.;)

Movies that don't stop after they end. i.e., when the climax is over and the epilogue goes on and on.

Thats what pissed me off about the new Dawn of the Dead. They should have left it at the gun shot.

:)

[nervmeister]

When slow-motion is used WAY too frequently.

[hoffmandu]

I hate when the hero has some obscure skill that will become pivitol to saving his/her ass later in the movie. Like in one of the Lethal Weapon movies where Mel Gibson's character could dislocate his shoulder at will. Then, later in the movie, that saves when he's put in a straight jacket and thrown in the ocean.

I don't know, I think they set that up quite nicely in LW2. Serenity? Aweful. It's not like Mel was able to save the day with that, his girl did die......

[oddieson]

the way a sprinkler system works is a blob of wax hold back the water when the wax melts water sprays. somehow in movies the dingus (sorry i dont know what they are called) sets off alrams and causes all the sprinkler to spray. Manholes require a special tool to remove but in movies climbing into the sewers well its not difficult.

[LordEd1976]

Completely tacked-on, contrived, unnecessary twist endings that make no sense, ala "Along Came a Spider."

Or like the ending to the Burton version of Planet of the Apes.

I also hate when a cheerful song is used over scenes of violence or something else depressing. Good Morning Vietnam used that with the song "What a Wonderful World" and Face-Off used it with the song "Over the Rainbow."

This isn't a film but ever since ER used the tropical version of "Over the Rainbow" over the scenes where Mark Greene dies I can't hear without almost crying.

[nervmeister]

I hate it when the director insists too much on erect nipples.

[TheLazy]

Or like the ending to the Burton version of Planet of the Apes.

I also hate when a cheerful song is used over scenes of violence or something else depressing. Good Morning Vietnam used that with the song "What a Wonderful World" and Face-Off used it with the song "Over the Rainbow."

This isn't a film but ever since ER used the tropical version of "Over the Rainbow" over the scenes where Mark Greene dies I can't hear without almost crying.

I studied film and this is callen contrapuntal noise. Used right it can be effective, like in snatch where Brad Pitts character KOs that big guy in one punch and panic ensue, accompanied by the most laid back song Iv ever heard. Mostly they just use tacky songs with moments of extreme violence so its to obvious.

:)

[Lee Kaye]

This isn't a film but ever since ER used the tropical version of "Over the Rainbow" over the scenes where Mark Greene dies I can't hear without almost crying.

I still remember him dying. God that was heart wrenching.

[blackdragon6]

In short, I don't like condensed endings. I want some sense of conclusion that makes the past 2 hours worthwhile.thats the problem i had with x-men 3

[Jared]

Bathing the actors inblue light for romantic love scenes. Or sometimes blue light is used to make a scene more ominous (X-Files used to do that a lot.) Where is this mysterious blue light coming from?

Sewers that have clean water and don't smell bad.


Calling 911 at a pivotal moment and being put on hold.

[TheLazy]

Calling 911 at a pivotal moment and being put on hold.

Now you mention 911, I hate it when a cop or someone goes into a room with a gun looking for a suspect, only to hear a noise AND THEN COCK THEIR WEAPON! What happens if the suspect attacks before the weapon was loaded? pisses me right off.

:)

[Kirayoshi]

Gene Siskel identified what he called the Fallacy of the Talking Killer. The villain has the hero dead to rights. All he has to do is pull the trigger and his nemesis is dead. But he gloats. He outlines the hero's mistakes. He insults or theatens the hero. And he gives the hero enough time to escape or defeat him.

Examples: practically every James Bond movie, Die Hard("Thanks for the advice."), most action-thrillers actually.

Related to the Talking Killer is the Elaborate Death Trap, another staple of James Bond movies(one of the things I liked about Casino Royale). Bond villains are especially fond of carnivorous fish or reptiles(pirhannas, sharks, alligators). Dr. Evil in the Austin Powers series sent up both these devices.

[TheLazy]

Gene Siskel identified what he called the Fallacy of the Talking Killer. The villain has the hero dead to rights. All he has to do is pull the trigger and his nemesis is dead. But he gloats. He outlines the hero's mistakes. He insults or theatens the hero. And he gives the hero enough time to escape or defeat him.

Examples: practically every James Bond movie, Die Hard("Thanks for the advice."), most action-thrillers actually.

Related to the Talking Killer is the Elaborate Death Trap, another staple of James Bond movies(one of the things I liked about Casino Royale). Bond villains are especially fond of carnivorous fish or reptiles(pirhannas, sharks, alligators). Dr. Evil in the Austin Powers series sent up both these devices.

Scott Evil: " Yeah, but why dont you just shoot him?"

:)

[Darth Joker]

Sex scenes with no nudity.


Seriously, if you aren't going to show me some nipple, just go to a fade out. We know they're having sex, I don't need to see the back of someone's knee rubbing against some unidentifiable body part for a minute and a half. It doesn't do anything for me, and it just puts a gaping hole in your narrative structure.

I agree with that.

A sex scene should at least arouse the viewer - if it doesn't do that, why bother to have a sex scene in the first place?

Speaking of which, I dislike the addition of sex scenes that don't flow with the narrative at all.

A good sex scene should flow with the narrative, and not be minutes of unidentifiable body parts.

[Gaz]

I studied film and this is callen contrapuntal noise. Used right it can be effective, like in snatch where Brad Pitts character KOs that big guy in one punch and panic ensue, accompanied by the most laid back song Iv ever heard. Mostly they just use tacky songs with moments of extreme violence so its to obvious.

:)
I'd even argue that 'What A Wonderful World' is so ambiguous that it's NOT contrapuntal. I've always heard the song as being as melancholy as it is hopeful.