10 Cinematic Clichés That Must Die!
by James HudnallAs a writer and consumer of entertainment, I really hate clichés and stereotypes. They’re only useful for misdirection, making readers believe the story is going a certain way so you can fool them. But Hollywood keeps trotting out the following lame tropes over and over again. It’s about time they were called on the carpet for this stupidity. These stereotypes are not only offensive; they’re overused to the point where they must be retired for good. If you really care about not offending people, Hollywood, stop offending me and the legions of people who are sick of this drivel.
1. The Crazed Vet/Soldier: According to Hollywood, if you’re a veteran who fought in a war or a soldier returning from one, you are insane, dangerous and probably a murderous sociopath. Either that or you’re a pathetic loser with mental problems. An emotional basket case. And of course, only poor people join the military, only uneducated stooges easily fooled by government propaganda. No one joins the military because they believe in something. If they do they will find out how foolish they were and become disgusted with America.
Note to Hollywood: Obviously, reality and research are a problem for you. Here’s a newsflash: People from all walks of life join the military and most who serve during wartime never experience serious combat, or any combat at all. During the Iraq war, it was actually statistically more dangerous to work on a farm or drive a taxi cab than to be a soldier in Iraq. And most vets are stable people. They’re trained to be responsible and orderly. They’re trained to deal with stressful situations rationally. Those who can deal with live fire are more likely to be able to handle stress back home, not the other way around. You’ve created ugly myths that betray the very people who make it possible for you to lead your silly lives. They defend the free speech that you use to defame their good name. They work for little money, often in horrible conditions, away from the people they love, for years in some cases. They risk their lives so other people can be free. People like you. And this is the thanks they get? You should be ashamed of yourselves! This is an insane form of prejudice. Bigotry against people who protect you.
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2. The Professional Bitch: For some reason, professional women have to hate men in Hollywood films and TV. They have to be cold, and smarter than men in every way. Their aloofness and snobbery is supposedly a way of showing they are above the lowly male. But of course, the right guy may melt their heart toward the end of the story. But he will almost always be dumb in some way and act more like a puppy than a man.
Note to Hollywood: The 70s are over. Man hating Feminism is so passe it might as well be wearing bell bottoms. I get it; you’re trying to create some friction between the characters so the romance will be hotter, except you make these women unlikable. Who cares if they get the guy? Unpleasant people are tedious. And few of you know how to make entertaining bitches. They’re always the same, tired kind. Smart people know how to be appealing to others. They know the importance of being charming. If your professional woman is really smart, then having some kind of witty verbal play would show that. But it seems many of you can’t write witty banter anymore. Maybe the problem is you don’t know how to write appealing characters because you’re writing about yourself?
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3. The Evil Christian: Hollywood seems to say that anyone who believes in Christianity is a sexual deviant, crook or a murderer. Christians are always shown to be hypocrites and phonies. They’re never good people. They’re exposed as pious frauds when their “true colors” are revealed.
Note to Hollywood: Do any of you realize that Judeo-Christian values are the foundations of modern liberalism? That liberalism was a movement that came from Christianity? The very things you claim to believe were derived from that. Every group of people has their bad apples. To constantly paint Christians in this way because of a few is pathetic. You want to be seen as tolerant and yet to resort to these abysmally vicious clichés? By your logic everyone in Hollywood is a scumbag. Christians do a lot of good work all over the world. More charity work than all the liberals in Hollywood combined. Christians do more public service, feed more of the poor, work in more developing countries and provide rehab and other outreach services than Hollywood ever will. So why do you hate them? Don’t like the competition? Maybe you pick on them because they don’t fight back. Maybe you hate them because they set a better example than you. Show some respect for their good works. If you don’t agree with their religion, find a better target. One that deserves it.
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4. The Stupid Dad/Male: In Hollywood movies men are either stupid or gay. If they are straight, they’re almost always either buffoons, geeks or dumb jocks. Women are always smarter. Men can’t do anything without a woman telling them what to do. And fathers can’t take care of the kids. They can’t cook dinner or even be good parents. They’re always too busy to spend time with their kids, or they do idiotic things that get the family into constant trouble.
Note to Hollywood: The only thing more idiotic than this cliché is the fact that you keep using it after it was worn out 20 years ago. Maybe you write dumb characters because you write from experience. Or maybe it’s because ripping off Homer Simpson is easier than thinking. Perhaps your way of telling people you’re a sexist creep. Misandry is not better than misogyny. Bad is bad. What you’re doing is morally, ethically and intellectually bankrupt. In other words, it’s stupid.
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5. The Magical Minority (aka “Magic Negro”): I’m sure you’ve seen a movie or three where some wise old Black/Asian/Native-American man/woman, who’s usually a janitor/maid/babysitter/garbage man, is a fountain of wisdom and always seems to know things. And they dispense good luck with some sparkly effects and a wink. They seem to either have supernatural powers, or they enter the clueless white person’s life and change it for the better by getting them to loosen up and put on some James Brown records. Dancing to black music or putting on some other ethic affectation always makes the dumb white character cool somehow. Because, let’s face it, white people are lame. Their culture is stupid and they are clueless. Right?
Note to Hollywood: Guess what? Aside from being racist to whites, it’s patronizing and a soft form of bigotry. Viewing “people of color” as being “special” because of their race is the point of view of a white person who doesn’t get to know others too well. Probably because they’re self centered. Race doesn’t put any one group on some exalted level, you know. There is a term for doing that. It starts with an R and I already used it for those of you who are slow. People are people. They don’t get magic powers with their skin color. Black people can’t automatically sing well (see American Idol). Native American people don’t commune with the spirit world and animals just because they took some money from you the last time you visited a Sedona gift shop. And yeah, old Asian men don’t all know kung fu and feng shui. Sorry. This kind of stuff annoys a lot of minorities. Though some find it useful when they want to trick dumb lefties.
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6. The Pedophile Priest: Similar to the Evil Christian except this is a huge fictional cliché . According to Hollywood, unless there’s a demon that needs exorcising, priests are all sanctimonious, corrupt child molesters. And often alcoholic ones at that.
Note to Hollywood: The Catholic Church made a huge mistake sweeping the pedophile priest problem under the rug for so long. They didn’t want to give the Church a bad name, so they moved the priests around rather than kicking them out. The problem grew until it became a serious a national scandal but not every priest did this. Once again, you show you have no imagination by whipping out this drivel every time you have a priest in a story (unless it involves demons or Vatican corruption). Sweeping generalizations against a group of people is something you like to accuse conservatives of doing. Hypocrisy alert! Why don’t you take a break from this one? It’s played out and tired. Try something current for a change. Like the UN child sex scandals.
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7. The Traditionalist Hypocrite: Anyone who stands for traditional values, or works in a traditionally male role, like a cop, fireman, cowboy is revealed to be a drunk, wife beater, or criminal. Because we all know that tradition is wrong. At least, that’s what Hollywood seems to think. (Similar to the Crazed Vet/Soldier).
Note to Hollywood: Just because you live in a messed-up social circle where being a drugged-out, back-stabbing phony is common, doesn’t mean that everyone else is like that. And just because you can’t be imaginative enough to make complex characters rather than clichés, doesn’t excuse you from your lameness. We know what you’re trying to do. You want to tear down the male in our culture. The creeps passing as lit professors at your college called it “deconstruction.” Remember that old joke that those who can’t do, teach? Our culture isn’t your urinal. We’re not interested in your daddy issues or your loyalty oath to the brainwashed counterculture. Like I said, the 70s are over. So is the 20th century. Get over it and start writing real people or find something else to do.
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8. Evil Republicans: What a surprise. All Republicans in movies or TV are evil. They’re all trying to cheat the public, start unnecessary wars, take away civil rights and turn the country into a fascist dictatorship. And, of course, it’s saintly Democrats who save the day.
Note to Hollywood: Do you even bother to educate yourself about the corruption going on out there? A lot of Democrats in the news lately aren’t exactly saintly themselves. And those who aren’t under investigation are busy trying to pass laws taking away more freedoms in the name of “saving us”. Gee, isn’t that what you claimed Bush was doing? If you think your party is the good guys and the Republicans the bad guys, no wonder so many of you are crazy. You’re bound for some massive disappointments in the next 4 years. While this will amuse those of us not blinded by your hubris, the fact is politicians of any party are our servants. Some of them forget that and they deserve our scorn. But your blind acceptance of one party, your blind hatred of the other, makes you one-dimensional hacks. We seek truth in our fiction, not propaganda. If you can’t deliver, McDonalds is always looking for burger flippers.
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9: Wise Trashy People: According to Hollywood: hookers, homeless and bizarre lifestyle people are the normal ones. They know what’s “really going on, man.” They’re just being honest. Everyone else is a freak. People who act normal are all depraved and sick. The suburbs are a place of spiritual death. The only truth lies in Bohemia.
Note to Hollywood: So, people who lead self destructive lives (as many of those listed above do, but not all) are wiser than those who try to lead responsible lives? Really? Based on what evidence? Have you ever flipped through the mugshots on sites like the Smoking Gun? Not a lot of “ordinary people” there. And not too many people I would accuse of being wise. Nope. Are you perhaps trying to tell us something about yourselves? Are you trying to rationalize your own freaky code? Or is it just another attempt to dump on traditional society and normalcy. We know that you seem to hate it. You certainly seem to have contempt for Middle America. Well, you’re asking for the same from us. Watch it.
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10. Flyover Losers: Hollywood says: Everyone in the middle or South of America are worthless, toothless, dumb-as-dirt, inbred hicks who may or may not be incestuous psycho killers who keep their deformed children chained in the basement and let them out to feed on any foolish coast dwellers who run out of gas near their house. Either that or they’re insane Bible-thumping Jesus Freaks who want to scream about the Lord and torture you in bizarre reenactments of Passion of the Christ.
Note to Hollywood: If you’ve read this far and haven’t learned anything you really are as stupid as the tropes described above. And probably as inbred and as crazy, so I don’t know what good it is lecturing you. Maybe I’ll just join the public and stop supporting anything with these abysmally lame, sub-literate, morally bankrupt caricatures. You’re starting to look like a bad stereotype yourselves. And smell twice as rank. Clean up your act!
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779 Comments
British Accent = Evil, Brilliant or both. But mostly evil. Or maybe God.
And if they dropped these, then what?
Actually…write interesting and complex charcters exchanging witty dialogue about weighty issues or solidly entertaining escapades??
Obviously, you’ve posted your April 1st column too early.
But keep hammering away.
The wall may not fall down, but maybe it’ll at least start to ache a little.
I repeat myself–I sooooooo love this site. You are so right on. I just have a great feeling about this website; I think you’re going to have a huge impact. Everyone who writes here is no only completely based in common sense and reality, but you’re just great communicators.
What if instead of just not going to these movies–instead, we go and picket outside the theater and list some of the very reasons you mentioned in your article? Just let me know what I, an ordinary citizen, can do to help, and I’ll be there!
Ah yes, the Evil Corporation. I second that.
This is a rant about what the TV Tropes Wiki calls the “Strawman Political.” 3, 6, 7, 8, and 10 fit this description.
As for other TV Tropes equivalences:
1 is the “Shell Shocked Veteran.”
2 sounds like a “Straw Feminist,” which is just a subset of the Strawman Political.
4 is the “Bumbling Dad.”
5 is the “Magical Negro” (obviously!)
I’m not sure of 9’s TV Tropes equivalent.
All in all, this is an all-right article, though I had already grown tired of the clichés myself.
Great post, James. As a not-yet-produced writer, I would like to add something. Part of the problem is the conventional wisdom being handed out in screenwriting books, seminars, and film schools. I accept that the movie biz is part art and part profit-making business. Trouble is, the art side (creating fresh characters, settings, and story lines) is too often viewed as an “unnecessary” risk.
“How to be an entreprenuer” books warn against trying to be an innovator. If you want to maximize your chances of success, say the business experts, do not innovate – offer people a familiar product or service they already know – with a twist to make it better.
Likewise, writers typically pound out specs “something like” a recent hit. And we all know that producers want to buy scripts that are “the same, only different.” If your script does NOT have the cliche characters and a tried-and-true story line, business people don’t see much chance of success. “How do we KNOW that these characters or this story will appeal to people?” It’s safer to stick with the familiar.
This makes sense if you’re starting a restaurant or a hardware store, but it’s a lethal attitude for the arts. If “make money” is your goal, stop wasting your time writing. There are much easier ways to make a buck!
The challenge is to come up with fresh material that works. If you want to write a “traditional values” story, here’s your incentive to ditch the traditional cliches: your story is already off-kilter. Go for broke!
I saw Gran Torino – what a great example of what I’m talking about.
Too many writers – conservative or otherwise – are following a well-beaten path toward what they think is a commercial story – but instead, turns it turns out to be the same-ol’ same-ol’ dusty cliche. If you’re a writer, you’re supposed to use your imagination – no one is going to pay you just to strike computer keys.
These things have been done to death:
1. Sports redemption
2. Psycho slasher
3. Agnsty teen comedy
4. Quirky teen comedy
5. Gross-out romantic comedy
6. Rogue agent
7. Heist gone wrong
8. Shoot-em-up
9. Magical kids, with or without talking animals
10. Cute dog (or whatever)
Yawn! What’s the point? The number of specs making the rounds in each of those architypes is in the zillions already. Be original! You’re writing something traditional and pro-American, so what have you got to lose?
James, if they stopped using the characters on your list, most of Hollywood wouldn’t be able to cobble together movies anymore.
Lee: It got started when the communists took over Hollywood circa 1943. They were our “allies” then, but after the war, no one bothered to kick them out.
Re #5:
Evidently you didn’t get this memo either. Only whites can be racist. All non-whites CANNOT be racist.
Thank you! I’ve noticed every one of those cliches and despise every one of them. (Especially the anti-Southern and anti-military cliches. Note to Hollyweird: That’s my family you’re bashing) Needless to say, I don’t watch much tv any more and even fewer movies.
What pedophile priests? You perpetuate a lie with this cliche. The priests were gay, not pedophiles. The were all same sex molestations (the lone female who I remember filing a suit was molested by a nun) of mostly adolescant boys. Pedophiles molest usually much younger children of bot sexes. Back in the mid 80s there were published warnings that the Catholic Church was courting disaster with it’s 70% – 80% recruitment of gay priests (due to the no marriage requirement) and it happened. So now we have a conserevative poster repeating the propaganda lie that it was pedophilia…
I think you hit them all. No, you forgot the wise children who know more than their parents.
There was an episode of “Frasier” from Season 2 or 3 that was surprising at the time, but makes far more sense now that Kelsey Grammer outed himself as a Republican.
In it, Frasier and Niles decided to go all-out to elect a liberal Democrat to Congress who they believed shared their political views, only to find out later the guy was a stark raving lunatic. What made the story work, and be true to character, is that given Seattle’s demographic and the Crane brothers cultural pretensions, the idea that they would be out there shilling for a liberal Democrat was perfectly natural. The shocking thing was that you’d actually see a liberal Democratic politician portrayed on a network TV show as a nut (normal procedure of course would have been to suddenly make Frasier and Niles into conservative Republicans so the looney candidate would then have the right party affiliation, even if that meant changing the main characters’ personalities just for that one episode).
How about the hero college professor. I know a few academics. They aren’t heroes, unless you call defeating the evil digestive effects of bourbon as a heroic trait. Most couldn’t get a real job if they tried. Yet the Da Vinci Code, that Redford/Cruise abortion, chances are a modern movie will have a college professor as the hero than a soldier or a cop.
You could also add the heroic newspaper writer. I’m a reporter and worked with plenty of others. Being heroic or altruistic is the last thing on any of their minds.
[...] at Big Hollywood – Breitbart’s new site – James Hudnall offers up excellent advice for Hollywood. I’ll excerpt it here, but the full article is well [...]
Joan – Russian accent = pure evil, especially for males; teh hawtness (sic) for females.
Even in this generation, where there is no more Soviet Union, a Russian/Ukranian/Southwest Asian/Southeast European accent is used as an indicator of evil. Not governmental evil any more, but of organized criminal evil. In Taken, the main bad guys are Albanian “Mafia”; in the last 2 Bond films, the criminals had “Eastern Bloc” flavored accents.
Yes, we know that the Germans, Italians and Japanese are tha bad guys in WW2 films; and that the Russians, East Germans, and Yugoslavians are the bad guys in Cold War films; but PLEASE, can we have bad guys that aren’t Russians all the time?
Maybe more Arab bad guys; or is that too politically incorrect?
well, when you choose to see mainstream films, can you expect any better than cliches? Perhaps you’re looking in the wrong places for the original and intellient material you crave.
More “Arab bad guys” wouldn’t be politically incorrect. I see them all the time. Actually, they’re pretty cliche. Ooops. That wasn’t on the list . . . big surprise.
And what about sainted gays (Philadelphia, Brokeback, Milk) . . . there’s a tired cliche . . .
Homeschoolers are freaks, or the kids are victims, is another not-so-prominent one that I’ve seen around on pop TV (Smallville, etc.). This might be tied to the Evil Christian, too, or even Evil Republican (but I bet there are Evil Liberal Christian Homeschoolers, too!).
You left out stupid and/or naive older people. In TV shows they’re usually the parents of the main characters and don’t even exist until they show up in some ridiculous story line like deciding to motorcycle across the country or leaving spouse of 50 years for unbelievable reasons.
Outstanding article. I’d add the noble blue collar worker- unless said worker is white, at which point the worker is ignant white trash.
And speaking of ignant, actionman wrote:
“I just vomitted in my mouth while reading this piece of trash article.”
Brilliant rebuttal, Einstein.
Think it’s time to dismantle this blog, if this is the rapier like wit that opposes us.
Bravo, James! Your list applies to comic book creators, too. Should be mandatory reading!
Hey, I have a great idea for any aspiring conservative filmmakers out their. A spoof comedy called the cliche movie that incorporates all of the above cinematic cliches. Maybe if these cliches are ridiculed enough publicly Hollywood will stop using them.
Nice list!
This is my biggest objection to most bad movies: bad characters. In fact, going back to the Battlestar Gallactica post yesterday:
http://bighollywood.breitbart.com/dbenedict/2009/01/19/lt-starbuck-lost-in-castration/
This list here describes why I can’t watch BSG. Most of the characters in that show are built upon these cliches that you just described.
Have you ever heard the lefties in Hollywood show any cognizance of the fact that they are doing this? Or do they not realize it at all?
I like to watch these cliché movies on a dark and stormy night….
So Growltiger, I guess you would like to see Nazis portrayed as the “good guys”?
Go back to prowling Stormfront… bigot.
I give him 0/100 for comprehension, but 80/100 for enthusiasm.
Also, I am at this moment penning a letter to President Obama pleading with him — for the healing of the nation — to put a stop to the use of “I just vomited/threw up a little in my mouth.” Talk about cliche.
Good post, James…and as someone mentinoed we can’t forget the evil corporation. I wonder if all of this is the main reason Hollywood’s customers are primarily teenagers?
Another cliche’ that seems to be out there a lot is that there is Nothing funnier than an overweight black person when they are dancing.
This article, and the comments, pissed me off for several reasons.
First – yes, most films take the easy way out with characters. Most films suck, let’s only make the good ones. Wait….that doesn’t work. Films must & will be made, and people are fallible. The bell curve works with film quality.
Second – a primary tool in the writer’s arsenal is the dichotomy/juxtaposition. Sad clown. Evil priest. Mature child. It works, because we the audience takes notice of these. When you see a fun clown, you walk on by. Yup, seen hundreds of those. Same with good natured priest and child-like child. Boring. Every day. To get up on 50′ of reflective canvas, it needs to be different, interesting. No one has had a problem with the uneducated street rat knowing all the answers in “Slumdog Millionaire.”
Third – if you don’t like it, make your own movie.
How about Hollywood almost always showing male gays as being various versions of the ’sissy’ type, or of being neurotic in some way? And how often are lesbians shown to be some version of being ‘butch’?
I am an older gay man (55) who has lived in San Francisco for many years. We homosexuals are men and woman, Hollywood, not the sexual parodies that you have presented us as being since the very beginning of profesional filmdom. There are many homosexual actors in Hollywood, but why should they come out knowing that the general publics attitude toward them will change from being a fan to “Oh, so he/she is queer!”.
Jever notice that most courtroom scenes are centered by a black female judge? It’s become a cliché in movies and in TV.
Jack Bauer – January 20th, 2009 at 12:14 pm
“Dude, I would say like, get a life dude!”
Nothing more cliche than flame-bait.
The intrepid reporter who will stop at no ends to expose the Evil Corporation or the like. Commonly screams “People have a right to know” and a strange obsession with “The scoop.”
“Second – a primary tool in the writer’s arsenal is the dichotomy/juxtaposition. Sad clown. Evil priest. Mature child. It works, because we the audience takes notice of these.”
You missed the point Directorguy. These themes have been done and overdone to the point that they no longer surprise or interest us. Portraying a clown as funny or happy WOULD catch our attention since we have seen nothing but scary and suicidal clowns for the past 30 years.
Moreover, the “dichotomy/juxtaposition” character has become a crutch for unimaginative writers — that is why they are now cliche, and we are sick of them.
You know what would be eye-catching for the American audience? A REAL character. You know, like a married guy in his early 30’s who works 40-60 hours a week, yet barely makes enough to cover his bills, and loses sleep at night because he barely gets to see his young children or wife. Show his struggles, justify his feelings, then integrate a story of triumph…and boom, $200 million box office.
Some others:
1) The Evil CIA
2) Blacks overcoming white racism.
3) The saintly journalist exposing evil corporation.
Most of the time, people now assume that any character in a movie/show will fit in one of these cliches (eg, you can stop watching Law and Order when they introduce the aggressively christian/conservative guy, since he is obviously the one who did it). There is no “insight” or “irony” in using the cliches anymore. It’s just plain laziness by the writers.
However, these cliches can still be exploited very effectively to trick the audience. If you have a priest character, make sure a few shots reinforce the cliche (eg, a shot lingering a bit too long with the priest looking at children, while the music becomes ominous). This is all it takes to absolutely convince the audience that the priest is a molester. Then, when it is revealed at the end that the priest is actually the good guy, the audience is genuinely surprised and entertained.
That actually takes imagination, and is the only way you are going to get the audience to ‘examine their own prejudices’ or whatever BS the writers use to justify the continued use of these cliches.
You ommitted the “idiot savant” character that must have the highest proportion of Oscar winners.That’s a teeth grinding stereotype.
Please, no more crusading journalists who know everything and are always on the side of right.They are never capricious,envious,greedy,lazy or ignorant because they have a mission to make sure the mail gets through come rain or shine….
I am eight of these catagories,a white, catholic,hetero,traditional,suburban,Republican, father, Vietnam Vet. I was also a business ’suit’. I can’t watch anything without being punched in the face by these clowns.
The only black guy cast in the show plays the chief of police.
[...] at Big Hollywood is an interesting list of cinema clichés that should die. Number one is: 1. The Crazed [...]
Though you didn’t cover it, per se, you covered it from several angles. My one least favorite stereotype in movies and TV these days is the evil white-man. He’s not just any white guy, he’s usually a White, Christian, husband/father, conservative, white guy, and he’s always the baddest guy in the whole movie even if there are saintly dope dealers and wonderful gangbangers throughout the movie.
Hollywood hasn’t had an original thought in 30 years. Must be all that alcohol and cocaine! Like the Demoncrats, Hollywood is inherently evil and stupid and it’s belief system puts out films that have no relationship to reality. They are racists, bigots, sexists, misanthropic, anti-American and the result are films mostly that don’t open! Eventually, financial reality will hit them between the eyes and they will stop making films that only exist as a derangement or a delusion! Mr Hudnall I salute your treatise!!!
I was going to ask how you could leave out the “mad scientist” cliche, but I think JOHNFNWAYNE answered that. He’s morphed into the nerdy college professor who Speaks Truth to Power (tm.)
Still a cliche I have no use for.
This site keeps getting better and better. Best Commentary on the site yet.
BRAVISIMO!! May your words sear deep into the conscience of the Hollywood bigots.
And if you are reading this GARY BUSEY, if one soldier has been killed as a result of your portrayal of an evil
military doctor in Valley of the Wolves, (who sells organs to wealthy Israelis that were ripped out of Iraqi bodies) then may you spend 9 eternities in the Bardo – you’re the worst kind of traitor.
Thanks for your guts and insight Mr. Hudnall – I salute you.
So many replies … it looks like this crowd is a market. Writers/developers should network and use the the Internet for distribution.
A-B-S-O-L-U-T-E-L-Y P-E-R-F-E-C-T!
Seriously, you nailed it all, holy crap, someone else gets it!
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Oh yessss ….
From now on I only want to see movies devoid of all conflict and character development.
Maybe a movie about fat freepers sitting behind their keyboards all day bitching about how miserable their lives are will be next years “big block buster”.
At least there won’t be any “magic negroes” in it.
: JAMES HUDNALL, I made a film that shows the vietnam veteran as a heros I am selling the DVDs off my website http://www.fogottenheroesthemovie.com I have been at this for 20 years. I pissed off a lot of powerful liberals in town and they blacklisted me for years and years and even now I am ignored around here like a homeless drunk in a crowded elevator. I am just letting YOU know that FORGOTTEN HEREOS exist and that I was making conservative pro american films way back in the early 80s before any of these blogs and documentaries were being made. I’d love to post my story on here for all conservatives that are just FED UP with all this BS being dumped on us in a movie theater that we PAY to see. I am blogging all over algore’s creation, I am on internet radio shows all over the country and people are buying the film. I am getting great responses. Too many Hollywood people both liberal and conservative are just way to jaded with their opinions with films. If you people are truly fed up with all this crap dished out by Hollywood, then I have the film you can throw back at them. It is the only 35 mm narrative feature length film ready for any theater in the country. FORGOTTEN HEROES go to the site, buy the film because you want to SUPPORT a real conservative FILMMAKER and with your purchase we make a donation of our profits to THE AMERICAN VETERANS DISABLED FOR LIFE MEMORIAL FUND . Every DVD sold is a victory for our side and right now I am the only one from our side out there in the trenches fighting these Hollywood fascist. There is talk and there is action and action gets things done lets get the only Vietnam film that honors our troops to salute a generation that was spit on in film.
What about the sentient machine/computer/software that comes to the conclusion that humans are the problem and must be destroyed?
I’m tired of seeing the rogue CIA agent with evil intent. Or the NSA as being some dark & evil organization who’s member are working to secretly manipulate the lives of ordinary people.
With all the true evil in the world how come Hollywood chooses them to be their villians so much of the time?
Right on the money! Exactly!
Great. This even opened up my eyes…
“Second – a primary tool in the writer’s arsenal is the dichotomy/juxtaposition. Sad clown. Evil priest. Mature child. It works, because we the audience takes notice of these.”
Sh’yeah, right. Apparently you didn’t notice the box office for “Sister Act” or “National Tresaure”. You know, “good nuns”. “Honest cops”. “Evil thieves.” “Altruistic patriots”. But evidently the audience did.
“Third – if you don’t like it, make your own movie.”
I think you have unwittingly hit upon the motivating undercurrent of this entire site: Leftist hack screenplays are passé.
I hope that didn’t tear up the street where you live too much.
Great article. Bighollywood is becoming a regular stop for me.
Way to go! Spot on as usual. Maybe someday we can wake more people up to the fact that pop culture is killing america & making more & more people ignorant & apathetic. It makes me long for the days when John Wayne, John Ford, Ward Bond & Jimmy Stewart were in hollywood & it wasnt so taboo to say you were a conservative. Keep up the good work! Remember everybody, support & buy consevative entertainment. That is the only way to defeat this crap.
Great article!
And I agree with the posters who mentioned The Evil Corporate Suit as another tired cliche. Sheesh, you’d think Hollywood was some little cottage industry, entirely unconcerned with making a buck,…,The oil business and the insurance business and every other big business under the sun is filled with corrupt monsters, but studio heads apparently believe they have the souls of Gandhi – hey, they support the correct political party, do they not? And they don’t wear suits and ties to their business meetings, so they must be OK.
Oh yessss ….
From now on I only want to see movies devoid of all conflict and character development.
Translation: Waaaahhh! I don’t wanna my cliches challenged! I love those cliches!! You can’t take those stereotypes away, they’re MY stereotypes!!!
(Oh yessss then stomps off to bedroom and stamps the door.)
Actually, I have my favorite stereotype too, the whiney, wussy, spitty liberal with a massive sense of entitlement – never see them in the movies, but they’re everywhere.
[...] will embrace what is right”» Hail to the Chief» Video: Roberts flubs the oath» 10 Cinematic Clichés That Must Die!» AMERICA PASSES A MILESTONE: We now have more people employed in government than [...]
The inspirational teacher who helps his/her students overcome obstacles to achieve greatness (see Lean On Me, Dead Poets Society, Dangerous Minds, Stand and Deliver, Freedom Writers)
This cliche can sometimes be effective, as in the true-life story The Marva Collins Story (TV movie from the early 80s). But it can be overdone.
Jill, buy FORGOTTEN HEROES the only Vietnam action war drama without the F-Bombs and sick violence. I made a old fashion war film in a vietnam setting. If you want to spend money on a film that makes you feel proud of our Vietnam Vets than my film is the one for you to invest in. Besides I am donating $5.00 from each DVD sale to the AMERICAN VETERANS DISABLED FOR LIFE MEMORIAL FUND this the organization that Gary Sinise is the spokesperson to help raise the funding. Anyone can go to my website and buy the film at http://www.forgottenheroesthemovie.com This is the only real independent 35mm feature narrative film made by a conservative with a track record of real films. My film doesn’t preach it entertains you.
I wonder if great blog postings like these ever get sent to Hollywood writers and executives (or instead, if they just languish in the blogosphere and get a lot of affirming comments).
If it’s incisive, print out a copy and mail it to your favorite cliche offender! Track down the address and mail it there. You never know what could happen.
Never said they should be “good guys”. Read the post again. Or can you read? If not, get someone to read it to you. I said I’m tired of the Nazis as villains – it’s been done. And done. And done. And done. And done. And done…………..
What Growl means is, when Big Hollywood needs an international terrorist threat, they select European white nationalists (e.g. Sum of All Fears), when most terrorists are anything but.
The last movie I saw that attempted to portray the radial islam terrorist with any sort of realism was “The Seige”. Of course, it used several tropes in that as well (Meglomaniac Military Leader).
[...] Here [...]
Well, Actionman, perhaps that is what your mouth is for.
[...] these cliches in fiction and cinema. [...]
biggest hollywood stereotype of all? all germans are evil, and/or german accent = evil. time to give it a rest, especially in light of more recent atrocities to which we’re collectively looking the other way.
Right on! What amazes me is that I assume these writers work for companies interested in making a profit. It would seem to me that if the people running the show were interested in maximizing that profit, they would encourage the writers to a) become aware of world events, and b) learn about American exceptionalism. Since most Americans love America, and want to have their pride about their country reinforced, they’d love to pay to see an epic in which pure evil is vanquished by righteous Americans. To do so would not require making anything up. All they have to do is learn about what our soldiers did, and are doing, to liberate Iraq. I recognize this might be difficult. The writers would have to overcome prejudice, media misinformation, political manipulation, and learn. They’d have to learn the facts about the nature of this part of the geopolitical struggle against Islamic Supremicists, the pure evil incarnate practiced by Islamic Supremicists, about the pride and bravery of American troops, and how those brave selfless American troops have been used as pawns by the hateful political left but shrug it off anyway because of their tremendous character. Such a story would bring unimagined profits to Hollywood. Unfortunately, the producer, director, and actors would be shunned by their brethren. But heh, what’s more important? Being popular at some silly Hollywood party or providing for your family?
[...] ..that should die. As they note in comments, he left out the Evil Corporation, and tired trope that businessmen are heartless monsters. I’ve written about the latter in the past. [...]
Any bullet wound that causes people to fly backwards 10 feet…..
Any fistfight that lasts more than 5 blows…unless BOTH are expert martial artists, it’s not a game and anyone who has been trained at all can immobilize/kill another person in just a few steps
Quiet, clean, violent death: It’s neither
‘Flesh wounds’, ‘grazing wounds’ and other ‘minor’ bullet wounds. If bullets were so benign, wars would be pretty damned boring.
Entertainment execs that are afraid to make evil people (say, islamic fundamentalist) evil. Of course, they may be worried about decapitation.
Here’s another one: the tiny wisp of a girl who can take out multiple big male bruisers.
Unless it’s a comic-book movie and she has super-powers, it’s just not believable. And yet we see it so often that it’s become a laughable cliche.
“So is the 20th century.”
Wait, which century is this, again? Didn’t the 21st century start 1st January, 2001?
Good piece.
These cliches are a problem not just because of lazy story telling, which should be enough, but because they are propaganda used to reinforce the writers world view, despite being wrong or very rare as James pointed out.
Ironically, some of these could be made into much better, maybe even good, stories if they were presented as the outliers that they are rather than the norm.
Say, a soldier returns from a war a bit unhinged, so his wife calls his old army buddies to talk to them. They are well adjusted/normal people and show him why he should be proud of the hard things he did. Etc.
Perhaps that’s how these started, because people assumed the norm, but after being so misused for so long, it seems that Hollywood actually thinks that these cliches are generalities that are representative, which makes them irritating indeed.
Hudnall: “I have not seen a lot of attacks on pagans or atheists in recent films and TV. They did it in the past, but I’m talking about current cliches. (the atheist one, I can’t even remember seeing anywhere.)”
I saw one recently for the pagans, “The Wicker Man.” The main character has a few of those stereotypes going for him. He’s a martinet. He’s a Catholic. He’s sexually repressed. He’s obviously supposed to be ridiculed for his squareness.
And then you realize that the people he’s up against aren’t just hippies, they’re literally pagans with bloody intent. And then they cruelly murder him for their own sick, gratuitous and unjustifiable purposes. And all he tried to do was uphold the law and protect and defend a child he had every reason to believe was being victimized.
I found it shocking to view a film (from the 70’s) where someone who is really quite unimpeachable in the character he shows (even for his misunderstandings) who is not only victimized, but martyred for his faith without a trace of irony. It’s really something we’re not familiar with because it’s been so thoroughly wiped out for centuries, but people used to die in just this way spreading civilization to the remoter parts of the world.
I’m not sure what effect it had on the audiences of the time (obviously it inspired pagans with the “Burning Man”, but that’s clearly not the intent of the film.) My reaction was more like the one in “Aliens.” I’d say nuke them from orbit, just to be sure.
But I’m a layman and not even Catholic: the traditional response would be to send in the Jesuits…one after the other until the disease was cured.
So, when the Catholics were vicioiusly murdering people in Spain during the Inquisition was that “spreading civilization”.
[...] has found it’s just too easy to use the same old tired memes over and over, hell they’ve even started to just recycle movies they made 20 or 30 years ago rather than [...]
“Catholic Ghoulgirls” – Sequel to 2003’s cult hit Escape from the Dead.
Any cliche’s in that one?
Flight ER Doc wrote: “Any bullet wound that causes people to fly backwards 10 feet…..”
Yes, and let’s not forget people who get hurled through storefront windows, and yet somehow manage to not bleed to death from their cuts. All those shards never seem to sever major arteries.
[...] Cinematic Cliches That Must Die Big Hollywood Blog Archive 10 Cinematic Clich
[...] from Big Hollywood 10 Cinematic Clichés That Must Die! the best take down of the big wigs in the entertainment industry. I am sick of the rotten movies we [...]
“there actually is humor to be found in subjects other than the sexual obsessions of teenage Jewish boys.”
My 23-year-old daughter Salem and I are “movie buddies”, that is, we’ve gone to a lot of movies together over the years. We’ve had a long-standing joke that “edgy teen/young adult comedies” usually work out to male directors and/or screenwriters putting up on the screen their unrealized (and unrealistic) teenage fantasies. ..bruce..
Good to know I’m not the only one who has observed and is irritated that men are always portrayed as stupid, women as smart.
Excellent article and comments.
Just to add a couple:
1) If there is any type of contest/competition between a woman and a man, or between a minority and a white person, the woman/minority will *always* win, at least by the end of the movie.
2) Regardless of your age and occupation, you’ll live in a home you couldn’t possibly afford in the real world. Really, you work in a coffee shop and you live in this awesome loft in downtown NY?
And already mentioned, but the one that really gets my goat is how stupid and helpless men are portrayed in both movies and TV. The man is *always* wrong/stupid/oblivious/lazy and needs to be guided and cajoled by his wiser wife and/or kids. Could we once in a while see a dad who is competent, clever, and sets a good example for the family? You can’t say that is dramatically uninteresting – you have women in that role all the time.
More:
Along with the "Magic Minority" there's the "Magic Homosexual":
He's always hilarious, honest, stylish, good-looking, sincere, kind, glib, smart and heroic. The lesbian is sweet but a constant victim.
Sorry..not every gay person fits that description…except according to Hollywood. There are plenty of slimy gays out there as ther are hetero's
And of course the evil conservative spends at least 50% of his life figuring out how to oppress minorites.
One thing I really liked about Steven Spielberg’s ET the Extraterrestrial was the fact the three kids were stupid. We’re talking dense. Jumping to conclusions, missing the point, underestimating grownups, that sort of thing. Displaying the lack of insight and forethought real kids are notorious for. In short, being children.
Then again, four year olds blab. There is no way Drew Barrymore could’ve kept that secret in real life. Even when they get something right there’s always something they get wrong.
Here’s more:
Protagonists are all writers/aspiring authors/English professors. And the corollary is that they all live in cool places like Seattle, New England or New York driving cars and living in homes they could no way afford in real life.
The poor girl gets raped by a big, dumb, mean, rich (white of course)jock upon enrollment at the new school…well she gets invited to a party first. (I’m sure anyone at his/her first day at a ghetto school is greated with open arms). Oh….and the ugly girl simply combs her hair a tad differently and puts on a cute sweater and is transformed into Miss America. Her blothcy skin and zits and downward gaze disappear; oh and her figure is the envy of Playboy models everywhere.
Young poor minority women are where they are (with illegitmate kids in tow) not because of bad life-choices because the white-run system has s**t on them. They are always sincere, honest and highly ambitious. Oh and they seem well educated despite a high school “diploma” from some slum gangster high school.
The kind but inexperienced journalist (read that white wussy male) cracks the crime of the century even though he can’t seem to get a job at the newspaper wielding a feather-duster.
Cliches are one thing, I’m just getting tired of the remakes of the “Classics”
Redoing “Friday the 13th”. You got to be kidding.
DAVE:
“Oh….and the ugly girl simply combs her hair a tad differently and puts on a cute sweater and is transformed into Miss America. Her blothcy skin and zits and downward gaze disappear; oh and her figure is the envy of Playboy models everywhere”
Gah. I absolutely despise those movies where they put an attractive girl with thick eyebrows in glasses and overalls and then insist that she’s “ugly.” Most often, I find I prefer the girl before her inevitable transformation into a fashion clone.
The only movie I’ve seen where they managed to pull off the “ugly” thing was “Never Been Kissed.” Drew Barrymore looks truly unpleasant in her high school flashback. From what I’ve seen of it, the original Spanish version of “Ugly Betty” has the main character looking pretty awful, too, but for some reason, the American version can’t summon the willpower to do the same.
[...] you read part one of this essay, you know I hate clichés and stereotypes. They’re the products of hack writers, lazy minds, [...]
[...] recently put together a set of essays featuring “Cinematic Clichés that must die”. Part one is here, and part two is here. Some of them spoke to me more than others. The Professional Bitch: [...]
All good cliches. The hurt hero whom continues to fight, and the super-bitch female boss that for some reason is still all desireable are my two biggest peeves. What about the raised from youth to be a cold-blooded ruthless don’t ask questions efficent hitman who disregards all that on a whim that the hooker he comes across on the hit will make him a new man, thus he compromises the mission to save her; whom he just met.
[...] Hudnall had a right-on post about 10 Cinematic Clichés That Must Die!, which he followed up with 10 more. I agree, but I offer my list of characters to replace [...]
Charles Dutton character in Rudy
I, too, am disappointed that you chose that particular character as an example of an otherwise valid point. There’s nothing magical, false, or cliched about him. He’s just a good guy who doesn’t put up with any BS, but is a good, and wise mentor once you prove that you are worth it, or, put another way, that you aren’t just wasting your own time, and are thus worthy of his. These people do exist. And, he does have a flaw, but proves to be big enough to recognize it in the end.
The capacity to be truly happy for another’s success where you have failed is a true virtue, and one not often seen in Hwood movies. He comes right out and tells Rudy how he himself had become bitter, and why. There is no greater gift you can give a kid than to be brutally honest about your own failures when that is appropriate, and it is in this movie. When you do this, the kid does NOT see you as the failure that you see; he sees you as the adult who thought him worthy of such a confidence. Here’s a cliche for you: Kids don’t care how much you know, until they know how much you care. Here’s another: Kids spell love T I M E. True.
The Dutton character gives Rudy his time, his trust (the key, and the story of his own biggest failure, and pain), and his caring. To a kid, this is pure gold. If this is a cliche, then so is breathing.
Oh, please. Irony is so over.
Hud: Man, these types of columns are SO overdue! I’m so glad to see you doing them.
I am tired of people who own or use a firearm portrayed as a “psycho”, survivalist whacko, or some other misfit or deviant. The general attitude in Hollywood is that nobody except cops or soldiers has any reason to own a gun so anybody who does has a serious flaw in their character.
A simpleton or a misfit doing great deeds is a theme done over and over again mostly in disney/pixar productions. He or she is always ridiculed and/or rejected by his/her community and wants to break free for first half and in the end after an “Adventure” is embraced by the community with appreciation. Examples: Ariel, Belle, Flick, Remy from Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, Bug’s Life and Ratatouille respectively.
Also in action movies, villain giving or relishing the details of how hero’s father was murdered is also very common.
And Steven Spielberg is not letting go of his bad parenting issues, he has to show them in every of his movie. Bad parenting is his signature.
Also commenting on pedophile priest point in the article above, why would Hollywood want to make movie about a priest who perfectly acts like a priest and good christians?
Riz
Oscar for Heath Ledger….
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