# Dealbreaker screenplay clichés **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** movies\ **Created:** [March 14, 2022, 2:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dealbreaker-screenplay-cliches/961002 "2022-03-14T02:31:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eyebrows_0f_doom/32/3119_2.png) [@Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eyebrows_0f_Doom)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2022, 4:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dealbreaker-screenplay-cliches/961002/81 "2022-03-19T16:07:27Z")
I mean, I’d certainly rather be shot than burned alive or skinned to death or some other slow and painful method. “Brutally murdered” has a very different connotation than just simply “murdered.” ---
**Author:** ![Yogeekgirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yogeekgirl/32/4129_2.png) [@Yogeekgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yogeekgirl)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2022, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dealbreaker-screenplay-cliches/961002/82 "2022-03-19T16:20:34Z")
Ha. And they almost never say “Bye”, or somesuch when ending the call. : ) This drives the DH nuts. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2022, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dealbreaker-screenplay-cliches/961002/83 "2022-03-19T16:41:08Z")
I’ll keep that in mind the next time I feel like whacking someone. God forbid I should be merciful. ---
**Author:** ![solost](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/solost/32/11776_2.png) [@solost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/solost)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2022, 4:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dealbreaker-screenplay-cliches/961002/84 "2022-03-19T16:42:48Z")
> [@Q.Q.Switcheroo](#): > > With the notable exception of this guy: Haha, that’s a pretty funny example of turning a trope on its ear. What’s that from? I just thought of a very common dumb trope I just saw somewhere on a show recently— someone is being chased, doesn’t matter if it’s a car chase or a foot pursuit, the chasee rounds a corner or something and is temporarily out of view of their pursuer, and they take evasive action. If in a car, they find hidden spot in a full parking lot or a dark alley, turn off their lights, and their pursuers drIve past. If on foot in a house, they may run into a room, open a window and hide under the bed. Pursuers think they went out the window and run outside. If in the snowy woods, they backtrack in their footsteps for several yards and hide behind a tree. You get the idea. But, in the previous scene the pursuers were mere seconds behind them. All the evasive maneuvers took a good minute or so. ---
**Author:** ![Zakalwe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zakalwe/32/270_2.png) [@Zakalwe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zakalwe)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2022, 5:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dealbreaker-screenplay-cliches/961002/85 "2022-03-19T17:00:41Z")
> [@solost](#): > > See also: estranged couple who have a big cathartic scene where they decide to argue out their differences in the middle of a firefight. In fairness, this was done very well in _Mr. and Mrs. Smith_ - the car chase scene. “I can’t believe I brought my real parents to our wedding.” ---
**Author:** ![Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/q.q.switcheroo/32/5713_2.png) [@Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.Q.Switcheroo)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2022, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dealbreaker-screenplay-cliches/961002/86 "2022-03-19T17:56:39Z")
> [@solost](#): > > Haha, that’s a pretty funny example of turning a trope on its ear. What’s that from? “That Mitchell and Webb Look.” Here’s the full sketch: [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/HtQNULEudss/hqdefault.jpg "That Mitchell and Webb Look - Film Director") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HtQNULEudss) ---
**Author:** ![Odesio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/odesio/32/20003_2.png) [@Odesio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Odesio)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2022, 6:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dealbreaker-screenplay-cliches/961002/87 "2022-03-19T18:40:00Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > So you’re doing the guy who gets plugged a favor by shooting him? When I was a graduate student, one of my research projects was on the lynching of John Carter in Little Rock, Arkansas in 1927. During the manhunt, Carter suffered a non-fatal gunshot wound before being hanged from his neck until he was dead. And I actually thought to myself, “Wow, he got off kind of lightly.” Because when it came to lynching, the victims were often tortured prior to the murder. Let’s take Mary Turner, 8 months pregnant, who was lynched in Georgia in 1918. I’m going to put this is spoilers because it’s absolutely brutal. Ms. Turner was hung upside down from a tree, gasoline was thrown on her, and she was burned. While Turner was still alive, the mob cut the unborn child from her abdomen and when it fell to the ground someone crushed its skull. Only then did the crowd open fire on Turner killing her. So when someone says a particular murder was brutal I tend to think they just mean it was worse than normal. It’s not that those other murder were gentle, just that this one was worse. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2022, 6:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dealbreaker-screenplay-cliches/961002/88 "2022-03-19T18:59:07Z")
> [@lissener](#): > > “Just let me explain!” (Instead of explaining) It’s probably not fair to bring Community into this since they very openly lean into all these cliches (and the characters are usually very aware of it). But the [‘let me explain’](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZmRQkcEEk94) scene is one certainly near the top of my favorite Community moments. ---
**Author:** ![carrps](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carrps/32/2957_2.png) [@carrps](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carrps)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2022, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dealbreaker-screenplay-cliches/961002/89 "2022-03-19T20:43:09Z")
Well, you can also poison someone who subsequently dies peacefully in their sleep as a result. Not brutal. Still murder. ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2022, 6:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dealbreaker-screenplay-cliches/961002/90 "2022-03-20T06:56:58Z")
> [@lissener](#): > > “I can explain!” [![](http://www.reiduns-cats.com/catfun12.jpg) ](http://www.reiduns-cats.com/catfun12.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![Crafter\_Man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crafter_man/32/458_2.png) [@Crafter\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crafter_Man)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2022, 8:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dealbreaker-screenplay-cliches/961002/91 "2022-03-20T08:38:50Z")
“Let’s get outta here.” ---
**Author:** ![lissener](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lissener/32/6139_2.png) [@lissener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lissener)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2022, 8:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dealbreaker-screenplay-cliches/961002/92 "2022-03-20T08:40:37Z")
You wanna get outta here? ---
**Author:** ![I\_Love\_Me\_Vol.I](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/i_love_me_vol.i/32/521_2.png) [@I\_Love\_Me\_Vol.I](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/I_Love_Me_Vol.I)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2022, 10:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dealbreaker-screenplay-cliches/961002/93 "2022-03-20T10:30:01Z")
“OK, what’s the plan?” Which really means: “OK, what’s the plot point?” ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2022, 1:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dealbreaker-screenplay-cliches/961002/94 "2022-03-20T13:25:03Z")
Dying people spitting out blood. ---
**Author:** ![Horatius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/horatius/32/3572_2.png) [@Horatius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatius)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2022, 11:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dealbreaker-screenplay-cliches/961002/95 "2022-03-20T23:33:30Z")
> [@Sherrerd](#): > > Can’t they have dropped their phones and broken them so badly they no longer work? Cliche Thread of the Future: “Man, why can’t anyone in a movie ever hold on to their damn phones? Are they made from Teflon and grease, or something?!?” ---
**Author:** ![caligulathegod](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/caligulathegod/32/9685_2.png) [@caligulathegod](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/caligulathegod)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2022, 12:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dealbreaker-screenplay-cliches/961002/96 "2022-03-21T00:34:28Z")
Per Mel Brooks and Carl Reiner, “Secure the perimeter.” ---
**Author:** ![Chelonaut](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e9a140/32.png) [@Chelonaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chelonaut)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2022, 12:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dealbreaker-screenplay-cliches/961002/97 "2022-03-21T12:33:18Z")
In techno thriller or science fiction movies/shows. “These readings are off the chart!” What exactly are they measuring? Usually some vaguely described energy field-whatsit. What are the units? Who cares, it’s just shorthand for “this is a REALLY serious situation”. It was said a lot in DS9, a show I actually like quite a lot. Usually by Bashir or O’Brien, who would say it with gusto, or Jadzia, who wouldn’t. ---
**Author:** ![Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/q.q.switcheroo/32/5713_2.png) [@Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.Q.Switcheroo)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2022, 2:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dealbreaker-screenplay-cliches/961002/98 "2022-03-21T14:35:51Z")
“There’s only one solution…we need a **bigger chart!** ” ---
**Author:** ![Hampshire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hampshire/32/4887_2.png) [@Hampshire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hampshire)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2022, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dealbreaker-screenplay-cliches/961002/99 "2022-03-21T17:04:56Z")
We’re(you’re) only going one chance at this thing, so (let’s) make it count. ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2022, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dealbreaker-screenplay-cliches/961002/100 "2022-03-21T18:51:26Z")
I’m enjoying this thread so much I’ve given myself a headache from passionate nodding. > [@solost](#): > > Yep, the “cough of death”. I don’t think any character has ever coughed in a movie or TV show without it being a harbinger of doom. See also “young woman who throws up: if it’s not made obviously clear that it’s due to being hung over she’s definitely pregnant”. Oh, yes… the cough. In a third world country, it’s TB. Everywhere else: lung cancer. If a woman of child-bearing age feels nauseous or throws up at any time, but especially in the morning, she’s preggers. If anyone, but especially a middle-aged man, has a pain in their left arm: heart attack. Anyone who runs away from a bad guy ALWAYS falls down at some point. At least now men fall down, too, not just women so that’s progress, I guess. Cars blow up at the drop of a hat-- going over a cliff, or flipping upside down, or crashing into concrete barriers. Are cars really **that** explosive? Then there’s “Not Believing the Kid” (or other naive character) who Saw Something Important, so the plot goes round and round in circles until – oh yeah, The Kid really saw The Thing, so we shoulda believed him before 17 more people got killed. Oh well. “I can’t talk about it over the phone… you’ve got to meet me!” Right. That person is toast. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dealbreaker-screenplay-cliches/961002.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dealbreaker-screenplay-cliches/961002.md?page=6)