# Game: Describe two different works of fiction with the exact same sentence **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Created:** [November 17, 2013, 9:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-describe-two-different-works-of-fiction-with-the-exact-same-sentence/674144 "2013-11-17T21:35:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2013, 10:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-describe-two-different-works-of-fiction-with-the-exact-same-sentence/674144/21 "2013-11-18T22:02:31Z")
A man who has led a very violent life is shot and seriously wounded. He is nursed back to health by a family of quaint, old-fashioned religious pacifists, and eventually falls in love with their daughter. As long as he’s hiding on their farm, however, he’s putting them in danger, for the gunman who shot him is still at large, and looking for him. ---
**Author:** ![turtlescanfly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/65b543/32.png) [@turtlescanfly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/turtlescanfly)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2013, 10:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-describe-two-different-works-of-fiction-with-the-exact-same-sentence/674144/22 "2013-11-18T22:02:56Z")
**Astorian** correct on both:) I was so struck by the similarities in both set of movies I wondered why there weren’t any claims of copyright infringement (at least that I heard about). ---
**Author:** ![turtlescanfly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/65b543/32.png) [@turtlescanfly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/turtlescanfly)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2013, 10:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-describe-two-different-works-of-fiction-with-the-exact-same-sentence/674144/23 "2013-11-18T22:05:13Z")
> [@astorian](#): > > A man who has led a very violent life is shot and seriously wounded. He is nursed back to health by a family of quaint, old-fashioned religious pacifists, and eventually falls in love with their daughter. As long as he’s hiding on their farm, however, he’s putting them in danger, for the gunman who shot him is still at large, and looking for him. I think one is _Witness_ but I can’t think of the other. ---
**Author:** ![turtlescanfly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/65b543/32.png) [@turtlescanfly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/turtlescanfly)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2013, 10:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-describe-two-different-works-of-fiction-with-the-exact-same-sentence/674144/24 "2013-11-18T22:09:21Z")
> [@astorian](#): > > #6 > > A detective who suffers from brain trauma wakes up each morning with little or no memory of what happened the previous day, but must investigate and solve a major mystery. Knowing that he will soon forget everything he has discovered, he leaves himself constant clues, notes and reminders of everything he has learned up to now. _Clean Slate_ and _Memento_? ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2013, 10:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-describe-two-different-works-of-fiction-with-the-exact-same-sentence/674144/25 "2013-11-18T22:22:59Z")
> [@turtlescanfly](#): > > A soldier who has become weary of war and all it represents is posted to the farthest frontier where he comes in contact with the natives who live in a unique harmony with nature and the land they inhabit; eventually he assimilates into the native culture and fights alongside them against his former colleagues, who are only interested in taking and exploiting the natural resources even if it means destroying the natives very livelihood in the process. Avatar, Fern Gully, Dances with Wolves, Last Samurai > [@turtlescanfly](#): > > A hotshot, self-absorbed city slicker finds himself stranded in a small town, sentenced to a short term of labor he considers beneath him as punishment for some property damage he inflicted; while at first he can’t wait to get out, he slowly learns to appreciate the small town life, even falling in love with a girl and learning the importance of friendship and having people you can count on. When he finally returns to his former life, he suddenly realizes how shallow it is and returns to the small town and the life he fell in love with. Doc Hollywood, Cars An aging professional athlete struggles with deteriorating skills, and seeks comfort and enlightenment from a new woman in his life. He doesn’t exactly succeed, but he’s able to retire in the comfort of remaining true to himself, and having gotten the girl. Starring Kevin Costner. ---
**Author:** ![turtlescanfly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/65b543/32.png) [@turtlescanfly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/turtlescanfly)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2013, 10:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-describe-two-different-works-of-fiction-with-the-exact-same-sentence/674144/26 "2013-11-18T22:26:27Z")
> [@Munch](#): > > An aging professional athlete struggles with deteriorating skills, and seeks comfort and enlightenment from a new woman in his life. He doesn’t exactly succeed, but he’s able to retire in the comfort of remaining true to himself, and having gotten the girl. Starring Kevin Costner. _For the Love of the Game_ and _Bull Durham._ ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2013, 10:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-describe-two-different-works-of-fiction-with-the-exact-same-sentence/674144/27 "2013-11-18T22:36:03Z")
> [@astorian](#): > > A man who has led a very violent life is shot and seriously wounded. He is nursed back to health by a family of quaint, old-fashioned religious pacifists, and eventually falls in love with their daughter. As long as he’s hiding on their farm, however, he’s putting them in danger, for the gunman who shot him is still at large, and looking for him. > [@turtlescanfly](#): > > I think one is _Witness_ but I can’t think of the other. I’ll go with _Witness_ and _Soldier_. ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2013, 10:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-describe-two-different-works-of-fiction-with-the-exact-same-sentence/674144/28 "2013-11-18T22:48:41Z")
_ **Witness** _ is correct, but the other movie is much older, and stars (arguably) Hollywood’s greatest icon ever. ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2013, 10:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-describe-two-different-works-of-fiction-with-the-exact-same-sentence/674144/29 "2013-11-18T22:50:36Z")
> [@turtlescanfly](#): > > _Clean Slate_ and _Memento_? Excellent! I figured everyone would guess Christopher Nolan’s grim, noirish _ **Memento** _, but the same plot was used in a lame-o Dana Carvey comedy called _ **Clean Slate** _. ---
**Author:** ![Rhodes](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rhodes/32/273_2.png) [@Rhodes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rhodes)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2013, 11:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-describe-two-different-works-of-fiction-with-the-exact-same-sentence/674144/30 "2013-11-18T23:31:33Z")
This was done by [The Oatmeal](http://theoatmeal.com/comics/aliens_avatar): Humans awake from cryogenic sleep. Fancy spaceship lands on alien planet. Sigourney Weaver talks to a businessman. Mechwarrior makes an appearance. Humans and aliens get to know each other. Human ends up inside alien, or vice versa. Humans stand in a line and shoot aliens. Alien babies get torched by a-hole humans. Humans go after mother alien. Epic mechwarrior battle with alien. Mechwarrior deprives alien of air. Big explosions. Humans are kicked off the planet. Directed by James Cameron. Ah, dammit. Also both written by James Cameron, so disqualified by the OP. ---
**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:** [November 18, 2013, 11:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-describe-two-different-works-of-fiction-with-the-exact-same-sentence/674144/31 "2013-11-18T23:47:22Z")
> [@astorian](#): > > _ **Witness** _ is correct, but the other movie is much older, and stars (arguably) Hollywood’s greatest icon ever. The second is **The Angel and the Badman** with John Wayne A teenager goes skinny dipping and is punished when a beast appears and devours her. The vacation area where she was attacked refuses to warn the public, afraid it will drive tourists away. The local police chief recruits a loud-mouthed and controversial naturalist and a old war vet who uses his own craft to find the monster and kill it. They confront the monster and the war vet is killed. The war vet’s craft is destroyed, but the sheriff manages to kill the animal, saving the town. ---
**Author:** ![turtlescanfly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/65b543/32.png) [@turtlescanfly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/turtlescanfly)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2013, 11:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-describe-two-different-works-of-fiction-with-the-exact-same-sentence/674144/32 "2013-11-18T23:50:35Z")
(Not mine, and I would guess many of you have seen it before. Also not limited to one sentence, so sue me;)) You know what my favorite show is? It’s about a handsome antihero, a man with a Scottish name and a nickname that means something significant in Latin. He’s a war veteran who’s spending his days in a less noble line of work. In the pilot, after a meeting with a potential client goes south, the client explains that it’s offensively obvious that our antihero thinks he’s better than all this. But does he really? While he doesn’t like to talk about his origins, we eventually learn that he grew up as a poor, adopted farmhand before a traumatic event in the war prompted him to transform himself. Now, he struggles to be honorable even as he must constantly deceive. Women in his life: well, there’s the one who’s been devoted to him for years, but he just takes her for granted. The woman he wants is fiercely independent, and it drives him crazy to have to stand by as she sleeps with an endless succession of other men. Then there’s the much younger woman who works for him, but there’s no tension there. She’s just interested in the new guy, who drives our antihero crazy with his arrogant ambition and elitist style. It’s witty, feminist, and original with a cult following and critical acclaim. And I love Christina Hendricks’s character, a talented redhead who tries to use a marriage as a means to an end, only to have it backfire horribly. ---
**Author:** ![Rhodes](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rhodes/32/273_2.png) [@Rhodes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rhodes)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2013, 12:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-describe-two-different-works-of-fiction-with-the-exact-same-sentence/674144/33 "2013-11-19T00:01:39Z")
> [@](#): > > It’s about a handsome antihero, a man with a Scottish name and a nickname that means something significant in Latin. He’s a war veteran who’s spending his days in a less noble line of work. In the pilot, after a meeting with a potential client goes south, the client explains that it’s offensively obvious that our antihero thinks he’s better than all this. But does he really? While he doesn’t like to talk about his origins, we eventually learn that he grew up as a poor, adopted farmhand before a traumatic event in the war prompted him to transform himself. Now, he struggles to be honorable even as he must constantly deceive. Women in his life: well, there’s the one who’s been devoted to him for years, but he just takes her for granted. The woman he wants is fiercely independent, and it drives him crazy to have to stand by as she sleeps with an endless succession of other men. Then there’s the much younger woman who works for him, but there’s no tension there. She’s just interested in the new guy, who drives our antihero crazy with his arrogant ambition and elitist style. It’s witty, feminist, and original with a cult following and critical acclaim. And I love Christina Hendricks’s character, a talented redhead who tries to use a marriage as a means to an end, only to have it backfire horribly. Sounds like **Firefly** , and I’m gonna guess **Mad Men**. ---
**Author:** ![Oakminster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/77aa72/32.png) [@Oakminster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oakminster)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2013, 12:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-describe-two-different-works-of-fiction-with-the-exact-same-sentence/674144/34 "2013-11-19T00:34:10Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > “All of human history is the result of an epic struggle between two secret societies, one of which values order and obedience over all else, and the other of which values individual freedom and pursues its goals through terrorism, and both groups become embroiled in a potential apocalypse involving the Greek gods and the golden apple of Greek/Christian myth” would accurately describe both the _Illuminatus!_ trilogy and the _Assassin’s Creed_ games. Put a period after “apocalypse” and you’ve also described _Babylon 5_ and _Battlestar Galactica_. ---
**Author:** ![Quimby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/22d042/32.png) [@Quimby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quimby)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2013, 1:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-describe-two-different-works-of-fiction-with-the-exact-same-sentence/674144/35 "2013-11-19T01:19:03Z")
> [@BrotherCadfael](#): > > Only two? 😃 ---
**Author:** ![turtlescanfly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/65b543/32.png) [@turtlescanfly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/turtlescanfly)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2013, 2:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-describe-two-different-works-of-fiction-with-the-exact-same-sentence/674144/36 "2013-11-19T02:06:22Z")
> [@astorian](#): > > Excellent! > > I figured everyone would guess Christopher Nolan’s grim, noirish _ **Memento** _, but the same plot was used in a lame-o Dana Carvey comedy called _ **Clean Slate** _. I actually haven’t seen either movie, but it sounded like Memento based on buzz I’ve heard about it (that’s the one where all the scenes play out in reverse order, right?). I vaguely remembered a Dana Carvey movie that fit that description but had to wiki his name to look at his filmography to come up with the name. ---
**Author:** ![turtlescanfly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/65b543/32.png) [@turtlescanfly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/turtlescanfly)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2013, 2:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-describe-two-different-works-of-fiction-with-the-exact-same-sentence/674144/37 "2013-11-19T02:12:47Z")
> [@Rhodes](#): > > Sounds like **Firefly** , and I’m gonna guess **Mad Men**. Correct. As a fan of _Firefly_, it was this description I came across on the web that prompted me to start watching _Mad Men_ (it was 3 seasons in at that point, I caught up on Netflix) and now I’m eagerly awaiting the 7th and final season starting this spring. ---
**Author:** ![turtlescanfly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/65b543/32.png) [@turtlescanfly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/turtlescanfly)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2013, 2:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-describe-two-different-works-of-fiction-with-the-exact-same-sentence/674144/38 "2013-11-19T02:19:37Z")
> [@RealityChuck](#): > > A teenager goes skinny dipping and is punished when a beast appears and devours her. The vacation area where she was attacked refuses to warn the public, afraid it will drive tourists away. The local police chief recruits a loud-mouthed and controversial naturalist and a old war vet who uses his own craft to find the monster and kill it. They confront the monster and the war vet is killed. The war vet’s craft is destroyed, but the sheriff manages to kill the animal, saving the town. Well, one is so obvious I won’t even bother to say, but I’m not enough of a monster movie aficionado to guess another. Are hints allowed? ---
**Author:** ![turtlescanfly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/65b543/32.png) [@turtlescanfly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/turtlescanfly)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2013, 2:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-describe-two-different-works-of-fiction-with-the-exact-same-sentence/674144/39 "2013-11-19T02:33:16Z")
> [@RealityChuck](#): > > A teenager goes skinny dipping and is punished when a beast appears and devours her. The vacation area where she was attacked refuses to warn the public, afraid it will drive tourists away. The local police chief recruits a loud-mouthed and controversial naturalist and a old war vet who uses his own craft to find the monster and kill it. They confront the monster and the war vet is killed. The war vet’s craft is destroyed, but the sheriff manages to kill the animal, saving the town. Oh, I’ve got it… _Jaws_ (the obvious one) and _Grizzly_, thought from what I read on Wikipedia, _Grizzly_ was very purposefully made in the pattern of Jaws because of the former’s great success. And the “police chief” in _Grizzly_ was actually a park ranger (but still a law-related authority figure). Unless of course I’m wrong about the second movie… I think there might be others that could fit the bill. ---
**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:** [November 19, 2013, 2:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-describe-two-different-works-of-fiction-with-the-exact-same-sentence/674144/40 "2013-11-19T02:48:42Z")
Yes, that’s it. A banker, well loved in his town because he’s willing to lend to the little guy, is faced with a crisis that could cause his bank to fail and would destroy his reputation. When his friends hear of his troubles, though, they help out, giving him enough money to save the bank. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-describe-two-different-works-of-fiction-with-the-exact-same-sentence/674144.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-describe-two-different-works-of-fiction-with-the-exact-same-sentence/674144.md?page=3)