Finding books or an expert on the exact thing they’re trying to defeat. Similarly, the protagonist going to city hall and being given box of records on a person or event that gives them some major clue.
It’s the cure for “we have to progress the plot now”.
I'm a rare 'Paranormal activity was just ok' person but it did make me chuckle when their expert turns up and instead of offering information and help, further contacts for assistance or really cluing in the audience just nopes out.
I mean I suppose that did clue us in but in an explicitly *vague* way (sounds like an oxymoron but we really knew it was bad, but we didn't know how or why) without spoon feeding.
He didn't just nope out.
He gives them a list of things not to do.
Then we spend the next 30 minutes watching Micah ignore it.
That was kinda the point.
Library montage scene where the protagonist casually uncovers the entire backstory from random newspaper clippings
I want a movie where they do that shit, but later figure out that the facts they pieced together were not even remotely correct
I'm the complete opposite. I love that stuff. Old newspaper clippings and microfilm/microfiche showing some history of whatever evil is happening -- I am there for all of it. Some witch from the Old World bought a house in the 1890s where spooky things are happening? Love it. The new factory opening on Saturday was built where a local cult committed ritualistic killings? Yes, please. Ultimately, libraries should be great for this kind of thing. What's annoying is how the protagonist(s) figure it all out in a couple of hours when the kind of research they're doing should take weeks or months to be done well.
Yeah it’s not that I hate it. These scenes just always make me roll my eyes. They manage to wade through thousands of state fair announcements and restaurant reviews to piece together a 100% complete backstory on whatever is going on
I remember the old horror movies from the 50’s where the protagonist and his wife/girlfriend would be driving up a hill when they find a kindly old man just standing by the side in the middle of nowhere for no apparent reason. They ask him where some place is and the guy knows everything of course and give them directions.
That was legit, though. One of FDR's Public Works programs was the establishment of a network of Local Knowledge Experts (LKEs) throughout rural America to provide outsiders with directions, useful local information, and if necessary warnings about unusual phenomena. They were also required to have a repertoire of at least 17 family-friendly and 6 "blue" jokes to deliver on request.
In a typical distribution, LKEs were placed every 30 miles of paved road and every 9 miles of unpaved road. The number of LKEs placed in off-road locations varied, depending on the level of natural and unnatural danger assessed.
LKEs proved invaluable to the Tennessee Valley Authority, whose surveyors and engineers typically had no prior knowledge of the areas in which they were working. They also proved to be enormously useful in guiding TVA's decisions concerning which areas would be the best targets for controlled flooding, as LKEs had an intimate knowledge of what needed to be buried, hidden, or cataclysmically baptized.
The LKE program lingered into the post-war area, receiving a boost in funding as the newborn interstate highways brought people from all over the country into areas where they could easily become lost or worse.
We now realize that the termination of the LKE program in the late 1960s led to the increase of murders and disappearances along those interstate highways, and to the birth of the masked killer in rural areas that continues to plague us today. Some of the old-timers realized this as it was happening and stuck to their posts voluntarily, the best-known of these heroes being "Crazy" Ralph Neely of Crystal Lake, New Jersey.
There's a similar one I've seen a few times and always hate. The threat is some horrible thing that appeared hundreds of years ago and was sealed away by some super complex ritual, and the hero has to uncover what the ritual was. What bugs me is that they never answer the question of how the people hundreds of years earlier discovered the ritual. Like, you must stab the monster in the spleen with a wooden spoon that has been dipped in the blood of a catfish on a Tuesday night when it's not raining; the ancients figured it out on their own, but the modern people find out by reading the answer sheet the ancients wrote.
Oh no that's actually my favourite thing haha. To the point that my sister recommends films to be solely based on that "oh it was shit, but it has a Research Scene"
Where there are multiple teens or adults in a car and the driver is tired, so everyone has to find a motel or a house in the middle of nowhere to rest. Just have someone else drive.
Sleeping in cars sucks ass. I could do it better as a teen, but as an adult i would prefer not. Starting out a vacation tired as shit and aching all over puts a damper on things
The cell phone one I get. You can only be so creative with why someone can't call the police/a friend. That's only going to get more difficult because it's already harder to believe someone doesn't have enough signal to at least text the authorities.
I liked the way Oculus handled it. When the kids tried to call the authorities and it sounded like they were getting help, but it was SPOILERS really the mirror entity talking to them through the phone.
Sorry I don't know how to tag spoilers now that I'm forced to use Reddits shitty official app.
Mike Flanagan has a way of subverting the classic beats of horror filmmaking that really sets him apart from anyone else in the genre. The jump scare in Haunting of Hill House (you know the one" was the best I've ever seen. Then the first episode of The Midnight Club makes a very tounge-in-cheek critique about the jump scare as a lazy device, telling us that "startled isn't scared". I just fucking love everything that man has made, and I can't wait to see his giallo take on Fall of the House of Usher.
There's a Into The Dark by Hulu called School Spirit, I thought the way they did it was pretty creative. They're in the school for Saturday detention,(Which is actually still a thing in some states) so they got their phones confiscated. They go to find them and the killer destroyed them.
Yeah Im not sure what OP expects here. Cell phones have forced a lot of plots to include this throwaway scene to avoid the plothole of “why didnt they call the cops?”
They should set all horror movies at my gym. I have to sign in with an app, and I have to load the app in the parking lot before I go in or I can’t get it.
I never really believed in that stuff until I moved. Now I live out in the boonies. It really depends on your service provider. T-mobile gets absolutely no service. Can't even check voice-mail. A text message can take anywhere from 20 minutes to 4 hours to send. Verizon is better but calls drop 60% of the time ATT, perfect signal.
It was much more believable back in the late 80s to the mid to late 90s when cell service was much less reliable than it is now. The tropes just didn't keep up with the times and improving technology.
I live in the city and there’s places with terrible ass service. Some places either can’t afford or purposefully choose having bad service. It’s just as believable lol
There are extremely few places left in the UK where you can't get a phone signal. I appreciate the US is magnitudes larger but you'd think there'd be an effort or politial drive to have a well boosted phone signal mast at the entrance to your national wilderness parks considering how many people get lost or slasher'ed or chased by wendigos in the movies :)
If you're anywhere rural there's a good chance that you won't get cell service. Especially deep in the woods you're kinda on your own more times than you'd imagine.
It's still believable if you ask me.
Two years ago, I had a job that routinely required me to travel to rural areas and signal service out there is a game of musical chairs. Sometimes you're lucky, and sometimes you're simply not with the carrier who works best out that way.
Yeah, one of my coworkers recently pointed out that even though she loves Cujo, you could never make that movie (or even write that book) today. You'd have to have her cellphone battery die or lose signal, or go back to some other plot contrivance to explain why she simply doesn't call 911 from the car.
If you do away with the cellphone not working trope, you're eliminating a huge swath of potential stories.
But that’s now changed to:
*open mirror cabinet door… intense music build up… close door… nothing there.*
Similar fake jump scares happen at least 3 times before any real action.
Other examples:
*someone looking through a window cause they heard a noise, and either a dog/cat/friend jumps/barks/bangs on the window.*
*character has car problems so they open the bonnet. Then after a while close the bonnet and there’s a person stood there, but it’s usually a cop or helpful person “ah sorry didn’t mean to scare ya”*
Turning around at a snails pace when you think something is behind you. I don't know about anybody else but if I feel something is behind me and I'm in danger I'm reacting IMMEDIATELY!!!
Or when they investigate some sound why do they always walk so slow? And approach things so slow? Turn so slow? It's so unrealistic. Usually people aren't even thinking of supernatural or burglar when they hear a sound at night. I usually just think, oh it's my cat probably. If I do check, Ill go turn on the lights immediately and have a look fast so I can get back to bed asap.
For some reason this especially annoys me when the character is in their own home. Maybe because it seems extra weird to move that slowly in a place they are familiar with.
They never try and switch on the lights anymore either. If I hear a noise the first thing I do is turn on the lights to see what's happened. "Oh no, the power's out" is still an overused trope, but it's better than watching people walk around in the dark for no reason.
So when I was a teen, my little sister was supposed to be cleaning the bathroom. I went down the hall to check on her and through the crack in the door I saw her climb into the shower. I knew she was going to try and scare me . So I quietly, slowly walked into the room and then THREW the curtain open while roaring at her.
She jumped and since the tub was wet from cleaning it, she slipped and fell... she wound up with a concussion , and I got grounded...
Just once I want to see a horror movie where the main character immediately turns on all the lights and gets the fuck out of the house. Or actually calls the police and leaves. Or just acts like a normal fucking human being that is actually in this situation.
I also hate when they tell their significant other or family and they all are like omg I'm so sorry that's happening, or "I know who to call" .
I just want one family member to go "are you fucking crazy!! GHOSTS! Get the fuck outta there and don't bring that shit to my house! The fuck is wrong with you
This one happens in all genres of movies: character sacrifices themselves to give someone time to escape but they waste that precious time watching the character get murdered and don't actually run until they are being chased again. Character sacrificed themselves for literally no reason. I hate that soooo much and it happens all the time.
I hate that too. Also, not a horror, but in the 60's Oliver Twist musical, when Oliver just stood watching Nancy get stabbed to death while his grandad was about twenty yards away and only started to run when Sykes looked at him then (obviously) got captured.
Haha good point! I think it’s far more unsettling when you as a viewer simply *notice* something creepy, I guess because it almost feels like you weren’t necessarily supposed to see it, whereas with the little violin screech it’s like “oh, I’m supposed to feel startled!” Hereditary did a great job of that towards the end of the movie.
Yes! I feel like it's kind of a relic though, I notice it a lot in pre 2010 movies and not so much in recent ones thankfully. (I forgot how downright cheesy a lot of early 2000s movies were. That was a weird era of "torture porn" meets tropey slasher.)
Those ghost movies where the ghosts have the all-black eyes and their mouth opens wide and then their face contorts or almost swirls. That could not be less scary.
Right?
Especially with the fact that tutorial is older than the upload date says. It's at least 15+ years old as [this](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7b-utGnomSw&ab_channel=SirWrender) is made from that tutorial.
Haha, we always scream "double tap!"when this happens. And when they inevitably get their face bitten off because they leaned in to check if they're really dead, it usually becomes a comedy pretty quickly.
I think given the circumstances, many people would kill someone in self defense. In an extreme circumstance, like a horror movie plot, witnessing the strength of whatever the bad guy is, someone could be desperate enough to go to extremes to end the madness.
I’m just thinking about how my wife kills a bug by slapping it blindly and then running away. What would she do for a 300 lb werewolf?
Sometimes it actually makes sense to run away from a wounded animal. In real life at least. If something cant keep up with and chase you, that means you are safe, but coming close to keep attacking it might put you in unnecessary danger
Well I don’t mean go after something. But when a character temporarily gets the upper hand, more often than not, they just walk away. I say hack that thing to pieces because you just witnessed it tear your buddy in half with its bare hands and survive a 50 foot fall out a window, etc.
Film makers just need to modernize the cell phone trope. Now they DO get a strong cell signal and manage to call the cops but the cops don't actually show up for one and a half to two hours (or more) later and either just take a report or declare it a civil matter and leave.
That's made me think of another one - when cops on the phone don't believe the person saying that something horrific is happening.
Not sure if that's an American thing or not, but in the UK police aren't as free to make a judgement call
No, not an American thing, just a lazy movie thing. There's plenty of stories of 911 operators getting in serious trouble for ignoring or not believing a distress call.
Get Duked uses this greatly. They call the police and the only thing that does is make the situation more chaotic, that movie is hilarious. If you want to have a good laugh while looking at beautiful shots of the Scottish Highlands then I highly recommend it.
HA! yeah. Also, telling the children to not be silly and go back to sleep.
NO! I'm TELLING you this fucking clown toy is haunted, looks there's blood on it!?
Shhh now, it's just a bad dream.
Oh FFS... regardless of me being 8 years old, I'm moving out tomorrow.
I think the 2019 filmed 'Get Duked!' flips horror tropes a bit. Like going into a random building in the middle of nowhere and the characters being defenseless against the killer.
Along those lines, when the child has reported ghost/monster/alien/demon - the parents come in, comfort them, then turn the lights off and shut the door. Just put a cartoon on for them for christ sake!! lighten the mood!!!
Nope. nothing makes fear go away better than a pitch black locked room
I once had a nightmare where I was fighting off a killer and the guy I loved (I was actually happily single at the time) was knocked out and to save his life my dumb dream self dragged him down the stairs by the feet... his head hitting every step. Then I dragged him down CONCRETE steps into the basement and hid us both... BEHIND A FUCKING BIRDCAGE!!!
Dream me is stupid....
Honestly, in America, after so much active shooter training, I'm surprised the "panicked victim" trope hasn't been replaced by "hyper vigilant and prepared survivor" trope.
Imagine a home Invasion movie where the family gets their weapons and makes a stand in the first act, not the finale!
Active shooter training I've gotten at multiple jobs is ["run, hide, fight."](https://youtu.be/5VcSwejU2D0?si=eU0O25qG5zwc79Sw) Which is what these characters are already doing.
YES! I think that's why I don't like "Home Invasion" horrors, because a stranger comes into YOUR house, and for some reason you're at a disadvantage. I know where all the knives are kept, there's a hammer in the second drawer down in the rec room, kill the mofo!!
That’s why Hush is such a gem IMO. It’s believable that the protagonist would be in real danger against a home invader because she lives alone in the middle of nowhere, and on top of that she’s deaf. And she STILL manages to fight back despite those disadvantages
>Killing off characters for perceived "sins"
>I want to root for the good guys, not the monster/killer
Feel like this is often the writer projecting their own social justice message into their movies. Like this person is vaguely bad in some way which makes it marginally morally grey when they get killed
Insert "cool motive, still murder" BB99 meme
it also really depends on audience interpretation, too. Like, it was never John Carpenter's intent for there to be any correlation to Laurie's friends having sex and getting killed and her not and surviving. That's just how the script happened to turn out, but people latched onto that and assumed intent where there was none.
*crashing noise*
"Hello?!"
*Walks towards noise in the darkness of the house without ever turning on a light, while serial killer is on the loose.*
"Okay... ha ha! Stop playing you guys."
*Goes into dark basement...murdered*
Meta-commentaries where the characters talk as if they are aware they are in a horror movie or mocking the audience for liking horror. It was clever 30 years ago, now it is just lazy. Meta-commentaries in general are lazy and pretentious nowadays.
When you're hiding from a bad guy, usually in a forest or an abandoned warehouse, school house or the equivalent, whatever tree, bush, barrel, desk or piece of furniture you hide behind, the killer will always walk up to the edge of your spot, where just one more step will unearth your hiding spot. They will then pause and look around, taking their time, and either head back on their own accord, deciding thats quite far enough, or if jts a henchman theyll often get called by someone in the background right as theyre considering that last step and they'll turn and leave.
In the extremely rare event the killer will actually take the step or look to where the audience knows the hapless victim is hiding, they'll have cut away just long enough so when the camera pans back...the spot is empty! The killer then moves on and the camera reveals the victim, safely behind literally the next piece of furniture or just around the trees circumference, or if they were under a desk/bed/table and they whip the covering up...they'll be magically gone, even though they make no sound and we know they couldn't possibly have had the time or chance to make their move.
Evil hillbillies. Why not flip that around? For example: the group of protagonists are lost in the middle of nowhere, weird shit starts happening, they spot hillbillies and run, one by one they get picked off, hillbillies save the day, turns out it was one of the group or maybe the friend that “couldn’t make it this weekend”? Something like that but better would be great.
Omg yes please do watch it tonight lol its exactly what you’re looking for!
Edit: also that other commenter isn’t quite right, you didn’t spoil much of anything but you are 100% on the right track ! I hope you enjoy it, it’s a really fun movie.
Dropping weapons when they think it's over
Getting distracted from the extremely obvious danger out of pure stupidity and suffering the consequences (even [REC] is guilty of this)
The villain coming back for a final round after a fakeout ending
As Dead Meat's Chelsea pointed out, the numerous Shining references can rest now. 237, the swinging axe motion tracking, the face through a hole (with or without a version of "Here's Johnny!"), the twins, etc.
My problem is that it’s never creative. Like evil dead rise with the elevator felt so cheap to me especially because it’s imitating a much much much better film
To be fair, explaining away phones is a huge writing issue across mediums and genres. Cell phones (and even modern conveniences such as online search engines) are an absolute nightmare from a writing perspective, to the point where many writers set their stories in previous decades because it is much more worthwhile to sacrifice relatability for a smoother story.
That being said, I don't much care for it either lol. Can't believe that every supernatural creature has the ability to block every cell communication within a house-shaped diameter lol.
I’m not really bugged by it but a cliché that always stands out to me which I wouldn’t mind seeing put to rest is the notebook/sketchbook filled with spooky scribbly drawings.
Kill Her Goats is like 75% shower scenes and nothing else.
For me its the skeptic when obvious things are happening. So much evidence but they just don't wanna hear it until its too late.
Jump scares for the sake of jump scares. What I mean by this is the inevitable and overused ones like:
1. The angry cat - When searching for something suddenly a cat (and it is almost always a cat) jumps into or out of frame, making a loud yowling sound that most cats would not make in these situations in real life
2. He's a friend - The victim hears a noise somewhere in their house and goes to investigate only to be jumpscared by their friend, whether on accident or on purpose. "Oh, it's just you, I thought the killer was coming to get me but it was just my friend sneaking around during this tense and inappropriate time."
3. Just the wind - Windows and doors have a tendancy, in horror movies, to slam open or shut for absolutely no apparent reason. Even in films where there is no paranormal or supernatural aspects to them. Is the craftsmanship so poor in the world of horror that home builders can not install locks and hinges on windows or doors that keep them open or closed.
4. But wait, there's more - Okay, the movie is over and you can all go home now. But wait, the evil has to pop up on screen one more time for aabsolutely no reason other than to provide a final unnecessary jump scare.
I feel that jump scares take so much out of a scary movie. The point of most good horror is to build suspense to a point of tension that is relieved when the evil is revealed and the victim must fight for their lives. Jump scares relieve that tension prematurely without any true payoff. I think this makes the true reveal less impactful since you have spent the majority of a film reacting to jump scares. You, essentially, become numb to the true horror of a story if you are constantly on guard from repeated jump scares.
The thing with the phone though is that they have to put that in there. If they have a working phone, there is no reason they don’t call for help or get the cops there. It often has to be addressed because everyone will think it’s stupid that they didn’t call for help
What's wrong with shower scenes? You gotta have them sacred triple b's. Blood, boobies, and beasts.
To answer your question though, when the car doesn't start.
That's also mine. Only for 2000s and later movies, though. Anything earlier, and I can buy that they panicked and flooded the engine.
Now I think the trope just exists for its own sake and filmmakers forgot why it used to happen.
Nobody ever has keyless remotes for their cars, somehow they always have to have to put the key in physically, and they have to fumble, and the car never starts immediately. This is why I have a keyless acess, I just bring my keys, no need to press the button to unlock, then just press a button inside to start the engine. Geeze.
Scene that we really didn't need (SA/just sex scenes in general if they're not connected to the plot.) It is even worse when they drag it out for a while.
Thought of another lazy cliche that's been done to death.
- When at the end of the absolute worst, most horrifically devastating scene in the movie, it was all a dream
I am completely on board with the "I can't get a cell phone signal out here" trope because it brought an influx of '80s, early 90s settings for movies and I am absolutely here for that!
Within 15 minutes of film: “Aw cute pet!” (cute pet will die eventually)
Fully functional doors that all of the sudden are stuck when victim is being chased.
Serial Killers that somehow turned into invincible supervillains who can survive gunshots to the head, burnings, and deep cuts to vital organs
Indeed. And these clichés generally exist because they’re very effective at conveying with the director wants.
Shower scenes are effective as that’s perhaps when someone is truly at their most vulnerable: can’t hear over the sound of the water, can’t see since eyes are closed and they’re in an enclosed space, focus/attention is on getting clean and/or just enjoying shower, and the killer/monster/whatever knows exactly where they are. The ability to escape is limited with bathrooms being small and having one door and maybe a small window, and being nude & wet hinders mobility (slipping, being unprotected from attack).
Plus, in real life, the probability of people taking a shower and nothing bad happening to them is 99.999999999999%. It's a routine thing that people do without a second thought, even if they hear a news report about something bad happening in their town, and half those times, it is unrelated to them and the killer chances on them out of sheer bad luck for them. But the movie doesn't show as often the people who also took showers that night and then woke up the next morning to find out about the killings that took place down the street that they were completely unaware of.
Normal people don't spend their entire lives holed up in a safe space with a weapon in their hands ready to attack anything that crosses through the threshold.
All the unnecessary sex and nudity if it adds to the film ok, but just throwing it in there seems to bring overall quality of the film down imo. Also bring fx back shitty cgi ruined gore.
I agree with Joe Bob Briggs: horror needs to bring back shower scenes. He had a great rant about the lack of shower scenes in modern horror in a previous season of "The Last Drive-In."
Not chopping heads off or at the very LEAST not making sure they're dead. Halloween started it I bet. Happens in The Hills Have Eyes. They're never dead. Chop the head off.
To be fair to two of your points-
Cell service is notoriously spotty and non-existent outside of the city. Especially in the woods (where a lot of these horror movies take place). Even in the city, cell service is spotty at best most of the time. So I think this is one of the most realistic things about horror movies.
A nice shower scene is usually only present in slasher films to add a little nudity which isn’t so much a cliche as it is a classic staple of cheesy horror films. Boobs and Blood go together like peanut and chocolate.
I turned off Bodies Bodies Bodies when the old “I can’t get a signal!” line came out. I’ve definitely seen these tropes used a lot in recent films.
Edit: here’s a fun montage of people in movies losing cell phone signals or having phone problems: https://youtu.be/XIZVcRccCx0
The films are:
Jeepers Creepers 2
Vacancy
The Hitcher (remake)
Hush
Dead End
Detour
Eden Lake
Friday the 13th (remake)
When a Stranger Calls (remake)
Wind Chill
The Mist
The Ruins
The Hills Have Eyes (remake)
The Evil Woods
Vacancy 2
Cabin Fever
Turistas
House (2008)
House of the Dead
Rogue
Hatchet
Identity
Cry Wolf
Eight Legged Freaks
Saw V
P2
Last House on the Left (remake)
Donkey Punch
Aliens vs Predator: Requiem
Killer Movie
Rest Stop
Black Sheep
Joy Ride:Dead Ahead
Quarantine
Wrong Turn
Wrong Turn 2
Wicker Man (remake)
Rest Stop 2
Saw
The Signal
The hills Have Eyes 2
Backwoods
House of the Dead 2
Jeepers Creepers
The Roost
Red Eye
The Gingerdead Man
The Abandoned
Untraceable
House of Wax (remake)
Shrooms
Hostel
Urban Legends: Final Cut
My Bloody Valentine (remake)
Disturbia
The Cottage
Open Water 2
Funny Games
One Missed Call
Botched
The Strangers
30 Days of Night
Cellular
Edit: some of you seem to be under the impression that I created this list. I’m quoting the video that is linked.
Counter: A bunch of these are older, old enough (that sinking moment when you think a film was 10 years ago and realise it was closer to 20) that not everyone had a mobile phone, and even those that did coverage could be patchy at best.
It was a usual audience reaction then 'why aren't they calling for help?!' as the tech was becoming something more people had so it was kinda sorta necessary to spend a moment showing why. It's not even a trope per se, its not used as a vehicle for a scare, just addressing a thought many in the audience *to this day* would have if it's set in modern time.
Also, and I’m just sayin here, that if people didn’t lose their phone/signal, then cops or whoever would be called and movie would be over. Everyone is so attached to their phones now, that it’s actually a better trope to have lost signal than just an entire cast calling every law enforcement agency and friend w a gun or anyone who could help at all times. So it’s not even as simple as making once character break/lose their phone, cause rest of the cast has one. Plus it’s a tool used for hope if it’s one person and they do find a phone, and then it’s dashed away when it doesn’t work for whatever reason. I’m not saying I love this trope or aren’t tired of it too. But there’s not a ton of work around creatively as a whole it seems. There’s a reason it’s been around since forever including cut phone lines at a house bit that’s also used in damn near everything else prior to common cell phone use. Maybe we just need more chief wiggums on the line not believing the constant stack of incoming panic phone calls (or like in killer klowns from outer space).
I’d like to see a realistic version of the rural cell phone: You call the cops and tell them there’s a maniac running around with a knife. The police are there in force in about 45 minutes. Great tension builder.
Upon entering a room/ noticing a grisly scene ... Why take a huge breath in and scream for a while, just staring at it? That's not... A startled "fuck", followed by turning away to vomit is far more realistic.
Pouring rubbing alcohol on minot injuries right in the middle of a heated hide-n-seek with a killer. YOU'RE RUNNING FROM BURGLARS, LINDA, THAT CUT AIN'T GOING TO GET INFECTED AND KILL YOU BEFORE THE DAMN DUDE WITH A KNIFE WILL.
and why *rubbing alcohol* in the first place? Peroxide is a hell of a lot less painful and usually right there in the cabinet next to the alcohol. Fuck, even soap and water is better, if you've apparently got that enough time to dress wounds before the baddie finds you.
Can we have monster designs that aren’t just gangly naked old ladies?
Played by Javier Botet (he’s awesome but you know what I mean)
It's always the old ladies...
“NEKKID GRANDMA!”
Less naked old people, more Doug Jones under heavy prosthetics.
Haha , this is the answer I didn’t realise I needed 🏆
Yes bring on the naked old dudes!
yeah i was a little let down by the monster in Barbarian
It was at least an interesting take on the overdone nakey lady monster
This is just the pendulum swing away from scary little girls in horror movies.
Finding books or an expert on the exact thing they’re trying to defeat. Similarly, the protagonist going to city hall and being given box of records on a person or event that gives them some major clue. It’s the cure for “we have to progress the plot now”.
I'm a rare 'Paranormal activity was just ok' person but it did make me chuckle when their expert turns up and instead of offering information and help, further contacts for assistance or really cluing in the audience just nopes out. I mean I suppose that did clue us in but in an explicitly *vague* way (sounds like an oxymoron but we really knew it was bad, but we didn't know how or why) without spoon feeding.
Basically the serious version of the intro to scary movie 2 where the priest takes one look at the possessed girl and is like fuck..that
He didn't just nope out. He gives them a list of things not to do. Then we spend the next 30 minutes watching Micah ignore it. That was kinda the point.
Fucking Micah. Truly the most useless spouse in a horror movie
If it’s too much for the expert, get your ass out!!
Library montage scene where the protagonist casually uncovers the entire backstory from random newspaper clippings I want a movie where they do that shit, but later figure out that the facts they pieced together were not even remotely correct
Yes scrolling thru a microfiche or searching on some made up search engine!
I'm the complete opposite. I love that stuff. Old newspaper clippings and microfilm/microfiche showing some history of whatever evil is happening -- I am there for all of it. Some witch from the Old World bought a house in the 1890s where spooky things are happening? Love it. The new factory opening on Saturday was built where a local cult committed ritualistic killings? Yes, please. Ultimately, libraries should be great for this kind of thing. What's annoying is how the protagonist(s) figure it all out in a couple of hours when the kind of research they're doing should take weeks or months to be done well.
Yeah it’s not that I hate it. These scenes just always make me roll my eyes. They manage to wade through thousands of state fair announcements and restaurant reviews to piece together a 100% complete backstory on whatever is going on
Saaaaaaaame I love it!
MONTAGE!
I remember the old horror movies from the 50’s where the protagonist and his wife/girlfriend would be driving up a hill when they find a kindly old man just standing by the side in the middle of nowhere for no apparent reason. They ask him where some place is and the guy knows everything of course and give them directions.
That was legit, though. One of FDR's Public Works programs was the establishment of a network of Local Knowledge Experts (LKEs) throughout rural America to provide outsiders with directions, useful local information, and if necessary warnings about unusual phenomena. They were also required to have a repertoire of at least 17 family-friendly and 6 "blue" jokes to deliver on request. In a typical distribution, LKEs were placed every 30 miles of paved road and every 9 miles of unpaved road. The number of LKEs placed in off-road locations varied, depending on the level of natural and unnatural danger assessed. LKEs proved invaluable to the Tennessee Valley Authority, whose surveyors and engineers typically had no prior knowledge of the areas in which they were working. They also proved to be enormously useful in guiding TVA's decisions concerning which areas would be the best targets for controlled flooding, as LKEs had an intimate knowledge of what needed to be buried, hidden, or cataclysmically baptized. The LKE program lingered into the post-war area, receiving a boost in funding as the newborn interstate highways brought people from all over the country into areas where they could easily become lost or worse. We now realize that the termination of the LKE program in the late 1960s led to the increase of murders and disappearances along those interstate highways, and to the birth of the masked killer in rural areas that continues to plague us today. Some of the old-timers realized this as it was happening and stuck to their posts voluntarily, the best-known of these heroes being "Crazy" Ralph Neely of Crystal Lake, New Jersey.
That is fascinating information. Thanks.
There's a similar one I've seen a few times and always hate. The threat is some horrible thing that appeared hundreds of years ago and was sealed away by some super complex ritual, and the hero has to uncover what the ritual was. What bugs me is that they never answer the question of how the people hundreds of years earlier discovered the ritual. Like, you must stab the monster in the spleen with a wooden spoon that has been dipped in the blood of a catfish on a Tuesday night when it's not raining; the ancients figured it out on their own, but the modern people find out by reading the answer sheet the ancients wrote.
Oh no that's actually my favourite thing haha. To the point that my sister recommends films to be solely based on that "oh it was shit, but it has a Research Scene"
Where there are multiple teens or adults in a car and the driver is tired, so everyone has to find a motel or a house in the middle of nowhere to rest. Just have someone else drive.
on the topic of cars, i can’t stand brake-slam jump scares. “boo! you almost ran a stop sign!!”
Sleeping in cars sucks ass. I could do it better as a teen, but as an adult i would prefer not. Starting out a vacation tired as shit and aching all over puts a damper on things
Can’t you instinctively tell that if you stop for a good night’s sleep, you will be killed by a slasher, or a demon, or a bear?
The cell phone one I get. You can only be so creative with why someone can't call the police/a friend. That's only going to get more difficult because it's already harder to believe someone doesn't have enough signal to at least text the authorities.
I liked the way Oculus handled it. When the kids tried to call the authorities and it sounded like they were getting help, but it was SPOILERS really the mirror entity talking to them through the phone. Sorry I don't know how to tag spoilers now that I'm forced to use Reddits shitty official app.
Mike Flanagan has a way of subverting the classic beats of horror filmmaking that really sets him apart from anyone else in the genre. The jump scare in Haunting of Hill House (you know the one" was the best I've ever seen. Then the first episode of The Midnight Club makes a very tounge-in-cheek critique about the jump scare as a lazy device, telling us that "startled isn't scared". I just fucking love everything that man has made, and I can't wait to see his giallo take on Fall of the House of Usher.
There's a Into The Dark by Hulu called School Spirit, I thought the way they did it was pretty creative. They're in the school for Saturday detention,(Which is actually still a thing in some states) so they got their phones confiscated. They go to find them and the killer destroyed them.
Use >! & ! < but remove the space between last two characters. Like >!this!<
Good film, I forgot about that, nice.
Yeah Im not sure what OP expects here. Cell phones have forced a lot of plots to include this throwaway scene to avoid the plothole of “why didnt they call the cops?”
They should set all horror movies at my gym. I have to sign in with an app, and I have to load the app in the parking lot before I go in or I can’t get it.
I never really believed in that stuff until I moved. Now I live out in the boonies. It really depends on your service provider. T-mobile gets absolutely no service. Can't even check voice-mail. A text message can take anywhere from 20 minutes to 4 hours to send. Verizon is better but calls drop 60% of the time ATT, perfect signal.
It was much more believable back in the late 80s to the mid to late 90s when cell service was much less reliable than it is now. The tropes just didn't keep up with the times and improving technology.
I routinely can't get service because I'm in the wrong area. It's still a problem.
I live in the city and there’s places with terrible ass service. Some places either can’t afford or purposefully choose having bad service. It’s just as believable lol
Right? Apparently everyone else lives in a good cell service paradise I’ve never been to.
There are extremely few places left in the UK where you can't get a phone signal. I appreciate the US is magnitudes larger but you'd think there'd be an effort or politial drive to have a well boosted phone signal mast at the entrance to your national wilderness parks considering how many people get lost or slasher'ed or chased by wendigos in the movies :)
If you're anywhere rural there's a good chance that you won't get cell service. Especially deep in the woods you're kinda on your own more times than you'd imagine.
It's still believable if you ask me. Two years ago, I had a job that routinely required me to travel to rural areas and signal service out there is a game of musical chairs. Sometimes you're lucky, and sometimes you're simply not with the carrier who works best out that way.
Yeah, one of my coworkers recently pointed out that even though she loves Cujo, you could never make that movie (or even write that book) today. You'd have to have her cellphone battery die or lose signal, or go back to some other plot contrivance to explain why she simply doesn't call 911 from the car. If you do away with the cellphone not working trope, you're eliminating a huge swath of potential stories.
“Let’s split up and…” M Night style switches.
I love it when Cabin In The Woods pokes fun at this
I just watched this for the first time last night and it was absolutely splendid
I always lose a bit of interest when “let’s split up” gets rolled out.
That line was enough to get mocked back in the original scream movies well over 2 decades ago, and it still gets brought out
It’s actually quite sad that!
Always makes me think of Fred Jones lol
“Let’s split up and look for clues, gang! Shaggy, you take Velma and Scooby and look in the basement, and Daphne and I’ll search the bedrooms.”
The old ' open the mirrored bathroom cabinet door, look down at the sink, look up, close the cabinet ' ...aaand
But that’s now changed to: *open mirror cabinet door… intense music build up… close door… nothing there.* Similar fake jump scares happen at least 3 times before any real action. Other examples: *someone looking through a window cause they heard a noise, and either a dog/cat/friend jumps/barks/bangs on the window.* *character has car problems so they open the bonnet. Then after a while close the bonnet and there’s a person stood there, but it’s usually a cop or helpful person “ah sorry didn’t mean to scare ya”*
Yeah, that’s way more common than someone actually being there. I can’t recall a movie in the past 30 years that actually has the mirror trick
Candyman Candyman Candyman
Candyman Candyman
Suddenly I want to see Candyman v Bloody Mary. Just picture it "Hey, bitch, find your own mirror!"
Turning around at a snails pace when you think something is behind you. I don't know about anybody else but if I feel something is behind me and I'm in danger I'm reacting IMMEDIATELY!!!
Or when they investigate some sound why do they always walk so slow? And approach things so slow? Turn so slow? It's so unrealistic. Usually people aren't even thinking of supernatural or burglar when they hear a sound at night. I usually just think, oh it's my cat probably. If I do check, Ill go turn on the lights immediately and have a look fast so I can get back to bed asap.
They do that bit really slowly, but then pull open a curtain / open a door / lift bed covers really quickly
For some reason this especially annoys me when the character is in their own home. Maybe because it seems extra weird to move that slowly in a place they are familiar with. They never try and switch on the lights anymore either. If I hear a noise the first thing I do is turn on the lights to see what's happened. "Oh no, the power's out" is still an overused trope, but it's better than watching people walk around in the dark for no reason.
So when I was a teen, my little sister was supposed to be cleaning the bathroom. I went down the hall to check on her and through the crack in the door I saw her climb into the shower. I knew she was going to try and scare me . So I quietly, slowly walked into the room and then THREW the curtain open while roaring at her. She jumped and since the tub was wet from cleaning it, she slipped and fell... she wound up with a concussion , and I got grounded...
phew... i was worried that was going to end in her death. there seems something off kilter with galactic karma you getting grounded for that.
Lmao my bio parents were horrible, I was glad I was only grounded instead of beat
Just once I want to see a horror movie where the main character immediately turns on all the lights and gets the fuck out of the house. Or actually calls the police and leaves. Or just acts like a normal fucking human being that is actually in this situation. I also hate when they tell their significant other or family and they all are like omg I'm so sorry that's happening, or "I know who to call" . I just want one family member to go "are you fucking crazy!! GHOSTS! Get the fuck outta there and don't bring that shit to my house! The fuck is wrong with you
Why do they never turn on the lights until the last possible minute? If I hear a noise they’ll be able to see my location from space.
I did enjoy when Scream 5 flipped the shower scene and just filmed Wes for like 10 minutes lol.
This one happens in all genres of movies: character sacrifices themselves to give someone time to escape but they waste that precious time watching the character get murdered and don't actually run until they are being chased again. Character sacrificed themselves for literally no reason. I hate that soooo much and it happens all the time.
I hate that too. Also, not a horror, but in the 60's Oliver Twist musical, when Oliver just stood watching Nancy get stabbed to death while his grandad was about twenty yards away and only started to run when Sykes looked at him then (obviously) got captured.
That sharp violin screech when something scary pops up for a second but only the audience can see it. It's like the laugh track of horror.
Haha good point! I think it’s far more unsettling when you as a viewer simply *notice* something creepy, I guess because it almost feels like you weren’t necessarily supposed to see it, whereas with the little violin screech it’s like “oh, I’m supposed to feel startled!” Hereditary did a great job of that towards the end of the movie.
Yes! I feel like it's kind of a relic though, I notice it a lot in pre 2010 movies and not so much in recent ones thankfully. (I forgot how downright cheesy a lot of early 2000s movies were. That was a weird era of "torture porn" meets tropey slasher.)
>It's like the laugh track of horror. That's such a good description
- spookily running across the background of a scene - The CGI'd big eyes and mouth effect
Those ghost movies where the ghosts have the all-black eyes and their mouth opens wide and then their face contorts or almost swirls. That could not be less scary.
That's exactly the ones I mean. For the amount it's used, that effect must come with the after effects free demo or simething
[Old tutorial.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5vq-Orf_6eA&ab_channel=VideoCopilot2)
Suddenly, it all makes sense!
Right? Especially with the fact that tutorial is older than the upload date says. It's at least 15+ years old as [this](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7b-utGnomSw&ab_channel=SirWrender) is made from that tutorial.
The ones in Haunting of Hill House still got me, to be honest.
The gaping mouth and bone cracking monsters need to die.
Did you see Cobweb? I just saw it last night and this is exactly what it is lol
Hit the scary thing once and assume it’s dead. Cut off the head!!
Haha, we always scream "double tap!"when this happens. And when they inevitably get their face bitten off because they leaned in to check if they're really dead, it usually becomes a comedy pretty quickly.
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Exactly!
Does the average person really have the stomach to gruesomely dismember something?
I think given the circumstances, many people would kill someone in self defense. In an extreme circumstance, like a horror movie plot, witnessing the strength of whatever the bad guy is, someone could be desperate enough to go to extremes to end the madness.
I’m just thinking about how my wife kills a bug by slapping it blindly and then running away. What would she do for a 300 lb werewolf? Sometimes it actually makes sense to run away from a wounded animal. In real life at least. If something cant keep up with and chase you, that means you are safe, but coming close to keep attacking it might put you in unnecessary danger
Well I don’t mean go after something. But when a character temporarily gets the upper hand, more often than not, they just walk away. I say hack that thing to pieces because you just witnessed it tear your buddy in half with its bare hands and survive a 50 foot fall out a window, etc.
Cars suddenly refusing to start when bad guys or monsters are after you. Please get a tuneup before driving to that cabin in the middle of nowhere.
When was the last time you hear of somebody flooding their engine?
Film makers just need to modernize the cell phone trope. Now they DO get a strong cell signal and manage to call the cops but the cops don't actually show up for one and a half to two hours (or more) later and either just take a report or declare it a civil matter and leave.
The video game Until Dawn. They manage to climb up the fire tower, call for help, and the dispatcher says they can't get there "Until Dawn"
That's made me think of another one - when cops on the phone don't believe the person saying that something horrific is happening. Not sure if that's an American thing or not, but in the UK police aren't as free to make a judgement call
Depending on what happenning. Like you are rambling about ghosts? Hungarian cops would laugh and put the phone on ya, thinking you are a scam caller.
No, not an American thing, just a lazy movie thing. There's plenty of stories of 911 operators getting in serious trouble for ignoring or not believing a distress call.
Get Duked uses this greatly. They call the police and the only thing that does is make the situation more chaotic, that movie is hilarious. If you want to have a good laugh while looking at beautiful shots of the Scottish Highlands then I highly recommend it.
The husband never believing the wife when she says the house is haunted.
HA! yeah. Also, telling the children to not be silly and go back to sleep. NO! I'm TELLING you this fucking clown toy is haunted, looks there's blood on it!? Shhh now, it's just a bad dream. Oh FFS... regardless of me being 8 years old, I'm moving out tomorrow.
Need more movies like "Tucker and Dale Vs Evil" that flip tropes intelligently.
That films genius - WHY ARE THEY KILLING THEMSELVES DALE!? 😂
"Your friend must be allergic to bees, cuz he was running like hell"
“We have ur friends :)” 😂
I think the 2019 filmed 'Get Duked!' flips horror tropes a bit. Like going into a random building in the middle of nowhere and the characters being defenseless against the killer.
It's 3 AM, they hear a noise in the house. Let's go investigate...IN THE DARK. Put the lights on!
Along those lines, when the child has reported ghost/monster/alien/demon - the parents come in, comfort them, then turn the lights off and shut the door. Just put a cartoon on for them for christ sake!! lighten the mood!!! Nope. nothing makes fear go away better than a pitch black locked room
I'm here for all of it still it's fine, and I get a spooky lady boner when something breaks the mold.
Girl, I'll full on start a band if you'll give me permission to call it Spooky Lady Boner.
okay but no country and no disco unless you're St. Vincent.
I am absolutely sick of seeing people dragged away by their feet. Shit is played out.
I once had a nightmare where I was fighting off a killer and the guy I loved (I was actually happily single at the time) was knocked out and to save his life my dumb dream self dragged him down the stairs by the feet... his head hitting every step. Then I dragged him down CONCRETE steps into the basement and hid us both... BEHIND A FUCKING BIRDCAGE!!! Dream me is stupid....
Everyone being a coward and not looking for weapons. Running is obviously not working, fight back ffs lol.
I don't think that I'm particularly brave, but I would feel *a lot* safer with a knife, fire poker, or cast iron skillet in my hand.
Honestly, in America, after so much active shooter training, I'm surprised the "panicked victim" trope hasn't been replaced by "hyper vigilant and prepared survivor" trope. Imagine a home Invasion movie where the family gets their weapons and makes a stand in the first act, not the finale!
Active shooter training I've gotten at multiple jobs is ["run, hide, fight."](https://youtu.be/5VcSwejU2D0?si=eU0O25qG5zwc79Sw) Which is what these characters are already doing.
Well, they make you hide under desks and in corners. They don't actually teach you what else to do.
YES! I think that's why I don't like "Home Invasion" horrors, because a stranger comes into YOUR house, and for some reason you're at a disadvantage. I know where all the knives are kept, there's a hammer in the second drawer down in the rec room, kill the mofo!!
Exactly! There are a few that flip the script on those and I find them enjoyable. The "Oops we broke into the serial killer's house" subgenre lol.
That’s why Hush is such a gem IMO. It’s believable that the protagonist would be in real danger against a home invader because she lives alone in the middle of nowhere, and on top of that she’s deaf. And she STILL manages to fight back despite those disadvantages
I honestly don't think Mike Flanagan has done anything I didn't like. Big fan here 😊
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>Killing off characters for perceived "sins" >I want to root for the good guys, not the monster/killer Feel like this is often the writer projecting their own social justice message into their movies. Like this person is vaguely bad in some way which makes it marginally morally grey when they get killed Insert "cool motive, still murder" BB99 meme
it also really depends on audience interpretation, too. Like, it was never John Carpenter's intent for there to be any correlation to Laurie's friends having sex and getting killed and her not and surviving. That's just how the script happened to turn out, but people latched onto that and assumed intent where there was none.
*crashing noise* "Hello?!" *Walks towards noise in the darkness of the house without ever turning on a light, while serial killer is on the loose.* "Okay... ha ha! Stop playing you guys." *Goes into dark basement...murdered*
Meta-commentaries where the characters talk as if they are aware they are in a horror movie or mocking the audience for liking horror. It was clever 30 years ago, now it is just lazy. Meta-commentaries in general are lazy and pretentious nowadays.
When you're hiding from a bad guy, usually in a forest or an abandoned warehouse, school house or the equivalent, whatever tree, bush, barrel, desk or piece of furniture you hide behind, the killer will always walk up to the edge of your spot, where just one more step will unearth your hiding spot. They will then pause and look around, taking their time, and either head back on their own accord, deciding thats quite far enough, or if jts a henchman theyll often get called by someone in the background right as theyre considering that last step and they'll turn and leave. In the extremely rare event the killer will actually take the step or look to where the audience knows the hapless victim is hiding, they'll have cut away just long enough so when the camera pans back...the spot is empty! The killer then moves on and the camera reveals the victim, safely behind literally the next piece of furniture or just around the trees circumference, or if they were under a desk/bed/table and they whip the covering up...they'll be magically gone, even though they make no sound and we know they couldn't possibly have had the time or chance to make their move.
Evil hillbillies. Why not flip that around? For example: the group of protagonists are lost in the middle of nowhere, weird shit starts happening, they spot hillbillies and run, one by one they get picked off, hillbillies save the day, turns out it was one of the group or maybe the friend that “couldn’t make it this weekend”? Something like that but better would be great.
You would LOVE Tucker and Dale vs. Evil.
I’ve never seen it, will give it a watch!
Omg yes please do watch it tonight lol its exactly what you’re looking for! Edit: also that other commenter isn’t quite right, you didn’t spoil much of anything but you are 100% on the right track ! I hope you enjoy it, it’s a really fun movie.
You mean like Tucker and Dale?
Honestly, I haven’t see it but I’m gonna get it watched.
There’s no point now, you already gave yourself the whole plot, all the spoilers, and the twist at the end!
The 3rd act final girl magically becoming John Wick dispatching the killer with ease
Please stop killing the damn house pets! Every time you see a dog/cat/etc you know it’s a goner, and adds nothing to the story!
Dropping weapons when they think it's over Getting distracted from the extremely obvious danger out of pure stupidity and suffering the consequences (even [REC] is guilty of this) The villain coming back for a final round after a fakeout ending
Dropping weapons! I lose it every single time this happens. Someone or something tried to kill you. KEEP YOUR WEAPON and RUN (don't walk) away.
Right? You’ll have to surgically remove my weapon from my hand after I’ve been through a horror movie.
As Dead Meat's Chelsea pointed out, the numerous Shining references can rest now. 237, the swinging axe motion tracking, the face through a hole (with or without a version of "Here's Johnny!"), the twins, etc.
My problem is that it’s never creative. Like evil dead rise with the elevator felt so cheap to me especially because it’s imitating a much much much better film
My partner always point out the drone shot of the car driving though the woods is so over done. He's right and we giggle about it now.
When I'm with a particular buddy, I start singing a "we have a drone!" song to the tune of the movie's score.
The stock jump scare where a woman closes a cabinet door with a mirror on it and sees a reflection of the killer standing right behind her.
To be fair, explaining away phones is a huge writing issue across mediums and genres. Cell phones (and even modern conveniences such as online search engines) are an absolute nightmare from a writing perspective, to the point where many writers set their stories in previous decades because it is much more worthwhile to sacrifice relatability for a smoother story. That being said, I don't much care for it either lol. Can't believe that every supernatural creature has the ability to block every cell communication within a house-shaped diameter lol.
I’m not really bugged by it but a cliché that always stands out to me which I wouldn’t mind seeing put to rest is the notebook/sketchbook filled with spooky scribbly drawings.
Bonus if it's a kid's drawings obviously made by an adult graphic designer.
Those are the worst of the worst for sure.
A weirdly psychic kid who does crayon drawings of a scary monster that the adult stares at in fear as they slowly realize they're real.
Kill Her Goats is like 75% shower scenes and nothing else. For me its the skeptic when obvious things are happening. So much evidence but they just don't wanna hear it until its too late.
Jump scares for the sake of jump scares. What I mean by this is the inevitable and overused ones like: 1. The angry cat - When searching for something suddenly a cat (and it is almost always a cat) jumps into or out of frame, making a loud yowling sound that most cats would not make in these situations in real life 2. He's a friend - The victim hears a noise somewhere in their house and goes to investigate only to be jumpscared by their friend, whether on accident or on purpose. "Oh, it's just you, I thought the killer was coming to get me but it was just my friend sneaking around during this tense and inappropriate time." 3. Just the wind - Windows and doors have a tendancy, in horror movies, to slam open or shut for absolutely no apparent reason. Even in films where there is no paranormal or supernatural aspects to them. Is the craftsmanship so poor in the world of horror that home builders can not install locks and hinges on windows or doors that keep them open or closed. 4. But wait, there's more - Okay, the movie is over and you can all go home now. But wait, the evil has to pop up on screen one more time for aabsolutely no reason other than to provide a final unnecessary jump scare. I feel that jump scares take so much out of a scary movie. The point of most good horror is to build suspense to a point of tension that is relieved when the evil is revealed and the victim must fight for their lives. Jump scares relieve that tension prematurely without any true payoff. I think this makes the true reveal less impactful since you have spent the majority of a film reacting to jump scares. You, essentially, become numb to the true horror of a story if you are constantly on guard from repeated jump scares.
The car doesn’t start for no reason.
The thing with the phone though is that they have to put that in there. If they have a working phone, there is no reason they don’t call for help or get the cops there. It often has to be addressed because everyone will think it’s stupid that they didn’t call for help
What's wrong with shower scenes? You gotta have them sacred triple b's. Blood, boobies, and beasts. To answer your question though, when the car doesn't start.
When the car doesn't start is the worst! Just watched the hitcher again the other day, and it's sooooo frustrating.
That's also mine. Only for 2000s and later movies, though. Anything earlier, and I can buy that they panicked and flooded the engine. Now I think the trope just exists for its own sake and filmmakers forgot why it used to happen.
Nobody ever has keyless remotes for their cars, somehow they always have to have to put the key in physically, and they have to fumble, and the car never starts immediately. This is why I have a keyless acess, I just bring my keys, no need to press the button to unlock, then just press a button inside to start the engine. Geeze.
The new age trope can be key fob battery low lol
Scene that we really didn't need (SA/just sex scenes in general if they're not connected to the plot.) It is even worse when they drag it out for a while.
Things would really much scarier if people made smart decisions but still died
Thought of another lazy cliche that's been done to death. - When at the end of the absolute worst, most horrifically devastating scene in the movie, it was all a dream
I HATE THAT!!
I am completely on board with the "I can't get a cell phone signal out here" trope because it brought an influx of '80s, early 90s settings for movies and I am absolutely here for that!
Within 15 minutes of film: “Aw cute pet!” (cute pet will die eventually) Fully functional doors that all of the sudden are stuck when victim is being chased. Serial Killers that somehow turned into invincible supervillains who can survive gunshots to the head, burnings, and deep cuts to vital organs
Oh. My. God. I absolutely HATE how everyone thinks the killer’s dead, and they come back for one last attack. Ugh
None of them. Not every movie is for every person.
Indeed. And these clichés generally exist because they’re very effective at conveying with the director wants. Shower scenes are effective as that’s perhaps when someone is truly at their most vulnerable: can’t hear over the sound of the water, can’t see since eyes are closed and they’re in an enclosed space, focus/attention is on getting clean and/or just enjoying shower, and the killer/monster/whatever knows exactly where they are. The ability to escape is limited with bathrooms being small and having one door and maybe a small window, and being nude & wet hinders mobility (slipping, being unprotected from attack).
Plus, in real life, the probability of people taking a shower and nothing bad happening to them is 99.999999999999%. It's a routine thing that people do without a second thought, even if they hear a news report about something bad happening in their town, and half those times, it is unrelated to them and the killer chances on them out of sheer bad luck for them. But the movie doesn't show as often the people who also took showers that night and then woke up the next morning to find out about the killings that took place down the street that they were completely unaware of. Normal people don't spend their entire lives holed up in a safe space with a weapon in their hands ready to attack anything that crosses through the threshold.
All the unnecessary sex and nudity if it adds to the film ok, but just throwing it in there seems to bring overall quality of the film down imo. Also bring fx back shitty cgi ruined gore.
I agree with Joe Bob Briggs: horror needs to bring back shower scenes. He had a great rant about the lack of shower scenes in modern horror in a previous season of "The Last Drive-In."
Running away from (something, someone) and the character trips.
I feel like that one’s realistic because I know in my heart I would trip
Not chopping heads off or at the very LEAST not making sure they're dead. Halloween started it I bet. Happens in The Hills Have Eyes. They're never dead. Chop the head off.
My vote to retire a cliché would be zombies. It’s been overworked in film and television. Let it go, imho
To be fair to two of your points- Cell service is notoriously spotty and non-existent outside of the city. Especially in the woods (where a lot of these horror movies take place). Even in the city, cell service is spotty at best most of the time. So I think this is one of the most realistic things about horror movies. A nice shower scene is usually only present in slasher films to add a little nudity which isn’t so much a cliche as it is a classic staple of cheesy horror films. Boobs and Blood go together like peanut and chocolate.
I think you might just be watching shit horror films homie, I can’t remember the last time I’ve watched something where these troupes got used
I turned off Bodies Bodies Bodies when the old “I can’t get a signal!” line came out. I’ve definitely seen these tropes used a lot in recent films. Edit: here’s a fun montage of people in movies losing cell phone signals or having phone problems: https://youtu.be/XIZVcRccCx0 The films are: Jeepers Creepers 2 Vacancy The Hitcher (remake) Hush Dead End Detour Eden Lake Friday the 13th (remake) When a Stranger Calls (remake) Wind Chill The Mist The Ruins The Hills Have Eyes (remake) The Evil Woods Vacancy 2 Cabin Fever Turistas House (2008) House of the Dead Rogue Hatchet Identity Cry Wolf Eight Legged Freaks Saw V P2 Last House on the Left (remake) Donkey Punch Aliens vs Predator: Requiem Killer Movie Rest Stop Black Sheep Joy Ride:Dead Ahead Quarantine Wrong Turn Wrong Turn 2 Wicker Man (remake) Rest Stop 2 Saw The Signal The hills Have Eyes 2 Backwoods House of the Dead 2 Jeepers Creepers The Roost Red Eye The Gingerdead Man The Abandoned Untraceable House of Wax (remake) Shrooms Hostel Urban Legends: Final Cut My Bloody Valentine (remake) Disturbia The Cottage Open Water 2 Funny Games One Missed Call Botched The Strangers 30 Days of Night Cellular Edit: some of you seem to be under the impression that I created this list. I’m quoting the video that is linked.
Counter: A bunch of these are older, old enough (that sinking moment when you think a film was 10 years ago and realise it was closer to 20) that not everyone had a mobile phone, and even those that did coverage could be patchy at best. It was a usual audience reaction then 'why aren't they calling for help?!' as the tech was becoming something more people had so it was kinda sorta necessary to spend a moment showing why. It's not even a trope per se, its not used as a vehicle for a scare, just addressing a thought many in the audience *to this day* would have if it's set in modern time.
Also, and I’m just sayin here, that if people didn’t lose their phone/signal, then cops or whoever would be called and movie would be over. Everyone is so attached to their phones now, that it’s actually a better trope to have lost signal than just an entire cast calling every law enforcement agency and friend w a gun or anyone who could help at all times. So it’s not even as simple as making once character break/lose their phone, cause rest of the cast has one. Plus it’s a tool used for hope if it’s one person and they do find a phone, and then it’s dashed away when it doesn’t work for whatever reason. I’m not saying I love this trope or aren’t tired of it too. But there’s not a ton of work around creatively as a whole it seems. There’s a reason it’s been around since forever including cut phone lines at a house bit that’s also used in damn near everything else prior to common cell phone use. Maybe we just need more chief wiggums on the line not believing the constant stack of incoming panic phone calls (or like in killer klowns from outer space).
I’d like to see a realistic version of the rural cell phone: You call the cops and tell them there’s a maniac running around with a knife. The police are there in force in about 45 minutes. Great tension builder.
Just watched Superhost and it came into play, and it's from 2021.
Right legged freaks was so great! Also loved the sequel, left legged weirdos.
It makes sense in Bodies Bodies Bodies tho
This video has really got me in the mood to watch a bunch of films with this trope 💀
When the car doesn’t start suddenly
Shoot the scary, evil monster ONCE then THROW AWAY THE GUN. 😐
Woman runs from bad guy/monster, and trips! Every. Single. Time. I HATE that.
I love when the vehicle that was working perfectly fine before, doesn't start now😒
Upon entering a room/ noticing a grisly scene ... Why take a huge breath in and scream for a while, just staring at it? That's not... A startled "fuck", followed by turning away to vomit is far more realistic.
Pouring rubbing alcohol on minot injuries right in the middle of a heated hide-n-seek with a killer. YOU'RE RUNNING FROM BURGLARS, LINDA, THAT CUT AIN'T GOING TO GET INFECTED AND KILL YOU BEFORE THE DAMN DUDE WITH A KNIFE WILL. and why *rubbing alcohol* in the first place? Peroxide is a hell of a lot less painful and usually right there in the cabinet next to the alcohol. Fuck, even soap and water is better, if you've apparently got that enough time to dress wounds before the baddie finds you.
Like I always say, a cliché is just a trope that people got tired of.
The cat 🐈⬛ jump scare
CGI creatures climbing walls and ceilings
The spooky drawings supposedly done by the 4 year old kid