Reddit users have picked out the tropes that annoy them endlessly and make for a poor cinematic experience
Films like the recently released Jurassic World: Dominion or Morbius end up being poorly received for a variety of reasons, but among those reasons are usually movie tropes or cliches that audiences find to be exceedingly dull or that annoy them enough to take them out of the movie. There are many examples of these cinematic sins, and Reddit has picked its most despised cases.
Whether it’s excessively cutty action scenes, trailers that give away too much, or a lack of balance between practical effects and CGI, Reddit users have picked out the things that make for a poor cinematic experience.
Exploring a character’s morality usually ends up making a film better when following their arc throughout a movie, but there’s one instance that gets on viewers’ nerves. Reddit user Literally_-_Hitler mentions the trope when a character murders several henchmen “without a sign of remorse” but then doesn’t kill the main villain “because suddenly morals”.
When a character more responsible for the problems in a film gets shown more mercy than their followers, it comes across as slightly hypocritical and sometimes takes the audience out of the film. It also doesn’t help that all the actions that previously occurred are seemingly forgotten about and seem more worthless when this ends up happening.
Relaying information to the audience is a part of every film, but some movies do this in a more annoying fashion than others. Reddit user ta_507john mentions that it drives them nuts “when a movie slams the entire exposition of a story into a 5-second dialogue directly after the opening credits”.
Exposition is needed for viewers to understand the story, but some films give the audience important information in a way that’s more natural and purposeful. Having characters talk unnaturally to deliver information is more than likely going to do more harm than good.
Getting coverage of an action scene and using different angles is a normal part of the filmmaking process, but that doesn’t mean that every shot eventually needs to be used in the film. Reddit user MyNameIsRay mentions a pet peeve where the “action sequences have so many cuts it might as well be a slideshow”.
Cutting during an action scene is sometimes necessary, but some films go overkill with the cuts. On top of the equally hated use of shaky-cam, unfortunately, sometimes audiences can end up focusing on everything but the action that’s happening on screen.
Villains explaining their dastardly plan in a film may sometimes be necessary for expositional purposes, but it may end up becoming a nuisance depending on when they reveal themselves and to whom. Reddit user AngryMustachio mentions the trope where the villain explains their plan to the people trying to stop them “only to be thwarted seconds before completing the plan”.
Antagonists may sometimes find pleasure in explaining their evil plans to the main characters, but audiences take no pleasure when it directly results in their scheme not working out. The trope is so overdone that movies where the heroes ultimately lose such as Watchmen have subverted audiences’ expectations by having the villain explain their plan only after it’s been completed.
Romance on screen can sometimes be the main attraction for audiences trying to envelop themselves in a story, but only if it’s believable. Reddit user Clapperoth mentions love stories where they “never see the two of them in a conversation” and where they “don’t believe the two people even like each other” as a major pet peeve.
Two characters falling in love can make for a great story or character arc, but showing them in love after a small number of scenes or a short time together can feel forced and unrealistic. Attraction isn’t easily manufactured, and audiences can feel when something as universal as love is shoehorned into a story.
Humor and comedy when used well can elevate a film’s entertainment value substantially, but when used in the wrong place, they can start to detract more than they add. Reddit user Mr_Frible mentions that “comedy that doesn’t belong where they put it” can ruin a movie for them.
Undercutting emotional scenes for comedic purposes or humor that isn’t character-based can end up feeling insincere and ends up being played for cheap laughs, which happens with some ridiculous lines of dialogue in films like The Avengers. If it takes the audience out of the story and isn’t explicitly a parody, the film may end up parodying itself unintentionally.
The sound of a film can play a larger role than most people may realize, but when it’s done poorly, it may hinder the audience’s experience. Reddit user qquiver mentions “movies with mismatched levels throughout” when talking about the difference in volume between effects-heavy and dialogue-heavy scenes.
In a theatre, unintelligible dialogue can take away from viewers’ engagement with the story, and in a home setting, it can be an annoyance constantly having to use the TV remote to change the volume. Viewers who find either of these scenarios annoying may have had trouble watching a film such as Christopher Nolan’s Tenet.
Seeing characters that you’ve grown to love reaching the end of their life on screen is hard as is, but faking out an audience in this regard is a hard pill to swallow for some. Reddit user jpj77 mentions a trope when characters are implied to have been killed in an on-screen explosion, only for the film to reveal the “character wasn’t actually there”.
While in general, storytelling is technically manipulative by nature, some viewers clearly see this example as too deceitful, such as Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker‘s egregious scene with Chewbacca on the transport ship in the 2019 film. There are better ways for films to make the audience care that a beloved character is alive that don’t involve cheap tactics.
Trailers are supposed to give audiences enough information to make them excited to see a movie, but sometimes they end up doing this by showing them half the movie instead. Reddit user sternje mentions “trailers that give away the best parts” as something that ruins a movie for them.
Trailers should probably not give away too much to audiences in way of plot outside of the film’s premise. However, trailers such as Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice‘s give away important plot points that would have been a surprise otherwise. If more movies could sell themselves using their mood, ambiance, or aesthetic, viewers may actually end up being surprised once they step foot into a theatre for once.
CGI is a great tool that allows filmmakers to bring things to life that wouldn’t have been possible in the past, but its overuse is sometimes a pet peeve of audiences. Reddit user Belthezare says that “too much CGI” and “not enough practical effects” can sometimes ruin a film.
The blend of practical effects and computer imagery has been mastered by filmmakers like Christopher Nolan and Denis Villeneuve recently, and viewers can easily tell the difference in quality. As opposed to being distracted by the effects work, audiences can be increasingly immersed in the world of the story, which might not necessarily be the case otherwise.
10 Tropes That Instantly Ruin A Movie, According To Reddit – Screen Rant
