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Do you think this counts as a cliche in my script?

posted 7 years ago by RynoII
9 replies | jump to latest

I am writing a script, and asked some for feed back and one person who read what I had so far, said he said that the love interest character was a cliched trope. Basically it's a crime thriller where the main character is a cop going after dangerous villains, and he has a love interest, that is sort of hos moral compass, when it comes to going too far, and what not.

I was told that she is a cliche because she has nothing to do with the actual plot, and there have been so many thrillers movies, with the love interest that has nothing to do with the actual plot. Two examples, I can think of where the love interest is not part of the plot, but a moral compass, that are similar in genre are Heat (1995), and Bullitt (1968).

But do you think it's a cliche that cheapens the character or the story in any way, because of it?

[–] Speed_of_Late 7 years ago

Is there any reason not to have her be a fully rounded character? I object to a character who exists only to serve the plot, trope or not.

And I'm begging you to stop putting commas between subjects and predicates. In fact, to master commas completely. I'm not sure any of the ones in your post are correct, although I have to go so I can't proofread properly.

SPEED
Don't mistake my silence for weakness. Nobody plans murders out loud.

[–] jswans01-1 7 years ago

But do you think it's a cliche that cheapens the character or the story in any way, because of it?
-Yes and yes. Horrible clichés you should not even consider going forward with. In all honesty, they never should have even occurred to you. The fact that they did, well, that's not a good sign.

[–] RynoII 7 years ago

Okay thanks. They didn't occur to me, they occurred to someone else when showing them parts of the script.

However, does a character have to be part of the plot to have to be full rounded? Like is the wife of the MC in the movie Heat a cheap character because she wasn't part of the actual crime plot at steak, and had no hand in it?

Or the love interest in Bullitt for example? Or the love interest in Internal Affairs (1990)? Can't a supporting character exist, to give the main character more depth in his personal life, as in those cases? Or were those examples cheap characters as well?

[–] jswans01-1 7 years ago

I'm saying it never should have occurred to you to write the script that way.

[–] RynoII 7 years ago

Oh okay. So every character should be part of the crime plot then, do you think?

[–] jswans01-1 7 years ago

Let's concentrate on getting that out of your script for right now.

[–] RynoII 7 years ago

I could take her out, I just don't know why I am doing it really. I mean all these other movies, have love interests that are not part of the crime of plot, like the ones I mentioned, so I am just wondering why it was acceptable in those ones, but a cliche now. I mean why is every character must having something to do with the crime plot, a rule now?

[–] jswans01-1 7 years ago

I'm happy to explain everything, but only after you've taken that out of your script. I have to remain firm on this. As long as that's part of your story the conversation can't go any further. That's how appallingly bad and cliché it is. If it's in your script, or even just a vague possibility, then there is no point in saying anything else as far as I'm concerned and as far as the movie going public is concerned.