slaytonf Posted May 1, 2015 Share Posted May 1, 2015 To paraphrase Angie Dickinson in Point Blank, they make my skin crawl. I get so tired of reading and hearing them so often. Using them should be the only crime punishable by death. To start off: Cliché--Is there any more clichéd word? Overrated, or underrated--Term used to allow one to dismiss a well-known movie one doesn't care for on the one hand, or rave over an obscure movie one likes on the other, all without offering any justification. Is there a Central Standards Agency that establishes an Official Ratings Scheme for movies? I've never seen one. Frankly, I don't have a clue what the rating of any movie is. Masterpiece--Term used to describe a movie you really, really like. So by definition, it's a surpassing work of art. If there's any word that's so dismayingly misused, or makes me cringe when I read it, it's this one. Think The Night Watch. Think Pride and Prejudice. Think the Pieta. Think "'Round Midnight." These are the works a movie is being equated with when someone uses that term to describe the latest installment of the Fast and Furious franchise. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
primosprimos Posted May 1, 2015 Share Posted May 1, 2015 To paraphrase Angie Dickinson in Point Blank, they make my skin crawl. I get so tired of reading and hearing them so often. Using them should be the only crime punishable by death. To start off: Cliché--Is there any more clichéd word? Overrated, or underrated--Term used to allow one to dismiss a well-known movie one doesn't care for on the one hand, or rave over an obscure movie one likes on the other, all without offering any justification. Is there a Central Standards Agency that establishes an Official Ratings Scheme for movies? I've never seen one. Frankly, I don't have a clue what the rating of any movie is. Masterpiece--Term used to describe a movie you really, really like. So by definition, it's a surpassing work of art. If there's any word that's so dismayingly misused, or makes me cringe when I read it, it's this one. Think The Night Watch. Think Pride and Prejudice. Think the Pieta. Think "'Round Midnight." These are the works a movie is being equated with when someone uses that term to describe the latest installment of the Fast and Furious franchise. Instant Hit. Says who? Feel Good Movie of the Year. Ditto. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tikisoo Posted May 1, 2015 Share Posted May 1, 2015 I agree.... "Instant hit"? What about "instant classic"? Oy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndyM108 Posted May 1, 2015 Share Posted May 1, 2015 I agree.... "Instant hit"? What about "instant classic"? Oy. I haven't heard this particular cliche for some time, but in the 70's and up into the 80's it seemed as if every movie ad would have some variant of "Diana Ross IS Billie Holiday". After a while that "IS" really got grating. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DownGoesFrazier Posted May 1, 2015 Share Posted May 1, 2015 I haven't heard this particular cliche for some time, but in the 70's and up into the 80's it seemed as if every movie ad would have some variant of "Diana Ross IS Billie Holiday". After a while that "IS" really got grating. A negative review could say "Diana Ross is NOT Billie Holiday". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndyM108 Posted May 1, 2015 Share Posted May 1, 2015 A negative review could say "Diana Ross is NOT Billie Holiday". Yeah, Miss D wasn't the world's greatest actress, and she was no Lady Day as a singer, either. But her version of "Good Morning, Heartache" was actually pretty good as covers go. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sepiatone Posted May 1, 2015 Share Posted May 1, 2015 "Diana Ross IS Billie Holiday". A buddy of mine, at the time quipped, "Not unless she's dead, too!" I could also do without..."In a world...." I kinda giggle when, in a trailer for a movie that looks like one I'll surely not care for claims...."You've never seen anything like...." I always think, "Yeah, that's because up till now, I've been lucky!" Sepiatone Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hamradio Posted May 1, 2015 Share Posted May 1, 2015 Movie titles that don't match the film or better make any sense. " Example "Lucky Number Slevin" What in the world is a slevin?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vertigo2 Posted May 1, 2015 Share Posted May 1, 2015 Yeah, Miss D wasn't the world's greatest actress, and she was no Lady Day as a singer, either. But her version of "Good Morning, Heartache" was actually pretty good as covers go. I don't think her performance in "Lady Sings the Blues" can be faulted. Unfortunately there is "The Wiz". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vertigo2 Posted May 1, 2015 Share Posted May 1, 2015 I don't know which reviewer first described a film as "pitch perfect" (and I don't mean the movie of that title), but enough of that term already. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ray Faiola Posted May 1, 2015 Share Posted May 1, 2015 How about "In a world......." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kingrat Posted May 1, 2015 Share Posted May 1, 2015 Most writers know that "thin as a rail" and "smart as a whip" are clichés. However, they seem to believe that "rail-thin" and "whip-smart" are oh so clever. If you describe a movie's dialogue as "whip-smart," you are letting us know you are "box-of-rocks-dumb." 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Gorman Posted May 1, 2015 Share Posted May 1, 2015 When I hear the phrase "I love you with all my heart" it usually makes me want to puke. Howzabout we switch that line with some more interesting organs! Like: "Hey, baby, I dig you with both my kidneys!" "I love you with every soaked inch of my pickled liver!" "I love you with all the bile my stomach can produce!" (Whatever that means . . . ). "Baaay-bee, you is da Goods! I luv with you with all the sweat tucked away in my un-washed man-boobs!" Nothin' says lovin' like . . . "I love you now liked I loved all my amputated toes!" "My iron lung and I both luv you, darlin'!!!" "My dental fillings are throbbing with whatever the dentist used to fill them for your love!" "I love you with all 25-feet of my lower intestine!" (Now that's luv ♥♥♥!) 'nuff said. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dargo Posted May 1, 2015 Share Posted May 1, 2015 Oh my gosh, yes! I agree with you folks here. (...yep, there ARE a lot of words and phrases which by sheer overuse seem to lose much of their..ahem.."gravitas", aren't there!) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DownGoesFrazier Posted May 2, 2015 Share Posted May 2, 2015 When I hear the phrase "I love you with all my heart" it usually makes me want to puke. Howzabout we switch that line with some more interesting organs! Like: "Hey, baby, I dig you with both my kidneys!" "I love you with every soaked inch of my pickled liver!" "I love you with all the bile my stomach can produce!" (Whatever that means . . . ). "Baaay-bee, you is da Goods! I luv with you with all the sweat tucked away in my un-washed man-boobs!" Nothin' says lovin' like . . . "I love you now liked I loved all my amputated toes!" "My iron lung and I both luv you, darlin'!!!" "My dental fillings are throbbing with whatever the dentist used to fill them for your love!" "I love you with all 25-feet of my lower intestine!" (Now that's luv ♥♥♥!) 'nuff said. More than enough. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sepiatone Posted May 2, 2015 Share Posted May 2, 2015 How about "In a world......." Covered that just about a half-hour before ya, Ray....So, great minds DO think alike! Sepiatone Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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