I was very surprised to find I enjoyed the 21 Jump Street remake and one of the things I liked about it was how it addressed and also avoided conventions. It's not the only film to do so nor the most cutting-edge but it presented a light bulb moment because for a long while I couldn't understand why my characters and plots were seen as cliched.
Anyhoo, I now find it much easier to create new and unique characters and storylines. Certain genres make it easier. Pour moi, indie-crime is wide open for all sorts of bizarre-ities, as is comedy, but whenever I turn to horror, specifically contained, slasher and possession, I find it very hard to break out of the cliches. Is it just me or are these sub-genres limiting by default?
It's easy to have a crime-thriller and replace the done-to-death workaholic detective with 3 ex-wives with a gay stutterer. I see story lines that can be wide open - the guy can get the girl, the criminal can get away with it, there can be double crosses or not. But in horror, the psycho-stalker film has to start with small incidents the protag isn't aware before building to a climactic one-on-one showdown, the possession film has to show slowly degrading behaviour culminating in an exorcism and of course, the phone lines have to be down/no mobile signal. Slasher psychos with stutters and OCD don't seem to wash somehow, nor merrily catching taxis as they chase their prey around.
Anyhoo, I now find it much easier to create new and unique characters and storylines. Certain genres make it easier. Pour moi, indie-crime is wide open for all sorts of bizarre-ities, as is comedy, but whenever I turn to horror, specifically contained, slasher and possession, I find it very hard to break out of the cliches. Is it just me or are these sub-genres limiting by default?
It's easy to have a crime-thriller and replace the done-to-death workaholic detective with 3 ex-wives with a gay stutterer. I see story lines that can be wide open - the guy can get the girl, the criminal can get away with it, there can be double crosses or not. But in horror, the psycho-stalker film has to start with small incidents the protag isn't aware before building to a climactic one-on-one showdown, the possession film has to show slowly degrading behaviour culminating in an exorcism and of course, the phone lines have to be down/no mobile signal. Slasher psychos with stutters and OCD don't seem to wash somehow, nor merrily catching taxis as they chase their prey around.
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