Favorite Plot Contrivances, Anyone?

[AndyC]

Guy has a crush on girl, but doesn't think she'd be interested. Meanwhile, either she feels the same way about him, or she's lonely and would welcome anyone's attention.

Then we have nice guy who fantasizes about hot girl who is in a serious relationship with big jerk. Through some series of events, hot girl thinks nice guy is kind of sweet. This angers big jerk, causing him to reveal his true nature to hot girl and lose her to nice guy.

Bumbling protagonist runs afoul of rich jerk, and decides the only solution is to win a big annual competition that rich jerk wins every year. Basically, Caddyshack, Summer Rental, One Crazy Summer and Revenge of the Nerds all use this plot in one form or another.

[Monster Jungle X-Ray]

Every film that remotely has to do with high school has the Party Scene. You know the one I mean, it might come in various disguises, but its really the same party every time. And why is it that the party seems to always happen in the same house? Is there one house that Hollywood has set aside for the Party Scene? Does no one in a school district live in a ranch-style house anymore?

Plot contrivances abound when this scene happens. Nerdy shy main character gets an invite from the girl he likes whose parents are out of town/ the girl's former boyfriend/gang causes trouble/ shy kid does/says something incredibly stupid that makes him think the girl is not interested/ party usually ends when the cops (in Weird Science's case mutant marauders) arrive. See 10 Things I Hate About You, Can't Hardly Wait (The whole film is the HS Party Scene), Super Bad (2 parties in this one, but one is college/adults), and nearly every film ever made that has teenagers in them.

Another plot contrivance that bothers me is in alien films. Why is it that writers are so lazy that whenever we encounter another advanced race they are A) entirely naked or B) dressed completely the same in long robes or space suits. The space suits I can understand, but are we the only species in the universe with different tastes???

[AndyC]

In movies about college or high school boys coming of age, somebody concocts a plan to peep at the hot chicks while they're naked. Bluto on the ladder in Animal House, the CCTV cameras in Revenge of the Nerds, the shower scene in Porky's, the webcam in American Pie.

[Jack]

In any sort of a disaster movie where the whole earth is threatened with destruction, you'll have the main characters who develop some plan, and then - invariably - there'll be some government bureaucrat who opposes them.  "No, we must nuke it!"  He usually says.  He's normally a negative stereotype of the military, or maybe he's greedy or some other clichéd crap.  And then it's a "race against time" as our protagonists try to implement their plan before the antagonist is able to carry out their evil scheme. 

[Teksun]

In the old slasher films, if you had sex or smoked pot you would be dismembered in a matter of minutes.

The girl twists her ankle or breaks a shoe while running from the killer.

[AndyC]

In any sort of a disaster movie where the whole earth is threatened with destruction, you'll have the main characters who develop some plan, and then - invariably - there'll be some government bureaucrat who opposes them.  "No, we must nuke it!"  He usually says.  He's normally a negative stereotype of the military, or maybe he's greedy or some other clichéd crap.  And then it's a "race against time" as our protagonists try to implement their plan before the antagonist is able to carry out their evil scheme. 

And no matter what, Earth's last hope always turns out to be some combination of screwups, mavericks or people who have suffered some tragedy or disgrace. For one reason or another, the cream of the crop are either out of commission or completely oblivious.

And when it comes to fighting monsters and bad guys, who is better equipped than nerdy kids? The Monster Squad, The Goonies, Tommy Jarvis, the Losers Club, etc. Adults are just too unimaginative, and usually too busy doing grownup things to notice the vampire moving in next door, or that clown who's been hanging out in the catchbasins.