Things in Films that Drive Me Crazy

I think we all have things in films that drive us nuts. Whether it is a pet peeve that annoys us, or blatant product inclusion, at one time or another, we come across content that just isn't necessary!

Of course, I have my own list of these pet peeves--call them 'Things I wish weren't in a film.' Here's my list:

1) Excessive Swearing. I'm certainly no prude; but doesn't the swearing in films just get tiring? I can understand having a little bit--but when a film has seemingly non-stop vulgar language, I'd rather not be watching the film at all. Personally, I think it is just laziness on the part of the screen writer to include a never-ending stream of crass, vulgar, offensive dialogue.

2) Unnecessary Nudity. I'm not talking the occasional artistic inclusion, such as in Titanic. I'm talking, showing boobs and butts simply for the sake of showing them. Whether to titillate teenage boys, to just be vulgar, or for pure shock value, showing nudity for non-artistic reasoning is pushing things too far. For example, when The Watchmen came out in the Spring of 09 I was excited to see it. However, the only lasting image from that movie was the good Doctor's gigantic blue penis that was onscreen way, way, way too much. We got the image the first and only time it should have been seen.

3) Love Scenes. Again, I'm no prude--but it seems like filmmakers are pushing this envelope further and further each year. Personally, I don't think 13 year-olds should not be seeing the graphic displays so prevalent these days in the so-called "safe rating." What we are seeing today as PG-13 sex scenes were an R rating just ten years ago. Does a graphic sex scene further the storyline? Or is it there simply to show sex? Personally I really enjoy when a film actually fades to black, time passes, and the encounter is insinuated--not, "In your face."

4) Product Placement. I realize that product placement is a necessary evil in the TV and film industry. Placements help pay for a film. Corporations want some return in exchange for [basically] advertising space, however brief. Product placements are literally everywhere in a film. They range from cars to candy bars, from books to beer. You can always tell what car company is a major cash partner. Their cars are all over the place throughout a film. My gripe here is that sometimes, too much blatant product placement occurs and you feel like you're watching a long series of commercials between which is the actual movie.

5) The Audience Are Idiots. (I'll only touch on this briefly because I'll do a blog later on screenplays.)
Are you an idiot? So stupid that you have to be spoon-fed all the relevant story lines and information? This is called "Exposition," and it drives me crazy. There are filmmakers (directors, screen writers, etc) who feel that no one in the movie-going audience has any intelligence. So, they 'exposit' the information via tiring, obvious dialogue. (Think, Wing Commander, or tv's CSI New York as wonderful examples). It is incredibly refreshing when a movie has almost zero exposition. The Book of Eli is a fantastic example of this. Barely any foreshadowing, and very little exposition. By the time the end was viewed, the twist suddenly hits you and everything you may have not understood, suddenly makes all the sense in the world.

These are my main gripes regarding unnecessary things included in film making. I think these are all quite unnecessary in a film. Do you have anything to add? I've love to hear your feedback! If I get enough comments I'll include them in a follow-up blog.