Films That Invented Now Commonplace Cliches Or Genres

[Cantaloupe]

It's said that Bullitt was the first film to feature a car chase [ sequence of fast, dangerous driving usually unconnected to the plot ]

Although I'm thinking The Great Escape and McQueen on the bike, not technically a car, but he was chased by cars.

Any other films that were instrumental in creating film cliches ?

[Halmyre]

Cantaloupe said:

It's said that Bullitt was the first film to feature a car chase [ sequence of fast, dangerous driving usually unconnected to the plot ]

Although I'm thinking The Great Escape and McQueen on the bike, not technically a car, but he was chased by cars.

Any other films that were instrumental in creating film cliches ?

Bullitt director Peter Yates had earlier directed the film 'Robbery' which had a car chase - Steve McQueen saw it and got Yates hired on the strength of it. There's probably even earlier examples, but Bullitt was certainly a milestone of the genre.

Don't know it it's really a cliche, but I believe Psycho was the first film to kill of its leading character halfway through (spoilers be damned, I'm sure you've all seen it...)

[entropy]

Gun fu AKA bullet ballet

Dynamic gunplay action sequences usually jumping around and shooting with a gun in each hand. Unrealistic but entertaining to watch.

Started off in the 1980s by Hong Kong director John Woo before Hollywood beckoned: A Better Tomorrow 1&2, The Killer, Hard Boiled; often seen in the Heroic Bloodshed genre of HK action films - brotherhood, chivalry, honour, justice; interspersed with bloody violence - see films by Ringo Lam eg. City On Fire (inspired/ripped off by Tarantino/Reservoir Dogs), Full Contact.

Proliferated in Hollywood in the 2000s onwards but notably influenced Robert Rodriguez's 90s movie Desperado and its sequel.

[Johnspex]

Dirty Harry. Rogue cop with a big gun.

[swisstoni]

I think it was Sam Peckinpah films that first engendered the phrase ‘gratuitous violence’.

For example a scene where some cowboy or other is shot with a shotgun. The camera is behind the victim and the shooter can be seen through the hole in the still standing victim.

Relatively tame stuff today but shocking when you were used to gunshot victims just politely falling over in 100 westerns.

[Dr Jekyll]

The Right Stuff. The Team walks side by side in slow motion to imply something or other.

[London424]

Die Hard...first time the hero got the crap kicked out of him. Before that it was all superficial flesh wounds. (I think)

[generationx]

"Bullet time" - popularised (but not invented by) The Matrix.

[Halmyre]

London424 said:

Die Hard...first time the hero got the crap kicked out of him. Before that it was all superficial flesh wounds. (I think)

Hold my beer...

[SlimJim16v]

Probably not the first, but Shane, the reformed bad guy, who hung up his gun/sword/fists trying to live peacefully. Unfortunately events force him to do what he was good at.

Also very well and amusingly parodied in Cat Ballou, by the great Lee Marvin.

The Big Boss.
Rocky V.
Rambos.
Steel Dawn.
Etc.

[Time Fly]

The original Hollywood movie King Kong seems to have greatly influenced 'eyewitness' perceptions of what the Loch Ness monster looks like- even to this day.

There are scenes in it that depict dinosaurs one of whom is a plesiosaur- a long necked large water borne lizard with a humped back.

This was a hugely popular movie released in 1933 but before then nobody had described Nessie in that way.

[anonymous-user]

I may be wrong but I think that Juggernaut - a cracking film from 1974 is the first to do the "do I cut the red wire or the blue" scenarion

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nXoPEmh39ls

[motco]

"Round up the usual suspects" from 'Casablanca' in 1942

[Cantaloupe]

Carrie for the sneaky "shocker" at the epilogue.

" Whaaaaat " Les Diaboliques for the awesome plot twist denoument [ must be earlier examples, but this one is the bee's knees ]

Forbidden Planet for using a Shakespeare play as a script template ?

Blair Witch Project for the Found Footage genre that we're all heartily fed up of.

[RichFN2]

Cantaloupe said:

Blair Witch Project for the Found Footage genre that we're all heartily fed up of.

That was the first thing that popped into my head is that Blair Witch Project must be responsible for the really annoying hand held shaky cam footage that became popular in films

[motco]

Cantaloupe said:

Carrie for the sneaky "shocker" at the epilogue.

" Whaaaaat " Les Diaboliques for the awesome plot twist denoument [ must be earlier examples, but this one is the bee's knees ]

Forbidden Planet for using a Shakespeare play as a script template ?

Blair Witch Project for the Found Footage genre that we're all heartily fed up of.

Forbidden Planet 1956 Throne of Blood (Kurosawa) 1957. Pretty close run thing! Similarly 'West Side Story' stage version 1957. I didn't realise Forbidden Planet was as early as it was.

[Halb]

SlimJim16v said:

Probably not the first, but Shane, the reformed bad guy, who hung up his gun/sword/fists trying to live peacefully. Unfortunately events force him to do what he was good at.
.

Not sure, but you may have one there. Most of the ones mentioned have not been firsts, usually done first by Westerns...ooo as I type this I just thought of Destry Rides Again.


Trying to rack my brain for a genuine first...The Godfather probably has one but can't think of it.

The Maltese Falcon might be the 'rogue cop' (yeah Sam isn't a cop) theme.

[Halb]

Time Fly said:

This was a hugely popular movie released in 1933 but before then nobody had described Nessie in that way.

How was it described?

[Pothole]

Halb said:

Trying to rack my brain for a genuine first...The Godfather probably has one but can't think of it.

Origin of the commonly used phrase "an offer you [he/she/they] can't refuse"?

[Pothole]

Grand Prix premiered split screen, didn't it?