Fiction vs. Reality, 50 TV & Film Clichés That Work On Screen But Fail in Real Life

Movies don't have to reflect reality, and that's a good thing because our reality is often quite dull.

Who would want to watch a movie about that? On the other hand, sometimes the writers go overboard and use clichés that are completely unbelievable.

These clichés can even ruin our movie experience. Most of us, being skeptics by nature, are quick to criticize films—particularly romance movies—for being unrealistic and nothing like real life.

While scriptwriters can't be blamed for why you don't receive flowers sent to your office, they can be held accountable for the expectations they raise. It's widely accepted that certain things that work in movies simply don't work in real life.

These are the so-called movie tropes—a set of clichés that are overused in films. For example, the leading actor hops into a random taxi they catch on the street and asks the driver to take them home without providing an address or any other information.

This trope is even lampooned in the movie How To Be Single (2016) with a cheeky response from the taxi driver. However, it's not just in the romance and horror genres that these tropes are used.

A user on AskReddit recently asked, "What happens in movies or TV that seems normal, and you think to yourself, 'That is not what people do in real life'?" This prompted thousands of answers that revealed the most commonly used clichés and movie tropes.

So, we've compiled this list of movie tropes from the responses, highlighting the clichés you see way too often.

1. "Soldiers Running Towards The Enemy Instead Of Hanging Back And Setting Up Suppressing Fire"

HECUMARINE45

2. "Ordering A Beer Without Specifying What Brand Of Beer They Want"

ShermanKrebbs

3. "Knocking On The Door And Someone Opening It Within Two Seconds"

iwtoblv

4. "Being A Young, Aspiring Artist Living Alone In A Nice, Spacious Apartment In A Prime Area Of A Big City Like New York Or LA"

SDFDuck

5. "Getting Fired From An Office Job And Walking Out With A Box That Has A 3-Foot Tall Plant Sticking Out"

EstebanSays

6. "Taking Turns Talking. Like In Cop Shows When One Cop Begins An Explanation, Then The Next One Picks Up The Story At A Seamlessly Convenient Spot"

madcats323

7. "When A Couple Wakes Up In Bed Together (With No Wild Bed-Head Hair, Mind You) And Just Start Making Out"

VictorBlimpmuscle

8. "Highschool Bullies In Movies"

oiquake

9. "Turning On A Shower And Jumping Right In Without Checking The Water Temperature With Their Hand First"

Money4Nothing2000

10. "Guessing The Passwords Of Other People Correctly"

Transitionals

11. "No One Using A Computer Ever Uses A Mouse. It’s Just Constant, Frantic Typing"

Santos_L_Halper_II

12. "Every Time Anyone Sneezes, People Assume They're Sick. Like, Don't They Ever Get Random Sneezes?"

jatinvj-sumba-d-else

13. "Dreaming Of Kissing A Beautiful Woman, But Actually You're Just Being Licked By An Animal"

level 1 I_Am_Terry

14. "Crying Without Their Face Getting Puffy, Red, And Ugly"

JammyJacketPotato

15. "The Amount Of Ultimatums In 'Romantic' Movies Is Appalling"

TemptCiderFan

16. "Running Upstairs In Horror Movies. If There Was Something Chasing You, Wouldn’t You Head For The Door To Get Outside?"

Horrorwriterme

17. "People Opening The Oven Only To Be Surprised And Exclaim 'Oh No' At A Completely Black Roast/Turkey/Meat Of Some Kind, With Smoke Billowing Out Of The Oven"

HeliumIsotope

18. "Making The School Dance A Big Deal"

Salty-Tortoise

19. "Hitting Someone On The Head With A Whiskey Bottle To Knock Them Out. There's A Pretty High Risk Of Killing Them"

reddit.com

20. "A Car Gets Hit, Scratched, Rolled, Goes Off A Cliff, And In A Car Accident... It Blows Up"

Moln0014

21. "Getting Eaten By A Dinosaur. That Rarely Happens In Real Life"

logicalmaniak

22. "Finding A Parking Spot Right In Front Of Their Building"

reddit.com

23. "Computers Making A Soft Priiiiiip Every Time A Line Of Text Appears On Screen"

V02D

24. "School Buses Honking And Waiting For Kids Who Are Still In The House. If I Wasn’t At The Bus Stop When The Bus Arrived, It Would Drive On By. It Didn’t Stop. It Didn’t Honk"

DannyC990

25. "Girl Vomiting Means Pregnant, Hiccups Mean Drunk, Coughing Means Seriously Ill"

MrSpotgold

26. "If A Simple Miscommunication Happens, No One Stops To Clarify With The Other Person. If A 10-Second Conversation Can Derail An Entire Plot Thread, I'm Not Interested"

bleedsdaylight121

27. "Absolutely Everything Related To Pregnancy And Especially Childbirth. You Don't Just Instantly Rush To The Hospital"

Roupert2

28. "On The Phone Making Plans: 'Ok, Meet Me At 5?' 'Sure.' And That’s The Whole Plan. Where Are You Meeting?"

bees_knees5628

29. "Waving 'Full' Coffee Cups Around"

JustABoyAndHisBlob

30. "Women Running Around In Heels With Perfect Hair And Makeup, And The Dirt And Sweat Making Their Hair And Makeup Look Even Better"

ISeeMusicInColor

31. "Going To A Friend's Place, Staying There For Only 30 Seconds To Talk About Something Plot-Relevant, Then Leaving Right Away"

fd1760

32. "Just Asking A Random Girl: 'Hey, Wanna Get Dinner Tomorrow? I'll Pick You Up At 5.' You Don't Have Her Address Or Her Phone Number"

reddit.com

33. "Women Can Be In The Jungle For Weeks, And They Don't Have Hair Growing Anywhere. Men Immediately Begin To Grow A Beard"

Dream_babe

34. "Scenes Where Someone Is Painting Something, Like A Wall Or A Chair, While Wearing Nice Clothing, With No Tape, Coverings, Or Paint Splatter Anywhere"

Money4Nothing2000

35. "Wearing Shoes On Their Beds. Like, Who Actually Does That?"

Cain_Soren

36. "Instantly Drying, Even Though They Just Jumped Into Water Fully Clothed"

l4i2n0ks

37. "People Splashing Cold Water On Their Faces And Looking In The Mirror To Indicate A Character Is Upset"

Robot-XL-5

38. "Putting A Baby In A Playpen When Your Friend Visits And Said Baby Doesn’t Scream"

dudettte

39. "Doctors Performing Surgery Without Safety Glasses"

Money4Nothing2000

40. "Walking Into Friends' Houses Without Knocking"

ninjoid

41. "Drinking Heavily Without Consequences"

pure_la_croix

42. "Suppressors On Firearms Making Them Whisper Quiet"

Samura1_I3

43. "Having Highly Confidential Conversations About 4 Feet Away From The People They Are Talking About, And Not Being Overheard"

Goose-rider3000

44. "Throwing An Unspecified Amount Of Money On The Bar And Walking Out"

ZedsDeadBabyyyyyy

45. "Everyone Has One Paper Bag For Groceries, And It Has A Celery Stalk And A Loaf Of French Bread Sticking Out The Top"

ArachnidBeneficial61

46. "Young Singles Living In Million-Dollar Condos That Overlook The City"

kwinner7

47. "A Woman Rejects A Man, And He Keeps Pestering Her With Gifts And Attention Until She Changes Her Mind. In Real Life, That’s Called Stalking, And She Won’t Appreciate It"

squirrels33

48. "Waking Up At 6 AM No Matter What Time Of Year And It Is Bright And Sunny"

peoplecallmeamy

49. "The Stupid Slow Motion Kiss Or Hug As The World Is Falling Apart"

puckmonky

50. "Furiously Making Out While Coming Through A Front Door"

PalpableMoon

Movie clichés are an integral part of films, providing familiarity and comfort to viewers. They can create a sense of recognition for the audience and help establish a certain atmosphere.

Movie clichés can also serve as shorthand to quickly bring the audience up to speed on the plot and characters. For example, a scene of two lovers sharing a romantic kiss on a beach is an instantly recognizable cliché that quickly communicates to the audience what kind of movie they’re about to watch.

So, they serve a purpose... Do we like them? Not always...