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1 year ago
6
"I'm you... and your me!?"
If it's not broken, don't fix it. Throughout time, films have been known to hop on trends and tropes that work. The 2000s were no exception. From spiked hair with frosted tips to low-rise jeans, the 2000s had a very particular vibe, and that includes the clichés that kept appearing on the big screen.
Fox Searchlight Pictures
Here are 11 things from 2000s movies we should bring back and 11 we should trash forever:
NOTE: Dated tropes like sexual harassment as a comedic gag, gay men used as jesters, the awful portrayal of Native Americans, and other things of such nature stretch beyond the 2000s and are obviously problematic. So, I chose to exclude them from this list.
1. BRING IT BACK! When a film delivers a big musical number despite it not being a full-blown musical.
Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures
From Enchanted to Slumdog Millionaire to 13 Going on 30, a sudden (out of place) dance number or song sprinkled into a non-musical was a 2000s film signature. To me, it's the ultimate sign of a movie not taking itself too seriously while progressing the story.
2. TRASH IT! Body swaps give us the same lesson over and over and over and over (you get the picture).
Buena Vista Pictures Distribution
So many movies in the 2000s tried to capture that Freaky Friday magic. There's only so far this trope can take audiences, so I say let it die. Even more recent movies like Freaky just don't do it for me.
3. BRING IT BACK! Movies that have non-teachers try to teach kids.
Paramount Pictures
Something is outstanding about non-teachers stepping into the role of teachers that works really well on film. Put a misfit character in a room of students, and that character realizes they want to help kids learn. Films like this can have a lot of heart, the film School of Rock being the best example.
4. TRASH IT! Cops or whoever go deep undercover into seemingly weird professions or personas.
Sony Pictures Releasing
Everything I said about the teacher trope having heart is the opposite of the undercover cops trope. To me, movies like White Chicks, She's the Man, and Miss Congeniality all have the same problem: You're waiting for them to get caught. Films like that don't have a lot to lean on...
Maybe I'm just not into undercover cop films.
5. BRING IT BACK! Who doesn't love a changing room montage of a character trying on terrible 'fits only to find the perfect outfit?
Universal Pictures
Maybe I don't watch enough current movies, but I feel like this trend was a movie staple and fizzled out in the 2010s. Yes, it's campy... but, you know, you're allowed to have fun while creating a film.
6. TRASH IT! A vengeful warrior needs someone to die to give them motivation.
DreamWorks Distribution
Every action movie in the 2000s leaned heavily on someone killing someone else's family and that person seeking revenge. It's kind of dark to see how many of these movies happened and never really dealt with characters finding inner peace without going out and taking a life out of hate.
That said, I still love a ton of movies like that, Gladiator included, but I feel like there are deeper elements to tackle for characters wanting revenge.
7. BRING IT BACK! Horror icons duke it out in films reminiscent of old-school Universal monster movies.
New Line Cinema, 20th Century Fox
Before all the dark times of multiverses, audiences were graced with movies to answer the question: Who would win in a fight, X or Y? Alien vs. Predator and Freddy vs. Jason both worked as standalone films and didn't need to create a whole connected universe to be entertaining.
Shocked we never got Michael Myers vs. Leatherface.
8. TRASH IT! Rob Schneider cameos in every Adam Sandler film.
Buena Vista Pictures Distribution
An Adam Sandler signature in the '90s and into the 2000s. If there was ever a running gag that I did not get, it was this gag that guys growing up would quote constantly.
If you find it funny, I'm jealous. I feel like it's an inside joke I'm not part of.
9. BRING IT BACK! Celeb cameos and bringing the laughs.
Universal Pictures
Rolling in from the '90s, Ben Stiller cameos died down after his appearance in Anchorman. I like it when celebrities show up in random comedic roles, especially when there is nuance to it, like Stiller would always bring.
10. TRASH IT! The main character falls during a serious/trying-to-be-cool moment.
Paramount Pictures
You can't sit with us. From Mean Girls to... well, every teen comedy, we always got that one moment of the main character falling at the worst possible moment. As far as cheap gags, this is up there.
11. BRING IT BACK! Our two leads sucking faces in the rain.
Sony Pictures Releasing, New Line Cinema
If you've never made out with someone in the rain, you won't get it.
The overall ridiculousness of it is great, so you'll either think it's romantic or hilarious. Both are a win, in my opinion.
12. TRASH IT! A character tells another character to "GET OUT OF MY LIFE," only to apologize later.
New Line Cinema
I'm not saying they shouldn't apologize, lol. The whole "get out of my life" trope only has one road: realizing you don't want said person out of your life.
I feel like there are much better ways to give our main character difficult trials than such a ham-fisted line.
13. BRING IT BACK! A story around a character gaining superpowers or discovering hidden powers (non-comic book films).
Warner Bros.
I think we're nearing the end of the superhero age, and we are in need of some new heroes. Their power doesn't have to make them a superhero, but it can take them on a wild adventure.
14. TRASH IT! The geek is really a babe, thanks to a makeover.
Buena Vista Pictures Distribution
The "wait, you're hot under those glasses!?" trope (used mostly always for female protagonists) was always a classic tool, even before the 2000s. For some reason, it really felt like this "ugly duckling" trope was heavily used in the early 2000s. Examples: The Princess Diaries, Hairspray, The Devil Wears Prada, Catwoman.
15. BRING IT BACK! Dramatic love-at-first-sight moments that are extra x100.
20th Century Fox
Bring back super zoom-ins and cheesy music. Every movie in the 2000s had that scene where a character falls in love in the most ridiculous fashion, and I say bring it back!
We've all felt this way at least once in our lives.
16. TRASH IT! Superheroes wore black costumes despite how their costumes looked in comic books.
20th Century Fox
Black is the new... black?
For some reason, whether it was Batman or the X-Men, comic book characters ditched their colorful roots and traded in their original duds for boring black costumes. At least add some colorful details in there or something.
17. BRING IT BACK! Portals take us to a magical world.
Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures
I miss feeling like characters would go into a different world, and it felt like it was there. That's right. It's another beat to this post railing against green screens and CGI. Movies like The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe and Alice in Wonderland are classics, but it'd be nice to see a new, original story idea taking characters and having them enter a magical place.
18. TRASH IT! "Screensaver-looking" CGI is proof that pushing the boundaries of technology can ruin films that could have been ageless.
20th Century Fox, Universal Pictures
Don't get me wrong, there have been some amazing CGI feats throughout the new century, but we can admit the early-2000s had some trash CGI effects that have aged so poorly they look like PC games.
19. BRING IT BACK! Practical set pieces that feel like another world and not another studio stage.
New Line Cinema
Tighten up those shots and make magic happen. So many 2000s fantasy and adventure movies like The Lord of the Rings deliver on practicality.
There are so many talented set designers out there. Give them the cash to make magic happen.
20. TRASH IT! Sloooooow mooooootioooon.
Warner Bros.
A classic movie trick, but the 2000s really slooooowed things down thanks to the famous Matrix bullet time scene.
I feel like scenes can slow down and take their time without literally slowing the speed of the film down with effects.
21. BRING IT BACK! Campy fight scenes that don't take themselves seriously, but at the same time, don't do it in a meta way.
Sony Pictures Releasing
The 2000s delivered on corky fight choreography (try saying that five times fast). Movies like Charlie's Angels, The Mummy, and Lara Croft: Tomb Raider had a lot of fun action that was trying to be more "fun" than "badass."
Not everything has to be John Wick when it comes to action. BUT, modern movies that try to be goofy don't have to play it to the audience so hard when they do take the goofy route.
22. TRASH IT! Farts equal comedy gold.
DreamWorks Animation
Seriously, someone should do a flatulence counter for movies in the 2000s. It felt like it was the biggest decade for letting it rip. This was bread and butter for children's comedies, and even as a kid, I sat there and rolled my eyes.
Are there any 2000s movie tropes that deserve a comeback? How about ones you'd banish forever? Comment below!
If you didn't like my list, yell at me in the comments and tell me to "GET OUT OF YOUR LIFE" (and then apologize days later).
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