Just in seeing my movie collection there seem to be a lot of similar plots just in what I have. Can you list some other examples? Both plots, and movies?
And I mean plots, not story devices or themes. i.e. cop's two days from retirement, or government is bad, etc don't count.
Spoilers for those that haven't seen the movies.
A small group of people come to save another group of people from an outside destruction. Usually against extremly large numbers and for a group not wanting to be saved.
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Star Wars
Seven Samurai
Lord Of the Rings
Bugs Life
The Magnificent Seven
A protaginst manipulates two forces to fight and destroy each other. Red Harvest seems to be the first story where this plot came from.
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Jackie Brown
Yojimbo
Brick
Fistful of Dollars
Last Man Standing
A protaganist frustrated with their routine in life, goes out to find the extreme opposite, and by the end of the story finds his place somewhere in the middle.
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Fight Club
Office Space
A protganist is rectruited to fight for a cause that he doesn't believe in. Usually lied to by the people recruiting him.
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Children of Men
Escape from New York / L.A.
fumanstan
08-08-08, 04:33 PM
Yeah, I was just going to complain about how much Fight Club and Office Space were alike.
Groucho
08-08-08, 04:39 PM
Arrogant rich dude driving through a rural area gets in an accident and is forced to live in that area as penance for the damages. A local babe shows him her headlights, and he falls in love:
* Doc Hollywood
* Cars
majorjoe23
08-08-08, 04:49 PM
You should probably add The Magnificent Seven and a Fistful of Dollars to the first two examples. But some of your choices have me baffled.
notkevinbacon
08-08-08, 04:50 PM
I think i see what you're going for... I <i>think</i>
Would it be closer to consider them movies that follow the same "formula" so to speak??
Unusually ferocious predator begins attacking humans. Local authority has trouble dealing with new menace. Brings in old experienced hunter who loses life to the beast.
Jaws
Ghost in the Darkness
lukewarmwater
08-08-08, 05:16 PM
Well I'm guessing fight club and office space are what's bugging you guys.
They all start out with the character bored and wanting more from life, then something happens and they start to go through extremes, then they realize they may have gone to far and end up trying to stop what they had done, then at the end realize that they are not that extreme, and they can't go back to their routine boring life, so they lie somewhere in the middle.
Again it's just like my opinion man.
KillerCannibal
08-08-08, 05:32 PM
Teens go into the woods to have sex and do drugs:
*See: most 80's horror films.
snoogins
08-08-08, 05:39 PM
Arrogant rich dude driving through a rural area gets in an accident and is forced to live in that area as penance for the damages. A local babe shows him her headlights, and he falls in love:
* Doc Hollywood
* Cars
Leap of Faith? (except Debra Winger falls in love with Liam Neeson)
rw2516
08-08-08, 05:39 PM
Guys involved in a dangerous occupation in a remote, dangerous part of the world("This is no place for a woman") get saddled with a couple women who complicate things and they usually end up in love.
RED DUST
MOGAMBO
ONLY ANGELS HAVE WINGS
NORTH TO ALASKA
HATARI
HELLFIGHTERS
DONOVAN'S REEF
Various calvary fort westerns
JumpCutz
08-08-08, 06:02 PM
Cop getting ready to retire because he's "too old for this shit" only to be dragged into one final case.
RyoHazuki
08-08-08, 06:18 PM
Rush Hour
Osmosis Jones
(seriously)
Groucho
08-08-08, 06:31 PM
Three young people: one male, two female (blonde and brunette), live together. Bits and pieces of conversation and activities are overheard, causing a misunderstanding of sexual nature.
* Atonement
* Three's Company
MinLShaw
08-08-08, 06:43 PM
Have you heard of the "Cinescopes" book/project? For those who haven't, it's the work of two film buffs/sociologists who have divided films into sixteen "cinescopes." Think of them as your horoscope identity, but based on movies and not astrology. Each 'scope is comprised of films that share certain plot points, etc. that would appeal to the same type of personality. Some films appeal to multiple personalities (definitely *not* the way to phrase that...), and that's taken into consideration. It's not exactly science, but it's fun and an interesting way to look at not only films that are similar in nature, but what being drawn to them might say about us.
lukewarmwater
08-08-08, 07:19 PM
Have you heard of the "Cinescopes" book/project? For those who haven't, it's the work of two film buffs/sociologists who have divided films into sixteen "cinescopes." Think of them as your horoscope identity, but based on movies and not astrology. Each 'scope is comprised of films that share certain plot points, etc. that would appeal to the same type of personality. Some films appeal to multiple personalities (definitely *not* the way to phrase that...), and that's taken into consideration. It's not exactly science, but it's fun and an interesting way to look at not only films that are similar in nature, but what being drawn to them might say about us.
I haven't heard of that specifically, but I've seen variations like that, like that's sort of what netflix does, trys to define u by saying if you like A then you must like B. But it gereralizes and put's people into types. Like there's no way that someone who likes 300, would also like casablanca, etc.
But it sounds interesting, I'd check it out.
MinLShaw
08-09-08, 01:29 AM
I haven't heard of that specifically, but I've seen variations like that, like that's sort of what netflix does, trys to define u by saying if you like A then you must like B. But it gereralizes and put's people into types. Like there's no way that someone who likes 300, would also like casablanca, etc.
But it sounds interesting, I'd check it out.
According to Cinescopes, "Rebellious Lovers" and "Passionate Mavericks" are drawn to Casablanca, and "Chosen Adventurers" and "Destined Hunters" are drawn to 300. These four cinescope types are pretty compatible with one another, so you may discover that you're one cinescope type and your friends are among the other three. To determine your type, you're supposed to list your 10 favorite movies of all time, and see which type is the most prevalent. I should tell you that the movies they've categorized are pretty much all mainstream fare from the last few decades. Your favorite film of all time may well be a silent French film from the turn of the century, but it's not gonna come up.
Tscott
08-09-08, 02:47 AM
Single guy lets best friend talk him into zany idea to get a girl and gets more than he bargained for:
Weird Science
Audition
lukewarmwater
08-09-08, 04:33 AM
Also Point Break and Fast and The Furious
and Finding Nemo and Toy Story 2
Rockmjd23
08-09-08, 04:38 AM
The Most Dangerous Game and a million other movies.
Suprmallet
08-09-08, 05:32 AM
A teacher at my film school once said there's only two kinds of stories: "Stranger comes to town" or an Odyssey. I think it's a bit reductive, but he was pretty adamant about it.
joliom
08-09-08, 04:21 PM
There are thousands...but for fun's sake here's one I recently took note of:
Child's Play/Shocker/The First Power/Fallen
A serial killing practitioner of black magic is caught and killed, only to resurrect and start a whole new killing spree whilst jumping into and out of host bodies. The tough detective - or, in the case of Shocker, the tough son of the detective - who caught him originally, is now his primary target for revenge.
joliom
08-09-08, 04:29 PM
A teacher at my film school once said there's only two kinds of stories: "Stranger comes to town" or an Odyssey. I think it's a bit reductive, but he was pretty adamant about it.
He should have added 'slice of life' to account for films that just depict everyday life without a character actually experiencing a personal struggle. You don't see too many of those outside of the documentary arena, but they are, however, entirely possible to construct.
lukewarmwater
08-09-08, 06:11 PM
Well isn't it also a theory that there are 7 basic plot points for all stories?
I think what made shakspere and kurosawa so great because they basically did one of each.
Mr. Salty
08-09-08, 07:18 PM
Well isn't it also a theory that there are 7 basic plot points for all stories?
And they are:
1. Man vs. nature
2. Man vs. man
3. Man vs. the environment
4. Man vs. technology
5. Man vs. the supernatural
6. Man vs. self
7. Man vs. god
lukewarmwater
08-09-08, 07:33 PM
And they are:
1. Man vs. nature
2. Man vs. man
3. Man vs. the environment
4. Man vs. technology
5. Man vs. the supernatural
6. Man vs. self
7. Man vs. god
what about man vs animal? or robot vs robot? or ghost vs ninja? or bunch of people just talking, not really fighting, two men vs nature and supernatural? Man vs boring day?
MANBREASTS
08-09-08, 07:57 PM
malisious with molly ringwald was remade as swimfan
JTH182
08-09-08, 08:54 PM
Three Amigos
Tropic Thunder
Rizor
08-10-08, 12:54 AM
A protaginst manipulates two forces to fight and destroy each other. Red Harvest seems to be the first story where this plot came from.
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Jackie Brown
Yojimbo
Brick
Fistful of Dollars
Last Man StandingYou can add Jet Li's "War" to this as well.
lukewarmwater
08-10-08, 12:57 AM
You can add Jet Li's "War" to this as well.
Yeah, but I don't want to. That movie was so very awful.
Buy: