Widely decried “overused” filmmaking things I actually like

I spend a good amount of my life concerned with media. Consuming it, analyzing it, reading about it, creatively engaging with it. In that process, I've also read and listened to others’ opinions on movies and how they are made. There are certain things in filmmaking, be it tropes, camerawork, or aspects of post-production, that are widely decried as overused - or just bad. I want to use this space here to share with you some of these things that I actually sincerely enjoy:

Star Trek 2009 (syfy.de)

- lens-flares: dammit but I love the light reflecting off of surfaces and shining brightly into the camera. It gives everything an otherworldly feel. It’s very sci-fi to me and I think lens-flare aficionado JJ Abrams put it into words well: “The reason I wanted to do [lens flares] was I love the idea that the future that they were in was so bright that it couldn’t be contained and it just sort of broke through.” 

- this action scene is just noise: How often have I heard that an action scene in a movie is meaningless because it’s just noise and nothing else and while that might be true, I tend to still enjoy it. It’s cinemasins’ “explosions! running! excitement!” sin but fully genuine.

300

- slow motion, especially slow motion fight scenes: I just can’t help but think that slo-mo shots are stylish and cool, no matter how often they appear in a movie. Slo-mo makes fighting especially look very sleek and I love that.

- person in the foreground doesn’t notice fight in the background: That’s just a little fun thing to do. Whenever I see it in a movie or show I just think it’s a joy.

Kingsman

- fun songs during fight scenes: No matter how often I hear a joyful song playing during a fight scene, I will always enjoy it greatly. I’m thinking Freebird in Kingsman, Istanbul in The Umbrella Academy, or I’m Just a Girl in Captain Marvel. I like fight scenes and seeing someone kick ass to a cheery tune is just great.

- narration: I know it’s ‘show don’t tell’. But sometimes I like to be told. Sometimes I just like to be explicitly told what’s going on.

I’m sure there’s more that I’m currently forgetting. This post kind of fits with the theme of the “Good films don’t have to be good” post. These things are used for a reason and even if they are seemingly overused, they can still spark joy in your heart.

Satori over and out