More spoilers
Sep. 22nd, 2006 12:26 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
jackContinuing on from a comment in my last post, what doesn't constitute a spoiler? What examples do you think are so universally known that no-one at all would not know/mind being told? (In the UK, let's say -- obviously these won't have spread everywhere.)
This is *not* lj-cut, that's sort of the point :)
* Pasion of the Christ: Jesus rises from the Dead. Christians have spent 2000 years telling people, I really hope everyone in this culture has heard about this by now. Of course, some people haven't, but I think this tidbit is generally the first not the last thing said -- no-one says "Hey, you're ruining the ending for the Heathens!"
* Dracula: Dracula is a vampire Dracula is so synonymous with vampire I bet reading this it didn't occur to you that he could not be. Does anyone not known this? And also not know all the other hints?
This is an interesting one, actually, because when it was first written, I think this was *not* obvious, and a different and possibly better horror novel for it.
* Romeo and Juliet: They die at the end Quite apart from the bywordity of them, I heard an amusing exchange about this.
A: blah blah blah die at the end blah
B: Hey! Technically that's a spoiler.
A: Yeah, but everyone knows--
B: I know it's 400 years later, but some people haven't seen the play.
A: And also, IT SAYS SO IN THE PROLOGUE, YOU ILLITERATE MONKEY!
:)
Are those the best? Can you think of anything else more universally agreead not to be a spoiler?
PS. And now, some that don't count:
* Titanic sinks, Napoleon loses Waterloo -- I think these are sufficiently well known and intended to be known there's no point not saying them. However, I have heard people exclaim "Oh no, you spoiled it for me."
* How starwars ends, What the "Matrix" is -- You'd think everyone would know, but some people just don't care about the films, haven't seen them, and don't know.
This is *not* lj-cut, that's sort of the point :)
* Pasion of the Christ: Jesus rises from the Dead. Christians have spent 2000 years telling people, I really hope everyone in this culture has heard about this by now. Of course, some people haven't, but I think this tidbit is generally the first not the last thing said -- no-one says "Hey, you're ruining the ending for the Heathens!"
* Dracula: Dracula is a vampire Dracula is so synonymous with vampire I bet reading this it didn't occur to you that he could not be. Does anyone not known this? And also not know all the other hints?
This is an interesting one, actually, because when it was first written, I think this was *not* obvious, and a different and possibly better horror novel for it.
* Romeo and Juliet: They die at the end Quite apart from the bywordity of them, I heard an amusing exchange about this.
A: blah blah blah die at the end blah
B: Hey! Technically that's a spoiler.
A: Yeah, but everyone knows--
B: I know it's 400 years later, but some people haven't seen the play.
A: And also, IT SAYS SO IN THE PROLOGUE, YOU ILLITERATE MONKEY!
:)
Are those the best? Can you think of anything else more universally agreead not to be a spoiler?
PS. And now, some that don't count:
* Titanic sinks, Napoleon loses Waterloo -- I think these are sufficiently well known and intended to be known there's no point not saying them. However, I have heard people exclaim "Oh no, you spoiled it for me."
* How starwars ends, What the "Matrix" is -- You'd think everyone would know, but some people just don't care about the films, haven't seen them, and don't know.
no subject
Date: 2006-09-22 01:33 pm (UTC)The madwoman in the attic. Maybe even if people don't know which book it is from everyone has heard of her.
And talking about madwomen: Psycho. Is there a person in the world who thinks Mrs Bates and her son have a normal, healthy, both-of-them-are-alive type relationship?
no subject
Date: 2006-09-22 01:58 pm (UTC)2. Yeah. This was mum's example. I haven't read the book, but heard about it, and read several books based around it, so very know by now.
3. LOL, yeah. The title is a *bit* of a giveaway, but doesn't spoil it :)
no subject
Date: 2006-09-22 02:26 pm (UTC)Well, I thought it was obvious. I wouldn't say anyone who didn't was subnormal, I'd say that they were very lucky that they don't have the sort of imagination that makes it obvious from the context what was in it. Not just for that moment, but for the rest of the film, since most of the horror isn't displayed on screen. It's a really horrible film to watch for the first time if you do have a good imagination and can extrapolate from what is shown. I could hardly walk out of the film I felt so ill at the end of it.
Didn't bother me so much in subsequent viewings, but I don't think I've seen it the whole way through since. Mind you, I became numb to Bad Taste after watching it a few times. I'm not sure I'll ever become numb to That Scene in American Pie 3 though *shudder*.
no subject
Date: 2006-09-22 02:21 pm (UTC)I hadn't heard anyone saying anything about the film before I went in. But when the box appeared, I confused the wossname out of my neighbours* by doing an incoherent "The box! That's so disgusting! The box! Eurgh *hands over face*" wibble. They both turned to me and asked what was in the box, why was it gross and how did I know what was in it. To them, it wasn't instantly and painfully obvious what it was.
*It was at the sort of viewing where minor observations were OK.