5 Minor Character Death Films That Make Guys Cry
- Thread starter Firefilm
- Start date
Coulson's death was ruined when Marvel decided to revive him for a TV show. And don't you just hate it how they can't sacrifice a single character that isn't the Origin Story Mentor or the Villain of the Day?
Marvel wants to 1) forward a character's arc and 2) increase the stakes, but they refuse to lock themselves out of a character by killing him. So they end up undermining a perfectly functional death scene by resurrecting characters for TV shows and movie deals or simply because they want to keep their options open. They never commit, they always compromise. So why should I be moved by Coulson's death?
Bucky goes MIA, which is supposed to be a huge stepping stone in Cap's arc, yet is revived for the sequel. Coulson is killed and the Avengers finally bond over his death, and he gets revived for the TV show. Nick Fury gets killed so you can go "Blimey, shit got real in Captain America 2!" only to show up later, alive and well. Loki apparently dies, finally having reconciled with Thor and avenged his mother... and surprise surprise, he's okay anyway.
Marvel wants to 1) forward a character's arc and 2) increase the stakes, but they refuse to lock themselves out of a character by killing him. So they end up undermining a perfectly functional death scene by resurrecting characters for TV shows and movie deals or simply because they want to keep their options open. They never commit, they always compromise. So why should I be moved by Coulson's death?
Excuse me. Where's Eddie from Jurassic Park: The Lost World? No side-character death pisses me off more than that one. Every time I watch the movie I feel like crying at that scene. In the minutes leading up to his death, he saved his friends' lives with a rope, winched his car to their truck to keep it from falling off a cliff, and kept his foot on the gas WHILE BEING ATTACKED BY TWO T-REXES. In the history of heroic movie deaths, this one gets overlooked far too much.
That is a pretty painful one. And they don't even really stop to mourn him or anything.Silk_Sk said:
As for the rest of the list:
1 I'm not sure who Agent Clay is. I've never watched the entire Hellboy movie, but I always feel bad when any random good guy on the team gets killed. It's like if you're not the hero, don't even bother showing up to work, because you're toast. These people have, or had, lives, and no one cares once they're gone. It's why I cheered so hard when that random pilot in Gundan SeeD Destiny not only goes on the final mission, he goes into the main base, fights alongside the heroes, sets his charges, and makes it all the way back to his Gundam and out of the battle alive, never taking off his helmet.
2 Yeah, I was crushed when Coulson went down, but the fact that they brought him back kind of ruins that one. Still waiting for him to return to the Marvel Movies though, and we get to see everyone's reactions.
3 Never saw it.
4 I'm disagreeing on this one. I didn't feel bad with Winston died. If anything, I wanted to salute him. He died doing what he loved, and laughing while it happened. He got his final wish--a death in glory, and while the world may not know what he did, I'm positive that O'Conner and the others will make sure that he is remembered. He did save the entire world, after all.
5 Completely agree on this one. I knew those two were going to die, because the team was too big. Still, I was expecting them to go out swinging. Watching them die like that was heartbreaking. And your right about her line, "Not like this," with tears in her eyes being a real gut punch.
Uh, his name is 'Agent'.EeviStev said:
On a serious note, it was weird being in the theater when that moment happened. There was no sound at all, no one said a dame thing. There wasn't even that obligatory "that guy" who said something funny or stupid or just made a loud, obscene sound.
Personally I think there was plans for a series post-Avengers right after the first weekend due to the box office return, and with fans demanding Coulson be brought back it seemed inevitable. It's not like Sci-fi series haven't turned bringing back characters due to fans demanding it isn't the norm.
