Well Defined—The Blind-Bye

A Penny in the Well movie definition

As the pressures of becoming a father of four and a tougher work schedule than I’ve ever had before, I find it increasingly difficult to post a new film review every day. Not so much because I don’t want to write a new review each day, but because I just can find the time to watch enough movies to do that. I just can’t write about a movie simply by memory. I’d really prefer to watch the movies I’m writing about so I can present fresh views on them. So, I find myself in a dilemma if I want a new post each day.

With the release of “Life Itself”, the documentary about the life of film critic Roger Ebert, I also find that I miss some of the details he contributed to cinema. One of those details were definitions of cinematic phenomenon, such as the Meet Cute, that often cutesy moment when two characters are first introduced to each other. Ebert had a tradition of continuing to contribute to his ever growing film glossary of definitions and terms, which the people who run his website probably still do, but I’ve decided to steal this idea from him.

As a way to compensate for those days when I just can’t get a movie in, I offer the newest feature of A Penny in the Well—Well Defined, my own little movie glossary of terms and definitions of the language of cinema. Like Ebert, I will gladly accept definitions from outside contributors for this feature. So, if you have a definition, please submit it in the comments section, or on Facebook, and you might save me from lacking a post one day.

The Blind-Bye

If a character in a horror movie is ever crossing the street and talking to someone else who is not in the street, the character in the street will invariably be blindsided by a bus or a truck or a surprisingly tough car that neither the characters nor the audience will hear coming, nor will the driver of the vehicle make any attempt to stop until after hitting the victim. This rule also applies to characters with vital information in thrillers.