Those who saw the first Karate Kid film likely remember the scene where Mr. Miyagi jumped a fence and singlehandedly took on five Cobra Kai goons to save Daniel LaRusso. If you saw this as a kid, it likely made many of you believe that knowing Karate was pretty much a superpower that could save you in a similar situation. 

The reality is that street fights are ugly. It could land a person in jail, in the hospital, or worse. People will bite, headbutt, strike the groin, maybe even have a weapon involved that can instantly nullify your Karate.  

This misrepresentation of hand-to-hand combat is just one of the many responses to a Reddit thread from a while back. People also shared how they felt Hollywood romanticized high school life, being in the military, and the physical act of love, among many others. 

#1

Being relentlessly pursued by someone you keep telling you are not interested.

It’s not romantic or comedic, it’s just a mixture of stalking and harassment if you keep showing up in their life and/or throwing romantic gestures their way.

Maybe you can try again at a later date if you feel your initial approach or the timing might have been off. But really leave the other person alone until then. Truly alone – no following them in real life or on social media – even if they don’t find out (they will), you will inevitably let something slip when you do reconnect and that will be very bad.

Image credits: zazzlekdazzle

#2

Small town living.

Oh, I’ll catch hell for it, I’m sure, but I’ve never been impressed with small towns. Some people really do enjoy living in small communities, but I grew up in one and lived in another for 10 years, and it was awful.

There’s a lot of judgment in small towns, especially for people with “those families” – you know, the ones from the wrong side of the tracks. There’s also a lot of judgment if you’re not a straight, white, Christian. You’re going to face a lot of discrimination and gossip.

You’ll either be in the small town where everyone knows everyone’s business, or the small town where you are frozen out for 10 years because you weren’t born there and your family isn’t from there. I’ve lived in both.

Image credits: will_write_for_tacos

#3

Gunfights.

Image credits: anon

Dealing with grief is one of the many facets of life that Hollywood romanticizes. According to Joseph Castranova-Monceleano III, founder and CEO of Resting Rainbow Pet Memorials and Cremation, movies that depict dramatic crying scenes followed by characters moving on with their lives, claiming they have been “transformed and healed,” are a distortion of reality. 

“Real grief doesn’t follow Hollywood timelines or neat emotional arcs. (It is) messy, urgent, and completely unpredictable,” he told Bored Panda, adding that movies also sell the idea that closure “happens in two hours with a soundtrack.”

#4

High school.

Image credits: forestmango

#5

Life.

Image credits: Skyys_

#6

Losing your job and finding yourself.

Image credits: Mardanis

Similarly, movies depict recovery from traumatic life experiences as a “quick fix,” which Intensive Trauma Therapy Retreats owner Dr. Bambi Rattner describes as “dangerous.” She noted that many films depict people having “breakthrough moments,” only to be “cured” by the end credits. 

“(It) creates unrealistic expectations that damage real recovery efforts,” he said. “In my intensive retreats, we work for 8+ hours over multiple consecutive days specifically because trauma doesn’t follow Hollywood timelines.”

#7

Living “off the grid”

My guess is most people do well for the first few months, then cant handle losing modern conveniences long term.

Image credits: bevymartbc

#8

Running as fast as you can, chasing someone, for blocks and blocks, and not winded much.

Image credits: Vernerator

#9

Hand to hand combat.

Image credits: CrackedEight

To show how potentially destructive film depictions of recovery can be, Dr. Rattner mentioned a case involving one of her clients, who almost quit therapy after six months. According to her, movies led individuals to believe that it was enough time to be “fixed.” 

“What’s particularly harmful is when clients internalize Hollywood’s message that they’re ‘broken’ if healing takes time,” Dr. Rattner said.

#10

Watching street performances. 99% of the time, they’re s**t.

Image credits: anon

#11

Jumping in piles of leaves.

First you have to rake everything, then you jump into a shockingly not soft pile of dirt and animal feces, then you have to rake it all over again!

Image credits: KDsmackeroni

#12

‘Mr Bond, your plane leaves in one hour’

what! I need three days to prepare clothing, medicin, house/pet/kids-sitter, cancel the giggolo.

Image credits: OldMork

Having a “soulmate” is another concept glamorized by Hollywood. It made many believe that once they found their perfect match, they could understand each other with minimal effort. According to veteran marriage and family therapist Ross Hackerson, it’s a fantasy that “keeps couples from learning actual communication skills.” 

“The most damaging romanticization is that passion should be effortless and constant. Real intimacy requires specific skills like validation and emotional attunement, not magical compatibility,” said Hackerson, who referred to the soulmate trope as “the biggest Hollywood lie.”

#13

A guy you’re not interested in that won’t give up on trying to be your boyfriend.

Image credits: kirbyspinballwizard

#14

Waking up in the morning.

Image credits: alohanouiloha

#15

Making a big hot breakfast for a large family.

Image credits: Scrappy_Larue

If you’re a fan of romantic thrillers, you’ve likely come across the story that portrays infidelity as a steamy, passionate episode in one’s life. But according to betrayal expert, speaker, and author Lora Cheadle, JD, Cht, real affairs rarely start with passion. They begin with pain. 

“An affair is less about finding love and more about escaping what hurts. Like any other unhealthy coping mechanism, it’s a way to numb feelings we don’t know how to name or express,” she said.

#16

Months and months of hard physical training… the power of “montage” would be the most amazing super power ever lol.

Image credits: anon

#17

Years ago, I had the privilege of flying in a Navy attack jet. It was an “orientation flight” to see if we wanted to pursue a career flying combat fighters. It was brutal. It convinced me that those guys are crazy, and I wanted nothing to do with it, but I still enjoy watching the Blue Angels at the air show.

Image credits: fredzout

#18

Children.

Image credits: Ian_Dima

Cheadle adds that Hollywood sends a message that an affair can “make us feel alive.” But in reality, it creates chaos that involves guilt, shame, secrecy, broken families, and the loss of self-respect. 

“When people discover that the fantasy doesn’t deliver — that the passion fades and the consequences remain — they’re left reeling, wondering how they got so far from who they wanted to be,” Cheadle said.

#19

Being in the f*****g military.

Image credits: AlphaWhiskeyOscar

#20

Working in the medical field. Saying it “sucks” is maybe too harsh, but I feel it’s often glamorized or even over-dramatized to seem like a more fun job than it actually is. Sometimes it’s super messed up, other times it’s boring and mundane as hell, it can be fun too, but shows/movies get it wrong more often than not.

Image credits: BrainShort7824

#21

Real life might be a stretch, but I heard people often romanticize apocalypse scenarios. This was really prevalent during the zombie fad from the mid to late 2000s.

“It’d be just you and me against the world, baby!!!” Yeah, I’ll pass on the constant threat of infection, starvation, shelter, etc, etc. Sounds f*****g awful.

So why does Hollywood have a penchant for giving its audience a warped view of reality? According to actor and film producer Randy Charach, movies are not the replication of life as it happens, but rather, the distillation. 

“Life is complicated and winding, but film cuts the fat and creates an enhanced emotional reaction that allows for better audience engagement,” he said.

#22

I’m just going to throw this out there, risking to upset a lot of people😅. But what about having children?

Image credits: Kind-Eyes9733

#23

I feel like tragedy in general is romanticized in movies/books. Like it’s the tragedy (of any kind, a death, accident, disaster, fire, illness, etc.) that brings the couple closer or makes their love stronger. In reality, the trauma would be much more complex and wouldn’t always bring people closer.

#24

Jealousy.

It’s not cute or sweet, nor does it mean that this person really loves you. They just see you as a possession and that’s disgusting.

Charach added that while romanticization is not required for every narrative, it is in the majority of films in some form. He also clarified that Hollywood does it mainly for the entertainment of the audience, who “do not come to watch every boring second.” 

“Hollywood plays into romanticization because it takes the mundane and, through conflict, turns it into something larger than ourselves,” he explained.

#25

Depression.

#26

Serial killers.

#27

Toxic relationships.

#28

Kissing someone without their consent. This goes for both genders not just men. They just push them against the wall and start kissing them. I feel like it teaches young people that this is romantic and not potentially sexual harassment. It happens a lot on tv shows like Grey’s Anatomy for example. You really shouldn’t kiss someone like that without their consent.

#29

NYC 🤷🏻‍♀️ sorry but it’s terrible lol.

#30

Caffeine a*******n. It’s always about collecting energy drinks cans, casually drinking 10 gallons of coffee, etc, and never about horrible headaches, blood pressure swings, and heart problems. I literally have a friend younger than me that drinks more than ~6 cans per day and jokes about it, flexing it in her social media, and thinks it wouldn’t affect her much, no matter how often I try to argue with her about it.

#31

I hate it when people romanticize going to war. They don’t know what it’s like to live with a vet with PTSD.

#32

Road trips.

Image credits: MujoBosnianKing

#33

S*x.

Image credits: Antterr

#34

Fighting on top of a train.

Image credits: MegaZombieMegaZombie

#35

Talking to people.

Image credits: Alibaba_gonnamessya

#36

When someone comes to visit someone, they are asked if they want a drink, they accept, then leave without touching it.

If that happened irl, I’d lose it.

Image credits: mindtropy

#37

Fall in love.

Image credits: Altruistic_Angle9539

#38

Raves.

#39

Driving.

#40

S*x on a beach.

#41

Moving. In the movies, there’s just the fun of unpacking important keepsakes and placing them on the mantle. In real life, packing up all your s**t and carting elsewhere sucks.

Image credits: anon

#42

Shooting without ear protection. All these action heroes would be deaf from all the shooting in enclosed spaces they do.

#43

Hanging out alone in a bar, they always end up having a great conversation or meeting an interesting person, while in reality, you either end up silent and solo or chat with a talkative, annoying fella.

#44

Fixing the bad boy.

#45

That the love of your life will automatically read your mind just like in the movies. Real life doesn’t work like that, you need to make efforts at communicating with each other.

#46

Bonnie and Clyde.

#47

Take a romantic novel and play out the script in real life. You’ll be appalled with the main character’s behavior.

#48

Houses with open floor plans! All the home renovation and home-buying TV shows glamorize them, but there are so many negatives to them! 

They can smell bad, as odors from the kitchen waft into other areas. 

They are noisy, as sounds reverberate throughout the open area, so if there’s a microwave or kettle going, it makes it hard to hear conversations or the TV. Everyone in the home has to put up with whatever is the noisiest activity in the main room, so if one group is having a boisterously fun time playing a board game, another group that’s trying to watch a movie will have trouble hearing it.

Unless the home is built with a ton of storage, things can look perpetually messy because there’s less space to stow items away, and there are so few walls to prop shelves or cabinets up against. And if you are entertaining, everyone gets to see you cooking and any messes you make while preparing food, adding pressure to wash dishes immediately rather than spending time with your guests and dealing with the dishes and other kitchen messes later. 

And they are not at all energy efficient since you have to heat or cool a large room rather than smaller spaces.

#49

Country life ☹️ a doctor, a medical emergency? No. Is something missing from the fridge? Well done for you. Schooling for kids? They will take the bus for 40 minutes every morning and sometimes it won’t even make it because it will snow. Tranquility? Forget. You’re too likely to come across a noisy family, a group of messy individuals, a couple who bicker 24 hours a day, old idiots who will scrutinize your every move.

People who hate each other but want to know everything about everyone else’s lives. The slightest fact that will give rise to speculation and rumors. Hatred of others, especially if they come from the city.

Honestly, I don’t want to go back, it’s crazy.

#50

Sailing.

#51

Fixing your broken car in a desert.

#52

Weddings.

#53

Jumping through a glass window.

#54

Flying down the highway with the top down at close to 100mph

There’s no way she wouldn’t be frizzy when they arrived, and you feel like a Saint Bernard with its head out of a window if you try to talk. Also, bugs hit you in the face when they bounce off the windshield.

#55

Being a hit man, wouldn’t want to constantly looking over my shoulder or making absolutely sure everything went to as planned or making sure the crime scene was left perfectly clean so I don’t go to prison.

#56

Killing people.

#57

Eating disorders.

#58

War.

#59

Stalking (like in “romance” novels and movies).

#60

Being in a relationship with someone leagues above your station.

So many shows and stories make it seem romantic, but it can be incredibly precarious to be with someone who has 10 times more power and money than you do. It can create an extreme power imbalance.

#61

Being skinny (not unintentionally but fighting for it every day, while other think you don’t do anything).

#62

The Notebook.
He threatens to let go from hanging onto a ferris wheel if she turns him down for a date. Meanwhile she’s already on a date with someone. He repeatedly doesn’t accept her saying no.

Parts are sweet, sure… But there’s been too much “no means try harder,” for men.
Look at Indiana Jones and even Han Solo with how he was to Leia.
007 in a ton of movies, too.

#63

True crime and podcast based off true crime stories. These stories are the worst moments of someone’s life and we listen to them like entertainment.

#64

Flying overseas.

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