History SlidingScaleOfIdealismVersusCynicism / FIlm

* ''{{Film/Fame}}'' is stuck firmly on the cynical end, when it comes to the realities of the entertainment industry. If you follow your star, live the dream and stay true to yourself... you will be kicked in the head by the people who put in the work, paid their dues and honed their skills. Back the wrong project and you will fail. Antagonize the wrong people and you will fail. And even if you do everything right... chances are good you'll still never make it. "Seven harsh lessons and a cooked lunch" is this films tagline for a reason.

* Throughout the ''Film/XMenFilmSeries'', [[Characters/XMenFilmSeriesProfessorCharlesXavier Professor X]] and Magneto are traditionally at the opposite ends of this scale, but in ''Film/XMenApocalypse'''s denouement, they have both taken a step towards the middle. Xavier's actions during the FinalBattle are a subtle acknowledgement that in extreme circumstances, he'll do ''whatever'' it takes to SaveTheWorld, even if it means committing murder. Erik appreciates this new, hardened edge in his old friend, and his respect for Charles is even greater than in the original timeline. [[spoiler:Because they've reconciled,]] it hints that Magneto intends to tone down his warmongering and will be more open to negotiation with the Professor the next time there is a major incident between mutants and humans. From director Creator/BryanSinger's commentary:

* The Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse, as a whole, tends strongly to the idealistic side, which provides an interesting contrast to Creator/MarkMillar's very cynical [[ComicBook/TheUltimates Ultimates]] comic book run, which a lot of the movie continuity takes elements from. However, there are still some [[BittersweetEnding bittersweet moments]], if the endings for both ''Film/{{Thor}}'' and ''Film/CaptainAmericaTheFirstAvenger'' are any proof.
** A major part of the conflict in ''Film/{{The Avengers|2012}}'' stems from Steve Rogers' "outdated and irrelevant" idealism clashing head on with Tony Stark's hedonistic and materialistic cynicism. Ironically, Steve and Howard (Tony's father) were friends and allies during World War II.

* Creator/JohnHughes has films that can be either very cynical or idealistic, but not towards people, but rather an idea. However, all of his films feature relateable and sympathetic characters, and there's always enough humor to go around. For example: he directed both ''Film/FerrisBuellersDayOff'' and ''Film/HomeAlone''.

* Throughout the ''Film/XMenFilmSeries'', Professor X and Magneto are traditionally at the opposite ends of this scale, but in ''Film/XMenApocalypse'''s denouement, they have both taken a step towards the middle. Xavier's actions during the FinalBattle are a subtle acknowledgement that in extreme circumstances, he'll do ''whatever'' it takes to SaveTheWorld, even if it means committing murder. Erik appreciates this new, hardened edge in his old friend, and his respect for Charles is even greater than in the original timeline. [[spoiler:Because they've reconciled,]] it hints that Magneto intends to tone down his warmongering and will be more open to negotiation with the Professor the next time there is a major incident between mutants and humans. From director Creator/BryanSinger's commentary:

** ''Film/BatmanReturns'' on the other hand is even more cynical to the point of nihilism despite not being as dark as the original with more jokes and campy idiots instead of corruption. However Batman losses the girl, ends up being forced to do even more killing, the one person he loves ends up being morally ambiguous, and everyone hates him again thanks to The Penguin via the murder of The Ice Princess.

* ''Film/ShortCircuit'' had this kind of conflict between the idealistic Newton Crosby ([=PhD=], who wanted to capture the wayward Number 5 intact and unharmed to study why it was acting the way it was) and the cynical Captain Skroeder (who had a bit of a [[GeneralRipper technophobic streak]] and was understandably wanting to take the robot out before it could do any harm with its ''fully armed and combat-ready laser weapon''; WordOfGod has even admitted that despite being the villain for the movie, he is still doing the right and logical thing by trying to destroy Number 5). Also, the crew purposely used this trope in combination with WhatMeasureIsANonHuman, wanting to get away from the "idealistic" approach of having the characters treat their start as always being "alive" and instead explore the question of how people would react to [[InstantAIJustAddWater artificial intelligence]] in real life (their answer being that no one would believe it for a second).

* Most films by Creator/QuentinTarantino average out somwhere in the middle of the spectrum, leaning more towards, perhaps counterintuitively, the idealistic side; violence that would otherwise be very cynical becomes strangely idealistic through either absurd BlackComedy or righteous motivation, and characters who behave cynically nonetheless usually manage to achieve their goals and be "good" (relatively speaking); if they don't, they'll probably at least FaceDeathWithDignity. See ''Film/DjangoUnchained'' or ''Film/PulpFiction'' for examples.

* Films by Creator/JohnHughes are usually very cynical about something but are still feel-good or heartfelt movies with a warm emotional sentiment somewhere.

* ''Film/TheBreakfastClub'' is extremely cynical in its view of high school life and humanity in general. Parents and authority figures are portrayed as [[AdultsAreUseless apathetic at best]] or [[{{Jerkass}} scumbags]] at worst, and its hard to say by the end which of the characters has the least controversial amount of metaphorical blood on their hands.
* Compare ''Disney/BeautyAndTheBeast'' with ''Film/KingKong''.

* So far as the story goes, ''Film/TheHungerGames'' is on the cynical side of the scale, showing the ugly nature of most of the Tributes and the people of the Capital, revealed in and out of the killing game program in question, as well as relatively nicer ones being wiped out ruthlessly. Although it does contain some idealistic redemption, it barely brings the plot to a bittersweet conclusion at best, which in turn implies an even darker terror awaiting in its sequel, ''The Hunger Games: Catching Fire''.
** After two years of [[spoiler:losing a lot of people close to her, after inspiring a nation to rise from oppression, after seeing an innocent 12 year old girl die in her arms,]] Katniss and Haymitch have no problems at all sending twenty three innocent children to their deaths, just for revenge. But those children Katniss and Haymitch oppose are [[KidsAreCruel hardly innocent]].

** ''Film/TheTrumanShow'' could be said to have even bigger dystopian cynical moments. And that's also forgetting Allie Fox, his most cynical hero, in ''Film/TheMosquitoCoast''. ''[[Film/Gallipoli]]'' is also cynical with WarIsHell as it's main theme.

* WWII ''Film/PlayDirty'' starts out with the (Allied) captain of a group of murderers and rapists being bribed by a general (who himself has the ethics of a sewer snake) to not [[UnfriendlyFire murder his commanding officer]] on his next mission. It only gets more cynical from there as the suicide mission they're sent on proves to be completely pointless mission is proved to be completely pointless, and chucks in a downbeat ending of casual brutality that just hammers home the point. It's the kind of war movie that could only have been made in the midst of the Vietnam War.

* Critics accused ''Film/ValentinesDay'' of being a bit too much on the cynical side for a romantic-comedy (one reviewer compared it to "expecting milk chocolate but getting baking (bitter) chocolate instead"; another compared it to "getting bad Valentine candy from a pretty/handsome person" in reference to the brilliant but wasted AllStarCast), especially compared to its {{spiritual|Successor}} [[FollowTheLeader predecessor]] ''LoveActually''.

* The major reason why ''[[LifeIsBeautiful La vita è bella]]'' was so critically acclaimed was thanks to its ability to keep a fluffy idealist tone ''in the middle of a freaking concentration camp''. It also sparked controversy for [[DudeNotFunny having a sympathetic protagonist trying to distract from the horrors of the Holocaust with slapstick]].

** In contrast ''Film/BatmanForever'' and ''Film/BatmanAndRobin'' are heavily on the idealistic side

* Films by JohnHughes are usually very cynical about something but are still feel-good or heartfelt movies with a warm emotional sentiment somewhere.

* WWII ''Film/PlayDirty'' starts out with the (Allied) captain of a group of murderers and rapists being bribed by a general (who himself has the ethics of a sewer snake) to not [[UnfriendlyFire murder his commanding officer]] on his next mission. It only gets more cynical from there as the suicide mission they're sent on proves to be completely pointless mission is proved to be completely pointless, and chucks in a downbeat ending ending of casual brutality that just hammers home the point.

* CharlieKaufman 's work is usually cynical in tone, but surprisingly still optimistic at its core.
* Films by StevenSpielberg are usually full of optimism and wonder, even those that portray the harsh realities.
* RichardLinklater films differentiate on the scale, but several end on a believable HopeSpot.

* ''Film/TheHunt'' is critical of human behaviour and prejudice, particularly when it comes to assumptions and gossip. A little girl named Klara rapidly develops an [[{{Main/PrecociousCrush}} unhealthy obsession]] with her kindergarten teacher, Lucas. After she kisses him on the lips during school playtime, he is quick to rebuff her infatuation. [[{{Main/NotGoodWithRejection}} In a childish rage]], she unwittingly implies to the head teacher that he has sexually abused her. This lie begins to [[{{Main/SnowballLie}} mutate and grow]], and Lucas is ostracized by his community. Even though it's proven he's not a pedophile, and Klara eventually openly admits to making it up, he is still voraciously hated by some of his peers.

** Then came [[Film/TwentyEightWeeksLater the sequel]], [[spoiler: in which there is utterly no hope.]]

** Despite its overall idealist tone, the film generally considered to be the best in the series is ''Film/TheEmpireStrikesBack'', possibly the darkest. The same applies to ''Film/RevengeOfTheSith'', which was considered to be the best of the prequel trilogy.

* Even more surprisingly ''Film/{{Batman}}'' also fits on the idealistic side, although not quite to the point of ''Film/TheDarkKnight'', but for Batman's actions, he becomes publicly loved and gets the girl, and SelfDemonstrating/TheJoker is dead. Although he had to take the cynical route of killing people to get there. It is mostly cynical, but it too is a case of EarnYourHappyEnding

* ''Film/TheHunt'' is critical of human behaviour and prejudice, particularly when it comes to assumptions and gossip. A little girl named Klara rapidly develops an [[{{Main/PrecociousCrush}} unhealthy obsession]] with her kindergarten teacher, Lucas. After she kisses him on the lips during school playtime, he is quick to rebuff her infatuation. [[{{Main/NotGoodWithRejection}} In a childish rage]], she unwittingly implies to the head teacher that he has sexually abused her. This lie begins to [[{{Main/SnowballLie}} mutate and grow]], and Lucas is hunted down by his community. Even though it's proven he's not a pedophile, and Klara openly admits to making it up, he is still voraciously hated by his peers.

* ''MoulinRouge'' flits from side to side during its running-time, but the ending jumps into the space between the two extremes. Nearly all of the main characters lose absolutely everything (and the Duke relatively gets away with it), but they keep their ideals intact and win the moral argument.

* ''{{Film/Fame}}'' is stuck firmly on the cynical end, when it comes to the realities of the entertainment industry. If you follow your star, live the dream and stay true to yourself... you will be kicked in the head by the people who put in the work, paid their dues and honed their skills. Back the wrong project and you will fail. Antagonize the wrong people and you will fail. And even if you do everything right... chances are good you'll still never make it. "Seven harsh lessons and a cooked lunch" are this films tagline for a reason.