Nothing chaps my lips more in film these days than the use of the expressions the Game and the Rules. I abhor the way these bathetic catch-phrases are so damn common in today's cinema. One would think that, after this many years of movie and tv making, such cheesy diction would have been done away with after the first 200,560,000th use.

You won't catch this movie-lovin' goober renting Murder at 1600 any time soon- and I'll tell you why Jack: if you recall in the trailer of that flick, supercop Wesley Snipes is standing just outside of his police cruiser one night (White House dramatically lit in the background) talkin' into his CB - he blathers something about needing backup or somesuch because there has been a murder - no ordinary murder mind you, no ma'am, this one "breaks all the Rules." Enough said, Wes (as a testament to the Snipes acting skills, he is able to deliver the line with total seriousness).

Breaks all the Rules? What Rules? Murderers abide by some unwritten code that we upstanding citizens are not privy to? How come I never hear reference to the Rules on COPS?

"Think we have the suspect cornered in this trailer park and called for back-up. Not only did the purp shoot his woman, sell drugs to his mother, and bite his dog, but he then crossed the line and broke the Rules."

The Game burns me too - how many more movies must I endure where the main character needs to make just one more big hit/score/arrest before they have enough cash/drugs/honor/revenge to get out of the Game? What damn Game? Are there Rules to this Game? How successful could I be if I wrote a movie in which the main character breaks all the Rules of the Game? Cripes bub! A plot like that would topple Titanic!

Occasionally script writers will cook up a really original concept: have the main character already retired from the Game - but is then sucked back in (because someone is breakin' the Rules). He was the best at playin' the Game, and dammit, this job calls for the best!

It is one thing to see this manner of swill on my beloved 70's cop shows, but great balls of bacon brother, don't paste this type of dialogue up on my movie screen. The bottom line is this: I have no problem when they break the Rules, just don't come out and tell me they are breaking the Rules. Have them quit the Game, just don't call it the Game. No Rules. No Game. Resist the temptation - fight the horrible urge (be stronglikebull). If we all pull together we can end this clich? madness...

True, Ron O'Neal needed to make one more big score to escape the crazy Game known as "drug dealing", but Superfly is the one exception to the Rule (Superfly breaks all the Rules, baby).