Top 5 Film Rules You Need to Remember

I'm not the best film critic in the world, not by far, but I noticed far to many films COULD have been good, but fall flat because of overlooked flaws in the film, or that a film critic calls a film good, because they don't notice the flaws the first time around. Sure, several film rules are well known, but others really needed to be expressed to people who want to create or watch films. So, without any further ado, let's begin:

5. When writing a female character, write them as characters before females

This is mostly evident is children's films. It's when you get a female character who has absolutely no personalty, and is just in the film either to get the plot moving, or to show girls aren't equal to guys, they're BETTER than them, which is a sign of intense feminism. Write a female character with personality, and don't make her perfect just to show off the male lead, who probably is annoying as well. Make them equal, or at least not annoying.

4. Subtlety is key

Did any of you see the 70s horror film, Black Christmas? It's about a murderer who calls several girls in a house. Basic stuff, but in the end, *SPOILER* you never discover who the killer is. There's a suspect, but nothing definite. You want to find out, but if you do find out, you'll most likely be disappointed. That's how subtlety works. 

3. Suspense and/or Surprise is often the biggest step to horror

A long walk through a scary hallway like in Shutter Island, that shadow before the shower murder in Psycho, the face in the window at the end of Eminem's "Stan", SOMETHING. And no, I'm not talking about jump scares. A good example of surprise that isn't a jump scare is Psycho's shower scene, as you see a shadow, you get nervous, you know something will happen, and THEN you're surprised. 

2. CGI shouldn't be used for EVERYTHING

CGI stands for Computer Generated Image(s). CGI has been used for films like Avatar, The Matrix, etc. The main problem with CGI is rarely does it ever look like the image is in front of the camera. Take Indiana Jones for example, the first 3 films had amazing action, but this was before CGI, so when the objects were in front of the camera, you knew it. The fourth film however uses CGI, and guess what? The action was not as good. It shows that CGI doesn't always make a film better, and should only be used when absolutely necessary. 

1. For suspense to exist, you need likable and developed characters to back it up

I... cannot stress this enough. If suspense involves a character or more, you need to care about the characters. You will be afraid for the characters, and hope nothing happens to them. This is why I think films like Rear Window and The Hurt Locker are horribly overrated. I don't know or like the characters, so I don't feel any suspense. 

What film rules do you think should have been here?