In true crime shows, the relatives of every female victim ALWAYS say “she lit up every room” or some very close variant of that phrase. It has become a huge cliché in the true crime genre, but the producers can’t exactly cut it out of the show without VERY AWKWARDLY explaining to the grieving people that they’re doing cringe facepalm shit.
Thank you for your explanation. Just a question, as a non-native English speaker: does “to lit up every room” have some special/hidden meaning? Or it has to be taken literally? Dumb question, I know…
You’re welcome! Also, the ocean of English metaphors and colloquial phrases is literally so deep and wide that you’ll definitely still be learning new ones in forty years. Have fun with it.
“Cut! Yeah hey, Sheryl was it? No no you’re doing great, thanks again for telling us about your murdered daughter. I know we said this is unscripted and to just speak from the heart, but could you ask your heart to say something less cliche so we stand out a little more and have a good bit for the promo? Thanks darling.”
How do you light up rooms with true crime victims?
In true crime shows, the relatives of every female victim ALWAYS say “she lit up every room” or some very close variant of that phrase. It has become a huge cliché in the true crime genre, but the producers can’t exactly cut it out of the show without VERY AWKWARDLY explaining to the grieving people that they’re doing cringe facepalm shit.
Thank you for your explanation. Just a question, as a non-native English speaker: does “to lit up every room” have some special/hidden meaning? Or it has to be taken literally? Dumb question, I know…
In that phrase, “lighting up the room” means the person brings joy and laughter to everyone. Like, by being vivacious, charismatic, energetic, etc.
Understood. Thanks a lot! :-)
You’re welcome! Also, the ocean of English metaphors and colloquial phrases is literally so deep and wide that you’ll definitely still be learning new ones in forty years. Have fun with it.
“Cut! Yeah hey, Sheryl was it? No no you’re doing great, thanks again for telling us about your murdered daughter. I know we said this is unscripted and to just speak from the heart, but could you ask your heart to say something less cliche so we stand out a little more and have a good bit for the promo? Thanks darling.”
Luminol
Nice. I didn’t even think about that. That one would be more specific to “lit up like a Christmas tree,” though.