If you look very long at Netflix, you will see words like gritty in some of the program descriptions. Reviewers use these words to signal several things at once. Just what does this mean?
Real, physical grit* is like sand. It is uncomfortable and irritating, especially when it gets in your eyes (or certain places in your bathing suit). So, it’s this sense of discomfort and irritation reviewers want you to think about with this type of movie. They are saying that you will be forced to think about and see situations that are disturbing.
Gritty films, they say, are ” the reality you don’t want to contemplate.”
The term is usually used for crime dramas, when bad things happen to the innocent and there is no way to help or rescue them. Many times gritty films will spotlight the discouragement of people who are trying to change things or do good when they realize the problem is too big to fix. It may mean that the person who most wants to help is the one who gets possessed or tortured or worse.
The intention (say the creators of these films) is to force viewers not to ignore that bad things happen, not to live in the illusion that life is safe or that you have control. This is especially important if the viewer is isolated from these horrors by money or social standing. These movies say,
SEE! Not everyone has it as good as you do. WAKE UP!
An older usage of grit is resilience or inner strength—the ability to do hard things in order to achieve justice or another worthy goal. The classic Western True Grit (1969) stars John Wayne as a lawman who tracks down and brings justice to dangerous outlaws, murders, and thieves.
I haven’t heard the terms grit or gritty to describe positive qualities for a while. In everyday conversation, if we want to say someone is willing and strong enough to face the dark side of life, the things the rest of us would like not to think about, we are more likely to use a descriptive phrase like, “He has what it takes.”
Take another movie classic, The Right Stuff (1983). Military test pilots showed they had the right stuff (grit) to fly experimental, rocket-powered aircraft and, eventually, venture out into space. Here, too, there’s the feeling that they will go where no one else will, and face challenges that would crush the rest of us. Movies like this explore the positive side of grit. Ironically, they would not be described as gritty. Instead, they would be described as inspirational or suspenseful.
When it comes to movie descriptions, I avoid the ones that brag they are dark or gritty. I can read the news if I want to be discouraged.
*Note: There’s a traditional Southern US dish called hominy grits or just plain grits. This has nothing to do with either irritation or stamina, and everything to do with being delicious! Loaded with carbs and about the texture of creamy rice, they are the ultimate comfort food. Served hot with lots of butter and salt, grits are the antidote to just about any bad day.