Many of the world's most iconic movies have problematic themes or plots, but the romanticization of kidnapping and false imprisonment ranks among the worst.
It's a theme as old as storytelling itself, and there have been documented cases of Stockholm Syndrome in people held against their will. Still, this form of abuse has often taken hold in the cinematic imagination as comedies or romances, as it becomes clear in this survey.
Abduction as Romance is a media trope where a man kidnaps or imprisons a woman and she eventually falls in love with him. Abduction as Romance is one of a series of popular media tropes where violence against women and abusive male behavior is presented as necessary, exciting, or romantic.
• Abduction As Romance (YouTube / Pop Culture Detective)
