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Old 01-16-2013, 01:09 AM   #26
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I know it and probably would have used it, but I guess it depends whether you're using it ("she was a real bunny boiler") instead of demonstrating the character as a bunny boiler type ("she sat at his bedroom window for four days without eating, until he had no choice but to let her inside").
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Old 01-16-2013, 01:14 AM   #27
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i think too obscure, unless you're trying to capture the "Matlock" audience.....I'm closing ion on 40 and it was a film from high school, and I DO use the term occasionally, as old slang that I haven't completely left behind. Honestly, I probably have to explain it at least half the time, which would suggest it isn't doing its job any more :-(
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Old 01-16-2013, 01:25 AM   #28
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Mr Flibble View Post
Looking at the responses, I think perhaps it's more common in the UK than the US? (Pretty common slang around here, even among the young 'uns who don't know where it comes from)
Quote:
Originally Posted by Corussa View Post
I think you're right; I'm familiar with it (though I only saw the film in recent years) and was a bit surprised to find that most responders to the OP hadn't come across the term before.
The lack of recognition of the term has surprised me too - I thought it was so entrenched in popular culture it had probably entered the OED *goes to look*

Yup, it's in there

I'd say not obscure then, but possibly a more common saying the UK than the US, from the look of it.

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Poor bunny...
Mmmhmmm... *sob* still traumatised...
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Old 01-16-2013, 01:28 AM   #29
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Quote:
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Can i use the term bunny boiler, as the narrator to describe an unseen character? Or is it too obscure or cliche pop reference?
Never heard the term in my life. I wouldn't know what it meant.
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Old 01-16-2013, 01:35 AM   #30
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I got the reference instantly.

If it's used in dialog, that's fine, since dialog is privileged. The use of the term also defines the character. If a particular reader doesn't get the reference presumably there's enough else that the story still makes sense.

You don't need to write on a third-grade level. Detective novelists throw in underworld slang all the time and don't bother to footnote. Fantasy novelists put in occasional words in made-up languages and no one thinks the less of them.

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(I saw the film when it was first released. (Optional trivia: It was filmed in the town where I grew up so I recognized all the locations.) When the cute little pet rabbit showed up and the little girl is wondering what to name it, I said to myself, "Better name it Hasenpfeffer, because that rabbit isn't going to live to see the final credits." I glanced at my watch and predicted when the rabbit would die, and I was right to the minute. To say that was a formulaic movie is doing it a kindness.)
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Old 01-16-2013, 01:49 AM   #31
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I used it just yesterday, and I've never even seen Fatal Attraction...
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Old 01-16-2013, 01:56 AM   #32
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For those not familiar with the movie, a woman is stalking the married MC. The family comes home to find their pet rabbit, intact but deceased in a boiling pot of water on the stove.
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Old 01-16-2013, 02:15 AM   #33
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Chiming in to say I'm another who gets the reference instantly but hasn't seen the film. Also UK, which supports the comments upthread that it's a more common turn of phrase here.
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Old 01-16-2013, 02:21 AM   #34
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Eh, I'm so accustomed to seeing pop culture references in books that I don't understand that it wouldn't really bother me that much if I didn't get it.
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Old 01-16-2013, 02:25 AM   #35
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Quote:
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Never heard of it (US, though).

I initially read "bunny" as a mistake for "birdie." (Lion King reference. )
The Lion King was my first thought too. I know of the term, but I've never bothered to find out what it means. (I googled it now though, it means 'emotionally unstable female stalker' according to general consensus)

Consider this another vote for 'too obscure'.
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Old 01-16-2013, 02:25 AM   #36
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Haven't heard of it, but it sounds delicious.
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Old 01-16-2013, 02:50 AM   #37
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Makes me think of the Child Broiler.

...can I use that reference?
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Old 01-16-2013, 03:19 AM   #38
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Haven't heard of it, but it sounds delicious.
Hippos must feel a lot safer than bunnies, since there are no hippo boilers out there (until they find a big enough pot).
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Old 01-16-2013, 03:44 AM   #39
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Never heard of it. Made me think of Zazu sitting on the birdie boiler in The Lion King. Or bunnies being cooked in a pot
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Old 01-16-2013, 06:01 AM   #40
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Quote:
Originally Posted by veinglory View Post
For those not familiar with the movie, a woman is stalking the married MC. The family comes home to find their pet rabbit, intact but deceased in a boiling pot of water on the stove.
Ah. Now it makes sense. I was having trouble equating "female stalker" with "bunny boiler." It seemed the ultimate in non-sequitars.
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Old 01-16-2013, 07:28 AM   #41
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For those not familiar with the movie, a woman is stalking the married MC. The family comes home to find their pet rabbit, intact but deceased in a boiling pot of water on the stove.
That's right, now I remember.
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Old 01-16-2013, 08:10 AM   #42
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Old 01-16-2013, 09:29 AM   #43
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Looking at the responses, I think perhaps it's more common in the UK than the US? (Pretty common slang around here, even among the young 'uns who don't know where it comes from)
Yeah, references to boiling the bunnies are pretty common in my circle. Even among those who've never seen the movie.
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Old 01-16-2013, 11:14 AM   #44
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I'm also surprised that a lot of people aren't familiar with it. I'm in my mid-20's and have only seen a few minutes of Fatal Attraction, but I recognize it as a pop culture reference and know what it's referring to.

(I'm in the U.S., by the way.)
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Old 01-16-2013, 01:30 PM   #45
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Interesting to see how many people aren't familiar with it. I thought it was very common. Not sure if I've ever seen the film all the way through but as it's part of pop culture, I've just picked up the meaning over time.
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Old 01-16-2013, 01:42 PM   #46
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I know what a bunny boiler is and I've never seen Fatal Attraction. I always thought it was a phrase that had become common usage without having to know the source material.
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Old 01-16-2013, 01:43 PM   #47
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Mr Flibble View Post
Looking at the responses, I think perhaps it's more common in the UK than the US? (Pretty common slang around here, even among the young 'uns who don't know where it comes from)
I was just about to say the same thing. I reckon the majority of folks here would know the term.
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Old 01-16-2013, 02:27 PM   #48
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Brit here who was unfamiliar with it. Maybe it's due to my region (Scotland) or age (early twenties) though? I've never seen Fatal Attraction.
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Old 01-16-2013, 02:54 PM   #49
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Common parlance round my way. Also rabbits are delicious!
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Old 01-16-2013, 06:08 PM   #50
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I got the reference (and also enjoy eating rabbits), but I wouldn't use it. For one thing, it might make the reader remember how badly written the last part of that movie was.
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