# Characters dying of thirst: why do they always slop their water everywhere? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [September 30, 2008, 9:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/characters-dying-of-thirst-why-do-they-always-slop-their-water-everywhere/465923 "2008-09-30T21:30:24Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![chacoguy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/50afbb/32.png) [@chacoguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chacoguy)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2008, 12:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/characters-dying-of-thirst-why-do-they-always-slop-their-water-everywhere/465923/21 "2008-10-01T00:50:48Z")
They also don’t show how you’d barf it all back up if you drank that way. Besides, remember the last time that you were _really_ hot and stopped to take off your hat and sunglasses and _glared accusingly right at the sun_? I do that all the time.:rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![Shawn1767](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ee7513/32.png) [@Shawn1767](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shawn1767)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2008, 4:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/characters-dying-of-thirst-why-do-they-always-slop-their-water-everywhere/465923/22 "2008-10-01T04:13:52Z")
I suppose the water wasting bothers me, but as a corollary to this, why do people who are hungry in the movies always stuff everything into their mouths at once? Every time you see someone take in some poor, downtrodden person who hasn’t eaten in a while, the downtrodden starts stuffing everything in their mouths while they try to talk. ---
**Author:** ![guizot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guizot/32/3636_2.png) [@guizot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/guizot)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2008, 6:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/characters-dying-of-thirst-why-do-they-always-slop-their-water-everywhere/465923/23 "2008-10-01T06:46:48Z")
> [@Shawn1767](#): > > I suppose the water wasting bothers me, but as a corollary to this, why do people who are hungry in the movies always stuff everything into their mouths at once? Every time you see someone take in some poor, downtrodden person who hasn’t eaten in a while, the downtrodden starts stuffing everything in their mouths while they try to talk. It’s all clearly for cheap dramatic effect. What else do you expect? And if you haven’t eaten for a while, your appetite outstrips your hunger (I think maybe because your stomach is used to being smaller?) So you’d only have to eat a little before you feel full. This, however, doesn’t satisfy the romantic notion the typical film viewer has of the starving/water-starved person who suddenly gets food or water. ---
**Author:** ![Don\_t\_fight\_the\_hypothetical](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/59ef9b/32.png) [@Don\_t\_fight\_the\_hypothetical](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Don_t_fight_the_hypothetical)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2008, 6:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/characters-dying-of-thirst-why-do-they-always-slop-their-water-everywhere/465923/24 "2008-10-01T06:56:17Z")
> [@devilsknew](#): > > Yea, Bear Griylls is dehydrating in the desert, and even he let half the urine from his snakeskin bladder runneth over. I don’t think he was serious about hydrating… Sure he was, he knew there [were elephants up ahead.](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6vlEavUH9ng) ---
**Author:** ![Kid\_A\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ed8c4c/32.png) [@Kid\_A\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kid_A_1)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2008, 12:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/characters-dying-of-thirst-why-do-they-always-slop-their-water-everywhere/465923/25 "2008-10-01T12:17:06Z")
> [@Lobsang](#): > > :smack: > My problem is I take people seriously when I shouldn’t. > :smack: I’ve been here for five years and I’ve never even tried to whoosh anyone. Now I’ll sit back and plot for another five. ---
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2008, 12:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/characters-dying-of-thirst-why-do-they-always-slop-their-water-everywhere/465923/26 "2008-10-01T12:41:48Z")
> [@Shawn1767](#): > > I suppose the water wasting bothers me, but as a corollary to this, why do people who are hungry in the movies always stuff everything into their mouths at once? _ **Acting!** _ ---
**Author:** ![Raguleader](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/258eb7/32.png) [@Raguleader](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Raguleader)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2008, 1:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/characters-dying-of-thirst-why-do-they-always-slop-their-water-everywhere/465923/27 "2008-10-01T13:46:44Z")
Maybe they all have drinking problems?😛 ---
**Author:** ![Gwyen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/858c86/32.png) [@Gwyen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gwyen)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2008, 3:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/characters-dying-of-thirst-why-do-they-always-slop-their-water-everywhere/465923/28 "2008-10-01T15:18:33Z")
I would think that if you were that in need of hydration, (or even food), you would carefully drink or eat every drop with great care not to waste anything. Maybe that is just me. Anyone see the episode of Friends where Joey says he can drink a gallon of milk in 10 seconds? Most all of it is on the floor at the end, this thread made me think of that… ---
**Author:** ![Baldwin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/baldwin/32/7264_2.png) [@Baldwin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baldwin)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2008, 3:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/characters-dying-of-thirst-why-do-they-always-slop-their-water-everywhere/465923/29 "2008-10-01T15:52:46Z")
I grew up with shows and movies in which a character who starts out wearing a business suit will not take off his jacket and tie, no matter how uncomfortable it must be. This includes crawling through the desert. ---
**Author:** ![kingpengvin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9dc877/32.png) [@kingpengvin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kingpengvin)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2008, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/characters-dying-of-thirst-why-do-they-always-slop-their-water-everywhere/465923/30 "2008-10-01T16:14:55Z")
[![]( " - YouTube") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L0XQAYEj8VA) About 3:09 in I think you have a case where an actor did not go for the gulping spilling everywhere…right away… then he goes for broke. ---
**Author:** ![Mtgman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b5a626/32.png) [@Mtgman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mtgman)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2008, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/characters-dying-of-thirst-why-do-they-always-slop-their-water-everywhere/465923/31 "2008-10-01T16:24:40Z")
> [@OpalCat](#): > > Seems like any time a character on TV or in the movies is crawling through the desert about to die from dehydration, when they finally get some small quantity of water (possibly the last they’ll see for quite some time) they drink it in such a way that over half of it spills all over the ground? Can someone shoot these directors, please? Handling food/water on stage/screen is always very difficult. Firstly, it’s difficult to talk/act when you’re eating/drinking. The mouth motions to form the words clearly are impeded, and it gets worse if you’re doing a character voice or accent. In stage productions most of the “eating” is actually pantomime, meaning no one actually eats, they just pretend to. For screen work, where faking it from a distance isn’t possible, they eat/drink as little as possible, and substantial foods are substituted for less substantial foods. Hot dogs would become empty buns(or twinkies) which can be chewed and swallowed quickly, so the actor doesn’t miss their next line. With drinking there’s the possibility of gagging, choking, coughing, burping, etc. as well as missing your line. So if someone is supposed to chug a drink, they fake as much of it as possible. Secondly, what if they have to re-shoot the scene? Then the actor/actress has to eat it again. A couple takes and they’re stuffed, and feeling like crap. A long day of shooting could be interrupted by a sick star, and that’s expensive. Thirdly you’ve got health and food safety issues. If that’s a real hamburger, can you make them on set so they’re fresh? If they’ve been sitting around they could have been growing bacteria and a case of food poisoning could ruin a film on a tight schedule/budget. Plus, you’re in the movie making business, not food service(at least not right now, odds are you work tables at least part time). So a lot of it is the practical needs of the film/television production process. Enjoy, Steven ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2008, 4:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/characters-dying-of-thirst-why-do-they-always-slop-their-water-everywhere/465923/32 "2008-10-01T16:33:33Z")
For the same reason martial artists in movies use big, slow jumping hook kicks, or gangstas hold their guns sideways so they can only hold it with one hand, and can’t use their sights: it looks better on camera. ---
**Author:** ![Scissorjack](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c67d28/32.png) [@Scissorjack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scissorjack)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2008, 8:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/characters-dying-of-thirst-why-do-they-always-slop-their-water-everywhere/465923/33 "2008-10-01T20:37:59Z")
Continuity is always a bitch when filming eating or drinking scenes, as well: if they’re not careful, the amount of liquid in a glass that a character is drinking from tends to vary wildly according to which take it is. This is a real problem on TV, where shooting schedules are tighter. Warning: once you start noticing this _you will never be able to stop!_ Bwahahahahaha! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/characters-dying-of-thirst-why-do-they-always-slop-their-water-everywhere/465923.md?page=1)