# Common Gaffes in Movies and TV **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 29, 2020, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-gaffes-in-movies-and-tv/847194 "2020-01-29T22:43:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 10
**Author:** ![DPRK](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4491bb/32.png) [@DPRK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DPRK)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2020, 4:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-gaffes-in-movies-and-tv/847194/181 "2020-02-02T04:55:53Z")
> [@lingyi](#): > > Another one from _Red 2_. Yeah, I know the entire movie is unrealistic, but ten’s of thousands of lives are at stake, and good guy (in this case gal), let’s the bad guy go because there’s someone in the way. If it’s one bystander versus tens or hundreds of thousands of lives at stake, SHOOT!!! > > I’m pretty sure this is from a Hollywood movie since I can clearly hear the dialog in my mind. Woman being held in front the bad guy yelling “Shoot! Shoot!”. The good guy shoots her in the shoulder and kills the bad guy who’s shocked and may have said, “You shot me!?”. Woman says to the good guy. “You shot me!”. Good guy says, “You told me to!”. > > I tried to watch \*Armageddon \* when it was on TV a long time ago and just could bear the: Oh, how tragic, they’re not going to be able to return home. _cue sad music_. So what! They’re going to save the Earth! What’s a few lives compared to the entire human population? I’m pretty sure NOT targeting innocent bystanders because it may be convenient is a real thing. (Not that the scenarios in action movies have much to do with reality.) ---
**Author:** ![dorvann](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/df705f/32.png) [@dorvann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dorvann)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2020, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-gaffes-in-movies-and-tv/847194/182 "2020-02-02T16:59:13Z")
> [@DCnDC](#): > > Not so much of a “gaffe” rather than just non-realistic, but in battle scenes, riders are almost always carefully plucked off of their horses, sparing the animal. > > I realize this is done because #1 protecting the animals, and #2 it’s much easier to train an actor to fall off a horse than it is to train a horse to collapse onto the ground on cue, but in reality, of course you just kill the horse. It’s the much bigger target, and even if it doesn’t kill the rider, at the very least it puts the him on the ground. I actually could see some strategic value in this. 1. The horse aren’t armed; the riders are. The rider can still attack you if their horse is dead. 2. It leaves the horses alive so you can keep them for yourself and integrate them into your own army. ---
**Author:** ![lingyi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d2c977/32.png) [@lingyi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lingyi)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2020, 8:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-gaffes-in-movies-and-tv/847194/183 "2020-02-02T20:06:54Z")
> [@DPRK](#): > > I’m pretty sure NOT targeting innocent bystanders because it may be convenient is a real thing. (Not that the scenarios in action movies have much to do with reality.) True, but real life standoffs are rarely if ever, spare one life to save tens or hundreds of thousands like in the movies. I know it’s a touchy subject, but that was part of the justification for dropping the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. We killed tens of thousands of non-military people to prevent the loss of the hundreds of thousands of military and non-military lives that would be lost in an invasion. ---
**Author:** ![Mijin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mijin/32/9369_2.png) [@Mijin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mijin)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2020, 2:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-gaffes-in-movies-and-tv/847194/184 "2020-02-03T02:45:38Z")
> [@DCnDC](#): > > Not so much of a “gaffe” rather than just non-realistic, but in battle scenes, riders are almost always carefully plucked off of their horses, sparing the animal. Well you can see horses go down very realistically in pre-1940 movies. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![aruvqan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aruvqan/32/2891_2.png) [@aruvqan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aruvqan)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2020, 6:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-gaffes-in-movies-and-tv/847194/185 "2020-02-03T06:18:23Z")
> [@dorvann](#): > > I actually could see some strategic value in this. > > 1. The horse aren’t armed; the riders are. The rider can still attack you if their horse is dead. > > 2. It leaves the horses alive so you can keep them for yourself and integrate them into your own army. Medievally, you take down the knight, the guy now on the ground is surrounded by guys waiting to put the book [and pointy thing] in. In general, any knight unmounted tended to end up dead unless it was in a period when they would be more inclined to be held for ransom. And a well trained warhorse was _dangerous_ and could be dangerous to handle by strangers. ---
**Author:** ![PatrickLondon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/patricklondon/32/4422_2.png) [@PatrickLondon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PatrickLondon)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2020, 6:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-gaffes-in-movies-and-tv/847194/186 "2020-02-03T06:57:12Z")
Coming late to this thread: you might like to compare with this list of similar howlers and clichés on UK television: [https://forums.digitalspy.com/discussion/2362597/unrealistic-things-people-do-in-tv-dramas-that-you-dont-really-see-in-life/](https://forums.digitalspy.com/discussion/2362597/unrealistic-things-people-do-in-tv-dramas-that-you-dont-really-see-in-life/p1) ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2020, 8:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-gaffes-in-movies-and-tv/847194/187 "2020-02-03T08:01:39Z")
> [@aruvqan](#): > > Medievally, you take down the knight, the guy now on the ground is surrounded by guys waiting to put the book [and pointy thing] in. In general, any knight unmounted tended to end up dead unless it was in a period when they would be more inclined to be held for ransom. Assuming, of course, that the rider survives falling off a horse 20–24 hands tall while traveling 25–30 mph and not getting trampled. ---
**Author:** ![Art\_Rock](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/art_rock/32/525_2.png) [@Art\_Rock](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Art_Rock)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2020, 12:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-gaffes-in-movies-and-tv/847194/188 "2020-02-03T12:19:22Z")
> [@Omniscient](#): > > Perhaps I missed it on my first read through, but has no one yet mentioned the all-time classic…explosions and loud noises in space? As you all know, space is basically silent and without air or another medium for sound waves to travel through you won’t hear a thing when the planet/star destroyer/space station out the window explodes. Seconded. More rare, but equally stupid: a space ship that takes a severe hit in battle then starts going _down_. In space. :smack: ---
**Author:** ![SciFiSam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/47e85d/32.png) [@SciFiSam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SciFiSam)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2020, 12:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-gaffes-in-movies-and-tv/847194/189 "2020-02-03T12:52:21Z")
> [@aruvqan](#): > > Medievally, you take down the knight, the guy now on the ground is surrounded by guys waiting to put the book [and pointy thing] in. In general, any knight unmounted tended to end up dead unless it was in a period when they would be more inclined to be held for ransom. > > And a well trained warhorse was _dangerous_ and could be dangerous to handle by strangers. A horse also probably wouldn’t just be felled instantly by an arrow or gunshot, surely? Even humans often aren’t, and horses are much larger. Yeah, odds are the horse would die before too long, but an arrow or gunshot that didn’t make much impact would still leave the rider in charge of the horse for possibly long enough to inflict damage, and if the injury to the horse was bad, there’d be a period of time where they were injured and scared and trampling over people on any side. It’d be like shooting at a car that was travelling towards you and making it crash into your guys. I’m sure people did often aim for the horses, mostly because they’re a bigger target so easier to hit, but there are reasons not to as well. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2020, 12:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-gaffes-in-movies-and-tv/847194/190 "2020-02-03T12:55:26Z")
> [@DesertDog](#): > > Probably because they borrow them from the enthusiasts who’ve lovingly restored them to Concours levels and would strenuously object to dirt being applied, never mind a few dents. I made the mistake of renting a car for a movie. It was deliberately abused. I’m still mad about that! :mad: (I still drive this car, a lot) ---
**Author:** ![WildaBeast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wildabeast/32/6_2.png) [@WildaBeast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WildaBeast)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2020, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-gaffes-in-movies-and-tv/847194/191 "2020-02-03T17:33:05Z")
> [@Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](#): > > I only starting noticing this after reading someone else mention it last year, but now I see it _everywhere_: in period movies all the cars are pristine. Cars parked in the background, driving past the characters, etc look like they came right out of a showroom, because they have. You’ll only ever see a car with damage if it’s a plot point, every single other car on the road looks shiny and brand new. A corralary to this one – when a car being old and beat up _is_ a plot point, they will often use a car that would have actually been fairly new at the time the show or movie is set. _The Wonder Years_ was guilty of this in the episode where the family gets a new car. Their old station wagon that was supposedly on its last legs was a 1968 model, in an episode set in 1969. I admit this is one only car enthusiasts would actually notice, though. ---
**Author:** ![DCnDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dcndc/32/2842_2.png) [@DCnDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DCnDC)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2020, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-gaffes-in-movies-and-tv/847194/192 "2020-02-03T17:39:54Z")
Related to the car thing, as a former Volvo 240 owner I tend to notice them, and I’ve noticed that anytime a character needs to have a “humble family car,” for whatever reason it’s almost always a Volvo 240. I’ve seen it way too frequently for it to just be random. I’ve even seen it in the Simpsons more than a couple of times (usually depicted as Principal Skinner’s car; he also owned a Camry at some point). ---
**Author:** ![WildaBeast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wildabeast/32/6_2.png) [@WildaBeast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WildaBeast)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2020, 5:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-gaffes-in-movies-and-tv/847194/193 "2020-02-03T17:54:56Z")
I’m guessing it’s a combination of 1) Volvo 240s have a very loyal following among a certain crowd, and therefore have a much higher survival rate than other sedans from that era, and are therefore probably easier for filmmakers to obtain. Nobody bothered to preserve a 1986 Buick Skylark or whatever, but lots of people kept their old Volvos. 2) Volvo didn’t really change the styling much from the mid-1970s to the early 1990s, so filmmakers don’t need to worry too much about getting the year right. A 1992 Volvo 240 wouldn’t really look out of place in a show set in the 1980s. Only the most pedantic Volvo enthusiast would be likely to notice. ---
**Author:** ![Rebo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rebo/32/13005_2.png) [@Rebo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rebo)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2020, 6:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-gaffes-in-movies-and-tv/847194/194 "2020-02-03T18:33:57Z")
The volume in a nightclub is muted enough for people to speak normally without raising their voices. ---
**Author:** ![BrickBat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ac91a4/32.png) [@BrickBat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrickBat)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2020, 6:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-gaffes-in-movies-and-tv/847194/195 "2020-02-03T18:59:45Z")
> [@WildaBeast](#): > > A corralary to this one – when a car being old and beat up _is_ a plot point, they will often use a car that would have actually been fairly new at the time the show or movie is set. _The Wonder Years_ was guilty of this in the episode where the family gets a new car. Their old station wagon that was supposedly on its last legs was a 1968 model, in an episode set in 1969. I admit this is one only car enthusiasts would actually notice, though. I remember that episode. While the actual car shown really is a 1968 model, on the show the voice-over narration refers to it as a 1963 model, during the time it’s being spruced up to be put up for sale. ---
**Author:** ![DCnDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dcndc/32/2842_2.png) [@DCnDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DCnDC)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2020, 7:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-gaffes-in-movies-and-tv/847194/196 "2020-02-03T19:45:36Z")
> [@WildaBeast](#): > > I’m guessing it’s a combination of 1) Volvo 240s have a very loyal following among a certain crowd, and therefore have a much higher survival rate than other sedans from that era, and are therefore probably easier for filmmakers to obtain. Nobody bothered to preserve a 1986 Buick Skylark or whatever, but lots of people kept their old Volvos. 2) Volvo didn’t really change the styling much from the mid-1970s to the early 1990s, so filmmakers don’t need to worry too much about getting the year right. A 1992 Volvo 240 wouldn’t really look out of place in a show set in the 1980s. Only the most pedantic Volvo enthusiast would be likely to notice. Yeah, all that, and the fact that they are both very distinctive so it’s easy to pick out in a shot, yet they are fairly common so they never look like someone just drove in from the future. They were also sold on just about every continent so they look at home in almost any setting. Not to mention that no one is ever, ever going to mistake it for a sports car; it’s a humble family sedan/wagon, and that’s all. ---
**Author:** ![DrCube](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a3d4f5/32.png) [@DrCube](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrCube)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2020, 7:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-gaffes-in-movies-and-tv/847194/197 "2020-02-03T19:57:35Z")
> [@2Bits](#): > > Perfect, white teeth in every mouth, no matter when, no matter where. The excellent HBO miniseries John Adams has period accurate teeth, especially for the old people. It’s quite noticeable and I love it. Honestly, even shows set today ought to have at least some people with terrible teeth. They’re out there, in all walks of life, though the wealthy can usually get cosmetic surgery or implants. > [@silenus](#): > > Cowboys back in the day wearing modern styles of cowboy hats that weren’t developed until this century. This one annoys me every time. Even the otherwise accurate _Deadwood_ has a lot of historically inappropriate hats. Pretty much anyone in any western who isn’t wearing a Derby or Boss of the Plains (or the odd topper) is wrong. ---
**Author:** ![FairyChatMom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fairychatmom/32/21906_2.png) [@FairyChatMom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FairyChatMom)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2020, 8:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-gaffes-in-movies-and-tv/847194/198 "2020-02-03T20:47:19Z")
> [@lingyi](#): > > - \\* Edit: Also, not hitting or kicking in the groin. I talked about his in another thread. If I was in an all out fight for my life, I’d punch, kick, bite, grab the groin of the other person, male of female! Oh yes, this for sure! Doesn’t every self-defense class teach this? I think the only time I saw it used was in _[Jumpin’ Jack Flash](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=te-hhtqatQk)_ when Whoopie took down one of the baddies - around the 1:30 mark. I have to wonder, too - how many people, when being chased, will keep turning to look behind at their pursuer? Me, I’d be bookin’ it at full speed till I couldn’t - then maybe I’d look back. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2020, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-gaffes-in-movies-and-tv/847194/199 "2020-02-03T21:17:19Z")
> [@Peter\_Morris](#): > > That was from _Speed_, although it didn’t happen quite as you remember. > > The "You shot me" "You told me to" is in a later scene, I couldn't find a clip, but [here's some quotes](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0111257/characters/nm0001099?ref\_=tt\_cl\_t5). For some reasons I keep thinking there was a similar scene in Running Scared with Billy Crystal. I’m not sure it was a long time ago. > [@MrAtoz](#): > > This is one more thing that makes _Barney Miller_ the most realistic police show ever broadcast (seriously, several cops have said that). They had two or three episodes in which detectives had to shoot a criminal. All of them were traumatized afterward. Just being traumatized isn’t very realistic. I’ve never been in a shooting but I’m very familiar with several. The officers involved were out of work for months. And these were obvious good shoots involving armed suspects. The investigations were extremely thorough and long and then it was many months before they cleared the officer physically and mentally to come back to work. Yes I realize that would make for a very boring TV show. ---
**Author:** ![UltraVires](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ecccb3/32.png) [@UltraVires](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UltraVires)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2020, 10:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-gaffes-in-movies-and-tv/847194/200 "2020-02-03T22:01:02Z")
One that gets me is that there are always 3 messages on the answering machine when our hero comes home. The first two are personal messages, but the third is the one that drives the plot. The first message is from VISA telling our hero that his credit card bill is overdue. The second is from his ex wife telling him that she heard he has been drinking too much and is worried about him. The third is from the bad guy who is going to blow up the Brooklyn Bridge/kill the little girl/assassinate the President/capture the next hostage/etc. There are always three. Our hero never had a slow message day where there was only the one important message. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-gaffes-in-movies-and-tv/847194.md?page=9) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-gaffes-in-movies-and-tv/847194.md?page=11)