# Dumb things in movies **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [February 28, 2016, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumb-things-in-movies/747433 "2016-02-28T21:21:28Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Rick\_Kitchen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rick_kitchen/32/522_2.png) [@Rick\_Kitchen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick_Kitchen)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2016, 6:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumb-things-in-movies/747433/61 "2016-03-01T06:08:37Z")
> [@](#): > > I haven’t seen it…but it’s my understanding they torture Powers in the film? Eff that film. Not torture, except for keeping him awake. ---
**Author:** ![TonySinclair](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/49beb7/32.png) [@TonySinclair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TonySinclair)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2016, 6:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumb-things-in-movies/747433/62 "2016-03-01T06:21:17Z")
> [@BobLibDem](#): > > “Cover me!” How? You’ve got three guys shooting at you but telling your buddy with a pistol to cover you is going to make the bad guys not shoot at you while you dash across the parking lot. How does “cover me” work, exactly? With proper training, it can be extremely effective. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/zvVYG98jjvU/maxresdefault.jpg "Cover me, Frank (from Police Squad! TV series)") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zvVYG98jjvU) ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2016, 10:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumb-things-in-movies/747433/63 "2016-03-01T10:56:16Z")
> [@Dante\_G](#): > > One that always bugs me is people answering the knock on the door within less than 2 seconds. Are they hovering around by the doorway just waiting to answer? Do they teleport from upstairs to the doorway at the sound of the knock? I mean come on, atleast have the actor wait 7-10 seconds. Believe me, I doubt if we the viewers are going to be impatiently tapping our foot waiting for the door to open. One of my favorite _Carol Burnett Show_ moments was an episode of _As the Stomach Turns_. Marion (Carol’s character) needed to have the family doctor come to the house. MARION (into telephone): Doctor, can you come over right away? SFX: _Ding-Dong_ MARION (still speaking into telephone): Oh, that must be you now. ---
**Author:** ![JRDelirious](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jrdelirious/32/9531_2.png) [@JRDelirious](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JRDelirious)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2016, 11:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumb-things-in-movies/747433/64 "2016-03-01T11:47:36Z")
> [@Rick\_Kitchen](#): > > Military salutes. If you’re portraying a member of the military, please learn how to salute properly. The sloppy salutes people use in movies and TV shows really bug me. > > And let’s not get into the long hair they allow military characters to wear… Why, you wouldn’t expect a star to show up at the clubs in a regulation haircut, would you? (except for Ed Harris, of course) ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2016, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumb-things-in-movies/747433/65 "2016-03-01T18:44:33Z")
_Signs_: the alien invasion is thwarted by a baseball bat and a lawn sprinkler. ---
**Author:** ![stillownedbysetters](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/41988e/32.png) [@stillownedbysetters](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stillownedbysetters)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2016, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumb-things-in-movies/747433/66 "2016-03-01T18:51:16Z")
80 bad guys - trained killers, so we’re told - all shooting at one good guy and no one hits him. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2016, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumb-things-in-movies/747433/67 "2016-03-01T19:02:13Z")
Control surfaces in the vacuum of space. ---
**Author:** ![Rick\_Kitchen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rick_kitchen/32/522_2.png) [@Rick\_Kitchen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick_Kitchen)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2016, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumb-things-in-movies/747433/68 "2016-03-01T19:37:27Z")
> [@Boyo\_Jim](#): > > _Signs_: the alien invasion is thwarted by a baseball bat and a lawn sprinkler. And glasses of water that the little girl just happens to keep leaving all over the house. ---
**Author:** ![Kelevra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/97f17d/32.png) [@Kelevra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kelevra)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2016, 7:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumb-things-in-movies/747433/69 "2016-03-01T19:47:52Z")
> [@TreacherousCretin](#): > > People end phone conversations by simply hanging up/turning off, without so much as a “by your leave” or “goodbye.” You should meet my friend Joe. When he considers the conversation over he just hangs up. He might have some issues… ---
**Author:** ![AncientHumanoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ancienthumanoid/32/278_2.png) [@AncientHumanoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AncientHumanoid)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2016, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumb-things-in-movies/747433/70 "2016-03-01T19:56:46Z")
> [@carnivorousplant](#): > > Control surfaces in the vacuum of space. They deflect gravitons, thus warping the gravitational constant of the multi-verse. Dude. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2016, 8:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumb-things-in-movies/747433/71 "2016-03-01T20:19:46Z")
> [@GargoyleWB](#): > > I’ve been marathoning **The Walking Dead** , and the terrible gun tropes and capabilities are driving me batty. > > -Pistols with long-distance sniper accuracy > -Super silencers > -Superfluous cocking and chambering and racking > -Bullets that can’t penetrate a leaf > -People that jump out of full cover to pose guns blazing, then jump back into cover > > A-Team had more technical accuracy than this show does. Guy gets the drop on another guy, pointing an automatic handgun at him. Guy makes a move and the guy with the gun cocks his automatic dramatically. It’s either a dramatic effect edit, or the guy with the gun had a chambered round with the hammer down, which, for most automatics, would render it useless in a confrontation with someone else carrying a weapon. The list is endless, I know, and most people don’t know the difference. The rest of us just have to grit our teeth. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2016, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumb-things-in-movies/747433/72 "2016-03-01T20:23:16Z")
The women are all incredibly hot. ---
**Author:** ![Dinsdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/97f17d/32.png) [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2016, 8:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumb-things-in-movies/747433/73 "2016-03-01T20:25:05Z")
One that has bugged me since my wife brought it to my attention is cool cops and medical examiners speaking about “GSWs” “Gun shot wound” - 3 syllables. “GSW” - 5! Nice abbreviation there! Our guilty TV habit is Hawaii 5-O. We get a kick out of how nearly every week, in the penultimate scene they’ll kill 5-10 bad guys (paradise indeed!), and their reaction is, “Let’s go have a beer!” Sociopath much? 😃 ---
**Author:** ![AncientHumanoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ancienthumanoid/32/278_2.png) [@AncientHumanoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AncientHumanoid)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2016, 8:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumb-things-in-movies/747433/74 "2016-03-01T20:28:53Z")
I gratuitously shoot up places and then I AGONIZE about it later to my girlfriend. And I write novels. IN CRAYON! ---
**Author:** ![Rick\_Kitchen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rick_kitchen/32/522_2.png) [@Rick\_Kitchen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick_Kitchen)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2016, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumb-things-in-movies/747433/75 "2016-03-01T20:50:12Z")
> [@TriPolar](#): > > The women are all incredibly hot. This is the \*\*\*dumb \*\*\*things thread. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Typo\_Negative](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/typo_negative/32/484_2.png) [@Typo\_Negative](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Typo_Negative)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2016, 9:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumb-things-in-movies/747433/76 "2016-03-01T21:18:22Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > Bad guy gets kicked square in the cajones, but is able to get up and chase the good guy within 30 seconds. Ain’t happening, people. I took a shot to the 'nads while sparring with other guys in a tae kwon do class. It wasn’t even that square a blow or that hard. I dropped like a sack of potatoes. Took a few minutes to get back up. And I was done for the day. **An Officer and a Gentleman** had a great scene where the D.I and cadet were fighting in the ring. The D.I. goes down to the mat, the cadet is about to deliver an ‘end of fight’ kick, except the D.I. delivers a kick, square in the cadet’s gonads. His reaction is very realistic, as in he drops into a fetal position, writhes in pain and blows snot bubbles. ---
**Author:** ![Jim\_s\_Son](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e19adc/32.png) [@Jim\_s\_Son](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jim_s_Son)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2016, 9:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumb-things-in-movies/747433/77 "2016-03-01T21:59:42Z")
An EMT once told me on how training films for CPR invariably had a lovely woman needing mouth to mouth. In reality it’s a drunk or drugged middle aged man who vomits in your mouth when you revive him. Used to watch “Babewatch” to see if it took Mitch two or three breaths to save someone and if they had a mild cough or not. Once Mitch couldn’t save somebody and was depressed until they found out the guy had been dead for awhile. ---
**Author:** ![DrCube](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a3d4f5/32.png) [@DrCube](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrCube)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2016, 10:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumb-things-in-movies/747433/78 "2016-03-01T22:13:43Z")
In the movies, they make it look so perfect. And in the background they’re always playing the right song. In the ending, there’s always a resolution. But real life is more than just two hours long! ---
**Author:** ![Count\_Blucher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c5a1d2/32.png) [@Count\_Blucher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Count_Blucher)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2016, 11:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumb-things-in-movies/747433/79 "2016-03-01T23:29:53Z")
> [@Mijin](#): > > Yep, drop the mic. > > If I lived in that world I’m not sure which would bother me more: the super-earthquake or the cheesiness. > > It’s so dumb I didn’t even realize one of the problems with the premise until it was mentioned on Cracked (that he’s a rescue worker, using a rescue helicopter, that spends most of the film ignoring people in need to go find his daughter). Yeah, that was definitely a Rock slide. Also, Carla Gugino is a pretty decent actress. Who blackmailed her into That horror show!? Number One of the Top 20 questions she’ll never answer: “Carla…! Which is more embarrassing? Being naked on the floor in ‘Sin City’ with your hand chopped off… or being in ‘San Andreas’…?” ---
**Author:** ![Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e47c2d/32.png) [@Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biffy_the_Elephant_Shrew)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2016, 1:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumb-things-in-movies/747433/80 "2016-03-02T01:03:04Z")
> [@BobLibDem](#): > > Forgot to mention the routine where the cop dips his pinky fingernail into the white powder, touches it to his tongue…“Yep, cocaine!” Why wait for the crime lab to safely test the product with something more admissible in court than your tongue? Why no, just put whatever unknown substance it might me onto your tongue- what could possibly go wrong with that? “Yep, anthrax!” [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumb-things-in-movies/747433.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumb-things-in-movies/747433.md?page=5)