# Hip flasks for alcohol. Is it just a film trope **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** movies, liquor-alcohol\ **Created:** [December 31, 2021, 3:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hip-flasks-for-alcohol-is-it-just-a-film-trope/956984 "2021-12-31T15:11:11Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Nansbread1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Nansbread1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nansbread1)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2021, 3:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hip-flasks-for-alcohol-is-it-just-a-film-trope/956984/1 "2021-12-31T15:11:12Z")
Remember match stick in mouth. Another film trope that gives the characters something to do between or during dialogues… Might have been relevant in Western films but it’s silly in modern Hollywood films. Is the hip flask the same. Who carries it now for just a few sips of alcohol. It may look cool in films but I have seen no real person take a swig from a flask. What do you think? ---
**Author:** ![bobot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bobot/32/21622_2.png) [@bobot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bobot)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2021, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hip-flasks-for-alcohol-is-it-just-a-film-trope/956984/2 "2021-12-31T15:15:51Z")
With the ubiquity of liquor stores and “airplane” sized bottles of booze, I say that carrying a flask is for special occasions only. Need a quick nip? Easy. Grab a disposable airplane bottle or two, and you don’t have to carry the container when you’re done. My money says most flask use anymore is done in football stadiums by cold tailgaters. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2021, 3:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hip-flasks-for-alcohol-is-it-just-a-film-trope/956984/3 "2021-12-31T15:16:40Z")
Very relevant in movies set during Prohibition. I haven’t seen flasks in any modern era films. ---
**Author:** ![HMS\_Irruncible](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hms_irruncible/32/7394_2.png) [@HMS\_Irruncible](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HMS_Irruncible)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2021, 3:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hip-flasks-for-alcohol-is-it-just-a-film-trope/956984/4 "2021-12-31T15:17:07Z")
> [@Nansbread1](#): > > Is the hip flask the same. Who carries it now for just a few sips of alcohol. It may look cool in films but I have seen no real person take a swig from a flask. It’s still considered a hip thing to do in some circles. Still popular thing to do at football games and other events that don’t offer hard liquor. They don’t really carry enough to get drunk, but as I see it, that’s not really the point. The point is to be able to say “hey let’s all do a shot, aren’t we naughty?” More of an in-group signaling accessory. ---
**Author:** ![susan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/susan/32/17537_2.png) [@susan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/susan)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2021, 3:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hip-flasks-for-alcohol-is-it-just-a-film-trope/956984/5 "2021-12-31T15:19:22Z")
I don’t know about cinema, but I find a metal hip flask less prone to breaking if I’m carrying alcohol on, say, a camping trip. I’m considering a Nalgene hip flask for walking as a less cumbersome alternative to a cylindrical bottle. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2021, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hip-flasks-for-alcohol-is-it-just-a-film-trope/956984/6 "2021-12-31T15:21:10Z")
> [@HMS\_Irruncible](#): > > Still popular thing to do at football games and other events that don’t offer hard liquor. This is what I was going to say. I have seen people using hip flasks to smuggle alcohol into football stadiums. ---
**Author:** ![CairoCarol](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cairocarol/32/3825_2.png) [@CairoCarol](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CairoCarol)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2021, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hip-flasks-for-alcohol-is-it-just-a-film-trope/956984/7 "2021-12-31T15:21:46Z")
I had one (it got lost in one of my many moves, apparently, as I haven’t seen it in a few years) and used it from time to time. It’s a convenient way to surreptitiously carry a little bit of alcohol to a dry event. Personally I find it easier/cheaper/less trash-creating than buying nips. ---
**Author:** ![gdave](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gdave/32/3683_2.png) [@gdave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gdave)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2021, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hip-flasks-for-alcohol-is-it-just-a-film-trope/956984/8 "2021-12-31T15:22:01Z")
> [@Jackmannii](#): > > Very relevant in movies set during Prohibition. I haven’t seen flasks in any modern era films. Not a film, but in the TV series _Leverage_ (2008) [which I’m currently re-watching so it came immediately to mind], the character Nate Ford, an alcoholic, does use a hip flask on occasion. I think it’s meant more as a quirky character affectation than an accurate depiction of how real life alcoholics sneak quick nips, but it’s there in a modern era fictional depiction. ---
**Author:** ![icantdraw](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/3ec8ea/32.png) [@icantdraw](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/icantdraw)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2021, 3:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hip-flasks-for-alcohol-is-it-just-a-film-trope/956984/9 "2021-12-31T15:28:23Z")
I have one in my golf bag for scotch, which they generally don’t sell on the beer cart. Gets used pretty regularly. ---
**Author:** ![Nansbread1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Nansbread1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nansbread1)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2021, 3:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hip-flasks-for-alcohol-is-it-just-a-film-trope/956984/10 "2021-12-31T15:28:36Z")
The film In Time with Justin Timberlake, set in the future had a hip flask scene. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2021, 3:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hip-flasks-for-alcohol-is-it-just-a-film-trope/956984/11 "2021-12-31T15:29:57Z")
I once knew a priest who carried wine in a metal hip flask, for if he was called upon to administer communion when away from his church. He always got a few laughs when he got it out, but as he pointed out, it’s the most convenient way to carry it. ---
**Author:** ![DrFidelius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drfidelius/32/3447_2.png) [@DrFidelius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrFidelius)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2021, 3:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hip-flasks-for-alcohol-is-it-just-a-film-trope/956984/12 "2021-12-31T15:30:22Z")
Ten years ago i used one whenever we went to the movies. Between health issues and getting out of the movie going habit I haven’t used one in years. ---
**Author:** ![DavidNRockies](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/davidnrockies/32/6279_2.png) [@DavidNRockies](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DavidNRockies)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2021, 3:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hip-flasks-for-alcohol-is-it-just-a-film-trope/956984/13 "2021-12-31T15:30:33Z")
Skiing. Blackberry brandy or peppermint schnapps. ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2021, 3:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hip-flasks-for-alcohol-is-it-just-a-film-trope/956984/14 "2021-12-31T15:31:17Z")
> [@gdave](#): > > Not a film, but in the TV series _Leverage_ Also, Bobby on _Supernatural_. ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2021, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hip-flasks-for-alcohol-is-it-just-a-film-trope/956984/15 "2021-12-31T15:32:33Z")
> [@DavidNRockies](#): > > Skiing. > > Blackberry brandy or peppermint schnapps. When you are skiing, shouldn’t you just use one of those large dogs with the small barrels? ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2021, 3:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hip-flasks-for-alcohol-is-it-just-a-film-trope/956984/16 "2021-12-31T15:35:13Z")
Not modern-modern but in the 1960s-set series _Endeavour_ the title character (also an alcoholic) carries one as well. Anyone know if his modern self, _Morse_, carries one? ---
**Author:** ![k9bfriender](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/k9bfriender/32/3283_2.png) [@k9bfriender](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/k9bfriender)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2021, 3:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hip-flasks-for-alcohol-is-it-just-a-film-trope/956984/17 "2021-12-31T15:37:52Z")
Hard to fit in a hip pocket. ---
**Author:** ![Dandan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a87d85/32.png) [@Dandan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dandan)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2021, 3:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hip-flasks-for-alcohol-is-it-just-a-film-trope/956984/18 "2021-12-31T15:40:49Z")
Covid has put the kibosh on our usual Friday eve bar meeting, so a couple of us will meet on a back deck, BYOB. My preferred isn’t available around here in miniatures, so I’ll fill my flask (acquired last year for just this purpose). Fortunately, I have a weak head, and 8 oz is WAY more than I’ll need. Dan ---
**Author:** ![solost](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/solost/32/11776_2.png) [@solost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/solost)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2021, 3:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hip-flasks-for-alcohol-is-it-just-a-film-trope/956984/19 "2021-12-31T15:51:42Z")
My sister and BIL came over for Christmas dinner. BIL is really into high-end fancy bourbons, so we picked up some top-shelf stuff. When we presented it, he pulled out a flask and said, “looks like I won’t need my backup”. BTW, what is a hip flask, exactly? Is it something different than what I think of as a flask, which is a small thin metal container that has a slight curve to it so it can be worn, I thought, not on the hip, but in the inside pocket of a suit jacket, the curve conforming to the person’s side? ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2021, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hip-flasks-for-alcohol-is-it-just-a-film-trope/956984/20 "2021-12-31T15:59:17Z")
My late husband’s mother was an alcoholic (as was his father), and I have her glass hip flask. I never knew her, but I doubt if she took nips from it. Probably carried it in her purse and added a splash of booze to whatever beverage she was drinking when out and about. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hip-flasks-for-alcohol-is-it-just-a-film-trope/956984.md?page=2)