# Movies that reference other movies **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [June 25, 2003, 1:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-reference-other-movies/184284 "2003-06-25T13:29:43Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![godzillatemple](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/49beb7/32.png) [@godzillatemple](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/godzillatemple)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2003, 1:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-reference-other-movies/184284/1 "2003-06-25T13:29:43Z")
I was watching a rather well-made (in my opinon) werewolf movie recently called _Dog Soldiers_. One of the characters had the improbable nickname (I assume it wasn’t his real name) of “Spoon.” It seemed like a rather silly name for a character. Anyway, somewhere toward the middle of the movie Spoon is killed (sorry if this is a spoiler, but come on – this is a **werewolf** movie for Pete’s sake. The only spoiler would be who _doesn’t_ die). Another character finds the body and, when asked where Spoon is, replies, “There is no Spoon.” And yes, this movie was made after _The Matrix_. So now I’m wondering – what other movies have you seen that reference (either directly or indirectly) other movies? And no, Gus van Sant’s “remake” of _Psycho_ doesn’t count… Barry ---
**Author:** ![godzillatemple](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/49beb7/32.png) [@godzillatemple](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/godzillatemple)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2003, 1:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-reference-other-movies/184284/2 "2003-06-25T13:34:23Z")
Sorry – I meant to post this in “Cafe Society.” Hopefully a friendly moderator will be along shortly to move it there… ---
**Author:** ![Jonathan\_Chance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jonathan_chance/32/701_2.png) [@Jonathan\_Chance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jonathan_Chance)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2003, 1:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-reference-other-movies/184284/3 "2003-06-25T13:37:11Z")
About a billion of them. Shrek referenced The Matrix. Batman referenced Citizen Kane. Twister referenced Star Wars. Others? ---
**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:** [June 25, 2003, 1:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-reference-other-movies/184284/4 "2003-06-25T13:42:14Z")
Go to [url=“[http://www.imdb.com](http://www.imdb.com)”]IMDB\*\* and search for the movie of your choice. On the left-hand side, click where it says “Movie Connections.” The listing for _Shrek_ is: References Three Little Pigs (1933) Old Mill, The (1937) Wizard of Oz, The (1939) Dumbo (1941) Cinderella (1950) Peter Pan (1953) Oklahoma! (1955) Vertigo (1958) West Side Story (1961) “Star Trek” (1966) How the Grinch Stole Christmas! (1966) (TV) Godfather, The (1972) Superfly (1972) Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975) “When Things Were Rotten” (1975) Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977) Star Trek: The Motion Picture (1979) Blues Brothers, The (1980) Time Bandits (1981) Poltergeist (1982) Last Unicorn, The (1982) Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi (1983) Trading Places (1983) Unendliche Geschichte, Die (1984) Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984) “Dragonball” (1986) Highlander (1986) Beetlejuice (1988) Jurassic Park (1993) Pulp Fiction (1994) Interview with the Vampire: The Vampire Chronicles (1994) Babe (1995) “Xena: Warrior Princess” (1995) Super Mario 64 (1996) (VG) Xiao Qian (1997) Final Fantasy VII (1997) (VG) Vita è bella, La (1997) Mulan (1998) Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, The (1998) (VG) Darkstalkers III (1998) (VG) Gladiator (2000) Wo hu cang long (2000) How the Grinch Stole Christmas (2000) Paper Mario (2001) (VG) “Dragon Ball” (2001) Artificial Intelligence: AI (2001) Spoofs Frankenstein (1931) Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937) Adventures of Robin Hood, The (1938) Pinocchio (1940) Fantasia (1940) Dumbo (1941) Cinderella (1950) Peter Pan (1953) Sleeping Beauty (1959) West Side Story (1961) Mary Poppins (1964) “Dating Game, The” (1965) “Monkees, The” (1966) Graduate, The (1967) Planet of the Apes (1968) Return of the Pink Panther, The (1975) Taxi Driver (1976) Saturday Night Fever (1977) Ladyhawke (1985) “WWF Prime-Time Wrestling” (1986) Highlander (1986) Spaceballs (1987) Princess Bride, The (1987) NeverEnding Story II: The Next Chapter, The (1990) Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves (1991) Beauty and the Beast (1991) Jurassic Park (1993) Robin Hood: Men in Tights (1993) Lion King, The (1994) Riverdance: The Show (1995) Babe (1995) Rock, The (1996) Independence Day (1996) “Raw Is War” (1997) Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery (1997) Fifth Element, The (1997) Mulan (1998) Lion King II: Simba’s Pride, The (1998) (V) Bug’s Life, A (1998) Matrix, The (1999) Wo hu cang long (2000) Shanghai Noon (2000) Charlie’s Angels (2000) Dungeons & Dragons (2000) Knight’s Tale, A (2001) ---
**Author:** ![godzillatemple](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/49beb7/32.png) [@godzillatemple](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/godzillatemple)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2003, 1:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-reference-other-movies/184284/5 "2003-06-25T13:44:38Z")
**Jonathan** : Can you give specific cites? I know _Shrek_ (and other movies) parodied the fighting style from the Matrix (the whole “Bullet Time” thing), but were there actual quotes used? And where in _Batman_ was _Citizen Kane_ referenced? I do remember the “That’s not a moon – it’s a space station” quote from _Twister_. Barry ---
**Author:** ![godzillatemple](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/49beb7/32.png) [@godzillatemple](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/godzillatemple)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2003, 1:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-reference-other-movies/184284/6 "2003-06-25T13:47:39Z")
**Ethilrist** : Holy crap!!! 😉 Barry ---
**Author:** ![Achernar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e274bd/32.png) [@Achernar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Achernar)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2003, 2:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-reference-other-movies/184284/7 "2003-06-25T14:31:35Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Ethilrist \* > Super Mario 64 (1996) (VG) > Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, The (1998) (VG) > Paper Mario (2001) (VG) I consider myself intimately familiar with two of these games, and familiar with the third. Does anyone happen to know what the _Shrek_ references to them were? ---
**Author:** ![Jonathan\_Chance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jonathan_chance/32/701_2.png) [@Jonathan\_Chance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jonathan_Chance)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2003, 2:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-reference-other-movies/184284/8 "2003-06-25T14:33:44Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by godzillatemple \* > \*\ ***Jonathan** : Can you give specific cites? I know _Shrek_ (and other movies) parodied the fighting style from the Matrix (the whole “Bullet Time” thing), but were there actual quotes used? And where in _Batman_ was _Citizen Kane_ referenced? > > I do remember the “That’s not a moon – it’s a space station” quote from _Twister_. > > Barry \*\* The scene in Batman where Billy Dee Williams is getting the award is akin to a similar scene in Citizen Kane. Yes, I was referring to the bullet time thing in Shrek. The fact that she used the time to fix her hair was a brilliant send up of it. ---
**Author:** ![godzillatemple](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/49beb7/32.png) [@godzillatemple](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/godzillatemple)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2003, 2:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-reference-other-movies/184284/9 "2003-06-25T14:37:27Z")
Hmmmm… Allow me to rephrase my original post. What other movies **directly quote** (as opposed to making indirect references) other movies? And please, be specific if possible. Barry ---
**Author:** ![Optihut](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/edb3f5/32.png) [@Optihut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Optihut)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2003, 2:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-reference-other-movies/184284/10 "2003-06-25T14:59:34Z")
All Kevin Smith movies - or at least the ones I saw: Clerks, Mallrats, Chasing Amy, Dogma, Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back - have Starwars quotations in them. ---
**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:** [June 25, 2003, 3:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-reference-other-movies/184284/11 "2003-06-25T15:02:15Z")
Okay, fine. ID4: “Must go faster. Much faster.” ---
**Author:** ![skaterboarder87](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9de0a6/32.png) [@skaterboarder87](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/skaterboarder87)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2003, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-reference-other-movies/184284/12 "2003-06-25T17:53:39Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Achernar \* > \*\*I consider myself intimately familiar with two of these games, and familiar with the third. Does anyone happen to know what the _Shrek_ references to them were? \*\* Yeah, I know all three games like the back of my hand and never noticed any references to them through all 9 viewings of Shrek. ---
**Author:** ![Fiddle\_Peghead](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fiddle_peghead/32/3506_2.png) [@Fiddle\_Peghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiddle_Peghead)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2003, 10:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-reference-other-movies/184284/13 "2003-06-25T22:36:18Z")
The scene in _Sunset Blvd._ where the producer Sheldrake, in reference to _Gone With the Wind_, says something along the lines of “who ever thought they [the movie-going public] would want to see a civil war picture?” ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2003, 11:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-reference-other-movies/184284/14 "2003-06-25T23:14:46Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by godzillatemple \* > \*\*Sorry – I meant to post this in “Cafe Society.” Hopefully a friendly moderator will be along shortly to move it there… \*\* Okey Dokey. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2003, 11:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-reference-other-movies/184284/15 "2003-06-25T23:59:32Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by godzillatemple \* > \*\*Anyway, somewhere toward the middle of the movie Spoon is killed (sorry if this is a spoiler, but come on – this is a **werewolf** movie for Pete’s sake. The only spoiler would be who _doesn’t_ die). Another character finds the body and, when asked where Spoon is, replies, “There is no Spoon.” > > And yes, this movie was made after _The Matrix_.\*\* You actually think this is a Matrix reference? :rolleyes: Sorry, but the phrase predated “The Matrix” by many years. ---
**Author:** ![Lobsang](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobsang/32/4067_2.png) [@Lobsang](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lobsang)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2003, 12:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-reference-other-movies/184284/16 "2003-06-26T00:09:52Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by RealityChuck \* > \*\*You actually think this is a Matrix reference? :rolleyes: > > Sorry, but the phrase predated “The Matrix” by many years. \*\* That may be so, but I am pretty sure that it was The Matrix they had in mind when they included it in the film. ---
**Author:** ![dantheman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dantheman/32/9421_2.png) [@dantheman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dantheman)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2003, 12:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-reference-other-movies/184284/17 "2003-06-26T00:15:16Z")
“There is no spoon” is a phrase that’s been around a while? Please explain where, **Reality Chuck**. And wipe that silly eyeroll off your face. It’s not becoming. ---
**Author:** ![godzillatemple](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/49beb7/32.png) [@godzillatemple](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/godzillatemple)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2003, 12:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-reference-other-movies/184284/18 "2003-06-26T00:40:44Z")
I’m with Dantheman on this one – where’s your cite, Chuck? Barry ---
**Author:** ![Wumpus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8c91f0/32.png) [@Wumpus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wumpus)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2003, 12:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-reference-other-movies/184284/19 "2003-06-26T00:51:55Z")
“There is no X,” where X is an obstacle, was a common pseudo-Zen movie phrase long before the Matrix. (“Ignore the pain, grasshopper. There is no pain!”) But I sure don’t remember “There is no _spoon_” before Kenau & co. came along. Maybe on the Tick? 🙂 Back to movie references: I was just re-watching 12 Monkeys, and there’s a sequence where the two main characters are in a theatre watching Vertigo and discussing how that movie is like their current predicament. This is followed by a sequence in the theatre lobby where Madaline Stowe surprises Bruce Willis by showing up in disguise. The scene where he takes her in his arms is a shot-for-shot recreation of the Vertigo scene where Jimmy Stewart gets his first look at Kim Novak 2.0 made up as Kim Novak 1.0. (Or rather the other way around. It’s confusing.) ---
**Author:** ![greenphan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c37758/32.png) [@greenphan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/greenphan)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2003, 1:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-reference-other-movies/184284/20 "2003-06-26T01:26:52Z")
In “Swingers”, the characters are sitting around a poker table talking about how directors steal from other directors (Tarantino stole from Scorsese, etc.) as the camera rips off, almost shot for shot, the opening sequence to “Reservoir Dogs” and then, after they complement the slow-mo walking scene from the credits in “Reservoir Dogs”, they walk down the street in a reproduction of that shot. It’s rather amusing the first time you see it. After that, at least for me, the Average White Band song gets on my nerves far too much. –greenphan [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-reference-other-movies/184284.md?page=2)