# SHOCKER! Things work differently in the movies. **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [May 3, 2016, 2:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shocker-things-work-differently-in-the-movies/753778 "2016-05-03T14:42:20Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 7
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2016, 3:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shocker-things-work-differently-in-the-movies/753778/121 "2016-05-05T15:23:28Z")
> [@Morbo](#): > > Oh, and this scene took place in the wide-open flat streets of…Rome. C’mon, Rome has flat streets! Somewhere. Maybe in Cinecittà? ---
**Author:** ![scabpicker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scabpicker/32/8268_2.png) [@scabpicker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scabpicker)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2016, 3:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shocker-things-work-differently-in-the-movies/753778/122 "2016-05-05T15:44:37Z")
> [@Guinastasia](#): > > Except nowadays they’re finding out that’s not necessarily the case. Just because you recover quickly from being knocked out doesn’t mean there isn’t lasting damage. Ask a lot of former athletes. It can take a few days for a concussion to show up. Back then they just called it “getting your bell rung”, but now they realize, it’s much more serious than that. I’ll bet Modano was certainly feeling it for awhile, but in those days guys just accepted it as part of the game. Now? Not so much. Well, these days, he might not practice the next day and might miss the next game after having what’s pretty obviously a stage 3 concussion. That’s far from having life changing brain damage and skull fractures or being fated to die soon. I’ve personally busted my head on concrete hard enough to split my helmet, and bruise my head _through_ it. I was quite loopy for a few minutes afterward, and couldn’t tell you what day it was. I haven’t had any long-term effects from it, not even neck problems. ---
**Author:** ![scabpicker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scabpicker/32/8268_2.png) [@scabpicker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scabpicker)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2016, 4:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shocker-things-work-differently-in-the-movies/753778/123 "2016-05-05T16:07:04Z")
> [@Doug\_K](#): > > And for another nitpick (although this is another losing battle like ATM machine and PIN number), it’s SHORTwire. (Because you start the car by shorting two wires.) I’m not sure I understand your nitpick. When you connect two wires, you aren’t necessarily shorting them to ground. In the case of a starter, you’re completing the circuit that’s sending current to the solenoid, it passes to ground after it’s done it’s work there. Ignition is a more complex thing, but you’re more likely to stop the car by shorting that system’s electrical supply to ground. Unless that is, if you’re meaning that we think of electron flows as being backward when we think positive and negative poles of a circuit. Because yes, in some sense, I’m providing a path to ground for the device I want to do work. If I’m not mistaken, it happens in that switch (but I could totally be mistaken). If you’re saying that you short circuit the intended circuit (which includes the lock you’re bypassing), yeah. That’s shorting the circuit in the technical sense (possibly the best sense). Ehh, I’m probably unnecessarily confusing “shorted out” with “shorted”. If you’re just saying the wires under the dash were short: yeah, GM and Ford are especially bad about not giving you extra wire, the cheap bastards. ---
**Author:** ![Flare4roach](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/7cd45c/32.png) [@Flare4roach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Flare4roach)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2016, 1:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shocker-things-work-differently-in-the-movies/753778/124 "2016-05-06T01:33:49Z")
I’ve always wanted to shoot a gun through a pillow as a makeshift silencer. My guess is I’ll end up with a loud bang and lots of feathers. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Tooth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c67d28/32.png) [@The\_Tooth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Tooth)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2016, 3:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shocker-things-work-differently-in-the-movies/753778/125 "2016-05-06T03:25:23Z")
> [@Annie-Xmas](#): > > And when was the last time you carried home your groceries in a brown paper bag with a baguette sticking out of it. I was far from home, and the bag was neither brown nor paper, but you’d better believe I hiked through the Swiss Alps with a baguette sticking out of my backpack. ---
**Author:** ![Drummond\_Bays](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/8edcca/32.png) [@Drummond\_Bays](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drummond_Bays)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2016, 4:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shocker-things-work-differently-in-the-movies/753778/126 "2016-05-06T04:16:25Z")
> [@Guinastasia](#): > > Don’t forget breaking bottles over someone’s head. A real beer or wine bottle will generally bounce and hurt like hell. Bottles don’t break that easily. Brown beer bottles (Molson, Bud, Coors-style) break like in the movies if opened. Unlike the movies, they tend not to do a damn thing. Unless the attacker is to stab with the mouth, or pound with the bottom, the latter usually being inneffective. Edit: sealed bottles can be hard to break when hitting a blunt object, like a head. They are also usually pretty damn effective. Cite: multiple bottles smashed over my head. Seen many more smashed over other people’s heads. ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2016, 5:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shocker-things-work-differently-in-the-movies/753778/127 "2016-05-06T05:26:30Z")
> [@Drummond\_Bays](#): > > Cite: multiple bottles smashed over my head. Seen many more smashed over other people’s heads. Do I want to know? 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2016, 5:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shocker-things-work-differently-in-the-movies/753778/128 "2016-05-06T05:50:01Z")
> [@scabpicker](#): > > And for a nitpick: up to about 1970, and beyond depending on the model, hotwiring a car is just yanking and crossing the right wires from under the dash in the right sequence. That’s all your ignition key used to do, without the yanking. Locking steering wheels made it require more than that. My 1969 Ford Galaxie 500 was quite popular with Cambridge car thieves. After the second time they scooped out the ignition and couldn’t drive it thanks to the locking steering column I wired up a switch and a button in the glove box to start the car. Which worked fine until they towed it away for the metal. ---
**Author:** ![scabpicker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scabpicker/32/8268_2.png) [@scabpicker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scabpicker)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2016, 8:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shocker-things-work-differently-in-the-movies/753778/129 "2016-05-06T08:33:19Z")
> [@Flare4roach](#): > > I’ve always wanted to shoot a gun through a pillow as a makeshift silencer. My guess is I’ll end up with a loud bang and lots of feathers. I can provide firsthand experience on this subject. I had a roommate who was cleaning his .22LR revolver, who then loaded it, cocked it, and carried it back to his room. A teeny bit on the worried side about why he would cock it before going back there, I followed. He wrapped the pistol up in his pillow, and shot it into the floor (don’t worry, ground floor apartment, no basement). It had an audible report, but it was a lot less loud than the same gun without the pillow. It was no louder than a hand clap. The same pistol when fired in the bathroom sans pillow was about as loud as a black cat firecracker in the same space. Loud enough to make your ears ring, but not so loud that you were momentarily deaf. So, it does kind of work. Plus, for a few months of my life someone besides me was the terrible, crazy roommate. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2016, 9:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shocker-things-work-differently-in-the-movies/753778/130 "2016-05-06T09:09:46Z")
> [@koufax](#): > > I watched 30 minutes of “the Revenant” and saw Leo not only get his throat crushed and survive unscathed (didn’t even rub his throat) but also get torn apart by a Grizzly and get sutured up in filthy conditions and somehow not die of infection. People were tougher back then, dontcha know. ---
**Author:** ![Gedd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gedd/32/4938_2.png) [@Gedd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gedd)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2016, 3:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shocker-things-work-differently-in-the-movies/753778/131 "2016-05-06T15:04:45Z")
The roads always just clear enough for car chases too. There’s never a traffic jam or not enough room for cars to zig and zag through traffic. ---
**Author:** ![ivylass](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/9de053/32.png) [@ivylass](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ivylass)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2016, 3:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shocker-things-work-differently-in-the-movies/753778/132 "2016-05-06T15:13:12Z")
> [@Chimera](#): > > Of course, an episode of Star Trek TNG did it even worse, having the computer extrapolate and identify an unknown person standing BEHIND someone else, from just a thin sliver of their hair. :smack: Well, they are a couple hundred years in the future. Who knows what Apple can come up with? 😉 ---
**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:** [May 6, 2016, 3:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shocker-things-work-differently-in-the-movies/753778/133 "2016-05-06T15:51:19Z")
> [@scabpicker](#): > > I can provide firsthand experience on this subject. I had a roommate who was cleaning his .22LR revolver, who then loaded it, cocked it, and carried it back to his room. A teeny bit on the worried side about why he would cock it before going back there, I followed. He wrapped the pistol up in his pillow, and shot it into the floor (don’t worry, ground floor apartment, no basement). > > It had an audible report, but it was a lot less loud than the same gun without the pillow. It was no louder than a hand clap. The same pistol when fired in the bathroom sans pillow was about as loud as a black cat firecracker in the same space. Ground floor or no ground floor, yet another reason I’m not in the landlord business… ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2016, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shocker-things-work-differently-in-the-movies/753778/134 "2016-05-06T16:08:07Z")
> [@Annie-Xmas](#): > > And when was the last time you carried home your groceries in a brown paper bag with a baguette sticking out of it. I have to say I saw this all the time in France, where people buy bread daily. But it was usually a reusable bag or plastic. ---
**Author:** ![Why\_Child](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/b782af/32.png) [@Why\_Child](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Why_Child)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2016, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shocker-things-work-differently-in-the-movies/753778/135 "2016-05-06T16:10:59Z")
> [@Victor\_Charlie](#): > > … ventilation ducts in all commercial buildings are large and sturdy enough to support multiple adults. … And you can’t slide through them without getting hurt. They always make it look like it might be fun, like a water slide just without the water. The edges of sheet metal are sharp!! :eek: ---
**Author:** ![TreacherousCretin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treacherouscretin/32/476_2.png) [@TreacherousCretin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TreacherousCretin)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2016, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shocker-things-work-differently-in-the-movies/753778/136 "2016-05-06T17:19:11Z")
> [@Annie-Xmas](#): > > And when was the last time you carried home your groceries in a brown paper bag with a baguette sticking out of it. > [@fachverwirrt](#): > > Probably the last time I bought a baguette. Facts at his fingertips. ---
**Author:** ![Mister\_Rik](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mister_rik/32/491_2.png) [@Mister\_Rik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mister_Rik)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2016, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shocker-things-work-differently-in-the-movies/753778/137 "2016-05-06T17:19:23Z")
Rewatching _Fringe_ has reminded me that in real life, most medical injections do not require inserting the entire needle into the patient. ---
**Author:** ![Peter\_Morris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peter_morris/32/359_2.png) [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2016, 5:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shocker-things-work-differently-in-the-movies/753778/138 "2016-05-06T17:47:04Z")
[A discussion about blood donors in movies.](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=572093) ---
**Author:** ![scabpicker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scabpicker/32/8268_2.png) [@scabpicker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scabpicker)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2016, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shocker-things-work-differently-in-the-movies/753778/139 "2016-05-06T17:49:49Z")
> [@JRDelirious](#): > > Ground floor or no ground floor, yet another reason I’m not in the landlord business… Believe it or not, that was one of the apartments where I got my entire deposit back after leaving. Most of a fine arts degree and some paint goes a long way! 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![TBG](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c89c15/32.png) [@TBG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TBG)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2016, 11:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shocker-things-work-differently-in-the-movies/753778/140 "2016-05-06T23:22:43Z")
In TV and movies no one has screens on their house windows. Try that in real life, and you wind up with a house full of bugs or stop opening your windows. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shocker-things-work-differently-in-the-movies/753778.md?page=6) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shocker-things-work-differently-in-the-movies/753778.md?page=8)