# They're always empty! **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** tv-shows-scripted, movies\ **Created:** [February 12, 2022, 7:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/theyre-always-empty/959378 "2022-02-12T19:54:06Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![velomont](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/8491ac/32.png) [@velomont](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/velomont)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2022, 5:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/theyre-always-empty/959378/61 "2022-02-14T17:44:08Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > men’s hair— _ **MASH** _ Ex-military guy here. A lot of '70s tv shows (or cheesy movies) with military people in them had men with fairly long hair slicked back to expose the ears. To military viewers it was really obvious and removed a lot of credibility. ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2022, 5:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/theyre-always-empty/959378/62 "2022-02-14T17:47:49Z")
The thing about proper military haircuts, is you get movies like Band of Brothers or even more so Black Hawk Down. I could never tell anyone apart. I couldn’t even recognize actors I knew. Years later, I’m like “Ewan McGregor was in BHD? Seriously?” ---
**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:** [February 14, 2022, 5:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/theyre-always-empty/959378/63 "2022-02-14T17:58:35Z")
> [@Tusculan](#): > > My pet peeve is when characters enter a house or a room and don’t close the door. It happens all the time. People, anyone can come in! They can hear and see you! I go to a yearly movie marathon and this is one of the tropes our audience hates as well. If someone goes through a door in the movie and doesn’t close it, the whole crowd yells “Shut the door!” > [@WOOKINPANUBv.2](#): > > That pregnancy test that you just took / found in the waste basket is _covered in urine_ . Why are you waving it around / touching it? Blecccccch. Yes! Eew gross! My addition to the thread is magic fast-acting pills. I understand that a nitroglycerine can be an immediate life-saver for heart events, but I’m not aware of any other prescription meds you can carry around in a bottle and take with your shaky hands the moment you feel off. I’m not talking Tylenol or Tums. I’m talking plot-advancing bottles of meds that are just out of reach, falling down the kitchen drain, or taken sullenly in the moment with a swig of beer. Maybe I’m blessed to not be aware of these types of pills. But I am guessing they are more trope than typical. ---
**Author:** ![Andy\_L](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c67d28/32.png) [@Andy\_L](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Andy_L)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2022, 6:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/theyre-always-empty/959378/64 "2022-02-14T18:30:31Z")
Purportedly true story from “Ask a Manager” advice site [https://www.askamanager.org/2022/01/my-coworker-tried-to-film-her-pregnancy-announcement-and-now-there-is-chaos.html](https://www.askamanager.org/2022/01/my-coworker-tried-to-film-her-pregnancy-announcement-and-now-there-is-chaos.html) > _My coworker, “Jessie,” is pregnant and decided she wanted to film a reaction video announcement telling everyone in our office. This is a marketing firm, but we’re a small satellite office so corporate encourages us to do a lot of “meet the staff” and “it’s Tiffany’s Birthday” type sharing posts to attract clients. We’ve had problems before with the higher-ups encouraging some oversharing, and just a LOT of bad personal boundaries in the office. I feel like this inspired Jessie and another coworker, “Daniela,” to do this pregnancy announcement by tossing people a positive pregnancy test so they could film the reactions._ > _Jessie started by tossing the used pregnancy test to “Abby,” who flung it when she realized what it was and yelled “oh gross,” which got a lot of people’s attention and “ruined” Jessie’s announcement. It’s kind of office knowledge that Abby is a germophobe so while part of me gets that Jessie was excited and maybe didn’t think things through, the rest of me feels like this was a really unfair position to put Abby in, along with all the other staff she was planning to throw a used peed-on pregnancy test at._ > _HR told me they’re considering disciplinary actions for Abby and anybody else who “reacted poorly” unless they publicly apologize to Jessie. I told them that was a terrible idea and, not knowing what else to do, I called corporate HR and relayed the situation to our female head of HR, outlining what I saw, who said what, and the low-level bullying that Abby’s been subjected to now. (If someone asks Jessie about her pregnancy and she knows Abby’s in earshot, she’ll say loudly, “Oh, well I guess my baby is GROSS according to SOME PEOPLE.”) Corporate HR (which is separate from our on-site HR) was horrified and put out a company-wide memo about keeping bodily fluids to yourself._ ---
**Author:** ![Jasmine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jasmine/32/2964_2.png) [@Jasmine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jasmine)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2022, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/theyre-always-empty/959378/65 "2022-02-14T18:51:59Z")
> [@Mangetout](#): > > They sit down to a meal, but don’t eat anything. Not always! Have you ever seen “Mobsters” with Anthony Quinn? There is a scene where he is eating while talking to Christian Slater’s character. Man, is he eating! LOL What if they had to do ten takes of that scene? ---
**Author:** ![Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/q.q.switcheroo/32/5713_2.png) [@Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.Q.Switcheroo)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2022, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/theyre-always-empty/959378/66 "2022-02-14T18:58:29Z")
> [@Jasmine](#): > > What if they had to do ten takes of that scene? [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/mWGGr7GwWNc/hqdefault.jpg "1969 Alka Seltzer Spicy Meatball Commercial") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mWGGr7GwWNc) ---
**Author:** ![Jasmine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jasmine/32/2964_2.png) [@Jasmine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jasmine)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2022, 7:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/theyre-always-empty/959378/67 "2022-02-14T19:05:21Z")
Perfect! 🤣 ---
**Author:** ![BrickBat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ac91a4/32.png) [@BrickBat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrickBat)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2022, 7:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/theyre-always-empty/959378/68 "2022-02-14T19:17:22Z")
> [@Feurmann](#): > > Second, when someone on foot is being chased by a car along a road with trees along each side, why does the person on foot run down the middle of the road? That one always makes me scoff. I’ve also seen this depicted on city streets as well. I want to exclaim loudly “_You idiot! Stop running down the street/road and duck in someplace a car can’t go!_”. As an aside to those scenarios, for dramatic effect, the chase is slowed down in an overdone way. Within a given distance between a hapless runner being chased down by a car, an overtake time, due to the relative speed distance between the two would be a few seconds, but is usually milked out many many times longer. We see quick clips and cuts back and forth between a speeding car ( usually from the viewpoint of a camera mounted on the front bumper ) and the chase-ee. Bonus points for the chase-ee taking quick glances back toward the car as he runs. I believe the movie ‘Austin Powers’ had a gag scene that mocked this kind of chase. Oh, yeah, I too hate when someone enters a house and leaves the door open. ---
**Author:** ![Bonum\_Legatum](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bonum_legatum/32/6183_2.png) [@Bonum\_Legatum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bonum_Legatum)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2022, 7:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/theyre-always-empty/959378/69 "2022-02-14T19:25:10Z")
(Actor portraying a cop) “This is definitely an illicit drug. I can tell by the taste.” ---
**Author:** ![Fugazi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/f08c70/32.png) [@Fugazi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fugazi)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2022, 7:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/theyre-always-empty/959378/70 "2022-02-14T19:25:25Z")
One I’ve noticed since smart phones became a thing. People will do something on their phone in 4 or 5 seconds that would take me at least a few minutes to accomplish. Even something as simple as adding in a new contact takes me a minute or 2. On TV they get it done faster than I could type in just the 10 digits of the phone number. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2022, 7:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/theyre-always-empty/959378/71 "2022-02-14T19:49:29Z")
When I see that, I assume it’s because they’re better at using a smartphone than I am. Like I can barely type a text standing still and they’re texting and walking or texting and driving or texting and performing surgery. ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2022, 7:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/theyre-always-empty/959378/72 "2022-02-14T19:49:55Z")
> [@Bonum\_Legatum](#): > > (Actor portraying a cop) “This is definitely an illicit drug. I can tell by the taste.” This has been old for so long it’s due to retire. You taste drugs nowadays and you’re likely as not to die. I think it was the old private eye show Tenspeed and Brownshoe (1980!) that spoofed it by having Jeff Goldblum’s Brownshoe take a finger full of the unknown powdered substance to see if it was heroin or whatever and it made him catatonic. ---
**Author:** ![GESancMan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gesancman/32/2923_2.png) [@GESancMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GESancMan)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2022, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/theyre-always-empty/959378/73 "2022-02-14T20:43:26Z")
> [@BrickBat](#): > > As an aside to those scenarios, for dramatic effect, the chase is slowed down in an overdone way. Within a given distance between a hapless runner being chased down by a car, an overtake time, due to the relative speed distance between the two would be a few seconds, but is usually milked out many many times longer. We see quick clips and cuts back and forth between a speeding car ( usually from the viewpoint of a camera mounted on the front bumper ) and the chase-ee. Bonus points for the chase-ee taking quick glances back toward the car as he runs. > > I believe the movie ‘Austin Powers’ had a gag scene that mocked this kind of chase. Just gonna leave this here… [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/gHdDxKy2QW0/maxresdefault.jpg "Monty Python and The Holy Grail -- Lancelot Running") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gHdDxKy2QW0) ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2022, 9:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/theyre-always-empty/959378/74 "2022-02-14T21:07:34Z")
They’re escaping from the bad guys lair - unarmed, pursued by deadly threats. They take one of the armed henchmen by surprise; he drops his gun as he falls to the floor unconscious. They continue on, unarmed. Against all the odds, they overpower several more heavily armed guards, all of whom drop their guns as they fall. The protagonists continue to flee the deadly threat, unarmed… ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2022, 9:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/theyre-always-empty/959378/75 "2022-02-14T21:15:18Z")
Similarly. one of the captives of the mad serial killer breaks one hand free from the restraints in the torture chamber and in a burst of unlikely and desperate energy, knocks the villain unconscious with a nearby heavy object. Now able to release their other hand, they untie and release their companions from their restraints too. Next, they all stand around and argue about what is happening and what to do next, while the mad killer lies recovering on the floor, not restrained in any way. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2022, 9:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/theyre-always-empty/959378/76 "2022-02-14T21:22:49Z")
Or in other words… Pick up the damn gun! Hogtie the bad guy! ---
**Author:** ![DesertDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/desertdog/32/11503_2.png) [@DesertDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DesertDog)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2022, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/theyre-always-empty/959378/77 "2022-02-14T21:33:57Z")
> [@Jasmine](#): > > What if they had to do ten takes of that scene? In _Men in Black_ when Edgar-bug downs that glass of sugar water Beatrice gives him it took _fifteen_ takes to get it right and D’Onofrio was pretty well bouncing off of the walls by then. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2022, 9:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/theyre-always-empty/959378/78 "2022-02-14T21:39:41Z")
> [@Thylacine](#): > > Don’t forget the bright white teeth That’s always bugged me. You’ll see a guy meant to be ugly or homeless or having lived a hard life wearing worn out clothes and long dingy hair that hasn’t been washed or cut in months but then he looks at the camera with piercing blue eyes and and a perfectly straight, overly whitened set of teeth. > [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](#): > > Also, watch someone on television carry bags of groceries. They shift them around as if they weigh a few ounces. Not so much a pet peeve of mine, but more one of those ‘can’t unsee it’ things that’ll pull me out of whatever I’m watching is brown grocery bags that don’t make any noise. I completely understand the need for them, but ever since I learned about them, I notice them all the time. IMO, they’re easy to spot because they have a slightly different look to them. [Here’s the video](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x6btmJSRueE). It covers paper bags, but also other things like ice cubes and pool balls. ---
**Author:** ![GreysonCarlisle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a87d85/32.png) [@GreysonCarlisle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreysonCarlisle)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2022, 9:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/theyre-always-empty/959378/79 "2022-02-14T21:40:54Z")
> [@Mangetout](#): > > Or in other words… > Pick up the damn gun! > Hogtie the bad guy! And for god’s sake, if you find yourself having defeated a serial killer, don’t throw your weapon to the ground so that he can come back to life and attack you with it one last time. ---
**Author:** ![Seanette](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/seanette/32/9139_2.png) [@Seanette](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Seanette)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2022, 9:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/theyre-always-empty/959378/80 "2022-02-14T21:52:20Z")
Or just cave in the bad guy’s skull. You KNOW he has seriously nasty plans for you, make sure he’s physically unable to do anything other than breathe (if that much). Second the “pick up the damn gun!”, or any other handy weapon. Granted, it’s a less dramatic final showdown if you’re armed, but self-preservation (and protecting any other potential victims) IS a thing among functional human beings. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/theyre-always-empty/959378.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/theyre-always-empty/959378.md?page=5)