# Things you learned from movies. **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [September 27, 2013, 6:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-learned-from-movies/669785 "2013-09-27T06:08:28Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 11
**Author:** ![BobLibDem](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boblibdem/32/3149_2.png) [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2013, 1:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-learned-from-movies/669785/201 "2013-11-02T01:14:52Z")
> [@Siam\_Sam](#): > > _Snakes on a Plane_ taught me there are trains on the island of Oahu. Damned if I could ever find them when I lived there. [It may not be much, but they have at least one.](http://www.hawaiianrailway.com/) ---
**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:** [November 2, 2013, 1:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-learned-from-movies/669785/202 "2013-11-02T01:24:09Z")
> [@BobLibDem](#): > > [It may not be much, but they have at least one.](http://www.hawaiianrailway.com/) Huh. Never heard of that while I lived there, although that was quite awhile ago. But still, the beginning of _Snakes on a Plane_ seemed to show an active freight train in use, not a historical oddity. ---
**Author:** ![Slow\_Moving\_Vehicle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slow_moving_vehicle/32/291_2.png) [@Slow\_Moving\_Vehicle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slow_Moving_Vehicle)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2013, 5:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-learned-from-movies/669785/203 "2013-11-02T05:14:56Z")
> [@Siam\_Sam](#): > > Huh. Never heard of that while I lived there, although that was quite awhile ago. But still, the beginning of _Snakes on a Plane_ seemed to show an active freight train in use, not a historical oddity. Well, Hawai’i _had_ them. But they all got taken out of service because everybody had had it with these motherfuckin’ snakes on the motherfuckin’ train. ---
**Author:** ![stosh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e95f7d/32.png) [@stosh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stosh)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2013, 11:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-learned-from-movies/669785/204 "2013-11-02T23:37:10Z")
If there are fifty guys shooting at the hero with machine guns, they will all miss or just give him a flesh wound. ---
**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:** [November 3, 2013, 2:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-learned-from-movies/669785/205 "2013-11-03T02:56:18Z")
> [@stosh](#): > > If there are fifty guys shooting at the hero with machine guns, they will all miss or just give him a flesh wound. And if they do riddle him, there’s not much blood. ---
**Author:** ![Jungian\_Camisole](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/8baadc/32.png) [@Jungian\_Camisole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jungian_Camisole)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2013, 3:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-learned-from-movies/669785/206 "2013-11-03T03:01:39Z")
When running through the woods in order to save your own personal life, it’s best to wear high heels. Stilettos, if you got 'em. The inevitable tree root will still take you down. But at least you’ll look _sexy._ ---
**Author:** ![notfrommensa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/f14d63/32.png) [@notfrommensa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/notfrommensa)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2013, 3:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-learned-from-movies/669785/207 "2013-11-03T03:14:15Z")
This is from TV. If you are party with Jessica Fletcher, somebody (or somebodies) is going to die. ---
**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:** [November 3, 2013, 3:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-learned-from-movies/669785/208 "2013-11-03T03:18:34Z")
If you’re a harmless-looking older lady (e.g. Jessica Fletcher), you can wind up involved in a murder investigation every week, with homicides even happening in your vicinity while you’re traveling, and somehow never be suspected of being a serial murderer. Really, if she hadn’t traveled so much, Cabot Cove would have had a population of about eight. ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2013, 4:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-learned-from-movies/669785/209 "2013-11-03T04:04:39Z")
While there may occasionally be some communication trouble between a person from, say, 16th-century England and one from 21st-century New Jersey, or someone from 10-century-BC Greece and someone from 20th-century Wales, it will only last for as long as the intended comedic effect is expected to work. Also and if TV counts, it is possible for two Brits in 21st century clothing, one of them black, evidently female and wearing jeans, to walk around Shakespearean London and not draw so much as a raised eyebrow until they meet the Bard himself. The Bard’s English is surprisingly non-Shakespearean, too; I suspect many people for whom English is a second language would find his accent and phrasing more understandable than Tennant’s… ---
**Author:** ![WilyQuixote](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/f9ae1b/32.png) [@WilyQuixote](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WilyQuixote)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2013, 11:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-learned-from-movies/669785/210 "2013-11-03T11:01:26Z")
I may have missed it but: - when a cop/detective/PI/vigilante/other encounters a bag filled with a white powder, its always a good idea to have a taste of an unknown white powder to determine if its cocaine. Even in a crack den with associated levels of hygiene and cleanliness. - white south africans always speak English with an Afrikaans accent. Sometimes Australian. (I’m looking at you, Grimm!) ---
**Author:** ![Lumpy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lumpy/32/446_2.png) [@Lumpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lumpy)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2013, 12:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-learned-from-movies/669785/211 "2013-11-03T12:06:24Z")
> [@Nava](#): > > The Bard’s English is surprisingly non-Shakespearean, too; I suspect many people for whom English is a second language would find his accent and phrasing more understandable than Tennant’s… I thought that was the TARDIS’s automatic language translation. How would someone in 16th century London say “Shut yer gobs!”? ---
**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:** [November 3, 2013, 2:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-learned-from-movies/669785/212 "2013-11-03T14:16:07Z")
> [@Lumpy](#): > > I thought that was the TARDIS’s automatic language translation. How would someone in 16th century London say “Shut yer gobs!”? The Gift of the Time Lords 3rd Doctor explained it to Sarah Jane was my first knowledge of it. Probably explained earlier, tho ---
**Author:** ![Slow\_Moving\_Vehicle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slow_moving_vehicle/32/291_2.png) [@Slow\_Moving\_Vehicle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slow_Moving_Vehicle)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2013, 4:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-learned-from-movies/669785/213 "2013-11-03T16:37:31Z")
> [@Nava](#): > > Also and if TV counts, it is possible for two Brits in 21st century clothing, one of them black, evidently female and wearing jeans, to walk around Shakespearean London and not draw so much as a raised eyebrow until they meet the Bard himself. The Bard’s English is surprisingly non-Shakespearean, too; I suspect many people for whom English is a second language would find his accent and phrasing more understandable than Tennant’s… Martha’s trousers, rather than her skin color, were probably the bigger anachronism. “Moors” were exotic in Jacobean London, but not completely unknown. It’s not certain if “Moor” referred to just North Africans, or any dark-skinned person, but in any case, brown people were common enough for Shakespeare to write a play about one. The jeans, on the other hand, must have stood out. But hey, the Doctor ran around in Pompeii in a trenchcoat and suit, without raising any eyebrows. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2013, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-learned-from-movies/669785/214 "2013-11-03T18:29:46Z")
Slight hijack, inspired by the mention of Jessica Fletcher: Culinary mysteries have taught me that any women who works in the catering and/or restaurant business will have a homicide detective for a boyfriend or husband, and constantly be falling over dead bodies. ---
**Author:** ![Philliam](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/philliam/32/3011_2.png) [@Philliam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Philliam)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2013, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-learned-from-movies/669785/215 "2013-11-03T19:22:31Z")
Korea has the same climate and trees as Southern California. It is most effective to spray a house with automatic weapons at window level because people inside would never think to lay down on the floor. When investigating a crime scene always leave the lights off and use flashlights to search for clues. After kicking in the door of a perp’s residence, holding your pistol sideways and shouting “clear!” insures that no one can be hiding in a closet or behind the couch. The ‘enlarge’ and ‘clarify’ functions on police computers take one key-stroke each. ---
**Author:** ![Soylent\_Juicy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/82dd89/32.png) [@Soylent\_Juicy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Soylent_Juicy)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2013, 2:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-learned-from-movies/669785/216 "2013-11-04T14:37:41Z")
You can discharge firearms on multiple occassions and even in confined spaces without ear protection and never experience hearing loss. ---
**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:** [November 4, 2013, 7:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-learned-from-movies/669785/217 "2013-11-04T19:52:24Z")
> [@Soylent\_Juicy](#): > > You can discharge firearms on multiple occassions and even in confined spaces without ear protection and never experience hearing loss. For me, the elevator scene in Terminator 2 stands out as a particularly ridiculous example. ---
**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:** [November 4, 2013, 9:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-learned-from-movies/669785/218 "2013-11-04T21:23:15Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > If you cough, it means you have a fatal illness. If it is accompanied by a pain in your left arm, you are a dead man. There is no such thing as a benign cough or left arm pain in movies or TV. > [@silenus](#): > > The “enhance” function on a computer can resolve fingerprints\* at 50 yards. \*And faces. And license plate numbers. Oh yeah, this is one of my favorites. :rolleyes: > [@Chefguy](#): > > The most gorgeous person in the world will eventually fall in love with your butt-ugly self if you just give it enough time. You mean that’s NOT true? ☹ Crap. > [@Evil\_Captor](#): > > Serious women, women you marry, women who are smart and have great depth of character, never have large breasts. Strike two. ☹ This from TV: if a cop sends you to a safe house and/or says “We can protect you,” you are toast. Especially if it’s Olivia Benson talking. ---
**Author:** ![Kenm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/bc79bd/32.png) [@Kenm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kenm)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2013, 3:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-learned-from-movies/669785/219 "2013-11-05T03:07:12Z")
> [@ThelmaLou](#): > > \*And faces. And license plate numbers. Oh yeah, this is one of my favorites. :rolleyes: Abbey of NCIS read an inverted licence plate from a pumpkin. ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_Captor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f17d59/32.png) [@Evil\_Captor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Captor)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2013, 4:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-learned-from-movies/669785/220 "2013-11-05T04:38:25Z")
> [@Kenm](#): > > Abbey of NCIS read an inverted licence plate from a pumpkin. To be fair, it was a large and shiny pumpkin! 😃 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-learned-from-movies/669785.md?page=10) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-learned-from-movies/669785.md?page=12)