# What is extremely common in TV or movies but almost never happens in real life? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [February 6, 2021, 4:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-extremely-common-in-tv-or-movies-but-almost-never-happens-in-real-life/932311 "2021-02-06T04:16:49Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 75
**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:** [July 27, 2021, 6:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-extremely-common-in-tv-or-movies-but-almost-never-happens-in-real-life/932311/1481 "2021-07-27T06:17:59Z")
> [@minor7flat5](#): > > On a general note, I recently watched the 1960s movie “Blow-up” and was stunned at how much difference good (or bad) pacing makes–the movie had so much irrelevant stuff in it that bogged down the plot, but was more like real life. In the Romanian film, [_Police, Adjective_](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Police,_Adjective), the focus of the plot is on a young police officer who knows a teenager is using hash and is ordered to arrest him for selling the stuff. Reluctant to do so – believing hash use and possession will soon be legal and not wanting to ruin the kid’s life – the bulk of the movie consists of him following the kid around to catch him in the act. I remember at one point the camera is on him in his office distractedly doing some paperwork, then following him as he gets up, walks down a hallway and around corner or two to a break room where he digs some coins out of his pocket, buys a soda, and returns to his desk to open it. This was all with no cuts, not even for a change of POV and I was thinking. “Come _on_!” I’ve not watched a Romanian movie since. ---
**Author:** ![PatrickLondon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/patricklondon/32/4422_2.png) [@PatrickLondon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PatrickLondon)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2021, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-extremely-common-in-tv-or-movies-but-almost-never-happens-in-real-life/932311/1482 "2021-08-03T20:01:54Z")
Something that just occurred to me: characters in TV soap operas never seem to watch, let alone talk about, TV soap operas. ---
**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:** [August 3, 2021, 9:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-extremely-common-in-tv-or-movies-but-almost-never-happens-in-real-life/932311/1483 "2021-08-03T21:09:03Z")
TV characters in general watch relatively little TV (this was particularly true in the 1970s - there’s maybe four episodes of The Brady Bunch which feature the kids watching TV). ---
**Author:** ![FrenchDunadan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/frenchdunadan/32/5449_2.png) [@FrenchDunadan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FrenchDunadan)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2021, 6:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-extremely-common-in-tv-or-movies-but-almost-never-happens-in-real-life/932311/1484 "2021-08-04T06:07:44Z")
An even bigger problem: German soldiers in Egypt in the 30’s !? that was a British protectorate. A German scientific expedition could have been authorized, but armed soldiers bossing Egyptians around, with an experimental plane and armed vehicles? Not a chance. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2021, 6:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-extremely-common-in-tv-or-movies-but-almost-never-happens-in-real-life/932311/1485 "2021-08-04T06:16:56Z")
That was what the experimental plane was for, of course—bringing in all those soldiers and vehicles. The Germans were decades ahead of everybody else when it came to Stealth technology! 🥺 ---
**Author:** ![Asuka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@Asuka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Asuka)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2021, 6:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-extremely-common-in-tv-or-movies-but-almost-never-happens-in-real-life/932311/1486 "2021-08-04T06:23:53Z")
The Germans also had a submarine base in a Greek island, which means that the world Raiders takes place in has Germany in a much stronger position Mediterranean wise than in our actual world. Maybe Greece allied with Germany during World War 1 leading to its stronger influence in the area? ---
**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:** [August 4, 2021, 12:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-extremely-common-in-tv-or-movies-but-almost-never-happens-in-real-life/932311/1487 "2021-08-04T12:45:23Z")
This has probably been mentioned already because it’s so common… I just saw it on a show yesterday and thought of this thread. On detective / crime shows (whether real or amateur detective), when they ID who the real killer is, the suspect, even before being formally arrested, just totally spills the beans and starts blabbing-- “I had to do it, because blah blah blah blah blah blah…”. Of course it’s in order to satisfyingly wrap up the episode, but it’s so counter to real life, where 99.9999% of the time an actual person who committed a murder or other serious crime would immediately clam up and lawyer up. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2021, 4:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-extremely-common-in-tv-or-movies-but-almost-never-happens-in-real-life/932311/1488 "2021-08-04T16:22:30Z")
> [@solost](#): > > Of course it’s in order to satisfyingly wrap up the episode, but it’s so counter to real life, where 99.9999% of the time an actual person who committed a murder or other serious crime would immediately clam up and lawyer up. …an actual SMART person… 80% of murder cases are solved by confession. ---
**Author:** ![Wolf333](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolf333/32/3460_2.png) [@Wolf333](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wolf333)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2021, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-extremely-common-in-tv-or-movies-but-almost-never-happens-in-real-life/932311/1489 "2021-08-04T16:28:41Z")
> [@Lumpy](#): > > Any movie or TV show in which someone has surgery, they spend some time in their hospital bed, then fast forward to back to life as normal. No weeks or months of pain pills and limited mobility. Related: in movies an TV, brain tumors are always VERY VERY BAD! I’m reality, mine was benign and pretty easy to get to. I had surgery on Tuesday, and was home by Friday. That next month of recovery just flat out sucked. Dexamethasone is no joke. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2021, 5:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-extremely-common-in-tv-or-movies-but-almost-never-happens-in-real-life/932311/1490 "2021-08-04T17:24:01Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > > [@solost](#): > > > > Of course it’s in order to satisfyingly wrap up the episode, but it’s so counter to real life, where 99.9999% of the time an actual person who committed a murder or other serious crime would immediately clam up and lawyer up. > > …an actual SMART person… > > 80% of murder cases are solved by confession. Yeah, but how long does it take to get a confession, and what kind of representation does the perp have? Most of the murderers I see in shows like _ **Forensic Files** _ confess after being interrogated for hours with no lawyer present, or after long investigations that uncover things they can’t explain. ---
**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:** [August 4, 2021, 5:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-extremely-common-in-tv-or-movies-but-almost-never-happens-in-real-life/932311/1491 "2021-08-04T17:35:50Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > 80% of murder cases are solved by confession. Huh. Did not know that. But, at least it’s probably after hours of interrogation, like @terentii said, not immediately upon the detective pointing to the bad guy and saying “_ **there’s** _ the murderer”. > [@Wolf333](#): > > Related: in movies an TV, brain tumors are always VERY VERY BAD! > > I’m reality, mine was benign and pretty easy to get to. I had surgery on Tuesday, and was home by Friday. See also: [Incurable Cough of Death](https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/IncurableCoughOfDeath) ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2021, 5:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-extremely-common-in-tv-or-movies-but-almost-never-happens-in-real-life/932311/1492 "2021-08-04T17:54:09Z")
> [@solost](#): > > Huh. Did not know that. But, at least it’s probably after hours of interrogation, like @terentii said, not immediately upon the detective pointing to the bad guy and saying “ _ **there’s** _ the murderer”. True, and there are quite a few false confessions. ---
**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:** [August 4, 2021, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-extremely-common-in-tv-or-movies-but-almost-never-happens-in-real-life/932311/1493 "2021-08-04T19:56:32Z")
> [@Asuka](#): > > Maybe Greece allied with Germany during World War 1 leading to its stronger influence in the area? Unlikely. Greece was (and rather still is) anti-Turkey. The Ottoman Empire was anti-Russia which is why during WW1 the Ottomans were nominally pro-German and Britain and France were nominally anti-Ottoman (plus rivalry for control of the Middle East). ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2021, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-extremely-common-in-tv-or-movies-but-almost-never-happens-in-real-life/932311/1494 "2021-08-05T16:28:46Z")
> [@PatrickLondon](#): > > Something that just occurred to me: characters in TV soap operas never seem to watch, let alone talk about, TV soap operas. Characters in zombie movies and shows have never heard of zombies or seen a zombie movie. With notable exceptions ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2021, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-extremely-common-in-tv-or-movies-but-almost-never-happens-in-real-life/932311/1495 "2021-08-05T16:35:31Z")
I’ve occasionally wondered things like: If I _were_ a character in a zombie movie, how long would it take me to recognize that fact? ---
**Author:** ![Folacin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/folacin/32/3195_2.png) [@Folacin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Folacin)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2021, 8:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-extremely-common-in-tv-or-movies-but-almost-never-happens-in-real-life/932311/1496 "2021-08-05T20:19:54Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > Characters in zombie movies and shows have never heard of zombies or seen a zombie movie. Well, if there are no zombie movies in their universe, the slow response to an actual outbreak is much more understandable. 911, what is your emergency? Yeah, somebody crazy person broke in and bit my husband, and he seems really sick. We managed to kill the attacker, but please send help. OK, take him to the ER. We’ll send an officer to take a report. ===================== 911, what is your emergency? Yeah, I just called, my husband seems to have died before I could get him in the car. OK, call a funeral home. The officer is on their way, but there are a lot of calls, so they may be delayed. ============= 911, what is your emergency? Um, I just called - my husband seems to have risen from the dead. I’ve barricaded myself in the bathroom because he is attacking me. Lady, this is an emergency number. We take a dim view of prank calls. If you call again, we’ll have to press charges. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2021, 10:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-extremely-common-in-tv-or-movies-but-almost-never-happens-in-real-life/932311/1497 "2021-08-05T22:20:32Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > Characters in zombie movies and shows have never heard of zombies or seen a zombie movie. With notable exceptions And the exceptions tend to be horror-comedies that are making a meta commentary about the zombie genre. Ever notice that vampire movies are almost the exact opposite? Everyone knows about vampires in vampire movies. Stoker’s _Dracula_ will almost certainly be referenced, even in vampire movies that are literally about Dracula. The only exception is actual adaptations of the novel in their original setting. ---
**Author:** ![Melbourne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b5e925/32.png) [@Melbourne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Melbourne)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2021, 10:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-extremely-common-in-tv-or-movies-but-almost-never-happens-in-real-life/932311/1498 "2021-08-05T22:24:09Z")
> [@Miller](#): > > The only exception is actual adaptations of the novel in their original setting Even in the original novel, vampires weren’t a new thing that nobody knew about – only a thing new to England that the characters didn’t know about. ---
**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:** [August 5, 2021, 11:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-extremely-common-in-tv-or-movies-but-almost-never-happens-in-real-life/932311/1499 "2021-08-05T23:26:02Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > Characters in zombie movies and shows have never heard of zombies or seen a zombie movie. With notable exceptions Well, creatures like vampires have been part of legend for a long time. We didn’t get our modern concept of zombies until Romero’s ‘Night of the Living Dead’ in the late 60s and all the resultant spin-offs and copy cats since then. If you were transported to a parallel Earth in which an actual attack by reanimated corpses was beginning, but Romero had never made Night of the Living Dead, you’d yell “zombies!” and people would say, “uh, what? Haitian Voodoo slaves? Think I saw an old 30s movie about that once. What’s it got to do with this?” ---
**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:** [August 5, 2021, 11:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-extremely-common-in-tv-or-movies-but-almost-never-happens-in-real-life/932311/1500 "2021-08-05T23:27:50Z")
Somewhere on Twitter recently someone said they wanted a killer clown movie filmed like a zombie movie - in that, in the movie universe, no one had heard of clowns. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-extremely-common-in-tv-or-movies-but-almost-never-happens-in-real-life/932311.md?page=74) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-extremely-common-in-tv-or-movies-but-almost-never-happens-in-real-life/932311.md?page=76)