# What modern movie plots wouldn't work today because of the Internet? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [February 9, 2015, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-modern-movie-plots-wouldnt-work-today-because-of-the-internet/712229 "2015-02-09T15:59:13Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Casey1505](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/dc4da7/32.png) [@Casey1505](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Casey1505)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2015, 5:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-modern-movie-plots-wouldnt-work-today-because-of-the-internet/712229/61 "2015-05-13T17:32:08Z")
> [@Isamu](#): > > “What does…” and Google auto completing “…dead nigga storage look like?” “What does Marsellus Wallace look like?” ---
**Author:** ![Hypno-Toad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b2d939/32.png) [@Hypno-Toad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hypno-Toad)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2015, 6:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-modern-movie-plots-wouldnt-work-today-because-of-the-internet/712229/62 "2015-05-13T18:09:36Z")
Clippy appears: “Looks like your trying to get medieval on someones ass. Would you like some help?” ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2015, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-modern-movie-plots-wouldnt-work-today-because-of-the-internet/712229/63 "2015-05-13T20:43:46Z")
_Star Trek III: The Search for Spock_: “Genesis! I want it! So I torrented it!” ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2015, 9:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-modern-movie-plots-wouldnt-work-today-because-of-the-internet/712229/64 "2015-05-13T21:27:53Z")
_The Music Man_ Mayor Shinn runs a 5-second Google search on “Gary Conservatory of Music.” _Hello Dolly_ J-Date put Dolly Levi out of business long before Horace Vandergeller ever moved to Yonkers. _Star Wars_ “I emailed the plans for the Death Star to the Alliance, Vader! They’ve already launched an attack.” _Twelve Angry Men_ Thanks to a half-dozen iPhone videos taken at the scene of the crime, the kid is cleared of the murder charge. ---
**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:** [May 13, 2015, 10:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-modern-movie-plots-wouldnt-work-today-because-of-the-internet/712229/65 "2015-05-13T22:56:05Z")
> [@Hypno-Toad](#): > > Clippy appears: “Looks like your trying to get medieval on someones ass. Would you like some help?” Clippy wouldn’t misspell “you’re” or leave the apostrophe out of “someone’s.” ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/46a35a/32.png) [@Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_T-Bonham.net)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2015, 12:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-modern-movie-plots-wouldnt-work-today-because-of-the-internet/712229/66 "2015-05-14T00:05:03Z")
> [@kunilou](#): > > _Tora! Tora! Tora!_ – you just know one of the Japanese pilots would’ve Tweeted “Attacking Pearl Harbor this morning!” Umm – no. The pilots weren’t told what the target was until they were well away at sea (the night before, as I recall), and they would have been well out of range for any tweets. (Of course, they had been practicing that specific type of torpedo attack, and in a Japanese bay resembling Pearl Harbor for some time, so any smart pilot could have easily figured out what was being planned and where. And just before they headed out to sea, they could have dropped a postcard in the mail to their family saying that same thing. Heck, that might have actually happened. But how would the word get from some poor family in Japan to the oblivious commanders in Hawaii, and be believed by them? Hell, the US Naval Intelligence had decoded the Japanese telegram to their Ambassador in DC, and that didn’t get to Pearl in time. So that plot hole existed in the original movie, and even in reality.) ---
**Author:** ![Saint\_Cad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saint_cad/32/18907_2.png) [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2015, 1:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-modern-movie-plots-wouldnt-work-today-because-of-the-internet/712229/67 "2015-05-14T01:48:15Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > Or someone would just do it on an iPhone during the interrogation. “Siri, who is Keyser Soze?” ---
**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:** [May 14, 2015, 2:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-modern-movie-plots-wouldnt-work-today-because-of-the-internet/712229/68 "2015-05-14T14:01:23Z")
Audrey the talking plant from Little Shop of Horrors would definitely have gone viral on youtube! ---
**Author:** ![Gyrate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gyrate/32/3588_2.png) [@Gyrate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gyrate)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2015, 2:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-modern-movie-plots-wouldnt-work-today-because-of-the-internet/712229/69 "2015-05-14T14:31:37Z")
Ironically: _Desk Set_. Katherine Hepburn has been replaced not by the room-sized EMERAC but by Google. ---
**Author:** ![johnspartan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/a183cd/32.png) [@johnspartan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/johnspartan)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2015, 8:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-modern-movie-plots-wouldnt-work-today-because-of-the-internet/712229/70 "2015-05-14T20:06:34Z")
I’m not even really sure it was entirely realistic in the late 1990s, but certainly now I don’t think you could pull off something like _Wag the Dog_. A fake war (and a bunch of people involved in making a fake video) wouldn’t last very long. ---
**Author:** ![JustinC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/justinc/32/8083_2.png) [@JustinC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JustinC)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2015, 3:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-modern-movie-plots-wouldnt-work-today-because-of-the-internet/712229/71 "2015-05-15T15:08:58Z")
**The Rocky Horror Picture Show** - Janet and Brad call AAA and stay in the car. **Life of Brian** - Brian shows on Google Images he doesn’t look like the Messiah, but he’s still a very naughty boy. **Amadeus** - Salieri to Google “How does…” and Google auto completing “…one kill a man.” > [@Isamu](#): > > “What does…” and Google auto completing “…dead nigga storage look like?” “What does Marsellus…” and Google auto completing “…Wallace look like.” ---
**Author:** ![Apocalypso](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@Apocalypso](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Apocalypso)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2015, 1:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-modern-movie-plots-wouldnt-work-today-because-of-the-internet/712229/72 "2015-05-16T13:01:12Z")
> [@RadioWave](#): > > “Well, yes, obviously we can’t just _WALK_ into Mordor but check this out. There are, like, half a dozen Uber cars heading there right now.” > > Lyft? Nah, they’re not licensed in Rohan. “Nah, that’s lame. Let’s just text the eagles and ask them for a ride.” ---
**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:** [May 16, 2015, 2:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-modern-movie-plots-wouldnt-work-today-because-of-the-internet/712229/73 "2015-05-16T14:54:25Z")
> [@Apocalypso](#): > > “Nah, that’s lame. Let’s just text the eagles and ask them for a ride.” [Too damn risky](http://oglaf.com/ornithology/) ---
**Author:** ![dasmoocher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/dbc845/32.png) [@dasmoocher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dasmoocher)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2015, 5:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-modern-movie-plots-wouldnt-work-today-because-of-the-internet/712229/74 "2015-05-16T17:44:29Z")
In _The Blues Brothers_, Jake and Elwood could have advertized their concert through social media, instead of driving around with a loudspeaker, and then remitted the back taxes payment for the orphanage to the Cook County Assessor’s Office online. Thus there is no need for the car chase and the destruction of dozens and dozens of vehicles. ---
**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 16, 2015, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-modern-movie-plots-wouldnt-work-today-because-of-the-internet/712229/75 "2015-05-16T17:56:05Z")
> [@johnspartan](#): > > I’m not even really sure it was entirely realistic in the late 1990s, but certainly now I don’t think you could pull off something like _Wag the Dog_. A fake war (and a bunch of people involved in making a fake video) wouldn’t last very long. Or blogosphere and comments sections would create an edifice of Conspiracy Theories so much more convoluted than the original hoax that it would be vastly more effective in distracting attention and shaping public opinion… ---
**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:** [May 16, 2015, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-modern-movie-plots-wouldnt-work-today-because-of-the-internet/712229/76 "2015-05-16T18:29:56Z")
> [@Richard\_John\_Marcej](#): > > I hope you saw **The Simpsons** from two weeks back when they did a brilliant spoof of Ned Beatty’s speech from _Network_. That was great. Coincidentally, a few months ago, I sent the original Ned Beatty speech to a coworker who was meddling with the forces of NATURE! ---
**Author:** ![handsomeharry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e9c0ed/32.png) [@handsomeharry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handsomeharry)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2015, 1:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-modern-movie-plots-wouldnt-work-today-because-of-the-internet/712229/77 "2015-05-17T01:40:09Z")
> [@Casey1505](#): > > “What does Marsellus Wallace look like?” New winner. ---
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2015, 3:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-modern-movie-plots-wouldnt-work-today-because-of-the-internet/712229/78 "2015-05-17T03:56:28Z")
> [@Gedd](#): > > _The Breakfast Club_ - The kids sit and play their cellphones and never speak to each other. I like this one best. It’s not about the technology per se, but about how the technology has changed our social behavior. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2015, 7:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-modern-movie-plots-wouldnt-work-today-because-of-the-internet/712229/79 "2015-05-17T07:34:20Z")
_Fiddler on the Roof_: Tzeitel finds her perfect match, a scholar in the next shetl, through _Jewish Friend Finder._ They move in together and have a bunch of kids. Yente the Matchmaker goes out of business, unable to find a match for herself. Tevye opens a micro dairy, and indeed becomes a Rich Man. ---
**Author:** ![johnspartan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/a183cd/32.png) [@johnspartan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/johnspartan)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2015, 1:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-modern-movie-plots-wouldnt-work-today-because-of-the-internet/712229/80 "2015-05-20T13:23:00Z")
It seems like most Eddie Murphy 80s movies fall apart with Internet. Trading Places — you’d have to have a much more elaborate setup to successfully pull off the identity swap thing. And I’d have to think with Interwebz, pretty much anyone can find out with a couple of clicks how the quarterly Frozen Concentrated Orange Juice report is gonna look when it comes out. Coming to America — Lisa googles Zamunda. Or Prince Akeem just gets [Match.com](http://Match.com) or Tinder or something. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-modern-movie-plots-wouldnt-work-today-because-of-the-internet/712229.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-modern-movie-plots-wouldnt-work-today-because-of-the-internet/712229.md?page=5)