# What's with all this puking? (in movies) **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [June 12, 2009, 3:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-all-this-puking-in-movies/499524 "2009-06-12T03:00:07Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Chez\_Guevara](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/aeb1de/32.png) [@Chez\_Guevara](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chez_Guevara)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2009, 7:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-all-this-puking-in-movies/499524/41 "2009-06-15T19:08:42Z")
> [@WOOKINPANUB](#): > > I thought it was after Moss has crossed the border back into the US and has drunk some of the beer he got from the teens whose jacket he bought. I do remember a shot of his gaping wound though so you’re probably right. You’ve got me wondering about this now. To be honest, I was practically mesmerised by the film so it’s not impossible I lost concentration at some point, just thinking about the direction or the cinematography, or something. Anyway, I fully intend to watch it again soon. In the meantime, confirmation one way or the other would be welcome. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Scrivener](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/eada6e/32.png) [@The\_Scrivener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Scrivener)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2009, 9:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-all-this-puking-in-movies/499524/42 "2009-06-15T21:54:00Z")
> [@Freudian\_Slit](#): > > Vampires puke? I didn’t know they…had bodily functions. You could say they puke up any food that passes their lips precisely _because_ they lack those functions, like digestion. They cannot handle food, so their bodies violently reject all traces of it. I can recommend Christopher Moore’s comic novel, [You Suck: A Love Story](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/You_Suck), in which a young man is turned against his will by his vamp girlfriend (and anarchic events ensue). He kinda grooves on the lifestyle, but sorely misses food and drink. (An early rebellious food binge ends disastrously, with projectile vomiting all over the place.) The couple experiments with blood adulteration, adding, for ex., coffee in tiny amounts to their blood pints so as to get accustomed to it. To a small degree, they’re able to cheat on the age-old vampire dietary restrictions. ---
**Author:** ![teela\_brown](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d9b06d/32.png) [@teela\_brown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/teela_brown)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2009, 10:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-all-this-puking-in-movies/499524/43 "2009-06-15T22:30:12Z")
As **winterhawk11** points out, yakking is a constant on _House_, but it’s a convenient time-telling tool. Seems to always happen at about the 20-minute mark, in between the first set of seizures and the full-on cardiac arrest. ---
**Author:** ![Apollyon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/apollyon/32/4238_2.png) [@Apollyon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Apollyon)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2009, 2:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-all-this-puking-in-movies/499524/44 "2009-06-16T02:38:08Z")
> [@Sage\_Rat](#): > > Might be that they figure with all the reality shows having people eat stuff that makes them throw up… **MPSIMS:** I’ve puked on reality TV. :eek: (Well it certainly looked like me that the rescue helicopter had come for after the jet-ski accident and the fractured skull. Still have no memory of the event and only know what the aftermath looked like because there was a camera crew filming the 'copter’s activities). 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![freckafree](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/freckafree/32/3050_2.png) [@freckafree](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/freckafree)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2009, 2:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-all-this-puking-in-movies/499524/45 "2009-06-16T02:52:50Z")
> [@Bryan\_Ekers](#): > > Don’t watch _Team America: World Police_. > > Although it _is_ a funny movie to those of us less puke-sensitive. I’m borderline between puke-sensitive and puke-aware, and that scene in _Team America_ is one of the funniest send-ups (throw-ups?!??) of movie puking scenes ever. The first movie puking scene I remember was in _Barry Lyndon_. I can remember how horrified and fascinated I was that they actually showed…stuff…coming out of a character’s mouth, complete with retching sounds, etc. I have no idea if this is an original comment, but I was in a conversation once with someone that went like this: “Why does it bother you to see a woman breastfeeding? It’s perfectly natural!” “So’s puking, but I don’t want to see that either.” ---
**Author:** ![ZenDenizen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/fbc32d/32.png) [@ZenDenizen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZenDenizen)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2009, 4:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-all-this-puking-in-movies/499524/46 "2009-06-19T16:56:42Z")
2 comedies come to mind: Pineapple Express Get Smart Very unnecessary… ---
**Author:** ![teela\_brown](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d9b06d/32.png) [@teela\_brown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/teela_brown)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2009, 5:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-all-this-puking-in-movies/499524/47 "2009-06-19T17:09:39Z")
All puking scenes I’ve seen are gross, but I think the worst has to be the astronaut puking in zero G in _Apollo 13_. The other two astronauts seemed puzzlingly unconcerned; I’d be retching and hiding my head in a towel or something. ---
**Author:** ![sensibleguy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2bfe46/32.png) [@sensibleguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sensibleguy)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2016, 11:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-all-this-puking-in-movies/499524/48 "2016-04-01T23:52:35Z")
I’ve become more and more irritated with these “throw up” scenes. I’m currently watching Black Sea, and guess what scene I’m at…? I think the absolute most unnecessary throw up scene I’ve seen so far was in the Australian series The Code. The timing, the need for it, the clarity of it. In the 70’s there was an abundance of glorified nudity mid point of the movies, and now we have these mid movie throw up scene additions. It’s bothered me enough to search if others were irritated, and here I am. > [@Peanuthead](#): > > Since I’ve bought a Roku to supplement my Netflix account I’ve been watching more movies than ever. At least 6 to 8 a week. And I’ve noticed that in about 70% of them there is a scene where someone throws up. I enjoy comedies, thrillers, suspense, cops and robbers, some independent and foreign films. And this puking business transends all genres. So what the hell is going on? Is this some kind of inside joke by directors or screen writers? I just don’t get it. 😕 ---
**Author:** ![Superdude](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/superdude/32/13450_2.png) [@Superdude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superdude)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2016, 1:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-all-this-puking-in-movies/499524/49 "2016-04-02T01:14:54Z")
> [@WOOKINPANUB](#): > > Do people regularly vomit as a response to stress/surprise/ grief? I know that’s never been a reaction that I’ve had and I’ve lived through a few harrowing things, as I’m sure all of you have. Nor have I ever witnessed anyone react that way. I don’t know what started this revolting trend but I hope it fades away. I realize that this post is several years old, but some people do. When I first got started in EMS, almost 8 1/2 years ago, some runs would elicit this response in me. When I had to run on chest pain (my father died of 3 heart attacks in 4 days with no history), I would sometimes get so worked about it that I’ve had to go around the side of the house and let it fly. I got desensitized to it pretty quickly, however. I was working a fentanyl overdose, and the guy projectile vomited. Into my mouth, which was open because I was on the phone with the hospital, advising them of his status. And I couldn’t react the natural way. I ended up swallowing a portion of it. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2016, 4:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-all-this-puking-in-movies/499524/50 "2016-04-02T04:03:39Z")
Please note that this is a thread from 2009. There’s a puking scene in _Limitless_. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2016, 4:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-all-this-puking-in-movies/499524/51 "2016-04-02T04:35:59Z")
> [@teela\_brown](#): > > All puking scenes I’ve seen are gross, but I think the worst has to be the astronaut puking in zero G in _Apollo 13_. The other two astronauts seemed puzzlingly unconcerned; I’d be retching and hiding my head in a towel or something. I realize this is a response to a 2009 post, but that didn’t bother me because it was relevant to the plot. Space sickness is far more common than most people realize. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-all-this-puking-in-movies/499524.md?page=2)