Questions tagged [props]
Inanimate objects used in film or tv productions to propel the storyline or that help to define a character by association.
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What is the book/novel Mike Ross refers to in the pilot of Suits?
In the pilot of Suits, in the scene during the hotel interview with Harvey,
Is this book he's referring to real or something made up to help the plot of the pilot episode? If the book IS real, can ...
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Why do tough guys chew toothpicks or match-sticks?
I remember Cobra (1986) and Razor Ramon from WWE.
They both chew either toothpicks or match-sticks.
What was the reason?
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How do movies typically do corpses, with real people or manikins?
What is the usual practice for displaying random corpses in movies (not corpses of principal characters)? Is the usual practice to use extras made up to look like corpses or is it possible to buy or ...
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Why an observatory keeps being used as a location to advance plot in Hannibal?
In the TV show Hannibal, an obsolete observatory is used on multiple occasions to advance the plot:
A female FBI trainee severed hand holding a cell phone is found at this station
Dr. Chilton is ...
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Why doesn't Alice ever use the rifle we see her holding in the movie poster?
In the US theatrical poster for Resident Evil, Alice is seen holding a rifle in her right hand.
There is also a promotional photo of Alice holding the rifle:
But in the movie itself, she never ...
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What's the first movie to use a prop to destroy/control an entire world?
Infinity stones in Avengers series
Mother Boxes in Justice league series
Aries prototype in F9: The Fast Saga
Project Starfish | The Suicide Squad (2021)
What's the first movie to use a prop to ...
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What is the history of these computer props?
I first noticed these computer/instrument... Mainframes? On Stargate SG-1.
(Background right)
(Background centre)
I've seen them in other shows too, such as Batwoman's batcave.
(Background left)
I'...
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Why do the handmaids wear those boots?
What's with the boots that the handmaids wear? They look like a World War I design, but they don't seem to be fit for the purpose of the role, in terms of the functionality.
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In the American version of The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, was the falling water-bottle an accident?
This is a small thing, and trivia too, but I'm really curious.
About halfway through the movie (1h20), Daniel Craig returns to the cabin. He finds the cat's dish outside, shouts "cat!" at ...
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What does this wind turbine do?
In the movie, Legends of the Fall, Colonel William Ludlow leaves the US army and starts living as a rancher in Montata. We can see a wind turbine in the background, what does it do given the story ...
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How are straight razor throat slit scenes done? [duplicate]
I am watching Midsomer Murders season 1 episode 3, “Death of a Hollow Man”. In it, the first killing happens during a stage play. A character in the play slits his throat. This kills the actor ...
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Is the plane in Die Hard 2 a prop? [closed]
In Die Hard 2, Esperanza takes control of the aircraft bringing him into the US to face justice, and then manages to land it.
I cannot identify this plane. Does anyone know if this is a real plane, or ...
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Why isn't Robin Williams in Sean's military photo?
In Good Will Hunting (1997) during the scene where Will and Sean have their first session, Will notices a photo of Sean and his buddies in Vietnam. The photo is shown below. My question is why Robin ...
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Is there a canon explanation of the function/purpose of the rotating teeter-totter device in The Prisoner?
In the 1967/1968 TV series "The Prisoner", there is an "operations" room of sorts; it appears dome-shaped, and in the center is a rotating teeter-totter-like device with a man ...
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Why is smoking shown as cool in movies? [closed]
For example, James Bond, Man with No Name(Clint Eastwood), Tyler Durden, etc.
It seems that smoking is associated with coolness and having an edge. Where and why did this trope start?
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Why is disarming bombs so hard? [closed]
Here we have a typical Hollywood bomb, which is featured with relatively minor variations in hundreds (if not thousands) of titles:
However, just looking at it, I’m confused. Why are these bombs ...
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Why is Mr. Wayne collected by a man with a flashlight?
During the scene at the Charlie Chaplin show in Joker, right before the scene in the toilets, Mr. Wayne is collected by a man holding a flashlight.
Why is this? Why is he being summoned for what ...
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What are those items hanging behind the shop keeper? [closed]
In No Country for Old Men, Anton offers a coin toss to a shop keeper.
There is a row of cable-tie looking items hanging behind the shop keeper. What are they? I have never seen them in a gas station? ...
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Did Scorsese know Nicholson would pull a real, unscripted gun on DiCaprio?
After 05:20 in the video Iconic Movie Scenes That Were Never Supposed To Happen the narrator says:
In one scene, Nicholson totally surprised co-star Leonardo DiCaprio in the worst way. Nicholson had ...
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Significance of Photos in Silence of The Lambs
I have recently watched The Silence of The Lambs. Near the climax of the story, there is a part when Agent Starling goes to Frederica Bimmel's room and opens a secret compartment in a musical box.
...
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Was there a reason why nobody fired a gun on-screen in Jurassic Park?
Watching Jurassic Park, something odd stuck out to me that I've never heard talked about: why does a movie with at least three gun scenes in it never actually fire a gun on screen?
I can think of at ...
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Raj's computer monitor and keyboard
Near the beginning of season 10 episode 16: The Allowance Evaporation, the camera is at an angle that shows Raj's computer monitor and keyboard. Is that a real monitor or just a created prop for Raj's ...
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How do production crews film people running down corridors in Star Trek?
In Star Trek, especially the newer series, the camera follows Captain Kirk, Spock, Michael Burnham, etc. running down corridors, turning left or right, and flying by people. It would be convenient if ...
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What was the significance of overemphasis of conservation of resources posters?
In the start of the Bollywood film Blackmail, we see a lot of resource conservation posters, like "Save water", "Use the hand dryer for 10 seconds only" etc etc. And those posters were shown in focus.
...
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What was the medal that Ethan gives his niece in The Searchers (1956)?
In the beginning of the 1956 feature film, The Searchers, directed by John Ford and starring John Wayne as Ethan Edwards, one of his most enduring characters, Ethan presents a medal to his niece which ...
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What is this golden belt that is given to Chewbacca?
At the end of Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, Chewie is given a golden belt of some kind.
Is this a piece of gear from a character? Leia's? Han's? What is this item, and why does it mean something ...
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What is that attachment on the telephone?
In The Wire, I noticed there was an attachment on the telephone set. What is it? I encircled it with a polygon.
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Electric portable lamps in 1917 - how realistic is this depiction?
I've just seen "1917" and when Schofield and Blake were in enemy trenches - the rat tripwire scene - they were using some portable lamps.
My question is - how realistic is this depiction and if it ...
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What exactly is ALF?
We all know and remember the 1980's family sitcom ALF. He is a cat-eating, food-loving alien from the planet Melmac.
One thing that I have always wondered: what exactly is ALF? He is not a puppet, ...
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How was the Etch a Sketch art of Mona Lisa made for Elf?
In the movie Elf, at one scene an Etch a Sketch is shown with an amazingly accurate rendition of the Mona Lisa drawn on it. Of course, it's really hard to draw on an Etch a Sketch, so I was wondering ...
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Do Harry Potter scarves in the movies have house emblems?
I've bought officially licensed Harry Potter scarves (the kind the kids wear, which have different colours for each house), however they come with a house emblem patched on the front of each.
I don'...
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Why are needles pushed in so far in movies?
Having seen a lot of needles used in movies I've always wondered why they are inserted so deep - it's like they're trying to inject stuff into the bones!
Why aren't needles used the way they should ...
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What is the red cord around the chest of Shaolin fighters?
Two Champions of Death (1980) made me wonder why one of the Shaolin fighters has red cords tied all around his chest over his jacket. I've seen this before in other Kung fu movies and always wondered ...
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Was the HBC (Hudson's Bay Company) mug a deliberate prop in "The Princess Bride"?
In "The Princess Bride", Peter Falk is seen holding an HBC mug with the distinctive green/red/yellow/indigo stripes of the Hudson's Bay Company:
Was this prop a deliberate insertion, or did this "...
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Why is Darkman being "rotated"?
In 1990 movie "Darkman", after the protagonist is seriously injured, he is put on some rotating machine, as the other patients of the hospital.
What are these machines? Are these things really used ...
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Why do cars in movies set in earlier eras always look brand new?
Whenever I watch a movie or TV show set in an earlier era, all the cars look brand new. In fact, better than brand new; the paint is rich and deep, highly polished. They all look as though they ...
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Was Geordi's VISOR ever spelled lower-case in "Star Trek: TNG" scripts?
Reference materials for Star Trek spell the visual aide used by character Geordi LaForge as the acronym VISOR, instead of the word visor. Was this also the case in the scripts for the television show?...
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What gadget does Will have on his wrist in "Stranger Things" S03E08?
Here are two screenshots from Stranger Things S03E08 with the gadget in question:
It does not look like a wrist watch. Is it maybe some kind of portable video game?
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What's the significance of this wearable item on Hanna?
In Midsommar, (2019) Hanna (played by Louise Peterhoff) appears to be wearing some kind of modern ankle strap/support. The item is black with red or orange trim and not in keeping with the rest of her ...
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Does the Rube Goldberg machine used in the Elementary intro credits fully exist (and work)?
The intro sequence for the CBS show Elementary has a Rube Goldberg machine that actually captures the general flow of an episode quite well:
I was wondering if there ...
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Why is Havana covered in 5-digit numbers in Our Man in Havana?
In the 1959 film version of Our Man in Havana, the streets of Havana are littered in signs with 4- and 5-digit numbers on them.
Here's an example:
Notice the "00260", "19072", and "42857" left of ...
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What is Thanos's weapon called?
In Avengers: Endgame, Thanos wields a kind of "double sword". I have no idea what this weapon is.
(Image source: Thanos' new Avengers: Endgame weapon has been revealed）
I'm wondering what kind of ...
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Was this miniature in "Requiem for Methuselah" ever used to portray the Enterprise in space?
In the Star Trek: TOS episode "Requiem for Methuselah", the title character shrinks the Enterprise. You can see Kirk inspecting this miniature Enterprise on a table:
Was this particular prop ever ...
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What is this round thing on the pantry door in The Shining
When Wendy locks Jack in the pantry, there is a round object on the door.
I thought that it was something to help out if someone gets trapped in the pantry, but based on the scene, it seems like that'...
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Did Kevin spill real chili?
In the Office season 5 episode 26 in the cold open Kevin makes a big pot of chili and spills it all on the office floor when bringing it in.
Is it real chili? I am wondering if there is any episode ...
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How did the original lightsaber prop work?
The original (non-animated) lightsaber was apparently a wooden slat that could rotate covered with a reflective tape:
What kind of reflective tape are we talking about here? The light is so intense ...
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What is the meaning of the smoking hair in Yellowbeard?
I have watched Yellowbeard countless times and tried to place a meaning on the smoking hair ends used twice in the film. I have heard reference to an inside joke amongst the cast and crew, but never a ...
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What is the difference between the beige and orange prison uniforms?
In Orange Is The New Black, what is the difference between the beige prison uniform and the orange prison uniform? I've noticed some prisoners have beige and some have orange and the beige are only ...
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Flags in Kim Possible (2019)
In a scene near the end of the TV movie Kim Possible (2019), two flags are seen on two different flag poles outside of the Middleton high school. I don't remember, but they might also be seen in ...
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Is the video game played by Roland Schitt in S4E4 of Schitt's Creek real?
In S04E04, Girl's Night, of Schitt's Creek, Roland Schitt plays a video game.
If it is a real one, what's the name of this game?
If it's not a real video game, it looks like a lot of effort was ...
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