Questions tagged [realism]
The general attempt to depict things accurately in films and tv shows.
416
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Why was Rachel's dilation measured in centimeters?
In Friends episode 8x23, "The One Where Rachel Has A Baby, Part 1", Rachel is at the hospital waiting to give birth to her child. During the episode, the doctor checks how much Rachel is ...
0
votes
1answer
100 views
How long would it take for this character to escape in The Old Guard? [closed]
This question is partly science based, apologies if this is the wrong place to ask it.
Spoilers for The Old Guard, a 2020 Netflix movie:
Here is my question: Iron rusts much more quickly in salt ...
5
votes
2answers
203 views
Lost: Can People Use Stadiums for Exercise?
In Lost seasons 1 and 2, Jack Shepherd (and later Desmond) are seen running the steps in a stadium.
One could assume this is either a university or local city stadium of some sort. Usually those are ...
0
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0answers
115 views
If Japan won WWII, why would they write from right to left and in kyujitai form?
Can someone please expound the following comment based on the screenshot below? I don't speak Japanese, so please forgive my benightedness. How does Japan's imaginary winning World War II affect ...
3
votes
0answers
124 views
Do US private schools ask Chinese students to get referral letters from the Chinese Consolidated Benevolent Association to join them? [closed]
In Ip Man 4, the principal of an American private school asks Ip Man to get
references from the CCBA so his son can be considered for enrollment in the school.
Do US private schools ask Chinese ...
19
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7answers
9k views
Can there be sunlight in Australia and Texas at the same time?
In the third season of The Leftovers, episode 3, there is a scene where Kevin Garvey, Sr. calls Matt Jamison from a pay phone outside of Melbourne, AU. Matt is in Miracle, TX, however both locations ...
7
votes
0answers
89 views
Does the red flag scene in Ozark make any sense?
In Ozark episode S3:E4 Boss Fight, Marty Byrde fixes a red flag (frozen funds) on a Panamanian bank account. He says:
You have a red flag on a Panamanian deposit account. That happens. All you have ...
0
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0answers
50 views
Why are the operators so sloppy in hiding themselves?
In the movie, Sicario - Day of the Soldado, the American operators set up a surveillance team above the high school campus where they would kidnap a cartel's boss's daughter.
but we can see form this ...
5
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1answer
159 views
Is total television air time takeover feasible?
We've all seen the trope from films, TV series, books, and so forth about the evil villain (or dark hero in the case of V for Vendetta) who manages to take over all TV network broadcasts (cable/...
3
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1answer
89 views
In The Politician season 2 - is the controversial method for deciding an outcome real?
In season 2 of The Politician, the vote ends in a draw. Patton and Deedee are told that they can decide the outcome with a coin flip (or a similar method).
Is this actually the way it would be decided?...
4
votes
1answer
151 views
Does the 3D sculpting machine in Mission Impossible III exist?
In Mission Impossible III at 48 minutes in there is a scene in which they make one of the signature Mission Impossible latex face masks using a portable sculpting machine to create the pattern. Does ...
5
votes
1answer
224 views
What authority did the Department of Defense have to seize Iron Man's suits?
A major plot element of Iron Man 2 is that the Department of Defense (presumably) is trying to seize his Iron Man suits, one of which they get their hands on via Colonel James Rhodes. However, the ...
0
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2answers
155 views
In Rocky IV how does the Creed vs Drago fight go on?
I know it is a movie. But I was a fighter just years after Rocky IV was made. My kids were watching tonight and ask me about the fight and have me pause the movie.
Four different times during the ...
21
votes
2answers
6k views
Why is everyone so focused on the black box in LOST?
Ok maybe not everyone, but in two examples after the crash of Oceanic flight 815 we see survivors claiming that the rescue planes will find them and the reason the give is "the plane had a black box". ...
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vote
2answers
114 views
Does the sound of a gun fired in a large room actually take time to “die”, as told in “Prison Break”?
In Prison Break SE1E5 "English, Fitz or Percy", Attorneys Veronica Donovan and Nick Savrinn bring a video tape of a murder, in where the suspect is seen on tape shooting another man with a gun in an ...
5
votes
1answer
156 views
What's the meaning of the performance of I Will Survive at the end of Man On The Moon?
Man On The Moon is the story of the career of Andy Kaufman.
One of the personas that Andy sometimes adopted was Tony Clifton, an obnoxious and terrible lounge singer. Tony is an alter-ego for Andy. In ...
5
votes
3answers
754 views
Why didn't the Army Rangers use scoped rifles?
I refer not to weapons that usually has default iron sights like the M249. I'm uncertain if the M16A4 could've been mounted with a forward scope in 1993.
If yes, why didn't the Army Rangers scope ...
24
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2answers
6k views
What does this exercise do in the movie “The Fighter”? Is it realistic?
In the movie The Fighter,
Micky is seen drilling into a bucket of rice with his fist. I have seen speeding ball exercise, rope jumping, running, but this is the first time and only time I have seen a ...
4
votes
1answer
158 views
How accurately is the vision of an elephant depicted in the movie Dumbo 2019?
This is a PoV [Point of View] shot, during Dumbo's initial flight round the Medici Circus.
How realistic is this impression of what an elephant might see?
2
votes
0answers
210 views
How far from reality were field and general officers who didn't remove rank insignia from their helmets, when near the enemy? [closed]
In The Longest Day (1962), while they stormed the beaches, field officers were wearing helmets that clearly exhibited their rank insignia! Isn't it foolhardy to unnecessarily expose your rank insignia ...
6
votes
2answers
4k views
Is it realistic to build a well in the basement?
In the movie, The Silence of the Lambs, Buffalo Bill imprisons his victims in a well located under the house he lives in. That well could have been there before Buffalo Bill starts living in there.
I ...
2
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1answer
151 views
How accurate is IP Man's story?
Recently I watched the Ip Man film series. The 4th one specially got me thinking.
How accurate could the story be?
I am thinking, since it's a Chinese movie, perhaps they have exaggerated a little ...
19
votes
4answers
5k views
Does the FBI keep track of people's library records?
In the movie Se7en, the detectives get the records of people who have read certain kinds of books (like nuclear weapons etc.). So that they can narrow down their list of suspects/can find them.
Is ...
3
votes
0answers
67 views
How realistic are the drone live feed in Homeland
I'm currently watching Homeland season 4, a TV show taking place in Pakistan. The U.S. intelligence services and army forces make heavy use of drone imagery in the series, with huge consequences on ...
11
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3answers
679 views
Did people not wear seat belts in 1970s?
In the movie Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, the characters played by Leonardo Di Caprio and Brad Pitt never wear seat belts.
I do not think characters such as Planski and Sharon wear seat belts ...
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1answer
138 views
Would the villain's testimony be usable in court?
In the movie Knives Out (2019), the villain is brought to justice by his testimony recorded secretly on the detective's phone. The Fifth Amendment protects people from self-incrimination, so would ...
0
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0answers
49 views
Are the quotes in Dave Gorman's “Found Poems” real?
In Dave Gorman's show, Modern Life Is Goodish, he has a segment called a "Found Poem" which is a funny presentation of quotes from "the bottom half of the Internet" relating to a trivial scandal.
Are ...
3
votes
1answer
3k views
How much was 1 pound worth in 1918 England?
In the tv show, Peaky Blinders, season 1, money is mentioned over and over again:
Tommy gives Polly 200 pounds for Ada and Freddie to get away to America and start a new life.
Tommy gives 1 pound and ...
6
votes
1answer
117 views
What war was shown at the beginning of Outbreak?
At the beginning of Outbreak, American scientists visit a camp in the middle of a jungle to assess a disease and take blood samples. There were also American soldiers at the camp. Was this a depiction ...
0
votes
1answer
135 views
Sound-proof, anti-Soviet spies room
In the movie "The Coldest Game" (2019), taking place during the Cold War, a special room of the Polish embassy is shown. The room contains a sound-proof glass box, raised from the floor, inside which ...
3
votes
1answer
290 views
Exactly what kind of illness/disorder was Arthur suffering from?
In Joker (2019), we know that Arthur suffered from mental trauma in his childhood which affected his personality throughout his life. One of the consequences that we see is his unusual laughter; ...
5
votes
2answers
2k views
Meaning of the 'single white lighting bolt on black background' symbol in JoJo Rabbit?
There were two different 'single lightning bolt' symbols.
The first on is a badge awarded within the hitlerjugend afaik:
The second one has different colors and is portrayed on a flag. What's its ...
5
votes
1answer
314 views
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 ...
32
votes
1answer
13k views
Is the drug used to stop infection in The Rock real?
In The Rock (1996), Nicolas Cage used an injection to stop himself from being infected by the deadly virus. Is that a real drug in real life or just some fictional creation? How does it stop virus ...
2
votes
1answer
423 views
How does humanity survive after half of the population returns?
In the Avengers the villain snaps his fingers and half the universe population disappears. Later, after several years have passed this half returns, effectively doubling the world population in one ...
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vote
1answer
125 views
Why didn't the USS Nathan James use air defense with SM-2 and ESSM in the opening scene?
In the series The Last Ship in S1 E1 they have an Arleigh Burke class destroyer which supposedly is at EMCON Alpha (radio silence). At some point they notice some enemy helicopters approaching the ...
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0answers
105 views
How medically accurate is this quote from Person of Interest?
In the TV drama Person Of Interest Season 2 Episode 15 (Title: Booked Solid), former CIA agent Reese encounters another agent Hershe and a fight ensues which later leads to a knife fight. Reese ...
6
votes
4answers
1k views
What is the significance of this song in 1917?
In the World War 1 movie 1917, when Lance Corporal Schofield washes ashore the river, he hears a person singing a song. He then advances towards the voice and finds a number of soldiers sitting around ...
39
votes
5answers
12k views
What could have resulted in such a huge crater in WW I?
In the movie, 1917, there is huge crater filled with muddy water and bodies, what could have caused it? It is a bit too big for an artillery shell.
2
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1answer
99 views
What did the writers mean by this detail in one scene of one episode of “Alfred Hitchcock Presents” from 1957?
In the 26th episode of season two of "Alfred Hitchcock Presents" titled, "I Killed The Count Part II", first aired in 1957, there is a short scene, or rather a brief moment of one scene, which ...
1
vote
1answer
243 views
Does Maximus' blocking an axe with the sharp edge of his gladius make sense?
At 0:10:31, in the battle with a Germanic tribe, Maximus is placing the sharp edge of his gladius on his palm to block an axe swing. Wouldn't the impact simply bury the gladius into his hand? Do you ...
0
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2answers
97 views
Does Nick pay Tanner his retainer fee in the end of Gone Girl?
In the movie, Gone Girl, Nick hires a lawyer from New York, Tanner, whose legal retainer is 100k.
I searched a bit on the internet, a legal retainer is an upfront fee that you pay for in order to ...
4
votes
2answers
214 views
Are Top Gun 2 dogfights & airplane maneuvers real?
In the 2nd trailer of Top Gun 2, a plethora of swift airplane maneuvers and at least one dogfight take place. Are those scenes real, captured by a chase airplane?
Or they're just simulation (Computer ...
3
votes
0answers
218 views
Soup, Courage or Faith? [closed]
In TBBT S03E08 (The Adhesive Duck Deficiency), Sheldon notices a tattoo on Penny's body as he helps her dress in preparation for a trip to the hospital due to 'a lack of adhesive ducks'.
Sheldon ...
4
votes
1answer
716 views
Do the symbols used in the TV series Evil, actually exist?
In Robert & Michelle King's latest TV series, Evil, a priest in training, a forensic psychologist/mother of four, and skeptic techie-carpenter/contractor investigate for the Vatican: the potential ...
8
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1answer
11k views
How real is the ending of the movie Ford v Ferrari?
The movie Ford v Ferrari (2019) starring Matt Damon and Christian Bale shows how Ford Motors built a car that beat Ferrari in Le Mans 24 hour race.
In the end of the movie, the three Ford cars cross ...
0
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1answer
91 views
Could HMS Devonshire have deduced her location despite Gupta's IT hacks?
Before 1:25, HMS Devonshire's RN Commander (three rings of gold braid of equal length) asks
Are we absolutely sure of our position?
The Lt Cdr (two medium gold braid stripes with one thin gold ...
1
vote
1answer
93 views
Couldn't HMS Devonshire have spotted Carver's stealth ship?
This comment for the post-opening of Tomorrow Never Dies (1997) at 2:37 proclaims:
fully agree. Even in full battle condition you have bridge watch keepers.
Is this accurate? The screenshot above ...
6
votes
2answers
562 views
How can an actor “fake” an American accent so convincingly?
Actors assume accents that aren't their natural language/heritage frequently in movies and on TV. Obviously, some of them are better than others. Some are downright laughable, but some are ...
3
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0answers
206 views
Were new prisoners in Alcatraz made to walk without clothes as Frank Morris was made to do?
In Escape from Alcatraz, Frank Morris (Clint Eastwood), upon entry into Alcatraz (after being processed), is shown walking down the cell corridor naked (if memory serves me correctly, he is holding ...
