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Physics in the Movies
nucal writes "Here's a site rating Insultingly Stupid Movie Physics. A really thorough site with a rating system which ranges from GP (Good Physics) to XP (Obviously physics from an unknown universe)." My vote goes to the helix of M&M's.
Windows XP, eXtreme Programming, XPCOM, eXperience Points, "Cross Platform", and now this. It's got to be one of the most overloaded acronyms of all time.
Each time a Jedi uses the force to move an object, the Jedi doesn't seem to be subject to an equal and opposite reaction (Newton 3rd Law). Therefore conservation of linear momentum isn't conserved in the Star Wars universe. I think this can be bad for the universe.
They give the coveted GP == Good Physics award to Seven Years in Tibet...?!?! Like... okay? How about we give other coveted Good Physics awards to Lolita, Joy Luck Club, Pi, True Stories, and Office Space since they were so full of projectile cars, falling, laser beams, and other physical effects that could be modelled poorly???
Then they go and say the Matrix had questionable physics, despite the fact that a key element of the plot is that the physics of the world are simply rules in a computer which Morpheus so eloquently describes: "some can be bent, others broken."
I'm gonna just have to go ahead and disagree with you there.
fifth sigma, inc.
Nitpicking makes a movie better! Every time I'm watching TV with my friends, and I see a physical error, I pause it with Tivo, and draw out a diagram of how it cannot happen. My friend threatened to shoot me with an Uzi for doing this, but I reminded him that a Mac 10 is what the REAL action heroes use.
they are supposed be fictional.
But fiction needs consistency and a connection to the real world to be successful. What if Captain Ahab had chased Moby Dick to land, wherein Moby and Ahab's ship sprouted legs and continuted chase? Would you have accepted that? Some of these physics errors are nearly that bad to anyone familiar with the subject, and come in movies that are set in realistic settings that shouldn't have whales sprouting legs and Macs interfacing with alien technology on an instant's notice.
"What if Captain Ahab had chased Moby Dick to land, wherein Moby and Ahab's ship sprouted legs and continuted chase?"
I would love to see that version, heh.
What you said reminded me of Hithhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, particularly where the Improbability Drive turned a missile into a whale. How could a FTL drive do that? Because it was improbable! heh
Just about any physics can be accepted in the proper context, which some movies fail to explain too well. Few people criticize animated movies, for example. However, the comment about the physics in the Matrix sparked a heated "It's all a computer simulation!" rebuttal.
If you want an interesting example of context fixing scripting oddities, watch the first 3 eps of Robotech, and then read the first Robotech novel. (There are 6 books total....) There are some cheesy lines in the ep, but the book gave more attention to the context, while having the character deliver the exact same lines. I couldn't believe how much more mature it felt.
"Derp de derp."
"It's a movie about a GUY WHO DIED AND CAME BACK TO LIFE and you're worried about realism?"
I want to see this guy debating with Jesuits, just for entertainment value.
"Are you being weird, or sarcastic?" said Emma. I said I didn't know because I get the two feelings mixed up.
For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction, remember?
Now, if Arnie had fired both railguns simultaneously, in opposite directions... :-)
I choose to remain celibate, like my father and his father before him.
What's the matter? Can't you say "penis"?
Heros use god mode when they play. That's go to be the only explanation.
If Mr. Edison had thought smarter he wouldn't sweat as much. --Nikola Tesla
Like how you can jump on missiles in the air, and then they keep going in the same direction without deflection. All attacks must be called out by name, even if they're as simple as pushing a button on a control panel. The best pilots have hair that completely covers one eye. And of course, all the usual Hollywood ones like the guns that never run out of ammo (unless it's a plot point to run out of ammo), and the Stormtrooper Effect (best parodied by the Rambo scene in UHF.)
Don't even get me started on the Laws of Anime Cooking.
#naabhaprzrag, #sverubfr-000, #agi-fcbafberq, negvpyr[pynff*=' negvpyr-ary-'] { qvfcynl: abar !vzcbegnag; }
was when he pointed out how Itchy played Scratchy's rib like a xylophone, but when he struck a particular rib, it made distinctly two notes! That was some really screwed up physics!
I heard someone got fired for that one.
Insert simplistic political, ideological, or personal proselytization here.
...and 4,000 year old mummies coming back to life is completely realistic...
"Can't you see that everyone is buying station wagons?"
Previous poster should have simply said "switch" (perhaps activated by sensors attached to your muscles?)
Set aside the electromagnet will need juice...*lots*
Yes, but more than a "phaser", a device small enough to fit in your palm that can contain enough power to disintegrate a large building several times over?
Somehow, I don't think that they run on the same AA's that fit inside your walkman.
Giving a guy a rifle and a scope doesn't make you a sniper.
True dat. But it might make him a sniper.
:-)
-raph