I watch a lot of 80s and 90s shows. I've noticed that when two characters sit on a couch, they often sit close beside each other, in the couch's center. It's not so unrealistic for a dating/married couple, a parent and young child, or times when a character needs to hug and comfort another. But in real life, if there is plenty of room on a couch, many teens and adults don't choose to sit so close together. Is this done for a filming reason? Or is my real-life experience odd?
General questions about movies, TV and more
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Does anybody know the name of this 90s TV movie? A woman's mother-in-law is controlling and possessive of her son/the woman's husband. The woman eventually leaves her husband because of it. I remember in one scene, the mother-in-law is displeased because the couple named their son Matthew instead of Nicholas (after the man's late father). Eventually, the mother murders the wife or hires someone to do it. The husband's brother had a blonde wife, who the mother didn't approve of either.
Answer: It could be "The Perfect Mother," (1997) TV-Movie based on a true story, Tyne Daly plays a controlling possessive mother, who rules her family with an iron fist. When her daughter-in-law leaves, taking her grandchild, she has her murdered.
Thank you. That is the movie.
Are there any bloopers available online from VERY serious movies, like Schindler's List or 12 Years a Slave? Actors must slip up when filming them like anything else - is the subject matter just serious enough that they don't laugh about them at the time, making the bloopers nothing worth watching, or are they just never compiled and released because it's felt to be too inappropriate?
Chosen answer: From what I've seen, in serious films, or scenes, when actors mess up their lines, they're more apologetic and what they said wasn't funny or outrageous. I feel like serious films have more rehearsal times as well, where comedy films are often shot quickly with a lot of ad-libbing or improv. So there's less slip ups during the actual shoot. Similar to how a play has a lot of rehearsals, but improv shows won't have as much. There's are some outtakes of "Silence of the Lamb." This is something that I've wondered too though and tried to search for. I had a chance to go to a Q&A session with Cary Elwes and wanted to ask him if he had as much fun making "Saw" as "Princess Bride" and "Men in Tights" and were there "Saw" outtakes, but we ran out of time before my question could get asked and I've always regretted it.
Answer: Youtube has plenty. Simply enter "serious movie bloopers." You'll even find some for "The Silence Of The Lambs."
I remember seeing a movie about 10 years ago, I think. I wanna say it was a heist movie or something along those lines, and it may have been a British film, but I was honestly deathly ill at the time and can't remember too much. All I remember is that there was a team of criminals, and one of them was an amateur adult-film actor, and I think there was a scene where he was tortured (and possibly threatened with castration if not castrated?) and killed for information. Ring any bells?
Answer: The Bank Job (2008) based on a true story. A femme fatale, Saffron Burrows, convinces Jason Statham and his crew to rob bank full of safe deposits, not knowing it's a cover to retrieve some photos of a royal family member in a "Fifty Shades" situation. It takes place during the 1970's. Unfortunately, the other boxes belong to the mob. They capture and torture the adult film actor for information and as a hostage.
Thanks! That seems to be the one.
In the 90s, I was watching a TV show about a summer camp. This episode involved a new camper who was a "bad girl"/punk type. At one point, she was sitting at a table, lifted the cover/cloth, and used a knife to carve marks into it. A guy - not sure if he was a counselor or another camper - approached her and said "You were carving the table." This might have been on Nickelodeon.
Answer: Sounds like "Hey Dude", s03e12, "The Bad Seed."
Thank you, I think that was it.
I am trying to remember an episode of a show that I watched at my Grandparents house one summer. I want to say it was Stargate but I'm not so sure. I remember a lady takes a baby boy and later discovers that he is sick with something. She is told that all of the baby boys in this specific dimension have something in them that makes them sick and eventually die. I remember she fights to have him saved and I think her father is able to get him the antidote to make him better. What was this from?
Answer: I found it the show was called Sliders.
Was it "Mother and Child", s04e14?
Answer: If you're looking for a Stargate SG-1 episode, maybe s02e20, "Show and Tell." The Reetou are an incest-like race out of phase and thus invisible to the unaided eye. One of the Reetou, referred to as Mother, genetically engineers a human boy and sends him to SG Command to warn them. But because of his rapid growth, he is quickly dying. He develops a bond with Jack and takes the name Charlie, the name of Jack's (now dead) son. By the end off the episode Charlie's organs are shutting down and the Tok'ra agree to take the boy and blend him with a symbiote to heal him. Although we never discover if it works or not.
I checked it out and that isn't it. This is driving me crazy. I remember that people travelled through tunnels or something to get to different dimensions or alternate worlds or something like that. I remember the baby receiving the medicine and I think he lives as well. I remember when he gets the medicine it is through a weird looking syringe that was put flat against the baby's arm and then a man injecting it into him. I want to say it was around 1999 maybe 2000 if that narrows it down.
I remember seeing a sketch show in the US in the late 90's or early 2000's. There was a sketch that was parodying James Bond where the villain was going to kill the Bond character, but realised Bond always had an out for everything. (Ex. "I can't feed you to alligators because you'll just run across their heads like a bridge!" etc.) At the end, the villain got so frustrated, he just killed himself by grabbing onto an electrified panel. Does anyone know what sketch show this is from?
Answer: I found my answer. Evidently it's a skit by Hale and Pace, an English comedy double-act, and it's on YouTube if you search "Hale and Pace Bond." Some of their skits were shown in the US in the 90's as part of the "Ohh, Nooo! Mr. Bill Presents..." comedy show, which was a show that aired comedy skits and shows they licensed from overseas, and were introduced by the character "Mr. Bill." (A little man made out of clay who would comedically be injured and squashed in every episode while screaming "Oh nooo!"). That's where I saw it.
Answer: I don't know about a sketch, but in an episode of "The Simpsons," a character Frank Grimes gets so frustrated that Homer is so dumb but yet archives so much acclaim, becoming an astronaut, winning a Grammy and becomes friends with celebrities. He sets Homer up to fail, but yet wins an award. Frank throws a tantrum, doing dumb things like Homer but ends up electrocuting himself. There have also have been several episodes spoofing James Bond.
Definitely not that. This was a live-action sketch show specifically parodying James Bond.
When animated shows are recorded, do all the voice actors record lines together, as the plot happens? Or does each person record all their lines at once? And if a character only says a few words in an episode, is some of their previously-recorded dialogue just re-used (if the script would allow it)? If it matters, I am mostly thinking about half-hour shows like The Simpsons, King of the Hill, South Park, Family Guy, etc.
Answer: To add to Bishop's answer, some shows occasionally do have multiple (or all of the) actors working together, but it's typically pretty rare for that to happen. As for the second part of your question, audio clips and lines do get reused sometimes. It just depends on the circumstance of the episode.
Answer: Generally each character's lines are recorded separately where the voice actor reads all their lines at once. There may be other voice actors in the studio with them to read their lines as a prompt so the actor being recorded has something to play off. Also, in the examples you give, one actor voices multiple characters. It would be very difficult for even a seasoned voice actor to have to switch between characters in a scene if the lines were recorded together. And impossible to do if two characters voiced by one actor were both talking at the same time.
I'm trying to locate the name of an afterschool special film I haven't seen in over 40 years. The plot as I remember it was a kid in school who liked his teacher, but was way too young for her, somehow became an adult (I forgot how exactly) and finally had a chance to date her. Near the end of the film, he had to become a kid again and now was worried he couldn't date her anymore. Suddenly, she surprised him by entering the classroom now as a kid herself, making him happy. Film name?
Answer: Yes, that was it. I always thought it was a much earlier year than 1988 though, but thanks.
Answer: Sounds like the 1988 made for television film "14 Going on 30."
In some movies/shows, a "bad guy" will visit someone in the hospital with the intent of killing them. One method is to smother them with a pillow until they die. Often their death is signified by us hearing the heart monitor beeping normally and then flatlining. But in reality, if someone was hooked up to hospital monitors, wouldn't other alarms go off as they struggle to breathe before they die? Wouldn't their heart-rate increase in the panic? Doesn't disconnecting monitors set off alarms?
Answer: Absolutely. If the person is awake whilst being smothered and hooked on to a monitoring machine, both heart rate and blood pressure will skyrocket whilst the smothering is taking place. This will send nurses rushing in. It's a common mistake in movies. Unplugging the devices will also indeed trigger alarms. Only thing you can do is turning the machine off properly (if possible without triggering anything) and do the deed before people come to check. If someone is in a coma though, the only alarm that might go off is the heart monitor when the heart stops. Then again, a coma patient usually is attached to a breathing apparatus. Detaching that also gives off alarms. Another far fetched solution is putting the devices on yourself before killing a patient. Or simply setting off a bomb or something.
Answer: They could time it so no-one would be at the nurse's station, do it quickly before anyone arrives or have someone stand outside the door as look out. Also make it look like a natural causes.
What TV show is this an episode of? A woman, one of the show's main characters, is in the women's bathroom at her job. She tells a co-worker that they're the only women in this part of the building, so this bathroom is like their own private one. She is offended when the co-worker still uses one of those paper toilet seat liners. It turns out that the co-worker thinks she is promiscuous, and prefers not to sit directly on the same toilet seat as her. I saw this in the early 2000s or late 90s.
Answer: Seinfeld s09e09, "The Apology." Elaine's co-worker uses the seat liner. Elaine thinks maybe she's just a germaphobe until she sees her co-worker drink from someone else's bottle. It's the episode where George is waiting for an apology from someone in AA on step 9 of the 12-step program. It's also the episode where Kramer installs a garbage disposal in his bathtub and makes his meal in the tub while he showers, the meal he prepared for David, Elaine, and her co-worker.
Thank you.
When I was in the third grade I remember watching a Halloween movie. The year was 1993 and I remember very little from the movie. I remember these kids going to another boys house, but he is being taken away in an ambulance, I think he was sick or something. The kids find a creepy old house and a ghost boy climbs up a tree and takes a pumpkin. I remember a man takes them through Halloween traditions in the past. Does anyone know what this movie was called?
There was a short cartoon I saw in the early 80s where every time the guy used a figure of speech, it would happen literally: I combed the beach (with an actual comb); I put my foot in my mouth (literally); She had a lot of little ones (tiny numeral 1s).
Answer: "Symphony in Slang" by Tex Avery (1951).
Thanks. You just solved a 40-year-old problem for me.
You're welcome.
What was this science fiction movie from the early 80s or earlier? An earth man is undergoing a procedure by aliens (or future people) to make him super intelligent. I just remember the aliens chanting 'Think about the brain...think about the brain...' over and over again.
Answer: Maybe "Starship Invasions," (1977) two alien races bring their war to Earth. One set experiments on humans, while the others ask for their help.
I don't think that's it either. I'm pretty sure I saw it in the theater and that was before my time.
Answer: There is a 1977 TV-Movie, "The Man with the Power." A man discovers his father was an alien from another planet. He has super powers. An alien emissary appears to advise him on how to use his powers to help mankind. I don't know about the "think about the brain" scene. It hasn't been broadcast in twenty years. There are a couple of other movies, but I believe this is the one your looking for.
Thanks, but after googling it, I don't think that's it. The man in my movie was older, they definitely were performing some sort of medical procedure on him, there were in some sort of futuristic hospital, there were multiple aliens, and I'm almost certain I saw this in the theater.
What was this science fiction show or movie I saw in the early 80s? There was this eclectic group of aliens, including, strangely, an earth cowboy. Some of the group were identical aliens who did everything exactly the same. When the cowboy offered an alien a hot dog, they all began chewing, and reciting the ingredients ("and artificial flavoring").
Answer: "Battle Beyond the Stars" (1980).
I need help with the title of a book my teacher read to my class in 5th grade, circa 1995. The only details I remember were it taking place in either the North or South Pole, and the main character killed a polar bear by shooting it in the head.
Answer: It may or may not help, but polar bears don't live in Antarctica (the South Pole).
Answer: If you aren't recalling the details, the only movie (and book) around this time period that I can think of is "Alaska" (1996), starring Vincent Kartheiser and Thora Birch. But Vincent did not shoot a polar bear - a poacher shot a mother polar bear and the baby followed the kids while they searched for their father who had wrecked his plane.
I've never seen the movie Alaska, but the book in question feels like it was probably more of a survival story rather than an adventure. The only additional detail I can give is that the teacher assigned us to draw a scene from the book, and since the protagonist shot the polar bear in the head, many of the boys in the class, myself included, decided to draw that scene, complete with exaggerated gore.
"Alaska" was about survival.
I wonder if your teacher may have deliberately altered some information (e.g, the boy shooting the bear) to make the story more relevant and provocative to the grade level and whatever discussion questions that were given?
I've only seen the Nostalgia Critic's review of it, but wasn't it about the father's survival while his children were on an adventure of sorts to rescue him? Again, I'm not familiar with the "Alaska" book, but it seems like the protagonist for my book was an adult male and it was told from his point of view.
Trying to remember what product or service this 1990's infomercial was for. It started (in narration form) with a man about to board a plane in Chicago who then stops, changes his mind and walks away from getting on the plane - then the plane goes down in flames. Next was about a prediction from a woman that had to do with crying children in another part of the world. I forgot the rest of the commercial but does anyone remember it or remember what this was advertising for?
When any movies are shown on television, why are non offensive lines dubbed with another line? Ex. In the movie *batteries not included, Carlos says to Frank, "You kill my head, man." When the movie appeared on TV, the line was changed to, You make me sick, man."
Answer: Agree with the other answer, but specifically to your example, phrases like, "You kill my head, man," while inoffensive regarding sex or profanity, could be considered problematic due to constant mass shootings and a concern about inciting violence. In other cases, some dialogue may be changed because it is now recognized as being socially and culturally offensive to women, disabled people, certain ethnic groups, and others.
Answer: It's often done so the movie can air on television and be presented to younger audiences. Ex. In the 1984 Ghostbusters film, Bill Murray says, "I'll sue your ass for wrongful prosecution," but the first time I saw it on TV (in the 80's) the line was now, "I'll sue your funny face for wrongful prosecution."
And to make the words more easily understood - "You kill my head, man" may have ambiguous meaning, but "You make me sick, man" is more straightforward.
Answer: To add the answers, generally movie studios provided edited films for TV airing. This not only includes dubbing lines that may be offensive, but deleting inappropriate scenes, editing for time, and formatting. Sometimes studios will add scenes if too many scenes were deleted to add time. The example you gave is from a 1987 film where standards are different from today. But the network or studio isn't going to re-release a newly edited version for today's audience. And it's unlikely the network would be able to play the original film without any edits.
I remember this moment from an '80s or '90s TV show. A woman tells another woman "Early is on time, on time is late, and late is unheard of." Then she walks away. I seem to remember that one or both women were black. Does anyone know what show it was?
Answer: This was a line of dialogue in the TV series, The Blacklist, S5, Ep. 6, titled "The Travel Agency," though that does not quite fit your timeline. The line originates from a phrase in a novel by Eric Jerome Dickey, and it may also have been used in other movies or TV shows.
I don't know what year this movie was made but I only seem to remember the ending of the movie. I remember a family staying at a house in the country, and they are all woken up one night and taken to a room downstairs. I remember a man comes in and some others follow. Then they take out some guns, and they all start shooting at the family members. I remember there was lots of blood in the scene as well especially on the wall behind them. The movie ends after but I want to know what this was from.
Answer: It was from Nicholas and Alexandra I looked it up and was able to watch the scene on YouTube. I remember the father carrying the boy because he had something wrong with one of his legs.
Answer: That is the story of Anastasia. The last Royal family to rule Russia, when the revolution came they ran hoping to reach a friendly country to ask for asylum. They were betrayed and massacred. Years later, a young girl came forward claiming to be the long-lost daughter who survived.
Answer: This is probably the 1971 movie, "Nicholas and Alexandra" about the final days of the royal Romanov family during the Russian Revolution. As pointed out, there's been a number of other films and documentaries about Czar Nicholas II (the last Russian emperor), his wife, Czarina Alexandra, and their five children who were murdered by the Bolsheviks in 1918. If that's not it, this Wikipedia page might help you: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_films_about_the_Romanovs.
Answer: This is what happened to the Russian Tsar, Nicholas II and his family in real life. There have been several films and series about him with this scene. For example, "The Romanovs: An Imperial Family" (2000) or "The Last Czars" (2019).
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Answer: It's usually done that way for framing/composition reasons, since it looks more aesthetically pleasing to the eye to see two people beside each other than on opposite ends of a couch. Things that may seem more natural, like sitting on opposite ends of a couch, just don't often look good on camera. Plus, it subtly indicates that they are close in some way, making it a good storytelling shorthand. (It's kinda similar to how in TV shows, if a scene is set during the morning, there's usually a giant, ornate breakfast out on the table that nobody actually touches, save for maybe grabbing something before they run out the door. Totally unrealistic, but it looks good on camera and is a visual shorthand to indicate it's the morning).
TedStixon
I'd imagine with older 4:3 ratio TV screens if people were at opposite ends of a couch the camera would have to be quite far back to see them both (easier on 16:9 widescreens), so it's easier to have them in the middle with a bit of space either side to make it symmetrical.