odelphi

21st May 2020

Common mistakes

Factual error: In movie plots that take place hundreds or even thousands of years ago, the characters have perfectly white, straight teeth. It is a known fact that Queen Elizabeth I was virtually toothless by age 40. Good dental hygiene didn't really exist until after WWII. Some movies get it right, but only for the bad guys.

odelphi

Upvote valid corrections to help move entries into the corrections section.

Suggested correction: False teeth have been around for centuries; they could be made from a variety of materials including wood, porcelain, or even human teeth taken from corpses or people who willingly sold their teeth to make some quick cash. People with the means to do so could acquire them quite easily, and they were often indistinguishable from a person's own natural teeth.

zendaddy621

Your reasoning is very weak. Yes, false teeth have been around for centuries, but even today with much better technology, with close observation you can tell someone has false teeth. Everyone knew G. Washington had false teeth. No, these characters from 500 years ago are not ALL wearing false teeth.

odelphi

Australian Aboriginals have (had, before colonization) almost perfectly white, straight teeth and it's known that this is somehow related with their foraging diet. If it's true, then most people back ago could have almost perfect teeth too.

Furthermore, widespread tooth decay before great age was only a rich person's problem until refined sugar became cheap, so the peasants wouldn't have bad teeth either.

dizzyd

Tooth decay is not caused by refined sugars. Any carbohydrates will promote bacterial growth, which can cause tooth decay. Additionally acidic food and drinks and alcohol (which can be high in carbohydrates) can damage the teeth and promote bacterial growth. And the mistake is talking about movies in general with countless characters, not a few select characters with significant means.

Bishop73

Thanks for your response. You said it better than I could have.

odelphi

I mostly agree with you, but I am talking about characters who are rich with perfectly white teeth (and more importantly) great gums - no recession. What I disagree is that only sugar causes teeth decay. Not true. Virtually all food breaks down into simple sugars with enzymes in your saliva.

odelphi

14th Jun 2018

Hereditary (2018)

Factual error: Spoiler: In the scene toward the end of the movie when the dad is burned alive, his skin is completely black but his clothes are still on and intact, just blackened. With fire hot enough to completely blacken the skin, it would have burnt the clothes completely off (or at most they would have been shredded rags). (01:51:25)

odelphi

Factual error: When the criminal gang arrives at the Haberdashery and kills Minnie, Six-Horse Judy, et al, there is blood everywhere, including big smears on the floor. In the 1860's/70's, it would have been virtually impossible to clean up all that blood, especially on wood plank floors, but when the second stagecoach arrives carrying Major Warren, John Ruth, Daisy and Chris Mannix they don't notice that a massacre just occurred there. Even today, with much better cleaning tools and solutions, it would be hard.

odelphi

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