Hollywood on Trial

“When you go to the movies,check both your coat and your brain at the door.”

– Xenocrates

Have you ever seen one of those movies where you saw something that just didn’t make sense?  I’m not talking about the obvious stuff that is the product of special effects like punching through a wall or making an impossible shot. Stuff like that is usually quaintly explained by the plot of the movie – such as the main characters being from another planet, or have superpowers that are the product of genetic mutation. We all know that suspension of belief is critical to most movies.

However, I’m talking about some of the things that are logically implausible or downright stupid. I’m talking about stuff that is the product of continuity mismanagement or lack of simple research. I will admit that it does seem hypocritical to assail Hollywood for breaking the laws of simple logic while allowing them to break the laws of physics on a regular basis. But the reason why this allegation has validity is that we expect them to defy the laws of physics. We however do not expect them to defy the laws of reason – or at the very least, not to defy the basis of the plot.

In this post, I cover some of the greatest, most common, most inexplicable, most stupid things that I’ve seen in movies that simply just don’t make sense. Put on your thinking caps for this one. I wax scientific about why the Millennium Falcon can’t possibly make the Kessel Run in 12 Parsecs and why Superman could never safely move faster than a speeding bullet – ever.