Film is always filled
with fantasy and illusion. Not only do movies push the boundaries of science,
but TV shows as well. But why do directors allow for this? The laws of science
are pushed often for comedic effect or to create action. The motivation to stretch
science is always rooted in the story of the film or TV show. When we think of
certain areas of science that are routinely pushing the limits, people may
think of scientific fallacies concerning action packed explosions, or superhero
problems. However, there are many other areas of physics that are exaggerated
though they may be more subtle compared to other fallacies. Balance in objects
or people or animals, is important and allows for characters to be grounded
physically and maybe even mentally and these are exaggerated often. In movies,
the character’s base of support should be in alignment with the center of
pressure. However, it has been skewed in media such as How the Grinch Stole Christmas, Aladdin,
and the movie A Series of Unfortunate Events. However, they are done in a
believable manner that supports the story and characters.
In How the Grinch Stole Christmas, there is
an instance where the Grinch is using a toy fire truck’s ladder to obtain the
star on top of a Christmas tree. Visually it is very amusing and unexpected,
but is it realistic? At first glance, it looks stable. The center of gravity
from where the Grinch is position runs straight down to the fire truck right
beneath him. However, it still looks impossible. It could also be the fact that
no fire truck toy has a ladder that long, let alone could support the weight of
an “adult.” However, by evaluating the scene more thoroughly one would realize
that Grinch’s weight is the main factor it looks unrealistic. When you lower
the center of gravity in an object, it becomes more stable. Conversely, if you raise
it becomes unstable. In this instance, the Grinch is high up, making his the
whole scene impossible. He would fall down even if did manage to somehow climb
that ladder.
Another example
comes from Aladdin. The movie has a famous scene where, Aladdin is introduced
as Prince Ali to the king, while the Genie sings the beloved Prince Ali song. There are several
moments within the segment that push at the laws of physics concerning balance.
There is an instance where Aladdin is balancing 6 men. However the scene in
question is when the Genie is trying to rally up the people in the bazaar. He
gets one guy and pushes him around like a wheelbarrow and picks up at least a
dozen other guys. Somehow they form a tower that curves over Aladdin and he
shakes a couple of their hands as they balance over them. The way the column is
stacked almost looks like a backwards question mark. The main reason this would
be impossible to achieve is that the center of pressure is not in the base of
support and which also means that center of gravity is not in alignment either.
Also, it unlikely that any human would be able to support all that weight, and
balance so many people in a tower.
The last example
of balance being violated comes from the movie A Series of Unfortunate Events. There are many movies that take advantage of
fantastical architecture to help take the viewer to another world. This movie
is no exception. There is a character named Aunt Josephine and her house is
balanced on stilts over the side of a cliff. In the movie, the characters even
question the structure. The structure of
the house defies science to a great extent. Extensive special effects and green
screens were used to capture the effect of the house sitting precariously on
the cliff. First, the structure is too top heavy, the same problem of the
center of gravity being too high. In addition to this, its foundation is not
sound. Lastly, the center of pressure is not within the base of support, thus
making it unbalanced.
The creators of
these shows did not just decided to push science to its limit. In each example,
there is a clear reason why such science was turned on its head. In How the Grinch Stole Christmas, he
stands on the ladder for comedy effect from both adults and children. Secondly,
he is being sneaky and going under cover of darkness so he has to make due with
what he has. Lastly, it plays into his character; it is unexpected but makes
sense for the Grinch. In Aladdin, the scene with the song Prince Ali was a very vibrant excessive scene. The reason it is
there is for audiences to see how lavish Aladdin was and went with his fake
Identity as a prince to gain Jasmine’s affection. So he shakes the hands of
several men in a ridiculous manner, this also allows for the audience to see
that everyone likes them. Lastly is Aunt
Josephine’s house, the house is an extension of her personality and how its
unwieldy and precarious just like her personality. All of these movies had a
clear reason for going out of their way to push the boundaries of science.
Movies often play
off of science for comedic reasons, but in these examples they were more than
just laughs. Both a Series of Unfortunate
and The Grinch have aspects where
science is questioned, but these are done to deepen what the main character
already is. Aunt Josephine is afraid of
everything, so her house is situated on stilts to represent her fragile
personality. The Grinch is sneaky but not the smartest. Seeing him on the fire truck ladder is unexpected
but matches his character. Aladdin on the other hand, the tower of men was done
purely as a visual element. Regardless of how the relationship between the
center of gravity and base of support,
physics can be pushed either to make characters more fuller and believable, or capitalize
on a already humorous moment.
