A Retrospective of Movie Phone-Fails

by Chris Hardwick on September 23, 2009

Cinema owes cell phone technology a lifetime of hand jobs for this never-not-useful plot device.

via @R_SRS & fourfour

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22 comments

{ 14 comments… read them below or add one }

Johnny Oz September 23, 2009 at 4:04 pm: Hahahahahah.

How the hell does one think of a list like this?
Not to mention cutting them all up.

I loved the ‘Can You Hear Me Now’ one.
Charlie September 23, 2009 at 4:04 pm: ohhhhh me
Cami September 23, 2009 at 4:10 pm: They should make a horror movie in the basement of the Humanities building at my university. You can’t get any signal there either. The actors could get really frustrated and curse. They seem to like doing that.
Danika September 23, 2009 at 4:17 pm: That’s it, I am totally getting a SATELLITE phone before my next trip!
Danika September 23, 2009 at 4:18 pm: AND….a back up battery!
Danika September 23, 2009 at 4:19 pm: AND….it better be waterproof! AND….oh whatever….
Danielle September 23, 2009 at 4:40 pm: … and yet still every bloody telephone in the Scream movies worked fine …..
Drew September 23, 2009 at 5:26 pm: Was that a movie montage or an AT&T commercial?
Renee September 23, 2009 at 7:40 pm: They have to add in these lines now. Have you ever watched an old movie and thought “If they only had a cell phone…”? Well now most people do so they have to create a fail for the plot to work!
Deltus September 24, 2009 at 8:45 am: They can’t all have had AT&T, could they?

Seriously, though, the one military guy had a goddamned SATELLITE phone. Those things work in the middle of the fucking ocean. Bullshit he didn’t get any signal.

Still, Renee is right. Without this, too many plot twists would be foiled.
Julia September 24, 2009 at 11:36 am: Nice! I always love how they magically don’t work in movies.
Michael LaMere (The Fish) September 24, 2009 at 12:09 pm: You notice one thing about all those movies, they all SUCK! I am sure that GOOD movies will use this stupid plot device as a tension builder, but ALL of these movies blow donkey cock.

It just goes to show you how crappy writers come up with plot twists. The no signal crap is probably from writers experience with AT&T wireless. That might explain why they think it’s normal for the “no service” banner to pop up on their phones. Perhaps if more Hollywood writers switched to Verizon, they wouldn’t have used it as often. I think I see a commercial in there for Verizon. I just want a 5% kick back, no big deal.

Michael
ModstRob October 1, 2009 at 11:29 am: This explains the terrible feeling of horror I get when my phone dies or goes out of range. Also why I hate camping…
Jo October 6, 2009 at 9:10 pm: No wonder why I’m always Loaded my phone dont wanna end up get wacked out dead lol stranded in the midle of no where zone that I cant find a pay phone ….to my bbf => call 911 ….(.)(.)