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Friday, May 18, 2012

Flashlights and Reality

Where do people on TV and in movies get their flashlights?  (And why are people on television, but in the movies?  Nevermind; that's another rant for another day.)

I've been using flashlights since somewhere around 1970.  I'm guessing I've used hundreds of different types, and NEVER used one like they have.  Mine always had the main beam that lit up a spot, but the rest of the room was also illuminated fairly well. 

The first time I noticed the difference was on scary movies.  They turn a flashlight on in a dark room, and the only thing you can see is the one-foot circle where the main beam hits.  Really?  Why can't I ever find a flashlight that works that way?  I think it could be useful in some situations, like...

No...can't think of a single one. 

And why, when they're looking for a serial killer, do only the two main characters enter the building?  I'm sorry, but if I'm on the trail of a person who is armed and dangerous, there will also be some of the fifty police officers outside the scene that are going in with me. 

And when they enter the building, why are they using flashlights anyway?  We now have really great things to aid us in nighttime vision.  They're called light switches.  They are usually on the wall, just inside the door.  You hit the switch, and it turns on some lights so you can see without using your messed up flashlights. 

I used to love the CSI shows.  But I've quit watching them because they were always too far fetched.  On a crime scene, they are trying to find clues.  After a few moments, someone notices something.  It is a single human hair...in the carpet.....all the way across the room.  Really?

There is a meme that highlights the ridiculousness of that here:  http://www.moronail.net/img/2010_see_if_you_can_enhance_that_license_plate

Maybe I'm just getting more cynical in my old(er) age.  But if you are going to try to make fiction believable, at least try to make it believable. 

These are the things my brain chooses to occupy its time with.