Films featuring mobile phones, in particular texting.

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The mobile phone has had the potential to drastically alter film plotting. Why be alone in the dark any more when you can call on your mobile. But actually most films seem to ignore the plot changing potential of the mobile giving us "no signal, dead battery" excuses.

So what films actively use the potential of mobile phones. And have any films (with the exception of Take Care Of My Cat) even considered the effect of texting?

― Pete (Pete), Friday, 19 December 2003 11:07 (twenty-one years ago)

Dunno abt txting, but cf Kiarostami's 'The Wind Will Carry Us' for cellular action.

― Enrique (Enrique), Friday, 19 December 2003 11:09 (twenty-one years ago)

Good call. Though I guess the plot point there is again critical of the technology because it only works at the top of that tedious hill (first time funny, other five times dull).

― Pete (Pete), Friday, 19 December 2003 11:12 (twenty-one years ago)

Take Care of My Cat was the only film to come to mind. A friend pointed out that the one way in which Intermission isn't set here-and-now is that no-one has a mobile.

― Andrew Farrell (afarrell), Friday, 19 December 2003 11:13 (twenty-one years ago)

Johnny Depp spends most of "Once Upon A Time In Mexico" on his mobile, as do much of the other cast - it's missing link which shows us how everybody is manipulating everybody else, as you're not always sure who they're talking to. It could be anybody by the end...

― aldo_cowpat (aldo_cowpat), Friday, 19 December 2003 11:16 (twenty-one years ago)

And, of course, 'The Big Lebowski'

'*That* was the driver. You don't think I'm handling the money, driving the car, and talking to you guys all at once, do you?'

― Enrique (Enrique), Friday, 19 December 2003 11:17 (twenty-one years ago)

also they still haven't noticed 1471 in movies yet have they? it's still all "it'll take us another 30 seconds to trace the call"

― mark s (mark s), Friday, 19 December 2003 11:18 (twenty-one years ago)

It strikes me that TV is much better with mobiles (24 would die without them), but did Buffy ever have a mobile in it. And soaps don't have much mobile action. Orange film commision to thread.

― Pete (Pete), Friday, 19 December 2003 11:19 (twenty-one years ago)

Season 7 of Buffy = one giant Motorola ad, so yes! It even featured a special txt message CODE!!

― Sarah (starry), Friday, 19 December 2003 11:21 (twenty-one years ago)

Season 7 blind to me. Interesting. Texting Yay!

― Pete (Pete), Friday, 19 December 2003 11:23 (twenty-one years ago)

Have mobiles really taken off in the States as they have here in the UK. Rap choons still mention pagers.

also they still haven't noticed 1471 in movies yet have they? it's still all "it'll take us another 30 seconds to trace the call" Can anyone date the first use of this meme? Melville's 'Le Cercle Rouge' appeared to have a very early example of CCTV in heist movie, but I forget if it had call-tracing.

The mobile has made 1471 a bit dud, mine never seems to recognize.

― Enrique (Enrique), Friday, 19 December 2003 11:26 (twenty-one years ago)

txting specifically is not widely used in the US, I am given to understand

Queer as Folk is the 1st telly drama i can recall making good use of mobiles. oh and an episode of early Steven Moffat sitcom Joking Apart

― Jaunty Alan (Alan), Friday, 19 December 2003 11:27 (twenty-one years ago)

Mobiles do not seem to have suffered from the impossibility syndrome computers have. Firstly computers doing things they cannot do (blowing up digital photos resolution on CCTV), and the user interface being generally unlike anything people actually use. But then we rarely get to see the screens of mobiles on films.

Kim Bauer could certainly do with a mobile.

― Pete (Pete), Friday, 19 December 2003 11:32 (twenty-one years ago)

well you say that, but in 24 there was a great bit where someone sent some data "by IR" on their phone - which considering the distance seems implausible. arguably this is the computer implausible thing

― Jaunty Alan (Alan), Friday, 19 December 2003 11:36 (twenty-one years ago)

Well in the first six episodes on the first season Jack's phone / PDA had a DNA analyser in it if I remember rightly. 24 as a spy/security show hangs a bit on James Bond expainations (where do they get those marvelous gadgets).

Bond has used mobiles of course. To drive a car even, so again this would fit implausible.

― Pete (Pete), Friday, 19 December 2003 11:38 (twenty-one years ago)

Er Pete what about the Matrix?! I have never been able to zap myself into black leather and do kung-fu by texting 8133 (hem hem BB fans will know what this means)!

― Sarah (starry), Friday, 19 December 2003 11:38 (twenty-one years ago)

Although at the end I do seem to recall Neo using a phonebox (?) (I only saw it once on Channel 5) so perhaps I am wide of the mark here.

― Sarah (starry), Friday, 19 December 2003 11:39 (twenty-one years ago)

Jack's phone / PDA had a DNA analyser

As did the one in Episode I!

― Andrew Farrell (afarrell), Friday, 19 December 2003 11:41 (twenty-one years ago)

The dna analyser was dashboard mounted iirc Pete. The PDA had fingerprint recognition

I love gadgets

― chris (chris), Friday, 19 December 2003 11:41 (twenty-one years ago)

Mobile phones to communicate out of the Matress, need actual phonebooth to get out.

Which brings us to Phonebooth of course. Which really fluffs its mobile scenes (and uses really bad excuses why he can't use it - understandable considering how long the script was knocking about). Upcoming film Cellular seems to have very similar dodgy mobile science.

All versions of The Ring avoid mobiles, which is odd as they would make more sense.

― Pete (Pete), Friday, 19 December 2003 11:43 (twenty-one years ago)

Just thought of another...

There's a sequence in "Die Another Day" where Bond ends up getting recognised/captured after having his photo taken and MMS'd by the guy who ends up getting the diamonds stuck in his face. If memory serves correct he uses a Sony P800.

― aldo_cowpat (aldo_cowpat), Friday, 19 December 2003 11:43 (twenty-one years ago)

Fucking Åmål (aka Show Me Love). There's the great scene with mobile phones as penis extensions. Also, didn't the girl dump her boyfriend via mobile phone? I can't remember, it's been ages since I saw it.

― Tuomas (Tuomas), Friday, 19 December 2003 11:43 (twenty-one years ago)

No, you're right Starry, not only were there mobiles in The Matrix, they were a special kind co-promoted with the film (the first with a keypad protector that goes "Shunk!" when you open the phone).

― Andrew Farrell (afarrell), Friday, 19 December 2003 11:44 (twenty-one years ago)

Yeah, it was a big Nokia ad.

― Tuomas (Tuomas), Friday, 19 December 2003 11:45 (twenty-one years ago)

That rings a bell Tuomas, I'll follow it up.

US teen movies though seem to avoid mobiles like the plague, which is odd because that is an area where the use is probably most prevalent.

― Pete (Pete), Friday, 19 December 2003 11:47 (twenty-one years ago)

'rings a bell' -- he's here till the end of the week, you know.

― Enrique (Enrique), Friday, 19 December 2003 11:48 (twenty-one years ago)

the stuff re mobiles (=palantir) in lotr is a bit screwed up

― mark s (mark s), Friday, 19 December 2003 11:48 (twenty-one years ago)

the fingerprint thing in 24 was a scanner which was later flipped to magneto-optical mode to scan a key card. OF COURSE

― Jaunty Alan (Alan), Friday, 19 December 2003 11:48 (twenty-one years ago)

bill gates can see ALL OF OUR TEENYTINY LITTLE FACES as we work at our screens this VERY SECOND

― mark s (mark s), Friday, 19 December 2003 11:51 (twenty-one years ago)

The use of mobiles in science fiction or spy films isn't that interesting becuase they always had something approximating these in the first place (think Star Trek communicators, police radio etc). What is more interesting is that very few films have addressed the social upheaval in the way people communicate and order their lives now with mobile telephony, especially texting.

― Pete (Pete), Friday, 19 December 2003 11:55 (twenty-one years ago)

This is true. I hardly ever arrange to meet people at set/times places these days. but I'm not a professional film and television actor. 'Zoolander' has some amusing 'tiny mobile' moments.

Now if you'll excuse me, I have an after-funeral party to attend.

― Enrique (Enrique), Friday, 19 December 2003 11:57 (twenty-one years ago)

Finland is the place with the most mobiles per capita, so Finnish TV series at least are loaded with them; I can't recall any Finnish film where they'd play a big part, though. I think there are also some Finnish sociological books about how mobiles have changed everyday communication.

― Tuomas (Tuomas), Friday, 19 December 2003 11:59 (twenty-one years ago)

They're quite prominent in TV shows like, say, EastEnders when people look at their mobile and it says "Phil calling" so they decide not to answer. This is a convenient plot device, and generally makes no sense. Like WTF? Why would Dennis have Phil's number programmed into their phone? (or whatever).

― ailsa (ailsa), Friday, 19 December 2003 12:02 (twenty-one years ago)

not to forget Sonia txting Jamie in heaven

― Jaunty Alan (Alan), Friday, 19 December 2003 12:05 (twenty-one years ago)

Trite but fair use. Is Eastenders the most mobile. I assume Hollyoaks is nuts for the mobile too.

― Pete (Pete), Friday, 19 December 2003 12:06 (twenty-one years ago)

Yes!! Poor Lisa's abusive text messages from BRIAN!

― Sarah (starry), Friday, 19 December 2003 12:07 (twenty-one years ago)

Do they show the mobile message on screen, or just the reaction, or do they read it out loud.

The most prevalent convention for letters in films after all is a reading out (usually though not exclusively) in the voice of the writer. With txtng this seems a bit odd, doe sit happen.

As mentioned above the Take Care Of My Cat solution was most ingenious, projecting the actually message on a nearby wall or blank part of scenery.

― Pete (Pete), Friday, 19 December 2003 12:10 (twenty-one years ago)

I think they did both - sometimes you saw the message, sometimes she or her friends would read it out loud and they'd go "ugh what a FREEK" und so weiter. "Strange" texts do tend to get read out loud IRL, which I think is a grebt idea.

Most often, a phone will beep, x person will pick it up, read it and say "oh the Deans are still poor, YAWN", the other person will nod and they'll go on. That's mo' like it.

― Sarah (starry), Friday, 19 December 2003 12:12 (twenty-one years ago)

'reading out the txt' cd be amusing. if hard to understand.

― Enrique (Enrique), Friday, 19 December 2003 12:13 (twenty-one years ago)

Sarah, your expertise as ever is invaluable with my research.

― Pete (Pete), Friday, 19 December 2003 12:14 (twenty-one years ago)

Karl's brick-sized mobile was the centre of a plot device the other day in Neighbours as he left it lying about in the coffee shop and some bird answered it and Susan was jealous. I would love to elaborate further, but I wasn't really paying attention and I don't know who anyone new is in Neighbours any more.

― ailsa (ailsa), Friday, 19 December 2003 12:14 (twenty-one years ago)

Isn't it just?

There have been a few incidences of people being set up and recieving text messages to inform them of their "set-up-ness" as well.

― Sarah (starry), Friday, 19 December 2003 12:17 (twenty-one years ago)

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