Special effects in films are pretty amazing.
It allows filmmakers to bring characters and places to life in ways not thought possible.
Special effects are also extremely clever. Did you know that Gravity was made to look like it was filmed in space? Or that Star Wars used a mirror to fake a flying aircraft?
For more, read on to these 19 movies that tricked us using hidden special effects!
*Free Guy*
In case you didn’t know, Ryan Reynolds is a marketing genius!
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He hit the ball out of the park with that Peloton ad and did so again in Free Guy . That “subtle product placement” is his own Aviation gin.
*Gravity*
Director, Alfonso Cuarón, made it look like the film was really filmed in space!
This was accomplished by adding CGI crew members with a movie camera and boom mic to reflect off George Clooney’s helmet visor.
*Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope*
“The Sandcrawler in Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope (1977) was in fact only 2 feet long, but clever camerawork created the giant scale.” – u/Murderhands
*The Ring*
If there’s one image that’s hard to forget, it’s Amber Tamblyn’s face after the monster in the film got her. If you thought this was makeup, you’d be wrong. It was actually a body double created by Rick Baker!
*Iron Man 3*
If Robert Downey Jr. looked a little off in the final scene of the film, it’s because that wasn’t really the actor. Since he was injured, his face was added onto a body double instead.
*Jojo Rabbit*
If you watched the film, you know about Jojo’s (Roman Griffin Davis) fascination with Hitler.
In one scene, there are Hitler Youth clones. Instead of using CGI, they were all played by the younger twin brothers of Davis.
*Back to the Future*
Were you seriously impressed with Michael J. Fox’s self-lacing shoes?
Well, this was done with a clever hand. The laces exited the bottom of the shoe and a stagehand underneath the platform Fox was on pulled the laces tight.
*Blade: Trinity*
“Wesley Snipes had dificulties with the production team and at one point was even unwilling to open his eyes for the camera. Leading to this morgue scene where they had to CGI open eyes for him.” – u/sqookyqueen
*Dunkirk*
War isn’t something to smile about. That’s exactly why this smiling extra went viral for his smirk.
To fix it, filmmakers used CGI to place a serious expression on his face for the film’s final verson.
*Raiders of the Lost Ark*
This next hidden special effect might make fans see less of the magic in this film.
That’s because that final shot of the ark wasn’t hard to make at all; it was quite literally just a shadow!
*Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace*
When you look at those waterfalls on the planet Naboo, you would think it’s actual water streaming down, right? Or maybe a CGI version of water?
Well, it’s neither. It’s salt!
*Dr. No*
“The aquarium in Dr No (1962) was fake. To create it, the production team projected some stock footage of fish onto a screen. However, they only had footage of small fish, so they maximised it. In-universe, the villain explains that the glass of his aquarium has a “magnifying effect.” – u/Tokyono
*2001: A Space Odyssey*
In 1968, a floating pen in a movie was pretty impressive. But special effects weren’t used at all.
Late director Stanley Kubrick attached a pen to plexiglass with double-face tape.
*Doctor Strange*
In the film, Benedict Cumberbatch worked overtime! In addition to playing the protagonist, he also played the main antagonist, Dormammu. He did the voice and the performance capture for the CGI face of Dormammu.
*Godzilla*
In the film, Godzilla is able to easily melt electrical towers with his radioactive breath.
In real life, the towers were made with wax. They melted easily since the special effects crew blew hot air on them.
*Dunkirk* again
In an effort to use as little CGI as possible, the 2017 film used forced perspective flats to decorate the scenes. The next time you watch it, see if you can notice these flats.
*Blade Runner*
A breakthrough was made in this film when Ridley Scott and Jordan Cronenweth discovered the ‘shining eyes’ effect. Basically, a mirror is angled 45 degrees in order to bounce the light into the actor’s eye.
*The Thing*
“The title effects sequence was made using an animation cell with ‘The Thing’ written on it placed behind a smoke filled fish tank which was then covered with a plastic garbage bag. The burning effect was created once the bag ingited.” – u/stealthynotion
*Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope* again
Since the old Star Wars movies didn’t have the same special effects as we do today, filmmakers had to get creative.
It’s why they used a mirror on Luke’s speeder to hide the wheels and make it look like it was flying.
H/T: Reddit
