The Physics of Movie Special Effects – How Realistic Are They?

[azizi]

Hello everyone,

I’m really interested in the way physics is used in movies, particularly in the special effects (SFX) we see on screen. I’ve been watching a lot of action movies lately, and while some of the stunts and explosions look incredible, I often wonder how realistic they are. For example, in films like Avengers or Mad Max, explosions seem to happen almost in slow motion, and characters sometimes survive things that would be impossible in real life.

I’d love to know more about how filmmakers use actual physics in these scenes. How do they make explosions and crashes look so real? Do they use real science to simulate what would happen in the real world, or is it more about creating the illusion?

Also, how accurate are the representations of things like gravity, motion, and impact forces in action-packed sequences? Are there any common myths or misconceptions in movie physics that we should know about?

Looking forward to hearing your thoughts and learning more about the science behind movie magic!

Thanks!

[FizziksGuy]

Great question, and a very fun one.  As a high school physics teacher my students and I had a great time analyzing video clips from action movies to determine the level of realism in the captured scene... and much of that can be done with pretty straightforward algebra-based kinematics (making a few assumptions, of course).

There are a number of fun books that do the same.  A quick search of "movie physics" on Amazon will pop up a few to potentially get you started!