From Mundane to Iconic: How Movies Change Popular Perception."

Paracord Junky

Well-Known Member
(This is of a spinoff of the most recent Iconic Props thread.)

There are a lot of good movies out there; there are quite a few great movies out there, but sometimes a movie goes beyond great and etches itself into popular culture. When this happens, common, everyday items can be given new significance, sometimes to the point that they become icons in themselves.


The Hat. Raise your hand if Harrison Ford already popped into your head. There was a time when a fedora was just a hat, a basic part of any man's daily attire. Now it's nearly synonymous with Adventure, and if paired with a brown leather jacket you WILL be called Dr. Jones.

Before the Slasher genre was invented a big kitchen knife was just a big kitchen knife. Now "big kitchen knife" = "Horror Movie.''

Jason's hockey mask. it's so iconic that you can't even wear it to an actual hockey game without getting looks.

The Braveheart Sword. I'm referring here to the huge claymore wielded by Mel Gibson. Prior to this movie's release, a big sword was merely a novelty. You might see one and say "woah, that's a big sword." or even "That's not a sword;THIS is a sword." Now it's all but mandatory that it be hoisted over one's head while you "FFFREEEEEEDDOOOMMMMMMMMMMmmmmmmm....."

Utility Belt. Do I really need to go into this one? Well, I will anyway. Once a synonym for toolbelt, it is now solely the property of the Caped Crusader. Anyone with more than two things on their belt shall at some point be called Batman.

Delorian. Prior to Back To The Future, a delorian was just a stainless steel Pinto with wings for doors. One fire-writing trip through the space-time continuum later, and it's a holy grail of Nerddom.

The Ark of the Covenant. What's that? This was actually a historical item? Oh yeah, now you mention it I do seem to remember reading about it somewhere. It might have been in Soloman's temple thousands of years before Spielberg was born, but until it shot fire through a Nazi battalion and turned Toht into a wax figure, I bet no eight-year-old ever made a paper-mache replica in their living room.

Can of Shaving Cream. Anyone who saw Jurassic Park as a kid remembers how that can of aerosol foam in the bathroom cabinet was suddenly a mysterious piece of spy-gear that was probably full of baby dinosaurs.

Buoy. You think that metal barrel with a strobe is a marker for boats? WRONG!! That's where the giant shark lives, and no I won't swim out and touch it.
 
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