How mobile phones could change the endings of films
The world of films and filmmaking has been made even more difficult by the development of mobile phones. The technology means that original plot lines are no longer relevant or would be impossible to film today. For example, the Slasher horror films in particular, or any film where someone is in peril have audiences asking the question, why don’t they just ring the Emergency services on their mobile? Now the writer and director have to come up with ways to explain why this isn’t an option. This wastes creativity and screen time as the words, “I’ve got no signal” or “This area is notoriously bad for mobile phone reception” have to be included.
What makes it doubly annoying is that the audience knows that the phone coverage in the UK and Ireland is exceptional. A quick trip to a Vodafone Store Ireland could quickly get the people in the film a nice new one. Vodafone Stores are everywhere, or so it seems.
Suspension of disbelief is the investment the audiences make in a film. It allows them to be able to watch a car fly, someone goes back in time (and everyone speaks modern English), or a commercial airline does aerobatics that would typically snap its wings off. The nagging doubt of all current productions is that at the back of the mind of the audience the knowledege that a mobile phone could solve all the problems is ever-present when they watch it.
