Ask Omer
"Omer is definitive. Reality is frequently inaccurate."

Friday, October 28, 2005

Question #11

Tal enquires:

Why in action movies and some TV shows when there's an action packed scene everything suddenly goes "bullet time" or slow motion, just before the entire place goes boom?


The theory of relativity declares that Time, Matter and Energy are interconnected.
Due to the fact that noe of the pre-requirements for most hollywood action-movie director positions have a Master's Degree in Applied Physics, those directors apply the theory in their movies.



This dictates that since the amount of energy and matter changing in a small amount of time, time will stretch around the point of blast to accomodate those changes. This causes the cameras to work faster than the rest of the world, causing the 'slowing' effect.
The Matrix (1999) is an example of a movie which does excellent work with this effect, allowing it to win the 2000 Academy Award for Applied Physics in an Action/Comedy/Variety.