Top 10 Iconic Movie Props: Cinematic Objects Analysis

[00:00:00]Actors and directors get lots of attention and the camera and lighting in sets are always popular on Instagram.

[00:00:05]But today, we want to honor things, items, objects, stuff.

[00:00:09]These are our picks for the top ten best props of all time.

[00:00:19](Noise) Kicking us off at Number 10, let's look at possibly the most straightforward prop use there is.

[00:00:25]The prop as a tool, and there are tons of these that deserve some attention.

[00:00:29]Maps and cloaks and masks and saws and traps and boomboxes.

[00:00:32]And hoverboards and time machines and teacups and ruby slippers and memory flashy things.

[00:00:38]But our favorite is a whip.

[00:00:40]- Give me the whip.

[00:00:41]- Throw me the idol.

[00:00:42](Sound) No time to argue, throw me the idol, I throw you the whip.

[00:00:48]- Give me the whip.

[00:00:50]- Audios, senor.

[00:00:51]- With just a simple bullwhip, "Indian Jones" pretty much out McGuvers, McGuver.

[00:00:56]It's a rope.

[00:00:56]It's a grappling hook.

[00:00:58]It's an extendable arm.

[00:00:59]He uses it for fighting, mobility, escape, romance.

[00:01:02]Along with his hat, it single handedly invokes his image.

[00:01:05]Rarely has there been a tool prop so frequently useful and so constantly badass, which is why it's the right pick to start our list.

[00:01:11](Music) Of course, if we talk about tools, we have to talk about weapons too.

[00:01:17]And boy, do we have a lot of options.

[00:01:18]There are the staples, a revolver, a Walther PPK, a sword, a switch blade, a hammer, a knife.

[00:01:24]And there's the unexpected, a bowling pin, a cricket bat, a dental pick, a captive bolt gun.

[00:01:29]And finally, there are the utterly unique.

[00:01:31]Holy shotguns, (Inaudible) pistols.

[00:01:33]Elder wands, noisy crickets.

[00:01:35]Bladed gloves, chainsaw arms, machine gun legs, proton packs.

[00:01:38]And our Number 9 pick, the lightsaber.

[00:01:41]- Your father wanted you to have this when you were old enough.

[00:01:44]But your uncle wouldn't allow it.

[00:01:47]He feared you might follow old Obi-Wan on some damn fool idealistic crusade like your father did.

[00:01:53]- What is it? (Sound) - Your father's lightsaber.

[00:01:57]This is the weapon of a Jedi knight, not as clumsy or random as a blaster.

[00:02:04]An elegant weapon for a more civilized age.

[00:02:08]- Now there have been times when we've picked 'Star Wars' when maybe we shouldn't, but this isn't one of those times.

[00:02:13]The lightsaber truly is one of the most memorable, iconic, culturally relevant, and well designed weapons ever conceived.

[00:02:20]It starts with what might be a rather absurd idea, the laser samurai sword, and takes it completely seriously.

[00:02:26]Igniting generations of imaginations in the process.

[00:02:29]Visually and sonically spectacular, stark inrecognizable on and off from close and far away.

[00:02:34]Lethal in both defense and offense, evocative of character and personality.

[00:02:39]Imbued with meaning and history, the lightsaber is everything a good prop should be and then some.

[00:02:44](Sound) Next up at Number 8 we're looking at the gag prop, the item as visual joke.

[00:02:50]Silliness in physical form.

[00:02:52]This is the holy hand grenade from 'Monty Python' and 'The Holy Grail'.

[00:02:55]The disguise hat from 'Fifth Element'.

[00:02:57]A bizarre plate of strudel from 'Inglorious Bastards'.

[00:02:59]The hilarious simplicity of a hula hoop from the 'Hudsucker Proxy'.

[00:03:02]'McLovins' ID', 'Office Space's' printer, almost everything "Jackie Chan" touches in all of his films.

[00:03:08]And our Number 8 pick, the amp from 'This is Spinal Tap'.

[00:03:12]- This is a top to a, you know, what we use on stage, but it's very, very special because if you can see- - Yeah.

[00:03:18]- The numbers all go to eleven.

[00:03:22]Right across the board.

[00:03:24]11, 11, 11.

[00:03:26]- Most amps go up to ten.

[00:03:27]- Exactly, what we do is if we need that extra push over the cliff, you know what we do?

[00:03:33]- Put it up to 11.

[00:03:33]- 11, exactly.

[00:03:34]One louder-.

[00:03:35]- Why don't you just make ten louder and make ten be the top number and make that a little louder?

[00:03:43]- These go to 11.

[00:03:45]- Devilishly simple and easy to make.

[00:03:47]There's something immensely silly about the slightness of the modification.

[00:03:51]In a bit that's absolutely iconic for such an absurd idea presented so dedicatedly.

[00:03:56]This prop manages to perfectly capture the deadpan spirit of the joke.

[00:04:00]Compared to the wonderfully loud Mel Brooks-ian prop gags, this pic manages to get a laugh out of a single extra printed number on its dials.

[00:04:07]And for that, we love it.

[00:04:09](Sound) Sometimes a prop isn't meaningful in and of itself, but in how it facilitates the interaction of the characters around it, the actor business.

[00:04:18]Taking a page out of Vaudeville's book, this type of prop opens up a new mode of actor expressiveness through its use.

[00:04:24]Think 'Annie Hall's lobsters', or 'Big's' keyboard.

[00:04:26]Or "Sam's" piano or the 'Godfather's' cat, or 'Ghost's' clay pot, or 'Copland's' sandwich.

[00:04:31]'Singing in the Rain's' umbrella is a wonderful song and dance version of this.

[00:04:34]But for our Number 7 pick we're actually going with an entire riverboat from 'Fitzcarraldo'.

[00:04:40]- There, (Foreign) (Foreign) (Foreign) - We know that a whole riverboat sounds like more of a set than a prop.

[00:05:08]But if you've ever seen 'Fitzcarraldo' you know that's kind of why it's so great.

[00:05:11]"Werner Herzog" and his cast and crew and characters and story take a massive 300 ton riverboat and try to treat it like a hand prop.

[00:05:19]And the result is phenomenal.

[00:05:20]Not only is the story a tale of a madman trying to drag a river boat over a mountain the production itself actually did that.

[00:05:27]The behind the scenes mirrors the film in the most bizarre life imitating art imitating life utter madness.

[00:05:32]It is the physical struggle of nearly every scene, it is the emotional catalyst of every conflict.

[00:05:37]It is the thematic thrust of entire tale and it is exactly because they took something so insanely huge and tried to use it as a prop.

[00:05:46](Sound) Sometimes a prop can cause an entire plot without actually meaning a damn thing.

[00:05:50]Instead of coloring every possible interaction with its specificity, it's just a thing that people want because they want it.

[00:05:56]And what it is doesn't matter so much as that they do.

[00:05:59]In a word, it's a it's the holy grail.

[00:06:01]Government secrets or military secrets or transit papers or the ark of the covenant.

[00:06:05]It's a mysterious Maltese Falcon.

[00:06:07]It's arguably 'Citizen Kane's' rosebud.

[00:06:09]But for our Number 6 pick, we're actually going with the briefcase from 'Pulp Fiction'.

[00:06:13](Noise) - We happy?

[00:06:25]- Vincent?

[00:06:28]Are we happy?

[00:06:29]- Yeah, we happy.

[00:06:30](Music) - This is the ultimate.

[00:06:33]It's the so purposely presented to the audience as a valuable without any actual meaning to hang that value on.

[00:06:41]It's a end joke.

[00:06:42]Worth with no substance.

[00:06:43]Seen only in its reflected glow in the envious eyes of those who look upon it.

[00:06:47]And because it's "Tarantino", you know he's doing it on purpose.

[00:06:50]And yes, we know, we know, some of you probably think it's "Marcelle's" soul that slipped out of the back of his band aided head.

[00:06:56]But what sounds more like "Quentin Tarantino" to you?

[00:06:58]Creating a super secret spiritual easter egg and then not talking about it, or playing with audience expectations and hanging a lampshade on it?

[00:07:06]That's what we thought.

[00:07:08]Now, other times a prop has clear concrete meaning right now and it's place in the narrative is to tell us something.

[00:07:15]It's a clever tool of narrative expression from the director to us.

[00:07:18]Think about the brilliant cup of water from 'Jurassic Park'.

[00:07:20]It's not particularly important, but boy is it an awesome way to tell us that a T-Rex is coming.

[00:07:25]Or there's 'Chinatown's' glasses.

[00:07:27]'Memento's' Polaroids.

[00:07:28]'Twelve Angry Men's' second knife.

[00:07:30]In the 'Mood for Love's' cigarette.

[00:07:31]'Blow Up's' photos.

[00:07:32]The 'Kobayashi' mug.

[00:07:33]The 'Matrix' pill's.

[00:07:34]'The Seven's' box.

[00:07:35]'The Shining's' writing.

[00:07:36]'Inception's' top.

[00:07:37]'Godfather's' horse head.

[00:07:38]And our Number 5 pick 'Blade Runner's' origami unicorn.

[00:07:41](Music) - It's too bad she won't live.

[00:08:05]- In the theatrical version, the origami unicorn probably belongs more in our next category about symbolic props.

[00:08:11]But in the director's cut, the unicorn is a very clear message to "Deckard" and the audience.

[00:08:16]Brace yourself because spoilers are coming.

[00:08:18]"Ridley Scott's" director's cut contains a Deckard dream sequence that producers had previously cut for being, quote to artsy.

[00:08:24]Without that the origami, is just a symbol but after having seen it when Gaft leads Decker this particular prop.

[00:08:30]it has a very clear message that Gaft knows exactly what is going on in Decker's head, which can only mean one thing.

[00:08:38]At Number 4 we're looking at the prop as a symbol, a little object speaking to something bigger than itself.

[00:08:44]Think 'Forrest Gump's' box of chocolates or 'Battleship Potemkin's' baby carriage, or 'Late Spring's' vase.

[00:08:49]Think 'Raging Bull's' title belt, the 'Seventh Seal's' chess board or 'Miller's Crossing's' hat, think 'A Christmas Story's' leg lamp.

[00:08:56]Think 2001's' Bone'.

[00:08:57]And for our Number 4 pick, think 'American Beauty's' plastic bag.

[00:09:01]- You want to see the most beautiful thing I've ever felt?

[00:09:03](Music) - Is one of those days when it's a minute away from snowing.

[00:09:15]And there's this electricity in the air.

[00:09:18]- Now it's easy to look at this plastic bag and assign it all kinds of hyper-literal significance.

[00:09:22]The bag stands for trash, for that which is discarded, for some kind of spirit of the universe.

[00:09:28]But our take is much simpler.

[00:09:29]The bag really is just one example of the kind of beauty that "Lester" is talking about when he talks about his heart filling up like a balloon that is about to burst.

[00:09:38]It's simple and uncomplicated and yet when we look at it we kind of feel the exact same way.

[00:09:42]Watching it, we really do get drawn into the sense of wonder that is so key to the emotional arc of the film.

[00:09:48]It's just a simple plastic bag acting as a physical reminder of our sense of childlike awe at the beauty in the world.

[00:09:57](Sound) Now sometimes a prop can basically be a character itself.

[00:10:01]We see this with the one ring, 'Lars' Real Girl', 'Harry Potter's' sorting hat, 2001's 'HAL', and kind of its Monolith.

[00:10:08]And maybe even 'Weekend at Bernie's' "Bernie", which is an actor as a prop as a character.

[00:10:12]However, for our Number 3 pick, we think it's pretty obvious that we've gotta go with 'Castaway's' "Wilson".

[00:10:19]- And what is your point?

[00:10:22]Well, We might just make it.

[00:10:27]Did that thought ever cross your brain?

[00:10:31]Well regardless, I would rather take my chance out there on the ocean.

[00:10:35]Than to stay here and die on this shit hole island spending the rest of my life talking to a God damn volleyball!

[00:10:43]- If you've never cried over a prop, then you have never seen Castaway.

[00:10:48]He's won awards, given interviews, and even has his own IMDb page.

[00:10:52]And what probably started as a simple practical solution to keep "Tom Hanks" talking while he's alone on screen turns into so much more.

[00:10:59]As we watch him cope with his loneliness by turning this simple, painted volleyball into a friend.

[00:11:04]Projecting his emotions and fears onto it, we as viewers start to do it with him too.

[00:11:08]Our empathy for "Hanks" drives our connection with "Wilson", who sits there quietly collecting all our vicarious identification.

[00:11:16]And reaping the rewards by becoming one of the most loveable hunks of leather there ever was.

[00:11:20](Sound) Closing in at Number 2, we're looking at the props that aren't characters themselves but that stand for them all the same.

[00:11:27]A momento, a proxy, an icon.

[00:11:30]A prop that's association with the character allows us to think and talk and feel about them even when they're not on screen.

[00:11:36]It can be a potted plant, or a painting, or a child's ball, or a garden gnome.

[00:11:40]A pocket full of flower petals, a golf watch, a bell, or even a water tank.

[00:11:44]However, for our Number 2, we're going with a simple candle from 'Nostalghia'.

[00:12:10](Foreign) - In 'Nostalgia', "Andre" befriends a bizarre madman who has spent much of his life endeavoring to cross a mineral pool's water with a lit candle.

[00:12:18]Believing that in doing so, he might save the world.

[00:12:21]But he leaves the village for Rome, insisting that "Andrei" take up his candlelit mantle, and then emulates himself to 'Beethoven's 9th'.

[00:12:27]And so, in an utterly moving nine minute long take, "Andrei" returns to the mineral pool to honor his friend.

[00:12:33]And finding it empty, he takes the candle, and tries to walk its full length without it going out.

[00:12:38]And it is riveting and it is heartbreaking.

[00:12:40]It is as beautiful a filmic memorial as has ever been shot.

[00:12:44]Each flicker of the candle flickering with the fragility of human life.

[00:12:47]Burning like madness, facilitating a touching moment of remembrance, a true testament to the power of a prop.

[00:12:55]And finally finishing off at Number 1, we're looking at the character defining prop.

[00:12:59]A personality incarnate.

[00:13:00]A prop that tells us everything we need to know about its owner.

[00:13:03]This is "Holly Golightly's" cigarette holder.

[00:13:06]"Juno's" hamburger phone.

[00:13:07]"Radio Raheem's" radio.

[00:13:08]"Groucho Marx's" wire.

[00:13:10]"Elle's" pink fuzzy pen, it's a business card from 'American Psycho', brass balls from 'Glengarry Glen Ross', and a wallet that says bad motherfucker.

[00:13:17]But for our Number 1 pick, it's Kikuchiyo's comically large sword from 'Seven Samurai'.

[00:13:27](Sound) Okay, sure we could have filed this under our weapon slot in place of the lightsaber, but that's not really why it's wonderful, is it?

[00:13:37]This one prop has so so much meaning attached to it that shifts and changes throughout the film.

[00:13:42]We can probably squeeze it into nearly every category on this list.

[00:13:45]In the beginning, it is a hilariously oversized accessory for a man of undersized prestige.

[00:13:50]A hummer of a weapon.

[00:13:52]The reason we're all laughing at "Kikuchiyo" and later it's a means of actor business, a giant walking stick he leans on and poses with.

[00:13:59]An example of his lack of marshall discipline.

[00:14:01]But then it takes on tragic shape as its origin comes to life.

[00:14:05]It is the stolen weapon of a fallen warrior taken by a farmer's son who now poses as the samurai his family killed.

[00:14:11]And then it is a weapon.

[00:14:12]The manifestation of "Kikuchiyo's" dedication to that which is truly noble about the samurai.

[00:14:17]And finally, it is a mementum, a memorial for a fallen hero, a single item that has taken on so much meaning throughout the film.

[00:14:25]Tracking the complexity of its most interesting character while revealing and expounding upon.

[00:14:30]Which is why we think it's the best prop of all time.

[00:14:33](Music) So what do you think?

[00:14:39]Disagree with any of our picks?

[00:14:40]Did we leave out any of your favorite props?

[00:14:42]Let us know in the comments below and be sure to subscribe for more Cinefix movie lists.