History Main / PracticalEffects

Rightly or wrongly, though, practical effects are seen by many as being in some way superior to ComputerGeneratedImages or CGI. Certainly, early CGI was much more prone to SpecialEffectsFailure, the lower resolution, texturing and lighting flaws would push the images into the UncannyValley while even a bad practical effect could be seen to be physically real. The more modern CGI can still be [[SpecialEffectFailure very conspicuous]] compared to a well-integrated practical effect. And an argument can be made that it's easier for actors to turn in a good performance when interacting with something physical.

* Despite its [[UncannyValley uncanny appearance]], the snowman in ''Film/JackFrost1998'' was actually an animatronic for most of the movie, the only CG used was for far shots and effects sequences.

* ''Film/TheThing1982'' stands as an iconic example of practical effects. Animatronics and puppetry was used to bring its shapeshifting alien creature to life. The SignatureScene of a man having his arms bitten off was achieved with an actual double amputee as a stand-in. Its [[Film/TheThing2011 2011 prequel]], on the other hand, [[http://www.denofgeek.com/movies/23966/unused-practical-fx-footage-emerges-from-2011s-the-thing had CGI added over the practical FX at the last minute for whatever reason.]]

* ''Film/{{Ronin}}'' deliberately used old-fashioned stuntwork for the car chase scenes, in defiance of a trend towards CGI chases.

* ''Flywheel'' director Alex Kendrick confirmed that the rotating flywheel seen in the opening credits wasn't CG, but a real one that he suspended on fishing lines and filmed in his garage.

* ''Film/{{FX}}'' and its sequel are about a Hollywood practical effects wizard getting swept up in a thriller and using his skills to get an advantage over his enemies.

* ''Film/{{Ghostbusters|1984}}'' used heavy amounts of practical effects throughout. Many of the Library Ghost effects were practicals: books on wires, library cards being blown through copper pipes, etc. Also, when Stay-Puft kicks over a fire hydrant, the miniature actually sprays blue sand rather than have a gusher added in post-production.

* ''Film/TheThing1982'' stands as an iconic example of practical effects. Animatronics and puppetry was used bring its ship-shifting alien creature to life. Its SignatureScene of a man having his arms bitten off was achieved with an actual double amputee as a stand in. Its [[Film/TheThing2011 2011 prequel]], on the other hand, had CGI added over the practical FX at the last minute for whatever reason. [[http://www.denofgeek.com/movies/23966/unused-practical-fx-footage-emerges-from-2011s-the-thing]]

Practical effects are those which are done using props or special gear to produce an effect for the camera to film. Wind- and rain-machines, squibs, radio-controlled vehicles, {{Muppet}}s, and pyrotechnics are all practical effects. So are breakaway furniture, walls or windows, and tilting or shaking platforms under the set.

* ''The Secret Adventures of Tom Thumb'' was originally going to create its RogerRabbitEffect by splicing together footage of the human actors and stop motion animated characters in post. But due to the film's NoBudget, the effects crew had to pull this off on camera by having the actors pose frame by frame with the animated characters, resulting in the humans moving in an odd, jiddery fashion that only adds to the film's already uneasy atmosphere.

** The practical effects in ''Film/{{Inception}}'' border on the ridiculous. Most notably, the famous spinning/zero G fight scene was filmed using a full rotating set rather than any CGI or camera trickery. This is film is pretty much Creator/ChristopherNolan making a point about how good practical effects can be.

* While the [[Film/BladeRunner original film]] predated modern CGI, ''Film/BladeRunner2049'' used in-camera effects as much as possible to an extent that most audiences didn't even notice, building the vast majority of its futuristic cityscapes as MiniatureEffects and creating the scenes of Ryan Gosling walking through the ruins of an irradiated future Las Vegas via ForcedPerspective statues and a massive matte painting background.

Rightly or wrongly, though, practical effects are seen by many as being in some way superior to ComputerGeneratedImages or CGI. Certainly, early CGI was much more prone to SpecialEffectsFailure, the lower resolution, texturing and lighting flaws would push the images into the UncannyValley while even a bad practical effect could be seen to be physically real. The more modern [[ConspicuousCG CGI can still be very conspicuous]] compared to a well-integrated practical effect. And an argument can be made that it's easier for actors to turn in a good performance when interacting with something physical.

* The Japanese ''Franchise/UltraSeries'' and the thematically related ''Franchise/KamenRider'' are members of an [[{{Toku}} entire genre]] that is well known for [[SugarWiki/VisualEffectsofAwesome showstopping]] practical FX; from the [[MiniatureEffects model cities]] that [[PeopleInRubberSuits Ultraman and his monster friends]] frequently level, to the associated [[{{Main/Squib}} explosions,]] it's all created by hand. It's still largely done this way today despite it being [[LongRunner over 50 and 40 years since these series premiered,]] respectively.

* ''Franchise/TheMuppets'' are probably one of the few major franchises (outside of post-2015 ''Star Wars'' projects) to still use puppets in TheNewTens.

* ''Film/SupermanTheMovie'' was able to achieve the effect of the title character flying by suspending Cristopher Reeves in front of a screen that the aerial footage would be projected on while a wind fan would blow air in front of him. The effects crew also timed the camera to zoom in on Reeves as the aerial footage would zoom out to create the illusion that Superman was moving forward in the air.
* ''Film/Terminator2JudgmentDay'' came with groundbreaking CGI effects but still relied heavily on animatronics FX as showcases in [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8uKRNlpT1X0 this featurette]].

** Discussed in [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P_VxktNWQAM a featurette]] for ''Film/FastAndTheFurious6'', where the producer feels that doing a certain scene for real, while more difficult, lent it a weight that couldn't be replicated with CG. The scene in question is [[TankGoodness a tank]] [[CarFu crushing oncoming traffic]] [[MultiTrackDrifting on a freeway at 60 mph]].

* In John Woo's ''Film/HardBoiled'', the elevator trick similar to ''Good Night and Good Luck'' above was applied. During the final act hospital shoot out, a long take is made of Tequila and Alan shooting their way through that lasts for 2 minutes and 43 seconds and doesn't break when they get into an elevator.

* Discussed in [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P_VxktNWQAM a featurette]] for ''[[Film/TheFastAndTheFurious Fast and Furious 6]]'', where the producer feels that doing a certain scene for real, while more difficult, lent it a weight that couldn't be replicated with CG. The scene in question is [[TankGoodness a tank]] [[CarFu crushing oncoming traffic]] [[MultiTrackDrifting on a freeway at 60 mph]]. Similarly, in ''Fast Five'', the climax, involving Dom and Brian towing a massive bank vault through Rio de Janeiro, was done with a specially-made vault and over two hundred squished cars.
* Surprisingly, a majority of the deaths in ''Film/FinalDestination'' used a large number of practical effects. For instance, when Rory is trisected in ''2'', the abdomen and legs are dummy mockups, while Rory's actor donned a green-screen suit from the chest down. The main use of CGI is to enhance some of the {{Gorn}} in the deaths.

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* ''Film/FantasticFour2005'' and [[Film/FantasticFourRiseOfTheSilverSurfer it's sequel]] uses prosthetics to create The Thing on screen.

* ''Film/TheDarkCrystal'' is widely considered a cinematic landmark for practical effects, as every single creature in the film was a highly complex puppet brought to life using difficult but innovative techniques. To put it in perspective, the main character Jen was one of the the more simpler creatures in the film, and even he required 3 to 4 puppeteers just to operate him from off screen.

* The crew of ''Film/EdgeOfTomorrow'' built dozens of sets of physical prop "[[PoweredArmor jackets]]" for the actors to wear. In an amusing and ironic twist, the actual props were most definitely ''not'' "powered" armor, meaning the actors actually had to walk, run, and fight in these things under their own power, and they were heavy as shit, too, which is especially hilarious for a movie starring infamously shrimpy Creator/TomCruise.

* Likewise, the killer snowman in the ''Film/JackFrost1997'' was also a large puppet, albeit one that was [[SpecialEffectsFailure much less convincing]]. Although giving the film's BlackComedy writing, it doesn't distract you too much.

* ''Franchise/{{Godzilla}}'' is one of the most prominent examples of practical effects in cinema history, with its title character and monster foes being brought to life on screen using rubber suits and puppetry against a miniature Japanese landscape. While the movies have incorporated CG over the years[[note]]if not strictly used like [[Film/Godzilla2014 with]] [[Film/GodzillaKingOfTheMonsters2019 Sony's]][[/note]], Creator/{{Toho}} has never strayed away from the use of puppetry, [[DoingItForTheArt and don't plan to anytime soon]].
* ''Film/Godzilla1998'' used CG to create the title monster on screen, but the scene where Godzilla tries to eat the taxi the main characters are driving used a giant rig for the inside of his mouth while an animatronic Godzilla head was used to show him spitting it out. Other practical effect shots included an animatronic of Godzilla's upper body for close-ups, the monster's newborns which were portrayed by people in bodysuits, and a miniature of the Brooklyn Bridge for the scene where the military finally shoots the title monster down.

* ''[[Film/Shazam2019 SHAZAM!]]'' had a few practical effect shots that most viewers don't notice.
** Director David S. Sandberg revealed in an [[https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://heroichollywood.com/shazam-tv-spot-practical-effect/&ved=2ahUKEwjC5pCVysfjAhXWJDQIHc7tATcQFjAAegQIAhAB&usg=AOvVaw0U3_SDhC3Sru_wjFNI4tMm article]] that the Ferris wheel that's knocked over in the climax was an actual Ferris wheel that they built and destroyed for the movie.
** For the scene with [[MakesJustAsMuchSenseInContext The Crocodile men playing poker]] behind one of the doors in the Rock of Eternity, the effects crew decided to make Crocodile costumes for [[CreatorCameo David Sandberg and two other effects artists]] to wear rather than using CG.

* ''WesternAnimation/BeautyAndTheBeast'' has an interesting example for an animated feature. Near the end, as The Beast transforms back into a human, his body is engulfed by a large puff of smoke as it levitates into the air. The film's directors [[WordOfGod confirmed]] this wasn't a computer effect but was actually a real smoke cloud they filmed using a store-bought smoke machine which was later inserted into the movie.

* ''Film/CarnivalOfSouls'' had a minuscule budget that didn't leave much in the way for any special effects during post-production. So to achieve the scene where the ghoul's face appears on Mary's passenger window while driving, director Herc Harvey sat in the back seat with a flashlight which, when turned on, would bounce his reflection off of a mirror rigged on the car's side and project it onto the window.

* ''Film/{{Zathura}}''. All the explosions and destruction felt very solid because they actually built the house interior on top of a tilt-able platform, filmed anything that required it to be intact, then proceeded to demolish the set as they filmed. Good luck doing a retake! The Zorgons and the robot were both done practically too, the Zorgons were just ([[TropesAreNotBad very well-made and convincing]]) PeopleInRubberSuits, while the robot's torso, head, and feet were worn by a guy in a motion capture costume, with the arms and legs added in later ([[JustifiedTrope since the robot's proportions would make it impossible for a human's arms or legs to fit into the robot's.]])