11 Iconic Movies With Subtle Yet Brilliant Hidden Details

Some directors love challenging even the most observant viewers with cleverly hidden details in certain scenes. Whether it’s an homage to their sources of inspiration or a clever way to add complexity to the plot, these secrets are sure to make you relive the magic of some famous blockbusters.

1. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone

Most viewers probably didn’t have time to notice, but in one scene in the franchise’s first movie, actress Emma Watson wears false teeth. This was intended to make her closer to the Hermione Granger of the book, whose large front teeth are often mentioned. However, the film’s director, Chris Columbus, quickly realized that the dentures were not exactly comfortable and abandoned the idea. As a result, the actress wears them in the final scene of the film (which was shot first), when Harry, Ron, and Hermione leave Hogwarts.

It should be noted that Emma Watson would have had to wear dentures for quite some time because it is only in the fourth book that Hermione gets a perfect smile after she is cursed, and the young sorceress ends up in hospital.

By the way, blue-eyed Daniel Radcliffe was going to wear green contact lenses, but they irritated his eyes so much that, after consultation with J.K. Rowling, they decided to leave his natural eye color in the film.

2. Addams Family Values

As a continuation of the Addams Family story, in addition to the expressive make-up, Morticia’s eyes were illuminated with a beam of light independent of the lighting of the entire scene.

This was done to emphasize her image— a femme fatale, like something out of a classic Hollywood film. This technique, practiced for many years, drew attention to the actor’s eyes and added dramatic depth.

3. The Truman Show

In the film The Truman Show, the reality show’s creators constantly announce the names of the products that appear in the frame, but that only becomes apparent on re-watching the film— when the plot twist is already known.

Many other details become obvious after discovering the truth about the main character. For example, Truman’s television wife wears a white silk dressing gown with a barely visible floral print, and later in the film, we see the same garment worn by an elderly viewer of the reality show. This underlines once again how commercialized Truman’s false reality is.

4. Smile

In the film, the protagonist, who has received a curse, begins to see people with frightening smiles everywhere.

To emphasize her growing paranoia, the production designer took full advantage of the smirk theme in several scenes. For example, toward the end of the film, the Messenger profile picture of the protagonist’s husband changes from a neutral expression to a wide grin.

5. Ghosts of Girlfriends Past

In the 2009 film, actress Christa B. Allen plays a younger version of Jennifer Garner.

But it turns out that this is not just a coincidence— five years earlier they had already met on the set of the film 13 Going on 30, where Christa had also played a younger version of the main character.

6. Moonrise Kingdom

Wes Anderson is famous for controlling the smallest details in his films, and he likes to leave Easter eggs for his most attentive fans. One such detail was recently discovered in the film Moonrise Kingdom. Here, the protagonist often reads science fiction and fantasy novels. None of these books are real, but the back cover of one of them features a map of Frank Herbert’s Dune.

This reference has gone unnoticed for more than a decade, but it makes sense that it has been discovered by viewers now that the second movie of Denis Villeneuve’s blockbuster Dune has been successfully released.

7. Deadpool & Wolverine

The recent blockbuster Deadpool & Wolverine features the burnt-out car from John Hughes’ famous comedy Planes, Trains, and Automobiles. No wonder, actor Ryan Reynolds, who played the role of Deadpool, is a big fan of this film, especially of John Candy’s character. Therefore, the friendship between Deadpool and Wolverine is along the lines of the friendship between John Candy and Steve Martin’s characters— Wolverine, serious and grumpy, can barely tolerate the talkative Deadpool.

Given that Ryan Reynolds is from Canada, it’s not surprising that his comic style was shaped by John Candy, another Canadian actor. And to pay tribute to John Candy, Ryan Reynolds is even making a documentary about him.

8. Scream

The first half of the thriller gives us a clear clue as to Ghostface’s identity. After a maniac attacks the protagonist, the scene shifts to the next morning, where Stu, her schoolmate, briefly examines himself in front of a mirror.

Normally, viewers don’t pay much attention, but it later becomes clear that Stu wanted to see what his forehead looked like after the punch he received from Sidney.

9. Twilight

In the first film of the franchise, Bella accidentally drops an apple in the school canteen. When Edward catches it, he holds the fruit in his palms, copying the cover of the novel of the same name on which the film is based.

10. Titanic

At the beginning of the film, Rose’s hairstyles and costumes are quite formal and strict. The outfit in which we first see her even looks like a prison uniform, due to the alternating black and white stripes. However, the more she falls in love with Jack, the freer her hairstyle and dresses become.

The dress that Rose wears to meet Jack by the clock on the main staircase at the beginning of the film is replicated in the final scene. It is the same, but now it is white.

It can be assumed that, after her death, Rose ends up in heaven, where she is reunited with her lover and thus fulfills her promise to meet him by the clock. This ending subtly links the scenes of the film and gives the characters a happy ending.

11. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

In the third installment of the franchise, a painting of a woman and a child can be seen next to the portrait in the Gryffindor common room. They are the wife and daughter of the film’s director, Alfonso Cuarón.

We missed many details of our favorite movies. Some of the 21 fun facts explained in this article left us thinking for a while.