When it comes to props in movies, there are the ones that take hours or days of conceptual design. Then it requires meticulously creating that prop for the same amount of time. It allows for a prop to stand out and become iconic due to the amount of time and effort put into it.
However, many people would be surprised by how easy and cheap some props can be made. Especially if the movie is operating on a less than extensive budget. Cutting corners and going the cheap route can actually be beneficial and end up creating some of the most famous props from movie history.
Wrist Computers – Total Recall
Throughout Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Total Recall, the soldiers on Mars are seeing wielding personal computers built right into their wrists. This is similar to what the Yautja Hunters have throughout the Predator franchise.
The items used for these highly advanced pieces of technology are nothing more than large Casio calculators with a strap to keep them in place. Cheap but effective in the long run for the filmmakers.
Rocket Launcher – xXx
In the first xXx, Vin Diesel’s Xander Cage uses a “high-tech” heat-seeking rocket launcher. To create this marvelous weapon, the filmmakers simply used a video camera painted greyish green with some odds and ends thrown in to make it look like a rocket launcher.
At one point, one can even see the controls for the camera when Xander opens the viewer. On first viewing, it’s not that noticeable but once someone does see it, it’s impossible to view the scene the same way again.
Communicator – The Phantom Menace
There are a few cheaply made props in the background in The Phantom Menace. Throughout the first Star Wars prequel, characters like Qui-Gon Jinn communicate with each other through small devices. They fit the worn and gritty look of Star Wars well enough.
On close inspection, it becomes clear that the communicators are nothing more than electric razors. They were given a new coat of paint along with an extra attachment to make it look different.
Bomb Trigger – The Fifth Element
Towards the end of the second act of Luc Besson’s crazy yet highly entertaining The Fifth Element, Zorg deactivates his bomb. However, the Mangalore mercenaries activate their own bomb to destroy Floston Paradise.
The detonator they use to activate the bomb is nothing more than a simple combination padlock with the shackle removed and an LED installed. There is only one clear shot of the detonator and if one pauses on it, it’s pretty noticeable.
Signal Jammer – V For Vendetta
At a few points in V For Vendetta, the titular character of V and the police inspector use a handheld jamming device to cover their tracks. It certainly looks high-tech and serves its purpose but anybody who watched television around that time would notice that it looked familiar.
That’s because it was a tiny book reading light that was everywhere at the time. The only modification made to the prop is the red light instead of the usual bright white light the product usually has.
The Smart Gun Mounts – Aliens
In Aliens, characters like Vasquez and Drake use the massive Smart Guns which are mounted onto the marines via a robotic arm that keeps them stable. The mount definitely fit the blocky and subtle sci-fi look of the Alien franchise quite well.
However, anyone with knowledge or experience in filmmaking will recognize those mounts. They are the same mounts used for Steadicam shots which makes sense as to why Cameron would use that for the Smart Guns.
Most Star Wars Blasters – Star Wars
A New Hope did not have the most stellar of budgets so George Lucas and his crew had to cut corners. To create the blasters, it was the simple use of real-world weapons and modifying them to look more science fiction. Han Solo’s iconic blaster pistol originated as a Mauser C96 pistol, a weapon that would be used again for Leia’s pistol in Return Of The Jedi.
The iconic E-11 Blaster Rifle of the Stormtroopers was based on the British Sterling L2A3 submachine gun. The Rebellion’s AC280s were a mix of an AR-15 and a German StG 44. This would continue throughout all the films with most blasters being inspired by a real-world weapon in some way.
The PKE Meter – Ghostbusters
The Ghostbusters seemed to have the most highly advanced gadgets in the world, including the Psycho-Kinetic Energy Meter or famously known as the PKE Meter. One would think that something like this would have been built from scratch. In actuality, the PKE meter was built from a shoe polisher.
Specifically, it was a 1967 Iona Electric Shoe Polisher that was heavily modified to create the iconic Ghostbuster gadget. The shoe polisher’s body is still very much visible in the final product. In the first Ghostbusters, it’s mainly used by Harold Ramis’ Egon Spengler.
The Mask Of Michael Myers – Halloween
With a budget of a little over three hundred thousand, John Carpenter did not have the funds for making something from scratch for serial killer Michael Myers. So they relied on an easy and inexpensive solution: a store-bought William Shatner mask.
Carpenter painted the mask white, messed up the hair, and widened the eyes to create the iconic face of evil. So technically Jamie Lee Curtis is being chased by an evil Captain Kirk throughout the Halloween franchise.
The Skywalker Lightsaber – Star Wars
Star Wars strikes again and this time it’s with one of the most iconic weapons in history. Surely, George Lucas would have spent a good amount of money on the production of the lightsaber. Incorrect, the cost of the lightsaber was a measly twelve dollars.
It was built from the mount of a camera flash with different odds attached to it to form the hilt. That simplistic and minimalist job would result in a weapon that would span across three eras of films.
