Originally published at: No, you cannot save someone from falling with one arm, like in the movies | Boing Boing
…
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he’s real
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I always just assumed that the people falling only weigh about 20 or 30 pounds.
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I’ve seen rock climbers do one handed pull ups while holding kettle bells in their other hand. Combine that with adrenaline, their superior grip strength, and a light weight rescuee and it’s not out of the question, especially considering that the film characters are exceptional to begin with. Two average people on the other hand, one or both of them are going for a ride.
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With my American sized waist that ride is only going to last a few seconds…
To be fair to Batman he is almost anime level of muscular. I’m pretty sure his rotator cuff is going to be fine catching a 150lb person. Any other real person in a movie, sorry not going to happen.
Also catching someone in free fall with any type of rope is likely to cause severe damage to them. Spiderman might get away with it assuming the web has some stretch, like a bungee cord.
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I always assumed it was totally impossible and just done for giggles in the movies. Watching the video, and inserting “super hero” instead of “very fit climber”, it actually seems more possible than I thought.
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What about that time Captain America curled a helicopter?
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That ass can do anything and do it all day.
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He pretty famously killed his first girlfriend trying to catch her from freefall with a web-rope.
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One of the things I liked about Cliffhanger was that Sly Stallone couldn’t lift the rather slight Janine Turner.
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One minor quibble with the video: in this scene, no ankles were climbed, and no one was saved.
Also, it was a punch to the gut.
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Corridor Digital did their take on this a while back as well 
it’s a fun watch
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I did say might. I think it’d take me a while to get use to climbing walls and shooting webs, especially when he wasn’t born with that ability.
Just to keep on topic. I think Skyscraper might have been one of the more over the top movies to use this trope. Fun movie, but I think my disbelief took a solid 90 minute nap.
Skyscraper (2018) - Crane Jump Scene (3/10) | Movieclips - YouTube
Skyscraper (2018) - Life & Limb Scene (6/10) | Movieclips - YouTube
Sometimes, you just don’t want to.
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OH I knew this trope was baloney. It just ratchets up the tension.
Also when they use very very thin rope for something. Especially if it is snapped tight to catch someone or something. Even if you had super rope that could hold the weight, etc, there is no way you could hold on to it, especially from a jolt.
Super rope exists; check out Dyneema.
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Yeah, but you can’t hold onto really thin rope. Wrap it around your hand and it is going to hurt your hand. Granted this is in cartoons and such more than live action.
Have it mounted on a ring and harness or something, then sure.
Now I’m trying to think back if there was actually a scene in any of the Marvel movies in which Steve Rogers actually did save the day with his ass.
If nothing else he probably could have raised a lot of money for charity by posing for a risqué calendar or something.
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Agreed. Dyneema, aka ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE to its friends), has a ridiculously low coefficient of friction. Even tying a knot in it is a pain in the neck.
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He can keep every penny I am allowed to bounce off it.
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