These days part of the fun of watching a movie in theaters or at home with the ability to freeze frames, is finding the hidden Easter eggs hidden within. For the history buffs out there, the origin of the cinematic Easter egg dates back to THE ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW. Supposedly one day on the set, the cast decided to have a traditional Easter egg hunt, as you do, but some of the eggs were never found and actually appeared in frames of the movie! So if you're obsessed with finding hidden messages, jokes, and ways to make you look smart in front of your friends, check out these Easter eggs!
Understandably some of these have been around for a while, but some may be new to other readers; there’s no expiration date on sharing so enjoy and have fun!
**POSSIBLE SPOILERS**
In Quentin Tarantino’s underrated gem Kurt Russell plays Stuntman Mike, a sociopathic stuntman/serial killer who kills women in and with his "death proof" car – yes, it’s awesome. The egg I’m sharing today (and there are a few I know) has to do with the two different vehicles Mike drives throughout the film, both of which have significant licence plates. The one on his Cherry Nova reads JJZ-109, that’s the same number as Steve McQueen’s Mustang in BULLITT, and the plate on his Charger is 938-DAN, a reference to DIRTY MARY CRAZY LARRY. Needless to say QT did his homework when it came to making a near perfect car movie.
In Tim Burton’s BATMAN near the beginning of the movie Knox walks into his office and a sketch of The Batman is handed to him. The signature at the bottom is that of Bob Kane, the original creator of Batman. He was set to make a cameo appearance in the as the newspaper artist but scheduling conflicts prevented this. Kane's trademark square signature can still be seen clearly on the drawing still. Also to note, in the novelization of the movie, the character is identified as "Bob the cartoonist."
This is one of my favorite eggs mainly because when I saw MAVERICK in theaters with my dad (he loves James Garner) I had to explain to him why this was so clever; it was one of few times I could be smug with him. Basically Maverick, played by Mel Gibson, finds himself caught in the middle of a bank robbery and soon the robber is revealed to be played by Danny Glover from LETHAL WEAPON! They even do a double-take with each other; it’s so obvious and sweet it has to be seen.
Remember that awesome scene in DUMB & DUMBER when Harry and Lloyd get the best of angry Sea Bass (played by Boston Bruins great Cam Neely) by putting all their food and impulse items at the till on his tab? After they’re own the road again Harry (Jeff Daniels) asks Lloyd (Jim Carrey) how he came up with an idea like that. He saw it in a movie once obviously, and it had to be the 1986 movie SOMETHING WILD starring Jeff Daniels who that time around nearly got his throat slit. While unfortunately I don’t have the clip for that scene in SOMETHING WILD, we can surely always relive the brilliance of the homage in DUMB & DUMBER.
BONUS! Near the end of the film ME, MYSELF, AND IRENE, Charlie (Jim Carrey) is reunited with his sons; he passes by a Rhode Island State Trooper and says "Thanks, Sea-Bass". Bass of course is played by Cam Neely again.
Got a cool Easter Egg discovery? E-mail us at: eastereggs@joblo.com with any you'd like to see featured in future columns!