After Effects? What about good ol' Practical Effects?

 

What did we do before the wonders of After Effects and post production possibilities? Directors and film-makers alike used what's known as Practical Effects! Practical effects are basically special effects done in real life. So what that means is, if you want a head to explode, you need to find a way to make something look like a head, stuff it with blood and guts, and actually explode it in front of a camera.

It takes a certain amount of creativity and know-how to get some of these special effects done, but when they're done, man do they look good. There's something about practical effects that just leaves viewers with a lasting impression. After watching the stomach teeth scene from The Thing (#1 in the top 10 video above), I don't think it would look as disgusting and horrifying if it were done in post-production. While practical effects are becoming less and less common, I think they should still have a place in movies today.

Funny Deaths

So I haven't noticed many people having death sequences in their final project.  But if you did make sure they look nothing like these.  These are some of the worst movie deaths of all time brought to you by WatchMojo.



Some of these deaths are terrible graphics others are terribly dumb, either way avoid making yours look like these.  My personal favorite is this one though.  It makes me laugh every time.