Can You Hear Me Now?: Difference between revisions

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=== Anime & Manga ===

* [[Lampshade Hanging|Lampshaded]] in ''[[~~Mai~~-HiME]]'', when several characters are stranded in a cave.

* [[Lampshade Hanging|Lampshaded]] in ''[[My-HiME]]'', when several characters are stranded in a cave.

{{quote|'''Yuuichi:''' Kanzaki-senpai!!! ''(draws out cell phone)'' Cell phones won't work either? Seriously?}}

* ''[[Final Fantasy VII]]: Advent Children'' uses phones as a metaphor for emotional contact. The result of this is that Cloud and Vincent's reluctance to use phones (Cloud only uses his voicemail, and Vincent doesn't own one at all) is a symbol of their inability to integrate themselves into normal life, and so when Cloud refuses to call for back-up it's all right, because it's all a metaphor. Tifa lectures Cloud about how not getting rid of his cell phone shows he still cares about people deep down, and Vincent later announcing his surprise arrival to help the heroes out after all with the line "[[Anvilicious|where can I buy a phone]]?" At the end, Vincent buys a phone and Cloud starts using his again properly.

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* ''[[Erin Brockovich]]''. Whilst in a late-night diner Erin comes across a rather creepy man who seems to be making overtures, though it turns out he has access to crucial documents that could help the case. When Erin steps out to her car to call her boss for advice she finds her cellphone isn't working, so she makes a rush for a nearby payphone instead.

* The trope explanation above links to a montage illustrating just how [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XIZVcRccCx0 fickle, fragile, and generally unreliable] cell phones are on the silver screen, particularly in horror movies.

* Realistically treated in ''[[The Host (film)|The Host]]'', where Hyun-seo is trapped in the sewer without a recharger and with terrible reception. She's able to get one call through, which is what starts off much of the plot.

* Realistically treated in ''[[The Host (2006 film)||The Host]]'', where Hyun-seo is trapped in the sewer without a recharger and with terrible reception. She's able to get one call through, which is what starts off much of the plot.

* In ''[[Panic Room]]'', the heroine and her daughter are trapped in the panic room while the house is being robbed. They immediately go for the land line, only to remember that she never hooked it up, thinking it was unnecessary. In a suspenseful trip outside the room, she manages to get a cellphone, only to find there's no reception in the steel-plated walls.

* In ''Shrooms'', a bunch of teenagers go into the wilderness to eat shrooms and do wacky teen stuff. Then people start dying and they want to call the cops. And all of a sudden all their phones are missing. {{spoiler|Turns out the killer hid all of them right before starting the killing spree.}}

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* [[Angel]] is really bad at using phones, and there were several occasions in the series where he had let the charge run down, just forgot he had one with him, or couldn't [[For Inconvenience Press One|work out the intercom]].

{{quote|'''Angel:''' These things were definitely cooked up by a bored warlock.}}

* A very silly plotline on ''[[Studio 60 On the Sunset Strip]]'' called for Danny and Jordan to get locked on the studio's roof so that they'd be forced to discuss their relationship. [[Aaron Sorkin]] does find it within himself to pay lip service to the idea that they could just call someone to unlock the door... by having them wander around holding their phones aloft, complaining that they can't get a signal. On a roof. In the middle of L.A. For no reason.

* A very silly plotline on ''[[Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip]]'' called for Danny and Jordan to get locked on the studio's roof so that they'd be forced to discuss their relationship. [[Aaron Sorkin]] does find it within himself to pay lip service to the idea that they could just call someone to unlock the door... by having them wander around holding their phones aloft, complaining that they can't get a signal. On a roof. In the middle of L.A. For no reason.

* ''[[Babylon 5]]'': In one episode a character loses his communicator. He finds another person's communicator, but can't use it to call for help, because the communicator will only work for its owner. Meanwhile, back in the 21st century, all mobile phones can be used to call the emergency number, even without SIM cards.

* ''[[Burn Notice]]'' loves this, though it's good about [[Justified Trope|justifying]] it; anyone meant to be incommunicado will have their cell phone jammed, taken away, or secretly sabotaged. The villains are usually portrayed as pretty [[Genre Savvy]] about this as well, further justifying the trope.

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** Justified again in the "bROKEN" story, when the Fate Spider's Apprentice intentionally makes Torg forget to charge his cell phone, forcing him to leave it off when communication would have been vitally important.

* In ''[[El Goonish Shive]]'', Nanase is unable to call for help during a wizard attack on a school in [http://egscomics.com/?date=2009-06-06 this strip.] As for why, [[A Wizard Did It]], literally

* In ''[[~~Silent Hill Promise|~~Silent Hill: Promise]]'', Vanessa's cell phone hasn't worked correctly yet.

* In ''[[Silent Hill: Promise]]'', Vanessa's cell phone hasn't worked correctly yet.

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* The [[Freaky Friday Flip]] of ''[[Justice League Unlimited]]'' had Flash (in Lex's body) attempting to contact the rest of the League through a cell phone, only to find that there's no service.

* Parodied in ''[[Dan Vs.]]'' "Technology." Chris attempts to call for help after crashing in the woods, only for his cell phone to explode in his hand as he dials.

* In ''[[What's New Scooby Doo]]'' episode "There's no Business Like Snow Business", a journalist was having trouble with her cell phone while ranting about audience, which made the gang regard her as a suspect while all Fred pointed out was that he thought cell phones worked well in that area. At first, it seemed he was [[Completely Missing the Point]], but it turned out to be a [[Chekhov's Gun]], as the [[Monster of the Week]] was a machine radio-controlled by the [[Villain of the Week]], whose radio signs were causing interference on the cell phones.

* In ''[[What's New, Scooby-Doo?]]'' episode "There's no Business Like Snow Business", a journalist was having trouble with her cell phone while ranting about audience, which made the gang regard her as a suspect while all Fred pointed out was that he thought cell phones worked well in that area. At first, it seemed he was [[Completely Missing the Point]], but it turned out to be a [[Chekhov's Gun]], as the [[Monster of the Week]] was a machine radio-controlled by the [[Villain of the Week]], whose radio signs were causing interference on the cell phones.

* In ''[[Batman: The Animated Series|Batman the Animated Series]]'', when Batman wants to call the mayor and warn him of a plot, he is told there is no phone, and Bat's won't work either - the host is a scientist who chose a dead zone for his experiments so as not to be disturbed.

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=== Anime & Manga ===

* In the anime series ''[[Gate Keepers]] 21'', many characters use specially designed cell phones to activate "Gates", the source of the series' [[Functional Magic|magic-like abilities]].

** The Pixies of ''[[The Fairly ~~Odd Parents~~]]'' also use cell phones to make magic.

** The Pixies of ''[[The Fairly OddParents]]'' also use cell phones to make magic.

* ''[[Vision of Escaflowne]]'' has a pager (remember those?) that works on an ''invisible moon'' orbiting the Earth. This is debatably justified via [[Your Mind Makes It Real]] (or that could just be [[Fan Wank]]), but this still resulted in a lot of jokes.

* In the ''[[To ~~Love~~ Ru]]'' anime, Lala uses what looks like a cellphone to summon various useful items from somewhere, even items like a tree-sized stylized octopus robot that sucks up the Mooks that have been chasing her.

* In the ''[[To LOVE-Ru]]'' anime, Lala uses what looks like a cellphone to summon various useful items from somewhere, even items like a tree-sized stylized octopus robot that sucks up the Mooks that have been chasing her.

** The phone also appears in the manga, with the same uses. Her two sisters also have cell phones they can use to summon plants and animals.

* ''[[Voices of a Distant Star]]'' is all about a mecha pilot and her boyfriend keeping in touch via SMS messages, which take longer and longer to reach the farther from Earth she travels. She eventually travels outside our solar system, and is still able to send the messages. That's some pretty amazing reception.

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* Most people took issue with how one of the main characters could use his cell phone in the subway station in ''[[Cloverfield]]''. This, however, was a savvy case of [[Truth in Television]], since the MTA is actively wiring subway platforms for cell service, specifically so riders can use their phones during emergencies.

** After much of Manhattan had been smashed into oblivion, the subway station might be ''the only'' place where you can still get cellphone service.

* The 2008 film ''[[Journey to ~~The~~ Center of ~~The~~ Earth]]'' had a cellphone that ''works at the center of the Earth''. Worse yet, not only is it just a joke that's not essential to the plot, but there was a scene in the same movie where a cell phone won't work inside of a normal cave.

* The 2008 film ''[[Journey to the Center of the Earth]]'' had a cellphone that ''works at the center of the Earth''. Worse yet, not only is it just a joke that's not essential to the plot, but there was a scene in the same movie where a cell phone won't work inside of a normal cave.

* In ''[[Enchanted]]'', Nancy gets cellphone reception in a ''magical fairytale kingdom'', the bizarreness of this is [[Lampshade Hanging|lampshaded]] right before she [[Cutting the Electronic Leash|destroys the cell phone]].

* ''[[The Dark Knight]]'' has {{spoiler|sonar emitting phones}}.