MovieChat Forums > The Mummy (1999) Discussion > Quicksand, on top of a hill?

Quicksand, on top of a hill?

posted 8 years ago by chicago72
6 replies | jump to latest

Watching "The Mummy" on Spike right now. When the plane crashed on a sand hill, the 3 passengers survived while the pilot died. Then they jump back as the plane starts to sink, and they exclaim, "Quicksand!"

I thought you needed water to make quicksand out of sand? I realize it's just a movie, but it's just too incongruous, particularly since there was no necessity to the story for the plane to sink. In addition to that, only the fuselage sank, and not the broken off wings nearby? That's some very localized quicksand. Weird.

[–] alexjbab 8 years ago

There is such a thing as dry quicksand. Dry quicksand is loose sand whose bulk density is reduced by blowing air through it and which yields easily to weight or pressure. It acts similarly to normal quicksand, but it does not contain any water and does not operate on the same principle. Dry quicksand is an example of a granular material.

[–] Otter (24464) 3 years ago

I've heard of this.

I suspect the movie's scriptwriters hadn't.

[–] bobbydallas (8681) 3 years ago

yes but considering the rest of the film.

entirely plausible within their universe.

[–] [deleted] 3 years ago

Seriously? The movie is filled with the Plagues of Egypt, including water turning into blood, meteors from the sky crashing into pyramids, swarms of locusts and an evil high priest risen from the dead, and he focuses on... QUICKSAND???

[–] strntz (12773) 3 years ago

Regarding the wings specifically, they would have more buoyancy than the fuselage considering the relatively light weight and very large surface area.

But yeah, the quicksand was a bit odd.

[–] aavfreak (3395) 3 years ago

I didn't see this as much of a problem within the context of a movie with secret underground chambers. It could be that the crash caused the roof of an underground space to collapse, sucking the sand down with it. There are rational possibilities here.

"Quicksand" was just the term that Jonathan used to announce the danger and it fits well.