“AAAAARRRRGGGGHHH!!”
The scene: Aragorn, Legolas, and Gimli are on the trails of hobbits. They come to a point where they think they are dead. Aragorn yells in frustration and kicks a helmet. Any “Lord of the Rings” movie will forever go down in history as one of the best movies ever made in the 21st century.
In this particular scene, both the yelling and kicking of the helmet were improvised. In fact, Viggo Mortensen accidentally broke his toe when filming the scene. But hey, it made for one of the most popular scenes in cinema history, so perhaps it was worth it.
Pretty Woman
*SNAP!*
The scene: Wealthy businessman, Edward, presents a beautiful necklace to his love interest, Vivian, that completes her outfit for the opera. “Pretty Woman” was so good that some critics have rated it as one of the best revolutionary rom-coms that they've ever seen.
In this classic movie, Julia Roberts and Richard Gere play an unlikely, but a fairytale-like couple. In this scene, when she reaches for the necklace, he jokingly and suddenly snaps the box closed, which led to one of the most recognizable laughs in film history. This unscripted moment was completely influenced by Julia and Richard’s off-screen chemistry.
Zoolander
"Why male models?"
The scene: JP Prewitt is explaining to Derek and Matilda the purpose of male models. “Zoolander” is a comedy classic from the early aughts. Some have rated it as one of the most innovative flicks from this time period. Thanks to the movie exhibiting celebrity culture and the fashion world, it will always be remembered.
After David Duchovny’s lengthy explanation, Ben Stiller forgot his line. But, instead of asking for the line, he simply repeated the line from before when he first asked David the question that started the monologue. This was absolutely hilarious, and the directors decided to keep it in instead of the original line.
This Is Spinal Tap
Believe it or not, this film is actually mostly unscripted. That’s probably what makes this movie so unique, as it’s very rare that directors and movie makers give that much writing power to the actors. This movie is about a fictional 80s hair band starring in their very own spoof film.
Director Rob Reiner aimed to make this film as a relatable and hilarious look at the rock’n’roll lifestyle, so most of the script was left up to actors. It is even shown in the credits, as all of the actors are listed in the writer’s section, which includes Rob Reiner, Michael McKean, and Christopher Guest, who all also starred as the main characters of the movie.
The Dark Knight
*Clap, clap, clap…*
The scene: Everyone claps for Gordon’s promotion. The joker joins in with a slow clap that carries on after everyone else stops applauding. “The Dark Knight” was released in 2008 and included some big names like Christian Bale and, of course, the late Heath Ledger.
As one of the most iconic bad guys in cinema history, the Joker has been played by numerous actors. But, Heath Ledger arguably did it best because of how immersed he was in his character, which allowed him to improvise a lot of his lines and actions. His extended clapping in this scene was a definite show-stopper.