Famous HVAC Air Duct Scenes in Movies
HVAC air ducts have provided protagonists and antagonists with means of escape, sneak entrances, and surprise attacks in movies. While the scenes in these movies may not be completely realistic by real life standards, they are still enjoyable and entertaining to watch. Below are some scenes where characters in the movie cleverly used an HVAC air duct.
Mission Impossible
Perhaps the most infamous scene in the Mission Impossible series is when Tom Cruise’s character is lowered into the white control room at Langley. Given the tight security surrounding this mission, Tom Cruise’s character can’t just walk through the front door. The air duct gives you access from the ceiling to retrieve information without triggering any alarms. During the scene, we see his achievement lowering it from the safety of the immensely strong and studied air duct above.
The fifth element
In this wacky sci-fi flick, an alien transforms into a human woman. After completing her transformation, she is completely bewildered, confused, and scared. To escape those trying to capture her, she jumps headfirst into an air duct. She there she navigates through the tunnels in search of a way out. This character also tries to escape through a vent at the climax of the film, but she soon realizes that the vent is circular and there is no way out. Needless to say, ventilation comes in handy when this otherworldly creature is looking for an escape.
Alien
Alien is unique in that the antagonist (the alien) is the one using the ventilation system to navigate and surprise their prey. This scenario pushes the truth to the limit, as we can assume that the alien probably weighs close to a ton and spits acid. These two factors combined make it highly unlikely that the alien could be properly supported in this way, but then again, it makes for an exciting and suspenseful movie.
the breakfast club
The Breakfast Club inserted a bit of truth into its HVAC air duct escape scene. After the rebellious character Bender is locked in the broom closet for misbehaving, he escapes through the chute over the halls. Once he is over the library, where all the other students are, the chute sinks and he falls. Since most airways probably can’t support the weight of a human, this is the most realistic scene on the list. The collapse also provides a funny gag for Bender’s unfinished joke.
demon resident
A group of agents enter an underground facility that has been shut down due to a virus outbreak. Once the group realizes that the virus has turned the dead into walking zombies, they search for a way to get out of the underground facility safely. Navigating through hallways, lab rooms, and utility tunnels, the group eventually makes their way through an air shaft to safety and evade hungry zombies.
Although escaping through an HVAC air vent system probably isn’t your best option in real life, it makes for an exciting and entertaining escape in the movies. We are likely to see many more sneaky crawls through the airways in the future.