Movie Idioms (Part 2/2)

11. Museum piece

A museum piece is something or someone that is so old, antique, and out of place that it should belong in a museum rather than as a part of everyday life.

It is used mostly as a derogatory phrase – if you call something or someone a museum piece, it means that they are stuck in the old ways of doing things and unable to change or improve.

Of course, a museum piece can be used literally. You can literally call something that is displayed in a museum a museum piece, but the idiomatic meaning is much more common.

• Ross, your hat looks like a total museum piece; please do not take it with you to wear to the show.
• Lany was so angry when Rebecca called her homemade pants a museum piece because she had been so proud of her work before that.

12. A dog and pony show

A dog and pony show is an event of some sort whose purpose is to rally people for their support and/or their money. If someone is trying to sell you something, they are likely to advertise something free to get you to join, show you a portion of what they have, and ask you to pay for the full thing.

A dog and pony show is one that does that, regardless of the quality of the product. Many times, the quality or usefulness of the service or product is far lower than you would expect. Even if this is the case, people will often buy the product because they have been subtly manipulated to be receptive to it.

• Before she realized that this was a dog and pony show meant to get her to spend as much money as possible, Ada had already promised her next paycheck to the event’s manager.
• The company had a hard time convincing their potential customers that they were more than just a dog and pony show, but their lack of professionalism and experience really hurt their cause.

13. The show must go on

Regardless of all the bad things that happen and the things that go wrong, an event or show that is planned must continue. This is what people mean when they say, “The show must go on!”

This is an expression that someone uses when they want to push through adversity and bad luck and carry out their plan. Often times, there are many reasons to quit and give up or postpone something, but making do with the situation is allowing the show to go on.

• “I know that the rain makes all out papers tear easily,” said the director, “but we can replace those with plastic pages. The show must go on!”
• Even when the flower delivery was mixed up and the chef for the reception bailed at the last minute, the bride insisted that the show must go on and made the most of the situation anyways.

14. To run the show

If you run the show, it means that you are in charge of every part of it. You make sure that it happens, and that each person and thing involved is able to do a smooth job. Any kind of boss runs the show. This means that the head is not someone who is limited to show business.

A train conductor who makes sure that the train arrives at its destination at the right time and that all the passengers have the right tickets is one who successfully runs the show.

• It is foolish to think that you can simply come to the office and start giving out orders to the employees like you are the one who runs the show!
• Joey has always admired his boss because she has the ability to run the show like it’s nobody’s business.

15. To sing your heart out

This idiom comes from the fact that most people like to sing, even though they do not always sing well. This is a dilemma because someone who is a bad singer may not want to sing in front of other people, or sing loudly.

However, if you power through your nerves and fear and sing out loud anyways, that is singing your heart out. This applies to any situation. As long as you overcome fears, doubts, and even criticisms from other people, you can sing your heart out.

• Let me tell you – the only thing you will regret is holding yourself back from doing something that you will really enjoy. Sing your heart out instead!
• Even though thousands of people thought the movie star was stepping out of bounds for speaking out against racism, sexism, and discrimination, most of his fans wanted him to keep singing his heart out!

16. To be star-studded

If something is star-studded, it means that it has all kinds of stars – movie, TV, music, and any other entertainment stars. Something that is studded has things all over it. For example, a diamond-studded keychain has diamonds that completely cover its surface.

A star-studded event or movie is one that has many actors and music artists at or in it.

• The new superhero movie is completely star-studded; I just can’t wait to see it!
• If there is a star-studded party happening, there is always very tight security to prevent the paparazzi from taking too many pictures and journalists from bothering the stars.

17. To steal the show

Somebody that steals the show is one that the audience pays the most attention to, even though the creators of the show did not intend for her to be the star. For example, if you are watching a YouTube video with a talking head and their adorable puppy comes into the camera shot, you may start to pay attention to the puppy instead of the person.

If you scroll down to the comments and see that everyone is talking about how cute the puppy is, it has officially stolen the show!

• At my daughter’s piano recital, she ended up stealing the show by going on stage but refusing to play, making all the other parents laugh!
• When the anthropology professor had to bring his son to class with him one day, his son stole the show with how cute and entertaining he was.

18. A show stopper

To be a show stopper, something has to literally stop the show. For one reason or another – good or bad, the show has to be paused for a short time before continuing. The reason can be a song in a Broadway musical, after which most people applaud, or a horrible shock or accident that causes everything to stop while the injury is tended to.

• The twist at the end of the play was a complete show stopper; you could hear the gasps and the whispers in the audience for a full three minutes after it was revealed!
• It looked like the broken stage lights would be a show stopper until the technician came and fixed it all for us.

19. It’s not over until the fat lady sings

This is one of the most well known and most used idioms from show business. When you say, “It’s not over until the fat lady sings,” it is a silly expression that means that nothing is over until it is truly over. Some people want to leave or give up if they are lagging behind in the score after the third quarter.

However, the truly experienced players know that they could still make a comeback in that last quarter. Instead of giving up prematurely, they will keep playing hard until the end. In this case, you would say, “It’s not over until the fat lady sings,” to prod them and get them to stay focused.

This saying comes from the olden times when watching the opera was popular. The performances almost always ended with an overweight woman singing the last song. Because of this, those songs usually marked the end of the shows, and this saying came out of it.

• We are so close to putting on the best show of our lives! Remember that it’s not over until the fat lady sings so don’t lose focus now.
• All the fans thought that their baseball team was going to lose when they trailed by 4 runs at the bottom of the ninth inning, but they were able to score 5 runs and win the game! It’s not over until the fat lady sings.

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