30 Absurd Movie Details That No One Should Take Seriously, As Shared On This Page (New Pics)

In a previous interview, Michael W. Boyce, Ph.D., a Professor of English and Film Studies at Booth University College in Winnipeg, Canada told Bored Panda that Easter eggs give the most passionate fans a chance to show off their knowledge and feel like they’re in on something special, secret.

They also demand multiple viewing for movie buffs to try and catch everything. In fact, “Sometimes the view of the egg moves on screen so quickly, that "it can only be appreciated with high resolution pausing," Boyce said. 

Meanwhile, Melanie Williams, film historian and professor at the University of East Anglia sees Easter eggs as a fun thing, rewarding viewers' vigilance. "But sometimes when elaborate fan theories are attached to certain motifs, it can get a bit close to conspiracy theory territory when everything has a hidden meaning," the professor said referring to the documentary about The Shining, Room 237. 

According to Williams, the idea of the Easter Egg hunt is that someone's hidden them for you to find. “Or that they're an in-joke for the makers of the film, which may have been the case in older productions: When you could only see a film at the cinema (like initially Star Wars), it would be very difficult to spot the THX reference."  Like, in George Lucas’ film THX 1138.

 "But ever since playback technologies of various kinds from VCR onwards, it's become a game that more people can participate in," Williams said and added that Hitchcock's cameos were the first who gave the viewers “something to look out for in every one of his films."

Part of the appeal of Easter eggs comes down to the fact that we’re story people — we like to make links and connections, even when they’re not intentional. Boyce argues that “If you meet someone for the first time and discover you have a mutual friend or both attended the same summer camp, you start to project a narrative — you were somehow meant to meet.” A similar thing happens when you notice a witty detail in your favorite movie.