Question: All realistic indication by the end of the movie points to the fantasy actually being real, based on strong evidence. (Such as the magical door and chalk, etc.) Is there any strong theories that the fantasy is not real? I know is is ultimately up to the viewer to decide, I am just curious as to whether or not there is any concrete proof the fantasy might not be real.
Question: My friend swears the lead female actress changes at about 10-15 minutes into the film. He says Yancy Butler of Witchblade fame plays the lead at first, and then someone else (I assume it must be Kate Beckinsale) takes over the role. My research to date tells me my friend is nuts. Is he? Is there any explanation related to this? (I think maybe it's due to my friend's pain medication/s - a side effect of some sort.) Thank you for the help. He paid me to research this for him (only two bucks) and so far I've spent over two hours on it. But I did at least learn about these actresses.
Answer: This could be a confusion over characters. If I remember rightly, the film opens with a scene set somewhere around 1200AD, showing the three vampire elders, Markus, Viktor and Amelia, leading a war party. Possibly your friend has mistaken Amelia, played by Hungarian actress Zita Görög, for Selene, who doesn't appear in the film until after this lengthy flashback sequence has finished.
Question: Why is the word "Lorraine" scratched into the handle of Shaw's gun? The words are easily seen after Boog levels Shaw with a golf club near his gun.
Chosen answer: Shaw named his shotgun "Lorraine". He refers to the gun by the name throughout the movie. It's not an uncommon practice among hunters.
Question: What is the song that is playing when the students are building the ramp, skateboarding, etc. (right after the "what do you want to learn" sequence)?
Answer: It's Holiday, by Green Day.
Question: At the end, during Cindy's play, there's a woman in a cream color coat in the audience that the camera and lighting seem to focus on. She's sitting cross legged and not reacting like the other extras. She seems totally out of place to be just an extra. At first I thought she was suppose to be someone and was going to do something (like reveal her superpowers or something). Is she suppose to be a character, like Ace? Did we see her earlier in the film? Is there a deleted scene with her? Or is it truly just a random extra?
Answer: She could be Cindy's Mom, who is video taping her daughter and not surprised by her powers. If not, she probably a government agent sent to keep tabs on her.
It's not Cindy's mom. The woman is after the boy is pulled up. Later Cindy's mom says "that's my princess" and it's a different lady (though a very similar outfit up top). I tried to see if there were other "out of place" people watching the other kids to see if government agents were watching them, but didn't see anyone.
Question: As Robert Langdon sinks to his knees on top of the Louvre at the very end of the film over Mary Magdalene's tomb, what is the music playing? It's very uplifting and would logically be the last track on the soundtrack, but on listening to a sample on iTunes, the style of the tracks seem completely different.
Chosen answer: The track is "Chevaliers de Sangreal" on the official soundtrack. It's the second to the last track (13).
Question: This is a strange question, but is it possible that Isolde could sleep with both the King and Tristan so many times and not get pregnant? Was there any kind of birth control at this time?
Answer: Without going into detail, two possible birth control options would be the withdrawal method or earlier versions of condoms. It's unlikely that Marke and Isolde were using these methods, because Marke, as a king, would probably want children to be his heirs. But Isolde might have at least been taking precautions with Tristan, especially during the time that she was betrothed to Morholt. There would be trouble if she became pregnant while her betrothed was away. Also, as Tailkinker wrote, maybe she simply did not conceive.
Answer: Yes, it's entirely possible. Even in this day and age, with our relatively detailed knowledge of the processes and timing involved, couples trying for children can sometimes try for months or even years before a successful conception.
Answer: Three answers. ONE: Manuscript medical texts survive from Anglo-Saxon England. These describe folk wisdom and empirical medical tradition handed down from generation to generation. Herbs and herbal products were used as cures and prophylactics. These say little about contraception (they were written by monks or nuns who lived celibate lives) but it could be inferred that women used herbs and herbal products for women's issues (including contraception), knowledge refined over generations and handed down orally that has been lost or forgotten. TWO In the middle ages diet, nutrition and health conditions were such that, in general, people were not as healthy as they are today, so women may have been less "fertile" and less likely to become pregnant after sex. THREE: The legend of Tristan and Isolde is not accurate history. It began to circulate in the twelfth century, but even then it was a story, told to entertain, and this cinema version is a fictional, fantasy re-imagining of medieval life (similar to Game Of Thrones or Lord of the Rings) so such logical details do not necessarily apply.
Question: In the movie, when Viola is becoming a guy, they play "Love Is All Around" by Joan Jett & the Blackhearts. But the version on the soundtrack is sung by The Tea Queens. Any particular reason why?
Answer: A. The music supervisor wanted a cover instead of the original. B. It's sometimes cheaper to pay for the rights to a cover than the original song.
Question: What is Ramses drinking at the party?
Answer: The drink Ramses is holding appears to be a dark red beverage with a white, foamy head. Granted, it could simply be a very dark beer; but there are numerous frothy drinks in Mexico, both alcoholic and non-alcoholic. However, given the color of the beverage and the fact that it's a party, I believe what Ramses is drinking is called a "Mexican Cloud," which is considerably stronger and more festive than beer. The red drink itself is made with tequila, pomegranate juice, rhubarb bitters and agave syrup. The foamy head is mixed separately, made with liqueur, egg whites and lemon juice, frothed by hand and carefully poured atop the drink to create the "cloud" for which the beverage is named.
Question: If Billy's mom hated him and her husband then why not leave? That and why not kill Billy instead of imprisoning him?
Answer: Billy's mom is insane and does not possess a fully rational mind.
Question: Did they ever say what caused the plane to crash?
Answer: The did not mention it in the film, but here is a short explanation of what happened. The plane was on final approach, less than 6000 feet from the runway, and the weather was rainy and foggy. The tower communicated to the pilots that landing would be more difficult due to the weather and poor visibilty, but not impossible. The pilots couldn't see very well, and the plane collided with the tops of trees on a hillside located on the west side of the runway. The plane "inverted" and crashed almost upside down into the ground, creating a huge ball of fire and intense heat. The exact cause of the crash was never fully determined by the National Transportation Safety Board, although it was believed that the cause was due to "adverse operating conditions" and descent below "minimum descent altitude." (For more info, you can research "Southern Airways Flight 932")
Question: Does anyone know when the release date for the DVD is in the UK?
Answer: According to AnimeonDVD.com, there is still nothing planned, though the first volume of the manga is coming out on April 28. See http://www.animeondvd.com/forum/showpost.php?pid/311465/ for further DVD release updates.
Question: The Dr. 1's are repeatedly shown opening their attack by diving down on their enemy. I know that Dr. 1's (because of their tri-wing configuration) had excellent climbing abilities, but it was hopeless at diving. So my question is: was this a common tactic for German pilots (specifically in the Dr. 1) to do this?
Answer: Easy answer. In WW1 and WW2 pilots would attack with the sun behind them as it made them very hard to spot. "Beware of the Hun in the sun" Once the missile age started it didn't matter.
Question: Why does Violet's hair change color? Is it a mood indicator or something?
Chosen answer: Her clothes also changes color, and so does the color of the clothes of the real XPD154. It's never fully explained, but it's probably a technological advancement from the future to change colors at will, whether it's bottled hair color or clothes.
Question: There is something I don't get about the bad guys. Why would they kidnap a teenage boy?
Answer: If you're talking about why they kidnapped Zack, Zack is the younger brother of Jake. Jake still owed Johnny money, but when Johnny and his gang go look for Jake, they can't find him. They see Zack and kidnap him, essentially for ransom, until Jake fully pays Johnny back.
It's also important to remember that this is a film based on true events, the kidnapping and murder of Nicolas Markowitz. All the names in the film have been changed.
Why did they murder Nick?
Although this should be posted as a different question, in real life, Jesse (the one Nick's brother owed money to) had decided to let Nick go home. However, Jesse found out what kind of legal consequences he'd face for kidnapping Nick and decided to have Nick killed instead (obviously thinking he could get away with murder and deny any kidnapping allegations).
Question: What's the name of the first techno/dance song that's played in the masquerade ball scene?
Answer: 'Jump 2' by the Sunclub.
Answer: Evidence from the film: 1) The image of a ram appears frequently in the house, including over the mother's bed and the twisted growth of the tree. An image such as this suggests that the fawn was created from common images. 2) The first image is of the magical realm. The the following show Ofelia reading a fantasy book. This inidicates that the movie will be mostly from the point of view of a child who spends time developing her imagination. 3) The images of fascist, war-torn Spain are bleak aand desaturated while the images of the magical realm are bright. Even the monochromatic images of el Fauno are supersaturated. This filming technique suggests that Ofelia creates the fantasy. 4) At the end of the movie, the General cannot see Ofelia talking to el Fauno. Therefore, at least for him, the kingdom is fantasy. The proof exists for both. The flower at the end of the film has been cited as evidence that the magical world certainly exists but only for those who choose to see it. This means that the kingdom is both real and not real - a paradox.