Question: Didn't Gordon Gekko only have a son in Wall Street, not a daughter, as he does here in Wall Street Never Sleeps?
raywest
30th Sep 2010
Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps (2010)
29th Sep 2010
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004)
Question: When Harry and Hermione are rescuing Sirius, Hermione blasts open the door using a different spell than the one she used in The Philosopher's Stone to open the door to where Fluffy was. I can understand that the reason the spell would be stronger on Sirius's cell is so he can't escape and it's more secure. But the Philosopher's Stone had to be secured well, so why was the lock so easy to unlock?
Answer: It's never stated that one spell is stronger than the other. There may be different spells that achieve similar results, and Hermione simply chose one over the other. Therefore, it should not be assumed that one lock was easier to open than the other. Also, the "bombarda" spell was never mentioned in the books. It was invented by the filmmakers for the movie, probably because it sounded stronger and was more descriptive (as in to bombard).
30th Sep 2010
The Other Boleyn Girl (2008)
Question: Anne tried to get her brother to impregnate her so Henry wouldn't know about her miscarriage, but wouldn't this have obviously not worked? She mentioned that Henry already seemed to notice that her pregnancy wasn't showing. Even if she and George did sleep together and she became pregnant, she wouldn't start showing for another four months or so. By then, wouldn't Henry and everyone else expect her to look eight or nine months pregnant?
Answer: Of course they probably would have noticed, but Anne was desperate, thinking irrationally, and she would have done anything to regain Henry's favor and remain queen. She probably believed that if she became pregnant, it would be assumed that it must be the king's child. And if she could entice the king back into her bed, she could claim her earlier condition was a false pregnancy, but that she was now carrying the king's child.
11th Sep 2010
Back to the Future Part II (1989)
Question: Does anyone know why Marty takes a book of matches off of Biff's desk when Biff isn't looking? I know that the matches come in handy at the end of the film when he burns the sports almanac, but what was his original reason for swiping the matches? Unless he knew beforehand that he was going to have to burn the almanac.
Answer: It seemed more like a reflex action than a deliberate decision. Marty saw Biff's name on the matchbook cover, causing him to pick it up for a closer look, then just stuffed it into his pocket. As you pointed out, they came in handy later. That and when they changed the timeline in 1955 after burning the alamanac, it would also change back to "Biffs Auto Detailing." Gotta make sure you cover your bases when dealing with the future, make sure that everything changes back to normal.
10th Sep 2010
Alien (1979)
Question: First, thank you to the individual that answered my question: "Why did they wear helmets in the first alien and not Aliens?" However, I am still puzzled though with my question: "How did the facehugger get through Kane's helmet?" The answer given was: "It secreted an acid that "burned" through the helmet." If this is true, wouldn't the acid still on the facehugger have burned Kane's face when it attached itself?
Answer: In the Alien novel it pushed its way into Kane's helmet using just brute force and not with acid.
The question was about the movie, not the novelization. And yes, in the movie the facehugger secretes acid: you can hear a sizzling sound as the creature latches onto Kane's helmet.
Sorry I was wrong about the Alien novel, it did indeed use acid to burn its way into Kane's helmet.
17th Aug 2010
Taken (2008)
Question: Can we assume that Brian or Stuart had Amanda's body shipped back to the U.S.?
Answer: It's never made clear, but that would be the logical assumption. It's possible that the other Albanians had already disposed of Amanda's body before the police got to the house. After rescuing Kim, Brian likely cooperated with the French authorities regarding the sex slave operation and would have attempted to locate Amanda's remains and also make sure arrangements were made for the other girl he rescued.
24th Jul 2010
Back to the Future (1985)
Question: What happened to the original timeline to cause such a dramatic change in Marty's mom? In the original timeline, Marty's mom was 'born a nun' as Marty described her to Jennifer. But when Marty goes back to 1955, Lorraine is a drinking, smoking, parking with boys kind of girl. In the original timeline, what would have made it to where Lorraine thinks it's inappropriate for a girl to make advances on a boy? She seems to already be a boy chaser before Marty even gets there.
Chosen answer: Actually, nothing happened to the original timeline to change Marty's mom. It's Marty, like many children, who had a rather unrealistic view about what Lorraine was actually like when she was a teenager. He always believed (and was deliberately given the impression) that she was extremely shy and proper, when in fact, she was a boy-crazy flirt, though she apparently changed after falling in love with George. Parents are often evasive regarding their own youthful behavior.
22nd Jul 2010
General questions
I once saw an old (1930's) comedy movie with a train. I remember two specific scenes: 1. A donkey was standing too close to the track, and could not be made to move. So the engineer gets off the locomotive and pulls the track aside, and the train made a curve around the donkey. 2. At one point the wood that the locomotive used was almost gone. So the engineer and the fireman started throwing rocks to people living close to the railroad track. These started to throw back wooden blocks because that was all they could find. In the next scene, the fireman and the engineer would collect all the wooden blocks with which the train could continue. The train had a caboose at the end and the guy had a horn that he would blow when something was wrong. I always thought that Buster Keaton played in it, but I've checked all his movies and I can't find it in the list. Does anybody have any idea?
Answer: Based on the information you gave, there's two possibilities. There is a 1925 silent movie starring Buster Keaton, called, "Go West." However, this actually sounds like the 1940 film, also titled, "Go West," starring the Marx Brothers. At the end, there is a wild train ride as the brothers tear apart everything they can find to fuel the locomotive's engine to win a race.
27th Jun 2010
Robin Hood (2010)
Question: When the caravan that is moving the grain is captured by Robin Hood, he ties the men together and they are forced to walk back to the town ("17 miles" or so). Shouldn't they have used the metric system to state the distance they have to travel to the town? I thought stating the distance to be traveled in miles was just for the sake of the joke for American viewers.
Chosen answer: A "mile" is not American in origin. The British adapted it from the ancient Roman term, "mille passuum," meaning one thousand paces or strides. Each pace was the length of five Roman feet, resulting in a mile that was approximately 5,000 feet long. This measurement fluctuated up until the Tudor era, when Parliament established the current measuring standard, though the metric system, which was developed by the French in the late 1700s, has since replaced it in Europe and elsewhere. Britain still uses mile as a standard measure of distance on road signs and for speed limits, etc.
24th Jun 2010
Friends (1994)
The One With The Cheap Wedding Dress - S7-E17
Question: When Monica is showing Chandler the dress, she tells him that she's booked the Swing Kings, so she got what she wanted. Why didn't she just keep the dress she wanted because she got the band for Chandler?
Answer: The woman who wanted Monica's wedding dress from the blow-out sale retaliated by booking the Swing Kings for the same day as Monica and Chandler's wedding. She would only let Monica have the band if Monica agreed to give up the dress. Monica honored the agreement to ensure that Chandler got his favorite band for the reception - if she'd kept the dress after booking the band, the deplorable woman would have retaliated in some other way. Monica simply found another dress.
Answer: The first answer is 100% correct, but in S8 E1, the band they actually have at the wedding is called ‘Jungle Swing'.
If you haven't yet, you should totally submit this as a Mistake / Plot Inconsistency. Nice catch.
20th Jun 2010
Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End (2007)
Question: When they are all in Davy Jones' Locker, Tia Dalma says to Jack something along the lines of "Don't pretend you didn't enjoy it at the time." What did she mean by this?
Answer: This is never explained, and it can be interpreted any number of ways. It's mostly just meant to be a funny piece of dialogue, as well as hinting that there is a prior sexual relationship between the two that didn't end so well. Although Tia apparently tried to kill Jack, probably in a very unusual way, she still seems attracted to him.
13th Jun 2010
Saving Private Ryan (1998)
Question: A question about those sticky bombs they use in the last battle to blow the tracks of the tanks. Were there ever really any bombs made like that from socks, grease and explosives and used for such a purpose or was it something they just made up for the movie?
Answer: There were actual "sticky bombs" used in WWII. Developed by the British, they were nitroglycerin-filled glass spheres, coated with a sticky adhesive, and covered by a protective metal sheathing that was stripped away before being thrown. Designed as anti-tank weapons, the bombs were often more dangerous to the user than to the tank, occasionally getting stuck to the person who was throwing it, or even igniting while being handled or during transport. In addition, Britain trained their Home Guard units in the making of improvised sticky bombs, the most common being glass containers of nitroglycerin inside a bag soaked in the glue compound, and dropped onto enemy tanks from rooftops. The G.I. may have learned of the improvised method, as actual sticky grenades only made it into the hands of very few combat units.
26th May 2010
The Silence of the Lambs (1991)
Question: Why was Hannibal Lecter so interested in Clarice's past? How would it benefit him?
Answer: Knowing about her past gives him an advantage in how he can manipulate her - he understands her fears, weaknesses, strengths, and so on. A psychiatrist normally deconstructs a patient's psychological make-up to better understand and help them, but in Lecter's case, he uses this knowledge against his victims. However, as he learns about Clarice, he becomes sympathetic and protective toward her.
Answer: Also, he loves psychiatry and analyzing people. He is bored in his cell and this is a chance to do something he enjoys a lot.
Answer: Clarice's answers also enable Lecter to assess her honesty/ integrity and sincerity, as well as ascertain if she is trustworthy - or even worthy - enough for him to reveal certain kinds of information.
Answer: I remember a scene where he seems to roll his eyes in a kind of ecstasy as he comprehends, then thanks her, and shortly after touches her hand as he passes the folder. "People will say we're in love."
16th May 2010
Titanic (1997)
Question: How long did this film actually take to make? because regular films go for around an hour and a half and they usually take 5 months to make. but this movie is double the length with a lot more stunts and more expensive things in it?
Chosen answer: Principal shooting began in September 1996 and was scheduled for 138 days, though various delays extended this to 160 days. Prior to the filming, crews spent 100 days constructing the sets. Following filming, there were additional months for editing. Although the movie is twice as long as most films, it does not necessarily mean the shooting schedule was doubled. More second unit directors could have been used, filming scenes simultaneously.
3rd May 2010
Friends (1994)
29th Apr 2010
Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest (2006)
Question: When Elizabeth tries to board the Black Pearl at Tortuga, Jack is extremely unwilling to let her on. I know there's the element of what he has done to Will, but why doesn't he just let her on, and trade her as one of the 99 souls he needs? I mean, if he can leave Will on the Flying Dutchman to serve for a hundred years in his place, why can't he do it to Elizabeth?
Chosen answer: Jack is reluctant to have her on board because he knows she has her own agenda (to save Will) that could upset his plans. He is aware that Elizabeth is intelligent, strong-willed, and determined. She knows better than anyone how Jack operates, and would use any advantage to achieve her goal. It is only when Jack realizes that Elizabeth can lead him to the Dead Mans Chest, that he allows her to join his crew. Also, having any woman on board a ship creates its own set of problems, and Jack, in particular, could be distracted by her. It's also questionable as to whether or not Davy Jones accepts female souls aboard his ship, as none have been seen. Jack may also feel enough loyalty to Elizabeth to want to spare her from that fate. He did try to retrieve Will as part of his bargain with Jones. Of course, Jack knows it is unlikely that he can collect enough souls by the deadline, and his intent is to find the Dead Mans Chest so he can control Davy Jones, thus relieving him of his debt and controlling all the seas.
19th Apr 2010
The Godfather (1972)
Question: After Paulie is shot, Clemenza says, "Leave the gun, take the cannoli." Do the two men then walk home, catch a cab, take a bus?
Chosen answer: No, and this is explained in the book. Everything was pre-arranged, and the entire trip was a ruse solely to execute Paulie for him helping set up the hit on Don Corleone. Clemenza had Paulie drive them in Paulie's car on the pretense of looking for apartments to house Corleone "soldiers" in the event of a gang war. He directed him to drive and then stop at that specific isolated location (supposedly to relieve himself) where Rocco then shot him. Another car is waiting nearby to pick up Clemenza and Rocco.
12th Apr 2010
Friends (1994)
Question: Why does no one ever sit on the window bench, behind the desk? It seems to be there for no apparent reason, the only person I've ever seen sitting on it was Rachel. Why does no one ever sit on it?
Chosen answer: Unless there is a specific plot reason for someone to sit here, such as when Rachel was moping after her first break-up with Ross (after he made "the list"), it does not serve the overall story well. A character would be sitting far away from where the central action takes place, making it more difficult for them to interact with what is going on. Rachel again sits on it when she, Phoebe, and Chandler were looking for where Monica hid the Christmas presents. Rachel discovers them inside the window seat. Also, a window bench is not that comfortable to sit on, and the other furniture is far more inviting.
1st Apr 2010
The Other Boleyn Girl (2008)
Question: Why didn't George Boleyn like his wife, Jane?
Answer: It's never explained. Historically, little is known about George and Jane Boleyns marriage, though it is believed it was not particularly happy. At that time upper-class marriages were usually arranged by families to provide their offspring with the most advantageous situation - socially, politically, financially, and so on. It mattered little if the two parties were in love, though it was assumed the couple would eventually learn to care about each other. A woman, who was considered her husbands property, was expected to be a dutiful and faithful wife to her spouse, whose responsibility it was to provide for his family. George and Jane may simply have been incompatible, and as divorce was unacceptable then, they may simply have had to tolerate each other. Also, some historians have theorized that George Boleyn may have been either bi-sexual or homosexual, but there is no documented proof whatsoever that George was either. There is some evidence he may have been a womanizer, though having a mistress was hardly uncommon for someone in his station. Whatever their relationship, Janes testimony against her husband at his trial helped condemn him to death.
28th Mar 2010
The Other Boleyn Girl (2008)
Question: At the end of the movie, it states that Mary married William Stafford, but wasn't she still married to William Carey (even though the king sent him away)?
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Answer: Gordon did talk about his son (who was then about 3-years-old) to Bud Fox in Wall Street, but that does not mean he only had one kid. He may have had another child that wasn't mentioned. It's also possible that Gekko's wife was pregnant at the time he was indicted.
raywest ★