Question: What are the chances of four guys of their age ACTUALLY passing the physical to the required standards? I know they all kept reasonably fit but they struggled with running etc. so it seems unlikely they would pass all the tests. I know movie rules dictate suspense of disbelief to a certain degree, I'm just wondering what their chances would be in reality.
raywest
3rd Feb 2016
Space Cowboys (2000)
Chosen answer: It wasn't a matter of how physically fit they were, but that their particular combination of knowledge, skills, and past experiences were needed for this specific mission. The physical criteria would be amended in order to recruit them for that mission.
They were specifically told they wouldn't be given an easier ride and would need to pass the exact same tests as the younger astronauts. The physical criteria wouldn't have been amended to suit them so is it possible for 4 guys of this age to pass?
Remember that at some point in the process it became a political issue - the old cowboys were wanted for their PR value, so physical test results would have been "fudged", if not ignored altogether.
Agree that the physical requirements were a major plot point and part of the 'deal' for the team to go, but there was some relaxing of requirements and politics. In general, the answer is YES, old folks can go to space without major fudging of the requirements as was demonstrated by lots of astronauts in their late 50s, a few in their 60s, and John Genn at 77. Just recently an 82-year-old woman flew on Jeff Bezos' tourist rocket.
1st Feb 2016
The Good Dinosaur (2015)
26th Jan 2016
Batman (1966)
Question: Why were three different men used for the villain Mr. Freeze?
Answer: It's wasn't unusual for multiple actors to play one character on this show. The villains on the TV Batman were played by guest stars, not regular cast members. George Sanders, Otto Preminger, and Eli Wallach played the part at various times. They may simply have only wanted to play the part once or twice, or they were later tied up with other projects, making it necessary to cast someone else. Other characters, like Catwoman, were also played by more than one actress.
26th Jan 2016
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004)
Question: How could Hermione attend classes back in time, when all the others were seeing her? When she travelled with Harry, they were told they can't be seen.
Answer: Hermione had special permission, arranged by Dumbledore from the Ministry of Magic to use the Time Turner to take classes that were scheduled at the same time. Its use was carefully regulated and Hermione was instructed on how to utilize it so that she could attend multiple classes without other students noticing. When she is traveling with Harry to rescue Sirius, she is explaining to Harry that they must not be seen at the same time as the "other" Harry and Hermione that are in the past.
23rd Jan 2016
The Karate Kid (2010)
Question: Why are Cheng, Liang, Zhuang and all the other boys so mean to Dre and why do they hate Dre so much even when Dre minds his own business? When Dre leaves them alone, why don't they leave Dre alone? They seem to be attacking Dre for no apparent reason like they're psychopaths. Are they purely malicious and evil at heart?
Answer: Cheng is picking on Dre because Dre developed a crush on Meiying, a violinist, but it is implied that she is Cheng's love interest since his family is close to Meiying's. After Dre develops a crush on Meiying and she reciprocates those feelings, Cheng becomes jealous and vindictive. From then on, Cheng and his gang continually bully Dre. As bullies usually do, they attack someone they perceive as being weaker, purely for malicious reasons.
It is not because of the crush but it is because Dre was trying to give the sheet back to Meying and Cheng pushed him to throw it on the floor. Then Dre challenged Cheng to a fight and tried his best. After that Cheng started showing no mercy to Dre and Dre became a prey.
14th Jan 2016
The Maze Runner (2014)
Question: Ben has been stung when he was in the forest trying to kill Thomas. How did he get stung? Did a griever come from the maze into the forest? And why was it significant that he got stung during the day?
Answer: Ben was a runner and he was stung by a griever while he and the other runners were exploring the maze, as they did every day, looking for a way out. The maze was always safe as long it was occupied during the daytime. At night, the gates automatically closed, protecting the glade while the grievers roamed the maze's passageways. Anyone caught in the maze at night would be killed. It is significant that Ben was stung during the day because it showed that the stability of the maze, the glade, and the system the boys had been living with was changing in an unexpected and ominous way.
16th Nov 2015
The Man From U.N.C.L.E. (1964)
Question: Why would Solo compare the descending elevator to an Eaton's department store, when these only existed in Canada?
27th Jan 2014
Downton Abbey (2010)
Episode #3.6 - S3-E6
Question: When Robert and Cora come to see the doctor at the end of the episode to hear his explanation about Cybil's death, who shows them into the room? It looks a lot like Bates, who hasn't been released from prison yet.
Answer: Although this looks a bit like Bates with a similar build and darker coloring, it is actually Lady Violet Crawley's butler, Spratt, who is showing them into the drawing room. They are meeting at Violet's house to talk with Dr. Clarkson about Sybil's death. Also, Bates was never a butler, he was a valet, and would never be the one to show people into a drawing room or anywhere else. Servants' roles and duties were strictly defined.
28th Dec 2015
Spider-Man 3 (2007)
Question: This might be a dumb question and more character choice or ignorance, but when Mary Jane is fired from the play she asks "One critic?" to which she gets the response of "No. All of them." Why would she just read or hear of one review? Even if they all said the same thing she would have probably read more than one to look for even the slightest chance of a positive review.
Answer: She most likely knows how bad she was, has gotten poor reviews from previous plays, and couldn't bring herself to read or hear more than one terrible review this time. Nobody wants to read/hear negative things about themselves, and she may be hoping someone will tell her that there is at least one positive review about her.
28th Dec 2015
Mrs. Doubtfire (1993)
Question: When the monkey puppet on Mrs. Doubtfire's show says "Here's a monkey bite!", sometimes the monkey is shown on the TV screen next to Lundy and sometimes it's not shown and only zoomed in on Lundy watching (without the monkey at all seen). It seems TV or cable stations/DVD all have one of these versions or the other. Why is it different? Was something inappropriate about a puppet monkey "biting"?
Answer: When movies are shown on TV they are often edited using what is called a "pan and scan" format to fit the television screen. Movie screens are much wider, and when movies are shown on television as they were originally filmed, the image on the sides are cut off. Sometimes movies are shown on TV in a "letter box" format, where you see the black lines at the top and bottom of the TV screen. This shows the entire scene, but it is much smaller overall. "Pan and scan" is edited to cut back and forth between the scene to show the different characters, usually when it is their time to be speaking. Otherwise, one character may be talking, but the audience cannot see them, confusing the plot. The version of "Mrs Doubtfire" that you were watching is done in "pan and scan."
16th Dec 2015
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 (2010)
Question: Why is it necessary for Draco to confirm that the real Harry has been captured by the bounty hunters? Lucius and Bellatrix have each dealt with Harry before.
Answer: Lucius and Bellatrix were unable to confirm Harry's identity because Hermione had jinxed his face to disguise him just before the snatchers captured them. They are fairly certain it is Harry, but as Bellatrix says, if they summon Lord Voldemort, and they are wrong, he will kill them all. Of all the Death Eaters at Malfoy Hall, no one knows Harry better than Draco, having spent more time with him because they were schoolmates. Lucius and Bellatrix have to be absolutely sure that this is Harry Potter.
16th Dec 2015
Jurassic Park (1993)
Question: Why is the lawyer visiting the mines at the beginning of the film? He ultimately brings along Dr Malcolm so why go see a 'digger' who is not Grant?
Chosen answer: Hammond was being pressured to have outside consultants evaluate the feasibility of the park's ability to function in both a safe and profitable manner. Hammond relents to the demands but he wants Dr. Alan Grant, whose research he has been supporting for the past three years, to evaluate the park. Hammond believes Grant will endorse the park, especially after Hammond offers to continue funding Grant's dig for another three years. That potentially makes Grant's conclusions biased, and the other investors want more varied opinions, including one about Dr. Grant, which is why the lawyer visits the other paleontologist.
16th Dec 2015
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (2002)
Question: Wouldn't Lockhart be subject to disciplinary action by the Ministry of Magic considering he attempted to run away from Hogwarts whilst a student was missing and in danger, and he should have been there to help with the rest of the staff?
Chosen answer: Considering that he was rendered mentally incapacitated by the backfiring spell from Ron's broken wand, he would not be considered competent, at that time, to be charged with any wrongdoing. If you watch the film until after the end credits, it is seen that Lockhart is confined to a mental institution with little of his memory left intact. Most likely his actions were reported to the authorities, and if he ever regained his senses, would likely face some sort of inquiry about what happened at Hogwarts.
16th Dec 2015
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 (2011)
Question: When Hermione goes to Gringotts disguised as Bellatrix, the bank manager asks to see her wand. Hermione has Bellatrix's wands from the previous film. Why does she not simply show it?
Chosen answer: Hermione knows this is an unusual request and she and (and Harry) suspect the bank knows that Bellatrix's wand was captured by Harry Potter (at the end of Part 1). Showing the bank manager the real wand would prove that this is not Bellatrix. The bank and Voldemort's minions expected that Harry and the others might go to Gringotts searching for a Horcrux in the Lestrange's vault. They are setting a trap for Harry and his accomplices.
Incidentally, if I remember right, in the book Hermione actually does hand over Bellatrix's wand, not realizing the Gringotts goblins already know the wand is no longer in her possession, forcing Harry to cast a timely Imperius Curse to avoid the entire plan being exposed.
16th Dec 2015
Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (2001)
Question: I get that the DADA role is cursed because of Voldemort being denied the role when he applied for it at Hogwarts, but why does Dumbledore not let Snape take the role like he's wanted to every year? I thought Snape was a double agent (he spies on the Death Eaters and Voldemort for Dumbledore, and he pretends to be on Voldemort's side too), so unless Voldemort decides that he wants to get rid of him for being in the role, he's okay to take it on provided he's given it, and yet every year, Dumbledore turns down his application. Is it because Snape's too involved in Voldemort's side of things or some other reason? I hope I explained it well.
Chosen answer: There are several reasons. First, the position is cursed, so there is little reason to give Snape the job when he will not last any longer than all the previous instructors. If Snape did become the DADA instructor, something could happen to him that could result in his being harmed, having to leave Hogwarts, or be otherwise incapacitated in some way; that would render him useless to Dumbledore as a double agent. Also, Dumbledore trusts Snape, but putting him in an environment where he is teaching about dark magic on a daily basis would be too tempting and emotionally compromising to someone who had been so easily seduced by the dark side. He could possibly relapse. It would be like having a recovering alcoholic work as a bartender. Of course, he does eventually become the DADA instructor, and lasted no longer than his predecessors.
In the movies it is never mentioned that DADA role was cursed by Voldemort.
This is true; though it doesn't say it's not either. With trying to fit 7 long books and years worth of pages of HP information in 2 and a half hours; as long as the movie doesn't say it's not cursed, with our knowledge, there is no problem with reporting that it is. Even directors of non-book movies do this all the time; leave background information out that helps explain things they just didn't have time so they explained it behind the scenes.
16th Dec 2015
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2005)
Question: Why does Barty Crouch Jr. flee when the prisoner says his name? Surely the minister's son could easily claim that the desperate prisoner trying to get out of jail's claim is completely false. And was the man in prison in that scene the Damstrung headmaster, and if yes, is that why he and Moody (Crouch) were so suspicious of each other in the trophy room right after Harry's name was drawn?
Chosen answer: Even though Barty Jr. could claim he was being set up, he would have been interrogated using veritase serum, a potion that forces wizards to tell the truth. Some can circumvent its effect, but Barty was not a talented enough wizard to do this. The prisoner who implicated him in that scene was Igor Karkaroff, who became headmaster of Durmstrang, the wizard school that was participating in the Triwizard Tournament. Karkiroff was a Death Eater who defected to Dumbledore's side. Moody (a disguised Barty Jr.) would never have trusted him under any circumstances. Karkaroff had been previously pursued and captured by the real Mad Eye Moody, and would naturally have a negative reaction to being around him.
Answer: Barty Crouch Jr. appeared to be a fanatical Voldemort supporter, not unlike Bellatrix Lestrange and several other death eaters. They refused to deny their allegiance. This differs from the book, where Barty does protest his innocence, but his father refuses to spare him mercy to set an example.
14th Dec 2015
Twilight (2008)
Question: Near the end of the movie, at the prom, when Bella and Edward first walk in, Bella spots Jessica and signals something to her with her hand going across her chest. What was Bella signalling to Jessica?
Chosen answer: Earlier, when the girls were shopping for prom dresses in Port Angeles, Jessica commented that the low-cut dress she was trying on made her boobs "look good." She is wearing that same dress at the prom, and Bella is gesturing and then giving a "thumbs up" that Jessica's cleavage does look good. Jessica mouths back, "I know."
26th Nov 2015
The Color Purple (1985)
Question: Shug and Celie found the hiding place in the floor in the bedroom looking for the letters. They found naked pictures, money, and of course the letters from Nettie. There were also some vials of something. What was inside of the vials?
30th Nov 2015
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 (2011)
26th Nov 2015
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
Question: Sirius says that Snape already knew a lot of curses when they started at Hogwarts. How could Snape have been practising outside of school if he was underage?
Answer: It was never said he was actually practising. Like Hermione, he learned much about magic by extensive reading. Snape, unlike Hermione, was born into a wizard family and could also learn much by observing others. Also, J.K. Rowling later explained that wizard children could not always be monitored if they used magic or not, because the adults in the same household would also be casting charms and spells. The "trace" put on under-aged wizards could not specifically identify individuals while they were in their homes.
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Answer: Eastwood would be out on height alone and the rest probably have high blood pressure. https://www.nasa.gov/centers/johnson/pdf/606877main_FS-2011-11-057-JSC-astro_trng.pdf.