Question: At the dinner table in 1955, Marty's grandfather is there. It has always appeared to me that there is something off about his appearance. He seems to appear as if he was not actually there, and that he was spliced into the footage from another movie. The lighting on his face, his style of hair, the quality so to speak of him, just seems off from everyone else. He almost seems like he is from a black and white movie, spliced in and colorized a bit Is it supposed to be that he was to look this way, or did they actually take this actor's scene from another movie and splice it in?
Phaneron
25th Jan 2019
Back to the Future (1985)
20th Jan 2019
Spider-Man 3 (2007)
Question: Why did Peter put part of his black symbiote suit on when going over to Harry's?
Answer: The longer Peter wore the symbiote, the more influence it had on him. It was effectively making Peter do things that he would never do and because Peter saw how much stronger it made him, he began to wear it more than his original suit.
Answer: He typically wears his suit underneath his regular clothes to begin with if he's not going out for sole purpose of being Spider-Man and patrolling the city.
20th Jan 2019
Iron Man 2 (2010)
Question: Why do many people consider this to be one of the worst Marvel movies?
Answer: Having rewatched it recently I thought about this. At least partly it's because *at the time* some people felt it spent too long putting Avengers pieces in place, introducing Nick Fury more, Scarlet Widow, Tony's dad's history, etc. In hindsight however that aspect fits perfectly with the other films that came after it, so feels much less jarring now. I'd also say that Whiplash was somewhat underwhelming, and Sam Rockwell was criminally underused. Personally I'd rate Thor: The Dark World lower than this, but would also argue that the "worst" Marvel film is very much a relative term, as while some may be better than others, they've yet to really release a true stinker.
Answer: I absolutely love the MCU, and I consider this to be one of the weaker entries. Not because of world building and setting up future films, I never had a problem with that. I just personally find the story to be a little lackluster, and the villain to be rather bland (to be fair, I always thought Iron Man had a pretty weak rogues gallery anyway).
14th Jan 2019
Spider-Man 3 (2007)
Question: What exactly happens with Peter Parker and Mary Jane's relationship at the end of the movie? I know they reconcile, but afterwards do they get back together and get married or is it purposefully left ambiguous?
10th Jan 2019
Room (2015)
Question: Why did Joy's father not want to talk to Jack, and why could he not even look at Jack when Joy asked him?
Answer: It's not explained. For whatever reason, he apparently is unable accept that his grandson is the illegitimate product of rape. He may consider his daughter to now be sullied from the experience, and possibly blames her in some way, even though she was a victim. It is also possible he may believe that he somehow failed to protect her.
9th Jan 2019
Step by Step (1991)
Question: Who is the brunette kid in the yellow shirt in the beginning? It's supposed to be Marc but it's not.
Answer: From what I've read, the kid in question was the original actor cast to play Mark and was intended be closer in age to Brendan. For whatever reason, they recast the role with Christopher Castile and didn't bother removing the original actor from the beginning of the opening credits. I guess they figured people would just assume the kid was one of Brendan's friends.
29th Dec 2018
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003)
Question: Why was Merry's hand burned when he stabbed the back of the witch king's leg?
That's caused by his breath and I don't think he breathes from his leg.
How was Merry even able to stab the witch king's leg anyway? It's been said that no man can kill the witch king.
Going back to the books for more explanation: First: it wasn't a protection. It was a prophecy/prediction by Glorfindel a millennium earlier. Second: the weapon Merry had in the books was a barrow-blade recovered by Tom Bombadil while saving the Hobbits from the barrow wights and had been enchanted directly against the Witch King. Since the scene (and Tom) were not in the film, they went with a more specific interpretation. The Witch King was not killed by a man, but by a Hobbit and a woman.
Answer: Because of what the Witch King is made of, his blood (or whatever) burns the skin of a mortal. Maybe even being too close will cause burns.
28th Dec 2018
Cape Fear (1991)
Question: So how exactly did Max Cady slip past Kersec's security system and get into the house? Did he kill the maid outside and then just walk in disguised as her?
Answer: He snuck in during the day and hid, before Kersec's teddy bear security system was set up. Sam Bowden realises this when he wakes from a nightmare. Its how he was able to poison the dog which hadnt been let outside. Max Cady killed the maid in the pantry with the same piano wire he later attacks Kersec with.
Answer: Kersec suspected that Cady might attempt to break into the Bowden house if he thought it was empty. His plan was for Cady to break in and then be shot dead as an intruder. He likely lessened the security to allow Cady to break in. Cady killed and then impersonated the housekeeper to get in.
I like your answer but I'm a little confused by the "lessened the security" part. If I'm not mistaken, every possible point of entry into the house at least from the ground floor was connected to the bear via the fishing line, so Kersec would know if a point of entry was disturbed by the bear moving. Where would Kersec lessen the security from that standpoint, especially since his setup was supposed to be foolproof?
Kersec wanted Cady to be able to break in so that there would be a plausible reason to shoot him dead. The idea is to make it look like his death was a result of self defense. I'm only speculating that Kersec made it easier for Cady to break in into the house. Being as it was his security system, he would know how to make it possible for Cady to get in.
29th Dec 2018
Dead Silence (2007)
27th Dec 2018
Home Alone 2: Lost in New York (1992)
Question: What happened to the limo on the curb of the toy store after Kevin got out? Why did the limo driver leave him there?
Answer: During that time, the hotel found out the credit card Kevin used was stolen. So since they were the ones who got the limo for Kevin, it's safe to assume they also called it back.
Answer: When Kevin exits the toy store he doesn't look around for the limo but instead pulls out his map to examine it. This would suggest that Kevin was intending to do some more sightseeing on foot and likely told the limo driver not to wait for him.
When Kevin got outside the toy store, he did look around like he was confused, and after that, he raised his shoulders.
27th Dec 2018
Zodiac (2007)
27th Dec 2018
Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace (1999)
Question: What did Palpatine mean when he said to Anakin, "We will watch your career with great interest"?
Answer: I believe the line was meant as foreshadowing so fans would get it if they have watched the original trilogy they can make the connection from Anakin to Vader so they are aware of his fate. It also shows that Palpatine had his eye on Anakin for a long time to eventually recruit him as his apprentice.
17th Dec 2018
General questions
I saw a TV movie in the early 90s. The plot centered around a man abducting a young boy under the guise that he was a co-worker of the boy's father and that he was looking after the kid while the dad was tied up in a meeting. At one point in the movie, the kid is keeping his distance from the man in an attic and manages to break his nose with a canoe paddle. Later in the movie, someone else tries to claim the kid. The kidnapper says the kid got away and the other man says "What did he do, punch you in the nose?" The two get into a scuffle that ends with the kidnapper killing the other man by stabbing a screwdriver into his neck. At the end of the film when the boy is rescued, rather than face the consequences, the kidnapper commits suicide by jumping out of the window. Anyone have any idea what the title of this movie is?
Chosen answer: The kid taking refuge in the attic and the kidnapper jumping out of the window, is from a 1990 TV movie, Bump in the Night. Christopher Reeve takes a little boy to his N.Y. townhouse. The boy evades him long enough to call his mother, Meredith Baxter, for help.
13th Dec 2018
End of Days (1999)
27th Nov 2018
Star Wars (1977)
Question: When Obi-Wan tells Luke about Darth Vader murdering his father, Luke doesn't seem to have heard of Vader before. But he knows about the rebellion and wants to go to the Imperial Academy (so he can defect later). Shouldn't he know who Vader is?
Answer: Not necessarily. The Empire is infamous, but that doesn't mean everyone will know who their higher-ups are. I know who the Ku Klux Klan are, but I couldn't tell you who their leaders are.
This. Or possibly, Luke knows who Vader is but just doesn't comment while Obi-wan is talking.
Answer: For most of his early life, Luke lived a simple, rustic life. His aunt and uncle knew his parentage and no doubt suppressed information about the Empire from him. Luke is naive and still has a limited and generalized knowledge of the rebellion, most of which was gleaned from talking to friends. He has little awareness of who the key players are.
Answer: Remember that Luke was hidden on Tatooine as a baby, and Obiwan also went into hiding there, presumably as a protector to keep Luke's very existence a secret from Darth Vader. It could be that Obiwan remotely exercised Jedi mind-tricks on Luke throughout his young life to block any curiosity about Vader.
2nd Oct 2018
Hereditary (2018)
Question: After Peter is possessed by Charlie and he clicks his tongue for the first time after standing up, he starts to walk towards the tree house and heads off screen. The camera lingers though, and focuses in on something lying on the ground in the background. What is that on the ground? It almost looks like a dead dog or possibly the dead dear from earlier, but the shape isn't quite right. It does appear to be some sort of animal but I can't make it out. What is that the camera lingered on right then? And why? It's not shown again. (01:57:45)
Answer: Earlier in the film, Peter swerves the car to avoid hitting a dead animal in the road, resulting in Charlie's decapitation. That animal appears to be a goat (a ram) with slightly curled horns. Within the context of this movie, this is probably a Sabbatic Goat, alluding to Occult symbolism associated with the Mystic Pentagram and the Satanic deity Baphomet. The implication is that Satanic forces caused Peter to swerve off the road, killing Charlie in preparation for migrating her soul into Peter. The dead animal seen in the background at the end appears to be the Sabbatic Goat again, marking completion of Charlie's soul migration into Peter.
5th Nov 2018
The Sandlot (1993)
Question: At the end of the movie, it shows Benny managing to steal home, being called safe, the catcher arguing that Benny was out and the umpire saying Benny was safe. In slow motion, it shows the catcher catching the ball and tagging Benny as he slides into home so why wasn't Benny called out?
Answer: The umpire got the call wrong in that case. It happens all the time in real life. It wasn't allowed back then, but now Major League Baseball and other sports leagues will use instant replay to make sure they get close calls right.
Answer: The catcher tags Benny on the chest after he touches home plate with his left hand. Safe.
Answer: The film shows Benny beating the tag. Although the ball gets there before Benny, the catcher tags Benny a split second after his hand touches home plate.
5th Nov 2018
Saw II (2005)
Question: Is the SWAT team lead to a different building than Matthews by jigsaw at the end of the film? It looks very similar to the actual crime scene, which is what confuses me so much. If it was the same building they would be able to find Matthews, right?
Answer: It's a different building. It does look extremely similar, but it's not the same building. Given that they are so similar, it's entirely possible that they share a common blueprint design and are part of a development project, which would make sense, as later in the series, John is shown to have had a part in reel estate development.
Detective Mathews is in the real building, the signal the SWAT team finds leads them to a 2nd building which sends the camera feed.
No it was the same building, that's when they found out the tapes were pre recorded because it didn't show them on the cameras.
Answer: When they enter the house, the rugs on the floor are different.
Answer: Yes, he took Matthews to the real building and sent the SWAT team to a duplicate building. But, couldn't they start tracing that building through the feeds in the building he sent the SWAT team through? Oh, and it's kinda BS anyway. There isn't any detective worth his salt, that's been around for as long as he was, that wouldn't have dragged Jigsaw in by his ear and stuck his gun right against his head the whole walk down to that toilet. After all the crap he's done, now all of a sudden the detective is going to trust Jigsaw and trust the key that he handed him? I would've said you hold on to that key. You're going to be the one using it.
30th Oct 2018
Beetlejuice (1988)
Question: Is there any reason besides plot convenience that the Deetzes didn't enter the attic during the three months that the Maitlands were away from the house to meet with Juno? I realise they don't have the key, but seeing as how they were renovating the entire house anyway, it seems like they would have had no problem just knocking the door down.
Answer: No reason was given, but they probably felt no immediate need to enter the attic. I've never been in my own house's attic. As you pointed out, it's really a matter of plot convenience.
Answer: After the dinner scene when Otho asked where they hid and Lydia said "the attic" Charles replied that the attic was locked. So it seems like she never told them she had the skeleton key.
I addressed this in the question. A key is not required to get into the attic because they could just break the door down.
Except they didn't break the door down. Delia kept banging on the door until it opened. If they had broken the door down, there would have been some damage.
Answer: This is purely for convenience. It's always bothered me. Like since the early 90s when I first had a VHS copy to rewind. That whole house has been gutted and rebuilt but no-one got in to the attic for 3 months? That's BS. For one thing not only would someone like Charles Deets want to see every square inch of his property, but a major company/contractor doing a remodel of that size would have at some time needed access to and been on every square foot of that house.
Quite often, people don't think about the attic along with the rest of the house. Many of them won't be going into the attic every day, not every month, maybe not more than once a year.
30th Oct 2018
Home Alone 2: Lost in New York (1992)
Question: Why are they all so shocked that Kevin called Frank a cheapskate? He is. He also just practically admitted that he's not paying for this trip?
Answer: Not only was it disrespectful toward his uncle, when a kid Kevin's age says something like that, it is often attributed to overhearing and repeating what adults said. The implication is that Frank would now know what his adult relatives thought of him. They are shocked partly because they are embarrassed and feel guilty.
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Answer: I just pulled up this scene on YouTube, and I think it is just the lighting. The shadow from his wife's head is casting onto his right shoulder in a realistic way, which suggests the actor was there for filming. It would also be impractical logistically and economically to insert him after the fact, because they could simply hire another actor for the part if he was unavailable.
Phaneron ★