Question: When Frank is writing Jane a letter from prison, we see a flashback of his former fiancé running up to a tiny house only for Frank to open the door and knock her off the cliff. Is this a spoof of any particular movie?
Phaneron
31st Aug 2021
Naked Gun 33 1/3: The Final Insult (1994)
24th Aug 2021
Ghost Rider (2007)
Question: The trivia page on IMDB says Nicolas Cage's hairpiece took three hours to apply every day. If this is true, why would it take three hours to apply a hairpiece? Don't they just use adhesive to bond it to the skin? And why would they apply it everyday instead of having him wear it for the duration of the shoot and adjusting it as needed?
Answer: You are right to question the unattributed trivia blurbs on IMDB. The truth is more likely that the hair took 3 hours to apply only on the first day. After that, about 20 minutes max to reapply and touch up as part of the overall makeup process. The goal is optimize the actor's appearance for that day's scenes and lighting, given that the post production colorization will also hide a lot. The hairpiece would be attached with a temporary glue and it's unlikely that the actor would wear the hairpiece home because it's uncomfortable and looks fake.
10th Aug 2021
Blade II (2002)
Question: If Blade knew the bomb on the back of Reinhardt's head wasn't actually a dud like Scud believed it to be, why didn't he detonate it and kill Reinhardt instead of using it to kill Scud? Surely Reinhardt is a bigger threat than Scud. Blade could kill Scud with his bare hands if he wanted to.
Chosen answer: Killing Scud with it probably was more satisfying for Blade than Reinhardt, who he easily beat as well. He hates familiars and that moment he used the bomb to have Scud reveal his betrayal, and then kill him, so he won't get away. Reinhardt he knew would not try to run, he was killing him anyway.
Agreed. I saw it as he was waiting for Scud to show his hand. Like Blade said, he knew Scud was a traitor/a familiar the moment they turned him. He was waiting for the perfect time to let Scud know that he was already well informed on his betrayal, and that his azz was now cooked. Doing it that way was way more satisfying for Blade.
9th Aug 2021
Blade (1998)
Question: At the end when the Russian vampire has his would-be victim in a choke-hold, she says something to him, and he says something in return, but neither lines are subtitled. What are they saying?
Chosen answer: I have taken the Russian subtitles and machine translated them, then edited for clarity. Here they are with and compared to the hard subs from the theatrical release of the movie. Russian version is in brackets. Here is the full conversation... MOSCOW Woman: (A good show. I'm glad we went.) Vampire: (It went well, I thought?) Woman: (Yes, keep up the good work.) Vampire: (I will try.) Woman: It's cold. Where are we going? (I'm so cold. Where are we going?) Vampire: It's a surprise. Woman: Surprise? (Surprise? Really?) Man: (Yes.) Woman: I like surprises. (You know, I like surprises.) Vampire: Then you'll like this - (Then you'll like it very much.) Vampire: (You have such sweet skin!) Woman: (Peter, what are you doing? You're hurting me!) Vampire: (You will live forever.) Woman: (Don't touch me!) Blade: (Hey, good evening.) Blade: Catch you at a bad time - Blade: - Comrade? Vampire then growls until blade draws his sword and it cuts to credits.
9th Aug 2021
Blade (1998)
Question: Why wouldn't the vampire elders just kill Deacon Frost if he's such a problem for them? It's not like they have a code of ethics to follow, plus it would send a message to any other rebellious vampires.
Chosen answer: It would seem Deacon has gathered a lot of strength around himself, in followers of "young" vampires like himself. After he kills Gitano he just abducts all the vampire elders, showing his followers are a lot stronger than the elders are. So they probably couldn't have killed him even if they wanted to, not unless they want to unleash a war. They thought his pursuit of the vampire god was totally pointless, so they let him waste his time and were probably trying to find a way to get rid of him.
8th Aug 2021
Spawn (1997)
Question: How exactly did they make John Leguizamo look so short? Was he just sitting on some seat concealed inside the fat suit?
Chosen answer: He is squatting the entire time in every scene. The suit probably helped in ways to balance himself whilst squatting, so he could hold on much longer than normally.
2nd Aug 2021
General questions
1st Aug 2021
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III (1993)
Question: What's the deal with the awful looking costumes in this movie? Were the costumes from the previous two no longer available?
Answer: Jim Henson's Creature Shop didn't work on the third entry, so they went with someone else.
Why would Jim Henson's Creature Shop have to specifically work on the film? There were already existing suits. Shouldn't the studio have owned the suits, or did Jim Henson's Creature Shop only provide them on a rental basis?
All Effects was the company that provided the suits for the 3rd film. They had similar technology as Jim Henson's Creature Shop but underbid Jim Henson's Creature Shop to get the job.
1st Aug 2021
Happy Gilmore (1996)
Question: Is there any particular reason why there is some kind of wire either hanging or protruding from the golf club when Happy hits a ball for the first time? It's most noticeable when says "Look at this stupid thing."
Chosen answer: The wire is actually some sort of line that would be wrapped around the club attaching the club head to the shaft.
27th Jul 2021
Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me (1999)
Question: When Dr. Evil demands $100 billion in 1969, the President laughs it off and says that amount of money doesn't even exist. However, the U.S. budget in 1969 was $186 billion. Does the President just mean that much physical money doesn't exist? If so, how did the government pay for things back then? Did they just reallocate funds?
Answer: I think it was just exaggerated as a gag. But he was asking for a huge amount of money that probably couldn't get pooled together. He was asking for almost 10% of the U.S. GDP and more than 50% of the budget. So it would have been like asking for $1 trillion in 1999 (or over $2 trillion today).
20th Jul 2021
Hot Shots Part Deux (1993)
Question: What is the symbol on Saddam Hussein's pajamas?
Chosen answer: It appears to be his initials "SH" in the style of the New York Yankees "NY" logo. He's also wearing pinstriped pajamas that look like the Yankees uniform.
15th Jul 2021
Scary Movie 2 (2001)
25th Jun 2021
General questions
I once saw part of a movie I think from the 1980's that featured Christopher McDonald, and I believe he was in a club looking for his son, and I think there was also a man in the club that had a really tall mohawk. Anyone know the name of the movie?
Chosen answer: Maybe "Conflict of Interest"? That came out in 1993.
That's the one. I looked up the movie on YouTube, and luckily the entire thing was uploaded, and I was able to find the scene I was describing, though it appears the guy with the mohawk didn't have it styled straight up, but was parted. Interesting that it came out in 1993, because the hairstyles and wardrobe for the film definitely have an 80's vibe to them.
24th Jun 2021
The Butterfly Effect (2004)
13th Jun 2021
Friends (1994)
The One With Ross's Tan - S10-E3
Question: I occasionally perform spray tans as a side gig, and the solution usually takes around 8 hours to set. Is there any reason aside from creating a comedy situation that the spray tan salon wouldn't just tell Ross to immediately go home and shower so that his tan won't look so ridiculous?
Answer: None at all. It's played for laughs and that's all. If we really wanted to give it a real-world explanation, we can speculate that maybe Ross stormed out of the tanning salon without giving the staff a chance to recommend a shower.
10th Jun 2021
Unknown (2011)
Question: How is Martin able to freely travel at the end? I get that he has fake passports, but given that he admitted to the German police that he is an assassin, and that he is the one who planted the bomb in the hotel, wouldn't they have shared his picture with Interpol, regardless of the fact that he prevented the deaths of Bressler and the Saudi prince?
10th Jun 2021
Friends (1994)
Question: There are a few episodes where Phoebe is talking with her twin sister Ursula, and one of them will hand something to the other person, and you can tell a stand-in is not being used for one of them because Lisa Kudrow's face is visible for both characters. How do they achieve this effect?
Chosen answer: The effect can be achieved in various ways. Split screen and image overlapping is one method. CGI can simulate body movements making it appear the characters are physically interacting, or a face can be superimposed over a body double. Lisa Kudrow's older sister, Helena, who looks almost exactly like her, was often used as her twin body double, mostly filmed from the back or the side and in scenes where one stood or walked in front of the other.
10th Jun 2021
Friends (1994)
28th May 2021
Bruce Almighty (2003)
Question: Aside from it being a funny scene, is there any reason why the people at the news station would keep the feed on Bruce during his tirade at Niagara Falls instead of switching back to the studio?
Answer: I think they are all just stunned about what they are seeing, and perhaps a little curious.
24th May 2021
Equilibrium (2002)
Question: Why would they need to authenticate the Mona Lisa painting at the beginning? Wouldn't a replica yield the same punishment for whomever is in possession of it?
Answer: They need to know they got the real one because that is the one that is so revered and protected. Not a replica.
Answer: I'm not sure who "they" refers to, so I'm giving a general answer. They need to ascertain the monetary value of the painting in order to know how to proceed. Obviously, an authentic painting (perhaps worth millions of dollars) has a much greater value (selling price) than a fake painting (which could be produced at a small fraction of the cost plus would not hold the same cultural or historical significance). The "punishment" (sentence) that could be imposed may vary with jurisdiction, type of sentencing system, monetary value, and the offender's prior criminal record (if any). Although it may be possible somewhere for the replica to carry the same punishment that is attached to the authentic painting, the extreme difference in value between the two paintings is likely to separate them into different classifications or grades of the offense (felony/misdemeanor or grand/ petit larceny). In general, the grand theft of an authentic painting worth millions carries a heavier sentence.
The plot of this film is that all emotions have been outlawed, as are anything that can stir up emotions (art, literature, music, etc.) Anyone that violates this law is put to death. So someone that has a replica of the Mona Lisa would be executed just the same as someone that has the real thing. Monetary value doesn't factor into the equation, because the police force in the film incinerates all contraband.
Thanks for explaining why my general answer does not apply and is thereby "dead wrong." I know I saw "Equilibrium" but I didn't remember anything about it; it obviously didn't have a lasting impression on me. I should have at least looked it up before giving a general answer. Now I am wondering what the specific answer is... Good question.
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Answer: It's a parody of those Romance Novel advertisement commercials. The young beauty searching for her true love. FYI, that particular scene was originally part of the trailer only. It was never part of the film, but fans protested after an early preview of the movie. They demanded it in the film and it was put in.