Answered questions about specific movies, TV shows and more

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Answer: No, she doesn't die. Summary from Wikipedia: Paikia climbs onto the back of the largest whale and coaxes it to re-enter the ocean. The whale leads the whale pod back into the sea; Paikia submerges completely underwater before being thrown off the whale's back by the tide. The spectators fear she has drowned. When Paikia is found alive and brought to the hospital, her grandfather, Koro, declares her the new tribal chief. At the end, Paikia and her family are on the beach, watching the completed canoe being launched into the sea for its maiden voyage.

raywest

Question: Why did the old T-800 prevent his younger self from killing three punks and stealing their clothes? I mean, these punks were meaningless to it, so why did it save them?

Answer: The T-800 "Pops" was working with Sarah Connor, and they were trying to eliminate any Terminator sent back in time. The punks were incidental and the aim was not necessarily to save them, but Sarah probably also wanted to minimise the collateral deaths as much as possible by destroying the machines as soon as they emerged.

Sierra1

Question: When Balin meets with Dwalin in Bilbo's home, he says "Sharp enough for both of us." before they headbutt each other. What exactly does he mean?

Bunch Son

Answer: They're brothers who greet each other with good-natured verbal barbs. When Balin says, "sharp enough for both of us," he jokingly means he's the smarter of the two and has enough intelligence for both. The head butt is their version of a hug.

raywest

Show generally

Question: Why are the computers in the office on "our" side so outdated? Phones aren't, and we see computers elsewhere that are modern. People get visas to come through into the world as a whole, so they'll see technological differences there - why keep the office so behind the times?

Jon Sandys

Answer: Great question, this bothered me too. Throughout the series, both sides take extraordinary measures to protect their technologies, but several times allow people to enter on official visas with unsupervised access. This is a plot mistake.

Answer: I couldn't find any info on the name "Teeger," but Monk got his name because they wanted to come up with a simple, single-syllable name for the protagonist that could easily stick in your head. They eventually settled on "Monk," which seemed to fit the character.

TedStixon

Just learned Bitty Schram's middle name is Natalie. Of course I'm overthinking it, but it's interesting.

Jlglassett

Obviously without confirmation from a writer that's where they got the name, you can't be sure. But it is an interesting fact that makes it seem plausible that the writers used her middle name as a tribute when she was let go from the show.

Bishop73

Answer: From what I could see, it was never specified what caused their strained relationship. Many sisters just don't get along for a variety of reasons-jealousy, resentment, rivalry, personality clashes, etc. Of course, it serves the plot and is a common movie trope that Cecilia has little family support to help with her situation, adding to the suspense as she tries to escape Adrian on her own.

raywest

Answer: Controlling husbands like Adrian severely restrict who their wives can see and talk to, so Adrian most likely interfered with Cecilia maintaining a positive relationship with her sister. Cecilia's sister probably did not know how controlling and manipulative Adrian was, so assumed it was Cecilia who did not want to be close to her. Adrian made it appear as though it was Cecilia's choice, but it was actually the restrictions he placed on Cecilia that caused the strain between the sisters.

KeyZOid

Answer: Because an email was sent from Cecilia but really from Adrian (the invisible man) saying that her sister was suffocating her. And that Cecilia didn't want to see her anymore.

And these were the types of stunts Adrian had been doing for years, creating tension and causing spite between the sisters.

KeyZOid

Question: Two questions. 1. Since Frederick knew that Annabelle was cheating on him with David, why didn't Frederick just file for a divorce? 2. Since Frederick's plan was to murder Annabelle and David, then why invite the others? Why not just take Annabelle to the house, kill her and then invite David and do the same thing? If nobody else had been at the house, he could have got away with it especially since the acid would have left no trace of Annabelle or David.

Answer: Because then there wouldn't be a movie. It's called "suspension of disbelief", where we accept that movie characters often make decisions that, in real life, they would not. This only becomes a problem if it negatively affects the believability of the story within the universe of the film. If the entire plot depends on a questionable/unrealistic choice, then the filmmakers really have no choice but to lean into it and hope the audience goes along for the ride.

Question: Why does the tank point at Guy when he asks for a cappuccino? The cop says, "someone's getting shot" as if the game will kill him if he doesn't follow his code, but we know that's not the case. (00:09:12)

Answer: The cops are there to enforce the rules of the game and Guy's not following them. In GTA-type games like Free City, when you get Wanted, every cop in the game knows right where you are. This is playing on that.

Captain Defenestrator

Question: At the end of the film, Phil finally wakes up in bed with Rita on the day after Groundhog Day (meaning he's finally broken out of the time-loop and temporal continuity is restored). Doesn't this necessarily imply that everything he did the day before will have repercussions for him? I mean, as far as everyone knows, Phil Connors just suddenly became a local sensation in one day, flashing a lot of money on the same day as the armored car robbery. Wouldn't Phil naturally fall under suspicion?

Charles Austin Miller

Answer: On that particular previous day, he didn't rob the armored car. All he did was spend the day doing good deeds and the only repercussions will be people thinking highly of him.

Brian Katcher

A huge part of his "good deeds," no doubt, was his flashing a lot of money around town, buying a full insurance package from Ned, paying the piano teacher a significant wad of cash, gifting the newlyweds tickets for their honeymoon, etc. That's a big part of how Phil became so beloved by so many townspeople in one day. Plus, he bought the ice-carving chainsaw and who knows what else. He wasn't just pulling all that cash out of thin air. I think robbing the armored car every morning had become second-nature to Phil.

Charles Austin Miller

Phil seemed to be trying to do everything just right to break the cycle. It's unlikely he would choose to rob the armor truck. And it's unlikely the truck was robbed that day. However, Phil was a professional with a good paying job. Rita herself had almost $400 in cash on her. If Phil didn't have that much cash on him, he could easily get it from the bank and then write checks (or use a credit card) for everything else.

Bishop73

Question: Who is the woman that pops out of the lake and grabs Chris near the end? This is the first and last time that we see her, but who was she? And, was Chris dreaming/hallucinating or did it really happen?

Answer: It was the decomposing body of Jason's mother, Pamela Voorhees. (Who, as I'm sure you know, was the killer in the original movie.) And it was just a nightmare. It didn't actually happen.

TedStixon

Question: Why doesn't it show Luke turning into a mouse with all the smoke?

Answer: We've already witnessed Bruno being turned into a mouse so there's no need for us to see Lukes transformation as we already know how his transformation is going to be.

Question: This may sound like a silly question, but who are the pirates who don't do anything?

Answer: Exactly what they call themselves. Pirates who don't do anything, they just stay home and lay around. It's from a veggie tales silly song from an older release.

Would they be genuine pirates if they didn't do anything? A pirate is basically a person who attacks, and robs ships at sea.

Question: Why was Dr. Grant so dismissive of Tim when they first met? I can understand Grant being annoyed with the bratty kid at the dig site but Tim showed a genuine interest in dinosaurs and even mentioned he'd read Grant's book.

Answer: Dr. Grant doesn't like kids. Any kids.

lionhead

That was an issue between him and Ellie Sattler, who wanted to have a family, while he did not. She eventually married someone else and had kids.

raywest

Answer: Grant just has a low opinion of kids in general. He probably thinks Tim is too young to really understand or appreciate the research that Grant has dedicated most of his life to. Also, Tim can come across as a little "too much" at times; he talks really fast and barely gives Grant a chance to get a word in edgewise.

Question: Why does Brad take the blame for Charlie for shooting April with the slingshot? If he tells dad that Charlie had done that, he would've told him it was an accident.

Trainman

Answer: Charlie had become a chronic drunk and the town considered him a crackpot with his claims about alien abductions being foretold through his dental work. Even though it was an accident, he could have been declared incompetent and a danger to himself and others; he possibly could have been involuntarily committed. Brad is protecting him.

raywest

Question: After being shot we see Valentina wrapping her arms around her abdomen. When Jackal approaches her she slowly raises her arms and reveals her wound. Why did she do that?

Answer: Agree with the other answer, but would add this was likely also a directorial decision to show the audience how seriously wounded she is, foreshadowing her eventual demise.

raywest

Answer: I believe she knew she was dying and was making a last ditch effort to stop him. It may have been a futile try, but how many dying criminals have done the same thing, getting that last shot at the Hero.

Question: How did the police not come across the fact that Nichols drove Richard's car, meaning he had access to the keys to the house or that a phone call was made from the car while it was in his possession? Surely this would have been known or mentioned to the investigators since they had a timeline of Richard being at the fundraiser?

Movielover1996

Answer: Yes, but as is shown in the film, the police investigation was incompetent at best. They decided very early on that Richard was guilty, and did only the most rudimentary of legwork to prove their theory, while not following up on leads like this one that would just muddy the waters. Definitely a misstep on behalf of Richard's defense not to bring it up at trial, of course.

For sure, the Chicago PD thought they had an easy open and shut case and did no real investigation. That's why they are still mad at the end because they were jerks who didn't want to admit how lazy they were.

Answer: Possibly, but very unlikely. The mid-credits scene in Spider-Man: No Way Home sees Eddie Brock telling his bartender that he intends to go to New York to "talk to this Spider-Man guy" (paraphrased), which would suggest he's never heard of Spider-Man before, and if he occupied the same universe as the Andrew Garfield version, he would definitely know who Spider-Man is, not least because Eddie is an investigative journalist, and Spider-Man would undoubtedly be one of, if not the most, famous persons on the planet.

Phaneron

Answer: No, it's established that Tom Hardy's Venom is in a universe of his own. The mid-credit scene of "Let There Be Carnage," shows him jumping into the MCU and seeing Spider-Man for the first time. At the end of "No Way Home," he wants to go to New York, but is pulled back, but leaving a piece behind. Somebody will be Venom in the MCU, maybe rich kid Eddie Brock, his arrongance would be perfect for Venom.

Venom, as in the symbiote, knows who Spider-Man is and has been to multiple universes. It's Eddie Brock that seems unaware of Spider-Man. Although there was that "incident at the Daily Globe", which in the comics is what started Brock's hatred of Spider-Man.

Bishop73

Answer: I agree it's unlikely he's in the Garfield universe. At the time of the film, Tom Holland was already Spider-Man. It would be different if this Venom film came out before 2016. But the Symbiote has been to other universes in the multiverse as explained in "Venom: Let There Be Carnage", so it's possible it's been to the Garfield universe and could be the same one from the Maguire universe.

Bishop73

Question: How was Batman able to get to Harvey Dent faster than police to Rachel? I mean, I can think Bat's technology being way faster of course. But for example: if all units were sent to Rachel's location, there might have been some units patrolling near her location so it would have been faster to have them go there first. Right? What other possibilities am I not considering?

Paradox Rastafa

Answer: I honestly think within the context of the movie, we are just meant to assume that most units are either at the police station (given a high-profile terrorist suspect - the Joker - and many of his goons were just captured) or still at the scene of the massive chase that just occurred earlier in the night, since there was a lot of destruction or chaos. Thus, there simply wouldn't be any available units closer to Rachel's location. It's a little far-fetched, sure... but it's basic "suspension of disbelief." It's required dramatically for the plot to progress. (Similar to the fact that in the sequel, many of the Gotham City PD got stuck underground by Bane... it's a little far-fetched, but it works for the plot.) Batman was simply able to get to Dent's location faster since he's using the batpod, which is a bit of a technological marvel and can get around much quicker and easier than a police car.

TedStixon

Answer: This could be a plot hole, but I would posit: Given how corrupt/easily corruptible the Gotham police are, it's likely the Joker may have bribed/threatened/otherwise coerced the beat cops to a) steer clear of the areas where he was holding Dent and Rachel, or b) ignore the call to go to that location. You're right that Batman's tech is what allows him to reach Dent faster than Gordon et al. Reach Rachel; the Joker set it up that way, so that whoever Batman saves means the other one dies.

Answer: Batman showed up only a few seconds before the GPD, they arrived as the building blew.

Question: McElroy is gutshot at close range. Operated on w/ rusty pliers, no drugs. Minutes later he walks around, and next day seems fine as he rides in a posse. Totally impossible! Shouldn't he be dead?

Answer: Obviously. But to quote Josephus, movies is magic.

You Only Move Twice - S8-E2

Question: I, like Marge, don't know much about football. Why is Homer disappointed to own the Denver Broncos team? I know his first choice was owning the Dallas Cowboys, but he seems to especially dislike the Broncos.

Answer: I don't think the writers had anything particular in mind when choosing the Denver Broncos to be the butt of the joke. But I wonder if it's meant to be a clue where Springfield is. But, while this episode did air late 1996 when the Broncos had a winning season, given the amount of time needed to produce the episode, it was written when the Broncos were a mediocre team at best. From '92-'95 they had a 32-32 record and never finished higher than 3rd in their division. And the Cowboys and Broncos are in separate conferences, so they're not particularly rivals. But as Phaneron points out, the Broncos ended up winning back-to-back Super Bowls in the following 2 season after this episode aired, so Homer is a very lucky guy.

Bishop73

Probably also worth mentioning that by the time this episode had aired, the Broncos had an 0-4 record in the Super Bowl, and to this day I believe they hold the record for most Super Bowl losses.

Phaneron

The Buffalo Bills also had an 0-4 record at the time of airing having lost 4 straight years.

ctown28

The Vikings are also 0-4 in the Super Bowl. The Patriots have 5 losses (although only had 1 at the time this episode aired).

Bishop73

True, and they would have been a funnier pick for Homer to end up owning, given that two consecutive of those four Super Bowl losses were to the Cowboys. Although Homer fantasizing about being John Elway in the episode Cape Feare makes his disdain for the Broncos rather funny.

Phaneron

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