Questions about specific movies, TV shows and more

These are questions relating to specific titles. General questions for movies and TV shows are here. Members get e-mailed when any of their questions are answered.

Question: How old are Peter, Lulu, Seth and Zoe?

Answer: Peter - 3. Lulu - 10. Seth - 13. Zoe - 16. Although the children actors were 2-3 years older than the characters they were playing (which isn't uncommon, but more noticeable at these younger ages).

Bishop73

Answer: This is an NYPD Meritorious Police Duty bar, specifically either the Honorable Mention (silver-star) medal, or the Commendation (bronze-star) medal. Recipients are awarded Honorable Mention for "an act of extraordinary bravery intelligently performed in the line of duty at imminent and personal danger to life." And the Commendation is for "grave personal danger in the performance of duty" or "highly creditable unusual police accomplishment."

Super Grover

Question: In the scenes where Rick lights a match to use on a stick of dynamite, he does so by striking the match against either his own ear or the ear of Ardeth Bay. Is there an explanation to how he does this?

Josh West

Answer: He's lighting the match on his beard-stubble by raking it down his face. He's not striking the matches on his ear. It's not practical at all (and in fact, it's basically impossible unless you have beard-stubble like sandpaper), but it's just a cute way for the movie to show how much of a bad-a** he is. In reality behind the scenes, they actually had a strip of matchbox taped to the actor's faces that they were striking the matches on to light them. But with the right camera placement, it looks like they're lighting them on their faces.

TedStixon

Answer: Matches in those days were friction matches, with added red phosphorous so you could light them on basically any surface, as long as you generated enough heat. Some prefer the bottom of their boots, or a wall, but others light them on their own body, or someone else's.

lionhead

Bare skin does not provide the necessary friction to light a match. It's possible to light one using one's fingernail by flicking it hard against the match head, but not with skin. There has to be a hard textured surface to create a spark.

raywest

Rough stubble?

Those matches are known as 'strike anywhere matches', because of the phosphorous coating on the matchhead they can be used on any suitably frictional surface. That's why Rick used Ardeth's stubble beard to strike the matchhead against.

Answer: I don't think he was rubbing the match on bare skin, more likely the edge of where the beard grows. The rough hairs would make the area of skin able to produce enough friction to light the match as long as it was rubbed fast enough.

scaryterri

That is very unlikely, and even if it was possible, it would cause deep pain and injury to the skin.

raywest

Don't be ridiculous. It's not a sanding stone you are rubbing with, it's just a match.

lionhead

Https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=btTR7-HfM-k.

lionhead

Answer: There's no explanation, but really, this is just a movie invention.

raywest

Question: Has it been explained how all those animals (and primates) ended their lives in the tyrannosaurus rex's lair? Did all of them get there by the sand trap(s)? If so, who re-hid them after they had been walked into? Perhaps the lair was used as sacrificial grounds or execution by the primates?

Question: Kyle Reese finds Sarah before the Terminator - why does he need to wait hours, until the Terminator has his laser sighting on Sarah, before approaching her?

Answer: Kyle didn't know what the Terminator looked like so he waited for him to make a move on Sarah so he could identify him in future.

Answer: By saving her life he shows that he means no harm. The terminator on the other hand is out to kill her. By saving her, he's given her a reason to trust him.

Ssiscool

Question: Can anyone explain the dates in the first movie? I am very confused. The Terminator arrives on Thursday May 12 at 1:52 AM. The first killing is on Friday (although there is no indication that more than a full day has passed. Lastly, Sarah's timecard says it is 5/19. This would also be a Thursday (although we know it is a Friday). Has a week really passed? Makes no sense.

Answer: It takes the terminator time to gather weapons and find each victim so yes, time has passed. Easily several days.

Question: How exactly do both the Terminator and Kyle find addresses? We are led to believe that is the reason for the phone books, but none of the addresses in the phone books match up to the addresses where either the first Sarah is killed, nor the apartment of our Sarah.

Answer: Gonna be totally honest... that might just be nothing more than a simple continuity error. They accidentally made a phonebook prop that didn't match up with the locations where they shot, and assumed most people wouldn't notice or care. (And to be even more honest, I never noticed it until I saw this question today.)

TedStixon

Answer: My two cents: The T-800 Terminator does indeed, rip out the page of a phonebook for the address, but remember, he was looking for any and all Sarah Connors, not a specific address. He did not know which Sarah would give birth to John Connor, so by process of elimination he began terminating any woman with the name Sarah Connor. He did plug the first Sarah Connor (a housewife), then went to kill the other Sarah Connors in the phone book.

Scott215

I already gave that answer, but apparently that's not what the question is asking.

Charles Austin Miller

Answer: Both the T-800 and Kyle look up Sarah's address in the phonebook and it's Kyle who rips out a page. Neither uses a police computer; that's the T-1000 in Terminator 2.

But that doesn't answer the question (and it's already been mentioned) since the information in the phonebook appears wrong.

Bishop73

Answer: Kyle we are shown uses a police computer to find the addresses. The T800 just uses the phonebook as you mentioned. He rips the page out and takes it with him.

Ssiscool

Except 2 of the addresses in the phone book don't match. So how does the Terminator find them using the phonebook?

Bishop73

The Terminator is just blindly killing everyone in the phone book whose name is Sarah Connor (apparently a common name). Process of elimination. So, the day he arrives, unrelated women named Sarah Connor start dropping like flies, and the police believe it's the work of a serial killer. Our heroine Sarah Connor barely escapes this sweeping extermination by sheer luck and Kyle's intervention.

Charles Austin Miller

You just described the plot. Were you trying to answer the question? Because the question still stands. (As it is, it's either a mistake or plot hole in the film).

Bishop73

Perhaps I'm not getting the question. What is meant by "none of the addresses in the phone books match up"? Match up to what, the murder scene addresses? I wasn't aware that the murder scene addresses were prominently displayed.

Charles Austin Miller

Exactly. The addresses seen don't match. Specifically the first Sarah Connor's house number is "14239", but in the phonebook it is listed as "1823." And the real Sarah Connor lives in an apartment but the phonebook doesn't list an apartment number.

Bishop73

Perhaps though this all doesn't matter because phone books can quickly become outdated, the phone book he found could be over a year old. Someone moves but can still be listed in the phone book with their old address. He could have gone to the addresses but found someone else living there and then asked where the previous owner might be, and he was told (or he forced them). This might be how he found all the Sarah Connors.

lionhead

Are any of the Sarah's listed as living at 1823? I've not got access to the film right now to check.

Ssiscool

The first is listed as "1823." The second is "2816." The 3rd is "309." Although after reviewing the scene and thinking about it, for "309" (which is supposedly our Sarah J Connor), the full address isn't actually seen and the apartment number could have been listed.

Bishop73

Reese never uses a police computer; that's the T-1000 in Terminator 2. He rips out the page from the phonebook. The T800 also uses the phonebook but is never shown ripping out a page.

Question: When they get chased by the other kids Charlie asks Jack (the living snowman) to turn them to ice to which Jack replies he "doesn't even got pickets". Was this some sort of joke? Could someone enlighten me?

Answer: He says "I don't even have pockets." He's just saying he doesn't have the power to zap them into ice.

Bishop73

Question: When Jack went searching for the girl in the top apartment of the building he could hardly see because of the fog. As soon as the fire from beneath bursts through the floor the thick smoke has disappeared. Is this normal for building fires?

Answer: I'm not a fire fighter so I do not have a answer based on experience but I assume that when Jack was disoriented it's because there was no light in the building, then when the fire broke through it produced enough light to break through the smoke and make seeing easier for him to escape.

It actually doesn't break through the floor...it's a flashover where everything including the gases in the smoke reach their ignition temperature simultaneously and the room lights off...it's a very serious and dangerous situation to be in as a firefighter...I was in one, luckily we were only 10 feet inside the door.

Steve Kozak

Question: When Peter and Harry were fighting while Peter was wearing the black suit and threw a pumpkin bomb at Harry's face, how did Peter know that pumpkin bomb wouldn't kill Harry? I know Harry had enhanced powers and all. But what if the pumpkin bomb was strong enough to kill Harry? would Peter will be willing to kill him if he was giving the chance due to the influence of the black suit?

Answer: The symbiote had clouded his judgement to the point he no longer worried about killing. He wouldn't likely directly kill Harry, but didn't hesitate to throw the lethal weapon back toward Harry, viewing it as self defense.

Answer: I wouldn't say so - he's loyal to Palpatine regardless. He saves him from Mace Windu, then kills Dooku/Tyranus on Palpatine's orders. I don't see the hypocrisy.

Jon Sandys

You're missing the point, Anakin saves Palpatine because he viewed him as a Father. The point of saying Anakin a hypocrite is fairly clear. Because when he was asked to kill Tyranus he did it without mercy. But he even mentioned that "It's not the Jedi way" to Palpatine. But later in the film, he saved Sidious from Mace Windu. What a hypocrite.

DFirst1

Answer: This is an interesting question. Early on in Episode II and III he always talks about wanting to be a better Jedi, but breaking the rules by killing Tyrannus in cold blood, killing the sand people, distrusting his mentor and friend. Being a hypocrite though, that means he judges people for breaking the rules whilst doing it himself, he doesn't do that. Nor does he pretend to say he is the most powerful or knows more than others, not while he was still an apprentice. But Anakin is so lost and confused, the fear inside him clouded his mind tremendously, being corrupted by Palpatine without seeing it, up to the point he aids Palpatine in killing Mace Windu and thus completely and permanently turning his back from the light side. He does realise this right then and there though, doesn't go on pretending he is more than just a Sith or still a Jedi, he fully gives in to the Sith ways. Although some parts of his old self creep back when he talks to Obi-Wan later on, about how he will overthrow the Chancellor and rule the galaxy as Emperor himself. At that point he becomes a hypocrite, talking to Obi-Wan like he's the one confused, talking about his powers like he is the strongest. After being beaten by Obi-Wan and thinking he killed Padme though, that all disappears and he is the silent and deadly servant of Sidious we know in IV and on.

lionhead

Question: In the Canyon, when Immortal Joe tells Nux to kill Furiosa and return his treasures, what does he mean that he'll personally carry Nux to the Valhalla gates?

Answer: Immortal Joe is trying to inspire Nux to complete the mission, and that he would be honored to deliver Nux's soul to Valhalla, the ultimate heaven for the warriors working for Immortal Joe.Everybody in the film fears and reveres Immortal Joe, to the point he is almost a god and some of his warriors are excited when Immortal Joe even glances at them. For Immortal Joe to tell Nux this is the highest honor and recognition that Nux could receive from Joe.

Scott215

Question: Did people actually care about figure skating? I wasn't alive when this happened, but apparently it was one of the biggest sporting controversies of all time. Well I find that quite hard to believe, since before this movie came out, I'd never heard anyone talk about figure skating, I barely even knew what it was. Was figure skating ever actually a big thing, or do people just like controversy?

MikeH

Answer: It used to be a lot more popular. The Harding/Kerrigan Winter Olympic figure skating competition was the 6th highest rated program in TV history as of 1994, with 48.5 million viewers, no doubt helped by the controversy. It's slowly declined over time - from 1998 to 2018 viewing figures for the US championships declined by 1/3. Opinions about its loss of appeal range from a change in the scoring (used to be judges rating out of 6.0, now it's a more complicated points system), to a lack of "star power", with recognisable names grabbing people's attention. In the UK at least, skater team Torville and Dean were household names for a long time, but I'd imagine a lot of people would struggle to think of skaters with that level of popular recognition nowadays. That said, viewing figures for the 2018 US championships were 60% up on 2017, and membership of the US figure skating organization has risen for the last four years - these things wax and wane like any other.

Jon Sandys

Question: When the warden goes to see Andy in the hole, he has a pin on his lapel. Does anyone know what it's for?

Answer: I can't say for sure in the movie but in the novella it is described as being a 30 year church pin. It's reasonable to assume that it's the same in the movie.

Bane91

Question: Why was Merry's hand burned when he stabbed the back of the witch king's leg?

Answer: It's what is known as the Black Breath.

Phaneron

That's caused by his breath and I don't think he breathes from his leg.

lionhead

It could be wrong, but the reference page I read specified that despite its name, the Black Breath is not actual breath, but an aura that the Nazgul project.

Phaneron

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.

Merry doesn't kill the witch king, but he hurts him. His power has grown, giving him more of a presence in the real world, a presence that can be hurt.

lionhead

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.

LorgSkyegon

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.

lionhead

Answer: Most likely Bob was receiving cash payments from his new "employer" and depositing the money into their bank account himself. Back in those days, wages were given directly to the workers from the employers, then the workers would deposit their wages into the bank during lunch break or after work. If the workers were married, the only evidence their spouses saw of a bank transaction would be whatever record the working spouse brought home.

Scott215

Question: What city is this movie set in?

Answer: We are never told where the movie takes place.

Question: What does "Spider" pull out of the stream bed? I really don't think it's gold. Gold isn't porous, and I don't think he'd be able to hold it with one hand.

Answer: It's a gold nugget. It is not real gold, of course, but is a movie prop. That is why it looks like some other type of substance.

raywest

Or it's a piece of quartz with a lot of gold in it.

Answer: Lava.

Question: Why did Mary get angry when the boy in the audience said that he could see her mouth moving? When a close-up of Mary is shown, she's moving her mouth.

Answer: Because he is heckling her and belittling her performance.

Phaneron

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