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: What does Luke think happened to his mother before he meets Obi-Wan and learns that his father was a Jedi? Has this been mentioned anywhere?

Answer: It's never revealed in the movies what Luke thought about his mother's demise. His foster aunt and uncle probably had no idea how she died. Obi Wan brought the child to them and likely provided them with little information other than Luke's name. Lars and Beru probably invented some story that Luke's mother died from natural causes shortly after he was born.

raywest

Question: I once read something about a chimpanzee being in this movie somewhere. No joke. Has anyone else read or heard this?

Answer: This is likely what you are referring to: When the Emperor first appeared in The Empire Strikes Back, he was portrayed by Marjorie Eaton under heavy makeup. Chimpanzee eyes were superimposed into darkened eye sockets during post-production. Https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palpatine#:~:text=over%20military%20force.-, Portrayal, was%20voiced%20by%20Clive%20Revill.

ctown28

Question: When Stanley first met up with Charlie and their dates at the Coco Bongo, why did the admission guy refuse to let him inside? The guy knows Charlie (they greet each other), and he allowed the two women to follow Charlie inside, so why not Stanley?

Answer: Because Stanley didn't appear to be part of the group, as Stanley doesn't immediately follow them. The bouncer, at least, didn't see it that way. Charlie also doesn't say anything to the bouncer about Stanley before he himself goes through.

lionhead

Question: Why did the Princess not have money with her at the market? She could easily disguise herself as a lower-class person who has some amount of money with her, like the other shoppers.

Answer: Despite being royal, Jasmine might not have access to money. Everything in her life is controlled, and whatever she needs or wants is provided. Jasmine is young, naive, and has been so pampered and sheltered from the real world that she'd probably never consider money.

raywest

Question: Sidious/Palpatine killed three of the Jedi who came to confront him in his office, fought Mace Windu until Anakin arrived, and later, Yoda could not defeat him. Considering this, why is Luke such a big threat to him years later?

Answer: Probably because Luke is Vader's son. It creates complications and a conflict of interest with Vader, who becomes torn between serving the emperor and his underlying feelings for Luke, despite Vader telling Palpatine that Luke will join them or die.

raywest

Question: A couple of times, Luke mentions Vader not being able to kill/destroy him "before." What is he talking about? At Cloud City, Vader wanted to freeze him in carbonite, not kill him. He even tested the process on Han Solo first.

Question: When Seth teleports a plate with a piece of steak on it, why doesn't the steak merge with the plate?

Answer: Short answer, because the plate doesn't have DNA. Initially the pod was making synthetic versions of what was being teleported, which is why it turned the baboon inside out and made the steak taste funny but inanimate objects appeared OK. It was only later, after reprogramming, that the pods could basically identify tissue to teleport living organisms. However, with the fly present, the pod's programming couldn't distinguish there were two separate living organisms and ended up combining them. It didn't happen with the plate because the pod recognized it as a separate object.

Bishop73

Answer: Something non-biological can't merge with something biological.

lionhead

Except that later on, a portion of the telepod merges with the Brundlefly.

Jukka Nurmi

Answer: Several reasons. Hawthorne wasn't eager to accept the role, but thought the story had some merits and hoped the movie would help him professionally. The script was constantly being revised during filming, and he found the overall production unpleasant. Hawthorne didn't directly clash with Stallone or Snipes but their enormous egos and being constantly late, often keeping cast and crew waiting, was irritating. Stallone and Snipes were self-involved and showed little interest in Hawthorne, offending him. He also found Stallone's acting style annoying. Hawthorne also thought director Joel Silver was quirky.

raywest

Question: Who was the werewolf that chased and killed the guy in the beginning?

Answer: It was Serafine and the guy she attacked was her stepdad Thierry. Thierry believed that he had found a cure for Serafine's lycanthropy and injected her with it. However, instead of curing her, it caused her to transform into a werewolf and attack him. Serafine, however, didn't kill Thierry. Claude did.

Answer: He installed asbestos in schools. It's not said what he did after that, but he complained about all his work being undone.

Captain Defenestrator

Question: Is there any truth that an anaconda will regurgitate its prey so it can keep feeding, or was it made up for the film?

Answer: A snake can regurgitate its food, but they do this mostly if they are in danger or stressed, not to go after another prey or swallow it again so it's easier to digest. The food is usually quite a weight on their body and takes long to digest, so the snake could regurgitate it to become mobile again if threatened.

lionhead

Question: Could it be considered attempted murder on both Peter and Harry's parts when they both took a turn throwing the pumpkin bomb at each other until it exploded near Harry's face after their fight? Those pumpkin bombs are designed to kill, and Peter knew that when he threw it back at him, although I'm not sure how the explosion didn't kill Harry.

Answer: Well, Harry was obviously trying to kill Peter, so yes, that was attempted murder. Peter, at that point, is heavily influenced by the symbiote, causing him to not feel remorse or empathy towards Harry. It angered him that Harry would throw the bomb at him while his back was turned to him and therefore did commit attempted murder by throwing it back at him. Harry survived because he was spiked up on his father's muscle enhancers. Although he should be deaf and blind after.

lionhead

The Run of His Life - S1-E2

Question: Why was the SWAT team involved in OJ Simpson's arrest when they were at his house and when OJ was in the Bronco? Were they there in case of a barricade situation or if he took his driver friend hostage?

Question: When Dooku invited Obi-Wan to join him and destroy the Sith, what did he really want? Surely he didn't think that Obi-Wan would believe him?

Answer: I don't think that Dooku, nor Palpatine, really cared much about being actual Sith Lords. They wanted to be rulers in their own rights. Hence why Palpatine becomes Emperor Palpatine and abandons the "Darth Sidious" title. Dooku might have "destroyed the Sith" in the sense that he would kill Darth Sidious/Palpatine with Obi-wan's help.

Answer: Siths are often delusional, trying different ways to come out on top, kill their master. I think Dooku was serious in trying to recruit Obi-Wan, the apprentice of his apprentice Qui-Gon.

lionhead

Question: In real life, would it have been possible for a fully-grown great white shark to smash through the metal cage that Hooper was in like it does in the movie, or is that just Hollywood nonsense?

Answer: Most shark cages are reliably safe and strong enough to withstand sharks biting the bars or bumping them. Of course, individual cage quality is an issue and there have been instances of sharks getting jammed into the cage and destroying it as they attempted to free themselves. In the movie, the fictional premise is that "Jaws" is an exceptionally large and powerful shark that can demolish a cage other sharks could not damage.

raywest

Question: When the student is stopped from taking the taxi to see his father, once they are going together, why do they still take a cab in what looks like a long drive instead of driving their own car?

Question: Is it implied that Bleaker's mother doesn't know he got Juno pregnant? She makes no secret of not liking her, but I thought there was a phone conversation between Juno and Bleaker, saying she wouldn't say anything to his mother.

Question: On Cloud City, why did Vader surprise Han and the others in a dining room? Lando says that the Imperials arrived before Han's group. But they've had time for Leia to change clothes, change her hair style, and for her to ask people about C3PO when he is missing.

Answer: No answer is given. Maybe Vader needed more time to negotiate with Lando and wanted to ensure the group would feel "safe" and then be caught off guard. It's more about plotting, though. The scene is constructed to build suspense and doubt. Han thinks the friendly and charming Lando is trustworthy, but Leia is wary, especially after C3PO disappears. The group, and the audience, are then taken by surprise when Vader is revealed and Lando's true character and motive is exposed.

raywest

Question: Before the Clone Wars, what situations did Jedi handle most of the time? I only ask because at Padme's apartment, Obi-wan says it's not their job to investigate the assassination attempt. Anakin says that local security could guard the apartment; it's not a matter for Jedi. So apparently, Jedi don't watch over people nor investigate crimes. What do they do?

Answer: Their job is to protect the integrity of the republic with diplomacy and advice to politicians. They do not enforce laws or rules. They can also be security for senators or be taken to places in crisis to help resolve difficult matters (like the blockade of Naboo). They protect and secure. That was their job during the time of the 'old' republic.

lionhead

So, in a way, are the Jedi similar to involving the FBI in a situation, instead of contacting your town/city/county police?

Maybe more like UN Peacekeepers.

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