Answered 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 is the length of time in the monster world compared to the human world? Boo is gone overnight in the monster world, so would that mean the human world is longer since Boo's parents aren't worried about their missing child?

Answer: How do you know Boo's parents weren't worried about her? Most of the film takes place after Boo goes into the monster world and the one time when she goes back her room is empty, only meaning her parents weren't there when she returned. It's also impossible to tell whether the monster world's days are shorter or longer than the human world.

Lummie

Question: Just after Mystique takes the bullet for Magneto, he does acknowledge that she saved him, but walks away. It was very obvious that she did save him so the line wasn't put there for explanation, so why have Magneto say that she saved him if he didn't care?

Answer: As you said yourself, he's acknowledging to her that she saved him. Whether he now cares about her or not, an acknowledgement is hardly unreasonable.

Tailkinker

Answer: Judging by the French narrator, and the tropical atmosphere, I'd say they're meant to be in the Galapagos.

Phixius

The Pacific Ocean is where the Bikini islands are located.

Dan23

Question: How come King Kong is on the ad smoking a cigar? He wasn't in the movie or anything.

Answer: Ads are often made months before the final editing of any movie. Therefore, it's not unsual for something to be in an ad but not in the final movie (or to happen differently, or a different shot, or different music, etc.).

Myridon

Question: What exactly is the red slime on the body of Carol Anne and her mother after they are rescued from the another dimension?

Answer: Ectoplasm.

Phixius

Question: According to imdb.com Jerry Goldsmith composed the music for the film. But I ran across a copy of the soundtrack which names Danny Elfman as the composer. I have also seen him credited for the music in both "Gremlins" films on several occasions, both on TV and online. Why is Elfman getting credit if Goldsmith composed the music?

Answer: It's hard to get a definite answer to this, as I've found conflicting answers online. However, by 1984 Danny Elfman hadn't done much composing, with his musical work largely restricted to songs as part of his band. As such I'd think it was unlikely he composed the Gremlins score. No music from the Gremlins films are on either of his compilation CDs either. The closest thing to a reason I can find for the mis-crediting is that on the Gremlins 2 DVD one of the deleted scenes apparently has some music from "Beetljuice" (which Elfman scored) used over it, which may have led to the confusion.

Jon Sandys

Goldsmith also had a cameo in the film (as did Steven Spielberg) as the man at the phone, while Spielberg rolls around on some sort of bicycle-type vehicle.

Scott215

Answer: I purchased the Gremlins theme on my iPhone, listed under Danny Elfman, and it's the original theme. I'm guessing Danny bought the rights.

Any Gremlin theme song you bought with Elfman's name attached was mislabeled. He didn't buy the rights to any of the songs Goldsmith created.

Bishop73

Question: Why did Michael's secretary keep asking him if she could go to the toilet?

Answer: She felt that she had to ask permission to do everything. She feared that she would make Michael angry if he needed her and she wasn't there.

moviemogul

Question: I was reading one of the first transcripts of Scream on the internet and at the end of the movie just before Sidney kills Billy, she says something along the lines of "and this, Billy Studbucket, is for having an incredibly small weenie." Does anyone know why this was cut out of the final film?

Answer: I have read the original scripts and that line isn't in them, so don't know what you read, must have been fake.

Answer: Who knows. Almost every movie made has gone through a myriad of script rewrites before ending up with the finished movie and changes are made on all levels of production; from the initial scriptwriting, to on the set changes, to changes made in post production.

Andreas[DK]

Question: Why would shoppers need to carry a scanner round a store with them like Kate does early on in the film?

Answer: She is picking he items she wants on her wedding registry. You scan the items you want, so people will know what to buy you.

pross79

Answer: It's Peter; he's the main protagonist in the series so naturally the title and theme song are referring to him.

Andreas[DK]

Question: I haven't seen this movie but I've seen the adverts. Is the woman who plays Sandler's wife the same woman who plays Kate in Lost? She sure does look like her.

Answer: No Sandler's wife in the movie is played by Kate Beckinsale. Kate on Lost is played by Evangeline Lilly.

Andreas[DK]

Question: Why didn't they just shoot Mystique with the cure, rather then hold her in a cell like they did? Knowing how dangerous she is, and how she can shape-shift into anyone, why keep her incarcerated? Surely they knew that Magneto would try to rescue her, and how unstoppable he could be. It would have been in their best interest to just "cure" her.

Answer: Because they're not allowed to. You can't just beat a potentially violent prisoner unconscious. This is along the same lines. The legality of usage of "the cure" has not been fully clarified. So all personnel were given the order not to use it unless absolutely necessary.

Phixius

Question: Does Cyclops sleep with his visor on?

Answer: He has various other sets of glasses made of the same material - he would wear one of those rather than his bulkier visor.

Tailkinker

Conspiracy - S1-E25

Question: What happens if a "Captain-eyes-only" message comes in and the captain is off the ship and not easily accessible? Is the message transferred, or does the captain give his first officer permission to view the message?

Answer: It would depend on just how inaccessible the Captain was. If possible the message would be transferred. Otherwise, in the Captain's absence, the first officer would be the acting Captain and would be permitted to view the message.

Phixius

Show generally

Question: Does anyone know what is the order of replacement for the captain on the Bridge? All I know is that Riker is the first, but is it the captain's choice after that?

Answer: According to rank and seniority, the chain of command is: Picard, Riker, Data, LaForge, Troi and Worf as of the series finale. Troi was added when she took command school, Tasha Yar would have been between Geordi and Worf, and Wesley or Ro Laren would have been after Worf had they not left the Enterprise.

Grumpy Scot

This has changed over the series but it all depends on who is available and rank has little to do with it. When Worf became the Security chief after Tasha died, he essentially became the fourth in Command (with some exceptions IE: Commander Shelby in The Best of Both Worlds) from then on. Even though Crusher, Geordi, and Troi all outrank him, Worf is a Bridge Officer, so that apparently elevates him in the chain of command over higher ranking Officers.

Question: Does anybody know were I could get the Fruity Oaty Bar (the strange advert that makes River go mental) song, as I really like it but don't know where to find it. Thanks in advance.

Answer: Here it is on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BLF5J7rFjhs.

Myridon

Question: What is the song that Cab Callaway sings to stall the crowd?

Answer: It's called "Minnie the Moocher", and was first recorded by him in 1931.

Twotall

Answer: It's exactly like Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. No one knows for absolutely sure, but it is a near-certainty that they did because they were in the first wave charging across no man's land. Like BC and the SK, they stop the scene just as they were rushing in.

Zwn Annwn

Question: The architect mentions a "mother" of the Matrix. Who is she? When Neo asks if it's the Oracle, the Architect says "Please." Does he mean please how can you think that, or please don't interrupt, I'm speaking?

Answer: It's the Oracle. The Architect says "please" because Neo called her an oracle. To the Architect, she's just another program. He is scoffing at Neo for using that term, not for coming to that conclusion.

Phixius

Question: If the witches were being hung outside the house when Winifred's book showed her how to cast the life spell, where did the black flame candle and its instructions come from?

Answer: They were set up, beforehand, just in case. Winnifred knew about the spell, but she didn't memorize the incantation. So she needed the book to see how to cast it.

Phixius

If you pause the movie, you will see that the book opened up to the Black Flame Candle spell.

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