Best crime movie questions of 1997

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Copland picture

Question: Did Ray set up the killing of Joey Randone because of what he saw them do, or was it just luck on Ray's part that he was attacked and left hanging from a TV aerial to then plunge to his death, and this is why he stalled for time with the door lock?

The_Iceman

Answer: I would think this would just have been random luck. There is no way you can just pay some random criminal to find and single out Joey and his partner to attack. With all the cops on patrol anyone of them could have responded to that call, so that was just pure luck that Joey and his partner encountered the criminal that threw him to his death on the roof.

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Con Air picture

Question: What is the actual likelihood that a decorated serviceman, with no prior criminal record (we know this because if Poe had any priors he wouldn't have been in the Army) would actually get prison time for killing two men who attacked himself and his girlfriend? Seeing as there were witnesses (said girlfriend and bartender) I find it hard to believe he would have gotten more than an extended period of probation. A prison term, even a year or two, seems severely harsh considering the circumstances.

dablues7

Chosen answer: Zero. As you said, he was attacked and there are witnesses that he tried to avoid the fight and the killings were in self-defense. It is an extremely weak plot hammer to get Poe onto a plane full of criminals. It's foolish as well. The writers could have had Poe framed for a crime then exonerated and put in the same situation much more believably.

Grumpy Scot

It's in Alabama. People are put in prison here for much less.

First, Poe is a federal prisoner, not subject to State laws or legal procedures. Secondly, he is not in Alabama. During a conversation with Billy Bedlam we hear that he is incarcerated in the "Q" - prison slang for San Quentin in California. It makes you wonder why a Federal prisoner is in a State prison, but that's another type of mistake.

Would it really be considered self-defense, though? After he beat the guys to the ground he could have just stopped and walked away, but he didn't. He kept beating them until they died.

He is defending his wife against two armed assailants, and use of lethal force is allowable. No DA in the United States would even think about pressing charges, knowing full well a grand jury would throw them out in a second.

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La Confidential picture

Question: What is Lynn's connection to the Nite Owl killings?

Answer: She doesn't really have one - not directly, anyway. The only link is that Susan Lefferts died at the Night Owl, and Bud saw Lynn with Lefferts when he was buying the alcohol for the party. Lefferts had the bandage on her nose at the time, which sparked Bud's curiosity and prompted him to seek out Lynn after Lefferts was murdered.

Tailkinker

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Face/Off picture

Question: Why did Castor shoot Dietrich? They were on the same side.

MikeH

Chosen answer: Although they were on the same side, Troy is currently posing as Archer, which means he would have to do everything that the FBI would expect Archer to be doing. The whole point of the raid was to take out Archer, as well as Troy's gang. He would have rather risked killing part of his own gang than risk exposing his identity to anyone else.

Casual Person

That doesn't really make sense. In the scene, he goes out of his way to shoot him and smiles while doing so, carefully and slowly. Was not a collateral damage situation. The question is why he deliberately goes out of his way to kill him.

Answer: If you watch closely, he saw Archer, went out of his way not to shoot him, instead was aiming for his own son that he didn't know was his, to further traumatize Archer.

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The Jackal picture

Question: Why didn't Koslova try to fight while the Jackal is talking to her?

Answer: Because she's dying, in shock, losing blood, and in pain.

raywest

Answer: She's in too much pain to fight. He also just helped her to slow her bleeding, after that she seems to weirdly trust him.

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Batman and Robin picture

Question: How was Pamela Isley aka Poison Ivy able to fight Batgirl with martial arts-like skills towards the end of the movie? Pamela was a doctor and I highly doubt given her obsession with her research she had the time to take martial arts lessons in her spare time, if she had any during her stay in South America. Even after she transformed into Poison Ivy, her transformation could not have given her martial arts skills since her powers are based on plant abilities.

joshtrivia

Answer: There's no way of knowing whether or not she "had the time" to study martial arts. Regardless of her studies, she could have made time to pursue this as an extra-curricular activity. Universities can have classes, clubs, competitions, and student groups for martial arts on campus that anyone can participate in. She may also have been studying it since childhood. She was also a botanist, so even with a rigorous academic schedule, she would likely have more free time than a medical student.

raywest

Answer: That and they had to have the women fight in here. I mean they couldn't have the guys hit her now could they? So it was necessary for her to fight competently at least.

Rob245

Exactly, and that's a point I make again and again that things happen in movies because it's required to make the plot to work, not because it reflects real life.

raywest

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Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery picture

Question: It was mentioned that Austin's chest hair resembled a shape. Can anyone tell me what the shape is? I don't have the movie.

leyesalot82789

Chosen answer: It's supposed to resemble an upside-down version of, ahem, wedding tackle.

JustJudy

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Home Alone 3 picture

Question: When Beaupre thought there was a woman in the Alcott's house, why go back in and kill her? He thought she was in the shower so she couldn't see him, so there was no evidence to give the police about what he looked like.

THE GAMER NEXT DOOR

Answer: It was Jernigan who thought there was a woman in the shower and he couldn't take the risk that if it was a woman, that she would eventually get out and see intruders in the house and call for the police. The only option open to Jernigan would be to kill her so there'd be no witnesses.

No it was Beaupre who thought there was a woman in the house.

I've seen the movie and I can confirm that it was Jernigan who opened the shower curtain because he thought a woman was in the shower.

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Suicide Kings picture

Question: Much ado is made near the start of the film about the kidnappers sending Elise's finger back to her family as a threat, but we learn later that she was never harmed. Did the film ever explain where the finger actually came from, or if it was even sent at all?

Answer: The finger is never shown, only mentioned. Since Elise looked to have all her fingers one must assume it was made up as part of the scheme to fool everyone.

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Donnie Brasco picture

Question: Did the real Lefty actually have "cancer of the prick", as was claimed in the movie?

Answer: Benjamin "Lefty" Ruggiero suffered from testicular cancer, as well as lung cancer.

Bishop73

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Answer: I don't know how prevalent this is (or how it actually works), but one possibility would be that he was under contract with a particular agency (or company/ business) and could only receive credit for work performed under this contract and/or no other agency could benefit from using him. His name cannot show up in something he did outside of that contract.

KeyZOid

Chosen answer: I don't know why, but he asked not to be in the credits.

Josh Appelbaum

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Absolute Power picture

Question: The Secret Service Agents rush up the mansion stairs to the bedroom grabbing the stair banister multiple times without gloves. Why didn't the police pick up their fingerprints? And where did they get the crowbar? Is that standard issue for agents?

Answer: The female detective states the carpet is spotlessly clean, indicating they had performed an intense cleanup not shown on camera so they would no doubt cover the staircase as well and wipe it clean of prints. As for the crowbar, it is more than likely part of a "kit" in the boot (trunk) of secret service vehicles.

The_Iceman

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Conspiracy Theory picture

Question: Shouldn't Dr Jonas and his men have been arrested for what they did? And shouldn't the guys who employed have been arrested too?

Answer: They may have been arrested eventually but it would only happen after a lengthy and involved investigation that would extend beyond the movie's timeline.

raywest

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Grosse Pointe Blank picture

Question: Does anyone know what kind of pistols Martin Blank uses in this film? Also, is the gunfire sound they make accurate? It's very distinctive.

Phil C.

Chosen answer: His pistols are 9mm Glock 17's (http://www.glock.com/g17.jpg). No movie firearm shot is authentic as it would sound very flat and unexciting because the blank rounds used are very quiet (not much louder than clapping your hands actually). The shot sounds are added in post production.

Grumpy Scot

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Kiss the Girls picture

Question: What song is playing when the killer is putting on make-up and dancing around in his silk robe?

Answer: I think you're talking about 'Silence of the Lambs,' not Kiss the Girls. The song is 'Goodbye Horses' by Psyche.

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