Question: In the final episode, when Godber is struck on the head, why doesn't he call an ambulance rather than his wife?
Moose
7th Sep 2017
Porterhouse Blue (1987)
27th Aug 2007
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (1981)
Question: When Marvin is left behind in the Disaster Area ship as the others teleport away, he says, "I'm so intelligent I've probably got time to go through the five." before he is cut off. Is there anything in the books or rest of the series which suggests what we was about to say?
6th Aug 2007
Transformers (2007)
Question: When the people in the military base channel the All Spark to create a Transformer, it is evil and tries to shoot them; and the Transformers that Sam creates from machines in the city by accident also appear to attack the humans around them. If the All Spark can only create evil Transformers then where did the good ones come from?
Chosen answer: I don't think we have enough information to say that it only creates evil transformers. I think it would be more accurate to say that it creates transformers that ACT bad, which could be because they don't know the difference yet. There is a difference between amoral and immoral. Amoral creatures don't know the difference and could then do a lot of bad things in their excitement for being created. Immoral creatures do bad things because they know they're bad. Alternatively the transformers are actually evil because they're interacting with earth technology, all of which was derived from Megatron who's very much evil already.
29th Dec 2005
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2005)
Question: What is "priori incantatem"? I'm told it's explained in the books - what's the deal?
Chosen answer: In order to explain "Priori Incantatem" an explanation is first needed for "Priori Incantato." In the book Goblet of Fire, during the Death Eaters' rampage at the World Cup, Voldemort's Dark Mark appears in the sky. Amos Diggory uses the spell "Prior Incantato" to see the last spell that was cast by Harry's wand, which in the book is the wand that created that Dark Mark in the sky. That spell creates an image of the last spell cast by a wand, and it emerges from its tip; this is the "echo" of that original spell, and the echo is different depending on that spell. As for "Priori Incantatem," Harry's and Voldemort's wands share the same core - Fawkes' feathers (Dumbledore's phoenix), and when two wands that share the same core battle each other - as Harry and Voldemort in the cemetery, "Priori Incantatem" takes place. This is a reversal of the last spells cast, and the images of Voldemort's victims of the Avada Kedavra curse appear out of the tip of his wand, which include Cedric, Frank Bryce, Lily and James Potter.
20th Jun 2005
Battle Royale (2000)
Question: In the original novel, it was Shogo (not Shuya) who hacked the system to discover how to disable the collars; at the same time he found out that the class would be doing the Battle Royale and transferred into that class to try and use his knowledge to mess it up. In the film, the person who found out how to disable the collars and the person who found out about the Battle Royale and transferred into it are different people. Does anyone know why this change was made?
Chosen answer: Kawada hacked the system, learned about the collars, and transferred voluntarily to the class he knew would be participtaing in both versions. The only difference is when he transferred: in the book, it was right after his win, and in the film it was just for the battle. Shuya never hacked anything in either the book or the film. As to why the change was made, I can only assume that, given the shortening of novels involved in film making, it's easier to make Kawada a complete stranger than a loner that the kids recognize.
20th Jun 2005
Battle Royale (2000)
Question: I have heard the following story about this film: one of the assistant producers met with Quentin Tarantino. Quentin talked about how much he liked the film, and the producer asked him which bit he liked best. He replied that he liked the lighthouse scene the best, and the assistant producer laughed out loud, and said that the main producer would be amused to hear him say that - because he pinched the scene from Reservoir Dogs. Is this really true?
Chosen answer: Specific aspects of direction may be from Reservoir Dogs, but the scene itself plays out almost exactly the same as in the book.
13th Jun 2005
General questions
Is it really true that to shoot an IMAX film, the camera has to be reloaded with film every 3 minutes, and the reloading takes half-an-hour? Why on earth wouldn't they have fixed this yet to use high resolution digital capture (which could then be printed to film), for instance?
Chosen answer: From the research I've found, yes. And here's a few websites to view, and you have to realize how much bigger and realistic IMAX films are. http://www.georgianhousehotel.co.uk/imax_cinema.htm. http://www.bfi.org.uk/showing/imax/explained.php. Even the highest resolution digital cameras available don't come close to the quality of IMAX. Hope that helped!
8th Jun 2005
Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith (2005)
Question: During the film, Padme mentions that "the Queen" of Naboo must be asked to approve something, implying that she is no longer Queen herself. So given that her mother was no longer a Queen, and her original past had to be hidden anyway - why was Leia a Princess?
Chosen answer: This was because when Senator Bail Organa (Leia's adopted father) returns to Alderaan following the Clone Wars, he becomes the Viceroy and First Chairman of Alderaan, and his family thereby become the Royal Family of Alderaan. Incidentally, Padme finished her term(s) as Queen of Naboo sometime prior to Episode II and later becomes a senator of Naboo, which is the position she holds throughout Episode III as well. Since Leia was adopted by the Organas, however, this change in Padme's status (from Queen to non-Queen) became irrelevant as Leia took on the social titles of the Organas and was really no longer connected to her mother.
Also, the Queen of Naboo is not a family thing. Naboo elects its King and Queen, usually young women. Therefore, if the Queen had any children, they would not necessarily be given royal titles. Being the Queen of Naboo would be more like being President of the United States than the Queen of England.
1st Jun 2005
Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith (2005)
Question: In this film, two Jedi show they have the power to block Force Lightning: Mace Windu does it using his lightsaber, and Yoda does it unarmed. Given this, is there any reason why Yoda would not have taught this to Luke in Episode 6, especially since - having fought him - he would know that Palpatine had that power? Even if Luke wasn't as powerful as Yoda, he still could have done the Mace Windu version since he had his lightsaber with him.
Chosen answer: Yoda's got his work cut out condensing what would ordinarily be a lifetime of Jedi training into, at most, a few months, so it's hardly unsurprising that he wasn't able to cover everything. That being said, it's quite possible that Yoda did explain the lightsabre technique for blocking the Force lightning, but Luke doesn't have his lightsabre available to use - he throws it away when he tells the Emperor that he's a Jedi like his father was (after he cuts off Vader's hand). When he's subsequently being hit by the lightning, he's in too much pain to focus enough to pull his sabre back.
21st Mar 2005
The Simpsons (1989)
Question: In the intro to the show, just before Homer's car arrives at the garage, there is a crash pan across several screens-worth of characters. Are these characters significant in any way or are they just random people?
Chosen answer: Actually it looks like many are large characters but I guess it's a quick way to show as many of the characters as possible. If you freeze frame the shots you can see the characters Milhouse, Nelson, Jimbo, Patty and Selma, Grampa Simpson, Dr Hibbert, Flanders and his wife and many more.
1st Mar 2005
The Incredibles (2004)
Question: At the very end, when the boy walks up to Violet, Violet is talking to another girl and saying something that sounds like "Why do they even have to have cheerleaders." Given the film's many political correctness references, is this also a reference to something?
Chosen answer: Traditional cheerleaders are very un-pc for many reasons. They are basically popularity contests, promote beauty/thinness as an ideal, etc.
3rd Feb 2005
General questions
In many films where the makers wish to show a character as having gymnastic skill, they include a shot of them doing a sequence. In many films this sequence is the same: a cartwheel, followed by a back handspring, followed by a back somersault. Is there any reason why this sequence is used so often (is it well-rehearsed by stuntmen or something)?
Chosen answer: As a gymnast I can tell you why - it's one of the first (and easiest) things to learn that still looks hard to do.
3rd Feb 2005
Team America: World Police (2004)
Question: I know that the musical being called 'Lease' is a reference to 'Rent', but what's the joke behind the song being called 'Everyone has AIDS'?
Chosen answer: The musical "Rent" is based on the opera "La Boheme" in which the main character Mimi dies of consumption (tuberculosis). In the updated story for "Rent", the disease is AIDS rather than TB. Several characters in Rent have AIDS or are HIV positive.
18th Oct 2004
Super Size Me (2004)
Question: UK screenings of this film begin with a 'UK Film Council' credit. Why would this appear when it's an American film?
Chosen answer: Because it probably got some funding from the UK Film Council.
18th Oct 2004
Super Size Me (2004)
Question: Is there a list somewhere of exactly what Morgan Spurlock ate on each day? It seems that on several days, he ate more than a standard meal (you often see multiple sodas visible on desks, or he carries bags larger than a typical McDonalds' meal bag), which rather hurts the point he's trying to make.
Chosen answer: If you were going to eat at McDonald's three meals a day for 30 days, would you actually make 90 separate trips to the restaurant? I'm sure there were times that he got 2 or 3 (or more) meals at the same time and simply reheated them. As for the cups, I know lots of people with old soda cups on their desk and tons of them in their car. The crew may have had food too.
16th Sep 2004
Blackadder (1986)
Question: Can anyone hear the (heavily slurred) words of the ending song in this episode - or is it just random garbage?
Chosen answer: Black Adder couldn't hold his beer. The art of boozing he's not mastered. And I, your merry balladeer, Am also well and truly plastered. Black Adder, Black Adder, a bit like Robin Hood. Black Adder, Black Adder, but nothing like as good. Black Ad(hic), Black Adder, I thought that he had died. Black Adder, Black Adder, our writers must have lied.
2nd Sep 2004
Trainspotting (1996)
2nd Sep 2004
Shrek 2 (2004)
Question: A follow-up from a previous question: OK, Best Costume is an Oscar category. However, would the "Costume Designer" for Shrek 2 be eligible to win - given that they didn't design any real costumes, just parts of the animated 3D models?
Chosen answer: Probably not. As stated in the rules (see below), there must be a costume designer who is recognized as such by other costume designers. The Shrek artists are not likely to be considered costume designers. From the official Oscar rules at www.oscar.org: "To be eligible for the Costume Design Award, the costumes for the picture must have been conceived by a costume designer. It is the intention of this rule to recognize the designing of costumes for their special use in motion pictures. Eligibility shall be determined by the costume designer members of the Art Directors Branch present at a meeting called specifically for that purpose prior to the mailing of nominations ballots."
11th Aug 2004
Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels (1998)
Question: During the gambling game at the beginning, one of the rules is 'an open man can't see a blind man'. This seems an insane rule - it means that as soon as one player has their first win, and thus has more money than everyone else at that instant, he should always play blind. If others play open, they can't call him (that would be 'seeing' him), they lose if they fold, so all they can do is raise - and since he has more money, he can then raise back, and keep going until they are unable to raise further (and have to fold, because they still can't 'see' him). The only way to prevent this is to play blind themselves, so after the first win, EVERYONE would play blind. Is this really what's intended?
Chosen answer: If you are playing blind, you obviously aren't allowed to see your cards, nor exchange any cards. So if I'm playing open, I've seen my cards (and only me) and after the first round of betting I can exchange some or all of my cards. Statistically I'm now going to have a much greater chance of having a better hand than the blind man. Both players know who's likely to have the best hand, so it's a very brave gambler that plays blind for more than a couple of rounds. Imagine betting hundreds or thousands of pounds on cards that you haven't seen versus a hand that your opponent has managed look at and change. The rule an open man can't see a blind man tries to even up the odds, and make the game more interesting. It's literal seeing, rather than poker terminology.
They are playing 3 card brag. Nobody can exchange cards regardless of whether they see or not.
Answer: The open player can still "cover the pot", which means they bet all the money they have left and then place their cards face down on top of all that has been bet so far (hence cover the pot). The rest of the players then open a new pot and place their bets there. Once the new pot has been resolved, the player who won it compares their hand with the cards covering the old pot - the better hand wins the covered pot. This means if you keep playing blind you will likely lose those covered pots.
11th Aug 2004
Daredevil (2003)
Question: Is the braille text that appears at the start of the film (then transforms into the opening credits) correct?
Chosen answer: In short, yes, it is.
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Chosen answer: That seems to be an error in the subtitling of the episode. What Marvin actually says is: "I may just be a menial robot, but I'm far too intelligent to expect to think of me for a moment... far too intelligent..."
Sierra1 ★