Question: When McClane gets out of the dump truck to try to lift the ramp up, he closes the door and then gives the door a push and stares at it briefly before running to the ramp. Does he recognise the logo on the door or something?
Phaneron
25th Jun 2021
Die Hard: With a Vengeance (1995)
25th Jun 2021
The Avengers (2012)
25th Jun 2021
General questions
I once saw part of a movie I think from the 1980's that featured Christopher McDonald, and I believe he was in a club looking for his son, and I think there was also a man in the club that had a really tall mohawk. Anyone know the name of the movie?
Chosen answer: Maybe "Conflict of Interest"? That came out in 1993.
That's the one. I looked up the movie on YouTube, and luckily the entire thing was uploaded, and I was able to find the scene I was describing, though it appears the guy with the mohawk didn't have it styled straight up, but was parted. Interesting that it came out in 1993, because the hairstyles and wardrobe for the film definitely have an 80's vibe to them.
9th Jan 2019
The Avengers (2012)
Question: How did Loki know that it was Natasha who brought Bruce onto the Helicarrier?
Answer: He doesn't mean her, he means them, the Avengers, they have brought the Hulk on board.
When Natasha calls Loki a monster, he responds, "No, love, you brought the monster."
And with the "you" he refers to the Avengers, not her specifically.
Actually, it was Natasha who brought Bruce. She had been informed by Coulson that she was specifically requested to bring Bruce with her so Loki's comment "You brought the monster" was accurate.
1st Mar 2005
Last Action Hero (1993)
Question: Does anyone know the name of the song played in the very beginning of the movie (intro with the police cars)?
Answer: It's "What the Hell Have I?" by Alice in Chains. Megadeth's "Angry Again" is what is played for the opening credits of "Jack Slater IV."
Answer: It is Angry Again by Megadeth.
9th Dec 2015
Non-Stop (2014)
Question: Before leaving the plane, the doctor smirks, and after leaving he furtively looks back. He's supposedly an innocent, so why does he do this?
Answer: At no point is he shown smirking before leaving the plane. In the two shots he appears in before he is shown exiting, the first he is wearing an oxygen mask, and the second shows him straight-faced and helping someone to the front. The reason he looks back after going down the slide could simply just be to see who is coming behind him, or he could be examining the damage to the plane.
24th May 2021
Equilibrium (2002)
Question: Why would they need to authenticate the Mona Lisa painting at the beginning? Wouldn't a replica yield the same punishment for whomever is in possession of it?
Answer: They need to know they got the real one because that is the one that is so revered and protected. Not a replica.
Answer: I'm not sure who "they" refers to, so I'm giving a general answer. They need to ascertain the monetary value of the painting in order to know how to proceed. Obviously, an authentic painting (perhaps worth millions of dollars) has a much greater value (selling price) than a fake painting (which could be produced at a small fraction of the cost plus would not hold the same cultural or historical significance). The "punishment" (sentence) that could be imposed may vary with jurisdiction, type of sentencing system, monetary value, and the offender's prior criminal record (if any). Although it may be possible somewhere for the replica to carry the same punishment that is attached to the authentic painting, the extreme difference in value between the two paintings is likely to separate them into different classifications or grades of the offense (felony/misdemeanor or grand/ petit larceny). In general, the grand theft of an authentic painting worth millions carries a heavier sentence.
The plot of this film is that all emotions have been outlawed, as are anything that can stir up emotions (art, literature, music, etc.) Anyone that violates this law is put to death. So someone that has a replica of the Mona Lisa would be executed just the same as someone that has the real thing. Monetary value doesn't factor into the equation, because the police force in the film incinerates all contraband.
Thanks for explaining why my general answer does not apply and is thereby "dead wrong." I know I saw "Equilibrium" but I didn't remember anything about it; it obviously didn't have a lasting impression on me. I should have at least looked it up before giving a general answer. Now I am wondering what the specific answer is... Good question.
17th Apr 2021
Deja Vu (2006)
Question: The timeline in the past is 4 days 7 hours (something like that) and only 1 version of themselves can exist at any time. So if Doug (present) went back and died in the explosion, Doug from the past came to meet Claire. Happy ending, right? So does this mean that due to Doug (present) ceasing to exist, Doug from the past has only 4 days 7 hours to live? I mean, this sacrifice of himself for saving 500+ people doesn't look bad.
13th Apr 2021
Blue Streak (1999)
Question: How is it that Carlson can know that Miles hid the diamond in the police station, but not know what Miles looks like?
Answer: He most likely noticed a lot of weird stuff and started piecing it together. Like Miles having an obsession with the ventilation system, Tulley shouting Miles over and over again down the alley and again when he says Logan owes him $50,000. He'd be able to access police records and see that Miles Logan was arrested inside that very building whilst it was still under construction but the diamond wasn't on him... At this point, it wouldn't take much to figure out what was happening and who he was.
4th Jul 2019
The Butterfly Effect (2004)
6th May 2021
X-Men: Days of Future Past (2014)
Question: How did Quicksilver manage to get the arcade game, the table tennis and what looks like a sound system in the basement? They are very heavy and even with his speed would be impossible to move.
Answer: There could be a basement door, so he wouldn't need the stairs, and with a hand truck, even the heavier objects would be easy to move.
He's able to move several people out of the Mansion when it is destroyed, so perhaps his powers allow him to move things that big quickly. He can also push a cart or trolley at speed, remember.
Answer: He doesn't have to steal the actual heavy items, he can steal money and buy the heavy items and have them delivered. His mother is a single parent so it wouldn't be very difficult for him to arrange delivery of items while she is working. Mom also appears to be completely aware of Peter's crimes and doesn't really seem all that concerned.
And his mother wouldn't have found that suspicious? Or the movers? He's a teenager.
His mother seemingly already knows that he steals stuff. It's her house after all. She thinks the heroes are the police when they first show up to talk to him, and she visits him in the basement in the next film, and would have seen all the stuff he has down there. As for the movers, I used to work for a moving company, and not once did we ever ask a customer where they acquired something we were moving. They would be there to do a job.
That totally doesn't make any sense. The idea is that he stole these items. Would he call a moving company to steal an arcade game out of an arcade hall? How does he get the arcade game in the first place? Does he leave it on the curb of the arcade hall (or shop) so they can pick it up and drop it off at his house?
He most likely stole money and legit bought all those things. He likely helps his mother with the bills and stuff, so she doesn't ask him how he does it. Pietro is not known to be some master criminal with bad character, so he likely doesn't steal from ordinary people. The way he broke Magneto out of the prison, it seems he knows his way around a vault.
How he gets the arcade game is another question entirely. Maybe he stole it from a gas station or a restaurant that was near an apartment complex, but was still far from his home, and arranged to have it picked up at the apartment complex, so it would look like he lived there and was moving it to a new place. Alternatively, he could have had friends help him load it onto a truck.
26th Mar 2009
Watchmen (2009)
Question: I don't quite understand why Dr. Manhattan had to kill Rorschach. That is, I don't quite get why that was the only solution. Rorschach was a valuable member of the Watchmen, and in the type of world they were in (chaos, corruption, murder, etc) one would think that they would want to keep as many of themselves banded together as possible. Couldn't some sort of negotiation or compromise have been reached/agreed to by Rorschach instead of him being killed?
Answer: He has spent years as a costumed vigilante despite the fact that it was illegal. He has a very strict idea of what is right ("never compromise") and has proven himself incapable of doing otherwise. So no, there was no real chance of negotiating with him - Rorschach himself made it clear he'd have to die if they wanted his silence.
Death was not the only choice. Doc M could easily have teleported/banished Rorschach to Mars/anywhere secluded in an oxygen bubble. He could have spared his life and just made him mute or manipulate his brain chemistry/atoms to remove the memory of what happened. The point is Doc M is all powerful and could manipulate matter at his whim; death was just a plot device creating a chance of an emotive martyrdom/sacrificial ending.
Ethically speaking, exiling him to Mars or erasing his memory of the event can be considered just as cruel as killing him, because then his agency is being taken away from him. Rorshach's malcontent with the situation poses a problem for the other heroes, and since Dr. Manhattan isn't willing to let him tell the truth of what happened, he obliges Rorschach's demand that he kill him instead.
25th May 2015
Watchmen (2009)
Question: Why do Rorschach and Night Owl go searching at Veidt Enterprises for further clues about Pyramid Deliveries? They go there after interrogating the guy at Happy Harry's about Roy Victor Chess. He tells them that Janey Slater had him give the sealed envelope (with the assasination orders) to Chess. So is this the link, that they know Slater is also working for Veidt Enterprises? Furthermore: Can it be assumed that Slater was in on the staged assassination on Adrian Veidt, as she was delivering the envelope? Or did she also not know what was in it?
Answer: They go to Veidt's place because they think he will have business contacts that will help them uncover more about what is going on at Pyramid Transnational. It's only once they look through Veidt's office that they learn that Pyramid Transnational is a subsidiary of Veidt's corporation. The man at the bar mentioned that Janey's job at Pyramid was to give work to ex-cons, so it's unlikely she was in on the red herring assassination attempt on Veidt. She would have just been doing her job to give assignments to people under her.
7th Jan 2016
The Dark Knight (2008)
Question: Why doesn't the movie acknowledge the actress change for Rachel? I mean everyone who watched Batman Begins will be clueless if they didn't know that Katie Holmes chose not to reprise her role. But the movie never explains this and are people just supposed to go along with it?
Chosen answer: Actors are often changed between movies, occasionally with acknowledgment, more often not. James Bond immediately comes to mind, Jennifer in Back to the Future, Bruce Banner and Rhodey in the Marvel films, Clarice Starling in the Silence of the Lambs/Hannibal...the list goes on. The recasting of Evelyn in The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor got a passing nod to the audience (actually, as did the first recasting of Bond), but most of the time audiences are just expected to accept the change and move on.
Answer: I'm really not sure how you think a movie can address an actor being replaced. Unless it's something like Deadpool or Wayne's World, where characters speak directly to the audience, there's no real practical way for a movie to openly acknowledge that one of its characters is being played by someone new.
26th Mar 2021
The Falcon and the Winter Soldier (2021)
Question: Why does Bucky rip his jacket sleeve off before jumping out of the plane? Just for the sake of an audience reveal to demonstrate his artificial arm?
Chosen answer: The sleeve probably would have been ripped to shreds in battle anyway. He was just saving time by ripping it himself. Also, gunfighters would take off their coats in a duel or an arm wrestler rolling up his sleeve.
Answer: Aside from visual aesthetics and it being nice to see the metal arm. In world/practically I think (and I believe this is the reason why he tends to not have a left sleeve in most action we've seen him in prior films) it's also to assist with mobility during fights. The metal arm likely behaves a little differently than a human/bone and flesh arm does - and restricting that in a sleeve during a fight (especially in a thicker jacket sleeve) might mess with his reflexes. So removing the sleeve probably assists with the mobility of that arm.
22nd Mar 2021
The Incredible Hulk (1996)
Question: Why does General Ross keep trying to kill Hulk?
Answer: The Hulk is a giant brute who smashes everything in his path when he is angry. In Ang Lee's "Hulk," General Ross, played by Sam Elliot, explains it to his daughter.
Answer: Because he feels the Hulk is a threat to all life on Earth, and particularly his daughter's close relationship with Bruce Banner puts her at risk when Hulk enters the equation.
Why does Ross think the hulk is a threat?
Because the Hulk is nearly mindless and goes on destructive rampages with high risk of collateral damage.
If that's the case, what's the problem with the way general Ross judges the hulk?
3rd Mar 2021
Game of Thrones (2011)
Question: Some of the Free Folk are reluctant to join Jon's fight against Boltons in Winterfell. Jon tries to convince them. And suddenly, Wun, the sole giant stands up and says "Snow." then leaves. What does he mean?
Answer: Giants only really speak the Old Tongue (in the book one of the Night's Watch, Leathers translates for Wun). So he just grunts out "Snow" as his pledge.
21st Jan 2021
Watchmen (2009)
Question: During Jon's backstory into becoming Dr. Manhattan, why did Janey leave Jon in the chamber instead of letting him out? There was plenty of time for Janey to get Jon out of there, but she simply walked away.
Answer: Wally says "we can't override the time lock." Janey sees that he's locked in there and leaves because she can't bear to watch him die. That's why she bursts into tears as soon as she leaves the room. If it was possible to open the door, Wally would have done so.
20th Jan 2021
X-Men 2 (2003)
13th Oct 2020
3rd Rock from the Sun (1996)
Question: I'm watching this show on an app called "Tubi TV" and none of the 1st season episodes have the opening narration from James Earl Jones. I remember watching this on TV, but it would have been reruns and I can't remember hearing the narration then either (granted, I may have forgotten hearing it, but it's so distinct and unique that I don't think I would have forgotten it). When the show was in rerun syndication, was the narration removed? Why? Just to ad 30-seconds of ad time? Why would the narration be removed on streaming services where ad time isn't an issue? Do they not have access to the originals? Has anyone seen the narration removed anywhere else?
Answer: I have the entire series on DVD, and season 1 doesn't have the narration on it either. Perhaps the studio cut it to avoid having to pay residuals to James Earl Jones. Some episodes on my DVDs also seem to be missing scenes or parts of scenes that appeared in original airings, but were removed in syndication, so it seems just as likely that all episodes that were supplied for DVD replication or for streaming services received versions that were the edited for syndication.
Thank you for this insight. Interesting the DVDs don't have it.
Join the mailing list
Separate from membership, this is to get updates about mistakes in recent releases. Addresses are not passed on to any third party, and are used solely for direct communication from this site. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Check out the mistake & trivia books, on Kindle and in paperback.
Answer: If you listen closely, just as he closes the door there is a slight "boom" sound which is more than likely Simon blowing the dam up with the bomb. He more than likely heard that noise and thought it was the trucks door when he closed it.