lionhead
29th Oct 2024
The Ring (2002)
5th Oct 2024
Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)
3rd Sep 2024
Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014)
Question: In the launch room when SHIELD loyalists and HYDRA operatives drew their guns on each other, what are both sides shouting to each other as they draw their weapons?
Answer: I hear one person shout, "Put your gun down, move away." There is someone else yelling, but I can't make it out. Maybe "Move it!" or something.
31st Aug 2024
The Big Bang Theory (2007)
28th Aug 2024
Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)
Question: Is the island shown through the submarine's periscope (Geheimhaven in the movie) a real island (of course without any Nazi base)?
Chosen answer: The Indiana Jones wiki: To film the arrival of the German submarine at the base, the visual effects artists at Industrial Light and Magic borrowed a miniature prop from Steven Spielberg's 1979 film, 1941. The model was floated through San Francisco Bay towards one of the two Marin Islands just off the shoreline from ILM's then-headquarters in San Rafael. The real-world island was later replaced with a matte painting.
14th Aug 2024
Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny (2023)
But his surname sounds German. It might suggest that he is an American Neo-Nazi of German descent.
Yes, of German origin. "American" is not a race or ethnicity, is made up of many cultures, and is only a nationality. Klaber is an American citizen likely with German ancestry. American Neo-Nazis are of many different racial backgrounds. They adopt Nazi ideologies.
German is also a nationality, not a race. To be clear.
German is a nationality, referring to citizens of the country of Germany, and also an ethnicity, traditionally characterized by certain genetic traits, certain facial features, light-coloured eyes, blond hair, etc. "American" is only a designation of citizenship, not any particular racial or ethnic makeup.
That's not true. People with those genetic traits (like me) are not "German" or "Germanic." Maybe Aryan or Caucasian. Those are ethnicities. Not German. Germans are only distinguished by their use of the Germanic language, not their appearance. Also, certain Germanic tribes were very far from blond and light-colored eyes.
10th Aug 2024
Indiana Jones and The Last Crusade (1989)
Question: I don't know if this is a mistake so I'll ask here: why is there a soldier at the Berlin Rally who has the fraction 2/13 on the collar of his jacket instead of the SS runes? (01:10:01)
Chosen answer: He is not SS but SA. Brown shirts are SA (SturmAbteilung) and SS wore black (and rarely gray). The 2/13 is the unit type and number respectively.
5th Aug 2024
Hot Tub Time Machine (2010)
Question: Considering that there are many different theories about how time travel works, such as the grandfather paradox, temporal paradox, etc., why did Adam assume that the butterfly effect was the primary rule of time traveling?
Answer: It's just the rule they used for the movie; not a lot of thought was put into the time-traveling rules with the obvious inconsistencies the movie has throughout regarding it, especially in the ending.
18th Jul 2024
Iron Man 2 (2010)
Question: When watching Tony on the news, what did Anton mean when he said it should have been Ivan?
Answer: Howard Stark and Anton Vanko together developed the arc reactor technology that made Stark Industries so big and wealthy, and indirectly responsible for the Iron Man suit. But Anton got discredited, so his son Ivan didn't get the opportunities like Tony did, by not inheriting any of the wealth and recognition.
28th Jun 2024
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 (2010)
Question: To become master of the Elder Wand, it must be taken from the wizard who owns it. How could Harry become the new master of the wand when it was buried with Dumbledore and Harry took away Draco's own wand?
Answer: You don't have to physically take the wand to become the master; you have to disarm the master. When Harry disarmed Draco, the wand became his. Even though the wand was not present, it still knew. Call it magic.
Answer: The Elder Wand or Deathstick must be removed by force from the current owner. Draco disarms Dumbledore at the top of the tower. Thus, its allegiance passed to Draco and he becomes the wand's master. When Voldemort takes the wand from Dumbledore's grave, he's not taking it from the wand's master. Later, Harry disarms Draco and as such Harry is now the wand's master. This ultimately proves helpful and a key point in the final showdown in the Great Hall. As Lionhead said above, it's magic. But at its deepest level, as explained by Mr. Ollivander at Shell Cottage.
Answer: The wand chooses the wizard. Draco disarmed Dumbledore to satisfy the wand's allegiance, and Harry disarming Malfoy and taking his was enough for the Elder Wand, the most powerful wand in the world, to change allegiance.
26th Jun 2024
War of the Worlds (2005)
Question: What is the liquid that comes out of the first tripod in the movie when it sounds the horn? I think it could be blood, but it was the first tripod to rise and it hasn't harvested any humans yet. Can someone please explain?
Answer: As it emerges, a lot of dirt is falling off it. I can see no liquid falling off. If you mean at the moment it sounds its horn, that's just more dirt falling off. It falls much later, probably because of the vibrations from the horn blowing.
Answer: It looks to be a combination of dirt, dust, steam, and water. As it's breaking through the ground, spouting water is erupting, which could be a broken water main. The machine is probably generating heat, causing the steam. The dirt is covering the hull and falling off as it rises. The machine also appears to vent some type of gas or exhaust on one side after it's fully risen.
18th Jun 2024
Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones (2002)
Question: Why not take over this planet's cloning process instead of shutting it down and recruiting others to be Stormtroopers, when the clones were 100% obedient and loyal to the Emperor?
Answer: I think recruiting people is one of the sneaky ways of controlling the galaxy. Many Stormtroopers might have spouses and children back home. They could be receiving a tiny salary. Maybe some younger adults are eager to get away from their home planets, as Luke and Anakin both were. Still, others could be criminals who agreed to serve as Stormtroopers instead of another sentence (in "Game of Thrones", some convicted criminals can choose to join the Night's Watch order). These would all be ways to convince more citizens to support the Empire, instead of just training clones.
I'd like to add besides these points that it's possible the cloning process is just too slow and cumbersome for the Emperor. They were useful as shock troops, to fight droid armies. But their numbers were not great enough to cover the entire galaxy as a security force. This especially once the Rebel Alliance shows up. I'd say recruiting people gives him a much-needed manpower boost in a shorter time.
Answer: There would be serious moral and ethical issues about cloning sentient beings just to become mindless, obedient servants/slaves/killers to achieve your cause, regardless of its good intent.
But the Empire clearly doesn't really have moral/ethical issues about most stuff, so that's not really an argument.
Ray West mentions "mindless, obedient" servants, which is a good point. I think an army of "mindless" clones would actually be less effective. Instead, the Emperor claims that the Jedi wanted to overthrow the Senate. If he can persuade a decent number of people to support him, and spread his way of thinking, he can slowly gain more influence around the galaxy.
19th May 2024
Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace (1999)
Question: This is more of a general question for the franchise. What happens if Jedi discover children who have Force ability, but they are in stable, happy families? We see situations where Jedi were found as orphans, i.e. after battles, or a parent is glad to give their child a better life, as Shmi Skywalker did. But this can't be the case for everyone.
Answer: Jedi don't only go for the ones that are orphans, but they are the most likely to be taken in by the order, since they offer them a home and goal in life. When a child is showing he or she is force-sensitive, any legal guardian could or would contact the Jedi to find out more, possibly allow that child to be trained to become a Jedi, but it is not required. The order is basically a boarding school, or military school; the younglings can still see their parents, but not for too long. It's the choice of the parents, and later the child itself, whether or not to continue with the training. During the time of the Republic, the Jedi order even checked children for force-sensitivity and consulted the parents about training to gain new recruits.
4th May 2024
The Mask (1994)
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.
4th May 2024
The Fly (1986)
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.
Answer: Something non-biological can't merge with something biological.
Except that later on, a portion of the telepod merges with the Brundlefly.
21st Apr 2024
Spider-Man 3 (2007)
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.
21st Apr 2024
X-Men Origins: Wolverine (2009)
Question: Why does Stryker believe the adamantium bonding process won't work on Sabertooth? Him and Wolverine are brothers and so have the same abilities so it should definitely work.
Answer: Sabretooth's healing powers have always been inferior to Wolverines. Since Wolverine technically did die for a minute during the surgery, Sabretooth's chances of surviving are slim. Also, Stryker wanted to use Sabretooth to capture the other mutants; in return, he would give him the surgery. It is plausible to think he had no intention of giving him the bonding surgery and was lying to further his own agenda.
21st Apr 2024
Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones (2002)
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.
21st Apr 2024
Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones (2002)
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.
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.
21st Apr 2024
Anaconda (1997)
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.
Answer: Other than being born with it, there is no explanation given.
lionhead