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: During the arena battle, while Mace is retrieving his lightsaber, why doesn't Jango just shoot him there while he's disarmed and steady, instead of trying to steal it?

Answer: Because Mace Windu is a Jedi and if he gets his lightsaber he'll be able to deflect Jango's blaster shots with ease. If Jango is able to grab the lightsaber before Mace can get it, then he stands a much better chance of winning.

BaconIsMyBFF

But if he shoots him before he got his lightsaber he can't deflect the shot.

lionhead

Not saying it was either smart or prudent, but that was obviously his thinking. In his mind if he grabs that lightsaber before Windu can get it he's won.

BaconIsMyBFF

Villains in movies don't have a lot of logic.

Question: Why did her mother spare Carrie after giving birth? When they made eye contact was she suddenly sane and filled with love for her new daughter?

Rob245

Answer: It's doubtful she became momentarily "sane" but the mother/child bond is incredibly strong, and apparently was stronger than Margaret's initial desire to kill her infant.

raywest

Thank you, happy new year. I found this to be a touching scene, they just love having Julianne Moore hold babies as she's done this in four or five movies now, latest being Still Alice, took them forever to give her an Academy Award, should've won at least for The Hours prior to this win.

Rob245

Answer: At the end of the movie, Margaret tells Carrie that she wanted to keep her, and asked God to let her. There's also a small implication that Carrie's powers may have stopped the scissors blades right as they were about to stab her (remember that Carrie doesn't always have control of her powers, and the deleted scenes reveal that she's had the powers since she was very little. They aren't new). This may have led her mother to believe that God himself was stopping the scissors and allowing her to keep the child.

Answer: It's just a continuity mistake. The blade rips a hole in the shoe, but the hole disappears later on... that's a continuity mistake. It's definitely not a plot hole. A plot hole is more a gap or contradiction in a film's internal logic, or when a film leaves out vital information. (Ex. If a character is established as having a deadly nut allergy, but is eating nuts later on with no ill effect... that would be a plot-hole).

TedStixon

Answer: I would classify that as a plot hole.

raywest

It would only be a plot hole if somehow the lack of holes in the shoes was written into the plot that some effect on the plot. Of course, someone would probably correct the entry by saying she could have had a 2nd pair or they bought a new pair if it was integral to the plot.

Bishop73

Question: Under the waterfall men say their gunpowder is wet. Do they still have dry powder in their horns? Later they have dry powder to shoot their guns.

Answer: If the powder horns were tightly capped, then the powder could remain dry. Also, from what I've read, traditional black powder (gun powder) made from natural ingredients of charcoal, potassium nitrate, and sulfur, is actually made wet, then was formed into cakes and dried. If it got wet again, it could be dried out and be usable.

raywest

Drafted - S1-E9

Question: Why would Ethel think Fred's enlisted? He wouldn't be allowed in due to his age right? I know the plot yet this thinking makes no sense.

Rob245

Answer: There is no reason. It's a just a silly plot device, typical of the era. Women characters were often portrayed as making uninformed assumptions or decisions.

raywest

Season 1 generally

Question: The eels eat the fuel in all the Jupiters, other than the one in the desert. Somehow, the eels get in all the fuel tanks. We know that the Robinson's ship got them when their ship sank and flooded, so how did they get into all the other ships' tanks, and why wouldn't more eels suck down the fuel later added from the desert ship?

Answer: It's unknown how the eels got into all the fuel tanks. Once they were discovered, the colonists could flush them out of the tanks and keep them out before adding the fuel from the Jupiter that crashed in the desert.

raywest

We Can See the Light! - S1-E41

Question: Why was Eggman controlling the moon in order to con people into buying the sunshine balls he invented? Was he doing it to get rich?

Answer: No, he doesn't need the money. He was doing it to try to paint himself as the hero. Make it look like only he could save the the light and painting Sonic as a villain for destroying it.

Quantom X

So what if Eggman doesn't need the money. There are tons of people who don't need more, but still try to get richer.

But not Eggman. His goal isn't money in the series at all. He hardly even ever mentions it. He wants power, fame, and to rule the world. In fact, he comes from a world where money isn't exactly a thing or much of it. So he doesn't have that in his roots of desire, he wants power.

Quantom X

Question: When Kristoff takes Anna go to meet the trolls and they start singing mentioning Kristoff's name, why does Olaf say, wait "Kristoff"? I'm confused.

Answer: When Anna introduced him to Kristoff and Sven, and because of the way Olaf's questions were phrased ("Who's the funky-looking donkey?", "And who's the reindeer?"), he believed Kristoff's name was Sven.

Cubs Fan

Question: Why did Christof not get rid of Sylvia earlier when it's seen that Truman fancies her? He could just have taken her off the set and had the other actors tell Truman she "transferred" to another school, so as not to have her be alone with Truman and attempt to tell him what was going on. Also how could Sylvia predict that Truman would fancy her, thereby making it easier for her to tell him about Seahaven being fake?

Answer: They fell for each other, the feelings were hidden enough for the show makers not to notice until it was already "too late." I don't think they minded Truman looking at other women or female actors flirting with Truman, as long as they held to the script and understood who Truman was supposed to end up with. Sylvia broke those rules, because of her feelings and only made the decision to tell him the truth after she realised she was going to be removed and never see him again (in person I mean). It wasn't her plan to fall in love with him, nor to tell him his life was a lie (although that could theoretically be true, but not the falling in love part).

lionhead

Question: If the Spinosaurus was a fish eater, why would it go after the group?

Aidanfox

Answer: Basically, this is a fictional version of the Spinosaurus. Simply because scientists didn't know the Spinosaurus was a fish eater when this movie was made so the movie makers made the Spinosaurus a land hunter. It's possible that the Spinosaurus in this movie hunts for mammals because it doesn't have access to the sea to hunt for fish, or doesn't know how to because it was bred that way.

lionhead

Question: Why doesn't Arthur's doctor recommend a new doctor after their sessions end so he can keep getting his meds?

Rob245

Answer: Arthur's therapy and medication are paid for by the city government. The entire program was cut and Arthur can't afford it on his own.

Brian Katcher

Answer: The real world answer is poor storytelling. In the film, he's trying to find a way to destroy Nuclear Man, who is genetically the same as himself.

Superman dropping Nuclear Man into a nuclear reactor scene contains serious plot hole. Namely, it should have made Nuclear Man much more powerful because it would be giving him a lot of nuclear energy. For some absurd reason, he gets absorbed by it instead.

The Best of Both Worlds (1) - S3-E26

Question: I can't tell if this was a mistake or if there's an explanation. When the Borg are on the Enterprise's bridge, the first two are covered in the green light indicating they're being transported back to the Borg ship, but the 3rd one (the one successfully shot by Worf) has no lights, he just fades away. Why?

Bishop73

Answer: The Borg use technology to cause the dead to disintegrate, presumably as a security measure to prevent their technology from being captured.

But in s05e23, "I, Borg", Riker says "the Borg collect their dead" when they encounter the injured Borg. Worf says to kill it and leave no evidence they were there so that when the Borg return to collect the dead member. Plus, there were 4 dead Borg and none of them disintegrated.

Bishop73

I believe "collect" refers to the disintegration. We see other Borg remove specific pieces of technology from the dead borg, which causes it to disappear.

Answer: Its possible that the Borg use a special transporter for living beings (which is the one with the green glow) and a different one for non-living things (which might not have a green glow). In Star Trek the federation uses a different type of transporter when moving bulk cargo than it does when moving people.

Elleby

Question: How was Lecter able to send the message "Dear Pilgrim" published in the Tattler if he was in his cell?

Answer: We see him use the phone in the film, claiming he's talking to his lawyer. That's likely how he did it.

Question: What is the time frame after Sam's visit to the airport to see Joanna off, and the last scene, when the prime minister returns?

Answer: Approximately 1 month later.

Question: Why does George keep saying "Hot dog" after wishing for a million dollars and then using the lighter?

Answer: It was a common phrase at the time, like someone saying "oh boy!" or "hot damn."

Answer: The part of Winston was written for Murphy. He was unavailable because he was filming Beverly Hills Cop. The director and writer are on record as saying had Murphy accepted the part, Winston would have had a much larger role in the film.

Question: Right after Ralphie takes off the Pink Bunny suit his aunt Clara made him, the camera pans on Ralphie's younger brother sleeping in midst of Christmas wrapping and opened gifts...at the upper right just above the kid's head is a head that looks just like Herman Munster (The Munsters TV series began in '63 I think) The story is supposed to be in the time 40's time frame. Doesn't it look just like Herman Munster?

Answer: That's not Herman Munster, it's the Frankenstein Monster. Specifically, it's Boris Karloff as the monster (from the original 1930s films), which is what Herman Munster was modelled after.

Answer: It's just a Frankenstein's monster mask, which Herman was anyways. I think a Herman Munster mask would have a bigger nose and a smile.

Bishop73

Question: If Rey was powerful enough to realise that Chewbacca was still alive on another spaceship (remember that they were in space and the ship was probably a far distance away), why did she have no clue that he wasn't on the cargo ship right in front of her (the one her and Kylo accidentally blew up)?

Gavin Jackson

Answer: At this point Rey had just been involved in a test of power versus Kylo Ren - she was probably far too stressed at the time so couldn't determine whether Chewbacca was onboard or not.

True. However she may have been more baffled by the blue lightning strike that she just cast.

Question: If Countess de Winter's fleur-de-lis brand is on her left shoulder, how did she manage to keep it hidden from Athos during their entire marriage? Were they never intimate?

Phaneron

Chosen answer: They were most likely intimate, but until modern times, it was typical for men and woman to always maintain their modesty by never being completely nude in front of someone, even their spouse. The Countess was probably always partially clothed whenever they were intimate. Marital relations were usually confined to the bedroom, in the dark, and after retiring for the night. Aristocratic women also dressed privately, assisted by a lady's maid. At one time, people even bathed while partially clothed. The Countess may also have used some cosmetic treatment to help cover the brand.

raywest

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