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: When Evey is captured after they take Gordon, you can briefly see the eyes of who is assumed to be one of Creedy's men. Since V is the one who took her, is it possible that for that brief moment we saw what V looks like under the mask?

Iris Cervantes

Chosen answer: Since V said he got to her before the others did after freeing Evey from his fake prison, yes, we have to assume we were looking at V.

Question: Who is actually writing the 'I know who you are' messages to Hoffman? Is it Strahm trying to scare him or is it Jigsaw letting Hoffman know that he knows he killed Seth?

Answer: In the last Saw movie we find out that it was actually doctor Lawrence Gordon who has been helping Jigsaw (John) the whole time.

Question: How is it that the disease could infect dogs too, and turn them into the same thing as infected humans? At the beginning of the movie, it is stated that the virus that killed everyone arose from a specially bioengineered treatment for cancer, which mutated into the deadly virus. But dogs can't get a lot of the diseases that infect humans. Did the disease really mutate far enough so that it affected dogs that way too, or did people want their pets cured of cancer, or what? Even if the disease was able to infect the dogs, it seems strange that it would affect them the same way as it does humans.

Answer: When the woman who created the cancer treatment is being interviewed at the beginning of the movie, she states that the original virus used to create the cure was the measles. Human Measles are in a family of virus called paramyxovirus. This same family contains the canine virus distemper. So they are very closely related to one another. The virus was then modified in a way that was not stated so that it could deliver cancer therapy. After that, since the patients in the clinical trial were initially cured of cancer (stated in the same interview), the virus must have mutated in order to turn humans into night seekers. Then, in order for the virus to become airborne it must have mutated yet again. So, it is not hard to believe that it would be able to infect both species after a virus coming from a family that is already known to infect both species has been changed 3 or more times. This might also explain why the virus is slightly different in dogs, e.g. Dogs can't catch the airborne strain, and dogs can come out at dusk while night seekers must wait for full dark.

Chosen answer: He was an NYPD Detective. Police Detectives, while high-ranking, typically dress in more discreet civilian clothing when on duty.

Charles Austin Miller

Show generally

Question: What is the picture of women on the walls of the set? Not the butterfly picture, the others.

Answer: I believe you are referring to the artwork of Alphonse Mucha. On the wall next to the front door was "Feather" (which is one half of "Primrose and Feather"). Above the telephone in early episodes was "Zodiac". Also seen through The Apartment was "Spring" and "Autumn".

Answer: Or, you may be referring to Tranquillo Cremona's High Life (A Piquant Conversation), which hangs above the side table.

Question: If Costello was an FBI informant then why did he put Sullivan undercover in the police department, and then why did the police put Costigan undercover in Costello's mob, and therefore why the police were trying to get evidence against Costello and wanted to arrest him?

Answer: The FBI and police are separate organizations that do not share full information. Only the FBI and Costello himself knew about the informing, and the FBI can only do so much to stop Costello being caught without drawing attention to their relationship. The police and Costello's gang are fighting a separate battle, hence the two moles.

Question: Deadpool spends his whole movie killing dozens of people trying to find Francis. But did anyone else know that his real name was Francis, or just knew him as Ajax?

Answer: No and I think that was the joke. He was angry at that whole system so taking out everyone who worked for Francis was probably just him warming up for Francis. What possibly proves this is when he finally gets to 'Agent Smith' he actually asks "where is your boss?" He doesn't say Francis to him.

Question: Everyone says Rambo only kills one person in First Blood. But I watched it a few months ago, and I'm sure I remember him blowing up some police cars in a chase. What happened there?

MikeH

Chosen answer: He is never shown on camera to definitely kill more than one person (the shooter in the helicopter); the police cars flip over and crash, but the people inside are not shown to be dead, so it is possible they survived.

Twotall

Question: Why does Mad Eye point to his left while Harry is looking at him, right before the hedges close in the maze?

Answer: It's a hint. Mad-Eye (rather Barty Crouch Jr., masquerading as Mad-Eye) would want Harry to win the challenge and get sent to the graveyard, so he gives him a little help.

Twotall

It actually looked like he was pointing at Dumbledore, hinting Harry to look at him.

That wouldn't make any sense; it's just a coincidence.

Question: When Harry delivered his famous "do you feel lucky" monologue at the start, did he know his gun was empty? And when he repeated it at the end, did he know the gun was loaded?

MikeH

Answer: He certainly knew at the start, which is why he felt confident in pointing the gun at the (disarmed) robber and pulling the trigger. Harry knew he was bluffing, but passed it off so well the robber wasn't sure. At the end of the film, again, he knew he had one bullet left and wanted to bait Scorpio into attacking him, giving him an excuse to fire.

Chosen answer: That question is the entire point of the first scene. You're meant to wonder whether he knew or not. At the end of the film, you're given the impression he does know, and is hoping the killer will attack him, giving him an excuse to fire.

The way I see the scene, he knows that he still has one round, and he is giving Scorpio a chance to live. He will only fire if he has to.

Leicaman

Chosen answer: The electricity was flickering was because Boo was crying. After Mike trips on the lamp, Boo stops crying and her attention is drawn to Mike, stopping the electricity from flickering.

Casual Person

Question: When Gary Oldman detonated the C4, did he die? If so, assuming it wasn't intentional, how did he make that mistake?

MikeH

Chosen answer: Yes, he did die when he detonated the C4. Also, he made no mistake, detonating the C4 was intentional. He saw the apes as a threat and detonated the C4 as an attempt to kill them all, even if it meant giving up his own life in the process.

Casual Person

Question: The Diva gets to perform only one song of her concert before she is mortally gunshot in the abdomen. Almost simultaneously, Zorg sets a time-bomb to detonate in 20 minutes. Korben removes the stones from the Diva's dead body and barely escapes from the Fhloston cruise liner before it explodes 20 minutes later. Korben and his party immediately fly at hyperspeed straight to Earth and set the stones in place with only 5 minutes to spare. If they had followed the original plan without interruption and the Diva hadn't been unexpectedly murdered, she would have proceeded with the remainder of her concert, lasting an indeterminate amount of time; thereafter, presumably, she would have to undergo surgery to remove the stones from her body and deliver them to Korben, all of which would have taken far too long for him to save the Earth, correct?

Charles Austin Miller

Chosen answer: Not necessarily. Remember that the evil sped up once he knew Zorg was dead and the team had the stones. And we don't know how the Diva was going to get the stones out.

Greg Dwyer

Answer: At the end of the Diva's big number she bows, and they close the big curtains behind her displaying the amazing view. Maybe that was it, one big epic song. Plus, she asked Leeloo to wait in the hallway for her which seems kind of rude if it's the longer concerts we think of, so I don't think she planned on being that long. The Diva definitely gave off the mystic physic vibe so maybe she knew her fate. However, that would mean that she told Leeloo to wait in the hallway knowing she wasn't coming back, and maybe even knew the big beasties would show up. Either way you are correct about the dramatic timing issues all around in this movie, not that I mind.

Nikita Moon

Answer: The Diva already knew her fate... she knew it was her last song and fate would unfold the way it did.

Question: Did Dumbledore and other Hogwarts staff know that Voldemort would try to return with the help of the Philosopher's Stone this year, so they transferred it from the bank to Hogwarts, and put such a big protection as the three headed dog etc.? Because I think it's a very big coincidence that after all this years that stone has spent in the bank, they decided to put the stone in school, and the very next day someone tried to steal the stone from the bank. It's like they knew that Voldemort would try to use the stone to return. And if they did, why didn't they figure it out and put protection on over the last 10 years, maybe the very next day when Voldemort was defeated by little Harry? It's really like Dumbledore knew that Voldemort will try to use it, and more important, like he knew that he will try to do it NOW, not in last decade when he was "half alive."

Feather

Chosen answer: Dumbledore did probably have an idea that Voldemort might be looking for the stone, but he knew he would never be able to find it as he wanted to use it (Dumbledore's own spell upon it). But the stone gave Dumbledore an opportunity to lure Voldemort to him. So, in order to lure Voldemort out Dumbledore hid it at Hogwarts, closer to him, telling the staff what was going on. Of course then Quirrell knew too and thus Voldemort as well which caused a dangerous situation right the next day, but the general idea was to lure Voldemort out of hiding and into the hands of the Hogwarts teachers. They didn't know yet that Voldemort was already inside Hogwarts as a parasite of Quirrell.

lionhead

Question: Benedict sent the SWAT team down to the vault while the "thieves" were still there in order to gain control over his vault etc. Obviously the SWAT team kind of managed to do that, except that the "thieves" blew up the vault with the money. But then when Benedict came down to the vault personally, why he didn't ask about the thieves or want to speak to them, or wonder where their bodies were? Because when the SWAT team left it was only him in the vault.

Answer: Simple, he didn't suspect the SWAT team to know anything more than he did. All he knows is that the SWAT team arrived in an empty vault, just like he did. No thieves, no money. He is a control freak anyway and wanted to nail the scumbags himself, it was his vault.

lionhead

I thought about this... but how are they going to justify the standoff and gunfight if they say the vault is empty.

He talks to the SWAT team shortly after the lights are turned back on. They say the bomb was detonated, and they were looking for survivors. He then rushes to the vault and doesn't contact them again, assuming he would meet them at the vault but the SWAT team was already gone before he got there. I suspect Benedict would have run up to vault to find nobody there, no guards, SWAT, or thieves. That's when he starts working things out. Remember the money was supposed to be in the van at the airport.

lionhead

Question: Why did Michael Douglas expect David to spend 2 hours in the back stairwell between entering the building at 8 p.m. and attacking Gweneth at 10 p.m. after the phone rings? He'd be sitting in the stairwell where anyone could see him, with or without his black ski mask.

Answer: It is unknown what Douglas' entire thinking was behind the plan, but if someone had spotted David in the stairwell, it would only help to support Douglas' alibi and point the finger at a stranger breaking into the apartment and killing his wife.

raywest

Answer: Good point. If a resident in an upscale apartment building like that were to see a suspicious-looking man loitering in the stairwell, he would tell the doorman, who would either investigate or call the police, or both.

Question: When Max is pulled over by the cops because of the broken windshield and blood on his taxi, they immediately demand for him to open the trunk, which has the dead victim inside, and then to impound the taxi. When they receive a distress call on the radio, they let Max and Vincent go, feeling that it is more serious. Would this happen in reality?

Answer: It's quite possible it could happen. Max had told them that he had hit a deer, which explained the blood and broken windshield. The police did not suspect a taxi driver with a passenger in the car of any wrongdoing. Their concern was regarding the safety of the vehicle. When they got the emergency call on their police radio that became a more urgent priority than a damaged car, and Max was then instructed to get his cab off the road as quickly as possible. It's unclear why the cops wanted the trunk opened, but it really seems this was only to add to the scene's overall suspense before it is quickly diffused. It's a rather cliched plot device.

raywest

Answer: The cop says they need to do an itinerary, no doubt for legal reasons in case the cab driver claimed that they had stolen something after it had been impounded.

Question: After the witch is crushed by the house and confirmed by the coroner, a munchkin says, "This is a day of independence for all the munchkins and their descendants." After this, a different munchkin adds "If any." I have always wanted to know what is meant by "if any."

Answer: The one munchkin thinks they have been liberated by the wicked witch's death. The second munchkin, who says, "If any," apparently realises that the dead witch's more evil sister will probably seek revenge and kill everyone, which would mean there would be no descendants.

raywest

Question: When Will Smith enters the abandoned apartment looking for survivors, etc., he opens a cupboard to find some Spam. When he opens the cupboard, there is a magazine cover saying "Dogs can come out at dusk". I have two questions. One, why can the dogs come out at dusk and the infected humans can't? And two, when the encounter with Fred occurs, and the dogs are waiting for the strip of light to fade so they can kill Robert, is that the reason why the infected human hiding in the shadows could not come out? Because they cannot come out at dusk?

Answer: The newspaper page says "Infected dogs can come out at dusk. Stay in the light". My guess is that dogs can come out sooner because their physiology is just different. You're absolutely correct that it is the reason the dogs are out and the infected are hiding in the building waiting for the last ray of light to fade. The only reason the newspaper clipping exists is to set up this scene.

Question: For someone stranded on Mars for several months, Mantee's hair and sideburns seem remarkably well-groomed, even, and trimmed! (He could have cut his hair with his knife, but wouldn't it have looked more shaggy and uneven than it does)?

Answer: In the movie before he discovers his water supply and watches the survival video, he is shown grooming himself and shaving.

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