Answered questions about specific movies, TV shows and more

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Question: Do the pieces of Voldemort's soul (in the Horcruxes) obtain all of his memories, including those from days after they were made? For example, would the Tom Riddle in the diary horcrux remember Harry killing Professor Quirrell a year earlier?

Answer: No, the Tom Riddle that rose from the diary had no recollection of anything that happened after the piece of soul from which he came had been severed from the rest of Voldemort's soul.

Phixius

Question: Did I miss something somewhere? What was so special about the baby that its birth would change everything?

lartaker1975

Chosen answer: It is implied that this baby is destined to grow into a leader, a person of power, authority, and influence in the world and will be a champion for peace and the unity of all mankind.

Phixius

Chosen answer: He doesn't trust her. He knows Ethan is in love with Claire, and suspects she is in love with him. Claire does not deny this, and begs him not to kill Ethan, which confirms his suspicion.

Sierra1

Answer: Perhaps he planned to kill her all along. He was planning to escape via the helicopter but how was she to escape?

She was never supposed to go to the baggage area. She would have just got off the train like a normal person.

Question: When Professor Snape confronts Draco for avoiding him, he is able to tell that Draco is using Occlumency to block his attempts to look into his mind. Therefore, wouldn't Voldemort know if Snape has ever used Occlumency to block him out, and be suspicious of him?

Answer: Two possibilities: One: Voldemort didn't question Snape's loyalty and never bothered to look into his mind to see if he was using Occlumency. Two: Since Snape is operating as the Death Eaters' double-agent in the Order of the Phoenix, it would be practical for him to be using Occlumency at all times (which would have the hidden advantage of not being able to let Voldemort see that he is, in fact, a triple-agent loyal to Dumbledore).

Captain Defenestrator

The Herb Garden Germination - S4-E20

Question: In the beginning, Sheldon and Amy are attending a reading (or lecture) of Brian Greene. It seems Sheldon is truly mocking, although at the end he says he's kidding. Do theoretical physicists consider Greene to be a hack, or is he respected in the field of physics? Are Sheldon and Amy truly laughing at him?

Bishop73

Chosen answer: He's respected. Sheldon just thinks he knows more than anyone else and mocks anyone whose theories don't agree with his completely. Amy is probably just going along because it makes Sheldon happy.

Captain Defenestrator

Question: Who put Magneto in that plastic prison? Nixon and his cabinet don't seem know anything about mutants or see them as a threat (even after Cuba). Yet they put Magneto in a plastic prison as they know he can bend metal, so why wasn't anyone in the US government and most notably the President informed of this fact? It would have made Trask's appeals a lot more justified. Even likely sentinels would have been put into action a lot sooner rather then later.

lionhead

Chosen answer: Government agents were previously aware of mutants - they are probably the same ones that imprisoned Magneto, and his attempt to prevent JFK's assassination was most likely covered up due to the revelation that Kennedy was a mutant. Magneto was already in prison by the time Trask pitched his Sentinel idea to the government, which is probably why the program wasn't instituted.

Phaneron

Question: I'd like some clarification on the dual timelines in this movie. The past timeline is pretty simple, as it's just a continuation from First Class. But is the future apocalyptic timeline really the same timeline as X-Men, X-2, X-3, Origins, and The Wolverine? I ask because, while it'd be much simpler than having THREE different timelines unnecessarily, I'm not sure it really adds up. Why didn't Trask and his prototype Sentinels have a MUCH heavier presence in those previous movies? Why are there two Bolivar Trask characters, one of whom is portrayed by the African American Bill Duke, and another by Peter Dinklage? How does the after-credits scene from The Wolverine play into the events of Days of Future Past?

Answer: The Sentinels had no presence in the previous movies because the manufacturers spent decades working on them. Wolverine's intervention in the past set up a chain of events to which the first Sentinel prototypes were introduced much earlier. The mid-credits scene in "The Wolverine" implies that the Sentinels from the original timeline are nearing completion, which is why Magneto and Xavier are recruiting Wolverine. There aren't two Bolivar Trask characters. The Secretary Trask character played by Bill Duke just happens to have the same last name and was originally meant to be a nod to the character.

Phaneron

Question: In Divination class, Harry predicts that Ron will suffer but be happy. Is this a particular reference to anything that happens later in the series? (I have read the books, so spoilers are fine).

Answer: It does not have any real reference to anything in the entire story. Neither Harry or Ron have any psychic abilities or real interest in Divination. Harry did have a psychic connection to Voldemort, but he could not predict the future. Divination is just a class they are taking as part of their Hogwarts curriculum. In the book, both were making up predictions on the spot when it was their turn because they are expected to participate in the class. Their predictions became more outlandish over time. Technically that particular prediction is accurate, but it is so generalized that it could apply to almost any character in the books.

raywest

Question: So if Leonard actually killed his wife, even though he denies it, did Sammy Jankins ever exist? And all of the times Sammy's wife asked Sammy to give her the insulin, did that actually happen with Leonard's wife, or did Leonard just give her the shots without her agreeing? And if he did kill his wife when he had the "condition", does it ever say where or when he really got it?

Answer: Sammy Jankis did exist, but Leonard exposed him for being the conman that he was; however Leonard conditions himself to remember this differently. Right after Leonard kills Jimmy, Leonard is insisting that "Sammy Jankis wasn't faking." Teddy retorts that "Sammy was a con-man, a faker," and says "You exposed him for what he was: a fraud." The implication is that Sammy Jankis was a fraud with a story similar to what actually happens to Leonard; Leonard conditions himself to remember it differently so that he can use this false memory of an innocent man with the same condition to help him do two things: not feel responsible for his wife's death, and also give his life purpose by consistently having a John G, who supposedly killed his wife, to search for.

However, if Leonard did accidentally kill his wife with insulin, it was after his injury. He wouldn't remember it. Removing pages from the police report indicating that she survived the original incident would have been enough to hide the truth from himself forever. No memory, no guilt.

Question: What is the song being played during the scene when Henry is being chased by the helicopter towards the end? It starts when he puts the bags in the trunk of his car before going to pick up his brother, but it's not on the soundtrack and I can't see it listed in the end credits.

Stacey

Chosen answer: The song is called "Jump Into The Fire" by Harry Nilsson, and is not on the original motion picture soundtrack.

Question: I heard that Ron Jeremy had a walk on part in this film, does anyone know in which scene he is in?

Answer: Ron Jeremy can be seen in the crowd outside the firehouse right after the containment unit is shut off.

Question: When the transvestite is propositioning Calvin, he says "I'll even throw in some lawn furniture." Later, when Calvin tells his wife about the encounter, he says "they offer lawn furniture as a come on!" I have been puzzled by what they were referring to for years! Urban Dictionary has been no help at all! Does anyone know what s/he was referring to?

Captain Defenestrator

Chosen answer: I think this is a reference to two things: home shopping networks (which often offer free inducements such as lawn furniture or steak knives to shoppers who "call now" or "act now"; it's also probably a reference to Calvin's age - elderly people liking lawn furniture.

Sierra1

Years ago, there were TV commercials of used car salesman that would throw in lawn furniture or other desired household items when you buy a car from them. Pretty sure that is the reference here.

Answer: He is talking about what he thinks is the sub race of people created by the atomic blast. The "new human race" that he was telling his wife about.

Question: After watching Professor Quirrell die in this school year, shouldn't Harry have been able to see thestrals?

Answer: In the novel, Harry passes out before Quirrell dies, meaning that he did not truly see the death and therefore was unable to see the Thestrals. In the movie, Harry does see Quirell die and therefore should have been able to see the Thestrals before witnessing Cedric Diggory's death. This was a movie mistake.

kristenlouise3

I thought the reason Luna told Harry that only they could see the thestrals was because they lost a loved one. Not that that they saw someone die.

Question: Did Professor Snape have an ulterior motive for participating in the Dueling Club, or was it just simple personal interest?

Answer: Snape is mostly sure that Lockhart is a fraud and is looking for any chance to expose him.

Captain Defenestrator

Question: Why does Freddy come back in the end? I thought he was dead? Why is he killing now the adults?

Answer: It's a nod to the original Nightmare on Elm Street where the same thing happened at the end of the movie to Nancy's mother. Also you have to remember that Gwen, whom he killed at the end, was part of the mob who burned him alive. Can we say revenge?

lartaker1975

Question: Ed Exley recommends that the LAPD shift the blame for Bloody Christmas to men whose pensions are secured, and he names Bud White and Richard Stensland as two such men. But when Dudley Smith later tells Bud White that Stensland has been forced to retire, White says "A year from his pension!" So was Stensland entitled to a pension or not?

Answer: Exley is suggesting two things: to shift some blame to three officers with secured pensions and forcing them to retire; when he refers to White and Stensland though, he is saying "someone has to swing" and that they should be charged, tried and imprisoned - so Stensland is not entitled to a pension.

Sierra1

Question: Why do all the SEALS have scruffy beards? Usually they are clean shaved, right? I was just wondering if it's maybe for the mission that they are on, but I see all the SEALS there have a bunch of facial hair. Can someone confirm this?

Answer: SEALs are allowed to have 'modified grooming standards'. They are often undercover in other countries and it helps them to blend in, as beards are far more common in the Middle East.

Grumpy Scot

All That Remains - S8-E14

Question: I have the DVD sets for all the seasons, and I am wondering if anyone else noticed this issue with season 8, Disc 4, episodes "all that remain" and the next episode "broken", the descriptors of the episodes on the DVD case are correct and in the right order of when they were aired, but when I click "All That Remains" it plays the "broken" episode and vice versa, I wouldn't have noticed if I didn't happen to look up one of the actors in an episode, just wondering if anyone else had this issue with their DVDs, or any other similar issues with their DVDs? Thanks.

Answer: I just noticed the same thing about season 8 disk four, Broken and All That Remains are reversed on the DVD.

Answer: I always assumed one of the gods told him how to get there after they won the battle. The underworld in Greek mythology could be traveled to by mortals, albeit extremely ill-advised.

Jordan Oxendine

Answer: She is crying because Simon is back in her life. And she knows that the only reason for that would be that her hypnosis worked. She reads the article and she knows what he has done, even though he isn't aware of it. As we see later in the movie he was not really a nice guy, especially not to her.

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