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: The very last mistake listed for Mary Poppins says that you can see the lamp post coming through the bag and the table. I have watched this scene many times (in slow motion and otherwise) and I can't seem to find what you are talking about. Could someone please explain it's talking about?

Answer: There's no reason you shouldn't be able to see it, it's so obvious, unless you have the movie on DVD. It's possible they fixed the framing of the scene for its DVD release.

Question: Someone submitted in the trivia section that there's a shop in Knockturn Alley where the entire set of Harry Potter books are in the window. I couldn't find them. Are they really there? I think if they are, they might be the British version of the books, and I have no idea what they look like.

Answer: Yes they are there, and yes, they are the British versions of the books. This page has pictures of the British covers: http://www.bloomsbury.com/BookCatalog/subject.asp?Category_id=28.

Question: When Morrow bites off Eboshi's arm, the wolf's head has been somehow cut off her body. When the Forest Spirit took her life away, the head was attached. How did the head become detached?

Answer: You can see part of the ooze flowing across Moro's neck, thus it gets severed.

Question: Are there any Easter Eggs on the normal (not extended) DVDs of any of the three films?

Answer: No. All of the easter eggs are on the extended edition of the films.

Question: I know the first film had dialogue references to chapters of the book, such as "A Shortcut to Mushrooms" and "A Long Expected Party". Did this film have any such references?

Answer: Nothing so precise. Like the Two Towers, the chapter headings in the Return of the King tend more to the simple, like "The Siege of Gondor", "Minas Tirith", or "Mount Doom". These do come up in dialogue, obviously, but can't really be considered as references to the chapter titles in the same way as with the Fellowship of the Ring.

Tailkinker

Question: I know the first film had dialogue references to chapters of the book, such as "A Shortcut to Mushrooms" and "A Long Expected Party". Did this film have any such references?

Answer: Not really, no. The chapter titles of The Two Towers tend to be relatively factual, like "Helm's Deep", which, while obviously said during the film, can hardly be considered a specific reference to the chapter title. The closest is probably Aragorn calling out "Riders of Rohan" when they encounter them on the plains - there is a chapter with this title (adding "The" to the beginning).

Tailkinker

Question: Is there a reason why Uma Thurman's handwriting is so clumsy? I was thinking it would have something to do with her getting shot in the head.

Answer: Maybe it does or maybe she just has bad penmanship.

Tobin OReilly

Question: One of the trivia entry's mentions something about Go-Bots, who are they?

Answer: Go-Bots were transforming-vehicle toys from around the same period, competition for (or rip-off of, depending on your opinion) the Transformers.

Xofer

Question: What do the castle guards pour on Mongo's head that gives him the foamy hair style and eventually causes his arms to break off?

Answer: Steamed milk.

Paul Plesser

Question: What if they were to destroy the Matrix, then all the humans would be free but the problem is where would billions of human beings go? Zion, the last city, can't hold them all and they can't live in the tunnels or above the earth's crust because there is no food or water there. The whole war doesn't seem to be well thought out and seems like a big plot hole on the Wachowskis part.

Answer: The inhabitants of Zion seem to have little problem with killing off dozens of 'real people' during their constant gunfights inside the Matrix. This suggests that they would be willing to sacrifice the bulk of humanity. Remember, it's supposed to be difficult for adults who spent their entire lives in the Matrix to survive being suddenly removed from it anyway.

J I Cohen

Answer: It stands for either National Intelligence Department, or National Intelligence Division, although it's never expressly stated on the show.

Answer: Fun fact: The producers were originally going to call the NID the "NRD" for "Not a Real Department", but changed it so they could make it mean something sensible if they ever needed to.

Question: At the beginning, Brad Pitt takes two tablets then somehow survives a massive electric shock. Are the tablets some form of stimulant to help his system recover (or some other form of genuine treatment), or is it just a fictional cinematic device?

Jon Sandys

Chosen answer: He might have taken a medical equivalent to a regulated dose of Curare, which can suspend the body temporarily in a coma-like state, while keeping the mind active and perceptive. It could also have been tetrodotoxin, which has remarkably similar effects, but lasts longer. In either case, they were specifically engineered for his physiology, indicating a pharmacologist's aid in their endeavor.

Question: Why was the ship that stopped in the front of the library empty? Did the crew abandon ship? Or was there something more sinister?

iceverything776

Chosen answer: Hard to tell why, it was not depicted. During heavy storms, most people would be on call, attending watches in the engine room and bridges. They probably died during the storm (several causes, as such heavy trashing, being swept away, the cold) etc., but their bodies were not shown, as it was irrelevant to the plot.

Question: Did that animal in Crematoria's prison (during the "feeding") have his eyes change (start glowing) after his contact with Riddick? I thought maybe I had missed something, but it looked like he/it had eyes like Riddick's after.

Michael Westpy

Chosen answer: The animals appear to be somewhere between a minor-class mimic of their surroundings and emotionally-triggered chameleons. As a sympathetic gesture towards Riddicks' dominant nature, it may have been altered purposely, or it was the animals' native eye color, when unstressed.

Question: I'm curious to know how people in Russia, the Ukraine, and other parts of the former Soviet Union feel about this movie. Do they detest it, love it, like it... do they think any part of it is an exaggeration? Where could I go to see their opinions on Miracle?

Matty Blast

Chosen answer: My name is Anastasiya and I am from Moscow, Russia. I am married to an American and we visited his family in New York, America and saw the movie Miracle in the theatre. My opinion on the movie was very good. I thought it was a good movie and although their views on the Soviets weren't very good at parts, I think that was how it really went and I think it was true to the real story. Overall, I liked the movie, and it was not hurtful in any way to me at all, as a Russian. Sincerely, Anastasiya Yakovlev-Burke.

Question: The scene where Lucy is at the mental institution and she's drawn Henry a million times, did that actually happen?

Answer: Yes, it did happen: right as it did in the movie. Henry was on the boat, thought that Lucy remembered him, turned around, went into the hospital, and saw the paintings. But the movie then skipped many years into the future and showed Lucy and Henry about, maybe 5 years later on the boat in Alaska. It was shown like this so you would know how they got back together, but they also wanted you to see how they ended up. Hope this helps, it took me a while to figure this out anyway!

Question: In at least one scene of the NYC mayor's office/residence, the flag on the other side of her desk from the U.S. flag appears to be the flag of Mexico. Is this correct?

scwilliam

Chosen answer: That's the flag of New York City - see http://flagspot.net/flags/us-nyc.html. While it does look similar to Mexico, the Mexican flag is green, white, and red instead of blue, white, and red.

Question: When Sam rips open the web on Frodo's face that Shelob made, what are those little black spots on Frodo's face?

Answer: Dirt. You try crawling through swamps, up mountains and through a spider's cave and not get dirty.

Chosen answer: "Deus Ex Machina" means "God out of the machine." It's from Greek plays, wherein a god would appear at the end of the story to solve a problem. Nowadays it basically means that a totally new plot element appears out of nowhere and solves everything. It's an easy (and cheap) way out.

Question: What is the kiss on the side of Wendy and her mother's mouth?

Answer: It is a dimple that only shows when she smiles. It is there to be found by the one who can make her smile, better known as someone you love.

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