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: Why was Travis labeled a hero at the end and not arrested? He murdered several people.

MikeH

Chosen answer: One theory about the end of the film is that it is Travis' dying thoughts, but this is not the view of Scorsese or writer Paul Schrader...they intended the ending to be ambiguous and an ironic critique of the media's, and the public's, reaction to and interpretation of violence (Travis is hailed as a hero for rescuing Iris, but we can imagine a very different reaction had he followed his original plan of assassinating a senator). Interestingly, when the film was originally shown on television, the following "disclaimer" of sorts accompanied the closing credits: "In the aftermath of violence, the distinction between hero and villain is sometimes a matter of interpretation or misinterpretation of facts. 'Taxi Driver' suggests that tragic errors can be made. The Filmmakers."

Question: What does it mean to call someone a "bubble-butt" boyfriend, as a girl refers to Billy when Sidney is in a bathroom stall?

Answer: "Bubble butt" is, in some areas, a slang term for a nice-looking rear end. The comment is a reference to Billy being perfect, as Sidney herself and Tatum describe him at other times in the movie.

Question: I know this isn't very important to the movie but when Magneto says Charles always wanted to build bridges was he making fun of Charles or making a reference to how he's moving the bridge.

THE GAMER NEXT DOOR

Chosen answer: A little bit of both. Although he wasn't really making fun of Charles, but pointing out that Charles only talked about doing something (building bridges in a figurative way) while Magneto was actually doing something to accomplish his goals, by literally moving the bridge.

Bishop73

Chosen answer: It is an implication that Carrie White is not really dead.

BaconIsMyBFF

Answer: It's most likely just a metaphor for the terrible memories that those who survived the prom massacre must have in their minds forever. The memory of Carrie White haunts them.

Chosen answer: There is no clear answer as to her fate, only that J reminds K in the second MIB movie that K's wife left him, which K answered with a punch to J's face.

Scott215

Question: When the lady knocks on the door and says "House keeping" which causes some monster wind thing, If you look on the right side of the screen, what's inside the room?

Cloude2

Chosen answer: It's not known what it is. It is left to the audience's imagination of what exactly is in the room or what some witch or wizard was doing in there. This is only meant to be a humorous bit and is unrelated to the plot. It didn't happen in the book.

raywest

Question: After Alex translates the hieroglyphs as "This way to Scorpion King," Jonathan quietly responds by saying "It's just my work." What exactly did he mean by that? He's not a translator of ancient Egyptian like his sister Evie, so I don't think he literally meant "work" as his profession.

Phaneron

Chosen answer: He says, "this just might work" meaning he and Alex trying to bring Evie back using the book of the dead.

Question: What was the girl in the well trying to do with the bone and the bucket?

Answer: She was trying to attract the dog with the bone, then pull it into the pit with the bucket (and she succeeded).

Brian Katcher

Question: What does Kylo Ren mean when he tells Rey "Don't be afraid. I feel it, too"? I thought he meant the Force, but Rey has seen him use the Force by now, so it would be strange to for him to inform her that he can feel it.

Answer: Kylo Ren is referring to an unexpected connection through the Force between them. He thinks this will make it easier for him to read Rey's mind, but it actually allows her to block him and read his mind.

Sierra1

Question: I thought that the chip they stole was fake? Why did Walter think it is real? Hypnosis?

Answer: Walter thought the chip was real because he placed it under a scanner and the scanner confirmed that the chip was real. However, given the fact that later on it was revealed that the whole plane sequence was a set up, it is probable that the device used to scan the chip was actually a fake that was used to make Walter believe the chip was real, most likely throw him off guard.

Casual Person

Answer: It is revealed later on that Allen Scott-Frank, the man from the Macau Science Center, where they stole the fake chip from, was working with The Eye. He likely anticipated their arrival due to being in contact with The Eye and planted a fake chip into the system, allowing the Horsemen to steal it. This fake chip was likely designed to trick a scanner into thinking it was real.

Casual Person

They stole the real chip but lost it. That's how they were able to recognize the one they currently had was fake.

Question: Why is Barbossa reluctant to hand over Elizabeth while making a deal with Sao Feng while Jack is talking with Beckett on his ship? And why is Beckett interested in Elizabeth (asking Jack about her when he fails to mention her)?

Answer: Barbossa does feel some loyalty to Elizabeth and considers her a comrade, and he would not hand her over to an enemy. Beckett would be interested in Elizabeth for a variety of reasons. She would possess valuable information. Having her as a captive would make it easier to ensure Norrington's obedience. She would also make for a good bargaining chip in his dealings with Jack. He may also fancy her.

raywest

Question: What did it say on the bench in the garden they climbed over the fence for?

Answer: "For June who loved this garden - from Joseph who always sat beside her." And below that, "June Wetherby 1917-1992" with a picture of a three leaf clover underneath. Upon seeing the inscription, Julia Roberts comments, "some people *do* spend their whole lives together."

Michael Albert

Answer: The mountain in the background appears to have two vertical grooves down the surface facing the camera. Those grooves are far too wide to be ski trails. They are simply a natural part of the mountain. Mountains are subjected, over hundreds of thousands of years, to a variety of natural forces, such as wind erosion, water erosion, tectonic shifts and earthquakes, just to name a few. These cause mountains to have irregular shapes, and irregular surfaces.

Michael Albert

Question: Why did Jay look like she was going to swim out to the boys on the boat to have sex with them if it turned out she never did?

Answer: The scene was meant to show that Jay was seriously considering having sex with a stranger and passing the curse on, as she was told to do. At the last minute she changed her mind, presumably due to guilt.

BaconIsMyBFF

Chosen answer: It would appear so. He even says "I punished those bad men."

Answer: 1971 Plymouth Satellite hardtop. You can see the Satellite's blue/white/red flag emblem on the grill.

Bishop73

Answer: Mostly because he's trying to maintain a professional distance between him and Mako. That aside, it's not unlikely that he can trust Herc to take care of that, and it really were Raleigh and Mako that needed yelling at first.

Friso94

Answer: Because he is their commanding officer and he makes a strategical call: he thinks Raleigh and Mako are unfit for combat. As for the whole 'grounding', that is a phrase that most likely stems from the Air Force. If a pilot is punished by not letting him fly, he is grounded.

Friso94

Question: After Kingsley gives Harry the Daily Prophet, is it Sirius or Arthur who says Fudge is attacking Dumbledore as well?

THE GAMER NEXT DOOR

Chosen answer: Its Sirius. You can see Lupin nodding at Sirius as he says it.

lionhead

Question: In the Sabbath backstage scene when Stillwater is leaving, is that the band manager played by Jimmy Fallon following the band out, before he was introduced as their manager in the timeline?

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