Question: I've been wondering this since I was very little. When The Wizard of Oz was first released in theaters in 1939, was Oz in color or is that only for the televised version? This has been bugging me for years.
Questions about specific movies, TV shows and more
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Question: Did Harry simply get away with attacking Professor Snape? It happened before the moment that he and Hermione would time-travel back to, so it wasn't erased.
Answer: Harry was acting to save Sirius, who Snape was intending to turn over to the Dementors so his soul could be sucked out. Due to the unusual circumstances, Dumbledore would not have allowed Harry to be punished for protecting his godfather and uncovering the truth that proved his innocence. Dumbledore also knew Snape had acted inappropriately due to his personal hatred of Sirius. In the book, Snape was simultaneously jinxed by Harry, Ron, and Hermione. Snape later claimed they were not responsible for their own actions and were coerced.
Question: Many years ago, I saw on TV (while I was in Florida before 2004) another film version of Phantom of the Opera where Minnie Driver played the role of Christine Daae. I remember being surprised because I did not know she could sing. Clearly, she later played the role of Carlotta in Joel Schumacher film version. But what version was that film where she played Christine? I have been trying to find that version but have been unable to do so.
Chosen answer: Minnie Driver was born in 1970 in London, England. A search of IMDb.com yields four film and television productions of "Phantom" between 1970 and 2004. The 1983 TV Film was not a remake of the original musical, and there is no character named Christine (even if there were, it is unlikely she would have been played by a 13 year-old actress) In the other productions, the role of Christine was portrayed by (in chronological order) : Jill Schoelen (1989), Terri Polo (1990, TV), and Asia Argento (1998, Italy) Minnie Driver's IMDb oeuvre also does not list any other production of "Phantom" beside the 2004 film. Further, though Minnie Driver is an accomplished singer (she sings the original song, "Learn To Be Lonely" over the credits of "Phantom"), she is not a trained opera singer. In fact, her opera singing in "Phantom" was dubbed by Margaret Preece. As such, it is unlikely Minnie Driver ever portrayed Christine Daae in any version of "Phantom of the Opera".
Question: How many people are maimed or killed in the fight with the 88, from the bathroom to the death of O-Ren?
Answer: There are several answers to this question floating around the net which are supposedly based on an freeze-frame analysis of the film conducted by "Jonathan R. From Bouncing Ferret Films": 67 killed, 12 maimed, 1 killed by an axe thrown by somebody else, one possibly killed, one spanked. +1 for O-Ren I guess, so around 70 killed, 12 maimed. A few less than 88, but perhaps they were elsewhere, were killed previously or died in the club but were not shown.
They state there really aren't 88 they just call themselves that because it's cool.
Question: What is Dr. Casares' first name? A clue was his handkerchief which had his initials.
Question: Who is the actress we only see as photographs or slides in her funeral that played Liam Neeson's wife and Sam's mother?
Question: What was the Skipper's job in the navy?
Answer: While the Skipper did state he was a Navy cook in one episode, other pieces of information were given in other episodes which offer conflicting information regarding his back-story. This excerpt from the Wikipedia article about The Skipper (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Skipper) summarizes it best: "Little was ever learned about his past, but in several episodes he mentions variously having several ships blown out from under him, and his veteran's status, implying that he'd served in World War II. One episode indicates the Skipper was a veteran of the Battle of Guadalcanal. In another episode he gets amnesia, and thinks he's on a covert mission behind enemy lines, mistaking the others to be Japanese soldiers, including Ginger, whom he mistakenly believes to be a ventriloquist. He claims to be the CO of the 177th Infantry Regiment, which is a U.S. Army regiment, but whether that actually happened or was just a wish-fulfilling fantasy is open to debate, for later on in the series he says that he was simply a cook. In one episode he claimed to have been a Navy Bandmaster and in another he claims to have been the best card player in the US Navy." There are inconsistencies in the back-stories of most characters on "Gilligan's Island," even including whether "Gilligan" is the eponymous character's first or last name. This suggests that plot consistency wasn't foremost on the minds of the show's writers and creators (I mean, why would the Howell's bring suitcases full of money on a three-hour Hawaiian tour?), who instead focused on zany misadventures and missed rescue opportunities.
Question: During Clu's "Toast" to his army, there is a closeup of one particular program that has been converted. For some reason, this looks like Gem to me, even though the impression is that she died in the End of Line club (though if the sequence happened in real time, there was plenty of time for them to escape the club before it blew) Is it supposed to be Gem, or another significant program, or just a cool shot showing Clu's reflection in the visor of the program?
Chosen answer: There's no indication that it's anyone we'd know. I'm pretty sure the shot was simply placed there for the visual it creates.
Question: I recently purchased the soundtrack to Rocky IV and one of the songs is called Man Against The World. The small pamphlet that came with the CD stated that this song was originally going to be in the movie but was eventually left out. Had this song been in the movie, what scene would this song have appeared in?
Answer: Presumably it would have been used in the scene where Rocky and company arrive in Russia. Burning Heart (also by Survivor) was chosen to be used in this scene instead.
Question: Was Sara Gilbert (Darlene) pregnant in real life when she was pregnant on the show?
Answer: No. Sara Gilbert has given birth to one child (so far) and that was in 2007.
Question: The part where Talia's mother gets attacked and the doctor forgets to lock the cell, why did he need to lock the cell, and why did they attack her? Were there no other women in the Pit?
Chosen answer: The prison had a very large male population. It didn't appear to hold too many women. Thus, though it is never stated in the film, she was obviously always in danger of being physically attacked or sexually assaulted by prisoners. Hence, her cell door needed to be locked.
Question: I don't quite understand the moving portraits. Are they alive, are they Horcruxes or pieces of the subject's souls, or do they just say previously-recorded things?
Answer: They are not alive, nor are do they carry any piece of the subject's soul (or anyone else's for that matter) Neither are they just playing out some manner of magical-programming. They are normal paint-and-canvas paintings that have been charmed with sentience and to behave exactly as the subject of the portrait would have behaved.
Question: If Hagrid was blamed for killing Myrtle, why was he allowed to join the Hogwarts staff as Gamekeeper? Surely parents of students and other staff would object to him remaining at the school.
Answer: Hagrid wasn't accused of killing Myrtle. It was wrongly believed that Aragog, the giant spider, was the monster that killed her. Hagrid was found responsible for having brought the creature into Hogwarts and keeping it hidden there. That is why he was punished by not being allowed to use magic, though he was later exonerated of any wrongdoing.
Answer: Dumbledore trusted him and gave him the job as gamekeeper.
Question: What kind of church is it that Ada is singing in, because I have never seen it with the hands like that on the music.
Chosen answer: The hand movements you refer to are called "time setting." The purpose is to maintain the beat of the song, and keep the singing on track, particularly in the old back-woods churches where there had rarely been instrumental accompaniment. It also has the added benefit of enhancing the energy of the musical experience for the participants. I am not certain if the denomination of the church was ever explicitly stated, but it was likely Pentecostal.
Question: When Doc and Marty go back to 1985, after going to 2015, they land and find out that it's an alternate 1985 wherein Biff is in charge. Someone said in a question that when they returned, shouldn't they have seen Biff's casino as they fly over Hill Valley - is them not seeing the casino there to mislead the audience into thinking nothing has changed or is it a mistake?
Question: Did Woody really drive the truck his son traded in at the end of the movie, or was he dreaming?
Question: I've always wondered what the significance is of the old Shasta TV commercial that they are watching. This is one of my favorite movies, but this has always bugged me.
Answer: It doesn't really have any significance but the one man thinks the commercial is to make people go out and buy the drink.
Question: Why does Colin not want his girlfriend's pictures out in the apartment?
Answer: Because he's a sh*tty boyfriend (as reinforced by purposely making a point of showing Costigan hanging it on the wall later on).
Answer: Because he doesn't want her to be in trouble if he gets into trouble. Also he wants as little information about himself in the apartment. Another option is psychological issues. He had a hard childhood after all.
Answer: Colin is Damon, not a mixup. I agree that it is to protect her identity from someone who may enter the apartment.
Answer: My interpretation is to emphasize the divide between the two characters and show how the person one conveys on the surface could be vastly different from someone's true nature. Colin is a cop (arguably a good one who is granted his own team investigating organized crime). As a cop, society views him as a good, well-intentioned, selfless person who serves a greater purpose. Furthermore, we are shown that he is highly ambitious (pursuing a law degree and aspiring to a life in politics). All of this shows that on a societal level, he is a good fit or match for Madelyn. She is a doctor, therapist, university educated, decent person who would typically end up with someone in a similar social class and circle. This juxtaposes Billy, who despite the fact that he went to a prestigious and private private school, is extremely intelligent and we know from the beginning a good person, to the rest of society is simply a low-life murderer, criminal and thug and member of Costello's inner circle. This is not the kind of person that Madelyn nor society would pair her with. So, on the outside, the characters are written as such. But this small interaction with the childhood photo shows that surface interpretations are not an accurate representation of the true man. Colin isn't actually the right match on a more intimate level, and Billy, for all intents and purposes is more loving and compassionate to Madelyn's true self.
Question: In the scene where Sam is at the airport and catches up with Joanna, he says "Oh Jesus" and then "Here, I've got to run", before the camera cuts to the scene of him going back to his Dad. Did he talk to her during this time, or give her a note or something?
Chosen answer: It doesn't appear so. Joanna was surprised and impressed that he would risk so much just to see her before she left.
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Answer: The Emerald City was, indeed, presented in color in the original 1939 film. In fact, even Kansas was not originally purely black-and-white. The Kansas scenes were initially sepia tinted. Later prints showed Kansas in black-and-white. The original sepia tones were returned in the 1989 restoration for the film's 50th anniversary.
Michael Albert