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.

Chosen answer: No reason for this has yet been disclosed.

Tailkinker

Question: I've been wondering about this for a while: the teacher who befriends Carrie seems to care about her a great deal. Was Carrie just imagining that everyone (including the teacher) was laughing at her or was it real?

Answer: She was just imagining it. She had become so used to being ridiculed by many students, that she was unable to separate out those who actually were kind to her.

raywest

In the book, they were all laughing. Some did it intentionally, and some couldn't seem to help themselves, but it was not Carrie's imagination.

Question: When Jane and Roxy are in the hotel, they run out onto the street in towels, they then buy the 'I (heart) NY' t-shirts. What happened to their other clothes that they were wearing?

kkaattiiee

Chosen answer: Before the girls go to the stall where the "I heart New York" shirts are, they broke into an apartment and Jane could have left her clothes in the bathroom when she was taking her shower, and Roxy could have left her clothes somewhere else around the hotel room. As for their towels and robe, they could have disposed of them in a bin or left them in the cubicles etc...

curiouskid

Question: When the Black Pearl arrives at Port Royal, and the two pirates, Ragetti and Pintel go after Elizabeth, she runs to her bedroom and throws fire on Ragetti's head. These pirates are cursed, and therefore cannot feel anything. Why then, does he yell as if he could feel the fire? Isn't that a mistake?

linita

Answer: Ragetti (amongst others) is indicating that the undead pirates do feel pain. In example Ragetti talks about his wooden eye and how it "splinters terribly". He also screams that the coal is hot and that it burns him. Another pirate screams in agony when being stabbed. As Barbossa states; they can't feel pleasure in any form but mentions nothing about pain. The curse is meant to punish the greedy who stole/steals the gold. What better punishment than let them suffer by not feeling what wealth can bring in form of pleasure by flesh and food but only take away that part and leave the "bad" feelings like pain?

Fairly logical - just one slight chink: At the end, when Jack and Barbossa fight, Jack stabs Barbossa right through the middle - if the curse is punishing them in this way, Barbossa should be feeling quite a lot of pain. Yet he just sighs, pulls the sword out, and stabs Jack with it.

When Barbossa is explaining the curse to Elizabeth he says, verbatim, "I feel nothing." Therefore, Ragetti can't feel that the coals are hot.

Chosen answer: No, this is not a mistake. Ragetti is just reacting to it in panic, believing that he really can feel pain, even though he cannot.

raywest

Chosen answer: When landing on an aircraft carrier, a pilot "calls the ball" by confirming to the landing signal officer (LSO) that they have the carrier, and more specifically its landing guidance systems in sight. Carriers use a Fresnel lens system which is a light only visible at a certain angle, so if a pilot sees the "ball" they are at the correct altitude and glide slope for landing.

Sierra1

Question: Why is Medusa able to turn the lady in the garden to stone and why is Annabeth afraid of her? Per Medusa's curse that Athena put on her she can't harm women.

Answer: Medusa is still pretty scary, and Annabeth may not know about Athena's curse.

raywest

Question: It never shows the clues to Kat, Rory, or Eugine and Clear's deaths, can someone please tell me what they are?

M0vi3

Chosen answer: Eugene's death had no clues I know of, but Clear and Rory's did, Rory's clue was with Nora's. The trophy's shadow is segmented, giving it a divided look, Rory ends up divided to pieces by the barbed fence. As for Clear, Bludworth hints at it with his comment "such fire you have now".

Answer: Eugene And Clear die at the same time because when Eugene was plugged up to the ventilator it sparked a fuse and caused the whole hospital to go up in flames, leading Kimberly to drive the emergency van into the river trying to drown herself.

Happy Birthday, Baby - S3-E18

Question: During the opening credits of this episode Dean is shown as being in this episode but he was not actually shown. Is there a reason why he was shown in the credits for this episode even though he was not in it?

Jenzzyuk

Chosen answer: So long as Dean was a regular on the show, whether he appeared in a particular episode or not, he was featured in the opening credits' montage. Once the character was phased out, they stopped showing him in the opening.

Phixius

Question: Why did the drillers have to go through all the rigorous medical tests if the NASA doctors were going to pass them anyway, after most of them failed? According to the movie, Harry and his team were the best drillers on the planet, so it didn't seem like NASA had any other option considering the time constraints.

Answer: True, they failed to meet NASA's strict requirements. But the tests would at least determine if they could concievably survive the journey, if not maintian optimal health, etc. None of them lost consciousness for any extended periods in the course of the examinations, so they were passed.

Phixius

Question: On the bridge after the crash, they take a man's small pickup truck. What is written on the bumper sticker?

dejavu62

Chosen answer: Praise the Lord.

THGhost

Flight - S1-E22

Question: In season one Terrence Steadman is played by John Billingsley as listed on prison breaks imdb cast list however why is this character played by Jeff Perry in season 2? Considering Steadman has a larger part in season 2, I thought John Billingsley would have been signed on to play him indefinitely. Was there some altercation between Billingsley and the director? Was he unavailable to work on season 2? Was he fired? Quit? I'd just like to know because it has been bugging me for ages now and I cant seem to find the reason.

Answer: According to the Internet Movie Database, Billingsley was unable to reprise the role due to his work on "The Nine".

Cubs Fan

Question: What was the meaning of Larry meeting a woman that looked just like Amelia Earheart? The woman says that she isn't related to Amelia, so I'm confused about why it was done.

Answer: Larry was smitten with the wax figure of Amelia Earhart and when he sees the woman in the museum who looks like Amelia (and who was played by the same actress who portrayed Amelia), his infatuation and attraction were understandable.

MovieFan612

Question: How did Will not recognise Viloa in her boy disguise? Even in disguise, you can clearly see it's her, and she didn't sound like a boy.

Answer: In real life, Viola, of course, would be recognized as a female in disguise. However, in literature, film, opera, etc, it often is necessary to employ what is known as a "suspension of disbelief." That is, the author expects the reader or audience to know something is impossible, unlikely, or completely unreal, but they have to accept a certain premise in order to allow the plot to unfold. We go along with the idea that no one realizes Viola is actually a woman, so that we can enjoy the overall story.

raywest

Chosen answer: No. It's very similar, but not the same set.

White Lock

Answer: To confirm, it is not the same set. In fact, the "Two and Half Men" production staff have officially denied their set is based on the "Laverne and Shirley" set, but just appear similar since they share a Spanish Colonial style. In addition, "Two and Half Men" and "Laverne and Shirley" were produced by two different companies and shot on two different stages.

Bishop73

Answer: It's the same set.

Question: In the virtual reality bar, a man comes up to the operator with a request. On television I've seen this line as, "I want to kill my boss." But I remember the line being much less family friendly in the theater. Was this line changed since the move left theaters, or am I mistaken?

Answer: You are not mistaken. Movie scenes are filmed multiple times, often with small changes to the dialogue, actors reacting differently, and so on, to see which one works best. However, some more adult scenes that are appropriate for a movie theater or certain cable channels are also filmed with a more family-friendly version that can be edited into the film for later TV viewings. This eliminates having to "bleep" out offensive words, dubbing in non-offensive words, which sounds unnatural, or otherwise chopping up or cutting scenes entirely due to nudity. This method is less distracting and makes for better viewing. A good example is the TV series, "Sex and the City." The show actually filmed many racier scenes in two versions, one for the very adult-oriented HBO, and also tamer scenes that eliminated all nudity and offensive dialogue for later syndication to general cable channels while keeping the overall content intact.

raywest

Chosen answer: The 8th Doctor regenerated into the War Doctor by his ship crash landing on Karn. See "The Night of the Doctor". The people on Karn recognised him and allowed him to have a regeneration because he had helped them before. He got to choose who he regenerated into, and decided on the War Doctor, saying "Doctor no more". The War Doctor regenerated into the 9th Doctor in "The Day of the Doctor" apparently just due to old age, saying "Oh yes, of course. I suppose it makes sense. Wearing a bit thin. I hope the ears are a bit less conspicuous this time."

Shadow5

Question: What's up with Percy (the midget)? He was with Dr. Parnassus decades ago, when he won a bet with the devil to win the heart of a woman he craved, but he hasn't aged a day since. Or was that another midget and Dr. Parnassus has a tendency to pick midgets up to live in poverty by his side, and these two just happen to look identical? Both were obviously played by the same actor (Verne Troyer) and some make-up would easily disguise this, so I'm guessing this is intentional.

Answer: Percy's backstory is never touched upon, but he certainly appears to have been with Parnassus for a substantial period of time, longer than his visual age would suggest. Possibly he himself has done his own deal with the Devil, or some other power, to extend his life, but, if so, the film never elaborates on it.

Tailkinker

Show generally

Question: This has interested me for ages: Where does Smithers actually live? And how does he get to and from the power plant? I am asking because Smithers is at Mr Burns's mansion most of the time, which gives the impression he is sort of a live-in servant, but in other instances, he is shown to live in a house by himself e.g. Lisa vs Malibu Stacey. And in terms of his commute to and from work, he is seen to drive Mr. Burns around in Burns's car, like a chauffeur, but in the episode where Homer gets promoted and gets the executive spot, Smithers drives up in another car, and not Burns's, which is already there.

Answer: I'd say Smithers has his own house, where he keeps his Malibu Stacy collection, but Mr Burns doesn't let him leave a lot. Of course, being Smithers, he's more than happy to stay by his boss' side.

Answer: In the episode, "You Only Move Twice", Smithers walks out of a house saying that it's nice driving Mr. Burns to work, so he could live in said house.

Question: Why was Michael killing people? There was no mention of his history, or what made him the way he was.

Answer: The only answer given in this film is that Myers is purely and simply evil. He's just doing it because he's compelled to, and doesn't seem to have any trace of humanity left inside of him. Future sequels attempted to give an explanation, but to varying degrees of success. But as far as this original film is concerned - he's just pure evil.

TedStixon

Answer: The movie doesn't require a back story, although subsequent sequels, and the Rob Zombie remake address your questions. Then again, what makes any serial killer kill? The topic has been studied by psychologists for decades. Often serial killers lead normal lives, at least in public.

rswarrior

Question: Is it possible to shoot the pilot of an enemy bi-plane in mid-air with a handgun? I would have thought the high wind velocity would have blown the bullet sideways, but I'm hardly an expert.

Gavin Jackson

Chosen answer: Biplanes were not very fast in flight. For instance a Sopwith Camel at about 5000 ft altitude had a cruise speed of approximately 100 mph. A Fokker had a cruise speed of about 95 mph. A typical WWI handgun could shoot 830 feet per second. With the distances between the planes as shown in the movie, a bullet could travel between the planes in less than half a second. The pilot would have to lead the target some, but he conceivably could hit the other pilot if close enough.

rswarrior

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