Question: Did any of the actors know how to play their instruments? Because sometimes Harry Shearer seems to know what he's doing on the bass, particularly during 'Big Bottom' but the two leads sometimes look as though they're playing air guitar.
Questions about specific movies, TV shows and more
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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: I read that the character of Arwen is different in the film adaptation than from the books (including "Fellowship of the Ring"). In what ways? Second, did director/screenwriter Peter Jackson gave a reason why he expanded Arwen's presence in the film adaptation? Was it done for marketing purposes as some fans had claimed?
Chosen answer: Well, Arwen in the books really doesn't do a great deal - she's an extremely minor character. The first reason for increasing her role was simply to remove some of the myriad other characters from the book - for example, the elf Glorfindel, who, in the book, is the one who brings Frodo to Rivendell, then never appears again. Considering the sheer number of characters in the tale, it makes a certain sense to combine them occasionally. The second reason, and why they chose to use Arwen at this point, is that it fleshes out her character a bit, giving us a glimpse of her strength and power and allowing us to get a better glimpse at her relationship with Aragorn, making it clearer why he would love her. It has also given the tale another strong female character, which, yes, isn't bad for marketing purposes, but that consideration wasn't the primary reason for doing so.
Question: It is known through articles and interviews that Mel Gibson is considered a traditional Catholic, one who rejects Vatican II. Since there are many traditional Catholic sects (ranging from those are affliated with the Pope to those who reject his authority), who does Gibson represent?
Chosen answer: Gibson is a member of a small independent congregation called "The Holy Family" - total membership is about 70, and they worship in a chapel that was paid for by Gibson himself. As with pretty much all the traditionalist groups, they celebrate Mass in Latin, not abolished, but the mass was now to be celebrated in the vernacular, by the Second Vatican Council in 1964/65. They appear to be quite moderate by the standards of traditional Catholics - the more extreme elements regard the Vatican as a hotbed of heresy - Gibson previewed his film for the Pope, which implies a certain amount of acceptance. The Holy Family has, at one point, had a falling out (reasons unclear) with the Society of St Pius X, the largest traditionalist group, so it's unclear precisely where they lie within the Catholic spectrum.
Question: Is there any more significance about the tree of Gondor other than what Pippin saw in a vision?
Chosen answer: Quite a lot of significance, yes. Okay, deep breath, here goes. Back before the First Age, there was a time referred to as "The Years of the Trees". At this time, before the sun and the moon, the domain of the Valar (local godlikes) was lit by the radiance of two revered and mystical trees. The elder tree, called Telperion, was known as the White Tree. Destroyed by Melkor, the first Dark Lord, shortly before the beginning of the First Age, its image was preserved by the Valar in a second tree, Galathilion, in the elven city of Tirion (and Telpirion's last flower was set in the sky, the light now known as the moon). Seedlings of Galathilion was the source of many trees throughout the kingdoms of men and elves. One of the most famous of these was the tree Nimloth that grew in the royal courts in the prosperous human kingdom of Numenor. Sauron's influence ultimately allowed him to take control of Numenor's government, and he had Nimloth burnt, seeing it as a link to the Valar, his enemies. However, Isildur saved one of the fruits of the tree and took it with him to Middle-Earth after the fall of Numenor. He planted it there, in the Gondorian citadel of Minas Ithil (later to fall to the Nazgul and become Minas Morgul). Seedlings from that tree was planted in Minas Tirith, and, since that time, a White Tree has always grown there. So the Gondorians see the tree as a link to their founders, to the fabled kingdom of Numenor and ultimately to the Valar themselves.
Question: Lord Denethor is not the king of Gondor, but a steward, a caretaker of the throne according to Gandalf. Does this means that he is acting as a regent?
Chosen answer: Effectively, yes - the Stewards rule in the absence of the rightful King of Gondor. That being said, the Stewards have now ruled Gondor for 26 generations of their family and believe the bloodline of the King to be destroyed, so, as we see with Denethor, they pretty much consider themselves to be the true rulers of the kingdom these days. As such, while they are technically fulfilling the role of regent, they might not actually consider that to be the case any more.
Question: What is the difference from Hobbiton and The Shire? Is The Shire a village, and Hobbiton the region where the Hobbits live?
Chosen answer: Actually, it's the other way around. The region is called Shire, the village Hobbiton. There are several other villages in the Shire, for example Buckland.
All Good Things... (1) - S6-E23
Question: In all of the previews for the series finale, it shows Joey standing at what appears to be a dresser opening what appears to be a ring box. I taped the finale and that scene never appears. Was it deleted or did I somehow miss it?
Answer: You must have missed it. It was in the version I saw. It appears in the beginning of the episode, when Joey and Christopher are discussing their trip and Joey is wondering what to pack. Christopher walks into the shower and Joey opens the dresser to continue packing, and finds the ring.
Question: What was the purpose of C3PO going with Anakin, Padme and R2D2 to Geonosis? It just seemed to me like some small subtle scene Lucas threw in hoping no one would notice just to bring things together for Episodes 3 and 4.
Answer: Anakin created Threepio and left him with his mother when he left to train as a Jedi. Anakin has now returned and, with his mother dead, ownership of Threepio has passed to him, so, when they leave, they take the droid with them.
Question: What is with Mrs. Mills and the rest of the people who come to help with the housework? I know they are dead, but are they evil or good; and what are they trying to do?
Question: Jack and Andie are brother and sister in the same grade...but does the show ever explain how that came to be? Are they twins or was Andie moved up because she is so smart?
Answer: It's only explained once in the series. Jack says to Andie "I tried to start kindergarten without you", meaning Andie was smart enough to start school early.
Answer: They are not twins (Jack is older than Andie). It is possible due to when birthdays fall in the school calender for non-twin siblings to end up in the same grade. Say that you have to be 5 on Sept 1 to start Kindergarten, you are born on Sept 2, 2000 and your little sister on Aug 30, 2001. Sept 1, 2005, you are 4 years and 364 days and can't start. So Sept 1, 2006, you are 5 years and 364 days and your sister is 5 years and 1 day, and, voila!, you're both in the same grade.
Answer: The writers have said they are not twins and Jack is older. Although they were both born in 1983. In some states, like Massachusetts, it's a district decision when a child under 6-8 can start kindergarten, so there's no age deadline. In January 1988, Jack and Andie would both be 4, turning 5, and the district then allowed Andie to start kindergarten with her brother. It has nothing to do with Andie being smarter or moved up a grade, a point she alludes to in response to Jack saying he tried to start kindergarten without her (s04e04). As a side note, there was talk among the writers about whether to make Jack older or younger and they ultimately decided to make him older. The writers put in an inside joke about that when Andie says she is "definitely the older sibling in this relationship" (s04e04). It's also an inside joke to the fact that Meredith Monroe (Andie) was almost 2.5 years older than Kerr Smith (Jack). Monroe was 18, turning 19, in 1988.
Question: How do the devices Preston uses to shoot guns and magazines from his coat sleeves work? Do they actually exist in real life?
Answer: Wrist holsters do exist for smaller pistols, although I don't know of any current devices that actually bring the weapon forward into the hand. However, somewhat bizarrely, a toy gun back in about 1960 did come with a wrist holster that had this feature - it was referred to as using a "wrist-flick" action. Precisely how Preston's more advanced devices work isn't clear - it most probably involves some specific muscle contraction, which the device can 'read' to bring the gun into play or retract it. The reloading probably has some sort of signal sent from the gun to the device (using something along the lines of today's Bluetooth system), to inform it that a reload is necessary - again, a specific muscle movement (i.e. that required to put the gun into a position where the reload can occur) could be used to trigger the event.
Question: What is Jerry's last name? When Brian signs his name he signs 'Jerry St. Clair', but in the hospital the nurse says 'Mr. Digman', and the plaque above the door of the Phoenix Club says both names. What is going on?
Answer: His name is Jerry St. Clair Dignan. He presumably prefers to go by Jerry St. Clair, hence Brian calling him that - hospital records, on the other hand, would have his full name, hence the nurse calling him Mr Dignan.
Question: What does NID stand for?
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: I was wondering if anyone knows why the movie didn't follow the script? I read it and most of the lines are in the movie, but out of order. It seems if the movie followed the scripts it would have made much more sense.
Answer: Scripts generally have many, many versions before a final shooting script is produced, and even then, changes can be made during filming, and editing can also alter things.
Engine Blocked / Mighty Mom and Dyno Dad Meet the Crimson Chin - S3-E5
Question: Do you think it depends to use your left or right foot for the pedals? Or is there a fixed rule to use either foot? (The accelerator pedal is shaped like a left foot.).
Answer: That's just decorative. The gas pedal is always on the right and using the left foot would be quite awkward.
Who Shot Mr. Burns? (1) - S6-E25
Question: When Lisa goes up to turn on the oil pump for the first time, there is a sound between Skinner saying, "Here's our top student, Lisa Simpson", and Lisa actually getting to the pump. It sounds like someone straining. What is it?
Answer: It's a student yelling, "Nerd!" at Lisa.
Question: When are heroes encounter the Merovingian in the club, what is it he says to them in french?
Answer: He says Quel Grand Surprise which translated means what a big surprise.
Question: Do the head orc with the skin over his eyes and the orc with the skulls pile on top of his head have names?
Answer: The lead orc is Gothmog, a briefly mentioned character in the books (mentioned precisely once) - it's not even clear in the books which race he belongs to. The second orc, with the skulls, doesn't seem to have a name.
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Answer: The actors are all good musicians - it's them playing.
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