Best mystery movie questions of all time

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Devil picture

Question: Are there any clues throughout the movie hinting that the old woman is the devil?

Answer: There weren't any clues. It comes off as a total surprise during the reveal. But watching it for the second time, I did notice that she spoke very less compared to others and no one was suspecting her. Usually, that kind of character ends up being the bad guy.

Earthling

Answer: No. The devil is a deceiver and a trickster who can easily manipulate anyone so everybody in the elevator would not even think to suspect an old lady.

Answer: Yes, there are many clues actually. The old woman's reflection throughout the film always had black eyes. In one scene, they're backed against the wall, the elevator buttons look like devil horns on her head. When she goes to push the floor button, the color is red, rather than the green it is for others. The other two answers just don't pay attention.

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Mississippi Burning picture

Question: Who was the man who hung himself in the end?

Answer: The Mayor (played by R Lee Ermey) who had been told the story of Homer Wilkes and threatened with castration earlier on.

Chimera

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The Sixth Sense picture

Question: Through most of the film Malcolm is dead. All the other ghosts still have scars from how they died but why doesn't Malcolm have his mark which should be a bullet wound?

Answer: Because as Cole tells us in the middle of the movie, "They only see what they want to see." The movie shows us Malcolm as he perceives himself. He can't actually put on an overcoat, or change clothes. He sees what he expects to see. He goes outside in the cold to visit Cole, so he sees himself wearing an overcoat. He doesn't know he is dead - he doesn't see his wound. To preserve this misdirection throughout the movie, we are shown Malcolm as he sees himself.

Actually, we do see Malcolm and Cole sees him. The entry wound in his abdomen is tiny, and the large, obvious exit wound is on Malcolm's back, which we never see.

C Classic

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The Gathering picture

Question: Why did Argyle want to kill Michael? I can understand wanting to kill those who harmed him but Michael was an innocent boy.

Answer: She said in the movie, "He must see himself as a child in Michael. He wants to get rid of him to erase his past."

Answer: While Argyle shows a strange affinity for Michael, his primary goal is still revenge on the entire town. Innocent or not, Michael is connected to those who tortured him.

BaconIsMyBFF

How could Michael have anything to do with those men that he killed? He's just a kid.

How is he connected?

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The Ghost Writer picture

Question: Was the ghostwriter murdered? Why? The book had already been published, and he only discovered the truth about Ruth minutes before, so who would have wanted him dead?

Answer: Who would want him dead? Ruth, for one, as well as Professor Emmett (her CIA recruiter) and others involved in the conspiracy. Yes, the book had been published, but the secret message only comes across if one is in possession of all the knowledge that the writer had acquired, which the casual reader would not have. And minutes is plenty of time for Ruth, Emmett, or anyone else to make a phone call and arrange the hit.

The published book was a rewrite and would not have the secret message in the chapter beginnings.

The published book was a rewrite of the original manuscript. He gives her the original manuscript that he was working off, not a final draft.

Makes no sense, he was run down 2 minutes after she read it.

We know the beginning of the book was rewritten as he didn't like it. Almost certainly, the clue is not in the published version of the book. Ruth was shocked to read the note and is delivering her speech so is unlikely to be complicit in the murder of the Ghostwriter. The ending suggests that Ruth, too, is little more than a pawn in the whole conspiracy.

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Saw V picture

Question: I was wondering why the man and woman in the last trap didn't use the woman from the bathtub to give the pints of blood? They could have carried her into the room because the door stayed open for about forty seconds.

Michelle Ferris

Chosen answer: Assuming the woman in the bathtub was able to be moved safely the amount of blood gained from her, while still being helpful, would probably not be enough to save the final two survivors from self harm. Without the heart pumping blood you would only get the blood that was in her arm at the moment. You would have to lift her or raise her so gravity would get other blood moving to get enough. Which the final two possibly could have done, but stress of the situation clouded their judgement.

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Sleepy Hollow picture

Question: When going to kill the Killians, how did the Horseman know that Thomas was hiding under the floor? Thomas stayed completely still and didn't make a sound.

Answer: It would seem the Horseman possesses a supernatural instinct.

Phaneron

Answer: The horseman saw that the mother was close to where he was hiding.

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The Shadow picture

Question: When Lamont is struggling to stop the Phurba from cutting his throat, how did he finally manage to get control over the Phurba and use it to stab Khan?

Answer: Mind control over matter.

turkman143

Answer: He had never gone up against someone like him. A man who not only knew how to harness his abilities, but had mastered them as well, like young Luke going up against Vader. He finally found the strength and the courage to fight and defeat him.

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La Confidential picture

Question: What is Lynn's connection to the Nite Owl killings?

Answer: She doesn't really have one - not directly, anyway. The only link is that Susan Lefferts died at the Night Owl, and Bud saw Lynn with Lefferts when he was buying the alcohol for the party. Lefferts had the bandage on her nose at the time, which sparked Bud's curiosity and prompted him to seek out Lynn after Lefferts was murdered.

Tailkinker

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Chosen answer: The script of The Bourne Supremacy actually calls Martin Marshall the "Deputy Vice-Director" of the CIA, although in the same script and film dialog, Landy refers to him as "Director Marshall". So it appears Kramer is CIA Director in all the Bourne films, but Marshall is either acting Director in Kramer's absence or is just referred to as a Director.

Sierra1

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Donnie Darko picture

Question: What is the music track that plays during the scene where Donnie is talking to Frank in the bathroom inter-cut with the teacher complaining about the book being read to the students?

Dra9onBorn117

Chosen answer: Song: Manipulated Living. Composer: Michael Andrews.

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Nerve picture

Question: My understanding is that Vee orchestrated the plan for Ty to bring a blank filled gun, but how was the dare revealed to her before being told to shoot her opponent, let alone before given the gun?

Answer: Once she saw the gun and knew how crazy the game was, she formed an idea that someone's would get shot and believed that it would be her.

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The Manchurian Candidate picture

Question: Isn't the whole premise for this movie dead wrong? There is no precedent for an assassination of a president ELECT. He is not president so therefore anyone could become president. The Constitution does not apply to "elects" What does happen?

Answer: According to the Constitution, the Vice-President elect is actually elected separately by the Electoral College, i.e. they are really not a package deal, the death of one doesn't negate the election of the other. The Vice-President elect would indeed become the President.

Myridon

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Copycat picture

Question: Who is Conrad? Harry Conick, Jr.'s character writes him a letter at the end, and there is a Conrad character listed in the credits, but I haven't been able to find him.

Answer: I thought that it was Peter Kurten (Foley) that broke in and left the book. However if it was Conrad, then he does not appear in the flesh in the film.

Alan Keddie

You are correct. I just rewatched this tonight on Tubi.

Answer: Conrad is the man that breaks into Helen's flat and leaves the book. Happens just over 1 hour into the film.

jle

Answer: I don't think Conrad appears in the film. Earlier in the movie HC Jr says he has other "disciples"; Conrad seems to be the new recruit to replace the just-killed McNamara character.

JeffOCDmovieADDict

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The Ninth Gate picture

Question: Does "the girl" - as she's been called - have a name? And is she a (or the) devil?

Answer: She was not given a name, neither in the film nor credits. She is simply known as "The Girl". As to precisely who she is, it is deliberately left ambiguous. But the last engraving found by Corso does seem to indicate that she is the Whore of Babylon mentioned in the Book of Revelation.

Twotall

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Interstellar picture

Question: Why do they still have gravity when Romilly asks Cooper to turn of the spinning, when they neared the wormhole? The centrifugal force stops, but on the inside there is still gravity.

thibault

Chosen answer: They do not still have gravity. Romilly is actually floating, but nothing is ever shown from behind his back, so the floating is gone unnoticed. In fact, during some shots of Romilly, you can see his feet floating behind him.

Casual Person

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Candyman picture

Question: What did Candyman mean when he told Helen it was always her? Why was he so interested in Helen?

Answer: When Helen goes back and sees the mural of his murder, the camera lingers on a woman in the picture that looks like her. This is the woman Candyman was in love with before he was killed. The implication is either she was reincarnated as Helen, or Helen reminded him of her, hence his interest in her.

dewinela

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Rosemary's Baby picture

Question: What is the name of the melody that Mia Farrow sings (La La La Laaaa, La La La Lalala La Laaaaa) at the beginning of the movie, as the title/credits are being displayed?

Shipper

Chosen answer: It doesn't have a specific title. It was a lullaby written for the film by Krzysztof Komeda. There's a few variations of the lullaby heard throughout the film, the opening credits version is listed as "Rosemary's Baby Main Theme - Vocal."

Bishop73

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Flowers in the Attic picture

Question: Who laced the cookies that were given to the children with arsenic? It's never shown who applies it, only who takes the cookies to them.

Answer: When the children discover the cookies had been poisoned (revealed by the death of their pet mouse which ate part of one of the cookies), they suspect their grandmother. After all, she was the one who had been cruel to them all along. But eventually, they realise that it was in fact, their mother, Corinne, who was lacing the cookies with poison. She was doing so with the hope that the children would eventually die, seemingly from disease. In doing so, she would secure the family inheritance which was contingent upon her never having had children from her first marriage. They eventually confront their mother on the day of her second wedding, and a struggle ensues which ultimately leads to Corinne falling to her death from a balcony.

Michael Albert

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Answer: To add slightly to the other answer, evidently some of the blood in the scene had to be digitally removed for the film to secure a PG-13 rating, which explains why we don't see any actual spray/gush. But we are to assume that a drop managed to splash onto her shoe when he slit his throat.

TedStixon

Answer: The rationale is that blood can travel quite far from an artery and her shoe therefore got the droplet on it even from the doorway - however it does seem to me that the filmic portrayal is lacking, since you don't actually see any instance of spray. Rian Johnson' script says "Blood gushes." What we see in the scene is that it is trickling down his cut - a bit.

Sammo

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