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: If the two waterspouts were swirling closely around the pickup truck, how come they weren't able to pick it up?

Roman Curiel

Chosen answer: A tornado would have to be at least an F3 to be able to pick up a truck. The waterspouts were very small.

Greg Dwyer

The Fujita Scale is incorrectly portrayed as being used to describe the size of a tornado. It's actually used to describe the amount of a damage it has caused AFTER it has passed.

stiiggy

Question: In the hotel scene in China, Bond throws the ashtray at what is believed to be a mirror but is actually a 1 way mirror where the guys had cameras. Were they trying to shoot a sex tape or something?

Answer: This was the 20th Bond film and there are a number of references to previous films throughout. This scene references From Russia With Love, where agents of SPECTRE film Bond and Tatiana for their blackmail/murder/suicide plot to both kill Bond and steal the Lektor decoder. Bond sees it coming this time, though - it's most likely just the Chinese security service keeping him under surveillance.

Captain Defenestrator

Answer: Since the Chinese government agent at the reception area recognized Bond as a British spy, they wanted to keep tabs on his activities and understand why he was patronizing the hotel and showing up in the area unannounced.

Timothy Conard

The Switch - S2-E2

Question: In this episode, Carlton is told by Linda that he's too old for her so he decides to undergo surgery to become younger. Eventually, he looks just like Hans. At the end of the episode, when Carlton visits Linda, he sees that she's now with Hans, who looks exactly like him. If Carlton was too old for Linda, then why was she still with Hans, since he now has Carlton's body and therefore his old age? Since Carlton was too old for her, that would mean that now Hans is too old for her too.

Answer: It's just the show's typical ironic ending. It turns out Linda was more interested in money than looks, and the surgery and loss of his fortune were unnecessary.

Brian Katcher

Question: Let's say the Joker was alive and released along with all the other prisoners. If he learns that Bane at one point tried to have Batman killed, what would Joker do? Would he try to have Bane, and by extension Talia, killed? If Batman came back, would Joker work with him to kill Bane, or allow Gotham to be destroyed. Due to different goals, who Joker and Bane somehow face off? And would some old followers betray Bane and follow Joker instead?

Answer: It is beyond implausible to presume that the Joker would have been locked away in Blackgate Prison. The previous movie has shown the Joker to have been a terrorist and extremely psychotic. Someone like the Joker would have been put away in a far more secure prison than Blackgate, one that has far more higher grade security and one that is specifically designed to hold people like him.

Casual Person

Question: The scene where they are watching a Washington Redskins game on TV, shows Doug Williams throwing a pass in slow motion and it looks like they are losing the game. In the timeline this game is played before October 18, 1988. The only game which he played in and lost that year was against the N.Y. Giants on Monday night to start the season so I could not place the date or opponent of the game that was airing in the scene. Who/when was it?

Answer: Several key factors in determining which game it was. The commentator said, in regards to the Redskins it's been a disappointing "night for the Super Bowl champions", meaning this game took place in 1989, since the Redskins won the Super Bowl in '88. Additionally, he said "Mark Rypien has some big shoes to fill." Rypien took over the starting QB role in '89 over the Super Bowl MVP Williams. The slow motion shot was probably a Super Bowl highlight. Given this was a night game with the Redskins missing a field goal, it was the Nov 20, 1989 game vs Denver Broncos where the Redskins lost 10-14.

Bishop73

Question: How would Jack get his "eternal life" reward if he was able to kill Jones? Is that what will happen, or I misinterpreted things? Was it because he's free from him due to Davey Jones' demise? Why would Jack want Will to kill Jones and have the immortality thingy if his dream was to sail to the sea forever? I thought Will and Jack weren't "friends" at all? Also, Calypso cheated on Davey Jones with whom? If Elizabeth did the same thing with Will after a span of 10 years had passed, would Will have a scary image like Davey Jones' as well? I mean his sort-of-like-an-octopus look? Lastly, if Davey Jones forgave Tia, would the curse be removed from him? Thank you in advance.

Answer: Jack, by killing Jones, would assume his place and become immortal. Jack gave up his bid for immortality to save Will. He cared about Will (and Elizabeth) more than he'd ever admitted to himself, and could not let him die. Calypso didn't cheat on Jones with another man. She simply chose to abandon him because she could not be committed to one person. As she said, it was her nature. Jones' appearance became corrupted because he had abandoned his true purpose of ferrying dead souls to the "other side." This does not happen to Will because he honored the duty that was imposed on him. Also, if Jones forgave Tia Dalma, it would have nothing to do with the curse.

raywest

The Antique - S5-E12

Question: When Hogan gives Klink $100 for the cuckoo clock, the bill handed over was a crisp American $100 note. How did Hogan get an American $100 note? At best, in this time period, he should only have Reich Marks. And how would he have 333 Marks, 33 pfennigs? Unless he had a side businesses going, this seems unlikely.

Movie Nut

Answer: It's a comedy, not a documentary.

stiiggy

Perhaps it was counterfeit. There are numerous episodes where they deal in counterfeit monies.

Chosen answer: Hogan and his men are running a spy ring out of the camp, they have access to supplies from outside. (In another episode, they have to convince a defecting German officer that they're legitimately working for the Allies by arranging a specific personal ad to run in the next day's London Times, so a new $100 bill is not beyond their capabilities).

Captain Defenestrator

Answer: Werner Klemperer fled Nazi Germany as a teenager. His two conditions for taking the role of Colonel Klink were that he had to be a bumbling idiot and he always had to lose. It would then be a character mistake that if Hogan offers him a fresh American hundred-dollar bill, he's not going to ask questions, he's going to take the deal. The fact that he's Commandant and could just confiscate the money from Hogan would never occur to him because, again, he's a bumbling idiot who, by the actor's contract, always has to lose.

Captain Defenestrator

Answer: Rightfully, Hogan should not have any money at all. POW were stripped of all cash they carried. The intention was to make escape more difficult. The fact that Hogan has what is the equivalent of a third of the price of a KdF-Wagen (You'd probably know it as a Volkswagen Beetle) in cash should rightfully make Klink more than a litle suspicious.

Question: How did Willy Wonka know that Charlie and Grandpa Joe had stolen Fizzy Lifting Drinks? The entire time they were in the room they were completely alone and security cameras obviously didn't come into existence at the time.

Answer: Closed circuit security was invented in 1942 and came into common use in the late 60s and early 70s. Beyond that, Wonka could have had Oompa Loompas monitoring the group or simply noticed that they were gone and guessed.

Greg Dwyer

Question: How is Elliott spelt, as I've seen it both Elliot and Elliott on various different Disney memorabilia?

Answer: In the original film, the credits show his name as "Elliott" (with 2 t's). In the remake, his name is "Elliot" (with 1 t). So older memorabilia will have "Elliott". In the original film, Elliott was the dragon's given name, in a manner of speaking. In the remake, Pete names the dragon after the puppy from his favorite book which was called "Elliot Gets Lost". This is the only reason I can find for the spelling change.

Bishop73

Question: When they are fighting John the bartender would that dart to the head not have killed Shaun?

Answer: People have survived much more serious head injuries than a dart to the head, such as gunshots and even a railroad spike driven completely through the skull. There is also the possibility the dart didn't penetrate Shaun's skull.

BaconIsMyBFF

Answer: In the prologue, it states that the Beast must find true love by his 21st birthday, and that he had been cursed for ten years, so since his relationship with Belle takes place as the deadline approaches, he must have been 10 when he was cursed.

Answer: He must have been in his teens at least, his portrait that he shreds was not of a 11 year old.

Answer: I think the prince was 11 when he was cursed.

Answer: He is 11. 21 by first love '10 years we've been rusting'. (Be Our Guest). So, he was 11 due to the flower above to lose all petals.

Question: How old was Willa in 1916 and how old is she in 2014? Asking because it would seem like she is over 100 years old yet still works?

Answer: In 2014, she's around 105 years old. In 1916, she would be 7, but she hasn't aged due to supernatural reasons. Remember, this is a movie with a magical winged horse.

Show generally

Question: Two questions. 1. Was there some kind of contributing factor that made Nick want to be human again and if so what was it? 2. In one episode Janette is discovered to be human again. How did she accomplish this?

Answer: Nick was sick and tired of being an immortal bloodsucker. He wanted to be human, fall in love, get married, have children, grow old and die. As for Janette, according to her, she fell in love and the passion she felt "cured" her of her blood lust.

Show generally

Question: When Freddie gets bullied by the kids at school or harassed by Sam, why doesn't he just tell the teacher/principal?

Answer: Some kids are afraid to tell because they fear later retaliation, are embarrassed, don't think they'll be believed, or will be considered a sissy.

raywest

Answer: He maybe just wanted to be brave and let it go.

That '90s Show - S19-E11

Question: Near the beginning of this episode, there is a heating repairman. He asks "Does anyone want to hear the story of the love I once had and lost?" or something like that. Is this character supposed to be the professor from Marge's flashback? He is also seen later on sitting with the kids and listening to Marge's narration, but then he just disappears from the story with no explanation. The purpose of introducing and then abandoning this character is lost on me.

Answer: I think a lot of shows (Simpsons included) use the trope of an initial set up kicking off the main plot but not being referenced back again. As in if this was a regular show the heating repairman would be forgotten and that plot line dropped. The Simpsons were just making a joke and kinda spoofing that trope by having the repairman pop back up again to listen to the story.

Question: What did Hermione mean when she asked them if they thought that Sirius was trying to live through her, Ron and Harry?

THE GAMER NEXT DOOR

Chosen answer: Because Sirius was imprisoned when he was still young, he'd become emotionally stunted, lacked maturity and sometimes exhibited poor judgement and often thinks and acts like someone much younger. Hermione thinks he is trying to relive his lost youth through them.

raywest

Question: Why does Indiana Jones wear glasses? We always see him wearing round-rimmed glasses in academic settings, which implies that he wears reading glasses. In the midst of high adventure, however, he never wears glasses; nonetheless, he's able to read cryptic inscriptions and even his father's diary in the worst possible lighting conditions. Are his reading glasses some sort of passive disguise, like Clark Kent's?

Answer: According to the book, he is far-sighted. In his office, he had to hold the package that contained the diary at arms length. He cannot read anything up close.

Answer: Indy does not attempt to disguise himself. Most likely this is done to show his character's two personas. He dresses like a mild-mannered, nerdy professor when in an academic setting and transforms into a masculine, rugged man when he is on an adventure.

raywest

Question: There's an entry mentioning when little Forrest's foot gets stuck in a drain and how the leaves are there, then not. I've seen this movie at least 20 times but don't ever recall seeing that scene in the movie. Did some countries get an edited version?

Answer: Perhaps. It's near the beginning right after Forrest explains how he got his name.

Greg Dwyer

Answer: He gets his foot stuck at 6 minutes and the leaves never move. The shot shifts up in the second shot so you see less leaves but they don't move or disappear.

Question: At Harry's trial there is a large mural behind Fudge. I have searched high and low but I can't find it anywhere, but I'm sure it is famous and that I've seen it before. Can you help?

BobsWife8

Chosen answer: According to the Harry Potter wiki it is a depiction of a 5th Century Byzantine fresco (or indeed, mural), religious setting. As I read it the mural was made for the movie and is not a true historic piece.

lionhead

Question: It's stated in "The Return of the King" that the Witch-king of Angmar is Sauron's greatest servant. Given this, why is he portrayed as somewhat bumbling in this film? A scene in the extended edition of "The Return of the King" shows him confronting Gandalf and even destroying his staff and he also has the reputation of being unkillable, but in this film he is chased off by Aragorn swinging a sword and a torch at him, and is also defeated by Arwen using a river to wash him away.

Phaneron

Chosen answer: The Witch-King of Angmar, as well as the other 8 Nazgûl were severely weakened since the defeat of Sauron, when they were send out to find the ring they had been dormant for decades, that's why they were so easily defeated by fire and waves. In the later movies their powers had increased significantly, especially the witch king's.

lionhead

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