Question: The photo that Sy got off the market stall, (the old photo of a women) he said to Nina that, that was his mother, was it his mother, or did he just say that to make himself feel better, and if so, why would he lie about that?
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: How did Commudus find out about Lucilla conspiring against him?
Answer: Commudus found out through Lucius (Lucilla's son). If you watch, at a certain part at the film Commudus sees Lucius fighting and asks him about becoming a legionary. Lucius then calls himself "Maximus The Savior of Rome". Commudus then asks "who said that?" and then Lucius, who whispers it in his ear.
Question: When Michael & Hannah begin their affair Michael is 15 years old - in the courtroom scenes, the judge states that Hannah is now 43 years old and also states that the events at Auschwitz took place 20 years prior, which would've made her 23 at the time of Auschwitz and possibly around 23 when she left Michael - meaning that when they had the affair she was only about 7 years his senior. Therefore, when she's 43 in court, that makes him 36 years old when he's at university watching the court proceedings - but surely that's too old for what the film is trying to portray? It seems like he's in his 20's when he's at uni. I don't get it. Surely they couldn't have gotten their timelines so incorrect?
Answer: It is confusing in the movie because it seems like she went from the ticket taking job to the SS job after refusing the office job promotion, which would require literacy. When actually her SS job was prior to the ticket taker job. Was muddled in the movie.
Chosen answer: Where do you figure she was 23 when she left Michael? She had been working at the dispatch office for several years before she meet Michael (as indicated in the scene where her boss promotes her for her long service) -- so this is years after she was at Auschwitz. So she was in her mid-30s when she began the one-year affair with 15-year-old Michael. Then, while at university about 8 years later (when she is in her early 40s), he attends her trial. The timeline is fine.
A Piece of the Action - S2-E17
Question: After Oxymx gets Spock and McCoy for the second time, Kirk rushes in and turns the tables. Where were Oxymx's guards when Kirk came in? Krako had guards and he was a smaller time gangster than Oxymx. (00:26:00)
Answer: Probably similar to today's 'business' circles, only small-timers drag their troops around in plain sight; when you're Made, you'll still have them within a few seconds' reach if needed, but having them visible makes you look weak and insecure. Even though everyone knows they're out of sight but not far away, the accepted illusion is that they're not there - that you're so strong, you don't need protection.
Question: Why are Girls Aloud credited with being on the soundtrack, when that isn't their version of "Jump" which the Prime Minister listens to?
Chosen answer: Irrelevant when it comes to soundtracks, Girls Aloud released a version of Jump to coincide with the movie's release and the video for the song featured scenes from the movie, hence its inclusion.
Question: I've noticed in the last two seasons that certain jokes and gags are ruined because the characters explain the whole point of them. Why do the writers feel that their humour needs to be explained?
Answer: It's a meta joke. The "explaining the joke" is itself a joke, usually about how the family guy writers themselves recognise their reliance on certain types of humour.
Question: After discovering the slaughter of the apprentice Jedi at the Jedi Council, why do Yoda and Obi-Wan decide to fight Palpatine and Anakin separately? Palpatine was ready at hand, at the Senate, while Anakin was in distant Mustafar. Stategically, it seems to me this would be their best option - Yoda loses the fight to Palpatine but not for much, managing to survive and flee; he most likely would have been able to win had Obi-Wan fought along. Then, Anakin would have certainly been defeated - the loss of his master impacting on him. If I understood it all correctly, this would have saved the Republic and allowed them to rebuild the Jedi Order from scratch (but not made any sense with IV, V, VI, which is why they didn't do it). But is there any in-plot explanation?
Answer: It boils down to the element of surprise. The clone troopers have shown that they're entirely capable of dealing with Jedi by that point - if either Palpatine or Anakin is able to surround themselves with a large and alerted clone trooper force, then Yoda and Kenobi will have no chance to get near them and that's game over. With Anakin seperated from his master, they're vulnerable, but if both Jedi attacked one target, the other would be alerted to the fact that Yoda and Kenobi had survived Order 66 and could take steps to protect themselves and unleash the military to hunt down their adversaries. By dividing their strength and attacking their targets simultaneously, Yoda gives them their best shot of taking out the Sith for good.
Question: Is the Mouth of Sauron capable of seeing through his helmet? The design visibly does not incorporate eye holes, yet he nevertheless is able to accurately throw Frodo's mithril shirt at Gandalf and then recognizes Aragorn even though Aragorn does nothing to give away his identity, both conceivably would not be possible without keen eyesight.
Answer: We know very little about the Mouth of Sauron as he's portrayed in the film. While he's human in the book, his cinematic incarnation is of indeterminate species, so it's hard to say what he might or might not be capable of. The book version of the character is described as being a powerful sorceror - if the same holds true of the film Mouth, then possession of such strong magic could readily explain his ability to identify those around him and operate easily without eyesight.
Question: What Ivy League university is Sam attending?
Answer: The name is never said in the film, but some of the university scenes were shot at UPenn, and others at Princeton. Both are Ivy League.
Question: Why wasn't Pete sucked into the Void when he came back to rescue Rose? Also, how did he even know when and where to teleport to, or that she even needed saving at all?
Chosen answer: He was only there for a fraction of a second, so the Void didn't have a chance to drag him in. As for knowing when and where, it's one of those last-second rescues that fiction revels in. Improbable, but dramatically satisfying.
Question: What exactly happened to the original crew of the Event Horizon? Where did they go after they tortured each other?
Chosen answer: At least one crewmember is seen as a floating, frozen corpse on the bridge of the ship when the rescue crew are exploring, there is also evidence seen that a significant amount of tissue and blood have been spread around the walls in some parts of the ship, however it is implied that the original crew are in the alternate Hell dimention, if not physically then spiritually.
Question: When using the trap, why is it inadvisable to look directly into it?
Chosen answer: It is so bright, it may damage your eyes.
Question: Why is Daniel afraid of Mike Barnes when he fought in a supposed fight to the death against a karate master in the second film?
Chosen answer: He is fighting someone who is specifically trying to hurt and injure him. He also is worried because he was betrayed by Terry Silver and doesn't know how much Barnes knows about him.
Chosen was trying to kill him not just hurt him, this still doesn't explain his fear.
Answer: Daniel doesn't believe the Okinawan guy is a real threat, he is coming off his big victory in his last fight. Barnes is a better aggressor and gets in his head, also its s movie.
Question: Why does Daniel lie to Freddy Fernandez about his mother's job? He said that she worked with rocket computers, yet we see her working in a restaurant.
Chosen answer: He didn't lie. That was the company she was supposed to be working for. However, the company went bankrupt and she lost her job. She showed up at the restaurant at the same time that the hostess quit and was hired immediately.
Question: What exactly did Jonathan and Maddie give to the tramp in exchange for information?
Chosen answer: It was a bottle of turpentine.
Methylated spirit, always coloured purple.
Answer: It was actually mouthwash.
Battlestar Galactica (2003 Miniseries) - Part 1 - S1-E1
Question: Why does Number Six ask the Armistice Officer if he's alive?
Chosen answer: "I think, therefore, I am" - Descartes Both Six and the Armistice Officer are alive. What she is doing is pointing out the central theme of the show. Humans don't believe that the "toasters" are alive. But when asked to prove that they are alive, humans are as powerless to do so as the Cylons. This is because it is inherently unprovable. The show is pointing this out right from the very beginning. What is life? Who is alive? How can we possibly know? and most importantly, what gives us the right to decide who and what is alive?
Question: Why does the Cyber-Leader think Dalek and Cyber technology are compatible? How and why does it know this?
Chosen answer: The Cybermen have a misplaced belief that all other life forms want to be upgraded. He can probably work out, from scaning the Dalek, that it is a powerful war machine and thus useful in subduing the humans. Once that's done, they could reward the Daleks by upgrading them.
Question: Why did the Event Horizon choose to come back after seven years? In fact, why come back at all?
Chosen answer: The movie never explicitly says; but science is as yet unsure what happens to a given piece of matter once it crosses a black hole's event horizon, so who knows? The ship could have been thrown seven years forward in time, or far enough away that it took seven years for it to drift close to Neptune. Pick any explanation you like.
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Answer: It wasn't his mother. He was just trying to fit in and make himself feel better. There is a scene earlier of Sy buying the photo at some type of vendor. Maybe a swap meet.
William Bergquist