Question: In the openings scene, the prehuman drinks a tar-like fluid (like the one poisoning Halloway later on), while looking at a spaceship hovering above. He then dies, falls into the river and disintegrates. I do not understand this scene, is he the last of the surviving prehumans committing suicide and the ship above is the others leaving the planet?
Answer: The giant ship has landed on Earth to drop off the Engineer so that he can terraform the planet and make it sustainable for life. He might drinks the black stuff to break down his own structure and spread life on Earth through his own DNA.
Question: Whenever Tim goes back in time, his clothes change to whatever he was wearing at the time, but he always appears in the same spot that he left from. Both times he goes back to the NYE party he appears in the upstairs wardrobe. So what happened to the version of him that was already walking around at the party? Did that version of him just vanish?
Answer: This is one of the (many) time travel plot holes in the film, and unfortunately your question doesn't really have a definitive, or satisfying, answer. Richard Curtis has said he was less concerned with making an airtight time travel film than with the human story at its core, so he let things like this slide without explanation. However, since we don't see any "second" Tims around when he goes back in time, and no-one else seems to think of him as an "extra" Tim, we can safely assume that, yes, he replaces himself in the timeline when he travels back. (Of course, this doesn't explain what happens when he then returns FROM the past).
Question: Megatron was brought back through the body of Galvatron because his head was recovered, although Optimus Prime previously stated that Transformers' memories are stored in their Spark in their chest. Wouldn't this mean Megatron would not have any of his memories from before?
Answer: Optimus was being dramatic when he said it contained their memories. Transformers don't carry their memories in their spark any more than humans carry theirs in their soul.
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.
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.
Question: Victor got his powers when his suit fused with him. Ben got his when he got pelted with rocks. Johnny was blasted with fire which explains his ability. But, how did Sue and Reed get their abilities?
Answer: It is believed that the heat from the radiation caused Reed to start "melting", which is how he got his rubber powers. It is unknown why Sue got invisibility.
Question: Does the movie give any indication with any evidence in the movie that Douglas is dreaming for the ending?
Answer: Verhoeven points out that if a viewer believes the whole film is a dream, then Edgemar's prediction that Quaid will end up being lobotomized is fulfilled in the fade to white which ends the movie.
Answer: When Dr. Edgemar is in the hotel room with Quaid and Lori, Quaid puts a gun to Edgemar's head and says that if it's all a dream, that Quaid could just pull the trigger and it wouldn't really matter. Edgemar goes into details about consequences of what would happen if Quaid killed him. As seen, when Quaid kills Edgemar the walls of the hotel room crash down, Quaid believes he's the rebel savior, had visions of alien civilization and is best friends with Cohaagen and the white light that is at the end of the movie indicates that Quaid was lobotomized.
Answer: There are many signs that the adventure was reality. When Quaid watched the news (before going to Rekall), the newscasters asked Cohaagen about Kuato and alien artifacts (the alien reactor) in the Mars Pyramid Mine. Lori didn't want Quaid going to Mars or thinking about Mars. Harry didn't want Quaid to go to Rekall, as he sounded very intense when he said this to Quaid. The Rekall technicians popped Quaid's memory cap before they could implant his ego trip. Richter and Helm were watching Quaid the whole time and his trip to Rekall made them attempt to kill him before he could remember the alien reactor and his previous identity. Edgemar lied when he said Quaid's "dream" started in the middle of the implant procedure when Dr. Lull had told McClane they hadn't implanted the ego trip yet. Edgemar shouldn't have been sweating if it was a dream. Richter, Helm, Lori, Edgemar, and Benny were all trying to help Cohaagen keep his evil power and prevent Mars from having free air.
This isn't true. The DVD commentary states that if the viewer is believing that the story is a dream, then it begins right where the camera cuts to McClane and his female client watching the TV monitor. The bit where Quaid resists and Renata says she hasn't implanted the ego trip yet are part of the dream. The clue is that McClane's statement is "the trip is as real as any memory in your head." So for it to come across as real, it has to begin right there and then.
If Lori is really Quaid's wife, it seems strange that he would dream of her trying to kill him. When Richter and Helm are trying to kill Quaid, several people get killed in the crossfire. When Edgemar and Lori visit Quaid, Lori gives Edgemar a look right before he takes out the red pill, almost as if Lori is signaling Edgemar to do that. They are awfully eager for Quaid to take that pill, and the film's novelization states that the pill could possibly be a knockout dose or lethal. If Edgemar is a projection, he should not be sweating, which makes Quaid realise Edgemar is real. Those four agents who blast through the wall were back there listening to the conversation and waiting to see if Edgemar's plan with the pill would work. Richter and Helm were downstairs in the bar waiting to hear from Lori and Edgemar that they captured Quaid. If Edgemar was telling the truth, why would Richter and Helm be down in the bar waiting? Also, the novel points more toward reality.
You are forgetting to assume the dream shows him stuff that didn't actually happen, like innocents being killed in crossfire. If it is all a dream it all doesn't matter, he is being fed lies by the implants, about his wife, about Cohaagen, about everything, the fact it connects to real events before he went to Recall (which don't show the truth at all) just shows the ingenuity of the implants, who use his memories to create the story. Edgemar sweating could be another illusion caused by the implants. If it really is all a dream the moment he killed Edgemar the implants screwed his brain up enough there was no way of knowing what was real anymore, and his wife is sitting besides him at Recall crying that he isn't going to wake up anymore, whilst Quaid is experiencing killing her in his dream. This then goes on for him until the end it lobotomizes him. That is, if you believe it was a dream.
There is a villains site called Villains Wiki. Edgemar is listed on this site along with Cohaagen, Richter, Helm, Lori, Harry, and Benny. The article about Edgemar states that Quaid realises Edgemar is working for Cohaagen when he sees him sweating. It also states that Edgemar's goal is to aid Cohaagen in his plans. Also mentioned is the fact that Richter is Lori's real husband and is angered when Quaid kills her the same way he kills Edgemar.
Answer: The novel also reveals another detail that indicates reality. Before it is revealed that Richter is Lori's real husband, Quaid doesn't seem to love Lori. He dreams of Melina every night and actually loves Melina despite being with Lori. Quaid wonders why Lori married him, and she doesn't seem to have aged since their wedding. Once Lori reveals that their eight years together is actually a six-week memory implant, Quaid realises that is why his eight year memory of Lori hasn't changed. When Lori tries to detain Quaid for Richter and Helm at the Hilton Hotel, she tries to kill Melina because she knows Melina is Quaid's dream girl.
Answer: The novel by Piers Anthony has other signs that indicate Quaid's adventure was reality. When Richter and Helm are looking for Quaid on Earth, it says the bug in Quaid's head alerted them about his trip to Rekall. Richter and Helm went to Rekall to question the Rekall staff and dispatch them. When Richter and Helm are chasing Quaid and Melina on Mars, Quaid asks Melina if she has ever heard of Rekall, and she tells him she used to model for Rekall, which explains why Quaid saw Melina's face on the screen during his implant procedure at Rekall. Furthermore, Edgemar tells Quaid he is still at Rekall strapped in the implant chair, but McClane told the other Rekall staff members to dump Quaid in the Johnnycab and send him home. So it doesn't make sense that Quaid is still at Rekall after they sent him home.
Question: When Wall-E and Eve are in the repair ward, and Wall-E is misinterpreting Eve's cleaning as torture, what is the second "scene" supposed to be? I understand that the first one looks like Eve is having her arm ripped off and the third looks like Eve is having her head chopped off, but I can't figure out what the second one with the malfunctioning umbrella is supposed to be.
Answer: It's a combination of what WALL-E sees happening to EVE, with her circuitry lighting up and her head bobbing up and down as she laughs, with the noise of the umbrella as the diagnostic arms try to force it down. All WALL-E can hear is something that resembles a mechanical screech, along with EVE reacting - he thinks that she's being electrocuted and is in pain.
Question: What is the actual reason given why the police couldn't find Billy's mom? Just the fact his mom didn't want to find him and left doesn't mean the cops would stop looking. It's hard to imagine a 5 year old isn't able to tell the cops his address, where he goes to school or where he lives in general. Teachers, neighbours, his physician or dentist, classmates, all can tell where the mom is. Next to that isn't his dad in prison and thus easy to find?
Answer: He was a baby when he was abandoned - all he knew about his mother was her name, not her birth date or social security number. He didn't know anything about his father and his mother went back to her maiden name. In case you're wondering not everybody has their DNA taken.
He knew his full name. He's a legitimate son born in wedlock. They would have easily tracked down the father who is an inmate: that is on top of what the original poster mentioned, such as his home address or other minimal information. Lionhead, I believe this belongs in the Plot Holes section rather than simply the Questions section: I am not informed about Pennsylvania's laws for child abandonment, but I think it's rather unlikely that someone could just drop their kid in the middle of a crowd and get away with it entirely, especially when the kid knows his own full name.
I'm not too eager to put it in the plot holes section, because it is plausible I suppose that she disappeared willingly and they couldn't find her specifically. But you address the right point I was trying to make that the cops won't simply stop looking for his mother. It's a crime to abandon your child and they will look up and question a lot of people. And I mean a lot of people to find her. Even if there is literally no family besides mom and dad, the dad will be found since he is in prison. He won't be able to help much but contact will be maintained, even if he doesn't want it.
The thing is, they don't even have to question a lot of people since the kid is not a newborn left on the steps of a church or something: he was able to provide his own full name to the authorities. So it's absolutely straightforward for the police to see who his parents are - although it should be noted that he was born in a different state, I don't think it should be a particularly complicated research for the authorities.
Question: There's a quote that I don't understand: "The fact that you prevented it from happening doesn't change the fact that it was going to happen." I immediately thought, "Yes, it does change the fact that it was going to happen." If Witwer hadn't put his hand there, it would have happened. However, he did, thus "changing the fact that it was going to happen," right? Isn't this the point of the whole movie: determinism is foolish and that different actions produce different consequences?
Answer: No, he didn't change the fact that it was going to happen. He prevented it from happening. But until he stopped it, it was going to happen. And no matter how many times you look back at that sequence, it was going to happen. Up until a point, it was going to happen. It was just prevented.
Answer: The statement involves the idea of arresting people who did not commit the crime yet but are going to. Until the precogs tell someone to change things, the idea is that it will happen. If Anderton had rolled the ball and the other guy was not watching, it was going to fall. The only way to change it would have been for Anderton to say something. Things will happen unless the future is changed. Ultimately the idea is proven sketchy at the end at best.
Question: I don't get what happens at the end. Does Sean Connery come back to life? Someone please explain.
Answer: After Quartermain is buried, we see a witch doctor performing magic above his grave and the clouds darken indicating something is about to take place. The witch doctor is chanting "Return" and the grave begins to shake. Although we do not see Quartermain come back to life it is most definitely hinted that he did and left room for a sequel which never came to pass.
Question: How come a high tech ship would be unable to start its engine merely with the reason that the gate is unable to close?
Chosen answer: Its a safety device so the ship doesn't put to sea and ends up flooding the ship. The passenger ferry Herald of Free Enterprise capsized in the port of Zebrugge in 1987, precisely because the doors were not shut properly.
Question: If the island sinks underwater at regular intervals, then what happens to the tiny elephants, giant bees, etc (and the whole ecosystem) while the island is underwater?
Answer: There is a deleted scene on the DVD/Bluray where they attempt to give an explanation. Kailani asks "What happens to the animals when the island sinks? They can't all die!". Alexander replies "Even the mammals develop quasi-amphibian characteristics. They just burrow below the ground's surface and absorb the oxygen through their skin."
Question: In the beginning, Thomas wakes up in the Box which is moving up. He discovers an animal in the cage. It looks like a black pig. The pig apparently isn't shown anymore in the rest of the movie. Why the hell is the black pig in the Box?
Chosen answer: It is just part of the supplies that is sent up each month, along with a new boy. Everything the maze residents have has been supplied to them. That includes rudimentary tools, vegetable seeds, food, and various other supplies and equipment. The pig is just livestock that will likely be butchered for meat.
Question: When did Martian Manhunter get to Earth, why did he assume Martha Kent's identity, and where is she during Justice League?
Answer: Martian Manhunter is played by Harry Lennix, who also plays General Swanwick, a character who appears in Man of Steel and Batman v Superman (and we can see he transforms back into Swanwick he leaves), revealing that Swanwick was Martian Manhunter the whole time, so the indication is he got to Earth before Man of Steel. He assumed Martha's identity to speak with Lois, specifically to have a heart to heart with her as she is depressed due to Clark's death. Martha is present every other time we see her, when she leaves the Kent home at the beginning and when she reunites with Clark later on. This scene was the only time Martian Manhunter used her identity.
Question: Surely 'curing' the villains and sending them back to their own universes will have severe implications on the timeline. For example if Norman Osborn never dies in Spider-Man, then Harry never finds out, never becomes the new goblin and wouldn't be able to save Peter in Spider-Man 3?
Answer: Potentially, but there are way too many variables. Changes to the original Spider-Man timeline might have such ramifications that the events of the third film never come to pass at all! Or indeed the Norman Osborn that we see might be a variant of the one in the Spider-Man film, with his own timeline, or indeed making changes to the original timeline might split off multiple alternate timelines. There's just no definitive answer.
Question: What exactly happens to a host's body once the symbiote emerges? At the end of Venom, when Venom is threatening the robber, he partially opens his face, and we see Eddie's face. In this movie, when Cletus/Carnage is escaping from prison, guards start shooting at Carnage who then splits open his entire midsection but Cletus is nowhere to be seen.
Answer: The host and symbiote merge fully. So the symbiote can totally disappear into the host and the host can totally disappear into the symbiote. They can also split again, or partially, at will. It just depends on who gets to be the active version at that time.
I am not up to speed with recent Marvel canon, but in the comics it's never been that way? The symbiote can surely slink inside the host (especially Carnage in Kasady's blood), but the humans can't turn into shapeless goo. Comics aside, that sequence from the movie is mind-boggling; I can sorta explain it thinking the symbiote just tore Kasady's torso in half and then reattached it instantly (in other parts of the movie Eddie gets basically stabbed with what would be lethal wounds).
Actually, in the comics it's long been established that Carnage's healing factor is Deadpool-levels of broken. There are numerous moments where Carnage is impaled, crushed, decapitated, has his neck twisted, even grenades blowing up in his jaws and straight up nailed by military missiles... AND HE'S JUST FINE AND WALKS IT OFF LIKE NOTHING HAPPENED. He absolutely could casually tear himself open with no drawback whatsoever.
"Could" tear himself open, does he usually?"Can turn into shapeless goo", has he? One thing is to regenerate the torso, another thing is to manipulate your body parting before the bullets reach you.I don't really see that from the example posted, but my curiosity aside, given we're talking about the movie anyway, I really don't see Kasady depicted as a shapeshifter, and him and the symbiote in this movie are entirely separated at the end (pending a sequel of course).
Also, for Carnage specifically, the human absolutely can turn into shapeless goo. Makes sense, actually, given that the symbiote canonically merged into Kasady's own cells and microscopic DNA, something even Venom and its hosts can't replicate https://2.bp.blogspot.com/9DjIg5e1HwLrwx-lhLjXxlUqzici7xajVTQZMhEHW8a0X9BqdRFE4U6eaBuPKXJgb8zSxkTytpvh=s1600 so the "symbiote-opening-up-the-host-body-with-holes" being a Carnage specific thing isn't surprising at all, in fact, given it's the same body.
Chosen answer: He saw J's father murdered by Boris. In the unaltered timeline, J says that his father wasn't around. We see this at the end and it's also why J was recruited into the Men In Black. K was keeping an eye on him the whole time.
Brad ★