Question: In the film they find Jimmy Hoffa's body, but who is he? I've never heard of him.
Question: After losing his temper on TV, Bruce is being thrown out of the building because he was fired. Why, later in the movie, would Bruce be allowed back in since he no longer works for the news studio?
Answer: They most likely called him and invited him back in to get the scoop. Before another network gets him.
Question: What was the reason that God told Bruce he couldn't interfere with free will?
Answer: Because it would no longer be "free will." Humans were given the ability to make their own choices. If God began controlling everyone's will and actions, they'd no longer do anything based on their conscience. Making the right choice can be more difficult and challenging than doing the easy or wrong thing. It's a matter of an individual making the decisions.
Question: What does it mean when Bruce is live from the Maid of the Mist and one of the audio guys says "We've got a Walt Disney"? (00:15:10)
Answer: There is an urban myth that Walt Disney froze himself so he return unfrozen in the future. At the Maid of the Mist, Bruce is frozen from shock. If you listen to another audio guy after the first one says we got a Walt Disney, he says he is frozen solid, telling what it means to have a Walt Disney.
Question: Can anyone name all (or almost all) of the Biblical references in this movie?
Chosen answer: There is the tomato soup reference at the diner which is referring to God parting the Red Sea for Moses. Then at the party we see Bruce leaning on the golden calf which is another reference to the Bible's 10 Commandments where it says that "thou shalt not worship any false idols." Meaning that only the faithful must worship God and no false entities. Again at the party Bruce is coming upstairs with a pitcher of water and a glass of wine which is a reference to Jesus turning water into wine at a social function. When God and Bruce meet out on the water this is a reference to Jesus walking on water and the search engine Bruce uses on his computer Yahweh, is also another name for God.
Question: What is 'sweeps week'?
Answer: It's a time where Networks (ABC, CBS, NBC, etc.) have their ratings for a season tabulated. This is a time both in the late fall and again in the late spring where shows usually have a cliffhanger or a wedding in order to attract more viewers and get better ratings.
Question: The address for Omni Presents is something like 77526 23rd St. Does anyone know if there's a hidden Biblical or religious reference in those numbers?
Chosen answer: It's 77256 23rd St. The #'s spell out "Psalm" on a phone number pad. So it's Psalm 23 - "The Lord is my Shepherd...".
Question: Aside from it being a funny scene, is there any reason why the people at the news station would keep the feed on Bruce during his tirade at Niagara Falls instead of switching back to the studio?
Answer: I think they are all just stunned about what they are seeing, and perhaps a little curious.
Question: Where can you buy an umbrella hat like the one that Jim Carrey wears during the Niagra Falls story? Anyone know of a website or something similar?
Answer: You can buy a hat like that at many novelty stores, such as Spencer Gifts in the US. Just google umbrella hat and you'll find something.
Question: The guy who played Livingston (surveillance) in Ocean's Eleven gives Jack a sandwich which is the 'Cadillac of all bolognas'. It doesn't really fit with the rest of the film and has no significance, the character isn't even credited so why is it shown?
Answer: There is an unusual explanation. In the original script, he was Bobby, an yammering snack cart guy that made multiple appearances. He liked to talk about food a lot and pressured people to buy his unusual creations. Eventually, he annoys Bruce to the point where he accidentally turns Bobby into a demon. However, Bruce changes him back after Bruce learns to be more modest. This subplot was considered to be too irrelevant, so it was scrapped later on. They gave Eddie the single line as a consolation prize, basically.
Question: Is there supposed to be any significance to the elevator being out of order in the building Bruce is sent to?
Answer: Also, Bruce needed to learn a little humility.
God recognizes that Bruce is expecting things he hasn't earned and is attempting to teach him about the importance of hard work and earning things. Bruce has to climb the stairs (harder than taking the stairs) and God asks for his help mopping a very large floor (hard, but satisfying work).
Answer: It's just the idea that using the stairs is better for your health, so God forces him to use it.
Answer: Hoffa was the powerful and controversial leader of the Teamsters Union from 1957 to 1971. Often alleged to have ties to organized crime, Hoffa was convicted of fraud and jury tampering in 1964 and served four years in prison before his sentence was commuted by President Nixon. In 1975, while trying to regain power in the union, Hoffa disappeared from Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. He was widely assumed to have been killed by the Mafia. His body was never found, and in 1983 he was declared legally dead. Many movies joke of this, because to this day, his body has not been recovered.
T Poston