Why are individual years of a TV show referred to as a series on the site? Is it a European expression? The reason I'm asking is because in America series refers to the whole show (the series Lost, the series finale) and each individual year is called a season (Season 1, the season finale). If it is a European expression, what is the entire run of the show called?
Answered general questions about movies, TV and more
This page is for general questions - if you've got a question about a specific title, please check the title-specific questions page first. Members get e-mailed when any of their questions are answered.
I once saw a movie about a man who seemed to be able to burn things by starting at them, or was at least able to do it once. I remember that he glared at a cat, I think because it was trying to hurt some birds, and then the cat was shown burning on the ground.
Answer: There was a movie called Firestarter based on a Steven King novel but this was a little girl that could that had pyrokenesis (starts fires with her mind). There was also a sequel.
I am looking for the title of a movie I saw in the late 70s/early 80s. It was a swords and sorcery type of film. The only scene I have clear memory of is that one of the main characters is an archer. There is a bird that helps the main characters out and when a feather falls from the bird, it turns into a bundle of magic arrows for the archer. Anyone have any idea about this movie?
Chosen answer: Sounds like "The Archer: Fugitive from the Empire". It was a made-for-tv movie/pilot from 1981.
I saw a movie a while ago where a strict couple has children living with them. I remember one scene where a woman is telling a girl to get into a bathtub and scrub herself, but the girl doesn't want to because the water is too hot. There is also a boy who hides in the house, but can't talk because the man in the house cut out his tongue or something. Does anyone know the title?
Answer: Sounds like The People Under the Stairs.
I can't remember the name of this movie. It stars Roseanna Arquette, who is being cheated on by her husband, who is a British male with silver hair and he seems to have a sexual compulsion.
Answer: Could you be thinking of Diary of a Sex Addict (2001).
I remember a film ages ago. I think this man was trapped in a jungle or woods. When he actually got out he got run over by a truck. After all his efforts to get out that happens. Please do you know what the name of this film was? It would be really helpful. Thanks.
Answer: 'The Crying Game' features Forrest Whitaker being held hostage by the IRA. When he manages to escape, he runs out of the woods onto the street and is hit by a truck. This sets up the remaining part of the movie with one of the IRA soldiers seeking out the dead man's girlfriend.
Multiple times on this site I have seen mistake corrections saying that the mistake is not valid because the two movies of the same series are not consistent (e.g. Harry Potter 2 and 3). Why are they not consistent- is it because they have different directors?
Say a movie is based on a book. If the book has a mistake in it, and the movie copies it, does it count as a movie mistake since the filmmakers were just using the idea from a book?
Chosen answer: Yes. A mistake is a mistake regardless of the reason. It could, under those circumstances, possibly be considered under the "Deliberate Mistake" category, but it still counts as an error.
Numerous times mistakes have been corrected saying it is a character mistake, not a movie mistake. This has always confused me. The words performed by the actor are scripted by writers and scenes are filmed under the direction of its director. Since it is written in the script and accepted by the director and producer, how is this still a character mistake and not a movie mistake?
Chosen answer: In real life, people make mistakes. Just because someone in a movie says or does something wrong, it doesn't make it a mistake because it does happen in real life. A regular character in a movie stating that there are 268 bones in an adult human body could just be a way to show that character doesn't know what he/she is talking about and not really a mistake. A doctor making that same statement would be a mistake because the doctor SHOULD know better since it is his/her job.
I am looking for an animated movie or TV show, that would have been from the 1980's I believe. I recall a skeleton that talks, jewels, and a hero-type character. They are at a cave-like place at night. I believe the skeleton was an obstacle that they had to get through, maybe asking password questions. I watched a lot of Carebears, My Little Pony, and Rainbow Brite. Can anyone help me figure this out?
What film is about a blond guy who isn't allowed to see his kids, so he goes home and shoots a couple of people with an Uzi? Then points a gun at a man behind a restaurant counter, because he's a couple of minutes late for the breakfast menu? I think it was made in the 90's and the main character might be played by Michael Madsen, but I'm not sure. I only saw a bit of it so that might not be a main point in the film.
Answer: This is the movie "Falling Down" starring Michael Douglas.
When I was a kid, I remember seeing a movie in the early 80's, and all I can remember is at the end, a ghost train comes crashing through the house in the living room. Prior to this, you can see the light approaching, and I think there was a kid that yelled that the train was coming towards the house. Anyone know what film this was? It may have been a made for TV movie, but I think it was a regular film.
Chosen answer: Could you be thinking of the Spielberg-penned "Ghost Train" episode of "Amazing Stories"?
A movie from the 80's or early 90's about 3 male friends and one friend reveals he is very ill and dying. There is a scene where the friends do not know the one guy is sick until his wig falls off and they wonder why he is bald and has a wig on. He also makes a goodbye video and they watch it after he dies.
Answer: That would be "Breaking the Rules," released in 1992 and starring Jason Bateman, C. Thomas Howell, and Jonathan Silverman.
Does anybody know the name of a horror type movie that was set on an island with a bunch of Nazi robot type soldiers. If I remember correctly, the "Nazi" guys were underwater and would come to life and kill unsuspecting people if commanded by a scientist, who lived on the island. One thing that I remember about the movie, is when one character was being chased he ran through a swampy area filled with sea urchins or some type of spikey creature.
Answer: The movie is called "Shock Waves": http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0076704/.
Does anyone know exactly how many National Lampoon's Vacation movies there are? If so could you list me all the names?
Answer: There are four theatrical movies, "Vacation", "Vegas Vacation", "European Vacation" and "Christmans Vacation". There is one TV Movie. "Christmas Vacation 2: Cousin Eddie's Island Adventure".
There was, a few years ago, a cartoon on Cartoon Network about a black teenager who I think was called Virgil, and he and some people were exposed to some sort of chemical or radiation. After, the main character had magnetic powers and could float on a trash can lid. Does anyone know what this was called?
I'm looking for this movie I saw when I was a kid, it's possibly made in the 80's, maybe even earlier. In the beginning, this kid who is home alone is on the phone with his friend and he hears something in his house that distracts him. So he puts the phone down to go look and there's this miniature red car in his living room along with this machine thing. He gets in and starts looking in the car and it had these tokens that he was supposed to put in the machine, which he does and he somehow goes through this portal in which I'm pretty sure he turns into an animation and has this whole adventure as a cartoon boy, which I can't remember any part of. Anyway, in the end he comes back and his friend is still on hold. He picks up the phone and starts to tell his friend about this long adventure and the friend is confused and says that he's only been on hold for a couple seconds, or something to that affect. Any info will help, nobody I've told has heard of this and thinks I'm crazy. Thanks.
Answer: It sounds very much like "The Phantom Tollbooth" which was made in 1970, starring Butch Patrick (Eddie Munster).
Does anyone know why story lines on daytime soap operas drag on for months? You can watch 2 weeks of episodes, yet it will still be the same day on the soap.
I remember a film from ages ago.I think this man was trapped in a jungle or woods.I then remembered when he actually got out, he then got run over by a truck. After all his efforts to get out, that happens. Please, do you know what the name of this film was?
Answer: Could this be "Sorcerer" starring Roy Scheider?
Answer: It reminds me of the movie, Lonely are the Brave (1962). Kirk Douglas plays a modern day cowboy, who runs afoul of the law. He escapes into the wilderness on horseback. Just when he believes he got away, he crosses a busy highway at night and is hit by a truck.
Looking for a movie title of around mid 80's, whereby the character has problems with seeing certain colours and if he physically see's red he would run superhumanly fast. If he saw yellow, something else would happen that I can't seem to recall. He was given a special pair of glasses that allowed him to control his powers. There is one scene where he chases a motorbike on a freeway. There is another scene where he avoids looking at a fire. The rolling credits end with him on top of a large building looking down on the city. Can anyone help?
Answer: Sounds like "Super Fuzz." (http://imdb.com/title/tt0082924/)
Join the mailing list
Separate from membership, this is to get updates about mistakes in recent releases. Addresses are not passed on to any third party, and are used solely for direct communication from this site. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Check out the mistake & trivia books, on Kindle and in paperback.
Chosen answer: That's the English expression, yes. We use "series" to refer to both the overall run of the show and, with the appropriate number or year added, to what the US would refer to as a "season". As complete conjecture, it may have come about because in the UK we don't really have a TV "season" as such - while some shows start in September, our shows are shorter, and as such start and stop randomly throughout the year, meaning the word "season" wouldn't really be appropriate.
Tailkinker ★