Answered 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: I know the real world reason Bruno Kirby wasn't in this one (horse allergy that had to be kept at bay with daily medicine shots in dosage size and delivery needle fit for a horse), but is there any in-movie explanation for his absence here?

Answer: No in-movie explanation has been given but, at the end of the first movie, Ed said that he was going to get Kim pregnant so, it can be assumed that Ed decided to become a dad and spend time with his family.

Question: Is the song "The French Mistake" a real song or was it made up for the movie?

Answer: It was made up just for the movie, and I believe we only hear the chorus. Mel Brooks wanted to do an homage to Busby Berkeley's style of choreographed dance number.

Bishop73

Question: Grocer contacts the G-men to tell them that Blank is arriving by plane. Is that his own car he is driving around town, or are we to assume that he rented a car exactly like his own? If it is his car, how did it get there if he flew?

Answer: Given that Blank and Grocer both drive identical black Lincoln Town Cars throughout the film for some reason, that would be a reasonable assumption that they would also hire the same car model wherever they go.

Sierra1

Question: Is there any reason why Nebula told Mantis over all of the other Guardians to meet her on Titan?

Answer: In a deleted scene, Mantis was sitting in front of the coded message channel for five hours, mesmerized by the flashing light. Perhaps the system told Nebula that Mantis was the closest, or she actually heard her voice.

Sierra1

Answer: In real life, that might happen, but this is a fictional TV show that revolves around the characters and the dynamic interaction between them. Getting rid of JR, a main character that much of the story line revolves around, would make the show far less interesting, less melodramatic, and less intriguing. It's just an entertaining, over-the-top exaggerated soap opera.

raywest

Answer: Cole is screaming "Stop!" so you can't hear what the soldier is saying. If you mean all of it, it's in the line of asking what he is doing there, calling the captain to have a look, ask him where his clothes are, and telling him to speak French.

lionhead

Question: Why does Widow winship have a cut on her belly?

Answer: She was pregnant. The Horseman stabbed her in the belly to also kill her unborn child. This is why Magistrate Phillips tells Ichabod that there are 5 bodies in 4 graves and why Ichabod subsequently performs an autopsy on the widow's corpse.

Phaneron

Question: Why did Becky lead Rafferty and his friends into a trap? They went to Old Town looking for some fun and weren't causing any trouble at the time.

Answer: She wasn't leading them into a trap. He was stalking and harassing her despite the fact that she was repeatedly rebuffing his advances. The girls of Old Town look out for each other, so when Rafferty pulled his gun on Becky and told her to get in his car, he sealed his own fate.

Phaneron

Answer: One would assume. The father and everyone at the funeral just watched a video of her poisoning her daughter.

Brian Katcher

Show generally

Question: Hank sees Luanne watching Monsignor Martinez on TV and asks, "Why is the Pope..." and Luanne corrects him, "That's not the Pope, that's the Monsignor Martinez." What episode is this from?

Answer: That's from S2xE23, Propane Boom (1) at about 00:08:30.

Super Grover

Question: Since there was no vegetation to support grazing or browsing animals and apparently not enough water to support aquatic life what did the people eat if they weren't cannibals? Eli ate a cat, but what did the cat eat? Eli fed the mouse cat meat, but until then what did it eat?

Answer: In real life feral cats will eat just about anything they can catch: bugs, lizards, rodents etc. Wild mice will also eat about any scraps, grains or small creatures they can find - including each other. You are right though that in the movie it is not clear how large animals like humans will eat enough.

Question: How did Owen Lars and Beru physically age by 40 years between the time of this movie and the biologically previous movie when they should've only physically aged 19, and how did Obi-Wan physically age by 30 years when he should've only aged 19 as well?

Answer: There's no "official" answer, as far as I know, but the most common explanation is simply that life on Tatooine takes a greater toll on humans than on more hospitable worlds, especially in the case of those who simply eke out an existence as did Owen, Beru, and Obi-Wan. Tatooine also has two suns, which could also account for the apparent (as opposed to actual) age of its human inhabitants; much as it is on Earth, excessive sun exposure can cause premature aging of the skin.

zendaddy621

Answer: There is no explanation other than this is about casting. When George Lucas made the first Star Wars movie in the 1970s, he never expected the phenomena it is today. Alec Guiness was cast as Obi Wan because he was a famous, well-respected actor who was perfect for the part. When Lucas made the prequel trilogy some thirty years later, there were inevitable changes, revisions, and inconsistencies about plot, characters, and so on. Obi Wan was re-imagined as a younger character when he first met Anakin. The younger actors who played Beru and Lars were probably cast because they had a similar appearance to the original actors playing the parts. Actors often play roles where they are older or younger than their actual age. This is quite noticeable in the Harry Potter films, where the actors who played Snape, Sirius, Lupin, James and Lily Potter, etc. were at least 15-20 years older than the characters they played. Audiences are expected to employ a suspension of disbelief.

raywest

Question: Why is Del even homeless? I know he's a widower but that alone couldn't explain why he's homeless unless it's supposed to be some sort of cryptic answer like he couldn't live in his house without his wife.

Rob245

Answer: He's not homeless, he has a house or an apartment somewhere, or lives out of hotels. He just no longer has a 'home', ie, a place where he's happy and someone loves him.

Brian Katcher

Question: Did Obi-Wan fight alongside the rebels for some time after the Clone Wars?

Answer: Obi-Wan retreated, like Yoda, from public view to avoid being killed. He stayed on Tatooine to keep an eye on Luke. He didn't fight, but did keep contact with them, so to keep an eye on Leia as well.

lionhead

Question: Did the 1966-67 BBC TV series "Adam Adamant Lives!" inspire Austin Powers? The first episode of AAL! starts in England in 1902. Adam Adamant, a wealthy gentleman adventurer, thwarts a plot to assassinate Edward VII at a royal ball. Adam Adamant is captured by a masked villain, The Face, who subjects him to a 'living death' putting him to sleep in a block of ice. In 1966 Adam is found, frozen in ice. Revived to consciousness, he has daring, swashbuckling adventures in 'swinging sixties' England, although, as an Edwardian gentleman, 1960's pop culture mystifies him. In the second series of AAL! we find that The Face, too, has been cryogenically frozen. The Face is revived and renews his conflict with Adam (like Dr Evil). Aged 10 and 11 I watched AAL! avidly; it remains one of my favourite TV shows. Sadly the BBC dropped AAL! after two series. The Austin Powers franchise openly pays tribute to British 1960's espionage thrillers. How much of an influence, was Adam Adamant Lives!?

Rob Halliday

Answer: While there are many overlaps, and IMDB does list Adam Adamant as a "reference" for Austin Powers, Mike Myers himself has never indicated that that series was part of his inspiration. According to Myers, he created the character as a tribute to his father; more specifically, as a tribute to the comedy/culture of the '60s, which his father had introduced him to and which had influenced his own comedy.

Question: Before he kills Paul, he goes to the bathroom to take a pill - what pill was it?

Answer: It's a presrciption drug without a name, can't even see the shape or colour of the pill so it's totally unknown. Most likely it's an antipsychotic like Olanzapine.

lionhead

Question: Why would a gun store have ammo on display? Would it make more sense to have it behind the counter or a hidden place so customers can't take some when the clerk's not looking?

Answer: Things that are sold are on dispay or people wouldn't know you got it for sale now would they? The clerk is alert for shoplifters, its his risk. No difference from a gas station.

lionhead

I think the question is referring to why would they have the ammo on the counter and not on a shelf behind the counter or in a display counter? Having live ammunition on the counter is, as you say the clerks risk. But it does seem rather foolish.

Ssiscool

I think inexpensive things are common to be put on counters to sell. Like cigarette lighters, candy and lottery tickets. Bullets seem a bit dubious as this scene shows someone can load their gun on the spot, but I don't think in reality anyone would do that.

lionhead

Agreed, non-expensive items are generally kept on counters. But slightly stupid and dangerous to do it with ammo.

Ssiscool

Show generally

Question: How is the couple, mother played by Mandy Moore, able to adopt the orphaned kid? Given they're a poor couple with two kids already, wouldn't the hospital hold off on this for awhile and try locating the child's parents?

Rob245

Answer: Where did you get that they were poor? they were middle class and had their own home.

Answer: Because that would not have made for an interesting TV series.

Answer: He's using wooden weights, so the goods he buys will register less than their actual weight and he'll pay less than he actually owes.

Brian Katcher

Question: Why did the people's stuff (loose change, watches, purses, and a wig etc) stay on the plane, but their clothes were all gone? They may explain it in the movie, but I was reading the novella and didn't notice an answer. If it had something to do with being worn, wouldn't the wig have left too?

Answer: Stephen King is notorious for writing such elements as "haphazard, random, slightly without strict order", and I do not know if he does this deliberately or that he focuses on the weird aspect - the pacemaker and fillings remain but other things don't. But to take the speculation farther, clothing is somewhat organic, where the other things - even the wigs, are largely not organic (though many wigs are made with real hair). I just think King prefers this touch of random. I do, too. If you read the Tommyknockers he refers to the way the townspeople "become" and they do very haphazard, illogical things. Also this: For King, excessive order is often equated with evil. The Langoliers were described as "all about purpose." Randall Flagg was all about strict rule of law, where the agencies of the Light, of God are slightly randomized, not strict to form. This is a very thought-provoking concept.

Answer: Pure speculation, but maybe anything synthetic or heavily processed stays. That might leave a vinyl purse or belt, polyester scarfs, pills, candy, and the like, but take cotton clothes. Food would be a judgement call. Makes me want to watch it again to see.

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