Answered questions about specific movies, TV shows and more

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Question: Billy admits that he shot his wife and daughters to save them from a more horrible death at the hands of the vampires. Grieving, he says, "I tried to shoot myself, too, but the fucking gun jammed." But Billy is a deputy sheriff, and any competent law officer can resolve a jammed gun in a matter of seconds. Did Billy actually chicken-out of killing himself after murdering his family?

Charles Austin Miller

Answer: Perhaps Billy was not a competent law officer. Or maybe you were right he chickened out. Billy could have killed himself in other ways. Other ways more quiet than gunshot.

Alan Keddie

Exactly. How could he go on living after killing his whole family? A minor problem such as a gun jam shouldn't have prevented him from committing suicide. In fact, he couldn't become a law enforcement officer without demonstrating a proficiency with firearms, including the ability to field-service his weapon quickly in an emergency. The simple procedure for fixing a jammed firearm is at the top of the list of required skills.

Charles Austin Miller

Are we ignoring that he was obviously extremely distraught at this time? My take on this has always been that he pulled the trigger, the gun jammed, and he just gave up on everything. He literally didn't care enough about anything at that point to even bother taking his own life anymore. Let the vampires take him; or not. His family is gone, by his hand no less, nothing at all matters anymore. I didn't see it as an inability to clear the jam, I saw it as a psychological breakdown that resulted in complete and total apathy. The jam was nothing more than the straw that broke the camel's back.

Phixius

If he gave up on everything, why did he covertly signal Eben with a flashlight? If Billy had truly given up, why not just walk out into the street and be slaughtered by the vampires, rather than continuing to hide?

Charles Austin Miller

Question: After returning to Rome upon completion of the knights mission to rescue Alecto why did the little boy remove the ring from Marius' hand?

Answer: I believe he did it to remember him. I believe we are to assume after rescuing the boy and when he took care of him, he became a father figure to him.

Answer: He took the ring from Dagonet's hand, not Marius. Dagonet pulled the boy from the pit he was in at the dungeons of Marius' estate and protected him thereafter. Any articles of Marius would belong to his son, Alecto.

Question: When Sorrento activated the Cataclyst, why didn't i-R0k immediately log out of the oasis by removing his VR Visor like Art3mis did in AECH's shop instead of trying to reach a portal?

Answer: I think on Battleworld it's not that simple, or anyone about to be killed can just log off before it happens. On Battleworld you need to reach a portal to log off. It's basically a PvP area. Aech's shop isn't (safe zone) and you can just simply log off directly there.

lionhead

Answer: This is something that's answered in the book, but was left out in the film. In PvP areas such as Battleworld, you can't remove your visor to log out, removing your visor just leaves your character open for attack.

MasterOfAll

Question: Was the woman in the cave scene Teddy's imagination?

Answer: Yes, she was part of the imagined conspiracy.

Question: There is an entry stating that military members can't just choose which orders to obey. Is that actually true?

Answer: Article 90, 91, and 92 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice makes it a crime to willfully disobey a superior commissioned officer, superior non-commissioned office, warrant officer's legal order or fail to obey any general lawful order. Punishment for not following lawful orders during wartime can include death. The keyword being "lawful" orders. Military personnel do not have to obey unlawful orders. Military courts still hold individuals responsible for their actions, even if following orders. Thus, following unlawful orders can result in court discipline and the phrase "I was just following orders" has never worked. An unlawful order is the only time a military personnel can choose not to follow an order. Of course, just like in civilian life, they can always choose what orders to follow and not to follow and simply risk the consequences of a court martial.

Bishop73

Answer: Unless the order contravenes a standing order issued by the higher ups, or violates a treaty the government signed (the Geneva Convention, for example) then it has to be followed. Sometimes soldiers will disobey an illogical order and it turns out OK - but they will have to justify it at tribunal at some point if necessary.

Answer: Of course it is. When you join the military you get given orders and you follow them. You don't get to pick and choose to follow only the ones you like or the ones you agree with. The military is basically "do as you are told"

The_Iceman

Question: After the "death" of Superman, why did Jimmy take a job at another paper?

Answer: It was his way of coping with grief after Superman dies. Jimmy felt he needed to be in a new environment, away from painful memories. Similarly, Perry White turned to alcohol for solace, while Lois Lane sought out Clark's mother, Martha Kent for help.

raywest

Question: The Vikings led by Rolfe and the Moors led by Aly Mansuh are both seeking a gigantic bell, 'The Mother Of All Voices', twenty feet high, made of solid gold. Eventually the Vikings find it, and transport it on their ships back to Aly Mansuh's capital. How can they do this? One of the world's most famous bells is 'Big Ben' in the Houses of Parliament: a mere seven and a half feet high, this weighs thirteen tons! Not only is 'The Mother Of All Voices' considerably larger than 'Big Ben', it is also made of gold. Now, gold is heavier than lead, so how much will a gold bell over twenty feet high weigh? How can the Vikings transport this over the sea on their 'long ships'? And what do either the Vikings or the Moors plan to do when they have the bell? If they keep it to admire for its beauty and craftsmanship, then it will just be a financial liability to whoever owns it. Or if they melt it down for the gold they will destroy all the craftsmanship and artistic endeavour that went into making the bell.

Rob Halliday

Answer: Perhaps, when I submitted my question, I may have been pondering the internal logic of a film that makes a good adventure story, but is historically rather doubtful to say the least (I can say this as I have a degree in medieval history, and have worked as an archaeologist on Viking settlements). In all probability, if historical Vikings were seeking treasure or plunder, and found a bell made of gold, they would melt it down for its precious metal content, with no regard for its artistic significance.

Rob Halliday

Answer: It's unlikely Viking ships could transport such a heavy object, but movies, which frequently ignore historical and scientific reality, often use plot devices like this to tell the story. As far as the Vikings and Moors admiring the gold bell's craftsmanship, that may be the case, but they might also be like the Spanish conquerors who plundered Mexico and South America with little regard for the culture, and shipped finely-crafted gold objects back to Spain where they were melted and remade into coins, jewelry, and other art objects.

raywest

Question: Who is the artist that paints Lucy's murals? I would like to buy some of this artist's work. Please tell me it's Drew herself.

Answer: The credits have three different painters listed. They are David Carberry, Cole Chetney, and Samuel Pactol. Since there were so many pieces in the movie it's a pretty safe bet they all contributed.

oddy knocky

Question: What's the significance of the Dalai Lama when Vic wants Hart to smile?

Answer: It is an image Victor Melling conjures in an effort to elicit a calm, zen-like state for Grace. He is trying to assist her to focus on the competition, rather than her fear of walking the stage in a two piece swimsuit.

Michael Albert

Question: Aren't freight trains awfully loud in real life? Triple doesn't seem very loud in the movie.

Answer: Freight trains average 80db at 15 meters. This is loud enough to cause hearing damage over a period of time. As such, movie producers lowered the noise level so that a normal conversation could be heard.

Ssiscool

Answer: Yes, they are loud. However, the movie makers probably employed some artistic license to soften the sound so as not to distract from watching the story.

raywest

Question: Why did Alex kill Ellen's pet bunny and how did she get inside the house to boil it? Didn't Dan and Beth lock the door?

adamtrainman@aol.com

Answer: Because she is insane! And she picked the lock. By murdering the innocent pet bunny rabbit Alex was sending a message. She won't be ignored! She's just letting Dan know that she can get to him, or in this case his family (daughter's pet), anytime she wants to. He's not safe.

Alan Keddie

Question: Who was the real commander of the Serbian army when O'Grady was stranded behind enemy lines?

Answer: "Lokar" might be based on real-life Željko "Arkan" Ražnatović, commander of Serb Volunteer Guard.

Question: Why were the British singing the Russian national anthem during the Christmas party scene?

Jasinslayer

Answer: As this story was set during the Cold War era, this was a deliberate mockery of the Soviet Union and its policies against holiday celebration and religious freedom. The entire story revolves around the prospect of a Russian Mole among the British Secret Service and Intelligence Community-at that moment, complete with a mocking Stalin Santa Claus, they were letting off steam against their reviled rivals.

Erik M.

Question: Would the kind of field trip the kids were going on in the movie ever be allowed in real life?

Answer: Absolutely. I went on a similar one when I was at school. They are planned in advance to avoid service lines etc and schedules may need to be adjusted but it is possible. It's just unfortunate for movie purposes this one almost ended in disaster.

The_Iceman

Question: What is the significance of the no. 1 seating number in which Terence Mann sits at Fenway?

Answer: This is speculation, but the No.1 seat possibly referred to Terence Mann being the number one reason the whole "Field of Dreams" story was set in motion. When Ray Kinsella was a child, his father (John Kinsella) had high hopes that Ray would become a professional baseball player; he encouraged Ray and they played ball constantly. At the age of 14, Ray read a book by Terence Mann that denounced the 1919 Chicago White Sox baseball team as criminals, and Ray posed that argument to his father (his father believed the White Sox were wrongly accused). Because of Terence Mann's book, Ray and his father had a heated argument that caused Ray to give up baseball, which created a lifelong rift between them that lasted right up to John Kinsella's death. Understandably, Ray always regretted that he never resolved the bad feelings with his father. So, Terence Mann was really the starting point, the No.1 catalyst behind everything in Ray's troubled personal life. The supernatural cornfield events that followed years later were mainly about Ray and his father healing old wounds, the accused members of the Chicago White Sox getting a second chance to play, and Terence Mann losing the bitterness that had filled his writing for decades.

Charles Austin Miller

Brilliant.

I'm guessing it's way simpler than that. When Terrence pretends not to see or hear the message about Moonlight Graham, Ray thinks it was a mistake to bring Terrence to the game and suggests they leave. Them having the two seats right next to the aisle makes it easier to show them just get up and walk away, rather than maneuvering through a row of spectators.

Answer: Terrence Mann wasn't sitting in seat number 1 anyway, Ray was. Terrence was sitting in seat 2.

Answer: There is no significance. Having their seats be right next to the aisle just makes it easier and quicker for them to stand up and leave, ending the scene.

Episode #2.2 - S2-E2

Question: Was there prohibition in England? If not, why was Alfie running an underground distillery using a bakery as a cover instead of just having a legit distillery?

Answer: There has never been prohibition in England. There are many reasons for running an underground distillery. It would be a way to avoid things like government regulations, safe distilling methods, alcohol content limits, taxation, fix pricing, and so on.

raywest

Question: Bunny says he needs track D-16 track cleared because there are students are going on a field trip on that track. What if a freight train had finished loading at the day the field trip was taking place, and they needed use track D-16 in order to reach its destination?

Answer: They will have chosen a track that is not overly busy for the field trip. Things like this are planned in advance to avoid the situation mentioned above.

Ssiscool

Question: Why did the U.S. Navy intend on killing the pirates? Why not just give the pirates their money in exchange for getting Phillips back, and let the pirates go back to Somalia?

Answer: If they pay the pirates, it encourages more to try the same thing. Shooting them would discourage anyone else from attempting to use a hostage to extort money.

Question: During the end of the statue of liberty scene, Cyclops is about to destroy the mutation machine, but shoots Magneto instead. Immediately after, Jean has a meaningful look on her face and I don't really know why. I suspect that Jean used her powers of telekinesis to make Cyclops shoot Magneto instead of the machine since shooting at the machine would kill Rogue and Wolverine. Can anyone tell me the meaning of that look on Jean's face?

Answer: It is a look of concern that Cyclops may harm Rogue, followed by a look of relief that she was fine.

Leaping of the Shrew - September 27, 1956 - S5-E3

Question: Shortly after Sam throws some items off the life raft, Al appears and tells him that because of what Sam had done, neither he nor Vanessa would be saved for quite a while. If Sam had not done anything, both of them would have been rescued within an hour. I might be wrong about this next part so further verification will help. Al also said that because of Sam throwing stuff into the ocean, that somehow, instead if only being stranded in the lifeboat for a few minutes, four whole hours have passed. How could tossing anything into the ocean have made time move so rapidly?

Answer: Sam threw items off the raft to lighten the load, so it wouldn't sink, in doing so he made the raft less heavy. Which made easier to float with the currents, if it was heavy the raft would have moved slower and not moved so far.

Except that Al said that immediately after throwing stuff out of the boat four hours passed and it was shown that they didn't really move from where they were. They were still in the same spot. Forgot to ask this too. When Sam and Vanessa are stranded on the island, one of them, can't remember who, did something and when Al appears, he tells them that because of it, time had suddenly skipped several more hours and if the event hadn't been interrupted, they would have been rescued by a boat. So, what happened on the island that once again caused time to speed up? It seems kind of strange that time could move so quickly on the island, especially since it was still day time and it never showed any sort of changes like the sun or clouds moving.

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