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: In the scene just before Ashley and Ashlyn die, Ashlyn, the brunette, (I think), asks Ashley why she's wearing underwear and Ashley says it's because Simon gets off on tan lines. Now I know who Simon is but, what does she mean by "he gets off on tan lines"? Is this a turn on or something?

Answer: For some guys yes, it is a powerful turn on. Tan lines appear when the sun hits the legs, etc. but not the bits covered by clothing, hence "tan lines" appear where the skin goes from bronze to white.

The_Iceman

Question: When Quint and Hooper are comparing leg scars, they are sitting near each other with legs overlapping. The shot moves to Brody, then back to Quint and Hooper at the table, sitting apart. Quint is fastening his pants, buckling his buckle, and zipping his zipper. He obviously showed them something that was edited out of the movie. What was it?

Rick Neumann

Answer: Possibly a scar from having his appendix removed, I've been told.

The appendix shot is Brody - he is feeling inferior as the other two share tales of the sea and the only scar he has is from his appendix being removed.

Chosen answer: I just watched this on DVD. As the men were supposed to be comparing their body scars to one another, it appears that Quint had just shown one that was hidden beneath his pants. Whatever this was, it was edited out. When movie scenes are originally filmed, they are usually much longer in length than what is in the final version. After editing, some actions, dialogue, and character movements are deleted either to shorten the running time, for better storytelling flow, or the action was considered unnecessary to the scene. Also, film censorship at this time (mid-1970s) was far stricter than it is today, and it may have been that a review board deemed it inappropriate to have a character unzipping his pants in that manner and insisted it be removed from the final version.

raywest

I believe it was Brody, not Quint that was looking down his pants. And I believe that he was embarrassed that his (maybe appendix) scar was not as big or impressive as Quint and Hoopers.

Watch it again and as Quint is scooting back over to his spot he's fastening his pants, but no explanation is given.

I thought Brody had been shot as a cop in the big city (and that was why he took the job in a quiet, small town) and that in this scene he was looking at the scar and comparing it in his mind to the scars the other guys were showing but not saying anything to them about it.

Answer: After Brody looks down at his abdomen scar (probably an appendix scar) the camera switches back to Quint and Hooper. As Hooper starts talking, watch Quint. He is buttoning his pants and then struggles to zip them up. He leaves his belt unbuckled. I've seen Jaws more times than I can count - starting the year it premiered in 1975 - and I didn't notice this weirdness until a few years ago.

Answer: This question makes no sense. The Lone Survivor doesn't get killed. That's why he's the Lone "Survivor".

wizard_of_gore

Question: During the number "I've Got A Dream," the thugs ask Flynn to share his dream, but Flynn refuses to tell them with the excuse "I don't sing." Is that line a reference to Flynn's voice actor or is that just an excuse Flynn is making?

John Ohman

Chosen answer: It's just Flynn.

Phixius

Question: Why did Troy shoot Archer's kid again? I just watched the movie for the first time from start to finish so I really didn't get that part.

Answer: Michael wasn't the target. Caster was trying to shoot Sean, but the bullet went through him into Michel. It was collateral damage.

Quantom X

Question: When Mav meets Charlie in the bar, she makes a joke about his name and then he informs her it's his call sign. And she says "Oh, you're a pilot!" Considering the fact that she is an "important" civilian adviser at Top Gun and Mav is wearing his wings, wouldn't that have been obvious?

Answer: Charlie is playing dumb because she knows Maverick is trying to chat her up - he has no idea who she is and as she says later she sees a lot of pilots in there come and go.

Question: Why is Professor McGonagall so shocked that Harry would accuse Draco of cursing the necklace? She knows that Draco's father is a Death Eater, as well as some of his friends' fathers. Professor Snape is there, but they are both in the Order of the Phoenix (and she has no reason to not trust Snape yet).

Answer: She's likely incredulous at the idea that Draco could perform a curse that well.

Captain Defenestrator

Question: What I cannot understand about this movie, having watched it 3 times, is why there is no response to Crouch senior's death by anyone. Having read the book, I assumed it would be made clear at some point that he had been killed by his son, but in fact it's left hanging as a huge loose end. Is it conceivable that the tournament would just continue when the referee and judge has been found dead close to the castle?

Answer: You're right, and there is no real answer to this. The way Crouch Sr.'s death was handled did not make much sense and it is yet another example of how the movies glossed over many plot details that were explained in the books. It would be completely unrealistic that an important official's murder during the event would be overlooked. It's unfortunate that the overall story arc of the series has so many gaping holes in it and the filmmakers expected the audience to "fill in the blanks." That is why there are so many questions about the HP films on this site.

raywest

Actually it wasn't overlooked. In the next scene, just after Crouch's body was discovered, Dumbledore, Fudge and fake Moody are discussing the matter and are unsure what they should do about it. Moreover, in one of deleted scenes Harry, Ron and Hermione talk about Crouch's death.

Answer: But his death is explained in the book. Barty Crouch Jr. explains having killed him, transfiguring him into a bone and burying him in Hagrid's garden. As for why there was no announcement, Barty Crouch Sr. Was believed to be ill and had been out of sight for some time now. Percy Weasley, his assistant still had continuous messages from him via owl. At the end of the Tournament however and upon revelation, Fudge might've been acting out of fear and kept the entire incident low. Not to mention how he had limited proof considering he had Barty Crouch Jr. immediately kissed by a dementor. The movie plot for this is definitely flawed but the book, admittedly, allows proper assumption of the aftermath of his death.

Not quite flawed. After Crouch's body is discovered in the forest by Harry, there is a scene where Dumbledore, Fudge and fake Moody debate what actions should be taken due to this incident. Fudge, being afraid of losing his position of Minister Of Magic, refuses to cancel the Tournament because he doesn't want to be perceived as a coward.

Answer: It actually makes some sense. Fudge refused to cancel the Tournament because he was afraid of losing his position of Minister Of Magic.

Question: Why was Captain America unable to hold Thor's hammer? He fought to protect his country. He saved the lives of innocent people and wasn't afraid to back away from any kind of danger so he should have been able to lift it. Ultron said that the reason none of them could lift it is because they were all killers but that's really just speculation.

Answer: He can pick up the hammer, he didn't want to upset Thor.

brianjr0412

Answer: He's able to move it just barely, enough to impress Thor. It's an enchantment on the hammer that requires a combination of strength and righteousness. He might not be there yet, but he's on the way. Thus the hammer moves more than anyone else could.

Captain Defenestrator

Question: What is the make/model of the airplane used in the skydiving scenes?

Answer: The plane is a Beech 65-A90 King Air.

Sierra1

Chosen answer: "It doesn't have to be a snowman."

Phixius

Question: Slash filmed his role as a live-action character named Jerry Vadergeld and is even seen in the film's first trailer, but not in the actual movie. IMDb also says that Frankie Muniz has an uncredited role as a cop, but no police officers are found anywhere in the film. Other background characters (ex. The ice cream bikini girl, the two girls talking about the animated characters as superheroes), scenes (ex. Patrick and the bikini girl's three-scoop ice cream cone, Burger-Beard throwing a pair of plastic rings on Squidward's nose), and dialogue (ex. SpongeBob saying saying "This is uncomfortable!" and "Come on, team. Let's get that book back!") from the trailers were also not in the actual movie. Can anybody explain to me why all that is not in the actual movie?

Answer: The point of a trailer for a movie is to get bums on seats in cinemas so the film-makers have to make a film look really good and generate a "I really have to see this" vibe. Because virtually all professional films shoot far more material than they need, some of it will end up in the trailer as exclusive content and some will end up in the special features section of the DVD (bloopers, deleted scenes etc).

Neil Jones

Question: I have four questions; First, just out of curiosity but considering how easily the skelly guys break apart, then wouldn't they have instantly done that from jumping from a cliff? Second, when the Black Knight Ghost enters the TV station, how was the signal lost? All he did was enter, speak, look around and then the signal was lost so, how did that happen? Third, what's the name of the song playing when the gang arrive at their old clubhouse? Fourth, what's the name of the song playing when the gang are reversing the control panel?

Answer: Four answers; (1) Yes, but as we see later in the film, they are easily eligible to rebuild themselves back up into full shape. (2) We we later find out she's The Masked Figure, so it's reasonable he/she had a plan in mind. (3) The second song is just one that the crew members made up, but the first song is called "Circle Backwards" by Mark Provart.

Question: Juggernaut was supposed to appear in the movie, helping Magneto escape from the Pentagon, but was replaced by Quicksilver. Is there any reason for this role being replaced?

Answer: Bryan Singer didn't like the idea of using Juggernaut again, since Brett Ratner used him in The Last Stand. He felt it wasn't original enough. He was inspired by watching high speed videos online and did a re-shoot using Quicksilver.

Bishop73

Question: Riley runs away from home in the morning, not going to school, but the bus only leaves San Francisco in the evening. Where was Riley all day?

Butter Chicken

Chosen answer: We don't see Riley's day after she leaves home. One can only assume that she wandered around the city all day long until it was time to go to the bus station.

Question: On the Interceptor, when Jack swings back from the Black Pearl, he asks Elizabeth where the medallion is, and in reply she tries to slap him, saying 'Wretch!' Why? What has he ever done to her? Okay, Jack used her to escape from Norrington and his men, but he saved her life before that, so it's only fair.

benjyrabbit

Answer: She calls him a wretch because after his escape all he asks about is the medallion, which she overheard the pirates talking about. It is fairly logical to presume she thought he was trying to use the medallion to his advantage. Which is right.

Chosen answer: She says "fetch" not "wretch" and pretends to throw the coin, not slap him. He catches her hand, sees no coin and then asks where William is, because Will is the one that should be in possession of the coin since it was originally his can remove the curse.

No. If you turn on the subtitles, she says "wretch." It may have sounded like "fetch" due to her British accent.

Question: Why does Teddy have a cut with a plaster (band-aid) on his forehead throughout the film?

Answer: The bandage is a symbol indicating when and when not Teddy is caught in his delusions. When the bandage is on he is delusional, thinking he is the marshal finding out all the dark secrets of the facility. When the bandage is absent he is lucid and aware of his past crimes and his own delusions.

Wrong. It's on the whole movie until he takes a shower. The bandaid is off but yet that's the scene where he runs in the lighthouse thinking he's the Marshall still. Did you watch the movie at all?

Answer: He was in an altercation with the patient in ward C prior to returning to ward C and talking with him again. It was an injury sustained in the past due to that.

Scott McClure

Question: During the clock tower scene at the end, why is it necessary for the DeLorean to be going 88mph at the exact moment lightning hit the clock tower? When the Delorean was struck by lightning while it was in mid air at the end of the second film, it wasn't going 88mph at all, yet it was still shot through time. Seems the Delorean could have been parked in the street in front of the clock tower connected to the wire and just wait to be struck by lightning and sent back to 1985, no?

Carl Missouri

Chosen answer: The DeLorean was spun on its axis at 88mph when it got struck by lightning, that's what caused the backwards 99 and the time jump. Unbeknownst to Doc he'd accidentally switched on the time circuits.

Question: Right after the opera scene when Willis is getting the stones his shirt has sleeves. When he exits the opera house his sleeves are ripped off and he has blood on him. Was there a deleted fight scene?

Answer: Korben's shirt is fine before the fight with the aliens who walk back into the theater after Ruby shoots the hostage one by accident. A deleted or not filmed fight sequence occurs in which Korben and Ruby both get their shirts ripped up and gain several small wounds. The point where we see Korben shoot the three on the balcony is after he's taken care of the ones in the theater.

Question: There's a trivia entry already listed about where to find Matthew Lillard making a cameo, but I've heard that Rose McGowan (Tatum from Scream) is in the background in the opening sequence somewhere. Can anyone tell me exactly where?

Jon Sandys

Answer: Although that audience member does bear a vague resemblance to Rose McGowan, wouldn't she have had her blonde hair dyed back to her natural brunette look?

Alan Keddie

Chosen answer: Rose is the girl in a deep-green shirt with blonde hair. She looks slightly shocked. You see her near the left center of the audience scene, right after the 2nd shot of Jada climbing/crawling onto the stage.

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.