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 never understood what that "crunching" sound after Bender tries to put his head between Clair's legs and then everyone starts coughing. What exactly was that sound?

Answer: Meant to be the sound of her squeezing his head with her knees, maybe?

Shipper

Question: Why does Doug turn on the gas after he crashes the ambulance?

Question: Who is Conrad Mulaney and how did Lonnie steal his candy?

Answer: I always thought that Conrad was the guy with those two girls who steal Lonnie's candy. And Lonnie could have just pickpocketed the candy from Conrad. It's never explicitly stated in detail.

ChristmasJonesfan

Answer: He's another kid, and Lonnie probably just picked on him and stole some of his candy... it happens.

TedStixon

Question: I'm confused. In Halloween 1978, Lonnie looks like he was a tough bully. In the flashback, he's the one getting bullied. Why is that?

Answer: Looks can be deceiving. Also, Lonnie had backup when he was tormenting Tommy. And bullies can be bullied, too. Plus, there were three of them against one of him.

ChristmasJonesfan

Answer: Bullies are usually cowards. They target and pick on those weaker than themselves. In turn, they can be bullied by someone even stronger. It's a hierarchy. Being bullied often results in someone bullying others to make themselves feel validated.

raywest

Answer: It's a corn snake.

lionhead

Question: When Abby is crying over Sommerfield, Blade tells her to "use it" several times. What is he referring to?

sunfox35

Answer: He means for her to use her anger and sorrow over the death of Sommerfield and the others as motivation in their upcoming battle against Dracula and his minions.

Phaneron

Question: Is the island shown through the submarine's periscope (Geheimhaven in the movie) a real island (of course without any Nazi base)?

Big Game

Chosen answer: The Indiana Jones wiki: To film the arrival of the German submarine at the base, the visual effects artists at Industrial Light and Magic borrowed a miniature prop from Steven Spielberg's 1979 film, 1941. The model was floated through San Francisco Bay towards one of the two Marin Islands just off the shoreline from ILM's then-headquarters in San Rafael. The real-world island was later replaced with a matte painting.

lionhead

Question: Can someone explain the whole thing with Henry Addison and the $8,000? I don't get the link between that and King Benny asking for 8 grand from Rizzo's brother.

Brittle Fingers

Answer: King Benny "sold" Henry's debt to Rizzo's brother, Little Caesar. He then informs Caesar that Henry was the one who killed his brother, knowing that he'd kill Henry, and that he could use the debt as an excuse.

Brian Katcher

High I.Q. - S6-E20

Question: At the party, one of the "dumb" guests says that he teaches at a school in Los Angeles. Why is he apparently "dumb"?

Azalea

Answer: At the time, American public schools, especially those in large cities, were under fire for underperforming, especially compared to those in Japan. It was just a dig on the public's perceived views on education and teachers at the time.

Brian Katcher

Question: Near the start, RDN is narrating the casino and says of the count room, "Even I couldn't get in there." Why wouldn't the guy who is in charge of the casino be able to access the count room? Surely he would have unlimited access to everywhere, especially since he was put there by mob bosses and trusted 100%? Who would tell him no in any case?

The_Iceman

Answer: It's doubtful that anyone in the Mafia sphere is ever trusted 100%, regardless how capable they are. There would be legitimate concerns that someone might start skimming off the top or collude with others to cheat the bosses. Also, by restricting access and dividing responsibilities, it lessens the suspects if any irregularities occur. The counters likely directly worked for and reported to the mob bosses, not Rothstein, who handled the casino's daily operations, not the the money.

raywest

Red Flag - S12-E7

Question: With the fire in the house, they opened up the walls and the ceiling. Why would they do that? Wouldn't that give the fire more oxygen?

The_Iceman

Answer: Internet sources give many reasons why firefighters do this, but in regards to your question, it's probably because opening walls and ceilings creates better ventilation which allows heat and smoke to escape, giving firefighters better visibility and lowering the temperature.

raywest

Question: What does Toht shout after saying "Let me show you what I'm used to"? Is it a German word?

Big Game

Question: What was BioSyn planning on doing with the dinosaur DNA if Nedry had been successful in getting it to them?

Answer: Cloning their own dinosaurs and opening a rival park.

Brian Katcher

Answer: Agree with the other answer, but it was revealed later that the dinosaurs were also valuable commodities to sell to private parties for personal zoos, big-game trophy hunting, as bio-weapons, cruel sport competitions similar to rooster fighting, etc. In Jurassic World Dominion, small ones were being cooked and served as a delicacy.

raywest

Answer: Gillian says, "While we're building him up, they're knocking him down." The Professor is talking about building Duke's strength up, and Gilligan is basically saying Ginger and Mary Ann are wearing Duke out by running around with him.

Bishop73

Question: Would Bruce, standing in front of the Gamma Sphere, have really saved Harper's life?

Answer: It's fictional sci-fi movie technology, so it's honestly up to the writers. In the case of the movie as depicted, it seems to have worked. (While there is a real Gammasphere that was used as the very loose basis for the one seen in the movie, its function is entirely different, so it can't really be used as a valid comparison.)

TedStixon

Question: Why did the cable jam when Jim was being pulled into the rescue helicopter?

Answer: Simple malfunction to get the movie going. Also, the cable could have been old and in dire need of replacement.

ChristmasJonesfan

Moreover, after jamming and before breaking loose, this cable started smoking.

Question: Unless Dylan or a stewardess closed the plane's door, wouldn't passengers get sucked out as she and the would-be bomber parachuted out of it?

Rob245

Answer: A plane's altitude is a factor. If flying low enough so that the cabin's internal air pressure is equal to the external air pressure, there would not be a huge suction; the danger would be passengers falling out the open door. At a higher altitude, the door being blown open or a hole in the fuselage would suck people out until the pressure equalized within a few minutes. (Those left inside would suffocate without oxygen masks.) It's impossible to open the door if the inner and outer air pressures are unequal. Think of skydivers jumping from planes. The altitude must be under 10,000 feet for divers not to pass out from low oxygen during the descent and be below the sub-freezing air temperatures. The whole scene is ridiculous; the bomb's shockwave would likely kill or seriously injure all three. Jumping from the plane that way could have sucked them into the jet's engine or hit the wing or tail resulting in death.

raywest

Answer: Yes, you're correct, they would. But once the door was opened, there was no reclosing it. The way I look at it is that this was just a pre-credit action set piece which had zero to do with the rest of the movie. Similar to the Bond movies, only excruciatingly dumb.

ChristmasJonesfan

Answer: The timeline of the movie is important to consider. The 1966 film began production while season 1 of the TV series was being aired. Eartha Kitt didn't play Catwoman until season 3. According to the TV show "Biography", Newmar was suffering from a back injury and unable to reprise her role for the movie. But she was able to recover by the time they started shooting the 2nd season. So, for the movie they hired Meriweather.

Bishop73

Answer: Of the three actresses that portrayed Catwoman, Julie Newmar was the first in the TV series and Eartha Kitt assumed the role after Newmar became unavailable. Lee Meriwether played the character in the movie. All were "guest stars," not regular cast members, so their availability would constantly change as they did other TV shows, movies, plays, etc. Show creator William Dozier originally wanted to first film and release a feature-length Batman movie, using it like a pilot, to introduce the Batman character, then launch the TV show based on it. However, the studio, 20th Century Fox, wanted the TV series first, so the movie was delayed until after the successful first season. During the movie's filming timeframe, Newmar was unavailable (various reasons have been reported about why she did not reprise the role) and Meriwether was cast.

raywest

Answer: Presumably you're referring to the additional 18 minutes added to the DVD ending. This is not unusual. Theatrical releases usually maintain a certain runtime to allow the movie to be shown so many times per day, maximizing number of tickets sold. Most movies are around 90-120 minutes, so a film's scenes are often trimmed or cut entirely, often against the director's preference. The DVD "extended cut" allows the director to re-add deleted footage and show a more complete and cohesive story.

raywest

Question: What exactly was wrong with Hedy? What made her so messed up?

Answer: Hedy's twin sister drowned when she was a child. She's trying to reform that bond with Allie.

Brian Katcher

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