Question: Why exactly didn't Ramsley want Master Gracey to marry Elizabeth? What would've happened to him, the mansion, or Gracey himself if he married her?
Questions about specific movies, TV shows and more
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Question: What were all the cities that were attacked during the invasion?
Answer: Most likely, coastal cities or cities near a large body of water.
Question: Is the Egyptologist's (Jonathan Hyde) name ever revealed in the film, or is he always referred to as just the Egyptologist?
Question: For the slightly crude ball-throwing game, why is Jennifer Love Hewitt the target?
Answer: In the late 90s and 2000s, she was reported to be dating several different men. She was often called a "serial dater."
Question: How could Chris have legally become sheriff? Wouldn't he have had to go to law enforcement school or academy before he could have been considered for a role as sheriff?
Answer: The role of sheriff is an elected, political position, and as recent US politics have shown, one can be elected to office with little or no previous relevant experience.
Question: During the Sheriff's car ride back to the Vaughn house, when the Sheriff was explaining the story of the previous Sheriff, is it hinted that the sheriff and the others killed him so he could take over? And if that's true, was that because the previous Sheriff was about to get in the way of Jay's criminal activities or was already doing so?
Question: Why does Darth Maul have almost no dialogue?
Answer: Probably because Ray Park, who portrayed Darth Maul, was not a professional actor, but a martial arts expert and stuntman who was recruited for the film. Another actor, Peter Serafinowicz, voiced what little dialogue there was.
Answer: The comment by RayWest is a good possible behind-the-scenes reason. Also, I think Darth Maul had been raised by Palpatine/Darth Sidious from a young age, unless that is no longer canon. Unlike Vader and Tyranus, who join Sidious as adults, Maul has almost no interests nor associations with others. He is focused on serving his master because it's all he knows. This could be why he says very little to others - he has no desire, nor much knowledge, about how to interact with them. But again, I am not sure exactly what is canon now.
Question: What happened to Officer Paski, Ray Reddy, Lionel Prichard, that girl from the pharmacy, and that army recruiter guy after the events of the film? Did they survive?
Answer: It's never revealed, so any answer given would be pure speculation. In truth, the answer is that it's up to your imagination. I'd assume a few were killed, but most people likely survived, given how short the invasion was. Of all of them, Paski and Ray Reddy are the most likely to have survived, as Paski is a cop and likely could defend herself, while Ray went out towards the water – the alien's weakness.
Question: Why didn't the Hess family have guns? Unless it was against the family's religious beliefs to own firearms, wouldn't the smart thing to do have been to bring guns and lots of ammo into the basement with you, just in case the aliens breached the basement? I mean, a pistol round or a shotgun blast would seriously ruin the aliens' day.
Answer: Less than half of American households have guns in them. They simply didn't own any guns and didn't prioritise buying any in the panic of what's happening.
Answer: He was a preacher and, like all men of God, didn't believe in guns or violence.
Question: If Edward Walker sent Ivy to go get help, why couldn't he have done so at night when no one could see him? Law enforcement outside the village could have just as easily detained Ivy and practically forced her to reveal the location of the village. Did Jay (M Night Shyamalan) know about the village? And why did Kevin (the younger, helpful guard) just sit there with his truck door open after presumably helping Ivy back over the fence?
Answer: All the elders, including Edward, swore an ironclad oath never to leave the village for any reason. That is why he sent the two boys to escort Ivy. Jay, the head guard, apparently does know about the village and makes sure the younger guard does not get too curious. As to why Kevin just sat there with the car door open is anyone's guess. He appears rather stunned by the whole incident and is probably wondering what is inside the reserve.
Question: What was the reason for the ceremony of meat, where they tossed it onto the rock? And why couldn't they have just walked over and put it there instead of the wind-up toss? That was kind of ridiculous.
Question: Any idea as to how long the creation of the village took? Those stone cabins look like they would've taken a considerable amount of time to build. Adding to that, the guard towers and such. Was it just the elders who built everything before the events of the film? Also, where did all the families in the village come from? Aside from the younger generations who were obviously born there, did they hear of Edward Walker's plan and decide to leave everything behind to join in?
Answer: Don't disagree with the other answer, but would add that Edward Walker was extremely wealthy, having inherited his father's corporation that still financially supports the village. He had the resources to buy the land, discreetly build the village, maintain and guard the preserve, etc. After his father was murdered, Edward joined a grief support group. That is where he met the other people who became part of the village. Everyone had lost a loved one through a violent act. Edward proposed the plan to live in an isolated village, walled off from violence. Because he was a history professor, he chose to recreate the 19th century, opting for a simpler way of life.
Answer: I'd presume it probably took a few years to get everything in the village set up and built, paperwork handled, etc. It's never explained who built everything, but it wouldn't be a stretch to guess that they may have had outside help getting things set up. And the implication is that the families are all people from the outside world who moved in when the village was created and were all likely people who simply wanted to leave behind their old lives for personal reasons, like trauma.
Question: What exactly was "The Flight of the Birds" that was mentioned during one of the elders' meetings before Lucius was first introduced?
Answer: The "Flight of the Birds" is a metaphor for the village elders. They fled modern society and established the isolated village to escape societal violence. In some scenes, such as when Noah finds an elders' costume under the floor - loose feathers are seen. The feathers are a clue and symbolise the elders.
Question: When Lucius first approaches the body of elders regarding his request to go to towns, why do they all just stare at him in silence instead of doing something else, like commending him on his willingness to want to help his fellow villagers? It would have been more interesting if they all just told him "No" in unison, a split second before the scene changed, instead of them all just sitting there looking at him. And Edward Walker even looked like he was a bit annoyed with him even asking to go.
Answer: I wouldn't say that Edward was annoyed. The elders had adopted a sober persona and tended to react in a gentle, non-emotional way to just about everything. Lucius wanting to travel to another village created a problem for the elders, who wanted to keep the younger villagers from leaving for any reason, mostly by constantly instilling fear of the unknown creatures. It would be unrealistic for them to simultaneously say "no". It is also a plot device. The audience is deliberately left without any definitive answer about what the elders are thinking.
Question: Why did Finton Coin want Lucius to sit with him in the tower? What did he mean when he told him, "I do hope no one saw you"? And why was no one supposed to see him?
Question: What made Lucius want to enter the woods? It is implied that he was one of the first villagers (that we know of) to rebel against the "rules" of the village, second to Noah for entering the woods "on many occasions." Also, why wasn't Lucius taken to the quiet room like Noah was supposed to have gone to because of him hitting people with a stick? Lucius broke the rule, so why wasn't he disciplined? When the village found out it was him, they would have expected a punishment to have been handed down.
Answer: Lucius is a typical youth who is questioning the elders' "rules," and is curious about what lies beyond the village's borders. While Lucius pushes boundaries, Noah is mentally impaired and functions on a childlike level. He cannot be reasoned with in a normal adult manner and is punished like a small child. When Lucius dared to enter the woods, the elders, disguised as the monsters, later "invaded" the village, thus terrorizing the younger members and making Lucius feel guilty for "endangering" everyone by his disobedience. That was his punishment.
Question: When Cady asked a teacher for the "lavatory pass", he laughed at her and told her to sit down. So, when and where was a student supposed to get a pass?
Answer: At my high school, a teacher was only required to let you go if the office had a doctor's note on file, saying that you must be allowed to use the bathroom. A "lavatory pass" could be a version of such a note. Plus, as Brian Katcher wrote, some teachers are strict and want to be difficult.
Answer: Some teachers don't give passes during lectures or instruction time. Some think kids should go between classes so as not to waste time, and some are just cruel.
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Answer: She was African American, most likely the daughter of slaves. He felt she would have brought shame and disgrace to the mansion and the family name.