raywest

13th Jun 2006

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (2007)

Question: This actually may not be on the movie, but it's bothering me: If the Ministry knows exactly when Harry conjures the Patronos spell, how come they can't tell when Voldemort uses the Avada Kedavra curse, which is supposed to be much stronger?

Answer: Only underage witches and wizards are monitored for using magic outside Hogwarts, and Harry in particular has always been closely watched. Any use of magic by him would immediately be noticed. It's not until the end of HP and the Order of the Phoenix that the Ministry of Magic finally acknowledges that Voldemort has returned. Until then they were not searching for signs of him. Also, Voldemort has supporters working within the Ministry who could have hidden evidence of his presence.

11th May 2006

The Hand that Rocks the Cradle (1992)

Question: Do we know if Peyton's husband was really molesting his patients? I can't tell if he killed himself out of guilt, or because he was depressed that he had been accused of something like that.

Answer: Yes, Dr. Mott was molesting his patients, as was seen when he slipped off his plastic glove just before performing a pelvic exam on Claire. After Claire reported Mott to the authorities, a number of other women came forward and their accusations were made public. Mott never showed any remorse, and it appears he committed suicide because he was unable to face the ensuing scandal and criminal investigation.

20th Mar 2006

Red Dragon (2002)

Question: When Hannibal is in his exercise cell talking to Will he speaks a few lines in a different accent. Why does he do this?

Answer: It's not unusual for someone to do this to emphasize a particular point, to be sarcastic, or just show off. Lecture was a master manipulator and loved being the center of attention. By slipping into an accent for a few sentences, he jars the listener's attention.

11th May 2006

Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (2001)

Question: Does the vault number 713 (the philosopher's stone's Gringott vault number) have any symbolic meaning or is it just a random number?

Answer: If there is any symbolic meaning to it, only J.K. Rowling knows the answer. One possibility, seven is a lucky or "good" number; thirteen is considered unlucky or synonymous with evil. By being together, they may balance each other out.

4th Apr 2006

Fargo (1996)

Question: Are we ever told exactly why Jerry needs the money? His $750,000 deal with the parking lot falls through and he owes GMAC $320,000. He is going to give the kidnappers $40,000, but then it's increased to $80,000. But he sets the ransom at only $1 million. So what is the deal?

Answer: This is incorrect. Jerry had already devised the kidnapping plot before his father-in-law refused to loan him the money. It's never stated why Jerry needs the money. He owes $320,000 to GMAC but why he took that money from GMAC in the first place is never stated. Jerry is a greedy person who got himself into massive debt. He even balks when Carl demands they get $80,000 instead of $40,000, when, if the plan works, Jerry would still get $920,000. He's greedy and desperate and is willing to do foolish things for money. That's basically the "moral" of the story.

Jerry's balking when Carl demands $80,000 could be acting on his part. That amount is supposed to be the entire ransom, so Jerry had to pretend as if Carl's demand was unacceptable. Jerry may well be greedy, which could be why he's in financial trouble to begin with, but in the movie he needs money out of desperation, not greed.

Answer: The business deal didn't actually fall through. Jerry needed $750,000 to proceed with it. He tried borrowing the capital from his father-in-law, who refused to lend it to him. Instead, the father-in-law wanted to invest in the deal himself and to give Jerry a small finder's commission. Outraged, Jerry devised the phony kidnap scheme so he could get the money to invest in the parking lot. (He never intended for his wife to be harmed.) Presumably he planned to pay off the kidnappers and partially repay GMAC with some of the $1,000,000 ransom money, and use the rest for the investment deal.

This is incorrect - he meets with the kidnappers before visiting Wade (the father-in-law) about the loan for the deal.

2nd May 2005

The Interpreter (2005)

Question: Am I mistaken, or did Sylvia say she was born in the US before moving to Africa? I'm just puzzled as to why she was deported in the end even if she has dual citizenship.

Chosen answer: Dual citizenship is complicated, and it does not guarantee a person equal rights, privileges, and obligations in both countries. Nor does one country or the other always recognize dual citizenship. Since Sylvia's main residency has been in Africa, the US would consider that her primary homeland and could legally deport her there. Basically, the government is giving Sylvia a way to avoid prosecution in the US by allowing her to leave the country.

2nd Feb 2006

Brokeback Mountain (2005)

Question: Why were Jack and Ennis fighting on the hill on Brokeback Mountain? Ennis's nosebleed looked pretty serious.

Answer: At first they were just wrestling and horsing around. However, underlying tensions and frustrations over their impossible situation, and Ennis' reluctance to commit to Jack, causes their anger (particularly Jack's) to overtake them, and it erupts into a full-blown fight.

4th Apr 2006

Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987)

Question: I have a question about the cloaking technology all through the Star Trek universe. Does the cloak actually turn the ship using it invisible, or does it just hide the ship from being "seen" by other ships sensors? In other words, if a ship was cloaked and invisible to the view screen on the bridge, could someone looking out of a porthole still see the ship?

Answer: The cloaking device makes the ship invisible to other ships' sensors and to the naked eye. This was evidenced in Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home where the Klingon vessel Kirk time travels back to the 20th C. in is hidden from humans while it is in Golden Gate Park and when it hovers over the whaling vessel.

20th Mar 2006

The Thorn Birds (1983)

Question: Fee tells Mary she has two deceased sons. She tells her this before the deaths of Stuart and Hal. I don't remember any other of the Cleary children dying in the novel, what two sons is she referring to?

Answer: When Fee was very young, she had an affair with a man and became pregnant. To avoid a scandal, she was quickly married off to Paddy Cleary, a good and honest man, but someone far below Fee in social class. The eldest son (from Fee's previous relationship) never felt that he fit into the family, and both he and the second eldest son left home early on and met premature deaths. Neither character appears in the TV series, they are only mentioned. Stu and Hal are killed later in the story.

24th Feb 2006

Beauty and the Beast (1991)

Question: If the beast was a young boy when he was turned into a beast, why is it the portrait of him he tears up looks like he does at the end of the film?

Answer: "Boy" is a rather broad term, and it can refer to someone who is grown but has not quite reached full manhood.

Answer: Additionally, it sometimes happened that artist made noble rulers look adult even while still young. So it could've been a historical borrowing to foreshadow his later appearance.

24th Feb 2006

Brokeback Mountain (2005)

Question: What did Ennis mean at the end of the movie when he says "Jack, I swear"? It seemed really out of place.

Answer: I feel it meant "I swear our love will never die." Or "I swear I'll love you forever."

Answer: There's been a lot of discussion as to what this line actually means, but there's no definitive answer.

I feel like it is a statement of loss, what they had, what could have been, but Jack is now gone. They will never be together again, but the strong feelings of love and hurt that Ennis has been, and always will be, there.

6th Feb 2006

The Godfather (1972)

Question: When Clemenza is explaining to Michael how to shoot Sollozzo and McCluskey, he says to take no chances and shoot them both twice in the head. I know he shoots McCluskey twice, but am I correct that he only shot Sollozzo once in the head? (I realize this was Michael's first murder and he was extremely antsy and nervous and may have forgotten and it doesn't really matter since Sollozzo died anyway.) I just wanted to make sure that I wasn't missing a shot.

Answer: He did shoot Sollozzo only once. This is explained in the book. After shooting Sollozzo, Michael instinctively knew the first shot was fatal, and he purposely ignored Clemenza's instructions and immediately turned his attention on McCluskey.

2nd Feb 2006

Stand By Me (1986)

Question: What does Teddy mean when he says to Vern "did your mother have any kids who lived?"

Answer: Teddy's making a joking but also insulting remark to Vern. He has a rather low opinion of his capabilities and intelligence.

2nd Feb 2006

Brokeback Mountain (2005)

Question: What exactly did Jack do with that man in Mexico?

Answer: The man was a male prostitute. Jack engaged him to have sex.

7th Nov 2005

Flightplan (2005)

Question: Can someone please explain to me who those men were that Jodie Foster saw out of her daughter's window in the beginning of the movie if they were not the individuals on the flight?

Answer: It was the men seen early in the film who murdered Foster's husband. When her daughter disappeared on the plane, Foster suspected the Muslim passengers were the kidnappers, believing they looked similar to the men she saw when her husband died. However, they were never involved in the plot. Because Foster was under extreme duress and somewhat irrational, she jumped to a politically incorrect assumption based on their ethnicity.

What do you mean by it was the men seen early in the film who murdered? Are you saying it was Carson, and Stephanie wearing masks, or were they people hired by the hijackers to murder Kyle's husband?

There were people hired to kill Kyle's husband-wheels within wheels, it's a convoluted plan.

16th Sep 2005

Pearl Harbor (2001)

Question: Rafe's fighter combat experience is in Europe. How does he know the capabilities of a Zero?

Answer: Presumably fighter pilots were instructed about Japanese technical capabilities before they were transferred to the Pacific.

22nd Nov 2005

Butch Cassidy and The Sundance Kid (1969)

Question: What was the point of the dialogue between Butch and Etta when she wonders if they might have been a couple? There are no other moments in the film where she seems to want Butch more than Sundance so why bring it up for no reason at all?

Answer: It's to show how Butch and Etta care about each other as friends and that Etta is not just someone Butch has to put up with because she's Sundance's woman. A strong bond unites the three of them.

22nd Nov 2005

Sweet Home Alabama (2002)

Question: At one point, Melanie mentions that Jake got her pregnant several years ago. Was the baby stillborn or did she get an abortion?

Answer: She had a miscarriage.

Answer: She says something to the effect of "mother nature had other plans" leading audience to believe she had a miscarriage.

Answer: She had an abortion because she said it would have altered her future plans and admitted to feeling so ashamed.

Melanie did not have an abortion. When she's talking to Jake's mother, Stella Kay, at the bar, it's mentioned that Melanie had a miscarriage. Melanie felt ashamed because after losing the baby, she ran out on Jake and their marriage to pursue her own goals in New York.

Doesn't Melanie say she's ashamed for being relieved about losing the baby?

Saying "losing" a baby indicates it was unexpected event and not a deliberate action. Melanie only means she was relieved her pregnancy didn't naturally continue.

23rd Nov 2005

Chicago (2002)

Question: I noticed that during the Cell Block Tango, "Pop" shoves the Hungarian girl pretty aggressively. Is this a mistake?

Answer: It is not a mistake, it is choreographed that way. "Pop" is deliberately pushing the Hungarian girl ("Uh Uh") out of her way as she walks to center stage.

23rd Nov 2005

Butch Cassidy and The Sundance Kid (1969)

Question: The beginning of the film states that most of it is true. Are there any specific happenings which can be pointed out as not true?

Answer: It's doubtful Butch and Etta rode around on a bicycle together, and Butch and Sundance did not jump off a cliff into a river.

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