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: Why did Zuko get mad when Leo said "Pinks you punk! Pink slips! Ownership papers!"

Answer: The ownership papers of cars use to be pink. Whomever won the race would win the other persons car. They were playing for pinks and he did not want to lose their car.

Answer: Pink slips are ownership papers which means the winner gets the loser's car.

Answer: Because Zuko was being called a punk, and they other guy was from a rival gang and putting them down and being generally obnoxious. Plus, it's possible the word "pinks" was meant to be initially misunderstood as the "Pink Ladies."

Michael Albert

Answer: Because Danny didn't understand right away what the guy meant by "pinks" and the guy tried to humiliate Danny by calling him a punk for not knowing the lingo - that he was too inexperienced and dumb to know what he was talking about.

Question: What is the significance (if any) of the symbol Paul drew on Connie's body?

Answer: There is no significance, the script just says it is a "little doodle".

Sierra1

Answer: If you remember it was a flower or a heart with an arrow pointing down. You can figure it out. I think it was just something Paul did for fun to Connie.

Answer: My only thought is for her husband to see the drawing.

Question: If his father was a monster, why didn't Britt make that clear to everyone at the funeral and let them know he didn't deserve that statue? Also, why couldn't Britt tell his co-workers that he cut the statue's head off?

Answer: While Britt held a childhood grudge against his dad, his father wasn't so much a "monster" as he was a hard-nosed, dedicated publisher (who was, in fact, trying to expose organized crime). Britt has a change of heart when his father dies unexpectedly, and Britt makes the decision to take more responsibility in his life. Britt's old grudge only re-emerges when he and Kato get intoxicated and vandalize the statue, which Britt later regrets doing when he is sober.

Question: So, just to make this clear, neither Britt nor Kato win Lenore's heart by the end?

Answer: Any romantic tangent between Lenore, Britt or Kato was derailed when she discovered their true identities. Lenore was furious with both of them. By the end of the film, we only get the impression that she is joining the Green Hornet team, presumably to return as a trio in any sequels. Which, due to low boxoffice and poor reviews, never happened.

Charles Austin Miller

Question: Correct me if I'm wrong, but the plot of this film is to show Michael's consolidation to power. My question is, what's with the thing with Hyman Roth and Cuba? Like what are they trying to invest in? Why did Roth want Michael killed?

Answer: They were investing in hotels and gambling in pre-Castro Cuba, trying to extend their empire to what was then a lucrative market for rich Americans. Michael, however, saw the revolution coming, and started to pull back from the deal as he realised that the Communists would win and nationalize all those businesses. Roth, oblivious to this, tried to have Michael killed because he was worried that Michael's reticence would influence the others involved in the deal and ruin the investment for him.

Answer: Roth wanted Michael killed because he had Moe Green killed.

Question: How exactly did Leslie initially intend on crossing the Bering or Chukchi Sea from Alaska into Russia? I know he and Professor Fate end up floating on a large mass of ice to do so, but that's not exactly something you can plan for.

Phaneron

Chosen answer: The cars and drivers were supposed to make the trip by ship from North America across the Bering Strait to a Russian port, where they would resume the race. As it happened, Leslie and Fate were stranded in a blizzard on the North American side before they reached the ship. The ice beneath their cars unexpectedly broke away and drifted across the Bering Strait, improbably arriving at the intended destination port in Russia. As they drift into port, we see Leslie's right-hand man, Hezekiah, waving at them from the Russian dock, which is only possible if Hezekiah made the journey by the very ship that Leslie and Fate missed.

Charles Austin Miller

Question: Who plays the cop who handcuffs John Doe and gets blood all over his hands in the process?

Answer: John Cassini.

Answer: Thank you for the answer. I knew he looked familiar.

Question: Would Victor have felt any pain by the time he was found, or would he be so insane that he wouldn't be able to feel anything? And if so, how long would it take for him to become that insane? Also, would he be aware of where he is and who's in the room once he went completely insane, even if he's not able to communicate? And if he's no longer aware of reality, would he still feel pain? I'm a bit confused in that regard, as well as how long it would take for his brain to become mush.

EK8829

Chosen answer: The question presupposes that there is a "level" of insanity wherein one stops feeling pain, which there is not. If his body still has active nerve endings, he would continue to feel pain no matter what his state of mental deterioration. As to the second part of the question, the examining doctor describes his brain (read: mind) as "mush", suggesting that he is too far gone to be aware of reality anymore.

Question: When Scarlet Witch attempts to mind control Hawkeye, he turns it back on her and says something like "Already done the mind control thing...didn't enjoy it the first time." Was this supposed to be an in-joke reference to the fact that Jeremy Renner was publicly bitter about having to spend most of the first film being mind controlled by Loki (which almost got him fired)?

Answer: It's not an in-joke about real life. It's just a direct reference to Loki mind controlling him.

Greg Dwyer

Question: What does going to the mattresses have to do with war?

Answer: "Going to the mattresses" means they will find a place for their soldiers to live during the fighting, a place that the enemy families do not know about. The novel explains it a bit more, saying that the apartment would be outfitted with enough mattresses for everyone to sleep on, as well as basic cooking supplies.

Question: Were the pictures from newspapers used in the montage during the War with the other families real pictures from the 30's when the real Italian Mobs were around?

Answer: It appears to be a compilation of staged photos with actors in the movie, and also actual historical ones from that era.

raywest

Question: Why did Barzini rip the picture that was taken of him? Sure he's one of the heads of the 5 families which I guess you can say brings a lot of heat to his family, but all he's doing is attending Connie's wedding.

Answer: Barzini does not want anything publicly known about his private affairs, regardless of how innocuous or mundane. If photographers can get away with taking pictures of a mafia don at a wedding, then they'll photograph him and other key mob figures in all type of situations, some more compromising than others. Barzini is warning the press to stay away or risk retaliation. Continuing to take unwanted photos could result in a photographer getting killed.

raywest

Question: Why was Sonny the only one dealing with Carlo's abuse to Connie? Michael and Fredo never intervened, and I'm pretty sure that Vito and his wife must've known as well.

Answer: This is better explained in the book. Vito knew Carlo was abusive, but he had very old-fashioned and outdated morals and ideas, including non-interference in another's marriage. In that era and culture, spousal violence was often more tolerated. Vito worried that his intervention would make Carlo fearful and unable to perform his "husbandly duties," driving an even deeper wedge between the couple. Vito expressly forbid his sons or anyone from interfering. However, Vito was having Carlo secretly watched. Unfortunately, the family's seeming non-action only emboldened Carlo to become even more physically abusive, unaware of Sonny's seething wrath. Sonny finally lost control and, disobeying his father, beat his brother-in-law. Carlo never harmed Connie again until the plot to murder Sonny.

raywest

Question: What was Fabrizio saying in Italian to the Italian soldiers when they were driving by?

Answer: They weren't Italian soldiers, they were American. He was jestingly suggesting they take him with them back to America, as well as a few names of famous Americans. He says: "Hey, hey, take me to America! G.I.! Hey! Hey, hey, hey, take me to America, G.I.! Clark Gable! Hey! America, America, ha! Take me to America, G.I.! Clark Gable, Rita Hayworth!"

This foreshadows Fabrizio's treachery. He badly wants to emigrate to America, so he betrays Michael for money to get there, only to be executed on Michael's orders some years later.

raywest

In what movie is Fabrizio murdered?

Strangely enough, Fabrizio is killed in in both Godfather 1 and 2! In Godfather 1 Michael calls on the pizzeria Fabrizzio owns and kills him with a shotgun. (In the book this is done by one of Michael's henchmen). In Godfather 2 he is killed by a car bomb planted on Michael's orders. Both scenes were deleted by Francis Ford Copolla, leaving a sense of mystery about what actually happened to Fabrizzio.

Question: What happened to Little Henry after he killed Danny in the bathroom?

Answer: We don't find that out. It happens right at the end of the film, and we don't get to see the aftermath.

Purple_Girl

Answer: This is what I'm trying to figure out - when he shot Danny he disappeared, he probably got away with it or he was arrested later on.

Answer: In the original ending he was supposed to be arrested. It is possible that he was arrested in the final version of the film too.

Question: Although 9 was upset about 1 sending 2 out to die, why did he prevent 7 from killing 1?

Answer: 9 was not seeking revenge. Someone may do something wrong to another person, but that does not automatically mean you would do the same to them.

raywest

Answer: He doesn't want anyone else to die. One is the part of the scientist that wished that he had never built the machine. The only problem with one is that he wants to run away from his problems while nine wants to fix them. No parts of the scientist's soul hate each other. They are all trying to work together.

YellowBird

Question: Where would the monster get the fuel for his vehicle? Surely he wouldn't be fueling up at the gas stations.

Answer: There's no reason he couldn't use a gas station. In the dark he just looks like a guy with dark skin, unkempt hair, and a trench coat. Even if somebody does get close enough to get a good look at him, he would easily kill them to keep his secret.

BaconIsMyBFF

Question: Most of the songs the Brady kids sing in this movie (and the sequel) were played at normal speed but were redone with new musicians and singers. However in this movie, during the Sears scene, "Sunshine Day" plays and you can tell it's the original recording from the original show but has been slowed down. Just curious about the reason for slowing this one down - was it a legal issue since the original cast/recording was used or another reason?

Answer: I have listened several times to both versions of "Sunshine Day" on YouTube. To my ear, they are both the same speed. However, the movie version does have some significant cuts, and some added incidental bridge music, such as when the crowd of women rushes to the Tori Spelling book signing, or when the kids are talking to Alice in the massage chair. If the movie version is slower, it is not significantly so. And perhaps it was changed to fit the blocked movement they wanted, and to accommodate the timing of the scene that they were going for. I doubt legality had anything to do with it, as the soundtrack notes states the song was used by permission. But, again, I don't think the tempo has been significantly altered.

Michael Albert

The original series was faster. I just listened to the start of both versions a few times in a row and although they are both in the same exact key (key of A), the show is definitely faster tempo and the movie slower. Even the singer in the first line of the song (one of the girls) sounds higher pitched in the show, and slower and lower pitched in the movie.

Question: If you have to burn the superbill to find out it's real, wouldn't it technically still be considered a real bill? If this is the case, why hold a casino front to launder the money when the Triads could just print an unlimited supply if they just wanted to make money?

Answer: Burning was not the only way to tell if a superbill was real, it was just the quickest way to demonstrate these particular bills were counterfeit. There were no doubt several different ways a trained eye could tell the bills were fake. The nature of counterfeiting means criminals must constantly update their methods as new security measures are developed, hence the casino front. The bills must be put into circulation as quickly as possible in an attempt to prevent exactly what happens in the film: the entire organization is brought down as the bills were traceable back to one person.

BaconIsMyBFF

Question: What does the waitress say after Lee realises that the waitress is wearing Soo Yung's necklace?

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