Questions about the meaning or significance of an entity (i.e. symbols, objects, characters, scene) and what they represent on a film or TV show.
4
votes
0answers
39 views
Significance of 1958 and its cultural backdrop as the year for the Alien's landing?
This year seems to have a significant meaning in Super 8, as this is the year the humans made contact with the alien in the experiments. During the flashback sequence in the lab, the file folder ...
1
vote
1answer
52 views
Why did the horses calm down after John died in Melancholia?
Why did the horses calm down after John died? What was the director trying to convey?
7
votes
1answer
375 views
First occurrence of subliminal messages in film?
Subliminal messages in films isn't a new thing. They have taken many forms by flashing words for a single frame, using iconic images on props and product placements.
There are also stories in the ...
11
votes
4answers
464 views
What is the significance of the iconic imagery in the ending of Dredd
There are two things that stand out visually at the end of Dredd. When Dredd finally confronts Ma-ma in her apartment there is a display of guns and a jacket on the wall. When Anderson is laying down ...
2
votes
2answers
279 views
Water as a symbol in Fatal Attraction
I noticed the reoccurring use of water in the movie Fatal Attraction. When they first have the affair, the water from the sink appears. Then in the rabbit scene, there is boiling water. And at the ...
4
votes
2answers
342 views
Why was the movie 'Elephant' given that title?
I don't know if Gus Van Sant has admitted it but it seems clear that this movie has been inspired by the shooting in Columbine High School.
Is there a link between this event and an elephant?
Why is ...
9
votes
2answers
3k views
What is the significance of the appearance of the wolf?
Near the end of Fantastic Mr. Fox, and just after the film's climax, Mr. Fox, Ash, Kristofferson and Kylie encounter a wolf. Like the scene, the wolf seemingly came randomly and out of nowhere (with ...
4
votes
1answer
127 views
Is there a special significance to the cat in The Closer?
When Deputy Chief Brenda Leigh Johnson moves into a new house in season one (two?), she discovers a cat that has been living in the home already, whom she names "Kitty".
"Kitty" is a she, but Brenda ...
15
votes
1answer
543 views
What does the origami represent in Blade Runner?
Throughout Blade Runner we see Gaff (Edward James Olmos) making origami figures at various points in the movie. He makes a chicken, matchstick men and at the end of the film there is a unicorn waiting ...
3
votes
2answers
170 views
Why is the father blind in the dream world?
In Stay, you witness the story of Henry Letham as he deals with his survivor guilt in his mind. One representation of this world, however, has baffled me recently.
In his dream-like world, it is ...
18
votes
1answer
424 views
Why cutting an 'X' into ammunition?
I saw this in a lot of movies and noticed it again now in "Taxi Driver". There is a scene where Robert De Niro cuts an 'X' into his pistol rounds with a knife.
I don't know much about weapons, is ...
7
votes
2answers
237 views
South Park and references to Mohammad
In the most controversial episode of South Park, involving Mohammad, did the producers Trey Parker and Matt Stone intend to show the face of Mohommed, or did they cave into network pressures demanded ...
8
votes
1answer
136 views
What do the colours in the different areas in The Cook, The Thief, His Wife & Her Lover signify?
Peter Greenaway's art house epic The Cook, The Thief, His Wife and Her Lover was adored by many critics but never got a wide audience. The movie is set in various rooms of a restaurant frequented by a ...
10
votes
4answers
13k views
What is the symbolism of the uncrossable bridge in Melancholia?
In Lars von Trier's Melancholia (2011) there are two scenes of the sisters riding their horses. Both end with Justine's (Kirsten Dunst) horse Abraham refusing to cross a small bridge. In the second ...
10
votes
2answers
6k views
Significance of the Owl in “Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy”
There's a scene in "Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy" where Prideaux (Mark Strong) is in the class room teaching, then suddenly an owl pops out of the fireplace. Prideaux quickly dispatches it. Later on, in ...
14
votes
3answers
700 views
What is the significance of the hat in Miller's crossing?
Miller's crossing pays a lot of attention to Gabriel Byrne's hat.
Does it symbolize anything in the movie or have any significance to the plot or is this a bit of a red herring?
