All Questions
18
votes
2answers
458 views
Why did Neo have powers in the real world?
In the Matrix, why did Neo have magic powers in the real world? For example,
(1) Those scenes where he blows up those robots purportedly with his mind.
(2) That one where he has no eyes but can ...
18
votes
3answers
445 views
Does the ageing theme in Skyfall contradict the rebooting of the Bond franchise?
At the start of the rebooted series, in Casino Royale, we see Bond gain his 00 status, and through that film and Quantum of Solace Bond goes on his 'first' adventure. Skyfall continues this 'firsts' ...
18
votes
1answer
350 views
What changes were made to the Star Wars Blu-ray and what effect did they have on the plot?
The recently released Blu-ray edition of Star Wars has a few changes made personally by George Lucas. The most striking is Darth Vader's "No!" in episode VI. Why were these changes made, and do such ...
18
votes
1answer
1k views
Why does J. J. Abrams like to insert the number 47 into his movies?
In another question on this site I noticed that J. J. Abrams inserts the number 47 into several of his movies. I'm curious about it... Why is the number 47 significant?
17
votes
5answers
915 views
Why did the Joker lick his lips?
Throughout The Dark Knight, the Joker licks his lips when in conversation.
Why does the Joker do this? Is this a psychological affect commonly observed in sociopaths or people with mental imbalances ...
17
votes
2answers
539 views
Identify this movie: man's wife turns back into a monster when he talks about it
I'd say it's a movie from the 80's or 90's.
At one point the main character sees a monster in the street (I'd say at night, in an alley). It's quite a big monster and the monster can talk. They ...
17
votes
3answers
3k views
How are injections given without injuring actors?
In the movie Contagion , Jennifer Ehle's character is shown giving herself an injection.
This got me wondering. Are the injections they perform on-screen real? Do needles actually penetrate the skin ...
17
votes
3answers
4k views
Who was the guy in the scene after the credits in The Avengers?
After the credits roll on The Avengers, there is a brief scene that appears to hint at who the next villain will be. I thought it looked kind of like the Red Skull, but others I saw it with disagreed.
...
17
votes
3answers
3k views
Does Christopher Nolan's Batman have an overarching theme?
With the conclusion of Nolan's Dark Knight movies, we are now able to look at all three movies as a single entity, broken up into three parts (acts, if you will). Is there a specific theme, or set of ...
17
votes
3answers
7k views
Explanation of the ending of A Clockwork Orange
The ending of the film perplexed me a bit. The main hero says, quote, "I was cured alright".
While that could be interpreted as honest and truthful, the final scene (the fantasized orgy) makes me ...
17
votes
2answers
985 views
Why was non-linear narrative structure used in Memento?
In the movie Memento, a non-linear narrative structure was adopted. What effect does this peculiar narrative structure have on the movie watchers?
17
votes
6answers
829 views
How credible is the ending of Collateral?
Here's what happens at the end of Collateral (2004):
The taxi driver manages to defeat a highly skilled hitman. Is it mere luck?
Should we accept this as a screw-up on the part of the movie ...
17
votes
2answers
571 views
Why do studios use Roman numerals in the copyright notice in the end credits?
© Time Warner Studios MCMXCVIII
Something like this is almost always used in the very end of the credits creep in movies. Buy why the cumbersome use of Roman numerals? Why not just say 1998 and be ...
17
votes
2answers
666 views
What is a “performance capture” animation movie?
The recent movie "The Adventures of Tintin: The Secret of the Unicorn" is a performance capture animated movie. What is a "performance capture" movie and what is the need for this technology when the ...
17
votes
1answer
293 views
Identify film about a girl lost in a strange city
From what I recall, a girl who is about twenty years old finds herself in a strange and gloomy stop-frame animated city. A very distinct scene, which should identify the film, involves the girl ...
17
votes
2answers
9k views
Fight Club: How did they get to the end?
At the end of Fight Club, the narrator disables a bomb that Tyler had set up in a van in the basement, and then he and Tyler get into a fight. The fight ends with the narrator being thrown down some ...
17
votes
1answer
3k views
Why did three actors play Darth Vader?
In the original Star Wars movies (IV, V, and VI) three actors ended up playing Darth Vader. David Prowse was the actual physical body for the most part, James Earl Jones was used for the voice, and ...
17
votes
2answers
408 views
Evaluating characters by means of description
In his Star Wars Episode 1 review/analysis, Mike Stoklasa used a certain challenge as a device to illustrate how poorly thought out the characters were: "Describe the following characters without ...
17
votes
1answer
3k views
What’s with the “dead” characters at the end?
Near the end of V for Vendetta, while the building is exploding, you see people pulling off their masks to watch it explode. During this scene you see some characters that have been previously said ...
17
votes
2answers
414 views
Are there different endings to Cloverfield?
In particular, I'm talking about the scene at the very end, where the camera is on the happy couple in the ferris wheel. The first time I watched it, my friend pointed out the faint streak that hits ...
17
votes
1answer
470 views
Why did Ennio Morricone write the soundtrack of “The Thing” (1982) instead of John Carpenter?
There is something I always found odd about the soundtrack of John Carpenter's 1982 version of "The Thing". It has a really nice and fitting subtle synthesizer soundtrack, which is indeed very ...
17
votes
2answers
757 views
Were the 3 prequels intended?
After the making of Episode IV V and VI of star wars, was it immediately decided to make the 3 prequels or was it due to some other factors (eg: financial)?
17
votes
1answer
282 views
Where did the “calmly eating noodles when bad guys walk in” scene first appear?
This scene happens in many martial arts movies:
It usually starts with some hero wandering into a strange town; orders a bowl of noodles; then a couple of bad guys casually sit down and start ...
17
votes
1answer
1k views
Infection timelines of John Carpenter's The Thing
The paranoia and uncertainty in John Carpenter's The Thing (1982) is so well constructed that there is still no consensus on who gets infected, or even when some people do. The thing I really like ...
17
votes
1answer
157 views
What Object Is Harry Holding In Prisoner of Azkaban (Film)?
What object is Harry holding in this scene from Prisoner of Azkaban the film?
This is the scene where the Fat Lady disappears after Sirius Black tries to break into Gryffindor Tower and gouges her ...
17
votes
3answers
5k views
Andy Kaufman / “Friday's” Incident: Why did Michael Richards refuse to portray himself?
In the 1999 film "Man on the Moon" starring Jim Carrey as the infamous comic Andy Kaufman, the movie takes great pains to recreate specific points in Kaufman's life. In a somewhat unorthodox fashion, ...
16
votes
4answers
715 views
Why does Neo's cubicle not look like the workplace of a programmer?
The Matrix is not a movie with an overdose of realism.
But parts of it take place in the normal "real" world. We see Neo at work in his software company in his cubicle before the Agents come to his ...
16
votes
4answers
1k views
In Sherlock: The hound of Baskervilles: Why does Watson call Sherlock, 'Spock'?
Sherlock describes his feelings about not being able to distance himself from his latest felt feeling, fear and he says
The grit on the lens, fly in the ointment
To which, Dr Watson replies
...
16
votes
5answers
815 views
How did Thor and Banner know where to go?
In the middle of The Avengers, the team is split up after coming together on the SHIELD Helicarrier. Bruce Banner/Hulk end up in an abandoned warehouse. Thor ends up in a field. Shortly afterwards, ...
16
votes
3answers
640 views
How do the writers of The Simpsons handle the character's aging and time progress?
The Simpsons has been running for a long time, how does the series handle the character's aging? There's an annual Halloween episode, so we know the years pass in Springfield, but do the characters ...
16
votes
2answers
17k views
Why did Captain America give Nick Fury a ten dollar bill?
When Captain America walks onto the bridge of the ship, he gives Nick Fury a ten dollar bill. Is this because he is amazed by the ship or is it some reference to the fact that he is from a time when ...
16
votes
4answers
6k views
Why did the ring affect Frodo so much and not Bilbo?
Every time Frodo put on the ring the Eye of Sauron could see where he was and almost see into his soul as well. Frodo appeared to suffer hugely when he put the ring on.
Bilbo was able to turn ...
16
votes
2answers
417 views
Ending of Source Code
By the end of Source Code (2011), we learn that the flashbacks were reality in an alternate timeline/universe.
On the other hand, Captain Stevens manages to save the train in both alternate ...
16
votes
2answers
695 views
Movie about a toy factory and war toys?
I'm looking for a movie about a toy factory. From what I remember, it was about competing sides making toys - one side made violent war toys and the others made nice friendly ones. The makers of the ...
16
votes
3answers
1k views
Why do so many movies & TV shows feature recognizable, un-branded or re-branded products?
I've particularly noticed this in the past with cars in movies & TV shows. A car will quite obviously be of a certain make and/or model, identifiable by certain body features, but it will have ...
16
votes
2answers
298 views
How did they create the hole in Robert Downey Jr.'s chest for the Iron Man movie?
Don't know if this is the right place to ask this, but I'm wondering how they created the hole in Robert Downey Jr.'s chest so they can put the reactor there? Here is the video "Iron Man: Behind the ...
16
votes
4answers
33k views
What really happened in Memento?
So I watched Memento for the second time, and I felt like I understood the story pretty well, however, some things don't make so much sense to me. As far as I know:
Lenard, the main character, did ...
16
votes
4answers
41k views
What does the missing symbol on Quaid's arm in Total Recall (2012) symbolize?
Near the end of the film Total Recall (2012), does the missing symbol on Quaid's arm symbolize that it is all a dream/fake memory? And if so, why does he just accept it?
16
votes
1answer
19k views
Why is Gandalf referred to as Mithrandir?
I've read that Mithrandir is one of Gandalf's aliases. Why do certain people call him by this name and not Gandalf? I've noticed in particular that Galadriel uses the name Mithrandir quite often.
16
votes
2answers
677 views
How are older movies post-converted to 3D?
I went to see Hugo in 3D today, and beforehand there was a trailer for the upcoming re-release of Titanic in 3D. I must say, I was impressed.
How much of the conversion to 3D of a movie that was ...
16
votes
2answers
280 views
How does one hire “The A-Team”
[Source]
The A-Team intro says:
... If you have a problem, if no one else can help, and if you can find them, maybe you can hire... the A-Team.
The A-Team is on the run from the military ...
16
votes
2answers
2k views
Why didn't Bane reveal to the public that Bruce Wayne is Batman?
In The Dark Knight Rises, Bane publicly reveals the cover-up of Dent's death and disclosed all the crimes were made by Harvey Dent. Further, he reveals the role of Commissioner Gordon to cover-up ...
16
votes
3answers
398 views
Why didn't they use a brute force method to activate the Stargate?
In the movie Stargate, they have been trying to activate the Stargate for the last 2 years but could never get the right sequence. After Dr. Daniel Jackson figures out the seventh symbol, they try to ...
16
votes
2answers
2k views
Was the original Evil Dead meant to be funny?
In The Evil Dead series of Sam Raimi movies, the two sequels are meant to be funny. But was that the intent of the original movie?
16
votes
1answer
404 views
Why is Donnie Darko set in the 80s?
The movie Donnie Darko is timed in the 80s (to be precise 1988), but the movie was released 2001. I can see no significance, to put it in the past. Yes, there was the presidential election, but that ...
16
votes
2answers
485 views
How could Eisenheim achieve those reflections on the scene in that era?
In The Illusionist (2006), how could Eisenheim achieve those reflections (visions) on the scene? Even in one of the scenes, there was a (ghost) boy walking through the audience. Given that the film ...
16
votes
1answer
253 views
Is there a rating of the 3D-ness of a 3D movie?
If things aren't thrown in my face during a 3D movie I feel somewhat disappointed. Is there a name for rating the 3D-ness of a 3D movie?
16
votes
3answers
409 views
When/Why did American television change from primarily episodic to primarily serialized?
My recollection of the prime-time television I watched growing up -- the 70s and 80s plus whatever were on at the time -- are almost invariably of episodic television. At the end of each episode, ...
16
votes
3answers
486 views
Which movie is this? No actor names.. nor character names
I watched one movie when I was a boy, around 18 years ago maybe and I did not know the name nor the name of any actor, even worse it is not a popular movie. I am asking here because years of googling ...
15
votes
5answers
2k views
Fox's analysis of the Bat
Near the end of The Dark Knight Rises, Fox examines the Bat and finds out that an auto-pilot had been installed. This seems to me a bit strange, because we have seen the Bat carrying the bomb far from ...
