Bishop73

Answer: In the movie, there's a bar called "Formosa Lounge." In real life, "Formosa" was the name Portugal gave to Taiwan.

Bishop73

2nd Feb 2020

Cars (2006)

Question: Is it really possible to turn on dirt simply by turning right to go left?

Answer: The idea of drifting is that you are swinging the back end around and losing traction on the rear wheels while counter-steering with the front wheels to maintain control. Once you enter into the left drift, you turn your wheels right to point them forward.

LorgSkyegon

I know what the idea of drifting is. What I'm asking is whether or not it's possible to drift on dirt.

Yes, you can drift on dirt. The less friction a surface has, the easier it is to start to drift because you have less traction.

Bishop73

I imagine it would take practice to drift on dirt.

It takes practice to drift on any surface.

Bishop73

Answer: It's a rally move know as the "Scandanavian Flick" where you throw the car back end first into the corner and then counter the slide with opposite lock and flick the car around. I'm advanced driving instructor and it's one of the thing we teach pretty much straight away on a skidpan.

stiiggy

Question: What is the song playing when Queen Clarisse and Joe dance?

Answer: If you're asking about the scene I believe you are, it's an unnamed waltz. It's just incidental music written by John Debney for the scene and has no name and wasn't published or anything.

Bishop73

Answer: I haven't seen the whole movie (only some pieces), but when I don't know the name of a song I'm looking for, I just type in and enter lyrics of the song on YT, so try that if you haven't.

Answer: I believe Rockne Tarkington (from season 7) was the only black person with a speaking line in the entire show, which is what I'd say qualifies someone to be an actor in the show. That being said, there were at least a handful of black and white episodes (season 1-5) where black extras were used and seen on screen. For example, "Barney Gets His Man" (season 1) and "Opie and the Carnival" (season 5). But none of them had any lines and weren't credited for their appearance.

Bishop73

Question: What character is MJ wearing on her shirt at the very end of the film, visible just before she and Spidey swing away from 41st Street and Grand Central Station in NYC?

Erik M.

Thank you so much for that prompt and great response - it's appreciated!

Erik M.

Question: Doesn't anybody think that when the Star Wars movies were released, that the name of the enemy, Darth Vader, would get George McFly a little suspicious? After all, he had to have remembered the name of the spirit that "came down to him from planet Vulcan" since it is on the cover of his book at the end.

Answer: Suspicious of what? He never finds out Doc Brown has a time machine or that Marty affected his past. It might make him believe in some sort of "The truth is hiding in plain sight" conspiracy theory. Oh and BTW, he'd see Star Trek in 1966 (with the Vulcan reference) before he sees Star Wars.

Grumpy Scot

Marty says that he is "Darth Vader from the planet Vulcan", and unless George doesn't remember "meeting him", he might think back to it and be like "wait a minute..." Regardless of when Star Trek and Star Wars would come out, a nerd like him would be able to put two-and-two together and see that they don't add up, unless he thinks that it's just a coincidence.

Answer: I think it was mostly as a shock to him waking up like that with loud noises right in his ear. Disoriented and confused and already being kind of a jittery and craven person he just did what he was told. Doesn't matter at that point how unalien the encounter actually was. I mean the music was guitars, Vulcan is a common word, the "alien" spoke plain english and i'll bet people from the 50's have seen an environmental suit before (basically a diving suit with a gasmask).

lionhead

Answer: In a special "front page wrap" of USA Today for October 22, 2015, written by Michael Klastorin. The name of the alien is "Garth D'Vade." Obviously done as a joke, it does show that George may have not remembered the name and didn't associate it with Darth Vader, so there's nothing for him to be suspicious about. It's also possible he believes Darth Vader to be real and thinks Vader must have visited George Lucas.

Bishop73

I highly doubt George became a paranoid alien conspiracy theorist and a respected scifi author at the same time.

lionhead

Answer: Vulcan had long been used as the name of fictitious planets (when 19th century astronomers thought they'd discovered a planet closer to the sun than Mercury, they were going to name it 'Vulcan'). As for Vader, George wouldn't have heard the name again until more than 20 years after his 'dream, ' and either chalked it up to coincidence or misremembering what he heard.

Brian Katcher

25th Jan 2020

Star Wars (1977)

Question: Are lightsabers capable of cutting through any substance, or are there objects in the franchise (even if the examples are no longer canon) that have been specifically mentioned as being resistant?

Phaneron

Answer: There are several substances in canon and non-canon that are resistant to lightsabers. Beskar, also known as Mandalorian iron or Mandalorian steel was used to make armor and weapons by the Mandalorian people. Cortosis was an ore that, when heavily refined, stopped lightsaber blades and blaster bolts. Phrik was another metal, used in Darth Sidious' lightsabers and the electrostaffs used by Grievous' robot guards. Neuranium was a very, very dense and heavy metal that was partially resistant to lightsabers, but was more often used to shield from scanners. The species orbalisk and vonduun crab had carapaces that could withstand the blow of a lightsaber.

LorgSkyegon

Answer: The Force Awakens features stormtroopers using the "Z6 riot control baton", which they use to block the lightsaber when Finn uses it.

Jon Sandys

Is it the baton itself that is resistant, or the energy surge around it? Because I know Snoke's guards were able to block lightsabers with energized weapons as well.

Phaneron

Yes you see them in Episode III as well when fighting on the bridge of the chancellor's ship. My guess is the energy blocks the lightsaber. It's logical they would come up with some sort of technology to block lightsabers if materials that can block them are that rare.

lionhead

Answer: There are a handful of items, but I don't believe any have been mentioned or shown in the film series (other than another lightsaber itself). Mandalorian Iron (also known as Beskar) and Phrix are resistant to lightsaber attacks and have been mentioned in the TV show "Star Wars: The Clone Wars", but I don't recall if their resistance is specifically mentioned in the show.

Bishop73

Answer: Nick also points out that the crime scenes are always contaminated. The evidence was probably contaminated by the cops.

Answer: The reason the DNA was inadmissible was not elaborated on. We're only told it was inadmissible because of the "exclusionary rule." Therefore, the judge in the case must have deemed the way the DNA was collected from the suspects was in violation of their constitutional rights. The why was not explained and anything would be a guess (something like when they were arrested and there was no probable cause to take a DNA sample). But it's seems more of plot convenience to move the story forward quickly. Clyde passing out had nothing to do with the DNA being inadmissible, it only meant his eyewitness testimony may be considered unreliable. Therefore the DA's Office was not willing to try both men using Clyde as a witness, but go with the plea deal.

Bishop73

Answer: Because Clyde passed out.

Question: In the first classroom scene with Mr. Morgan, what does he call Joey?

Answer: He calls him "Chachi." This seems to be a reference to the "Happy Days" and "Joanie Love Chachi" character Chachi, who was played by Scott Baio. Joey (played by Andrew Keegan) looks like a young Scott Baio.

Bishop73

17th Jan 2020

War of the Worlds (2005)

Question: So I know this was asked but I'm going to go a little deeper, How were the aliens killed by microbes/bacteria? They are so much more advanced then we are that they didn't think to protect themselves from this possible threat? They were ready for battle with the lasers how did they not think about what is in our environment?

Answer: I think the issue of they're more advanced than us therefore how would they not know about Earth's diseases is a bad assumption. Having knowledge of space travel and weaponry doesn't mean having knowledge of microbiology, even if we think it must because of our own advancements. We know when Europeans came to the Americas, the diseases they brought over were devastating to the indigenous people who had no immunity. There's a theory that the Americas never had such plagues or diseases because they didn't live in overcrowded cities like the Europeans. Had the indigenous people carried unique diseases that they were immune to, their diseases could have easily wiped out of the Europeans, despite being "more advanced." Mars may simply never had experience with plagues or diseases that required the concept of immunization or they may have thought they were protected.

Bishop73

Answer: They had never been to Earth and test out of the biological nature of the planet and its life. They just assumed to be protected in their machines from any hostility against them and never thought to protect themselves from the bacteria. They thought that if they would just destroy the life they wouldn't be affected by it.

lionhead

So you said they had never been to Earth, but how did the machines they are using get here? If they are so intelligent and have these fancy machines how did they not think to look more closely at the life on this planet first when they brought the machines?

They didn't bring them, they sent them. A long, long time ago too. Who knows why they didn't think of it? That's just the story. They want the planet and kill everything on it to gain it. Why study an inferior species?

lionhead

Answer: The aliens may have been aware there were biological hazards but underestimated how lethal that would be to their physiology. Their intent was to quickly and completely eradicate all Earth's flora and fauna, sterilizing the planet by reseeding it with their own alien biology.

raywest

13th Jan 2020

Sesame Street (1969)

Answer: What exactly are you asking? Does he literally eat everything? No. Will he eat anything? Perhaps. Has he eaten weird things, including stuff that wasn't food? Yes, a lot of times. Through the long history of "Sesame Street", Cookie Monster has been seen eating a lot of non-food items. He'll do this for a number of reasons, generally because he's trying to get to some cookies, he's out of cookies, or he's still hungry. For example, he ate a safe that Kermit had put cookies in (in a failed attempt to keep the cookies away from Cookie Monster). He ate a plate when everyone else ate all the cookies, leaving him with none. And he ate a full size pickup truck a genie gave him when he ran out of wishes to fill the truck with a million cookies because he was hungry. The other times he eats something non-food related is because he gets overly excited, or just being silly. Of course, now Cookie Monster knows that cookies are a sometime treat and will eat healthy foods.

Bishop73

I'm asking if he eats anything.

Answer: No, he doesn't eat everything, though he prefers cookies.

raywest

Question: Harry opens a door causing a bag of tools to fall on his head. In real life, wouldn't Harry have been badly injured if that really did happen to him?

Answer: The YouTube channel Screen Junkies did a video consulting with a doctor called "Honest Action - Home Alone" in which they break down all the traps Harry and Marv encounter and what the real consequences would have been. For this one in particular, they said Harry would have been killed by a skull fracture and a possible epidural hematoma.

Phaneron

Answer: There are numerous YouTube videos of real doctors analyzing the traps in Home Alone 1&2 and what would "really" happen to Harry and Marv and almost every doctor who examined the bag of wrenches trap said Harry would've most likely died of severe head trauma, brain bleeding, skull fracture etc. You gotta check them out.

Answer: Yes it would have. In real life, a lot of the traps Kevin sets in both films would have seriously injured or killed both Harry and Marv.

Bishop73

19th Aug 2019

Little Monsters (1989)

Question: I'm watching on Netflix. Was this edited somehow from the original? In the Netflix version Brian enlists the help of Todd and Kiersten to rescue his brother. After escaping the dungeon, it shows them rearming themselves at the school. Then there's a cutscene where Maurice is in Ronnie's room and says "oh, Ronnie." Brian, Todd, and Kiersten are see walking into Boy's room a 2nd time, then all of the sudden Ronnie is there with the battery pack, and no-one seems surprised. In the original, was Ronnie recruited the first time around and then cut in the Netflix version? In the Netflix version Boy says the line "why lose 5 lives when you can gain 4?" when there's only 4 kids and not 5. So I feel like he must have been there. If Ronnie was edited out, why? Was it just to save the run time? If Ronnie wasn't edited out, who are the 5 lives Boy is talking about?"

Bishop73

Answer: I'd seen the movie a lot growing up and also just picked up the new Blu-Ray. As I remember seeing it when I was younger, and indeed in the new Blu-Ray, Ronnie is recruited on the group's second attempt to rescue Eric. He was never there the first time around. Admittedly, the line about "why lose five lives when you can gain four" is confusing given there's only four kids. But I always assumed he was referring to the four kids and Maurice, who he also has held captive.

TedStixon

Answer: You see Brian go down with Kiersten and Todd armed with their first set of flashlights. He then says this line because he wants to keep the four kids there and turn them into monsters. But he could kill them and my guess is maybe kill Maurice as well because he didn't succeed in turning Brian into one of them.

Answer: They went back to rescue Brian's younger brother Eric. Ronnie was there after Maurice went and got him to come and help. So the five lives refers to the four kids and the one that he stole which was Eric.

That's why I'm wondering why it was edited on Netflix because Ronnie isn't there when Boy says the line. In the Netflix version, Ronnie is recruited after Boy's line.

Bishop73

2nd Jan 2020

Venom (2018)

Question: I'm a huge Spider Man fan, but I've never understood Venom's weaknesses. Why would he be affected by sonics and fire?

Rob245

Answer: It's from the comics and much like Superman's weakness to kyptonite, it was just written that way. Venom is part of a species of extraterrestrial symbiotes that were forged in the head of a dead Celestial (which would later be known as "Knowhere") by an evil deity known as Knull. One of the unintentional effects of the forging in the head is weakness to sound and fire.

Bishop73

The Best of Both Worlds (1) - S3-E26

Question: I can't tell if this was a mistake or if there's an explanation. When the Borg are on the Enterprise's bridge, the first two are covered in the green light indicating they're being transported back to the Borg ship, but the 3rd one (the one successfully shot by Worf) has no lights, he just fades away. Why?

Bishop73

Answer: The Borg use technology to cause the dead to disintegrate, presumably as a security measure to prevent their technology from being captured.

But in s05e23, "I, Borg", Riker says "the Borg collect their dead" when they encounter the injured Borg. Worf says to kill it and leave no evidence they were there so that when the Borg return to collect the dead member. Plus, there were 4 dead Borg and none of them disintegrated.

Bishop73

I believe "collect" refers to the disintegration. We see other Borg remove specific pieces of technology from the dead borg, which causes it to disappear.

Answer: Its possible that the Borg use a special transporter for living beings (which is the one with the green glow) and a different one for non-living things (which might not have a green glow). In Star Trek the federation uses a different type of transporter when moving bulk cargo than it does when moving people.

Elleby

Question: When Clark gets the lights to work, Eddie shows up. Eddie calls to Rocky and Ruby Sue to come see what Uncle Clark has done to the house. Then in the scene where Clark's boss is at the house, Clark refers to Eddie as his Cousin-in-law. Is this a mistake or is the word uncle just being used as a pet name for Clark for the kids?

Answer: No mistake or pet name. In America it's common to refer to your cousin's kids as your nephews or nieces and thus you would be their aunt or uncle. Technically, they would be your first cousins once removed, but in the English language there's isn't a specific word for that relationship, so most stick with nephew/niece and aunt/uncle relationship.

Bishop73

Eddie and Catherine are on Ellen's side of the family that is why he calls him cousin in law.

30th Dec 2019

The Simpsons (1989)

Selma's Choice - S4-E13

Question: Surly Duff tells a kid to "Take a picture, it'll last longer" - just what does this expression mean?

Answer: It's just a sarcastic response people say when they catch someone staring at them. As if the person staring is trying to burn an image in their mind of what that person looks like and a picture will last longer than the memory.

Bishop73

Answer: Along with the other answer, it's a sarcastic thing that people say to someone who they don't want to be friends with or date. ie. a group of "cool" kids not letting a "loser" type into their group, or a woman rejecting a guy who wants to date her. They are basically saying "I want to get away from you as fast as possible, so you might as well take a picture - it'll last longer than our friendship/relationship would."

29th Dec 2019

Logan (2017)

Answer: It's just a continuity mistake. The blade rips a hole in the shoe, but the hole disappears later on... that's a continuity mistake. It's definitely not a plot hole. A plot hole is more a gap or contradiction in a film's internal logic, or when a film leaves out vital information. (Ex. If a character is established as having a deadly nut allergy, but is eating nuts later on with no ill effect... that would be a plot-hole).

TedStixon

Answer: I would classify that as a plot hole.

raywest

It would only be a plot hole if somehow the lack of holes in the shoes was written into the plot that some effect on the plot. Of course, someone would probably correct the entry by saying she could have had a 2nd pair or they bought a new pair if it was integral to the plot.

Bishop73

29th Dec 2019

A Christmas Story (1983)

Question: Right after Ralphie takes off the Pink Bunny suit his aunt Clara made him, the camera pans on Ralphie's younger brother sleeping in midst of Christmas wrapping and opened gifts...at the upper right just above the kid's head is a head that looks just like Herman Munster (The Munsters TV series began in '63 I think) The story is supposed to be in the time 40's time frame. Doesn't it look just like Herman Munster?

Answer: That's not Herman Munster, it's the Frankenstein Monster. Specifically, it's Boris Karloff as the monster (from the original 1930s films), which is what Herman Munster was modelled after.

Answer: It's just a Frankenstein's monster mask, which Herman was anyways. I think a Herman Munster mask would have a bigger nose and a smile.

Bishop73

27th Dec 2019

Home Alone (1990)

Question: When Kevin is shooting Buzz's Starting Lineup figures down the laundry shoot with the BB gun, who are the two figures left of the spatula? I know the one on the far right is Larry Bird, and I believe next to Bird is Walter Payton.

Phaneron

Chosen answer: Yes, Walter Payton. The other two are Babe Ruth and Steve Largent.

Bishop73

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