Answered questions about specific movies, TV shows and more

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Answer: He suspects that Cartman just wants an excuse to stay home and slack off on schoolwork.

Question: How did Noah know about Ivy going on her mission in time enough for him to grab the creature costume from underneath the floorboards of the quiet room, bust out of the room, and head into the woods to lie in wait for her?

Answer: He probably overheard his parents discussing it. The mission wasn't a secret, and enough time would have elapsed while Ivy and the two other boys prepared for and left on their mission. Noah understood things much better than anyone realised, and he was able to act quickly. He may also have seen Ivy and the two boys leaving the village, then he quickly got the costume and followed them into the woods.

raywest

Question: Wasn't it very unloving and cruel for Edward Walker to send out Ivy? She was the one person who was blind. The village is all she has ever known. She had never even heard a siren before until she hopped over the wall. She went there (quite literally) blindly, not knowing what to expect. I don't believe he couldn't have gone with her. He could have walked her to the wall (ironically covered in ivy) and just told her, "I can't go beyond this point," and could have told her exactly what to say.

Answer: That would have been the logical thing to do, and it is yet, among many, another plot hole. However, it could be argued it was because Edward had solemnly sworn never to leave the village. Even going to the reserve's perimeter was violating that oath and put him too close to the modern world. Ivy was chosen because she was blind and would be unable to see anything of the modern world and bring that knowledge back to the younger villagers. It was his intention that the other two boys would escort her to the wall, but they became too frightened and left her on her own.

raywest

Question: Why didn't Lucius try to defend himself after getting stabbed? He just fell down and allowed himself to receive more stabbings. Sure, it was no doubt shock that set in, but human instinct would have been to try to at least push Noah off him and try to get away from him.

Answer: Everyone reacts differently to physical trauma and stress. Lucius appears to be in a physical state of shock, as both arms are shaking, he is unable to move, and seemingly does not comprehend what just happened to him, never assuming that Noah would do something like this. That is when Lucius falls to the floor. It's not unusual for someone experiencing or witnessing something traumatic to become frozen in disbelief as they attempt to process what just happened.

raywest

Answer: In real life, sure... 90% of people would fight back. But in the context of the movie, we are meant to assume that he collapsed due to being in shock/pain from being stabbed. Just to add a little extra note, I'm assuming the numerous questions that have been posted for this film and "Signs" over the past few weeks are coming from the same person. You really do have to remember that these are stylised movies from a director with a very quirky style. Shyamalan's films (both his good films and his bad films) often have a sort-of unique sense of logic to them, and almost follow fable-like rules at times. Trying to force too much real-world logic into them or wanting too many answers to kind of undermines their point. It'd be like trying to apply real-world logic to Grimm's fairy tales or a Wes Anderson film.

TedStixon

Well stated.

raywest

Question: How could Chris have legally become sheriff? Wouldn't he have had to go to law enforcement school or academy before he could have been considered for a role as sheriff?

Answer: The role of sheriff is an elected, political position, and as recent US politics have shown, one can be elected to office with little or no previous relevant experience.

Question: Why couldn't Batman just follow Lau to his house and kidnap him there instead of this elaborate plan with the plane?

Answer: To add to the other answer, Lau is likely to have heavy security no matter where he is, so an equally elaborate plan would be necessary even if he left his tower.

Answer: Lau probably lives and works at his tower.

lionhead

Question: It's stated a couple times in the movie that Arnie could die at any moment. Pardon my ignorance, but why exactly is this? Is there something about his condition that makes him highly susceptible to dropping dead, or is it a matter of his behavioral impulses (such as climbing the water tower) that put him at a high risk of dying in an accident?

Phaneron

Chosen answer: It's because of his often reckless behavior; it's never implied within the film that his unique condition has anything to do the likelihood that he could "go at any time."

zendaddy621

Answer: In the beginning, Gilbert explains that the doctors said Arnie will only live till 10 years old, and that he is well past that, so he "could go at any time."

Question: When Jo and Bill drove through Wakita after the twister came tearing through moments earlier, she saw a family that looked just like hers from when she was a little girl standing in the wreckage. Was that an actual lookalike family who were victims of the Wakita tornado, or was her mind playing tricks on her because of the mixture of lack of sleep, stress, and her childhood trauma/PTSD?

Answer: It didn't appear to be an hallucination, but a real family that was similar to her own. Maybe someone else has a different take, but I don't think that was the intention.

raywest

Question: In San Francisco, why did the police, SWAT teams, and the military all converge and surround Hulk all at once? He could have easily just hopped over all that and kept going. Just the sight of the military could have thrown him into a rage, considering their previous engagements between the big green man and the men in green.

Answer: They've never previously encountered the Hulk, and therefore don't know that he needs to calm down in order for his rampage to cease. Betty is the one that has to convince her father of this.

Phaneron

Question: In the flashback scene of Bruce's father being carted off in a straightjacket after he had murdered Bruce's mother and blew up the base, who was the man that stood beside young Bruce and patted him on the shoulder?

Answer: General Ross.

Phaneron

Question: How did the aliens drop down from their ships that were shown on TV? Did they land and drop them off, or did they have some kind of teleporting device? Also, why didn't the Air Force attempt to shoot down any of them?

Answer: It was never shown how they did this, so it's all speculation. It was shown that the ships were apparently hidden by a shield, making them appear invisible. This was seen on the TV footage when birds in flight were hitting something in the sky and suddenly dropping to the ground.

raywest

Question: At the beginning, why did Jo's dad try to hold the storm cellar door against the raging winds of a tornado when he could have just scooted them into the farthest corner of the cellar – and even shielded them with himself if necessary? It was almost foreseen what had happened when he held the door.

Answer: His impulse thinking was to close the cellar door to best protect him and his family. He likely didn't believe they could survive if it was left open, even if they were all huddled in the furthest corner.

raywest

Question: Where exactly is Empire Bay supposed to be located?

Answer: The fictional town is supposedly located somewhere on New York's coast, near the mouth of the Culver River, also fictional.

raywest

Question: If Jay does know about the village in the woods, why wouldn't he have done something about it?

Answer: Do what about it? He's been hired by the Walker Corporation to maintain and protect the preserve and the village inside. He makes sure the junior guards do their job without asking too many questions. The village could not otherwise exist if it didn't have the support and protection of Edward Walker's money. Edward likely put his late father's corporation into a blind trust, to be run in his absence. Key people within the company would also know about the village and provide whatever is needed like the preserve's round-the-clock protection and maintenance, the medicine that is on hand in the event of an emergency, etc.

raywest

Question: Who exactly did MJ want Harry to help in the fight between Peter and Flash? I'd assume Peter since she didn't want Flash to attack him but Peter wasn't exactly in trouble during that fight.

Questionasker800

Answer: She meant Peter. Flash was hell-bent on beating Peter up, and Peter had a reputation for being a feeble nerd, so it's not like anyone early in the fight thought he could actually stand a chance against Flash. He was merely dodging Flash's attacks until the very end.

Phaneron

Question: Wouldn't betting on yourself be illegal? I get that betting on yourself to lose would be a no-no, but wouldn't betting on yourself at all be against gambling rules?

The_Iceman

Answer: Short answer is no, it's not illegal. For example, boxers are allowed to bet on themselves. There may be leagues or clubs that prohibit their players (and even staff) from any form of gambling, not just betting on themselves or their team. But it doesn't mean it's illegal. Some casinos or bookies may not take players' bets unless it's a straight bet to win, as opposed to a player betting he'll win in the 6th round.

Bishop73

Question: I don't think the elders of the village, upon creating the village, took into account things like horns, honking, or the explosions of fireworks on 4th of July and New Year's Eve. So, how would the elders have explained that one?

Answer: They've set up the village as a nature preserve, so isolated that not even airplanes are allowed to fly over. Soundwise, they're far away from civilization, so they can't hear modern noises.

Brian Katcher

Answer: It was mentioned that the Walker Corporation had paid a lot of money to have the airspace above the village restricted so that no planes flew overhead. Fireworks, horns, and other human-made sounds have been around for centuries and were easily explainable and would barely be heard because the village is so isolated. It's all rather far-fetched, plot-wise, however.

raywest

Question: After the events of this movie, why does Darth Sidious call himself Emperor Palpatine? Vader was expected to ignore his old life as Anakin Skywalker. Or was that a personal choice of Vader's?

Answer: Anakin, renamed Darth Vader, is a choice by Palpatine/Sidious. It is a Sith name. Darth Sidious, however, has two roles to play as both a Sith Lord and occupying an official position as the Emperor, so he uses his real name for that. The rest of the universe cannot know him as Darth Sidious.

lionhead

Question: When Blade is getting ready to leave the morgue and Karen is lying on the ground after being attacked by Quinn, Blade is about to walk by and leave her there. However, a flashback of his mom reaching out for help appears twice, triggering Blade to save her. This represents his mom, which I understand. But his mom's death occurred in the opening scene or at the beginning of the movie, and Blade was only a baby. How could he possibly have a memory of that as an adult from being a baby? (00:14:35 - 00:15:03)

Answer: I don't think it's so much a memory as it is Blade just equating Karen with his mother in that moment. The only way to convey his thought process to the audience, though, is to show his mother onscreen.

Phaneron

Question: At the very end where Lou is visited by the cops and Joyce, couldn't one of them smell the gasoline everywhere? Lou drenched the entire house before they arrived.

sunfox35

Answer: They most certainly should have. Even a small amount would be detectable. This seems to be a "plot hole".

raywest

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