why did Dr. Emmett Brown assume that the lightning would strike at 10:04:00?
09-28-04, 08:12 AM
#1
DVD Talk Legend
Thread Starter
why did Dr. Emmett Brown assume that the lightning would strike at 10:04:00?
what if it struck at 10:04:59?
a range of sixty seconds is quite a long time.
a range of sixty seconds is quite a long time.
09-28-04, 09:39 AM
#4
Senior Member
Join Date: Dec 1999
Location: North Cackylacky
Posts: 560
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
doesnt the lady in part one say a line to the effect of..."at precisely 10:04 on blah blah blah lightning stuck the clock tower" (you know the lady taking donations. michael j fox gives her a quarter.)
although i could be wrong.
although i could be wrong.
09-28-04, 09:42 AM
#6
Moderator
You guys are missing the point. The flyer only gives the hour and minutes. The lighting could have hit anywhere in the sixty second range that it was 10:04.
09-28-04, 09:45 AM
#7
DVD Talk Platinum Edition
Join Date: Jul 2001
Posts: 3,263
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
The clock was frozen when struck by the bolt of lightning. I think that some engineer or clock aficionado went inside the clock, and by inspecting the position of all the gears, this mechanical expert determined the exact moment when the clock tower was struck.
09-28-04, 09:47 AM
#8
Moderator
Originally posted by evitagen
The clock was frozen when struck by the bolt of lightning. I think that some engineer or clock aficionado went inside the clock, and by inspecting the position of all the gears, this mechanical expert determined the exact moment when the clock tower was struck.
The clock was frozen when struck by the bolt of lightning. I think that some engineer or clock aficionado went inside the clock, and by inspecting the position of all the gears, this mechanical expert determined the exact moment when the clock tower was struck.
09-28-04, 09:51 AM
#9
DVD Talk Legend
Join Date: Mar 2003
Location: Lyon Estates
Posts: 10,795
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
I thought the line was at EXACTLY 10:04.
Yes:
"...says here that a bolt of lightning is gonna strike the clocktower precisely at 10.04pm next Saturday night"
on the minute
Yes:
"...says here that a bolt of lightning is gonna strike the clocktower precisely at 10.04pm next Saturday night"
on the minute
Last edited by dick_grayson; 09-28-04 at 09:56 AM.
09-28-04, 10:15 AM
#13
DVD Talk Ultimate Edition
Join Date: Jan 2000
Location: Little Rock, AR
Posts: 4,086
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
It's nice to see that suspension of disbelief stops with the accuracy of a pamplet and lightning hitting the clock, not with a time machine .... 
09-28-04, 10:25 AM
#15
DVD Talk Legend
It's a make-believe fantasy story where the the lady made it clear that it was PRECISELY at 10:04; information Marty took into the future for later (or, I guess, past) use by Dr. Brown, therefore making any debate about seconds void. After all, we're also expected to believe Michael J. Fox can play the guitar too. Please.
09-28-04, 10:43 AM
#17
DVD Talk Legend
Thread Starter
Originally posted by evitagen
The clock was frozen when struck by the bolt of lightning. I think that some engineer or clock aficionado went inside the clock, and by inspecting the position of all the gears, this mechanical expert determined the exact moment when the clock tower was struck.
The clock was frozen when struck by the bolt of lightning. I think that some engineer or clock aficionado went inside the clock, and by inspecting the position of all the gears, this mechanical expert determined the exact moment when the clock tower was struck.
please.
And does "precisely 10:04" have the direct implication of 10:04:00?
They knew the clock was struck at 10:04 because that was the position the hands were in. There was no seconds hand on the clock.
The lightning could have hit anywhere between 10:04:00 and 10:04:59.
Why even use the clock tower at all?
Couldn't they have just attached a long ass lighting rod to the flux capacitor, and drove around in a lightning storm in some open fields. That might not work all the time, but if you keep on doing it, eventually it should work.
09-28-04, 11:20 AM
#20
Senior Member
Join Date: Dec 1999
Location: North Cackylacky
Posts: 560
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
this thread has me thinking way too much about the film when i should be working.
two words everyone needs to work into some conversation at work... "flux capacitor"
thanks for your support
two words everyone needs to work into some conversation at work... "flux capacitor"
thanks for your support
09-28-04, 12:22 PM
#21
DVD Talk Limited Edition
Originally posted by silentbob007
It's nice to see that suspension of disbelief stops with the accuracy of a pamplet and lightning hitting the clock, not with a time machine ....
It's nice to see that suspension of disbelief stops with the accuracy of a pamplet and lightning hitting the clock, not with a time machine ....
Who cares if its 10:04:00 or 10:04:59.
09-28-04, 12:36 PM
#22
DVD Talk Legend
How do we know there isn't more information on that pamphlet? It looks like there is a lot of fine print there below the main headlines. Just because the subheadline says "Clock stopped at 10:04" doesn't mean that the article/flier didn't elaborate more on the topic.
09-28-04, 01:11 PM
#23
DVD Talk Special Edition
Join Date: Jun 1999
Location: Chicago
Posts: 1,468
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
However, Doc sets the alarm for the precide moment when Marty must accelerate and proceed towards the clock tower, but the car stalls and Marty departs a few seconds too late.
This is adjusted for when the electricity takes a few seconds to travel down the wire. Therefore, the question isn't how did Marty know the lightning would strike at 10:04:00 but how did the electricity know that Marty would be a few seconds late and slow itself down?
This is adjusted for when the electricity takes a few seconds to travel down the wire. Therefore, the question isn't how did Marty know the lightning would strike at 10:04:00 but how did the electricity know that Marty would be a few seconds late and slow itself down?
09-28-04, 02:28 PM
#25
DVD Talk Platinum Edition
Join Date: Jan 2003
Location: H-Town, TX
Posts: 3,662
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
This one always did bug me, but I guess you have to accept "precisely 10:04 PM" as meaning the lightning struck right at that time before any seconds had passed.
The plothole that still annoys me to this day from the first moment I saw the film is why the older Doc Brown in 1885 in BTTF III has no idea why Marty went back for him. If younger Doc Brown in 1955 knew he was gonna get shot by Buford Tannen and presumably didn't forget that important piece of information over the next 30 years, shouldn't he be aware of it when he winds up back in 1885 and take the necessary precautions to avoid being killed?
The plothole that still annoys me to this day from the first moment I saw the film is why the older Doc Brown in 1885 in BTTF III has no idea why Marty went back for him. If younger Doc Brown in 1955 knew he was gonna get shot by Buford Tannen and presumably didn't forget that important piece of information over the next 30 years, shouldn't he be aware of it when he winds up back in 1885 and take the necessary precautions to avoid being killed?