History Headscratchers / ThePolarExpress

** So somewhere between the fifties and the seventies?

*** Maybe he just pretended to be asleep as noted in the first possibly. But contrary to that option, no one falls asleep right away. Plus the video could’ve been done like a day or two like the possibility noted 4 times above.

* All the boys seem to have a lesson to learn, but what about the girl? The main kid learned faith, the poor boy learned to trust, and the know-it-all learned humility (off-camera I guess), but the girl was already a leader from the start. Or did I just miss the scene where she gains her leadership qualities?
** You did. Next time you watch it, pay attention to when Hero Boy says "Are you sure?" At first, she stops what she's doing and cries, doubting herself, but later she believes in herself and leads them to the sound of the bell.
*** Ok, I watched it again, and fair enough she did hesitate. And, technically the know-it-all must have learned his lesson by being chastised by Santa. Still, the girl acts perfectly confident and independent [[AchillesHeel until asked if she's sure]]. It still kind of bugs me, but not as much. Thanks.

* Why did the conductor lose his temper at every little setback? If they've been running the Express for years and transporting a bunch of excited children to see Santa, surely they've had issues of emergency brakes being pulled, tracks being covered, and tickets being lost.

** How is Holly losing her ticket a setback? Chris pulling the breaks is definitely a setback.

*** Maybe he just pretended to be asleep as noted in the first possibly. Or he tried to do a prank in the middle of the night. No one falls asleep right away.

** How is Holly losing her ticket a setback? Chris pulling the breaks is definitely a setback.

* Why did the Conductor tell Hero Girl that “No one is required to see Santa.” when asking if Billy could join the group. He knew that Billy eventually joined the group to see Santa. Why couldn’t he give him a chance?

*** First off, on the contrary to no one expecting that Smokey (the fireman) had a sensitive chin, they sure kinda probably would have because of how long his beard is. Chris (Hero Boy) slipped and had to hold onto Smokey’s beard. James (The conductor) decided to pull it anyway because as explained above, his screams matched the caribou sounds and without the beard pull, Smokey just screaming would be too weak. Also, they do eventually use the whistle at the crossing but that’s when the track cleared and to know that it was time to go. On the track, definitely would scare the heard (like noted above) and cause them to stampede and maybe attack the train and as mentioned a stampede of caribou vs. a train full of children is dangerous. But maybe it didn’t. Trains use their horns/whistles to alert that they’re coming. As mentioned above, the crew had to check the engine’s light and they couldn’t see the heard until the light was placed in. And again, James is a [[JerkWithAHeartOfGold jerk with a heart of gold]] and a [[ClockKing Clock King]] and doesn’t want anyone to dilly-dally because he’d disappoint the children so he came to the first option in mind, pulling Smokey’s beard to communicate.

*** First off, on the contrary to no one expecting that Smokey (the fireman) had a sensitive chin, they sure kinda probably would have because of how long his beard is. Chris (Hero Boy) slipped and had to hold onto Smokey’s beard. James (The conductor) decided to pull it anyway because as explained above, his screams matched the caribou sounds and without the beard pull, Smokey just screaming would be too weak. Also, they do eventually use the whistle at the crossing but that’s when the track cleared and to know that it was time to go. On the track, definitely would scare the heard (like noted above) and cause them to stampede and maybe attack the train and as mentioned a stampede of caribou vs. a train full of children is dangerous. But maybe it didn’t. Trains use their horns/whistles to alert that they’re coming. As mentioned above, the crew had to check the engine’s light and they couldn’t see the heard until the light was placed in. And again, James is a [[JerkWithAHeartOfGold jerk with a heart of gold]] and a [[ClockKing clock king]] and doesn’t want anyone to dilly-dally because he’d disappoint the children so he came to the first option in mind, pulling Smokey’s beard to communicate.

*** First off, on the contrary to no one expecting that Smokey (the fireman) had a sensitive chin, they sure kinda probably would have because of how long his beard is. Chris (Hero Boy) slipped and had to hold onto Smokey’s beard. James (The conductor) decided to pull it anyway because as explained above, his screams matched the caribou sounds and without the beard pull, Smokey just screaming would be too weak. Also, they do eventually use the whistle at the crossing but that’s when the track cleared and to know that it was time to go. On the track, definitely would scare the heard (like noted above) and cause them to stampede and maybe attack the train and as mentioned a stampede of caribou vs. a train full of children is dangerous. But maybe it didn’t. Trains use their horns/whistles to alert that they’re coming. As mentioned above, the crew had to check the engine’s light and they couldn’t see the heard until the light was placed in. And again, James is a [[JerkWithAHeartGold jerk with a heart gold]] and a [[ClockKing clock king]] and doesn’t want anyone to dilly-dally because he’d disappoint the children so he came to the first option in mind, pulling Smokey’s beard to communicate.

*** First off, on the contrary to no one expecting that Smokey (the fireman) had a sensitive chin, they sure kinda probably would have because of how long his beard is. Chris (Hero Boy) slipped and had to hold onto Smokey’s beard. James (The conductor) decided to pull it anyway because as explained above, his screams matched the caribou sounds and without the beard pull, Smokey just screaming would be too weak. Also, they do eventually use the whistle at the crossing but that’s when the track cleared and to know that it was time to go. On the track, definitely would scare the heard (like noted above) and cause them to stampede and maybe attack the train and as mentioned a stampede of caribou vs. a train full of children is dangerous. But maybe it didn’t. Trains use their horns/whistles to alert that they’re coming. As mentioned above, the crew had to check the engine’s light and they couldn’t see the heard until the light was placed in. And again, James is a [[JerkWithAHwartGold jerk with a heart gold]] and a [[ClockKing clock king]] and doesn’t want anyone to dilly-dally because he’d disappoint the children so he came to the first option in mind, pulling Smokey’s beard to communicate.

*** First off, on the contrary to no one expecting that Smokey (the fireman) had a sensitive chin, they sure kinda probably would have because of how long his beard is. Chris (Hero Boy) slipped and had to hold onto Smokey’s beard. James (The conductor) decided to pull it anyway because as explained above, his screams matched the caribou sounds and without the beard pull, Smokey just screaming would be too weak. Also, they do eventually use the whistle at the crossing but that’s when the track cleared and to know that it was time to go. On the track, definitely would scare the heard (like noted above) and cause them to stampede and maybe attack the train and as mentioned a stampede of caribou vs. a train full of children is dangerous. But maybe it didn’t. Trains use their horns/whistles to alert that they’re coming. As mentioned above, the crew had to check the engine’s light and they couldn’t see the heard until the light was placed in. And again, James is a [[JerkWithGold jerk with gold]] and a [[ClockKing clock king]] and doesn’t want anyone to dilly-dally because he’d disappoint the children so he came to the first option in mind, pulling Smokey’s beard to communicate.

*** First off, on the contrary to no one expecting that Smokey (the fireman) had a sensitive chin, they sure kinda probably would have because of how long his beard is. Chris (Hero Boy) slipped and had to hold onto Smokey’s beard. James (The conductor) decided to pull it anyway because as explained above, his screams matched the caribou sounds and without the beard pull, Smokey just screaming would be too weak. Also, they do eventually use the whistle at the crossing but that’s when the track cleared and to know that it was time to go. On the track, definitely would scare the horde (like noted above) and cause them to stampede and maybe attack the train and as mentioned a stampede of caribou attacking a train full of children is dangerous.

** First off, on the contrary to no one expecting that Smokey (the fireman) had a sensitive chin, they sure kinda probably would have because of how long his beard is. Chris (Hero Boy) slipped and had to hold onto Smokey’s beard. James (The conductor) decided to pull it anyway because as explained above, his screams matched the caribou sounds and without the beard pull, Smokey just screaming would be too weak. Also, they do eventually use the whistle at the crossing but that’s when the track cleared and to know that it was time to go. On the track, definitely would scare the horde (like noted above) and cause them to stampede and maybe attack the train and as mentioned a stampede of caribou attacking a train full of children is dangerous.

[[folder:Apply the brakes again!]]

[[folder:Apply the breaks again!]]
* If Steamer (the engine’s driver) found out the throttle was jammed, could he have applied the breaks to check? It would’ve been better and Chris (Hero Boy), James (Conductor), and Holly (Hero Girl) wouldn’t have to deal with a roller coaster ride down to the ice.

*** They primarily pulled Steamer's beard as a means to assert dominance over the head caribou, since it matched their screams somewhat. The whistle would have more than likely spooked them, as pointed out above, and an army of caribou against a train full of children wouldn't have been a safe option. Besides, nobody could have seen the herd coming, and even if they did, nobody would have thought Steamer has such a sensitive chin.

** For a [[GreedyJew tasteless joke]].

*** The other presents could be from the parents playing Santa. Maybe the bell is the only REAL gift from Santa, and each of the parents think the other gave it to the kid so he'd keep believing for longer.

* Why was the poor kid sent to the back of the train, and not given any chocolate? While it does serve well as something for a kind hearted child to rebel against by taking him chocolate and befriending him, it doesn't make any barking sense for the train taking good children in need of moral lessons to Santa to segregate based on wealth.

*** I think it was all part of the Conductor's plan from the beginning. Consider: He's implied (or outright shown) several times to know a lot more about what's going on than he lets on; for instance, although he only punches two letters into each ticket at the beginning, he clearly knows what lesson each kid needs to learn, since he fills them in later. I think that segregating Billy from the rest of the kids was intended to impel Hero Girl to help him out even though she didn't need to. (A mark of a good leader is taking care of others, after all.) Either the Conductor would have brought Billy up front with the rest of the kids eventually, or he can see the future and he knew it wouldn't be necessary. I don't have a problem with it at all. As for giving Billy a present, I think the intended moral wasn't so much that extravagant Christmas presents will eventually fall out of the sky if you wait long enough; rather, it was that a defeatist attitude is unnecessary because you never know what will happen tomorrow.
*** To add to this, remember when the kids are in the gift bag, what the elves say? "We knew you were in there the whole time." I don't think anything that happens either at the North Pole or on the train is unplanned.

*** The poor kid's ticket-message was all about developing faith and trust. He'd probably been picked on for having cheap clothes or possessions at school, and was too suspicious of it happening again to join the other kids up front.

** Also, keep in mind that every setback was inadvertently or otherwise caused by the Hero Boy, who the conductor knows from the beginning is having doubts as to the existence of Santa Claus. As they begin to stack on top of one another, it'd make sense for him to suspect that it was a mistake to let him on anyway, and that he was only using the opportunity to sabotage the trip for the other children. And how many times would anyone in a group of children, even excited children, feel the need to pull the emergency brakes on a train?

*** It should also be noted that, magical railroad or not, executives at the company do not take kindly to their trains being late. It's expected they keep their schedule on time or not at all, and the Conductor is certainly not the type to break that schedule, seeing as he's been on the job for years. Any delay to the train means that they risk falling behind schedule further, and with a lot of more treacherous terrain on the route, they can't take any chances. Plus, he is also a JerkWithAHeartOfGold, and he would hate for the kids to miss seeing Santa. Schedule or no schedule, nothing hurts worse than disappointed children, and that wouldn't have done him any favors.

* I've seen this thing way too many times, as it's the default Christmas Eve Movie at my brother's house. One thing I still can't figure out is, what's the deal with the Evil? Ghost Hobo Dude? Why is he there, either InUniverse or dramatically? I [[{{Padding}} think I know the answer]], but even with that, I don't get the rationale behind this character.

*** When the protagonist drops the girl's ticket the Hobo Ghost is seen napping in a hammock on the underside on the train. If he's dead, I wanna know what he was doing there. Also, if the above is true, then it adds a bit of {{Irony}} to his comment about there only being an inch of clearance between the roof of the train and the roof of the tunnel.
*** If he'd gotten killed by dozing on ''top'' of the train, can you blame him for choosing to nap as far from the top of it as possible?
*** Considering that the engineers (called Smokey, the one with the beard, and Steamer, the plump man, respectively) are rather ditsy, it seems more likely that they're being a bit over-supersticious on the Hobo figure; especially considering that other scenes in the film imply that he's ''something/someone else''. Holly (The Hero Girl) believes that he might be a guardian angel. Then there's the question as to how the engineers knew if there was a Hobo who died on the train, especially since that they wouldn't've found his body during the winter's night because of snow.
*** But the Hobo seems to be aware and concerned of the danger of being on top of the train when the train heads into Flat Top Tunnel. He wouldn't be trying to warn about and save him if the death was made up.

** This will get more into the movie making side of things then the in universe explanation but consider the following. Perhaps rather then just doubt in general the Hobo is a representation of reasonable doubt? He makes a good point about how it's easy to take advantage of someone gullible enough to take a happy dream like Santa on faith. He exists to be the counterpoint to the true believer that is the Conductor who takes it that the things to believe in most are the ones we can't see. The two of them work together to help the protagonist find a balance between believing in the important things he can't see, whatever you might believe those to be, and not playing the fool as he grows older because of it. Presumably every kid with this sort of conflict who rides the Polar Express would have a similar experience.

** If you mean when the bell fell, for dramatic effect. The song wasn't the point of the scene any more, and slowing down and quieting the song was meant to draw viewers' attention to the important parts of the sequence, as well as drawing out [[{{Overcrank}} something that would normally last five seconds]].

* All the boys seem to have a lesson to learn, but what about the girl? The main kid learned faith, the poor boy learned trust, the know-it-all learned humility (off-camera I guess), but the girl was already a leader from the start. Or did I just miss the scene where she gains her leadership qualities?
** You did. Next time you watch it, pay attention to when Hero Boy says "Are you sure?" At first she stops what she's doing and cries, doubting herself, but later she believes in herself and leads them to the sound of the bell.

*** Part of being the leader is having faith in your own decisions. Having confidence only when people are following you without question isn't great leadership.

* How did they not know that the know-it-all kid was following them? Wouldn't they have seen him on the train or when falling on to the pile of presents?

* The number of cars on the train never seems to stay a rigid figure. In one scene, there seems to be about five cars, another there are dozens, a third might show ten, and when they walk through them there seems to be but three.

*** The obvious answer is that the animators made some goofs during the film itself. In-universe, the best explanation could be representative of the protagonists' own doubts. Is he really on this train? Is he really going to see Santa? If that's the case, then the cars likely come and go to represent the strength of those doubts, with its true consist revealing itself once his doubts finally ceased.

** And when the train hit the ice, it was nearly level. There was some breakage, but it didn't really slam into it from above. After that it was mostly coasting on the ice like a giant metal ice-skater, which could probably be supported if the ice was thick enough.

* Steven is caught doing a last minute naughty act of putting gum in his sister's hair. What kid chews gum, let alone puts it in his sister's hair, at five minutes till midnight, when they should all be ''asleep''?!

*** You take three hours off midnight, that's only 9 o'clock. That's not unreasonable, and some kids are night owls. Lots of time zones in the world.
*** He's in Maplewood, NJ. The train sets out from Grand Rapids, MI and seems to be on GR time for the rest of the film. That's all Eastern Standard Time.

** She was working her passage by helping the engineer.

*** The Gameboy Advanced version of the VideoGame has a cut-scene where the conductor states, "and you, miss. You better get back to shoveling coal," which basically confirms what the troper above said. As for taking her over the roof, the door in the old toy car was double locked, implying that there may be a padlock on the inside, making it impossible to travel into the toy car from the passenger cars.
** The conductor may be required to make passengers leave the train if they don't have a ticket (though he will obviously have to stop the train first). The conductor, not wanting do this, promotes them from passenger to crew member so they can still get to the North Pole. After all, [[ExactWords the staff don't need tickets to ride the train]].

** The only other person on the train that Hero Boy was likely to see again was Billy, who lived in the same town at a known address. Hero Boy doesn't know the name, address, home town, home state, or possibly even home ''country'' of any of the other kids on the train. So most of his friends hadn't seen Santa.

** Ditto. This Troper always assumed that he was referring to his regular-everyday friends, since it didn't seem all that likely he'd ever meet up with the other kids on the train ever again.

** 1) The ending narration came straight from the book, in which the other 3 main kids were not in, having been made exclusively for the film; 2) since the boy is still alive (at least at the time he is narrating this) there is still a chance he will meet them again after this.; 3) If he has met the other kids on the train at the time of the narration, he may have only saw at least one of them only once, so they might not count; 4) If he met and/or became official friends with them later in life, then yes, he was talking about his everyday friends (I assume from his school) because the movie happened during his childhood. 5) the 3 main kids are likely to still believe in Santa, as they each had their own lesson to learn and had also the special case of adventuring outside what should normally be the routine for all passengers (the whole lost ticket part, glacier glitch/ frozen lake, north pole journey, ECT.)
** Assuming the narration was referring to the friends he made on the train instead of his everyday friends who didn't share the experience, it's kind of important to keep in mind that the children are all pre-puberty (I'd say Hero Boy and Hero Girl are probably the eldest and even they are likely only around 11) and the only one to have an actual lasting physical reminder of that night is the Hero Boy himself with the bell and the note left with it. We don't keep memories forever and the memories we do keep are not picture-perfect snapshots that remain untarnished; they can become warped and changed over time, especially if there's no physical "anchor" to them. It really isn't unreasonable to assume that the further the children grew away from the whole experience, the less real it would seem to them and the easier it would be to dismiss it as a dream if they even remember it at all. This would probably also be exacerbated by parents outright telling the kids they must have been dreaming if they ever spoke of the journey. There's also the fact that children, especially at such a young age and in an era that predates social media, simply ''wouldn't'' keep in touch with each other across long distance for very long, even if they exchanged names/addresses/phone numbers - correspondence would last a few years at most. Without that contact with others who shared the same experience, again it would be very easy to forget about it over time.

* Christmas Eve is the most important date in the North Pole calendar. So why was there such poor maintenance on the equipment they used? The engineers on the train have to replace a burned out light bulb and a defective cotter pin while the train was moving, both of which nearly caused a disastrous accident. And the bell on the reindeer harness was improperly attached. All of that should have been checked and corrected well before 12/24.
** Don't forget, the ''Express'' is not only magical, but weirdly sentient. For example, it could ''sense'' the caribou crossing from miles off, but couldn't deal with them directly. Her solution: Get the two comedy engineers to where they'll see the offending herd. How to get them out there? Burn out the light-bulb so they can replace it.

* Why doesn't any of the kids feel the cold despite it being the middle of winter and them being only in their pajamas?

** Or maybe that's part of the magic. Considering that it can remain 5 minutes to midnight for a number of hours, it doesn't seem too far fetched that the snow is a little less cold than it would be in real life.

** Hopefully there's enough magic around to prevent any deaths on the train. Side theory: not only is the Hobo a ghost, but so is the conductor, the engineers, and even those guys who served the hot chocolate.

*** They primarily pulled Steamer's beard as a means to assert dominance over the head caribou, since it matched their screams somewhat. The whistle would have more than likely spooked them, as pointed above, and an army of caribou against a train full of children wouldn't have been a safe option. Besides, nobody could have seen the herd coming, and even if they did, nobody would have thought Steamer has such a sensitive chin.

* So in the beginning when the train arrives at the boy's house and he meets the conductor, he is hesitant about going and almost didn't ride. What suddenly made him change his mind? Same goes for when the train arrives at Billy's house.

* When exactly did this movie (Plus the book its adapted from) take place? All we know is that it was many years ago, and the Hero Boy is narrating the beginning and end as an adult.

* Who is the boss that the conductor mentions in the forsaken and abandoned toy car? It could be Santa, though that begs the question why the conductor doesn't say so.

* When the train goes down the roller coaster like Glacier Gultch, how did the passengers that were inside the train appear unscathed? Other than the Know-It-All telling the Hero Boy about it, the children act like nothing happened.

* Billy comes from a poor family "on the wrong side of the tracks", who doesn't believe in Santa because he has never gotten presents from Santa because his family can't afford them. Then Holly starts singing about presents and Santa Claus at Christmas, which feels very insensitive to me.