Sunfire gt. the car died :(

I have a 97 sunfire gt. i have only had minor problems..breaks..tires..i had to replace the gas tank a few months ago cuz it had a leak in it..but anyway..i just hit 150k on it and the other morning it died on me. im not sure what it is..my dad being a mechanic..took apart the engine cuz of a possibility of the cause and nothing..i think this is where it started...a few months ago my car started shaking after i took a right turn and it died. it was fine after and the idle time was adjusted blah blah..now..since that was adjusted my car just would shake once in awhile like it was gonna die when i applied my break for a minute.. but when i went to normal speed it went away. now a few days ago i went to shift from reverse to drive and it didnt kick into gear right away..and i hit the gas..and i heard a pop assuming its one of the motor mounds. thenn 2 days later my car died..now it wont start..my battery light came on and that was it..it sounded like something was getting chopped in my engine when i drove to get the car out of the way. and it was very loud. my dad was saying maybe it has something to do with the timing chain..a coil..or the alternator..its not the alternator. it isnt anything in the engine. his next guesses are something about one of the cylinders..and then something about the camshafts and valves not closing and opening when they are supposed to. im just a driver..i have no idea what to guess. if anyone knows what it is and has experienced it pleasee let me know!