My Favorite Movies of 1981 Part I Quiz

Answer: History of the World Part I

Mel Brooks wrote, directed, and stars in this farce that covers periods in history from the dawn of primitive man, the Roman Empire, the Spanish Inquisition, and the French Revolution. The film also stars Harvey Korman, Dom DeLuise, Madeline Kahn, Sid Caesar, Gregory Hines, and Cloris Leachman.

Answer: An American Werewolf in London

John Landis directed this comedic horror film wherein two American hikers in England are attacked by a werewolf. One man is killed, while the other becomes a werewolf at the next full moon and kills random people, whose spirits haunt him.

Answer: Buddy, Buddy

In Billy Wilder's last film, Walter Matthau plays a hitman waiting in a hotel, who runs into a prudish TV censor, (Jack Lemmon) whose wife is having an affair with a doctor who runs a sexual dysfunction clinic. The doctor mistakenly gives the hitman a sedative meant for the censor, who carries out the hitman's assignment. The film also stars Paula Prentiss and Klaus Kinski.

Answer: Taps

The students at the Bunker Hill Military Academy learn that their school is to be closed at the end of the current semester. At a dance held at the school, a scuffle with local teens and cadets leads to the accidental death of one of the locals, whereupon the authorities close the school immediately.

A group of cadets steal weapons and take control of the school, wanting to keep it open, leading to a standoff with police and the National Guard.

Answer: Clash of the Titans

Perseus, the son of Zeus and a mortal woman, courts the princess Andromeda, who is to be sacrificed on the orders of the goddess Thetis. Perseus kills the Gorgon Medusa, using her head to defeat the Kraken, a fearsome sea monster, thus freeing Andromeda. The film stars Harry Hamlin, Burgess Meredith, Maggie Smith, Laurence Olivier, and Judy Bowker.

Answer: S.O.B.

Blake Edwards directed this farce about a producer who makes a Disney-like film which flops. After several comic attempts at suicide, he is inspired to remake the film as soft core porn, but the studio takes control of the finished product and plans to distribute it without him. The film stars Richard Mulligan, Julie Andrews, William Holden, and Robert Preston.

Answer: Escape from New York

Kurt Russell stars as ex-soldier turned criminal, Snake Plissken. He is offered a pardon to rescue the President after his plane crashes on Manhattan Island, now a prison, while he is on his way to a summit meeting with Soviet and Chinese leaders. Snake must outwit an inmate leader who plans on using the President to obtain freedom for all of the prison's inmates.

Answer: Quest for Fire

In Paleolithic Europe, a tribe of ape-like humans attacks the Neanderthal-like Ulam tribe, extinguishing their fire. Unable to make fire themselves, three men of the Ulam set out to find a new source. They rescue a girl from the cannibal Kzamms, who takes the men to the village of her tribe, the Ivaka.

The more advanced Ivaka show the Ulam how to make fire, the secret of which they take back to their people.

Answer: Fort Apache The Bronx

In New York City's 41st precinct, a poverty stricken area, a new captain's policies lead to rioting, in which an innocent teen is murdered by officers. Two other officers, a hard drinking veteran and his younger partner, witness the incident and are uncertain whether to turn in their fellow cops or not. The film stars Paul Newman, Ken Wahl, Ed Asner, Rachel Ticotin, and Danny Aiello.

Answer: Knightriders

Ed Harris stars as King Billy, leader of a troupe that jousts on motorcycles. A promoter wants to bankroll the troupe, but Billy wants to stick to his principles and refuses. A section of the group breaks away, but they return when Billy announces his retirement and calls for a contest among all the riders to determine a new King.

The film was directed by horror film legend George Romero.