Cinematic Baddies Trivia Quiz

Answer: Census Taker

The full quote from "The Silence of the Lambs" was "A census taker once tried to test me. I ate his liver with some fava beans and a nice chianti." The 1991 movie was based on a book by Thomas Harris and it starred Anthony Hopkins and Jodie Foster who both won Academy Awards for their performances. On the American Film Institute's 2003 list of the 50 Greatest Villains in Movie History Dr. Hannibal Lecter received the #1 ranking.

Answer: Regan MacNeil from "The Exorcist"

Of all the movies I have seen "The Exorcist" was undoubtedly one of the scariest. The 1973 film was based on a 1971 novel by William Blatty and it tells the story of 12 year old Regan MacNeil who has been possessed by a demon named Pazuzu. The movie was based on the 1949 exorcism of a boy with the pseudonym Roland Doe.

Answer: Darth Vader

Darth Vader was the primary villain in the original "Star Wars" trilogy. Vader was born with the name Anakin Skywalker and trained as a Jedi Knight but he eventually turned to the evil dark side of the force under the tutelage of Darth Sidious.

Answer: "Open the pod bay doors, HAL."

In the lead up to this classic line Dave Bowman and Frank Poole had been planning to disconnect HAL 9000 but they didn't realize that their scheme was known by HAL 9000. Other films that featured sinister artificial intelligences include "I, Robot", "The Matrix", "The Terminator", and "Blade Runner".

Answer: Oswald Cobblepot

In addition to Danny DeVito, "Batman Returns" featured the acting talents of Michael Keaton as Batman, Michelle Pfeiffer as Catwoman, and Christopher Walken as Max Shreck. Oswald Cobblepot was deserted by his parents when he was an infant and was eventually saved by a group of penguins. To get back at the city that turned its back on him Oswald Cobblepot, nicknamed The Penguin, decided to turn to a life of crime.

Answer: Monstro from "Pinocchio"

Pinocchio was able to escape from Monstro's belly by starting a fire that caused Monstro to sneeze. In the Carlo Collodi book "The Adventures of Pinocchio", The Terrible Dogfish was described as being a kilometer long, larger than a five story building, and having three rows of teeth.

Answer: Auric Goldfinger from "Goldfinger"

The 1964 film "Goldfinger" starred Sean Connery as James Bond and Gert Fröbe as Auric Goldfinger and it was based on a 1959 novel of the same name by Ian Fleming. In addition to the title villain, "Goldfinger" also featured a villain named Oddjob that utilized a bowler hat as his primary weapon.

Answer: Joan Crawford

Although the most well-known line from "Mommie Dearest" may be "No wire hangers!", my favorite line from the film was "Helga, I'm not mad at you, I'm mad at the dirt". The film "Mommie Dearest" was based on the 1978 memoir of the same name by Christina Crawford, Joan Crawford's adopted daughter.

In the memoir Christina Crawford asserted that Joan Crawford abused her physically and emotionally, had numerous affairs, and was an alcoholic.

Answer: Taxidermy

The scene of the movie came from an exchange in which Norman Bates commented to Marion Crane that she ate like a bird. She responded by looking around the room full of stuffed birds saying "And you'd know of course". Norman then discussed how birds actually eat a lot and that "My hobby is stuffing things. You know - taxidermy". Anthony Perkins' portrayal of Norman Bates was voted #2 on the American Film Institute's 2003 list of the 50 Greatest Villains in Movie History.

While "Psycho" was released in 1960 it wasn't until 1983, three years after Alfred Hitchcock's death, that "Psycho II" was released.

Answer: Gollum from "The Lord of the Rings" series

The first film in the acclaimed series, "The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring", began with a prologue that told the history of the different rings of power and how Gollum possessed and lost the most powerful ring. In addition to Gollum, "The Lord of the Rings" series featured Christopher Lee as the evil Saruman and Elijah Wood as the protagonist Frodo.