Classic Directors and Their Films Quiz

Answer: The Lady From Shanghai

One would think that Hitchcock would have directed a film as suspenseful as "The Lady from Shanghai", but it was actually directed by its leading man, Orson Welles. It was released at the height of the Film Noir era, 1947. The title character was played by Rita Hayworth, whose trademark red hair was cut short and bleached blonde, adding to her "femme fatale" mystique.

Answer: Enter the Dragon

So incredible were those three films, that they were all remade by American studios. "Rashômon" became "The Outrage", "Seven Samurai" became "The Magnificent Seven", and "Yojimbo" became "A Fistful of Dollars". Kurosawa passed away at age 88 in 1998.

"Enter the Dragon" is Bruce Lee's most well-known film. It was released in 1973, the year of his death. The director was Robert Clouse, who was 45 at the time.

Answer: The Night of the Hunter

"The Night of the Hunter" is the only film acclaimed British actor Charles Laughton ever directed (although he directed several stage productions). Perhaps he would have directed another, but he died of cancer seven years after this 1955 film was released.

John Huston directed his father to an Academy Award (in "The Treasure of the Sierra Madre"), his daughter Anjelica to an Academy Award (in "Prizzi's Honor"), and his frequent star Humphrey Bogart to an Award in "The African Queen".

If I had wanted to make this question harder, I could have included the 1982 film version of the Broadway musical "Annie", which was definitely a change of pace for John Huston. It probably would have stumped quite a few.

Answer: The Bicycle Thief

One of the most famous Italian films ever made, "The Bicycle Thief" was the ninth film directed by actor-turned-director Vittorio di Sica. That would have been enough, but he went on to direct all the way up until his death in 1974. As an actor, he appeared in over 150 films.

Answer: All About Eve

"All About Eve" was written and directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz, who one Oscars in both categories. Even more incredibly, he had just won both awards the previous year for "A Letter to Three Wives"! But this time around, his film received Best Picture as well.

Unfortunately, Mankiewicz's career hit a sour note in 1963 with "Cleopatra", whose budget almost drove the Twentieth Century Fox studio out of business. He rebounded with his final film, 1972's "Sleuth", earning yet another Best Director nomination. Mankiewicz died in 1993. He out lived his brother Herman by almost FORTY years! (Herman, twelve years Joseph's senior, was best known for co-writing "Citizen Kane". He died of uremic poisoning at the age of 55.)

Answer: Blow Up

"Blow Up" was the first English language film by Italian director Michelangelo Antonioni. It was the first major studio film to feature full frontal nudity, albeit very briefly. His follow-up film, "Zabriskie Point" a major disappointment, but Antonioni has continued to make smaller-scale provocative films well into his eighties.

Answer: Funny Girl

"Funny Girl" was directed by the legendary William Wyler. It was his second to last film. His crowning achievement was "Ben-Hur", which set a record by winning eleven Academy Awards, later tied by "Titanic" and "Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King". Wyler was not nominated for Best Director for "Funny Girl", but he had already won the award three times out of twelve nominations.

He died in 1981 at age 79.

Answer: Diabolique

"Diabolique" was directed by Henri-Georges Clouzot. He reportedly beat Alfred Hitchcock by only a few hours in buying the film rights to Pierre Boileau's suspenseful novel. (Don't feel sorry for Hitchcock, he later won the rights to Boileau's "Vertigo".) Clouzot's wife Véra played the meek and terrified schoolteacher in the film. Simone Signoret played her husband's mistress.

Answer: The Invisible Man

"The Invisible Man" (1931) was directed by James Whale, best known for "Frankenstein" and its sequel, "Bride of Frankenstein". Film buffs may also know that he directed the original black and white version of "Showboat", which contains Paul Robeson's moving rendition of "Ol' Man River". Whale's last days are depicted in the 1998 film "Gods and Monsters".

Answer: Mary Poppins

"Mary Poppins" was directed by Robert Stevenson, who received his only Best Director Oscar nomination for it. (He lost to Cukor for "My Fair Lady", which is only fair becuse Cukor had been previously nominated many times without winning.) Stevenson directed some of the most successful Disney live action films of all time, including "Old Yeller", "The Absent Minded Professor", and "The Love Bug".

He died at age 81 in 1986, and in 2002 was named a "Disney Legend" by the studio. Thanks for playing!