"Flesh Wound II" More Classic Understatements Quiz

Answer: "They're baa-aack."

Directed by Brian Gibson, "Poltergeist II" also starred Craig T. Nelson, JoBeth Williams and Oliver Robins, who, along with O'Rourke, reprised their roles as the members of the by-now-somewhat-harried-and-irritable Freeling family. Dominique Dunne (the daughter of deceased investigative journalist Dominick Dunne) was conspicuous in her absence in the role of eldest daughter Dana Freeling, as she was murdered by boyfriend John Thomas Sweeney in 1982. Adding to the now infamous "Poltergeist" franchise 'curse', Heather O'Rourke passed away in 1988 from complications arising from intestinal stenosis, and Julian Beck (the evil Reverend Henry Kane) died in 1985 from stomach cancer.

While "Poltergeist II" did well financially, it was not nearly as popular as the 1982 original, but the film was nominated for an Oscar in the category of Visual Effects (but lost to "Aliens").

Answer: WarGames

"Do You Want To Play A Game?" was the tagline of "WarGames", which was released in 1983. Directed by John Badham, the film was Broderick's first major screen appearance (his first film, "Max Dugan Returns", was released several months earlier), and co-starred Ally Sheedy (her second feature film as well). "WarGames" was nominated for three Oscars (Best Cinematography, Best Sound and Best Writing, Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen), along with a variety of other awards, including six Saturn Awards (Badham winning for Best Director), three BAFTAs, and a Hugo.

Answer: "Backward! I always go backward when I'm backin' away."

The 'Duke' received his only Best Actor Oscar for his role as Marshall Reuben J. 'Rooster' Cogburn in "True Grit". He was also nominated for playing Sgt. John M. Stryker in 1949's "Sands of Iwo Jima", but as a sentimental fan, I always thought an additional win for his role as John Bernard Books in his last film, "The Shootist" (1976), would have been a perfect tribute. "True Grit" also featured one of the greatest scenes in cinema history (in my opinion), with Cogburn, reins in his teeth, shooting and twirling a rifle with one hand and firing a pistol in the other while charging 'Lucky' Ned Pepper (Robert Duvall) and his gang in the meadow. Directed by Henry Hathaway, the film also starred Glen Campbell (in a not-so-terrible performance), Kim Darby, Strother Martin and Dennis Hopper.

Answer: Raging Bull

Along with "Taxi Driver" (1976) and "Goodfellas" (1990), "Raging Bull" (1980) established Martin Scorsese as one of the premier directors in the film industry. Inspired by the personal and professional life of middleweight champion Jake LaMotta, the film (shot in 'glorious' black and white) opened to mixed critical reviews, but is now generally considered an American classic. Nominated for eight Academy Awards, "Raging Bull" scored for Best Actor (De Niro) as well as Best Editing, but lost Best Picture and Director to Robert Redford and "Ordinary People".

The film is preserved in the National Film Registry, and it is rated highly in several American Film Institute categories. Fans of the TV sitcom "Cheers" will also recognize Nicholas Colosanto (1924-1985) as the actor who played "Coach" Ernie Pantusso in that popular series.

Answer: "I guess you've noticed something a little strange with Dad."

Directed by Steven Spielberg, "Close Encounters" received nine Academy Award nominations, winning in the Best Cinematography category, as well as a Special Achievement Award for Sound Effects Editing. (An interesting note: Richard Dreyfuss, while not nominated for "Close Encounters", did pick up the Best Actor award for "The Goodbye Girl").

The film was also recognized with a variety of nominations and wins in other entertainment award programs as well, including the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films, BAFTA Awards, Golden Globes and Hugo Awards.

The American Film Institute lists "Close Encounters" as the 64th greatest film of all time, and it is preserved in the National Film Registry. The film also starred Melinda Dillon, François Truffaut, the wonderfully quirky Teri Garr, and a very speedy (don't blink!) cameo by The Grateful Dead's Jerry Garcia.

Answer: The Fly

David Cronenberg's fine remake of the 1958 classic (which starred Vincent Price and David/Al Hedison) featured a wonderful performance by a very buff Jeff Goldblum as the brilliant but ultimately doomed scientist Seth Brundle, and introduced us to the tagline "Be afraid. Be very afraid." The film picked up the Oscar for Best Makeup (its only nomination), courtesy of Chris Walas ("Gremlins"), and was honored with Saturn, BAFTA and Hugo nominations and wins as well.

Besides Goldblum and Davis, "The Fly" also starred John Getz, with a cameo by Cronenberg as a gynecologist.

Answer: "Well, you know... it wasn't easy."

I truly like Steve Martin and (most) of his films, and while he did a pretty good job as the bumbling Inspector in the "Panther" remakes, when I think of Clouseau, I can think only of Peter Sellers. There are a total of eleven films in the "Panther" franchise; Sellers was actually filmed in five of the films but technically starred in six (his appeararance in 1982's "Trail of the Pink Panther", released over two years after his death, featured unused footage from 1976's "The Pink Panther Strikes Again"). Directed by Blake Edwards, "The Pink Panther" also starred David Niven, Robert Wagner and Claudia Cardinale.

The film's only Oscar nomination was for Henry Mancini's famous and instantly reconizable musical score (which also was nominated for a Grammy).

Interestingly, the second film in the franchise, 1964's "A Shot in the Dark" (released only three months after "Pink Panther") was not originally intended to include Sellers or Clouseau, but many film critics consider it to be the best film of the series.

Answer: Kill Bill: Vol. 1

I've noticed that most people are essentially in two categories regarding Tarantino: Those who really love his work, and those who... well, really really don't. I happen to be in the first category, and thought that both "Kill Bill" films were excellent.

They featured a great story; wonderful, over-the-top characters and dialogue (a Tarantino trademark), and very cool stunts and effects. Michael Parks and his Earl McGraw character seems to be a Tarantino trademark as well, as the Ranger also made appearances in "Death Proof" (as well as Robert Rodriguez's "Planet Terror", both films combining as "Grindhouse") and "From Dusk Till Dawn". (Parks also portrayed Esteban Vihaio in "Kill Bill: Vol. 2). "Vol. 1" also starred Uma Thurman, Lucy Liu, Daryl Hannah, and (while not making an actual appearance until "Vol. 2") the late David Carradine (RIP, Grasshopper!).

Answer: "I notice when you get to dislikin' someone, they ain't around for long neither."

Originally to be directed by Philip Kaufman ("The Right Stuff"), Eastwood took over the director's chair for "The Outlaw Josey Wales", thereby prompting the Directors Guild of America to create "The Eastwood Rule", which prevents any current cast or crew member to replace a film's director.

After doing some research, I never found out why Eastwood replaced Kaufman (who did an excellent job with the film's screenplay), but it was obviously a good move, as "Josey Wales" is recognized as one of the best films of the Western genre (as well as one of Eastwood's favorites). Oscar-nominated for Original Music Score, the film was listed as "significant" by the United States Library of Congress, and is preserved in the National Film Registry. "Josey Wales" also starred Sondra Locke (her first of six films with Eastwood), John Vernon (who would soon rise to fame as Dean Vernon Wormer in 1978's "Animal House"), Bill McKinney and Sam Bottoms.

Answer: Earthquake

I was very surprised to learn that the first-draft script for "Earthquake" was written by none other than Mario Puzo ("The same guy that wrote "The Godfather"?, you ask? Yeah, that guy!). Puzo was unable to stay with the film project for long, however, due to contractual obligations for "The Godfather Part II", and writer George Fox came on board to rework the script (Fox's first screenplay) to the final draft. Directed and produced by Mark Robson and released in 1974, "Earthquake" followed the formula of the big-budget disaster films of the decade by featuring an all-star cast, including Oscar-winners Kennedy and Charlton Heston, Ava Gardner, Lorne Greene, Richard Roundtree, and Walter Matthau in a great semi-cameo (he was listed in the credits as... are you ready?... "Walter Matuschanskayasky"). Team "Earthquake" tried to recruit heavy-hitters Paul Newman and Steve McQueen, but they had already been drafted by Irwin Allen and Team "The Towering Inferno".

The film was nominated for four Academy Awards, winning for Best Sound, while also scoring a Special Achievement Award for Visual Effects.