History of Film Genres 1900-1950 Part 2! Quiz

Answer: Bow

She was dubbed the It girl by Elinor Glyn and then went on to star in a movie of the same name in 1927. The phrase "It girl" tends to identify someone who seems to have that mysterious X factor that makes them completely appealing to the public.

Answer: The Three Ages

"The Three Ages" (1923) had Keaton in three separate time periods (the Stone Age, the Roman Age, and the modern day era), with him trying to win a girl against society's wishes in each one. He succeeded in each one, but it was ambiguous as to whether he ever really wanted the girl in the first place. It's my favorite comedic silent film!

Answer: Footlight Parade

"Footlight Parade" (1933) featured the famous overhead shot of the flag and starred Dick Powell and Ruby Keeler. There were a lot of things going on in this movie, but it was basically about a movie producer who was going out of business because of talkies and who therefor had to reinvent his movies. And yes, Berkeley was a nut who made three "Gold Diggers" movies (1933, 1935, and 1937, not including "Gold Diggers in Paris"!)

Answer: Un Chien Andalou

"Un Chien Andalou" ("An Andalusian Dog") was a collaboration between Luis Buñuel and Salvador Dali and was considered a staple of French surrealism. The movie was largely a number of startling and disturbing images without any real narrative. Surrealism is often referred to as "the language of dreams".

Answer: Grand Illusion

Directed by Jean Renoir and released in 1937, this film followed the story of three French men in a German POW camp, trying to get out and deal with the war the best way they could. Poetic realism humanizes everyone, so even the Germans weren't portrayed very negatively in "Grand Illusion".

As a sidenote, "Partie d'Campagne" is one of my favorite short films ever, also directed by Renoir. If you can, see it!

Answer: Vittorio de Sica

"Umberto D." depicted a poor man and his dog trying to make a living. "The Bicycle Thief" was about a man and his son, trying to find the man's stolen bicycle so he could keep his job. "The Children Are Watching Us" was about a four year old dealing with his parent's split. Neo-realism is characterized by depicting real people in real situations, acting the only way they know how in order to survive.

They are sometimes called "male weepies" because of the pride involved in the movies.

Answer: Rome, citta aperta (Rome, Open City)

All the above films were directed by Roberto Rossellini. "Rome, Open City" was about Rome during the German occupation and the small revolt against the German powers. After "Rome, Open City" was released in 1945, Ingrid Bergman wrote Rossellini expressing her admiration for his work.

The two struck up a correspondence, which led to an affair, which led to the birth of actress Isabella Rossellini.

Answer: all of these

The femme fatale is a huge staple of film noir (if you're a detective in a film noir and you fall in love, chances are she's the culprit you're after!) The hero of the movie is usually a morally ambiguous character, alienated from the mainstream. And the visual style is one of the most important aspects of film noir - other tellings of it include low lighting and wide angle shots.

Answer: Expressionism

Many German directors fled Germany during WWII (notably Fritz Lang, director of "Metropolis") and came to America, where their unique style lent influence to film noir. Expressionism's experiments with shadows and the darker side of humanity were important aspects of film noir.

Answer: Double Indemnity

In "Double Indemnity", an insurance rep. gets drawn into a murder scheme by an adulterous wife. The other four are "Laura", "The Woman in the Window", "The Maltese Falcon", and "Murder, My Sweet." "The Maltese Falcon" is considered the first film noir and is the only one of the five not directed by a German. "Touch of Evil" by Orson Welles is considered the last film noir.

Look for quizzes on 1950 to the present after I finish my next film class! Hope you enjoyed this quiz.