National Film Registry: Part 2 Quiz

Answer: The Maltese Falcon

The line from the play is "We are such stuff as dreams are made on." When Spade is asked in the movie what the falcon is, he says, "The stuff dreams are made of." The movie stars Humphrey Bogart as Sam Spade, who is hired by Sydney Greenstreet's character to retrieve the jeweled Falcon. This movie is largely considered the first film noir.

Answer: Sunset Boulevard

William Holden's character tells us how he ended up dead in a swimming pool, and about how Norma Desmond (Gloria Swanson), a faded silent screen star, imagines her great "return" as she goes insane. It ends with the line, "All right, Mr. DeMille, I'm ready for my close-up."

Answer: Singin' in the Rain

In "Singin' in the Rain," a star of silent film falls from grace when studios find out that her voice is horrible. Other films, such as "A Clockwork Orange" and "Leon," refer back to this film using its title song.

Answer: It was the first Western shot in color.

While some people, like John Wayne and Howard Hawks, claim that it's an anti-Western about blacklisting, director Fred Zinnemann says it's about a man and his conscience. The good thing about film interpretation is that any or all meanings can be applied to the same piece of art. "High Noon" contains very little action for a Western and features Lee Van Cleef in his first role; Van Cleef later became famous for Westerns, such as the classic Leone film "The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly."

Answer: The Searchers

Ethan's line "That'll be the day" became the title of a Buddy Holly song. Ethan searches for years for his missing niece, who has been abducted by Comanches. Many movies have borrowed, or been inspired by, the story and imagery of this John Ford picture, including "Lawrence of Arabia," "Star Wars," "Saving Private Ryan," "The Missing," and, according to Martin Scorsese, "Taxi Driver."

Answer: Vertigo

Stewart's character has the title ailment, which is a sense of dizziness felt when staying still. His problem is brought on by heights. He becomes obsessed with Novak's second character after he fails to prevent the first character she plays from dying.

The two women turn out to be more connected than he thought. This is the only Hitchcock film inducted in 1989; other films of his have been inducted since then, including "Psycho," "Rear Window," and "Notorious."

Answer: Some Like it Hot

Tony Curtis and Jack Lemmon dress as women to escape the Chicago mafia and meet Marilyn Monroe in an all-girls band. Director Billy Wilder also directed another film on this list: "Sunset Boulevard."

Answer: Dr. Strangelove

Peter Sellers plays Dr. Strangelove, Captain Mandrake, and the President. They try to figure out how to prevent or live through a nuclear holocaust in this Kubrick movie. The full title is "Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb." Alec Guinness plays eight parts in "Kind Hearts and Coronets" (1949).

Answer: First Hollywood film directed by a black man

Gordon Parks directed this movie about prejudice in the U.S. when segregation was normal and legal. He based it in part on his life. "The Learning Tree" was able to open the door to more films about issues black people faced and face.

Answer: Star Wars

Some people saw the film multiple times a day. A coming-of-age myth/fairy tale set in space, "Star Wars" revolutionized special effects, changed the way movies are made and marketed, and is one of the most popular, analyzed, copied, documented, and parodied films ever made. The sequel "The Empire Strikes Back" was inducted in 2010.