Silence is Golden Trivia Quiz

Answer: F. W. Murnau

'Der Letzte Mann' translates from German into English as 'The Last Man' but the film was released to the English-speaking world as 'The Last Laugh'. The latter of the two names seems to me to be a more appropriate one for this 1924 film, directed by the great F. W. Murnau, given that the plot follows the life of an unnamed man (Emil Jannings) who is very much down on his luck until he walks into an unexpected fortune. When things weren't going well for Jannings' character, his colleagues laugh at him mercilessly but in the end 'The Last Man' has 'The Last Laugh'.

'Der Letzte Mann' is a genuinely wonderful piece of Weimar cinema that sticks in the memory. It is perhaps the most famous work from the Kammerspielfilm movement which was noteworthy for its lack of title cards (intertitles). 'Der Letzte Mann', which has a running time of around 90 minutes, features just one title card.

Answer: Asylum

'The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari', or 'Das Cabinet des Dr. Caligari' in German, typifies German Expressionist cinema. Films from this particular movement often had characteristically disorienting sets with quirky structures and claustrophobic walkways; such elaborate set design was very much in contrast to the simplicity favoured by the less well known Kammerspielfilm movement and films such as 'Der Letzte Mann'. Simple sets were perhaps favoured by the Kammerspielfilm movement in order to reflect the poverty-stricken nature of the Weimar Republic during bouts of hyperinflation.

'Das Cabinet des Dr. Caligari' is a silent horror film that is the vision of its director Robert Weine and writers Hans Janowitz and Carl Mayer. The film follows the sinister actions of a deranged hypnotist who manipulates a sleepwalker to commit crimes such as murder. The film is famous for its twist ending that takes place in an asylum but I certainly won't spoil it for you by mentioning it here!

Answer: Der Golem, wie er in die Welt kam

'Der Golem, wie er in die Welt kam', which translates from German into English as 'The Golem: How He Came into the World', is a classic film from the German Expressionist movement directed by Paul Wegener, who also stars as the titular character, the Golem. The Golem was constructed from clay by Rabbi Loew (Albert Steinrueck) and with some magical assistance, the mythical creature became animated. The Golem was created to stop the Romans from evicting the Jewish people from their ghetto in Prague.

It would be fair to say that Paul Wegener was somewhat obsessed with this story that has its roots in Jewish folklore; not only did he direct and star in 'Der Golem, wie er in die Welt kam', but he had also been heavily involved in bringing the legend to the screen in 1915 ('Der Golem'). In 1917, he directed a parody of 'Der Golem' called 'Der Golem und die Tänzerin' ('The Golem and the Dancing Girl'). Together these three films constitute an early example of a movie trilogy, though sadly the 1915 and 1917 instalments are largely considered to be lost.

Answer: Nosferatu

'Nosferatu', or to give it its full title 'Nosferatu, eine Symphonie des Grauens' ('Nosferatu: A Symphony of Horror'), is a film that perhaps shouldn't really exist. Clearly based upon the celebrated Bram Stoker novel, 'Dracula', 'Nosferatu' was created without any authorisation and, as such, is an illegal film. The film became the focus of court action and all copies of the film were ordered to be destroyed; this legal ruling has not stopped the silent film, directed by the great F. W. Murnau, from surviving and it is now considered an early classic in the horror genre.

In an effort, albeit futile, to stave off legal action, the film changed all the names of the characters and so in place of Count Dracula, we have Count Orlok; nosferatu was the generic name given to a vampire. The story is well known with the film opening with a businessman, Thomas Hutter, travelling to an unwelcoming, remote castle to meet a client - Count Orlok! Despite the local townsfolk attempting to dissuade Hutter from visiting the castle, he does so anyway and, in so doing, he enters a murky world of blood, death and horror.

There are many scenes of interest in 'Nosferatu' but my favourites include, one, the footage of Count Orlok creeping up the stairs, his shadow projected menacingly onto the wall behind him, and two, Count Orlok rising from his casket. An excellent film that would enthral fans of horror movies!

Answer: Metropolis

'Metropolis' is a 1927 film directed by Fritz Lang and based on the book penned by German novelist Thea von Harbou. The film is considered pioneering and is still much loved to this day despite being incoherent at times (lots of scenes cut and subsequently lost).

There is more than enough footage left to work out the general plot of the film which takes place in 2026. The film tracks the fortunes of the working class, who subsist in a bleak underground world (much like H. G. Wells' Morlocks), and how they are subject to the whims and desires of the wealthy rulers who live on the surface.

The film seeks to portray the means by which the two groups can live in harmony and concludes by way of intertitle that, "the mediator between the head [the wealthy rulers] and the hands [the workers] must be the heart".

Answer: Wings (1927)

Despite losing its distinction of being the only silent film to win the Academy Award for Best Picture when 'The Artist' picked up the award in 2012, 'Wings' will always be known as the first winner of the Best Picture Oscar. The film, starring Clara Bow and Buddy Rogers (and featuring a youthful Gary Cooper) portrays two men who both desire the affection of Mary Preston (Clara Bow).

Other themes that feature prominently include the friendship between two men (Buddy Rogers and Richard Arlen) and how one copes with the casualties of war.

Answer: Jackie Coogan

'The Kid' is a beautiful Charlie Chaplin film of 1921 that explores the relationship between Chaplin's famous "Tramp" and an abandoned child played by Jackie Coogan. The Tramp teaches the youngster, whom he names John, how to get on in the world by fair means or foul! It is all done in wonderful taste and good spirit which has resulted in the film being regarded very highly indeed. The film serves as an excellent introduction to the world of silent films. Silent films are not for everybody and can often take some getting used to, however 'The Kid' is only around one hour long and is consequently an easy watch.

Nearly half a century after Jackie Coogan featured in 'The Kid' he would go on to play the instantly recognisable character of Uncle Fester in the 1966 film 'The Addams Family'.

Answer: A Train

Starring Buster Keaton (as Johnnie Gray) and Marion Mack (as Annabelle Lee), 'The General' was released on New Year's Eve of 1926. Johnnie Gray was the excellent engineer of The General and as a consequence of his utility aboard the train he wasn't allowed to become a soldier in the Confederate Army. Through lack of communication (hey, it is a silent film!), his love interest, Annabelle Lee, comes to think that Keaton's character has refused to support the Confederates in their battle against the Union army in the American Civil War (1861-1865). 'The General' shows Gray's journey to success.

Answer: College

'College' is a light-hearted film from the dying days of the silent era that follows Buster Keaton's character, Ronald, on his journey from being a "most brilliant scholar" (as described on a title card) to an athletic supremo. The reason for this transition is of course his desire to attract the attention of a girl he likes, Mary Haynes (Anne Cornwall).

The film is not one of Keaton's best and it struggles to convince the audience that Ronald is athletically inept given the fact that Buster was an extremely fit individual. That said, there are some incredible stunts that make this film worth watching, most notably where Ronald pole vaults through a dormitory window.

Answer: City Lights

Often cited as one of Charlie Chaplin's best films, 'City Lights' proved that, when done well, silent films could still attract an audience (even if it was a hard sell) and be a critical success in a world where "talkies" had taken off. That said, very few people could have released a successful silent film in 1931 and it is very much due to the Charlie Chaplin brand that this project could even have got off the ground (keep in mind this is four years after 'The Jazz Singer' was released, promising that we "ain't heard nothin' yet").

The plot, which has been outlined in the question, culminates in a very famous scene which James Agee believed, in 1949, to be the "greatest single piece of acting ever committed to celluloid". It is not so much what happens in this scene but the incredible emotion conveyed to the audience in a purely physical way; the shy facial expressions of Chaplin and the unfolding realisation written all over the now-seeing eyes of Virginia Cherrill's character. I'm not ashamed to admit that the end of 'City Lights' brought a little tear to my eye.