The Old Curiosity Cinema Trivia Quiz

Answer: Torn Curtain

"Torn Curtain" was directed by Alfred Hitchcock. It was released in 1966. The main stars were Paul Newman and Julie Andrews. It was based on the book with the same name by Brian Moore. It revolved around a scientist from the United States who, in his quest to obtain for his country a chemical formula, pretended to defect to East Germany.

Answer: Without a Clue

"Without a Clue" was directed by Thom Eberhardt. It was released in 1988. The main protagonists were Michael Caine and Ben Kingsley. The movie was in fact a parody of the Sherlock Holmes stories by Arthur Conan Doyle. The main idea was that Watson was the real detective and "Holmes" nothing but Watson's creation, with actor Reginald Kincaid hired to play the role of Holmes. Together, while their relationship was strained and tarnished, they had to stop arch-criminal Professor Moriarty and his scheme to destroy the British Empire financially.

Answer: Gods and Generals

"Gods and Generals" was directed by Ronald Maxwell. It was released in 2003. It was based on the book with the same name by Jeffrey Shaara. The main roles were played by Stephen Lang, Robert Duvall and Jeff Daniels. The film focused on the first two years of the American Civil War and primarily on Confederate General Thomas Jonathan "Stonewall" Jackson, his religion, how it affected him and his gallantry and bravery on the battlefield.

The three battles depicted in the movie were First Manassas(Bull Run), a Confederate victory where Jackson acquired his nickname; Fredericksburg, a Confederate victory with tremendous losses inflicted to the Union army and Chancellorsville, called General Robert E. Lee's masterpiece, where the Confederates won a stunning victory but Jackson was mortally wounded by friendly fire.

The movie ended with Jackson's funeral.

Answer: The Quiet American

There were two films made named "The Quiet American". The first was released in 1958, starring Audie Murphy and Michael Redgrave. Author Graham Greene, who had written the book with the same name, disavowed the film, because the storyline was changed in some parts and because the whole outlook of the film was changed from anti-American to pro-American on the request of Audie Murphy.

The second film, released in 2002, starred Michael Caine and Brendan Fraser. This one followed more closely the book, including its political point of view.

It was very acclaimed, both by critics and the public.

Answer: The Pianist

"The Pianist" was released in 2002. It was directed by Roman Polanski and based on the book with the same name by Wladyslaw Szpilman. The film followed Szpilman's attempts to survive in a Nazi-occupied Warsaw while World War Two was in progress. It also depicted the harsh conditions the Jews were forced to live in under the Nazi regime and the way they were treated by their oppressors alongside the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising and the consequences it had upon the inmates of it.

The film ended somewhat after World War Two, depicting a liberated Warsaw and Szpilman playing a work of Chopin.

Answer: The Trouble With Harry

The black comedy titled "The Trouble With Harry" was directed by Alfred Hitchcock and released in 1955. The film took place in a village in Vermont, where the body of a man named Harry Warp was discovered by a young boy in the nearby woods. The trouble was who was the man, who was responsible for his death and what should be done with his body, as all the main characters wanted to avoid an investigation for Harry's death.

Answer: A Shot in the Dark

"A Shot in the Dark" was released in 1964. It was the second installment of the "Pink Panther" series, starring Peter Sellers in the role of incompetent Inspector Jacques Clouseau of the Surete. In the movie, Clouseau tried to investigate the murder of a Parisian plutocrat's Spanish chauffeur.

While all the evidence pointed to Maria Gambrelli, the maid, Clouseau had fallen in love with her. More murders occurred and Maria was arrested for all, but Clouseau always set her free. Meanwhile, he was four times arrested by uniformed police while in disguise, trying to crack the case. And all this occurs while Clouseau's boss, driven mad by his subordinates' blunders, was trying to kill him.

Answer: The Last Emperor

"The Last Emperor", a biographical film about the last Emperor of China, Aisin-Gioro Puyi, told Puyi's story from his summoning to the Forbidden City in 1908 to his death. It covered events such as the abolition of monarchy in China, the creation of the nation "Manchukuo", actually a scheme of the Japanese to extend their domination in the Pacific and the Far East and Mao's Cultural Revolution, a period of unrest and suffering for the Chinese people.

A special guest star in the film was actor Peter O'Toole, who played the part of Puyi's tutor, Mr. Johnston.

Answer: The Man Who Knew Too Much

There were two movies entitled "The Man Who Knew Too Much", both directed by Alfred Hitchcock. The earlier version, the one of 1934, belonged to the director's "British period", but the more well-known is the remake, the 1956 version, also known as the "American version".

The plot had some alterations in the two movies, which changed the course of the film more or less. In the earlier version, the main characters were portrayed by Leslie Banks and Edna Best, while in the second version the main roles were played by James Stewart and Doris Day.

The second version also featured the song "Que Sera, Sera (Whatever Will Be, Will Be)".

Answer: The Maltese Falcon

Two movies with that title have been released, in 1931 and 1941, while in 1936, a loose adaptation with the title "Satan Met a Lady" circulated. Basis for the two films was the novel by Dashiell Hammett. In the 1941 version, the main stars were Humphrey Bogart and Mary Astor, with other known actors of the era participating, such as Peter Lorre. Both movies dealt with a Private Investigator in San Francisco who was charged with finding the Maltese Falcon, a small statue of a falcon decorated with precious jewels.