True Grit (2010) Trivia Quiz

Answer: His Colt revolver

We learn in Mattie's voiceover at the start of the movie that Frank Ross had employed Chaney as a hired hand, and that the pair had traveled to Fort Smith to collect a string of Mustang ponies that Frank had purchased from Colonel G. Stonehill. While in town, Chaney lost all of his money to drink and cards, and became convinced that he was being cheated. When Chaney returned to the boarding house to retrieve his rifle, Frank tried to intervene and was shot for his trouble.

We see Chaney fleeing the scene, but not before robbing Frank of "his life and his horse, and two California gold pieces that he carried in his trouser pant". Chaney, however, does not steal Frank's gun, which is collected by Mattie, together with the rest of her father's belongings, from the boarding house later in the film. Mattie obtains an empty flour sack from the proprietress of the boarding house to tote the gun around, as she plans on using it to avenge her father's murder, if the law fails to do so.

Answer: That he is the meanest Marshal

The Sheriff informs Mattie that Chaney isn't a very high priority for the U.S. Marshals, so she enquires about placing a bounty on Chaney's head. "Well, nothing prevents you from offering a reward and so informing the Marshals," the Sheriff says. "It would have to be real money, though, to be persuasive." When Mattie asks for the name of the best Marshal, the Sheriff has to think it through. He tells her that William Walker is half Comanche and the best tracker, and that the meanest Marshal is Rooster Cogburn, who he describes as "a pitiless man, double tough and fear don't enter into his thinking". After some thought, the Sheriff concludes that the best Marshal is L.T. Quinn, because he tries to bring his prisoners in alive, and believes that "even the worst of men is entitled to a fair shake".

Mattie reveals that she is probably more interested in vengeance rather than justice when she asks the Sheriff, "Where can I find this Rooster?" Mattie eventually sees Marshal Cogburn at the Courthouse, where he is giving evidence in the prosecution of one Otis Wharton. The Defense counsel attempts to paint Cogburn as a trigger-happy killer, but this only seems to strengthen Mattie's resolve in her choice of Marshal. She walks up to Cogburn after the hearing to make her proposition, and says to him, "They tell me you're a man with true grit."

Answer: A Mustang pony

Mattie proves that she can hold her own while engaging in some literal horse-trading with Colonel Stonehill. Even though she is only 14, Mattie easily manages to one-up the more seasoned Colonel in her dealings with him. She succeeds in getting him to buy back the string of Mustang ponies her father had purchased, as her family no longer requires them now that her father is dead. She also gets the Colonel to pay for Judy, her father's saddle horse, on the basis that that he was the custodian of the horse when she was stolen by Chaney. Chaney had left behind the grey horse that was lent to him by her father, and Mattie gets the Colonel to buy him as well.

When Mattie returns to collect her money, the Colonel bemoans the poor deal he has struck. Mattie assures the Colonel that he will soon find another buyer for the ponies, and learns that the Colonel has received a tentative offer of $10 per head from the Fitzer Soap Works of Little Rock. "Well, look here," she tells him. "I need a pony and I will pay $10 for one of them." The Colonel replies absentmindedly, "No, that is a light price," before adding, "Wait a minute, are we trading again?" with a quiver in his lip. Mattie procures a beautiful black Mustang pony from the Colonel, which she names Little Blackie.

Answer: A kiss

Mattie awakens at the boarding house to find LaBoeuf sitting at the foot of her bed, smoking a pipe. He informs her that he has been tracking Chaney from Waco, Texas for shooting a Senator, and hopes to collect a sizable bounty on his head. Mattie is quick to discourage the Ranger. "My man will beat you to it," she informs LaBoeuf confidently. "I've hired a Deputy Marshal, the toughest one they have." When LaBoeuf proposes that they join forces, Mattie will have none of it. "When Chaney is taken, he's coming back to Fort Smith to hang," she says. "I'm not having him go to Texas to hang for shooting some Senator." LaBoeuf appears unimpressed. "It is not important where he hangs, is it?" he asks. Mattie replies that it is, and asks why it matters to LaBoeuf. "It means a great deal of money to me," he explains. "It's been many months' work." Mattie is unsympathetic, and replies bluntly that she's sorry that LaBoeuf has been "eluded the winter-long by a halfwit".

This proves to be too much for LaBoeuf to bear, and he rises to his feet in anger. "You give out very little sugar with your pronouncements," he says to Mattie. "While I sat there watching you I gave some thought to stealing a kiss, though you are very young and sick and unattractive to boot. But now I have a mind to give you five or six good licks with my belt." Mattie remains completely unfazed through the Ranger's outburst. "Well, one would be as unpleasant as the other," she retorts, before adding, "If you wet your comb it might tame that cowlick."

Answer: She crosses the river without the aid of a ferry.

Cogburn agrees to go after Chaney and the Ned Pepper gang for $100, but does not plan on taking Mattie along for the pursuit. He tells her to meet him in his room behind the Chinese grocery the next morning, but sets off earlier in the hopes of leaving Mattie behind. All she finds is an old Chinese man and a note from Cogburn, enclosing a train ticket for her journey home to Yell County.

Mattie rushes to the river crossing and finds Cogburn and LaBoeuf already on the other side. When the ferryman tries to escort her back to Fort Smith to hand her to the Sheriff, Mattie throws an apple at his head, and rides Little Blackie across the river without the aid of the ferry, her head barely above the water for most of the way. "That is quite a horse," Cogburn says to Mattie, after she crosses the river successfully. "I will give you $10 for him." Mattie is not in the mood for idle talk, and accuses Cogburn of stealing the $50 advance she had given him, as their agreement was for her to accompany him for the pursuit. "If I go back, it is to the U.S. Marshal's office to report the theft of my money," she informs Cogburn pointedly. "And 'futile', Marshal Cogburn, 'pursuit will be futile'?" she adds, referring to the note he left her, "It's not spelled 'f-u-d-e-l'." At this point, LaBoeuf dismounts and marches over to Mattie to administer a spanking for her impertinence.

Answer: A bear

Mattie and Marshal Cogburn part ways with LaBoeuf, after Cogburn decides that the prospect of collecting on Chaney's bounty is insufficient incentive to put up with LaBoeuf's opinions. He asks a passing Indian on horseback to signal him if he sees anyone following them, and when a single rifle shot rings out from the distance a little while later, Cogburn believes that LaBoeuf is on their trail. Cogburn and Mattie decide to stand their ground and wait for their former trail mate to catch up to them, but the person who appears is not LaBoeuf.

A rider enters the clearing with the appearance of an oddly docile grizzly on horseback. The illusion is broken when the rider gets closer, and reveals himself to be a man clothed in a bearskin. The man's name is Forrester, and he practices dentistry, veterinary arts and "medicine on those humans that would sit still for it". Neither Cogburn nor Mattie requires medical attention, but Cogburn does ask Forrester if he knows of a place where they can find shelter from the cold. He tells them of a dugout located in the hollow of a nearby river where they can spend the night.

Answer: A decent burial

When Mattie and Cogburn reach the dugout, they find Emmett Quincy and Moon inside with a store of whiskey and a suspiciously copious amount of food for the two of them. Cogburn suspects they are tied up with Ned Pepper and his gang, and tries to grill Quincy without much success. He turns his attention on the more weak-willed Moon, and when Moon begins to talk, Quincy takes out a knife he had hidden in his boot and stabs Moon in the chest in order to silence him. Cogburn shoots Quincy dead but the damage has already been done.

"Oh lord, I am dying. Do something. Help me," cries a frantic Moon. "I can do nothing for you, son," Cogburn replies. "Your partner's killed you and I've done for him," Moon begs Cogburn not to leave his body lying there for the wolves to rip up, so the Marshal vows to see that he is buried right if he tells him what he knows about Ned. Later, when Cogburn proposes to head for the mountains after Ned, Mattie reminds him of his promise to give Moon a decent burial. "Ground's too hard," Cogburn growls in reply. "Them men wanted a decent burial, they should have gotten themselves killed in summer."

Answer: "I misjudged you."

Despite starting off on the wrong foot with LaBoeuf, Mattie grows to appreciate the Ranger's strength of will in his pursuit of Chaney. When Cogburn declares that he is bowing out of the pursuit, Mattie tries to carry on without him. "I am going with you," she says to LaBoeuf as he prepares his horse to leave, pledging that she will be no more of a burden to him than she was to the Marshal. "That is not my worry," replies a weary LaBoeuf. "You have earned your spurs, that is clear enough. You've been a regular old hand on the trail. But Cogburn is right, even if I will not give him the satisfaction of conceding it. The trail is cold, and I am considerably diminished." Mattie refuses to accept that LaBoeuf can give up now after dedicating so many months to locating Chaney. "You have shown great determination," she tells him. "I misjudged you. I picked the wrong man."

"I would go on in your company if there were a clear way to go, but we'd be striking out blindly," replies LaBoeuf kindly. He tells Mattie that he is returning to Texas, and advises her to head home as well. Mattie is indignant. "I will not go back," she says flatly, "Not without Chaney, dead or alive." LaBoeuf is visibly moved. "I misjudged you as well," he says, as he inches closer to Mattie. "I extend my hand." Mattie takes his hand in hers, as tears well up in her eyes.

Answer: Mattie

Just when it seems like their prey has eluded them for good, Mattie chances upon Chaney while fetching water from the creek. She injures him with her father's pistol, but it misfires after the first, non-fatal shot, allowing Chaney to abduct Mattie and present her to Ned Pepper. Ned sets off with the rest of his gang to "The Old Place", but leaves Chaney behind with Mattie, and promises to send a fresh mount for him when he can. Chaney ponders his situation and attempts to silence Mattie when she won't keep quiet, but he is knocked out by LaBoeuf, who has heard the earlier gunshots and returned to investigate. While this is happening, Cogburn returns to confront Ned and his three companions and charges at them, taking the reins in his mouth so that both hands are free to draw on his pistols. He deals with all except for Ned, who is fatally wounded, but Ned manages to shoot Cogburn's horse, which falls, pinning him to the ground. As Ned comes in for the kill, LaBoeuf shoots him with his rifle from 400 yards, saving Cogburn's life.

Just then, Chaney appears and knocks LaBoeuf out with a rock, leaving Mattie to struggle with him for LaBoeuf's rifle. She gets the drop on Chaney, and shoots him in the chest, sending him flying off the cliff to his death.

Answer: A snakebite

The recoil from LaBoeuf's rifle causes Mattie to fall backwards and lose her footing, sending her falling into a steep chasm in the ground. In her struggle to free herself from some branches and roots, she awakens several rattlesnakes, who don't appreciate being disturbed from their slumber. Mattie is bitten on her hand by one of the snakes before she is rescued by Marshal Cogburn, who cuts an incision into the wound and sucks out as much of the poisonous venom as he can. They get out of the snakepit with the help of LaBoeuf, and set off immediately for help. Cogburn rides with Mattie through the night on Little Blackie, refusing to stop to rest. He rides the poor pony to exhaustion, and has to put the animal out of its misery after it collapses to the ground. Cogburn carries Mattie the rest of the way, guided only by the light from the stars above as he makes his way through Choctaw territory at night. When they finally reach Bagby's store, Cogburn kneels down on the ground and declares, "I'm growing old," between heavy pants.

In the film's epilogue, we learn that Mattie's hand had turned black from the snakebite, necessitating the amputation of her left arm. Mattie had achieved her goal of extracting retribution from Chaney for her father's murder, but it came at the cost of losing Little Blackie and her arm. But as Mattie herself said at the opening of the film, "We must pay for everything in this world, one way or another. There is nothing free, except the grace of God."