Nick's Film Quiz

1. Name the actress and any other members of the acting dynasty.

2. Who’s this and who’s her mum (and what’s the film)?

3. Who are these actors (and what’s the film)?

4. Who is this and name one of her films.

5. What’s the film?

6. Name the actors, the characters, and the sport under discussion!

7. Please supply name of film, tiger, and director!

8. The film is Major Barbara, but who is this in her debut?

9. An iconic shot from which film (and who’s the cinematographer)?

10. Which Hitchcock is this (and who’s back is it)?

11. Name these three actors, the film and director.

12. Which musical star is this and who’s she acting with?

13. Who’s playing who?

14. Who’s this and what’s the film called?

15. Name the actors, character names, and where are the letters of transit hidden?

16. The film?

17. The film?

18. This is the poster from which horror film?

19. This is the poster from which film?

20. This is the poster from which film, and who designed it?

21. Who are these people?

22. Who’s he and how many of his films can you name?

23. Actors and film please, plus names of any sequels.

24. Not even her debut (she was a baby in In Which We Serve), who did she grow up to be?

25. Name the director and massive bonus if you can name the actress.

26. Name film and director (and if possible, actor).

27. Who is she (correct spelling please).

28. The cast of which film?

29. Name the film, the writer-director and the actors.

30. What’s the film and where was it shot?

31. What’s the film and who aren’t quite in focus?

32. Name the film!

33. Who are these unattractive people and what’s the film called?

ANSWERS:

1. Drew Barrymore, grand-daughter of John, grand-niece of Ethel and Lionel.
2. Kate Hudson, daughter of Goldie Hawn.
3. Fred MacMurray, Edward G., Double Indemnity
4. Joan Greenwood, still from Kind Hearts and Coronets, filmog here
5. The Lady Vanishes.
6. Basil Radford (right) and Naunton Wayne, Charters and Caldicott, cricket.
7. Life of Pi, Richard Parker, Ang Lee.
8. Deborah Kerr.
9. Manhattan, Gordon Willis.
10. Marnie, Tippi Hedren.
11. Sidney Greenstreet, Peter Lorre, Humphrey Bogart, The Maltese Falcon, John Huston.
12. Debbie Reynolds, Albert Brooks.
13. Michelle Williams as Marilyn Monroe.
14. George Clooney O Brother Where Art Thou?
15. Rick (Bogie), Sam (Dooley Wilson), Ferrari (Sidney Greenstreet), in the piano.
16. Passport to Pimlico
17. Psycho
18. The Birds
19. Play It Again Sam
20. Vertigo, Saul Bass.
21. Martin Scorsese and Robert de Niro.
22. Roy Scheider in Marathon Man, best known for Jaws, The French Connection and All That Jazz, filmog here
23. In the Heat of the Night, Sidney Poitier & Rod Steiger, They Call Me Mister Tibbs, The Organization
24. Juliet Mills
25. Francois Truffaut directing Claude Jade.
26. Arsenic and Old Lace, Frank Capra, John Alexander.
27. Hattie McDaniel.
28. The Help
29. The Palm Beach Story, Preston Sturges, Robert Dudley, Claudette Colbert. 
30. The Shining. Elstree (Borehamwood).
31. The Third Man Joseph Cotten, Alida Valli
32. The Trouble with Harry
33. Javier Bardem, Penelope Cruz, Scarlett Johansson. Vicky Cristina Barcelona 

It's A Wonderful Life (1946)

The scene in which Stewart freaks out his family is key; and the one everybody relates to, giving the film its special power.

Robert J Anderson is perfect as the young George Bailey.

Lillian Randolph has the best line: "I've been saving for a divorce in case I ever get a husband."

Francesco Capra is the most (and least) famous Sicilian. I wonder if the combat footage shown is his own?

My Christmas text to Tom: "Just watched IAWL. Cried in the usual places."

I Met Him in Paris (1937 Wesley Ruggles)

A slightly misleading title as apart from the interiors of a hotel and American bar (and a quick stock shot of Paris) most of the action takes place in Switzerland (well, Aspen, anyway - - actually, I just checked: Idaho!)

Thin romantic quadrangle plot tells of Robert Young's infatuation with Claudette Colbert and the involvement of grumpy Melvyn Douglas.

Apart from a great stunt involving a bobsled there's not much to report, though Colbert is wearing a nice line in poodles:

The Big Sleep (1946 Howard Hawks)

Watched The Big Sleep again, properly this time - well as properly as you can after 15 brandies.

Thoughts? I got how good the script /dialogue is last time. (Forget the plot.) Bogie is like Poirot (always ahead of the game). "How do you like your brandy?" "In a glass."

Exchanges between Bogie and Bacall are fantastic (e.g. 'in the saddle', 'comes from behind' etc.)

I like when they phone the police and he starts saying 'my daughter wouldn't like that'-  it's got the flavour of They All Laughed (or rather, the other way around). Both films have sexy girl taxi drivers also (is They All Laughed  a remake of The Big Sleep?) And this is kind of where the Coen Brothers come from (Fargo).

I mean, it's great casting. I particularly like Martha Vickers as the bad sister. And that's a young Dorothy Malone as the bookstore owner (is that the origin of the scene where a girl takes off her glasses, lets her hair down and looks fantastic, or had this been done zillions of times before?)

She tried to sit on my lap while I was standing up.

Maybe Max Steiner's best score.

Somehow I love all the character names even though no one ever understands the plot: Colonel Sternwood, Eddie Mars, Sean Reagan, Mrs Rutledge, Geiger.

Is this Bogart's only moment of camp?

"Would you happen to have a copy of a Ben Hur 1860?"

Elisha Cook Jr is in it briefly.

The ear (he keeps pulling his ear).

Is it - to coin Paul Schrader - monocular? Bogie seems to be in every scene...

National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation (1989 Jeremiah S. Chechik)

So, it's the annual torture, I mean ritual.

You've not heard of Jeremiah S. Chechik? Well, neither have I. So let's leave that stone unturned.

I've never been a particular fan of Chevy Chase, though I have to admit that he has his moments e.g. falling apart when chatting to sexy perfume salesgirl. I also don't get on with Randy Quaid's character. At all.

Um. What else? I like the moment where they're all told to freeze and Beverly D'Angelo has her hand over Chevy's balls. And says something like "this is all we've got left'... I don't know. Something!

"The coffin - I mean the tree." I liked the bannister gag that references IAWL.

Written by John Hughes and unmistakably of his scent.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 (2011)

Here's my premiere review 26 July 2011.

Usual lot including Ralph Fiennes (managing the trick of looking scary and sad under all the make-up), Matthew Lewis (Neville), Tom Felton (Draco), Evanna Lynch (Luna), Kelly Macdonald (ghost of Ravenclaw), Ciaran Hinds (Dumbledore's brother), Nick Moran.

More beautiful dark photography by Eduardo Serrra (Panavision).
Music Alexandre Desplat. Editing Mark Day.
Absolutely sensational (use of) CGI.

I felt the ending lacked a big finish, something clever, a laugh, and the final duel is one fiery wand scene too many. Hardly anyone has any decent scenes. So I think Yates let us down a bit.

And today, after having watched the whole series and back to back with Part One:

Inflatus! Suffers from The Hobbit problem (why make a book into two or three films?) It's gone very Hollywoody (big Hollywoody music, OTT Gringotts sequence, big Lord of the Rings style battle). Where's Hagrid (in both parts)? Good writing though (Maggie: "I've always wanted to use that spell") and there's a couple of moments where there could have been a cheesy Hollywoody line, but they didn't, so maybe it wasn't too Hollywoody. Loved the moment where Mrs Weasley (does she have a first name?) despatches Bellatrix (we don't really see enough of HBC). Also thought Warwick Davies was a great goblin. Don't see enough of Ginny. (That's how you feel after too many Martinis.)

There is an Eduardo Serra moment in each film. This one is:

Alan (pause) Rickman (pause) is very funny again - almost like he's doing the piss-take version of himself with his very deliberate delivery.

Somebody says "Snape knows" and that made me laugh a lot because of 'Snapnose'.

Harry Potter really is the politest young man.

Q points out great sound design too.

Film music at the Proms

Actually beginning to tire of seeing the same bits of Psycho performed live, although the strings do look amazing in the shower scene. Why don't they ever perform Vertigo, arguably the greatest film soundtrack music?

Steiner's Casablanca medley enjoyable; The Big Country dispensable; Korngold's Robin Hood not nearly as good as his Kings Row theme. The star is David Raksin's sax led melody to Laura.

Forgot the Tom & Jerry music - were those guys on coke?

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1 (2010 David Yates)

Eduardo Serra has taken over on camera - known for his historical, natural light films he seems an odd choice for a special effects movie - though we benefit from some refreshingly natural night lighting.

Of all the series this is the one with a saggy middle (Steve Kloves writing) after a spectacular aerial battle opening. If you apply the Man Who Came to Dinner rule it needs Jimmy Durante to turn up. Nevertheless we get wonderful turns from Bill Nighy, Ralph Fiennes, Imelda Staunton and Helena Bonham Carter, and I found myself shedding a tear over the death of an animation - quite how that happened I have no idea. If you look how the special effects have improved since the first episode it's quite amazing. This is unmistakably a Part One. Nick Moran is in it too.

But the outstanding moment in the film is Ben Hibon's Framestore animation which is fucking fantastic:

It's actually better then the whole film. You can watch it here. It was apparently inspired by Lotte Reniger, but transcends her animations by a thousandfold (note even the lighting that makes it appear we're watching something theatrical - genius Q thinks the inspiration more likely Sicilian puppet shows). We had to run it twice.

The Man Who Came to Dinner

It must be Christmas.

See here.

Monte you old devil, are you taking a sneaky peek at Ann Sheridan's CDNs?

Finally Sheri is beginning to regret what he's done to Maggie...

...then a rescue plan emerges!

Finding Neverland (2004 Marc Forster)

I like Johnny Depp when he's playing a human, non-pantomime character and here his Scottish accent is a top notch addition. Kate Winslet is as good as usual and great to see Julie Christie (as stern mother). The kid in crisis is Freddie Highmore ("It's just a bit of silliness"). With Radha Mitchell (Woody Allen's Melinda and Melinda), Dustin Hoffman, Ian Hart, Kelly Macdonald, Mackenzie Crook, Toby Jones. Considering it's all about writing and performing plays it's interesting that the souce was one, written by Alan Knee, well opened up by David Magee and Forster with many striking cinematic moments, my favourite of which being the wooden seas of the pirate ship.

I was wondering how Forster got the Bond (Quantum of Solace) on the back of this, but in between he made The Kite Runner (and Stranger Than Fiction).

Photographed by Roberto Schaefer in Panavision (all Forster's films, including Monster's Ball).
Music by Jan Kaczmarek.

Lucan (2013 Adrian Shergold)

1. Who cares about Lucky Mad Lord Lucan Cuntington anyhow?
2. How did this get commissioned?
3. Who thought Chris Ecclestone was right for the part of Aspinall? (Would love to have seen Jude Law play him.)

Script lacks character empathy, an interesting story and a decent ending. Rory Kinnear so underperforms Lucan that he almost disappears into the background of the film: if that was the intention then it worked well, but was a foolish approach.

Shot by Tony-Slater Ling and written by Jeff Pope (Dirty Filthy Love, Appropriate Adult) so not without talent, but I rather felt it was the waste of an evening.

The Asphalt Jungle (1950 John Huston)

Sterling Hayden, Sam Jaffee (for me the billing order here is correct), Louis Calhern, Marc Lawrence (the numbers man),  Jean Hagen, James Whitmore (bar owner), Anthony Caruso (who mixes his own 'soup'!), Barry Kelley ('You can never trust a bent cop - you never know when they're going to go straight'), Marilyn Monroe (looking very slender), Brad Dexter (private eye).

Adapted by Huston and Ben Maddow from novel by W.R. Burnett (career spans Scarface to the Great Escape), including great dialogue like the above examples, 'he boned me', 'behind the walls' etc. Also very well acted by all. Hayden unexpectedly turns out to be a character of integrity, which is why Jaffee's 'Doctor' enlists and trusts him in the first place, and the ending featuring horses is touching. (Would it be too pretentious to suggest it anticipates Au Hasard Balthazar? Probably.)

Marries the old familiar film noir creep with the Huston situation in which a group of disparate characters are brought together, only then to unravel.

Shot by Harold Rossen and scored by Miklós Rózsa (not that there is much music in it). The definitive heist movie: ironic, tragic, taut and tense.

One Two Three (1961 Billy Wilder)

Coke executive in Berlin has problems when boss's daughter comes to stay. Jimmy Cagney, Arlene Francis (very good - "Now that's a Scarlet Hazeltine if I ever saw one"), Horst Buchholz, Pamela Tiffin, Lilo Pulver (a dishy and somewhat mercenary secretary, below).

Great supporting cast: Hanns Lothar as the energetic assistant (who always comes in when Cagney and Pulver are kissing), and the three trade commissars - who are no doubt based on the three Russians from Ninotchka (which Wilder cowrote):

Hanns Lothar

Leon Askin, Peter Capell, Ralf Wolter. "OK. Minsk is out, Pinsk is in."

Beautifully structured (note the way various objects are introduced which have a plot or joke purpose: balloon; brolly; cuckoo clock; polka dot dress; chewing gum) and peppered with great jokes and pot-shots (some of contemporary reference that we no longer understand) which build up a great momentum. Dialogue and film often moves in threes. Cagney's energy, particularly in long dialogue-heavy scenes, fantastic (he apparently rehearsed by dancing through the lines to get the right timing).

Doctor "What's wrong?" "I'm missing the first act of the Valkyrie" (then the Wagner makes it into the soundtrack). Also jokes about 'umlaut'.

Sign painter hanging out of the car is the climax of all the people brought in to quickly help Americanize Buchholz:

Ed. Daniel Mandell - amazing credits since 1924

Based on Austrian play by Ferenc Molnár

Music André Previn contributes to usual funny Wilder bar scene (the 'Hotel Potemkin' in another little joke).

Ph Daniel L Fapp
PD Trauner

Previously 24 July 2011. Like many Wilders it just keeps getting better.

Note: Safe combination 22-5-17 sure sounds like a date reference to me. Could be the Hungarian Prime Minister Istvan Tisza resigning (Billy would have been 10)? It's not Audrey's birthday...

The Shop Around the Corner (1940 Ernst Lubitsch)

Classic comedy romance from MGM featuring the great Felix Bressart, who had the distinction of acting in two of Lubitsch's other 40s classics Ninotchka and To Be or Not to Be. A Jewish emigré from Nazi Germany via Austria, he died sadly young of leukemia at 57. Whilst we are used to him with moustache it's good to see him also without:

scr, Samson Raphaelson
Ph William Daniels

Note great Lubitsch moments such as Bressart avoiding boss - "I just want an honest opinion." It happens three times, like many gags, and in the third all we need to see is his foot appearing on a staircase, then disappearing!

Also when Pepi rushes in to Matuschek's office, all we're allowed to see is a light shattering from a bullet.

Above, Frank Morgan with William Tracy (as Pepi he has many scene stealing moments). Joseph Schildkraut is the super-oily salesman Vardas and the lovelorn couple are of course James Stewart and Margaret Sullavan.

The Big Sleep (1946 Howard Hawks)

Absolutely brilliant script - by novelist William Faulkner, and frequent Hawks collaborators Leigh Bracket and Jules Furthman - performed by a brilliant cast and brilliantly scored by Max Steiner.

Bogie's adventures in bookstores are most amusing. People keep calling him "soldier", which I find interesting.

Love Actually (2003 Richard Curtis & scr)

It is that time of year.

My favourite story involves the prime minister and his secretary. Martine McCutcheon is so winning and likeable it's amazing she wasn't snapped up for tons of hit movies.

Also love story with Colin Firth and Portuguese Lúcia Moniz (with lots of jokes in the subtitles), Martin Freeman and Joanna Page charming as sex stand-ins and Rowan Atkinson's funny in bit part.

And then some of it's rather mushy and - did I miss something? - Laura Linney's story doesn't seem to conclude.

Curtis's directorial debut is shot by regular partner Michael Coulter.

Bad Santa (2003 Terry Zwigoff)

Disgusting reprobate Billy Bob Thornton and Tony Cox (Me Myself and Irene) are posing as Santa and Elf so they can crack safes over holiday period. Uncared for kid Brett Kelly forms unswerving attachment to foul-mouthed Santa and appears immune to all curses and dissuasion. Bernie Mac and John Ritter are also involved, Lauren Graham is the love? sex interest.

It's actually rather good fun and likeable - the perfect antidote to the sort of tosh on Channel 5's Christmas schedule (recent offerings - in all seriousness - include Will You Merry Me, The Christmas Heart and Mistletoe Over Manhattan). Written by Glenn Ficarra and John Requa.

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (2009 David Yates)

Dark drama with Amelie's Bruno Delbonnel a great choice for cameraman. Jim Broadbent is as good as always as the new Dark Arts master. The kids are falling in and out of love. Yates is using the edges of the frame well.

Was never entirely sure about Rowling's controversial ending.

 

Loved the moment of the power of the wizard:

Also Gambon's brilliantly timed line "Ah, to be young again and feel love's sting."

Also Ginny Weasley (Bonny Wright) is  following in Hermione's footsteps in being another great role model for girls. Amongst other feats she runs straight through a fence of fire that has repelled the adults.

It's just a bit disappointing though, when you watch other films with paintings in them and they don't move.

An Adventure in Space and Time (2013 Terry McDonagh)

David Bradley is great recreating William Hartnell in story of how Doctor Who got underway under producer Verity Lambert (Jessica Raine, who often looks like she's eaten something unpleasant) and director Waris Hussein (Sacha Dhawan).

Down and Out in Beverley Hills (1986 Paul Mazursky)

Adapted by Mazursky and Leon Capetanos from René Fauchois' play 'Boudu Sauvé des Eaux' previously filmed in 1932 by Jean Renoir.

Nick Nolte, Richard Dreyfuss, Better Midler, Elizabeth Pena, Mike the (extremely well-trained) Dog, who is perhaps over-directed at times.

Last seen 31 August 2010. This is the one where he gives the boy next door an apple. So what's the one with the triple stitched suits?

Obviously theme is Talking Heads, but other music is by Andy Summers (Police).

Ph. Donald McAlpine (Australian, then tons of comedies and things like Moulin Rouge (Oscar nom.)).

Still funny - "Call 911!" and Bette's orgasm.