Question 1

In 'Psycho' (1960), what is the name of the fictional town that Marion Crane steals $40,000 from?

Accepted Answer

Phoenix. Marion Crane works at a real estate office in Phoenix, Arizona, and steals $40,000 from a client there before driving to the Bates Motel.

Question 2

In 'Sunset Boulevard' (1950), what is the profession of narrator Joe Gillis at the story's opening?

Accepted Answer

Struggling screenwriter. Joe Gillis is an unsuccessful Hollywood screenwriter whose voiceover narrates the film, famously, from beyond the grave.

Question 3

Which director used the same actress — Harriet Andersson — in a scene where she plays chess with Death in a classic 1957 film?

Accepted Answer

Ingmar Bergman. Ingmar Bergman directed 'The Seventh Seal' (1957), featuring Max von Sydow playing chess with Death, with Harriet Andersson appearing in other Bergman films of that era — the chess-with-Death scene is Bergman's signature.

Question 4

In 'Singin' in the Rain,' Gene Kelly's famous rainy dance sequence uses a prop umbrella. What color is it?

Accepted Answer

Black. Gene Kelly carries a standard black umbrella during the iconic 'Singin' in the Rain' number, which he swings and twirls throughout the sequence.

Question 5

In 'Amadeus' (1984), which composer narrates the story as an aging man confessing his jealousy of Mozart?

Accepted Answer

Antonio Salieri. F. Murray Abraham plays Antonio Salieri as the bitter narrator in Miloš Forman's 'Amadeus,' confessing his perceived role in Mozart's downfall to a priest.

Question 6

In 'Citizen Kane,' the item that triggers Kane's dying word 'Rosebud' is ultimately revealed to be what?

Accepted Answer

A childhood sled. Rosebud is the brand name on Kane's boyhood sled, symbolizing the innocence he lost when taken from his mother.

Question 7

In Kubrick's '2001: A Space Odyssey,' what is the first word spoken aloud in the film?

Accepted Answer

Yes. After roughly 25 minutes of wordless action, the first spoken word is 'Yes' when Dr. Heywood Floyd responds to a greeting via a video call.

Question 8

Which famous film score was composed in just two weeks under extreme deadline pressure by its composer?

Accepted Answer

Psycho. Bernard Herrmann composed and recorded the entire 'Psycho' score in approximately two weeks, famously using only string instruments.

Question 9

Which film features the line 'What we've got here is a failure to communicate,' listed among AFI's top movie quotes?

Accepted Answer

Cool Hand Luke. The line is delivered by the Captain (Strother Martin) to Paul Newman's character Luke in 'Cool Hand Luke' (1967).

Question 10

Which actress played the lead role in both 'Rosemary's Baby' (1968) and 'The Haunting of Hill House' author Shirley Jackson's screen adaptation 'The Haunting' — neither, as it was someone else. Who starred in 'Rosemary's Baby'?

Accepted Answer

Mia Farrow. Mia Farrow played Rosemary Woodhouse in Roman Polanski's 1968 psychological horror classic Rosemary's Baby.

Question 11

Which director famously used a single unbroken 10-minute take to open his 1958 film 'Touch of Evil'?

Accepted Answer

Orson Welles. Orson Welles opened 'Touch of Evil' with a celebrated continuous crane shot lasting over three minutes (often misremembered as ten), widely considered one of cinema's greatest single takes.

Question 12

Which composer wrote the iconic four-note motif that opens John Williams' 'Jaws' score — widely misattributed only to Williams?

Accepted Answer

John Williams alone. John Williams alone composed the 'Jaws' theme; the question tests the misconception that he borrowed it — he didn't, and won the Academy Award for the score.

Question 13

In 'Singin' in the Rain,' Debbie Reynolds' singing voice was dubbed for some songs by which future Hollywood vocalist?

Accepted Answer

Betty Noyes. Betty Noyes dubbed parts of Debbie Reynolds' vocals in 'Singin' in the Rain,' including 'Would You,' in an irony fitting the film's own plot about voice dubbing.

Classic FilmTrivia Questions & Answers

Classic Film Quiz — 13 Questions

1. In 'Psycho' (1960), what is the name of the fictional town that Marion Crane steals $40,000 from?

2. In 'Sunset Boulevard' (1950), what is the profession of narrator Joe Gillis at the story's opening?

3. Which director used the same actress — Harriet Andersson — in a scene where she plays chess with Death in a classic 1957 film?

4. In 'Singin' in the Rain,' Gene Kelly's famous rainy dance sequence uses a prop umbrella. What color is it?

5. In 'Amadeus' (1984), which composer narrates the story as an aging man confessing his jealousy of Mozart?

6. In 'Citizen Kane,' the item that triggers Kane's dying word 'Rosebud' is ultimately revealed to be what?

7. In Kubrick's '2001: A Space Odyssey,' what is the first word spoken aloud in the film?

8. Which famous film score was composed in just two weeks under extreme deadline pressure by its composer?

9. Which film features the line 'What we've got here is a failure to communicate,' listed among AFI's top movie quotes?

10. Which actress played the lead role in both 'Rosemary's Baby' (1968) and 'The Haunting of Hill House' author Shirley Jackson's screen adaptation 'The Haunting' — neither, as it was someone else. Who starred in 'Rosemary's Baby'?

11. Which director famously used a single unbroken 10-minute take to open his 1958 film 'Touch of Evil'?

12. Which composer wrote the iconic four-note motif that opens John Williams' 'Jaws' score — widely misattributed only to Williams?

13. In 'Singin' in the Rain,' Debbie Reynolds' singing voice was dubbed for some songs by which future Hollywood vocalist?

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