Pick the Flick. Trivia Quiz

Answer: Wuthering Heights

"Heathcliff and Cathy in a doomed romance, two soulmates in an amorous dance, of spite and vengeance and tragedy, all conducted with malicious glee."

Laurence Olivier and Merle Oberon star in this 1939 release which only covers about two thirds or thereabouts of Emily Bronte's magnificent novel. Heathcliff, an orphan taken in by a kindly doctor, bonds in more ways than ten with the doctor's wild and willful daughter Cathy in the house they live in called Wuthering Heights. They're meant for each other and they both know it but Cathy aspires to a life with the sort of opulence Heathcliff could never be able to provide, being a mere stablehand of dubious origin. So Cathy marries the wealthy Edgar and settles in with him in a house called Thrushcross Grange after Heathcliff runs away upon hearing her admit to their housekeeper that she could never marry the poor sap (my words, not hers.) A few years later, Heathcliff mysteriously reappears on the scene as a very rich man and proceeds to take ownership of Wuthering Heights and cause strife for Cathy and Edgar in great vendetta style. All in the name of love of course. And this is just a fraction of the plot. Taken together with the novel and Kate Bush's superb song of the same name, it's part of a trio of great storytelling.

Answer: Amadeus

"The music in this is simply divine, the direction and acting are all very fine, it won eight Oscars, deservedly so. But is it all fiction? Well yes...but then again no!"

The storyline of "Amadeus" is a beauty despite its apocryphal premise. Antonio Salieri, court composer to the Emperor Joseph in 18th century Vienna, meets foul mouthed, crude, childish fellow composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and is consumed with a mixture of envy, hatred and admiration for the man, in the meantime having doubts about his own musical ability and blaming God for giving the gift of genius to the wrong composer. The running battle with God, in the form of a long confession to a priest years after Mozart's death forms the framework of the plot in which, via flashback, we witness the relationship between the two composers and the steadily increasing madness of Salieri as he plots his revenge against both God and Mozart. This is the almost entirely fictional premise of the movie. The non fiction of course is Mozart's music, heard throughout in all its stunning glory.

Answer: Gone With The Wind

"The casting of Scarlett O'Hara took ages, they wanted an actress of perfect fit, so a zillion Americans were auditioned on stages, but who got the role? Vivien Leigh and she was a Brit!"

For sheer spectacle, drama, romance and one has to admit, proliferation of hokum, this movie is hard to beat. Holding it all together magnificently is Vivien Leigh as Scarlett O'Hara, at the start of the movie a self-centred, beautiful young woman who hankers after Ashley Wilkes, a man who barely knows she exists. As the American Civil War takes its toll, Scarlett becomes wiser, resourceful and only marginally less self-centred. Clark Gable as Rhett Butler has a big hand in changing Scarlett's minxish ways and we all prefer his lovable rogue over the noble but rather bland Ashley anyway. The characterisation of African-Americans is oh so politically incorrect from our vantage point in history but hey, the powers that be didn't know any better when they made this film.

Answer: Bonnie And Clyde

"Released in 1967, this masterpiece is a film buff's heaven. From beginning to end it's a work of art, Clyde's very charming and Bonnie's his tart."

Based on the true story of Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow, Depression era bank robbers, this movie is an admittedly glamorous account of their misdeeds and their efforts to stay one step ahead of the law. Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway star, how can it not be glamorous? It has a poetic quality in spite of the liberal use of violence and a subplot deals with attempts to iron out problems in the sexual relationship between the two protagonists.

Answer: The Godfather

"A fascinating portrait of the world of organized crime, with a tale at times quite shocking but overall sublime. With Brando as the Godfather and Pacino as his son it's a cinematic marvel with thrills for everyone. "

"The Godfather" is a film once seen, never forgotten. Don Vito Corleone, a Mafia chief controlling gambling, protection money and prostitution rings refuses to assist a rival Don in setting up a narcotics racket, a concept Vito finds disgusting. This triggers off a gangland war, backstabbing of all kinds and the rise of Corleone's son Michael from non interest in the Mafia lifestyle to the ultimate position in its hierarchy, with a need for family vengeance the key to his about face. Interestingly, the word 'Mafia' is never mentioned throughout the film with producer Al Ruddy being pressured not to by the head of the Italian-American Civil Rights League who was also, surprise surprise, a crime boss.

Answer: Planet Of The Apes

"Based on a novel by Pierre Boulle, this starred Charlton Heston who was a bit of a tool. He played the astronaut finding there on the beach, the aforementioned statue just within reach. When he saw which particular statue it was, he cursed and he screamed and he shouted because.... (sorry, don't want to spoil the ending.)"

This is the original 'apes in control, humans as subservient' version of a story spawning countless sequels and a recent remake. Astronauts crash land on a planet, and in a charming role reversal, it's apes who are the rulers and humans who are nothing more than lower life forms. Needless to say, this doesn't go down too well with feisty lead astronaut Charlton Heston. One of the all time great movie endings which it would be remiss of me to reveal to people who have not seen the film.

Answer: The Piano

"Though very strange in lots of ways, attentive viewing certainly pays. Holly Hunter and Anna Paquin are simply sublime, this pic is well worth your valuable time. Special mention to Michael Nyman whose music is great and whose name rhymes with rhymin'."

An amazingly original movie with magnificent performances, Holly Hunter plays Ada, a Scottish woman who is mute although by design only. Along with her precocious child Flora, she travels from Scotland to New Zealand to meet the man she has previously arranged to marry. There are two ways the resolutely silent Ada can express herself clearly. One is through her daughter who acts as chief interpreter and intermediary, the other is through her passionate skills on the piano she has lugged along with her on the boat trip out to what seems like the edge of the world. For this is 19th century New Zealand and it's pretty much nothing but forests and mud. Ada's new husband is, to put it mildly, a jerk and wants no piano in his little mud shack no how. He leaves it on the shore, a neighbour pinches it, Ada wants it back, and the most bizarre love story ensues. Directed and written by Jane Campion and gorgeously shot, it's slow moving and the action as such is minimal. But it's an engrossing story and Holly Hunter and Anna Paquin as Flora are riveting. Well deserved Oscars went to Paquin, Hunter and Campion's aptly named original screenplay.

Answer: A Night At The Opera

"Groucho, Chico, Harpo Marx. The cream of the crop, the brightest of sparks. It was made in 1935 and is still so wonderfully fresh and alive. A jewel in M.G.M's glorious crown, in a thousand years it'll still be around."

How do you describe the plot of a Marx Brothers movie when plots have nothing to do with the reason for watching them? Comic anarchy doesn't need a plot but I'll try to explain it nevertheless. Groucho (the wisecracking one) is keen on getting his grubby hands on wealthy Margaret Dumont's money to form an opera company. He may even be keen on getting his grubby hands on Margaret. Meanwhile, Chico (the piano playing,scheming, semi-literate one) is both an ally and a foil in Groucho's plans while Harpo (the one who never speaks,communicates by beeping a hooter, and is pretty handy on the harp) is there to simply do what he does best: cause chaos. The majority of the action takes place on a ship sailing to New York with Chico and Harpo as stowaways. There's an evil villain (the not very nice opera star), a wannabe opera star and his love interest, and enough visual and verbal gags to make your sides split with laughter. Two scenes in particular have been in the Comedy Hall Of Fame ever since the movie's release, one involving a legal contract which literally gets ripped to shreds, the other a very crowded shipboard cabin. If you want to see comic genius in action, look no further. No synopsis can do justice to the plot, you simply have to watch the movie.

Answer: Sunset Boulevard

"What can you say about Billy Wilder that hasn't been said before? He directed this stunning pic and directed several more. He also had a hand in the writing along with a guy called Brackett, and the picture they painted of Hollywood, to put it mildly, caused some sort of racket. Not acclaimed at the time of release, it's now a worldwide treasure. A film to be watched again and again, an undeniable pleasure.(As an aside, my use of 'hunky dory' in the question is a deliberate tribute to David Bowie, who passed away as I was writing this quiz, and to one of his finest albums.)"

Art imitates life. Gloria Swanson was a big star in the silent movie days but sort of faded away after the talkies arrived. "Sunset Boulevard", made in 1950, was her comeback movie. So what part does she play? A former silent movie great, who wants to make a comeback. The similarities end there however. Swanson plays a demented, delusional version of herself, Norma Desmond, a character who hires a down on his luck screenwriter named Joe Gillis to tidy up a film script she has been working on for ages. Cynicism is the key word to describe the mood of this film and William Holden as Joe provides the vast majority of it, with the aid of Billy Wilder and Charles Brackett's pungent dialogue. This film does not paint a nice picture of the Hollywood read about in those old time movie magazines which is the reason it wasn't a hit at first. Fast forward many decades and it regularly appears on lists of greatest ever movies, more often than not in the top ten. Simply brilliant.

Answer: The Wizard Of Oz

"The Wizard Of Oz" holds up so well, its marvels as fresh as a daisy. And the great Judy Garland is a joy to behold, in the days before she got hazy. An interesting fact to declare in this space while I've got you quizzers all pinned, is that Victor Fleming, the director of Oz, went on to shoot "Gone With The Wind."

Originally a book, then a couple of now forgotten silent movies, it wasn't until 1939 that the definitive, never to be surpassed version was produced. Do I really need to tell you about Dorothy, her dog Toto, the Scarecrow, the Tin Man, the Cowardly Lion, all sorts of witches good and bad, an eccentric wizard, hundreds and hundreds of singing, dancing Munchkins, the yellow brick road, those magical ruby slippers, the beautifully poignant ending? Do I really need to tell you? Huh?