The Hunger Trivia Quiz

Answer: Catherine Deneuve

Catherine is a beautiful and less than effusive character actress. She can convey moods in complete silence or a concise statement. One of her very early films, "Repulsion", features her as an adolescent who fears men and reacts violently to their advances. She generally became cast as a mysterious femme fatale, elegant and aloof.
In "The Hunger" she is Miriam Blaylock, a very, very old vampire who enjoys perpetual youth. In her attic she keeps many caskets with the remains of her former lovers going back to ancient Egypt. They are not dead and cannot die while she lives. She promised them eternal life and that is what they suffer from, but they didn't get eternal youth and some of them are mere skeletons, still living and screaming.
This film does not abide by some of the vampire myths: Miriam goes out in daylight, and she wears an ankh (cross-shaped amulet). She must feed on people regularly to sustain herself; this involves more than drinking their blood, as there is not much left of the body once drained, so it is carried down to the furnace for disposal. When she takes a lover, it is by drinking only some of the blood and allowing the victim to drink of herself. Her blood keeps her lover alive. No fangs are shown, and very little blood. The basic premise of the film is the fear of aging more than of death.

Answer: David Bowie

David Bowie, the British rock star, has many albums and several films to his credit, among which are "The Man Who Fell to Earth", "Labyrinth", and the 2006 "The Prestige" in which he plays Nikola Tesla.
John is a young and handsome man, and is part of the 'music teachers' front for his and Miriam's establishment in an expensive townhouse in New York. He and Miriam have been together about 300 years and New York nightspots are their hunting grounds for victims. Lured back to the house for sex, these victims are drained and incinerated, never seen again and apparently never missed, as they were only part of the ever-changing nightlife scene.
John never changes...until he does.

Answer: She promises to find a cure

Miriam has watched an interview on t.v. with a Dr. Sarah Roberts, who is studying premature aging, and believes she may find the cure at their testing facility. Her conclusion after inquiries is that 'they know nothing'. John then goes to the facility and attempts to speak to the doctor there. John's aging process has become rather rapid by now, and after an initial glance at him the doctor sees him as he is leaving in despair, and realises that he has aged noticeably in that short period.

Answer: Be good to him

Miriam promised life 'forever and ever'. John evidently thought he would be with her, enjoying eternal youth as well. John is growing increasingly dangerous as his aging has become very rapid and he is desperate for a cure. He also has the undeniable hunger for life sustaining blood. Miriam has to conceal John so she won't be found out.

Answer: Teenaged

Alice is a gum chewing, brash teenager who is a talented musician. She enjoys playing primarily Classical or Baroque trios with the Blaylocks. At some point in the film, after John has noticed his sudden and rapid changing, she encounters him alone at home when he has the need...the need to feed.
She has not recognised him and thinks that he is John's father or grandfather. This is an unfortunate turn of events as this victim IS missed and brings the police into the picture.
Alice was played by Beth Ehlers.

Answer: Susan Sarandon

Sarandon is a talented and versatile actress, from the teenaged Janet in "The Rocky Horror Picture Show" to a nun in "Dead Man Walking" and a young woman on one last spree in "Thelma and Louise". Susan Sarandon plays Sarah, who is studying children with progeria, a premature aging and debilitating disease.

Her experimental animals are chimps, some of which turn vicious during the trials and feed on other chimps. When Sarah realises that John is an adult who is aging very quickly, she visits the address he left at the clinic, and meets Miriam.

There is a palpable attraction between the two, and Sarah is seduced by Miriam. During the seduction, Miriam has been able to drink from Sarah and vice versa. Thus, when Sarah's boyfriend comes there looking for her the next day, Miriam sends him upstairs to a bedroom where she is sleeping. Miriam knows that Sarah will be overcome with hunger by then, and she is right, as Sarah consumes her friend.

Answer: "Lakme" - Leo Delibes

The lovely "Flower Duet" from "Lakme" gained much popularity from the film, and is readily recognizable as it has since been used in commercial advertising and other media roles. The story is set in India with Lakme being a princess and Mallika her slave. They sing the duet while picking flowers; both roles are for sopranos.
This is a gentle, tragic love story, as Lakme may not marry the man she loves and kills herself at the end.
The duet is played during Miriam and Sarah's seduction scene, which is tastefully done.

Answer: Dan Hedaya

Dan Hedaya plays comedy and tragedy equally well. He was Carla's husband on the TV sitcom "Cheers". One of his many film roles was in the 1984 Coen Brothers film "Blood Simple", along with Frances McDormond. The story was unique in that the audience knew exactly what had happened and was happening, but the characters in the film did not. Hedaya's dark menacing look lends an air of tension to his character, Allegrezza.

As the investigating officer in the case of the missing Alice, he interviews Miriam who acknowledges that she knows Alice well as a student and musician, but has not seen her for some time.

She mentions that her husband, John, is overseas. In actuality, John is overhead, in the attic.

Answer: A short sharp blade

The blade is used to slice open the victim's throat to make feeding easier. Once drained the victim has no strength and not much volume, so is carried off in a garbage bag to be burned. Evidently this is the easy death. Being only partially drained, the victim lasts much longer...way too much longer, and always hungry.

Answer: Stabs herself and forces Miriam to drink

Although Sarah is consumed with the hunger to feed, she is repulsed by the concept of feeding on others and tries to reverse the position she is in.
When Miriam carries Sarah's body to the attic, Miriam's former lovers in various stages of decomposition attack Miriam and throw her off the balcony - she ages very rapidly, and seems to turn to dust as they do.
In the last scene of the film, evidently at a later unspecified time, Sarah is seen on the balcony outside her London high rise, gazing off in the distance; she has two companions, male and female. Miriam can be heard screaming from the attic. This ending left both actors and viewers confused. Had Miriam turned to dust? Was Miriam completely dead? Is Sarah now the head vamp? Inquiring minds want to know!
There was, at some point, an alternate ending proposed, but it's been a long time since the film came out, and a remake or sequel would require some explanation of the existing ending.