Jive Talkers Trivia Quiz

Answer: The Sting

This 1973 film, directed by George Roy Hill, is a masterclass in the art of storytelling. It also brings Newman and Redford together for a second time (previously they'd worked together on "Butch Cassidy & the Sundance Kid" (1969)) and they proved that they'd lost none of that special chemistry that they'd previously generated.

Set in Chicago during the 1930s, the pair join forces and devise a complex scheme to methodically fleece a mob boss played by the incomparable Robert Shaw. The film, which won a Best Picture Oscar, showcases the art of deception with teamwork of the highest order. Every little twist in this tale is beautifully balanced, giving the feeling that each one has been earned rather than contrived. The result is taut but exhilarating ride that leads you to a stunning final twist.

Answer: Catch Me If You Can

Steven Spielberg's exceptional directorial skills come to the fore in this enthralling tale as he guides us through the life of one of the most extraordinary con-men of the 20th century.

DiCaprio is Frank Abagnale Jr., a con man who manages to impersonate a wide range of professional people but, with each deception, he needs to become a little more audacious just to stay one step ahead of his nemesis, FBI agent Carl Hanratty, played by Tom Hanks. Not only does Abagnale pretend to be a competent medical practitioner, lawyer and airline pilot without ever having studied in those fields, he also manages to dazzle women and pass millions of dollars in false cheques... all before he turns nineteen. As you may have guessed, this is a true story, otherwise it would have sounded too preposterous for any screenwriter to have concocted.

Answer: Dirty Rotten Scoundrels

Two hustlers, Michael Caine as Lawrence Jamieson and Steve Martin as Freddy Benson, compete for the same territory, the wealthy Riviera resort town of Beaumont-sur-Mer. They wind up working together and then place a bet to see who will be the first to scam the wealthy American Janet Colgate (Glenne Headly). In a similar manner to "The Sting" (1973) there are scams within scams that get more ludicrous as the pair try to outdo each other; however, unlike the former movie, the ones that these two perpetrate, you can see coming.

What makes this film work, which is a remake of 1964's "Bedtime Story" with David Niven and Marlon Brando, is the chemistry between Martin and Caine. While Caine's visuals and humour take on a more debonair atmosphere, Martin resorts to the type of zanyisms and pratfalls of the sort that were evident in his over-the-top film "The Jerk" (1979).

Answer: Matchstick Men

The ending to this Ridley Scott-directed film produces an outstanding con and to reveal (here) how it plays out would be a greater crime...

Cage is Roy Waller, a small time con-man with a string of neuroses, from compulsive obsessiveness to Tourette's to panic attacks. The list is long but when they hit him they virtually cripple him. He is finally convinced to play the long con by his partner Frank Mercer (Sam Rockwell) and, at the same time, he discovers that he has a 15 year old daughter from his failed marriage, with whom he tries to make a connection.

The film could easily have been titled "The Three Faces of Nicolas Cage" as he plays out three storylines in the film - his neuroses, the big con and the reconciliation with his daughter. Thanks to some gifted writing by brothers Ted and Nicholas Griffin, the three plots never compromise each other, instead, it almost feels like you move from one great plot line to an even better one throughout the movie. The other is the man with the "three faces", Nicolas Cage, who moves from one face to the next with a fluid grace and, yet manages to instil into his character a frenetic intensity that, in the hands of another actor, may have proven to be a case of overacting.

Answer: The Grifters

Let me introduce the three main characters to this enthralling, albeit dark drama. John Cusack is Roy Dillon, a man that runs small-time cons, but he's not good at it; when we first meet him, he gets caught out on scam and is beaten to a point near death. Anjelica Huston is Lilly Dillon, Roy's estranged mother, who's also in the game but, unlike her son, she is very good at it. Finally, there's Annette Bening as Myra Langtry, Roy's girlfriend and, unknown to Roy, also a grifter, but one who uses sex as her weapon.

Lilly meets Myra by Roy's bedside at the hospital. Both women immediately extend their claws and so commences a pattern of winning trust and then betrayal... from this moment on, Roy is doomed. Roy dreams of being in the big time but he's not in the same league as his mother and Myra. Myra wants Roy to join her in a long con, but Roy still wants the instant gratification and turns her down. Instead of seeing the refusal for what it is she senses that Roy's mother is still a strong influence, despite Lilly not having seen her son in almost a decade. Myra's mind becomes set on revenge and this leads a final (and fatal) confrontation.

Answer: The Music Man

The year is 1912 and Henry Hill (Robert Preston) has arrived in the town of River City in Iowa. His plan is to sell uniforms and musical instruments to the River City folk. He also coaxes them to form a children's band, promising to give them music lessons. However, Henry is not a good guy, he's a dirty rotten scoundrel, who is only waiting for the town's people to invest in the scheme and then he plans to shoot through with their money. He appears to have deceived the whole town, everybody, except one person. The fly in his ointment is Marian Paroo (Shirley Jones) who sees through him. Hill decides that the only way to prevent his scheme from unravelling is to seduce her but, in the process of establishing the relationship, he manages to find a conscience.

This is a musical with a string of joyous numbers, so you expect a happy ending, and you get one. The film takes a rather laidback look at the workings of a deception followed by a redemption, which could have become rather hokey. What saves it is a sound storyline and a set of musical numbers that are an absolute hoot.

Answer: The Wolf of Wall Street

This film is based on the life of Wall Street stockbroker Jordan Belfort (DiCaprio), a man whose story, the actor declared, rivals that of the Roman emperor Caligula.

Belfort starts off working for a blue-chip firm but is expelled once the "Crash of '87" destroys the market. He starts his own boiler room stock-broking firm with his neighbour (and right hand man) the sleazy and ruthless Danny Azoff (Jonah Hill), along with several of his friends. They run a "pump and dump" scam, which involves taking investor's money, artificially inflating a worthless piece of stock, selling it for a huge profit and, when the price drops, the investors lose their money.

Addictions abound in this film, initially it's the lustful grab for money and power, which graduates to the materialistic lifestyle, the copious quantities of drugs, booze and prostitutes and the desire to inflict more pain on the poor and middleclass of America. Skilfully directed by Martin Scorsese, this is an unflinching portrayal of high-stakes financial fraud and a man's spiral into excess fuelled by greed.

Answer: The Flim-Flam Man

George C. Scott is Mordecai C. Jones, a veteran con artist who travels through the southern states of the USA fleecing locals with a range of scams from rigged punchboards, a range of card tricks, and the lost wallet gambit, among others. He befriends a young Army deserter, Curley Treadaway (Michael Sarrazin), who becomes the straight-man to his schemes. However, the partnership starts to fray a little when Curley begins to fall for the lovely Bonnie, played by Sue Lyon.

The film is a farce but it fails to sustain the initial pace that it creates. It has also received criticism for having Scott attempt to imitate the great W.C. Fields by playing a lovable rogue and not quite pulling it off. That said, the movie does possess one of the best car-chases ever put onto the big screen.

Answer: The Talented Mr. Ripley

Matt Damon is Tom Ripley, a man who doesn't know how to love himself so, instead of stealing other people's money or possessions, he steals their identities... in this case, that of his friend Dickie Greenleaf, played by Jude Law.

Drawn from the pages of Patricia Highsmith's series of novels, known as the "Ripliad", the first of which was published in 1955, this film is somewhat of a remake of the French film "Purple Noon" (1960), directed by Rene Clement and starring Alain Delon as Ripley. Though both films revolve around the same core - Ripley taking Greenleaf's identity - the two films take alternate paths to get there. Whereas Clement shows the two men as old friends, director Anthony Minghella decides to showcase Ripley as a schemer who winds up in the right place at the right time.

Damon delivers a brilliant performance, moving easily from dull, plain Tom Ripley to being vibrant as the master manipulator, taking on Greenleaf's persona. The envy, the deception, the obsession, they're almost unnerving. And, there is this part of you that knows that Ripley is irredeemable, but, Jude Law's Greenleaf is such a cold heart, who treats his girlfriend so badly, that you find yourself rooting for Ripley to succeed.

Answer: Paper Moon

Set in 1936 in the Depression of Kansas and Missouri, two states reeking of poverty and desperation, we first meet the nine year old Addie Loggins (Tatum O'Neal) at her mother's funeral. A late-comer to the burial is Moses "Moze" Pray, a con-man and, possibly, Addie's father. He disputes this but promises to deliver her to relatives because he can smell a $200 blackmail scam in the offing. Pretty soon Addie joins Moze in a scam selling personalized Bibles to widows, claiming that their husbands had ordered them prior to their passing.

Whilst the film is about con-men, it doesn't rely on the confidence tricks to draw the audience's attention. Instead, it works on the relationship between the two main characters, exploring the bonds of family against the backdrop of economic hardship. It is often funny, but it is also poignant, giving rise to a film that is a bittersweet engagement.

Answer: Tin Men

The "Tin Men" in this movie are BB (Richard Dreyfuss) and Tilley (Danny DeVito), and the pair make their living by selling aluminium siding. The two first meet when their Cadillacs come together, and the dents in their prized automobiles are like dents in their own manhood. Instantly, the pair become mortal enemies and swear revenge against each other.

The two hustlers also fear for their jobs as a new commission is due to come down hard on the high pressure sales tactics employed within this commission-based industry. Whilst the feud between BB and Tilley remains at the core of the film we are also treated to a range of swindles that the two create. The deceptions include, among others, the loss leader scam ("After your house becomes the neighbourhood showplace, we'll give you a cut when your neighbours sign up for siding"), and the Life magazine scam ("We need a picture of your house for a layout on how ugly houses are before the aluminium siding is added").

In the build up to the end BB figures that the ultimate revenge on Tilley would be to seduce his wife (Barbara Hershey). This, however, falls to pieces on two counts... Tilley doesn't care for his wife ("Well, that's just fine by me. She's a pain in the ***! An albatross around my neck! You're welcome to her. Keep her, and may you both rot in Hell!") and BB falls in love with her.

Answer: Trading Places

The Duke brothers (Ralph Bellamy and Don Ameche) are filthy rich and can make anything happen. One has a theory that environment, rather than inherited skills, are the making of a man. To this end, they upset the life of one of their employees, Louis Winthorpe III (Dan Aykroyd), and strip him of everything he's ever owned or known, leaving him destitute on the streets. In his place they install a down-on-his-luck street con named Billy Ray Valentine (Eddie Murphy) and provide him with the privileges that Winthorpe previously had.

This is not a new concept - Mark Twain did a similar job with "The Prince and the Pauper" (1881) - but this film works because of two features, the script writers and the actors. The writers have taken extra care to ensure that they develop the quirks and the eccentricities of all the characters, from the Duke brothers, all the way down to Ophelia, the hooker with a heart of gold, played by Jamie Lee Curtis. This comes on top of the many plot manipulations within the story that flow rather than be contrived. Murphy and Aykroyd prove to be perfect foils for one another and portray the elements that they're in with intelligence without losing the character's prejudices and peculiarities.

John Landis directs with a skilled hand that leads you to a climax that involves a commodities scam, a New Year's Eve party and a gay gorilla.

Answer: Ocean's Eleven

In this remake of the 1960 Frank Sinatra caper of the same name, we meet George Clooney as Frank Ocean, a smooth operator who is fresh out of prison and looking to make a huge score. He assembles a team that includes, among others, "Rusty" Ryan (Brad Pitt) , Reuben Tishkoff (Elliott Gould) and Linus (Matt Damon) to rob, not one but, three Las Vegas casinos.

This is a pure romp and, whilst the scheme is elaborate, it is not about the robbery... it is about being suave. To this end, the coupling of George Clooney with Julia Roberts' Tess (Ocean's ex-wife) recalls the elegance of the pairing of Cary Grant and Ingrid Bergman in "Notorious" (1946) and the romantic comedy "Indiscreet" (1958). Even their dialogue carries the wit of Noel Coward... for instance;
Roberts: "You're a thief and a liar."
Clooney: "I only lied about being a thief."
Roberts: "You don't do that anymore?"
Clooney: "Steal?"
Roberts: "Lie."

Take the film and enjoy the ride. It is fast paced with enough scams, laden with panache, to satisfy the most serious of film buffs and it does wind-up with a beautiful deception.

Answer: The Usual Suspects

After seeing this movie the first time, I was in a ball of confusion before being deliciously surprised by the ending. The film portrayed a great con taking place, but I walked away thinking that the director, Bryan Singer, had also managed to con his audience, but I couldn't figure out how... and isn't that how a good con is supposed to work? I figured it out the second time around - the tale is told through only one set of eyes, which is why you don't see the ending coming. Even with this knowledge, I was still struggling to keep pace with it.

The story begins with the destruction of a ship. A detective, Kujan, played by Chazz Palminteri, interviews the only eye-witness, a club-footed little weasel named "Verbal" Kint, portrayed by Kevin Spacey. Verbal lives up to his name by weaving a tale of a robbery to be carried out by a group of low-lives, played by Gabriel Byrne, Stephen Baldwin, Benicio Del Toro, Kevin Pollak and Spacey. They were stealing a massive quantity of dope from a mysterious Hungarian mobster who no one had ever seen but whose reputation was so fearsome... he was to criminals what the boogey-man was to small children.

The robbery goes awry and only Kint (Spacey) survives but the surprise is the reveal at the end... and I dare not reveal it here.

Answer: The Hustler

Paul Newman is the pool "hustler" "Fast" Eddie Felson, the title character of this 1961 masterpiece by Robert Rossen. Drawn from the 1959 debut novel, of the same name, by Walter Tevis, the film takes us amongst stygian gloom of pool halls and their wizened inhabitants. It is here that Fast Eddie's skill, rather than his words, earns him money, accolades and two broken thumbs.

The challenge for Felson is the legendary pool player Minnesota Fats (Jackie Gleason) and their initial contest, midway through the film, is a study in bluff, self-confidence, ambition and psychology. These elements are presented in all their starkness because, on a pool table, there is nowhere to hide. However, that contest resides on the surface of this film; the real battle is to be found within the relationship between Eddie and his alcoholic girlfriend Sarah Packard (Piper Laurie). Eddie is torn between his love for Sarah and his own desire to self-destruct. In the end it is the latter that will play a hand in Sarah's own demise. The other illumination in the film is Bert Gordon, an amazing performance by George C. Scott, who becomes Eddie's sponsor. He is a brutal and vicious man who has a hand in driving Sarah to harm and it is this combination that puts steel into Eddie before his final confrontation with Minnesota Fats.

Shooting the film in black and white adds to the wrinkles and the atmosphere of both the pool rooms and the film. In this environment Newman doesn't look like a pool shark... but good con men never do. Ironically, when Martin Scorsese directs the sequel to this picture, "The Color of Money" (1986), it is in colour, and Newman, who reprises the role of "Fast" Eddie, now displays that glitz... he does look like a pool shark. Newman would win an Oscar in the new film for a performance that many claimed was not on par with his 1961 effort. Did Eddie pull a fast one here, or was this merely a correction for an earlier oversight?