The Art of Magic Trivia Quiz

Answer: Jesse Eisenberg

Crime combined with magic... now that's a salivating prospect for a film. A mysterious hooded villain employs a team of four magicians called The Four Horsemen. These are played by Eisenberg, Woody Harrelson, Isla Fisher and Dave Franco. Their mission is to pull off an ingeniously planned, though seemingly impossible, robbery during a sold out performance of their live show. Talk about the ultimate illusion.

The film proved to be so popular that sequel was created in 2016, originally titled "Now You See Me 2". In this epic, the team has grown to five members with Eisenberg, Harrelson and Franco reprising their roles. Lizzy Caplan replaces Isla Fisher and Mark Ruffalo has been added to the team. Together, with the aid of another magician played by Morgan Freeman, the team set about foiling the schemes of a mad industrialist (Michael Caine) who is aided and abetted by a technical wizard (Daniel Radcliffe) and an evil magician (Woody Harrelson in a dual role).

Answer: John Malkovich

This film is filled with copious amounts of dry humour and pathos, blended in with a lot of heart. Inspired by the life of the mentalist, The Amazing Kreskin, John Malkovich, as the titular Buck Howard, does an incredible job of capturing Kreskin's eccentricities.

The once famous Buck Howard is down on his fortunes and is looking to make a comeback to the stage but his revival only sees him consigned to playing in small towns. Ably assisted by his manager (and apprentice) Troy, played by Colin Hanks, he walks the audience through the steps he takes to try an revive an act that has gone stale. He takes the viewer through the highs and lows of the industry and gives them a good look at what goes on outside of the spotlight.

Answer: Warren Hull

This movie borders on being a B-grade flick, but it's still a lot of fun. We are introduced to Mandrake, a magician who is plying his trade on cruise ships. It is here that he meets and befriends Professor Houston (Forbes Murray) who has invented a radium energy weapon.

Trouble is, there is a dastardly villain, Dr. Andre Bennett, also known as The Wasp (Edward Earle), on board the ship who will stop at nothing to secure the weapon for himself. To this end, he hurls waves (pun not intended) of evil henchmen at the professor. Mandrake, with the help of his trusty assistant Lothar (Al Kikume), must use all of his tricks and illusions to defeat them.

Answer: Tony Curtis

The feats of the mercurial magician and escape artist Harry Houdini border on being legendary, and this biopic is a fictionalized account of the great man's life.

Houdini, played by Curtis, has built a career on captivating audiences with a series of death defying acts. However, there is an insecurity about him in that he feels he cannot repeat the act and he becomes compelled to make his acts more daring and dangerous to maintain his celebrity standing. The film, directed by George Marshall, also stars Janet Leigh.

Answer: Steve Carell

Burt Wonderstone (Carell) and his partner, Anton Marvelton (Steve Buscemi) have managed to maintain a long running act in Las Vegas but... it has lost its fizz. Consequently, the audience numbers have dwindled and, soon, the pair find themselves out of a job.

This hilarious script then follows Burt's journey to rediscover the magic or, more apt, the joy in magic. He is aided in this quest by the arrival of an edgy street magician, Steve Gray, played by Jim Carrey.

Answer: Derek DelGaudio

Directed by Frank Oz, this film takes a walk through Derek DelGaudio's one-man, off-Broadway show where the magician, DelGaudio, produces a series of stunning tricks while interacting with his audience. These interactions call on the audience members to reflect on their perceptions of identity and questions the masks that they choose to wear.

By the end, he has pushed the edges of a magic show to new limits that you may begin to question what is real and what is illusion.

Answer: Vincent Price

This time, we couple magic with... horror, but what more could you have expected with Vincent Price in the storyline. Price plays Don Gallico, a man skilled in creating magic effects for various stage shows. He is also a man who wants to become a great magician in his own right. He is thwarted by his boss, Ross Ormond (Donald Randolph) who has conned Gallico into signing a contract that ensures all of the magician's inventions belong to him.

Tsk tsk... very stupid idea to steal from someone who has invented a magical guillotine and is prepared to use it again (and again... many times) to exact his revenge.

Answer: Bradley Cooper

Guillermo del Toro delivers a beautifully crafted neo-noir pyscho-thriller that presents us with a rather disturbing tale of the dark side of mentalism.

Bradley Cooper plays Stanton Carlisle, a devious young carnival worker who cons his way to fame as a mentalist. However, his ego and his ambition get the better of him and his web of lies grows more intricate by the day until he winds up trapped within his own deception.

The movie draws some wonderful performances from Toni Collette, Cate Blanchet and the durable Willem Dafoe.

Answer: Hugh Jackman

This riveting tale of rivalry and illusion was written for the screen by Christopher Priest and directed by Christopher Nolan. At the centre of the film, set in England during the 1890s, are two magicians - the upper class Rupert Angier, played by Jackman, and the streetwise Alfred Borden, played by Christian Bale.

The pair become consumed by the task of trying to outdo each other's illusions. The intense narrative then takes us to the darker side of magic and the ultimate price of obsession. When you do sit down to view the film, look for some startling cameos by Michael Caine and David Bowie.

Answer: Edward Norton

Set in Vienna during the 1800s, Norton is Eisenheim the Illusionist, who has had the love of his life, Sophie von Teschen, played by Jessica Biel, stolen away from him by the power hungry Crown Prince Leopold (Rufus Sewell). The prince however, forgot the golden rule... never steal from a master illusionist.

In a plot that will keep you guessing right up to the end, Eisenheim will use all of his tricks, cons and mysteries to win back his fair heart... ahh, the magic of romance (that pun was intended... with no apologies).