Pugnae Trivia Quiz

Answer: Cecil B. DeMille

"Decem" is the Latin word for ten, and can still be recognized in such modern English words as decametre or decimate. "Praecepti" is the plural of "praeceptum", which you can still find somehow in the word prescript. A praeceptum is thus a prescript or more generally a commandment.

"Decem Praecepti" thus translates to "The Ten Commandments", title of several movies on the same plot: the struggle of the Jewish slaves lead by Moses to flee Egypt and wander to their promised land, Canaan (nowadays Israel).

Cecil B. DeMille directed in 1923 a silent movie with this title and theme, but in 1956 he delivered an epic movie in Technicolor and with sound. In the remake, Charlton Heston portrayed Moses and Yul Brynner played his opponent, Pharaoh Rameses II. The principal female roles were for Anne Baxter (the Egyptian princess Nefretiri, in love with Moses but married to Rameses) and Yvonne de Carlo (Moses' wife Sephora).

Wyler directed "Ben Hur" (1959), Mankiewicz directed "Cleopatra" (1963) and LeRoy directed one of the few movies that bear a real Latin title : "Quo Vadis" (1951).

Answer: Saxi Rubei

The Latin word for red is Rubeus - which may remind you of the English word ruby. And saxum (plural saxi) is the Latin word for a rock or a cliff. The adjective has to match the noun in number and gender, so we use rubei instead of rubeus.

The title of this movie thus translates (in English) to "Red Cliffs" (2008) or in the original language to "Chi Bi".

The original title given points you directly to China. Indeed: the movie depicts the Battle of the Red Cliffs, near the river Yangtze, at the end of the Han Dynasty. In the winter of 208-209 AD, a large army of the Han Empire lead by Cao Cao tried in vain to cross the river towards the south, but were defeated by a coalition lead by a smaller army of Eastern Han and Eastern Wu forces.
In the movie directed by John Woo, principal actors were Tony Leung, Takeshi Kanshiro and Wei Zhao.

"The Thin Red Line" (1998, which I translate into "Linea Rubea Tenua") was set in Guadalcanal. "Der Rote Baron" (2008, which I translate as "Nobilis Baro Rubeus") is a German biopic of the fighter pilot Manfred von Richthofen during the First World War. And "The Angel Wore Red" (1960, translation: "Angela Vestita in Rubeum") is a romance set in the Spanish Civil War.

Answer: Signum Septimum

Septem is Latin for seven, as septimus is Latin for seventh. That's the easy part of the translation.

Signum is a seal which was used to authenticate documents (not the animal called seal: that would be a phoca). So "Signum Septimum" translates to "The Seventh Seal" (1957, original title "Det sjunde inseglet"), directed by Ingmar Bergman and with Max von Sydow as the wandering knight - the movie we were looking for.

Diei is the plural of dies, which means day. And Maius is the month of May. "Septem Diei in Maius" thus translates to "Seven Days in May" (1964), a rather obscure espionage movie.

Sponsa (plural sponsae) is the Latin for bride. Pro is easy: it means for. And fratribus is the ablative plural of frater, which means brother. "Septem Sponsae Pro Septem Fratribus" thus translates to the romantic musical "Seven Brides for Seven Brothers" (1954), about six brothers getting the urge to marry when their older brother gives the example.

And "Septem Magnifici" easily translates to "The Magnificent Seven" (1960), about seven gunfighters hired to protect a small village against forty-odd armed bandits.

Answer: Aquila Marina

Aquila is the Latin word for an eagle, and may occasionally be used for any other large bird of prey (even though the best Latin word for a hawk is accipiter, and the best Latin translation of a buzzard is buteo).
Marina is the feminine of marinus, anything related to the sea (mare in Latin).

So "Aquila Marina" translates to "The Sea Hawk", starring Errol Flynn as an English pirate in love with a Spanish noblewoman. The story evolves during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I, when England and Spain were always bickering about religion as well as about trade with the Americas.

Gregory Peck started his career in 1944 in the movie with a translated title "Gloriosi Diei" (Days of Glory"). He is best remembered for his role as Atticus Finch in "Mimum occidere" ("To Kill a Mockingbird", 1962).

Cary Grant's best known movie in 1940 was "Puella Sua Diei Veneris", my translation of "His Girl Friday".

Rex Harrison played in the 1940 movie "Decem Diei in Lutetia", my translation of "Ten Days in Paris".

Answer: Patriae Amator

Amator is the Latin word for lover, and patria (genitive patriae) is the homeland. So patriae amator translates to "the lover of the homeland" or more succinct "The Patriot".

In the movie "The Patriot" (2000) Mel Gibson played Benjamin Martin, a retired American soldier. As the American Revolutionary War started, Benjamin did not want to take part - but his two sons did enlist and one of them was killed by a British colonel. Thus Benjamin reluctantly took up arms.

As for the incorrect answers: Fred MacMurray starred in the 1945 movie I've translated as "Quo Hinc Imus?" ("Where Do We Go From Here?"). Cornel Wilde starred in the 1955 movie "The Scarlet Coat", translated as "Tunica Coccinea". And Francis Lederer was the protagonist in "The Pursuit of Happiness" (1934), which I'd translate as "Quaestio Felicitatis". All these movies dealt with the American Revolutionary War.

Answer: Panthera Pardus

Panthera is Latin for a panther (of course) or a big feline in general. And Panthera pardus is a spotted feline, more specifically a leopard - referring to the 1963 movie "Il Gattopardo" ("The Leopard"). This movie directed by Luchino Visconti told the story of a Sicilian nobleman confronted with the rise of a rich peasant, and that in the period when several people (mostly from Savoy) struggled to unify Italy once again. Main actors were Burt Lancaster in the title role, Alain Delon as his son and Claudia Cardinale as Delon's fiancée.

Fabula is Latin for a (fairy) tale. Duarum is derived from duo, which means two. And urbium is the genitive plural of urbs, which means city. The whole is thus translated as "A Tale of Two Cities", the 1935 movie based upon Charles Dickens eponymous novel set during the French Revolution (1789-1792).

Bellum is Latin for war, and pax is Latin for peace. "War and Peace" has been filmed many times, most famously in 1956 with Audrey Hepburn and Henry Fonda. Based on a novel by Tolstoy, it dealt with the Napoleonic wars and especially Napoleon's Russian campaign of 1812.

Matrona is Latin for a (distinguished) lady, and lucerna is a rather unusual word for a lamp (lumen is more frequent). Matrona cum Lucerna thus fits as translation for "The Lady with a Lamp" (1951), a biography of Florence Nightingale. The story evolved mainly during the Crimean War (1853-1856).

Answer: Omnia Tranquilla in Fronte Occidentali

Omnia is the Latin plural for all. Tranquillus is calm or quiet. Frons is Latin for the front. And occidentalis means to the west. So "Omnia Tranquilla in Fronte Occidentali" is the literal translation of the English title of the movie we're looking for.

Erich Maria Remarque's novel was first published in German as "Im Westen Nichts Neues", which I would translate as "Nil Novi In Occidentem".

Remarque's novel has inspired several movies, the first one already in 1930. The novel and movie described the atrocities of trench war.

"Longus Sponsialorum Dies Dominicus" is my translation of the French movie "Une longue Dimanche de fiançailles" (2004), translated in English as "A Very Long Engagement". The Latin translation of the English title would be "Sponsialae Longissimae".

"Equus Belli" translates to "War Horse" (2011).

"Valedictio ad Arma" is the literal translation of "A Farewell to Arms", one of several movies based upon Hemingway's novel. I'd suggest the 1957 version with Rock Hudson.
 

Answer: Dies Longissimus

All right, some of these titles seem very odd. Let's examine the Latin words used for them.

Dies is Latin for day, and longissimus is the superlative of longus - which translates to long. "Dies Longissimus" thus is literally "The Longest Day" (1961).

IMDb contains the English translation of the full quote (spoken in German). I prefer the quote in German (and shortened): "Fur die Alliierten und fur Deutschland, es wird der längste Tag sein... Der längste Tag." (followed in the movie by the first notes of the Fifth Symphony by Beethoven).

Pons is a bridge, and nimium is too much. With a little poetical liberty, "Pons Nimium" thus translates to "A Bridge Too Far" (1977).

Magna (feminine of magnus) is great, and fuga is escape or trek. "Magna Fuga" thus can be translated as "The Great Escape" (1963), but is also suggested as Latin translation for the French comedy "La grande vadrouille" (1966).

And the most curious translation of all is "Ecclesia Tumuli Arenacei". You will probably know that ecclesia is Latin for church, and maybe you also can decipher "tumulus" as a hill (although "collis" is the more frequent Latin word for hill, while tumulus is more linked to a burial mound). Arenaceus is a Latin word for sandy. Put these three words together, and you get "The Church on the Sandy Hill". Probably you don't know such a movie title, until I replace "sandy hill" by "dune" and contract the title to one single word. Then you get "Dunkirk" (2017). 

Answer: Venator Cervorum

Venator is Latin for hunter, and cervus (genitive plural: cervorum) means deer. "Venator Cervorum" is thus Latin for "The Deer Hunter" (1978) directed by Michael Cimino.

In this movie three young steelworkers, who used to go out hunting deer, went to Vietnam. The three were captured and forced to play Russian roulette.

Metallica is Latin for metal (and also a heavy metal band). Integra means entire or full, and lorica is a seldom used Latin word for an armoured jacket. Put these together, and you'll find "Lorica Metallica Integra" refers to the movie "Full Metal Jacket" (1987), directed by Stanley Kubrick.

Natus is Latin for born, quartus (ablative quarto) means fourth and Julius is the family name of a famous conqueror who named a month after himself. "Natus Quarto Julii" thus translates to "Born on the Fourth of July" (1989), directed by Oliver Stone.

In the Roman army, small divisions of about ten soldiers shared a tent. These small groups were called contubernii (literally those who share a tent). The smallest army unit in modern times is a platoon, which corresponds thus to a contubernium. And it was Oliver Stone who directed the movie "Platoon" (1986), which title I've translated as "Contubernium".

Answer: Accipiter Niger Decidit

Accipter is the Latin word for a hawk (sometimes also used for other large birds of prey, such as eagles, falcons or buzzards). Niger means black. Decidit is the past tense third person of the verb decidere, which means to fall or to fall down.

Put these three Latin words together and you get the translation of "Black Hawk Down" (2001), a movie directed by Ridley Scott and relating a nearly failed American intervention in the Somali civil war. A group of American special forces was sent to capture two of the feuding Somali warlords, but their helicopters of the type nicknamed Black Hawk) were shot down.

"Tres Reges" translates to "Three Kings"(1999), an unauthorized initiative by some soldiers during the Gulf War in Iraq.

"Manus cum Diabolo Iunge" is Latin for "Shake Hands with the Devil" (2007), a lesser known movie about the Rwandan genocide.

"Nil Obscurum Triginta" is my almost literal translation of "Zero Dark Thirty" (2012), a movie about the American covert operation in Afghanistan to capture or kill the terrorist leader Osama bin Laden. Google Translate came up with something you could not recognize as this movie title: "Multa Nocte", which literally means "Many Things During the Night".