Deck 2: The Silent Era, 1915-1928

Question 1

Which 21st-century film would be the best match for the talents of silent film star Douglas Fairbanks?

A) Pirates of the Caribbean
B) The Greatest Showman
C) The Hangover
D) Manchester by the Sea

Answer 1

Pirates of the Caribbean

Question 2

Which of the following D.W.Griffith films features Christian symbolism that highlights the female protagonist's baptismal cleansing?

A) Intolerance
B) Way Down East
C) The Birth of a Nation
D) A Corner in Wheat

Answer 2

Way Down East

Question 3

Which D.W.Griffith film became the subject of controversy due to its depiction of slavery, prompting boycotts and pressure from the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP)?

A) A Corner in Wheat
B) Intolerance
C) Way Down East
D) The Birth of a Nation

Answer 3

The Birth of a Nation

Question 4

Which Erich von Stroheim film was originally nine hours long, was recut by the studio, and ultimately disowned by its director?

A) Merry-Go-Round
B) The Birth of a Nation
C) Greed
D) The Cheat

Question 5

Which 21st-century movie star best captures the unique allure of Rudolph Valentino?

A) Seth Rogen (Knocked Up, Neighbors)
B) Christopher Walken (The Deer Hunter, Hairspray)
C) Arnold Schwarzenegger (The Terminator, The Expendables)
D) Oscar Isaac (Inside Llewyn Davis, Star Wars: The Force Awakens)

Question 6

During the 1920s, Fox set the tone for the expansion of the studios into which domain of the film industry?

A) production
B) distribution
C) exhibition
D) postproduction

Question 7

Which modern-day auteur best matches the traits of Cecil B.DeMille?

A) Quentin Tarantino (Pulp Fiction, Django Unchained)
B) David Lynch (Blue Velvet, Mulholland Dr.)
C) Ava DuVernay (Selma, Wrinkle in Time)
D) Steven Spielberg (Schindler's List, Jurassic Park)

Question 8

Both Way Down East and The Cheat feature which of the following thematic concerns?

A) the dynamic opposition of city and country
B) wealth and the indulgences of the upper class
C) moral sacrifices to better society
D) the dangers of motherhood

Question 9

Which of the following best describes Universal's approach to film production in the 1910s?

A) big-budget costume dramas
B) horror movies
C) a balanced program of modestly budgeted projects
D) inexpensive lowbrow comedies

Question 10

Which industry assisted in the production of-and could also complicate-the concept of the movie star in the 1910s?

A) celebrity endorsements
B) fan magazines
C) social media
D) retail

Question 11

Imagine you are a studio mogul in the 1910s and you want to make a film about an attractive and dangerous woman who destroys powerful men.Which silent film actress would you cast in the lead role?

A) Mary Pickford
B) Lillian Gish
C) Florence Lawrence
D) Theda Bara

Question 12

Which modern-day auteur(s) best matches the traits of Erich von Stroheim?

A) Martin Scorsese (The Departed, The Wolf of Wall Street)
B) the Coen brothers (There Will Be Blood, Fargo)
C) Kathryn Bigelow (The Hurt Locker, Zero Dark Thirty)
D) Christopher Nolan (Batman Begins, Dunkirk)

Question 13

Name the silent film comedian who was accused of raping and murdering a young starlet and was ultimately scapegoated by Hollywood in order to preserve the industry's family-friendly image.

A) Charlie Chaplin
B) Buster Keaton
C) William Desmond Taylor
D) Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle

Question 14

Which of the following terms best describes the studio practice of controlling production, distribution, and exhibition?

A) vertical integration
B) horizontal integration
C) conglomeration
D) oligopoly

Question 15

In response to public pressure throughout the 1910s and 1920s, the studios formed the Motion Picture Producers and Distributors of America (MPPDA).Name the former postmaster general who headed the organization and who helped usher in the era of self-censorship.

A) Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle
B) William Desmond Taylor
C) Will Hays
D) Joseph Breen

Question 16

D.W.Griffith utilized a hot-air balloon in Intolerance in order to ________.

A) capture the scope and scale of the film's breathtaking sets
B) market the film as an apology for The Birth of a Nation
C) capture the horror of the hangman sequence
D) emphasize the last-minute rescue

Question 17

Silent film star Mary Pickford leveraged her success and status in order to cofound this distribution company with Douglas Fairbanks, Charlie Chaplin, and D.W.Griffith.

A) Fox
B) Disney
C) United Artists
D) Columbia

Question 18

D.W.Griffith utilizes crosscutting throughout Birth of a Nation for all of the following EXCEPT

A) a juxtaposition of northern hypocrisy with the idyllic southern way of life.
B) to create spectacle, tension, and suspense.
C) to portray African Americans as disregarding the laws and traditions of the South.
D) to criticize the actions of the Ku Klux Klan.

Question 19

Which Cecil B.DeMille melodrama features a heroine who finds herself subject to sexual violation at the hands of a Japanese financier?

A) The Woman Forgot
B) The Cheat
C) Forbidden Fruit
D) The Ten Commandments

Question 20

Name the studio mogul who moved his production facilities to Universal City, marking the beginning of the Hollywood studio era.

A) Irving Thalberg
B) William Fox
C) Thomas Edison
D) Carl Laemmle

Question 21

Name the Charlie Chaplin film that features a climactic scene of a house teetering over a cliff during a blizzard.

A) City Lights
B) Modern Times
C) Sherlock Jr.
D) The Gold Rush

Question 22

Name the Charlie Chaplin sound film that satirizes the anti-Semitism-fueled rise of Adolf Hitler.

A) Modern Times
B) The Gold Rush
C) The Great Dictator
D) Limelight

Question 23

This genre of filmmaking challenged repressive Victorian morality and marked a move toward a more modern America in terms of speed and complexity.

A) melodrama
B) western
C) physical comedy
D) film noir

Question 24

Which silent film comedian successfully made the transition to sound before seeking exile in Switzerland after being targeted by the FBI?

A) Charlie Chaplin
B) Harold Lloyd
C) Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle
D) Buster Keaton

Question 25

Which silent film comedian successfully made the transition to sound before seeking exile in Switzerland after being targeted by the FBI?

A) Charlie Chaplin
B) Harold Lloyd
C) Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle
D) Buster Keaton

Question 26

Which characteristic best describe the aesthetic adopted by Robert Flaherty for Nanook of the North?

A) crosscutting and intellectual montage
B) high-contrast lighting and expressionistic mise-en-scene
C) long takes and long shots
D) superimpositions to capture subjectivity

Question 27

Which Harold Lloyd film climaxes with the hero hanging off a clockface on a skyscraper?

A) That's My Boy
B) The Waterboy
C) The Freshman
D) Safety Last!

Question 28

Name the German expressionist filmmaker who immigrated to the United States and whose film Sunrise won Best Picture (Unique and Artistic Production) at the first Academy Awards ceremony.

A) Cecil B.DeMille
B) Erich von Stroheim
C) D.W.Griffith
D) F.W.Murnau

Question 29

Name the ethnographic filmmaker whose film Nanook of the North marked the birth of the documentary tradition.

A) John Grierson
B) Thomas Edison
C) Robert Flaherty
D) Josef von Sternberg

Question 30

Name the Buster Keaton film that focuses on a Confederate soldier and his train.

A) Steamboat Bill Jr.
B) The Great Dictator
C) The General
D) Sherlock Jr.

Question 31

Name the studio mogul who implemented assembly-line production methods and would insist that projects be produced "exactly as written."

A) Carl Laemmle
B) William Fox
C) Thomas Ince
D) Thomas Edison

Question 32

Women filled which of the following roles behind the scenes?

A) director
B) screenwriter
C) editor
D) all of the above

Question 33

Name the Buster Keaton film that focuses on a film projectionist who finds himself sucked into the plot of a movie.

A) Cops
B) Our Hospitality
C) Steamboat Bill Jr.
D) Sherlock Jr.

Question 34

Sunrise utilizes a potent combination of light and shadow in order to ________.

A) create an atmosphere befitting a horror film
B) capture the realism of predawn hours
C) depict the psychology of the characters
D) evenly light the actors' faces

Question 35

All of the following were common studio practices between 1917 and 1928 EXCEPT

A) the usage of movie stars.
B) the usage of film genres.
C) the usage of directors who had name recognition with the general public.
D) the usage of an assembly-line model rather than specific craftspeople.

Question 36

Name the silent comedian whose persona embraced a natural, quiet boyish everyman.

A) Buster Keaton
B) Charlie Chaplin
C) Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle
D) Harold Lloyd

Question 37

This former comedy partner of Fatty Arbuckle became known for his daredevil stunt work and deadpan facial expression.

A) Charlie Chaplin
B) Buster Keaton
C) Harold Lloyd
D) Stan Laurel

Question 38

Which genre best describes Sunrise?

A) melodrama
B) film noir
C) western
D) horror

Question 39

Name the British comedian whose "Tramp" character was frequently utilized to critique Victorian values and the upper class, and who was not often what he seemed.

A) Buster Keaton
B) Charlie Chaplin
C) Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle
D) Harold Lloyd

Question 40

Name the European director whose career was defined by his gritty melodramas starring Marlene Dietrich.

A) F.W.Murnau
B) D.W.Griffith
C) Erich von Stroheim
D) Josef von Sternberg

Question 41

You're a 21st-century filmmaker who wants to pay homage to D.W.Griffith in your big-budget blockbuster.Describe how you will film an action scene in a way that would make the auteur proud.

Question 42

Define the three different aspects of the film industry related to vertical integration.

Question 43

You're a producer in 1910s Hollywood and you want to make a film similar to 48 Hrs.or Rush Hour, a buddy-cop comedy starring two very different detectives.Out of the silent film stars described in this chapter, who would you cast and why?

Question 44

Name the silent comedy duo whose films often climaxed with cathartic destruction.

A) Martin and Lewis
B) Chaplin and Keaton
C) Laurel and Hardy
D) Keaton and Arbuckle

Question 45

You've won the lottery and you want a famous silent film director to make a biopic about you, starring a silent film star.Choose either Erich von Stroheim or F.W.Murnau as director and Douglas Fairbanks, Rudolph Valentino, Theda Bara, or Mary Pickford as the star.Describe what they would bring to your life story.

Question 46

Define the business practices of the silent studio system.