Academy of Art University Film Multiple Choice Questions

I’m trying to study for my Art course and I need some help to understand this question.

• 1) Early attempts at computer generated effects ________________.

  For 1 Point(s)Answer:

  • A) were fully believable and realistic to audiences, as evidenced by The Last Starfighter
  • B) failed to convince viewers of dinosaurs’ realistic movement, as in Jurassic Park
  • C) though technically groundbreaking, did not appear realistic to viewers
  • D) were discarded, and “CG” never made it into mainstream Hollywood filmmaking

• 2) Director Steven Spielberg ________________.

  For 1 Point(s)Answer:

  • A) did not convince viewers of the realism of dinosaurs’ movement in Jurassic Park
  • B) suggested Jurassic Park’s T. rex with teasing shots of water rippling in a cup before actually showing the beast, so as to build dramatic tension
  • C) worked exclusively as an escapist filmmaker in the 1990s, making fun action adventure films and staying away from serious, realistic topics like war or prejudice
  • D) entered the 1990s as one of the least commercially successful filmmakers in history, even though his films were all critically acclaimed

• 3) Which of the following statements is NOT true?

  For 1 Point(s)Answer:

  • A) Toy Story became a hit largely due to successful artistry in both technology and story.
  • B) The writing team for Toy Story used classic buddy films as models for the bickering relationship of the two lead characters which nonetheless involved a charming chemistry.
  • C) The digital effects in The Matrix, though technically groundbreaking, failed to engage audiences because their reason for being was not linked closely enough to the story.
  • D) The use of digital technology was essential in Pleasantville in order to make a crucial, visual story point.

• 4) Which of the following statements is true?

  For 1 Point(s)Answer:

  • A) In films like The Matrix, The Sixth Sense, and Lost Highway, the “unreliable” narrator provides a dose of doubt about reality for the viewer.
  • B) In The Usual Suspects, the story which viewers are being told by the protagonist turns out to be completely true.
  • C) Just as in generations past, filmmaking talent in the 1990s emerged from literature and live theater, not from MTV or television.
  • D) Director Clint Eastwood’s films of the 1990s were seen by critics as nothing more than fluff; his Unforgiven was universally seen as one of the worst Westerns ever made.

• 5) Which of the following statements is NOT true?

  For 1 Point(s)Answer:

  • A) As digital technology and spectacle grew during the 1990s, the importance of story saw something of a decline.
  • B) Although old TV shows became broadly more accessible and re-entered the public consciousness during the 1990s, big-screen adaptations were not attempted by Hollywood producers.
  • C) During the 1990s, with DVDs and the coming of the Internet, the tendency grew in viewers to skip through stories and search through individual moments rather than watch films from start to finish.
  • D) With the rise of the computer database in viewers’ lives, a new aesthetic predicated on random access began to catch on in some writers’ approach to narrative structure.

• 6) Which of the following statements is true?

  For 1 Point(s)Answer:

  • A) During the 1990s, traditional boundaries marking the configuration of stories began to be stretched to a point they had not often been stretched to in the past.
  • B) Although the multi-character, multi-story approach to screenwriting gained popularity during the 1970s, all writers steered clear of this style during the 1990s.
  • C) Films like Anderson’s Boogie Nights and Magnolia and Linklater’s Slacker used a rigid, traditional story structure that followed only one main protagonist throughout the narrative.
  • D) Tarantino’s Reservoir Dogs and Pulp Fiction and Nolan’s Memento are told linearly from start to finish, all following a traditional approach to narrative time.

• 7) During the 1990s, ________________.

  For 1 Point(s)Answer:

  • A) narrative form in films like Memento and Pulp Fiction spoke to viewers who were becoming comfortable with the ability to move backwards and forward through media at will
  • B) digital technology made possible the special effects in Spielberg’s Raiders of the Lost Ark and Jaws
  • C) digital animation was not viable. All film studios went back to traditional 2D animation.
  • D) critics universally praised George Lucas’s Star Wars prequel films for their careful attention to story and character and very limited use of computer generated visual effects.

• 8) During the 1990s, ________________.

  For 1 Point(s)Answer:

  • A) Zemeckis’s Forrest Gump offered a prime example of the masterful use of CG technology to amaze the viewer and whisk audiences away from reality on screen.
  • B) film genres never mixed. Despite the Internet offering access to any and every form of Hollywood style, producers knew that audiences always preferred strict boundaries of genre.
  • C) the use of CG effects in Pleasantville was superfluous to the narrative. As a result, the effects felt out of place; they were not crucial to character development or the story.
  • D) puzzle films, often presenting an “unreliable” narrator, rose to popularity as fully believable CG effects forced viewers to often doubt what was real or computer generated.

• 9) Which of the following statements is true?

  For 1 Point(s)Answer:

  • A) Director Paul Thomas Anderson’s Boogie Nights was loosely modeled on the ensemble films of Robert Altman. The filmhad a flamboyant visual style inspired by Martin Scorsese’s work.
  • B) Director Woody Allen ceased making films after a long and successful career.
  • C) Director Clint Eastwood, although continuing to make films, fell into obscurity with critical flops like In the Line of Fire, The Bridges of Madison County, and Unforgiven.
  • D) During the 1990s, the Disney studio increased the number of movies produced from twenty to thirty and spent extravagant amounts on filmmaking budgets.

• 10) During the 1990s, ________________.

  For 1 Point(s)Answer:

  • A) the average cost of a Hollywood film went drastically downward, falling to less than half of what it had been at the beginning of the decade
  • B) director Quentin Tarantino displayed a visual style that matched up well with his bleak, nihilistic humor
  • C) the percentage of first-time directors who attended film school dropped significantly as compared with the 1980s
  • D) contemplative long shots, crane shots, and a smooth methodical pace were a common trait to all mainstream American movies