Film Noir Trivia
Film Noir trivia explores the dark, stylish world of the crime dramas that flourished in Hollywood during the 1940s and 1950s. From hard-boiled detectives and femme fatales to stark lighting and morally conflicted heroes, it offers a concise way to test what you know about one of cinema’s most influential genres.
Easy Film Noir Trivia
13 questions
These easy Film Noir trivia questions are great for beginners and kids around age 12 and under.
Question 1
Who directed the classic noir Double Indemnity?
Answer: Billy Wilder directed Double Indemnity.
Double Indemnity was directed by Billy Wilder.
Question 2
Which actress plays the title character in Gilda?
Answer: Rita Hayworth plays the title role in Gilda.
Gilda stars Rita Hayworth in the title role.
Question 3
In Out of the Past, what is Robert Mitchum's character name?
Answer: Robert Mitchum plays Jeff Bailey in Out of the Past.
Out of the Past features Robert Mitchum is Jeff Bailey.
Question 4
What year was The Maltese Falcon released?
Answer: The Maltese Falcon was released in 1941.
The Maltese Falcon was released in 1941.
Question 5
Which faded silent-film star is at the center of Sunset Boulevard?
Answer: Sunset Boulevard centers on Norma Desmond.
Sunset Boulevard centers on faded silent-film star Norma Desmond.
Question 6
Who directed Touch of Evil?
Answer: Orson Welles directed Touch of Evil.
Touch of Evil was directed by Orson Welles.
Question 7
Which actress stars in Mildred Pierce?
Answer: Joan Crawford stars in Mildred Pierce.
Mildred Pierce stars Joan Crawford.
Question 8
Humphrey Bogart plays which detective in The Big Sleep?
Answer: Humphrey Bogart plays Philip Marlowe in The Big Sleep.
The Big Sleep stars Humphrey Bogart is Philip Marlowe.
Question 9
Key Largo pairs Humphrey Bogart with which co-star?
Answer: Key Largo pairs Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall.
Key Largo pairs Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall.
Question 10
Which private eye appears in Kiss Me Deadly?
Answer: Kiss Me Deadly features private eye Mike Hammer.
Kiss Me Deadly features private eye Mike Hammer.
Question 11
Who directed Scarlet Street?
Answer: Fritz Lang directed Scarlet Street.
Scarlet Street was directed by Fritz Lang.
Question 12
The Killers first reached theaters in what year?
Answer: The Killers was released in 1946.
The Killers was released in 1946.
Question 13
What year was Gun Crazy released?
Answer: Gun Crazy was released in 1950.
Gun Crazy was released in 1950.
Film Noir Family Trivia
12 questions
These family Film Noir trivia questions are built for mixed-age game nights, classrooms, and groups.
Question 1
Who stars as Laura Hunt in the film Laura?
Answer: Gene Tierney
Laura features Gene Tierney in the role of Laura Hunt.
Question 2
Which director helmed In a Lonely Place?
Answer: Nicholas Ray
In a Lonely Place was directed by Nicholas Ray.
Question 3
In In a Lonely Place, what is the name of the character played by Gloria Grahame?
Answer: Debby Marsh
Gloria Grahame appears is Debby Marsh in In a Lonely Place.
Question 4
Who directed The Asphalt Jungle?
Answer: John Huston
The Asphalt Jungle was directed by John Huston.
Question 5
Which actor is the star of Night and the City?
Answer: Richard Widmark
Night and the City stars Richard Widmark.
Question 6
Who wrote the screenplay for The Blue Dahlia?
Answer: Raymond Chandler
The Blue Dahlia was written by Raymond Chandler.
Question 7
Phantom Lady was directed by which filmmaker?
Answer: Robert Siodmak
Phantom Lady was directed by Robert Siodmak.
Question 8
Name the lead star of Criss Cross.?
Answer: Burt Lancaster
Criss Cross stars Burt Lancaster.
Question 9
Who stars in The Woman in the Window?
Answer: Edward G. Robinson
The Woman in the Window stars Edward G. Robinson.
Question 10
Which actress headlines Sorry, Wrong Number?
Answer: Barbara Stanwyck
Sorry, Wrong Number stars Barbara Stanwyck.
Question 11
Dark Passage takes place largely in which city?
Answer: San Francisco
Dark Passage is set largely in San Francisco.
Question 12
The Killers was adapted from a story by which famous writer?
Answer: Ernest Hemingway
The Killers was adapted from a story by Ernest Hemingway.
Fun Film Noir Trivia
13 questions
These fun Film Noir trivia questions highlight surprising moments and playful facts for game-night groups.
Question 1
What explosive object powers the famous opening long take in Touch of Evil?
- A.A suitcase of cash
- B.A snub-nosed revolver
- C.A necklace of dynamite
- D.car bomb
Answer: A car bomb.
Touch of Evil is famed for its opening tracking shot built around a car bomb.
Question 2
Which noir begins with a hero so doomed he reports his own murder?
- A.Out of the Past
- B.The Killers
- C.D.O.A.
- D.Detour
Answer: D.O.A.
D.O.A. famously opens with its protagonist reporting his own murder.
Question 3
Postwar shadows, zither vibes: The Third Man takes place in what city?
- A.Prague
- B.Budapest
- C.Vienna
- D.Berlin
Answer: Vienna.
The Third Man is set in postwar Vienna.
Question 4
The Big Clock ticks away inside what kind of empire?
- A.crime-magazine empire
- B.A shipping empire
- C.A nightclub empire
- D.A hotel empire
Answer: A crime-magazine empire.
The Big Clock centers on a crime-magazine empire.
Question 5
Who directed the noir Raw Deal?
Answer: Anthony Mann.
Raw Deal was directed by Anthony Mann.
Question 6
Kansas City Confidential spins out from what specific kind of heist?
- A.A casino skimming operation
- B.racetrack payroll robbery
- C.A bank vault robbery
- D.A jewel theft on a train
Answer: A racetrack payroll robbery.
The film revolves around a racetrack payroll robbery.
Question 7
Which actress got a major star boost from This Gun for Hire?
- A.Gene Tierney
- B.Gloria Grahame
- C.Veronica Lake
- D.Barbara Stanwyck
Answer: Veronica Lake.
This Gun for Hire helped make Veronica Lake a star.
Question 8
Who called the shots as director on The Hitch-Hiker?
Answer: Ida Lupino.
The Hitch-Hiker was directed by Ida Lupino.
Question 9
Pickup on South Street came from the tough-minded direction of whom?
Answer: Samuel Fuller.
Pickup on South Street was directed by Samuel Fuller.
Question 10
Where does The Naked City stage its climactic chase?
Answer: The Williamsburg Bridge.
The Naked City ends with a chase on the Williamsburg Bridge.
Question 11
True or false: Leave Her to Heaven is shot in Technicolor.?
Answer: True
Leave Her to Heaven is a Technicolor film often discussed alongside noirs.
Question 12
In Nightmare Alley, what is the name of Tyrone Power's carnival hustler?
Answer: Stanton Carlisle.
Nightmare Alley stars Tyrone Power is carnival hustler Stanton Carlisle.
Question 13
Johnny O'Clock gets its title from whose nickname?
Answer: A casino owner named Johnny O'Clock.
Johnny O'Clock takes its title from a casino owner's nickname.
Funny Film Noir Trivia
13 questions
These funny Film Noir trivia questions highlight playful moments, odd facts, and inside jokes.
Question 1
In Kiss of Death, which character commits the especially nasty act of pushing a wheelchair-bound woman down the stairs?
Answer: Tommy Udo
The shockingly cruel stairway attack in Kiss of Death is carried out by Tommy Udo.
Question 2
Which film features a hitman whose complaint about women is that they are too unpredictable for his neat little murder schedule?
Answer: Murder by Contract
Murder by Contract includes a hitman who says he dislikes women because they are unpredictable.
Question 3
A suitcase of cash shows up, and the title clue arrives right after. Which movie’s title refers to a line spoken in that moment?
Answer: Too Late for Tears
The title Too Late for Tears refers to a line spoken after a suitcase of cash appears.
Question 4
Which title is the odd duck here because its dark comedy beat is specifically noted as not being part of classic film noir history?
- A.The Nice Guys
- B.The Big Lebowski
- C.The Ladykillers
- D.Kiss Kiss Bang Bang
Answer: The Ladykillers
The Ladykillers may be darkly comic, but it is not part of classic film noir history.
Question 5
Which 1982 parody stitched together clips from classic noir films, basically turning the archive into a trench-coat scrapbook?
Answer: Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid
Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid is a 1982 parody built from clips of classic noir films.
Question 6
Which movie borrows noir detective style for a comic mystery while also including a rabbit who would definitely fail a hard-boiled police lineup?
Answer: Who Framed Roger Rabbit?
Who Framed Roger Rabbit? uses noir detective style is part of its comic mystery approach.
Question 7
Which film reworks private-eye noir as a shaggy comedy, proving that the detective genre can survive on bowling energy?
Answer: The Big Lebowski
The Big Lebowski reimagines private-eye noir is a shaggy, comedic story.
Question 8
Philip Marlowe gets a 1970s makeover in which film, becoming a wisecracking detective instead of a purely gloomy gumshoe?
Answer: The Long Goodbye
The Long Goodbye recasts Philip Marlowe is a wisecracking detective in the 1970s.
Question 9
Which movie stirs noir mood together with playful reincarnation twists, as if fate needed a second draft?
Answer: Dead Again
Dead Again mixes noir atmosphere with playful twists involving reincarnation.
Question 10
Which spoof took aim at Humphrey Bogart-style noir heroes, lovingly borrowing the trench coat and then poking it with a stick?
Answer: The Cheap Detective
The Cheap Detective is the spoof that targeted Bogart-style noir heroes.
Question 11
Which film is a comic sequel riff on The Maltese Falcon, meaning the bird comes back but with a wink?
Answer: The Black Bird
The Black Bird is a comic sequel riff on The Maltese Falcon.
Question 12
In Cast a Deadly Spell, what city gets the noir-detective treatment with the added inconvenience of magic?
Answer: Los Angeles
Cast a Deadly Spell imagines a noir detective story in a magic-filled Los Angeles.
Question 13
Which film hands hard-boiled noir dialogue to high-school students, like someone slipped Chandler into a locker?
Answer: Brick
Brick is known for giving hard-boiled noir dialogue to high-school students.
Hard Film Noir Trivia
14 questions
These hard Film Noir trivia questions are for expert fans who want a real challenge.
Question 1
Which writer penned the source novel that became Phantom Lady?
Answer: Cornell Woolrich
Phantom Lady traces back to a source novel by Cornell Woolrich.
Question 2
Name the novelist responsible for the book version of Double Indemnity.?
Answer: James M. Cain
The novel Double Indemnity was written by James M. Cain.
Question 3
Scarlet Street ultimately derives from what French story?
Answer: La Chienne
Scarlet Street was adapted from the French story La Chienne.
Question 4
Which studio released Gilda?
- A.Paramount Pictures
- B.20th Television
- C.Columbia Pictures
- D.RKO Radio Pictures
Answer: Columbia Pictures
Gilda was released by Columbia Pictures.
Question 5
What major visual movement is cited as a strong influence on film noir style?
Answer: German Expressionism
German Expressionism strongly influenced the visual style of film noir.
Question 6
Who directed the noir road movie Detour?
Answer: Edgar G. Ulmer
Detour was directed by Edgar G. Ulmer.
Question 7
Gun Crazy reached theaters in 1950 through King Brothers Productions and which distributor?
- A.RKO Radio Pictures
- B.Republic Pictures
- C.United Artists
- D.Columbia Pictures
Answer: United Artists
Gun Crazy was released in 1950 by King Brothers Productions through United Artists.
Question 8
Out of the Past belongs to what release year?
Answer: 1947
Out of the Past was released in 1947.
Question 9
Touch of Evil arrived in theaters in which year?
Answer: 1958
Touch of Evil was released in 1958.
Question 10
In The Killing, what kind of heist sits at the center of the plot?
Answer: A racetrack robbery
The Killing uses a racetrack robbery is its central crime.
Question 11
Which famed noir cinematographer shot The Big Combo?
Answer: John Alton
The Big Combo was photographed by John Alton.
Question 12
Murder, My Sweet adapts Raymond Chandler's Farewell, My what?
Answer: Lovely
Murder, My Sweet is based on Raymond Chandler's novel Farewell, My Lovely.
Question 13
He Walked by Night was loosely inspired by which real-life criminal?
Answer: Erwin Walker
He Walked by Night is loosely inspired by Erwin Walker.
Question 14
The Window was adapted from Cornell Woolrich's story titled what?
Answer: The Boy Cried Murder
The Window was adapted from Cornell Woolrich's story The Boy Cried Murder.
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