You Don't Know Jack Movies

"If You're a Movie Enthusiast, this is THE game"

Fresh off the success of You Don't Know Jack: Volume 2 comes two new "specialty" versions of Jack, TV and Movies!!! Much like the sports version before it, both of these volumes include trivia questions catered to a specific subject. Today, we're gonna take a look at the Movies.

Maybe you've played You Don't Know Jack before, or maybe you're just interested now because you've found a nifty trivia game that tackles something you feel you know a lot about -- MOVIES. Or, maybe it was just on sale for like $10 bucks at Electronics Boutique. Be forewarned, though, that You Don't Know Jack is not like other trivia games. It's something bigger. Better. And all together, more fun.

First of all, know that You Don't Know Jack movies is not meant to be played alone -- it's meant to be played with two or three players. There's no computer opponents to play against, so you need to bring your own. You CAN play alone, but then it just becomes a question and answer period that's more fun than usual. The real fun is in the multiplayer.

If you aren't familiar with previous Jack Games, then sit back and read while I explain for about the fifth time what makes Jack so nifty. You Don't Know Jack is a trivia game that completely blows the doors off any other trivia game you've played. The entire game is set up like a gameshow, that you and up to two of your friends can play. You play for virtual money in a 21 or 7 question game. Instead of giving you the same boring questions over and over, Jack gives you interesting questions that fulfill the game's commercial motto, "The Trivia Game where High Culture and Pop Culture Collide." Except this time, all the questions are geared at movies. You'll see the most bizarre subjects join together to make bizarre questions. Indiana Jones and Citizen Kane combine to make one question. Deliverance and Saturday Night Fever for another. It's clever, ingenious, and never repetitious. NEVER, you hear me? Oy.. I've said that way too many times.

The game differs from other trivia games, computer or otherwise, in its presentation. The entire thing is set up like a game show, complete with a host and a virtual scoring system. The game wreaks of a style all its own from beginning to finish.

Your host this time is.. some guy whose name escapes me. I don't really pay as much attention to the hosts of these "specialty" expansions, but this one is signifigantly better than the one from Jack: Sports. He speaks every question in full, responses to whatever answer you pick, and is always helpful, snide, cynical, and sarcastic. Getting abused verbally is half the fun of You Don't Know Jack, and the tradition continues in Jack: Movies.

Jack: Movies rolls on right after Jack: Volume 2, so many of the features that were new on there are still new on here. There's a larger variety of question types than there were in Jack: Sports, including multiple choice, fill in the blank, dis or dat, the Jack Attack, gibberish question, and one exclusive to Movies and TVs, a question called "Whatshisname?"

Another warning before you delve into this Jack game -- if you think you're qualified to play just because you've seen the Star Wars trilogy a million times and saw Jurassic Park in the theater twice.. think again. This game, rather surprisingly, includes questions from all passages of time. If you don't know what Paper Moon is or if you've never really seen Casablanca, you better look elsewhere -- this is serious trivia with a humorous twist, not just some rehash of last night's episode of EXTRA!

Not familiar with the question types, or wanna know more about them and the ones included in Jack: Movies? Well, I'll be happy to oblige.. for the umpteenth time. (I've done a LOT of Jack Reviews, you see, and I've seen a lot of what I'm about to write again over and over)

Okay, here we go...

First of all, you have your basic questions, the ones that take up most of the game. First, you pick a catergory.. usually something pretty bizarre, like "Clockwork Green and Soylent Orange" The question is then given a value. The question is popped on the screen, along with four equally bizarre possible answers. Buzz in first and answer correctly, and you net yourself the amount of $$$ the question was designated. Screw (speaking of which, more on screws later) up and answer wrong, and that score will be detracted from your total.

Next up is the Gibberish question, which has been around since volume one.. and continues to go on strong even today. It's as much a part of Jack as Trivia is. In the Gibberish Question, a rather odd phrase is printed on the screen.. something that usually looks like a lot of nonsense mumbo jumbo. (That is usually pretty funny) You only have so much time to figure out what other phrase it rhymes with, usually a cliche or proverb of some sort. Figure it out first, buzz in, and get it right and you net yourself some greenbacks.. more if you answer quicker.

Next is the fast paced, one player Dis or Dat player! Only one player -- the one who picked the catergory -- is allowed to participate in this question. When it starts up, you'll be given two different catergories, each designated to a different key on the keyboard. For instance, "Dated Julia Roberts on Screen" would be on key 1 while "Dated Julia Roberts off Screen" would be on another. Ohh.. and for this particular question.. you could press "3" if the answer fits both catergories. And then, words will start popping up at the top of the screen. You have to figure out if that word matches catergory 1 or catergory 2. For instance, Lyle Lovitt pops up... you'd obviously hit 2.

Speaking of which, wasn't Julia Roberts perfectly cast for Runaway Bride? I mean.. well, think about it.

New and somewhat exclusive to Jack Movies and TV is the "whatshisname" question. Although it works a lot like celebrity trash from Jack 3, its different because.. well, it's more official this time. You're given clues as to a celebrity's identity, and then you buzz in when you figure it out. For instance, you get the following clues...

"Was originally considered for the lead role in 'Hook.'"
"Part of the notorious five time Saturday Night Live Host club."
"Y'know, I hear he gets Sleepless in Seattle..."

When you figure it out, buzz in and answer. Of course, this one was "Tom Hanks." The faster you buzz in, the more money you net.. the more time you wait, the less.. kinda like Gibberish. Clever, hm?

And of course, it wouldn't be You Don't Know Jack if it weren't for the Jack Attack, the final question for each game. In the Jack Attack, you will get a clue based on the catergory you picked for the last question.. for instance "Buddies to the Bitter End." Then, slowly float to the front of the screen from the back, while random words starting floating elsewhere on the screen. Buzz in when the word that matches the catergory and the clue shows up, and you gain money. So, if the word "Wayne Cambell" was leering forward, and you buzzed when "Mike Myers" Was floating around, you'd lose money. Buzz in when "Garth Algar" appears, and you net yourself 2000 bucks. Easy enough, but when competing with two other players, it can be an outrageous test of knowledge and speed.

And who can forget the screw? See, I told you I wouldn't forget.. gather round now, and I'll tell you all about one of Jack's most ingenious inventions.. the screw. If a question shows up for, let's say, the maximum amount of $6,000, and you know there's NO WAY the other players know it.. then screw one of em, preferably the one in the lead or closest to you in the lead. You get one screw for every ten questions, which forces the other player to answer the question. Be warned, though, that if they somehow get it right, they gain the money for the question.. and you, in turn, lose it.

Jack: Movies also scores some new style points with more complex graphics and such than you may be used to seeing in the Jack series. For instance, the catergory selection screen often has a filter on it that makes it look like it's from an old black and white movie, complete with specks and flickers, as the sound of an old whirring video roll is heard in the background. Even the question introduction animation sequences have been expanded on. Whereas they once featured some moving letters, now the letters are animated to spoof on different types of movies, from Godzilla to romance.. and even porn. It's clever and new, and it sets the Movie edition apart somewhat.

Sounds have been changed somewhat to fit the movie theme, and its all good. The sound of movie projecters and rewinds all accompany the games where blips and whirrs did before. The effect is memorable, and helps solidify the movie theme. The host is pretty good, and reads every question off in it completion, offering you new responses on whatever you picked. The game ends with commercials based on movies and such, and is supported with clean, clear voice throughout.

Jack Movies is Movie trivia with a true Jack Style. It's smooth, and it's good, and it's wholesome to the core. This isn't a game for the casual movie fan, either -- some of the question, which reach back into the fifties and beyond -- are for true movie moguls, not just for people who think they're special because they've seen all the Rocky movies. If you can mange to get three movie moguls together in the same room with a copy of this fab trivia game, you'll have a guaranteed blast.,

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 11/01/99, Updated 11/01/99