My name is Ramsey, but you may call me The Puzzleboy.
I have once again retreated to the palatial summer estate La Casa Del Niño Rompecabezas nestled safely in the Canary Islands. The sun has been hot, but lucky for me, I’m more of an Indoor Kid. I’m writin’ puzzles and watchin’ movies all day and all night!
Speaking of movies, if you’re anything like my friend Matt Bellamy, you might have noticed that there are so many sequels these days! This month, we harness Hollywood’s unhealthy obsession with franchises for good, giving you a chance at immortality with your name etched forever in The Puzzleboy Pantheon.
Okay, Smokey, roll 'em!
This month you are going to do some MovieMath™. There are four math problems below, each made up of a very succinct piece of movie trivia, followed by a mathematical operation. Every piece of trivia points to a specific movie. Your job is to identify which numbered installment of its franchise that movie is (counting by release order unless otherwise noted).
You will then take the corresponding number of that film in franchise order and use it to complete the formula before you. So, for example, “Saw V times Predator 2” = 5×2, so our answer is 10.
You are not expected to have seen all of these movies, so you are welcome to Google around for hints.
There are four MovieMath™ problems below. You will then use your solutions to those questions for one final question!
A couple other numerical tips:
If a movie title already contains a number, use that number. Otherwise:
If it's the first film in a franchise, its value is 1.
If it's a later installment without a number in the title (for example, Thor: Ragnarok), use its installment number (3, in that case).
If you identify the wrong movie… well, that's on you.
Reboots don't reset the count. For example, Superman Returns is still Superman 5, even though it ignores parts III and IV.
For Star Wars, use the Episode numbers. Other prequels are counted by release order, not chronology. So Temple of Doom counts as Indiana Jones 2.
Every clue has exactly one intended movie, and every movie has exactly one numerical value.
Number One
(Keith Richards attends the Brethren Court + Ian Malcolm has a daughter) x Gisele Yashar is alive, actually x Cypher betrays Morpheus.
Number Two
(Principal Strickland is a cowboy + Ripley is a clone + Goose dies) x Coriolanus Snow is little.
Number Three
Christopher Lee vs. Roger Moore + Mr. T vs Rocky + Ethan meets the Rabbit’s Foot + Paddington vs. the British prison system
Number Four
Meet Rose Tico - No Michael Myers - Sidney Prescott a decade later + arrivederci Fredo
Plug your four answers into the final equation below. The result will be a year.
Name the Steven Spielberg movie released that year.
(Question 1 x Question 2) - (Question 3 + Question 4)
To submit your answer, please click this link and fill out the form. You have until 11:59pm ET on July 25th to submit. There is no advantage to being first, so take your time!
NOTE: You are more than welcome to use the comment section of this post, but this is decidedly not the place to submit your answer or share hints. Doing so may result in your disqualification.
In other words: post answers in the comments? An usher will remove you immediately and you will not be refunded.
