Reel Haiku

About Reel Haiku

Reel Haiku is a film guessing game by Mike Linsey and Nathan Haslewood, who also make the daily fiction games on novlr. Its own description is short: a daily film puzzle in three lines.

Every day there are three puzzles, the same three for every player, and they change at midnight UTC. Each puzzle is a haiku about one film. The first line appears in large type, and you type a film title and choose it from the list. A wrong guess, or pressing Next clue, brings in the next line; after three lines without the answer the puzzle is missed. The films are drawn from 1940 onward, and where two films share a title, naming the right title with the wrong year costs you nothing.

At the end of each puzzle you see the film and its year and a row of three squares showing on which clue you solved it, ready to share. When all three are done, the page counts down to the next day's set and keeps your streak in the browser. The finished poem can be printed or saved as a poster in a clean view.

It suits film fans who like a riddle more than a stills or cast quiz: the lines hint at plot, setting and mood rather than show the film.

How to play Reel Haiku

1. Open Reel Haiku and read the first line of the day's first haiku.
2. Type a film title and pick it from the list that appears.
3. If you are wrong, or press Next clue, the next line of the haiku appears.
4. Name the film within three lines to solve it; your result shows which clue you got it on.
5. Play the day's other two haiku, then share your squares or save the poem as a poster.

Screenshots

Tips

• The first line is often about the setting or a famous scene, so think of iconic moments before plots.
• Skipping with Next clue costs the same as a wrong guess, so guess when you have a real candidate.
• Titles shared by a remake and an original are both in the list; the right title with the wrong year does not count as a miss.
• Only films from 1940 on are used, which rules out the silent era.

Questions