February
5It’s All in the Title
I worry about the folks who assemble movie marquees these days. Film titles keep getting longer and longer, even as the plexes shrink space allocated for titles.A couple of years ago, the film titled “Love in the Time of Cholera” on most marquees was just listed as “Cholera”. That’s not exactly an inviting title for a date movie. Even “Diphtheria” would work better.
Theaters dealt with “The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants” in devious ways. “Sisterhood” didn’t attract the guy trade. “Pants” proved more enticing, if misleading.
So now we have a new film titled “He’s Just Not That Into You.” I realize that’s a hip expression (the book was a best seller), but how about the marquees? “He’s Not” doesn’t work. “Into You” is suggestive, but weird.
I think filmmakers should stick to titles that are short and tough. Like “Push.” That title sold at Sundance and it’s already generating lawsuits. The trouble is there’s another movie called “Push” opening Friday, with Dakota Fanning. That may mean the next “Push” will have to be released as “Push: Based on the Novel by Sapphire.”
Marquees are in big trouble with that one.
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Another side effect of crowded marquees are the accidental phrases, such as MR BROOKS KNOCKED UP NANCY DREW and ERIN BROCKOVICH SCREWED MY DOG SKIP
Posted by: MarkMandel.com | 2/7/2009 12:20:02 PM
lol
Posted by: Tim | 2/6/2009 9:38:43 AM