Can anybody think of titles of films that are complete sentences and what is this called?
March 32010
I’m posting this question again just in hopes someone might come up with some other ideas….. the last answers were great….(For Doc G: I think that only "Hiding Out" is the actual name of the movie– John Cryer is Hiding Out was more like a tagline than the actual title….. but that’s a good one and it sounds like it could be a pretty funny movie)
It seems like during the 70’s there were many films, plays that were statements or sentences. They were quite long and seem to be for humorous effect. I can think of a few —
Who Is Harry Kellerman and Why Is He Saying Those Terrible Things About Me?
Oh Dad, Poor Dad, Mama’s Hung You in the Closet and I’m Feeling So Sad
Sheila Levine Is Dead and Living in New York
Jacques Brel Is Alive and Well and Living in Paris
Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb
To Wong Foo Thanks For Everything Julie Newmar
The Englishman Who Went Up a Hill But Came Down a Mountain
and I also found: If It’s Tuesday, This Must Be Belgium
Can anyone think of any others? What is the style of naming films like this?
Let’s Kill Uncle
It Had to Be You
Isn’t It Romantic?
Some Like It Hot
Lover Come Back
Are We There Yet?
I Shot Andy Warhol
Move Over, Darling
I Remember Mama
You Only Live Twice
Earth Girls Are Easy
Catch Me If You Can
Hold Back the Dawn
The Girl Can’t Help It
Meet Me in St. Louis
And I Alone Survived
The Lady Is a Square
Some Came Running
John Tucker Must Die
You’re a Big Boy Now
Don’t Lose Your Head
Blame It on the Bellboy
Meet Me in Las Vegas
Who Killed Teddy Bear
Who Slew Auntie Roo?
It Happened in Brooklyn
Dude, Where’s My Car?
Honey, I Shrunk the Kids
I Wanna Hold Your Hand
With Six You Get Eggroll
Honey, I Blew Up the Kid
All Women Have Secrets
You Can’t Take It with You
Why Do Fools Fall in Love
You Can’t Have Everything
I Love You, Alice B. Toklas
How Green Was My Valley
Who Framed Roger Rabbit
O Brother, Where Art Thou?
What Planet Are You From?
Let’s Scare Jessica to Death
Honey, We Shrunk Ourselves
What’s the Matter with Helen?
Hush… Hush, Sweet Charlotte
What’s Love Got to Do with It?
Take Me Out to the Ball Game
They Died with Their Boots On
I Woke Up Early the Day I Died
Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
Our Vines Have Tender Grapes
Do You Wanna Know a Secret?
30 Is a Dangerous Age, Cynthia
They Shoot Horses, Don’t They?
Stop the World: I Want to Get Off
Don’t Worry, We’ll Think of a Title
Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter?
Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing
Bring Me the Head of Dobie Gillis
Bring Me the Head of Mavis Davis
Then I Sentenced Them All to Death
What Ever Happened to Aunt Alice?
Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia
What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?
What’s So Bad About Feeling Good?
It Seemed Like a Good Idea at the Time
Who Is Killing the Great Chefs of Europe?
Children Shouldn’t Play With Dead Things
Where Were You When the Lights Went Out?
You’ve Got to Walk It Like You Talk It or You’ll Lose That Beat
Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Sex * But Were Afraid to Ask
Can Hieronymus Merkin Ever Forget Mercy Humppe and Find True Happiness?
There is a series of films that begin with "Carry on":
Carry on at Your Convenience
NOTE: I can list some more of them, but they’re not as much fun as finding other sentences. You list one of my favorites: "If It’s Tuesday, This Must Be Belgium", a film I saw three times in the theater long ago. During the Sixties and Seventies, they were especially fond of complete sentences for movie titles. However, filmmakers seem to have done this far into the past and will continue to do so. Think how often song titles are used, too.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
This isn’t a complete sentence:
The Englishman Who Went Up a Hill But Came Down a Mountain
You’d have to delete "Who".
This isn’t one either:
Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb
You’d have to delete "Dr. Strangelove or:" and "How".
March 3rd, 2010 at 9:38 am
Don’t Be a Menace to South Central While Drinking Your Juice in the Hood
The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou
The Cook, The Thief, His Wife and Her Lover
Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia
One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest:
The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford
References :
March 3rd, 2010 at 9:51 am
I have a TEXT file consisting of 3,649 lines. Each line contains the name of a film. The file is sorted alphabetically.
If you wish I can e-mail this file to you, and you can browse it at your own convenience, looking for films that satisfy the conditions you’ve stated.
Ed Collins
edwardcollins@yahoo.com
References :
March 3rd, 2010 at 10:41 am
big trouble in little china
me and you and everyone we know
The Incredibly Strange Creatures Who Stopped Living and Became Mixed-Up Zombies
eternal sunshine of the spotless mind
The Persecution and Assassination of Jean-Paul Marat as Performed by the Inmates of the Asylum of Charenton Under the Direction of the Marquis de Sade
The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford
References :
March 3rd, 2010 at 11:30 am
Let’s Kill Uncle
It Had to Be You
Isn’t It Romantic?
Some Like It Hot
Lover Come Back
Are We There Yet?
I Shot Andy Warhol
Move Over, Darling
I Remember Mama
You Only Live Twice
Earth Girls Are Easy
Catch Me If You Can
Hold Back the Dawn
The Girl Can’t Help It
Meet Me in St. Louis
And I Alone Survived
The Lady Is a Square
Some Came Running
John Tucker Must Die
You’re a Big Boy Now
Don’t Lose Your Head
Blame It on the Bellboy
Meet Me in Las Vegas
Who Killed Teddy Bear
Who Slew Auntie Roo?
It Happened in Brooklyn
Dude, Where’s My Car?
Honey, I Shrunk the Kids
I Wanna Hold Your Hand
With Six You Get Eggroll
Honey, I Blew Up the Kid
All Women Have Secrets
You Can’t Take It with You
Why Do Fools Fall in Love
You Can’t Have Everything
I Love You, Alice B. Toklas
How Green Was My Valley
Who Framed Roger Rabbit
O Brother, Where Art Thou?
What Planet Are You From?
Let’s Scare Jessica to Death
Honey, We Shrunk Ourselves
What’s the Matter with Helen?
Hush… Hush, Sweet Charlotte
What’s Love Got to Do with It?
Take Me Out to the Ball Game
They Died with Their Boots On
I Woke Up Early the Day I Died
Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
Our Vines Have Tender Grapes
Do You Wanna Know a Secret?
30 Is a Dangerous Age, Cynthia
They Shoot Horses, Don’t They?
Stop the World: I Want to Get Off
Don’t Worry, We’ll Think of a Title
Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter?
Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing
Bring Me the Head of Dobie Gillis
Bring Me the Head of Mavis Davis
Then I Sentenced Them All to Death
What Ever Happened to Aunt Alice?
Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia
What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?
What’s So Bad About Feeling Good?
It Seemed Like a Good Idea at the Time
Who Is Killing the Great Chefs of Europe?
Children Shouldn’t Play With Dead Things
Where Were You When the Lights Went Out?
You’ve Got to Walk It Like You Talk It or You’ll Lose That Beat
Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Sex * But Were Afraid to Ask
Can Hieronymus Merkin Ever Forget Mercy Humppe and Find True Happiness?
There is a series of films that begin with "Carry on":
Carry on at Your Convenience
NOTE: I can list some more of them, but they’re not as much fun as finding other sentences. You list one of my favorites: "If It’s Tuesday, This Must Be Belgium", a film I saw three times in the theater long ago. During the Sixties and Seventies, they were especially fond of complete sentences for movie titles. However, filmmakers seem to have done this far into the past and will continue to do so. Think how often song titles are used, too.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
This isn’t a complete sentence:
The Englishman Who Went Up a Hill But Came Down a Mountain
You’d have to delete "Who".
This isn’t one either:
Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb
You’d have to delete "Dr. Strangelove or:" and "How".
References :
I taught English at the high school level.
I recall many titles because I’ve been working on a book of filmographies for obscure actors and actresses. I have at least 2,000 files already printed out! Also, I’ve watched most of these a number of times, so I simply had to check my film journals. Who would have thought that there would be so many?
March 3rd, 2010 at 11:52 am
I believe these are all post-70’s, but they’re complete sentences.
I’m Gonna Get You Sucka’
What’s Eating Gilbert Grape?
Throw Mama From The Train
I Know What You Did Last Summer (and the others after)
Get Carter
Get Smart
I Think I Love My Wife
It Could Happen To You
Romeo Must Die
Martin Lawrence You So Crazy
Never Say Never Again
My Stepmother Is An Alien
You Kill Me
The World Is Not Enough
Who’s The Man?
We’re No Angels
Joe Versus The Volcano
Tomorrow Never Dies
There’s Something About Mary
Shall We Dance?
References :
From my mind.