# Film or book titles which are commonly used as metaphors **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [September 28, 2009, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/film-or-book-titles-which-are-commonly-used-as-metaphors/511865 "2009-09-28T17:33:22Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![eleanorigby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ee7513/32.png) [@eleanorigby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eleanorigby)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2009, 1:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/film-or-book-titles-which-are-commonly-used-as-metaphors/511865/21 "2009-09-29T01:52:12Z")
Shangri La (from Lost Horizon, both book and film). ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2009, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/film-or-book-titles-which-are-commonly-used-as-metaphors/511865/22 "2009-09-29T01:58:25Z")
> [@Colibri](#): > > **Gargantua** , for anything gigantic. Also, [Gigantor](http://www.henshinonline.com/images/gigantor_dvd_00.jpg). ---
**Author:** ![Horatio\_Hellpop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Horatio\_Hellpop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatio_Hellpop)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2009, 2:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/film-or-book-titles-which-are-commonly-used-as-metaphors/511865/23 "2009-09-29T02:20:03Z")
Similar characters with different connotations: **Rain Man** for anyone really gifted in one respect and deficient in most others, and **Forrest Gump** for the practice of inserting a modern actor into old or stock footage. How many frat houses or group homes pride themselves on being an **Animal House**? ---
**Author:** ![TWDuke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e495f1/32.png) [@TWDuke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TWDuke)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2009, 3:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/film-or-book-titles-which-are-commonly-used-as-metaphors/511865/24 "2009-09-29T03:07:07Z")
[Through the Looking Glass](http://books.google.com/books?id=i2MCAAAAYAAJ&dq=through+the+looking+glass&printsec=frontcover&source=bn&hl=en&ei=M3bBSpSTOpTStAOZmMHtAg&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=4#v=onepage&q=&f=false) ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2009, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/film-or-book-titles-which-are-commonly-used-as-metaphors/511865/25 "2009-09-29T03:20:18Z")
Back even further, _The Odyssey_, (if that counts as a book), for a long, convoluted journey. _The Last of the Mohicans_, for the last survivor of a dying race. _High Noon_, for a showdown. ---
**Author:** ![AlsoNamedBort](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alsonamedbort/32/3213_2.png) [@AlsoNamedBort](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AlsoNamedBort)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2009, 3:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/film-or-book-titles-which-are-commonly-used-as-metaphors/511865/26 "2009-09-29T03:27:24Z")
“I have a very difficult decision to make. It’s like last week I was at the video store. Do I rent Devil Wears Prada again? Or do I finally get around to seeing **Sophie’s Choice**? It is what you would call a classic difficult decision.” ---
**Author:** ![AppallingGael](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b9bd4f/32.png) [@AppallingGael](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AppallingGael)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2009, 4:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/film-or-book-titles-which-are-commonly-used-as-metaphors/511865/27 "2009-09-29T04:16:28Z")
I know someone who likes to say “the postman always rings twice”, but I have never understood what he means by it. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2009, 8:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/film-or-book-titles-which-are-commonly-used-as-metaphors/511865/28 "2009-09-29T08:51:41Z")
The Scarlet Letter ---
**Author:** ![Horatio\_Hellpop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Horatio\_Hellpop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatio_Hellpop)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2009, 9:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/film-or-book-titles-which-are-commonly-used-as-metaphors/511865/29 "2009-09-29T09:51:22Z")
Certain unsavory relationships have been described as **Lolita** or **Batman and Robin**. ---
**Author:** ![Martini\_Enfield](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/martini_enfield/32/11123_2.png) [@Martini\_Enfield](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martini_Enfield)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2009, 11:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/film-or-book-titles-which-are-commonly-used-as-metaphors/511865/30 "2009-09-29T11:48:53Z")
_Pythonesque_ is used to describe absurdist humour in the vein of _Monty Python’s Flying Circus_. A _Boy’s Own_ Adventure is one which will feature exotic destinations, a plucky hero, a virtuous heroine, lost treasure, dangerous animals and/or Natives, and is usually either set between about 1875 and 1939 or crafted in that style if it’s more recent. Not strictly a movie title, but the term _Bond Villain_ describes any well mannered, megalomaniacal Supervillain with a massive and implausible Secret Lair and an equally implausible Doomsday Device. The term _She Who Must Be Obeyed_ (usually playfully referring to one’s wife or de facto partner) comes from the H. Rider Haggard novel _She_ (in which the phrase had a far less jocular implication). And the idea of referring to a resourceful and exceedingly well-mannered Butler (or, if you’re being a smartarse, anyone who has brought you something) as _Jeeves_ comes from all those P.G. Wodehouse novels. _Duke Nukem Forever_ is commonly used as a metaphor for “Vapourware” in the PC Gaming industry (referring to a product which is hyped and hyped and promised to be “coming soon”, but never actually materialises). _Duke Nukem Forever_ has been in production (or “coming soon”) for quite literally 12 years now. The official release date is now “When it’s done.” _Machiavellian_, of course, is a cunning, reasonably complex, and underhanded scheme that may or may not involve stabbing people in the back (literally and/or figuratively). _Sherlock (Holmes)_ has become a byword for “Talented Detective”. A number of Dilbert-related terms have entered the English language as metaphors, most notably _Pointy-Haired Boss_ (clueless manager), _Dogbertian_ (megalomaniacal scheme largely based on cynism with Machiavellian undertones), and _Dilbertesque_ (working in a dysfunctional workplace much like the one Dilbert & Co inhabit). ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2009, 11:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/film-or-book-titles-which-are-commonly-used-as-metaphors/511865/31 "2009-09-29T11:50:32Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#): > > **Star Wars** , used as a reference to SDI-type space-based systems, definitely isn’t based on any book. The Russians loved the metaphor, because it made the US look like warmongers for pushing it. As Ben Bova pointed out, in his day this would have been called a “Buck Rogers” device. “No bucks, no Buck Rogers.” Which of course leads to **The Right Stuff** , The book and the movie never actually define what that is; only describing the exploits of those who obviously have it. Metaphorically, it’s the combination of talent and bravery needed to accomplish some difficult task. ---
**Author:** ![Defensive\_Indifference](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/defensive_indifference/32/6502_2.png) [@Defensive\_Indifference](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Defensive_Indifference)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2009, 12:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/film-or-book-titles-which-are-commonly-used-as-metaphors/511865/32 "2009-09-29T12:29:36Z")
Thomas More coined (or at least popularized) the word **utopia** in his book _De optimo rei publicae statu deque nova insula Utopia_. The title can be translated a couple of ways, but I always just called it _Utopia_. My professors in college thankfully didn’t insist on us using the full name. Or using Latin, for that matter. ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2009, 1:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/film-or-book-titles-which-are-commonly-used-as-metaphors/511865/33 "2009-09-29T13:08:46Z")
I’m going to throw out a few titles that I feel fit the OP, but I’m not sure exactly why they do. **Tarzan** **The Lost World** **Terminator** ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2009, 1:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/film-or-book-titles-which-are-commonly-used-as-metaphors/511865/34 "2009-09-29T13:12:31Z")
> [@Equipoise](#): > > What’s that? I’ve never heard of it. I omitted the final “t” in Babbitt, named after the Sinclair Lewis novel about American conformity and blandness. Not as common a metaphor now as it once was: [Babbitt (novel) - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Babbitt_(novel)) “Sherlock” is also used sarcastically in reference to someone who’s not exactly proving himself to be a genius, e.g. “No shit, Sherlock!” ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2009, 1:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/film-or-book-titles-which-are-commonly-used-as-metaphors/511865/35 "2009-09-29T13:23:14Z")
I think it’s going out of style, but you’ve got _The Bridge of San Luis Rey_ for sets of bizarre coincidences. ---
**Author:** ![johnspartan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/a183cd/32.png) [@johnspartan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/johnspartan)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2009, 1:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/film-or-book-titles-which-are-commonly-used-as-metaphors/511865/36 "2009-09-29T13:33:41Z")
The Lorax. The way I most hear it used is in describing a self-appointed spokesperson for a cause that’s a lot bigger than you and which you’re not really a part of. From “I am a Lorax and I speak for the trees…” ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2009, 2:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/film-or-book-titles-which-are-commonly-used-as-metaphors/511865/37 "2009-09-29T14:50:54Z")
How about the use of “Cinderella” as a metaphor for any success story that seems to come out of nowhere (particularly in sports)? Or what abot “The Ugly American”? ---
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2009, 3:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/film-or-book-titles-which-are-commonly-used-as-metaphors/511865/38 "2009-09-29T15:10:04Z")
Not sure if it’s quite what you’re looking for, but how about Men Are From Mars, Women Are From Venus ? ---
**Author:** ![cactus\_waltz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/74df32/32.png) [@cactus\_waltz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cactus_waltz)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2009, 3:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/film-or-book-titles-which-are-commonly-used-as-metaphors/511865/39 "2009-09-29T15:24:44Z")
> [@blondebear](#): > > Not sure if it’s quite what you’re looking for, but how about Men Are From Mars, Women Are From Venus ? Well, it is fiction, is it not. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2009, 1:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/film-or-book-titles-which-are-commonly-used-as-metaphors/511865/40 "2009-09-30T13:06:39Z")
Deep Throat–unnamed informant. Stepford–robotlike. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/film-or-book-titles-which-are-commonly-used-as-metaphors/511865.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/film-or-book-titles-which-are-commonly-used-as-metaphors/511865.md?page=3)