Where was the sword wielding jogger in Blade Runner?
The Terminators, not a sequel/spinoff of the Arnold/Cameron franchise but rather some direct to Syfy shit that probably should result in the makers being sued for trademark infringement.
Seven Pounds. I first saw it described as some sort of inspiring story of redemption, and I really thought it was about weight-loss issues.
I was somewhat surprised to learn that Watership Down wasn’t a film about the brave men in serving aboard our nation’s submarine fleet.
Yes, but in this case, the title is ironic. They are not ordinary people.
For older films, there’s The Gay Falcon, which is not about a homosexual bird.
Sorceror – a great film, but it sounds like it’s some Carlos Castaneda thing. Even after seeing it, I still didn’t understand the title. It was YEARS before someone pointed out where it came from.
Visionquest – sounds like it ought to be about Native American Spirituality, or a Fantasy Film.
Fantasia. Man, that sure wasn’t worth the arrest.
I don’t think I can count the number of times I’ve been flipping through the guide and seen 28 Days and thought to myself, this is a great time for a zombie movie.
I get what you’re saying, but at the same time the movie really did have a bit of a quest to it. Great movie!
The Breakfast Club.
There was no club. Or breakfast. It was just a bunch of kids in detention. I want my money back!
…
Funny People, starring Adam Sandler. A total contradiction in terms.
Also, Funny Games isn’t funny at all, unless you’re a homicidal sociopath.
How about Reindeer Games? I haven’t seen it, but I understand that it doesn’t even visit the North Pole and Santa’s workshop.
Okay. Then let me try again. Three of them.
O
Surely, this was to be a biography or documentary about Oprah (who, for some reason, I thought owned the letter “O”.) Instead, it’s about gangsters and drug dealers and people who get shot, complete with bad acting by pretty boy Josh Hartnett.
L.I.E.
I thought this was going to be about a super-secret government agency complete with ticking time bomb down to 1 second until defusing and all that. Instead, it turned out to be about an ephebophile who picked up boys who were actually cruising for pick-ups along the Long Island Expressway. (Hence L.I.E.) Played exquistely by Brian Cox, the protagonist (?) is actually a sympathetic old fellow, portrayed as a sort of victim of the boys who take full advantage of every opportunity to rob from him, have him do their bidding, and eventually shoot and kill him. An amazing movie. (Great credit to director Michael Cuesta.) Turns out its “R” rating was for nothing more than the mere context of what the censors believed to be pedophila. (No such harrowing scenes actually occured.)
The Princess Bride
I thought this would be a “girly” film, and boring as hell. But it turned out to be one of the funniest, most entertaining, and most memorable films I’ve ever seen. Great movie elements, from acting to directing to photography to set and costumes. And, of course, that great script.
In my mind I associated it with the Vodka “O,” which IIRC came out around the same time.
Of course, anyone who lives on Long Island would get the reference.
In my own case, I was confused that Freedomland wasn’t about an amusement park.
The Pelican Brief - did not feature a terminally ill bird.
Rain Man - wasn’t about an Indian witchdoctor.
North by Northwest - wasn’t the orienteering epic I was expecting.
Saturday Night Fever - wasn’t the story of a virulent viral outbreak.
Gone With the Wind - was not the story of a lady suffering from room-clearing flatulence.
The Grapes of Wrath - not a sequel to The Killer Tomatoes.
All Quiet on the Western Front - hmm.
Trainspotting - also hmm.
I don’t think it’s really fair to say that that’s a misleading title; I mean, the idea of self-discovery and coming of age is the central theme of the movie so the title is an accurate reflection of that. I highly doubt anyone bought tickets to Vision Quest expecting a movie about Indian rituals. However, there is indeed an Indian character in the movie who does tell the protagonist about the ritual of the vision quest and how he needs to have his own version of it. (Ironically he turns out to not be a real Indian - he invented the whole identity to cope with his abusive father.)
The book is better than the movie and TOTALLY different.
Likewise The Falcon and the Snowman, which is not about the heartwarming friendship between a bird and a child’s wintery construction project.
George Washington is not really about the first President.
Brazil is not a travelogue.
Vanilla Sky is not about an all-the-ice-cream-you-can-eat airline.
And sheesh, Rebecca never appears in the movie named after her!
Looking for Mr. Goodbar has no confectioners in it. And I took a first date to see it. On Christmas Day. It did not end well. The date, not the movie. Oh, I guess the movie didn’t end well, either. Never mind.
To be fair, the protagonist is rather fond of little chocolate candies, but I don’t think anyone would look at that title and think Thai kickboxing action flick.