The worst and greatest movies/series titles

[King]

And by titles, I mean “names”.

Its kind of simple. In your opinion, what do you think is the worst and or greatest title you ever read from a movie/show?
For a movie: Full Metal Jacket
Something about that title of the movie just rings to me. I've never seen the movie before (Which is odd since I got the DVD of it), but when I read that title, it just scream epicness to me.

As for worst title...Even though I like the series a little, “Ugly Americans”. I don't know why, it felt lazy to me. I get why the series is called like that, but I felt they could have added a little more effort in the title.

And yeah-yeah, “Don't Judge a book by its cover”. But what would you rather watch, “Changing Roboticals” or “Transformers”?
Egh, maybe its me, but titles in movies/series has a big part in it too.

[G. Wen]

I have to say it again: Fury Vengeance. That title is just so wrong!

[JasonFox]

Kill Bill. The title itself rhymes and pulls you in with somehow looking towards it as a graphic bloody masterpiece.

Apocalypse Now. Good film by FFC but the title is a little off putting.

[Tommy Lawson]

Back to the Future is definitely one of my choices for best movie title. The movie's title has become a phrase still used to this day.

[Damien]

Apocalypse Now. Good film by FFC but the title is a little off putting.

Yes, it does take away from the movie's overall cheerfulness.

I can't think of any bad or awesome titles just now, but I can throw out a couple titles that contributed to me not viewing the product: "I Love You, Man" and "How I Met Your Mother" grate on me. I'm not sure why.

[Rick Jones]

I thought Quantum Of Solace was kind of an off-putting title for a James Bond movie. I loved Casino Royale but still have yet to see this sequel and the boring title probably has something to do with that. I originally thought The Dark Knight might be a bad title when it comes to drawing in general audiences but then it turned out to be one of the biggest movies ever. Gentleman Broncos seems like a pretty odd duck of a title as well.

[Itchy]

I have to say "Saw" always seemed like a unimaginative and bland title to me.

[Jedigreedo]

Hmm, no significant TV shows are coming to mind at the moment, so here's some movies.

Best:
Star Trek: The Undiscovered Country - It easily adds a new sense of the unknown despite it being the 6th movie in the line, and its interpretation in the actual movie leads to some great moments.

Shoot'em Up - So simple, but so defining of the movie in that either you like it, or you utterly hate it.

Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back - The incautious blatant reveal of where the plot is going can be offsetting at times, but this isn't one of them. After watching "A New Hope," and hearing "The Empire Strikes Back," you simply can't wait to watch the movie, and it doesn't fail to deliver. Considering that the Empire not only continually manages to strike back throughout the movie, but even wins, it's actually an understated title.

Back to the Future - It seems simple, but it's really a coy title that easily leaves its impression upon you, especially after watching it. They also didn't ruin it by attempting to draw people in with epic titles, and simply used good ol' parts 2 and 3.

Indiana Jones and the - Obviously a title that harkens back to the days of cinematic serials, but it also keeps an air of adventure to those unfamiliar with them. Raiders of the Lost Ark is a bit long, but it's acceptable for the introductory movie. Temple of Doom and Last Crusade continue with the fun, but keep it simple, which is ideal because at this point you're focusing on the Indiana Jones portion most of all. Of course, this was improperly carried on with "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull," which was annoying to remember, and it didn't live up to it very well because there wasn't much of a Kingdom to actually be seen.

True Lies - Short, simple, and yet manages to convey a nice sense of mystery that works great for a quirky spy movie.


Worst:

Chronicles of Riddick - After having a movie so vaguely titled "Pitch Black," it was a very strange jump. Having a sequel start the "Chronicles" aspect was not the best idea, but it was made worse when you didn't really feel as though it was part of a larger story. Its self-containment, aside from the references of Pitch Black, left the title seeming completely pointless.

Superman Returns - No matter how you feel about the movie - personally I can find some enjoyment in it - the title is simply lazy. Yes, Superman does "return," but it comes off too much as a blatant rip off of "Batman Returns." Granted, that was in a context that was tickling the fourth wall as opposed to literally being the plot, but it should have been avoided.

Star Wars: Attack of the Clones - Considering the attack doesn't happen until the last half hour or so into the movie, and the story has skipped 10 years, it's really not best to focus on that sole aspect.

Stargate SG-1: Continuum - Not only is it annoyingly vague, lazy, and drained of any inspiration, it's also pointless. The movie prior to it, "Ark of Truth," was the end of an arc. "Continuum," however, was supposed be a new adventure, and yet you'd expect it to be a direct sequel if you had no idea of the movies already. Not smart.

[TKnHappyNess]

I'd say the prequel Trilogy for Star Wars. The originals, the titles made sense.

[Spideyzilla]

Yes, it does take away from the movie's overall cheerfulness.

When I first heard the title to the movie, I thought it was a science fiction or horror film, so I agree about the title.

[defunctzombie]

I'm not too sure about series or movie titles that are very off putting, but I know an episode title that sure strikes the weird-o-meter:

"Please note we are no longer accepting letters of recommendation from Henry Kissinger"

It's a L&O CI episode title. The episode wasn't really that good.

[BonyT]

Apocalypse Now. Good film by FFC but the title is a little off putting.Really? Wow. Apocalypse Now was my first thought for best film title.
I'm with you though on the coolness of Kill Bill.

Also great:
O Brother, Where Art Thou?
Full Metal Jacket

Honorable mention:
I'm Gonna Git You Sucka

In the "worst" category, have to agree with Rick Jones: Quantum of Solace is just plain awkward. Too big-wordy for any title fluidity. It's kind of like the feeling you get when the iconic Trek line, "To boldly go where no one has gone before," gets forced into grammatical correctness: "To go boldly where no one before has gone." Blech. Grates on the ears--and heck, for that matter it's ultimately pointless, because it's still a sentence fragment anyway.

And in a not-unrelated observation (since so many films are adapted from novels), the greatest novel title ever has to be Absalom, Absalom! For anyone acquainted with the Biblical story, that title conveys SO much before you ever crack the cover of Faulkner's book.

[Classic Speedy]

I think the off-putting criticism JasonFox has for Apocalypse Now is that with a word like "apocalypse" in the title, you'd expect the movie to be about the end of the world, not the Vietnam War. Don't get me wrong, it's a cool title, but I could see how a person completely unfamiliar with the movie could be confused about its content.

[blazecat]

I don't know about best, but some of the worst titles have to be from episodes of George Lopez. Unnecessarily long and/or over the top

1.George Helps Angie's Wha-Positive Self-Image By Saying You 'Sta Loca Good

2. George Joins the Neighborhood Wha-tcha and Raises the Vigil-ante

3. George Decides to Sta-Local Where It's Familia

4. George Gets Smoking Mad at Benny and Develops an Órale Fixation

Just to name a few

[BonyT]

I think the off-putting criticism JasonFox has for Apocalypse Now is that with a word like "apocalypse" in the title, you'd expect the movie to be about the end of the world, not the Vietnam War. Don't get me wrong, it's a cool title, but I could see how a person completely unfamiliar with the movie could be confused about its content.Yes, now that you mention it, I can see how that could happen.

The discussion of Apocalypse Now brings (naturally) to mind another great novel title, btw: Conrad's Heart of Darkness.

[El Dahveed]

I don't know about best, but some of the worst titles have to be from episodes of George Lopez. Unnecessarily long and/or over the top

1.George Helps Angie's Wha-Positive Self-Image By Saying You 'Sta Loca Good

2. George Joins the Neighborhood Wha-tcha and Raises the Vigil-ante

3. George Decides to Sta-Local Where It's Familia

4. George Gets Smoking Mad at Benny and Develops an Órale Fixation

Just to name a few

I tend to disagree, I like their titles, mostly because of their use of puns, like in the crossover ep with Freddie: "George Gets Cross Over Freddie."

[TKnHappyNess]

This is one that is best and worst all in one.

Super Mario Bros. The Super Show and the game were clearly good, the movie not really. Now I'm not sure how good the anime movie is, but it's better than the live-action one despite it coming out 7 years prior.

[Silverstar]

This is one that is best and worst all in one.

Super Mario Bros. The Super Show and the game were clearly good, the movie not really. Now I'm not sure how good the anime movie is, but it's better than the live-action one despite it coming out 7 years prior.

What's being discussed is the quality of the actual titles, i.e., the names of these projects, not so much the works themselves.

[cohenmarioman]

Best ... I would have to say Terminator: Judgment Day. When you think of Judgment day, Termination comes to mind. I think of the epicness of the movie whenver I say it.

Worse ... I would have to say True Blood. Sure, I love the series, but the name is kinda weird. What is true about the blood? It would have been better to be called one of the other proxy blood from the book, such as Pure Blood.

That is of course for names.