Giving a movie a title must be a difficult thing to do. It's often the first thing anyone will know about any given movie, and so giving a movie a great name is a surefire way to create a good first impression. Of course, having the movie live up to its given title - particularly if the title in question is silly, outlandish, or audacious - is another thing altogether, and surely most viewers have experienced being burnt by a movie not living up to what its title promised.
Thankfully, the following 10 titles are all suitably crazy and memorable, and are attached to movies that genuinely deliver on what you'd expect (and hope) to see. They help show that a great title isn't always too good to be true, and that even if many movie titles may let you down, an outlandish title isn't always going to lead to disappointment.
'Faster, Pussycat! Kill! Kill!' (1965)
Including one exclamation mark in a movie title is implying a high level of excitement from the movie proper, but having no less than three takes things to a whole other level. Such is the case with Faster, Pussycat! Kill! Kill!, which also uses the very dramatic word "Kill" twice, and in addition, opts to use the word "Pussycat," which isn't one you see in too many movie titles.
This low-budget blend of comedy and action more than lives up to its extreme title, thankfully. It might be an exploitation movie, but it's better made (and maybe even smarter) than you might expect, telling the story of three strippers who go on a wild crime spree in the desert. Somewhat unsurprisingly, it's a movie that Quentin Tarantino once claimed he wanted to do a remake of.
'The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent' (2022)
When a movie stars the wildly unpredictable Nicolas Cage, you have to be prepared for something offbeat, or out of the ordinary. When a movie stars Nicolas Cage and has a title as bold as The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent, it's naturally going to set expectations even higher for Cage connoisseurs.
Thankfully, The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent did end up being a good time. It was a solid action-comedy movie/homage to the filmography of Nicolas Cage that was at its best when it focused on the bromance between Cage and Pedro Pascal. The sooner they team up for another crazy film together, the better.
'Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb' (1964)
Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb establishes its darkly absurd sense of humor right from the outset. The long, baffling title prepares viewers for one of the most radical films of the 1960s: a Cold War movie where the idea of nuclear warfare destroying the world and ending humanity is made surprisingly funny.
Stanley Kubrick was a director who could make a masterpiece in just about any genre, with Dr. Strangelove standing as a showcase for how well he could make a comedy. It could well be too bleak or unnerving for some, but for anyone else who sees its 13-word title and thinks it sounds like a riot, you'll probably come away satisfied.
'Beyond the Infinite Two Minutes' (2020)
Even after watching Beyond the Infinite Two Minutes, it's still hard to fully wrap your head around the strange title. This makes sense, because the whole film is a mind-bending one: it's a low-budget time travel movie about a computer monitor that shows a group of friends messages from two minutes into the future, that they themselves send to their past selves.
Things get more and more complicated as the characters experiment with the monitor's capabilities, with the viewing experience being one of constantly playing catch-up to every new, strange, time-bending new development. It will likely go "Beyond" your expectations of what to expect from a time travel movie, making it one of the best - and most underrated - sci-fi movies in recent memory.
'Live Like a Cop, Die Like a Man' (1976)
This is a truly over-the-top action/crime film, as you'd expect, given it's called Live Like a Cop, Die Like a Man. The sort of ridiculous hyper-macho sensibilities you'd expect from such a title are front-and-center in this Italian movie, with it being a loosely-plotted story about two of the worst cops ever, as they live dangerously, wreak havoc, and probably do a great deal more harm than good, when all's said and done.
It's the kind of movie where if it was intended as satire, it might be genius, but if it was supposed to be genuinely "cool," it's one of the silliest things ever. Either way, it's a gloriously excessive - and shockingly violent - action movie that should please fans of exploitation movies, regardless of whether they're after something smartly subversive or just gleefully dumb.
'Everything Everywhere All at Once' (2022)
Everything Everywhere All at Once tackles the concept of the multiverse better than any other film or TV show has in fiction so far. It tells a sprawling story involving countless universes, and combines action, comedy, adventure, science-fiction, and fantasy all into one thrilling movie.
It really does feel like it's tackling all possible genres and tones at once (and somehow balancing them perfectly), which naturally fits the film's title. It does all this while also telling an emotional and relatable story about family at its core, making it a strong contender for the best film of 2022.
'Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan' (2006)
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Most would simply call this iconic (and infamous) 2006 comedy Borat, but its full title is the wonderfully convoluted: Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan. It's in character for Borat Sagdiyev to call his own documentary that, of course, and given how much Sacha Baron Cohen commits to his characters, it makes sense for him to effectively "let" Borat name the movie that.
The lengthy title is also audacious in much the same way that the movie ends up being, as anyone who's seen the film could attest to. It's a comedy that pushes boundaries, and so it's reasonable that its very own title can similarly push boundaries when it comes to what someone "should" name their movie.
'Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Sex *But Were Afraid to Ask' (1972)
Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Sex *But Were Afraid to Ask was one of Woody Allen's earliest movies as writer/director, and is made up of seven short segments that address unusual and taboo subjects surrounding sexuality.
Beyond the title being incredibly long, it also stands out for having an asterisk. It might not be as racy or provocative today as it would have been upon release 50 years ago, but it's still easy to appreciate how frank it is, and how much it would have stood out from more normal comedies about relationships at the time. Fans of out-there comedies shouldn't be too afraid to check this one out.
'No, the Case Is Happily Resolved' (1973)
There's a bluntness to the title No, the Case Is Happily Resolved that's strangely funny. It's rare to have an entire title sound like a (somewhat clunky) line of dialogue, but that's just what the name of this Italian crime movie offers.
Funnily enough, the film - while not without its quirks - probably isn't quite as crazy as you'd expect from the title. It follows a man named Fabio on the run from the law after he witnesses a murder, and the murderer tells police that Fabio was the one who did it. It's very Alfred Hitchcock-inspired, and even if it's not super over-the-top, it still delivers on that amazing title.
'Bambi Meets Godzilla' (1969)
This hilarious two-minute short film wasn't authorized by the owners of Bambi or Godzilla, yet it does live up to its title. In Bambi Meets Godzilla, Bambi does indeed meet Godzilla, with surprisingly realistic consequences (nevertheless, the film's most iconic moment will not be spoiled here).
Unironically, the film does feel ahead of its time. Its absurd sense of humor remains funny to this day, and it might have even been an influence on Monty Python and the Holy Grail, given each film does have a similarly drawn-out (and hilarious) opening credits sequence. The worst Bambi Meets Godzilla can do is waste just two minutes of your time, and regardless, viewers can take comfort in the fact that if they watch it, they will witness Bambi meeting Godzilla.