8. Movies With Pun Titles
A pun title should really signal the death of a movie before it's even released in theatres, although I'll admit that there are a few exceptions to this rule:
Shaun of the Dead, for example, makes clever use of a pun-induced title, but that one works because it's clearly referencing another famous movie and we get that straight away (haha). Also, you can get away with a pun title if your movie is animated, 'cause kids, uh... love puns, I guess.
Nick of Time,
Chopping Mall, Cop Out... lazy titles like these fall flat at every turn, though. I mean, if you're making a movie and you brand it with a pun title and it
isn't a comedy, there's only one question I have to ask you: why? No movie that's supposed to be funny should even attempt to have a pun in its title. You're simply saying to movie-goers that you don't take your work seriously and that you couldn't care less about what you've created.
Good Will Hunting scraped by on account that its pun wasn't that obvious, but, you know... I don't think it's very punny, that's all.