This got me thinking: Is it just me, or does it seem like the titles of movies and TV shows are getting less original and more patriotic? In the past decade alone we've seen "American Beauty," "American Dreamz," "American Gangster," "American History X," "American Idol," "American Movie," "American Outlaws," "American Pastime," "American Pie," "American Pimp" and the return of "American Gladiators" on TV, among many others.
And that's not counting older flicks like "American Graffiti" and "American Gigolo," or movies such as "American Psycho" and "American Splendor" that were based on books by writers who couldn't think of better titles.
This unfortunate trend is getting worse. Search the Internet Movie Database and you'll find hundreds of recent two-word "American " titles - everything from "American Dream" to "American Nightmare." They run from the bland ("American Men") to the redundant ("American Cowboy") to the oxymoronic ("American Asian") to my personal favorite, "American Mullet."
Granted, a few of these titles actually work on multiple levels. Oscar-winner "American Beauty," for example, also describes a type of red rose that was a recurring motif in the film. But most of them, like "American Gun," just feel random. Hey filmmakers: Don't know what to call your movie? Just slap "American" on it!
Speaking of Sundance: After studying the list of celebrities expected to be in Park City for the festival, I've come up with Sundancers who may be nominated for an Oscar next week: Ellen Page (for "Juno"), Tilda Swinton ("Michael Clayton"), Amy Adams ("Enchanted"), Catherine Keener ("Into the Wild") and Kelly Macdonald ("No Country For Old Men"); Let's Have a Reunion!: Mary-Kate Olsen ("The Wackness") and her "Full House" co-star John Stamos ("A Raisin in the Sun"); and my 2008 Parker Posey Award, to the actress appearing in the most festival films this year, to 23-year-old Melonie Diaz, who's in four: "American Son," "Be Kind Rewind," "Hamlet 2" and "Assassination of a High School President."
griggs@sltrib.com
