French Movie Titles
After a brief survey of movie theaters in Paris, Lyons, and Montpelier, I’ve decided that there are three ways in which the title of an American movie can be translated into French.
| There are a few movies whose titles are translated quite literally. For example, the French version of Message in a Bottle is simply titled Message dans une bouteille, and The Mummy becomes La Momie. Literal translation presents a small problem when the title consists of an idiomatic expression that cannot be directly translated without losing the spirit of the title; in this case, a suitable French alternative is typically chosen. Hence Face-Off becomes Volte-Face (About Face) and She’s All That becomes Elle est trop bien (literally, She Is Too Good). |  |
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In a second, far more prevalent form of translation, the title is translated not from English to French, but from English to English; a new English title is carefully chosen that consists of English words that the majority of the French public will understand. Since this method of retitling preserves the movie’s American feel while ensuring its title’s comprehensibility, it seems at first like a good idea. However, I’ve noticed that this method tends to substantially reduce the subtlety of most movie titles. For example, the movie Dance With Me became Passion Dance, and Cruel Intentions turned into the rather blatant Sex Intentions. Never Been Kissed was renamed College Attitude (in French, Middle School Attitude), and Varsity Blues became American Boys. Perhaps my favorite example of a film whose title suffered from this translation method is the movie Wild Things, which was rechristened Sex Crimes. |
A third type of translation, possibly the most common of all, is a form in which the English title is translated from English to French and then rather gratuitously embellished. Thus Notting Hill becomes Coup de foudre à Notting Hill (Love at First Sight at Notting Hill), Air Bud becomes Air Bud, star des paniers (Air Bud the Basketball Star), and Patch Adams becomes Docteur Patch. The most ludicrous example of this embroidered retitling is the renaming of the movie The Matrix to Les jeunes gens qui traversent les dimensions en portant des lunettes à soleil (The Young People Who Traverse Dimensions While Wearing Sunglasses). Whoever is in charge of marketing American films to the French public seems to have decided that the French prefer the obtrusive and the revelatory to the implicit and the suggestive.
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this was amusing! i love the titles that the french pick…like la cloche et l’idiot for dumb and dumber. haha it’s quite amusing.
Comment by Allison — March 15, 2006 #
I would like to know the French title of the film, “Scoop” Woody Allen
Comment by gerry — August 20, 2007 #
Gerry, as far as I know Scoop wasn’t renamed and was sold in France as Scoop
Allison, I am not sure where you saw the title for the Matrix translated like this but I never saw this title anywhere in France, they kept the original name, the Matrix. I’d be interested to know if you have found different information though as I am doing an article on film title translation
Thank you
Comment by Alexia — September 8, 2007 #
I would like to know the title of “les oies sauvages” in english please
Comment by moise sembene — October 15, 2007 #
do you have the movie the “quiet man” in french? please let me know.
thank you- susie
Comment by susie — November 16, 2007 #
i want to know the original title for the film (elles craquent tous sauf une) thanks
Comment by krishen v. — January 10, 2008 #
I would like to know the title of “les oies sauvages” in english please
WILD GEESE
Comment by s — April 12, 2008 #