21 movies that have hilarious titles in other countries

In the first Step Up film, Channing Tatum and Jenna Dewan come from opposite sides of the tracks. But they’re able to bond through dance and it’s beautiful. Whoever titled the French version of the film simply cut to the chase and called it Sexy Dance. That pretty much nails it!

Yep: Grease. Everyone loves Olivia Newton-John as Sandy during her epic transformation in this iconic musical from 1978. John Travolta as Danny is the one that she wants, even though he’s a tough guy greaser. In 1950s slang, that means he slicks his hair back and has a bad reputation. But for the movie release in Argentina, the title was simply Vaseline. Talk about lost in translation…

This German designation for the reboot of The Parent Trap is quite… literal. It was Lindsay Lohan’s first starring turn – the 1961 original starred Hayley Mills. The story is about twin sisters, raised apart by feuding parents, who decide to reunite the family; the twins are played by a single actress in both film versions. Maybe that’s why the German title-writer decided to get philosophical with this title.

The point of Silver Linings Playbook is that they’re both a little crazy, Russia! However, we can’t blame translators for changing this title. Since the English phrase “every cloud has a silver lining” doesn’t really have foreign equivalents, other countries had to seek an alternative name for the film. France called the comedy Happiness Therapy, and Lithuania went with The Story of the Optimists. And finally, since a “playbook” is an American football term, the United Kingdom dropped that part and just went with Silver Linings. Seems reasonable.

The marketing of the blockbuster Jaws was brilliant for its minimalist simplicity. With one word, audiences got a taste of the horror to come. The visual of the iconic movie poster – a woman swimming above a massive open-mouthed shark – gave the single word “Jaws” its power and impact. In France, the effect was a bit muted: The Teeth of the Sea sounds much less scary and a lot more confusing.

The French must have decided that every parent’s worst nightmare – leaving a child behind – is actually the child’s fault. That can be the only explanation for altering John Hughes’ Home Alone to the above title. That’s right: Kevin missed the plane, and he brought all this home alone burglar mayhem stuff on himself!

Adam Sandler comedies are not usually known for their inspirational, overcoming-the-odds tales of high stakes struggle and survival. So it’s not clear why The Waterboy was titled Dimwit Surges Forth in Thailand. However, the dimwit’s rinky-dink team does, ahem, surge forth in the end.

This was Germany’s interpretation of the madcap-comedy-slash-disaster-movie-spoof Airplane! Italy also went literal, calling it The Craziest Plane in the World. Several other countries, including Croatia, France and Peru, also lengthened the one-word title, calling it some variation of Is There a Pilot on This Plane? But the funniest title of all might be the working title used for the film during production: Kentucky Fried Airplane.

Anthony Hopkins gave an acclaimed performance as the disgraced president in the biopic Nixon, a drama that humanised the flawed American leader. Oliver Stone’s three-hour epic intended to depict the complexity of Nixon’s impact on history. In China, the film was released with the title Big Liar. Why mince words?

The beloved Pixar film Inside Out told a complicated emotional tale to child and adult audiences alike. However, multiple countries struggled with a quick, clear title for this movie: In China, the movie was called The Great Team Inside the Head. Russia went with Jigsaw. Vietnam chose The Puzzle Emotions. But Thailand may have taken the day by dubbing it Fantastic Emotional Turmoil. That works!