Original title: Lost in Translation
Mexican title: Perdidos en Tokio (Lost in Tokyo)
Original title: Milk
Mexican title: Milk: Un Hombre, Una Revolución, Una Esperanza (Milk: One Man, One Revolution, One Hope)
Original title: 9 Songs
Mexican title: 9 Orgasmos (9 Orgasms)
Note: The tagline also goes for the “sex sells” strategy: “An EXPLICIT love story” (explicit in caps).
Original title: Life of Pi
Mexican title: Una Aventura Extraordinaria (An Extraordinary Adventure)
Original title: Snatch
Mexican title: Snatch: Cerdos y Diamantes (Snatch: Pigs and Diamonds)
Note: As you may be noticing, there are a number of movie title translations that respect the original but add some “peculiar” words in Spanish to help us understand the mood of the film... or something.
Original title: Jaws
Mexican title: Tiburón (Shark)
A couple by Hitchcock:
Original title: The Man Who Knew Too Much
Mexican title: En Manos del Destino (In the Hands of Destiny)
Original title: Strangers on a Train
Mexican title: Pacto Siniestro (Sinister Deal)
Original English title: Yojimbo
Mexican title: Yojimbo el Mercenario (Yojimbo the Mercenary)
Original title: Superbad
Mexican title: Supercool
“We CAN’T release a movie title with the word bad in the title -- people will take it literally! But don’t worry pals, I just figured out how to make it sound cool!”
-Some superclever film distributor
Original title: Knocked Up
Mexican title: Ligeramente Embarazada (Slightly Pregnant)
Note: In Mexico we NEVER say that a woman with an unwanted pregnancy is “slightly pregnant."
Original title: Seven Psychopaths
Mexican title: Siete Psicópatas y Un Perro (Seven Psychopaths And A Dog)
Original title: 28 Days Later
Mexican title: Exterminio (Extermination)
Note: 28 Weeks Later is indeed Extermination 2.
Original title: Easy Rider
Mexican title: Busco Mi Destino (I Look for My Destiny)
Note: My generation refers to Easy Rider as Easy Rider, however my dad’s know it as Busco Mi Destino (I Look for My Destiny). And nowadays you find this Dennis Hopper masterpiece on Blu-Ray with yet another title: Busco Mi Camino (I Look for My Way).
Original title: Silver Linings Playbook
Mexican title: Los Juegos del Destino (The Games of Destiny)
Original title: Warm Bodies
Mexican title: Mi Novio Es Un Zombie (My Boyfriend Is A Zombie)
Original title: Fido
Mexican title: Mi Mascota Es Un Zombie (My Pet Is A Zombie)
Original title: Orgazmo
Mexican title: Un Chico Con Suerte (A Guy With Luck)
Original title: Chapter 27
Mexican title: El Asesino de John Lennon (John Lennon’s Killer)
Original title: Dear Wendy
Mexican title: Calles Peligrosas (Dangerous Streets)
Note: This gem from Thomas Vinterberg got a Spanish title that’s not only quite different from the original but also the same used for Scorsese’s Mean Streets.
In Mexico, Mean Streets is known as Calles Peligrosas (Dangerous Streets), and that’s a fair translation, right? But giving that same title to Dear Wendy was not the smartest move. No wonder why almost nobody in Mexico knows about this film.
Three titles about escaping:
Original title: True Romance
Mexican title: La Fuga (The Escape)
Original title: Harold & Kumar Escape From Guantanamo Bay
Mexican title: 2 Tontos En Fuga (2 Fools on the Run)
Original title: The Shawshank Redemption
Mexican title: Sueño de Fuga (Dream of Escape)
Devilish and Diabolical Quadruple Feature:
Original title: Poltergeist
Mexican title: Juegos Diabólicos (Diabolical Games)
Poltergeist is the first one, known here as Juegos Diabólicos (Diabolical Games).
Original title: Child’s Play
Mexican title: Chucky, el Muñeco Diabólico (Chucky, the Diabolical Doll)
Child’s Play is known in Mexico just as "Chucky". But let’s not forget that the complete title is Chucky, el Muñeco Diabólico (Chucky, the Diabolical Doll).
Since Bride of Chucky (1998), all the sequels have used “Chucky” in their original titles. So we’re definitely from the future!
Original title: The Devil’s Rejects
Mexican title: Violencia Diabólica (Diabolical Violence)
This is a strange case. The word “devil” was already in the original title! But it wasn’t enough, and they had to call this Rob Zombie film Violencia Diabólica (Diabolical Violence).
Original title: Evil Dead
Mexican title: El Despertar del Diablo (The Awakening of the Devil)
Raimi’s Evil Dead is called El Despertar del Diablo (The Awakening of the Devil).
And the remake by Fede Alvarez is Posesión Infernal (Infernal Possession). Which one do you prefer?
Original title: The Searchers
Mexican title: Más Corazón que Odio (More Heart Than Hate)
Original title: Stoker
Mexican title: Lazos Perversos (Perverse Bonds)
Original title: Cabin Fever
Mexican title: La Cabaña Sangrienta (The Bleeding Cabin)
Original title: There Will Be Blood
Mexican title: Petroleo Sangriento (Bloody Oil)
Original title: Scoop
Mexican title: Amor y Muerte (Love and Death)
Note: You decide not to literally translate the term scoop. Fine. But you name a Woody Allen film Amor y Muerte (Love and Death) when there’s Allen’s own Love and Death from the seventies?
Well, not really a big issue as in Mexico Love and Death (1975) is La Última Noche de Boris Grushenko (The Last Night of Boris Grushenko).
Original title: The Nightmare Before Christmas
Mexican title: El Extraño Mundo de Jack (The Strange World of Jack)
Original title: Scott Pilgrim vs. the World
Mexican title: Scott Pilgrim vs. los Ex de la Chica de Sus Sueños (Scott Pilgrim vs. the Exes of His Dream Girl)
Note: Edgar Wright called this title translation “catchy” on Twitter.
Original title: Beasts of the Southern Wild
Mexican title: Una Niña Maravillosa (A Wonderful Little Girl)
Mel Brooks has all the worst (or best?) luck:
Original title: Silent Movie
Mexican title: La Última Locura del Dr. Mel Brooks (The Latest Craziness of Dr. Mel Brooks)
Original title: Spaceballs
Mexican title: S.O.S. Hay Un Loco Suelto en el Espacio (S.O.S. There’s a Lunatic Loose In the Space)
Original title: The Watch
Mexican title: Vecinos Cercanos del Tercer Tipo (Close Neighbors of the Third Kind)
Original title: Cloverfield
Mexican title: Cloverfield: Monstruo (Cloverfield: Monster)
Original title: Fish Tank
Mexican title: Fish Tank: Vive, Ama y Da Todo lo que Tienes (Fish Tank: Live, Love And Give Everything You Have)