Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, February 19, 1993 TAG: 9302190094
SECTION: EXTRA PAGE: 1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Chris Gladden
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
WHAT'S IN A NAME? NOTHING NEW
In "Groundhog Day," Bill Murray asks a motherly innkeeper: "Do you ever have deja vu?"She looks perplexed for a moment and then says: "I'll go to the kitchen and ask."
If moviegoers don't exactly have deja vu, they may at least be a little bit befuddled by titles these days.
How about that recent romantic thriller starring a pop star with the word "body" in the title? Why, "Body of Evidence," you say, the movie that starred Madonna. Or is it "The Bodyguard," starring Whitney Houston?
Newspaper readers will have seen listings recently for a thriller called "The Vanishing" from director George Sluizer. They also will have seen listings and a review of a movie down at the neighborhood multiplex titled "The Vanishing" from director George Sluizer. This is not a case of saturation marketing. The movie in the theater is actually a remake of Sluizer's 6-year-old thriller.
Expect the same occurrence when the upcoming "La Femme Nikita" starring Bridget Fonda is released. It's a movie about a pretty sociopath who is turned into a hit woman by the police. This is the American remake of a 1991 French movie.
Some other titles coming up in 1993 to befuddle you are:
"Extreme Justice," an action thriller about a secret, vigilante police organization; and John Singleton's "Poetic Justice," starring Janet Jackson as a hairdresser who writes poetry.
"The Age of Innocence," Martin Scorsese's adaptation of Edith Wharton's novel set in 19th-century New York; and "Beyond Innocence," starring Don Johnson as a man who may or may not have murdered his wife.
"Body Shot," a drama about a photographer; and "Body Snatchers," another remake of the 1950s sci-fi thriller.
"Cop and a Half," starring Burt Reynolds as a policeman who is teamed with an 8-year-old; and "Good Cop, Bad Cop," a Chuck Norris adventure.
"Son-in-Law," a romantic comedy; and "The Good Son," a thriller starring Macaulay Culkin.
"Philadelphia," a drama about a lawyer with AIDS starring Tom Hanks; and "Philadelphia Experiment 2," a sequel to the sci-fi thriller.
Then there is "Fatal Instinct," a spoof of movies that we already can't keep straight such as "Fatal Attraction" and "Basic Instinct."
Which leaves us "Dazed and Confused," the title of "Slacker" director Richard Linklater's new movie.