Abraham's One Liners

 

Oxymorons In Movie Titles Part 1

As promised ,,, I burned my midnight candle last night to add more examples of oxymorons in movie titles.

Hollywood productions make use of oxymorons to entice the movie-going public by placing congruent words side by side and extracting their differences, They sound improbable having two differing words or phrases being combined in one sentence.

When oxymorons are being offered to you and when you exert an effort to understand them... you will realize... it makes sense ... and will eventually bring the reader to a concealed but detectable truth.

Oxymorons can be FIGURATIVELY TRUE but not LITERALLY TRUE. Take these movie titles and see for yourself.

In the list, you see The Civil War - To be civil means you are polite, courteous, well-bred, well-mannered, or gentlemanly. And war is an uprising, a fight, and a battle. If you heard of a gentleman's fight ... that's an aberration. But they were able to combine two contrasting words and coin them to bring out a different meaning.

Then the movie Asphalt Jungle is not literally true. For one a jungle is a dense forest or wilderness with tangled vegetation. On the other hand, Asphalt is a black tarry substance used to pave roads. Normal thinking usually dictates a jungle is not a jungle if it is asphalt-paved. See what I mean? But here the story may mean a modern city - a concrete jungle that is harsh, highly competitive, and dangerous.

1. A I - Artificial Intelligence

2. The Asphalt Jungle

3. Begin Again

4. Best Worst Movie

5.  Big Doll House

6.  Bitter Sweet

7. Blast of Silence

8.  Blind Eye

9. Blue Blood

10. Brain Dead

11. The Civil War

12. Cold Heart

13. Man of Steel

14. Sexy Beast

15. Reality Bites

Oxymorons In Movie Titles 2

Oxymorons are addicting ... once I thought the list above is enough to prove my point ... then comes the torrent of movie titles cascading down my memory lane ... commanding me " Hey you ... don't exclude this title ...  or else ... "

Last night was an exhausting night as movie titles haunted and woke me up in my already disturbed sleep like it was a matter of life and death that I needed to include them. I was already cursing myself for starting this topic ... and after a bated breath ... here comes another string of movie titles nagging me: "I am an oxymoron too ... where is justice ... if you don't include us?

Just like the Fairy Tale: A True Story ... tales are usually fictitious or imaginary narratives or stories and flagging it as a true story is a stroke of genius.

At three o'clock in the morning, I was still pounding my keyboard like my life depended on them ... because missing one would be misconstrued as bias or prejudice ... or worse bigotry. So here we go ... if you have something to add to the list ... please do so in the comment section:

1. Buried Alive

2. Cold In July

3. Dark Light

4. Dead Again

5. The Dead Don't Die

6. The Death of Superman Lives

7. Fairy Tale - A True Story

8. The Fallen Idol

9.  Far Away ... So Close

10. A Fine Mess

11. Frozen Fever

12.  Giant Little Ones

13. Hell's Angels

14. Higher Ground

15. I know Who Killed Me

Oxymoron Trivia

The word oxymoron is actually an oxymoron (a literary device that presents two contrasting ideas.

Oxymoron stems out from two Greek words - Oksus (meaning sharp or keen) and moros (meaning stupid or a moron). The contrasting words are sharp and stupid.

So how on earth ... did you describe a stupid person as sharp or keen?

Oxymorons In Movie Titles

The use of oxymorons is considered "the salt and pepper" of delectable writing. If you plan on doing an essay, a poem, a story, and a script ... or better still if you are into writing or describing life's peculiarities, weirdness, and incongruities ... stir up a boring and lifeless scenario into something more alive in the hard-to-please minds of your target audience.

Oxymorons serve akin to herbs, spices, and condiments ... and when you daub a little of this ... and a little of that into whatever you write... to your surprise ... it provokes a smile on somebody's face ... a giggle here and snickers there ... an expansion of awareness ...  or just pure awe.

That's precisely how this flavorful figurative language has been utilized by penpushers and speechwriters. It adds more verve, style, originality, flair, and fun to any sentence you write. 

Why even the titles of movies succumb to the use of oxymorons (defined as using two contradictory words) ... to make an impact, grab more attention, or create an impression.

Classical examples are: 

1. Eyes Wide Shut - contradictory words are wide and shut.  Eyes are not wide when shut. It should be Eyes Wide Open!

2. You Only Live Twice - contradictory words are life and twice ... not unless you are like a cat with nine lives.

3. Dead Man Walking - contradictory words are dead and walking ... if you are dead you can't walk and if you can walk you are alive.

4. True Lies - Contradictory words are true and lies.  If it is true ... then it is not a lie.

5. Back To The Future - contradictory words are back and future ... you can't go back to the future ... you have to fast forward.

See how the title tricked you ... and you end up shaking your head. The title did not just add flavor ... but it has intrigued you and aroused your interest and curiosity.

I'll try to add more movie titles, and literary works that employ the use of oxymorons next issue.

Mr. Right Inside and Out! | RATED KORINA

Places We Visited

If you want to see rainbows as you stroll and visit Esplanade 1 in Iloilo City, The Rainbow Umbrella Canopy will not disappoint.