Monday, January 05, 2009

THE WRESTLER Standee Gaffe - Plain Error Or Seasonal Sign?

Every holiday season at the theater where I work part-time a flurry of large standees fill the lobby. In the years past they’ve been elaborate structures with plastic panels and sometimes electric lights that brighten the promotional pictures and titles. This season however the standees we got were much less extravagant. They were just flat cardboard pieces that had the same image as the poster and a few reprinted in large a glowing review of the movie. I’m not sure if that’s a reflection of the economy or what but it wasn’t the only cheap concession on display. This standee (left) for Darren Aronofsky’s THE WRESTLER (which isn’t coming to my area for a few weeks yet to my chagrin) featured Peter Travers’ rave review from Rolling Stone. The review alone was annoying enough with its repetition – “Mickey Rourke gets everything right” and “Rourke doesn't make a single false move” but it has an error which, while minor, I still can’t get past: That’s right – they misspelled the title of the movie! Sure, it’s just a typo but a pretty noticeable embarrassing one. Once you see it you’ll never miss it. I surely don’t every time I walk past the damn thing. Maybe though, just maybe, it was a subtle Christmas message – no ‘L’, get it? Noelle? Oh, nevermind. Anyway – Happy New Year from Film Babble Blog! More later…

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

The post on lobby standees is interesting, but we are anxiously awaiting your picks for the best movies of 2008.
M&P

Fletch said...

You do know that there's an unwritten internet rule about correcting/commenting on other people's spelling and/or grammar, right?

"Sure, it’s just a typo but a pretty noticeable embarrassing one."

Hmmm....

Daniel Cook Johnson said...

Fletch - I am aware of the so called rule (though I don't mind at all when folks message me to correct some spelling or mistakes - I think it's helpful not "uncool") but this was a cardboard promotional stand in public that people who work in theaters all over have been laughing about. It was also a point about how much cheaper the standees have gotten these days but I digress...
- Dan

Fletch said...

Sorry - I didn't mean to come off as stuffy. I was just having fun with ya.

I totally agree - it's an embarassment for the studio and ad agency in charge of having those printed and isn't something that should be seen at that level of marketing. A typo anywhere is bad enough, but THE DAMN TITLE of your movie? Oy vey.