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Okay This Movie Looks Great, but What Is With This TITLE?

Just embrace the Cynthia Erivo, Orlando Bloom, Leslie Odom Jr., and Freida Pinto movie without naming it.

By Oct 14th, 2021, 1:09 pm

Cynthia Erivo and Leslie Odom Jr. having dinner in Needle in a Timestack

Sometimes, there is a trailer for a movie that looks great and you’re into it, and then the title card pops up and suddenly you’re questioning everything about the decision to name the movie that. Well, that’s the case with a trailer that dropped today. And yes, I’m purposely not saying the title because I want everyone to experience the magic of seeing the title for the first time and just cackling.

The movie itself features an all-star cast of Cynthia Erivo, Leslie Odom Jr., Freida Pinto, and Orlando Bloom. Do not type in their names or Google them right now. Just experience the trailer in Jenny Yang’s tweet and see how absolutely hilarious it is when you’re invested in this, ready to see whatever writer/director John Ridley has in store for us, only to discover that the title completely derails it.

I’ll put the YouTube link later in this article because I want you all to experience the magic of watching this trailer WITHOUT seeing the title because when I tell you it’s worth it, I mean it.

Okay, so you laughed, right? Just like, out loud? You were invested, watching the trailer and interested in where the movie was going, and then suddenly “NEEDLE IN A TIMESTACK” pops up and you can’t stop laughing? Because like, that title is laughably bad, not just a “wow, could’ve been better” bad.

Here’s the YouTube trailer just if you’d like better quality to watch now that the joke has landed.

The thing is: I’d watch this movie. I’ll still probably watch this movie because it does look like a fun time travel story. The title of Needle in a Timestack is just bad. There wasn’t another option? Sure, it is based on a short story of the same name by Robert Silverberg, but maybe that wasn’t the thing to keep when translating the short story to screen?

This is the first I’m even hearing about this movie and it comes out tomorrow, on October 15, but at least we will always have the reveal that this time-travel love story that seemed incredibly interesting is called Needle in a Timestack and everyone just said “good to go.”

(image: Lionsgate)

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Rachel Leishman - Assistant Editor

Rachel Leishman (She/Her) is an Assistant Editor at the Mary Sue. A writer her whole life but professionally starting back in 2016 who loves all things movies, TV, and classic rock. Resident Spider-Man expert, official Leslie Knope, actually Yelena Belova. Wanda Maximoff has never done anything wrong in her life. Star Wars makes her very happy. New York writer with a passion for all things nerdy. Yes, she has a Pedro Pascal podcast. And also a Harrison Ford one.