How to search for a movie without knowing the name, in 8 keys

It will have happened to all of us that on some occasion we are talking about or looking for some concept, aspect, person or work of which we suddenly realize that we do not know the name. It is possible that we have it on the tip of our tongue but we do not remember. And it is possible that it is a work that we are really looking forward to seeing, or simply just remembering. Maybe we'll go looking for it.

But... how to do it? How to search for a movie without knowing the name? Throughout this brief article we are going to try to visualize some ways or elements that we can use in order to carry out this search successfully.

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Ways to search for a movie without knowing the name

Finding a movie without knowing the name can be difficult, since the seventh art has generated a huge range of very diverse works of art. But that is not why it is impossible. The main strategy to use is to make the most of all the information that we remember or know about the film in question, and with it

take advantage of the available resources to try to locate the one we want.

Although it is possible to resort to search engines and specialized programs, we can also simply limit ourselves to searching in our usual search engine on the Internet or going to a film library or even to some friend. Among the different data that we can use to try to locate the film, the following stand out.

1. general argument

We may not remember the name of a movie, but chances are we do. an idea of ​​the plot of the film in question.

For example, we may be looking for a movie that despite not knowing his name if we remember that it was about a group of humans who got into in the bodies of some synthetic blue aliens to come into contact with the natives of that same species on a planet called Pandora. Or that in a gloomy castle located on top of a hill that had an excessively colorful town on its slopes, there lived a man who instead of hands has scissors.

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2. Genre, theme and setting

Also and linked to the above, another way to try to find a movie is considering the film genre of this (comedy, drama... although sometimes it can be difficult to define some tapes in a concrete way), or the themes or the place and time in which the action occurred.

For example, it may be easier to remember that this is a musical set in France during the years before and after the beginning of the French Revolution than to remember the title of "The Wretched”.

3. Name of one of the main characters

Another way to identify or try to find a movie is to try to remember or base your search on the name of the main character, as long as it is recognizable. Search engines highly value proper names when filtering results of film works.

You may not remember the movie Braveheart, but you'll probably have a much easier time finding it if you remember that it's based on the William Wallace character. It doesn't have to be a historical figure to be recognizable: Scarlett O'Hara, Simba or Freddy Krueger can lead us to find the movies "Gone with the Wind", "The Lion King" or "A Nightmare on Elm Street”.

4. Principal's name

While not everyone notices the names of movie directors, names like Peter Jackson, Night Shyamalan, Quentin Tarantino, Steven Spielberg, Guillermo del Toro or Pedro Almodóvar are highly acquaintances. Knowing who made the film greatly facilitates the search, to the point of being able to rely on it to find the work.

5. Part of the name of the main actors and actresses

It is possible that in order to find a film of which we do not know the name, it may be very useful to know who participates in it, especially when it comes to the protagonists. If we know the name of the actor or actress in question, we can search for the roles in which they have participated, among which we could find the film in question.

6. Have you won any awards?

This method is only useful if the movie you are looking for happens to be highly recognized and has been awarded or nominated for some type of award (whether at the level of the film or at the level of one of the actors or actresses). If we know the specific award or nomination and the gala in which it was awarded, it will suffice to look at the lists of nominees/winners until we find it.

This is especially easy if what we are looking at are big prizesLike the Oscars. However, it is not necessary for it to be a positive recognition either: remember that there are also awards for the worst films, such as the Razzie.

7. Salient features and art style of the film

Another element that we can take into account is whether the film in question has any characteristic in terms of artistic style that is remarkable.

For example, although nowadays almost all films are in color and with sound, if the one we are looking for is old or has been a different way than usual, we may have to focus our search on black and white movies or movies dumb

Likewise, we may also be looking for an animated film, or one that is structured like a puzzle instead of running linearly. Another aspect that we may remember if it is something salient is its duration (for example, there are movies that last around four hours and others that hardly last an hour).

8. Use an identifying phrase/line of dialogue

There are unique phrases and lines of dialogue typical of specific films that can lead us to search for a film despite not knowing the name of the film we are looking for, being able to serve as a reference when it comes to finding its name either by asking or looking for it in databases or in large Internet search engines.

Examples of this are phrases and lines of dialogue such as "are you talking to me?", "my house... telephone”, “Luke, I am your father” (although curiously this, despite being remembered, was never said in this way) or “My name is Iñigo Montoya. You killed my father. Prepare to die”, which simply searching on Google or other search engines takes us quickly to find the titles: “Taxi Driver”, “E.T.”, “Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back” or “The Princess Fiancee". However, this last method can be really complicated if the phrase or line of dialogue is excessively generic, of colloquial use or little known.