The literal translation is "Dogs Loves" or "Loves of Dogs". "Amores" is translated from Spanish to English literally as more than one "love" or figuratively as "goodness" or "sweetness", "loveliness". "Perros" means "dogs" but has been translated as "wretchedness" or "misery". Put together, "amores perros" translates as something like "that which is good and desirable in life" and "that which is miserable", an oxymoron like "treasure trash" or "trash treasure". Posters for the movie often pose the question, "¿Qué es el amor?" ("What is love?"), followed by the film title, "amores perros", as a play on an answer, "amor es perros", meaning "love is wretched" or "love's a bitch". "Perros" literally means "dogs" but can also be translated in pejorative terms for (1) an unworthy person, (2) a hired killer, (3) a prostitute, and (4) an unfaithful husband/boyfriend, all persons depicted in the film. It's like the "dog" in "dog days".
