Is there anyone here that won't watch subtitled films?

Valmont · 24-08-2009 10:54AM

Doesn't bother me especially when you have gems like Hero or Old Boy. My dad can't watch any subtitled movies but that's only because of eyesight, so maybe that would be a factor for quite a few people?

Dont be at yourself · 24-08-2009 10:58AM

I'll watch subtitled films over dubbed ones, but I completely understand why people don't like them.

At the end of the day, constantly scanning the bottom of the screen does take you out of the film. You're not hearing the stresses or intonations on the dialogue as you would in an English language film. Subtitles must also generally be more compact and succinct than dialogue, so often a lot of meaning is lost.

It was actually quite eye-opening to re-watch some of my favourite Japanese movies with subtitles after learning the language.

Latchy · 24-08-2009 11:01AM

indough wrote: »

not a chance, it added to the brilliance of those movies

I would also say it added comedy value to like when somebody spoke their mouths didn't open till 2 secs later .

norrie rugger · 24-08-2009 11:14AM

Karl Hungus wrote: »

I'm curious about this. I always find it a bit of a cop out when people say that English language remakes of foreign language films need to be made, because people won't watch films with subtitles. I think that's a load of rubbish myself, we've had quite a few subtitled films doing extremely well, such as Crouching Tiger, Hero, Pan's Labyrinth, Letters From Iwo Jima or Mel Gibson's The Passion of the Christ to name a few. Not only that, there's a lot of American made films that are partially subtitled, Inglourious Basterds being a recent example, and quite a lot of TV shows similarly have subtitled sections like Heroes.

I just don't see that mainstream audiences won't watch subtitled films. So I put it to you.

My only problem is that I will can find myself giving more attention to the subtitles than the film itself.

Saying that I watched, in cinema and/or own Crouching Tiger, Hero, The Passion of the Christ, Fearless (outstanding movie), Let The Right One In and a huge number of martial arts flicks etc so it is not a great problem to me but it can be a distraction

indough · 24-08-2009 11:56AM

Latchy wrote: »

I would also say it added comedy value to like when somebody spoke their mouths didn't open till 2 secs later .

ah yeah i definitely think it added a little character to the movies

ScumLord · 24-08-2009 12:58PM

I don't really like subtitles it might turn me off starting to watch a film but the dubs can totally ruin a film like in ong bak.

Galvasean · 24-08-2009 01:02PM

I prefer subtitles generally. Only if I'm extremely tired will I avoid subtitled films. I watched Brotherhood of the Wolf subtitled and loved it. They were showing it on Sky Movies a while back dubbed and it just wrecked my head.
Anyone who just out and out refuses to watch subtitled films is missing out.

24-08-2009 01:15PM

sunzz wrote: »

Oh god I couldnt even think of watching overdubbing.

for me foreign films are normally miles ahead of the holywood dribble that gets thrown out.

That's because bad foreign films don't escape their home country, but bad Hollywood movies do.

faceman · 24-08-2009 02:00PM

I dont like to call them "subtitled films" as it suggests that its a genre, which it isnt.

I have no issue with films that are subtitled as long as the subtitles are legible. There are just as many awful films with subtitles as there are hollywood films that are awful.

I prefer to watch movies in English though because no matter how good a film with subtitles is, unless you speak the language, you are missing our on an essential part of the actor's performance.

I dont think there is anything wrong with people who dont like watching films that are subtitled. Not everyone has the same level of passion for films as some of the people who post here. Its no different than 2 football fans who support the same team, yet one watches any football game no matter who the teams are, and the other only watches games where his own team are playing.

davej · 24-08-2009 02:13PM

I'd say 1/3 of all movies I watch are subtitled. I tried to watch the dubbed version of Crouching Tiger, but couldn't stick it. For the Ghost in the Shell series I alternated between dubbed and sub-titled and found both agreeable.

I understand enough French to know that often the subtitles are really only summarsing/simplifying what is being said. This can be a little annoying from time to time, but unless you are fluent in the language, what choice do you have ?

davej

djkeogh · 24-08-2009 04:25PM

Like most here I wouldn't let the fact a film has subtitles deter me from watching it if I had a genuine interest in the story. Can't abide dubbing though. It's clear as well that with subtitles you are missing out on alot of what is being said. It's unfortunate but other than learning a language we're left to rely on the subtitles and their accuracy to convey the dialogue for us.

Karl Hungus · 24-08-2009 05:31PM

faceman wrote: »

I dont like to call them "subtitled films" as it suggests that its a genre, which it isnt.

I don't think that's really been suggested.

monkeyfudge wrote: »

I hate the way that foreign language films are sold though.... like they don't want people knowing film is subtitled.

Saw the trailer for Coco Before Chanel recently and the trailer is edited together with a mentality of 'THEY MUST NOT KNOW THIS FILM IS IN FRENCH!"

This I definitely agree with, it's a pet hate of mine and it's not just a case with foreign films either. It happens a lot of times with English language films where they don't quite know how to market it, they'll make it out to be a different kind of film, or just focus on one aspect. The trailer for In Bruges is a pretty good example, they made it out to be completely a comedy, which it wasn't. Extremely irritating.

One of the worst was the American trailer for Pan's Labyrinth, they not only hid the fact it was subtitled, they hid all the darker aspects and made it out to be more of a kid's film.

SeekUp · 24-08-2009 06:50PM

I'm not a film buff, but I do enjoy watching movies that are both in English and subtitles. (Dubbing kind of annoys me.) Although I must admit, if I know I'm going to be watching something with subtitles, it's almost as if I have to "gear myself up" for it. I know that I have to pay attention or else I'll miss something, whereas with an English film, as long as I can hear what's going on, I'm usually okay.

norrie rugger wrote: »

My only problem is that I will can find myself giving more attention to the subtitles than the film itself.

I find this true as well . . . yes, I can see the entire screen, but I'm not always paying attention to the details in the scene because I'm reading the words at the bottom. It's kind of like going to the opera where the translation is running on the back of the seat behind you (or even above the stage!); I have to tear my eyes away and just listen to the music. With subtitled films, I can't really do that.

LiamMc · 24-08-2009 10:41PM

NekkidBibleMan wrote: »

I'll watch subtitled films over dubbed ones, but I completely understand why people don't like them.

At the end of the day, constantly scanning the bottom of the screen does take you out of the film. You're not hearing the stresses or intonations on the dialogue as you would in an English language film. Subtitles must also generally be more compact and succinct than dialogue, so often a lot of meaning is lost.

It was actually quite eye-opening to re-watch some of my favourite Japanese movies with subtitles after learning the language.

I agree with you. Sometimes I find myself conciously watching the faces of the actors and ignoring the subtitles at the bottom. 'To get a more authentic view, y'know'.
The gap is very pronounced in purpose built cinemas with a digital display apart from the screen so that the actual film is screened without s/t's but any language can be placed underneath on the display.

I have watched films in foreign cinemas where neither org. or s/t language is in English. I am in control I decide what the characters really mean.

Galvasean · 24-08-2009 11:25PM

Karl Hungus wrote: »

I don't think that's really been suggested.

Well HMV kind of do this. They generally lump anything subtitled under 'World Cinema'.

LiamMc wrote: »

I agree with you. Sometimes I find myself conciously watching the faces of the actors and ignoring the subtitles at the bottom. 'To get a more authentic view, y'know'.

I did this when watching Inglourious Basterds for the second time. Since I knew the story I could focus more on teh actors' performances.

Karl Hungus · 24-08-2009 11:48PM

Galvasean wrote: »

Well HMV kind of do this. They generally lump anything subtitled under 'World Cinema'.

Well that's no more suggesting it's a genre than them suggesting that Television is a genre, as they lump all TV series' together in one section. Or for that matter, having a separate section for Bluray doesn't imply that Bluray is a genre. I don't think the way HMV or other shops organise their products are any indication of genre.

Miss Lockhart · 25-08-2009 01:17AM

I prefer subtitles to dubbing (cos that's just horrific), but I would prefer a good film in any language I understand (unfortunately very few), as I do find reading the text distracts me from other aspects of the film.

I'm always willing to give subtitles a chance though - it certainly wouldn't rule a film out. I love Cinema Paradisio and Amelie and would hate to see a remake or a dubbed version of either. :eek:

FruitLover · 25-08-2009 01:18AM

Are we talking dubs vs subs here, or just subbed foreign-language movies vs English-language movies?

People who would rather watch (and consequently encourage) dubs over subs are mouth-breathing scum who should be purged from civilization.

Galvasean · 25-08-2009 01:48AM

Karl Hungus wrote: »

Well that's no more suggesting it's a genre than them suggesting that Television is a genre, as they lump all TV series' together in one section. Or for that matter, having a separate section for Bluray doesn't imply that Bluray is a genre. I don't think the way HMV or other shops organise their products are any indication of genre.

Well the one I usually go to has its World Cinema section between Horror and Westerns (two genres). Obviously Im not suggesting subtitled films are a genre (really cant see Cinema Paradiso and Battle Royal being in the same genre), but that seems to be the way places like HMV place them, seperated from films they actually share a genre with.

_ZeeK_ · 25-08-2009 01:53AM

Cidade de Deus (City of God) . Brazilian movie.

One of the best movies I've ever seen and not a single word of English.

Dont be at yourself · 25-08-2009 08:56AM

People who would rather watch (and consequently encourage) dubs over subs are mouth-breathing scum who should be purged from civilization.

Sergio Leone wants to see you in his office.

davej · 25-08-2009 09:06AM

Has anyone seen Night Watch (Russian Fantasy/Horror) ?

What did you make of the "creative" use of the subtitles (i.e the words sometimes dance, fade, change colour or explode on the screen)?
I thought it was an interesting idea and it suited the movie in this case.

Any other movies that do this sort of thing?

davej

Beruthiel · 25-08-2009 10:33AM

Dubbing is normally done so badly that I refuse to go down that route.
Also, I prefer to hear the actual voices of the actors on screen.
I have no problem with subtitles. Half my dvd collection is subtitled foreign films.
Only time I won't watch one is when I'm hungover and my eyes are too tired to read.

Dont be at yourself · 25-08-2009 10:52AM

Dubbing is normally done so badly that I refuse to go down that route.

Subtitling can also be very poorly done, in terms of accuracy, register, brevity or pacing. Check out this for a recent minor scandal.

Beruthiel · 25-08-2009 11:17AM

NekkidBibleMan wrote: »

Subtitling can also be very poorly done, in terms of accuracy, register, brevity or pacing.

Oh I don't disagree. It's just normally, we would never know, so it doesn't hurt so bad.

However, I know a smattering of French and have noticed that sometimes the swearing and language is softened on occasion. That can be annoying.

missingtime · 25-08-2009 10:04PM

NekkidBibleMan wrote: »

Subtitling can also be very poorly done, in terms of accuracy, register, brevity or pacing. Check out this for a recent minor scandal.

That was very silly really. When I went to the cinema to watch that my fear was that they used the wrong subtitles.

Very very silly. Could have affected the whole movie.

cabrwab · 25-08-2009 10:14PM

Won't avoid subtitles, i did get a giggle when i went to see apocolypto in the cinema and the amount of people that got up tutting about subtitles was unreal after about 15/20mins of the movie.

The Big this is subtitled stickers on xtra vision releases make me laugh.

Im not a movie snob either i just find it funny that you can't try to enjoy a movie just because it has subtitles. I've never found it take away from movies i can enjoy both the subtitles and the movie and i just get sucked into it and don't notice it.
I have seen a few subtitled movies that were rubbish, i don't automatically say a movie is great just because its foreign language.

I'd rather not watch a cartoon with subtitles i usually find the dubbed versions are usually well done.

Don't think you'll find a proper result here!
Good poll

Is there anyone here that won't watch subtitled films?

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