Subtitles or dubbing?

[Ranger REG]

No, I meant it's the voice that puts me off. The German JD has a pretty high pitched (naturally, I presume) voice, and it so nails down his sometimes "female" actions/attitude that it's hard to switch to the actors real, lower pitched voice.

Well, when I think of high-pitched voice I usually think Michael Jackson.

Zach Braff, the actor who portrays JD, have a high-pitched voice comparable to a teenaged male. But I guess it's hard to nail his voice right in a different audio language.

 

[Ranger REG]

Mea Culpa - this was reported, and on first reading it seemed like the post was implying that you are a kid if you like dubbing.

After some private conversation, it is clear that isn't the point, so I've removed my comment.

I've also removed the posts that people made in this thread about the moderation - you should know by now that if you've got a question about moderation you should either email the moderator or report the post so that it gets seen.

Sorry on my part. My bad.

 

[sniffles]

I prefer subtitles. It's so seldom that the actors do their own dubbing. I like to hear their voices. And the decision-making process of who to get for the dubbed voices often leaves me saying, "WTF? Why the heck did they choose *that* voice?!"

But I admit sometimes subtitles are distracting the first time I see a movie. I'm so busy reading the titles I don't get to see what's happening on the screen. I'm a fast reader and in some films I still have trouble keeping up. Plus poorly-translated titles can create unintentional humor that distracts from serious drama.

 

[Knightfall]

How do you prefer your foreign language films? I have a strong preference for subtitles, unless the principal stars are doing their own dubbing. But I know some people find subtitles distracting. Strong opinions or strong apathy?

Subtitles are way better. Dubbing never sounds right.

 

[Ranger REG]

But I admit sometimes subtitles are distracting the first time I see a movie. I'm so busy reading the titles I don't get to see what's happening on the screen. I'm a fast reader and in some films I still have trouble keeping up. Plus poorly-translated titles can create unintentional humor that distracts from serious drama.

The good thing about subtitles on DVD is that when you pause, it stays ON the screen, as opposed to closed captioning. Pause on DVD player is better than Pause on VCR (you tend to miss a few seconds of audio when you un-Pause or Resume Play with VCR).

 

[Pants]

Subtitles are way better. Dubbing never sounds right.

That's a pretty generalized stance to take.

Have you watched every dub?

 

[Ranger REG]

Have you watched every dub?

More than enough to realize you don't mess with the original film's voices.

 

[Knightfall]

That's a pretty generalized stance to take.

Have you watched every dub?

Yes. What Ranger REG said!

 

[catsclaw227]

Who finds dubbing more annoying, American viewers (watching a foreign film being voice-dubbed in English) or non-American viewers (watching an American film being voice-dubbed in their respective languages)?

Well, I prefer subtitles than dubbing (I am American), and some of my friends are movie snobs that say dubbed movies are an abomination.

But my wife is Russian, and prefers dubbed over subtitles, since she is used to hearing movies dubbed in Russian. That's how the general population sees movies.

Now if we are watching an American movie with thick accents (british, inner city, thick regional accents), she likes having English subtitles as well, so she can understand what people are saying.

 

[Victim]

I generally prefer subs, but some dubs are really good. Also, dubs seem easier to understand when there's several dialogue threads going on at once - characters talking over some announcement, interjections, rapid fire changes of speaker, etc.