Sep 242008
 

It is not unknown for me to watch subtitled films, and to enjoy them (assuming the film appeals to me of course!). For some reason there are plenty of people who will not watch such films and they really do not know what they are missing. Sure it is a little bit of extra work to watch one, so watching a mindless entertainment film (which I am not snobbish enough to refuse to watch … nothing wrong with a bit of mindless entertainment) with subtitles probably is not worth it.

But they are tons of absolutely great films out there that are more than worth the extra investment in time … “Hero”, “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon”, “Jamon, Jamon”, and countless others. Not only are there great film makers who make films in languages other than English, but every film offers a small window into the culture of the country it comes from.

The strange thing is that I once sat down with a friend to watch “Crouching Tiger” and it accidentally started playing the dubbed in English version. Neither of us could stand it and had to restart the film in Mandarin with English subtitles. Something about the actors moving their lips in a pattern totally unrelated to the dialogue was deeply off putting.