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[–]cuentanueva 1033 points1034 points ago

Subtitles > Dubbing

[–]ChaosFireV 175 points176 points ago

After watching enough anime you learn to read the subtitles while watching the middle of the screen. I'm assuming the same can be said after you watch some subtitled movies. You just get use to it.

[–]TranClan67 156 points157 points ago

I never knew it was a problem for people to read subs while watching the scenes until people pointed it out...

[–]dustyjuicebox 22 points23 points ago

It's mostly for the bigger screens where the issue arises.

[–]Hoefnix 14 points15 points ago

What issues if i may ask?

I went to a movie shown on an IMAX screen (very large screen) with subtitles. No one had any trouble with it. Certainly not making the head movements the cats do.

[–]vyleside 7 points8 points ago

It's probably only an issue for people who decide to sit in the front row.

[–]jack051093 7 points8 points ago

It's probably only an issue for cats.

[–]eat-your-corn-syrup 14 points15 points ago

or when the subtitle happens to be white on white

[–]watanuki 22 points23 points ago

Subtitles usually have black shadow so it's not a problem.

[–]DigitalChocobo 6 points7 points ago

I have been to a movie theater before, and I can confirm that they don't do that white on light color bullshit that Redditors pull all the time.

[–]impgod999 4 points5 points ago

Different. Country.

[–]kba334 2 points3 points ago

That differs from country to country

[–]evi1 13 points14 points ago

Sometimes I just like listening to shows while doing something else. This is why I love quality dubs like Cowboy Bebop.

[–]corruptsoul98 0 points1 point ago

Cowboy Bebop is one of the few animes in which the dub is better than the subs.

[–]Ravek 10 points11 points ago

That's a nice meme people like to repeat, but it isn't actually true.

[–]karmapopsicle 0 points1 point ago

Personally I found it much better. The subs are more of a direct Japanese translation, whereas the dub just seemed to flow a lot better.

I've watched the series subbed, dubbed, and both at the same time. It's very interesting to see how they change the dialogue slightly here and there to work better in English.

[–]Ravek 3 points4 points ago

For subtitles versus dubbing in general, it's important to consider that the two are different approaches to letting an audience that is not intimately familiar with Japanese experience the show. The goal for both is of course to approximate the way in which a Japanese viewer would experience the original.

Subtitles are fundamentally just a way to experience the original show with a nonexistent or limited understanding of Japanese. The audio still remains, and you should still be listening to it to tell tone of voice, to grasp the atmosphere of the conversation. The subtitles are just there to make sure you know the meaning of what's being said, not to rewrite the dialogue from an American cultural background.

Dubbing does do that, it replaces all the dialogue with English, and necessarily has to rewrite lines in the process, or conversations will never flow properly, and the impression a viewer would have would be vastly different from the impression a Japanese viewer would have watching the original. Some dubs are truly bad in an objective sense, either failing to grasp the intention of the original (e.g. Samurai X: Trust & Betrayal) or botching the delivery.

Subtitles can definitely be too literal and awkward, but they should also not be too English, as they need to match the spoken Japanese accurately so that the audio and subtitles combined provide the full experience.

Proper dubbing will probably work better for a lot of English native speakers than proper subbing will, since it's easier to properly experience the show that way for them. On the other hand, non-native speakers of English will likely not benefit so much from having American figures of speech as opposed to Japanese in their translation. Finally, people who watch so much subtitled Japanese that they are somewhat familiar with Japanese expressions and flow of conversation might prefer the original Japanese style. Especially for them, subtitles don't need to be well-flowing English, but instead work best as being, in a way, Japanese-using-English-words.

All in all, a preference for one approach over the other does not imply that the execution of the one approach was better than the execution of the other. A dub will be good or bad on its own merits, and so will a sub, and a direct comparison is pretty much apples and oranges.

[–]GoghGirl 0 points1 point ago

The only problem with subbing is I often like to do other things while watching (like browsing reddit) so reading two different sources at once ends up being impossible..

I prefer subbing but there is a time and place for both. However, there are a couple really good and sometimes hilarious dubs which I prefer to the subbed version.

[–]Mazakaki 5 points6 points ago

Ghost stories.

[–]reaper14th 4 points5 points ago

[–]Stregulator 515 points516 points ago

That's one of the main reasons why Northern Europeans speak english a lot better than Southern Europeans. Subtitles are standard up North while Southern and Eastern European countries dub everything.

I shouldn't get too many downvotes, because of what I said above.

[–]Ehkz 176 points177 points ago

It's true. Everything in Denmark is subbed. The only thing they voice over is kids cartoons and animated movies, which is fair enough.

[–]Stregulator 106 points107 points ago

Yeah, that's what they do in Finland too. I think it's for the kids who can't read yet. as you said.

[–]SomethingOverThere[!] 22 points23 points ago

Same for the Netherlands. Reading subs is second nature.

[–]Bluelegs 16 points17 points ago

Also cartoons are fairly easy to dub.

[–]BlobbyIsTheBest 29 points30 points ago

Woop woop I'm Finnish too

[–]JMan2112 72 points73 points ago

Finnished with what?

[–]BlobbyIsTheBest 37 points38 points ago

Everyfinn. Yeah okay you win, I have nothing witty to say.

[–]bemmu 3 points4 points ago

Ok, as a Finnish guy after the 1000th time of hearing this joke I'm finally getting a bit tired of it. Anyone have something equivalent for americans?

[–]haffe97 5 points6 points ago

American't

[–]PvR12 3 points4 points ago

American't read subtitles

[–]Bagelson 34 points35 points ago

Sweden as well. They don't always dub kids shows, though. Even when I was a kid there were shows in English with subtitles, and more recently I've seen kids' anime in Japanese with subs.

[–]Nekture 23 points24 points ago

Dutch speaking northern half of Belgium too.

[–]hdooster 3 points4 points ago

Me too. At age 8 our family was able to move to Germany (promotion for Dad etc etc) but we didn't speak German! Then my parents noticed us laughing at 'The Simpsons' jokes while eating dinner and unable to see the TV (and thus subtitles). Turns out we understood, could even read and speak enough English to put us in an American school in Germany :)

Which was awesome for my German and English (not my French though). But hearing and speaking it is the best way of learning. I'm proud of our subs!

[–]oogje 7 points8 points ago

They shouldn't dub kids cartoons. A) it's how I learned English. B) I still watch kids cartoons. You know how many puns are missing in the Dutch dubbed fairly odd parents??

[–]cysun 2 points3 points ago

That is a very good point. I stopped watching cartoon network the moment they starting dubbing it. I felt really sad.

[–]jdenk 1 point2 points ago

Netherlands as well, even cartoons when i was a kid (early 90s). Makes it real easy to learn English if all the good cartoons are in English.

[–]eat-your-corn-syrup 27 points28 points ago

And we Americans dubb your movies. Sometimes we go further. For Let The Right One In and Girl with Dragon Tattoo, we didn't just replace voice, we replaced your actors as well.

[–]Stregulator 6 points7 points ago

You damn 'mmmmurrrricans.... :)

[–]No_bacon 6 points7 points ago

And we Brits patiently wait until the Americans remake it so we can watch it too!

[–]sometypeofperson 4 points5 points ago

Europe doesn't expect you to know every little language out there. For Europeans not to have a rather high English vocabulary is embarrassing though.

I do have a gripe with some movies where, for example two Russians are speaking to each other... in English with Russian accents. That seriously rustles my jimmies.

BAI DA WEI SHEKK OUT INTOUCHABLES LOL

[–]nice_foreign_guy 17 points18 points ago

Obviously I can't speak for all of Southern Europe, but I can speak for Hungary: You are correct.

Dubbing takes away a very important source of foreign language content. Subs are demoted to the back seat. You have to consciously choose to have it, and even then it's not something you always have at your disposal.

I believe it's highly detrimental to language education (the lack of subs). Of course one movie and one dub makes little difference on its own, but when the trend of declining number of subbed films is set for you, you are very likely to go with it.

Interestingly enough, the fewer subs there are the lower demand will be and vice versa. I am baffled by how anyone can hate subs from the gut, but they do and they're more proud of it than ever. They actively choose not to learn foreign languages (English first and foremost) this way. Problem is, they don't learn them in any other way either.

God help us all in Eastern Europe, because passive self-education sure as anything won't.

[–]Stregulator 4 points5 points ago

You're preaching the truth my friend!

[–]gianna_in_hell_as 17 points18 points ago

Greece and Portugal are in South Europe and they don't dub. Not sure about Portuguese but typically Greeks have a pretty strong accent.

[–]drdee 9 points10 points ago

Portuguese have an accent but I believe it is very light. From my experience with people from all over Europe having English as a second language, Portuguese are some of the best speakers.

[–]waterlight 7 points8 points ago

Portuguese do have an accent, but the younger the generation the softer it is. And in any case, it doesn't even compare with the Spanish, who dub everything, and who's accent is way stronger.

[–]PortlandoCalrissian 13 points14 points ago

Wish they did that shit in Germany.

[–]cristti 44 points45 points ago

No dubbing here in Romania, only for cartoon movies. The rest is subtitled.

Oh, and Germany is dubbing fucking everything.

[–]Buxxbaum 10 points11 points ago

Well yes we do but in bigger cities (I live in Berlin) you can watch most movies in English.

TV is dubbed. But whoever watches movies on TV when there are 3-4 commercial breaks during the movies deserves it.

Pay TV is English/German and you can decide in which language you want to watch.

[–]cristti 2 points3 points ago

Nice to know there are some areas where you can watch in english.

Also, I understand that you translate all the games (xbox,pc,ps3). Is that true?

[–]fizzl 4 points5 points ago

Oh, jesus, fuck.

Just bought Starcraft 2 from amazon.de. Hail Raynor!

Then I spent a day downloading the English version from battle.net after validating my install.

[–]nariox 4 points5 points ago

Yes. My roommate installed Diablo III in German while I switched to English. You can't imagine how much more the German version sucks.

[–]skillphiliac 2 points3 points ago

It is, and it is awful. Rushed and badly acted, really not too enjoyable.

[–]shomii 32 points33 points ago

Not exactly. Countries of former Yugoslavia have had subtitles almost exclusively since WW2, yet the accent of people from that region is relatively strong.

The accent of people in North Europe has more to do with the face that Scandinavian languages and English are both of Germanic origin.

[–]Stregulator 19 points20 points ago

Ok. I actually have some Serbian friends who are living up here in Finland and their english is kind of good.

But when I have visited Russia, and Baltic countries....oh boy. It seems like every tv show and movie ever made is dubbed by this same creepy-voiced gentleman :)

[–]Whimish 13 points14 points ago

Estonia doesn't dub anything except for cartoons for kids and some mexican soap operas for elderly (because of their slow reading skills and weak eye sight, I guess).

Our language belongs to the Finnic branch of the Uralic language family, it is very similar to Finnish. Latvian and Lithuanian language has slavic origins in it and it sounds very different from ours.

[–]Stregulator 5 points6 points ago

Oh yeah I know. It's the funniest thing evertyime I hear Estonian people speak, because it is SO similar to our language. I kinda understand what you guys are saying but not quite. There are some sentences that I can guess what it means etc.

[–]Spindax 8 points9 points ago

A strong Danish accent absolutely destroys the English language. It really is cringe-worthy. Gladly, most Danes among the younger generations have figured out how to cope with it and speak stronger English.

[–]Duefaku 4 points5 points ago

Scottish does that as well. "Ye' foogin buggar A'm gonna charp of yer willee and puht it in me stew!"

[–]StratFeel 7 points8 points ago

I live in southeastern europe (Croatia) and we don't dub anything. Neither on tv or in theather. i heard in Poland though there is only one guy who dubs everything on their national television. even female voices.

[–]gianna_in_hell_as 5 points6 points ago

It's called lectoring and it was common in many Eastern European countries. It's really funny in love scenes.

[–]nahden 3 points4 points ago

i heard in Poland though there is only one guy who dubs everything

i'm not sure if it's just one guy for all tv content, nor whether they still do it that way (they certainly did until a couple of years back), but here's an example of what this one-guy-dubs-all-characters looks/sounds like for those who haven't experienced it yet

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8-Wy3rlAF-g&feature=player_detailpage#t=3950s

[–]SONG2 7 points8 points ago

Can't speak for the rest of Eastern Europe, but in Romania everything is subtitled. Except for cartoons, and when they started dubbing them a few years ago, people almost took to the streets to bring the subtitles back. And yeah, as a consequence we speak very good English generally.

[–]sprqn 2 points3 points ago

I would also add that we that come from Northern Europe travel a lot and it is quite common to do exchange years or summers in other countries to learn the languages. That usually helps a lot. Most of my friends had been to England or other English speaking country already as teenagers.

I figure that we should be good at languages, since Swedish is not spoken in very many other places we would not survive out in the world ;)

[–]LexLV 1 point2 points ago

I recently went to Germany and discovered all the TV stations were littered with American TV shows. All of them were dubbed. It was awful.

[–]prmaster23 1 point2 points ago

I agree with this with a little exception, a great dub > subtitles. The only movies that come dubbed here in my country are usually only kids/family movies and I have to say the Spanish (latin) dub of Sherk 1-2 were outstanding movies on their own, jokes that wouldn't even translate were replaced with even funnier ones. I understand both languages and still prefer the Spanish over the English version.

[–]cuentanueva 0 points1 point ago

Indeed, there are some exceptions, Shrek is one: "Sí, se lava la carita"

[–]eKtoR 159 points160 points ago

I use the subtitles on Netflix when I'm eating something crunchy - chips, Doritos taco loco, etc. And when my girlfriend sleeps. Best thing ever.

Also, some movies have the dialogues too quiet, and you are trying to listen and put the volume up, then...

Motherfucking

  • BAM -

    • an explosion.

[–]Fnarley 43 points44 points ago

This is my pet hate and scourge of 21st century living, inconsistent volume

[–]matphoto 13 points14 points ago

I feel like they mix the sounds that way for the theater experience and then don't remix it for home viewing. Maybe they just figure everyone has a home theater system.

[–]GuyInARoom 18 points19 points ago

This is correct - they are mixed for (usually) 5.1 sound where the dialogue has its own dedicated speaker.

Discs sometimes have an option to set the audio to Stereo (2.0) which will usually improve the experience if you don't have a surround sound system.

[–]reusablerigbot 9 points10 points ago

I've posted this before. Here's a copy paste.

When films are mixed for theatrical release they're mixed in surround, most often 5.1 or 7.1 depending on budget. Most 7.1 things are done in California, NYC (where I work) handles a lot more indie/doc material, our rooms arnt set up for 7.1, anyway, doesn't matter.

With both of these setups the dialoge goes pretty much entirely into the center channel (with some reverb or OS dial getting tossed into L or R, very rarely surrounds.) FX/Music occupy the surround speakers. This setup makes dialoge pretty easy to hear in the theater, as it has its own speaker behind the screen in the middle at all times.

When mixing for theater, films are typically mixed to a Dolby standardized 85dB SPL, TV is 79db SPL, at mix position (where the mixer sits) with very little overall compression or limiting. As the theaters should be relatively standardized once you mix to this level it should all play pretty fine in the actual theater provided the mixer knows what they're doing.

HOWEVER when films get broadcast on TV/DVD you very often listen to the LT/RT or just a stereo folddown as your TV only has stereo speakers. LT/RT is a very old Dolby technology that shifts the surrounds EDIT:phase polarity (phase is physical waves, polarity is electrical signal) by 90 degrees and drops them into the left and right along with everything else, then collapses the entire mix into two tracks. The dialoge track gets a slight level bump then is split evenly into Left and Right. This LT/RT tracks can then be played back either on stereo speakers and sound "relatively" like the original mix. Or be run back through a Dolby Decoder (DVD players/AV Receivers typically) and be phase shifted back into a surround mix. It's not perfect, typically affects the entire mix, and can exacerbate any badly mixed sections, also if the theater or home decoder isn't set up right (one sides amp set at a different level than the other) it can throw the whole mix out of whack.

How on earth do poorly mixed sections or inaudible sections of films occur? Surely the filmmakers want everything to be perfect? We certainly do. BUT film sound mixing stages for major blockbusters can upwards of a grand per hour for the room and mixer (typically closer to $400 on average,) plus editors wages for 3+ often union editors (Dialoge, Music, Effects, sometimes someone separate for Foley, assistants, etc.) And sometimes a producer in the room who's job is always to say "Guys we can't afford to spend any more time on this lets move on."

Add to this that unlike theaters, with the 85 dB standard. Most TV networks require far more compression and different levels. Most require either -2dBFS or -10dBFS at peak average, and a -24dBFS/LKFS (average weight of dialoge) This requires quite often a whole remastering of the show just for television. Something that can be quite expensive and often issues get glossed over or ignored because there simply isn't the budget to get them perfect.

So ultimately there often just isn't the budget to spend time on getting everything perfect for both theatrical and television/DVD, and theatrical typically has priority, so some parts get glossed over. Most often when we're printing out the mix we make the 5.1 then just on the fly fold down everything to the LT/RT stereo on the fly. We check it. But unless theres a really glaring issue the fold down through various plugins is just let to run.

It should sound okay. Except when you're trying to watch it on a tiny tv or an ipad with tons of background noise.

TL;DR, We try, If we could get it perfect on all devices we would, but budget and time combined with different standards for Theatrical vs TV/DVD often means mixes don't translate well to small TV speakers. The masters delivered to Netflix are probably the same theatrical 5.1 and LTRT from the master tapes made at the mix. Filmmakers are constantly trying to recoup costs, and I can almost gaurntee Netflix isn't paying enough for content to justify going back to a $300-400 an hour mix stage, except maybe on huge productions.

[–]momoichigo 33 points34 points ago

I'm Chinese, and the majority of the TV shows and many of the movies come subtitled automatically because China has so many dialects and many people are not used to hearing the official dialect in the standard accent. I grew up watching almost everything with subtitles and shows without subtitles annoy me.

I can watch a show on mute with subtitles, but it took me a long time to get use to American shows not having subtitles. When I can get away with it I put on caption. My MIL once asked me if I was hard of hearing because of it.

Nope, I just fucking love subtitles.

I feel without subtitles I miss some nuances in the show and sometimes I miss a few words that might be important.

Also, a lot of shows in Asia are aired simultaneously in two countries. "The Great Doctor/The Faith" is one of those examples. It's currently airing in China and Korea at the same time. China obviously did not dub the show simultaneously. It just subbed the show and aired it on prime time. This allows shows to easily reach a broader audience and it also helps with the literacy rate.

[–]Lecks 10 points11 points ago

I have the "not hearing bits and pieces" problem too sometimes when there aren't any subtitles. Sometimes I just don't hear what was said, either because of an accent, muffling or the movie's sound levels being messed up and having subtitles available (even when it's in the same language) can be very helpful. Especially when you're basically trained to look for subtitles, their absence can be...strange.

[–]FCalleja 2 points3 points ago

Exactly, and you can see everything at once, I never do like the kitties in the OP, cute as I would look.

[–]bilyl 2 points3 points ago

Chinese here too. I used to watch all my English-language movies with the subtitles on, and it wasn't until some point late in college when people complained that the words were blocking the action.

[–]fiona63 17 points18 points ago

They look like they're watching a vertical tennis match.

[–]capgetsreal 4 points5 points ago

"Vertical Tennis Match" sounds like some type of sex move/euphemism for sex.

[–]TeBags 1 point2 points ago

Like the horizontal limbo?

[–]blandz87 99 points100 points ago

especially when you're sitting in the front row.

[–]afewseekhay 60 points61 points ago

especially when you're at an IMAX

[–]ExtraCheesed_Buddha 46 points47 points ago

At IMAX I have to rotate my head around in circles to see the whole scene on the screen

[–]DiscoTwoDisco 89 points90 points ago

I rotated my head after reading this to get the full effect.

[–]ExtraCheesed_Buddha 19 points20 points ago

You go the extra mile

[–]jaryl 9 points10 points ago

He's not that fat...

[–]gusatron51 28 points29 points ago

[–]ExtraCheesed_Buddha 2 points3 points ago

.... Ok yes you caught me

[–]hockal00gy 9 points10 points ago

I do that anyway because I'm an owl.

[–]ExtraCheesed_Buddha 7 points8 points ago

So they do allow owls on reddit, nice to meet you

[–]iPredditor 6 points7 points ago

ugh, I hate having to sit there. it kills my neck.

[–]blandz87 4 points5 points ago

I saw Avatar 3D in the front row on a date because they were the only seats open. I absolutely hated it. It was way too close!

[–]JBFRESHSKILLS 8 points9 points ago

The wife and I thought we would be clever, and get to TDKR a whopping 20 minutes early to get a good seat...Ended up in the second row in the IMAX theatre. Needless to say, we went back 2 days later and got there 45 minutes early.

[–]alttp_player01 6 points7 points ago

Me and my friends went 4 hours early, got the best seats and interchanged 2 people leaving at a time

[–]Jack000 2 points3 points ago

we have assigned seats for IMAX over here. Hurrah for assigned seats!

[–]cunningacire 2 points3 points ago

We went to the marathon which started at 6pm. We got there 45 minutes early and got the perfect seats.

[–]P1TA 10 points11 points ago

Saw TDKR with 3 buds the second day it's out. We thought getting there 10 minutes early was enough. Nope.

I had a damn nice view of Batman's utility belt, at least.

[–]goats 34 points35 points ago

Only 10 minutes early on the second day? I'm surprised you found four seats together at all.

[–]iPredditor 4 points5 points ago

That's so weird, Avatar 3D is the movie I had in mind. I went with my best friend when it came out and we both agreed we couldn't see the 3D effects (let alone the movie) properly from that angle. She suggested at one point that we go sit on the concrete stairs to be able to see the movie and we were seriously considering it. I saw it again later with my uncle and actually got to enjoy it though.

[–]DolgVlaPet 17 points18 points ago

I like subtitled movies even more, those help you to understand better native language . I am a foreighner and most of english language I know, I learned from movies and internet. You can't transalte some jokes to russian, so original is always the best. )

[–]Well_With_My_Soul 4 points5 points ago

As someone who is literally half deaf, they are my best friend when I watch movies...

[–]vanderZwan 2 points3 points ago

You can't transalte some jokes to russian, so original is always the best.

Or from Russian! I watched Brat with subtitles that read like the typical broken English of literal-translation-of-Russian-to-English (including sentence structure and lack of words like "the" in some places).

Funny thing was that the result was really poetic and fitting somehow, if puzzling at times.

[–]Roflkopt3r 14 points15 points ago

As a non-native English speakers it happens much more frequently to face subtitles, so I guess the rest of the world is better prepared for this.

[–]petemate 8 points9 points ago

I don't get the US aversion with subtitled movies. It just seems lazy in the most stereotypical way. "I paid for a movie, i don't want to read"

Whenever i watch a US movie in a theatre, its always with danish subtitles(because i live in denmark, duh!), but that's fine. However, when i watch a DVD or something, i always turn on the english subtitles. Mainly because i would otherwise have to watch the movie at ear shattering volumes in order to pick up the dialog.

[–]victorius21 127 points128 points ago

Oh, you think subtitles are your ally. You merely adopted the subtitles; I was born in it, moulded by it. I didn't see the movie until I was already a man, by then it was nothing to me but BLINDING! I AM A FOREIGNER!

[–]schmeditor 17 points18 points ago

[–]racecaracecaracecar 23 points24 points ago

That one should really be saved for special occasions.

[–]schmeditor 41 points42 points ago

[–]gormanator 6 points7 points ago

Reddit has become tumblr

[–]Anaract 4 points5 points ago

I dont even read subtitles anymore, I just absorb them. I can't really explain it. Anyone who watches anime should know, you kind of see them in your peripheral vision and use your vague understanding of the language to piece it all together without directly reading them

[–]Subbie138 10 points11 points ago

This is the kind of creative post title that makes me smile, download the gif, then months later wonder why the fuck I have a gif of kittens looking up and down, and why it was so great that I saved it.

[–]aggressive_serve 5 points6 points ago

you're probably safer doing this with cat gifs than with mckayla maroney gifs

[–]Subbie138 13 points14 points ago

you're probably safer doing this with cat gifs than with mckayla maroney gifs

Yeah, that would be too crazy.

[–]AlwaysTheir 9 points10 points ago

Weird. When I watch movies with subtitles at the theater I don't even notice I'm reading them about 20 minutes in it's so automatic. Now watching subtiles at home I can't get into that zen state. The letters are too small or something.

[–]HW_Plainview 9 points10 points ago

That's because no one does this. OP has either never watched a subtitled movie in a theatre before, or posted it anyway because it's still sort of funny. I'm hoping for the latter.

[–]oneleginthebucket 5 points6 points ago

For Americans maybe.... the rest of us read without having to look down all the time.

[–]mr_k_pilkington 5 points6 points ago

I always put on subtitles with normal TV and movies, if possible. I really don't know why people dislike them. They reassure me I haven't missed anything crucial.

I would have LOVED subtitles for Bane in Batman....impossible to understand him.

[–]TomatosauceTheMessia 4 points5 points ago

I live in Europe, and I grew up with Dutch subtitles on English movies.

That's how I learned English, and when I now go to a movie in theater, I just watch and listen, and the subtitles are just there for reference.

That's education, right there.

[–]Softice4 4 points5 points ago

Hahaha ...no

[–]Jiggyx42 3 points4 points ago

Reminds me of the beginning of Star Wars

[–]bvanman 10 points11 points ago

Whenever I watch a Star Wars movie, the same thing happens. The big STAR WARS flashes on the screen and I think, "Ooh, it's starting!" Then I zone out, and when the intro gets about halfway done, I think, "Oh shit, I should have been reading this!" Then I try to catch up and finish the prompt before it goes away.

[–]ccuttriss 4 points5 points ago

karmakarmakarmakarmachamelioooonnnnnn

[–]LexLV 4 points5 points ago

I've never understood the problem with subtitled films / TV. I am a lover of world cinema but also foreign TV (Mostly Japanese and Korean TV shows), so I watch a hell of a lot of subtitled stuff. It's become so natural for me to follow subtitles that I just don't think about it and I can still watch what's going on as well as knowing what is said. It's also a good way to pick the language up too. I feel part of the reason I don't need to stare at the subtitles is because I can now understand things that are being said anyway.

[–]iPredditor 9 points10 points ago

I don't know why, but the second to left one reminds me of my little cousin...

[–]TreLeans[S] 23 points24 points ago

I don't think it looks anything like him.

[–]iPredditor 17 points18 points ago

It's the eyes.

[–]TreLeans[S] 25 points26 points ago

Now I see it.

[–]hyperdub5 37 points38 points ago

What's wrong with subtitles? And why would you go to a movie not knowing what language it's in?

[–]CannibalIowa 26 points27 points ago

It's not saying anything bad about subtitles, just more like this is everyone's reaction to them. I do this and I enjoy subtitles most of the time.

[–]gameguy285 27 points28 points ago

the only time i hate subtitles is when they fuck up the sync so i can never tell who's saying what

[–]CannibalIowa 7 points8 points ago

Excellent point, I also hate when the subtitles are just plain wrong. I flipped out watching Batman Forever because the dialogue and the subtitles almost never were the same actual words.

[–]KarmaticDuck 5 points6 points ago

Don't ever use YouTube's version of captions. They're ridiculous and don't make any sense. I have no idea what the fuck they're saying on screen, the crazy is so distracting.

[–]GoghGirl 2 points3 points ago

Actually.. Go use them but only so you can laugh at the confusing stories they create.

[–]varkson 2 points3 points ago

That's cause they use voice recognition, which can be sketchy, even when you are in a quiet environment talking into a microphone, let alone in a noisy video.

[–]BorkyBorky 2 points3 points ago

Even worse are subtitles translated by a retarded pimply teenager who either don't use the correct words, make shit up or use the local slang for something.

[–]housequake 2 points3 points ago

Pretty sure the picture represents looking up to see the image and then looking down to read the subtitles and then back up to see the image etc. Just sayin.

[–]Onkelffs 2 points3 points ago

"everyone", maybe in your country. In my country you had that problem when you were 9 years old.

[–]elcarath 8 points9 points ago

Nothing's wrong with subtitles. Personally, I feel they're way better than dubbing a film; that way, those who do speak the language it's filmed in can still properly appreciate the film.

[–]Annarr 4 points5 points ago

Watch, read, watch, read, watch, read! :)

[–]h8bit 14 points15 points ago

Watch more movies with subtitles, and they'll eventually become an integrated part of the movie. Most of the world don't experience "reading the movie" like Americans do.

[–]Parrrley 3 points4 points ago

You get used to it and you don't really notice it. You can easily watch the entire movie while simultaneously reading the subtitles. It's definitely not a 'read, watch, read, watch...' experience. It's just a simple 'read and watch'.

[–]shitniggachill 3 points4 points ago

Some movies are mostly English but have scenes in foreign languages so they add subs to those scenes.

[–]Fluix 4 points5 points ago

haha one word: Anime

[–]scullymeister_3 18 points19 points ago

They're so fluffy I'm gonna die!!! It's funny cuz it's true

[–]TreLeans[S] 47 points48 points ago

Sorta true. The kittens are probably too young to read.

[–]NotaMethAddict 23 points24 points ago

You're right, cats don't start to read until about two or three years old and only if you send them to the proper schools.

[–]boredatwork920 6 points7 points ago

I for one still support public schools. It's up to the owners to set up a strong educational support system at home

[–]ExtraCheesed_Buddha 3 points4 points ago

I shall now teach my cats to read, and take them into the movie theatres with me

[–]Redequlus 3 points4 points ago

People like you make me sick. I am so fuckin tired of all the cats i have to put up with at the theater!

Just learn to read the goddamn subtitles on your own!

[–]shanoxilt 2 points3 points ago

We could use your talent on /r/Shaskel.

[–]shanoxilt 1 point2 points ago

If you can make captcha comics, you have more than enough skill.

[–]delunatic5 0 points1 point ago

Reminds me of seeing Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon in the theater. Had a neck ache for a week.

[–]douglasfarra 1 point2 points ago

This is silly. I think it is silly.

[–]YouNeedNewDrapes 0 points1 point ago

I never really understood the fascination between reddit and cats but this here really rustles my jimmies.

[–]ponyarchive 0 points1 point ago

It just takes getting used to it. It's not that hard and most of the time you don't even "notice" the subtitles - they're just there and doing the work for you.

[–]ltx 0 points1 point ago

This might just be the most fitting submission title ever made on Reddit.

[–]Renrim 0 points1 point ago

I just watched this gif 5 or 6 times just so I could watch ever cats reaction :D

[–]CoryGM 2 points3 points ago

I grew up with a deaf dad, so I learned very early on how to watch a movie and read the subtitles at the same time.

[–]TheAdamantArchvile 3 points4 points ago

Bowl full of cats= Instant Comedy.

[–]Redequlus 3 points4 points ago

And you got a stew goin!

[–]Animefan90 -1 points0 points ago

After watching a lot of anime I have successfully trained one of my eyes to look at the subtitles and the other one look at the picture. Like a boss

[–]awful_dirty_talker 3 points4 points ago

I was watching this lesbian porno in German. There were two beautiful blonde German girls making love to each other. You could see the passion they shared together for each other. And their bodies? The video starts with the petite girl, going into the bathroom while keeping the door open, so naturally the other girl who is quite heavy, but healthy heavy mind you, with beautiful curves and a nice ass in leggings. When the petite girl comes out, the curvy girl notices a toilet paper handing out of her jeans.

Noticing this, the curvy girl maker fun of her hygiene practice, which ends in her pulling out the faeces stained paper and shoving it into the other girl's mouth. Surprisingly, the other girl likes it and swallows the ball of toilet paper. Seeing this, the petite girl says " if you liked eating shit so much why don't you just grab a spoon and eat it out of the toilet" in German. And that's why I think Mitt Romney should change his policy regarding German immigrants.

[–]TarBarrel 3 points4 points ago

Link please?

[–]-Misla- 3 points4 points ago

We should have a tag that says "non relevant/funny for Europeans". That way, we don't have to waste time on post like this. Cute kittens btw.

[–]blackhawk465 2 points3 points ago

Anyone seeking more info might also check here:

title comnts points age /r/
It is what it is: Sink full of kittens. 24coms 1295pts 10hrs gifs
Me when looking at every Kate Upton gif. 8coms 187pts 2mos gifs
Kittens in a bowl! 0coms 14pts 2mos aww
How I feel when asking a question in class 1com 15pts 2mos funny

source: karmadecay

[–]thou_liest 0 points1 point ago

If only I could be that cozy or adorable while in a movie theatre..

[–]TheBrownBall 0 points1 point ago

Gangsta kitties

[–]cd3393 1 point2 points ago

Damn that's cute...

[–]larrykins 1 point2 points ago

Out of all the things you could use used to caption this gif, you went with that?

[–]IrrelevantLeprechaun 0 points1 point ago

Pan's fucking Labyrinth.

[–]jamespweb 1 point2 points ago

This is so fucking adorable. Period.

[–]Vkmies -1 points0 points ago

As a Finn, this is me pretty much every single time I go to see a movie.

[–]netgamer7k -1 points0 points ago

Only if you're sitting up front.

[–]careeds3PO -1 points0 points ago

lol Pans Labrynth....got me so good.

[–]Fibonacci11235813 -1 points0 points ago

Well then you definitely shouldn't come to Belgium, every major English-spoken movie is subtitled in Dutch AND French over here.

[–]tatsumakisempukyaku -1 points0 points ago

The top black one looks like it is smilling

[–]archelon2001 -1 points0 points ago

Subtitles in movie theaters are a pain in the neck, but am I the only one who can read and watch at the same time on a TV?

[–]thwhitestkduknw -1 points0 points ago

This only applies if you don't speak the language. For example, when I go see an movie, but I go on the one day that is for deaf people, I don't read them.

[–]Republiken -1 points0 points ago

Jag fattar inte det roliga

[–]LoLItzMisery 0 points1 point ago

You see it's funny because there are cats in the picture.

[–]A_Slow_Redditor 0 points1 point ago

End up with a cramp when watching Passion of the Christ. Mel Gibson just wants to see the world burn.

[–]ranciddancer 0 points1 point ago

When the carpet doesn't match the drapes

[–]princenight 0 points1 point ago

i turn subtitles on every movie i watch.

my hearing is fine, but i have shitty listening skills. my mind will occasionally blank out segments of speech.

[–]billythemarlin 0 points1 point ago

This is the greatest use of cats in a gif ever.

And I'm a dog person.

[–]jehilla 0 points1 point ago

is it only me that after 14 years of watching movies with subtitles learnt to read the subtitles but still watch the middle of the screen?

[–]summer_watermelon 0 points1 point ago

Could not stop laughing thanks for that

[–]morty22 0 points1 point ago

I was thinking this would relate to every foreign film I go to and after being immersed in the language for 2 hours I come out thinking I can speak it fluently, this optimistic suzuki method of language learning lasts about 5 minutes. I basically can rattle off the few words of danish my grandmother uses when speaking about me on the phone to her relatives (which are mostly relating to what a shit I am), the what little french I picked up in my first year of high school and all the maori language health warnings on the ads on TV.... i'm a true modern renaissance woman....sigh*

[–]criminalpiece 0 points1 point ago

Actually it's nothing like that

[–]artydecor 0 points1 point ago

I'm curious, do Europeans have an issue with subtitles? I know in East Asia, they'll watch subtitled movies all the time. While most Americans I've met seem to hate it (not all, but I would say a large majority, which really saddens me).

[–]quantumcat 0 points1 point ago

[–]Nickd1200 0 points1 point ago

This is me watching Anime.

[–]PandemicPlague 0 points1 point ago

I find subtitles helpful because I can't understand the black ones in movies...

[–]caseyracer 0 points1 point ago

Listening to music and the cats are bobbing with it lol

[–]sprqn 0 points1 point ago

That was my reaction when I went to a movie theater in Zürich, to see a movie in English that had subtitles in both French and German.

Although I speak both English and French, I kept reading all of the subtitles (the ones in German too), which made me utterly confused :P

Once you've gotten used to read subtitles you just can't help it :D

[–]Glossophile 1 point2 points ago

I posted the video of this a while back (and was the first to post it) and only got like 10 upvotes, WTF?!

[–]Zer0Assassin 0 points1 point ago

I like watching stuff with subtitles

[–]Saysouchalot 0 points1 point ago

Ouch

[–]eat-your-corn-syrup 0 points1 point ago

that's one of the reasons scenes that tell stories without dialog are best

  • Many scenes in Wall-E and Three Iron

  • Action scenes

  • Martial art