# When watching a foreign-language film, do you prefer subtitles or dubbing? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 19, 2010, 2:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-watching-a-foreign-language-film-do-you-prefer-subtitles-or-dubbing/547226 "2010-07-19T14:45:03Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![SciFiSam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/47e85d/32.png) [@SciFiSam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SciFiSam)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2010, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-watching-a-foreign-language-film-do-you-prefer-subtitles-or-dubbing/547226/21 "2010-07-19T17:56:59Z")
Of course, I make a living subtitling TV shows, so I do have a vested interest. šŸ˜ƒ Ours donā€™t have the problems Kayla mentions, though I know exactly what sheā€™s talking about. I just realised another exception: shows that are aimed at children under the age of about ten should be dubbed for general release, perhaps with an alternate subtitled version available. There would be too many kids who wouldnā€™t be able to read fast enough to keep up with subtitles. (Maybe ten is too high an age there, but movies that are aimed at eight-year-olds are generally aimed at ten-year-olds too, so it works either way). ---
**Author:** ![Kyla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/eada6e/32.png) [@Kyla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kyla)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2010, 6:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-watching-a-foreign-language-film-do-you-prefer-subtitles-or-dubbing/547226/22 "2010-07-19T18:10:13Z")
> [@scifisam2009](#): > > Of course, I make a living subtitling TV shows, so I do have a vested interest. šŸ˜ƒ OH can you answer a question for me, then? Are subtitles based on a _script_ of the show, or on someone _watching_ the show? Some of the mistakes I saw seemed to be because they were going off a script that was possibly later changed, and some of them seemed to be because someone had maybe misheard something. It was very inconsistent and I found it baffling. ---
**Author:** ![Hampshire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hampshire/32/4887_2.png) [@Hampshire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hampshire)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2010, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-watching-a-foreign-language-film-do-you-prefer-subtitles-or-dubbing/547226/23 "2010-07-19T18:19:35Z")
Two movies off the top of my head that were ruined by dubbing: I saw _Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon_ in the theatre with subtitles and the movie was very beautiful from the imagery and music to the costumes and choreography. The spoken voice added a ton to it as Mandarin is so distinctive. Later I saw a dubbed version on DVD and hated it. It felt dumbed down. Same for _Kung Fu Hustle_. Watch the subtitled version and youā€™ll laugh your ass off. Itā€™s a riot. Watch the dubbed version and it just feels immature and stupid. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2010, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-watching-a-foreign-language-film-do-you-prefer-subtitles-or-dubbing/547226/24 "2010-07-19T18:25:31Z")
I always prefer subtitles, except in cases where itā€™s a mindless action flick, or maybe if the original actors have redubbed their own lines. However, since I see most movies here in English with Spanish subtitles, it does make me keenly aware of how bad subtitles often are. (Seeing _Amelie_ here in French with Spanish subtitles was a bit disorienting as well. Although I read Spanish, its not as fast or automatic as in English, so by the end of the movie my head was spinning.) ---
**Author:** ![Pleonast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pleonast/32/1183_2.png) [@Pleonast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pleonast)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2010, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-watching-a-foreign-language-film-do-you-prefer-subtitles-or-dubbing/547226/25 "2010-07-19T18:51:45Z")
I prefer subtitles, but I will also turn on the dubbing if the dubbing is good. For live-action movies, the dubbing is general poor, so itā€™s rare that Iā€™ll have it on. Many animations have good dubbing, so I turn it on, while keeping the dubbing. The extra channel of information is good for clarifying whatā€™s going on sometimes. Iā€™ll also turn on subtitles even if the movie is in English originally, simply because I donā€™t want to miss something simply because of random noisy disruptions (i.e. kids). ---
**Author:** ![Push\_You\_Down](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/push_you_down/32/9095_2.png) [@Push\_You\_Down](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Push_You_Down)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2010, 6:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-watching-a-foreign-language-film-do-you-prefer-subtitles-or-dubbing/547226/26 "2010-07-19T18:57:16Z")
Dubbing, if it is done well. ---
**Author:** ![SciFiSam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/47e85d/32.png) [@SciFiSam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SciFiSam)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2010, 6:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-watching-a-foreign-language-film-do-you-prefer-subtitles-or-dubbing/547226/27 "2010-07-19T18:59:40Z")
> [@Kyla](#): > > OH can you answer a question for me, then? Are subtitles based on a _script_ of the show, or on someone _watching_ the show? Some of the mistakes I saw seemed to be because they were going off a script that was possibly later changed, and some of them seemed to be because someone had maybe misheard something. It was very inconsistent and I found it baffling. For me, it varies. I usually use a script, but obviously I change it where it varies from the actual broadcast. ---
**Author:** ![Pyper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Pyper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pyper)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2010, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-watching-a-foreign-language-film-do-you-prefer-subtitles-or-dubbing/547226/28 "2010-07-19T19:04:28Z")
I go one further. I turn on the subtitles for all English language movies and TV. For me, reading has always been easier than listening, so having the subtitles on improves my understanding of what Iā€™m watching. ---
**Author:** ![troub](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/troub/32/14802_2.png) [@troub](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/troub)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2010, 7:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-watching-a-foreign-language-film-do-you-prefer-subtitles-or-dubbing/547226/29 "2010-07-19T19:23:52Z")
> [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](#): > > I donā€™t think weā€™ll have a lot of persons in this thread who complain loudly about subtitles, because those are generally persons who have difficulty in reading. For a message board, those are self-selected out. True, and that seems to be shown in the results thus far. But you know theyā€™re out there. Years ago I too saw _Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon_ in the theater with subtitlesā€¦I knew of lots of people who refused to see it because ā€œsubtitles are distracting,ā€ etc. I would say that I didnā€™t find them to be so, and indeed, they would respond ā€œWhy would you go to a _movie_ to spend all your time _reading_?ā€ Sometimes for kicks, Iā€™ll switch over to HBOL, which is HBO with everything dubbed into Spanish. Knowing the original voices and what theyā€™re saying, the Spanish dubbing often sounds quite ridiculous ā€“ like stereotype characters in a 1940s radio drama or something. If this is the kind of relative goofiness and total loss of context that I can expect from an English dub, I wouldnā€™t want anything to do with it. ---
**Author:** ![Geek\_Mecha](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/ecae2f/32.png) [@Geek\_Mecha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Geek_Mecha)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2010, 8:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-watching-a-foreign-language-film-do-you-prefer-subtitles-or-dubbing/547226/30 "2010-07-19T20:48:36Z")
Always, always subtitling, for both live action and animation. I go to foreign films aware that itā€™s a foreign film and I expect to see differences, so itā€™s very jarring to hear Americanized English-speaking voices. The only downside to subtitles is I work at a place that does subtitles (and dubbing) and I canā€™t help but notice stylistic differences and mistakes. ---
**Author:** ![Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/le_ministre_de_l_au-dela/32/12181_2.png) [@Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Le_Ministre_de_l_au-dela)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2010, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-watching-a-foreign-language-film-do-you-prefer-subtitles-or-dubbing/547226/31 "2010-07-19T20:59:32Z")
I canā€™t read about dubbing without thinking of this NSFW scene from JĆ©sus de MontrĆ©al. [The Dubbing Scene](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sZKYGv8rtk0&NR=1) Iā€™m sorry that this version broke up the scene so that you donā€™t hear the dialogue between the two actresses about how terrible it is that modern actors donā€™t care about diction, and how all they do is improvise. At any rate, Martin has to fill in for a missing voice actor in the dubbing studioā€¦ ---
**Author:** ![muldoonthief](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muldoonthief/32/3188_2.png) [@muldoonthief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/muldoonthief)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2010, 2:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-watching-a-foreign-language-film-do-you-prefer-subtitles-or-dubbing/547226/32 "2010-07-20T14:07:30Z")
I voted ā€œrefuseā€, but itā€™s really ā€œI donā€™t have the time or energy to watch movies in a language Iā€™m not fluent in.ā€ Dubbing is always obvious, and subtitles ruin it for me, so I generally do something else. I think the last foreign language movie I sat through was ā€œWhatā€™s Up Tiger Lilyā€ 20+ years ago. ---
**Author:** ![Anaamika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2010, 2:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-watching-a-foreign-language-film-do-you-prefer-subtitles-or-dubbing/547226/33 "2010-07-20T14:10:32Z")
Dubbing is awful. Languages are beautiful and I much prefer to put on subtitles and listen to the sounds. And I watch a fair amount of foreign flicks. ---
**Author:** ![dangermom](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e274bd/32.png) [@dangermom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dangermom)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2010, 2:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-watching-a-foreign-language-film-do-you-prefer-subtitles-or-dubbing/547226/34 "2010-07-20T14:17:28Z")
I much prefer subtitles unless itā€™s Godzilla. Bad dubbing in Japanese B-movies is just part of the joy. I really like many foreign films, ideally about half the movies I watch (which still isnā€™t all that many). The only problem with subtitles is that I canā€™t embroider while I watchā€“usually I like to have some handwork to do if Iā€™m sitting in front of the TV. ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2010, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-watching-a-foreign-language-film-do-you-prefer-subtitles-or-dubbing/547226/35 "2010-07-20T16:01:17Z")
I donā€™t really care one way or the other, mostly because Iā€™ve rarely seen live action movies with dubbing. I think **Nightwatch** was dubbed, and thereā€™s **Gozilla** , butā€¦ > [@Kyla](#): > > I will say, though, that after my Bulgarian got good enough that I could easily follow the subtitles while watching English-language TV shows, I began to realize how shitty subtitling often is. I hope they do a better job of subtitling, oh, I donā€™t know, feature-length French movies in English than they do silly Australian cop shows into Bulgarian. A LOT of detail gets left out because there isnā€™t enough space on the screen for so many words a lot of the time, and more than once I saw subtitles that were just WRONG. No kidding. Nothing drags me out of a Spanish film faster than realizing that they just mis-subtitled something. Even del Toroā€™s movies have incorrect subtitles here and there, so itā€™s a bit frustrating. ---
**Author:** ![Kiyoshi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e19adc/32.png) [@Kiyoshi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kiyoshi)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2010, 9:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-watching-a-foreign-language-film-do-you-prefer-subtitles-or-dubbing/547226/36 "2010-07-20T21:06:34Z")
With some anime, I prefer the performance in the English dub (Cowboy Bebop is a good example) to the original Japanese. But I would never watch a dubbed live action movie, it would be an insult to the actors. Plus it would annoy me that the lip movements didnā€™t match up. ---
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2010, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-watching-a-foreign-language-film-do-you-prefer-subtitles-or-dubbing/547226/37 "2010-07-20T21:21:41Z")
Iā€™d never considered differentiating between live action and cartoon; Iā€™ll have to think about that. But for live action, give me subtitles any day. Like others, Iā€™ll make exceptions for films like Das Boot. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2010, 9:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-watching-a-foreign-language-film-do-you-prefer-subtitles-or-dubbing/547226/38 "2010-07-20T21:24:16Z")
Our preference for subtitles could be because weā€™re a bunch of readers here - I wonder if people who donā€™t read often prefer dubbing. ---
**Author:** ![Kamino\_Neko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kamino_neko/32/34_2.png) [@Kamino\_Neko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamino_Neko)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2010, 9:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-watching-a-foreign-language-film-do-you-prefer-subtitles-or-dubbing/547226/39 "2010-07-20T21:26:09Z")
> [@Kiyoshi](#): > > With some anime, I prefer the performance in the English dub (Cowboy Bebop is a good example) Thatā€™s my main example of preferring the dub, too - and apparently someone major in the creative team for the series (I want to say Watanabe, but I canā€™t find the cite) agrees with us. ---
**Author:** ![Unauthorized\_Cinnamon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/bc8723/32.png) [@Unauthorized\_Cinnamon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Unauthorized_Cinnamon)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2010, 9:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-watching-a-foreign-language-film-do-you-prefer-subtitles-or-dubbing/547226/40 "2010-07-20T21:45:00Z")
Iā€™m the odd man out - I tend to prefer dubbing. Yā€™all act like dubbing is pure evil, while there are no drawbacks to (good) subtitles. But film is a visual medium. Maybe I just canā€™t multitask as well as most people, but if Iā€™m reading subtitles, thereā€™s no way I can truly appreciate the visuals. I also tend to miss subtle bits of action that may be crucial to the plot. And Iā€™m a pretty good reader - for someone who struggles to read quickly, as **Cat Whisperer** notes, subtitles could completely ruin the experience. Does low-quality voice acting detract from the experience? Sure. Mismatched lip sync I donā€™t mind, but yes, dorky sounding acting sucks. But so does reading so much I miss half of whatā€™s going on and have near-zero appreciation of the cinematography. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-watching-a-foreign-language-film-do-you-prefer-subtitles-or-dubbing/547226.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-watching-a-foreign-language-film-do-you-prefer-subtitles-or-dubbing/547226.md?page=3)