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Subtitles

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You know what I hate? When people refuse to see a movie because they have to read the subtitles. I work at a movie theater, and we were told to remind our customers that The Orphanage is subtitled. I can't tell you how many times our customers changed their minds just because it wasn't in English. I think subtitles are better than dubbing English speaking voices over the actors. Sure, there's a flaw with subtitles: your attention may be focused on the words when you need to be watching something else on the screen. That's the only real flaw, though.

Here are reasons why subtitles are better than dubbing:

Lip Sync worse than Ashley Simpson:

We, as Americans, think that everything needs to be in English. Dubbing over voice tracks is not the answer. It really bothers me when someone's mouth is moving but the words do not match up to the movements. It draws my attention away from the movie more than floating words do. I can't concentrate on the story while a character's mouth keeps moving and no words are coming out like in old kung-fu movies.

The New Way to Read:

I hate to actually sit down and read a book. Reading subtitles keeps my reading skills sharp while watching a movie. Movies are a lot faster than books. I don't have time to spend a month reading Memoirs of a Geisha, but I have two hours to watch the movie. Our society, as a whole, does not read as much as we should. Subtitles are a good alternative to reading. I often watch television shows and dvds with closed captioning or subtitles. It's easier to understand. You might miss a word if someone comes into the room and slams the door, but if you're watching the closed captioning, you'll be able to read it and find out who was the killer or who won the game.

That's Not What I Meant!:

Dubbing can change some of the original actor's emphasis. The English voice could subtly or obviously change an inflection or pitch of a line. This is not what the director or actor intended. If I'm going to watch a movie, I want to see the original version with the original soundtrack. Have you ever seen a movie made into a play? It's not the same, especially if second rate actors are portraying the roles.

So please don't turn a movie down because it has subtitles. You'd be missing out. Pan's Labyrinth was one of the best movies of 2007. Imagine if everyone had refused to see it because it wasn't an English audio track.

Learn more about this author, Niki Howlett.
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