"Vice" in Germany
For all I know this is totally standard, but Sebastian Selig, a regular reader from Stuttgart, Germany, who works at an ad agency and has a background in film distribution, is telling me that trailers from Michael Mann's Miami Vice have been re-dubbed with more simplistic dialogue by UIP Germany, a.k.a., the "German Paramount."
The dubbed German trailers areviewable in three versions at this location.
"As you can see, they are all based on the three US-trailers but dubbed quite differently," Selig writes. "About 98% of all released prints of U.S. films dubbed into German here, and some distributors see this as a chance to reshape pictures into a new direction which they think are more suitable for a German audience (which in theire opinion seems to be a lot dumber than an international crowd).
"For example Wes Anderson's The Life Aquatic got the Naked Gun treatment. Buena Vista Germany erased nearly all of the dry humor by letting everyone sound like they were obvious joking, even changed some line of dialogue and added 'funny' German accents to some of the main parts (something they especially like to do for animation pics like for example Finding Nemo, Ice Age and many more).
"Judging by the now-running trailers this also seem to have happened with Miami Vice. It`s obvious that UIP hates the movie because of it`s not-so-easy sell, so they apparently said to themselves, 'Let`s make this an easy sell by changing it so it wil play for the dumbest audience imageanable.' Compare the dubbed German trailer with the original and you'll see they've changed lines to make the actors sound more dumb-macho.
"A Colin Farrell line -- 'Do you understand the meaning of the word 'foreboding', as in badness is happening right now?' -- has now been dubbed and changed to "Do you know what a bad feeling is? It´s like when you feel something is about to blow.'( 'Weist Du was ein ungutes Gefühl ist? Wenn man genau spürt gleich knallt`s!')
"And to even more underline this is a 'bad boys' pic the announcer gives his best to sound as an schoolyard-bully straight out of hauptschule.
"Even more so regarding this Jamie Foxx line: 'Smooth. That's how we do it.' It has now become 'Easy man, eaaasy...' ("Ganz locker man, gaaaaaanz locker"), or spoken by someone who's obviously trying to go for a 50 Cent attitude.
"You can squirm in your seat by the trailers alone. An original version of Miami Vice will only be shown on comparable small screens in the bigger cities so the general impression over here in Germany will be this is dumbass action-fare (more Dukes of Hazzard than Heat).
"And yet UIP will hold most of the press screenings in English with subtitiles so critics will have a different impression than most of it`s audience, so it can be expected they will give this Mann film the thumbs-up."
Posted by Jeffrey Wells on July 26, 2006 at 12:43 PM
comment #1
oddDuck says ...
Dubbing sucks, even if the translation is exact word-for-word. I've tried watching some non-english movies dubbed in english and they just don't work. You're missing out on a huge aspect of an actor's performance! Is it standard practice in europe to dub? If so, I'd be willing to bet there are lots of europeans who simply wait for the dvd so they appreciate the movie as it was intended to be heard.
Posted by oddDuck at July 26, 2006 1:21 PM
comment #2
NYCBusybody says ...
I think subtitling is also inherently flawed. I'd say a huge percentage of the enjoyment I get in any high-quality film comes from subtle inflections or qualities of an actor's voice and delivery. If you can't understand the language, and you're just reading the titles, you're missing a lot, period, in my opinion.
Posted by NYCBusybody at July 26, 2006 1:25 PM
comment #3
Mark G says ...
The worst dubbed version of a movie released in Germany in the last couple of years is HAROLD & KUMAR GO TO WHITE CASTLE.
While the original version is dealing with day-to-day racism in a smart and funny way (I know, the movie has its share of fart, stoner and sex-jokes too), the main characters, who speak plain English as can be (except one scene to demonstrate racism), are voiced in the German dubbed version with the thickest Indian and Korean accent imaginable, thus destroying all the racism jokes...
Shame on you, Constantin (the distributor of HAROLD & KUMAR in Germany)
Posted by Mark G at July 26, 2006 1:32 PM
comment #4
oddDuck says ...
NYC, I'm sure subtitles have their limits, but they're infinitely better than cheesy dubbing, wouldn't you agree?
Posted by oddDuck at July 26, 2006 1:39 PM
comment #5
NYCBusybody says ...
Oh yes, of course. Subtitles are, I think, absolutely necessary and preferable to dubbing anyday.
I just do find that to be an unfortunate limitation of films, and the biggest reason that comedies never translate into international box office. If a comedy is based on performance and inflection, it's hard to laugh at that while reading words on a screen.
This is why I am learning every language and dialect on Earth, to be the first man to transcend subtitles.
Posted by NYCBusybody at July 26, 2006 1:54 PM
comment #6
Ponderer says ...
While subtitling is generally superior, it really depends on the type of film. For instance, 8 1/2 is pretty close to intolerable with subtitles. I saw a really good dubbed version years ago, and it simply smoked the subtitled version - all the flavor of Fellini's charming, overlapping dialogue was simply gone.
I prefer subtitling in anime, but if there's a good dub - like Lasseter's dub Spirited Away - I'd rather have the dub, to preserve the beauty of the animation. There's no right answer, every film has a different need to service.
Posted by Ponderer at July 26, 2006 2:03 PM
comment #7
Pepe says ...
Some of the same stuff described here happens in Mexico... that is, if distributors decide to dub a movie. It only happened with animation before, but now it's spreading and every summer blockbuster is released in two languages. But then there are lazy cases when the distributor opts to just distribute a dubbed version and it only adds insult to injury.
I guess it's a touchy subject, because most countries in Europe only get dubbed versions of international movies, something I just can't understand. Why are people adamant to read a little? Isn't it better to hear the real voices of the actors, and the intentions behind the acting and gestures? Isn't dubbing a little like pissing over someone else's art?
Posted by Pepe at July 26, 2006 2:39 PM
comment #8
ULE says ...
Most americans don't really go to see foreign films with subtitles, do they? "Memoirs of a Geisha" is the perfect example, as it otherwise surely would (and should) have been made in japanese. Dubbing is about the normal, natural convenience of the modern man. And you definitely relate differently to words spoken in your first language, so that comes into play too.
Now, I am Swedish, and here we use subtitles for all movies except for animation or such kids fare. I don't know if it's because we are typically much better at english than most other european countries, or if it is, like a german friend claims, because we are so "americanized". Probably both. But I think if we would have been a more "nationalistic" culture, we probably would have seen dubbing of live-action movies here too.
But back to the point; It doesnt have to be this way for our german friends. While in Germany I once saw a dubbed version of the danish dogma film "Italian for Beginners", and it worked really well. I totally forgot I was not watching it in the original language (and danish is distintively different from german). And when you think about it, of course dubbing can and should be done with nuance and ambition. But it's pretty much up to the german people to demand it. Maybe if this story makes the news there and gets people talking, things might change?
Posted by ULE at July 26, 2006 5:08 PM
comment #9
Daniel Zelter says ...
It's not like FOX Searchlight was any more respectful to Night Watch.
Posted by Daniel Zelter at July 26, 2006 8:06 PM
comment #10
Sebastian Selig says ...
I think dubbing is one thing, but to use it to willfully change the subtext of the original is another. That`s something that shouldn`t be tolerated. What`s your final cut worth when some german distrubitor (like for example UIP) who thinks he knews his audience better then you will butcher your work anyway?
By the way: that`s one reason Kubrick was known to be very specific about the dubbed versions of his work. He even handpicked the team for the dubbing and shot scenes with text intercuts in different languages for dubbed versions.
Posted by Sebastian Selig at July 27, 2006 1:34 AM
comment #11
Rogo says ...
This is exactly why I don't go to the movies anymore here in Germany. The dubbing gets worse and worse. The last movie that somehow succeeded in this realm was Fight Club. This dub almost held what the original offered. Also Harold and Kumar is a very good example ... the movie doesn't make any sense anymore. Britsh films especially, where accents deepens chracters, totally lose all originality (Guy Ritchie's movies come to mind). I'd rather wait for the DVD and snatch'em from playusa.com than to suffer through a bad dub. Subs are totally fine ... and I don't think it distracts the viewer. And IMHO Kubrick preferred the dub of "A Clockwork Orange" ... at least Alex voice in the German version.
Posted by Rogo at July 27, 2006 8:50 AM
comment #12
christian says ...
you mean the dialogue in MIAMI VICE is too complex too translate?
crockett: let's go.
tubbs: where?
crockett: speedboat chase.
tubbs: damn.
Posted by christian at July 27, 2006 11:27 AM
comment #13
Anonymous says ...
_italics_
*bold*
Posted by Anonymous at July 29, 2006 11:54 PM