Member Hei Meigui Posted June 12, 2015 Member Share Posted June 12, 2015 Do most of you prefer English Dubbed Movies or Mandarin/Chinese movies with English subtitles. I prefer the Subbed ones. Even when I was young the British voices looked so wrong with the Chinese actors!! Sometimes I will watch a Dubbed video with the English Subs on and it is funny the difference of what they are saying is! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Secret Executioner Posted June 12, 2015 Member Share Posted June 12, 2015 I tend to prefer a Mandarin/Cantonese dub with English (or French) subs - works better for many movies, especially the Shaw films. That said, sometimes a dub can add to a movie in terms of comedy (characters sounding like a Monty Python sketch), but it works better with little independent movies than with Shaws or even stuff like Jackie Chan movies (his French voice actor sounds okay, but I much prefer his actual voice). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member shaolin swords Posted June 12, 2015 Member Share Posted June 12, 2015 i definitely prefer English dubbed that's the way I first started watching them so I will definitely choice dubbed over subbed Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member legendarycurry Posted June 14, 2015 Member Share Posted June 14, 2015 I prefer to watch films in their original language with subtitles, but there are a few films out there that I like watching dubbed because of nostalgia or because i think it adds to the experience, for example old godzilla films are funnier in english to me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Hei Meigui Posted June 19, 2015 Author Member Share Posted June 19, 2015 I tend to prefer a Mandarin/Cantonese dub with English (or French) subs - works better for many movies, especially the Shaw films. That said, sometimes a dub can add to a movie in terms of comedy (characters sounding like a Monty Python sketch), but it works better with little independent movies than with Shaws or even stuff like Jackie Chan movies (his French voice actor sounds okay, but I much prefer his actual voice). It's so crazy you say that about his real voice. Being ignorant I just assumed (I'm American its what we do !) that when I hear a movie in a foreign language that it was the real actor's voice. I didn't realize that maybe the "Mandarin language track", may have had an actor dubbing the mandarin because the film was shot in Cantonese. That Kind of blew me away!! Although I shouldn't be surprised we have English language shows on TV that may have English subb's or dubb's, because the person has a strong accent like from the south!! So in these movies, like the Shaw Brother's are those the real actors voices in the Mandarin or Cantonese tracks? I guess I would have to hear old interviews with the actors to hear what their voices sound like to know. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Secret Executioner Posted June 19, 2015 Member Share Posted June 19, 2015 For Jackie, I believe most of his films are in Cantonese - for the Shaw Bros stuff, I think most are in Mandarin but there are some in Cantonese. The problem with language appears when I get both Mandarin and Cantonese audio tracks on a DVD (happened with one Shaw and I had to check on hkcinemagic which was the original one). There's sometimes re-dubbing in movies even in their original language indeed - the only exemple I can think of ATM is Kiss' drummer Peter Criss in the 1978 TV movie Kiss Meets The Phantom Of The Park whose character was redubbed supposedly because of the musician/actor's heavy accent that the younger audiences may not understand well, though it's more likely to be because of bad blood between Criss and the rest of the band at the time and his substance abuse. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member legendarycurry Posted June 19, 2015 Member Share Posted June 19, 2015 It's so crazy you say that about his real voice. Being ignorant I just assumed (I'm American its what we do !) that when I hear a movie in a foreign language that it was the real actor's voice. I didn't realize that maybe the "Mandarin language track", may have had an actor dubbing the mandarin because the film was shot in Cantonese. That Kind of blew me away!! Although I shouldn't be surprised we have English language shows on TV that may have English subb's or dubb's, because the person has a strong accent like from the south!! So in these movies, like the Shaw Brother's are those the real actors voices in the Mandarin or Cantonese tracks? I guess I would have to hear old interviews with the actors to hear what their voices sound like to know. The first ever HK produced Jackie Chan film to actually use Jackie's real voice was 1993's Police Story 3: Supercop. Up until then many HK produced films where dubbed, often with a designated voice actor assigned for each actor (such as the same person dubbing jackie in all previous Police story and project A films etc) before shooting with sync-sound became more common the films where often filmed without sound, with voices and sound added later, it was cheaper, faster, removed any problems with accents, dialects of actors involved and made the films easier to dub into other languages for overseas markets Dubbing also helped when dealing with non-cantonese speaking actors/actresses such as Michelle Yeoh and Michelle Wong in the 80's and 90's. Much like Jackie ,Michelle Yeoh (and all other actors in the film) had their real voices heard for the first time in a HK film in 1993 with the release of Supercop. so, actually for many of the oldschool films both the English and the cihnese language tracks are dubs, though I prefer Cantonese/Mandarin with subs due to it being the films original language. I remeber reading an interview with one of the venoms (Possibly Phillip Kwok) about how it was shooting some of the Chang Cheh films , The venoms films were being released almost like they were factory made and he said something along the lines of: The focus was the fighting, sometimes for the dialouge we would just say some stuff to move the scene along and they would dub-in what was in the script later Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Lady Jin Szu-Yi Posted July 19, 2015 Member Share Posted July 19, 2015 Subtitled without a doubt. I like picking up words in a new language and more importantly I want to know exactly what the filmmakers intended with their characters and story. And Chinese is such a beautiful language very rhythmic and musical. To me, hearing a film in the native language connects me to that culture and I appreciate that. I know some of the charm with the Shaw Brothers films are the dubs and they can make a great film a very fun(ny) experience. This evening, I was giggling while rewatching the Kid with the Golden Arm in English. My favorite: "Hai Tao is much the best." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member massa_yoda Posted July 19, 2015 Member Share Posted July 19, 2015 I don't care much for dubs, but to be fair, I never really grew up watching a lot of dubs either. I only owned a few VHS tapes that were dub only. The only ones I have any sort of affection for are the films that star the Three Kung-fu-Teers. Wheels on Meals, Dragons Forever, The lucky stars movies...Wheels is the only one I really like. For Old school movies, it's definitely subs for me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SMK Posted July 19, 2015 Share Posted July 19, 2015 I don't care much for dubs, but to be fair, I never really grew up watching a lot of dubs either. I only owned a few VHS tapes that were dub only. The only ones I have any sort of affection for are the films that star the Three Kung-fu-Teers. Wheels on Meals, Dragons Forever, The lucky stars movies...Wheels is the only one I really like. For Old school movies, it's definitely subs for me. For Old school movies, it's definitely DUBS for me. As long as the subs aren't white, cut off on the sides, or hard to read, I have no problem watching a movie with subs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member dvdtherapy Posted July 19, 2015 Member Share Posted July 19, 2015 Subtitled. No contest. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member paimeifist Posted July 19, 2015 Member Share Posted July 19, 2015 I prefer dubs almost all the time. But usually if I'm revisiting a movie I've seen before, I'll watch if in a different language the next time I watch it.. It sometimes does help to take these movies more seriously if I watch them in their original language. One thing that surprises me, is that most (even those that prefer English dubs) act as if the only reason they like them is for unintentional humor.. I think many dubs actually sound good, move the plot how it was intended, and have voices that fit the characters(as in fits their personality, I'm not saying Gordon Liu looks like he sounds like an average white guy). In particular, I find this to be true of Shaw movies often. Just sayin, I feel some English dubs are just "good", and aren't given a fair shake. Poison clan rocks the world! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Anonymous Posted July 28, 2015 Share Posted July 28, 2015 Oldschool movies? DUBBED ALL THE FRICKEN WAY!!! The sound bites anmd the voices are awesome and entertaining. Its so funny! It totally makes the movies more entertaining. I also learned that most movies were filmed silent and voices in various languages were dubbed in later, including the chinese languages. So either way its not their real voice. So I prefer english dubbed and I love the familiar voices in each movie. One voice in one movie is good, then in another movie that voice is evil. its awesome! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Anonymous Posted July 28, 2015 Share Posted July 28, 2015 . My favorite: "Hai Tao is much the best." Really? My favorite dub is in Super Ninjas where the lead ninja says, "ZIN JI!! Why are you so stupid? You will be executed now! 6 months hard labor!" She was executed by 6 months of labor, but a few days later she is free roaming around trying to trick the chinese ninjas. And she was hot!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member dvdtherapy Posted July 28, 2015 Member Share Posted July 28, 2015 In the Nine Demons, they make references to "Mr. Johnson" and "We gotta save Gary". I'm selling my copy, it's embarrassing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member KenHashibe Posted July 29, 2015 Member Share Posted July 29, 2015 I don't mind watching a movie dubbed if it's the only version available, but if I had the option to, I'd watch it subbed. There are certain dubs that I just can't stand though. It's rare that I'd rather watch a movie dubbed than subbed. But certain movies (Ninja in the Dragon's Den) come to mind. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member panku Posted July 29, 2015 Member Share Posted July 29, 2015 In the Nine Demons, they make references to "Mr. Johnson" and "We gotta save Gary". I'm selling my copy, it's embarrassing. That is one of the greatest dubs ever for hilarity. That group of voice actors really outdid themselves on that one. But honestly I don't really like many of that teams dubs. I go for the original language with subtitles. To me, no dub can capture the mood as it is in the native language, even if that language is technically a dub. That said, I do like the English dubs done by Ted Thomas' company Corporate Communications in the 1970's. I think it is because the dubbers working for him were very talented and the dubs really come off well. As the 70's turned into the 80's the quality of the dubs started to decline, either because people left and were replaced by lesser talents, or other companies were used. I really don't like the dubs with heavy British accents that started showing up in the 1980's and the completely wooden dubbing done by some of the lesser dubbing companies. Then there is the Abbot White dubbing team. One unique dub that I like is The Tongfather. There's something different about that dub. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Anonymous Posted July 29, 2015 Share Posted July 29, 2015 That is one of the greatest dubs ever for hilarity. That group of voice actors really outdid themselves on that one. But honestly I don't really like many of that teams dubs. I go for the original language with subtitles. To me, no dub can capture the mood as it is in the native language, even if that language is technically a dub. That said, I do like the English dubs done by Ted Thomas' company Corporate Communications in the 1970's. I think it is because the dubbers working for him were very talented and the dubs really come off well. As the 70's turned into the 80's the quality of the dubs started to decline, either because people left and were replaced by lesser talents, or other companies were used. I really don't like the dubs with heavy British accents that started showing up in the 1980's and the completely wooden dubbing done by some of the lesser dubbing companies. Then there is the Abbot White dubbing team. One unique dub that I like is The Tongfather. There's something different about that dub. I have always wondered who were the people who did the voices for movies back then and how they got their awesome jobs. I would love to do that! So say there are teams. And you know the names of the companies. How did you find it out? And what is Abbot White? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member panku Posted July 29, 2015 Member Share Posted July 29, 2015 I have always wondered who were the people who did the voices for movies back then and how they got their awesome jobs. I would love to do that! So say there are teams. And you know the names of the companies. How did you find it out? And what is Abbot White? There were a few threads at the old Kung Fu Cinema site that talked about some of the dubbers and the companies they worked for, such as Corporate Communications and Omni, etc. Mostly I have found out about it from reading and watching interviews and basic research online. Very few of the names are commonly known aside from Ted Thomas and Rik Thomas (no relation) and a few of the later dubbers such as Vaughan Savidge. Recently with the help of Warwick Evans a youtuber named That VHS Guy has discovered a few more of their names. Check out the videos: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCwj8De ... r6A/videos What is Abbot White? hahahahahahahaha Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member DragonClaws Posted July 29, 2015 Member Share Posted July 29, 2015 I will always have a soft spot for the old 70's dub jobs because my early purchases were all dubbed. Appreciated subtitles more when I started seeing some films on T.V with their original language. Not keen on those more recent American dub jobs at all. Some dubs can just be plain awful to watch, especially if they give a character a really high pitched voice for example. These are often reserved for the younger characters in the film. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Leung Tsan Posted July 29, 2015 Member Share Posted July 29, 2015 correct me if I am wrong but I got a theory on the dubs..... for me, as I live in Switzerland, Ive always preferred to watch movies in their original language with subtitles.... but then a few years later digging for martial arts movies (and also listening to rap groups like wutang and many others) I discovered there was a big love for the dubbed versions..... I think it may have to do a lot with nostalgia of people that saw these movies this way in their childhood (as previously mentionned in another post), and also kind of a cult touch to the movies themselves.... After watching some rare movies that only had the dubs, I found it sometimes very funny because the way they would talk to each other "hey you bastard", "you stupid son of a bitch", the accents,etc etc....... and that kind of made them very very cult in my opinion..... and then later on I remember on some movies, when I hear a special sentence it instantly rings a bell having heard that particular snippet in a song...... So it also made it special to me and I totally understand now this very interesting side of the kung fu cinema fans. So for me it would be original language with subtitles but in the case of Thundering Mantis for example, I always watched that movie dubbed, so it would make sense to watch it dubbed again...... So a bit of both..... even if I was not born in the USA. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member lungfei Posted December 3, 2015 Member Share Posted December 3, 2015 the voice of jimmy , bruce li and othersclassic Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Grasshopper Sage Posted December 3, 2015 Member Share Posted December 3, 2015 It seems there's a couple but I guess it's not as common as I thought. I tend to lean towards the English dub if it's a classic martial arts film, on the other hand if it's a modern martial arts film I usually prefer sub. Although watching any Gamera film I tend to prefer sub & anime dub so my preferences are kind of all over the place when it comes to foreign language in films/television. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member khuu_2000 Posted December 3, 2015 Member Share Posted December 3, 2015 I think that one is a fan, it is very nice to watch a movie in its original version with subtitle in addition if available and uncut version of whatever the origin of the film. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member goldenarm Posted December 4, 2015 Member Share Posted December 4, 2015 I prefer any HK film pre-1983 dubbed in English by the classic voices (Ted Thomas crew) anything after that I prefer to watch in the original language with English subtitles. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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