Why do people dislike reading subtitles?

[Smooth Operator]

Cuz I no turn on TV to read book, reading is for dummies!

No but seriously, the problem is when you are a slow reader most of your time will be spent concentrating on the text rather then the visual feast that you came to see.
And the best way to learn quick reading is via subtitles, so there is this initial hump you haveto overcome by spending alot of movie/show time just looking at text.

Oh and when you do learn quick reading it creates a rather funny counter issue where you can't help yourself if there are subtitles of the same language, MUST... NOT... LOOK... *take a glance*... damn it now I know how this conversation ends.

 

[Bat Vader]

I must admit I am kinda annoyed they are making an English language version of The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo. The film already has an English dub track. I don't see the need to make an English language version of the film.

I love subtitles. If there is an option on a film or a game for subtitles/captions I will always enable it. I have noticed that I can't enjoy a film or game as much without subtitles/captions.

 

[Lawnmooer]

I don't mind subtitles. Then again I actually like to read and it doesn't bother me to quickly take in all the words on the screen and go back to whats happening.

I'm not sure if I've actually watched any films that were dubbed instead...

I do know a few people who don't like subtitles, they either complain that they don't like reading, that it distracts them from the actual film (Because they are slow at reading) or they say that if they wanted to read then they would have picked up a book.

 

[Flames66]

I do not like subtitles because I spend the entire time trying to keep up with reading them instead of watching the action.

 

[Lerasai]

I'm so used to watching things with subtitles that I hardly notice it anymore. I read very quickly, so it isn't a matter of missing the visuals. I think it's a shame to limit what I can watch just because something I might like is in another language.

Dubs can be good, but they can also come off as disconnected from the original script since they're done independently from the source material. Plus, when it's a live-action movie or show the dub just looks ridiculous to me. I remember one particularly awful dubbing of a j-horror movie where they seemed to have cast a grown woman doing a terrible impression of a child as a little girl's VA. The thing I watch with subtitles the most is anime, since I sometimes get into a series before a dub is made. Besides, Japanese voice acting is pretty incredible.

One of the downsides of watching something with subs, though, is that it limits my ability to multitask. Sometimes I just like to do other things as I watch a show or movie, listening to the dialogue and looking up from time to time. It's great when I'm working on something or just having lunch. Doing those things is near impossible when I'm watching something with subtitles, since I miss what is going on if I look away for a bit.

 

[Reaper195]

I don't mind dubbing if it's good. I find subtitles distracting in some things, but I'll take a good foreign track and subtitles to a terrible dub.

 

[JochemDude]

I usually don't like dubbed versions. I raged when I found out that I had to play InFamous with the Dutch dub (thankfully they patched that)..

... Don't even remind me, that was so awful...

OT: Nope, don't even bother me with subtitles or dubs. Just take the original foreign or not.

 

[PureChaos]

i always prefer subs, there may be the occasional one where dubbed isn't too bad but subbed is still better. the people i know that don't like subs is either because they can't read quick enough to keep up with it or they can't read subs and watch what is going on at the same time.

 

[sinterklaas]

Dubbed versions are atrocious and only okay for little kids. Anything aimed at people older than 8-10 (or whatever age children learn to read decently) should not get dubbed.

I cringe everytime I see something dubbed.

 

[Flamezdudes]

Sorry but your friend is an idiot.

I love foreign movies, I can't understand why some people have a problem reading subtitles for things. Even anime.

I loathe americanized remakes of foreign movies... they're made for the idiots who aren't intelligent enough to just read subtitles.

(No offence if its a medical condition that you cannot read subtitles or something)

 

[Willsor]

Dubs for me, as ZP once said, it's irritating having to watch the bottom two inches of the screen the entire time. Also I like to be able to turn my head away from my monitor/tv for a few minutes without losing what is going on and having to rewind.
And I'm not sure if it's just how little foreign media I have watched, but I can't pick up emotion too well if it's in another language. Maybe that's just me.

I'm not particularly against subs in anyway, and I'll watch a subbed movie/anime, but if there's a dub available I'll usually watch that.

I've head some people say the English dub of Death note was bad. What, really? I thought it was an amazing job, bar a few annoying voices *cough* misa *cough*

 

[Thedutchjelle]

/all/ English and other foreign movies,TV shows, etc etc. get subtitles here in the Netherlands. Only child shows are dubbed.
Eventually you'll be able to watch the screen + read the titles at he same time. It never bothered me, I actually prefer it - sometimes I can't quite hear what is being said (for example, loud explosions, or the characters whispering) and the subtitles can clear it up for me then. I turn on English subtitles if there are no Dutch present whenever I can even though I can read and speak English fine.

When I went on vacation to Germany and France, I cried on the inside. EVERYTHING was dubbed. And it was terrible. No wonder French can't speak English if they remove English out of everything.

 

[Gaiseric]

I don't like subs in movies because it draws my attention away from whats happening on screen.

 

[Angerwing]

I read fast enough that I don't usually notice the subtitles after a while. I have no problems reading the subtitles and catching the visuals.

 

[Acier]

Subs can ruin the compositions of shots and can be distracting to the viewer who is inexperienced.

Although, I doubt many sub haters cite those as their reasons, it's usually boiled down to "I hate reading when I'm watching a movie"

Dubs are the best option if they are high quality, the problem is high quality dubs are shockingly rare. That, and the lips won't match, which can cause discomfort in the viewer from sheer uncannyness.

I usually go to subs to avoid god awful dubs and just rewatch it so I can enjoy the camera work later

 

[Elsarild]

Well, my own personal experience with this is Germans tendency to dub over everything they possibly can. (This is personal observations not a fact)

And it destroyed my childhood, Ace Ventura will never be the same again after I saw it with german dubbed over it.

I'm not sure why it is as it is, many germans I know who is my around my age all agree it's bull, but I suppose someone keeps doing it for their own reasons.

Sorry If i seem to be picking on Germans/Germany but it really is my onlyexperience in this.

 

[Sexual Harassment Panda]

I'd take subs over dubs.

My only real concern with subs, is that reading the dialogue means I miss things that are going on-on screen. I miss the subtleties of the acting, and some of the cinematography whizzes straight by me.

 

[Jandau]

I like subs. Granted, I grew up with subs, being from a non-english country that didn't have the money to dub everything, subs are the norm to me and I barely notice them. In fact, even though I speak fluent English, I still like to turn subs on simply to avoid missing lines due to accents or because they are spoken to loudly/quietly. An example would be the last Pirates of the Carribean movie, where all to often someone would mumble something in a thick accent and I'd be left wondering "What the hell was that?" until I turned the subs on.

However, I can see how subs might be disliked by some. If you grew up without them, aren't used to them and suddenly you're expected to read stuff while you're trying to watch something, that might be annoying.

But I'd also like to point out that subs have an extra educational function. I had my first formal English lesson in 5th grade. By that time I spoke fairly fluent English and I learned it by being exposed to hours and hours of bilingual footage on TV - spoken in English with my own language in subs. Growing up like that I absorbed the language without even noticing it and I've been grateful for that ever since. I was top of my class in English for all of my life without even trying, simply because my country dubbed the TV shows and movies...

 

[Phenx92]

Reading subs while watching the show/movie/whatever has become elementary after doing it so long. Although I'll admit at first it was hard to watch and read at the same time.

 

[EvilMaggot]

i prefer subs when it comes to anime, i prefer the original voices instead of dubbed...sometimes the sync is just horrible xD

Though for movies it depends on which country its from, from a english speaking, sure no problems doesnt matter with subtitles, but if its german or stuff like that i prefer me some subtitles, but never ever dubbed... hate it..

Like why the hell are they remaking "The girl with the dragon tattoo" ... the orignal version is freaking amazing (Original name "Men who hates women" made in sweden and they talk swedish in it) but is it because America are thick skulled and doesnt know how to read or what ? stuff like that pisses me off, "uugh we have to remake a non-speaking-english-movie-that-had-huge-succes-outside-of-US so we can make it english speaking so everybody can understand it" why not save some effing money and just put subtitles on the original.. which doesnt need a remake...