Subtitles, ew/yay!

[Mr Cat Dog]

What's your general reaction to having to read subtitles when watching TV/films? Ew, yay or something in between?

 

[Rogue planet]

It doesn't really affect me, I have no issue with them, but I'm not inclined to enjoy foreign language films just because they're foreign.

It does really annoy me when someone refuses to watch a subtitled film though.

 

[lacella]

i love subs. i'm the only one in my family who does xD.

 

[Her]

Sometimes I turn them on and just leave them there because I'm tired and don't have the energy to fully comprehend what the characters are saying. It annoys me when the subtitles are a terrible font, though. One time the subtitles were in Comic Sans and it frustrated the **** out of me :(

 

[Blade_of_darkness]

I'm always for subtitles, as I live next to a fire house that tests its fire siren on a rather frequent basis, it can be hard to hear what's on the TV when that is blaring out loud.

 

[Oryx]

Is this foreign language subtitles or like closed captioning?

Foreign language: I'm an anime fan so I'm not bothered by reading subtitles. But if I'm not totally involved in a film I would prefer it in English; I like to do other things while I'm watching stuff, and part of what makes me able to do that is that I can get the gist of what they're doing video-wise and look away for a few min while they talk. I hate when it's in another language and I'm not paying full attention haha.

English: I love love love them. My sister is hard of hearing so we have them on a lot and as long as they're good, they help me so much.

 

[Sydian]

I don't mind them, but I don't prefer them. Especially not the first time watching something, because I find it too distracting. I focus more on reading than watching. I can hear just fine, but the fact that there's words on there, I don't know. I just have to read them, and as a result, I focus too much on them and not enough on actually watching. I'm usually better with them if I'm watching something I've seen though, cause obviously there's some things you don't hear or mishear the first time you watch.

 

[Ryoutarou]

I like them for things I don't understand, but after a certain point they become bothersome to me and take me out of the viewing experience. Probably the biggest example of this would be when translators go for intent over direct meaning and toss in bits that aren't actually being said. It drives me up the wall, not being I don't like this translation style, but because I expect the subtitles to follow what's being said.

 

[PlatinumDude]

Subtitles are good when the characters are speaking in a foreign language, but they become pointless when the characters are already speaking in an understandable language.

 

[Shining Raichu]

For foreign language, subtitles are fine.

As for closed-captioning: Oh my God I cannot handle it. I'm really shocked that a lot of the answers have been in favour of subtitles lol, I really can't stand them. I find they distract me from what's happening and all of a sudden I'm exclusively reading the subtitles to see if they ever slightly differ from the audio for the sake of simplicity. Then before I know it, 15 minutes has passed and I don't have even the slightest clue what the hell is going on. So I have to rewind, turn the subtitles off, and watch them all over again.

My best friend and I can never watch movies together because she loves subtitles and I refuse to watch anything with them lol

 

[Halcyon]

Yay, for sure! Subtitles are really helpful especially if I couldn't understand or catch what they'd said.

Even if I could, I would still read them subconsciously. In return, however, I began to be over-reliant on them, which is kind of bad. But still, I don't really mind.

 

[A Pixy]

Subs are alright with me. Although, sometimes, when something spectacular is on screen and someone is talking at the same time, it kinda sucks that my eyes are glued to the bottom of the screen. :C

 

[Pokemon Trainer Touko]

Hate them, they're so annoying and they change too quickly I can't even read them owo;
//dyslexic

 

[Nick]

I don't have a problem with them at all. I do have problems watching foreign films and television shows that are entirely subbed, but for movies with a character occasionally speaking in French (that seems to be the biggest thing I notice), it's very helpful to have some translation subtitles there so I know what it is that they're saying.

 

[mondays suck]

I like them, that way I will only have to listen to the speaking person's tone, not what what they're saying as well. It's easier for me, even if I can understand every single word anyway. Call me weird, but that's how it is.

 

[Melves]

I am not bothered by the subtitles. I'm more bothered by that fact I always HAVE to read the subtitles which sometimes distracts me from actually watching. Even if it's in a language I don't know, lol. I don't know why. >.<

 

[Esper]

Usually I prefer them over hearing someone's voice dubbed (unless it's the original actor dubbing themselves like Jackie Chan doing his own voice over in English) with someone else's voice. If it's something that's animated I'm usually less bothered by dubbing since there's less of that disconnect between what your hear and what you see their mouths doing, although I still want subtitles if I can have them. It just seems like the least intrusive way to watch something. Nothing in the original is being taken out and replaced.

 

[Camisado]

I am pretty cool with subtitles. Especially when I watch TV late at night and have the sound switched off on my TV so that I don't disturb my parents. The internal walls in our house are made of cardboard, I swear. xD

I've used subtitles so much that I can read them while retaining complete attention on what else is going on with the video. It's pretty natural to me now!

 

[Alakazam17]

To put it simply, I'd prefer a RAW version of a film or TV episode as opposed to a dubbed version in my language. It has nothing to do with my hating how things are dubbed(though that can be the reason in some specific cases like Sailor Moon and One Piece), and more to do with the fact that I prefer watching things in their original languages. And since more often than not I am not proficient in said languages, I'd welcome subtitles with open arms.

In addition, context can often be lost in translation, as well as plays on language. An example I often use is that 'mouse' and 'house' rhyme in English, whereas 'souris' and 'maison' don't rhyme in French. In the case of subtitles, these points are usually explained along with the translation.

 

[blue]

I always have subtitles on! (nobody else approves) whenever I'm watching my DVD boxsets like Friends, Simpsons, The Big Bang Theory etc. I always put subtitles on.