FlubTitles.com

January 20, 2003 1:15 PM

Kill this side and then the others. Like its cousin the estimable Engrish.com, FlubTitles.com catalogs the horrible abuses of language that show up in English subtitles for Asian movies. Created by Asian film review site CityOnFire and movie seller HKFlix, it's all a plot to sell more DVDs, but there're some real gems hidden in the captions..."All fanciness are posted outside."
posted by me3dia (11 comments total)

Via the awesome Open Brackets.
posted by me3dia at 1:16 PM on January 20, 2003

Councilor Hui, don't worry, I've mobilized the crack unit.
posted by starvingartist at 1:33 PM on January 20, 2003

I saw an awful abuse of language on subtitles on the BBC London news this evening. Explaining some inaudible dialogue from a tube-worker in a tube-workers do nothing expose:

"act like your not doing anything"

And there wasn't even the saving grace of mind-bending athleticism.
posted by nthdegx at 1:47 PM on January 20, 2003

Also recommended is watching movies on cable with the TV's closed captions on. Memorable moments: "You know those dreams you're always having? Think I could part of them?" from UHF, and "I have to leave, because I am a fire" from Conspiracy Theory.
posted by kevspace at 1:50 PM on January 20, 2003

This book has lots of great subtitles collected. I'll post some when I get home from work.

On a somewhat related note, here's an interesting blog post regarding Chinese curses and how they often can't be translated.
posted by Vidiot at 3:11 PM on January 20, 2003

From "This is Kung Fu", Look, long stick on, go. Wanna be the Monkey?

Classic.
posted by JohnBigBoots at 3:56 PM on January 20, 2003

My all time favorite, though I can't verify it because I saw the film years ago, and don't have it on video or DVD, is from Samo Hung's Pedicab Driver:
"I cannot sleep in the room next to the bridal chamber, for I would be frightened by the loving couple's bizarre cries."
posted by Rebis at 6:19 PM on January 20, 2003

Great subject, but I don't think these guys (owners of the site) are serious. Such a short list, such lame quotes, and the obvious salesmanship angle. Actually e-mailed these people over a month ago, suggesting that they post the entire subtitle file for each movie in text format. The guy seemed to have no idea what I was talking about.

Some quotes from my own collection:

Crazy, beat one's our man?

Don't do the stupid thing.

Why you changed into so scary?

Shouldn't have kill him. Now, how to get the coke?

And the classic bad translation, appearing in dozens of movies...

You are nut.
posted by son_of_minya at 7:45 PM on January 20, 2003

"Suggest coming in if it gets tired of the traffic jam. Even if fatigue increases further, it isn't responsible." While not movie based, my favorite example of badly translated english has to be 'How to walk of Japan'.
posted by snez at 8:09 PM on January 20, 2003

"You always use violence. I should have ordered glutinous rice chicken."
posted by PsychoKick at 5:53 AM on January 21, 2003

The BBC's subtitling of live programmes often descends into complete gibberish with words you never knew existed. I'm amazed at how well the cope given the situation though.

Also, a few months back on the National Lottery programme the subtitler must have hit the wrong key when Eamonn Holmes was introduced as 'Eamonn Homosexual', which was then very rapidly cleared from the screen.
posted by kerplunk at 6:11 AM on January 21, 2003