I use subtitles 90% of the time. Even if the dialogue is mostly coherent, there's still usually something going on in the background or other information that only subtitles can clarify. Apparently I'm not in minority. Do you use subtitles?
Last edited by tree_ on Tue January 24, 2023 5:25 pm, edited 1 time in total.
dad wrote:we use them often because the volume levels tend to vary from movie to movie, show to show, or if we're watching one where accents are plentiful.
Same. And for a few similar reasons to tree
Though the last week or so I’ve made a few efforts to not use them.
Farmer John wrote:I prefer not to use them, because then I'm reading the words instead of looking at the beautiful visuals or actors' facial expressions, etc.
But if I don't understand something, I'll go back and turn them on, then turn them back off. If I keep having to do that, I'll just leave them on.
The former is a reason I’ve recently wanted to scale back, and lol yeah I’ve definitely done the latter. I’ve always had trouble making out certain inflections and especially mumbling, and my hearing sucks
Farmer John wrote:I prefer not to use them, because then I'm reading the words instead of looking at the beautiful visuals or actors' facial expressions, etc.
this is where i land too, but i try to not read them. very distracting.
Farmer John wrote:I prefer not to use them, because then I'm reading the words instead of looking at the beautiful visuals or actors' facial expressions, etc.
But if I don't understand something, I'll go back and turn them on, then turn them back off. If I keep having to do that, I'll just leave them on.
Not sure if subtitles are somehow a new thing for you Americans, but as a someone who's used to read them since the day I learned how to read (we've always had movies and tv-shows in Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, French, German etc. on tv) I don't feel like they distract me from anything. Subtitles were also probably a big reason why I wanted to learn how to read as soon as possible when I was a kid.
Last edited by contamination on Tue January 24, 2023 5:35 pm, edited 1 time in total.
There are some movies I can only watch with subtitles on, such as The Banshees of Inisherin or films in languages I can't speak. But otherwise I try to avoid them. They crowd the frame in annoying ways
Farmer John wrote:I prefer not to use them, because then I'm reading the words instead of looking at the beautiful visuals or actors' facial expressions, etc.
But if I don't understand something, I'll go back and turn them on, then turn them back off. If I keep having to do that, I'll just leave them on.
Not sure if subtitles are somehow a new thing for you Americans, but as a someone who's used to read them since the day I learned how to read (we've always had movies and tv-shows in Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, French, German etc. on tv) I don't feel like they distract me from anything. Subtitles were also probably a big reason why I wanted to learn how to read as soon as possible when I was a kid.
Jorge wrote:There are some movies I can only watch with subtitles on, such as The Banshees of Inisherin or films in languages I can't speak. But otherwise I try to avoid them. They crowd the frame in annoying ways
oh shit i forgot i made that thread.. sorry everyone
For me it's simple: if I am able to understand the language, I prefer to use my eyes to admire the frame. Composition, light, colors. What these elements say about the characters, the story, or the themes. With subtitles I can still do this, but my eyes are continually darting back to the bottom center of the screen to read, so there's just naturally less time for it
My default is to leave them off, but I have a very quick trigger finger to turn them on. If I have to rewind to try to make sense of a line, I'll probably just leave them on for the rest of the movie. And if the person I'm watching with wants them on, I have no complaint
Last edited by The Argonaut on Tue January 24, 2023 5:46 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Jorge wrote:For me it's simple: if I am able to understand the language, I prefer to use my eyes to admire the frame. Composition, light, colors. What these elements say about the characters, the story, or the themes. With subtitles I can still do this, but my eyes are continually darting back to the bottom center of the screen to read, so there's just naturally less time for it
I don't find this difficult to do at all. Usually I'll read what the character is about to say and then watch them say it. But maybe I'm way faster at reading than you.
Jorge wrote:For me it's simple: if I am able to understand the language, I prefer to use my eyes to admire the frame. Composition, light, colors. What these elements say about the characters, the story, or the themes. With subtitles I can still do this, but my eyes are continually darting back to the bottom center of the screen to read, so there's just naturally less time for it
I don't find this difficult to do at all. Usually I'll read what the character is about to say and then watch them say it. But maybe I'm way faster at reading than you.
For comedies especially, I don't like reading the punchline before hearing the character say it.