Gibberish...

It Happens all the time! Why don't you Americans express the language speak at an intelligible rate?

I happen to watch the occasional US movie - not through choice - my wife loves them, but I struggle with the dialogue and the whole sense of the film.

They're supposed to be 'RomComs' (ugh!) but they are singularly unfunny and don't compare with movies of the Forties or Fifties for wit and good naturedness. In my opinion.....

The current screening is 'Holiday in Handcuffs'. Now, this may well bit a hit Stateside, but it leaves me cold....

This is only an example. Typically, dialogue is expressed in such a distorted version of English and the delivery resembles that of a machine gun so that the meaning is lost.

I accept that I'm on old geezer and that I should probably be put out to pasture, but come on you Directors out there - make it understandable by the great majority and not just those whose conversational skills hover around the sidewalk. ( I would have used the word pavement, but I wasn't sure that you Americans would have understood the meaning.)

Back to the particular film which exemplifies (look it up) what I am talking about.....

Even with subtitles on, the film is a layer or two beneath the level of drivel.

Can't you guys over there with all your unbounded wealth create something of more substance?

Look back at the cinema of years gone by. Improve yourselves!

That's All Folks!

M

And a Merry Christmas to you . . .

Have to admit I have trouble following dialogue in some movies too. But, geezer hood is fast approaching for me as well.

Had to look up 'RomComs'. They pretty much all suck - nothing new - especially the made for TV ones.

The wife can watch them for days on end forcing me into the other room.

bobtomay said:

Had to look up 'RomComs'.

Click to expand...

Me too! For those of us not familiar with the vernacular, RomComs = Romantic Comedies.

They pretty much all suck - nothing new - especially the made for TV ones.

Click to expand...

Yeah, here in the US, this is pretty well known - and in fact, RomComs are the butt of many jokes.

The wife can watch them for days on end forcing me into the other room.

Click to expand...

Or worse, getting drug out to the movie theater for a date night and actually spending decent money on this tripe.

Mitcherooney said:

It Happens all the time! Why don't you Americans express the language speak at an intelligible rate?

I happen to watch the occasional US movie - not through choice - my wife loves them, but I struggle with the dialogue and the whole sense of the film.

I accept that I'm on old geezer and that I should probably be put out to pasture...

Click to expand...

Honestly...if you're having this much trouble understanding the dialog of US movies...either you need to turn up the volume...or get a hearing aid. I am not joking!

As we get older many of us begin to loose our hearing...and the first thing folks losing their hearing want to do is blame things on everything/everyone else other then themselves. Face it...your hearing is not what it used to be.

Of course you're going to say..."I have no problem with UK based television/movies...just US based movies!" Yeah right. When was the last time you yelled at your wife for "Mumbling all the time??"

My hearing isn't as great as it used to be either. It's your hearing dude...face it!

- Nick

p.s. Merry Christmas...now I know who's playing "Scrooge" this year ("Mitcherooney" from the UK)!

Greetings

Quote:
As we get older many of us begin to loose our hearing...and the first thing folks losing their hearing want to do is blame things on everything/everyone else other then themselves. Face it...your hearing is not what it used to be.
End Quote

Perhaps I am just turning into a Grumpy Old Man, but perhaps we Brits simply have difficulty when the language is mangled in the way I've described.

(By the way, you can 'loose a canon' - i.e. fire it, but you cannot 'loose our hearing'. You probably meant 'lose our hearing' - or maybe this is just a written example of the mangling that I refer to..

Merry Christmas all the same.

Ebeneezer

(Currently plugged in with two hearing aids courtesy of the dear old NHS)

Mitcherooney said:

Greetings

Quote:
As we get older many of us begin to loose our hearing...and the first thing folks losing their hearing want to do is blame things on everything/everyone else other then themselves. Face it...your hearing is not what it used to be.
End Quote

Perhaps I am just turning into a Grumpy Old Man, but perhaps we Brits simply have difficulty when the language is mangled in the way I've described.

(By the way, you can 'loose a canon' - i.e. fire it, but you cannot 'loose our hearing'. You probably meant 'lose our hearing' - or maybe this is just a written example of the mangling that I refer to..

Merry Christmas all the same.

Ebeneezer

(Currently plugged in with two hearing aids courtesy of the dear old NHS)

Click to expand...

LOL Mitcherooney ...you never phone, you never call, you never write...so what's with the long face! It's like a drive-by ear-bender (pardon the pun).

Mate, I understand but it's just that this inane tosh can help just fill the gaps in between serious stuff. I just watched Rise of the Planet of the Apes last night and it was (IMO) seriously bad in most respects but it passed some time.

However, more to the point, have you got an induction loop kit because it might help with the confusion SigNET - DL50/K Domestic Loop Kit

Thought it was that other, well defeated Mitch ranting sour grapes.

If you don't like it hit the on/off button. That is this consumer's greatest tool.

Mitcherooney said:

(By the way, you can 'loose a canon' - i.e. fire it, but you cannot 'loose our hearing'. You probably meant 'lose our hearing' - or maybe this is just a written example of the mangling that I refer to..

Click to expand...

Yes...I'm sure you would have loved if this misspelling was part of the "mangling" you're referring to...but it actually was part of the (IMHO) terrible auto-correction spelling which is now part of the Apple OS. If you look earlier in my previous post...I did use the word "lose".

I don't claim to be the quickest or most accurate typist in the world...and most of the time I do proof-read my posts before submitting them...so I must have missed that error. After more than 18,000 posts on Mac-Forums...the occasional spelling mistake will occur!

- Nick

Nick - you are totally forgiven. I've just realised (proper English spelling) that I should have used the word 'cannon' and not 'canon'.

So I suppose we can sum up this whole mish-mash of ramblings with the observation that we're all just human, and each is different.

I rest my case. (A Samsonite)

Pip Pip! and Tinkerty Tonk, everyone.

M

Mitcherooney said:

Nick - you are totally forgiven. I've just realised (proper English spelling) that I should have used the word 'cannon' and not 'canon'.

So I suppose we can sum up this whole mish-mash of ramblings with the observation that we're all just human, and each is different.

Click to expand...

It's all good mate! Yes we are all "just human"...prone to mistakes...and our individual pet peeves.

As far as American movies and hard to understand dialog. I look at it this way. If someone does not speak a foreign language (or speak it well)...that language always sounds too fast to a non-native speaker. I am a native English speaker...and I can speak a couple of foreign languages somewhat. If I hear a native speaker speaking one of those languages...it always sounds too fast.

I think that it's possible for this to work with accents within the same language as well. I know that there are a few regional accents spoken in the the United States AND the UK (UK accents) that can be hard to understand. I've certainly watched many movies with actors speaking with some very "thick" UK-based accents...which takes a lot of focus sometimes to not miss some of the spoken dialog.

Maybe with the American movies you are referring to...there is/are some "American-accents" being spoken that are hard to understand. It's possible that American folks and UK folks may BOTH find that accent hard to understand.

- Nick

Nick

Love you madly.

Guess I'll seek out those pastures and munch on a few tussocks....

Retiring quietly and wishing that I'd never started all this. Good night one and all..

M

Wow and how many times i have heard from people not from Straya, that they have a had time understanding our accent in the films we have made.
Considering there is probably only 1 or 2 they the Yanks have heard of, and a dozen or so the Poms have heard of, i reckon i have heard more complaints about ours than the ones from the US, and that goes for you Poms over there. Forgetting Home and Away and Neighbours do u understand us over here Mitch ??
All in jest mid you

I watched a couple Aussie films that I couldn't understand the dialogue at first: Tomorrow, When the War Began, Blackrock, Romper Stomper and Wolf Creek spring to mind. I had to rewind a few times for the first 20 minutes of each film, but eventually got use to it. I think sometimes you just need to take it in for a bit until you get the tempo, inflection and such.

British dialogue is so much better. (-:


Ministry of Silly Walks - YouTube

In summary, I would just like to get the gist of what's going on.... (Like in the old days..sigh)

If a movie is about a character from a region where the accent is pronounced, then yes, reflect that in the portrayal, but don't emphasise it to the point that it's incomprehensible to those that don't come from there.

At the end of the day, it's all about communication. I don't expect to hear Queen's English (apart from Her Majesty), but I would like to comprehend it all.

I guess that the likes of 'Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels' makes sense across the pond...yes? The characters were portrayed as Eastenders - but the dialogue was clear.

I suppose it all started with 'method acting' - thank you Marlon.

I just think it's gone too far.

Must confess that I can't recall seeing an Aussie movie since Crocodile Dundee (garbage, really, but I understood it.)

Oh and I did see a re-run of 'Walkabout', but I forget whether I really understood it or not...

And now I must retire from this discussion. Seriously, Really......

Mitch

Ironically, every other "rom-com" (or chick-flick if you prefer) being released these days seems to feature a certain familiar British actress.