Off topic: Worst Movie Title Translations Thread poster: LingoTrust
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Some of these are really funny. I wonder if they really are so crazy or if due to context they actually are somewhat accurate translations.
http://redd.it/vmvtu
[Edited at 2012-07-18 13:08 GMT]
| | | | | a few funny ones from Italy | Aug 18, 2012 |
Italy has a history of "creative" translations of movie titles, though things have somewhat improved over the past few years. A recent one that was probably meant to be funny, but just didn't make a lot of sense, was "Runaway Bride" (the 1999 romantic comedy starring Julia Roberts) translated into "Se scappi ti sposo" (If you run away, I'll marry you). However, this is nothing if compared to "The Outlaw" (starring Jane Russell), which became " Il mio corpo ti scaldera'" (My body will warm you), ... See more Italy has a history of "creative" translations of movie titles, though things have somewhat improved over the past few years. A recent one that was probably meant to be funny, but just didn't make a lot of sense, was "Runaway Bride" (the 1999 romantic comedy starring Julia Roberts) translated into "Se scappi ti sposo" (If you run away, I'll marry you). However, this is nothing if compared to "The Outlaw" (starring Jane Russell), which became " Il mio corpo ti scaldera'" (My body will warm you), or "River of No Return" (starring Marilyn Monroe), which became "La magnifica preda" (The magnificent prey). ▲ Collapse
| | | | Faustine.Rou (X)
Local time: 00:15
English to French
Where did they see that Matrix was called ‘The Young People Who Traverse Dimensions While Wearing Sunglasses’ ? The whole trilogy was kept in English...
So I doubt about the truthfulness of the other examples given on the site.
| | | | Oksana Weiss 
Germany
Local time: 01:15
Member (2011)
German to English
+ ...
| Well, it happens sometimes | Aug 19, 2012 |
Faustine Roux wrote:
So I doubt about the truthfulness of the other examples given on the site.
In USSR the popular comedy "Some Like It Hot" was translated as "There Are Only Girls in Jazz". It probably would not be allowed by censors, if the translation were accurate:)
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P.L.F. Persio
Netherlands
Local time: 01:15
Member (2010)
English to Italian
+ ...
| Other examples from Italy (bad and good) | Aug 20, 2012 |
The bittersweet Truffaut movie Domicile conjugal - Bed & Board - was awfully translated into Italian as Non drammatizziamo... è solo questione di corna, which in English could more or less sound like Let's not make a big deal out of this... it's only cuckolding.
On the other hand, the rather uninspired title Stagecoach, by John Ford, became in Italian the quite captivating Ombre rosse, or Red Shadows.
| | | | Tom in London
United Kingdom
Local time: 00:15
Member (2008)
Italian to English
| Inadequate translation | Aug 20, 2012 |
Billy Wilder's "The Seven-Year Itch" in Italian became " Quando la moglie è in vacanza". Not exactly the same thing, is it? Stripped of all its connotations.
On the other hand, in the far-off 1970s RAI screened a Billy Wilder series curated by Carlo Lizzani, for which he coined the marvellous title "Billy Wilder: un guastafeste nella fabbrica dei sogni" ("Billy Wilder: a spoilsport in the Dream Factory")
And what about Roman Polanski's hilarious 1967 horror spoof "The ... See more Billy Wilder's "The Seven-Year Itch" in Italian became " Quando la moglie è in vacanza". Not exactly the same thing, is it? Stripped of all its connotations.
On the other hand, in the far-off 1970s RAI screened a Billy Wilder series curated by Carlo Lizzani, for which he coined the marvellous title "Billy Wilder: un guastafeste nella fabbrica dei sogni" ("Billy Wilder: a spoilsport in the Dream Factory")
And what about Roman Polanski's hilarious 1967 horror spoof "The Fearless Vampire Killers" which was rendered into Italian as "Per favore non mordermi sul collo" (quite a funny title, actually: "Please don't bite me on the neck").
[Edited at 2012-08-20 10:35 GMT] ▲ Collapse
| | | | Krzysztof Kajetanowicz (X)
Poland
Local time: 01:15
English to Polish
+ ...
| Movie titles aren't translated. | Aug 20, 2012 |
Well, sometimes they are, sometimes they aren't. A title that works in English will look and sound awkward in many other languages. The local title of a movie is determined by the distributor, and translation is only one option.
| | | | | Dirty Dancing | Sep 18, 2012 |
Hi there!
My favourite crazy translation of all times is the name they gave here in Poland to Dirty Dancing. The film was commercialized as Wirujący Seks, which translates to Swirling Sex... Gotta love it!
http://film.wp.pl/id,1831,rid,48282,title,WIRUJACY-SEX,type,internaut,film_recenzja.html?ticaid=1f30b
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| Portuguese translations | Oct 29, 2012 |
I often wonder where does the portuguese tradition to translate the movies' titles in the most explicit way possible come from.
For example, the Austrian series called Kommissar Rex in German and Inspector Rex in English appears as Rex, O Cão Polícia (Rex, the Police Dog). Must be because they think people can get confused. Or police officers can take offence in this particular case.
| | | | Sitiens (X)
Sweden
Local time: 01:15
English to Swedish
+ ...
English: Teaching Mrs. Tingle
Swedish: Killing Mrs. Tingle
I would have loved to be a fly on the wall when they decided on this.
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