Off topic: Translation in (fictional) media Thread poster: Ty Kendall
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Ty Kendall 
United Kingdom
Local time: 18:52
Hebrew to English
It's rare to see translation/interpreting in (fictional) media, and even rarer to see it portrayed accurately or positively...I am reminded of Nicole Kidman's "The Interpreter" :-/
...and "Spooks" (UK TV Series) where it seems almost every character can speak everything from Afrikaans to Zulu. I am reminded of one character - "Ruth's" impromptu address to a conference in Mandarin, the topic? Astrophysics. The challenge? Remembering the Mandarin word for "Quark".
....hmmm....... See more It's rare to see translation/interpreting in (fictional) media, and even rarer to see it portrayed accurately or positively...I am reminded of Nicole Kidman's "The Interpreter" :-/
...and "Spooks" (UK TV Series) where it seems almost every character can speak everything from Afrikaans to Zulu. I am reminded of one character - "Ruth's" impromptu address to a conference in Mandarin, the topic? Astrophysics. The challenge? Remembering the Mandarin word for "Quark".
....hmmm.....I'll let you draw your own conclusions about the likelihood of that.....
There may be an argument for any such exposure of translation in fictional media, no matter how inaccurate or implausible, simply to aid increased visibility....but I'm not convinced...
Though I was pleasantly surprised to see translation used as a plot device in the most recent episode of "Torchwood:Miracle Day".
The plot actually involved deliberate mistranslation, but was interesting nonetheless:
It involved an original statement "The blessing saved me" being purposefully mistranslated to "It was a blessing I was saved" (to obscure the fact that "the blessing" is an entity acting as an agent semantically) and finally mistranslated once more into English as "It was a godsend that I was saved" (to obliterate any mention of "the blessing" at all).
I thought it was unusual to see such a detailed example of translation on prime-time TV, but it was decently done and surprisingly central to the episode's plot, as opposed to being periphery or inconsequential. ▲ Collapse
| | | | Phil Hand
China
Local time: 01:52
Chinese to English
| But the Chinese for quark is just quark... | Sep 4, 2011 |
I haven't watched Spooks for ages, so I missed that gem. That is a particularly egregious error, because the word in Chinese really is just a transliteration: kuake (pronounced kwar-kuh).
I'd forgotten Torchwood was back. I'll have to go and see if those geeky pirates have made it available yet.
While it's a bit much to expect lots of translation on TV - it's visual medium, after all - there's lots of good stuff in books. I just read my first China Mieville (The City an... See more I haven't watched Spooks for ages, so I missed that gem. That is a particularly egregious error, because the word in Chinese really is just a transliteration: kuake (pronounced kwar-kuh).
I'd forgotten Torchwood was back. I'll have to go and see if those geeky pirates have made it available yet.
While it's a bit much to expect lots of translation on TV - it's visual medium, after all - there's lots of good stuff in books. I just read my first China Mieville (The City and the City), which I highly recommend, and I hear his latest, Embassytown, is all about language. Anyone read it yet? ▲ Collapse
| | | | Ty Kendall
United Kingdom
Local time: 18:52
Hebrew to English
TOPIC STARTER | A quarking crime... | Sep 4, 2011 |
Phil Hand wrote:
I haven't watched Spooks for ages, so I missed that gem. That is a particularly egregious error, because the word in Chinese really is just a transliteration: kuake (pronounced kwar-kuh).
I'd forgotten Torchwood was back. I'll have to go and see if those geeky pirates have made it available yet.
While it's a bit much to expect lots of translation on TV - it's visual medium, after all - there's lots of good stuff in books. I just read my first China Mieville (The City and the City), which I highly recommend, and I hear his latest, Embassytown, is all about language. Anyone read it yet?
Hello Phil!
Thanks for sharing that, although that just makes the Spooks scene even more unforgivable. I suppose there's always the chance it was some form of in-joke....we can hope.
Indeed, Torchwood is back, and yes those pesky pirates have been at work, although I'm not sure I can in all honesty recommend it. The latest episode was interesting to me only because of the use of translation as a plot device. The past 9 weeks of it have been quite a yawn-fest I must admit. The online reviews aren't too favourable either, but it's all subjective really and you might love it.
Well, the final series of Spooks airs in a few weeks time, so they still have time to redeem themselves
I haven't read any of his books, but I might just do that now... is he paying you commission?
| | | | Just Opera
Belgium
Local time: 19:52
French to English
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| Andrei Tarkovsky: Nostalghia | Sep 5, 2011 |
http://www.sensesofcinema.com/2001/cteq/nostalghia/
Plot: Russian author, Andrei Gortchakov (Oleg Yankovsky) accompanied by his translator, Eugenia (Domiziana Giordano), has travelled to the hills of Tuscany to see Piero della Francesca’s Madonna of Childbirth...
"Eugenia attempts to engage him in a conversation over Arseni Tarkovsky’s (Tarkovsky’s fathe... See more http://www.sensesofcinema.com/2001/cteq/nostalghia/
Plot: Russian author, Andrei Gortchakov (Oleg Yankovsky) accompanied by his translator, Eugenia (Domiziana Giordano), has travelled to the hills of Tuscany to see Piero della Francesca’s Madonna of Childbirth...
"Eugenia attempts to engage him in a conversation over Arseni Tarkovsky’s (Tarkovsky’s father) poetry, but Gortchakov dismisses the book, reasoning that the simple act of translation loses the nuances of the native language. Eugenia then argues, “How can we get to know each other?” He replies, “By abolishing frontiers between states.” ▲ Collapse
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Just Opera
Belgium
Local time: 19:52
French to English
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| other one that springs to mind... | Sep 5, 2011 |
Jean-Luc Godard : Le Mépris
The famous "translation" scene with Michel Piccoli and Jack Palance, FFW (past the sex scene!) to 04:57 for it.
http://youtu.be/56ahqtLA3ZY
[Edited at 2011-09-05 15:48 GMT]
[Edited at 2011-09-05 15:49 GMT]
| | | | Andrew Weston
New Zealand
Local time: 05:52
Japanese to English
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| A little late into the discussion... | Sep 6, 2012 |
A little late into the discussion... I worked on this storyboard over lunch to alleviate the thought has been niggling at my mind since watching Taken. While the scene is a good one, it irritated me the way Liam Neeson's character used the terms interchangeably.
| | | | Phil Hand
China
Local time: 01:52
Chinese to English
| Prometheus: the dangers of machine translation | Sep 6, 2012 |
Hello, Andrew!
Seeing as this has come round again, we ought to mention a rather alarming example of how machine translation can be bad for your business. In Prometheus, Ridley Scott's microwave-reheated Alien franchise (so bad his brother killed himself...), Wayland gets his android to interpret for him to the aliens. He says, "Tell him why I came." No-one can tell what the android says, probably some garbled Google rubbish, but it enrages the alien so much that he beats up everyon... See more Hello, Andrew!
Seeing as this has come round again, we ought to mention a rather alarming example of how machine translation can be bad for your business. In Prometheus, Ridley Scott's microwave-reheated Alien franchise (so bad his brother killed himself...), Wayland gets his android to interpret for him to the aliens. He says, "Tell him why I came." No-one can tell what the android says, probably some garbled Google rubbish, but it enrages the alien so much that he beats up everyone in the room and tries to wipe out all of humanity.
Now, I'm not saying that if your umbrella company uses Google Translate, mankind will definitely be exterminated. But why take the risk, you know what I'm saying? ▲ Collapse
| | | | | Truly, Madly, Deeply | Sep 6, 2012 |
Ten years or so ago came that fascinating film (I thought) "Truly, Madly, Deeply" in which the main character (played by Juliet Stevenson) was a translator in a small London translation agency. Although translation wasn't crucial to the story, the scenes portraying the agency and its staff looked convincing to me. The film also introduced Alan Rickman to cinema audiences as Juliet's dead cello-playing boyfriend who kept reappearing in her life - or did he?
Worth watching.
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Phil Hand
China
Local time: 01:52
Chinese to English
| 10 years ago... | Sep 6, 2012 |
Jenny Forbes wrote:
Ten years or so ago came that fascinating film (I thought) "Truly, Madly, Deeply"
Ahem. It's a good film, but it was made ten years ago in the same way that you're still 25 years old, Jenny!
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Phil Hand wrote: Jenny Forbes wrote:
Ten years or so ago came that fascinating film (I thought) "Truly, Madly, Deeply" Ahem. It's a good film, but it was made ten years ago in the same way that you're still 25 years old, Jenny!
Oh dear, I was afraid that might be the case. How cruel of you to remind me of the passing of time ... but I AM still 25 years old, Phil, in my head!
It's still a good film, regardless.
J
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