Ghost in the Shell 2 on December 28th! (1 Viewer)

[Bryant Trew]

Release

:star:

 

[stephen la]

cool. will the dvd have a english dubbed track?
with anime I like having the choice

 

[David Williams]

I've heard that the DVD release is only subbed, not dubbed. I'd like to find out for sure. As much as I loved the first GITS, until I find out its language choices this title goes into the 'maybe' column.

 

[Matt Czyz]

Dreamworks has said that it will be only subbed (like they did with Millennium Actress) with 5.1 Japanese audio.

Also has:
Filmmaker's commentary
The Making of Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence
Theatrical trailer

 

[Jay Mitchosky]

This is a new feature length film as opposed to the series DVDs that have been out recently?

 

[David Williams]

No sub *and* dub = No sale. :frowning:

 

[ChristopherDAC]

Excuse me. You're saying that you will not purchase a DVD of a motion picture you would otherwise have acquired, based upon the fact that although an English translation is provided you have to read it and listen to the dialogue as spoken by the original voice actors? This strikes me as peculiar.
I can certainly understand boycotting a release without the original dialogue tracks, and I can understnad not buying a release without any English language support, but why do you demand a dub? Isn't availability the main point? I know that, of the titles I have with both dub and original soundtracks, I rarely ever use the dub. Maybe once dubbed and [if the subtitles are switchable rather than burned-in] sometimes with the subs, to familiarise myself with plot and dialogue, and much of the time I don't even employ the English version. So, all quality issues &c. aside the dub when it is present has very little value for me. I would not pay more than a dollar for it as an extra.
I may be atypical, but even still -- why do you insist on having a dub?

 

[David Williams]

To make a long story short (too late)... I find it incredibly difficult to read and watch at the same time. I can manage it on the big screen because it's well, big. But on my home television (27") it gives me a headache. I also find it really difficult to form an emotional attachment or bond with a story unless I can understand/speak the language... it's a disconnect. I become a observer to the story, not a participant.

I don't understand why Dreamworks is releasing this film without a dub... 99% of all the anime I've ever seen comes subbed and dubbed, or both versions are made available. It doesn't seem to make much financial sense to me... surely they would sell more DVDs in a primarily English-speaking market with a sub & dub.

 

[Matt Czyz]

This movie is a direct sequel to the original GiTS movie, while the "Stand Alone Complex" anime series is more of a parallel-world version of the same universe, one in that Section 9 never dealt with the Puppet Master from the first movie--the continued adventures of the characters from the first movie, basically. As far as I know, GiTS 2: Innocence has no plot connection to the series.

 

[Jay Mitchosky]

I struggle with this as well with subtitled films. The dubs are usually so bad, however, that it doesn't pay off. Not understanding the language and having to read the subtitles I find is ultimately secondary to the emotion portrayed by the actors (which includes their voice). Passion of the Christ is an immediate example.

 

[Jeff Kuykendall]

I saw this film in the theater and it was subtitled. (Great film, BTW, and I'm one who didn't care for the first.) So there's no dub to use...one would have to be made especially for the DVD, which would cost a lot of money (hiring voice actors, etc.). Correct me if I'm wrong.

 

[ChristopherDAC]

I understand that some people have trouble simultaneously watching and reading. Sometimes I find the subtitles distracting. But, as I said, I find it works very well to watch the film straight through a couple or three times, the first time for the subs, then for the movie, preferably with subs turned off. Awkward? You bet. But given the way dub translators and voice actors genrally mangle the dialogue and emotion, it's still preferable to a dub. It's somewhat of the same way that one traditionally enjoys opera: read the libretto through to familiarise oneself, then go see the production.

And there just isn't a dub for this movie. It's much less expensive to make subtitles than to overdub voices, and given that anime theatrical releases are typically somewhat marginal performers, and the same thing goes for sequels to eight-year-old movies, there was limited financial incentive. The Cowboy Bebop had a dub made, and I can say that it was a fairly decent one [although I wish the so-called art-house theatre I went to had seen fit to run the subbbed print; the distributor sent out one of each per location, another big item of expense], but that is a popular show and Bandai were already dubbing the TV episodes for showing on cable here in the states and video release.

 

[Jason Seaver]

Huh, that seems kind of counter-intuitive to me - I find subtitles work better on a TV because then both they and the action are in the same part of my field of vision, but when I see something in the theater, I find the subtitles drawing me away from the action.

 

[TheLongshot]

I personally think the argument is kinda silly. I've never had problems reading subtitles for movies, and keeping up with the action. Maybe that's just me.

Having it come out sub only isn't a surprise. Seems apparent to me that Dreamworks isn't investing a whole lot of money into these releases. Personally, I think it is very nice that Dreamworks put the movie into limited release uncut and in the original language. I just imagine what Disney (or Miramax, more likely) would do to this film. (The only reason why they haven't mucked with Miyazaki's films is because they aren't allowed to.)

Jason

 

[Matt Czyz]

I'm just glad that the original language track (in 5.1, no less) is on the disc. I'm so used to the Japanese voices for the Ghost in the Shell characters that to my ears, anything else is fingernails on the chalkboard. I tried listening to the English dub on the SAC discs, and couldn't make it past a few sentences. So, uh, yeah, "Yay, subtitles!"

 

[CaseyL]

To me this is a victory for original language Anime! Frankly I'm glad that this is being released in Japanese only. Go Dreamworks!

 

[Chad Ferguson]

Ghost had one of the best Dub teams around I think, They are doing a great job on the TV series as well. This was one where they should have supplied both.

 

[Tim RH]

If it was in DTS, I would probably buy it, but since it's only DD, I may only rent it. Damn. And I thought DreamWorks repected the DTS!

 

[Bryant Trew]

The biggest problem with subs is when a sentence or segment of a conversation stretches beyond one sub screen. It can wreck the flow as you are trying to watch the film. Now although GiTS had very good english acting, there is no way that I would want that in the place of the superb Japanese voice acting in Innocense.

Damn this is the one disc I have to have this year. I want it even more than RoTK EE.

 

[ChristopherDAC]

Tim, do you buy DVDs for the content, or for the audio format? If the Japanese producers supplied them with elements with DD already recorded, and not dts, they can't supply you a dts version no matter how much they "respect" it. If the movie interests you, get it! if not, skip it! but don't shilly-shally is my advice. The DD track I heard in the theatre was quite decent, and for the record I do not recall a dts logo at the end, only Dolby Surround and DD-EX.