Tough Questions: To Dub or to Sub?

After finally watching the less than stellar new Godzilla film, I found myself in desperate need for some classic “man in a suit” monster brawlin’ and ordered some old favorites from Amazon (Godzilla vs. Monster Zero and War of the Gargantuas for the curious). But when they arrived I found myself faced with a classic dilemma: to dub or to sub?

Though some filmmakers like Pier Paolo Pasolini have sometimes overseen and approved the English version of a film, 99% of the time this is done by some low-level functionary at the foreign distribution company for whom this is “just another film” rather than a labor of love. As a cinephile, I know I’m supposed to always see films in their original language so that I am getting the filmmaker’s direct and unencumbered vision. But can there be exceptions to that rule?

Dubbed Godzilla movie marathons taped off TV were a permanent fixture of my adolescence and were frequently watched during the car rides to Boy Scout outings. Similarly, my childhood video store only had the original Funimation dub of Akira. Perhaps if I'd grown up with them subtitled I would hate the dubs, but that wasn't my childhood. As any psychologist will tell you, the experiences of adolescence can really stick with you. This is why I still know the names of all three of the titular 3 Ninjas. But why do I still watch the original 1954 Gojira subtitled?

And what about Italian films? Up until very recently, ALL Italian films were dubbed, even in their own language. Am I really losing anything when I watch a Leone or Argento film with the American voice cast? But then why don’t I watch Fellini or Antonioni films dubbed? Is that due to some sort of intellectual snobbery where “art” is elevated above “genre”? I love both types of films equally, so why make the distinction? Stone me if you will. I am an imperfect being.

How do you watch foreign films? Do you sometimes prefer the dub? Let us know in the comments.