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SHAOLIN SOCCER is still dubbed!!!

post #1 of 17
8/20/03 at 10:05am
Thread Starter 
SHAOLIN SOCCER opened last Friday here in Columbus, Ohio...

It's still dubbed. And the dub just sucks.
When I went to see it, the place was damn near empty.
They got rid of the animated opening credits, but they did keep the shot of the earth, the monk's head and the soccer ball.
They cut the scene where Golden Leg receives the bribe, but kept the scene where he gets his leg broken...so you don't know what's going on (What the fuck???).
They added the dance number that was a cut scene on the DVD, but changed the music from "Thriller" to Kool and the Gang's "Celebration". This also makes no sense, as it's the dance number from the "Thriler" video.
They changed the tune of Iron Head and Steel Leg's song from "California Dreaming" to something even more painful to listen to...and managed to kill all the comedy in that scene.
They added "Celebration" to the finale.
They digitally altered most of the signs to English...which believe it or not was kind of jarring.
Then, there's a TERRIBLE version of "Kung Fu Fighting" added to the end.
Man, did it suck.

And, it's doing next to zero business in C-Bus.

They've killed the movie, and I wouldn't be surprised if the next place it comes out is your local video store.
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post #2 of 17
8/20/03 at 10:42am
<a href="http://www.kungfucinema.com/news/2003-08-05-01.htm" target="_blank">http://www.kungfucinema.com/news/2003-08-05-01.htm</a>
As it stands on Tuesday, the 5th of August (4:02pm PST), the subtitled edition of Shaolin Soccer will be given a limited release on September 5th. Meanwhile, another test screening of the dubbed edition of Shaolin Soccer, this time in the U.S., will take place in Ohio on the weekend of the 15th. If all goes well, a wide release of the film is likely to follow.

Source(s): Kung Fu Cinema Exclusive!
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post #3 of 17
8/20/03 at 11:07am
Good ole' Miramax. I know that for me personally, when I want to decide the fate of an odd, comedic HK action film combing special effects and soccer, testing it on one screen in Ohio with no fanfare is the ideal way to do it.

Whoever is in charge of buying and F-ing up HK films over there needs a few hundred million kicks to the chops.
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post #4 of 17
8/20/03 at 11:09am
I didn't think that the dub was that bad in the press screening I went to. And they may have changed the Thriller music because they couldn't get the American rights to it.

Anyway, this movie released subtitled would have even LESS of a chance than it does now.
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post #5 of 17
8/20/03 at 11:21am
Quote:
Devin vs Major Frank Burns:
Anyway, this movie released subtitled would have even LESS of a chance than it does now.
With its odds so small, they might as well do it with subtitles.
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post #6 of 17
8/20/03 at 11:24am
I'm thinking you could release this with an Esperanto dub, 3-D glasses and Smell-O-Vision, and it would probhably make the same amount. The theatrical release seems doomed to me. Just end this mockery.
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post #7 of 17
8/20/03 at 11:27am
Shit, the dialogue is so peripheral to this film. It might as well be silent. It's already succeeded as far as I'm concerned. But I'm white.
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post #8 of 17
8/20/03 at 11:31am
Yeah, I agree that a theatrical release is doomed regardless. Why not at least release it unmolested. It will be sure to pick up some good mainstream reviews and plant the seeds for the successful release of other unaltered imports. Hell, Crouchng Tiger had subtitles. I realize that was a different kind of film, but let's keep moving forward here. At least that way it won't perpetuate the myth that all Eastern foreign films are horribly dubbed crap-fests.
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post #9 of 17
8/20/03 at 3:59pm
Thank you Bob and Mikah. Miramax seriously needs to get their asses in line. Remember how Crouching Tiger beat Life is Beautiful(Miramax film) to become the highest grossing foreign film ever? Sony did it by keeping the subtitles suck on that Disney!
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post #10 of 17
8/20/03 at 9:55pm
Call me paranoid but i think that what all this is really is, is a smear-campaign headed by Disney to discredit Asian cinema (including Asian animation of course) so that they can maintain their position of power. They are not "cutting the shit to make it work" as Harvey Weinstein once said but they deliberately plan how to utterly and completely ruin the film. Sometimes they even buy films and don't release them at all, just so Joe Average doesn't find out about how good Asian cinema is. It doesn't affect us geeks because we'll import the DVDs or buy boots from ebay if all fails but most people already think Asian cinema sucks and if Miramax/Disney succeeds that belief will be solidified in the next few years.

In my opinion this is nothing less than fascist censorship, even if it is carried out for corporate as opposed to political reasons.
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post #11 of 17
8/20/03 at 10:09pm
Thread Starter 
I spoke to people from the Arena Grand, and they were under the impression that this was not a test screening (it's engaged for the full week).
They passed on FREDDY VS JASON to get SHAOLIN SOCCER, and they regret it.
They're losing their shirts on this travesty, and Miramax is doing nothing to help them out.
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post #12 of 17
8/20/03 at 10:15pm
Having seen both, while I prefer the subtitled version, the dubbed cut does the film justice.
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post #13 of 17
8/21/03 at 9:17am
To me it's more the principal of making alterations to a movie that, for the most part, works just fine in its original form. Would people be chafed if movies like Irreversible or Y tu Mama Tamien got a dub job and a new soundtrack to appeal to a "wider audience"? Fuck yeah. They're obviously different kinds of movies, but you still have to "read" them. Like I said, it's the principle. Why is Crouching Tiger (which made like $120 million) exempt from the meddling but Shaolin Soccer is not? Because it's got kung fu in it, and Americans expect shitty dubbing on kung fu movies? Please.
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post #14 of 17
8/21/03 at 7:30pm
the dubbing in this instance i hear is not the same as the subtitle. but also i find that most dubbing is poor and can make the situations in the film seem more silly. also i find it takes away from the performance of the actor giving the performance on screen.
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post #15 of 17
8/21/03 at 7:31pm
the dubbing in this instance i hear is not the same as the subtitle. but also i find that most dubbing is poor and can make the situations in the film seem more silly. also i find it takes away from the performance of the actor giving the performance on screen.
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post #16 of 17
8/21/03 at 7:36pm
I'll take subtitles over dubbing any day.
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post #17 of 17
8/22/03 at 12:09am
Thread Starter 
The dub isn't as bad as some I've seen...but it's by no means good.
The edits confuse instead of help. Adding the dance scene without the music destroys the joke.
And I just happen to DESPISE "Celebration"...

I was NOT pleased by what I saw.
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