"Life is Beautiful" without subtitles for some people

Web posted on:
Thursday, August 26, 1999 5:56:50 PM EST

From Cynthia Tornquist
CNN Entertainment News Correspondent

NEW YORK (CNN) -- In its original Italian, "Life Is Beautiful" earned a record $57 million in North America and three Academy Awards, yet only 13 percent of the American movie-going public saw it. Why? Subtitles.

So Miramax Films is releasing a version of the film dubbed in English -- a move that may open the doors for other international films. The studio gave Manhattanites a sneak peek at an outdoor showing on Tuesday, before the film's release in New York and Los Angeles on Friday.

The movie, written, directed by and starring Roberto Benigni, is about an Italian man who tries to shield his son from the horrors of the Holocaust by pretending life in a concentration camp is a game.

DISCUSSION:

Is a dubbed-to-English 'Life' more or less beautiful to you? Go to the boards!

Actresses Marlo Thomas and Annabella Sciorra hosted a party to celebrate the studio's decision, following Tuesday's showing. "Oh, I think it's such a great idea," Thomas says. "It's such a fine movie, and there so many people who are afraid to go to a movie if it has subtitles."

Sciorra says she doesn't think every international film needs to be dubbed in English. "I think for this film, it's nice," she says, "because Roberto apparently supervised all the dubbing."

Other moviegoers say they don't think the dubbing detracted from the movie's power. "The first version -- with subtitles -- I think it took a little longer for me to get really caught up in the movie," says one man, "but right away, (with the dubbed version) I'm into it, and I'm completely feeling it."

Japanese "Godzilla" movies were infamous for their dubbing, but it fell out of fashion

"Since I don't speak Italian, and I don't like to read when I go to the movies, then it's fine with me," another says.

CNN's movie analyst, Martin Grove, says Miramax may have started a trend among movie distributors eager to cash in on the American audience. "Those who do like them (subtitled movies) are such a small percentage of the audience that you can't make a lot of money from that," he says. "But dubbed in English, the movie will play like any other movie."

In the 1950s and '60s, dubbed films, like the "Godzilla" series, were common in the United States. But when dubbing fell out of fashion, the market for international films declined.

Miramax's Dennis Rice doesn't see why they can't make a comeback. "In almost every other country in the world, dubbed movies are enjoyed by people in their own language," he says.

Some movie purists say many films suffer when they are dubbed.

As one fan of subtitles noted, "A person's voice is taken away (by dubbing over it). Therefore, their character is changed."

To avoid that problem, Benigni cast an American actor to dub his character in the film.

Reaching a wider audience has always been a priority for him. After winning the Best Actor Oscar, the always exuberant filmmaker said: "We need to mix culture. It's like making love."