An English movie with a strange Japanese title

sequel film to walt disney animation Moana 2 It will premiere in Japan on December 6th. With just over a week to go until its U.S. premiere, it’s a pretty quick turnaround for Japan. In contrast, film adaptations of Broadway musicals evilReleased in U.S. theaters in November, Won’t be here until next spring.

The release date isn’t the only thing delaying the Japanese film industry, though. English-language films sometimes receive comically long and descriptive titles after they go through the translation process.

return to MoanaThis 2016 original animated film follows the 2010s trend of single-word title titles for Disney and Pixar films. think Tangled, brave, freezing and charm. However, Japan decided to take a completely different route. Moana become Moana and the Sea of ​​Legends, Tangled called Rapunzel on the tower, brave was named Merida and the Horrible Forest, freezing was named Anna and the Snow Queen and charm become Mirabell and the magical house.

Tessa Wong, international media coordinator for Paramount Pictures in Los Angeles, said certain phrases, idioms and puns in the original film’s title wouldn’t work in Japanese. Other times, using a new title is entirely helpful in marketing to a non-English speaking audience, with these Japanese titles acting as a preview of the story and describing what’s to come.

There are also some English-language movies with longer Japanese titles here.

What’s wrong with our planet

Of course, it’s not the star’s fault

2014 youth film, What’s wrong with our planet It tells the bittersweet love story of two cancer patients, Hazel and Gus. The play is adapted from John Green’s novel of the same name, with the original title alluding to the character’s ill-fated fate.

This movie was released in Japan in 2015 and its title is: Qing Jia Nei of Ghost Head Star — Of course, it’s not the star’s fault. The translation is actually the same, but the interpretation is slightly different. While the original is quite explicit, the Japanese version takes a more optimistic stance, not blaming the ultimate fate of their romance.

The Lorax

Grandpa Lorax’s Secret Seed

The Japanese translation is The Lorax It doesn’t sound quite right when translated back to English. As other fans have pointed out online, Lorax Ojisan no Himitsu no Tane—Grandpa Lorax’s Secret Seed— It’s a bit lascivious.

Released in 2012 by Universal Pictures and Illumination Entertainment, The Lorax is the second animated adaptation of Dr. Seuss’s iconic children’s book of the same name, following the 1972 television special. It expands on the book by telling the story of a previously unnamed boy who visits the reclusive Onsler. Greed took over what was once Le’s business, and he cut down all the truffle trees until the once lush, colorful forest turned into a barren wasteland. A truffle tree seed has been found to have survived, the last chance to restore the inhospitable environment. The Japanese headline spoils the detail but raises hope that the massive damage to nature can be reversed.

Click

If I could choose yesterday

A 2006 comedy produced by and starring Adam Sandler, Click Michael Newman is given a remote control that can control the universe. Michael uses it to fast forward through seemingly mundane parts of his life, but in doing so, he inadvertently skips important moments with his family.

Click Released in Japan as Moshi Kino ga Erabetara — If I could choose yesterday—— It’s an exciting and poetic choice compared to the original title. like The Lorax However, the Japanese title emphasizes Michael’s regret from the beginning, slightly spoiling the ending. In the movie, he is initially excited about his new abilities as he is able to skip parts of his life that he considers negative or boring. He didn’t learn his lesson until the end.

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Grandpa Carl’s Flying House

Pixar Animation Studios 2009 movies upa Japanese title reminiscent of Studio Ghibli’s howl’s moving castle: Prince Carl’s Soratobu House —Grandpa Carl’s Flying House. The spirit of adventure present throughout the film is better matched by the more descriptive Japanese title.

Despicable me

Mysterious Thief Gru’s Moon Heist

For Japanese speakers, accurately pronouncing the word “mean” can be a challenge, Despicable meoriginal title The audience is not given any indication of what to expect. To solve this problem, Japan adopted literal descriptions.

first issue Despicable me The franchise is named Phantom Thief Moon Dorobo —The moon heist of the mysterious thief Gru. The Japanese title shows Gru’s plan to steal the moon in a grand display of his evil deeds, highlighting the fun action and comedic shenanigans to come.

notebook

The story I read to you

notebookThe 2004 film adaptation of Nicholas Sparks’ debut novel was retitled You are your story — The story I read to you. Starring Ryan Gosling and Rachel McAdams, the film tells the complicated love story of Ellie and Noah through the lens of an old man reading a story from a notebook to a nursing home resident.

The Japanese version cleverly reveals its meta-format ending. It’s explained that the elderly couple are actually Ellie and Noah themselves, with Noah sharing their love story with Ellie, who now suffers from dementia.

Parent Trap

Family Games: Twin Angels

Keeping “The Parent Trap” in the title might have accidentally led to more of a real sense of danger and captivity. so, Parent Trap become Family Games: Angels of Two Sons — Family Games: Angels of Two Sons.

1998 remake Parent Trap Hallie and Annie, the “twin angels”, are played by 9-year-old Lindsay Lohan. They separated shortly after their birth when their parents divorced and decided to have twins each. When the girls coincidentally happen to be at summer camp, they hatch a plan to switch places in order to meet the other parent and ultimately bring them back together.

Japan also has its own version Parent Trap 1951, a decade before the classic film was produced by Walt Disney Productions. Skylark’s Song of Komori “Lark’s Lullaby” is directed by Koji Shima and inspired by German children’s novels double drawalso known as Lisa and Lottie.

Easy A

Why are little devils so popular? !

Easy A is a 2010 teen comedy starring Emma Stone as high school student Olive Penderghast. When rumors spread that Olive had slept with a college boy, she began to be labeled a school bum. She tries to turn the tables and use her newfound reputation for promiscuity to help the boy’s popularity by having him claim to have had sex with her in exchange for gift cards.

Inspired by Nathaniel Hawthorne’s 1850 novel red letter, After reading this quote in English class, Olive had a red “A” stitched into her dress. book, A woman is shamed for having a child with an unmarried man and must wear a bright red “A” as punishment for her sin.

The English title refers to Olive’s taking back the scarlet “A” and her tarnished reputation as a source of power. In Japan, the film was released under a more comical title Ko Akuma wa Naze Motteru? ! — Why are little devils so popular? !

imitation game

The Imitation Game: Puzzles and the Secrets of a Genius Mathematician

One of the longest examples of lengthy Japanese movie title translations is imitate game, published here as Imitation Gemu: Mystery and the Secret of the Tenzhai Sagamer — The Imitation Game: Mysteries and the Secrets of Genius Mathematicians.

This 2014 biographical thriller starring Benedict Cumberbatch is based on the true story of legendary cryptanalyst Alan Turing, who was involved in the creation of top-secret British government codes and A team of codebreakers from the Cipher School (later renamed GCHQ) worked together to decipher the codes sent by the Nazis using the Enigma machine.

The term “The Imitation Game” comes from a seminal paper written by Turing in 1960 called “Computing Machinery and Intelligence”, in which he analyzed whether machines could think and imitate human intelligence. The Japanese version of the title goes a step further, incorporating the Enigma machine and highlighting Turing’s extraordinary talents.

For more examples of Japanese titles for foreign movies, you can also check out Online movie database.

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