Sony on Board with Subtitled, Japanese Language Ghost of Tsushima Movie

Sounds awesome

I really do hope he get his way. I'd love for a Ghost movie, with an entire Japanese cast. The entire setting is incredible, and honestly feels fitting for a movie. But he is also right I feel. Without English he probably won't be getting a good budget.

We'll see how it goes. Hopefully Sony isn't gonna be stupid.

Sounds like it has the chance to be a great movie. So pleased he wants to make it using native language and actors, will make the story that much more impactful.
I wonder if they will try and have it release around the same time as the sequel drops.

Cool a ghost of tsushima movie with Japanese sub title.word up son

Wouldn't have it any other way! Couldn't play that masterpiece in English even if they payed me

Hopefully if you watch it on PS4 it only allows showing the English lip sync even when watching the Japanese dub.

I legitimately didn't think they would be willing to do Japanese language, that's quite a risk for a hearty chunk of Western audiences. Sure the west is more open to foreign media now than in the past but still that is taking a risk.

Absolutely laughable. So we’re getting to a point where games just shove elements of movies into them in order to create an easily digestible McMuffin of movie tropes. So what happens when they’re turned back into a movie? You get a reformed Billy Bear ham of a movie which has been put together with elements from different inspirations and has zero original ideas of its own.

Sounds great, but I really don't like foriegn language films subbed to English. I like to see the action, not read. Shame.

@GoodGame
I have never understood the can't or don't wanna read subtitles angle. Can you guys seriously not see the words and the rest of the screen at the same time? I have never once had that be an issue.

I loved the game and hope the movie does well but subtitles is a big no no for me. It's annoying having to read especially during a fast action sequence. Unfortunate as I would have loved to watch it

@PegasusActual93 Oh I can see it all ok. I just prefer English spoken films.

For sure keen for an authentic- Japanese- production. Again, funny that the property was both created, and will apparently be directed by an non-native person, but he clearly seems to have a lot of respect and the game, likewise, turned out fantastic.

This is giving me so much hope for this project. It was already a good sign when they got an actually good Director compared to Uncharted, but the fact that he wants to make a samurai movie and not simply an action movie is so exciting.

Sounds great, I'd love to see it in Japanese. As for options to those who don't like subtitles, or to appeal to western audiences, surely a voice over dub is the answer? Or do what they did with the recent Prey movie, film it in both languages?

@PegasusActual93 I think it's very hard for people who haven't been watching subtitled movies since childhood, and very easy for us from non English speaking countries. In my country, if a movie is not a local production, it will always be subtitled.

This sounds really cool..subs dont bother me and when i'm watching netflix movies or series that are foreign i always choose subs..why is it that almost all english speaking voice overs in movies that originate from japan,china or thailand always sound australian? Watched ong bak again recently and the raid movies..all sounded australian lol..

The all Japanese cast sounds amazing, hope he follows through with that. As for it being subtitled that's a little tricky, you would be putting a handicap on the amount of success the film can have from the start.

Some of us may have no problem with it but the casual crowd is not going to want to go to the movies to read. Maybe for example having specific times of the day be shown with subtitles while the rest would be in English language.

So 6-12 PM can be in english with the rest of the times being with subs, I'm just spitballing here but there has to be a way to satisfy both parties.

I believe games and movies should be kept separate. Once you inject a game's story into a movie, it shows how terrible, or average (at best) the writing really is. With Ghost being no exception.

I'm going to back this with all I have. I love non English and International movies but this is an American movie cosplaying as an International one which is funny.

@Ichiban I'd argue the story and writing in Ghost is better than half the crap Hollywood pumps out these days. I loved the story and characters and look forward to seeing it in the cinema. Just hope they get the cast right

As it should. Would be weird making it an English movie and with non-Japanese cast.

I just hope that there is an english voice over though as I'm not a fan of listening to a lanugage that doesn't match the words I read. I'm a full-time sub reader anyway, just the sound of another langague I don't understand is a deal breaker. Shows like Squid Game was manageable thanks to some wearing a mask but for the actors that didn't wear one, those took some getting used to. Even Money Heist (Spanish one) took some time to get used to and the trick was to stare at the subs more than their lips.

What's funny is I love the Japanese games like they are my favourite type of games. But I can't stand them if they don't have English voice. If there's no English voice then it's a lot easier to play them as a handheld game as I don't use sound in handheld.

@AFCC " Couldn't play that masterpiece in English even if they payed me"

I understand about people wanting the authentic experience when consuming Japanese media as dubbing can be a little tricky and some things are lost in the process.

However Is a different case for Ghost, the Japanese voice is the dub in this instance. Daisuke Tsuji did the english voice, he did the mocap and the character is base entirely on his physical appearance down to whatever pimples and scars he has.

Thats nice but i hope he doesn't rush it with no funds or it'll be very disappointing visually

@Ichiban I disagree. Some games are laughably written, but there are a handful of games that transcend what you get in a well written movie or book. Few examples for me are; Insomniac's Spider-Man (best SP story in any media), TLOU (nuff said), TW3, GOW, Hellblade (first one), RDR 2, PORTAL 2 (one of my faves), Dragon Age Origins, Mafia 2. I could continue

@Serialsid I mostly agree. For me, it was a fairly average story, elevated by excellent performances from the entire cast.

@theMEGAniggle Some good stuff in there for sure, RDR2 in particular really got me I have to admit.
Though I'm a bit confused regarding your praise for the story in Insomniac's Spiderman. It was pretty ordinary, and
seeing as we're comparing, the latest Spiderman movie (No Way Home) absolutely destroys it a million times over.

For the people complaining about having to read subtitles during a fast paced action sequence, it’s not like there is a lot of dialogue during the action.

This could be great. The director definitely knows how to use a small budget to make something great. And there are multiple examples of small budget foreign language movies with an all Asian cast that have been wildly successful both critically and financially.

@Ichiban no chance! Let me explain:

HEAVY SPOILERS

I say this because the story lasts 20 HOURS, and in it we get the best contrast between Spider-Man activities interfering with PP's life. Crazy good Villain origin stories for Doc Ock, Mr. Negative, tease of Venom and Green Goblin. Decent dynamic between Peter and MJ although the gameplay for her was awful. Good intro to Miles and Peter being his mentor. An explosive intro to the Sinister 6. A great sense of the cat and mouse game between Fisk and Spidey. Amazing setpiece battles. Great stakes. I've left the best for last, Aunt May. The way that sacrifice was written made me cry. I am a grown man.

No way home was great. I love it, but the story isn't as good in my opinion. The thing that makes No way home great is the inclusion of other Spider-Men and without it, people would complain that not enough happens in it. The story is essentially that he is naive and allows some people to cause damage. He's pretty much to blame for his auntie dying, then he gets picked up by his Spider-bros. Its a great watch, and a great story but the story is not better than Insomniac's.

Essentially its way more entertaining, but that doesn't mean better story.

And for people talking about box office receipts, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, which was entirely in Mandarin, made 128 million in America alone. And that was over twenty years ago, well before the majority of viewers had been exposed to subtitled films via streaming services.

GoT has the potential to be a good drama/action movie. But I'm not expecting much with Stahelski helming it.

@nessisonett I don't understand your problem here. It's nothing new that a piece of art was adapted and then readapted, not always successful, but it doesn't lessen the impact of the original. It's like samurai movies inspiring westerns, which then again inspired samurai movies. You could say the same about various mythologies across different mediums.
Also opens up stories to different audiences. I know my wife wouldn't sit down and play Ghost of Tsushima, but she would definitely watch and enjoy it as a movie or show if it's well done.

Even if dubs were provided that's how I'd watch it anyway.

The other day I felt like finally watching some old feudal Japan films (specifically Shichinin no Samurai and Harakiri so far) and not for one second did I think of seeking out a dubbed version. Much like I wouldn't watch a western dubbed in my language, either.

I'm glad they want to do it this way. Was slightly afraid we'd get another 47 Ronin or any other half-assed Asia according to Hollywood movie.
It would be cool if Sony would cooperate with Toho, Kadokawa or another big Japanese studio. I'm sure they could provide good set design and costumes.

@Microbius as if movies don't get dubbed in multiple languages by default anyways. It's only important that the original spoken language is Japanese. Everybody who wants it with English Dub can watch it like that as well, like with almost every existing movie out there unless some obscure Avant Garde films.

@tameshiyaku he’s probably angry it’s not gonna be very diverse 🤣

Sounds cool to me. Like most games to movies it’ll probably be crap though.

When I think about how A Ghost of Tsushima movie might be visually, I instantly just think of watching Hero…Which in fact I might just do, stunning film.

I literally only started this game a couple of days ago. I’ve noticed a certain formula Sony have in their gaming with gameplay and mechanics so I got familiar with it quite quick. Playing on ps5 on a 60 inch screen really brings the game to life, much better then playing on my monitor.

@theMEGAniggle Hey thanks for such a great, through response. You may have changed my mind a little bit actually, I might have to give Spiderman another playthrough.
Have a great weekend!

I played GoT in Japanese and loved it. I tried to play new game plus in English but it just wasn't the same.

Honestly, I wouldn’t have it any other way. Would totally dig it in black and white too.

Hoping it is a little more historically accurate than the game.

I know Sony also released Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon many years ago.
The film was released in cinemas in Mandarin with English subtitles but the DVD release came with both the subbed version and an English dubbed version. There were two separate VHS releases too: a subbed VHS and a dubbed VHS.
All releases moving forward would have both original Mandarin and English dub audio tracks.

I usually prefer subs for live action content but it would be great if Sony can get the original game cast back to do the English dub for the Blu-ray release.

As an owner of the Akira Kurosawa collection I played this game with the JAP voices & it was a great experience! ENG wasn't badly done but preferred the JAP voices, it gives just something extra when playing the game. Movies is are the same way for me. Give people options ... but I'm a fan of the OG idea!

Well, I'm looking forward to it. Should be good. But I do see the possibility of subtitles reducing attendance. I watch a lot of anime and Korean TV (some Japanese too) and others in my family often miss information, so sometimes what's happening is not clear.

Another solution is to shoot every scene with talking in it twice. First with Japanese, second with English. I know sometimes the magic can be lost or the perfect actor might not be able do it well in English, so it could turn out to be a terrible idea.

Alternatively, for the second shoot, you could work out a script in English and get an expert to create a Japanese script that would use words that would appear to match the English. The Japanese script might not make sense and be weird, but when getting an English dub made, it should look like they are speaking English. Then for fun, you could also release the Japanese (it doesn't make sense script) version as well, providing it isn't insensitive.

I always thought that the movie Passengers could have been a good movie to shoot more than once, but with different actors for each language (not too many versions though, you'd set a budget). That movie has a small cast and lots of CGI and prop sets (I'm guessing) that can be used over and over again. Wouldn't do this with Ghost of Tsushima or any movie that this idea would disrupt its origins or story. But it could be an interesting experiment for some movies. Just a thought/idea.

Subtitles for Japanese all too often means DTS only 😬 you know

@Ichiban I had to try! Love engaging with people on this site so not a problem dude. Hope you enjoy it and have an awesome weekend !!

@PegasusActual93 - For some people, like myself for example, have difficulty reading subtitles AND watching what's happening on screen at the same time, especially considering I often have to strain / squint my eyes to read the subtitles, and doing that for a prolonged period of time results in headaches, and some days I suffer from bouts of slight double vision, which makes reading subtitles almost like deciphering a convoluted message.

Plus there's the issue that Subbed Anime often has that I've no doubt a fully Japanese film will have, and that is that what the characters say is always abbreviated poorly through subtitles, by which I mean the subtitles give you the gist of what's being said but not exactly what's being said.

Granted I often rely on Subtitles when watching/playing movies, shows & games, because of my poor hearing, however that's just in case I miss-hear the occasional words spoken and need the subtitles to show me exactly what I didn't hear or simply miss-heard.

One for the hipsters to enjoy with a jar of craft beer...

@PegasusActual93 When you talk about "hearty chunk" of western audience you may mean US because here in Europe and with all our languages we are very used to watch movies in the original languages version with subtittles. Even more true with Japanese movies/anime. 😉

@ogamitaicho77
I mean western English speaking countries, obviously a lot of Europeans speak different languages but I doubt much of the US, UK, Australia or even Canada are very open arms about subtitles and those four are a hearty chunk of the western population.

Argh, It was irritating me when all games just wanted to be interactive movies, and is the key reason I have no love for ND, but it's twice as irritating now that every game gets made into a movie. It's the lowest common denominator. Book adaptations to movies are always terrible. Even when the film is good, it ends up diminishing the book that's often significantly more involved. And now games are getting the same treatment. As a big believe in "games should be interactive books, not interactive movies" I should be happy that games are getting dumped in the hollywood toilet with the same energy as books have been for decades, but, it annoys me just as it does when they break a book in the screen adaptations. I'm sure it'll be a decent movie, but...it diminishes the dozens of hours spent ingesting the world and the environment through play for sure.

I can't wait until the Soulsborne movie. No subtitles. No dialogue at all. Just a camera pointed at cool looking things to establish "lore" while the audience argues about what the plot even was when they leave lol.

@PegasusActual93 I actually prefer subtitles, however, even as A fan of it, I do tend to miss much of what's happening on-screen as I'm focused on text. I actually have a bad habit of always having subtitles on in games, but my eyes just naturally always focus on the text, and I read faster than most dialogue is spoken, and I end up missing the visuals. But GoT was definitely JP subs all the way, regardless.

@Juanalf My first playthrough was in English. I started my NG+ in Japanese to see how it went, but I abandoned it when I realized much of the side character dialog was not subtitled. There are so many comments from the NPCs in the villages or camps you can overhear as you walk by, but they aren't subtitled. It annoyed me and I switched back to English.

What does that have to do with a movie? For me, nothing, really - I can handle a subtitled movie just fine (though given a choice I prefer a quality dub). But there are a LOT of people out there who don't read as easily and as quickly as the average participant on a discussion board. Just as they wouldn't come here because reading isn't enjoyable for them, such people won't like subtitles and are unlikely to consider a movie without an English dub. That's simply the truth - you don't have to like it, but you're foolish to ignore it.

I'd wager there are more people (in the US, not the world) who would avoid a movie without an English audio track then there are who would avoid it without a Japanese audio track. Would they make up enough in ticket sales from Japan and the rest of the world to make up the difference? Not a clue - but some bean counter is trying to come up with projections.

@NEStalgia "Even when the film is good, it ends up diminishing the book that's often significantly more involved."

I don't see it that way. A movie doesn't change a single word in the book - the ink doesn't move on the page when the movie comes out. At most one can affect the popularity of the other, but that's not the same as affecting the actual work itself.

@Gravity_Bear Sony also made Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.
That film had a really good English dub that actively tried to match the original Mandarin lip movements.
And that was a live action film that is much harder to dub than anime.
They even got most of the original cast back like Chow Yun Fat and Michelle Yeoh to do the English dub.

They can probably do the same thing for Ghost of Tsushima: The Movie, but they must get the original game cast for the English dub.

@Hydra_Spectre I just noticed this post. 😥 It's always cool when they can get these things right, especially the same actors, now that's cool. Sorry about the delayed response, it'll take a little while for the audio to catch up to the video (silly joke).