Funny translation

Guys.. just for fun.. hehe... I know we r debating about Chinese/English dominance in future world; but have a look at the following... Hehe.. Bloody funny...
Cant stop laughing

The Ongoing Saga of the
Chinese Movie Title List


WILL "MR. CAT POOP" CLEAN UP AT THE BOX OFFICE IN HONG KONG?

by Hal Lipper, Staff Reporter of the Wall Street Journal

HONG KONG -- When it comes to translating movie titles, not every name will do. So Hong Kong''s movie distributors have created a cottage industry to rename Hollywood titles for Chinese audiences.

"Major studios think up titles that are flat, boring and don''t tell
audiences what movies are about," says Doinel Wu, who has spent more than a decade renaming Western movies. "We create titles that are more straightforward."

Hence, the Cantonese title for the film biography "Nixon" is "The Big liar." The title for "Boogie Nights" can be interpreted as "His Powerful Device Makes Him Famous."

Since many of Hong Kong residents don''t know Fargo is a city in
snow-blown North Dakota, the movie "Fargo" became "Mysterious Murder in
Snowy Cream." The words "snowy cream" are pronounced "fah go" in
Cantonese.
The stakes are huge since English-language blockbusters dominate Hong
Kong''s movie market and Chinese translations help sell the films to a
wider audience.

Mr. Wu''s title are touted as among the best in the business. For the arty
thriller "The Professional," about a killer befriending an orphaned girl,
he concocted "This Hit Man Is Not as Cold as He Thought."

"The English Patient" was problematic. Few Hong Kong residents knew of
the novel and marketers say a faithful translation, like "The Sick
Englishman," wouldn''t have drawn audiences. Mr. Wu''s title, "Don''t Ask Me
Who I Am," captured the story''s mystery and passion.
"Good Will Hunting" was equally challenging. Mr. Wu''s Chinese title,
"Bright Sun, Just Like Me," uses characters to imply more than can be said
with words. The first half alludes to the Chinese title for "Dead Poet''s
Society," ("Bright Sun in Heavy Rain") which also starred Robin Williams
and was set at a school. The second half denotes a movie for young people
who boldly do what they like.

"Titanic" and "Air Force One" needed no translation, distributors
decided. But some of the local idioms don''t travel well. "The Full
Monty," a comedy about six unemployed steelworkers who become strippers,
uses a Cantonese colloquialism meaning "Six Stripped Warriors." The
Mandarin interpretation is "Six Naked Pigs."
And some translations simply defy rationale. The Hong Kong title for "As
Good As It Gets," a comedy about a mean-spirited novelist, is "Mr. Cat
Poop." Its distributor declined comment.

â Copyright The Wall Street Journal, 1998
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THE TOP 15 CHINESE TRANSLATIONS OF ENGLISH MOVIE TITLES

15. "Pretty Woman" -- "I Will Marry a Prostitute to Save Money"

14. "Face/Off" -- "Who Is Face Belonging To? I Kill You Again, Harder!"

13. "Leaving Las Vegas" -- "I''m Drunk And You''re a Prostitute"

12. "Interview With The Vampire" -- "So, You Are a Lawyer?"

11. "The Piano" -- "Ungrateful Adulteress! I Chop Off Your Finger!"

10. "My Best Friend''s Wedding" -- "Help! My Pretend Boyfriend Is Gay!"

9. "George of the Jungle" -- "Big Dumb Monkey-Man Keeps Whacking Tree
With Genitals"

8. "Scent of a Woman" -- "Great Buddha! I Can Smell You From Afar!
Take a Bath, Will You?!"

7. "Love, Valour, Compassion!" -- "I Am That Guy From Seinfeld So It''s
Acceptable for Straight People to Enjoy This Gay Movie"

6. "Babe" -- "The Happy Dumpling-to-be Who Talks And Solves Agricultural
Problems"

5. "Twister" -- "Run! Ruuunnnn! Cloudzillaaaaa!"

4. "Field of Dreams" -- "Imaginary Dead Baseball Players Live in My
Cornfield"

3. "Barb Wire" -- "Delicate Orbs of Womanhood Bigger Than Your Head Can
Hurt You"

2. "Batman & Robin" -- "Come to My **** and Wear This Rubber Codpiece,
Cute Boy"

1. "The Crying Game" -- "Oh No! My Girlfriend Has a *****!"

PS: this is just for fun. I really dun think it was really the case

Thank you for your very interesting article about the Chinese language. I will vote for you 5* for that !!! However I personally prefer to read such funny and valuable stories in the right topics: Fun fun fun ... or The place of English in the world, depending on you.
To everybody: Các bác cứ trả lời vào đây đi rồi sẽ ghép chủ đề sau vậy, vì bài báo này chắc sẽ gây được nhiều phản ứng.

BWAHAHAHAHAHAH!
The sad thing is, I like most of those movies. ^^ HAHAHAHA