Movies About Interpretation and Translation (Part 1)


By Site Admin | Dec 11, 2020
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What is it like to be an interpreter? Who can work as an interpreter or a translator? If you ever asked yourself these kinds of questions, movies (films) about interpretation and translation are just right for you as they can provide fruitful insights about this profession. If you already have a decent knowledge of interpretation, it is likely that you still find joy watching the movies and see if they accurately depict the life and work of an interpreter.

In this article, Freelensia has gathered the most popular movies, TV series, and some funny short clips on the topic of interpretation.

 

FEATURED MOVIES AND TV SERIES

 

1. The Interpreter (2005)

Official trailer: https://youtu.be/12AsLh55gQU

This 2005 film was the first one to have special permission from the United Nations’ General secretary to film inside the UN headquarter in New York. So you can expect a realistic interpretation setting from it.

Moreover, The Interpreter has an engaging plot with unexpected turns. Silvia Broome (Nicole Kidman) is a simultaneous interpreter (also known as cabin interpreter or real-time interpreter) working at the UN headquarter. She interprets between English and the fictional language Ku, a tribal dialect spoken in the Republic of Matobo, a fictional African country as well. One day, she overhears an assassination plot, which puts her life at risk and forces her to go on a thrilling adventure.

In one scene, Silvia conducts consecutive interpretation in a meeting between the US and Matoban ambassadors. You may argue that she is interpreting simultaneously as she often speaks at the same time the ambassadors speak, yet the fact is the highly skilled consecutive interpreter does not need the speakers to make obvious pauses when they are interpreting.

https://youtu.be/hj5rz4ZxmY4

 

2. Arrival (2016)

Official trailer: https://youtu.be/tFMo3UJ4B4g

This 2016 blockbuster can delight not only science-fiction fans but also translators, interpreters, and linguists. Dr. Louise Banks (Amy Adams), an expert linguist, works with the US military to figure out a way to communicate with the alien lifeforms that they call “heptapods”. The aliens do not speak but using logograms, an extraterrestrial form of written language consisting of only circles that Dr. Louise and her crew need to “decode”. To find the answer, she will take a chance that could threaten her life, and probably the entire planet.

From this film, you can see that the language barrier is there and could become a deal-breaker, and an interpreter can actually become the savior of the Earth! Watch how Dr. Banks “talks” to Costello, one of the heptapods:

https://youtu.be/LwPpwLy4UIU

Do you know that a similar communication issue might happen when you want to expand your business worldwide? In that case, finding a qualified interpreter can save the deal. Please refer to our article which shows 4 things you should consider before booking an interpreter.

 

3. Lost in Translation (2003)

Official trailer: https://youtu.be/sU0oZsqeG_s

This is a romantic comedy film about interpretation taking place in Japan. Two Americans, Bob Harris (Bill Murray) and Charlotte (Scarlett Johansson) are on holiday. They discover the delights of cultural misunderstandings and the isolation when they are far away from home.

This movie also presents a dilemma when working as an interpreter: will you interpret every single word said by that the speakers, or will you interpret selectively based on what you think the listeners need to hear, and omit the parts that are unimportant or against your perceived values?

https://youtu.be/2_KXbBCwzPM

 

In the clip above, the English-Japanese interpreter interprets inaccurately, putting in her personal viewpoint that the director’s words might be too harsh for the actor. However, by not interpreting all that the director says, she confuses her listener. Do you know that to become a good interpreter, fluency in foreign languages is not enough? Please refer to 4 Keys Elements of a Successful Interpreter for more details.

 

4. Charade (1963)

Official trailer: https://youtu.be/QmgPw34Xm3A

The main setting of this 1963 movie is Paris. Regina "Reggie" Lampert (Audrey Hepburn), a simultaneous interpreter, hears from police that her husband was murdered and the fortune he had stolen is missing. From then, she is pursued by several men who want the money and insist that Regina has it. Whom can she trust?  

This oldie-but-goodie thriller and comedy film is one of the earliest ones featuring simultaneous interpretation. Audrey Hepburn gave us the impression that an interpreter can be so glamorous. However, she was also portrayed as a reckless interpreter who leaves in the middle of a simultaneous interpretation session.

https://youtu.be/PmQNBo7eX6M

At Freelensia, you will not ever see such unprofessional behavior. We encourage the interpreter to be punctual, have the client confirm their working hours, and also have a mutual rating system that clients and interpreters can give feedback to each other. If the interpreters do not fulfill their responsibilities, they will probably get low ratings and negative feedback on their profiles

 

5. Atlantis: The Lost Empire (2001)

Official trailer: https://youtu.be/sZIimDPZQwg

Being the only animated film in our featured movies list, Atlantis: The Lost Empire is more related to translation. If a linguist can save the world in “Arrival”, translation leads to a tremendous discovery in this cartoon.

By translating a mystical book, Milo James Thatch, a linguist, and cartographer, believes that he has found The Shepherd's Journal, an ancient manuscript seemingly containing directions to the lost world of Atlantis. So, he went on an expedition to find the mysterious island with his crew. He then helps the Queen of Atlantis, Kida, to translate ancient Atlantean writings to help return Atlantis to its former glory. Yet things are getting a bit unrealistic from here: all the Atlanteans have forgotten the written form of their mother language?

Below is the scene that Milo reads Kida an ancient Atlantean book:

https://youtu.be/bnSEBSY-S8s

 

See also