Through the magic of the big screen we can travel to distant places, live thrilling adventures and, quite often, explore the richness of languages and translation. Cinema has found ingenious ways of weaving translation and languages into its plots, giving stories depth and emotion. In this article we explore the fascinating world of translation on screen and discover films that have embraced the subject in a highly original way.
1. What we lose in translation: “Lost in Translation” (2003)
Directed by Sofia Coppola, “Lost in Translation” is an intimate journey through the city of Tokyo, where an actor (Bill Murray) and a young graduate (Scarlett Johansson) meet in a hotel. Language and communication are the barriers they face, and the film explores the idea that translation is not only about words, but also about human connection. The title itself refers to a concept every translator knows well: whatever is lost in translation, because carrying it over into another language is difficult or calls for very elaborate context, localisation and adaptation.
2. Language as a way of perceiving the world: “Arrival” (2016)
Denis Villeneuve’s film “Arrival” (released in Spain as “La llegada”) is a science-fiction story that examines how the arrival of extraterrestrials on Earth challenges our understanding of language and translation. The linguist played by Amy Adams has to decipher a completely unknown language and, in the process, uncovers profound secrets about the perception of time and about communication. The film shows how translation goes beyond words and can have a deep impact on our lives. Although it does so through science fiction, the film explores a very original and far-reaching idea: what if the way our brain, our sense of time and our reality are configured is determined by the morphology of language?
3. War, comedy and misunderstandings: “Inglourious Basterds” (2009)
Quentin Tarantino takes the theme of translation to the extreme in “Inglourious Basterds”, set during the Second World War. The film shows how a Nazi officer (Christoph Waltz) uses his language skills to hunt down Jews in hiding. The tension in the conversation scenes brings out the importance of accuracy and cultural interpretation in translation, and how it can be used to deceive or to save lives. Tarantino’s humorous approach to cinema has a particularly comic side here, dealing as it does with a subject as delicate as war. Even so, the hilarious dialogue, the wordplay, the speakers’ failure to understand one another and the trouble they have communicating make it especially entertaining.
4. Multilingual humour: “Lost in Hong Kong” (2015)
This Chinese comedy directed by Zheng Xu is a very funny example of how complicated it is to travel to a country whose language you do not speak. The main character finds himself in hilarious situations as he tries to communicate in Hong Kong, which reflects the reality faced by many travellers abroad. The film shows how language can be an endless source of comedy and misunderstandings.
5. Beyond machines: “Her” (2013)
In “Her”, Spike Jonze presents a near future in which a lonely man (Joaquin Phoenix) falls in love with an operating system with a captivating voice (Scarlett Johansson). The film makes us think about machine translation and about how technology is transforming the way we communicate. As artificial intelligence assistants become more sophisticated, the line between human and automated translation grows ever thinner. Barely 10 years after its release, AI is starting to settle into our daily lives. Assistants that write, that create images, that compose art… will we reach the dystopian futures that fiction sets before us?
The importance of human connection
Cinema has given us an enormous range of perspectives on translation and languages, from comedy to science fiction. These films often highlight the importance of accuracy, cultural interpretation and, above all, human connection in translation. At ALOS we invite you to explore this exciting world of translation and languages. Count on us for any professional translation need you may have. And we also offer you tailor-made courses in any language: learn how, when and where you like.