Spanish Language DVDs
Yes, there are many DVD’s produced of movies that were originally spoken in Spanish. Some people are surprised to find that they already have a fair size collection of movies that have been dubbed in Spanish.
I remember starting out with our DVD collection – my first pass through I would watch with the Spanish subtitles/English audio – then Spanish Audio/English subtitles, next Spanish Audio/Spanish Subtitles, and then finally Spanish Audio, no subtitles. So, yes I’ve watched some of these at least four times in Spanish (and sometimes many more.)
One thing that you should be aware of is that the Spanish language and subtitles will not match up perfectly. By the same token if you watch the movie in English with English subtitles enabled you will notice there may be some variations in how it is written. Sometimes details are left out, or synonyms are used. The same is true for the foreign language audio and subtitles.
As always with translations, remember that it’s not a word for word translation from English to Spanish when a movie is dubbed into Spanish. It is usually an attempt to translate the ideas that are communicated. In some cases there are striking changes. Many times comedies don’t have the smae kick that they do in the original language. It gives you great appreciation for what you miss when you watch a dubbed foreign film! It’s impressive though the high art that film dubbing has achieved. I’m particularly impressed with the work that was done on the Star Wars films. The voice matches are good. (The voice effects are very similar to those used in the English audio. (Darth Vader/C-3P0). Beyond that though the timing of the dialog and the words themselves have been chosen very well and carefully and match fairly well the lip movements of the characters. It’s really impressive given how difficult I am sure that is to accomplish.
As I’m working on this list I’m remembering that this is one of the main motivations I had for this site. I had become frustrated with how hard it was to find out what videos had a Spanish language track or subtitles when I was looking for DVD’s online. This isn’t an ideal list, but it’s a start.
What will follow here is a listing of DVDs that either have Spanish language subtitles or dubbing. (Or Spanish as a primary language.)
First those that have Spanish language audio:
Transformers
Star Wars Episode One – The Phantom Menace
Star Wars Episode Two – Attack of the Clones
Star Wars Episode Three – Revenge of the Sith
Star Wars Episode Four – A New Hope
Star Wars Episode Five – The Empire Strikes Back
Star Wars Episode Six – The Return of the Jedi
Indiana Jones – Raiders of the Lost Ark
Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom
Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade
The Searchers
The Princess Bride
Young Frankenstein
The Muppet Movie
The Muppet’s take Manhattan
Many of the Bear in the Big Blue House (childrens) videos.
Veggietales Jonas
Willow
Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory
League of Extraordinary Gentlemen
Mary Poppins
West Side Story
The Alamo (John Wayne version)
The Bob Newhart Show (Season 1)
Harvey
Dumbo
Looney Tunes Golden Collection Volume 2
Looney Tunes Golden Collection Volume 3
Finding Nemo
Piglets Big Movie
Toy Story
The Little Mermaid
The following titles just have Spanish language subtitles: (At least the region 1 edition we have)
Road to Morocco
The Princess and the Pirate
E.T. the Extraterrestrial
Spiderman
Batman
Support Your Local Sheriff
Robin Hood Prince of Thieves
Last of the Mohicans
Rio Bravo
She Wore a Yellow Ribbon
The A-Team Season 2 (Season 1,3,4 do NOT have Spanish language subtitles or audio)
Pinky and the Brain (Volume 1)
