Suspicious English titles

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Suspicious English titles

Postby yukabacera » Wed Mar 08, 2023 3:03 pm

In this thread, I intend to post about movies in our database with what I would consider "suspicious" English titles which meet three criteria: 1) not being backed up by any source I can find, and 2) being a literal or character-for-character translation that matches the Chinese title, and 3) the film already having another more obviously valid title (on the print, poster, etc.) By bringing attention to these, I'd like to invite other editors to point me towards possibly valid sources for these titles. (If I post a title in this thread, it means I already tried and failed to find any possible backing for it on my own.) Otherwise, posts here will serve as a record before I delete and replace the "suspicious" titles with the more valid ones. Here's a couple to start with:

a) https://hkmdb.com/db/movies/view.mhtml?id=9654 Don't Kiss Me on the Street
The title on the lobby cards (in our DB) is The Foreign Student. This movie isn't available on home video.

b) https://hkmdb.com/db/movies/view.mhtml?id=15656 The Night Treats the Grass
Mistranslation. The title on the print is Lovers Journey.

c) https://hkmdb.com/db/movies/view.mhtml?id=18187 Spring Breeze, Spring Rain, Silk Feeling
The title on the print is A True Love.

d) https://hkmdb.com/db/movies/view.mhtml?id=18188 Blood Baby
The title on the poster is Bloody Baby. This movie isn't available on home video.

e) https://hkmdb.com/db/movies/view.mhtml?id=19923 Deep Love at Deep Night
The Taiwan Film Institute gives the title as The Love At Night. This is also the title it was shown under in Singapore. I don't have a copy of this movie to check the credits.
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Re: Suspicious English titles

Postby STSH » Fri Mar 10, 2023 3:27 am

yukabacera wrote:a) https://hkmdb.com/db/movies/view.mhtml?id=9654 Don't Kiss Me on the Street
The title on the lobby cards (in our DB) is The Foreign Student. This movie isn't available on home video.


I can confirm this title as correct. It was on a videotape cover from a Chinatown shop I used to rent videos from, in the late 1990s. Of course, the shop has long since closed down.

An excellent project. Do continue :)
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Re: Suspicious English titles

Postby yukabacera » Fri Mar 10, 2023 3:40 pm

STSH wrote:I can confirm this title as correct. It was on a videotape cover from a Chinatown shop I used to rent videos from, in the late 1990s. Of course, the shop has long since closed down.

An excellent project. Do continue :)

Excellent, STSH, thank you! This is the kind of response I was hoping for. It's nice to hear that the movie does exist somewhere out there on video, as well - I'd like to see it! I won't delete that title, but I believe we should still make The Foreign Student the primary title in the absence of a print to verify, since its source is more direct (lobby cards vs. home video.)
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Re: Suspicious English titles

Postby STSH » Mon Mar 13, 2023 3:45 am

yukabacera wrote:I believe we should still make The Foreign Student the primary title in the absence of a print to verify, since its source is more direct (lobby cards vs. home video.)

A fair analysis.
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