I don’t understand why some people think that reading subtitles isn’t worth their time. If you only speak English and refuse to read the subtitles on a show or movie in a different language, then you’re missing out.
Parasite, the first foreign-language film to win Best Picture at the Oscars, is an absolutely phenomenal (it also won Best Director and Best Original Screenplay). Trust me when I say that you don’t have to be a studious film buff to enjoy it. It was added to Hulu last week and I haven’t been able to stop thinking about it since I watched it. If you watch anything this quarantine season, please let it be this. You won’t regret it.
Admittedly, Attack on Titan is popular, so anyone who’s even casually watched anime has probably seen a little bit of it. But even still, it’s one of my all time favorites and I felt the need to include it. It has amazing action, characters, and animation! The story is filled with twists and turns that keep you on the edge of your seat! It’s great! All three season are currently on Hulu and the first one is on Netflix, so if you’re looking for a good action anime, I’d recommend starting here.
I Lost My Body is a French movie on Netflix that was nominated for Best Animated film at the Oscars this year. It has the same vide as laying on your bedroom floor for hours just staring at the ceiling, if that makes sense. The animation is really good. The characters in this movie rarely speak, and yet you get a good feel for who they are as people. There’s a severed hand that, despite just being a severed hand, makes you feel all types of feelings that you never thought you’d feel for a severed hand. Overall, it’s pretty different from your average animated feature film, but it’s a welcome change!
Have you ever started watching a show that you thought was going in one direction but then something happened within the first episode and suddenly the show was going in the complete opposite direction that you thought it was? Yes? No? Doesn’t matter, you’ll love these shows anyway.
Puella Magi Madoka Magica is not your average magical girl anime. Without giving away too much, I will say that Google say that genre of this anime is both “Magical Girl” and “Psychological Thriller”, so do with that information what you will. It is on both Netflix and Hulu.
School-Live! (otherwise known as Gakkō Gurashi!) starts as your typical school girl anime, but quickly evoles into something much darker. This series only has 12 very short episodes, so it’s a quick watch, but every second of it is filled with artfully placed symbolism and foreshadowing. The relationships formed between the four main girls is a wholesome display of female camaraderie. You can watch it for free right now on Crunchy Roll!
Of course, the world of foreign language films and shows is basically endless. These aren’t even a fraction of the types of subtitled masterpieces that exist. Please, please listen when I say that if you watch exclusively English content, you’re missing out. New worlds that you’re sure to love are just waiting to be discovered by you, if you’d only look for them!
Remember to stay safe and healthy during these time! And if you feel up to it, read some subtitles, just for fun. Take care!
This was interesting to read because it sort of called me out (haha). So, I use subtitles when watching everything, except the occasional YouTube video, but I’ve never liked having just subtitles to rely on when there’s a show or movie that’s in a foreign language, so I just end up not watching it. The shows and movies you listed aren’t necessarily my style, but it did help me realize that it could be my style but I just don’t know simply because I skip over it because I don’t want to just rely on subtitles. A great read- thanks for sharing! 🙂
I use subtitles even when the movie/show is in English! They help me follow become sometimes I just do not hear what the actors/actresses are saying. I need to watch Parasite, everyone has said how good it is!
I use subtitles all the time because I literally cannot properly hear half of the time, and people ask how I read and enjoy the show/ movie at the same time. I mean, it’s not bad.