Movie Subtitles

PEOPLE may find themselves unsettled by "High Tension," and not only because of the violence in Alexandre Aja's ode to 1970s horror films such as "Maniac!" and "The Texas Chain Saw Massacre." Part subtitled, part dubbed, the movie is that rare hybrid: an experiment in how to make a French-language film accessible to a mass American audience. Lions Gate Films, the distributor, flip-flopped several times before deciding how to release the film.

THERE are plenty of abuelitas speaking in Spanish on the prime-time lineup if you click your remote toward Univision and Telemundo. But now there's a Spanish-speaking grandma on ABC who also speaks English, but refuses to do so. She's funny, feisty, and the grandmother on "Freddie," the new sitcom starring and co-created by Freddie Prinze Jr. and his best friend, Conrad Jackson.

THERE are plenty of abuelitas speaking in Spanish on the prime-time lineup if you click your remote toward Univision and Telemundo. But now there's a Spanish-speaking grandma on ABC who also speaks English, but refuses to do so. She's funny, feisty, and the grandmother on "Freddie," the new sitcom starring and co-created by Freddie Prinze Jr. and his best friend, Conrad Jackson.

PEOPLE may find themselves unsettled by "High Tension," and not only because of the violence in Alexandre Aja's ode to 1970s horror films such as "Maniac!" and "The Texas Chain Saw Massacre." Part subtitled, part dubbed, the movie is that rare hybrid: an experiment in how to make a French-language film accessible to a mass American audience. Lions Gate Films, the distributor, flip-flopped several times before deciding how to release the film.

Perhaps there's a poetic logic to the new location of AFIFEST--or as it's more officiously known, the American Film Institute International Film Festival. When AFIFEST starts Friday--with a two-week program of 208 features, shorts and seminars from 40 countries--it will be based only a couple of blocks from the Pacific Ocean, in Laemmle's Monica 4-Plex Theatres in Santa Monica.

I almost laughed my head off reading Michael X. Ferraro's article on Hong Kong action movie subtitles ("Eee-Yow! That Translation Hurt!," Aug. 2). I especially appreciated "You bastard, try this melon!" In colloquial Cantonese, "dead" sounds like "melon." So, "Bastard! You are dead!" is turned into a faux pas by a Mandarin-speaking translator. But, should this letter be translated into Chinese by a subtitler, "laughing my head off" might cause a few chuckles too. SAM FUNG Newport Coast

Conventional wisdom dictates: Never bring a knife to a gunfight. But what exactly do you bring to an elephant fight? Answer: Thai martial arts sensation Tony Jaa. Jaa follows up his superstar turn in "Ong-Bak: The Thai Warrior" with "The Protector," an overstuffed action vehicle about a man looking for his elephants. When gangsters steal his family's prized elephants and murder his father, Kham (Jaa) goes on the warpath.

The first sign of trouble was when she couldn't distinguish the letter B from D. Starting in first grade, Michelle Ferrucci began to have difficulty spelling and reading. She was diagnosed with dyslexia, a condition that impairs a person's ability to read. Thus began a long battle for Ferrucci, one she still wages as a senior girls' volleyball player at Granada Hills High. Friends helped her read books, magazines and movie subtitles. Others weren't so helpful.

When the television version of "Shogun" splashed onto our screens back in 1981 (remember Richard Chamberlain poking his fingers through Japanese shogi doors), Japan buffs were keen to know whether this popular series provided a genuine slice of late medieval Japanese life. These were passionate Japanophiles, who even then could belly up to the sushi bar, and order with the best of them. As with their food, these people were seeking the genuine article in their fiction.

I know there is no PC code for portrayal of teenagers, which might be a good thing, but I took umbrage at Shawn Hubler's generalizations in "What If Teens Rocked the Vote?" (March 21). I am 16 years old and I certainly hope I don't adhere to her stereotypes of shallow, ignorant idiots that lapse into improbable slang every other second. Our movie fare is not restricted to action schlock and pure drivel, and yes, we actually view movies made before the '90s besides the "Star Wars" trilogy.

Perhaps there's a poetic logic to the new location of AFIFEST--or as it's more officiously known, the American Film Institute International Film Festival. When AFIFEST starts Friday--with a two-week program of 208 features, shorts and seminars from 40 countries--it will be based only a couple of blocks from the Pacific Ocean, in Laemmle's Monica 4-Plex Theatres in Santa Monica.

It's not exactly David trying to slay Goliath. It's more like David trying to steal the shoes Goliath left out by the backdoor. OK, the analogy is a little strained. For years, though, giant chain-owned multiplexes have been stomping one- and two-screen theaters out of existence. Now, the two-screen Regent Westlake is fighting back using unexpected weapons: foreign and independent movies. "We know there is an audience for this type of movie," said Mark R.

It's not exactly David trying to slay Goliath. It's more like David trying to steal the shoes Goliath left out by the backdoor. OK, the analogy is a little strained. For years, though, giant chain-owned multiplexes have been stomping one- and two-screen theaters out of existence. Now, the two-screen Regent Westlake is fighting back using unexpected weapons: foreign and independent movies. "We know there is an audience for this type of movie," said Mark R.