Spirited Away: Lost in translation (English dub loss of meanings)

Out of curiosity, I watched the English dub of Spirited Away because this anime movie is my favorite.  I was half-surprised and half-disappointed that the Eng dub is NOT as good as the Japanese dub (especially Haku's voice sounds like a 30-year-old and doesn't fit the character at all, and Chihiro's voice is annoying as hell); it also changes several important details.  I think the problem was that they tried to turn this into a kid's movie, and that the West in general has very high censorship when it comes to those.

The following essay excellently points out the important changes [ I also added my viewpoints in blue ] :

"No cuts," Hayao Miyazaki’s producer at Studio Ghibli famously told Disney’s Harvey Weinstein using a note attached to an authentic Japanese katana; he did this when Disney attained the distribution rights for Miyazaki’s earlier film Princess Mononoke, and Weinstein demanded to make several edits to no avail.  By the time Studio Ghibli’s 2001 film Spirited Away came into Disney’s proverbial hands, everyone knew the rules.

Fittingly enough, for a film as focused on identity as Spirited Away is, a great deal of the identity and characterisation of the film changes from the original Japanese audio track to the later recorded English dub.  Whether in names, subtleties of language, or major differences of motivation – especially in the case of the titular Chihiro herself – the different language tracks end up showing just how open Miyazaki’s visuals really are to interpretation, and how audiences might wish to learn to appreciate that versatility by looking at all sides of these interpretations.

Most obviously out of all the changes, the North American release’s title, Spirited Away, shortens the longer and perhaps slightly more unwieldy Japanese title of Sen to Chihiro no Kamikakushi.  Along with being more specific to the plot of the film by adding character names, the word "kamikakushi" means "being hidden away by the gods".  (IMO, I prefer "Spirited Away" to the long Japanese title). 

While interesting enough that a single character has both her names in the movie title, the second reading makes a further suggestion of not just having two names, but of replacing her real name and not just forgetting it.  The whole issue of losing or forgetting one’s name in turn ends up being a focal plot point of Spirited Away, being the way Yubaba asserts her control over her employees. The English dub lost this theme by having Haku call Chihiro "Sen" while in the Japanese version, Haku always calls Chihiro by her real name. 

While on the subject of names, Chihiro’s change to Sen shows another moment of language play.  "Sen" in Japanese means "one thousand" and makes the whole scene of Yubaba contracting Sen to work both clever and perhaps even a little conventional; the protagonist has her individual literally name exchanged with a number. Names like Chihiro or Sen lend quick hints as to the nature of the characters they describe.  Yubaba’s name comes from a combination of "bath" and "old woman"; other characters like Zeniba ("money" and "old woman") or Kamaji ("boiler" and "old man") share in similar punning. While a viewer without foreknowledge of these very minor points could watch the film without any repercussions, a young Japanese child watching would have that much more to latch onto and understand about the characters.

As a character, Haku portrays many of the subtle translation nuances that occur with the English and Japanese tracks of the film.  "Haku" literally means "white" which connects to both his clothing and his colouring as a dragon.  The English dub abridges the substance of his full, true name, giving it as “Kohaku River.”  The original Japanese elaborates more on the issue, in which Haku remembers his full name as Nigihayami Kohaku Nushi.  His name sounds extravagant and impressive and, when considering he needs to repeat it to the barely-grasping Chihiro (she goes on to remark, "What a name! Sounds like a god!") – Miyazaki clearly meant for that.

Going further with his status as a kami (something that loses emphasis when he refers to himself as a "river" in the English), Haku portrays himself in a manner befitting his godly name.  For one, he dresses in traditional shrine clothing; for another, he speaks in a formal tone with formal vocabulary which is especially noticeable in his use of pronouns.  Thus, Haku’s use of "watashi" to refer to himself basically belies his appearance as a young boy whom one would expect to perhaps say "boku" instead.  And when he addresses Chihiro, he uses the ancient noble aristocratic term "sonata".

When the polluted river (the stinky spirit) is cleansed, its mask-like visage says to Chihiro through the clear waters, "It feels good."  That is, it has returned to its natural powerful freshness that characterizes all phenomena.  In the English version, the kami of the river says, "Well done," making it a compliment regarding Chihiro's good deed, not an affirmation of the river's natural state of purity so necessary to promote life.

Furthermore, Japanese honorifics that come after names lead to further translation anxieties, and the English translators chose to dub "Haku-sama" as "Master Haku".  Honorifics in themselves are not titles, and “master” perhaps sounds a little more weighty in tone than it should – the workers at the bathhouse give him a great deal of respect and reverence (and he expects as much for the most part), but he does not exactly demonstrate mastership over Yubaba’s other employees.  It keeps the English elegant while not in any way being a complete or direct translation, and it would not be surprising to believe that English scriptwriters had to contend with such issues constantly.

Spirited Away contains other language and cultural nuances that do not translate into the North American release, either in the English dubbing or the English subtitles.  Some, like the part where Kamaji performs the "engacho kitta", come from casual Japanese playground superstition; though the English script says "evil be gone", the whole action of chopping between the hands - as explained in the DVD special features - holds about as much spiritual cleansing strength as a North American child "passing cooties" by tagging another.

Others, like the relationship between the twin sisters Yubaba and Zeniba, come from the aforementioned idea of different words for older siblings and younger siblings. Despite being twins of basically the same age, Zeniba refers to her sister as "imouto" (for "younger sister") while Chihiro tells Kamaji how Haku had taken the seal from Yubaba’s "oneesan" (for "elder sister").  Despite their being twins, the distinction still makes for certain formalities between the two.  Nevertheless, Yubaba clearly holds resentment or jealousy towards her older sister, stealing from her and basically exploding when learning that her son is with Zeniba later in the film.  Yubaba’s rivalry becomes even more interesting when considering that she owns the grand, prosperous bathhouse while Zeniba lives in a cottage in the middle of "Swamp Bottom" – Yubaba wants what her sister has regardless of how much she has herself. Again, not catching any of these details does not hinder any enjoyment of Spirited Away as a whole, but as details they still enhance the understanding of the film, its characters and their motivations.

Not all discrepancies between the English and Japanese language tracks are quite so trivial, though.  In fact, much of Sen or Chihiro’s motivation changes quite dramatically with what she says and what others say about her. Early in the film, after Haku first brings Chihiro to see her parents in the pig sty, Chihiro rediscovers the farewell card she had received from her friend and remembers her real name.  In English, Chihiro says "I can’t believe I forgot my name!"  In the Japanese, however, she says, "I’d nearly turned into Sen!"  This distinction ties directly with the above-mentioned title ambiguity of Sen to Chihiro no Kamikakushi, where the idea of replacement works in tandem with that of forgetting.

More poignantly, though, is how Chihiro’s character in her Japanese comes off as more engaged and even assertive with the spirit world.  Much like the earlier name-forgetting and replacement, Chihiro’s lines differ in the two language tracks at several points throughout the film, but the best example comes from her confrontations with Kaonashi, or NoFace.  When NoFace offers the pile of gold to Chihiro in the hallway, her English line, "I don’t want any, but thanks" contrasts starkly with the abrupt Japanese of "I don’t want any... I don’t need any."  Later, when Chihiro faces off against the bloated and grotesque NoFace who continues to ask her what she wants, she replies (in both language tracks), “you should go back to where you came from.”  Her following line marks the change:  she says "Yubaba doesn’t want you in the bathhouse any longer" in English – thus placing her as but a means for Yubaba’s end – while in Japanese she states, "you can’t help me with what I want."  In these two moments, Chihiro displays a strong understanding of herself and her true needs, furthering her development as a character.

Another very different take on the characters and their understanding of each other comes with the subject of Haku as a dragon.  The English dub presents a simpler take on the whole subject, with Chihiro acknowledging upon first sight, "Haku... he’s a dragon?"  The dub continues to briskly make points clear upon Haku’s return under assault, and Chihiro’s big shock comes from realising that Haku is hurt.  In the Japanese, Chihiro sees Haku’s return and comments, "It’s the dragon from before," without making a direct connection to Haku.  Then, while witnessing the paper onslaught, she spontaneously shouts out, "Haku, hang on, come here!" – this time her shock comes from her sudden understanding of the dragon’s identity (In my interpretation, Chihiro makes the connection between "haku" meaning "white" and the dragon being white).  With that single moment, the "Japanese Chihiro" floods herself with subconscious questions:  "Why is Haku a dragon?", "Why do I know that Haku is a dragon?"  Indeed, Chihiro does not even confirm her feelings until after Haku finally reverts to his "human" form, saying something to the degree of, "so it was Haku after all."  Though hesitant with her thoughts, her sudden realisation furthers the connection between Chihiro and Haku that Haku establishes prior – "I’ve known you since you were small," he says shortly after their first meeting in the film.

Their connection re-establishes itself in a later scene mirroring Chihiro’s subconscious epiphany, when Haku awakens after recovering from the cursed seal:  "Grandpa, where’s Sen?" he asks Kamaji quickly (and curiously informally for this moment). Directly afterwards in his recollection, though, he says, "Chihiro kept calling my name in the darkness..."  Kamaji sees Haku’s calling Chihiro by her real name as the most significant detail, and reasserts the intimacy between the two younger characters.  The English script, meanwhile, has Haku continue to refer to Chihiro as "Sen" in his reminiscence – for this, Kamaji has nothing to elaborate upon, and instead narrates exposition until the next scene.  These sorts of moments in the Japanese script really make apparent the deep, spiritual closeness Chihiro and Haku have for each other.  That "power of love" may be there in any language version of Spirited Away, but the Japanese track definitely refines it to a degree.