What are subtitles actually for?

Some think subtitles are merely a device to allow the hard of hearing to understand and enjoy TV programmes and films more easily, and that is, of course, how they began their life, but what about everyone else? Are they just irrelevant choices on a DVD title screen?

If you've got this far then hopefully you have a feeling that there might be a little more to it than that.

A reliable (though basically designed) internet page tells us that subtitles have been considered since the inclusion of voices in film in 1929. In those days, a lot of films came from abroad in foreign languages, so the only way British audiences could understand them was to have the films 'dubbed' into English, a practice which still goes on to this day.

Dubbing is expensive though, and soon film-makers had the cunning plan just to show the words on screen as they did with the title and credits and the beginning and end of the films, but tucked away at the bottom of the screen so you could still see what was going on, hence subtitles.

Fast-forward to today and you see subtitles telling you the latest news in railway stations, when audio would need to be deafeningly loud to be heard over busy commuters, as well as in nightclubs to let you enjoy an episode of Family Guy or whatever it might be while you take a break from all that hard boogie-ing.

In foreign films still, subtitles are used, and in Japanese anime films and series there are not always English-dubbed versions of series available, making reading 'subs' the only way to understand the action.

Subtitles can also be used in education, since many children may be daunted at the prospect at watching Harry Potter's adventures in French, but once the subtitles are put on they can watch a good(ish) film and learn the language at the same time: the definition of enjoyable learning.

There are still practical reasons for the inclusion of subtitles, and it baffles the mind to think that in an age where we're (supposed to be) more accepting and accommodating to people than ever before, some DVD releases still don't have subtitles when others boast alternate audio soundtracks and dozens of world languages to read through.

The first day of the rest of your life...

So I've had my first week in the land of 21 and already things seem very grown up from the outside looking in.

I've been spending my days at Nintendo Wii magazine NGamer, and compared to the week before it's got a very different atmosphere, more casual and communal.

Here in Bath there's a whole different feel to things, with upwards of 40 magazines (or so, I haven't exactly counted) in the building there's plenty of people around all the time.

Guitar Hero controllers litter the floor all around, interspersed with giant flat-screen televisions and ancient issues of Future (Publishing) mags like Powerstation and Official Playstation 2 Magazine.

There's been plenty to do and get involved in, and I even managed to get my hands on the brand new issue before subscribers and anyone else will see it! The most reassuring moment was when I thought up an idea for a feature, and then was told it was in the new issue, least it means I'm on track.

Come January it's time to head back to London for DVD and Blu-Ray Review, here's hoping it brings another different experience again.

Oh and, Merry Christmas all.

Batman storms onto DVD, but what of Blu-ray?

It feels like a long time since Christopher Nolan's masterpiece hit cinemas in July this year, but yesterday The Dark Knight hit supermarket shelves nationwide, creating a frenzied hoarde of Bat-fans.

HMV coaxed potential shoppers into pre-ordering the epic for £11.99, and throwing in a graphic novel into the bargain, but then subsequently dropped the in-store price for £9.99 in the first week.

The reason? Other than almost betraying the hard-core fans who pre-ordered back in September, the emphasis has shifted from DVD to Blu-ray.

The ultra-cool format boasts increased capacity, allowing shed-loads of special features and numerous times better picture quality, but we've heard this before now, why is it that the shift in marketing has happened now?

Blu-rays war with HDDVD ended earlier this year, with the major film companies who had backed the losing format sheepishly creeping over to Blu-ray, and with Toshiba now having developing new players, the great war is over.

Retailers have waited to strike until Christmas because plenty of people will be forking out on Blu-ray players this year, now that the latest players have the option to connect to the internet to update themselves, and are finally trickling down in price to something affordable.

The Dark Knight was just the vehicle the shops needed to force Blu-ray to the front of people's minds and is currently the highest selling Blu-ray in the USA and UK. Plus it's not just an empty vessel, there's oceans of hot action content and special features to get people's tongues wagging, particularly the Joker's altercation with an articulated lorry and the Batmobile's destruction.

But will it last? DVD is only 10 years old this year and there's little inducation of it going the way of the dodo already. The trouble is that you have to fork out on expensive full HD TVs and 7.1 sound to make it worthwhile and at £25 or so for the titles themselves, the price will have to drop a fair way before the mass market gets on board.

Public perceptions of the format are still positive, but only in another year or so will it be clear how well the retailers Christmas marketing paid off for them in the long run.

For the time being, I'll be looking forward to seeing the film on 'traditional' DVD.

A day at EMPIRE: The World's Biggest Movie Magazine

Well I've made it, the clock has struck 6pm and my first day of work placement at EMPIRE is over.

There's no question it's been overwealming, and perhaps I feel as though I could have accomplished more, but I'm happy with the day, and most importantly, I've enjoyed myself.

My first taste of the industry has been as entertaining as I expected, with stories and comments flying around the office and big Hollywood names being name-checked here and there throughout.

I didn't get off to the best start, having been told to go to the FIRTH floor instead of the FORTH, but there's still time to turn around those first impressions, and everyone I've met is very nice.

I won't (t)witter on about it too much, but there's no signs of the credit crunch dampening people's spirits in this festive Christmas season.

The office, littered with EMPIRE issues as you'd expect, is also complete with a pool table to unwind with, as well as a couple of shiny big screen TVs for those all-important DVD views.

Most impressively though, is the A1 cardboard representations of some of the magazine's most iconic covers, which brought a warm smile to my face as soon as I arrived.

As well as that there seems to be a large amount of Star Wars related things lying around, fingers crossed that my new T-shirt in the same vein will make a good impression later in the week.

Stay tuned for more.