The audio description...

[Muzer]

...is hilarious! For those who don't know, this is an alternative audio track on the DVD and BD (for me anyway), for blind people - it describes things on screen between dialogue. I thought I'd put it on and see what it's like because in some movies it's been really funny.

In Avatar, the audio description narrator is quite funny - apart from his atrocious Na'vi pronunciation (for words like Na'vi (Narvee), ikran (ick-raahn), the people's names and toruk), when something I'd say is pretty important is happening on the screen, he describes completely random and petty details...

Also, different people read out the Na'vi translations - the actor for Eytukan had me in hysterics - he sounds like a failed movie trailer voiceover guy (with one of those really deep voices).


But it also made the destruction of hometree more effective somehow - not quite sure why, I felt much more emotional when the scene was on.


There are some hilarious descriptions though (like Jake and Neytiri "playing follow-the-leader" on Ikrans - I always thought you needed more than two people to play that game ), you have to listen to it if you ever find yourself bored...

[omängum fra'uti]

I didn't make it past the first Na'vi dialog between Norm and Grace.  I got annoyed that he talked over it.

However it is only an option on the BD.  The DVD doesn't have it.

[Muzer]

Does for me, although I've made a dump of the DVD (my drive is too loud, and I live in a sane country that allows you to do that) - so maybe it's not selectable in the menu but it is an option? I just selected audio track 2, and it gave me description...

[omängum fra'uti]

Nope, it's not even there but not selectable.  I'm playing it using VLC, which can ignore the menus and select whatever video or audio directly.  Audio track 2 is just like track 1, except down-mixed to 2 channels.  The DVD has English (5.1 and 2.0), Spanish & French.  The BD has English (5.1 and 2.0), English descriptive, Spanish, French & Portuguese.

[Muzer]

Maybe it's something to do with the fact that I live in Britain? Maybe our DVDs are slightly different - I didn't notice a 2.1 or 2.0 downmixed track.

[omängum fra'uti]

That's very likely the case; that slightly different releases have different mastering.

It's worth noting that your edition is shorter than ours.  (155 min vs 162)  Not that you're missing any scenes, but it plays back faster.  Since UK television is 25fps, they bump up the movie frame rate of 24 to the video 25, and sometimes frequency shift the audio down to compensate.  In the US they instead do a 3:2 pulldown to keep it at the same rate as in 24fps (Actually 23.976) but play back at 30fps (29.97).  While there is no difference in the size of the video (It's the same number of frames encoded) there is less audio data.  Perhaps room to put in another audio track without detracting too much from everything else.

[Muzer]

Ah, that makes sense - that's why I couldn't get those real Na'vi subtitles someone posted working properly!


EDIT: Yeah, I just noticed there's a PAL version later in the thread.

[omängum fra'uti]

That was me that posted them.  And if those PAL ones work let me know!  You'll be the first report of success or failure.

['Itan Atxur]

Any other funny moments? This sounds awesome.

[Muzer]

During the Palulukan attack scene, he starts randomly describing Jake's teeth (WTF?). Also, when walking with Neytiri he mentions 3 times that the ground glows whenever it is hit, and whilst doing this neglects to mention the bit where Jake nearly falls off the tree.

There are a few other funny descriptions I wrote down somewhere - I'll have to find them, I've forgotten most of them now

[Kätsyín te Zotxekay Tsyal’itan]

During the Palulukan attack scene, he starts randomly describing Jake's teeth (WTF?). Also, when walking with Neytiri he mentions 3 times that the ground glows whenever it is hit, and whilst doing this neglects to mention the bit where Jake nearly falls off the tree.

There are a few other funny descriptions I wrote down somewhere - I'll have to find them, I've forgotten most of them now

Is this on the Blu-Ray or DVD because I can't find the audio description on the DVD

[omängum fra'uti]

It's apparently on some editions of the DVD (PAL perhaps?) but not the US release.  In the US it's on the blu-ray only.

[HTML_Earth]

I've got a PAL version, and it has the descriptive audio track too.

Here's an example of what he says when jake wakes up in the first scene.

Spoiler

"Sooner or later though, you always have to wake up."
"The narrator's eyes blink open in dim-blue half-light. He's shaven-headed and looks around blerely. His mouth is parched. Twin waterdroplets suspended in zero gravity combine into one."
"In cryo you don't dream at all..."

And another funny thing is that sometimes, there's not enough time to describe what's happening on screen before someone starts talking, so the narrator has to speak very fast.

[Muzer]

I just figured out the BEST USE EVER of the audio description.

<@Muzer> I need to do this
<@Muzer> 1) Get the audio feed for Avatar with Audio Description
<@Muzer> 2) Convert to a format my phone will understand [substitute phone here with MP3 player if necessary]
<@Muzer> 3) "Listen to music" with headphones during revision sessions!

[Niwantaw]

now that is what i call a plan

[Muzer]

Just hope I don't start crying during destruction of hometree... or saying aloud some lines (which I will be VERY tempted to do, I am sure)

[Kätsyín te Zotxekay Tsyal’itan]

now that is what i call a plan

Word.

[Meuia te Stxeli Tstew'itan]

That can be interesting

[Kxeyo]

Do it, I want that to.

[Muzer]

Unfortunately, I put it on my phone last night as an Ogg Vorbis, but I don't think my phone expects pieces of "music" to be 2 hours, 40 minutes long, so it failed to play

I'm converting to an MP3 to see if that will fare any better - if not, I'll just split the Ogg Vorbis up...