Is there any way to search for DVDs based on which subtitles are available?

December 13, 2003 7:52 AM

I need to find a DVD with Korean subtitles. Is there any way to search for DVDs based on which subtitles are available? As a second option, can anyone recommend any good Korean-language films?

It is a present for my boyfriend's parents, and ideally we'd be able to find a new-ish hollywood release with Korean subtitles available, but aside from searching the back of every box in the store, I've been told there's no quick way of finding which DVDs offer this option.

posted by nprigoda to grab bag (7 comments total)

Start here. There are plenty of links to Asian DVD sellers.

I'm sure you'll find something there to your liking.
posted by MegoSteve at 9:56 AM on December 13, 2003

You could just do an eBay search for "dvd korean subtitles".
posted by dobbs at 10:28 AM on December 13, 2003

koreanfilm.org is one of the best resources for Korean films.

Joint Security Area is one of the best films I've seen period, a great looking Hollywood style military thriller, but any Korean would already be familiar with it. The Gingko Bed from a few years ago is also very good.
posted by bobo123 at 10:46 AM on December 13, 2003

I got a Region 0 NTSC DVD of La Haine from Korea that had Korean titles, not that the English ones were very good.
posted by joeclark at 3:04 PM on December 13, 2003

I saw 'Scandal' last week, which is a recent Korean-historical remake of 'Les Liaisons Dangereuse'. Quite good, but might be a bit on the sexy side, for the parents.
posted by stavrosthewonderchicken at 6:23 PM on December 13, 2003

Thanks everyone! This was way more feedback than I expected.
I also discovered that it is possible to search the amazon.com DVDs by subtitle language from their advanced search page.
posted by nprigoda at 6:55 PM on December 13, 2003

A tip: Columbia/Sony/TriStar is the only major Hollywood studio that seems to release region 1 DVDs with Korean subtitles (but not always).
posted by EatenByAGrue at 6:58 PM on December 15, 2003