Tecnica del Doppiaggio Cinematografico. Analisi del Doppiaggio del "Pinocchio" di Benigni negli Stati Uniti

The book deals with the translation and the adaptation of Roberto Benigni's film 'Pinocchio' into English for the American audience. In this case study the whole linguistic and cultural adaptation process, from the draft translation and synch script of the film dialogues to the final dubbed script, is analysed. The film directed and played by the Oscar winner Roberto Benigni was released by Miramax Films in the U.S. and received an English-dubbed soundtrack featuring the voice of some Hollywood stars. Savaged by the American critics, especially because of its dubbed version, the film did not reach the expected success in the United States in spite of its strong promotional push. In this work the 'US theatrical version' of Benigni's film, which is the shortened English dubbed version shown in American theatres, is compared with the longer English dubbed and the subtitled original language versions both contained in the DVD sold in the United States. The analysis is focused on the strong strategy of naturalisation adopted for the creation of the dubbed text. The socio-cultural adaptations occurring in the 'US theatrical version' serve the purpose to adapt this audiovisual text to the different cultural needs and prerequisites of the target audience (children and families) and affect the whole film, involving some evident transformation processes in the plot, in the characters presentation and sometimes even in the original author's message. In particular, the first two chapters of this book are focused on some visual and verbal transformation processes which take place in this version, such as the cutting of some scenes, especially those touching taboo topics (death and violence) and other dark elements belonging to Collodi’s tale and intentionally kept by Benigni in his film; the cutting and the modification of some lines and dialogues containing taboo topics; the additions of lines, dialogues and off-screen voices not belonging to the original version of the film; the substitution of Italian graphic signs with English ones; the transformation of some important characters as a consequence of the modification of their dialogues; the intertextuality of the original film with Collodi’s original tale and the added intertextuality of the dubbed film with Walt Disney animated movie 'Pinocchio'. Finally, this analysis focuses on some typical translation problems, always with reference to the domesticating strategy mentioned, such as the translation of proper and geographical names, of modes of address and power relation, of interjections and exclamations, of vocatives and, more generally, on the difficulties linked to cultural transfer on the screen.