Chinese Reacts to Arrival Dr. Louise Banks Calls General Shang Mandarin Scene

[@JovaniahTau]

“.. War doesn’t make heroes, only orphans and widows”… those words are so powerful🙌🏾

[@jpchan23]

The part about answering the phone with a rude phrase makes sense since you are a top general and getting a call on your personal phone from an unknown number. Also he should sound younger since this is occurring in the past from when we see the actor playing the general.

[@fep_ptcp883]

Only 18 months in the past

[@TowGunner]

@Justin Chan Exactly! Also, he’s about to order an attack on the aliens. Not in the mood for pleasantries.

[@hellomark1]

I just assumed a General would probably have an assistant that would answer his phone, even his private line, especially if he's busy in a time of crisis. Also probably a little rude because they can see it's a foreign number calling a supposedly unlisted and very secure number, again during a point of crisis in the movie.

[@rhuttrho88]

​@@hellomark1Don't assume. When you assume you make an ass........

[@puntabachata]

The General is about to be accused of treason for answering a call from the U.S....

[@AudreyEKim]

The use of the word "general"/"checkmate" could also be a callback to the earlier conversations in the movie about how difficult it would be to teach language to an alien species, and the horrifying implication of teaching aliens language through zero-sum games.

[@tinfoilhomer909]

humans have very context sensitive language, so do dolphins apparently. so I can't imagine the aliens would be any different.

[@chainofheaven]

Amy Adams should have won an Oscar for this role

[@Capitanroy]

Absolutely should have!

[@lucasraines]

I will ALWAYS stand up for Amy Adams because she puts effort into her roles. Not just for the sake of the film but for the accuracy to the character.

[@KalishKovacs]

According to the screenwriter Eric Heisserer, originally this scene was "She speaks in mandarin" in the screenplay and drafts. Denis Villeneuve called up Eric 3 months before filming to ask what the actor says, Eric realised that he actually needed to compose something for that scene in mandarin. It was a disconnect between Eric writing the screenplay, and remembering that someone actually has to speak it, so it can't just be "something in mandarin"

[@donovanhaas7315]

Three Body Problem is one of the best stories I've ever read. Also, Arrival is a beautiful movie, and like Three Body Problem, a wonderful example of the power of human imagination.

[@Pabloinjuanderland]

Loved loved loved that book

[@xuedi]

The TV series was a bit slow tough, the book is for sure better

[@mytho_gameplays]

A year later after your comment, Netflix released the show "3 body problem", how's that? Hahaha, a great show btw! I want to read the book now!

[@MalissiaCreates]

On this comment I will now look into the book

[@PierreMiniggio]

6:07 That 走吧 ahah. Felt like "You were useful to me, cantonese speaking slave, I let you free now !" 🤣

[@ChinesewithJessie]

😂😂😂

[@MrDdz]

He knows he's a lucky guy.

[@ParagonPKC]

This also hurt me 🤕

[@betsyheimburger8251]

Thanks so much! I was trying to figure out what was said in this scene in the movie and all I could find online was the line about war not making heroes… getting the translation for the rest of the conversation was so helpful!

[@chrisschmandt895]

Thank you for this. It makes the ending of the film much more intelligible. I had thought the miracle of Louise speaking the General's wife's dying words was supposed to be miraculous in itself, but now I appreciate that it was the particulars of what she said which changed his mind.

[@DerekJFiedler]

"War doesn't make heros, only orphans and widows." That says a lot, especially for a wife's last words to her husband, the general of the Chinese military. Arrival is one of the most sophisticated stories of our time.

[@herrunsinn774]

06:07 "走吧" as Jessie points her finger into the air. Poor Li... Jessie seems to be saying, "OK... Now go away". Ha ha ha! 😅🤣😂

[@Abdullah_D_Luffy]

I imagine the reason why he answered the phone a little rudely is because she has just dialed the number to a private cell phone of a man who supposed to be the highest ranking military general in all of China during the most stressful time in human history, I imagine maybe that’s why he’s a little less than polite when answering the phone.

[@cheska_yo]

Ted Chiang's work is so good, I recommend that everyone read his stories. Arrival was based on a story that came out of his collection called Stories of Your Life and Others. I wish he released more books! :(

[@michaelwachendorf2096]

Just wanted to say thank you for translating one of my most favorite movies. The acting is amazing the writing perfection. Strongly recommend watching it. Thank you again 😊

[@80LD]

Arrival is one of my favorites! So fun to see you analyze this scene

[@ATBatmanMALS31]

His greeting makes sense in the context of the film. He was contentious on the International stage, through western eyes anyway, and received a phone call from a government line in the United States.

[@kevintipcorn6787]

Such a great movie. You might change your mind about a small part of the video after you watch the whole movie, I can't get into it without spoilers.

[@bradcha5413]

Arrival is such a good movie, you should watch it

[@justteathankyou.3642]

The writer for Arrival (Eric Heisserer) explained that the line about war making widows and orphans was a late addition to the film's script. In earlier versions he just wrote down "she spoke Mandarin" instead of choosing the words. This became a problem when Amy Adams had to get taught the world-saving-lines. Source: kzbin.info/www/bejne/jXW7nZSXbq-jq6s Heisserer had lots of interesting things to say in that video. Video title: How I wrote Arrival Channel name: Behind the Curtain

[@Kmbri]

I have loved this movie for years and had no idea what she was saying. Thank you so much for this.

[@TheOthersparktank]

This is very insightful! Arrival is one of my favorite films. There's a lot of details about linguistics in the movie, especially concerning the alien language. This movie helped understand learning languages while keeping the story entertaining. Hearing how much thought the writers put into the Chinese dialogue is nothing short of amazing. A lot of research went into the script to help create this world with aliens and breaking language barriers. I absolutely love learning how well they formed the Chinese lines for this movie. Thank you so much! I need to watch this movie again.

[@wemustdissent]

I got the sense that the person initially answering the phone is like a secretary not the actual general and the reason they are rude is because its a tense military situation and they are getting a random call from someone in the US so saying "Hello??...Who IS this" makes perfect sense in the context.

[@michaelwachendorf2096]

Thats my thought as well. They were in a more intense position. And the General would be on multiple phones and also be next to his superiors. So some random call on his personal phone would either had to have waited or a personal ad would answer it. This movie was absolutely perfect. The writing perfection and actors and actress perfection. This movie gives me goosebumps.

[@cbailey6587]

OMG thank you for doing this! I finally have the missing conversation! Big hugs from Texas! Thank you so much!!

[@bernardoaguilargt3763]

This is the peak point of one of my very favorite movies ever. Too bad you spoiled it to yourself :) Thank you!

[@michaelcorbett4236]

SPOILER ALERT: What is even better is that at this part she is using a higher linguistic frame, the heptapod language to directly hear words from the future said in a human language that is only linearly temporal. So her brain is speaking in two languages at once: heptapod (to be able to access the future and the present at the same time) and Mandarin to be able to talk to his younger self in the present. That's what people don't realise. She has to speak heptapod in her head.

[@brodypenn]

The way you gasped when she said the final line gave me chills

[@squamish4244]

It's Denis Villeneuve, not surprising that the Mandarin is on point. Like everything else.

[@willvr4]

You're very educational Jessie. I live in NY and try to learn Mandarin from a local shop keeper near me. It's pretty difficult for me because I don't get to use it often enough to retain the information. She's from Fujian but doesn't speak Fujanese.

[@juliangonzalo1185]

Hi Jessie! The reason his voice is different is because he is supposed to be younger. If you watch the movie, its about an event that happened in the past, and time is definitely a factor. Time is what varies the story…

[@_Idolin]

I don't think so. The face-to-face meeting is said to happen 18 months after the phone call, his voice couldn't have changed that much.

[@cesruhf2605]

@@_Idolin nah bruh i have a chinese friend which when he's on a call its literally a different person's voice or maybe im just dumb

[@lucasraines]

@@cesruhf2605 Most likely, the General had a monitored line so that information doesn’t get leaked on accident.

[@RobertShikina]

Thank you! Your translation and nuances in language are so much better than the generic translation posted all over the internet - in war, there are no winners, only widows. that is so lazy. thank you for providing a detailed translation!

[@stormthrush37]

Actually as a wordsmith I kind of like that translation too, which plays on the similarity of those two words. But I think I like the closer to a direct translation one a little better; the "widows and orphans" one emphasizes the human cost to who will be left behind, and for nothing at that, because truth is frequently the first casualty of war, and wars often solve nothing (just look at the Afghanistan war). In effect saying, "This won't just hurt you, it will hurt the many left behind - not soldiers, but women and children. Please don't just think of yourself, but us as well."

[@Jose-bp7fu]

Very good, thanks! Unfortunately the movie don't have translations in the captions

[@demon39063]

side note, Arrival is one of my favorite movies! should definitely watch if you haven't

[@Kjleed13]

It’s so weird to me that Chinese is among the most spoken language in the world and American cinema keeps getting it wrong.

[@tommymarshall69]

I love how she get the boyfriend / hubby in for his movie buff knowledge, then is like "thx now gtfo" 😹

[@raulortiz9962]

Remember that she is calling ti a government private phone that no one only a handfull few should have theres no need to be polite

[@Murderbot2000]

The three body problem was amazing. -a great book.

[@seelianc]

I love this! I speak Cantonese and am looking for some other channels that does what you do in Cantonese. Will definitely subscribe to begin my Mandarin learning!

[@RoseDragoness]

Amazing! There is no translation of the chinesse conversations when I watch the movie, now I know they are interesting and profound words!

[@sdkooutr1148]

¡Por fin! Después de muchos años sé lo que le dijo el General a la Doctora! Tuve que poner los subtitulos del YT al español. ¡Uff, podre dormir en paz! Thanks ❤

[@mikecaetano]

Arrival is really good but a lot of it won't make sense until after the movie ends. A second watch isn't necessary, but it's useful.

[@jasoncoomer1226]

Please be honest... *Did anyone else try to wipe their phone off thinking that little thing in the left hand corner of the wall behind her was a smudge on your screen?*

[@kareneastman9695]

The whole movie is great, But this scene is my favorite.😞The actor's voice is soft and gentle. His performance is so excellent. and Amy Adam's'

[@chadbailey7038]

Definitely recommend watching this film! Great video thank you 🙌🏾

[@Epiousios18]

Great movie, great analysis. Thank you for making this, it was very insightful!

[@AM-el4iv]

Very interesting and helpful thank you. Loved the movie and obviously been intrigued about what the general said to to her. Googling it, I only got "In war, there are no winners, only widows." But I knew there was more to it. Now it makes so much more sense.

[@ErMogo]

Makes sense for that character to answer in an in polite way

[@palvaradinagy6703]

Watched the Chinese version on youtube of SunTee, and yes -- and made me regret I will probably never learn Chinese. Also, much better than the Netflix version, much much better.

[@Peripatetic45]

You're into Science Fiction! I just doubled my fan-ness :D

[@divergentlife493]

Finally translation of this. Not really interested in languages. But I never got the translation for this scene. But yes this is a really great movie. And 3 Body Problem is releasing a new TV series for USA. But I will watch the Chinese version if there's dub or subs.

[@Giovanni_Gabrielli]

hahahah Jessie you dismissed Lee with "....zhou ba!" you are the boss

[@QuizmasterLaw]

Chinese does sometimes use a slight rising tone to mark a question phrase, telephone wei喂 is one example. I haven't figured out a pattern or rule.

[@patriciacalmon13]

Three Body Problem , trrilogy, is one of the best Sfy i've ever read in long time.

[@brian423]

Wow, thank you for this wonderfully informative video. I barely know any Chinese, but I can tell you that in the very next scene, General Shang says "xièxie" to Dr. Banks. I got that.

[@hfsjfc8111]

I've been subscribed to your channel since you did a reaction to the movie Big Trouble in Little China and I have seen some other reactions to movies here, as well, but I know that is not what you regularly do here and Arrival doesn't have much Chinese to hear other than the clips you just saw. I still wouldn't mind seeing a reaction to it here if you could. If not, no problem. It is a great movie to watch. Enjoy.

[@Panxoge]

6:08 The way you send away your husband! Hahahaha wow.

[@leogarfieldsaenz334]

I absolutely love to hear u guys speak

[@markc.7984]

Wow, she is stunning.

[@Leon-xy3qr]

Thank you Jessie, yes, I do learn something new from it

[@smkh2890]

Incredibly helpful! thanks !

[@streaky81]

I could be wrong, but I don't think Amy Adams voices the lines, or maybe it's done in ADR because it doesn't _look_ quite right. She's a linguist so there's an extent to which they have to get it perfect, so somebody else doing the voice or massive amounts of practice it has to be almost perfect at least. Also Tzi Ma is awesome, he's played so many iconic roles - although he is a little bit typecast as "generic Chinese authority figure" - but you play to your strengths I suppose. Also you should watch it - it's all about linguistics and translations etc and is an unmitigated masterpiece.

[@kingoficeage]

Thank you so much!

[@Murderbot2000]

I think it was supposed to be some sort of aide that answered the phone.

[@pianoforte611]

You've probably learned by now, but even though the original writer was Taiwanese American, the entire Chinese general plot-line was made for the movie.

[@braziliyaful]

Thank you for your translation ! So Amy Adams pronounced the sentences in Chinese better than Cantonese actor. As for difference between the 2 male voices, it could have been assistant, who picked up the General's phone. He must be too busy to pick up his own phone every time it rings, especially, at such desperate time.

[@osher87]

Thank you. great video!

[@pierregagnon2666]

😂 😂 😂 You can go now 🫴🏽 don't do Lee like that 😆

[@ciiil8802]

its a crime that there are no translation in english when i watched this film

[@Garfield_Minecraft]

哈咯Jessie！ 我很喜欢你的视频 我订阅了！ 我非常喜欢短视频 lol

[@ChinesewithJessie]

谢谢！长视频和短视频我都会继续做的！

[@SR-kh6yq]

When you mentioned the 三体 TV series, did you mean the Tencent one? Because I know Netflix is also making one (oh and there's also a film?? How many adaptations are coming out??? 😆)

[@ChinesewithJessie]

Yeah, I hope they are all good!

[@homoduplex]

That was interesting, but do you always treat your friend or whatever he is like that? Have you tried "thanks" instead of "you can go now"?

[@josephdonais4778]

Thanks for the analysis. I have only watched the movie 10 times or so and each time it didn't matter what was said. That it was effective was the point. This time watching, I was purely curious. By the way, 6:08 did you just offhandedly dismiss him? 真正的玫瑰有刺 哎哟

[@Aardydarling]

Well the scene is taken out of the context, everything you’re criticizing makes sense in context

[@joaquinesteban686]

Really thanks for the Translate :>

[@manifbaker]

Did you watch the whole movie yet? It’s one of my all time favourites. So cool, and great if you’re into languages and linguistics. Would love to hear if you enjoyed it?

[@cristianrata3708]

Hi Jessie, thanks a lot for you video! Im speak spanish , so in the movie I dont understand any words in chinese! (dont have subtitles) love from chile.. cheers!

[@ZacharyFinch]

You should really watch the movie. It’s amazing. Great video btw!

[@crockurworld]

Phenomenal Content! As Always; You make learning Mandarin/Cantonese fun!! Btw, New look... ❤️ (Chuck R) North Carolina, 🇺🇲

[@2wheeledputter]

For the phone answering could he have been saying 你在 as in 你在吗？as in are you there? I just didn’t here 你是谁in the audio but.. I’m not a native speaker

[@irenesabe]

really appreciate this video, now i'm curious if you watched the movie! a bit sad that you spoiled such an important part for this video tho😢 you really sacrificed for us i'm very thankful

[@yasminejade]

This movie is great. Translating alien's language - Universal Language. But the mandarin speaking scene is funny. Why cant Hollywood hire a descent interpreter or voice actor for that?

[@MalissiaCreates]

Um… they did. As this video proved

[@EfraimNkengurutse]

have you watch it yet ?

[@ottowilson599]

really good video thx

[@TimothyWaldronSemple]

谢谢你的帮忙! 我也喜欢这个电影. 我把这个电影发给了中国政府，所以他们可以看。

[@rapharnold6897]

hey, thankyou so much for the cultural exchange, could you make a video to really learn the idiom? for now im just rewatching and trying to follow along, but seems like they are crucial phrases in case of conflict

[@cthulhuwu_]

Can't believe I missed this video, I loved this movie! Ted Chiang is a good author, although a lot of his stories are more about how people think and behave than the science fiction elements. I loved the Three Body series as well, and I hope you get the chance to do a video on either the Tencent or Netflix adaptation!

[@munjerkucci]

You look great with that hair. Kudos.

[@ZildjianNice]

Estaba viendo la película y justo termine de ver esa escena, la curiosidad "me mato" y tenia que encontrar a alguien que me tradujera la conversación. Gracias!

[@HeidiSanToro]

Great movie 😄

[@jmbii9545]

I love this movie!

[@anderandersson5229]

Have you watched the movie yet? 😊

[@saecula2391]

txx very interesting, as an german I asked me what she was talking about on the phone ... so 06:06 ;o)

[@Balcaceres_Art]

The first analysis is wrong, he sounds rude because in the movie, china is in DEEP tensions with the United States, in fact, in the film- china executed scientists to keep the truth or findings from other nations, and in fact also - it is explained that this is the generals private phone line, this is likely ( as you said someone younger answering the phone) is his lieutenant or someone else answering the phone for him during deep military tensions between the nations. This is why disregard 99% of all analysis in YT - a team of 300 deliberated in this with the writer, and remember, this scene is kept untranslated by design as requested by the writers and Denis villeneueve. Please - IF - I’ll say it again, IF, you’re going to react to this - then “react” to the language only as you are lacking so much of the context of this scene, so any explanation you “may” have exists in a vacuum because you-yourself (as mentioned) didn’t see or understand the whole film. Many foreigners like us speak extremely well fluent mandarin - like Xiaoma, so not only the context (of anything you’re analyzing) AND the language should be explained, both are important and neither is a full picture without the other. To be fair to you - the rest of the video is a correct “react” to the language, but please watch the movies for context and then - analyze

[@busload_uk]

Great translation...but it's a shame the film has kinda been spoiled for you now :-(

[@curtisowen3233]

Great movie!

[@Denis383479256]

that is a point. i know for langvige rus, eng, german and alkogol lang. this frau never learn last one. imho

[@unknownboccher]

我是跟着你的视频学英文哈哈，你英文说的很厉害，感觉很标准，但是又比母语者更好懂😂

[@ZildjianNice]

6:08 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

[@kareneastman9695]

I love Mulan.🙂😲😀

[@MikaelRioux]

You can go now ! lol :)

[@Ksavero777.]

You can go now 😂