@C.C. 95
There's no easy answer to your question. I have been trying to make sense of the issue of forced sub-titles on French releases since the days of DVD. Fortunately, it is less common today than it used to be but it still occurs. There are no hard and fast rules due to the number of exceptions that apply. At best, the following should be thought of as a guide.
Releases from the big multinational studios, Sony, Universal, Paramount, Fox, MGM, Disney and Warner
tend to have optional rather than forced sub-titles. Where the disc has
multiple sub-title options, it can be taken as given that
none of them will be forced.
Although most releases from the multinationals will conform to the above, there are exceptions, principally with regard to releases designed
specifically for the French market. Such examples include Warner's releases of "Dance of the Vampires" (aka "The Fearless Vampire Killers") and "The Artist" both of which have forced sub-titles.
Alone of the big multinational studios, Studio Canal releases
tend to have forced rather than optional sub-titles. There are exceptions, however, including their releases of "Serpico" and "The Howling", both of which have optional rather than forced sub-titles.
The situation regarding releases from the specifically French companies is even less clear cut. Those from Pathe, M6, Metropolitan, Carlotta and Gaumont
tend to have optional sub-titles, whereas those from Europa, Wild Side, TF1, Seven7, Filmedia, BAC and Sidonis tend to have forced sub-titles. Even here, there are exceptions. "Apocalypse Now" (Pathe) and "Immortals" (Metropolitan) have forced sub-titles, whereas "Johnny Mad Dog" (TF1) has optional sub-titles.
A 'French Forced Subtitles Master List' is available on the BD site. Unfortunately, it is only infrequently updated these days.
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