If the subtitles show weird symbols, the "Encoding" is likely wrong. Open the .srt in Notepad, click Save As , and change the encoding at the bottom to UTF-8 before saving.
Press Ctrl + L to load a subtitle file manually, or drag and drop the .srt file directly onto the player window while the movie is running. subtitle New.Year's.Eve.2011.1080p.720p.BluRay....
If the text appears too early or too late, you can adjust the timing "on the fly" in VLC using keyboard shortcuts: If the subtitles show weird symbols, the "Encoding"