Film review

1.- Introduction

In this lesson, we are going to examine a film review and look at the evaluative language used in the review.

Look at the following pictures and describe them out loud in as much detail as possible.

 

imagimag

 

2.- Key Vocabulary

In the picture on the right...: en la foto que está la derecha...
In the picture on the left...: en la foto que está a la izquierda...
Wooden (adjective): de madera
Wooden horse: caballo de madera
Crowd: muchedumbre / multitud de personas
Armour: armadura

 

3.- Your turn…

The pictures are from a film. Look at the following questions and answer them out loud using as much detail as possible.

  • What type of film do you think it is?
  • Do you like these types of films?

 

4.- Teacher talk time

You have now had the opportunity to see two pictures. These two pictures have come from a specific film. Do you have any idea what film they are from?

  • They are from the film "Troy".

Your teacher is now going to describe the two pictures in detail. Listen carefully!

5.- Listening

You are now going to hear a film review of Troy. Listen to the film review once and answer the following question.

5.1.- Does the reviewer recommend the film?

Inicia sesión para hacer seguimiento de tus autoevaluaciones
1)
Corregir   Ver Solución   Limpiar

 

5.2.- Now listen again and answer the following questions.

Inicia sesión para hacer seguimiento de tus autoevaluaciones
1)What is the main focus of the book The Iliad?
2)What is the main focus of the film Troy?
3)How does Peterson make the film seem real?
4)Who is the film reviewer´s favourite character? Why?
5)What is the reviewer´s favourite moment in the film?
6)What is the reviewer´s favourite main criticism of the film?
7)What is the reviewer´s overall opinion of the film?
Corregir   Ver Solución   Limpiar

 

5.3.- Look at the tapescript and find all of the adjectives in the text that are used to describe the film and characters. Decide if they have a negative or positive meaning.

(Para ver la solución hacer doble click en texto; un click vuelve a posición original)

cuadro

 

5.4.- Tapescript

Sonido

TROY

A review by Andrew Mansfield

The film Troy, made in 2004, was inspired by Homer’s Iliad, an epic work originally written over 28 centuries ago. Homer’s Iliad describes the horrors and brutality of war. In this modern-day film, however, director Wolfgang Petersen takes a different look at the story – through the eyes of the real people caught up in a terrifying experience.

In order to achieve such realism, Petersen chose to focus on the people, especially the raging Achilles (played by Brad Pitt) and the honourable Hector (Eric Bana). There is much historical detail, impressive recreations of Troy and the wooden horse and more than 2000 ‘extras’. There are also some spectacular battle scenes but the story remains intimate and human.

Both Brad Pitt as Achilles and Peter O’Toole as King Priam have huge presence on the screen but it is Eric Bana as Hector who is brilliant throughout the film. With his nobility and gentle authority, Bana is far more convincing and far more heroic than anyone else. His final confrontation with Achilles is one of the film’s most important moments – the most thrilling fight of all.

The film is long and it has had its criticisms. Some people don’t approve of the differences between Homer’s ‘original’ and what is shown here. But to my mind, although Homer wrote stories based on truth, we don’t know the real truth. The film Troy is another look at those stories. And by focussing on the human angle of this epic story of love and war, in my opinion Petersen has crafted an impressive film.

Extract adapted from Chapter 3, Total English, Student’s book, Upper Intermediate Level (Longman)

 

6.- Pronunciation practice

6.1.- Listen and write the words in the correct column according to the word stress.

honourable / historical / impressive / spectacular / intimate / human
brilliant / gentle / convincing

(Para ver la solución hacer doble click en texto; un click vuelve a posición original)

cuadro1

 

6.2.- Practise saying the words, paying special attention to where the stress falls on the word.


7.- Language Focus – Evaluative Language (Adjectives)

The adjectives that you have examined in this lesson have all been used to describe something/someone. It is very important, when you speak or write in English, that when describing things you don’t simply use the adjectives ‘good’ or ‘nice’. Instead at this level, you should use a range of different adjectives, like the ones we have seen in this lesson.

 

7.1.- Fill in the gaps with one of the adjectives from the list. There may be more than one possibility.

honourable / impressive / spectacular / intimate / brilliant
gentle / convincing / terrifying

Inicia sesión para hacer seguimiento de tus autoevaluaciones
1)I watched the film "Cinderella Man" yesterday and it was (positive)
2)Russell Crowe played the part of an man (positivie)
3)There were lost of fight scenes (positive)
4)Some of the boxing scenes were (negative)
5)He had an relationschip with his wife (positive)
Corregir   Ver Solución   Limpiar

 

8.- Your turn to review a film or book

Talk about a film or book that you have seen /read recently. Answer the following questions and try to include adjectives from exercise 5.3.

  • What was the title of the film?
  • What was the film about?
  • What were its strong points?
  • What were its weak points?
  • Would you recommend the film?

 

Key vocabulary

It’s called…: se llama…
It’s by….: el autor es...
It stars…: tiene como protagonista…
It’s based on…: esta basado en…
It lasts one and a half hours: dura una hora y media
The story is very…: la historia es muy…
It’s about…: trata de...
The best/worst thing about it is...: la peor/mejor cosa es…
One weak point was…: un punto débil fue…
I’d recommend it to anyone who…: lo recomendaría a gente que…

 

 

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