Weekly Lesson Entertaining Films Use your browser's print command to print this lesson |
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Vocabulary
alternative |
A. something which is done in a different way, not done in the normal way |
artsy |
A. extremely artistic, overly artistic, too artistic |
entertaining |
A. something which entertains; amusing and interesting |
hilarious |
A. something which is very funny; something which makes you laugh |
intense |
A. containing strong emotions or feelings |
light |
A. relaxing, amusing, not too intense |
mainstream |
A. something which is usual, or normally done |
superficial |
A. not deep or profound; lacking real content |
suspenseful |
A. something which makes you keep guessing or makes you question how something will end |
thought provoking |
A. something which makes you think |
Vocabulary in Conversation
Use the above vocabulary to fill in the blanks in the following conversation. Your answers can be checked by clicking at the bottom of the page.
Christine: What did you think of the movie? Did you like it?
Sarah: Not really, it was a little too ______________________ for me. It seemed like the director was trying so hard to impress us with strange close-ups and avant-garde dialogue that he forgot to include a story. I thought it was really boring.
Christine: I thought the movie was really ______________________. I love it when a movie makes you think. It's a nice change from the ______________________ dialogue and two-dimensional characters you usually see in films these days.
Sarah: I don't really care for ______________________ films. They are so dark and depressing. The characters are always so ______________________. Why does a movie have to be sad to be deep?
Christine: Yeah, I know what you mean, but ______________________ cinema is nothing but gun fights and exploding cars. I get so sick of movies like that. I prefer movies with substance.
Sarah: But sometimes you don't want to think; sometimes you just want a ______________________ movie. Like that comedy movie with Billy Crystal - that was so ______________________. I laughed so hard that I cried.
Christine: Movies have to be more than ______________________ to me.
Sarah: Did you see that new mystery movie that came out last month? That was so ______________________. I was on the edge of my seat the whole time.
Christine: I loved that movie. The plot was great, and the acting was incredible. I wouldn't be surprised if it were nominated for an Academy Award.
Sarah: Well, at least we agree on something. I guess we'll have to stick to mysteries in the future.
Vocabulary Follow-Up
Use the above vocabulary to fill in the blanks in the following sentences. Your answers can be checked by clicking at the bottom of the page.
1. If we go to a movie, I would like to see a ______________________ comedy. I don't want to have to think - I just want to be entertained.
2. Most movie theaters are primarily interested in making money, so they prefer to show ______________________ movies which have a greater earning potential.
3. There is an ______________________ cinema downtown which specializes in artistic films and foreign language films.
4. That movie was ______________________. I have never laughed so hard in my life.
5. That documentary was just a ______________________ look at the life of Oscar Wilde; it would have been better if they had gone into more depth and fully discussed his early years.
6. Although the story was simple and the acting was average, I thought the movie was still very ______________________.
7. That murder-mystery was fantastic. It was incredibly ______________________ - I had no idea how it would end.
8. That new Swedish film was so ______________________ that we were up all night discussing it.
9. I thought the movie was really strange. Why was half of it in black and white? Why did she keep dreaming in French? I think the whole thing was just a little too ______________________ for me.
10. I don't want to see anything that is too ______________________. Can't we just see a movie which is light and entertaining?
"Get"
Complete the following three texts by filling in the blanks with the appropriate word or words below. Afterwards, guess which kind of movie they are describing.
Use the following words to fill the blanks: scared, to, arrested, through, together, out of, killed, away, into, himself, across, over, cut, back, the end
Types of movies: horror, comedy, romance, action-adventure, mystery, science fiction, musical
1) That was the most exciting movie I have ever seen. I didn't expect for him to get __________________ in the beginning - that really surprised me. Then he got __________________ from the police by jumping out of that moving car. I was surprised that he didn't get __________________ killed. And that chase scene was absolutely unbelievable. When he got __________________ that police helicopter and tried to fly off the island. I love the way he finally got __________________ to London on that cargo ship. That was a great movie!
What kind of movie are they describing ? ______________________________
2) That was so suspenseful. But I didn't really get __________________ of the movie. Why did the waitress get __________________ ? Did she know who the murderer was? And how did Mr. Inglewood get __________________ the restaurant without being seen by the others? When they all got __________________ at the end of the movie to figure out who the killer was, how did the detective know that James was innocent? How did the waiter get __________________ the broken window without getting __________________ by the glass?
What kind of movie are they describing ? ______________________________
3) That was so hilarious! When Janet tried to get __________________ her fear of heights by going to the Empire State Building, I laughed so hard. And then, when she had to get __________________ that really high bridge... That was so funny! My favorite part was when she finally got __________________ the Grand Canyon and she got so __________________ she couldn't even look over the edge. I loved the movie so much that I think I'm going to see it again.
What kind of movie are they describing ? ______________________________
Focus on Verbs
The following passage should be completed by putting the verb in parentheses in one of the present or past tenses. Hint: This is a review of the verb forms used in the last nine weekly lessons. If you are confused, you should refer to the English Page's Verb Tense Tutorial.
Lars: Excuse me, which movie are you waiting for?
Tony: We (wait) ______________________ for the new Stars Wars Phantom Menace movie. In fact, we (wait) ______________________ here for more than five hours.
Lars: Five hours? When did you arrive?
Tony: We (get) ______________________ here at 6:00 o'clock this morning. More than forty people (stand, already) ______________________ here waiting for tickets when we arrived.
Lars: I can't believe that! Are you serious?
Tony: Yeah, people (take) ______________________ Star Wars movies seriously. In fact, this particular showing has been sold out for over a week. We (wait, just) ______________________ in line to get a good seat in the theater.
Lars: When did you buy your tickets?
Tony: I (buy) ______________________ them last week by phone. I (know) ______________________ tickets would be hard to get because I (hear) ______________________ on the news that a group of people in Los Angeles (wait) ______________________ in line for almost a month to buy some.
Lars: I don't believe that!
Tony: It's true. They (camp) ______________________ out in front of Mann's Chinese Theater in Los Angeles for about a month because they (want) ______________________ to be the first people to see the movie.
Weekly Lesson Answers Entertaining Films |
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Vocabulary in Conversation
Christine: What did you think of the movie? Did you like it?
Sarah: Not really, it was a little too artsy for me. It seemed like the director was trying so hard to impress us with strange close-ups and avant-garde dialogue that he forgot to include a story. I thought it was really boring.
Christine: I thought the movie was really thought provoking. I love it when a movie makes you think. It's a nice change from the superficial dialogue and two-dimensional characters you usually see in films these days.
Sarah: I don't really care for alternative films. They are so dark and depressing. The characters are always so intense. Why does a movie have to be sad to be deep?
Christine: Yeah, I know what you mean, but mainstream cinema is nothing but gun fights and exploding cars. I get so sick of movies like that. I prefer movies with substance.
Sarah: But sometimes you don't want to think; sometimes you just want a light movie. Like that comedy movie with Billy Crystal - that was so hilarious. I laughed so hard that I cried.
Christine: Movies have to be more than entertaining to me.
Sarah: Did you see that new mystery movie that came out last month? That was so suspenseful. I was on the edge of my seat the whole time.
Christine: I loved that movie. The plot was great, and the acting was incredible. I wouldn't be surprised if it were nominated for an Academy Award.
Sarah: Well, at least we agree on something. I guess we'll have to stick to mysteries in the future.
Vocabulary Follow-Up
1. If we go to a movie, I would like to see a light comedy. I don't want to have to think - I just want to be entertained.
2. Most movie theaters are primarily interested in making money, so they prefer to show mainstream movies which have a greater earning potential.
3. There is an alternative cinema downtown which specializes in artistic films and foreign language films.
4. That movie was hilarious. I have never laughed so hard in my life.
5. That documentary was just a superficial look at the life of Oscar Wilde; it would have been better if they had gone into more depth and fully discussed his early years.
6. Although the story was simple and the acting was average, I thought the movie was still very entertaining.
7. That murder-mystery was fantastic. It was incredibly suspenseful - I had no idea how it would end.
8. That new Swedish film was so thought provoking that we were up all night discussing it.
9. I thought the movie was really strange. Why was half of it in black and white? Why did she keep dreaming in French? I think the whole thing was just a little too artsy for me.
10. I don't want to see anything that is too intense. Can't we just see a movie which is light and entertaining?
"Get"
1) That was the most exciting movie I have ever seen. I didn't expect for him to get arrested in the beginning - that really surprised me. Then he got away from the police by jumping out of that moving car. I was surprised that he didn't get himself killed. And that chase scene was absolutely unbelievable. When he got into that police helicopter and tried to fly off the island. I love the way he finally got back to London on that cargo ship. That was a great movie!
What kind of movie are they describing ? action-adventure
2) That was so suspenseful. But I didn't really get the end of the movie. Why did the waitress get killed ? Did she know who the murderer was? And how did Mr. Inglewood get out of the restaurant without being seen by the others? When they all got together at the end of the movie to figure out who the killer was, how did the detective know that James was innocent? How did the waiter get through the broken window without getting cut by the glass?
What kind of movie are they describing ? mystery or murder-mystery
3) That was so hilarious! When Janet tried to get over her fear of heights by going to the Empire State Building, I laughed so hard. And then, when she had to get across that really high bridge... That was so funny! My favorite part was when she finally got to the Grand Canyon and she got so scared she couldn't even look over the edge. I loved the movie so much that I think I'm going to see it again.
What kind of movie are they describing ? comedy
Focus on Verbs
Lars: Excuse me, which movie are you waiting for?
Tony: We (wait) are waiting for the new Stars Wars Phantom Menace movie. In fact, we (wait) have been waiting here for more than five hours.
Lars: Five hours? When did you arrive?
Tony: We (get) got here at 6:00 o'clock this morning. More than forty people (stand, already) were already standing here waiting for tickets when we arrived.
Lars: I can't believe that! Are you serious?
Tony: Yeah, people (take) take Star Wars movies seriously. In fact, this particular showing has been sold out for over a week. We (wait, just) are just waiting in line to get a good seat in the theater.
Lars: When did you buy your tickets?
Tony: I (buy) bought them last week by phone. I (know) knew tickets would be hard to get because I (hear) had heard on the news that a group of people in Los Angeles (wait) had waited (had had the experience of waiting) in line for almost a month to buy some.
Lars: I don't believe that!
Tony: It's true. They (camp) camped out in front of Mann's Chinese Theater in Los Angeles for about a month because they (want) wanted to be the first people to see the movie.