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ESL Podcast 802 – Talking About Movies

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1

GLOSSARY

big-budget – very expensive; with a lot of money available for a particular
purpose
* The annual awards ceremony is a big-budget event.

special effects – the interesting or unusual things seen in movies or on TV
shows, usually created by using computer graphics and/or special cameras
* Did they really blow up that building, or was it just special effects?

big-name star – a very well-known celebrity, especially an actor or actress
* We’ve encountered a few big-name stars at nice restaurants around Los
Angeles.

snob – a person who is stuck up; a person who believes he or she is superior to
other people and better than them in some way, especially due to money or class
* Gordon is such a snob! He thinks he’s better than the rest of us just because
he drives a Porsche.

indie – independent, used to refer to music or movies produced without the
financial support of a large production company
* Shanae prefers indie music over pop music or hip hop.

shoestring budget – with a very small amount of money to spend on something,
just enough to make something possible
* Is it possible to go to Europe on a shoestring budget and still have a good time?

production value – the quality of a movie, especially referring to techniques like
lighting, sound, music, and special effects
* The story is great, but the movie had such a low production value that it wasn’t
very enjoyable to watch.

crowd-pleaser – something that many or most people like, but that is not very
sophisticated or artistic
* The comic always starts with a few standard crowd-pleasers before testing out
her new jokes.

predictable – referring to something that one can anticipate and knows what will
happen next and there are no surprises
* Seungyung wants a predictable career in a law firm where he can start as an
associate and eventually become a partner.

English as a Second Language Podcast

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ESL Podcast 802 – Talking About Movies

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2

to stretch the imagination – to be exciting and artistic and to make one start to
believe things that are or seem impossible
* Some of the concepts in high-level math stretch the imagination.

artistic value – a measure of how unique, interesting, beautiful, or impressive
something is, especially something that is different from more common objects or
ideas
* Her landscape paintings are pretty, but there really isn’t much artistic value.
Anyone could paint similar scenes.

artsy – artistic; showing others that one is interested in the arts
* Gillian has always been artsy, creating things that no one else understands.

confused – feeling unclear or uncertain; not able to make a decision or form an
opinion; unable to understand something fully
* I’m confused about my bill. Could you please explain what all these charges
are for?

ambiguity – uncertainty; a lack of precision or definition
* Political candidates often speak with ambiguity when answering reporters’
questions.

I don’t suppose – a phrase used to ask someone something when one believes
the answer will be “no”
* I don’t suppose you want to help me move next weekend instead of going to
see that concert?

blockbuster – a movie that is very popular and makes a lot of money in the
theaters
* How much money did the new blockbuster make last weekend?

variety is the spice of life – a phrase meaning that trying new things or doing
many different things is interesting and good, and the doing or having the same
thing all the time would be boring and uninteresting
* Lyle never orders the same thing twice, because he thinks variety is the spice
of life.

English as a Second Language Podcast

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ESL Podcast 802 – Talking About Movies

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these materials on another website or distributing them in any way is prohibited.

3

COMPREHENSION QUESTIONS

1. Why didn’t Joanna like the movie very much?
a) Because it was too loud.
b) Because it was too expensive.
c) Because it was easy to guess what would happen.

2. Why doesn’t Martin like artsy films?
a) Because he doesn’t understand the stories.
b) Because he likes to see more special effects.
c) Because he doesn’t like to read subtitles.

______________


WHAT ELSE DOES IT MEAN?

stars
The word “star,” in this podcast, means a celebrity or a person who is very
famous, especially an actor, actress, singer, or athlete: “Ilya dreams of becoming
a movie star.” The phrase “to see stars” means to see flashes of light that aren’t
really there, usually because one has been hit in the head: “Wallace saw stars
after that football hit him in the head.” The phrase “to be written in the stars”
describes something that will happen because it is fate or destiny: “The day they
met each other was written in the stars. They fell in love immediately.” Finally,
the phrase “to reach for the stars” means to try to achieve or accomplish
something that is very difficult: “Dynee knows it will be difficult to become an
astronaut, but she is determined to reach for the stars.”

production value
In this podcast, the phrase “production value” means the quality of a movie,
especially referring to techniques like lighting, sound, music, and special effects:
“Unless we can find more money, this film is going to have a really low
production value.” Normally, “production” refers to the process of making or
manufacturing something: “The costs of food production are increasing.” The
phrase “to go out of production” means for a company to stop making something:
“This model will go out of production in the fall when we introduce a new model.”
“To make a production out of (something)” means to create more problems or
trouble than is necessary: “Don’t make a production out of Dan’s birthday. He
just wants a simple celebration.”

English as a Second Language Podcast

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ESL Podcast 802 – Talking About Movies

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these materials on another website or distributing them in any way is prohibited.

4

CULTURE NOTE

Lesser-Known Film Festivals

“Film festivals” are events where many movies are shown to share ideas and
introduce “rising” (becoming more important and gaining popularity) producers.
Some of them, like the Sundance Film Festival we talked about in English Café
8, are very well known. Other film festivals are more unusual and less well
known.

The Slamdance Film Festival was created by a group of “filmmakers” (people
who make movies) who were not accepted into the Sundance Film Festival, so
they created their own event, which “has since” (since then has) become an
annual festival that encourages filmmakers working on unusual projects.

Some film festivals “feature” (show) films in a particular “genre” (type of movie).
For example, there are film festivals that specialize in “horror” (films intended to
scare or frighten audiences). Each year, the Terror Film Festival and the Eerie
Horror Film Festival are held in Philadelphia, and the Screamfest Horror Film
Festival is held in California. These film festivals give “screenwriters” (people
who write scripts for movies) and producers working in the horror genre an
opportunity to “get greater exposure” (to have one’s work seen by more people).

Other film festivals specialize in particular topics. For example, Frameline is an
international “LGBT” (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgenedered) film festival.
The Boston Irish Film Festival promotes Irish films. “Still other” (additional) film
festivals recognize the work of particular groups of producers and screenwriters.
The American Black Film Festival focuses on the work of African American artists
and the San Diego Asian Film Foundation focuses on the work of Asian
American and Asian artists.

______________

Comprehension Questions Correct Answers: 1 – c; 2 – a

English as a Second Language Podcast

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ESL Podcast 802 – Talking About Movies

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these materials on another website or distributing them in any way is prohibited.

5

COMPLETE TRANSCRIPT

Welcome to English as a Second Language Podcast number 802: Talking About
Movies.

This is English as a Second Language Podcast episode 802. I’m your host, Dr.
Jeff McQuillan, coming to you from the Center for Educational Development in
beautiful Los Angeles, California.

Our website is eslpod.com. Go there to download a Learning Guide. Well first,
become a member, and then you can download the Learning Guide.

This episode is all about the movies. Let’s get started.

[start of dialogue]

Martin: What did you think of that movie?

Joanna: It was okay, but I’m not really into big-budget movies with a lot of
special effects and big-name stars.

Martin: Oh, you’re a film snob. I bet you only watch indie films made on a
shoestring budget with low production values.

Joanna: No, that’s not true. I just don’t like crowd-pleasers that are predictable.
I like movies that stretch the imagination and have some artistic value.

Martin: You mean you like those weird movies with no plot and a lot of strange
characters. They’re artsy, but leave you totally confused.

Joanna: I don’t mind some ambiguity, if that’s what you mean.

Martin: Well, I’m going to see the new Spiderboy movie next week. I don’t
suppose you want to come?

Joanna: Spiderboy? I’ve been looking forward to seeing that movie.

Martin: But it’s a big-budget blockbuster.

Joanna: I can’t watch artsy films all the time. Variety is the spice of life, don’t
you think?

English as a Second Language Podcast

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ESL Podcast 802 – Talking About Movies

These materials are copyrighted by the Center for Educational Development (2012). Posting of
these materials on another website or distributing them in any way is prohibited.

6

[end of dialogue]

Martin begins our dialogue by asking Joanna, “What did you think of that movie?”
What was your opinion of that movie? Joanna says, “It was okay, but I’m not
really into big-budget movies.” “To be into (something)” is to like it, to find it
enjoyable or pleasurable. Joanna says she’s not really into big-budget movies.
A “budget” (budget) is the amount of money that you spend on something,
usually it’s a plan of how much you’re going to spend on something. A “big
budget movie” would be a movie that was very expensive to make; it cost millions
and millions of dollars. Well, Joanna doesn’t like big budget movies with a lot of
special effects and big-name stars. “Special effects” in a movie or a television
show are things that nowadays are created by computers – special computer
graphics programs. In the old days, they just used to be very creative about
doing things that aren’t real. You’re not actually seeing something that is real,
you may think it’s real. You may think that a real car is blowing up. Well actually,
sometimes they do blow up cars. But, you may see a building that is being blown
up. Or, when they made Titanic, the movie, they didn’t actually take a real ship
and put it into the ocean – I don’t think. They used special effects; they used
special tricks of the camera and of technology to make it look like that’s what you
were seeing. “Big-name stars” are famous stars; a “star” here means a well-
known actor or actress. “Star” has other meanings in English as well; find some
of those in your Learning Guide – and in the sky!

Martin says, “Oh, you’re a film snob.” Yeah Joanna, you’re a film snob! What’s a
“snob”? A “snob” (snob) – don’t you love the way that word sounds? “Snob,
snob.” I love the sound of the word! Anyway, Joanna’s a film snob. A “snob” is
a person who thinks that their opinion, their tastes are superior or better than
other people, especially things that have to do with artistic style or money.
Someone who’s a snob may say, “Oh, I never eat at McDonald’s, that’s where
poor people eat. That’s where people who don’t have very good taste eat.” That
might be something of a snobbish attitude; we may call you a “food snob.” Martin
is calling Joanna a “film snob,” a movie snob; “film” is just another word for
movie.

Martin says, “I bet you only watch indie films made on a shoestring budget with
low production values.” “Indie” (indie) stands for “independent.” It usually refers
to music or a movie that is made by a small company or a group of individuals,
not a big, large corporation, not one of the what we would call “major studios”
when it comes to movies. It’s not made by one of the large record companies
when it comes to music. Instead, it’s made often with a lot less money by a
much smaller company or group of people. They’re independent of the big film
and movie companies. A “shoestring budget” is a low budget, something that

English as a Second Language Podcast

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ESL Podcast 802 – Talking About Movies

These materials are copyrighted by the Center for Educational Development (2012). Posting of
these materials on another website or distributing them in any way is prohibited.

7

doesn’t cost very much money. “Production values” are the qualities of the
movie itself. It refers to the techniques that are used in the movie: the lighting,
the sound, the music, the special effects. Something that has a low production
value looks like it was made with not very much money. Maybe it doesn’t look as
professional as the movies where they spent millions and millions of dollars on.
That’s a low production value movie. Martin is saying that Joanna only likes
movies that are indie films, made on a shoestring budget, with low production
values.

Joanna says, “that’s not true. I just don’t like crowd-pleasers that are
predictable.” A “crowd-pleaser” is something that many or most people like but
that is perhaps not very sophisticated or not very artistic, especially when it
comes to movies. “Predictable” is something that you can anticipate; you know
what’s going to happen, there are no surprises. If you are watching a romantic
comedy, you know that the man and the women are going to get together at the
end of the movie. That’s predictable; we know that’s going to happen. Joanna
doesn’t like movies that are predictable. She says, “I like movies that stretch the
imagination and have some artistic value.” “To stretch the imagination” means to
make you think of things you might not have thought of before, and to do so in an
exciting and artistic way. By “artistic” I mean something that you would consider
quality, something that is unique or interesting or beautiful, something that is not
just normal or common or predictable.

Martin says, “You mean you like those weird movies with no plot (no story) and a
lot of strange characters (a lot of strange people). They’re artsy, but leave you
totally confused.” When we say a movie is “artsy” (artsy) we mean that it tries to
be artistic. Sometimes this can be a criticism; it sometimes is used to describe a
movie that perhaps tries to be artistic, maybe tries a little bit too hard so that
other parts of the movie, the plot, or the characters are not as important as
making the movie seem like it is an artistic one. Well, that’s what Martin says
Joanna likes. She likes weird movies with no plot – no story, and have a lot of
strange characters. “They’re artsy, but leave you totally (or completely)
confused.” You’re unclear, you’re uncertain, you don’t know exactly what
happened in movie. That’s how I felt about Forrest Gump. I don’t know, I –
maybe I just wasn’t paying attention, maybe I didn’t have enough Coca-Cola that
day that I saw the movie. Kind of – kind of confused by the whole thing. Don’t –
don’t really get it. Didn’t – didn’t really understand why everyone liked that movie
so much, I don’t know. I mean I don’t hate Tom Hanks. You know what I’m
saying? I just – just didn’t like the movie very much. Anyway, Martin thinks that
the movies that Joanna likes would leave you totally confused.

English as a Second Language Podcast

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ESL Podcast 802 – Talking About Movies

These materials are copyrighted by the Center for Educational Development (2012). Posting of
these materials on another website or distributing them in any way is prohibited.

8

Joanna says, “I don’t mind some ambiguity, if that’s what you mean.” “I don’t
mind” means it doesn’t bother me, it’s okay when I have some ambiguity in the
movie. “Ambiguity” (ambiguity) means that it isn’t exactly certain, you’re not sure
what exactly has happened. Having ambiguity is having uncertainty.

Martin says, “Well, I’m going to see the new Spiderboy movie next week. I don’t
suppose you want to come?” That expression, “I don’t suppose” (suppose), is
very common. It’s a phrase used to ask someone something when you think the
answer will be “no,” or you expect the answer to be “no.” You go up to a
beautiful woman and you say, “I don’t suppose you want to dance with me?” And
she says, “Here, on the subway? Probably not.” So the lesson is don’t ask a
beautiful woman to dance with you when you’re riding on the subway! A bar, a
dance club might be a good place to ask that question.

Joanna says, “Spiderboy? I’ve been looking forward to seeing that movie.” I
want to see that movie. Martin says, “But it’s a big-budget blockbuster.” A
“blockbuster movie” is a movie that’s very popular and makes a lot of money.
The – oh, that movie, uh, the one where the kids kill each other. What’s that
called? It’s a new one; this is 2012 if you’re listening to this in the future. And if
you’re listing to this in the past, buy Apple and Google stock! If you’re listening to
this in like 2005-2006, something like that, trust me, you’ll thank me. Anyway,
um, that movie Hunger Games, that’s a blockbuster; that’s a movie that is going
to make, you know, a billion dollars. Well, Martin says that the new movie he
wants to see, Spiderboy, not a real movie, is a blockbuster.

Joanna says, “I can’t watch artsy films all the time.” Martin is surprised Joanna
wants to go and see the movie. She says, “Variety is the spice of life, don’t you
think?” That expression, “variety is the spice of life,” means trying new things or
doing new things, different things is good for you; it’s interesting, it makes your
life more interesting.

Now let’s listen to the dialogue, this time at a normal speed.

[start of dialogue]

Martin: What did you think of that movie?

Joanna: It was okay, but I’m not really into big-budget movies with a lot of
special effects and big-name stars.

Martin: Oh, you’re a film snob. I bet you only watch indie films made on a
shoestring budget with low production values.

English as a Second Language Podcast

www.eslpod.com

ESL Podcast 802 – Talking About Movies

These materials are copyrighted by the Center for Educational Development (2012). Posting of
these materials on another website or distributing them in any way is prohibited.

9

Joanna: No, that’s not true. I just don’t like crowd-pleasers that are predictable.
I like movies that stretch the imagination and have some artistic value.

Martin: You mean you like those weird movies with no plot and a lot of strange
characters. They’re artsy, but leave you totally confused.

Joanna: I don’t mind some ambiguity, if that’s what you mean.

Martin: Well, I’m going to see the new Spiderboy movie next week. I don’t
suppose you want to come?

Joanna: Spiderboy? I’ve been looking forward to seeing that movie.

Martin: But it’s a big-budget blockbuster.

Joanna: I can’t watch artsy films all the time. Variety is the spice of life, don’t
you think?

[end of dialogue]

I’d like to thank our big-name scriptwriter, Dr. Lucy Tse, for her wonderful work.

From Los Angeles, California, I’m Jeff McQuillan. Thank you for listening. Come
back and listen to us again here on ESL Podcast.

English as a Second Language Podcast is written and produced by Dr. Lucy Tse,
hosted by Dr. Jeff McQuillan, copyright 2012 by the Center for Educational
Development.