Exercise 1.
Read the film review.
«Must – have» DVDs: Cinema Paradiso: 1989
Cinema Paradiso was directed by Giuseppe
Tornatore. It stars Philippe Noiret as Alfredo, and Salvatore Cascio, who
plays the part of the boy. The film won an Oscar in 1989 for Best Foreign
Language film.
The film is set in an Italian village in the 1940s and
50s. It was filmed on location in Sicily.
The film is about a little boy called Salvatore who ends
up becoming a famous film director. At the beginning of the film, he goes
back to his village for the first time in thirty years, for the funeral of an
old friend, Alfredo. The rest of the film is a «flashback» about his
childhood. In his village there is only one cinema, called Cinema Paradiso.
Salvatore is crazy about films so he spends all his time there. He becomes
friends with Alfredo, the man who shows the films and later he works as his
assistant. But when he is a teenager he leaves the village and goes to work
in Rome, and in the end he becomes a famous director. He never sees Alfredo
again.
I strongly recommend Cinema Paradiso. It makes you laugh
and cry, it has a memorable soundtrack, and it is a moving tribute to the
magic of the early days of cinema.
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Write a film review about a film you would
recommend people to buy on DVD.
Plan what you`re going to write in the four
paragraphs:
Paragraph 1 – The name of the film, the
director, the stars, and any prizes it won.
Paragraph 2 – Where and when it was set.
Paragraph 3 – The plot.
Paragraph 4 – Why you recommend this film.
Check the review for mistakes (grammar,
punctuation and spelling).
Exercise 2.
Read the film review.
One of my favourite films
is one of the Star Wars series. I`ve got the video. It`s an exciting science
fiction film and it`s called The Phantom Menace. It`s the first part of a
trilogy about a boy called Anakin Skywalker.
In this film Anakin is
nine years old and he lives with his mother on planet Tatsin. Strange-looking
creatures rule this planet and Anakin and all the other human beings are
slaves. Anakin`s dream is to become one of the Jedi knights, the brave
guardians of the galaxy, and free his people. One day two Jedi knights land
on Tatsin and Anakin thinks his dream might finally come true.
I enjoy watching this
film because it`s never boring. The story is full of surprises and suspense.
And the action never stops. There are spaceship races, battles with robots
and really exciting fight scenes with the Jedi knights. I like those the
best. Also, the space scenes and the different creatures on the planets are
amazing and they look so real.
You must go to see this
film or get the video. You may not like science fiction but this film is
special. The story is exciting and the scenery and acting are brilliant. And
it`s not just a film for children. All the family should see it. I can`t wait
to see the next two films in the trilogy!
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Write
a review of your favourite film.
Plan what you`re going to write in the four
paragraphs:
Paragraph 1 – Introduce the story. (Type of
film, some background information)
Paragraph 2 – Write the story (Use the Present
Simple)
Paragraph 3 – Give your opinion. (The
actors/the acting, the story, sound track/ special effects)
Paragraph 4 – Reach a conclusion. (Do you
recommend the film? Who should go to see it?)
Check the review for mistakes (grammar,
punctuation and spelling).
Exercise 3.
Read this film review and answer the
questions: What type of film is being described? What characters are
mentioned? What tenses are used? What recommendation does the critic make?
Father of the Bride
Father
of the Bride, directed by Charles Sayer, is a modern remake of the 1950`s
film starring Spencer Tracy. This time, the role of doing father is played by
Steve Martin, and Diane Keaton plays his long-suffering wife.
The story begins with Martin`s daughter announcing her
imminent marriage. Reluctant to see his beloved daughter leave the family
nest, he feels more like he`s losing a daughter than gaining a son-in-law.
As preparations for the big day get started, there
follows a chain of comic events, helped along by the delightful Martin Short,
superb as the wedding organizer for the occasion.
Steve Martin gives just as admirable a performance as
Tracy did in the original film, and brings his own unique brand of humour to
the part.
Father of the Bride is essentially a funny
enjoyable film, suitable for old and young alike. For those of you who like a
good chuckle, it`s well worth going to see.
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Write
a review, in 120-180 words, of a film / book you have recently seen / read.
Plan what you`re going to write in the four
paragraphs:
Paragraph 1 – Background (setting, type of
story, main characters)
Paragraph 2 – Main points of the plot
Paragraph 3 – General comments
Paragraph 4 – Recommendation
Check the review for mistakes (grammar,
punctuation and spelling).
Exercise
4. Look at these films, which are all about sports. Tell your partner anything
you know about them. Do you know any other sports films?
Read the review about the film Coach
Carter and answer the questions.
1. Who
is the main actor in the film?
2. What
happens in the film? Do not write more than three sentences.
3. What
did the writer like most about the film?
4.
Who would the writer recommend the film to?
1. «Coach Carter»
is an American film that was released in 2005. It starts Samuel L. Jackson as
the main character. It is a drama about basketball players at an American
High School.
2. The plot is
really interesting. A new basketball coach arrives at the high school. The
team of students that he works with is not very good. There isn`t much
discipline in the team and so they usually lose. But Carter changes all this.
He`s very strict but the students start to respect him and win matches.
However, Coach Carter has one important rule – if the students don`t get good
marks at school, they can`t play basketball for the team. Carter finds out
that some students never do their homework and fail all their exams. So he
stops the team. Parents, teachers and students are all against him, but he
doesn`t give in. In the end, he wins. The players study harder and the team
wins the cup. It`s the typical happy ending!
3. I really liked
the acting and the screenplay in this film. Samuel L. Jackson, who was in
Pulp Fiction, plays the role of Carter brilliantly. There are no special
effects and the soundtrack, which is basically hip-hop and soul, is nothing
special. But the relationship between the teenagers and coach is very
emotional, especially when you know that it`s a true story.
4.
To sum up, if you are a basketball fan, you`ll love this film.
If you aren`t interested in basketball, you won`t enjoy the match scenes. But
I would still recommend you to see it because the message of the film is very
inspiring.
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Exercise 5.
Match the
paragraphs with the descriptions of their content.
Paragraph 1 a
recommendation to see the film
Paragraph 2 a
summary of the story
Paragraph 3 basic
information about the film
Paragraph 4 the
writer`s opinion of the film
Exercise 6
Look at the
review again and answer the questions.
1. What
tense does the writer use to summarize the plot?
2. Does
the writer mix tenses to write the summary of the plot?
3. Is
the text only a summary of the plot?
4. Does
the writer give reasons and examples for his/her opinions?
Exercise 7
Write a review of your favourite film
or a film you have seen recently. Use the paragraph plan to organize your
ideas.
1. When you write a review of a
book or film, in which order would you put the paragraphs (a-c)?
a. Give
your overall recommendation to other people
b. Give
your opinion, including positive and negative points
c. Give
some information on what the book/film is about and why you chose it
Exercise
8
Read
the review below and check your ideas.
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