TALKING ABOUT MOVIES, -ED / -ING ADJECTIVES, EXTREME ADJECTIVES

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Lucinda Woods
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In 2009 the Japanese horror movie, Grotesque, directed by Koji Shiraishi, was banned from cinemas in the UK.

1 Movie Violence Think of a few movies that you have seen recently. Now count how many of them featured weapons and death. It s pretty difficult to think of any movies that do not contain at least some guns or violence. So how much violence do we rea$y want or need in the movies we watch? In 2009 the Japanese horror movie, Grotesque, directed by Koji Shiraishi, was banned from cinemas in the UK. Censors believed that Grotesque was too violent and could have a bad influence on its audience. In the UK, films must be watched by the BBFC (British Board of Film Certification) and given a certificate before they are released at the cinema. Certificates show who is allowed to watch the movie. The certificates are U, PG, 12, 15, 18. U (Universal) = anyone can watch PG (Parental Guidance) = anyone can watch with parents permission 12 Certificate = you must be twelve years old 15 Certificate = you must be fifteen years old 18 Certificate = you must be over 18 to watch It is rare for a movie not to get a certificate. If a movie gets no certificate then it is illegal to show or sell the movie in the UK. Most big blockbuster action movies contain some gratuitous sex or violence, but can almost always get at least an 18 certification. Sometimes the movies are edited to make them more suitable for a cinema release. However, a lot of other movies, some by famous directors or featuring Hollywood stars, have also been banned from our screens in the past. Stanley Kubrick s A Clockwork Orange is an infamous cult movie now, but when it was first released it was banned by the BBFC. So it seems the amount of violence we are prepared to put up with in our movies is constantly changing. Preparatory Reading 1. What movie was banned in the UK in 2009? 2. What does it mean if a film gets no certificate? 3. Find a word that means the same as the following: a big money movie!! a filmmaker!!! an official paper!!! against the law!!! famous for a bad reason! unnecessary!!! 5. Use words from the article to complete the following sentences I think smoking should be in public places. Video games have a bad on young kids. Horror movies contain too much. Everyone knows this serial killer. The banned the movie. 6. What do you think about violent movies?

2 A - Discussion Questions: Talk with your partner 1. Have you seen a movie recently? How was it? 2. What is your favorite movie? Why? 3. How many movie genres can you name? B - Mingling Activity: Stand up and ask questions of your classmates Ask questions to your classmates. If your classmate answers Yes write his or her name and ask some more questions. Name Find someone who... Details has seen a movie recently loves big blockbuster movies can t stand violent movies likes horror movies likes small independent movies has a favorite movie star prefers the movie theatre to DVDs has a favorite movie director C - Vocabulary: Match the words to their meaning 1. A lot of movie violence is very gratuitous. 2. Violent video games have a bad influence on kids. 3. It wasn t just hot in India; it was absolutely boiling. 4. The Harry Potter books are great escapism for reading on the train. 5. Titanic was an amazing blockbuster movie. 6. I didn t do anything at the weekend. It totally sucked. 7. That sci-fi movie had great special effects, but the story wasn t great. 8. Wearing those short pants with a shirt and tie looks completely ridiculous. a. unrealistic fun b. visual movie tricks c. totally d. a big, expensive movie e. wasn t good f. unnecessary g. effect h. doesn t make sense / laughable

3 C - Conversation: Use the words to fill the gaps Ask your partner these questions. Don t forget to ask follow up questions to make your conversation interesting. blockbuster escapism absolutely sucked gratuitous ridiculous influence special effects IZUMI: Hey, by the way, I went to see that new Schwarzenegger movie last night. DAVID: Oh, really. It s supposed to be brilliant - a must-see. I heard it s got amazing special effects. What did you think? IZUMI: Well, to be honest, it kind of. It s got a famous director, but it s just another big. You know, lots of big-name stars and expensive. Kiss, kiss; bang, bang. DAVID: Sounds good to me. What s it about? IZUMI: Well, the story s kind of. It s about a robot from the future who comes back in time to kill people. It s directed by Jones Cameron. Usually I like his movies, but this just had too much violence for me. And, to be honest, I was bored. DAVID: Oh, I quite like violent movies. It s just a bit of. I can forget about my boring real life for a couple of hours. IZUMI: Well, personally, I think movies like that can have a very bad on people. It certainly had a bad effect on me: I fell asleep. Comprehension Questions 1. What movie did Izumi see? 2. What did she think of it? 3. Who directed the movie? 4. Why does David like escapist movies? Personalization Questions 1. What movie have you heard is supposed to be good? 2. What movie is a must-see? 3. What movie kind of sucked? 4. What movie is great escapist entertainment? 5. What movie do you think is a bad influence?

4 D - Language Focus: -ed / -ing Adjectives ed / -ing adjectives The movie was boring. I didn t like it. I was bored. -ing adjectives describe people, things or events -ed adjectives express emotion/feelings Place the adjectives in the right space to complete the sentences. 1. That movie was really. It was really predictable so the ending was really. (disappointing / disappointed) 2. I m really about my trip to New Zealand. I m going to try bungee jumping. It s going to be so. (exciting / excited) 3. John s a really guy. The only problem is he never listens. He s never in what I have to say. (interesting / interested) 4. Something really happened earlier. I went into the wrong bathroom. I was so. (embarrassed / embarrassing) 5. The horror movie was great, but it was. My girlfriend wasn t scared at all, but I was absolutely. (terrifying / terrified) Complete the sentences. 1. I think is exciting. 2. I think is terrifying. 3. I think is boring. 4. I think is frightening. 5. I think is relaxing. What do you think of: Opera? Rock Music? Old Movies? University Life? Comic Books? TV Comedy Shows? Now tell your partner your opinions. I think opera is absolutely fascinating.

E - Express Yourself Expressing Opinions with Extreme Adjectives It was very good. < It was absolutely excellent. It was quite bad < It was utterly terrible Use very with weak adjectives.

5 E - Express Yourself Expressing Opinions with Extreme Adjectives It was very good. < It was absolutely excellent. It was quite bad < It was utterly terrible Use very with weak adjectives. Use absolutely with extreme adjectives. 1 2 Match the adjective with its extreme adjective. bad brilliant impressive tedious pretty thrilling boring spectacular good stunning big fascinating exciting hilarious small enormous funny terrible interesting tiny Find and circle the extreme adjectives in this movie review. Avatar is the most successful blockbuster movie of all time. It made an enormous amount of money at the box-office. It is a spectacular science fiction adventure movie. It was directed by the excellent James Cameron and released in It s about a war between humans and some large blue aliens. The war is on the alien planet of Pandora. The humans want to get the planet s natural resources and the aliens want to protect their home. Although the story is rather hackneyed, the 3-D computer graphic effects are absolutely amazing. The CG alien world of Pandora, with its floating mountains and bioluminescent jungles, is totally stunning. I couldn t really take seriously the love scenes between the giant blue aliens. In fact, they were pretty hilarious. But, overall, it is an incredible cinematic adventure. 3 4 Fill in the gaps in the sentences. Then explain your opinion to your partner. 1. was absolutely brilliant. 4. has spectacular SFX. 2. totally sucked. 5. was totally hilarious. 3. was utterly. 6. is really tedious. Agree or disagree with each comment. Discuss in your group: 1. Horror movies are absolutely brilliant, especially completely terrifying ones. 2. Spectacular special effects are more important than a good story. 3. Most Hollywood comedy movies are absolutely hilarious. 4. It is important for female movie stars to be absolutely stunning.

6 Final Discussion 1. What did you think of the topics in this unit? 2. What new words have you learned? 3. What would you like to get more practice with? Project Work Prepare a presentation on this topic: A Movie Review. Go to to print the presentation preparation worksheet. Review Movie Crossword Read the clues and fill in the puzzle ! IN THIS UNIT YOU: 1. talked about movies 2. reviewed -ed / -ing adjectives 3. practiced using extreme adjectives Across 1. It was terrible. It totally! 3. I went into the wrong bathroom. I was so! 6. Some movies have too much violence. 10. It was so funny. Absolutely! 11. Small? It was tiny! 12. Unrealistic fiction in books or movies. 13. Someone who decides what can be shown in a movie. Down 1. A famous movie actor. 2. A person who makes movies. 4. A big-money movie. 5. Visual movie tricks (two words). 7. It was so scary. Absolutely! 8. A scary movie. 9. Some violent movies can have a bad on kids. At you can find plenty more exercises and activities to practice this English.

A Magical Vacation? Preparatory Reading TALKING ABOUT TRAVEL, PAST SIMPLE TENSE ADJECTIVES, ASKING FOLLOW-UP QUESTIONS

A Magical Vacation? Preparatory Reading TALKING ABOUT TRAVEL, PAST SIMPLE TENSE ADJECTIVES, ASKING FOLLOW-UP QUESTIONS TALKING ABOUT TRAVEL, PAST SIMPLE TENSE ADJECTIVES, ASKING FOLLOW-UP QUESTIONS A Magical Vacation? Last year I went on the most wonderful vacation. I m a huge fan of the Harry Potter books and movies,