FILMS AND CINEMA

Task 1. Read the text and fill in the table.

We love watching films (= movies in American English) — either on TV, on DVD, downloaded onto our PCs or at the cinema.

What sort of films do you enjoy? You’ve got a lot of genres to choose from: westerns (set in the American Wild West) or spaghetti westerns (those filmed in Italy) to action films (fights, car chases etc.), adventure, travelogues (accounts of travels), animated (cartoons), or horror(lots of blood or ghostly visits). Perhaps you prefer comedy (or ‘romcom’ — romantic comedy) or dramas. Sometimes these are epics (long, historical dramas), adaptations (adapted either from a previous film or from a book or play), sequels (films following the events in the well-known film) or prequels (films preceding the events in the well-known film). What about thrillers (or suspense), or musicals (with song and dance) and science fiction (set in a futuristic world)? Or maybe you prefer the old black and white films, or the classics.

In a celebrity-obsessed world, actors are as famous as politicians (maybe even more so). We like to see our favourite actors playing a character — even a minor character — in films, whether these are in lead roles (=main roles), or supporting roles (not main roles). Every year, the Oscars gives awards to lead actors and supporting actors, but never to the extras (the actors who play people in a crowd, often without a speaking part). We like reading the film credits, firstly to see who’s in the cast (everyone who acted in the film) and if there’s a cameo — a special appearance by a famous actor who’s only in the film for a couple of minutes.

Then we like to see who the director or producer is, the screenwriter who wrote the screenplay (the script that the actors speak) and the composer, who composed the soundtrack (the music background in the film). We’ll read film reviews to find out more about the plot (or storyline) and how good the lighting, cinematography (art of shooting the film) or costumes are. We might even watch a trailer (short extract from the film) to see the special effects.

Task 2. Compare the most popular film genres by filling in the table with the italicized words. Add your example of each genre to the table.

Moving, slow, violent, dull, hilarious, humorous, gripping, frightening, thrilling, light-hearted, sentimental, scary, boring, action-packed, funny, cliché, charming, bloody, brutal, sensitive, intriguing.

Task 3. Choose and review the film using the tables.

Task 4. Read the text. Fill in the gap (1–8) with one suitable word.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1’ Movie Review

(adapted from Rebecca Murray, About.com Guide)

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1 is, as expected, the darkest film of the lot by far. In fact, the setting’s so bleak it’s almost as (1) _______________ our favourite now-nearly-adult wizards have survived the apocalypse and are fighting against all odds to stay alive in a suddenly completely inhospitable world (think The Road, The Book of Eli) And, in a way, they are. Voldemort and his Death Eaters have taken over and the fun days of learning spells, working (2) _______________ wands, playing Quidditch, and hanging (3) _______________ with their Hogwarts schoolmates are just fond memories. Harry, Hermione, and Ron are on a mission to destroy Horcruxes and save not only the wizarding world but innocent muggles in this next to last edition of the blockbuster Harry Potter franchise.

The Bottom Line. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1 has its share of action sequences, and returning director David Yates uses everything at his disposal (4) _______________ make the scenes as seat-grippingly suspenseful as possible. But what sells this film isn’t the occasional battle, it’s — as previously mentioned — the emotional connection we have with the main characters and investment we’ve made (5) _______________ following Harry, Hermione, and Ron’s journey over the years.

The title, Deathly Hallows, just sounds foreboding and the feeling of impending doom looms large over the entire two hours and 27 minutes running time. That said, there are some incredibly funny bits thrown in here and there to lighten the mood, mostly delivered with crackerjack timing by Grint as the ever dependable Ron Weasley. Grint’s got a real future in comedies, if that’s the direction he chooses to go.

The film concentrates (6) _______________ the three teen wizards, with most of the outside news coming through dream sequences, radio broadcasts, and newspaper headlines that flash by quickly onscreen. As with the book, Deathly Hallows narrows the focus of the story to Harry’s preparation for his fight to the death with Voldemort. And director Yates and returning screenwriter Steve Kloves (7) _______________ very few false steps (the pacing’s a bit sluggish about three-quarters of the way in) as they prepare audiences for the final showdown in Part 2 (hitting cinemas next July). But as far as being faithful to Rowling’s vision, Yates and Kloves are entirely respectful of her work and of the millions of Harry Potter fans who’ve been waiting anxiously for the film adaptations to bring Harry Potter to a close.

A slight word of warning for parents of young Harry Potter fans: there are a few more mature moments (in particular one scene involving an intimate moment between two of the main characters in which there’s a fair amount of skin shown) and there are, as there have been in the past, deaths of characters we’ve come to love. Keep that (8) _______________ mind when deciding if the seventh film is appropriate for younger viewers. However, if they’ve read the books, then there’s nothing that should be too shocking in the film.

Grade: A–. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1 was directed by David Yates and is rated PG-13 for some sequences of intense action violence, frightening images and brief sensuality.

Task 5. Your school newspaper’s editor has asked you to review the last film you watched. On a separate sheet of paper write an article that focuses on:

· the genre of the film;

· the setting, the plot and the characters;

· special details of the film;

· general impression.