TALKING ABOUT MOVIES, -ED / -ING ADJECTIVES, EXTREME ADJECTIVES
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) =
PG (Parental Guidance) = 12 Certificate = 15 Certificate =
18 Certificate =
anyone can watch
anyone can watch with parents’ permission
you must be twelve years old
you must be fifteen years old
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 !
!
!
______________
______________
______________
______________
______________
______________
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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?
________________________________________
________________________________________
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TALKING ABOUT MOVIES, -ED / -ING ADJECTIVES, EXTREME ADJECTIVES
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
e. wasn’t good f. unnecessary HTTP://WWW.COLLEGE-ENGLISH.WEEBLY.COM
c. totally
g. effect d. a big, expensive movie
h. doesn’t make sense / laughable
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TALKING ABOUT MOVIES, -ED / -ING ADJECTIVES, EXTREME ADJECTIVES
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 gratuitous
escapism ridiculous absolutely influence 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?
sucked
special effects
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
Personalization 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?
_____________________________________
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?
_____________________________________
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TALKING ABOUT MOVIES, -ED / -ING ADJECTIVES, EXTREME ADJECTIVES
D - Language Focus: -ed / -ing Adjectives
ed / -ing adjectives
The movie was boring.
I didn’t like it. I was bored.
1
-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.
2
3
4
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?
I think opera is absolutely fascinating.
___________________________________________________
___________________________________________________
___________________________________________________
___________________________________________________
___________________________________________________
• Now tell your partner your opinions.
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TALKING ABOUT MOVIES, -ED / -ING ADJECTIVES, EXTREME ADJECTIVES
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
pretty
good
exciting
funny
brilliant
thrilling
stunning
hilarious
terrible
impressive
boring
big small interesting
tedious
spectacular
fascinating
enormous
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 2009. 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
Fill in the gaps in the sentences. Then explain your opinion to your partner.
4
Agree or disagree with each comment. Discuss in your group:
1. _____________ was absolutely brilliant. 2. _____________ totally sucked.
3. _____________ was utterly__________.
4. _____________ has spectacular SFX.
5. _____________ was totally hilarious.
6. _____________ is really tedious.
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.
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TALKING ABOUT MOVIES, -ED / -ING ADJECTIVES, EXTREME ADJECTIVES
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 http://www.college-englishmag.com/ to
print the presentation preparation worksheet.
Review
Movie Crossword
Read the clues and fill in the puzzle.
1
2
6
3
4
5
7
8
9
10
11
12
!
IN THIS UNIT YOU:
1. talked about movies
2. reviewed -ed / -ing adjectives
3. practiced using extreme adjectives
13
Across
Down
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.
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.
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At http://www.college-englishmag.com
you can find plenty more exercises and
activities to practice this English.
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