Lesson 8   Movies / Books

 My brother is a huge fan of movies. When he sees a movie trailer (a short video offering a preview of the movie), he counts down the days until the movie comes out. He always goes to the movie theater on opening night – that’s the first day a movie, show, concert, or performance is open to the public. He also loves to analyze the film critics’ reviews (the evaluations of the people whose job is to analyze movies) and tries to guess which movies will be nominated for an award.

One of his favorite movie stars (famous actors/actresses) will be starring in an upcoming film about the Vietnam War. It’s based on a true story, and they’re shooting the film on-site in Vietnam – that means they will be recording/filming the movie in the same location as the story occurs.

This particular actor had been talking about retiring, but when he was offered the leading role (the opportunity to play the most important part in a movie) in a film that’s sure to be a box-office hit (a movie that is very successful) he couldn’t turn it down.

I, on the other hand, prefer books. I’m currently engrossed in a book by Stieg Larsson (the book is taking all my attention) – it’s the final part of a trilogy, and I can’t wait to see how things turn out for the main character (the most important person in the book). I already have a huge collection of books, and I also borrow books from the library.

One book I took out last week deals with modern feminism and motherhood. It’s a bit of a controversial topic, but it’s an interesting and enjoyable read. I’m not sure I’ll have time to finish it before I have to return the book to the library. Maybe I’ll renew it for another week – that means to get an extension of the length of time I can keep the book.

Note: We talk about the beginning and end of a book, story, or film (not the “start and finish”). The first and last parts of a story can also be called the opening and closing scenes (in a movie) or the opening and closing chapters (in a book).

Lesson 8 Movies / Books
Quiz

Choose the best word to complete each sentence:

1. A movie from an amateur filmmaker was ………………for three awards at an international film festival.
a) based           b) nominated             c) presented
2. Did you see the ……………………for the new Star Wars movie? It looks like it’ll be awesome!

a) trailer          b) trilogy                    c) theater
3. The opening …………………..of the movie is very violent.

a) chapter       b) genre                      c) scene
4. I didn’t like the ………………..of the movie; it just didn’t seem believable.

a) close           b) end                          c) finish
5. I enjoyed the book because I could really identify with the main……………………..

a) character   b) role                          c) star

6. It was a very moving film – and it was based on a …………………story.
a) factual       b) real                          c) true

7. It’s an enjoyable.……………., written in a humorous and relatable style.
a) page          b) read                         c) scene

8. Oh no! I lost a book that I …………………from the library.
a) borrowed  b) loaned                     c) returned

9. The documentary deals with a number of ………………..topics.
a) controversial  b) debatable         c) polemic

10. The first movie was excellent, but the sequel got mediocre……………………
a) analyses          b) critics                c) reviews

11. The movie Titanic …………………. Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet.
a) hits                  b) shoots               c) stars

12.We couldn’t get a ticket for …………………. night – they were all sold out.
a) initial              b) opening             c) beginning