Learning French with Movies
Learning French with Movies
What should I be looking for when buying French movies?
Ideally the DVD or Blu-Ray disc you purchase should offer as many French/English dialogue options as possible. This can include English audio with French subtitles, French audio with English subtitles, and French audio only. There are two ways to get these movies:
1. Domestic Market Movies
Popular French films often make it to our shores with English dubbing, or at least English subtitles. Thanks to Quebec’s Francophone population many American-produced movies include French audio tracks, but it’s rarer to find one of these with both French audio and subtitles. You may already have some of these movies in your collection, although the language will be less accurate since the dialog is adapted from English. Major releases will have a large box on the bottom of the back cover that will list the included audio tracks and subtitles.
2. French Market Movies
Video is encoded for different regions to control their worldwide release: France-market DVDs are Region 3 while U.S. and Canadian market discs are Region 1. French Blu-Ray is Region 2 while domestic market products are Region 1. Some off-the-shelf players are region free, although this feature won’t be advertised. Often the only way to tell is to try a disc from a different region. Retailers that specialize in import video will often carry region-free players. Britain has the same region coding as France so most newer French-market movies will include English audio and subtitles.
What are some good movies to learn French from?
1. Le fabuleux destin d’Amélie Poulain: Known as “Amelie” state-side, this is by far the most internationally popular French movie. A young woman does a good deed for a stranger which gets her started helping out friends and neighbors in unusual ways. The other movies on this list may require some searching, but nearly every video store will have a copy of this film on hand.
2. Les Visiteurs: Until “Amelie” came along this was the highest grossing comedy in France. A knight and his squire are accidentally sent to present day France where they must work with their descendants to return to their own time. The interactions these medieval French have with the modern world provide a good base for real-life situations, sort of like an adult “Dora the Explorer.”
3. Banlieue 13: This story of drugs and corruption introduced parkour to the world. Brought to English-speaking audiences under the titles “District 13″ and “District B13,” this is a good movie if you want to learn more earthy language.
4. Delicatessen: A handyman fixing things in an apartment building may sound like the plot of an instructional video, but if this apartment is in a post apocalyptic world where the tenants mysteriously disappear when they don’t pay their rent you have the makings of a great thriller. Like “Les Visiteurs,” its setting lends itself to language that can be useful in real life.
See also: French horror films.
Posted by: admin | 01-03-2011 | 09:01 PM
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