General Listening Quiz

What movie rating systems or guidelines are used in different countries to determine the appropriateness for different audiences? In the United States, the classifications are “G,” “PG,” “PG-13,” “R,” and “NC-17” (See the Motion Picture Association for more details). What rating systems are used to rank the quality of movies?

“a flop” = a bad movie
“Don’t see that movie. It was a real flop. The acting and the special effects were terrible.”

“catch a movie” = watch a movie
“I plan on catching a movie if I get bored over the weekend.”

Listen to the recording and answer the questions. (See transcript)

Here are some words and expressions that appear in the recording:

• doze off (idiom): to fall asleep – (See Idiom Lesson)
  – The little girl began to doze off after spending the whole afternoon at the park.
• bizarre (adjective): strange, absurd, weird
  – His behavior was so bizarre that he lost his job because of it.
• plot (noun): the story of a book, play, or movie
  – I was fascinated by the movie’s plot and sound track.
• admit (verb): accept or acknowledge
  – You must admit that the ending of the movie was a little weak.
• awesome (adjective): fantastic, great, wonderful
  – The movie was awesome. It was the best I have seen in a long time.
• weird (adjective): strange, absurd, unusual
  – The book’s plot was too weird for me, so I returned it to the library.
• fake (adjective): not real, not authentic
  – The scene where the doctor was killed by the shark was so fake. You could easily tell that the shark was just a plastic model.

What do you consider are the most important elements of a movie: the plot, special effects, the leading actors, the moral message, the genre? Share your thoughts with a partner.

Read a review of a popular movie at an online review site. Do you agree with the reviews for those movies you have seen? What makes a good movie? Consider the acting, special effects, plot, supporting cast, and music score. Discuss your opinions on the topic.