I just viewed the 1958 film, Le deuxième souffle (Second Wind). French films frequently leave the viewer with a sense of "I wondered what happened?" But this film leaves few loose ends. Gangsters in Marseille and Paris battle it out over trust, honor, and of course making a lot of money. The plot begins with a prison escape and proceeds to the logical conclusion of a bloodbath a la Capone style. The release date of this black and white film is 2007 (I found it on netflix). As for understanding the language as a beginner, this one is quite good. There is some gangster jargon and bad words, but frankly the English subtitles have more American gangster jargon than the French probably does. The speech is very clear, which is amazing since the film is largely made in the outdoors with a background of train whistles, traffic and strong winds. I like to view old French films in part because, as in this case, one can see what Marseilles, Paris, and Provence looked like in 1958. The film feels very authentic.
My homework is done... I can go out and play now.
The only DVD I have so far, is "Au Revoir Les Enfants" and I went crazy and bought the English and french books of the screenplay. Still, not a lot of money, as everything is second hand.
ReplyDeleteI first read the English book, then I watched the movie picking out as much french as I could.
I did not do very well, as the actors do not enunciate for students, they just speak as if they are on the street (which is authentic/good).
I then read the French book, and watched again, picking out more French. This movie might be a challenge. It is a sad story, and the actors are all good. The scenes have a depressing quality and you know from the beginning that something bad is going to happen.
I'm glad to you find are interested in improving your French with movies. In this blog I try to point out films I've found in which language and sound is good for beginners. Nobody really speaks as slowly as we hear in a classroom. The more you do this, the more comfortable you will become. Relax and enjoy and let your subconscious do the work.
ReplyDeleteIn the last year and a half I have been watching French films frequently, for the first year of studying French I watched a different one virtually every night, so now I have seen hundreds. I can tell you from this experience that it will seem like you are not catching any of the French at first. But with consistent viewing your ear begins to hear a few words, then you get the "gist" more and more without understanding every word. I struggle to hear the pronouns which are essential to catch if you want to know "who did what to whom". The process of learning to understand French by ear is more difficult than reading French, but obviously it's essential for when you get to Quebec, France or some other French speaking area.
Strangely, my efforts in viewing films to practice understanding French have made it possible for me to follow Spanish better... and I have never formally studied Spanish. So the listening skills acquired in the process has a big pay off. As for the Spanish, it simply doesn't liaison like French and there are a lot of words in common with French and English.