I’m taking a pretty intense beginner/intermediate Spanish class starting today (eek, starting Monday actually, but I had to miss the first class, which is giving me hives) and it’s really conversational, evidently. I want to watch/listen to some stuff to get the sound of the language in my ear and reinforce what we learn in class (and eventually understand it without subtitles, of course.)
So, what’s out there available either through Netflix in Region 1 DVDs or online that’s good to watch for pronunciation, grammar, etc., and that’s followable even if you don’t speak the language? With everyday vocabulary and such, but that’s still really interesting? I canceled my cable a few months ago, so we don’t get any Spanish channels (frankly we didn’t get a ton before, anyway.)
Check the threads, I’m sure there have been a couple within the last year or two dedicated to giving examples of movies in Spanish.
Personally, if you’re starting Spanish, I was wondering more why don’t you pick listening to music instead of film. For once, songs may be sung slower than normal speak. In an effort to be realistic, people in the films will speak fast, in slang, and using regional idioms that native speakers outside their countries wouldn’t get.
Heh… there are more than just slow love songs out there…
Unfortunately, the movies where I do know the titles are Spanish (from Spain) movies… I saw plenty Mexican, Chilean, Argentinian, but I never knew their titles…
IF you’re interested in TV shows, then hands down, considering what I’ve said in recent and other threads, get “El Chapulín Colorado” and “El Chavo del Ocho”. They’re old (from the 70s), and somewhat dated, but they’re still worthwhile, IMHO. Oh yea, and they’re comedy…
If you want a telenovela (see the current thread about Spanish TV), I’m not sure if the old telenovelas, like “Betty La fea” (the original Ugly Betty) are already out on Netflix, but should be worth a try. I HATED that soap opera, mostly because it was all based on the “everyone says she’s ugly because she uses eyeglasses and has braces” trope, which I HATE. But I must admit it was done better than most.
My old guilty pleasure telenovela was “María la del Barrio”… Again, don’t know if available on Netflix…
You don’t have broadcast Spanish TV? Where do you live? We have 3-4 channels here.
Or… some channels have the SAP (second audio program) in Spanish; that’s not a bad idea either.
Or another thing to do might be to pick a movie you do like and have seen several times in English, and watch it on DVD in Spanish (many will let you switch the language).
I’m in South Carolina, which has the fastest growing Spanish speaking population in the nation. I don’t think we have any Spanish broadcast channels, but I don’t know since we can’t get the antenna thing to bring anything in.
If you can find it, I recommend “Cien Mexicanos Dijeron”–literally, “100 Mexicans Said,” but you know it as “The Family Feud.” Heh. It’s excellent in my experience for learning vocabulary.
A question is asked. Didn’t quite hear it? The host will repeat it many times as they ask each person down the line.
Didn’t understand the question? Every answer must fit in the category that matches the question. Correct answers will be posted on the board, so in case you can’t understand accent, you can read it right away.
Don’t know the word? Since it’s on the board and spelled correctly, you can grab your Spanish-English dictionary.
I haven’t watched it in a while–I should. It really is useful for exposing me to vocabulary I might not always interact with, as well as euphenisms and other conversational aspects. Since it’s a game show, those euphenisms are limited so I’m not overwhelmed.
I also strongly recommend reading, as much as you can and can tolerate in the language. I still grab Spanish People every now and then. It used to be my SSR text in class, back when the teachers at my school were permitted to do silent reading. It was a great example, as my Spanish-speakers were reading in English while I was reading in Spanish. At the end of the silent reading time, we’d have a brief discussion–this is where the kids would ask, “What is _____?” And, of course, I’d ask, “Okay, now tell me what is __________.” Shared second language learning is fun.
Oh, I got that covered, at least. I’m a periodicals librarian - we get El Nuevo Herald, which comes with the Miami Herald, we got our young adults covered with LaTeen in Spanglish (and Quince Girl, just in case you want a really tacky party backdrop, although that’s in English all the way), we got Latina with some more of that good old half and half sound, we got People en Espanol and Selecciones de Readers Digest, and Vanidades for luck. The thing is, I have no clue whatsoever who the celebrities in People En Espanol might be.
Wait, what? Music lyrics are notoriously difficult to comprehend. For one, music is basically poetry so you are going to find weird constructions and colloqualisms there too. For another, words are strung together somewhat unnaturally in order to fit the melody. And the pitch is constantly changing, with many of the words entirely inaudible.
I can’t understand half of what people are singing in English-language songs, and I am a native English speaker.
I am not arguing that music lyrics are easy to understand, but I do feel that listening to Spanish language music really did give me the rhythm of the language you seem to be looking for. You are much more likely to find real-life colloquialisms and constructions there than in the classroom. Just print out the lyrics and try to sing along.
Hey, I don’t know why, but Spanish lyrics are way easier to understand than English lyrics. The language in Spanish songs is also (in my opinion) richer poetically, yet more concrete than songs sung in English. For instance, you could simply read the lyrics of many English rock/alternative songs, and still be wondering, “Huh? What was that supposed to be about?” Listening to Spanish rock/pop rarely leaves one confused. Maybe it all boils down to the fact that Spanish is an easier language to rhyme. (Olivesmarch- “Limon y sal” is a great song.
Here’s my suggestion for Spanish language comprehension: just rent American movies you like/have already seen and turn on the Spanish audio. Watching American movies dubbed in Spanish was a big part of how I learned Spanish in Spain. Having already seen the movie, there was no pressure to try to follow the plot and understanding the dialogue was easier. (The humorous side effect was that I ended up with a large action movie vocabulary from watching all those “Die Hards” in Spanish on TV.)
No cheating and turning on English subtitles, though! You can turn on Spanish subtitles- this was how English was taught in college English classes at my Spanish university. The students were ordered to watch Kenneth Branagh’s “Hamlet” with the English dialogue and subtitles.
If I’m suggesting songs, I’m not going to suggest going for the fast rock, ska, fast paced music, reggaetón (although I must admit some reggeatón lyrics are actually gramatically sound and have correct vocabulary)…
But there are plenty of “slow songs” that are not all love songs, and even if they are, they do not just say “Te quiero”… You just have to ask, and like olive showed, you’ll find some.
Zsofia, the people in People in Español are many times singers, of course… See how listening to music can help?
KarlGrenze, it’s really funny - I’ve seen you on these boards for forever, I’ve vaguely known you’re from some sort of Hispanic heritage for a while, but never before have I seen anything in anything you wrote suggesting native Spanish language constructions until you start writing about Spanish media, and then “are many times singers” - isn’t it bizarre how your brain’s language centers work?
By the way, if anybody else needs the same thing, I’m finding the ads in the Spanish magazines to be really easy to read and totally on my vocabulary level, especially since you know the products. Karen E., who is a Puertorriquena, really loves Pantene because it makes her hair so smooth and manageable. Alhia C. from Chile wants ten times the curl control. Valerin L is into the 24 hour volume.
And where do they get these insanely beautiful people? Granted, they have a lot of countries to pick from, but it seems like media personalities in Latin America are much, much more gorgeous than their American equivalents. They also have incredibly beautiful babies. (This whole issue is babies babies babies babies! but then the relationship advice column is “don’t have a baby just to stay together! bad idea!” and then babies babies babies look at the babies!)
I can recommend a couple of movies and TV series but some are argentinian. People often say we speak kind of funny: like italians speaking spanish. With that caveat:
The best advice I can give you is to watch the movies with subtitles in spanish or, if it’s difficult in english, till you are ready. While I had a “formal education”, I learned english playing Monkey Island I and II and watching movies.
God, I feel so stupid and American. Would you believe that out of nine people, eight of whom were there tonight, TWO of them are learning Spanish as a not-second-language? I don’t mean they’ve studied other languages in school like I have, I mean there are two people born in completely different countries who learned English as a second language and THEN went and took a language class IN ENGLISH. Good lord, I cannot even imagine. (My partner for one of the exercises didn’t know what a pinata was. BECAUSE HE IS FROM INDIA. Jesus Christ, I feel like such an ignoramus.)
