Scene from the film "The Pursuit of Happyness" (2006)

(Image from Wiki commons)

Here's a good scene from the 2006 film, The Pursuit of Happyness, about the benefits of staying positive even when things aren't looking so good. Links to the video and lesson plan below.

Video

Lesson Plan

Lvl: Advanced
Subjects: Interviews; Dreams; Determination

Scenes from "Before Sunrise" (1995)

When it comes to films about conversation, it doesn't get much better than this. Richard Linklater's 1995 classic, Before Sunrise. Video clips and lesson plan below.

Video 1

Video 2

Lesson plan

Lvl: Beginner
Subjects: Introductions; Love

Questions for the film "About Time" (2013)

I just recently watched this film and greatly enjoyed it. In fact, I enjoyed it so much that I decided to show it to a class of my students for our final class on film. Here is a simple lesson plan with questions about the contents. Note that there are two video links: the first is for a preview of the film, and the second is a link to the full film on Google Play.

Video (preview)

Video (full on Google Play Store; 300¥ rental)

Lesson plan 

Review lesson 2

This is the second movie review lesson. It covers vocabulary, contents, and grammar from the movies Casablanca, E.T., West Side Story, and Blade Runner.

Lesson

Scenes from the film series "James Bond"

In honor of the newly released James Bond film Spectre, I thought I would do a lesson that introduced the series as a whole, along with some clips from particular films. I'll be honest, there are quite a few Bond films that I either haven't seen or don't fully remember. But many of the characters and character traits are now so ubiquitous that it likely doesn't matter - they will be recognizable anyway. Nevertheless, for those without even this or any knowledge of the Bond series and its legacies, a bit of introduction is necessary. Hopefully this lesson will help do the trick. 

Background lesson plan

Video clip 1: "Bond, James Bond" scene from Dr. No (1962)

Video clip 2: "Enjoy your flight" scene from Moonraker (1979)

Video clip 3: "Certain kind of woman" scene from Skyfall (2012)

Lesson plan 

Elements of a story

"Elements of a Story" is my guide to analyzing the basic and essential points of any narrative. Namely, I include nine points in the guide, including "setting," "characterization," and "plot." The guide works best with fiction, however, I have also incorporated some of its aspects when analyzing non-fiction, and even news and other media stories in class.

In the context of the lessons on this blog, Elements of a Story can be used to aid students in discussing the contents of films and film clips.

Instructions

Scene from the film "The Darjeeling Limited" (2007)

Wes Anderson's The Darjeeling Limited is one of my favorite films. The story beautifuly weaves together themes of family, suffering, grief, and personal growth all against the backdrop of journey and travel. Like some of the director's other films, the characters take center stage while the often fantastical settings (mansions, boats, trains, etc.) are largely symbolic representations of society and the world around us/them. The train in this case offers one of the most tried-and-true metaphors of life as a journey, and yet it by no means comes off as worn or cliche. Rather, it radiates with a simplistic innocence and, thanks to the characters' development by the end of the film, they and the audience can view it in a new light and with newfound appreciation.

Video

Lesson plan