TEACHER’S NOTES

21
SPOT THE MISTAKE!
Aim Pre-activity (5–15 minutes)
To revise vocabulary used for talking • Tell the students you saw a film or video last night that you really
critically about films enjoyed and that they must see! (Make sure you have a film in mind
that you can talk about!) Tell them they have to find out what it was by
Language asking you yes / no questions e.g. Is it a comedy? Did it get any Oscars? If it
Vocabulary for different types of film proves too difficult, after a few minutes start giving them clues, e.g. the
or different elements of a film name of the director, the setting.
(blockbuster, screenplay, plot) • If the class enjoys this, they can continue with one of them thinking of
Language used to talk about these a film, either as a whole class or in two or three groups, depending on
(on location, corny, harrowing) the size of the class.
Skills
Reading, speaking Procedure (20–30 minutes)
1 Write on the board The film is a touching human drama with a hilarious
Lesson link performance from the leading actor and ask students what’s wrong with it.
Use after Classbook Lesson 21 (It doesn’t make sense; you probably wouldn’t have a hilarious
performance in this type of film.) Ask them to suggest an adjective that
Materials would be appropriate here (e.g. moving, subtle, restrained).
One copy of the Worksheet per group 2 Tell the class they are going to read some extracts from film reviews
of three or four (or ideally, one per with similar mistakes in the use of vocabulary.
student) 3 Divide the class into teams of three or four and give out the Worksheet.
4 Give a time limit of ten minutes to identify the mistake in each
sentence and think of a way to improve it by using a more appropriate
word or making another type of change to the sentence.
5 Ask each team in turn to identify the mistake in one of the sentences
and suggest an improvement. They get one point for correctly
identifying the mistake and one for a correct alternative suggestion. If a
team cannot answer or gives an unacceptable answer, the question
passes to the next team.
Note You can decide which team has which sentence (e.g. by picking the numbers
out of an envelope) or teams can opt for the sentences they feel most confident
about.

Extension activity
• Students prepare their own Spot the Mistake! sentences using vocabulary
connected with films, either in their teams or individually at home for
use in the following lesson.

Suggested answers 6 Mistake touching performance

Improvement chilling / memorable / great / dreadful
1 Mistake its corny plot 7 Mistake a flop
Improvement gripping / intriguing / exciting Improvement a (box-office) hit / smash
2 Mistake a blockbuster can’t be made on a shoe- 8 Mistake a cult movie suggests it’s not a box
string budget office success
Improvement leave out blockbuster Improvement a cult movie but not a box office
or enormous / collossal / huge budget success
3 Mistake music and score are the same thing 9 Mistake slapstick humour can’t be understated
Improvement change one to screenplay / direction / Improvement understated dry / witty humour
costumes or hilarious slapstick humour
4 Mistake harrowing humour 10 Mistake a trailer is not part of the film
Improvement slapstick / surreal / wacky Improvement action-packed sequences
5 Mistake an original screenplay can’t be an 11 Mistake an overstated performance
adaptation Improvement understated
Improvement leave out original 12 Mistake tedious dialogue
Improvement witty / slick / entertaining

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21
SPOT THE MISTAKE!
Worksheet

1 The film got rave reviews for its corny plot and
memorable performances by the leading actors.
2 His latest film is a blockbuster costume drama
made on a shoe-string budget in Scotland.
3 The film received two Oscar nominations: one for
the music and the other for the score.
4 Children really liked its harrowing humour,
especially in the circus scenes.
5 He won an award for best original screenplay for
his adaptation of the Vonnegut novel.
6 She gives a touching performance as the evil
alien ruler in this sci-fi movie.
7 The film was a flop thanks to its gripping plot and
pacy development.
8 This surreal, off-beat comedy became something
of a cult movie and box office success.
9 Critics appreciated the film for its understated
slapstick humour and quirky dialogue.
10 James Bond films are famous for their action-
packed trailers at the beginning of the film.
11 He gave a moving and overstated performance in
this grim portrayal of wartime existence.
12 Audiences greatly enjoyed this bitter-sweet
romantic comedy with its tedious dialogue.

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