Hace mucho tiempo, en una galaxia muy, muy lejana...

Question

Long ago, in a galaxy far, far away...

Tonight I'm watching El Imperio Contraataca, The Empire Strikes Back, in Spanish. If anyone hasn't discovered it, yet, many DVD's have the option of a Spanish soundtrack. I find this a good exercise, and more interesting than telenovelas. They tend to be not too difficult to understand, too, since you usually already know what they're saying in English. You can also cheat and turn on the subtitles, English or Spanish, if you want to.

I do this all the time. - Lrtward, JUN 11, 2010

Answer 1

This is a fun way to work on your listening skills...with the crutch of the subtitles if needed.

Answer 2

This is one of my favorite ways to practice listening to Spanish. As you said, you already know the plot, so if you miss a phrase here or there you're not left bewildered.

I find that frequently the subtitles are different from the spoken word, so I prefer to watch the movie once or twice (or more, jeje) and get a good understanding of the spoken dialogue. Then I turn on the subtitles and that helps me with synonyms and alternative ways of saying the same thing.

If I turn the subtitles on the first time I watch the movie, trying to process the spoken and written Spanish overloads my brain.

I find Avatar easy to understand.

I watched Rain Man and found it quite difficult.

March of the Penguins was super easy.

It's funny how the Spanish soundtrack and Spanish subtitles don't match. You'd think they were translated independently sometimes. - KevinB, JUN 11, 2010

Answer 3

Thanks, Kevin! I always appreciate new suggestions for movies that have a Spanish soundtrack.

Answer 4

Great idea. Gracias