节目资讯
刊物:空中英语教室
日期:2012-11-24
难易度:High
关键字:scriptwriter, comedic, gadget, tuxedo, arsenal
Hi, everybody.
Welcome to Studio Classroom Worldwide.
My name is Steve.
This month we're celebrating 50 years of Bond, James Bond.
You know, that quote, Bonds' signature introduction that he says in every movie,
has become one of the most famous and most loved movie lines ever.
Now more than that quote, though, James Bond himself consistently ranks in the
Top Five list of greatest movie characters of all time.
Let's turn to page 45 and learn why fans, children of fans, grandchildren, and
even great grandchildren of fans can't get enough of 007, the Man of Mystery.
007: Man of Mystery.
The Bond image.
The image of James Bond has changed over the years as different actors and
scriptwriters have brought their own styles to the role.
Bond has been daring, dark, charming and comedic while the themes of the films
range from thrilling to ridiculous.
Sometimes Bond saves the day with his intelligence and spy skills; at other
times, it's an arsenal of advanced technology that saves him.
Whatever the form, it's clear that Bond has been a huge success with audiences.
The films have earned nearly US$13 billion, and the books have sold 100 million
copies worldwide.
Hi, friends.
Thank you for joining us.
My name is Ryan.
That's right.
My name is Kaylah.
Today we're looking at Bond, James Bond.
You might remember 007 and the franchise that has been created around him.
He is probably the most famous spy in the world.
Even though he's a man of mystery, we all know a lot about him.
Yes, we do, that's because from when he was originally written in the 1950s, he
has spread to many different books,
many different movies and into things like comics and video games, and even new
novels written by other authors.
And he has spread to become a cultural phenomena.
That's right.
Many different authors have been writing him.
But if you look at this, Ryan, we say that Bond has been around for 50 years,
and movies started being made about him a long time ago in 1962, so that's at
least like a good 50 years deference.
So one man is not playing Bond all the time.
That's exactly right.
There are different actors that play him in the movies.
So let's take a look at the Bond image; "image" meaning this picture of who he
is.
Now the image of James Bond has changed over the years as different actors and
scriptwriters have brought their own styles to the role.
That's right.
Over the years, there have been different directors of the movies and different
actors as well as different scriptwriters.
Friends, a "scriptwriter" is someone who writes the scripts for movies.
Kaylah, what is a script?
A script is the words that are spoken and the directions of the staging.
So a scriptwriter writes not just for movies but for all kinds of film as well
as television, and as well as live theater shows.
So these people, when you write a character, you bring a different personality
or style to it.
So all these different pieces have made Bond a... kind of a different character
depending on when you're watching him,
but there are some things that never change.
That's right.
There are... Bond has always been daring, he's always been dark and charming.
OK. Dark, we don't mean he's dark-skinned or dark-colored or really moody, means
he is...
Dark, it means he's mysterious.
There's something interesting about him that you can't quite figure out.
Yes. And he is very charming.
That means even though he is dark and mysterious, he still gets people to like
him.
That's right.
"Charming" means people like you, you get them to like you by the way you
interact with them.
Well, he is also comedic.
This brings people to him as well.
What does it mean to be comedic?
If you are "comedic," that means you are funny or humorous.
And he does act in a certain way that sometimes is very funny.
That's right.
Now he's all of these things while the themes of the films range from thrilling
to absolutely ridiculous.
So they "range," that means they change from different areas.
That's right.
And sometimes even during the... during one film, it'll be really awesome and
really cool, and then it'll be totally ridiculous.
That means it's so crazy it probably wouldn't work that way.
That's right. I'm sure a lot of his crazy weapons add to this ridiculous edge.
Well, this sentence is extremely well-written with a lot of expression in it.
So let's take a look with Liz with Grammar on the Go.
Hello, friends.
Welcome to Grammar on the Go.
My name is Liz.
So we've been talking about the famous secret agent James Bond in today's
article.
We read: ... the themes of the films range from thrilling to ridiculous.
That's our Grammar Tip sentence.
Our focus today is on the pattern: to range from something to something.
We use this sentence pattern when we want to talk about how there is a wide
variety of something.
And in the case of today's sentence, the writer is telling us that there is a
wide variety of themes when it comes to James Bond's stories.
OK.
Let's have a look at some example sentences.
Although the grocery store is very small, customers can find goods ranging from
fresh produce tho baby products.
Or: The restaurant offers a wide variety of noodle dishes ranging from Italian
pasta dishes to Chinese chow-mein.
So give this sentence pattern a try.
Think of a place where you can find a wide variety of things and practice using
this sentence pattern.
And if you have a copy of this month's Studio Classroom magazine with you,
be sure to check out today's Grammar Tip section for more example sentences.
That's all the time we have for today.
This is Liz with Grammar on the Go signing off.
Bye-bye.
So Bond films and sometimes the novels can range from thrilling, or really
exciting, to completely ridiculous and crazy.
Sometimes Bond saves the day with his wit and intelligence and his spy skills;
and then at other times, it's completely different.
That's right.
Let's take a look at how he would save the day with his intelligence and spy
skill.
So his intelligence is how smart he is, how he's using the information around
him; and his spy skills, just how good of a spy is he really.
That's right.
So the way that he spies would be the skills that he spies with.
And at other times, instead of using his intelligence and skills, he uses an
arsenal of advanced technology that saves him.
That's right.
He does have a huge arsenal.
An "arsenal" refers to a large selection of weapons, so... or the place that
they are kept.
Now for Bond, we're talking about the different interesting gadgets that he can
use, all those high-tech weapons that he's got.
That's right.
Whatever the form or the way that it happens, friends, it's clear that Bond has
been a huge success with audiences.
Now the films have earned nearly US$13 billion, and the books have sold 100
million copies worldwide.
He is a big hit with audiences.
Let's take a... we'll take a look at why audiences love him so much.
But first, we need to visit the Chat Room.
Excuse me, Ken.
Do you have your cell phone charger with you?
My phone is dead, and I'm expecting an important call.
Ah, hold on.
I think I do. Let me see.
Well, you're in luck.
Here you go.
This is great.
Thanks.
You really save the day, Ken.
I save the day?
What does that mean?
The idiom "save the day" means to prevent something bad from happening.
It can be something big or something small.
So in this case, you save the day by preventing me from missing my call.
I see. But "save the date" means something different, right?
Yes.
When someone tells you to save the date, it means they want you to avoid making
plans on a certain day.
They're usually trying to plan something important for that day, like a wedding,
and they want you to be there.
Hey, recently I've heard a lot of idioms that use the word "save." I wanted to
ask you about another one.
Save one's skin.
Well, that means to stop something bad from happening to someone or to rescue
them from a bad situation they're already in.
So is it the same as saving someone's life?
Not exactly.
Saving someone's life means preventing them from dying.
But "saving their skin" can be used more generally.
For example, you might save a co-worker's skin by helping them finish a project
on time, thereby, saving their job.
OK.
Well, thanks for all the help, Bryan.
This has been a very interesting English lesson.
And thank you, Ken, for lending me your charger.
Now I know I won't miss that important call.