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Practice dictation & shadowing on the Cambridge IELTS 12 Academic Listening Part 3 Test 4.
Cambridge IELTS 12 Academic Listening Test 4 Part 3
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Total Correct Answers:
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Speaker 1 (1)
Joe, you know I'm giving a presentation in our film studies class next week?
Speaker 2 (2)
Yes.
Speaker 1 (3)
Well, could we discuss it? I could do with getting someone else's opinion.
Speaker 2 (4)
Of course, Katie. What are you going to talk about?
Speaker 1 (5)
It's about film adaptations of Shakespeare's plays.
Speaker 1 (6)
I've got very interested in all the different approaches that film directors take.
Speaker 2 (7)
Uh-huh.
Speaker 1 (8)
So I thought I'd start with Giannetti, who's a professor of film and literature.
Speaker 1 (9)
And in one of his books, he came up with a straightforward classification of film adaptations based on how faithful they are to the original plays and novels.
Speaker 1 (10)
Right.
Speaker 1 (11)
I've already made some notes on that, so I just need to sort those out before the presentation.
Speaker 1 (12)
I thought that next I'd ask the class to come up with the worst examples of Shakespeare adaptations that they've seen and to say why.
Speaker 1 (13)
That should be more fun than having their favorite versions.
Speaker 2 (14)
Yes. I can certainly think of a couple.
Speaker 1 (15)
Right. Next, I want to talk about Rachel Malchow.
Speaker 1 (16)
I came across something on the Internet about her work on film adaptations, and I was thinking of showing some film clips to illustrate her ideas.
Speaker 2 (17)
Will you have enough time, though, both to prepare and during the presentation?
Speaker 2 (18)
After all, I doubt if you'll be able to find all the clips you want.
Speaker 1 (19)
Perhaps you're right.
Speaker 1 (20)
Okay. Well, I'd better do some slides instead, saying how various films relate to what she says.
Speaker 1 (21)
That should encourage discussion.
Speaker 1 (22)
Next, I want to say something about how plays may be chosen for adaptation because they're concerned with issues of the time when the film is made.
Speaker 2 (23)
You mean things like patriotism or the role of government?
Speaker 1 (24)
Exactly. It's quite tricky, but I've got a few ideas I'd like to discuss.
Speaker 1 (25)
And, finally, I want to talk about a few adaptations that I think illustrate a range of approaches and make some comments on them.
Speaker 1 (26)
Do you know the Japanese film Ran?
Speaker 2 (27)
I haven't seen it. It was based on Shakespeare's King Lear, wasn't it?
Speaker 1 (28)
That's right. It was a very loose adaptation using the same situation and story, but moving it to 16th century Japan instead of 16th century Britain.
Speaker 1 (29)
So, for example, the king's daughters become sons.
Speaker 1 (30)
Because in Japanese culture at that time, women couldn't succeed to the throne.
Speaker 2 (31)
Okay. I hope you're going to talk about the 1993 film of Much Ado About Nothing.
Speaker 2 (32)
I think that's one of the best Shakespeare films.
Speaker 2 (33)
It really brings the play to life, doesn't it?
Speaker 1 (34)
Yes. I agree. And I think filming it in Italy, where the play is set, makes you see what life was like at the time of the play.
Speaker 2 (35)
Absolutely. Right. What's next?
Speaker 1 (36)
Uh, next, I thought Romeo and Juliet, the 1996 film, which moves the action into the present day.
Speaker 2 (37)
Yes. It worked really well, I thought - changing the 2 feuding families in the original to 2 competing business empires, even though they're speaking in the English of the original play.
Speaker 1 (38)
You'd expect it would sound really bizarre, but I found I soon got used to it.
Speaker 2 (39)
Me too.
Speaker 1 (40)
Then I thought I'd include a real Hollywood film, one that's intended to appeal to a mass commercial audience.
Speaker 2 (41)
There must be quite a number of those.
Speaker 1 (42)
Yes. But I've picked the 1996 film of Hamlet.
Speaker 1 (43)
It included every line of the text, but it's more like a typical action hero movie.
Speaker 1 (44)
There are loads of special effects, but no unifying interpretation of the play.
Speaker 2 (45)
All show and no substance.
Speaker 1 (46)
Exactly. Then there's Prospero's books based on The Tempest.
Speaker 1 (47)
That was really innovative from a stylistic point of view.
Speaker 2 (48)
Didn't it include dance and singing and animation as well as live actors?
Speaker 1 (49)
Yes. It did. I also want to mention Looking For Richard. Did you ever see it?
Speaker 2 (50)
No. But I've read about it. It was a blend of a documentary with a few scenes from Richard The Third, wasn't it?
Speaker 1 (51)
That's right. It's more a way of looking into how people nowadays connect with the playwright.
Speaker 1 (52)
The play is really just the starting point, and that'll be where I finish.
Speaker 2 (53)
Well, it sounds as though it'll be very interesting.