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No Country for Old Men

No Country for Old Men English, baby! Video Lesson

Date: May 07 2008

Themes: Hobbies, Pop Culture

Intro

1. Learn Vocabulary - Learn some new vocabulary before you start the lesson.

2. Read and Prepare - Read the introduction and prepare to hear the audio.

Call it,” says the strange man in dark clothes. He’s flipped a coin and covered it with his fingers. No matter how many times you ask, he won’t tell you what’s at stake. But if you guess wrong, he’ll kill you.

Sound scary? It’s supposed to be. The killer in the movie No Country for Old Men is scary even to the cowboys he fights. And cowboys are supposed to be tough.

You can imagine how freaked out Devan gets if anyone flips a coin around her. Or you can watch this video.

3. Watch - Watch the video without reading the dialog.

Dialog

1. Watch and Read - Watch the video and read the dialog at the same time.

2. Study - Read the dialog again to see how the vocab words are used.

Jason

Jason

Devan

Devan

Jason:  What should I get to drink?

Devan:  You want a beer? You want a margarita?

Jason:  Uh…I want one of those things. I’ll flip and if I get heads, I’ll get a margarita. If I get tails, I’ll get a beer.

Devan:  Whoa. Whoa. Wait. That is creepy.

Jason:  Why?

Devan:  Because, haven’t you seen No Country for Old Men?

Jason:  Tails. Beer. Uh…no.

Devan:  You can’t make decisions like that after that movie.

Jason:  What are you talking about?

Devan:  Because, Anton Chigurh – that’s how he decides if he’s going to kill people in the movie. It’s the creepiest thing ever.

Jason:  He flips a coin to decide if he’s gonna…

Devan:  Yes! He’s the creepiest villain I’ve ever seen in a movie.

Jason:  Does he, like, look at someone and say, “Heads, I’ll kill that person”?

Devan:  No. No. He brings it to the person. He gives them the coin and he says: “Flip this. Heads or tails.” And they don’t know why they’re flipping. And they say: “I don’t understand. Why am I flipping the coin?” And he won’t tell them. But the truth is whatever they flip that’s how he decides if he’s gonna kill them.

Jason:  Which means they get killed? Heads or tails?

Devan:  Um…I don’t know. But it’s really creepy and you can’t do that because that’ll make you like Anton Chigurh. You have to see that movie. It won all those Academy Awards.

Jason:  I do need to see it. Everyone else has seen it. That’s why I haven’t seen it.

Devan:  No, it’s amazing.

Jason:  Maybe I won’t go because I enjoy flipping coins to make decisions.

Devan:  And that actor won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for that role.

Jason:  For that role? I don’t know…

Devan:  I really think you need to retire the coin. You need to find a new way to make decisions.

Jason:  But I’ll have to stop if I see that movie, it sounds like.

Devan:  Yeah. You probably will.

Jason:  Well, I’ll flip until then.

 

Quizzes

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Lesson MP3

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Discussion

Jason can’t decide what to get to drink, so he decides to flip a coin. Seems reasonable enough, right? But Devan is very upset.

She asks Jason if he’s seen No Country for Old Men. He hasn’t because everyone he knows has already seen it, so he doesn’t understand why Devan is so freaked out. Meanwhile he flips the coin. Tails. He’ll get a beer.

Devan explains that the killer in the movie, who she says is the creepiest villain she’s ever seen and who won an Academy Award for doing such a good job of being creepy, flips coins to decide if he’ll kill people or not. The creepiest part is that he makes them call the toss and won’t tell them why.

So Devan insists that Jason stop flipping coins and go see No Country for Old Men. He’s not so sure he’ll do either. He likes making decisions with coins and doesn’t want to be scared away from it by a movie.

Have you ever made a decision by tossing a coin? Do you think it’s a creepy way to make decisions or fun?

 

Comments

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s.sarya

United Kingdom

when i was child we were flipping  a coin with my brother who will go to grocery:) but no more decisions in this way…

06:12 PM Apr 21 2009 |

Silent_HiLL

Ukraine

DAMN I DIDNT LIKE THIS MOVIE AT ALL :/

01:30 AM Aug 16 2008 |

likekisst3

likekisst3

Viet Nam

good opinion! but i'm just think it so fun and nothing else

10:39 AM May 13 2008 |

aliena

China

I haven’t made decisions by this way, just cause I don’t know how to flip a coin or sometimes there’s no coins available. Sometimes when we are in a delimma, we play a game called “stone, scissors, cloth”, of course they are all unimportant decisions. I agree with you that we should use our minds before we make decisions, if there’s really so hard that you are unable to make judgement, why don’t just wait and see, sometimes things work out themselves as time goes by.

03:06 AM May 13 2008 |

Jood

Jordan

well, for me, flipping a coin is absolutely not a good way to make decisions. and only you who can just make the right decisions, by thinking over and over again, because it is your life not the coin's life!

and don't say "it's just luck!" it is your destiny

12:34 PM May 12 2008 |

bahaa_diab

bahaa_diab

Syrian Arab Republic

i see this movie but i do not like it .. it make me feel that it is too easy to steal anybody’s life …it is creepy..

10:07 PM May 10 2008 |

SÉRGIO

SÉRGIO

Brazil

Sometimes it’s an alternative way if in doubt. But i can make my own decisions by myself!

02:25 PM May 10 2008 |

195854255

195854255

United States

   I always tossing a coin to decide if I should do one thing or not. And i can still remember one funny thing ever happened.  A friend of mine just tossing coin to do his examination paper. 

08:13 AM May 10 2008 |

taxumi

taxumi

Viet Nam

Flipping the coins to make decisions is somehow unfair regardless of the kind of decision you are about to make. Because the weight of the two sides, heads and tails, are not always equal. So when the coins rotates in the air and falls down the heavier side usually comes first. For this reason, the referees use coins with equal sides. So don't be victims of so-called fair games everybody.

04:45 AM May 10 2008 |

taxumi

taxumi

Viet Nam

Flipping the coins to make decisions is somehow risky regardless of the kind of decision you are about to make. Because the weight of the two side, heads and tails are not usually equal. So when the coin rotates in the air and falls down the heavier side usually comes first. So to be fair the referees use coins with equal sides.

04:38 AM May 10 2008 |

fjoan

fjoan

China

Flipping a cion to decide what to do?so stupid,so ludicrous

Usually making a decision is an important milestone in one's life,don't do it with giddy-headed mind

 

 

01:51 AM May 10 2008 |

AmenityTree

Czech Republic

I don´t mind flipping a coins if somebody want to do it why not but I don´t do it. I make decisions according to my feelings.Smile

04:09 PM May 08 2008 |

aqben

aqben

China

Flipping a coins  seems is a good choice to me do next decision. But I think I can decise my life

10:57 AM May 08 2008 |

regent

China

that's the most failure film i have seen , boring and meaningless

09:54 AM May 08 2008 |

david fan

China

Tjere is no discussion that the No Country for Old Men is a good movie,and flipping a coin to make a decide is funny.

 

02:02 AM May 08 2008 |

jana.czech

jana.czech

Czech Republic

I saw this movie just yesterday. It is pretty rough, well another brothers Cohens´ movie!!! :)) The psychopath-looking Chigurh was the higlight of the movie, no doubts about this. But I liked also the Sheriff. It looks that Javier Bardem plays in all good movies these days (I have seen Before Night Falls, Goya´s Ghosts, Love in the Time of Cholera and this one recently). Anyway, I don´t mind seeing him at all!! ;)

07:26 PM May 07 2008 |

SAEID

SAEID

Iran, Islamic Republic Of

hi 

i think flipping is bad way to have a choice ,we must ourselves decide to what to do,just believe your self

 

06:17 PM May 07 2008 |

likekisst3

likekisst3

Viet Nam

going to try it you would get funny!

05:23 PM May 07 2008 |

likekisst3

likekisst3

Viet Nam

oh not so much, but sometime i do that.

05:21 PM May 07 2008 |

tscai lynn

tscai lynn

China

well i've nver been done that but  i think it's not so bad

04:28 PM May 07 2008 |

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