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The Happening

The Happening

Date: Aug 06 2008

Themes: Alternative, 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.

When people watch a scary movie about the end of the world, they usually think they’d be like the characters in the movie who somehow survived and have to save the world. But, really, odds are you wouldn’t make it that far and even if you did, you might not have any idea what’s actually going on. It would just be chaos.

The Happening is a new movie from M. Night Shyamalan who also made The Sixth Sense and Signs. The commercials are especially scary because they don’t really give any information about what will happen in the film. Mason has seen it and even he doesn’t even know what happens!

Dialog

1. Listen and Read - Listen to the audio and read the dialog at the same time.

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

Mason

Mason

Jason

Jason

Mason:  Dude.

Jason:  Yeah.

Mason:  I just saw The Happening. It’s happening.

Jason:  It lives up to the hype?

Mason:  Yeah.

Jason:  Because it’s got such cool marketing. The quick cuts, the people falling, the no explanation for anything.

Mason:  Yeah, total like horror, terror, you don’t know what you’re getting into.

Jason:  Yeah.

Mason:  I’m messed up right now.

Jason:  Can you tell me what happens? What is the happening? What’s happening?

Mason:  You can’t even ask me that, man. I’m not gonna be the guy that leaks that information after they did such an awesome job of keeping it close to the vest.

Jason:  It is really tight. So it’s one of those things where you can’t even share anything at all without giving the whole…

Mason:  No, I mean, like, seriously, what do you know about The Happening without having seen it? You’re like, Mark Wahlberg is in it. Zoe Deschanel’s in it.

Jason:  It’s scary.

Mason:  Something’s happening. That’s about what I know.

Jason:  Gotcha.

Mason:  It’s a whole movie of just like, “Whoa dude! Oh my God!”

Jason:  That’s cool because it sounds like a horror movie from a legitimate perspective because a lot of times the horror movie’s from the perspective of these people who all know what’s going on. But I always figure, in the event of a zombie apocalypse or something, I’m gonna be the guy who’s just, like, on a bus and suddenly bitten by a zombie and had no idea what was happening with the zombie apocalypse. You know what I mean?

Mason:  Yeah…

Jason:  In a real-life horror situation, you would have as little information as you have about The Happening, you know?

Mason:  I didn’t even think about it that way. But yeah, it’s gonna sneak up on us all, right? Thanks for that. I wasn’t going to sleep tonight anyway, but now maybe tomorrow night too.

 

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Discussion

After seeing The Happening, Mason is a little freaked out. Jason asks him to tell him about the movie and he says he can’t. It was very exciting and mysterious.

Jason comments that it’s likely that that’s what the end of the world would actually be like. If it were really the end of the world, most people would probably die early on and never know what was happening.

There are a lot of movies about the end of the world these days. Do you have a favorite? Do you ever think about the end of the world? Jason imagines zombies taking over the Earth. What’s your favorite or most feared type of apocalypse?

 

Comments

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paingminko

Myanmar

yes. i like this movie because i afraid of mine one day became  like this how to do. It very scare.

03:21 AM Sep 26 2008 |

MICK

MICK

China

well ,though i don't see it ,but it may be interesting as your talking .

01:27 AM Sep 21 2008 |

huoshui

huoshui

China

 i HAVEN'T WATCHED THAT MOVIE HAPPENING, BUT I BELIEVE THAT MUST BE VERY EXCITING AND SHOCKED. I DON'T LIKE WATCHING THE HORROR FILM,  BUT I LIKE THE SCIENCE FICTION FILM. I WILL WATCH THAT MOVIE IF I HAVE TIME

09:30 AM Sep 18 2008 |

prajeeshnarayanan

India

Now i really want to watch this movie soon

02:56 AM Sep 18 2008 |

DAveY

Kiribati

YellCoolCry;;; Well, well, it's looks like that people soundly scared of the movie stated, we should remember that when the time comes, we should be already clean ourselves from sin, or repented ourselve from doing bad things, because at the last day, you won't feel scared for you already did your part which is repent.

 

03:55 AM Sep 16 2008 |

clarice lasse da Silva

Brazil

i liked that movie that i felt said because of the happenings, i felt like it was with me

10:20 PM Sep 15 2008 |

jose bretado

Mexico

hola

 

09:15 PM Sep 14 2008 |

jose bretado

Mexico

hola

 

09:15 PM Sep 14 2008 |

catcats

catcats

China

Kiss

04:24 AM Sep 13 2008 |

catcats

catcats

China

i don,t think so

 

04:23 AM Sep 13 2008 |

karoomy

karoomy

Saudi Arabia

very nice

10:14 AM Sep 10 2008 |

bounnn

bounnn

Turkey

i have not watched this film yet.

i have never heard that happening other mean is exciting and  cool. So i have learned them. thanks.

11:31 PM Sep 04 2008 |

carlos21

Honduras

I haven't seen it yet but It seems so intersting to see it.

11:52 PM Aug 31 2008 |

renemex

renemex

Mexico

It´s incredible that people pay money for suffer with a movie (this kind of films removes something inside of our primary instincts that maybe its better to left in peace…) the amazement capacity has been diminish with the evolution of the human being, and every time we need something more scary or stunning emotionally to feel we are alive, (its interesting that we need to fell ourselves near to danger or death to feel the power of life) what you think about it?

03:52 PM Aug 20 2008 |

friendly2008

China

thrillers or scary movies often brings me nightmare

12:32 PM Aug 20 2008 |

Jery Draic

Jery Draic

Germany

i think the Happening is a cool movie. it´s more the intelligent end of days movie, not just a catastrophy and in the end a hero saves us all. no, i think it´s really scary if you give the movie a chance. and also there are great live-action scence in it…

02:44 PM Aug 12 2008 |

JYH

JYH

China

it's  very good!

08:17 AM Aug 12 2008 |

Fiza

Fiza

Germany

nice lesson..it made me to go & watch this movie

06:45 PM Aug 10 2008 |

Nurhakim Ramdani

Indonesia

Wink

i like its…...

 

08:11 AM Aug 10 2008 |

Mr_Sob

Indonesia

look out! the zombies coming…heh..?

11:22 PM Aug 09 2008 |

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