Monkey See, Monkey DoAs you may have gathered from some of my other postings I have been studying French for the last year or so.
The BF and I had a private tutor for the first year. But since then we've been working on our own. We have two weekly self-taught classes. We quiz each other, try to do homework, etc. And we've gone to France twice this year.
Still, one thing we don't get enough of is listening to fluently spoken French. So I've started watching movies and TV shows we have on DVD with the French soundtrack on. One of my favorites is of all things the 1970s Planet of the Apes TV series.
Why on earth, you might ask, does Planet of the Apes adapt so well to French study? Hmm, why indeed...
Reason No. One: the scripts aren't that good. But the simple, flat writing means that the characters speak in a simple, flat and straightforward manner. And luckily apes use little colloquial slang.
Reason No. Two: Since half the cast is wearing ape makeup the dubbing isn't very evident. General Urko moves his muzzle and whether what comes out is French, English, or Swahili you really can't tell. It's also a good dubbing job. The voices fit the characters very well!
Reason No. Three: The TV series and the five films are after all based on a 1963 French novel La planète des singes by Pierre Boulle. So, with a little twisted logic, these apes are SUPPOSED to be speaking French, no? I have also recently obtained a copy of the French edition of the novel and plan to work my way through it. I'm sure the French is a little beyond my current comprehension. We'll see.
A+ David
When you talk about this blog later, and you will - be kind.
Blog copyright © 2007 D. H. Maxine
1 comment:
Very interesting trivia about the author. That will now become one of those pointless facts to pull out of my hat at parties.
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