Clips organised by level
Level 2 Page 1
Level 2 Page 2
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20H-Versailles.avi 20H-Versailles.srt 20H-Versailles.doc 20H-Versailles.mp3 20H-VersaillesMe.mp3 |
Eight o'clock is the traditional time for French TV news, and on France 2 it is hosted by David Pujadas. Here is a piece about the rarely seen rooms of the Palace of Versailles |
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20HLaLune.avi 20HLaLune.srt 20HLaLune.doc 20HLaLune.mp3 20HLaLuneMe.mp3 |
Apart from the content of this interview, I found the voice of Madame Haigneré fascinating. Clear, but slightly accented, and with the fluidity of spoken French which tests the ear. |
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14juillet.avi 14juillet.srt 14juillet.doc 14juillet.mp3 |
There's a lovely moment in this where the military commentator says that this year the President will not be waving to the crowd, because it's not the done thing. Oh you think so....? |
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Lacaussade.avi Lacaussade.srt Lacaussade.doc Lacaussade.mp3 LacaussadeMe.mp3 |
The châtelain rejoices in the name of James de Lacaussade de Mauduit. Just amazing.... |
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20HFeuMarseille.avi 20HFeuMarseille.srt 20HFeuMarseille.doc 20HFeuMarseille.mp3 20HFeuMarseilleMe.mp3 |
After warning holiday makers about the dangers of dropping cigarette ends in dry forest areas, lo and behold the, army decides to fire tracer bullets into the brush. |
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lechat.avi lechat.srt lechat.mp3 lechat.doc |
An appealing little piece about the animals that inhabit, and infest, a farm and its surroundings. The voice - that of Jean Topart is warm and amusing |
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20HBronzage.avi 20HBronzage.srt 20HBronzage.mp3 20HBronzage.doc |
France 2's evening news and a piece on the dangers of tanning cabins |
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Sorcier.avi Sorcier.srt Sorcier.mp3 Sorcier.doc |
The team investigate the Sun, and give us all the facts, distances, space missions, with that manic enthusiasm which is supposed to stop the young from turning to their Nintendos. It's a good programme, though |
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20HBatteries.avi 20HBatteries.srt 20HBatteries.mp3 20HBatteries.doc |
You can tell the President's gone off on holiday with Carla. Here's a journalist reduced to sitting on the tarmac watching a little robot pedal round Le Mans. Come back, Nicolas, all is forgiven... |
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Jekyll.avi Jekyll.srt Jekyll.mp3 Jekyll.doc |
As well as being a good version of the Stevenson story, the language here is clear and formal. An excellent exercise for the student of French |
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Poirot.avi Poirot.srt Poirot.doc Poirot.mp3 |
I am enchanted by this combination of an English author writing about a Belgian detective, played by an English actor, and dubbed into French ! |
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HenryVIII.avi HenryVIII.srt HenryVIII.doc HenryVIII.mp3 |
The presenter is Stéphane Berne, who gets very, very excited about royalty. He's good value for the student, however. This is a clear, educated voice. |
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20HVacances.avi 20HVacances.srt 20HVacances.doc 20HVacances.mp3 |
I always think the technical standard of these little news films is very high. An amusing voice over and the voices of the holiday makers to test the ear |
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HistoireCanada.avi HistoireCanada.srt HistoireCanada.doc HistoireCanada.mp3 |
I love the gentle Canadian voices in this excellent documentary |
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SigneQuatre.avi SigneQuatre.srt SigneQuatre.doc SigneQuatre.mp3 |
I don't care how often I have to say it. This is exactly what French students need to watch. The language is formal and clear. No lack of this sort of stuff on French TV! |
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LeBallet.avi LeBallet.srt LeBallet.doc LeBallet.mp3 |
As so often, we have here the measured tones of Alain Duault - and then the more excitable voices of the ballerinas |
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Felicie.avi Felicie.srt Felicie.doc Felicie.mp3 |
Songs are always very, very hard to follow. First time through, try it without the subtitles or text. Then just enjoy ! |
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ClaudeNougaro.avi ClaudeNougaro.srt ClaudeNougaro.doc ClaudeNougaro.mp3 |
The French chanson is a branch of poetry, and this man is a wonderful example |
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LaBurqa.avi LaBurqa.srt LaBurqa.doc LaBurqa.mp3 |
Jacques Myard speaks quickly, he becomes excited - but, as a politician, he continues to speak clearly |
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Train1650.avi Train1650.srt Train1650.doc Train1650.mp3 |
It's a good film, a classic of popular cinema. And it's very good practice at Level 2 |
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RamaYade.avi RamaYade.srt RamaYade.doc RamaYade.mp3 |
Rama Yade speaks clearly, quickly, and with a certain intonation typical of young French people. It's a voice worth studying |
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Amadeus.avi Amadeus.srt Amadeus.doc Amadeusmp3 |
This is very representative of what I'm trying to offer as Level 2 clips. It's reasonably clear, but it doesn't give you every word separately as happens with documentary voiceovers. The brain has to fill in the gaps |
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MadameHenderson.avi MadameHenderson.srt MadameHenderson.doc MadameHenderson.mp3 |
The crisp voices make this a reasonable Level-2. But there's a place where my ear let me down. Can you do better ? |
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20HeuresForesti.avi 20HeuresForesti.srt 20HeuresForesti.doc 20HeuresForesti.mp3 |
Foresti uses a fast, relaxed manner of speech. Very modern, very trendy - and exactly what our ears have to get used to ! |
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SherlockHolmes.avi SherlockHolmes.srt SherlockHolmes.doc SherlockHolmes.mp3 |
Formal, mannered language. The delivery is quite fast, which makes it a Level-2. But it repays study, this extract |
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LaraFabian.avi LaraFabian.srt LaraFabian.doc LaraFabian.mp3 |
I thought this was going to be a straightforward Level-2 when I started to transcribe it. But she speeds up and we get the usual problem where the meaning is lost in a torrent of words ! |
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Zorro.avi Zorro.srt Zorro.doc Zorro.mp3 |
Zorro has the voice of the landed gentry while other characters are just a bit harder to follow |
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Boulons.avi Boulons.srt Boulons.doc Boulons.mp3 |
This is a Level-2 - more for the range of vocabulary than the intrinsic difficulty of understanding. Even if nuts and bolts aren't your thing, you'll find this useful I think |
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GLOrmesson.avi GLOrmesson.srt GLOrmesson.doc GLOrmesson.mp3 |
I'm not sure which Level this is. The voices are mostly clear, but the content is - evidently - literary. Let's say Level-2 |
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20HRobotisation.avi 20HRobotisation.srt 20HRobotisation.doc 20HRobotisation.mp3 |
A useful extract with a quite trendy voice over, and plenty of vox pop in the street. Level-2 |
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RAReims.avi RAReims.srt RAReims.doc RAReims.mp3 |
The French commentary is the exact equivalent of the very stiff 'BBC English' which adorned our early radio and television programmes. The style is very florid, and the sound quality not always good, so Level-2 |
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20HFessée.avi 20HFessée.srt 20HFessée.doc 20HFessée.mp3 |
There are a few awkward moments in this that make it a good Level-2. The beginning of the voice-over is particularly difficult. |
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Pompadour.avi Pompadour.srt Pompadour.doc Pompadour.mp3 |
This is the exception that proves the rule. The language is formal, but the intimate style and rapid delivery make it Level-2 |
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Gregory.avi Gregory.srt Gregory.doc Gregory.mp3 |
It's fascinating to compare the typical voice-over of the '50s with this modern, trendy style. However, it is very clear, and this is an excellent Level-2 exercise |
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ChapeauMelon.avi ChapeauMelon.srt ChapeauMelon.doc ChapeauMelon.mp3 |
I think we'll say Level-2 for this one. The sound has been made little fuzzy to suit the black and white époque. But the language is amusingly mannered |
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BigBang.avi BigBang.srt BigBang.doc BigBang.mp3 |
I chose this clip because - apart from the galaxies who drift away from us without actually moving - the scientists voices are a good Level-2 exercise. Not indistinct, but perhaps a little difficult to follow |
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DétoursMalte.avi DétoursMalte.srt DétoursMalte.doc DétoursMalte.mp3 |
The voice is clear, but quite idiomatic, so we'll make this a Level-2. |
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BigBang1.avi BigBang1.srt BigBang1.doc BigBang1.mp3 |
I tend to pick up interesting documentaries where the voice over is interspersed with comments from 'real' people whose voices test the ear. This is Level-2 I think |
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TF120HTraders.avi TF120HTraders.srt TF120HTraders.doc TF120HTraders.mp3 |
When I started including clips from evening news I thought they would always be pretty straightforward as listening exercises. Not so. There's some gabble in this extract that defeats my ear. On average, Level-2 |
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SiecleSport.avi SiecleSport.srt SiecleSport.doc SiecleSport.mp3 |
The heavy-handed English humour results in an even heavier French. It is excellent listening practice, though. A voice-over which should be Level-1, becomes at least Level-2 |
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TF120HCuisine.avi TF120HCuisine.srt TF120HCuisine.doc TF120HCuisine.mp3 |
Nothing harder for me than extracts about cooking - so I apologise to food buffs for mistakes. It's a good Level-2, this one |
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LouisXV.avi LouisXV.srt LouisXV.doc LouisXV.mp3 |
The film makers clearly wanted a very informal style, and the speakers respond magnificently with a sort of academic stream-of-consciousness muttering. It makes a good Level-2 exercise |
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SoierieLyonnaise.avi SoierieLyonnaise.srt SoierieLyonnaise.doc SoierieLyonnaise.mp3 |
A good example of the enormous difficulty posed by unfamiliar vocabulary. Most of this is Level-2, but there are a number of specialised expressions in this piece that foxed me completely. Have you any ideas ? |
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Bardot.avi Bardot.srt Bardot.doc Bardot.mp3 |
All sorts of voices here. It's a good listening exercise. Let's call it Level 2 |
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RadioLondres.avi RadioLondres.srt RadioLondres.doc RadioLondres.mp3 |
Mostly straightforward, but the voice over is a little unclear. As are, inevitably the other voices from the archives. But it's a decent Level-2. |
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ForrestGump.avi ForrestGump.srt ForrestGump.doc ForrestGump.mp3 |
The deliberate pace of the dialogue helps greatly, but it's still harder than a straightforward documentary. A Level-2 |
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Thalassa.avi Thalassa.srt Thalassa.doc Thalassa.mp3 |
This is a good example of the difficulty of recognising unfamiliar vocabulary - in this case, nautical. For instance 'On sait aujourd’hui que le navire est venu ??? par l’arrière'. Clearly it started to go down by the stern. But what is the word ? Any ideas ? |
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RALyon.avi RALyon.srt RALyon.doc RALyon.mp3 |
A good exercise, because the three voices, the voice-over and the two experts, increase in difficulty. Overall Level-2 |
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GeraldDahan.avi GeraldDahan.srt GeraldDahan.doc GeraldDahan.mp3 |
Kouchner's theatricality makes this a very comprehensible sketch. A Level-2 |
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Guitare.avi Guitare.srt Guitare.doc Guitare.mp3 |
The difficulty here is vocabulary rather than listening comprehension. It's not always easy to resolve an unknown word. This extract is not too bad, though. Level-2 |
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How strange it is that American films work so well in French. It always seems to me that the dubbing actors particularly enjoy giving their own voices the gritty quality of the American accent |
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If the dialogue were delivered more slowly, this would be Level-1. Most of it is very clear. However, the rapid pace makes it a good little exercise at Level-2. Horribly boring story, though, isn't it ? |
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Finistere.avi Finistere.srt Finistere.doc Finistere.mp3 |
There are a number of different voices here. I liked the man at the end who speaks clearly, enthusiastically and fast, and pushes the extract up into Level-2 |
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Outrigger.avi Outrigger.srt Outrigger.doc Outrigger.mp3 |
I enthuse about this series because the voice-over is very clear, but the unfamiliar vocabulary forces us to work on difficult passages - of which there are a few in this extract |
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Churchill.avi Churchill.srt Churchill.doc Churchill.mp3 |
Discussions are very good sources of 'incoherent language', of false starts, repetitions; and also, rapid speech, people speakin g one on top of another. But this one isn't too bad. A Level-2 |