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How will I become fluent in Spanish? One Student's Advice

Submitted by Nikki on

Diós mio!!!! How will I ever learn Spanish?

  • Try to spend at least one hour per day learning Spanish. Mix it up- 15 minutes in the morning watching TV, online 20 minutes at some point during the day, talk to yourself in Spanish while driving in the car, etc.
  • Study textbooks of increasing difficulty. The first book that I bought was “Spanish for Dummies”, now I study Intermediate textbooks.
  • Learn vocabulary like crazy!! Learn the Spanish words for everything that you see in your life.
  • Don’t put yellow stickies on items all around your house that have the Spanish word for that item on them, your wife will get grouchy about that.
  • Translate anything that you see written in Spanish. Brochures, signs in stores, labels and instructions on cartons and boxes.
  • Speak Spanish anytime that you can. I don’t always have someone to speak with so I talk out loud to myself.
Topics: 
consejos

Rudo y Cursi

Submitted by Nikki on

Title: Rudo y Cursi
Released: 2009

Plot Summary

Diego Luna and Gael García Bernal, reunited after Y Tu Mama También, are brothers who live in a rural Mexican town harvesting bananas. Rudo (Luna) spends his free time gambling and losing his wife's blender (licuadora) while Cursi's (Bernal) passion is music, which he sees as his true calling. Both brothers play soccer, and are discovered by an Argentine talent scout named Batuta who take them to DF to try out for division one teams.

Rudo y Cursi is a great story of sibling rivalry, pursuing dreams, and adjusting to success. The acting and storyline are well-done, and is the quality you would expect from a film put together by three greats: Carlos Cuarón (y tu mamá también), Alejandro González Iñárritu (Amores Perros), and Guillermo del Toro (Pan's Labyrinth).

Language Learning Notes

Topics: 
Cine - Movies
Tags: 
Argentina
Mexico
Soccer

Amores Perros

Submitted by Nikki on

Title: Amores Perros (Love's a Bitch)
Released: 2000

Plot Summary

From director Alejandro González Iñárritu, Amores Perros is an extremely well-made movie from Mexico. The first scene indicates that this movie isn't going to be easy to watch: the film opens with a car chase scene, rushing to the hospital to save a dog that's bleeding to death. While on the surface the movie is about dog-fighting, it also weaves together three stories, while providing a social commentary about life in Mexico at all levels of society.

Amores Perros doesn't provide an escape from reality as many films do, but rather dives into it. Many scenes use rough camera-work, florescent lighting, and show characters as they are, like the arranger of dog fights who is fat, sweaty and scratching himself. Even Gael García Bernal (Octavio) looks like an average guy in this movie.

Topics: 
Cine - Movies
Tags: 
Mexico
Iñárritu

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