<p>We only have streaming now with Netflix. I might go look at one of our local libraries. There’s one that has a big French collection.</p>
<p>Just saw* Les Visiteurs*. It was pretty silly.</p>
<p>A new question: I seem to be having a hard time with the pronounciation of “understand” in a phrase such as je comprends le francais. Is there a difference if it is je comprends un peu le francais"? When I say it never seems to come out like the Pimsleur CD but I’m not sure where I’m going wrong.</p>
<p>Je ne comprends pas exactly what you’re asking, sylvan8798. Maybe you are asking why you hear the “s” in “comprends” when it it followed by “un,” a word which starts with a vowel? It’s that old liaison thing again.</p>
<p>“Je cohmPRAH le” versus “Je cohmPRAHZ un.”</p>
<p>Ok, NJT, that helps - I’m not really clear yet on the liason thing and what sounds go along with it. In this case it’s only the ending consonant, not the “n” or “d” then? On the CD (in the car) I’m never sure if they are getting an “n” sound in there or not - i.e. “Je cohmPRAH(n)”?</p>
<p>^Well that’s partly because it’s more of a nasalized vowel than an American n sound. Back when I took a phonetics course in France we used to do these exercises where we translated French into the phonetic alphabet. The “en” sound is “ɑ̃” and considered a nasal vowel, but when it’s followed by a word starting with a vowel you say the n. So you get "en </p>
<p>That’s a good question about the “d.” You don’t really hear the “d.” And you only hear the “n” in the usual way that you hear it when it’s part of “en” in French, as mathmom described.</p>
<p>You heard the “d” more in the infinitive, “comprendre.” That’s because the “dre” is more of a separate syllable in that word.</p>
<p>Here’s some more info on liaisons, where you can hear examples pronounced aloud:
[French</a> Pronuncation: Liaison -LanguageGuide](<a href=“http://www.languageguide.org/french/grammar/pronunciation/liaison.html]French”>French Pronuncation: Liaison -LanguageGuide)</p>
<p>I find it helps to think about how languages change to make speech “easier” - some would say “lazier”. That debate has been going on since at least ancient Rome, where the decline of language was a constant topic. </p>
<p>All languages tend to devices that make speech flow more easily. You can see the same process in English as in French. Just look at Southern US speech or British English. Or the way the “th” sound in Ireland is nearly gone now in favor of something between a d and a t.</p>
<p>Changing the subject a bit, here is a recommendation for anyone who is interested in learning French and finds the grammar perplexing.</p>
<p>[Bescherelle:</a> La Conjugaison Pour Tous (French Edition): Benedicte Delaunay, Nicolas Laurent: 9782218951985: Amazon.com: Books](<a href=“http://www.amazon.com/Bescherelle-Conjugaison-Pour-Tous-French/dp/2218951983/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1359051604&sr=1-1&keywords=bescherelle+la+conjugaison]Bescherelle:”>http://www.amazon.com/Bescherelle-Conjugaison-Pour-Tous-French/dp/2218951983/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1359051604&sr=1-1&keywords=bescherelle+la+conjugaison)</p>
<p>There are a number of books in the Bescherelle collection and most are superb. They are unbeatable for quick references and very easy to use. Even in this day of online resources, it represents a great investment. </p>
<p>You might find some real values in the second-hand market. Or wait until that next trip to Paris you promise yourself for all those efforts.</p>
<p>PS To appreciate the difficulty of the finer points of French, take a look at the weekly quizz on the main B site. Makes our SAT idiom testing look like a walk in the park. Look for Le quiz de la semaine - La bonne orthographe</p>
<p><a href=“http://www.bescherelle.com/[/url]”>http://www.bescherelle.com/</a></p>
<p>^Interesting site, xiggi. Those quizzes are hard! They also have “Quiz Juniors” that are much, much easier.</p>
<p>I liked the dict</p>
<p>Just got a new Iphone 5, so I’m looking for a possible French app. Maybe a word of the day or some such thing. Any thoughts?</p>
<p>There is a Web site called slow news in French, it’s good French but spoken at a speed that can be easily understood</p>
<p>A good film for listening to French is “La Belle et La Bete” by Cocteau. It’s quite wonderful and the lead characters tend to speak slowly, and in proper French, so it may be easier for you to understand than some of the others.</p>
<p>Repeat “Antoine Doinel, Antoine Doinel, Antoine Doinel” to yourself.</p>
<p>Has anyone seen The Intouchables? It was a huge hit in France and apparently did pretty well in the US too. I haven’t seen it; not sure whether I’d like it.</p>
<p>So exciting - I decided to watch one French film with English subtitles every month. Last month, I only understood un peu of “Belle de Jour” although I did enjoy the movie overall. This month I decided on “The Green Beautiful” and so far have understood more than I would have expected. </p>
<p>I really can’t believe that I’m teaching myself French 
Kudos to my helpers on cc as well!</p>
<p>Congratulations, Sylvan8798! Keep up the good work.</p>
<p>La Belle Verte sounds good. French + sci fi! I had never heard of it. Unfortunately Netflix doesn’t have it. Maybe I can request a copy through our library.</p>
<p>I have Polisse in my queue and plan to give it a try soon.</p>
<p>^I am watching La Belle Verte on youtube:</p>
<p><a href=“- YouTube”>- YouTube;
<p>Not the highest quality, but free and I can watch it at my own pace.</p>
<p>My trick with French films (once you’re at a certain level) is to watch them with FRENCH instead of English subtitles - that way you’re completely immersed - it’s way too easy to just read the English and ignore the French otherwise.</p>
<p>I’m a French major and I love it. Vive la France!</p>
<p>Fun thread! I’ve sent the film recommendations to my French-minor college D. So everything really is all about college… ;)</p>
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<p>Or you can re-watch an English language film you’ve already seen with the French subtitles turned on and pick up quite a bit that way. Doing either, you have a chance to read the French and not just hear it, though you have to hit “pause” a lot.</p>