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Real Easy English

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Talking about the cinema

Episode 261009 / 09 Oct 2026

(Photo: Getty)

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Introduction

Georgie and Phil have a real conversation in easy English about the cinema – the place we go to watch films on the big screen. Learn some cinema-related vocabulary and find out what Georgie and Phil find annoying about other people's cinema behaviour!

Vocabulary

trailers
short adverts for new films, usually shown at the cinema before the feature film

popcorn
snack made from puffed kernals of corn, usually flavoured with salt or sugar and often sold at cinemas

spectacular
extremely exciting to watch

distractions
things that take your attention away from something on which you want to focus

film / movie
motion pictures, often shown in cinemas before being released for watching at home 

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Transcript

Georgie
Hi Phil.
 
Phil
Hi Georgie. How's your week going?
 
Georgie
It's going very well, thank you. I watched a really good film last night.
 
Phil
Did you watch it at home or at the cinema?
 
Georgie
I watched it at home on my sofa with my housemates.
 
Phil
Oh, was it good?
 
Georgie
It was very good. Now, I told you I watched a film last night at home, but in this episode of Real Easy English, we're talking about cinema. So, the cinema is where you watch films, or in American English they're sometimes called movies.
 
Phil
And before we get started, let's just remind everyone that if you go to bbclearningenglish.com, there's a worksheet where you can practise all the language that you'll hear in this episode.
 
Georgie
So, Phil, do you go to the cinema often?
 
Phil
No. No, I don't go very often at all. What about you?

Georgie
I don't go often, but I did go a couple of weeks ago. I went to see an action film, a recent action film, and it was really spectacular. And I'm not a big fan of action movies – action films. I prefer films that are a bit less stressful, so I wouldn't usually watch action films at home, but in the cinema it was really an amazing experience because you have the big screen. You have amazing sound. And I really enjoyed it!
 
Phil
I've not actually been to the cinema for maybe two years, I think.
 
Georgie
Wow, Phil! Why don't you go to the cinema? Do you not like it?
 
Phil
I like... I like the cinema as an event, so the last time I went, I went with my kids. I can't remember what film, but it was a big thing for them to go and they were excited about it, but I don't know... I like the big screen. I like the sound. I like the event. But if you want to spend time with people, I think in a cinema you can't talk to anyone. You sit in the dark. You can't talk. And it's not the best when you want to talk to people, when you want to get to know people, so I tend to watch films more at home, to be honest.
 
Georgie
Yeah, but what about if you go to the cinema with people that you see very often and you don't need to catch up or find out about their lives? You're just going to watch a film and to relax.
 
Phil
Yeah. I mean, yeah, that makes sense because it is... it is nice to get out. It is nice to get out of the house and see it on a big screen.
 
Georgie
There are also other downsides to going to the cinema. My big thing with the cinema is that the seats are not very comfortable. It's much more comfortable to watch a film at home because you might have a sofa, blankets – you can lie down. You don't have to sit like we are now in a chair upright. Yeah, it's really nice at home. You have your snacks. You don't have to pay for them as well.
 
Phil
I also think TVs that people have at home now are much better than they used to be. When I was a kid, you had a tiny little TV and it was so different to watching something at the cinema. But now I've got quite a nice telly.
 
Georgie
So, Phil, you talked about going to the cinema as, like, an event. So, something we do for special occasions. I really feel that. I love going to the cinema because you can buy snacks that you wouldn't normally eat. Like, popcorn is something I don't eat at home, but I eat at the cinema. And then going in a little bit early and watching the filmtrailers, which are short adverts for films that are coming up soon that are shown at the cinema. Is there anything else you like about the cinema?
 
Phil
What is nice about the cinema is that you can have no distractions. You just have the film. You put your phone away. At least you should put your phone away! Some people... some people in the cinema don't follow the rules, but hopefully everyone watching puts their phone away. There's no distractions. You can just relax and get involved in the film.
 
Georgie
It's really nice. It is really annoying when people in front of you or next to you are talking really loudly throughout the film. It's OK to whisper. So, that's when you whisper like that. It's OK to do that every now and again, but if they're talking all the way through the film, that is really annoying.

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Phil
Yeah, I can't stand that.
 
Georgie
Phil, what kind of films do you like to watch at the cinema?
 
Phil
I think a film that takes you to a different place. So, something that's quite spectacular – there's a lot happening. There's a lot to see. Or maybe a film that shows you a bit of the world that's interesting that you don't know that well. I kind of like films like that – films that take you somewhere, that show you something you wouldn't normally see. That's definitely good to watch on a big screen.
 
Georgie
Yeah, I agree. I wouldn't go to the cinema to watch a romantic comedy, a romcom. I agree with you. I'd like to watch something, yeah, spectacular. OK. Phil, it's time to look at some of the vocabulary we heard in this conversation, starting with trailers, which are short adverts for new films shown at the cinema.
 
Phil
And we also talked about popcorn. Now, popcorn – it's a snack. It's made of corn, and it's usually either sweet or salty, and it's very nice and you get it at the cinema.
 
Georgie
We also heard spectacular, which is a very strong adjective to describe something that is very exciting to look at.
 
Phil
And we talked about distractions. Things that are distractions are things that make you look at something you might not have wanted to look at, like someone's phone screen instead of the film.
 
Georgie
And the things that you watch in the cinema are called films, or sometimes called movies as well.
 
Phil
OK. And that's it for this week's episode of Real Easy English, but don't worry – we'll be back next week with another episode in easy English.
 
Georgie
And don't forget to download a free worksheet to test what you've learned at bbclearningenglish.com. Goodbye for now.
 
Phil
Bye!

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