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STUDY ONE
technical language in the movie or TV show as subtitles can help her under¬
stand the different accents the characters use in the movie or (television) series
(Mitterer-McQueen 2009). Lucas also points out that he does not consume
anything in Hungarian but uses English subtitles so that when he cannot hear
something, he can check it. He also adds that “Subtitles help me a lot. I think
when one hears and sees something at the same time, they learn much faster”.
Lina points out that a lot depends on the genre of the movie or series as well
since films with a simpler plot or story are easier to follow and understand. In
her words:
It generally depends on how advanced the vocabulary is that they’re using, for
example, the show Friends, which has lots of everyday conversations, I can watch
it in English, but for instance, a more “complex” fantasy movie, where I have to
understand what’s what and all the “mythical” and difficult things, Id rather watch
them in English with English or Hungarian subtitles so I can enjoy it.
These thoughts of the participants also reflect on the literature in which it
is asserted that regardless of language (i.e., whether they use intralingual or
interlingual subtitles), subtitles reduce the cognitive burden on language learn¬
ers, which results in an easier comprehension of the content of the videos
(Baranowska 2020). In addition, the lexical coverage of movies, i.e., how many
different vocabulary items and how complex these items are, is also highly
dependent on the genre, so sitcoms, such as Friends, are indeed more likely to
be comprehended with less effort than movies or series with difficult scien¬
tific terms (Webb—Rodgers 2009).
Interviewees were also asked whether they could remember any words,
expressions, or phrases that they learned from movies or TV shows. The most
common phrases were either everyday expressions, such as “let’s get it over
with” or “I beg your pardon.” Sandra claims that these common expressions
are not present in coursebooks, and most of these words and expressions are
frequently used. In her words: “[Things] they say often, but [are] not in text¬
books.” Indeed, as Qiang et al. (2007) point out, movies are an excellent way
for learners to encounter idiomatic L2 language use and familiarize themselves
with the target language culture. Many participants mentioned that they
learned technical terms related to certain topics, such as “warfare” and the
different types of weapons from movies, and terms related to religions, such
as “monk” from the TV show Vikings.
From participants’ accounts, it becomes evident that they demonstrate a
preference for watching films and series in the original language, usually the
English language. Furthermore, participants show awareness of the benefits
of watching films and series in English when striving to improve their EFL
skills.
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